Intro to Linguistics Essay Example for Free

Intro to Linguistics Essay The study of human languages; including the influence of one language on another; how language and words are formed and change within time; the rules of the language- how words are formed, the structure of sentences and words; relationship between culture and language; how language is acquired- the process of language acquisition (foreigner verses mother tongue language). There are two approaches/types of linguistics: 1. Traditional Linguistics- the only field that ruled until the 20 century. 2. Modern Linguistics Traditional Linguistics. Characteristics: 1. Proscriptive approach- according to this approach, linguists tell native speakers how to use their own mother tongue- what are the rules: set norms of/ dictating the right use of the language, the rules and the right use of the language- educating the native speakers. The goal is to tell the speakers what is considered right or wrong language. 2. Focus on the written language- Most of the focus is on the written text, which is considered superior to the spoken language; the base of the rules. 3. Diachronic Research (etymology) Historical research- the study of the origins of words and languages, which reveals many connections between different languages. Due to technological developments, the influence of one language on another is even higher these days. Modern Linguistics At the beginning of the 20 century, there was a shift of interest to the following: The human languages are more complex and highly different than animal communication systems- due to amazing cognitive human communication ability (the language faculty). A known Swiss linguist, Ferdinand de Sassure- the first linguist to pose the following question: what do we know when we know a language (mother tongue)? By asking this question the focus of linguistics was shifted from grammar to the study of human language as a cognitive ability (cognitive science). The focus shifted to Language faculty ( ) and what it consists of. Characteristics: 1. Descriptive approach- we observe native speakers use the language, both in writing and in speaking, and try to draw conclusions out of it- learn about the changes that the language undergoes through time. Not interested in what should be, but rather in what IS. There is no judgment of the use, just observation and description of the current use, in order to analyze and find correlations. 2. Focus is on the spoken language- point of departure is that the spoken language is more important to the research because of the following: * It is less conscious, more natural, spontaneous and dynamic and therefore it reflects better the current use of the language. * Not all languages have a written system, but everyone has at least one mother tongue language. * The written language is less natural- one needs to study it in a very logical way; whereas the spoken language –mother tongue is acquired in a natural process, common to everyone (normally in the early years of 3-4). 3. Synchronic Research (current) the focus is not on the origin/History of the words; but on the current use of the words today. We are less interested in what happened; but rather in what is happening today. Knowing The whereas knowing about! 07/11/11 Linguistic Fields 1. Phonetics- the study of linguistic sounds (also called phones) which are consisted of consonants and vowels. The focus is on the articulation and pronunciation of sounds (independent of the letters/ graphics). How the sound is produced. It is independent of the letters (which is just the graphics). How we produce and perceive sounds. 2. Phonology- deals with sounds in interaction, and when they are brought together into words- they usually affect each other. Cats(s), dogs(z)- something very systematic- ( )) 3. Morphology- examines words structure, and the ways words are added into our vocabulary, i. e. how we form new words. Ex- dis/content/ed/ness (the parts are also called Morphemes- small units of words) 4. Syntax- deals with sentence structure and the meaning of sentences. We also examine differences between languages- the order of verb and its subject, adj, nouns etc. In addition, we examine Syntaxic Processing , for example: Without her contributions/ are hard to find. At first glance- it looks like something is missing in the sentence, when actually we did not process it in the right way- we can look at the sentence as: without her, contributions are hard to find. 5. Semantics- the study of meaning- both of words and sentences, and the logic behind them. 6. Pragmatics –deals with meaning in context- how we understand one another beyond what is actually said (the use of the language). For example: do you have the time? – One wont answer: yes; but rather tell the person what time it is. Not like the dry literate meaning, Pragmatics deal with the actual use of language – meaning in context- beyond the literate words that were actually said. 2 - : * 6 ( = 6 ) * 6 ( = ! ) 7. Discourse Analysis- Like Pragmatics, this also examines the use of language, but the focus is on the text. Written vs. spoken text; Narratives vs. expository text; the use of conjunctions; types of text; different tenses; complex vs. simple sentences; the length of sentences; vocabulary etc. 8. Language acquisition- we examine the process of acquiring a language- mother tongue and then foreign languages. How children acquire their mother tongue so quickly? How does the process happen? Which words are produced first etc. It is related to all the other fields mentioned above. 9. Neuro Linguistic- examines how linguistic knowledge is represented in the brain. For example: aphasia- brain injury that affects the part of the brain that understands linguistics. 10. Psycho Linguistic- a very big field that examines the correlation between language and psychological cognitive processes (for example: lexical retrieval). Sometimes one meaning of a word is more prominent than the other, depending on the context. For example: bug- insect/ computer related problem. The field also examines what happens when there is no context- how we associate between words and its meanings. For example: word priming- Duck-(goose/ book)- the word duck primes with goose, faster than with the word book. 11. Historical Linguistics- examines the evolution of languages, the origin of words, and the relation between languages- how they genetically related to one another (Etymology). 12. Computational Linguistics-deals with building artificial intelligence, creating models that try to imitate how language works and use it in different applications. Related to the implementation of linguistics. Information extraction, more practical. (for example: Google translate). 13. Clinical linguistics ( )- the use of linguistic tools for speech therapy, for people who have language disorders (both kids and adults). 14. Social Linguistics- the field that examines the interaction between language and society (socio economic and cultural factors). Socio-linguistics We distinguish between dialects- different varieties of the same language, as a result of many factors. Types of Dialects- 1. Geographic Dialect-changes according to region (city, country). In the states there are so many different dialects, depending on the area one grew up in. 2. Sociolect-typical for a certain group in the society, which has its own social, economic and cultural characteristics. 3. Idiolect-dialect that is typical to an individual. It is sometimes gradual, and we dont always notice it. Usually bases on imitation. Each of us speaks a little bit differently (intonation, pronunciation, vocabulary etc). 21/11/11 Linguistic knowledge- every 4-5 year old can speak the mother tongue language. Where does the ability to understand and speak a language comes from? The 2 opposed approaches argue on the source of that ability/knowledge Is it innate (genes) or acquired (comes from the environment, stimulates, feedback)? Two opposed currents in science, which have great debate on the nature of human knowledge in general. They argue on the source of the human knowledge: 1. Empiricism (John lock; Hume) -every person comes to the world, as a clean slate- have no knowledge, which means that human knowledge equals the sum of experiences. Nothing is innate, we are only equipped with the ability to respond. Everyone are born equal- with nothing innate. This means humans can be shaped- their thought can be manipulated using feedback and exposure. 2. Rationalism (Decardes)-claim that human knowledge does not equal the sum of experiences: we are born with some innate material- we are equipped with some ability, to which experience is added. Experience is not the only thing! All people are equal, but this equality is based on richness- we all share something very basic and innate, to which environment is added. At the beginning of the second half of the 20 century, the argument of human knowledge continued with regards to the human language – mother tongue (different theories): Behaviorism- As continuance of Empiricism- there was a current called Behaviorism (BF Skinner, wrote the Verbal Behavior, 1957). B. F. Skinner claimed, based on Empiricism, that Linguistic knowledge is based solely on exposure and the ability to react- to learn from experience. That means everything is acquired, nothing is in the Genes. Skinner also claimed we expand our sets of sentences, by analogy (differ in only one thing- thus it is able to expand ones use with the other). For example: a kid only heard John ate an apple- but he will be able to create the following sentence: John ate an Orange; using Analogy. This means, we learn and use language, by: exposure +analogy. - In the following sentences, configuration of who does what changes (relationships between the entities) when changing the word told to promise and still, it is automatically understood by a child in his mother tongue: John told bill to clean the room; John promised Bill to clean the room. How? -analogy is not enough to explain the above. - Noam Chomsky (Influenced from Rationalism; wrote the Syntactic Structures, 1957) -a linguistic who argued against Skinners observations, claiming Analogy is not enough; and we have to assume inborn/innate linguistic knowledge, common to all human beings (regardless of their language or culture), which is also known as the Hypothesis of innateness. The experience and the feedback are mapped on to these language biological properties (encoded in our genes). The experience and feedback are not enough to explain mother tongue knowledge! We have to add it to something innate. Language is partially innate! Evidence Chomsky proposed to enforce his theory: 1. Properties of human languages (natural languages, animals communication systems are excluded)- * Homogeneity- except for pathological cases, all human beings acquire at least one mother tongue; more or less at the same time; regardless of their region, culture, socio-economical condition etc. This implies there is something biological in the acquiring of a mother tongue language- we are all the same. * Infiniteness- language is infinite- we have the ability to produce and understand an endless number of sentences, including sentences that we have never heard before. We have the ability to expand the language (for example- we never count to 1,000,000 but we can). * Identical properties across languages- there are some properties that all languages share (therefore- it has to be in the genes, otherwise – how can it be explained? ). For example: * All languages have nouns and verbs –thus, it has to be some inborn categories. * Universal grammer rules/structures, that all languages share: * John said that Mary bought a car. What did John say Mary bought? * Bill said that John said that Mary bought a car. What did Bill say that John said that Mary bought? * John spread the rumor that Mary bought a car. What did John spread the rumor that Mary bought? Ungrammatical sentence- any speaker will know this sentence is ungrammatical- impossible in English. What prevents speakers of using the above structure intuitively (in other languages as well)? Chomsky claimed that there are universal constraints (in all grammer of all languages) that prevent it. 28/11/11 2. Properties of the process of language acquisition (mother tongue) * Process is quick and efficient- child has to acquire a very complex system of rules, and he does it by the age of 4-5. By the age of 5 he already masters the language (in comparison to the long and complex process of learning a foreigner language). It shows that there is something innate behind it, otherwise- it would have been a quick process also when learning foreigner language. * Critical period/age- there is a certain age in which the child must be exposed to a language (the innate system has to be stimulated, activated), in order to acquire it- the age is usually around 6-8, and in some extreme cases it can go until adolescence (16). If it was not activated during the critical period, the child will have no mother tongue- he will have no grammer. He will be able to communicate in a basic function, but without the richness and infinity of the mother tongue acquisition, since the brain is no longer elastic enough to acquire a mother tongue. The issue of critical period provides support for the importance of both exposer and innate theories. Chomsky agrees that exposer is crucial, but it is crucial to activate innate abilities. If it was only exposer – it would have been possible to acquire a mother tongue at any age. * Process is spontaneous/ immune against external interference- the process happens by itself and the teacher/ parent cannot manipulate it. MCNeal (1964)-research that shows you cannot manipulate childs grammer, it will eventually change by itself with exposer. * Identical stages across languages- children acquire their mother tongue in parallel stages across linguistics, more or less at the same time, regardless of the language. This shows that there is some biological aspect to the process of mother tongue acquisition we have to assume something innate in order for the process to be so universal. (First they babble, then acquire first words, combining 2 words together, then start using sentences). * Poverty of stimuli- stimuli(the input) is poor- it is not enough to explain completely how a child acquires and masters his mother tongue: a. The stimuli is partial and consists of errors- the child can never be exposed to everything, still he makes up sentences he has never heard before. What he is exposed to is limited, yet what he can produce is endless. In addition, the stimuli consist of errors- he child doesnt always listen to complete/ grammatical correct sentences: the input he hears consists of partial sentences and grammatical errors; yet the children know how to filter the errors and eventually acquire a perfect grammer. b. There is no teaching- the process of acquiring a mother tongue involves no methodological and pedagogical process (in regard to grammer). c. No negative evidence- there are mistakes that no child will ever make, even though he is not told ahead not to make them. For example: John thinks he is smart (he can be either John or somebody else) VS. He thinks John is smart (he can never refer to John). When examining language acquisition, we see children making many mistakes, but no child will ever use the second sentence when he wants to refer to John. No child will make such mistakes to begin with- they just know, without being told ahead. De Sassure was the first one to ask what do we know when we know a language? What does it mean to know a language? He distinguished between the following terms: * Langue-the rules of the language, that are agreed upon by some society. The rules of a language, but from a social point of view (a social term). * Parole-everything we use or say- the way we actually use the language (What we actually do, language wise). Linguists are generally more interested in the Langue (the knowledge). De Sassure didnt relate to the question of innateness- what abilities, if any, we have in our minds†¦ 12/12/11 Noam Chomsky used 2 other terms: Competence vs. Performance. 1. Performance: the same as Parole: performance is how we actually use the language: what we actually write or say. 2. Competence: is not exactly the same as Langue. Both relate to the rules of the language, but Langue is about the society, the community (grammer is something social, that we all agree on- social interaction creating social agreement) and Competence is about the individual (the system one has in his mind: some of it comes from the genes and some from the environment). Competence is the ability that each of us has to produce and understand an endless number of sentences. Every speaker of every language, has the ability (whether it is innate or not). The point of view of Chomsky and De Sassure is different when relating to the rules of the language. In modern linguistics- the focus is on the Langue- competence and not directly what we say/do with the language (the main goal is to crack the black box and understand how the system works). The performance is the mean to learn about the competence, not the direct end. It teaches us/indicates about the competence: the way we speak or write tells us about how the knowledge is organized in ones mind. The main question that linguists ask is: what does competence consist of? Chomskys Model: UG+EXPOSER= G. Chomsky assumes innateness and that language faculty is to some extent universal (some things are common to all languages). He Offers a SPECIFIC model for this question: When a child is born he is in the initial state. In this state, he has some specific knowledge, shared by all languages: Universal Grammer (UG) it is the grammer that is common to all languages. In addition to the difference in vocabulary, there are grammatical differences between languages: by the end of the critical period, he has more than the UG, he ends up with Particular Grammer (PG, G)- specific grammer of a specific language. There are many Gs, as many as the number of languages in the world. A child is equipped with universal grammer, common to all languages, and during the first years he is exposed to his mother tongue and how it takes place (feedback, corrections, mistakes etc)- and acquires particular/specific grammer. UG+EXPOSER= G. The G is a combination of something innate and something that comes from the environment. What does the UG consist of? According to Chomskys model, UG consists of two things: 1. Principles- rules that are innate and that are common to all languages (things that dont change at all from one language to another, such as: the existence of nasal consonants). 2. Parameters- those are also rules that are innate, and are also part of universal grammer; but in contrast to principals, these are open rules, whose values (fillings) are acquired during the exposer. The values are not common to different languages, Thus they have to be acquired via exposer. For example: in all language there is a subject in every sentence; but in some languages the subject must be a separate entity- which means the subject position is always occupied vs. in some languages the subject can be dropped (English does not allow the dropping of a subject: cant say ate an apple. We must add a subject; vs. Hebrew- represents the subject. In the French language, we are not allowed to drop the subject, even when it is known who did the action: Jai mange la pomme- the French ai is like the Hebrew , yet we still cannot drop the J: we have to have a separate entity for the subject). This parameter is called the Null subject parameter ( )- The Parameter: the subject must be pronounced separately; The Values of the Parameter: (that has to be filled- determined through the acquisition process) Yes or No. In Hebrew and Italian the value is no (in some cases, we can have a sentence without a subject), in English and French the value is Yes. During the critical period, the child is exposed to the data in his mother tongue and they acquire the values to the fixed parameters (the parameter is innate, its values though are not innate- they change from language to language and acquired in the childs critical period). Another Parameter is: * It is hot outside- * It seems that Marry is late- * There is a cat in the room- In English the occurrence of the pronouns (functioning as the sentences subject) it and there is a must: they cannot be dropped (it is not grammatical, although one will be perfectly understood if hell say it); in Hebrew, we can drop them. Even though semantically we dont need the subject, in English it must be filled. These pronouns are called: Expletive / Pleonastic Pronouns- pronouns that do not refer to an entity, but theyre only function is to fill the subject position. They HAVE NO SEMANTIC ROLE, THEY ARE ONLY THERE TO FILL THE POSTION OF THE SUBJECT. We distinguish between pleonastic pronouns and referential pronouns, which refer to some kind of entity (he, she, w, they etc). It and There are not always expletive pronouns- they can also function as referential pronouns: It is hot outside (expletive) vs. I cant eat the soup, (referential); the cat is there (referential) vs. there is a cat in the room (expletive). We can relate to it as two parameters: 1. Parameter: an expletive pronoun exists; values: yes/no. (In English- yes, in Hebrew- no). 2. Parameter: a subject is a must; values: yes/no. (We can say that if a language must have a subject, it will necessary have Expletive pronouns; and vice versa: If the subject is not a must- there are no expletive pronouns. there might be, but they will not be a must). The two things come together- * Cluster of properties- The Parameters come in clusters- one affects/ can teach about the other. The existence of Principles and Parameters strengthens the hypothesis of innateness, because it shows the occurrence of certain grammer structures is not random- there is something consistent across different languages, which therefore must be predetermined, innate. 19/12/11 Some languages require an independent subject and in addition- they have expletive pronouns (it seems that the quiz will be difficult- expletive; this soup is not tasty because it is cold. The it is referential- points to an entity). Proposition Stranding and Pied Piping Who did you speak to? can also be asked as followed: To whom did you speak? - These are two possible grammatical structures that manifest the same idea. It is not possible in Hebrew: : : This construction is called- Preposition Stranding- you desert the proposition by itself: leaving the proposition by itself at the end of the sentence. It can be viewed as a parameter, differentiating languages. Another construction/parameter is: Pied Piping- locating the proposition at the beginning of the sentence. This parameter is valued yes in both English and Hebrew (allowed in both languages). Material for the quiz is up to here! - Phonetics and Phonology- These are both fields that deal with sound and specifically linguistic sounds (phones- ) sounds that are parts of a language. Phones are divided into: consonants (b, l, r, m†¦) and vowels (e, a, i ). The differentiation doesnt refer to the letters, but to the sounds that are used naturally/ automatically. (Since the same sound can be expressed/ represented by different symbols/letters, for example: the sound K- is represented by 4 letters: k, c, q, ch. We will refer to all 4 as K). In Phonetics- Different sounds are examined in different languages: how they are produced and how they are perceived- it is a technical field regarding how pronunciation works. One sound can be expressed/ represented by different symbols/letters or one letter u represents many sounds: university, fur, put, cut etc. Conclusion: there is no correspondence between sound and symbol. Phonetic systems (systems of symbols- used for transcription- write exactly as you here it- distinguish between spelling and pronunciation) 1. International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) – a system of symbols, used mainly by linguists, in which every sound corresponds to one symbol and vice versa. 2. American Phonetic Alphabet (APA) similar, yet competing system to the IPA. These are two similar, yet competing, artificial languages/ systems, dealing with the ambiguity of the languages/ with the lack of correspondence between sound and symbol. Both systems are based on English letters, other than special sounds/exceptions (that have no one specific letter in English that prescribe them) such as: * in order to indicate/transcribe sh we use: stretched big s (IPA) or s^(APA)- (the ^ should be upside down) * ch= t+stretched big S with a bow on top of them (IPA) or c^ (APA) * for th (such as in thin) = 0 with a line across it (APA+IPA) 26/12/11 A minimal pair- * big- pig * sing- sang. * dean- teen (The only difference is the phone- t vs d. The spelling is irrelevant) * knight- light These words are different in meaning, yet they are different in only one sound. The switch of the consonant g/ p changes the meaning of the word. This kind of word pairs are called minimal pair-a pair of words that differ from one another in meaning and in one phone (sound) only. (Only one difference in pronunciation- the spelling is irrelevant) * night- knight : are not a minimal pair, because there is no difference in pronunciation. Phoneme- Phoneme- a minimal linguistic unit that can change the meaning. One of the goals of recognizing minimal pairs is to recognize the basic sounds in a language, that can cause a change of meaning. We use the tool of minimal pairs to identify and distinguish between the Phonemes of a language. Aspirated consonant ( ) * Spy vs. pie- when we pronounce pie, there is a greater puff of air when pronounced. This is also the case in: stole vs. tall (in tall we puff much more air). These are aspirated consonants, which are marked with a little h on top of the consonant. They are two types for the same consonant- the regular and the aspirated one, where we puff a greater amount of air (pie; tall). Are the aspirated consonants phonemes? (Can they distinguish between a minimal pair? -can we find a pair of words that the only difference between them is aspirated consonant vs. non-aspirated). In English, there is no such pair; yet in the Hindi language we can find several examples. Conclusions: 1. In English, they are not phonemes (vs. Hindi), because they can never occur in the same environment/location of the word, which means they are 2 manifestations/versions of the same thing. We can predict in which environment/ when the aspirated consonant will occur. 2. Minimal pairs are used to distinguish between phonemes and also to determine which consonants and vowel are not phonemes. 2/1/2012 Pig – big (minimal pair) vs. Pie, spy (not a minimal pair since there are 2 differences in pound). In English, aspirated and regular – Complementary Distribution- these two sounds never occur at the same environment/ same location of the words, which means they are two manifestations of the same thing – of the phone p. This means P is the phoneme which has two manifestations: aspirated and regular (non-aspirated). This means that this phone has two allophones. Two ways of language representation- 1. Phonemes- the general term for linguistics sounds. These are the basic sounds of a language, and are language specific (are not the same in different languages). They are part of the Underlying Representation (UR): the way and the place words and sounds in specific, are represented in our mind- in the backstage- abstract representation. The phoneme has two manifestations: one is the actual p and the other is the aspirated one. 2. What we actually say are allophones. Allophones are in the Phonetic/ Representation (PR) what comes out of our mouths (articulation). Every phoneme is also an allophone, but not the other way around! Thus, there are some things that are represented in the PR, yet are not represented in the UR (like the aspirated p). In the Ur we have the regular P phoneme, which has two manifestations in the PR: In English, the only case we see an aspirated P is in the beginning of a word and before a vowel (both must occur together). In all other case the P will not be aspirated. For example: Possible, put, pink, pan, etc. vs. apply, spring, play etc. This means the aspirated P has no independence existence- we can predict its occurrence. The default is the regular P and only in a specific environment will have an aspirated P. The aspirated P doesnt exist in the UR! Another example is: regular N vs. the back N: They cannot distinguish between minimal pairs in English- will never occur in the same environment. We will find the back n only before the sounds k and g- in specific environment, which is predictable. For ex: bank, Bangkok, rank, chunk, rang, ring, thanks, bring. The normal N is the default – will occur everywhere else, except for before the sounds: g and k sounds. These two allophones are two versions of the same thing (of the one phoneme) that never occur in the same environment- complementary distribution. N is the phoneme, which has two allophones: n and back n. We can predict exactly where each of the manifestations will occur. * The phoneme is in the UR and the allophones are in the PR. * The default is always in the UR! – The phoneme. * The allophones are always in complementary distribution- meaning they never occur in the same environment and will never distinguish between minimal pairs. You can nver find in English 2 words where the only difference between them will be n and back n. * Minimal pairs are the tools to identify phonemes. Distinctive Features 1. Aspiration The pair pal- pal (with aspirated p) in Hindi – these two words are different in meaning and in one phone only. In specific, they are different in one feature only: aspirated vs. non-aspirated. This means, they constitute a minimal pair (In Hindi). Aspiration – this feature in Hindi unlike the English, we have both – because they have independent existence- each of them is a phoneme on its own. Aspiration – this feature in Hindi, unlike English, is a Distinctive Feature- a feature that distinguishes between 2 phonemes in the same language and as a result it can create a difference between minimal pairs. Aspiration is not a distinctive feature in Hebrew and English. It is a distinctive feature in Hindi language. 2. Voicing ( )- Dean – Teen: d- Is a voice (+voice) consonant ( ) and t is voiceless (- voice). This feature, called voicing, creates different meaning in both words. Thus, it is a distinctive feature in English, because it can distinguish between minimal pairs. Minimal pair- a minimal pair is a pair of words that differ from one another in one meaning, 1 phone (sound) only, and the 2 phones must be different in one feature! 9/1/2012 Phonetic features of consonants- What makes sound/phones different from one another? Linguistic sounds are called phones, and are divided into: consonants and vowels. The difference between the two: in the production of vowels the air flows freely, however in the production of consonants the air is blocked to some extent. The speech organs- body organs that are involved in the production of phones (Lips, tongue, nose, teeth, and palate). Generally, the following are involved: the oral cavity and the nasal cavity ( ). The consonants differ from one another according to 3 criteria: 1. Place of articulation- the location in which the air is blocked and the consonant is produced (B- in the lips; T- in the tongue; P-in the lips and teeth) 2. Manner of articulation ( ) relates to the manner of the air flow and the degree of blocking. For example: n- blocked in the nose. 3. Voicing- relates to the vibration/ the lack of vibrat.

Narcissism and Social Isolation

Narcissism and Social Isolation Thesis Statement: narcissism can lead to social isolation because of inability to appreciate anything around them aside from themselves. Introduction Narcissism is a personality disorder wherein the individual feels an extremely elevated sense of self-worth compared to normal. A Narcissist thinks that he is like no one else, special and unique in every single way manageable and therefore believes that he is superior to all. A narcissist seem like the perfect kind of company in the short run but in the long run unfolds, so do their true colors begin to show. Body Narcissism is a psychological disorder that is gradually developed overtime by the involvement of biological and environmental factors. According to research, Narcissism has something to do with genetics. Narcissism can be triggered as early as the preschool years and may develop over the passage of time. Media has a big impact in transmitting narcissism to vast populations. Narcissists have such an elevated sense of self worth that they value themselves as inherently as others. Narcissists believe they are special and unique. Most narcissistic individuals require excessive admiration. Narcissists are incapable of completely empathizing. The narcissist recognizes himself as human and others as 3-dimensional cartoons in the background. The narcissist over values people, uses them and then devalues them. Narcissists are one track minded theyre not interested in other people. A narcissist is a human roller coaster fun for a limited time, nauseating in the long run. Non-narcissistic individuals get easily attracted to narcissists and their charms at first glance and want to be part of their circle. In the long run however, others will realize that narcissists only care about themselves and are incapable of genuinely caring for other people and eventually want out of their suffocating circles and shadows. Conclusion Narcissism can lead to social isolation because of inability to appreciate anything around them aside from themselves I. Introduction Mirror, mirror on the wall, whos the fairest of them all? asks the queen from snow whites fairytale and always the magic mirror would reply, You are, you are the fairest in the land. This cycle went on and on and pleased the queen. One day someone became fairer than her. It displeased her in many ways and disturbed her self- esteem so much that she would do anything to regain that title. More than anything, she wanted to be admired. A mythological Greek youth named Narcissus came across a lake and saw his reflection in the water. As he stared at his image, he slowly felt a great deal of admiration for himself. He began to fall in love with his reflection and found that he could not dare to look away from such beauty. No longer grasping the world around him while neglecting his physical needs, he died there still admiring himself. What happened to the queen, to Narcissus and to many more who get unconsciously attached to their own images is what people, today, call Narcissism. Have you ever been described as a vain individual? Have you ever tried describing someone as egocentric? Do you even know what those two words mean? According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, vain refers to having or showing undue or excessive pride in ones appearance or achievements while egocentric is defined as limited outlook or concern to ones activities or needs. Too much of either or too much of both becomes a disturbing characteristic for any individual in general. These two characteristics are also words suitable for describing a narcissistic individual. Narcissism is a personality disorder wherein the individual feels an extremely elevated sense of self worth. He may also insist on being first in line to grab opportunities to gain more fame and admiration. A narcissistic individual thinks that he is like no one else, special and unique in every single way imaginable and therefore believes that he is superior to all. This mindset lets the narcissist feel like no one can shine center stage as much as he does. Since he assumes and is convinced that he is unique, he feels that everyone is bound to give parts of their attention to him from time to time. He also believes that he was born to be treated in an extra special manner. Since these individuals seemingly shine in the spotlight and stand out in a crowd, people would get attracted to them. People would want to shine with them and share the same circle with the beautiful and the famous. Unfortunately, narcissists would seem like the perfect kind of company in the short run but as the long run unfolds; so do their true colors and inner divas begin to show. Narcissists cant empathize or love and therefore have no friends (Rachel, 2009). Narcissism can lead to social isolation because of inability to appreciate anything around them aside from themselves. Social isolation potentially leads to depression, placing narcissists at high risk for developing suicidal ideations on the longer run. III. BODY Narcissism is a psychological disorder that is gradually developed over time by the involvement of biological and environmental factors. According to research, Narcissism has something to do with genetics. It is said that children who have Narcissistic parents are most likely to develop Narcissism hence making it a natural and heritable character trait. Geneticists have also started to relate the existence of particular differences in genes with personality disorders. According to a study featured in the 2007 issue of the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, a particular gene referred to as tryptophan hydroxylase-2 may be associated in developing certain personality disorders, including narcissistic personality disorder. Tryptophan hydroxylase-2 aids in regulating the production of serotonin, an important brain chemical involved in mood regulation. Narcissism can be triggered as early as preschool years and may develop over the passage of time. Parent-child relationships including the different styles of parenting are the center of the development of Narcissism. It is believed that narcissism would likely develop as a result of parental rejection. A study from Kohut (1971) attributed narcissism to the inconsistency and lack of empathy of parents to their child. With this, the child seeks attention from others because it presumably is lacking from his parents. The child may behave to the extent of promoting himself through his self-perceived talent (Kernberg, 1975) to gain positive comments from others which he cant receive from his parents. Empty Praises causes the child to feel entitled while lacking the true confidence necessary to feel good about them. The child may then believe he can trust nobody but himself. In contrary to that, narcissism may also develop as a result of parental indulgence. A child may develop an inappro priate high self-appraisal if his parents give him inappropriate positive remarks. He or she may view himself as a person with grandeur and power. We are now living in an increasingly narcissistic society. Media has a big impact in transmitting narcissism to vast populations.ÂÂ  According toÂÂ  Laura Buffadi, online social networking sites like Facebook are common avenues for narcissists since they believe that others are interested in what theyre doing and would want to inform the public of what they are doing. It appears that it might also be possible that this has more to do with the social networks we have at home rather than with those online. Studies have shown that children are left feeling emptier and more prone to insecurities when they are praised for skills or talents that they havent mastered. Meanwhile, praising children for real accomplishments help build up a real self-esteem. Narcissists have such an elevated sense of self-worth that they value themselves as inherently as others. In narcissists, theres a grandiose sense of self-importance. Narcissists like to stare at the mirror and admire their physique. They assume that everyone else is interested to listen to their stories. They think as if they have the natural talent in influencing people. He needs constant attention. Thus he shows a sense of entitlement of deserving others adulation (McAdams, 2006). They tend to use singular pronouns when talking like I, me, my, in a spontaneous speech. Most narcissists require excessive admiration. They may feel as if everyone and everything exists to serve them. They never get satisfied until they get what they think they deserve. They love to take credit of successes and are responsive to opportunities of self enhancement (Wallace Baumeister, 2002). The narcissist recognizes himself as human and others as 3-dimensional cartoons in the background. Narcissists care more about themselves than others. They tend to be in a circle of friends where they first overvalue them then use them and eventually devalue them. Intimacy and transparency are important parts of true friendship, in which narcissists are incapable of. They are one track minded. If threatened by being told that someone else has outperformed them, theyre more likely to put the other person down (Morf Rhodewalt, 1993). They use their so-called friends as instruments to bring them a sense of entitlement or elevate their status. They sufficiently withdraw themselves from others. They love themselves too much that they lack empathy. They express envy when someone gains recognition because they think it should have been rightfully theirs (Videbeck, 2011). Narcissists expect special treatment from others and often result to anger if not given what they want. To a narcissist, nothing is ever good enough and its always the fault of others. Since narcissists have a high self-esteem and are charismatic, non narcissistic individuals get easily attracted to them at first glance and want to be part of their circle. A narcissist may have a lot of friends at first but eventually they would grow tired of his countless me, myself, and I conversations. They soon realize that narcissists only care about themselves and are incapable of genuinely caring for other people and eventually want to walk out from their suffocating shadows. According to Kluger (2011), youre bound to fall in love with narcissists at hello but when you get to know them better, you slowly realize that theyre actually quite unbearable. Their confidence becomes arrogance; charms turn to senselessness; smarts turn to conceitedness. They will talk endlessly about themselves, and never mind you. They have trouble working with others since they cant easily accept criticisms and negative feedbacks. III. Conclusion Narcissists tend to have fewer friends in the long run because narcissism makes individuals feel superior, making it hard to treat others fairly. A narcissist believes that he is the only one and that he is special and unique, and no one is more superior to him. He feels an extremely elevated sense of self worth. He is grandiose, vain, and egocentric all at the same time. With these traits, narcissists are not capable of empathizing. A narcissist is not interested in other people; all he wants is their attention. He only thinks of what is most beneficial for him, not minding the people surrounding him. Since a narcissist cant appreciate the things surrounding him, he will find himself in many similar situations in the future. A few episodes of peer rejection such as these can possibly lead to social isolation then to depression and might even be a reason for the development of suicidal ideation.

Education in the age of globalisation

Education in the age of globalisation Introduction What does education have to do with globalisation? The answer is simple: everything. The most recent wave of globalisation, which began in the 1980s, is being driven by the knowledge economy and, in turn, this knowledge economy is being facilitated by globalisation. Without education, the knowledge economy collapses. So anyone talking about globalisation is also talking about the knowledge economy and education. First, globalisation. Sometimes the concept seems like a many-headed dragon (Giddens, 2000). To some, the phenomenon is as old as the world itself just think of the great kingdoms of antiquity, the voyages of discovery, the great waves of migration in the 19th century, etc.. After the world wars, international institutions were created which were supposed to lead to global governance, a type of world government which would establish a new world order. However, the most recent wave of globalisation has swept over this like a deluge. As a result of increasing internationalisation in production and distribution networks, sovereign states are suddenly being downgraded to water-carriers of international big business. The laws of the free market are imposed upon them, for fear of being ignored by investors. Some institutions that were supposed to guarantee the creation of the new world order are themselves preaching deregulation and worldwide competition. In other words, in debates about globalisation, we are not usually talking about the globalisation trend in its generic sense (the increasing trend towards worldwide interdependence, driven by telecommunications). The model of globalisation that is so controversial that it has become the target of fierce demonstrations, is one that is coloured by neo-liberal ideology. It is the globalisation of the free market, driven by competition and the quest for profit. Both heads of the monster also refer to the knowledge society. In the first definition, the Internet and the media play a key role: ideas move at the speed of light around the world and ensure that every innovation that catches on also takes on worldwide proportions. This means that anyone who can master the Internet and the media is at the source and acquires power. In the second definition, the establishment of the global neo-liberal market economy, knowledge, IT and information play just as important a role. A great many services that do not require physical proximity (such as information processing, accounting, financial services, translation, etc.) can indeed be produced anywhere in the world and delivered to the other side of the globe. Moreover, markets are connected across the world so that information about production, prices, innovations, etc., is distributed over the Internet in the blink of an eye. This significantly increases the transparency of the markets and boosts co mpetition. Our leaders have also understood that our competitive advantage in the global market economy no longer rests on the possession of raw materials or manpower, but on our grey matter: knowledge. The Lisbon Strategy: knowledge as both competitive weapon and social cement? During the 2000 spring summit in Lisbon, EU leaders elevated the knowledge economy to the ultimate goal of the decade: making the EU into the largest and most dynamic knowledge economy in the world, with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion. The exegesis of this text is a fascinating activity. At first sight, one sentence contains the most obvious contradictions: on the one hand, the desire to be a winner in the global competitive struggle is clear while, on the other hand, we find the desire to counteract the social and regional polarisation that results from the neo-liberal market economy, using the same investments in knowledge. It seems to be a typically political sample compromise between heads of state on right and left, all wanting to put their eggs in the EU basket without checking whether their agendas are in any way reconcilable. The fact is that the Lisbon agenda can be taken in many different ways. For the marketeers, it is first and foremost about playing out comparative advantages on world markets. According to the Heckscher-Ohlin theorems of international trade theory, free trade will spontaneously cause trading partners to specialise in producing those goods and services in which they have a comparative advantage. Where necessary, the government may lend a helping hand. If we assume that Europe is relatively poor in raw materials and labour, but rich in brain power, then investing in education, research and development is indeed the recipe for success. Investment in RD has to be increased, up to 3% of gross domestic product. The innovative climate has to be nurtured, including by establishing innovation platforms, incubation centres, public investment in eco-technology, etc.. Information and communication technologies are key areas of economic development. The number of scientifically and technically educated people at secondary and higher levels must be dramatically increa sed. The connection between education and the labour market must be improved. The flow of unqualified school-leavers must be cut by half. Participation in life-long learning must be increased and every adult must have access to basic IT skills. By specialising in knowledge-intensive sectors according to the forecasts of neo-classical trade theory the European economy will grow further and the Third World will also benefit as a result because the flipside of the coin is that labour-intensive activities will be outsourced to low-wage countries. Both sides, North and South, can only benefit as a result. The World Bank looked and saw that it was good: according to the Bank, the new globalisers a group of 23 developing countries that have opened up their borders (China, India, Brazil and others) saw average economic growth in the 1990s (per head of population) of 5% per year. In the rich countries, where globalisation was promoted, this growth was 2% per year, while the stragglers, countries that sealed themselves off, experienced negative average growth (World Bank, 2002). At the same time, the OECD and the EU learned from research that the knowledge economy was once again to set them on the path of sustainable growth. Temple (2001) found that every additional year of education by the working population increases national income by about 10%. This effect can be broken down into a level effect and a growth effect: the former means that the working population is more productive and therefore generates more income. The growth effect can be attributed to the fact that the more highly e ducated have also learned to learn: even after leaving the classroom they continue to behave creatively and flexibly under changing circumstances, producing a snowball effect as a result. As far as investment in research and development is concerned, the figures are just as telling: Sakurai et al. (1996) estimate the average rate of return from RD activities at 15%, with exceptions up to 40-50% in some countries and sectors. In other words, every euro a company or government invests in RD is fully recovered in an average of 7 years. The observation that few investments are as profitable as investments in education and research is perhaps one of the most important findings to come out of social sciences in the past decade. The European Commission has also received this message loud and clear (de la Fuente Ciccone, 2002). So much for the good news. However, the way in which globalisation and the knowledge economy can be reconciled with social cohesion within the EU is not specified anywhere. Even the built-in pattern, that the global free market actually undermines social cohesion within Europe, is not discussed anywhere in EU documents. Indeed, the associated specialisation in knowledge-intensive sectors boosts the demand for highly specialised scientists and technically educated labour. The increasing shortages in these labour market segments will exert upward pressure on the wages of these workers. On the other hand, the outsourcing of low-skilled, labour-intensive production processes leads to reduced demand and a structural surplus of unskilled labour, which means that the wages and working conditions of these groups are also gradually undermined (Wood, 1994). Whether this polarisation on the labour market is caused by globalisation itself or by technological evolution or the tertiarisation of th e economy is more like a discussion of the gender of the angels: the three trends are after all dimensions of the same knowledge economy. Inequality in Europe, even in the whole of the rich North, has been systematically increasing since the mid-1980s (Fà ¶rster, 2000). According to Pontusson et al. (2002), some countries are still managing to curb inequality by a strong trade union movement and/or public employment, but these counteracting forces are coming under increasing pressure. The Lisbon strategy therefore seems like trying to square the circle. The more the member states encourage it, the less social cohesion there is. The EU does have structural funds available to promote social cohesion (both between regions and between the highly skilled and unskilled). Since the enlargement of the EU, however (itself also a stage in globalisation), these structural funds themselves have lost some of their influence because they have not grown in proportion to the size of the Union, certainly not in proportion to the drastically wider gap within the EU28. In our opinion, the only way to reconcile the knowledge economy with the objective of greater social cohesion and is through mass investment in education. The difference between this approach and the previous is that investment in education influences the supply side of the labour market, while globalisation and intensification of the knowledge-intensive production sectors influence the demand side. This difference is essential: perhaps it requires some explanation. RD investment and specialisation in knowledge-intensive trade (IT, financial services, pharmaceuticals, eco-technology, etc.), as we have said, boost the demand for highly skilled workers, while the outsourcing of unskilled production sectors causes a decline in the demand for unskilled workers. All other things being equal, this shift in the demand for labour causes a reverse redistribution of employment and income, from unqualified to highly qualified. Rather than stimulating this (spontaneous) trend, policy must be geared towards bringing about similar shifts on the supply side of the labour market. Education and vocational training are actually geared towards converting unskilled workers into more highly skilled workers: if this process can (at least) keep pace with the shifts on the demand side, inequality can be kept in check, or even reduced. It is a race against time and, if we claim that large-scale investment in education is needed, the distribution of this investment itsel f among the various sections of the population is also of great importance. The deeply ingrained Matthew effect in education and life-long learning actually threatens to undermine the effectiveness of this strategy. From a social perspective, the first priority in education policy is to eliminate the flow of unqualified school-leavers from education; the second priority is the literacy plan and the third is to increase the supply of engineers and those with scientific and technical skills. Not everyone will agree with this ranking. It is a question of social choice. The Lisbon strategy does not actually contradict this approach but nor does it lead automatically to the desired result. As we wrote in the introduction to this section, it seems like a sample compromise between diverging national priorities. Anything is possible with such compromises. We can characterise the contrasting policy alternatives described above as knowledge-intensive versus knowledge-extensive. The knowledge-intensive path, which gives priority to the development of advanced technology, will boost economic growth in the short term, but gradually become bogged down on the labour market, further dualisation of society and social unrest. The knowledge-extensive path, which gives preference to a raft of basic skills for as many people as possible, will perhaps deliver less visible results in the short term but, in the longer term, lead to more sustainable growth. The debate surrounding the correct mix has, to our knowledge, not yet been explicitly pursued. Free movement of education services The education sector is not only an involved party in the globalisation process; it is itself also partly the subject of it. In the 1990s, the WTO (World Trade Organization) launched an offensive (in the Uruguay round and again in 2001 in the Doha round) to involve a number of subsidised services in the negotiations about trade liberalisation as well. In principle, every service over which the government does not have a genuine monopoly can be discussed at the negotiating table. Education services are included here as soon as private organisers of education are admitted, even if they are 100% subsidised by the state. This is certainly the case in Belgium, given that the free education network alone is larger than the two official networks combined. International trade in education services can take various forms: from distance learning across national borders, international student or lecturer mobility, to the establishment of campuses abroad (Knight, 2002). Of course, it is up to the members themselves to decide, through free negotiations, whether they want to open up their education sectors to international competition. The EU commissioner for trade, who acts during the GATS negotiations on behalf of all EU member states, had given undertakings during the Uruguay round for privately financed education (in other words the commercial or at least unsubsidised education circuit). All compulsory education and most higher education therefore fall de facto outside the scope of GATS. Only entirely private schools and commercial initiatives in adult education were liberalised. What does this mean in practice? We are not used to talking about trade in educational services, even less about their liberalisation. After all, import tariffs are never charged Trade barriers do not, however, consist solely of import tariffs, but also of what are known as non-tariff obstacles (e.g. quota restrictions, quality standards, recognition procedures for fore ign qualifications, etc.). Once a party has opened up its borders, it must at least apply the general principles of GATS in this respect. Market access means that no quantitative barriers may be imposed, such as a ceiling of x foreign students or y branches of foreign schools. The most-favoured clause means that no privileges can be denied to one member if they are committed to another member of the WHO.  [1]  The principle of national treatment implies that, when there is free access to foreign service providers, no different standards or subsidy rules can be imposed on provisions of domestic or foreign origin. Furthermore, undertakings are irrevocable and WHO members hand over jurisdiction over any conflicts to a panel of international trade experts. The GATS initiative was not exactly welcomed with great enthusiasm. Its intentions were good: to increase prosperity by bringing burgeoning service sectors out of their national cocoons and to allow matching between demand and supply to take place across national borders. Liberalisation means diversification, greater freedom of choice, more efficiency and quality incentives and perhaps also less of a burden on the government budget. On the international stage, the major Anglo-Saxon countries were clearly in favour of the initiative. After all, they have had a strong comparative advantage right from the start because the working language of their education systems is the most important world language. E-courses, whether or not supported by specialist call centres, are very attractive as an export product because they are associated with huge economies of scale. However, the reception of foreign students can also be a lucrative business. For example, Australia is making big bucks with the tens of thousands of Asians attending university there. Even if this export education is partially subsidised, return effects can still be gained from other spending by foreign students and, if the best brains can then be retained in the host country, the picture is even more favourable. As importers, some major developing countries, led by China, can also make money from liberalisation. Thanks to the meteoric growth of its economy, the Chinese government cannot satisfy the increased demand for higher education. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese students begin their studies abroad every year, possibly with a grant from their government. Most of them come back with Western qualifications and join the countrys scientific and technological elite. The Chinese government saves on higher education because most migrants pay for their studies abroad themselves. In some cases, multinationals investing in China establish their own colleges to train suitable executives. By contrast, in the European education sector, liberalisation and commercialisation meet with great reticence, not entirely without justification (OKeeffe, 2003; Hanley and Frederiksson, 2003). Not for nothing do governments curb market effects in education because of the risk of market failure. A free, competitive market also requires homogenous goods (a nursing qualification in country A should have the same value as in country B); at the same time, all those involved must be well-informed about the quality and cost price of the goods. Power concentrations (e.g. of large universities or associations) are out of the question, etc.. None of these conditions for healthy competition is truly fulfilled. Education is a very complex, opaque market. If all this applies to domestic provisions, how much more then to foreign provisions? Will liberalisation not lead automatically to privatisation and price increases? Does globalisation of the education sector not open the door to the suppressi on of national culture? It is not actually clear to what extent all these objections are founded. It is a fact that the EU pursues a somewhat ambiguous strategy in this area. It portrays itself to the outside world as the defender of a regulated, protected education sector but, internally, despite its subsidiary role regarding education, it promotes liberalisation by all means available. The Bologna process and the Copenhagen process should create a European educational space for higher and vocational education respectively, in which supply and demand can move freely. Harmonisation of structures, recognition of qualifications obtained elsewhere and the development of a uniform, transparent European Qualification Framework should help to enable EU citizens to brush up or refine their skills in other member states. Erasmus grants should boost student mobility and, last but not least, the EU services directive (the infamous Bolkestein directive) has led to the free movement of educational services within the E U, which that same EU is fighting at the GATS negotiating table. So what effects should we expect? To begin with, remember that compulsory education is also not subject to the services directive or the GATS rules, so that a great deal of movement should not be expected at this level. Secondly, higher education will also remain largely subsidised in the future. Free movement in this sector will perhaps lead to a downwards levelling off of subsidies (or an upwards levelling off of registration fees). After all, in an open educational space, a member state cannot allow itself to offer cheaper education than its neighbouring countries for very long. In the long term, thousands of students from other member states could benefit from this transnational generosity. After all, different prices cannot be charged to EU students and to domestic students. In higher and adult education, an increased registration fee is not actually undemocratic: it counteracts the misplaced redistribution currently ravaging these segments because the better-off make disproport ionately more use of education which is partly funded by less well-off taxpayers. The democratisation of higher and adult education is not threatened if increased registration fees are coupled with higher study grants. The creation of a more transparent, uniform European educational space can, we believe, only be regarded as a positive phenomenon. It is the task of the government, where the market fails, to ensure that the educational supply is more transparent. This allows the user to choose more freely. The competition between provisions is also heightened as a result, which should lead to better quality and/or lower cost price. Nonetheless, the impending commercialisation of higher education may also have detrimental effects: in this context, education is gradually reduced to its most utilitarian dimension. As the student himself finances a larger share of the cost of education, he will also be more likely to choose the more lucrative studies. In particular, humanities and cultural sciences could come under pressure as a result. If society attaches importance to an adequate balance between courses of study, it will also have to build in the required incentives for this (e.g. by differentiated registration fees). Another risk the intensification of the brain drain is covered in the final section of our paper. Last but not least, at international level, the risks of any forms of market forces in education are of course present, specifically increasing polarisation in quality and prestige among educational establishments. The Cambridges, Paris VIs, Munichs and Stockholms are undoubtedly becoming even more of a major draw within a unified European higher education space. It will not be long before they increase their registration fees and tighten up their entry conditions in order to cream off the European elite. Regional colleges, by contrast, will see a weakening of the target audience as a result of the same mechanisms. If access to higher education (and, even more so, adult education) is to remain democratic, European directives will also have to be enacted, as was also necessary for the liberalisation of other public welfare services. For example, Flemish higher education is already feeling the consequences of entry restrictions in the Netherlands. The question is whether this will be s ustainable in a context where international student mobility is on the increase. On the whole, the free movement of educational services does not look as scary as many make it out to be. It is important that a distinction be made between compulsory education, on the one hand, which belongs to the field of basic social rights, and further education and training on the other hand. In these latter segments, partial commercialisation should not automatically lead to social breakdown. It can even contribute to a more balanced financing mix, which is necessary to cope with the growing participation trend in the future. EU legislation will still have to ensure the required limit conditions to prevent negative social side effects. Education and Third World development In the above sections, we have largely confined ourselves to the European perspective. What do education and the knowledge society mean for the Third World? Curiously enough, the theory regarding the social role of education in the development literature is much richer and more subtle than in Western education literature. Whereas the Chicago economist Becker (1964) labelled education as an individual investment in human capital, with a financial return in terms of future income, the Bengali Sen (Sen, 1999) teaches us that education can also be regarded more broadly as an investment in capabilities which subsequently enable higher levels of functioning to be attained at the levels of health, family life, social participation, etc.. Empirical research underpins this position and demonstrates that a higher level of education also leads to better nutrition, health (e.g. AIDS prevention), housing, sex education, etc. (MacMahon, 1999; Saito, 2003). Moreover, investment in education generates many spill-over effects on the wider society. People learn from one another. Education also has a positive influence on security (prevention of high-risk and delinquent behaviour), social commitment, civil responsibility and the quality of democratic decisions. Research increasingly points to the role of education in the development of social capital (de la Fuente and Ciccone, 2002). These positive social effects are most clear in the context of gender-specific anti-poverty programmes. For instance, more education for women is associated with better family planning and better nutrition, health and training for children (for a summary of the results, see Behrman, 1997). In order to break through the vicious circle of poverty and disease, education and training programmes for girls and women are essential. In this context, UNICEF talks correctly of the multiplier effect of education for girls (UNICEF, 2004). These positive external effects ar e an additional reason for government intervention in education and training. Sufficient evidence exists that educational investment in developing countries produces a higher return than in developed countries (Psacharopoulos and Patrinos, 2004). This difference is a direct indication of the need for education in the acquisition of basic skills. In addition, Behrman (1997) points out that, as far as subsequent educational investments in their children are concerned, basic education or basic literacy for women is more important than achieving higher levels of education. Sen (2002) also emphasises the role of basic education and the role which this plays in increasing the required human security and further human and social development. Cost-benefit analyses have demonstrated that investments in pre-school education and basic education have a higher rate of return than spending on secondary and higher education particularly in developing countries (Psacharopoulos and Patrinos, 2004; Cunha et al., 2006). In multilateral development cooperation, these findings have been well received. At the World Conference in Jomtien (Thailand), in 1990, the Education For All (EFA) initiative was launched under the auspices of UNESCO. All parties agreed with the position that universal, compulsory, free, public and good-quality basic education is the cornerstone of an education strategy which also includes secondary, further, vocational and adult education. During the international Education Conference in Dakar (2000), the importance of education for all was again underlined and 6 objectives were formulated, two of which were later adopted as millennium objectives (completion of basic education by all young people and equal educational opportunities for girls and boys at all levels by 2015). The key target groups of the EFA campaign are the 80 million children who have never been to school and the 800 million illiterate adults in the world. Every developing country participating in EFA draws up a na tional education action plan that fits in with the national poverty reduction strategy (Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper) and gives priority to basic education. This action plan is tested on all relevant social actors. A set of indicators is envisaged which can be used to test effective implementation. Monitoring and evaluation are entrusted to one single financier by the international community, per receiving country. In an attempt to accelerate the EFA train further, in 2002 the Fast Track Initiative (FTI) was launched, encouraged by the World Bank, which both international financial backers and receiving countries can join on a voluntary basis. In addition to endorsing the EFA principles, donors are asked for an additional commitment to long-term financing and receiving governments are asked to commit to transparent evaluation. The least that can be said about EFA and FTI is that they have the wind in their sails. Participation and invested resources are rising phenomenally. Since 2000, official development help for education worldwide has more than doubled. Nonetheless, the challenges are still considerable: the major enemies of education are poverty (and, associated with this, child labour), war, the debt burden, migration, mismanagement and disease. In crisis regions, education simply grinds to a halt. In some countries, the ravages of AIDS on teaching staff are so severe that it is barely possible to replace sick and deceased teachersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. In addition, it has to be said that the interests of financial backers and receiving countries, even if both groups have noble objectives, do not always coincide. The governments of developing countries are happy to make use of international support so that they can spend some of their own budgets on other priorities. On the other hand, the leading role of the World Bank in the FTI is not totally altruistic. One of the conditions for support, specifically, is that the national EFA action plans be linked to poverty reduction plans (PRSP): the latter are the World Banks key aid instruments. This means that multilateral educational aid serves as a lever to reinforce the influence of the World Bank on its customers. It is known that this external pressure is not always popular. Along with development aid, pro-globalist, liberal policy ideas are also dished out to receiving countries. In the past, for example, they were often obliged to reduce their import tariffs or food subsidies, which hit farmers and consumers particularly hard. Brain drain One of the reasons why the return on higher education in developing countries is relatively low has to do with the brain drain from developing countries to the rich North a phenomenon that does not exactly mesh with the predictions of international trade theory. In the first section of our paper, we referred to the theory of comparative advantages: every country will specialise in exporting goods and services for which the production factors are present in relative excess. Robert Mundell (1957) demonstrated that the international mobility of production factors can be regarded as a substitute for trade in goods, and with the same effect. In specific terms, this would mean that if developing countries have a surplus of unskilled labour and rich countries relatively large numbers of highly skilled people, we would expect a South-North migration of unskilled workers and a North-South migration of highly skilled workers. In both cases, migrants are attracted by the fact that, in the host country, they are relatively better paid than in their own countries because they are relatively scarcer there. In reality, the dominant pattern is a South-North migration of both unskilled and highly skilled workers. In 2005, around 4 million legal migrants (and an unknown number of illegals) flooded into the rich OECD countries (OECD, 2007). These figures do not include temporary migration. Upon closer inspection, the contradiction between theory and practice can be explained by a series of factors, of which we highlight only the most important. Firstly, the rich North dominates the world economy to such an extent that it also depresses demand for highly skilled people in the Third World. Secondly, governments in the North do not pursue a liberal policy when it comes to immigration. When push comes to shove, they place restraints on the laws of neo-classical trade theory, erect barriers to unskilled immigrants and are even actively recruiting the more highly skilled workers to fill existing bo

Inherit the Wind - Character Development of Matthew and Sarah Brady Ess

Inherit the Wind - Character Development of Matthew and Sarah Brady Films with intense legal themes generally present very dry, professional characters with occasional moments of character development. In the film Inherit the Wind, the head legal counsel for the prosecution, Matthew Harrison Brady, first appears as a dynamic man of the people. He and his wife, Sarah, seem to be a perfect couple in the spotlight of American politics. Both characters wear broad smiles, walk tall and proud, and sport conservative, yet fashionable attire. Sarah proudly applauds in support of her husband as he addresses the town of Hillsboro as their lead prosecutor. However, the director and screenwriter of the film continue to develop the Bradys as a couple with a long history full of emotion and love. In the scene entitled "Rachel Visits the Bradys," the characters of Matthew and Sarah Brady emerge as not only a political power couple, but as two very emotionally connected people. The director, Stanley Kramer, uses lighting, sound, and costuming in the character development of Matthew and Sarah Brady. These staging techniques accentuate the intense dialogue between Sarah and Rachel Brown, the preacher's daughter, and between Sarah and Matthew. In this scene, Rachel pays a visit to the Brady's hotel room to confront Matthew about his decision to put her on the witness stand against Bertram Cates. Instead of speaking with Matthew, Rachel and Sarah have a powerful exchange. Matthew then enters, half asleep, to hear Rachel exclaim that she is no longer a child. After Rachel's exit, Sarah and Matthew discuss the case, Matthew's integrity, and their relationship. As the conversation progresses, specific ligh... ...d when he is in public. The final scene shows the couple exchanging roles, accentuated by the rising and falling volume of voices to demonstrate tension. In public life, Matthew appears strong and confident but in their private life, Sarah acts as the source of reassurance. This role reversal suggests that in a relationship, one person cannot always be the assertive partner, but each person has to be strong at different times. In this setting, the Bradys appear to comfort each other in a very intense way. Matthew becomes vulnerable and Sarah rebuilds the image he presents in their public life. The political display they present for the town of Hillsboro is not an accurate representation of their life together. By establishing this contrast, Kramer reveals the misperceptions that result when society assumes that public life replicates private life. Inherit the Wind - Character Development of Matthew and Sarah Brady Ess Inherit the Wind - Character Development of Matthew and Sarah Brady Films with intense legal themes generally present very dry, professional characters with occasional moments of character development. In the film Inherit the Wind, the head legal counsel for the prosecution, Matthew Harrison Brady, first appears as a dynamic man of the people. He and his wife, Sarah, seem to be a perfect couple in the spotlight of American politics. Both characters wear broad smiles, walk tall and proud, and sport conservative, yet fashionable attire. Sarah proudly applauds in support of her husband as he addresses the town of Hillsboro as their lead prosecutor. However, the director and screenwriter of the film continue to develop the Bradys as a couple with a long history full of emotion and love. In the scene entitled "Rachel Visits the Bradys," the characters of Matthew and Sarah Brady emerge as not only a political power couple, but as two very emotionally connected people. The director, Stanley Kramer, uses lighting, sound, and costuming in the character development of Matthew and Sarah Brady. These staging techniques accentuate the intense dialogue between Sarah and Rachel Brown, the preacher's daughter, and between Sarah and Matthew. In this scene, Rachel pays a visit to the Brady's hotel room to confront Matthew about his decision to put her on the witness stand against Bertram Cates. Instead of speaking with Matthew, Rachel and Sarah have a powerful exchange. Matthew then enters, half asleep, to hear Rachel exclaim that she is no longer a child. After Rachel's exit, Sarah and Matthew discuss the case, Matthew's integrity, and their relationship. As the conversation progresses, specific ligh... ...d when he is in public. The final scene shows the couple exchanging roles, accentuated by the rising and falling volume of voices to demonstrate tension. In public life, Matthew appears strong and confident but in their private life, Sarah acts as the source of reassurance. This role reversal suggests that in a relationship, one person cannot always be the assertive partner, but each person has to be strong at different times. In this setting, the Bradys appear to comfort each other in a very intense way. Matthew becomes vulnerable and Sarah rebuilds the image he presents in their public life. The political display they present for the town of Hillsboro is not an accurate representation of their life together. By establishing this contrast, Kramer reveals the misperceptions that result when society assumes that public life replicates private life.

The Flight Path of Airplanes Over Neighborhoods Essay -- Solutions Pap

The Flight Path of Airplanes Over Neighborhoods The houses can’t be unbuilt, and the airports can’t be torn down.   But maybe the fences can be mended.   –Robbie Sherwood    In the past 10 years, many cities across the country have outgrown the planner’s expectations.   Unfortunately the airports that were built 20 or more years ago, have not grown with the cities.   Phoenix has tripled in size in the past 10 years.   The tripling of air traffic has not had anywhere to go.   The same two runways that have been serving the city since 1935 when the airport was built have been extremely over loaded.   It is not just happening in Phoenix, a few years ago Denver received a new airport to relieve the overflow of traffic from the older Stapelton Airport.  Ã‚   In Irvine California, El Toro Marine Air Base is scheduled to be closed next year, and running into opposition to be converted to civilian use.   The changes in the National Airspac e System (NAS) are always happening, either in the routing of traffic or the airports on the ground. The problem arises when the traffic routes change faster than the airport system does.   As said above, there are some changes that are going on in the system right now.   Ã¢â‚¬Å" To accommodate the growing number of flights operating at Sky Harbor construction of a new third runway is underway.   The 7,800-foot parallel runway is scheduled for completion in spring 1999†(Sky harbor International Airport 4). In Denver the traffic load that was being handled by Stapelton Airport was too high.   When Denver International (DIA) opened in February 1995 it could immediately take three times of the traffic that Stapelton could the week before.          I believe that the airports around the country and specifically in Phoe... ...Harbor International Airport. http://www.ci.phoenix.az.us/AVIATION/airports.html   (2 Dec. 1998). â€Å"Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.†Ã‚   List of Airport Tables. http://www.nrdc.org/nrdc/nrdcpro/nrdcpro/foc/phazps.html (2 Dec. 1998). â€Å"Record of Approval: Scottsdale Airport Noise Compatibility Program.† Federal Aviation Administration. http://www.faa.gov/arp/app600/14cfr150/roasdl.html (28   Oct. 1998). â€Å"Scottsdale Airport General Information.†Ã‚   City of Scottsdale Transportation.   http://www.ci.scottsdale.az.us/airport/general_info.asp  Ã‚   (28 Oct. 1998). Sherwood. Robbie. â€Å"Airports Runway to future Bumpy:   Olive Branches offered to  Ã‚   Williams Neighbors.†Ã‚   Arizona Republic.   25 Oct. 1998,   community ed.; EV1+. Sullivan, George.   Personal Interview. 27   Oct. 1998. â€Å"What’s New.† Williams Gateway Airport. http://www.flywga.org/whatsnew.htm (2 Dec. 1998)   

Ethics and Compliance Paper Essay

Starting in Seattle with one store, Starbucks has grown across the country and has become a household name delivering one of the best tasting coffees in existence. The first Starbucks opened in 1971, serving fresh roasted coffees. â€Å"Today, more than 15,000 stores in 50 countries, Starbucks are the premier roaster and retailer of specialty coffee in the world† (Starbucks, para. 7, 2010). The organization has been successful because of excellent managerial skills and implementing sound business decisions. Starbucks mission statement reads as follows: â€Å"to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time† (Starbucks, 2010, p. 1). The company values its relationships with communities, its stores, business partners, shareholders, and employees. Responsible ethical character and compliance helps the Starbucks brand protect its reputation. This paper will explain the role of ethics, procedures, Securities and Exchange Com mission (SEC) compliance, and evaluate the financial performance of the Starbucks organization. Ethics and Compliance Policies A successful organization builds its reputation on honesty and trust displayed to customers and business partners. Starbucks conducts business in an ethical manner that protects reputation and supports its culture by unceasingly striving to do what is right. Starbucks has a commitment to company values that successfully employs a Business Conduct Helpline and a Business Conduct Web-line for questions and guidance. Starbucks has incorporated an Anti-Retaliation Policy and does not tolerate retaliation against anyone reporting misconduct. The organization is an equal opportunity employer and use best practices in the hiring process. Business practices include and are not limited to accurate and truthful business transactions and comply with laws and regulations in any country the company operates in, and encourage partners to understand and adhere to the rules. Starbucks has an outside agent who facilitates and ensures an honest and ethical relationship with government officials throughout the international arena. Partners associated with the Starbucks brand must practice ethical conduct in sales, services, and promote fair competition. Matters dealing with conflicts of interest, gifts and entertainment, and securities are also addressed and implemented by the company. The company closely monitors proprietary information such as new ideas, company records including financial and audit details. Starbucks explains the Ethical Decision-Making Framework to identify ethical issues, give any possible solutions, pursue ideas from others, and take the best approach to resolve unethical matters and follow-up on results. The aforementioned framework empowers each Starbucks associate and affiliate to take responsibility to help maintain Starbucks ethical and honest reputation. â€Å"Ethical behavior is doing the right thing, and ethical dilemmas are everywhere in finance† (Keown, Martin, Petty & Scott, para. 1, 2005). Securities and Exchange Commission’s Regulations According to Ethisphere.com, (2010), Starbucks is one of the most ethical companies in the world for 2010. One of the key points to being an ethical business is to file reports for investors, government bodies, and the public to view. Starbucks complies in one way with the ethics policies set in place by the directors and organization by providing accurate data. The financial records of Starbucks are available to the investors, public and government in a timely manner via the website. The requirement set by the Securities Exchange Committee for a public business is to provide accurate reports in a timely manner. Starbucks publishes an annual report to the Starbucks website for anyone to find via the Internet. The annual report contains cash flow statements of income and expenses. The reports show that Starbucks is performing well even during a tough economic time. The annual report also contains a statement of Starbucks critical accounting policies. Starbucks believes that critical accounting practices are important. Starbucks considers its policies an asset impairment, stock-based compensation, operating leases, self insurance reserves and income taxes to be the most critical in understanding the judgments which are involved in preparing the consolidated financial statements, as stated in the annual report on Starbucks website, (2010). Financial Ratios for the Past Two Years Starbuck’s financial records allow investors, the government, and the public to have a firsthand look into the financial stability of the company. The financial records are available for several years; this allows the long-term financial success of the company to be easily accessible and available anyone wanting to know about the company. As an investor with interest in expanding into Starbucks there are several things the investor should look for. The current ratio allows investors the ability to measure how well a company can pay back short-term debt (Keown, Martin, Petty, & Scott, 2005). Starbucks ability to pay back debt in 2009, increased over 2008. In 2008 Starbucks closed several unprofitable locations (Starbucks Investor Relations- Financial Release, 2009) resulting in the decrease of overhead costs for those locations; allowing for additional funds and increasing the ability for Starbucks to pay back short-term debt. This increases the stability of Starbucks. The availability of extra funds allows Starbucks the opportunity to invest those funds in profitable time value investments. The funds could be invested in the company for improvements or costs for innovate new products. The extra funds could also pay necessary expenses outright. This allows the company to have lower amounts of outstanding credit or loans. The lower the amount of outstanding loans and credit allows for lower credit fees and lower costs. *Current Ratio 2009 2008 Current AssetsCurrent Liabilities 599.81581.0 269.82189.7 37.93% 12.32% Investors can also look at the Debt Ratio of Starbucks. The debt ratio shows the amount of debt a company carries in relation to their assets (Keown, Martin, Petty, & Scott, 2005). Companies must carry some debt to do business effectively. However, the company does not want to carry too much debt. Starbucks has expenses that must be paid for; some of these can be paid using credit. However, the company should ensure they are not charging unnecessarily. Starbucks must also show they are paying off their debt. Starbucks debt ratio decreased from 56.08% in 2008 to 45.38% in 2009 (Starbucks Investor Relations- Financial Release, 2009). Tends in the Ratios This shows a positive financial trend. The company had larger debt in 2008 and was able to repay a good portion of the debt without increasing debt somewhere else in the company, ultimately lower the overall debt of the company. This positive trend will increase the credit status of Starbucks. This will allow the company to have credit available if needed in the future. *Debt Ratio 2009 2008 Total DebtTotal Assets 2531.15576.8 3181.75672.6 45.38% 56.08% Investors can also look at the Return on Equity Ratio. The Return on Equity Ratio measure the amount of net income returned as a percentage of shareholder equity (Keown, Martin, Petty, & Scott, 2005). The main reason investors invest into companies is to make money!! If the investor does not make a sizable return on their investment, they may take their money and decide to invest elsewhere!! The investor wants to have confidence the company is going to make solid decisions that will increase the profitability of the shareholders. Starbucks has seen a decrease in Return on Equity. In 2008 Starbucks Return on equity was 21.10% and in 2009 it fell to 19.64% (Starbucks Investor Relations- Financial Release, 2009). This is a negative trend for Starbucks. Investors do not want to lose money! The decrease was minimal, yet it was a decrease. Overall the company has solid financials. This one negative issue can become a major problem if Starbucks continues to make decisions that allow shareholders equity to decrease. *Return on Equity 2009 2008 Net Income Common Equity 598.23045.7 525.82490.9 19.64% 21.10% *All numbers are in millions Conclusion In conclusion, Starbucks has proven itself to be a good investment for any investor. The organization has been in the business for 30 years and has showed substantial growth throughout. The organization started out with one location and has grown to over 15,000, which are located throughout the globe. The organization as a whole strives to uphold ethical behavior, not only set by the SEC but as well as for them. Not only does the organization uphold a high ethical behavior for them but as well only does business with those who have the same mentality. This was proven by being ranked one of the most ethical places to work and this was according to Ethisphere.com. Even though there was a small decrease in the return on equity from 2008 to 2009, which consequently could be because of the recession that most businesses have been affected by, Starbucks has still proven strong that the organization is still a good investment. The organization has shown an increase in profit and a decrease in debt. All and all, Starbucks is a good investment for anyone who is interested in getting into the business, which the organization has shown through good business decisions and ethical behaviors. Reference Keown, A. J., Martin, J. D., Petty, W. J., & Scott, D. F. (2005). Financial Management: Principles and Applications. Pearson Prentice Hall. Retrieved online on November 22, 2010 located at https://portal.phoenix.edu/classroom/coursematerials/fin_370/20101109/. Starbucks Investor Relations- Financial Release. (2009, 11 4). Retrieved November 20, 2010, from Starbucks: http://investor.starbucks.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=99518&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1492291&highlight= SEC. Gov, (2010). The Investor’s Advocate: How the SEC Protects Investors, Maintains Market Integrity, and Facilitates Capital Formation. Retrieved on November 22, 2010 online located at http://www.sec.gov/about/laws/sea34.pdf Starbucks. (2010). About Us. Retrieved online on November 22, 2010 from http://www.Starbucks.com Starbucks website, (2010). Investor relations. Retrieved on November 22, 2010 from Starbucks website http://www.starbucks.com Starbucks website, (2010). Annual Report. Retrieved from Starbucks website on November 20, 2010: http://www.starbucks.com

World Literature: Touch in Pedro Paramo and Dom Casmurro

In novels as sensual as Pedro Paramo and Dom Casmurro, it is not surprising that the authors employ a variety of literary techniques and imagery. Amongst them, not as prominent as the sense of hearing but still salient, is the sense of touch. I will examine how narrators in Dom Casmurro and Pedro Paramo use the sense of touch to reveal their inner motivations and feelings about a situation or character. Touch can symbolize relationships. When two characters touch shoulders in Pedro Paramo, for example, this seems to show siblinghood.Juan and Abundio walk â€Å"side by side, so close [their] shoulders [are] nearly touching† (5). Juan and Abundio turn out to be half brothers. They share a father and are nearly brothers, just as their shoulders nearly touch, but their different mothers create both a genetic and physical gap between them. Later in the story, Donis’s sister â€Å"[goes] to stand beside him, leaning against his shoulder† (53). Their shoulders do not me rely touch, which would confirm that they are siblings; she leans against Donis, suggesting their relationship extends beyond a familial one.Although this has already been strongly implied, Donis’s sister leans against Donis before asking Juan whether he truly understands the relationship between her and Donis. Rulfo has already revealed that they are incestuous, but the action coupled with her question shows that neither the reader nor Juan realizes fully the nature of this relationship. Like Rulfo, Machado de Assis uses one way of touching, in his case, men brushing against Capitu’s arms, in different situations. This results in different repercussions. Capitu’s shapely arms draw attention whenever she and Bento attend balls.However, during the first night they are merely admired and when other men touch her it seems incidental, innocuous: â€Å"however much they might touch other frock coats† (183). Bento mentions this touch fleetingly. His focus is on Capitu’s arms, not male attention. On the second night, the men are crasser, going from admiring to staring, â€Å"almost begging for them, and brushed their black sleeves against them† (183). Bento lingers more on the males’ touching and less on Capitu’s arms, like he is more concerned about the attention his wife is garnering than the object of the attention.The details he notes also speak of his uneasiness. Whereas during the first night, the men wear gentlemanly frock coats, the second night they are dressed in black, which can symbolize evilness. As a matter of fact, detail is used in both Dom Casmurro and Pedro Paramo by the narrators to reveal their feelings about other characters. When either narrator describes the touching at length, or notices even the smallest aspects of it, he shows how important this touch is to him. As young Pedro Paramo and Susana San Juan fly kites together, Pedro urges, â€Å"‘Help me, Susana. ’ And soft ha nds would tighten on [his]† (12).The fact that Pedro notes Susana’s hands are soft suggests that he harbours a liking for her, for to notice her soft hands, he would need to pay more attention to her hands than the string he is letting out or the kite he is flying. This action is also indicative of their relationship. Susana is Pedro’s lifelong love, and though she enjoys his company and likes him, it is only as a friend. Thus, while she is simply happy to fly kites with him and tightens her hands around his only to help him let out more string, Pedro takes note of how she acts around him and treasures her harmless actions.They appear much more meaningful to him than to her. Machado de Assis uses details in very similar circumstances. As Bento combs Capitu’s hair, â€Å"[his] fingers [brush] her neck, or her back with its cotton dress: it [is] a delicious sensation† (64). He does not simply concentrate on the task at hand, he takes pleasure in accid ental touches, no matter how minor, just like Pedro. While this can show the reader his sexual inexperience, as he has not seemed to have had a romantic encounter previously and thus enjoys a seemingly chaste activity, it also shows his affection for Capitu.If Bento was combing the hair of another girl, he may not notice such minor details. The contact may also not feel as delicious. He also touches Capitu although it is not necessary to do so. Even if this is accidental, he does not make a move to shy away from it, suggesting that he wants to touch Capitu and likes her in a more-than-platonic fashion. The fact that he brushes her hair is also significant. Hair is considered a symbol of femininity, especially long hair. Combing her hair could put Bento in a position of power.In fact, in the chapter after he combs her hair, Bento â€Å"[utters] these proud words: ‘I am a man! ’† (67). Hair is important when looking at their history, as well. When Bento thinks abou t his and Capitu’s past, he remembers how she â€Å"ran her hand through [his] hair, saying she thought it was very beautiful† (24). However, he never reciprocated. By touching him so, and through other gestures such as counting his fingers, Capitu demonstrates her affection for him and shows that she is aware of her fondness.Bento remains oblivious, though, as shown by his lack of response. After he realizes that he too feels warmly about Capitu, he asks to brush her hair, proving both to himself and Capitu that he is finally aware of his feelings. In Dom Casmurro, touch can reveal character traits. Ezequiel is shown to be a warm and affectionate boy: â€Å"Ezequiel hugged [Bento’s] knees, stood up on the tips of his toes, as if to climb up and give [Bento] his usual kiss† (229). He is comfortable with touching his father, and does so regularly to illustrate his love.This can be contrasted with Jose Dias who, even when everyone else is hugging and kissin g Bento farewell, remains â€Å"composed and grave† (98) and does not touch Bento at all. Jose Dias is not cold, but occasionally his respect and charm seem debatably genuine. Moments such as when he does not hug Bento farewell add on to this idea. In Pedro Paramo, Juan Preciado does not touch the residents of Comala when he arrives. He cannot; they are ghosts while he is still alive. Donis’s sister touching his shoulder is the first time touch occurs in Juan’s Comala. She is also the first living person he encounters.Although there is some disagreement over whether Juan actually died when â€Å"[his] soul turned to ice† (59), the fact that Dorotea is dead and lying in his arms, touching him, suggests that if he can touch the dead, then he is dead also. Moments of change are expressed through touch as well. After Bento sees that Capitu carved ‘Bento and ‘Capitolina’ into the wall, their hands â€Å"[took] hold of each other, clasping e ach other, melting into one another† (28). Whereas previously mutual touching was done in childish jest, and Bento was oblivious to Capitu’s attraction to him, now they touch each other with the ntention of holding hands like lovers. â€Å"Melting into one another† (28) can also show how they are thinking as one – they both feel the same way toward each other. When Donis leaves, Juan wakes up beside Donis’s sister. The majority of the tactile imagery thus far has been brief and subtle, but here Juan can â€Å"feel the woman’s naked legs against [his] knee, and her breath upon [his] face† (55). After being unable to touch the ghosts, Juan is all of a sudden pressed against a woman, a gesture that stands out from previous paragraphs due to its straight-forwardness.For Juan, it appears that the physical contact is like having to take care of the woman; neither pleasant nor unpleasant, simply thrust-upon and unexpected. Unlike in Dom Casmu rro, even feelings about environment can be revealed through touch in Pedro Paramo. As Juan approaches Comala, he observes that he and Abundio â€Å"[have] left the hot wind behind and [are] sinking into pure, airless heat. The stillness [seems] to be waiting for something† (5). While this airless heat adds on to the atmosphere, it also shows Juan’s state of mind.The surroundings in this scene mirror Juan’s mood, showing that he is waiting for something too. He may not expect to find his father, but he is coming with Comala with expectations, and the closer he gets to the town, the closer he is to finding out the truth. The sense of touch is an important tool in both Pedro Paramo and Dom Casmurro. It can reveal aspects of character personality, relationships and inner thoughts and motivations. This symbolism, coupled with the other literary techniques Machado de Assis and Rulfo employ, helps create the vivid alternate reality of the novels. Word count: 1470 word s