Organisation on learning Essay Example for Free

Organisation on learning Essay Background: Previous research suggests that the organisation of information is integral to its storage in and recall from memory. Aim: Differences with regard to the use of categorisation of information have been observed between cultures and age groups, so the aim is to find out the degree to which categorisation affects the learning of information in 16-18 year olds. Method: 20 participants aged 16-18 had 60 seconds to learn as many words as they could from a grid containing 24 words. The grid contained 6 words in 4 different semantic categories and was either categorised (control) or randomised (experimental). Participants then recalled as many of the words as they could. The amount of words that they recalled was observed. Results: The difference in the number of words remembered between the two conditions was found to be insignificant when put to the independent t-test and tested at the 0.05 level. In fact, participants in Condition B (randomised) recalled more words on average than those in Condition A (organised). However, participants in Condition B showed 68.83% categorisation upon recall, compared with 0.5% that would have been shown if participants recalled the words in the order that they appeared on the radomised grid. Conclusion: The results suggest that the degree of organisation of information upon presentation does not affect the amount of information remembered. However, the actual process of mentally organising the information may be a significant factor in the amount of information remembered. Individual differences may affect the way the information is organised, but this study found that categorical organisation was the most common form of this. Introduction Much evidence suggests that information in memory is highly organised, and that we remember large amounts of information by associating it with other similar pieces of information already stored. It may even be that the organisation of information is a prerequisite for information to be stored; for example, Mandler (1967) stated that memory and organization are not only correlated, but organization is a necessary condition for memory. From this viewpoint, it follows that, by definition, any information stored in the memory must be organised somehow. It may also be that the organisation of information upon presentation facilitates its storage, and that if information is not organised, people will attempt to create their own methods of organisation (Tulving, 1968). Categorical clustering is a term coined by Bousfield (1953) in order to describe one type of organisation in learning. In his research, he presented participants with a list of 60 words (15 from 4 different categories: animals, anthroponyms, professions and vegetables) and asked participants to free-recall the list. He found that, despite not having been told what the categories were, participants tended to recall the words according to their category and thus demonstrated the phenomenon. Bower et al. (1969) presented participants with words which were arranged into conceptual hierarchies. For one group, these were arranged in hierarchical form, and for the other they were listed randomly. The participants who were presented with the words in hierarchical form recalled almost 31/2 times as many words as those to whom they were presented randomly, suggesting that the organisation of the words upon presentation facilitated their storage in memory. A similar trait has also been observed with naturally occurring stimuli. Rubin and Olson (1980) asked students to recall the names of as many members of staff in their school as they could, and found that students showed a strong tendency for the members of staffs names to be recalled by their respective departments. This also shows evidence for categorical organisation. They further found that students who re-arranged word cards into more categories remembered more words on average than those who created less categories, and that those who were not told to actively remember the words, instead just sort them, remembered the same amount as those asked to remember them. These indicate that not only does categorisation increase the amount of information remembered, but the active process of organisation may even cause the information to be remembered. More support that organisation and learning are intertwined comes from Kahana and Wingfield (2000), who found that the relation between organisation and learning remained the same even after significant differences between participants mnemonic abilities had been taken into account.  One case study which suggests that memory is highly organised comes from Hart et al. (1985). Having almost made a complete recovery from a stroke two years previously, M.D. experienced no problems except that he was unable to name different types of fruit and vegetable or sort them into categories. However, he was able to name and sort types of food, for example, and vehicles, which suggests that his inability to carry out these tasks was limited to specific semantic categories. Aims The findings of this previous research suggest that organisation does play a large role in the storage, structuring and restructuring of information in memory. However, organisation does not necessarily imply categorisation, which is what will be tested here. Also, in a similar way that Gutchess et al. (2006) found that age and culture affected the way in which categorisation was used in memory, it may be that young people in turn use it differently. So, the following experiment aims to investigate the effects of organisation on learning in 16-18 year-olds. More specifically, it will investigate the degree to which organisation of information upon presentation affects the storage and recall of words presented in a randomised grid. Following on from research by Bower et al. (1969) and Rubin and Olson (1980), two hypotheses have been drawn:  Experimental hypothesis  Participants will recall, on average, fewer words when the words given are listed randomly, than will the participants for whom the words are listed categorically.

Analytical Review Of From Out Of The Shadows History Essay

Analytical Review Of From Out Of The Shadows History Essay From Out of the Shadows is a study of Mexican women, who had migrated to America before the World Wars, their struggles and achievements. Vicki L. Ruiz is a professor of History and Chicano/Latino studies , University of California and has authored a number of books including the well known book Cannery Women, Cannery Lives. Vicki L. Ruiz exposes the strife the Mexican women had to face after crossing the border early in the century. The book tells us about the endeavors of these courageous and enterprising women and the society they helped to build in an alien land, quite often under hostile conditions. In her book she writes From Out of the Shadows focuses on the claiming of personal and public spaces across generations (Ruiz, xi). Ruiz was motivated to chronicle this aspect of American history by the stories she heard as a child from her mother and grand-mother. Her imagination was kindled by the images of village life, the difficult living conditions and the discrimination women faced in those days. From Out of the Shadows also emphasizes the different types of political activism in which the Mexican-American women participated and created public awareness, which included fighting for the cause of civil rights and organized protests against the Vietnam War. For a newer edition of this book, Ruiz has added a preface that carries on the story of the Mexican womens experience in America and traces the growth of Latino history. The book describes the first exodus of women crossing the border from Mexico to California seeking refuge from tyrannical husbands or in search of a better life earlier on in the century. Over one million Mexican men and women migrated al otro lado between 1910 and 1930 (Ruiz: 6) Ruiz throws light on the effort made by protestant groups in an attempt to Americanize the Mexicans but whose efforts generally failed because the Mexican women relied on their own community groups like the rural community groups, religious groups and labor unions to help them absorb into mainstream American society. The book talks about the conflict that arose between mothers and daughters when the daughters were forbidden to use makeup and the mothers insisted that teenage girls attend a dance or go for social outings like movies with a chaperone. What this book reveals is a portrayal of a distinct culture in America, one that has slowly gained momentum and richness in the past several years. From Out of the Shadows is a significant contribution to the largely unrecorded and undocumented history of Mexican-American women. She has chosen to integrate the cultural diversity based on gender, class, region and generational experiences. She has used a variety of sources in her research such as records of census, journals and scholarly texts. In the introduction, Ruiz tells her readers that Mexican women have made history, no matter what their occupations. However, somehow their tales have remained in the shadows (Ruiz xi). In her work, Ruiz has tried to address the issues of interpreting these unheard voices and defining strength within individuals, families and communities. Conventionally the history of America has focused on the Northern European immigrants and their progeny as the settlers in a male dominated, capitalist society. In her writing, Ruiz demonstrates the hardships the Mexican women faced in their journey to become a part of the American community. Ruiz draws upon the lives of women, their dreams, aspirations and decisions and gives these issues a platform. She examines the influx of Mexican women into the States before World War II. Her writing also illustrates their responses to the pressures and challenges of adjusting to the newly forming American culture and Americanization of society in general. The women had to live with altered social values during the inter-war period and the end of young Mexican American women who took to chaperoning. The increasing political and social activism of Mexican women and their role in resisting financial oppression as well as their espousal of the cause of feminism through the 1960s and 70s has been faithfully chronicled in the pages of this book. As yet not much has been documented and published about the activities and importance of Mexican women in twentieth century America. In that perspective this book may be considered as a pioneering attempt to record the contribution of Mexican women in building a multicultural American society. The book is full of interesting anecdotes and tales of how the women struggled to make sense of an alien world, into which they had migrated, and of their efforts to make their lives and of those around them meaningful. The thoughtful way in which personal interviews of Mexican women with very long memories and lots of stories to tell, adds poignancy to the text. The narrative increases the readers admiration for the courage and doggedness displayed by these women in their struggle to realize their rights and for a chance to get equal opportunities, work and wages. To present an unbiased analysis of the book one must draw attention towards some of the draw backs in the book as well. While this is a monumental effort to chronicle the contribution of Mexican women and the integration of Latino people to the American society it becomes hard to comprehend the frequent use of jargon that impacts the flow of the narrative. In portions the author becomes too involved in the account and loses sense objectivity and neutral research. Ruiz, however, admits that she has written from the heart (p.xii) and this kind of impassioned approach may appeal to a good many of her readers. Readers looking at this book as a traditional source of historical data may find this approach subjective and a bit unconventional. It must be emphasized here that the data collected and recorded in this book is of great importance to students of American history and to all those generations of Mexican-American people who have now become assimilated in the multicultural American so ciety. The book will find a ready readership amongst scholars in who are taking courses or researching in the areas of Diaspora, immigration and ethnic studies. It is also an asset for teachers who have to teach courses in this filed. This book is of special interest to women all over the world and to anyone who wishes to learn about the Mexican settlers in America and the contribution Mexican-American women have made to the development, organization and sustenance of Latino culture in the American society. Through the pages of this book Vicki Ruiz has truly rescued the Mexican- American woman and drawn them From Out of the Shadows. Work Cited: Ruiz, V.L. 2008. From Out of the Shadows: Mexican Women in Twentieth Century America. New York: Oxford University Press. Print. .

Awareness and Attitude of Radiographers Towards Protection

Awareness and Attitude of Radiographers Towards Protection Nor Atiqah Binti Mohd Fouzi RESEARCH TITLE Awareness and attitude of radiographers towards radiation protection PROBLEM STATEMENT The term ‘radiation’ covers a wide spectrum of different forms of energy, most of which have been suspected to cause ill health to human-beings (Mubeen et al., 2008). The use of ionizing radiation in diagnostic radiography may lead to hazards such as somatic and genetic damages. In addition to the use of ionizing radiation for diagnosis could be have slight chances of damage to living tissues. The effects of low level exposure to ionizing radiation are of a concern to large number of people. For example radiology department has the potential to present the harmful effects of radiation (Mojiri and Moghimbeigi, 2011). Thus Personal protection devices is an important way to address the ‘as low as reasonably achievable’ (ALARA) requirement in radiography. However, its use relies on the attitudes of radiographer to consistently adhere to professional conduct requirements relating to the application of protection devices especially for lead apron, thyroid shield, gonad shield, radiation sign, lead glove and lead goggles (MacKay et al., 2012). Awareness and knowledge of application protection guidelines and instruments among radiology technicians is vital to ensure a safe workplace. Compliance with work and safe radiation protection practices can reduce these risks. The protective measures provided are implemented, to ensure that the risks associated with the use of diagnostic ionizing radiation can be reduced. Therefore, the effect of radiation to the patient or the person responsible for the use of radiation would increase the risk of harm to them. Thus this research intended to answer the question, does radiographer aware of radiation protection and its attitude toward radiation protection? OBJECTIVES General objective The objective of this research to assess the awareness and attitude of radiographers on radiation protection at medical imaging department. Specific objectives To evaluate awareness regarding radiation safety among radiographers. To evaluate personal practices regarding the use of protection devices among radiographers. RESEARCH HYPHOTHESIS Hypothesis 1 Null Hypothesis: The radiographers with low level of work experiences had less knowledge about adverse effects due of radiation. Alternative Hypothesis: The radiographers with high level of work experiences had more knowledge about adverse effects due of radiation. Hypothesis 2 Null Hypothesis: The radiographers with low level of education had less personal practice regarding the use of protection devices. Alternative Hypothesis: The radiographers with high level of education had further personal practice regarding the use of protection devices. LITERATURE REVIEW Radiological examinations are an essential tool for the evaluation of many disorders in daily practice. Ionizing radiation in medical imaging is one of the powerful diagnostic tools in medicine. Radiation which is applied in radiology departments has hazardous effects on biological systems. They produce some type of injury that is incurable. Although all medical interventions have potential benefits, but its potential risks should not be ignored. The cancers risks arise with radiation have been known. Ionizing radiation may effects on gastrointestinal system, central nervous system, gonads or even whole body. These effects may appear as somatic effects or in next generation as genetic effects (Mojiri and Moghimbeigi, 2011). Doses of whatever magnitude are assumed by International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) to be able to induce what are referred to as †stochastic effects† such as cancers and hereditary disorders (Yucel et al., 2009). Dose-dependent effects are called as â€Å"deterministic effects† that may be responsible for teratogenicity in diagnostic radiology. These effects are also useful for cancer therapy. Radiation therapy uses high-energy radiation to shrink tumors and kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy is sometimes given with curative intent that is, with the hope that the treatment will cure a cancer, either by eliminating a tumor, preventing cancer recurrence, or both (Yucel et al., 2009). To minimize the probability of stochastic effects and prevent deterministic effects, the practice of radiology is guided by the radiation protection framework established by the ICRP. One of the important principles of this framework is that of optimization, meaning the use of as low as reasonably achievable (ALARA) dose without compromising the quality of the image. Optimization, therefore, involves strategies to manage the radiation dose to the patient (Seeram et al., 2013). In addition, a common pattern was the use of automatic exposure control (AEC) and the measurement of constant effective dose, and the use of a dose-area product (DAP) meter (Warlow et al., 2014). Many studies showed that knowledge about ionizing radiation was insufficient among radiographer and physicians who requested radiological procedures, even radiologists who should have had more information than non-radiologists (Yucel et al., 2009). Radiation protection is the science and art of protecting people and the environment from the harmful effects of ionizing radiation. It is also described as all activities directed towards minimizing radiation exposure of patients and personnel during x-ray exposure. Thus occupational radiation protection is necessity whenever radiation is used in the practice of medicine. Occupational radiation protection measures are necessary for all individuals who work in the diagnostic imaging departments. This includes not only technologists and nurses, but also individuals who may be in a radiation environment only occasionally. All of these individuals may be considered radiation workers, depending on their level of exposure and on national regulations. All workers require appropriate monitoring continuously by common personnel dosimeters like film badge and thermo luminescence dosimeter. They must also receive education and training appropriate to their jobs and protect by tools and equipment. The amount of absorbed dose is related to exposure factors such as kV/ potential difference and mA/ intensity of the beam and time. Personnel protective devices applied for the employee to work safely with the construction of a dose reduction of exposure to personnel. Moreover development and refinement of basic safety standards has a great important role to protect radiology staffs. The level of awareness concerning with radiation protection influences in staff behavior is important. If they have not enough information related to mentioned issue, their action will not be safe and resulted to adverse effects (Mojiri and Moghimbeigi, 2011). METHODOLOGY Study Design Study design will be the cross-sectional study in which the information gather from at least 40 respondents, randomly pick and will be analyzed. Time is provided to them to answer all of the questions in the questionnaire and they need to return back the questionnaire after they finished answering it. All of the data that get from the questionnaires is considered as confidential and all the data will key-in to evaluate the knowledge and attitude of radiographers towards radiation protection. Study Setting This study will be conducted at the hospital will be my practical. Sampling Design and Sample Size In this study, a sample selection of 40 radiographers who have answered the designated questionnaire will be randomly taken out from the target population. Inclusion criteria All radiographer who work in that hospital. Exclusion criteria Clinical students. Research Flow Data Collection Procedures The data collection of 40 respondents will be collected using questionnaires. Radiographers are given questionnaires. They will be asked to fill up the questionnaire. The questionnaire will be asses their awareness regarding radiation safety and their personal practices regarding the use of these protection devices. In producing the questionnaires, I adapted the questionnaires from the previous study which are Takakuwa et al., 2010, Baumann et al, 2011, Sin et al., 2012 Larson et al., 2007. The questionnaires were divided into two sections. The questionnaire has mainly two parts with various questions around radiation protection and safety related to staff and patients. The first part contained information about demographic data like age, sex, work experiences and etc. The second section was about awareness and attitude of employees around protection acts, protection device and dose limit. All the data and details then will be gathered using the standard version of SPSS version 18.0 for windows will be used in a statistical analysis. Data analyzed by Chi square and Fisher exact tests to detect relationship between categorical data. 7.6 Research Tools This study will use hand-out questionnaires in order to obtain data from respondents. Participants for this research are selected when they had finished doing a case related to medical imaging and research done during radiographer have free time. The set of questionnaires set for response are attached in Appendix 1. 7.7 Statistical Consideration The data will be analyzed using SPSS version 18.0. All the data from the data collection form will be gathered to and key in into this software. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies and percentages were used to show the relative proportion of radiographer selecting given answers for each question. Chi square and Fisher exact tests will be used to detect relationship between categorical data. ETHICAL CONSIDERATION Research questions pursued in this study are relevant to important health care issues. This study also justified based on the potential scientific value of its results. Statistical procedures to be carried out during this study will be appropriate, and will not be used to manipulate the data just to get significant results. This final result of this study will be published in a thorough and honesty during reporting. Data information that will collect from the respondent will be private and confidential. Approval for this study will be sought from the Faculty of Health Science, MARA University of Technology, which is associated with Imaging Diagnostic Department at the hospital that I would practically then. Furthermore, researchers will complete and sign the application of research ethics to be approved by the Faculty of Health Sciences, MARA University of Technology, to declare that the research has been tied to ethical principles. A copy of the proposal and agreement of the investigation will be included. Head of department and institution approval will submit personally to the respective institutional by the researcher for approval. BUDGET The calculation of estimated budget for this research includes the travelling cost, printing cost, and photocopy. Below is the table of the estimating cost. Table 1: Estimated Cost of the Project PROPOSED TIME FRAME FOR THE PROJECT A Gantt chart is a planning tool that shows graphically the order in which various tasks must be completed and the duration of each activity. Look at table 2 below on the planning of the study to be conducted. Table 2: Gants Chart of the Project

Comparing Barn Burning and Pauls Case :: comparison compare contrast essays

Barn Burning and Paul's Case The stories "Barn Burning" written by William Faulkner and "Paul's Case" written by Willa Cather both have two separate characters with very similar troubles. Each has a uniquely sad narrative. "Barn Burning" is a sad story because it not only shows the classical struggle between the underprivileged and the privileged classes, but also the struggle between a father and his son, Sarty. Together, these two boys share comparable lifestyles. Each has conflicts with his father, fantasize of a wealthier existence, and flee from the tribulations in his life. Sarty's main dilemma is his loyalty to his family, which collides with his disappointment and suppressed dislike for his own father. He tends to hide his feelings by denying the facts, "our enemy he thought in that despair: ourn! mine and his both! He's my father!" (Faulkner 171). Sarty appears to be fearful of his father: "If I would have said they wanted only truth, justice, he would have hit me again. But now he said nothing. He was not crying. He jut stood there." (Faulkner 173) In comparison, Paul and his father also have conflicts and Paul too seems to be afraid of his own father. He decides that he would much rather spend the night in the cellar of his house than go inside and face his father. Paul does not feel as much at home when he is at his father's house as he does at Carnegie Hall where he works as an usher and spends most of his time. Paul's teachers and his father believe his working at the theater affects his schooling. As a result, Paul's father takes him out of school and forces him to work for a company referred to only as the firm of Denny and Carson as an office boy. Paul's dream to live like the stars is taken away when his father forbids him to work, visit, or go anywhere near the theater. It is at Carnegie Hall that Paul became struck by the glitter and the starlight of the stage. He is not star struck in the sense that he wanted to perform in any way; he is simply content to observe others' performances.

Science of Microwave Heating :: microwave oven

The microwave oven, a tool that we use often in our busy lives to heat up foods when we just don't have the time or patience for a conventional oven to do its work. How does this device work? It's pretty simple if we use the basics of physics to explain it. Vibrations from the high frequency radio waves cause the water and fat cells in food to generate heat through friction of the molecules. An example of this using a turkey shows the molecules positive and negative particles acting through these vibrations to cause friction. J. Carlton Gallawa -- http://www.gallawa.com/microtech/howcook.html "In microwave cooking, the radio waves penetrate the food and excite water and fat molecules pretty much evenly throughout the food. There is no "heat having to migrate toward the interior by conduction". There is heat everywhere all at once because the molecules are all excited together. There are limits of course. Radio waves penetrate unevenly in thick pieces of food (they don't make it all the way to the middle), and there are also "hot spots" caused by wave interference, but you get the idea. The whole heating process is different because you are "exciting atoms" rather than "conducting heat"." -- Howstuffworks.com From Wikipedia.org: "Microwaves, also known as Super High Frequency (SHF) signals, have wavelengths approximately in the range of 30 cm (1 GHz) to 1 mm (300 GHz)." and "A microwave oven uses a magnetron microwave generator to produce microwaves at a frequency of approximately 2.4 GHz for the purpose of cooking food. Microwaves cook food by causing molecules of water and other compounds to vibrate. The vibration creates heat which warms the food. Since organic matter is made up primarily of water, food is easily cooked by this method." From http://www.gallawa.com/microtech/howcook.html: "Microwaves possess three basic characteristics: * Just as sunlight shines through a window, microwaves pass right through some materials. Materials such as glass, paper, and plastic are transparent to and generally unaffected by microwaves. * Microwaves are reflected by metal surfaces, much as a ball would bounce off a wall. The metal walls of the cooking space actually form a cavity resonator. In other words, the enclosure is designed to resonate the microwaves as they are radiated from the magnetron tube. The principle of resonance may be illustrated using sound waves. When a piano key is struck, it produces sound vibrations or sound waves. Sometimes a note is played on a piano, and an object across the room, perhaps a wineglass, can be heard vibrating and producing the same sound.

Leo Tolstoys The Death of Ivan Ilyich Essay -- The Death of Ivan Ilyi

Death of Ivan Ilych 1. Characterize the following individuals   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Peter Ivanovich   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gerasim   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Proskovya Fedorovna   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Vasya Indicate, as well, the ways, in which these individuals help or hinder Ivan Ilych’s spiritual growth. 2. How do (a) the stories associated with the Baal Shem Tov and (b) the biblical tale of Elisha in Damascus illustrate the spiritual journey undertaken by Ivan Ilych? 1. Peter Ivanovich (known from now on as PI) was Ivan’s dearest friend. PI and Ivan have known each other all their lives yet at Ivan’s funeral PI shows no deep remorse. All that PI really thinks about is the vacancy that Ivan has left at work. He like other people, thinks that relationships are just about achieving ones own agenda. And such loving and compassionate relationships do not exist. Another situation that PI has is that after his selfish like behavior he is characterized by a desire to avoid the unpleasant. This is shown when PI skirts the topic of Ivan’s death and â€Å"drags his feet† when it comes time to attend the funeral. He has a problem with confronting the aspect of his own mortality. PI never quite makes the transition to the true understanding of the nature of life that Ivan had made and Gerasim as well. Even though upon leaving Ivan’s funeral PI evokes the observation that it is God’s will that everybody dies someday. His receptivity and consciousness make him stand out amongst society. If one looks at PI’s last name of Ivan... Leo Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich Essay -- The Death of Ivan Ilyi Death of Ivan Ilych 1. Characterize the following individuals   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Peter Ivanovich   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gerasim   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Proskovya Fedorovna   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Vasya Indicate, as well, the ways, in which these individuals help or hinder Ivan Ilych’s spiritual growth. 2. How do (a) the stories associated with the Baal Shem Tov and (b) the biblical tale of Elisha in Damascus illustrate the spiritual journey undertaken by Ivan Ilych? 1. Peter Ivanovich (known from now on as PI) was Ivan’s dearest friend. PI and Ivan have known each other all their lives yet at Ivan’s funeral PI shows no deep remorse. All that PI really thinks about is the vacancy that Ivan has left at work. He like other people, thinks that relationships are just about achieving ones own agenda. And such loving and compassionate relationships do not exist. Another situation that PI has is that after his selfish like behavior he is characterized by a desire to avoid the unpleasant. This is shown when PI skirts the topic of Ivan’s death and â€Å"drags his feet† when it comes time to attend the funeral. He has a problem with confronting the aspect of his own mortality. PI never quite makes the transition to the true understanding of the nature of life that Ivan had made and Gerasim as well. Even though upon leaving Ivan’s funeral PI evokes the observation that it is God’s will that everybody dies someday. His receptivity and consciousness make him stand out amongst society. If one looks at PI’s last name of Ivan...

Critical appreciation of the poem “Old Ladies’ Home” by Sylvia Plath with reference to the presentation of old age

George Orwell, one of English literature's most important and famous writers, draws the picture of a dystopia in one of his best known novels 1984. Being considered as a warning against totalitarianism, it is also possible to say that the novel puts forth a road map on how totalitarian regimes work and how certain ideologies are imposed on nations. Creating a world in which the worst possible totalitarian regime is present, Orwell also takes a very close look at the psychological states of people. The writer doesn't only deeply analyze what a totalitarian regime stands for but also introduces the themes of the importance of language, how certain ideologies can be imposed on people and how physical pain can control the human mind. Putting stress on the dreadfulness and the destructive nature of totalitarianism, and also by pointing out that nations can in fact be forced to admire and support such a regime, the writer makes his reader face the cruelest and most realistic aspects of such a horrific repressive regime. Before taking a closer look at the novel, it would be helpful to give background information about the era in which Orwell was influenced to create such a hellish world. 1984 was written in 1949, when Fascism was on the rise, right after the Second World War, when Hitler was defeated and Stalin had performed his cruelest acts. Having worked in Spain in 1936 during the Spanish civil war, Orwell witnessed the cruelty of fascist regimes and had already collected his dreadful memories which lead him to write his political novels. Regarding Orwell's intention in writing 1984, Jenni Calder in her book Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four states: To anyone who was in Britain in the years immediately after the Second World War, and particularly in London, the sights and smell that Orwell recreates will be familiar†¦ In 1984 he translates this situation in to the future by adding details that are unfamiliar (57). Thus, it becomes possible to say that as a result of the world's existing state at the time Orwell wrote 1984, he was deeply concerned about the future and that his pessimist attitude in his novel acted as a warning and as a criticism of totalitarian regimes. Adriaan M. De Lange, in his book The Influence of Political Bias in Selected Essays of George Orwell says, â€Å"The rise of Fascism, Nazism and Stalinist communism in Europe and the resultant tremors in Britain left an indelible mark on Orwell's thought and work (1). † At this point taking a closer look at Orwell's intentions in writing 1984 from the perspective of the Marxist Hungarian critic Georg Lukacs would be convenient. Due to his theory of â⠂¬Å"Reflection† Lukacs claims that literary works would reflect the hidden aspects of the social and political era in which they are written. Parallel to Lukacs' â€Å"Reflection† theory, Orwell reflects his concerns deriving from the political state in which he lives through fiction. Regarding 1984 Calder states, â€Å"Orwell is underlining a psychological as well as a political truth here, which is demonstrated in the kind of mass embracing of authorial influence that came with the rise of Nazism and Stalinism (63). † While the era in which 1984 was written marks itself with political depressions, it also hints that the world was within a phase when totalitarian and fascist regimes were condemned as a result of the devilish acts of Hitler and Stalin. While taking a closer look at the book and the themes it introduces to the reader, the theme of the importance of language gains significance. â€Å"Newspeak†, Oceania's official language, consists of limited words which are created by party members. The language totally deletes some words which are present in the English language such as â€Å"excellent† or â€Å"splendid† and replaces them with an extremely plain word such as â€Å"plusgood†. Changing the language and limiting it in number of words becomes a matter of importance since language is one of the most important tools of expression and thought for human beings. Deleting complex words and limiting language also limits the thoughts of people and enables the party to delete certain concepts from people's minds. As Syme explains Winston how important it is to change the language he says, â€Å"Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thought crime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it (60). † Analyzing Syme's comment on language, the reader comes to the realization that it is the language itself that makes people think. Hence it becomes understandable that being a totalitarian regime, the party doesn't want its people to think, since thinking may lead to original ideas and thus to through crime. By lowering the language to a very simple state, the party cleverly paralyzes the brains of its people and disables them from thinking. As Syme continues to explain the real aim of the party in creating Newspeak, he also mentions one important topic about language forming concepts. He says: How could you have a slogan like â€Å"Freedom is Slavery† when the concept of freedom has been abolished? The whole climate of thought will be different. In fact there will be no thought, as we understand it now. Orthodoxy means not thinking-not needing to think. Orthodoxy is unconsciousness (61). In trying to understand Syme's remark on language, it might be useful to think of Ferdinand de Saussure's theory that discusses whether concepts or objects would really exist if they were not expressed in language. According to Saussure, what makes a concept present is the language itself. He claims that the world is a whole and that the language divides this whole in to separate pieces to make it become more understandable. Thus, a concept or an object which isn't expressed by language wouldn't exist. When â€Å"Newspeak† is concerned, one may claim the same thing. If the word â€Å"Freedom† doesn't exist in Oceania anymore, there wouldn't be such a concept. Thus, one of the most important problems that threaten the party would be removed. When these facts are concerned, simplifying language and removing words that are used to express threatening concepts, would perfectionalize the regime in terms of the obedience of people. Another remarkable aspect about language is that it is one of the most important things that make human beings privileged when compared to animals. As a result of the ability to think, human beings can speak. Thus, decreasing language to a minimum level in words and expression also means the dehumanization of human beings. Limiting people's one and very important ability to think and speak, the party tries to dehumanize human beings and make them become animal-like creatures. Hence, it would be far easier for the party to have full control over its citizens. While language plays a major role in shifting people's thoughts to fit in the Totalitarian regime, another striking aspect of the novel is the theme of how certain ideologies can be imposed on people. As a starting point, the party chooses to change and destruct the past. Replacing true history with a fictional one which glorifies Oceania makes the already powerful party become even more invincible. As it is stated in the novel: And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed-if all records told the same tale-then the lie passed into history and became truth. Who controls the past,' ran the Party slogan, ‘controls the future: Who controls the present controls the past. ‘ And yet the past, though of its nature alterable, never had been altered (40). The party creates a kind of reality by creating a past of its own. Since when there's no one who has any historical documents saying that the party's history is shifted from the truth, the party's recreated history w ill become the truth. Hoping that there should be more than this in life, Winston tries to find a proof that the past wasn't always like this and that the past was based on a much better world. Winston tries to link himself with the past. He writes a diary using a pen. The pen, being an object belonging to the past, symbolizes Winston's need for the past and trying to find a little something which would connect him the past that he doesn't know about. Thus, the manipulation of history, in this sense, is directly related to the manipulation of people living in Oceania. Thinking that the world has always been like this, people don't have any expectations from the future and they accept the current regime in all its ways, since they don't have alternatives. However, when Winston is concerned, he is one of the rare citizens who think that the past couldn't be like this and that there was a totally different world. Knowing that history has been changed, Winston wants to find out about the true history. Looking at the issue from Winston's psychological perspective, it might be possible to say that Winston, unhappy in the world he lives in, needs hope for the future. Not knowing what the past was like disables Winston to locate himself somewhere in the future. When the theme of history is regarded, the antique shop can be considered as a symbol of the past. Winston gets deeply interested in the shop starting from the first moment he sees it, as it functions as a page from the past, which isn't manipulated and changed by the party. The paperweight which Winston buys from the shop can also be considered as a symbol of the past. Being a long lost object which Winston doesn't know about, the paperweight functions as what is â€Å"different† and â€Å"unfamiliar† and it gives Winston little hope about a better future. â€Å"Doublethink†, which simply means â€Å"telling deliberate lies and believing in them†, also functions as another aspect about imposing ideologies. The slogans, for example, are products of the â€Å"Doublethink† principle. Orwell uses binary oppositions that say â€Å"War is Peace†, â€Å"Freedom is Slavery† and â€Å"Ignorance is Strength†. He then places them as the main mottos of the party. As doublethink plays a very important role in conditioning people, it also becomes one of the most important sources which provides the regime with permanence. â€Å"Doublethink† marks itself as one of the most important tools of the party, since it's the basic element that makes people favor war. The reason why the party wants people to be in favor of war is once more related to the power theme. Paras Mani Singh, Nardeep Singh Juneja mention in their book Orwell as a Political Novelist that: The only way that Oceania can exist as a state is for it to wage a constant war, the whole structure of society and state is geared to wartime economy and austerity. If there should be peace, the citizens of Oceania might reasonably expect better living conditions, better food and less control by the government (123). Thus, the motto â€Å"War is Peace† becomes very important for the party in order to keep the citizens of Oceania satisfied. Making them watch movies of war and manipulating people in such a way to make them laugh when they see a woman hugging a little child to protect it from bullets, shows how a totalitarian regime would succeed in making people become fond of violence and cruelty. The motto â€Å"Freedom is Slavery†, on the other hand, is related to the idea of being free both in physical and psychological terms. Since freedom of thought and expression are threats to any totalitarian regime, the party replaces the understanding of the concept of â€Å"Freedom† through â€Å"Doublethink† and it creates an irrational way of understanding for its people. Due to the fact that the people of Oceania are anything but free, for they are being watched constantly, it also becomes necessary for the party to make its citizens believe that freedom is a negative thing and that it is nothing but slavery. A this point it might be suitable to mention Foucault's idea of the prison model the Panopticon, that functions as a system that disables the prisoners to know when they are being watched, thus to make them act in proper manners 24/7. Paul Rabinow, in his article The Foucault Reader states: On the whole, therefore, one can speak of the formation of a disciplines society in this movement that stretches from the enclosed disciplines, a sort of social â€Å"quarantine,† to an indefinitely generalizable mechanism of â€Å"panopticism (206). Thus it would be possible to say that Big Brother, in the novel, functions as the Panopticon for the citizens of Ocenia, since people never know when they are being watched and due to their fear towards the existing totalitarian power, they act in proper manner when the sanctions of the regime are concerned. As the last motto â€Å"Ignorance is Strength† is concerned, the party makes its final stroke on the big picture by saying that none of these things should be thought through, since ignorance and accepting things just the way they are is a kind of strength. By doing so and by applying these mottos, the party blocks all the ways for its citizens to rebel against the system. The concept of â€Å"Thoughtcrime†, gets under the spotlight at this stage, since despite all the cautions taken against any threat or rebellions against the system, the party guarantees its permanence by also limiting the thoughts of its citizens. Having mentioned that the act of thinking itself is an undesirable act for the regime, the party strictly watches people in all their actions. The screens which are placed all over the city and even in the homes of citizens, completely removes the privacy of Oceania's people. Big Brother's picture staring at its citizens and controlling them in every action they take strengthens the idea of the totalitarian regime in the novel. Looking at Big Brother's picture symbolically, it may become possible to say that Orwell draws parallelism between the picture of Stalin and Big Brother. Drawing the picture of a totalitarian regime, Orwell points out the main principles of how such a regime would succeed. As Robert J. Savage, James Combs and Dan Nimmo quote Jane Kirkpatric's words in their book The Orwellian Moment: In a recent and well known essay, Jane Kirkpatric describes totalitarian societies as ones which drive to establish comprehensive political control over the lives of individuals, obliterating in both theory and practice the distinction between public and private, between objective and subjective, claiming for the state the whole life of people (47). Removing privacy is preventing people from thinking. People mostly think when they are alone and when they are in solitude. For this reason, the party completely removes the chance for its citizens to be alone, thus to think. Thinking is an important theme in the novel since it links the reader to the concept of forming an identity. People who think can have their own views about life and can be considered as individuals. Removing the concept of being an individual is one of the most important goals of the party, since individuality is a threat to any totalitarian regime. As Goldstein lectures Winston in room 101 about individuality he says, â€Å"Can you not understand, Winston, that the individual is only a cell? The weariness of the cell is vigor of the organism. Do you die when you cut your fingernails? (302)† Thus, it becomes plain to see that for the party, being an individual isn't a matter of importance, on the contrary it is something which isn't favored. Since the party only considers being a whole as something important, individuality is something which it wants to completely destroy. Taking a closer look at the novel, it can be said that Winston's ache in his ankle is also a symbol of his individuality. Before meeting Julia, Winston continually mentions an ache in his ankle and when he finally meets her, he mentions that the ache disappears. At the end of the novel when Winston is caught by the party and when he's being tortured in room 101, he receives blows on his ankle. Being an ordinary Oceania citizen, Winston first lacked his individuality. However starting from the moment he meets Julia and starts to have an affair with her, he regains his individuality, for he becomes able to experience something which is private and individual. Winston's love to Julia makes him become separate from the crowd and makes him become different from the rest of the people in Oceania, who have no intention to feel love at all and who only consider marriage as a duty which should be fulfilled for the sake of the party. Sexual life, amongst the people of Oceania is seen as a mission to reproduce and create other useful and loyal citizens for the system. However, the theme of love in Winston and Julia's case individualizes the couple not only in terms of the love they feel for one another, but also in terms of their meetings which they think are in private. Winston and Julia meet in secret places where they think they aren't watched and they get total privacy. Since lacking privacy also disables the people of Oceania from becoming individuals, they are also indirectly disabled from becoming human beings. Dehumanizing people by forbidding them to love and killing all their feelings towards compassion, mercy and affection, puts them in an animal-like state. This animal-like state, however, is totally perceived as normal and humane by the party and is presented as something which is favored. Citizens who don't posses this animal-like state are perceived as ill. At the end of the novel Winston is referred to as â€Å"cured† when he finally draws 2+2=5 on the table and perceives the principles which the party imposes on him with torture. Winston is considered as a person with an animal-like state since he felt love for another human being. The party treats Winston as if he is ill only because he questions the party's policies and only because he loves a woman. At the end, when Winston is freed from all the â€Å"inhumane† feelings such as doubt or love, he is again regarded as a healthy person by the party. When the theme of humanizing and dehumanizing is concerned, the Proles play an important role. The Proloes, symbolizing a rebellion against the party, are referred to as animal-like creatures; however Winston manages to make a distinction between his own people and the Proles by saying, â€Å"The proles are human beings. We are not (191). † Winston and Julia's love affair in this sense can be regarded as a rebel against the party and as a struggle to become humans and individuals. As Winston's thoughts about Julia are revealed, it's stated: In the old days, he thought, a man looked at a girl's body and saw that it was desirable, and that was the end of the story. But you could not have pure love or pure lust nowadays. No emotion was pure, because everything was mixed up with fear and hatred. Their embrace had been a battle, the climax a victory. It was a blow struck against the Party. It was a political act (145). As stated, the love affair of Winston and Julia is perceived by them as a rebellion against the party. Since the party is so much full of hatred, love becomes a rebellion against it. Being an important theme in the novel, Orwell also stresses that physical pain can control the human mind. Towards the middle of the novel when Julia and Winston are having one of their regular chats about the system as they say: I don't mean confessing. Confession is not betrayal what you say or do doesn't matter: only feelings matter. If they could make me stop loving you- that would be the real betrayal. She thought it over. They can't do that she said finally. It's the one thing they can't do. They can make you say anything- anything- but they can't make you believe it. They can't get inside you (192). Despite the firmness of Julia saying that nobody can make her feel something or can make her think something, at the end of the novel, the reader comes to the realization that through physical torture, one can be made feel and believe in anything. As Goldstein tells Winston what he thinks about confessions, he says, â€Å"All the confessions that are uttered here are true. We make them true (291). † The fact that the party does really make the confessions become true, is based on torturing people. Despite the human mind seems to be far away concealed in the skull, Orwell puts forth that physical pain in fact can rule the human mind. As stated in the novel: On the battlefield, in the torture chamber, on a sinking ship, the issues that you are fighting for are always forgotten. , because the body swells up until it fills the universe, and even when you are not paralyzed by fright or screaming with pain, life is a moment-to-moment struggle against hunger or cold or sleeplessness, against a sour stomach or an aching tooth (117). The basic human instinct of survival is actually based on physical aspects. Unless the physical wellbeing is fulfilled and satisfied, there's no rest for the human being. Relating this fact to the basic human instinct of survival, Orwell states that although it looks like the human mind is separate from the physical being, they are in fact directly related and that the physical suffering has the power to rule over the mind. As this is the case, the novel also clearly puts forth that at the end, Winston totally changes his thoughts about the system and even about Julia. In the end after being released from torture, Winston draws 2+2=5 on the table and believes in it. Again, at the very end of the novel Winston says that he has won the battle against himself and that he now finally loves Big Brother (342). Another fact about physical pain ruling the human mind is revealed in the case when Winston and Julia meet again after being released from torture and when they can't feel anything towards each other. As a result of torture and as a result of their survival being threatened for such a long time, both of these human beings have lost their feelings of love towards another human being. Orwell's message at this point might be based on the theme that after being threatened in existence and after being exposed to a tremendous amount of torture, human beings instinctually come to think of only themselves. As Winston and Julia confess to each other that they have betrayed one another in the novel, the heart breaking truth is being revealed that human beings, in depth, are based on the instinct of survival and that they are unconsciously selfish. The novel states: I betrayed you, she said baldly. I betrayed you, he said. She gave him a quick look of dislike. Sometimes, she said they threaten you with something- something you can't stand up to can't even think about. And then you say, don't do it to me, do it to someone else, do it to so-and so. And perhaps you might pretend, afterwards, that it was only a trick and that you just said it to make them stop and didn't really mean it. You think there's no other way of saving yourself, and you're quite ready to save yourself that way. You want it to happen to the other person. You don't give a damn what they suffer. All you care about is yourself (336). The sad fact that human beings do only think of themselves and that they are selfish in nature is once more revealed by this remark. However, it is also evident in the novel that human beings who are exposed to torture lose the ability to love and think of other people. Thus, it becomes a fact that physical pain is so strong that it has the ability to erase all sorts of feelings which are related to the wellbeing of other people. Due to their instinct of survival, human beings become ready to sacrifice even people they love, to save themselves. Looking at the party from a religious point of view is also a possible theme in the novel. Being free from all the beliefs which are related to God and his religions, people are still in need to believe in something. The party at this point functions as religion for the people of Oceania, since they are blocked in all the ways which lead to a power that is greater than the party. Thus, representing themselves and the divine power, the party introduces itself as God. The religious motives are present in the novel when Goldstein offers Winston and Julia some wine, and later places a white waffle both on Julia and Winston's tongues so that they don't smell of alcohol. The ceremony which is presented here is similar to the Catholic rituals that take place in church. Believers are offered some wine which symbolizes the blood of Christ and they are placed a piece of bread on their tongs to symbolize the body of Christ. Going through a similar ceremony with Goldstein, Orwell in fact makes a foreshadowing that even the opposition, which stands for Goldstein at the beginning of the novel, is in fact one of the closest persons to the party. Thus, there is no way out of the system. If this theme is compared to the theme of religion, the devil, who is the opposing party to God, is in fact an angel and that it is again strongly related to God. Drawing parallel lines between the party and religion, Orwell states that the Party is God like figure for the people of Oceania and that there's no escape from it. In conclusion, speaking in general terms, the novel functions as a warning against the totalitarian regime and reveals the fact that such repressive regimes, do in fact have the power to manipulate people and that they do have the power in making people believe things which appeared as totally bizarre at the beginning. Taking physical pain ruling over the human mind as a theme, Orwell states that human beings are selfish in nature, since they posses the basic instinct of survival. Putting also major emphasis on the concept of language and how it functions in people's lives, Orwell states that it is in fact the language itself that shapes the motives of people and that makes some concepts become reality. The lack of expression of some concepts in language would automatically destroy them and make them become nonexistent for human beings. Despite the novel as a whole appears as a pessimist approach to the future, taking it as a warning and looking at our present state in today's modern world, readers can still feel gratitude for the present capitalist system they live in now and they still can preserve their hope for a better future.