She Stoops to Conquer free essay sample

The central male character, who has set out to court the young attractive Kate Hardcastle. A well-educated man, bred a scholar, Marlow is brash and rude to Mr. Hardcastle, owner of Liberty Hall (a reference to another site in London), whom Marlow believes to be an innkeeper. Because Marlows rudeness is comic, the audience is likely not to dislike him for it. Marlow is sophisticated and has travelled the world. Around lower-class women Marlow is a lecherous rogue, but around those of an upper-class card he is a nervous, bumbling fool. Thus, his interview with Kate exploits the mans fears, and convinces Miss Hardcastle shell have to alter her persona drastically to make a relationship with the man possible. The character of Charles Marlow is very similar to the description of Goldsmith himself, as he too acted sheepishly around women of a higher class than himself, and amongst creatures of another stamp acted with the most confidence. We will write a custom essay sample on She Stoops to Conquer or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page George Hastings A close friend of Charles Marlow and the admirer of Miss Constance Neville. Hastings is also an educated man who cares deeply about Constance, with the intention of fleeing to France with her. However the young woman makes it clear that she cant leave without her jewels, which are guarded by Mrs. Hardcastle, thus the pair and Tony collaborate to get hold of the jewels. When Hastings realises the Hardcastle house isnt an inn, he decides not to tell Marlow who would thus leave the premises immediately. * Tony Lumpkin   Son of Mrs. Hardcastle and stepson to Mr. Hardcastle, Tony is a mischievous, uneducated playboy. Mrs. Hardcastle has no authority over Tony, and their relationship contrasts with that between Hardcastle and Kate. He is promised in marriage to his cousin, Constance Neville, yet he despises her and thus goes to great effort to help her and Hastings in their plans to leave the country. He cannot reject the impending marriage with Neville, because he believes hes not of age. Tony takes an interest in horses, Bet Bouncer and especially the lehouse, where he joyfully sings with members of the lower-classes. It is Tonys initial deception of Marlow, for a joke, which sets up the plot. * Mr. Hardcastle   The father of Kate Hardcastle, who is mistaken by Marlow and Hastings as an innkeeper. Hardcastle is a level-headed countryman who loves everything old and hates the town and the follies that come with it. He is very much occupied with the old times and likes nothing better than to tell his  war stor ies  and to drop names, such as the  Duke of Marlborough, into conversations. Hardcastle cares for his daughter Kate, but insists that she dress plainly in his presence. It is he who arranges for Marlow to come to the country to marry his daughter. Hardcastle is a man of manners and, despite being highly insulted by Marlows treatment of him, manages to keep his temper with his guest until near the end of the play. Hardcastle also demonstrates a wealth of forgiveness as he not only forgives Marlow once he has realised Marlows mistake, but also gives him consent to marry his daughter. * Mrs. Hardcastle   Wife to Mr. Hardcastle and mother to Tony, Mrs. Hardcastle is a corrupt and eccentric character. She is an over-protective  mother  to Tony, whom she loves, but fails to tell him hes of age so that he is eligible to receive ? 1,500 a year. Her behaviour is either over-the-top or far-fetched, providing some of the plays comedy. She is also partly selfish, wanting Neville to marry her son to keep the jewels in the family; shes blissfully unaware however, that Tony and Neville despise each other, and that Constance is in fact planning to flee to France with Hastings. Mrs. Hardcastle is a contrast to her husband, which provides the humour in the plays opening. She loves the town, and is the only character whos not happy at the end of the play. * Miss Kate Hardcastle   Daughter to Mr. Hardcastle, and the plays stooping-to-conquer heroine. Kate respects her father, dressing plainly in his presence to please him. The formal and respectful relationship that she shares with her father, contrasts with that between Tony and Mrs. Hardcastle. Kate enjoys French frippery and the attributes of the town, much as her mother does. She is both calculating and scheming, posing as a maid and deceiving Marlow, causing him to fall in love with her. * Miss Constance Neville   Niece of Mrs. Hardcastle, she is the woman whom Hastings intends to court. Constance despises her cousin Tony, she is heir to a large fortune of jewels, hence her aunt wants her to remain in the family and marry Tony; she is secretly an admirer of George Hastings however. Neville schemes with Hastings and Tony to get the jewels so she can then flee to France with her admirer; this is essentially one of the sub-plots of  She Stoops to Conquer. Sir Charles Marlow   A minor character and father to Charles Marlow; he follows his son, a few hours behind. Unlike his son, he does not meet Tony Lumpkin in the Three Pigeons, and thus is not confused. He is an old friend of Mr. Hardcastle, both of them once having been in the British military, and is quite pleased with the union of his son and his friends daughter. Sir Charles enjoys the follies of his son, but does not understand these initially. Short summary of she stoops to conquer? Answer: She stoops to Conquer is a comedy by the Irish author Oliver Goldsmith. The play was initially titled as Mistakes of a Night and the events in the play, indeed, happen during the time frame of one night. Mr. Hardcastle, a rich countryman plans to marry his daughter Kate to the son of his old friend, Sir Charles Marlow. Hardcastles second wife is determined in marrying her spoiled son, Tony Lumpkin to her niece, Constance Neville in order to keep her fortune, a casket of jewels within the family. But Miss Neville has plans to marry Hastings, a friend of young Marlow. While Hardcastles family is eagerly awaiting the arrival of Marlow and his friend, Hastings, the friends stop at the village Inn to inquire their way. Tony Lumpkin, who is present there, realizes their identity and plays a joke by telling them that they are far away from their destination and asks them to stay at an inn, recommending Hardcastle house as the best Inn around there. Thus the friends arrive there and treat Mr. Hardcastle as mere Inn keeper. This enrages Mr. Hardcastle and is convinced that Marlow is not suitable for his daughter. On the other hand, Young Marlow who is nervous in the presence of ladies of his own social status, yet quite the quite opposite with lower-class women doesnt look properly at Kate on their first meeting. Kate realizes this and stoops to conquer him, by posing as bar maid and putting Marlow at his ease so that he falls for her in the process. However, he changes his mind when he realizes the truth behind Marlows behaviour. The play concludes with Mr. Hardcastle realizing the truth behind Marlows behaviour and changing his mind; Kate succeeding in her plan and getting engaged to Marlow; Tony Lumpkin discovering he is of age and receives his entitled money, which his mother hides from him. He refuses to marry Ms. Neville, who then gets her entitled jewels and gets engaged to Mr. Hastings. So all is well that ends well. Summary She Stoops to Conquer  opens with a prologue in which an actor mourns the death of the classical low comedy at the altar of sentimental, mawkish comedy. He hopes that Dr. Goldsmith can remedy this problem through the play about to be presented. Act I is full of set-up for the rest of the play. Mr. and Mrs. Hardcastle  live in an old house that resembles an inn, and they are waiting for the arrival of  Marlow, son of Mr. Hardcastles old friend and a possible suitor to his daughter Kate. Kate is very close to her father, so much so that she dresses plainly in the evenings (to suit his conservative tastes) and fancifully in the mornings for her friends. Meanwhile,  Mrs. Hardcastles niece Constance is in the old womans care, and has her small inheritance (consisting of some valuable jewels) held until she is married, hopefully to Mrs. Hardcastles spoiled son from an earlier marriage,  Tony Lumpkin. The problem is that neither Tony nor Constance loves the other, and in fact Constance has a beloved, who will be traveling to the house that night with Marlow. Tonys problem is also that he is a drunk and a lover of low living, which he shows when the play shifts to a pub nearby. When Marlow and  Hastings  (Constances beloved) arrive at the pub, lost on the way to Hardcastles, Tony plays a practical joke by telling the two men that there is no room at the pub and that they can find lodging at the old inn down the road (which is of course Hardcastles home). Act II sees the plot get complicated. When Marlow and Hastings arrive, they are impertinent and rude with Hardcastle, whom they think is a landlord and not a host (because of Tonys trick). Hardcastle expects Marlow to be a polite young man, and is shocked at the behavior. Constance finds Hastings, and reveals to him that Tony must have played a trick. However, they decide to keep the truth from Marlow, because they think revealing it will upset him and ruin the trip. They decide they will try to get her jewels and elope together. Marlow has a bizarre tendency to speak with exaggerated timidity to modest women, while speaking in lively and hearty tones to women of low-class. When he has his first meeting with Kate, she is dressed well, and hence drives him into a debilitating stupor because of his inability to speak to modest women. She is nevertheless attracted to him, and decides to try and draw out his true character. Tony and Hastings decide together that Tony will steal the jewels for Hastings and Constance, so that he can be rid of his mothers pressure to marry Constance, whom he doesnt love. Act III opens with Hardcastle and Kate each confused with the side of Marlow they saw. Where Hardcastle is shocked at his impertinence, Kate is disappointed to have seen only modesty. Kate asks her father for the chance to show him that Marlow is more than both believe. Tony has stolen the jewels, but Constance doesnt know and continues to beg her aunt for them. Tony convinces Mrs. Hardcastle to pretend they were stolen to dissuade Constance, a plea she willingly accepts until she realizes they have actually been stolen. Meanwhile, Kate is now dressed in her plain dress and is mistaken by Marlow (who never looked her in the face in their earlier meeting) as a barmaid to whom he is attracted. She decides to play the part, and they have a lively, fun conversation that ends with him trying to embrace her, a move Mr. Hardcastle observes. Kate asks for the night to prove that he can be both respectful and lively. Act IV finds the plots almost falling apart. News has spread that  Sir Charles Marlow(Hardcastles friend, and father to young Marlow) is on his way, which will reveal Hastingss identity as beloved of Constance and also force the question of whether Kate and Marlow are to marry. Hastings has sent the jewels in a casket to Marlow for safekeeping but Marlow, confused, has given them to Mrs. Hardcastle (whom he still believes is the landlady of the inn). When Hastings learns this, he realizes his plan to elope with wealth is over, and decides he must convince Constance to elope immediately. Meanwhile, Marlows impertinence towards Hardcastle (whom he believes is the landlord) reaches its apex, and Hardcastle kicks him out of the house, during which altercation Marlow begins to realize what is actually happening. He finds Kate, who now pretends to be a poor relation to the Hardcastles, which would make her a proper match as far as class but not a good marriage as far as wealth. Marlow is starting to love her, but cannot pursue it because it would be unacceptable to his father because of her lack of weatlh, so he leaves her. Meanwhile, a letter from Hastings arrives that Mrs. Hardcastle intercepts, and she reads that he waits for Constance in the garden, ready to elope. Angry, she insists that she will bring Constance far away, and makes plans for that. Marlow, Hastings and Tony confront one another, and the anger over all the deceit leads to a severe argument, resolved temporarily when Tony promises to solve the problem for Hastings. Act V finds the truth coming to light, and everyone happy. Sir Charles has arrived, and he and Hastings laugh together over the confusion young Marlow was in. Marlow arrives to apologize, and in the discussion over Kate, claims he barely talked to Kate. Hardcastle accuses him of lying, since Hardcastle saw him embrace Kate (but Marlow does not know that was indeed Kate). Kate arrives after Marlow leaves the room and convinces the older men she will reveal the full truth if they watch an interview between the two from a hidden vantage behind a screen. Meanwhile, Hastings waits in the garden, per Tonys instruction, and Tony arrives to tell him that he drove his mother and Constance all over in circles, so that they think they are lost far from home when in fact they have been left nearby. Mrs. Hardcastle, distraught, arrives and is convinced she must hide from a highwayman who is approaching. The â€Å"highwayman† proves to be Mr. Hardcastle, who scares her in her confusion for a while but ultimately discovers what is happening. Hastings and Constance, nearby, decide they will not elope but rather appeal to Mr. Hardcastle for mercy. Back at the house, the interview between Kate (playing the poor relation) and Marlow reveals his truly good character, and after some discussion, everyone agrees to the match. Hastings and Constance ask permission to marry and, since Tony is actually of age and therefore can of his own volition decide not to marry Constance, the permission is granted. All are happy (except for miserly Mrs. Hardcastle), and the mistakes of a night have been corrected. There are two epilogues generally printed to the play, one of which sketches in metaphor Goldsmiths attempt to bring comedy back to its traditional roots, and the other of which suggests Tony Lumpkin has adventures yet to be realized. Suggested Essay Questions 1. Explain the meaning and significance of the title  She Stoops to Conquer. Even without reading the play, the irony of the title is obvious, since the she in question is lowering herself in order to prove herself superior. In context of the play, the title could be argued to refer both to Kates plan to trap Marlow and to Goldsmiths purpose of using â€Å"low comedy† to convince his audience to embrace it. The former is a good description of the irony of Kates plan: in order to convince herself she is a worthy match for Marlow, she has to first convince him she is of a low class. However, the title also describes Goldsmiths purpose: he wishes to convince an audience to embrace this â€Å"low† or â€Å"laughing† comedy, and by indulging in it, he might convince them that it is superior to â€Å"sentimental† comedy. Regardless of which description one uses, the irony of the title expresses Goldsmiths view of humanity: while we pretend to be of impeachable high class, we all have a â€Å"low,† base side that we should celebrate rather than try to ignore. 2. How is Kate an example of moderation? Explain how her personality stands as the way of life Goldsmith most recommends. The play is organized into a series of conflicting philosophies: high-bred aristocrats vs. low-bred common folk; city life vs. country life; wealth vs. poverty, etc. Much of the absurdity that fuels Goldsmiths comedy comes from exploiting the way most people engage in contradictions even when they pretend to be examples of virtue. The best example is Marlow, and his bizarre contradictory attitudes towards women depending on their class. Kate stands at the center of most of these, and as such is the best depiction of Goldsmiths message. As a country girl who has spent time in town, she is an example of what Marlow calls refined simplicity, and knowing as much as she does about humanity, is able to also enjoy and be amused by the contradictions rather than disgusted by them (as most of the elder characters are). 3. In what ways is Tony Lumpkin a hero in the play? Use historical/social detail to explain why this heroism is unconventional. Tony Lumpkin would traditionally have been considered nothing but comic relief. Consider most Shakespeare plays, where the poor, common characters might have wisdom, but are primarily used to comedic effect, and are rarely engaged in the main plots. Tony is presented this way initially in  She Stoops to Conquer, but we quickly see that there is a great wisdom to his lifestyle, which prizes enjoyment of life over heavy considerations of it. When his parents discuss the way to live in Act I, Tony takes off quickly for the Three Pigeons, where he sings a song that expresses a desire for true life rather than the hypocrisy of overly-educated or overly-religious lifestyles. Tony perhaps has more agency than any other character in the play, setting in motion the confusions that ultimately allow everyone to be happy. The message, of which Tony is the best representative, is that by engaging in the confusions and contradictions of human nature, we can find our best happiness. 4. For a comedy,  She Stoops to Conquer  has a serious vein of commentary of class. Explain. In a traditional sentimental comedy, money would ultimately be shown to be irrelevant in the face of true love, so as to stress the characters’ virtue. Of course, the characters would have almost all been high-bred and money not a serious issue in their lives. In this play, there are characters, like Tony or Constance, who really do need money if they want a strong future. Even in what is perhaps the most cliche romantic subplot – that between Constance and Hastings – money becomes an inescapable force, and in the end they turn to the virtue of asking Hardcastles permission not because of some innate virtue, but because they acknowledge that they will need money. In another way, Marlows class contradictions are certainly meant to be amusing, but there is a serious criticism in the way that a class system has led him to despise what he enjoys. He considers himself inferior for his love of unpretentious women, and assumes that he ought to love a â€Å"modest† woman. Part of the lesson Kate teaches him is that the substance of a person is what matters, and not the way one gauges her behavior as high or low class. 5. How does the device of dramatic irony facilitate the plays major themes and comedy? The play is a masterpiece of dramatic irony, which is a device where the audience has information and knowledge that the characters do not. From the moment Tony plays the practical joke on Marlow and Hastings, the audience learns secrets that will grow more complicated and hence create confusion that leads to hilarious situations. The best example is perhaps the way Marlow and Hastings treat Hardcastle, because they think him a landlord. Because we understand the details of the confusions, we understand the jokes whereas the characters only grow more offended. However, the behavior wrought by the dramatic irony reveals much of Goldsmiths view on humanity and class. The same example listed above is funny, but also shows the cruelty that comes from a rich mans entitlement. Throughout the play, much of the class commentary derives from the behaviors people show when they don’t realize they are being judged. Kate exploits this to try and find out what kind of person Marlow actually is. 6. In what ways are the characters of the play comic archetypes? How does Goldsmith deepen these stock characters? At the beginning of the play, it seems as though all the characters fall into traditional comic patterns. Hardcastle is the old curmudgeon who hates modern life, Mrs. Hardcastle a vain old lady, the young men are handsome heroes, Kate is the pretty young heroine, and Tony is the comic drunkard. Very quickly, Goldsmith explores the depth of class, money and human contradictions by putting those qualities in broader contexts. Hardcastle turns out to be not entirely incorrect about the impertinence of the young (which he discovers because of Tonys trick), but turns out to be forgiving. Mrs. Hardcastle is frankly never deepened, and stays who she is throughout. Hastings remains a valiant young man, but Marlow is obviously full of absurd contradictions very much connected to the very aristocratic virtue that seems to define him in the beginning. And Kate, of course, is perhaps the deepest and fullest character of all, not a simple heroine to be won by the young man. 7. Does the plays ending undercut Goldsmiths attempt to write a low and not sentimental comedy? Explain. Mrs. Hardcastle perhaps speaks to Goldsmiths own concern over the ending when she remarks that this is all but the whining end of a modern novel. It is clear from both the prologue and his Essay on the Theatre that he wishes to write a play that mocks vice rather than praises virtue. And yet the ending of the play finds not only all the characters ending up happy, but happy because of very clear-cut lessons. In a way, even the most grievous characters (like Marlow, whose contradictions lead him to some rather unsavory behavior) are forgiven for their vices. However, one can argue that Goldsmith provides an entertaining end for his audience while not diving fully into the conventions. For one, Constance and Hastingss realization about the necessity of money adds a pragmatic reality to the otherwise sentimental end. Further, the plays end does not suggest that the absurd contradictions of humanity will go away, which could lead to the belief that such problems will never go away, even if the play wraps up nicely within its five acts. 8. Define what town and country mean in the context of this play, using characters as examples. There is a strong conflict between town and country set up from the very opening of the play, when Mr. and Mrs. Hardcastle argue about the virtues and vices of town and country. The town is associated with several elements: wealth and pretension, education, style, and in the broadest sense, living life for itself. The country is associated with simplicity and a slower, more considered way of life. The characters who come from town are certainly to be admired, and would be by Goldsmiths audience. And yet they are shown to have serious faults, particularly in terms of their pretensions and cruelty towards Hardcastle when they think he is a landlord and not their host. Likewise, while the theatre audience at the time would probably consider the country characters to be overly simple, there is a great kindness revealed in the way Hardcastle is willing to forgive everyone despite how he is treated. The best character overall is Kate, who shows a moderation in her way to find refined simplicity by embracing the best of both worlds. . Explain how much of Goldsmiths comedy relies on his ability to set-up a joke. Most of the comedy in  She Stoops to Conquer  comes from the deep dramatic irony wherein characters do not realize quite who one another are. However, for the audience to clearly understand all the complications, Goldsmith has to set up the details of the jokes to come. He does this masterfully in Act I. For instance, it is set up that the old Hardcastle home resembles a n inn, important so that we believe Marlow and Hastings could believe as much. Further, the strange behavior whereby Kate dresses plainly in the evenings is important so as to understand Marlows confusion over her class standing. Throughout the play, elements are introduced, or set-up, so that our expectations can be manipulated later. The use of the jewels, of Tony and his mothers relationship, and of who is lying to whom are all examples of set-ups that produce great comic dividends. 10. How can one make a Freudian analysis of this play? Though it is folly to suggest an explicitly Freudian intent in this play (since it was written so much earlier than Freuds day), the same could be said about  Oedipus Rex  or  Hamlet, both of which stand as seminal texts in Freuds theories. There are definitely Freudian undercurrents in the Oedipal complex suggested as existing between Tony and Mrs. Hardcastle, and more implicitly between Marlow and his mother. The former is expressed in Tonys professed hatred of his mother, though it is a hatred that makes him insistent on constantly waging war with her. If he truly despised her, he could simply blow her off, but he takes too much pleasure in wickedly tormenting her through his tricks and behavior. Many characters remark on how they spoil one another, which parallels a sort of destructive romantic relationship, all of which can be interpreted through a Freudian lens. In terms of Marlow, his strange behavior can be linked to a self-hatred, an inability to appreciate his own love of immodest woman and inability to speak to modest woman whom he feels he ought to appreciate. At one point, he mentions that his mother was the only modest woman he could ever speak to, which could suggest that their relationship has polluted him somewhat, led him to compare other women to her and hence to grow into a bumbler when attempting to woo them romantically. Quotes and Analysis 1. Let school-masters puzzle their brain, With grammar, and nonsense, and learning; Good liquor, I stoutly maintain, Gives genius a better discerning. Tony Lumpkins song, Act I, pg. 6 This opening to Tonys song helps to establish one of Goldsmiths aims – to properly appreciate â€Å"low† behavior. Here, Tony sets two different lifestyles in opposition: proper life versus base life. While the play has a conservative streak that keeps it from entirely embracing baseness as the key to life, it does propose that moderation ought accept that a life of â€Å"good liquor† can grant us a perspective into human absurdity and folly, whereas a life solely dedicated to proper education would not provide such insight. 2. So I find this fellows civilities begin to grow troublesome. But who can be angry at those assiduities which are meant to please him! Hastings, about Hardcastle, Act II, p. 8 Hastings speaks this to himself about Hardcastle, whom Hastings still thinks is the landlord. Hardcastles attempts to speak with Hastings and Marlow are annoying the latter two. To some extent, the quote is a great indication of the dramatic irony that gives most of the weight to the plays comedy. However, it also touches on the confusion of class, behavior, and expectation that is central to the plays themes. What Hastings asks could be argued to be true of all aristocratic folk who are particular and picky about what is â€Å"acceptable† to their standard of living. Goldsmith suggests a view of humanity that is far more complex, contradictory, and nuanced, and finds amusing and absurd the nature of humankind that leads high-class folk to look down upon the fun part of life that is meant to please them. 3. Pardon me madam. I was always willing to be amused. The folly of most people is rather an object of mirth than uneasiness. Marlow, to Kate, Act II, pg. 20 Marlow speaks this in his first meeting with Kate, the conversation in which he cannot look her in the eye. This quote is very much a statement of Goldsmiths perspective on the world, and a defense of his purpose in vaulting â€Å"laughing comedy† above â€Å"sentimental comedy. † Part of what both defines Goldsmiths perspective and marks Kate as the heroine is the ability to laugh at folly, rather than judging harshly a persons lapse from virtue. 4. True madam; those who have most virtue in their mouths, have least of it in their bosom. Marlow to Kate, Act II, pg. 22 Marlow speaks this in his first meeting with Kate, the conversation in which he cannot look her in the eye. It is a straightforward yet profound declaration about the hypocrisy and contradictions of people. While Goldsmith finds these contradictions and the absurdity engendered by them amusing (consider Marlows different behaviors and how so much comedy comes from them), he equally finds the hypocrisy of sanctimony unattractive. It is this sanctimony that offends him about sentimental comedy, and which also infects his â€Å"high† characters. The truth is that Marlow and Hastings love pub food over more refined fare, or that Mrs. Hardcastles virtue hides greed for her son. . Its very odd, I can read the outside of my letters, where my own name is, well enough. But when I come to open it, its all – buzz. Thats hard, very hard; for the inside of the letter is always the cream of the correspondence. Tony, about the letter thats arrived from Hastings, Act IV, pg. 45 Tony cannot read the letter that arrives from Hastings (bearing the news that Hastings is waiting for him in the g arden). However, this quote produces a great symbol for one the plays themes: the absurd contradictions that truly define people. Where high-minded folks (and the sentimental comedy Goldsmith believes they prefer) tries to praise their superficial virtue, he believes that people deep down are actually full of contradictions and attractions to more â€Å"low† interests. In the same way that the outside of the letter is recognizable and suggests an easy identity, while the inside is more complicated and harder to read, so it is that the characters in Goldsmiths play are recognizable comic types at first but far more complex when investigated. 6. Ha, ha, ha, I understand; you took them in a round, while they supposed themselves going forward. And so you have at last brought them home again. Hasting, to Tony, Act V, pg. 53 Literally, the quote concerns the way Tony drove Mrs. Hardcastle and Constance around haphazardly so that they wouldnt be too far from the Hardcastle home. However, it is a great symbol for the structure of the play as well. At the beginning, everyones goal is clear: Marlow and Kate are meeting to judge each other as potential mates; Hastings wants to see his beloved; and the parents are interested in securing favorable matches for their children. The one exception is Tony, whose conception of life is that fun and liveliness are the guiding principles. However, Goldsmith wishes us to see that such a philosophy is more than just hedonism, but rather can lead to greater happiness and truth. Because of Tonys tricks (the biggest of which is that which he plays on Marlow and Hastings), everyone has a crazy night of mistakes but ends up â€Å"home† again, grounded and happier than they otherwise would have been. 7. Prudence once more comes to my relief, and I will obey its dictates. In the moment of passion, fortune may be despised, but it ever produces a lasting repentance. Im resolved to apply to Mr. Hardcastles compassion and justice for redress. Constance, to Hastings, Act V, pg. 56 In Constances idea of how she and her beloved should proceed, we get a glimpse of the pragmatism that keeps Goldsmiths play from ever veering into cliche sentimental territory even if the ending is somewhat a conventional â€Å"happy ending. † The truth is that, while in plays and entertainments lovers will happily choose one another at the expense of money, Goldsmith wishes us to see that in real life, fortune cannot be so easily written off for those who lack sufficient income. Constance cannot run off into the sunset with Hastings – life requires money – and so she must apply to Hardcastle for help. Its a pragmatic truth that colors and deepens the play. 8. I have lived, indeed, in the world, madam; but I have kept little company. I have been but an observer upon life, madam, while others were enjoying it. Marlow, to Kate, Act II, pg. 20 Marlow speaks this in his first meeting with Kate, the conversation in which he cannot look her in the eye. Though Marlow is stammering, he touches upon one of the central questions of the play: whether it is better to stay removed from life, judging it, or to live in all of its complexity and absurdity? Obviously, Goldsmith answers with the latter option, though his full response values moderation more than a simple choice. The best option is to live life but also to be able to judge and laugh at it. Kate is able to do this because she appreciates both the country and the city way of life, whereas most other characters pay for veering too strongly in one or the other direction. . Ask me no questions, and Ill tell you no fibs. I procured them by the rule of thumb. If I had not a key to every drawer in mothers bureau, how could I go to the alehouse so often as I do? An honest man may rob himself of his own at any time. Tony, to Hastings, Act III, pg. 29 Literally, Tony is explaining to Hastings how he was able to steal the jewels he passes on to them. But this quote further illustrates his philosophy of life, which espouses a more complex idea of virtue and vice than that assumed by the high-class characters. For Tony, a man is allowed to â€Å"rob himself,† which could mean more than just taking money or jewels, but also engaging in baseness for oneself (such as he does at the alehouse). In fact, to engage in our baser nature is not only acceptable but preferable since it acknowledges a truth of who we are. He would not go so far as to harm or â€Å"rob† others, as he says, meaning he engages in such behavior not to harm anyone else, but just to enjoy his own life. Many of the characters play around with this theme, in coming towards their acceptance of their real human, base natures. Tony stands as the central proponent of this philosophy. 10. Pshaw, pshaw! This is all but the whining end of a modern novel. Mrs. Hardcastle, Act V, p. 59 Mrs. Hardcastle snidely makes this observation as both couples are arranging their happiness in the plays final moments. It is a useful observation to consider, since it also serves as a bit of commentary on the play itself, perhaps sculpted by Goldsmith to provide awareness that his play is veering into the very territory he professed it would eschew: that of the sentimental comedy that praises virtue rather than mocking folly. Whether or not his play is guilty of the trespasses it seeks to condemn is open to interpretation, but the fact that Goldsmith is deliberately confronting these questions of how to craft an entertaining, satisfying work while trying not to undercut his message and theme is undeniable, as this quote shows. He is aware that the end could be construed that way, and is attempting to address it. Having this complaint come from the least discerning character in the play shows that Goldsmith might believe a more discerning audience would see his ending is not quite so sentimental. She Stoops to Conquer is a master piece in using dramatic irony . Explain? The play is a masterpiece of dramatic irony, which is a device where the audience has information and knowledge that the characters do not. From the moment Tony plays the practical joke on Marlow and Hastings, the audience learns secrets that will grow more complicated and hence create confusion that leads to hilarious situations. The best example is perhaps the way Marlow and Hastings treat Hardcastle, because they think him a landlord. Because we understand the details of the confusions, we understand the jokes whereas the characters only grow more offended. However, the behavior wrought by the dramatic irony reveals much of Goldsmiths view on humanity and class. The same example listed above is funny, but also shows the cruelty that comes from a rich mans entitlement. Throughout the play, much of the class commentary derives from the behaviors people show when they don’t realize they are being judged. Kate exploits this to try and find out what kind of person Marlow actually is. 2. discuss humor in she stoops to conquer The second play of Goldsmith She Stoops to Conquer was produced in 1771. This play marks a departure from the first play and practically introduces the reign of humour in comedy. The entire play with its fun and humour, its intrigues and sparkling dialogues, its mischievous tricks and roguish attempts by Tony Lumpkin deals a direct blow on the sentimental comedy. A piquant observation, elements of ingenious and new realism, a welling froth of pleasantry that never dries up, bathe even the rare movements when emotion could rise all go to make this charming comedy an unalloyed source of amusement. The principal characters of this comedy are Mr. Hardcastle who loves everything that is old; old friends, old times, old manners, old books, old wine etc. Mrs Hardcastle and Miss Hardcastle their daughter; Mrs Hardcastle’s son by a former marriage, Tony Lumpkin, a frequenter of ‘The Three Pigeons’, idle and ignorant, but cunning and mischievous, and doted on by his mother; and young Marlow, one of the most bashful and reserved young fellows in the world except with barmaids and servant-girls. Marlow’s father, Sir Charles Marlow has proposed a match between young Marlow and Miss Hardcastle and the young man and his friend, Hastings accordingly travel down to pay the Hardcastles a visit. Losing their way they arrive at night at ‘The Three Pigeons’, where Tony Lumpkin decides to play a prank on them. He directs them to a neighbouring inn, which is in reality the Hardcastle’s House. The fun of the play arises largely from the resulting misunderstanding, Marlow treating Mr Harcastle as the Landlord of the supposed inn and making violent love to Miss Hardcastle, whom he takes for on of his servants. This contrasts with his bashful attitude when presented to her in real character. The arrival of Sir Charles Marlow clears up the misconception and all ends well, including the subsidiary love affair between Hastings and Miss Hardcastle’s cousin, Miss Neville, whom Mrs Harcastle destines for Tony Lumpkin. The play is a charming one in which the rough edges of the world are ground smooth, in which faults turn out to be virtues and mistakes to be blessings. Its characters are particularly delightful. Tony Lumpkin is a genuine child of the soil and is said to be a monitor. Tony Lumpkin is loved by the readers of the comedy for his pleasant fun and nice jokes. Mr Hardcastle is another character whom we all like because he loves everything that is old. Mrs Hardcastle who appears more like a sentimental mother becomes pathetic because of the way in which she is treated by her son, Tony Lumpkin. Young Marlow and Miss Hardcastle come out as fine lovers and this pair of lovers is well matched by Hastings and Miss Hardcastle’s cousin. In ‘She Stoops to Conquer’ Goldsmith succeeds in introducing the humour of the finest type. The plot also is well-knitted and the characters have everything of comedy about them. The old mawkish sentimentality is driven out and sense of pathos is supplanted by mirth and delight. Tony’s treatment of his mother, particularly when he drives her round and round the house, would have been extremely pathetic. Goldsmith drives out pathos from the scene and makes it truly comic. Thus everywhere in ‘She Stoops to Conquer’ Goldsmith introduces the qualities of a true comedy. 3. She stoops to conquer is a comedy of manners. Discuss Though it is only explicitly referred to in the prologue, an understanding of Goldsmiths play in context shows his desire to reintroduce his audience to the â€Å"laughing comedy† that derived from a long history of comedy that mocks human vice. This type of comedy stands in contrast to the then-popular â€Å"sentimental comedy† that praised virtues and reinforced bourgeois mentality. Understanding Goldsmiths love of the former helps to clarify several elements of the play: the low scene in the Three Pigeons; the mockery of baseness in even the most high-bred characters; and the celebration of absurdity as a fact of human life. . Compare between Marlow and Hasting? Marlow is a shy young man, who has a hard time communicating with ladies. Hes a gentleman and considered to be honorable, but when put to the task of proposing to a young woman of quality.. he becomes tongue tied and unable to speak. Note.. he has no trouble speaking to those he believes are not up to his own standards. Hasting, on the other hand, is a confidant and well-spoken young man, no matter who he speaks with. He could charm just about any woman of any class. he might want to give marlow some lessons. Major Themes Class While the play is not explicitly a tract on class, the theme is central to it. The decisions the characters make and their perspectives on one another, are all largely based on what class they are a part of. Where Tony openly loves low-class people like the drunks in the Three Pigeons, Marlow must hide his love of low-class women from his father and â€Å"society. † His dynamic relationship with Kate (and the way he treats her) is defined by who he thinks she is at the time – from high-class Kate to a poor barmaid to a woman from good family but with no fortune. Hastings’ and Marlow’s reaction to Hardcastle is also a great example of the importance of class—they find him impudent and absurd, because they believe him to be of low class, but his behavior would be perfectly reasonable and expected from a member of the upper class, as he truly is. Money One of the factors that keeps the play pragmatic even when it veers close to contrivance and sentiment is the unavoidable importance of money. While some of the characters, like Marlow and Hardcastle, are mostly unconcerned with questions of money, there are several characters whose lives are largely defined by a lack of access to it. Constance cannot run away with Hastings because she worries about a life without her inheritance. When Marlow thinks Kate is a poor relation of the Hardcastles, he cannot get himself to propose because of her lack of dowry. And Tony seems to live a life unconcerned with wealth, although the implicit truth is that his dalliances are facilitated by having access to wealth. Behavior/Appearance One of the elements Goldsmith most skewers in his plays satirical moments is the aristocratic emphasis on behavior as a gauge of character. Even though we today believe that ones behavior – in terms of â€Å"low† versus â€Å"high† class behavior – does not necessarily indicate who someone is, many characters in the play are often blinded to a characters behavior because of an assumption. For instance, Marlow and Hastings treat Hardcastle cruelly because they think him the landlord of an inn, and are confused by his behavior, which seems forward. The same behavior would have seemed appropriately high-class if they hadnt been fooled by Tony. Throughout the play, characters (especially Marlow) assume they understand someones behavior when what truly guides them is their assumption of the other characters class. Moderation Throughout the play runs a conflict between the refined attitudes of town and the simple behaviors of the country. The importance of this theme is underscored by the fact that it is the crux of the opening disagreement between Hardcastle and his wife. Where country characters like Hardcastle see town manners as pretentious, town characters like Marlow see country manners as bumpkinish. The best course of action is proposed through Kate, who is praised by Marlow as having a refined simplicity. Having lived in town, she is able to appreciate the values of both sides of life and can find happiness in appreciating the contradictions that exist between them. Contradiction Most characters in the play want others to be simple to understand. This in many ways mirrors the expectations of an audience that Goldsmith wishes to mock. Where his characters are initially presented as comic types, he spends time throughout the play complicating them all by showing their contradictions. Most clear are the contradictions within Marlow, who is both refined and base. The final happy ending comes when the two oldest men – Hardcastle and Sir Charles – decide to accept the contradictions in their children. In a sense, this theme helps to understand Goldsmiths purpose in the play, reminding us that all people are worthy of being mocked because of their silly, base natures, and no one is above reproach. Comedy Though it is only explicitly referred to in the prologue, an understanding of Goldsmiths play in context shows his desire to reintroduce his audience to the â€Å"laughing comedy† that derived from a long history of comedy that mocks human vice. This type of comedy stands in contrast to the then-popular â€Å"sentimental comedy† that praised virtues and reinforced bourgeois mentality. Understanding Goldsmiths love of the former helps to clarify several elements of the play: the low scene in the Three Pigeons; the mockery of baseness in even the most high-bred characters; and the celebration of absurdity as a fact of human life. Deceit/Trickery Much of this plays comedy comes from the trickery played by various characters. The most important deceits come from Tony, including his lie about Hardcastles home and his scheme of driving his mother and Constance around in circles. However, deceit also touches to the center of the plays more major themes. In a sense, the only reason anyone learns anything about their deep assumptions about class and behavior is because they are duped into seeing characters in different ways. This truth is most clear with Marlow and his shifting perspective on Kate, but it also is true for the Hardcastles and Sir Charles, who are able to see the contradictions in others because of what trickery engenders.

Wine Of Astonishment Essays - Bolo, Bee, Free Essays, Term Papers

Wine Of Astonishment Essays - Bolo, Bee, Free Essays, Term Papers Wine Of Astonishment In Earl Lovelace's book The Wine of Astonishment two main characters arise Bee and Bolo. Bolo's character is a warrior and he directs the people to the path of empowerment by way of the warrior for that is what he knows and who he is. Bee's character is a man of faith, patience, and a man of his people. Bee also chooses a path of empowerment for the people of the village that is defined by his character, he guides the people to the path of faith. The journey in the book has both men put their characters and paths of empowerment to the test. Who succeeds? Patience, a man of faith, and a man of the people are how I describe Bee's charcter in this book. Bee demonstrates his patience when it is tested against Corporal Price. Prince comes to the village to enforce the law against the Spiritual Baptist. Bee decides it is best to practice in the manners of the Catholics and Anglican until he one day starts preaching in the original manner of the Spiritual Baptist. After that vitalizing sermon he continues till Corporal Price raids the church. Bee realizes that for the benefit of his people they, he must wait, be patient till this injustice is lifted to preach again in the Spiritual Baptist way. Bee is truly a man of the people. In the incident when Corporal Prince raids the church Bee's first thoughts were for the people. Bee tells them Brethren, please don't run. Please don't give them the excuse to brutalize you. He knew how the police would act toward the congregation and he wanted to protect his people. Bee puts the people of the villag e first for he is a man of the people. Bee is a man of faith. He puts his faith in the Spirit, and the people to stay strong. In continuing with the occurrence of the raid from Corporal Prince you can see Bee's faith. The faith Bee has for the Spirit and the people when the congregation is walked though the village after being arrested and Bee joins in the hymn started by Sister Isabel which the whole congregation then joins. The hymn goes I never get weary yet, I never get weary yet, Forty long years I work in the field, And I never get weary yet. Saying they have done this a long time now and they have still stayed strong. Here Bee puts his faith in the people and the Spirit together from the uniting of the congregation in the song of the Spirit. Bee is a man of faith, his people, and of patience, with these examples you can understand why I characterize Bee in this manner. The first descriptive words you read about Bolo are rising like a spear out of the back row, with the rest of the congregation, to sing the first hymn was Bolo. With a new kind of toughness about him, a warrior still. I would character Bolo as a warrior defiantly. He is a soldier for his people in this time of oppression. Bolo started as a warrior in the beginning and ended as warrior. When he began as a warrior with stickfighting as the book describes Bolo was in Bonasse, the champion stickfighter, the king, leading the village in battles down the length and breadth of the island. Bolo fought in pride for the warrior inside during those times of stickfighting. Bolo's warrior disposition continued when Corporal Price was transporting the congregation (including Bolo's mother) to the police station for breaking the law of worshiping in the Spiritual Baptist manner. Bolo made a stand for the people he was their soldier willing to fight even being out numbered. The book refers to how Bo lo headbutted Price till he went down. At same time Prince was going down the 9 other police office jumped Bolo. He continued to fight and fight till his head was split open by a police officer. Bolo was a warrior no matter the odds he had to face. The last demonstration of Bolo's warrior character was when he stood on the porch with Primus's 2 girls that he had taken

Problems with real estate career during the recession Research Paper

Problems with real estate career during the recession - Research Paper Example ..11 Works Cited†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.12 Executive Summery Real estate market is among the most dynamic market in history. Despite the fact that the market is not that large, many processes need to run successfully. Many economic issues as well as legal matters that make operation in it not that easy bind this market. Investing in real estate is only profitable when the economic gaps are high, but quite challenging in low economic seasons. Working n real estate does not offers difficulties to the investors only, but also to their selling agents. Brokers normally earn handsomely in peak seasons despite some few challenges they encounter during their marketing. However, in recession times a lot of risk with little satisfaction is what they encounter in the job. There are several challenges that they meet in their operation, including the fac t that this sector is much dominated among few buyers at the recession times. This creates a very stiff competitive environment that discourages their prosperity. Marketing real estate products pose difficulty due to the high expectation from the sellers from the brokers. Despite the economic falls, sellers still expect to fetch great prices for their products that become unachievable by the agents. Emerging trends in the real estate such as such as Mortgage Assistance Relief, MID and QRM creates changes in the brokers work environment. This forces the brokers to adjust to the running occupational changes that normally are not easy. During economic scarcity loaning system are much reduced that only a few clients are available in the market. The agents hence find no market for their services in the market. In such cases generally earns very little to support them. Because of these challenges, working in this career is normally very hard, and mitigation measures are necessary to prote ct this employment sector. Several recommendations encompassing legal aspect, market protection, financial security, diversification, technological adaptation and teamwork have been proposed for implementation to see these groups succeed and enjoy their career. This proposal was made after a rigorous research and study in the field. Introduction For many years, the lives of real estate agents have been unbearable, especially during recessions. Due to this, the brokers sent their pleas to the ministry of labour in the late 2007, following the start of 2007 and 2009 recession. This was taken as an appropriate moments since studies could reveal situations of the real estate brokers from the start to the end of economic hard times. The Ministry in turn sent a group of experts to study the problem and recommend as appropriate. This report was presented to me, a broker and the secretary of the real estate brokers in the Washington. Besides, the report was tabled before the representatives of real estate agents, real estate investors and representatives from government policy makers and planners. This was carried out in a two days seminar in Washington. The report was aimed at

Design, Analyze, and Create Political Poster or Personal Story Art Essay

Design, Analyze, and Create Political Poster or Personal Story Art Piece - Essay Example The middle portion shows the animals scrambling for water at the Serengeti River which flows through the park. With the large number of animals at the park, competition for water becomes difficult. The painting therefore shows the wild animals that include zebras, buffaloes and antelopes meeting at the river to quench their thirst The lower portion of the picture shows a herd of antelopes running for their lives away from a predator probably a pride of lions or cheetahs. Antelopes are a common prey for animals like lions and cheetahs and sometimes crocodiles at the Serengeti. Predation at the park is a familiar occurrence as the animals look for food for survival. There are numerous battles in the park between the wild animals as they search for food and water. Therefore, the painting shows a herd of antelopes at the Serengeti Park running away from a predator. The purpose of the picture is to educate people of what happens at the Serengeti National Park in the Kenya-Tanzania border in East Africa. The Serengeti National Park is one of the best attraction sites in East Africa. The Great Serengeti Migration is considered as one of the Seven Wonders of the World (Mari & Croze 56). The site of approximately 2 million wild animals crossing the Serengeti River annually is spectacular to watch. The great migration occurs from July to August during dry spell in Kenya. The animals therefore migrate into Tanzania from Kenya in search of water and pasture. The picture therefore is meant to educate people mostly from America and Europe about the marvellous site of the Serengeti Migration in East Africa. Apart from the Great Migration, the picture also seeks to show the different wild animals found in the park. The park has approximately over ten different species of wild mammals. Some of the wild animals include: buffaloes, zebras, antelopes, elephants, giraffes, cheetahs, wildebeest and lions. In addition there are also different species of birds at the park. The park is one of the few areas in the world where one is able to find large numbers of wild animals moving and grazing freely. It provides a natural scene of nature and wild animals that cannot be found anywhere else in the world. The picture therefore shows the natural wild animals found at the Serengeti in addition to showing the Great migration of the animals with a view of encouraging citizens from America and Europe to visit the park as a tourist destination. The picture also purposes to sensitize the world on the beauty of nature and therefore the need to preserve nature and the wild animals. For the wild animals at the Serengeti to continue to exist, efforts must be put in place to protect these animals and their habitat (Mari & Croze 145). Encroachment of land by humans has continuously reduced the habitats of these wild animals hence reducing their numbers considerably. The Park should therefore be reserved as a game reserve and humans should not use the lands in the park for any pu rpose such as farming. Only this way will the beautiful scene of the animals preserved. The picture also seeks to discourage the illegal poaching of these wild animals by show casing their beauty. The painting seeks to encourage more tourists from the US to visit the site as a tourist destination. With more tourists, the Kenyan government will put more efforts to discourage poaching as the park will be generating a lot of revenues from tourism. The number of elephants has been reported to

Why is the employment relations system in the USA characterised by low Essay

Why is the employment relations system in the USA characterised by low levels of collective bargaining - Essay Example Every country have specific norms and labour policies based on which the framework of the employee relation system is designed. In USA there are three basic laws with regard to the employee relationship. They are: a) National Labour Relation Act, which is also known as the Wagner Act, b) Labour Management Relation Act, also called the Taft-Hartley Act, and c) Disclosure Act, which is called the Landrum Griffin Act. The Federal authorities throughout USA make sure that these three laws are implemented in organizations. The agency responsible for its enforcement is the National Labour Relation Board (NLRB). It is into labour management and relation assessment. The Department of Labour (DOL) is responsible for the enforcement of the other important aspects in labour relationship management laws. The major requirement for doing such activity is to ensure the democracy of the internal union and the financial accountability. Both of these regulatory bodies are responsible for ascertaining that the laws are strictly followed and organizations are working under the assistance of these stated frameworks. The private sector workforce or employees have laws set for them under the federal labour laws of the two regulatory bodies such as DOL and NLRB. It has been stated in the Commerce Clause that these regulatory bodies even have regulatory authority to control the labour or employee relations in the privately owned companies (Cahuc and Zylberberg, 2004, pp. 371–373). Traditionally, the unions were formed by skilled craftsmen to safeguard their interest in the organization. With the advent of scientific management in the organizations and industries, the rationale for collectively acting to bargain for the disbursement and working conditions among the workers increased. However, the capitalists in those times were extremely powerful and they opposed the union movement. The anti-union employment laws were even floated by them so as to dishevel the union movement of t he craftsmen. However, during the Great Depression of 1930s, the factory workers united and started forming unions. It was during this time when these unions were successful in performing many activities such as the Wagner Act of 1935, which gave the employees or workers the right to plan and organize strikes. In 1940–1950, the unions began to grow though the federal legislation controlled and monitored them from time to time. In 1960 and 1970, the unionization in the public sector increased considerably (Harcourt and Wood, 2006, pp. 141–145). The regulatory bodies in US affect the industrial and employee relation system in many ways such as: They provide the terms and conditions of the employment in details and directly. They regulate the way in which the organized labour or employees and the management are related to one another. The regulatory bodies had ascertained the minimum wage rate and the maximum working hours for the workers. The overtime rates were also asc ertained by the federal and state bodies. The concept of â€Å"employment at will† operates in US. This means that the employer would have to show no specific reason for dismissing any employee. In this scenario, the National Labour Relation Act was introduced, which provided a specific structure of policies for employee rights in relation to the collective actions. A few of the regulations also required union certification through secret ballot (OECD, 1997, pp. 86–87). In 2007, the union density in US was about 36 percent. Among this about 7.5 percent was in the private sector and the rest in the public sector. It is said that the US unions have a unique approach because they provide benefits mainly to the existing

Christian And Jewish Marriage Customs Religion Essay

Christian And Jewish Marriage Customs Religion Essay Christian weddings usually take place in a Church. Like weddings around the world, rituals and traditions of a Christian wedding can be divided into terms of pre-wedding, wedding, and post-wedding rituals. Friends and family members of the bride and bridegroom participate to add joy to the wedding celebrations. The basic set of rituals of a Christian wedding usually remains the same, regional variations can be observed as communities tend to be influenced by the tradition of land they are living in. Traditionally, a Christian bride wears a white gown in western style and the groom wears a suit. The brides head is covered with a white veil and a crown a tiara or a bunch of white flowers, and she holds a flower bouquet in her hand. Pre-Wedding and Wedding Rituals Bridal Shower-Bridal Shower is one of the major pre-wedding customs of a Christian Wedding. This is a fun-filled and entertaining informal hen party, which is hosted by the brides female friends. It is mainly a female get-together with songs, dance and joyful game sessions. Friends and relatives present gifts to the bride-to-be and give blessings for a happy married life. Following the tradition, the bride serves a pink cake to all present. Uniqueness of the cake is that there is a thimble hidden inside this cake. It is believed that a girl who receives the piece of cake with a thimble will be the next to get married. Bachelors Party-Bachelors Party is the opposite version of the Bridal Shower and is hosted by the groom for his friends. It is essentially a stag party organized on the eve of the wedding or a couple of days before the wedding where the groom is expected to enjoy his last evening as a bachelor. A Bachelors Party typically begins by raising a toast before the drinking begins in earnest. It is mostly celebrated to have fun and enjoyment with close friends. Welcoming The Bride-The ceremony of welcoming the bride is conducted on the day of the wedding. The groom sends a car to pick up the bride and waits for her outside the church. Following the tradition, when the bride arrives, the Best Man welcomes her with a kiss on either cheek and hands her a bouquet of flowers. Following this ritual, the couple walks down the aisle slowly and gracefully accompanied by the wedding procession. Inside the church, the couple walks up to the place where the priest stands for the wedding mass. The priest then welcomes them and offers his best wishes. The Wedding Mass-When everyone is seated, the priest begins the wedding mass with hymns and selected reading from the bible. The priest then delivers the homily, with an emphasis on the sanctity of marriage. The next most important ritual is the blessings and the exchange of wedding rings and marriage vows by the couple. The wedding rings are first blessed by the priest in belief that it there will be everlasting love and an earnest faith. A Christian Wedding ceremony comes to an end with the final blessings of the priest. Then towards the end, the guests shower their blessings on the newlywed couple. Finally, the newlywed couple signs the register and walks down the aisle arm in arm. Post-Wedding Reception-Reception is the most vibrant and sought after occasion organized after a Christian Wedding. As the newlywed couple enters a grand reception ceremony they are welcomed by all with a shower of confetti. Following the tradition, the happy couple also cut a wedding cake and feed each other a bite of the first slice. The Toastmaster proposes a toast in honor of the couple. The reception is mostly celebrated with dance and dinner party. Some people also arrange for a live band performance where everybody dances to the tune of the band. Jewish Marriage Customs In Jewish marriage customs, the betrothal is as binding as marriage. It can only be undone by divorce on proper groundssuch as the bride not being found a virgin. Next in the ceremonial order is the placement of the sealed cup of acceptance before the bride and groom as per the ancient Jewish Wedding custom during the betrothal ceremony. You will be surprised to know that the groom actually proposes to the bride during this ceremony! The groom is expected to pour out the wine from the cup for his bride and wait for her to drink it as a token of her love for him and acceptance of his marriage proposal. This cup is looked at as a blood covenant. If the bride drinks the wine, the celebration begins with the groom giving his gifts to the bride. The groom then leaves the bride to prepare the Chuppah. The bride promises to wait for him. In the interregnum between the betrothal and the wedding, the groom has certain jobs to complete. You may be surprised to know that the Chuppah or Huppah is to be prepared by the groom with his own hands. This is a canopy that is prepared by the groom at his home to receive his bride as per the dictates of the ancient Jewish marriage customs. It is also the honeymoon room in the grooms house, where the wedding is consummated. You will also note that it is symbolized by the chuppah or canopy under which the wedding ceremony is conducted. Significantly the groom is not allowed to lack on the quality of work in preparing this room or canopy. The preparations have to be approved by the grooms father before he can consider it ready for his bride. The groom, therefore, cannot declare with any certainty the date of his wedding. It is incumbent upon the approval of the Chuppah by his father. Consequently you will find that as per the Ancient Jewish marriage customs the groom must answer Only my father knows to any query regarding the date of his wedding. The bride spoken for or betrothed will spend the time between the betrothal and the wedding under a veil whenever she steps out of the house. The Nissuin or the Marriage The Jewish wedding ceremony is called the Nissuin. As we said above, you will note that the date will be fixed whenever the grooms father considers the Chuppah ready to receive the bride. This can happen at any time so in ancient Jewish marriage custom, the term Nissuin also refers to the abduction of the bride from the home of her father. Consequently the bride must be ready for her groom at all times after the betrothal ceremony. She must keep her lamp, her veil and other things she needs beside her bed. Her bridesmaids must also be ready with oil in their lamps. The groom needs to shout Shofar as he nears the house of the bride. The purpose is to warn the bride that the groom is coming to claim her and she must be ready to leave to her new home! As with wedding around the world, you will note that the bride and the groom are richly attired and crowned. They pledge themselves to eternal happiness. All guests are then invited to participate in the marriage feast. A Quaint Custom and Virginity of Bride The bride and the groom spend seven days continuously, in the honeymoon chamber prepared by the groom. The grooms best friend stands guard outside the chamber to receive the news that the marriage has been consummated and the proof of the first intercourse is to be testified to by the blood on the bed sheets. You may note that the ancient Jewish marriage customs dictate that blood on the sheets is an indication that the bride is a virgin and the marriage is pure. It is also a blood covenant that the bride and groom have been joined in marriage. The guests will continue the celebrations for seven days till the bride and groom emerge from the chamber. A final wedding supper is then held on the seventh day.

Gap Between Rich And Poor Essay -- essays research papers

â€Å"America the beautiful, Who are you beautiful for?†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  America, the land of opportunity, but is it really? America is made up of people of many different cultural and social backgrounds. The constitution of the people reads that as Americans, these people are entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. These rights were designed in part to attain a sense of equality within the individual so that a sense of unity would exist. Because of the structures within society that influence a person’s character such as the educational, corporate and governmental structures there are many differences in the social, economic, and political sense amongst the individuals. There is a select group who are more educated that come from the more prestigious and wealthy backgrounds as opposed to those who come from the working middle class and poor levels. The opportunities are much different due to the effects of these institutions and the socioeconomic levels that children are born into. If the economic resources are abundant, than success is easier to attain. By looking at the exclusive clubs that the wealthy belong to and the differences in the educational institutions that children attend, it is evident that the individual born into a wealthy family is more apt to achieve success than one who is brought up in a working class family. One of the main keys to success is to establish networks and organizations in support of the corporate community. These networks form a social cohesion which is based on two types of relationships found in a membership network: common membership in specific social institutions and friendships based on social interactions within those institutions. Social cohesion creates a group identity where members of the social groups are seen to be exclusive and of high status. â€Å"The social bonding can be seen as one reason why the social rich are cohesive enough to dominate the rest of society despite their numbers.† (Domhoff, G. William, Who Rules America? p.72) Used as indicators of upper class standing, the exclusive clubs are used as a reinforcement to separate the wealthy from the working-class. The Bohemian Club is one of the most widely known clubs that caters to the upper class, corporate leaders, celebrities, and government officials. This retreat intertwines the upper class with the corporate community to ... ...ources in their educational institutions. Through the social institutions of the upper class as well as the educational systems of both the upper and lower classes, it is evident that there exists an inequality in the class structure. More opportunities exist for the upper class from the early years of their childhood leading up to the membership of exclusive clubs and through attendance of private schools. The most important factor of success is a good education and most low-income families are denied this because of zoning reasons. Besides having a good education, it is at one’s advantage to be a part of a network or social club which will support them and guide them through their career. These social clubs exist primarily among the more affluent families. In order to even out the scales of opportunity, the educational systems have to be re-evaluated so that students receive adequate resources in a safe environment. Parents must also help in showing their support in the educational and motivational sense. Being born into a certain social class does determine one’s future if they do not realize that there are more opportunities out there besides that ones that are most apparent.

Comparing Propaganda Used in Animal Farm Essay

Comparing Propaganda Used in Animal Farm to the Russian Revolution’s Propaganda â€Å"Propaganda is a narrowly selfish attempt to get people to accept ideas and beliefs, always in the interest of a particular person or group and with little or no advantage to the public (â€Å"What is Propaganda†¦ 2). Propaganda is the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person. In the Russian Revolution Joseph Stalin used propaganda to his benefit and used it to usurp the people of Russia. Also how Napoleon used propaganda to his benefit and to usurp the animals of Animal Farm. Napoleon got Boxer to follow him and Boxer helped spread the propaganda, but Squealer was the propaganda itself (Orwell, George 56). Much like how, Joseph Stalin got common people to follow him and he got them to spread it. Fear, transfer, and pinpointing the enemy are three propaganda techniques that are shared by the novel Animal Farm a nd the Russian Revolution. The first propaganda technique is fear and it is used to scare the animals of Animal Farm. Napoleon uses fear by holding purges in which he accuses the animals of treason and kills anyone who confesses to working with Snowball. In the same way, Joseph Stalin uses fear by holding executions in which he accuses his enemies for crimes and forces them to admit to false confessions and then executes them (Background information†¦Ã¢â‚¬  4). The executions are called the Great Terror of 1936 to 1939 and millions of people were killed (Joseph Stalin†¦ 1). Another similarity is how the dogs used fear to force the animals to work and in the Russian Revolution, the secret police forced support for Joseph Stalin. The dogs would also intimidate or threaten any animal who stood in Napoleon’s way. The KGB or secret police would use force and would kill anyone for disobedience (Lamont, George J. 1). The second propaganda technique that is used is transfer. In Animal Farm, all of the animals are equal and that is what they call Animalism. Likewise, all people are equal in Communism, which is what was used during the Russian Revolution. In Animalism, the Animals own the farm and in Communism, the government owns everything and the people own the government (Lamont, George J. 1). Another similarity is that the  raven Moses tells the animals of Animal Farm about a place called Sugar Candy Mountain and that is where all animals go when they die (Orwell, George 17). Allegorically, this represents the Russian Orthodox religion during the Russian Revolution. When the pigs let Moses stay when he returns represents how Joseph Stalin used the Russian Orthodox Church as a way to raise funds for the Russian war effort during World War II (â€Å"George Orwell†¦ 1†). The third and final propaganda technique is pinpointing the enemy. In the book Animal Farm, Mr. Jones is cruel towards the animals and in the Russian Revolution; Czar Nicholas II is brutal with his opponents. Mr. Jones also abused and neglected his animals and Czar Nicholas II would let his people starve and was a bad leader (Lamont, George J. 2). During the Battle of the Cowshed, Mr. Jones tries to regain control of Animal Farm and that represents the Russian Civil War in which the Western capitalist governments sent soldiers to try to remove the Bolsheviks from power (George Orwell Links†¦ 1). Another example of pinpointing the enemy is how Napoleon blames Animal Farm’s mishaps on Snowball and told the animals that he was the enemy. In the Russian Revolution, Joseph Stalin feared that the Trotsky supporters would try to assassinate him and he was also afraid of Trotsky gaining power. Napoleon thought of Snowball as a threat and drove him off of the farm and that represents Trotsky being exiled to Mexico (â€Å"Background information†¦ 16†). Then Joseph Stalin shunned Trotsky from the Soviet Union and then eventually had him killed (â€Å"Joseph Stalin†¦ 1†). Fear, transfer, and pinpointing the enemy are the three propaganda techniques that were talked about in this research paper. Fear is used to make a particular action occur or a consequence will result of disobedience. Transfer is used to make an attempt to make the subject view a certain item in the same way as they view another item to link the two subjects in the mind. Pinpointing the enemy is used to resolve a conflict by presenting a person or group as the enemy. Therefore, the propaganda that was used during the Russian Revolution and Animal Farm had greatly impacted the people of Russia and the animals of Animal Farm. Works Cited â€Å"George Orwell-Animal Farm-Interpretation of characters and symbols.† The Complete Newspeak Dictionary. 7 December 2011 . Lamont, George J. â€Å"Animal Farm-Comparison of characters to the Russian Revolution.† Gonzaga Student Web Server. 11 December 2011 http://barney.gonzaga.edu/~sbennet3/mead/lesonplans/animalfarm.htm>. â€Å"Background information for George Orwell’s Animal Farm-George Orwell Links.† Charles’ George Orwell Links-Biographies, Essays, Novels, Reviews, Images. 11December 2011 Orwell, George. Animal Farm: a fairy story. New York, NY: Signet Classic, 1996. Print. â€Å"What is Propaganda?: Defining Propaganda.† American Historical Association. 15 December 2011 . â€Å"Joseph Stalin – Discover the Networks.† Discover the Networks. 15 December 2011 . Borade, Gaynor. â€Å"Stalinism: The use of Propaganda by Joseph Stalin.† Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web. 15 December 2011 .

Defining Leisure and Recreation Essay

Leisure is a general term and just like an umbrella, covers the terms, sport, recreation and play. Leisure is the overall term. Below is a diagram to help explain the relationship between leisure, recreation, sport and play: On the continuum between play, recreation and sport, there are a varied level of effort and seriousness. Play is a non-serious form of leisure and sport is very serious. Leisure can be very difficult to define. It is said to be the time spent outside of working commitments and other daily necessities. It can be spent doing anything that an individual would like to do. It is said to be called ‘free choice’. It is our ‘free time’ and is a complete opposite to work. There are many characteristics of leisure including your state of mind. Your state of mind is how you decide to spend your leisure time whether it is shopping or whether it is playing sport. Leisure may not always be relaxing but it has an aftermath of relaxation and a good feeling. Leisure may be active or passive depending on our state of mind. An example of a passive leisure activity is watching television. You are not active as you are only sat down watching television but it is a very popular leisure activity. An example of an active leisure activity is football. You are very active and you are running around. Leisure activities can also be home-based or away from home. An example of a home-based activity can be listening to music in the home and an example of an away from home activity could be going to the pub. Leisure is enjoyable and can be done anywhere. A quote from Collins Advanced Vocational textbook of Leisure and Recreation says, â€Å"Leisure can be defined as the time that an individual sets aside for activities or pastimes outside work or other necessities such as sleeping.† A-Z OF LEISURE ACTIVITIES ARTWORK NATURE SEEKING BIRDWATCHING ORIGAMI CAMPING PUB DANCING QUIZZES EXCURSIONS READING FAMILIES SHOPPING GARDENING TELE HOLIDAYS UNDERWATER ACTIVITIES INTERNET VISITS JOGGING WATERSPORTS KNITTING XYLOPHONE PLAYING LISTENING TO MUSIC YOUTH CLUBS MUSEUMS ZOOS All the above activities are activities that are done in our leisure time. They are taken out when we do not have work, or everyday duties like sleeping and eating. Recreation is also a free choice activity and is often active. It is more structured than leisure and is not usually done at home. Recreation implies enjoyment and the skill level does not matter. Recreation has a flexibility of rules and is very purposeful as it ‘re-creates the individual’ or ‘re-charges the batteries’ ready for work. Hobbies are usually productive with skill levels increasing with more practice. Recreation has a moral element and has a good attitude about it. Examples of recreation are swimming, stamp collecting and gardening. They are all ‘creating’ something, hence the word ‘recreation’. Swimming creates a stronger person, stamp collecting creates a larger stamp collection and gardening creates a nicer garden. Recreation is defined as, â€Å"the type of activities undertaken for enjoyment or relaxation during a person’s leisure time.† There are physical and passive recreational activities. Physical activities are playing sport, playing music instruments and gardening. Passive activities are watching television, listening to music and playing computer games. ‘Home-based’ recreational activities are cheaper, for example, reading library books is free and eating at home is much cheaper than eating out. It is also non-dependent on anyone else whereas going to a restaurant would involve other people. A quote from Kaplan in 1975, says, ‘Activity voluntarily engaged in during leisure and motivated by the personal satisfactions which result from it†¦a tool for mental and physical therapy.’ This is a very good quote to describe the definition ‘recreation’. Play can also be very hard to define as many people have different views on what play is. Although a major football team play football every Saturday, competitive football is actually counted as sport. An example of play is ‘tig’. ‘Tig’ is a game that can be played anywhere and does not have certain rules or boundaries. Play is very spontaneous and can be done on the spare of the moment. It can be played in the garden and is not competitive. It is make-believe and is often done to get away from the real world. There are no age boundaries and adults and children can play. Play is not very important and has a low level of skill. It is not compulsory and is a free choice what an individual decides to play. Playing does not have to be physical. An example of a non-physical game is playing cards. Whilst playing, no certain skills are being taught but people can learn new things whilst playing. Play can be defined as, ‘Activities from which you get immediate pleasure without ulterior motive.’ This quote was taken from There are many skills learnt by children through play such as physical skills like how to pass a ball properly in football. Other skills are cognitive skills, environmental, social and moral skills. An example for a cognitive skill is where you decide on a decision quick enough to react to it, for example, when an opponent comes towards you dribbling the ball, it is a cognitive skill that is used to decide whether you go and tackle them or not. An environmental skill is where you pick up from people what is the best way to care for the environment and the area around you. Social skills are how you learn to react around each other, how you learn to be friendly with one another and learn how to communicate in the appropriate manner, for example, a social skill learnt through play is shaking the opponent’s hand after a game. Moral skills are the way you act to other people and the manners use. For example if someone gives you something, you say ‘thank you’. You know it is morally correct to thank the person. This is an example of a moral skill. Play is the opposite of sport. Sport has many characteristics and can be defined as the most physical of leisure’s field of study’s. It can be very successful and competitive. Sport has a high level of skill and a high level of fitness. There are strict rules on and off the pitch. For example, on the pitch, one rule in football is that you are not allowed to tackle an opponent from behind. A rule off the pitch is that players are not allowed to take drugs. In sport, the outcomes are important as it may be for a league, cup or tournament. There are qualified officials that have an important role in the game. There are many people who play sport as a job, therefore, are professional sports players. In sport there are tangible rewards such as the F.A. Cup in football. Sport is formal as it has organised dates and times when sport is going to take place. There is a lot of effort put into sport and a lot of work is put into practising for the sport. For each sport, there is a National Governing Body just like the Football Association in football and the Sports players do still find it enjoyable as it is rewarding and fun to participate in. The word ‘sport’ stems from the Latin word, ‘disportare’ which means ‘to carry away’. Sport across the world is seen very serious and top sports players even put themselves through pain and emotion to succeed. A definition of sport is, ‘Any physical activity which has the character of play and which takes the form of a struggle with oneself or involves competition with others is a sport.’ This quote was taken from There are many factors that affect the participation of people in leisure and recreation activities. One of the most important factors are our peers. They can have a big influence on whether we do or do not participate. For example, if our friends really enjoy playing sport, you will be more influenced to take part also. But if our friends have the attitude that playing cricket is boring and we would be much better going to the cinema instead, you would be influenced in thinking the same. Other influences can be by your parents. If your parents are behind you in playing sport and buy you equipment and transport you, they will be influencing you into deciding to play sport. If you decide you would like to play football for your local team and need some football boots and your parents will not buy you them, you may decide not to play as you do not possess the equipment to play. A big influence on participation can be the opportunities you have around you. If the school you go to has a very good range of extra-curricular activities and has contacts with clubs in the area, you will be more influenced in taking part. If you have a higher opportunity to participate then there is a higher chance that you will participate. The area in which you live will influence you as well as there may be great facilities in the area or there may be none at all. A big influence in which activity we decide to participate in can be role models, such as Michael Owen in football, Steve Redgrave in rowing and Paula Radcliffe in running. These are all professional and very successful sports players that have a big influence on what sport we participate in. They are all very good at there own activities and our skill level can also influence us in our participation. For example if you know and feel you are good at an activity, you will want to take part in it more often that in an activity that you are not so good at. Some people have a lot of leisure time whereas other people have very little, this can also influence us on our participation as there may not be activities going on at the time you want to participate in. Our culture can also have a big influence on what activity we decide to take part in. For example, if your Granddad, Uncle and Dad all were good footballers, you may decide to take part in football, as it is a ‘family tradition’. Other influences in our participation can be our medical conditions and our disabilities. For example, a person in a wheelchair would not be able to play in the Premiership. A major influence on our participation in leisure activities is our wealth and our disposable income (our money we have left after we have paid for all our necessities), Many leisure activities cost money to participate in so if we do not have much money to append, this may affect our decision in what we do. There are many things that influence our participation such as our sex. Netball is seen as a women’s sport and men do not play. Although women play football, their status is nothing compared to men’s football. There are rules that say men and women cannot play football together from the age of 11. The lack of men’s netball teams and the lack of women’s football teams can influence our participation in certain leisure activities. Our level of fitness can also influence our choices as if we were very tall and very fit, we may decide to play a sport like basketball but if we had very strong arms, we may decide to choose to take part in rowing. Media can have a very big influence in our participation as it has a big influence in our lives. When you read the back pages of tabloid newspapers, you usually find that most of the pages are about football, because there is so much talk about football, you may be influenced in participating, just like if on the news, they say that it is bad to take part in basketball because you can hurt your ankles, you may be influenced in taking part in another sport. The marital status of an individual can also influence participation. If you are married with children, your leisure time will be reduced as you have more daily necessities like picking up the children and caring for them. Car ownership can have a major influence in participation also as if you have a car, it will be easier to access places that you cannot get to by public transport. As shown above, there are a great number of influences in participation, whether it is friends or medical conditions.

Report of Experiences in Assessments in Matoska International School

Report of Experiences in Assessments in Matoska International School Introduction At Matoska International School, assessment is one of the key elements of the teaching and learning process. Assessment is concerned with the gathering of valuable feedback from student in term of what the student know, what the students feel and what the students are able to do at various stages of the teaching learning process in response to what they have learned.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on Report of Experiences in Assessments in Matoska International School specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The school has multi faceted assessment criteria that aim at evaluating different types of learning such as skills, knowledge and attitudes. It also means that students are an integral part of the assessment process and that the students are encouraged to develop critical thinking as well as a self evaluation mentality. Assessment at Matoska International School is not only for the purpose of gathering in formation for the sake of enriching the teaching and learning process but is intended to aid in the development of students’ learning and learned abilities. As such it is an ongoing process that also involves the environment, the community as well as the student’s family members. The student is continuously informed of the assessment criteria and adequately prepared before any assessment test is administered (Matoska n.d). Assessment is therefore a continuous process of varied activities intended to develop the student and involves various parties such as the parent community, and the family members while the student is the central figure in the entire process. Assessment methods At Matoska, teaching and learning is multifaceted and as such the assessment criteria is modeled along the Bloom concept of learning domains. It evaluates various aspects of learning such as knowledge skills and attitudes. Knowledge learned is assessed through summative tests at the end of eve ry learning unit. The learner is required to define, describe, knows, lists, or recall knowledge learned. The learner is also expected to show the ability to analyze knowledge learned. Assessment also tests the learner’s attitudes. This involves testing whether the learner’s skills, concept and beliefs have been affected by what has been learned. As such the learner will be observed to identify how he/she cooperates, influences, questions and internalizes learned values. Furthermore, assessment is also intended to evaluate the learners ‘doing’ abilities. This includes testing the learner fro creating, constructing, composing designing and such other physical abilities. Assessment involves both qualitative and quantitative evaluation.Advertising Looking for term paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Quantitative assessment involves awarding of numerical score or grades while qu alitative assessment appeals to a teachers emotion and responses such as good, satisfactory, excellent are involved. Qualitative assessment is used in assessing both written and unwritten tests. Furthermore, assessment also tests a learners psychomotor skills; the ability of the students to do what they have learned in class. Therefore, the assessment at Matoska involves a variety of methods (Matoska n.d). To begin with the teachers use the paper pencil methods. This involves written response where students will write tests that may either involve multiple choices, short answers or essays. Written assessment is done both as a continuous measurement method of a student learning. Therefore it is achieved through writing daily class room assignment as well as the end of every learning unit or semesters exams. Non paper and pencil assessment involves unwritten evaluation such oral tests and manual task. A student is required to give oral responses to questions as well as completing manu al tasks such as simple laboratory experiments while following simple procedures. Unwritten assessment is also part of co curricula activities such as debating, group discussions, music, as well as sports and physical education. The teacher will also observe the student developmental needs in communication skills, interpersonal skills and the way the student relates to the environment around them (Gredler1999). The purpose of assessment The methods mentioned above are student centered and as such the main purpose of using them is to make the student be part of teaching learning process. Thus the student becomes an active participant in the learning process. Students are encouraged to develop self evaluation mechanism and as such they reflect on what they have learned. They are therefore become aware of their own personal academic progress and as such the student will make self directed effort to improve their grade (Matsoka, n.d; Badders, 2000). The tools mentioned above are also ve ry useful in gathering information about the teaching learning process. This information is valuable as it will inform the teaching methods applied to the whole class in general as well as for specific learners. Diagnostic tests help the teacher to understand the student entry level knowledge and learning needs. Assessment is also part of the professional teacher’s duty. At Matoska, teachers are supposed to administer tests and examinations at predetermined times in fulfillment of their professional duties. Such include Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment, administered every spring to students to grades 3 to 5 (Matoska n.d.).Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on Report of Experiences in Assessments in Matoska International School specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Assessment generates valuable information As mentioned earlier, the methods of assessment are used to generate valuable information about the entire t eaching and learning process. The tools for assessment thus have been able to yield valuable information to the teacher as follows. Over a given period of learning a student takes a series of tests of which an average score is calculated. Continuous tests measures learning abilities on given topics. These tests are used by the teacher as to gauge the student’s immediate needs per topic which are addressed before progress to the next topic. Therefore the tests help in gathering information about a student’s continuous progress and needs. The averaging of tests scored is very useful in giving an accurate measure of a student’s academic performance over a given period of time, such a school semester. The series of assessment test a variety of knowledge, skills and talents. This reveals students’ strength, weaknesses and development needs (Marzano 2006). The assessment has also been very valuable in yielding information on teaching methods that will aid a stu dent’s improved learning. It is through assessment that teachers identify weak areas and thus have to vary teaching methods to address those areas (Matoska n.d.). If students score poorly in communication skills or have poor written skills, the teacher will vary the teaching methods, to incorporate teaching communication, both verbal and written. Rating assessment methods The assessment methods applicable at Matoska have been rated very highly and proved satisfactory. The purposes of using these particular methods have had a very significant impact on the curriculum at Matoska International School. These methods are very valid as have allowed students to exhibit what they know and are able to do. Such assessment includes writing down grammatically correct sentences, ability to identify herbivore from carnivores among other activities. The scores for these assessments are recorded, analyzed and used for future reference as well as improving the learning process at the school. The assessments are reliably useful as they can be applied to all students at all time not only in Matoska but in other schools in the district. These assessments have been able to produce similar results if applied to various schools and students at different times. They also produce data reliable data that that accurately reflects individual student’s knowledge, attitudes and skills learned.Advertising Looking for term paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Assessment methods are also upgraded periodically to reflect the current thinking in classroom assessment. Furthermore, the methods have been structured in such a way that they address the time available. This reflects the efficiency of the methods in use (Badders 2000). Insight and problems encountered The assessment process has yielded useful insights. Credible assessment is an interactive process between teaching and the learning process where the student is the central figures in the whole process. It therefore means that communication is valuable in the whole process as goals and intentions have to be clearly communicated to the student. To facilitate this mean that the relationship between the student and teacher has to be right for any effective communication to occur. Traditional assessment only involved the teacher as the only one who would develop assessment tools. However modern methods are also encouraging the student to do a self evaluation that will help in student dir ected studying. There are also some problems encountered in using the assessment methods identified in this essay. Assessment is a much more complicated affair especially when it comes to qualitative assessment. The use of adjective such a s good, excellent and such other words that express the quality of learning do not have a universal application because of their subjective nature. What is satisfactory performance to one student may be poor performance from another. Therefore qualitative assessment becomes difficult when assessing student with varying abilities using the same criteria (Black Dylan, 1998). Conclusion Teaching, learning and assessment have symbiotic relationship. Teaching and learning are directed towards assessment while assessment is directed towards further learning which may result in further assessment. As such none can exist without the other. Traditional assessment was content oriented but with changes in the education system, a more student approach has be en adopted. This has resulted in better assessment methods being adopted which have lead to improvement of educational standards. Matoska International School values assessment as an integral part of its teaching and learning process. It is also student centered and as such other than assessing knowledge, the student’s attitudes and physical abilities are also part of assessment the intention of which is to produce an all rounded individual. Reference List Badders, W. ( 2000). Methods of assessment. Web. Black, P., Wiliam, D. (1998). Assessment and classroom learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy Practice5 (1). Web. Gredler, M. (1999). Classroom assessment and learning. New York: Addison Wesley Longman. Marzano, R. (2006). Classroom assessment and grading that work. Virginia: ASCD. Matoska International PYP assessment policy. Web.