The New Subjects in Romantisism

During the Romantic Period there seemed to be revolution in the air. The American Revolution and the French Revolution of 1789 had a great impact on literature of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. This impact can be seen throughout Romantic literature but especially in the area of new subjects. Before the 19th century authors tended to write about the aristocratic class. There was nothing written for or about the common people. There are three areas in which the discussion will focus upon in the area of new subjects. The first area will focus on the children, the second will be women, and the third will be the new attitude towards God. The Romantic period strongly emphasized the lives of children. Authors writing at that time did not just look at children playing outside but within real life situations. Writing started to be explored in the language of the common man. The topics presented by most of these writers appealed to the general public. Today, the area of children within literary works does not seem revolutionary. At this time, however, there were no writings that reflected the everyday lives of children. The first important poem in the Romantic period with regards to children is by William Blake, â€Å"The Chimney Sweep.† This poem focuses upon the tremendous abuse of children during this time. This poem portrays visions of death throughout â€Å"were all of them lock'd up in coffins of black†(Norton 31). This quote catches the reader's attention with a vision of death. These children talked of death very candidly because they died young. The sweeper almost inevitably would have died before he even knew how to live life. They worked in horrible labor conditions with no sign of relief because there were no labor laws. These children mainly died from consumption of the fumes within the shaft or by an accident. â€Å"We are Seven† by William Wordsworth refers frequently to children. This poem is told from the perspective of a seven-year-old girl. A young girl as the center of the poem would have been unheard of in earlier periods. The little girl has a brother and a sister who have died. The girl shows the reader the presence of another reality. The audience could not have understood this new reality we before the entrance of a child's perspective. The child has seven people in the family but two are dead. The little girl's reality is different than the readers. She believes her family members are with her even though they are really dead. These two poems impacted the populace to be aware of the exploitation of children and their understandings of the world. Frankenstein also addresses the concept of children in literature. Mary Shelly does it on several occasions. The first reference to children in the book is when Victor's brother is killed. Only in the Romantic Period do readers see the concept of death of children. Also on another occasion within the novel the talk centers on children migrating because of war. In earlier novels the role of children was not predominant. Another area in which the Romantic writings were opened were the writings on and by women. The most influential work would be Mary Wolstonecraft's work The Vindication of The Rights of Woman. There are many points that are brought to light within this work. Wolstonecraft calls for the education of all people, including women. She does not want to educate women for the amusement of men, but for intellectual stimuli. She tires to argue for women's education in a subtle way. She argues for the education of women to be for the betterment of the populace. Wolstonecraft tries to make the point that the education of women would be in a good light. She argues that the education of women would create stability within the home. Husbands and wives will be able to hold a substantive conversation; they will â€Å"become the friend, and not the humble dependant of her husband†(Norton 113). Wollstonecraft was able to write in this way because she herself was educated. Her relationship with her husband was one of a mutual affection not a necessity, and he was not threatened by this. Women threatened other contemporary males during this time. As seen here from a journal called Gentleman's Magazine in April 1799: In the general confusion of ideas, religious, moral, and political, we are not surprised to find claims set up for the female sex, unsupported we must say by prescription, but we are justified in saying by reason. Mrs. R. avows herself of the school of Wollstonecroft; and that is enough for all who have any regard to decency, order, or prudence, to avoid her company. She has traveled for her improvement; and what are the blessed fruits of her travels? Let the motley list of heroines subjoined to this letter, and the anecdotes of female characters, of all descriptions, interspersed in it, speak for themselves. (Randall 1) This is an illustration of how men felt at this time. This also shows that not everyone was inclined to recognize the new subjects. (The Mrs. R refers to Mary Robinson a contemporary of Wolstonecraft) One of the most intriguing works we read was â€Å"The Lady of Shalott.† This poem was in long form but it captured life in a different light. The poem depicts women looking at life only through a mirror. She watches her whole existence through the mirror, until she finally needs to see with her own eyes what has happened. The meaning of this poem can be interpreted in many ways. One way is that woman are watching the world pass them by without trying to taking part in everyday actions. Another area in which women were making their mark was writing the literature. Mary Wollstonecraft started the chain of events. She was one of the first women noticed for her writings. Her daughter Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley made great strides as a writer also at this time. These authors also made women more human. Women, not only did they cook and clean but also they even did other things. The third area to look at when addressing new subjects is God. There were many writings on the role of God before this period. The Bible being the best example tells of God the friend and God the punisher. William Blake illustrates poetry best in relation to God. The two poems that gave us the best look at, the two different versions of, God are â€Å"The Lamb† and â€Å"The Tyger.† In these two poems Blake takes two very different views. The lamb is the traditional symbol for the flock of God. He challenges the idea of Christ the lamb with the repetitive nature. He repeatedly asks the question â€Å"who made thee?† referring to who created a creature like the lamb (Norton 29). In the â€Å"Tyger† the same question of â€Å"who made thee?† comes up (Norton 37). This vicious animal and hunter is he too one of Gods creatures. This asks the question â€Å"What king of immortal hand or eye/ could frame thy fearful symmetry?† The questioning of what kind of god made you, the lamb and tyger. Then the next question asked is â€Å"Did he who made the lamb make thee?† seemingly the answer being yes it is the same god. Blake seems to question God several times within his poetry. The next one that sticks out particularly is â€Å"The Divine Image† where he continues to question what God really is. â€Å"To mercy, Pity, Peace and Love† sets the tone for the rest of the poem. He tells of how we are all God's children so we better be good to one another. He stresses the idea of equality here. There are also two stories that come to mind when discussing God as a new subject. The first is the â€Å"Rime of the Ancient Mariner† by Samuel Colleridge. In this short story we see a man on a journey. His journey starts not at the beginning of the trip to the South Pole, but it begins when he kills a bird. He shoots it with a crossbow. The symbolism behind the crossbow may mean he killed Jesus. Then when He goes through all the pains and anguish, he is forgiven for killing one of God's creatures. The next story that comes to expresses God in the area of new subjects is Frankenstein by Mary Shelly. This novel shows God in a very different light. Victor is shown as a God because he has created a creature outside of his own blood. Victor is faced with a choice whether or not to destroy or create a new creature. The Frankenstein book looked at the idea of God in a new fashion. Shelly tries to show us that our obsessions draw great light upon us. Mary Shelley shows how our obsessions draw light upon us in two ways. If we are obsessed with doing something when it happens we are let down. The second way that obsession affects us is that if we do not do something it may kill us. There were many new subjects that were addressed by Romantic poets and authors alike in regards to new subjects. The subject area of children is still being explored today. Once the subject area of children was opened the writing world has not been the same. In the area of women Vindication came when that work was published. It did not free women but gave them rights that they had not ever had before. In the area of God there was a great deal of questioning taking place. The entrance of Darwin and its legitimization raised questions pertaining to god. These new subjects were vital to the Romantic period and every piece of writing afterward.

Succubus Shadows Chapter 12

It occurred to me at some point that I wished the Oneroi would only send me false dreams. They hurt – no question – but there was a very, very small comfort afterward in knowing they hadn't really happened. Yet, my next few dreams were true ones, and I was forced to keep reliving the past. One memory brought me back to fifteenth century Florence. At first, I felt a small blossoming of joy at repeating this. The Italian Renaissance had been a beautiful thing, and I'd been in awe watching the ingenuity of humans reawaken after the last few depressing centuries. Things were made that much more interesting because the Church was always pushing back against this artistic flourishing. That kind of conflict was what my kind thrived on. Another succubus and I had shared a house, living luxuriously off of a textile business we ostensibly managed while our merchant uncle (an incubus who was never around) traveled. It was a good setup, and I – going by the name of Bianca – was the favorite child of our local demoness, Tavia, thanks to conquest after conquest. It all started to go awry when I hired an eccentric and extremely good-looking painter named Niccol? ° to create a fresco for our home. He was flamboyant, funny, and intelligent – and had been attracted to me from the first day. Nonetheless, a sense of propriety and professional boundaries made him keep his distance. This was something I intended to change, and I frequently stayed with him while he worked on the wall, knowing it would only be a matter of time before he gave in to my charms. â€Å"Ovid didn't know anything about love,† I told him one day. I was lounging on a sofa, caught up in one of the literary discussions we so often stumbled into. His ability to engage in these talks added to his allure. He looked up at me with mock incredulity, pausing in his painting. â€Å"Nothing about love? Woman, bite your tongue! He's the authority! He wrote books on it. Books that are still read and used today.† I sat up from my undignified repose. â€Å"They aren't relevant. They were written for a different time. He devotes pages to telling men where to meet women. But those places aren't around anymore. Women don't go to races or fights. We can't even linger in public areas anymore.† This came out with more bitterness than I intended. The artistic culture of this time was wonderful, but it had come with a restriction of female roles that differed from those I'd grown used to in other places and eras. â€Å"Perhaps,† Niccol? ° agreed. â€Å"But the principles are still the same. As are the techniques.† â€Å"Techniques?† I repressed a snort. Honestly, what could a mere mortal know about seduction techniques? â€Å"They're nothing but superficial gestures. Give your ladylove compliments. Talk about things you have in common – like the weather. Help her fix her dress if it gets mussed. What does any of that have to do with love?† â€Å"What does anything have to do with love anymore? If anything, those comments are particularly applicable now. Marriage is all about business.† He tilted his head toward me in a speculative manner that was typical of him. â€Å"You've done something with your hair today that's extremely pretty, by the way.† I paused in return, thrown off by the compliment. â€Å"Thank you. Anyway. You're right: marriage is business. But some of them are love matches. Or love can grow. And plenty of clandestine affairs, no matter how ‘sinful,' are based on love.† â€Å"So your problem is that Ovid is ruining what love is still left?† His eyes drifted to the window, and he frowned. â€Å"Does it look like it'll rain out there?† The zeal of this topic seized hold of me, making his abrupt interruptions that much more annoying. â€Å"Yes – what? I mean, no, it won't rain, and, yes, that's what he's doing. Love is already so rare. By approaching it like a game, he cheapens what little there is.† Niccol? ° abandoned his brushes and colors and sat down next to me on the couch. â€Å"You don't think love is a game?† â€Å"Sometimes – all right, most of the time – yes, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't – † I stopped. His fingers had slid to the edge of my dress's neckline. â€Å"What are you doing?† â€Å"This is crooked. I'm straightening it.† I stared and then started laughing as the ruse revealed itself. â€Å"You're doing it. You're following his advice.† â€Å"Is it working?† I reached for him. â€Å"Yes.† He pulled back. This wasn't what he'd expected. He'd only intended to tease me, proving his point with a game. Averting his eyes, he began to rise. â€Å"I should get back to work†¦.† He was rarely thrownoff, and I'd disarmed him. Gripping him with surprising strength, I jerked him back to me and pressed my lips to his. They were soft and sweet, and after a few stunned moments, he responded, his tongue moving eagerly into my mouth. Then, realizing what he was doing, he drew away once more. â€Å"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I could see the longing in his eyes, the desire he'd held back since working for me. He wanted me, but even a roguish artistic type felt it was wrong to do this with an unmarried, upper-class woman – particularly one who'd employed him. â€Å"You started it,† I warned in a low voice. â€Å"You were trying to prove me wrong about Ovid. Looks like it worked.† I put my hand behind his neck, pulling his mouth back down to my own. He still initially resisted, but it didn't last. And when his hand began slowly pushing up the folds of my skirts, I knew I'd won and that it was time to retreat to the bedroom. Once there, he abandoned any attempts at decorum. He pushed me down onto the bed, the fingers that so deftly painted walls now fumbling to release me from my complicated dress and its layers of rich fabrics. When he had me stripped down to my thin chemise, I took charge, removing his clothing with a brisk efficiency and delighting in the way his skin felt under my fingertips as my hands explored his body. Straddling him, I lowered my face and let my tongue dance circles around his nipples. They hardened within my mouth, and I had the satisfaction of hearing him cry out softly when my teeth grazed their tender surface. Moving downward, I trailed kisses along his stomach – down, down to where he stood hard and swollen. Delicately, I ran my tongue against his erection, from base to tip. He cried out again, that cry turning to a moan when I took him into my mouth. I felt him grow between my lips, becoming harder and larger, as I slowly moved up and down. Without even realizing what he did, I think, he raked his hands through my hair, getting his fingers caught up in the elaborate pinning and carefully arranged curls. Sucking harder, I increased my pace, exalting in the feel of him filling up my mouth. The early twinges of his energy began seeping into me, like glittering streams of color and fire. While not physically pleasurable per se, it sparked me in a similar way, waking up my succubus hunger and igniting my flesh, making me long to touch him and be touched in return. â€Å"Ah†¦Bianca, you shouldn't†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I momentarily released him from my mouth, letting my hand continue the work of stroking him closer to climax. â€Å"You want me to stop?† â€Å"I†¦well, ah! No, but women like you don't†¦you aren't supposed to†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I laughed, the sound low and dangerous in my throat. â€Å"You have no idea what kind of woman I am. I want to do this. I want to feel you in my mouth†¦taste you†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Oh God,† he groaned, eyes closed and lips parted. His muscles tensed, body arching slightly, and I just managed to return him to my mouth in time. He came, and I took it all in as his body continued to spasm. The life energy trickling into me spiked in intensity, and I nearly had a climax of my own. We'd only just started, and I was already getting more life from him than I'd expected. This would be a good night. When his shuddering body finally quieted, I shifted myself so that my hips wrapped around his. I ran my tongue over my lips. â€Å"Oh God,† he repeated, breathing labored and eyes wide. His hands traveled up my waist and rested under my breasts, earning my approval. â€Å"I thought†¦I thought only whores did that†¦.† I arched an eyebrow. â€Å"Disappointed?† â€Å"Oh, no. No.† Leaning forward, I brushed my lips against his. â€Å"Then return the favor.† He was only too eager, despite his weariness. After pulling the chemise over my head, he ravaged my body with his mouth, his hands cradling my breasts while his lips sucked and teeth teased my nipples, just as I'd done to him. My desire grew, my instincts urging me to take more and more of his life and stoke my body's burning need. When he moved his mouth between my legs, parting my thighs, I jerked his head up. â€Å"You said once that I think like a man,† I hissed softly. â€Å"Then treat me like one. Get on your knees.† He blinked in surprise, taken aback, but I could tell something about the force of the command aroused him. An animal glint shone in his eyes as he sank to his knees on the floor, and I stood before him, my backside leaning against the bed. Hands clutching my hips, he pressed his face against the soft patch of hair between my thighs, his tongue slipping between my lips and stroking the burning, swelling heart buried within. At that first touch, my whole body shuddered, and I arched my head back. Fueled by this reaction, he lapped eagerly, letting his tongue dance with a steady rhythm. Twining my hands in his hair, I pushed him closer to me, forcing him to taste more of me, to increase the pressure of his tongue upon me. When the burning, delicious feeling in my lower body could take no more, it burst, like the sun exploding. Like fire and starlight coursing through me, setting every part of me tingling and screaming. Imitating what I'd done to him earlier, he didn't remove his mouth until my climax finally subsided, my body still twitching each time his tongue tauntingly darted out and teased that oh-so-sensitive area. When he finally broke away, he looked up with a bemused smile. â€Å"I don't know what you are. Subservient†¦dominant†¦I don't know how to treat you.† I smiled back, my hands caressing the sides of his face. â€Å"I'm anything you want me to be. How do you want to treat me?† He thought about it, finally speaking in a hesitant voice. â€Å"I want†¦I want to think of you like a goddess†¦and take you like a whore†¦.† My smile increased. That about summed up my life, I thought. â€Å"I'm anything you want me to be,† I repeated. Rising to his feet, he pushed me roughly against the bed, holding me down. He was ready again, though I could see the effort it took. Most men would have collapsed after that loss of life energy, but he was fighting through his exhaustion in order to take me again. I felt the hard press of him against me, and then he pushed – nearly shoved – himself into me, sliding almost effortlessly now that I was so wet. Moaning, I shifted myself up so that he could get a better position and take me deeper. His hands clutched my hips as he moved with an almost primal aggression, and the sound of our bodies hitting each other filled the room. My body responded to his, loving the way he filled me up and drove into me. My cries grew louder, his thrusts harder. And, oh, the life pouring into me. It was a river now, golden and scorching, renewing my own life and existence. Along with his energy, he yielded some of his emotions and thoughts, and I could literally feel his lust and affection for me. That life force warred with my own physical pleasure, both consuming me and driving me mad, so that I could barely think or even separate one from the other. The feeling grew and grew within me, burning my core, building up in such intensity that I could barely contain it. I pressed my face against him, smothering my cries. The fire within me swelled, and I made no more attempts to hold off my climax. It burst within me, exploding, enveloping my whole body in a terrible, wonderful ecstasy. Niccol? ° showed no mercy, never slowing as that pleasure wracked my body. I writhed against it, even as I screamed for more. Doing this might make Niccol? ° immoral in the eyes of the Church, but at the heart of what mattered, he was a decent man. He was kind to others and had a strong character whose principles were not easily shaken. As a result, he had had a lot of goodness and a lot of life to give, life I absorbed without remorse. It spread into me as our bodies moved together, sweeter than any nectar. It burned in my veins, making me feel alive, making me into the goddess he kept murmuring that I was. Unfortunately, the loss of such energy took its toll, and he lay immobile in my bed afterward, breathing shallow and face pale. Naked, I sat up and watched him, running a hand over his sweat-drenched forehead. He smiled. â€Å"I was going to write a sonnet about you†¦. I don't think I can capture this with words.† He struggled to sit up, the motion causing him pain. The fact that he'd managed all of this was pretty remarkable. â€Å"I need to go†¦the city's curfew†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Forget it. You can stay here for the night.† â€Å"But your servants – â€Å" † – are well-paid for their discretion.† I brushed my lips over his skin. â€Å"Besides, don't you want to†¦discuss more philosophy?† He closed his eyes, but the smile stayed. â€Å"Yes, of course. But I†¦I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me. I need to rest first†¦.† I lay down beside him. â€Å"Then rest.† A pattern developed between us after that. He'd work on the fresco during the day – his progress slowing significantly – and spend his nights with me. That twang of guilt never left him, making the experience doubly exciting for me. My essence drank from his soul while my body enjoyed the skills of his. One day, he left to run errands – and didn't come back. Two more days passed with no word from him, and my worry began to grow. When he showed up on the third night, there was an anxious, harried look to him. More concerned than ever, I hurried him inside, noting a bundle under his arm. â€Å"Where have you been? What is that?† Unwrapping his cloak, he revealed a stack of books. I sifted through them with the wonder I'd always had for such things. Boccaccio's The Decameron. Ovid's Amores. Countless others. Some I'd read. Some I'd longed to read. My heart gave a flutter, and my fingers itched to turn the pages. â€Å"I've gathered these from some of my friends,† he explained. â€Å"They're worried Savonarola's thugs will seize them.† I frowned at this reference to the city's most powerful priest. â€Å"Savonarola?† â€Å"He's gathering up ‘objects of sin' in order to destroy them. Will you hide these here? No one would force them away from someone like you.† The books practically shone to me, far more valuable than the jewelry I'd amassed. I wanted to drop everything and start reading. â€Å"Of course.† I flipped through the pages of the Boccaccio. â€Å"I can't believe anyone would want to destroy these.† â€Å"These are dark days,† he said, face hard. â€Å"If we aren't careful, all knowledge will be lost. The ignorant will crush the learned.† I knew he spoke the truth. I'd seen it, over and over. Knowledge destroyed, trampled by those too stupid to know what they did. Sometimes it happened through forceful, bloody invasions; sometimes it happened through less violent but equally insidious means, like those of Fra Savonarola. I'd grown so accustomed to it that I barely noticed anymore. For some reason, it hit me harder this time. Maybe it was because I was seeing it through his urgent eyes and not just observing it from a distance. â€Å"Bianca?† Niccol? ° chuckled softly. â€Å"Are you even listening to me? I'd hoped to spend the night with you, but maybe you'd rather be with Boccaccio†¦.† I dragged my eyes from the pages, feeling my lips quirk up into a half-smile. â€Å"Can't I have you both?† Over the next few days, Niccol? ° continued to smuggle more and more goods to me. And not just books. Paintings accumulated in my home. Small sculptures. Even more superficial things like extravagant cloth and jewels, all deemed sinful. I felt as though I'd been allowed to cross through the gates of heaven. Hours would pass as I studied paintings and sculptures, marveling at the ingenuity of humans, jealous of a creativity I had never possessed, either as a mortal or immortal. That art filled me up with an indescribable joy, exquisite and sweet, almost reminding me of when my soul had been my own. And the books†¦oh, the books. My clerks and associates soon found their hands full of extra work as I neglected them. Who cared about accounts and shipments with so much knowledge at my fingertips? I drank it up, savoring the words – words the Church condemned as heresy. A secret smugness filled me over the role I played, protecting these treasures. I would pass on humanity's knowledge and thwart Heaven's agenda. The light of genius and creativity would not fade from this world, and best of all, I would get to enjoy it along the way. Things changed when Tavia showed up one day to check in. The demoness was pleased at the report of my conquests but puzzled when she noticed a small sculpture of Bacchus on a table. I hadn't yet had a chance to hide the statue with my horde. Tavia demanded an explanation, and I told her about my role in protecting the contraband. As always, her response took a long time in coming, and when it did, my heart nearly stopped. â€Å"You need to cease this immediately.† â€Å"I – what?† â€Å"And you need to turn these items over to Father Betto.† I studied her incredulously, waiting for the joke to reveal itself. Father Betto was my local priest. â€Å"You can't†¦you can't mean that. This stuff can't be destroyed. We'd be supporting the Church. We're supposed to go against them.† Tavia raised a dark, pointed eyebrow. â€Å"We're supposed to further evil in the world, my darling, which may or may not go along with the Church's plans. In this case, it does.† â€Å"How?† I cried. â€Å"Because there is no greater evil than ignorance and the destruction of genius. Ignorance has been responsible for more death, more bigotry, and more sin than any other force. It is the destroyer of mankind.† â€Å"But Eve sinned when she sought knowledge†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The demoness smirked. â€Å"Are you sure? Do you truly know what is good and what is evil?† â€Å"I†¦I don't know,† I whispered. â€Å"They seem kind of indistinguishable from one another.† It was the first time since becoming a succubus that the lines had really and truly grown so blurred for me. After the loss of my mortal life had darkened me, I'd thrown myself into being a succubus, never questioning Hell's role or the corrupting of men like Niccol? °. â€Å"Yes,† she agreed. â€Å"Sometimes they are.† Her smile vanished. â€Å"This isn't up for debate. You will yield your stash immediately. And maybe try to seduce Father Betto while you're at it. That'd be a nice perk.† â€Å"But I – † The word â€Å"can't† was on my lips, and I bit it off. Under the scrutiny of her stare and power, I felt very small and very weak. You don't cross demons. I swallowed. â€Å"Yes, Tavia.† The next time Niccol? ° and I made love, he managed a tired but happy attempt at conversation in his post-sex exhaustion. â€Å"Lenzo's going to bring me one of his paintings tomorrow. Wait until you see it. It shows Venus and Adonis – â€Å" â€Å"No.† He lifted his head up. â€Å"Hmm?† â€Å"No. Don't bring me any more.† It was hard, oh God, it was so hard speaking to him in such a cold tone. I kept reminding myself of what I was and what I had to do. A frown crossed his handsome face. â€Å"What are you talking about? You've already collected so much – â€Å" â€Å"I don't have them anymore. I gave them up to Savonarola.† â€Å"You†¦you're joking.† I shook my head. â€Å"No. I contacted his Bands of Hope this morning. They came and took it all.† Niccol? ° struggled to sit up. â€Å"Stop it. This isn't funny.† â€Å"It's not a joke. They're all gone. They're going to the fire. They're objects of sin. They need to be destroyed.† â€Å"You're lying. Stop this, Bianca. You don't mean – â€Å" My voice sharpened. â€Å"They're wrong and heretical. They're gone.† Our eyes locked, and as he studied my face, I could see that he was starting to realize that maybe, just maybe, I spoke the truth. And I did. Sort of. I was very good at making people – especially men – believe what I wanted them to. We dressed, and I took him to the storage room I'd previously hidden the objects in. He stared at the empty space, face pale and disbelieving. I stood nearby, arms crossed, maintaining a stiff and disapproving stance. Eyes wide, he turned to me. â€Å"How could you? How could you do this to me?† â€Å"I told you – â€Å" â€Å"I trusted you! You said you'd keep them safe!† â€Å"I was wrong. Satan clouded my judgment.† He gripped my arm painfully and leaned close to me. â€Å"What have they done to you? Did they threaten you? You wouldn't do this. What are they holding against you? Is it that priest you're always visiting?† â€Å"No one made me do this,† I replied bleakly. â€Å"It's the right thing to do.† He pulled back, like he couldn't stand my touch, and my heart lurched painfully at the look in his eyes. â€Å"Do you know what you've done? Some of those can never be replaced.† â€Å"I know. But it's better this way.† Niccol? ° stared at me for several more seconds and then stumbled for the door, uncaring of the curfew or his weakened state. I watched him go, feeling dead inside. He's just another man, I thought. Let him go. I'd had so many in my life; I'd have so many more. What did he matter? Swallowing tears, I crept downstairs to the lower level, careful not to wake the sleeping household. I'd made the same journey last night, painstakingly carrying part of the horde down here – a part that I didn't give to the Church's minions. Splitting the art and books had been like choosing which of my children had to live or die. The silks and velvets had been mindless; all of them went to Fra Savonarola. But the rest†¦that had been difficult. I'd let most of Ovid go. His works were so widespread, I had to believe copies of them would survive – if not in Florence, then perhaps some other place untouched by this bigotry. Other authors, those whom I feared had a limited run, stayed with me. The paintings and sculptures proved hardest of all. They were one of a kind. I couldn't hope that other copies might exist. But I'd known I couldn't keep them all either, not with Tavia checking in. And so, I'd chosen those which I thought most worth saving, protecting them from the Church. Niccol? ° couldn't know that, though. I didn't see him for almost three weeks, until we ran into each other at Savonarola's great burning. History would later know it as the Bonfire of the Vanities. It was a great pyramid stuffed with fuel and sin. The zealous threw more and more items in as it blazed, seeming to have a never ending supply. I watched as Botticelli himself tossed one of his paintings in. Niccol? °'s greeting was curt. â€Å"Bianca.† â€Å"Hello, Niccol? °.† I kept my voice cold and crisp. Uncaring. He stood in front of me, gray eyes black in the flickering light. His face seemed to have aged since our last meeting. We both turned and silently observed the blaze again, watching as more and more of man's finest things were sacrificed. â€Å"You have killed progress,† Niccol? ° said at last. â€Å"You betrayed me.† â€Å"I've delayed progress. And I had no obligations to you. Except for this.† Reaching into the folds of my dress, I handed over a purse heavy with florins. It was the last part in my plan. He took it, blinking at its weight. â€Å"This is more than you owe me. And I won't finish the fresco.† â€Å"I know. It's all right. Take it. Go somewhere else, somewhere away from this. Paint. Write. Create something beautiful. Whatever it takes to make you happy. I don't really care.† He stared, and I feared he'd give the money back. â€Å"I still don't understand. How can you not care about any of this? How can you be so cruel? Why did you do it?† I studied the fire again. Humans, I realized idly, liked to burn things. Objects. Each other. â€Å"Because men cannot surpass the gods. Not yet anyway.† â€Å"Prometheus never intended his gift to be used like this.† I smiled without humor, remembering an old debate of ours about classical mythology, back during our sweeter days. â€Å"No. I suppose not.† We said nothing else. A moment later, he walked away, disappearing into the darkness. For a heartbeat, I considered telling him the truth, that much of his treasure was still safe. I'd paid well for it to be smuggled out of Florence, away from this mad destruction. In fact, I'd actually sent the goods to an angel. I didn't like angels as a general rule, but this one was a scholar, one I'd met in England and tolerated. Heretical or no, the books and art would appeal to him as much as to me. He would keep them safe. How ironic, I thought, that I would turn to the enemy for help. Tavia had been right. Sometimes good and evil were impossible to distinguish from one another. And if she'd known what I had done, my existence would probably be over. So I couldn't tell anyone. The secret had to stay with me and the angel, no matter how much I wished I could share it with Niccol? ° and comfort him. I had to live with the knowledge that I had taken his life, soul, and hope. He would hate me forever, and it was a sting I would likewise carry with me forever – one that would slowly make my existence more and more miserable. My world dissolved into darkness. I was back in my box, still cramped and uncomfortable. As usual, I couldn't see anything, but my cheeks were wet with tears yet again. I felt exhausted, even a little disoriented, and my heart ached with a pain that I could never put into words. I didn't see the Oneroi, but something told me they were probably around. â€Å"That was truth,† I whispered. â€Å"That really happened.† As suspected, a voice answered me in the darkness, and I suddenly knew the real reason they kept showing me true dreams. â€Å"Your truths are worse than your lies.†

Critical Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Critical Analysis - Essay Example However, in this case it appears that the church has developed a political arm, which has a firm grip amongst the legislators. Secondly, what is the purpose of the writer? The author tries to shed light on gross violations in the Bahamian society which are going on unabated yet, the very agencies designed to safeguard against this take to shifting responsibilities and sometimes taking part in perpetuating these violations themselves e.g. the police, specifically in-charge of security, differ it’s duty by pegging it’s performance on the church’s intervention. Secondly, he condemns the church over its abuse of public trust by getting swayed into primarily pubic-related issues as opposed to their divine calling to administer matters of faith. Thirdly, he serves to open the eyes of members of the society to the realization that the overall change as desired by the state-to free Bahamas of the previous year mishaps-lies ultimately in themselves as citizens. He accomplishes this by showing failures of the legislatures, the security agents, and the custodians of the society such as the church. Thirdly, we examine the writer’s tone and feelings. The author is disapproving-even critical-about the ability of realizing the objectives of state for the New Year. He begins with much hope following the declaration by Bahamas Christian Council that calls on a change of people’s attitudes. This hope gradually ebbs away into despair, and he appears disillusioned in lieu of the rot within the very council empowered to oversee the transition. He appears enraged at one point when the BCB makes submissions to the local cable network and the URCA on suitable time to air adult-rated programming. To him, it seems the council is being hypocritical by at one point rightly condemning airing of pornography due to its impact on children, yet in the very same breathe appears to approve its viewing by the adult population (White field 3, paragraph 5). Shouldn’t the council

The Indian Firm CMYK Health Boutiques Research Paper

The Indian Firm CMYK Health Boutiques - Research Paper Example The Four Fountains Spa is a unique concept in the wellness industry and aims at offering a quality spa experience at affordable prices. It is currently located only at the city of Pune, India, with two centres there and is aiming to set up day spas in the top 20 towns of the country. The spa has body polishes, body wraps, facials and many other packages for men and women. In world therapies, they have the Swedish Therapy which is a deep tissue massage that uses firm but gentle pressure and is known to relax, improve circulation, ease muscle aches and tension. They even have the Harmonizing aromatherapy which is essentially done with natural oils from flowers, herbs, leaves and fruits. From the Far East, there is the Thai Meridian Therapy which is not an oil massage but takes into consideration Marma (energy) points. They also have thirty-minute massages like comforting foot reflexology and back therapy to eliminate pain in those areas. In Indian therapies, they have the Abhyangam, wh ich involves the application of herbal oils using soft and gentle strokes in the downward direction. Also, there is Shirodhara, where warm herbal oil is gently poured on the forehead. This is said to help in curing fatigue, mental exhaustion, anxiety, insomnia, headache and nervousness. They also have various facials, body polishes and body wraps (body polish plus body mask). Their special package for men is interestingly called Gentleman’s Retreat. Similarly, the one for the women is called Ladies Day Out.

Creative process Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Creative process - Essay Example tion to such an extent that the ideas can be expressed, selecting an idea or group of ideas from those generated and then producing a possible solution to these concepts. These are often labeled in more scientific fields with such terms as preparation, incubation, illumination and verification. The first two of these processes occur entirely within my mind, almost completely without outside assistance while the second two often include interaction with others as I work to communicate and refine my ideas sufficiently enough to communicate both the idea as well as my solution. Each phase presents its own challenges and approaches. For example, the initial phase is characterized by my interest in solving a problem that I see around me or answering a question I might have about the universe. It can even be something as simply profound as â€Å"why do the whorls in that knot of the tree take on that particular shape?† As I become more and more obsessed with the issue at hand, I begin to gather as much available information about the topic as possible, often allowing myself to freely associate ideas from a number of sources. â€Å"During the initial, intuitive phase, each thought activates, and potentially retrieves information from, a large region containing many memory locations† (Gabora, 2002). Thus, my ideas are generated from the things I see around me as well as my memories of things from the past and images I see as I continue to kick an idea around in my head. This is different from the second stage of my process because it is mostly conscious as I actively seek new ideas for new work. The t hinking taking place is done primarily in the conscious range as I attempt to find answers to any gaps in the ideas that are coming forward and to find ways of connecting them in a unique way. In the second phase of creation, and the one I allow myself the greatest emphasis, I allow the information that has been gathered to freely associate in the subconscious mind,

The First Crusade Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The First Crusade - Research Paper Example Indeed Pope Urban’s religious apparel often tends to shroud the true aspects of the First Crusade and the fact that Pope Urban himself was up to his own cause is often ignored. Indeed historians have interpreted the event of the First Crusade differently. The lack of any unique primary document on Pope Urban’s (II) motive for the crusade has laid the event open to interpretation. These interpretations revolve mainly around three points: a. the 11th century reform movement, b. the Seldjuk or Muslim threat to the Eastern Roman Orthodoxy, c. affirmation of Papacy on entire European Christendom. But an astute analysis of the event will reveal that all of these three causes had their, more or less, equal shares of influence on the First Crusade. Seldjuk’s Threat in the East as a Primary Cause of First Crusade Though there is a common tendency among the historians to underrate the Seljuk threat to the Eastern Christendom considering it as a secondary cause of the First Crusade and to view it as a mere excuse to move eastward, the Seljuk attack on the Byzantine Empire was no less important as a psychological motivation than other causes. In a concrete sense, it might be a mere excuse in Pope Urban’s political and religious scheme, but it was a demonic cause to usurp the commoners’ sacrificial emotion for the war in its essence. In fact, First Crusade was the product of the reincarnated commoners’ passion for a holy war against the infidel and the unfaithful that were commonly considered to be the Seldjuk during the late 11th century. The extremity of medieval religiosity to achieve ablution for sins, restored faith of the commoners in church, superiority of the Popes and the church’s victory of the Emperor- all together functioned to boost up the common people’s zeal to fight for the Holy Land and eastern Christendom against the invading Seldjuk. Even if Islam and Christianity coexist on the east bank of the Medi terranean Sea for more than three hundred years before the 1000s, as Thomas Asbridge’s claims, the increasing Seldjuk attacks on the Byzantine Empire, the defeat in Manzikert in 1077, the conquest of religiously important cities like Antioch and Nicaea, Turkish invasion and conquest of Anatolia, etc were severe blows on the 11th century Christendom that made the Western church reformers feel the pressure on the East and eventually provoked the superior papacy to successfully characterize the invaders as the infidel and unfaithful who must be challenged. In an article, Paul Crawford describes the crisis as following: â€Å"In 1071 the Turks met and crushed the Byzantine army at the Battle of Manzikert, near Armenia. As a result the entire heartland of the Empire, in Asia Minor, lay open and defenseless† (Crawford 2). The atrocities of the Seldjuk are reflected in a â€Å"Letter of Alexius to Count Robert of Flanders†: The holy places they desecrate and destroy in numberless ways, and they threaten them with worse treatment†¦For almost the entire land from Jerusalem to Greece, and the whole of Greece with its upper regions†¦and now almost nothing remains except Constantinople. (Alexius) East-West Schism as one of the Causes of First Crusade Indeed for Pope Urban II there was no

Summery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 13

Summery - Essay Example The study was carried out on 1337 young school going people aged between 17 and 18 in Vastmanland, where the students completed a survey by answering questions about their relationships with parents, sexual abuse experience and delinquency levels, and saliva samples taken for determination of DNA. In conclusion, individuals carrying less active variant of MAOA, show a greater level of crime and violent delinquency, and those who experience abuse in childhood, are likely to display antisocial behavior to their adulthood(Amelia Para 13). BDNF variant on the other hand was associated with aggressive behavior if the peers were exposed to aggressive peers and among carriers of HTTLPR, those exposed to adversity in childhood were more likely to show antisocial behavior. Exposure to stress was found to increase violence and delinquency among kids, and genes were found to affect brains, thereby behavior by altering sensitivity to environment (Amelia Para 17). Amelia, Smith. New study reveals antisocial behavior is linked to genetics. 2014. Web 19th Jan 2015

International Migration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

International Migration - Essay Example The same affects the health facilities in the country and negatively impacts the overall healthcare facilities in the USA. Research has found that illegal immigration affects the citizens of that particular country, especially the poor people and the legal immigrants. It is also found that the taxes paid by these illegal immigrants are far less than the services received by them. Countries like United States of America are trying their level best to counter this by increased border patrol but this is not only reason for illegal immigration, most of the cases occur because of people who overstay even after their visa is expired. United States of America provides Medicaid facilities to the legal and illegal immigrants but this results in a very big loss for the economy of the country because the people take undue advantage of the same by overstaying in the hospitals even after recovery. The Medicaid policies depend on state to state but there are some states in America which provide the young children and elders requiring medical attention with great facilities like free drugs, free nursing and proper med ical attention. Off late the federal law has brought in many restrictions to keep a check on the illegal immigrants, this also ensures a strict check on the money spent on the public welfare.

Case Study- Marks & Spencer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Case Study- Marks & Spencer - Essay Example Case Study- Marks & Spencer Despite new policies being made and brand’s shares overtaking the UK general retail index since 2009, M&S still fails to be a hit around the globe. I think this is because save cost savings, little improvement is made in financial performance with majority of customers who approach M&S stores belonging to old age group. This is one of the main shortcomings of the company that it fails to attract younger people especially women to its stores and this is an area where more work needs to be done by M&S management in order to compensate for the fall in profits. A growing body of arguments attempts to find out what exactly M&S should do to combat falling fashion sales which despite different policies and many changes made within company, fail to reverse. People who ardently used to approach M&S stores for quality shopping experience now hesitate because apart from dwindling standard, there is also lack of innovation and flair in designs and patterns of clothes. This explains why M& S is currently relying more on food sales for annual profits as clothing sales continue to struggle. I think it would be a better future strategy if M&S decides to focus less on celebrity-laden advertising campaigns and invest more in bringing back the quality and originality in its clothing designs. It is reported that M&S CEO Bolland faces pressure from critics as the business reports consistent fall in clothing sales. (Thompson 2013). In contrast to cloth sales, M&S has made more progress as the most significant food retailer in the UK in terms of customer satisfaction. I think that same old arguments regarding performance and clothing sales will keep haunting M&S cloth stores in the coming years if the leaders do not make radical changes in the company. Employee empowerment is good but this is also true that M&S has suffered quite much as a result of deciding to distribute power to the lowest level possible. This decision started many of its store managers making many decisions on their own which were not very well-thought-out and negatively interfered with both fashion sales and customer loyalty. It is suggested that delivery of power to employees working on all levels is good but only if top management continues to heavily monitor all operations being performed. It is also recommended that people at top positions in the company who have power should establish a new healthy culture at M&S plc in an attempt to rid it of its constipated culture. This is the biggest challenge which should be analyzed in order to plummet down the rate of operation problems. Also, failure to meet profit targets is one of the primary issues encountered by the management. Several issues like poor relations with investors and suppliers, embarrassing boardroom arguments, failure to provide trendier clothes at lower prices, and more than necessary autonomy given to people working at low level are responsible for this. I think that as a way of

Acounting for pensions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Acounting for pensions - Essay Example However, most employers invest the pensions to be managed by a separate entity. The entities that manage the pensions recognize the assets and liabilities on their net values. The accounting practices for pensions faces a lot of criticism such as lack of clarity in the disclosure of the postretirement accounting information. The accounting practices ignored the importance of full recognition of the effects of pension contracts on the company’s performance. For this reason, a big deal of pension contract related costs are borne by the users of such information. Secondly, some investors have expressed concerns on the reporting of gains and losses. They propose the elimination of the smoothing of gains and losses as allowed under GAAP. This method should be replaced by a separate recognition of pension plan’s assets and liabilities on the balance sheet. Lastly, preparers criticize the short-term approach to accounting for pension transactions (The United States Securities and Exchange Commission 49 – 59). In view of the above criticism, the staff members propose an improvement regarding the accounting practices. First, they suggest a long-term approach to accounting for pensions since the post retirement contract is long-lived. Second, further disclosures besides those contained in the financial statements should be provided to ensure further clarity of the contents of the financial statements. Lastly, the staff proposes that issuers should give more time the preparation of the postretirement financial information in order to facilitate the provision of more useful information to the users (The United States Securities and Exchange Commission 107 – 108). The United States Securities and Exchange Commission. N.d. Report and Recommendation Pursuant to Section 401 (c) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 On Arrangements with Off-balance sheet Implications, special purpose

No Longer at Ease Essay Example for Free

No Longer at Ease Essay From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia No Longer at Ease is a 1960 novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. It is the story of an Igbo (also spelled Ibo) man, Obi Okonkwo, who leaves his village for a British education and a Job in the Nigerian colonial civil service, but who struggles to adapt to a Western lifestyle and ends up taking a bribe. The novel is the sequel to Achebes Things Fall Apart, which concerned the struggle of Obi Okonkwos grandfather Okonkwo against the changes brought by the English. Novels title The books title comes from the closing lines of T. S. Eliots poem, The Journey of the Magi: We returned to our places, these Kingdoms, But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation, With an alien people clutching their gods. I should be glad of another death. Plot summary The novel opens with the trial of Obi Okonkwo on a charge of accepting a bribe. It then Jumps back in time to a point before his departure for England and works its way forward to describe how Obi ended up on trial. The members of the Umuofia Progressive Union (UPIJ), a group of Ibo men who have left their villages to live in ajor Nigerian cities, have taken up a collection to send Obi to England to study law, in the hope that he will return to help his people navigate British colonial society. But once there, Obi switches his major to English and meets Clara Okeke for the first time during a dance. Obi returns to Nigeria after four years of studies and lives in Lagos with his friend Joseph. He takes a Job with the Scholarship Board and is almost immediately offered a bribe by a man who is trying to obtain a scholarship for his little sister. When Obi indignantly rejects the offer, he is visited by the girl herself ho implies that she will bribe him with sexual favors for the scholarship, another offer Obi rejects. At the same time, Obi is developing a romantic relationship with Clara Okeke, a Nigerian woman who eventually reveals that she is an osu, an outcast by her descendants, meaning that Obi can not marry her under the traditional ways of the Igbo people of Nigeria. While he remains intent on marrying Clara, even his Christian father opposes it, although reluctantly due to his desire to progress and eschew the heathen customs of pre-colonial Nigeria. His mother begs him on her eathbed not to marry Clara until after her death, threatening to kill herself if Obi disobeys. When Obi informs Clara of these events, Clara breaks the engagement and intimates that she is pregnant. Obi arranges an abortion, which Clara reluctantly undergoes, but she suffers complications and refuses to see Obi afterwards. All the while, Obi sinks deeper into financial trouble, in part due to poor planning on his end, in part due to the need to repay his loan to the I-JPLJ and to pay for his siblings educations, and in part due to the cost of the illegal abortion. After hearing of his mothers death, Obi sinks into a deep depression, and refuses to go home for the funeral. When he recovers, he begins to accept bribes in a reluctant acknowledgement that it is the way of his world. The novel closes as Obi takes a bribe and tells himselt that it is the last one ne will take, only to discover that the bribe was part of a sting operation. He is arrested, bringing us up to the events that opened the story. Themes Though set several decades after Things Fall Apart, No Longer at Ease continues any of the themes from Achebes first novel. Here, the clash between European culture and traditional culture has become entrenched during the long period of colonial rule. Obi struggles to balance the demands of his family and village for monetary support while simultaneously keeping up with the materialism of Western culture. Furthermore, Achebe depicts a family continuity between Ogbuefi Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart and his grandson Obi Okonkwo in No Longer at Ease. Both men are confrontational, speak their minds, and have some self-destructive endencies. However, this aggressive streak manifests itself in different ways.

The Monkeys Paw and The Black Veil Essay Example for Free

The Monkeys Paw and The Black Veil Essay The writers of The Monkeys Paw and The Black Veil engage and sustain the readers interest by using a variety of narrative skills The writer of The Monkeys Paw is skilled at creating atmospheric setting. For example the way he describes the weather and surroundings of the house; The night was cold and wet. Even though they are a few words they are affective words as are these; Hark the wind. They describe the outside world in the way you can imagine it yourself. Another of the writers skills is the convincing characters. I think that the most convincing character is the sergeant. This is because I think you get a more detailed background of him more than anyone else, and a more detailed description. For example; Followed by a tall burley man, beady of followed by a tall burley man, beady of eye and rubicund face. This tells us more about his appearance and this makes you feel that you can relate to him a lot easier than any of the other characters. Another of his skills is the way he creates a sense of evil or mysterious things that have happened in the past. These types of things only crop up now and then in The Monkeys Paw and also in the The Black Veil. In the The Monkeys Paw it is when they find out about the first owner of the paw and how his last wish was for death. To me this indicates that the first two wishes were so drastic that he could not live with himself or the results of the wish and so he wished for his own death. To me this is the major part for things that had happened in the past here is what it says in the text; The first man had three. Yes. Was the reply; I dont know what the first two were, but the third was for death. Thats how I got the paw. Suggestions of evil yet to come are when are when the sergeant warns them that something will happen as a result of making the wish. As you read through the book this passage comes up; Better let it burn. This is said after the sergeant has through the paw on the fire. This suggests that the sergeant knows of the evil which might or will occur once the wishes have been granted and so he does want his friend or his family to be hurt so he attempts to destroy it. This makes the reader want to read on to see if this true. The authors use a skill of making you feel sorry or sympathetic for the different characters most of all Mr and Mrs White; He was the only one left to us. When Mr White says this you cant help but feel sorry for him and his wife, because it makes it sound like there had been more children who had died at a young age. This is also felt when the young man is brought back to his mother in the Black Veil, and we here that the old lady has nobody else left. Overall you can get emotionally involved in the story without noticing it.

Introduction to Vampires

Introduction to Vampires A vampire is a mythological or folkloric creature that is famous in their blood sucking ability in order to prolong their life and their super strength. The term vampires was not popularized until 18th century in Western Europe because of superstitious beliefs and continuously popularized in our present time because of some famous movies and books that were related to vampires attracted us. We were fascinated by their special traits, habit, characteristics and ability. But those were just fictional characters and created by the artistic imagination of the authors or the movie makers about vampires. People of today, when hear the word vampire, the first thing they come in their mind is Edward Cullen (Twilight 2008 the vampire romance series) and any movies that has a vampire appearances or those vampires that they read in a fictional book particularly The Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyer. They dont have any ideas what is a real human vampire. But do you have any idea what are the char acteristics of a real vampire? Do you want to know the common misconceptions about them? And why these misconception spread out all over the world? History of the word vampire: The word vampire was borrowed from the French word vampir in the early 18th century. But according to some sources it came from Slavic language vampir, Bulgarian vapir Croatian upir/upirina, Czech and Slovac upir, Russian upyr', Belarusian upir and Ukaranian upir, many of these languages have also borrowed from the wordvampir/wampir in the western country. The word upir as a term of vampire, was first founded in year 1047 AD into a letter to a Novgorodian prince referring to him as Upir Lichyj which means the wicked vampire. The word upir is still a controversial based on its real meaning, in some languages upir means to blow. to drink bat and to fly. It is still hard to tell how the word vampire came from and what it is real origin, if it was discovered, invented or flourished by just a written word, the exact etymology from where the word vampire is still a mystery and unclear. (http://vampires.monstrous.com/etymology_vampire/htm) The first vampire word appears in the Oxford English Dictionary in 1734 and it came from the old Russian word upir. A brief description about vampire myths Vampires are evil creatures with very pale skin and wear capes are believed to live for more than a hundred of years. They commonly live in coffins, but they also live in graves or any dark places and sleep upside down. They are nocturnal, meaning that they are active at night and asleep by day. Vampires are afraid of sunlight or any ultraviolet lights and cannot touch religious artifacts, they burned into ashes when they were expose to sunlight or sprinkled by holy water. Garlics, roses, rosary, silver and an aloe vera hung backwards are the famous repellent to them. They dont have any reflection when they look in a mirror and dont cast shadows because they were believe that they have no souls. They have super strengths and they have a special ability to transform into any kinds of animal, particularly into a bat. Most of all, they have long sharp fangs that they use to bite the neck of their victims easily and suck their blood and then the victim instantly turns into a vampire hims elf. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/vampires) Misconceptions about vampires Vampires are evil and know what they are doing is an evil thing. They are seductive, physically strong, and they dont need any jobs. They are immortal or undead and the only way to kill them are by exposing them on sunlight, hit their heart with a stake, break their neck or beheaded them, burn them with fire and more vampire-fictional killing method. (http://hubpages.com/hub/howtokillavampire/) They were repelled by roses, garlics, roses and silvers. They drink human blood to nourish them and give them strength; otherwise, if they dont suck blood, they die. They cant expose themselves on sunlight or any ultraviolet lights or else, they might get burned or explode violently. They live and sleep in a coffin upside down, wear black cape and have long and very sharp fangs that grows longer and longer when they smell blood, and when their victim was bitten, it instantly became vampire themselves. They had a very pale skin, and when they look in a mirror, they dont have any reflection beca use it is believed that they have no souls and they dont cast shadow either. They cant go into church and touch religious artifacts or else they get burned. They can fly and they have an ability transform into any kinds of animals particularly into a bat. (http://vampireamongus.com/vampchars.html) The real human vampire Human vampires exist, but they are not like those on what we watch on TVs or what we read on books or novels. They were called vampires because they have some characteristics like a vampire. Human vampires have strong desire on blood. The people you get close to tend become tired, weary and upset a lot when with you. They begin to find you interesting at first, but soon they began to avoid you. Even if you are with others, you feel alone. The sunlight or bright lights tend to hurt your eyes easily and you prefer to work at night because you feel more comfortable at night. You have strong interest about vampires, you seldom get sick and when you have a wound, they heal easily and swiftly. You have the ability to read the auras of the others and you seem look younger even if you are more than 20 years of age. Animals get tends to you and you have strong passion about sex. You only have one or two friends or companion who really understands you and whom you get along with. They suffer f rom allergies and have very sensitive senses.Most of all, they are humans with some extraordinary traits or habits. The truth about vampires: The statement of Lady Rose Noire(2008): Vampires are just like everyone else, they have generally tend to have more intense and charismatic personalities. Vampires need to earn a living, which mean they need a job to buy some foods and other necessary things that we need in order to live. Vampires are physically mortal and have immortal souls. They can die from anything, bullets AIDS or even accidents, however, the sunlight cant kill them, it is just fictional way to slay them. Roses, garlic and others repellents on vampires have no effect on them, the only way they might repelled by rose is because the thorns might prick them. They drink blood, but they have a regular diet to, and drinks water as well. Vampires can go out in sunlight and the reason they exposed much on sunlight is because their eyes might irritate them, cause headache and they take care of themselves to prevent heatstroke. They dont ware capes at all, they wear just like the normal people, they dont have any fangs, unless it is surgically implanted and va mpire might be pale if he/she avoid sunlight if he/she is sensitive to it. (http://vampireamongus.com/vampchars.html) Not all vampires are evil and they dont know if there doings is an evil thing or not, there is no being on earth who can state with any validation what is good and what is evil. There are a great many evil humans out there too, anyway. Furthermore, not all vampires even know they are vampireslet alone contemplating whether their vampirism makes them good or bad. (Lady Rose Noire, 2008) The statement of Robias (2008) Vampires are sensitive to sunlight, especially their eyes. So they were eye glasses to prevent their eyes from soaring or irritation. They get burned, but only a sun burn. Vampires arent afraid of garlics, and they can eat garlics. They were repelled if they were allergic to it or sometimes they cant take too long the smell of the garlic. The only way they might repelled by roses in when the thorns prick them. Vampires can go to church, touch religious artifacts and dont get burned when sprinkled by holy water. This myth came from religious people that believed that vampires are evil and dont have any souls. Vampires are undead. Vampires are not dead; they are alive and have pulse. These rumours spread out because vampires in the early times are cadaver that awakens after their burial. Vampires dont have any long sharp fangs, unless it was surgically implanted or they wear fake fangs. In early times, it is believed that their fangs grow longer and longer when they smell blood and vam pires need these fangs to bite easily their victim. Vampires dont have super strengths. Most vampires that appear in the movie, particularly Edward Cullen in the Twilight Saga has super-human strength. This isnt true, it is a fiction. Vampires cant transform into a bat or any kinds of animals, even human living vampires, they cant transform into anything they want. This is another myth among vampires. Vampires dont sleep in a coffin. They were once thought that they rise from their resting place when the sun goes down and goes back to their tomb before the sun rise, they do this to prevent light from entering their resting place. (http://www.vampireforum.net/vampire-general-discussion-vampire-chat/3329-vampire-misconceptions.html) Why these misconception spread out? Literatures The poem Vampire (1748) by Heinrich August Ossenfelder, is where the first vampire appeared. The influential fictional book of Bram Stokers Dracula (1987), the famous Stephanie Meyers Twilight (2005) became the most influential cause of misconceptions of vampires. These also include the first scientific novel of Richard Mathesons 1954 I Am Legend. (http://www.ign.com/blogs/DarkBlood999/2010/10/14/correcting-a-misconception-the-vampire-diaries/) Movies Mostly, vampire movies originated from books or novels about vampires and still the misconception about vampires broadcast it in that movie. Like I am Legend (2007), Twilight (2008) The Vampire Chronicles: Interview with the vampire (1997) they added some fictional features of vampires which is totally a myth. (http://www.ign.com/blogs/DarkBlood999/2010/10/14/correcting-a-misconception-the-vampire-diaries/) Conclusion Vampires in our era are only based on a myth created by artistic imagination of some people. They are just like any other human beings in this world, but they have extraordinary habits like strong passion on bloods. No one can judge them if they are evil or not. there is no being on earth who can state with any validation what is good and what is evil (Lady Rose Noire, 2008). The reason why these misconception spread out is because of those movies and novels about vampires defining them as a super natural being that live for more than a hundred of years and have super extraordinary power is absolutely ridiculous. They are humans; they have mortal bodies and have immortal souls.

confant Pride and Conflict of Law in Sophocles Antigone :: Antigone essays

Antigone - Pride and Conflict of Law Sophocles' Antigone, in its later phases is no longer about the conflict of law; It is about stubbornness and self will, about the sin of refusing to listen; about a man who has never been told. Conflict of law, presents the initial disturbance within Thebes. Creon, King of Thebes, refuses to bury the body of Polynices, for in his eyes Polynices is 'his country's enemy' Antigone pg.131. Thus, despite breaking the laws of the gods, Creon holds his power higher than that of God and heavens and enforces his law. As the story follows, Sophocles expands on the ignorance presented by Creon and Antigone, and it is also found that it is impossible to defeat an ignorant man, or woman in argument. It is this ignorance, that establishes the notion of the sin and punishment that both Creon and Antigone face due to their stubbornness and self will. Antigone holds her love of family, and respect to the dead, elevated beyond the laws of Creon, whom she believes, has no righteous justification to close his eyes to the honor of the deceased. In her determination to fulfill Polynices' rights, she runs directly into Creon's attempts to re-establish order. This leads to encounters of severe conflict between the dissimilarities of the two, creating a situation whereby both Creon and Antigone expose their stubbornness and self will. It is Antigone's morals, which drive her to betray the laws of man, in order to honor the laws of God. Knowing and comprehending the consequences of defying Creon's ruling do not restrain the intensity of Antigone's self will, yet it feeds her hunger to achieve her principles. Losing sight of her future, Antigone allows her stubbornness to consume her life, taking with it, the prospect of marriage, motherhood and friendship. As the story continues, we find that Antigone focuses more on the need to establish her human ethics in spite of Creon, rather than proving the incorrectness of man defying god's laws. Following the unlawful burial of Polynices, Antigone openly admits to Creon the knowledge of the following punishment by carrying out such a defying act. "I knew it naturally, It was plain enough." Antigone pg.138. With the intention of gratifying the laws of the gods, Antigone holds neither guilt nor regret as she feels that she has brought justice to the eternal rest of her brother.

Advancement of Technology and Science and its Influence on Science Fiction Novels :: Technology Science Literature Essays

Advancement of Technology and Science and its Influence on Science Fiction Novels The rapid pace of technology and the advancement of scientific understanding in the past one hundred years are at the backbone for the distinctly twentieth century genre -- science fiction. Such rapid advancement in these fields of technology have opened up literally worlds of possibilities for the future. One hundred years ago the possibility of simply flying from city to city may have seemed nothing more than a distant futuristic dream to most. While a mere sixty years later the impossible was achieved -- a human being on the moon. Since technology has brought as much change as it has in the past one hundred years the next hundred should be entirely incomprehendable to us. Who knows what to expect? "The modern discoveries and applications of Science throw deeply into the shade the old romances and fanciful legends of our boyhood" (James 8) observes James. Technology has made what was once thought impossible, plausible and weather or not technology is directly incorporated into a science fi ction story as an obvious vehicle, the author knows that it is always present in the mind of the reader. It is this plausablilty of what conventionally should not be acceptable that has led to science fiction's increasing popularity over the years. As James explains, "much sf is concerned with the future and with the possibilities presented by scientific and technological change" (James 3). Truly, humans exploring and even colonizing other worlds, the plot of many a science fiction novel, has to many become inevitable. The successful series of Apollo moon landings in the 1960's and the knowledge that we already possess the technology to send humans to other worlds leads many to believe that it is only a matter of time. Even such a notably respectable news source as Newsweek has detailed the future maned missions to Mars (September, 23 1996). When I look forward to the future I can hardly imagine the changes that will occur as a result of new discoveries in science and new technologies. With so m any possibilities for the future, science fiction is able to capitalizes on this by showing the audience entirely new worlds and alternatives to our own. Technology presented in science fiction stories most commonly serves a very important role in the stories plausablilty to the audience. While this does not mean that technology is necessarily the focus of such stories it is often used as the vehicle for which such alternative and wonderous events occur. Without the advanced spaceship how could the Segnauts have gotten to the planet Advancement of Technology and Science and its Influence on Science Fiction Novels :: Technology Science Literature Essays Advancement of Technology and Science and its Influence on Science Fiction Novels The rapid pace of technology and the advancement of scientific understanding in the past one hundred years are at the backbone for the distinctly twentieth century genre -- science fiction. Such rapid advancement in these fields of technology have opened up literally worlds of possibilities for the future. One hundred years ago the possibility of simply flying from city to city may have seemed nothing more than a distant futuristic dream to most. While a mere sixty years later the impossible was achieved -- a human being on the moon. Since technology has brought as much change as it has in the past one hundred years the next hundred should be entirely incomprehendable to us. Who knows what to expect? "The modern discoveries and applications of Science throw deeply into the shade the old romances and fanciful legends of our boyhood" (James 8) observes James. Technology has made what was once thought impossible, plausible and weather or not technology is directly incorporated into a science fi ction story as an obvious vehicle, the author knows that it is always present in the mind of the reader. It is this plausablilty of what conventionally should not be acceptable that has led to science fiction's increasing popularity over the years. As James explains, "much sf is concerned with the future and with the possibilities presented by scientific and technological change" (James 3). Truly, humans exploring and even colonizing other worlds, the plot of many a science fiction novel, has to many become inevitable. The successful series of Apollo moon landings in the 1960's and the knowledge that we already possess the technology to send humans to other worlds leads many to believe that it is only a matter of time. Even such a notably respectable news source as Newsweek has detailed the future maned missions to Mars (September, 23 1996). When I look forward to the future I can hardly imagine the changes that will occur as a result of new discoveries in science and new technologies. With so m any possibilities for the future, science fiction is able to capitalizes on this by showing the audience entirely new worlds and alternatives to our own. Technology presented in science fiction stories most commonly serves a very important role in the stories plausablilty to the audience. While this does not mean that technology is necessarily the focus of such stories it is often used as the vehicle for which such alternative and wonderous events occur. Without the advanced spaceship how could the Segnauts have gotten to the planet

Mikes Fish Market :: essays research papers

Case Study Philips NV 1. Describe changes in Philips environment occurring during the 1960’s and 1970’s (a)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Philips operates in a very competitive market domestic and internationally. There have been various changes over the last decade, with the emergence of the company from a position near economic failure to a well-known brand that is still lacking in performance. From the 1960’s onward, a number of significant changes took place. Due to the efforts of the GATT General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade barriers fell worldwide. There have been many attempts at designing models which describe the competitive environment and the determinants of profitability from Western competitors. The first element is that of the existing competition. Philips market for their products are elevating domestically and emerging internationally, however the environment in which it operated in for both of these markets is highly competitive. The way in which the products are perceived had changed over the last decade may have been seen as a luxury by the domestic markets are now seen as becoming more and more a necessity as technology moves into the home internationally. According to Cahners, the name Philips s is well known, indeed it is ranked as the global brand leader in electronics Cahners Research and in terms of Inter-brand's World's Most Valuable Brands 2000. However, there are also some problems with this and the way that it has been competing and brand awareness alone does not create sales, socially in a market where there is firm competition. 2. Describe why Philips had low profits durng the 1970’s and 80’s (a)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The problem faced by the company may be seen as a result of the lack of change and the inability to identify the way the market was moving. In the 1970‘s and the 1980’s there were different market drivers and challenges. Philips has many different products, and with such a diversified portfolio there has been a spread of risk, but this has also lead to a lack of specialization. This is partly being corrected with a concentration on video cassette recorders. However, unlike many other companies in the market, there is not a single association with the brand.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Other companies have had a higher level of differentiation due to the way in which they have been able to identify with a single product, and this has enhanced their reputation, such as Sony and Matsushita initiating VHS. This is an industry where reverse engineering is extensive and many competitors will be working on similar technologies.

Overtraining, and Burnout in Child and Adolescent Athletes. Pediatrics Essay

Exercise and sports behavior has been an area of vigorous research interest. Athletes and people who compete at a high level of physical exercise are usually habituated to intense levels of activity for over a prolonged period of time. However, there is hesitation to term it as a psychological disorder or a disorder associated with characteristic patterns of psychological disturbance. People with very high levels of athletic activities may be high achievers who participated in these activities with intense physical work due to many reasons, but the most important is their sense of achievement. Many of them feel that these activities contributed to their psychological well-being and their emotional stability. A closer examination of their exercise patterns happened to be adaptive and hence has been contemplated to be contributing to the overall psychological functioning. Investigation into their lifestyles revealed that those revolved about their athletic or physical exercise activities, and many of them had disciplined, inflexible, and well-ordered routine. To be able to maintain such routines, these individuals rigidly followed a regimented running programme and often subordinated other aspects of their life such as diet, occupation, and socializing to their running. The question remains, whether this obligatory pattern of excessive exercise and physical activity have any detrimental effects on these people with high athletic activity. In this assignment, current research will be reviewed to find out the answer of this question. Overtraining or burnout is commonly regarded as a generalised stress response to a prolonged period of overload. Thus, overtraining can be defined as â€Å"an abnormal extension of the training process culminating in a state of staleness† (Weinberg and Gould, 1999). Many other terms have been used to denote this syndrome. These include staleness, burnout and failing adaptation (Hooper et al. , 1993). Tenenbaum et al. (2003) recently suggested as theoretical model of this condition (Tenenbaum et al. , 2003). Generally speaking, overtraining can be attributed to a combination of high-intensity training at excessive levels and provision of inadequate rest or insufficient time for recovery. There have been arguments as to whether a single, universally agreeable diagnostic index of burnout is possible, case studies have revealed a host of physiological and psychological symptoms. Physiologically overtraining may manifest signs of depressed immune function leading to an increased incidence of upper respiratory tract infections. The physiology alters so that there are increases in resting heart rate. Endocrinologically, there may be decreases in testosterone levels and increases in cortisol concentration. In some individuals, there may be decreases in maximal blood lactate concentration, which is otherwise expected to be high. All these may culminate into deterioration in athletic performance of the affected person, but there may be psychological symptoms which may include include mood disturbances, feelings of chronic fatigue, loss of appetite, repetitive loading injuries, and quite often insomnia (Cashmore, 2002). The prevalence of this syndrome can be estimated from Morgan (2000) that over 50% of both male and female marathon runners have at least sometimes suffered from burnout in some time. As a paradox, burned out athletes tend to try harder and perform increasingly worse. There are many factors associated with this phenomenon. Literature has revealed that these factors may include â€Å"inadequate recovery time between bouts of training, prolonged or over-intense training regimes, personal problems and inadequate coping resources† (Weinberg and Gould, 1999). Morgan (2000) also claimed that mood disturbance in these individuals may be etiologically related to burnout, although there have been disputes against this claim. In general, it has been shown that people who exercise vigorously tend to suffer from symptoms of mood changes, irritability, restlessness, insomnia, lack of appetite, or feelings of guilt. Bill Norris, the principal trainer on the American Tennis Professionals’ tennis tour, observed recently that problems of injury and burnout stem from a combination of the â€Å"never-ending pursuit of achievement and the inability of coaches to understand that the human body can only take so much for so long† (cited in Evans, 2002, p. 24). Consequently excessive stress is an important initiating event for psychological, emotional, and physical withdrawal from a formerly enjoyable sport. As Gould et al. (2002) concurs exercise or sport burnout can be defined as the â€Å"manifestation or consequence of the situational, cognitive, behavioural, and physiologic components of excessive stress† (Gould et al. 2002). This phenomenon has been embodied most strikingly in teenage sports performers or athletes, who have spectacular and sudden rise with similarly abrupt and premature decline. Many young tennis prodigies can be used as examples to illustrate this phenomenon, and even some of them despite being prolific achievers could not go to the extent that they would have. Moreover, some of them fell prey of recurring back or neck problems or other chronic injuries. History suggests that a combination of parental pressure and coaching tyranny was operational in leading to halt of many promising careers in sporting (Gould et al. 2002). There had been attempts to explain the phenomenon of sports burnout through different theoretical framework. The progression of burnout has been presumed to be due to pressure of training and development of competitive approaches. This demand is interpreted by the athletes’ psyche in a different manner, and some indeed end up seeing it as a threatening situation. If the demand is perceived to be threatening, the youth usually demonstrates physiological responses, which are characterised by fatigue or insomnia. In the next state, these physiological responses lead to strategies for coping, which in turn may manifest as diminishing levels of competitive performance. This may lead to interpersonal problems of the affected individuals and failure of coping may lead to complete withdrawal from sport or any other athletic activity. It has been argued that it is difficult to generalize since to cause this, many subjective factors, such as, self-esteem, ambition, and personal anxiety may play important roles. Lonsdale et al. (2009) had examined the potential factors contributing to the psychological impacts of sports burnout. They used self-determination theory by employing a cross-sectional design with the primary aim to investigate the behavioral regulations and athlete burnout. It has been shown that less self-determined motives showing positive associations and more self-determined motives showing negative correlations with burnout. Competence, autonomy, self-determined motivation, exhaustion, devaluation, reduced accomplishment, and global burnout play important roles in exercise and sports burnout (Lonsdale et al. , 2009). This means, personality and factors related to motivation influence the different stages of burnout process. Some authors have identified training stress as the determinant of the burnout process. This is a physical characteristic of the burnout process. This occurs due to the fact the body cannot tolerate the physical strain anymore. As an additive, competition also plays important roles. Although in some cases, some of the young people are grown up enough to cope up with the stressors associated with higher level of competition, in many cases, the young competitors experience a psychophysiological malfunction once their bodies fail to respond positively to training. This would affect their mental orientation leading to incapability of meeting the demands placed on their bodies. Brenner et al. (2007) describes burnout syndrome as a series of psychological, physiologic, and hormonal changes that may result in decreased sports performance. The common manifestations have been described as chronic muscle and joint pain, changes in the personality, resting tachycardia, and decreased performance in sports. This is commonly associated with fatigue manifested by lack of enthusiasm about practice or competition. The athlete may also encounter immense difficulty in completing the normal routines of an athlete. Burnout in sports has been recognised as a serious sequel of the syndrome of overtraining. Although this is a serious problem, it can be prevented. Usually, the athletes are encouraged to participate and practice different kinds of sports rather than one particular type of activity. Sometimes these may be prevented though various training adjustment approaches. It has been seen that steps to keep workouts interesting with age-appropriate games and training may prevent it. There should be time off from structured or organised sports at least 1 to 2 days per week, to allow the body and mind to rest. This time may be utilised in other activities. The trainer must allow longer scheduled breaks from training and competition every 2 to 3 months, but during this time, he must focus on other activities involved with cross training so his loss of skill and level of conditioning does not deteriorate (Brenner et al. , 2007). Conclusion The detrimental effects of high level exercise are numerous. There is risk of over-use injury, potential for excessive weight loss, mood disturbance, psychological burnout, eating disorders, depression, and low level of psychological wellbeing. Recently, there has been a growth of research interest in the areas of personal problems. These include stress and burnout afflicting people involved in sport and exercise. Research also suggests that not infrequently exercise habit can have adverse consequences. For certain vulnerable population practicing athletics, sports, and physical activities, exercise is associated with specific psychopathologies. Furthermore, a variety of physiological hazards to health have been demonstrated to be associated with habitual physical activity and/or sport. These include metabolic abnormalities, such as, hypothermia in swimmers or dehydration in marathon runners; disorders of hemapoeisis, such as, anemia in endurance athletes and cardiac problems, such as, arrhythmia. All these may result from prolonged vigorous athletic activity. On the contrary, it has long been known that intensive training regimens do not always enhance athletic performance. More precisely, when the nature, intensity and/or frequency of athletic training exceed the body’s adaptive capacity and lead to a deterioration in sport performance, then the condition is known as burnout or overtraining. Modern research has suggested many changes. Reference List Brenner, JS. and the Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness Overuse Injuries (2007). Overtraining, and Burnout in Child and Adolescent Athletes. Pediatrics; 119: 1242 1245. Cashmore, E. (2002). Sport psychology: The key concepts. London: Routledge Evans, R. (2002). â€Å"Breaking point†. The Sunday Times, 19 May, p. 24 (Sport). Gould, D. , Damarjian, N. , and Greenleaf, C. (2002). Imagery training for peak performance. In J. L. Van Raalte and B. W. Brewer (Eds. ), Exploring sport and exercise psychology (2nd ed. , pp. 49–74). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Hooper, S. L, Traeger Mackinnon, L, Gordon, R. D. , and Bachmann, A W. (1993). Hormonal responses of elite swimmers to overtraining. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 25, 741–747. Lonsdale, C. , Hodge, K. , and Rose, E. , (2009). Athlete burnout in elite sport: A self determination perspective. J Sports Sci; 27(8): 785-95. Morgan, W. P. (2000). Psychological factors associated with distance running and the marathon. In D. T. Pedloe (Ed. ), Marathon medicine (pp. 293–310). London: The Royal Society of Medicine Press. Tenenbaum, G. , Jones, C. M. , K

Lobbying in the European Union

The European bursting charge has four main rules1. Proposing new lawmakings to the parliament and the Court. It is main(prenominal) that these proposals are aimed to defend the liaison of the Union and its citizens, and not only for limited countries or industries.2. It is responsible for supervising the reckon under the watchful eye of the Court. It in like manner has to manage the policies which are adopted by the sevens and Council.3. They lay down to nark legitimate that the law in every European country is properly apply.4. Representing the EU on the international stage. It makes sure that the member states burn down speak with 1ness voice (Europa.eu, 2009). beg off why the system of Qualified absolute majority Voting (QMV) in the Council of Ministers has become more than than all-important(prenominal) in the conclusiveness- do carry through with(predicate)presumptuous a measure is opposed by Britain, Italy and Ireland, which together wield 23 votes, the se harbour more creator than lower-rankinger countries. Since a block off majority consists of 26 votes, the power of Denmark or Finland ( severally with three votes) to determine the Councils last on the measure becomes infinitely great than Luxembourgs (with only ii votes). A small country cigarette exert wonderful leverage on its larger colleagues when it can use its votes to transform an make uping densification into a answer majority or blocking majority (Peterson and Bomberg, 1999, p.51-52).Why and how has the federal agency of the European Parliament become more significant in the decision-making fermentThe European Parliament works aside the Council of Ministers to make decisions, in that respectfore Parliament amendments are immediately influenced by the European Parliament in the decision-making process. It is more involved under two parts, co-decision and co work with the Council of Ministers. This consumption was introduced by the EC treaty of Maastr icht and was largely expanded by the capital of The Netherlands and Nice alteration of the TEC. Now the surgical procedure is applied to practically all important matters (Europedia, 2009).With the cooperation procedure, introduced in the SEA, the Council becomes more influenced. If the EP has different opinions to what the Council proposes in a specific legislation, further word of honor and modifications can be under take upn. Today this procedure allow only be applied in limited areas of economic and monetary unions. Under the co-decision procedure now pearl the vast majority of EU legislations that were introduced by the Maastricht, Amsterdam and Nice Treaties. In this procedure the EP has more power to veto against or so decisions from the Council. If they can not agree with each other, the legislation leave behinding fail to exist (Bomberg E. and Stubb A., 2005, p. 59).To what extent will changes to decision making procedures outline in the Lisbon accord (2007) improv e the legislation process in spite of appearance the EUFirstly, it generalises the qualified majority right to vote in a normal legislative process. Secondly, the weight of the votes will change in the Council and significantly simplify the system of qualified majority. From the 1st of November 2014, the qualified majority has to be at least 55 % of the members of the Council, including a minimum of fifteen of them and representing fellow member States involving a minimum of 65 % of the inhabitants of the Union. A blocking majority must(prenominal) take away a minimum of four Council members, and the qualified majority will be reached. The new balloting system values the fairness of portion States as each one has one vote in respect of the scratch line decisive factor and the second criteria is the existence size of a country. The third criteria which must be noted is that 15 atom States in support of the proposal is gratuitous(Europedia, 2009).Current decisions about ro aming fees and the services leading demonstrate how the European Parliaments membership guides take decisions, which are in the interest of the European citizens. Henceforward, the European Parliament will have the same power as the Council of Ministers in many areas. Regarding the agricultural policy, the Parliament will be able to contribute to it. The EP will therefore take part in all aspects of the EU budget. The national Parliament will play a role prior to the acceptance of EU legislation and will be adept to ram the Commission to modify draft EU-legislations. It will be a milestone to bringing the EU nearer to its citizens (TheEuros, 2007).In what slipway do lobbying groups contribute to the policy process in the EU and why are they significant for businessIn 2008, there were 15,000 lobbyists and 2,500 lobbying organisations in Brussels. In the EU, the Lobbyist usually drops into one of three major groups industry associations, regional representations and non-government al organisations / interest groups. Interest groups and industry associations revolve about on influencing decision-making processes for the benefit of their members, while also gathering and disseminating useful information. In distinction, regional lobby groups stand for regional and topical anesthetic authorities within EU member States, they do not focus on direct lobbying, but on networking, making known and marketing their regions all the way through the EU machinery (Stevenson, 2008, p.1).One of the most important issues in front of interests groups is the hanging counterpoise of power between European Institutions. effusion of qualified majority voting in the Council take the veto power from Member States in some economic areas, the co-decision process gave the European Parliament a large role in decision-making and the power to disdain legislation that the Council favours. Interest groups style alliances in order to give the issue a true European dimension and pers pective. The EU today manages important policies such as the Common Agriculture Policy, telecommunication, the negotiation in the World Trade Organisation, food safety, human race health and transport. Business groups account for about two-thirds of all Eurogroups (Lehmann, 2003, p.5-21).Lobbying is significant for the business, because the firms can influence on the governments decisions.Levi Strauss & Co. for example, relies on Guatemala for materials such as textiles. In 2001, the U.S. government denied Guatemala duty-free berth for its imports due to the Latin America governments decision to adequately implement labor laws. This would have increased Levi Strausss costs, so it had a receptive business interest in dominating, quite than lobby the U.S. government to retain Guatemalas prejudiced trade stance the author writes, Levis convey to attack the cause of the problem the Guatemalas neediness of labour laws. The resoluteness Guatemala put into operation stronger labor laws as a result it continues to have protected trade status with the United States (Is Lobbying for Good CSRs Missing Link?, 2009).