Ethical Dilemma Faced By A Registered Nurse On The Medical...

Ethical Dilemma Paper This paper will describe an ethical dilemma faced by a registered nurse on the medical/surgical unit at Baptist Nassau. This dilemma will be analyzed using Catalano’s ethical decision-making model (2009) for nurses. Throughout this paper the pros and cons of this dilemma will be discussed, as well as answer the question â€Å"Is it morally and ethically just†? The ethical dilemma encountered by the nurse involved a 69 year-old female patient. This patient had cancer that had metastasized to the bones and brain with a diagnosis of approximately one week to live. This patient was alert and oriented times four but very weak and lethargic. The patient was having difficulty swallowing pills, fluids and food. Therefore her intake was very little. She had no advance directives but was of sound mind and could make her own decisions. The patient’s pain level was 10/10 on a pain scale of 0-10 with 10 being the worst pain. â€Å"Even before end of life, nearly half of patients with cancer report moderate to severe pain; up to 30% report the pain as severe; and an estimated 25% will die in pain (End-of Life Care, 2015)†. The patient’s family did not want the patient to take her pain medication during the day because it would sedate the patient. They wanted to spend every waking moment with their loved one. â€Å"Often fa mily members of the dying patient cannot make end-of-life decisions or have conflicting desires about the care that should be provided (Blais

The Boy Who Was Raised As A Dog And Other Stories From A...

Paper 2: The Boy Who was Raised as a Dog and Other Stories from a Child Psychiatrist’s Notebook Summary Dr. Bruce Perry, an incredible psychiatrist, describes some of his many experiences with extremely traumatized children in his novel, â€Å"The Boy who was Raised as a Dog and Other Stories from a Child Psychiatrist’s Notebook†. Throughout this book, Dr. Perry presents just a slight insight into what children all over the world experience: violence, neglect, abuse, starvation. Due to the effects of these harsh realities, many children are viewed as strange or different, but in reality, they are some of the bravest children I’ve ever heard of. Though all of these stories are incredibly remarkable, one of the children that stood out to me the†¦show more content†¦During her first session, after being repeatedly asked what happened to her neck (referring to the scars left by her attacker), Sandy picked up a stuffed animal and motioned as though she were cutting its neck. She then repeatedly stated, â€Å"it’s for your own good, dude†. Dr. Perr y soon learned that this phrase is what her attacker whispered to her, before slicing her throat. In the sessions to follow, they met at a church, because she was under a form of witness protection to keep her safe from her perpetrator’s fellow gang members. Dr. Perry allowed her to guide the â€Å"play† during their sessions and she chose to reenact the night of her mother’s murder, using him as the dummy. She forced him on the ground and had him lay as though he were hog-tied. She would then walk around the room and bring various toys to him. Dr. Perry determined that she was choosing to relive her horrible experience, but this time, she was the one who had control. This allowed her to come to better terms with what happened and begin to heal. Slowly, Sandy began to change Dr. Perry’s position to laying on his side. Then, one day, after months of work, she chose to lead him to a rocking chair instead. She then handed him a book and sat in his lap. Sandy spent the rest of her sessions sitting in his lap, as he rocked her and read to her. Slowly, but steadily, Sandy made progress. Through the time he spent with her, Dr. Perry wasShow MoreRelatedDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 Pagesbuilt-in pretests and posttests, focus on what you need to learn and to review in order to succeed. Visit www.mymanagementlab.com to learn more. DEVELOPING MANAGEMENT SKILLS EIGHTH EDITION David A. Whetten BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY Kim S. Cameron UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN Prentice Hall Boston Columbus Indianapolis New York San Francisco Upper Saddle River Amsterdam Cape Town Dubai London Madrid Milan Munich Paris Montreal Toronto Delhi Mexico City Sao Paulo Sydney Hong Kong Seoul Singapore

Absurdism Free Essays

1 This thesis has been approved by The Honors Tutorial College and the School of Theater Dr. William F. Condee Director of Studies, Theater Tutorial Program Thesis Advisor Dr. We will write a custom essay sample on Absurdism or any similar topic only for you Order Now Angela Ahlgren Visiting Assistant Professor Thesis Advisor Jeremy Webster Dean, Honors Tutorial College 2 HAPPY DAYS: A MODERN WOMAN’S APPROACH TO ABSURDISM THROUGH FEMINIST THEATER THEORY A Thesis Presented to The Honors Tutorial College Ohio University In Partial Fulfilment Of the Requirements for Graduation From The Honors Tutorial College With the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theater By: Rachel Collins 3 Table Of Contents Introduction †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦4 On Absurdism†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 6 On Beckett†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 10 Happy Days Production History†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 16 Feminist Theater†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã ¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦18 Beckett and Gender (Happy Days)†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 23 Happy Days in Performance: A Feminist Perspective (Process)†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 34 Happy Days in Performance: Reflection†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 40 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦48 Annotated Bibliography†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 52 Creative Supplementary Materials†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦59 Happy Days Rehearsal Notes†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 59 Happy Days Rehearsal Script†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦74 Happy Days Program and Event Flier†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 92 Happy Days Production Photos†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 94 4 Introduction This thesis examines the character of Winnie in Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days through performance and the lens of feminist theory and critique. In the wake of the Second World War, a number of artists in Europe attempted to find meaning in what some considered a meaningless world. The war had ravaged Europe, and it was difficult to find hope across the continent. Many artists during this time were concerned with existentialist ideas. These new social constructs led dramatists to experiment with new forms, which dealt with these existentialist philosophies through a dramatic medium. These forms experimented with language, de-railed linear plotlines, and placed characters in bizarre situations. Martin Esslin, the producerjournalist turned scholar, coined the phrase â€Å"the Theatre of the Absurd† in his book of the same title. One of the major writers of this new form of drama was Samuel Beckett. Since Beckett’s plays began to be performed in the 1950’s, theater critics have typically viewed performances of Beckett’s works through the lens of existentialism, and his style prompted many to consider him an absurdist. Absurdist theories were able to frame the dramatic works for that time, but as the social constructs of Western culture, especially those concerning women, have changed, so has dramatic criticism of women. As half a century has passed since the initial writing of Beckett’s plays, it is important to consider them, especially those with strong female characters, through a modern feminist critique. Beckett’s writing took place during the second women’s movement. The Second World War had changed people’s views on morality, and society was forced to 5 redefine its standards. Before the First World War, class structure in Europe was rigidly defined. People â€Å"knew their place† and the gap between the rich and the poor was almost un-crossable. The war created opportunities for the lower class to advance in social position, but once it was over, society attempted to return to its pre-War structure. This cycle happened again after the Second World War. During the war, oppressed peoples in Europe were allowed to do things that they hadn’t been able to previously, but once it was over they were expected to return to their place in society. In Europe these people, including racial and religious minorities, the working class, and women, were fed up with these constraints. Women in particular strove to gain more equality in the job market and other venues. Beckett was in the interesting position of writing in the midst of this social revolution. In many ways, he was very familiar with the old world and traditions, where women’s place in society was subservient to her husband. But he was also looking forward to what the future could bring. His work in many ways anticipated the second women’s movement. Beckett’s early dramatic works are filled with male characters. Each of these men is attempting to answer the most basic of life’s questions: Who are we and why are we here? However, it was not until 1961 with Happy Days that he gave the stage over completely to the voice of a woman. In Waiting for Godot, Endgame, and Krapp’s Last Tape, women were not given a strong voice on the stage’s playing space. With Happy Days and the character of Winnie, Beckett gave women a voice in his work. Traditionally, Happy Days has been viewed through an existentialist lens, much in the same way that Beckett’s other works are 6 viewed. This study, however, attempts to re-frame Happy Days through a new set of scholarly examinations: the ideas of feminist theory and theatrical performance. Through scholarly research and performance of the piece, I looked at this important work from a new perspective. In the twenty-first century, an actress cannot approach the part with the same background as a woman playing the role in the early 1960’s. While it is important to look at plays within the historical context and tradition in which they were originally performed, this view limits the performer. If one was to only look at a piece of work historically and not interpret it using modern approaches, theater would, I believe, eventually become stale and no longer relevant to the world other than from a historical museum. Happy Days needs a new evaluation. It is time to examine it through the eyes of a modern-day woman, because that is the person who will be performing this role today. On Absurdism Absurdism was a deviation from traditional French theater but not conscience movement in itself. At the beginning of the twentieth century the avant-garde movement was regarded in the same vein as the symbolists of the late nineteenth century: their art was attempting to achieve the same results. Symbolists were reacting against the naturalist and realist forms of art and believed that the only way to represent the truth and meaning of life was to do it indirectly, instead of through exact imitation of reality. Much of the world was trying to recover after two large-scale wars. During the late 1940’s and the 1950’s, the French were interested in looking at the past for inspiration for their drama. Myths, legends, and symbols were primarily 7 used as subject matter. Particular emphasis was placed on the structure of language, for â€Å"the ‘poetic avant-garde’ represent[ed] a different mood; it is more lyrical, and far less violent and grotesque† than the theater of the absurd (Esslin 25). Productions tackled the mystery of dreams and desire through traditional dramatic conventions. Paris, which has been the cradle of a number of new artistic movements, was the birthplace for new schools of thought, and the avant-garde of Paris drama â€Å" is this part of the ‘anti-literary’ movement of our time, which has found its expression in abstract painting, with its rejection of ‘literary’ elements in pictures; or in the ‘new novel’ in France, with its reliance on the description of objects and its rejection of empathy and anthropomorphism† (Esslin 26). Theater artists realized that this was an important advancement for their art form as well, and began to experiment with these forms through dramatic constructs. Esslin choose the word â€Å"absurd† to describe these plays based on the word’s definition, which means â€Å"out of harmony with reason or propriety; incongruous, unreasonable, illogical† (Esslin 23). The work of the absurdist playwrights, including Samuel Beckett, Eugene Ionesco, Harold Pinter, Edward Albee, Tom Stoppard, and David Mamet, carry these attributes. Most of these dramatists claimed they are not trying to be â€Å"absurdist. † Even Esslin, who coined the phrase, states that â€Å"the writers in question [are] individuals[s] who regard themselves as lone outsiders, cut off and isolated in his private world† (22). This phrase has, however, been accepted widely to describe plays of this type, because the authors in question â€Å"can be seen as the 8 reflection of what seems to be the attitude most genuinely representative of that era in style, execution, and philosophy† (Esslin 22-23). Esslin borrowed these notions of existentialism from the ideas of Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. Camus’ essay â€Å"The Myth of Sisyphus† (1942) deals with existential issues, such as a lack of a God or omnipotent presence and fixed moral standards. Throughout the essay he stages an argument around suicide to examine what he considers the absurdity of life. In short, he believes that â€Å"the absurd enlightens [himself] on this point: there is no future† (Camus 58). He delves into the idea that life has no true purpose, and even when many humans discover how mundane life is, they still choose to continue living. Esslin quotes Camus: A world that can be explained by reasoning, however faulty, is a familiar world. But in a universe that is suddenly deprived of illusions and of light, man feels a stranger. His is an irremediable exile, because he is deprived of memories of a lost homeland as much as he lacks the hope of a promised land to come. This divorce between man and his life, the actor and his setting, truly constitutes the feeling of absurdity. (Camus qtd. in Esslin 18) With these ideas of man’s insignificant place in the world, humans, not God, determine their own existence. In the absence of the influence of a higher power, there is no longer any certainty in an afterlife, or in anything, as humans are fallible beings. This then creates a philosophy that is based more on the individual versus the collective. Sartre on the other hand explains a more hopeful interpretation of existentialism. While Camus stresses the human’s inability to break the cycle of absurdity, Sartre asserts that humans are absurd because their free will always puts 9 them in complete control of their fate. In his book Existentialism and Human Emotions, Sartre asserts: Man is condemned to be free. Condemned, because he did not create himself, yet, in other respects is free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does. The existentialist does not believe in the power of passion. He will never agree that a sweeping passion is a ravaging torrent which fatally leads a man to certain acts and is therefore an excuse. He thinks that man is responsible for his passion (Sartre 23). A person is therefore in complete control of his or her own destiny. There is no God, so there is no set of doctrines or moral code to follow. The only thing that one has to rely upon is his or herself, and that reliance is what creates absurdity. Life has no meaning, because â€Å"before you come alive, life is nothing; it’s up to you to give it a meaning, and value is nothing else but the meaning that you choose† (Sartre 49). Therefore, life is meaningless unless one chooses to give it meaning. The philosophies of Camus and Sartre are critical to understanding the existential elements of the absurdist works. Another aspect of absurdism is that it attempts to create a world that accentuates the strange and bizarre. In short, it â€Å"strives to express its sense of the senselessness of the human condition and the inadequacy of the rational approach by the open abandonment of rational devices and discursive thought† (Esslin 24). It has a chaotic structure that creates the illusion of an irrational universe. The plots are unclear, as well as the relationship between the characters. There is ambiguity in space, time, and relationships between characters. Words and phrases are repeated so that language itself becomes inadequate and incomprehensible. Reality is skewed so that the viewer does not know the difference between fact and fiction. Plays tend to be 10 cyclical in that they end in the same place they started. These never-ending cycles create an illusion of despair, and remind the audience how continually hopeless life can be. There is also a strong vaudevillian presence within absurdist drama: this creates an element of humour that therwise might be absent, and also highlights that as desperate as life can be, there are still moments of laughter within misery. The plays are funny and tragic at the same time, and they utilize traditional clowning techniques as well as orchestrated pauses to convey their messages. Therefore, â€Å"the Theatre of the Absurd has renounced arguing about the absurdity of the human condition; it merely presents it in being† (Esslin 25). Although absurdism is a widely defined genre, Beckett is considered by many scholars to be one of the pioneers of the form. When considering other playwrights and plays as absurdist, many scholars to this day compare the writers and works to Beckett’s canon. Therefore Beckett, although he does not consider himself to be an absurdist writer, is one of the major contributors to this style of theater. His works are numerous and his unique style is what brought absurdism to the forefront of dramatic movements of the late twentieth century. On Beckett Samuel Beckett was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1906 to Protestant middle-class parents. After he pursued his education in Ireland he was offered a teaching fellowship in Paris, which he accepted. There he met James Joyce and a variety of other artists. Joyce, impressed by Beckett, stated that â€Å"he thought Beckett had promise–a rare 11 gesture for him† (Alvarez 12). It was during the late 1940’s and into the early 1950’s that Beckett â€Å"began his lifelong association with Paris† and his fascination with the French language and linguistics in general. It was then that Beckett began writing; he published his first novel Murphy in 1938. After spending time in Ireland with his mother, Beckett returned to Paris when World War Two began. He volunteered for the Red Cross and was involved in the war in many ways, from helping with wounded soldiers, to joining radical political groups and trying to aide France’s war effort. He was forced to flee Paris when friends in a radical political group were arrested. Once the war ended, Beckett returned to Paris. It was during this post-war period that he wrote a number of dramatic works, including his most famous play, Waiting for Godot (Bair 381). After Godot Beckett wrote Endgame (1957) and Krapp’s Last Tape (1958). Shortly after the premier of Krapp he began writing Happy Days in October of 1960. Happy Days came at an interesting time in Beckett’s career: because of the success of Godot, Endgame, and Krapp, â€Å"celebrated playwrights, [and] other dramatists who studied his plays wanted to share their ideas, and in most cases, to pay him homage† (Bair 527). His new fame also caused rifts in Beckett’s personal life. He and his partner Suzanne Deschevaux-Dumesnil were planning on getting married, but wanted to keep the ceremony under wraps. They were making their relationship official because Beckett had realized current French law would not allow Suzanne to inherit the estate or his money if he were to die. They wanted to get married in England because â€Å"as an Irish citizen whose financial affairs were concentrated in 12 England, he had to be married there to insure the legality of the ceremony and Suzanne’s right to inherit his estate† (Bair 530). However, since Beckett and Suzanne had been living in Paris, he had to reside in England for two weeks before the ceremony was legal, according to English law. During these few weeks, Beckett hid himself from the public eye in the Bristol Hotel and worked on his Happy Days manuscript. Like his early plays, Happy Days is an examination of life in an absurd situation. A woman, Winnie, is buried alive in an ant hill in a scorched landscape, while her husband Willie prattles around behind the landscape. Winnie is first buried up to her bosom and then to her neck in a large hill (presumably an abandoned ant hill, as one single emmet wanders the mound). She spends her days chatting about seemingly mundane nonsense, all with the hope that Willie might just be listening to her. While Winnie endures blistering heat, increased immobility, and a strident bell that keeps her from falling asleep, â€Å"she remains to the bitterest end, implacably optimistic and talkative† (Alvarez 108). Her unfailing hope in the future is both depressing and hopeful. It is her optimism that causes so many audience members to be moved by Winnie. In one Beckett biography, Diedre Bair asserts that as a result of Beckett’s increasing fame, Suzanne found it more difficult than usual to deal with her new husband. According to Bair: She resented his fame and felt that he should have made a more public acknowledgement of her important role in bringing it about. She wanted to be known as the helpmate who had made his success possible. He wanted nothing at all known about himself, least of all details which he considered of no more 13 than domestic import. He felt he had demonstrated his gratitude to her by marrying her when both considered the ceremony a mockery. (533) Bair believes the couple grew apart as the years passed: â€Å"They had nothing in common anymore, but neither thought of parting. Beckett began to envision their relationship as one in ineluctable bondage, and from then on, veiled references to their situation began to appear in his writing† (Bair 534). It is conceivable that much of the Happy Days plot was derived from his personal life, because it was written during the events surrounding his secret wedding. Other biographers, including James Knowleson, assert that Beckett and Suzanne had a loving relationship. While they were having problems in their small apartment, they felt if they moved to a bigger space they would have more time to live independently of each other. Therefore, Knowlson notes â€Å"the [bigger apartment] allowed them to live parts of their lives independently-without one disturbing the other, if he or she did not want to be disturbed† (423). Knowlson also mentions in this biography that Beckett had a mistress named Barbara during this part of his life, but that Beckett still felt (even though he waited almost a quarter of a century to marry her) that he was committed to Suzanne. In this account the marriage was troubled, but the couple was working through their problems. Because of their fiercely independent personalities, both wanted and desired independent space: their union worked best when there was a good combination of time together and time apart. It is this examination of Beckett’s married life that is pertinent to Happy Days, as Beckett’s view on the institution of marriage and lifelong commitment is explored throughout the text. 14 As Beckett is from Ireland and his English dialect is influenced by that country, Happy Days has Irish undertones in plot and form. While Beckett spent a majority of his life in France, his strongest ties were to his Irish roots. He was fascinated by the old ways or the old words that the Irish used, such as emmet (an ant). The way Beckett manipulates language is particularly Irish. Beckett’s use of the language is distinctive, utilizing traditional Irish techniques of â€Å"repetitive . . . words or sentences; . . . transformations, division, contraction, shortening and lengthening of words; and the minimization of the number of different words per sentence, but also exaggeration through redundance† (Van Slooten 48). Beckett also was very attached to music in the Irish tradition. He wrote to utilize â€Å"vocal techniques and sound effects [including] the sound of vowels and consonants and the alternately winded, syncopated, and pounding rhythms† to shape his texts† (Van Slooten 48). What is most interesting about this concept is the life and mobility that the Irish language gives to a piece like Happy Days, where the central character is trapped in a hill. The dialect itself requires a wide range of emotion and tonality in its expression, so that â€Å"stage directions such as ‘sad’, ‘suppliant’, ‘very excited’, ‘irritated’, ‘laughing’, ‘explosive’, ‘melancholy’, and the individual diction for different characters indicate how much importance [Beckett] attached to these matters and show how his words should be voiced† (Van Slooten 58). Because of the nature of the language in Happy Days, it is important to evaluate it through the Irish musicality to find the momentum of a play that contains little to no stage movement otherwise. 15 This â€Å"Irishness† can be seen in a London performance of Happy Days at the Old Vic Theater in 1975 (later transferred to the Lyttleton Theater in 1976). In this production, Dame Peggy Ashcroft played Winnie, Harry Lomax played Willie, and Peter Hall directed. Despite Ashcroft’s positive reputation, this particular production received a number of mixed reviews. One reviewer, Rosemary Pountney, believed that Ashcroft’s biggest weakness was her lack of vocal range. She believed that while Ashcroft had a great vocal capacity, Pountney loathed the Irish accent that Ashcroft attempted: Her greatest strength as an actress, the marvellous flexibility of her voice, was flattened and deadened in an attempt to convey an Irish accent—not a strong Irish accent, but, much more difficult for a non-Irish woman, the suggestion of one. A ‘non-accent’ accent resulted, with Dame Peggy’s superb voice not merely out of tune but restricted in its range, as though straitjacketed. Thus Winnie’s fluctuations of mood†¦ were dulled and Act 1 seemed to lack impact (Pountney). Although Ashcroft did not do the dialect justice, Pountney addresses that Beckett had written a musical quality to his dialogue, which in many cases is what â€Å"scores† the actress through the piece. The repetitions in the script work as guidelines and create the score of the production. Pountney was impressed by understanding of the Irish nature of the piece, but not so much their enactment of it. It is important to note that Happy Days was originally written in English, whereas most of Beckett’s works were previously written in French. Beckett stated that his reasons for writing in French were because it gave him a strict structure around the language. Because French was not his native language he was forced to be selective when he chose words, he chose words selectively, and did not inadvertently 16 embellish the language (Van Slooten 48). Although he translated all of his plays himself from French to English, there is still an element of sparseness to the language. Since Happy Days was originally in English, the style of the writing is different. Although there are pauses in the dialogue, the sentence structure flows differently than the sparse language of Godot or Endgame. Therefore, Beckett’s use of the English language in my production is paramount to understanding it through performance. Happy Days Production History Happy Days was performed for the first time on September 17, 1961 in New York at the Cherry Lane Theater. The production starred Ruth White as Winnie and John C. Becher as Willie; Alan Schneider directed the production. Schneider and Beckett had a long career as collaborators. Schneider directed a number of Beckett’s plays, including the American premier of Waiting for Godot, and Film? among many others. Because of prior commitments Beckett was unable to come to New York to supervise direction of this production. The two men therefore corresponded in letters to relay information, and according to Bair â€Å"Beckett’s letters could easily become a textbook for Happy Days should [anyone] ever decide to publish them† (536). As with any Beckett performance, the directions given to the actors were thoroughly specific, as Bair describes: They are long and painstaking, filled with minute directions for action and how it should correspond to speech; detailed descriptions of lighting, even to the physical properties, brand name and positing of each individual bulb; and a series of drawings in pen and ink done by Beckett to show exactly how he wanted Winnie and her mound to appear, and what the position of Willie should be at all times in relation to her. (536) 17 At many times throughout the process, Schneider was worried that he was not doing Beckett or his script justice, since the directions were so specific. He remained worried until the show opened to an eager audience. The reviews of the play were mixed, as they had been for many Beckett plays before, but the reviewers who liked the production were not shy in their praises. In The New York Times, Howard Taubman praised the performance, especially White’s, stating that she: conveys a profound sense of the dark, empty spaces of Winnie’s life. She uses her voice to achieve a remarkable range of nuance. Her eyes, her lips, the very lines in her face suggest mood and feeling. She fusses bravely with the black shopping bag that seems to contain all her worldly possessions. Her attempt to be invincible turns into a pitiable failure. At the end, with the silly, feathered little hat atop the head projecting out of the mound, she seems like a puny, weary Earth Mother of a mean, despairing world. (Taubman) The performance was praised for its ability to not only inspire viewers to look at life’s deep existential and sometimes disheartening questions, but also to reveal compassion, which is rare in Beckett’s works (Taubman). Ruth White’s performance was so revered that she received a 1962 Obie Award for Distinguished Performance. While the first few performances were received well, they were still looked at from a primarily masculine perspective. The majority of theater reviewers were male, and so the comments on the productions came from a male perspective. At this time however, a different group of artists was exploring theater from a feminist perspective. They experimented with dramatic forms to ighlight the female experience, which they believed to be lacking in society. It was during the late 1950’s and early 1960’s that feminist theater began to be produced. 18 Feminist Theater For many centuries the theatrical arts were dominated by men. Notable feminist scholar Sue-Ellen Case states that when the second-wave feminist movement began in the early 1960’s, â€Å"the singular term ‘feminism’ was often employed to describe a variety of political and critical re alms. This term was interchangeable with the term ‘the women’s movement’† (62). The feminist movement was divided into a number of philosophies. In the theatrical world, there are two major approaches that scholars have identified as self-conscious approaches to feminist work: that of the radical or cultural feminists and that of the materialist feminists, otherwise known as socialist or Marxist feminists. Both of these groups influenced how the experiences of women were presented on stage. The most common form of feminism in the United States and democratic European countries was what Case identifies as radical feminism. This particular form of feminism â€Å"is based on the belief that the patriarchy is the primary cause of the oppression of women†¦ the patriarchy represents all systems of male dominance and is regarded as the root of most social problems† (Case 64). Radical feminist performers and theater practitioners have concerns with the style of realism, because of â€Å"the nature of realism as a conservative force that reproduces and reinforces dominant cultural relations† in which man is superior to woman (Dolan 84). They believe that most male playwrights write about the male experience from a male perspective, even if writing female characters, and that the male experience is directly linked to patriarchal society. According to Jill Dolan: 19 By rejecting both realism and the genderized posturings of the of the maledominated experimental theater groups, the new feminist theater meant to create woman identified productions. This work, created by women for women, focused on woman’s experience with one another and their connections to each other through gender and sex. Identifying with each other as women was meant as an antidote to their oppression under patriarchy (85). Radical feminists believe that realism is inherently patriarchal, so they want to create a new form of realism for the female spectator so she â€Å"can find a coherent identity in the mirror image they hold up† (Dolan 99). It was the continual oppression of the feminine gender that most radical feminists wanted to examine. One of the most significant oppressions that women felt was that of sexual oppression from a maleoriented society. For centuries, â€Å"male culture made women’s bodies into objects of male desire, converting them into sites of beauty and sexuality for men to gaze upon† (Case 66). Many women as a result were afraid to discuss intimate details about their biology or their sex lives and desires. Radical feminists wanted to challenge social norms and allow for women’s issues to rise to the surface, to reclaim women’s place in history. They wanted to portray women’s collective struggles against the â€Å"patriarchal backdrop on which women have been victimized,† to highlight the centuries of male dominance in the theater (Dolan 88). In radical feminist theater, Brechtian and Artaudian techniques were often utilized. The Verfremdungseffekt, otherwise known as the distancing effect, is a technique Bertolt Brecht used in his epic theater to ensure that the audience would not become emotionally attached to the characters and could serve as an external political observer. In contrast, Antonin Artaud believed that the theater should contain an aspect of cruelty. He did not intend cruelty to mean causing physical pain for an actor 20 r audience, but cruelty in the way of making violent or disturbing actions on stage so the audience member is forced to deal with uncomfortable topics. Brechtian techniques are used in feminist theater to alienate the audience and Artaudian to make them feel uncomfortable as they are faced with the breaking of cultural norms. Radical feminist performances, however, differ from those traditions in that radical feminist performances generally consist of a ritualistic element, which created t he illusion of timelessness. This differs from Brecht’s usual usage of historical events to urround his plotlines. These performances also highlighted the biology of women and the power they held as a result, whereas Brecht largely concentrated on the politics and Artaud on the cruel intentions. While this was the intention, often â€Å"the body is curiously lost in [performance], perhaps because truly considering the body in space means dealing with the representational apparatus, which the feminine aesthetic is inadequate to handle† (Dolan 97). This struggle between rejecting and embracing realism is used as a means to advance feminist ideologies through performance. Dolan and Case discuss one other type of feminist performance: that of the materialist feminist. The major idea materialist feminism expounds is that all oppression comes from societal construction, and that capitalism is the major determinant in this construction. This can be seen through a historical labor production as Dolan explains: Production is the central human action played out in the market place and, for women, in the domestic sphere. The organisation of the forces of production and the role of wages create the situation of the worker. In the market place, the woman worker has generally been paid lower wages than the man and retained in a subordinate position without upward mobility. In the domestic sphere, unpaid housework and unpaid 21 reproductive and child-rearing labour have been instrumental in shaping the condition of women. The nuclear family is perceived as a unit of private property, in which the wife-mother is exploited by the male as well as by the larger organisation of capitalism (Dolan 83). Therefore, the materialist feminists believe that there should not be a distinction between genders, but that all genders should be treated with equal weight. Instead of viewing women as a gender, they are treated as a class, much like middle class, upper class, or working class. In short, the woman lives in a system that provides free labor to her husband or her employer. She provides free labor for her husband â€Å"by producing future workers as babies and by preparing the labourer for each day’s work† (Case 84). As a result, this form of feminism has been most prominent in European countries, as the class structure is more defined in those countries than in North America. The only way that a woman can liberate herself from this structure, according to this form of feminism, is to enter the workforce. According to Simone de Beauvoir1 in her revolutionary text The Second Sex (1949), when a woman receives employment she is liberated from her husband and can be her own member of the social structure. She then â€Å"ceases to be a parasite [and] the system based on her dependence crumbles; between her and the universe there is no longer any need for a masculine mediator† (Beauvoir 679). In patriarchal society, men have the liberty of having their occupation not determined by their gender. Women who try to deviate from this norm are subject to oppression, as â€Å"the woman who does not conform devaluates herself sexually and hence socially, since sexual values are an integral feature of [a patriarchal] society† (Beauvoir 682). Materialist feminists believe that by changing the economic structure, 22 the social structure will soon follow. If women are given equal opportunities in the workplace and are treated as men, they will not be sexualized and demoralized as before. Therefore, in performance, materialist feminists do not see it necessary to portray women as accurately as they would in life, because that is not the aim. The aim is to see women as a class, not as a performer of gender. Materialist feminists believed that the theater could be used to advance their gender in society, but they felt that the radical feminists were slightly misguided. They felt that if women were still working under the constraints of a male society, they were weakening women until she could only exist as a representation on stage. Therefore, the materialist feminists wanted to discover â€Å"how to inscribe a representational space for women that will point out the gender enculturation promoted through the representational frame and that will belie the oppressions of the dominant ideology it perpetuates† (Dolan 101). The materialist feminists deviated from the idea that â€Å"patriarchy is everywhere and always the same and that all women are ‘sisters’† and instead used their theater to underscore â€Å"the role of class and history in creating the oppression of women† (Case 82). The most successful way to make their points, they believe, is by highlighting the arbitrary nature of gender and its performance in society, and to assert that all real differences between individuals are the results of class inequalities, which in turn manifest in gender inequality. They wish â€Å"to reveal the complicity of the representational apparatus in maintaining sexual difference,† and prove that it is not as important to maintain these differences on stage as it had been in works of realism (Dolan 101). 23 It is through the performance ideologies of radical and materialist feminism that most feminist theater of the late twentieth century can be categorized. Also, many subsequent forms of feminist theater have been widely influenced by these theories, either directly or because the performers choose explicitly to deviate from the feminist theater norm in order to make their own points on gender in society. However, even today, much of feminist theater employs techniques of distancing, alienation, highlighting differences between sexes. They are less concerned with making sure gender is represented accurately on stage in accord with realism, or talking about issues that are traditionally considered feminine, such as women’s sexuality, body, and life experiences due to gender. Beckett and Gender (Happy Days) Beckett is often criticized as being sexist. This claim comes mainly from the way the Beckett Estate, which is in control of all of Beckett’s works, deals with gender when giving out performance rights to companies. Beckett has made it very clear that only men are allowed to perform the roles for men, and women are allowed to perform the roles for women. His estate has filed a number of lawsuits on companies trying to change the gender roles in his works and has been successful in most instances (Jeffreys). Though some have gotten angry at the iron grip that the Beckett Estate seems to have on Beckett’s works, there is a logic to the demand that each gender represented in a play must be played by an actor of that gender. Beckett intentionally wrote a part for a man so a man could play it, in the same way that he wrote a part for a woman to play. He wrote very clear male and female voices. The female voice 24 specially that of Winnie, is inherently unique. She does not speak about herself or her troubles in the way that Vladimir and Estragon do in Godot. She does not speak about prostates or having an erection, she speaks about lipstick and quotes Shakespeare. Therefore, it is imperative to explore gender and choice of language in Beckett’s works, because he was so deliberate with gender in his productions. In many ways, Beckett has represented his women stereotypically. Throughout his writing career, however, Beckett began to challenge his original notions and began to portray women more diversely. At the beginning of his career, when he was focusing on prose, most of Beckett’s women were overbearing and clearly antagonistic to men. For example, in his first novel Murphy, the main female character, Celia, is a prostitute that Murphy lives with. Celia makes many demands of Murphy, and is portrayed as an overbearing woman throughout. On the other hand, Beckett did move away from some established theatrical gender roles. In traditional gender roles, young women were often sexualized and are portrayed as â€Å"beautiful, chaste, and usually static† (Bryden 18). Some say that Beckett does not conform to this gender stereotype because most of his women are loud, overbearing, in grotesque circumstances, and older. For example, in Happy Days, Winnie is continually overbearing toward Willie, especially when giving him specific directions on how she wants things done. He cannot even go where he wants without Winnie screeching, â€Å"Do as I say, Willie, don’t lie sprawling there in this hellish sun, go back into your hole† (Beckett 25). Winnie has lost much of her vitality, and in a way is so far removed from it she is no longer bound to the stereotypes of youth. Instead, Winnie is 25 confined to stereotypes of age, as many older women are portrayed as meddling, controlling, and loving, just as Winnie is. Another gender stereotype would be the care that Winnie takes in preserving her appearance. Throughout the beginning of the play, Winnie is focused on making sure she keeps up her physical appearance. The act of obsessive grooming and the placement of value in physical appearance tend to be regarded as feminine traits. At the beginning of the play Winnie is following her morning routine. She brushes her teeth, checks herself in the mirror, and begins to apply lipstick. She is also concerned about the appearance of her hair. Winnie is in the middle of a thought when she anxiously cries out, â€Å"My hair! Did I brush and comb my hair? I may have done, normally do† (Beckett 22). In a number of productions of Happy Days, the design takes into account the idea that in Act II Winnie is unable to move her arms any longer. Therefore she is unable to tend to her personal appearance. In the 2007 production of Happy Days at the Royal National Theatre in London starring Fiona Shaw, the actress had blackened teeth, mussed hair, and a dirtied face at the onset of Act II. This showed that Winnie was unable to take care of herself, and this choice is even supported in the text when Winnie mentions, â€Å"Willie, look at me. Feast your old eyes, Willie. Does anything remain? Any remains? No? I haven’t been able to look after it, you know† (Beckett 62). Willie, as a man, does not tend to his appearance in the same vein at all, and to that effect does not help Winnie keep up her looks when she is no longer able. Winnie must give him orders on how to take care of his 26 appearance. Therefore, Beckett places the female in the stereotypical role of taking care of her appearance, while the male is placed in the role where he does not. Winnie is also obsessed with her declining looks. It is clear that she spends much of her time trying to impress Willie and feels that because she has lost her looks, she has lost what makes her desirable to men. She states, â€Å"Was I lovable once, Willie? Was I ever lovable? Do not misunderstand my question, I am not asking you if you loved me, we all know about that, I am asking if you found me loveable at one stage† (Beckett 31). Winnie believes that her lovability is directly attached to the past, and therefore her youth. It is generally considered typical of women, rather than men, to be obsessed with their own youth and beauty. Women are typically cast off as undesirable when they reach a certain age, whereas men have a much longer time frame before society deems them too old to be physically attractive. Winnie also remembers her beauty from before she was in the mound, stating: and now? The face. The nose. I can see it†¦ the tip†¦the nostrils†¦breath of life†¦ that curve you so admired†¦ if I stick it out†¦the tip†¦suspicion of brow†¦eyebrow†¦imagination possibly†¦. Cheek†¦no†¦no†¦ even if I puff them out†¦ no†¦no†¦damask. (Beckett 52) She truly believes that her looks are the only reason that Willie could have ever loved her, and now that they are gone, she has no means of attraction. It is stereotypically characteristic of a woman to have these thoughts, and the preoccupation fits the gender stereotype. Winnie is also a stereotypical woman in the way she remembers her past lovers. For example, she is very sentimental about the memories of her first ball and her first kiss. It was with â€Å"a Mr. Johnson, or Johnston, or perhaps I should say 27 Johnstone. Very bushy moustache, very tawny. Almost ginger! Within a toolshed, though whose I cannot conceive† (Beckett 16). According to most gender stereotypes, it is typical of women to be obsessive over past relationships. Winnie’s memory is no exception. She also remembers another lover before Willie named Charlie. It is a fleeting memory, where she contemplates the situation, stating, â€Å"Ah yes†¦ then†¦now†¦beechen green†¦this†¦Charlie†¦ kisses†¦this†¦all that†¦ deep trouble for the mind† (Beckett 51). Clearly, Winnie is saddened in her memories but clings to them because she has little left that she can value as a result of her situation in the mound. Holding onto her past lovers represents Winnie’s desire to hold onto her rites of passage, including her first sexual experiences. Beckett explores a number of other stereotypes, including the purse Winnie carries. A purse is traditionally considered a feminine object to carry and generally is filled with trinkets that women are prone to using or carrying around. For example, the bag that Winnie uses is filled with such objects as a compact mirror, a handkerchief, a bottle of medicine, lipstick, a brush and comb, and a nail file. Although it can be argued that Winnie is bound to her purse because of her lack of mobility and things to occupy her time, it can also be seen as a comment on the female gender and their stereotypical dependence on the purse or bag that they carry. Winnie has great faith in her bag, and is protective of and dependent on it, stating: There is of course the bag. The bag. Could I enumerate its contents? No. Could I, if some kind person were to come along and ask, What all have you got in that big black bag, Winnie? Give an exhaustive answer? No. The depths in particular, who knows what treasures. What comforts. (Beckett 32) 28 Winnie is so attached to her bag she believes that the objects themselves carry not only meaning, but life. In the second act Winnie contemplates, â€Å"It’s things, Willie. In the bag, outside the bag. Ah yes, things have their life, that is what I always say, things have a life† (Beckett 54). This materialistic view has been attributed to women in many instances. Someone who marries a person for their money or resources is more likely to be a woman than a man (even though it is a stereotype for both genders), as women are seen as a lower class, and to escape their place in the class structure they marry into their wealth as they are not as privileged to earn it themselves. There is, however, one stereotypically masculine object in the bag: the revolver. In many cases, the revolver is a symbol of power and dominance over others. In the past, men typically carried firearms on their person and were given guns to use in war, an arena that has only recently been occupied in a standard capacity by women. The shape of the gun itself can also be considered phallic. The gun, considered as a phallic object, can also be seen as a castration of Willie. Winnie has essential ownership over his manhood. This can be supported by one of Willie’s few lines, in which Winnie asks him what a â€Å"hog’s setae† is, to which he replies, â€Å"Castrated male swine. Reared for slaughter† (Beckett 47). Willie clearly sees himself as someone who is no longer in control of his masculinity and has fallen so far that his status is reduced to that of a pig. He is also so far gone that he is ready to be killed. He is on his deathbed, waiting to go to the slaughterhouse. This viewpoint is very alarming, and does shed a slightly negative light on women. Winnie, in many ways, 29 can be seen as a monster for having power over the gun and therefore Willie’s masculinity. It is again remarkable to note that Winnie, not Willie, is the owner of the gun as it suggests that Winnie is in possession of the masculine object, and thereby the power. It is in her bag, and though she seems repulsed by the idea of a gun, she is also somewhat fascinated and consoled by its presence. When considering the gun, Winnie states, â€Å"oh I suppose it’s a comfort to know you’re there, but I’m tired of you. I’ll leave you out, that’s what I’ll do. There, that is your home from this day out† (Beckett 33). It is also unclear whether or not Willie is attempting to reclaim the gun from Winnie or not. At the play’s end, when Willie comes out â€Å"dressed to kill† and comes to Winnie on the mound where the gun is resting near her, Beckett makes sure that Willie’s last lunge towards the mound is ambiguous (Beckett 61). One is unsure whether or not he is trying to reach for Winnie, or for her gun. Regardless of his motive, one thing is certain: he does not attain the gun; it remains in Winnie’s possession. It is fair to assume that if the play’s narrative would have continued, Willie would never have gotten the gun from Winnie. Therefore, though Winnie is considered stereotypical with the use of her purse to carry trinkets and her attachment to her purse, she also is the wielder of a surprisingly masculine object, and the male character is unable to have it for himself. Another notable point is that commonly arises in Beckett plays is the lack of mobility women usually have, which suggests that women have little room for advancement in this world. Scholar Mary Bryden points out that â€Å"in these plays, stasis 30 has more in common with aspiration than with condemnation,† meaning that those who are not moving have aspirations that are static, not that they themselves are condemned to some sort of hell (90). Nell in Endgame lives in a trash can. The women in Play (1963) are trapped in urns. While this lack of mobility can be seen in male characters as well (Nagg in Endgame, the male in Play), the effect is different. Other men are given mobility in Beckett’s works, when women are less likely to be given movement. Hamm is able to move, as is Krapp, Vladimir, Estragon, Lucky, Pozzo, and most notably Willie. Willie is given the option of mobility, whereas Winnie is not. Winnie is actually happy with her lack of movement, stating, â€Å"What a curse, mobility! † (Beckett 46). She is aware that at one time she used to be mobile, but blissfully unaware at how much easier her life was when she was mobile. She was able to hold a parasol above her head with ease instead of with pain and discomfort. She was not the object of spectacle when others passed by. She was independent in many ways because she was not bound to the earth. She even dreams of leaving her situation, and dreams that â€Å"if I were not held–in this way–I would simply float up into the blue. And that perhaps someday the earth will yield and let me go, the pull is so great, yes, crack all round and let me out† (Beckett 33). Winnie recalls these things many times and acknowledges that mobility would be best for her. But she remains complacent about her situation and still finds happiness in her utterly dependent state with Willie, because her aspirations cause her to stay immobile. Her mobility is in direct relation to her ambitions. Since her dreams are not going anywhere, neither is Winnie. 31 In other ways Beckett does break standard gender stereotypes when portraying his women. In a patriarchal society the wife is supposed to be the servant to the husband. While Winnie is holding up her parasol and her arm tires, she asks his permission to put it down, stating, â€Å"bid me to put this thing down, Willie, I will obey you instantly, as I have always done, honoured, and obeyed† (Beckett 36). It seems that Winnie is a woman who is completely dependent on her husband, and in many ways she is because of her situation in the mound. However, Willie is the one who serves Winnie. Willie is the one who brings her items when she demands them, answers to her voice when she calls out to him, and essentially does whatever she demands. Winnie, in effect, has not taken the role of the stereotypical married woman. She mentions that she serves her husband and is bound to do so. Therefore she does not leave because of her duty and her vow of marriage and her situation in the hill. Willie, in the same vein, is not trapped in the hill as Winnie is. He is able to leave the harsh environment whenever he would like and essentially let fate take Winnie. He doesn’t leave, however. He takes the abusive phrases from his wife and he stays with her until presumably the end of her days. In much the same way, sex in Beckett plays is just as forgotten and elusive to men as it is to women. Characters in Beckett plays remember that sex, at one time, existed. But now it is so far in the past that it is almost forgotten. Winnie’s only memories of sex seem to be poor, as she states â€Å"sadness after intimate sexual intercourse one is familiar with of course. You would concur with Aristotle there, Willie, I fancy† (Beckett 57). Ironically, the Aristotle quotation actually refers to men, 32 stating â€Å"the exhaustion consequent on the loss of even a very little of the semen is conspicuous because the body is deprived of the ultimate gain drawn from the nutriment †¦ [so] as a general rule the result of intercourse is exhaustion and weakness rather than relief† (Alexander). It is extremely interesting that Winnie, as a woman, references such a masculine viewpoint on sexuality. However, she does seem to agree with this overtly masculine philosophy. Through her condition in the hill, Winnie’s sexuality is gradually covered up. Cooker, or Shower, as Winnie is hard at remembering, has made numerous comments about her sexuality in regards to the mound. Cooker and/or Shower is a man and his wife, that occasionally pass Winnie and Willie, and make rude comments about the state that Winnie finds herself in. Beckett was well versed in German, and used these English names as a play on words. In German, the word â€Å"schauen† means to look, and â€Å"gucken† to watch: naming his onlookers Shower and Cooker was highly suggestive. The mysterious onlooker is curious as to whether her body is still good looking, stating, â€Å"can’t have been a bad bosom†¦in its day. Seen worse shoulders†¦in my time. Does she feel her legs? . . . has she anything on underneath? † (Beckett 58). She is infuriated by the comments, yelling, â€Å"let go of me for Christ sake and drop! Drop dead! † (Beckett 58). But her condition in the mound makes it impossible to defend herself. While man and woman are both foreign to sex, it is the woman who is trapped and made a fool of, and has no way to defend herself because of the condition the playwright has placed her in. Dolan makes a point to discuss this in her work, commenting on the role that sexuality plays in performance. She believes that â€Å"if power adheres in sexuality, and cultural feminists 33 assume power leads to violence against women, it becomes politically and artistically necessary to attempt to disengage representation from desire,† meaning that in feminist theater practices, women have to be presented as women, not the object of male sexual desire (Dolan 61). In Beckett’s production, Winnie is literally trapped and gaped at, proving Dolan’s point that in most of the modern canon, the representation of woman on stage is synonymous with desire. One of the scenes in Happy Days that concentrates most on sex is that in which Winnie discusses Mildred, commonly referenced as Milly, and the mouse. The story is quite frightening and underlines the idea that sex for women and for Winnie in particular has been terrifying and un-gratifying. In the second act, Winnie describes Mildred, a little girl who could have been Winnie as a young woman. She has been given a wax doll named Dolly. Milly sneaks out of her room to the nursery to undress Dolly, as she seemingly has been â€Å"forbidden to do so,† then suddenly out of nowhere a mouse appears and crawls up Milly’s leg (Beckett 55). She screams, and the entire household comes running to see what the matter is. It is at that moment that Winnie stops her story, and is too overcome to finish. It is clear from the language, that the story is one of Milly’s, or perhaps Winnie’s, first memories of sexuality and perhaps her own sexuality. Clearly the experience frightened her in regard to her sexual nature, because she abruptly stops her story by warning Willie that he â€Å"may close [his] eyes, then [he] must close [his] eyes- and keep them closed† (Beckett 59). While Winnie’s sexuality has shifted and her sex drive has been affected by her entrapment in the 34 mound, it is clear that even from a young age she was not accepting of her sexuality, or able to properly deal with it because she felt violated. Throughout Beckett’s work, gender stereotypes are present. However, these stereotypes are accompanied by a number of gender deviations from the stereotypical norm. Therefore, when considering the work of Beckett, it is valid to assert that although Beckett conforms to gender stereotyping, he is not bound by them. Even though his work is informed by a world on the verge of the second-wave feminist movement, he is beginning to break gender stereotypes that are inherent in his earlier works of prose and even drama. Therefore, Happy Days is an appropriate and interesting play to look at from an absurdist feminist perspective. Happy Days in Performance: A Feminist Perspective (Process) When mounting a production there are a number of individuals involved, and they all have a certain role to play. Actors, directors, producers, and the production design team all work together to create a final performance. In the fall, I spent most of my time researching the production and writing the preliminary part of my thesis. In the production, I held two roles: that of producer and lead actress. As a producer, it was my responsibility to be in charge of the logistical elements of the production. I was responsible for coordinating the space rental, finding rehearsal spaces, making the program and fliers, and essentially all of the production aspects of the performance. Some of my duties I gave to my director and stage manager to handle, which in a typical performance would not happen; however, since I was also taking on the role as the lead actress, I had to divide my time. In that role I was expected to memorize all of 35 my lines, have character ideas, personalize emotional responses and relationships, and have a set of actions to achieve my objectives. This role proved to be the most time consuming, as the Beckett script was repetitive and convoluted, making it difficult to memorize. Winnie is essentially the only character who speaks (meaning there are no other actors to rely on for help with lines and following the through line of the script, or the journey of the character throughout the play), and the nature of absurdist work makes it difficult to discover objectives and relationships. One of my first duties as producer was to assemble a production team. First, I chose a performance faculty advisor. I asked Professor Shelley Delaney because of her work with one-woman performances and her knowledge of the craft of acting. After making this choice, I was informed that Professor Delaney would not be able to help direct me in the production. I knew that as an actor I would not be able to assess my progress without the help of a director. Therefore, I asked Arielle Giselle Rogers to direct me. She graduated from Ohio University’s School of Theater with a BFA in Acting in 2011, and she is very experienced in directing and performing in onewoman shows, especially feminist works (she is the founding member of F-Word, a feminist theater performance group on Ohio University’s campus). I also needed a stage manager; someone to handle the day to day operations of rehearsal. For that I choose Jacob St. Aubin, a junior BFA stage management major because he is an impeccable organizer and very talented. I then needed a set designer to help with the construction of the hill that Winnie is buried in. I chose Ryan Myers, a senior BFA production design and technology major who specializes in set design, based on his 36 previous design and portfolio work. For costumes I turned to Megan Knowles, a senior BFA production design and technology major who specializes in costumes, because I had worked with her before and she has a very impressive portfolio. For the sound design I asked Aaron Butler, a graduate student in the School of Music, because of his work in other School of Theater productions in which he utilized minimalist soundscapes and experimental music. For the lighting design I asked Keri Donovan, a BFA production design and technology major who specializes in lighting design to create the effect of the fire and generally light the show. Finally, I solicited help from one other faculty member, Laura Parrotti, who was my vocal coach throughout the process. Professor Parrotti has been a vocal coach on a number of professional productions, as well as the main voice coach for the School of Theater students. Her advice on how to handle the Beckett text from a vocal standpoint was instrumental to the process. Rehearsals for Happy Days began January 9, 2012. The cast consisted of me (Rachel Collins) as Winnie and Sean O’Brien as Willie. Rehearsals were coordinated through a joint effort between Jacob and me, but he facilitated the rehearsal reports, space rental, and coordination of meetings with the production team. The first week of rehearsals consisted of table work, which was run by Arielle. Table work is generally the term used for the first week of rehearsal, in which the actors go through the script beat by beat and look at the academic and theoretical aspects behind the script that would inform the performance. Sean and I read through the script while Arielle gave notes. Then the three of us would discuss the scholarly background of the play, 7 characters, motivation, and my take on the thesis, etc. , with the group and began to come up with character ideas and how to shape the piece. The main aspect we discussed through these workings was the idea that Winnie is a woman who i How to cite Absurdism, Papers

Communication in Sciences-Free-Samples for Students-Myassignment

Question: Discuss about the Coordination of Work Process. Answer: Introduction The coordination of work process in a group or organizational set up requires delegation and effective work fulfillment by the members of that particular organization. This report will therefore address the team performance on Mens Health Immunization and Food Tax Subsidies, surveys as commissioned by the head of the of Ministry of Healths Research Team. The report is the collective work of five group members, entrusted with the task of surveying and devising solutions on the topic. Our team was selected to perform the task because of the ability, skill, professional diversity and leadership, which was relevant for the process. The Role Coordination and Teamwork Work process that is carried out in a more connected environment when it comes on role delegations is usually successful in most cases. The delegation of roles is usually done based on the skills and capability of an individual to perform that particular task. But the most important aspect of the role coordination in a collective duty is teamwork and coordination of the players in the process. People differ in abilities, skills and professions and having people utilize what they can best perform in an environment of teamwork is the best way of handling a complex work process such as the report commissioned by the head of Ministry of Healths Research Team. Meredith Belbin invented nine team-role styles, which includes the Coordinator who is usually in charge of the team, the shaper, Plant, the Monitor or Evaluator, the Implementer, the Resource Investigator, the Team Worker and the Completer or Finisher. An ideal team should have at least a coordinator, a plant, a team worker and Implementer. This is in reference to Beblins suggestion that an optimum team for effective teamwork should consist of four individuals. But also a group of five people makes division of roles much easier and the process as evidenced in this report, for the best possible results. The Team and the Roles Our team was constituted based on what an individual could perform the best, based on their abilities. It was imperative as a team to have a specialized way of addressing the task based on roles to simplify the process and obtain the best results possible. Therefore, for the best functionality of our team, we decided to delegate duties to individual persons, whereby every person had their role to play towards a common course in a united group. Our team was made up of five group members with the following characteristics: Isabel Davisthe Coordinator and Team Leader Isabel played the role of the leader for the team to put together our efforts in the process to the expected standards. Her visionary characteristics and the ability to see the bigger picture and the ability to bring the best out of the team members made her the ideal team leader. Characteristics of a team leader or basically the coordinator involve providing inspiration and focus for the team members, and they are naturally confident and have the ability to clarify decisions that guide their members. Faith KettletonEditor The editor moderated all the contents of the report and findings. She was in charge of moderating the report and the contents, decided on what to be included within the report content as well as editing and removing what was not necessary. In team work scenario, the editors role resembles that of the shaper. The shapers are highly motivated, objective and who are often not concerned by the social aspects of their teams, rather they are only concerned with success of their team in the best possible way. The role of the editor was to ensure smooth flow of the process, collated the survey results and brought the discussion into perspective and also took charge of Mens Health Immunization and doubled up as a completer or a finisher. Priscilla ReddySecretary Ms Reddy was in charge of our teams secretarial position. She also took the role of writing about the Food tax Subsidies in conjunction with another team member Leon Cocker. The position reflected the role of plant in the Belbins team roles. The plant is that person who has the creative sense and an ability to bail out the team in tricky situations. As a secretary, she doubled up as the contributor on the Food Taxes Subsidies and her contribution is a clear indication of the creative presence. Most often, the plant personalities are always responsible for generation of new ideas, but the generation of new ideas was also a collective responsibility of the whole group. Leon CockerPlanner Leon was at the epicenter of our teams report structure formulation. He was the one who planned and came up the structure of our report; and also in association with Priscilla Reddy, he wrote the section on Food Taxes Subsidies. His expertise enabled us to develop an appropriate report structure for our survey. His case is a perfect resemblance of the monitor or evaluator in Belbins roles of the team. The evaluator or monitor is relatively similar to the plant individual. They are the critical thinkers within the team, have a sense of seriousness about the processes within the group and he provided a spark of enthusiasm within the team. Rosemarie NazarethTracker I was in charge of tracking the teams progress and ensured everything went as planned. Furthermore, I also took part in the report writing process. This role could be equated to that of the resource investigator, who is practically sensible and also a great communicator and they are further open to new ideas generated from the outside. This is a relevant element within the team unit who can inspire her colleagues to greater levels of inspiration. The Team Processes and Leadership Our group took part in compiling a report about the two topics, that is, Mens Health Immunization and the Food Taxes Subsidies. The report had to be compiled by the groups collective efforts and teamwork and coordination was crucial. Every team member was assigned his role according to their ability and the capability to perform that particular role. The process involved conducting of the surveys in the general public about immunization and subsidies on food taxes. All the members took part in the devising the survey and administering it. Team cooperation was fundamental and realizing the successful work progress required leadership within us to provide guidance in our activities. Leadership is understandably a great part of a successful team. The delegation of roles aimed at promoting each members participation and the creation of work environment where everyone had a chance to offer a solution depending on his/her position. Therefore, as the team members we had to look for inspiration and leadership from ourselves. We provided good leadership to each other to remind each other about our roles and goals. The great philosopher Aristotle once stated that he who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander. This statement carries a heavier meaning in reference to the teamwork, cooperation and coordination. For instance, given that we had to challenge each other to have the desired results in our team, obedience and respect of each others commands was fundamental in the performance of our group. The self-perpetuated leadership in the team enabled the division and subdivision of roles that included the team leader, the secretary, the planner and the editor among other roles that enhanced the efficiency and the performance of our team in completing the task set. Strengths and Weaknesses Our team was based on the strengths exhibited by the versatility of the team members. For example, the work process and the task completion were characterized by the unconditional cooperation, and in some cases sharing of roles, as in the instance whereby, Priscilla Reddy and Leon Cocker both tackled the topic on immunization. The second strength within our team lied on the inspirational leadership provided by the members themselves and the cooperation. We drew inspiration from each other, challenged each other and inspired ourselves to achieve the best results. But the most important part was the respect exhibited in obeying each others call of duty. The other point of note that asserted the strengths of our team is the presence of different roles assumed by the members based on the Belbins roles. In our team, we had a coordinator, a plant, a monitor evaluator, a shaper among other roles. The most interesting characteristic of the team was that, we both assumed the role of the teamworker, the good listeners, and the diplomats responsible for running the team smoothly without unnecessary confrontations. However, as much as the team had commendable strengths to work together and operate as a team in the process of the report, there was also a little weakness which was really insignificant but necessary to mention. In a well coordinated team, the weaknesses may arise from the challenges that accompany the work processes. The main challenge was the time constraint and the tight schedules, which meant sometimes the team members, though not often; had to arrive a little late, but it was not important given every member had their special parts to address and complete. The working process was made easier with mutual understanding of each other, which sped up the work process. Conclusions and Recommendations Conclusively, the working environment that is optimum for the successful teamwork activities requires a sizeable number that is easy to manage. While Meredith Belbin argues that an optimum team should contain only four people, it also important to note a manageable number of more than four people could still constitute a successful team. However, it is beneficial that at least every member is assigned a defined role within the team that would incorporate responsibility and personal accountability team members. It also is a challenge for the members to ensure their close working relationships is constantly maintained. But the most important thing to have within a team; is the group of individuals with capability of assuming roles as outlined in Belbins nine-team roles. Therefore, based on the performance of my team during the survey and the report process, the following recommendations are important for the authority: The management should constantly be assigning individuals tasks in team of four people as it is the optimum number for the operation of the team, as stated in Belbin that any number beyond this is a group, as individuals would not work closely. It is also important to have a group or a team with a balanced composition of characteristics, the leaders, the team workers, the plant and the shaper among others for the balanced operation of the group or that particular team. Finally, the authority should understand the significance of the leadership in teamwork hence; cultivating the art of leadership should be top of their agenda in assigning roles to specific individuals within a group.

My Two Dads Essays - Same-sex Sexuality, Sexual Orientation, LGBT

My Two Dads Table of Contents Topic Rationalpp. 2 Internet Resourcespp. 4 Abstractspp. Topic Rationale The reason I chose homosexuality as a topic is because it is queer to me. What I do not understand is what would drive people to this way of life. As far as I can tell, people had weird lives when they were younger. Maybe they were dropped on their heads as babies. Maybe they were abused as children, be it emotionally, sexually, mentally, verbally, physically, socially, politically, economically, chemically, and/or academically. Maybe these people joined the ?other team? later in life. They could have just come into it, perhaps simply putting a name to the idea. It's possible that they have had a peculiar attraction to the same sex, taken a step back and realizing what exactly is happening. Or they may have done so just to gay out of a rut or for a change. It may have been that they were rejected one too many times or that they saw one too many straight people who were jerks, and they said to themselves that they did not want to be one of them. There are many reasons, some petty or insignificant or ridiculous. Some reasons are extreme of obvious. What my long term goal, in a nut shell, is to understand them, their reasons, and I am guessing that this will make me a better person. The preconceptions that I have are that they, the gays, are wrong, and I, (the straight one), am right. I think that I base this on the fact that the majority of the populous are straight. I mean, the entire American population can't be wrong, can they? Another preconception that could be is that I am comfortable, simply because I had never given it much thought before. I am not going to go around and beat them senseless to say that homosexuality is unacceptable. The truth is, to me, that it is acceptable. This is where my motto come into play: ?If it feels good, do it (Within reason)!.? If they know what they are doing, then go ahead and do it. It is their perogative and their lives and let them do as they please. I also feel that gay people are the most polite people in the world too; I also hope to understand this as I research more. I do not really have much of a previous experience with any aspect of this topic. This is one of the main reasons why I chose this topic, to learn more about this. My only experience with this is from TV. There is a gay host with his own homemaking show and a gay character in MTV's ?The Real World? in San Francisco by the name of Pedro, a Cuban. I am also familiar with Ellen DeGeneres, a lesbian comedian/actress and Melissa Etheridge, the singer. If they are comfortable with it, then we should be too. Buckel, David ?Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund for Immediate Release?

101 Syllabus and Intro to Course Professor Ramos Blog

101 Syllabus and Intro to Course Syllabus Welcome to English 101, Freshmen Composition We will be using the blog to post comments and final drafts of essays in order to help us learn from each other. One of the best ways to improve your writing is to study the writing of others. This blog will allow us to share and see others’ writings. I will also be posting updates and assignments to make sure we are all on the same page. The syllabus will be posted under 101 Syllabus. The resources page will have links and videos to help you with citations, WordPress, and more. Syllabus The syllabus for this course can be found on the navigation menu for this class website. Textbook The textbook for this class is â€Å"They Say, I Say†Ã‚  with readings, 4th edition. Make sure to order the textbook that has the readings included! The cover should be bluish, not black. Also, we will be reading Sandra Cisneros’  Woman Hollering Creek and other Stories.  Available on Amazon for $10 new, and 1 cent used. You will need this one by week 3. Writing Approach The way I like to approach the teaching of writing is through  Genre. You may know genres from music and movies. Just like those, there are many different writing genres that we can use. We will be focusing on four genres for this course. We will learn more about each genre as we are working on them. Each genre asks you to do specific work. You will be graded on how well you write the genre, using the five criteria we agree on together. Literacy Narrative Literary Analysis Report Argument Ice Breaker Name Major Two interesting facts about you Find one other person who has something in common with you. Either first or last name, major or related major, one or more interests as you or related facts. Homework Buy your Textbooks Read Chapter 1 from They Say, I Say 101 Syllabus and Intro to Course Syllabus Welcome to English 101, Freshmen Composition We will be using the blog to post comments and final drafts of essays in order to help us learn from each other. One of the best ways to improve your writing is to study the writing of others. This blog will allow us to share and see others’ writings. I will also be posting updates and assignments to make sure we are all on the same page. The syllabus will be posted under 101 Syllabus. The resources page will have links and videos to help you with citations, WordPress, and more. Syllabus The syllabus for this course can be found on the navigation menu for this class website. Textbook The textbook for this class is â€Å"They Say, I Say†Ã‚  with readings, 4th edition. Make sure to order the textbook that has the readings included! The cover should be bluish, not black. Also, we will be reading Sandra Cisneros’  Woman Hollering Creek and other Stories.  Available on Amazon for $10 new, and 1 cent used. You will need this one by week 3. Writing Approach The way I like to approach the teaching of writing is through  Genre. You may know genres from music and movies. Just like those, there are many different writing genres that we can use. We will be focusing on four genres for this course. We will learn more about each genre as we are working on them. Each genre asks you to do specific work. You will be graded on how well you write the genre, using the five criteria we agree on together. Literacy Narrative Literary Analysis Report Argument Ice Breaker Name Major Two interesting facts about you Find one other person who has something in common with you. Either first or last name, major or related major, one or more interests as you or related facts. Annotate Your Texts How to Annotate To summarize how you will annotate text: 1. Identify the BIG IDEA 2. Underline topic sentences or main ideas 3. Connect ideas with arrows 4. Ask questions 5. Add personal notes 6. Define technical words â€Å"Shitty First Drafts† The writing process is a very important concept that you need to learn. This will move you from writing ok papers to good papers. The first draft is the down draft. The second draft is the up draft. The third draft is the dental draft. Anne Lamott, â€Å"Shitty First Drafts† Take a couple minutes and read the short article. Annotate the text. Homework Buy your Textbooks Read Chapter 1 from They Say, I Say

Political Issues - The Congress Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Political Issues - The Congress - Essay Example The member of Congress holds forums with the constituents while at home. The member also likes to appear as if they are one of the constituents. He achieves this through putting on the local attire, talking in a casual manner, and answering the questions in a way that will leave the constituents attracted to him. Moreover, he uses this forum to listen to the grievances of the people on the ground and issues that they would like the member to address once he gets into Capitol Hill. Hill style is significant in fulfilling the election promises. It is the style of which a member represents his district. This can be achieved through voicing a support to projects that are of great significance to the constituents. In addition, a member can request more funds to support stalled projects in the district. Hill style focuses mainly on bringing money back home. In addition, it includes voicing the support of the home people, businesses, and sports team in order to attract investment and increa se the focus on the area. Through the hill style, the constituents are able to fell well represented, an aspect that leads to the reelection of the member. One of the major problems facing the Congress is the increasing number of unemployed people in the country. The economy is growing slowly and people are optimistic that is heading in the right direction. However, ballooning debt is likely to affect the policies that are meant to create more jobs for the young people who are being released from the institutions of higher learning.

Intrapreneurship and Entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Intrapreneurship and Entrepreneurship - Essay Example Still, entrepreneurship is limited in resources (including financial resources) and has fewer possibilities to compete on the global scale. The paper will discuss differences of concepts, their piratical application, the main driven forces and risk related factors. The study of new venture development and entrepreneurship as a process, and the study of the early stages of the business life cycle, belong as much or more to marketing than to any other business function. Indeed, some argue that the very term management may be somewhat in definitional conflict with the term entrepreneurship (Clark and Lee 2006). Further, the entrepreneurial spirit can be hypothesized that marketing is the organizational function most dominated by boundary agents; by open interactive systems; and by truly entrepreneurial activity. Market opportunity analysis, new product development, the diffusion of innovation, and marketing strategies to create growing firms are at the heart of both marketing and entrepreneurship. These also represent the most relevant, existing marketing literature bases. Entrepreneurship as defined by Burns (2001) focuses on opportunity and is therefore particularly relevant to the marketing interface; it is the process of creating value by com bining resources to exploit an opportunity. Although entrepreneurship requires innovation, not all innovation is entrepreneurial. There is an extensive body of knowledge on creativity in science and the arts that does not involve "the commercial or industrial application of something new--a new product, process, or method of production; a new form of commercial, business, or financial organization" (Burns 2002, p. 54). Pinchot and Pellman (2000) explain that "intrapreneurs are linked to the speed and cost-effectiveness of technology transfer from research and development to the marketplace" (p. 45). The researchers claim that Intrapreneurship is often associated with inventions that come up with new products and new processes. There is also considerable research on innovation and the management of research and development that deals with an end product of ideas or objects whose ability to deliver economic value has yet to be tested. In the entrepreneurship literature, innovation is coupled with its ability to create economic v alue. Whether done by an individual or a team, there is general agreement that entrepreneurship involves an act by a motivated individual who innovates by creating value through

Role of Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility Assignment

Role of Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility - Assignment Example Ethics can be defined as the study of moral which is appropriate for taking decisions after judging the plan of action. The two concepts are linked with each other for most of the firms. It is observed that in today’s competitive world, sustainable development is required in every organisation for its successful operation. It also leads to the enhancement of quality of products and services that they offer to their customers (Aybars and Kutlu, â€Å"Managing corporate performance†). Corporate responsibility can be regarded as the degree to which an organization complies with rules and legal guidelines which is made for the betterment of society (Nicolau, â€Å"Corporate social responsibility†). The contemporary business practices often identify noteworthy levels of understanding between the good and responsible corporate practices. In today’s world, the stakeholders and shareholders, who have understood the importance of CSR, is focusing on incorporating b usiness activities within the societal norms, which leads to good management practices. CSR has been regarded as the technique which assists an organization in evaluating the business activities and its effect on the environment and society through transparent and ethical decision making. World Business Council for sustainable development has stated that CSR approach can be defined as method of attaining sustainable development by contributing to the society. The different CSR activities include health and safety, corporate governance and ethics, environmental stewardship, human rights and sustainable development. It, thus, focuses on the features like, societal and community involvement, corporate philanthropy, development and investment, customer satisfaction, employee volunteering, anti-corruption... The assignment highlights the theory of Corporate Social Responsibility and its impact on the community and modern society. The researcher also elaborates the importance of ethics in leading a business organisation in a proper manner today. The concept of Corporate Social Responsibility, that is described in the assignment helps in revenue generation for a particular organisation in an ethical way. It also contributes positively to the society and environment. The assignment presented by the researcher also depicts the role of Corporate Social Responsibility practices in contemporary organisational practices. It can be concluded though that business ethics and corporate social responsibility have immense importance in development of an organisation. Without following the two fundamental concepts that are mentioned in the assignment, an organisation will not be successful in the long run and can even face challenges. Corporate social responsibility has become the best part of sustaina ble development program. For long-term sustenance, the organisation has to take into account the shareholder’s interest, environment and society as a whole. Ethics elaborates the correct and incorrect behaviour of any human being, which can affect the operation of an organisation and also, lead to disturb the entire society. Therefore, the researcher concluds the discussion and states that ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility both are required for organisational effectiveness for corporations and to run a peaceful business.

The nurse practitioners

The nurse practitioners Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Worldwide, a lot of people have no insurance coverage or uninsured (Chalfin Fein, 1994). As the government and politicians in different countries continues the debate over unique dynamic of health care, there are still shortage of physicians and other registered practitioners. Here comes the importance of a nurse practitioners especially in the fields of neonatal, pediatric, general medicine and obstetric. Nurse practitioners have proved their ability in providing care such as children, women, migrant workers, the homeless and the workplaces such as schools, work sites and health departments.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The nurse practitioner (NPS) is a registered nurse with advanced preparation, graduation from a nurse practitioner program, and successful completion of the licensing exam (Wikapedia 2009). They provide client outcomes that are as good as physicians outcomes Nurse practitioners (NPs) provide primary health care services to consumers. Nursing care services provided by NPs include assessing client health using a holistic framework, identifying medical and nursing diagnoses, planning and prescribing treatments managing health care regimens for individuals, families, and communities, promoting wellness, preventing illness and injury, and managing acute and chronic health conditions. NPs carved out a distinct difference in practice from the medical model by using a holistic approach to care based on nursing theory As recognition grew, mostly related to the reduced cost of primary care and positive health outcomes for clients (Wikipedia, Nurse practitioner, 2009 ). Nurse Practitioners Scope of Practice   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Today, more than 95,000 NPs practice in a variety of settings. Frequently, the health care system defines NP practice according to clients served, including pediatric NP, family NP, adult NP, and geriatric NP. Before qualifying for direct third-party reimbursement, NPs must obtain certification. Several bodies offer certification examinations, including the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and Nurses, the National Certification Board of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, and the National Certification Corporation. Most NPs are required to renew certification every 5 years. This process requires documented practice and evidence of continuing education. Within their relatively short existence, NPs have earned the respect of clients and other health team members. Recent research has demonstrated the effectiveness of NPs in primary care, health promotion, decreasing hospitalization rates, and client satisfaction (Bu reau of Labor Statistics, 2007). Nurse practitioners education and licensing   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are three basic educational paths to registered nursing to become nurse practitioners. They are a bachelors degree, an associate degree, and a diploma from an approved nursing program. Nurses most commonly enter the profession by completing one of these programmes. Nurse practitioners then should take licensing examination in order to obtain a nursing license. Further training or education can qualify nurse practitioners to work in specialty areas. (Hampson, Gillian D. 2006) The three major educational paths to registered nursing are a bachelors of science degree in nursing (BSN), an associate degree in nursing, and a diploma. Associate degree in nursing educates nurses in the community college setting. Nurses usually take 2 years of coursework that focus on the technical aspects of professional nursing. Diploma programs provide nursing education in primarily the hospital setting. Diploma nursing students attend school for 3 years and take courses focused on professional nursing. Diploma nursing programs emphasize the scientific aspects of nursing practice; provide more hours of clinical instruction than other programs, and graduate nurses adept at following policies and procedures rather than relying on theory to meet clinical practice demands. A bachelors of science degree in nursing (BSN) educate students in university settings. A bachelors of science degree in nursing (BSN) may be traditional or accelerated in nature. In a bachelors of science degree in nursing (BSN) student receives a well-rounded education over 4 years. Courses in nursing may be integrated with other fields of study. a bachelors of science degree in nursing (BSN), nursing majors frequently take the same courses as other health profession majors. (Hood, L.J, Leddy, S.K, 2006)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After completing the education program, the nurse must be licensed by the state in which he or she plans to practice. The State Boards of Nursing regulate nurse practitioners and each state has its own licensing and certification criteria. In general, the criteria include completion of a nursing program and clinical experience. Because state board requirements differ, nurse practitioners may have to fulfill additional requirements, such as certification by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or a specialty nursing organization. The license period varies by state; some require lasting two years re-licensing, others require occurring every three years. (womenshealthchannel, 2007) Characteristics of Nurse practitioners   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nurse practitioners have a standardized education for entry into the profession. Like many other professions nurse practitioner requires from members to have intelligence, deep personal commitment, mutually shared values, and specialized skill to make autonomous decisions to serve society. A nurse practitioner should have these have authority to control its work, should possess exclusively unique body of knowledge, extensive period of format training , specialized competence, control over work performance, service to society, self-regulation, credentialing systems to certify competence, legal reinforcement of professional standards, ethical practice, creation of a collegial subculture, Intrinsic reward and public acceptance in order to be classified as one. The nurse practitioner does use a specialized knowledge base, has autonomy and control over his work, requires specialized competence, regulates himself, possesses a collegial subculture, and has public acceptance.( Hampson, Gillian D. 2006) Intellectual Characteristics of Nurse practitioners   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nurses make decisions that affect clients lives, nurse practitioners must have the intellectual capability to master scientific concepts, understand the impact of self on others, use this information in clinical practice, and understand potential consequences for alternative actions. Nurse practitioners possess a body of knowledge on which professional practice is based, a specialized education to transmit this body of knowledge to others and the ability to use the knowledge in critical and creative thinking. (Hood, L.J Leddy S.K, 2006) The roles of nurse practitioners   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nurse practitioners use 31 different competencies as they engage in clinical practice. They are shorten into the following seven domains upon which nurse practitioners roles are based on â€Å"The helping role† which provides the foundation for the roles of caregiver (provider of direct client care, colleague, helpful team member and client advocate the person looking out for the clients best interest. (Hunt. R, 2001). â€Å"The teaching-coaching function† which provides the foundation for the roles of teacher (provider of education and information) and counselor (one who provides emotional support and encouragement). â€Å"The diagnostic and patient monitoring function† which provides the foundation for the caregiver, and critical thinker (someone who uses complex thought processes) roles. â€Å"Effective management of rapidly changing situations† which provides the foundation for the caregiver, change agent (person who initiat es and guides the change process) and coordinator (person who manages, leads and verifies that things get done) roles. â€Å"Administration and monitoring of therapeutic interventions and regimens† will provide the foundation for the caregiver and change agent roles. â€Å"Monitoring of and ensuring the quality of health care practices† provides the foundation for the roles of coordinators, client advocates, and change agents. And lastly, â€Å"Organizational and work role competencies† provides the foundation for the client advocate, change agent, and coordinator roles.( Michaelene, P; Jansen, M; Zwygart, M. 2006) The role of nurse Practitioners development from social political perspective   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nurse practitioners have a history of political activism. Nurse practitioners participate in public policy formation in a variety of ways. During the womens suffrage movement of the early 1900s, the American Nurses Association joined forces with other womens groups to work successfully in attaining the right for women to vote. Once they are successful in affecting public policy by providing input, some nurse practitioners progress to higher levels of political activism. Feldman and Lewenson (2000) identify how being involved in politics and the political process fits with the goals of professional nursing to benefit society. The public perceives nurses as being trustworthy and credible. Nurse practitioners advocate for large groups of clients when they use their specialized knowledge of wellness, health, illness, and delivery of health services to influence policy makers to create new and fund public health programs. Nurse practitioners also have well-refi ned communication and assessment skills that enhance the ability to determine what types of health programs are needed. Because of the ability to understand nursing and health-related research, nurses can present strong cases based on solid evidence to document needs for new programs and to continue present ones. 9Ameican College of Physicians, 2008)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Politically active Nurse practitioners frequently use nursing process to guide their thinking for public policy development and evaluation. Because laws govern professional nursing practice, Nurse practitioners have a stake in public policy legislation and enforcement. Legislators pass laws and provide funding for health care programs, access, professional education, and research. Nurse practitioners might react to proposed legislation by writing their elected officials to influence their action during the legislative process. Some Nurse practitioners engage in proactive political action by proposing legislation, persuading an elected official in the legislature to introduce a bill, devising public relations campaigns around their proposal, lobbying to get the bill passed by both houses of Congress, and influencing the head of the executive branch to sign it. Nurse practitioners participate in national, state, and local legislative efforts. A national or s tatewide effort to pass legislation requires the participation of many for success. However, once legislation becomes law, some nurses continue to work with state or federal agencies responsible for devising the regulations to implement the law. (American College of Physicians, 2008)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1996, Cohen, Mason, Kovner, Leavitt, Pulcini, and Sochaiski outlined four stages of political activism in nursing that still apply today. The first stage is buying in- which nurse practitioners become aware of the importance of political activism to attain professional goals, and they use the political system to have input into public policy development. Secondly, regarding Self-interest-wherein Nurse practitioners continue to use the political system to the sole advance of intra professional agendas. Thirdly is about Political sophistication where Nurse practitioners engage in complex political activity, such as building coalitions and running for political office. And lastly is leading the way-where Nurse practitioners serve as influential persons by holding key govern-mental positions and in the process select the course for public policy changes. (Hood, L.J Leddy, S.K. 2006) Pediatric nurse practitioner knowledge, abilities, characteristics and responsibilities   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pediatric nurse practitioners deliver care to newborns, infants, toddlers, pre-scholars, school-aged children, adolescents, and young adults. The pediatric nurse practitioner is a specialist in the care of children from birth through young adult with an in-depth knowledge and experience in pediatric primary health care including well childcare prevention and management of common pediatric illnesses. This care supports health of children within their family, community, and environment. (Crabtree, M. Katherine; Stanley, Joan; Werner, Kathryn E.; Schmid, Emily, 2002) Upon graduation or entry into practice, the pediatric nurse practitioner should demonstrate good abilities in the following: Health promotion, health protection, disease prevention, and treatment   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner is a provider of direct health care services. The pediatric nurse practitioner synthesizes scientific and contemporary clinical knowledge for the assessment and management of both health and illness states as following: Assessment of health status   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  These qualifications describe the role of the pediatric nurse practitioner in assessing all aspects of the patients health status, including for purposes of health promotion, health protection, and disease prevention. The pediatric nurse practitioner should obtain and document a relevant health history for children. The pediatric nurse practitioner should perform age-appropriate screening for developmental and behavioral concerns, such as speech development, learning disabilities, and behavioral and mental health concerns. The pediatric nurse practitioner assesses the childs developmental status based on developmental theories recognizing the individual differences in temperament, reactions to selected developmental tasks and situational crises, and coping styles and strategies. The pediatric nurse practitioner should identify and analyze factors that affect the childs growth and development. The pediatric nurse practitioner assess for evidence of child ab use and neglect and the effects of violence on the child. The pediatric nurse practitioner analyzes the family system to identify factors that influence the health of the child and adolescent. The pediatric nurse practitioner should assess patients and familys knowledge and behavior regarding leading health indicators. Diagnosis of health status   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner should differentiate between normal and abnormal development in relation to physiological, cognitive, and social behavior of the child. The pediatric nurse practitioner should identify, natural history, developmental considerations, pathogenesis, and clinical events of common disease processes in children. The pediatric nurse practitioner should order and interpret age and situation appropriate screening, labs, and other diagnostic tests. The pediatric nurse practitioner should cooperate in the diagnosis of children with special health needs and disabilities. Plan of care and implementation of treatment   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner should have abilities to promote healthy nutritional practices, including promotion and management of breastfeeding, national nutritional programs, and nutritional intake considering food preferences and avoidance of food sensitivities. The pediatric nurse practitioner should provide interventions to modify behavior associated with health risks. The pediatric nurse practitioner should refer children with developmental disabilities. The pediatric nurse practitioner should link health objectives into individual educational plans. The pediatric nurse practitioner should assist the child in coping with developmental behaviors. The pediatric nurse practitioner should evaluate health maintenance and health promotion services for the child and family by including teaching, counseling, and advising. The pediatric nurse practitioner should help in planning for transition to adult health care. (Margaret G. Marks, 1998) Nurse practitioner-patient relationship   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner should adapt the nurse practitioner-patient relationship to the changing nature of the childs cognitive and Psycho-social developments. The pediatric nurse practitioner should communicate effectively with children and family members. Teaching-coaching function   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner should provide expectant guidance that is age or developmentally appropriate. The pediatric nurse practitioner should advise regarding and support effective parenting. The pediatric nurse practitioner should help the child in taking responsibility for self-care and healthy behavior in agreement with age and developmental cure. Professional role   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner should serve as an advocate for the child and the family, especially in giving services to provide for the health, safety, and protection of the child. The pediatric nurse practitioner should know the importance of sharing in professional and community organizations that affect on the health of children. The pediatric nurse practitioner should understand his or her role in primary and specialty health care to other health care providers. The pediatric nurse practitioner should serve as a source in the shape and development of pediatric community health services. (Hennery H., Bernstein, 2005) Managing and negotiating health care delivery systems   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner should have information regarding state and federal programs for child and family health care. Monitoring and ensuring the quality of health care practice   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner should monitor public matters that affect on presenting health services for children and their families. Cultural competence   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The pediatric nurse practitioner should recognize the influence of cultural differences on child health practices, and parenting. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The future of health care providence needed various teams of health care workers that collaborate to provide patient-centered care. To perform well in multidisciplinary teams in an understanding of the distinctive roles, skills and values of all team workers. Nurse practitioners should be well qualified and skillful to get along with these teams. In future, nurse practitioners need a broad based education, assertiveness skills, technical competence and the ability to deal with rapid change. However, research and technology may provide the instrument nurses require for defining professional nursing, demonstrating that professional nursing care affects client care outcomes, and marketing professional nursing to the public. Nurse practitioners will be in need for extra skills and abilities to develop healthcare.