Plato and the Allegory of the Cave Essay Example for Free

Plato and the Allegory of the Cave Essay The son of a wealthy and noble family, Plato (427-347 B.C.) was preparing for a career in politics when the trial and eventual execution of Socrates (399 B.C.) changed the course of his life. He abandoned his political career and turned to philosophy, opening a school on the outskirts of Athens dedicated to the Socratic search for wisdom. Platos school, then known as the Academy, was the first university in western history and operated from 387 B.C. until A. D. 529, when it was closed by Justinian. Unlike his mentor Socrates, Plato was both a writer and a teacher. His writings are in the form of dialogues, with Socrates as the principal speaker. In the Allegory of the Cave, Plato described symbolically the predicament in which mankind finds itself and proposes a way of salvation. The Allegory presents, in brief form, most of Platos major philosophical assumptions: his belief that the world revealed by our senses is not the real world but only a poor copy of it, and that the real world can only be apprehended intellectually; his idea that knowledge cannot be transferred from teacher to student, but rather that education consists in directing students minds toward what is real and important and allowing them to apprehend it for themselves; his faith that the universe ultimately is good; his conviction that enlightened individuals have an obligation to the rest of society, and that a good society must be one in which the truly wise (the Philosopher-King) are the rulers. The Allegory of the Cave can be found in Book VII of Platos best-known work, The Republic, a lengthy dialogue on the nature of justice. Often regarded as a utopian blueprint, The Republic is dedicated toward a discussion of the education required of a Philosopher-King. The following selection is taken from the Benjamin Jowett translation (Vintage, 1991), pp. 253-261. As you read the Allegory, try to make a mental picture of the cave Plato describes. Better yet, why not draw a picture of it and refer to it as you read the selection. In many ways, understanding Platos Allegory of the Cave will make your foray into the world of philosophical thought much less burdensome. * * * * * * [Socrates] And now, I said, let me show in a figure how far our nature is enlightened or unenlightened: Behold! human beings living in a underground cave, which has a mouth open towards the light and reaching all along the cave; here they have been from their childhood, and have their legs and necks chained so that they cannot move, and can only see before them, being prevented by the chains from turning round their heads. Above and behind them a fire is blazing at a distance, and between the fire and the prisoners there is a raised way; and you will see, if you look, a low wall built along the way, like the screen which marionette players have in front of them, over which they show the puppets. [Glaucon] I see. [Socrates] And do you see, I said, men passing along the wall carrying all sorts of vessels, and statues and figures of animals made of wood and stone and various materials, which appear over the wall? Some of them are talking, others silent. [Glaucon] You have shown me a strange image, and they are strange prisoners. [Socrates] Like ourselves, I replied; and they see only their own shadows, or the shadows of one another, which the fire throws on the opposite wall of the cave? [Glaucon] True, he said; how could they see anything but the shadows if they were never allowed to move their heads? [Socrates] And of the objects which are being carried in like manner they would only see the shadows? [Glaucon] Yes, he said. [Socrates] And if they were able to converse with one another, would they not suppose that they were naming what was actually before them? [Glaucon] Very true. [Socrates] And suppose further that the prison had an echo which came from the other side, would they not be sure to fancy when one of the passers-by spoke that the voice which they heard came from the passing shadow? [Glaucon] No question, he replied. [Socrates] To them, I said, the truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images. [Glaucon] That is certain. [Socrates] And now look again, and see what will naturally follow if the prisoners are released and disabused of their error. At first, when any of them is liberated and compelled suddenly to stand up and turn his neck round and walk and look towards the light, he will suffer sharp pains; the glare will distress him, and he will be unable to see the realities of which in his former state he had seen the shadows; and then conceive some one saying to him, that what he saw before was an illusion, but that now, when he is approaching nearer to being and his eye is turned towards more real existence, he has a clearer vision, -what will be his reply? And you may further imagine that his instructor is pointing to the objects as they pass and requiring him to name them, -will he not be perplexed? Will he not fancy that the shadows which he formerly saw are truer than the objects which are now shown to him? [Glaucon] Far truer. [Socrates] And if he is compelled to look straight at the light, will he not have a pain in his eyes which will make him turn away to take and take in the objects of vision which he can see, and which he will conceive to be in reality clearer than the things which are now being shown to him? [Glaucon] True, he now. [Socrates] And suppose once more, that he is reluctantly dragged up a steep and rugged ascent, and held fast until he s forced into the presence of the sun himself, is he not likely to be pained and irritated? When he approaches the light his eyes will be dazzled, and he will not be able to see anything at all of what are now called realities. [Glaucon] Not all in a moment, he said. [Socrates] He will require to grow accustomed to the sight of the upper world. And first he will see the shadows best, next the reflections of men and other objects in the water, and then the objects themselves; then he will gaze upon the light of the moon and the stars and the spangled heaven; and he will see the sky and the stars by night better than the sun or the light of the sun by day? [Glaucon] Certainly. [Socrates] Last of he will be able to see the sun, and not mere reflections of him in the water, but he will see him in his own proper place, and not in another; and he will contemplate him as he is. [Glaucon] Certainly. [Socrates] He will then proceed to argue that this is he who gives the season and the years, and is the guardian of all that is in the visible world, and in a certain way the cause of all things which he and his fellows have been accustomed to behold? [Glaucon] Clearly, he said, he would first see the sun and then reason about him. [Socrates] And when he remembered his old habitation, and the wisdom of the cave and his fellow-prisoners, do you not suppose that he would felicitate himself on the change, and pity them? [Glaucon] Certainly, he would. [Socrates] And if they were in the habit of conferring honors among themselves on those who were quickest to observe the passing shadows and to remark which of them went before, and which followed after, and which were together; and who were therefore best able to draw conclusions as to the future, do you think that he would care for such honors and glories, or envy the possessors of them? Would he not say with Homer, Better to be the poor servant of a poor master, and to endure anything, rather than think as they do and live after their manner? [Glaucon] Yes, he said, I think that he would rather suffer anything than entertain these false notions and live in this miserable manner. [Socrates] Imagine once more, I said, such an one coming suddenly out of the sun to be replaced in his old situation; would he not be certain to have his eyes full of darkness? [Glaucon] To be sure, he said. [Socrates] And if there were a contest, and he had to compete in measuring the shadows with the prisoners who had never moved out of the cave, while his sight was still weak, and before his eyes had become steady (and the time which would be needed to acquire this new habit of sight might be very considerable) would he not be ridiculous? Men would say of him that up he went and down he came without his eyes; and that it was better not even to think of ascending; and if any one tried to loose another and lead him up to the light, let them only catch the offender, and they would put him to death. [Glaucon] No question, he said. [Socrates] This entire allegory, I said, you may now append, dear Glaucon, to the previous argument; the prison-house is the world of sight, the light of the fire is the sun, and you will not misapprehend me if you interpret the journey upwards to be the ascent of the soul into the intellectual world according to my poor belief, which, at your desire, I have expressed whether rightly or wrongly God knows. But, whether true or false, my opinion is that in the world of knowledge the idea of good appears last of all, and is seen only with an effort; and, when seen, is also inferred to be the universal author of all things beautiful and right, parent of light and of the lord of light in this visible world, and the immediate source of reason and truth in the intellectual; and that this is the power upon which he who would act rationally, either in public or private life must have his eye fixed. [Glaucon] I agree, he said, as far as I am able to understand you. [Socrates] Moreover, I said, you must not wonder that those who attain to this beatific vision are unwilling to descend to human affairs; for their souls are ever hastening into the upper world where they desire to dwell; which desire of theirs is very natural, if our allegory may be trusted. [Glaucon] Yes, very natural. [Socrates] And is there anything surprising in one who passes from divine contemplations to the evil state of man, misbehaving himself in a ridiculous manner; if, while his eyes are blinking and before he has become accustomed to the surrounding darkness, he is compelled to fight in courts of law, or in other places, about the images or the shadows of images of justice, and is endeavoring to meet the conceptions of those who have never yet seen absolute justice? [Glaucon] Anything but surprising, he replied. [Socrates] Any one who has common sense will remember that the bewilderments of the eyes are of two kinds, and arise from two causes, either from coming out of the light or from going into the light, which is true of the minds eye, quite as much as of the bodily eye; and he who remembers this when he sees any one whose vision is perplexed and weak, will not be too ready to laugh; he will first ask whether that soul of man has come out of the brighter light, and is unable to see because unaccustomed to the dark, or having turned from darkness to the day is dazzled by excess of light. And he will count the one happy in his condition and state of being, and he will pity the other; or, if he have a mind to laugh at the soul which comes from below into the light, there will be more reason in this than in the laugh which greets him who returns from above out of the light into the cave. [Glaucon] That, he said, is a very just distinction. [Socrates] But then, if I am right, certain professors of education must be wrong when they say that they can put a knowledge into the soul which was not there before, like sight into blind eyes. [Glaucon] They undoubtedly say this, he replied. [Socrates] Whereas, our argument shows that the power and capacity of learning exists in the soul already; and that just as the eye was unable to turn from darkness to light without the whole body, so too the instrument of knowledge can only by the movement of the whole soul be turned from the world of becoming into that of being, and learn by degrees to endure the sight of being, and of the brightest and best of being, or in other words, of the good. [Glaucon] Very true. [Socrates] And must there not be some art which will effect conversion in the easiest and quickest manner; not implanting the faculty of sight, for that exists already, but has been turned in the wrong direction, and is looking away from the truth? [Glaucon] Yes, he said, such an art may be presumed. [Socrates] And whereas the other so-called virtues of the soul seem to be akin to bodily qualities, for even when they are not originally innate they can be implanted later by habit and exercise, the of wisdom more than anything else contains a divine element which always remains, and by this conversion is rendered useful and profitable; or, on the other hand, hurtful and useless. Did you never observe the narrow intelligence flashing from the keen eye of a clever rogue how eager he is, how clearly his paltry soul sees the way to his end; he is the reverse of blind, but his keen eyesight is forced into the service of evil, and he is mischievous in proportion to his cleverness. [Glaucon] Very true, he said. [Socrates] But what if there had been a circumcision of such natures in the days of their youth; and they had been severed from those sensual pleasures, such as eating and drinking, which, like leaden weights, were attached to them at their birth, and which drag them down and turn the vision of their souls upon the things that are below if, I say, they had been released from these impediments and turned in the opposite direction, the very same faculty in them would have seen the truth as keenly as they see what their eyes are turned to now. [Glaucon] Very likely. [Socrates] Yes, I said; and there is another thing which is likely. or rather a necessary inference from what has preceded, that neither the uneducated and uninformed of the truth, nor yet those who never make an end of their education, will be able ministers of State; not the former, because they have no single aim of duty which is the rule of all their actions, private as well as public; nor the latter, because they will not act at all except upon compulsion, fancying that they are already dwelling apart in the islands of the blest. [Glaucon] Very true, he replied. [Socrates] Then, I said, the business of us who are the founders of the State will be to compel the best minds to attain that knowledge which we have already shown to be the greatest of all-they must continue to ascend until they arrive at the good; but when they have ascended and seen enough we must not allow them to do as they do now. [Glaucon] What do you mean? [Socrates] I mean that they remain in the upper world: but this must not be allowed; they must be made to descend again among the prisoners in the cave, and partake of their labors and honors, whether they are worth having or not. [Glaucon] But is not this unjust? he said; ought we to give them a worse life, when they might have a better? [Socrates] You have again forgotten, my friend, I said, the intention of the legislator, who did not aim at making any one class in the State happy above the rest; the happiness was to be in the whole State, and he held the citizens together by persuasion and necessity, making them benefactors of the State, and therefore benefactors of one another; to this end he created them, not to please themselves, but to be his instruments in binding up the State. [Glaucon] True, he said, I had forgotten. [Socrates] Observe, Glaucon, that there will be no injustice in compelling our philosophers to have a care and providence of others; we shall explain to them that in other States, men of their class are not obliged to share in the toils of politics: and this is reasonable, for they grow up at their own sweet will, and the government would rather not have them. Being self-taught, they cannot be expected to show any gratitude for a culture which they have never received. But we have brought you into the world to be rulers of the hive, kings of yourselves and of the other citizens, and have educated you far better and more perfectly than they have been educated, and you are better able to share in the double duty. Wherefore each of you, when his turn comes, must go down to the general underground abode, and get the habit of seeing in the dark. When you have acquired the habit, you will see ten thousand times better than the inhabitants of the cave, and you will know what the several images are, and what they represent, because you have seen the beautiful and just and good in their truth. And thus our State which is also yours will be a reality, and not a dream only, and will be administered in a spirit unlike that of other States, in which men fight with one another about shadows only and are distracted in the struggle for power, which in their eyes is a great good. Whereas the truth is that the State in which the rulers are most reluctant to govern is always the best and most quietly governed, and the State in which they are most eager, the worst. [Glaucon] Quite true, he replied. [Socrates] And will our pupils, when they hear this, refuse to take their turn at the toils of State, when they are allowed to spend the greater part of their time with one another in the heavenly light? [Glaucon] Impossible, he answered; for they are just men, and the commands which we impose upon them are just; there can be no doubt that every one of them will take office as a stern necessity, and not after the fashion of our present rulers of State. [Socrates] Yes, my friend, I said; and there lies the point. You must contrive for your future rulers another and a better life than that of a ruler, and then you may have a well-ordered State; for only in the State which offers this, will they rule who are truly rich, not in silver and gold, but in virtue and wisdom, which are the true blessings of life. Whereas if they go to the administration of public affairs, poor and hungering after the own private advantage, thinking that hence they are to snatch the chief good, order there can never be; for they will be fighting about office, and the civil and domestic broils which thus arise will be the ruin of the rulers themselves and of the whole State. [Glaucon] Most true, he replied. [Socrates] And the only life which looks down upon the life of political ambition is that of true philosophy. Do you know of any other? [Glaucon] Indeed, I do not, he said. [Socrates] And those who govern ought not to be lovers of the task? For, if they are, there will be rival lovers, and they will fight. [Glaucon] No question. [Socrates] Who then are those whom we shall compel to be guardians? Surely they will be the men who are wisest about affairs of State, and by whom the State is best administered, and who at the same time have other honors and another and a better life than that of politics? [Glaucon] They are the men, and I will choose them, he replied. [Socrates] And now shall we consider in what way such guardians will be produced, and how they are to be brought from darkness to light, as some are said to have ascended from the world below to the gods? [Glaucon] By all means, he replied. [Socrates] The process, I said, is not the turning over of an oyster-shell, but the turning round of a soul passing from a day which is little better than night to the true day of being, that is, the ascent from below, which we affirm to be true philosophy? [Glaucon] Quite so.

Traffic congestion Essay Example for Free

Traffic congestion Essay Introduction Traffic congestion is one of the most compelling global problems especially in developed cities. London is among those cities which suffer from the traffic problems. According to the London city council, Londons population was 8. 17 million in 2011. By the year 2011, every 100 people in London owns 60-65 personal cars, which means cars have been the prior transportation tools for local people (Blythe, 2005). Frequently using cars as vehicle contributes to the traffic problems. As the rapid growth of population, the rate of car ownership would reach to a higher level hich is a severe test to the environment. According to Hickman et al (2010), Approximately 25% of carbon dioxide(C02) emissions is contributed by transport tools. Obviously, traffic problem is a magnificent cause of the environmental damage. Although some relevant policy has been implemented to reduce the congestion, traffic problems still exist across the capital with the growth of population and employment. (Transport Committee, 2008) According to Transport Committee (2008), Londons traffic speeds are below average speeds of global cities such as New York nd Singapore. Meanwhile, the population and the demands of Jobs in London are predicted to reach to a high level by 2025. The location of the additional Job will force a large number of people to go through the city at peak hours, which is a severe challenge to the local traffic situation. (Transport Committee, 2008) Thus, light rail transit systems (LRT) could be the ideal solution to traffic problem. However, the high cost might limit the scale of this method. Electronic toll collection system (ETC) is regarded as another option with relatively low cost.

Career Planning in Human Resource Management

Career Planning in Human Resource Management Untill recently talents or employees can join an organization with the expectation of staying there for their entire career, now life long careers are a thing of the past. Employees lacking worldly experience and understanding still believe that they are immune to the ongoing reductions because they are doing a good work and adding value to the organization. However rapid technological change, increasing completion, relentless restructuring and downsizing mean that high performance no longer protects the employees form the termination or dismissal. People increasingly will move from one opportunity to another opportunity without regard to the traditional job boundaries. Realistic career planning forces employees to foresee problems and opportunity and to be proactive. Career planning and development involves two process of career planning and career management. Career management is integral to Human Resources planning. But Human Resources planning and career management do not exist or are not integrated in some organization. Career planning and development should be seen as a process that aligns the skills and interets of the employees with the need of the organization. This means that career must be strategically managed so the skills that are demanded by the organization strategic business objectives are understood and a workforce with a matching profile of skills is developed. Career planning and development play an important role in ensuring that the organization has a knowledgeable workforce together with a competitive advantage. Human Resources planning and career planning and development The important reasons why organisation and employees are paying more attention to career planning is because there are EEO legislation and AA pressures,employees educational level and aspirations are rising, employees are more concern about their quality of life, employees are transiting from vertical careers to lateral careers and a global talent war is created by the shortage of skilled workers. Components of Career planning http://www.docstoc.com/docs/8714685/Career-Planning-1 The Goal: Matching individual and Organization needs A career development program should be viewed as a dynamic process that matches the needs of the needs of the orgazation with needs of employees. Employees responsibility Each and every employee should be concerned about his her own career planning and development, but many employees ignore this , preferring it to leave it to the organisation.By adopting such a passive stance employees give up their future career by limiting their future employability.This reduces the employees chances of achieving their career goals.Therefore employees has to take initiate in finding such oppurtunities and ways for career planning and development. Though some of the organisation provide in house traning and develop, this is often provided for the purpose of the organisations needs and not for the needs of the individual employees.Individula career planning menas that employee him/herself should find his/her own vocational interests,weakness present skills, ability levels and finally the career goal. The Organizational role http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/shengvn-65920-session-8-career-development-education-ppt VERY IMPORTANT Effective and proactive HR manger will recognize the importance of the career planning and development and will satisfy the organizational and employees needs.If the HR department is fully awrae of the organisation HR needs,career chances and traning and development oppurtunities than the HR department is well placed to promote career planning amoung employees ORGANIZATIONS NEEDS Strategic Operational Current competencies Employee turnover Future competencies Absenteeism Market changes Talent pool Mergers, etc Outsourcing Joint ventures Productivity Innovation Growth Downsizing Restructuring INDIVIDUAL NEEDS Personal Professional Age/tenure Career stage Family concerns Education and training Spouse employment   Promotion aspirations Mobility Performance Outside interest Potential Current career path CAREER MANAGEMENT What is career development? Career development is which an individual takes personal improvements which he/she undertakes to achieve a personal career plan.Career development is also important for the organisation to create and maintain a continuos learning environment. Factors in career development For a successful career development and growth include the following important factors. Exposure: if the employee wants to succed, the employee has to become known to the top or the senior management.Employees can be known to the senior management through performing superior work performance, giving presentations, report writing, taking initiate in and involveing organizations special events in organisng and arranging them in addition individually involveling company training and development programmes and social events. Performance: Employees who perform the job up to the management expectation will be well recognized by the department heads and the senior management, but employees who performa badly will also be rescognised but for the career development oppurtunities are less likely to be offred to them. Qualification: Strong correlation exsists between graduate earnings and the experience and the konledge that they have. Employer reputation: Some organisation have an strong reputation that is well known around the globe as breeding ground for high potential employees.Therefore employees getting a job in these companies will be an important factor for a successful career and for a long term employability. Mentor: Successful managers will have a mentor or a sponsor who helps advance their career by offering advice, providing instructions and opening career oppurtunities. Benefits of Menotoring Mentoring provides the structure for the groeth and development of all employees within an organisation. Mentoring plays an important role in motivating the employees and improves the employees job satisfaction. Mentoring also helps to impress the corporate values of the organisation. Mentoring also helps to avoid discrimination over women by helping them to overcome the gender related barriers to advancement. Helps companies and organisation to encourage and capitalize on diversity by identifying talents. Women sometimes find them excluded from mentoring, this is because mentoring is repetadly or frequently based on personal relationships that is built outside the working hours. Development: Rapid expansion of skills and knowledge makes the employee more valuable, where the employee will be more attracted and appreciated by the management. Language skills: The internationalization of business and the development of global business, business organisations seeks employees that not only speak English fluently but competency in a second language, and the more languge the employee know the more the better. Networking: It is extremely important for the employee to maintain or build a network of contacts with the people who are likely to be useful for the his/her career devellopement. Goal setting: A succeseeful career planners are extremely self motivated.The have pre identified what goels they need to achieve and what they have to do to reach and achieve it. Computer skills: Computer literacy is an important skill, having that far better than other l is a competitive advantage amoung other employees.Intodays world high skilled employees must be technology capable. Fainacial planning skills: To savvy employees understand that there is no life long employement gurantees. Apperance: Apperaence plays an important role in compensation and career success. Factors involved in career development system Needs In this step it defines the present system.It involves conducting a needs assessment as in a training programmes. It estabilhes roles and responsibilities of all employees and the organization.By identifying the needs it helps to establish, the target groups,mission or philosophy of the programe,cultural parameters, determine organisation receptivity and commitment and support for the career development. Vision The career system need to have a relation with the intervention. The vision creates a longterm philosophy. Design intervention for the organization, its employees and managers. Organize and make nessecary career information that is required to support the programme. Establish the objectives of the programme. Action plan To achieve the vision an action plan must be developed.And also the top management support is nessecarily important. Create a survey programme Establish a consultancy or advisory group. Asses resources and competencies. Involving the advisory group in the programme design, implementation, and for the evaluation and monitoring. Results Identifying Career Opportunities and Requirements Begin with competency analysis It is important for any organisation to learn its jobs carefully in order to identify and assign weights to the knowledge and skills each one requires.This can be achived with job analysis and evaluation systems such as those used in compensation programs.The system used at sears measures three basic competencies for each job, such as the know-how, problem solving and accountability.Know how is divided in to three respective categories of knowledge: technical, managerial and human relations.Problem solving and accountability also have different types of dimensions.The scores of each of the above competencies are assigned to each job and total value is accumulated for each job. Identifying Job Progressions Once the skill demands of jobs are identified and weighted according to their improvement , it than possible to to plan job progressions. Employees without any experience (new employees) will typicall assign a starting job. When the employee get experience from the current job, than the new employee can be promoted to a post that requires more knowledge and skill. most organization concentrate on developing job progression for managerial, professional and technical jobs.But these organizations also can develop job progression to types of jobs.When job progressions are develop it serve as a baisi for developing the career paths of the individual employees. Organisation can also make informative and attractive brouchers providing information in regarding the career paths that are available in the organisation for the employees. Recognize lots of possibilities Career development and planning systems were once primaly focused on promotions and advancement. However in todyas ever changing business ennviroment and the flatter o organizations and employees career development can occur in several different ways, which includes transfer to a from one place to another, demotion due to lack of competence and experience and job promotion to a better position or to a senior position within the organization. To provide the above possibilities HR policies have to be flexible enough to adapt and willing to help to support the career change. Promotion Promotion is the change from the current position to a position that is high level within the organisation assigned with more responsibilities. The position that was promoted provides the employee lots of benefits based on the responsibilities; it increases the pay, RR etc.The three principal criteria for determimg promotions are merit, seniority and potential. Transfer A transfer is the placement of an employement of an employee in another job for which the duties,responsibilities, status and renumerations are approximately equal to those of the previous job.A transfer can provide an individual to prepre for an eventual promotion.Trasfers make the path way for the employees to aquire more knowledge by tranfering from one organisation to another, to a different group, transferring to aboard or work shift.A transfer can also be a demotion, which the employee moves to a low level postion from the current position that can provide development oppurtunities. Relocation Services Relocation services include a range of internal business process that the HR department engage to transfer the employee, employees famility or the entire department to new work location.Relocation also include help in moving, selling a home, learning a new culture etc. Outplacement Outplacement is type counseling that is given help the employees that are terminated to locate or find a new career.The consultation provided by the consultant vary but it includes, career evaluation, termination procedures , phycological appraisals, interview traning preparing resumes, certain techniques to search for jobs etc. Dual Careers As more women are entering the workforce HR managers has to develop specific policies and programmes for accomodationg the dual career aspirations of employees and their spouces.HR mangers has to particularly pay attention to the implications of an employed spouse when providing career counseling to an employee.Dual career couples need to be flexible , to be mutually committed to both careers to adopt coping mechanisums to develop the skills of career planning.Therefore inturn organisation can provide flexible work schedules, effective career management, counseling, child care support etc. Career plateau Career plateau menas that high points in ones career where the probability and the motivation is minimal.When this happens the employees finds it difficult or trapped which it unables to achieve further advancement.If an employee is avoide plateauing it is difficult for the employee to get adapated and develop in the face of change or transition. Intodays business environment employees are now reaching pletaues earlier than before, it is extremely important for the organizations and individuals today to prepare to cope with the phenomenon successfully.and most importantly when there is sign of impending plateuea are observed. Significant decline in the competiveness is less if the organisation accept responsibility for employee development and if the employees are willing to invest time for their development. Work family conflict Work family conflict is commonly exsisting isn dual-income family and single parent family.People today are facing problem in identifying the deffrence or what is meant bu success and how to balance work and family.Specially for women it is difficult to balance the work and family responsibilities because the job demand competes with the traditional family demand being the mother, wife etc.Other than women, men also face the same problem if they place the family first, therefore they have to face lots of problem with their co-workers and with the company. http://www.scribd.com/doc/18002097/Career-Planning-and-Development What is career management? Career management is the process of designing and implementing goals, plans and strategies to enable the organization to fulfill the employee needs which this allows the individual employees to achieve their career goals. It is also the process whereby the employee indentify their own interest values and their own weakness and strengths And also the individuals establish action plans to achieve their career goals. .In todays global world each and every organization felt the need of career planning and development. The reason why career management is important because if the organization fails to motivate their employees to plan their career, the organization will face the following issues, such as loss or shortage of employees to fill the vacant positions, commitment by the employees become lower and high training cost. The career management process includes: Self assesement: employees determine the values, interests,aptitudes and dehaviroual tendencies.The self assessment is uaully involves phsycological tests. Reality check: Using the available information employees identify how the organisation or the company evaluate their skills and knowledge and where they fit in the companys plan. Goal setting: in this process employees establish and develope longterm and short term onjectives. Action plan: After the individual establish his/her goal, the individual developes an actional plan determimg how they will achieve their short and long term career goals. Employee role in career mangement The employees individually has to initiative to ask for feedback from managers and peers in regarding their skill in the work place and their strengths and weaknesses. This will help the individual employees to further improve their performance where improvements is needed. The employees have to seek challenges by gaining exposure to a range of learning opportunities. The employee has to Interact with employees from different work groups and organizations inside and outside the company environment. The employees has to create visibility through good performance skills HR managers role in career management The HR manager to provide relevant information to the employees in regarding the training and development opportunities that are available in the organization. The HR manager has to help the employees for to search for jobs. The HR manger is responsible to provide counseling services to the employees who have career related problems. Organization role in Career mangement Oraganizations or companies are responsible to provide nessecary resources needed by the employees for their career planning. Career planning workshops Workshops offer similar experiences that are provided in the workbooks.Comparing to workbooks, workshop has several advantages to employees, such as the employees has the chance to dicuss their ideas, concerns, attitudes and plans with others in similar situations.Diffrent workshops has different focus. Some workshops focus on the employees current job performance and development plans.And some focus on broader life and career plans and values.Career workshops assit the employees to learn how to make decisions, find career planning information, set career goals and bbuild confidence and self esteem within the employees. Career planning workbooks These workbooks are prepared by the organization to guide their employees through systematic self estemm of values,abilities, personal development plans and interests. Career couselling Career counseling is usually done by HR department. Career counseling involves talking with employees with their personal interests and goals, about their current job activities, their personal skills and career development objectives.In some organization career conselling is done annually and partially.Career counseling is usually  voluntary.

The Community of Female Voices in Arab Women Literature :: Fatima Mernissi Arab Culture Cultural Essays

The Community of Female Voices in Arab Women Literature In her memoir, Dreams of Trespass, Fatima Mernissi remembers asking her grandmother Yasmina how one can discern a true story from a false one. The wise old woman, Yasmina, told her granddaughter to relax and not look at life in extreme polarities because "there are things which could be both [true and false] and things which could be neither" (Dreams, 61). "Words are like onions," Yasmina explained further and "the more skins you peel off, the more meanings you encounter" (Dreams, 61). Thus, according to Yasmina, the real power of finding the "true" answer for oneself is to discover "multiplicities of meanings" because then right and wrong become irrelevant (Dreams, 61). Yasmina's image of words as onions can be used in one's understanding of the multilayered complexity of oppression in Arab women literature. Although in some novels, such as The Pillars of Salt and Drams of Trespass, female oppression is an obvious result of social norms, in other texts (In the Eye of the Sun, for example) the main female character, Asya Ulama, seems to be free of any form of social pressure. However, one has to keep in mind that no woman ever stands alone in her oppression, whether it is physical or psychological oppression, or both. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to "peal off all the skins of an onion" or to uncover all the different layers of female oppression presented in the five books: Pillars of Salt, A woman of Five Seasons, A Balcony Over Fakihani, Dreams of Trespass and In the Eye of the Sun. The Feminist Theory The feminist writer, Gloria Anzaldua, argues that in order for silence to "transform into speech, sound and words," the silence must first ‘traverse through our female bodies" (Making, XIII). According to Anzaldua, the female silence is richly layered and it hides important voices which once discovered lead to women's liberation. Many feminist writers would argue that women can only tell their stories when they listen to (and follow) their inner voices. These inner voices are not only singular voices of the "self" but also communal voices that connect women with past and future generations. Thus, if one is to explore the oppression of Muslim women through the work of Arab women novelists, one must keep in mind the multilayered complexity of women's voices, or what I call the "community of

Biography Of Karl Marx :: essays research papers

Karl Heinrich Marx was born on May 5, 1818, in the city of Trier in the Rhine province of Prussia, now in Germany. Marx was an economic theorist who composed the idea of communism which included the idea of all the people owning all the property and infrastructure. These theories played a large role in international politics and the cold war in the mid to late 20th century. Marx was the oldest surviving boy of nine children. (Perhaps this is where his theory on equality of resources began. Competing with eight brothers and sisters for attention would have seen an unequal distribution of the parent’s resources to the children) His mother, born Henrietta Pressburg, was from Holland. Both parents were Jewish and were descended from a long line of rabbis, but, a year or so before Karl was born, his father--probably because his professional career required it--was baptized in the Evangelical Established Church. Karl was baptized when he was six years old. Even though Karl was baptized as a youth he still faced discrimination because of his Jewish background. (Marx may have seen from this discrimination that religion wasn’t necessary and was “ the opium of the masses) In October 1835 Marx matriculated at the University of Bonn. The courses he attended were exclusively in the humanities, in subjects such as Greek and Roman mythology and the history of art. He participated in the usual student activities got involved in a fight and spent a day in jail for being drunk and disorderly. Mark left the University and enrolled at the Berlin University to start a law degree. Here Marx joined a Hegelian club these clubs followed the teachings of a philosopher called Hegel. The club denounced religion particularly Christianity. In January 1842 Marx began contributing to a newspaper newly founded in Cologne, the Rheinische Zeitung. It was the liberal democratic organ of a group of young merchants, bankers, and industrialists. By October 1842 Marx became editor of the newspaper. Marx built up the circulation and began writing controversial editorials. Eventually the Prussian authorities suspended production of the newspaper because it was seen as being too controversial. In June 1843 Marx married his fiancà ©e of seven years, Jenny von Westphalen. They moved to Paris which was at the time the centre of socialist thought. Marx met his life long buddy Frederich Engels here and they wrote the French – German yearbook.

Emily Brontës Wuthering Heights :: essays research papers

Chapter I But Mr. Heathcliff forms a singular contrast to his abode and style of living. He is a dark-skinned gypsy in aspect, in dress and manners a gentleman †¦ Writing in his diary in 1801, Lockwood describes his first days as a tenant at Thrushcross Grange, an isolated manor in thinly-populated Yorkshire. Shortly after arriving at the Grange, he pays a visit to his landlord, Mr. Heathcliff, a surly, dark man living in a manor called Wuthering Heights—"wuthering" being a local adjective used to describe the fierce and wild winds that blow during storms on the moors. During the visit, Heathcliff seems not to trust Lockwood, and leaves him alone in a room with a group of snarling dogs. Lockwood is saved from the hounds by a ruddy-cheeked housekeeper. When Heathcliff returns, Lockwood is angry, but eventually warms toward his taciturn host, and—though he hardly feels that he has been welcomed at Wuthering Heights—he volunteers to visit again the next day. Chapter II On a chilly afternoon not long after his first visit, Lockwood plans to lounge before the fire in his study, but he finds a servant dustily sweeping out the fireplace there, so instead he makes the four-mile walk to Wuthering Heights, arriving just as a light snow begins to fall. He knocks, but no one lets him in, and Joseph, an old servant who speaks with a thick Yorkshire accent, calls out from the barn that Heathcliff is not in the house. Eventually a rough-looking young man comes to let him in, and Lockwood goes into a sitting room where he finds a beautiful girl seated beside a fire. Lockwood assumes she is Heathcliff's wife. He tries to make conversation, but she responds rudely. When Heathcliff arrives, he corrects Lockwood: the young woman is his daughter-in-law. Lockwood then assumes that the young man who let him in must be Heathcliff's son. Heathcliff corrects him again. The young man, Hareton Earnshaw, is not his son, and the girl is the widow of Heathcliff's dead son. The snowfall becomes a blizzard, and when Lockwood is ready to leave, he is forced to ask for a guide back to Thrushcross Grange. No one will help him. He takes a lantern and says that he will find his own way, promising to return with the lantern in the morning. Joseph, seeing him make his way through the snow, assumes that he is stealing the lantern, and looses the dogs on him.

How Lennie Is Portrayed in the First Chapter Essay

To begin with, Steinbeck describes Lennie’s physical features to be very animal-like. He states that he walked â€Å"the way a bear drags his paws†. The use of animal imagery in this quote illustrates an image of a huge man heavily dragging himself, not only suggesting his size but also suggesting his immense strength. Due to his physicality, he is unable to carry out tasks normal people would be able to do. He is unable to control himself, specifically his strength—thus easily breaking things. Steinbeck emphasizes this as he brings up incidents of Lennie having killed mice and other small, fragile animals, while petting them. Lennie is also described to have an animal’s mental state, leaning towards animal instincts rather than human instincts. Steinbeck states he’d â€Å"drink out of a gutter if [he] was thirsty†, displaying Lennie’s rash behaviour. His urge to satisfy his immediate desire would overpower the need to be cautious and aware of his surroundings. Many people think before they act. In Lennie’s case however, he doesn’t think at all as George does it for him. Lennie was â€Å"snorting into the water like a horse† which also proves his uncivilized manner. Furthermore, Lennie’s animal instincts prevent him from being able to learn. Like wild animals, he is uncontrollable and unpredictable; though he may be trained and taught not to do some things, they are bound to commit the same mistakes over and over again. Steinbeck states that George had â€Å"hopelessly† warned Lennie about the water he was drinking, proving that George’s warnings will not affect Lennie in any way as he is bound to forget—he will never learn. Not only is Lennie’s mental behaviour similar to an animal, but it is also similar to a child. Lennie is described to be â€Å"puzzled† and thathe â€Å"giggled happily† at some parts of their conversation, showing that he is unaware and immature. He constantly forgets everything very easily and doesn’t sense the seriousness in some of their conversations—showing that his maturity is like of a 6 year-old, who needs constant reminding and explaining of almost every matter discussed. Steinbeck states that after Lennie created ripples in the water with his fingers, he said â€Å"Look George, look what I done. He is easily impressed at the ripples he made and notifies George of his work to make him proud. Lennie’s child-like character also depicts a father/son relationship between Lennie and George. Earlier in the book, it is stated that â€Å"Lennie’s closed hand slowly obeyed† after George had commanded Lennie to hand over a dead mouse. The adverb â€Å"slowly† shows that though Lennie was reluctant to follow George’s orders, he had no choice but to obey him. Like an obedient son who must follow his father, Lennie fears George—the paternal figure—conveying George’s authority over Lennie. Supporting this, Lennie’s timid behaviour towards George is constantly portrayed as he is described to be speaking â€Å"slowly† and â€Å"cautiously† to George—indicating Lennie’s high level of respect for George. As a son would look up to his father, Lennie also sees George as his role model and a leader. Steinbeck portrays Lennie as submissive—giving him the role of the follower between the two main characters. Lennie is said to have â€Å"imitated George exactly† proving that he sees George as a role model. He â€Å"imitates† George, depicting his respect for him. Lennie also prioritizes him and whatever he says. This is seen when he tries to recall a memory from the past saying, â€Å"and you says†¦you says†. It is conveyed through this quote that he is dependent on George as he values George’s opinions more than his opinions. Supporting the fact that Lennie is dependent on George, George says, â€Å"think I’d let you carry your own work card? † This proves that George is much more responsible than Lennie, who constantly forgets things. Steinbeck also states in the beginning of the book that they walked in a â€Å"single file†, conveying that one is the leader and the other is the follower. Their relationship evidently highlights George’s authority over Lennie.