How Does the Internet Aid Communication

The Internet has become an integral part of the life of many people. The invention and spread of the Internet changed all aspects of modernity. Thus, the Interned made the life quicker and communication easier. The communication via the Internet is becoming more and more popular nowadays. People prefer sharing their ideas and best moments while being online. Although the Internet has become of extreme significance nowadays, there are both advantages and disadvantages of using it.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on How Does the Internet Aid Communication? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Communication and Its Forms Before examining the Internet and its role, it is necessary to be aware of the notion of communication and its various types. There are numerous definitions of communication. The central idea of all of them is that communication is a process of sharing thoughts. Thill and Bovee (2013, p. 3) define communic ation as ‘the process of transferring information and meaning between senders and receivers, using one of more written, oral, visual, or electronic media’. The nature of communication is complicated as far as it can be presented in various forms and dimensions. According to the most general division, the communication can be of two types: verbal and nonverbal. Verbal communication presupposes the usage of words. Thus, when people communicate with the help of words (either orally or in writing), they are engaged in the verbal communication. The distinctive feature of spoken communication is that people use different gestures, postures, movements, and facial expressions. All these signs are referred to as nonverbal communication. Nonverbal communication is not formally accepted though it exists. However, one should always bear in mind that meanings of nonverbal signs may differ among cultures and countries (Sarvaiya 2013). The sub-types of verbal communication are oral an d written. The oral communication is spontaneous, personal, and flexible. Written communication is usually influenced by particular rules of writing and is rather formal. Depending on the number of participants, the communication may be intrapersonal, interpersonal, group, and massive. An intrapersonal communication occurs when one thinks. All people practice internal communication. It assists in the better understanding of the world. An interpersonal communication is realized in the form of dialogues between two people. Group communication occurs between members of the particular unity. The group is a company of individuals who are united by the common goal. There are small (from three to seven participants) and large (seven and more) groups (Sarvaiya 2013). The mass communication is the last form. This type is conducted via television, radio, or any other mass media channels.Advertising Looking for essay on communication strategies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your firs t paper with 15% OFF Learn More Internet Communication and Its Forms Internet communication is more often called online communication. The aim of the Internet communication is the same — to transmit information between senders and receivers but with the help of computers or any other devices that have access to the Internet. The classification of the forms of online communication can be rather a challenging task due to its constant development and improvement. The Internet communication is divided into several types. The first type is â€Å"one-to-one† messaging. It is the most popular method of communication. It presupposes sending â€Å"e-mails† or messages via other platforms or social media. The primary thing about one-to-one messaging is that it is the way of online intercourse between individuals. The second type is â€Å"one-to-many messaging†. This type means the automatic sending of messages to many recipients at the same time. For insta nce, a person may visit some website, like it, and subscribe to it. All people who subscribe to the particular content will receive automatic e-mails about the news. â€Å"Distributed message databases† comprise the third type of communication via the Internet. In this case, people participate in group discussions. Thus, one person leaves a message, and others can write responses. All messages are visible to everybody. Many forums may serve as examples of distributed message databases. The next type of online communication is known as â€Å"real-time communication†. It should not be confused with the first type where users read messages later. In a real-time communication, one can answer immediately. This form is possible in all social media as well as in many chat rooms or specially designed services (Methods to Communicate Over Internet n.d.). Barret suggests another classification of the Internet communication tools. He differentiates traditional services, World Wid e Web, video and phone calls, streaming video, and video games. Barret combines e-mailing, chat rooms, and forums into the group of traditional services. World Wide Web provides opportunities for every user to find required information. It is a service that works on the basis of the Hyper Transfer Protocol or HTTP. The user has to request particular information and the web server answers to that request. Modern online communication is not limited by messaging. Video and phone calls are possible nowadays. One has to have the gadget that supports such function and the access to the Internet. Skype is one of the most popular platforms for video and phone calls. Barett suggests that streaming video is one more option for communication when one can download film or music. Finally, video games are the last type. Many gamers can play games and communicate with other players simultaneously (Barett n.d.). Communication before the Invention of the Internet Human communication was realized in a variety of forms before the invention of the Internet. People used different media to transmit information. Drums were one of the first methods for sharing information. They were the primary way of communication in Africa in pre-historic times. The sound produced by drums could be heard from the distance of one hundred miles. In 2000 BC, Egyptian pharaohs established the other method of sharing information.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on How Does the Internet Aid Communication? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More They developed the courier service to deliver written messages. The first prototype of the modern postal system was first used in Ancient Persia in the 5th century BC. It happened when the Athenian messenger run to ask for help from Sparta when Persians invaded Marathon (O’Neil 2013). Smoke signals represent an easy and efficient way of the visual communication. They were first used on the Great Wall of China. Pigeon post is regarded as the first most efficient system of communication. This type of message delivering was developed in the 12th century by Sultan Nur-ed-din. He built dovecotes in Damascus and Cairo, and pigeons carried messages over long distances. Besides, pigeon post played a crucial role in World War I and World War II. Telegraph was the first technologically aided method to transmit information. It was invented by Samuel Morse in 1844 and gave rise to the further development of the modern ways of communication such as telephones or faxes (From Smoke Signals to Smartphones 2014). The Development of the Internet The invention of the Internet is usually associated with the name Leonard Kleinrock. He was the first to write about ARPANET, the network that is considered to be the beginning of the Internet, in 1961. ARPANET is the abbreviation for the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network that was initially used by the U.S. Defense Department. Leonard Kleinro ck sent the message via ARPANET in 1969. Since that time, many communication protocols appeared, and they were used for transmission of messages. The term â€Å"Internet† was introduced in 1973. Telenet was the first Internet Service Provider that used ARPANET for commercial purposes. The standard protocol for the Internet (IP) was introduced in 1982. A year later, the Domain Name System developed the modern version of website names such as.org,.com,.gov, and others. In the 90th, the era of rapid development continued and became close to the modern version of the Internet. Thus, Tim Berners-Lee, a scientist at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, worked on the HTML (HyperText Markup Language). A few years later, Microsoft and Apple Corporations started to work on the browsers for the access to the Internet (Zimmerman 2012). A crucial point in the development of the Internet happened in 1998. The Google introduced the search engine system that changed the human comm unication. In 2004, Facebook was launched. This event is another milestone in the Internet communication as far as it gave rise to the social networking. In six years, the number of Facebook users increased to four hundred million. Since 2010, social media became essential for the human communication.Advertising Looking for essay on communication strategies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The Role of the Internet The Internet has changed not only the nature of communication. It modified a variety of other aspects of everyday life including: Education is much more accessible nowadays than whenever before. People have opportunities to receive degrees online regardless of their location. Although the online education is still developing, it brings a substantial hope to the sphere of education; Research. Millions of people use Google or other online sources to find answers to everyday questions. The World Wide Web has become a massive storage of helpful pieces of advice for every day; Business. The Internet gave rise to the development of the electronic commerce. Nowadays, e-commerce is an essential part of the successful business. Also, the job search became much easier. An employee can send resumes via e-mails from one place without wasting too much energy; Travelling and shopping. There is no need to go the travel agency anymore as far as one can reserve tickets to a ny place online. The same is with shopping. Online stores made it possible to buy everything without living home; Entertainment. The Internet provides numerous opportunities for having fun in the virtual reality. Thus, one can play games, watch movies, or listen to music using the same computer or gadget; Healthcare. Currently, an individual can use a variety of online applications that can calculate ideal weight, suggest necessary treatment or well-balanced diet (Mehta 2014). Online Communication and Politics The topic concerning the way the Internet communication influences democratization and public engagement is one of the most discussed nowadays. Some scholars argue that the Internet has made communication more democratic and allowed people to be more open in their judgments. One of the reasons to speak about online democratization refers to the increasing number of online protests or arranging of real protest with the help of online communication. The Internet gave people the possibility to collaborate and coordinate whenever there is a necessity. Online communities, blogs, forums, websites — all of them can be used to demonstrate the particular attitude towards some issues. Tsatsou (2014, p. 88) writes that ‘the Internet can contribute to enhance the autonomy of citizens to organize and mobilize around issues that are not properly processed in the institutional systems’. The term â€Å"digital democracy† is used to define the notion of online democratic communication. However, the increasing engagement in online affairs makes people distracted from the real-life citizenship and social life. In this respect, the Internet is believed to impede communication in real-life settings and, in its turn, decrease the role of democracy. The other fact that undermines the notion of digital democracy refers to the ethical issue of privacy. Service providers can define who is hiding beyond the anonymous blog. Even more, personal data of us ers are now actively used for the variety of purposes. Consequently, people claim that their rights to privacy are violated. The Influence of the Internet on Personal Communication: Advantages and Disadvantages Probably, the most significant impact of the Internet refers to the personal communication. Virtual communication is a subject of numerous discussions nowadays. There are both advantages and disadvantages when speaking about the role of the Internet in human intercourse. Matusitz (2007, p. 23) writes that ‘a virtual community can be considered as a â€Å"real† gathering of people where they communicate, like in a physical environment, create webs of personal relationships, and strengthen weak ties over time, even if everything occurs in cyberspace’. Thus, the Internet makes communication accessible for all people regardless of their location. The second advantage of the online communication is that people can improve psychological well-being. Virtual reali ty allows everyone to find individuals who share the same point of view on politics or like the same music. The Internet erases barriers and loneliness. One can communicate with everyone who has the same values or preferences. Finally, people feel free when they express their opinions via the Internet. It is possible to write a response anonymously. It gives the possibility to express such thoughts that could be regarded as unacceptable in the society. Thus, the Internet provides individuals with the feeling of digital freedom. Nevertheless, there are adverse sides of online communication as well. Some scientists believe that the online communication is nothing but the illusion (Matusitz 2007). Virtual communities can never replace real as far as they lack such features of the human intercourse as touches, facial expressions, gestures, smells, and other non-verbal signs. One more disadvantage of the online communication refers to the fact that there is no moral obligation. Thus, it is easy to deceive people about one’s beliefs, interests, or even gender. People who have bad social skills or are lonely often start to communicate via the Internet. However, Kim, LaRose, and Peng have demonstrated that such an escape from reality impedes the situation and deepens the feeling of loneliness and psychological dissatisfaction (Kim, LaRose, Peng 2009). Remarks and Recommendations The Internet aids communication in a variety of ways. First, it is a useful tool that allows people to stay connected regardless of their location. The Internet facilitates the process of globalization. Representatives from various communities, religious and political groups become closer to each other. The Internet erases the barriers during intercourses that exist in real life. The most significant thing is that the Internet allows individuals to express their opinions anonymously. This practice is of great significance for those who do not like to be judged and attract attention. At the same time, the Internet can worsen the effectiveness of communication. Not all people follow the rules of morality while communicating via the Internet. Besides, the communication may lead to the increasing feeling of loneliness. These are the most significant remarks concerning the Internet communication. Further studies should evaluate the impact of the Internet on the communication in various settings. Besides, it can be used to examine the level of self-satisfaction among people who prefer virtual communication. One more concern relates to the notion of literacy of the Internet usage. There are assumptions that people are not attentive to mistakes in online communication, and that leads to the improper level of literacy in other types of writing. Conclusion Human communication has numerous forms. Verbal types of communication can be realized with the help of the Internet. There are different forms of the Internet communication including one-to-one messaging, online calls, a nd video games. The methods for human communication changed drastically. Thus, the drums and smoke were the first ways of transmitting information. The rapid growth of the Internet commenced in the previous century. In a few decades, it became one of the most popular forms of communication. Although there are several concerns about the online communication, the Internet makes communication democratic, open, and unites people. Reference List Barett, J.,  Types of Internet Communication. Web. From Smoke Signals to Smartphones,  2014. Web. Kim, J., LaRose, R. Peng, W. 2009, ‘Loneliness as the Cause and the Effect of Problematic Internet Use’, CyberPsychology Behavior, vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 451-456. Matusitz, J. 2007, ‘The Implications of the Internet for Human Communication’,  Journal of Information Technology Impact, vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 21-34. Mehta, P. 2014, 8 Ways the â€Å"Internet of Things† Will Impact Your Everyday Life. Web. Methods to Comm unicate Over Internet. Web. O’Neil, M. 2013, From Pigeons to Twitter: The Evolution of Communication. Web. Sarvaiya, M. 2013, Human Communication, Amazon Publishing, Seattle. Thill, J. Bovee, C. 2013, Excellence in Business Communication, Pearson, Upper Saddle River. Tsatsou, P. 2014, Internet Studies: Part, Present, and Future Directions, Ashgate Publishing, Farnham. Zimmerman, K. 2012, Internet History Timeline. Web. This essay on How Does the Internet Aid Communication? was written and submitted by user Haven F. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Christmas Trends, Demographics, Spending and Waste

Christmas Trends, Demographics, Spending and Waste Christmas is one of the most widely celebrated holidays by people all over the world, but what are the particularities of it in the United States? Who is celebrating it? How are they doing it? How much are they spending? And how might social differences shape our experience of this holiday? Lets dive in. The Cross-Religion and Secular Popularity of Christmas According to Pew Research Centers December 2013 survey about Christmas, we know that the vast majority of people in the U.S. celebrate the holiday. The survey confirms what most of us know: Christmas is both a religious and a secular holiday. Unsurprisingly, about 96 percent of Christians celebrate  Christmas, as do a whopping 87 percent of people who are not religious. What may surprise you is that people of other faiths do too. According to Pew, 76 percent of Asian-American Buddhists, 73 percent of Hindus, and 32 percent of Jews celebrate Christmas. News reports indicate that some Muslims also celebrate the holiday. Interestingly, the Pew survey found that Christmas is more likely to be a religious holiday for older generations.  While just over a third  of people ages 18-29 celebrate Christmas religiously, 66 percent of those 65 and older do so. For many Millennials, Christmas is a cultural, rather than a religious, holiday. Popular Christmas Traditions and Trends According to the 2014 National Retail Federations (NRF) survey of planned activities for Christmas Day, the most common things we do are visit with family and friends, open gifts, cook a holiday meal, and sit on our bums and watch television. Pews 2013 survey shows that more than half of us will attend church on Christmas Eve or Day, and the organizations 2014 survey shows that eating holiday foods is the activity that we most look forward to, after visiting with family and friends. Leading up to the holiday, the Pew survey found that  the majority of American adults- 65 percent- will send holiday cards, though older adults are more likely than younger adults to do so, and 79 percent of us will put up a Christmas tree, which is slightly more common among higher income earners. Though hurtling through airports at top foot-speed is a popular trope of Christmas movies, in fact, just 5-6 percent of us travel long-distance by air for the holiday, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. While long-distance travel  increases by 23 percent at Christmas time, most of that travel is by car. Similarly, though images of carolers punctuate holiday films, just 16 percent of us join in the activity, according to Pews 2013 survey Studies also show that we are getting engaged, conceiving children, and deciding to get divorced more so on Christmas than during any other time of  the year. How Gender, Age, and Religion Shape Our Christmas Experiences Interestingly, a 2014 survey by Pew found that religious affiliation, gender,  marital status, and age have an impact on the extent to which people look forward to the  common ways of celebrating Christmas. Those who regularly attend religious services are more enthusiastic on average about Christmas activities than are those who attend less often, or not at all. The only activity that escapes this rule? Americans universally look forward to eating holiday foods. In terms of gender, the survey found that, with the exception of visiting with family and friends, women look forward to the holiday traditions and activities more than men. While the Pew survey did not establish a reason for why this is the case, existing social science suggests that it could be because women spend more time than men do shopping and visiting with or taking care of family members in the context of their everyday lives. Its possible that mundane and taxing chores are more appealing to women when they are surrounded by the Christmas glow. Men, however, find themselves in the position of having to do things that they are not normally expected to do, and so they dont look forward to these events as much as women do. Echoing the fact that Christmas is less of a religious holiday for Millennials than it is for older generations, the 2014 Pew survey results indicate an overall generational shift in how we celebrate the holiday. Americans over the age of 65 are more likely than others to look forward to hearing Christmas music and attending religious services, while those in the younger generations are more likely to look forward to eating holiday foods, exchanging gifts, and decorating their homes. And while the majority of all generations do these things, Millennials are the most likely to buy gifts for others, and the least likely to send Christmas cards (though still a majority do it). ChristmasSpending: Big Picture, Averages, and Trends More than  $665  billion is the amount the NRF forecasts  Americans will spend during November and December 2016- an increase of 3.6 percent over the previous year. So, where will all that money go? Most of it, on average $589, will go  to gifts, out of a total $796 that the average person will spend. The rest will be spent on  holiday items including candy and food (about $100), decorations (about $50), greeting cards and postage, and flowers and potted plants. As part of that decorative budget, we can expect Americans to collectively  spend more than $2.2 billion on about 40 million Christmas trees in 2016 (67 percent real, 33 percent fake), according to  data from the National Christmas Tree Association. In terms of gift-giving plans, the NRF survey shows American adults intend to buy and give the following: Clothing or accessories (61%)Gift cards or certificates (56%)Media items (books, music, videos, games, etc.) (44%)Toys (42%)Food or candy (31%)Consumer electronics (30%)Personal care or beauty items (25%)Jewelry (21%)Home decor or furnishings (20%)Cash (20%)Sporting goods or leisure items (17%) The plans adults have for gifts for children reveal the stronghold that gender stereotypes still have in American culture. The top five toys that people plan to buy for boys include Lego sets, cars and trucks, video games, Hot Wheels, and Star Wars items. For girls, they plan to buy Barbie items, dolls, Shopkins, Hatchimals, and Lego sets. Given that the average person intends to spend nearly $600 on gifts, its not surprising that nearly half of all American adults feel that exchanging gifts leaves them stretched thin financially (according to Pews 2014 survey). More than a third of us feel stressed out by our countrys gift-giving culture, and nearly a quarter of us believe that it is wasteful. The Environmental Impact Have you ever thought about the environmental impact of all this Christmas cheer? The Environmental Protection Agency reports that household waste increases by more than 25 percent between Thanksgiving and New Years Day, which results in an additional 1 million tons per week going to landfills. Gift wrapping and shopping bags amount  to a whopping  4 million tons  of Christmas-related trash. Then theres all the cards, ribbons, product packaging, and trees too. Though we think of it as a time of togetherness, Christmas is also a time of massive waste. When one considers this and the financial and emotional stress of consumerist gift-giving, perhaps a change of tradition is in order?

MLA literary research paper on Louise Glucks Mock Orange and A Summer

MLA literary on Louise Glucks Mock Orange and A Summer Garden - Research Paper Example The lyrical beauty of her poetry is really praiseworthy that the readers can sense even the inner pulse of the poet. The significant features of her poetry include â€Å"†¦its technical precision, sensitivity and insight into loneliness, family relationships, divorce, and death† (Poetry Foundation). While reading through her poetry, one would certainly feel them as quite true and they really enhance the quality of the work. When analyzing her poems â€Å"Mock Orange† and â€Å"A Summer Garden,† one can state that both the poems have structural similarities as well as differences and both the poems make use of various literary devices and conceits to create an effect in the poem. â€Å"Mock Orange† is small poem that discusses a grave theme. Daniel Morris, in his book, â€Å"The Poetry of Louise Glu ̈ck: A Thematic Introduction† asserts, â€Å"Mock Orange† [is] a controversial and much anthologized poem expressing the female speaker’s revulsion because sex with a man seemed a fiction of togetherness as well as a literal form of silencing the female with the covering male lips† (Morris, 29). After a close reading of the poem, many critics agree to the view point that Gluck composed the poem in a female perspective, accusing men for their male-chauvinistic nature. â€Å"A Summer Garden† is somewhat a large poem when comparing with â€Å"Mock Orange.† In the poem, the poet brings the readers to a memory lane where she identifies an old photograph of her dead mother. When the poet wipes off the dust from the old worn out photograph, she also wipes off the present to the past. The poet visualizes the childhood of her mother and then the poem shifts to the mother’s point of view. Analyzing the structure of â€Å"Mock Orange† one can see that the poet has resorted to a particular pattern in the arrangement of stanzas. The poem opens with a three-line stanza immediately followed with a five-line stanza. The third stanza is

Management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Management - Research Paper Example This paper will discuss the evolution of management principle from the Classical School to the present and further compare, contrast, and relate different schools of management theory and management practices. Evolution of management principle from the Classical School to the present There are several theories originating from different principles throughout history which have seen management from their own point of view. These theories appeared due to the revolutionary development that has happened throughout history and not because they were planned. Management theories are broadly classified into three which are the classical management theory, the neoclassical management theory and the modern management theory. The classical management theory, which is also referred to as the traditional school of management, consists of a group that has similar ideas on organizational management which evolved from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. This theory evolved due to the In dustrial Revolution and consists of three branches, which are the administrative principles, bureaucratic organization, and scientific management. The common aspects of these theories under the classical management theory is that they all put an emphasis on the economic rational of management and organization, which assumes that individuals at work are motivated by economic factors and would normally choose that which will give them the greatest monetary benefits. The scientific management was championed in 1911 by Frederick Tailor, who is considered to be the father of scientific management; he emphasized on time and motion studies, production maximization, and task specialization. Taylor argued that other schools of thought leave workers too much discretion, and their potential at the workplace is not being maximized. Taylor argues that despite the fact that there is specialization and division of labor, employees still retain discretion on how to perform tasks. Scientific managem ent theory was designed so as to put management in control, designing and using studies that are scientifically measured while focusing on the most efficient work methods and then organizing and controlling workers to ensure maximum efficiency (Giannantonio & Hurley, 2011).This method had four elements where each job had to be broken down into elements and where each element is assigned a scientific way of handling it. Workers then would be selected and trained on how to do a task in a specific way, and there should also be good coordination between the managers and workers, and finally, there should be division of labor. He believed that this would determine the most efficient way of doing work. This method was challenged as there is no best way of doing work, and by the fact that there are also other factors other than money that affect productivity, like social needs, esteem and security needs. As the scientific management pioneers tried to find the best way of doing things, the administrative principle pioneers tried to explore possibilities of the best ways of pulling jobs together and operating the organization; they tried to find the best way of running an organization. This theory was championed by Henry Fayol, who introduced the principles of management which are fundamental functions of all managers; they include planning,

Church and Government Essay Example for Free

Church and Government Essay According to Article II, Section 6 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution states that, the separation of Church and State shall be inviolable and Article III, Section 5 states, No law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. . The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference, shall be forever be allowed. No religious test shall be required for the exercise of civil or political rights. Given the articles of the constitution regarding the relationship of the church and the state, is the Catholic Church violating the principle of the Separation of Church and State by daring to speak out against certain bills? First, what does the separation of the church and state really means? The separation of the state means that the state does not have an official religion. It means that the people are free to choose in what religion depending in their own belief. It also means that there should be no laws that shall be pass that favors a religion over the other. It also means that there should be no discrimination of the religion and belief of the people. In short, what the union of the church and the state really means is that the citizens should be forced to follow a particular doctrine and those that do not follow should be penalized. We can see from banners outside of cathedrals the popular phrase â€Å"No to RH Bill, Yes to Life.† But can we consider this action as a violation of the constitution? The separation of the church and the state does not mention that church officials cannot speak or try to influence the state policy. Since the Philippines is a democratic country, every person, group and organization is free to express their own opinion regarding certain issues. The church does not force people to go against a certain bills; the decision still lies in the people according to their conscience and understanding. It means that the church is not violating the constitution since it is only expressing its right to speak in order of its belief. Given the reasons above, that the Philippines has no state religion and given that the state does not subsidize the church, and that no church has any official access to the instruments of state power, I believe that the church does not violate the constitution and that there is really a separation of the church and the state.

Impact of Exile on the Frankfurt School’s Theory

Impact of Exile on the Frankfurt School’s Theory GERMAN JEWS: INTELLIGETNSIA IN EXILE The atrocities of the Second World War (WWII) drove many of continental Europe’s Jewish intellectual elite to the United States and Great Britain. The Axis persecution not only targeted ethnic groups, but also persecuted an array of intellectuals and political thinkers. Among these was the political and philosophical institution known as The Frankfurt School (TFS). Some of its most influential members included Austrian-born art historian Ernst Gombrich (1909-2001), Herbert Marcuse (1898-1979), Theodor Adorno (1903-1969), Max Horkheimer (1895-1973) and Walter Benjamin (1892-1940), all of whom were at one point influenced by both political and intellectual persecution. Their European experience was affected by their Jewish identities as well as their respective theories of aesthetics and their affinity for a reformed system of Marxist thought. Unfortunately for the noted thinkers, their alienating experiences in exile did not stop after leaving Europe. As a proponent of Marxism and aspects of Communist thought, TFS’ encounters with elements of America’s notorious Red Scare had profound effects on the development of its work. Despite the inherently American institution of Ford’s mass assembly and naturally Communist implications of the American working class’ ideals, the bourgeois-idealism of TFS found it could not escape questions of its motives and widespread suspicions perpetuated throughout the American political environment. Spurred on by the relentless political witch-hunts of the Senator Joseph McCarthy (R-Wisconsin), scholars of the Frankfurt school found themselves perpetually marginalized throughout their lives. While ostracized intellectually for espousing Communist theory and rhetoric, TFS scholars were not limited to political systems. Gombrich and others followed paths similar to aesthetic thinker Michel Foucault in arenas ranging from art and music to popular culture at large. The experiences of TFS thinkers differed in this respect, with some challenged directly upon their arrival to the US. Others found that while they may not have been singled out in McCarthyism’s irreconcilable political aggression, their experiences in exile shared common traits ranging from the nonchalant acceptance of existentialist thought to the mobilization of Marxist revolutionary rhetoric. Unable to settle in any intellectual sphere, the constant alienation of TFS scholars weighed heavily on their philosophical conclusions, arguably cementing the unique characteristics of its thought. The political unrest and unconscionable harassment TFS thinkers encountered played as big a role in the development of its thought as religion played in the formulaic structure of a priori philosophy vis-à  -vis Kant and Rawls. Without their experiences in exile and resettlement in America and Britain, it is argued that their indirect sponsorship of Marxist thought would never have taken form. The particularly noteworthy traits of TFS scholarship are the irrevocable feelings of nostalgia and longing and perhaps the inevitable rebellion of those who simply could not accept intellectual ostracizing. Whether rejected by Heidegger or pursued by McCarthy, TFS found itself constantly in defense of its positions, its scholars either accepting of the situation or flagrantly unapologetic in their stance. Through identification of each key scholar’s beliefs and comparing shared experiences in exile, revelations of the weight of exile on the establishment of TFS schools of thought are clarified as well as the extent to which each scholar may have based his respective epistemological conclusions on sen timent rather than idealism. The German-Jewish experience, after all, was unique among Communist experiences throughout Europe and the United States. On one hand, Communists were persecuted both in the United States and Europe. On the other, the Jewish experience in Europe, especially that of the bourgeois, added a personal degree to marginalization. Europe had no propensity of goodwill towards Jews, but the American predilection to personal liberty found little room for acceptance in regards to Communism, especially in the years after WWII and the gradual Soviet ascension to the status of superpower. THE EXPERIENCE OF GERMAN JEWS IN CONSTANT EXILE: A LOOK AT AMERICAN TFS SCHOLARS Herbert Marcuse A student of German philosopher Martin Heidegger, Marcuse found himself at odds with society from the natal stage of his academic career. Marcuse found himself at odds in the forming of his epistemological stance; Feenberg believes this struggle is the product of â€Å"his own past, his complicated relationship to the doctrine of his teacher, Heidegger†[1]. Academically blocked as a German Jew, Marcuse would later find opposition in his career as a proponent of Communism; the two traits were hardly welcomed in German academic circles in the years preceding the rise of the Nazis. Even Heidegger hampered Marcuse’s development, the notorious Nazi supporter blocking publication of his student’s thesis in the infamous purge of dissenting ideas. Where Marcuse was remembered for being â€Å"guru of the New Left, the darling of 1968,† Heidegger is most known for having â€Å"betrayed his calling by becoming a Nazi and recognizing Hitler as his Fuhrer, never renou ncing his error publicly even after WWII†[2]. Marcuse differed from Heidegger’s nationalist positions as well as from his mentor’s stance on technology and social evolution. Marcuse believed technology had a profound effect on society, which in turn became a part of modern technology â€Å"not only as the men who invent and attend to machinery but also as the social groups which direct its application and utilization†[3]. To an extent, Heidegger’s avoidance of technology in regards to social evolution had much to do with the classical revolutionary stance Marxism upheld. The radical changes implicated in technological advancement, especially in the development of the wholly-efficient industrial ideology of Henry Ford, presented several philosophic and social implications, none of which could be tolerated in a society in constant intellectual upheaval. While Heidegger’s writings exuded a sense of existential realism in regards to technology and what he perceived as the end of human aesthetics and reason, Marcuse accepted modernity as part of an the ongoing Enlightenment, deviating from a priori traditions and accepting, for example, that concepts such as essence â€Å"can neither be based on tradition and community standards nor speculatively derived in an a priori metaphysics†[4]. In regards to his Marxist contemporaries, one of Marcuse’s shared traits with his other TFS scholars was his attempt to â€Å"combine critique and modernism in a revolutionary perspective†[5]. Perhaps the source of nationalistic suspicion, the revolutionary undertones of Marxist philosophy earned Marcuse the enmity of Germans and Americans alike, the extent of which will be later examined. A utopian thinker, Marcuse conceived â€Å"of a redeemed technological rationality in a liberated society, much as Plato,† imagining â€Å"a reformed rhetoric that would serve good ends†[6]. While Heidegger and other German nationalists believed in a utopia, their idealism was served by future ethnic cleansing and a politically-derived eschewing of Soviet-style Communism. â€Å"Safely checked after the mid-1930s,† Heidegger’s suppressed utopian impulses were a form of supplication to a regime that would not stand for intellectual deviance; also affected by the bleak reality of exile and intellectual persecution, TFS scholars Adorno and Horkheimer in turn â€Å"seemed to have lost not hope but even the capacity to imagine a better future†[7]. Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer Early in Adorno’s career, when he â€Å"started his study of philosophy in Frankfurt with Hans Cornelius, he was already complete outside the Neo-Kantian mainstream of the scholastic philosophy of that time that Cornelius himself represented†[8]. A priori epistemology was a staple of pre-war Germany for the ability to manipulate morals based on a code of law. Adorno’s anarchic themes and then-unconventional thinking added to his academic ostracism. In contrast, as the â€Å"son of an undertaker from Stuttgart, Horkheimer was no scholastic philosopher either, but he did stand closer to the traditional style of German philosophy than did Adorno†[9]. While a proponent of Marxism, Horkheimer often examined the nature of existing concepts rather than venturing into the realm of revolutionary action. In his â€Å"On the Problem of Truth,† Horkheimer wrote of the temporal nature of reality and truth, perhaps a reactionary piece to the propaganda and book-b urning espoused by the Nazis in 1938. Horkheimer placed a great deal of weight on the deviation of the individual from the perspective of the many, writing that â€Å"cognition never has more than limited validity† and that â€Å"every thing and every relation of things changes with time, and thus every judgment as to real situations must lose its truth with time†[10]. Perhaps slightly less existential than Adorno, Horkheimer did not fully discount the bleakness of the reality of his time. Though not outwardly optimistic, Horkheimer was taken aback by the negative light in which Adorno perceived the world around him. A lifelong friend and colleague of Max Horkheimer, Adorno â€Å"had, as Horkheimer once put it, a keen view of the existing world sharpened by hatred, and this coalesced well with the misanthropic inclinations of the Institute’s director who understood himself as its ‘dictator’†[11]. Welcomed almost instantly in to the TFS circle, Adorno was greatly affected by the persecution he encountered as a Jew and an intellectual. His negative views of the world and its people lead him to deviate in focus from the social institutions that would earn TFS infamy in America and Europe. Unlike his contemporary Horkheimer, Adorno was â€Å"not so much interested in social science and research as in music and aesthetic theory†[12]. Adorno’s negative view of the world, nationalist or not, had a profound effect on his writings and the development of his beliefs. His disdain of modernity and realism lead him to adopt surrealist views reminiscent of aestheticians such as Hume, not unlike fellow TFS scholar Walter Benjamin. Feenberg noted that: â€Å"From the point of view of an aesthetic modernism, Adorno made a sinister and radical critique of all non-aesthetic modernity. Here he was close to the French surrealists as was his friend Walter Benjamin. The aesthetic idea of freedom from all institutions of a repressive society was very different from a more scientific idea of freedom as controlling and planning this society and its economic anarchy, which was basically Marx’s idea†[13] Unlike Marcuse, who embraced technology fully as a manifestation of social evolution within the framework of the Enlightenment, Adorno acknowledged both the positive and negative potentials of a world philosophically and politically lead by technology. Both he and Horkheimer believed that technics â€Å"by itself can promote authoritarianism as well as liberty, scarcity as well as abundance, the extension as well as the abolition of toil†[14]. Though Marcuse shared several social views in common with Horkheimer and Adorno, he differed from the two in his methods of critiquing the Nazi ascension to power. Unlike Marcuse, Adorno believed technology and social evolution had as much to do with the pre-1938 German nationalistic purge of free thought as did the provincial thought espoused by the Nazi party. For instance, Adorno believed â€Å"National Socialism [to be] a striking example of the ways in which a highly rationalized and mechanized economy with the utmost efficiency in production can operate in the interest of totalitarian oppression and continued scarcity†; the Third Reich was what Adorno referred to as a form of technocracy, the â€Å"technical considerations of imperialistic efficiency and rationality [superseding] the traditional standards of profitability and general welfare†[15]. Despite the advances of technology and the social implications that should have set with society at large, the Nazis a nd their reign was sustained by the historically-familiar force of arms, propaganda, and ironically all the traits associated with Marxist society. In what was strikingly similar to Soviet-style Communism, the Nazis ascended to power on the coattails of â€Å"the intensification of labor, propaganda, the training of youths and workers, the organization of the governmental, industrial, and party bureaucracy—all of which constituted the daily implements of terror† and in doing so, following the lines of â€Å"greatest technological efficiency†[16]. Unlike Adorno and Horkheimer, â€Å"Marcuse followed a different trajectory,† believing â€Å"technology was to be reconstructed around a conception of the good in his terminology around life†[17]. The more pragmatic and academically optimistic of the two TFS colleagues, Horkheimer perceived the negative sociology of knowledge grasping Nazi Germany as a cyclical phenomenon, one that like its â€Å"existentialist counterparts, calls everything into question and criticizes nothing†[18]. Unlike Marcuse, whose philosophy held fewer checks and precautions on the evolution of society, Horkheimer held that â€Å"the growth of antagonisms† of their period was the product of â€Å"disproportionate development of human capacities,† as if to suggest the Nazi ascension was a matter of personality and not â€Å"of the anonymous machinery which does away with the individual†[19]. Horkheimer thus asserted that the negative state of the world leading to his and other German Jews’ experiences had more to do with the hasty elimination of the value of the individual, with the populace conned into fascism by belief in the good of the state over the good of the pe rson. He observed that â€Å"right and wrong are glossed over in like manner,† with â€Å"the average man abstracted from the concepts and assigned an ontological ‘narrow-mindedness’† reminiscent of pre-Enlightenment eras[20]. THE EXPERIENCE OF GERMAN JEWS IN EXILE: TFS SCHOLARS IN EUROPE Walter Benjamin and Ernst Gombrich Adorno believed Walter Benjamin’s â€Å"thinking constituted the antithesis of the existential concept of the person,† that Benjamin â€Å"seemed empirically, despite extreme individuation, hardly to have been a person at all, but rather an arena of movement in which a certain content forced its way, through him, into language†[21]. Benjamin was much more akin to Marcuse in his optimism for technology and its effect on society. Benjamin did not espouse the same existentialist negativity of Adorno and Horkheimer, his philosophy embodying the aspirations of a utopian dedicated to the transformation of society. While still revolutionary in the Marxist sense, Benjamin did not advocate as fully as Adorno the impetus of labor and its inherent connection to the human psyche. However, his focus on aesthetics paralleled his thinking along the lines of Adorno, which prompted an exchange of ideas among the two contemporaries. Where Marcuse focused on technology as a tool to revolutionize the proletariat in keeping with Marxist ideals, Benjamin focused more on art, media, and popular culture’s consumption of the latter. Benjamin was among the first to identify the impact of transforming aesthetics and their ability to change society. Where Benjamin saw a great chance â€Å"for a revolutionary transformation of art by the new technical mass media, Adorno and Horkheimer were much more skeptical,† focusing equally on the negative potential as well as the potential to contribute to the betterment of mankind[22]. Though an advocate of the individual and markedly more optimistic than Horkheimer (and Adorno), Benjamin’s philosophical perspective was one of bleak realism. Constantly pursued, Benjamin allegedly committed suicide while fleeing the Nazi regime of whom he was sharply critical. Never leaving Europe, Benjamin’s obstinate refusal to flee lead to his demise but ironically espoused his bleak outlook on life. Though he had th e means to do so, Benjamin remained in continental Europe at the end of his life, not following in the footsteps of the German Jewish intelligentsia who found refuge in America. Where Gombrich and Benjamin unfortunately differed most as European aestheticians was their end; Gombrich remained in the United Kingdom during the war as in the employ of German broadcast monitoring living to the age of 92. Benjamin, however, would never know acceptance or peace in his life, dying a manifestation of his perspective of man. Ironically, it was Horkheimer and Adorno who emphasized what they believed to be â€Å"the obvious power of the new media in fascist dictatorships† and â€Å"the manipulative potential to impose the will on the leaders to passive and authoritarian masses of people†[23]. Adorno and Horkheimer’s pessimism surpassed whatever bleak outlook Benjamin may have exuded, countering Benjamin’s emphatic support of mass media as equally malignant as beneficial to society. They believed, unlike Benjamin, that the propensity for immobilization of the individual was present â€Å"not only in fascist countries but also in democratic regimes like the USA and in totalitarian or authoritarian socialism such as the Soviet Union under Stalin†[24]. Benjamin most markedly departed from Horkheimer’s views in his take on subjectivity. He exuded a â€Å"refusal to speculate on the role of subjectivity in the critical process in large measure explicable as a reluctance to incorporate idealist philosophical baggage into an exploration of the metaphysical structure of truth, which, as he had been convinced from very early on, was objectively present and objectively discoverable in the phenomena themselves†[25]. Like Adorno and Marcuse, Benjamin’s perception was a marked departure from neo-Kantian phenomenology and a priori-based philosophy. Benjamin’s â€Å"unwillingness to regard contemplative subjectivity as a constitutive in the critical discovery of truth was a philosophical predilection he shared with peers† who â€Å"were engaged in critical receptions of Marx, Nietzsche, and Weber†[26]. Pensky notes that: â€Å"†¦the potential endlessness of the process of subjective speculation might close out for good the receptive capacity whereby the messianic moments of historical experience could disclose themselves in the medium of critical thinking. Subjectivity, which is the medium in which the act of critical redemption takes place, is also the realm of contemplation and poses risk of an abyssal, endless descent into the inner recesses of speculation as bad infinity†[27]. Like Benjamin and Adorno, Ernst Gombrich was an accomplished aesthetician. Quick to make note of the innately negative potential of art, Gombrich claimed in his article â€Å"Art and Propaganda† that the modern age’s â€Å"sinister technique which gradually converts human beings into something like mental robots† rendered art and propaganda sharing â€Å"at least one common frontier†[28]. The exploitation of art’s aesthetic appeal coincides with propaganda; for art and propaganda to be received successfully by the general public, Gombrich argued that sensationalism in one shape or form had to be communicated. Where art had to break boundaries and the norm set by the precedence of the imagination, propaganda had to break boundaries set by the precedence of accepted logic. Gombrich stated plainly that â€Å"aesthetics of bygone days could name rhetoric† as the realm where art and propaganda met[29]. Gombrich believed â€Å"persuasion through t he eye, pictorial propaganda, is far from holding a similar rank in theory, but in practice its possibilities have always been exploited†[30]. THE TFS INTELLECTUAL EXPERIENCE IN AMERICA DURING MCCARTHYISM â€Å"According to information compiled by the various national and international aid committees formed in 1933 to rescue German intellectuals, about 1,200 academics lost their jobs in Germany during that year. This number was to grow by the end of the 1930s to about 1,700, to which another 400 university faculty were added after the annexation of Austria. If the various other academic professionals, doctors, lawyers, and so on, as well as students suspended from the universities are included, the total number comes to about 7,500. If we add writers, artists, and other freelancers, we may safely assume that—not counting family members—about 12,000 intellectuals lost their jobs and were eliminated from Germany’s social and cultural life†[31]. Perhaps more ominous than the volume of intellectuals exiled from Germany was the indication made by the mass-exodus of field-specific academics. Krohn notes that no sooner was the so-called â€Å"Law to Restore the Professional Civil Service† of April 1933 passed than â€Å"over 16 percent of all university faculty were dismissed†[32]. These â€Å"dismissals,† as they were termed, reached new heights, culminating in the forced-departure of â€Å"more than one-quarter of all university teachers†; in retrospect, the loss of â€Å"university faculty through the end of 1938 has been assessed at 39 percent†[33]. The fact that nearly 80 percent of German philosophical intelligentsia was Jewish and estranged on two fronts—ethnicity and intellectual affiliation—only hastened the effective neutralization of dissent inside Nazi Germany. Unfortunately, however, the departure of the German Jews whose beliefs fell outside the auspices of American political favor comprised a majority. TFS scholars comprised a minority of intellectuals whose formerly high-profile status carried over to the United States. Ironically, those â€Å"who had first experienced Hitler’s wrath benefited from their privileged position†; â€Å"the academics he booted out in 1933 were extended assistance and hospitality almost at once by American and British institutions; hence their crossing was comparatively smooth†[34]. Intellectuals who later reached the shores of Britain and the United States well into the war, however, experienced a different welcoming. With Britain under constant attack and the main city centers such as London almost shut down in Nazi bombing campaigns, several lacked the institutional umbrella of academia to transition into their new lands. Without such protection, many such â€Å"intellectuals often supported themselves initially with menial jobs, working as gardeners and dishwashers or, if strong enough, as stevedores and mechanics†[35]. Finding themselves in a state of near-poverty, many intellectuals including professionals such as doctors, lawyers, and en gineers never resumed their academic pursuits. Most notably, the American academic environment at the end of WWII left many German intellectuals to find â€Å"that their specialties did not transport well†[36]. A common assumption in regards to intellectuals in McCarthy-era America is that all were persecuted in the â€Å"Red Scare† that ensued at the beginning of the 1950s. But those intellectuals who were fortunate enough to remain in their fields found themselves in a much more favorable position than those who were struggling to survive in the blue collar marketplace. In comparison to these â€Å"foiled scholars, the most abused academic rested on a flower bed of ease†; â€Å"these unfulfilled à ©migrà ©s remained present in the academics’ lives, as their friends, their relatives, the audiences for their lectures and publications†[37]. This is not to say, however, that the German-Jewish academics in 1950s America did not encounter tribulation in their assimilation to New World society. Contentions such as Marcuse’s support of the Marxist tenet emphasizing labor as â€Å"man’s means of realizing his essence† and an irrevocable aspect of â€Å"man’s nature† were only slightly more welcome in American intellectual circles as they were in pre-war Germany[38]. Suspected by many as agents provocateurs of the Soviet Union, German-Jewish intelligentsia were marginalized further after having fled a land inflamed by similar conditions. Tensions flared following the capture and execution of convicted Communists Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, whose 1953 executions were part and parcel of McCarthy’s fervent vigil for Communists of all sorts. Given Benjamin, Adorno, and Horkheimer’s fears about propaganda, McCarthy-era America was hardly a place to feel welcomed. The isolation felt in America by TFS after fleeing Nazi persecution contributed greatly to the molding of its philosophic rhetoric. Marcuse often wrote of â€Å"the horror of capitalism produced by the type of objectification it fostered,† finding glaring similarities in the death of individuality embodied in the American industrial working class as in the nationalist characteristics of Nazi Germany. Furthermore, TFS scholars were alarmed at the scant modicum of utopian values espoused by a competitive drive set on besting one’s fellow man. Marcuse and others agreed â€Å"with the analysis of alienated labor in the Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts, to which Horkheimer and Adorno rarely referred in their writings†; â€Å"un-alienated labor, Marcuse suggested, implied working with others, not against them†[39]. As capitalism p revented the Marxist ideal of solidarity, TFS scholars perceived it as one more cause against which revolutionary tactics were mandated. Such revolutionary overtones, as one might imagine, were demonized by intellectual circles advocating McCarthyism’s rhetoric. As a corollary, further existential rhetoric pervaded TFS philosophy, the impetus of the constant necessity of revolution alienating themselves from American society simultaneously lending to their own feelings of nostalgia and desire for a sense of belonging. Adorno was among the TFS scholars who never found a place among American academics. Estranged from non-Communist circles, he was among several who found themselves as perpetual intellectual refugees. Brunkhorst claims that â€Å"all in all America remained foreign to Adorno†; during his exile, â€Å"Adorno never gave up the hope of coming back to Europe and Germany†[40]. Like other TFS scholar, Adorno was acclimated to a certain â€Å"distinction† as was the norm among â€Å"the old European educated classes†[41]. America, however, was entering a point of mass industrialization, ironically paralleling pre-war Germany in its focus on the state and the relative muting of intelligentsia in the era. THE DEVELOPMENT OF KEY TFS THEORY Development of key TFS theory evolved through conversation and communication, which were â€Å"among the guiding mottos of contemporary thought†; Dallmayr questions, however, if TFS socio-political perspectives could be â€Å"integrated into a common conversational framework† in a manner â€Å"yielding transparent understanding of all points of view†[42]. It is just as likely that such idioms as Marcuse’s take on technology and Gombrich’s theories of propaganda and truth were formulated on the precepts of an â€Å"unbridgeable gulf† or the â€Å"incommensurability of linguistic and epistemic rules†[43]. TFS theory, Dallmayr contends, was shaped by contact with its a priori counterpart in the Freiburg Institute, comprised of Heidegger and Kantian colleagues. In measuring the extent of exile’s effect on TFS, it is of the utmost importance to examine TFS’ experiences in its indigenous setting, that is to say its experiences in Germany and Europe. According to Dallmayr, â€Å"nowhere are the dilemmas of communication and non-communication more glaringly apparent than in the context of recent German thought† as manifested between TFS and Freiburg; â€Å"to a large extent, contacts between the two schools of thought have been marked either by neglect or indifference or else by polemical hostility and an insistence on incommensurability, often coupled with hegemonial [sic] claims†[44]. It is, after all, equally as possible that as a proponent of revolutionary rhetoric that TFS’ existence was dependent on a measure of exile of the metaphoric type. To a large extent, TFS scholars’ conclusions were drawn within the framework of Marxism, whose fundamental precept is revolution on a large scale. When taken into the context of â€Å"moral indictment† as described by Dallmayr, the experience of TFS in Germany would put into perspective the exchange of ideas espoused by TFS in ex ile and in its natal setting of pre-war Germany. Given the tendency of Marxist ideology and the radicalization of its writings, perhaps even Benjamin’s bleak outlook on life could have been regarded as carrying with it the requisite novelty of individuality; how would any revolutionary school of thought conduct itself if it followed in the footsteps of convention? Adorno, after all, â€Å"maintained a relentless opposition to Heidegger’s work and lavished on it an unending stream of polemical venom, a practice aggravated by personal distance†; Heidegger, on the other hand, â€Å"remained aloof from the Frankfurt School and at one point confessed complete ignorance of Adorno’s writings†[45]. While the personal contingent of Heidegger’s latent support of the Nazi party cannot be dismissed, it also does not dismiss the tone with which Adorno and other TFS thinkers indicted their opposition and the contempt they held for some of their a priori, Kantian contemporaries. Sherratt examines the possibility of Adorno’s â€Å"Positive Dialectic,† in which she purports there is a â€Å"positive† solution to what Adorno and others â€Å"envisaged as the problems of subjectivity and knowledge in enlightenment†[46]. Sherratt examines Adorno’s aesthetic, extricating and examining from Adorno’s work on enlightenment that would have the potential for positive dialectic. Unlike many of his other works, Sherratt finds that following his exile from Germany, Adorno’s epistemological and aesthetic conclusions are indirectly and dialectically positive. She concludes that the â€Å"newer† dialectic was positive in contrast â€Å"with the ‘old’ dialectic, which is already shown as negative†[47]. If Sherratt’s conclusions are of any sch

‘Herbert and Harry’ by Pamela Allen Essay

The genre of picture books is predominantly aimed at younger readers and often referred to as children’s books. Herbert & Harry is a children’s picture book, written by Pamela Allen in 1986, which tells the story of two brothers who have a falling out over treasure they found. It is a picture book which not only tells a story but which possesses moralistic values and ideologies through the story. Together with the written aspects of the text the illustrations fulfil an important role in the message this book expresses. These two main features of any picture book are, quite obviously, what works on the reader to get a certain view across. Picture books are a great way of getting a message to children. Along with other resources and mediums children, in their early learning years tend to do a lot of reading of such books, this provides an effective tool to convey moral and ethical messages to young readers. It would however, be incorrect to state that all children appreciate the same messages through picture books, for some young students may not appreciate a message at all. In this specific picture book the message is perhaps a little more obvious. While the story does not distinctly state that money does not make you happy, it does state that you can be happy without money, or treasure in Herbert & Harry’s case. Herbert and Harry are brothers who do everything together, happily, one day however they stumble across treasure which Herbert chooses over his brother, this leads onto their parting, while Herbert struggles to hide and guard the treasure he becomes miserable and tired, â€Å"Harry, who had not treasure, has always been able to sleep soundly.†(Allen, 1986) This quote sums up the message in the story and is accompanied by an illustration which shows just how happy Harry is without money. The use of these tools is what makes the reader think and feel what the autho r is attempting convey. The narration of the visual and verbal texts plays a significant part in the affect the picture book has on the reader. The verbal element this text is very important in analysing what the affect on the reader is. A picture book can use many different tools when writing the words to try and express a certain view or value. In the instance of Herbert & Harry, the words â€Å"they†, â€Å"same† and â€Å"together† (Allen, 1986) are used quite frequently in the first few pages. This repetitive use of these words drums home the idea that the brothers did everything together. While  quite insignificant by itself, this message adds a great depth to the final conclusion of the book. The names given to the characters are also important factors. Herbert and Harry are quite similar, which gives the reader the impression that these brothers are pretty much the same people. Through out the story the verbal text turns its focus on each brother separately; this could perhaps show us that the characters have parted and that perhaps they are not the same person any longer. While fighting over the treasure, Herbert says; â€Å"This treasure is mine,† â€Å"I pulled it up† (Allen, 1986) while Harry says, â€Å"I chose this place to cast our net† (Allen, 1986). The use of ‘our net’ perhaps says to the reader that Harry is a little more selfless than Herbert is, this could encourage the reader to agree that Herbert is acting selfishly. Another difference can be found in the intended tone they use. Where Herbert â€Å"shouted† (Allen, 1986), Harry simply â€Å"said† (Allen, 1986) suggesting that Herbert has spoken with more aggression than Harry did. The fact that â€Å"Harry was a strong swimmer and managed to get safely home† (Allen, 1986) could propose that, through the use of the word safely, Herbert had put Harry in danger when he pushed him overboard. This is may be where text starts persuading the reader to dislike one character, Herbert. It could also be said that the word ‘home’ in this sentence was deliberately placed there to reiterate that that’s where Harry was going; â€Å"safely home.† â€Å"Herbert rowed the treasure as fast as he could†¦until he reached a lonely stretch of coast.† The word lonely plays a key role in this quote and ultimately the rest of the picture book. It sets the scene for where Herbert is for the remainder of the story. Alone and lonely. Promoting the reader to recognise that the character is alone on his stretch of coast, alone â€Å"as far away from Harry as possible.† (Allen, 1986). The author has used repetition in a lot of the verbal text in the story. â€Å"The land got emptier and emptier† and â€Å"the treasure got heavier and heavier† (Allen, 1986), are examples of this. Repetition enables the author to emphasize a feeling for the reader to understand just how, in this case, empty the land is and how heavy the treasure is. It is a tool that is used to stress a point. Another example of repetition in this story is where Herbert began to chip the rock in order to hide the treasure, â€Å"Chip chip, chip chip, chip chip, chip chip, went Herbert.† (Allen, 1986). This could suggest that while Herbert does have the treasure and it would seem that he had beaten Harry, in fact it has been  more than hard work maintaining the treasure, and perhaps not so fun either. This could be the moral of the story. Allen uses many different tools to stress this point through the use of the verbal and visual texts in the picture book. In the final stages of the story the author has uses contrast to weight the values incorporated into the story. â€Å"While Harry, who had no treasure, has always been able to sleep soundly.† This quote ties together the idea that money and in this case treasure, will not always make you happy, in fact one can be happy without it. This use of contrast enables the reader to explore the story and the values within it more objectively. The verbal text can influence a reader just as much as the pictures or visual text of a book, and normally one will reinforce the other. The pictures in this book are notably significant when assessing the author’s presumed intention. There are several significant illustrations which, combined with the verbal text not only tell the story but reinforce the values which the author is expressing. Children’s books often use the pictures to present a certain moral standing, â€Å"their shape [pictures], their style, their composition are also means of conveying information about how viewers are being invited to respond to the story.† (Nodelman et al, 2003), this children’s picture book, and it’s pictures are no different. In the beginning of the story when we are invited to believe that the brothers are equal, the pictures reiterate this. The brothers look the same, apart from the colour of their clothes they are identical. Perhaps it is this that prompts the reader to show no favoring toward any brother; this however is encouraged later in the story when the pictures start to change. In the beginning of the story the pictures reflect happiness, the brothers are smiling, one could even point out that while fishing together from the same boat, the fish they have caught are even smiling. This is not the case however after they have their falling out over the treasure. Once the story begins to tell of Herbert’s struggle with the treasure and its hiding the illustrations seem to have zoomed out. Where Harry and Herbert were once the largest focus in the pictures herbert has now got smaller in comparison to his surrounding mountainous terrain â€Å"Characters depicted as small shapes surrounded by forests or large empty rooms seem threatened or lost. If the figure of the character were enlarged so that it filled th e space, the same  figure would seem much less bleak.† (Nodelman et al, 2003). In all of the illustrations of Herbert without Harry he is depicted small, and is in fact surrounded by seemingly empty mountains. This recapitulates the feeling given by the verbal text, that Herbert is alone and threatened â€Å"what if someone had followed him and stole the treasure while he slept?† (Allen, 1986). The sentiment of the book so far is that Herbert is not having a good time hiding his treasure and being all alone. His size in the illustrations is somewhat proof of this. Barren colours were used in most all of these pictures, perhaps representing a lack of life and vibrancy. The stark contrast between not only the words, on the last two pages of the book coincide with the overall feeling of the book. On one side, there is a picture of Herbert, in his fort, amoungst the mountains, seemingly skinny, bored, and tired, and on the other page, Harry, plump, happy, warm and surrounded by children, presumably grandchildren. This contrast in similar fashion as the words expresses the differences their lives have taken. Harry with a smile on his face seems happy and fulfilled, yet Herbert, who has the treasure is alone, small and tired â€Å"But still, he cannot sleep.† (Allen, 1986). This use of comparison and opposition echos the view that treasure is not worth the lengths Herbert went to for, and that one can be happy and fulfilled without it. Another question raised with these last two pictures, is perhaps that the reason Herbert could not sleep was not in fact that he was worried about his treasure but maybe he found it hard to sleep because he was alone and didn’t have a family that we see Harry has. Picture books are quite unique as far as story telling goes, not only do they use verbal text but visual ones as well. Without words the picture would seem incomplete or perhaps tell a slightly different story, the same with the words. It is the special relationship between the two that tell the story to its fullest. A combination of the two that give the author the opportunity to express the views and values intended â€Å"the pictures focus attention on specific aspects of the words and cause viewers to interpret them in specific ways.† (Nodelman et al, 2003). A junction of the two aspects of any picture book, the visual and the verbal text allow for the interpretation of any moral, or ideological message within a story. REFERENCES Allen, Pamela, HERBERT & HARRY, 1986, Melbourne, Nelson Publishers Nodelman, P and Reimer, M, ‘Picture Books’, from THE PLEASURES OF CHILDRENS LITERATURE, 3rd ed, 2003, Boston, Allyn & Bacon, pp. 274-301

Analysis Of The Fall Of Ferdinand Marcos Essay

October 10, 2001 Word Count: 2466 Research Question: How did Ferdinand E. Marcos eventually fall from power? INTRODUCTION Ferdinand E. Marcos was the longest reigning Philippine president in history. His rule spanned 20 years, beginning in 1965 up to his downfall in 1983. He was the first and only president re-elected so far (first in 1969 and second in 1981). After his second term, corruption in his administration was rampant. For 20 years he ruled the Philippines with an iron fist, and amassed a personal fortune. According to all sources, he managed to prolong his term for so long through his â€Å"private military† (Sonia M. Zaide, 217) that crushed or silenced opposition against him. His attempts to prolong his term however, were also responsible for the dissatisfaction of his people and the growth in opposition and against him which eventually led to his downfall, after the assassination of Benigno Aquino on 1983. BACKGROUND ON MARCOS’ RISE TO POWER Marcos came from a rich and politically prominent family in Ilocos, a province in the northern part of the Philippines. He began his political career in 1949, being elected to the House of Representatives as congressman of Ilocos. In 1965, he was elected as President of the Senate. He then (as a Nacionalista, one of the 2 main political parties) ran for president and gained victory over the incumbent president, Diosdado Macapagal. Marcos promised to â€Å"make the nation great again,† and during his first term of 6 years Marcos gained widespread popularity through his extensive economic and political achievements. In 1969 Marcos became the first (and up to the moment, still the only) re-elected president of the Philippines. During his second term however, Marcos lost popularity due to the extensive graft and corruption of his favoured cronies, and the human rights violations of the Marcos administration when he proclaimed Martial Law on September 21, 1972. He lifted Martial La w in 1981 after reducing the opposition by intimidation. During his second re-election in 1981, Marcos had only one opponent, Alejo Santos of the Nacionalista party, because Senator Benigno Aquino (who was his only credible opponent) was living in exile in the United States. During the next years, the Philippine economy was considered â€Å"the sick man of Asia† (Time Magazine). In 1982, Marcos was sickly and he was absent in many official ceremonies. During this time, his wife (Imelda Marcos) and her  cronies were unofficially running the country. It was during this time, when on August 21, 1983, his long time rival, Benigno Aquino (wife of Benigno Aquino), returned to the Philippines. He was assassinated in broad daylight in the Manila International Airport by one of the government military escorts and this incident was captured by camera (Don Lawson, 1). This infuriated the Filipino people, which was the final blow to his rule. After days of mass rallies and demonstrations all over the country, he called as snap election as part of his strategy to maintain his credibility in the international body. He was declared the official winner because of massive vote buying and cheating and intimation. The mass rallies and demonstrations continued nationwide which paralyzed the government operations † for example, banks were closed and transport services were on strike, and part of the military rebelled, and all these led to the now popular EDSA Revolution (also known as â€Å"People Power†) on February 16, 1986 which toppled Marcos’ rule. ANALYSIS OF THE CAUSES OF MARCOS DOWNFALL The causes of Marcos’ downfall can be divided into two parts † long term causes and short term causes. Marcos’ acts of corruption which include: his attainment of large sums of money from the Philippine treasury during his reign, abuse of military power to suppress opposition and maintain a firm grip on presidency, and his political schemes to prolong his rule were responsible for creating an atmosphere of hatred and discontent on Marcos’ rule, under the overriding atmosphere of fear created by the resulting suppression of any threats to his power. These doings cultivated the seeds of dissatisfaction which soon developed into unified hatred towards Marcos’ reign. There was widespread discontent, but this discontent was still silent. The short-term or immediate cause of Marcos’ downfall was the Assassination of Ninoy Aquino. The â€Å"assassination brought Philippine’s economic shambles to world attention† (Fred Poole and Max Vanz i, 244) and lead to Marcos’ fall from power after the EDSA revolution. MARCOS’ MILITARY The military was the initial basis of Marcos’ power. Marcos’ military control provided him with a huge political advantage. Marcos used the military to create an atmosphere of terror, to discourage opposition and  eliminate any threats to his power to enable him to continue his rule over the country. During his reign, bribery and intimidation of voters during elections was rampant. As the corruption in the Marcos administration became widespread, demonstrations occurred as student activism rose, but were quickly suppressed by his military. An example of this is the â€Å"Battle of Mendiola† on January 1970, in which demonstrators tried to storm in the gates of the Malacanang Palace (the Philippine Presidential building, similar to the White House). It was the most violent of the student demonstrations (Florida C. Leuterio, 151). Due to the increase in violence Marcos imposed martial law in 1972. According to all sources consulted, there may have been a possibil ity that some acts of violence were planned by Marcos to ensure the legitimacy of his declaration of martial law. Since the constitution limited his presidency for merely two terms, he was due to step down on December 30 1973. However, upon the proclamation of martial law, he would be able to perpetuate his rule over the Philippines, because the 1935 constitution had not stated the limitations for the length of martial law (Florida C. Leuterio, 153). Marcos then used the military to detain Filipinos suspected of subversion. This included all critics/activists (ranging from students to professionals), and potential political opponents. They were tortured by their captors and many were then held in military detention camps. Marcos’ â€Å"military establishment tightened its grasp into a stranglehold through increased terror† (Fred Poole and Max Vanzi, 208). Although POLITICAL SCHEMES TO PROLONG HIS TERM AND GAIN POWER For more than 20 years Marcos was able to prolong his term. Through his political schemes and manipulations, Marcos was able to continue with his presidency despite the limitation of only eight consecutive years, the decline of his country’s economy, and the harsh conditions suffered by the majority of its citizens. Even before the presidential elections of 1965 Marcos received numerous military decorations which made him one of the most decorated heroes of World War II. Through this, Marcos gained popular American support, and gained an edge in the 1965 Elections. Sterling Seagrave (author of The Marcos Dynasty) states that Marcos had merely invented the feats made the Philippines most decorated World War II hero. Don Lawson (author of Marcos and the Philippines) however, does not state that Marcos has invented those feats. During 1971 a Constitutional Convention was held to rewrite the 1935  constitution which would then enable Marcos to continue in power under the new constitution. On 1973 he enforced the new constitution which would give him both the powers of a president and a prime minister (until one is elected). The constitution was ratified through citizen assemblies by raise of hands. Due to the prevailing atmosphere, the people adopted to the new constitution. During elections, Marcos engaged in massive fraud to ensure his victory. ILL-GOTTEN WEALTH According to Australian investigator Reiner Jacobi the Marcos rule was economically disastrous for the Philippines. Financial he discovered showed that Marcos had â€Å"systematically looted his country for over 20 years.† He states that the Marcos’ taken at least $5 billion in â€Å"ill-gotten wealth† and that there is other material suggesting that Marcos took even more. Marcos â€Å"used his favourites†Ã‚ ¦ to take charge of the nation’s natural and human resources and its big economic ventures.† Journalist Ron Whittaker goes on to prove that as Marcos and his family amassed a personal fortune, through stealing from the Philippine treasury. He states that â€Å"Despite the hundreds of millions of dollars from the United States each year, Marcos’ government was falling increasingly into debt; and, even as his personal fortunes rapidly escalated, the majority of his people were living in poverty.† Although Marcos succeeded in intimidating his opposition and prolonging his term, his abuse of power exposed his corruptness to the people, which thus created an atmosphere of discontent towards him which continued to build up and would eventually cause his downfall. However, due to the atmosphere of fear Marcos has created, there was still a lack of motivation to call for reform and stand up against the threat of Marcos’ military. THE AQUINO ASSASSINATION AND THE EVENTS THAT FOLLOWED The final blow happened when Benigno Aquino, his only credible opponent, was assassinated by his military escorts, with this incident captured in video tape and broadcast in the foreign media. The event shocked the not only the Filipino people, but the whole world, as footage of the assassination was aired internationally (Sonia M. Zaide, 217). The Assassination was the last act of injustice that the people would take from Marcos. This infuriated the Filipino people, who  became bold because of their outrage. Benigno Aquino was transformed into a national idol (Florida C. Leuterio). It created anger in the Filipino’s that was able to supersede the atmosphere of fear. His death awakened the Filipinos to the â€Å"Evils of Marcos.† In addition to this militant groups (the August Twenty-One movement, Justice for Aquino, Justice for all, and BAYAN† were organized. They staged demonstrations calling for an end to Marcos’ rule. Aquino’s death caused a ch ain reaction of events that eventually forced Marcos out of power. As the Philippine economy deteriorated the Filipinos became poorer and poorer. Anti-Marcos demonstrations cause the decline of the tourism industry. Rampant corruption discouraged foreign investors. High oil prices, and the price decline of traditional exports caused a slow down in economic activity. The government was forced to borrow from the IMF, World Bank, the US and its foreign creditors pressured Marcos to implement reforms as a condition for granting him economic and financial assistance. Their actions were like a vote of no confidence to the Marcos rule and legitimacy as the living conditions of the Filipino’s had furthermore worsened (Florida C. Leuterio, 165). Their actions resulted in further depreciation of the Philippine Peso. As many businesses slowed down, there were mass layoffs which, in turn, caused more poverty and the further disenchantment of the people. Marcos’ effort to survive by calling and winning the snap elections on 1986 failed because of the massive cheating, and the people truly believed Cory Aquino was the true victor. Doubt and scepticism on Marcos furthermore threatened his rule. A group of reformist lead by Fidel V. Ramos, and Juan Ponce Enrile made plans to face the Marcos loyalist and overthrow Marcos. In an attempt to prevent a bloody civil war Cory Aquino launched civil disobedience nationwide in a movement which became known as EDSA or â€Å"People Power.† The Filipinos made a human barricade that prevented the two forces from attacking each other. US senator Paul Laxalt advised him to â€Å"cut, and cut clean.† Marcos was forced to exile in Hawaii on February 25, 1986. According to Dr. Florida C. Leuterio (author of Philippine History and Government), despite the hopelessness of the situation, Marcos had not yet  give up and attempted to impose martial law once again. The plan was code-named â€Å"Everlasting.† He was to send soldiers dressed in civilian clothing to spread violence and terror. This incident would eventually give him an excuse to once again impose martial law and thus, furthermore prolonging his term. However, before he could put his plan into act, the EDSA revolution took place. This truly exposes the corruptness of Marcos’ and furthermore proves his unjust nature and his illegitimacy as president. Sterling Seagrave adds that just before the inauguration of Cory Aquino, Marcos had contacted Enrile offering to set up a provisional government were Cory Aquino, Enrile, and Marcos would rule. This goes to show Marcos’ sheer determination to retain his presidency and prolong his term. ROLE OF THE MEDIA IN THE DOWNFALL OF MARCOS Ron Whittaker (a journalist who studies the effects on Media in politics) believes that the media has had a crucial role in contributing to the downfall of Marcos (both in exposing his corruption, and also in helping organize the EDSA revolution) and that Marcos might have retained his presidency if it were not for the media. He states that because of Marcos’ control over the media, the international community was not aware of the situation in the Philippines because unless certain attention is required, the â€Å"international media take their cues from local press coverage.† I strongly support this and believe that the media was essential in the downfall of Marcos. The assassination of Benigno Aquino was a key factor and the immediate cause of Marcos’ fall from power. It was the event that fuelled the Filipino’s angers and made them take action. It was the event that caused international eyes to observe the situation in the Philippines. This in turn, forced Marcos to think twice before carrying out his military abuses. CONCLUSION The Marcos experience teaches us that power corrupts and creates a situation which ultimately impoverishes the country and its people. The main cause of Marcos downfall is the suffering and poverty he created during his rule. Not even his control of the military can sustain him forever. Eventually he lost major support of the people, the church, and part of the military mutinied. (Unlike Lee Kuan Yu of Singapore who was also an  authoritarian leader, but he was perceived as honest and he was able to improve the economy of Singapore and the standard of living of his people. Even up to now Lee Kuan Yu is still active as a senior minister and highly respected all over the world, a sharp contrast to what happened to Marcos). Even if Marcos did not commit the fatal mistake of assassinating Benigno Aquino, I believe that it merely hastened the process and it would be only a question of time, before he will replaced by the people in a popular election or uprising. In this world of modern television and CNN, a corrupt leader like Marcos would not be able to sustain his image as a legitimate leader of his people. In many ways, the experience of Soeharto, who also had complete control of the military, also proves that a leader today cannot survive if there is widespread corruption and poverty in his country. With the help of the pouring international media, Marcos not only gained opposition locally, but abroad as well, and as a result of this Marcos was eventually forced to step down from power.

Panera Bread Nonprofit Restaurant

Panera Bread Nonprofit Restaurant Panera Bread is a company that has a chain of caterings all over the USA. The executive chairman of the board, Ron Shaich, has decided to open a nonprofit restaurant in St. Louis that declares â€Å"Take what you need, leave your fair share†.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Panera Bread Nonprofit Restaurant specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The restaurant offers bakery products and customers pay the price they consider appropriate, or, those who cant pay, are able to get food by donating their time. One of the main ideas of this restaurant is to sell day-old baked goods other restaurants of the chain produce (Panera: Pay what you can afford, 2010). Sharing experience is one of the main problems the organization faces. Dwelling upon the main idea of this nonprofit restaurant, it is important to state that it offers people bakery products which are not paid to the cashiers as in usual restaurants. Cashiers offer only the information about their cost and receive credit cards. When people have selected what they want, they are not offered to pay their bill, they are asked to donate. Those who have no money have an opportunity to donate their time, to work in the restaurant. Money donated by the visitors is delivered to different communities which need support. Volunteer work is extremely important as it allows the company not to pay salaries and deliver more money to those who really need it (Horovitz, 2010). Sharing experience and knowledge is considered to be one of the main problems the community of practice faces, and the following steps should be considered to solve it. First of all, the community of practice should identify the goals, objects and the scope of work to do. Considering the case under consideration, it is necessary to identify the organizations in the area which want to have the same practice. According to the number of objects, a group of people should be created which sh ould be aware of the main principles of this kind of business. The volunteers who participated in the restaurant business may be considered as the best candidates. Secondly, it is necessary to create a plan according to which the information is going to be shared. Specific meetings, Internet forums or leaflets with the specific data are the central means of sharing the information among those who are interested in the affair. The managers of the restaurant should always be ready to answer the questions asked by those who are interested in running this kind of business. Panera Bread is not the first company which has decided to run this kind of business, so the information from other companies may be interesting. The Internet is a great opportunity to get it.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The policy of actions in the relation to the sharing of knowledge and exper ience in running donation business is created on the basis of the community of practice. It does not have any financial basis as this organization is nonprofit. The community of practice is â€Å"made up of individuals who are informally bounded to one another through exposure to a similar set of problems and a common pursuit of solutions† (Daft Lane, 2008, p. 216). Keeping in mind this specific definition, it is possible to create a set of nonprofit organizations which are aimed at helping foundations which need specific assistance or financial support. Thus, it may be concluded that Panera Bread nonprofit restaurant based on donations and volunteer work may become a center of the community of practice aimed at helping other companies create the same kind of business in different spheres. Information sharing may be considered as the main problem the company may face, but it is important to remember about the communities which are always ready to help. Reference List Daft, R . L. Lane, P. G. (2008). The leadership experience. Stamford: Cengage Learning. Horovitz, B. (2010, may 18). Non-profit Panera cafe: Take what you need, pay what you can. USA Today. Web. Panera: Pay what you can afford. (2010, May 18). St. Louis Business Journal. Web.

Structural Equation Modeling

Structural Equation Modeling Structural equation modeling is an advanced statistical technique that has many layers and many complex concepts. Researchers who use structural equation modeling have a good understanding of basic statistics, regression analyses, and factor analyses. Building a structural equation model requires rigorous logic as well as a deep knowledge of the field’s theory and prior empirical evidence. This article provides a very general overview of structural equation modeling without digging into the intricacies involved. Structural equation modeling is a collection of statistical techniques that allow a set of relationships between one or more independent variables and one or more dependent variables to be examined. Both independent and dependent variables can be either continuous or discrete and can be either factors or measured variables. Structural equation modeling also goes by several other names: causal modeling, causal analysis, simultaneous equation modeling, analysis of covariance structures, path analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis. When exploratory factor analysis is combined with multiple regression analyses, the result is structural equation modeling (SEM). SEM allows questions to be answered that involve multiple regression analyses of factors. At the simplest level, the researcher posits a relationship between a single measured variable and other measured variables. The purpose of SEM is to attempt to explain â€Å"raw† correlations among directly observed variables. Path Diagrams Path diagrams are fundamental to SEM because they allow the researcher to diagram the hypothesized model, or set of relationships. These diagrams are helpful in clarifying the researcher’s ideas about the relationships among variables and can be directly translated into the equations needed for analysis. Path diagrams are made up of several principles: Measured variables are represented by squares or rectangles. Factors, which are made up of two or more indicators, are represented by circles or ovals. Relationships between variables are indicated by lines; lack of a line connecting the variables implies that no direct relationship is hypothesized. All lines have either one or two arrows. A line with one arrow represents a hypothesized direct relationship between two variables, and the variable with the arrow pointing toward it is the dependent variable. A line with an arrow at both ends indicates an unanalyzed relationship with no implied direction of effect. Research Questions Addressed by Structural Equation Modeling The main question asked by structural equation modeling is, â€Å"Does the model produce an estimated population covariance matrix that is consistent with the sample (observed) covariance matrix?† After this, there are several other questions that SEM can address. Adequacy of the model: Parameters are estimated to create an estimated population covariance matrix. If the model is good, the parameter estimates will produce an estimated matrix that is close to the sample covariance matrix. This is evaluated primarily with the chi-square test statistic and fit indices. Testing theory: Each theory, or model, generates its own covariance matrix. So which theory is best? Models representing competing theories in a specific research area are estimated, pitted against each other, and evaluated.Amount of variance in the variables accounted for by the factors: How much of the variance in the dependent variables is accounted for by the independent variables? This is answered through R-squared-type statistics. Reliability of the indicators: How reliable are each of the measured variables? SEM derives reliability of measured variables and internal consistency measures of reliability.Parameter estimates: SEM generates parameter estimates, or coefficients, f or each path in the model, which can be used to distinguish if one path is more or less important than other paths in predicting the outcome measure. Mediation: Does an independent variable affect a specific dependent variable or does the independent variable affect the dependent variable though a mediating variable? This is called a test of indirect effects. Group differences: Do two or more groups differ in their covariance matrices, regression coefficients, or means? Multiple group modeling can be done in SEM to test this. Longitudinal differences: Differences within and across people across time can also be examined. This time interval can be years, days, or even microseconds.Multilevel modeling: Here, independent variables are collected at different nested levels of measurement (for example, students nested within classrooms nested within schools) are used to predict dependent variables at the same or other levels of measurement. Weaknesses of Structural Equation Modeling Relative to alternative statistical procedures, structural equation modeling has several weaknesses: It requires a relatively large sample size (N of 150 or greater).It requires much more formal training in statistics to be able to effectively use SEM software programs.It requires well-specified measurement and conceptual model. SEM is theory driven, so one must have well-developed a priori models. References Tabachnick, B. G. and Fidell, L. S. (2001). Using Multivariate Statistics, Fourth Edition. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon. Kercher, K. (Accessed November 2011). Introduction to SEM (Structural Equation Modeling). chrp.org/pdf/HSR061705.pdf