Lynn university Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Lynn university - Essay Example This makes her independent of her mother and she starts off well on her own. Then she refuses the prime ministers request that he should name her new ladies in waiting leading to his resignation. Riots in the streets arise amongst other constitutional crisis matters. It is Albert who rises to the occasion and restores her self confidence. Having been impressed by Albert’s philanthropy in relation to her desire to help her subjects, she accepts his hand in marriage (Young Victoria, 2009) . Further questions arise in relation to Albert’s role in her life and she finds a solution for this. He proves a devoted spouse and an agent of the much anticipated new reforms that he finally gets approval from the Melbourne. Front stage scenes refer to those scenes that are physically visible to the audience. These are those parts of the movie that the audience is present to witness hence the real stage acting. In the young Victoria movie, the major parts of the scenes are acted front stage where they are visible. Taking for instance Albert and Queen Victoria’s quoting scenes until getting together are front stage. At the end queen Victoria is shown to move alerts desk next to hers in view to show their newly found trusts and unification in ruling the kingdom. The scenes where Albert saves Queen Victoria from being shot and gets injured in the process and where they are playing chess and comparing themselves to pawns are also front stage. This is in view to show their closeness and one of the many crucial reasons why Albert was the chosen one by Queen Victoria amongst many. Back stage scenes refer to those scenes that are invincible to the viewers or audience. These scenes are mainly implied or assumed through the application of dramatic techniques or implication of their results there after. In the young Victoria movie, there are a number of scenes that are backstage. This is mainly in relation to their inability to be front staged due to resource inabil ities or being unnecessary in the movie. During scenes of Queen Victoria in the palace, screams and noises of the riot brought upon by the resignation of the prime minister are heard. There is also mentioned of many suitors who are lined up for Queen Victoria and their messages but not all are shown (Young Victoria, 2009). Another scene is where Watson giggles as he hears laughter from Queen Victoria and Albert’s room. The scene is not shown though assumed to implicate they were together as man and wife. A testimony is a statement that is made by an individual in view of expression of their thoughts and opinions about an issue to themselves. In the movie the young Victoria, the queen Victoria makes a testimony to the council. She states to the council that though she is young, she has learnt a lot and she is ready and counting for their support in running the kingdom. In another scene, she is playing chess with Albert and she expresses on how she feels like a pawn in real lif e. How she sees what people desire of her and what they would do and have her do if she let down her guard and gave them the powers and chance to. Participant refers to the nature of being observant or observing on issues surrounding oneself. This is from just typically being aware of one’s environment and also deducting useful information form observation of others in relation to oneself. In the movie the

Drama - Blood Brothers Response Essay Example for Free

Drama Blood Brothers Response Essay Blood brothers is a story which was written in 1981 as a school play and included a range of themes which help the audience understand and feel for the story rather than just watching it. The themes in this play include poverty, innocence, love, games, belief and superstition. I feel that the key themes that control the play are chance and society of the time and I feel that most of the story circles around these themes and most events are caused by these themes. To emphasize the themes in the play, we created a three minute version of the play which consisted of still images, narration and stylised movement. We decided to split the play into four sections which were: baby years, childhood, 14 17 years and 20+ years. We decided that we would show the giving away of the baby as this allows the rest of the story to flow. If it wasnt for this specific scene, the story wouldnt have happened as the giving away of one twin is a significant event in the play. This also allowed us to add emotion to our piece as this is one of the several events which separate people into two opinions. For the second section (which was childhood) we included images of them first meeting, playing games, both of the mothers separating Mickey and Eddie and Mrs Johnstone giving the locket to Eddie. My group and I felt that these were also important events in the play; in fact one of the main themes in the play is games which relates to the robbery and overall shooting of both twins later on. For 14 -17 years, we decided to show both children being suspended from school, the meet up between friends with the devil narration on top which we thought allowed our piece to flow making it easier to understand. At the last stage, 20+, we performed four still images which included an unemployment scene, Lindas pregnancy, Eddie and Linda being together and finally the shooting with the second half of the images having the mad man narration over the top: Theres a mad man running round and round You know the devils got your number You know hes right beside you Hes screamin deep inside you And someone said hes callin your number up today Today Today TODAY! This piece of narration was used in our three minute version of the play as we thought that it summed up a lot of the happenings in this age group and is a constant theme throughout the play. I found that the best way to tell this story within the three minutes was to use different techniques which allowed expressing and stressing of several moments in a play making it more effective. In our three minute version, this included levels, space and marking the moment. One example of these entire three put together was when both boys got expelled. We had the class sitting down at the back while the teacher was standing up straight looking down on one pupil who was higher than the class but lower than the teacher. This made use of levels, space and also marked the moment by focusing on the locket. We decided to make the giving away of the baby the most significant point in the play. This is because the whole of the story centres on this point, and if it wasnt for this event, none of the other events would have happened. To mark this moment, we used narration which was originally placed over the point where Mrs Johnstone was only considering giving the baby to Mrs Lyons. How quickly and idea, planted, can Take root and grow into a plan. The thought conceived in this very room Grew as surely as a seed, in a mothers womb This piece of narration allowed us to realise how the event they are seeing came into being. We found that forum theatre was a very useful technique to bring Mickeys monologue to life. Forum theatre was used to change the way we said lines and how to put expression, feeling and life to the lines which in turn make the monologue a lot more vibrant and interesting. The way we performed forum theatre was to have someone acting out a verse of the poem. We then got the audience to comment and suggest improvements. We then acted the verse out again and repeated the process until we were happy with it. Below is the verse we performed. Y know our Sammy, He draws nudey women, Without arms, or legs or even heads In the baths, when he goes swimmin. But Im not allowed to go to the baths, Me Mam says I have to wait, Cos I might get drowned, cos Im only seven, But Im not, Im nearly eight. We started off with the beginning of the verse being said in a very secretive way although it was put in the category of secret in a child which meant that it had to be told; something I had felt many a time when I was a young child which also meant my body was slightly crouched and slightly tense. I used the same experience to goggle at what Sammy was able to do when he went swimming. Then disappointment kicks in when I hit But Im not allowed as my voice goes slower and my body slumps and when the mother comes on I re-enact a rather rude hand motion usually used when someone is too talkative while the mother reads her quote. The last line is said in a way of self-pity making the character feel sorry for himself which I have felt many times when I was a young child and feeling as if my parents were deriving me of all of the worlds pleasures. In this monologue I learnt that Mickey was a character who always wanted more and wanted something someone else had that he hadnt which is an apparent characteristic of Mickey throughout the play. It also helped me realise that it was more than just a greedy feeling as the feeling was a lot deeper and it was if the world had forgotten about him but not the others who lived in the world around him. As I said before, forum theatre had helped me find these characteristics as it helped shape what had been written. It was as if there were a lot of muddled thoughts and both me and the audience were helping to piece it together properly so we could both get an idea on how the character was really like and how the character really felt. For individual spontaneous improvisation, I acted as Mrs Johnstone where I was looking at both babies and playing with them as if it were my last time with both of them. Of course, at the time my character would have not known which baby would have been taken and because of this, I acted in a way as if it were the last time for Mrs Johnstone to see both of them. My thought track for this piece was: I cant believe this is happening and it would have been hard to come to terms with something which could potentially change somebodys life, especially when it is your own son. This decision was both challenged and supported by a technique called a conscience corridor which we used to find the pros and cons of giving the baby away which was then fired to somebody stepping into the shoes of Mrs Johnstone. Feeling the confused and mixed feelings, it gave us a chance to make our own decision as if we were that character. Some pros included having money, less stress, a better life for your son, less work. Some cons included the guilt of your child being bought, splitting up a natural bond given to both children, more stress as you worry and having to cover it up from the outside world. The conscience corridor was put into action by splitting the class in half and putting them up as two sides to create a human corridor. We then got a member of our class to walk up while each person in the wall said the pros and cons. When the person in the middle finishes walking up through the corridor, he/she tells us his/her decision. In this situation, I wrote a diary entry as Mrs Johnstone. I typed my diary entry up below I cant believe it is happening. So close to the time where one of my beloved babies would be given away to my employer. I am sure that I am doing the right thing I cant afford to give them both a good life and Mrs Lyons does want a baby so badly. Even so, I feel I am breaking a natural bond given to them both which makes me unsure on whether I should do it. I am in a situation which I would never wish on any mother. Overall, I found that explorative strategies helped us understand Blood Brothers as it allowed us to see what usually are hidden thoughts and feelings of characters. It also allows us to get into character and realise how events and other actions are performed by the character.

The Interrelation Between Tourism And Terrorism Tourism Essay

The Interrelation Between Tourism And Terrorism Tourism Essay Given that tourism is very fragile to terrorism, and that it has come to dominate or perhaps displace, economy of most courtiers, it is imperative to take a closer look at the interrelation between tourism terrorism to lessen the negative impacts. As indicated in the introduction, the first approach to the studies into relationship between tourism and security incidents focus on diverse but interrelated topics ranging from the nature of such relationship (including types, causes, targets, motives and so forth) to the impact of terrorism on the tourism demands. The overarching objective of this chapter is to review studies with such approach which emerged in the beginning of the 1990s. The chapter begins with a general discussion and overview of the direct and indirect importance of tourism to the national and global economies and proceeds to discuss the susceptibility of tourism industry to rampant crisis. Those terrorism concepts which relates to tourism industry are briefly reviewed. As contribution to literature, a time series analysis approach with yearly aggregated data is presented to show how and to what extent terrorists have targeted tourism since 1968. The rational and motives behind terrorists attack on tourism destination is a crucial area which seeks logically examine relationship between terrorism and tourism. The next section devoted to these significant discussions. Then it would turn to next area of studies or the impact of terrorism as a tourism crisis on the tourism industry. For this purpose the extant research on the impact of terrorism on the tourism industry in several countries will be reviewed. It also considers various determinants of ter rorism acts on the tourism industry. Last but not least, it explores the theories and components of image and perception management. It is also imperative to clarify the definitions of a few repeatedly used terms that there is potential for confusion among them. This chapter also attempt to offer definition and develop empirically derived concept. Importance Despite recent crisis, tourism represent, one of the fastest growing sectors in the world economy. In 1960 the whole tourist arrivals were around 70 million while it rocketed to some 700 million in 2003. According to World Travel and Tourism Council, out of overall world exports, tourism industry is account for 12.2% and provides 8.3% of total jobs (WTTC, 2007: 6). These figures represent direct economic impact of the industry while the indirect impacts estimated to be much larger. The indirect impacts are enormous. For instance; it plays an important role in the development of new cities, societies and provides them with necessary infrastructure and superstructure. What is more, tourism helps the protection of environment by stimulating the creation of national parks for wild life as well as the conservation and preservation of beaches and marine life as a part of tourist products. From cultural point of view, it offers more opportunities for the restoration of old monuments. It als o encourages small industries, souvenirs, handmade art and craft; it improves the standard of living in many societies. Moreover, the tourist spending in the tourist establishment (hotels, restaurants, and transportation) doesnt go totally to them. These establishments need to purchase goods and services from other sectors with local economy (services of builders, accountants, food, and beverage suppliers). Bale (1998) argues that tourism makes much contribution to employment by differentiating between its impact on direct and indirect employments. The contribution of tourism and travel to both industrialized and developing countries is now so great that any downturns in the level of activity in the industry are a cause of concern. The repercussions extend beyond activities directly associated with tourism, notably airlines, hotels and catering, to sectors that supply intermediate or final goods that are purchased by firms and employees in the industry, so that all sectors of the economy are affected to a greater or lesser extent. Adam Blake and M. Thea Sinclair, Tourism Crisis Management: adjusting to a temporary downturn,Sixth Annual Conference on Global Economic Analysis, 2002, p. 1. Tourism is important not only to developed nations but to many less developed ones, whose chief resources often come from their visitor attractions. Since no other substitute major natural resources, such as oil or heavy industry is available in such countries, they are heavily reliant on international tourism to generate national income. Although the lack of the necessary infrastructure and communication facilities are often proved to be an obstacle to attract a considerable number of tourists, some less developed countries demonstrated considerable success in attraction of tourists (Harrison 2001). In recent years, tourism has been focus of attentions for its potential to help à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ½to the reduction of poverty. UNWTO statistics reveals the growing strength of the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ½tourism industry for developing countries. International tourism receipts for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ½developing countries accounted for a record number of 203 billion US dollar in 1995. According to the UNW TO, tourism is one of the major export sectors of poor countries and a leading source of foreign exchange in 46 of the 49 Least Developed Countries (LDCs). (UNWTO 2007: p 38) Terrorism background and definition Terrorism phenomena across the world is traceable to centuries ago when Jewish patriots, begun to challenge the Roman sovereignty in holy lands (Poland, 1988). In our times it dates back to the latter half of the twentieth century when terrorist attacks came to occupy a central place to in news headlines and it was in 1960s and 1970s that grabbed the attention of the people from all over the world. It was for the first time in world history that so few people managed to put into trouble so many peoples in a quick and effective manner (Sacks, 2004). The attacks against the US on 11th September 2001, and the post-9/11 attacks, including the bombings in Bali, Jakarta, Casablanca, Mombasa, Madrid, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, London, India and other places are prime examples to this. The terrorism attacks have been of importance to tourism industry as the tourism destination turn out to a prime target of terrorist attacks. Despite the omnipresence of terrorism attacks in the world today, there has been little consensus among scholars of terrorism studies over the concept. There are several reasons why terrorism is difficult to define (Cronin 2002). Firstly, labelling an action as terrorism or a group as terrorist is hardly free from ideological or political partiality (Moxon-Browne, 1994). In addition, most definitions are very flawed. Over time particularly when they come to power, the terrorism groups may recognized as a legitimate government. A prime example is Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress in South Africa. Another source of ambiguity in the definition lay in differing perception of what terrorism as it means different things to different governments and different scholars. To better define the terrorism it is important to set apart terrorism from crime-related acts. Tarlow (2001) lists the differences between acts of crimes and terrorism. He argued that dealing with criminal acts requires well trained police forces while terrorism is more war like in nature which can not cope with police actions alone. Rather it needs cooperation between all stakeholders in question. In addition, the goals of terrorist are destruction through victimization and seek publicity and mass economic destructions with added bonus of loss of life. Table 1.1 Key Difference between Acts of Tourism Crime and Terrorism Crime Terrorism Goal Usually economic or social gain To gain publicity and sometimes sympathy for a cause. Usual type of victim Person may be known to the perpetrator or selected because he/she may yield economic gain Killing is random and appears to be more in line with a stochastic model. Numbers may or may not be important Defenses in use Often reactive, reports taken Some pro-active devices such as radar detectors Political ideology Usually none Robin Hood model Publicity Usually local and rarely makes the international news Almost always is broadcast around the world Most common forms in tourism industry are: Crimes of distraction Robbery Sexual Assault Domestic terrorism International terrorism Bombings Potential for bio-chemical warfare Statistical accuracy Often very low, in many cases the travel and tourism industry does everything possible to hide the information Almost impossible to hide. Numbers are reported with great accuracy and repeated often Length of negative effects on the local tourism industry In most cases, it is short term In most cases, it is long term unless replaced by new positive image Source: Tarlow (2001: 134-135) Since the extent to which terrorism challenges governments and threatens civilian populations differs considerably, it is possible to constitute a typology based on which we can compare different types of terrorism. One approach is to differentiate between domestic restricted to the borders of one country and international consist of the citizens of more than one country terrorism. However, this distinction is proved to be perplexing in practice as most terrorist groups have links to abroad. (Chalk 1996) A more elaborate typology categorizes groups in terms of their primary motivations. Based upon such criteria, Peters (2002) classified terrorists into two broad categories: the practical terrorist and the apocalyp ­tic terrorist. The demand of practical terrorists is restricted to recreation of a state and society without destruction of the whole society, what its followers have in mind is to eradicate what they see as a political evil. A prime example of such terrorism is anti-abo rtion terrorists in United State. Apocalyptic terrorists are very different. Their ultimate goal is to destroy completely the current worlds and build up a new order from the outset. Table 1.2 summarizes the main feature of each approach. Table 1.2 Differences between Practical and Apocalyptic Terrorists Practical Terrorist Apocalyptic Terrorist Mental state Hopes to change a policy through violence Victim of self-rage and anger Time frame for success This world oriented Next world oriented Attitude toward religion Tends toward secularization Tends toward religious mystical experiences Suicide Rarely suicidal, not a key goal Highly suicidal; suicide is a means to a greater end Goal Recreation of state or policy Annihilation of the state, or people Willingness to use WMDs Limited use of chemical Biological or nuclear Value of human life Low Nonexistent Source: Peters (2002) p.86 Regardless of these ambiguities, it is imperative to offer a working definition. For the purposes of this research, the terrorism defined as the calculated threat or use of violence designed to create an overwhelming fear in a larger target population, perpetuated by individuals, sub-national groups, or state actors to attain political, social, or economic objectives. (Alexander, 2002) take the original article http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/0/9/8/4/7/pages98470/p98470-3.php (GETTING IT RIGHT: Understanding Effective Counter-Terrorism Strategies) The records of terrorism attacks on tourism targets Tourism and terrorism has always been inevitably interwoven. Over the last 30 years tourist industry have been key targets for terrorists attacks. The terrorists believed that they have been very successful in accomplishing their goals through terrorism attacks to tourism destinations. As international terrorism augmented by September 11, 2001 attacks on US targets by al Qaida, its inevitable effects on tourism became the subject of serious concern (Sabasteanski, 2005). Paraskevas and Arendells (2007) list of pos-9/11 truism destinations and tourist targets attacked by terrorists up to September 2006 include more than 18 incidents. As such, Mitroff (2005) is right to state that it is no longer a question of if terrorists will strike but rather a question of when, how and how prepared the destination is to deal with them. The records of terrorist incident on the tourism industry between 01/01/1968 and 07/20/2007 indicate that tourists have been target of 261 out of 33817 terrorist acc idents. (Figure 1) This accidents account for 676 tourists loss of lives and 1875 injury (Figure 2 and 3). Figure1.1 International Terrorism, 1968-2007, Number of Incidents Source: US Department of State (various years) and RAND series Figure1.2 International Terrorism, 1968-2007, Number of Deaths Source: US Department of State (various years) and RAND series Figure1.3 International Terrorism, 1968-2007, Number of Injuries Source: US Department of State (various years) and RAND series The targeted list of terrorist attacks varies. The 1960s and 1970s was the time of plane hijackings. Consequently, the terrorist targeted the tourism destination initially through plane hijackings in the time. In the 1960s, hijackings were often from the U.S. to Cuba with no intention to harm pas ­sengers. However, in the 1970s, the purpose of terrorists actions was the loss of life plus damage to the property. Thus we witnessed the more severe actions from them. During the 1970s, the Munich Olympic Games became the focus of one of the most notorious terrorist attacks and set a new standard for terrorism at major world events. In the consequent years, the targeted list encompassed a variety of sites including, airlines, cruise ships, buses, restaurants and cafes, events and festivals, or sporting or cultural institutions, wherever people get together for leisure or any other purpose. In the beginning of 90s, a significant number of terrorists incidents occurred at tourist destinati ons, while in the recent years we witnessed a shift in the targets of terrorism accidents (Mansfeld and Pizam, 2006). (Figure 4) Figure1.4 International Terrorism, 1968-2007, Incidents by Targets, Compare Tourists to other Targets Source: US Department of State (various years) and RAND series Terrorists motives Tourism scholars argued that understanding terrorist motive may shed light on the relationship between terrorism and tourism (Sonmez, 1997). As such they have sought to explain the motive behind the terrorist activities regarding the tourism destination. To date, there is no consensus among scholars on their explanation of terrorist objectives, however almost all agree that terrorists have much to gain by targeting tourists. In their influential work on terrorism and tourism Sonmez, Apostolopoulos, and Tarlow (1999: 85) noted that tourism destinations offer a cost-effective instrument to deliver a broader message of ideological/political opposition. They placed the terrorists objective in two main groups: strategic objectives and ideological objectives. With respect to strategic objectives, they maintained that terrorists tend to accomplish some goals that can be found only in tourism destinations. These goals include mass casualties, mass publicity and great economic damage. As discussed earlier, tourism is lucrative business interconnected with several other industries; thus an attack on the tourism industry would affect considerably a number of secondary industries as well. What is more, tourism officials have often avoided taking tough steps to stop terrorism because such measures often result in frightening the potential customers. As such the tourism destinations have seen as an easy target for terrorism attacks. Tourism destinations also are visited by a regular flow of new people, thus terrorists are hardly suspected. In other words, terrorists can easily disguise their identity in the tourism destinations. Tourism industry is also a sensitive area to media especially when nationals of other countries are engaged it will rec eive massive coverage from international media and at the same time it bypass their governments censorship. (Weimann and Winn 1994: 143) The ideological objectives are more complex ones encompassing clashing values, cultures, or socioeconomic levels. Such motives push the terrorists to target the tourists for their symbolic value as proxy of larger group or apparently their governments. In his discussion of terrorism in Egypt, Aziz (1995) put into question a widely accepted notion that Islam is simply against foreign tourists. According to Aziz, tourists differs from and locals by many cultural and social gaps. Following Richters he argue that since travel styles can be representative of ideological values, class behavior, and political culture of tourists and their countries, tourists may be targeted because of their tourism styles which may dem ­onstrate conspicuous consumption (i.e., demonstration of money or credit cards; flashy photography equipment; expensive clothes, jewelry, and luggage). The clash of cultures and values between locals and travelers can also account for motives. Certain tourist behaviors (i. e., consumption of pork and alcohol; gambling; Western dress; codes of behavior incongruent with Islamic tradition) oppose to Islamic cultural values-are also suggested as a possible explanation for the Egyptians frus ­tration (Aziz 1995). Wahab (1996) stated that sometimes terrorism specifically targets tourism because it is seen as a movement of visitors representing a form of neo-colonialism or a threat to well-established societal norms, traditions, value-systems, and religious convictions. The impact of terrorist attack to tourism industry The impact of terrorism on a states economy may be enormous, leading to unemployment, homelessness, deflation, crime and other economic and social ills (Laurance, 2003:2) Previous studies based on the accumulate evidence throughout the world shows that the impact of terrorists attacks on tourism industry, destination, the local community, the tourists are in the most cases negative and resulted in decline in tourism demands. Such incidents paralysed or severely impacted the local tourism industry as result of trip cancellation and the inclination of passengers of booking to safer alternative destinations. These events have resulted in major drops in tourism demand, for example we witnessed the loss of more than a million arrivals from the United States to Europe in 1986 down 23% from 1985 because of December 1985 Palestinian terrorists attacks in airports in Rome and Vienna and the 1986 hijacking of TWA flight. (Brady and Widdows, 1988: 8; Hurley, 1988; Conant et al, 1988) The following is copied from: Effects of News Shock on Inbound Tourist Demand Volatility in Korea http://jtr.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/44/4/457.pdf Blake and Sinclair (2003) explored the effects of the September 11 terrorist attack in the United States using a computable general equilibrium model. In their study, they reported the percentage decreases in the number of visits during September 2001 compared to the previous 12 months were 34% for domestic and 23% for international travel. Baron analysed monthly tourism figures to measure the effect of terrorism on tourism in Israel, Spain, Egypt and turkey. For instance, the analysis indicated that ongoing terrorism cost Israel approximately 332000 visitors from North America between Spring of 1985 to the end of 1987, at a cost of around 54 million U.S. Dollars (). Others have also reported reductions in tourist arrival and receipts in the periods following terrorist action in, for example, Israel (Pizam 1999), Egypt (Wahab, 1996) and Northern Ireland (Pizam, l999; Wall, 1996). In addition to quantifying the reduction in the number of visitors to destinations affected by terrorism, studies have also assessed the duration of this impact. Using newspaper reports of terrorism world-wide between 1985 and 1998 Pizam and Smith (2000), found that 79% of media reported terrorist incidents were associated with a significant decline in tourism, and that the effect lasted between one and six months. Enders and Sandler (1991) estimated that an average terrorist incident in Spain in the period between 1970 and 1988 resulted in a decrease of approximately 140,000 visitors. However, the decline did not start until three months after the incident, and took around two years for visitor numbers to stabilize at a le just below that prior to the incident. A somewhat longer delay was observed tourism to Greece and Italy, where it was between six and nine months after terrorist attack before tourism figures started to decrease (Enders et al., 1992). Pizam and Smith (2000) argue that observed time delays in the deterrent effect of terrorist action might be because travelers would u sually forfeit the costs of the travel if they were to cancel at short notice. In addition to the effects of terrorism on tourism over time, research has also examined whether the deterrent effect is limited just to the country targeted by the terrorists or whether it extends to other destinations. Enders et al., (1992) identified a generalized deterrent effect of terrorism in certain European countries on tourism throughout Continental Europe during the 1970s and 1980s. They also identified that terrorism in France did not specifically impact French tourism, but that it did contribute to lost revenues for continental Europe as a whole, suggesting that the deterrence was generalized to the whole continent. However, it is not clear why there was not any reduction in visitors to France. Similarly, Richter and Waugh (1936) state that tourism to Switzerland was adversely affected by terrorism in France, Italy and Austria. The determinants of terrorist attacks to tourism industry The scholars identified diverse variables determining the impacts of terrorism on the tourism industry and the ability of countries to recover quickly. However they failed to offer any integrated empirical or theoretical frameworks for the casual relationship between these variables. Still, almost all studies refer to tourism demand drop as a proxy for tourism industry suffering. Santana (1997) developed a model, which bring together the psychological and demographic factors that tend to influence the attitude to international travel (or destination image) referred to as deterrence (or drop in demand) in the light of threat from terrorism. He identified the psychological factors as Thrill and Adventure Seeking (TAS), Experience Seeking (ES), attitude to international travel (AIT), risk perception of political hazards and risk perception of physical hazards. The socialization factors of age, gender and travel experience are included in the model as well. Figure1.3 casual relationship among determinants of terrorists attacks to tourism industry TAS Gender ES Deterrence Age AIT Political Hazards Travel Experience Physical Hazards Source: Santana (1997), p. 457 To find out which certain acts of terrorism has more determining impact on tourism demand than others, Pizam and Smith (2000) identified a variety of characteristics of terrorism activities including frequencies, locations, severity and motives. They also took into account destination image and mass media as two important intervening which suppose to impact the tourism demand over the security incidents. Elsewhere Pizam (1997) have maintained that the impact of terrorism attacks on tourism industry varys by its severity of the event and the frequency of occurrence. He noted that: acts resulting in mass destruction of life and property followed by loss of life and bodily harm have the strongest effect on tourism demand. . . . Acts resulting in loss of property only have the lowest effect on tourism demand. . . . All else being equal, acts occurring more frequently will have a more intense, widespread and lengthy effect on tourism demand than those occurring less frequently (Pizam, 1997: 11). Tarlow(2006) argues that in the last decades there does not seem to be a rela ­tionship between a locales base population size and the act of terrorism. As such, ter ­rorism has targeted both rural and urban settings (Mansfeld and Pizam, 2006:17). Discussing on risk evaluation, Walker and Page, (2003) has demonstrated the interrelationship between severity and frequency of incident on a graph. As they indicated there is a direct correlation between frequency of problems and its severity. As such the minor incidents happens more frequent than the severe ones like terrorism. Figure 1.4 The Tourist Health and Safety Continuum: Severity and Frequency of Incidents Source: Walker and Page, 2003, page 222 Image and Perception management Terrorism attacks on tourism destination have not always left an enduring impact on the tourism industry. Yet, the comparative evidence show that soon after the event receives the international coverage, the information it conveys will be result in negative image among potential tourists and this in turn lead to cancelation their travel and /or choosing to book a more secure place. (Mansfeld and Pizam, 2005) Therefore, the host countries tend to take necessary measures to lessen the negative images by conveying correct, impartial and market oriented messages. Lepp and Gibson (2003) referred to four key authorities responsible for disseminating such information à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Security and risk information issued and communicated by governmental agencies in the generating markets (in the form of travel advisories); à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The global and local mass media; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Governmental tourism organizations in the affected receiving destination; and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The travel industry in the generating markets (Lepp and Gibson, 2003). Since discussing on all aspects of the topic will be beyond of the scope of the research I only explore the destination image and the role of media. 4.6.1 The Concept of Image (Tourism Events thesis) pp 57 An image is a concept that is hard to understand. It has both vague and shifting meanings and used in a variety of contexts and disciplines, thereby creating different meanings. The definition for tourist destination image that is most commonly cited is that by Crompton (1979, in Jenkins, 1999): à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the sum of beliefs, ideas and impressions that a person has of a destination. (p. 18) Many authors have also defined tourism image of a destination as the mental portrayal of a destination (Alhemoud Armstrong, 1996; Kotler, et al., 1993, in Erfurt et al., 2003). The image of a destination is a crucial factor in a tourists destination choice process (Jenkins, 1999) and according to Mercer (1971, in Mossberg, 2000) the initial image formation stage is the most important phase in the buying process when selection a destination. Only the destinations the individual is aware of will be considered in the destination selection process and this awareness implies an image of the destination (Mossberg, 2000). Furthermore, according to Fakey and Crompton (1991) only destinations with positive images can be expected to prosper, while those with less favourable images may never achieve their fullest tourism potential. Destination image To make decision on where to go or choosing the one destination over another by potential travellers has long been of great significant to academics and tourist stakeholders. The existing literature suggested that destination choices are influenced and conditioned by both internal (such as images, perceptions, motives, attitudes, and beliefs) and external factors (i.e., time, destination attributes, perceived costs of tourism product, buyer characteristics, and benefits sought). Image among other factors received more attentions as a deciding factor in choosing on destination. Thus the scholars employed the concept of destination image to describe this determining factor. Bojanic (1991: p) defined country destination image as the impressions that a person or persons hold about a country in which they do not reside. Similarly Crompton Crompton (1979: 18, in Jenkins, 1999) noted: destination image is the sum of beliefs, ideas, and impressions that a person has of a destination. Due to its importance, destination image has come to consider as a dependent variable in the consequent studies and the scholars attempted to identify the determinants that define, modify, and strengthen this construct. For instance, Hall and OSullivan (1996) identified three basic elements creating a destination image (a) Returning tourists via verbal reporting, (b) the role of Media in making image and (c) Overall policies of the host government. The scholars are on consensus that the destinations with strong, positive images are more likely to be considered and chosen in the destination selection process. In contrast, they argue that the perceptions held by visitors about potential crisis in the tourist destination have significant influences upon the tourism demand. However, there exist little if any, clearly defined conceptual base for destination image studies, especially the ones investigating causality between destination image and negative events. Seddighi and his colleagues (2000) developed a framework for the examination of perceived impact of political instability on tourism. As illustrated in figure 1.5 a synthesis of information flow which comes from the above mentioned elements of destination image creation (i.e., word of mouth, media, and government policies) is account for the perceptions of potential travellers. This information is in turn manipulated by Prospective Holidaymakers and Tourism Generating Region through a process of the determination of the perceptual pattern/image for a particular tourism destination. The destination choice therefore is reliant on the extent to which the perceptual patterns of holidaymakers towards the destination are positive or negative. Figure 1.5 Perceived impact of political instability on tourism Source: Seddighi et al., (2000 ), p.182 Since the tourists do not spare time to check the reality behind the received images, these images become highly biased and distorted. Due to frequent hostilities that have originated from the Arab-Israeli conflict, Israels high-risk tourism image has prevailed. The struggle to reverse this image has been extremely frustrating, involving simultaneous confrontation between government agencies, tourism operators, and the media. Media Almost no researches disagree on that intensive mass media coverage of security incidents results in the drop of tourists arrivals in affected destinations (Mansfeld and Pizam, 2006:17). They widely accepted that it is the media that give the event more or less significance by different interpretation. Therefore in many cases the news media tends to distort the actual security situation and to exaggerate the risk involved in traveling to affected destinations. In addition, the media reports often is not merely limited to exact report of what happened but also act as an advisor by interpreting the risk involved i

Extensive Reading Why And How English Language Essay

Extensive Reading Why And How English Language Essay An extensive reading program was established at the British Council Language Center in Sanaa, Yemen. An elementary level class of government employees (age range 17-42) was exposed to a regime of graded readers, which was integrated into normal classroom teaching. Students followed a class reader, had access to a class library of graded readers, and had classes in the British Council library, which gave them access to a collection of 2000 titles. Questionnaires were used to examine students reading interests, habits and attitudes, both prior to, and following the program. The class library contained 141 titles in the published readers of some major publishers (see inventory of titles in Bell, 1994). Familiar titles (e.g. popular Arab folk tales) were selected for both the class readers and the class library, so as to motivate the students to read. These titles proved very popular, as did the practice of reading aloud to the class. Students reading was carefully monitored; formal and informal records being kept both by the researcher, and by the students themselves. Reading diaries and book reports were used, together with a card file system to document the program and record both the titles read and students written comments on the books. A wall chart acted as a focal point for in-class reading, discussion and exchange of titles. Reader interviews were conducted throughout the program, which ran for a period of six months over the course of two semesters. Students became actively involved in running the class library; tables were arranged and titles displayed attractively during the periods set aside for the reading program. Students were taken into the main British Council library for one lesson a week, during which they participated in controlled twenty-minute sessions of USSR 1 (cf. Davis, 1995). With reference to research evidence, we now turn to the role of extensive reading programs in fostering learners progress in reading development and improvement. The Role of Extensive Reading in Language Learning 1. It can provide comprehensible input In his 1982 book, Krashen argues that extensive reading will lead to language acquisition, provided that certain preconditions are met. These include adequate exposure to the language, interesting material, and a relaxed, tension-free learning environment. Elley and Manghubai (1983:55) warn that exposure to the second language is normally planned, restricted, gradual and largely artificial. The reading program provided in Yemen, and the choice of graded readers in particular, was intended to offer conditions in keeping with Krashens model. 2. It can enhance learners general language competence Grabe (1991:391) and Paran (1996:30) have emphasized the importance of extensive reading in providing learners with practice in automaticity of word recognition and decoding the symbols on the printed page (often called bottom-up processing). The book flood project in Fiji (Elley Manghubai: op cit.), in which Fijian school children were provided with high-interest storybooks, revealed significant post treatment gains in word recognition and reading comprehension after the first year, and wider gains in oral and written skills after two years. 3. It increases the students exposure to the language The quality of exposure to language that learners receive is seen as important to their potential to acquire new forms from the input. Elley views provision of large quantities of reading material to children as fundamental to reducing the exposure gap between L1 learners and L2 learners. He reviews a number of studies with children between six and twelve years of age, in which subjects showed rapid growth in language development compared with learners in regular language programs . There was a spread of effect from reading competence to other language skills writing, speaking and control over syntax, (Elley 1991:404). 4. It can increase knowledge of vocabulary Nagy Herman (1987) claimed that children between grades three and twelve (US grade levels) learn up to 3000 words a year. It is thought that only a small percentage of such learning is due to direct vocabulary instruction, the remainder being due to acquisition of words from reading. This suggests that traditional approaches to the teaching of vocabulary, in which the number of new words taught in each class was carefully controlled (words often being presented in related sets), is much less effective in promoting vocabulary growth than simply getting students to spend time on silent reading of interesting books. 5. It can lead to improvement in writing Stotsky (1983) and Krashen (1984) reviewed a number of L1 studies that appear to show the positive effect of reading on subjects writing skills, indicating that students who are prolific readers in their pre-college years become better writers when they enter college. L2 studies by Hafiz Tudor (1989) in the UK and Pakistan, and Robb Susser (1989) in Japan, revealed more significant improvement in subjects written work than in other language skills. These results again support the case for an input-based, acquisition-oriented reading program based on extensive reading as an effective means of fostering improvements in students writing. 6. It can motivate learners to read Reading material selected for extensive reading programs should address students needs, tastes and interests, so as to energize and motivate them to read the books. In the Yemen, this was achieved through the use of familiar material and popular titles reflecting the local culture (e.g.. Aladdin and His Lamp). Bell Campbell (1996, 1997) explore the issue in a South East Asian context, presenting various ways to motivate learners to read and explaining the role of extensive reading and regular use of libraries in advancing the reading habit . 7. It can consolidate previously learned language Extensive reading of high-interest material for both children and adults offers the potential for reinforcing and recombining language learned in the classroom. Graded readers have a controlled grammatical and lexical load, and provide regular and sufficient repetition of new language forms (Wodinsky Nation 1988).Therefore, students automatically receive the necessary reinforcement and recycling of language required to ensure that new input is retained and made available for spoken and written production. 8. It helps to build confidence with extended texts Much classroom reading work has traditionally focused on the exploitation of shorts texts, either for presenting lexical and grammatical points or for providing students with limited practice in various reading skills and strategies. However, a large number of students in the EFL/ESL world require reading for academic purposes, and therefore need training in study skills and strategies for reading longer texts and books. Kembo (1993) points to the value of extensive reading in developing students confidence and ability in facing these longer texts. 9. It encourages the exploitation of textual redundancy Insights from cognitive psychology have informed our understanding of the way the brain functions in reading. It is now generally understood that slow, word-by-word reading, which is common in classrooms, impedes comprehension by transferring an excess of visual signals to the brain. This leads to overload because only a fraction of these signals need to be processed for the reader to successfully interpret the message. Kalb (1986) refers to redundancy as an important means of processing, and to extensive reading as the means of recognizing and dealing with redundant elements in texts. 10. It facilitates the development of prediction skills One of the currently accepted perspectives on the reading process is that it involves the exploitation of background knowledge. Such knowledge is seen as providing a platform for readers to predict the content of a text on the basis of a pre-existing schema. When students read, these schema are activated and help the reader to decode and interpret the message beyond the printed words. These processes presuppose that readers predict, sample, hypothesize and reorganize their understanding of the message as it unfolds while reading (Nunan 1991: 65-66). Practical Advice on Running Extensive Reading Programs 1. Maximize Learner Involvement A number of logistical hurdles have to be overcome in order to make an extensive reading program effective. Books need to be transported, displayed and collected at the end of each reading session. Considerable paperwork is required to document the card file system, reading records, inventories, book reports and in maintaining and updating lists of titles. Students should therefore be encouraged to take an active role in the management and administration of the reading program. In the Yemen program, students gained a strong sense of ownership through running the reading resources in an efficient, coordinated and organized manner. 2. The Reader Interview Regular conferencing between teacher and student played a key role in motivating students in the Yemen to read the books. This enabled effective monitoring of individual progress and provided opportunities for the teacher to encourage students to read widely, show interest in the books being read, and to guide students in their choice of titles. By demonstrating commitment in their own reading, teachers can foster positive attitudes to reading, in which it is no longer viewed as tedious, demanding, hard work, but as a pleasurable part of their learning. 3. Read Aloud to the Class In the Yemen study, reader interviews conducted with students revealed the popularity of occasions when the teacher read aloud to the class. The model of pronunciation provided acted as a great motivator, encouraging many students to participate in classroom reading. Students gained confidence in silent reading because they were able to verbalize sounds they previously could could not recognize. This resulted in wider reading by some of the weaker readers in the class. Often thought of as bad practice, reading aloud should play a full part in motivating the emerging reader to overcome the fear of decoding words in an unfamiliar script. 4. Student Presentations Short presentations on books read played an absolutely crucial role in the program and students frequently commented on the value of oral work in class for exchanging information about the books. The reader interviews revealed that most of the book choices made by students resulted from recommendations made by friends and not by the teacher. This demonstrates that given the right preparation, encouragement, sense of ownership and belonging, an extensive reading program will achieve a direction and momentum governed by the learners themselves; a large step in the promotion of student independence and autonomy. 5. Written Work Based on the Reading Effective reading will lead to the shaping of the readers thoughts, which naturally leads many learners to respond in writing with varying degrees of fluency. Elementary level students can be asked simply to write short phrases expressing what they most enjoyed about a book they read, or to record questions they wish to ask the teacher or other students in class. With intermediate students, book reports may be used, with sections for questions, new vocabulary, and for recording the main characters and events. At this level, summary writing is also a valuable practice because it allows learners to assert full control, both of the main factual or fictional content of a book, and of the grammar and vocabulary used to express it. Advanced students can be asked to write compositions, which, by definition, are linguistically more demanding written responses to the reading material. 6. Use Audio Material in the Reading Program The use of audio recordings of books read aloud and of graded readers on cassette proved very popular with the students in Yemen, and is advocated for wide application. Listening material provided the learners with a model of correct pronunciation which aided word recognition, and exposed students to different accents, speech rhythms and cadences. Student confidence in their ability to produce natural speech patterns and to read along with the voice of a recorded speaker is central to maintaining their motivation to master the language as a medium for talking about their reading. 7. Avoid the Use of Tests Extensive reading programs should be without the pressures of testing or marks (Davis 1995:329). The use of tests runs contrary to the objective of creating stress-free conditions for pleasure reading because it invokes images of rote learning, vocabulary lists, memorization and homework. Extensive reading done at home should be under the learners control and not an obligation imposed by the teacher. By their very nature, tests impose a rigor on the learning process, which the average student will never equate with pleasure. 8. Discourage the Over-Use of Dictionaries While dictionaries certainly have a place in the teaching of reading, it is probably best located in intensive reading lessons, where detailed study of the lexical content of texts is appropriate. If learners turn to the dictionary every time they come across an unfamiliar word, they will focus only on the language itself, and not on the message conveyed. This habit will result in slow, inefficient reading and destroy the pleasure that reading novels and other literature are intended to provide. Summarizing comments on the extensive reading done by his subjects, Pickard (1996:155) notes that Use of the dictionary was sparing, with the main focus on meaning. 9. Monitor the Students Reading In order to run an extensive reading program successfully, effective monitoring is required, both to administer the resources efficiently, and to trace students developing reading habits and interests. In the Yemen program, a card file system was used to record titles and the dates the books were borrowed and returned. Input from the monitoring process helps us to record students progress, maintain and update an inventory of titles, and locate and select new titles for the class library. It therefore serves both the individual needs of the reader and the logistical task of managing the reading resources. 10. Maintain the Entertainment This is perhaps the most important aspect of the program to emphasize. Teachers need to invest time and energy in entertaining the participants by making use of multimedia sources to promote the books (e.g. video, audio, CD ROM, film, etc.). They should also exploit the power of anecdote by telling the students about interesting titles, taking them out to see plays based on books, exploiting posters, leaflets, library resources, and even inviting visiting speakers to give a talk in class on a book they have read recently. In these ways, teachers can maintain student motivation to read and secure their full engagement in the enjoyment the program provides. Conclusion Tsangs (1996) study, carried out in Hong Kong secondary schools, provided further persuasive evidence of the effectiveness of extensive reading in fostering learners language development. He found that the reading program was significantly more effective than the writing program (1996:225) . Extensive reading programs can provide very effective platforms for promoting reading improvement and development from elementary levels upwards. Although they do require a significant investment in time, energy and resources on the part of those charged with managing the materials, the benefits in terms of language and skills development for the participating learners far outweigh the modest sacrifices required. If such programs receive institutional support and can be integrated into the curriculum so that they become agreed school policy, as suggested in Davis (1995), they will likely be more readily and widely adopted, particularly in countries where material and financial resources are adequ ate. Notes 1. USSR is uninterrupted sustained silent reading.

Prejudice and Racism: All Men are Equal, Unless They Are Black Essay

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Brian is a young African American male who has been pulled over by the police somewhere between twenty and thirty times and accused of committing a crime. The only problem is, he's never so much as jaywalked across a street. Brian is a hardworking, church-going man who is director of lighting at Black Entertainment Television in Washington, D.C. He has a spotless record. That matters little to the D.C. police. Time after time, the cops would pull Brian over to interrogate him for a recent murder, robbery, or assault. He would be yanked out of his car, thrown to the ground, and held until one of them figured out he was the wrong guy. -"Brian Anthony Harris is Not Wanted", by Michael Moore In his 1963 document, "Letter From Birmingham Jail", Martin Luther King Jr. prayed "in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty." To date, his prayers remain unanswered, and the radiant stars he dreamed of seem more remote and dim than ever. It seems impossible, in the wake of the Civil Rights movement of the Sixties, America would not take heed and make strides to erase the lines of inequality dividing its population. It hasn't. Superficial changes in race relations, like the halfhearted integration of schools, the ever-lessening concessions to affirmative action, and the few token minority Court and Cabinet appointments notwithstanding, the status-quo of American life illustrates the continuing failure of King's dream. In the 37 years since Martin Luther King Jr. sat in an Alabama jail cell, more black men have gone to jail than to college, and the black voice in America's democracy has quieted to a whisper. Black Americans are not m... ...anna Huffington. 10/01/00. http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2000/10/02/disenfranchised/index.html "Back to the Civil Rights Barricades", by Todd Gitlin. 12/04/00. http://www.salon.com/politics/feature/2000/12/04/democracy/index.html Justice Policy Institute/ Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice. Beatty, Holman, and Schiraldi, 2000 Poor Prescription: The Costs of Imprisoning Drug Offenders in the United States. Washington DC: The Justice Policy Institute. Accessed 5/20/01. http://www.cjcj.org/drug/drugpr.html "America's One Million Non-Violent Prisoners", by V. Schiraldi, J. Ziedenberg, and J Irwin, PhD.1999. Accessed 5/21/01. http://www.cjcj.org/jpi/onemillion.html United States Department of Justice. Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 1999. Allen J. Beck, Ph.D. Apr, 2000, Accessed 5/20/01. http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pubalp2.htm#pjmidyear

Essay --

According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, the discussion of definite and indefinite descriptions has been at the center of heated debates of analytic philosophy for over a century. There have been many compelling arguments and interesting views by many philosophers on this topic and it is hard to yet conclude whose argument is more correct. In this essay, I will first briefly explain Russell’s analysis of definite descriptions, then present both Strawson’s and Donnellan’s views of descriptions in opposition to Russell’s, then I will conclude the essay by showing why I find the analysis of definite descriptions by Donnellan more persuasive than the others’. To put it simply, Russell believes that the statement, ‘the F is G’ has three components: existence (âˆÆ'xFx), uniqueness (∀x∀y((Fx∠§Fy)→y=x)), and predication (∀x(Fx→Gx)). In other words, for a statement, ‘the F is G,’ to be true, there must exist at least one thing which is F, there must exist at most one thing which is F, and whatever is F must be G. To expand on this, a sentence of the form ‘The F is G’ states, ‘There is one and only one F and it is G’ and the difference between ‘The F is G’ and ‘An F is G’ is that the latter is just stating there is a (G) F, whereas the use of the definite article, ‘the,’ emphasizes extra uniqueness. For example, it is true to speak of â€Å"the son of Eric† even when Eric has several sons, but it would be more correct to say â€Å"a son of Eric.† Russell further argues that if there is no unique F, an a ssertion of â€Å"the F is G† is false. Strawson thinks otherwise. Strawson claims that Russell confuses properties of a sentence with properties of a use of that sentence. To explain, while Russell thinks truth-value belongs to sentence meanings... ...rase ‘the F’ to refer to something, thus it does not completely embrace the definite descriptions as actually used in a natural language. For example, when I say, â€Å"the leaves are red,† I am referring to the object, leaves, that I am trying to communicate across, but with Russell’s theory, this may not be the case. Using Strawson’s theory, we must ascertain what object is being identified or referred to and what is being ascribed to it even before we evaluate for truth or falsity. For instance, when I say, â€Å"Smith’s murderer is insane,† and it turns out that Smith was not actually murdered at all, then his theory fails as the description, ‘Smith’s murderer,’ does not apply to anyone. Contrastingly, to me at least, Donnellan’s theory encompasses the weaknesses of the theories by the other two, which is why I believe it is the more persuasive argument over the others’.

Essay on Double Standards in The Taming of the Shrew :: Taming Shrew Essays

Double Standards in The Taming of the Shrew    A very prominent theme in Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew is society's double standards of men and women. In the play, Katherina is a very free-willed, independent woman who wishes to follow her own path in life and is not dependent on a man for her happiness. Petruchio is also free-willed, independent and speaks his mind freely. However, where Petruchio is praised for these characteristics, Katherina is scorned and called names. Petruchio is manly and Katherina is bitchy for the same traits.    This is seen in popular cultural too often than is comfortable for such an advanced modern culture as ours. Women who are ambitious are seen as bitchy and conniving while men are seen as ambitious. Examples can be found in politics and entertainment. Prominent figures such as Senator Hillary Rodham-Clinton and former Attorney General Janet Reno, were forced to take a more masculine persona, because people were so threatened by their power. Senator Clinton was always seen as a woman to be watched, just because she wanted her own life while her husband governed the country. She was even criticized for keeping her maiden name instead of dropping it in lieu of the traditional husband's name.    In the entertainment industry stereotypes of what women should be. Women of power like Oprah Winfrey are found threatening to this. Rosie O'Donnell was chastised for proclaiming her political views on her television show. When she stated her opinion about gun control to prominent NRA advocate Tom Selleck she was considered bitchy for stating her opinion, even though he did the same thing. On the television show, ER, Kerry Wheeler is considered a bitch for being a strong character and boss, while her co-worker, Mark Green can be equally headstrong and difficult but is considered determined. Comedian Roseanne has always been ridiculed for being brash with her opinions, where male comedians like Chris Rock are hailed. When a woman may celebrate her sexuality and be open with it, she will be called a slut, but if a man sleeps around he can still be a hero - President John F. Kennedy and Wilt Chamberlain, a few examples.    When you use the word feminine you naturally think of demure, quiet, pretty, pastel, and motherly. Strong, ambitious, athletic, powerful and opinionated never come to mind. And, it seems, because the woman is not to speak up for herself it is okay to say hurtful things in front of them.