How Reading As A Young Child Encouraged Essay Example for Free

How Reading As A Young Child Encouraged Essay When I was a young boy, while my other friends were busy playing ball, riding bicycles, playing games and doing other forms of leisure, I was always listening to my mother as she read comic books to my ears. My mother would always read the interesting comic books to my attentive ears; I would sit with my mother on the sofa as she read the comic books to my ears. I grew up from listening to my mother to reading the comic books on my own. My mother always bought me several books to read every week, as soon as I finished reading one book there was always another book to be read. I developed interest in several comic books, ranging from Iron Man, Spiderman and the likes. I inculcated the habit of reading right from a very tender age. My early reading habit really helped me in life as I developed an undying love for reading and improved greatly on my writing. While growing, I developed from reading comic books to reading more voluminous books, newspaper articles, magazines, novels etc. Books were packed in the shelves of our house. My friends always called our house a library. Reading was always the only option to kill boredom. My flare for reading encouraged me to get involved in writing as I discovered that the more I read the better I wrote. I could relate what I read in several books and combine them into writing something better. My reading habit really boosted my diction and I learnt new words each day I picked up a book to read. I learnt the rules of language, my grammar was greatly improved. Over the years I garnered a lot of experience from reading both fictional and true life stories. I applied some of the knowledge acquired from reading these books to various aspects of my life. Reading lots of books gave me a hint on the ways writers wrote, the style of language used and how best to communicate to a particular audience. I am a testimony of the quote that says that â€Å"A good reader is a good writer†. The more I read, the more I improved on my reading speed and grasped new ideas on how to write. Reading frequently made me a better reader and a good writer. I developed from reading for fun to reading for the acquisition of knowledge. Books like; the Richest man in Babylon, Thinking Big, the tale of two cities and many others were already in the long list of books that I have read . My whole life was affected positively by my reading habit as I read several motivational books that have been spurring me to achieve greatness in life. Through writing I could now transfer my thoughts and imaginations into a book or piece of article. The knowledge that I have acquired over time is what has made me the better person I am today. As I now read more, write better, have better grammar and have become a better man. The saying that you are what you read and you are an expression of what you write is definitely true as I have noticed tremendous changes in my life as a result of the past books I have read. I will have to thank my mother for imbibing the culture of reading in me; if not for her I would not have been a good writer and would definitely not be what I have been fashioned out to be today.

Introduction and History of Sainsburys

Introduction and History of Sainsburys John James and Mary Ann Sainsbury established Sainsburys in 1869 which grew rapidly and become the largest grocery retailer in 1922 and also become the first self-service retailing in the UK and had its most successful time during the 1980s. Its Britains longest standing major food retailing chain. The founders principles and values guide us strongly today as they did at the outset to be the customers first choice for food shopping by providing high quality products, value for money and excellent service. As a business we are determined to achieve our goal, which is: At Sainsburys we will bring an ever improving quality shopping knowledge for our customers with great product at fair prices. We will exceed customer opportunity for healthy, safe, fresh and tasty food making their lives easier every day (www.jsainsbury.co.uk ) This means we are firm on quality and customer happiness in a way that brings this to life in a present and very different world.To support us in achieving our goal we have six colleagues values and we have five company values which are the ways of working that we look forward to all colleagues and managers while working in Sainsburys to live by. The values are listed below: Sainsburys Colleague Values:- Getting better every day Great service drives sales Individual responsibility team delivery Keep it simple Respect for the individual Treat every  £ as your own Company Values: Best for food and health Sourcing with integrity Respect for our environment Making a positive difference to our community A great place to work (www.jsainsbury.co.uk ) Size:- J Sainsbury Plc consists of a chain of 872 stores comprising in which 537 supermarkets and 335 convenience stores and Sainsburys Bank. At present, Sainsburys serve over 19 million customers a week. The large store of Sainsburys offers around 30,000 products 40% of these are Sainsburys own brand. Many stores offer complementary non-food products and services. Nearly 60% of our stores are in the town centre or edge of centre locations, many of these built on previously in ruins sites. We employ 150,000 colleagues of these, 70% are part-time and 30% are full time. It is the UKs third largest grocery stores with 16% market share behind international behemoth Tesco (31% share) and ASDA (17%), which is owned by Wal-Mart. ( www.Hemscott.com ) An internet based delivery shopping service is also available to nearly 90 per cent of UK households. Structure:- In order to meet our customers needs the Sainsburys retail area is divided into different customer-led formats. This acknowledge the face that Sainsburys should be a customer led business and supports our strategy to delivering great service and quality at a competitive cost. There are 2 main format categories: Supermarkets:- These stores have a comprehensive full food offer with some having extended ranges of general merchandise. These make up the bulk of our estate. Convenience:- Sainsburys local these stores are located within the high street, urban and suburban areas. They are specifically designed and operated to cater for the grab and go, meal solutions, top up, distress and convenience customer. These stores are typically the smallest in estate. SWOT Analysis: (S)trengths They may be innovative products, the way you serve your customer or highly skilled colleagues. World largest retailer for Fair-trade goods by value. Strong reputation, brand name and high consistency Sainsburys won more Quality Food Awards than any other retailer this year including seven wins from 15 categories for Value products. ( www.investegate.co.uk ) Sainsbury own manufacture brand TU is one of the top 10 clothing brand in UK. (W)eaknesses Average return on invested capital over the past five years was just 5%. None of the Sainsburys is 24hours. Sainsburys is only covering just UK market and not going global like their rivals Tesco and Asda (O)pportunity Expanding focus on non-food assistance such as outfits, electronics and home products. UK is a tough market for new store development -controlled by space and planning permission Sainsburys has strong visibility on its store pipeline allowing greater security for growth. ( www.Hemscott.com ) Olympics 2012 and Commonwealth 2014 at Glasgow which will be the forth coming opportunities for Sainsbury. The ownership of property assets provides operational flexibility and the exploitation of potential development opportunity will maximise value. (www.investegate.co.uk ) (T)hreats Grocery retailing is a highly competitive industry. For years, Sainsburys struggled to compete with the major players in the industry. Fierce completion with Tesco and ASDA to keep/increase market share. At present, Sainsburys is the UKs third largest grocer with 16% market share behind international behemoth Tesco (31% share) and ASDA (17%), which is owned by Wal-Mart. (www.Hemscott.com ). Deep recession has prompted consumers to be price sensitive During fiscal 2010, Sainsburys opened 38 new stores, extended and refurbished 54 stores. Increased capacity growth in 2010 could put additional pressure on prices and completion. ( www.Hemscott.com ) (P)olitical Impact: Since Sainsburys started providing banking services any government changes would reflect the change in taxation policies. Sainsbury recognised as the worlds largest fair-trade retailer more than 7.5 million people- farmers, workers, and their families, across 59 developing countries benefit from the international fair-trade system. (E)conomic Environment: Sainsbury have an ambitious new stores development programs for 2010 which will provide lots of job opportunities also new opportunities for the local businesses which will make significant contribution to UK economy. Trainee partnership scheme works in conjunction with 60 of Sainsbury stock construction , engineering , facilities management and retail suppliers to provide training and employment

American Needs a Medical School Application Loan Program Essay

American Needs a Medical School Application Loan Program For more than a year, a large part of my time has been spent applying to medical schools. I have dedicated much energy to prepare for and take the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT), obtain multiple letters of recommendation from my professors, interview for a health professions committee letter of recommendation from my university, complete and submit the applications, and interview at various medical schools. Although this process proved to be a positive experience, the extraordinary cost of applying to medical schools poses a danger of limiting individuals with limited financial resources. Moreover, the lack of scholarship or loan programs to assist students with the application process further contributes to this danger. One of the first hurdles of applying to medical school is the MCAT. Although many students prepare for this exam on their own, a large portion of students choose to take preparatory classes offered by various private test preparation companies. These courses, which often cost in excess of $1000, teach students not only the basic concepts covered on the MCAT, but also helpful test-taking techniques unique to the MCAT. Thus, these preparatory classes may provide students with helpful advice and knowledge unavailable to those who cannot afford the classes. I attribute much of my success on the MCAT to these helpful hints; furthermore, many of my fellow pre-medical colleagues, who were unable to take the preparatory classes because of financial constraints, scored poorly on the exam. Hence, I believe MCAT preparation courses significantly increase one's probability of performing well on the MCAT, and, since these courses are out of reach for many... ...expenses should not impede a student's desire to apply to medical school and achieve his or her goal of becoming a physician. Although AMCAS and some medical schools have attempted to alleviate this problem by providing fee waivers or reductions, these efforts fall short of solving the problem of financial impedance to medical applicants. Many students from moderate income families cannot receive these fee waivers; moreover, their families cannot provide the $2000 to $3000 necessary to apply to medical school. Thus, I believe that the Department of Education, in conjunction with private loan companies, should provide low interest, medical school application loan programs. Through these loan programs, qualified students who lack necessary application funds, may rightfully apply to medical schools without facing the exuberant and potentially limiting application fees.

Revenge In Hamlet Essay -- essays research papers

What do you consider to the main theme(s) of Hamlet? Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a complex play where many themes are intertwined – themes that are essential to the development of the play. The issue of death and disease, both physical and emotional is very prevalent throughout the duration of the play, as well as fate and divine providence. The play also questions madness and whether it can be feigned, as well as corruption and its moral implications. Of course, who could forget the famous ‘To be or not to be’ soliloquy, where Hamlet not only questions life and death, but many of life’s other uncertainties as well. Undoubtedly, the most essential theme in the development of Hamlet is revenge and question ‘Does revenge pay?’ Revenge is a frighteningly bloodthirsty emotion, which causes people to act blindly and without reason. Revenge is a theme that is cleverly built upon throughout the extent of the play; with it being the driving force behind two of the main characters in the play. The play is introduced by the appearance of the ghost of Hamlet’s father in the first scene, which automatically gives the impression that something is amiss. This is later clarified by the statement that â€Å"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark† (Act1 Scene 4 Line 90). The ghost emerges before Hamlet and insinuates that his death was not as nocent as it may seem. The ghost urges Hamlet to â€Å"Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder† (Act1 Scene 5 Line25) and informs him that â€Å"The serpent that did sting thy father’s life now wears his crown â€Å"(Act1 Scene5 Line 38). This appears to indicate that Hamlet’s father’s death was actually murder, and that the deed was committed by King Hamlet’s brother, Claudius, who had now taken over as King of Denmark. The Ghost taunts Hamlet, telling him that it is part of every man’s honour to avenge his death. Hamlet then becomes a part of Denmark’s foulness and wre tchedness when he agrees to avenge his father’s death. This is the beginning of a vicious cycle of hatred, death and revenge that destroys many lives. Soon after Claudius marries Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude, Hamlet feigns madness as a ploy to cover up his attempts to avenge his father’s death and to bring him closer to Claudius. One of the first things Hamlet does in his attempt to prove Claudius’ guilt is to have ‘The Mousetrap’ performed in court. ‘The Mousetrap recreates ... ...amned Dane, Drink off this potion. Is thy union here? Follow my mother.† Laertes dies, content that justice has been served and Hamlet himself dies soon after, his father’s death finally avenged. The obsession and need for revenge displayed by our two main characters eventually led them both to their downfall. Not only did it hurt themselves, but many others close to them. Ophelia’s death, for example could be blamed on Hamlet’s desire for revenge, whilst Hamlets death occurred as a result of Laertes quest to avenge his father’s death. Hopefully, it is easy to see why I believe that revenge is the core theme in Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Revenge shapes the entire plot of the play and could be blamed for corrupting Hamlet and Laertes, making them almost evil in their final intentions. Shakespeare highlights the moral implications of revenge, and how a person can be corrupted by their need for revenge. The age-old saying ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth’ is outlined perfectly in Hamlet. You cannot receive a punch, return a punch and then all sit down together for a lovely dinner. The second that you retaliate, it starts a horrible chain that is almost impossible to break.

Organisational Structure and Culture of the Oceans 11 Team Essay

Organisational Structure and Culture of the Oceans 11 Team 1.0 Executive Summary: The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)[1] wished to review how the Ocean’s 11 team was formed and discuss by putting a management development programme together, the organisational behavioural aspects of the group. A vast amount of research was conducted in order to put together the management development programme together to show other organisations how to prevent problems within their group and avoid issues that will be mentioned in this programme. The main objectives of this report are to research and analyse what motivates a group or team in order to perform successfully and cohesively. To look at the leadership of a group and the different roles they play in terms of power they may hold, which leads onto conflict that may occur and could cause problems within the organisation. This will also incorporate the strategy the leader, if elected, uses in order to control and influence its organisations. In addition to the above, to investigate the communication skills of a group and how significant the experience of its members is, whilst looking at the attitudes present amongst them. The report will also examine the individual differences and perceptions of a team/group and sees how they can conjure an aim and how to achieve it. This will involve looking into the organisational structure and culture of the Oceans 11 team. All the above will use associated theories and models to analyse how the team was formed and backed up with relevant references. 2.0 Introduction: ----------------- This report intends to look at how our managerial development programme reflects groups and organisations and its concern with the improvement of the quality ... ...), Organisational Behaviour: Individuals, Groups, and the organisation, London, Pearson Education [20] Brooks, Ian (1999), Organisational Behaviour: Individuals, Groups, and the organisation, London, Pearson Education [21] Brooks, Ian (1999), Organisational Behaviour: Individuals, Groups, and the organisation, London, Pearson Education [22] Brooks, Ian (1999), Organisational Behaviour: Individuals, Groups, and the organisation, London, Pearson Education [23] Brooks, Ian (1999), Organisational Behaviour: Individuals, Groups, and the organisation, London, Pearson Education [24] Learning to Work in Groups - Matthew B. Miles [25] http://www.google.com [26] Brooks, Ian (1999), Organisational Behaviour: Individuals, Groups, and the organisation, London, Pearson Education [27] Organisational Behaviour Lectures [28] Ocean’s 11 Case Study

Reality in Jean Genet’s ‘the Balcony’ Essay

Jean Genet’s Le Balcon (or The Balcony) is an absurdist play in which the main structure is the â€Å"philosophical battle between illusion and reality† (Savona 1983: 76) and this essay will investigate some of the levels of reality within an absurdist and existentialist context in Genet’s play. The play itself â€Å"offers a spectacularly theatrical exploration of the relationship between fantasy and reality† (Patterson 2005: 32) whilst also seeking â€Å"to negate reality itself† (Innes 2001: 438). Whilst also attempting to transform reality into a fantasy world in which its characters can escape the dismay of daily life, it is â€Å"also designed to be a moving play which†¦ keeps the audience aware that it is a play† they are watching and not allowing them to get lost in the world of illusion, fantasy and desire that the characters are trapped in (Reck 1962: 23). This echoes a technique used as part of Brecht’s Verfremdungseffekt, and by keeping the spectator at a critical distance, they become observers and thus can learn something about their own lives and the world in which they live. The play is set in Madame Irma’s Maison d’illusions (or house of illusions) which to the spectator is clearly a brothel, but not a brothel in the conventional sense. In the brothel, men of everyday walks of life (for example a plumber) act out sexual fantasies with the women that work there. Their sexual fantasies are by no means conventional either, for example the ‘clients’ of the brothel take on the personas of powerful men, namely a bishop, an executioner, a judge and a general. From the exposition of the play, it is unclear that the bishop isn’t actually a bishop as the costume, dialogue and action of the bishop are completely authentic aside from the fact that the powerful characters â€Å"tower over all the other actors as well as the audience† (McMahon 1963: 110). This is visually unrealistic and takes the spectator away from realism right from the onset, yet somehow draws them into this world of illusion. The sexual acts were intended by Genet to contain meaning and not to be realistic. They are merely projections, a series of images of man trapped in a hall of mirrors, not attempting to convey naturalism in the slightest (McMahon 1963: 176) and the characters’ â€Å"performance becomes reflections of reflections† (Innes 2001: 438). As Esslin states in his The Theatre of the Absurd, â€Å"there are no characters in the conventional sense†¦merely the images of basic urges and impulses† (Esslin 2001: 22). Image is of key importance in the play; it is everything â€Å"for the deeper one moves into images the less danger there will be of reality’s coming back to question the veracity of the images† (McMahon 1963: 162). One of the key themes of the play is the escape from reality, and as T. S Eliot wrote â€Å"human kind cannot bear much reality† (1964: 69), one of the fundamental messages Genet is trying to portray in his play. There is a strong sense of the actor merging with the character in The Balcony (Savona 1983: 86), or the character merging with the fantasy characters they attempt to portray in the brothel, or characters they so long to be, even for just an hour or so. This inauthentic relationship between reality and fantasy reflects human nature and life itself – we have all at some point aspired, or even wished that we could be someone else, someone with power or respect. However as McMahon suggests â€Å"there is no aspiration within the motivation of these people to be bishop, judge or general; the limit of their ambitions knows its range, and the cutting off point†¦is the thin line between pretence and reality† (1963: 160). The play takes a turn when the clients of the brothel are forced to take on the characters they are pretending to be for real. It is at this point that the illusion is destroyed and the men of everyday life no longer want the roles they are playing. For them, the roles are now too realistic and there is no escape from them – the relationship between reality and fantasy has become authentic. When the characters are acting out their roles in the real world, they are no longer comforted by their imagination; they are faced with the harsh reality of life, the one thing that they have sought to escape in the first place. This is reinforced by the fact the characters are reluctant to assist the chief of police and be â€Å"dragged from their dream world into the harshness and dangers of reality† (Thody 1970: 186-187). The revolution outside can be seen as a symbol of real life. â€Å"Were it not for the revolution, the various characters could continue to play their games in the enclosed a-historical atmosphere provided for them†¦but the revolution is there, and threatens at any moment to destroy their world of illusion completely† (Thody 1970: 179). During the play, various sounds of gunfire can be heard in the background of the scenes – A threat from the real world outside reminding the characters they have tried to escape life and whilst this may be successful for the hour they are in the brothel, real life is still going out outside. â€Å"Machine gun fire attempts to undermine the magic of illusion created and reflects Brecht’s distancing effect† (Savona 1983: 89). Once again Genet forces the spectator to remember that they are watching a play, but also when we all hide behind the facade of life, or try and escape reality, the real world is still very much at large in the background and we can’t ignore this! â€Å"The theme of illusion reaches its climax at the very end of the action, when Madame Irma comes to the front of the stage to remind the audience that they have, after all, only been watching a play† (Thody 1970: 185). The spectator is suddenly brought back to ‘the real word’ having witnessed actors playing characters, characters playing characters, characters playing people. The audience has taken the journey through Madam Irma’s ‘house of illusions’, and has been presented with a theatrical projection of humanity through many planes of reality. She tells the audience â€Å"you must now go home, where everything – you can be quite sure – will be falser than here†¦You must now go† (Genet 1966: 96). She has highlighted that as humans we have a tendency to hide behind the facade of life, to go along with what we are told and what we see, thus taking life for granted. We then think back to the characters in the play and realise how they are merely projections of ourselves. â€Å"Genet proclaims the illusion of reality and the reality of illusion† (Nelson 1963: 61). For the spectator and the characters â€Å"reality has become indiscernible from illusion† (Nelson 1963: 65) and the audience must ask themselves where does reality end and pretence begins. BIBLIOGRAPHY Eliot, T. S. , Murder in the Cathedral (Fort Washington PA: Harvest Books, 1964) Esslin, Martin, The Theatre of the Absurd, 3rd Edition (London: Metheun, 2001). Genet, Jean, The Balcony (New York: Grove Press, 1966) Innes, Christopher, ‘Theatre After Two World Wars’, in The Oxford Illustrated History of the Theatre, ed. by John Russell Brown (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), pp. 380-444. Macquarrie, John, Existentialism (Baltimore: Pelican Books, 1972) McMahon, Joseph H. , The Imagination of Jean Genet (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1963) Nelson, Banjamin, ‘The Balcony and Parisian Existentialism’, The Tulane Drama Review, 7:3 (1963), 60-79. Oswald, Laura, Jean Genet and the Semiotics of Performance (Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1989) Patterson, Michael, The Oxford Dictionary of Plays (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005) Reck, Rima Drell, ‘Appearance and Reality in Genet’s Le Balcon’, The New Dramatists, 29:1 (1962), 20-25. Savona, Jeannette L. , Jean Genet (London and Basingstoke: The Macmillan Press, 1983) Styan, J. L. , The English Stage (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996) Thody, Philip, Jean Genet: A Study of His Novels and Plays (New York: Stein and Day, 1970).

Smells Like Fifth Symphony: A Dissertation On The Works Of Cobain And Beethoven

Musical legends Kurt Cobain and Ludwig Van Beethoven may have lived in different timelines, played different kinds of music and had different musical influences but their passion and the workmanship that they have rendered to perfect their craft is so commendable that their masterpieces are still considered as one of the pillars of the music industry of today. Kurt Cobain as Kurt Donald Cobain was born on February 20, 1967. On the other hand, Ludwig Van Beethoven was born on December 16, 1770. Both of them had families that had musical backgrounds, Cobain’s maternal uncle Chuck Fradenburg starred in a band called â€Å"The Beachcombers† while his Aunt Mari Earle played guitar and performed in bands throughout Grays Harbor County, and his great-uncle Delbert had a career as an Irish tenor; making an appearance in the 1930 film King of Jazz . On the other hand, Beethoven was a grandson of a musician named Lodewijk van Beethoven where he was named after as Lodewijk which was the Dutch cognate of Ludwig. His grandfather was employed as a bass singer at the court of the Elector of Cologne, rising to become Kapellmeister (music director). Moreover, his grandfather had one son, Johann van Beethoven who worked as a tenor in the same musical establishment, was also giving lessons on piano and violin for additional income . With those musical genes encrypted in their DNA, it was no wonder that both of them made a mark in the music industry with their compositions. Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony and Kurt Cobain’s Smells like Teen Spirit both catapulted them to superstar’s status and fame to say the least. Even though the compositions of the two musical geniuses were 183 years apart, Smells like Teen Spirit was released on 1991 while Fifth Symphony was released on 1808, both had changed the way the music should be played in their various eras. The song â€Å"Smells like Teen Spirit† talked about teenage angst and not following the guidelines that the adults expect the teenagers to be. It was sort of a revolutionary anthem among teenagers at that time . On the contrary, experts believed that Beethoven’s â€Å"Fifth Symphony† was about fate knocking at the door or at the gate . Among the other differences of the two pieces was the key of the song, Teen Spirit was written in the key of F minor while Fifth Symphony was written in C minor. Furthermore, instrumentation was one of the major differences among the two pieces; Fifth Symphony used flutes, clarinets, horns among others while Teen Spirit used heavy guitar distortions and drums. However, tempo was one of the resemblances of the two compositions. They both had transition between slow notes and faster notes and vice versa. Furthermore, they also had distinctive notes played mostly throughout the song. One thing that could really connect the two musical geniuses was that Cobain loved to focus on the melodies of the songs and not the lyrics. Cobain said, why in the hell do journalists insist on coming up with a second-rate Freudian evaluation of my lyrics, when 90 percent of the time they've transcribed them incorrectly? With that kind of mentality, given the chance, Cobain’s musical idea could have worked well with the idea of Beethoven. It would like the mash-up between the classical music and rock music. For sure, the music industry would never be the same again.