Tips for a Successful Relationship

Tips for a Successful Relationship Ezell ORR Communication Instructor: Macy Dailey October 17, 2011 ? Dear Jack and Jill, My advice to you for a successful and everlasting relationship is good communication. Without good communication the relationship/engagement will not develop to the next level of marriage. In the beginning your communication was limited to conversations of neutral agreements because of the initial stage of your relationship. Researchers have found that one of the reasons a new relationship is usually so pleasant and friendly is that people emphasize the similarities they have and ignore the differences (Brown & Rogers, 1991). As your relation blossoms the differences in both of you will surface. Some maybe too minute to entertain, and can be easily overlooked or digested. Constant differences amongst partners that are everyday habits can be discussed and settle without harming the relationship. Disregarding or overlooking major concerns such as, financial matters, sexual preferences, and raising of children can be harmful to the relationship if not handle properly. Counseling may be recommended or advisable in most cases. Every relationship is different, no two relationship are the same. As the relationship unfolds and you both begin to know each other better, you will begin to release information to the other which was somewhat private at the start of the relationship. The most important characteristic of a deep interpersonal relationship is the self-disclosure of our innermost thoughts and feelings (Roeckelein, 1998). When you both begin to exchange personal information, building trust and confidence that is a sign that the relationship is progressing. As the relationship progresses you will be more incline to disclose more of your identity. Self Disclosure is sometime give-and-take, where both parties have equal risk when disclosing personal information. Shared disclosures will increase the vulnerability to being hurt or disrespected by others, and the fact that you both have devoted so much of yourself may make it complicated to break the bond you all have together. Forming a relationship with someone is not like what you see on TV. Communication problems can surface and disrupt the relationship or even bring it to an end. Certain behaviors can really ruin a relationship. Being silent, nice, and playing games; these behaviors can damage a relationship and stand In the way of trust. Everyone tends to be silent at times, but lengthy silence is not good for the relationship. Refusing to talk to someone is frequently a means of controlling the other person or exerting power in a relationship. If it is prolonged, it can even be a form of psychological abuse (Chang, 1996). It is best to try and talk things out oppose to not talking at all. You know the old saying â€Å"time heals everything† so sometime it is better to let things along for a while if both of you understands that there is a problem. Another area of concern is being too nice or being overly agreeable. Don’t put yourself in a position where you would rather let someone have their way or just take the blame to make the problem go away. Playing Games will also destroy a relationship. In 1964, Eric Berne wrote a best-selling book titled Games People Play, which describes how people sometimes have ulterior motives. He called these strategies â€Å"games† (Berne, 1996). He defined games as a dysfunctional way of communicating, and it is a negative pattern of interacting that can develop between people. Berne said, â€Å"In most cases, the participants of the game are unaware that they are playing; they have simply developed a pattern of interacting that is not constructive or useful in growing the relationship†. Playing games at the expense of someone’s feelings is never a good thing. Relationships can easily take a turn for the worst when games are involved. The games will terminate when one of you decides to stop playing. The end result of playing games is that sometimes ends with one person becoming angry or upset. Berne also states that â€Å"regardless of the strategy, open and honest communication can prevent the continuation of a game and its effects on the parties involved. It is best to not play games and let the relationship run its course without any kind of interruptions. ? Another component of having a successful relationship is being a good listener. Everybody who can speak, read, and write were taught to achieve these three components through parenting and school. We take classes in reading, writing, or even speaking but we rarely hear of someone taking classes in listening. You cannot understand others, respond appropriately to what they say, and provide helpful feedback if you have not listened (Hayes, 1991). Listening is one of the most important factors in interpersonal communication. One study estimated that 45 percent of all communication time is spent listening, compared with 30 percent speaking, 16 percent reading, and 9 percent writing (Hayes, 1991). Most people are also generally inefficient listeners; they tend to forget rather quickly what has been said. Within 48 hours, we forget about 50 percent of that information, for an overall retention of about 25 percent efficiency (Lee & Hatesohl, 1993). Most people think that hearing is listening, but much more is involved than just hearing something and waiting for it to get transmitted to your brain to be interpreted. Effective listening is a process that requires six distinct components: (1) motivating yourself to listen, (2) clearly hearing the message, (3) paying attention to the message, (4) correctly interpreting the message, (5) evaluating the message, and (6) remembering and responding appropriately (Adair, 2003). You all must learn to be motivated and have an open mind and be willing to gain something from one another. During conversation between the two of you make sure you can hear each other clearly without any interruption. Virginia Satir (1976) suggests that when you do not clearly hear the speaker, you often make up what you think the other person said. We tend to make an assumption and then hold the other person responsible for not communicating effectively. Paying Attention is another means of effective listening. Messages are sent by verbal and nonverbal means. To be an effective listener you must give your undivided attention to both verbal and nonverbal messages. Never jump to conclusion, let the other party finish their thoughts before you intervene to ensure that you have interpreted the message correctly. ? Interpreting the wrong message or signal can result in causing an interpersonal conflict. Being able to indentify conflict and handle it without incident will improve your relationship. Daniel Dana, a pioneer in the field of mediation, suggested that four factors must be present for a disagreement to be considered a conflict: Two people are interdependent; they each need something from the other. Both parties blame the other or find fault with them for causing the problem. One or more of the parties is angry or emotionally upset. The parties’ behaviors are affecting their relationship with each other and/When conflict emerges, tension are high, and the relationship can be put in jeopardy if not resolved as soon as possible. In all relationships, whether friendly, romantic, or family, conflict is unavoidable. Conflict can be hazardous to your health because it has the potential to get out of control, but it can also have value that can reinforce the relationship. Researchers Patricia Noller and Judith Feeney (2002) reported that some conflict may actually be good for a marriage over time and can lead to the personal growth of both parties if the negative communication is aimed at the other person’s specific behavior and not at the whole person. Another scholar from Harvard University reported that conflict has other value as well. He noted, in businesses and other organizations, conflict increases the necessity to accomplish tasks, it helps people understand their positions because it brings issues out into the open and forces them to support their arguments, and it gives all parties to the conflict a greater awareness of their own identities. Walton also suggested that conflict can help people be more creative in finding solutions to problems. Avoiding conflict is always better than promoting conflict. Sometimes it is best to get away and let the air clear. When emotions are high and tensions are peaking, a little space between each other will relax the atmosphere. I am not saying to just â€Å"sweep it under the rug† and hope it just go away. However, researchers found that the pattern that indicates a relationship is failing is that angry words are exchanged, the anger escalates, and then the withdrawal occurs. In other words, in falling relationship, negative emotions overwhelm the interaction between the parties, who then withdraws from each other (Zautra, 2003). Psychotherapist and author Virginia Satir suggests that we are initially attracted to people because of what we have in common with them, but we grow on the basis of our differences (Aatir, 1976). When you first meet someone you try and field them out. For a relationship to develop, you must have some initial interest. Some people will ask questions about another person, or they will watch someone to see if they meet the physical qualification. Some may listen to how someone speaks, there are several different techniques we use to gather information about someone whom we may be attracted to or want to get to know better. Theorists believe that several factors may influence your attraction to certain people. These factors are physical proximity, physical attractiveness, perceived gain, and similarities and differences (Hartley, 1999). Physical attractiveness is one of the first thing most people explore prior to entertaining a relationship. Some like their mate to be slim, some like them to be a little on the heavy side, some like them to be tall, short, or even short and round. Psychologists have found, however, that you are strongly influenced by prototypes of the idea male and female form as portrayed by media in our culture (Cattarin, Thompson, Thomas, & Williams, 2000). Some people is attracted to others because of what they think they can gain from being in the company of superstars or other high ranking individuals. Do you find yourself associating with people because who they are, or what you think they have and maybe you could be a part of it, in other words, you just want to be seen with someone who you believe you can benefit from. You have probably heard the saying, â€Å"Birds of a feather flock together. †Which saying is true? According to researchers, both are accurate (Hartley, 1999). It is good to know someone of importance or someone who is a superstar, but trying to put yourself in a position to gain something thru someone else’s fame, it just not worth the trouble. If you grew up with someone who have recently gain fame and fortune and you wish to associate yourself with them and they welcome your interest that will be entirely up to you. Emotional Intelligence is another area you should be familiar with to have a successful relationship. Knowing how to manage, communicate, and understand emotional feelings. Emotional Intelligence is similar to emotional health, the higher your emotional intelligence-the higher your emotional health is. Emotional health allows you to stay in touch with your own feelings while you are exposed to the feelings of others. It also enables you to handle life’s emotional setbacks in a healthy manner instead of taking your feelings on others (Segal, 1997). Emotional intelligence has three components: (1) the ability to effectively perceive, communicate, and manage negative emotions; (2) the ability to experience, communicate, and ustain positive emotions; and (3) the ability to retain perspective during difficult times and to recover following stressful events (Zautra, 2003). Most positive and negative feeling you encounter is a condition of your thoughts and your interpretation of events within the relationship. Psychotherapist and author Richard Carlson (1997) suggests that you think of negative thoughts similar to the way you think about your dreams. Y ou may awaken and be upset about something that occurred in a dream. But you understand that dreaming is merely thinking while you are asleep, and you dismiss the negative dream because you realize that it is not reality. The negative thoughts you have while awake also seem real, but they are not necessarily the truth. You can dismiss them like bad dreams and not allow them to spiral out of control until they ruin an entire day or even a lifetime. When negative thoughts assail you, Carlson suggests you remind yourself of the following: â€Å"We all produce a steady stream of thoughts, twenty-four hours a day. . . Pick and choose which thoughts you wish to react to â€Å". Everybody has different moods happiness. You can be happy and be in a good mood, or you can be mad or sad about something and keep your feelings inside and you can appear to be in a good mood. Moods are simply a part of being human, and being able to understand these moods oppose to letting them get the best of you will help you manage conflict. When you are in a good mood, everyth ing look good, you feel good, and life if great. However, a bad mood can ruin your day and the people around you. We know that words are not things; they are merely symbols that represent things. So as linguist Robin Tolmach Lakoff asks, â€Å"How can something that is physically just puffs of air, a mere stand-in for reality, have the power to change us and our world? †(Lakoff, 2001). Words are very powerful, they can cause pain, damage, excitement, and they can inspire you. Words are magical in the way they affect the minds of those who use them. â€Å"A mere matter of words,â€Å" we say contemptuously, forgetting that words have power to mould men’s thinking, to canalize their feeling, to direct their willing and acting. Conduct and character are largely determined by the nature of the words we currently use to discuss ourselves and the world around us. (Huxley, 1940). One of the first things children do when they first learn language is to identify parts of their bodies such as their eyes, mouths, or toes. They can say a word and touch the body part at the same time, so they tend to think that words have direct correlation with objects in the physical world. Thus, as children, and then as adults, we are misled into thinking th;at this item or object is what the word â€Å"means. Because we communicate with others, and they understand us, the word must mean the same to everyone else as it does to us (Kreidler, 1998). Words can mean different things to different people. Words are symbols, and they do not have the same meaning to everyone. Words reflect attitude, some words can be offensive to some cultures and less offensive to others. When words are interpret wrong it can caused confusion and proble ms. The meaning you interpret from a message is always personal and is the result of many factors including your personality and experiences. Communication always occurs in a context, so the meaning of a message often depends on the context of the communication. ? References Satir, V. (1976). Making Contact. Millbrae, CA: Celestial Arts. Zautra, A. J. (2003). Emotions, stress, and health. Cary, NC: Oxford University Press. Segal, J. (1997). Raising your emotional intelligence: A practical guide. New York: Henry Holt. Huxley, A. (1940). Words and Their Meanings. Los Angeles, CA: The Ward Ritchie Press. Hartley, P. (1999). Interpersonal communication. Florence, KY: Routledge. Lakoff, R. T. (2010). Language war. Ewing, NJ: University of California Press. Cattarin, J. A. , Thompson, J. K. , Thomas, C. , & Williams, R. (2000). Body image, mood, and televised images of attractiveness. The role of social comparison. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 19(2), 220–239. Retrieved, March 9, 2011, from Pro–Quest Research Library. doi: 55606627. Lee, D. , & Hatesohl, D. (1993). Listening: Our most used communication skill. CM 150, Communications. University of Missouri Extension. Retrieved December 5, 2010, from http://extension. missouri. edu/publications/DisplayPub. aspx? P=CM150?

World Englishes

World Englishes  refers to the different  varieties of English and for emerging localized or indigenized varieties of English, especially those territories influenced by the United Kingdom or the United States. The study of World Englishes entails of classifying varieties of English used in varied sociolinguistic contexts globally and analyzing how histories of sociolinguistic, multicultural backgrounds and function contexts influence in different regions of the world the use of English. Today, we live in a society which is multilingual for wherever you go, you will be able to meet diverse groups of people who speak individually different tongues. At the same time is when we interact with people from different countries, we hear English with a variety of fluency which often differs from the so-called standard English in terms of pronunciation,  lexis, expression and  grammar (Kubota,  2001). Kashmiri-American linguist Braj B. Kachru, the research pioneer on these linguistic variations and claimed World Englishes  in 1986 initially to refer to the institutionalized varieties of English (Hornberger & McKay, 2010). The term World Englishes is now used to define or describe the nativized and diverse ranges of English spoken in non-native countries, and Kachru (1986) explains that the spreading of English can be categorized into a three concentric circle model that represents the spread and growth of English in the world. In the field of Applied Linguistics, it has been invaluable for researchers to come to grasps with the implications of the omnipresent, highly composite and scary existence of the language. According to Kachru (2003), the world is divided into different circles: the inner circle, countries like United Kingdom, USA, Canada, New Zealand, Australia where English is the L1 or native language, outer circle, countries like Singapore and Philippines which is a community with large speech, great diversity and distinct characteristics while the expanding circle, Chile and Holland which English is an international language where performance varieties were characterized. English may vary or performs in different ways according to the situations, settings, or contexts in which English employed by the speakers from the three circles mentioned. The world Englishes are the result of these diverse sociocultural contexts and diverse uses of the language in culturally distinct international contexts. The agony in world Englishes is the â€Å"Torn between the norms†- the conflict about whose norm should be followed or legitimized from the different varieties in the face of a checkerboard of English use in the world today. They are the ones who have not had an opportunity to study or learn the language and may not be in a state of ecstasy. The ecstasy: English is everywhere, but not available for all people. It gives privileges to those who learned the language formally in schools or acquired it in an early age. The following approaches, in recent years have been used to study world Englishes: (1) the deficit approach; (2) the deviational approach; (3) the contextualization approach; (4) the variational approach; and (5) the interactional approach. The first two approaches have dominated the field out of the five approaches and believed to be the least insightful. The following are just merely a commentary of the issues which are given the utmost importance for our understanding of English in its world context. The following are thus a critique primarily of the two approaches, and that such approaches reflect in the attitudes. (1) Ontological Issues: Conflict between idealization and reality. The issues of attitudes and identity is the core of the problem which attitudes are only partially determined toward a variety of English by linguistic considerations. With concern in the varieties of English, there are two major positions in the Outer Circle: first, the nativist monomodel position, second the functional polymodel position. The monomodel position is well-articulated in two studies; one by Clifford Prator (1968) and by Randolph Quirk (1988) which is almost a generation apart when presented. Quirk sees language range mainly with reference to three models: the demographic, the econo-cultural, and imperial. In the demographic model, population spread together with the language and resulted in several varieties of English in the Inner Circle. The econo-cultural, it says that language spread even though there is no serious population spread. The imperial model, the spread of the language is the result of political (colonial) domination. The last two models resulted in the endocentric varieties of English in Africa, Asia, and the Philippines over a period of time (see e.g. Kachru 1982 and 1986a). The endocentric models are what Quirk's concerns, and their instructions or teaching implications, the English international currency, and generally, the English language good linguistic health. As to the serious practitioners of applied linguistics, it raises a number of questions relevant to them. The second position relates the formal and functional characteristics of English to appropriate sociolinguistic and interactional contexts.

Commentaire †Jude the Obscure, Thomas Hardy Essay

Thomas Hardy described the novel in his preface as dramatizing â€Å"a deadly war between flesh and spirit†. This quasi reference to St Paul’s conception of human dualism goes far towards explaining the nature of Jude’s tragedy. This dualism appears also in the book. Jude The Obscure is the last of Thomas Hardy’s novels published in 1895: its critical reception was so negative that Hardy resolved never to write another novel. The passage under analysis is situated towards the beginning of the novel, at the arrival of Jude at Christminster (the fictional name of Oxford). He found a job at a stonesman’s to make a living while studying by himself to try and achieve his dream. Indeed, Jude’s first concern is a job, though his working is to be done only as a way of supporting himself until he can enter the university. Our commentary will fall into two parts. First we will study the isolation of Jude, and the opposition between Jude’s world and the world of his enthusiasm that is to say the world of Oxford students. Then, we will study the omnipresence of spirituality that contrasts with the materiality in the text. As we have said before, this novel is the last novel of Thomas Hardy. This novel recounts the painful process of his disillusionment and his final destruction at the hands of an oppressive society, which refuses to acknowledge his desire. Even if this extract does not seem so sombre, and presents a real hope, we can notice that the theme of the contrast or the opposition exists all the text long. Thus it is interesting to underline that play of opposition which appears quite characteristic of the novel as it is implied by the sentence of Thomas Hardy that we have quoted in the introduction where he describes his book as â€Å"a deadly war between flesh and spirit†. In a strikingly similar vein, Hardy tells also that the † ‘grimy’ features of the story go to show the contrast between the ideal life a man wished to lead, and the squalid real life he was fated to lead.† There is a play of opposition and parallelism that exists in this extract that presents contrast also. The first opposition that can be noted is the opposition between Jude and the others. Indeed, there is a real separation  between Jude and what he calls â€Å"his inmates† on line 11 or his â€Å"happy young contemporaries†. That is also obvious with the use of the pronoun. All the text long, and mostly in the first part of the text – when the narrator describes Christminster and the students – we can see appearing two different groups as clearly underlined on line 25: â€Å"Whatever they were to him, he to them was not on the spot at all; and yet he had fancied he would be close to their lives by coming there†. This sentence permits really distinguish the opposition between those to entity. This idea of separation exists in all the text, with different symbol of separation. Thus we can say that even if the â€Å"Christminster ‘sentiment’ (†¦) ate further and further into him†, Jude is clearly not in the Christminster ‘way of life’. This situation of exclusion is described implicitly, by the narrator, as quite unfair, when he underlines for instance that â€Å"he probably knew more about those buildings materially, artistically and historically, than any one of their inmates. We could perceive this remark and all the text as an implicit criticism of the fixed class boundaries that exist in the Victorian society. Indeed, we know that Jude has a real willpower of being â€Å"someone†. He left his life in the country town to come into the big city in the hope of succeeding in life. But that society seems quite close as described by Hardy. That is probably why the narrator and Hardy himself insist on the separation of Jude, his isolation and even a sort of imprisonment. He is all alone, in a big city, living apar t and a lot of elements in the text can induce this idea. Firstly let’s notice the â€Å"echoes of his own footsteps†. Echoe occurs most of the time in big and empty spaces, thus using the world ‘echoe’ the narrator wanted to show the isolation of Jude. The adjectives â€Å"impish† and the comparison with â€Å"blows of mallet† are also relevant is that respect. The character appears then, at first sight, isolated, alone with some kind of harsh condition. The evocation of the â€Å"wall† is stronger in that respect. The wall is the symbol of separation, division and exclusion; and here this symbol is used several time as on line 10 â€Å"Only a wall divided him from those happy young contemporaries† or on line 14 â€Å"Only a wall – but what a wall!† showing us the real feeling of exclusion of Jude. This image is reinforced by the metaphor of the â€Å"gates† saying that: â€Å"For the present he was outside the gates of everything, colleges included†. Otherwise the gates can refer to heaven, as we will see later. This division appears also in the  room itself, showing that it exists two worlds: â€Å"rigged up a curtains on a rope across the middle, to make a double chamber out of one†. As we have said, there is a gap between Jude and the rest of Christminster; it is also suggested with the world ‘antipodes’ used on line 21. Nevertheless, it seems that Jude look like ‘their inmates’. The narrator on line 11 underlines it when he says ‘he shared a common mental life’ or on line 20 â€Å"they seemed oftentimes (†¦) to be particularly akin to his own thoughts†. The difference is then more a difference of wages, and not of cleverness or aspirations, we can thus see an implicit criticism of the system by Hardy: they are equal but separate, and they don’t have the same chance to succeed in life, and this opposition drawn by Hardy permits to understand that. The picture painted of the education system is very bleak for the common man, who can study day and night, but will never walk through those great doors of learning. There is a dichotomy between manual work and intellectual work: the young workman in a white blouse vs. the young students. Jude seems to want to realize a synthesis of those two worlds as underlined on line 38: â€Å"He was young and strong, or he never could have executed with such zest the undertakings to which he now applied himself, since they involved reading most of the time after working all the day†. Indeed this text not only presents this division between two worlds but also sort of hope concerning the future. The way of writing of Hardy permits us to understand Jude’s enthusiasm and his faith in future, and permits then to comprehend the mind of Jude: the landscapes of this extract is both Christminster and Jude’s mind: Christminster changes and evolves in Jude eye’s. . Even if Jude The obscure is Hardy’s most sombre novel, here, it is the beginning of the novel and faith and hope are still allowed. This hope appears on line 28 â€Å"But the future lay ahead after all (†¦)†. Desire and enthusiasm are perceptible in the text and particularly in the last paragraph. However the last sentence permits to understand that the future will be more difficult than he probably thinks: â€Å"His desire absorbed him and left no part of him to weigh its practicability†. And Christminster will not be probably the city he was expected. Indeed, this text is situated toward the beginning of the novel when Jude has just arrived at Christminster. In  that respect, he is still full of hope, and enthusiasm even if we can see that he realises â€Å"how far from the object of that enthusiasm he really was†. But it is more a dream than anything else: indeed, Christminster’s phantasmal allure, glimpsed by Jude from the top of his ladder, becomes after his arrival in the city the sinister phantasm of feeling himself disembodied and different. This idea could be illustrated by the description of the Cathedral in the text with the insistence of the size (grandeur ) of it on line 59 : â€Å"Tall tower, tall belfry windows and tall pinnacles†. The anaphora permits to show the discrepancy between Jude, alone and the big city, bigger than his country town where everything is closed for the moment. But as we have said, there is still hope, and the reference to the Cathedral permits to underline another aspect of this extract, which is faith and spirituality as implied by the use of the word â€Å"faith† on line 61. In Hardy’s book, Bible is omnipresent. The text is full of biblical allusion, so much that The Ecclesiasts are a privileged intertext. We can say that God is everywhere, and this extract presents us a lot of references to spirituality that contrasts with materiality of his life conditions. The use of Biblical analogy separates it from all the others novels of Hardy. In it Hardy traces the odyssey of Jude, showing that at important turning points in his life Biblical references serve as guideposts marking his direction. Christminster is tinted with spirituality and so does the extract under study. Firstly, we can point out the name of the city because even if Hardy refers to Oxford, he gives to the city a fictional name that is â€Å"Christminster†, mixing Christ, which is the title, also treated as a name, given to Jesus of Nazareth and â€Å"minster† which is a large or important church, typically one of cathedral status in the north of England that was built as part of a monastery. So, it is a double reference to religion and spirituality. Then there are a lot of references in the text itself, and the place of Christminster seems impregnate with religion and spirituality, which are two notions not exactly similar. Indeed, religion is the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, spirit; and spirituality is relating to or affecting the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or  physical things. In those definitions, we can then clearly see that spirituality is opposed to materiality, which seems also the case on that extract. Spirituality or religion appears first throughout the abundant lexical field: â€Å"haunted† on line 1, â€Å"cloisters† (l.1), â€Å"God†, â€Å"Cathedral†, â€Å"Belfry†, etc. More of that, Hardy plays with the meaning of some words; firstly, with the meaning of the world enthusiasm. As we have said before, Jude’s enthusiasm is one of the major stakes of the extract. It could be understand as the intense and eager enjoyment or interest, which is probably the case. But not only, enthusiasm has also an archaic and religious meaning: indeed, enthusiasm is a religious fervour supposedly resulting directly from divine inspiration, typically involving speaking in tongues and wild, uncoordinated movements of the body. This religious could also cast a different light of the expression â€Å"Christminster ‘sentiment’†. This sentiment could also be a religious feeling, a spiritual fervour that pervades Jude. God is thus present in the text, and Jude is not an atheist as underlined on line 30: â€Å"So he thanked God for his health and strength, and took courage†. The world courage is also relevant in that respect. Courage is the ability to confront fear, pain, danger, uncertainty, or intimidation. But In both Catholicism and Anglicanism, courage is also one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. With the gift of fortitude/courage, we overcome our fear and are willing to take risks as a follower of Jesus Christ. A person with courage is willing to stand up for what is right in the sight of God, even if it means accepting rejection, verbal abuse, or physical harm. The gift of courage allows people the firmness of mind that is required both in doing good and in enduring evil. The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are thus wisdom, understanding, wonder and awe, right judgement, knowledge, courage, and reverence. And it seems that Jude possesses some of them, just like â€Å"knowledge, wisdom or understanding† as implied in the text, or at least that is what let us hear Thomas Hardy in some sentences as on line 29 â€Å"If he could only be so fortunate as to get into employment he would put with the inevitable† which shows the â€Å"understanding† of Jude for instance. It is also obvious on the end of the extract with the quotation of The Ecclesiasts â€Å"For wisdom is a defence and money is a defence; but the Excellency of knowledge is, that wisdom giveth life to them that have it†. We can see that God, spirituality and religion are everywhere in Jude’s life  and in this extract. But this quotation of the Ecclesiast permits also to cast a light on a major opposition in the text between that spirituality and the materiality. Indeed, Jude seems in a state of imprisonment also because of his lack of money. He is met with obstacles time after time, mainly due to his social station as a common stonemason. This lack of money is thus a real obstacle as underlined one line 49 â€Å"Having been deeply encumbered by marrying, getting a cottage and buying the furniture†. That sentence permits to see that those things of life are limited the freedom and the development of his mind. That is why there is real opposition between spirituality and materiality. In the same way poverty seems contradictory to wealth of mind: â€Å"After buying a book or two he could not even afford himself a fire†. Thomas Hardy gives details about the price of the lamp, in order to insist on this problem of money. Money problem seems to be an obstacle to think well as implied on the beginning of the text when the narrator says â€Å"men who had nothing to do from morning till night but to read, mark, learn and inwardly diges t†. The real difference between Jude and his inmates is that, they don’t have to preoccupy about money, they are totally free of materialist preoccupations and thus, they only have to think, learn and understand. Their mind is not hobbled by money questions. Throughout this opposition, we can maybe perceive the denunciation of the author. Jude’s cousin Sue Bridehead describes his situation very succinctly few chapters later: â€Å"You are one of the very men Christminster was intended for when the colleges were founded; a man with a passion for learning, but no money, or opportunities, or friends. But you were elbowed off the pavement by the millionaires’ sons.† The image of the ogee dome can also be relevant in that respect. Indeed, the ogee dome is the dome of Tom Tower in Christ Church, and it was at one time the signal for all the Oxford College to lock their gates. We find back the image of the gates that could also by a symbol of the Gates of Heaven. But here again, they are closes, and locked showing how vain and difficult it is to try to penetrate in it. Thomas Hardy touches on several socially relevant and subversive themes in Jude The Obscure: education, social ranks, and religion. Those themes appear  in the extract under analysis. This one is particularly interesting because of Hardy’s craftsmanship. He uses a subtle play of opposition and parallelism that convey a peculiar atmosphere and permits to understand Jude’s feelings and situation. He seems thus alone torn between his desire of knowledge and his social condition, but also between spirituality and some kind of materiality inherent to his condition.

Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 9

Economics - Essay Example To enhance our perception of the situation let us first brush up on the underlying economic concepts. First consider the difference between the economic short run and long run. The short run is defined as that period of time in which at least one input of production is fixed while the long run is defined as the time frame over which all factors of production are variable. A simple way to distinguish would be to consider the shifts in the scale of production. In the short run the scale of production is fixed. A particular scale of production is represented by a short run average cost curve. Again in the long run the scale of production varies. The Long run average cost curve is an envelope of the infinite number of short run average cost curves. However it is critical to note that the Long run average cost curve by no means an envelope of the minimum points of the short run average cost curves. The individual short run optimums are the minimum points of the short run average cost curv es but in the long run the optima vary as the scale of production itself is now variable. The Long run average cost curve is U shaped under traditional assumptions. The falling part is explained by reduction in per unit cost with all factors variable due to efficiency gains of expanding the scale. These are known as scale economies1. Again the upward rising portion is explained by per unit long run cost rises due to decline in efficiency and is known as diseconomies of scale2. Let us now consider the situation of Engines R Us. In the given situation it produces at the minimum efficient scale of production. The minimum efficient scale of production refers to the minimum amount a firm can produce that minimises its long run average costs (Varian, 1990). For a continuous and U shaped long run average cost curve, the minimum efficient scale of production is the output level that corresponds to its minimum

Critical Assessment of Morrisons Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Critical Assessment of Morrisons - Essay Example Thus, there are many challenges which the present groceries are facing in the UK market. Hence, in the present business scenario, organisations need more sustainable and effective tools to gain advantage in this competitive environment. Looking at the current crisis which the company is facing, powerful strategic operations and new market diversifications are crucial for profitability and sustainable growth in the future. The current operations of the retail giant include convenience stores and supermarket chains. The company follows a vertical integration strategy for the current distribution system. The supermarket chain of Morrison is currently distributed into six major areas of United Kingdom. Except for its petrol stations, the company does not provide any loyalty schemes. Apart from that, the company does not provide any online shopping service, a strategy which they are looking seriously now. At present the company has three distribution centres based in UK. Other smaller ope rations of the organisations include kidscare, an online website selling wines and a clothing brand. The logistics and supply chain processes are monitored by the company itself. The biggest advantage of implementing this model is the cost advantage to the company. The company does not require middle men in their operations and thus they are able to provide their products and services at a lower price compared to their competitors. The company can also respond to any change in trends of customers purchasing. The organisation is family owned and works in a closed loop. Thus, ownership is an important aspect of their business. The current business scenario of the company is suffering because of volatility in the fresh foods market.... The current business scenario of the company is suffering because of volatility in the fresh foods market. The food and grocery market has seen a dramatic change, as a result of the change in strategies and logistics of the overall industry. Morrison’s have reported a continuous loss in sales for a period of six weeks from November till December 2012. According to this report from telegraph, though the industry saw an overall decrease in sales, the loss incurred by Morrison was more compared to its competitors from the industry. Reports suggested two possible causes for the deep loss. Lack of sufficient number of convenient stores and no online presence unlike its competitors were considered as major contributors of the loss. So far, the company has established only 12 convenient stores in the nation. Looking at the increasing popularity and acceptance of convenience stores it can be said that the organisation is losing out a large chunk of sales on this format. Apart from thi s, the market penetration of the retail chain is scattered, with major stores based out of town. The organisation also lacks proper penetration in affluent and popular grocery places in London.

E-marketing plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

E-marketing plan - Essay Example Likewise, Internet has opened diverse range of avenues for businesses to conduct their activities and the best opportunity given to companies is of E-marketing (Rossi et al., 2007). Hence, the strategy of reaching customers and enhancing the customer loyalty starts with a strong e-marketing plan. The brands whether old or new ones, all need to design an effective e-marketing plan for reaching the customers so that the company’s expansion plan is successful and the business can earn revenues as well (Krishnamurthy and Singh, 2005). E-marketing is the latest marketing strategy for all organisations these days and it offers ample advantages to the companies as it allows easy and direct access to the customers, makes tracking easier, saves a lot of time and cost and most importantly marketing efforts can be measured with utmost ease. Hence, E-marketing can be defined as the means of getting the company’s product or service or brand to the entire world in a glimpse via the u se of effective electronic mediums such as Internet and World Wide Web (El-Gohary et al., 2008 and Grimes, 2010). In other words, E-marketing is the marketing of goods, services and information via various electronic mediums. For decades, researchers have used Internet Marketing, E-marketing, E-commerce and E-business interchangeably; however, there are differences between each terminology which can be expressed by the figure developed by El-Gohary (2010) as follows: In today’s market, it is vital for companies to do more than telling a story of innovative technology; they need to take advantage of technological advancements and attract customer flow to develop a good market share. Hence, companies need to develop effective e-marketing plans and strategies that have quantifiable goals and provide measurable impact to monitor the successful implementation of an e-marketing plan (Petrovic, 2009). According to Carmen et al. (2004), the conceptual framework of E-marketing is: The performance levels of the company can be measured with the co-alignment of the strategy with the firm’s internal and external context. The web strategy is made by taking account of 4 W’s as shown in the figure above to ensure that the marketing functions are effticient. The long-term performance of the company’s website is heavily dependent on the relationship with the customers and it will be the most important factor for measuring the company’s performance. Hence, the e-marketing plan of Blackberry’s computer will be designed following the conceptual framework as highlighted by Carmen et al. (2004). BlackBerry profile BlackBerry is among the top-rated and popular brands in the smart phone industry and the devices under the brand name are designed and developed by Research in Motion (RIM). The pioneer in the smart phone industry has introduced numerous products in the market taking advantage of the technological breakthroughs happening in the wor ld. Almost all

Economic of Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Economic of Industry - Essay Example This attracts new players to the field as there are no entry or exit barriers. When the number of players in the industry increases, the industry output increases. This reduces the profit margins of the firms. Will the entry of new players stop at this level No, the entry will not stop until the firms are able to make profits. But as the number of firms increases, the industry is squeezed of profits and the firms start making losses. When the firms start making losses, financially weak and the operationally inefficient leave the industry and that is also because there is no barrier to exit from the industry. The example of the competition in the Video rental market in United States shows how the lack of entry or exit barriers help shape the industry. In the early 1980s when the Video cassette recorder(VCR) and video cassette player (VCD) was available to the consumers it became a must in many of the households. Statistics show that in 1980 less than 1% of American households owned a VCR. But by 1990 over 70% of families owned one. This led to a huge increase in demand for video cassettes. So movie tapes rental business was a very popular ones. The initial players in the industry had huge profits upto five dollars a night and they were able to recover the cost of the tape after a few rentals. But there was no entry barrier in the industry. Looking at the huge demand and the enormous profit levels, many people started the same business. This lead to increase in competition. So between 1982 and 1987 the number of movie tape rental outlets increased by 400%. Gas stations and grocery stores also rented tapes. This led to a downward pressure on the price, so by 1990 the tape rental rates had fallen down to $ 1.50 per night. The profits had fallen down and this caused many firms to exit from the industry. Entry had ceased. The industry had attained its equilibrium in the long run. With the advent of more modern technologies the movie rental industry is going to shrink even more. Due the fact that the product is identical and the industry has no entry and exit barriers, the firms in this kind of industry are price takers. They have very little control over the price, the profits for the firms depends on

Cultural Comparison of the Muslim African and Catholic Mexican Research Paper

Cultural Comparison of the Muslim African and Catholic Mexican cultures related to Healthcare - Research Paper Example Mexicans have several illnesses in their healthcare culture that have varied meanings among them. While others are of the idea that health is as a result of good fortune or comes as a recompense for good conduct, others believe that illnesses have either natural or supernatural causes. For example, Mexicans have an illness in their culture known as humoral imbalance that they believe that mental and bodily sickness results from an inequality between the sick person and the surroundings. In Muslim culture, health is often believed to be lost through a lack of balance and moderation in one’s lifestyle and this creates a situation where it is difficult. Mexicans generally have three meals per day with dinner and lunch larger than the breakfast and the family takes their meals together especially when they have a large extended family and the meal is usually prepared by grandmothers. Food in the Mexican culture can be traced to the Galen’s humoral theory that is based on th e notion that the body is composed of four humors that is the blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile which in order to have the best health must be balanced using the qualities of heat, cold, moisture or dryness. Ethnopharmacology The African Muslim culture has a long history of pharmacology and this includes the use of knowledge from the ancient world as well as newly developed medicines. Today, African Muslims use both traditional and modern western medicine for the purpose of treating various medical afflictions. This is the same for Mexicans who use both traditional healthcare providers and Western medicine and the Mexican medication is prevalent in the urban areas though the poor who cannot afford the often expensive Western medicine resort to long-established practices in healthcare. Traditional medicine may be through home remedies such as taking herbal teas or if home medicine is ineffective, the Mexicans consult herbalists known as yerbero or massage therapists (sobador) or partera(midwife). Treatment can also be through religious rituals that may include prayers or the use of religious symbols worn on the body or kept in the house, making promises or commitments or visiting religious shrines. Mexicans can purchase prescription medicine anywhere without necessarily having to consult Mexican pharmacies but in some instances such as a person suffering from tuberculosis (TB) will purchase the drugs back in Mexico for fear of divulging their status that may result into stigmatization in a Western healthcare provider. Ethnonutrition When African Muslims deal with the matter of diet, they often follow the Islamic teaching on moderation, and when defining self-control, the Prophetic direction on the best of common diets is one-third food, the other third is composed of water and the final third should be air (Books, LLC 2011). This is because of the belief that when the stomach is overfilled with food, it will not be able to consume water, and when food a nd water go beyond their required level, one may experience from pulmonary problems. Therefore, this leads to anxiety and fatigue from lungs being incapable of easily delivering

Macroeconomic Performance of Canada during the Recent Crisis Assignment

Macroeconomic Performance of Canada during the Recent Crisis - Assignment Example Some countries were affected immensely while others were affected less. For instance, China was never affected as Australia (Organization for Economic Co-Operation†¦, 2006; Pg. 132). The Chinese economic growth never dropped below six percent while on the other hand, Australian economy was adversely affected up to a point that it experiences no growth in its economy for the whole quarter. Other economies including Mexico, Japan, and the United Kingdom had their annual GDPs contracting by between 5 and 10 percent per quarter a phenomenon that lasted between and seven quarters consecutively (Daudelin and Schwanen, 2008; Pg. 103). Notably, Canada also was not affected greatly be the recent global economic recession; therefore, this paper aims at analyzing whether its management during this economic trying times was due to its effective economic policies or just a mare luck. Introduction Numerous research works have since been conducted on the 20060 to 2011 global economic effect an d recovery of these economies from such crisis. Most reports from these research works indicate that economies that performed better despite the effects of global economic crisis have affective capitalized banking sectors, current account surplus, low loan to deposit rations, low growth rates and levels of credit to GDP private sectors, and high foreign exchange reserves (Piersanti, 2012; Pg. 44). Therefore, it appropriate to note that the economies that managed to move from the economic crises that were facilitated by global economic crisis had efficient and adversely effective policy decisions. Moreover, their financial crises were well managed by their institutions that reduced the vulnerability of these economies’ to the financial crisis. Canada managed the global economic crisis and its economic developments despite the crisis were reflected on its sustained economic growth that was reflected mainly on the domestic spending and its continued economic growth. Additionally , it stemmed from the debts of the debt crisis affecting the euro zone sovereign. Numerous factors are preempted to have helped Canada through the global economic crisis. Some of the postulated factors include the federal fiscal plans that favored low borrowing costs; thus, enhancing the market credibility (Organization for Economic Co-Operation†¦, 2006; Pg. 78). The Canadian banking system was and has remained sound and effective that it never required the taxpayers to bail it out during the crisis. Canada has also become one of the strong merging economies that most of the world economies shifted their purchasing power towards thereby stabilizing its economy. Despite these measures, the Canadian economy was slightly affected by global financial crisis. For instance, the crisis threatened its financial market by lowering business confidence among investors (Daudelin and Schwanen, 2008; Pg. 151). This lowered the interest rates thereby increasing the mortgage debts and increasi ng housing prices. However, same financial effect or effects never affected Canada as an economy but affected some parts or cities with Canada. Additionally, Canada for long time has enjoyed credible policies and strong institutions. Moreover, for many years, the Canadian economy has been pegged on capital input and increasing labor. The multi factor productivity growth has declined and weakened further for the decades. Canada has also registered poor R & D and partnering rates. Therefore, as means of curbing these problems, Canada opted increase its innovative measures

Bargaining Essay Example for Free

Bargaining Essay It is often difficult to differentiate whether a particular subject is permissive, illegal or mandatory bargaining subject. The reason as to why this problem emanates is that the bargaining subjects in most cases collide with the rights of the management which often belong to the public employer as a matter of public policy or state law (Geel Imber, 2004). In another observation, it can be seen that the managerial rights and the bargaining rights are inextricably associated. There have been ways of defining different ways of collective bargaining in order to determine whether it is lawful to negotiate the inclusion of the subjects into the agreements of collective bargaining and whether it is lawful to lockout or strike to force proposal acceptance. These classifications of the bargaining subjects include mandatory, illegal and permissive subjects of bargaining. Mandatory bargaining subjects consist of any topic that is directly related to the hours, wages and other employment terms and conditions of the bargaining members (Riccucci, 2007). Some of the topics essential for the determination of employee working conditions and wage levels are also part of the mandatory bargaining subjects (Riccucci, 2007). Examples of negotiated mandatory subjects of bargaining include wage negotiatins such as shift differentials, incentives pay plans, commissions, paid holidays, overtime premiums, stock purchase plans and profit sharing. Work rules, grievances and disciplinary procedures, fringe benefits and work schedules are also negotiated mandatory subjects of bargaining (Riccucci, 2007). In mandatory subjects of bargaining, the two parties have to propose the same subject and it may be lawful to insist to a level of impasse that the mandatory subject of bargaining be part of the contract. It is also lawful to lockout or strike to obtain a mandatory bargaining subject. Illegal subjects of bargaining violate the specific Taft-Hartley provisions or other federal or state provisions (Riccucci, 2007). Illegal bargaining subjects include the hot cargo clauses which violate some sections of the US Constitution, the clauses that illegally discriminate on the basis of sex, race or some other unenviable classifications, the improper union shops or closed shops and the agreements conditioning full union membership representation (Geel, Imber, 2004). It is illegal to negotiate an illegal bargaining subjects and the consequent insisting on illegal subject negotiations. It is also considered illegal to have a lockout or strike to obtain illegal bargaining subject. The last type of collective bargaining subjects is the permissive subjects of bargaining where the subjects are neither illegal nor mandatory (Riccucci, 2007). Although there is a long list of possible subjects of bargaining under permissive category, there are a number of different categories that are commonly proposed or negotiated as permissive subjects. It happens that some bargaining subjects are grouped in the category of permissive since the represent negotiating efforts on behalf of the people not part of the unit of bargaining (Geel, Imber, 2004). Permissive bargaining subjects include pension benefits for individuals who have retired, bargaining unit expansion and the drug testing prior to employment. The classification of a subject as permissive subject means that either party may propose over permissive bargaining subject or in case any of the parties choose to have negotiations, any of the agreement that is reached is always enforceable (Geel, Imber, 2004). In general, collective bargaining subjects are important processes which start from a mere beginning when workers of any organization raise a majority vote in order to be represented (Riccucci, 2007). Although collective bargaining is important in answering the grievances of workers, some of the bargaining subjects are unlawful. Workers should therefore adhere to the classification of bargaining subject which respects the rule of law.

The Sexual Abuse Of Children Social Work Essay

The Sexual Abuse Of Children Social Work Essay Childhood is idealised as a garden, protected by walls and hedges, where nature flourished at its perfect best. It is often envied and honoured. However, in reality most children are often neglected, abused and exploited. An overview of the reported cases suggests that a major part of reported child maltreatment was sexual abuse. As many as one out of every four children will be the victims of some kind of abuse. Child Pornography and child sexual abuse are two of the most disturbing issues in the world today. This paper aims to show the ongoing debate on whether consumers of child pornography pose a risk for hands on child sex abuse offences. It provides an overview of existing research studies and their approaches concerning the linkages between child pornography and child sex abuse. In this paper I will be including arguments for and against this relationship by various authors, statistics reports and surveys to reach a conclusion. This paper also aims to talk about how the legal system attempts to control child pornography through actual legislation and a graded selection policy. INTRODUCTION Child pornography is a complex topic for which the standards applied are subjective and dependent upon moral, cultural, sexual and religious beliefs. Legal definitions of both child and child pornography differ globally. However, the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of Child, which has now been adapted by 191 member states, provides a universal definition of the child as any person under the age of eighteen years. It should be noted that each countrys legal definition of child may be different but the term child pornography will refer to a sexually explicit reproduction of a childs image. According to the Interpol Specialist Group on Crimes against Children, Child pornography is created as a consequence of the sexual exploitation or abuse of a child. It can be defined as any means of depicting or promoting the sexual exploitation of a child, including written or oral material, which focuses on the childs sexual behaviour or genitals. The Council of Europe defines child pornog raphy as material that visually depicts a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The ECPATs definition closely mirrors Interpols which states the visual depiction of a child engaged in explicit sexual activity, real or stimulated, or the lewd exhibition of genitals intended for the sexual gratification of the user, and involves the production, distribution and/or use of such material. It can be seen that each definitions given by the above bodies speak of visual images or depictions, or representation of sexual activity involving the child or minor defined in Article 1 of UN Convention Rights of a Child. Each of the definition emphasises the sexual nature of the representation and seeks to distinguish child pornography from, wholly innocent images of children, for example in a family setting or on the beach, where they could be fully or partially undressed, which are appropriate to the wider lawful activity shown in the depiction. The official definition of child sexual abuse is forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities including prostitution, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve physical contact, including penetrative or non-penetrative acts. They may also include non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or, in the production of, pornographic material or watching sexual activities, or encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways. Persons who exploit children sexually, in the view of ECPAT, fall into two categories. Preferential child sex abuser and the situational child sex abuser where abusers in the first category suffer from psychological disorder and the latter are experimenting with new forms of sexual contact. In the paper prepared by Julia OConnell Davidson for the World Congress against the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, she describes both of these categories. Accord ing to her, the term paedophile refers to an adult who has a personality disorder which involves a specific and focussed sexual interest in pre-pubescent children. The preferential child sex abusers are abusers who are usually, but not always, men, and their victims may be either male or female children. Psychiatry views their taste for immature and powerless sexual partners as the manifestation of a personality disorder. The situational child sex abusers are men and women who sexually exploit children, not because they have sexual interest in children per se, but because they are morally/sexually indiscriminate and want to experiment.These abusers do not consciously seek out children as sexual partners, but use them when such children are available. Generally child pornography will be possessed, made and distributed by the paedophile or preferential sex abuser. However, it would appear from a number of arrests that child pornography can be accessed with ease on the internet. Its anonymity has meant that situational child sex abusers are also using this medium. Identifying Victims and Offenders In most countries, street children, poor children, juveniles from broken homes, and disabled minors are especially vulnerable to sexual exploitation and to being seduced or coerced into the production of pornographic material. While impossible to obtain accurate data, the perusal of the child pornography readily available on the international market indicates that a significant number of children are being sexually exploited through this medium. According to the Home Office Statistical bulletin more than one third (36%) of all rapes recorded by the police are committed against children under 16 years of age. Another study which examined police data on rapes committed against children found that children under the age of 12 were the most likely of all those age 16 and under to have reported being raped by someone they knew well. According to the NSPCC statistics, there is a predominance of girl victims than boy victims. For example, in England and Wales there were 6,587 offences of se xual abuse on a female child under 16 and 2,821 offences of sexual abuse on a male child. Another Home Office report shows that 60-70% of sex offenders against children target girls only, about 20-30% target boys only, and about 10% children of either sex. In the context of sexual exploitation of children, sex exploiters can be defined as those who take unfair advantage of some imbalance of power between themselves and a person under the age of 18 in order to sexually use them for either profit or personal pleasure. Child exploiters and pornographers often seek occupations that bring them into habitual contact with children. Paedophiles constitute a significant sector of the offenders. Some of these paedophiles are attracted to children of the same sex, but the majority are heterosexuals. It should be noted that not all paedophiles are child molesters and that many child molesters are not paedophiles. In 2005/06 the average number of registered sex offenders was 58 per 100,000 of the population in England and Wales. An estimated 110,000 people have been convicted of sexual offences against children in England and Wales. 90% of the child victims know their offender, with almost half of the offenders being a family member. Although highe r proportion of the offenders is males, the number of female offenders is also a key concern. Researchers from the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, a child protection charity that deals with British female sex offenders, said its studies confirmed that a fair proportion of child abusers were women. The sexual exploitation of children can happen anywhere in schools, homes, workplaces, in communities and even own computers, and anyone can be an exploiter a teacher, relative, religious leader, employer, aid worker, peer or pornographer. A study which examined police data on rapes committed against children found that children under the age of 12 were the most likely of all those aged 16 and under to have reported being raped by someone they knew well. Children between 13 and 15 years of age were the most likely to have reported being raped by an acquaintance. Since the advent of the internet and mobile telephone services linked with download and exchanging capabilities, the production and sale of child pornography has also became a profitable business. The men who sexually violate or photograph children being violated in order to sell the images are child sex exploiters. So are those who operate the websites that are the shop fronts for the illicit trade in child abuse images. When someone pays to look at child pornography, they are not just looking, they are exploiting. They are part of the chain of exploitation and in most countries, are pursued by the law as child sex offenders. Arguments This research assignment is aimed to answer the question of whether there is a link between child pornography and child sex abuse. This is a very controversial area, with experts differing over any casual link. Some experts argue that there is a link between the two as watching child porn increases the risk of offending, and some argue that it reduces the risk of offending. The main reason for this debate is that it is virtually impossible to conduct research in the laboratory using standard specific methods which yield statistically reliable results. The constraints of ethical research, false reporting, interviewer distortion and a whole host of other problems contribute to the difficulty of acquiring scientific results. Many researchers have come to the conclusion that there is no sound scientific basis for the conclusion that exposure to child pornography increases the likelihood of sexual abuse of children. Others have suggested that there is a consistent correlation between the use of pornography and sexual aggression. This debate will be considered in two sections, the arguments supporting that there is a link and the arguments against the link followed with a conclusion. Arguments supporting the link between child pornography and child sex abuse A common theme within the existing discourses surrounding child pornography is that such an activity represents a threat because it is invariable existing sexual abusers of children who possess and use child pornography as an incitement to commit child sexual abuse. It is also frequently argued that possession and use of child pornography present a real threat to children