A Critique of Endgame and Play Essay -- Plays

The mis-en-scene which is the arrangement of actors and scenery in a theatrical production is vital to the success of a play. Throughout this critique I will review two different plays and examine their use of costume, lighting, and set design to convey a message through a strong mis-en-scene. â€Å"Play† opens with three figures encased in large urns with only their faces visible. The urn as a prop is significant because it symbolizes the individuals’ being trapped by their own desires; doomed to repeat them. They can neither see nor hear one another. A spotlight, acting as a voiceless interrogator projected on the faces of the actors, swivels between them prompting each in turn to speak; when the light leaves, the faces fall silent. A man and two women (a husband, his wife and his mistress) are compelled by the light to recount the story of their love triangle. Through precise use of lighting, shadows, and props the audience is compelled to become fascinated with the story. As the bodies repeatedly recount their stories, various tones are used to describe/convey new details each time. â€Å"Play† begins with a humorous tone, but with each repetition the story becomes darker and wearier? However, the consistency of that single set makes for a po werful message and keeps the audience in tune and focused. The play â€Å"Endgame† opens by initiating the sole mise-en-scene of the play. It is early morning, and Clov has entered a barren room containing two trash cans (covered with an old sheet) and an armchair on casters (also covered with an old sheet). The light of the rising sun suffuses the room as this event takes place. Using a ladder, Clov begins his daily ritual of drawing back the curtains of two small windows (fir... ...ul boring being costumes, Hamm was dressed in red, this representing how he views himself about the universe and play. As a visual designer I gained the importance of what an individual set could do for a play, and how this is one of the main components. This play was the first time I had seen a play that can use one set, and it’s definitely a way to think about future projects and how having one consistent theme rather than integrating multiple ones can be powerful for a story, I also found it fascinating that the author of the play use a hobby of his and incorporated it into the play in a unique way. Works Cited A.C.T Theater. "Endgame And Play." Web. 22 May 2012. Class Reading. "Analysis of Endgame." Web. 22 May 2012. "Mise-en-Scene." What Is Mise-en-scene? Web. 22 May 2012. .

The Old Man and the Storm

This program starts with the family patriarch, 82-year old Herbert Gettridge, out in his yard cleaning up from the wake of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. He has made it his mission to recreate the home he’d originally crafted more than 50 years earlier, this was literally his creation. So there was nothing in his body that was going to allow him to walk away from that. Mr. Gettridge was trying to get the house together so that he could bring his wife (Lydia Gettridge) of 60+ years home.Nobody felt comfortable bringing her back to a city where there really was no hospital, no ambulance service or anything. She suffers form congestive heart failure and diabetes, New Orleans is the only place she has ever known so it was really important for her to come back. And so, therefore, really important to Mr. Gettridge, him being a good husband and all. To make sure that she is able to get back to her home. Officials said the area was uninhabitable but Mr. Gettridge didn’t care. I t hink his attitude was, well, the house withstood the water.I’ll be damned if I’m going to just walk away from it. I worked too hard to get this. He has worked since the time he was seven years old, he dropped out of school during the Depression. And had learned to work with his hands. He fought racism and diversity at work and over came it, becoming a master plasterer. He took pride in his work and it showed. He did a lot of one of a kind work, one of the houses he did work on is a historical landmark. The Gettridge family has a lot of perseverance, love and strength he and his wife raised nine children.Only seven are living now, they have thirty-six grandchildren and many great grand children. The house is only part of his tragedy. Three generations of his family, were scattered across the country in the wake of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. His family has been in New Orleans for over five generations. It’s very possible that the Gettridge house is on land that his ancestors had once worked as slaves. His family of 200 people or so, all lived within fifteen-minute drive from each other and would still get together for holidays and to celebrate things they were a close knit family.Mr. Gettridge with the help, support, and sacrifice of volunteers, and charities finishes his house against the huge odds he faced. Lydia is brought home by one of her daughters just before July fourth of 2007. A year and a half after the flood. She is disoriented when she arrives from a stroke she had suffered. She doesn't recognize the house she left and says she wants to leave. Mr. Gettridge tries to lighten the mood with his since of humor telling he she looks as beautiful as she did when she was sweet sixteen. However, she’s not buying it.Only when their children and grand children start visiting them for the up coming forth of July festivities does Mrs. Gettridge start to feel as if this is her home again. Mr. Gettridge was asked if he had to do it al l over again, would he? He answers, â€Å"I’m kinda skeptical about that now. Once upon a time I could answer that question in a split second for you. I can’t do that now†. He’s a man of incredible determination and incredibly stubborn. But, He’s been worn down. There’s just so much you can do at 84 to start over again. It takes hands to build a house, but only hearts can build a home. ~Author Unknown

Introduction To TESOL Essay

Using what you have read in this introduction to TESOL and your own knowledge, what do you consider to be the blocks which may prevent language learning? When speaking about difficulties in learning and teaching foreign language different authors use different terminology. Some of them speak about mistakes, misbehavior (Cummings, C.: 2000), sources of friction (Smith, C. J., & Laslett, R.: 2002), some – about anxiety (Nishimata, T.: 2008), troubles, difficulties and so on. For better understanding let’s summarize all this definitions into a word â€Å"block†, which means â€Å"block, that could prevent language learning†. There are two major types of blocks. The first type is teacher’s blocks. And the second one is student’s. This means that we could face with some challenges in the question of effective learning from the both sides of the process. And in each situation there are also external and internal blocks. External are blocks that are dictated with the environment. Internal ones are coming from the personality. In both cases I suppose blocks are about psychological reactions but the di fference is in a reason for that. Regarding blocks that could appear from the teacher’s side most of the authors pay attention to the following. Lack of self-discipline, fears of working with different (â€Å"non-standard†) students (Cummings, C.: 2000), managing stress, anger and other emotions (Coetzee, S. A., Wydeman, J. L., & Niekerk, E. J.: 2008). Also I could mention blocks that are connected with the previous experience, teacher’s deformation and burnout. To overcome this troubles teacher needs to be a strong-motivated person able to struggle with his/her blocks. Help of colleagues and observation feedback, realistic understanding of the own level and own abilities may be very useful. Connecting with other teachers â€Å"is a way of sharing your burdens, and your successes, with somebody else. They might feel the same and share strategies to help you overcome the burdens and rejoice in the successes† (Saumell, V.: 2014). Authors also stress that teacher should remember that the bloc ks exists from both sides, try to create a relaxing atmosphere, be respectful to students, give a positive feedback and be encouraging, give students an opportunity to redo the tests, use various teaching methods and techniques. As for the students and their blocks there is much more information to think of. In a list there are such huge themes  as age, motivation, level of knowledge, previous learning experience and influence of mother tongue. The problem of age mostly appears before adults. â€Å"I’m too old to learn English† or â€Å"The time is lost† and so on. It’s important to work upon the positive attitude of grown-up students, to show them the advantages of learning language now, when they exactly know where they will use it and what for do they need it. And do not forget to dispel a myth that it’s impossible to learn foreign language effectively after the age of 20. Teacher may use different arguments to confront with the lack of self-confidence. For example â€Å"without strongly embedded L1 syntactic structures, young children are probably more amenable to actions and activities that promote productive language skills†. (Holloway, M. K.: 2008) And for sure it’s essential for a teacher to know the basis of developmental psychology to be able to communicate effectively with the students of different ages and to consider age peculiarities. As for the motivation it’s a great clue to solve the problems with other blocks. Strong motivation to learning allows student to overcome all other difficulties. Speaking about children it’s a rare situation when a teacher faces with the highly motivated class. So it is one of the great challenges – to motivate students, to show them the positive attitude, to encourage for search and discovering new world. â€Å"As with all learning skills, pupils will be more motivated when they are interested in what they are thinking about or see a real purpose for their thinking† (Wilson, J., & Murdoch, K.: 2008). It’s far not all the blocks and not all the ways of overcoming them but I think that student’s blocks and the blocks of a teacher are deeply connected. And if a teacher has strong blocks in teaching sure s/he will face with the lack of motivation and self-confidence from his/her students and vice versa. As the main responsibility lies on the teacher’s shoulders it’s meaningful to know the blocks and not to avoid but face them and work at them.

Free Essays on On First Looking Into Chapmans Homer

COMMENTARY ON  ¡Ã‚ §On First Looking Into Chapman ¡Ã‚ ¦s Homer ¡Ã‚ ¨ This poem is an expression of how the poet John Keats felt after rediscovering Homer ¡Ã‚ ¦s  ¡Ã‚ §The Odyssey and the Iliad ¡Ã‚ ¨ when he read Chapman ¡Ã‚ ¦s English translation of this Greek classic. To express this he uses the form of a sonnet, with fourteen lines, every set of two lines rhyming. The first four lines are one long sentence consisting mainly as metaphors to summarize his full meaning in whole.  ¡Ã‚ §Much have I travell ¡Ã‚ ¦d in the realms of gold, and many goodly states and kingdoms seen ¡Ã‚ ¨. This can be understood only in a  ¡Ã‚ §literary ¡Ã‚ ¨ and not a  ¡Ã‚ §literal ¡Ã‚ ¨ sense. I say this because he was relatively poor and probably had traveled very little when he wrote this poem at age 21.* But we know that he had a strong passion for literature. * John Keats is trying to tell us that he has traveled and explored the rich realms of literature.  ¡Ã‚ §Round many western islands I have been which bards in fealty to Apollo hold ¡Ã‚ ¨. Keats is using  ¡Ã‚ §western Islands ¡Ã‚ ¨ to cause us to think of ever new vistas of constant discovery. Keats is stressing the honoured poets (bards) passion and obligation toward the  ¡Ã‚ ¥Art of Poetry ¡Ã‚ ¦ symbolized by the Greek god  ¡Ã‚ ¥Apollo ¡Ã‚ ¦.  ¡Ã‚ §Oft on one wide expanse had I been told That deep-brow'd Homer ruled as his demesne; Yet did I never breathe its pure serene ¡Ã‚ ¨ Keats is telling us how he had heard about another great kingdom of writing, the serene air of which he had never breathed. (probably because he never learned Greek) * Perhaps Keats is stating Homer ¡Ã‚ ¦s deep intellect with the term  ¡Ã‚ §deep-brow ¡Ã‚ ¦d ¡Ã‚ ¨.  ¡Ã‚ §Till I heard Chapman speak out loud and bold: Then felt I like some watcher of the skies When a new planet swims into his ken; ¡Ã‚ ¨ Even though this is mid-sentence, I see this, as the pivotal point of the poem, where Keats starts to express his emotions towards Chapman ¡... Free Essays on On First Looking Into Chapmans Homer Free Essays on On First Looking Into Chapmans Homer COMMENTARY ON  ¡Ã‚ §On First Looking Into Chapman ¡Ã‚ ¦s Homer ¡Ã‚ ¨ This poem is an expression of how the poet John Keats felt after rediscovering Homer ¡Ã‚ ¦s  ¡Ã‚ §The Odyssey and the Iliad ¡Ã‚ ¨ when he read Chapman ¡Ã‚ ¦s English translation of this Greek classic. To express this he uses the form of a sonnet, with fourteen lines, every set of two lines rhyming. The first four lines are one long sentence consisting mainly as metaphors to summarize his full meaning in whole.  ¡Ã‚ §Much have I travell ¡Ã‚ ¦d in the realms of gold, and many goodly states and kingdoms seen ¡Ã‚ ¨. This can be understood only in a  ¡Ã‚ §literary ¡Ã‚ ¨ and not a  ¡Ã‚ §literal ¡Ã‚ ¨ sense. I say this because he was relatively poor and probably had traveled very little when he wrote this poem at age 21.* But we know that he had a strong passion for literature. * John Keats is trying to tell us that he has traveled and explored the rich realms of literature.  ¡Ã‚ §Round many western islands I have been which bards in fealty to Apollo hold ¡Ã‚ ¨. Keats is using  ¡Ã‚ §western Islands ¡Ã‚ ¨ to cause us to think of ever new vistas of constant discovery. Keats is stressing the honoured poets (bards) passion and obligation toward the  ¡Ã‚ ¥Art of Poetry ¡Ã‚ ¦ symbolized by the Greek god  ¡Ã‚ ¥Apollo ¡Ã‚ ¦.  ¡Ã‚ §Oft on one wide expanse had I been told That deep-brow'd Homer ruled as his demesne; Yet did I never breathe its pure serene ¡Ã‚ ¨ Keats is telling us how he had heard about another great kingdom of writing, the serene air of which he had never breathed. (probably because he never learned Greek) * Perhaps Keats is stating Homer ¡Ã‚ ¦s deep intellect with the term  ¡Ã‚ §deep-brow ¡Ã‚ ¦d ¡Ã‚ ¨.  ¡Ã‚ §Till I heard Chapman speak out loud and bold: Then felt I like some watcher of the skies When a new planet swims into his ken; ¡Ã‚ ¨ Even though this is mid-sentence, I see this, as the pivotal point of the poem, where Keats starts to express his emotions towards Chapman ¡...

Viking Social Structure - Living in a Norse World

Viking Social Structure - Living in a Norse World Viking social structure was highly stratified, with three ranks or classes which were written directly into Scandinavian mythology, as slaves (called thrall in Old Norse), farmers or peasants (karl), and the aristocracy (jarl or earl). Mobility was theoretically possible across the three strata- but in general, slaves were an exchange commodity, traded with the Arab caliphate as early as the 8th century CE, along with furs and swords, and to leave slavery was rare indeed.   That social structure was the result of several changes within Scandinavian society during the Viking age. Key Takeaways: Viking Social Structure The Vikings in and outside of Scandinavia had a three-tier social structure of slaves, peasants, and elites, established and confirmed by their origin myth.The earliest rulers were military warlords called drotten, who were selected from warriors based on merit, only in power during wartime, and subject to assassination if they gained too much power.  Peacetime kings were selected from the elite class and they traveled throughout the region and met people in halls built in part for that purpose. Most provinces were largely autonomous of the kings, and the kings were also subject to regicide. Pre-Viking Social Structure According to archaeologist T.L. Thurston, Viking social structure had its origins with the warlords, called drott, which had become established figures in Scandinavian society by the late 2nd century. The drott was primarily a social institution, resulting in a pattern of behavior in which warriors selected the most adept leader and pledged fealty to him. The drott was an ascribed (earned) title of respect, not an inherited one; and these roles were separate from the regional chieftains or petty kings. They had limited powers during peacetime. Other members of the drotts retinue included: drang or dreng- a young warrior (plural droengiar)  thegn- a mature warrior (plural thegnar)  skeppare- captain of a chiefly vesselhimthiki- housekarls or the lowest rank of elite soldiersfolc- the population of a settlement Viking Warlords to Kings Power struggles among Scandinavian warlords and petty kings developed in the early 9th-century and these conflicts resulted in the creation of dynastic regional kings and a secondary elite class which competed directly with the drotts. By the 11th century, Late Viking societies were led by powerful, aristocratic dynastic leaders with hierarchical networks including lesser religious and secular leaders. The title given to such a leader was that of respect rather: old kings were frea, meaning respected and wise; younger ones were drotten, vigorous and warlike. If an overlord became too permanent or ambitious, he could be assassinated, a pattern of regicide which continued in Viking society for a long time.   An early important Scandinavian warlord was the Danish Godfred (also spelled Gottrick or Gudfred), who by 800 CE had a capital at Hedeby, inherited his status from his father and an army set to attack his neighbors. Godfred, probably overlord over the federated south Scandinavia, faced a powerful enemy, the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne. But a year after victory over the Franks, Godfred was assassinated by his own son and other relations in 811. Viking Kings Most Viking kings were, like warlords, chosen based on merit from the earl class. The kings, sometimes called chieftains, were primarily itinerant political leaders, who never had any permanent role over the whole realm. The provinces were almost entirely autonomous, at least until the reign of Gustav Vasa (Gustav I of Sweden) in the 1550s.   Each community had a hall where political, legal and perhaps religious matters were dealt with, and banquets were held. The leader met his people in the halls, established or reestablished bonds of friendship, his people swore oaths of allegiance and gave the leader gifts, and proposals of marriage were made and settled. He may have held a high priest role in cultic rituals.   Norse Halls Archaeological evidence concerning the roles of jarl, karl, and thrall is limited, but medieval historian Stefan Brink suggests that separate halls were constructed for the use of the different social classes. There was the house of the thrall, the banqueting hall of the peasant, and the banqueting hall of the nobleman.   Brink notes that in addition to being places where the itinerant king held court, halls were used for trade, legal, and cultic purposes. Some were used to house specialized craftsman in high-quality forging and skilled handicrafts or to present cult performances, attendance by specific warriors and housecarls, etc.   Archaeological Halls The foundations of large rectangular buildings interpreted as halls have been identified in numerous sites through Scandinavia and into the Norse diaspora. Banqueting halls ranged between 160–180 feet (50–85 meters) long, and 30–50 ft (9–15 m).  Ã‚  Some examples are: Gudme on Fyn, Denmark, dated to 200–300 CE, 47x10 m, with ceiling beams 80 cm in width and equipped with a double doorway, located east of the Gudme hamlet.  Lejre on Zealand, Denmark, 48x11, thought to represent a guild hall; Lejre was the seat of Viking age kings of ZealandGamla Uppsala in Uppland, central Sweden, 60 m long built on a man-made platform of clay, dated to the Vendel period CE 600–800, located near a medieval royal estateBorg on Vetvagoy, Lofoten in northern Norway, 85x15 m with cultic thin gold plates and imports of Carolingian glass. Its foundations built over an older, slightly smaller (55x8 m) hall dated to the Migration Period 400–600Hogom in Medelpad, 40x7–5 m, includes a high seat in the house, an elevated base in the middle of the building, thought to have had several purposes, high seat, banqueting hall room and assembly hall   Mythic Origins of Classes According to the Rigspula, a mythic-ethnologic poem collected by Saemund Sigfusson at the end of the 11th or beginning of the 12th century CE, Heimdal, the sun god sometimes called Rigr, created the social classes at the beginning of time, when the earth was lightly populated. In the tale, Rigr visits three houses and engenders the three classes in order.   Rigr first visits Ai (Great Grandfather) and Edda (Great Grandmother) who live in a hut and feed him husk-filled bread and broth. After his visit, the child Thrall is born. The children and grandchildren of Thrall are described as having black hair and an unsightly countenance, thick ankles, coarse fingers, and of being a low and deformed stature. Historian Hilda Radzin believes this is a direct reference to the Lapps, who were reduced to a state of vassalage by their Scandinavian conquerors. Next, Rigr visits Afi (Grandfather) and Amma (Grandmother), who live in a well-built house where the Afi is making a loom and his wife is spinning. They feed him stewed calf and good food, and their child is called Karl (freeman). Karls offspring have red hair and florid complexions.   Finally, Rigr visits Fadir (Father) and Modir (Mother) living in a mansion, where he is served roast pork and game birds in silver dishes. Their child is Jarl (Noble). The nobles children and grandchildren have blond hair, bright cheeks, and eyes as fierce as a young serpent. Sources Brink, Stefan. Political and Social Structures in Early Scandinavia: A Settlement-Historical Pre-Study of the Central Place. TOR 28 (1996): 235–82. Print.Cormack, W. F. Drengs and Drings. Transactions of the Dumfriesshire and Galloway Natural History and Antiquarian Society. Eds. Williams, James and W. F. Cormack, 2000. 61–68. Print.Lund, Niels. Scandinavia, c. 700–1066. The New Cambridge Medieval History c.700–c.900. Ed. McKitterick, Rosamond. Vol. 2. The New Cambridge Medieval History. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1995. 202–27. Print.Radzin, Hilda. Names in the Mythological Lay Rigspula. Literary Onomastics Studies 9.14 (1982). Print.Thurston, Tina L. Social Classes in the Viking Age: Contentious Relations. C. Ed. Thurston, Tina L. Fundamental Issues in Archaeology. London: Springer, 2001. 113–30. Print.

The Business Case for Diversity Literature Review

The Business Case for Diversity - Literature review Example The different theories and approaches of diversity management have been developed to understand the concept of business diversity in a better manner. These theories and approaches have been widely appreciated and supported by academics, managers and diversity consultants. Business Diversity Defined The business case for diversity management can be better understood if it is divided in three sections (Nicholas, Sammartino & Lau, 2007): 1. The HRM Business Case for Diversity Management According to the HRM business case of diversity management, unmanaged diverse human resource only results in increasing the business costs by reducing the job satisfaction, increasing turnover and absenteeism rate and creating conflicts in team members. The sound management of diverse human resource results in creating a competitive edge for the organization. 2. The Knowledge Case for Diversity Management The knowledge case for diversity management basically takes in to account the system of information and knowledge flow. It finds ways and strategies to facilitate knowledge creation and transmission. 3. The International Business Case for Diversity Management This business case works to determine how to exploit cross cultural capabilities in favor of the organization and business success. This business case illustrates that effective management of diversity has the potential to result in positive international orientation of a firm by strengthening international networks and improving mutual business decision making. Initially the diversity management was regarded as a tool to legally safeguard an organization that it is complying with the legal requirements of equality and not discriminating against any class (Ongori & Evans, 2007). However the recent years have seen a change in the perception of diversity by managers and recruitment agencies. It has evolved to become a more proactive concept with significant bottom line advantages. Many corporation and organization are making a point to make sure that their workforce is well diversified to facilitate unique, innovative and creative ideas for problem solving which translate in better overall performance of the organization (Allen et al., 2004). A case study of Botswana emphasized the need of business diversity. The society of Botswana is multicultural with a large number of immigrants coming from all across the world. It means that the organizations operating in Botswana does not have choice but to be work force diversified. Their competitiveness, level of innovations, profits and business success are all dependent on how well it manages its diverse workforce both within and across the organizational boundaries (Barker and Hartel, 2004). The issue of business diversity is gaining more interest of the researchers and politics because of the slow shifting of trend of economies from manufacturing to services. There is a greater need in the services market to communicate and network with different organization and people which have further emphasized the need of today to manage business diversity well (Wentling and Palma-Rivas, 2000). Advantages of Business Case of Diversity The business case for diversity works to provide a competitive edge for any organization (Karsten, 2006). The question that might be raised now is

Enterpreneurship, Innovation and Economic Development Essay

Enterpreneurship, Innovation and Economic Development - Essay Example Therefore, organizations require innovative and creative individuals; who are ready to explore new opportunities. Entrepreneurship, innovation, creativity, and problem solving are the key aspects that result to economic development in any society. The term entrepreneurship in business to describes the process of taking the risk to explore markets and invest capital with the hope of making profits. An entrepreneur is a confident person, who is willing to venture into the market sometimes with a new product or idea (Wennekers, Stel, and Carree, 2010:370). However, he or she is ready to face the challenges involved and keep focused on the results. Such individuals are dedicated to achieving their goals of making profit no matter the market trends. Entrepreneurs do not limit their ability to the resources they control but seek opportunities of mobilizing more resources. Entrepreneurship requires prior planning. One must analyze the market critically. Despite the risk, one must have faith of creating a difference in the global market. An entrepreneur must think positively and be able to make decisions. Due to changes in the market trends, the entrepreneur should learn how to adapt to new situations. Therefore, flexibility is a necessity but the goal of making profits remains unchanged. Successful entrepreneurs should study the market and recognize a need that other businesses are not addressing fully. They then set out to transform the unrefined, raw idea into a business venture. The viability of the idea should be critically. This requires a lot of patience and hard work. Persistence is evident from Ted Turner’s example on his road to becoming a successful entrepreneur. Ted came up with the idea of giving people more news than they were receiving and started CNN. He carefully studied the market to recognize the opportunity and it took him faith and persistence to pull it through effectively. People who lack endurance are not successful entrepreneurs. For an entrepreneurial venture to be a success, planning and management should be effective. Self-discipline is also compulsory. One should ensure that there is sufficient financing before they choose to start up any venture. Management is very critical in entrepreneurship because many ventures fail due to lack of proper management. Some are ideas are very viable but the individuals lack critical managerial skills and therefore personal failure contributes to failure of the idea (Terrence and Ulijn, 2004:105). The market should be read logically and analytically to avoid disappointment. There are individuals who prefer to start on small scale and advance with time as they learn to adjust to market trends. Others start large-scale businesses. Capital entrepreneurs invest a lot of capital and therefore take a greater risk. Capital entrepreneurs are daring enough to invest a large sum, expecting better profits. Usually, they have control on more resources and have the right connections in the market. However, even small-scale entrepreneurs can succeed if they plan strategically. Entrepreneurs must apply innovation to compete effectively in the market. Innovation is the exploitation of any new opportunity in the business world to comer up with a new product or service in the market. Innovation seeks to improve the products, goods, or services existing in the market. Innovation takes advantage of new technologies to improve the existing products. Innovators are critical thinkers and can recognize the sectors of business that can benefit