Discuss an Opera of Mozart Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Discuss an Opera of Mozart - Essay Example In the coda, he ends it abruptly and immediately goes into the first act. Mozart wrote for all audiences at different levels. The multiple levels are in his music, his storyline and his use of different themes. The overture shows us that Mozart conformed to form but didn't conform to style. The purpose of this paper will be to show how he used the roles of the three women to show that he didn't conform to musical style and social standards. In the beginning of the first act, Don Oliviera sees Don Giovanni leaving Donna Anna's quarters. They are singing an aria in duet. It soon becomes a trio as she is saying how Don Giovanni has scorned her. When he argues with her father, they sing a duet in a passionate tenor voice before the father dies. In order to have full understanding of the women's roles, it is necessary to understand the social context of women in the 18 century. In Kristi Brown's Mozart's Women, she compared Donna Anna to a misfortunate Spanish maiden. It was very common f or composers to take the style of where they were living at the time; and write in that genre of music. Donna Anna was a daughter who was to be married. The role was sung by a soprano. Her voice showed her grief finding herself in mourning due to the death of her father. When Don Giovanni left, we hear the first recitavo with the harpsichord. (voices singing to each other as they talk) This is from the Baroque Era. The stone statue invited for dinner in the last scene was part of folk mythology of Don Juan (Donington 446). To return to Mozart's Woman, Brown never once considered the social context whereas Mozart was writing an Italian opera only using the setting and subject matter of "Don Juan" with the 18th century interpretation. It is the purpose of this paper to show how Mozart communicated his values and judgments. For some, it still remained an opera buffa which was the style of the period (Grout 517). It was a light hearted opera which made the audience laugh and also sell t ickets. Mozart used his music and symbolism on stage to go beyond the opera buffa. Don Giovanni, a opera in two acts, was composed by Mozart and first performed in Prague in 1787. (Mendelsohn 55) As a common style of writing, Mozart could only use the opera buffa to show how women were treated in the 18th century. Though Mozart considered Don Giovanni as an opera buffa at the time, his librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte called an opera giocosco. (Fischer, 167) The Opera was placed in Seville in the 18th century (Mendelsohn 55) Mozart's Don Giovanni was controversial. At the time, the theme was thought to be too serious to be considered a "funny" opera". People usually did not die nor were audiences frightened by stoned statues. Mozart used his three women characters in order to mix the reality of their existence with the storytelling of Don Juan. Don Giovanni was killed. The father became the stone statue. The women became the protagonists. Gounoud wrote in the 19th century that Don Giovan ni was an "apogee of the lyrical drama, a wondrous example of truth, beauty of form, appropriateness of characterization, deep insight into the drama, purity of style, †¦.charm and tenderness in the love passages, and power in pathos." (Krehbiel 69) Don Giovanni "can be viewed as an archetype of every man or woman's alter ego, a man who faces that eternal conflict of the tension, desire and craving for love, and the struggle between emotion and reason, the spirit and the

Transformational Leadership in Organizations Essay

Transformational Leadership in Organizations - Essay Example The term ‘leadership’ can be defined in various ways it can be stated as a mechanism through which all the team members are guided to achieve a common goal or a tool that enables all the members of an organization to work together and is supported by the leader as and when required. There are various forms of leadership and the appropriate leadership style that is adopted by an organization depends on a particular situation and nature of the team members. Transformational leadership is a form of leadership that facilitates job performance, morale and motivation of all the team members. This form of leadership enhances the followers to include their identity to the project and inspires more of collectivism in the organization so that every member feels being valued for their contribution towards the organization. Transformational leader becomes a role model for all the followers that makes them interested and also inspires them to work towards the common objectives of the organization. The leader adopting this kind of leadership style imposes challenges on the followers so that they can take more of ownership towards the job they perform, analyzes well the weaknesses and strengths of the team members and aligns the tasks to be executed by the followers in such a way that it enhances the overall work performance of the team members. Organizational leaders are the ones that shape and define work and contribute towards innovative practices in the organization. Individual leadership is one of the most important determinants of organizational innovation.

Paraphrase Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 6

Paraphrase - Essay Example The photoelectric smoke detectors have special features that allow them to be efficient. This encompasses use of an LED lens and a photodiode that is specifically placed to act as a light detector. In the occurrence of a fire, when the particles of smoke rise and enter the photoelectric chamber, the smoke particles distort the light beam and this triggers the alarm. This technique seems technologically enhanced and effective. The mechanism of ionization smoke detectors is however different from that of photoelectric detectors. It utilizes radioactive elements, for instance, americium-241 which can emit radiations through the ionization chambers. The ionization chamber has two electrodes through which the radiations pass causing constant generation of current. The photoelectric smoke detectors are more preferable since they are dependable and less likely to trigger false alarms. In fact, the utilization of radioactive components by the ionization smoke detectors can be injurious to individuals who come close to it since it constantly emits radiations. In contrast, the photoelectric detector alarms are not radioactive and quick ion indicating any signs of smoke, especially in open flame fires. There are two chief requirements for detector placement in residential occupancies. One includes informing the residents on fire prevention, maintenance and escape plans. Secondly, is to ensure full documentation of the installed smoke detector. Finally, few considerations are necessary during the placement of smoke detectors. First, the smoke detector should not be installed in areas such as fireplaces. It should be installed near the cooking areas in the kitchen since it will be prone to indicate false alarms. The non-insulated attic and outside walls are also not good ideas. It can be tricky since the smoke could emanate externally and initiate false alarms when put near windows and

Discrimination Against Indians In Singapore Cultural Studies Essay

Discrimination Against Indians In Singapore Cultural Studies Essay Singapore may be highly advanced in terms of education and technology however there remain social fault lines that need to be addressed. This paper aims to outline a common form of racism against Singaporean Indians and how this affects the particular individual and the society. The paper will also cross-reference to the USA and discuss the situation of American-Indians living there. Recommendations to solve this problem will also be further discussed. Section II THE ISSUES AND WHO ARE INVOLVED The population in Singapore is about 4.9 million people, 3.7 million people are Singaporeans and Permanent Residents while the rest are foreigners. The ethnic distribution of Singaporeans is as follows, 9.2% of Singapores population is Indians, 13.4% of Singapores population is Malays, 74.2 % of Singapores population are Chinese, while the remaining 3.2% of Singapores population are Eurasians. (http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/reference/sif2010.pdf) From the above mentioned statistics Indians are one the minority groups in Singapore while the Singapore population is dominated by the Chinese race. The following paper will highlight the racism against Indians in Singapore from the majority race which is the Chinese population. This topic has been chosen because the author has experienced racism in many forms from the Chinese population in Singapore, thus the author is able to relate to this topic better and give better suggestions to solve the problem on hand. According to Nadra Kareem, one of the major causes of racism is because of the skin colour, where the minorities are rejected by the society and suffer verbal abuse because of their ethnic background. (http://racerelations.about.com/od/understandingrac1/a/internalizedracism.htm) The following are two quotes taken from interviews (conducted by me) to strengthened Nadra Kareems statement. Vinodini, 25 I was about 13 years old when this incident happened, I went to the swimming school with my female group of friends. I and my friends did not really know how to swim, we just went for the sake to try out something new. My group of friends were wearing our swimming costume and we were about to enter the pool when a Chinese man said to his wife Charcoal coming inside the pool lets go. At that point I felt so insulted. I did not know whether to scold him or just simply run away to escape the humiliation. From that day onwards I lost the interest in swimming and I have never worn a swimming costume. The following statement illustrates the point that colour is a cause of racism, naturally swimming costumes tends to show more of the body and the Chinese man had to comment on her colour as charcoal. The respondents body is shamed by being referred to as charcoal (in relation to its black colour) and on a worse note the Chinese man felt that by the respondent entering the pool it meant that the man and his wife should leave the pool and that they cannot be in the same pool together. On a whole this incident is extremely damaging to Indians confidence in their body. Thevandran, 16 During primary school there was an incident whereby a Chinese boy from my class would cover his nose and encourage other students to cover their noses because he thought I was smelly and dirty. When I confronted him he told me that it was his parents who told him that Indians dont bathe at all. That day I convinced myself that I did not want to socialize with the Chinese. In both instances it can be noted that there are actually racially-motivated racism by the Chinese against the Indians in Singapore based on their colour. The multiple disgraceful terms such charcoal and dirty is mainly to mock the Indian body as inferior to theirs. Ardis C. Martin, M.D. states that if ones culture continues to be devalued it results in low self-esteem. (http://ap.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/32/4/338) In both cases above, the respondents felt insulted by the remarks that they received. Vinodini did not ever want to swim again while Thevandran did not want to socialise with Chinese to ease his pain. Section III WHY THIS PREJUDICE AND DISCRIMINATION AFFECT SOCIETY AND IS IMPORTANT The racism of Chinese against Indians in Singapore should not be treated lightly and must be treated seriously. One only has to look back into Singapores history and remember of the two racial events that nearly tore apart Singapore The Maria-Hertogh Riots and 1964 Race Riots. On 11 of December 1950 the court decided to award custody of Maria Hertogh (who was raised by Muslims) her biological Catholic parents. Outraged Muslims protested the decision which eventually led to rioting when images showing Maria Hertogh kneeling before a statue of Mother Mary were published. Rioting in Singapore lasted 3days. Many properties were destroyed but more importantly 173 people were injured and 18 were killed. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Hertogh_riots) The 1964 Race Riots was a series of riots that took place in Singapore in July and September between Chinese and Malay racial groups. The racial violence killed 36 people and a further 556 people were injured. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1964_race_riots_in_Singapore) The following two events illustrate how racial conflicts can destroy Singapore. To deal with this situation the government has continuously and actively promoted racial harmony as the key pillar of the nation through various policies and measures emphasizing tolerance, understanding and respect among the different races and religions in Singapore. (http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20100429-213067.html) Singaporeans are also constantly regularly reminded in official speeches of the racial in events in Singapores history and how it threatened to engulf the nation in turmoil. (http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/sp/nationaldayrally2009/090817_hard_work_on_harmony.html) The situation in Britain/United Kingdom will now be discussed, whereby Indians there are one of the minority race groups and they are discriminated violently and viciously by the majority groups. Even though the situation in Singapore regarding the racism against Indians by the Chinese may be seem as tame as compared to the situation in Britain/United Kingdom, lessons has to be learnt from those countries to prevent our nations future from becoming bleak as Britain and United Kingdom. Section IV WHERE CAN WE START TO FIX THE PROBLEM Racism of Indians by the Chinese in Singapore results in marginalisation between the two groups and thus creates divide within the multi-racial society within Singapore. (http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20100429-213067.html) There are many measures put in place by the government to tackle the issue of racism between the different racial groups. During Mr Lee Hsien Loong National Day Rally speech in 2009 he mentioned about Singapores efforts at fostering harmony among the different races and religions. (http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/sp/nationaldayrally2009/090817_hard_work_on_harmony.html). The reason for doing so is to create social interaction between different races and thus promote cultural diversity among them. Examples to promote national integration between the different races include through promotion of public housing, national service, educational policies, the mass media and grassroots organizations. One such measure I suggest to tackle the issue of racism against the Indians by the Chinese is to implement a system in primary schools whereby for one day a Indian student will have to live a Chinese students house. The next day the Chinese student will have to live in the Indian students house. This thus creates the social interaction required to foster harmony between the different racial groups. The reason for implementing this system during primary school is because young children are impressionable and through interaction at this age it will continue a trend to interact with other races as they grow up. Martin Luther King once said I look to a day when people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. I totally agree with him, through the implementation of my idea it will help Chinese in Singapore to judge Indians based on their character and nothing else, thus creating a harmonious and multi-racial Singapore for all to see.

Does the FBI have the right to use Carnivore? :: Argumentative Persuasive Essays

Does the FBI have the right to use Carnivore? Carnivore is an unnecessary system that should be replaced by one that infringes less on the privacy of Internet users, such as one that records the data of certain subscribers and sends only that information to the FBI. The methods used for intercepting communications, from simple wiretapping to the NSA’s ECHELON satellite surveillance system, have been designed as a means of intercepting information concerning criminal and terrorist plans and using that information to apprehend suspects before they cause any harm. Carnivore, the FBI’s email â€Å"wiretapping† system, is used to scan emails on a specific ISP that is believed to be hosting a suspected criminal. Carnivore was designed to scan packets of information passing through a router in search of suspicious activity. It looks for keywords and names in the headers of emails and other data that may lead to the prevention of crimes or apprehension of suspects. It is believed that Carnivore was derived from commercial online detection software known as Etherpeek. [Tyson] In February 1997, the system known as â€Å"Omnivore† was proposed to run on Solaris X86 computers. In June 1999, it was replaced by the Carnivore system, which runs on Windows NT-based computers. [Konrad] Carnivore is part of a system known as the DragonWare Suite. This system contains three parts: Carnivore, the system that captures information; Packeteer, which is believed to be used as a packet reassembler; and Coolminer, an application that is thought to be capable of analyzing the data collected. [Tyson] It was recommended that Carnivore’s name be changed because its current name caused people to infer that it would aggressively invade their privacy. Because of its job as a â€Å"digital collection system,† it was recently renamed DCS1000. [Luening] It has also been said that the FBI has merely â€Å"dressed its online wolf in sheep’s clothing† [Luening]. When a suspected criminal is detected, a court order for investigation must be issued, and then a Carnivore machine is set up at the suspect’s ISP. It then scans all incoming and outgoing data for every user on that ISP. It is claimed that only the headers of emails are scanned for information and that the contents are left alone, but there are questions as to whether or not this is true and, if it is not, whether citizens can trust the government not to read personal email while searching for their suspect.

The Jade Peony–Sek-Lung Is a Marginal Character

A strong, intelligent, independent boy is what every traditional Chinese family wants. Unfortunately, Sek-Lung is not such an ideal child. In the novel, The Jade Peony, Sek-Lung is a marginal character. He is rejected by the dominant group, first being made to feel insignificant and second to feel uncomfortably visible. Sek-Lung is born in Canada, with a sick body, being considered inferior and unimportant. To begin with, he gains a reputation because of his brainlessness. Referring to his own feeling, â€Å"everyone knew [†¦] I was brainless† (Choy 145). For example, â€Å"I would say ‘Third Uncle’ instead of ‘Great Uncle’ † (Choy 145).That is because he is stuck between two cultures. In English, kinship terms are simple, but in Chinese, they are complicated, and Sek-Lung is so confused. Another reason is because he is not allowed to go to school due to a lung infection, and he cannot receive proper education, neither from English school nor Chinese school, which restricts his knowledge. Every time he uses improper Chinese, he is insulted by being called brainless. In addition, the lung infection makes him very weak, and he has to stay at home, while â€Å"everyone in the family is caught up with work and school† (Choy 186).In fact, â€Å"Kiam was fifteen and was getting all A’s at King Edward High; Jung was twelve and was learning how to box [†¦] at Hastings Gym† (Choy 148), and his sister can â€Å"read rapidly† (Choy 176). His siblings impress him so much with their amazing abilities. In contrast, Sek-Lung can do nothing, which makes him feel inferior. Furthermore, he recognizes that he is a burden in his family. He thinks, â€Å"I did everything to ruin their time with me, if they stayed around at all† (Choy 224). For instance, each family member needs to take turns to teach him.He notices that he is wasting their time, and actually they do not like spending time with him. In brief, Sek-Lung is brainless, not as good as his siblings, and he is treated as a waste. Sek-Lung, growing up in an unusual background, is made to stand out, because he is different from others. First, he is insecure, and he is afraid that he will not get along with other students. When he first goes to school, â€Å"Jung’s tough-guy reputation protected I from the school bullies† (Choy 174). A marginal character is always unconfident.Because of his weakness, brainlessness and different cultural background, he worries about getting into trouble. Second, Sek-Lung, spending all his childhood with Poh-Poh, is the only person who sees her ghost. For example, after Poh-Poh dies, every time the windows mysteriously close or make noises, Sek-Lung insists, â€Å"It’s Grandmama† (Choy 181), â€Å"[†¦] and everyone [glares] at [him]† (Choy 181). Poh-Poh is his closest family member, and he cannot get over her death. He believes that Poh-Poh’s soul will come back and protect him. However, in his family’s eyes, he is acting strange, and no one believes him.Besides, his family thinks he will shame their name. For example, sister Liang refuses to take him out because people will see or hear him. Similarly, â€Å"Chinatown people turned away, muttering behind my back† (Choy 178). He is not only noticeable in his family, but also well-known all over Chinatown. People think he may be crazy or he really sees a ghost, which shows that he is unlucky, and either point of view will make him be rejected by society, because no one likes abnormal persons at that period. To conclude, Sek-Lung becomes marginal by being treated as insignificant and distinctive.

Egyptian History Essay

The period in Egypt from 2660 to 1100 BC can be considered as a very important time in Egyptian history as it witnessed many changes in how the land was ruled. This period in time experienced wars and changes in leadership, slowly molding the Egyptian nation into what it is today. These people and events not only played an important role in Egypt’s history but also for the rest of the world. One specific period during this time was the Old Kingdom, back to the time when Egypt was ruled by the Third Dynasty all throughout the Sixth Dynasty. During this time, the capital of Egypt was located at Memphis, and the ruling pharaoh was Djoser. This period in time was known for the construction of large pyramids, which were built to serve as the burial places for pharaohs and other important persons during that time. This was considered as the Age of Pyramids. During this time only the pharaoh ruled the former independent ancient states of Egypt which was known as nomes. The former ruler of these states were forced to take the role of governor, else, they’ll have to work in the tax collection area. During this time, the pharaoh is not only recognized as a ruler but as a god, and was worshipped by all his subordinates. This is because of the belief that worshipping these gods would mean assurance of the annual flooding of the Nile River. This is because agriculture during this time centered on the â€Å"fertile crescent† or the area which has been flooded by the Nile. All their crops are dependent on this annual flooding, as Egypt is filled with barren lands and desserts which they cannot use for farming and agriculture and the river is their only hope for scarce food supplies. This period of time also witnessed feuds between different rulers which resulted from the fall of the Old Kingdom. The previous kingdom collapsed as a result of civil conflict which was insinuated by regional governors waging wars on each other. The unity of the kingdom weakened, causing it to finally fall. The case worsened as the lands were plagued with severe drought, resulting to a drop in rainfall, affecting the normal flooding of the Nile River. Decades of famine and strife followed eventually. Intermediate periods have risen afterwards, wherein there were several acting rulers and leaders, further complicating the matters. This has lead to many wars between the different peoples of Egypt, since no one held power over the whole nation. To make matters worse, neighboring lands were starting to invade Egypt, hoping to besiege the already war-torn nation. Because of this, consolidations were made by local leaders and a new line of pharaohs have been formed. After several changes in the ruling heads, Egypt was able to prosper further and continued to exist many years after. Some pharaohs were able to expand their influence, thus making the nation wealthier and more powerful. This period however, ended in another intermediate period wherein the power has been divided between the recognized king which was Smendes and the High Priests of Amun at Thebes. The king ruled the northern half of the nation while the High Priests took control of the southern part of the country. This division proved to be less significant since both the ruling king and high priests came from the same family line.