Discuss the importance of dreams in the play Essay Example for Free

Discuss the importance of dreams in the play Essay Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and author. He was a prominent figure in American literature and cinema for over 61 years, writing a wide variety of plays. Miller was born into a moderately-wealthy Jewish family in New York City. His father, Isidore Miller, was a ladies-wear manufacturer and shopkeeper who was ruined in the Great Depression. His mother, Augusta, was a housewife who valued literature and education. His sister, Joan became an actress. Death of a Salesman is a 1949 play by Arthur Miller and is one of his most famous and commonly revived works. Viewed by many as the American Dream of achieving wealth and success, Death of a Salesman made both Arthur Miller and the character Willy Loman household names. Some of the other titles Miller considered for the play were The Inside of His Head and A Period of Grace. The American Dream is the faith held by many in the United States of America that through hard work, courage, and determination one can achieve a better life for oneself, usually through financial prosperity. These were values held by many early European settlers, and have been passed on to subsequent generations. What the American Dream has become is a question under constant discussion, and some believe that it has led to an emphasis on material wealth as a measure of success and/or happiness. The American dream is a dream of having 2 children and living in a perfect house with financial security. This ideal is closely related to Horatio Algerism. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/American_dream In the play Death of a Salesman, dreams are discussed and shown in many different ways throughout the play. There are dreams that happen during ones sleep, hopes and ambition type dreams, day dreams, fantasies and national/cultural dreams. In this play all are explored, and the national dream focused on is The American Dream. Dreams in this play stimulate the characters reactions and actions; they also affect the way the play is structured and explain behaviour of both the past and present. The play is unusually structured; there are no scenes just three main sections, Act 1, Act 2 and the Requiem. Within Act 1 and Act 2, there are several dreams and possibly flashbacks but the audience is unaware of what is real or not. The American Dream features in the play but not informing the audience that The American Dream is what it is partly focusing on. On page 82, Biff says Weve been talking in a dream for fifteen years. First of all the reader thinks hes saying hes been taking in the dream for 15 years but reading the sentence over we see talking. The reader thinks that it means the American dream, and at this point in the play Biff realises himself and his family has been trying to live this dream but are unsuccessful. The American Dreams is partly to do with status and having the best of everything. It also focuses on popularity, success, ownership, wealth and your house and objects within it. The American Dream is linked to capitalism and consumer culture, which is when we are sold items we dont really need. This is a symbol of success and if you can afford these luxury items they are a fall back for your family. When someone dies their family receives insurance, not only life insurance but also insurance for the object used in the death, for instance a car. This is all part of Willys plan to make his family more wealthy. Willy is scared of becoming an ordinary man, which in those days was a man that can no longer afford the luxury items that Willy possesses, when Linda is talking to Biff on page 44 she says Willy Loman never made a lot of money. His name was never in the paper. Hes not the finest character that has ever lived. But hes a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him. So attention must be paid. This shows the reader that Linda knows about Willys depression and that she knows he is becoming and has a fear of becoming a typical, ordinary man. This is not what Willy wants or wanted at all, Willy wanted to be well known around the country and great, successful. The depression that Willy held may have been caused by the lack of positive attention, his lack of progress in his job or his fear of becoming this ordinary man that he never wanted to be. Linda also knows that in his last months or weeks, herself and her sons need to make up to Willy and give him the most positive attention that they can. On page 44 Linda says Attention, attention must be finally paid to such a person. This is also evidence to suggest Willys want for death. Willy is not progressing at all in his job, his ex boss son is now at the top of his career ladder but Willy, still near the bottom should have retired. But his dreams and passion to become rich and successful meant that he forced himself to carry on working and hope that one day these dreams will be fulfilled.

Life expectancy, the number of years that a

Life expectancy, the number of years that a 195462 A discussion of the factors that contribute to lower life expectancy in the west of Scotland as compared to other parts of the U.K Life expectancy, the number of years that a person can expect to live on average, is a single measure of population health which is used to monitor public health, health inequalities, and the outcome of health service interventions and to allocate resources. Life expectancy in Scotland The relationship between health and wealth is complex. One as yet unexplained paradox in Scotland is that, even when matched with their English counterparts of comparable socio-economic status, Scots are relatively less healthy over a range of indicators from age standardised mortality to specific disease outcomes (Figure 1). Figure 1: Directly standardised mortality rates per 1,000 populations, 1990/92, by country and deprivation quintile. These findings suggest that there are factors at work, other than simply wealth, which are making Scots unhealthier than people in other parts of the UK (Scottish executives 2007). West of Scotland: A Description West of Scotland is one of the eight electoral regions of the Scottish Parliament which were created in 1999. In terms of local government areas the region covers: West Dunbartonshire East Renfrewshire Inverclyde Most of Renfrewshire (otherwise within the Glasgow region) Most of East Dunbartonshire (otherwise within the Central Scotland region) Part of Argyll and Bute (otherwise within the Highlands and Islands region) Part of North Ayrshire (otherwise within the South of Scotland region) Within Scotland, life expectancy is lowest for people living in the west of Scotland. According to the Scottish household survey, healthy life expectancy at birth is 63.3years and 60.3years in females and males, respectively of greater Glasgow for example. These figures are the lowest in the UK (Scottish Public Health Observatory 2007). Life in the West of Scotland While parts of west Scotland have prospered with greater employment and better paid middle-class jobs, in other parts ‘worklessness’ and low income are commonplace. The issue for west Scotland is that greater reductions in disease have been achieved elsewhere and so west Scotland’s health has become worse relatively in comparison to other UK cities. Estimates of life expectancy suggest that people living in west Scotland not only live shorter lives, but succumb to disease and illness earlier in life. An explanation to this is that the health of an individual is largely determined by the circumstances in which he or she lives. Poor health is associated with poverty, poor housing, low educational status, unemployment and a variety of other life circumstances (Tackling Health Inequalities 2007). Health inequalities within Scotland and between the west of Scotland and the rest of the UK appear to be widening. In the 10 years to 2001, average male life expectancy in Sc otland increased by 3% but the rate of increase was more rapid in the most affluent parts of the country, with the least affluent west areas falling behind (Whyte and Walsh 2004). The recent decline in death rates from common conditions such as cardiovascular disease has also been more rapid among the more affluent (Krawczyk 2004). Thus, despite the overall improvements, the west of Scotland still lags behind. Economic factors A number of trends related to the economy are also notable in West Scotland. There are now more women than men in employment in Glasgow and part-time work has grown to represent more than a quarter of all jobs. The service sector has grown to become the most important sector of the heart of West Scotland’s economy, while manufacturing employment has shrunk (Scottish Public Health Observatory 2007). Social factors It is common knowledge that those who smoke, become obese through eating a poor diet or through lack of exercise, and those who drink alcohol in excessive quantities or abuse drugs have poor health. Smoking levels in west Scotland have remained higher than those observed in other parts of the UK. Hanlon and his colleagues (2001) have shown that, by 1991, deprivation appears to explain only 40% of the excess deaths in Scotland (2001). Gillis and his colleagues (1988) have found that, at comparable daily smoking rates and levels of affluence, men in the West of Scotland are more likely to die from lung cancer than other populations in the UK or the US (Gillis 1988) (Figure 2). Figure 2: Comparison of lung cancer mortality in Renfrew and Paisley with three major cohorts in US and UK. The increasing impact of alcohol is undeniable: There are estimated to be more than 13,500 ‘problem alcohol users’ resident within Glasgow City, and since the beginning of the 1990s, there has been a striking increase in numbers of alcohol related deaths and hospitalisations especially in west Scotland. Simple projections of alcohol related deaths based on recent trends suggest that the number of alcohol related deaths in Greater Glasgow could double in the next twenty years (Figure 3) (Scottish executives 2007). Figure 3: Alcohol related mortality in West Scotland: Greater Glasgow The impact of the use of illicit drugs also serves to further decrease life expectancy in west Scotland in comparison with other parts of the UK. Between 1996 and 2004, drug related deaths in Greater Glasgow for example, rose by a third. There are estimated to be around 25,000 problem drug users in the West of Scotland, of whom more than 11,000 live in Glasgow (Scottish executives 2007). Life expectancy for drug addicts is expectedly very low and these figures will impact negatively on the overall life expectancy for the region. In Glasgow and other parts of west Scotland, it is predicted that single adults will account for 49% of all households in the next ten years, while lone parent households may rise to make up almost one in two of households with children (Scottish Public Health Observatory 2007). Obesity levels have risen exceedingly in west Scotland to the extent that in Greater Glasgow, for example, a fifth of males and almost a quarter of females are now estimated to be obese, with well over half classified as overweight. Trends in hospitalisation for diabetes, much of which is associated with obesity, have also risen dramatically in recent years (Scottish executives 2007). A cultural issue The ethnic minority population of west Scotland has risen in recent years and looks set to increase further, particularly taking into account the recent rise in the asylum seeker and refugee population. The influence of this trend on life expectancy within the region remains to be determined (Scottish Public Health Observatory 2007). Provision of services Despite improvements in overall house conditions and dramatic decreases in levels of overcrowding, housing-related problems persist for considerable numbers of residents of Greater Glasgow and the West of Scotland (Scottish Public Health Observatory 2007). Recent research suggests other important ways in which the environment and life circumstances can affect biological processes which in turn can make individuals more susceptible to ill health. By following the progress of male civil servants over a 10 year period, Marmot and his colleagues found that mortality was approximately three times greater among the lowest grades than the highest (Marmot et al 1978). When deaths from heart disease were considered, the recognised risk factors of smoking, high blood pressure and elevated cholesterol levels could account for part of the differences between the groups. Other studies have confirmed that higher levels of risk of death in a working population are explained by health-related behaviours (Marmot 2000). There is mounting evidence that at least part of the unexplained increase in risk across the social classes is related to how the body responds to social stress. Available data shows that people are perhaps exposed to a high level of str ess factors in west Scotland (Scottish Public Health Observatory 2007). Whether these stress types and levels are more or comparable to what is obtainable in other parts of the UK remains an unanswered question. . References Gillis CR, Hole DJ, Hawthorne VM, 1988.Cigarette smoking and male lung cancer in an area of very high incidence-II Report of a general population cohort study in the West of Scotland. J Epidemiology and Community Health 42: 44-48. Hanlon P, Walsh D, Buchanan D, Redpath A (2001). Chasing the Scottish Effect. Public Health Institute of Scotland (now NHS Health Scotland) Glasgow 2001. Marmot MG, Rose G, Shipley M, Hamilton PJ. (1978) Employment grade and Coronary Heart Disease in British civil servants. J Epidemiol Community Health. 1978 Dec; 32(4): 244-9. Marmot MG (2000) Multi-level approaches to understanding social determinants in Berkman and Kawachi (eds) Social Epidemiology New York. Oxford University Press pp 349-367. Scottish executives (2007) [Internet] Available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Health/TrendLifeExpectancy Scottish Public Health Observatory (2007): Healthy life expectancy in Scotland (Internet) (Accessed 15/04/07) http://www.scotpho.org.uk/web/site/home/Populationdynamics/Healthylifeexpectancy/hle_intro.asp Tackling Health Inequalities – An NHS Response (2007) [Internet] (Accessed 15/04/07) www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/nationalframework/Documents/TACKLING%20HEALTHINEQUALITIES240505 Whyte B and Walsh D. (2004) Scottish Constituency Profiles 2004.www.phis.org.uk/info/sub.asp?p=bbb Krawczyk A. (2004) Monitoring Health Inequalities. Scottish Executive Health Department Analytical Services Division 2004.

History and Structure of Venice Essay -- Italy Europe Papers

History and Structure of Venice Problems with format ?Venice is one of the most fascinating places to travel in Europe.? Its intrigue lies in its unique beginnings, its dominant past, and its remarkable people and their buildings.? Its foundation is unique because of the need for protection that drove the early Venetians to their new home and the location of this new dwelling-place:? ?Rarely in human history has a vigorous and progressive civilization arisen in a less likely place than the mud flats of the Venetian lagoon.?1? Venice rose to power by its domination of the sea and reached its climax during the years of the Renaissance.? It is during this time period that it truly became ?the bride of the Adriatic and the unchallenged mistress of the Mediterranean.?2? This collection of small islands connected by canals and small strips of land became the home of an independent people and its architecture makes Venice ?a symbol of beauty.?3 ? Geography and Foundation The city of Venice is located at the far north of the Adriatic Sea, in what Dr. Timothy Fehler of Furman University calls ?the armpit of Italy.?4? Venice is situated on a chain of marshy islands protected from the Adriatic Sea by the Lidi, the sandbar-like islands further out in the water.? In describing the body of water Venice is located in, Horatio Brown states, ?Perhaps no piece of water in the world is more remarkable than this hundred and eighty-four square miles of Venetian lagoon.?5 because ?the lagoon is not a lake, still less is it a swamp, nor is it like the open sea.?6? At low tide the marshy islands of the lagoon are exposed, and at high tide Venice appears to be alone on the sea.? Lane describes the lagoon as ?mostly open water with a cluster of sma... ... Davis, 68. 28. Davis, 89. 29. Davis, 96. 30. Howard, 178. 31. Davis, 100. 32. Davis, 99. 33. Davis, 117. 34. Davis, 123. 35. Davis, 127. 36. Howard, 15. Bibliography Brown, Horatio F.? In and Around Venice.? New York:? Charles Scribner?s Sons, 1905. Davis, John H.? Venice.? Edited by the Newsweek Book Division.? New York:? Newsweek, 1973. Fehler, Timothy.? Furman University, Greenville.? 20 March 2003. Howard, Deborah.? The Architectural History of Venice.? New York:? Holmes & Meier Publishers, Inc., 1981. Lane, Frederic C.? Venice:? A Maritime Republic.? Baltimore:? The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1973. Wiel, Alethea.? Venice.? New York:? G.P. Putnam?s Sons, 1894. Yriarte, Charles.? Venice:? Its History, Art, Industries, and Modern Life.? Philadelphia:? Henry T. Coates & Co., 1986.

Running: An Integral Part of American Culture Essay -- Essays Papers

Running: An Integral Part of American Culture The running phenomenon has blended into society in many different aspects of our lives. This does not only include track and field, but also cross country, road-racing, and jogging for health and leisure. Many Americans make running an essential part of their day. Running is not only good for your heart and lungs, but it is very beneficial for relieving stress, keeping your metabolism high, and keeping you trim and muscular. Another expanding characteristic of running is using it as a social experience. It is a part of people’s routine to meet with friends and to catch up with one another. Track is a sport that is shadowed by the likes of football and basketball, but is definitely a crowd-pleaser at the Summer Olympics every four years. Yet track begins at the youth level and expands beyond high school and college. Even though it is not the most popular sport in America, it has made an impact on our culture and our lives. Running shoes that are on your feet or in your closet probably were not created to lounge around in or to wear to school. Today the majority of running shoes are used for that. The running shoes that we know and appreciate today are a response to the numbers of people that have begun to pick up running. The market is flooded with different brands of athletic shoes, and running shoes are a large portion of that. A few decades ago there was a generic athletic shoe used for all sporting activities. Through the growing popularity of running, shoes have become much more specialized in an effort to cater to the specific needs of different runners. While running to some may be a way to earn a living or a way of life, others may do it in order to ... ... of the Internet, people can find race results that have occurred within hours of the event. There are numerous web-sites that address any runner’s needs, in addition to chat sites like Track Net that people subscribe to, and talk about†¦what else, but running. In many large cities you can find running specialty stores that sell running shoes and apparel. This is where many running groups meet for their daily run and where road racers register for the races. These specialty stores are becoming more common today as the fitness craze strikes like wildfire across the nation. As stated above, the running craze has caught on in many different aspects and on many different levels. Whether people start to run to lose those extra few pounds, or to win their age group at the local road race, running is catching on fast and the running trails are becoming more crowded.

Analysis: The American Perspective On Hackers Essay -- social issues

Analysis: The American Perspective On Hackers The issue of public information has always been a controversy in our world. One of our country’s founding arguments was based on the necessity of free speech and free information. Many now believe that our government is being overly restrictive on information, blocking and controlling some aspects of free speech that first amendment advocates feel are necessary to maintain our American society. These advocates of free information have been using the nickname â€Å"hackers† for over twenty years, but improper use by the media has stretched the word to slanderous levels. Hackers are now stereotyped as mindless vandals and miscreants, although the word â€Å"hacker† has been used as a term for computer programmers and technicians since the late 1970s. Modern-day hackers refer to themselves as intelligent socio-political activists who want to raise social awareness of threatening problems. Governments worldwide are trying to persecute hackers when vandals, not hacker s, are most often the ones breaking laws and causing damage. The conflict between hackers and the American public is a deeply rooted standoff, caused by misinformation and sensationalism from the media and the government. To evaluate and analyze this conflict objectively, both points of view must be put into proper perspective. This was a simple task for me, because I am a very technically oriented person who does not get lost in the â€Å"computer jargon† used by both the â€Å"hackers† and the political forces. I have worked as a security engineer for three Internet Service Providers. I am presently a security programmer at the second-largest private Internet Service Provider in Tampa. To do my job, I must to understand the thoughts and methods of the cyber-delinquents often misnamed as â€Å"hackers.† This experience has given me a strong perspective of both the intruder and victim’s side. Firstly, take the view of the American people. This includes people who do and do not have computers at home, and do not understand their core functions. This group also makes up the majority of the users on the Internet. Most of them are home users with no intentions of understanding the machine they own. They see â€Å"hackers† as being electronic vandals and information thieves, breaking computer networks and destroying data. They fear anyone with cyber-power, because they do not un... ... This part of our society has proven that it is unable to accept other individuals and groups who are more intelligent and still believe in our Nation’s first amendment, out of fear that the rest of the world might evolve around them, without them. Rather than persecute and attack the hackers in our society and in our world, we need to embrace them. They are the people trying their hardest to make a difference in our government and society. They are the ones speaking out as we all should about atrocities, such as the East Timor Massacre in Indonesia seven years ago (http://www.2600.com/hacked/). True hackers are not out to destroy things. They want to learn and make a difference in our world. Our society should stop limiting their potential as human beings and citizens by slandering them. Our society should stop blindly believing stories about them without hearing both sides, as our Government, which is run by â€Å"We, the People† must become educated before creati ng and enforcing laws. Otherwise, we, as a society, are burying ourselves in ignorant beliefs, disrupting learning and the growth of knowledge. After all, no one can honestly say that they want to live in an ignorant society.

Nike Inc: Cost of Capital Essay

The Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) is the overall required rate of return on a firm as a whole. It is important to calculate a firm’s cost of capital in order to determine the feasibility of a particular investment for a firm. I do not agree with Joanna Cohen’s WACC calculation. She calculated value of equity, value of debt, cost of equity, and cost of debt all incorrectly. For value of equity, Joanna simply used the number stated on the balance sheet instead of multiplying the current stock price by the number of outstanding shares. The correct calculation is $42.09 x 271.5M = $11,427.435M. The correct method of calculating the value of debt is to multiply the price of publicly traded bonds by the amount of debt outstanding. This calculation results in 95.60% x $1296.6M = $1,239.550M. The sum of debt and equity is equal to $12,666.985M. Therefore, the weight of equity is 0.902 and the weight of debt is 0.098. In order to determine the cost of debt, the yield to maturity of the debt must be calculated. Using a financial calculator (N=30, PV=-$95.60, PMT=$3.375, FV=$100), the YTM is equal to 7.24%. This is the cost of debt. The cost of equity can be determined using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM). Joanna was correct in using the 20-year yield on U.S. treasuries as her risk-free rate and was also correct in using 5.90% as her risk premium. However, she should have only used the most recent year’s beta instead of using an average of multiple years. The correct calculation is 5.74% + 0.83(5.90%) = 10.64%. This is cost of equity. Using a 38% tax rate, we can now calculate the WACC. WACC = 90.2%(10.64%) + 9.80%(7.24%)(1-38%) = 10.03% Using the Dividend Discount Model, the cost of equity can be calculated as the sum of the dividend yield and the dividend growth rate. In this case, it is ($0.48/$42.09) + 5.50% = 6.64%. Using the earnings capitalization ratio, the cost of equity can be arrived at by dividing the projected earnings per share by the current market price of the stock. Therefore, $2.32/$42.09 = 5.51% is the cost of equity using this model. The advantage of using CAPM is that it is relatively easy to calculate, but a disadvantage is that it assumes perfect asset valuation, which does not always happen in reality. An advantage of the dividend discount model is that it allows investors to value stocks based on the dividends they pay and it is also easy to calculate. However, not all companies pay dividends so another method would have to be used for those firms. Kimi Ford concluded that at discount rates below 11.17%, Nike’s stock would be undervalued. At Nike’s cost of capital rate of 10.03%, Kimi Ford should invest in the company.

Funny Games Movie Analysis

The preferred reading from director Michael Haneke gives a lot of insight to why the audience felt the way they did. Haneke’s intended message of the film was irony. â€Å"All the rules that usually make the viewer go home happy and contented are broken in my film,† (Haneke). This is why the film makes audiences so uncomfortable; it takes them out of their standard beliefs of what a film should have in it. Haneke breaks these rules several times to give the audience increased feelings of anxiousness. â€Å"There’s this unspoken rule that you can’t harm animals. What do I do? I kill the dog first thing. The same thing with the boy. You’re not supposed to break the illusion. What do I do? I break the illusion. It’s the principle of the whole film. It’s a very ironic film,† (Haneke) Haneke also displays the irony through the music, â€Å"Just like the film is a parody of a classical thriller, John Zorn is a parody of classical heavy metal. The classical music is not a soundtrack in this movie. All my music is not meant as a soundtrack—is part of the action, part of the story. The other music, the John Zorn music, is under the titles, and it’s the ironic colon. OK, now we go to a thriller,† (Haneke) Haneke’s second message is manipulation, â€Å"I wanted to show the audience how much they can be manipulated,† (Haneke). He purposefully toys with the audience, bringing them to unfamiliar territory. â€Å"First they think it’s all an illusion, just a film, then I do this rewinding and suddenly you go back. I look at the viewer directly, I talk to him, I wink at him. I do this again and again to show how much one can manipulate. In view of this overriding illusion in movies, it’s a good idea to create a little bit of mistrust in the verite, in the truth of moving pictures. † As for Peter and Paul being gay that interpretation was not intended. â€Å"We heard it before, but I’m very surprised actually. First of all, the actors aren’t gay, but that would be beside the point. I don’t know why people think that—because they are handsome, or have white clothes on, I don’t know,† (Haneke). Overall Haneke wanted the audience to feel a, â€Å"Slap in the face,† and it definitely worked. The negotiated reading for Funny Games describes the movie as, â€Å"Horror that really scared, devastated, and stayed with me long after the final scene was over,† (Galina 1). I feel that this is close to what I was thinking after the film and also to many others in the class. The nonchalant nature of Paul and Peter really sticks to you and the infamous George, â€Å"Why are you doing this to us? † Paul, â€Å"Why not? † is absolutely chilling. This is scary to most people because the audience is used to a killer that has a direct motive and a back story. Funny Games leaves you with none of that and because this is very uncommon our lack of gap-fill is shocking. â€Å"I can't easily recall another movie that made me go through the same emotions as the innocent victims in the movie did, to feel the same helplessness, hopelessness, despair, humiliation, and horror,† (Galina 1). All of these emotions build up to a realization that the good guys won’t win. Most of the time movies punish evil and let the good prevail but when this doesn’t happen audiences are shocked because our gap-fill between good and evil comforted us that there was a chance for the good. After the awareness that evil has won a sense of â€Å"They are among us, they are nice and polite, well read, shy and ironic, they have the names from the new Testament, Paul and Peter, they talk with the soft refined voices but they are monsters nevertheless who have no regard for a human life and who want to play their sadistic funny games to the extreme,† sets in (Galina 1). This reception of the movie Funny Games is what I feel most viewers felt.