Many of the characters in Of Mice and Men are lonely Essay Example for Free

Many of the characters in Of Mice and Men are lonely Essay Describe the reasons for their loneliness and explore the different ways they seek comfort. Many of the characters in the novel of Mice and Men are lonely because they grew up in an unurturing and unfriendly environment. The reason for this type of negative and depressing attitude is due to the Great Wall Street Crash. This tormenting economic crash took place at the same time when the novel Of Mice and Men is set, in the year 1929. Families fell apart as the men were forced to leave behind their roots, and seek employment on ranches in order to bring back stability in their lives again. Relationships were never formed on these ranches as no one had any time nor interest in trying to communicate and bond with the other ranch hands or other residents. The only object the ranchers were attracted to was making money and moving on, therefore there was no stability. Tragically, vast amounts of people committed suicide, as they could not bear to live their lives recounting all their losses. Coincidentally the meaning of the town Soledad is our lady of loneliness. Loneliness is a spreading disease, which has the power to make the most cheerful people dull and gloomy as they begin to feel isolated. There is no direct cure for loneliness; therefore no one knows how to deal with it. This is the stage where the effected people begin to split into two distinctive groups depending on each individuals character; the two groups are known as introverts and extroverts. The people that are catogrised in the introvert group suffer the most as they keep all their emotions locked up inside, leading in them taking their anger out on themselves. Whereas the extrovert group has a completely different way of approaching loneliness, they begin to take their anger out on other people in such ways as being aggressive and flirtatious to overcome their feelings. There is a vast comparison between the two groups; if you look at it between characters, which are extroverts and introverts, at one extreme you have Crooks a Negro who is partially crippled, and then you have Curley, a cruel, insensitive extrovert. All humans need to be comforted at the time of need as this is the human desire, therefore, it is not surprising that the characters in this novel also require comfort. Some characters similar to Crooks need friendship-based relationships so that they can communicate with other people. Other characters similar to George and Lennie have their future dream to look forward to and work towards that is their target. The definition of a dream is: Dream n. Train of thoughts, images, or fancies passing through mind during sleep; Conscious indulgence of fancy, reverie, thing of dream-like beauty, charm, goodness, etc. (Taken from the Readers Digest Great Encyclopedic Dictionary, Third Edition) A dream is something you indulge in, to escape momentarily from life. This seems to be the context that John Steinbeck intended his characters in Of Mice and Men to dream in. They are all craving for something in the case of George and Lennie, that something is land. All the dreams in this novel are similar to the Great American Dream, which is that you can achieve anything if you have the mind and desire to do it. However, most of the characters who have dreams know that their dreams may never become reality, but never the less it still provides comfort for them. Crooks is partially crippled, his body was bent over to the left by his crooked spine, yet self-dependant Negro, he too is very lonely. Crookss personality is quite interesting, as he is very defensive and protective of himself: He kept his distance and demanded that others kept theirs. Crooks is very cautious about those who approach him, this is as he does not want to be in any more pain than he already is; he is frightened that someone will not only hurt him physically but harm him mentally as well. He is fully aware of his rights, he knows the limitations of what he is allowed to do and what he has not got the right to do. Crooks is lonely as he has not got anyone to talk to due to the colour of his skin, he does not even know how to act around other guys. All he spends his time doing is reading the battered magazines and dirty books which were scattered all around his bunk: Books aint no good, a guy needs somebody to be near himA guy goes nuts if he aint got nobody. Dont make no difference who the guy is, longs hes with you Later on in the chapter we realise that all Crooks is longing for is companionship, however, it is evident to see that Crooks is a bad communicator: You got no right to come in my room. This heres my room. Nobody got any right in here but me. Crooks reacts angrily, his anger is and pride is a defense against the harsh treatment he has been subjected to and experienced for most of his years in life. He has been held back without any real conversation for an eminent amount of time, therefore leading to his language being unwelcoming as it is aggressive and defensive. Loneliness has had a negative effect on Crooks as it has made him verbally aggressive and very protective of what is his and his right. In chapter 4, John Steinbeck does a role reverse, instead of a white man tormenting a Negro, a Negro torments a white man, in this case Lennie. Crooks took a lot of pleasure in torturing Lennie the night George went into town, he had pleasure form teasing Lennie by suggesting that George would not bother to return as he better off without the presence of Lennie: I said spose George went into town tonight and you never heard of him no moreJust spose that. Crooks enjoys having the power over Lennie, he uses persuasive and manipulative language to prove his point, for once in all the time on the ranch he has an advantage over a white man. This inspires him, Crooks is feeling good at this point; he feels self-assured as though he can take on anything: Now you jus get on out, an get out quick. If you dont, Im gonna ast the boss not to ever let you come in the barn no more. Crooks builds up his confidence to such an extent that he forgets his status on the social hierarchy. However, Curleys wife coldly reminds Crooks of his unsuccessful position as a black man; a nigger: Well, you keep your place here nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easily it aint even funny. This racist statement reminds Crooks of his old self, leading to him remembering that he has reduced himself to nothing, he pressed his body against the wall, in shame. Crooks achieves comfort from remembering his childhood; Crooks came from a background full of love and care for each other, he knows what the true value of companionship is: I remember when I was a little kid on my old mans chicken ranch. Had two brothers. They were always near me, always there. Crooks past childhood is full of affection and love in contrast to Crooks now, an isolated and lonely man who is referred to as a nigger. Crooks is in vast emotional pain as he knows what he is missing out on, however, some people may argue that he is actually quite advantaged as at least he has old memories to refer back to. Crooks also gets comfort from asking to be allowed to join the dream, which George, Lennie and Crooks hold: If you would want a hand to work for nothing- just his keep, why Id come and lend a hand. Crooks wants things to go back to as he was a child, he wants to revisit the happy days of his life that are now just a vague memory to him. Crooks knows that the only way he can do this is by joining the dream that George, Lennie and Crooks share. However, Crooks soon finds out when George rejects him from sharing the dream that he is destined to be an old isolated Negro. George Milton is one of the main characters in the novel, Of Mice and Men, he is quiet, modest and clearly a good worker. George is considered as one of the fortunate characters in this particular novel, this is as he atleast had a chance to experience the true value of companionship and unconditional value with his best friend Lennie Small. His companionship with Lennie staves of loneliness, as well as giving George a role in life; a clear task to look after Lennie. It is evident to see that at the beginning of the novel George feels superior with this role as it gives him a sense of power over Lennie: George has learnt vastly from his past experiences with Lennie; this allows George to have a two-way relationship with Lennie, one that of a best friend, and another that of a parent. George feels a sense of duty and responsibility towards Lennie as a parent: Dont really seem to be running, though. You never oughta drink water when it aint running, Lennie. However, as the novel progresses George begins to realise what companionship is, we kinda look after each other, now this role simply makes George feel different from the rest of the ranch hands as it entitles him to a status. Nevertheless, George still recognises that he is still lonely, despite having a companion, it may be more discrete than others may, but he is still lonely. George and Lennie do not interact on an intellectual level; Slim describes George as a smart little guy, where as Lennie is described by George as dumb as hell; therefore the comparison on their intellect is eminent. At times George thinks he is talking to himself, as Lennie never really responds to his questions. Therefore Lennie can never really understand George emotionally or physically. George seeks comfort by the companionship with Lennie, they both look out for each other: Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world Lennie broke in. But not us! Becausebecause I got you to look after me, And you got me to look after you, and thats why. George relies on his companionship with Lennie to get through the unurturing and unfriendly environment of Soledad: its a lot nicer to go around with a guy you know George values and treasures his special relationship with Lennie, he loves him so much that he can even sacrifice him for Lennies own benefit. George also seeks comfort by his simple dream, he wants him and Lennie to have land of their own, and they want to be their own managers and look after each other until they grow old: Some day-were gonna get the jack together and were gonna have a little house and a couple of acreswhen it rains in the winter, well just say the hell with goin to work, and well build up a fire in the stove and set around it an listen to the rain comin down on the roof Georges dream, although extremely similar to Lennies, is probably more detailed and complicated. Lennie due to his child-like mentality only thinks as far as tendin the rabbits, whereas George assesses the situation by asking himself if they have got enough money, or when will they be able to achieve the dream, before accepting the dream to become reality. George had made it perfectly clear that the dream that he and Lennie share will only become successful if they both achieve it: I knowed wed never do her. He usta like to hear about it so much I got to thinking maybe we would. George realised that he just got carried away, he knew from the start that the dream was unattainable; all dreams are unattainable in Soledad, as it is such a disturbing environment. Curleys wife is possibly the loneliest of all characters in the novel, Of Mice and Men, throughout the beginning of the novel John Steinbeck gives the readers the impression that Curleys wife is a tart: She put her hands behind her back and leaned against the doorframe so that her body was thrown forward She is portrayed as tarty through her provocative appearance and flirtatious actions. John Steinbeck deliberately does not give her a name, she is only known as Curleys wife; therefore a possession of Curley. Curleys wife has been forced to recognise that her sexuality is the only weapon, the only thing that will ever get her noticed: She had full, rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up This is mainly the reason for why she is dressed in a sexually provocative manner throughout the novel. Curleys wifes complaints of loneliness are likely to be sincere, yet she presents them in a manipulative manner that reduces any sympathy for the character. Her craving for contact is immense, she is longing for someone to have a conversation with her: Why cant I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody. I get awfully lonely. However, it seems that everyone is incapable of having a faithful conversation with her without it including any sexual content. John Steinbeck describes Curleys wife, as so desperate that to experience the true value of a relationship that she would do anything to obtain it: If anyone- a man or a woman- ever gave her a break- treated her like a person- she would be a slave to that person. Curleys wife is prepared to carry out any instructions, or meet any demands for anyone that would for once be able to trust her and become her friend, she would do it to such an extent that she would even follow them as if she was enslaved to them. Curleys wife has a different type of dream from George and Lennies; instead of having something to call her own, she wants fame, fortune and respect: Coulda been in the movies, an had clothes- all of them nice clothes like they wear. An I coulda sat in them big hotels, an had pitchers took of meBecause this guy says I was a natural. Curleys wifes dream allows her to escape from her tormenting controlled life and seek comfort from what in her point of view could have happened. Curleys wife is vulnerable, and innocent, she shows her humanity by consoling in Lennie. However, Curleys wife seems to have a deep regret that she did not take up either of the men on their offers: If Id went, I wouldnt be livin like this, you bet. Curleys wifes vulnerability shows the most at this point, she is so desperate to get away from her usual lifestyle that she takes the words of a complete stranger to be equivalent of that of a gospel: He says he was gonna put me in the movies. Says I was a natural. Curleys wifes dream was shattered when the letter that she was waiting for never came, coldly she blamed her mother, accusing her of stealing the letter. It is understandable that there never was going to be a letter, the men were just taking advantage of the poor innocent girl. Curleys wife married Curley on impulse; her hasty marriage to Curley proves to be a failed attempt to escape from her own spiral of loneliness, however, it is now that she has come to realise that what she did was immoral; she feels more trapped now then she ever did: I dont like Curley. He aint a nice fella. Curleys failure to satisfy his wife both emotionally and physically is another reason why Curleys wife is so lonely and has so much hatred built up towards him. When Lennie kills Curleys wife in Chapter 5, John Steinbeck offers the readers a disturbing image. He describes her with more life and vitality as a corpse than he did as a living character, her rouged cheeks and reddened lips now after her death give her the appearance of life. In death the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and the ache for attention have gone from her face. This represents John Steinbecks first concrete praise for Curleys wife; he writes for the first time that she appears pretty and simple, a more commendable character as a corpse than as a living human being, as she is not her manipulative self. Therefore, concluding that in a way, some may say that Curleys wife has achieved her dream as she won her innocence back. Loneliness is a major theme in the novel Of Mice and Men. It is only the two characters George and Lennie who stave of it by their relationship. However, the disadvantaged characters are the ones who suffer the most, it embitters Candy and Crooks, moreover, it kills Curleys wife. John Steinbeck describes loneliness as part of a human condition in this particular novel, it is something we as humans are born with leading it to be either something we fight or succumb to all our lives: Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world Lennie broke in. But not us! Becausebecause I got you to look after me, And you got me to look after you, and thats why. However, throughout the novel John Steinbeck does not offer any answers to get rid of loneliness, it only shows how different characters deal with this problem differently.

Of Castles And Kings (chess) :: essays research papers

Of Castles and Kings Chess, which is believed to have originated in India, has come a long way since it’s earliest record and perhaps violent history. Since it’s origin, chess has undergone a few changes. One of the biggest changes in chess is the switch from classical openings to a new style referred to as hypermodern openings. Before you can understand this change, you must know about the history, rules, and strategy of chess.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are many theories about the origination of chess. The most popular idea is that it originated from the game Chaturanga, once thought to be Chinese Checkers, but now is believed to be of Indian Origin (from India, the country). According to Eastern Legend, Chaturanga was invented by a man named Sissa. Sissa was a Brahman at the Court of King Balhait of India. King Balhait was tired of dice games that depended primarily on luck and chance, so he ordered his wise men to come up with a game that depended on a player’s judgement and skill. Sissa took an eight by eight grid of sixty-four squares, which back then in India was called an Ashtapada Board, and checkered it with with colors. The pieces he used were based on the four categories of the Indian army: The elephants, the cavalry, the chariots and the infantry. He also used the King and his chief counselor. Sissa made the rules so that you have to use strategy and skill in order to win. The King was ver y pleased with this new game. It reduced luck and chance to a small role. He ordered that it be played in every temple as training in the art of war.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Chaturanga spread Eastward to China, and on the way over there, it was transformed into Siang K’I, which is Chinese Chess. Chinese Chess is played on the points, rather than the squares. Chinese Chess traveled through Korea to Japan, where it transformed into Shogi, also known as The General’s Game. Chess also traveled Westward to Persia; there it was known as Shatranj. The Moors brought the game into Spain in the eighth century, from their traders took it to Russia. It wasn’t until the 15th century that Chess began to resemble the game we have now, with a Queen instead of the King’s counselor and Rooks, Knights, Bishops, and Pawns instead of elephants, cavalry, chariots and infantry.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Is it possible that chess is a violent or evil game?

Marketing to Children Essay

Advertisers spend 100s of billions of dollars a year worldwide[1] encouraging, persuading and manipulating people into a consumer lifestyle that has devastating consequences for the environment through its extravagance and wastefulness. Advertising exploits individual insecurities, creates false needs and offers counterfeit solutions. It fosters dissatisfaction that leads to consumption. Children are particularly vulnerable to this sort of manipulation. Young children are increasingly the target of advertising and marketing because of the amount of money they spend themselves, the influence they have on their parents spending (the nag factor) and because of the money they will spend when they grow up.[2] Whilst this child-targetted marketing used to concentrate on sweets and toys, it now includes clothes, shoes, a range of fast foods, sports equipment, computer products and toiletries as well as adult products such as cars and credit cards. In Australia, children under 18 have an ave rage $31.60 to spend each week and they influence more than 70 per cent of their parents’ clothes and fast food purchases.[3] Advertisers attending a conference on Marketing to Kids and Youth were told that children and teenagers between the ages of 10 and 17 spent $3.3 billion every year.[4] In the US there are over 57 million school age children and teenagers who spend about $100 billion each year of their own and their family’s money on  sweets, food, drinks, video and electronic products, toys, games, movies, sports, clothes and shoes.[5] Additionally children 12 and under spend more than $11 billion of their own money and influence family spending decisions worth another $165 billion on food, household items like furniture, electrical appliances and computers, vacations, the family car and other spending.[6] For example, one study estimated that children influenced $9 billion worth of car sales in 1994. One car dealer explains: â€Å"Sometimes, the child literally is our customer. I have watched the child pick out the car.†[7] This means that car manufacturers cannot afford to ignore the children in their marketing. Companies such as Nissan sponsor the American Youth Soccer Organisation and a travelling geography exhibit in order to get exposure for their brand name and logo in child-friendly settings. Chrysler distributes 100s of thousands of glossy cardboard pop-up promotional books by direct mail that will appeal to children who love pop-up books. And Chevrolet has used advertisements featuring children. Some car dealers have added children’s play areas and arcade games to their facilities.[8] US advertisers are now beginning to recognise the potential of the international children’s market. James McNeal in his book Kids as Customers estimates that there are about three quarters of a billion children in other industrialised countries: â€Å"Letting one’s marketing imagination run wild for a moment, if these children spend only half of what U.S. children spend, their market potential would be equal to around $86.5 billion.†[9] Brandweek magazine, also enthusing about â€Å"the marketing opportunity that kids around the world represent† pointed out that even in China where children don’t get much income and save most of it, their total spending amounts to $2.6 billion per year, â€Å"second only to the US†.[10] Brandweek cited a survey that showed McDonald’s was the favourite fast food all over the world and Coke the favourite drink. It argued: if it is possible to create global preferences with food products–where obstacles like differences in local cuisine and culture exist–transcending cultural boundaries with toys, clothing and entertainment products should be considerably easier.[11] Average Income and Spending for Children aged 7-12 yrs Regular Income Annual Income# Savings Total Spending $US/month/child $US/year/child  $US/year Germany 32.30 569.40 46% 0.9 billion UK 31.50 506.20 26% 1.7 billion US 29.10 493.10 21% 8.9 billion France 22.50 377.90 30% 2.2 billion Japan* 10.70 407.90 62% 1.0 billion China* 9.00 182.00 60% 2.6 billion * urban areas only # including special income Source: Laurie Klein, `More than play dough’, Brandweek, Vol. 38 (24 November 1997) McNeal argues that â€Å"in many nations the competition for the children’s market is not as aggressive† as in the US: â€Å"It has been said that in the United States when you get a competitor down you kick him; in Asia you help him up.† He suggests that US firms using US-style competition will therefore have an advantage: it appears that fairly standardized multinational marketing strategies to children around the globe are viable. And they are advisable for those American marketers who are wanting to avoid some of the intense competition domestically and are thinking of seeking market and profit growth across the seas.[12]] The Development of a Consumer Children represent three different markets. In addition to the direct money that children spend and the money they influence, children also represent a third major market and perhaps the most significant and that is the future market.[13] Advertisers recognise that brand loyalties and consumer habits formed when children are young and vulnerable will be carried through to adulthood. Retailers and manufacturers have two sources of new customers, those who they can persuade to change from their competitors and those who have not yet entered the market. Those who switch are less likely to be loyal than those who are nurtured from childhood.[14] According to the CEO of Prism Communications, â€Å"they aren’t children so much as what I like to call `evolving consumers’.†[15] McNeal outlines the stages in the evolution of a child consumer. From age 1: Accompanying Parents and Observing. Children are taken with their parents to supermarkets and other stores where all sorts of goodies are displayed. By the time a child can sit erect, he or she is placed in his or her culturally defined observation post high atop a  shopping cart. From this vantage point the child stays safety in proximity to parents but can see for the first time the wonderland of marketing.[16] From age 2: Accompanying Parents and Requesting. Children begin to ask for things that they see and make connections between television advertising and store contents. They pay more attention to those ads and the list of things they want increases. At the same time, the youngster is learning how to get parents to respond to his or her wishes and wants. This may take the form of a grunt, whine, scream, or gesture–indeed some tears may be necessary–but eventually almost all children are able on a regular basis to persuade Mom or Dad to buy something for them.[17] From age 3: Accompanying Parents and Selecting with Permission. Children are able to come down from the shopping trolley and make their own choices. They are able to recognise brands and locate goods in the store.[18] At this point the child has completed many connections, from advertisements to wants, to stores, to displays, to packages, to retrieval of want-satisfying products. For many parents this is a pleasing experience. Ditto for the marketers, for it signals the beginning of the child’s understanding of the want-satisfaction process in a market-driven society.[19] From age 4: Accompanying Parents and Making Independent Purchases. The final step in their development as a consumer is learning to pay for their purchases at the check-out counter. From age 5: Going to the Store Alone and Making Independent Purchases. According to Direct Marketing magazine, by the age of eight children make most of their own buying decisions.[20] Modern children can often recognise brands and status items by the age of 3 or 4, before they can even read. One study found that 52 percent of 3 year olds and 73% of 4 year olds â€Å"often or almost always† asked their parents for specific brands.[21] Advertisers recognise that brand loyalties and consumer habits formed when children are young and vulnerable will be carried through to adulthood. Kids `R’ Us president, Mike Searles, says â€Å"If you own this child at an early age†¦ you can own this child for years to come.†[22] Forms of Marketing Children’s advertising covers all types of media outlets from newspapers to television stations. By the time most US children start school they will have spent 5000 hours watching television. They will spend more time watching television than they spend in class for their entire schooling.[23]  Similarly in Australia, where in one in four homes children have their own television sets, children spend an average of a quarter of their spare time in front of the television.[24] A version of the infomercial aimed at children is the television show whose main characters are modelled after toys. By 1988 64% of television toy advertisements were for toys related to children’s television programmes. Often cartoon characters would be launched as movies, be followed up by television series and then be merchandised on hundreds of products from t-shirts to toys.[25] The head of Disney explained to Advertising Age in 1989 how the Disney Corporation’s activities all reinforced each other: â€Å"The Disney Stores promote the consumer products which promote the [theme] parks which promote the television shows. The television shows promote the company.†[26] Advertisers not only feature cartoon or other characters from children’s television programmes to gain their endorsement for their products (known as host selling) but they sometimes even place those advertisements in the breaks of the television programmes about those characters, thus blurring the distinction between programming and advertising and taking advantage of the affection children feel for those characters.[27] Television advertising makes up about 70% of the total amount spent on advertising to children in the US but total advertising expenditure makes up only about 15% of the total amount of money spent on marketing to children. In fact much marketing to children now consists of sales promotions such as direct coupons, free gifts and samples, contests and sweepstakes, and public relations such as using celebrities and licensed characters which visit shopping centres and schools. New technologies have also provided new opportunities such as the Internet and telephone services that enable â€Å"new, personalized promotions† aimed at children.[28] Marketing in schools is also a rapidly growing arena.[29] Kids clubs, organised by retailers, producers and media outlets, have proliferated in recent times. They offer an opportunity to develop a more personal relationship with each child, get information about the children for marketing purposes that can be used for mailing lists and data bases, and to promote products to children of particular age groups and geographical locations.[30] These additional forms of marketing have supplemented rather than replaced advertising as the importance of the children’s market has grown. Their aim however is the same as advertising,  to create brand loyalties and customers amongst children. Also, those wanting to sell goods recognise that some older children become somewhat cynical of advertisements and therefore publicity in children’s newspapers and magazines as well as other marketing strategies are alternative ways of reaching these children.[31] Advertising on the Internet A new arena for advertising is the internet. It is estimated that about four million children are using the internet world-wide and this figure is bound to increase dramatically over the next few years.[32] According to the director of Saatchi & Saatchi Interactive, â€Å"This is a medium for advertisers that is unprecedented†¦ there’s probably no other product or service that we can think of that is like it in terms of capturing kids’ interest.†[33] In their advertising material Saatchi and Saatchi explain their Kid Connection service: We at KID CONNECTION are committed to understanding kids: their motivations, their feelings, and their influences. In keeping with our mission to connect our clients to the kid market with programs that match our clients’ business objectives with the needs, drives and desires of kids†¦Interactive technology is at the forefront of kid culture, allowing us to enter into contemporary kid life and communicate with the m in an environment they call their own.[34] Children as young as four are being targeted by advertisers on the internet and often the interaction with the children is unmediated by parents or teachers.[35] These advertisers elicit personal information from the children by getting them to fill out surveys before they can play and offering prizes such as T-shirts for filling in â€Å"lengthy profiles that ask for purchasing behavior, preferences and information on other family members.†[36] Advertisers then use this information to â€Å"craft individualised messages and ads† targeted at each child. The ads are integrated with the other content of the internet site which is designed to keep the children engrossed in play for hours at a time. There are even product â€Å"spokescharacters† to interact with the children and develop relationships with them so that long lasting brand loyalties can be developed.[37] Michael Brody, spokesperson for the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, told a US Federal Trade Commission workshop on privacy that preadolescent children do not understand what personal information is. What is more, he pointed out, they look up to  fictional characters and tend to do what they ask of them.[38] The Centre for Media Education (CME) studied 38 children’s sites â€Å"commonly found on lists of popular places for children† on the internet. It found that 90% of them collected personal information from children and forty percent used incentives such as free gifts and competitions to encourage children to give that information. One in four subsequently send children an email after they visit the site and 40 percent send `cookies’ to those visiting the site to get unsolicited information from them.[39] Concerns There are questions about the ability of children so young to understand advertising and its intent and not be deceived and manipulated by it. Experts say that children don’t understand persuasive intent until they are eight or nine years old and that it is unethical to advertise to them before then.[40] According to Karpatkin and Holmes from the Consumers Union, â€Å"Young children, in particular, have difficulty in distinguishing between advertising and reality in ads, and ads can distort their view of the world.†[41] Additionally children are unable to evaluate advertising claims. At the same time, Richard Mizerski, an Australian professor of marketing, observes; â€Å"their cognitive structures are beginning to form and they are most sensitive to external influences.†[42] This is especially a problem when advertisements appear on school walls and posters and book covers and gain legitimacy from the supposed endorsement of the school so that children think th ey must be true.[43] One study by Roy Fox, Associate Professor of English Education at the University of Missouri-Columbia, found that children watching athletes in television commercials thought that the athletes paid to be in the advertisements to promote themselves rather than the products. They believed children in advertisements were real rather than paid actors and they often confused advertisements with news items. Generally they did not understand the commercial intent and manipulation behind advertisements.[44] Older children pay less attention to advertisements and are more able to differentiate between the ads and TV programs[45] but they are also easy prey for advertisers. Around puberty, in their early teens, children are forming their own identities and they are â€Å"highly vulnerable to pressure to conform to group standards and mores.†[46] At this age they feel insecure and want to feel that they belong to their  peer group. Advertising manipulates them through their insecurities, seeking to define normality for them; influencing the way they â€Å"view and obtain appropriate models for the adult world;† and undermining â€Å"fundamental human values in the development of the identity of children.†[47] Advertisements actively encourage them to seek happiness and esteem through consumption. It is for these reasons that marketing to children should be carefully restricted. In particular advertisements aimed at children under the age of 9 years old, including on the internet and during children’s television programmes, should be banned. Such advertising subsidises the cost of these services at the cost of our children’s values, sense of well-being, health and integrity. Moreover the future of the planet is at stake if we allow advertisers and marketers to turn children into hyper consumers of the future.

An Issue Of Nuclear Authorization - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 13 Words: 3998 Downloads: 3 Date added: 2019/08/16 Category Energy Industry Essay Level High school Tags: Nuclear Power Essay Did you like this example? Â  Imagine being told nuclear energy is the answer to many of the problems we face, as you walk into an Environmental Science class one day? I do not have to because this happened to me, and I was prepared to walk to the counselor to ask to be removed from the course. I was shocked! How could those large concrete monuments creating toxic green sludge be our solution? To be honest, all I could envision for our future was that of The Simpsons with talking flowers, three-eyed fish, and yellow skin. But the explanation given by the instructor cleared my concern shortly after they finished. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "An Issue Of Nuclear Authorization" essay for you Create order Natural gas and oil are resources wehave only to a certainextent,and,at the rate we use these assets,we willeventually be outand left with only the consequences. These effects can be summed up with the phrase ecological footprint which is the impression left on the earth due the consumption of land and resources over the course of a lifetime. But like most problems, thisresolution can be found in what we current possess. Nuclear energy provides the solution to the prospective problem. To ensure the end of this dependenceon nonrenewable resources, we shouldagree to allownuclear energy to take theplace of our currentreliance on nonrenewable resources. Thismodificationwill have positive effects onthe environment and the economy andwill allowmore individuals to dedicate time tocontinueexpanding our understanding ofnuclear energy. Nuclear power plants themselves and the processes used are simpler in operation than most expect. In figure 18-14 in The Nucleus: A Chemists View, we are able to see the basic concept of how the power plants work (732). In layman terms, a nuclear power plant is a large steam generator with the thermal energy source being radioactive atoms housed in a protective container called a reactor. The reactor is where the reactions take place. For the reactions to occur, scientists take atoms of Uranium-238 andhave its bond energy (the energy it takes to hold a neutron to a proton) transformed into thermal energy, a more usable chemical form for us. There are two ways as to how to obtain this kind of bond energy: fission and fusion. The more utilized version, fission, is the splitting of one heavy nucleus (example: Uranium-238) into two smaller lighter nuclei. With this partition of the nuclei, a release of energy occurs because it is an exothermic process. Fusion is considered the opposite o f fission in that it is the combination of two smaller, lighter nuclei to create one heavy nucleus. Fusion creates the most energy of the two processes, but it is less stable along with less understood by our scientists. As a way to comprehend how unpredictable and stupendous the act of fusion is, here is an example: the sun is able to create all its energy from the process of fusion (Zumdahl 742-745). And it is because of these processes as well as power plant to transform the outcome, we are able to create energy in a more usable form for our daily lives. The history of nuclear energy explains when and why public opinion of the source has transitioned and now tends to fall to the opposed side. As stated previous, nuclear energy comes from the energy housed in the bonds between two nucleic particles. The energy itself was first introduced along with radioactivity, excess energy radiating from the source, in the early 1900s.InNuclear Fear, theaccreditedauthor and science historian,Spencer R.Weartexplains how, for years, many scientists sought after a source of energy with an incredible amount of power.Weartunearths the scientists who were able to identify this great power source:PierreCurie and his wife, Marie Curie. These two brought forth this radiating energy [that released]vastlymore energy, atom for atom, than any other process known (Weart6). Approximately50 years afterthis discovery, majorscientificbreakthroughs were made to house the energy being released, delivering to the world the first nuclear reactor. Named the Experimental Breeder Reactor II, it was developed to confine this energy. With this, everyone desired the White Cities of the future, a place that ran on this form of clean and continuous energy (Weart 7). After this impressive innovation and twenty years later, the world saw an approximate 65% increase in atomic energy growth and utilization (Pravalie and Bandoc 82). As the years and wars came, studies of the atom and its new uses increased. The atomic bomb, which places a nucleus in a small container then forces the reaction to occur, releasing this energy into the surrounding area, was a deadly outcome of these studies. And to keep the distance between the large increase in information arising and the relationship between the atomic bomb and nuclear energy, Dwight D. Eisenhower dedicated an atomic power station in Pennsylvania to the cause of scientific progressto the cause of peace in the name of nuclear energy during 1958. Eisenhower believed in putting the atom to work for the good of man kind, not his destruction (Peters and Wooley). Over the course of a century, what was once infinitesimal and somewhat obscure is being driven to the forefront of our nations present-day concerns. As stated previously, nuclear energy and their power plants are relatively new to the world, so we have not completely mastered or attained all the knowledge that can be gained from our studies on nuclear energy and the atom. Considering this, we have had several accidents in this field. Although not the first documentation of a nuclear related incident, Chernobyl, located in the USSR, was by far the worst nuclear accident of our time. Based on Table 1 in Pravalie and Bandocs article, Chernobyl ranked a seven on the INES (International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale), same as Fukushima, the second worst incident of nuclear energy (87). Events such as these caused the public opinion on nuclear energy to shift greatly away from being pro-nuclear. Most of the public no longer saw the White City, but the three-piece symbol stating: radioactive hazard (Weart 7). In their manuscript, Nguyen and Yim provide the public opinion towards this energy source. These two explain how nuclear a ccidents.have significantly damaged the public acceptance of nuclear power, but with the acceptance of the dangers in all forms of energy extracting and the recognition of the benefits, public opinion of the events return to the pre-tragedy state of mind (Nguyen and Yim 3-4). Kok and Benli, authors in the journal Renewable Energy, advocate for nuclear energy and as far to explain how the Fukushima death toll was not an outcome of a problem with the power plant, it was the tsunami [that] caused 16,000 people to die (Kok and Benli 876). Even years after the accident, people still associate the mass incident with that of the power plants fault without the proper understanding. Because of this lack, public opinion still stands in their beliefs against nuclear energy. Ann Stouffer Bisconti, director of the Nuclear Energy Institute, addresses the need for a change in public opinion towards nuclear energy in her article presented in the Progress in Nuclear Energy journal. She explains how in the media; nuclear energy only gets acknowledged when there are negative events occurring. The impact of accidents on public attitudes can be surprising, she states. It varies depending on several factors, including the perception of need, proximity, perception of control, and the communications surrounding the teachable moment'(104). With this, we can see how if the media, government, etc. were to address the accidents with a different attitude, it would allow for better communication given to and understanding from the public. Nuclear energy and the aura surrounding has the potential to be seen in a better light. The phrasing of the words teachable moment also appeases those who oppose and favor nuclear energy. This short phrase does not take away from the seriousness or magnitude of the incidents, but simply means we need to learn from mistakes made in the past to have a better response and have a more positive outcome for our future. Keeping the planet in an ideally clean state is very important to our livelihood and the promise to keep nuclear energy. Our lifestyles are affected daily by the amount of carbon dioxide rejected by factories across the plant; all the while, nuclear energy is an eye-opening source that emits, in a sense, no carbon dioxide into our already weakening environment from its facilities. Because, as stated previously, nuclear energy is the equivalent of a large steam engine, it is not radioactive waste in the form of smoke, but steam, coming out of the commonly envisioned smokestacks. In their article addressing the economics of nuclear energy, Pravalie and Bandoc quotes the International Atomic Energy Agency by stating between 1970 and 2016 the use of nuclear power plants has been able to [prevent] the release of over 60 billion tons of CO2, that we would have gotten from burning our other energy sources (83). The halt of carbon dioxide from being consistently ejected into our air will bet ter the surrounding areas. In big name cities of the southern part of the United States, such as Houston, where oil and natural gas plants are the main draw to the city, the air quality will improve drastically. Because it has been able to cut the CO2 emissions by having a low rate itself, nuclear energy needs to be the major power source we rely on. To supplement the great environmental aspect further as well as the steam emission and ameliorate nuclear waste, nuclear energys by-products have the capability of being recycled for additional use. The water vapor that is not expelled into our atmosphere is stored in a cooling tank to be reused in the production cycle, so there is no need to consistently replenish the water supply. The waste product of the nuclear fission of Uranium-238 is Plutonium-239; this synthesized element has a half-life of 24,110 years. A half-life is the time it takes for the mass of the atom to deteriorate to half from its most recent state. There was once cause for concern in this because this deterioration is the decay, the breakdown of particles like any other used item like a banana peel. But where a banana takes a day or two and is reabsorbed readily, Plutonium is taking a sizable amount of time and effort. But, with current evaluations of this element, science has found a way to turn what was once wa ste into usable fuel pellets for continued use. Chmielewski and Szolucha identifies how the future of nuclear power engineering is oriented on a closed nuclear fuel cycle, our capability to use and reuse everything (237). By providing the steps of how this can be done through a series of in-depth chemical reactions and explanation of the necessary processes, the two demonstrate how thought and progress has already started in this aspect of nuclear energy. The closed-system that Chmielewski and Szolucha offers is necessary for the safeguard of the environment due to its all but complete cease in the reliance on our planets limited resources. These two possible recycling opportunities add up to create a smaller ecological footprint left on our earth, a better environment for our future. The reclaiming ability previously stated adds to promote the economy as well as the switch from the over-dependence on fossil fuels to nuclear energy. The boom in the economy will come from two major focal point of the economy: jobs and energy. As a quick overview, increasing available jobs brings increases the workforce as in those who are making money. This money will be put in to the economy due the reliance on consumer goods, bills, etc.. The jobs that will open range from the laborers brought in by big-name companies who will build the plants to those who continuously run and maintain the plant in the years after development, along with the scientist necessary for day to day necessities and studies. Bisconti points out how job messages [are] powerful in promoting government actions to boost the enterprise. She explains how all forms of power plants present the promise of jobs, economic boom, but how an incentive is needed to fully insure the guarantee (111). The most effective i ncentive for the workers is the promise of a job in their future which is exactly what nuclear energy is capable of doing. The incentive that effectively promises jobs for years to come is the estimation of 5.7 million tonnes of .uranium resources.sufficient for at least 100 years of nuclear electricity production (Pravalie and Bandoc 86). And, this estimation of one century is based on the idea of a one-use system and does not include the advances made daily in nuclear recycling studies or in nuclear fusion and fission of the trans plutonium elements; these features expand this time period further past 100 years. Also, based on the locations we have currently functioning, nuclear energy and the power plant is relatively inexpensive. Hejazi breaks this down in his article Nuclear Energy: Sense or Nonsense for Environmental Challenges. This comparison has to be done by measuring the differences in capital, operation and maintenance, taxes, and external costs. Based on his research, the capital costs are all amounted on the size and type of plant it is. The average nuclear unit itself is capable of a retur n approximately half of the initial investment which can then increase based on the power plants lifetime and the possibility of extension to that lifetime (Hejazi 697). In recent years, science has been able to expand the life of 30 years to 60. The main allocation of money for this type of power plant goes to maintaining the plant, insurance, and taxes based on the fluctuation government laws and regulation. And with the constant increase in our knowledge of nuclear energy, a steady stabilization to these amounts has been brought about. Specifically, for Europe, Hejazi states for each megawatt hour of energy a plant produces, only 0.05 of a Euro is paid to cover insurance costs; this is very low, especially since a plant annually averages 12 billion kilowatt hours (conversion factor: 1 kWh=0.001 MWh). As for the fuel that makes the entire plant functional, only 20% of the financial estimate must be budgeted for this. And over the course of time and the discoveries of large reserve s, the prices as of 2017 were averaging 0.44 U.S. dollar per kWh capable of being generated (697). Bundled in these finances is the cost to house the by-product of the continuous reactions, and although nuclear recycling is a possibility with uranium and plutonium, only 4% of the by-product is deemed waste because we have yet to create a way to further use the product. Some countries designate tax payer dollars in addition to requiring the company to pay the cost to place the waste in places like Yucca Mountain in Nevada (Hejazi 697). With nuclear energy being relatively cheap along with the promise of long future economically, it is capable of replacing our current reliance, nonrenewable. Though they may not be opposed to nuclear energy, some individuals of the public may say that renewable resources like solar would be the better alternative, not nuclear. Solar energy possesses the same benefits nuclear does today in a safer way. In the magazine Solar Today, writer Graham Shorr explains how by buying individual solar panels for ones home, there is a definite promise of a financial return (13). By investing in their own energy producers, the owner is not only capable of gaining money, but being electrical the independent from the electricity network. They could go off-grid. Another benefit of going solar is the incentive of the energy credits some companies offer. Shorr states how certain electrical companies will take the extra energy created for credits, basically sending the investor a check (13). This incentive also allows the owner to take in more money. Even with all these benefits, solar energy, alone, will not solve our problems because it is not for everyone. Solar energy requires high up-front cash.and wait several years for the return, not everyone will be able to put an amount of at least five figures to wait that such a time for a profit (Shorr 13). Most people want the benefits at least within a year of any change on their part. Along with this, solar energy possesses costs that are not broadcasted out right. This form of energy requires installation one has pay for; also, the monetary incentives could be removed with drastic decrease in rarity (Shorr 13). Although many individuals would lean more toward the energy that is solar, there are many concerns hidden from view or forgotten. But there are ways to appease these people who want the solar aspect in their energy production. Not only has science created better systems to maintain and track the essential information, but it has envisioned hybrid-reforms that could be made to nuclear and solar energy plants. These forms represent the best of both worlds: clean and economically efficient. Siddharth Suman, an independent researcher for India, presents his article Hybrid Nuclear-Renewable Energy Systems: A Review to provide the idea of power plants run on a combination of both nuclear and some kind(s) of renewable energy sources; his main focus being solar. Our public forgets that we have not created the perfect energy system, and how the renewable energy we utilize is not solving all our problems in a single monumental leap towards a completely green process. Our perfect energy solution that we arrogantly demand not only features no carbon dioxide emissions but requires significantly smaller ecological footprint than anything we have currently designed. And as Todd explains how these forms of energy are bett er for the planet but are a good way of producing for places with little to no resource needed for the specific energy. For example, a mandatory switch to solar would be pointless for places along the northwestern coast of North America where they have long periods of sunless day. But with the construction of the latest ideas of hybrid systems that can improve our energy production, we will reach our goal. In his introduction, Suman identifies this: Future of nuclear energy is also uncertain because of public apprehensions and subsequent government policies. To overcome the issues derailing these two virtually carbon-free energy sources, a new hybrid or integrated nuclear-renewable energy systems is being proposed and seen as an attraction option (166). The hybrid system proposed is a way to reach a compromise between the two energy sources. It has the amazing capability to be clean and produce energy efficiently, all the while helping the economy. With energy sources like these, we have the chance to further our studies in the various aspects of what nuclear energy is and what it can be. In reaction to urge to use nuclear energy, some individuals would be against this. Fear has always been an important standing point in many arguments, and nuclear energy has been seen from the viewpoint of many negative attitudes in the 100 years it has been around. As always, the fear stems from the unknown, but that unknowingness was once what drove the progression of nuclear energy forward in the beginning. The scientist as well as the general public all yearned for the white city that ran on the clean low-cost energy that is nuclear (Weart 7-8). So, what turned the world away from such a brilliant power source? Mass explosions; those that were planned and those that were not. The derivative of the atomic bomb was an issue that knocked nuclear energy into the area of fear. Weart explains how the nuclear industry urgently wanted to dissociate civilian products from bombs.speak not of atomic but of nuclear (Weart 177). The nuclear businesses tried diligently to keep the two bodies s eparate but even today one of the first ideas that pops up in the nuclear-generations mind when thinking of it is that of all the negative aspects. Nguyen and Yim explain how over the course of the years, the younger generation tends to be more accepting of nuclear; this is because they have not grown in those years of fear of being under nuclear control (2). And while this fear cannot be completely eradicated, the regulation of nuclear weapons over the years have helped ease the mind of the public. As for the explosions scientists had not planned for, opposes claim nuclear accidents are a damaging outcome of our lack of complete knowledge of nuclear, which is true. As stated previously, Chernobyl was the most devastating nuclear incident as a result of human error (Pravalie and Bandoc 87). The result of accident are increases in birth defects related to the enormous amounts of radioactivity released into the surrounding area and the reiterated fear in such a powerful source we cann ot hope to understand as believed by those who oppose. This fear is not one to be simply wiped with a simple explanation; easing the mind, removing the stigma placed on the nuclear energy is a way to begin. The fact that we can and have kept track of all the nuclear incidents and what went wrong shows how meticulous proposers are about this study. We want to make it better. Also, the fact that some of the accidents were not the cause of human miscalculation, but Mother Nature herself. The Fukushima accident happened because of an earthquake (7.4 on the Richter scale) caused a tsunami. In response to these devastating events relate to nuclear, science has taken and used them to further our studies just as Busconti wanted. Using scientists and engineers is the safest way to bettering nuclear energy. Kosai and Unesaki describe the new System Interruption Nuclear Vulnerability Index (SINVI) which can be used to predict the risk of electricity supply disruption arising from the sudden stoppage of nuclear power operation (1198). This a new and improved computer system that can be installed into the mainframe of the power plants mainframe and begin running without any necessary prior data that is required by the current vulnerability indexes. The main reason for the need and use of a new one is the fact that the current system will shut down in a state of urgency and not collect the data formulated by the power plant itself (Kosai and Unesaki 1206). With this in mind, the main goals of this new and improved system are to analyze the relationship of three major attributes for evaluating stable electrical supply systems; diversification redundancy and nuclear vulnerability with the outcome of utilizing the nuclear fuel to its best ability to prevent wastefulness. (Kosai and Unesaki 1199). With the continuous support from the computer running the functions of the plant, we can be more prepared and notified sooner in the event of a complication. This system also goes to improve the energy aspect of nuclear; the use of nuclear fuel in our best ability is important because, like anything on our planet, we want to get the most out of as little as possible. We want to make sure we are not wasting anything as serious as fuel reserves especially if we are placing such a large reliance in the them. Over the course of the seven years since the Fukushima accident, advances such as these have been made. The pursuit of this knowledge for ways to better our understanding of nuclear energy and the collection of new data from such a system shows the fear has been taken into consideration and has been used as an influence to urge our studies further. Altogether, we need to implement a change toward giving our dependence on fossil fuels over to nuclear energy. This will ensure improvement not only to the environment but will produce a thriving economy. With the increase in nuclear energy sites, our studying of all things related to nuclear energy will receive a more informed input. And with time and consistent modifications, nuclear energy can be where we not want, but need it to be for our future consumption. Ultimately, we will reap the benefits on our active journey towards a better and cleaner future and far from the of the style of life of The Simpsons I had once believed we would live.