Analysis of The Moldau essays

Analysis of The Moldau essays For my first selection of music for this final project I chose The Moldau by Bedrich Smetana. The reason I chose this piece was first, it is a symphonic poem and second, because it perfectly exemplified the use of nationalist style and word painting. The Moldau is a symphonic poem representing Nationalist pride for Smetanas country. It is the second of six symphonic poems from the orchestral piece My Country. A symphonic poem is a one-movement orchestral form that, in this case, suggests a scene. It was written over a five-year span that covered the revolution against Austrian rule. The Moldau is a perfect example of a nationalist song, which is a song of folk pride for ones country. The piece The Moldau represents scenes along the river Moldau in Bohemia. It is here that we see the use of word painting, music expressed as though it were a painting to be seen. It begins as a few streams in the forest flowing into the mighty river, painted with a flute and some clarinets and leading to violins. The journey takes us through a day in the forest where we see hunting, peasants dancing at a wedding, nymphs in the moonlight, the St. Johns Rapids, the Ancient Castle and back to the River theme as the river dies away. It is truly an enchanting piece. ...

How to Find the Sagittarius Constellation

How to Find the Sagittarius Constellation The skies of July and August provide an excellent view of the constellation Sagittarius. Easy to spot and filled with fascinating deep-sky objects, Sagittarius is an ideal subject of study for stargazers and astronomers alike. The constellation Sagittarius is often referred to as a teapot because of its appearance: the main boxy shape is the body of the teapot, from which a handle and a spout extend outward. Some observers add that the Milky Way appears to be rising up out of the spout like steam. Finding the Sagittarius Constellation In the northern hemisphere, Sagittarius reaches its highest point in the southern part of the sky during July and August and into early September. Sagittarius is also visible high in the northern part of the sky for regions south of the equator. Sagittarus has such a distinctive shape that its not too hard to spot in the sky. Simply look for the teapot shape next to the curved body of Scorpius the Scorpion.  Not only are these constellations filled with fascinating celestial bodies to observe, they are also on either side of the core of our galaxy, where the black hole Sgr A* lives. A chart of the sky containing Scorpius and Sagittarius. Ross 154 is a faint star in Sagittarius. Carolyn Collins Petersen All About Scorpius Sagittarius is best-known as the figure of a cosmic archer, although the Greeks saw it as a starry representation of a mythical creature called a centaur. Alternatively, some mythology identifies Sagittarius as the son of Pan, the god who created archery. His name was Crotus, and he was put into the sky by the god Zeus so that everyone could see how archery worked. (However, most viewers dont see an archer when they look at Sagittarius- the teapot shape is far easier to identify.) The Stars of the Scorpius Constellation The entire constellation of Sagittarius shown with IAU boundaries and the brightest stars that make up the pattern.   IAU/Sky Telescope The brightest star in the constellation Sagittarius is called Kaus Australis (or Epsilon Sagittarii). The second-brightest is Sigma Sagittarii, with a common name of Nunki. Sigma (Nunki) was one of the stars that the Voyager 2 spacecraft used for navigation as it was traveling to the outer solar system to study the gas giant planets.   There are eight bright stars that make up the teapot shape of the main constellation. The rest of the constellation as outlined by the IAU boundaries has a couple of dozen more stars.   Sagittarius constellation is outlined by eight bright stars, and scattered among them are globular clusters (yellow circles), open clusters (yellow broken line circles), and nebulae (squares). Its best to search this area with a good pair of binoculars just to get an idea of the many fascinating objects in the Sagittarius region.   Carolyn Collins Petersen Selected Deep Sky Objects in Constellation Sagittarius Sagittarius is right on the plane of the Milky Way and its teapot spout points almost directly to the center of our galaxy. Because the galaxy is so well-populated in this part of the sky, observers can spot many star clusters, including a number of globular clusters and open star clusters. Globulars are spherical-shaped collections of stars, many much older than the galaxy itself. Open star clusters are not as tightly gravitationally bound as the globulars. Sagittarius also contains some lovely nebulae: clouds of gas and dust lit up by radiation from nearby stars. The most prominent objects to search out in this area of the sky are the Lagoon Nebula, the Trifid Nebula, and the globular clusters M22 and M55.   Nebulae in Sagittarius Because we look at the galaxy from inside, its very common to see clouds of gas and dust in the plane of the Milky Way. This is especially true in Sagittarius. The Lagoon and Trifid Nebulae are the easit to spot, although they can generally only be seen well with binoculars or a small telescope. Both of these nebulae contain regions where star formation is actively taking place. Astronomers see both newborn stars as well as protostellar objects in these regions, which helps them track the process of starbirth. The Trifid is also known as Messier 20 and has been studied by many ground-based observatories as well as Hubble Space Telescope. It will look somewhat dim but should be easy to spot in a small telescope. Its name comes from the fact that it looks like a little pool next to the brighter regions of the Milky Way. The Trifid looks like it has three lobes connected together. They lie just over four thousand light-years away from us.   The Trifid Nebula in full glorious color provided by the European Southern Observatory. Smaller telescopes will not show these colors, but a long-exposure photograph will.   European Southern Observatory Globular Clusters in Sagittarius Globular clusters are satellites of the Milky Way Galaxy. They often contain hundreds, thousands, or sometimes millions of stars, all tightly bound together by gravity. M22 (which is the 22nd objects in Charles Messiers list of Faint fuzzy objects that he compiled in the 18th century), was first discovered in 1665 and contains about 300,000 stars all packed together in a region of space about 50 light-years across.   This view of the globular cluster M22 in Sagittarius was taken using an amateur telescope.   Hunter Wilson, via Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 3.0 Another interesting globular cluster is also in Sagittarius. Its called M55, and was discovered in 1752. It contains just under 300,000 stars all gathered into an area bout 48 light-years across. It lies nearly 18,000 light-years away from us. Search out Sagittarius for other clusters and nebulae, especially using a pair of binoculars or a small telescope.

Why we should be far more skeptical about the death penality Essay

Why we should be far more skeptical about the death penality - Essay Example Basically, the bone of contention has always revolved around religious beliefs, and the application of utilitarian theory whereby the advocacy has been to go by the side that yields greater benefits. For those that advocate on the death penalty, it is evident that they wish for the end results to have impact on reducing the number of crimes. On the other hand, those that feel that the death penalty is not a better solution hold the view that there are other ways through which penalties can be applied in order to curb the crime menace (Shaykh 84). Nevertheless, whichever the side that people go by, it is apparent that the underlying principle is for everyone to be skeptical about the reality on the ground. As Bertrand Russell argues in his article, it would be necessary to consider articulating on uncommon opinions, which would in a way be of help in the transformation of social and political systems. In this regard, it is analytically correct to argue that the side that people could be less skeptical about could be the side with potential to offer solutions to an issue with dilemma. For example, it is unclear if many people endorse the death penalty. Nevertheless, going by the hypothesis that many people do not advocate for the death penalty, it could have some implications that having the death penalty in place could help in reducing the incidences of crime (Yorke 205). For example, one would argue that putting the death penalty in place would create some fear to persons with deviant behaviours. In fact, in another dimension, some victims of deviant behaviour by the defendant would only feel that justice has been done if the death penalty is executed on the offender. Perhaps, this would go in line with what others would term as favoring offenders if the death penalty is not imposed on them. All in all, I would not advocate for the death penalty. It is evident that those that advocate for it would be less skeptical about it. Nevertheless, I would argue that hav ing the death penalty in place would not for example cause resurrection of somebody killed by the offender. If anything, this would be causing another crime of murder. This is where the issue of religious beliefs comes in. Many religions do not advocate for the death penalty as it is associated with going against the will of God (Stewart 102). In a broader sense, if an alternative punishment can be put in place, it is apparent that the offender would in a way be helped and could probably change his/her behaviours. This could arguably be true because, for example, if the offender is subjected to parole or probation sentence, there is a possibility that the offender could be reformed and change his ways. However, since the death penalty has been viewed as an inhuman act that violates human rights, civil right groups have been campaigning to have it fully eliminated. Many countries have abolished execution and adopted other forms of punishment. Many people have argued that the death pe nalty is useless and does not help the victims or even the offender himself. Opponents of the death penalty belief that right to live is the most important human right and needÃ'‹ to be honored. The death penalty cannot be compared to normal death as it comes with physical torture to the victim from the time one has been convicted to the death penalty. One is subjected to a state of fear and mental torture as he has been made aware of when he will die. An act as this one should be discouraged as it is against the human rights. In another dimension, opponents of the death penalty argue that in the quest to have justice done, many people are punished for the crimes they did not commit. Many innocent people have been subjected to capital punishment as at times arm

Marketing Communications Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marketing Communications - Essay Example The inter-dependence of the various elements within the system has vast potential to establish a market that is sustainable as well as mutually satisfying. Indeed, as per the video (persuaders), one of the major challenges of modern integrated marketing is anticipating the changing requirements of the people and using effective advertising to connect emotionally with the people. Kotler has defined IMC as the concept under which a company carefully integrates and coordinates its many communications channels to deliver a clear, consistent and compelling messages about the organization and its products (Kotler, 2009). Even though the customer base is increasing, it is becoming difficult not only to attract more customers but also to retain them. So, one need to add something ‘more’ on the existing products to make it more attractive without compromising much on the price. In fact, the more innovative the product and fancier the promotional techniques, the higher are its chances of capturing market space. Thereby, asserting that brands, advertising, and promotional techniques are very important tools of marketing. Baker and Hart have asserted that ‘putting people into marketing is essential for many reasons’ and not the least being that all businesses fundamentally cater to the needs of the people (Baker & Hart, 2007). Advertisements and media play a very crucial role in the strategy planning and are often used to define company’s position vis-Ã  -vis the market strategy for non market factors. A well defined market strategy is the key to success in any new market. The various media in the region are important tool to popularize the company and help establish its brand among the masses. Analysis and identification of the changing trends of the customer requirements are important ingredients to gain leverage against their rivals. Understanding of consumer psychology,

Master Harold and the Boys Essay Example for Free

Master Harold and the Boys Essay â€Å"Master Harold† and the boys, by the white South African playwright Athol Fugard, is a naturalistic play set in a Tea Room in Port Elizabeth on a rainy day in 1950. Two black servants, Sam and Willie, and their white master’s son Hally (‘Master Harold’), have deep conversations about the good time they had together when Hally was young. In the beginning of the play, Sam and Willie, practice their dancing techniques and talk about an upcoming dance contest. Fugard has created first impressions of situation and characters in the opening of the play by using set design, stage directions, duologue as well as speech and tone. The opening of the play is interpreted as being up to Hally’s first entry. Firstly, the unprofessional and for the audience surprisingly casual and light-hearted situation is created by Fugard’s choice of set design, stage directions and duologue. Secondly, Sam and Willie’s relationship is proven of unequal status, yet intimate and deep, by the difference in speech and tone, and by the choice of topics in the duologue. Finally, initial perceptions of a childish and rude Willie and an intelligent and experienced Sam are constructed through mostly speech and tone. The unprofessional impression of the Tea Room and the carefree and easy going ambiance is created by set design and stage directions, and duologue. Firstly, the amateurish impression of the business is created by the blackboard on which an untrained hand has chalked up the prices of the items, and by the few sad ferns in pots in the room. Furthermore, the fact that Fugard has chosen to clear all tables to one side, suggests that the business is not doing well, because the Tea Room is not likely to be expecting any customers. Secondly, the audience notices immediately that the mood in the room is casual, by letting Willie start off with singing a song as he mops down the floor. This strong mood is then reinforced when Willie suddenly gets up and starts dancing, Sam eagerly encouraging and correcting Willie’s dance technique. The audience must have been surprised by this casual situation, because one must not forget that at the time of the performance, around 1982, apartheid in South Africa was considerably further developed than the setting of the play. The fact that two black men, obviously workers, are without supervision of a white person and that they are enjoying themselves during work must have raised a sense of unease from the spectators, unsure how to react. The relationship between Sam and Willie is profound, yet Sam seems to have a higher status compared to Willie, as suggested by Fugard’s choice of topic of conversation and by the contrast between the terms of address and physical position. To begin with, the way in which both men communicate is very informal. Willie uses plenty of swear words, like â€Å"fuckin’ whore† or â€Å"bitch†, whereas Sam uses a higher register, but is still joking around with Willie (â€Å"How’s your pillow with the quickstep?†). This use of language suggests that both men feel at ease and that they have known each other for a very long time already. A sense of intimate relationship is also created by the topics of conversation. Willie is very open with Sam about his relationship with Hilda Samuels, as when he talks about the problems buying food for their baby of which he isn’t even sure it is his son (â€Å"Only his hair looks like me.†); he shows no hesitation to discuss the matter with Sam. Sam even knows that Willie often beats up his girlfriend, suggesting that they have been living alongside for a long time. The audience realises that it is watching an intimate conversation, which makes them attentive, curious and involved in the discussion. Secondly, Sam’s higher social position is suggested by the contrast between the way Sam addresses Willie and vice versa, almost like a teacher-student relation. Sam suggests improvements for Willie’s dance technique, as â€Å"Don’t look down!† or â€Å"But you’re too stiff!†, as well as how he could be more successful in his relationships with girlfriends (â€Å"You hit her too much.†) and Willie reacts willingly to take up the advice. Also, Sam demonstrates the dance as it should be, suggesting that Sam is more experienced. Lastly, a subtle but symbolic detail is the physical positioning of Sam and Willie at the very beginning of the play: Willie is mopping down the floor on his knees, working, while Sam is flicking through a comic book, standing, and obviously not working. Fugard has visualised their relationship by the contrast between kneeling and sitting, and working and relaxing, and this can in fact be applied to the entire rest of the play. Sam is portrayed as a confident, intelligent and experienced character through his speech and tone. The way Sam guides Willie through the learning process of the quickstep, and even demonstrates a much more accomplished dance than Willie, indicates he is a skillful dancer himself. Fugard has made the audience feel sympathy towards Sam, as he encourages Willie, â€Å"Look happy, Willie! Relax Willie!†, although Willie is a hopeless dancer. Fugard represents Willie’s character as slightly vulnerable, unexperienced, and as a bad lover through his reactions to Sam’s teasing, the difficulties he has with learning the quickstep and through his description of his relationship with girlfriends. Willie is very quickly frustrated by Sam’s advice, like â€Å"Yesterday I’m not straight today I’m too stiff!† and â€Å"I try hard because it is hard.†. Willie’s incapability to cope with Sam’s teasing once even results in a small brawl between the two of them: â€Å"It’s finish between us.† Furthermore, Willie is clearly a bad love partner, confirmed when he describes his girlfriend as a â€Å"whore† and a â€Å"bitch†, but which is, quite ironically, provoked by himself hitting his girlfriend every once in a while. This, together with his vulgar choice of language, results in an aversion from the audience to Willie. To conclude, Fugard has managed to create strong first impressions in the opening of the play in terms of situation and characters. He has used set design, stage directions and duologue to create an unprofessional and casual ambience. In terms of characters, Fugard has succeeded in associating strong characteristic features to Sam and Willie, both intimate friends, yet separated in a way by an intellectual line.

Knowles Separate Peace Essays: Character Traits :: Separate Peace Essays

Character Traits in A Separate Peace In the book A Separate Peace by John Knowles, one of the main themes is the effects of realism, idealism, and isolationism on Brinker, Phineas, and Gene. Though not everyone can be described using one of these approaches to life, the approaches completely conform to these characters to create one realist, one idealist, and one isolationist; thereby providing the foundation of the novel. The realist is Brinker. Brinker's realism takes on a very morbid quality after Gene decides not to enlist with him, do to Phineas's return to Devon. Brinker still sees everything the way it is, but begins to think that the way it is, is bad. On page 122, he is quoted as saying, "Frankly, I just don't see anything to celebrate, winter or spring or anything else." Brinker will scrutinize any incident until he finds a dark side to it, because, in his mind, at least one side of everything is a dark side. Already we have the footing for our climax. Phineas (Finny) is the idealist. Like Brinker, Finny's approach experiences a grim metamorphoses. Before his accident, Finny sees the world as a glorious playing field and life as a never ending game. After his accident; however, Finny begins to view the world through the eyes of a paranoid old man who is always seeing something covert in everything. On page 106, Finny even goes as far as to ask Gene, "Do you really think that the United States of America is in a state of war with Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan?" This outlook is a mental facade that only succeeds in setting Finny up for a harder fall. Finally there is the isolationist, Gene. Gene's approach is austere from the beginning. It is Gene who generates the dark change in the others. Gene looks for danger in everything he is emotionally close to. When he finds danger, he ostracizes himself from whatever it is that is posing a threat to him. If he can not find danger, as with Finny, he creates it. On page 45 he strives so hard to create danger in Finny that he falsely concludes that, "Finny had deliberately set out to wreck my studies." This creates the story's

Marketing Case on Target

1. What micro environmental factors have affected target’s performance over the past few years? The biggest affect would be its competitors. Walmart has affected targets performance in the past few years. The fact that they could keep low prices when that was at a high demand made target think that they had to lower their prices which would made their customers think that they didn’t have that high quality that they once had before. 2. What macro environmental factors have affected target’s performance over the past few years?The biggest affect was recession and inflation, this was not good for target because the lost a lot of money. A person wasn’t looking for quality they had to make every dollar count so they were looking for low prices. The used advertising to get there sells up and use there â€Å"pay less† marketing plan to help target become better and to get there customers back. 3. By focusing on the â€Å"pay less† part of its sloga n, has target pursued the best strategy? Why or why not? There â€Å"pay less† strategy is the best strategy.They told the old customers that they still have high quality product just at lower prices than before. They showed new customers that they could have high quality products without having to pay a high price. 4. What alternative strategy might target have followed in responding to the first signs of declining revenues and profits? 5. Given target’s current situation, what recommendations would you make to steinhafel for is company’s future? By focusing on the â€Å"Pay Less† part of its slogan, has Target pursued the best strategy? Why or why not? I believe that Target has been doing things right since the beginning.They were the first to build them selves on a very diversified and unique strategy and way of business. They set them selves a part and succeeded as their slogan â€Å"Expect More. Pay Less. † took off and had customers in love w ith their chic in products. As they reached a peek they made one small mistake and that is focusing too much of their advertising on â€Å"Expect More† only. When the Recession hit, customers were low on funds and thought that shopping at Target would be too much of a treat, fancy, and/or â€Å"More† expensive then what they can afford.They chose the right strategy to use, but definitely the wrong time to enforce it. They were late on using the other half of the slogan, which nearly ended Target. CEO Gregg Steinhafel had other plans to continue pushing the strategy to an extreme/last resort through newspapers, commercials, and other marketing and advertising. This move in strategy stabilized and saved the company, and maybe even created a better and perfect Business strategy. 4. What alternative strategy might Target have followed in responding to the first signs of declining revenues and profits?Well they could have just kept the same strategy and motto and just tweak ed it. Their motto â€Å"Expect More† â€Å"Pay Less† could be used with the current strategy to let customers know that they deserve better and/or higher quality clothes, appliances, and other products, which other stores do not provide. Like adding, â€Å"You Deserve it† at the end of the current motto will have people thinking and saying â€Å"Do I? † (Most people with a decent salary will always believe they do and spend the money) This might make it possible to tap into a completely new market segment.With a smooth transition that could provides a low risk situation. A great way to make sure the strategy follows through and succeeds would be to communicate with the company, integrating departments, give satisfying service, and value the customers. 5. Given Target’s current situation, what recommendations would you make to Steinhafel for his company’s future? The â€Å"Pay Less† strategy worked so well that I would recommend that the company itself work more intensely on keeping the â€Å"Pay Less† strategy while at the same time keep the â€Å"Expect More† strategy.As most customers love to save money no matter what economic stage, I also recommend that give more coupons out in newspapers and/or offer more discounts in store like a store membership card. With the card, the customers apply for and are able to save money and receive offers that non-cardholders are not able to receive. With these benefits, the customers will feel more self-valued, greater worth, and satisfied. This in the end will create loyal customers and bring in new customers.