Saturday, October 5, 2019

Management focused study and professional development plan (PDP) Essay

Management focused study and professional development plan (PDP) - Essay Example The importance of good leadership cannot be stressed enough with the number organizations and business entities that folded to the failure of its leadership. Leadership coupled with the tools of management, intends to reach or achieve the vision of an organization with its available resource in information, technology, materials, organization and personnel. In today’s very competitive business arena, leadership can spell the difference of an organization’s success or failure. Leadership is a critical element in ensuring the sustainability of an organization. Research in the field of leadership has never been saturated with theoretical and conceptual quests for leadership styles that work with any situation and followers’ condition. (Jamaludin, et al, 2011, pg. 73). One of the important attributes of leaders that attract the interest of many researchers is their leadership styles (Adeyemi-Bello 2001). Leaders lead through a combination of logical decision making a nd feeling. Depending upon the situation, it may require more emotional intelligence and less logical decision making or vice versa (Mayer & Caruso, 2002). ... Consistent with this observation, Al-Mailam (2004) argued that high-quality leadership is regarded as vital in bringing success to any group activity. One of the more recent and prevalent discussion about leadership is the emotional aspect of it as â€Å"leadership has been described as an â€Å"emotionladen process† (George, 2000, p. 1046), with the skillful management of followers’ feelings representing a critical leadership function (Humphrey, 2002, 2008). The ability to address underlying feelings and emotions is essential to effective leadership (Mayer & Caruso, 2002). This brings to the fore the relationship and emotional aspect of leadership which has been the subject of inquiry of many management theorist – emotional intelligence. This is quite interesting because the emotional aspect of human resource was used to be thought of as insignificant and irrelevant in the production line that management theorists relegated it as being trivial and unimportant. When science in management was first introduced in an organization and production line, the emotion of the people in the bureaucracy was never considered (Taylor, 1911). Organization then was viewed more of cohesive machine that works efficiently rather an structure that composes of people of different background, interest, predisposition and motivation. Recent management theorists however are looking at it at a different perspective. Mayer and Salovey (1997) elaborated the idea and defined emotional intelligence as "the ability to monitor one's own and others' feelings, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one's thinking and action" (Grewal & Salovey, 2005 p. 332). Interpersonal

Friday, October 4, 2019

Green Estate Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Green Estate - Essay Example The remit provides background of the company under study. Introduction section, which follows the remit, provides an overview of the whole paper in addition to defining some aspects of the analysis. Methodology section on the other hand indicates how collection of data was achieved and where it (data) was obtained from. The main source of data for analyzing Green Estate as used in this paper is the firm’s website. From Green Estate’s website, it was possible to obtain data on environmental factors affecting internal and external operations of the firm hence development of the PESTLE and SWOT. Within the findings/results, the paper attempts to critically review Green Estate’s background, mission statements, PESTEL, SWOT, competitors, and substitutes that are affecting operations of the firm. A conclusion, giving a brief summary of the main points, forms part of the paper. Lastly, the paper has recommendations, which mainly revolve around taking advantage of their strengths to overcome weaknesses and through opportunities, overcome the threats. Remit Found in 1998, Green Estate Ltd is an organization or firm has been involved in designing landscape, managing landscape, green roof, composting green waste, maintenance of ground, and providing educational experience. Through Single Regeneration Budget (SRB), Green Estate Ltd was created to help in reforming the landscape. The good reputation created from the SRB, Green Estate Ltd was able to attract more reputation hence being an epicentre in enhancing the landscape (Cote et al., 1994). Operations of Green Estate Ltd have enabled the organization to create a landscape, which has so far led to a positive relationship between land and people. Green Estate Ltd has been able to achieve tremendous success in their bid to enhancing land and people (Greenestate.org.uk (a)). Consequently, Green Estate Ltd forms part of the study area. Interest to study and analyze Green Estate Ltd has been aroused by th e achievements of the firm over the past few years since its inception. Introduction Like many other organizations, Green Estate Ltd has inspired many people in respect to how it has handled issues dealing with landscape and people. Undoubtedly, contemporary environment has been adversely affected by human activities. Hence, there is a sour relationship between people and landscape especially when the latter attempts to obtain their livelihood from the former. People through land have been able to find their livelihood. Green Estate Ltd has therefore been a fundamental firm in creating a positive and mutual relationship between people and landscape. The mutual relationship between people and land has been a creation of Green Estate Ltd thereby arousing the interest to dig deep into the firm’s mission, objectives, competitors, and surrounding business environment. Method In order to analyze the company, there is need to obtain adequate data and information on the organization. One of the ways of finding data is through analysis of the firm’s PESTEL, and SWOT strategic tools. PESTLE and SWOT strategic tools will provide an overview of how Green Estate Ltd is operating within and is affected by the environmental factors. Moreover, finding or obtaining adequate data on Green Estate Ltd also involved evaluating the firm’

Thursday, October 3, 2019

1906 British General Election Essay Example for Free

1906 British General Election Essay The Liberals lapped on the conservatives weaknesses, and used that to their strengths. The leadership of Campbell-Bannerman proved as a success by throwing out accusations towards the Tories, like their methods of barbarism and ‘Chinese slavery.’ They also had young, dynamic MP’s and the gaining of Winston Churchill. The liberals opposed the tariff reform and supported free trade like many working class voters. The Tories had won 334 seats in the 1900 election but that went down to 157 seats in the 1906 election, which is a loss of 177 seats. But on the other hand in the 1900 election the Liberals had 187 seats but by 1906 election they had gone up to 401 seats, which is a gain of 214 seats! The Conservative party introduced two new acts just before this General Election which decreased their popularity. The Education Act of 1902 was an attempt by the ‘Tories’ to improve national efficiency: Britain must improve the health and well-being of the nation if it was to remain a leading world power. The act abolished school boards, which meant that taxpayers funded primary school education. Although this was a successful policy, (attendance increased from 94,000 in 1905 to 200,000 by 1914) it angered non-conformists who were outraged that their taxes were being used to fund church schools. In fact, the Act was branded Rome on Rates, as the Catholic Church was benefiting from taxes being paid by anti-Catholic citizens: Balfour soon had to control a revolt as 7000 people refused to pay their taxes. This rebellion shows just how unpopular this act was and reduced the amount of support for the Conservatives. The Conservative party also had a ‘Laissez Faire’ attitude, which means ‘you are on your own’ with your health and wealth. Booth and Roundtrees studies showed that 1/3 of the population were in Poverty and in the Boer War soldiers were declared to unhealthy to fight. The Non-Conformists were also outraged by the Licensing Act of 1904, which aimed to reduce the number of pubs in areas where they were not needed. However, the government paid compensation to the brewers whose pubs were closed down which angered voters as the brewers were receiving unnecessary government funds. This act, The Brewers Bill was another attempt by the Conservatives to introduce reform,  which ended in their popularity decreasing in the 1906 election. These acts were important, not only because they weakened Conservative support but also because they gave the Liberal party new policies to increase popularity: they promised to reverse the Education and Licensing Acts, which made them more attractive to Non-Conformists. The reforms gave the Liberal party strength: whereas in 1900, they had been split over the issue of home rule and had suffered from faddism. The first major event that had an impact on the general election of 1906 was the Boer War. There are a number of reasons why the Boer War occurred, the first being Joseph Chamberlains appointment as colonial secretary whose job it was to strengthen the empire. South Africa was important in these plans as it had the most valuable land on the continent not only because of its trading location but also because of the recently discovered Witwatersrand goldfields growing wealth. Agreements in 1881 and 1884 gave the Boer states independence but they faced interference from imperialist Britain which escalated hostilities. These and other factors eventually led to war with the Boer states. Views were split on the subject but as the war went on the Conservatives were being increasingly blamed for their military inexperience. The war also allowed the Liberals to start a revival as it took views off the internal cracks in the party and gave it a united front as most Liberals disagreed with the war. The Boer war also created other issues for the Conservatives. There were 50,00 Chinese workers in South Africa (or also as it is known as ‘Chinese Slavery’) and despite the Conservative government having little to do with it the Liberals could portray them as exploiters of workers due to the long hours, poor pay and lack of rights they had. This harmed the Conservatives reputation with middle class voters because of the humanitarian issues (methods of barbarism) but more importantly badly damaged their reputation with working class voters because not only did it close off potential job opportunities in South Africa but also made many worried that they may implement the practice in Britain. Another major event that had an impact on the election was the retirement of Lord Salisbury who had been influe ntial in the revival of the Conservatives and the alliance with the Unionists. Salisburys successor, Balfour can be seen as another reason for the revival of the Liberal Party. As soon as Balfour was appointed the Unionist alliance began to break. Balfour is partly to blame for Chamberlains attempt to implement  the tariff reform in 1903. Although Balfour had little to do with it he failed to stop Chamberlain putting the reform forward which led to many people questioning his authority. This controversial policy split the unionist alliance so much so that many voters turned to the Liberals. The split was in three ways. ‘Whole Hoggers’ who supported the tariff reform fully. There were ‘Free fooders’ whom were mostly Liberal Unionists where they supported free trade and absolutely hated the idea. Then finally there were the ‘Balfourites’ who tried to create peace throughout the party. The reform stated that all non-British (and British Empire as well just pay lower taxes) colonies should have to pay tariffs on imports into Britain. But free trade was indented into British society and nearly all voters were against the idea as no one wanted to pay more for the same products. Another damaging misestimate by Balfour was the decision not to take any action on the Taff Vale incident. The railway workers on the Taff Vale railway went on strike in 1900. The management replaced them with National free labour association workers and then took the union to court for damages. The judge ruled in favour of the company which angered thousands of trade union members who wanted change but by 1905 the Conservatives had not taken any action whereas the Liberals and Labour were supporting change. Balfours successive miscalculations with this series of events led many to change their allegiances and angered many, none more than the working class who were becoming increasingly important. However it was not just Conservative weaknesses that caused the Liberals to win a victory in the 1906 general election, but also Liberals renewed strength. Henry Campbell-Bannerman, Herbert Asquith and William Gladstone are all acknowledged as great leaders and also with more dynamic MP’s, ( David Lloyd George, Herbert Samuel, Winston Churchill) while the Conservatives kept making mistakes the Liberals were gaining support, creating policies the public supported and forming alliances such as the Lib-Lab Pact. (The Liberal Party agreed to withdraw parliamentary candidates in some constituencies where the Labour was also standing in order to make sure the anti-Tory vote was not split.) And with the mess of the conservatives the Liberals promised to introduce social reforms. Overall, I think the statement is valid, as the Tories had their chance to show the public what they had to offer, but they failed and they wanted to have something new and  fresh. The Liberals took the Conservatives weaknesses to their advantage and won! With their fresh new MP’s it looked like the government, the future looked bright for the people in poverty.

Pre Marital Sex And School Dropouts Sociology Essay

Pre Marital Sex And School Dropouts Sociology Essay This is the base line study conducted among adolescent students to correlate between the knowledge and the thoughts of students about pre-marital sex and school dropouts.  The present study is a cross sectional base line study conducted using an online survey which consisted of questions relating to the topic to test the understanding of the Indian youth on premarital sexual activity. Around 130 students attempted this survey based on their views on premarital sex and their perception regarding the present scenario of the society. The study shows that around 79% of the students think that premarital sex is nothing but a sexual intercourse before marriage, and not an adolescent or youthful sex. Moreover, students disagreed on the fact that premarital sex is responsible for school dropouts in India. INTRODUCTION Sex being a universal term one would expect a great deal to be known about it. But this is not the case, partly because all societies regulate sexual activities. The family institution is where sexual activities or intercourse takes place between two adult of opposite sex. Pre-marital sex is not confined to young people alone; a good number of people who are not married are also vulnerable to pre-marital sex. This is evidence by the large number of unintended pregnancies many of which get terminated in back street clinics which leads to the high rate of sexually transmitted infections among the 15-24 years old and an increasing number of girls dropping out of school due to unwanted pregnancies. Is premarital sex really a good enough reason for girls to drop their schools? Let us find out with the help of some reports and surveys conducted across the world. In a recent report released by CSA (Centre for The study of Adolescents), the age of sexual debut is now at all-time low, in between 8 and 12 years. This increases the chances of unwanted pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases as well as the chances of dropping out of school. Also, the consequences of pre-marital sex are sexually transmitted diseases, (as well as HIV) are higher for females. If a young girl becomes pregnant, she places herself and her unborn child at further risk because a young girls body would not have developed to the point being able to handle child birth safely. Even if a young mother escapes severe heath consequences, she must still face serious responsibilities of parenthood. This is aside the fact that she drops out of school and except in rare cases she may never go back to school again. Modern society is becoming freer in many different ways so that premarital sex is becoming more ordinary. Pre-marital sex seems to be causing many social disturbances su ch as disorderly household and more corruption of public morals. The absence of social and economic opportunities for girls and women and the demands placed on them, coupled with the gender inequities known to exist within the educational system, may result in unsatisfactory school experiences, poor academic performance and resignation to or preference for early childhood. Although pregnancy is often thought to disrupts the education of adolescent girls, teenage reproductive behaviour may be endogenous to school completion in that many of the same factors lead to drop out and early child bearing. In conjunction with the trend towards an increase in the age as marriage, the age at sexual initiation among young women has either remained the same or risen. At the same time, a shift has occurred in many countries towards an increase in the proportion initiating sex before marriages at ages when adolescent could still be enrolled to school. However, the issue of premarital sex in India remains a poorly explored topic. Not enough is known about the levels, trends and regional patterns in sexual activity before marriage in India. A review of the literature on adolescent sexuality showed that anywhere up to 10% of unmarried girls and women and 20-30% of unmarried boys and men have been sexually active. Given the conservative attitude towards non-marital sexuality, even this vague figure for premarital sex is revealing. Further, there are indicators that the numbers are likely to be higher than those reported by women, especially in poor and rural areas. Considering the present Indian generation, this topic is now becoming more and more open in comparison to the preceding generations, which is highly motivating to do a survey on a topic presumed to be a taboo in the society. In the popular media, there is now a sense that sex before marriage is on the rise with the social and economic changes brought about by globalisation. The increasing exposure of youth to western culture is thought to have effected a change in moral attitudes towards sex before marriage. REVIEWS AND FINDINGS The data used for this study are collected with the help of an online survey. This analysis includes all women and men, unmarried or married. While there appears to be a strong relationship between education and household wealth and the levels of premarital sex among women, these relationships are less clear for men. The percentage of women who report premarital sexual intercourse decreases with an increase in their level of education as well as with an increase in the wealth quintile their household is in, albeit marginally. The majority of women cannot enjoy sex outside of the bonds of marriage. The development of a fulfilling sex life needs the security and peace of the marriage bond. Premarital sex usually takes place sneaking around in hidden places dealing with the fear of being caught, the fear of pregnancy and feelings of guilt. All these (worrisome) factors undermine pleasure in premarital sex, most especially for women. But there is no discernible relationship between prema rital sex and mens level of education or wealth. In India, research attention on youth sexual behaviour has increased considerably in recent years. Several small and large scale studies, including the recent National Family Health Survey and the National Behavioural Surveillance Survey have explored pre-marital sexual behaviour of young people. Evidence from these studies indicates that despite socio-cultural taboos, youth in India do engage in pre-marital sex and that for many young people, pre-marital sexual experiences are characterised by multiple partnerships, lack of contraception or condom use and for young women, by coercion as well. Studies that shed light on the correlates of pre-marital sexual experiences among young people are, however, few in India. Although studies on pre-marital sexual behaviour of young people have increased considerably in India in recent years, these studies differ substantively and methodologically. Just a couple of studies were nationally representative, a few were representative of districts in which they were conducted and almost all others were small-scale studies. Some focused on community-based samples of unmarried and married youth, while others focused on institution-based samples of special groups such as college students or young men seeking treatment for sexually transmitted infections. Hence, findings from most of these studies were not intended to be generalised to the country as a whole. Numerous scientific studies show that the children of single mothers suffer psychologically and are less successful socially and academically than children from intact families. Above all, children need both their father and their mother. It is wrong to risk having children who will never have their fathers l ove, protection and care. The following are the results of the online survey which included around 130 people. This online survey is taken by approx. 130 people of which 82% are male and remaining 18% are female. Out of these 130 people, 42% belong to the age group of greater than or equal to 20. Remaining 58% have their age less than 20 years. 71% of the Indian Population thinks that pre-marital sex is justified and correct, even morally. The increasing exposure of youth to western culture is thought to have effected a change in moral attitudes towards sex before marriage. In general, Indian men and women are not expected to have sex before marriage. But still, 22% of the people who attempted the survey said that if a boy and a girl are prior to marrying each other, their sexual activity is morally correct. Otherwise, it is wrong. In the popular media, there is now a sense that sex before marriage is on the rise with the social and economic changes brought about by globalisation. Culture also plays an important role when it comes to the decisions which are bold and would be unacceptable in the society. Especially in Indian culture, where ethics and values are followed to the core, such activities may create a thunderstorm in the society. 79% of the people think that Indian culture has a great influence on the perception regarding Pre-marital sex. Considering the above diagrams, it can be easily understood that pre-marital sex is a taboo in Indian society. As a result, there are several ramifications for the event. School Dropouts, being the most common and the most severe one, can be observed as a prime effect of pre-marital sex, in case of unwanted situations like pregnancies. When the youth was asked about the school dropouts, 74% disagreed for the fact that increase in school dropouts is not due to pre-marital sexual activities. Also, when asked about the future aspects of the event, 72% of the people said that they have no problem engaging in a pre-marital sexual activity. CONCLUSION At the national level, reported premarital sex is still fairly low among women (1.8%) and somewhat higher among men (12%). The data show that ever married women are more likely to report premarital sex compared to currently unmarried women. A comparison of the age at intercourse and the age at marriage for married women reveals that the majority of women who had premarital sex report the start of sexual activity to have taken place in the year before marriage suggesting that it is likely that takes place during the transition to marriage. Among unmarried women and men who report premarital sexual activity, the distributions vary in accordance with their level of education and household income. It is notable that gender equitable attitudes in men are associated with higher levels of premarital sexual activity, while the opposite is true for women. If the awareness of the consequences of risky sexual behaviour is combined with the better ability to determine safe and healthy outcomes a mong both women and men, then this is one avenue for public policy to ensure better sexual health in the population. Sexual activity for young people arrests their psychological, social and academic development. Studies show that when young people engage in premarital sex, their academic performance declines and their social relationships with family and friends deteriorate. This is because adolescents are too immature to deal with the explosive sex drive and it tends to dominate their life. Sex is a powerful force that can destroy if not used properly. Like atomic power, sex is the most powerful creative force given to man. When atomic power is used correctly it can create boundless energy; when it is used in the wrong way it destroys life. Sex is the same kind of powerful force. Sex is a gift from God to give us the greatest pleasure, to help in creating a deep companionship with ones spouse and for procreation of the next generation. But if you play with this powerful force outside the bounds of marriage, it destroys you and those close to you. As mentioned above, it may ruin the entire career of the person by dropping his/her academics. Our study makes several new and important contributions to understanding the correlates of age at initiation of pre-marital sex among both young women and men about which information is scant in India. Programmatically, findings underscore the need for sexual and reproductive health interventions to target not only young people but also their peers and the influential adults in their life, including parents. Methodologically, the study emphasises the need to continue the search for appropriate methodologies to measure sensitive behaviours among youth as well as the need for prospective or panel study designs that capture the ways in which the situation and experiences in adolescence influence their life courses at later ages.

Wednesday, October 2, 2019

Angels Essay -- essays research papers

ANGELS   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  God’s holy angels carry out a variety of tasks and deeds, as well as the angels of Satan. They carry out what the will of heaven is on earth when god Himself wants. Sometimes they appear as normal humans and sometimes with all the radiance of heaven shining upon them, and making known that a part of heaven is on earth. What I am going to try to explain is that I don’t think that angels have a role. I think that any angel does whatever heaven’s will wants it to do, when it wants it. In other words, angels do as they are told, not what they want. I’m going to review one by one what jobs or roles God has given to the angels. Roles of the Angels Messenger   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Most likely the angels’ main role that God gave to them was to be a messenger to those that were in need. Many times angels have appeared to someone just in the nick of time to deliver an urgent message from God. This is evident in the following stories: Abraham is just about to sacrifice his firstborn child before an angel comes and reveals to him why he had to do this. Many times in Acts angels appear to the Minor Prophets to give them important messages ranging from not being afraid for things to come or telling them they must seek out someone. Then there are the angels that are spoken of in Revelations. Sometimes the angels speak directly to John, and sometimes appear in visions of the end of times. The angel at the end of times is yet to come, and will proclaim in a loud voice to all the world the glory and majesty of God. There are many other examples of angel revealing a message to God’s people, both in the Old and New Testament. Many of them are very brief, (an angel appeared to John and told him not to enter Samaria), yet still important. We don’t know God’s reasoning for sending His angels, yet every message was in God’s plan and could not have been overlooked. Guardian   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although the Bible does not actually use the term â€Å"guardian† angels, it does speak of angels protecting people. God is our protector and cornerstone, and yet He includes in His Word that angels also protect us. Specific instances of this are, for example, two times in Psalms angels are said to encamp around those that fear Him, and angels will guard you in all your ways. They don’t specifically guard one single person in these chapters, ... ...hat stands up for everything that is evil. His role is to corrupt and rapture all of mankind and bring them all into eternal punishment and damnation. As for all his demonic followers, Rev 12:14 suggest he might have taken one third of the angelic population with him as it says the dragon that swept 1/3 of the stars away. His fight with Michael is described in Rev 12:7-12 where again Satan is the dragon and Michael the guardian hurls him down to earth from the sky. After Revelations mention this they have 4 other passages with Satan that all speak of his and all of his and their demise. It says they are thrown into the lake of burning sulpher and condemned to hell forever to be experience eternal pain and suffering.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the end, are angels assigned to roles? Can some only do what they where made to do? I would have to disagree and say they don’t have specific roles in heaven. All the unnamed angels, when they visited earth, usually either guarded or gave a message to someone in need. God sends every angel with or for a purpose and Gods purposes are important. Really, the angel’s only role in heaven and earth is to do what the Lord requires them to do.

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

The Legend of Narcissus :: Greek Mythology

In Greek mythology, â€Å"Narcissism" has its roots from the legend of Narcissus, a young man whom most deemed extremely handsome. A nymph named Echo developed an obsessive infatuation with Narcissus but he was unwilling to reciprocate such feelings to her or others. She finally gave up and isolated herself. Narcissus was then cursed to become socially isolated and reviled due to his complete self absorption by loving his own shadow from the pool (Wall & Loewenthal, 1998). Havelock Ellis (1898) first developed the concept of narcissism as a psychological construct referring to excessive masturbation by the people become their own sexual objects. Then this concept was adopted by Sigmund Freud (1914/1957) and other prominent psychoanalysts. Interestingly, the term â€Å"Narcissistic Personality Disorder† was first introduced by Heinz Kohut (1968), the founder of self psychology, and â€Å"Narcissistic Personality† by Otto Kernberg (1970) who is the major contributor of modern object relations theory. The DSM did not adopt the diagnosis of Narcissistic Personality Disorder until in the third revised edition published in 1980 (Siomopoulos, 1988). Thus, throughout the last century, the general term â€Å"narcissism† has been usually seen in the literature rather than Narcissistic Personality Disorder. From a recent study by Pincus et al. (2009), narcissism has been conceptualized as â€Å"one’s capacity to maintain a relatively positive self-image through a variety of self-, affect- and field-regulatory processes. It underlies individuals’ needs for validation and affirmation as well as the motivation to overtly and covertly seek out self-enhancement experiences from the social environment† (p.365). Normal and pathological narcissism. Researchers usually use the terms normal and pathological features of narcissism to describe adaptive and maladptive personality structure respectively, representing different psychological needs for self enhancement, validation, and regulatory mechanisms (e.g., Kernberg 1998, Kohut 1977, Morf 2006, Pincus 2005, Ronningstam 2009, Stone 1998). Some believe that normal and pathological narcissism are situated on a single continuum or dimension from healthy to disordered functioning (e.g., Cooper, 2005; Miller, Hoffman, Campbell & Pilkonis, 2008; Paulhus, 1998; Ronningstam, 2005b & Watson, 2005), while others contended that adaptive and pathological narcissism may be two distinct personality dimensions (e.g., Ansell 2006, Dickinson & Pincus, 2003; Pincus et al., 2009; Rathvon & Holmstrom, 1996; Wink, 1991). It could be found that the studies of social and personality psychology have more interest in the normal narcissism (e.g. Miller & Campbell, 20 08 ), whereas those researchers in clinical psychology focused more on the studies of pathological narcissism (e.

James Joyce Essay

In James Joyce’s Ulysses readers encounter Stephen Dedalus’s search for identity – a search which will be present through the entire narrative. At the heart of Ulysses is Stephen’s relationship with his mother. Stephen describes both the real mother who reared him and is now dead and an imagined mother serving as a symbol who is a product of Stephen’s consciousness having fear and anxiety (Hill 329). Mother love is idealized by Stephen in Ulysses: â€Å"Amor matris,† says Stephen, â€Å"subjective and objective genitive, may be the only true thing in life† (207). The concept of â€Å"amor matris,† or mother love, shows the magic power of the mother’s fertility. Motherhood is the only fact of life about which Stephen is confident. A mother’s love, the dyadic relationship in which the mother and child are inseparable, however, Stephen experiences only nostalgically. He attempts to articulate it, when it is over. Thus Stephen’s fantasy of a selfless love is marked by a sense of loss. Main Body Although Stephen has buried his mother, she subsequently appears as a ghost. With his own mother dead, it is normal for Stephen to direct his attention sooner or later to Molly Bloom, the Magna Mater presiding over Ulysses. But Molly is something more than a mere person which serves in place of real mother. She symbolizes the sinful flesh, the claims of nature, and human love. Stephen’s attraction toward her is symptomatic of his disillusionment with all forms of patriarchal pressure (political authority and the Old Testament). She is like a moral goal towards which he is drawn as a result of his opposition to the church. As Murray explains: â€Å"If a man, who believes somehow in the reality and ultimate worth of some religion of gentleness and unselfishness, looks through the waste of nature to find support for his faith, it is probably in the phenomena of motherhood that he will find it first and most strikingly†(Goldberg 36). For Stephen the pain is very strong by the fact that his mother is dead. She has left him alone. She has taken with her his assurance of being related to the world and to himself. She has left the terrible anxiety about his loss. Moreover, she became the â€Å"ghostwoman† who appears to Stephen in the dream of death that lives in his memory throughout the day, together with memories and reflections about the mother in life. Added to his uneasiness about the psychic separation that is necessary for his growth into manhood is the hopeless realization that there is no physical woman to take the mother’s place: â€Å"She, she, she,† he says repeatedly in â€Å"Proteus,† â€Å"What she? † (426). As Stephen comes intermittently into focus through the text, so does as much again in strength the problem of the loss of his mother and his necessity for a woman to take her place. The Stephen’s persistent idea with his dead mother is lightened at times by tenderness, but gradually is darkened by feeling of distress, anger, and offence over the relationship. Stephen’s memories of his mother start in â€Å"Telemachus† with the recall of his periodic dream of her in her â€Å"loose brown graveclothes† (103-4), which draws from him his initial plea for release – â€Å"let me live. † Stephen’s reflection to the memories of his mother in life and in death vibrates at the beginning between the desire for separation and the desire for continuous dependence, and his plea for release in â€Å"Telemachus† – â€Å"No, mother! Let me be and let me live† (279). In order to become capable of giving immortality to his life, in art, Stephen must first become a man. This requires a rebirth, not through the spirit, as it is in religion, but like the birth from the mother, occurring through the flesh of the loved woman: â€Å"in woman’s womb. † Stephen considers this rebirth seriously. At the end, Stephen is reborn in the text. This rebirth is textually completed at the middle of â€Å"Ithaca,† when Bloom opens the garden gate for Stephen, and a birth image includes meanings of the pun on â€Å"in woman’s womb. † Bloom inserts a â€Å"male key† into â€Å"an unstable female lock,† to reveal â€Å"an aperture for free egress and free ingress† (215-19). This is the â€Å"rebirth into a new dimension† and is also Stephen’s participation in the incarnation of the artist (Goldberg 96). Stephen’s image in â€Å"Telemachus† of his mother’s â€Å"glazing eyes, staring out of death, to shake and bend my soul. . . . to strike me down† (273-76), brings from him the most dramatic raising of the terrible mother. â€Å"Ghoul! Chewer of corpses! † (278) is a manifestation of rejection which is definitely confirmed in ‘Circe† at the appearance of The Mother. Stephen’s mother shelters and nurtures her son with her body, her blood, her â€Å"wheysour milk,† who saves him from â€Å"being trampled underfoot† by the outside world (141-47). This motif of interchange between the loving and horrible aspects of the mother, presented in the first two episodes of Ulysses, is repeated in moments of memory any time Stephen’s mother becomes present in the text, until in â€Å"Oxen of the Sun,† the birth chapter, Stephen describes his release from the mother’s threat through his proposed appropriation, as an artist, of her sophisticated power: â€Å"In woman’s womb word is made flesh, but in the spirit of the maker all flesh that passes becomes the word that shall not pass away. This is the postcreation† (292-94). Haunted through the whole of the day by the memories of his mother in death and in life, Stephen has moved from his loneliness in the morning, coupled with his inner plea to his mother to free him – â€Å"Let me be and let me live† – to this statement of purpose at the maternity hospital. And this statement leads to his claim to a creative power that is greater than that of the mother (Hill 329). In â€Å"Circe,† then, The Mother meets with Stephen directly as the terrible mother, in her â€Å"leper grey,† with her â€Å"bluecircled hollow eyesockets† in her â€Å"noseless† face, â€Å"green with gravemould† (156-60). And here in the brothel, Stephen releases from the mother. This release is necessary for Stephen to become the divine creator of his proclamation. The release is accomplished in the unconscious, which is the ruling principle of â€Å"Circe. † The conversation between mother and son in a fundamental manner repeats Stephen’s encounters with her memory in the daytime, more or less changed, but still with the same odd balance between the loving and the horrible that is associated with the conscious memories. For although The Mother brings with her a message of death – â€Å"All must go through it, Stephen†¦. You too† (182-83) – she contains powerful features of the loving mother. As Stephen frightfully denies responsibility for her death – â€Å"Cancer did it, not I† (U 15:4187) – The Mother claims, â€Å"You sang that song to me. Love’s bitter mystery† ( U 15:4189-90). This line from Yeats’s ‘Who Goes with Fergus? † can be found in â€Å"Telemachus,† as Mulligan leaves the parapet, humming: And no more turn aside and brood Upon love’s bitter mystery For Fergus rules the brazen cars. (239-41). The paradox found in â€Å"love’s bitter mystery† colours The Mother’s answer to Stephen’s plea, â€Å"Tell me the word, mother, if you know now. The word known to all men† (U 15:4192-93). Twice before Stephen has asked the same question in his thoughts about â€Å"the word known to all men†: in Proteus (435) and in â€Å"Scylla and Charybdis† (429-30). In all the episodes in which the question is asked, in only one is a clear answer given. The answer, actually, had never been in the published text of Ulysses until Hans Walter Gabler’s 1984 Critical and Synoptic Edition interpreted five lines in â€Å"Scylla and Charybdis† (U 9:427-31) – forty-three words, eleven of them in Latin (Deming 129). This text, restored to one of the most scrutinized carefully segments in Ulysses, the source of most liked quotations about art and life, about fathers and sons, about mothers and sons, described love as the â€Å"word known to all men† (Deming 129). Richard Ellmann, in his 1984 presentation address to the Ninth International James Joyce Symposium in Frankfurt, presented the audience with his own identification of the word known to all men as love, claiming that the word was â€Å"perhaps† death (Deming 129). Kenner’s position that it might be death is much more than clear in his 1956 Dublin’s Joyce, where he describes Dublin as ‘the Kingdom of the Dead† and characterizes Molly’s final â€Å"yes† as â€Å"the ‘Yes’ of authority: authority over this animal kingdom of the dead. † The mother thus becomes the image of the â€Å"bitter mystery. † The complete answer to the question Stephen asks about the â€Å"word known to all men† is not ‘love† or â€Å"death† but â€Å"love† and â€Å"death† – for whatever is born of the flesh through love will die at the end (Goldberg 156). In â€Å"Circe,† The Mother answers to Stephen’s plea with a conflicting blending of the loving and the terrible mother. The Mother in â€Å"Circe† is not gentle. True, she gives evidences of her love for her sun – amor matris – in terms that echo Stephen’s own thoughts that his mother â€Å"had saved him from being; trampled underfoot† (146): â€Å"Who saved you†¦? Who had pity for you? † (196). But when she asks for Stephen’s penitence, she becomes for him ‘The ghoul! Hyena! † (198-200). And as the Mother continues to present assurances of her love and concern – â€Å"I pray for you†¦ Get Dilly to make you that boiled rice†¦. Years and years I loved you† (202-3) – her simultaneous threat of â€Å"the fire of hell† brings from Stephen the words of appeal, â€Å"The corpsechewer! Raw head and bloody bones† (212-14), together with the echo in â€Å"Circe† of his rejection in ‘Telemachus†: â€Å"Ghoul! Chewer of corpses! (278). Up to this point in the meeting with The Mother, although mother and son communicate, they do not touch each other. But with Stephen’s frantic denial of The Mother’s final demand for remorse, a crab unexpectedly appears, and mother and son touch through the crab. This â€Å"green crab with malignant red eyes,† although evidently autonomous, is nevertheless mysteriously, ambiguously connected with The Mother, who â€Å"raises her blackened withered right arm slowly towards Stephen’s breast with outstretched finger,† uttering, â€Å"Beware God’s hand! † as the crab â€Å"sticks deep its grinning claws in Stephen’s heart† (217-21). This crab is real, and at the same time â€Å"Cancer did it, not I† (187) – has all features of a primary creature from the dark depths of Stephen’s unconscious. Stephen’s crab is not visible to others, and his inner creature is not certainly visible even to him. But the terrible ghost with whom both crab and dragon are connected remains – for the reader and for Stephen himself – Stephen’s mother (Hill 329). Even Stephen’s references to Mother Ireland, Cathleen ni Houlihan, are tinged with gender bias. Stephen betrayed his mother as well as Mother Ireland. In the early morning at the Martello tower, he connects the old milk woman with the Shan van Vocht, â€Å"silk of the kine and poor old woman† (403), but doubtfully recognizes that the â€Å"wandering crone’ serves the â€Å"conqueror and her gay betrayer [Mulligan]† (403-5). Unlike the patriots who glorify Mother Ireland, Stephen thinks of â€Å"Gaptoothed Kathleen, her four beautiful green fields, the stranger in her house† (184). Mulligan and Stephen at the Martello connect woman with nature: the â€Å"great sweet mother† (78) of the sea. â€Å"Our mighty mother† (85) is, as in case with the Romantic poets, nature (Rickard 215). Conclusion In Ulysses, there is Stephen’s misogyny. He realizes the significance of â€Å"woman’s place† in a man’s life and in his sense of himself. Ulysses is, without doubt, typically a man’s book. It begins and ends with the mother figures who complete the male artist’s self. The mother, who is the â€Å"first incarnation of the anima archetype† (330), enters Ulysses with young Stephen and stays with him throughout most of Bloomsday. Thus, in Ulysses, though there are not many women, Joyce has presented to readers in symbolic terms the important interdependence and complementarity of the man and the mother. Works Cited Deming, Robert H. James Joyce: The Critical Heritage. Vol. : 2. Routledge: London, 1997. Goldberg, S. L. The Classical Temper: A Study of James Joyce’s Ulysses. Chatto & Windus: London, 1961. Hill, Marylu. â€Å"Amor Matris: Mother and Self in the Telemachiad Episode of Ulysses†. Twentieth Century Literature. Vol. 39, no. 3, 1993. Joyce, James. Ulysses. New York: Vintage, 1986. Rickard, John S. Joyce’s Book of Memory: The Mnemotechnics of Ulysses. Duke University Press: Durham, NC, 1999.