Qingming Festival Essay Example

Qingming Festival Essay Qingming Festival, also known as Pure Brightness Festival, which falls on either April 4th or 5th of the solar calendar (one of the Chinese Twenty-four Solar Terms). From that day temperatures begin to rise and rainfall increases, indicating that it is crucial time for plowing and sowing in the spring. Qingming Festival therefore has a close relationship with agriculture. However, it is not only a seasonal symbol; it is also a festival of paying respect of the dead, a spring outing, and other activities. Because it reinforces the ethic of filial piety, Qingming is a major Chinese festival. Qingming Festival is a time of many different activities, among which the main ones are tomb sweeping, taking a spring outing, and flying kites. Some other lost customs like wearing willow branches on the head and riding on swings have added infinite joy in past days. The festival is a combination of sadness and happiness. Tomb sweeping is regarded as the most important custom in the Qingming Festival from which the name of Tomb-sweeping day is got. Cleaning the tomb and paying respect to the dead person with offerings are the two important parts of remembering the past relatives. Weeds around the tomb are cleared away and fresh soil is added to show care of the dead. The dead person’s favorite food and wine are taken to sacrifice to them, along with paper resembling money. This is all burned in the hoped that the deceased are not lacking food and money. Kowtow before the tablets set up for the dead are made. Today, with cremation taking over from burying, the custom has been extremely simplified in cities. We will write a custom essay sample on Qingming Festival specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Qingming Festival specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Qingming Festival specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Only flowers are presented to the dead relatives and revolutionary martyrs. No matter how respect is shown, good prayers for the deceased are expressed. Not only it is a day for commemorating the dead, it is also a festival for people to enjoy themselves. During March, everything in nature takes on a new look, as trees turn green, flowers blossom, and the sun shines brightly. Nature unfolds her beauty in shapes, colors sounds, dynamic pictures, stills, scents, obscure mists and clouds. It is a fine time to go out and to appreciate the beautiful scenes of nature during the festival. This custom can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and followed by each dynasty later till today. So visitors can be seen everywhere during the month of the festival. Spring outings not only add joy to life but also promote a healthy body and mind. Flying kites is an activity favored by many people during the Qingming Festival. Kites are not only flown during the day time but also in the evening. Little lanterns are tied to the kite or to the string that holds the kite. And when the kite is flying in the sky, the lanterns look like twinkling stars that add unique scenery to the sky during the night. What makes flying kites during this festival special is that people cut the string while the kite is in the sky to let it fly free. It is said this brings good luck and that diseases can be eliminated by doing this. All in all, the Qingming Festival is an occasion of unique characteristics, integrating sorrowful tears to the dead with the continuous laughter from the spring outing.

Corporate Governance and Organizational Structure

Corporate Governance and Organizational Structure The process of choosing a new member of the board of directors in an organization whenever an incumbent one is leaving a particular office is a tricky task that requires great care and insight. It is important for leadership to change from one person to another after the agreed term of service expires or due to some other circumstances that crop up, which makes it necessary to have a person chosen to lead in particular docket.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Corporate Governance and Organizational Structure specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More For instance, a certain member of the board might pass on, and therefore creating a vacancy that ought to be filled. Another instance that can emerge to make it necessary to select another member due to a vacancy in the board is when a member leaves the office due to other personal reasons. In all these cases, it becomes compulsory to select a new member to fill in the available op portunity. There is a wide range of potential candidates who can be selected to fill in the vacant space. This person can either be from within the organization or from outside the company. At the same time this person can be one of the board members, a top leader in the company, an outsider who has some affiliation with the organization, but does not have any involvement in the company, and lastly, there can be an outsider who got no connection with the company. Members who have affiliations with the organization are likely to be slow in generating new and innovative measures of development for the corporation. Probable developments must have taken place in their presence and therefore their means to creativity are limited by the presence in that corporation if compared with outsiders. Having been associated and having worked in the corporation lets one likely think that growth and development policies have probably been exhausted, even when that is not the case. The ability for an insider to pursue innovative processes for the corporation is therefore slow or limited to some extent. Another aspect of an insider that may not be favorable for the corporation is the emulation of previous management by the insider once appointed, even when that management was not effective or efficient in its leadership. The newly appointed member may continue to uphold the leadership qualities that were used before and this may result to ineffective operations, even when such changes of management is meant to achieve management change for the organization. Failure to move the corporation forward proves the entire process ineffective because such changes should be tailored towards the forward movement of the corporation (Gup 180).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More New challenges are the mother of innovations, and this is not different in corporation management. H aving an outsider in the management of a corporation brings in new ideas that were not present before. Generation of new management systems is also likely to take place. This is because the outsider has no interactions with the corporation, and the basic fundamental role of managing a corporation is to oversee its success in its particular line of production. What this means is that an outsider will give the corporation a chance to grow at a faster rate than it would have been the case if an insider. This is due to the diverse creativity and innovative procedures that the outsider might have at hand, given that he or she is not an affiliate of the corporation (Hirschey, John, and Makhija 140). Likewise, operations of any corporation are essential to the success of that corporation. The operation potential of corporation determines the level of revenues that the corporation is likely to generate. Consequently, the revenues that the corporation generates determine the profitability of the firm. The long term plans of the corporation are solely based on the operations ability of the corporation in the long run. These plans are therefore key factors to consider in the line of management, so that the effectiveness of the management is as well brought into focus. An outside member of the management panel can pursue such policies with broad and diverse reasoning that an insider may be limited to generate (Gup 200). In essence, the management panel should be in a position to understand that the corporation is there to make better achievements. Therefore, the management should as well welcome an insider or an outsider in the management board. The issue in managing corporations is not who does what and where he or she is from, but it is all about making the corporation better in its overall welfare. Conflicts of interest are therefore not expected, and it is the responsibility of the entire management team to work together in accordance to the codes of ethics that gover n the corporation (Hirschey, John, Makhija 150). Gup, Benton. Corporate Governance in Banking: A Global Perspective. California: Edward Elgar Publishing, 2007. Print.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Corporate Governance and Organizational Structure specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Hirschey, Mark, John Kose, and Makhija Anil. Corporate Governance and Finance Volume 8 of Advances in Financial Economics. Elsevier Book Series on Science Direct, Chicago: Emerald Group Publishing, 2003. Print.

The 5 Smallest States in the U.S.

The 5 Smallest States in the U.S. The United States is made up of 50 individual states that vary greatly in size. When talking about land area, Rhode Island ranks as the smallest. Yet, when we discuss population, Wyoming- the 10th largest state by area- comes in with the smallest population. The 5 Smallest States by Land Area If youre familiar with U.S. geography, you might be able to guess which are the smallest states in the country. Notice that four of the five smallest states are along the eastern coast where the states seem to be crammed into a very small area.   1) Rhode Island- 1,034 square miles (2,678 square kilometers) Rhode Island is only 48 miles in length and 37 miles wide  (77  x 59 kilometers).Rhode Island has over 384 miles (618 kilometers) of coastline.The highest point is Jerimoth Hill in Foster at 812 feet (247.5 meters). 2) Delaware- 1,949  square miles (5,047  square kilometers) Delaware is 96 miles (154 kilometers) in length. At its thinnest point, it is only 9 miles (14 kilometers) wide.Delaware has 117 miles of coastline.The highest point is Ebright Azimuth at 447.85 feet (136.5 meters). 3) Connecticut- 4,842 square miles (12,542 square kilometers) Connecticut is only 110 miles long and 70 miles wide  (177  x 112 kilometers).Connecticut has 618 miles (994.5  kilometers)  of shoreline.The highest point is the southern slope of  Mt. Frissell at 2,380 feet (725 meters). 4) Hawaii- 6,423  square miles (16,635 square kilometers) Hawaii is a chain of 132 islands, eight of which are considered principal islands. These include Hawaii (4028 square  miles), Maui (727 square  miles), Oahu (597 square  miles), Kauai (562 square miles), Molokai (260 square  miles), Lanai (140 square miles), Niihau (69 square  miles), and Kahoolawe (45 square  miles).Hawaii has 750 miles of coastline.The highest point is Mauna Kea at  13,796 feet (4,205 meters). 5) New Jersey- 7,354 square miles (19,047 square kilometers) New Jersey  is only 170  miles long and 70 miles wide (273 x 112 kilometers).New Jersey has 1,792 miles (2884  kilometers)  of shoreline.The highest point is High Point at 1,803 feet (549.5 meters). The 5 Smallest States by Population When we turn to look at the population, we get an entirely different perspective of  the country. With the exception of Vermont, the states with the lowest population are among the largest by land area and theyre all in the western half of the country. A low population with a large amount of land means a very low population density (or people per square mile). 1) Wyoming- 579,315 people Ranks as the 10th largest in land area -  97,093 square miles (251,470 square kilometers)Population density: 5.8 people per square mile 2) Vermont- 623,657  people Ranks as the  45th  largest in land area -  9,217  square miles (23,872 square kilometers)Population density: 67.9 people per square mile 3) North Dakota- 755,393   Ranks as the  19th  largest in land area- 69,000  square miles (178,709 square kilometers)Population density: 9.7 people per square mile 4) Alaska- 739,795   Ranks as the largest state in  land area- 570,641  square miles (1,477,953 square kilometers)Population density: 1.2  people per square mile 5) South Dakota- 869,666 Ranks as the  17th  largest in  land area- 75,811 square miles (196,349 square kilometersPopulation density: 10.7  people per square mile (Population counts according to the July 2017 census estimates.) Source US Census Bureau. â€Å"Census.gov.†Ã‚  Census Bureau QuickFacts,

The Organizational Behavior Principles Presentation Essay

The Organizational Behavior Principles Presentation - Essay Example The importance of this factor stems out of its determining role in the employees' job satisfaction, level of stress and interest. There are three most commonly used approaches to integration of job design: efficiency perspective, motivation perspective, and quality perspective. The efficiency perspective developed on the base of the scientific management and its primary goal is to economize on the costs of production activities. We can think about one of the aspects of the efficiency perspective, namely process engineering, as a potential tool to increase efficiency of the sales force performance. However, the efficiency perspective does not really have the positive impact on the workers' motivation and effort. Generally speaking, process engineering assesses the sequence of tasks required to produce a particular product or service and analyzes the way those tasks fit together into an integrated job. It also examines tasks to see which should be performed by people and which can possibly be automated without compromising on the performance. The motivational perspective concentrates on fitting the characteristics of jobs to the needs and interests of the people who performs them and, therefore, provides the opportunity for satisfaction at work. Although, its commonly used tools, which include vertical, horizontal, comprehensive, and sociotechnical job enrichment, are applicable to a greater extend to the manufacturing organizations, the motivational perspective may provide us with useful insights as well. We may consider allocating to the new product line sales team those sales managers who have had previous experience with new products' launches and are excited about participating in such a challenge. The quality perspective incorporates both elements of motivational and efficiency perspectives and emerged later when the total quality management began gaining popularity. Closely interconnected with the motivational theory and job design is the goal setting process. As the goal commitment and performance are positively related, the task of proper goal setting gains importance. Every company wants to rely on its workers doing "the best they can". Although such a goal is intended to guide job performance in everyday situation, research in the organizational behavior field has consistently demonstrated that instructions shaped in this way can hinder the working performance. In contrast, Wagner and Hollenbeck (2005) note that more than 100 studies support the assertion that performance is enhanced by goals that are both specific and difficult (120). Two additional elements that help in motivating the employees are feedback, so the progress can be monitored, and incentives, so the goal accomplishment takes on meaning. Therefore, the goals of the new sales team should be both specific, meaning quantified and personalized, and challenging. Moreover, following the steady evolutionary growth should be rewarded. Specific and difficult goals are especially effective when incorporated into a continuous improvement cycle in which future goals consist of reasonable increments on the fulfilled goals of the past. The aggressive but achievable goals encourage people to develop effective task strategies and sharpen their mental focus on the task. However, their major advantage is that they direct attention to specific desired results, clarifying perceptions of

Carbon sequestraion and climate change lab Assignment

Carbon sequestraion and climate change lab - Assignment Example Release of carbon dioxide into the water lowers water pH. Elodea photosynthesizes only when it is exposed to light but respiration is constant because the plant will always require energy. The effect of respiration, however, does not overly influence the pH since aquatic plants have a low energy requirement (Lal). 3. Amount of light penetrating the water is a limiting factor to terrestrial carbon sequestration by aquatic plants. For the aquatic plants to be able to sequester the carbon, light is needed to facilitate the process of photosynthesis. Another limiting factor is the amount of aquatic plants in the water. Aquatic plants sequester carbon when they are alive and when they die, the organic matter that is rich in carbon remains in the dead matter (Lal). As aquatic plant coverage increases, therefore, so does the terrestrial sequestration that accompanies it. The population of aquatic life feeding on the aquatic plants also determines the amount of carbon that aquatic plants can sequester. In the aquatic ecosystem, the aquatic plants are at the base of the food chain. The size of the subsequent food level will determine the population of the plants that will remain available to sequester carbon. 1. Accuracy and precision of measurements in the experiment is influenced by the process of estimation. An estimate is subjective in nature, and is prone to errors because it will depend on the person carrying out the estimate. Individual differences such as height and eyesight will affect the estimates that are made. The same tree will, therefore, have different height estimates for different individuals. Estimating wood volume of branches is also introduces errors to the experiment because branches are not perfect cylinders. The diameter of a tree branch reduces as you move from the stem to the branches; the calculations do not account for this

LA Ministers to Promote Digital-to-Analog TV Conversion Essay Example for Free

LA Ministers to Promote Digital-to-Analog TV Conversion Essay Olivarez-Giles, Nathan. â€Å"L. A. Ministers Asked to Spread the Word about Digital TV. † Los Angeles Times. 10 Feb 2009. 10 Feb 2009. http://www. latimes. com/business/la-fi-digitaltv10-2009feb10,0,7978127. story. Summary On June 12, all television viewers of Los Angeles – the largest group of television viewers in the country – must have digital-to-anolog converters to be able to watch TV, unless they are customers of satellite or cable television. The Federal Communications Commissioner has asked church ministers of Los Angeles to convey this information to church members, adding that there is no difference between converter boxes sold for $40 and the expensive ones for . Response I found Nathan Olivarez-Giles’ article â€Å"L. A. Ministers Asked to Spread the Word about Digital TV† enjoyable to read because it is humorous. The author refers to the Federal Communication Commission asking â€Å"for divine assistance† with digital-to-analog television conversion. But, the fact that the Commission has chosen churches as its medium of communication with the public is based on practical reason. Churches are responsible for leading groups of people. Then again, if churches are expected by federal regulators to convey this kind of information to the public, they may be asked in future to act as television news channels to boot. All kinds of news may be conveyed through the church. In that case, there would be no difference left between the church and local media. It is for this reason that the author has written a humorous article about the news. He mentions spreading â€Å"the word† with the awareness that churches were initially established to spread the word of God. Because it is illogical for federal regulators to expect the church to spread all kinds of information to its members, in order for this news not to sound as funny as it does – it would be best for federal regulators to spread the word about converter boxes through local media, that is, newspapers, television channels and radio. Churches have their own responsibilities that should not be made a mockery of. Therefore, I completely disagree with the Commissioner’s request.

The Protestant Reformation Essay examples -- Martin Luther, venality,

During the Late Middle Ages, Christian followers and clergy were becoming increasingly concerned about the corruption of the church. Some had even declared that the dogma was false, however, the church had dealt with similar challenges before. In the 1500’s a new series of attacks on the church’s authority had started to destroy Christianity creating both political and cultural consequences. At the center of the changes happening in Germany was Martin Luther who lived between 1483 and 1546. His life began simply enough. His father was a merchant and his grandfather was a peasant. Luther originally went to university to become a lawyer, when he had, â€Å"the calling† to become a not-so-humble Augustinian monk in 1505. He spent his life studying theology, becoming a cherished professor at the University of Wà ¼rttemberg in Germany. He was concerned to the point of obsession about sin and his search for salvation, and with help from his studies and desire for the truth; he became one of the biggest critics of the Catholic Church. Luther had many issues with the church, but his loathing for venality, the selling of things the church deems as taboo or illegal, and especially that of indulgences was what broke the camel’s back. These indulgences, which the church issued so, someone might be forgiven of their sins, was a considerable source of profits by as early as the 1400’s. Luther was vehemently against the trading of relics associated with Saint. He felt it encouraged superstition and pagan thoughts of magic, bringing them further from the true faith of the Christian beliefs. Luther’s most important criticisms had to do with the Catholic Theology. His argument was this: The Church had gotten away from the fundamentals of the... ...lvinists, which was the catalyst to the Hundred Years War. The Catholic church was losing ground physically and in the hearts of the people. While there were still a great many who remained loyal to Catholicism, there were still people like Calvin, King Henry VIII and Luther who felt the need to call the Catholics out on the problems within their faith, and how it was affecting everyone else. The reforms that had begun through the Lutheran folks, pushed its way through Europe which caused the Catholic church to become nervous. The Catholics fought back vigerously, but to no avail. The Lutherans, Calvins, Puratins and the countless other denominations formed from this big mess that has helped shape the modern world. Works Cited Hickey, M. "The Protestant Reformation." Western Civilization to 1650. Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg. 4 Dec. 2013. Lecture.

Historical Changes of Affirmative Actions

Affirmative action was established to practice equal employment opportunity. Moreover, in general, it is a catchall phrase that refers to laws, customs, and social policies. It intends to ease the discrimination between majorities and minorities by giving more opportunities for diverse demographic groups in various social organizations. Also, it refers to both voluntary and mandatory efforts practiced by federal, state, local governments, private employers, and schools to overcome discrimination and to urge equal opportunity into the educational system and working environments (Stephanopoulos and Edley 1995). On the other hand, it is criticized and discussed since it was established due to its has very broad influences in America society. It is not simply a legal issue, but also an issue that affects every American†s way of life. However, it†s just like other laws and regulations, none of them can please all kinds of people. I am a supporter of the affirmative action. Some may say that this is because I am a student, and I need affirmative action to protect my opportunity of finding jobs in the future; unfortunately, they have the wrong thought. I am Taiwanese, and I will find my job in Taiwan where there is no regulation like affirmative action. Therefore, I am standing at a very objective position to discuss this topic with you. Of course, you can always keep you opinions in minds, but please open your minds to look at what I am going to tell you. I. The historical changes of affirmative action Affirmative action was first seen at 1961. President John F. Kennedy referred to his executive order that asked all federal contractors treat the applicants and their employees â€Å"without regard to their race, creed, color or national origin† (Pasour 1989). In 1964, affirmative action expanded its scope to prohibit employment discrimination by large employers, having over 15 employees, whether they have government contracts or not. In addition, from 1965 to 1967, affirmative action was expanded to require all government contractors and subcontractors to take it to expand job opportunities for women and minorities. Then, from 1970 to 1973, legislators evaluated and compared the affirmative action this program and status quo and made this program have more flexible goals and timetables for every organization to achieve it. II. I-200 & Proposition 209 V. S. Affirmative Action When I heard that Washington and California have passed Initiative 200 (I-200) and Proposition 209, which are regulations that against affirmative action, I think the residents of these two states may not clearly realize what the affirmative action really is. These regulations were passed because the supporters believe affirmative action has gone too far to protect minorities and women. Furthermore, the affirmative action causes reverse discriminations, preferential treatments, and privileges at not only work places but also schools. Proponents of I-200 and California†s proposition 209 also argue that affirmative action has led American colleges and universities to use racial and ethnic as criteria to select a significant fraction of their entering classes. They also argue that because of affirmative action, companies may hire less qualified minorities or women instead of best-qualified white males. I cannot agree! If those are true, why are most of the top level managers white males? Besides, why are women getting lesser pay than men have when taking charge of the same duties? According to the report of the Federal Glass Ceiling Commission in March 1995, â€Å"a large proportion of minorities and women are locked into low-wage, low-prestige, and dead-end jobs† (Murrell and Jones). The Glass Ceiling Commission reported that â€Å"97 percent of senior managers at the Fortune 1,000 corporations were white males†(Morin and Warden A01). Also, in 1998, women were earning 75% of men†s salaries base on the same kind of job, said by Jim Hose, a Human Resource Professor of Eastern Washington University. The general pattern of male-female relations continues in modern societies. An example like Home Depot Inc. , â€Å"it was suited by EEOC in 1997 because it hired women into low-level jobs, such as cashier, with little chance for advancement into sales or management positions† (Lerner D3). The evidence shows that affirmative action is still needed due to society†s unequal status. Most importantly, opponents argue that affirmative action causes reverse discrimination, and that is not true. A statistic shows that â€Å"fewer than 100 out of 3000 discrimination cases filed actually involved reverse discrimination and only six out of 100 cases were true† (Wilson 1995). When the U. S. overnment stars to practice affirmative action, it creates broader opportunities for all populations instead of only for white men. At this point, white males may have some impact on them, but the affirmative action is still needed when you consider society as a whole. Another issue has been brought out by advocators of I-200 and Proposition 209, that affirmative action leads schools to select candidates unfairly. However, universities do not just look for racial and ethnic diversity when composing a class. Universities may reject some white students, but the reasons are absolutely not simply about racial and ethnic issues. According to the date, which is based on 1996 applications for ten public Virginia universities, â€Å"show those universities selected applicants would consider about race, sex, SAT scores, class rank, and high school grade point averages† (Mcqueen A13). Affirmative action is the regulation that ensures everyone in America has fair chances in every organization. Why did legislators established affirmative action? Is it because of historical discrimination of white people against African Americans? This notion gives those opponents a very big chance to criticize affirmative action. They argue that discrimination between blacks and whites has become history; therefore, we should not have affirmative action to deepen prejudice or recall everybody†s attention to racialism. Has our society become equal without discrimination? I don†t believe that someone is so naive to think so. Perhaps those critics just don†t want to face the truth of the status quo. There was an example on ABC news, which filmed two men that have the same education, age, appearance, and other qualities, However, one is African American and another is white. While the white got full service in shoes store, got a lower price and better financing plan for buying a car, the African American got opposite treatments. Thus, when you think that affirmative action is enough, please consider what the real world is. The truth is that there is pervasive racism in all areas of U. S. society. IV. Four-fifth rule/Quota and Affirmative action The most common argument about the affirmative action is that many people believe that affirmative action leads organizations to not hire the best-qualified people due to some quota restrictions, such as the four-fifth rule. The four-fifth rule means â€Å"adverse impact exists if the selection ration for the discriminated-against group is less than four-fifths (or 80 percent) of the selection ration for the majority group† (Ledvinka and Scarpello 143). These opponents of affirmative action argue that some affirmative action practices have involved the use of preferential treatment and privilege to achieve workforce diversity that destroyed the purity of assessing candidates. At this point, I am not going to say that there is no company that likes what they have described, but the problems occurred due to misunderstanding of those regulations. What we say about the Four-fifth rule, or simply say quota restriction, is a goal set by government for every organization to follow. So far, there is no company which hires employees base on BFOQ (Bona fide occupational qualification), that has been charged because of not reaching the goal of the Four-fifth rule. â€Å"True affirmative action does not enshrine preferences or mandate quotas. Nor has any effective affirmative-action program ever been structured to allow unqualified candidates to take jobs over the qualified† (Redwood 136). Everyone can have goal. By setting a good goal for yourself, even you can†t reach it, you are still going toward right direction. The affirmative action and Four-fifth rule as like. V. How do you identify the term â€Å"Best-qualified†? Can you give the â€Å"best-qualified† a definition? No, I can†t. Actually, by using â€Å"best-qualified,† this phrase is usually very subjective. Different employers have different considerations under their â€Å"best-qualified† catalogs. Tom may be the best-qualified candidate for company A, but may not be eligible for company B. Also, â€Å"Employers have traditionally hired people not only on test scores, but on personal appearance, family and personal connections, school tiles and on race and gender preferences, demonstrating that talent or desirability can be defined in many ways† (Kivel 1996). As we know, many job opportunities are heard from informal networks, like friends, family, and neighbors. If there is no affirmative action to ensure that everyone has a fair chance at what is available, the segregation between different groups, such as black and white, men and women, will become more and more serious. VI. Affirmative Action creates diversity for our environment Affirmative action helps organizations to find diverse and talented employees. America is a diverse country; therefore, if your company has more diverse employees, your company can get various ideas, information, and knowledge to enhance your competition. Many companies, such as Mountain Bell, have commented that â€Å"by instituting affirmative action, they not only made their employee population look like American, which is a diverse country, but also found more talented and skilled workers† (Pendleton and Douglas 1991). Another example for supporting affirmative action is the Aire Sheet Metal, which its president, Bobby Bramlett, said that â€Å"affirmative action creates opportunities with contractors who otherwise wouldn†t know us, or give us a chance†¦ The work comes through relationships, but that first opportunity to build a relationship comes from affirmative action† (Spencer 151). Therefore, affirmative action can let companies have various personnel to enrich companies† overall human resource and enhance companies competitive capacities. In conclusion, I just want you to recognize what affirmative action really is. Affirmative action ensures that everyone in America has an equal chance to compete with others. It is a law to minimize the gap between blacks and whites, men and women. Although affirmative action may have some impact to white males, we still need this law to balance our society by considering the society as a whole. Affirmative action is good for overall U. S. society, especially, when people can combine those diverse powers together. Affirmative action is a long-term benefit for the U. S. society. I believe every American should support this regulation.

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Style Analysis Essay

Plot:â€Å"Pretty soon he†¦ it was Miss Watson’s Jim! I bet I was glad to see him. I says: ‘Hello, Jim! ’ and skipped out. † (Twain 40) â€Å"Who do you reckon ‘t is? † â€Å"I hain’t no idea. Who is it? † â€Å"It’s Tom Sawyer! † (Twain 203) Point of View: â€Å"It didn’t take me long to make up my mind that these liars warn’t no kings nor dukes, at all, but just low-down humbugs and frauds. † (Twain 115) â€Å"Well, I couldn’t see no advantage in going where she was going, so I made up my mind I wouldn’t try for it. † (Twain 6-7) Micro: Figurative Language: â€Å"I never see such an old ostrich for wanting to gobble everything– and I a trusting you all the time, like you was my own father. † (Twain 189) â€Å"BOOM! † I see the white smoke squirt out of the ferry-boat’s side. † (Twain 36) Allusion:â€Å"ONe was â€Å"Pilgrim’s Progress,† about a man that left his family it didn’t say why. † (Twain 93) â€Å"Why, hain’t you ever read any books at all? † – Baron Trenck, nor Casanova, nor Benvenuto Chel -getting a prisoner loose in such an old- maidy way as that? No;† (Twain 216) Imagery:â€Å"There was a clock in the middle of the mantel-piece, with a picture of a town painted on the bottom half of the glass front, and a round place in the middle of it for the sun, and you could see the pendulum swing behind it. It was beautiful to hear that clock tick. † (Twain 93) â€Å"†¦ and a streak of butter come a trickling down my forehead, and Aunt Sally she see it, and turns white as a sheet. † (Twain 245) Themes: In Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry FInn finding the truth yourself is wiser than believing what others tell you. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain he portrays how differences bring people closer together and make peace. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Style Analysis Essay Macro: Plot:â€Å"Pretty soon he†¦ it was Miss Watson’s Jim! I bet I was glad to see him. I says: ‘Hello, Jim!’ and skipped out.† (Twain 40) â€Å"Who do you reckon ‘t is?† â€Å"I hain’t no idea. Who is it?† â€Å"It’s Tom Sawyer!† (Twain 203) Point of View: â€Å"It didn’t take me long to make up my mind that these liars warn’t no kings nor dukes, at all, but just low-down humbugs and frauds.† (Twain 115) â€Å"Well, I couldn’t see no advantage in going where she was going, so I made up my mind I wouldn’t try for it.† (Twain 6-7) Micro: Figurative Language: â€Å"I never see such an old ostrich for wanting to gobble everything– and I a trusting you all the time, like you was my own father.† (Twain 189) â€Å"BOOM!† I see the white smoke squirt out of the ferry-boat’s side.† (Twain 36) Allusion:â€Å"ONe was â€Å"Pilgrim’s Progress,† about a man that left his family it didn’t say why.† (Twain 93) â€Å"Why, hain’t you ever read any books at all?† – Baron Trenck, nor Casanova, nor Benvenuto Chel -getting a prisoner loose in such an old- maidy way as that? No;† (Twain 216) Imagery:â€Å"There was a clock in the middle of the mantel-piece, with a picture of a town painted on the bottom half of the glass front, and a round place in the middle of it for the sun, and you could see the pendulum swing behind it. It was beautiful to hear that clock tick.† (Twain 93) â€Å"†¦and a streak of butter come a trickling down my forehead, and Aunt Sally she see it, and turns white as a sheet.† (Twain 245) Themes: In Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry FInn finding the truth yourself is wiser than believing what others tell you. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain he portrays how differences bring people closer together and make peace.

The Email Copywriting Process You Need to Get More Conversions

The Email Copywriting Process You Need to Get More Conversions You’ve probably heard email marketing gets 4,000% ROI. It might not be exact, but it gets repeated to drive home a very real point. Email converts at an extremely high rate. But, what if your own email efforts aren’t generating that kind of return? You might be wondering what you’re doing wrong. Or, whether the talk around email is all hype and no substance. Either way, you need to do something. Fast. Your business literally depends on it. Sharpening your email copywriting skills is part of solving that equation. Writing high-converting emails that get clicked is an art and a craft. Even if you’re decent at it, there’s always room to improve. And without well-written copy, you’ll struggle to keep your list engaged, and convince them to switch from passively consuming content, to becoming loyal paid customers. Fortunately, that means you wield a lot of power as a marketing email writer. What matters next, though, is how well you can execute consistently to convert leads into cash. The Email Copywriting Process You Need to Get More Conversions via @First, Get Organized With Free Email Copywriting + Calendar Templates Email copywriting is challenging. But, doing your best work becomes easier when you’re organized. So, plan ahead and keep copy projects straight with: A free email calendar template (Excel). Map out every email send ahead of time. An email newsletter template (Word). Need to write copy for a designer or developer to turn into a finished newsletter? Give them all the info they need to get it right. A call to action template (PDF). Get good at converting customers with the power of words. Download all three for free, and then follow this process to sharpen your copy skills.I'm writing better #email #marketing copy with these free templates from @:†¦ Or Organize Email Marketing With has long been an industry-leading marketing management platform for planning and executing marketing projects with teams. And now, it integrates with your favorite email marketing platforms, too. With Email Marketing from , you can: Seamlessly integrate with your *favorite* email marketing platform. integrates with MailChimp, Campaign Monitor, Constant Contact, and Active Campaign. Write click-worthy email subject lines...every time. With Email Marketing, you can use ’s *exclusive* Email Subject Line Tester to optimize and perfect every subject line to drive more opens, more clicks, and more conversions. Get full visibility into your ENTIRE marketing strategy. Manage your entire email copywriting workflow in one place (along with all your other marketing projects and campaigns). And when it’s this easy to manage + optimize your already-powerful email marketing strategy†¦ †¦ you can spend less time getting organized, and more time crafting creative copy. Did you know @integrates with popular email platforms like @MailChimp and...Why is Email Copywriting Important? If you’re here, you know email marketing matters. Or, at the very least, you’ve been tasked with writing email copy. Why exactly is it important, though? Start by taking a look at these statistics: Check out these 15 #email marketing stats you might not have known:What Does Good Email Copywriting Look Like? It’s easier to emulate success when you have good examples to follow. Here are some samples of effective and well-written emails to inspire your own. MarketingProfs Here’s a simple example from a snippet of an email newsletter from MarketingProfs: In the top content block, the headline establishes a clear benefit (ranking first in Google) even if you’re facing a problem (you don’t own the top spot for a given keyword). Not only does this promise to teach you something valuable, but it creates intrigue. How exactly can one rank first †¦ if you don’t have the top search result? It then leads the reader to the answer: â€Å"featured snippets.† (This is legitimately great advice, too). Best of all, if you click to read the article, you’ll learn exactly what featured snippets are, and how you can earn more of them to help your company’s site rank. It also manages to inform the reader of all these things using an efficient number of words. Here's an example of great email copy from @MarketingProfsBitdefender Now, quality copywriting doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel. This simple offer email from Bitdefender opens with a strong benefit (keeping all devices safe, everywhere), then piles on more clear benefits. It all leads toward a single CTA, and a compelling offer to buy now before the offer expires. This is simple stuff, but it works. Threadless This example from custom clothing brand Threadless creatively connects its subhead to an actual interior decorating challenge: making the most of limited space. Notice that it never once references a product or an offer. Instead, it uses the image to show off a well-decorated space (incidentally, with products they sell). Then, they promise to show you how to improve your home decor, even if you don’t have much room to work with. Here's an example of great email copy from @threadlessAdobe Similarly, this example from Adobe highlights a common problem, and promises to deliver a solution. Simple, and to the point. Here's an example of great email copy from @AdobeJoanna Wiebe / Copyhackers When it comes to copywriting, Joanna Wiebe is one of the best in the business. Get on the Copyhackers email list now  and enjoy a steady stream of excellent examples in your inbox. Here’s one well-written plain text email. Here’s what this email does well: It starts with a stance (all writing is copy). Acknowledges potential for disagreement. Leads the reader through a detailed and compelling explanation with relatable  examples. Lists things the reader could be doing better (writing all different types of copy). Then, promises to show the reader how to improve. This email also maintains a conversational tone all the way through, which is extra important for plain text emails (especially is your name is synonymous with your brand- people want to feel like they’re reading something written by a human, not a company, in such a case). Here's a great example of well-written email copy from @copyhackersCopywriting 101: Give It Some Feeling So, like Joanna implies in the previous example, copywriting is copywriting. Sure, the mechanics of how you write for different channels may change. Email is certainly no exception there (or else this post wouldn’t be written). But, many of the fundamentals of writing copy remain consistent, no matter the medium. With that in mind, let’s cover some of the basics. Following these simple tips will get you far. Know Your Audience Make zero assumptions about who you’re writing for. Even if you, as an individual, are similar to your target market, it’s best to lean on research and learn as much about your audience as possible. Some basic things you should know: Age range. Gender mix. Geographic location. Job title. Hobbies and interests. Pain points. Don’t have personas? Create some. Learn how here: How to Find Your Target Audience With a Marketing Persona Spark Your User Persona to Life With These 9 Important Tools Know Your Product If you’re not an expert on the product you’re selling outside of work (say, you’re selling musical instruments, but you don’t play one), then learn as much as you can. Here’s how: Read what your audience reads. Whether that means blogs, magazines, research reports, or whatever, read it all. Learn how your target audience talks, thinks, and sounds. Talk to someone internally who knows your products. That could mean an engineer, product designer, head of marketing, whoever in your organization knows the history and value of your products the most. Try using your own products. This might be tough depending on your situation. But, let’s say you sell musical instruments, but can’t hold a tune to save your life. At the very least you could try holding some instruments, make some noise, and see what they actually look and feel like. That’ll help immensely when it comes to writing email copy about them. Identify Pain Points Customers buy stuff to fix problems. Your job, intrepid email copywriter, is to know those pain points, and offer a solution. Some common pain points might include: Difficulty doing a task because existing solutions are sub-par. Inability to get something done because the customer doesn’t own any product or solution at all (yet). Outdated or worn out products are holding them back. They need to do something, but don’t know how. So, those are generic examples. To really know specifically what your audience is struggling with, you’ll need to do some research. Start by: Interviewing subject matter experts. Does someone in your company know a lot about your target audience (ideally through first-hand experience)? Talk to them. Survey your audience. Twitter polls and survey tools like SurveyMonkey make this relatively simple. Read industry publications. And make note of which topics they cover. You can learn a lot about what a particular audience considers to be a problem this way. Sell Benefits, Not Features Did you know the iPhone X uses an A11 bionic chip with 64-bit architecture? Probably not, because no one cares. You’re probably more that it: Takes awesome photos. Looks cool. Works better than your screen-shattered iPhone 5s. So, if you were writing an email to promote the newest iPhone (bear with us), what would you focus on: a dry list of features detailing technical specs, or the fact that people can turn their face into a cartoon animal? It turns out people really want to turn their face into a fox. You might double down on why that matters to customers, too: No other phone offers animoji. That’d be playing up the fear of missing out. It’s a status symbol. Apple products are well-made and attractively designed. It’s faster than an older iPhone. And that means doing literally anything with it will be easier. Features are important, but benefits are what sell. Show your audience why their life will be better with your product, and leave dry details to spec sheets and other supporting content. When writing copy, sell benefits, not features.Keep It Clear and Concise How long is perfect copy? As long as it needs to be. Most often, that’s not long at all. Now, there’s a real debate to be made over whether short or long copy sounds best. But, everyone can agree that excess  verbiage helps nothing. Take a moment to reexamine the examples listed earlier in this post. One thing they have in common? Tight, punchy sentences. Aim for no more than 20 words per sentence, and three to four sentences per paragraph. Writing email copy? Aim for no more than 20 words per sentence, and three to four sentences per...Use Words That Increase Open Rates †¦ Words matter. Especially when you have limited space. Check out this cheat sheet for terms proven to increase opens: Stick to One Clear Call-to-Action Ultimately, the goal of your email is to drive one specific action. If you try to direct your audience in too many directions, they’re more likely to get confused, or end up somewhere other than the one place you want them to visit most. Stay focused here. Recommended Reading: How to Write a Call to Action in a Template With 6 Examples Keep This Infographic Around For Reference This infographic from GrammarCheck is worth keeping handy: Step 1. Know Your Goal This can be broken down into two parts: What is your email about? What does your email need to achieve? The first question should be simple enough. Some things your email might cover include: Promoting a piece of content. Getting the word out about an event. Advertising a sale. Informing customers about new products. Second, understand what needs to happen as a result of sending your email: Increasing referral traffic to your site or blog. Driving event registrants. Selling more products. This is all standard stuff. But, it all informs how you write your email. Recommended Reading: The Best Way to Organize an Effective Email Marketing Strategy Step 2: Knock Out Your Subject Line Your initial success hinges on your subject line. It’s the first thing your recipient will see in their inbox. If it isn’t compelling, all your hard work writing and designing your email will be for nothing. No pressure or anything. So, make sure you get it right. This will require some trial and error, but having the right knowledge on your side will tilt the odds of success in your favor. Keep ‘Em Short Data shows that brief subject lines tend to perform best. Sure, this is based on averages of accumulated data, and doesn’t necessarily apply in all circumstances. But, generally speaking, it’s best to get to the point quickly here. According to ’s Head of Demand Generation, Nathan Ellering, the best-performing subject lines are just 17-24 characters long. That’s super short. It also places incredible weight on the value of each character and word you include. With that few characters, you probably won’t have more than three to five words to work with. Nathan’s research corroborates this: So, why does his research appear to show shorter = better? One plausible theory is because email clients on mobile phones only display a limited number of characters. In fact, iPhone users see 35-38 characters, while Samsung Galaxy owners see about 33 characters. It makes sense, then. If the most important or compelling part of your email is cut off, fewer people will click. So, keep your subject lines brief, and keep them action-oriented. Recommended Reading: Everything You Need to Know About Writing Awesome Email Subject Lines Write ‘Em in Title Case Writing email subject lines in sentence case, or even all in lowercase, might look and sound more conversational. And, as we’re often told, great copy should be conversational. That advice is timeless, and it isn’t wrong. But, when it comes to subject lines, data shows title case works best. Title Case Example: Do Small Dogs Bark Loudest? Sentence Case Example: Do small dogs bark loudest? Lower Case Example: do smaller dogs bark loudest? The difference isn’t extreme. But, a 4.2% gap over sentence-case, and 6.7% over all-lowercase, is significant. It could be that title case appears more professional, or at least, more in line with what people expect to see from a brand (versus friends or family). Writing in sentence or lowercase isn’t bound to kill your success rates. When in doubt, though, lean toward title case. Writing email subject lines? When in doubt, lean toward title case.Use Action-Driven Language You’re writing an email because you want people to do something. So, nudge readers to action right away. Try following this sentence structure: â€Å"Use [VERB] to [PERFORM ACTION] to [ACHIEVE BENEFIT].† Here’s what this might look like in practice: â€Å"Use to manage your marketing team and get organized.† That’s a basic example, but it forms the generic structure of a lot of sales writing. The key is to connect your product with an action and a benefit using an appropriate action verb. Incorporate Words Shown to Increase Opens Using these words won’t guarantee success. You’ll still have to, you know, write a good subject line. But, they’ll help: Use the Email Subject Line Tester Finally, how can marketers have some assurance their subject lines are strong? Use the Email Subject Line Tester. Start by entering your subject line: Then, get your score: Following that, you’ll see which words you’ve used that increase (and decrease) opens: Get an analysis of your case and number usage (stats and numbers help): Get tips on how to optimize your word and character count: And finally, see how your subject line might appear in an inbox: This tool is available both as a free webpage, and is built directly into . Writing Your Body Copy Now, finally, it’s time to buckle down on writing some actual email copy. Keep It Concise The general best practice for web writing is to keep sentences under 20 words, and paragraphs under three sentences. Those guidelines are good enough to pay attention to for email. Use Conversational Language Leave jargon to technical user manuals. Copywriting is all about creating a conversation with your customer. So, use language they’ll understand. Here’s a bad example: â€Å"The iPhone X uses a 5.8 in. Super Retina AMOLED display and a dual 12MP camera.† Both points are factually accurate and contribute to the phone’s quality. But, if we were going to push this in an email, it’d be better to use plain English to convey benefits first. Here’s a better example: â€Å"Make photos bigger, brighter, and better with the industry’s best smartphone camera.† Hear the difference? The first one is dry and factual. The second one conveys a clear benefit and appeals to the reader’s emotional need to have the best product possible (both for functional needs and status). Understand Message Match Whatever benefit or hook exists in your subject line, had better be blatantly clear in your body copy. There’s not much to understanding this. Just be sure that if your subject line tells people you’re going to offer them Benefit A, don’t switch it up with copy that pushes Benefit B instead. This post won’t offer examples outing anyone guilty of this, but it happens more often than you’d think. Writing Your Call to Action The success of your copy hinges on the call to action. It serves one purpose: to get people to do what you want. That could mean clicking through to reading content on your blog. Or registering for a course. Or directly buying a product. Whatever your goal may be, if your body copy serves up a pitch, the CTA hits it out of the park. A typical CTA will have two elements: A line of body copy. This is the text that directs people to the next step. A button or linked text. This is what people actually click to take the next step. Both are important and work in conjunction with one another. To write them well, keep the following in mind: Write short. A CTA should be punchy and brief. Use action verbs. If you want people to take an action, use words that imply action. The body communicates a benefit. The button informs action. Put both those items together, and you’ve got yourself a CTA. If this were a plain text email, linked text might replace using a button. Here are some hypothetical examples: Pre-order your iPhone X here. Find out where to get an iPhone X in your city. Get the iPhone X first. In this case, the functions of the body text and button may need to be rolled into one line. To get started, experiment with the words on this list: Putting It All Together: Writing Actual Email Copy You’ve seen plenty of examples, and you’ve got some basic copywriting advice. Now, let’s try putting it all together to write a hypothetical marketing email. For demonstration purposes, this next section will walk through writing an email for a fictional company called Mia’s Seed Supply. They’re promoting a seminar at their store to help farmers and growers improve their yields. Acknowledging the Problem The first thing to do is identify the problem. Why would someone want to go to this seminar, anyway? Here’s a few reasons: They’re struggling to get their plants to grow because their region is notorious for poor-quality soil. Unpredictable weather patterns make watering appropriately difficult. Some people are beginners and need help getting started. Start With the Subject Line For the purposes of writing this email, the next step is writing a subject line. Come up with at least two you can A/B test, and up to five if you’re writing for a client, and want to give them choices. If you're a user, you can do this directly in-app on any piece of email content you create: Remember, the subject line should be: Short. Three to five words, ideally. Get to the point. How much of the story can be told in under five words? Incorporate a number if possible. Stats and numbers help increase opens. Knowing this, here are some options Mia could go with: Get 300% Better Seed Growth (ESLT Score: 63 out of 100) Grow Plants 300% Easier (ESLT Score: 61 out of 100) Learn what to do about tough soil. (ESLT Score: 68 out of 100) Lead With a Problem or Relatable Situation Now, once you start writing your body copy, be sure to connect your intro to your subject line. Readers want to know that they didn’t get duped into a bait-and-switch. Here’s a basic opener: Planting seeds around here is, well, stressful. The soil conditions aren’t ideal. In fact, they’re awful. And this spring weather doesn’t do you any favors, either. If you’re just starting out, it’s enough to make you wonder, â€Å"Maybe gardening isn’t for   me.† This ties into real problems Mia’s customers face. Plus, it empathizes with how they’re feeling (frustrated). Then Offer a Solution With the pain point identified and agitated, it’s time to roll out the solution: Fortunately, you’re not the first gardener to feel that way (whew!) Even better, success is within your reach. Join us on April 30th at Mia’s Seed Supply for â€Å"How to Successful Grow Seeds in Tough Soil With No Experience.† You’ll learn exactly how to: Pick the best seeds for your garden conditions. Plan a smart watering schedule around unpredictable weather patterns. Make your growing season successful no matter your skill level. Plus, we’ll have free coffee and snacks (and you gotta get your coffee anyway, right?) In this section, Mia has now addressed her customer’s core concerns, communicated clear benefits, and even threw in an added bonus (free coffee is a powerful motivator). Add a Call to Action Finally, time for the closer. The call-to-action: BODY: Get your most growth this spring! BUTTON: Register Now There’s a benefit, and an action. That’s all there is to it! Managing Email Marketing Workflows With If you’re writing marketing emails, you’ll need to have a workflow. And you’ll need a platform to manage that workflow. Think about all the steps involved: Ideation and research Writing copy Handing off for coding and design Scheduling email delivery Plus, email is usually integrated with broader campaigns. So, what’s the best way to make sure workflow snafus don’t derail your creative copy’s success? Start by getting organized and managing email alongside every other piece of every other campaign. As an all-in-one marketing management platform, that’s something is built for. Select a day on your calendar, and then choose Email Marketing (enable this using content types  and make sure you’ve connected your email service provider): Then, choose your ESP. Currently, integrates with MailChimp, Campaign Monitor, Active Campaign, and Constant Contact (with more services to be added in the future): Then, apply a Task Template (a reusable and fully customizable workflow checklist): Here’s a hypothetical checklist an email copywriter could use: Write five subject lines. Craft email copy. Proof email copy. Hand off email for design. Stage email in ESP. Schedule delivery date and time. Then, as you’re working through your email, use Discussion Threads to manage communication with designers (if you’ll need graphics created for your email, or work with another team member to proof your copy): All through the process, your team will see the email on your marketing calendar (alongside every other project the team is responsible for): That’s the short version. If you’re looking for a free alternative to plan email in advance and manage your team, use the free email marketing calendar (Excel) included in this post. It’ll get you started in proactively planning, getting organized, and executing copy more effectively. Get Out There and Convert More Customers You’ve just absorbed a lot of info. So, here’s a recap: You understand the value of stressing benefits over features. People buy better versions of themselves, not features on a spec sheet. You can craft complete narratives efficiently. You don’t always have a lot of space to write in marketing emails. But, you now know how to fit everything you need, in logical order, into the space you have available. You understand the mechanics of email copywriting. From nailing your subject lines, to writing persuasive body copy, to crafting calls to action that convert, you have it all under your belt. Plus, you’ve got plenty of examples to help you emulate success, and all the tools you need to get organized and execute email copy projects. From here, it’s up to you to succeed. Practice makes perfect, and remember, like with all things related to email marketing, test everything. If your first effort fails, keep refining until results improve.

9 Things You Didn’t Know About Für Elise

9 Things You Didn’t Know About Fà ¼r Elise SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips From its first repeating notes, Fà ¼r Elise is instantly recognizable. It may even be the most famous melody ever written! But did you know that when Beethoven first drafted this short piano piece, he stuffed it in a drawer, never to be seen in his lifetime? Curious how it went from forgotten trifle to universally known? Wondering what exactly makes it such an unforgettable earworm? Need some tips on learning to play this piece? Then keep reading for everything you've ever wanted to know about one of Beethoven's best-known masterpieces. Fà ¼r Elise: The Basics Ludwig van Beethoven wrote Fà ¼r Elise 1810 as a small piece for the piano, and then put it aside with his many other draft works. We only have it because a musicologist found it and published it in 1867! And it's a good thing for us that Fà ¼r Elise was finally found! Its first five notes (alternating E and D-sharp) have become as famous as the booming da-da-da-dum first notes of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony. Why has this piece been so popular ever since its publication? Musically, Fà ¼r Elise is deeply melodic and full of nostalgic feeling, with a relatively simple harmony that makes it very accessible and not overly intellectually demanding. At the same time, because its first part is easy even for a beginner piano player to learn, but is also beautiful, it is often assigned by piano teachers the world over, perpetuating its fame. And finally, the romantic and mysterious possibilities of its name make us wonder about the identity of Elise and the love life of its composer! Where Can I Listen to Fà ¼r Elise? Before diving into the history and background of this piece, here are some versions that will give you a great sense of the range of interpretations out there. Start with this straightforward Fà ¼r Elise piano recording: [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8ECRYcXtEg[/embed] Then, you can explore interesting takeoffs, samples, and modifications. On the piano, there is a great blues-imbued version, as well as a ragtime version. At the same time, the piece's arpeggios make it a popular choice for classical guitar interpretations like this one. Because Fà ¼r Elise is so incredibly popular, there are a million and one versions of it on YouTube. Do a quick search and check out the versions played by wildly talented four-year-old prodigies! I wouldn't be surprised if there's a cat-playing-violin version out there somewhere. The History of Fà ¼r Elise In 1810, when he was 40 years old, Ludwig van Beethoven was already renowned as one of the greatest composers of all time. He was also already plagued by the horrible tinnitus that preceded his eventual deafness. Although the very next year he stopped performing in public altogether, he never stopped composing. On April 27th, 1810, Beethoven drafted a bagatelle - a small, unimportant song - and jotted the label "Fà ¼r Elise" on it in his famously messy handwriting. But he never published this piece of music. Instead, it sat in a drawer until 1822, when Beethoven revised it slightly, and shoved it back into the same drawer. In 1827, Beethoven died, and his bagatelle never saw the light of day. It was only in 1867, 40 years after Beethoven's death, that a musicologist named Ludwig Nohl found the piece of music and published it. Who Was Elise? Remember how I told you that Beethoven jotted the words "Fà ¼r Elise" on his final draft of the sheet music? Well, it turns out that we only know this from Ludwig Nohl, the man who found and published the piece. The actual final draft itself is missing! Not only that, but no distinct records, letters, or accounts from people at the time make mention of an "Elise" in Beethoven's life. So who was the mysterious Elise that Beethoven apparently dedicated this music to? There is no conclusive answer to this question. There are several theories, however, which I will lay out in order of most to least likely. Theory #1: "Elise" Was Beethoven's "One That Got Away" Beethoven had a doomed love affair with a woman named Therese Malfatti. She was his student, and he fell in love with her right around the time of the composition of Fà ¼r Elise. We aren't quite sure exactly how they broke up, but we do know that he proposed, and she either said no right away, or strung him along for a while and then said no. Either way, Therese then married someone else. So, the most popular theory is that our friend Ludwig Nohl misread Beethoven’s messy handwriting, and that in reality, the piece was labeled "Fà ¼r Therese" not "Fà ¼r Elise." Theory #2: "Elise" Was Beethoven's Opera Singer BFF A few years before writing Fà ¼r Elise, Beethoven became friends with an opera singer named Elisabeth Rà ¶ckel, whose nickname may well have been Elise (Elizabeth to Elise doesn't seem to be that much of a stretch, but we don't have any documentary evidence that anyone actually did call her Elise). Beethoven and Rockel were close friends until she married Beethoven's frenemy, Johann Nepomuk Hummel. Perhaps Fà ¼r Elise was written in the midst of this friendship - or as a way of saying good-bye. Theory #3: "Elise" Was One of Therese Malfatti's Friends The least likely scenario is that Beethoven wrote the piece for another woman nicknamed Elise - Juliane Katharine Elisabet Barensfeld, who used "Elise" as a variant first name. She was a musical child prodigy who was Therese Malfatti's neighbor and conceivably could have been her student. This theory holds that Beethoven was willing to do anything for his one great love, Therese, including writing a quick piece of music for one of her favorites. Since there's not enough evidence to prove it conclusively, we should probably use Occam’s razor for this one. To whom is a sad, longing love song dedicated? Probably to the lost love of Beethoven's life, Therese. What Does the Title of Fà ¼r Elise Mean? The full title of Beethoven's piece of music is Fà ¼r Elise: Bagatelle in A minor WoO 59. In reality, the stuff after the colon is the official title, and "Fà ¼r Elise" is just a nickname for the piece. This is because musical compositions have a specific naming system that references type, key, and a numbering system. Let's unpack each of the components of this title separately. Fà ¼r Elise. The words â€Å"Fà ¼r Elise† mean â€Å"for Elise† in German. Bagatelle. This is the piece of music's type (other types include sonatas, etudes, symphonies, and so on). A bagatelle is a short, lighthearted, and generally frivolous piece of music. Similar words have also been used to describe this piece. Sometimes the title uses the word "Albumblatt," which means "album leaf" - a short, pleasant, usually solo piano piece that friends could easily share by pasting into each other's musical albums. More rarely, you might find Fà ¼r Elise labeled as a "Klavierstà ¼cke" which is simply German for "piano piece." A Minor. "A" stands for the music's key, indicating the scale - the set of notes divided by regular intervals - that the piece uses. In this case, Fà ¼r Elise is based on the scale that is anchored by the A key. Keys are divided into major and minor, depending on the intervals between the notes used in the scale. Here, the minor key is a technical way to convey which notes should be played higher or lower than the corresponding natural notes. It also tells us about the musicality of the piece. In Western music, music in a minor key sounds sad, helping with the sense of longing and wistfulness that characterizes the melody. WoO 59. Usually, composers number their published pieces of music, using the Latin term "opus" (which means "work") and whatever number followed in sequence from the last piece of the same type. However, not only did Beethoven not number Fà ¼r Elise, but he really only gave opus numbers to his most significant published pieces. Because of this, much of his work has been assigned numbers by later publishers, using the German term "werk ohne opuszahl" (meaning "work without opus number" and abbreviated as WoO) and a number in sequence. So, in this case, WoO 59 means that Fà ¼r Elise was the 59th bagatelle to be published that hadn't been given a number by Beethoven himself. Fà ¼r Elise Musical Analysis Now that we've explored the history and romance behind the work, let's check out what's under the hood. How is Fà ¼r Elise Structured? As we already saw from its title, this piece is in the key of A minor. It's time signature is 3/8, so there are 3 beats in each measure and each eighth note (â™ ª) gets 1 beat. Fà ¼r Elise is a rondo, with a A–B–A–C–A structure. In other words, its first section (main theme A) is repeated between its other sections (themes B and C). The first section is the famous melody that everyone knows, with the right hand playing the melody itself and with the left hand playing arpeggios (chords played note by note instead of all at once). The other sections are more challenging, incorporating the keys E major, C major, G major, and F major. The repeated central theme's A minor key builds a melancholy, longing mood. However, Fà ¼r Elise's other themes are in complete contrast to the main theme, creating a sense of whimsy, unpredictability, and playfulness. What's the Musical Style of Fà ¼r Elise? Fà ¼r Elise is part of the Romantic music movement that developed in the late 18th and early 19th century in Europe along with Romanticism in the arts in general. Note that capital-R Romanticism has nothing to do with small-r romance. Instead, Romantic music was characterized by ideas of revolting against Industrial Revolution and the perceived triumph of hyper-rationalism. Romanticism instead embraced a preoccupation with nature, an imagined glorious past, and beautifully terrifying and unknowable spiritual and emotional experiences. We can see some of this in the way Fà ¼r Elise shuttles back and forth between the forlorn plea of the repeated main theme and the sudden, mercurial shifts in tone of the B and C themes. Romanticism is like a storm: moody, unpredictable, wild, and dominating puny humans. 8 Tips for Learning to Play Fà ¼r Elise Have you decided to learn how to play Fà ¼r Elise on the piano? Here are some things to keep in mind! Are You a Beginner? Because the most famous part of Fà ¼r Elise - the main theme - is reasonably easy to play, many piano teachers assign just that first part of the piece to their students early on in their piano learning. Not only is it not technically difficult, but it also provides a good basic exercise for piano pedaling technique. Here's some advice for mastering the piece: Watch out for tricky fingering. In this piece, precise finger position is key to the flow of the right-hand melody and the support of the left-hand arpeggios. You may want to write out each note’s fingering in your score to help you articulate the music well. Legato, legato, legato. Think of the left-hand’s arpeggios as almost-chords. You should play them as smoothly as possible, gliding each note into the next. Imagine playing the piece as if you're trying to demonstrate perpetual motion. Your gently flowing tempo and legato should unite to let the melody shine. Imagine a conversation between right and left. Start by practicing hands separately. Then, when you're combining them, listen to the way the left and right hands reply to each other - it's almost a series of call-and-response questions, or a plaintive conversation. To articulate this, carry your legato over from the right hand to the left and vice versa, and do not privilege one hand over the other in volume or tempo. Don't rush. Even after you've learned the melody, you have to keep your tempo slow to convey the wistful and sad mood. Beethoven marked the tempo as "molto grazioso," meaning a deeply graceful and even speed. Are You Playing at an Intermediate Level? If you're learning all three section of Fà ¼r Elise, here are tips to help you: Learn the sections in order of difficulty. As we've already seen, theme A is the least technically challenging. The most technically difficult section is the B theme, so you may want to save that one for last. Learn each section on its own, phrase by phrase. Rely on repetition for easier memorizing. The rondo form makes learning the piece by heart much easier, since 3 out of 5 sections are the same. Focus on the transitions between the sections to confidently go in and out of each. Stress the contrast. Fà ¼r Elise is marked by the shifting tones and moods of its three sections. Maintain the contrast demanded by the different sections, and connect your playing with the mood you want to convey. Are You an Advanced Musician? At this point in your musical career, you're no longer as worried about physically being able to carry the piece from sheet music to keyboard. Instead, here are some thoughts about your main challenges: Proper wrist placement. For an even smoother performance, you may want to rethink the way you hold your wrists and how to relieve tension in them while playing. This blog post has some very helpful pointers. Make your mark, find your voice. The biggest challenge for those who can readily overcome the technical challenges is that Fà ¼r Elise is everywhere and has been interpreted many, many times over. How do you bring your own quality to such a widely known work? You may want to simply avoid other interpretations while working on a piece, so that someone else's vision doesn't influence your version. Think deeply about what you want to convey, and which aspects of Beethoven's music you want to illuminate. Let these ideas be the guiding principles of your interpretation. All together now! Where Can I Find Fà ¼r Elise Sheet Music? For beginners. If you'd like a version that has only the first section, clearly labels each note with its corresponding key, and leaves out the sustains, check out this easy piano rendition. For more advanced players. If you're looking for sheet music to learn to play the piece, you can use this printable very cleanly edited PDF version. For research and study. If you are curious about the first printed version that has the D in the 7th measure instead of the E as we now accept, explore a PDF of a potentially misprinted publication. Or you can check out the draft in Beethoven’s hand that informs how we play the piece now. Fà ¼r Elise in the World I wasn't exaggerating when I said that Fà ¼r Elise is now everywhere. Here are some of the more and less unlikely places it has turned up: Garbage trucks in Taiwan use the tune, as part of that country's completely revolutionary approach to dealing with waste. Check out the 99% Invisible podcast for more of this great story. American rapper Nas built his 2002 song "I Can" around samples of this piece. Elephant, Gus Van Sant's 2003 movie about teenage alienation, used Fà ¼r Elise as a haunting refrain. The Peanuts character Schroeder performs the piece in A Charlie Brown Christmas. The Takeaway: 9 Amazing Fà ¼r Elise Facts Fà ¼r Elise was lost for over 50 years until a musicologist found it and published it after Beethoven's death. And then that final draft copy was lost again and has never been found. We do still have an earlier draft copy of Fà ¼r Elise in Beethoven's hand, but that one isn't labeled "Fà ¼r Elise." No one knows who Elise really was! But most likely, she was Therese Malfatti, the woman who broke Beethoven's heart. Fà ¼r Elise is versatile enough to have been musically reinterpreted as blues and ragtime, and used as a sample in a Nas song. There are actually three separate sections in Fà ¼r Elise: the first, most famous section repeats between two other sections. As part of the Romantic music movement that explored beautifully terrifying and unknowable spiritual and emotional experiences, Fà ¼r Elise contrasts the sad wistfulness of its main theme with the unpredictable wildness of its other two themes. Part of the reason Fà ¼r Elise remains so popular is that piano teachers the world over assign its first section to their beginner students. Because there are so many versions of Fà ¼r Elise out there, it can be very hard for professional musicians to put their own spin on this work. Garbage trucks in Taiwan use Fà ¼r Elise to let people know that the garbage pickup is happening, in kind of same the way ice cream trucks use tunes in the U.S. to get people to line up for frozen dessert.

Sexual Harassment Scenario Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sexual Harassment Scenario - Essay Example There is also the difference between the bodies of the male and the female. There are hormonal, mental, emotional as well as physical aspects which vary. Also, the side of the brain – whether left or right – a person uses counts. All these lead to the males and females having thoughts and feelings not quite similar. The accounts of many psychologists in the 1990’s state that gender identity and personality of a child emerges by the age of 3 years and it continues to gradually evolve by the influence of the outside world: parents, school, etc (Morris & Maisto, 2005). However, Collaer & Hines say that a child starts to develop its individuality in the womb and that is dependent on certain hormonal factors. Environment plays an important role throughout the stage in which the child continues to change (Morris & Maisto, 2005; Collaer & Hines, 1995). By the time a child enters school, he already has certain ideas in his head, which continue to grow or diminish depending on the worldly influences, so it is necessary that they are nurtured. We have certain concepts in mind as to how the boys are much better in Science and Mathematics so the teachers ask them the related questions and not the girls. On the other hand, if the topic is literary related, then the girls are encouraged to answer and the boys ignored. This automatically brings in a divide between the two. The school environment helps in making groups, the children being too young to understand what is going on and follow blindly. Later they realize that they could have pursued another subject altogether. On the other hand, this example is a misconception since it has been proven that there is no biological reason why only boys may be good at the subject, the girls have equal opportunity too and vice versa. Another misconception is that males who are interested