Coping with Anxiety

Kathrina is a 20-something professional with dilemmas that disrupt her from being productive in her career. It also gives her inconsistent sleeping habits, which results from an uneasy feeling from the anxiety that she feels. Furthermore, she feels that her way of coping with such is not improving at all. Such predicaments hamper her career as a real estate agent, which she finds a big deterrent in producing sales. Kathrina’s biggest dilemma is that her parents expect a lot from her.She doesn’t want to leave home yet she already feels uneasy about her situation at home. With this in mind, she resorts to me, a behavioral psychiatrist. Kathrina opts to undergo a series of sessions that will give her the opportunity to deal with anxiety and stress. 1) As a behavioral therapist how would you proceed in therapy in the case of Kathrina? First, I would like the patient to describe her environment while she was growing up. This would help me ascertain what is it like to live in her environment during her childhood.It will allow me to determine how she generates feedbacks and how she behaves in this type of environment. As a behavioral therapist, I have to make her understand that her environment is responsible for her apparent behavior. The environment she thrives in conditions her to be behaving in such way. The environment includes all the people around her and the behavior of this people. She has to understand that her behavior does not deliberately stems from her. In behavioral psychology, it is suggested that behaviors are attained through the environment’s conditioning (Wagner, 2008).As the individual interacts with her environment more, the more she is conditioned to act accordingly to her environment’s standards. As the individual accommodates this conditioning into her system, the more she is influenced by her environment’s conditioning. As I proceed with the subject’s current situation, I learn that she really accommo dates and tolerates the behavioral standards of her situation. She does not have a hand in her apparent behavior at all. The stress from her work is not responsible as well.The environment which is her home is the primary stimulus that affects her behavior, and causes her numerous dilemmas. In a branch of behaviorism, classic conditioning is used to condition a subject to respond to a certain stimulus. Classic conditioning is a type of conditioning in behaviorism, which conditions a subject by instigating a stimulus in order to generate a favorable response (Van Wagner, 2008). In Kathrina’s case, her parents conditioned her in the most effective manner. This leads us to the speculation that Kathrina might not have received classical conditioning at all.Another type of conditioning, Operant conditioning can be suggested as the possible culprit for the apparent behavior of Kathrina. Operant conditioning takes place whenever the subject is conditioned through punishment and rewa rd reinforcements. In Kathrina’s case, she might have received more reward reinforcements than punishment reinforcements. Yet this brings to us the notion that she might have been conditioned by reward reinforcements even if her parents are wrong in giving her reward reinforcements.With this in mind, Kathrina’s case will remain unsolved, and I will suggest further therapy sessions for her to be able to cope up with stress and chronic anxiety. 2) How does behavioral therapy fit, or not fit, with your own personal style? The behavioral approach to therapy is not proper at all. It is very subjective and not objective at all. It is one-dimensional because it simply analyzes the environmental factors that contribute to the individual’s behavior. Both operant and classical conditioning are subjective in approach, and analyzes a subject’s behavior in a bias manner.In Kathrina’s case, her behavior is not really caused by her environment alone. She has also a hand in contributing to her mental tortures. With this in mind, she must shrug her dilemmas aside. Apt therapy can also aid her in this situation she faces. References Van Wagner,K. (2008). Behaviorism. Retrieved March 22, 2008, from http://psychology. about. com/od/behavioralpsychology/f/behaviorism. htm Watson,J. Behaviorism Explained. General Psychology. Published Diestro Ltd. 2000.

Boys and Girls Essay

Search for Identity in â€Å"Boys and Girls† In Alice Munro’s â€Å"Boys and Girls†, she tells us a story about a young girl’s rebellion to the womanhood prescribed by a society which has stereotyped views toward both sexes’ roles and identity in society. The story takes place in the 1940s when women have not gained so much equal rights as today, and they are still perceived as attached to males. The story is set is a fox family of Jubilee, Ontario, Canada, a rural area and the point of view of this story is first person â€Å"I†. The narrator is the female protagonist whose name has never appeared in the story directly, which symbolizes her lack of identity in a patriarchal society compared with boy children. There is a character whose name is given to us, the narrator’s brother with the name of Laird, meaning Lord in the Scottish language. The choice of name can truthfully reflect women’s role and social position at that time as well as men’s priorities in a way. Although women had no identity or social position at time, they are just the angel in the house as what they are expected to do, the narrator has never accepted this position and this unfairness easily and satisfactorily. She rebelled against those expectations the society had put on women. She tried hard to search for her identity in the society, to be â€Å"more that just a girl†. The search of identity is the major theme of Zhang 2 this little story, and such search can be best reflected on the narrator but also on her little brother. Here, the author of this thesis will try to analyze the respective process of their search, and the results for search of identity will not be the same because of the difference in gender roles. The narrator’s search for identity can better be represented in the following scenes. Firstly, her nightly stories. Her desire and dream for acting like a hero to protect others in these fabricated stories are the reflection of her burning desire to be not just a girl and her wish for freedom that was just recognizable hers. Before bedtime, she loved to sing the song â€Å"Danny Boy†, differently from her brother who would sing â€Å"Jingle Bell† whether it is Christmas or not. â€Å"I arranged myself tightly under the covers and went on with one of the stories that I was telling myself, when I had grown a little older; they took place in a world that was recognizably mine, yet one that presented opportunities for courage, boldness and self-sacrifice, as mine never did† (Munro, 115). The image she fabricated in these stories represented her ideal self, a girl, powerful independent, not â€Å"just a girl†, the complete opposite of the stereotyped† girl†, which her family wanted her to become and society expect her to become. It represents her desire to transcend the stereotyped role prescribed to women. In the second place, her ungirly behavior can also represent her rebellious search for identity. This obvious resentment for society’s womanly duties symbolizes the narrator’s desire to be more than â€Å"just a girl†. For example, even after her grandmother criticized her with commands like, â€Å"Girls keep their knees together when they sit down† (Munro, 121). And â€Å"Girls don’t slam doors like that† (Munro, 121), She continued to slam doors and sit awkwardly because she felt that it kept her free. In other words, she has not been prepared to accept and claim her gender identity. However, gradually, she began to take the identity of a girl. She began to decorate her room, her bed, pay more attention to her appearances when she communicates with her peers. In fact, after a long process of rebellious search for identity, she finally began to construct her identity as a girl, but a girl who is more than â€Å"just a girl†, a girl that finally achieves some freedom in her construction of identity. Thirdly, her desire to be outside of the house. She is torn between the outside where her father introduces her to and the warm inside where her mother tried protecting her from the brutal outside. In that time, girls were expected to be a help mate to mothers, doing housework, cooking and cleaning and so on. However, she totally rebels against this household identity of women. She will escape from the house before her mother yelled her to do housework, and enjoys working beside his father. â€Å"I worked willing fully under his eyes, and with a felling of pride† ( Munro, 120). Her father once introduced her to others as new hired hand. In this sense, her rebellion does make some difference in her life and she get some recognition in being not â€Å"just a girl†. Fourthly, the narrator’s association with and her identification with Flora also symbolizes her own thrust for freedom in metaphorical sense. The family would sometimes kill healthy horses that no longer had any use because the father fed his Zhang 4 foxes with horsemeat, and Flora was one of these horses, a beautiful female horse, violent and rebellious. In an accident, Flora broke away and ran wildly in the barnyard. When her father tried to catch it and shout to her to close the door, she got there just in time to close it, but instead she held it open for Flora. â€Å"It was exciting to see her running, whinny-ing, going up on her hind legs, prancing and threatening like a horse in a Western movie† (Munro, 126). The act of her opening the gate and setting Flora free is a rebellious act against the authority of her father and her pursuit for freedom in metaphorical sense. In the story, â€Å"Boys and Girls†, the narrator is not the only one who has come to terms with identity through search. Her little brother Laird also went through a process of searching for identity. Laird began in the story like a girl who is very timid, very obedient, just like his mother. In the beginning, he enjoyed more of the house than the outside world. He sings â€Å"Jingle Bell† before bed. However, gradually, he also developed her identity as a boy, perhaps under the aid of his elder sister whose desire for excitement drove her to do something fascinating and thrilling. She once made Laird climb the ladder to the top beam, persuaded him to look how the old shoot a horse. In the end of the story, there is a scene in which Liard commented his sister’s singing as â€Å"you sound silly† and another scene in which he told his sister that â€Å"we shot old Flora†. All these demonstrate that she has found the identity a boy should have in a society. In the end, he has developed a desire to do the masculine things around the house, as expected to be done by boys. Zhang 5 From the above analysis of the narrator’s and her brother’s search for identity in a society which tend to stereotyped the role of men and women, it is found that pure rebellion against the expectation does not make a girl more that â€Å"just a girl†, people should also try to come term with the society in a certain degree, because the construction of identity is a social integration, a social process. However, it does not mean to say that the narrator’s search did not have meaning. Actually it did help her to get some freedom and some peace in the heart.

Ice-cream social and a game of Jenga Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Ice-cream social and a game of Jenga - Essay Example Players remove and balance blocks in turns to create tall and unstable structures during the game progress (Scott, 2009). I had an opportunity to attend an ice cream occurrence where a game of Jenga was played as well. The event was creative because of the presence of several friends in attendance. Simple, appealing dà ©cors and fresh flavors were on service as people mingled with each other and played Jenga. I discovered that such events are good for meeting and making friendships. As a first time player of Jenga, I was able to discover and learn new rules of the game. I acquired skills on how to load the tray in all the 18 levels. However, the game is full of struggles because one has to balance the mental and physical aspects with the ice cream social. Matching the number of levels in the game with the possible number of moves was an uphill task too. This was attributable by the need to express the number of levels as ‘X’. The next step will be to learn the mathematical applications to win the game of Jenga (Scott,

Marketing Strategies and Techniques by Coca Cola Assignment

Marketing Strategies and Techniques by Coca Cola - Assignment Example The organization has been effectively successful over the last 100 years. The organization has become an icon of global culture. The organization believes in partnership business with several bottles around the globe. The organization has generated revenue of more than 35 billion US dollar in the year 2010. Moreover, the organization has achieved a net income of almost 12 billion US dollar in the same year. These are a quite impressive number. Presently the organization is operating in more than 200 countries (Vpcomn, 2008, p.2). Moreover, during this point of time near about 139,600 employees are working under the payroll of Coca-Cola (Vrontis, 2003, p.2). The leading global organizations are trying to capitalize on the opportunities that have been created due to globalization. After the Second World War, the concept of globalization has evolved dramatically around the globe. Coca-Cola is one of those organizations who has effectively capitalized on those opportunities. The brand na me is hugely popular in more than 200 countries. Current UK soft drink market has become competitive enough. Several potential organizations within the industry including Coca-Cola are competing within this competitive UK market. Due to the high-calorie issue, recently the consumers are trying to consume fruit flavor juice or low-calorie soft drinks (Pitt, 1999, p.1). PepsiCo the only potential competitor of Coca-Cola is creating several challenges for the organization by introducing several product lines. The current market trend, huge competition and matured sift drink UK market has to make Coca-Cola busy to perform its business activities in the UK market (Wmich, 2012, p.1). Mission, Direction, and objectives Coca-Cola is one of the leading soft drink manufacturing companies. Their business values and activities reflected in their mission statement. Mission The organization used to do business practices according to their mission statement which is: The products will refresh the world....in mind, spirit, and body. The organization will inspire optimism moments......through products, actions, and brands. The organization will create huge value and will create the difference...wherever they are involved (Svendsen, 2013, p.4). Direction and Objective Segment The major business objective of Coca-Cola is to expand its diet coke range with the inclusion of several healthy elements. Moreover, the organization is trying to achieve an impressive market share by entering in UK fruit drink segment. The organization already has started to execute the required strategies in several parts of the globe. But due to huge market saturation in the UK, the organization is planning to enter the fruit drink market by monitoring all the strategies and current market trend (Jones, 2010, p.9).  Ã‚  

African Traditional Religions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

African Traditional Religions - Essay Example This festival is celebrated in the honour and recognition of the power of women. However, this festival does not allow African women to perform dance in public spheres and demonstrate their influence; instead men most passionately perform masquerade dance with their wooden masks, and phony breasts and hips entailing costumes. The masquerade dance is supposed to support female spirit and their mystic attributes in African society. Simultaneously, it is believed to enhance communal accord between diverse tribes of Africa, the potential of survival as a tribe, and most importantly the aspect of fertility either in terms of land, cattle, or women. Yet, Gelede festival significantly portrays the influence and inevitable need of women in African society for the sake of progress and harmony (Ray, 79). Nevertheless, there is one region in Africa which actually allow women to wear wooden masks and dance in the Gelede festival and that is Mende. Mende has its own secret society which is known as Sande and its female members are the ones who wear Sowei and dance masquerade in open. These courageous women return from the dance wearing the Sowei mask, which is believed to entail many moral, spiritual and visual meanings of beauty in general and also qualities of Sande society as well. Every feature of the mask holds a different meaning and significant traits, like different carved hairstyles depict inner contentment of the person wearing it, small mouth depict the moral, religious and ethical values of women to avoid gossip and eventually small ears depict that women of strong character do not surrender to worldly allures of the heart and mind and ignore them by all means. Furthermore, if the wooden mask has an illustration of animal at the top of it, this representation can behold a lot of meanings either it is showing a connection between the dancer and an appreciable animal trait. Like speed, cleverness or fertility, or it shows the link of

Strategic Marketing Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Strategic Marketing Proposal - Essay Example Executive Summary Salad Creations has been offering fresh and natural salads in different parts of United States for years. Considering the response of the customers in United States, the company has planned to expand its services in United Kingdom as well. There are lots of reasons behind the success of Salad Creations in United States and the company would be highly relying on the brand image and management expertise to make the brand successful in London as well as it plans to expand. Salad Creations offer fresh and healthy salads. Different variety is available for customers to choose from and even if they do not like any of these, then the company gives them the freedom to prepare their own salads. Although, in United Kingdom there are few competitors offering fresh salad but considering the market research and response of the target market, the management feels that London would be the best suited area for opening a new store in the European Union. The management plans to make use of different marketing channels and has devised different short term as well as long term objectives. Strategies have been devised to achieve these objectives by the management. The company would also be making use of traditional as well as latest marketing channels to promote the offerings of the company so that they are able to reach the target market. Also the company would be evaluating different marketing channels and then prioritising the investment on different marketing channels accordingly. Online marketing strategies, social media marketing and traditional promotional channels such as direct mail, advertisements on billboards and advertisements on newspapers would be ysed by the management to promote the brand in London and in United Kingdom. Marketing Budget has also been setup by the management however the management has pre-decided that this budget would not be fixed and it would be flexible. The management would be evaluating the marketing budget on a quarterly bas is so that they can invest more in activities that yield better returns so that it helps in the long run profitability of the company. 2.0. Situational Analysis Salad Creation is a renowned name in the food industry of United States offering fresh and healthy salads. Salad Creation offers spectacular taste at affordable prices and with the growing consciousness of the people around the world to have more fresh and natural foods, the demand of salad has increased to a great extent. The proposal analyses the situation of Salad Creation to start offering the fresh salad in United Kingdom as it plans to expand the idea of fresh and natural foods in other parts of the world besides United States. Salad Creation has been evaluating to offer its services in London, United Kingdom and then afterwards to other parts of United Kingdom. In London, the management has selected the Oxford Street where the company should be opening its first outlet in United Kingdom. There are several reasons for selecting this location; accessibility of resources, ease of customers to reach, an important area in the city, availability of transport etc. In the appendix section, a map has been placed identifying the proposed location of Salad Creations. Although, the demand for such products have been increasing throughout the world. However, there are few competitors already operating in London

Planning and Enabling Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Planning and Enabling Learning - Essay Example The 9th and the 12th academic year are the two most significant life paths that a student can pass through. Generally those two years guide the students to their chosen careers. To a greater degree though what will bring success in his/her life depends on the choice of subjects during these stages. Both parents and teachers play an immense role in directing children towards what education route to choose that would lead them to successfully university and career development. BTEC was established in 1984 and stands for the Business Education Council (BEC) and the Technician Education Council (TEC). BTEC course is based on continuous assessment rather than on annual exams. The BTEC course incorporates opportunities for work experience and gaining real life skills through case studies. BTEC course is designed to enhance the demands of employers in modern society and to allow students to quickly progress to their university degree. BTEC has proved its operational success and effectivenes s in the last 25 years and is gaining popularity as students are mo focused on day to day abilities and the course's flexible nature. Statistically, more than 1 million students enrolled on BTEC course for the academic year 2006/2007 (Edexcel BTEC Course, 2009).Institutions and students all around the world value the BTEC brand because it delivers excellent vocational qualifications that signify global recognition to the chosen area of studies. Practically it does not matter whether the programme is taught in London, Beijing or Dubai, since the quality assurance procedures assure that the candidates are awarded with standardized and internationally recognized qualifications. BTEC diplomas are organized to provide specialist work-related abilities in a wide range of sectors. BTEC courses equip students with valuable and lifelong skills and knowledge required for their career progress, and/or for the continuation of their vocational studies at higher academic level. During the BTEC course learners meet with professionals from the preferred industry in order to receive adequate consultation and the specialists to supervise the programme and progressive activities of the students. All BTEC seminars cover core and expert units, thus they have standard format and clear guidance about the requirements of the qualifications assessed. There is assessment criteria applied. The learners get Pass, Merit, or Distinction for each module of the programme. This means that the learners have to collect a number of points to obtain the overall Pass Grade for the programme. No external examinations apply in BTEC programmes (Edexcel BTEC course, 2009). When designing the cou rses providers work closely with employers from different sectors to create an inspiring atmosphere where students gain the skills they need to either start employment immediately after graduation or continue to a higher education. The subject areas that BTEC cover are: Applied Sciences Children's Care, Learning and Development Engineering Hospitality Languages Public Services and Security Art and Design Construction Hairdressing, Beauty and Related Therapies IT and Computing Media Sport, Leisure and Recreation Business, Management and Services Education and Training Health, Care and Counselling Land and the Environment Performing Arts and Music Travel, Tourism and Transport Services - Decide on the envisaged group and identify the barriers The envisaged focused group is 12 graders. The barriers that learners at BTEC course can face while planning and organizing his ideas are several. First of all, when one is attempting to clarify and comprehend the functions or operations of the studied course, students can rarely imagine properly the object itself. For example, it will be difficult to communicate how to use a computer for the first time if this is not visually demonstrated. In order for learners to study the subject, they have to get the object related to it. In this way they will experience it in various directions and will build

Analysis of Walden Paddlers company business model Assignment

Analysis of Walden Paddlers company business model - Assignment Example Problems (1-3 problems) Walden Paddlers Company has been facing the following problems namely: 1. Whether the company should remaining being operated by two people, become a virtual corporation 2. Problem of finding alternative products 3. The problem of finding potential markets (Yang, 2015). Existing Alternatives Walden Paddlers Company had the following options; 1. Focus on kayak market and produce limited number of orders 2. Execute aggressive Kayak market expansion 3. Diversify into other recreational products. Solutions to each problem 1. The company grew tremendously, creating a need to grow virtually which made it able to reach customers located in different parts of the world 2. The company found a new alternative product called paddlers that were cheaper and affordable. 3. The Kayak market was full of giant companies; Walden focused on retail market segment and targeted school and college students (Yang, 2015) Key Metrics The key parameters, in this case, that shows the com pany success include; increase in revenues and sales volumes. i). Helping people to pursue outdoor paddling pleasure in a healthy way ii). To provide clean and suitable living by recycling waste products iii).

How China Grew Rich Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

How China Grew Rich - Research Paper Example This is because these companies are usually export-import oriented. On this basis, the integration of foreign direct investment with the labor force of the domestic country has an effect of creating a positive development of an economy of a country1. Globalization is a factor in the emergence of this international trade, and more so after the disintegration of the Soviet Union. This is because the Soviet Union was a country that was advocating for communalism. On this note, all countries under its influence had a closed economy. However, after its disintegration, majority of the nations within the world began to create an export promotion policy. They began to open their market system for purposes of promoting free trade. In developing these policies, developing countries of the world took an example of the Asian tiger economies compromising of Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea and Hong Kong. These countries managed to improve their economies because of insisting on exports, instead of imports. This policy involved the removal of trade barriers, and encouraging direct foreign investments. On this basis, local companies within the country will participate in international trade by associating with these multi-national companies2. This export promotion strategy was successful in developing countries, and China began to experiment with it in the periods of 1970s. It is important to denote that China had one of the closest economies of the world, prior to the 1970s. The various regimes in the country regulated its economy, and they never encouraged any direct investments within the country. On this basis, their market system was closed. This made the country to be very poor, contributing to its low economic development. However, after opening up its market system to foreign companies, China was able to attract a large percentage of foreign investments and capital3. In 1990s, the country became the second largest nation to host foreign direct investments after

Central and Eastern Europe Environmental Issues Essay Example for Free

Central and Eastern Europe Environmental Issues Essay Eastern Europe’s environmental problems are not as simple as they may seem on the surface. The environmental problems that face Eastern Europe are complicated by political, economic, and social implications. The current environmental problems are a bi-product of rapid industrial expansion under a socialist government. The soviet government was more concerned with surpassing the western cultures in technology and military might than the environmental damage they were doing to their country. The following paragraphs will address the current environmental problems facing Eastern Europe, the various solutions to the environmental problems, and the efforts taken to correct the environmental problems. Environmental Problems in Europe Eastern Europe during the 1980s had rapidly become the industrial giant for the Soviet Union. Massive industrial factories would be built throughout the eastern bloc of the Soviet Union and the factories used obsolete technology to provide the industrial needs of the country. The heavy industrial activity characteristic of the post-World War II period took a heavy toll on both the regions population and its environmentâ€Å"(U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2010). Various local populations were suffering from high rates of cancer, respiratory issues, and infant mortalities. The environments in the areas around the industrial regions were also being damaged on unprecedented levels. Legacy of Pollution According to the U. S.  Environmental Protection Agency (2010), The outmoded, energy-intensive technologies were such an integral part of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and New Independent States of the former Soviet Union (NIS) regions economy in the post-war era not only wasted resources, but also caused severe local, regional, and trans-boundary pollution problems. Not only was the industrial technology outdated, the communication among the post-war government, local governments, and various environmental ministries was ripe with secrecy and non-communication between each other. The results would prove to be catastrophic pollution of the air, surface water, soil, ground water, marine zones, and coastal areas. Air Pollution Air pollution in Eastern Europe is the top concern because of the levels of sulfur dioxide found in all the industrial areas. High levels of sulfur dioxide exposure can lead to asthmatic children and adults, respiratory illness, decreased lung defenses, and worsening of existing cardiovascular diseases. When Sulfur Dioxide is exposed to rain it creates acid rain and raises the acidity level of everything it touches such as soil, lakes, and streams. Buildings corrode faster and there is also a reduction in visibility. Water Pollution Agricultural and industrial practices were causing large spread water pollution because of outdated waste regulation practices and no environmental regulation. According to Liroff (1990), Drinking-water supplies throughout Eastern Europe are heavily contaminated. Vast reaches of the Vistula River in Poland, which drains much of the country, are classified as unfit for use even by industry. The Baltic and Black Sea coasts are badly degraded by domestic sewage, agricultural run-off, and heavy metals and organic pollutants from industry. The Eastern Europe governments have been slow to implement solutions to purify the drinking water in the various regions. Soil Pollution Samples of produce from upper Poland have yielded 30 to 70 higher percentages of cadmium, lead, zinc and mercury then acceptable levels listed by the World Health Organization. The high percentages of these heavy materials indicate how polluted the soil is in the upper polish regions. In Hungary alone, waste generators dispose of more than 500,000 tons waste found in illegal landfills. The local government has trouble tracking any kind of waste transportation and disposal due to obsolete tracking processes, and because not all waste is indicated as waste before being disposed of. Eastern Europe is wreaked with not only environmental problems, but also with government, and local government problems also. The good news is that there are viable solutions to the environmental problems that the Eastern Europe countries are having. Viable Environmental Solutions The environmental problems that face Central and Eastern Europe are much the same as any other country in the world with one exception, the proximity of the environmental hazards. Most countries in the world deal with environmental hazards, but the hazards are spread out over different parts of the country. Central and Eastern Europe are unique when it comes to environmental disasters because Central and Eastern Europe was the industrial might behind the soviet military. For every environmental disaster Central and Eastern Europe faces, there is a viable solution thanks to modern technology and proven environmental regulations. Possible environmental solutions Because of the vast environmental disasters throughout Central and Eastern Europe there are several possible environmental solutions. The possible environmental solutions that Central and Eastern Europe are considering will be decided by the cost of the solution, ease of implementation, and consultation from environmental agencies such as the United States Environmental Agency. Even with the various economic, governmental agency communication problems, and various ecological disasters Central and Eastern Europe have a number of viable solutions. Air Pollution Solutions One of the possible remedies for air quality in Europe would be to switch to burning low sulfur coal. When coal is burned, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury compounds are released. For that reason, coal-fired boilers are required to have control devices to reduce the amount of emissions that are released. The amount of sulfur oxides produced by power can be reduced by using coal with low amounts of sulfur present. Another possible air solution would be to use scrubbers. Scrubbers are an air pollution control system that removes pollutants from the air stream they are most commonly used to help control the emissions of sulfur into our air. There are a few types of scrubber, Air scrubbers, wet scrubbers, and gas scrubbers are differentiated by the manner in which they remove gases and particulates from the air; either wet or dry. Wet scrubbers literally wash dust and particles out of the air. Exhaust air is forced into a spray chamber, where fine water particles cause the dust to drop from the air stream. The dust-laden water is then treated to remove the solid material and is often re-circulated. Dry scrubbers are used more commonly with acid gases. The pollutant is collected on or in a solid or liquid material, which is injected into the gas stream. A dry scrubber produces a dry product that must be collected downstream from this control device. Water Pollution Solutions One of the many possible water pollution solutions would be aeration. Aerating is the process to bring river water at the bottom of rivers up to the surface so that the entire river is oxygenated by the atmosphere surface to bottom. They can do this by pumping air into bodies of water at the very bottom. On the other hand Central and Eastern Europe could use more wastewater treatment plants these types of plants would drastically help the water quality in Central and Eastern Europe by removing harmful bacteria’s, animal wastes and pollutants and then recycling the clean water back into their system.. Soil Pollution Solutions There are many different types of soil pollution that hurt the environment and by treating Sewage before dumping wastes would cut back on many of the current environmental issues. Spraying pesticides may be good for the crops but it’s destroying the soil and the drain off into the water system is affected by this as well. Cutting down on the usage of fossil fuels would create less solid waste and harmful gasses that may seep into the soil. Eastern Europe needs to adapt to more of these possible solutions. Using low sulfur coals, Scrubbers and limestone in the remedies of air pollution would set a chain reaction in the environment the water would then become cleaner along with the soil. These remedies may not fix the issue completely for Eastern Europe, but it would help them greatly. Efforts to correct  Central and Eastern Europe have been left untouched since the end of the Nazi/German rule and the fall of the Great Berlin Wall on November 9th, 1989. Many of the people living in such a terrible environment still struggle every day to survive, but it is not a war against other countries it has turned into an environmental war and one that is near impossible for them to win without help. As with most all larger countries around the world Eastern and Central Europe are suffering from the same types of environmental issues but, in their case they do not have the means that we do in order to make the necessary changes that they need. Practical and low cost solutions need to be the wave of the future and used as often as possible. The problems need to be prioritized based on the highest health risk and the surrounding public will be educated and involved in its’ own environmental decision making. AIR- Airborne pollution is said to be one of the greatest environmental risks identified in the region. There is a large amount of sulfur dioxide found in the air, it comes from several different places but are byproducts of several different types of older industrial facilities like the old coal burning power plants that used to be found there (EPA). The United states are one of the few countries in which it is a law for vehicle owners to participate in an annual emissions test. The Czech government however has accelerated its’ efforts in cleaning the air pollution through it $240 million project that will assist its residents in converting homes from coal to natural gas in hopes to subsidize conversion costs (EPA). Along with this local agencies in many areas lack the equipment needed to assess and identify local problems so the Krakow Air Monitoring project. This project is under the supervision of the EPA and the Polish environmental experts are working together to identify and measure the major sources of industrial, residential and vehicle emissions testing (EPA). Along with such a huge problem facing the countries the EPA has also transferred some very low-cost techniques to help them out. Water pollution- Along with clean air there is the Krakow Water and Wastewater Improvement project, the idea here is to provide safe drinking water to city residents. Most people are drinking from contaminated drinking sources, especially those outside of the city limits. The idea here is not only to decontaminate the water before it is consumed, but to attack the problem at the source and to educate the people of the possible affects that waste dumping in unsecure facilities can have on them and their families. The Krakow project as a result installed modern ozonation and chlorination equipment that in turn disinfected the drinking water of 400,000 residents in the area. It also focused on the improvement the forming of the Raba River Watershed Association as well as focusing on the agricultural runoff into local streams and rivers (EPA). In addition to this a team of EPA, Wisconsin, and Latvian environmental managers have also come up with a solution to protect supplies of future ground water in Daugavplis, this is where the national ground water protection strategy is based. Solid and Hazardous Waste- All types of waste needs to be dumped somewhere and the most contaminated solid waste sites are often found on military bases in Eastern Europe. They can be found on active or former military base cites, these are still dumping cites. Children in these areas are affected the most and are still being diagnosed with very high blood-lead levels, due to these case studies the EPA has provided special equipment and training to local officials to assess possible impacts of lead exposure. Due to such high levels of exposure in certain areas additional support has been provided by Romanian officials to assist areas in the cleanup of contaminated soil, the Czech Council of Ministers even committed to assist the cleanup of future development cites by approving $40 million to get started, this is called Project Selesia. This is not the only cleanup plan in effect there is also the Solid Waste Policy Demonstration Project, this idea helps to train local communities in the proper way to carry out more effective policies of cleaning and recycling waste. Pilot programs include the construction of new sanitary landfills, the cleanup of existing landfills, curbside recycling, are probably the most important public outreach programs taking place (EPA). Technology Transfer- the EPA has also helped with the development of a geographic information system (GIS), this system helps to track different trends that occur over time. The GIS is a computer-based mapping system that over time will store and track other environmental information that identifies pollution source and tracks it over time. This system will help the public become more informed and promote better decision making (EPA). The Radiation and Nuclear Safety Manage ment Project is yet one more idea that is hoped to assist different storage areas of nuclear material in a quick-turnaround of radiochemistry data in case of any future leaks and potential disasters. To be able to assist such tracking a mobile radioecology laboratory was created by the EPA along with the United Nations Development Program and USAID, have provided the Ukraine with possibly one of the world’s best equipped mobile radiation monitoring laboratories. This lab is monitored by both the EPA project team and Ministry officials have since been conducting on-site contamination assessments of potential public health threats all around the country (EPA).

The Ideas Of The Classical School

The Ideas Of The Classical School In order to appropriately address the topic of discussion, its important to consider the criminological perspectives related to the debate and the principles associated with each perspective. Two schools which will be drawn upon are the Classical school, which was established towards the end of the 18th century and the Positivist school which developed towards the end of the 19th century. The Classical school was based on a utilitarian philosophy and demonstrated the idea that, for the sake of consistency, every offender must be treated equally. The Positivist school, however, opposed Classical principles, using the scientific method to study human behaviour, expressing individuality and stressing the need for the criminal to be treated with appropriate discretion. One contentious area within criminology is the idea that the criminal is normal. Jeremy Bentham, a Classical thinker, argues that this is indeed the case. Criminals are normal in that they are rational, calculated decision-makers just like everybody else. Individuals have free-will and they are guided by a hedonistic calculus the maximisation of pleasure and the minimisation of pain (Bentham cited by Walklate 2007:18). Such idea suggests that before engaging in criminal activity, the criminal calculates whether the reward outweighs the risk. i.e., is the potential pleasure worth the potential punishment? However, what this assumption fails to consider is that criminality can sometimes be a spontaneous reaction; its not always a pre-meditated one. People may act out of pure desperation; giving little thought to the consequences should he/she be caught. An ideal to support this would be the clichà ©d scenario in which an individual steals a loaf of bread to feed his/her starving fami ly. Such action involves no particular thought process; they do what they do simply because they wish to survive. However, thats not to say that rational choice is not apparent. It does have relevance to certain crimes, especially crimes such as burglary in which a planning process is undergone before hand to avoid detection and significantly increase the chances of a successful sweep, such as observations of home security and patterns in daily comings and goings. Arguably the main principle of the Classical approach can be said to be reflective of the idea that the criminal is normal this principle being that offenders should receive equal punishments, providing the offences are of the same or a similar nature. The principle revolves around the idea that everybody is equal and thus to treat everybody as equals disregards the conception that theres an abnormality in the behaviour of the criminal (Hopkins Burke 2009: 31). Their philosophy expresses that there is no place in the categorisation and labelling of individuals into specific groups based on conditions which they may or may not have; in order for there to be a truly just justice system, everybody must be treated the same. This principle has, unsurprisingly, come under a lot of criticism, a general criticism of which would argue that society is in fact unequal (in terms of the divisions in social class) and so for an offender to be punished in the same way as an affluent offender is s een to be ludicrous. Take the example mentioned previously: an individual who is forced to engage in the theft of a loaf of bread to feed their starving family should not be punished in the same way as a president of a large corporation, for example, who dips his hand into the wages of his employees to give himself a larger bonus. In one scenario the crime is very much committed out of necessity, whereas the other is a crime of greed and thus it would be unfair, morally, to treat the cases equally as they are clearly unequal in nature. On the flip side to the normality of the criminal debate, comes the idea that the criminal is sick. Where in the 18th and early 19th century, we have discussed that crime was believed to be a deliberately chosen behaviour of rational actors; the second half of the 19th century saw the emergence of individual positivism which sought to dispel the Classical approach to explanations of crime and the ways in which criminals should be punished (Sapsford 1981: 310). Such perspective doubted the ability of a criminal to choose to engage in crime and that criminality, they argued, is a form of mental illness which removes their capacity to act freely. Therefore, straight away the disparity between Individual Positivism and Classical criminology become visible. Cesare Lombroso (1876) was a key contributor to Positivist criminology. His research focused on idea that the criminal is born a criminal and they have very little choice in the matter. He studied the physical differences between the criminal and the non-criminal, whilst also taking into account the similarities and differences of the criminal and the mentally ill. Most notably, he drew the observation that criminals possess similar traits to an atavistic being which of course refers to an earlier stage in human development. Such observations included irregularity in skull size, ear size, irregularities in both height and weight and many other traits. However, he was also prepared to accept that not all criminals are born into the role and that some in fact do achieve it either through mental disorders or the environments in which they live (Lombroso 1876 cited by Sapsford 1981: 310-311). The views regarding the normality or the abnormality of the criminal have a substantial effect on the ways in which the Classicists and the Positivists believe punishment should be distributed. The history of the use of punishment is an interesting one. Michel Foucault (1979) in his book Discipline and Punish provides a great context into how the problem of crime was treated pre-enlightenment. The purpose of Foucaults research was to establish how it was that we got to the stage where incarceration became the main kind of punishment. It was 1757 Paris in which Foucault researched a man who was convicted of murder and sentenced to death by the court. By order of the court, the man was publicly taken through the streets of Paris in horse-drawn cart until he arrived at the point of execution. He was stripped to the waist, flesh was torn from him with pincers, sulphur was poured onto his hands and he was then quartered by four horses. Four hours passed before his torso was pierced onto a spike. The following day, the torso was burned and the execution process was complete (Foucault 1976: 3). What Foucault found was that the punishment was very much made into a public spectacle and these public displays were boisterous affairs people found great pleasure in seeing people condemned for their transgressions. 80 years later, a similar thing happened. A man was found guilty of murder, but instead of receiving the same brutal punishment; he was incarcerated, isolated from the outside world. High walls kept the criminal confined on the inside; the public were kept on the outside public emotions were taken out of punishment. Although Foucault was not associated with the Classical school, his observations were regarded highly by Classicist thinkers, particularly Cesare Beccaria. Beccaria was an enlightened thinker who sought great need in replacing irrational thinking with a rational one. He stated that pre-1750; punishments were barbaric and localised meaning that punishments varied from place to place (Beccaria 1764 cited by McLaughlin et al 2003: 11). Punishments were vengeful with public participation permitted through the throwing of projectiles and the hurling of abuse. Beccaria claimed that such a criminal justice system is weak and as a result, he set out to reform the way in which we punish offenders, in which Foucault insisted that his intentions were not to punish less, but to punish better (Foucault 1976: 82). For Beccaria, one of the main issues that needed to be addressed was the complex nature of the law and the written legislature. The law needed to be made clear and simple so that people can understand what is deemed acceptable and unacceptable behaviour. Law should not just be a doctrine which can only be understood by lawyers and other legal experts, but should be understood by the individual when the number of those who can understand the sacred code of laws and hold it in their hands increases, the frequency of crimes will be found to decrease (Beccaria 1963: 18). Classicist thinking requires that the punishment must be proportionate to the offence (Newburn 2007: 116). Proportionality has in itself caused confusion, with some taking it literally to be reflective of the notion: eye for an eye. However, what is truly meant by the term is that punishment should not be too excessive as it doesnt have any real impact on preventing crimes from occurring. In order for punishment to be justified, it must have a use and the use that punishment provides is its deterrence effect on the rest of society it must prevent others from committing the same crimes (Newburn 2007: 116). The most important aspect of punishment, for Classical criminology, is that the general public are discouraged from committing crimes because of the fear of suffering a similar fate to the offender who has been caught and publicly punished. Also, this punishment must be made certain. That is, that people must be made aware that crime will not be tolerated and punishment will follow. Again, this relates to the general deterrence of punishment. A significantly effective way of deterring the public is through the participation of the media in the reporting of crimes. Rarely, crimes are reported to have gone without punishment. Yet it must be said that the certainty of punishment doesnt necessarily reduce crime in all cases. There are of course instances where people are aware of the consequences of a crime but continue to carry out the crime nonetheless. Ideally, the more promptly the punishment follows the crime; the more just a justice system will be a concept which makes a whole lot of sense. The modern day criminal justice system is a rather weak one in terms of how quickly they are able to process trials through a court and decide on whether the accused is guilty or not guilty. Such lack of urgency is deemed a cruel torment of uncertainty as the criminal is forced to wait an indeterminate length of time to hear the verdict and the punishments that may follow should the verdict be one of guilt (Beccaria 1963: 19). The promptness of punishment would thus spare the criminal of this torment. However, not only does the promptness of punishment serve in the interests of the accused, it also serves in the interests of the criminal justice system. If a system is seen to be tough on crime in that they can swiftly and appropriately punish an offender, people will recognise that the chances of them evading detection are slim. Whilst the Classicist justification for punishment resembles that of a retributivist nature, the Positivist approach looks more to rehabilitate the offender and provide treatment for the sick criminal. Sentences must consider the psychological conditions behind why it is that somebody engages in crime. It would simply unfair to give somebody suffering from some degree of mental deficiency the same punishment as a person who is of sound mind. The criminal justice system needs therefore to encompass mitigating circumstances which can decrease the culpability of the accused as they are not controllably committing unlawful behaviours. Mitigating circumstances can be seen in the English Criminal Justice System, evident with the offence of manslaughter which is an offence of less culpability than murder. One partial defence for murder, written under s.2(1) of the Homicide Act 1957, is diminished responsibility which states that a person will not be found guilty of murder if they suffered f rom an abnormality of mind which substantially impaired their mental responsibility for the action (Padfield 2000: 153). Such mitigating circumstances are necessary because people are not the same and thus to punish them as equals would be inappropriate and completely unjust. Some people dont act out of their own free-will, they have little to no control over their behaviours and it would be wrong to give them the same punishments as those who are fully in control of their behaviour i.e. the rational, calculated offenders. In drawing a conclusion, its clear to see that theres been a progressive development in theories regarding the debate of the normality or the abnormality of the criminal. Classical thinking preceded Positivist thinking and their principles did not take into consideration that scientific explanations for the behaviour of the criminal could be influential to the formation of a just criminal justice system. The emergence of the scientific approach saw improvements into how we perceive the criminal. In most cases, the criminal is sick and its thus necessary to at least attempt to try and treat them rather than punish them. This saw a shift from a retributivist approach to a reductionist one which saw to rehabilitate the offender. But although the two perspectives are the contrast of one another, thats not to say that one of them, have had little impact on the criminal justice system that we see today. Todays system encompasses principles from both perspectives from the Classical school, it takes the idea that punishment must fit the crime that the serious offences must be met with a more severe punishment and subsequently, the lesser offences should receive a lesser sentence. We can see that with the sentencing tariffs in which each offence requires a minimum and a maximum sentence for the offence. From the Positivist school, the system adopts the idea that the punishment must also fit the criminal the culpability of the offender must be considered in order to ensure that the best possible sentence is imposed on the offender. The influence of Positivism has also encouraged a variety of punishments/treatments including community sentences which serves as both a retributitive punishment and a rehabilitative treatment. Beccaria, C. (1963) On Crimes and Punishments. 18-19. New York; Bobbs-Merrill. Foucault, M. (1976) Discipline and Punish. 3, 82. London; Penguin. Hopkins Burke, R. (2009) An Introduction to Criminological Theory. 31. Collumpton; Willan. McLaughlin, E., Muncie, J. and Hughes, G. (2003) Criminological Perspectives: Essential Readings. 11. London; Sage. Newburn, T. (2007) Criminology. 116. Collumpton; Willan. Padfield, N. (2000) Criminal Law. 153. London; Cromwell Press. Sapsford, R.J. (1981) Individual Deviance: The Search for the Criminal Personality in Fitzgerald, M., McLennan, G. and Pawson, G. (1981) Crime and Society: Readings in History and Theory. 310-311. London; Routledge. Walklate, S. (2007) Understanding Criminology: Current Theoretical Debates. 18. Cardiff; Open University Press.

Essay --

Naturalism in Literature Naturalism is the literary movement that directly followed, and was born from, the Realistic Movement. Unlike Realism, which focused on the middle class, Naturalism focused on the lower class. The characters of naturalist writers were usually poor, disenfranchised, living in impoverished conditions and struggling to survive hardships. This is how naturalism is explained according to The American Novel, â€Å"While it is strongly associated with realism, in the shared emphasis on depicting surface reality, naturalism is more than a literary technique, involving as it does the philosophy of determinism. Naturalism is antiromantic in emphasizing the limited ability of humans to impose will upon their own destiny, and also in devaluing the imagination's embellishment of reality. For the naturalist, it is the duty of the writer to present to the reader reality without illusion, to offer a scientific, detached view of it rather than to adorn or mislead or simply please the reader† (Matterson). Naturalism also focuses on nature and how humans are subject to the laws on nature. Naturalists believed that circumstances were what controlled your life. The belief was that your environment is what determined the rest of your life or who or what would become of you. In Crane’s The Open Boat the story is a perfect model for naturalism because of the way it pessimistically depicts life. The four men in the story are at the mercy of the natural setting of the sea. Nature is portrayed as heartless and unsympathetic toward the circumstances of men. The characters of the story are not given supernatural powers to fight and win against nature as they would have been given in romanticism. The motif of the story seems to be ... ...y similarities. Both forms were reactions to and against Romanticism. They both try to simulate and parallel real life and both were to uncover and unmask the social ills and bigotries of society. These bigotries not only related to racial divides but also classism. Naturalism, which is an offshoot of Realism, focused more on the underprivileged and lower classes because Realism seemed to have left this group out. Naturalism also focused more on the power of nature and the environment, whereas Realism focused more on the characters. Naturalists often left their characters unnamed to ensure the focal point was the conditions or surroundings and not the people. Naturalisms themes are despair, cruelty of nature and how uncaring it is about people. The characters in naturalism often end up dying with lengthy periods of reflection of life before the death occurs.

Comparing of Shakespeares Othello and Volpone :: comparison compare contrast essays

Othello Compared to Jonson's Volpone  Ã‚   Both Othello and Volpone are set in Venice, well known for its wealth, power, and justice. Shakespeare called Venice the Whore of the Adriatic, for many different reasons: it is a port city, with many ships coming and going; it is also a corrupt city , with much pollution--not only of the actual enviornment but the soul as well. In Volpone the corruption that is planned between Volpone and Mosca is evident from the beginning. The two are taking advantage of their kinsmen's weaknesses--gullibility and an all-out lust for money. This is similar to Iago taking advantage of Othe llo's gullibility and jealousy in order to gain Desdemona. In Volpone, Mosca and Volpone are swindling people out of money while making them believe they are to become the sole heir of Volpone's vast riches when he dies. The situation is the same in Oth ello, but Iago longs for leadership capabilities and a title. Iago longs to be in charge of the Mercenaries as he believes he is more qualified for the position than Othello. Much of this is brought on by Othello's race and his love for Desdemona; he i s a Moor who loves a white woman. Both plays, being filled with bribery, deceit, lies and hate, are best set in Venice which shares many of the same traits. Another trait that is shared is the theme of prostituting women. Venice was known for its courtesan class, a group of well-dressed prostitutes. In both plays the virtue of a young woman is compromised by men seeking to increase their own fortunes. I n Volpone, Corvino makes a whore out of his wife Celia by offering her to the men around town, and in the play's climactic scene, to Volpone himself. In either instance, Corvino is thinking of his own financial gain and not of the injustice he brings to his wife.

Holden Caufield from The Catcher In the Rye :: essays papers

Holden Caufield from The Catcher In the Rye A family can be classified as one of many things. It can be a group of people living under one roof; a group of people of common ancestry; or even a unit of a crime syndicate like the Mafia (Merriam Webster). But to Holden Caulfield, the main character of J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher In The Rye, his family was what we as a society normally think of when that word is spoken. There are always variations on a theme, but a typical family consists of two parents and at least one child. During the 1950’s when the novel is set, adoption was virtually unheard of and divorce could be considered a sin where as today these are common practices. But one thing about family that has prevailed through the decades is the family’s affect on a person’s existence. The way a person interacts with their family can affect them for the rest of their lives. And the way a family interacts with a specific person can affect that person for the rest of their life. It is a two way relationship which is often complicated and confusing, especially to Holden. Holden’s family is obviously very important to him. The novel opens with talking about his parents and his brother. Holden negatively criticizes them to hide the fact that he truly loves them. But, one would ask, how can you love those you never see? Holden is constantly being shipped from one boarding school to another. This absence between him and his parents intensifies his general alienation from everyone. Holden’s only real love in the family is for his sister Phoebe. The bond and respect between brother and sister can not be broken no matter how far the distance between them. When Holden arrives back in New York, he immediately wanted to call someone; his sister Phoebe. "She wouldn’t’ve cared if I’d woke her up†¦" (Salinger 59) Many people her age would not appreciate being woken up that late at night, especially by their brother, but there is a mutual respect between Phoebe and Holden that would allow for this event to occur. Throu gh out the whole novel, this relationship continues because she is his little sister and he would never hurt her. In today’s world, this type of relationship is next to impossible.

Issues in Art Therapy with Children Essay

Art therapy is the therapeutic use of making art within a professional relationship, and the process involved in making art is healing and life-enhancing. In the early 1980s, the American Art Therapy Association (Levick, 1983, as cited in Newcomer, 1993) regarded art therapy as an opportunity for nonverbal expression and communication with the belief that the creative process of art is a means of reconciling emotional conflicts and of fostering self-awareness. The association later expanded their definition to read: â€Å"Art Therapy is a human service profession that utilizes art media, images, the creative art process and patient/client responses to the created products as reflections of an individual’s development, abilities, personality, interests, concerns and conflicts. Art experiences can provide an alternative to verbal forms of assessment and treatment† (American Art Therapy Association Newsletter, 1998). Kaplan (2000) reviewed the findings of other neuroscientists who noted that graphic representation is a complex activity, involving areas of the brain associated with language. For example, Restak (1994) reported that more brain neurons are devoted to vision than the other senses. Kaplan suggests that studio art can facilitate problem-solving abilities, stimulate pleasure and self-esteem, and provide opportunities for successful functioning in children and adults with cognitive impairments. Malchiodi (2003) cites studies by scientists who found that drawing involves complex interactions between many parts of the brain, and notes that science will be central to understanding how art therapy works and why it is a powerful therapeutic modality. Riley (2003) observed that offering opportunities to create art to depressed adolescents as a means of communication that can be enjoyed and controlled provides a lens for viewing their perceptions through their own images, as well as a vehicle for treatment and a way to address resistance. In addition, she finds drawingless confrontational, less familiar, and less judgmental than talk, and that adolescent depression is often masked. Teenagers may also be angry or aggressive, as opposed to the lassitude characteristic of depressed adults, and art-making can serve to relieve painful self-deprecation. Wadeson (1980) noted that drawings by patients experiencing depression showed less color, less affect, and less effort than the drawings of nondepressed individuals. In addition, they showed more empty space and more depressive affect, such as drawing about harming others. Silver & Ellison (1995) described the behavior and history of a 16-year-old who had been arrested and incarcerated for stabbing another youth with a pencil. His history included a volatile temper and it was feared that he might harm others. His father had disappeared and his mother had been killed in a gang-related incident. During his stay in the facility, he was placed on suicide watch, and then was disciplined for angry acting-out. Three weeks after his release, he committed suicide. Advantages of Art Therapy vs. Traditional Verbal Therapy for Children Many studies performed by therapist-researchers have been chosen to focus on art therapy in particular because of the expressive arts benefit of allowing children a nonverbal outlet for their feelings. However, because art therapy is a relatively new modality, there is a minimal amount of research that has been conducted to support its efficacy or usefulness. Therefore, traditionally there has been less acceptance of it as a viable treatment option. Due to this belief, it is important to point out the many advantages of conducting art therapy to treat a wide spectrum of mental illnesses, from severe disorders such as schizophrenia to mild behavioral disorders. There are many therapeutic advantages to this particular type of therapy. Pre-adolescent children often have difficulty expressing their thoughts and feelings verbally. Children’s linguistic and cognitive skills are not fully developed, which limits their verbal expression. Because art therapy involves nonverbal communication, it is useful with this age population whose developmental limitations prevent the level of participation often required in verbal therapy (Newcomer, 1993). Instead of words, the image created by the child is the symbolic representation of a feeling, event, wish, etc. This form of preverbal expression and preverbal thinking does not require translation because it is depicted in image form. For children who are not able to make the translation, art is used as a vehicle for expression rather than words (Newcomer, 1993). Another advantage of art therapy is that the image produced can serve as a catalyst for verbal expression. This image then provides the child with structure and a foundation in an attempt to explain or describe the production (Newcomer, 1993). Many children suffer from low self-esteem and low self-confidence. When a child participates in art therapy activities and can master the materials and projects, it provides an opportunity for the child to increase self-esteem and self-confidence. Many of the participants in the present study suffer from a poor self-image and low self-esteem and confidence. Children, particularly in violent neighborhoods, often feel a lack of control over the unpredictable and unstable environment in which they are living. Therefore, it is important to gain mastery of a task, which helps build a feeling of control. Art projects can serve to do this. Art therapy is advantageous to traditional talk therapy in that it helps to provide a socially acceptable opportunity for expression and is relatively nonthreatening, whereas verbal therapy can carry a stigma. Many individuals, both children and adults, suffer from the stigma of being in therapy. Reducing or eliminating this negative stigma can serve to enhance the therapy (Newcomer, 1993). Art therapy provides a forum where children are able to freely express emotion when discussing their artwork without fear of violating social norms. Another benefit of art therapy is the social component that can be worked into the session if providing group art therapy. By working on group projects and sharing materials, it helps develop interpersonal relationships and fosters cooperation (Newcomer, 1993). At the Lake School’s Insight Through Art Program, all children in the groups share materials and at times engage in group projects. Another advantage of art therapy that has been noted is the decrease in energy level that occurs during the creative process (Newcomer, 1993). Individuals in art therapy are still stimulated as in talk therapy, but in a different way that provides greater relaxation. Many of the children at the Lake School are hyperactive, anxious, and overly excited. Working on an art project provides structure, containment, and limit setting that helps to calm children down. Art can also have the reverse effect on depressed, introverted children. Art and art-making can help stimulate these individuals and increase participation in therapy and decrease inhibition. A disadvantage of verbal therapy is that when working verbally, individuals can stop and filter thoughts and feelings (Wadeson, 1980). It is easier to control and tame your words then your art. This editing can slow down the therapeutic process. Harriet Wadeson lists objectification as another advantage. This term is based on the premise that art expression can form a bridge. Objectification is the notion that â€Å"feelings or ideas are at first externalized in an object (picture or sculpture). The art object allows the individual, while separating from the feelings, to recognize their existence† (Wadeson, 1980, p. 10). Hopefully, the individual can then come to own his or her feelings and integrate them into the self. When in art therapy, the individual is left with a tangible object that can be taken with him or her after the therapy has ended (Wadeson, 1980). In verbal therapy, there are no tangible products. The object(s) is symbolic of the work done in treatment and can also serve as a reminder of skills learned. The person then has a reminder of work done, which is especially beneficial for children. The picture or sculpture is not subject to distortions of memory. An additional advantage of having a tangible product is that it is easier to recall and notice emerging patterns. A therapist and the client can derive a sense of ongoing development that occurs in the therapeutic process. The art object provides documentation that is a direct statement by the patient, not filtered by the therapist (Wadeson, 1980). A final noted advantage is that art taps into primary process thinking and allows the child to process the event without the censorship or inhibitions of secondary process thinking. Literature Review of Art Therapy Research Art therapy programs, unlike traditional doctoral programs in psychology, have not emphasized empirical research. Students studying art therapy enter the field because they tend to be more interested in the clinical work rather than in conducting research. Many programs, though this began changing in the 1980s, do not offer the foundational courses in research design. Given this focus, the field of art therapy lacks the research studies that utilize quantifiable data. Therefore, much of the research regarding the efficacy of art therapy has been case studies. Many prolific writers in the field have written about the lack of art therapy research (McNiff, 1998a, Rosal, 1998; Malchiodi, 1995). â€Å"As a relatively new discipline we have yet to ‘advance’ to the stage where professional researchers separate the process of investigation from the ‘the practice of the craft† (McNiff, 1998a, p. 86). Many art therapists struggle with the more traditionally acceptable research procedures. Creative research methods seem to lend themselves better to studying this unique field because in enables the researcher a better opportunity to provide evidence regarding the process of therapeutic change. To show the changes that occur after the course of art therapy, many practitioner-researchers try to let the artistic products speak for themselves, coupled with a description of how the client moved through the process and experience of art therapy. â€Å"The practice of art therapy generates a desire to ‘show’ data on the part of both participants and therapists. The presentation of imagery is a natural extension of the therapeutic process and a primary feature of artistic activity† (McNiff, 1998b, p. 93). To date, it was difficult to find studies that investigated behavioral changes occurring after the introduction of a school-based group art-therapy program. However, there is research that addresses other changes art therapy can bring about. Rosal, McCulloch-Vislisel, and Neece (1997) conducted an art therapy pilot study in an urban high school with ninth-grade students. The program goal was to improve attitudes about school, relationships, and life; decrease the number of failing grades; and keep students from dropping out of school. Results of this study indicated that the art therapy, in conjunction with the English curriculum, had a positive effect on the subjects. The investigators found that the participants stayed in school, failed a very small number of courses, and improved their attitude about school, family, and self. Another study, conducted by Jasenke Roje (1995), utilized art therapy with latency age children who were victims of the 1994 Los Angeles earthquake. Roje found art therapy to be an effective and successful treatment modality in the recovery of earthquake trauma. â€Å"It enabled children to express internal processes which they had no verbal awareness of and it facilitated working through the defenses in order to identify underlying conflicts which hindered recovery† (Roje, 1995, p. 243). Rosal (1993) investigated the use of art therapy to modify the locus of control and adaptive classroom behavior of children with behavior disorders. Subjects were fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students living in a poor urban area in a large city. Most of the children came from unstable families. All subjects were identified as having behavioral difficulties at school and poor peer relationships. Results of this study were not statistically significant, however, Rosal noted change in the subjects. One of the measures Rosal utilized was The Children’s Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Locus of Control (CNS-D3) measure. She found that although there were no statistically significant results, both experimental groups made greater moves toward the norm of the CNS-IE than the control groups. A second measure used in this study was the Conners Teacher Rating Scale (TRS). Results indicated that the two art therapy treatment conditions showed significant differences in changes of diagnosis on the TRS. Both art therapy treatment conditions were more effective than the control group in helping the behavior disordered students improve. Seventy-five percent of the subjects in one of the treatment conditions showed an improved diagnosis on the TRS and 67% showed improved diagnosis in the other treatment condition. The third and final measure that Rosal used in this study was a personal construct drawing interview (PCDI) that was developed specifically for this study to measure changes in self-perception. The students in both art therapy treatment conditions showed an increase in positive attitudes, whereas no major change was noted in the control group. In conclusion, Rosal’s study suggests that art therapy may be an effective modality in helping children with behavior disorders increase levels of control. Pleasant-Metcalf and Rosal (1997) utilized a single-case study research design in a school setting to study the effectiveness of individual art therapy with a 12-year-old girl whose academic performance declined following the divorce of her parents. Evidence in this pilot study suggests that school-based art therapy was effective in helping increase academic performance. This study adds to the growing body of literature supporting the notion that art therapy is an important school-based service and can positively impact academic performance. Avidar (1995) explored through two case studies how art therapy can address treatment needs of children who experience pervasive trauma. The subjects in Avidar’s study, much like the ones in the current study, reside in a violent inner-city housing project in a major metropolitan city. Avidar found that art therapy proves to address the psychological needs of individuals who experience chronic trauma. â€Å"[Art therapy] provides distance, expression, mastery, control, and above all, safety and trust† (Avidar, 1995, p. 16). Omizo and Omizo (1989) used art activities with minority children aged 8 to 11 to help improve self-esteem. It is well documented that poor self-esteem, feelings of incompetence, worthlessness, hopelessness, powerlessness, and feelings of inadequacy contribute to delinquency, substance abuse, unemployment, unrealized potential, poor achievement, and involvement with crime (Roundtree, 1979 and Shaplen, 1982, as cited in Omizo & Omizo, 1989). As in Omizo and Omizo’s study, the children in the current study face the aforementioned feelings and problems. Children in the Omizo study were assigned to an experimental group or a control group and were pre- and post-tested using The Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventory for Children (SEI) to measure self-esteem. Results on the post-test indicated a significant difference between the experimental and control group. The minority children who participated in group counseling that utilized art activities had significantly higher social peer-related and academics/school-related self-esteem. Application of Art Therapy in Counseling Children Historically, therapy has been provided in private offices, hospitals, and community clinics. Traditionally, schools have been viewed narrowly as places to educate. Now that we have entered the 21st century, an expanded notion of the function of the school needs to be considered. Schools are not just the place where students learn academic material; schools also shape students’ psychological well-being, especially in poor urban neighborhoods where there are few resources available to families. Schools are the primary institutions where children gather, and as such, they provide an excellent setting in which to deliver effective services to children in need. Individuals and families may not be able to obtain services if they are required to go to an office-based treatment setting. School-based services can provide a solution to the problem of children not being independently mobile and having to rely on a family member, guardian, or some other adult to take them to therapy. Schools are â€Å"where the children are. We have to take the service to them, rather than expect them to come to us† (McNiff, 1997). This is especially the case when working with disadvantaged, at-risk children. There are a multitude of factors that may lead to a lack of participation in treatment. It is often not a lack of desire or motivation for treatment, but rather a confounding situation. Disadvantaged families usually do not have a reliable source of transportation. Therefore, it makes it very difficult to make a scheduled session that possibly is miles away, outside of their community. Another problem with children receiving services outside of the school is that they have to rely on an adult to get them there. Parents in poor urban settings are often disenfranchised by the system and may lack the motivation to get their child to treatment. In addition, there may be crises that arise and other children whose parents or guardians are caring for that make it difficult to get to scheduled appointments. However, with school-based interventions, if the child attends class, he or she is able to receive treatment without relying on an adult to provide transportation. The school is therefore a more effective place to reach children more consistently. The earlier the intervention, the more likely it is that one can eradicate and reshape unhealthy behaviors among children. The longer the behavior continues, the more difficult it is to extinguish. By meeting the needs of children in a school setting, there is a greater chance of targeting and changing negative behaviors at an early stage. There are numerous advantages to school-based treatments when compared to more traditional settings. There is a push for briefer treatments in which the patient takes a more active role in the therapeutic process. In addition, there is no longer the belief that one type of treatment is appropriate for all presenting problems. Art therapy in the public schools is an alternative approach to a variety of problems, one that is both active and brief. The therapy takes place when school is in session; therefore, the school calendar dictates treatment to only be a certain length of time. Another advantage is that the therapist, by being in the school, is part of the school system and climate and has an opportunity to â€Å"gauge the general social climate that is impinging on the child† (Nicol, 1979, p. 83). The therapist can witness the child interacting with peers and teachers and identify problematic social relationships and social skills that are causing difficulties for the child. Providing treatment in a familiar environment is linked to clients remaining in treatment. The school is a very familiar environment for children, thus increasing the chances that the child will remain in treatment. A final advantage of the school-based setting is the collaboration that can occur amongst professionals (Nicol, 1979). Teachers do not receive the necessary training on how to handle children with behavioral problems. The school-based therapist can serve as a resource for the teachers and school staff, providing consultations and in-school workshops. Given the central role that schools play in the lives of children, we need to expand upon this by not only educating children on subjects of reading, writing, and arithmetic, but also help to foster positive self-esteem and emotional and cognitive growth. In addition, schools also should help children build interpersonal relationship skills and help students to develop positive behaviors. By broadening the definition and role the school plays beyond academic success, children will have a greater chance of success and a larger set of skills necessary to make it in the outside world. Most of the literature on art therapy in schools represents work that is taking place in specialized settings, not urban public schools. â€Å"The severity of problems that children bring into school settings is rising dramatically. Violence, sexual abuse, suicide, substance abuse, poverty, and the decay of family and community structures are just some of the numerous issues affecting children today† (Essex, Frostig, & Hertz, 1996, p. 182). Children bring these problems into the classroom and schools are left with the responsibility to handle these grave situations. When a child is in distress, it interferes with the child’s ability to learn. In 1990, a decision by the Supreme Court of New Jersey emphasized the critical need for public school support of these issues. There have been several other legislative initiatives that focus on the benefits of creative art therapies to help individuals who do not respond to more traditional therapies. â€Å"The Senate and House Report (No. 96-712, May 18, 1980) on the Mental Health Systems Act of 1980 gave special attention to the creative arts therapies in the treatment of persons who required mental health services but who did not respond to traditional therapeutic modalities† (Bush, 1997b, p. 10). Janet Bush (1997a) introduced the first comprehensive art therapy program in a public school in Dade County, Florida during the 1979-1980 school year which still exists today. Other art therapy programs have been started in the United States, but they are not as extensive as Dade County and have developed differently. Initially, the goal of the pilot program in Dade County was to provide art therapy for students with physical, emotional, educational, and psychological problems â€Å"to ameliorate a variety of unacceptable behaviors and to help the students learn by improving students’ insights, attitudes, and skills† (Bush, 1997a, p. 9). Eventually, the program narrowed its focus to only include students with emotional problems. While obtaining her graduate degree in art therapy, Bush recognized how students’ problems were directly and indirectly affecting their educational goals. By introducing art therapy in the school, she hoped to assist the children in problem resolution by providing tools to foster self-expression and emotional and cognitive growth. In 1999, the Bade County school district employed 20 Mi-time art therapists to work in 28 public schools. (Minato, 1999, p. 59). As the art therapy program grew and developed, other professionals (psychologists, social workers, family therapists, and teachers) joined the treatment team. At first, the program combined art education along with art therapy. This was due to the fact that the original funding for the program came from the art education department. In 1995, the program shifted away from art education and started focusing entirely on clinical art therapy objectives with severely emotionally disturbed children (Bush, 1997a). The activities the school art therapists provided were very comprehensive. They included: consultation, assessment, intervention, professional training and development, research, program planning, and evaluation (Bush, 1997b). Although the Dade County school-based art therapy program has been a success, its success has been measured by observation and experiences of the therapists. This program, along with most school-based art therapy programs, lacks the documentation to support empirical research. The Dade County program has continued to prosper since its commencement in 1979, but empirical research supporting it is minimal (Bush, 1997b). Art therapy in schools, however, has not taken root. It is time for controlled research and documentation on the application of art therapy in schools. Relevant outcome criteria on the effectiveness of art therapy in treating students and the effects of participation on a school’s team should be reported. (Bush, 1997a, p. 13) The Dade County art therapy program is a model program, which can serve to inspire future development of similar school-based art therapy programs. Art therapy in a school-based setting can provide at-risk children with an outlet to work through obstacles that are hindering their educational, emotional, and social growth. Conclusion Behavioral science research has focused on the psychological, emotional, behavioral, and cognitive problems that children exposed to chronic stress and violence face. Research in this area has become increasingly prolific as the rates of violence and risk of exposure increases. This is especially true in large urban cities where the prevalence rate of urban youth exposed to violence and chronic stress is rapidly increasing. There are many factors in the lives of impoverished African-American children that lead to chronic stress. Rutter (1978) identified six significant familial stressors that increased the probability of behavioral disorders among children. They are: (a) the father having an unskilled/semiskilled job, (b) overcrowding in the home or a large family size, (c) the mother suffering from depression or a neurotic disorder, (d) the child having ever been â€Å"in care,† (e) the father having been convicted of any offense against the law, and (f) marital discord (Rutter, 1978). Other researchers examined multiple stressors on school-aged children’s psychological functioning: parental conflict, maternal depression, overcrowding, and family income. Shaw and Emery found that â€Å"cumulative family stressors predicted clinically-elevated child behavior problems and below-average ratings of children’s IQ and perceived social competence† (1988, p. 204). The research suggests there is a significant relationship between exposure to chronic stress, crime, and violence and behavioral, psychological, and academic problems. It is necessary to then take the next step and focus on ways in which to ameliorate these negative effects. Traditionally, psychological services of art therapy have been provided in hospitals, community mental health centers, and private offices. There are, however, numerous factors that impede the ability of at-risk children from getting these needed services that are often provided outside their community. School-based interventions in art therapy can provide one solution to this problem. School-based therapeutic interventions have been effective in helping children to deal with the emotional repercussions of living with multiple stressors. By addressing common problems in a novel way, school-based art therapy therapy opens the doors to many children who otherwise would not receive the needed therapeutic help. The children are in their schools everyday, so why not bring the service to them. Outcome literature supports the notion that school-based intervention programs in art therapy can yield to positive outcomes in the lives of children. References Art therapy: Definition of profession. (1998, Summer). American Art Therapy Association Newsletter, 31, 3. Avidar, A. (1995). Art therapy and pervasive trauma: Working with children in violent communities. Pratt Institute Creative Arts Therapy Review, 16, 10-16. Bush, J. (1997a). The development of school art therapy in Dade County public schools: Implications for future change. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 14(l 9-14. Bush, J. (1997b). The handbook of school art therapy. Springfield, IL: Charles C Thomas. Essex, M. , Frostig, K. , & Hertz, J. (1996). In the service of children: Art and expressive therapies in public schools. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 73(2), 181-190. Malchiodi, C. A. (1995). Does a lack of art therapy research hold us back? Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 12(4), 218-219. Malchiodi, C. A. (2003). Art therapy and the brain. In C. A. Malchiodi (Ed. ), Handbook of art therapy. New York: Guilford Press. pp. 16-24 McNiff, S. (1997). Art therapy: A spectrum of partnerships. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 24, 37-44. McNiff, S. (1998a). Enlarging the vision of art therapy research. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 15(2), 86-92. McNiff, S. (1998b). Art-based research. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers Ltd. Kaplan, F. F. (2000). Art, science, and art therapy. London: Jessica Kingsley. Minato, Laura. (1999). Book Review. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 26(1), 59-60. Nader, K. , & Pynoos, R. S. (1991). Play and drawing techniques as tools for interviewing traumatized children. In C. E. Schaefer, K. Gitlin, & A. Sandgrund (Eds. ), Play diagnosis and assessment (pp. 375-389). New York: Wiley. Newcomer, P. (1993). Art, Music, and Dance Therapy. In P. Newcomer (Ed. ), Understanding and teaching emotionally disturbed adolescents (pp. 515-553). Austin, TX: Pro-ed. Nicol, AR. (1979). Psychotherapy and the school. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 20, 81-86. Omizo, M. M. , & Omizo, S. A. (1989). Art Activities to improve self-esteem among native Hawaiian children. Journal of Humanistic Education and Development, 27(3), 167- 176. Pleasant-Metcalf, A. M. , & Rosal. M. L. (1997). The use of art therapy to improve academic performance. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 14(1), 23-29. Restak, R. M. (1994). The modular brain. New York: Scribner. Riley, S. (2003). Using art therapy to address adolescent depression. In C. Malchiodi (Ed.), Handbook of art therapy. New York: Guilford Press. Roje, J. (1995). LA ’94 earthquake in the eyes of children: Art therapy with elementary school children who were victims of disaster. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 12(4), 237-243. Rosal, M. L. (1998). Research thoughts: Learning from the literature and from experience. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 15(1), 47-50. Rosal, M. L. , McCulloch-Vislisel, S. , & Neece, S. (1997). Keeping students in school: An art therapy program to benefit ninth-grade students. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 14(1), 30-36. Rutter, M. (1978). Family, area, and school influences in the genesis of conduct disorder. In L. A. Hersov & D. Schaffer (Eds. ), Aggression and anti-social behavior in childhood and adolescence (pp. 95-114) Oxford: Pergamon Press. Silver, R. , and Ellison, J. (1995). Identifying and assessing self-images in drawings by delinquent adolescents. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 22, 339-352. Wadeson, H. (1980). Art psychotherapy. New York: John Wiley & Sons.

Beethoven Biography

Beethoven, who was a great composer and pianist of German origin was born in the 1770 and died in 1827. On the same note, he is grouped among the very influential composers and played a very great role in Western classical music especially due to the fact that he existed during the transition period between the famous classical and romantic eras (Beethoven: biography, 2001).Although he was born in Bonn which was the capital city of Cologne, currently known as Germany, he later migrated to Vienna where he got occupied in studying as well as learning to play piano.It bears noting that though he developed a hearing problem, this did not deter him from his music career since he continued to perform and compose even after becoming completely deaf. Although he did not live for long, he made notable contribution in the field of music. With this background, this paper will objectively describe his biography, laying more emphasis on his life history as well as his major accomplishments. 2. 0 Background InformationBeethoven was born in the family of musicians since his grandfather Lodewijk van Beethoven was also a musician of Flemish origin who was employed as a bass singer and ended up becoming a music director (Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827)). More to that, his grandfather still had a son by the name Johann van Beethoven who was also talented in music since he was employed as tenor in the same place with his father. The son used to teach violin and piano lessons part time as a means of supplementing his income. Johann married a lady by the name Maria Magdalene and the two became the parents of the famous Ludwig van Beethoven.Although studies record that the parents of Beethoven had seven children, it is only Beethoven together with two younger boys who survived past infancy stage. He was the second born in the family and even though his exact date of birth is not known as there are no records, it is assumed that he was born 16th December 1770. This is due to the fact that it is evidently known that he was baptized on 17th December 1770 and by then children were being baptized a day after birth (Lane, 2005). Moreover, most studies indicate that he used to celebrate his birthday on 16th December.Beethoven talent in music was discovered quite early in life and his father who was a music teacher was the first person to start teaching him how to play keyboard. Although his father used to teach him, he still had other local teachers like Tobias Friedrich who taught him how to play piano, Franz Rovantini who taught him how to play violin as well as Gilles van den Eden. In the year 1779, Beethoven began to study music seriously with the help of Christian Neefe who helped him compose and publish his first composition in the year 1783.He was first employed in the year 1784 at Court Chapel although before then he used to work as Neefe assistant without any pay. He was later appointed as an assistant organist and the people who used to work closel y with him like Maximilian Fredrick noticed his talent in music and encouraged him to pursue further studies in music. Although studies illustrate that Beethoven had attempted to travel to Vienna in 1787, he was forced to go back to Bonn to take care of his siblings especially after his mother’s death.His father who was becoming a worse alcoholic day by day could not be trusted with caring for the family, this is denoted by the fact that he used to do it through a court order. However, in the year 1792, Beethoven travelled back to Vienna through the help of Elector. At Vienna, he trained under Haydn and managed to compose lots of work that was not published even though the works displayed his development in the music career. Similarly, these works by then indicated that he had learnt a lot from Haydn’s since they displayed a lot of Mozartean flavor.Nevertheless, Beethoven did not first concentrate on composing but on learning to play piano under the instruction of Hayd n as well as playing violin. He was also occasionally taught on Italian vocal composition style by Antonio Salieri for some few years. Even though after sometime Elector ceased to finance him, he continued to stay in Vienna because some people from the same place who had noticed his talent in music continued to support him financially (Crowest, 2009, p. 120). 3. 0 Beethoven’s Music CareerBeethoven’s Music career began to flourish in 1800. It is noteworthy that his first music performance at Vienna was in1795 after which he planned for the publication of his initial compositions, piano trios of Opus 1 which were dedicated to his patron. He continued to compose in many forms such as symphony, quartet and string. Although his works were greatly influenced by Mozart and Haydn, he emerged to be unique due to his music development, his use of modulation and texture, as well as his unique characterization of emotion.Beethoven was not only a composer, but a music teacher as we ll. Further studies indicate that he also taught Ferdinand Ries who became a composer and went a head to write a book entitled ‘Beethoven Remembered’ which explained about their encounter. Carl Crenzy who was a music teacher was also a Beethoven student for two years from 1801-1803 (Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827)). Just at the height of his career, Beethoven developed a hearing problem which was quite discouraging since he could no longer be able to appreciate music.Even if the exact cause of the problem is not known, it has been assumed that the problem was attributed by lead poisoning, syphilis, his habit of immersing his head in water in order to stay awake and typhus. However, the doctor’s report indicated that it was as a result of distended inner ear. The evidence of his deafness is not only from his works which record his written conversation with his friends, but also from a large collection of his hearing aids which have been preserved in Beet hoven House Museum in Bonn. He completely become deaf at 1814 but still continued with his music career (Davies, 2001, p.234) and (Udvarhelyi, 2003). Much as Beethoven used to obtain money from his compositions and his performances, he also depended heavily on financial help from his patrons like Prince Lichnowsky and Archduke Rudolph who was the last born son of Emperor Leopold II. As years progressed, he continued to develop his career and by 1810, he had managed to be recognized as a great composer. However, due to family and personal as well as financial problems, a slight decline was noted in his music career. He also had numerous illicit love affairs which may have contributed to the decline of his performance.In addition, he also started to experience ill health and his brother who was also ailing died in the year 1815. Albeit during this time he was still composing, his health did not stabilize and in 1825, he became bedridden. Nonetheless, he composed the fifteenth Quartet and still compiled the sixteenth, fourteenth and the thirteenth quartet while still in poor health. In 1826, his health deteriorated further (Kinderman, 1997, p. 238). Further studies illustrate that he latter died in 26th March 1827 and his funeral service which took place in the Holy Trinity Church was attended by more than ten thousand people.Beethoven was buried at Wahring cemetery located in Vienna, but latter his remains were exhumed in 1862 for study purposes. Further studies indicate that the exact cause of his death is not known although it has been projected that he might have died of infectious hepatitis, syphilis, lead poisoning, Whipple’s disease or Sarcoidosis. However, the analysis that was done after his body was exhumed point out that he could have died from excessive lead poisoning administered by his doctors (Beethoven: biography, 2001). 4. 0 Beethoven Major AccomplishmentsBeethoven’s composition represents several music genres and also contained a v ariety of music combinations. He wrote a total of sixteen string quartets, five string quintet, seven works for piano trio, five string trios and a lot more works containing a variety combinations of wind instruments. In addition, he also wrote nine symphonies and nine concerti and some vocal works with orchestral accompaniment. The first and the second symphonies and the first set of the six string quartets as well as some few other works were written in his early life when his music was greatly influenced by Mozart and Haydn (Kinderman, 1997, p.284). Most of the major works of Beethoven that identified him as a hero was written when he started experiencing hearing problem. Such works include the six symphonies, the very last piano concertos, five string quartets, Fidelio which was his only opera and some piano and violin sonatas. In his last stages of life, he began composing works that displayed high personal expression, formal innovation and his intellectual depth. His very last works include the last five quartets, ninth symphony and the last five piano sonatas.However, there are some of his works which were still very significant and may not have been recorded or published. 5. 0 Conclusion Whereas studies indicate that Beethoven managed to become one of the renowned giants of classical music, some of his character traits did not display a vey strong personality. For instance, his deafness made him to contemplate suicide and was frequently described as an impatient as well as a highly irritable person. He had some close friends who stayed by his side especially during his illness which led to his death.However, most studies indicate that he found it quite hard to get along with people the main reason why he was never legally married. His works remain to be a strong indication of his contribution in music arena. References Beethoven: biography. (2001). Retrieved July 10, 2010, from http://www. lvbeethoven. com/Bio/BiographyLudwig. html Crowest, F. J. ( 200 9). Beethoven: With Illustrations and Portraits. Charleston: BiblioBazaar, LLC. Davies, P. J. ( 2001). Beethoven in person: his deafness, illnesses, and death.West Port: Greenwood Press. Kinderman, W. (1997). Beethoven's Childhood . Berkeley: University of California Press. Lane, W. (2005). Beethoven's Childhood . Retrieved July 10, 2010, from http://www. lucare. com/immortal/childhood. html Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827). (n. d. ). Retrieved July 10, 2010, from http://library. thinkquest. org/22673/beethoven. html Udvarhelyi, G. B. ( 2003). Beethoven in Person: His Deafness, Illnesses, and Death (review). Bulletin of the History of Medicine , 77 (1), 196-197.