Free Essays on Childhood Event

Perfect Student An old substitute stood before our loud fifth grade class. Usually, we didn’t act this way but both of our teachers were gone, so everyone saw this chance for freedom. â€Å"Sit down in your seats,† she barked. Since our regular teacher had never yelled at us, every child’s face illustrated the amazement to this new idea. Then she handed out what seemed to be a thousand papers, none of which stimulated our minds, especially me. I sat there attempting to do some of the papers she had assigned. I wasn’t a bad child, nor did I want to be. I usually did my work as I was told to, but this day I was feeling unusually rebellious, almost as though a burst of energy had shot through my young undeveloped body. I ripped a piece of paper out of my notebook and scribbled a note to a classmate, a note which normally I would not have wrote a note which I swore in. In my note I depicted the substitute as a â€Å"bitch† and stated that I wanted this day to end so I could go home. Though this note does not seem as important to me now, it did then. It was very important; I wasn’t the type of child to do anything like this. I told my classmate to rip up the note and throw it away after she finished reading it. Most of the boys in my class had not left the kindergarten maturity level yet, so they had this idea that picking through the trash and recycling bin to find note pieces was fun. They picked through and pieced entire notes back together. Of course my note was found, pieced back together and handed to the principal. So there I sat alone in the principal’s office, a room I had never seen the interior of. The only time I talked to the man was the occasional times he entered our fifth grade classroom to speak with our nutty teachers. I was the quintessential good girl. I never did anything to upset a teacher, and there I sat awaiting my trial. He slowly entered the room, closing the large metal door, which looked ... Free Essays on Childhood Event Free Essays on Childhood Event Perfect Student An old substitute stood before our loud fifth grade class. Usually, we didn’t act this way but both of our teachers were gone, so everyone saw this chance for freedom. â€Å"Sit down in your seats,† she barked. Since our regular teacher had never yelled at us, every child’s face illustrated the amazement to this new idea. Then she handed out what seemed to be a thousand papers, none of which stimulated our minds, especially me. I sat there attempting to do some of the papers she had assigned. I wasn’t a bad child, nor did I want to be. I usually did my work as I was told to, but this day I was feeling unusually rebellious, almost as though a burst of energy had shot through my young undeveloped body. I ripped a piece of paper out of my notebook and scribbled a note to a classmate, a note which normally I would not have wrote a note which I swore in. In my note I depicted the substitute as a â€Å"bitch† and stated that I wanted this day to end so I could go home. Though this note does not seem as important to me now, it did then. It was very important; I wasn’t the type of child to do anything like this. I told my classmate to rip up the note and throw it away after she finished reading it. Most of the boys in my class had not left the kindergarten maturity level yet, so they had this idea that picking through the trash and recycling bin to find note pieces was fun. They picked through and pieced entire notes back together. Of course my note was found, pieced back together and handed to the principal. So there I sat alone in the principal’s office, a room I had never seen the interior of. The only time I talked to the man was the occasional times he entered our fifth grade classroom to speak with our nutty teachers. I was the quintessential good girl. I never did anything to upset a teacher, and there I sat awaiting my trial. He slowly entered the room, closing the large metal door, which looked ...

THe Glass Ceiling in the US Military

THe Glass Ceiling in the US Military Free Online Research Papers Being a member of the United States Armed Forces I believe that since entering the service in late 2003, I have personally witnessed the glass ceiling in affect as well as it be nonexistent in numerous situations, positions, and places. The military overall is still primarily made of males, with males making up roughly about 80% of the total military force. With percentages like that it would be easy to see why some military service members would be hesitant if not resistant to women having equal advancement and command opportunities. In 1948 the Law 625, The Women’s Armed Services Act was signed into effect by President Harry Truman, allowing women to serve in the armed forces in fully integrated units during peacetime. Throughout the following 62 years post Law 625 being passed, women have slowly achieved more and more milestones related with military service. On December 20 1989 Capt Linda L. Bray, 29, became the first woman to command American soldiers in battle. However to the date they still as a whole have not achieved a complete level playing field. As of November 2008 there is only one female currently serving as a 4-star general. So overall it’s been a slow transition for females military speaking. One of the many reasons that this overall process has been slow is due to the still overall thought and assumption that women cannot perform certain task, and jobs currently performed by males due to physical restrictions and inabilities. Currently, women are not allowed to serve in the United States Marine Corps as an infantryman of any type. Many still have the misguided belief that women don’t have the strength or â€Å"guts† to be in a combat unit, that they lack the killer-instinct and the ability to kill if need be. It is widely thought that with today’s given technology and the way current wars are fought that there is absolutely no reason women cannot serve in every capacity allowed or designated to men. Utilitarianism is the idea that the moral worth of an action is determined solely by its usefulness in maximizing utility/minimizing negative utility, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determined by its outcome. From a Utilitarian standpoint, the allowance of women into every job field and duty currently held by men as well as the allowance to command better the military as a whole. By providing more bodies and personnel for assignment currently held only by males, the frequency and duration of certain assignments could possibly be changed, this benefit than trickles down to reduce hardships possibly felt by families with loved ones abroad for long periods or in dangerous areas. There are few negatives that can be discussed, such as possible unit cohesion issues with female integration into units and duties held prior only by males. Also a certain level of distraction may exist with males and females working in close proximity and relationships can cause unnecessary grief and tension not need on the battlefield. With a deontological view and it being based around an adherence to rules and regulations some may look at women’s entering into all military capacities as a failure to follow the guidelines currently in place and that in breaking those guidelines may cause undue hardship and unrest as a whole. I believe it would be hard-pressed however, to truly show a greater negative affect than positive in this manner. In conclusion I believe overall the glass ceiling has and is continuing to disappear, only remaining in select conditions and jobs within the military. As time goes on, though a slow process, I believe women will begin to fully equalize in terms of military service. Let us hope that the majority of us who serve will accept this greater good benefit for all active duty service members. Research Papers on THe Glass Ceiling in the US MilitaryInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married Males19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraThe Fifth HorsemanResearch Process Part OneOpen Architechture a white paperAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2Twilight of the UAWThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeRelationship between Media Coverage and Social and

Final Marketing Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Final Marketing Plan - Essay Example management strategy, the company will move forth by promising its customers to provide secured services without hampering their assets or interests to welfare. The services provided by the company will therefore be entirely environment friendly. The products and the devices used by the company will also take due care of the customers’ needs, which often remain unaddressed. The company will also provide extreme care and privacy security to their clients during servicing, which is quite likely to increase customer satisfaction ultimately. At the initial stage, the company will mainly target the commercial market as its future customers. As per estimations, there are approximately 30,000 small and large businesses, comprising the group of targeted customers of the company. The company is expected to have a huge growth in its business process by targeting those customers, as it will also ensure limited competitive effects on the same. It has been expected that small offices are the potential customers of the company, which will help the company to achieve growth in the short-run. This targeting strategy of the company to attract the big business organization and sophisticated customers, will be a great opportunity for the company to expand (Iyer & et. al, 2005). The segmentation strategy of the company emphasizes targeting the customers in geographical basis. Contextually, the company has decided to increase its business by targeting the local or the regional customers and commercial customers (Jenkins & McDonald, n.d.). â€Å"Get It Done Office Pro’s† will be a cleaning service provider company. The uniqueness in the company’s services is to provide security during the office cleaning process and provide high-level security to maintain privacy to all its clients and their assets. All the employees of the company will belong from a decent background, which will ensure a better working environment not only for the employees but also for the customers after

Final Report on Shenzhen Company Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Final Report on Shenzhen Company - Essay Example The company is a limited liability company with ownership never changing hands since the company’s establishment. As a management policy, human resource is developed in the company through internal training. Most often than not, the company trains lower ranked staff to take up top rank position so as to ensure that less resources are spent on recruitment and placement. Greater part of the company’s clientele has to do with other production companies most of whom have their operations demanding the constant supply of energy. To a large extent therefore, every newly established company becomes an automatic target client for the company. The company’s internal systems have translated into a business image whereby the company is seen as one with a well regulated organizational culture that is based on customer satisfaction. Clearly, the customer satisfaction models used by the company have become its greatest competitive edge. Though public publicity and advertisemen ts are done, most of the company’s new clients are the result of the good things that existing customers tell them about the company. This includes the numerous customer appreciation promotions they enjoy from the company. As a strategy, pricing has always been the same as that of competitors. However, there is a slight difference whereby there are regular discount programs to reward faithful customers. The company’s competitors include other energy companies especially government funded energy companies. Part II. Strengths and Weaknesses of the Company (30 pts) In a number of ways, the company has exhibited a number of strong points as far as the delivery of work is concerned. For instance the company has established an organizational culture that focuses purposely on the customer. This has generally improved the customer service of the company and made it one of the best to in the world as far as customer satisfaction is concerned. There also exists the use of compet itive pricing in the company. Instead of strategizing in the use of lower prices, the company wins the hearts of customers through other for a such as the institutionalization of quality assurance and excellent customer service so that these would make room for maintaining competitive pricing that ensures that the company does not run at losses resulting from reduced prices of goods and services. What is more, the use of internal recruitment is an excellent way of ensuring that workers in the company give off their very best when they are at post. If for nothing at all, the employee would work hard and be committed to work so that he or she gains promotion to take up higher portfolios. The strengths discussed above not withstanding, there remain certain vital weaknesses that are worth addressing with immediate effect. The greater part of this has to do with the growth and expansion policy of the company. Presently, the company concentrates more on regional expansion rather than glob al expansion. This means that not as many branches as the company is in a position to build are formed in international economies. What this implies is that the company is denied of precious foreign exchange. The company also lacks diversity in its overall workforce. Again, the company is not opened to international standards and competition. It is therefore suggested that the company starts major

Professionalism and system of Healing Essay Example for Free

Professionalism and system of Healing Essay Much of the existing sociological work on professions and professionalism takes a structural approach (Macdonald 1995); the focus is on how groups of people professionalize, or how professionalism can be defined, which occupations count as ‘true’ professions (Johnson 1981). For this reason ‘professionalism’ is often dismissed as rhetoric. In order to achieve status and monopolistic position in the market for services of some kind, aspiring professionals are seen to stress the distinctness of their knowledge, the undoubted authenticity of their altruism and the responsibility of their members. When professionalism is considered purely as a trope perhaps this is a legitimate line to take. However, it can overlook the fact that professionalism can also be regarded as a set of boundary setting practices. These practices no doubt contribute to status since they distance the professional from the client, but they may also benefit the client. For example, the practitioner may adopt a person in which his or her emotions or prejudices are back grounded and subordinated to the client’s task in hand (Cant and Sharma 1998). Professionalism Professionalism in medicine is nothing more than the institutionalization of a male upper class monopoly. I must never confuse professionalism with expertise. Expertise is something to work for and to share; professionalism is – by definition – elitist and exclusive, sexist, racist and classist. In the American past, women who sought formal medical training were too ready to accept the professionalism that went with it. They made their gains in status – but only on the backs of their less privileged sisters – midwives, nurses and lay healers. The main goal today should never be to open up the exclusive medical profession to women, but to open up medicine to all women. Professionalism is the ability to meet the relationship-centered expectations required to practice medicine competently. What does competence look alike? The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS), the umbrella organization for certifying boards agree that competent physicians have abilities in the following areas: medical knowledge, patient care, professionalism, practice-based learning and improvement, interpersonal and communication skill, and system based practice. Professionalism integrates all these competencies. It can be observed, for instance, with practice-based learning and improvement when students or residents reflect on their performance and task themselves. Professionalism interfaces with system-based practice when students or residents help patients obtain the care and resources they need to maintain health. Professionalism overlaps with interpersonal and communication skills and with patient care when students or residents are respectful in their interactions with others. The Healing System The integrative practitioner acknowledges the intrinsic restorative capacity of the human organism. Activation of this process is critical to an integrative practitioner’s decisions regarding which therapeutic choices are most beneficial for the patient. Weil has described the concept of a â€Å"healing system† operating in the human organism, not intrinsically different in nature from the â€Å"endocrine system† the â€Å"nervous system, the â€Å"immune system,† or any other conventionally defined functional system in the human body. Like these other systems, the healing system is not specifically located in any single organ, but functions via a subtle and complex web of intracellular signaling systems affecting all levels of the organism, from the cellular level to the tissue-organ level to the levels of mind and spirit. Weil gives an example of the process at the cellular level: when the DNA of a skin cell is damaged by ultraviolet radiation – potentially triggering mutation and unregulated replication, eventually leading to development of a skin malignancy – DNA lipase and a set of related enzymes within the damaged cell’s nucleus are automatically activated, resulting in the identification and removal of the damaged sequence, with restoration of normal replication. If this level of â€Å"automatic healing† fails, then generally, once the cell has mutated and begun to replicate abnormally, immune cells will identify it as foreign and contain and destroy the affected group of cells – without any conscious action on the part of the person affected. At the level of tissues or organs, the spontaneous healing of wounds is an obvious example of the healing system at work. The occurrence of an injury initiates a complex system of intracellular signaling, leading to local inflammation as a defense against infection, increased tissue perfusion to promote healing, and, ultimately, activation of fibroblasts and other cells to repair the damaged skin and subcutaneous tissues. Here again, although this process can potentially be influenced by certain inputs, including medications, botanicals, mind-body therapies, and others, the basic mechanisms of healing are intrinsic and require no intervention to be moved into action. Summary Medicine is a cooperative art and a deeply satisfying profession. Students become professional by paying attention to the relationship of medicine-relationships with patients, colleagues, and mentors. Competence in professionalism is a habit, and its acquisition requires more than knowledge and skill. The inclusion of traditional medical system and other proven modalities in a healing-oriented framework brings us back to a more balanced stance that serves the physician, the patient, and ultimately, the health care system..

Goodrich-Rabobank Interest Rate Swap Essay -- Economics Economy Essays

Goodrich-Rabobank Interest Rate Swap 1. How large should the discount (X) be to make this an attractive deal for Rabobank? 2. How large must the annual fee (F) be to make this an attractive deal for Morgan Guaranty? 3. How small must the combination of F and X be to make this an attractive deal for B.F. Goodrich? 4. Is this an attractive deal for the savings banks? 5. Is this a deal where everyone wins? If not, who loses? Introduction: Players: Morgan Bank, Rabobank, and B.F. Goodrich, Salomon Brothers, Thrift Institutions and Saving Banks Goodrich: In early 1983, Goodrich needed $50 million to fund its ongoing financial needs. However, Goodrich was reluctant to borrow (short term debt) from its committed bank lines because of the following reasons: 1. It would lose substantial about of its remaining short term capital availability under its bank lines. 2. It would compromise its future flexibility by borrowing in the short term. Instead, it wanted to borrow for an 8 year range (or longer) at a fixed rate. However, since the general level of interest rates were pretty high, and Goodrich?s credit ratings had dropped from BBB to BBB-. Goodrich believed that it would have to pay 13% interest for a 30 year corporate debenture. Salomon Brothers had advised Goodrich that they could borrow in the US public debt market with a floating rate debt issue tied to the LIBOR, and then swap payments with Euro market bank that had raised funds in the fixed-rate Eurobond market. Note: The reason that Salomon were confident that this could be done is described as follows: 1. There was a recent deregulation of deposit markets had allowed deposit institutions to offer n... ...% - (x1+11.2%) = 1.3%-x1. 7. From (2), and (5) Rabobank saves the following amount in semiannual interest payments: LIBOR ? 1/8% - (LIBOR ?x2) = x2 ? 1/8%. 8. For this deal to occur, Rabobank, Morgan, and Goodrich must profit hence the following also must be true: a. (x1-x2)>= F where 37.5> F> 8 (footnote #2 on page 362). b. 130 ? x1> 0 i.e. 130> x1 c. X2 ? 12.5> 0 i.e. x2> 12.5 Assuming that x2 = 20 basis, and x1 = 100 basis. We can conclude the following: Goodrich pays a fixed interest of 11.2% + 1% = 12.2% a savings of 20 basis points (after transaction costs). Rabobank saves a total of 2% - 1.8% = 20 basis points. And Morgan collects 2% - 1.25% = 75 basis points in fee, in addition to the $125,000 one time fee. Note: The total savings that this deal provides as a result of the swap is: 5 + 20 + 75 = 100 basis points.

Communication barriers Essay

One of the most challenging issues, any manager will face, is communication barriers. Process, personal, physical, and semantic barriers is what I will focus on throughout this essay. For me, as a manager, the combination of lack of formal upbringing and non-traditional schooling contribute to my communication flaws. The process by which a person interprets a message being delivered is known as the process of communication. When an error occurs while two people are communicating this is known as a process barrier. This type of error can occur while using any form of communication including face to face, or media and can occur for many reasons. I, as a manager, struggle with encoding the messages I am trying to send. Due to my lack of formal upbringing and non-traditional schooling I have a hard time with vocabulary and correct word usage. While writing papers or emails I can use the built-in review tools to assist me such as spell check or grammar correct. I use a program like Word t o check my grammar and spelling when possible. While speaking face to face with people I use simple vocabulary and ask detailed questions to better understand them when needed. Personal barriers is defined as any individual attribute that hinders communication. This particular area of communication is one that I have struggled with my whole life. I have a tendency to talk very fast and not listen so well. I have trained myself to remember that listening is one of the most important steps in communicating with people. I have attended effective communication seminars to help me understand the importance of listening. My main source of communication is face to face and not through media. When communicating through email or text I tend to lose a lot of what I am trying to say. I also focus on using constructive criticism. I have learned from personal experience that it is easier to get your point across when the sender is open to hearing it. Factors such as bad signal, different time zone, and loud noise are known as physical barriers. Physical barriers is another huge reason why I prefer face to face meetings and conversations over media interactions. During a conversation the communicator can misperceive the receiver’s distraction by loud noise and think they are not listening or being rude. This can lead to a very frustrated communicator. When having important conversations with customers, employees, or other supervisors I  always practice active listening. In order for active listening to be effective I require the meetings to be in a designated quite open area that is distraction free. I make sure we have adequate funding for the best technology available to avoid any media physical barriers. We have the best modems, and routers available to a small business. This helps lessen the possibility of signal interruption during our virtual online meeting with the owner during our monthly meeting. The way a person interprets frequently used words can create a semantic barrier. An example of semantic barrier is a situation I personally went through. I will never forget my first experience, I was a new hire for a company within an industry I knew nothing about. I had 8 years management experience in a service industry, but the fashion industry was foreign to me. My new boss said to me, â€Å"We need to get those mannequins done tomorrow before we leave.† The next day came and I assumed we would do them together, but to my surprise my boss never mentioned them. Three days later I was being formally wrote up for not completing an assigned task, also known as insubordination. I was shocked and very frustrated. Due to this situation, when speaking with employees, I always give clear, defined instructions and check for understanding before leaving an employee to perform a task. During day to day operations I have developed Jargon for our office. Previously all the doctors were referred to as doctor and all the patients were known as patients. This became very confusing when trying to discuss specific doctors or specific types of patients. For example patient in room 5 ready for doc would be announced. Now each type of patient, hall, and doctor have a specific call. The same statement as above on the new system would be NP, blue hall, doc 5. It is very specific and leaves no room for wrong interpretation. The new practice of Jargon in the office reduced our semantic barriers dramatically. I am currently a manager for several doctors within one office here in Amarillo, Tx. I have developed procedures for my employees to follow when requesting a meeting with myself or other administrators so that we do not have any physical barriers. During the meeting I use tools such as active listening, assertive communication, and constructive criticism to ensure that there are minimal process or personal barriers. I encourage all employees to ask questions if they are not clear on what is expected of them. I have also developed a training program for our office Jargon that requires all  employees to attend meetings once a month to ensure their understanding of office terminology.

World War Ii and Candidates

12 eP e ap . c rs om FOREWORD This booklet contains reports written by Examiners on the work of candidates in certain papers. Its contents are primarily for the information of the subject teachers concerned. 9697 History June 2005 HISTORY GCE Advanced Level and GCE Advanced Subsidiary Level Paper 9697/01 Paper 1 – Modern European History, 1789 – 1939 General comments The general standard of the scripts was satisfactory and all of the Examiners read some excellent work that was relevant, clearly argued and well supported by appropriate knowledge. Most candidates answered four questions as required and used their time effectively. The standard of the answers to Question 1, the Source-based question, was better and Examiners welcomed the improvement.Fewer candidates only summarised the sources and more gained credit by comparing and contrasting them and by assessing their relative value. They considered how reliable and useful the passages were. This could be done in sever al ways, including testing the reliability of what a source said against one’s own knowledge, testing the reliability of what a source said against what other sources indicated, examining the language and argument in a source to indicate its bias, and analysing a source’s language and argument in relation to the author’s purpose or audience. Sometimes candidates dismissed sources because they were biased.However, all sources might be biased in one way or another and the task of historians is to see through the bias and extract useful judgements or knowledge. When answering the essay questions (Questions 2 – 8), weaker candidates were usually unable to provide enough knowledge to support their explanations so that their answers tended to be assertions. On the other hand, good answers were able to balance arguments or explanations with accurate knowledge. This knowledge does not have to be detailed but candidates must provide support for their claims. This was particularly apparent in Questions 3 and 5.In Question 3, there were some acceptable arguments about the general social effects of the Industrial Revolution but the answers could not be given high credit when the claims were not supported by examples. This was the reason why candidates were required to refer to developments in two of Britain, France and Germany. In Question 5, many candidates were able to record accurately a variety of reasons for European imperial expansion but the better answers emerged when they illustrated policies by the use of examples. Less satisfactory answers tended to be vague about specific developments.A discriminating factor between good and less creditable answers was that the former paid attention to key words or phrases in the questions whereas the more moderate responses sometimes comprised general accounts of topics. The essay questions are given below with the key words or phrases in bold. Teachers might decide that it would be a useful exerci se to provide their candidates with exemplar essay questions and discuss which are the key words or phrases that need particular attention in answers. Question 2 Question 3 Question 4 Question 5 How far was Napoleon Bonaparte an oppressive ruler in his domestic policies from 1799 to 1815?Discuss the claim that the middle classes gained most from the Industrial Revolution in Europe. Explain the growing support for nationalism in Germany and Italy from 1848 to 1871. Why were European governments more willing to support imperialist policies in the later years of the nineteenth century? (You should refer to developments in at least two of Britain, France and Germany in your answer. ) How far had Lenin achieved his aims by the time of his death in 1924? How accurate is the claim that the effects of World War I were the most important reason for the rise of totalitarian governments in Europe during the period to 1939? You should refer to at least two of Germany, Italy and Russia in your a nswer. ) Examine the claim that Marxism developed to 1914 as the result of industrialisation. Question 6 Question 7 Question 8 2 9697 History June 2005 Comments on specific questions Section A: The Origins of World War I, 1870 – 1914 Question 1 ‘Russia’s policies caused the outbreak of war in 1914’. Use Sources A-D to show how far the evidence confirms this statement. This Source-based question on The Origins of World War I asked candidates to use four Sources to consider whether Russia’s policies caused the outbreak of war in 1914.Candidates were given credit when they sorted the Sources into groups. Sources C and D confirmed the claim whilst Source B contradicted it. Source A was interpreted by most candidates as contradicting the claim but some candidates noted the strong hint in the last sentence that Russia would stand by Serbia, often interpreting this as a ‘blank cheque’ from Russia that equated with Germany’s ‘blank cheque’ to Austria-Hungary. Many candidates attempted to evaluate the extracts but some answers applied simplistic tests of reliability.For example, they stated that Source A was reliable because it was a personal telegram from the Tsar to the Kaiser, whilst Sources B, C and D were reliable because they were, in different forms, official documents. The most successful candidates used the internal evidence of what the sources contained to assess their reliability and value. For example, was Source A correct to claim that ‘Germany had used all her influence on Austria-Hungary in order to bring about an understanding with Russia’? Some candidates were given credit when they referred to Germany’s ‘blank cheque’ to deny this claim.There were creditable contrasts between the effects of German long-term planning and Russian mobilisation. The least successful answers sometimes spent too much time in summarising, or paraphrasing, the extracts. They la cked a conclusion whereas the best answers included a conclusion that provided an overall judgement. Section B Question 2 How far was Napoleon Bonaparte an oppressive ruler in his domestic policies from 1799 to 1815? The question asked candidates to examine how far Napoleon Bonaparte was an oppressive ruler in his domestic policies from 1799 to 1815.The overall standard of the answers was sound. The most successful candidates examined a range of issues but focused on domestic issues because these were specified in the question. Answers could not be given credit for discussions of foreign policy. Some answers devoted too much time to the rise of Napoleon to 1799. This could be used as a brief introduction but not as a major point in the argument. Credit was given when candidates considered some of the major policies and reforms introduced by Napoleon, such as the Code Napoleon and the Concordat. They also referred to the police system and censorship.Good answers examined the politica l structure of Napoleon’s rule; it was highly centralised and authoritarian. Some moderate and weak answers omitted this very important aspect of the question. Question 3 Discuss the claim that the middle classes gained most from the Industrial Revolution in Europe. The question was based on the claim that the middle classes gained most from the Industrial Revolution in Europe. The standard of the answers was variable. The most frequent reason why answers did not gain a high mark was that they devoted too much time to eneral descriptions of the processes of the Industrial Revolution and did not examine sufficiently the effects on social classes. There were some sound answers that explained the profits that were gained by the middle classes from investment in industries. Increasing wealth allowed them to play a more important political role. The same reason gave them advantages in society. The question allowed candidates to compare the middle classes with other social groups. Some weak answers only described the hardships of the lower orders and referred to the middle classes by implication but the better responses included a fuller comparison. 9697 History June 2005 Question 4 Explain the growing support for nationalism in Germany and Italy from 1848 to 1871. The key issue was the growing support for nationalism in Germany and Italy and the specified period was 1848 to 1871. Examiners read some very effective answers that were analytical and considered a variety of relevant points. Some referred to the legacies of the French Revolution and the Vienna Settlement. This was relevant as long as it was not given too much space. The most successful answers were balanced between Germany and Italy whereas some did not merit the highest credit because they were imbalanced.Some moderate answers wrote narrative accounts of political leaders such as Bismarck and Cavour. This approach was relevant but it sometimes omitted to link these leaders to nationalism. On the other hand, Examiners read some perceptive answers that argued that, whilst Bismarck and Cavour promoted unification, they were not essentially German or Italian nationalists. There were interesting assessments of the effects of the 1848-1849 revolutions and of the Zollverein in Germany. Question 5 Why were European governments more willing to support imperialist policies in the later years of the nineteenth century? You should refer to developments in at least two of Britain, France and Germany in your answer. ) A recurring quality of the best answers was their combination of argument and examples. Many candidates could explain a number of relevant factors that encouraged governments to support imperialist policies but their essays sometimes lacked examples so that the answers were too general for a high mark. The most successful answers combined explanations of factors such as political and economic interests with references to regions where these were implemented. Question 6 How far had Lenin achieved his aims by the time of his death in 1924?Examiners were pleased with the quality of most of the answers. Credit was given when candidates explained Lenin’s aims explicitly; these were assumed by some of the more moderate responses. The most successful answers considered both his successes and his failures and came to a considered balance of judgement. Answers in the middle and lower bands sometimes focused exclusively on successes. A few candidates devoted too much time to the rise of Lenin and Bolshevism to 1917; this was relevant but needed to be linked to the key issue of Lenin’s achievements by 1924.Among the successes that were explained was that Lenin took the Bolsheviks to power in 1917. He then led the new government to victory against the Whites in the civil war. The war with Germany was ended. He established a one-party state, defeating opponents, and he was unchallenged personally. On the other hand, possible failures might have incl uded the fact that Lenin’s economic measures, especially War Communism, almost led to collapse and had to be revised in the New Economic Policy. Survival was achieved at the cost of abandoning Marxist-communist principles.Terror became widely used. Question 7 How accurate is the claim that the effects of World War I were the most important reason for the rise of totalitarian governments in Europe during the period to 1939? (You should refer to at least two of Germany, Italy and Russia in your answer. ) The question asked candidates to consider whether the effects of World War I were the most important reason for the rise of totalitarian governments in Europe. They were required to refer to at least two countries out of Germany, Italy and Russia in their answers.The general quality of the essays was satisfactory and Examiners read some excellent answers. These assessed the impact of the war and compared it with other factors; their arguments were supported by appropriate knowl edge. Good candidates explained that the war had serious political and economic effects. For example, it destabilised an authoritarian regime in Russia and the post-war democratic governments in Germany and Italy because neither state was content with the outcome of the conflict (including Germany and the imposition of the Versailles settlement and Italy’s disillusionment with erritorial issues). Economic consequences were examined. In Germany and Italy, the war led to the growing appeal of ultra-nationalist groups whilst it confirmed communist leaders, Lenin and then Stalin, in power in Russia because the 1917 Revolution was a direct outcome of World War I, although it was not its only cause. With this basis, sound answers explored other factors in the rise of totalitarian governments, such as the personal appeal of leaders and their use both of propaganda and terror to enforce obedience. Democratic governments were weak. 4 9697 History June 2005Question 8 Examine the claim that Marxism developed to 1914 as the result of industrialisation. The key issue was the connection between Marxism and industrialisation. Candidates gained credit when they explained that Marx believed that there was such a link; he held that capitalist industrial states suppressed the wage earners or proletariat. The middle class or bourgeoisie were said to use industrialisation to exploit the lower classes. Sound answers explained that Marxism appealed most to those in industrial societies, especially in France and Germany.However, it did have less appeal in highly industrialised Britain. Some noted that Russia, the centre of the first Marxist revolution, was not an industrially-based country. Some weak answers were vague about Marxism and provided only general accounts of industrialisation. These did not deserve a high mark because they did not address the key issue in the question. Paper 9697/03 Paper 3 – International History, 1945 – 1991 General Comments The num ber of candidates taking this paper was slightly up on last year. The overall standard of the candidates was satisfactory.Most scripts demonstrated a reasonable level of knowledge and understanding. The paper produced answers which covered the entire range of marks with a pleasing number of candidates producing some high quality answers. An example of a high quality answer has been included below under Question 1. The most successful candidates used their knowledge and understanding of the topic to answer specifically the question on the examination paper. Knowledge was used to support and sustain an analytical argument which came to a specific conclusion.Many candidates underachieved because they tended to use their knowledge to write narrative and descriptive answers which contained only a limited amount of analysis. Each question on the examination paper focused on one of the topic areas contained within the syllabus. In Question 1, candidates were asked to assess the hypothesis that the UN Secretary-General was the most important factor in ending the Suez Conflict of 1956. The command instruction of ‘how far’ required candidates to offer an analytical answer ‘for’ and ‘against’ the proposition in the question, using source information and contextual knowledge to support their answers.The essay questions (Questions 2-8) were all framed in a similar way to enable candidates to engage in analysis. Command instructions such as ‘how important’, ‘assess’ and ‘discuss’ require candidates to produce a balanced analysis in direct response to the question. Given the limited time available in the examination, lengthy contextual sections which ‘set the scene’, unfortunately limit the time available for direct coverage of the issue in the question. Although it is useful to plan an answer, candidates should be aware that this exercise should take only a few minutes for each answer .Very few candidates failed to attempt four questions. However, although a number of candidates failed to finish their final answer, this was presumably due to pressure of time. Comments on specific questions Section A: The Development of the United Nations, 1945 – 1991 Question 1 How far do Sources A-E support the view that the work of Hammarskjold was the most important reason why the Suez conflict was brought to an end in November 1956? The question required candidates to study five sources on the UN and the Suez Crisis of 1956.They had to consider the view that the UN Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjold was the most important reason why the Suez Crisis was brought to an end in November 1956. In doing so, candidates should have considered information within each source, cross referenced information between sources and have analysed the attribution of the sources to decide whether or not the hypothesis in the question was correct. 5 9697 History June 2005 The vast majority of candidates were able to use source information to construct an answer which both supported and challenged the hypothesis in the question.However, although most candidates used information within the sources, fewer were able to cross reference information between sources or evaluate the sources as examples of historical evidence on the issue. In providing source devaluation, many candidates did not go beyond referring to specific sources as ‘biased’ or ‘fairly reliable’, without explaining precisely why this assessment was made. For candidates to receive adequate reward for source evaluation, an explanation of why sources might be ‘biased’ or ‘unreliable’ is required.Some candidates wrote extensive answers to this question which created time problems in answering the essay questions later in the examination. The following is an answer to this question; although it did not receive full marks, it does illustrate a very high standar d of answer. The claim that Hammarskjold was the most important reason why the Suez Conflict came to an end is debateable. Source A supports the hypothesis by almost making it seem that UNEF would not have been possible without him. ‘Hammarskjold found himself acting as much in the diplomatic as in the administrative field. This was because he had to persuade Egypt to be the host country for the UNEF. This source gives one the sense that the Secretary-General was an effective leader in a time of pressure and was willing to take up the challenging role. For instance ‘The Assembly asked the Secretary-General†¦ to produce a plan for a UN force within 48 hours’. Hammarskjold took up the challenge and organised the force. This gives the impression that the UN General Assembly would have been helpless without Hammarskjold’s involvement. This source has been written by a British journalist six years after the end of the conflict.Although not a key player in t he conflict the journalist provides credible evidence as to the role of the Secretary-General. Source B also supports the hypothesis. It looks more at the diplomatic side of the conflict by stating that ‘Hammarskjold†¦succeeded in establishing a basis for co-operation between the UN and Egypt upon which the UNEF operated smoothly’. The source only focuses on this fact of how Hammarskjold was able to persuade Nasser. This point is also mentioned in Source A. One has also to note the author of the source. Brian Urquhart was a key player concerning the UN presence in the conflict.As it is explained in source C Urquhart was part of Hammarskjold’s ‘admirable staff’. Therefore, this source provides more effective information because Urquhart was involved in the UN at the time and therefore knew precisely what was happening. The source, in that sense, can be said to be reliable. However, as a member of Hammarskjold’s team it may be likely to sup port the role of the Secretary-General. This source comes from a biography of Hammarskjold and does not offer any critical comments on the Secretary-General’s role in the Suez Conflict. Therefore, source B may not be wholly reliable as evidence.Source C partially challenges the hypothesis, unlike the first two sources. It points out that ‘the idea (for the UNEF) came from Lester Pearson’. Therefore, Hammarskjold cannot be said to be the most important reason for the ending of the Suez Conflict. The author of this source concentrates more on the role of the General Assembly. It states, ‘the Suez crisis was†¦ the finest hour of the General Assembly’. The author gives credit to Hammarskjold ‘and his admirable staff’. One can see that Hammarskjold is not praised as he is in Source A and furthermore, this view can be seen in Source D which also partially challenges the hypothesis.The General Assembly gets more attention when the Security Council would not do anything following the veto by Britain and France. Hammarskjold is shown in a different light compared to sources A and B. Hammarskjold is said to have ‘had serious doubts at first about’ Pearson’s idea. In sources A and B Hammarskjold seems to have jumped at the challenge without having second thoughts. On the other hand, one should take note that the source was written in 1995 and would have had a better overview of what happened. This would explain the playing down of Hammarskjold’s role.Source C is written by a diplomat and source D is written by a journalist neither of which were key players in the conflict. The sources are both from books which attempt to place the Suez Conflict in wider international context. The sources cannot be said to be wholly reliable but they do offer an objective view. Source E partially supports the hypothesis. Yet, like sources C and D states that there were different key people. The source states â⠂¬Ëœthe key person, in addition to Hammarskjold himself, was Lester Pearson’. Lester Person is actually labelled as a key erson rather than just being mentioned as the person who came up with the idea of the UNEF. But this source does not play down Hammarskjold’s role and also mentions that he ‘quickly provided a preliminary plan’ about the crisis. This is similar to source A. 6 9697 History June 2005 In conclusion, source A and B fully support the hypothesis while source partially supports it. Sources C and D partially challenge the hypothesis. Sources C, D and E all have the advantage of having a better overview of the Suez Crisis, being written some time after the event.However, these sources are not written by key players and they cannot be considered wholly reliable. Source A is not written by a key player but was written soon after the event. Source B, on the other hand, is written by a key player but cannot be said to be wholly reliable because one would not expect a person to openly criticise his own organisation. The hypothesis claims that the Suez conflict was brought to an end because of Hammarskjold’s work. Yet, most of the sources have pointed out that other key players, the General Assembly, Pearson and Nasser, also helped to end the conflict.I would suggest that the hypothesis should be modified to ‘How far do sources A-E support the view that the work of Hammarskjold, in carrying out the idea of Lester Pearson, was an important reason why the Suez conflict was brought to an end in November 1956? ’ Section B Question 2 Which of the following has the best claim to mark the start of the Cold War: Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech, 1946; the Truman Doctrine, 1947; the Berlin Blockade, 1948-1949? Explain your answer. This was by far the most popular of the optional essay questions.However, some candidates did not differentiate effectively between the ‘cause(s)’ and ‘start’ of the Cold War. In many of these answers a significant amount of time was used to provide detailed contextual material going back to the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. The vast majority of candidates displayed a detailed knowledge of the1945 to 1949 period of the Cold War in Europe. The best answers were able to use this information to answer the question directly. Those candidates who achieved high marks were able to explain directly which of the three developments had the best claim to starting the Cold War.Knowledge was then deployed to support and sustain the case made. A number of candidates took the view that none of the three incidents constituted the start of the Cold War. The best of these answers were able to explain which of the three developments did not constitute the start of the Cold War as well as pointing out why another incident deserved the title. The Soviet takeover of Eastern Europe, 1945-48 and the Marshall Plan were offered as alternatives to the three develo pments offered in the question. Question 3 Who or what was responsible for the globalisation of the Cold War?This was also a very popular question. Many of the better answers were able to give a definition of the term ‘globalisation’. They also made specific reference to the two command instructions in the question, ‘why’ and ‘what’. Most of the candidates were able to mention the Korean War as a possible starting point in the globalisation of the Cold War. Other events such as the Vietnam War, Cuba and the Arab-Israeli conflict were mentioned. Some candidates mentioned the collapse of the European overseas empires in the 1950s and 1960s which resulted in the involvement of the two superpowers.In determining responsibility, the vast majority of candidates chose either the USA or the USSR or both as the prime culprits in globalising the Cold War. However, a small number of candidates also laid blame on the ambitions of the People’s Republ ic of China. Question 4 Assess the relative contribution of America and the Soviet Union to the outcome of the war in Vietnam? This was not a popular question. A clear majority of candidates chose Question 3 over Question 4. Many answers adopted a narrative-chronological or narrative description of the Vietnam War.Very few candidates were able to assess the ‘relative’ contribution of either the USA or the USSR. In many cases, the US contribution was seen in providing troops and leading the conduct of the war from 1965 to 1972. The Soviet contribution was seen in terms of providing military equipment to North Vietnam. Very few candidates were able to link the term ‘relative contribution’ to the ‘outcome’ of the Vietnam War. As a result, diplomatic aspects of the contribution of both the USA and USSR were ignored. 7 9697 History June 2005 Question 5 How important was the West in the collapse of the USSR in 1991?This proved to be a very popular qu estion. It was clear that the majority of the candidates had a clear understanding of why the USSR collapsed in 1991. Those candidates who underachieved tended to ignore the role of the West and instead, concentrated on the internal factors which resulted in the collapse of the Soviet Union. Most of this type of response mentioned Gorbachev’s attempted reforms (Glasnost and Perestroika) and their subsequent failure. Fewer candidates referred to the impact of nationalism (The Baltic States and the Caucasus region) on the weakening of the USSR.Only a small number of candidates referred to the events of August 1991 which led directly to the USSR’s collapse. Unfortunately, those candidates who displayed detailed knowledge of internal factors without mentioning the importance of the West, did not score highly. Of those candidates who referred directly to the role of the West, the vast majority referred to the role of the USA. The Second Cold War was regarded as a major dest abilising factor for the USSR. The cost of matching the USA in both conventional and nuclear armaments was cited as an important cause of the Soviet Union’s collapse.A small number of candidates mentioned the broader role of the West. The disparity of lifestyles and wealth which were picked up via TV and radio in East Germany or by radio across the Soviet Bloc were given as examples of this phenomenon. Question 6 How successful were attempts to control the nuclear arms race between the superpowers in the period 1960 to 1980? Examiners noted that the majority of answers to this question adopted a narrative and narrative-chronological approach, with only very limited analysis of the issue of ‘success’, which was mentioned in the question.The vast majority of answers referred to the Test Ban Treaty of 1963, the Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 and the two SALT treaties of the 1970s. Unfortunately, a significant minority of candidates did not limit their coverage to the period ending in 1980. As a result, considerable time was spent describing and explaining the role of START, SDI (The Strategic Defence Initiative or Star Wars) and the INF (Intermediate Nuclear Forces) treaty. Considerable detailed knowledge was displayed on the treaties of the 1960s and 1970s mentioned above.However, this knowledge was not always used to its full effect. In many cases knowledge was deployed to describe events and the terms of treaties, rather than used to explain the degree to which attempts were successful. Question 7 ‘By the 1980s, the American dominance of the international economy had almost disappeared’. Discuss. Examiners noted that this was not a popular question. Many responses showed only a limited knowledge of the international economy between 1945 and the 1980s. Many candidates accepted the assertion in the question at face value.They mentioned the rise of West Germany and Japan as potential economic rivals to the USA in the internation al economy by the 1970s. They also mentioned the rise of the Asian Tiger economies in a similar vein. Some candidates mentioned the collapse of the Bretton Woods system by 1972, with the abandonment of the Fixed Exchange Rate system. However, only a few candidates offered a balanced approach which mentioned that although the USA’s overwhelmingly dominant position in the international economy after the Second World War had been eroded, it had not disappeared.US dominance in I. T. related industries as shown by the NASDAQ index of companies (e. g. Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, Apple etc. ), and its dominant role at the WTO and with the World Bank, were cited as examples of continued dominance. 8 9697 History June 2005 Question 8 Why did Africa experience serious problems of famine in the 1980s? Although not a popular question it, nevertheless, produced some very good quality answers. It was clear that some Centres had taught this topic extremely well.Candidates were able to menti on social, climatic, political and economic factors which resulted in large areas of Africa experiencing famine in the 1980s. The best answers gave specific examples of the areas of famine. The most regularly mentioned were Ethiopia and Somalia. However, in several cases candidates interpreted the question somewhat differently. Many candidates displayed sound knowledge of Africa in the 1980s but used this knowledge to explain why Africa was relatively poor compared to the rest of the world, rather than the specific issue of famine.Paper 9697/05 Paper 5 – History of USA c. 1840 – 1968 General comments There was a considerable increase in the number of candidates compared with June 2004. The overall standard was sound, but certain common weaknesses were evident, resulting in lower outcomes. The most common was failing to answer four questions, or alternatively only offering a few lines as answers. There were also a number of completely irrelevant answers which scored Ban d 7 (0-7 marks).However, the best scripts were a pleasure to read, being consistently relevant, well structured, analytical or explanatory, with good supporting evidence appropriately used. These scored Bands 1 and 2 (18-25 marks). One script even attained the exceptionally high mark of 96. The compulsory source based question, Question 1, was answered indifferently. To simply repeat and recycle the words of the sources with a few general remarks at the beginning and/or end of the response could at best only result in Level 3 (10-14 marks), and this is what most candidates did.To achieve the higher bands it was essential to use the sources as evidence, i. e. to interpret and evaluate them in their historical context. The most common failings in the essay questions (2-8) were over reliance on narrative and descriptive responses and a reluctance to engage in relevant analysis of the problems posed in the questions, backed up by good evidence in a coherent structure. Comments on specif ic questions Section A: The Road to Secession and Civil War, 1846-61 Question 1 ‘It was the complete breakdown in trust between North and South that made compromise impossible. Using Sources A – E, discuss how far the evidence supports this assertion. Only a minority of candidates evaluated the sources as evidence in their historical context, but those who did scored higher marks in Levels 5-6 (19-25 marks). A common failing was to put the case for or against the contention, whereas it is important to show the evidence for and against it and then to come to a conclusion as to which, in the candidate’s view, is better or more reliable.Few candidates noted that the sources came into three groups, A being two years before Lincoln’s election in November 1860, B and C being an immediate reaction to his victory and D and E, after the secession of the lower south had occurred. Few candidates pointed out that Douglas was a Presidential candidate in 1860 and only s ome explained what his doctrine of Popular Sovereignty involved and how it had proved unworkable in Kansas. Most candidates saw the significance of Stephens being later Vice President of the Confederacy, but few gave evidence of his strong pro-Union views until his home state of Georgia seceded.The best approach was for candidates to give the evidence for the contention; this would be Sources B, D and E in their historical context and then to give the evidence against the contention; this would be Sources A and C in their historical context. Finally, the candidate should state his or her conclusion, or at the highest level, why sources point to a different hypothesis to that stated in the question, or alternatively, why the hypothesis should be modified in the light of the evidence. 9 9697 History June 2005 Section B Question 2 ‘Mexico will poison us. United States? How accurate was this prediction of the effects of the Mexican War on the This was a very popular question with the great majority of candidates answering it. A significant number simply ignored Whitman’s quotation and gave a descriptive account of the origins and course of the war. The majority of candidates went beyond this to point out that as a consequence of the huge annexation of territory the slavery question flared up violently with sectional tensions getting steadily worse and leading to secession and civil war.The best responses went beyond this to point out that the ultimate result was not only a transcontinental nation from Pacific to Atlantic but that the Union victory led to the elimination of the Southern veto in the Senate and that America became the most aggressively capitalist and individualist nation in the world. It could be argued that the modern American nation took shape as a result of the territorial annexations from Mexico. Question 3 ‘I claim not to have controlled events but confess plainly that events have controlled me. ’ (Abraham Lincoln, spee ch in 1864). Do you agree with Lincoln’s assessment of his Presidency?A very popular question but few really good responses; most candidates played it safe by giving a descriptive account of Lincoln’s Presidency, in some cases going back long before he became President. The point of the question was not that Lincoln simply reacted to events but that many of the key events facing him were beyond his control. Obvious examples would be the acute sectional crisis of the 1850s, the whole slavery issue and the decision of the Lower South to secede and form the C. S. A. Relatively few pointed out that Lincoln was decisive and active when needed.Good examples would be his skill in keeping Kentucky and Maryland from seceding, the Emancipation Proclamation, his flat refusal to negotiate terms with the Confederacy when this appeared to be the only way to end the war, as in the early half of 1864. He also assumed to himself almost dictatorial powers in suspending, in effect, the B ill of Rights, introducing censorship and suspending Habeas Corpus. He also appointed and retained Grant amid much criticism and towards the end of his Presidency had a Reconstruction programme which, if implemented, might have reconciled the defeated South.Question 4 Explain why the United States became the world’s leading industrial nation in the period 1865-1900. A minority choice but reasonably well answered. The role of technological inventions was well handled and nearly all candidates discussed the endless supply of cheap and motivated labour by immigration. Relatively few mentioned cheap land or the fact that the US had a political and legal framework in this period which was extremely favourable to business and hostile to any degree of government in economic matters, with the partial exception of the railroads.There was an almost total lack of data – for example, that by 1900 the US produced 30% of the world’s industrial goods. 10 9697 History June 2005 Question 5 How was it possible, in spite of constitutional protection, for the Southern States to deny basic civil rights to African-Americans from 1895 to 1964? A very popular question, though not very well handled, with little discussion of the roles of Presidents Kennedy and Johnson in granting full civil rights. In theory the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth Amendments had granted full legal and civic equality to the Freedmen.The basic problem, which few candidates mentioned, was that the whites had lost interest in the fate of the African-Americans; the latter were a small minority in the nation and even in the former slave states they were a majority in only two states in 1900. As a result, the southern states were able by a variety of means, which were quite well described, to circumvent the plain intention of the Amendments by reducing blacks to the status of permanently second class citizens, denied the right to vote and access to the same level of education as the whi te majority.Most candidates mentioned the effect of the Supreme Court decision in Plessy v Ferguson. The role of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s was probably overstated and few mentioned FDR’s juggling act in keeping the Solid South as part of his victorious coalition, while successfully wooing Northern blacks into voting for him. Most Presidents in this period were indifferent to black aspirations. Candidates correctly dwelt on Martin Luther King’s inspiring and intelligent leadership in the civil disobedience campaign from the 1950s onwards.Few mentioned his building up of alliances with Democratic politicians in the North, in particular Kennedy. The effect of the Brown case was dealt with well and better responses highlighted the effect of the Cold War on putting pressure on the American political establishment to grant civil rights. None pointed to the irony of the Texan career politician Lyndon Johnson pushing through the major civil rights legislation when his more high minded predecessors had been unable, or unwilling, to do so. Question 6 How different were the policies adopted by Hoover and Roosevelt to deal with the Great Depression?A popular question but candidates paid little attention to Hoover. Unlike Roosevelt, Hoover believed firmly that it was quite wrong for the Federal Government to engage in the regulation of, and interference in, the economy. No one mentioned that Hoover tried very hard to commit FDR to a continuation of his own policies even up to the day before FDR’s Inauguration in March 1933. Hoover was, of course, regarded as one of the great humanitarians of the twentieth century for his outstanding work in famine relief in Russia in 1919 and 1920 and it is quite wrong to portray him as indifferent to suffering.His policies were, however, ineffective and from 1929 to 1933 unemployment, business failures and falling stock market prices grew steadily worse until it seemed that the whole financial system of the US was on the very edge of total collapse. While candidates were correct to portray FDR as both different from and more effective than Hoover, few made much sense of the famous New Deal. It was not a coherent, logical programme and at times it was not easy to see precisely what FDR was trying to do; this was not helped by his persistent deviousness.However, he managed to infuse all around him with his unfailing cheerfulness and optimism (in contrast to Hoover) and he was clearly an activist ready to try any policy, however unorthodox, to beat the slump. As a result the popular mood shifted and disaster was averted. Some candidates correctly pointed out that unemployment figures were still very high up to 1939. Question 7 ‘Gradually and rather reluctantly, the United States became an imperial power and a military presence on a global scale. ’ Is this a fair assessment of American foreign policy, 1890-1919?This question required skill in organisation as it covered two wars, but most candidates relied on a descriptive, rather than an analytical answer, and as a result the treatment of the 1914 to 1919 period was frequently hurried with, too often, the Versailles Peace Conference being ignored. Few were prepared to tackle the assertion contained in the question. The war with Spain was brutal and pitiless, resulting in de facto control of Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and in effect Cuba. There was certainly nothing accidental or hesitant about it. It did make the US a global, and in effect, imperial power.No candidate mentioned Theodore Roosevelt’s successful mediation in the Russo-Japanese war which resulted ironically in the Nobel Peace prize being awarded to one of the most aggressive and warlike US Presidents. Many candidates discussed Roosevelt’s acquisition of the Panama Canal and the creation of both the US Canal Zone, with sovereign powers, and the creation of the state of Panama being hived off from Columbia. The first World War was ha ndled better, with most candidates being correct in describing President Wilson’s determination to stay out of conflict.It is arguable that the US was slowly dragged into conflict once Russia had withdrawn in 1917, leading to the strong likelihood of German victory which financial considerations, among other factors, made unacceptable to the US. No candidate mentioned the famous Zimmerman telegram and its effect on US public opinion. In 1918 and 1919 Wilson seemed to develop illusions of grandeur in attempting to force his own internationalist ideals on reluctant Allies. 11 9697 History June 2005 Question 8 How far was increasing national prosperity from 1945 to 1968 shared by all Americans?Very few candidates answered this question and none did particularly well. The main focus of responses was on the exceptions to the national prosperity, usually African-Americans, but the other pockets of poverty such as the rural poor, declining mining areas and Hispanic migrant workers, were usually ignored. One would have preferred to have seen much more discussion on why and how Americans became so prosperous in the post war period. Alone among major powers, it gained enormously in wealth from the war and dominated the world economic scene during the whole period.The US was a major beneficiary of the long economic boom from post war reconstruction and the huge armaments industry benefited greatly from the Korean War and the Cold War with the Soviet Union. These factors were ignored. Paper 9697/06 Paper 6 – Caribbean History, 1794 – 1900 General comments In the main candidates attempted the required four questions, although there were a few who obviously spent too much time on Question 1 and either could not finish a fourth question or, in some cases, had failed to tackle a fourth question.As far as possible, candidates should give equal shares of the time available to each question as a truncated or missing final answer will affect the examination r esult. Among the ways of avoiding the most serious consequences of failing to complete four full answers would be to plan responses to the questions so that, if need be, a firm outline of an answer could be given when time is running out, rather than writing two or three paragraphs which only represent a fraction of the material a candidate may have available.Question 1 was always answered. Many candidates were able to consider critically the material in the sources and the reasons why they were written. Some answers only made use of the sources for their content and at face value. A number of candidates did not write a conclusion to their response and so failed to link what they had written to the statement in the hypothesis. Of the other questions, Question 4 was the most commonly answered followed by Questions 3, 2, 6 and 5 in the order of frequency.Though many candidates did use examples for their answers from across the whole Caribbean area, some answers were written in very ge neral terms and, often, with the experience of the British Caribbean (or Jamaica only) in mind. Question 4 was an example of this, but answers to other questions sometimes had a similar appearance. In Question 2, abolition in the British colonies often took up more than half of an answer which should have given prominence to French and Spanish experiences too. Detailed comments on the answers to all the questions follow later in the report.There were some examples of candidates embarking upon answering questions without sufficient thought or planning. Examples included Question 2, in which there were long accounts of how the slave trade in the British Empire was ended, which might have provided a single point about abolition but where a page and a half of detail represented a wasted opportunity to deal with the question more directly. Candidates probably needed to take some time to collect their ideas about Question 5 and to plan to cover both societies and economies. In general, sc ripts were well presented, though some candidates’ handwriting was difficult to read.A few candidates failed to arrange their scripts in proper page order and some did not number their questions. 12 9697 History June 2005 Comments on specific questions Section A: Emancipation and its Consequences Question 1 ‘As the nineteenth century progressed, it became clear that there was no future for the Caribbean sugar industry’. How far does the evidence of Sources A-E support this statement? The Level description for candidates to receive at least two-thirds of marks is that a candidate ‘by interpreting/evaluating sources in context finds evidence to challenge and support the hypothesis’. Evidence is a key word.Candidates should use all the sources, use them as more than a source of information and relate them to the hypothesis in order to gain a high mark. Responses to this question varied widely. Many considered at least some of the sources critically. Som e answers were unnecessarily long. Sources A and B described the introduction of machinery to the processing of the cane and gave a hopeful impression of the future of parts of the sugar industry in the early 1850s. Candidates raised questions about the possible attitude of the Governor of British Guiana in Source A and possible journalistic and pro-planter bias in Source B.Other points about the wide time scale of the sources and their limited geographical scope were made in order to assess the sources. Many missed the chance to use Source D (about the problems of the sugar industry in the British Caribbean, 1876-77) and Source E (on Cuban sugar production in the 1890s) to compare the seemingly dire situation in one part of the area at one time (Source D), with a more buoyant one a little later (Source E). In Cuba, sugar production recovered rapidly after the disasters of war, presumably because of the underlying strengths of the industry there.In addition, both could be related to the hypothesis and used to suggest that the situation of sugar production was not hopeless in every area and also to question whether Source D really indicated that there was no future for British West Indian sugar. Both Sources C and E were occasionally misunderstood when candidates did not read the extracts through to the end. Many candidates seemed to assume that each of the sources would be directly for or against the hypothesis where, in fact, it could be suggested that none is as clear cut as that.Section B Question 2 Discuss the factors which account for the abolition of slavery in British, French and Spanish colonies in the Caribbean. A strong point about many answers was that a number of factors, humanitarian activity, resistance of the enslaved, political and economic circumstances, were outlined in the introduction. These themes were then continued through the essays with comparisons of all three sets of experiences together or sometimes with British and French situation s compared, followed by a section on Spain. The dominant element was often material about British colonies.Individual factors sometimes were sketched in and there were examples where description replaced the discussion and weighting of the various factors. Treatment of economic and political factors was often slight in comparison with humanitarian activities and slave resistance. Dealing with France, only Victor Schoelcher’s influence tended to attract much attention and some candidates wrote little about Spain. Less successful answers took each country’s experiences separately and sometimes went back into the eighteenth century anti-slave trade movement in Britain in great detail.This led to over long essays which failed to deal adequately with the question. Question 3 Compare apprenticeship in the British Caribbean with the patronato in Cuba and assess their respective results. The comparison element in this question was usually well done and many candidates were wel l informed on the Spanish experience. Normally there was a reasonable attempt to compare the two schemes in terms of planter control, punishments, wages, manumission and judicial supervision. The premature ending of each was explained and many candidates judged the Spanish experience to be more humane and more successful than the British.There was a minority of candidates who gave great detail on the emancipation legislation but did not look at the working of the systems in much detail. 13 9697 History June 2005 Question 4 Assess the reasons why freed people left the estates where they had been slaves. This was the most widely attempted question in Section B. There was a tendency for candidates to present a series of possible explanations without any assessment or illustration to show the complexity of the situation or the time scale involved.In general, answers were restricted to the British Caribbean and mostly attempted to cover the push and pull factors. The most successful answ ers reflected an awareness of the debate among historians about the reasons why freed people left the estates, emphasising opportunities which freed people saw and exploited. Only a few answers dealt only with the rejection of plantation life and the consequent ‘flight from the plantations’. Some candidates used the development of the peasantry to 1860 as an illustration.Others made good use of the theme that emancipation widened the expectations of freed people. Question 5 To what extent were societies and economies of Caribbean colonies affected by emancipation up to 1900? Explain your answer. Many answers concentrated on economic change and did not reach the date 1900. Some largely reproduced material which was appropriate to Question 4. More effectively, a large number of answers concentrated on the creation of the peasantry and its social and economic results, including the impact on plantation labour and the knock on effect of immigration schemes.Some candidates w rote about the diversification of crops and the export trade, using Jamaica as an example. Also mentioned were issues about the quality of life (family and education) and social development (village communities and financial cooperatives). Developments in education and health care were mentioned in some essays. There were some sound and well organised answers. Question 6 How far was there a labour crisis in the Caribbean sugar industry in the second half of the nineteenth century? This was a good question for those who were prepared to plan the answer on the extent of the crisis.Very few candidates did this. Most candidates discussed labour problems in general and the introduction of immigrant labour. Reference to a labour crisis was either non-existent or very brief, possibly a statement that from the landowners’ point of view, there was no longer an adequate or dependable labour force or, with reference to Trinidad and British Guiana, that even in the slave period there was an insufficient supply of labour. Because of the tendency to deal with the ‘labour issue’ rather than the ‘labour crisis’, most answers lacked emphasis in relation to the question.One plan could have been to deal with: †¢ †¢ †¢ the idea of a crisis, ‘a crisis for whom’ areas of ‘crisis’ where there was no crisis (Cuba, Barbados). Question 7 How significant was discrimination based on gender in Caribbean societies after emancipation? Explain your answer. Answers tended to centre on examples of male dominance, though in any one answer few were mentioned. The main point made in relation to the ‘How significant’ element in the question was that gender discrimination was one among a number of forms of discrimination in Caribbean societies.Most answers were short and limited in scope. Question 8 Explain how Haiti achieved and consolidated its independence. This question was based on the final section (VII) of the syllabus. Unfortunately, most candidates who attempted to answer it used material which was appropriate to the first two content sections. In consequence, few of the answers covered independence or the period which followed. Many answers dealt only with Toussaint, or even with earlier

Development and Training Employees as a Method of Retention

Development and Training Employees as a Method of Retention Free Online Research Papers Employee retention guarantees companies remain high performance organizations. Crucial to retention is identifying talented employees who possess potential, showing them how they add value to the organization, and using their talents, so not only the employees remain engaged, but also the company benefits from the employees’ contributions. Oftentimes, if employees lack engagement, they seek out opportunities with other companies. Since companies cannot afford to lose talented employees to competitors, proper training and development is critical (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, and Wright, 2003). Although geared toward companies’ future needs, developing employees aids in retention because development shows employees that they have a future with the company. Conversely, training focuses on employees’ present positions. However, training is as important as development since succession planning highlights high-potential employees, allowing employers to earmark employees for development. Development is not necessarily the employer’ responsibility, as employees aspiring to better positions can and should make their intentions known (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, and Wright, 2003). Training an employee to function properly at a given task requires planning and foresight. Desiring to become an Employer of Choice, Lincoln Electric has made a commitment to provide quality training to its employees. This paper will analyze the training and development plan of the following five training issues; needs assessment, design, development, implementation and evaluation of training provided to employees of Lincoln Electric. Employee development is more than just training; it must become the way the company runs. Companies hire people from all skill levels, even those people who possess little more than a high school diploma or GED. Companies provide these talented individuals with challenging opportunities for personal and professional growth and development. In business training, communicating the importance of accomplishing tasks is paramount. Effective training starts with pinpointing the current skill set of each individual employee. One of the first steps of effective training is finding out what each employees current skill set is. The next step is to find out which parts of the job need to be taught to that individual. The team needs to develop a company-wide development and training program for all of the employees at Lincoln Electric. The result will be an organization of talented, engaged and committed employees. The training program will address the training needs for potential, existing, and newly hired employees as well as supervisors and directors (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, and Wright, 2003). Lincoln Electric’s pay-for-performance system (Lincoln Electric Company, 2007) is well known; however, Lincoln Electric oftentimes encounters difficulties in recruiting employees (Prizinsky, 1994 Narisetti, 1995). While most people seek positions at Lincoln Electric because of their infamous holiday bonus, which is really profit sharing dividends, many applicants do not meet the position requirements (Narisetti, 1995). Moreover, Lincoln Electric is not capitalizing on its most valuable asset: the employees. Investing in employees makes business sense for the employer. While Lincoln Electric laments the number of skilled workers available to them, they forget that they already have those skilled workers: current employees. Lincoln Electric’s issues with training and development are solvable, and the solution starts with the initial problem, which is the lack of qualified, entry-level applicants (Narisetti, 1995). The better the employee, the better the company runs. Lincoln Electric is doubtlessly aware of this concept. Training and developing employees from the onset guarantees Lincoln Electric remains successful in the future. The first way to hook potential recruits is to catch their attention. Lincoln Electric does this rather well by promising no lay-offs, and sharing the company’s profits with the employees (Lincoln Electric Company, 2007). Perhaps even more important is the employer’s willingness to help maximize employees’ potentials. Although Lincoln Electric promotes employees based on experience, as opposed to seniority, there are no systems in place to ensure employees garner enough experience to realize a promotion. If only a small number of applicants can perform basic math skills, and the results are worse every year, Lincoln Electric has to begin training and development before applicants begin working at Lincoln Electric (Narisetti, 1995). This training r anges from refresher courses in mathematics for new applicants to specialized courses such as tool and die, computer-controlled machining, and welding for present employees. Lincoln Electric cannot hire enough applicants for several reasons. First, most people have no manufacturing experience. Second, many high schools restructured their curriculums and no longer offer students exposure to vocational training programs (Prizinsky, 1994). Consequently, Lincoln Electric rejected a majority of the 20,000 applications received during an 18-month period because applicants lacked basic algebra skills (Narisetti, 1995). Lincoln Electric exhausted its hiring efforts by placing newspaper advertisements, retaining recruiting firms, and launching a mail marketing campaign (Prizinsky, 1994). While they did hire some workers using these methods, the original problem remained. Lincoln Electric can meet its hiring goals by sending new recruits to math refresher courses. As opposed to turning away all applicants who fail Lincoln Electric’s math assessment, Lincoln Electric should send those applicants to the math refresher courses. Doing so ensures a continual su pply of entry-level workers. More important, Lincoln Electric can groom these employees for higher positions within the company. Lincoln Electric currently affords employees the opportunity to develop their own career path, and promotes employees based on experience, not seniority (Lincoln Electric Company, 2007). Lincoln Electric should take this incentive a step further by offering tuition reimbursement to employees showing an interest in tool and die making, welding, computer-controlled machining, or any two-year college program that will help employees perform their job more satisfactorily. Tuition reimbursement often pays unforeseen dividends. An employee who realizes his or her true potential is bound to perform better. Although costly, this strategy offers Lincoln Electric a better return on investment than their direct mail marketing campaign. Carefully analyzing costs is one of the many reasons Lincoln Electric is a successful business. To ensure employees stay with Lincoln Electric after completing their degree or certificate, Lincoln Electric should have employees sign contracts that mandate employe es remain under Lincoln Electric’s employ for a specified number of years in exchange for their education. Cleveland Clinic has a similar program; for every 2 years of education the clinic pays on an employee’s behalf, the employee owes the clinic 1 year of employment. If employees leave beforehand, they are liable for the cost of the education (C. Ormsby, personal communication, 2007). Implementing this strategy has a cyclical effect on the hiring, training, and development process. Once new employees enter entry-level positions, seasoned workers who have completed their schooling progress to higher positions, and the cycle continues. As an alternative, Lincoln Electric can offer in-house training program that will inaugurate each January after analyzing contract bids from any area college interested in the advertisement. Participants must sign in for the lab, and take a pretest, which aids in future benchmarking. Lincoln Electric will test participants again after five math labs and participants must demonstrate significant improvement in order for the contract to remain viable. Participants gain no compensation, other than their respective gains in job skills and qualifications. This program will encourage, though not mandate, managers at Lincoln Electric to attend at least one lab a year. The labs commence at Lincoln Electric twice a week at both 8:00 A.M. and 8:00 P.M., to compensate for Lincoln Electric’s rotating schedule (Lincoln Electric, 2007). The primary purpose of these labs is to focus on improving skills in two areas – mathematics and computers. The company will post the schedule on a bulletin board to encourage as many employees as possible to attend. Unfortunately, many ambitious adults do not possess adequate math or computer skills to help Lincoln Electric. This plan will provide otherwise-dedicated employees the basic skills needed for company growth and potential. The evaluation process consists of a two-step process. During the training process, management focuses on the participation and enthusiasm of the employees. Next, employees describe the main points of the training. After the training and development process, the employees demonstrate their mastery of the training session, while management observes. This is an evaluation tool used for employees with direct observation performed by supervisors. While observing, supervisors, prepared with checklists evaluate whether employees demonstrate the desired and required behaviors and skills of the position (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, and Wright, 2003). Businesses usually conduct annual evaluations on their employees rather than providing ongoing process of continuous feedback. A problem with annual appraisals is that the evaluation can sometimes focus on recent events as opposed to past events, which, depending on the details of the events, could be either good or bad for the employee. Both positive and negative feedback is recognized as effective when it is done shortly after completion of a task. Therefore, ongoing evaluations are required at Lincoln Electric. After completing training, employees have the opportunity to complete satisfaction surveys of the training. Any feedback they have helps in their learning process and feedback also lets the employees know their opinions matter and the company as a whole will do their best to consider their opinion. After all, they are the ones using the information they gain from the training on a daily basis. Any employment setting implementing a training program requires planning. For Lincoln Electric, the training and development processes begin at the hiring phase. By implementing training geared toward specific positions, Lincoln Electric can overcome its hiring issues and further develop career path incentives already in place. The institution of math classes and tuition reimbursement provides effective training, and ensures adequate delivery of the training to the employees. Moreover, once employees complete training, supervisors conduct evaluations on the effectiveness of the training, and employees have opportunities to provide feedback. These days, all industries including manufacturing need skilled employees. By providing adequate training to employees at the onset and further developing employees, Lincoln Electric can prepare employees and the company for future growth. References Lincoln Electric Company (2007). Incentive Performance A Cornerstone of Our Culture. Retrieved November 27, 2007, from lincolnelectric.com/corporate/career/ Narisetti, R. (1995). Many workers are called . . . but few are qualified. The Wall Street Journal [Electronic Version]. Retrieved November 24, 2007 from ProQuest Database. Noe, R.A., Hollenbeck, J.R., Gerhart, B., Wright, P.M. (2003). Fundamentals of human resource management. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Prizinsky, D. (1994). Going to church gets new meaning: Lincoln electric tries varied venues to find employees. Crain’s Cleveland Business [Electronic Version]. Retrieved November 24, 2007 from ProQuest Database. Research Papers on Development and Training Employees as a Method of RetentionAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaTwilight of the UAWResearch Process Part OneThe Project Managment Office SystemOpen Architechture a white paperInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in Capital

Free Essays on Zen Action

Zen and action are inseparable- the latter being the most expedient means of transmitting the teachings of the former. Far from the attempts at conceptualization and articulation of the primary ideas of Zen, the more appropriate approach is through action, be it zazen or other significant acts. As Morinaga Soko explains of his own experience, â€Å"I had known nothing but theorizing; during my high school days I often spent the whole night with friends reading books on philosophy and arguing- talk, talk, talk. I now burned with shame because I could not even do such a simple job as cleaning a floor properly† (Kraft 1988, 18). Buddhism seeks to teach people that to notice the simple fact in front of them- that they are acting in a condition of oneness in the present moment- is to realize what reality is, to be awake to reality. And it says that when we immerse ourselves into what we are doing in the actual moment, we make ourselves balanced too. This allows us to overcome the tendency of the mind to cover up the essential nature of what we are doing in the present moment with analyses, opinions, objectives, expectations, uncertainties, and so on. Thus, action allows the practitioner to not miss the fact that is in front of him. In Zen and Japanese Culture, D.T. Suzuki also substantiates the importance of action in Zen. â€Å"[T]eaching by action, learning by doing. There is something like it in the actional approach to enlightenment. But a direct action in Zen has another meaning. There is a deeper purpose which consists in awakening in the disciple’s mind a certain consciousness that is attuned to the pulsation of Reality . . . . Satori must be the outgrowth of one’s inner life and not a verbal implantation brought from the outside† (Suzuki 1993, 9-10). We can therefore see that the attempts at conceptualization or linguistic expression of Zen become futile and lead us astray rather than guiding us to a more approximate underst... Free Essays on Zen Action Free Essays on Zen Action Zen and action are inseparable- the latter being the most expedient means of transmitting the teachings of the former. Far from the attempts at conceptualization and articulation of the primary ideas of Zen, the more appropriate approach is through action, be it zazen or other significant acts. As Morinaga Soko explains of his own experience, â€Å"I had known nothing but theorizing; during my high school days I often spent the whole night with friends reading books on philosophy and arguing- talk, talk, talk. I now burned with shame because I could not even do such a simple job as cleaning a floor properly† (Kraft 1988, 18). Buddhism seeks to teach people that to notice the simple fact in front of them- that they are acting in a condition of oneness in the present moment- is to realize what reality is, to be awake to reality. And it says that when we immerse ourselves into what we are doing in the actual moment, we make ourselves balanced too. This allows us to overcome the tendency of the mind to cover up the essential nature of what we are doing in the present moment with analyses, opinions, objectives, expectations, uncertainties, and so on. Thus, action allows the practitioner to not miss the fact that is in front of him. In Zen and Japanese Culture, D.T. Suzuki also substantiates the importance of action in Zen. â€Å"[T]eaching by action, learning by doing. There is something like it in the actional approach to enlightenment. But a direct action in Zen has another meaning. There is a deeper purpose which consists in awakening in the disciple’s mind a certain consciousness that is attuned to the pulsation of Reality . . . . Satori must be the outgrowth of one’s inner life and not a verbal implantation brought from the outside† (Suzuki 1993, 9-10). We can therefore see that the attempts at conceptualization or linguistic expression of Zen become futile and lead us astray rather than guiding us to a more approximate underst...

All God's Children (Fox Butterfield) Book Report Essay

All God's Children (Fox Butterfield) Book Report - Essay Example All God's Children is an exceptionally well written and finely researched book, detailing how violence in the African American community and primarily in the Bosket family, saw roots from the violence that was the norm in South Carolina, where the Boskets came from. It is the sobering story of Willie Bosket's family, from his ancestors down to his parents and siblings, explaining how families can be doomed when they remain outside mainstream society and who have no access to opportunity or given any hope. Butterfield does a fine job describing the criminal justice system as it relates to children and how we have come to treat 12 and 13 year old children like adults. In July 1962, while Willie was still in the womb, his father, Butch, stabbed two men in the heart in a Milwaukee pawnshop. Willie's mother, Laura gave birth to him in Harlem, three months before Butch was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murders. Willie did not learn his father's history or whereabouts until he was seven years old. By then, Willie had stolen groceries and assaulted an old woman. By age 8, Willie was described as a human nuclear chain reaction, someone very unpredictably violent and aggressive. When he threw a typewriter out of a school window, just missing a pregnant teacher, he was expelled from school and sent to Bellevue for observation. His institutional life had begun. He was diagnosed as depressed. By the time he was 15, Willie claimed he had committed 2,000 crimes, including 200 armed robberies and 25 stabbings. They culminated in seven violent weeks in 1978, when he kicked another boy off a roof to his death, and then murdered two men during subway robberies. Six factors existed in the Bosket family that fuelled this level of violence - alcoholism, physical abuse, sexual abuse, incest, rejection, and neglect. Since the victims of this abuse found it difficult to transfer their anger back at their family, they turned their rage outwards on society. It seemed as though the only way they had learned to fight back was with either weapons or with their bare hands. One of the saddest situations included Butch and the fact that he had raped his girlfriend's 6 year-old daughter, Kristin. The girlfriend's name was Donna, a weak-willed woman, who had actually ignored her daughter's cries during the rape. In the end, because she allowed it to continue, she had lost custody of both Kristin and her twin brother, Matthew. She was so taken by Butch that she seemed to care more about him than her own children. Butterfield shows the weaknesses that existed within the family. This book seamlessly ties two issues together. On the one hand, it is a fascinating and detailed true crime study of Willie Bosket and on the other hand it's a study of the origins of violence in America. With a surprisingly detailed research, the author was able to trace Willie Bosket's ancestry back to his slave ancestors, and follow the escalating evolution of violence and criminality in each succeeding generation of the Bosket family. The book begins in pre-revolutionary era with a study of white violence in the region of North Carolina where Willie's ancestors were enslaved. The author persuasively argues that the primary origin of black violence is the tradition of white violence that was transferred to them from their former slave owners. Butterfield contends that the white Southern mentality of easily aggrieved honor has made its way through time and the descendants