The Meaning of Other in Sociology

In classical sociology, other is a concept in the study of social life through which we define relationships. We encounter two distinct types of others in relation to ourselves. Significant Other A â€Å"significant other† is someone about whom we have some degree of specific knowledge and thus we pay attention to what we perceive to be his or her personal thoughts, feelings or expectations. In this case, significant does not mean that the person is important, and it doesnt refer to the common parlance of a romantic relationship. Archie O. Haller, Edward L. Fink, and Joseph Woelfel of the University of Wisconsin performed the first scientific research and measurements of the influence of significant others on individuals. Haller, Fink, and Woelfel surveyed 100 adolescents in Wisconsin and measured their educational and occupational aspirations while also identifying the group of other individuals who interacted with the students and were mentors for them. Then they measured the impact of the significant others and their expectations for the teens educational possibilities. The results found that the expectations of the significant had the single most powerful influence on the students own aspirations. Generalized Other The second type of other is the â€Å"generalized other,† which we experience primarily as an abstract social status and the role that goes with it. It was developed by George Herbert Mead as a core concept in his discussion of the social genesis of the self. According to Mead, the self lives in an individuals ability to account for himself as a social being. This also requires a person to account for the role of the other as well as how his or her actions could affect a group. The generalized other represents the collection of roles and attitudes that people use as a reference to figure out how to behave in any particular situation. According to Mead: Selves develop in social contexts as people learn to take the roles of their consociates such that they can with a fair degree of accuracy predict how one set of actions is likely to generate fairly predictable responses. People develop these capacities in the process of interacting with one another, sharing meaningful symbols, and developing and using language to create, refine, and assign meanings to social objects (including themselves). For people to engage in complex and intricate social processes, they have to develop a sense of expectations--the rules, roles, norms, and understanding that make responses predictable and understandable. When you learn these rules as distinct from others, the aggregate comprises a generalized other. Examples of the Other A significant other: We might know that the corner grocery store clerk likes children or does not like it when people ask to use the restroom. As an â€Å"other,† this person is significant in that we pay attention not only to what grocers are generally like, but also what we know about this particular grocer. A generalized other: When we enter a grocery store without any knowledge of the grocer, our expectations are based only on knowledge of grocers and customers in general and what is usually supposed to take place when they interact. Thus when we interact with this grocer, our only basis for knowledge is the generalized other.

Analysis Of How Of Tame A Wild Tongue - 1507 Words

Seth Mauck Professor MacDonald Comp 099 Oct. 11,2016 Cracks in Culture In Gloria Anzaldà ºa article â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† she shows us how different worlds so close can be so different. Anzaldà ºa shows that people have restricted freedom in society by the social norms set in them. Anzaldà ºa pressed her awareness and distraught on how people treat her depending on the type of language she uses. She also explains some of her emotions towards the way people are like with speaking and listening to accents. The article is how Anzaldà ºa explains how culture and accent shapes a person’s identity by being controlled and oppressed to fit into the social norms, which is how she creates cracks using language and code switching. Anzaldà ºa cannot be defined by any one culture because of the area of Texas she lives in, the languages she speaks, her identity, and where she fits into society. In the United States, the most common language people speak is English because it surpasses the language border. Culture leans more to the sides of men and that they can do more than a woman can do in society. The founding fathers were all men that created the Declaration of Independence. Men of that time expected to be well dressed, socially responsible in how they acted, and what they said. Women were held to higher standards because the women made sure everything was in order in the house and that the children had at least one good example for how to live in society. The expectations I grew upShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of How To Tame A Wild Tongue1713 Words   |  7 Pages In â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue† by Gloria Anzaldua, she speaks from personal experiences she grows up with while living as a Chicana in the United States. Throughout her life she was subjected to being oppressed because of her native language. From a very young age she felt as if she was not allowed to express and acknowledge herself while speaking Spanish. Anzaldua believes that â€Å"If you want to really hurt me, talk bad about my language. Ethnic identity is twin skin to linguistic identity – I amRead MoreAnalysis Of The Poem How Of Tame A Wild Tongue 1460 Words   |  6 PagesThe essay, â€Å"How to tame a wild tongue† written by Gloria Anzaldua is a staggering piece on important social issues such as racism, cultural differences, individuation, and domination. Anzaldua believes that her language is yet the most central and important component for her ethnic identity as a person. If her language is threatened, then her individuality is threatened. Sh e basically responds to the violence she experienced as her character was restricted in this dominating society that she wasRead MoreAnalysis Of How To Tame A Wild Tongue By Taloria Anzaldà ºa987 Words   |  4 Pagesto let it tear you down? Within the short text â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† this idea is explored in numerous ways as the various groups of Hispanics and women attempt to gain more rights within their community and society as a whole. They come to the realization that the ways in which they are treated is in an unjust manner, making them feel insignificant and powerless. Therefore, in Gloria Anzaldà ºa’s â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue,† she confronts how many Hispanic minorities, especially women, areRead MoreTame A Wild Tongue Summary1113 Words   |  5 Pages Rhetorical analysis of â€Å"How to tame a wild tongue â€Å" Activist, Gloria Anzaldua’s narrative excerpt â€Å"How to tame a wild tongue† She Goes into depth of ethnic identity, While knocking down walls of linguistic and identity down. How one would identify themselves while broadcasting the struggles any person with culture has felt. She uses ethos, pathos, and logos alongside all 5 senses making the reader feel they witness the struggles she went through if not witness then actuallyRead MoreBecoming Members of Society: Learning the Social Meanings of Gender (Devor1029 Words   |  5 Pagesidentity as unfortunate by-products. The Xicano (Chicano) was able to evolve and retain their cultural identity and ethnicity by creating a border dialect or language (a Patois) which supports the view of the essayist Gloria Anzaldua’s â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue.† This dialect is viewed as sub-cultured jargon in their homeland (Mexico) where Standard Mexican Spanish is spoken and the Working Class English is demanded by their adopted host north of the border, America. Ultimately, the appropriationRead MoreA Wild Tongue By Gloria Anzaldua1779 Words   |  8 Pagesâ€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue† Critical Analysis When Anzaldua says â€Å"So, if you want to really hurt me, talk badly about my language† she wants you to feel every aspect of what she is saying. In â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue† she persuades her readers to believe this and that she has went through hell to fight for what she believes in. â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue† is published in Borderlands/La Frontera, by Gloria Anzaldua and â€Å"the book talks about how she is concerned with many kinds of borders--betweenRead MoreLanguage Is More Violent Than War?1426 Words   |  6 Pagesstandards. Langue is a part of our culture it’s how we begin to communicate with those around us. In this article she explains how Chicanos express themselves through language, we speak different English than White Americans and we speak different Spanish than Mexicans. We get criticized by both for speaking incorrectly; I think it’s important to shine light on the oppression of language in today’s life and how it affects our culture. I will discuss how our culture and language shapes our identityRead MoreSpeaking Spanish in the USA1412 Words   |  6 Pagesspeaking Spanish only, and then I regained the Mexican accent that had faded away during the school year. My experience learning English was different from what earlier Spanish speaking generations in the United States dealt with. In â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue† Gloria Anzaldà ºa writes, â€Å"being caught speaking Spanish at recess†¦ that was good for three licks on the knuckles with a sharp ruler† (Anzaldà ºa 374). Born in 1942, a few years later Anzaldua was dealing with physical abuse to discourage herRead MoreHow to Tame a Wild Tongue1952 Words   |  8 Pagesâ€Å"My Perspective of a Wild Tongue† â€Å"How to Tame a Wild Tongue†, by Gloria Anzaldua, is a very expressive story about a Mexican American women’s struggle to preserve her culture. Her main fight revolves around a struggle to keep a form of Spanish, called â€Å"Chicano Spanish†, a live. In the short story she says, for a people who cannot entirely identify with either standard (formal, Castilian) Spanish, or standard English, what recourse is left to them but to create their own language?(pageRead MoreThe Taming Of The Shrew By William Shakespeare1382 Words   |  6 Pagesand opinions on the matter – denying her a voice in her own future. Regardless of how Kate is portrayed at the play’s beginning, it is through her ‘taming’ that Shakespeare acquiesces to traditional patriarchal beliefs. The use of language throughout the play is constantly derogatory towards women, supporting the patriarchal view of femininity being subsidiary. Upon first glance of Bianca, Lucentio remarks of how â€Å"But in the other s silence do I see, Maid s mild behavior and sobriety. Peace, Tranio

Cultural Safety of The Nurses Practices †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about theCultural Safety of The Nurses Practices. Answer: Self-confidence as the culture Self-confidence or self-esteem will be related to the cultural safety of the nurses practices. It will provide the nurses with cultural sensitivity. It will also prevent the negative perceptions and will enable them to engage in experienced service Reflective practice by using Gibbs reflective model This model will thus support the nurses to work with self confidence in the surrounding environment. This will be critical to develop the cultural practice of the self confidence among the nurses. Description Self-confidence as a culture will shape the area of thenursing profession among the nurses. It will allow the nurses to place them superior in their tasks, perceive the world in a very dutiful manner. The nurses should have the trust on their own abilities and qualities and perform any task easily. The quality of self identity will enable to perform their duties in culturally competent manner. The personal culture of self confidence will help in their professional practice. Feelings Since the identity acts as the cultural recognition, there should not be any negative recognition of the self identity aspect. The self confidence means a lot to the nurses. This is because it will give a feeling of personal satisfaction and will also help the patients by providing them with best quality services. The services are to be provided irrespective of the individual gender, occupation, socio economic status, ethnic backgrounds, migration. Evaluation Evaluation of self confidence showed that this code of professions practiced by the nurses is very helpful. The nurses must use this self identity in their practice because it will help them to manage any critical situation regarding the differences in cultures. The nurses must be trained and evaluated to see that their self confidence is present. In order to achieve self confidence the nurses must set their goals and be motivated. Self confidence in any work will help to fulfill the principles of the cultural safety in broad spectrum. Analysis Thenursing and midwifery council code of professional conduct states that self confidence will n be useful to give the best quality services to the patient in any condition. This is also essential in promotion of the learning among the nurses. This will help to recognize the differences and equally accept the diversity in human behavior and social structure. Conclusion Self confidence as an aspect of self identity will be helpful for the nurses to respect all the behavior of the different people. This will help to resolve effective and equitable service. Action plan Cultural safety learning will include the outcome of the self confidence in the nursing practice. They must ensure and demonstrate the flexibility in the relationship with people who are different from themselves. Self confidence and self esteem will also provide positivity in the cultural competence in health care. As a wavetool As a wavetool, I will stand in the position to be competent enough to give high quality health care to all the culturally different people in unique ways. With self esteem and confidence I might induce the same to other people. This will be a way of showing respect to all the people with different cultural backgrounds. This has helped to change a lot from the previous situation. Cultural identity also is a part of personal identity. Thus modification of the personal qualities will help them to pay respect to other people beliefs (Potter et al, 2016). The new information that I can seek is to know all the cultural description of the patient that will be treated. This could be done by communicating them if possible. At first, there could be a challenge while dealing with differences in values of other people. The personal self esteem can influence them and make them understand a treatment procedure. Sometimes the treatment procedures can harm other people thought and that can be remove d by self identity. In this part the reading from the Cultural safety in Aotearoa that has helped me to understand the concepts of cultural safety (Banks, Kelly, 2015). References Banks, L., Kelly, M. (2015). Cultural safety and theNursing Council of New Zealand.Cultural Safety in Aotearoa New Zealand, 26. Potter, P. A., Perry, A. G., Stockert, P., Hall, A. (2016).Fundamentals of Nursing-E-Book. Elsevier Health Sciences.

Types of Accountability free essay sample

In a few cases, recall elections can be used to revoke the office of an elected official. Generally, however, voters do not have any direct way of holding elected representatives to account during the term for which they have been elected. Additionally, some officials and legislators may be appointed rather than elected. Constitution, or statute, can empower a legislative body to hold their own members, the government, and government bodies to account. This can be through holding an internal or independent inquiry. Inquiries are usually held in response to an allegation of misconduct or corruption. The powers, procedures and sanctions vary from country to country. The legislature may have the power to impeach the individual, remove them, or suspend them from office for a period of time. The accused person might also decide to resign before trial. Impeachment in the United States has been used both for elected representatives and other civil offices, such as district court judges. We will write a custom essay sample on Types of Accountability or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In parliamentary systems, the government relies on the support or parliament, which gives parliament power to hold the government to account. For example, some parliaments can pass a vote of no confidence in the government. [edit] Ethical accountability Ethical accountability is the practice of improving overall personal and organizational performance by developing and promoting responsible tools and professional expertise, and by advocating an effective enabling environment for people and organizations to embrace a culture of sustainable development. Ethical accountability may include the individual, as well as small and large businesses, not-for-profit organizations, research institutions and academics, and government. One scholarly paper has posited that it is unethical to plan an action for social change without excavating the knowledge and wisdom of the people who are responsible for implementing the plans of action and the people whose lives will be affected. [14] [edit] Administrative accountability Internal rules and norms as well as some independent commission are mechanisms to hold civil servant within the administration of government accountable. Within department or ministry, firstly, behavior is bounded by rules and regulations; secondly, civil servants are subordinates in a hierarchy and accountable to superiors. Nonetheless, there are independent â€Å"watchdog† units to scrutinize and hold departments accountable; legitimacy of these commissions is built upon their independence, as it avoids any conflicts of interest. Apart from internal checks, some â€Å"watchdog† units accept complaints from citizens, bridging government and society to hold civil servants accountable to citizens, but not merely governmental departments. [edit] Market accountability Under voices for decentralization and privatization of the government, services provided are nowadays more â€Å"customer-driven† and should aim to provide convenience and various choices to citizens; with this perspective, there are comparisons and competition between public and private services and this, ideally, improves quality of service. As mentioned by Bruce Stone, the standard of assessment for accountability is therefore â€Å"responsiveness of service providers to a body of ‘sovereign’ customers and produce quality service. Outsourcing service is one means to adopt market accountability. Government can choose among a shortlist of companies for outsourced service; within the contracting period, government can hold the company by rewriting contracts or by choosing another company. [edit] Constituency relations Within this perspective, a particular agency or the government is accountable f voices from agencies, groups or institutions, which is outside the public sector and representing citizens’ interests in a particular constituency or field, are heard. Moreover, the government is obliged to empower members of agencies with political rights to run for elections and be elected; or, appoint them into the public sector as a way to hold the government representative and ensure voices from all const ituencies are included in policy-making process. [edit] Public/private overlap With the increase over the last several decades in public service provision by private entities, especially in Britain and the United States, some have called for increased political accountability mechanisms to be applied to otherwise non-political entities. Legal scholar Anne Davies, for instance, argues that the line between public institutions and private entities like corporations is becoming blurred in certain areas of public service provision in the United Kingdom and that this can compromise political accountability in those areas. She and others argue that some administrative law reforms are necessary to address this accountability gap. [15] With respect to the public/private overlap in the United States, public concern over the contracting out of government (including military) services and the resulting accountability gap has been highlighted recently following the shooting incident involving the Blackwater security firm in Iraq. [16]

Charley Death Of A Salesman Essay Example

Charley Death Of A Salesman Paper Miller makes Requiem a moving and appropriate ending in many appealing ways. This ending of his reveals the even more strenuous situation of Willy. Although the audiences have known him as a salesman with no glorious achievement in life but with a conclusion like this, the funeral highlights the focus on Willy’s isolation and failure. Furthermore, it also issues the doubt in the vague American Dream of our departed salesman. It appears that at Willy’s funeral, there was only his loyal wife Linda; his two beloved sons: Biff, Happy; and Charley with his boy Bernard. Yes, his only friend who’s at the funeral was Charley-the man that was yelled, swore at by Willy throughout the whole play. However he ended up being the only one Willy can go to and ask for help, for money. It is shown that Charley is the one who cares and keeps on offering Willy a job but what he gets is always rejection. In this final scene, Miller clarifies to the audience about how much Charley comprehends the job of a salesman in this kind of world, especially the one like Willy. Charley Death Of A Salesman Essay Sample We will write a custom essay sample on Charley Death Of A Salesman specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Charley Death Of A Salesman specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Charley Death Of A Salesman specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Death of a salesman Death of a salesman Death of a salesman Specifically, Charley says: â€Å"For a salesman, there’s no rock bottom to the life†. The connotation of â€Å"rock bottom† is the lowest level. This suggests that for a salesman like Willy, it doesn’t matter what his social status is, he just have to get down low and serves his job. â€Å"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine† The color blue means hope. This indicates that Willy was a person with the desire of reaching success. But to do that â€Å"a smile and a shoeshine† are what it takes. A smile refers to the fact that he must always be delighted and satisfies what customers need in order to sell his products. â€Å"Shoeshine† is the act of polishing one’s shoes. To many people, this job is low and â€Å"cheap†. Link back to the salesman’s circumstances, his position is low, the lowest; all of this highlights Willy’s sacrifice just so his dream would come true. However, â€Å"it comes with the territory†, the unavoidable result. Maybe Willy just was not in luck. Or maybe he was just a little man, unable to handle such gigantic pressure. That’s life, with the reckless society, which only place strain on our shoulder. Charley is not the only one who understands Willy’s predicament, but so does Biff. He appears to be wiser, more sagacious and sensible through his words. Biff knows precisely his father’s situation: â€Å"The man didn’t know who he was.† – he said. As the audience, we are already aware of that all the way through the story. Biff signifies that Willy â€Å"had the wrong dreams. All, all wrong†. While it is beyond doubt that Willy’s destination, where he aims to is the wrong way. However it is vague to no one but him. He kept on heading blindly so this is the end of everything. Thankfully, Biff realizes the mistaken error in his father’s life. Biff knows that there’s more of Willy when he â€Å"makes the stoop, finishing the cellar; putting on the new porch; when he built the extra bathroom; and put up the garage.† This specifies that Willy â€Å"was so wonderful with his hands†. He should have chosen the path that was right for him. In spite of that, Happy has the total contradict point of view. He still believes that Willy had a good dream. â€Å"It’s the only dream you can have – to come out number-one man.† This illustrates the lack of understanding of Happy towards Willy. He does not recognize his father’s real strength. His perception on the job of a salesman and the sort of society that he is living in is limit. Lesson but be learnt following the death of his father. However, Happy didn’t seem to acknowledge that. He still wants to â€Å"show everybody else that Willy Loman did not die in vain.† It is a foolish thing to do, as we all know, the percentage is high that he might as well end up regretting the failure of his life. â€Å"Like father, like son.† But unlike his brother, the Biff that we know decides to get away from the city of cruelty, dishonesty and also known as the dog-eat-dog world. About Linda, she has been faithful and stands by Willy’s side through everything yet she still cannot understand his action. Throughout the whole Requiem, Linda keeps repeating: â€Å"I can’t understand it.† This suggests that the unexpected death of Willy happened in the blink of an eye left her clueless and most of all shatter in sorrow. The unintelligible, ironic fact is that his family was just â€Å"about free and clear.† That is what really confuses her. She thought Willy only needed a little salary but that’s not the big picture Linda is looking at. She is the one to provide Willy with supports but his death finally gave her nothing but uncertainty. It has always been Willy’s dream to be a successful salesman. He yearns for it that he is almost hypnotized by the dream that is beyond his reach. Linda does not get it because the business world is complicated and she is just one loyal wife, who utterly loves her husband. Therefore it consumes her. â€Å"Help me, Willy, I can’t cry. It seems to me that you’re just on another trip. I keep expecting you.† What Linda said implies that in the old days, Willy kept on traveling for his job. As for Linda, she’s just an ordinary housewife, who stays home and does her chores and waits for Willy one day to another. She cannot cry because it’s the agony that is too painful for her. It eats her up on the inside that no tears can help. But just the sobbing of Linda is the communication of her sadness. Lastly, the notion of the American Dream is what obsessed Willy ever since he starts being a salesman. Willy’s concept of being a successful salesman is to be well-liked. He spent his whole life obligated to fulfill his dream, his fallacious dream. To be exact, he didn’t have a chance to choose right from wrong. It’s the American society that guides him there. At the end, he ended up finding himself in the middle of nowhere, falling out of his dream, the dream that never suited Willy Loman. Moreover, Willy was inspired by his idol, Dave Singleman, once a glorious salesman. He left Willy with the fantasy of an ultimate job. Our little man thought he would have accomplished it and had a marvelous life. But no he did not. Dave Singleman died the death of a salesman. Willy Loman also died the death of a salesman. But their funerals aren’t the same. One was filled with hundreds of salesman and buyers. One is solitary with the presence of family members, and a friend. These details are enough to explicate the isolation and the collapse of Willy’s life. When the play finally reaches its end, â€Å"only the music of the flute is left on the darkening stage as over the house the hard towers of the apartment buildings rise into sharp focus.† Music of the flute is the instrument that Willy’s father can play. This shows us the reminiscence of everything that has passed. The lightning of stage is dark indicates the misery that Willy’s family is suffering through. Finally, the stage emphasizes the apartment buildings as a beautiful memories for our characters, remind them of what they have been through, both joyful and tough times. This is a lesson to learn by heart and also a tribute to our tragic hero, Willy Loman. In conclusion, through our characters’ speech, acting and the stagecraft, Arthur Miller has successfully formed such emotional and suitable ending for the play. Willy’s miss-choosing of his dream is demonstrated accurately in Death of the Salesman. It is also specially highlighted in the Requiem. â€Å"Requiem† means â€Å"a Mass for the repose of the souls of the dead†. Therefore this is a totally appropriate ending for the play as Willy’s death has just occurred. Death of the Salesman left behind the explanation for the corruption of Willy’s life and his broken American Dream.

USS Maine Explosion and the Spanish-American War

USS Maine Explosion and the Spanish-American War The sinking of USS Maine took place on February 15, 1898, and contributed to the outbreak of the Spanish-American War that April. After years of unrest in Cuba, tensions began to re-escalate in the 1890s. Seeking to calm the American public, which had been calling for intervention, and to protect business interests, President William McKinley ordered the US Navy to dispatch a warship to Havana. Arriving in January 1898, USS Maine sank on February 15 after an explosion tore through the ship. Initial reports concluded that Maine had been sunk by a naval mine. Sparking a wave of outrage across the United States, the loss of the ship helped push the nation towards war. Though a later report in 1911 also concluded that a mine caused the explosion, some began to believe that it was the result of a coal dust fire. A subsequent investigation in 1974 also favored the coal dust theory though its findings have been contested. Background Since the late 1860s, efforts had been underway in Cuba to end Spanish colonial rule. In 1868, the Cubans began a ten-year rebellion against their Spanish overlords. Though it was crushed in 1878, the war had generated widespread support for the Cuban cause in the United States. Seventeen years later, in 1895, the Cubans again rose up in the revolution. To combat this, the Spanish government dispatched General Valeriano Weyler y Nicolau to crush the rebels. Arriving in Cuba, Weyler began a brutal campaign against the Cuban people which involved the use of concentration camps in rebellious provinces. This approach led to the death of over 100,000 Cubans and Weyler was promptly nicknamed the Butcher by the American press. Stories of atrocities in Cuban were played up by the yellow press, and the public put increasing pressure on Presidents Grover Cleveland and William McKinley to intervene. Working through diplomatic channels, McKinley was able to defuse the situation and Weyler was recalled to Spain in late 1897. The following January, supporters of Weyler began a series of riots in Havana. Concerned for American citizens and business interests in the area, McKinley elected to send a warship to the city. Arriving in Havana After discussing this course of action with the Spanish and receiving their blessing, McKinley passed his request to the US Navy. To fulfill the presidents orders, the second-class battleship USS Maine was detached from the North Atlantic Squadron at Key West on January 24, 1898. Commissioned in 1895, Maine possessed four 10 guns and was capable of steaming at 17 knots. With a crew of 354, Maine had spent the entirety of its brief career operating along the eastern seaboard. Commanded by Captain Charles Sigsbee, Maine entered Havana harbor on January 25, 1898. USS Maine entering Havana harbor, January 1898. US Department of Defense Anchoring in the center of the harbor, Maine was afforded the usual courtesies by the Spanish authorities. Though the arrival of Maine had a calming effect on the situation in the city, the Spanish remained wary of American intentions. Wishing to prevent a possible incident involving his men, Sigsbee restricted them to the ship and no liberty was given. In the days after Maines arrival, Sigsbee met regularly with the US Consul, Fitzhugh Lee. Discussing the state of affairs on the island, they both recommended that another ship be sent when it was time for Maine to depart. Rear Admiral Charles D. Sigsbee. US Naval History and Heritage Command Loss of Maine At 9:40 on the evening of February 15, the harbor was lit by a massive explosion that ripped through the forward section of Maine as five tons of powder for the ships guns detonated. Destroying the forward third of the ship, Maine sank into the harbor. Immediately, assistance came from the American steamer City of Washington and the Spanish cruiser Alfonso XII, with boats circling the burning remains of the battleship to collect the survivors. All told, 252 were killed in the blast, with another eight dying ashore in the days that followed. Investigation Throughout the ordeal, the Spanish showed great compassion for the injured and respect for the dead American sailors. Their behavior led Sigsbee to inform the Navy Department that public opinion should be suspended until further report, as he felt that the Spanish were not involved in the sinking of his ship. To investigate the loss of Maine, the Navy swiftly formed a board of inquiry. Due to the state of the wreck and a lack of expertise, their investigation was not as thorough as subsequent efforts. On March 28, the board announced that the ship had been sunk by a naval mine. The boards finding unleashed a wave of public outrage across the United States and fueled calls for war. While not the cause of the Spanish-American War, shouts of Remember the Maine! served to accelerate the approaching diplomatic impasse over Cuba. On April 11, McKinley asked Congress for permission to intervene in Cuba and ten days later ordered a naval blockade of the island. This final step led to Spain declaring war on April 23, with the United States following suit on the 25th. Aftermath In 1911, a second inquiry was made into the sinking of Maine following a request to remove the wreck from the harbor. Constructing a cofferdam around the ships remains, the salvage effort permitted investigators to probe the wreck. Examining the bottom hull plates around the forward reserve magazine, investigators found that they were bent inward and back. Using this information they again concluded that a mine had been detonated under the ship. While accepted by the Navy, the boards findings were disputed by experts in the field, some of whom put forward a theory that the combustion of coal dust in a bunker adjacent to the magazine had sparked the explosion. Workers preparing to raise the wreck of USS Maine, 1910. US Naval History and Heritage Command The case of USS Maine was reopened in 1974, by Admiral Hyman G. Rickover who believed that modern science might be able to provide an answer to the ships loss. After consulting experts and reexamining the documents from the first two investigations, Rickover and his team concluded that the damage was inconsistent with that caused by a mine. Rickover stated that the most likely cause was a coal dust fire. In the years after Rickovers report, his findings have been disputed and to this day there has been no final answer as to what caused the explosion.

THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF FOOD AND EATING by Sidney W. Mintz^ and Christine Essay

THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF FOOD AND EATING by Sidney W. Mintz^ and Christine M. Du Bois^ - Essay Example That notwithstanding, what comes out as of utmost importance in the article is what anthropology entails. From the reading, it is asserted that anthropology is concerned with unearthing the origin of human life, culture, as well as social interactions. In fact, through references made to Kant’s philosophy on reasoning, the concept of anthropology is epitomized. It seeks to find knowledge against which man gains understanding of the world. Fabian fronts the idea that knowledge is a possession which contributes to the survival of mankind. The article by Roy Ellen mainly seeks to espouse on the theories that should be accepted as being anthropological. Just as argued by Fabian, anthropology is fundamentally based on theories just like in philosophical studies. In fronting his views on anthropological theories, the author argues that theories are basically presumptions. They constitute of suppositions which should aid one in developing a basis for ascertaining the truth behind contemporary occurrences or predicaments. In doing, the author gives an example of how the theory of evolution from selected individual could be used to give presumptions on the rest of life. Anthropological theories, therefore, should seek to give directions on anthropological studies with the aim of giving information which could be used for the survival of the existent species. There are different theories which have been fronted in this discourse. The first is the simple correlative theory which is based on hypothesis which bear relevance to selected variables. It works by minimizing the variables to selected ones which would best suit the situation at hand. The other is the theory of emergent systems which is characterized by probabilistic occurrences. The last theory is on socio-cultural change as well as its transmission. In reviewing the theories which are existent in anthropology, the writer digresses to the Darwinian Theory of