Globalisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Globalisation - Essay Example These dimensions include economic, political, security, environment, and health social, cultural among others. Globalisation was coined in 1980’s but the concept is an ancient one that has a dissimilar significance to most people (Hansen et al, 2010). Apparently, scholars, policy makers and activist see it as a force that could be used to advance the economy in the world while others view the concept as a danger to the economic systems in the world. In light of view of globalisation as the concept that is relevant to the world economy, there is a remarkable increase in worldwide trade and exchanges through increasingly open, integrated and borderless international economy. Besides, remarkable growth has be noted in trade and exchange not only in traditional and international trade of commodities and services, but also in currency exchanges, in capital activities, transfer of technology, movement of people through international travelling and migration, over and above, the flow of information and ideas internationally (Ku?ng, 1998) Globalisation as an Unstoppable Force Globalisation has continually become an unstoppable force especially now when it has opened a golden chance for business, commerce and trade (Dervis and Altinay, 2011). In fact, never before in the history of the world has there emerged such a situation where many goods have been sold to many people in the easiest way as is happening currently. Moreover, the presence of information and communication has enabled everyone to access everything anywhere. In regard to this, markets are continually becoming global, numerous corporations are richer and powerful as compared to some countries. Of importance to note, is that there is a combination of reduced trade barrier, financial liberalisation, over and above, a technological revolt that has totally changed the environment of business in most of the industrialized countries. According to Boesak (2009), globalisation has promised more trade, more market, more business, and more information among other issues. This has been demonstrated through the considerable wealth that has continuously been brought by the tide of globalisation. Why does the World need a Global Set of Ethic rules and What would They be? A global ethic can be described as an ethical perspective which incorporates significant ethical relations between states, between individuals who live in different societies. In the ethic, there are claims with regard to the existence of some universal values and norms concerning obligations that have global scope (Chatterjee, 2011). Consequently, global ethics is a concept that entails ethical inquiry into the nature and explanation of the values and norms that are global. Simply, it articulates various issues that have risen in the recent past such as international aid, security, environmental problems, intervention and human rights. Never the less, scholars interested with global ethics argue that it is not possible of the global ethics to be accepted by the world over to make a single society. Needless to mention, global ethics are crucial and should be accepted as they arguably promote the global goals (Hutchings, 2010). In the event that some global ethics are not embraced by a considerable number of agents, the intended goals are not likely to be attained. Apparently, there can be diverse global ethics and diverse understanding of the goals. Some global ethics

Why Are Proteins Important Essay Example for Free

Why Are Proteins Important Essay Proteins can easily be addressed as one of the most important molecules in animal cells. There are many varieties of protein molecules which allow a vast range of biological activities in the cell.( Williams, G.(2000))’Proteins are big compound with large molecular masses’’(Williams, G.(2000)) whose main chemical constituents are hydrogen, carbon ,oxygen and nitrogen. A protein structure consists of a specific sequence of amino acids called the primary structure, this particular sequence determines the secondary structure of the protein which can be ÃŽ ±-helix or ÃŽ ²-pleated sheet. This then further folds to form the tertiary structure . The primary structure determines the eventual shape of the protein and thus its function. ‘’Different proteins can appear very different and perform diverse functions’’ (S-COOL. Biology A-level: Biological Molecules and Enzymes-URL: http://www.s-cool.co.uk/alevel/biology/biological-molecules-and-enzymes/carbohydrates.html (accessed 11/11/2010)). Some of the diverse range of functions provided by proteins are transport , for example haemoglobin, which allows oxygen to be transferred throughout the body. Defence, primarily by immunoglobulin, i.e. antibodies. Structure, such as collagen and elastin that form tissue. For hormones e.g. insulin and glucagon are important for controlling blood sugar. All enzymes are proteins, enzymes control most of the reactions found in living organisms, they also transfer substrate molecules. They have a specific shape due to a specific primary structure. They are therefore specific in the reactions that they catalyse. They have an active site which is a unique shape so any one type of substrate will fit in it. (S-COOL. Biology A-level: Biological Molecules and Enzymes- [online] )

Socialization Leads To Identity Formation

Socialization Leads To Identity Formation What is socialization? Socialization is the process in which human beings interact with each other individually and in groups. It is the process by which one learns the traditions, customs and accepted behaviour in any given society. It is not a onetime process, but it is a lifelong process that provides individuals with skills, values and attitudes that are necessary for interacting with the society. Human beings need social experiences to learn their culture and survive in the society. They are not born with values and skills. They learn from what they see, hear and experience throughout their life. They have the capability to learn and absorb from what they see around them. Socialization is not a just a simple term that can be seen at face value. It has many layers, and each layer is different from the other and leads to different processes and situations. Socialization has three layers; primary, secondary and tertiary. Primary is what we learn from our family and when we are youn g, secondary is what we learn in school, and tertiary is what we learn throughout our lives. We now know what socialization means, but what is identity? Identity is what makes an individual who he really is and what his purpose in life is. It is what makes an individual definable and recognizable. It is who you are and where you come from and what makes you unique from every other human being. It gives an individual a sense of being. Identity can be defined as individuality, personality, distinctiveness or uniqueness that makes an individual stand out. Like socialization, identity too cannot be seen at face value. Identity has many layers to itself, and as we walk through life, each new layer keeps unfolding in front of us. Now, since we know what socialization and identity both mean, we can bring them together and relate them to answer our question does socialization lead to identity formation? Well, I think yes, socialization does lead to identity formation as we discover who we really are and where we fit in, only in the midst of people and in our interaction with them. Once we start interacting with the society, we learn so much about ourselves as well as about others (individuals or societies), their culture, customs, behaviour, etc. We learn that we are similar to some people, and different from others. Socialization makes an individual more confident. The more people we talk to, the more topics we talk about, and this in turn widens our scope. Also, we make ourselves more visible to society and hence people recognize us. Thus socialization helps in building ones identity. Todays world is all about power and identity. If one has an identity as well as the right attitude, he can achieve whatever h e wants. Socializing also leads to better networking. Better networking means more connections and more connections means higher opportunities at work or elsewhere as well. Hence socialization leads to a boost in ones career or talent and thus helps in identity formation. The more we interact with people, the more we discover ourselves and form judgements about ourselves as well as others. One is only able to discover his true self when he interacts with others and reacts in certain ways that are different from others. Everyone has a different and unique reaction to a certain situation. This uniqueness is what gives an individual his identity. For example, if we see Phillip Zimbardos Stanford Prison Study Experiment (Zimbardo, 1971), that was undertaken to study the behavioural and psychological consequences of becoming a prisoner or prison guard, we observe that the prisoners started to lose their identity, and didnt see it as an experiment, but as a real prison run by psychologist. They forgot that they were actually just college students and not actually prisoners. The prisoners actually gave up their freedom and forgot their rights and liberties. The situation was such that it made them feel that way. The environment was so realistic that they act ually believed they were prisoners and thus behaved in rebellion. It is the prisoners who created in the guards a sadistic impulse. The guards were compelled to act in ways that were totally opposite from what they were feeling inside. But few of the guards were actually cruel, and felt no guilt or regret while doing their job. They had completely lost themselves and started behaving in the role that was assigned to them, i.e. the role of a prison guard. The prisoners as well as the guards lost their true identity and became what the situation required them to be. The fresh prison routine, the privilege cell for the obedient ones and the hole for those who were punished, the clothes they were made to wear, the food they were made to eat, the number given to them by which they were now addressed, made them lose their true identity and become someone else. Thus, from this experiment we learn that situations affect us more than we think. What the volunteers in this experiment experienc ed was the power of the situation and not anything to do with their personality. Prisons are institutions which attempt to rid individuals of their previous identity, and this can be clearly seen in Zimbardos prison experiment. Another example is The Clark Doll Experiment (Clark, 1939) that was carried out by Dr. Kenneth Clark and his wife, where they asked black children to choose between a black doll and a white doll. Most of the children said the white doll was nicer, prettier and the one they preferred playing with, whereas the black doll was the bad doll. All these children were aged from 6 to 9 only and were already so damaged by racism at such a young age. This racism was due to the school segregation between white and black kids. It was distorting their minds, causing them to have stereotypes and hate themselves. When asked the last question of the experiment-which doll looks like you? the children hesitated and answered. They wanted to choose the white doll, but reluctantly pick the black one. Thus, prejudice, discrimination and segregation caused black children to develop a sense of inferiority and self hatred. These children were embarrassed of who they truly were, and hated themselves for being black. They wanted to be white like the other kids. Thus, they lost their identity at such a young age and in fact were ashamed of who they actually were. They preferred being someone else. Thus, socialization does lead to identity formation, and this identity formation starts at a young age itself. Even before children learn the basic dos and donts. So, it is very important to keep children away from bad influences and situations that can make them form bad judgements and ideas about themselves. Now, arguing against the motion, socialization leads to identity formation, I would completely disagree upon this statement. Identity is who we are and where we come from. We form our identity by how we behave, how our family has brought us up, what education we get, where our interests lie, etc. It is what we do and how we behave as individuals that form our identity and make us who we truly are. Socialization has nothing to do with identity formation. Socialization will not pour knowledge or talents into an individual; it will not build ones identity. It is important because we get to know more people, and get to widen our base. But it doesnt form who we are. It is we ourselves who from who we are, not the people around us. Primary and Tertiary socialization may lead to identity formation, but I can confidently say that Secondary socialization does not lead to identity formation. This can be proved by Paul Williss Learning to Labour: How Working Class Kids Get Working Class Jobs (Willis, 1977). In this study, we see that it is the family that gives the children their identity and even schooling could not change this identity. This is because the school did not teach them what they actually required in life and what they need to live life the way their society lives it. It is the students who distance themselves from the school culture and requirements, and develop their own counterculture. They are resistant to the schooling, and reject what the school offers to them. Willis finds that they are not less talented, but they do develop an antagonism towards the work hard move forward mentality of modern education, and develop what Willis terms as counter school culture (Willis, 1977). Thus, these children do not form a different identity that their school wants them to become. They stick to what their family has taught them and what their family requires them to be. Their family requires them to be labourers, who earn their living by hard work and labour, not by sitting on a desk and signing papers. Thus, these children reject the education and school culture that schooling is supposed to embed in a student, and prefer living life the way their family has been doing so, not because they want to, but because it is their duty, it is who they are and where they belong.

Basketball Essay -- essays research papers

Basketball Basketball was created a simple game. The primary objective was to place a ball, without dribbling, into a peach basket. However, like Darwin's theory of man, basketball has evolved into the most exciting exhibition of athletic ability. Basketball has seen many rule changes, because of the increasing ability of the players. Basketball is a melting pot, where black, white, and European people excel. This is a sport that is color-blind. This sport requires complete control over one's body and mind. Pure strength is required to fight through opposing teams picks, and to gain position for rebounds. Speed is necessary to create space for a shot attempt or a pass. Concentration is vital to dribbling a ball up the court, with an opposing defender harassing you. With as much physical prowess that is required for success, basketball is a mental chess match. "Thurber, make the smart play!" yelled Coach Balderama all last season.This game is only "ten percent" physical as Duke's Coach K explains it. For those who deny the mental aspects of the game, John Stockton is an ideal example. He is not the fastest, strongest, or best player on the floor. Stockton uses angles and his understanding of basketball to quietly and consistently outplay much more talented opponents. There is a growing problem in the NBA, and it is evident in the "Pop Warner" leagues also. Basketball is not the same game it was ten years ago, and ESPN's Sportcenter, the lack of fundamentals, and the influx of teenagers into the professional ranks. "Vince Carter on the baseline†¦ He raises up†¦ Boo-ya, all in Alonzo Mourning's grill!" States an exited Stuart Scott. Every day ESPN gathers the most amazing highlights from the games the night before, and creates a visually appealing collage. As a religious viewer I am fed a ste ady diet of no look passes, monstrous slam-dunks, and impossible fade-away shots that only NBA caliber players are capable of making. This, almost unknowingly, has assisted in creating a new mentality towards the sport. Last season I would find myself in situations where I was trying to execute a spectacular play, instead of completing the easy one. Why do I try to imitate the sweeping crossover dribble glorified by Allen Iverson? ESPN has made "Playground" basketball in style. Allen Iverson is the pioneer of this ghetto re... ...aliber, and he educated himself about the game and life off of the court. Many of these players who jump to the pro's after little or no college are ignorant. The NBA, these days, has a combined IQ of fifteen, and we wonder what is wrong. The NBA is in a limbo, and is tripping over it's own clumsy feet. The game will not get better until the players improve their levels of play. But improvement comes with experience, and it is difficult for players to gain experience and confidence when they are only children trying to master a complex game. In conclusion, ESPN's Sportcenter, the lack of basic basketball fundamentals, and the decreasing age of players entering into the league is a recipe for disaster. It is a cycle that is going to be hard to break. Today's kids are presented with options that are too difficult for them to comprehend. So instead of doing it the right way and going through school and listening to their coach, agents are give utter control over these exploited chil dren. However, with all of the negatives surrounding the game, basketball will survive. David Stern is a competent commissioner and there is too much money involved for people to let the NBA self destruct.

Reaction Paper for personality developement Essay

I learned a lot with the seminar, the presentation about Personality development is appropriate with the business student like us. The discussion and the explanation are very well set, we truly understand and inspired, and we learned so much about what we are going to do. What I have learned is that, there is no end to the process of self-development, it is just like a lot of things in life which is kind of solid and maybe hard to specify now and again. Every individual should be more effective independent and self-directed learners and It is a continuous improvement process which helps an individual to improve performance in the current job, develop skill and competences realize own full potentials and of course personality makes a person distinctive, unique and exceptional. Every person has different personality and some personalities are better than the others. Human personality should be always praised and no one should ever put anyone down for having a different personality because it will determine the limit of success in order to understand what personality is. This topic that we have emphasizes the stable difference between people and social, emotional and motivational characteristic. It can limit or expand options and choices of lives. It is also been said that personality is shaped through environment, learning, parental and development factors. What I can only say is that, Personality development is a structured and supported process undertaken by an individual whom reflected upon their own learning, performance and achievement and to plan for their personal, educational and career development. It was been thought that we need to improve general skills for study and career management and encourage positive attitude to learning throughout life. The aim and objectives for this Is to improve our capacity to understand what and how we are learning and to review, plan and take responsibility for own learning and career choices. We as a student should keep growing and never stop on learning as it will be a way to our success. I learn so much with the talk. Now I think I will study hard more and develop my skills for me to become successful and have a good life someday.

Sociology Within 1984 by Orwell

Madeline LaRossa October 24, 2012 C07789454 Potential Outcomes of Progress: Orwell’s 1984 1) Summary of the Book 1984 is an eye-opening novel written by George Orwell. Orwell wrote the novel in 1949 to outline how he projected society would be in 1984 if progress continued upon its current track. Orwell published the book as a warning that society must be careful about progress for progress’s sake, or conditions could end up similar to the way society is in his work 1984. The novel is divided into three chapters, or books, each with multiple subunits, and these sections tell the story in chronological order.The book ends with an appendix on the principles of newspeak, the new language of Oceania. The novel follows Winston Smith’s experiences in London in 1984. Smith is a low-ranking member of â€Å"the Party,† the all-controlling ruling entity of their county Oceania. The Party (represented by Big Brother) has telescreens (two-way microphones and cameras) and spies everywhere with the purpose of finding and snuffing out anyone who is not fully and unquestioningly devoted to the Party.The citizens of Oceania are not allowed to own their own property, are not allowed any privacy (even in their thoughts), are not encouraged to have sexual desires, are forced to live under strict rations in constant wartimes, and are forced to alter their memories and records as The Party sees fit. The book focuses on Smith’s secret disobedience of the Party; he thinks he joins an underground resistance movement However, he is eventually captured and tortured into honest belief of everything that the Party and Big Brother claim and represent. 2) Summary of the ChaptersThe beginning of the first chapter takes place in April of 1984 and introduces the reader to the book’s protagonist, Winston Smith. Smith is coming home to his dilapidated apartment building (ironically called â€Å"Victory Mansions†) and reflects both on his troublesom e varicose ulcer and on the large posters plastered everywhere, all advertising the same blown-up face and stating â€Å"Big Brother is Watching You. † The reader learns that although Smith is a low-ranking member of the Party, he is still under their oppressive control. Smith enters his apartment and sits in the alcove in his oom hidden from the telescreen; he proceeds to commit â€Å"thoughtcrime† by writing his true feelings against the Party in his secret diary. In the second and third parts of the chapter, Winston reflects on how there are spies everywhere searching for thoughtcrime and how a parent’s own child will turn him in. Winston thinks about his childhood and how the Party has falsified historical records as they saw fit, even though Winston is not allowed to acknowledge or even be having these thoughts. Winston also reflects on a man named O’Brien, with whom he works and whom he suspects may also secretly question the Party as he does.In the middle of the first chapter, Smith goes to his job at the Party, where he falsifies old records in order to account for the Party constantly switching war enemies and eliminating questioning citizens. While at work, Winston hears an announcement from The Party stating that they are increasing rations, when Winston really knows that they are decreasing them. Winston observes how everyone believes this unquestioningly, but then wonders if he has given himself away when he realizes that a dark-haired woman has been watching him.When he goes home, Smith writes in his diary about how he would love to have a steamy sexual affair because the Party discourages sex for any means other than reproduction. In the close of the first chapter, Smith writes in his diary about how any hope for rebellion lies in the â€Å"proles,† the lowest class in Oceania, and a rumored secretive resistance group called â€Å"The Brotherhood. † Smith considers how bad the conditions are that everyon e lives in, but then realizes that no one has any previous better conditions to compare it to, thanks to the Party altering all historical records.He writes about how he once had concrete evidence that the Party was lying about the past, and he repeats his suspicion that O’Brien shares his sentiments towards the Party. Winston eventually walks into the proles’ district and sneaks into a forbidden shop to buy a paperweight, a relic from the past. As he is leaving the store, he realizes that the same dark-haired girl is watching him and believes that she is a spy for the thought police, and that he has surely been found out and will be eliminated. The second chapter starts with the dark-haired girl slipping Smith a note at work saying that she loves him.The two eventually make secret plans to meet far out in the country, and Smith learns that her name is Julia. The two eventually do meet and have sex hidden out in the countryside, simply for the purpose of pleasure and d efying the Party. Julia and Smith then return to their respective homes, thinking themselves undiscovered. Smith then rents a room above the shop where he previously bought the paperweight. Julia and Smith meet in the room whenever possible to have sex and share in the contraband food and drink they are able to obtain.As the citizens prepare for a large political movement supporting Oceania in its ever-going war, O’Brien makes contact with Smith and arranges a secret meeting between the two, confirming Smith’s suspicions about O’Brien’s disloyalty to the Party. Winston and Julia continue to meet in the room above the shop, and eventually, the two go together to meet O’Brien at his home. O’Brien turns off his telescreen (as he can do this since he is an upper-Party member) and enlists Smith and Julia in The Brotherhood’s secret efforts to overthrow the Party.O’Brien tells them that he will arrange to have The Brotherhood’ s book of missions and truths delivered to Smith, and then bids them on their way. Smith does acquire the book, and the chapter ends with Smith and Julia reading it in their rented room. The book uncovers all of the Party’s lies and lectures on the Party’s ever-increased desire for complete control over all. The next morning, Julia and Smith realize that they have been found out by the Party’s thought police; the two are cornered in their room and restrained into custody. The last chapter opens with Smith locked up in the Ministry of Love, one of the Party’s three departments.Smith is originally still hopeful for the Brotherhood, but he then sees O’Brien there working for the Party; Smith realizes that O’Brien has actually been an undercover member of the Party’s thought police the whole time, and that the Brotherhood has never actually existed. O’Brien begins to torture Smith, trying to impress The Party’s ideals and pr inciples into Smith. Smith initially resists, but after weeks of torture, he yields on all aspects of the Party and its teachings except for one: Smith still refuses to betray his feelings for Julia.Smith is transferred to more comfortable quarters in the department and is content for a while, until he accidentally reveals his prevailing love for Julia. O’Brien brings Smith to the infamous â€Å"Room 101,† where everyone is tortured with his or her worst fear. There, Smith is threatened with rats that will slowly eat him, so he finally renounces his love for Julia. At the very end of the last chapter, the story leaps to when Smith has been released back into society. Smith now honestly believes in everything that the Party does and represents and he respects them whole-heartedly.He runs into Julia by chance, but they both are now different people and go their separate ways. Smith eventually has a fleeting memory of his childhood but quickly dismisses it as a false memo ry, congratulating himself on his victory over himself and his unquestioning love for Big Brother. An appendix follows the last chapter of the book, explaining some of the vocabulary and grammatical structures of Oceania’s official language, New-speak. 3) Relation Between the Book and Class Materials Orwell’s 1984 holds great relevance to the topics we have recently covered in class.First of all, 1984 references, on several occasions, then tendency for people to get drawn into mass sentiments, doing things without knowing why they are doing them. In class, we referred to this as â€Å"collective behavior,† and defined it as â€Å"behavior that doesn’t involve that deliberate interpretation—instead we just get swept up and act as others are acting† (Weinstein, 2012). As an example, we discussed how people get swept up at a basketball game and react favorably simply because everyone around them is doing so, without specifically thinking about or analyzing it.We talked about how this can also lead to â€Å"circular reaction,† when a person reacts off of the person next to them, and then the person next to them reacts based on the original person, and so on, leading to amplification of the original reaction. 1984 touches on this concept several times. Early in the novel, the character Smith reflects on something called â€Å"the Two Minutes Hate,† in which everyone gathers once a day and simply hates and yells out against Oceania’s wartime enemy.Smith realizes that the mass hysteria of everyone around him can even change his own sentiments momentarily, as Orwell writes, â€Å"At those moments his secret loathing of Big Brother changed into adoration, and Big Brother seemed to tower up, like a rock against the hordes of Asia. . . † (Orwell 15). Later on in the book, Smith talks about how the uneducated Proles get swept up into moments of blind patriotism without really knowing or understanding wh at they are rooting for.Smith notices that â€Å"The poles, normally apathetic about the war, were being lashed into one of their periodical frenzies of patriotism† and realizes that the upper Party encourages this behavior in many slick ways, including propaganda and mind control (Orwell 149). Orwell yet again wants us to understand the dangers of this behavior as he writes â€Å"Times beyond number, at Party rallies and spontaneous demonstrations, she [Julia] had shouted at the top of her voice for the execution of people whose names she had never heard and in whose supposed crimes she had not the faintest belief† (Orwell 152).Orwell impresses upon the reader the importance of fighting this mindless behavior since this mindlessness can be very dangerous. We discussed in lecture how historically, people have often gotten swept up into mindless bureaucracy, doing things simply because everyone else is or because it is what they are used to doing or are told to do. We t alked about how dangerous this could be— it can allow a bureaucracy to gain much more power than it ever should be able to, since its citizens do not question the things that the government does and implements, as occurs in 1984.Secondly, the attributes of progress and the ways technology influences it play a large role both in 1984 and in our class discussions. Early on in the work, 1984 overlaps some of the topics we have covered in class as Orwell references some of the various ways that â€Å"progress† is exhibited in a society; Orwell writes, â€Å"The Party claimed, for example, that today forty per cent of adult proles were literate; before the Revolution, it was said, the number had only been fifteen per cent.The Party claimed that the infant mortality rate was now only a hundred and sixty per thousand, whereas before the Revolution it had been three hundred. . . † (Orwell 74). Just as Orwell uses factors such as literacy rates and infant mortality rates to measure progress in society, we also learned in class that these can be important indicators of how a society is changing, as well as death rates and other statistics. Similar to how we learned in class that progress just for progress’s sake must be discouraged as it can lead to detrimental results, Orwell is warning against this very occurrence all through 1984.More specifically, Orwell warns against the dangers of excessive technological advancements: â€Å"Science and technology were developing at a prodigious speed, and it seemed natural to assume that they would go on developing. This failed to happen. . . partly because scientific and technical progress depend on the empirical habit of thought. . . As a whole the world is more primitive today than it was fifty years ago† (Orwell 189).Orwell later warns that technology can indeed ruin our private lives by allowing us to be constantly watched and submitted to endless propaganda. The character Smith reflects upo n this when he says â€Å"Every citizen, or at least every citizen important enough to be worth watching, could be kept for twenty-four hours a day under the eyes of the police and in the sound of official propaganda. . . The possibility of enforcing not only complete obedience to the will of the State, but complete uniformity of opinion on all subjects, now existed for the first time† (Orwell 206).We discussed this very possibility in class when we talked about how citizens of today’s society are created technology that is smarter than us, and about how dangerous this could be towards the safety of our society in the case of a technological revolt. Professor Weinstein also pointed out how excessive technology can make it even easier for government can control us and gain power excessively; he pointed out that the government could be watching us right now through the webcams on our laptops and listening to us through our phones.Additionally, both our class lectures and 1984 reference aspects of a class system and a hierarchal society. First of all, when we discussed in class the characteristics of a bureaucracy, we talked about the concept of ascribed versus achieved statuses. We learned that in the family setting, a status is ascribed—a person is born into their position. However, in a bureaucracy such as that present in 1984, a status is instead something that must be worked for and earned—it is an achieved status. 1984 touches on this in the secret Brotherhood’s book, as the book lectures â€Å"In principle, membership in these three groups is not hereditary.The child of Inner Party parents is in theory not born into the Inner Party. Admission to either branch of the Party is by examination, taken at the age of sixteen† (Orwell 208). In lecture, we learned that since statuses are achieved in a bureaucracy instead of ascribed, the power of the status is held by the position itself, not the person that holds the posit ion. In other words, we learned that in a bureaucracy, a person is simply filling a role that could be filled by anyone; if a person dies or no longer wishes to hold their position, it can quickly be filled by another person.People, or a policeman, for example, only hold power because of their uniform and job, not because of who they are on a personal, individual level. 1984 also teaches this concept; at one point, Julia is expressing how happy she is to finally escape her generic job position in the Party and instead simply be an individual woman as she exclaims, â€Å"In this room I’m going to be a woman, not a Party comrade† (Orwell 142). 4) Relation Between the Book and a Personal Experience 1984 and its teachings hold close relation to a personal experience I recently had.Last week, I had a huge assignment that I was trying to do for one of my classes. I settled in to start working on the paper, but then my phone rang. I picked up because it was my mother, and I e nded up involved in a thirty minute conversation. I eventually hung up with my mother and returned to the paper, but soon after, I heard someone start talking to me from my computer! I soon realized that I had accidentally left my video messaging on on my computer, behind the screen on which I was writing the paper, and one of my friends had seen that I was online and started video chatting me.Since she had started the conversation, I was then obligated to hold a conversation with her in order to not be rude. All the while, I was distracted from working on my assignment. Once we finished talking and I turned off my chat program, I was tempted to check my email before I got back to my paper, but I realized that if I did, I may indeed never get to my paper. This showed me that technology certainly can be dangerous towards progress, not only on a large societal scale, but also as far as the simple task of writing my paper.All of the means of technology that my friends were using to con tact me were simply invading my privacy while I was trying to concentrate and have a private evening to do an assignment. Reading 1984 only supported and increased my awareness of how distracting technology can be, and how dangerous and detrimental it can actually be in the grand scheme of progress. 5) Critique of the Novel 1984 has many positive aspects. I really enjoyed how Orwell used a fictional situation to teach readers and warn them against dangerous conditions rather than simply lecturing the readers about what they should and should not be doing.I liked this because even though a lecture-style presentation of material teaches important concepts, I feel that putting these concepts into a theoretical story helps the reader to remember the concepts and understand how they can be practically applied in real life. Although the ending is sad for the reader (as it extinguishes all hope that anyone could hold out against the Party’s mind control and excessive practices), I l iked it because I thought it was important to drive Orwell’s teachings home.I felt that this ending was necessary because through the way things ended, Orwell showed that if society continued as it was in 1949, conditions would eventually get so bad that even the smartest individuals would not be able to undermine and revolt against the political entity, and there would be no hope. I feel that this was necessary because it shows just how important it was that people altered the path down which society was headed. I am hard-pressed to find anything that I dislike about Orwell’s work.At some points during the first half of the book, I wondered if Orwell’s long and detailed description of the conditions and unspoken rules of Oceania was really necessary, but as I read farther in the book, I realized that all of the descriptions were indeed necessary so that the reader would fully understand and grasp all of the terrors that were in store if society’s current track was not derailed. All in all, I really enjoyed this book, and it helped me to further understand many concepts that we discussed in lecture.When it was published in 1949, 1984 was, and remains as such now, an eye-opening warning of the way our lives will change if we ever allow our society and government to run away with itself by striving for progress simply for progress’s sake. Citations Orwell, George. 1984. New York: Penguin Group, 1949. Weinstein, Jay. Class Lecture. The Components of Change. University of Miami, Miami, Florida. 9 October 2012. Weinstein, Jay. Class Lecture. The Engines of Change. University of Miami, Miami, Florida. 16 October 2012.