Behavioral therapy

Behavioral therapy is also known as behavioral modification. It is a psychological method based on the principle that one can change the badly adjusted, maladaptive, observable, specific and self destructive behavior, through learning new and more suitable behaviors (Skinner, p 194). The origin of this theory can be traced back to the school of behaviorism which indicates that one can scientifically study psychological matters through observation of overt behavior without necessarily involving interior psychological states.Skinners theory of behaviorism accepted and supported that internal state could be part of a certain kind of behavior without necessarily being the main cause; however, he declared that through environmental manipulation, one could improve on them. The behavioral theorists include Hans Eysenck, Joseph Wolpe, Harry Solomon, Ogden Lindsley and B. F Skinner and they all had different ways of looking at behavioral problems. Eysenck’s perspective saw behavioral p roblem as connection between one’s behavior, the environment and personality characteristics. For the sake of this study, I will focus on B.F skinner’s behavioral theory (Skinner, p 198). Origin of behavioral therapy Edward Thorndike did experiments to discover the ability of dogs and cats to solve problems. He constructed wooden crates and he would cage the animals each in their own crate. The animals would escape from the crates. Though initially he just wanted to show that dogs and cats’ achievement could be controlled, he realized that he could measure the intelligence of these animals using his tools (Lindsley, p 34). He would set the animals for the same kind of task and observe how long it took to complete the given task.He learnt that there was no difference in performance between the animals that started an assignment and the ones that first observed the others performing (Skinner, p 89). He also learnt that when an animal did something that made it to successfully get out of the box; the animal was likely to repeat that action when faced by the same kind of problem. He concluded that reward reinforces the relationship between stimulus and action. He later formalized it to be called the law of effect (Skinner, p 199). Classical conditioning theory then came to explain that there is an association between reflex and the neutral stimulus.Watson used rats in his experiments to improve on the law of effect and apply it in behaviorism. He made a maze which the rats were supposed to follow. Once they had mastered the routes, he started putting blocks at different points of the maze (Skinner, p 94). If a route was blocked, the rats would then follow another route indicating that they had memory. Once the second route was blocked they would follow the other available route. He observed that when the reward for an action done was less, then the rats performed the task more slowly (Lindsley, p76). B.F Skinner came to improve on Thorndike an d Watson’s work by studying objectively behavior sequences over a prolonged period of time. He came up with the concept of operant conditioning which related the operant response and the reinforcement. This theory is based on the proposal that learning could help in change of overt behavior. People change their behavior as a result response to the occurrences in their surroundings. A given response leads to a certain outcome. When one reinforces a certain pattern of Stimulus-Response, a person’s response becomes conditioned (Skinner, p 97).The key element in this theory is reinforcement; this is anything that supports the response that is desired. Reinforcement could be positive or negative. Positive reinforcement makes one be encouraged to do more of the action that led to positive results. It includes attaining satisfaction after doing something, being recognized, being praised for work well done among others. Negative reinforcement on the other hand involves the act ions that make one increase the frequency of responses once a certain stimulus is withdrawn. Aversive stimulus results to the reduction of responses (Skinner, p 200). Behavioral Therapy This is a report about Paula a client who was referred to therapy by the general practitioner of the hospital. Following a thorough physical checkup performed on Paula the GP feels that Paula’s heart is sound enough and her condition is psychological. (Getzfeld, 2004). Paula’s case is not an isolated case of psychological dysfunction and in fact a sizeable number of people suffer these attacks in silence. (Beck, Rush, Shaw, & Emery, 1979). This is perhaps due to the feelings of embarrassment and stupidity that they feel they might be accused of.Additionally, panic attacks are not well known to many and hence the stigma. Nonetheless, panic attacks are not insignificant and can have a crippling effect in someone’s life. They are a symptom of underlying stressing and traumatic events in the patient’s life. (Feather & Ronan, 2006). This report gives a diagnosis of Paula’s case. It gives a comprehensive analysis of what is the onset of Paula’s con dition, the triggers and the effects of her attack. At the end of the report it will give the findings and recommendations on the way forward for Paula in getting treatment for her condition.Diagnosis Paula has been experiencing an array of symptoms that occur frequently at the workplace and outside home. These symptoms include dizzy spells, shortness of breath, dizziness and lightheadedness as well as chest pains and fast heartbeats. Paula feels that there is cause for alarm because these symptoms may be an indication of a heart attack. For this reason she has sought medical help from her general practitioners, and she has even visited a cardiologist for a sonogram and echocardiogram. Both these tests showed no defects or indication of heart attack.Nothing is wrong with Paula’s heart and apparently the symptoms may be a psychological related. The doctors at the company clinic where Paula works suggested that she try to relax more and steer away from caffeine, nonetheless the attacks still persevere despite Paula’s attempts to relax. She sought a second opinion from another physician who also gave similar diagnosis i. e. her attacks are a psychological problem hence she needs to sign up for therapy. With that Paula came to the clinic. Brief history of PaulaIn order to clearly diagnose Paula’s condition information from her life experiences both in the present and from the past had to be sought. Paula is 27 years old, single and lives at home with her parents. She has a good job at a securities and bond trading company which she has worked for loyally since she graduated from university with a BA in economics seemingly her life was be smooth and no developmental milestones have been experienced on her part. Prior to her recently persistent attacks she was ready to enroll for MBA.Her father died soon after she graduated from University after a brave fight with cancer, emphysema and the killer heart attack. Her mother has some health problems although nothing too serious. Her grandparents died of cancer; her grandma of breast cancer and her grandpa of colon cancer, she feels that cancer runs in the family and is afraid of it too. This is the reason why she stopped smoking and does not drink alcohol. She says matter of factly â€Å"I have enough bad seeds in me†. Paula is the only child not by plan but out of natural misfortune.She had a little brother who died at the age of three out of heart defects that developed with age. He also had other birth defects that Paula was unwilling to disclose. This memory made her teary. Obviously, the death of the little boy had deep-seated effects in all the family members. (Feather & Ronan, 2006). According to Paula, her parents did not try to get pregnant again and the option of adoption was too devastating to consider. Paula’s mother and friend at work feel greatly concerned over her condition and Paula feels that as well. Paula feels that it is time she had greater c ontrol over her problem.The medication she has been taking i. e. Xanax and Contac zonk her out and she refers to herself as a ‘walking dead’ when she is on this medications. The persistent attacks seem to be triggered by anything major to Paula and given the nature of her job she reports frequent dizzy spells, faints and attacks at work. She remembers a case whereby a client fell through and all the blame was pinned on her. At the same time a coworker at the workplace had shown particular interest on Paula as a woman. All these major events occurring concurrently in her somewhat laid back lifestyle triggered an attack.In the moment of it all, the other workers got wind of her weak point and she is afraid that they might think of her as ‘chicken’ or incompetent of handling such a demanding job. Frequency of attacks Paula’s attacks have been with her for a long while. She points out that ever since she entered university she started experiencing them. The stress levels were high what with the huge load of work, pressure from men in campus and the need to fit in since the university was small and everyone knew everyone else. In her high school it was easy to be an invisible wall paper and stay unnoticed when necessary.Unfortunately in university this was not the case and she lacked the necessary support systems or good outlets to channel the stress she was feeling. She also recalls her father’s death which affected her greatly. It was overwhelming for her although she had suspected it would happen soon. This reminded her of her brother’s death. For this reason Paula feels ‘life is very unfair’. The death of loved ones caused her to withdraw from life completely. At school she would get sweaty and the dizzy spells prior to presentation and even before she lost her virginity she had a panic attack.Paula’s case now involves her mothers, her co-workers the doctors and now psychiatrist. Before, it was her personal problem and she felt she could deal with it. Now her life is significantly affected and people around her are worried. Doctors feel that it is time she saw a therapist to uncover the real cause of the problem. Her mother feels strongly about the same as also the people at work. Assessment and investigation plan It seems that Paula is suffering from severe depression which manifests itself in panic attacks.(Alpert & Fava, 2004) She has not developed the expression skills and seems to bottle up feelings of anxiety, frustration, hurt and stress. She has managed to deactivate her social life and is highly dependant on her mother for comfort although she does not disclose her inner feelings to her mother as well. Notably, at 27 and with a good job she is still unattached to anyone and does not go out with friends. Throughout the sessions she makes no mention of significant persons other than her mother. Even at university she frequently went home to be babied.Her family back ground is a troubled one with a history of heart diseases and cancers. Her loved ones seem to be consumed by these diseases and she feels afraid of being the next. Panic attacks manifest either as ‘a way of getting through tough situations’ as she puts it or as a reaction to overpowering feelings of loss, excitement or expectations. After reviewing Paula’s case in detail it is recommended she have behavioral therapy as a start treatment program since it is the best therapy linked to activating the client from depression, a condition that is the underlying cause of Paula’s panic attacks.BATD (Behavioral Activation treatment for Depression) overview, foundation and Assumptions. This treatment option bases its foundations from cognitive therapy. It basically involves activating the client from depression by encouraging them to make connection between powerful experiences both in the present and in the past with the symptoms that they may be having. In Paulaâ €™s case it is panic attacks. The basic assumption of this therapy is that depression and subsequent symptoms of depression arise from life expenses of the patient and not the genetic predisposition. (Cooper, Smith & Upton, 1994).Vulnerability is severed by traumatic life events. This therapy encompasses assessment and treatment of cognitive, emotional and behavioral aspects of the clients. This means that its efforts are channeled toward sharpening social skills of the client through training and reinforcements, imparting relaxation techniques as well as therapy to help relax the client, increasing pleasurable activities in the clients life say situations with more laughter and easiness, training clients on assertness and emotional expressions and restructurings the clients patterns of thoughts and cognitive perceptions.(Gortner & Jacobson, 2000, Martell, Addis & Jacobson, 2001) These areas are greatly emphasized because they alter the client’s beliefs of the world aroun d them and eventually how they choose to resolve their inner problems or conflicts which are evident in behaviour. According to Beck, Rush, Shaw and Emery (1979 p. 118) mentioned in Jacobson, Mortell and Dimidjian 2007, p. 257 ‘the aim of this therapy to bring about change in the clients negative outlook in life’. The beliefs and expectations of a person indecent in his cognitive make up ultimately affect behaviour.The behavioral activation therapy recognizes that some depressions and subsequently panic attack may be or a result of genetic predisposition, it greatly emphases environmental factors as a great a preventative measure for depression maintenance. Course of treatment Paula’s treatment will commence with the establishment of therapeutic rapport with the therapist while they discuss the objectives and goals for the therapy and the sessions. This will be achieved by encouraging Paula to ask questions and be as comfortable as possible during the sessions.Pa ula and the therapist will explore the implications that her depression has had on Paula’s life for instance she lacks a social life, she cannot do her daily tasks any more, she will lose her job and so on. Under this treatment the therapist will be performing some functional analysis on Paula to gauge how well Paula is responding to treatment. For example, she should be able to start driving her car to work and performing her duties at work. The use of home works will be helpful to both Paula and the therapist in finding areas that the therapy should concentrate on.The therapy sessions will also explore the strategies that Paula should use to avoid a relapse. Paula intervention plan The first step in her treatment plan is to get her to talk more about her unpleasant life experiences. So far she has registered commendable progress into talking about her father and her young brother. When she first came in she was fidgety and kept checking her pulse over her neck. She had a pa nic stricken look but now she has relaxed a little.It is impossible to accurately state the duration that Paula might take to show full recovery since depression can be hard to overcome with the lack of proper support systems and the troubling environment at her workplace. Nonetheless, Paula sounds really determined to get over this problem and regain full control of her life. A two hour session with the psychiatrist thrice a week for a month and once a week for the following two months is recommended. This will be flexible enough for Paula to manage work and treatment. The significant people in Paula life i. e.family and coworkers need to give Paula all the support she needs to overcome this milestone. This is because her depression is not just an inner problem but the environment also triggers her attacks. The boss could encourage Paula to take some early days off and maybe some days be allowed to work from home until she is ready to work full time. The mother needs to continue be ing there for her daughter but on the other hand encourage her to be more independent. This will ensure that she is strong enough to handle life situations on her own and avoid a relapse in case she dies.The coworkers may be a bit more supportive when she experiences panic attacks and let her know it is nothing to be ashamed of. Again, Paula should expand her social networks and support system and this will a particular area where she will be trained during therapy sessions. Paula seems to over think her situations and the events in her life. A case in point is where she is quick to say that her coworkers will recommend she be transferred to the mail room because of the panic attacks. She feels that she should ‘never’ have an attack at the office again.She says ‘everyone will laugh and say look at the retard at it again. ’ She also seems to have planned out her suicide and thought of the consequences i. e. she would go to hell, it would be painless if she o verdosed on Aspirin, she would play some sad music, the suicide letter and other details fully planned. This seems to be Paula’s pattern of thinking and it is detrimental. In therapy, I will be interested in activating Paula’s spontaneity and her ability to accept her vulnerabilities and limitations towards having a fuller life. Measuring progressIn order to gauge progress on Paula’s treatment the therapist should be able to find improvements in Paula’s frequency of panic attacks. Ideally, they should reduce in the first month of treatment significantly. Additionally, her patterns of avoidance will be evaluated to see how well she is able to confront her fears. (Carr, 2001). For example, she avoids getting close to any man who might show interest in her hence stays away from social scenes like movies theatres and social gatherings. She also marks all the exit points to a place just incase she suffers another panic attack.Driving is also a problem to her a nd she has to be driven by her mother. She also avoids going out doors and stays in mostly where treatment will be effective, Paula should be able to take on her daily activities and develop healthy relationships with new people. The therapist will also make use of homework whereby Paula can try to engage in a task she feels prohibitive or unable to handle and see how well or not she manages the situation. This homework will allow her to self monitor her own progress and in therapy session discuss the feelings of accomplishment and pleasure derived from engaging in that activity.Results of the actions So far Paula has impressively shed light on her life. She has made the first big step towards treatment and that is the resolution to seek professional help. The diagnosis is that Paula is suffering from panic disorder which overlaps severe depression. She has had traumatic life experiences and suppressed them sufficiently. However she has reached a point where the emotions and negativ e psychological beliefs can no longer be bottled up hence the frequent panic attacks.The panic attacks have greatly eroded her self-esteem to a point that she planned a suicide although did not execute it. After evaluating her case I recommend psychiatric assessment just to ascertain this diagnosis so that the next level of therapy i. e. relaxation therapy and psychoanalysis can commerce. Although Paula is not actively keen on attempting another suicide, the risk is inherent and she needs close monitoring by her family and friends before and during therapy until she is strong enough to stand on her own.Paula should enroll in an activity that will enable her to think outside herself and her problems as well as boost her self-esteem. Yoga and social gatherings will particularly do her a lot of good. (Gortner & Jacobson, 2000). Lastly but importantly, Paula’s GP and cardiologist input would also be necessary in affirming this diagnosis so that Paula is well convinced that her pa nic attacks are purely psychological and not heart attack related. This will encourage her to continue the treatment. ConclusionPanic attacks are surmountable behavior activation therapy is a good way of assisting clients who suffer these attacks. The collaborative relationship between the client and the therapist should be useful in uncovering the depression in clients who suffer depression. The patterns of avoidance that Paula has developed such as avoiding relationships and friendships with others, avoiding social places staying away from work among others are crippling to Paula’s life and need to be confronted. Paula has to find a way of dealing with her problems in healthy ways. Behavioral therapy Behavioral therapy is also known as behavioral modification. It is a psychological method based on the principle that one can change the badly adjusted, maladaptive, observable, specific and self destructive behavior, through learning new and more suitable behaviors (Skinner, p 194). The origin of this theory can be traced back to the school of behaviorism which indicates that one can scientifically study psychological matters through observation of overt behavior without necessarily involving interior psychological states.Skinners theory of behaviorism accepted and supported that internal state could be part of a certain kind of behavior without necessarily being the main cause; however, he declared that through environmental manipulation, one could improve on them. The behavioral theorists include Hans Eysenck, Joseph Wolpe, Harry Solomon, Ogden Lindsley and B. F Skinner and they all had different ways of looking at behavioral problems. Eysenck’s perspective saw behavioral p roblem as connection between one’s behavior, the environment and personality characteristics. For the sake of this study, I will focus on B.F skinner’s behavioral theory (Skinner, p 198). Origin of behavioral therapy Edward Thorndike did experiments to discover the ability of dogs and cats to solve problems. He constructed wooden crates and he would cage the animals each in their own crate. The animals would escape from the crates. Though initially he just wanted to show that dogs and cats’ achievement could be controlled, he realized that he could measure the intelligence of these animals using his tools (Lindsley, p 34). He would set the animals for the same kind of task and observe how long it took to complete the given task.He learnt that there was no difference in performance between the animals that started an assignment and the ones that first observed the others performing (Skinner, p 89). He also learnt that when an animal did something that made it to successfully get out of the box; the animal was likely to repeat that action when faced by the same kind of problem. He concluded that reward reinforces the relationship between stimulus and action. He later formalized it to be called the law of effect (Skinner, p 199). Classical conditioning theory then came to explain that there is an association between reflex and the neutral stimulus.Watson used rats in his experiments to improve on the law of effect and apply it in behaviorism. He made a maze which the rats were supposed to follow. Once they had mastered the routes, he started putting blocks at different points of the maze (Skinner, p 94). If a route was blocked, the rats would then follow another route indicating that they had memory. Once the second route was blocked they would follow the other available route. He observed that when the reward for an action done was less, then the rats performed the task more slowly (Lindsley, p76). B.F Skinner came to improve on Thorndike an d Watson’s work by studying objectively behavior sequences over a prolonged period of time. He came up with the concept of operant conditioning which related the operant response and the reinforcement. This theory is based on the proposal that learning could help in change of overt behavior. People change their behavior as a result response to the occurrences in their surroundings. A given response leads to a certain outcome. When one reinforces a certain pattern of Stimulus-Response, a person’s response becomes conditioned (Skinner, p 97).The key element in this theory is reinforcement; this is anything that supports the response that is desired. Reinforcement could be positive or negative. Positive reinforcement makes one be encouraged to do more of the action that led to positive results. It includes attaining satisfaction after doing something, being recognized, being praised for work well done among others. Negative reinforcement on the other hand involves the act ions that make one increase the frequency of responses once a certain stimulus is withdrawn. Aversive stimulus results to the reduction of responses (Skinner, p 200).When considering this theory, schedules of reinforcement are considered to be very important. Principles under this theory are that positively reinforced behavior is very likely to reoccur. Shaping is also a principle that states that in order to reinforce behavior, information should be provided in small amounts. Stimulus generalization principles talks of reinforcement being generalized across stimuli that are similar to the original one (Lindsley, p 56). Behavior modification using B. F Skinner’s theory Behavior modification refers to a straight forward therapy technique that bases its arguments on skinner’s theory.It indicates that one can extinguish the unwanted behavior through the removal of the reiforcer and at the same time, behavior that is desired can be obtained and maintained via reinforcement . This argument has been used in solving many psychological problems. It is the preferred method when dealing with children. Other disorders which can be corrected using this therapy are anxiety disorders, phobias, eating disorders, anger management, aggressive behavior and substance use. All these are eliminated through changing the activities and behavior that may have contributed to such disorders (Skinner, p 96).Token economy is a derivative of behavior modification and it is used in institutions like prisons, juveniles, and psychiatric hospitals. This involves giving tokens to these people whenever they behave in a certain required way. When they revert to poor habits, the tokens are withdrawn. This is one way of behavior modifications that these institutions have used in order to keep order within the institutions. At times, Behavioral therapy methods are brought together with additional psychological involvements like medication (Skinner, p 197).This technique uses the follow ing approaches when using behavioral therapy to change a negative behavior to a positive one; systematic desensitization, flooding, behavior modification, prevention of exposure and response, operant conditioning, observational learning, contingency management, matching law, habit reversal training and covert conditioning (Lindsley, p72). Best fit patients for behavior therapy Behavioral therapy can be used as a tool to treat various problems like mental illnesses and their symptoms especially those that have maladaptive behavior.These conditions include phobias, eating disorders, anger management, aggressive behavior and substance use. Organic disorders like insomnia and incontinence could also be handled using the behavioral techniques (Skinner, p 205). This technique works very well in the treatment process of obesity. This process starts with the analysis of the activity and eating patterns in addition to other habits like dieting methods. After all this information is collected , the therapist uses it to come up with positive methods that can be used to promote weight loss, a positive self image and get healthier eating practices.The therapist does an analysis to the behavioral cause of stress in a patient. An appropriate method of treatment is then established. Cognitive therapy This therapy focuses in altering the bad behavior through changing the patterns of thinking behind them. It involves the emotions and the thoughts of the individual and the way they can be changed so that this person starts behaving more appropriately. This therapy can be used to correct many disorders like schizophrenia, autism, shyness, neurosis, stress disorders, attention deficit disorders, social phobias, mental disorders and addictions (McCullough, Para 24).It involves helping patients to triumph over difficult situations and modifying dysfunctional emotional, behavior and thinking responses. Treatment is all about bringing together the beliefs of the client and those of the therapist and testing them. It may also include testing the kind of assumptions an individual makes in life and also identifying the extent of distortion of thoughts that renders them unhelpful and unrealistic (Kohlenberg, p 234). Once the therapist challenges the way an individual thinks about something, that person is likely to change the way of thinking.Initially, this therapy was used to treat people suffering from depression. Beck came up with a list which contained ‘errors’ in thinking. He suggested that the errors maintained depression. They included selective abstraction, minimizing positives and magnifying negatives, over generalization and arbitrary inference (Kohlenberg, p 234). Historical development of cognitive therapy The theory of cognitive therapy came to be more than 50 years ago and it suggested that thoughts act as a go-between to stimuli like emotions and external events.A stimulus brings out a thought which can be a weighed up judgement of a kind and this further leads to a certain emotion. People’s evaluation of thought about a certain stimulus is what results to an emotional response and not necessarily the stimulus itself. Beck also came up with the etiological theory of depression under cognitive therapy. The theory indicated that people think negatively because their thinking is inclined to negative interpretations. People suffering from depression acquire negative schemas which are important ways through which information about the future; the world and the self are processed.These schemas are adopted early in life maybe during childhood or puberty as a result of going through stressful events in life. When such people come across situations that are similar to the ones in which the negative schemata was established, it becomes activated in the current situation (Kohlenberg, p 235). Beck also explained about the negative cognitive triad which constitutes negative biases and negative schemata. He proposed that pe ople who are depressed are very likely to make unconstructive evaluations of their future, world and selves.Depressed people are impossibility thinkers according to Beck. The cognitive triad indicates that a negative schema results to cognitive bias which fuels negative schema (Kohlenberg, p 237). Researchers suggested that depression could occur as a result of responding to perceived or imaginary loss. It could also be caused by self critical characteristics of the ego. Many psychologists wrote about cognitive features of depression trying to identify the cognitive components that caused depression. They also tried to develop many cognitive intercessions that could be used to treat depression.Since then, there have been many successful cases of patients suffering from depression getting well through cognitive therapy. His theory was opposed by behaviorists who claimed that mental causes of problem was unmeaningful and non scientific. With time, it was merged with the behavioral the rapy so as to deal with the problems that it could not have dealt with on its own (Kohlenberg, p 240). Strategies under cognitive therapy Cognitive therapy uses two strategies i. e. emotional focused and problem focused strategies.The problem focused strategy aim at directing the client in the process of identifying the problem. The therapist then helps the client to identify the responses that are utilized in the process of reducing distress in a situation. They are also evaluated to check how effective they are. The therapist and the client then develop and examine alternative responses to see how beneficial they can be to a client. When faced with a stressful situation, the client feels empowered to make mindful alternatives and chose among them the best way in which to respond.This gives the patient a kind of control over situations as they try different methods of getting out of distressful situations (McCullough, Para 32). Emotional focused strategies also aim to get the same outcomes as the other strategy. This perspective aims to alter the perception of the client on the distressing event. It therefore helps in changing the level of perceived suffering. The client is helped to redefine the problem which aids in the transformation of a disaster into a challenge or even an opportunity.The process of restructuring the event can be achieved through various ways like selective attention, distancing, minimization, and looking for constructive value from any given bad situation. When all these happen, the patients get the feeling that he is in control of the situation and this contributes to reduce the levels of stress (Kohlenberg, p 245). Best fit patients for cognitive therapy Since this technique was discovered, the most common condition that it has treated is depression.Patients who have depression are allowed to undergo self evaluation to check whether they act, say and do things the way they are supposed to do and how the patient views all these. Skills deficits are also established so that the therapist can know the source of the problem. Life experiences in terms of how satisfied the patient has been by the kind of life that he has lived (McCullough, p 24). The expectations of the patient are also evaluated in order to know how realistic they are. The therapist checks on the kind of self talk that the patient usually has.If it is negative, then it could be a source of depression since the patient seems not to believe in his capabilities and this could lead to negative repercussions like being fired (Kohlenberg, p 254). The process goes on to evaluate the kind of automatic thought that the patient has. In most cases, there is consistency in that a person who usually has positive automatic thought is likely to have them, in most situations and the same case applies to negative automatic thoughts. Irrationality or rationality of ideas is evaluated because irrational ideas could cause depression.Depressed patients tend to generalize in most cases. The therapist works to find out the extent of generalization in his depressed patients. Cognitive distortion is also checked so that the therapist can be in a position to tell the extent of depression. Optimism versus pessimism is evaluated given different situations. All these are ways through which therapists can know the causes of depression and get ways of tackling it (McCullough, p 25). Comparison and contrast between behavioral and cognitive therapyBehavioral therapy focuses on how one can change from bad behavior through strategies like reinforcement. On the other hand, cognitive therapy focuses on how there can be a change of behavior due to a change in how a person thinks about a certain situation. While cognitive therapies deal with emotions and thoughts that direct a person towards behaving in a particular way, behavioral therapy on the pother hand focuses on how to change and eliminate the bad behavior (Kohlenberg, p 263). While behavioral therapy deals w ith observation of behavior, cognitive therapy deals with the cognitive elements.

Daoism

Beginnings and History The history of Daoism can befittingly be separated into four periods: Proto-Daoism, Classical Daoism, Modern Daoism and Contemporary Daoism. The first period, Proto-Daoism, spans the time from antiquity all the way to the 2nd century C. E. The intention behind this period being called â€Å"proto-Daoism† is that we have no information of any official Daoist religious organizations at this time. The classic works that were inscribed in the course of this period, the Daode jing and the Zhuangzi in particular, they were highly significant upon the flourishing of the classical Daoist tradition.Many textbooks on world religions still take this period as representing the essence of Daoism. This is simply an dull-witted and ambiguous interpretation of the m, entire history of Daoism. The second period, that of classical Daoist religion, starts in 142 C. E. when Zhang Daoling established the Way of the Celestial Masters, also known as the Way of Orthodox Unity, the first successful organized Daoist religious system. Daoist priests today claim to be ordained in a lineage that stretches back to this original founder.Two other important movements developed later during this period of classical Daoist religion: the Way of Highest Clarity (Shangqing Daoism) and the Way of Numinous Treasure (Lingbao Daoism). This period, between the 2nd and the 7th centuries can be called the classical period because scholars of Daoism look back to this time (known also as the medieval period of Chinese history) as the era in which many Daoist practices, texts and rituals initially took shape. Also during this period, Buddhism was brought to China by missionaries from India and Tibet.Buddhist ideas and practices were absorbed into Daoism (and vice-versa) but there were also periods of intense rivalry between Daoists and Buddhists. The classical period of Daoism ends with the Tang dynasty (618-906), one of the high-points of Chinese civilisation from the point of view of the development of art and culture. During the Tang dynasty Daoism became fully integrated with the imperial court system particularly under the reign of the Xuanzong Emperor (713-756). During this time Daoism functioned as the official religion of the imperial court and exerted complete supremacy over Buddhism.The period of modern Daoism begins with the Song Dynasty (960-1279), during which time the boundaries between elite Daoist religion, Buddhism, and local cults begin to be increasingly blurred. Based on the syncretism that began in this period, it becomes increasingly difficult to separate out Daoism as a religious category from the popular Chinese religious culture as it functions on the ground. In terms of elite Daoism, however, the most significant event was the founding of the Way of Complete Perfection (Quanzhen dao) by Wang Zhe (1113-1170).The Way of Complete Perfection is the major monastic form of Daoism that exists to this day alongside the more community-bas ed priesthood of the celestial masters. The Way of Complete Perfection is devoted to the practice of internal alchemy, in which the energies of the body are refined through breathing and other forms of meditation into ever subtler forms, thus promoting longevity and even, in a few rare cases, the possibility of totally transcending the ordinary finitudes of human existence.The Way of Complete Perfection is also marked by its aim to â€Å"harmonise the three teachings† of Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism, and became highly influential under the Mongol Yuan dynasty after Wang Zhe's disciple Qiu Changchun (1148-1227) underook a three-year journey to the court of the Mongol warlord, Chinggis Khan. Despite the rhetoric of harmonization, further acrimonious debates with Buddhists developed at this time, and when the Daoists lost a series of these debates in1281 many Daoist texts were burned.Despite this setback, Daoism flourished during the subsequent Ming dynasty (1368-1644) and the year 1445 saw the compilation of the Daoist Canon (Daozang), a compendium of some 1,500 Daoist texts, under the patronage of the Yongle Emperor. In the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) Daoist ideas and practices became more entrenched in popular religious culture.Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that we have better historical evidence of the way popular religion functioned since many popular Daoist morality texts were published and the practice of Daoist-inspired arts such as Taiji quan (Tai Chi) and Qigong (Ch'i-kung) became increasingly widespread. The fourth period, since 1949, has been a near-total catastrophe for Daoism, particularly during the period of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966-76) when many Daoist temples were destroyed and the overt functioning of the religion to all intents and purposes ceased to exist in mainland China.Since 1980 Daoism has begun to be practiced openly again in China and a new generation of Daoists are struggling to rebuild their temples and recover their tradition. On the other hand, through the emigration of many Chinese people across the world, Daoist temples have been established in Europe, the Americas and elsewhere and many popular Daoist practices such as Qigong and Taiji quan (Tai-chi) have taken root in the West. Until recently it was not certain that Daoism had survived this cataclysmic upheaval, but the study and practice of Daoism is beginning to flourish once again in China and throughout the world.Beliefs The primary belief is in learning and practicing â€Å"The Way† (Dao) which is the ultimate truth to the universe. The Dao has several meanings. It is the basis of all living things, it governs nature, and it is a method to live by. Daoists do not believe in extremes, instead focusing on the interdependence of things. There is no total good or evil or negative and positive. The Yin-Yang symbol exemplifies this view. The black represents the Yin the white represents the Yang. Yin is als o associated with weakness and passivity and Yang with strength and activity.The symbol shows that within the Yang there exists the Yin and vice versa. All nature is the balance between the two. Daoist beliefs have undergone a series of changes in its history. In the 2nd Century the Shangqing school of Daoism emerged that focused on meditation, breathing and recitation of verses. This was the dominant practice of Daoism until about 1,100 AD. In the 5th Century AD, the Lingbao school emerged which borrowed much from Buddhist teachings such as reincarnation and cosmology. The use of talismans and the practice of alchemy were also associated with the Lingbao school.This school of thought was eventually absorbed into the Shangqing school during the Tang Dynasty. In the 6th Century, Zhengyi Daoists, who believed in protective talismans and rituals, emerged. Zhengyi Daoists performed offering rituals for showing thanks and the retreat ritual that includes repentance recitations and abstin ence. This school of Daoism is still popular today. Around 1254, Daoist priest Wang Chongyang developed the Quanzhen school of Daoism. This school of thought used meditation and breathing to promote longevity, many are also vegetarian.The Quanzhen school also further combines the three main Chinese teachings of Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism. Due to the influence of this school, by the late Song Dynasty (960-1279) many of the lines between Daoism and other religions were blurred. The Quanzhen school is also still prominent today. Another key component of Daoism is the De, which is the manifestation of the Dao in all things. De is defined as having virtue, morality and integrity. Historically, the highest achievement of a Daoist is to achieve immortality through breathing, meditation, helping others and the use of elixirs.In early Daoist practices, priests experimented with minerals to find an elixir for immortality, laying the groundwork for ancient Chinese chemistry. One of thes e inventions was gunpowder, which was discovered while searching for an elixir. Daoists believe that influential Daoists are transformed into immortals who help guide others. Tao, originally, meant ‘road' and then implied ‘to rule' and ‘principle'. Lao Zi used Tao to propound his ideological system; therefore his school of thinking is called Taoism. At the time Lao Zi created this religion, it was simply a school of philosophy.During the Eastern Han Dynasty, it became a religion. Tao is the origin of the eternal world. It is boundless in time and space. Ordinary people can become gods when they have Tao. This religion pursues immortality and preservation of health; its uttermost goal is to become an immortal being. This can be obtained through cultivating one's moral character and perfecting one's moral integrity. A Taoist phrase is to say an ordinary man can become immortal if he does good 3,000 times and accomplishes 800 exploits. Of course the number is symbolic .It requires people to do good without making it known to others as the gods will know it naturally, much like the Christian principle expressed in Matthew 6:3-4, â€Å"But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. † At certain dates, food may be set out as a sacrifice to the spirits of the deceased or the gods, such as during the Qingming Festival. This may include slaughtered animals, such as pigs and ducks, or fruit.Another form of sacrifice involves the burning of Joss paper, or Hell Bank Notes, on the assumption that images thus consumed by the fire will reappear—not as a mere image, but as the actual item—in the spirit world, making them available for revered ancestors and departed loved ones. At other points, a vegan diet or full fast may be observed. Also on particular holidays, street parades take place. These are lively a ffairs which invariably involve firecrackers and flower-covered floats broadcasting traditional music.They also variously include lion dances and dragon dances; human-occupied puppets (often of the â€Å"Seventh Lord† and â€Å"Eighth Lord†); tongji ( â€Å"spirit-medium; shaman†) who cut their skin with knives; Bajiajiang, which are Kungfu-practicing honor guards in demonic makeup; and palanquins carrying god-images. The various participants are not considered performers, but rather possessed by the gods and spirits in question. Fortune-telling—including astrology, I Ching, and other forms of divination—has long been considered a traditional Taoist pursuit. Mediumship is also widely encountered in some sects.There is an academic and social distinction between martial forms of mediumship (such as tongji) and the spirit-writing that is typically practiced through planchette writing Daoism Today The Taijitu (â€Å"yin and yang†) symbol as well as the Ba gua (â€Å"Eight Trigrams†) are connected with Daoist symbolism. While almost all Daoist societies make use of the yin and yang symbol, one could also call it Confucian, Neo-Confucian or pan-Chinese. The yin and yang make an â€Å"S† shape, with yin (Black or Red) on the right. One is likely to see this symbol as beautifications on Daoist organization flags and logos, temple floors, or stitched into clerical robes.In accordance Song Dynasty sources, it originated around the 10th century. Previously, yin and yang were symbolized by a tiger and dragon. A zigzag with seven stars is sometimes displayed, representing the Big Dipper (or the Bushel, the Chinese equivalent). In the Shang Dynasty the Big Dipper was considered a deity, while during the Han Dynasty, it was considered a qi path of the circumpolar god, Taiyi. Daoist temples in southern China and Taiwan may often be identified by their roofs, which feature Chinese dragons and phoenix made from multi-color ed ceramic tiles. They also stand for the harmony of yin and yang (with the phoenix being yin).A related symbol is the flaming pearl which may be seen on such roofs between two dragons, as well as on the hairpin of a Celestial Master. In general though, Chinese Taoist architecture has no universal features that distinguish it from other structures. Daoist temples may fly square or triangular flags. They typically feature mystical writing or diagrams and are intended to fulfill various functions including providing guidance for the spirits of the dead, to bring good fortune, increase life span, etc. Other flags and banners may be those of the gods or immortals themselves.Today Taoism is mainly practiced in China and Taiwan. It has also spread to other parts of Asia and even around the world. There are about 20 million followers worldwide–most of them living in Taiwan. About 30,000 North Americans practice Taoism. The Chinese government has tried to suppress Taoism (severely at times in the past), but its teachings and practices still thrive and remain strong†¦ One thing that keeps Taoism popular is its flexibility–it almost isn't a religion, but a philosophy. Most followers practice Taoism in conjunction with Confucianism, Buddhism, and other religions.Many Chinese practice a mix of Confucianism and Taoism. Evangelization to Daoism Daoist are very involved in their own historic culture much like most other religions, things have always been a certain way for them, so they are comfortable in dealing with the â€Å"Dao† and in saying what’s life is life. Which brings a hard pint top bring across when a Christian makes it their goal to show a Daoist that there is value to life, and things do not simply happen for no reason. Many Christians, including me before this class, have no connection with Daoism like they would with Islam or Buddhism.But with 30 million followers Daoism is making a name for itself in the religious world. Dao ist are far opposites from extremist, believing that is simply no evil and no good. So with a start I think as a Christian you have to hear them out and understand their beliefs as to why there is no good or why there is no evil. Otherwise it will just come across as you attacking them and having no care for their soul, and just talking to prove wrong. Once you are comfortable with one another, it’s your turn! You begin to show the good things in the world, and explain how they came to be and how God had a hand in all of it.Now I know this won’t work for every single individual you come across, but any reasonable person will give you a shot and that is all our God needs! Bibligraphy Littlejohn, Ronnie. Daoism: An Introduction. London: I. B. Tauris, 2009. Print. Palmer, David A. , and Xun Liu. Daoism in the Twentieth Century: Between Eternity and Modernity. Berkeley, CA: Global, Area, and International Archive, University of California, 2012. Print. â€Å"The Canon of Reason and Virtue. † (Tao Te Ching) Index. N. p. , n. d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. â€Å"China and the Chinese. † From Project Gutenberg. N. p. , n. d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013.

Conflict of interest in social work policy Case Study

Conflict of interest in social work policy - Case Study Example As social workers strive to maintain the expected professional and personal ethics, they face challenges when handling ethical dilemmas. Usually, there are times when there is an evident conflict between policy and practice and social workers are compelled to make critical decisions when handling such conflicts. The code of ethics is critical in establishing certain ethical standards that define the social work profession. This paper will consider conflicts of interest as one of the ethical standards governing the conduct of social workers. It will present instances of unethical social work behavior and present scenarios whereby there is evident conflict between policy and practice. In such situations, social workers are expected to depict a professional demeanor, and this will be discussed in the paper. According to the code of ethics that social workers rely on for guidelines of their professional behavior, it is evident that they should stay clear from conflicts of interest that compromise their professional discretion motivating them to exhibit partial judgments. Social workers are required to recognize any occurrence of a conflict of interest that may arise between them and their clients and take the necessary steps to address the conflict of interest. Notably, it is the role of the social worker to protect the interests of the client. In serious cases when a conflict of interest arises between a social worker and a client, the situation compels the social worker to terminate the professional relationship (Congress, 2001). After the termination of the professional relationship, the social worker may refer the client to a colleague. These ethical standards also forbid social workers from using professional relationships with clients to promote their interests, whether personal, political, and business or religion. In addition, it is unethical for social workers develop dual or multiple

Teacher Education in TESOL (Master's Level) Research Paper

Teacher Education in TESOL (Master's Level) - Research Paper Example 19). Teacher development is the development of a sense of the strengths and weaknesses in a teacher so that the increased self-awareness resulting from the process helps the teacher identify better ways to teach others. Training and education are both the means of development of a teacher. How is second language teacher training different from teacher training in other disciplines? Second language teacher training differs from training of teachers in other disciplines in that it imparts a need for the teacher to study and develop compatibility with different cultural factors that drive the students’ tendency to learn second language, language being intrinsically and integrally linked with culture whereas training in other subjects is not constrained by cultural differences. Teacher training in other disciplines is primarily about developing the expertise of the teacher in the technical aspects of the subject e.g. lab work training for such subjects as physics and chemistry, an d training of software and programming for the subject of computer. On the contrary, training of teachers in the teaching of second language is more about reaching out to the students both individually and collectively so as to understand the barriers they face in developing their competence in the second language. One aspect of teacher training in the subject of second language teaching could be planning and designing of lecture in such a way that it includes activities and exercises aimed at individually targeting the barriers of students in learning the second language, respecting the time constraints of the lecture. 2. Summary of teacher training history and the main theories on teacher training. The history of teacher training varies from one country to another, yet one common and very favorable improvement that has occurred over the years is increased use of ICT and advanced technology in the teacher training. The training of primary school teachers dates back to the late Vict orian period when it commenced almost by an accident after the Kindergarten school was established in the year 1882 (Randall, 2007). Bedford was families’ choice because of the availability of high quality of education. The Training College was established originally with only five students and continued to remain at the site for more than 70 years. The Bedford students followed Friedrich Froebel’s progressive model of training. The system gradually became more developed and advanced. Likewise, the only teaching requirements in the colonial period in America were mediocre learning and low pay. Teacher training began during the 1820s and 1830s in academies that were equal to the contemporary secondary schools (The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 2011). †¦..and the main theories on teacher training. Ethical theories primarily apply in teacher training. â€Å"We believe that some teaching of ethical theory – the teaching of the ways we can distinguish right from wrong, good from bad - is necessary in ethics courses, but we suggest a modest, not a major role for theory† (Bowden and Smythe, 2008, p. 23). Since unethical behavior is identifiable, students and teachers can individually assess their actions’ rightness or wrongness. Training of the teachers of second language describes the teacher’s notion as a reflective practitioner, that is an individual who reflects on the professional practices with a view to

Intercultural Humour Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Intercultural Humour - Essay Example One of the challenges of understanding the place and value of humour within the multi-cultural environment is that it is not entirely translatable. In usual cases, humour is culturally-specific. A speech act with some content of humour may not apply across the cultural spectrum. In other cases, humour relates to the context and the personality of an individual. This would imply that an idea or phrase with humorous content may not be understood easily or may be distorted in the process of translating into another language or culture. Findings Case reviews have shown that humour could be used to bridge cultures by identifying some mutual linkages within the discourse of communication (Holliday, Kullman & Hyde, 2012). Andrew (2010) distinguished between humour and laughter by identifying some of the problematic areas, which define the essence of humour. In his effort, he established that humour does not necessarily translate into laughter. He sought to establish the theoretical basis on which humour is founded. In his study, Andrew identified three theories as fundamental to the understanding of humour. These include incongruity theory, relief theory, and superiority theory. He explains incongruity theory as being informed by a reaction to a logical impossibility, or to an ambiguity. This kind of humour is associated with the thinking of Kant and Kierkegaard particularly due to its drift from the conventional flow of logic. Superiority theory, according to Andrew (2010) arises out of a feeling of euphoria, which basically comes to the surface when the person making the humorous statement relates to the audience from a real or presumed higher level of seniority. Superiority theory is defended in the philosophies of Aristotle and Plato (Andrew, 2010). A third theory, which is embraced within the Freudian conception of humour, argues that the release of repressed feelings often translates in the form of humour. These theories put together provide a comprehensive fram ework that could be relied upon to furnish deeper connections between the element of humour and inter-cultural connections. The theories have helped in the establishment of important linkages that define life in terms of meanings and underlying meanings of words. Evidence adduced from multiple studies has established that a proper understanding of the structure of humour provides a resourceful entry point into the inner details of any given culture (Holliday, Kullman & Hyde, 2012). Humour should be understood within certain contexts, situations, origin, and other factors that situate it within some specific categories of identification. The element of humour manifests an entire corpus of ideals that are buried beneath the substance of any given culture. As such, it becomes necessary to conceptualize such evidence in light of some of the issues that attend to the general beliefs, practices, and cultural assumptions of that particular culture. Humour provides the framework of understa nding the worldview of a given culture. Broadly, the study of humour involves an investigation into the various connecting points of the different genres that fall under the umbrella name. According to Andrew (2010) some of the genres that are included within the corpus of humour are satire, sight gags, stand up comedy, sarcasm, bending joke, irony, variety shows and word play. These aspects of humour usually involve various issues that work together to form a comprehensive understanding of

Work of Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Work of Art - Essay Example A southern-born artist, Louis Rmy Mignot painted this view Niagara after he had moved to London during the Civil War. Before leaving the United States in 1862, he had sketched at Niagara Falls, perhaps with the idea of exhibiting an ambitious canvas before an English audience." (Niagara) The view of this work of art has been taken from the Horseshoe Falls, it is an oil on canvas work of art. The signature of the artist can be found on the right hand side corner of the work of art. American identity has been presented in this work of art, it also represents a new look of the American society. Traditional framing devices have been used in this work of art. This work of art falls under the American Art and it predominantly represents the American Society. "At first glance, Song and Yuan landscapes seem to conform to a narrow set of compositional types, with requisite central mountains, hidden temples, and scholars strolling along a path. In fact, the landscape tradition developed slowly as painters gained technical facility and consciously chose to allude to earlier styles or bring out philosophical or political ideas in their work." (Northern Song) Central Majestic Mountain has been portrayed in this work of art; it is unlike the Niagara Falls. The foreground is conspicuous and it is presented at the eye level, it has been painted with crisp and very well defined brush strokes by the artists.

Learning Language Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Learning Language - Essay Example When a child is born, either in a congested urban slum or in privileged ghettos, either in mountainous hilly villages or to a wealthy noble family. At that time a child is not concerned with any of the social interaction with each other through language, or that the concern about the production of grammatically well-formed sentences, but a means for acting in the world in order to establish relationships with others so that it might be easier for him to communicate information and to engage with them in joint activities. We can say that a child is thus born into a community of language users whose social interaction in the form of symbols, gestures and facial expressions makes him learn and his learning of language forms part of his socialization as a member of that community. To acquire complete control of the complex patterns of his native or mother language is, therefore, placed on the second account, which is mentioned above in the following words of ‘language as a resource ’. A child when interacts in whatever environment and in whatever circumstances, experience through interacting with his environment and acquires the resources of the language of his community and learns how to make use of those resources in order to achieve a variety of purposes in relation to different people in different situations. The language which children under 4 years use is easily recognizable as their mother tongue it is also readily apparent that it is very different from the language of most adults. But exactly in what ways and in what respect it differs from adult language depends on consideration of the various component skills and the different kinds of social and conceptual knowledge which underlie language. For example, two young children clearly after learning the meaning of a large number of words are able to string words together into

Web 2.0 and Beyond Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Web 2.0 and Beyond - Assignment Example Generally, these technologies were more users friendly and one could learn and at same time make contribution. One thing which I disliked about these technologies was their lack of privacy. Web 2.0 technologies assimilation has led to both positive and negative impacts in life. One of their advantages is the ease of access of information and communication. These technologies have made information easily accessible from variety of sources. They facilitate interaction at advanced levels through chatting in blogs, over social sites and video conferencing all of which have made communication nowadays more effective and efficient. The main disadvantage of web 2.0 technologies is over dependence amongst its users. This means that one is shut down in case of internet slow down or failure. Furthermore, there is lack of privacy and security of data shared due to susceptibility of hacking and plagiarism in case of literal information. Despite these disadvantages these technologies have currently been applied in fields like sales and marketing e.g. in second life and many others which have made life better. On the contrary many users have fallen prey to hackers and grown excessiv ely dependent on the internet. Thus it is inconclusive to state web 2.0 is a breakthrough. Web 3.0Â  refers to a proposed semantic web which will incorporate personalizations like. iGoogle, intelligent search and behavioral advertising with the objective of turning web into a database. Contrary to the past technologies it is infrastructural based. Web 3.0 will add more value to users since the technology will be with human capabilities of accurately and precisely determining information required, translating to more relevant information. In addition, this may lead to massive loss of employment since most activities unlike currently will be automated. This will be caused by the human intelligence to be applied in webs 3.0

Practical Application Interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Practical Application Interview - Essay Example Finally, the interview also sought to determine the teacher’s ways of delivering successful cooperative lessons. Successful teaching strategies allow a kindergarten teacher to efficiently educate his or her students (Weimer, 2009). The findings of this interview incorporated ideas that mostly involved understanding children. The interview found out that, in order to model a skill or an idea in a kindergarten student, teachers first need first to grasp the interests of their students. This is because when someone is interested in something, especially a child, it will be much easier for the person to understand the concept. This is a terrific idea. Kindergarten students need first to realize what they are going to learn before they get into details. This will arouse their interests in the concept (Weimer, 2009). The teacher in this interview uses practical objects and imagery to build the vocabulary of her students. Showing pictures of objects to kindergarten students is a powerful way of improving their vocabulary. Children tend to build their vocabulary on what they see (Weimer, 2009). This i s because their thinking capacity is low at their current stage of life. They, hence, recognize what they can picture in their minds. As a result, the teacher uses pictures and real objects to build the vocabulary of her students. According to the findings of the interview, there is one vital way of providing opportunities to students for repeated practice and application of what it taught in class. This is through regular examination of what is taught in the class. Children tend to forget things more quickly than grow ups, (Weimer, 2009). They need to be assessed on a regular basis so that they could remember what they are taught by their teachers. Also, in order for teachers to get immediate feedback to the questions they ask their students, they need to regularly assess their students so as to build their confidence in class. If students have confidence,

Direct and Digital Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5250 words

Direct and Digital Marketing - Essay Example Identity theft is basically the illegal use of an individual's personal information including such identifiers as social security numbers, driving license numbers, financial cards and account information, usually for frauds and crimes without the consent if the original owner. This crucial information can be used to fraudulently obtain such things as loans, credit, employment, healthcare services, rentals, and mortgages. Identity theft has become a global problem. It was regarded the worst in US until recently because, in US, the traditional use of the social security numbers is identification - a piece of information that, when linked to the name and address of the individual, makes it relatively easy for a thief to get all the necessary information regarding an individuals identity. However, the problem has caught up in Europe too with the UK Home Office estimation that identity theft is growing at 165% per year in the UK and is currently costing the country  £1.3 billion annually. An interesting fact about the increase of identity theft is that it is greatest at rising in Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia - two of the new hotspots in the current trend of outsourcing. According to a survey on internet security by the Cyber Security Industry Alliance, about 97% of the users online consider the identity theft a very serious problem. These underlying perceptions of people are having dire effects on the businesses trying to market their products online (digital marketing) or directly through phone or email. Another interesting fact is that fraud committed during card-not-present transactions accounts for 60% of fraud which has made people further cautious of any kind of online transaction they make.   Companies and businesses are starting to realize that the increasing ratio of identity theft and its dire consequences on the perception of people has made the use of credit cards and sharing of other personal data even for authentic business purposes very limited.  

Huckleberry Finn Essay Example for Free

Huckleberry Finn Essay Theme, structure and social characteristics as the literary elements, highlighting the spiritual growth of the main characters in â€Å"My Name is Asher Lev†, â€Å"Emma† and â€Å"Huckleberry Finn† The present paper is designed to discuss three novels about moral maturation and the growth of self-awareness, â€Å"Huckleberry Finn† by Mark Twain, whose protagonist is Huckleberry Finn, Jane Austen’s â€Å"Emma†, named after the protagonist and â€Å"My Name is Asher Lev† by Chaim Potok, whose main character is Asher Lev. Notably, the authors necessarily indicate the protagonists’ names in the titles, underlining their moral and psychological development as a central plotline. The literary elements of theme, structure and protagonist’s social characteristics actually strengthen the reader’s understanding of the character’s spiritual growth: Lev’s novel demonstrates’ the protagonist’s liberation from the community bonds through the lens of the theme of social pressure, Twain’s writing – the progress of Huck’s humanistic views underlining the theme of slavery, Austen’s work – Emma’s psychological maturation, through prioritizing the theme of marriage, moreover, all works by their structure provide the mistakes made by the protagonists on their path and thus make clear to the reader that development is not a smooth and gradual process, whereas the change or stability of sociological characteristics pay reader’s attention either to the connection between self-awareness and social position or to the purely inner revolution. The characters actually perfect very distinct aspects of self awareness: Emma, for instance, overgrows the selfish and infantile girl, whose main interest is manipulating the others’ fates (as she appears at the beginning), Asher Lev realizes that he is actually an independent personality rather than the subject of the Hassidic community after being judged for depicting the his mother’s anguish, whereas Huckleberry Finn, who has never considered carefully the issue of racial equality, begins to realize his humanistic views and oppose the oppression of slaves and the split of their families. Due to the fact that the major theme in â€Å"My Name is Asher Lev† is community bonds and the conflict itself develops in terms of the weakening of the commitment to the groups of Hassids (Walden, 1985), the protagonist, who is a bright and unordinary individuality, should ascend over the blind observance of community tradition and learn to distinguish himself from the group. Therefore, his development is associated with individuation and learning of his ego and the religious conflict results in the development of Asher’s ability to assert his self: â€Å"So it is time for the defense, for a long session in demythology. But I will not apologize. It is absurd to apologize for a mystery†(Potok, 1998, at http://search. barnesandnoble. com). The theme of marriage as the leading one in â€Å"Emma† is also related to the main character’s development: whereas at first, Emma views marriage as a game, popular in her environment, she is still not infantile to understand that this specific type of partnership is based necessarily on strong affection after developing the feelings for her brother-in-law; whereas at the beginning she has fear for the responsibility associated with marriage. The theme of slavery also supports the reader’s understanding of the young protagonist’s moral growth in â€Å"Huckleberry Finn†: â€Å"I’m low down; and I’m a-going to steal him† (Twain, 1999, Ch. 33); as one can understand, Huck no longer views Jim as property, but in order to persuade Tom, he recognizes his own inclination to wrongdoing and takes entire responsibility for the stealing the slave. The structure of the stories is generally similar: the greatest part of the plot is dedicated to depicting the behavioral imperfections of the protagonist, so that the reader can feel the protagonist is an ordinary person, whose growth is based upon his/her own mistakes. For instance, â€Å"Emma† at first depicts an arrogant and class-conscious girl saying â€Å"The yeomanry are precisely the order of people with whom I feel I can have nothing to do† (Austen, 2001, Vol. 1 Ch. 4) and throughout the first two parts she acts as a quarrelsome person, whereas her later reasoning can be characterized as wiser: â€Å"I think Harriet is doing extremely well â€Å"(Austen, 2001, Vol. 3, Ch. 28), i. e. she approves of her best friend’ marriage to the farmer, having got the idea of love and letting it in. Beyond mistakes, Potok’s and Twain’s protagonists also encounter difficulties and adversities, which shape their outlooks; for instance, Lev’s story can be divided into three parts (Walden, 1985): period of the teenage conflict with the environment, movement toward the goal in Kahn’s studio and the resolution of the conflict and individuation (Potok, 1972). Huck’s moral development is less gradual and actually consists of several insights: 1) first encounter with Jim as a fugitive slave and the initial desire to help him; 2) The loss of the companion after meeting the â€Å"aristocrats† and Jim’s imprisonment in Phelpses’ house. Finally, social characteristics of the protagonists are quite expressive themselves and point actually to the qualities to be changed. For instance, Emma is introduced as a girl with a degree of self-importance and class-based prejudice because of her upper class identity, but later she begins to understand her friend Harriet in her love for Martin and thus grows more open-minded; furthermore, her maturation is accompanied by the change of social characteristics, as Emma accepts Knightley’s proposition Huck Finn’s social characteristics remain practically the same, as the author seeks to maintain the reader’s focus on the advancement of his moral qualities, so that the adolescent still remains to some extent uncommitted to social norms (â€Å"Aunt Sally she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me, and I can’t stand it† (Twain 1999, Ch. 43), in spite of having developed his distinct attitude towards slavery. Asher Lev, in turn, drastically changes his social identity: the growth of his self-awareness and self-identity result in his alienation and separation from the community. To sum up, the reader’s understanding of the protagonist’s path toward self-awareness is to great extent manipulated by the authors: Jane Austen, Chaim Potok and Mark Twain design the plot structure, which underlines the failures and subsequent insights of the protagonist, embed the central theme into the main character’s spiritual growth and substantially change the protagonist’s social features, except Huck’s case, in which the focus on morality shift is broadened through remaining social characteristics stable. Reference list Austen, J. (2001). Emma. At http://ebooks. adelaide. edu. au/a/austen/jane/a93e/. Twain, M. (1999). Huckleberry Finn. At Potok, C. (1972). My Name is Asher Lev. Alfred A. Knopf. Potok, C. (1998). My Name is Asher Lev. At http://search. barnesandnoble. com/booksearch/isbninquiry. asp? ean=9781400031047displayonly=EXCz=y#EXC http://etext. virginia. edu/toc/modeng/public/Twa2Huc. html Walden, D. (1985). The World of Chaim Potok . State University of New York Press, 1985.

Necessity of Parental Spiritual Leadership

Necessity of Parental Spiritual Leadership In this paper, I will show why I believe the parents are to be the primary spiritual caregivers of their children. I believe that there is more than just personal preference deciding who should train children spiritually. This has been a topic of much discussion and one that needs to be brought to the attention of parents. Parents in North America have largely left the spiritual raising of their children up to the church. This is why there are many children and family pastors. I believe that the churchs role is to support the parents in raising children spiritually. It would help to begin by defining some terms. When talking about spiritual leadership, what then is meant? Spiritual leadership is quite simply leadership that is spiritual. Leadership is the act of leading a group of people. This can be by taking somebody from one place and moving them to another by being an example and correcting should the need arise. Spiritual leadership takes the idea of leadership one step further by making it about leading somebody spiritually. What then isÂÂ   meant by spiritual in spiritual leadership?ÂÂ   Spiritual pertains to the realm of religion. In this paper, spiritual will refer to the leading and following of Jesus Christ. Now that spiritual leadership has been defined who can be spiritual leaders? Spiritual leaders can be anybody who is farther along on the faith journey than the one theyre leading. This might include pastors, teachers, leaders, parents, older siblings, or older individuals in the church. In some cases, the spiritual lead er is younger than whom he is leading. Why do children need spiritual leadership? George Barna in his book on transforming children[K1], says that in order to have a proper relationship with God, children must be taught to obey Him.[1] Children need someone to guide them along this journey of life to becoming more like Christ. They need someone to teach them the things of God. They will not and cannot do that on their own. They are in dire need of someone to guide them who is more spiritually mature than they are. What does spiritual leadership have to do with families? Moses wrote in Deuteronomy chapter 6 These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.[2] These verses give a clear indication that children are to be taught the things of God by their parents. These words were spoken by Moses as a direct command from God. God was to be taught about by the parents all the time. There is a clear indication of this by the words when you sit, when you walk, when you lie down and when you rise up. One can infer that this is to be an every day, every week, every month, and every year occurrence. The Bible is clear where talks about parents teaching their children. Does spiritual leadership need to come from the family or can it come from somewhere else? The two locations that spiritual leadership can come from is the family or the church. The church is a great place for Spiritual leadership come from because of the amount of knowledge that most leaders in the church have. On the other hand, a family is also a great place for it to come from because; there is the sheer amount of time that they are with their children and the built in trust the children have for their parents. The question is, is the church and the family equal in terms of training or is one better than the other? When the church leads spiritually, there can be much benefit to the children. Reggie Joiner believes that, The church is a critical part of Gods divine strategy to demonstrate His redemptive story to the world.[3] Over the years, since its inception, the church has perfected the art of teaching. It has designed strategies to guide children into the knowledge of Jesus Christ. The church has specific vacation strategies called VBS, Vacation Bible School, to get the gospel into the hearts of the boys and girls. Many boys and girls give their life to Christ at the VBS. These take place all around the world. George Barna said that, Most church-going parents are neither spiritually mature nor spiritually inclined and therefore they do not have the sense of urgency or necessity about raising their kids to be spiritual champions.[4] The church has picked up the slack of parents. This is why there are becoming more and more children and youth directors. Churches are realizing that parents are not doing their God-given responsibility to lead their children spiritually. Putting it quite simply when he said, while more than four out of five parents believe they have the primary responsibility for the moral and spiritual development of their children, more than two-thirds of them abdicate that responsibility to their church. Their virtual abandonment of spiritual leadership for their children is evident in how infrequently they engage in faith-oriented activities with their young ones.[5], George Barna identified the key problem in the lives of parents today. When children come to church they are taught by educators who have spent all week learning a lesson that they will teach to the children. This lesson has been specifically planned to aid in the spiritual development of the child.ÂÂ   The Sunday school teachers, many who have done this for many years, are teaching out of the experience and other things that they have learned. This teaching becomes concentrated in i ts Biblical content. A former childrens director Michelle Anthony stated what most workers in childrens ministry feel when she said, We desire that those in our care will have been spiritually formed by the time they leave our ministry.[6] It is this desire that drives the many childrens workers at churches around the world. All this so far seems well and good, but[K2] Barna figured out the problem with this church predominant teaching. He said, So, parents are happy, children receive some religious instruction and experiences, and the churches are serving people. This sounds like a wonderful win-win situation except for one issue: the approach is completely unbiblical.[7]ÂÂ   This leads to an improper view that the church should be the primary spiritual caregivers of children. They can have an influence, but[K3] should not be the primary. When parents make the decision to lead spiritually it can have the largest impact on their children.ÂÂ   Parents have the unique,opportunity to help them (kids) discover, access, and strengthen their (kids) trust and faith in Jesus Christ[8] as authors Powell and Clark correctly identified. Children are born into this world completely helpless. They cannot do anything on their own. As they begin to grow, they become attached to their parents. They look to the parents for guidance, support, and encouragement. Through this relationship that has been God-given, the parents can use this relationship to begin guiding their children to follow Jesus Christ. As George Barna specified, Spiritual development is a lifelong continual process. It is not to be practiced as a once a week routine[K4], but a 24/7 habit.[9] This is attainable by the parents and not the church. There are 168 hours in a week. 56 of those are designated as sleeping hours. Children spend approximately 40 hours in sch ool. This leaves 78 hours of the week that the children are neither sleeping nor at school. These 78 hours can be intentional hours that parents can use to guide their children spiritually. The church only gets probably 1 to 2 hours a week of spiritual influence over the children. Powell and Clark also stated so well that parents, model an unconditional, nonjudgmental, and ever embracing love in which our kids can do nothing that jeopardizes or even lessen that love.[10] Through this parents can show pragmatically to their children that nothing can drive the kids out of the family. The parents are modeling the same that is true in Gods family. Once they are a part of Gods family, nothing they can do is able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand.[11] Parents must not wait until children are in school to begin the spiritual training of their children. They can begin as early as when they bring them home from the hospital. By simply singing the song Jesus Loves Me, parents can begin the spiritual training of their children. This song speaks great theological truths. Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so. The children can know first off that Jesus loves them. Second, they can learn to trust the Bible. It is the Bible that accurately tells them the truth that Jesus loves them.ÂÂ   The parents are teaching[K5] though the song even before the child can speak. Children can know these truths from a very young age and all it begins with is the parent singing the song to them and they are imparting deep theological truth. The authors of Losing Your Marbles plainly state, If kids dont feel loved when theyre young, they may never love themselves in a healthy way.[12] This is very easily done by parents who can model the u nconditional love that God has for us. Parents can teach their children the love of the Father with the love that they have for their kids. It is kind of ironic that God describes himself as a Father. That is what sets parenting apart from anything else. God has allowed parents to take those young individuals and be able to mold them in accordance with His Word. Jesus welcomed the little children onto His knee. He still wants kids to be with him. In their book Sticky Faith Drs. Powell and Clark say that when kids come to the conclusion through failure or pain that theyre not in control of their faith and they lose interest in their faith, they are going to set that faith aside. Parents must help the kids discover the faith that doesnt fade by staying true to the words of Jesus. They wrote the children need to learn to trust in the one the Father has sent and live convinced that the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.[13] Again, Michelle Anthony brought the important truth out when she said, As ministers of Christ, I believe our job is to simply hoist our sail far and as wide as we can and catch the wind of God. That sail is important, but not as important as the wind.[14] As parents deal with children day after day they will be able to see these areas where the Holy Spirit is moving and use that prompting to speak the truth of God into the kids lives. Even a simple thing like walking down the stree t, there are areas that parents can use to teach about Gods greatness. As the children hear about news articles, parents can use that as a jumping point to speak the truth. As the parents listen for Gods direction, they will be able to use random things that can happen every single day as teaching points. Its no accident that God directly told the parents in Deuteronomy to teach the things of God, when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.[15] These words are very strong proof that it must be the parents that lead spiritually. The church is simply not in the kids lives often enough. In conclusion, there is nothing wrong with the church teaching children spiritually[K6], but they must not be the primary. The primary spiritual leadership needs to come from the parents. They have been called by God to fulfill this role. Often parents dont know where to start[K7], but, even just reading the Bible with their kids is a great place to start. Its no coincidence that God has placed children in a family and when someone receives Jesus as their Savior they become part of Gods family. The family is very important to God and that is why the parents can reach their children best. The book Think Orange underlying theme is that the parents are red; signifying their love for the children and the church is yellow, signifying it as a light in the world. It is only when both come together, red and yellow that you get orange. Rather than the church doing one thing and the parents doing another thing, if they work together they can attack two fronts. When you combine two influences, you amplify whats important[16] The best, and most ideal situation, is the family providing the primary spiritual leadership[K8], and the church coming alongside and augmenting the parents teaching with their own teaching. The churchs role is to evangelize the world. The parents role is to disciple and train their children as spiritual leaders. This is not a task that parents can approach half-heartedly, theyÂÂ   must daily rely on the Holy Spirit to guide them in this rewarding task. Annotated Bibliography Anthony, Michelle Dreaming of More For The Next Generation Colorado Springs, Colorado: David C. Cook, 2012 Boys and girls come to Sunday School every single week and every single week, sadly, boys and girls stop coming to Sunday School. This book explores the ideas of what could happen if boys and girls, entire families, learned about got together. Imagine what could happen to our world if this generation of Christians altered their mindset about the importance of disciple in children. If an entire generation continued to practice the things that they learned in Sunday school as kids. The change can happen and it starts with parents to taking their role of spiritual leaders seriously. Anthony, Michelle; Marshman, Megan 7 Family Ministry Essentials Colorado Springs, Colorado; David C. Cook, 2015 Ministry to families has become something of an important aspect in many churches today. No longer are specific leaders just ministering to kids but, there is a gradual shift towards the church providing something for the entire family. This book looks at 7 essential aspects related to ministering to families. The first aspect is essential to this report with its title being Empowering Family as Primary. The authors suggest that in one generation there could be a shift in the primacy of parents being the primary spiritual caregivers for kids. Recycling, seatbelts, and sunscreen have changed from obscurity to necessity in only one generation. Think what could happen if we made this the prime thing we were teaching parents. Barna, George Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions Ventura, California: Barna Research Group, Ltd., 2003 When it comes to raising boys and girls according to the word of God, George Barna leads the pack on championing this cause. He has done extensive research into reasons why children need to the number one priority in the church. He says that children need to be an investment by the church. With all the research that has been done, children are still influenced primarily by their parents. Even though churches do have an influence on children, the church is on the lowest tier of influence. Parents must rise up and take their place in leading their family spiritually. Joiner, Reggie Think Orange Colorado Springs, Colorado: David C. Cook, 2012 With the church averaging only 40 hours of a year to influence a child, compared to the 3000 that parents get, it only makes sense to have parents use that time to spiritually raise their children. The think orange philosophy is that when parents and the church work together, the spiritual training can be attacked on both fronts. Families being red, representing love and church being yellow, representing light, it is when those two combine you get orange. The author stresses that the parents voice needs to be the strongest in a kids life. The parents need to matter more than their friends, more than a coach, and more than the world. This book, if properly utilized, could change the church today, because it changes families. Joiner, Reggie; Hansen, Elizabeth; Ivy, Kristen Losing Your Marbles Cumming, Georgia: The reThink Group, Inc., 2013 Reggie Joiner weaves the tale of a boy named Simon and his quest to do the right thing at school. This book takes a look at one week out of out of Simons life and the massive changes that can take place in strictly one week. Flipping the book over, Joiner stresses that kids need six things repeatedly in their lives to make a difference. When these six things are done by parents, they can make lasting changes in their childrens lives. The six things are time over time, love over time, words over time, stories over time, tribes over time, and fun over time. These six things done over time, show children that they matter and in these parents can speak spiritually into their kids lives. Newheiser, Jim Parenting is More Than a Formula Philipsburg, New Jersey: PR Publishing Company, 2015 This book is written as an encouragement to parents that sometimes the best parenting doesnt follow strict rules. A key portion of the book is on the parental duties as directed from scripture, with the following section on responsibilities of the child for the choices that he makes. This book hits the nail on the head when it points out the very important high point that its only by Gods grace our kids can be saved. Powell, Kara E.; Clark, Chap Sticky Faith Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2011 This book explores the relationship between children who are raised in the church who is that walk away from it as they get older. The numbers speak of 50% of kids walking away from their faith, their faith does not stick. The essential leading factor with the decision to stay or leave the faith is the influence that parents have on the kids. The authors write that as children get older they need to have developed faith for themselves otherwise, it will not stick and they will walk away. In order to make Faith stick, parents must have conversations with their children about spiritual things throughout the week and not only on Sundays. [1] George Barna, Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions (Ventura, California: Barna Research Group, Ltd., 2003), 61 [2] Deut. 6:6-7 (NASB) [3] Reggie Joiner, Think Orange (Colorado Springs, Colorado: David C. Cook, 2012), 36 [4] George Barna, Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions (Ventura, California: Barna Research Group, Ltd., 2003), 111 [5] George Barna, Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions (Ventura, California: Barna Research Group, Ltd., 2003), 109 [6] Michelle Anthony, Dreaming of More For The Next Generation (Colorado Springs, Colorado: David C. Cook, 2012), 29 [7] George Barna, Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions (Ventura, California: Barna Research Group, Ltd., 2003), 114 [8] Kara E. Powell and Chap Clark, Sticky Faith (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2011), 37 [9] George Barna, Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions (Ventura, California: Barna Research Group, Ltd., 2003), 116 [10] Ibid. [11] John 10:29 (NASB) [12] Reggie Joiner, Elizabeth Hansen, Kristen, Losing Your Marbles (Cumming, Georgia: The reThink Group, Inc., 2013), 47 [13] Kara E. Powell and Chap Clark, Sticky Faith (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2011), 36 [14] Michelle Anthony, Megan Marshman, 7 Family Ministry Essentials )Colorado Springs, Colorado; David C. Cook, 2015), 121 [15] Deut. 6:6-7 (NASB) [16] Reggie Joiner, Think Orange (Colorado Springs, Colorado: David C. Cook, 2012), 134 [K1]comma [K2]comma [K3]comma [K4]comma [K5]awkward sentence [K6]comma [K7]comma here instead [K8]comma

Deep River Shusaku Endo English Literature Essay

Deep River Shusaku Endo English Literature Essay Shusaku Endo has had a long career in literary works. He has written some very compelling novels that dive deep down into the journey of spiritual learning. He has fixated most of his writings on two main crossing issues such as eastern and western cultures specifically between Japanese culture and Christianity. His novels have sited a wide range of issues of cultural and spiritual identity, alienation, and personal pledge to faith. The story he wrote Deep River is a fascinating journey of revelation for the characters involved, especially the relationship between Mitsuko has with Otsu. Otsu and Mitsuko first meet in college, Otsu is an awkward religious student and Mitsuko is a woman who has no real passion for life. She decides she wants to steal Otsu away from the god he believes in. She invites Otsu to a party to ask him about his beliefs, to my surprise he comes clean saying he is unsure of what he believes in. Mitsuko forces Otsu to drink and wont stop forcing him until he forsakes god, but he drinks till he throws up, never giving up on god. No it sounds like these two would never see each other again after something like that. To your dismay Mitsuko cant leave Otsu be, she says he must falsify his belief in god. She then gives him the opportunity to be her boyfriend if he gives up his faith. I honestly cant believe anyone would force that upon someone. To my dismay they end up having sex and dating for several months until she breaks his heart. Otsu now depressed, leaves and doesnt return, although they do of course, meet again. Mitsuko has a problem because she feels no passion in life; she goes through her life and this story with a horrible feeling of emptiness in herself On Mitsukos Honeymoon instead of spending time with her new husband she hears Otsu is in France and searches him out. They meet up and come up with a new word for god onion because to Mitsuko the term god means nothing. Otsu is on the complete opposite page, saying god is everything everywhere. The French actually say he is a heretic for his beliefs that other religions are also true and that god uses both sin and suffering for the greater good. Otsu is opposed by his teachers because of this statement he gives evil lurks within good, and good thingsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦good things can lie within evil as well (65). I believe what Endo is trying to express be that god has the power to convert every sin into some kind of good. Later in the story another quote comes up, god has many faces. I dont think god exists exclusively in the churches and chapels of Europe. I think he is also among the Jews and the Buddhists and the Hindus (121). Otsu wants to live a life of selfless sacrifice for all p eople, which at the time Mitsuko finds to be a waste of time. I believe the reason she seeks out Otsu so many times in the story even though she doesnt really know what it she is searching for she is searching for god which in the end brings love. Otsu signifies a belief in unity of all. He believes in combining all faiths and caring for all mankind, generating an enormous social assembly of love. Even with being called a heretic, Otsu never revokes his beliefs and maintains a strong faith and trust in Jesus. While talking to Mitsuko he decides to tell her he has dedicated his existence to chasing only one thing: the love of that onion, Love is all the onion has imparted to us. The thing we are most lacking in our modern world is love; love is the thing no one believes in anymore; love is what everyone mockingly laughs at, and that is why someone like me wants to follow my onion with dumb sincerity (119). Otsu follows his beliefs to India at the river Ganges. This is a place that is very sacred to the Hindus, they travel here when they are dying with the hope to have their bodies cremated and their ashes spread into the holy river. Otsu goes here to sacrifice himself so he can help these people make the dying journey. He literally carries the people to the river who can barely walk. Sacrifice is the focus of Otsus faith. Jesus is the number one symbol of sacrifice. He gave up his life for mankinds sins. Jesus symbolically lugs all of the anguishes of mankind on his shoulders when he is made to carry his own cross to death. Otsu imitates the carrying of suffering by plainly transporting the deceased and dying on his back to the River Ganges. Otsu sees more than just the task he is doing, he feels something pure and necessary in putting the suffering of others on his shoulders, by sacrificing himself. Mitsuko sees what Otsu is doing as a waste of his own life, because he is getting nothing out of it in her eyes. Otsu knows he will not change the world or cure suffering, he is doing this act of sacrifice for the good of the people, if there is a benefit that comes from it then Otsu knows the act will not be the true good act of sacrifice. By the end of the story you start to get the feeling that Mitsuko finally understands the belief of sacrifice and love for others. She decides to bathe in the holy river joining the Hindus with her own prayer, which she still believes is a lie, she still has that emptiness until she sees the ultimate sacrifice. Sacrifice is to give and receive nothing in return except for happiness in you. To love is to sacrifice; Otsu makes sacrifices for people trying to turn their sorrow into love. The end of the story brings the biggest sacrifice, when Otsu becomes mortally wounded, while saving Sanjo, who is a person who most wouldnt sacrifice for because of his cultural insensitiveness. But because Otsu and his beliefs he saves the man and in the end giving his life. This act makes his sacrifice even greater, he is not sacrificing for a loved one or a family member but for a stranger who does not know or appreciate what Otsu does for him. Otsu has Christ-like, selfless love that rises above all cultural, racial, and religious prejudices to embrace all of humanity, just like the river Ganges, which he saw as a deep and flowing river of love accepting all, rejecting neither the ugliest of men nor the filthiest (185). This is when we finally understand what lies at the heart of Christianity; Love and sa crifice for others. Otsus sacrifice is one of pure love for mankind, deaf, blind and dumb to how pointless it may be.