Project planning and control Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Project planning and control - Essay Example It is a very key part in stakeholder management. Its goal is to develop cooperation between the stakeholders and the project team. It is needed to clarify the consequences of expected change or to start anew project by the organization (Mitchell, Agle & Wood 2008). In this case of changing room project the stakeholders are: the members of the group, software developers, suppliers, customers and the government. The software that is developed will provide a platform for the supplier to know the exact measurement of the client without returning the clothes that have been ordered. The entrepreneurs who form the group will be able to receive the image from all side and the exact measurement taken. The software will promote the good relation between the firm and the client and the supplier of the clothing. The online marketing done through the application also give the government the opportunity to get revenue and regulate the number of businesses carried out within a specific location within a particular time (Fletcher et al. 2003). In addition, the software developers will also find the readily available market for their product in the market. On the technological advancement, it will add an input in the use of current technology in sales and mark eting. The product quality and the volume of sales to the business will increase greatly. While the positive effects are felt among the stakeholders, it is also associated the negative effects among the stakeholders. The project is very expensive because it requires additional capital to consult and contract the software companies. It requires regular maintenance and qualified and trained personnel which the company might lack in the long run. It might also take too long to be implemented. To the clients it will take them too long to change with the new system. Change is difficult to adopt some client would

The Role of Parenting in Henry Roths Call it Sleep Essay Example for Free

The Role of Parenting in Henry Roths Call it Sleep Essay In the novel Call it Sleep, by Henry Roth, one of the hardest tasks is to truly understand the character of David Schearl. Written from the perspective of a young child, the reader has to wade through rambling streams of consciousness filled with significant meaning, as well as, well-developed mature thoughts. However, you cannot truly comprehend a character like David unless you fully understand his familial structure and the effects it has on him. Davids parents are important because they prove to be the source of his rejection and confusion with the world around him. By rejecting his parents and their culture David is only left with confusion, guilt, and loneliness. The Schearl household is filled with secrets, blame and denial that shake the basic foundations that a family depends on. Davids home is lacking openness and intimacy, and that forces David to look towards other places, such as religion, for such needs. Upon examining the effects the familys dysfunctions have on David; one can better understand the true nature of his character and his search for a personal identity independent of his parents. Davids relationship to his mother, Genya, is filled with love. However, as David gets older this love is sometimes replaced by shame. David, who formally took comfort in being near his mother, is trying to free himself from only feeling safe in her arms. At the beginning of the novel, David needed his mother to wait in the stairwell while he came up stairs because he was so terrified. While later in the novel, David is proud of himself for walking up the stairs and not being afraid of anything. However, there were times during this period when David wanted his mother waiting, and he felt shame in needing his mother to feel safe. Davids deep connection to his mother is the result of the father, Albert, rejecting both. Albert is not a good father figure, in the sense that, he doesnt fulfill any of Genya or Davids emotional needs. This absence of a strong husband/ father figure creates the tight and awkward bond between Genya and David. Alberts absence in Genyas life creates a huge emotional gap and for comfort she latches onto David. Another factor playing into the deep connection between David and Genya is the alienation both feel in America, a strange land, where neither feels as though they belong. Genyas inability to assimilate to the American immigrant lifestyle has left her sheltered and alone in an apartment all day. Having no peers or equals to spend here time with, Genya is constantly babying David to ensure that he will not turn elsewhere for his needs. As a child David thrives on this close relationship because he hates the ugly outside world. David seeks shelter in his mothers arms from people like Yussie and his sister, Annie, who wants to play bad. David, however, has more interaction with the outside world and finds his adventures there comforting as he grows older. Davids escape to the roof and the journey he took when he got lost replaced his need to find comfort in his mothers arms. The distance between David and his mother grew when she divulged her great secret to Aunt Bertha. The two women spoke half in Yiddish and half in Polish creating a huge gap not only in David s understanding but also in his connection with his mother. His mothers Polish and Davids increasing English vocabulary prevent them from sharing a common language in which they feel comfortable expressing themselves. David who used to feel at home in his mothers world inside the apartment finds himself growing up and rejecting Genyas inability to grow and change. Genyas world is becoming unfamiliar to David, whose experiences in the modern world are foreign to Genya. Davids rejection of his mothers world and her inability to understand his world force David to look for fulfillment and acceptance outside the home, in school, religion and with street kids like Leo.

Impact of Canine Intervention on Rabies

Impact of Canine Intervention on Rabies Problem Rabies-is a fatal viral disease that causes inflammation of the nervous system, caught from bites or scratches of rabid animals, most commonly domestic-dogs (>95%).[1] Immediate treatment of infected humans with four doses post-exposure prophylaxis decreases chance of developing severe infection, but this is often prevented by availability and awareness of treatment in low-income settings. Canine-vaccination provides broader benefits for disease-control reducing cases in dogs, human animal-bite injuries, and number of human-cases.[2] While the value of canine vaccination is well-known, local uptake at low-income-settings have been low despite public provision and financing.[3] Intervention The intervention involves empowering community-health-workers to formulate local-strategies to encourage participation and conduct self-organized rabies-vaccination days, compared against standard of care of centrally-coordinated program. The intervention assumes that low-uptake for current publicly-provided canine vaccination programs is due to locally-inappropriate programs that do not effectively promote awareness and engagement. Community-directed interventions are used in other public health diseases with promising results in improving access to interventions and enhancing efficiency, cost-effectiveness and sustainability.[4] But, its effectiveness for canine-rabies vaccination is-unknown. Community-directed interventions for rabies vaccination is theorized to maximize reach of vaccination activities through localization, more effective community-engagement, and more accurate targeting of potential households. The theory of change behind the intervention is illustrated by the logic model in Figure 1. Inputs The intervention makes use of people, money, equipment, and research base to carry it out. The implementers will tap district officers, train trainors, and recruit village health care workers (HCW, i.e. coordinators and vaccinators). Money will be used for training and logistics, as well the incentives (à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤20/month/coordinators and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤4/day/vaccinators) for the HCW to implement the program. Equipment for training, coordination, vaccination, and monitoring are necessary to conduct the activities. And, all  inputs and activities are developed from the research base available. It is assumed that these inputs are adequate and effective in carrying out the intervention activities. Figure 1. Logic Model Activities The inputs shall be used to conduct recruitment, training, and mentoring for the intervention. Recruitment will include development of criteria and guidelines for choosing HCW and actual strategies to reach them. HCW recruits will undergo training on topics such as rabies, safe handling of dogs and equipment, vaccine administration, and prevention as stated in the logic model. They will also undergo mentoring with the research team through annual retraining and network support to motivate the HCW to perform the intervention. It is assumed that HCW are able to understand and internalize their role in rabies prevention, and that the activities will equip them to formulate adequate and effective local strategies to carry out the vaccination and community engagement programs. Formulation of community strategies is an essential step as it actualizes the interventions main assumption. The developed strategies are assumed to effectively sensitize the community towards the vaccination campaign and mobilize the most number of families to participate. This also assumes each individual HCW agrees with and follows the strategy formulated by the group. The end activity of the intervention is to implement the formulated strategies for conduct of vaccination days, dog registration, and community engagement. Conduct of vaccination days involve local organization and recruitment, logistic management especially for vaccines and equipment, and actual conduct of canine vaccination. The HCWs are expected to conduct dog registrations and maintain an updated record-keeping mechanism. The strategies, being locally owned, are also assumed to go beyond just conduct of vaccination into regular community engagement with follow-up/ supporting activities. Outcomes The interventions assumption on the value of local mobilization and engagement is expected to contribute towards increased community awareness and acceptability of rabies vaccination. This is expected to increase total attendance to vaccination days, as both frequency and method are dependent on local needs assessment and planning of the group. Both higher community awareness and attendance to vaccination days are assumed to influence canine vaccine coverage. Higher canine coverage protects the population by decreasing the number of rabid dogs that can infect humans. This would result in the medium term as decreased prevalence of rabies cases in the community. This assumes that the community is able to recognize the signs and symptoms of rabies and seeks diagnosis and treatment to health facilities that are able to diagnose them. Impact With less rabies cases in the community, less patients will progress into complications that lead to death, hence reducing rabies-related deaths in the long term. This assumes the community patients are willing to be treated once diagnosed. This also assumes health system reforms on case management nor technological advances in treatment of rabies had no influence in change in mortality. Objectives Using the interventions logic model, a process evaluation study is proposed with three supporting objectives from a mix of evaluation theories to give more holistic and practical recommendations regarding the results of the intervention. These objectives are as follows: Table 1: Research Objectives Objectives Key areas of concern Understand the extent to which the intervention was implemented Implementation (fidelity, reach and dose) Test the validity of the underlying assumptions in practice Mechanisms of impact (interactions, alternative pathways) Context Determine best practices that can be replicated in future roll-outs Implementation Mechanisms of Impact Context The first goal (reflective of implementation theory) was chosen to determine if successful implementation was achieved and can be attributed to the results. The second goal (reflective of intervention theory) was chosen to understand if hypothesized mechanisms-of-change were realized and if other mechanisms have emerged to contribute to the results. The third goal (reflective of realist theory) aims to understand the best mechanisms to attain intended outcomes of the intervention for future reference in similar studies and policy implications. Evaluation Overview The process evaluation team created a 24-month evaluation plan that will focus on key aspects of the research objectives believed to contribute most to the results in the intervention arm of the research. Figure 2 gives a general overview of the domains, chosen from the assumptions from the logic model. Figure 2. Research Domains Methods The evaluation will be done in four phases, implemented closely with the timeline of the impact evaluation/research team across 24 months. General methods and target population for the process evaluation are as follows: Figure 3. Method Overview At pre-intervention (month 0), questions on knowledge attitudes and practices (KAP) regarding rabies and the community context will be added as rider questions to the researchers baseline survey. HCWs will be asked to complete a questionnaire on personal data (economic status), relations with the community (social status), and KAP regarding rabies. Focus group discussions (FGD) will be done with the community to gain deeper insight into the community context that may impact the intervention, and with HCW to assess their perceptions on the interventions. Health system documents (policies, care guidelines, local government initiatives, etc.) will be reviewed to look at changes in care management and technological advances that have taken place. During intervention (month 1-24), direct observation and document review will be done to assess fidelity, reach and doses of each of the activities during implementation. All of the activities on training, formulation of community strategies, conduct of vaccination days will be directly observed by at least three researchers to understand how interactions take place. Value judgements will have to be agreed by at least 2/3 of the team present during the activity. Conduct of other activities will be assessed from monitoring documents (attendance sheet, accomplishment reports of each HCW, pre- and post-training test results, post-activity feedback forms) from the implementation team. At post-intervention (month 24), baseline quantitative and qualitative information with be gathered similar to pre-intervention methods to enable assessment of changes from baseline values. The final FGDs with the community and HCWs will also be used as a workshop to create an agreed cognitive map of best practices within the intervention that contribute to its success. Frequency Surveys, questionnaires and FGDs are deliberately scheduled only at pre- and post-intervention as the likelihood of the research team influencing both community awareness and engagement through these efforts are high. The third objective of the process evaluation is to look at best context-practice mixes that can be replicated in future runs of the program and conducting these evaluations mid-intervention may act as mediator that will skew the results positively and affect the program and policy recommendations of the study. Direct observation and document review will be done throughout the activities of the intervention to assess conduct of activities taking place. Sampling Household surveys coupled to the research will use purposive sampling of community households considering geographic factors and socio-economic status. FGD participants will be chosen using purposive sampling to represent different groups and community areas. For quantitative analysis, all of the data from questionnaires and document reviews will be used during analysis. Analysis plan Quantitative aspects of the study will be analyzed through descriptive statistics to show frequency and ranges of responses. Qualitative aspects of the study will be analyzed through causal modelling with mediation and mediator analysis to summarize the responses. Issues and best practices will be determined from post-intervention qualitative analysis using stakeholder cognitive mapping to agree on a generalizable process. Domains, research questions, research methods, indicators, and frequency are summarized in Table 3: Table 3. Methods and Indicators Domain Research question/s Method Target Indicators Frequency IMPLEMENTATION Fidelity Was conduct of the intervention activities done as intended? Were adaptations done necessary? Direct observation HCW Checklist score based on module guide Value judgement score based on agreement of 2/3 observers During each activity (training, formulation of community strategy, vaccination days) What adaptations were perceived to be more successful by the HCW? Document feedback forms HCW Responses After each activity Reach Were effective HCW recruited for the intervention? Direct observation HCW Value judgement score from criteria (positive influence in the community, capacity to understand training and perform vaccination, perceived willingness to participate) based on agreement of 2/3 researchers Combination of observations from training, community engagement activities, vaccination days How many families were influenced by the community strategies? Document attendance Community Attendance to community engagement activities Total of all activities during whole of intervention Dose Was training new to the attendees/ was there added knowledge gained? Which aspects were delivered successfully? Document feedback forms HCW Views on preference for teaching methods/ topics After each activity Was knowledge from training accurate and retained? Document test results HCW Scores on exams and return demonstrations During initial training and retraining Are the inputs (esp. incentives) and preliminary activities (i.e. training, mentoring) given adequate for HCW to perform their role to the best of their abilities? FGD HCW Responses (qualitative) Twice (month 0 and 24) Are the supply of inputs adequate to perform the intervention? Document review HCW Incidence of stock outs during vaccination days After each activity MECHANISM OF IMPACT Interactions Were community strategies developed by HCW unanimously decided and carried out by the individual? Direct observation HCW Strategy formulation process dynamics, value judgement based on agreement of 2/3 researchers After each activity Questionnaire HCW Strategies HCW agreed with Personal conduct of strategies during engagement Personal adaptations done with strategies Once (month 24) Were incentives, training, and mentoring perceived to be adequate by the HCW? Did personal motivation of the HCW affect their performance of community strategies? Questionnaire HCW Percentage of incentives to household income Time available Personal motivations (checklist) Once (month 1) FGD HCW Responses (qualitative) Twice (month 0 and 24) Alternative pathways Were other mechanisms outside the intervention encouraging awareness and vaccination? Were there other reasons for non-attendance of willing families to vaccination days? FGD Community Responses (qualitative) Twice (month 0 and 24) Household survey Community Awareness of new community strategies Willingness to participate in activities Reasons for attendance and non-attendance (checklist) Were there changes in the way the community interacts with dogs not accounted for by the intervention? Household survey Community Presence of dogs in the household Number of interactions with dogs in the past 7 days Did new health system reforms on case diagnosis and management or technological advances in diagnosis and treatment occur? Document -policies System Presence of new policies Changes in budget and procurement of local government CONTEXT What was the communitys level of pre-intervention awareness and engagement in rabies programs? FGD Community Knowledge of rabies pathophysiology Knowledge and engagement to past rabies programs Awareness and engagement Twice (month 0 and month 24) What are the health-seeking practices of the community? Do they recognize and seek care for rabies? Willingness to go to health center Awareness of symptoms of rabies Care-seeking behavior after diagnosis What are the community views on western medicine and canine vaccination? View of western medicine View of canine vaccination What are the community views on the role of dogs and their relationship with them? Which views promote taking dogs for vaccination? View of dogs on being necessary, perceived harm, importance, need for attention, need for medical care References [1] source [2] Cite downloaded cleaveland [3] source [4] Source, reword since copied from assignment

The New Deal :: American America History

The New Deal The New Deal period has generally - but not unanimously - been seen as a turning point in American politics, with the states relinquishing much of their autonomy, the President acquiring new authority and importance, and the role of government in citizens' lives increasing. The extent to which this was planned by the architect of the New Deal, Franklin D. Roosevelt, has been greatly contested, however. Yet, while it is instructive to note the limitations of Roosevelt's leadership, there is not much sense in the claims that the New Deal was haphazard, a jumble of expedient and populist schemes, or as W. Williams has put it, "undirected". FDR had a clear overarching vision of what he wanted to do to America, and was prepared to drive through the structural changes required to achieve this vision. It is worth examining how the New Deal period represented a significant departure from US government and politics up to then. From the start of Roosevelt's period in office in 1932, there was a widespread sense that things were going to change. In Washington there was excitement in the air, as the first Hundred Days brought a torrent of new initiatives from the White House. The contrast with Herbert Hoover's term could not have been more striking. By 1934, E.K. Lindley had already written about The Roosevelt Revolution: First Phase. Hoover, meanwhile, denounced what he saw as an attempt to "undermine and destroy the American system" and "crack the timbers of the constitution." In retrospect, it was only a "half-way revolution", as W. Leuchtenburg has written. Radicals have been left with a sense of disappointment at the "might have beens", in P. Conkin's words. But Roosevelt never intended to overthrow the constitution, nor did he wish for an end to capitalism and individualism. He harboured the American Dream just like the millions of people who sent him to the White House a record four times. That, indeed, was precisely why they loved him so much: because the American Dream had turned sour in the Great Depression, and they trusted that he would be able to find a way back towards it. As Europe gave in to totalitarianism, the New Deal set out to show that democratic reform represented a viable alternative. Roosevelt's enthusiasm for his role as head of state established a new convention that the President would lead from the front, and in his First Inaugural he warned that he intended to ask Congress for greater powers to enact his policies.

Obstacles in Pursuing an Education Essay

Obstacles in Pursuing an Education Pursuing an education doesn’t always go as smoothly as we wish. In today’s society many people believe indulging in corporate jobs, and businesses is the only way to be successful. In most cases the way to achieve this is for students to further their education beyond just a high school diploma. In the Midst of reading â€Å"A Homemade Education† written by Author Malcolm X, I have come to realize that sometimes people have to work hard to overcome inhibitions, and setbacks. Students need the ability to overcome common obstacles, an essential factor for pursuing and education. The most common of obstacles include paying tuition, self-discipline and even just a lack of retaining knowledge as easy as others. Paying school tuition, for some people, can be the biggest obstacle to overcome .While some people grow up into a family with riches and inherit all of their families assets, others have to make it own their own. In order to have a top notch education, to fit i nto a top notch society, you must have top notch dollars. Although it seems to be impossible to do without plowing into debt, earning tuition can be hard; yet reachable goal. Financial aid, student loans, scholarships and much more are available for people to take advantage of. Every small amount counts! How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Suppose Money isn’t the obstacle. Sometimes self-discipline for some can be a huge factor in staying committed to pursuing an education. What if its wasting money that is at stake? In some cases students get enrolled into college, get comfortable with their environment, and slack off. They start procrastinating and coming up with reasons to put off til tomorrow what can be done today. Staying focused and disciplined can be a huge issue at times. Not only is it important to stay focused, but is of great importance that you stay motivated. Some people find it hard to retain knowledge as well as others. Its not always easy just show up to class and understand every minute of a lecture. That is why it’s imperative for students to study and go beyond the bounds of the classroom to obtain knowledge. Malcolm X wasn’t the brightest bulb on the tree, but in his own personal studies he overcame that . Malcolm wanted to be able to speak with intelligence, and read a book and understand. â€Å"I saw that the best thing i could do was get hold of a dictionary†, Malcolm wrote as he reflected his essay â€Å"A Homemade Education†. Malcolm didn’t sit around and wait for intelligence to come to him, he went after it. There is nothing wrong with wanting more out of life and your career, and so we seek to a higher level of education. Paying tuition, self-discipline and even just a lack of retaining knowledge can be in the way of pursuing an education. Not everything comes with ease, and that is why we have to learn to overcome the common obstacles in life.

Poets and Pancakes Essay

Gemini Studios Gemini Studios was one of India’s pioneer movie factories. Situated in the present day Chennai, owned by S.S Vaasan and worked by over 600 staff, the GS made movies for Tamilnadu and other southern Indian states. Pancake[TM] was the makeup material used by the GS. Asokamitran Asokamitran was one of the staff whose job was to collect information such as news events from newspapers and magazines and to paste them in files. The other staff considered his job out of place and most of them thought so high of themselves. Here are some of the interesting staffs of GS. Office Boy Office Boy was a grown up man in the Makeup Department of the GS. He was in charge of the crowd makeup. He applied pancake on their faces with the help of a dipped paint brush. Though his job was quite an easy one, the office boy considered him to be a greatly skilled artist. Subbu Kothamangalam Subbu was another clerk. He was not as educated, as fortunate and as supported by as the Office Boy, yet he reached the top of the GS. He was a man of amazing genius. He was able to direct the directors. He suggested dozens of ways to shoot a certain scene when the director failed to find one. He acted better than the heroes. He wrote incredible poems. Though he was able to write more complicated ones that could raise him to the status of a great poet, Subbu preferred writing them in simple Tamil to enlighten the majority of Tamil people. Besides, he supported his far and near relatives. But he had only enemies everywhere because he was very much close to the boss, Vaasan. Legal Advisor The legal advisor worked in the Story Department. He was a lawyer and provided legal advices to the writers yet he was known as the illegal advisor. The following incident is one reason that gave him that name. Once a shooting was under progress. The heroine, a highly emotional girl, got  angry with the director and producer. While the whole set stood stunned at this, the legal advisor recorded her voice without her permission and made her listen to the playback, thus resulting the end of a rising actress. Poets and writers Gemini Studios had some great poets like Harindranath Chatopadhyaya and a few others. Most of the insignificant poets considered so great of themselves. They had no great talent, no great creativity, no political views yet they assumed the airs of the greatest poets, wasting Vaasan’s money and time. They believed Gandhiji to be the last word of politics and had developed an aversion to Communism. Communism and anti-communism Communism was a new political order that was spreading throughout the world, especially in Asian countries. Communism preached equality of people and abolition of poverty and class divisions while it discouraged private ownership. But Communism won a negative impression due the Capitalist countries such as America. MRA MRA or Moral Rearmament Army was an international team of actors and actresses that spread anti communist feelings throughout the world. The MRA came to Chennai and saw how influential was Gemini Studios in the south of India. The team got permission from Vaasan to stage their plays. Vaasan was only happy to give them permission because he hoped that his staff would get inspiration from the international team. But little did Vaasan know of their intentions. MRA staged their plays with hidden anticommunist messages and went away and it was yet after some time that Vaasan realized that he had been fooled. Stephen Spender Why should Vaasan be fooled if an organization spread anti communist messages in Chennai? It appears that Vaasan himself was a Communist! Or, he too had an experience of a disillusioned abandoning of Communism. The author has not given us a hint about this and therefore we have to different opinions: Crisis Vasan as a Communist: If so, Vasan felt terribly bad for being played into the hands of the MRA that left a deep anticommunist impression upon his staff. He therefore decided to bring back the Communist atmosphere in his studio and for this he invited a communist poet to deliver a speech on how great Communism was. Vasan as an anticommunist: If SS Vasan was an anticommunist, he was the one who invited the MRA to the Gemini Studios. Later, when he saw that MRA had successfully spread anticommunism among his staff, he wanted to strengthen the new notions in them by inviting another anticommunist and therefore he invited Spender. Spender’s Speech Anyway, Stephen Spender, who was once a prominent communist editor and poet from England, came to the studio and gave his speech. His lecture was about Communism on one side and about his struggles to establish as a poet on the other. Whatever he spoke was great, hot, exciting and inspiring, but what use, his accent was such terrible one that none of the Gemini staff could clearly understand what Spender had spoken. They fell into shame for not being able to understand the poet and wished not to meet him again. Asokamitran’s meeting Spender-1 The lesson ends with two incidents in which Asokamitran, our author, met Spender; not face to face, but in two different ways. While attempting to send his short story to England to participate in a contest, Asokamitran happened to read The Encounter, a magazine that had Stephen Soender as its editor. On another occasion he happened to read the book, the God that Failed, an article of which was written by Spender. Questions & Answers How was Gemini Studios connected to Robert Clive? The connection the GS had with Robert Clive was that its Make-up Department  was built on the upstairs of Clive’s stables. What was the fiery misery inside the make-up department of the Studios? The makeup room had a lot of hot bulbs always burning inside and a number of mirrors to reflect the heat. Madras, being a hot city and no cooling at that time at the studio, it was a real misery inside the makeup room. All this shows that there was a great deal of national integration long before A.I.R. and Doordarshan began broadcasting programs on national integration. Explain. The heads and the subordinates of the make-up department were from various parts of India. There was no preference to any state or language or religion. Anyone could be the head. Once there was a Bengali as the head of this department. He was succeeded by a Maharashtrian who was assisted by a Dharwar Kannadiga, an Andhra, a Madras Indian Christian, an Anglo-Burmese and the local Tamils. Who was the office boy? What was his duty in the make-up department? How did he appreciate himself and his profession? The office boy was a forty year old man who worked at the lowest rank among the makeup artists at the Gemini Studios. His duty was to apply makeup for the crowd-players for shooting. As his work required no skill and that he was not satisfied with his designation and the kind of work, the ‘Boy’ remained unsatisfied and criticized everyone he was jealous. How was the author’s job odd in the eyes of the other staff? How did they respond to this? Asokamitran’s job at the Gemini Studios was to collect information from newspapers and magazines and to paste the cuttings in files for reference. This was probably the only work odd in the Gemini Studios while every other staff was some sort of an artist. They therefore advised the author to do some better jobs other than wasting his time cutting papers in a department similar to a barber shop. Why did the author pray for crowd shooting? Like many of the other staff who believed that Asokamitran was doing next to nothing in the Gemini Studios the Office Boy too used to advise him for hours. When the author was tired of his unending epics, he used to pray for a crowd shooting to which the Office Boy assigned. Who was Kothamangalam Subbu? How did he make all the other staff hate him? Kothamangalam Subbu joined the Gemini Studios as a clerk and remained the same in the records. But in practice he soon acquired the status of the No.2 at the studios thanks to his amazing genius and multifaceted skills. He did any work for  his boss and ignored the rest above him. This made him envied and hated by the rest of the staff. Discuss Subbu’s identity as a poet. Why was he not known as a poet? Apart from being an amazing director of movies, Subbu had the identity as a poet. The world of his time and later never recognized Subbu as a poet yet he was a great unknown poet. He wrote poem in the simplest Tamil language and was able to recreate the classical poems in his own style. Subbu excelled as an actor too. Discuss. Subbu was a good actor. He was able to act better than the lead actors yet never wished to take any lead roles in any movie. In spite of all the good qualities and readiness to be a host any time, Subbu had only enemies. Why? Subbu was good to everyone he came by, spoke in his niceness, fed his relatives, excelled everyone in the Gemini Studios but was hated by most of them just because he was so close to the boss of the studios. Being a clerk in the attendance register he was above all and above all the departments. Those who bore designations above Subbu felt it intolerable to obey him. How did the legal advisor behave illegally in the instance of the actress. The legal advisor was, of course, an advocate, yet was known as an illegal advisor. Once he recorded the voice of an actress who shouted at the producer and director while in the shooting sets. The legal advisor’s behavior turned out to be illegal because he did it without the actress’ permission. In what context did Congress rule mean Prohibition and how was it for the staff of Gemini Studios meeting over a cup of coffee a rather satisfying entertainment? Congress being the ruling party, made the public’s life horrible by imposing curfew and emergency in the initial years of Independent India. Citizens were not allowed to gather and hold meetings. While the whole of the nations struggled under emergencies, the six hundred Gemini staff enjoyed freedom inside the studios as their freedom was not restricted. How did Subbu surpass the office boy despite his limitations? The office boy in the makeup department was always ahead of Subbu in the beginning, especially in education, having influential people to support. But he ended up where he began while Subbu ascended the steps to the maximum height and surpassed the Boy. The staff of the Gemini Studios attributed Subbu’s success to his being a Brahmin. Why? Most of the staff of the Gemini studios was unhappy with Subbu. His amazing influence on the Boss and the  consequent privileges he enjoyed made them feel jealous of him. So, instead of accepting his talents, they consoled themselves by attributing his fortunes to be a Brahmin. What is Communism? What ideas about the communism gathered popularity in India? Communism is a political order that believes in the equality of citizens and abolition of private ownership. The state or nation is the owner and caretaker of each citizen. Citizen’s welfare is nation’s prime concern. It sometimes resorts to armed revolution to establish social and political equality. What was MRA? Why did it tour the world? MRA, short for Moral Rearmament Army was an anti-Communist organization that toured the world informing the world of the evil side of Communism that was spreading throughout Asia and some parts of Europe. Headed by Frank Buchman, the MRA believed that Communism was evil and it would wipe out democracy in the world. How did the MRA spread its anti Communist ideas in South India? Moral Rearmament Army believed that Communism was evil and therefore wanted to wipe it out of the world. This group of 200 men and women from twenty different nations spread anti communist messages with the help of their stage performances such as dramas. How was Vasan played into the hands of the MRA? There is no clear indication that Vasan, the owner of the Gemini Studios, was a Communist or not yet there are very clear hints that he was a prominent Communist of Chennai. The MRA spread its anti-Communist messages through their stage programs and made the poets and writers of the South India hate Communism which was a great achievement. Vasan, who knew nothing of their intentions, was indeed fooled by MRA at his cost. Why was Stephen Spender invited to the Gemini Studios? Who wanted him there? Stephen Spender was a great poet with Communist inclinations. SS Vasan, the owner of the Gemini Studios, wanted Spender give a speech on the greatness of Communism to his staff. Spender’s Speech was a shock for him and a matter of utter shame for the literati of the Gemini Studios. Explain. Stephen Spender was specially invited to the Gemini Studios to enlighten the staff there with communist ideas. When Spender began his speech he was amazed to see the way he was being listened to. But soon, when he realized that his audience didn’t  follow him the least due to his accent, Spender’s amazement turned to utter shock and embarrassment and he stopped his speech in the middle. How are poets and prose writers different according to Asokamitran? What personal experience makes him say that? Asokamitran says poems can be written by any genius while prose writing is the true pursuit of a really determined person who has suffered a lot of rejections and is ready for any further disappointments with more perseverance to pursue his mission of writing a long prose. Spender’s Speech was a shock for him and a matter of utter shame for the literati of the Gemini Studios? Stephen Spender was called to the Gemini Studios to talk to the staff there about Communism but what he spoke was of his struggles as a poet. Whatever he spoke, his talk was not followed by practically an yone. When Spender realized that his audience didn’t follow his talk, he stopped in utter shame to have made a talk to a deaf audience while the Gemini staff got dispersed in great humiliation because Spender’s accent failed them. How are poets and prose writers different according to Asokamitran? What personal experience makes him say that? Asokamitran believes in the qualitative difference between prose writers and poem writers. A poem can be written in no time if the poet is a genius while prose such as a novel can be written by a person who has a lot of patience and perseverance. The prose writer’s mind should be so shrunken that no rejection can disappoint him but he will be encouraged from failures and rejections. How did the magazine ‘The Encounter’ become important in Asokamitran’s life? The Encounter was a British Communist magazine. When Stephen Spender was its editor, this magazine organized a short story competition for writers from all over the world. How does the book, ‘The God That Failed’ deserve its title? OR Justify the title, ‘The God That Failed.’ The ‘God That Failed’ was written by six eminent writers who were attracted to Communism and abandoned it because they hated it later on. Communism was in its beginning, a God because it stood for equality and removal of class systems and poverty. While the Gods or incarnations before it achieved their goals, Communism failed in attaining its goals as it was a failure in itself. What made Asokamitran hope Stephen Spender too would be singing the same song at the same time when he sealed the envelop of his manuscript? Asokamitran had been struggling to establish as a writer when he came across the magazine, The Encounter. When he saw that the editor of The Encounter  was Stephen Spender, the same poet who came to Gemini Studios and talked about his struggles to become a poet, Asokamitran felt as if he had found a long lost brother. ‘In a moment I felt a dark chamber of my mind lit up by a hazy illumination.’ What was the dark chamber? What did light up the darkness? Due to Spender’s British accent the normally educated staff like could not understand his speech and therefore his speech remained an unsolved mystery for the staff including Asokamitran. This mystery was the dark chamber of his mind. When Asokamitran saw that Spender was the editor of The Encounter, he understood that Spender’s speech was all about stories and poems and suddenly he related this to his speech he made years ago the Gemini Studios. The Boss of the Gemini Studios may not have much to do with Spender’s poetry. But not with his god that failed.’ Explain. Stephen Spender was invited to the Gemini Studios to enlighten the staff with great ideals of Communism but what Spender spoke was about his thrills and struggles to establish himself as a poet. The bosses of the studio like S. S. Vasan were interested in Spender as a Communist, not as a poet. How did MRA impress the staff of Gemini Studios and the Tamil drama community? Taking a careful reading, one sees the tremendous struggle that Asokamitran underwent to surface as a writer par excellence. Discuss. For Asokamitran training himself as a writer was passion. He had a nickname, barber, when he was working at Gemini Studios because he did a lot of cutting newspaper clips and magazine as he was a news record keeper. Even though he was laughed at by the rest of the staff and was advised by some to seek a profession that fitted him, Asokamitran had a drudge that nothing could weaken – he was determined to rise in the world of people of his kind: writers. Among those members of the Gemini staff who was embarrassed and confused at Stephen Spender’s lost speech was there none as embarrassed and confused as Asokamitran. It was all because of his literary ambitions that he was able to know more about Spender and his literary traits and political views as well as the unknown communist inclinations of the boss of one of India’s foremost movie factories. Asokamitran’s language that we read in the extract, Poets and Pancakes, is amazing as an India author is concerned and there is no doubt that he acquired it as part of his quest for perfection as a writer. He quite poignantly narrates his participating in a short story contest organized by the Encounter for which he spent considerable time and money. On reading the name of the editor, Stephen Spender, he feels like getting his lost brother back.

Free Essays on Rocks And Sand

IMPORTANT THINGS IN LIFE A philosophy professor stood before his class with some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a large empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rock, rock about 2" in diameter. He then asked the students if the jar was full? They agree that it was. So the professor then picked a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The students laughed. The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. "Now," said the professor, "I want you to recognize that this is your life. The rocks are the important things - your family, your partner, your health, and your children- things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else. The small stuff." "If you put the sand into the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out dancing. There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party and fix the disposal." "Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."... Free Essays on Rocks And Sand Free Essays on Rocks And Sand IMPORTANT THINGS IN LIFE A philosophy professor stood before his class with some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a large empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rock, rock about 2" in diameter. He then asked the students if the jar was full? They agree that it was. So the professor then picked a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The students laughed. The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. "Now," said the professor, "I want you to recognize that this is your life. The rocks are the important things - your family, your partner, your health, and your children- things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else. The small stuff." "If you put the sand into the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out dancing. There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party and fix the disposal." "Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."...