The Comedy in Chivalry Free Essays

Jordynn Barnes April 16, 2013 The comedy in Chivalry The historical adulteration of chivalry in Don Quixote by Cervantes ties in to its literary parody. Don Quixote parodies the anticipation of chivalric affection: lone knights had lost their military essence. The dominant classes still served the ideology of chivalry. We will write a custom essay sample on The Comedy in Chivalry or any similar topic only for you Order Now The loss chivalry can be tied into the War of the Alpujarras. The knights, the caballeros de cuantia, were obligated to keep their horse and armor ready for serving the king, but slowly and shamefully they were unprepared. The knight’s individual language of knightly service represents the parody realism of chivalry as foolish as Don Quixote could fantasize about. Also, The knight’s materialistic behavior and desire of self-interest represented the character Sancho Panza. Don Quixote has read about chivalric romance and he tried to imitate the knights-errant. This is comical, because he had such a since of mission. These knights that he was trying to imitate were so far from being chivalric, yet he thought otherwise. The armor that the knights used to wear was for military purposes, but while going on his missions through La Mancha, he made sure to have his armor on. This was strange to the La Mancha town’s people, because wearing armor did not necessarily mean that knight was chivalric. Chivalry was long dead, and people only knew of it through books; it was not a practice they were used to. Don Quixote attempted to bring back this practice, and this draws attention to the interlude between social hierarchy and the principles that it sustained. This story of Don Quixote is a burlesque epic of the chivalry romance. Cervantes tried to teach the readers the sincerity by creating a ridiculous comedy my mocking and ridiculing the time period. Cervantes first shows how the protagonist’s noble knightly manner is old fashioned. The comedy is easy to understand, because the dynamics of the story are simple. Don Quixote tries to act out what he has read in the stories, for example, he lets prostitutes pamper him, because he says that they are princesses. In chapter three, he lets the innkeeper properly knight him, because he has not yet been knighted yet. Don Quixote thought that it was a knight’s duty to protect the citizens, so another comical scene in the novel is when Don Quixote tries to save a boy from being beaten from his master. Don Quixote tried to revolve the conflict, and he felt satisfied when he rode off on his horse; but little did he know is that the master beat the worker boy even worse after Don Quixote had left. â€Å"We can define comedy as something that entertains the reader and that makes us want to laugh out loud and Cervantes succeeds in doing this through his use of parody and satire and burlesque, slapstick and simple self-reflexive comedy. Along with the comedy, Cervantes uses adventures and shock through Don Quixote’s character to further entertain. Don Quixote had intervals of lucidity and moments of insanity. A moment of insanity is when he used the galley slaves to help fight off the guards so that he could reach his princess. Don Quixote freed the galley slaves, and in return the galley slaves beat Don Quixote, and left him. â€Å"Cervantes places particular emphasis on the comedy of appearance, comedy of situation and the comedy of action during Don Quixote’s adventures and it is the use of these devices that makes the story so humorous from beginning to end. The theme of appearance is used to show the burlesque role of chivalry in the story. The material appearance of Don Quixote and his horse Rocinante, as well as Don Quixote’s vision on the banal places he stumbles upon proceeded to generate the foundation for laughter. The fact that Don Quixote had used cardboard as a visor showed in itself the humor from the description of his appearance. Not only did he use cardboard, he held his helmet together by green ribbons, and when the innkeeper had asked him to take his helmet off he said no, because taking it off would make the helmet fall apart. How to cite The Comedy in Chivalry, Papers

Organisational Context Medibank Travel Insurance

Question: Write a report on Medibank Travel Insurance. Answer: Background summary Insurance is a process by which one party agrees to compensate the other party in case of certain events happening. This cover is provided by the first party in return of payment of a certain amount called premium by the second party. There are different types of insurances like life insurance, health insurance, general insurance, etc. people have become more aware of the need to insure themselves against different types of risks which can cause financial and physical losses to the individuals. As the demand for insurance products grew over a period, the number of companies providing insurance services has also grown. In Australia also there are several companies providing insurance. The general insurance companies in Australia have existed for a long period of time. The insurance industry in Australia is regulated by a prudential regulator called Australian Prudential Regulation Authority. This authority is concerned with the implementation of Insurance Act. Further there is a corporate regulator called Australian Securities and Investment Commission which follows Insurance Contracts Act. There is also an organization of the general insurance industry of Australia called Insurance Council of Australia. This organization also creates awareness about general insurance issues among the people (Insurance Council Of Australia, 2016). The general insurance industry in Australia is characterized by high degree of competition among insurance firms. There are also many fluctuations in the earnings of the insurers. The Global Financial Crisis of 2008 affected the general insurance industry in Australia adversely (Accenture, 2016). Further, floods and other natural disasters in 2010-2011 also led to increased claims by people who had taken insurance policies. This created financial problems for the insurance industry in Australia. A large amount of reserves with the insurance companies were used for settling claims of customers. But the insurance industry has recovered from such setbacks. It has to face more challenges as customers have become more price sensitive. They have become more aware of the insurance products and compare insurance policies offered by different companies before making a purchase decision. Medibank Private Limited is one of the leading insurance companies of Australia (Medibank Private Limited, 2016). The company has been doing well in selling different types of insurance products, but its market share in the travel insurance business is lesser than that of many other companies. Medibank has planned to launch again its travel insurance business. There is the need for the company to follow a new marketing strategy to increase its travel insurance business. Products and service There are a variety of reasons that make people buy a travel insurance policy. There are individuals who have apprehensions that their luggage might get lost while they are travelling. They want insurance so that they get compensated if such a thing happens. Some of them feel that they would suffer if their important documents get lost during a journey. Further there are many who are worried about the medical expenses in a foreign country. Medibank should look thoroughly into the purposes for which people buy insurance while designing its travel insurance products. The company should offer a comprehensive travel insurance plan that compensates for lost luggage, medical expenses, flight accidents, etc. Further the consumer should be provided the option to cover for expenses arising out of cancellation of trip. The idea is to cover all the important objectives for which the consumers buy travel insurance. There is need for proper market research by the company (Zimmerman and Blythe, 2013). In this case premium to be paid by the customer would vary according to the number of options the customer has selected. The company should focus primarily on the proper development and promotion of this insurance plan also because it would cover the needs of different types of people like those going on a vacation, educational tours, visiting relatives, etc (Ettlie and Rosenthal, 2011). the company should set up the goal of earning maximum revenues by selling this insurance plan. Instead of having too many insurance policies the firm should focus a large proportion of its energy in making this insurance plan a success. Apart from the above discussed insurance plan, the company should also have insurance policies tailored to meet the needs of business people and those travelling for medical purposes. The company should aim to provide professional services relating to issues like claim settlement, medical services in hospitals abroad and any other required documentation. The enterprise should make use of latest technology in offering its services. The company should have processes which are transparent and fair for the customers. Pricing Medibank wants to beat the competition in the travel insurance sector. One of the most important tools to achieve this objective is to fix the prices of its insurance policies, that is, premiums, at a lower level than its competitors (Zielke, 2010). The company needs to bring down the cost of operating its business. This can be achieved by having innovative processes and better training of its employees. The company needs to be agile and respond to the needs of its customers with speed. The decision making in the company should be quick. The claims of customers should not be kept pending for too long. When the customer contacts the company, then the executives of the enterprise should be prompt and show empathy. As the company lowers its premiums, the volume of its business is expected to rise as the consumers in the insurance sector of Australia are very particular and sensitive about the price of an insurance policy. The customers are looking for value for their money. As Medibank provides good quality services for a reasonable price, its customers in the travel insurance space would increase (Steenkamp, Heerde and Geyskens, 2010). Medibank has been doing well in other types of insurance like health and life insurance. People in Australia know about the company. The company can convey to its customers that lower premiums do not mean lower quality of service. The enterprise should have the objective of reducing or cutting costs without compromising on quality. Further while fixing premiums for travel insurance policies, the company should take into consideration factors like the total cost of the tour, its length, age of people being insured and the number of insurance covers that the customer wants. Place and distribution Medibank makes use of modern technology to sell its travel insurance policies. Any individual can buy an insurance policy of the company by applying online at the enterprises website. The company has kept the procedure for buying the insurance policies online simple (Lunt and Carrera, 2011). There is some information that the customers have to provide and they get a quotation. But Medibank should provide more information to a consumer when the individual uses the online process for buying travel insurance policy of the company. There are many online customers who buy an insurance policy only after comparing the insurance policies of different companies. Medibank should provide a comparison of the features of insurance products of the company with that of the insurance policies of the other companies in a concise way to the online consumers. The information should be provided in an attractive way. The company should aim to sell a large proportion of its insurance policies online. This method is also less costly and less time consuming. The company should strengthen its information technology section to help the marketing department in making sales online. The company needs to properly organize its online operations. The company should develop more advanced application (software) that can be downloaded by consumers on their mobile phones. This software would help the consumers buy insurance products of the company online. The effort of the company should be to make the process of buying insurance from the company more convenient for the consumers. Medibank also sells its insurance policies through intermediaries like brokers and travel agents (Manzano and Valpuesta, 2010). The company should organize workshops and training events for the agents and brokers. The company should provide them with more detailed information regarding its insurance products. Further there can be sessions to teach communication and marketing skills to these people. Medibank should also provide competitive commission and benefits to these people (Eckardt and Doppner, 2010). Promotional mix The market for insurance products in Australia is very competitive. Medibank Private Limited is one of the leading sellers of life insurance and health insurance in Australia. The company has an identity in the market. The enterprise should make use of this goodwill created over a period while selling its travel insurance products also. The company should convey in its promotional messages in the media that the same company with excellent management skills, knowledge and products has now come with better travel insurance products. The firm should do some introspection regarding how the company has been able to do so well in selling the other kinds of insurance products (Zimmerman and Blythe, 2013). Medibank should try to associate with travel and tourism programs on television and radio. The company can also sponsor sports events especially adventure sports like skiing and rowing held in tourist destinations to target the people who visit such places. The firm can make its website provide more information and if possible make it interactive (Lunt and Carrera, 2011). The idea is to create an inclination in the consumer to travel by showing how enjoying and safe the experience can be if the consumer has brought travel insurance from the company. Conclusion Insurance industry is a very important part of any country as it helps people face numerous types of risks. In case of any tragic incident happening, the insurance firm bears the cost out of the premiums collected by it from a large number of people. But in case of losses being very large, even the insurance companies find their resources too stretched. There is element of risk for the companies also. In Australia such a situation arises when there are natural problems like floods. The insurance companies therefore need to decide with utmost care what premiums to charge from their customers. There is lot of competition in the insurance industry in Australia. The companies cannot charge too high premiums but they have to charge a sufficient amount so that they do not find themselves facing liquidation in case of natural disaster happening. The insurance business needs to be carried out in a professional way. Some companies find it difficult to survive in insurance industry. Medibank, as a company, should realize that competition is part of business. Further the enterprise needs to understand what its competitors are doing to be more successful. The firm should see whether it is not getting repeat customers due to its poor service. The company should train its employees better. After a customer buys the insurance from the company, the person should get the service promised by the firm. It is sometimes easier to build expectations but difficult to live up to them. References Accenture (2016) How Australian Insurers Can Achieve Profitable Growth In A Challenging Market Overview. A Eckardt, M. and Doppner, S. (2010) The Quality Of Insurance Intermediary Services: Empirical Evidence For Germany, Journal of Risk And Insurance, 77(3), pp. Ettlie, J. and Rosenthal, S. (2011) Service Versus Manufacturing Innovation, Journal of Product Innovation Management, 28(2), pp. 285-299, Insurance Council Of Australia (2016) Issues And Submissions. Lunt, N. and Carrera, P. (2011) Systematic Review Of Web Sites For Prospective Medical Tourists, Tourism Review, 66(1/2), pp. 57-67, Manzano, J. and Valpuesta, L. (2010) The Decline Of The Traditional Travel Agent Model, Transportation Research Part E: Logistics And Transportation Review.

Concepts of Confucianism and Daoism free essay sample

Concepts of Confucianism and Daoism Author’s Name Institutional Affiliation Abstract Confucianism is seen or viewed as a way of achieving the full potential in persons thus attaining harmony in society and the world through moral cultivation. All Confucians share the conviction that it is possible to transform oneself and all of society through the cultivation of virtue. This paper therefore discusses various concept and assumptions of Confucianism mainly ren, xiao, li and yi and it also touches on Daoism. Concepts of Confucianism and Daoism Confucianism can be defined as a way of achieving the full potential of human life and attaining harmony in society and the world through moral self-cultivation. It is agreed among Confucian thinkers that the cultivation of moral virtues through which a person learns to be fully human is fundamental to human and social well-being. Confucius or Kong Zhongni was born in China where he was well known as Kong Fuzi and by the time he was growing up he personally experienced the poverty, political abuse and hardship that affected the lives of ordinary people. Confucius shared a belief that although the way of humans is established in the way of heaven and operates in harmony with the way of nature it is to the ideals and exemplars of the human way that we must turn to for guidance for the purpose of reforming and renewing the society. Naturalism agrees that it is nature that is taken as the ultimate source of values whereby the human principles for human action and life are taken from nature. On the other hand supernaturalism argues that a being or power other than human beings or nature is taken to be the ultimate source of value. The supernatural being regulates both nature and humans making them subordinates. Humanism is a concept whereby humanity, rather than the nature or God is taken as the ultimate source of values. In humanism people look to the best of their human practices to find the principles that provide for goodness and happiness. The main concepts of Confucianism are those of human goodness (ren), propriety (li), filiality (xiao), and rightness (yi). The word ren has been translated in many different ways to mean â€Å"virtue,† â€Å"humanity,† â€Å"benevolence,† â€Å"true manhood,† â€Å"moral character,† â€Å"love,† â€Å"human-goodness,† and â€Å"human-heartedness† among other meanings. Human-heartedness suggests that ren makes us human because it is a matter of feeling as well as thinking therefore becoming the foundation for all human relationships. This reveals the Chinese emphasis on the heart, rather than the head, as the central feature of the human nature. Confucius understood that the way of humanity is highly personal, lies within each human being, and must be realized in one’s personal life and one’s personal relationships. Confucius once answered his student who asked the definition of ren that it meant the action of loving men. Ren’s ultimate principle of action reveals that a superior man never abandons humanity (ren) even for the lapse of a single meal and in moments of haste he acts according to it and in times of difficulty or confusion he acts according to it. One who departs away from ren is not expressing the fullness of humanity. A resolute scholar and a man of humanity will never seek to live at the expense of injuring humanity and he would rather sacrifice his life at the expense of realizing humanity. It is ren, ultimately that makes life worth living. Conscientiousness or zhong agrees that one has to strive to be the best he or she can be and to do the best one can do while Altruism (shu) consists in putting oneself in place of others, extending ren to all relationships. The way of zhong and shu incorporates the golden rule of Confucius namely treat others as you wish to be treated. It is only through enriching and optimizing human relationships that self and society can achieve their highest perfection. It is observed that ren is the basis of humanity and the ultimate guide to human action, Confucius recognized that more immediate and concrete actions are needed in every day life. The concrete guides to every day human action is found in the rules of propriety (li) governing customs, ceremonies, and relationships established by human practice over the ages. Therefore li is the ceremonial or ritual means by which the potential of humanity i. e ren is realized. On another occasion when Confucius was asked what is ren about he replied by saying to master oneself and return to propriety (li) is humanity (ren). Self-mastery refers to the self-development that overcomes selfishness and cultivates the inner qualities of humanity that include sincerity and personal rectitude. Confucius also believed that if a man can for one day master himself and return to propriety, all under heaven will return to humanity. To practice human is the human choice thus what meks li a standard of conduct is the fact that it is in accord with ren. Therefore customs and regulations cannot be in accordance with ren if they are not li. The individuals own humanity can be evoked and developed through true ren. Embodies of li included ceremonial activities and they were very clear to Confucius as of one day he is said to sigh after a ceremony. Confucius was attached to a remark that li was the principle by which the ancient kings embodied the laws of heaven and regulated the expression of human nature and therefore he who has attained li lives and he who has lost it dies. To understand the importance of li we need to examine the meaning this concept had on Confucius and his predecessors. The word li can be used in many ways to give different meanings and this may include religion; general principle of social order; the entire body of social, moral and religious practices taught by conficius. Li can also be viewed as a system of well defined social relationships with definite attitudes toward one another, love in the parents, filiality in the children, respect in the younger brothers, friendliness in the elder brothers, loyalty among friends, respect for authority among subjects, and benevolence in rulers. Thus li entails moral discipline in personal conduct and also means propriety in everything. Li is that important to Confucius that it must be looked deeply whereby we find that the earliest notion of it is religious where it is concerned with the rights of religious activities performed by the emperor to secure the blessings of Heaven and support of the spirits for his reign. This soon came to denote most emperor’s duties as well as a did range of other rituals, such as marriage, and military and government festivals and therefore the sense in this coincides with amore or less elaborate set of rules and conventions, requiring strict observation for public activities. The second notion of li explains it in terms of customary code of social behavior and in this sense it is customary law, or common morality. Therefore in this particular sense li takes the place of written law though it differs from the written law in that it is positive rather than negative. Li was generally assumed to conform to aristocracy. The last meaning of li describes it as anything proper and conforming to the norms of humanity. All the meanings of li are related and all refer to acts that are public and are ceremonial, acts constituting the important rituals of life for example exchange of greetings between two people or mourning rites for a deceased relative. A ceremony is considered public in the sense that it involves at least two people in relationship with each other. The development of ren is backed by the shared participation in life with other persons who are fundamentally a like in their common human nature. Yu Tzu, a favorite student of Confucius, said, â€Å"filiality (xiao) and brotherly respect are the root of humanity. This is the virtue of reverence and respect for family and firstly parents are revered because life itself is generated from them. Therefore it is important to protect the body from harm just to show reverence to the parents since the body is from these parents. Honoring the parents can be shown by protecting the body. Reverence in bigger part can be shown to parents by doing well and earning them respect. Xiao concentrates in bringing parents emotional and spiritual richness. And, equally important, after parents are dead, their unfulfilled aims and purposes should be the aims and purposes of the children which is even more important than offering sacrifices to the departed spirits. The xiao virtue influences actions outside the family circle and becomes a moral and social virtue. Children acquire love from their brothers and sisters after showing respect and reverence for their parents and when this is accomplished the children can love all humankind thus the beginning of ren was found in xiao. Confucius also stressed another necessary virtue for developing ren and that is yi usually translated as rightness. He argued that the superior man regards rightness (yi) as the substance of everything. Yi tells us about the right way of acting in certain situtions so that we will stay in the same line as ren demands. It mainly deals with morality which determines a person’s ability to recognize what is right and do the right. Confucius viewed this ability in terms of a person’s character or uprightness. Yi talks of morality in that a person who sees an opportunity for personal gain thinks first about whether it will be morally right (yi) to do so. Such a person is able to sacrifice his or her own life for someone in danger. In yi since its morally right action we therefore see that some actions must be performed for the same reason that they are right. Other actions may be performed for the sake of something valuable they bring about i. e. for the sake of profit. This is contrary to the actions performed according to yi which are only performed because they are right. It is evident that li, xiao and yi make the characteristics of a superior person who has both humanity and morality cultivated in him therefore becoming the opposite of the person who is morally uncultivated. Embodiment of ren through li, xiao and yi will result in a well ordered society. Therefore people must have faith or sincerity in these virtues for there to be good governance and harmonious social order. Along with Confucianism, Daoism/Taoism is one of the greatest indigenous philosophical traditions of China. The Daoist ideas and concerns include wuwei meaning effortless action, ziran meaning naturalness, how to become a shengren i. e sage or zhenren i. e realized person and the mysterious Dao meaning way. Daoism is described as a retroactive grouping of ideas and writings which were already at that time one to two centuries old, and which may or may not have been ancestral to various post-classical religious movements. Wing-Tsit a philosopher spoke of Daoist religion as a degeneration of Daoist philosophy arising from the time of celestial masters. Wing – Tsit viewed that Daoist philosophy (daojia) and Daoist religion (daojiao) are absolutely different traditions and therefore trying to separate the two is more of the western frame of reference we use than of Daoism itself. The ideas of the Daoist fermented among master teachers who had a holistic view of life. These Daoists practiced meditation and physical exercises, studied nature for diet and remedy, practiced rituals related to their view that reality had many layers and forms with whom/which humans could interact, led small communities, and advised rulers on all these subjects. The teachings of the masters gradually became more available through their masters. Therefore it’s difficult to separate Daoism from religion or philosophy since it is evident in both. Daoism is clearly understood in Chinese language since it originates in China. References Koller M. J. (2006). Asian Philosophies.

Jack Worthing, as the Image of Englishman of Victorian Epoch, in The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde

Introduction The Importance of Being Earnest is the famous play by Oscar Wilde, an outstanding English play-writer. The play was highly appreciated by the public and reviewers. Due to its involved plot and a good sense of humor, the play continues to attract a numerous audience at the theatres all over the world.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Jack Worthing, as the Image of Englishman of Victorian Epoch, in The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The aim of this essay is to analyze Jack Worthing, one of the main characters of the play, which the author represented as the typical wealthy Englishman of Victorian epoch. The Fabricated Story John Worthing is the young wealthy gentleman, the owner of a big country mansion. We first meet Jack, as his friends call him, at the London apartment of Algernon Moncrieff, Jack’s best friend. Both friends tired of their ordinary l ife and created the stories about themselves. Algernon says to Jack, â€Å"You have invented a very useful younger brother called Ernest, in order that you may be able to come up to town as often as you like.   I have invented an invaluable permanent invalid called Bunbury, in order that I may be able to go down into the country whenever I choose† (Wilde n.pag.). Jack and Gwendolen At the time when the friends are talking how the things are and sneering at their life, Lady Braknell and Gwendolen, her beautiful daughter, enter the room. Jack and Gwendolen are in love with each other. However, she does not know his real story. Besides, she has always said that her dream is to marry a man named Ernest (Wilde n.pag.). Algernon says that the way Jack flirts with Gwendolen is â€Å"perfectly disgraceful and that  it is almost as bad as the way Gwendolen flirts with him† (Wilde n.pag.). However, the fabricated story prevents Jack’s intention to marry Gwendolen. Lad y Bracknell said that she will not give her daughter in marriage to someone without a family. Jack and Lady Bracknell Probably, the discussion of Lady Bracknell and Jack is one of the most interesting and amusing episodes in the play. From this discussion, we get to know that Jack is twenty-nine years old; he has â€Å"a country house with some land, attached to it, about fifteen hundred acres† and that he lost his parents and does not know a lot about them (Wilde n.pag.). Lady Bracknell also asked him about his political convictions.Advertising Looking for essay on british literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More â€Å"Lady Bracknell. What are your politics? Jack.   Well, I am afraid I really have none.   I am a Liberal Unionist Lady Bracknell.   Oh, they count as Tories.   They dine with us.   Or come in the evening, at any rate.  Ã¢â‚¬ (Wilde n.pag.). At the end of the play, the true stories of Jack and Algernon uncover. Nevertheless, Gwendolen agree to marry Jack. Incidentally, it turns out that Jack’s real name is John Ernest. The name was given to him after his father who he had never known. The Main Traits of the Character Witness, respectability and quick mind are the brightest traits of Jack’s character. Despite the conventionalities, Jack shows his good sense of humor and independent outlook. Although he created the false story about himself, he is hardly described as a dishonest man. We know from his dialogue with Lady Bracknell that he does not hide his views, though they are not in his favor sometimes. The idea to create a fabricated story about his life rather shows his desire to take a rest from the conventionalities of the haut monde. Conclusion In order to sum up all above mentioned, it should be said that Jack Worthing is one of the main characters of The Importance of Being Earnest play by Oscar Wilde. He represents the typical Englishman of upper social class of the Victorian epoch; his witness and cleverness make him one of the brightest male characters in Oscar Wilde’s drama. The independence of views characterizes him as a man not used to the conventionalities of the his time. Works Cited Wilde, Oscar 2006, The Importance of Being Earnest. Web. http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/844?msg=welcome_strangerAdvertising We will write a custom essay sample on Jack Worthing, as the Image of Englishman of Victorian Epoch, in The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This essay on Jack Worthing, as the Image of Englishman of Victorian Epoch, in The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde was written and submitted by user Brynn Hebert to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Avoir Le Cafard - French Expression Explained

Avoir Le Cafard - French Expression Explained The French expression Avoir le cafard means to feel low, to be down in the dumps, to be depressed. It literally translates to to have the cockroach and is pronounced [ah  vwar  leu  kah  far]. It has an informal register. Etymology The French word  cafard, which is probably from Arabic  kafr, miscreant, non-believer  (according to Le Grand Robert CD-ROM) has several meanings: a person who pretends to believe in Godtattletalecockroachmelancholy It was the  poet, Charles Baudelaire, in  Les Fleurs du mal, who first imbued  cafard  (and also  spleen, incidentally) with the fourth meaning. So the French expression  avoir  le cafard  isnt related to cockroaches at all (even though it kind of makes sense- who wouldnt feel bad about having cockroaches?) Example In order to use the phrase, you need to conjugate the verb avoir. Je ne peux pas me concentrer aujourdhui - jai le cafard.I cant concentrate today - Im depressed. Source Le Robert Staff. Le Grand Robert CD ROM. Edition 1, The Robert, 2004.

Leaks and Hacks. When Is It Illegal To Get Hacked Essay

Leaks and Hacks. When Is It Illegal To Get Hacked - Essay Example The term is also used to describe variation of a program or mechanism to give the user entrance to computer features that otherwise would be inaccessible like the DIY circuit bending. Hacking has been considered a serious crime especially when one hacks in to a government. There are instances when some get involved in what is termed as "ethical hacking"; this is company's strategy to determine their security weaknesses or target for intruders. Even so, the ethical hacker may get in trouble with the law, it is therefore necessary that some one gets the Get out of jail Free Card (GOOJFC) which is a document that states that you have been authorized by someone in power to do so. Hacking is a federal crime and any cases of suspicion would be investigated by the federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Justice (DOJ), the crime can never be expunged unlike the other state crimes, depending on the damage caused, one could also be sued for damages ion the civil court leading t o possible jail term or job termination. There are some critics who are proposing that any company hacked should be held responsible and make it a rule that it's illegal to be hacked. Taking Responsibility In the recent years, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued claims and charged hefty fine to some companies that had leaked data to hackers. This of course brought about some critical questions about taking responsibility if the firm in question is hacked (Severson.1997, 36). Usually it's very difficult to stop a company's computer system from being hacked if not impossible; hence imposing liability to the affected company could result in unintentional consequences. The development of disclosure laws has played a great deal in revealing that some of the security breaches that have bee common over the pas t few years were actually due to negligence on the part of the corporate information technology (IT) team failing to lock down the data in any considerable mode. This revelation encouraged the pressure on companies that get hacked to take responsibility for the crime. The computer systems hold very critical information about consumers, company's corporate management, finances and other critical information that should not be accessed by just anybody; companies that leak such information should be help responsible (Hammond & Hammond 2003, 36). This is according to Slashdot post at info world. Imposing serious penalties on the involved companies especially on claims of negligence is also very risky undertaking on the company and consumers. This is because the regulations may be very strict and could result in unintended consequences bearing in mind that hacking is inevitable, companies may even totally stop accepting credit cards from customer since the liability could be very great (Severson.1997, 42). This means that people would have to forego the convenience of using credit cards to protect their safety. Most of the credit card users however would rather use their credit cards for convenience and risk their safety since benefits outweigh the chances of risk. Leaks and Hacks The difference between leaks and hacks is not very distinct as in leaking information facilitates hacking and it's likened to the difference between negligence and wickedness (Hammond & Hammond 2003, 39). This is the basis on which some penalty is imposed on companies with arguments that doing something stupid that hams others should be penalized. This is like the situation when a driver falls asleep at the wheel and because a fatal accident, it's quite justified to hold him accountable for being negligent with other people's life, in the same way a negligent

Compensation and other benefits Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Compensation and other benefits - Essay Example There are different types of accounting treatment and enclosures for employee compensation and benefits. These include short term, post-employment, long term, and termination benefits. Post-employment employee benefits are into single-employer and multiemployer plans respectively. This paper seeks to explore the different compensation types and how their respective account treatment and disclosures operate. Examples of short-term benefits include compensated absences, profit sharing, and bonuses. These are payable within twelve months following the end of employee’s service rendering period. Others are non-monetary and include housing, medical, cars, and subsidized goods and services. Accounting for these benefits is straightforward since actuarial assumptions are not for measuring the cost or obligation. Besides, any actuarial gain or losses are often not possible. Additionally, short-term benefits requirements are measured through undiscounted means. Some standards may require disclosures regarding employee benefits especially for key personnel managers (THE EU SINGLE MARKET, 2009). Post- employment benefits entail a given entity identified to offer benefits plans. The standard is then applied to all agreements regardless of whether or not they entail establishing a different entity to collect contributions then pay benefits. Examples of post-employment benefits are pensions and other benefits including medical care and life insurance. These benefits can be either through defined plans, based on the scheme’s economic perspective obtained from its critical terms or through defined plan of contribution. A pension scheme maintained by one employer is known as single-employer plan while that supported by different employers is referred to as multiemployer plan. The defined type of contribution plan is accounted for in a direct manner because for every period, the obligation of the reporting entity depends on the amounts likely to be