My Proudest Accomplishment free essay sample

Of all the students in my entire high school, there are only ten that are Christians in the Recovery, one of which is me. Each of us are in separate grades, classes, and cliques, and until a year ago, we hardly knew each other. My proudest accomplishment is uniting together this cluster of Christians. Around the beginning of my junior year, I was inspired to initiate a team of Recovery Christians to spread the gospel on my school campus. Immediately, I set about contacting each of them. I scheduled meetings in which we would all meet in the band room fifteen minutes before class to have prayer revival, to which friends were always invited. For the rest of the year, I remained the sole facilitator of these meetings. This soon became a weekly event, and it produced our way of being living testimonies of Jesus and preaching the gospel at school. We will write a custom essay sample on My Proudest Accomplishment or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page But sometimes, our proudest achievements can also become our worst nightmares. There is a strange tendency in our nature to bury in our hearts those intangible things which it holds to be most dear. Whether it be due to the increasing materialism or liberal thinking in society, we often feel that our most sacred beliefs would be belittled in the open air, and no one is above the fear of having their core beliefs shattered. We were all afraid of what dark, hurtful ideas might be lurking in others minds. For many of us, the need to fit in was of utmost importance, which explains why most were too shy to speak up or even make an appearance at the morning revivals in the beginning of the year. Indeed, my faith was challenged by atheists as well as other Christians, but I was also challenged from within my group as well. I was one of only three girls in the team, and my awkward position as the matriarch required me to toughen up against its more sexist members. The drive to survive cause d some to turn against me. Sometimes it felt as though the whole world turned its back on me. I lied. My proudest accomplishment is not uniting together this team of Christians, neither is it the fact that I adhered to my beliefs and never gave up. It is not the fact that by the end of the year, we had a weekly 100% attendance rate as well as two new members. It is not the fact that each person in the team has changed in some way for the better, whether they became more supportive of me as well as each other or became more devoted to the Lords move. It is not the knowledge that I may have implemented an indefinite change in each of their futures. Neither is it the fact that I also saw change in myself, from being a quiet push-over to being a dedicated leader. My proudest accomplishment is that I just got up and did it. I cannot say that I did not care for what others thought of me, because I did, and it scared me. But I refused to let that make a difference to me. I just got up and did what I had to do, and that makes all the difference in the world.

Transracial and International Adoptions

Transracial and International Adoptions In many societies, children have the privilege of growing up with either both or one of their birth parents present. Therefore, the perception of adoption is that of a family with fragile ties, for the adopted child is not from the family’s bloodline. Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Transracial and International Adoptions specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Transracial and international adoptions are superlatively more precarious due to the fact that physical attributes, cultural and ethnical inclinations coincide to tell the difference between foster parents and their adopted children. That is why both the parties involved in the adoption process stand to loose during its progression. The biological parents loose their child while the foster parents loose a chance to conceive and leave their own heritage. The adopted child looses even more in terms of lineage, culture and behavioral traits. This cause s the adoptees to undergo painful psychological adjustments while they try to place themselves in their adoptive family. On the other hand, Oceanic and Eskimo societies have a very casual approach to adoption unlike most western societies and to them adopting a child needs not be a legally frustrating process. In Hawaii for example, the preceding ruler, Queen Luliuokalani was an adopted child and the documented process of her adoption was very simple in that her biological mother just gave her to the administrating chief who adopted her. This form of adoption was and is quite popular with the chiefs and it sends a message of unity and accordance to society. More civilized societies like America only apply for adoption in moments of crisis, contravening the Oceanic method of adoption that is a lucid selfless act of love and compassion. These societies treat adoption as a social obligation, and it is deeply entrenched into their culture. These close-knit societies offer an advantage to the biological parents of the adoptee for they can still monitor their child’s progress and consequently maintain the bonds between the parent and the child. An Adoptee can be moved from parent to parent for a short or long periods depending on the prevailing circumstances of the biological parents. Anthropology and adoption The management of adoption in anthropological prose brings about sagacity that the notion has already been resolved. Anthropologists err in obliging this notion on others rather than embrace examination thus amplify the criterion of study. The indenture of a child is considered as an aspect of affiliation due to demographic conditions rather than a major social and cultural event. Advertising Looking for research paper on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This disregard points out the conventional approach in analysis taken by anthropologists. This is reflected back into society especially in the western world, which views adoptees as predestined persons who fall between the kin and non-kin dimensions. Such presumption are however not worldwide and other distinct societies view kinship as a special connection with a child either by feeding or spending time with it and a child is perceived to be born to and of society. Therefore, kinship is attributed to the fostering society and the environment a child grows up in, as a result kinship is considered designated rather than definite. The study of adoption is hence crucial to anthropologists not only as a means to devise biological links, but also a way to discover the importance and inference of certain facets of culture that affect ethnicity, family and individual and hence influence human nature, human character and human behavior. Adoptee challenges relative to birth parents Conversely, adoptees in both western and isolated societies need to be shielded from harm. The essential motive of adoption is to form a stable and safe environment for a child to grow in so as to achieve its potentials determined by the consenting parties involved. One factor that is keenly observed is the ability of a parent to properly raise a child and the influence the parent has on this child. Western societies have witnessed an expanding generation of younger parents who are prone to irresponsibility and unsociable behavior. Such parents would obviously provide a degraded setting for their child to grow up in and consequently negatively affecting the child’s growth and development. Civilized societies have mechanisms in place that extract the child from any harmful setting and it has also been discovered that indigenous societies also had social structures that were responsible for the welfare of any child born to that society. After being born, the child is placed in foster care and the biological parents might still be allowed to visit and engage with the adoptee, and this kind of adop tion is referred to as open adoption. However, there are particular instances that may forbid a child from accessing information regarding his or her biological parents and this kind of adoption is known as closed adoptions, even though they are quite seldom. Discussed below are some of the reasons why a child’s rights to find his or her biological parents may be revoked either by the government or the foster parents;Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Transracial and International Adoptions specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Addiction If a biological parent happen to be of a negative influence to the adoptee is the first factor. The circumstances surrounding the extraction of a child from his biological parents’ home may vary, but of interest is; are the parents responsible for negligence. Some biological parents might be drug addicts or alcoholics and such kinds of parents are basically suspecte d of having a poor moral compass. An adoptee would be highly discouraged or forbidden from interacting or even finding out about them for their union would more often than not lead the young child into the realms of drugs or alcohol. Children tend to relate more with what their parents do and a connection with parents who have a destructive personality might lead that child down that same road. Teenage pregnancy You may also encounter young parents who gave birth in their teens and were unable or unwilling to support the child and still hold onto that mentality. Teenage pregnancies have been on the rise since mid 20th century and young mothers who are courageous enough not to have an abortion often end up giving up the child for adoption for their own subjective reasons. Others may find taking care of a child is a huge burden especially when coupled with school and other personal ambitions. By the time the child is grown up and ready to face his or her biological parents the then young biological parents would most likely have gone and started a more stable life and the adoptee being only a faint memory. This means that to allow a child to meet up with such biological parents would be setting them up for disappointment and emotional torment. Crime Hardcore criminals like rapists, murderers and robbers are generally not good role models. If adoptive parents or the adopting agency is aware of their criminal record, it is unlikely that a child would be allowed to find them. Psychologists believe that biological parents, especially mothers have a tremendous influence on their children and they link this to the vibrations of the mother’s voice that reach a baby while still in the womb. Studies have shown that the mother’s tone is firmly etched into the child’s brain during fetal development and as such, the mother’s voice continue to have command over a person even when they are separated for a long time. If for example a mother has c riminal traits and conveys them to the child as they speak, chances are that gradually the child will imprint these words and begin to manifest criminal behavior. Work risk Biological parents may also be forced to give up their children for adoption due to the nature of their work. Absentee parents that are travelling almost every day of the week or officers who go undercover for several months or years are less likely to provide stability or emotional comfort that a child needs. They may also lack the option of leaving a child with relatives and so eventually decide to give it up for adoption. Advertising Looking for research paper on social sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Foster parents can therefore revoke the right of that child to find his or her biological parents because introducing them to his or her life could only bring chaos and confusion to the child, destabilizing his or her emotional balance. This could be reflected in poor grades in school, sudden outbursts of violence or a child may even turn suicidal. In the case of undercover police officers or high profile criminal lawyers, criminals may discover the person’s connection to the adopted child and may end up kidnapping him or her to use the child as leverage to avoid either arrest or prosecution. This inevitably brings grief to the foster family and so foresight is applied by barring the child from finding out his or her biological parents. Terrorism and extremism Parents suspected of being terrorists or religious extremists may also be a cause for revocation of an adopted child’s rights in finding his or her birth parents. Terrorists are well known to have the inclinatio n to use close family members to carry out acts of terror. This can be one of the consequences if the adopted child is allowed to find his or her birth parents. Religious extremists on the other hand could be responsible of instilling propaganda and antisocial ideology into an innocent child. Children born of such parents may be forbidden from accessing them or any information about them for the sake of their psychological and emotional stability. Abuse Another reason that would lead to barring of an adopted child from finding out about his or her birth parents is violent and abusive conduct of the biological parents. It is possible that the child was being abused from a very tender age by either of the parents before he or she was extracted and put up for adoption. If this is the case, it is highly unlikely that the child would be allowed to find his or her birth parents. It has been scientifically proven that bad memories tend to linger in the subconscious, and a familiar sight like of the parent or smell of their perfume could act as a trigger allowing a wave of abusive memories to flood the child’s mind. This could gradually or immediately change a child’s behavior to one that is withdrawn and this can take time and a lot of expensive counseling to cure.

Epic Beowulf Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Epic Beowulf - Essay Example This is another way of engendering hope and celebrating life even when there are traces of warning and of darkness ahead. Man cannot but lose with death, and yet he can make most of his hay days to die without regret. And that is a cavalier's way of uttering a Donne like conceit with the lines: (from Death be not Proud; Holy Sonnets: X) Similar threats have been mellowed down with Shakespeare's sonnets with his optimism to conquer death with truth, love and beauty. Sometimes to him Death was not a physical death but a death in life as in Sonnet 73 where he speculates his coming death and yet feels dead at the same time like "Bare ruined choirs," an escape (Sonnet 66, "Tired with all these, for restful death I cry"), or Sonnet 55 vouching an undying "living record" of his lover's memory, in the "eyes of all posterity and dwell in lovers' eyes"! This idea of cheating melancholy, and eternal note of human sadness heard from the days of "Sophocles" through what Matthew Arnold hears and concludes in his poem "Dover Beach": This is Arnold's way of giving his fears and turmoil the only antidote, for he is helpless in a world swept by such helpless inevitable destiny of mankind.

Arts and Crafts Movement in America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Arts and Crafts Movement in America - Essay Example Many eminent designers and their works have contributed to the success of Arts and Crafts movements in America. As Boehm points out, in Cincinnati, socially prominent women, like Mary Louise McLaughlin engaged in overglaze decoration of ceramic pieces at the Cincinnati School of Art. Her works were sent to the Centennial Exposition where she expanded her knowledge into Oriental pottery and French barbotine with underglaze decoration in colored slips. Later in 1879, McLaughlin started the Women’s Pottery Club, and flourished in the crafting field. There were other women too taking the initiative in the reform, like the Newcomb College Pottery, started in 1895. Another designing group that got flourished before the Arts and Crafts movement was the Rookwood Pottery. It was founded by Maria Longworth Nichol, the granddaughter of Cincinnati real-estate millionaire, Longworth, in an old schoolhouse in 1880 and named it after their family estate. Within a few years from its birth, th e Rookwood Pottery started to succeed and thrive. They produced several thousand pieces and held a dominating place in the market. The pragmatic attitude in production boosted up the developments of the organization into becoming a commercially successful one with obtaining gold medal at the World’s Fair in Paris In 1889. Realistic attitudes taken by the Rookwood Pottery had a great influence on the Arts and Crafts Movement in America. Prominent potters such a George Ohr had demonstrated his skills on the formation.

Christology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Christology - Essay Example Parables can also easily be transformed to different situations, cultures and modern societies. They offer a real-life experience version and a psychological and spiritual accuracy. Jesus never just handed out the truth on a silver platter. He wanted the people to really think about their meaning and the impacts. Jesus’ parables, on the one hand, referred to everyday life situations, such as the ‘Parable of the Sower’ (Mark 4:1-20), the ‘Parable of the Good Samaritan’ (Luke 10:30-37) or the ‘Parable of the Pearl’ (Matthew 13:44-46). These parables deal, on the other hand, with much heavier messages about religious themes such as the Kingdom of God and the importance of praying (John). According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a Gospel is a â€Å"message concerning Christ† or â€Å"one of the first four New Testament books†. According to history, the Gospels were written at least 30 years after Jesus’ death. Can these Gospels be accurate accounts? Many believers agree on this and blindly follow the words of the writers, but since scholars started to research the Gospels, they discovered that Jesus in the Gospels is quite different than Jesus in the historic accounts (Albl 276). Five of the main points of dispute are these mentioned in Albl (281-282). The first point is that the Gospel of John differs from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. The second is that the first Gospel was written approximately 30 years after Jesus’ death, which means that it is not an eye-witness account. The third is that Jesus spoke Aramaic and the Gospels are written in Greek. The high ‘supernatural’ incidents that raise questions of reliability is number four and number five is that the Gospels were written to encourage faith. Supporting the last point given by Albl (282), that the Gospels were written with the explicit purpose to encourage faith, is the rumor that the Christian church burned

The History And Background Of Ethical Egoism

The History And Background Of Ethical Egoism Introduction Ethics, in Greek language means morals. In fact, ethics is de ¬Ã‚ ned as the re ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ection on what is moral Ethical theories deal with the question of how human beings ought to behave in relation to one another. (Dontigney, 2012 They attempt to systemize, defend and recommend concepts of right and wrong behaviour. They can be applied both individually and on a bigger scale like in companies. Different companies make their decisions based on various sets of theories. These theories are more like viewpoints from which guides them when making a decision. Each theory influences decisions made by an individual or company like predicting an outcome or following duties to reach what is called an ethically correct decision.For a company to zero in on a single theory to follow, it is important for the company to realize that not everyone makes decisions in the same way. There are mainly two different sets of ethical theories. Teleological which are consequential theories and deontological which are non-consequential theories. These can be further broken down into ethical egoism, utilitarianism and virtue ethics for teleological theories and for deontological theories; it would consist of Kantian and justice ethics. Let us take a detailed look into all these theories before making a statement on which theory is the most useful in making company decisions. Teleological Theories The word teleology in Greek language means ends. It is more concerned about the end product of a decision made rather than the actions.The goodness or badness of the outcome makes or breaks the decision made. However, the actions undertaken have no say. An example according to this theory can be, killing a bad person is morally correct if it is for the greater good. Ethical Egoism Ethical egoism is a standardized or an accepted philosophical view. It differs from psychological egoism, which claims that people can only act in their self-interest. It does not describe how people behave but how they are supposed to behave. Ethical egoism is the normative theory whereby people ought to act exclusively in their self-interest (Jones et al., 2007). Therefore, the moral principle of ethical egoism suggests that an act is ethical when it promotes the individuals long-term interest. It is possible for people to help others, follow the rules of society, and even grant gifts if they believe that those actions are in their own best interest. Ethical egoism is different from the other ethical positions as it portrays that other peoples interests is or should never be considered in making a moral decision. An ethical egoist believes sacrificing something for others is not a moral action unless it makes them happy or if the sacrifice gives himself benefits. This could satisfy a person in the short term, but in the long run it is not advisable as if everyone is just as egoistic, nobody would want to help when in times of need. An example would be that this individual who loves to shop. She sees this dress in a shop and wants to buy. However, she only has enough money to buy food for her household. So in an act of ethical egoism, she decides to spend the food money on the dress instead of getting food for her family as it benefits her and does not care about the people at home who have not had their food. Utilitarianism A utilitarian considers doing something is right if the action proves useful in bringing about the best consequences in the end. Utilitarian decision makers are required to estimate the effect of each alternative on all parties concerned, and to select the one that optimizes the satisfaction of the greatest number (Velasquez, 1998). Utilitarianism represents the dominant and most influential consequence based or teleological theory. Utilitarianism focuses on ends and not on the means required to achieving those ends and it takes into account all present and future benefits and harms that accrues or might accrue to anyone who is affected by the action, including items that may be difficult to evaluate accurately (Schumann, 2001). So in this theory, it is clear that as long as the work is done or the outcome of an action is desirable, one can undertake any methods. The flaw of this method is that it does not assume that all individuals should be treated in the same way. An real life ex ample would be the Americans bombings in Japan during World War 2. The Americans point is that the Japanese were developing the same kind of weapon to wage war so if that happened, many other countries could be affected. So before such a disaster could happen, they acted early and dropped a bomb of their own, killing thousands rather than sacrificing millions. Virtue Ethics The general concept behind Virtue Ethics is that it focuses on what the individual should choose for his/her own personal inward behaviour or character rather than the individual relying solely on the external laws and customs of the persons culture, and if a persons character is good then so ought the persons choices and actions be good. (Gowdy, 2010) This theory as it suggests, is used to make moral decisions. This method is based on the person having moral character and intentions, and their actions being ethical on that basis. It relies on an individual and not on other factors such as religion, society or culture. It is based on the question what sort of person should I be rather than what should I do. In simple terms, it is more of ones character and integrity. Its about what you are, rather than what you do. This is more of a practice knowledge. The more you practice, the more virtuous you are. The more virtuous you are, the more you will more likely make moral decisions. Ther e are many examples to this theory like, not stealing, not taking medical leave unless you are legitimately sick, showing up to meetings or work on time and not lying unless it is for a good cause. Deontological Theories Deontological theories, or duty-based theories, hold that human beings have a moral obligation to follow certain principles. Deontology is one of those kinds of normative theories regarding which choices are morally required, forbidden, or permitted. (Alexander et, al, 2008) According to these theories, the rightness or wrongness of actions does not depend on their consequences but on whether they fulfil our duty. Justice Ethics According to Rawls (1971), under a veil of ignorance, rational, self-interested, and equal individuals will agree that each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive total system of equal basic liberties. Moreover, social and economic inequalities are to be arranged so that they are both to the greatest benefit of the least advantaged, and attached to offices and positions open to all under conditions of fair equality of opportunity (Budd, 2004). In Rawlss opinion, the first virtue of social institutions is justice for the individual and not aggregate welfare. He is concerned more with how the pie is divided than with how large it is. Inequalities are just only if they result in benefits for everyone, with particular emphasis on the least advantaged (Jones, 2007). The theory of justice requires decision makers to be guided by equity, fairness, and impartiality (Cavanagh et al., 1981). It relies on three types of moral prescriptions: (a) that individuals who are similar i n a relevant respect should be treated similarly and individuals who are different in a relevant respect should be treated differently in proportion to the difference between them; (b) that rules should be administrated fairly and clearly; and (c) that individuals should not be held responsible for matters over which they have no control, and should be compensated for the cost of their injuries by those responsible for these injuries (Cavanaugh et al., 1981). Decision making and reasoning based on the theory of justice focus on the distributional effect of actions (Cavanagh et al., 1981). Statement and Conclusion Now since all the theories have been explained and analysed, it is time to make a statement on which ethical theory is the most useful in guiding company decisions and why so. Based on my research, I feel that utilitarianism is the most useful and quite important in guiding company decision making. One can argue that utilitarianism does not please everyone emotionally and only takes the big picture into account. An act or choice is morally right if, in carrying out the act, one exercises, exhibits or develops a morally virtuous character. It is morally wrong to the extent that by making the choice or doing the act one exercises, exhibits or develops a morally vicious character. (Garrett, 2005) Every theory has its very own pros and cons. But for a company to make the correct decision in moving forward, they have to be utilitarian. In these times, a company is judged on how much profits they make and what is the position of the company. To be the best, you cannot give in to your emoti ons and set of rules of what to do and what not to do. The main aim here is to reap the sows. Business managers have to realise that when it comes to business decisions, its always a win-lose situation. Like for example, in order for gaining market share, a company must make its competitors to lose their shares. One cannot refuse to do such an act saying that it is morally wrong and giving in to their emotions. Another example would be increasing the value of a long term shareholder may require sacrificing of short term profits such as bonuses or monetary rewards to a companys employees or even the employer himself. But in the long term, there would be much more profits and monetary rewards to share. Lastly, I feel that the utilitarian approach is the best as a utilitarian is much more flexible in responding to different situations. A utilitarian only has two mind-sets varying from short term to long term goals or financial to non-financial goals. So when faced with a problem, a uti litarian will weigh up options and consider the corporate profitability instead of other factors such as employees or the community. Virtue Ethics A Basic Introductory Essay, by Dr. Garrett Latest minor modification November 28, 2005 Garrett, 2005 http://www.ethicsmorals.com/ethicsvirtue.html http://www.ehow.com/info_8404891_pros-cons-ethical-theories.html Alexander, Larry and Moore, Michael, Deontological Ethics, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2008 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = .

The Purpose of Education :: Philosophy of Education Teaching Teachers Essays

The Purpose of Education American youths attend schooling between the ages of approximately six to eighteen years of age. Yet, in this required schooling, oftentimes one is at a loss to understand why schooling is necessary for twelve years of each of our lives. I believe there are three reasons why a rigorous twelve-year education plan is mandated in this country. Students must developmentally be around their peer groups in their early youth, they must learn about how our society works, and must become educated enough in order to live in that society upon graduating. For those pursuing further education, K-12 schooling also helps students to find a desired subject area for them to preserve and/or enhance our society's growth and well-being. First, we find that the ages between six and eighteen are those when human behavioral skills exceed any other time in our lives. Before the age of six, young children are learning to speak and use basic motor skills. It is approximately at the age when we begin schooling that children are learning social behaviors. These behaviors include interacting with other children, communicating, and adapting to schedules that do not revolve around the child's own needs. Young children learn to abide by structured hours instead of basing their actions on what they want and need. This basic form of teaching children to begin to grow up is why education begins at the age that it does. Once we learn the basic behavioral skills and understanding that the world does not revolve around oneself, schooling is important for another reason. This reason is comprised of the actual content being taught. We must learn about our own society and the world in which we live in order to one day become an active part in them and be educated on what needs to be done to create positive changes. Students must learn their own language, other languages, mathematics, history, and sciences, so they understand what the world around them looks like and how it is changing. Toward the end of the later years of education, students often have options of taking certain high school classes to correlate with their interests. However, the primary goal is to educate all students thoroughly and not to concentrate on too much of any one subject.