Sport and Society in Ancient Greece Essay Example for Free

Sport and Society in Ancient Greece Essay Ancient Greece is one of the most ancient civilizations in history and some historians say it is one of the greatest. They have survived many invasions and attacks from barbarians and Persians as well. The Greeks those times were divided into city states and they don’t have any form of alliance with each other. They don’t help each other on wars they except for times that they don’t have a choice. The Greek society is basically unique. Greece had never been united under one sole ruler. And even the city states are fought among each other on whom or which city-state should rule Greece. These qualities of the Greece made the Greek history interesting. Mark Golden’s book, Sport and Society in Ancient Greece, had elaborated the key points of the Greek society subjected on common theme. The book uses the Greek sport and games to give very good description of the Greek society. It expressively explained the sport as very important part of the society of Greece. In addition to this, he related the Greek sport to religion, social status, gender, age and other things that constitute to study of its society. Golden uses the sports arena to surface the differences among individuals and groups of the Greek society. The fact that it is theme-oriented made the book readers friendly. Most history professor uses this book as a very good guide to teach history. The themes use in the Golden’s book made it reader friendly. Identifying the themes of the book would be relatively easy. One of the themes he used is the Greek sport. In fact, it unites all ideas in the book. He used the Greek sport as a standpoint of the differences of the Greeks. He explained it using various events in the competitions and its competitors. He explained why most explained that in every event there is a kind of group that can participate. He also expressly give emphasize the difference of participants in the athletic events to the equestrian events. In virtue of this, he elaborated the tension between to the two types of contest. He explained that he sees the difference on the participants of the said events reflect on how the Greek society was comprised. Another theme he used in his book was the stories of Iliad and Odyssey. He uses explain the start of the games and the religious beliefs of the Greek society. The stories of Iliad and Odyssey was widely use in their religious activities. The fact that most of the games was done in tribute to the Gods of Greece. They do this by reliving the great stories of both Homer’s epic novel. They believe that Homer’s epic novel were very accurate about the Gods activities. They had lived with this belief with so many years. The next theme which Mark Golden used in the book was the historical background of Greece. He stated several historical events in Greece that influences the Greek culture and the games. He had explained briefly how some games had started and the changes that the Greeks had implemented to the games. He had emphasized the importance of these historical events to the Greek society. The last theme that I will list here is the relation of the social status to events a Greek can participate. He uses this theme through out the book. He basically discusses the social hierarchy the Greek have in their society as times came by. The book clearly differentiated the differences on how a group of Greeks or an individual can participate in the sport or the games. Golden stated that in the equestrian events slaves can only win as jockeys and other rules they applied in this event. The social discrimination in the Greek society was highlighted in the book. The themes he uses simply put the book in position that it is easy to read, can be use as teaching material because of its reliability, and its distinct use of other literatures of other historians. With this book, I could relive the moment the games had begun and gone on until today. I lived in Athens during the time Olympics had been established. It was a glorious moment for the Greeks. Everyone believed that these games can unite the whole of Greece where it could fight and function as one whole country. The start of the game signaled a turn in the history of the Greeks. The feeling of this glorious moment is very pleasing to me and to other Greeks as well. Imagine that a Greek won’t face another Greek in the battlefield again. I would join the games to prove the dominance of Athens over other city states. Joining the games as an Athenian is a privilege and a great honor for me. And befriending other Greek is as not bad as it looks in the past. Being at war with other Greek is pain that a soldier must overcome. Being a soldier, killing other Greeks is the most painful thing to do. It is as if it was killing your own brother. Nowadays that pain is nothing but a pigment of the past. I’m glad that my sons would not feel that pain that anymore. They will not go up against other Greeks except at the games. And it is for the gods after all. They had blessed us of something great. I thank our Gods that they found a way to stop the quarreling between city states of great Greece. After reading the book, I’ve come to think that the Greek games and sports are done to unify Greece and for entertainment. The world had mimic the Greek games and created Olympics. It symbolizes the unity of the nations participating in the Olympic Games. The fact that culture of Greek is carry out by the nations in the Olympics. It raises a sense of pride among the Greeks. Another thing is a realization that sports does come from religion. The games were held in religious festival in ancient times. The sports today are said to have a purpose of camaraderie, enjoyment, and battle of skills. It is shocking to know that it came from religion. The showing of facts in the book of Mark Golden had convinced me that sports started as tribute to the Gods. And that the relation of the religion and sports is undeniable. He presented reliable evidences that strengthened a claim made by a priest. The idea of classifying the participants that participate in an event was a shocking revelation. I thought at first that the classification of participants was done only to make the games fair. And that is invented after the world wars. It is shocking to know that these classifications were really done due to social status in ancient Greece. The structure of the games from those times to these days is very different. But to know that they have the same purpose is quite a relief. The most important idea that occurred to after reading Mark Golden’s book is that literature has something to do with sports. If you look at sports and literature at plain logic, they are very different because literature uses mental capabilities while the sports and games use physical abilities. The connection of literature and sports was established clearly in Mark Golden’s book. He clearly stated the relation of the two. The realization of the relation between the two is quite interesting and mind bugling. Mark Golden’s book clearly is one of a kind. Historians who read his book were very enthusiastic to discuss Greek history to his class. The reliability of the book make more convincing to historians or even to non-historians. The book is really a must read to people to who likes Greek history. Works Cited Golden, Mark. Sport and Society in Ancient Greece. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998

Russia :: essays research papers

As I picked up Vodka, Tears, and Lenin’s Angel, by Jennifer Gould, I thought that I was about to read a novel that would be boring with nothing but facts and statistics. As I began to read it, the novel became much more interesting. Jennifer Gould, a journalist, decided to go to Russia. She was there to research Russia and its culture. I would have never believed some of the situations and conversations she had with so many people. The topics that made me change my mind about Russia in general were the Internat, the cars and drivers, the homeless, and sexpionage.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While reading about the Internat, I started to get disgusted. One of the reasons for this is that Russia sent healthy children to orphanages with ill kids. They were not like orphanages hear in the United States, with reasonable housing conditions, education and a chance to live with a family to provide them the better things in life. Instead, as a punishment they would be beaten, or sent to a psychiatric facility and drugged or tied to their beds for months. The law will not allow foreigners adopt healthy children. In place of the healthy kids, they would find a Western doctor that would diagnose the sick children as healthy. I believe that is not far to the children or the family who is adopting the child. Also, in the summer the orphanages close down and the majority of the kids go to camp. Once the camps are filled the extra kids get sent to psychiatric facilities. A man named Vitaly Llynin told Jennifer, â€Å"Some children are sent to the orphanages because they are too hot-te mpered and get into too many fights.† The children say that they do not understand why they go to these hospitals. An administrator believes that the children deny the fact that they are there because they are ashamed. None of the children receive counseling. Instead they are given antidepressants and tranquilizers. I personally can not believe that any person would think that this kind of action is okay.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another subject that I found a little disturbing was how the people drive and who are the drivers. To me, Moscow sounds like its road are worse then Pennsylvania. There are no traffic laws. People can make illegal anywhere they want. Streets turn from one way to two way frequently. They have many potholes.

Ishikawa

A Forefather of TQM Principles: Kaoru Ishikawa Total Quality Management (TQM) principles are based off of the philosophies of numerous individuals – W. Edward Deming, Joseph Juran and Philip Crosby, to name a few. One such individual is Kaoru Ishikawa. Touted as the â€Å"Father of Quality Circles and as a founder of the Japanese quality movement† (Beckford, 2002), his philosophy on quality control is critical to understand TQM in general. Knowing the fundamentals/ building blocks of TQM can be used to shape the future direction and improvement of TQM.Ishikawa hoped his philosophy would improve quality in work, which in turn would lead to improvement in quality of life (Beckford, 2002). Ishikawa was born July 13, 1915. He graduated from the University of Tokyo where he received an engineering degree in Applied Chemistry. Later he would become a professor of the same University. After graduating, he joined the Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE) in 1949. Th is could be seen as the first steps he took towards developing his quality control philosophy and following in the footsteps of his father in Management Science (Hutchins, 1989. The core ideas of Ishikawa’s philosophy on quality control – companywide quality control (CWQC) – can be divided into three main concepts (Beckford, 2002). The first is that quality is based off of a holistic approach. The second core idea of Ishikawa’s philosophy is that there is active participation in the quality program amongst the employees. The third core idea is that there is direct, simple communication between management and workers. A holistic approach means that not only is the end product/service a quality product/service but also extends to the process that developed it.The end is just as important as the means. The company has a program in place that strives for quality management, quality workers and quality processes within all levels of the company. I think this c oncept of quality at all levels within a company is especially important in today’s society where it is not enough to know a company provides a quality product but is socially and environmentally conscious. For example, if a company has a quality process in place when choosing and working with certain suppliers – they lessen the chance of being surprised that the supplier uses child labor or contaminates the environment.Ishikawa’s second core idea of active participation among employees emphasizes the importance the workers. It’s not enough to have a quality program in place; the employees (including leadership) have to be involved and to have a voice within the company. This is based off of the idea that employees not only can recognize the problems in a process but also the solutions (Beckford, 2002). One of the main complaints that employees have is that management is not in touch with what they actually do so they don’t listen when there is a p roblem or a solution. Ishikawa’s second core idea looks to avoid this phenomenon.The last core idea of direct, open communication between workers and management rounds out Ishikawa’s philosophy on quality control. It stresses the importance of group communication to be understandable and in â€Å"layman terms† so it can be pertinent for all levels of the company. Ishikawa’s contributions to quality management were numerous. He wrote 600+ articles and 31 books (Smith, 2011). He had 2 English translated books – â€Å"Introduction to Quality Control† and â€Å"What is Total Quality Control? The Japanese Way†. He was also behind the concept of quality circles and the Fishbone Diagram.Quality circles can be seen as a method of creating active participation within a company. It shows how Ishikawa believed that â€Å"all workers must be involved in quality improvement through teams to enhance the capability of individual workers and improve work processes† (Watson, 2004). Quality circles are groups of workers within a company that is formed to review, analyze and make recommendations for issues and problems. The Fishbone diagram was developed in 1943 as a problem-solving tool and was used to identify possible root causes to problems in a simple and straightforward presentation.It is one of the seven tools of quality control that is recognized worldwide (Smith, 2011). While all the tools of quality control is important, this diagram can be used in numerous disciplines ranging from not only quality management, but science, education, etc. The other tools of quality control is Pareto Charts, Stratification, Check sheets, Histograms, Scatter graphs and Control charts (Beckford, 2002) Throughout his career, Ishikawa was the recipient of numerous awards. Per Beckford, he received the Deming, Nihon Keizai Press and Industrial Standardization prizes and the Grant Award from the American Society for Quality Control.Ishik awa’’s work also prompted an award to be given out in his honor. In 1993, ASQ established the Ishikawa Medal where it is awarded â€Å"to an individual or a team whose work has had a major positive impact on the human aspects of quality† (ASQ, 2012) Ishikawa passed away April 16, 1989. Although he is no longer with us, his work and his philosophy is still vibrant and in use today. Understanding the core concepts behind Ishikawa’s CWCQ sheds light on TQM principles. His philosophies help shape how companies today develop their quality control programs.Maybe from the lessons and philosophy of Ishikawa, a future TQM guru could emerge, giving the world another individual that further advances quality in work and ultimately in life. References Beckford, J. (2002). Part two: The quality gurus: Chapter 8: Kaoru Ishikawa. Quality (Routledge), pg. 93 – 104. Watson, G. (2004). The Legacy Of Ishikawa. Quality Progress, 37(4), 54-57. SMITH, J. (2011). The Last ing Legacy OF THE MODERN QUALITY GIANTS. Quality, 50(10), 40-47. Kaoru Ishikawa 1915-1989. (2010). Quality Progress, 43(11), 19. Bauer, K. (2005). KPI Identification With Fishbone Enlightenment.DM Review, 15(3), 12. Hackman, J. , & Wageman, R. (1995). Total Quality Management: Empirical, Conceptual, and Practical Issues. Administrative Science Quarterly, 40(2), 309-342. Hutchins, David. (1989). Obituary: Professor Kaoru Ishikawa. The Independent. April 26, 1989. http://asq. org/about-asq/who-we-are/bio_ishikawa. html http://asq. org/about-asq/awards/ishikawa. html (Evans, James R.. Managing for Quality and Performance Excellence, 8th Edition. South Western Educational Publishing, 01/2010. p. 110). <vbk:1111509360#outline(3. 7. 2)>

Masculine and Feminine Norms and Gender Identity Essay

Throughout today’s society, almost every aspect of someone’s day is based whether or not he or she fits into the â€Å"norm† that has been created. Specifically, masculine and feminine norms have a great impact that force people to question â€Å"am I a true man or woman?† After doing substantial research on the basis of masculine or feminine norms, it is clear that society focuses on the males being the dominant figures. If males are not fulfilling the masculine role, and females aren’t playing their role, then their gender identity becomes foggy, according to their personal judgment, as well as society’s. Norms in society do not just come about randomly in one’s life, they start once a child is born. To emphasize, directly from infancy, children†¦show more content†¦In addition, a study was done on children ages 4, 6, and 8 to test flexibility about gender and parental influences. Assessments were focused around gender constancy, judgments about gender norms; results showed that younger children were more rigid than older children, showing parental influence is present (Cyphers, Lisa)(Conry-Murray, Clare). Society also depicts the masculinity is defined by strength, and that women cant handle as much. A study conducted focused on the aspect of pain tolerance in comparison to men and women conforming to the norms, believing that men are stronger; two studies were performed. The first study tested pain tolerance strictly based on using a hypothetical pain stimulus; scientists wanted to prove that people know and encourage norms on pain tolerance. The second study was done to observe knowledge about pain, and tolerance behavior. It required actual stimulus to be taken place on the participants; they experienced electrical impulses at different intensities. Results showed that high identifying men were able to handle more pain than high identifying females’ some men endured the pain because they felt obligated (Pool, G.). Strength and pain tolerance are not only a factor with identifying gender, but emotional expression between genders is a big debate amongst society as well. Men a re thought to be the ones to have aShow MoreRelatedWonder Woman Character Analysis1123 Words   |  5 Pagesfemale’s advances (Hanley, 2014). Women in comic books who were smart, independent, has established storylines and identities, are always fashioned to be villains if they do not fall into the love interest role. Wonder Woman flips the paradigm by embodying those values, all the while being titled a hero. Not only do these masculine traits allow Wonder Woman to defy traditional gender norms, there is also a role reversal between her and Steve Trevor. 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