Mcdonalds Healthier Happy Meals Essay Example for Free

Mcdonalds Healthier Happy Meals Essay In order to successfully make these changes McDonald’s hired a research group to conduct an extensive research and present them with a cost effective solution. The Research Questions The questions the company had to look into to resolve this issue was: * How can they make the meals for the children healthier while maintaining the convenience that fast food is known for? * How can they cut the calories from their existing meals? * How can they make healthy food desirable to children? * How can they keep these healthier options cost effective? * What would be the best marketing strategy to launch these healthier changes? The Hypothesis A hypothesis explores a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation (Merriam-Webster, 2013). In the exploration to raise a question and find an answer, the company has to face the question: how can they make the meals for the children healthier while maintaining the convenience that fast food is known for? Through the years McDonald’s has added a couple new features to their menu like a wider selection in desserts, a value menu, and select new refreshing healthier choices to their fast food chain. But the question now is, how can they further cut the calories from these meals? Yes, McDonald’s has gained a fine respect in the fast food industry for upgrading to healthier choices, but now the kids menu may need some revamping on their own. If the regular menu can provide healthier choice selections like salads, less than 400 calories, and weight watcher approved items, what can they do about happy meals? A solution to providing a healthier selection is to offer a more beneficial meal that kids can enjoy. Apple bags, celery sticks, carrots, reduced milk, baked instead of fried items and healthier meat. Those are just a couple of suggestions to an issue that is easy to solve. The main purpose is to change the world one step at a time, and healthier living for is the new road to take. The Variables Local societies are becoming more health conscience and looking for healthier options when going out to eat. Even though McDonald’s did not follow the popular approach by luring people in through the use of famous celebrities, people felt that offering toys with their Happy Meals were unacceptable. The variables in a research scenario are considered to be independent (IV) and dependent variables (DV). In this research scenario the independent variables are the food and the marketing strategy, while the amount of calories and interest of the children are the dependent variables. Many children were attracted to McDonald’s Happy Meals for the toy they got with it and this is what their marketing strategy revolved around. In April 2012, The Time’s released the article â€Å"Why we’re eating fewer happy meals†. The article’s main focus was McDonald’s use of toys with their Happy Meals and the use of a clown who â€Å"is hell-bent on the creepy mission of luring children into McDonald’s, where they’ll be fattened up and primed for a lifetime of regular fast-food dining visits† (Tuttle, 2012, p. 1). Along with improving their Happy Meals, McDonald’s has also changed their marketing strategy. They still offer the toys but it is no longer their main focal point. Instead they now show Ronald McDonald playing around, participating in healthy activities and proclaiming that a healthier life style is a lot of fun.

How Continuous Quality Improvement Can Address Medical Errors

How Continuous Quality Improvement Can Address Medical Errors This paper will cover medical errors and how Continuous Quality Improvement can address them. Health care managers have addressed the issue of medical errors for many years. Medical errors can be caused by lack or communication and leadership. Quality improvement in the health care environment is a hot topic and managers are researching ways in which they can increase the quality of care that a patient receives. The quality of care that a patient receives can be the determining factor as to whether they live or die. It is critical that managers develop policies and implement control measure to control the rise of medical errors. Attention to medical errors escalated over five years ago with the release of a study from the Institute of Medicine (IOM), which found that between 44,000 and 98,000 Americans die each year in U.S. hospitals due to preventable medical errors (Kaiseredu, 2010). Hospital errors rank between the fifth and eighth leading cause of death, killing more Americans than breast cancer, traffic accidents or AIDS. Serious medication errors occur in the cases of five to 10 percent of patients admitted to hospitals. These numbers may understate the problem because they do not include preventable deaths due to medical treatments outside of hospitals (kaiseredu, 2010). Health care managers, along with the Food and Drug Administration, have study the medical error reports to determine the cause of errors. Medical errors are one of the leading causes as to why health care has declined. To improve healthcare managers must determine how to decrease the mortality rates. Managers can determine this by studying and analyzing medical reports. These reports provided managers with detailed information on what procedure was being conducted or what medication the patient was administered. In a study by the FDA that evaluated reports of fatal medication errors from 1993 to 1998, the most common error involving medications was related to administration of an improper dose of medicine, accounting for 41% of fatal medication errors. Giving the wrong drug and using the wrong route of administration each accounted for 16% of the errors. Almost half of the fatal medication errors occurred in people over the age of 60. Older people may be at greatest risk for medicati on errors because they often take multiple prescription medications (Stoppler Marks, 2010). History has shown that many surveys and research studies have been conducted, so that providers can learn where and why mistakes are being made. Once providers have a clear understanding, they can implement control measure to insure these mistakes do not occur. National Patient Safety Foundation Survey: The National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) commissioned a phone survey in 1997 to review patient opinions about medical mistakes. The findings showed that 42% of people believed they had personally experienced a medical mistake. In these cases, the error affected them personally (33%), a relative (48%), or a friend (19%) (Wrongdiagnosis, 2010). Patients that were given the survey have experienced the following medical errors: Misdiagnosis (40%), Medication error (28%), Medical procedure error (22%), Administrative error (4%), Communication error (2%), Incorrect laboratory results (2%), Equipment malfunction (1%), and Other error (7%). Patient safety should be the number one concern for health care organizations. Health care managers are held accountable for ensuring that patients are provided with quality care. They are also accountable for the patients that are injured or die due to a providerà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s medical error. The health care industries along with scientific researchers have developed tools in which the quality of care can be measured. Organizations can use these tools to determine if effective care is being provided. Once they have determined the level of care they are providing, they can educate providers on what they are doing both wrong and right. The most common method used to determine the quality of care, is through the use of surveys. Health care organizations can provide staff and patients with surveys to determine what areas the organization can improve and sustain. These surveys will not be provided to every patient the provider has treated but only a selected few will be surveyed. Quality measurement in the healthcare industry requires a large amount of resources and funding. Researchers will most likely use methods that have worked before and have provide them with data; they could use to enhance the level of care the organization is providing. Healthcare researchers are constantly trying to find ways in which the completely eliminate medical errors. Due to the continuous cycle of experienced providers leaving and new providers being hired, medical errors in many cases will never be eliminated. Health care organizations can however implement the necessary control measures to ensure that patients are not misdiagnosed or the wrong limb is not amputated (Cohen, 2007). Healthcare organizations can decrease medical errors by establishing a continuous quality improvement plan that calls for the development of a multidisciplinary team to research and investigate the causes of medical errors. The Department of Veteran Affairs uses a CQI model developed by the Joint Commission to reduce the number or medical mistakes made by providers. Joint Commissions surveys all the Veteran Affairs Medical centers to see whether their staff is following the medical policies and regulations in providing quality care. Joint Commission has also established policies regarding how health care organizations will report and handle sentinel events. A sentinel event is an unexpected occurrence involving death or serious physical or psychological injury, or the risk thereof. Serious injury specifically includes loss of limb or function. The phrase, or the risk thereof includes any process variation for which a recurrence would carry a significant chance of a serious adverse outcome. Such events are called sentinel because they signal the need for immediate investigation and response (Jointcommission, 2010). In conclusion medical errors can occur at anytime while a patient is receiving care. It is important that health care providers communicate and provide education to their staff on reducing the number of medical errors, the facility has encountered. Medical errors can lead to the organization being sued by the patient or the patient family member. Law suites can be devastating for any organization to go through and can reduce the amount of funds that have been allotted to providing quality care. Therefore it is important that medical errors are reduced and even eliminated.

Effects Of Warm Up In Learning Second Language

Effects Of Warm Up In Learning Second Language The Effects of Warm up in Learning Second Language Abstract One of the ways to learn the language better is having a good warm up activity. This paper aims to investigate the effects of warm up as a class room activity in learning second language. It is going to have a critical study, and over view of some books and essays about this activity. This paper attends to provide the definition of warm up as an activity before the lesson. Then, it is going to discover that how could warm up affect the learning process? It is probably going to find that having a good warm up activity helps students to set for the new lesson. Key words: Warm up activity, second language, learning process Introduction Warm up is one of the good methods for ESL students to learn the second language better. This paper introduces the concept of warm up as an activity which attracts students attention and helps them to focus on the topic. Literary review An interesting way of starting a lesson could be using activities called warm-up activities or ice-breakers (Robertson Acklam, 2000). Teacher could start warm up activity by using some games, asking questions and having discussions which all should be related to the topic or lesson. A warm up activity could help a teacher to recognize the different types of students learning style. According to CÃ ¡rdenas (2001), Students learn best when they can address knowledge in ways that they trust. They will learn best through doing rather than reflecting. Therefore, teacher could use different styles like play, demonstration, discussion, and totally we could say by action. A warm up activity helps students to put aside any distractions which are in their mind and focus on topic, and it helps ESL students to think in target language. According to Peterson (2010), Beginning your lesson plans with a five minute warm up can serve to focus your students on the topic, open up creative thinking and help to apply the learning in new ways. Purpose of the study This paper assesses the impact of warm up on ESL students and aims to examine the effects of this activity on the learning process. It is going to examine these questions: 1) what are the effects of warm up activity? , and 2) how could warm up affect the learning process? Which offers two hypotheses: 1) this activity may helps ESL students to think in target language (English) and focus on the language,2) this activity may just helps ESL students to put aside any distractions and maybe after awhile they will forget whatever they learned. Therefore, this paper is going to explore the answers of these two questions and then it will discover which hypotheses are right. Method In advance this paper mentions two questions which are going to explain in this section. This paper by using critical review about warm up provides the following answers to these questions; 1) What are the effects of warm up activity? This paper propounds five important effects for warm up which are explained below. 1) Create a friendly environment. A brief warm up activity can build a relationship between the students and the learning materials (Hasan Akhand, 2013).Warm up works as an ice breaker; it helps students to be comfortable with the environment and their classmates. 2) Attract students attention. Walqui (2006) states, by focusing students attention on the main ideas, teacher first prepares the students for engaging them in interactive tasks to practice (p.169). A five or ten minute warm up attracts the students attention toward the lesson and besides being physically in the class it helps them being mentally in the classroom, too. 3) Activate the students background knowledge. Rumelhart (1980) states, we comprehend something only when we can relate it to something we already know-only when we can relate the new experience to an existing knowledge structure (as cited in Carrell, 1983, p.82). Students might forget the things which they have learned from the last class or session. Hence, a warm up activity could activate their background knowledge; things they already know or learned. 4) Think in English and focus on the topic. Kay (1995) claims that warm ups are different types of activities which help the students begin to think in English, review previously introduced materials and become interested in the lesson (as cited in Velandia, 2008, p. 11). A warm up activity could help ESL students to start thinking in second language and forget any distractions and focus on the new topic or lesson. 5) Increase students participation. Warm-up activities like joke, game, and puzzle establish a positive learning environment and make the students comfortable to participate in the classroom (Joshi, 2006). When a teacher uses warm up, because of its enjoyable and interesting feature, students attends to participate or take place in that activity. Students like to be involved in such an amazing warm up activity; it builds a sense of community inside them. Now this paper answers the second question which is: 2) How could warm up affect the learning process? Learning process is facilitated through building a positive relationship with the students. A fun or interesting class largely depends on the teachers as their personality and teaching method motivate the students to raise a positive attitude towards learning (Krishnan Hoon, 2002). Because of all those effects that warm up activity has on ESL students, it is obvious that warm up task could affect the learning process, too. Following is a diagram which displays the effects of warm up task briefly. Diagram: effects of warm up activity Discussion/conclusion This paper, in the purpose of the study, states two hypotheses: 1) this activity may helps ESL students to think in target language (English) and focus on the language,2) this activity may just helps ESL students to put aside any distractions and maybe after awhile they will forget whatever they learned. The first one is acceptable because it is correct and actual, but the second one is reject able because it could help students to put away any distractions but when we use warm up activity, it is a review of what they learned. Hence, they could not forget whatever they learned. In sum up, this paper gets to the point that warm up activity is the best way for thinking in target language, setting for the new lesson, focusing on the topic, and attracting the attention. Therefore, it should be short, interesting, related to the topic, and be at the students level or slightly above (i+1) to have their effect in learning the second language. References Akther, A. (2014). Role of Warm-up Activity in Language Classroom: A Tertiary Scenario. Retrieved from http://dspace.bracu.ac.bd/bitstream/handle/10361/3553/10303010.pdf?sequence=1 Hasan, M. K., Akhand, M. M. (2013). Strategies for Enhancing the Use of Textbooks in Language Classrooms at the Tertiary Level. ABAC Journal, 33 (2), 1-14. Retrieved from http://www.abacjournal.au.edu/2013/may2013/01_StrategiesforEnhancing.pdf Pakdel Estaikhbijari, Z. Khodareza, M. (2012). The Effects of Warm-up Tasks on the Iranian EFL Students Writing Ability. Retrieved from http://www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/ies/article/viewFile/11691/10636 Peterson, D. (2010). Warm-Up Exercises. [Online] Available: http:// www.TeachingJobs.com (September 17, 2010) Velandia, R. (2008). The Role of Warming Up Activities in Adolescent Students’ Involvement During the English Class. Profile Journal, 10, 9-26. Retrieved from http://www.redalyc.org/pdf/1692/169214143002.pdf Walqui, A. (2006). Scaffolding Instruction for English Language Learners: A Conceptual Framework. The International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 9 (2), 159- 180. Retrieved from http://www.educacion.gob.es/exterior/centros/losangeles/es/series/201003-Scaffolding- Walqui.pdf Joshi, M. (2006). Diversity in Lecture-Delivery. Journal of NELTA, 11 (1-2), 1-151. Retrieved from http://nelta.org.np/uploads/files/2006.pdf Krishnan, L. A., Hoon, L. H. (2002). Diaries: listening to ‘voices’ from the multicultural classroom. ELT Journal, 56 (3), 227-239. Retrieved from http://eltj.oxfordjournals.org/content/56/3/227.full.pdf+html?sid=c6d03ada-4f81-4786- 819c-78335f7f594a CÃ ¡rdenas, M. L. (2001). Responding to Childrens Learning Styles. How, 8, 17-22. Robertson, C., Acklam, R. (2000). Action Plan for Teachers a guide to teaching English. London, UK: BBC World Service. Kay, C. (1995). Scott Foresman English series. Baltimore, Maryland: Scott Foresman. Carrell, P. L. (1983). Some Issues in Studying the Role of Schemata, or Background Knowledge, in Second Language Comprehension. Reading in a foreign language, 1 (2), 81-92. Retrieved from http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/rfl/PastIssues/rfl12carrell.pdf

Good Ol’ Southern Food: The Ins and Outs of Preparing a Southern Feast

Good Ol’ Southern Food: The Ins and Outs of Preparing a Southern Feast There is just something about Southern Cooking, something about the women who’ve mastered it, and something about what it represents. A Southern Feast represents time spent in careful preparation and an almost entire region of people that didn’t get the memo about cholesterol. Southern cooking brilliantly displays a community that still remains untouched by at least some of the craziness in the world around us. Things move a little slower in the South, and one of those things is the cooking. Preparing a Southern feast is a job. It is hard work, and it takes some time, but that is part of the charm. This cooking is the kind that allows for sitting around canning beans and fussing over biscuits. In the way that baking Christmas cookies brings families together, Southern cooking does as much. It can be done, with ease and grace, not to mention great fellowship when a meal is prepared with the ones you love. I believe the basis of any southern meal is a good amount of lard. We are not really talking olive oil here, but actual lard from a pig. If done correctly lard should be found in at least three of the main dishes. Equally important are the homegrown veggies. No meal, southern or any other, for that matter would be complete without some good homegrown food. Now, a true genius can use the lard and veggies, but we will get to that later. Once you have your veggies and main dish, complementary side items like biscuits and gravy, and sweet tea make the meal complete. The Main Element: In most circles, you will find the main element to be a meat. In most southern circles, you will find that meat to be fried, be it southe... ...nd nutmeg v Stack 2 piecrusts; gently roll or press together. Fit pastry into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate. v Toss together apple and lemon juice in a large bowl. Combine brown sugar and next 4 ingredients; sprinkle over apple mixture, and toss to coat. Spoon into prepared piecrust. v Roll remaining piecrust to press out fold lines; place over filling. Fold edges under, and crimp; cut slits in top for steam to escape. v Bake at 450 ° for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 °, and bake 35 minutes. Fried Apples 12-15 Golden Delicious Apples  ½ -3/4 Cups Sugar 1tsp Cinnamon  ½ stick of butter v Wash and Cut apples into bite size pieces v Combine Sugar, Cinnamon, and Butter in skillet v Add apples v Stir occasionally until apples are tender v Serve hot or later chilled

Understanding Dostoevsky Essay -- essays research papers fc

While confronting Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground seems a difficult task initially, one must be able to transcend the elaborate diction and parodies, and comprehend the author himself, while also taking root the message Dostoevsky had originally intended in the time it was addressed. Understanding the author himself, along with the period in which the work was written, augments one’s overall discernment of the passage. In the age he wrote, Dostoevsky must have seemed eccentric and outlandish; nevertheless, looking back on him from today with a literary understanding of modernism, he appears ahead of his time. His central premise, although difficult to determine amongst the satire, is humanity’s necessity for freedom and religion, specifically Christianity. In the first part of Notes from Underground, the narrator’s jeering monologue, Dostoevsky insists â€Å"civilization has made mankind if not more bloodthirsty, at least more vilely, more loathsomely bloodthirsty† (Dostoevsky 1305). He is adamant about man’s ability and need to choose right or wrong. Put another way, according to Dostoevsky, the freedom of choice is what makes us human, despite the consequences and destruction our selections might cause. When he begins to reflect about a man who enacts a fit of vengeance â€Å"like an enraged bull with lowered horns,† he calls him â€Å"a genuine, normal person, just as tender Mother Nature wished to see him when she lovingly gave birth to him on earth† (Dostoevsky 1311). His seeming...

Is there anything to admire in the character of Macbeth? Essay

Is there anything to admire in the character of Macbeth? And how does Shakespeare influence our thoughts and feelings towards him as the audience? As the audience, our opinions of Macbeth change throughout the play, from a perception of a character who is heroic and a loyal servant, to a cruel and evil â€Å"butcher†. Shakespeare uses many varied methods to portray the character of Macbeth to the audience, and influence their thoughts and feelings. The opening scene is of three witches who feature throughout the play. They would have terrified an audience of the time as it was written and performed around the time of the ‘Gunpowder Plot’ and when the threat of being bewitched by a witch was very real to them. When supernatural and inexplicable things happened, women were often persecuted as witches and executed. This unfounded fear is what Shakespeare uses to get his audience hooked, and from there he is able to reel them in. The weà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rd sisters introduce Macbeth to us, ‘there to meet with Macbeth.’ As they say this they are predicting the future, a skill that witches were believed to have. At this point the audience are surprised to see that the main character is being linked to witches and therefore evil. The last line of their scene, ‘fair I foul and foul is fair,’ this line has alliteration, which enforces the line, making it stick in the memory. Also it is juxtaposition of foul and fair, they are opposites of each other, and yet they are being used together to describe the weather. This is also the first line of Macbeth, this strengthens the link between him and the witches, so before the plot has begun, this gives the audience preconceptions of him being sinful and malicious. The line also conveys an element of pathetic fallacy as it describes the strange weather, and also reflects the ‘strange’ and ‘confusing’ rhymes of the weà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rd sisters. Shakespeare keeps referring to them to show the overall mood and directions of Macbeth during the play. After Macbeth’s meeting with the weà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rd sisters, he writes to lady Macbeth, this is when the audience first meet her, and so the way Shakespeare conveys her character in this scene is important as it is how the audience will view her for most of the play. The letter tells both lady Macbeth and the audience how the weà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rd sisters prophesised his future as thane of both Cawdor and Glamis, and also that he will be king, ‘hail king that shalt be.’ Contrary to the ethics of the time Macbeth seems to treat his wife with the kind of equality he would only show other thanes. However, it begins to become apparent that Lady Macbeth has a great deal of control over him. He calls her his, ‘dearest partner in greatness.’ This shows the audience that Macbeth would be willing to do a great deal for her. We see them contrast each other again when they meet to discuss the murder of king Duncan. It is lady Macbeth who initiates the plan, ‘O never shall sun that morrow see.’ Again showing her dominance over Macbeth, but also a very ambitious, evil side. Macbeth shows doubts and loyalty to his king, ‘we will speak further-‘ this restores some feelings of respect for Macbeth in the audience, as he is defying his wife, and showing his loyal side. But Shakespeare also uses it to make the audience wonder whom Macbeth values and loves more, his wife, or his king and country. â€Å"I am his kinsman and his subject, strong both against the deed.† When he says this, it shows that he seems to be more loyal to his king, but he is won over by his wife. At this point we as the audience admire him for his devotion to his king, and to his wife, it shows him to be a human and have human feelings, Lady Macbeth reveals her true self to the audience in a soliloquy. She links herself to ‘spirits who tend on mortal thoughts.’ And she asks that they ‘unsex’ her, to make her more masculine and therefore able to carry out the tasks that Macbeth is too weak to do. ‘Take my milk for gall.’ This symbolises a theme of black versus white, darkness and light and good and evil that runs through the play. It shows how Lady Macbeth could be seen as a fourth witch in the play, and is helping the weà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rd sisters cast their spell on Macbeth. She also feels as though it is her committing the murder, and controlling Macbeth, ‘My keen knife.’ This shows how she wants to more masculine, and feels that if she weren’t a woman she would be stronger than Macbeth. Perhaps she feels that he is an extension of herself, at this point the audience would begin to pity Macbeth as they feel he is being submissive to his wife, who is using her persuasive techniques to overpower him in order to make Macbeth carry out her plans, because she feels too female and weak to do them, she is using Macbeth, simply as a body to perform her evil deeds. Shakespeare shows this by using â€Å"we† when Lady Macbeth talks about the crime Macbeth is about to commit, â€Å"We’ll not fail.† His use of the word â€Å"we† makes Lady Macbeth appear to the audience as though she feels that it is her who is committing the murder and that she is controlling Macbeth. Macbeth realises that Lady Macbeth is taking advantage of his love for her and tries to take control of the situation. He shows his loyalty to his king and country as he tries to stop the deed, ‘We will proceed no further in this business.’ But again lady Macbeth shows her dominance and cunning, calculated plans, she throws his better judgement right back at his face and taunts him into submission. ‘Live a coward in thine own esteem.’ She questions his masculinity, ‘then you were a man.’ She uses words such as â€Å"coward† to describe Macbeth to make him feel guilty that he is letting her down, that he is not being the man she wants him to be. She is manipulating him by using his love for her to her own advantage. She even uses her femininity to her advantage and to further taunt his manhood when she says she would have, ‘dashed the brains out’ of her own child, rather than break a promise as he is doing. This is another point at which the audience feels a great sympathy towards Macbeth as a â€Å"woman† is bullying him to murder against his own will. In a 1600s society, when the play was first written and performed, women were considered as second class, weaker both mentally and physically, therefore if a man were seen to being weaker than his wife, the audience would pity him. Shakespeare is using Lady Macbeth’s difference to other women, as a tool to show Macbeth’s vulnerability, a quality that requires sympathy and pity from an audience, and so they would place the blame on Lady Macbeth instead of Macbeth, as it seems as if he isn’t responsible for his own actions. Macbeth buckled to is wife’s pressure and began to plan Duncan’s murder, he begins to hallucinate about a dagger, ‘A dagger of the mind, a false creation.’ Even in his ‘heat oppressed’ vision Macbeth appears to be aware that it isn’t real and that it has something to do with witches, ‘Pale Hecate’s off’ rings, and withered murder.’ Here Shakespeare is using the theme of good and evil as Macbeth battles evil in his mind. It must have been confusing for him as he is fighting against himself, and so either way, he cannot win. We as the audience pity Macbeth here because he has been won over by his wife’s evil ways, we see that he has a weak mind, but we still admire his self knowledge that it is only a hallucination, it is as though he knows he is being taken advantage of, but cant do any thing to prevent it. Evil presides and he goes on to murder King Duncan, perhaps with some regret that he gave way to his wife’s assertiveness. ‘I go and it is done†¦that summons thee to heaven or hell.’ Heaven juxtaposes hell; they are two opposites that are used by Shakespeare to show the underlying theme of good and evil in the play. The way Macbeth questions where Duncan will go after his death, suggests that he knows that Duncan is a good person. Perhaps he is beginning to realise that he is quite the opposite, that he juxtaposes Duncan. This shows that he knows Duncan’s death to be untimely, as he suggests that it might go to heaven for he did not deserve to die. Shakespeare again uses confrontations between the Macbeths to make the audience feel empathy towards Macbeth, as he seems confused and bewildered by what he has done, and Lady Macbeth still berates him. ‘Infirm of purpose.’ She still feels that she is the stronger one in their relationship and feels more worthy of the royalty promised to Macbeth. She believes that Macbeth feels remorse for his actions because he is not evil as she is. He shows his remorse in the form of delusions, ‘Me thought I heard a voice cry, ‘sleep no more: Macbeth does murder sleep.’ At this point we feel for Macbeth as he is clearly distressed, we feel that his suffering is as a result of the bullying prevailed on him by Lady Macbeth, therefore we feel sympathetic towards him. Again, Shakespeare uses the theme of good and evil, this time represented by blood and water. Macbeth asks, ‘will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand?’ this shows that he feels as though his bloodstained hands will give him away, he wants to hide the fact that he is a murderer, although this is what he does in battles. At this point we might feel that he is only doing what comes naturally to him, he kills in battle all the time, â€Å"his brandished steel which smoked with bloody execution.† but when it was someone that he knew and respected, and it was off the battle field, he felt distraught and remorseful. This makes the audience respect his morals, but dislike him slightly because he didn’t heed to them. After Lady Macbeth has taken back the daggers, she uses the blood now on her hands to goad Macbeth, ‘my hands are the colour of yours, but I shame to wear a heart so white.’ Lady Macbeth knows that she is more evil and capable of murder than Macbeth was. It is the fact that Shakespeare constantly compares Macbeth to Lady Macbeth. This makes the audience like Macbeth more than his wife. When the two are compared it is always when she is being portrayed as an evil woman, like the witches, he seems to be much more naà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ve and innocent. It is through such comparisons that Shakespeare is able to make his audience feel that Lady Macbeth takes advantage of her husband’s weaker points, and that he is blind to this. We feel sympathetic towards him because he doesn’t know what is happening to him. The power that Macbeth receives when he is crowned seems to unleash him from Lady Macbeth’s powers. He plans the murders of Banquo and his son Fleance without Lady Macbeth’s knowledge or consent. He pretends that all is normal and hides behind a mask of normality. He ironically tells Banquo, ‘fail not our feast’ even though he knows that he will be dead before it. He tells Lady Macbeth to ‘be innocent of the knowledge.’ He is trying to protect her and also show her that he can be evil with out her help. It seems like some of Lady Macbeth’s devious, calculating side is coming out in Macbeth. Shakespeare is using Macbeth’s role reversal here to make the audience start to respect him as he is taking his rightful place as the more dominant partner in their relationship. It is now him who is giving the orders to her, and not the other way round as we have previously seen, â€Å"And so I pray be you.† And â€Å"So prithee go with me.† Although these are orders and directions, he gives them in such a way that the audience see that he is kinder and more caring than his wife. This dominance seems short-lived, in what has become known as the water shed or turning point at the play. After Banquo has been killed Macbeth sees the ghost of Banquo at his banquet Shakespeare uses the fact that only Macbeth can see Banquo to heighten tension and suspense in the scene. ‘Never shake thy gory locks at me!’ the rest of the banqueters are worried about Macbeth, ‘Gentlemen, rise, his highness is not well.’ And do not wish to see him in a weakened state. Lady Macbeth however, tries to cover up for him, ‘sit worthy friends. My lord is often thus,’ So again, Lady Macbeth is more dominant and has to take control of the situation Macbeth has created in his fits. The ghost leaves, but then enters again to the horror of Macbeth. This re-entrance of Banquo creates tension in this scene as he instils yet more fear and anger in Macbeth. ‘Avaunt and quit my sight!’ Macbeth remains angry and confused after the ghost leaves. ‘Blood will have blood.’ Lady Macbeth shows a more caring motherly side as she tries to calm him, ‘You lack the season of all natures, sleep.’ However, by saying this, she is ironically reminding him that believes that he has â€Å"murdered sleep.† Macbeth goes to see the witches again, this shows that he is a slave to them, and craves their input. They take control from Lady Macbeth and she becomes the delusional one. The witches play a trick on him and predict his future, saying that ‘none of woman born shall harm Macbeth.’ They also say, ‘Macbeth shall never vanquished be until Great Birnam Wood to Dunsinain hill shall come against him.’ This makes Macbeth feel immortal and he becomes more willing to obey the weà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rd sisters. The new confidence they have given him when they told him his future has given him the self-belief that he is invincible. There has been building hatred towards Macbeth among the Thanes and lords; Lennox and an unnamed lord talk about the tyranny of Macbeth and his murderous ways. ‘That had he Duncan’s sons under his key- As, an’t please heaven, he shall not.’ They both refer to him as, ‘tyrant’ this shows how they no longer hold respect for him as bold warrior and king. ‘Macduff is gone to pray the holy king upon his aid.’ Macduff is the first of many Thanes to escape to England to help them overthrow Macbeth. We have a sense here that Shakespeare is using Macduff to contrast with Macbeth it is like he is the good where Macbeth is the evil. Macduff says, â€Å"Not in the legions of horrid hell can come a devil more damned in evils to top Macbeth.† This shows how the rest of Scotland may be feeling about Macbeth’s tyranny. When Lennox tells Macbeth this news, he greets it with anger and disgust, he reacts by sending murderers to Macduff’s castle to ‘give to th’ edge o’th’sword his wife, his babes and all unfortunate souls.’ At this point the audience may still feel sympathy for Macbeth even though he is acting like a ‘butcher’ it would seem easy to place the blame on the witches, as it is them who are ultimately controlling him, giving the self-assurance that makes him feel like he can do as he pleases without consequence. When news of the ‘slaughter’ reaches England the rebels feel even more hatred to Macbeth. As Macbeth has grown stronger, Lady Macbeth has weakened and becomes ill. It is as though he draws his new strength from her, as though they are one person. Lady Macbeth is now more delusional than Macbeth ever was, ‘All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.’ This relates to an earlier scene in the play where Lady Macbeth used the blood on her hand to taunt Macbeth, but now it is he who is coping better with the guilt of murder. The Macbeths have grown apart, and so when, in her madness she kills herself, all Macbeth can say is, ‘she should have died hereafter.’ Here the audience would think that Macbeth was becoming heartless and uncompassionate. But subsequently he shows that he knows that he has lost all that he had. He prepares to go out to fight Macduff, and admits his deepest thoughts to his servant, ‘Seyton I am sick at heart.’ This line shows an underlying theme of sickness in the play, for Lady Macbeth has died of a sickness of the mind, and it seems now that Macbeth will die of a sickness of the heart, he has given up hope on life and is willing to enter into his consequences, be it heaven or hell. Also, ‘As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends, I must not look to have, but in their stead, curses.’ These lines evoke a great sorrow in the hearts of the audience, as they see how underneath it all he is as human as us all and he is hurt that he has lost everything. This shows the audience how he is reformed, but it is all too late, they would feel really very sorry for him at this point, and admire his bravery to stand up and stare imminent death in the face, ‘cheer me ever or disseat me now.’ Shakespeare uses a soliloquy of Macbeth’s to voice the morals of the play in just one simple sentence. ‘Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more; it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.’ This is Shakespeare’s view on life, that it is meaningless, especially when you let others control you, and don’t live for you. Shakespeare is perhaps showing how he doesn’t respect or admire the character of Macbeth but that he sympathises and pities him. When Macbeth realises there is nothing left for him, and he only has himself to blame there is something to admire in his character. The fact that he acknowledges his inevitable death, but doesn’t try to justify his actions shows the audience that underneath it all there always was an admirable person, it wasn’t until his wife died that this side of him came out. Maybe this is because Lady Macbeth had a strong hold over him and he could only break free and show his true self when she had gone for good. Overall the audience only really admire him at the end of the play when his last soliloquy shows that he is a truly brave individual, â€Å"cheer me ever or disseat me now.† This shows that in his impending death he still wanted to go out fighting like the man he used to be, rather than take his own life, as his wife does. It is this final comparison between the two that we can finally see his brave side. Laura Barnes MACBETH ESSAY: Is there anything to admire in the character of Macbeth? And how does Shakespeare influence our thoughts and feelings towards him as the audience?

Critical Response to Martin and Milway’s Editorial Essay

In â€Å"A Productive Labour: The Only Limit to Productivity Growth is Human Ingenuity,† authors Martin and Milway present an argument for increasing productivity as a means of raising Canada’s economic health and living standards. Although Martin and Milway’s editorial on productivity present a piece that is rational and easily understood, its effort to convince that readers of its main argument is encumbered by weaknesses in the authors’ approach and reasoning that lead to more questions being raised than answered in the course of one’s reading. The editorial underlines the importance of improving Canada’s productivity in light of rising prices of manufactured goods and services that accompanied the strengthening of the Canadian dollar in 2001. The main argument put forth is that enhancing productivity is critical in ensuring improvements on the country’s living standards. The authors proceed to support their arguments by presenting two ways by which living standards can be raised, the first by increasing the number of working hours or using up more natural and physical resources for sustained wealth creation, and the second by improving productivity or raising the value created per working hour. After illustrating that the first way is not a viable alternative, the authors then concentrate on convincing the reader why the second way is better by defining the concept of productivity based on efficiency and innovation. The strength of Martin and Milway’s editorial lies in its ability to appeal to the rational side of its readers and their ability to tackle an otherwise complicated subject in simple terms. The authors attempt to defend their arguments by stating facts and carefully defining their subject, that is, productivity. As a result, the readers are compelled to view their argument in consideration of the definition that they present. Unfortunately, several weaknesses in Martin and Milway’s editorial in terms of their approach and in their reasoning reduce the effectivity of their argument. The biggest errors that exist in the editorial are faulty reasoning and the inability of the authors to substantiate their claim. As a consequence, the authors fail to persuade readers that â€Å"productivity is the surest way to raise our living standards. † (par. 4) The editorial was clearly written to convince readers that Canada needs to raise its productivity if it is to continue its economic growth and if it is to raise living standards. On the other hand, the authors fail to present evidence to substantiate this claim aside from the argument that it is the most cost-effective alternative in terms of labour, time, and natural resources. The authors automatically assumed that the readers of the editorial would readily accept that an increase in economic growth follows from an increase in productivity. Likewise, this argument raises several implications: first, that economic growth is not possible without an increased productivity; second, that productivity growth always leads to a raise in the living standards. It is here that the informed audience becomes wary as the authors’ bias shows through in their failure to consider countries with high productivity growth but low living standards. This shows a lack of forethought of the authors in answering the questions that would be inevitably raised by their argument. The main weakness of the editorial is that the authors commit fallacies in reasoning. For one, they are â€Å"begging the question† wherein the reader must already accept the conclusion in order to accept the evidence forwarded (Boyne, et. al. , 69). For instance, the authors enumerate the ways by which productivity can be improved to support their main contention. They state that â€Å"productivity increases in one of two ways: greater efficiency in how we employ labour and capital, or greater value creation per unit of these inputs. †(par. 8) This flow of the discussion reflects an assumption on the part of the authors that their main argument has already been accepted by the readers since discussing the ways by which productivity can be improved does not necessarily support the argument that productivity will improve the country’s economy. This circular reasoning makes the reader feel like the authors are trying to sound logical but cannot support their argument beyond the definition of the subject. Another obvious error in reasoning in the Martin and Milway’s editorial is superstition (Boyne, et. al. , 70) or hasty generalization. The authors attempt to prove the argument that â€Å"Productivity growth also benefits workers and consumers† (par. 14) by stating that â€Å"countries and regions with higher productivity pay higher wages† (par. 14) which assumes that higher wages automatically result from higher productivity. If one is to follow this argument, then it would imply that countries and regions that pay lower wages are not productive or low in productivity. In sum, a critical analysis of the piece reveals that the weaknesses outweigh the positive aspects in Martin and Milway’s editorial. Shortcomings in substantiating the editorial’s central argument with credible evidence as well as the inability to defend their argument in a logical manner renders the entire editorial ineffective in convincing the reader of the importance of improving productivity to improve their lives.