Knights in shining armor Essay Example for Free

Knights in shining armor Essay When we think of knights, we may think of the saying â€Å"knights in shining armor† imagining them rescuing attractive damsels in distress from harm’s way. But in reality, knights were much more than that. Being a knight represented much more than we could even comprehend. Knights were one of the principal characters of the medieval times. They were soldiers who had an obligation to serve the king during military combat. In exchange for this service to the king, the knight would receive a position in the king’s Court. They existed during the period of the 12th through the 17th centuries in the European area, but later went on to other areas such as Japan and India. The knight of Europe therefore had his origins in military and economic need. His role was of a warrior, and in some cases he was little more than a thug rewarded for his aggression. But if in order to be successful, he had to take his role in the military seriously. As time went on, success required more than dedication: it required loyalty to his king in society as well as strategy and ingenuity on the battlefield. Medieval knights did not just turn into knights by any apparent reason. There were many certain factors that determined whether men could become future knights. The first factor was to be born into a high noble class family and the other factor was by proving he was worthy of the title by showing his strength and courage through battle combat. In the first case, the boy from an early age of eight years old began his process of training by taking a series of classes and instructions like chivalry, music and weapons in order to form his intellectual and physical self. He practiced his battle skills on a wooden dummy called a quintain. Later on they would only make emphasis on combat because they were more bodily developed. This would be by the ages of fifteen or sixteen, becoming a squire or a servant of another knight where he helped the knight get ready in the morning, serve all of his meals, care for the knight’s horse and clean his armor and weapons. He also assisted his knight on the battlefield and on what concerned his personal training he began to learn how to handle a sword and a lance while riding his horse with all of the required armor on. It wasn’t until the age of twenty that the squire would be able to become a knight by proving he was worthy of this title. Once they became knights, they were granted special suits of armor. They first consisted of pieces of metal covering the entire body but then evolved to a more flexible material, Plate. This type of armor offered better protection and gave more flexibility than the metal material. Additionally to this armor, knights were also given a long spear or better known as a Lance and also a two-handed sword called a Mace. The sword was the knight’s main weapon, accompanied by a metal Shield to cover himself from the enemy’s attacks. Other weapons that were given to knights include the crossbows and longbows. Inside the training of knights there was something very important that was taught to them called The Code of Conduct and Chivalry. Inside it, many of its points included â€Å"the knight was bound to defend his lord or liege, care for his lands and his people and in the later centuries this code of chivalry was expanded to include conduct in courts and public functions. A knight was expected to protect those less of lesser rank than himself and to hold himself to the highest standards of combat and knowledge in religion and writing, music and leadership. † (www. knight-medieval. com) Even though this code was formed with the rules that it was, ironically it was not applied for everything, for example the peasants. They were often aggressive to common folk. They could sometimes rape young peasant women without fear of being scolded just because they were part of the upper class. Knights participated in rigorous Tournaments every once in a while. These Tournaments were made for the knights to practice their skills, develop more strength and practice warfare. â€Å"Tournaments were essentially mock battles with audiences. The audience was usually made up of fair damsels. This was another way in which a knight was expected to act chivalrous. The tournaments had different rules that had to be followed. They were judged by umpires that watched for dishonest play. Tournaments were usually fought between either two people or two teams. If two people fought a tournament, it was usually by jousting. † (www. thinkquest. org) Also the tournament was a way for warriors to practice working together and at the same time use their other mounted combat skills. It was also a proving-ground for knights looking for service. Combatants wore the armor they always wore in battle and used the same weapons they used to kill their enemies. It didn’t matter to them that the men they fought were their fellow colleagues; in the tournaments, they were the enemy too. â€Å"In the early tournament, Chivalry did not apply. No one held back or tried to avoid killing their opponents. There were even knights who practiced what was known as a Count of Flanders technique, which involved waiting until late in the combat, then joining the fray and attacking tired and worn-out fighters and thus easily winning their belongings. † (Snell, www. historymedren. com) Over time, the tournament became a great event. It was organized by heralds and announced to the public weeks in advance. Processions took place, and evening banquets were given. Ladies in finery looked on from the gallery, giving chosen knights a favor, such as a scarf, to display as they contested. Prizes were also held out. The life of a knight in a majority of aspects was determined by his king. The king had the control of his knight’s life, career and future and in extreme cases, the King even had a say in whom his knight should marry and to whom he should leave his property or properties after his death. Even though the knight was in charge of his property, ultimately it was his king’s decision to take this or these lands away and even give them to anyone else he pleased. The main property a knight could own was his Castle. The castle was a private fortress where his family and servants resided. â€Å"It was a community unto itself; everything necessary for daily living was made within its massive walls or grown (or hunted) in the surrounding land. † (Snell, www. historymedren. com) Not only did knights have their effects on society inside the timeframe they existed, but in today’s society we are still living the effects they created. â€Å"The days of the steel armored knight have all but passed; though some true knights do indeed seek to strengthen their character and their arms through the practice of arms, today the knight must rather rely on the armor of his soul to defend himself, seeking to ennoble himself in the same way as his ancestors-by his deeds. † (Price, On Knighthood) Just as they did back then, knights still seek to obtain their honor through demonstrating their strength in battle but also defend what they believe in through mouth and word. Some knights today pursue this goal through the tournament or martial art; some through confraternal organizations that defend charity and support their cause as well as advance the causes of right. Like in history, none of these groups, even less the nobles within them, will attain the ideal that drives them. Bitter divisions sometimes are the best companies of knights, quietly ushering them further from the basic ideals that empower them, starting them on the journey to vainglory that defeats humility, overcomes charity, makes a mockery of courtesy, and in short blackens the heart against chivalry. Today there are many paths that lead to knighthood. You can seek membership in a knightly order; you can use a martial art or the tournament. But these are all external, not worth very much unless the spark of knighthood is ignited within them. The spark of nobility that has been recognized since the earliest age within certain men and women of character and spirit is the one that truly defines what a knight can really be, especially in today’s society. Works Cited †¢ Knights, Castles, Chivalry, siege engines and everything Medieval 2007-2008 Kalif Publishing http://www. knight-medieval. com/ †¢ The Medieval Knight 1997 Thinkquest 10949 Team http://library. thinkquest. org/10949/fief/medknight. html †¢ Price, Brian R. On Knighthood July 29,1996 http://www. chronique. com/Library/Knights/knitessy. htm †¢ Snell, Melissa. Knightlife #5 A Castle in the Background 1998-2000 http://historymedren. about. com/library/weekly/aa062698. htm

Leadership Is About Leading Followers Management Essay

Leadership Is About Leading Followers Management Essay According to Williams, C McWilliams, A, leadership is about leading followers to achieve organization or company goals. The purpose of this essay is to define the differences between transformational leadership and transactional leadership. The former facilitates a redefinition of a peoples mission and vision, a renewal of their commitment and the restructuring of their systems for goal accomplishment (Leithwood, cited in Cashin et al. 2000, pp. 1). While the latter occur when the give and take exchange happens. Transformational leadership usually called as a charismatic leadership. It is the most studied guide of leadership (Bass 1985, 1990; Bass Avolio 1993, 1994; Gastil 1994; Lowe et al.1996; Pawar Eastman 1997; Shamir et al. 1998; Yammorino et al.1997; Yukl 1994), while transactional leadership called as an authoritative leadership, serves to articulate and establish positions held by the leader. This leadership is the least supportive of intentional change (McWhinney 1997, pp. 194). The differences between both of them are the process and the behavior. The process of transformational leadership which is a leadership focusing on team building and strategies where all employees and leaders have a strong bond to make decisions to reach the target. For example: the McDonalds manager obligation is to make strategy how to provide less time to serve the chickens. While the process of transactional leadership is about making sure everything goes as desire and about the reward and the punishme nt. The rewards are given such as honor, wage, etc. While, the punishment is well understood by everyone. The example of transactional leadership is job for McDonalds employees is to sell as many chickens as possible. According to Bass (1985), transactional leadership behaviors which are the leadership aiming at monitoring and controlling employees through rational or economic means. While transformational leadership behaviors are a variety of field studies demonstrating that are positively related to employees satisfaction, self-reported effort, and job performances. Transformational / charismatic leadership usually make a better performance than transactional / authoritative leadership. It will produce a greater satisfaction and make less role conflict.   In addition, Ashkanasy Tse (2000) and Bass (2002) said that, emotions are playing an important rule in the leaderships process. Transformational leadership is very sensitive to the emotions of the followers. This sensitiveness could lead the followers to a good result if the leaders have a positive thought. Example: if the leaders of the groups have a very high self-motivation, the followers can reach beyond what they expected because they can trust their leaders, otherwise if leaders without positive thought, the leaders will not get the employees trust. While in the transactional leadership, it does not seem to be as sensitive as the transformational leadership. In this leadership, the leaders are not supporting the employees and cause the negative effects that make frustrations, sadness and regret to the employees because not getting what they want or expect. So, transformational leadership is more related to the positive effects while transactional leadership is more related to the negative effects.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Everyone personality is different, so do the leaders. Which will provide different impact to the followers. Bass (1985) identified eight dimensions of leadership behaviors. The first transformational behavior is an idealized influence, refers to leaders who have a very high personal regard and who engender loyalty from followers. The second transformational leadership behavior is an inspirational motivation, refers to leaders with a strong vision for the future based on values and ideals. The third transformational leadership dimension is an intellectual stimulation, which refers to leaders who challenge organizational norms. Individual consideration is the fourth transformational leadership dimension, refers to a leader behavior aiming at recognizing the unique growth and development the needs of followers. The fifth is contingent reward, refers to leadership behaviors focused on exchange of resources. The next one is management by exception-active, refers to monitoring performance and taking corrective action as necessary. In the management by exception-passive, the leaders are taking a passive approach. Finally, Bass (1985) included Laissez-Faire under the transactional leadership label.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     An example of Malaysians business which have transformational leadership is Air Asia. The owner of Air Asia is Tony Fernandes who was born on 30th  April 1964, this organization is bought by him from DRB-Hicom. He studied in London, United Kingdom majoring in Finance in 1976 and graduated in 1987. Before he joined Warner Music International London in 1989 and had been promoted four times in twelve years (approximately promoted every three years), he worked in Virgin group majoring in communications. In 1992, he was transferred to Malaysia back to his hometown. And at the age of 28, he received the title of the youngest person in recording music industrys history to head Warner Music Malaysia. Unfortunately, he leave his promising career in music industry which he had earned the position as a vice president, ASEAN region because he was going to build a low price airline based on almost the same business models as in USA (Southwest Airlines) and E urope (Ryanair easyJet). Setia Mahkota Selangor is the title which he got in 1999 and given by his Royal Highness King of Malaysia Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah. In this airline organization he lead, the first priority is the employees, it can be said that this is showing the organizations loyalty. Because of this organizations trustworthiness, the employees give a good service to the customers to show the respect to the organization. This transformational leadership behavior is included into an idealized influence.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Even though transformational leadership is more recommended than transactional leadership as it is said above, it does not mean that transactional leadership is not important. Because the function of transactional leadership is to motivate employees to do beyond than they could expect. So both of the leadership is needed in every organization. The organization should balance their leadership between the transformational and transactional leadership. (916 words)

The Burdens of Lt. Jimmy Cross in Tim OBriens Story The Things They C

The Burdens of Lt. Jimmy Cross in Tim O'Brien's Story "The Things They Carried" One of the most overlooked aspects in the life of a soldier is the weight of the things they carry. In Tim O'Brien's story, "The Things They Carried," O'Brien details the plight of Vietnam soldiers along with how they shoulder the numerous burdens placed upon them. Literally, the heavy supplies weigh down each soldier -- but the physical load imposed on each soldier symbolizes the psychological baggage a soldier carries during war. Though O'Brien lists the things each soldier carries, the focal point centers around the leader, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, and his roles in the war. Lt. Cross has multiple burdens, but his emotional baggage is the most pressing. Of all the weights burdened upon Lt. Cross, the heaviest baggage is located in his own mind. Specifically, the heaviest things Lt. Cross carries are an emotional obsession over Martha's love, the physical consequences caused by his daydreaming of Martha, and an unrelenting guilt about Ted Lavender's death. In the first paragraph of the story, Jimmy Cross' rank is noted (First Lieutenant) along with the fact that he "carried letters from a girl named Martha, a junior at Mount Sebastian College in New Jersey" (434). From the outset, the reader sees that Martha plays a pivotal role in his thoughts and actions. The fact that Jimmy Cross "would imagine romantic camping trips into the White Mountains in New Hampshire" after he marched the entire day and dug a foxhole indicates that he thinks often of Martha (434). While these thoughts of a lover back home provide some form of escape for Lt. Cross, they also burden him with the obsessive feelings of unrequited love. ... ...nal lives, but O'Brien's choice to focus one soldier, Lt. Cross, lets the reader scope the depths of the human mind during an extremely stressful situation. As a young lieutenant, this man shoulders his own longing for love, the death of a fellow soldier, the guilt he places on himself, as well as the added duties of responsibilities for a platoon of men. The narrator provides one specific quote, which perfectly summarizes the mental aspects of war: "They carried all the emotional baggage of men who might die. Grief, terror, love, longing -- these were intangibles, but the intangibles had their own mass and specific gravity, they had tangible weight" (443). Indeed, the intangibles in this story do have tangible weight -- weight that Lt. Cross must carry for the rest of his life. Works Cited: O?Brien, Tim. The Things They Carried. NY: Broadway Books, 1998.

Death of a Tumor Essay -- Biology Cancer

Cell Background Animal cells are eukaryotic and have a very complex structure. A eukaryotic cell is composed of many membrane-enclosed organelles. Organelles are compartments that perform different functions inside the cell. An organelle called the nucleus contains the genetic material, or DNA, and is the most vital organelle of the cell because it is responsible for carrying the genes that make up the body. A cell's membrane is composed of two layers that regulate the flow of materials in and out of the cell. Along the membrane are several kinds of receptor proteins that detect foreign materials. A cell replicates by a process called mitosis. In this process the chromosomes pair up and when the cell divides and each cell is genetically identical. Any mistakes in this process can lead to cancer. If somewhere along the line, the normal regulation of mitosis is broken and the cell divides continuously and out of control. This is how tumors are created. There are many reasons for the mitotic cycle to break such as the loss of certain checkpoints, which make sure the cell is dividing normally. Without these checkpoints in the cycle of mitosis, the cell does not divide normally, and this usually leads to the growth of tumors. Tumor Prevention There are several ways to prevent cancer, but some of the time cancer is a genetic defect that cannot be prevented. Overexposure to sunlight or tanning salons may cause skin cancer. Clothing and sunscreen protects the skin from the sun and can decrease the chances of skin cancer. To decrease the risk of developing cancer, one should not smoke. Smoking increases the risk of developing cancer of the lung, mouth, throat, esophagus, panc... ...s showed that Raf-1 had indeed prevented angiogenesis from occurring by making apoptosis successful in destroying the tumor. TUNNEL had shown that the nearby dead blood vessels had self- destructed leaving behind signs of apoptosis in tumor cells. This supported what the scientists had confirmed that each blood vessel has the ability to support 50-100 tumor cells. When the blood vessel dies, so do the tumor cells, thus crumbling into a concentric ring. Resources & Links: [1]Cancer Research UK. Catrin Pritchard, Ed. University of Leicester. http://science.cancerresearchuk.org/research/loc/ leicester/leicester_univ/pritchardc/pritchardcover?version=1 Purves, William, Sadava, David, and H. Craig Heller, eds. The Science of Biology. Sunderland: Sinauer Associates, Inc., 2001. Signal Transduction. Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology.

The Justification of Science :: Science Scientific Racism Physiognomy Essays

The Justification of Science What does the average person think when they hear that an idea is supported by science? Often, it makes people assume that this idea must be objectively true, and will necessarily be more right than a theory that doesn’t have the backing of â€Å"science.† While in many cases, objective science really does produce better results than mere conjecture, there have also been influential movements in history that were justified by â€Å"science,† but which we see today as unjustifiable. These include biometrical methods like phrenology and craniology, the empirical definitions of racial difference in the 19th century, and the â€Å"scientifically† racist ideology of the Nazis, among many others. In many of these situations, biology has been used to support conceptions that were already accepted in the society of the time. However, they seemed stronger with scientific support, even if the scientific support was weak enough that it was eventually proven to be untrue. Considering this, why were these â€Å"scientific† conclusions seen as objective when, with the benefit of hindsight, it is clear that they were not? Additionally, why did the supporters of these ideologies want to use science as support? If science were seen as merely a collection of useless knowledge, it would not have been relied upon in the way that it was, so it is clear that the scientific method was trusted to add some additional level of truth to the given conclusions. The interactions between these systems of classifying groups of people, their scientific support, and society in general tell us many things about science and about people. Physiognomy and Phrenology The earliest versions of biological classification are found in the related disciplines of physiognomy and phrenology. Physiognomy, the science of reading a person’s character based on facial characteristics, was popularized by Johann Caspar Lavater in the late 18th century. His Essays on Physiognomy, widely read throughout Europe for many decades, gave a newly scientific justification to an idea that had been present in popular thought since ancient Greece. There, Aristotle recorded observing that certain physical traits in people are often linked to distinctive personality traits, and Pythagoras is said to have selected students for his classes based on who â€Å"looked† to have potential (Mainwaring 1980). As this concept reached the 18th century, it was given the explanation that God makes a connection between a person’s face and their â€Å"inner state.

A Narrow Fellow in the Grass – 1

â€Å"A Narrow Fellow in the Grass† By Emily Dickinson. â€Å"A Narrow Fellow in the Grass† Is believed to have been written in 1865. About a year later it was published under the title â€Å"The Snake† by a journal called Springfield Republican. This poem express nature's infamous creatures, the snake. The poem is built around what appears to be and what is. This poem is meant to be read aloud and appreciated for it's precision. Some would say â€Å"A Narrow Fellow in the Grass† is perhaps the most nearly perfect poem addressing nature. Also this poem itself has received a great deal of critical attention.In the opening lines, Dickinson cleverly states the subject of the poem, a snake. She makes the snake sound harmless. The term â€Å"narrow Fellow† is a nice form of colloquial language â€Å"narrow† meaning small, and â€Å"fellow† being a familiar term for boy or man. The choice of words she uses is also interesting like the word à ¢â‚¬Å"rides† sounds like â€Å"glides†. It gives the impression that the snake is being carried, or that it is floating about. The words could also say torment, harass, of tease which would fit the snake's sly tempter.Also the snake seems to take people by surprise. Lines five through eight describes the way a snake moves through tall grass. The grass is compared to hair and the snake is compared to a comb. The snake is quick, long, slender, and marked with spots. The snake slanders along in a ghost like manner. In the lines following nine through twelve the snake likes wet and mushy land. The corns dry environment is not suitable for the snakes wet environment therefore a snake will not be found in a corn field.The speaker mentions that he is barefoot in a childhood encounter, which the thought of a snake slithering across a humans bare skin makes many people cringe. The word â€Å"barefoot† makes the speaker seem even more vulnerable to the snake's potential th reat. In lines thirteen through sixteen the speaker continues to talk about his childhood encounter and he sees something that seems to be a whip-lash. He bends down to pick up the â€Å"whip† just to find that it is slithering away. Oddly, the definition of â€Å"wrinkle† is â€Å"a clever trick†.In these lines he was tricked by the snake for it was not what it appeared to be. The image of a snake â€Å"wrinkling† suggests the snake was frightened by the approach of the speaker. Also, in lines seventeen through twenty the speaker claims to have a connection to the outdoors and its animals. He feels close to these creatures and he describes this connection as a â€Å"transport† In lines twenty one through twenty four the speaker describes the feeling of an encounter with a snake as a moment of shock and fear.He mentions on how he had tighter breathing from the panic. Most people who has encountered with a snake has felt the fear and the panic. In the final line he describes the feeling with the metaphor â€Å"zero at the bone† referring to the bone chilling terror. The end suggest that the snake which is referred as harmless might possible be deceptive. The speaker, which suggest that he loves all animals, cannot love dangerous trickster the snake in the grass. The speaker reacts to the snake as if it were a living terror of the unknown, for it is both chilling and startling.Dickinson wrote several â€Å"riddle† type poems, where she uses metaphor to compare her subject to something, without letting you know. Each stanza has â€Å"clues† in the form of imagery, pictures such as the grass â€Å"as a comb†. â€Å"A Narrow Fellow in the Grass† is written in six quatrains, or stanzas of four lines each, rhyming only in the second and fourth lines. Most of the rhythms are iambic, meaning the poem has regularly recurring segments, in which the first syllable is unstressed and the second is stress ed. â€Å"A Narrow Fellow in the Grass† can be interpreted on several levels.It could be read as just a description of the snake. Also Dickinson's imagery can be read as sexually nuanced. Dickinson's poetic technique is very much an art form she worked hard to refine and hone. The readers today can gain so much from Dickinson poems and her technique. She leaves so much unsaid, and yet, says so much with so little. Dickinson uses the device of sound throughout this poem; hearing this poem is as important as seeing the words. Dickinson creates both a visual and an auditory image of the snake with her language.

Information Systems Management in Practice

Information system is perceived as tools to automate business processes for better performance and productivity. It is viewed as a machine which takes input, possesses processing logic and gives a defined output which is further used to process jobs. It was strictly viewed as a catalyst in bulk processing of tasks and also those that are very difficult for human resources to take care. Primarily the idea of information system was duly followed and businesses could use it often effectively for automating their business processes. Presently, the meaning of information system is quite different from traditional thinking.It is definitely used for automating tasks; however it is also used for mining of data for finding a new definition of information. The idea is to find the hidden meaning of information, intelligence in the information domain for an organization. The meaning of integration of various isolated business processes into a holistic integrated system is a new meaning of techno logy. The concept of information system is now exploited to bring out exceptional variants of fetching intelligence out of information and better and stronger connection of resources for better business advantage.The idea is to encourage better process development which would ensure right judgment of the business advantage. From the transition of simple systems to ERP and intelligent systems, information technology has taken a leap ahead in finding better solutions for business. The transition further would enhance better forms of use and seamlessly integrating with various latest handled devices for control and management of business processes. The combination of technology and communications would bind the technology closely with the needs of the organization and evolve to enable the organization for better prospects in future.The previous perceptions of information system have evolved with time and have become better to understand the organization and its needs. The information s ystem perception from automated behavioral nature to intelligent devices has come a long way to decide the future rule of information systems over every part of human life and work. References McNurlin B. C. and Sprague R. H. (2009). Information Systems Management in Practice (8th Ed). Prentice Hall.