Mesopotamia Case Essay Example for Free

Mesopotamia Case Essay HISTORY OF MESOPOTAMIAN RELIGION The name Mesopotamia, is a Greek name which means ‘the land between the rivers’, refers to the geographic region which lies near the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers and not to any particular civilization. The land of Mesopotamia is made fertile by the irregular and often violent flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. While these floods aided agricultural endeavors by adding rich silt to the soil every year, it took a tremendous amount of human labor to successfully irrigate the land and to protect the young plants from the surging flood waters. Given the combination of fertile soil and the need for organized human labor, perhaps it is not surprising that the first civilization developed in Mesopotamia. Sumerians were the first settlers in Sumeria. By c.3500 BCE, the Sumerians had developed many of the features that characterized subsequent civilizations. Cuneiform was a system of writing established by the Sumerians which became the dominant system of writing in Mesopotamia for over 2000 years. Mesopotamia is widely recognized as one of the regions in the Near East first experiencing the developmental transition to hydraulic and urban civilization, duly celebrated as a â€Å"cradle of civilization† and the eastern segment of the Fertile Crescent. Mesopotamian religion is the religious beliefs and practices of the Sumerians and Akkadians, which were noted the first developed civilizations and religions; and later of their successors, the Babylonians and Assyrians. (Lindemans, 2007). In general terms, it constitutes the greater part of what is now Iraq, eastern Syria, and south-eastern Turkey. The deities of Sumer were usually associated with aspects of nature, such as fertility of the fields and livestock. Among the most important of the many Mesopatamian gods were Anu, the god of heaven; Enki the god of water; and Enlil, the earth god. Deities were often associated with particular cities. Astral deities such as Shamash and Sin were also worshipped. The Mesopatamians are skilled astrologers who studied the movements of heavenly bodies. Priests also determined the will of the gods through the observation of omens, especially by reading the entrails of sacrificed animals. The king functioned as the chief priest, presiding at the new-year festival held in spring, when the kingship is renewed and the triumph of the deity over the powers of chaos was celebrated. In Mesopotamia, each city state had its own god who owned it, and although other gods were admitted, they were always subordinate to the city god. Everyone had to belong to a temple, whatever rank they had in society. If they belonged to the temple of Marduk, they considered themselves ‘the people of the God Marduk’. The god was the lord and the people served him as slaves or at least as servants. Part of everyone’s produce belonged to the god and had to be brought as a sacrifice. The land itself belonged to the god and had to be leased from him. God have never been any good at signing agreements so the contracts were signed on his behalf by the priests. The main festival in Mesopotamia was the New Year Festival held in spring or in autumn. Its significance was the renewal of the land through the sprouting of new buds or the end of the summer scorching. The Sumerian drama focused on Dumuzi or Tammuz, the creative power of Spring while the Goddess was Inanna, the fertility of nature. The drama went this way: the earth goddess conceived a handsome son who later became her lover and begat the next son – a ritual performed by the king and his consort or the head priest and priestess in a ritual coupling. The son died and everyone wailed but the new son was born and everyone rejoiced. In the tropics the vegetation died in the summer heat but in northern climates it died with the onset of frost, so the times were not necessarily the same. (Amytas, 2002) In an article of Sumerian Religion it was said that reincarnation is a concept suitable for Mesopotamians because it was so real and explicit that it was not worth reporting the striking obvious. The Mesopotamians, took painstaking notes of the coming of the sunrise and sunset every day, the return of the seasons, the planets and the stars, always revolving and returning to chartered points in the skies. Thus, they did believe that everything was cyclic, and probably considered life and death as such as well (cited in Adapa). MESOPOTAMIAN MYTHOLOGY The two following stories are one of the descent and ascent stories of Mesopotamian Religion (Amytas, 2002) Descents to the underworld are a constant theme in Mesopotamia and tell about the triumph of the spirit over desire, wrong doings or guilt. Descent stories always contain the warning that one should not venture to ‘the Land of No Return’, that the laws of ‘Great Below’ cannot be changed and it designs the foremost. Nevertheless, Inanna descended to meet Her other Self, the Great Judge and Queen of the Underworld, Ereshkigal, and She who is the Lover and Beloved resurfaced as the vision of triumphant humanity that transcends all deaths. Enlil descended after having raped Ninlil, who immediately took matters in her hands and went down after Him to conquer Her beloved back, achieving major growth along the process herself from maiden to Consort of Lord Air. Even Enlil, the most important of the young Anunnaki gods, had to undergo punishment for a terrible act in the most romantic and intense of all descent stories. However, Ninlil, as the Beloved and Hardest Judge Enlil could have ever had, flew after him for the rescue to bring him back to the Heights Above, to become Enlil’s partner in all levels. All of them faced awesome trials and returned back to the Heights after achieving much healing and growth. It is therefore clear that returns from the Underworld, despite all warnings against venturing over there, can be achieved, but only by the triumph of the spirit, by conquering one’s own weaknesses, by a necessary loss to achieve a major growth. In the myth of Adapa, Adap ascends to the Heavens to meet Anu so that he could justify himself in front of the Skyfather for having been disrespectful to the South Wind. Adapa is the proto-Solomon, the sage and the priest-king of Eridu. He refuses immortality to come back to the Middleworld instead of remaining with the Great Gods in the Great Above, as Anu had given him the opportunity to stay there by eating and drinking from the table of the gods. Adapa refuses the offering, because Enki, Adapa’s personal god, had warned him not to, if Adapa did not want to die. A possible experience for this passage is the following: in the end Adapa understood that he would have eventually eternal life after living a full life in the physical world, and not in the moment he had been offered the gift by Anu. He did not need eternal life when he was offered it by Anu, because he was needed on earth, he was the priest-king the foundation of the state which was being built in Eridu, the place where kingship descended from the heavens. Again, it is a Mesopatamian ascent story with a return, whose mystery show the cycle and the link between heaven and earth, the Great Above and the Great Below not as opposite worlds, but matching complements, in a never-ending cycle. PHOENICIAN LETTERS (Amytas, 2007) The Phoenician Letters is a piece of mystery teachings in a written form from a master to a devoted acolyte in the Mesopotamian tradition, a sort of retro-Caballa. It involves 10 letters, each involving a god/goddess (Rimon-Adad, Nabu, Ishtar, Nergal, Shamash, Marduk, Anu, Enlil, Ea-Enki, Sin-Nana) by the master to the acolyte exchanged during the period of two years. The letters cover the training of a future-priest king by a master kept unknown up to the last letter. The quotations on the chapter of Nergal on the next paragraph are about reincarnation, the Eternal Return. Notice that the piece of metal that is left from the burning of what should be burnt may refer to that part of matter in us that is primeval and without blemish, the seed of the Great Mother that they all carry within, represented by the metal attributions of Mesopotamians deities, or the imperishable in them, their Personal Gods. On Ishtar, â€Å"But Ishtar is all this and more. She is the reborn†¦Know, o Prince, that death is the source of life, life is the cause of death. Dumuzi her lover must die in order to live. She is the rhythm, and all rhythms have an end, this is death, all have a beginning (pages 34-35).   On Nergal: â€Å"There are many forms of heroism. There is that form that represents a magnificent stupidity, where the hero achieves nothing, saving neither his people nor his own life, but taking with him down into death as many of the enemy as possible. He will fight in the underworld that battle which he did not win, for it is sad that as a man dies, all that he has done is presented to him, to see if he regrets his actions or not. If he regrets and pines for the things that he failed to do or the errors he has made, then this is a weight he must carry into his next time of living (Lishtar’s emphasis). Herein is the tale of justice: the assessors of hell visit upon each man his crimes, and according as he loves them or hates them, he will be attracted to the same events, time without end, till the actions of his life be without blemish† (page 41). CREATION OF MAN (and WOMAN) SUMERIAN VERSION Enki, the Magician, and Ninhursag, the Earth Mother, create humankind from the fertile waters of the Abzu and a pinch of clay, breathing into the mix the spirit of a slain god. It is in the myth that the spirit of the slain god resonates in each and every being as a drumbeat, life force, to remind them of its sacrifice. According to Amytas, the myth was a wondrous metaphor that shows incarnation as a gift from Divine Consciousness bestowed upon all humankind, all that lives and breathes. The bond that was thus established between heaven and earth from the beginning of Sumerian religion, whereby from this moment on humankind is called upon to continue for the gods the workings of existence and faithful servants. This metaphor shows the truth all initiates have experiences from times immemorial. Spirit can only incarnate through love, the same way we can only ascend to the heights of religious and visionary experience by giving spiritual body to our soul’s design. Slain in this context may very well mean the necessary loss to achieve higher consciousness, the disrobing and vulnerability needed to enter both Great Above and the Depths Below enforced. Furthermore, the myth of the ‘Creation of Man and Woman’ can be interpreted according to the Sumerians as the never-ending miracle of spirit entering matter and for those of them who live their lives in the light of the Mesopotamian tradition. From the beginning of Sumerian Religion, from the creation of man and woman it is therefore present the everlasting bond between matter and spirit. As concluded by Amytas,† the part of us who belongs to the everlasting spirit will be then confronted by our life achievements and judged by the Annunaki of the Underworld. These deities will be the judges of our souls and decide when we are ready to return from the ‘Land of No Return’. It is for all these reasons that we suggest that the Eternal Return might have been a core understated principle of Mesopotamian religion.† THE BABYLON AND ITS PEOPLE Many scholars believe the first great historian, Herodotus, a Greek who traveled widely over the ancient world several centuries before the birth of Chris, visited the city of Babylon in its decline. He has left a description of the city but, because he could not speak Babylonian, his remarkable statements must come largely from the lips of the guides. The harvest was, Herodotus says, twice or thrice as bountiful as in other lands, the ears of wheat and barley growing to a phenomenal size. Rich groves of palm trees waved in the breeze all over the plain and so expert were the food growers that from the fruit of the palm they got bread, wine and honey. From their scattered villages they looked with pride toward Babel – the Greeks called it Babylon – or the gate of the God. They had no physician. Marriage, he says, was by purchase or auction sale. His most famous statement about the morals of ancient Babylon is to the effect that every woman had once in her life to prostitute herself in what Herodotus calls ‘the court of Venus’, meaning the court of the temple of the goddess Ishtar. There she was compelled to stand until some man threw her a coin, saying, â€Å"the goddess Mylitta prosper thee,† and taking her away to his couch. (Shirlie) On the contrary, in regard to its morals and its women he totally misunderstood his informants. There was no auction of wives in Babylon, and there was no such law as the prostitution of every woman at the temple of Ishtar. By that time, Ishtar was a patroness of virtue and the chief refuge of sinners. Women had in ancient Babylon a position of respect and prestige scarcely lower than they have won in modern times and the law of sexual purity was most drastically enforced upon both sexes. The Babylonian code of laws was compiled by King Hammurabi. This code was found carved on a black diorite column seven feet high in the ruins of Susa in 1901. A conqueror of Babylon about 1100 BC had stolen it and carried it off to the hills. On the upper part of it is a figure of Hammurabi in an attitude of worship before the sun-god, Shamash. The king says he made the code himself. Babylon, supposed to have been a sink of iniquity, in which chastity was unknown, an example followed the clauses of the next paragraph in the Hammurabi Code of four thousand years ago. MESOPOTAMIAN CONCEPTS OF DISEASE AND HEALING Mesopotamian diseases are often blamed on pre-existing spirits: gods, ghosts, etc. Each spirit corresponds or is responsible for a specific disease. For example, ‘Hand of God X’, of the stomach corresponds to what is called a disease of stomach. A number of diseases simply were identified by names, ‘bennu’ for example. Also it was recognized that various organs could simply malfunction causing illnesses. Mesopotamian uses plants as treatment for diseases although this cannot be relative for magical purposes. In addition, specific offerings are made to a particular god or ghost when it was considered to be a causative factor, but these offerings are not indicated in the medical texts, and must have been found in other texts. There two distinct types of professional medical practitioners in Mesopotamia, the ashipu known as the ‘sorcerer’ and the asu which may be referred to as the ‘physician’. The ashipu diagnoses the ailment. In the case of internal diseases, this most often meant that the ashipu determined which god or demon was causing the illness. The ashipu also attempted to determine if the disease was the result of some error or sin on the part of the patient. The phrase, â€Å"the Hand of†¦Ã¢â‚¬  was used to indicate the divine entity responsible for the ailment in question, who could then be propitiated by the patient. The ashipu could also attempt to cure the patient by means of charms and spells that were designed to entice away or drive out the spirit causing the disease. On the other hand, asu is the specialist in herbal remedies and deals with were often classifiable as empirical applications of medication. For example, when treating wounds the asu relied on three fundamental techniques: washing, bandaging and making plasters on which appear in the world’s oldest known medical document (c. 2100 BCE). CONCLUSION Mesopotamian religion in accordance with my research clearly implies that it is the foundation of many religions since, Sargon, who founded the Babylon and created the first Mesopotamian empire, lived over two thousand years before Christ and even a thousand years before the presumed time of Moses of the Christian bible. One example would be the comparison in the story of Moses: one of the clay tablets covered with the cuneiform writing of the Babylonians and Assyrians refers to Sargon, the great king. His mother bore him in secret. After the birth she made a little ark or boat of reeds or rushes, coated it with pitch, which is natural there. She placed the baby in it and she set it afloat on the river, doubtless expecting it to die but hoping it might be saved. The child was destined to be a mighty leader and the gods took care of him. A water-carrier found the ark and reared the child, until the goddess Ishtar saw and fell in love with the youth, and made him king over the land. To sum it all up, learning man’s history always is a very interesting subject, it’s like being transported to a different world where oneself could be alienated. For me it would not matter because the most important thing is that you have respect to all men regardless of their religion. Bibliography Williams, Tyler. Ideas of Origins and Creation in Ancient Mesopatamia. 2007 Lindemans, M.F. Mesopotamian Mythology. 2007 Amytas, Voluptua. Sumerian Religion and the Eternal Return. 2002 Shirlie. God or Goddess? The Son Gods. 1999 http://www.oriental.cam.ac.uk/jmc http://www.archaeowiki.org/Mesopotamia

Parasite-Induced Changes in Host Behaviour

Parasite-Induced Changes in Host Behaviour Parasite-Induced Changes in Host Behaviour: Is it Truly Parasitic Manipulation? Introduction Behavioural changes in the host when infected with a parasite were first observed in 1952, when van Dobben discovered that fish caught by cormorants (waterbird) were more likely to play intermediate host to the cestode, Ligula intestinalis than fish caught by fishermen (cited in Thomas et al., 2005). However it wasn’t until 1972 that the ability of parasites to manipulate their host’s behaviour in order to facilitate their transmission was discovered and demonstrated by Holmes and Bethel (cited in Poulin, 2000). They showed that infection of the parasite, Polymorphus paraoxus caused the amphipod, Gammaeras lacustris to display abnormal behaviours that led to an increase in its predation by ducks, the definitive host of the parasite. Since then there has been considerable research carried out in this area supporting the idea that parasites have adapted in order to manipulate their host, with a large number of parasites now known to cause changes to their hosts behaviour. There is a wide array of influenced behaviours from anti-predator behaviour e.g. mice infected with the tapeworm, Taenia crassiceots show no stress response to predation (Wheat, 2009); to reproductive behaviour e.g. female mice infected with the nematode, Trinchinella spiralis show inhibition of their sexual behaviours, limiting possible mate response (Kavaliers et al., 2000). In a few cases completely new behaviours in infected hosts have been observed, for example orb-weaving spiders infected by a parasitic wasp build unusual webs that are designed to protect the emerging larva once the host spider dies (Eberhard, 2010). More recently, the idea of parasitic manipulation has come under criticism, due to the lack of supporting evidence demonstrating that these behavioural changes provide parasites with a fitness benefit (a prerequisite of an adaptive trait), either in the form of increased transmission or survival (Poulin, 1998) and has therefore been suggested that the observed ch anges may just be an inevitable consequence of infection, or in some cases mediated by the host itself in order to counteract the negative fitness effects of parasitic infection. Understanding the origin of these behavioural changes is of great importance as there are many manipulative parasites that have implications for human health, such as malaria which alters the behaviour in the mosquito in order to increase transmission to humans (Lynch et al., 2014) and Toxoplasma gondii which can alter the personality of infected individuals (Worth et al., 2014). Manipulative parasites are also seen as playing as important a role as predation in shaping biological communities, even having an influence on non-host species (Hatcher et al., 2014). Adaptive vs. Non-adaptive Behavioural Change The argument that some of the previously observed behavioural changes of the host during parasitic infection are non-adaptive and just a consequence of infection generally refers to three different kinds of phenomena (Thomas et al., 2005). The first is the idea that the behavioural changes are just a side-effect of parasitic infection and confer no adaptive value for either the parasite or its host. However this is a questionable explanation as it is highly unlikely that any such change in behaviour will not provide a positive effect for either organism. Therefore this explanation should only be used if there is strong supporting evidence and not used as a default explanation, for example the parasitic cestode, Hymenolepis diminuta was shown to cause reduced fecundity in females of the beetle intermediate host, Tenebrio molitor and was seen as a side-effect, until further research discovered that the parasite produced a substance that inhibited vitellogenin uptake (Moore, 2012). Seco ndly some behavioural changes may be considered beneficial to the parasite, but are not due to manipulation by the parasite in order to do so, for example when the parasite Ligula intestinalis infects the Roach (Rutilus rutilus) a change in host migration to areas where predation by the parasites definitive host, ichtyopahgous predatory birds, are more common is observed (Loot et al., 2001). However it was found that these areas are more productive and it is therefore more likely that the increased energy demands caused by the parasitic infection had caused the Roach to migrate to these areas in order to negate this negative effect of the parasitic infection and increase its own fitness. Thirdly other adaptations by the parasite may have coincidentally caused behavioural changes in the host which unintentionally led to an increase in the transmission of the parasite to its definitive host, for example Fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) are commonly infected by the trematode, Orni thodiplostomum ptychocheilus which caused a reduction in behaviours associated with host vision by the encystment of the parasite in the optic lobes, which leads to an increase in its predation by piscivorous birds. However this encystment in the eye may originally been favored by selection as it offers the parasite protection from the host’s immune system and not because it increased the transmission of the parasite to its definitive host (Shirakashi and Goater, 2005) On the other hand the argument for the adaptive nature of behavioural changes of the host during parasite infection is normally supported by the idea that it should show some degree of specificity in the intermediate host, for example P. laevis induces various behavioural and physiological changes in the crustacean amphipod, Gammarus pulex, such as altered drifting behaviour, altered anti-predator behaviour, partial castration and lower immune activity. These changes are not observed in Gammarus roeseli a closely related species, showing that the alterations by the parasite are specific to Gammarus pulex (Lagrue et al., 2007) Examinations on the effect of the acanthocephalan parasite, Moniliformis moniliformis on the behaviour of different species of cockroaches by Moore and Gotelli found that different behavioural changes had evolved for different species of cockroach supporting the adaptive nature of the host behavioural change (cited in Poulin, 1998). Indirect methods have also be en used to demonstrate the adaptive nature of altered behaviours in the host by determining whether the timing of observed behavioural changes coincide with the period when the parasite is infective to its next host. For example Tribolium confusum beetles infected with the nematode, Protospirura muricola only show observable changes in the behaviour of the beetles that make them more vulnerable to predation when the parasite has developed to the third larval stage. No behavioural change is observed in beetles home to the first and second larval stage. (Schutgens et al., 2013) Behaviour as a Form of Host Defense Not all changes in behaviour can be attributed to the manipulation of the host by the parasite as they do not benefit the parasite. The host is under selection to avoid parasites, and when possible to compensate for the negative effects of infection. Behaviour is often used in order to achieve this and is the first line of defence against parasites as it allows animals to avoid becoming infected in the first place (Moore, 2012). Animals may avoid infection by parasite propagules through behavioural means such as territoriality, site-specific defecation and mate selection. More drastic measures may be taken when trying to avoid ectoparasites, including migration, shifting habitats and lethal combat e.g. howler monkeys invest a significant proportion of their energy to slap at flies, and execute over 1500 slaps in a 12 hour resting period. Once a host becomes infected with a parasite, its behaviour will also be altered in order to minimise damage caused by the parasite. For example ani mals display sickness behaviours e.g. fever and behavioural chills, which may help in obtaining the benefit of increased care from other members of a group/population. Some animals, for example Chimpanzees, show self-medicating behaviour in which infected animals may consume medicinal plants that are not part of their usual diet. It is also possible in some cases that both parasite and host are shown to benefit from a change in host behaviour, in these cases it can be difficult to determine which organism is responsible for change, or whether it is a shared adaptation, for example caterpillars of several butterfly species play host to braconid wasp parasitoids and unlike non-parasitised individuals they perch at the top of high branches. It has been suggested this benefits the host by making itself more likely to eaten by a predator, killing both the parasitoid and host, but protecting its nearby relatives from the parasite. However it may also help the parasite by reducing the risk of hyperparasitism and therefore increasing its chance of survival. (Poulin, 1998). Conclusion Up to this point mainly laboratory based studies have been carried out in order to assess host behavioural changes due to parasite infection. Future research into the area needs to include field based studies in order to fully assess these changes in the natural environment. Currently very little is known about the molecular and genetic mechanisms underlying these changes. Therefore the basis as to how parasites cause these behavioural changes in there host is an area that needs to be addressed in order for these behavioural changes to ever be fully understood. Word Count: 1490 References Thomas, F., Adamo, S. and Moore, J. 2005. Parasitic manipulation: where are we and where should we go? Behavioural Processes, 68: 185-199 Poulin, R. 2000. Manipulation of host behaviour by parasites: a weakening paradigm? Proceedings of the Royal Society Biological Sciences, 267 (1445): 787-792 Wheat, S. E. B. 2009. Parasitic manipulation: The current state and future direction. University of Sheffield, Department of Animal and Plant Sciences Kavaliers, M., Colwell, D. D. and Choleris, E. 2000. Parasites and behaviour: An ethopharmacological perspective. Parasitology Today. 16 (11): 464-468 Eberhard, G. W. 2010. New types of behavioural manipulation of host spiders by a parasitoid wasp. Psyche: A Journal of Entomology. 2010: 1-4 Poulin, R. 1998. Evolution and phylogeny of behavioural manipulation of insect hosts by parasites. Parasitology. 116: S3-S11 Cator, L. J., Lynch, P. A., Thomas, M. B. and Read, A. F. 2014. Alterations in mosquito behaviour by malaria parasites: potential impact on force of infection. Malaria Journal. 13(164) Worth, A. R., Lymbery, A. J. and Thompson, R. C. A. 2013. Adaptive host manipulation by Toxoplasma gondii: fact or fiction? Trends in Parasitology. 29(4): 150-155 Hatcher, M. J., Dick, J. T. A. and Dunn, A. M. 2014. Parasites that change predator or prey behaviour can have keystone effects on community composition. Biology Letters. 10: 20130879 Moore, J. 2012. An overview of parasite-induced behavioural alterations – and some lessons from bats. The Journal of Experimental Biology. 216: 11-17 Loot, G., Brosse, S., Lek, S. and Guegan, J. F. 2001. Behaviour of roach (Rutilus rutilus L.) altered by Ligula intestinalis (Cestoda: Pseudophyllidea: a field demonstration. Freshwater Biology. 46: 1219-1227 Shirakashi, S. and Goater, C. P. 2005. Chronology of parasite-induced alteration of fish behaviour; effects of parasite maturation and host experience. Parasitology. 130: 177-183 Lagrue, C., Kaldonski, N., Perrot-Minnot, M. J., Motreuil, S. and Bollache, L. 2007. Modification of hosts’ behaviour by a parasite: field evidence for adaptive manipulation. Ecology. 88(11): 2839-2847 Schutgens, M., Cook, B., Gilbert, F. and Behnke, J. M. 2013. Behavioural changes in the flour beetle Tribolium confusum infected with the spirurid nematode Protospirura muricola. Journal of Helminthology. 1-12

A Data Collection Methods Psychology Essay

A Data Collection Methods Psychology Essay 3.0 Introduction In chapter three, all the data previously collected will be analysed to test against the hypotheses. The result generated will show the relationship between the 4 independent variables and stress. Research design, data collection methods, sample design, research instrument, construct measurement, data processing and data analysis of the study are also discussed in this chapter. 3.1 Research Design In this research, the researchers analyse the unit of undergraduates in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. They are analyzed using cross-sectional studies based on the relationship between stress and undergraduates stress factors. Survey is conducted to collect data because this research covers a large numbers of target respondents in different geographical areas (Sekaran, 2003). Besides that, research design can be altered during data collection stage of the survey (Groves, 1989). Moreover, survey is cost efficient and quick (Zikmund, 2003). Self-administered questionnaires will be distributed to the undergraduates in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor and collected immediately upon completion. 3.2 Data Collection Methods Primary and secondary data firm the basis of this research which provides helpful and appropriate information in this study. Primary data is gathered from the respondents through questionnaires. On the other hand, researchers collected information from online information databases as the sources of secondary data. 3.2.1 Primary Data Malhotra (2007) defined primary data as the information collected for the first time specifically for a research project. These data collected originates from first-hand experience called as primary data (Zikmund, 2003). Questionnaire is one of the standardized and familiar methods of most of the researchers where data are obtained without bias. As mentioned in Zikmund (2003), questionnaire is the main tool to gather opinions, perception, direct expression and descriptions from respondents and make the data more comparable and amenable for analysis. Hence, self-administered questionnaire is researchers choice to collect primary data in order to increase the dependability and simplicity of data in this research. According to Ministry of Higher Education (2010), most universities and colleges are located in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor (Appendix A). Hence, primary data was collected from respondents through 250 sets of questionnaires which were distributed randomly by hand in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. According to Ministry of Higher Education (2010), most of the undergraduates are located in selected target universities. The targeted universities included public universities such as Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia (UIAM), Universiti Malaya (UM), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), and private universities such as Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL), Unisel Universiti Selangor (UNISEL) and Universiti Tun Abdul Razak (UNITAR). Around 10 minutes are spent by each target respondent to complete the questionnaires which are immediately collected under the supervision of researchers. 3.2.2 Secondary Data According to Sekaran (2003), secondary data is the information from previously published or compiled sources by researchers for certain purposes which are related to historical data to support our research study. Secondary data included scholarly books, articles in journals, textbooks, government and private sources and online information database. Furthermore, obtaining secondary data is easier, cost and time effective but such data may be obsolete and inaccurate to fulfil researchers requirements in of present investigation compared to primary data (Zikmund, 2003). From the beginning of research, secondary data is used to review the similar literature study from online information databases such as EBSCOhost, JSTOR and ProQuest and other databases provided by Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR)s website. In addition, Internet search engine such as Google Scholar is also used by researchers to develop other related material in this research. 3.3 Sampling Design 3.3.1 Target Population This research focuses on the study of stress factors among undergraduates in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. Therefore, the target population will be the undergraduates in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. 3.3.2 Sampling Frame and Sampling Location There is no sampling frame in this research and the questionnaires will be distributed at universities in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. Since most of the universities (Ministry of Higher Education, 2010) are located in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor respectively, the researchers have chosen these two areas to conduct their study. The location of Malaysian universities will be showed in Appendix A. 3.3.3 Sampling Elements The sampling elements are the undergraduates studying in universities in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. They will be randomly selected for questionnaires survey as suicide cases for undergraduates in Malaysia are getting serious (Kok et al., 2011). 3.3.4 Sampling Techniques Besides that, quota sampling will be targeted at public and private universities and at 64% (160 questionnaires) and 36% (90 questionnaires) respectively since the figures provided by the Ministry of Higher Education (2008) indicated that the numbers of undergraduates in public and private universities are 247,881 and 140,669 students respectively in 2007. 3.3.5 Sampling Size To determine the regression of sample size, Green (1991) indicated that N>50+8m were N is the sample size and m is the number of independent variables. Since, there are 4 independent variables in this study, therefore m is equal to 4. Hence, n=50+8(4)=82, which means that the sampling size required should be more than 82 target respondents. However, according to Denscome (2007), usually the research sampling should involve between 30 to 250 cases. Therefore, researchers will distribute 250 questionnaires to the target respondents for more accuracy in results. 3.4 Research Instrument Questionnaires method is an efficient technique for collecting data in which the respondents need to answer a set of questions presented by the researcher in order to obtain information (Zikmund, Babin Griffin, 2010). In addition, Sekaran (2003) defined that questionnaire is a pre-planned set of questions for respondents to answer which enables the researches to know exactly what is needed and how to evaluate the variables of interest. Normally, the self-administered questionnaires can be personally distributed to the target respondents by hand. Besides, in order to ensure that the questionnaires components and measurement scales are properly designed and are easily understood by respondents, a pilot test had to be conducted. 3.4.1 Questionnaires Design Self-administered questionnaires are chosen to conduct the study in this research. Researchers distribute questionnaires to respondents and collect them after the response. This method is used because the direct contact with respondents. The whole process is done fast, efficiently, ensuring richness of data and involving a large numbers of respondents (Rattray Jones, 2005). Questionnaires method is a better way to make comparison and judgment then interviewing respondents (Field, 2003). Besides, closed-ended questions are used to construct standardised questionnaires in order to reduce bias and assist researchers in coding the information and simplify the data compilation process. English is international language and widely used in Malaysia, hence it is used in designing the questionnaires. 3.4.2 Pilot Test According to Zikmund (2003), pilot test is a small assessment designed to investigate the logistics and obtain information prior to a larger study in order to improve the questionnaires quality and efficiency. The pilot test can disclose the deficiencies of the questionnaires before proceeding to large scale studies. Researchers have distributed 30 questionnaires to the target respondents from UTAR to test the reliability and internal consistency of the questionnaires in order to ensure whether it is comprehensive and able to implement the real survey. 3.5 Constructs Measurement 3.5.1 Scale Measurement In order to enrich the description in research, the most common way is to perform measurement which is a process of assigning numbers to the research objects (Brown, 2011). There are four types of measurement scale which includes nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio scale. Each of these scales has its own functions and helps to differentiate the variables. There are three types of measurement scales used in this research which are nominal, ordinal and interval. Nominal scale is categorizing by assigning number labelling to objects based on its nature, for example measurement on genders. Subsequently, ordinal scale is categorizing data by ranking or order, where datum are expressed orderly such as firstly and followed by. Interval scale is to show order of things, however the equal intervals between objects represents equal differences. Likert scale is a form of interval scale where it is the most suitable to describe opinion measurement (Brown, 2011). In this research, a five points Likert scale is used by dividing the interval scale into five points to distinguish the degree of agreement and disagreement in each statement. The pointer starts from number 1 to number 5 which represent strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree and strongly agree. Moreover, the questionnaires are divided into Section A, Section B and Section C. Section A consists of demographic profile of the target respondents, the questions of which are designed to collect their demographic information such as gender, age, race, and so on. Section B investigates the factors of stress of the undergraduates using the 5 point Likert scale. The scale is used to examine the agreement of the four independent variables that influence students perceptions about their selection of stress factors of stress that contributes to stress. In Section C, questions on current level of overall stress of undergraduates are being used to examine how significant the factors of stress will influence their stress by using the 5 point Likert scale. 3.6 Data Processing The raw data collected from survey questionnaire need to be analysed in order to provide useful information in resolving the research questions. All data collected are needed to undergo a series process before it can serve the purpose of being analyse. This data processing is a process that includes questionnaire checking, data editing, coding, transcribing and cleaning before the analysis made (Zikmund, 2003). 3.6.1 Questionnaire Checking Questionnaire checking is a process that identifies, corrects, and resolves any errors or problems which may occur in the questionnaires. The questionnaires are being checked and amended numerously to ensure error free, followed by an approval from the supervisor to ensure the questions asked are of highest quality, appropriate and comprehensible by respondents. 3.6.2 Data Editing Data editing is performed to ensure high accuracy of the data. Missing data is being discarded while extremely contrasting data is being removed to ensure consistency and to prevent any undesirable results outcome. 3.6.3 Data Coding Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) program requires all data to be in code form, so the data are being coded before being keyed into. Therefore, prior to the questionnaire distribution, data coding are being done by assigning code to each option of answers in the questionnaire. In the research questionnaire, respondents are required to fill up their demographic profiles. Coding was being made on each question with the first answer on each question coded as 1 while the second answer is coded as 2 and so on. For example, in Section A the first question is on genders and the answer is either male or female. The code for male is 1 while female is 2. Subsequently, Section B requires respondents opinion regarding five different stress factors in their daily life. The five different stress factors also known as independent variables include financial issues, academic issues, social support issues and time management issues. As for Section C, the questionnaire focuses questions regarding stress level for the past four weeks of respondents life which are the dependent variables in the research. Both sections require respondents to respond to their level of agreement and disagreement by using the 5 Likert scale. The 5 levels of agreement are: strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree and strongly disagree. The code for strongly agree is 5, agree is coded as 4, neutral is coded as 3, disagree coded as 2 and lastly strongly disagree is coded as 1. 3.6.4 Data Transcribing After all questionnaires are retrieved, the answers to the questionnaires are converted into code data which are subsequently being keyed manually into Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) for further analysis. 3.6.5 Data Cleaning With the help of Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS), the checking process is enhanced ensuring consistent data. Any extreme data is easily identified and replaced with a more consistent data. Furthermore, missing data can to be detected thus ensuring no data is missed out during transcribing process. 3.7 Data Analysis The Computer program that is being used to analyze questionnaire data is Statistical Package for the Social Science program (SPSS) which includes descriptive analysis and inferential analysis. To ensure that target respondents have a clear understanding of the questionnaires, a pilot test will be conducted before distributing them to respondents. 3.7.1 Descriptive Analysis Descriptive analysis consist of measurement of mode, mean, frequency, range, standard deviation and variance. The researchers use it to analyses the demographic data in the questionnaires (Han, 2010).The research data will be summarized by calculating the average, frequency, range and standard deviation. Consequently, mode, mean, frequency, range, standard deviation and variance are calculated based on the interval scale of 4 independent variables and dependent variable. 3.7.2 Reliability Test A reliability test will be conducted to make sure the measures are free from error. Cronbachs Alpha reliability test model is selected to measure the reliability of the questionnaires and 0 to 1 is used to assess the reliability of data collected. According to Nunnally and Bernstein (1994)s study (as cited in Krishnan Ramasamy, 2011), an alpha of 0.7 is an acceptable reliability coefficient level and acts as the minimum requirement for validity. 3.7.3 Normality Test Normality test is used for the purpose of checking the normality of the data set (Archila, 2010). When the sampling size is more than 100, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test is used to test the normality of the sample data. The p-value will indicate whether the data is significantly different. When the p-value is more than 0.05 the data set could be assumed as normal (Islam, 2011). 3.7.4 Inferential Analysis Inferential analysis using Pearsons correlation and multiple is used to test whether the hypothesis is substantial. 3.7.4.1 Pearson Correlation Pearsons correlation measure the degree of interrelation between the dependent and independent variables (Mudelsee, 2003). Doss and Kamery (2006) mentioned that Pearsons correlation is used to test whether the relationship between variables exists. Hence, it is being used to determine whether the relationship between the financial issues, academic issues, social support issues, time management issues and stress faced by undergraduates exist. The relationship depends on Pearsons correlation outcome. The range of outcome is between -1 to 1. Positive outcome indicates a positive relationship between variables and vice versa. 0 outcome indicates no relationship between both variables (Doss et al., 2006). 3.7.4.2 Multiple Regressions Multiple regression analysis will be used for identifying which independent variable influences dependent variable the most (Hair, Babin, Money Samuel, 2003). Multiple regressions are able to examine the relationship between dependent and independent variables (Orme Buehler, 2001). Hence, it is used to evaluate the relationship between financial issues, academic issues, social support issues, time management issues and stress faced by undergraduates. Since the researcher used interval data measurement scale on dependent and independent variables where both variables are parametric, the general equation for the multiple regressions is (Yount, 2006). Therefore, the multiple regressions equation in this research is developed as 3.8 Conclusion This chapter consists of research design, data collection methods, sampling design, research instrument, constructs measurement, data processing and data analysis which are used to collect data for analysis. In chapter four, the researchers will examine the pattern of and analysis of the result which are collected from relevant target respondents.

Human Function: Aristotle’s Basis for Ethical Value Essay -- Philosoph

Human Function: Aristotle’s Basis for Ethical Value I. Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics Depend on the Human Function Aristotle presents a system of virtue ethics in Nicomachean Ethics. This work presents a prescriptive theory with the aim of showing how humans may reach a proper state of happiness in which the natural human end is fulfilled. This end is regarded as an end in itself to which subordinate ends are related. This master end itself is understood as a type of activity rather than a state that can be achieved with a limited series of actions, and this activity is described as a general practice of acting well in accord with reason. The Ethics launches an inquiry into what makes human happiness, or eudaimonia, possible, and Aristotle believes this is the highest good for mankind. Aristotle expresses this good as being the highest end that action reaches for, which is something self-sufficient, and he suggests that to understand action we should understand function. He presents his concept of the human function and says that humans must function well in order to reach the highest good. Funct ioning well is what is understood as virtue, and so his system of virtue ethics is overall concerned with humans functioning well. Functioning well is seen as aiming at a mean between excess and deficiency. The virtue of a thing is understood in terms of its function. A function fulfills a need, and a need is met by being provided the right amount of something but not too much or too little. This is why a craftsman designs goods without excess or deficiency — so that they will function well — and likewise human virtue must be understood as aiming between excess and deficiency. So the Nicomachean Ethics develops a system where all val... ...ve. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1998. Aristotle. Nicomachean Ethics. Trans. David Ross. New York: Oxford University Press, 1925. Irwin, Terence. Aristotle’s First Principles. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. Kraut, Richard. Aristotle on the Human Good. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1989. MacIntyre, Alasdair. After Virtue. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1981. Plato. Protagoras. Trans. Stanley Lombardo and Karen Bell. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1992. Reeve, C. D. C. Practices of Reason: Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992. 1 C. D. C. Reeve, Practices of Reason: Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992) 124. 2 Richard Kraut, Aristotle on the Human Good (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1989) 313-16. 3 Reeve 125-26.

The Misunderstood Message of Aime Cesaires A Tempest Essay examples --

The Misunderstood Message of Aime Cesaire's A Tempest      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A Tempest, by Aime Cesaire, has been the center of controversy for over twenty years now.   The argument is not concerning whether the play has substance, or whether its themes are too racy; the criticism is about its parallel to another work.   The work in question is that of The Tempest by William Shakespeare.   Cesaire has been bluntly accused of mirroring, misrepresenting, and misinterpreting Shakespeare's last play.   I challenge these critics to research Cesaire and his works, rather than pick apart this most insightful play.   It is pertinent to understand a few key ideas when examining A Tempest because Cesaire was not attempting to mirror Shakespeare; he was merely using him as a reference.   Cesaire, who understood that Shakespeare is an icon of the Western world, himself is iconoclastic.   He knew by adapting The Tempest to his own voice, he would draw attention from the West and raise awareness of his intended audience, the oppressed bla cks of the world.   But valuing this idea requires the reader to be aware of who Aime Cesaire is, what ideas he embraces, and the message he wishes to convey to his readers.    Aime Cesaire was born in Martinique, that time an island under the rule of the French.   He was heavily involved in the politics of his colony, being mayor of Fort-de-France, a member of the French Communist Party, and later founder of his own party, the Parti Progressiste Martiniquais (Davis).   Cesaire grew up in the 1960's, a time when his country was fighting for independence, many African nations were doing the same, and blacks in America were pushing for the equality of races.   He was a strong advocate for independence, and understood the effe... ...uld take another look before rejecting one of the most profound works in Caribbean literature.    Works Cited: Achebe, Chinua. "The Novelist as Teacher." Commonwealth Literature: Unity and Diversity in a Common Culture. Ed. John Press. London: Heinemann, 1965. 201-05. Allison, William "A Legacy of Greed, Slavery, and Racism" Available at http://www.cas.ilstu.edu/English/Strickland/215/f96/allison.htm Cesaire, Aime. A Tempest. Trans. Richard Miller. New York: UBU, 1992 Davis, Gregson.   Aime Cesaire.   United Kingdom : Cambridge Univ. Press, 1997. Hirsch, E. D. "Objective Interpretation." PMLA 75 (1960): 463, 470-79. Rpt. in Contexts for Criticism. Ed. Donald Keesey. 3rd ed. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield, 1998. Sarnecki, Judith Holland, "Mastering the Master: Aimà © Cà ©saire's Creolization of Shakespeare's The Tempest" in The French Review The Misunderstood Message of Aime Cesaire's A Tempest Essay examples -- The Misunderstood Message of Aime Cesaire's A Tempest      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A Tempest, by Aime Cesaire, has been the center of controversy for over twenty years now.   The argument is not concerning whether the play has substance, or whether its themes are too racy; the criticism is about its parallel to another work.   The work in question is that of The Tempest by William Shakespeare.   Cesaire has been bluntly accused of mirroring, misrepresenting, and misinterpreting Shakespeare's last play.   I challenge these critics to research Cesaire and his works, rather than pick apart this most insightful play.   It is pertinent to understand a few key ideas when examining A Tempest because Cesaire was not attempting to mirror Shakespeare; he was merely using him as a reference.   Cesaire, who understood that Shakespeare is an icon of the Western world, himself is iconoclastic.   He knew by adapting The Tempest to his own voice, he would draw attention from the West and raise awareness of his intended audience, the oppressed bla cks of the world.   But valuing this idea requires the reader to be aware of who Aime Cesaire is, what ideas he embraces, and the message he wishes to convey to his readers.    Aime Cesaire was born in Martinique, that time an island under the rule of the French.   He was heavily involved in the politics of his colony, being mayor of Fort-de-France, a member of the French Communist Party, and later founder of his own party, the Parti Progressiste Martiniquais (Davis).   Cesaire grew up in the 1960's, a time when his country was fighting for independence, many African nations were doing the same, and blacks in America were pushing for the equality of races.   He was a strong advocate for independence, and understood the effe... ...uld take another look before rejecting one of the most profound works in Caribbean literature.    Works Cited: Achebe, Chinua. "The Novelist as Teacher." Commonwealth Literature: Unity and Diversity in a Common Culture. Ed. John Press. London: Heinemann, 1965. 201-05. Allison, William "A Legacy of Greed, Slavery, and Racism" Available at http://www.cas.ilstu.edu/English/Strickland/215/f96/allison.htm Cesaire, Aime. A Tempest. Trans. Richard Miller. New York: UBU, 1992 Davis, Gregson.   Aime Cesaire.   United Kingdom : Cambridge Univ. Press, 1997. Hirsch, E. D. "Objective Interpretation." PMLA 75 (1960): 463, 470-79. Rpt. in Contexts for Criticism. Ed. Donald Keesey. 3rd ed. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield, 1998. Sarnecki, Judith Holland, "Mastering the Master: Aimà © Cà ©saire's Creolization of Shakespeare's The Tempest" in The French Review

The Woman Warrior :: essays research papers

Love Medicine Lipsha Morrisey's confusion about his place in society results in his combining both old Indian traditions with new American ideas in an attempt to discover himself and his place in society. Although this combination ultimately ends with disaster, Lipsha uncovers a powerful lesson about love. Lipsha's first mistake begins when he decides to concoct a "love medicine". Fearing for Nector and Marie's relationship, he draws from old Indian superstitions since "these love medicines is something of an old Chippewa specialty" (241). But in reality, while the idea of the love charm was born in Indian tradition, Lipsha strays into the American realm when creating the charm. Instead of the hearts of wild geese that the spell requires, Lipsha buys turkey hearts from the grocery story, a completely American creation. Shunning the Chippewa gods, Lipsha instead attempts to have the hearts blessed by a catholic priest. His attempts at playing love doctor backfire when Nector chokes on the turkey heart and dies. Yet even though Lipsha repents and realizes "it was all my fault for playing with power I did not understand", Nector's true love for Marie is allowed the chance to be revealed when his spirit returns for a final fairwell (255). Lipsha knows that since the love medicine was a fraud, Nector's love was real. "He loved you over time and distanceIt's true feeling, not no magic. No supermarket heart could have brung him back" (257). Much like his decision to "Americanize" ancient Indian love spells, Lipsha mentally "Americanizes" whatever seems to reflect the old culture. His observations of people and life reflect his susceptibility to American influences. Throughout the chapter, he makes references to video games and pinball machines when describing something. Death has always been an important part of Indian culture, as evidenced in numerous myths and legends. American Indians believe the soul is a tangible object, existing in all living objects. As a person dies, the soul departs, and travels to a realm of spirits. When Nector lays dying on the floor, Lipsha draws from his Indian heritage, the respect and awe of the soul while describing it with an American twist. "Time was flashing back and forth like a pinball machine.

Phoenix Jones Character Analysis Essay

They say with age, comes wisdom. They say a tough life will build tough people. That the world, no matter how terrible it may seem or how bad things get, is only what you make of it. This has never been shown more so by Phoenix Jackson from Eudora Welty’s â€Å"A Worn Path†. Encumbered with age and poverty, Phoenix shows fortitude, cleverness, and a child-like view of the world while traveling to the city for medicine. Welty’s love of literature from her mother, and classic writing style with African American characters (Marrs) is clearly displayed in â€Å"A Warn Path†. Eudora Welty, whose life spanned most of the 20th century, represented the world of the deep American South in multiple genres. In stories, novels, and photography, the Pulitzer Prize winner was especially interested in the relationship of place to character. Her art explores the impact of place on the life of the individual depending on race, gender, and economic status, as well as the reverse influence of the individual character on environment, which is exeptionally displayed in â€Å"A Warn Path† (Marrs). In â€Å"A worn path† an elderly african-american woman, named Pheonix Jones, is up against the world on her way to town. Armed with nothing but her cane, she maneuvers through obstactle after obstacle, showing perseverence in the highest fashion through every disincentive that inhibits her journey. As such, her story depicts the Depression in the United States from the vantage point of a victim insufficiently represented in art—though a victim who, like the mythological phoenix her name evokes, resists annihilation, Phoenix transcends the abuse she experiences. This essay will explore Eudora Welty’s character Phoenix Jones’s most exemplary traits. It will shine light on her fortitude, ingenuity, and light hearted view of the world. Provided along with Phoenix’s traits is examples in which she shows each trait, with direct reference to â€Å"A worn path†. Imagine, having every bone in your body weakened with over seventy plus years of aging. You now have the bones of Phoenix Jones. Weakened, she struggles to get to town. Yet, still she keeps trecking over every obstacle thrown at her. This calls to merit her outstanding fortitude. At one point she encounters a barbed wire fence. With barbs glaring at her, hungry to put a halt to her journey, â€Å"There she had to creep and crawl, spreading her knees and stretching her fingers like a baby trying to climb the steps. But she talked loudly to herself: she could not let her dress be torn now, so late in the day, and she could not pay for having her arm or her leg sawed off if she got caught fast where she was. At last she was safe throught the fence and risen up out of the clearing,† (Welty 850). This is a fine example of her phenominal perseverance and fortitude, showing she was not only going to get through, but she refused to let that fence make even a scratch on her dress. And even before that, at the start of her journey, she already had shown her tremendous amount of determination. As she starts out on her journey she exclaims with a fiery attitude â€Å"Out of my way, all you foxes, owls, beetles, jack rabbits, coons and wild animals! Keep out from under theses feet, little bob whites. Keep the big wild hots out of my path. Don’t let none of those come running my direction. I got a long way† (Welty 849-850). This shows that her mind is already set on getting to town and nothing is stopping her. These fine examples show the true, raw determination and fortitude within Pheonix Jones, showing that she may be frail, but she is anything but weak. There are few things that make true â€Å"good character†. Imagination is one of them. No one has better imagination than a child. A child sees the world as something different†¦ something better. Phoenix Jones clearly holds her inner-child within herself after all these years. After traveling a piece she decides to rest. â€Å"Up above her was a tree in a pearly cloud of mistletoe. She did not dare to close her eyes, and when a little boy brought her a plate with a slice of marble cake on it she spoke to him. â€Å"That would be exceptable,† she said† (Welty 850). Her imagination peeking forth, this shows even through her journey, she imagines a little boy giving her a slice of delicious cake, presenting that everything does not have to be serious. A little piece onward, she shows her enlightening imagination running wild again as she runs up on a menacing scarecrow that she gazes at from a distance. â€Å"Ghost,† she said sharply, â€Å"who you be the ghost of? For I have heard of nary death close by. †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ She found a coat inside that an emtiness, cold as ice. â€Å"You scarecrow† she said†¦ †Dance, old scare crow† she said, â€Å"while I dancing with you. † She kicked her foot over the furrow, and with mouth drawn down, shook her head once or twice in a little strutting way,† (Welty 851). Her fun loving child-like nature is highlighted through this passage, showing that she took a fear, and enlightened it when she found out it was a scarecrow, dancing with it, showing the trophy of imagination and optimism. Welty shows through Pheonix that imagination will never die, and that it is a precious tool to get over any obstacle. Further down the warn path, Phoenix is greeted by a discourteous hunter helping her up after she fell in a ditch in the wake of a nosy dog coming to investigate this strange intruder. This point is where she shows her cleverness and wit. As she is talking to the hunter, â€Å" Without warning, she had seen with her own eyes a flashing nickel fall out of the man’s pocket onto the ground† (Welty 843), and she said nothing. As it continues the hunter runs off and she wittily bent over in his absence and â€Å"The yellow palm of her hand came out from the fold of her apron. Her fingers slid down and along the ground under the piece of money with the grace and care they would have in lifting an egg from under a setting hen†(Welty 843). As he later lies about having money to spare, this presents her wit, as she gained five cents from this brash traveller who has the audacity to later hold a gun to her head as a joke, which does not intimidate her, and only shows once again the fortitude previously stated in the last paragraph. As she gets to her destination, a clinic that she gets medicine from, she meets an attendant when she first walks in. She came to claim a bottle of medicine through charity for her grandson, which may just be a guise to get free medication, which in itself is a example of clever planning, the example I am using is of her interaction with the attendant. â€Å"It’s Christmas time, Grandma,† said the attendant. â€Å"Could I give you a few pennies out of my purse? † â€Å"Five pennies is a nickel,† said Phoenix stiffly† â€Å"Here’s a nickel,† said the attendant† (Welty 856). She persuades the attendant to give her a nickel, which in total gives her a dime, showing her witty resourcefulness. Whether she uses this ten cent for her grandson a windmill, or something else she wishes to buy, her adept skill and dexterity is presented as she uses wit and expierence to claim these precious boons. Pheonix Jones is a woman of many traits. From her perseverance to her sly inginuity, she uses all her characteristics to get through â€Å"A Warn Path†. She shows her child like perception in a way that eases the burdon of travelling. To the hills and back again seven times fold, her fortitude and will is an object of pure sovereinty over obstacles in her way and in her head. And with just a little bit of quick thinking and bamboozlement she was able to obtain a secondary reward from her journey, a skill that comes in handy throughout her life. Pheonix Jones is a pure, text book definition of strong.