Belonging in Romulus My Father and Looking for Alibrandi

Belonging in Romulus my father and looking for alibrandi: Belonging represents the need for individuals to find their identity and place within a society. This results in the growth of individuals and their understanding of the world around them. Through reading the novels, Romulus, My Father and Looking for Alibrandi, we are helped to get a better understanding of the concept of belonging, belonging to a country, belonging to family, and belonging to a racial group. As well as the struggles of not belonging and being an outcast because of race. Romulus, My Father, written by Raimond Gaita, is a true story about Raimonds father, Romulus. Gaita explores the concepts of belonging to a family, belonging to the Australian landscape, and not being accepted because of the fact that Romulus was an immigrant. We belong when we feel connected to others and the world. Romulus found it hard to fit in when he arrived to Australia. This is understandable as immagration invariably involves detachment, loneliness and isolation. His first two years in Australia saw him working for the government, isolated from his family. Romulus did not physically belong to the community due to his appearance, everybody noticed his eyes, almond-shaped, hazel and intense. Colour imagery is used here to contrast the lighter colours of the stereotypical Australian. Romulus was embaressed about his dark complexion, he called himself gipsy and later in Australia, an Aborigine. We see here that Romulus changes his story, in a plea to belong to a community or environment. Romulus doesnt dwell over the isolation he feels, instead he has come to accept what fate dealt him. He feels he is not owed anything better then what he currently has. As time progresses and members of the community realise the blacksmithing and handyman skills he has, he earns respect. It was because Romulus treated everyone with great respect that he was eventually accepted and finally felt a sense of belonging. Similarly, in Looking for Alibrandi, written by Melina Marchetta, we see the pain of a 17 year old girl, Josephine, as she is stuck in between two worlds. She earnt a scholarship at an upper class private school where everyone is judged by how rich their families are. Josie is embaressed of her Italian background, she has been bullied through school and steers away from her Italian traditions. Josie endures pain over her background, and thinks no matter how smart she is, shes always going to be the little ethnic girl from Glebe as far as these people are concerned. She feels that she doesnt belong within society and The use of the words these people highlight the cultural divide and differences between the white anglo-saxon community and the Italian community. When Josie calls upon her father for legal help after assaulting Carly Bishop, her father asked her the reason why she hit Caly with a book, she called me a wog, amongst other things, her father then went on to say You are a wog Josie, does it offend you to be one? . From this point forward, Josie was forced to reconsider her perspective on being Italian. Eventually, a pride in her Italian heritage emerges, although she is selective and doesnt want to be a long suffering Italian woman as earlier generations of women had. However, she didn;t want to be a rebel Italian because she hates the thought of being outcasted by her Italian community, she wants to belong. A sense of belonging can be created with an environment. In Romulus, My Father, we feel Romuluss pain has he longs for the generous and soft Eurpoean foliage. Although the Australian landscape is beautiful, he has no connection or sense of belonging to the environment as he is used to the lush and green bush of Europe. Words with negative connotations such as scraggy and desolate are used to describe the harsh Australian environment and to highlight the fact that Romulus feels no sense of belonging with it. In contrast to this, we see how Raimond finally appreciates the rare beauty of the Australian environment. He now realises that how beautiful it is and feels a connection to it, he has finally stopped looking through his fathers European eyes, the scraggy shapes and sparse foliage actually became the foci for my sense of its beauty and everything else fell into place. In both texts we see the concepts of belonging to a family or close friends. In Romulus, we see the strong bond not only between Romulus and Raimond, but also Hora. The strong bond between father and son is symbolised solely by the memoir, the fact that Raimond wrote the novel about his father emphasies the strong bond they had. Romulus motorbikes were used as a symbol to show the sense of belonging they feel amongst each other, i was nervous when i rode with Mitru and entreated him to slow down on the gravel roads. When i rode with my father, no matter how fast he drove, i always urged him to go faster. Romulus and Horas relationship has stemmed from a cultural bond to a strong friendship based on respect and trust. They became close because of the similar cultures, and they were both aliens in a foreign country. Horas friendship rubs off onto Raimond, who he has great affection for. This is shown by Hora making sure Raimond had an orange for school every day. The fact that Hora would do anything for Raimond is a reflection of the deep sense of belonging that Hora feels towards Romulus. Similarly, in Looking for Alibrandi, we see the strong bond between Josie, and her mother Christina. Although they fight at times because of their fiery personalities, the bond will always be strong because of the hard times they have been through together. As Josie matures on her road to an inner sense of belonging, she becomes close to her grandmother. This is partly because of the fact she has accepted her Italian background, which means she can now tolerate her Nonna more. At the agof 17, she also meets her father for the first time. Initially, she resents him. But after spending time with him she realises how alike they are and they form a tight bond, therefore belonging with each other.

Human Right Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Human Right - Essay Example Values, such as freedom, equality and human dignity, are relevant to all societies and all times, but differ in their forms of manifestation and their roles in society. The term 'human rights' was born of Western cultural and historical traditions, but with the passage of time it has transcended the Western cultural boundary and become a universal symbol of human values. As a concentrated expression of diverse positive values, human rights enjoy unprecedented popularity today. However, each nation or culture has its own system and ways to achieve these values. People have different understandings of what human rights entail and what the approaches are to achieve them. These differences call for international cooperation and coordinated efforts of nations to promote human rights the world over. "Dialogue on human rights is a sensible means to surmount differences and reach consensuses." (Yunlong, 2006) During the last two years, one major 'human right' issue of conflict; was that of the Lebanese-Israeli conflict which initiated on July 12, 2006 .It had ignited loud criticisms. These criticisms were basically regarding the conflicts that had occurred because of the violations of the International Humanitarian Law. The international armed conflict and the laws which governed it were a major cause of debate. The issue was twofold: The relation of Hezbollah, the guerilla group, to the international humanitarian law, the treatment of the prisoners of war, the protection of the civilian's indiscriminate attacks and access to humanitarian relief. On July 12, 2006, Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite armed group, launched an attack on Israeli positions, captured two Israeli soldiers on the other side of the Blue Line (the United Nation embarked line after the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon on May 25, 2000). Nine Israeli soldiers were also killed. In response, Israel launched a large scale ope ration on Lebanon. The death toll of the ongoing conflict from August 1, 2000 has climbed up to 800 killed Lebanese civilians and 51 Israeli killed civilians. The Israeli army has been accused of disproportionate and indiscriminate assaults in its operations toward Lebanon. The Israeli Defense Forces said that they were doing 'everything to minimize' civilian casualties in Lebanon. The Hezbollah on the other hand launched its rockets randomly on targets within Israel and has been accused targeting civilians and civilian objects within Israel. The actions from the Hezbollah, as also from the Israel Defense Forces are reflecting the current opposing conflict between them, as they are also considered international humanitarian law violations. The second conflict in violation of the humanitarian law took place in Azerbaijan, which accused neighboring Armenia of breaching a ceasefire, regarding the dispute about the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, causing the death of an Azeri soldier. In this latest round of feuding between these two rivals, Armenia quickly denied the charge and responded with a counter-accusation that Azeri troops had killed an Armenian soldier. When these two former Soviet republics became

Describe the methods used to calculate value added. How does value Essay - 4

Describe the methods used to calculate value added. How does value added contribute towards understanding the connections betwee - Essay Example Value added concept of income measurement has been viewed as the increase in the wealth of an economic body. It is traditionally rooted to the evaluation of national income in macro economics, measured by national economy productive performance.2 This concept is referred to as National or Domestic product and represents a specific period’s national economy. This is a common use of this concept but it has also been applied in many other different areas of business operations and economics as a positive performance and economic gauge. This makes value added a measure and indicator of an economic entity’s performance and has a fairly long period of application in the field of economics.3 Value added represents a calculated value, and for this reason, it is well related to accounting. It is also contrasted from the traditional calculation of income in that, it can be and has been used in all the three accounting systems i.e. managerial accounting, financial accounting and t he national accounting system. It is also distinguishable from income computation whereby value added is constantly described internationally as a difference of expenses from revenues. It can be defined in two ways that will be discussed below and this gives value added concept another critical characteristic commonly known as the dichotomy of value added.4 Subtractive method is the first method of calculating the value added and it is defined as: Value Added (VA) = O – I. Where O = Output; I = Input. This means that when being compared to accounting income, it is perceived as the net figure. The value expressed is the value that an economic body, such as a person, an industry or a company adds to the products and services it purchased or received from other entities during its creative or own productive economic activities.5 In the second one, additive method, the value added is represented by the total sum of the distributed parts that constitute the created wealth. This is done with respect to the reality that all the created wealth is well distributed i.e. by being allocated in some way. When considering a company, value added calculation is defined as: VA (Value Added) = RE + RG + RCP + NAP. Where RE = Remuneration of employees; RG = Remuneration of government; RCP = Remuneration of capital providers; NAP = not appropriated income i.e. retained earnings.6 The two formulas above disclose the characteristic content that value added concept has. This concept can be divided into social aspect, represented by the additive method, and performance aspect which is articulated by the subtractive method. This shows that in addition to economic information given by this concept, value added also offers social information through identification of the part of the yield that goes to every contributor of the whole process in a company.7 Value added concept has evolved besides its historical principal function in national accounting to several other uses and appl ications in the three; financial, national and managerial accounting. The two sided feature of value added i.e. performance and social characteristic, is depicted clearly by the concrete and possible applications. Hence it has been argued as a way to estimate productivity of an economic body through their way of using productive factors.8 This makes the

Birth control Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Birth control - Movie Review Example The cost of sustaining the use of contraceptives is clearly evident and younger women, especially those in colleges cannot afford it. This can be a barrier to the women’s choice of contraceptive method. Given the extent to which contraceptives are important to women, more so college women, the government has an obligation to fund the low-cost birth control for college women. This will enable most women to access to birth control services at relatively low costs. As a result, there will be a reduction in the cases of unplanned pregnancies which often lead to abortions. In response to the post by the student, I agree with her that women need to embrace the use of contraceptives. The benefits of using contraceptives are very evident for those who choose to use it. However, it is also very true that the cost of sustaining contraceptives limits many women to adopt its usage. For this reason, the government needs to come with other options to ensure that most women are able to access this critical health care. Including approved contraceptive methods in most health insurance cover is one step in the right direction to ensure that women have access to contraceptive methods that are suitable for them. I strongly agree with her that there should be no politics around such a critical subject as contraception since it is a matter that touches on the health of

The limit of shipowner's liability towards the shipper Essay

The limit of shipowner's liability towards the shipper - Essay Example The seller (shipper) will not usually make the contract of carriage with the carrier directly. What normally happens is that a forwarding agent will be employed to make the necessary arrangements. Similarly the carrier will employ a loading broker to obtain cargoes for him. The COGSA incorporates an international convention called the Hague-Visby Rules which attempt to strike a balance between the different interests of carriers and cargo owners. However there is an opinion that these Rules are weighted too much in the favour of the carrier. Therefore another set of rules, The Hamburg Rules came in force on 1st November 1992. So we have the situation where some countries have agreed to become signatories to the Hague-Visby rules, whilst other countries have adopted the Hamburg rules. The UK is not a signatory to the Hamburg Rules. Indeed it is true that the carrier may limit his liability under the COGSA because it creates a one year statute of limitation to bring forth maritime claims, and it allows a stipulation limiting the carrier’s liability to a certain amount, for example. The aim of the COGSA is to limit the liability of the carrier as insurer and to promote maritime trade in view of the many, often unpredictable perils of the sea. The principle of the Himalaya clause was developed in the British case Adler v. Dickson, 1 Q.B. 158 (C.A.1954), where a passenger, Mrs. Adler, injured on the steamship â€Å"Himalaya†, sued master and boatswain in tort because she could not sue the carrier, which was contractually exempt from all liability. The passenger won the case because the contract between her and the company did not have a clause extending the exemption to master and boatswain. Generally, a "Himalaya clause is any clause in a Bill of Lading which seeks to extend to non-carriers any immunity, defense, limitation

Sexism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sexism - Essay Example Women have nothing to prove but there are still several men who believe that women are inferior to men and should be suppressed. This feeling can also be a result of insecurity, several women have the ability to outperform men in almost every field, this is why men feel the need to suppress women. Men make sexist remarks because they believe that women are inferior, Andy Gray’s example is very appropriate here, he thought that a lineswoman can never perform as well as a linesman and this is why he made sexist remarks and was later sacked. Saying anything inappropriate about women is called sexism, for instance several men think that when a woman employee gets promoted she gets her promotion by going out of her ways and giving sexual favors to her boss, this is a fine example of sexism. They use language which is beyond the pale; such things should be kept under perfect control in an organization. Women get raped so frequently in Asian countries, this is because of misogyny. Women haters rape them not for sexual interest but to inflict pain on them. Breaking down a woman physically and psychologically is more often than not the main aim of a perpetrator. Women should be treated fairly and they should be given respect, there is no reason as to why they should not be respected in the society. They have already proved themselves and need not prove themselves any further. Domestic labor is taken for granted; Karl Marx had serious problems with this. He said that women should be paid for domestic labor, women work indefatigably but we fail to acknowledge their contribution. They raise children but do not get enough credit for it. To conclude it is very fair to say that sexism in any form should be discouraged, our society would become so much better should we start treating women with respect. They deserve to be respected and not to be raped and exploited. Andy Gray Sacked (2011).

The Responsible Leader and Manager Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

The Responsible Leader and Manager - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that Debenhams, headquartered in London, is an international retailer of men’s, women’s and children’s clothing, gifts, electrical goods and furniture. The company operates more than 240 stores both directly and under franchise. Its management team is made up of managers located in different stores. They include Helen Tully, who manages the operations, commerce and customer focused retail business in London, Chris Halstead, the stores development and projects manager in London, Soleta Oliver, the commercial and stores services manager in London, Andrew Parnell, the operations and visual merchandising manager in Redhill and Shahin Rahnama, who is a store manager in Iran As a team, the managers coordinate the company’s operations with a focus on satisfying customers and the community and maximising profits. The manner in which stakeholders are treated and managed is a crucial component in the revenue generation and success of a corporate outfit. It is the managers’ duty to ensure that stakeholders’ interests are met for the sake of creating beneficial relationships for business continuity. Some of the stakeholders of Debenhams are the customers, employees and corporate shareholders. Customers form the core purpose of any business’ existence. Employees bridge the gap between the company’s operations, products and services, and the customers. Schroder PLC, in its corporate shareholding capacity, has 202.9 million shares, representing a 16 percent shareholding. The managers integrate their personal values with corporate values to lay strategies to manage the unique needs and interests of each group of stakeholder. The managers at Debenhams understand that their customer base, running into millions, works hard to earn and afford their purchases. They know that quality products alone, without personal attention and appreciation, do not represent full value for customers ’ money. They are motivated by the virtue of customer satisfaction to improve their services. They aim to be responsible and active participants in their communities of operation, which are basically made up of their customers. As a corporate entity, the company supports both national and local charities towards the well being of their customers.