Abstract In this article, the writer presents the key reasons that racial reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous Australian groups needs to occur. The writer examines the contemporary situation in the light of historical approaches to policy making by governments.
From the Paper "Reconciliation between Australia's indigenous and non-indigenous populations is crucial for a number of reasons. The development of the nation and its progress in terms of domestic productivity relies upon reconciliation among its people. It also hinges on the ability to reconcile the past with the future. Australia's position in the international community is also seriously threatened due to the present attitudes which seem to be preventing reconciliation from occurring in any meaningful way. Most importantly though the very survival ... "
Tags: Aboriginal, Reconciliation, Contemporary, Australia
Abstract The paper argues against the cliche that contemporary music is without lasting significance. It shows that contemporary music is made up of a multitude of facets, including jazz, country-western and rock and roll. The paper discusses what constitutes good contemporary music, from its style to the source from which it springs. The paper also explores how one judges the cultural strength of a particular style of contemporary music. Finally, the paper looks at the inventive side of contemporary music, such as the use of instruments and lyrics.
From the Paper "A good example of contemporary music that served our culture well were the anthems and songs sung on 9/11/2001. A few songs were chosen again and again at ceremonies, gatherings, commemorations and fundraisers, and these songs had an even greater impact than the American flags that were waved in so many towns, in so many homes across the country. Although we have a national anthem, and a beautiful one, simpler songs often won the day. "God Bless America" could not be more homespun in its words and simple melody. Like a poem of the people, it inspires and reverberates through the cultural fabric. Another song that was almost always performed was ?America the Beautiful.? The melody is simple and memorable, the words evoke the majesty and myth that is America"her spacious skies, her amber waves of grain"and the song inspires emotions that very few Americans can resist."
This paper is an anthropological analysis of the contemporary fine art market based on Stuart Plattner's study, titled 'A Most Ingenious Paradox - the Market for Contemporary Fine Art' from "American Anthropologist".
Abstract This paper explains that Plattner's article, 'A Most Ingenious Paradox - the Market for Contemporary Fine Art', reports trends in the North American contemporary fine arts markets and in the commodification of fine art that reflect a neo-liberal environment of considerable new wealth and the culture of consumerism. The author points out that Plattner's orientation is one of participant-observation; a person exposed directly to the phenomenon of local fine art businesses and those who produce for them. The paper concludes that the local fine art markets are well established and profitable and that its artifacts may indicate a great deal regarding consumer tastes and behavior.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
An Informal Ethnography
The Decline of Authority
Economic Anthropology and Fieldwork in Toronto
Concluding Remarks
From the Paper "Few consumers can know much of why one piece of fine art in a local venue costs more than another, as producers know that few seem to purchase with an eye to buying something to appreciate in value, as opposed to buying due to personal preference. In local and regional markets, the artists that Plattner refers to as identity producers can have an involved philosophy towards what they produce of which consumers need not know, featuring ideas of contributing to a total cultural heritage rather than pursuing artistic fame or monetary success."
Abstract This paper examines the many theories and processes of contemporary management theory and explains the benefits and drawbacks of implementing these theories. The paper explains two of these theories - contingency theory and systems theory - in detail. The writer discusses how all of the contemporary management theories are somehow related to another. The writer then suggests that in order to understand these differences, organizations must become a 'learning organization' and be efficient in their knowledge management. The writer further notes that there are limitations to some of these theories as they are still currently being researched, developed and revised as time passes. The writer concludes that the beauty of contemporary management theory is that it allows us to combine, experiment and find best alternatives in dealing with today's managerial problems.
From the Paper "Management has been around since the beginning of human civilization, way back to the Egyptian times. The earlier years of the last century gave birth to the first theories in approaching management, which we today classify as the classical perspective. During that time management theorists "conceptualise organisations as machines, and workers as cogs within those machines" (Davidson et al. 2006, p. 21). This view gradually evolved into behavioural perspectives theories. The behavioural theories incorporated the elements of "individual attitudes and behaviours" as well as the "group processes" (Davidson et al. 2006, p. 22). At present we now look at management at a contemporary perspective. Contemporary theories "seek to derive value for the organisation" (Davidson et al. 2006, p. 26) by trying to interpret the "today's organizational environments" through the use of past and current perspectives."
Abstract The author of this paper discusses contemporary art in the light of a course taken in college. The writer of the paper states that contemporary art is art that is uniquely self-conscious of its time, that it is art that does not aspire to be universal or to offer abstract ideals about truth, but instead speaks about a particular aesthetic or moment in time. In an attempt to prove the validity of his statement, the author examines the works of a number of contemporary artists.
From the Paper "Likewise, Barbara Kruger's feminist use of collages, one of which proclaims to the viewer that 'your body is a battlefield' takes photographic images and superimposes ironic labels on top of those images in a way that demands the viewer question his or her assumptions about gender. Work like Kruger's shows how new ways of creating art, namely film, photography, and video, began to flourish at the same time as contemporary art, and many contemporary artists have used new technology to further question what is art, and the ways that art can be created. It can be striking to see what is assumed to be 'real,' namely a photograph, deconstructed and reconstructed, as it is in some of David Hockney's works. This can be, to some extent, even more startling than some of Warhol's deconstruction of advertising and celebrity, although Warhol also embraced film towards the end of his career as part of his artistic project."
Abstract This paper is a report on Mark Eisner et al.'s 2000 study of regulation and political economy, "Contemporary Regulatory Policy". The book addresses contemporary financial regulations in the U.S., as well as energy, environment, workplace, consumer products, and telecommunications regulations, and how these policies are formed and enacted.
This paper discusses Burdett A. Loomis' "The Contemporary Congress", which examines the dynamics of the contemporary Congress and how these have changed from the ideal embodied in the Constitution and from the practices of earlier eras.
Abstract This paper explains that Burdett A. Loomis' "The Contemporary Congress" begins his examination in the Thirteenth Congressional district in Pennsylvania, from 1992 to 1997, when the Republicans changed the make-up of Congress and gained control of the House of Representatives for the first time in years. The author points out that, although he also finds that a reasonably homogeneous party can overcome these tendencies, Loomis refers to the centrifugal Congress because there are a number of forces decentralizing it. The paper stresses that the forms of political institutions should serve the needs of the people they serve and should uphold and promote the values that these people want to elevate to special status.
From the Paper "Loomis discusses the changing nature of congressional politics, with the growth of lobbying as a way for special interests to reach legislators and to wield influence. Various social and economic pressures also operated to change the way policy is made and the budget is created and passed. The idea of balancing the budget is often raised, but this is rarely achieved. Even when it is, other forces may prevent a balanced budget from achieving what leaders think it will achieve."
Abstract This paper examines how current findings estimate that a large amount of children and adolescents have significant mental health problems, which are exasperated by contemporary stress. It includes information about contemporary stressors in children and adolescents, the importance of the developmental stages related to these stressors, and different ways to help children and adolescents deal with everyday stressors.
From the Paper "Children and adolescents shared the exposure to psychosocial stressors that include: life at home (parents, lifestyle, marital and financial status, and neglect), school (bulling, academic performance, peer relationships, teacher-student relationship), personal stressors (abuse, relationships, and physical changes). These stressors will impact the social and individual functioning. In young children may be difficult to distinguish from symptoms of minor illness. Some symptoms of stress are signs of irritability, sleeping, toileting or eating difficulties, fearfulness, difficulties adapting to change in routine and clinginess, or use of key words such as "sad" or "afraid." As children get older, their responses to stress may include more attention-seeking behaviors, mood changes, avoidance of certain activities, school refusal or changes in the quality of schoolwork, sleeping difficulties and physical complaints (headache, stomachache). "
Abstract This paper explains that misplacement is a common theme in contemporary literature, which is often an antonym to the American dream. Considering the possibility of unfortunate events and adversity that come interchangeably with life, the author states, the suggestion that ideal success can be achieved by an equation is no longer a practical remedy. The paper investigates the usage of various literary elements in which misplacement is illustrated as a universal stage of life in contemporary works by poets Howard Nemerov in his "The Human Condition", Louis Simpson in his "American Classic" and Shirley Geok-lin Lim in her "Riding into California".
From the Paper "The concept of winter plays a very significant role by symbolically telling the reader with which the persona is not familiar. Winter, in contemporary literature, is used as a metaphorical synonym, to represent death or the end of something, perhaps deterioration, or this case dormant confusion. It can also be considered as an imminent solace, which the passing cars indicate. The people driving these cars, with their typical technology, are enduring this state of confusion, by driving through the heavy snowy roads and leaving the restricted window frame."
Tags: misplacement, metaphorical synonym, persona parallelism satire
Abstract This paper analyzes the various theories of George Marcus in the study of anthropology and concludes with various 'experimental' solutions to the problems Marcus addresses in his article "Contemporary Problems of Ethnography in the Modern World System".
From the Paper "George Marcus's article, "Contemporary Problems of Ethnography in the Modern World System," is a call for anthropologists to take into account change, history, and political economy in their writings.(1986) According to Marcus, "Change and the larger frameworks of local politics have usually been treated in separate theoretical or conceptual discourse with some ethnographic detail added in for illustration." (1986: 166) This partition has resulted in a the world of larger systems seen as externally impinging on and "bounding little worlds, but not integral to them."(166) This paper will explore the methods, and their implications, that Marcus puts forth as a means of integrating historical and political perspectives with the ethnographic."
This paper analyzes and compares the following contemporary books: 'Trash Culture', 'The Death of Literature', 'The Medium is the Massage' and 'What was Literature?'.
Abstract This paper discusses four books about literature today. The author of the paper's ideas are the following: Richard Keller Simon's book 'Trash Culture' encourages studying classic literature and both its classical and contemporary interpretations. Leslie Fiedler's book 'What Was Literature?' states that the examination of the art novel is a pass? exercise; that our approach is flawed if we cannot cater to the detective novel, the pornographic fancy, or the comic strip. Marshall McLuhan's book 'The Medium is the Massage' discusses messages as well as the importance of themes in novels. Alvin Kernan's book' The Death of Literature' advocates negative views against television. The paper also includes examples of modern movies and television shows and compares them to certain books.
From the Paper "Richard Keller Simon, in his book 'Trash Culture' advocates the simultaneous study of classic literature through its traditional forms and contemporary interpretation, highlighting the importance of promoting popular culture in conjunction with classic literature in order to comprehend the crucial perspective in which the books materialize. (R. K. Simon, California, 3-5) In rejecting Stallone's interpretation and condensation of the Iliad as not having the ability to convey any of the inherent messages of its classic counterpart, we deny popular culture as a possibly influential schooling device. (Spectrum, Australia, 1) "
Abstract This paper integrates materials from the field of psychology to discuss the case of a woman diagnosed with episodic schizophrenia with interepisode residual symptoms. The paper focuses on her case as an example of the wide range of topics, issues, approaches and considerations covered in many different readings of contemporary psychology, as part of an attempt to understand the broad scope of this field. Through this exploration this analysis synthesizes a diversity of materials, ranging from traditional psychotherapeutic approaches to philosophical reflections on the nature of psychopathology and spiritual development.
From the Paper "Nancy B. Miller and Linda K. Silverman (1987, May) discuss the views of Polish psychiatrist and psychologist Kazmierz Dabrowski, who argued that higher levels of human development are only possible with "the breakdown (disintegration) of lower level, egocentric concerns in the service of higher level, altruistic values" (p. 221). According to Dabrowski's coding system, Ellen can be seen to reflect many of the qualities of the second level, having moved beyond the superficial, egocentric elements characterized by the most basic level of development. It is not surprising that this causes her some pain and discomfort, since the second level is an expression of "conflicts between basic motivational patterns and various experiences [which] lead to a loosening of the primary structure" (Miller, 1987, May, p. 222). In some respects, Ellen is moving toward the third level, and, Miller and Silverman (1987, May) note, "This struggle often brings about dismay, anxiety, and intense internal conflicts for individuals when they fall short of their own expectations" (p. 222). In this view, Ellen's pain is actually an indication of spiritual growth and positive personal development."
Abstract The nature of marketing has changed in the wake of globalization. The marketing organization that both survives and thrives in this evolving environment will be the one that hones its capabilities, builds upon these capabilities and applies these capabilities in the satisfaction of customers. This research examines contemporary marketing problems within the context of capability-based marketing. Essentially, capability-based marketing holds that a firm should concentrate on its most problem-causing customers and attempt to satisfy them. The paper shows that through learning to deal with such problem customers, the capability-based marketing approach holds that marketing companies will develop expertise that will enhance their capabilities to serve all customers.
From the Paper "The concept of mass production is based on assumptions of stability in both product and process change. Within the framework of such assumptions, both "product specifications and demand are relatively stable and predictable" (Boynton, Victor, & Pine, 1993, p. 43). Such stability facilitates the standardization of products, the centralization of decision-making, the routinization of work and rewards, the development and enforcement of standardized rules and procedures, and the allocation of work on a dedicated basis to specialized tasks. Such conditions, thus, lead naturally to the development of the mechanistic organization (Davidson & Davis, 1990)."
Abstract This essay provides an extensive analysis of contemporary conflicts. It examines the nature of guerrilla warfare and how it can negate the technological superiority of larger states. It studies the tactical lessons drawn from individual conflicts and the changing roles of the army, navy and air force, as well as the importance of effective combined arms. It also studies modern warfare from a political viewpoint, the role of the media and the ability of the United Nations to secure a stable international environment.
From the Paper "The conflicts of the past twenty-five years have been notable for their range and variety. Few corners of the globe have been left untouched; the recent terrorist attacks in New York and Washington have even brought conflict to America's doorstep, and only the continent of Australasia has remained relatively unscathed. Furthermore, the types of conflict have been as varied as they have been widespread, including wars of nationalism, revenge, territorial acquisition, ideology and humanitarian intervention. These wars have manifested themselves in a variety of different ways, from old-style trench warfare seemingly copied straight out of the First World War, to high-precision bombing campaigns, where the attackers are almost completely removed from the battlefield, and experience few, if any, casualties. Therefore, it is difficult to generalise about the lessons derived from these wars. This period has been dominated by the decline and fall of the Soviet Union, and few conflicts have occurred, even a decade later, which have not been affected by the legacy of the Cold War. Formerly suppressed nationalism has been released, reviving age-old tensions in the former Yugoslavia, and sparking many civil wars across Africa, whilst the Soviet Union's demise has caused the United States and her allies to look elsewhere for enemies to fill the Soviet gap, particularly the Middle-East, and potentially China. Meanwhile, many believe that the United States is going through a 'revolution in military affairs', heralded by her victories over Iraq and the Taliban Alliance. However, neither victory proved her ability to defeat a popular, irregular army: Iraq deployed a conventional force, whilst the Taliban had little local support, and had to fight against the Northern Alliance as well. Thus, the Soviet experience in Afghanistan, and the Russian experience in Chechnya, still provide important lessons for the future."
Tags: afghanistan, artillery, chechnya, iraq, kosovo
Abstract This paper will discuss the elements of neo-colonialism that seems to have affected a large part of the Sub-Saharan parts of Africa within the book "Understanding Contemporary Africa" by Douglas Gordon. This paper will focus on the ways that this has been achieved in the rules that the colonials have created upon the African learning systems here. With this in mind, we can see how they function in tandem.
