Saturday, September 7, 2019

Life in Navy Boot Camp Essay Example for Free

Life in Navy Boot Camp Essay It was a warm summer evening as I packed for Navy Boot Camp. I carefully went down the list of things I could take and ensured I didn’t have anything else. A little nervous I went to talk to my parents about my move to becoming my own man. I looked at their faces and could tell that although they were proud they were a little nervous about their only son leaving home for the first time. My mom tried to smile but she was proud yet nervous because I had always been her little guy so she was having a hard time letting go. After a short conversation with my parents I decided to try and rest for the long journey ahead. Its now 5 o’clock in the morning and I’m up to shower and get ready for the trip, I didn’t sleep very much because I was so nervous. I showed and got ready for the trip to the Military Entrance Processing Stations (MEPS) for my final swearing in. My first trip included my initial processing and medical screening and now it was time to put all that into action. As my parent drove me to the station the car was very quiet. As we pulled up my parents got out and hugged me and wish me well. I walked in and looked back at them and it was like the cord was being cut between us, now it was time for me to make them proud and show them what I’d learned from them. The officer swore us in and we all boarded the bus starring out the window like lost kids. Hours later we arrived at Boot Camp in Great Lakes, Michigan. As we pulled up Company Commanders ran out yelling and screaming at us to put all our stuff in one hand and line up on the footprints. My heart was beating super fast and I was like what have I done. We marched into this room where they asked us to take out all our stuff, they went through it and told us what we could keep and what had to be sent home. After feeding us, they took everyone to the barber shop and shaved all our heads. They then issued us our initial uniforms and began indoctrination. After marching back to our dorms, we were told how the bed should be made, stenciled all our gear, showered and went to bed. The first night I can honestly say I missed my folks and at one point wanted to cry but I pushed on. I knew I had to do this for me and them, I had to show myself first and them second that I had what it took to make it. Day two and forward we woke up at 4 am with yelling and screaming that we had 15 minutes to shower, shave and get in line for physical training and breakfast. Everything was 15 to 20 minutes including eating; you learn to eat real quickly. Training was tough but as the weeks went on it got easier. Then around week 4 we had to swim, I was never a strong swimmer so I was nervous but I made it through. Around week five it seemed they got a little easier and then explained that the toughness was to help us rely on each other and build the necessary teamwork within us all. As time went on we had learned the entire Chain of Command, proper Navy rules and how to properly wear all the uniforms and the seasonal changes for whites and blues. As the 8th week came we got ready for graduation. Everyone was ready to show their parents how much they had grown up in the last two months. Part of growing up was proper grooming, making our beds and being responsible and accountable for each other. Some of the guys in my company sat around the night before talking about some of the hard times in boot camp. I talked about the hard part for me was the fire fighting training and taking off that gas mask, my eyes burned so bad and I coughed like I was going to die. We laughed so hard about that and having to jump off that diving board that seems like it was 100 stories tall. So now its graduation day and I’m so excited to see my parents and so they can see how I’ve turned from their little boy to this young man. We march out on the field and the guide yells â€Å"eyes right† and I look over and see my parents. My mom was crying as usual and my dad had the biggest smile on his face, it was a time I will always remember. Their little guy was finally a man.

Friday, September 6, 2019

History of Pole Dancing Essay Example for Free

History of Pole Dancing Essay Pole dancing is a combination of dance and gymnastics that is an increasingly popular form of fitness and dance. Pole dancers use a vertical pole which is either static or spinning, and train in gyms or dedicated dance studios. It’s no secret that pole dancing really started in the strip clubs. But it has evolved into so much more and pole dancing fitness enthusiasts and schools have been working tirelessly to change the perception to one of a legitimate dance style emphasising the acrobatics and strength. Circus influences such as Chinese pole and other aerial arts have helped along the way, moving it away from the erotic environment. Competitions are usually non-sexual and are judged on tricks and transitions rather than sensuality. Rather than just the gyrating and grinding people expect it to be, pole dancing requires an amazing amount of strength, flexibility and cardiovascular endurance, even a five minute routine is extremely tiring! Obviously in clubs, rather than actual tricks, there is a lot of floor-work and other things that are designed to arouse rather than amaze! Pole dancers use upper body and core strength are the most obvious requirements as there are a lot of climbs, spins and inverting the body weight – it often involves a lot of training to get anywhere near an advanced level. Pole dancing as we see it today originated during the depression in America. The traveling entertainment and carnival troupes would go from town to town. In one of the side tents aside from the main show, girls would dance suggestively on a small stage in front of crowds of cheering men. Sound familiar? Pole dancing gradually moved into to bars in the 1950s as burlesque became more popular and then during the 1980s in North America, became pole dancing and the modern striptease. It was only a decade later that a dancer in Canada started teaching pole dancing for fitness to women who weren’t club dancers. In Australia, the first pole dancing studio, Bobbi’s Pole Studio, opened in Sydney in 2004, closely followed by Pole Divas in Melbourne in 2004 and a national competition followed in 2005. Since then there have been dozens of pole dancing schools opening all over Australia and we boast some of the best pole dancers in the world, including multiple Miss Pole Dance World winner, Felix Cane. We do know that there are different styles of pole dancing including Chinese pole, and Mallakhamb (an Indian sport), neither of which have an erotic component and are mainly performed by men, so obviously pole dancing in different forms has developed around the world over time. The Mallakhamb pole is wide, made of wood and has a wooden ball on the top of it. Chinese Pole is usually performed using two poles, between which the men perform gravity defying acrobatics. During a pole dancing fitness class, which are often similar to aerobics or dance classes in their format, students begin with a cardiovascular warm up, use dynamic stretching and strength drills to prepare and then learn a series of tricks, climbs and inverts and often then put them into a dance routine to practice transitions and develop their endurance. One other thing that is often reported by women who have taken up pole dancing for fitness is a feeling of empowerment and increased confidence. Whether this is because of their developing strength, skill, grace or simply a sense of achievement, differs from student to student. Pole dancing now focuses on the fitness, acrobatics and dance performance aspects and competitions are fierce. Some dancers are lean contortion machines whilst some look like they could be body builders in their spare time. Women and men compete on a regular basis around the world in a number of styles, all with absolutely breathtaking performances. Pole dancing has definitely come a long way from the sexy tent pole dancing where it began!

Thursday, September 5, 2019

History of the Feminist Art Movement

History of the Feminist Art Movement Before the twentieth century, women artists struggled to participate in the male-dominated art world. Male domination forbade female learning in general. Women had minimal access to courses in art history, philosophy, and anatomy of the human body. Not gaining any perspective of the human anatomy hindered the women artists from creating realistic portraits or accurate majestic scenes. Along with the educational limitations, female artists were forbidden to sketch from live models because it compromised their integrity. Proper social protocol would suggest that self-expression of a female was limited to bearing children, conforming to proper social etiquette and lace making. Some women artists rejected social protocol of marriage to pursue freedom within their artistic expressions. These female artists laid the foundation for equality of artistic freedom despite the harsh regulations placed on their paintings. These pioneering female artists would discreetly incorporate feminist meanings into their work and wanted to remove the gender label from their artworks. The purpose of de-gendering their art was to compete and find recognition of their talents within the art society. By de-gendering their paintings, female artists started to gain recognition of their talents. During the early nineteenth century, female artists reputations affirmed their talents and they slowly achieved success. The twentieth century marked a major social and cultural movement for them. Female artists insisted equality within society by protesting the gender biases and limited opportunities within the art community. Their disapproval provided a foundation for women artists to fight for equality and justice within museums and art galleries. Along with verbally fighting for equality, these women designed their art to cross gender, sexual, and social norms. Early generation feminist artists inspired future generations o f female artists to break the stereotypes of art. Pioneering female artists had the courage to create artistic masterpieces, expose the gender biases within the art community, and shatter creative boundaries within society. This path for womens equality in art was received with criticism and objectification. Noticeable separation of male to female artists is illustrated in Johann Zoffanys group portrait of the newly founded Royal Academy in 1772. Female artists Kaufmann and Moser are not included among the male artists but their portraits hung on the academys walls (Chadwick 7). Their artistic talents were comparable to the gentlemen within the academy, yet, Zoffany treated these women as objects, not equals. During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, women were barred from the study of the nude models that formed the basis for academic training. The lack of academic training provided to these women did not stifle them from succeeding within the art community. Sofonisba Anguissola illustrated in fifteenth century that women could challenge the male artist, even with the limitations placed on their artistic boundaries. Women were confined to paint only self-portraits or respectable landscapes. Sofonisba Self-Portraits exemplifies her techniques in painting by the contrast, lights, and colors used in her portraits. These portraits incorporate her place within society, culture, and her own virtuoso. Sofonisbas father stifled her paintings when she became of age to marry. She refused to stop painting and defied society by continuing to paint when she was married and was bearing children (Chave). Her portraits still astound the art community with her brush techniques. Artemisia Gentileschi challenged society with her portrait of Susanna and the Elders created after the conviction of Artemisias rapist. She lived a horrible life of torture, rape, and deception. Her father was a great artist and ran his own studio for inspiring male artist. Her father taught her how to paint within the boundaries of properly raised females. During one of her fathers sessions a young student lured Artemisia to an outside room and raped her at the age of twelve. The charge of rape was unheard of and the case was taken to the high courts. At the trial, her thumbs were bound and tightened with each question asked by the court. This torture was to ensure the court that she was telling the truth under pain. The young gentleman was convicted, which embarrassed her fathers reputation. Artemisias father disowned her for many years over the judges ruling. She was able to transform her passion and personal pain over the years to create artistic masterpieces. With her success, s he opened a school for women artist at the young age of 14 (Mieke). Womens liberation was still considered absurd through the 1800s, but one woman artist took the world by surprise. Rosa Bonheur was an extraordinary woman that was restricted to drawing and painting wildlife portraits and landscapes. Rosa incorporated messages of empowerment and rebellion in The Horse Fair, which illustrates horses being pulled and shoved by the male handlers. The message of The Horse Fair was translated over the years as the horses represented the womens struggle for equality and freedom. In her personal life, she broke the mold by dressing as a man, having a female companion, and controlled her own money (Madden). Rosas conviction to be a woman artist and self reliant demonstrated early ambitions of womens liberations. The womens liberation movement started to gain momentum in the early 1900s with the Womens Suffrage Movement. This movement involved women uniting for equality within the social and political organizations. These rebellious women uprooted themselves from the daily tasks of cooking and cleaning to picket the White House for equality. The feminist movement for equality did not gain much political ground and many of these organizations disbanded over the inequality frustrations. This movement influenced many women to start exploring their own freedoms within society. This female exploration developed into various feminist organizations that promoted carefree attitudes of dancing, smoking, and enjoying life. Enjoying life was short lived for the early feminist groups due to the Great Depression in the 1930s. During WWII, feminist started to pull out of the depression and began performing masculine rolls within society. Rosie the Riveter was an image of the powerful women supporting their family and the country while at war. The image of Rosie fueled the sense of independence and freedom within women lives. Unfortunately, the war ended and men returning home from war wanted their positions back as the family provider. Women returning to the role of homemaker did not sit well with the feminist organizations because they started to gain social and political freedoms (Nguyen). The early 1900s laid a foundation for women rights and freedom of self-expression and liberation. However, it took another twenty years for the feminist movement to gain any ground within society or the art community. Through the 1960s and 1970s, America was facing the Vietnam War and social changes within the largest social structure, the Catholic Church. Women realized their lack of representation within society and the art community. They began to organize themselves into support groups in order to raise awareness of equal opportunities. A new wave of feminism gained momentum by actively questioning gender norms and tackling stereotypes. The Womens Liberation Movement in the Sixties started with the fight for Civil Rights among blacks, the left-wing political student revolution of 1968, and the demonstrations against the Vietnam War (Humm 132). In addition, these protests included the struggle for abortion-rights, sexual freedom, social, and economical equality. The Womens Liberation and female artists became intimately joined forces in fighting for visualizing the injustices of society. The inequality of women expanded into the artistic community that escorted the first protest on the American art world. These protests focused on racism and sexism within the art community that enraged many feminist. The progress for equality was beginning to become organized and powerful, which allowed for all injustices to be fair game. One of the organizations was the Art Workers Coalition that was formed by artist George Takis. He removed one of his sculptures from the Museum of Modern Art or MoMA in 1969, which drew attention to his disapproval of the treatment of various artists (Gross). However, his protest for women artists equality was not as important to him as other causes. This infuriated the women artists within the group to strike out on their own. The Women Artists in Revolution or WAR was an established as a fragment organization to protest the male dominated Art Worker Coalition. Cindy Nemser is an art historian and critic, who published numerous journals in the 1970s about the liberation of women artists. She attended one of the first meetings of WAR. They gained recognition as artists and not as objects within the art community (Russell and Spencer 112). One of the crucial topics during the first meeting was the debate whether to have an all womens artist exhibition. A few women felt fearful that they would be stigmatized by exhibiting their artwork with only women. Within moments the debate resolved to the resolution to have a exhibit featuring twelve women artists, which they would call X12:X. The intention of this exhibit was to illustrate the power and talents of women artists and it became a milestone for equal artistic rights. These twelve women artists conducted their exhibition on the roof in the East Village, NYC in 1970. Artists were: Iris Crump, Lois DiCosola, Maryann Gillies, Silvianna Goldsmith, Helene Gross, Doloris Holmes, Arline Lederman, Inverna Lockpez, Carolyn Mazzello, Vernita Nemec, Doris OKane, and Alida Walsh (Bock DiCosola). That same year of the X12:X exhibition the A.W.C. and W.A.R. collaborated to protest the actions of the Whitney Museum. The Whitney Museums Annual opening in 1970 featured 143 artists and only 8 of the artist were women (Gross). This lack of women artists representation in the museum piloted demonstrations by the Women Artist in Revolution and the Art Workers Coalition. These organizations advocated equal opportunities by direct open letters, demonstrations, and media interviews. The purpose of these demonstrations was to insist that all the art institutions reorganize the museums exhibition agenda. These demands included topics of feminism, anti-racism, and anti-war movements that needed to be incorporated into the museums exhibitions. In addition, these demands included the participation of the art institutions to exhibit and place minorities and womens artists within society. Due to the intensive fight for equality of female representation at the museums the Whitney Museum raised from 5% in 1970 to 22% in 1971. These protests opened many avenues for social and artistic equality within society (Tobias). Another organization fighting for women artists rights was AIR or Artists in Residence. The AIR Gallery open in 1972 and is the first non-profit gallery that exhibits women artists in America. These female artists would determine what programs and exhibits would be illustrated in the gallery. Also, each female artist would have the opportunity to demonstrate their works by designing and installing their own show. Some of these exhibits would attract some commercial venues but the majority of the exhibits would challenge the view against the stereotypes of women in society (Chave). This artistic evolution opened numerous opportunities for writers to focus on the history of womens equality within the artistic society. Moreover, these writers wanted to expose the tainted past with the historical perception of women artist. Linda Nochlin published an essay in 1971 called, Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists? This essay inspired women artists to reject art history of women because of the injustices within the educational and cultural opportunities. These rejections offered women the authority to reject the customary artistic education, which was held in reserve for male artists. She communicates that the fault for the lack of women artist did not lie within their stars or hormones. Linda explains that women artists do not have the golden nugget of genius and continues to state that women artists were not born with the genes to be a great artist because of the lack of a penis (Nochlin). Lindas publication encouraged many women artist to reject the past and re ach within their soul to find new inspirations within female art. Judy Chicago read Nochlins essay and began to re-educate herself in art history by rejecting the tilted observations of male art history. Judys earlier exhibitions of her work at the Jewish Museum included paintings as the Rainbow Pickets and Primary Structures. These earlier artworks utilized the Minimalists approach (Chave). However, this approach to art was abandoned with the awareness of the fight for womens equality within the artistic community. Nochlins essay inspired women like Judy to move toward the feminist art faction and to usher in aspirations of artistic creativity. The female artists of the revolution went beyond gender bias to create a new generation of stirring and proactive art. This evolution of womens expressionism facilitated the new wave of liberating topics that was incorporated into paintings, sculptures, and education (Lucie-Smith 196). Miriam Schapiro embraced the female experience of crafts and developed a new median of art. She was inspired by this feminist movement to demonstrate and elevate the status of crafts to a fine art through sewing, collage, and painting. The use of embroidery and cross-stitching within art has come to be known as femmage. Femmage was a word that stood for hand sewn art that incorporated different fabrics and textures. This unique use of crafts elevated her work to the high-art of collages, which is seen in the Dolls House at the Womanhouse project (Bock DiCosola). Schapiro wanted to encourage the ordinary housewives to be inspired and made aware that their daily tasks could be turned into beautiful art. Her popularity within the womens community allowed her to challenge the establishments of injustices and encouraged women to emerge from the isolation of the housewifes persona. Schapiros enthusiasm for liberating the housewife included educational projects with Judy Chicago. Judy and Miriam became acquainted by their recognition of each others earlier artistic challenges in the male dominated art society. They first met at a dinner held in the home of Allan Kaprow, where they discussed the possibility of Schapiro lecturing at the university where Judy resided. Both of these women embraced the emancipation of women and women artists. The first advancement of educational programs for women in art was created by Judy at California State University. Judy and Schapiro integrated their talents to design the first Feminist Art Program at the California Institute of Arts (Lucie-Smith 194). It was the intention of this school to create a new generation of artists, who had an expanded knowledge of the feminist self awareness. These challenges and recognition of each others work encouraged Judy and Miriam to have an exhibit that allowed the women artists to express their new femininity. In 1972, Womanhouse project was a brainstorm of Judy Chicago and Miriam Schapiro and integrated the Feminist Art Program at the California Institute of the Arts. This exhibition encouraged students of the Feminist Art Program to participate. The intention of the Womanhouse is to showcase womens performances and art outside of the school environment. Projecting the students into the social community gave a new purpose for their art and a chance to open the minds of the public to liberating womens artistic abilities. This exhibition joined forces with all the students to prepare a dilapidated house in a suburban area of Hollywood. Students that worked several jobs had to prioritize their lives to create new pieces for the exhibit. Beyond their own works of art, the students became laborers in repairing windows, rewiring electric and other carpentry related tasks. Unfortunately, the undertaking of this project became overwhelming for the students and staff. Numerous students were pushed to their limits and suffered sleep deprivation and exhaustion in preparation. Judy became the general of this project by yelling, poking, and pushing students to their limits (Sider). The students and staff managed to convert this house into a month long art exhibition for the public. Each woman was given a room to create whatever they wanted, providing it followed the parameters of the females experiences. The Womanhouse exhibition was received with mixed reactions by the critics. These participating artists were less concerned with the critics and more concerned with raising the conscious awareness in femininity. Each night of the show, the media and spectators filled the exhibition rooms to interact with many talented artists. The general, or Judy, created the Menstruation Bathroom that included a waste basket overflowing with dirty, bloody pads. She also scattered around the bathroom various feminine hygiene projects. Another inventive use of household items is the Linen Closet designed by Sandra Orgel. The Linen Closet illustrates a women trapped inside the closet or incorporated into the closet next to the folded towels. The head of the females appears to have been chopped off and placed on the self. The one leg appears to be outside but also attached to the body, it seems to be that she was stuck inside the boundaries of traditional womens duties. The traditional womens duty was challenged by a room called Waiting at Womanhouse. Waiting at Womanhouse was performed by Faith Wilding, which involves her sitting in a room with her hands folded while she rocks back and forth reciting words that stereotyped women. Faith would mutter words like, waiting for someone to feed me, put me on the toilet, or waiting for menopause. The message provided by this piece demonstrates the outdated suppression of females but also provides a powerful voice to break the cycle of oppression. Nurturant Kitchen was a combined insulation by Susan Frazier, Robin Weltsch and Vicki Hodgetts. The Womanhouse exhibit provided a creative outlet for the artist to explore the feminist view of unequal opportunities in society. Moreover, it illustrates the talents that women possess when they are not muffled by the male dominated society (Sider). During the Womanhouse exhibit, another organization for womens equal rights was beginning to assemble. In 1971, the Women in Arts Foundation or WIA became a structured foundation that addressed the discriminations against women artists. This foundation challenged the unfair practices of jurying female artists for shows. Also, they provided educational and professional information to these artists, so that they could govern their careers with knowledge. A majority of these educational programs tackled topics dealing with various law practices, grants, art dealers, and coping with critics (Morgan). The WIA organization also contributed in protests that took to the streets of New York. They would have television interviews, speeches, and even picketed events that were unjust to the female artist. WIA conducted a protest in front of MoMA, which included numerous open letter campaigns to the New York museums to reorganize their ignorance toward women artists. The result of this protest led to the Women Choose Women exhibition that opened in 1973. This show included only 109 of nearly 500 WIA members (Tobias). Although the percentage of women was low, it still set a precedent for future womens exhibitions. Women Choose Women was essential not only because it was the first womens museum exhibition but it gained recognition by the art community. It was important because it demonstrated that women artists were no longer under the control of the male influences and these males could no longer determine what works of the females would be exhibited. Also these women artists would decide how these exhibitions would be interpreted. Inverna Lockpez was one of the artists featured in this exhibition with an untitled painting. Lockpez was always involved with the womens movement since the early sixties and felt that this show was overdue. Buffie Johnson, Betty Parsons, and Mary Frank were among some of the diverse artists that were featured in this exhibit. This show illustrated various womens artistic abilities and was hosted by the New York Cultural Center (Jolly). The Women Choose Women show set precedence for other women artists to unify and take control of their artwork. The Women Choose Women and the sexual revolution aided in the liberation of homosexual and bisexual female artists. However, the fight for womens freedom was still ongoing and to tackle another issue for female homosexual equality would be challenging. The League for the Advancement of Lesbianism in the Arts was founded in Los Angeles. This foundation provided a safe environment for their members to explore the freedom of sexuality through their art. In New York City lesbian artists protested the lack of support within the art community. Ellen Turner, Maxine Fine, Flavia Rando, Ellen Turner and Fran Winant would target high traffic populated areas and saturate them with copies of their artworks. These artwork flyers would have the female artists drawings, which was stamped with the word lesbian art across the flyer. In 1974, the Lesbian Herstory Archives was founded in New York City by Joan Nestle and Deborah Edel. The undertaking of this foundation was to gather and preserve records of lesbian lives and activities so that future generations will have access to the material. Moreover, lesbian artists were gaining some recognition in 1978 with A Lesbian Show exhibition (Jolly). Harmony Hammond created the A Lesbian Show which was an exhibition that featured lesbian artists. In the early 1970s, she exhibited art pieces that resembled the feminist attitudes of the times. Beyond the confronting of the current feminist agenda, Harmony came out as a lesbian and became a strong voice for future generations of lesbian artists. She is an accomplished artist that incorporates lesbian feminism into her paintings, sculptures, and writings. Her artistic works incorporates the female stereotypical household materials into her sculptures and paintings. Some of these materials included the use of blankets, curtains, and any recycled cloths that were transformed into crocheted painted rugs. Harmony also experimented with latex and rubber materials in her sculptures which are illustrated in her bag collection. Today, this pioneer of womens art is still an accomplished artist, writer, curator, and publisher on the topic of lesbian art (Russell and Spencer 220-221). In the 1970s there were many foundations that supported the feminist fight. However, lets go beyond the organizations or exhibitions and explore a few of these pioneering feminist artists. These women used their artistic creativity to express unique insights within feminist art. It is important to recognize each of these following women as courageous and bold women within their own convictions to broaden the artists awareness to female art and equality. Cindy Sherman established her reputation as an artist by using Untitled Film Stills to provide a different prospective on photography. In the late 1970s, she created a series of black-and-white photographs which the artist depicted herself dressed in the guises of clichà ©d B-movie heroines. Another artist that used film within the artistic community was Joyce Wieland. She was a painter, writer, and director of her own movies, which include The Far Shore. Joyce is called the pioneer of the idea of women working together to create art. She was the first artist to hire outside individual quilters to quilt various pieces for her Reason Over Passion(Chadwick 383). Joyce was considered one of the most important artist figures with the U.S. and Canada. Judy Chicago used other female artists to aid her creation of the 1979 piece called The Dinner Party. She had taken the idea of getting other women to help her from Joyce Wieland, but unlike Wieland, Judy Chicago never paid the people who worked for her. This Dinner Party took five years to complete and she has since received a bad reputation for exploiting the work of other artists by taking the credit for herself (Chadwick 229). Judys efforts and drive helped the feminist movement toward a positive direction but after this show her past accomplishments were over shadowed by her greed. Benglis is the next feminist artist that rocked the artistic community. Her creations are very unusual concepts of the use of latex. During the feminist movement, she poured latex and foam to create sculptures. Benglis angrily created these works of art to represent the male dominated fusion of paintings and sculptures that had taken place within Process Art and Minimalism. Movement of the material was the purpose for creating these sculptures with the foam and latex. Benglis work was met with controversy over the critical awareness of the abstraction of content and the gesture of the mass (Tobias). Her creations of sculptures were very formal but used unique materials that captured the audience imagine. The sculptures during the feminist movement varied from latex to fiberglass. Hesses preferred material was fiberglass, which incorporated organic geometric elements into the sculptures. Most of her sculptures were rigid and contained mechanical shapes and forms. Unfortunately, during her peak of artistic genius, Hesse discovered that she had a brain tumor. It has been said that her unique situation gave her the inspiration to boldly use materials like latex, rubber, and cheesecloths to define movement within the sculptures (Chadwick 340). The last feminist artist that inspired this research for the liberating art movement was Betye Saar. She began creating artworks that incorporated the social injustices arranged within boxes with windows. Saar used mixed media collages, assemblages, and installations to illustrate her message of freedom. Saars work had a methodic element of passage of life, death, and rebirth. Each of her artworks conveyed stories of equalities, her own mixed culture, and the fight for civil liberties. The majority of her art work deals with issues of race and gender equality. The Liberation of Aunt Jemima forces the audience to see the injustices within the social boundaries of life(Barko). In closure, the evolution of the artistic freedom illustrates the level of bias within the education and opportunities offered to the early pioneer women artists. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, female artists began to organize and fight for equal artistic and personal freedoms. These early struggles for equal exhibitions led many female artists to conduct protests and boycotts of various museums to gain recognition. Various female artists that had the opportunity to exhibit their works opened new avenues for future feminist artists. These artistic pioneers illustrated that females are just as talented, bold, and provocative as male artists. The golden egg theory that males had a gift from God to be great artists was trampled by the feminist artistic movement. Moreover, these feminist artists demonstrated that their artworks were just as marketable as the male artists works. The organizations formed by these women were used to provide support and advancement within the artisti c community. Many of these feminists artistic organizations still exist today. They still continue to fight for equality and equal exposure for the female artist and their artworks. Nowadays, women artists are able to benefit from these pioneers of liberation; however, to benefit from the past is to maintain the level of artistic freedom in the future. Work Cited Anguissola, Sofonisba. Self Portrait. 1561. Painting. http://www-english.tamu.edu/pers/fac/phillippy/_women_artists/anguissola/. 30 Nov. 2009. Barko, Cortney Cronberg. Rediscovering Female Voice and Authority: The Revival of Female Artists in Wendy Wassersteins The Heidi Chronicles. Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies 29.1 (Mar. 2008): 121-138. Academic Search Elite. EBSCO. Westmoreland County Community College Learning Resources Center. 23 Aug. 2009 . Benglis, Lynda. Quartered Meteor. 1969. Photo.http://www.cheimread.com/exhibitions/2002_10_bettina-rheimslynda-benglis/. 30 Nov. 2009. Bock DiCosola, Lois Ann. Feminists Who Changed America 1963-1975 . 2007. 13 September,2009. . Bonheur, Rosa. The Horse Fair. 1853. http://www.shepherd.edu/englweb/artworks/A8.jpg. 30 Nov. 2009. Chave, Anna C. I Object Hannah Wilkes (Feminism). Art in America 97.3 (Mar. 2009): 104. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Westmoreland County Community College Learning Resources Center. 23 Aug. 2009 . Chadwick, Whitney. Women, Art, and Society . 4th Ed. Canada: Thames HudsonWorld of Art, 2007. Chicago, Judy. The Dinner Party. 1974-79. Photo. http://arthistory.about.com/od/from_exhibitions/ig/spring07/sp2007exh_03.htm. 30 Nov. 2009. Chicago, Judy. Menstruation Bathroom. 1973. Photo. http://feministartrevolution.blogspot.com/2007/12/womanhouse-1973.html. 30 Nov.2009. Chicago, Judy. Rainbow Pickett. 1965. Photo.http://www.lewallencontemporary.com/judychicago. 30 Nov. 2009. Frazier, Susan, Hodgetts, Vicki, Weltsch, Robin. Nurturant Kitchen. 1973. Photo. http://feministartrevolution.blogspot.com/2007/12/womanhouse-1973.html. 30 Nov.2009. Gentileschi, Artemisia. Susanna and the Elders. 1610. Painting. http://www.artemisia-gentileschi.com/susanna.html. 30 Nov. 2009. Gross, Alexander. The Artists Branch of the Movement. Inside the Sixties Book. 2009.September 15,2009. . Hammond, Harmony. Bag XI. 1971. 1973. Photo. http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/feminist_art_base/gallery/harmonyhammond.php?i=832. 30 Nov. 2009. Hammond, Harmony. Floorpiece VI. 1973. Photo. http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/feminist_art_base/gallery/harmonyhammond.php?i=832. 30 Nov. 2009. Hesse, Eva. Right After. 1969. Photo. http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/feminist_art_base/gallery/eva_hesse.php?i=1700.30 Nov. 2009. Humm, Maggie. The Dictionary of Feminist Theory. 2nd ed. Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1995. Lucie-Smith, Edward. Movements in Art Since 1945. 1st Ed. Canada: Thames Hudson World of Art, 2001. Jolly, Margaretta. Lesbian Herstory Archives. 2009. LHEF, Inc..13 September,2009. http://www.lesbianherstoryarchives.org/index.html. Lesbian Herstory Archives. Lesbian Herstory Archives Photo 1974. Photo. http://www.lesbianherstoryarchives.org/index.html. 30 Nov. 2009. Lockpez, Inverna. Untitled. Movements in Art Since 1945. 1st Ed. Canada: Thames Hudson World of Art, 2001. Madden, Gerry. Rosa Bonheur, a Boy in Petticoats. Hopscotch 16.6 (Apr. 2005): 36. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Westmoreland County Community College Learning Resources Center. 22 Aug. 2009 . Mieke, Bal. The Artemisia Files: Artemisia Gentileschi for Feminists and Other Thinking People. 1st ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005. Morgan, Ann Lee. Feminist Art. Art Journal 54.3 (Fall95 1995): 102. MasterFILE Premier. Westmoreland County Community

Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Decrypting Cryptography Essay -- E-Commerce Internet Papers

Decrypting Cryptography Cryptography is the study of techniques and implementation dedicated to the solving of complex problems. Today, its primary use is to protect sensitive information by maintaining the privacy of communications. In general, the secret information is transformed into an altered text by a process referred to as encryption, thus preventing the message from being read by anyone besides the intended receiver. It is this cipher text that is transmitted to the intended recipient, who must use the proper key to reverse the process, that is convert the encoded message back into its plain text form. Cryptography has seen a recent rise in popularity due to the expanding nature of communications technology, the Internet, and the inherent security needs of such systems. Cryptography has many practical uses besides providing a code for secret communications. A major contributor to the many current applications of cryptology is the status of computers. Cryptology provides the tools to create a large-scale network of individuals who can communicate with each other confidentially without the threat of an unintended party being able to receive the transmission. The electronically intangible nature of e-mail messages makes them particularly susceptible to attack. Cryptography provides encryption for e-mails, so that only the intended recipient can access the plain text. Cryptographic applications have been augmented with the recent increase of business conducted over the Internet, otherwise known as e-commerce. Online banking, brokerage accounts, and shopping have increased the need for protection against fraud, theft and corruption of the vital information that is sent via the Internet with each electronic transa... ...lobe. Whether you are trading stocks at the office, talking on a cellular phone in the car, or just purchasing a CD at home, cryptography provides the necessary security to insure that your sensitive information will not fall into the wrong hands. Works Cited [1] Daepp, Ulrich. â€Å"Public Key Encryption Scheme.† 14 October 1999. [2] â€Å"Frequently Asked Questions About Today’s Cryptology.† RSA Security. [FTP] ftp://ftp.rsasecurity.com/pub/labsfaq/labsfaq4.pdf. 1 December 1999. [3] â€Å"Leonard Adleman.† The University of Southern California. [WWW] http://www-hto.usc.edu/people/Adleman.html. 3 December 1999. [4] McHugh, Josh. â€Å"People-Innovators, Smart People, Smart Ideas: Leonard Adleman.† Forbes 7 July 1997. [5] â€Å"RSA† [WWW] http://www.whatis.com/rsa.htm. 3 December 1999 [6] Shamir, Adi. â€Å"RSA for Paranoids.† CryptoBytes vol.1, no.3 Autumn 1995: 1-4.

Tuesday, September 3, 2019

Audit Engagement Essay examples -- essays research papers

Subject: Assessment of Exton Industries, Inc. Dear Ms. Johnson:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I have recently reviewed the Control Environment Questionnaire for Exton Industries, Inc. After evaluating the evidence collected by our staff member, I have come up with an assessment of the fraud risks. From the evidence gathered, I have concluded that Exton Industries has a weak control environment. Overall, it will not do an effective job of preventing fraudulent activities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  While evaluating Exton Industries, I had to consider how the control environment would prevent misstatements arising from misappropriation of assets and fraudulent financial reporting.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The controller, CFO, and CEO review all financial reports before releasing them. Another area to consider was the assignment of authority and responsibility. Because three different people review the financial reports, it’s easier to identify any mistakes that may have been made which in turn reduces the chances of misappropriation in fraudulent reporting. Through conversation with employees it was noted that proper responsibility and delegation of authority were assigned and the proper information appeared to be considered in developing responsibilities. Written job descriptions and standards also exist. Since proper responsibility and delegation of authority and written job descriptions and standards exist the, the chances of fraudulent activities are reduced. Other issues to consider were management’s commitment to competence and human resource policies and procedures. During the hiring process, management makes sure the potential employee possesses the proper knowledge and skills to carry out the job adequately. Upon hiring, the new employee is made aware of his or her responsibilities and management’s expectations of them. In addition supervisors conduct annual reviews. The company’s previous success also shows that employees have the required skills and knowledge. Discussions with employees indicated that they are made aware of the consequences if they perform ineffectively and/or do not fulfill their responsibilities. Exton Industries has effective controls in their commitment to competence and human resource department’s hiring and review process. Overall, the control environment of the board of directors and audit committee will p... ...ast year several employees have left on short notice and there has been difficulty in retaining key personnel. The new management team is probably worried about getting profits up and by using an aggressive approach there may be more errors because financial statements may not checked as thoroughly. The cause of the high turnover rate should be investigated, employees may be leaving because others are committing fraudulent behavior and they do not want to get involved. Management may be encouraging this or may not see it because they are too worried about making the company look profitable. Lastly, there were failures to protect valuable assets, which could lead to misappropriation of assets. In conclusion, I found that Exton Industries has some internal controls that will prevent fraudulent financial reporting and misappropriation of assets however, they are lacking effective internal controls as well. As a result of Exton Industries having weak internal controls, control risk is increased and the audit team will need to choose higher control risk strategies. If controls in the areas lacking are not improved the control environment will fail to protect future fraudulent acts.

Monday, September 2, 2019

Essay Comparing Beowulf and A Knights Tale :: comparison compare contrast essays

Comparing Beowulf and A Knight's Tale In the stories of Beowulf and A Knight's Tale, there are many different themes. One of the major themes is the religion that runs through both of them, yet both stories have a very different view of religion. In Beowulf, it seems as if God has chosen where our life will end and where it will begin, everything happens by the will of God in a fair and just way. In The Knight's Tale, we see Greek gods playing with the characters and when they "play" with them, there is no real pattern to how they choose things. Each vies is different and this affects the stories in different ways. Beowulf has multiple references to God and how God chooses what happens in his life. For example on the very first page of the story (Beowulf, 27) we see that God saw the need for a king so he sent a king to the Danes. This shows us that God is able to see his people and in a fair and just way he sends them a much needed king. Later on, we see how God punishes those who go against his will. On page 29 we read that Grendel is from Cain. For the eternal Lord avenged the killing of Abel. He took no delight in that feud, but banished Cain from humanity because of his crime. From Cain were hatched all evil progenies: ogres, hobgoblins, and monsters, not to mention the giants who fought so long against God - for which they suffered due retribution. (Beowulf, 29) This shows that for Cain's sin of killing Abel, he receives a just punishment not only to him but also to his "offspring." Also in Beowulf, God decides when people will die in advance. This is shown many times by Beowulf himself. For example, every time Beowulf is faced with a major battle, he always goes in with the faith that if it is God's will, he will be brought out alive. Also, God must give him the victory because he cannot win it by himself. "Tonight we will do without weapons ... God in His wisdom must allot the victory as He thinks fit.

Sunday, September 1, 2019

“Beijing EAPS Consulting, Inc.” Case Study Essay

The case study, â€Å"Beijing EAPS Consulting, Inc.† in the Custom Book, (2011), examines the project management structure of the Beijing EAPS Consulting (BEC) company. This case study also addressesabout project plan itself and how the co-workers are struggling with this communication between bothmangers. This project plan has demonstrated many strengths and weakness. The one thing that theproject plan needs put into action is safeguards to insure that the project is completed on time.BEC has taken on the matrix organizational structure. This type of structure combines functional anddivisional organization structure styles. There are advantages and disadvantages in utilizing this type of organizational structure. Advantages include resource utilization, specialization, cross functional areas,communication and flexibility. Resource utilization allows for the project departmental managers tofocus on their strengths. Also, it allows for the managers to all the workers to specialize in an area of important for that project. In turn, it uses people across the company who specialize in a field thatrelates to the project at hand. This matrix structure permits cross departmental communication andflexibility to work on different projects across the company structure.( Guzman, 2012)However, with advantages come disadvantage with this type of matrix organizational structure. Thisstructure increases complexity within the organization by leading to confusion among both workers andmanagers. The managers may not know what a certain employee has on their plate. In reverse, theemployee will obtain an overload of work because they are receiving work from two different types of managers. Another disadvantage is an increase in overhead cost for the company due to the need fordouble management. This double management can lead to confusion between managers as to who hasthe higher priority of work creating a power struggle. (Johnson, 2012) The case study, â€Å"Beijing EAPS Consulting, Inc.† in the Custom Book, (2011), reveals many advantages anddisadvantages to this matrix organizational structure. For instance, the project manager, Ms. Song, andthe departmental manager, Mr. Yang, are having a problem deciding who makes the final decisions onwork to be completed because they are the same level in the management structure. Ms. Song feels like she does not have the authority to give direction to Mr. Yang’s employees. She is also wary about asking Mr. Yang to give his employees work from her because of his temperament. The loud and  abrasiveattitude of Mr. Yang represents the rational personality type. A rational trait is more forceful and can getangry quickly. (Lewis, 2003) Mr. Yang knows he has this type of personality; however, he does not doanything to curve this problem when he notices that Ms. Song is not communicating with him. Also, theemployees do not know which manager to listen to or how to prioritize their work at hand. This causesmore conflict between the employees, the project manager and departmental managers. In addition,these employees are not sure if the project manager or the department manager is their directsupervisor. This in turn causes conflict between both managers.There are some strengths and weaknesses that have been made clear about the project plan in the case study, â€Å"Beijing EAPS Consulting, Inc.† in the Custom Book, (2011). These weaknesses include an overload of individual and team projects. The employees need to work extra hours to keep up with tightdeadlines. They are also working across department lines meaning they have to meet the demands of more than one manager at a time. When urgent matters arise they a re required to add the new work tomeet a new deadline on top of the current work load which now causes more stress on the employees.