General Statement About Your Topic Example Essay Of How Does History Repeat Itself
Wednesday, October 30, 2019
ISOM 201 Excel assignment Speech or Presentation
ISOM 201 Excel assignment - Speech or Presentation Example The means are however different among the retailers and means that the standard deviation is not a god measure for variability. The universal measure, coefficient of variation, which does not depend on units, is therefore suitable (109). Based on the coefficient of variation, the demand is more volatile for retailer D and least volatile for retailer B. Retailer A experiences the second highest level of volatility and retailer C follows. From the results, and using either the standard deviation or coefficient of variation because of equivalent means, combining retailer B and retailer D, reduces the variability from 69.9 percent to 64.75 percent. The other combinations increase variability of D. Postponement tactic allows Benetton to meet uncertain demand of each color by reducing the level of uncertainty. By waiting until demand arises in a season, the company operates under certainty. Production is also done on demand and therefore to meet customersââ¬â¢ needs at a low inventory level. With high level of uncertainty, the postponement strategy reduces volatility to establish accuracy in production volumes. This ensures reliable and valid data and the eliminated error, due to variation, in the production volumes, ensures accurate
Sunday, October 27, 2019
Outline of the key models of working memory
Outline of the key models of working memory Memory has long fascinated cognitive psychologists and cognitive theories as to the nature of memory go as far back as the late 19th century and William James (James, 1890). He was the first to propose a multi-store model of memory. In it he distinguished between primary and secondary memory. He stated that primary memory consisted of information that remained in the consciousness immediately after it had been perceived and secondary memory which constituted memories that had left the consciousness but were still readily obtainable. His theories became the benchmark for cognitive research in the area of memory and were expanded upon with the terms short-term memory and long-term memory soon becoming coined instead of his primary and secondary memory model. This was then developed into a three stage model by Atkinson and Shiffren in 1968 (Passer Smith, 2009). This multi-store model was a quite a large advancement; however it was very basic in design as regards the workings of short t erm memory (Eysenck Keane, 2010). It wasnt until the 70s and Baddeley and Hitchs model of working memory, that a more developed theory on short term memory was properly explored (Baddeley and Hitch, 1974). They believed that the three stage model of memory was too passive in its explanation on short term memory. This was the most complex theory in this area that had been put forward at the time, however Baddeleys Working Memory theory is not universally agreed upon and other contrasting views exist. For example Shah and Miyake disagree with some of Baddeleys assumptions in a paper published in 1996 (Eysenck and Keane, 2010). In this essay different theories on working memory will be explored, also to be taken into account is how they compare and contrast. It will also be evaluated whether working memory can be understood in terms of attentional control by taking into account various studies. The Working Memory model has been greatly expanded on over the years since it was first published yet its core arguments remain the same. Working memory is a limited capacity system that temporarily stores and processes information (Passer Smith, 2009). According to Baddeley, working memory is split into four components, a phonological loop, a visuo-spatial sketchpad, a central executive and an episodic buffer. The phonological loop is where sounds are briefly stored in working memory. It is active when listening to spoken words or sounding out words while reading. Baddeley and Hitch proposed that the phonological loop is made up of two mechanisms, a phonological store and an articulatory rehearsal system. The articulatory rehearsal system silently repeats the information in order to access the phonological store which is connected with the perception of speech. As shown in Eysenck Keane (2010) there is fairly good evidence to support its presence through research with brain damaged patients. However the point should be raised that the phonological loop seems to have little purpose as people with deficient phonological loops seem to manage very well. The visuo-spatial sketchpad oversees the brief storage of visual and spatial information (Passer Smith, 2010). Similar to the phonological loop Baddeley proposed that it also can be separated into two mechanisms, the visual cache which stores information concerning the image from and colour and the inner scribe which processes spatial and movement information. It also transfers the information from the visual cache to the central executive. It should also be noted that the Baddeleys working memory theory allows for the phonological loop and the visuo-spatial sketchpad to be used simultaneously, this can be seen when a word is linked with an image in memory. Evidence by a variety of researchers supports the idea of separate spatial and visual components including research by Quinn and Mc Connell in 1996 and Beschin et al in 1997 however very little is yet proven about the processes which integrate both of these (Eysenck Keane, 2010). The central executive is the most important, yet least understood, of Baddeleys four components in his working memory model. It directs the overall action of the other components and is theorized to be contained in the frontal lobes of the brain. It is also theorized to be responsible for the switching of attention between tasks, the planning of sub-tasks to achieve a goal, the updating and checking of the contents of the working memory system and coding representations in working memory for time and place of appearance (Eysenck Keane, 2010). Baddeley used the impairments displayed by individuals who suffered from damage to the frontal lobes on their brain as evidence to support the presence of the central executive. He hypothesised that it was because of a malfunctioning central executive that these individuals acted as though they lacked a system to control their processing resources appropriately. Baddeley called this dysexecutive syndrome (Eysenck Keane, 2010). The final component of Baddeleys model is the episodic buffer; this was only added to the working memory theory in 2000. It was believed that the model was lacking a general storage system that is not limited to just one form of information but can manage several types. This is the role that the episodic buffer fills. It takes information from both the long term and working memory and integrates and manipulates it so that it can be consciously used. Baddeley also believed that the episodic buffer comes into play when chunking information. He proposed that the episodic buffer expands on the phonological loops limited acoustic range and allows the brain to remember larger chunks of information in the short term by putting them into meaningful phrases and linking them together with what is already known in the long term memory (Passer Smith, 2009) Baddeley and Hitches working memory model is extremely comprehensive and is a very valid alternative to Atkinson and Shiffrens short term store model as it has more evidence to support its theories then the other way around (Eysenck Keane, 2010). However not all researchers agree with all aspects of this working memory model. Shah and Miyake (1996) disagreed with Baddeleys notion that there is only one central executive. They put forward the theory that there are in fact separate central executives that deal with verbal and spatial working memory systems respectively. They obtained evidence that supported their view through a study in which students were presented with tests of verbal and spatial working memory, in their results the correlations between reading span and spatial span seemed to agree with their hypothesis on separateness. This showcases that Baddeley and Hitches model is not omnipotent. Another working memory model is Cowans Integrated Framework theory (Cowan, 1995). Here Cowan doesnt regard working memory as a separate system, but as a part of long-term memory and he believes that working memory is organized into two levels. The first level is made up of the activation of long-term memory stores; he believes that there can be many of these and that there is no limit to activation of these stores in long-term memory. The second level is called the focus of attention. The focus is regarded as capacity limited and holds up to four of the activated stores. Cowans model is not as expansive as Baddeleys and it goes against the grain as it promotes a single-store model which could be viewed as dated by many researchers today. However it does attempt to understand working memory in terms of attentional control, a view shared by many. A study on adults with ADHD sought to prove whether working memory ability could explain group differences in brain activity between those with ADHD and a control group during attentionally demanding situations (Burgess et al, 2010). Their results seemed to suggest that a link does indeed exist between working memory and attentional control. Also, Baddeley himself said that the central executive and the supervisory attentional system (SAS) described by Shallice (1982) were one and the same. According to Shallice, the supervisory attentional system is a limited capacity system that is used for a variety of purposes, including the monitoring of tasks involving planning or decision making. In conclusion this essay examined the working memory model and some of its offshoot models. Baddeley and Hitchs original model has been developed and most researchers use it as the base model for their studies in this area. It has been expanded upon many times over the years and seems to be able to incorporate more modern ideas into its basic structure. As a result the argument can be put forward that it is currently the best model of working memory. As regards working memory and attentional control, they appear to be linked and studies seem to have shown that link as shown by
Friday, October 25, 2019
Libya: A Deep and Rich History Essay -- essays research papers
Libya: A Deep and Rich History In the beginning of the 20th century Libya was a country that was not to populate nor did it have much power. The name Libya was given by the Italians, who had a major influence in Libya from 1911 until the end of World War II. At the turn of the century the Ottoman Empire was in control of Libya, which at the time was spilt up into three parts. One part was around Tripoli called Tripolitania in the west. The second was around Banghazi called Cyrenaica in the east. The third was in the southwest part of the country called Fezzan. Over the next 90 years Libya would see it shares of rulers and bloodshed. Some important factors that have helped Libya become the country it is today were the creation of the Sanusiyah brotherhood and their resistance against the Italians, Italian colonialism from 1911 to WWII, Libya gaining itââ¬â¢s independence, and the discovery of oil in the late 1950ââ¬â¢s. So much has happened to Libya in the last 90 years, which has developed a unique history t hat involves a country over coming annexation and leading up to Libya becoming an independent country. The Ottoman Empire had been in control of Libya since the 16th century. The Karamanli dynasty ruled the area around Libya, Algeria, and Tunisia from 1711 to 1835. Over the 124 years they were in power there were many rulers, but it was not until the Ottoman decided to review how that area was being run and decided to change to control to include officials from Istanbul and limited that areas modernization so that it was the same with the rest of the empire. One of the most important events in Libyan history was the formation of the Sanusiyah brotherhood in 1837. This brotherhood was an Islamic order that preached a stricter form of Islam. The Sanusiyah would give people help and tell others how things should be done. This gave all the new followers a feeling of unity. The original meeting place of the Sanusiyah was in the ruins of Cyrene in eastern Cyrenaica, but was moved to the oasis of Jaghbub near Egypt. The founder was called the Grand Sanusi. His son took over in 1895 and tried to gain influence southward in the oasis of Al-Kufrah. The Ottomans noticed this and did not intervene, but keep their eye the situation. In 1902 Italy saw that the British and the French were not that interested in Libya. They gave their blessings for the Italians to pursue the... ...on sites that were claimed to be ââ¬Å"terrorist centers.â⬠One of the sites was Qaddafiââ¬â¢s home and his young daughter was killed. The major part of the damage was done to other military sites. When things could not get any worse between Libya and the U.S., it was discovered that Libya might be making chemical weapons. This led to the U.S. impose sanctions against Libya. Libya has had a rich and extensive history in the last 90 years. It is clear that Libya is a country that has developed from depending on other countries to being a country that is in charge of how it is run. Libya has really grown by producing and exporting oil. The oil was a key factor in getting Libya on its feet. Today many people visit Libya to see how this country has developed over the last 90 years. à à à à à Works Citied Chapin Metz, Helen. Libya A Country Study. U.S.A.: Secretary of the Army, 1989. Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia. Libya. Microsoft Corporation, 1996. Wright, John. Libya. United States of America: Frederick A. Praeger, Inc. 1969. Wright, John. Libya, Chad, And The Central Sahara. U.S.A.: Barnes & Noble Books, 1989.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Shareholders Activism
What is shareholder activism? In the last decade, and especially after the global financial crisis, shareholders of publicly listed companies have started to be more active and advance their views to the board of directors. It should be noted right from the beginning that the intensity of the shareholders activism is not correlated with the state of economy.Therefore, the management of a publicly traded company should not assume that in times of relatively strong economy shareholders will turn a blind eye to issues affecting them (Taylor Wessing LLP, 2012, p. 1). To better understand the concept of shareholder activism, a tentative definition is required. According to the European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI), ââ¬Å"shareholder activism is the way in which shareholders can assert their power as owners of the company to influence its behaviourâ⬠(ECGI, n.d. , para. 1).Shareholder activism has both proponents and opponents. Those sympathising the emancipation of the shar eholders argue that ââ¬Å"when companies perform poorly, shareholders activists are said to play the role of fire brigades that bring about change and more quickly than would have been the case had the fire brigade been on strikeâ⬠(ECGI, n. d, para. 3). On the other hand, opponents think of shareholder activism as ââ¬Å"a euphemism for disruptive, uninformed, populist rantingâ⬠(ECGI, n.d. , para. 4).The rise of shareholder activism in Canada and abroad In the world of business the concept of shareholder activism has lost its novelty a long time ago. However, the last few years saw an increase in the level of this kind of activity. ââ¬Å"Investors appear to be feeling increasingly empowered to intervene in the management of public companiesâ⬠(Taylor Wessing LLP, 2012, p. 2). The reasons are multiple.Mediatized international scandals involving some of the biggest companies in the United States of America, such as Enron and Worldcom, have led to changes in the legi slation regarding the corporate governance and the directorsââ¬â¢ independence. Moreover, the public access to information on unjustified executive compensation and bonuses, and the recent financial crisis have put the shareholdersââ¬â¢ patience to test. Closer to home, some changes in the Canadian corporate law have encouraged shareholders to take action whenever they felt their interests were not properly considered by the management.In an interview for Calgary Herald, Noralee Bradley, a partner with Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt, points out some of the changes in the Canadian legislation: A request by five per cent of shareholders can now compel a company to call a shareholder meeting; proxies can now be solicited by an unhappy shareholder through informal public statements such as press releases, without issuing a formal dissident proxy circular; and, a dissident can now privately solicit proxies from up to 15 shareholders before going public with a proxy circular.à (as cited in Burton, 2012, para.7) Another reason for the rise of the shareholder activism in Canada identified by Bradley is the increase in size of pension funds and hedge funds. The size enables these funds to take a stand whenever the companies are underperforming, or they do not meet their targets (as cited in Burton, 2012, para. 8). In the United States of America the situation is almost similar.Some of the most important characteristics are: (1) ââ¬Å"greater financial firepower [â⬠¦] permitting them [the activists] to make larger and more investmentsâ⬠(Noked, 2013, para. 3); (2) the emergence of new activist funds started by individuals who worked for other similar funds; (3) the degree of sophistication has increased, meaning that activists are hiring financial and legal advisors, and they run more professional campaigns.Also, many of the activists have switched their platforms to seek long-term involvement with their target companies; (4) increased attention from the med ia, which is usually sympathetic with the activists and it is always a low cost way to pressure companies (Noked, 2013, para. 4 ââ¬â 7). Forms of shareholder activism According to Admati and Pfleiderer (2006), shareholder activism can take any of several forms: proxy fights or battles, takeovers, strategic voting, or shareholdersââ¬â¢ proposals (p. 1).Other forms of shareholder activism include private discussions or public communication with the board of directors and management (or negations), publicity or press campaigns, blogging or other electronic ways of outing the underperforming managers, talking with other shareholders, calling shareholder meetings, shareholder resolutions, litigations and settlements, whistle blowing, and in extreme cases ââ¬Å"voting with ones feetâ⬠and ââ¬Å"seeking to replace individual directors or the entire boardâ⬠(ECGI, n. d. , para. 1).Many of the tactics employed by the activists do not need any further explanations, but some of them require special attention not only because they are more complicated and not so easy to understand by an untrained observer, but also because they are the best course of action. Proxy fights. ââ¬Å"A proxy is a person to whom a principal with voting authority delegates his voting rightsâ⬠(MIPR, n. d. , para. 1). A proxy fight usually involves a battle for other shareholder proxies and it is typically in opposition to management (MIRP, n. d., para. 3). According to Burton (2012) a proxy fight has the goal to ââ¬Å"force change on an unwilling companyâ⬠(para. 4). Shareholder resolutions. ââ¬Å"Shareholders exercise most of their influence over how the corporation is run by passing resolutions at shareholdersââ¬â¢ meetings. Decisions are made by ordinary, special or unanimous resolutionsâ⬠(Industry Canada, 2011, para. 8). In Canada, ordinary resolutions may involve the election of directors or the appointment of auditors, and only a simple majority is r equired (Industry Canada, 2011, para.9). On the other hand, special resolutions must be approved by two thirds of the votes and usually involve fundamental changes, like selling all of the corporationââ¬â¢s assets, or amending the corporationââ¬â¢s name (Industry Canada, 2011, para. 10). Usually management will oppose many of the shareholder resolutions leading to a rather lengthy process in which the sponsoring shareholder and the management summarize their opinion and try to get to a common view (MIPR, n. d. , para. 5). Say-on-pay vote. In the UnitedStates of America, ââ¬Å"the say-on-pay vote asks investors to vote on the compensation of the top executives of the company ââ¬â the CEO, the Chief Financial Officer, and at least three other most highly compensated executivesâ⬠(SEC, 2011, p. 1). ââ¬Å"In Canada, say-on-pay began as an investor-led campaign that started in 2007, when the big five banks were asked if they would offer shareholders an annual advisory vo te on executive compensationâ⬠(Alberta Venture, 2012, para. 9). It is important to note that say-on-pay give investors a non-binding vote, which makes this vote simply an expression of support, or disapproval (McFarland, 2012, para.12). Voting with their feet. Another tactic employed by activists is to vote with their feet. This is an extreme situation in which the investor sells all the shares of the company and exists the corporation. Historically, this was the most common form of shareholder activism, until proxy battles became more common (Taylor Wessing, 2012, p. 2). Canada is ready for shareholder activism Shareholder activism is not something new in Canada, in fact it is slowly becoming business as usual.Agrium Inc. , Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd., SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. , Telus, and Rona have all been involved in cases of shareholder activism during 2012 and 2013 (Dmitrieva & Pasternak, 2013, para. 2). ââ¬Å"There were 42 cases of shareholder activism among Canadian f irms last year, almost double the 22 a year earlierâ⬠(Dmitrieva & Pasternak, 2013, para. 4). Shareholder activism can take many forms, but proxy battles and say-on-pay could prove the most effective in the Canadian corporate world. The legislation has changed and has become more shareholder friendly.Proxy battles are more frequent in Canada and according to Jeffrey Gandz, a professor of strategic leadership at the Richard Ivey School of Business in London, Ontario, ââ¬Å"If itââ¬â¢s happening more, itââ¬â¢s probably because it paysâ⬠(as cited in Dmitrieva & Pasternak, 2013, para. 7). Gandzââ¬â¢s statement is backed by facts that indicate an increase in the value of the shares issued by the companies involved in proxy battles. The same view is shared by Robert Staley, a partner at the Bennett Jones law firm in Toronto. ââ¬Å"Weââ¬â¢re going to see more shareholder-driven activism in Canada this year; this is a growing trend.This should increase the share pri ces of companies targetedâ⬠(as cited in Dmitrieva & Pasternak, 2013, para. 18). Indeed, each company that was targeted by activists recorded and increase in the share prices, from CP Railways Ltd. to Rona and Agrium Inc. These results should motivate shareholders to be more active and to consider proxy battles as a method of voicing their interests. However, proxy fights usually involve strong public attacks on both sides, and some shareholders may wish to keep a low profile. For this reason settlements might seem like a better alternative (Melnitzer, 2013, para. 13).Say-on-pay is another tactic that activists can engage and it is already being accepted by many publicly traded companies. Some of them are Potash Corp. , Manulife, Power Corp, and Bombardier. According to Cornell Wright of Torys LLPââ¬â¢s Toronto office, say-on-pay and majority voting ââ¬Å"allow investors to express themselves to management on frequent basis. The prospect that investors might express their v iew by withholding votes from board members or voting against a company proposal on say-on-pay is in a sense a more nuanced, less costly and lower-risk threat than a proxy fightâ⬠(as cited in Melnitzer, 2013, para.20). Say-on-pay votes may not seem like a reliable weapon for Canadian activists, but it will slowly be accepted as a confidence vote for the directorsââ¬â¢ compensation and decisions. In Canada, say-on-pay has the potential of increasing the directorsââ¬â¢ accountability to the owners of the company. Also, this kind of vote can lead to a better cooperation between the boards and shareholders in order to design a compensation package that will motivate the executives to work harder and maximize the companyââ¬â¢s value in the long-run.It is not a surprise to see an increase of say-on-pay votes in Canadian companies because investors are slowly becoming more vocal. It is also not surprising to see an increase in negative votes considering the financial uncerta inty in the business world. Shareholder Association for Research & Education (SHARE) concluded that in 2012 ââ¬Å"4. 5 per cent of Canadian companies had scored less than 75-per-cent support for their pay votes this year, while no companies scored below that level in 2011â⬠(McFarland, 2012, para.6). In the past few years say-on-pay votes in Canada have managed to change the composition of CEOsââ¬â¢ compensation packages to include more share units and stock options. Even though the real benefit is hard to understand very quickly, there is a reason why this tactic should have a big impact in Canada: ââ¬Å"those equity elements more often include additional performance features, requiring a company to meet financial targets before they pay outâ⬠(McFarland, 2012, para. 16). ConclusionShareholder activism has become a hot topic in the business world especially after the financial crisis that affected the profits of many publicly traded companies. It is an activity that has both opponents and proponents. Shareholder activism is on one hand just another populist method of influencing the public, but on the other hand is probably the only way to save a company from an underperforming management. Activism has a lot of facets, from proxy battles to takeovers, strategic voting, or shareholder resolutions, from press campaigns and blogging to litigations and settlements, and ââ¬Å"voting with ones feetâ⬠.Canada is not immune to these kinds of shareholder activism, but the ones that will really have an impact in the near future are the proxy battles and the say-on-pay votes. Both methods have yielded an increase in the value of the shares of the targeted company. According to Paul Gryglewicz, managing partner at Global Governance Advisors, ââ¬Å"say on pay and shareholder activism are very real and very alive in Canadaâ⬠(as cited in McFarland, 2012, para. 15).
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Australian Aborigines and Their Complex Kinship Essay
Aborigines have a complex system in relation to their social and marriage laws, based on the grouping of people within their society. To understand the complexities of their social organization, consider it this way: divide it first into three main parts. The first part is the physical structuring of society in terms of numbers ââ¬â family, horde and tribe. Second, the religious structuring based on beliefs and customs, totems and marriage laws. (Kinship, 2005) These beliefs divide people into sections and subsections, totemic groups and clans. Third, there is also a kinship system that gives a social structuring. The social structuring and kinship system can become very difficult to understand for non-Aboriginal people, but is a natural part of life for Aborigines, and its details vary from tribe to tribe. There are three main aspects of Aboriginal social structure. The first aspect is the geographical structuring of the society. A tribe of around 500 people is made up of bands of about ten to twenty people each. (Australian, 2012) They join together for day to day hunting and food gathering activities. Each band of people can be called a horde. Within each horde are a number of families. The second part is the religious and totemic structuring of the society. On a religious level the society in much of Australia is divided into two moieties. Within each moiety are significant animals, plants, or places, which are of a highly religious nature. Each person, as well as belonging to one or the other moiety, is also connected to one or more of these subjects, called totems. The third part of their social structuring is the relationships between people, otherwise the kinship system. The kinship system allows each person in Aboriginal society to be named in relation to one another. When Aborigines acknowledge an outsider into their group, they have to name that person in relation to themselves, to allow that person to fit into their society, because they need to have in their own minds the kinship relation of that person to themselves, and that person must have a defined social position. The value of a kinship system is that it structures peopleââ¬â¢s relationships, responsibilities and manners towards each other. This in turn defines such matters as, who they will have look after children if a parent dies, who can marry whom, who is accountable for another personââ¬â¢s debts and who will care for the sick, weak and old. The kinship system allows individual naming for up to 70 connection terms in some tribes. (Australian, 2012) It is the system where brothers of oneââ¬â¢s father are also called, in one sense, father. Cousins may be called brother or sister. A person knows who their real mother and father are, but under kinship laws, they may have similar family obligations to their aunts and uncles, the same as they would to their mother and father, and this is shared. These groups are further described as tribes. In Australia, tribes are really language groups, made up of people sharing the same language, customs, and general laws. The people of a tribe share a common bond and in their own language, their word for man is often the word used for the name of the tribe. For example, in Arnhem Land, people are called Yolgnu because Yolgnu name for man. People from another tribe are outsiders, because a tribe is like a small country with its own language, some tribal groups also use the term nation to describe themselves, such as the Larrakeyah tribe around Darwin calling itself the Larrakeyah Nation. (Kinship, 2005) Tribes were generally not a war- making group and people generally use their moiety or clan name to describe themselves individually, rather than their tribal name. There were an estimated 500 Aboriginal tribes in Australia at the time of European settlement. Out of all of those tribes about 400 of them are still together. (Australian, 2012) Throughout Australia the moiety system divides all the members of a tribe into two groups. These two groups are based on a connection with certain animals, plants, or other pieces of their environment. (Kinship, 2005) When a person is born into one or the other group it does not change throughout their life. A person belonging to one moiety has to marry a person of the opposite moiety. This is called an exogamous system, meaning that marriage has to be external to the group. The clan is an important unit in Aboriginal society, having its own name, territory and is the land-owning unit. A clan is a group of about forty to fifty people with a common territory and totems and having their own group name. (Kinship, 2005) It consists of groups of extended families. Usually, men born into the clan remain in the clan territory. Not all members of a clan live on the clan territory. The sisters and daughters of one clan go to live on their husbandsââ¬â¢ clan territory. A horde is an economic group that consists of a number of families who band together for hunting and food gathering activities. (Kinship, 2005) A horde is not a distinct group in the minds of Aborigines. Different members of these groups may be contained within the horde. At the main camp, the horde separates into family groups who each have their own camp fire and cook and eat separately. A family group can be quite large, consisting of a man and his wives, the children from each wife, and sometimes his parents or in-laws. A man often has from two to four wives, ranging from one to more than ten. Today, most men have just one wife. Aboriginal custom all over Australia bans a person from talking directly to their mother in law. This rule applies to both men and women talking to their mother in law. (Kinship, 2005) To allow this rule to work, communication took place by using a third person. When food was divided and shared around campfires, a mother in law had a small fire of her own separate to her son in law or daughter in law and their spouse. Her own daughter or son would chat and bring over some of the meat, or perhaps a grandchild would sit with her and act as messenger between herself and her daughter or sonââ¬â¢s partner. This is completely different from my own society. A man having more than one wife is frowned upon, we do not need to name a person to welcome them into our lives and we can certainly speak with our mother in laws. Our society is not as strict as that of the Aboriginal when referring to our kinship. Our kinship does not affect behaviors in my own life. I do not need to hunt, garden or eat with other people. References ââ¬Å"Australian Aborigineâ⬠. Encyclop? dia Britannica. Encyclop? dia Britannica Online. Encyclop? dia Britannica Inc. , 2012. Web. 11 Jun. 2012 . ââ¬Å"Kinship and Skin Namesâ⬠. Central Land Council. Central Land Council Inc. ,2005 http://www. clc. org. au/articles/info/aboriginal-kinship.
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