AERO 2384 Aviation Safety & Security Systems

Table of contents

Abstract…………………………………………………………….3

Introduction………………………………………………………….4

What is a Safety Management System?……………………………6

Critical elements of Safety Management System……………….….6

The importance of Safety Management System. …………………..8

Who sets the standards for SMS……………………………………10

Conclusion………………………………………………………….11

References…………………………………………………….……12

Abstract

Safety management is an organizational function, which ensures that all safety risks have been identified, assessed and satisfactorily mitigated. In aviation context,it sets out organizational regulation and activities aimed at promoting and improving aviation safety.Aviation safety management policy has shifted from an out dated traditional reactive basis to a modern proactive, organizational-based focus. Aircraft accidents have become statistically rare events. That does not mean, however, that there is no room for improvement. This report contains material on about sms in the aviation operation and organisations. It aims to discus, how safety management system (SMS) became to play a vital role and the critical elements within the pillars of sms. SMS employs advanced system management theory and practice to drive the occurrence rate of serious safety events down to an even lower level.

The key fundamental concepts of SMS is a systematic approach to managing safety including the necessary organisational structures, accountability, polices and procedures. Further more, the report will discus in details the what safety management system is, the critical elements, the importance, and who are the regulators and set the standards. Safety can be defined as the state in which the risk to harm to persons or damage to property is reduced to, and maintained at or below, an acceptable level through a continuing process of hazard identification and risk management. The terms hazard and risk also need to be defined. Hazard is the condition or circumstance that can lead to physical injury or damage and risk is the consequence of a hazard measured in terms of likelihood and severity.

Introduction

Safety responsibility is defined as an obligation to achieve a successful conclusion of safety related task by using necessary action, while safety accountability is defined as anobligation to answer for action by demonstrating task achievement and taking responsibility of safety performance according to the specified expectation

(SKYbrary, 2012)

It is essential for the company to understand that the OHS targets and objectives requireappropriate designation of responsibility and accountability. The designated person shouldpossess appropriate level of skill and resource that suffice the requirement of the responsibilityand accountability. The induction program should provide every new worker with adequatetraining and resources to meet the accountability level.Delegation of safety responsibility is possible as long as it is properly documented, whiledelegation of safety accountability is not possible because it defines the obligation of theresponsible person to demonstrate the satisfactory discharge of his/her safety responsibilities(SKYbrary, 2012)

Many organizations that have adopted an SMS program have realized that the program vital role is necessary for companies and add value to their operation.

The aviation organisation is an industry dependent on service that it provides and therefore aims to achieve production output, and generate return on investment to allow growth and continued operations. Regardless of the usually stated phrase “ safety is number one” in reality, like all other industry it concerned with revenue generated, the fact is no aviation organisation has ever been created to deliver safety or even prioritised safety first.

The organisation dose however to some extent concerns it’s self with safety but how effective is that concern remains to be under question mark. Until the recent fact, which concludes that the effective safety management is one of many organisational processes that allows a firm to deliver its service and generate profit. Through positive management of safety, SMS programs have become good businessoperational practice. SMS stands alongside any other core business management function.

The world has evolved to be more analytical than ever, therefore the cost of a serious aviation accident can cripple an industry and even end the very existence of the company. The need to prioritise safety has never been more vital as the consequences of an aviation safety event can be staggering.As survival becomes the natural instinct for all organisations, success depends on the intelligent allocation of resource to SMS in order for firms to remain operational.Smaller organizations may not have sufficient resources to employ a full-time safety manager. The blunder for companies in terms of safety is often assigning the duties of safety as a collateral function to mid level manager such as Chief Pilots or manager of standards.

These mistakes lead to unintentional acts, which put safety, a secondary priority and a weak safety culture. This can be realised as a clear error especially considering substantial efforts required. Solution clear and obvious requires, genuine commitment from upper level management to position both personnel and financial resources to the critical functionof safety management. The advantages of sms program, implemented correctly and with constant monitoring will enable positive and measurable results.

What is a Safety Management System?

(ICAO) defines in a little more detail, a safety management system involves a systematic approach to managing safety, including the necessary organisational structures, accountabilities, policies and procedures (ICAO, 2009).

According to Professors James Reason, in his accidental causation model, states that SMS, is the prevention process in the chain of events, which lead to the actual event. Reason uses the Swiss cheese as an example. In the Swiss cheese model an organisations defense against failures are a series of barriers, represented by the slice and the holes, which represent the weakness in the barriers suggesting that the system produces failures when these holes in the slices are aligned.

Similar to the accident causation model, SMS encourages the proactive solution to the practice of safety. SMS is a systematic and continuous management process based on proactive identification of hazards and analyses of their risk. Safety management system requires knowledge of human error mechanism, meaning knowledge of what, and why human errors occur, because human errors account for 60-80% of all aviation accidents (ICAO). The process of SMS is built around four main pillars, policy, Risk management, Assurance and Promotion.

What are the critical elements?

Safety management process are in accordance with are pre organized plan. They must be applied in a consistent manner through out the firm. With its four main pillars consisting of 13 critical element places emphasis on hazard identification and risk control and mitigation, before events that affect safety occurs. The critical elements under the four main pillars include:

Policy

Management/ responsibility

Safety accountability

Appointment of key safety personnel

Coordination

SMS documentation

Risk management

Hazard identification

Risk assessment and Mitigation

Safety Assurance

Safety performance monitoring and measurement

The management of change

Continuous improvement of the SMS

Promotion

Training and education

Safety communication

Why is it important?

Safety management system is very essential within all organization in order to promote safety across a wide variety of industrial contexts. Only when the primary mechanism for safety management moved from prescriptive regulation to organisational responsibility was specific practices for organisational safety management collectively grouped together under the banner of ‘safety management systems’.

Safety management system practices forms the strategies by which an organisation could demonstrate and take all reasonably practical steps to maintain and ensure the safety and welfare of employees and others within the organization. Prior to the requirement for individual organisations to adopt a systematic approach to the management of safety, the welfare of employees, and the general public, was generally managed through adherence to prescriptive regulation as set out by government bodies. This so called ‘boots, belts and buckles’ approach to safety management suggested that as long as organisations followed government regulation with respect to technical protection of the workforce, the health and safety of employees was being managed effectively.

Health and safety basically, managed through the powers of the governmental inspectorate ensuring that organisations were adhering to the relevant legislation and regulations. While this approach was deemed sufficient in the early industrial age, by the later part of the 20th century, a number of catastrophic accidents resulting from the complexity of the post-industrial era led to significant regulatory reform that shifted the responsibility from the inspectorate to individual organisation’s management of their unique industrial risk. An organisation’s own responsibility for safety management (beyond adherence to regulatory requirements) was perhaps only first realised after the watershed report of the Robens Committee in the 1970s in the UK (A.R. Hale & Hovden, 1998).

The Robens Committee recommended that an organisation’s management must assume responsibility for the organisational management of risk. This recommendation, and its embodiment in 1974 within the UK Health and Safety at Work Act, set out a philosophy of ‘self-regulation’. Although the terminology of self- regulation remains problematic, this act was innovative in the fact that it included the first requirement for a common law ‘duty of care’ for an employer to ensure, as far as reasonably practical, the health and safety of its employees. Robens saw three important pillars to improved safety performance through self- regulation. These were: 1.better systems of safety organisation 2. More management initiatives 3.More participation from employees (Reason, 1997).

Safety management shifted in the late 1970s from an approach that focused on adherence to prescriptive legislation, to an approach that focused on an organisation taking responsibility for its own management of its unique risk profile. To this end,

‘Self regulation’ was defined as the requirement for an organisation to ensure that they took all reasonably practical steps to ensure the health and safety of their workforce (Feyer & Williamson, 1998).

This shift in regulatory orientation was driven by a spate of catastrophic events in a diverse set of industry domains. For instance, the 1976 Seveso disaster, which involved a large-scale release of highly toxic dioxins from a small chemical processing plant in Italy, gave rise to the Seveso II directive, whichmandated systematic management systems across facilities in Europe that handled dangerous substances (Anvari, Zulkifli, & Yusuff, 2011). A decade later, the Piper Alpha accident in the North Sea saw similar directives put in place for offshore oil and gas facilities as a result of the Cullen inquiry (Reason, 1997).

In this environment, SMS emerged as a conglomerate of safety-related activities that enabled an organisation to discharge their responsibilities under the spectre of self-regulation. Instead of completely walking away from regulation, the role of the regulator has in turnevolved to one that attempts to support and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a safety management system. This change has not only presented challenges to an organisation that now must effectively self-regulate, but also to the regulator who must now evaluate the effectiveness of a system, rather than compliance with a prescriptive regulation.

Who sets the standards for SMS?

The International Civil Aviation Organization develops and disseminates standards and recommended practices (SARPs) that are contained in 18 Annexes. The catastrophic industrial accident that happened across many aviation and other related industry led to the development of safety management system.

While the drivers for the development of safety management systems internationally had been catastrophic industrial accidents with widespread social impacts, in Australia, regulatory activity focussed on generic workplace health and safety management. Two Australian standards relating to the design, implementation and on- going maintenance of generic occupational health and safety management systems were developed in the late 1990s and published in the year 2000. First, Australian Standard AS4801 Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems Specification with Guidance for Use provide the detailed specification, and AS4804 Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems.

General Guidelines on Principles, Systems and Supporting Techniques provides more general guidance. These standards were heavily influenced by previous directives in the UK and Europe and explicitly aligned with the International Organization for Standardization standard ISO 9000 Quality Management suite of management systems standards. The standards for safety management systems are designed such that they mirror many components of the ISO 9000 series of standards pertaining to quality management systems and the ISO 14000 series of standards pertaining to environmental management systems. Indeed, for some time organisations have sought integration of their management systems in order to gain efficiencies and avoid duplication of processes across an organisation. Even given the very different demands of managing the risks of workplace injury compared to the risks associated with low-probability high-consequence (LP/HC) transportation accidents, the overarching structures, individual components, and major functionality of safety management systems have remained very similar, regardless of industrial context.

Conclusions

The international safety management system (SMS) standards and requirements are structured mainly as objective regulations. SMS are created in a way to emphasize more on what has to be done and how to do it. The main objective of the development of SMS is to create standards with organizations across all kind of industries. The SMS standards are designed to enable the operators of industry and service providers to integrate and develop the safety management practices into their individual operational models for the well being of employees and the company as a whole.

Although Safety management system builds upon an organization’s existing safety processes, it is different from the traditional approaches. One of the key differences is that SMS takes a proactive and predictive approach to safety management it goes beyond prescriptive audits and checklist-based inspections to develop procedures and indicators that anticipate safety risks. Safety management system spreads responsibility for safe processes throughout all levels and segments of the organization. This increase in the number of people watching for safety issues makes it less likely that a hazard will go undetected and possibly lead to an accident. Each SMS implementation will have its own customized set of layers that synchronize to create the safety culture of SMS. Each slice has holes that represent the potential for a safety hazard to go unnoticed, because the layer does not deal with that type of hazard, or due to human error.

However, when these layers are integrated by SMS principles, it becomes less likely that a hazard makes it through all the levels without being identified and mitigated as Reason (1997) mentioned on his theory of active and latent. Finally safety management system recognizes that human and organizational errors can never be completely eliminated and seeks to reduce them by developing a safety-oriented culture. Which means emphases on eliminating hazardous conditions before they can become something more serious.

References

Amalberti, R. (2001). The Paradoxes of Almost Totally Safe Transport Systems. Safety Science, 37, 109-126.

Anvari, A., Zulkifli, N., & Yusuff, R. M. (2011). Evaluation of approaches to safety in lean manufacturing and safety management systems and clarification of the relationship between them.

World Applied Sciences Journal, 15 (1), 19-26.

Arocena, P., & Nunez, I. (2010). An empirical analysis of the effectiveness of occupational health and safety management systems in SMEs. International Small Business Journal, 28 (4), 398-419.

Arocena, P., Nunez, I., & Villanueva, M. (2008). The impact of prevention measures and organisational factors on occupational injuries.

Safety Science, 46 (9), 1369-1384.

Bottani, E., Monica, L., & Vignali, G. (2009). Safety management systems: Performance differences between adopters and non-adopters.

Safety Science, 47(2), 155-162. Bottomley, B. (1999). Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems: Information Paper.

Canberra, Australia: National Occupational Health and Safety Commission. CASA. (2009). CAAP SMS (1) Safety Management Systems for Regular Public Transport Operations. Canberra, Australia: Civil Aviation Safety Authority.

Chang, J. I., & Liang, C. L. (2009). Performance evaluation of process safety management systems of paint manufacturing facilities. Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, 22 (4), 398-402.

Aesthetic Analysis Of Francis Ford Coppola’s Film ‘The Godfather’

‘The Godfather’ is an epic movie based on Mario Puzo’s novel ‘The Godfather’. It is deemed a masterpiece of art and has been used as a template for developing other ‘gangster’ movies. The movie draws us back to the era in which mafia groups controlled some of the major towns in the United States and Italy. It also reminds us of the atrocities such mafia groups could commit in order to maintain their influence and grip the power. The movie’s director Francis Ford Coppola has received numerous awards for showcasing the ‘gangster’ character in the movie. The goal of this essay to do an aesthetic analysis of ‘The Godfather’ movie. Specifically, it will focus on its cinematography, lighting techniques, editing style, sound, camera techniques, and acting. Hopefully, this will further improve our understanding of the movie and help appreciate its unique filming techniques.

Undoubtedly, the cinematography of this movie was done to perfection. It was done by Gordon Willis, one of the most influential cinematographers in America.. It effectively fortifies the themes of the movie.For instance, Michael Corleone is depicted as someone calm and always in thoughts. Behind his calmness, there lies a very strategic person who calculates his steps before making a move. The cinematography blends various scenes acted in different parts of the world without creating a conflict. To specify, the movie takes us to Sicily, Los Angeles and then back to New York. The post war era, in which the events of the movie take place, has been beautifully elucidated by the use of old generation cars and old mansions. In some scenes, our view is entirely focused on a single character as, for example, when Luca Brasi dresses up to go and visit one of the night clubs owned by the Tattaglia family where he unfortunately meets his death. As the camera trails Luca, we notice his consciousness of his security. He puts on a bullet proof vest because he knows the type of danger he is getting himself into. In other scenes, our view is made to alternate on many different characters as, for example, during Connie Corleone’s wedding. It seems in this way the viewer is saved from the boredom brought about by the monotony of plot. He/she is allowed to focus on many different actors, carefully distinguishing their roles and character in the movie. Cinematography is excellently controlled through the majority of scenes being cast in almost entire darkness. Sepia tones form the basis of photography in the initial scenes. They draw viewers back to the post Vietnam War era. The sepia tones used also align our feelings and expectations with the mood associated with a particular scene.

Light has been used to a lesser extent in this movie. Most of the scenes are engulfed in almost entire darkness. This has created a unique visual and artistic impression. Lighting keeps changing from scene to scene allowing us to interpret the emotions of the characters in a particular scene. It provides a reflection of mood, and allows foretelling the events which are about to happen. Especially, low-light photography has been utilized to a much greater extent in this movie. It has effectively contributed to the complexity of the cinematography. Apparently, scenes illuminated with light are meant to show us the jovial and positive side of Corleone family. They depict Corleone family as a generous family, always willing to help those in need. A classic example of this is the situation at Connie Corleone’s wedding. The scene is bright and the Corleone family have invited many people to the wedding. Amerigo Bonasera, Johnny Fontane and Nazorine came to Don Corleone with their problems. The latter wishfully and willingly obliged these people and solved their problems.

However, some scenes contradict the light associated with them. For instance, it happens when Don Corleone dies. We expect the scene to have been cast in a dull place such as a hospital. On the contrary, the scene is cast in a garden where the sun is bright and everything seems okay. Don Corleone is jovial and playing with a child just before he meets his death. It is worth noting that very low light scenes are associated with looming danger, death, war or some strategic meeting. A classic example of this is when Luca Brasi gets killed in the nightclub owned by the Tattaglia family. Other examples include the scenes where Don Corleone is shot and at the restaurant where Michael shoots down Sollozo and the police captain. Some scenes contradict the darkness associated with them for instance the scene of the reconciliatory meeting organized by Don Corleone in his house. People are to be jovial and in a celebratory mood in this scene, so the lighting should have been bright.

A wide variety of camera techniques were used in this movie. In some scenes, deep focus was used. This type of technique needs a small aperture and encompasses the area in focus as well as its surroundings, as, for instance, during the reconciliatory meeting organized by Don Corleone. This focus makes it possible to showcase the largesse of Don’s reconciliatory meeting and expose the wealth of the Mafia heads. When the filmmaker needed to trail a specific character in the movie, he used the following shot technique. For example, this technique was used to trail Luca Brasi on his way to the Tattaglia’s nightclub. Thanks to this camera technique, attention is drawn to a single character and the anxiety of the viewers is build in a slow manner. In addition, shallow focus was used in some scenes. This type of technique allows for the demonstration of subjectivity. To illustrate, this is especially effective in the scene where Michael is left alone on the bench after having discussions with his father. We see Michael in this scene as being rational and strategic. Also, racking focus was used to highlight romantic relationships between various characters. A classic example of the use of this technique is the dinner meeting between Kay Adams and Michael. This technique is used to shift viewers’ focus and attention away from the main story. Finally, canted framing is evident in the scene where Michael readies himself for shooting the police captain and Sollozo. This type of camera technique draws viewers’ attention towards an impending doom.

Don Corleone and Michael are perfectly portrayed by Marlon Brando and Al Pacino respectively. Both Don and Michael are portrayed exceptionally as being rational and reserved. They keep their calm even under pressure. Marlon Brando and Al Pacino succeed in making us believe that they are the real Don and Michael. James Caan and Al Pacino were selected to portray their roles as sons of Don Corleone. It seems James Caan portrays Sonny in a bit unconvincing manner, because his physique does not meet the expectations. From the book by Mario Puzo, we expect Sonny to be powerfully built and very arrogant. It seems, James Caan failed to bring out this character. At the same time, The portrayal of Tom Hagen, Kay Adams and Sollozo by Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton and Al Lettieri lives up to the expectation. The actors enable the viewers to identify themselves with the characters and relate the personality of different characters with the story line.

Two basic ways can be used to edit motion pictures: continuous action and parallel action. Continuous action is used to showcase chronological events, while parallel action is used to depict simultaneous events. The main difference between the two ‘Godfather’ films is that that the first ‘Godfather’ film uses continuous action while the second part of ‘Godfather’ employs parallel action as its preferred editing style. In the first ‘Godfather’ film, events occur in a chronological sequence. One event leads to another. To illustrate, the development of Michael Corleone from the son who preferred not to participate in his father’s ‘dirty’ activities to a fearless and ruthless successor of Don Corleone is shown. In this type of editing style, the characters’ actions tell us many things about them. In some scenes, however, the parallel action has been employed. A classic example is the meeting organized between Vito and Sollozo. The meeting is also attended by Sonny and Tom. We are given brief flashes of the events that led up to the meeting. The parallel structure in this scene portrays Sollozo as a double-dealing man and Vito as a skeptical person. Another scene is where Sollozo gets murdered by Michael which is related to the Mafia wars that erupt thereafter.

In the second ‘Godfather’ movie, the scenes revolve around two different themes. The parallel action hugely manifests in this film opposed to the initial ‘Godfather’ film where parallel action is sparsely used. The movie begins with a servant kissing the hands of Michael, the new ‘Godfather’. Almost immediately, the movie takes us back to the Sicilian countryside to show the place of birth and the early life of Vito Corleone. The first scene announces that it will not progress forward like it was the case in the first ‘Godfather’ film rather it will move us back and forth by linking the past with the present.

Most of the soundtracks were composed by Nino Rota. It is worth mentioning that sound is widely used by Coppola to create suspense, for instance when the second part of the ‘Godfather’ movie begins we hear the piercing cries of a baby inside a quiet and otherwise calm church. These two different sounds make the audience feel unsettled and eager to know what happens next. In the scene where the priest is blessing the baby, the soundtrack increases slowly in texture as one of Michael’s assistants prepares to kill one of the characters. The tense tone increases the suspense and anxiety among viewers. All in all, thesoundtracks used in the film correctly highlight the mood in a variety of its scenes.

In conclusion, it is evident that the unique camera techniques, lighting and cinematography employed in the ‘Godfather’ film have greatly contributed to its status as one of the greatest ‘gangster’ movies ever produced. Up to date, many producers and directors use ‘Grandfather’ movies as a template for directing their motion pictures.

Works Cited

Lebo, Harlan. The Godfather Legacy. New York: Fireside, 1997, p. 38. Print.

Simon, William. “An Analysis of the Structure of Godfather, Part One”. The Cinematic Text: Methods and Approaches. Ed. R. Barton Palmer. New York: AMS Press, 1989. 101-117. Print.

Aesthetics:

In the Western world, aesthetics is considered the branch of philosophy that is concerned with concepts of value and beauty as they relate to the arts. Philosophers from Plato until the present time have had rigid ideas about what artists should create and what people should like, but in today’s world, aestheticians represent a variety of approaches to the philosophy of art.

Aesthetics, in the broadest sense, may be thought of as a worldview, a view that may be markedly different in other cultures. Objects from other cultures that are categorized as art works from the Western perspective may or may not hold the same meaning in their culture of origin. Precisely because of possible differences in worldviews and aesthetic stances of non-Western cultures, it is important to set aside Western aesthetics as criteria when making judgments about non-Western art. For example, many non-Western cultures recognize no distinction between fine art and craft, may not even have a word for “art,” and may not separate art from everyday life.

Japanese Aesthetics:

To understand the art and aesthetics of Japan, it is necessary to investigate a Japanese worldview, ideas about the nature of art, and influences brought about through contact with other cultures. The aesthetics of Japan developed in a unique fashion, partly because of its geographic location, a string of islands about 100 miles from Korea and 500 miles from China. Its isolation by the sea helped protect Japan from foreign invasion and allowed its rulers to control contact with other nations.

During long periods of self-imposed isolation, art forms and aesthetic ideas developed that were specifically Japanese. Over the centuries, when interactions with foreign cultures occurred, they influenced the traditional arts and aesthetics of Japan. For the purposes of this discussion, the focus will be on what remained essentially Japanese.

Traditional Japanese art and aesthetics were most affected by the Chinese and Buddhism, but influences from the West are also evident. For example, the Japanese made no distinction between fine arts and crafts before the introduction of such ideas by Europeans in the 1870s. The Japanese word that best approximates the meaning of “art” is katachi. Katachi translates to mean “form and design,” implying that art is synonymous with living, functional purpose, and spiritual simplicity.

The primary aesthetic concept at the heart of traditional Japanese culture is the value of harmony in all things. The Japanese worldview is nature-based and concerned with the beauty of studied simplicity and harmony with nature. These ideas are still expressed in every aspect of daily life, despite the many changes brought about by the westernization of Japanese culture. This Japanese aesthetic of the beauty of simplicity and harmony is called wabi-sabi (wah-bee sah-bee).

Wabi-Sabi:

Since wabi-sabi represents a comprehensive Japanese worldview or aesthetic system, it is difficult to explain precisely in western terms. According to Leonard Koren, wabi-sabi is the most conspicuous and characteristic feature of what we think of as traditional Japanese beauty and it “occupies roughly the same position in the Japanese pantheon of aesthetic values as do the Greek ideals of beauty and perfection in the West.”

Wabi-sabi is a beauty of things imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete.

It is the beauty of things modest and humble.

It is the beauty of things unconventional.

The concepts of wabi-sabi correlate with the concepts of Zen Buddhism, as the first Japanese involved with wabi-sabi were tea masters, priests, and monks who practiced Zen. Zen Buddhism originated in India, traveled to China in the sixth century, and was first introduced in Japan around the 12th century. Zen emphasizes “direct, intuitive insight into transcendental truth beyond all intellectual conception.” At the core of wabi-sabi is the importance of transcending ways of looking and thinking about things/existence.

All things are impermanent

All things are imperfect

All things are incomplete

Material characteristics of wabi-sabi:

Suggestion of natural process

Irregular

Intimate

Unpretentious

Earthy

Simple

As wabi-sabi once was the preeminent high culture Japanese aesthetic, a familiarity with its concepts is essential for the understanding of the Japanese tea ceremony.

The Japanese Tea Ceremony:

“Tea began as a medicine and grew into a beverage.” –Katkuzo Okakura

“The Way of Tea cannot be taught in any book…It is a state of mind. Tea is a living tradition.” –Professor Kimiko Gunji, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

“Holding a bowl of tea whisked to a fine froth… Such a simple thing: yet filled with a spirit that Reaches back more than a thousand years.” –The Urasenke Tradition of Tea

The most comprehensive example of the Japanese aesthetic of wabi-sabi is found within the traditions of the tea ceremony. To understand Japanese aesthetics, it is necessary to understand the unique features of the Japanese tea ceremony, known as chanoyu, chado, or sado. The tea ceremony is the serving of tea, ritualized over time and rooted in Zen Buddhism. It symbolizes aesthetic simplicity and represents the fundamental Zen principles of harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility. The word chanoyu (chah-no-yoo) literally means “hot water for tea,” but its simple art is a synthesis of many Japanese arts which focus on preparing and serving a bowl of tea.

According to Leonard Koren, the tea ceremony “became an eclectic social art form combining, among other things, the skills of architecture, interior and garden design, flower arranging, painting, food preparation, and performance.”

The tea ceremony developed under the influence of Zen Buddhism, the aim of which is, in simple terms, to purify the soul by becoming one with nature. The true spirit of the tea ceremony has been described by words like calm, rustic, graceful, austere, and simple. The tea ceremony varies according to the seasons, with tea bowls, types of tea, flowers, and scrolls appropriately chosen.

The History of the Tea Ceremony:

The tea plant probably originated in the mountainous regions of southern Asia, and China received it later. Tea was first introduced to Japan along with Buddhism from China in the sixth century. The Emperor Shomu, who ruled from 724-749, is credited with introducing tea drinking into the country after he had been presented bricks of pressed tealeaves by a Chinese priest. During the Heian period (794-1185), tea was made from steamed and dried tealeaves ground into a powder. This green tea powder, called matcha (mah-chah), is still used today.

In the 15th century, Juro Murata, tea master to Shogun Yoshimasa Ashikaga, integrated many of the concepts of wabi-sabi into the tea ceremony, including the dedication of a special room or house for the sole use in the chanoyu. The samurai class, familiar with the austerity of Zen Buddhism and the disciplined and proscribed lifestyle of the warrior, embraced the ceremony of tea. As rules governed every other aspect of life at the time, participants in tea ceremonies were also required to follow certain rules and procedures.

An increased emphasis on Zen Buddhist concepts in the tea ceremony was established by Sen no Rikyu (1522-1591), the most revered Japanese tea master. During the Momoyama period in the second half of the 16th century, Rikyu established a tea ceremony that reflects a simple and quiet taste, the form that is practiced and taught in Japan and throughout the world today.

He also designed a simple, separate building to house the ceremony based on a typical Japanese farmer’s rustic hut. Rikyu further formalized the tea ceremony’s rules of behavior and identified the spirit of chanoyu with four basic Buddhist principles of harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility. These guiding principles signify the highest ideals of the tea ceremony.

The Seven Rules of Rikyu:

“Make a delicious bowl of tea, lay the charcoal so that it heats the water; arrange the flowers as they are in the field; in summer suggest coolness; in winter, warmth; do everything ahead of time; prepare for rain; and give those with whom you find yourself every consideration.” –Soshitsu Sen

Many stories are told about Rikyu. Rikyu became the tea master for the warlord Hideyoshi Toyotomi, a difficult and powerful man. Hideyoshi heard of the wonders of Rikyu’s garden of morning glories and expressed a desire to see the flowers. Consequently, Rikyu invited the warlord to tea. When Hideyoshi arrived and walked down the path to the teahouse, not a flower was in sight. Upon entering the teahouse, Hideyoshi saw a single, beautiful morning glory displayed on the alcove. Rikyu had cut down all the other morning glories so that full attention could be focused on one single blossom.

The power of Japanese warlords in evident in another story about Rikyu. In 1591, Hideyoshi demanded that Rikyu hand over his daughter to be a concubine to the warlord, but Rikyu refused. In retaliation, Hideyoshi ordered Rikyu’s ritual suicide. Rikyu held a last tea ceremony at the age of 70 and committed seppuku (ritual suicide) when the ceremony was completed.

Much of the prescribed behavior used in contemporary tea ceremonies was introduced by Rikyu. Some of his contributions include a teahouse that can accommodate five people, a separate small room where tea utensils are washed, and two entrances, one for the host and one for the guests. The entrance for guests had a doorway low enough to require the guests to bend down to enter, humbling themselves in preparation for the tea ceremony.

In the traditional chanoyu, every part of the ceremony is carefully orchestrated. There are rituals for entering and leaving the room, making and serving the tea, and appreciating the choices of flower, scroll, and tea vessel appropriate to the season. The simplicity and austerity of the tearoom (and of Japanese homes) allows an exceptional focus and appreciation of a single flower or scroll carefully chosen to represent the season.

Aesthetic objects are not left on permanent display in Japanese homes, but are brought out for focused viewing and appreciation for specific purposes or seasons. As the season or purpose for display changes, the objects are stored and replaced by others more appropriate. Though Japanese rooms sometimes may appear too bare or simple for Western tastes, a Japanese visiting an a typical American home may feel surrounded and overwhelmed by visual clutter.

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Affirmative Action

Affirmative action, which was introduced by President Kennedy, has raised hot debate from various individuals ranging from provocative researchers, scholars, politicians as well as the judiciary. Affirmative action plays an integral part in eliminating the numerous discriminations and unfairness experienced almost everywhere across the world in various set ups. It acts as the best tool of fighting racial, ethnic and gender inequalities and was first used in 1960s (Debate.org Web). It is undeniable that affirmative action has proved to be a very effective tool in redressing several injustices experienced in the past and even currently against the disadvantaged group.

The federal government, state governments and other relevant institutions have strongly step forward in improving the opportunities for the minorities and even women have now been given preference than before. According to “Debate.org” special consideration for the disadvantaged group and levelling the playing ground for the groups in various factors including public service composition and government contracting decisions (Web).

Giving preferential treatment to minorities is not an easy task and its success has not been achieved in as much as policies were put in place several decades ago to give the disadvantaged a boost. However, the diversity of the current society attempts to indicate some elements of success making some people argue that the policies are no longer needed as they trigger many problems. One of the outstanding examples was the issue regarding the University of Michigan admissions criteria of rating potential applicants on a point system. Minority students got double points in achieving a perfect SAT score as the school official argued that diversity was significant and affirmative action was the best thing to do (Brownstein Web). There are indeed various other court decisions and events regarding affirmative action experienced by almost everyone across America and globally.

Although various countries describe affirmative action in numerous terms, the concept still remains unchanged which is of ensuring that the minority groups are fully represented in various institutions, employment decisions, admission to educational organizations and many other vital arenas where affirmative action is deemed effective. There is likeliness in that even the disadvantaged group have equal opportunity to succeed just like the so called advantaged group though not fully confirmed because of the affirmative action.

Looking at the institution of affirmative action, it is undeniable that it arose due to particular assessment of past injustices in a nation. According to American Civil Liberties Union affirmative action has always been meant to provide a vital compensatory measure in cultures and groups, which have experienced a past discrimination or denying them opportunities based on their economic disadvantage brought about by their race and or national origin (Web). Restoration of complete equality amongst various races has been widely practiced in numerous countries although it has received almost equal criticism. The lines of argument have continuously been changing since its conception and the social and demographic demography context has been transformed into a more complex and consequential manner.

According to Brunner and Rowen, affirmative action has had major milestones that involved allocation of resources and jobs to disadvantaged groups since 1960s to the latest cases witnessed in the courts (Web). In March 6, 1961,the executive order 10925 made the initial reference to affirmative action which was issued by President JF Kennedy to create the Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity and mandated that all the government funded projects take affirmative action. Executive Order 10925 was to eliminate discrimination against hiring and employment practices based on race. In July 2 1964, Civil Rights Act was signed by President Lyndon Johnson prohibiting biasness based on race, colour, religion, or even national origin. This marked as the most effective and sweeping civil rights bill after the Reconstruction and was believed to greatly eliminate discrimination of various kinds.

UClIrvine explains that President Johnson further gave a defining concept of affirmative action on June 4, 1965 to the graduating class at Howard University where he posits that civil rights alone could not be enough to eliminate biasness (Web). He later issued Order 11246, which was meant to reinforce affirmative action for the first time where contractors were required to take responsible and non-discriminatory measures while hiring. Additionally, there was the 1969 Philadelphia Order that was initiated by President Richard Nixon to guarantee fairness in construction jobs since construction constituted several offenders against equal opportunity laws.

The regents of the University of California v. Bakke in June 28, 1978 were a landmark Supreme Court case that enforced restraint on affirmative action. It was argued that offering opportunity to the disadvantaged groups was not supposed to be enacted at the expense of the majority and that affirmative action triggered reverse discrimination. The University of California, Davis and Medical School had different admission pools including the pool for standard applicants and the other for minority as well as the economically disadvantaged groups. It was noted that Allan Bakke who was a white applicant was twice rejected despite some minority groups being admitted regardless of their lower scores compared to Bakke’s. According to the Supreme Court ruling, judging Bakke based on race was not good because the white race was a legitimate factor in school admissions (UClIrvine Web).

According to Beattie the cases of affirmative action have been continuous throughout the years and courts still battle with the issues from time to time (761-762). Fullilove v. Klutznick, Wygant v. Jackson Board of Education, United States v. Paradise, City of Richmond v. Croson, White House guidelines on affirmative action, Florida bans race as factor in college admissions, Supreme Court Upholds Affirmative Action in University Admissions and Ballot Measure to Ban Affirmative Action Goes before Voters are amongst the cases. The latest incident where issues of affirmative action were touched was in June 24, 2014 when Court ordered University of Texas to re-examine affirmative action policy making the decision appear as if it is a compromise between the court’s conservative and liberal factions.

According to Parker, race based college admissions is still a debatable issues and some critics argue that affirmative action is not important in this times of Obama presidency. Parker explains that other criticizers think that affirmative action would leads to discrimination against the white race. White students are denied opportunities to access education in some institutions simply because they do not fall under the minority group such as the people of colour. Currently there are issues regarding whether the affirmative action should c0oncentrate on race or socioeconomic issues and whether the learning institutions should continue with their admission policies or drop them (Parker Web). The fruits of affirmative action are evident across various learning institutions where minority students enrol in large numbers. Nevertheless, it is important to take note of the quality of education offered in those institutions. As much as minority group is apportioned a good percentage and are allowed in public learning institutions, there should be improved quality of services (Hodgman Web).

Indeed, affirmative action has contributed to numerous transformations across the world and has provided a good remedy for education and jobs. The disadvantaged groups have had their fair share for their sweat and unrelenting push to eliminate various forms of discriminations. Although affirmative action cases are experienced, a lot of effort has been vested to bring normalcy and fairness amongst the disadvantaged groups. It can however, be argued that the majority groups have somehow been disadvantaged since they can no longer enjoy all the goodies that resulted from discrimination. For example, affirmative action has empowered the black race to have almost equal opportunity to attend school, secure jobs, get promotion and earn similar amount of salary with a white person in the same job position. This is indeed positive but the question is what is the percentage of the whites are denied opportunity to learn into a particular institution or secure a job due to affirmative action?

Works Cited

American Civil Liberties Union. Affirmative Action: The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU Foundation, 2013. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <https://www.aclu.org/racial-justice/affirmative-action>.

Beattie, Brett, et al. “Affirmative Action for the Future.” Contemporary Sociology 39.6 (2010): 761-2. ProQuest. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://search.proquest.com/business/docview/815416183/141EFEAD5B1341E604A/4?accountid=45049>.

Brownstein, Ronald. Why This Affirmative Action Debate Is Different. National Journal, 30 May, 2013. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.<http://www.nationaljournal.com/columns/political-connections/why-this-affirmative-action-debate-is-different-20130530>.

Brunner and Rowen. Timeline of Affirmative Action Milestones. Infoplease, 2007. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://www.infoplease.com/spot/affirmativetimeline1.html>.

Debate.org. Affirmative Action Debate: History and Debate of Affirmative Action, 2013. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://www.debate.org/affirmative-action-debate/>.

Hodgman, Matthew R. “The College Access Debate: Class Considerations and College Preparation.” Journal of College Teaching & Learning (Online) 10.1 (2013): 63. ProQuest. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://search.proquest.com/business/docview/1418715759/141EFEAD5B1341E604A/11?accountid=45049>.

Parker, Zachary. The Decades-Long Affirmative Action Debate is Incomplete. Huffington Post, 7 Oct. 2013. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/zachary-parker/the-decadeslong-affirmati_b_3575653.html>.

UClIrvine. Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity. University of California, 5 March 2010. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://www.oeod.uci.edu/aa.html>.

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Affirmative Action

California alongside eight other states in the country has banned affirmative action policies in institutions of higher learning with far-ranging consequences. Historically, women and minority groups have been represented in various areas of life such as education, employment, among others. Affirmative action is the process by which institutions, governments, and other groups make efforts and policies to increase the representation of these underrepresented groups. The idea of affirmative action has always been a controversial one for multiple reasons. One such argument is that it favors one group which leads to others in the majority being disadvantaged. Affirmative action is an excellent way to increase equality for women and minorities in areas where they have been historically excluded or underrepresented. This policy gives these groups opportunities they may not have gotten otherwise, promoting equality and addressing bias and injustice against women and minorities.

The history of injustice and bias against women and minorities in the US dates far back, with efforts to address it made only fairly recently. Much of the injustice against African-Americans in the US dates back to slavery and segregation policies thereafter. African-Americans and other minority groups were not allowed to interact with white Americans in all areas of life such as places of residence, marriage, schools, public transport, churches, and hotels, among many others. Such unfair policies have always promoted the idea of inferiority among these groups. Women have also faced discrimination in the early twentieth century where they were not allowed to work, vote, or take part in any progressive community activities. When the time came for women and minority groups to join the rest of the population in culture, employment and education, they had, and still have, a lot of catching up to do. Affirmative action is an excellent way to aid them in this endeavor.

Affirmative action takes many forms in areas of underrepresentation. For example, in education, some schools take in a specific number of minority and female students who might not have gotten admission through regular competitive admissions programs. Affirmative action considers race, gender, and ethnicity to create fair policies for women and minority groups. Through these programs, disadvantaged students can also get funding in form of grants and scholarships to help financially struggling students through college. One argument in favor of affirmative action is that minority students remain underrepresented on college campuses across the country. The Center for American Progress reports that in 45 out of 50 flagship campuses, there is a significant disparity in enrolment for African-American students (Maxwell & Garcia, 1). Although college completion rates have improved significantly over the years, black and Latinx students are yet to achieve the same rates as their majority counterparts. Affirmative action reduces this disparity.

Affirmative action in education not only benefits female and minority students but all students as well. Students in racially diverse school environments enhance experiences through interaction and reduce racial biases, promote self-confidence and improve satisfaction. Such benefits also prepare students for diverse environments later on such as in employment where they can work with people from different cultures and backgrounds respectfully. Between 1979 and 2008, affirmative action has led to a 39% increase in black student enrolment (Arcidiacono et al. 488). Affirmative action also promotes equity in admissions for students who face historical barriers. Many minority students face exclusion, have lower familial wealth and fewer resources to help them get into college. In contrast, white, wealthier students have the advantage of legacy admissions from their family, attend schools with competitive extracurricular activities that give them an edge in college admission. These two groups of students do not have a level playing field applying to college. Minority students who do not have such advantages benefit greatly from affirmative action.

Multiple arguments have been brought forth against affirmative action, the most prominent being that it is a form of reverse discrimination. The main aim of affirmative action is to address discrimination that women and minority groups have faced. However, the process also creates a situation where students in a non-minority group lose out on opportunities, creating tension between the two groups (Balafoutas et al. 91). This argument is questionable, mainly because the main premise of discrimination is that a person is historically disadvantaged in some way. White, wealthier students cannot claim that affirmative action discriminates against them because the system is already designed to give them a priority.

Another argument against affirmative action is that it discourages meritocracy and demeans achievements. Qualified students with great potential miss out on opportunities that may be offered to students with lower qualifications based on affirmative action. Meritocracy encourages individuals to do their best so that they can get into a specific school or job, and affirmative action goes against this system. Additionally, affirmative action creates a situation where achievements by women and minorities are credited to affirmative action rather than personal effort. It suggests that they did not get there by merit but by discriminatory policies. These negative attitudes towards affirmative action defeat the whole idea of the policy. Affirmative action supports minorities who would not have gotten the same opportunities as everyone else, and they have to be qualified to get those opportunities.

In summary, affirmative action is crucial to bringing equity and justice to groups that have traditionally been excluded and discriminated against. Women and minorities continue to face many hurdles in major areas such as employment and education. For a fair, balanced, and progressive society, every individual must be afforded the same opportunities. Women and minorities have a long way to go to catch up with other majority groups, and affirmative action is one of the best ways to work towards equity and parity. Although affirmative action remains a sensitive topic with nine states banning it, the public needs to understand that the policy benefits society as a whole. The negative attitudes surrounding the issue should be open to debate and to create new ways of implementing affirmative action without promoting the idea of reverse discrimination. Women and minorities deserve the same opportunities as other privileged groups, which is why stakeholders should work together to counter these obstacles.

Works Cited

Arcidiacono, Peter, Michael Lovenheim, and Maria Zhu. “Affirmative action in undergraduate education.” Annu. Rev. Econ. 7.1 (2015): 487-518.

Balafoutas, Loukas, Brent J. Davis, and Matthias Sutter. “Affirmative action or just discrimination? A study on the endogenous emergence of quotas.” Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization 127 (2016): 87-98.

Maxwell, Connor & Garcia, Sara. “5 Reasons to Support Affirmative Action in College Admissions.” Center for American Progress. 1 October 2019. https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/news/2019/10/01/471085/5-reasons-support-affirmative-action-college-admissions/

AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN MIAMI

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Affordable housing in Miami

With the current generation whereby almost everyone is living in urban areas, people find themselves in difficult situations about the amount of money they will spend on housing. This comes along with the fact that different people have different earnings and therefore even though there is a need for affordable housing, this situation is not readily available in all parts of Miami. Most people especially those who do not have high wages struggle to find these affordable housing options as Andrew puts it (Andrew, 2014). There are several ways proposed towards solving this and therefore it is a very important discussion to have as it bears solutions to the problems of affordable housing.

Reference

Aurand, A. (2014). Florida’s Planning Requirements and Affordability for Low-Income Households. Housing Studies, 29(5), 677-700.

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Affordable Housing in the US

Introduction

The attempt by the US government to provide housing facilities to her citizens has sparked a lot of public debates and controversies. The debates and controversies have come in due to the various aspects that relate to housing in the States. Some of the key sources of such debates are encircled on the source of housing assistance, the groups or individuals that require assistance and issues of preservation or mobility in terms of housing. The Unites States department of housing and urban development is obliged to provide affordable housing facilities to all citizens without bias and discrimination. The department ascertains that the provision of affordable housing should be upheld to families that pay more than 30% of their incomes on housing. The department has embarked on a series of grant programs with an aim of increasing the affordability of housing by low-income people. For instance, the National Housing Trust Fund (NHTF) aims at providing support to the extremely low-income families to enable them acquire and construct rental units. Despite these attempts by the government, various debates have erupted on several issues regarding to housing. In 2012 the National Low Income Housing Coalition embarked on a housing dilemma on whether the preservation or mobility public housing should be initiated. The federal housing policy should provide policies to move the low income residents to areas lived by those with higher incomes with low levels of racial segregation rather than preserving the existing public housing.

Mobility of Housing

The federal housing policy should strive to provide the means by which low incomes people should move from the already existing public and assisted housing. The action of increasing the mobility of the low income people from their previous housing set-ups has a number of merits. The advantages accrued to such an action will by far outweigh the disadvantages. Increased levels of diversity will be realized as a result of this action. Diversity in the USA societies will be enhanced by the efforts of the federal housing policy to move the low income households from their original housing settings. The association of the newly moved low–income residents with those with higher incomes would prompt some diversity in various aspects. For instance, diversity in cultural, religious and other social issues will be enhanced between the two groups. Cultural exchange and mimic amongst the new entrants and the predecessors will be enhanced hence peaceful co-existence. The incorporation of new religious practices and undertakings in the new blend of the society will further diversity in religion and subsequently the religious believes. The interaction between the two groups will initiate aspects of intermarriages that help to shun the problem of racial segregation thereby non-biasness in the overall performance of the society.

The act of moving the low income households to higher income housing through the federal housing policy will be a key ingredient in overcoming the monster of racism that has since existed among the people. The adoption of the mobility policy will ultimately help to curb and overcome racism which is one of the major setbacks to integration in the USA. The existing public assisted houses were entirely set aside for the black people and their families. The notion that the blacks were poor and could not afford better housing facilities ought to be scrapped of the minds of the US citizens by moving them to higher income households.

Conclusion

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For many westerners and the Americans, the word, Africa, denotes images of strangely dressed tribesmen, impenetrable jungles, ferocious animals and safaris. In spite of the occasional highlights, in the press, on civil wars, genocides and other wrong happenings, most of the world is unaware of what constitutes the continent. Curtis Keim intended his book for the American audience who bear robust images of Africa in American advertising, cartoons, movies, and many other aspects of the society (Keim 4). However, this book applies to a larger Western audience who hold prominent misconceptions about Africa.

Africa is a place of poignant stories and great contrasts. This is a continent that the American imagination simultaneously strongly idealizes and vilifies. To being with, Americans’ perceptions of this continent are popularized by media-driven representations of a degraded Hobbesian existence. Intractable patterns of corruption, violence, famine have replaced the former images of a poignant society that was relishing in post-colonial independence. Neo-Malthusians propose that uncontrolled rapid environmental degradation, increasing resource scarcity, and population growth place Africa in this miserable scenario. On the other end, Americans imagination of Africa as a land of exotic animals, picturesque vegetation, and idyllic beauty is informed by the replication of Disney-inspired images and the big game safari stories. This expresses a dissonance between extreme stereotypes which informs a significant ignorance and collective misinformation of a large and diverse audience. Interestingly, Africa occurs in a significant part of the American subconscious, in spite of the idea that the knowledge about the continent does not exist in comprehensive form.

It is arguable that the continent has a beauty and diversity that is not known to the American continent. To begin with, in general terms, America is a hypocritical land that holds positive words, such as kinship and homeland, but maintains ignorance about the land of which such words are really instrumental. This is an overwhelming impression that builds on few notions of wild animals and primitivity. This is a factor that emanates from a consistent American language about limited notions on Africa. An investigation by an American museum, on common perceptions about the African continent, uncovered largely held misconceptions. These messages intertwine with American culture and perpetuate strong impressions. These impressions possess deep impressions that affect every other American. It is, thus, difficult to hold oneself free from such misconceptions.

This large conception largely plays out in the perspective of viewing Africans as inferior. Interestingly, once Africans integrate within Western societies, they suffer from this conception as other individuals look down upon them. During a momentous part of the Western and American history, it is discernible that exploitation and racism have become largely acceptable within the large part of the population. Although the present population never ruled Africa, it is crucial to highlight that the ancestors maintained slavery, segregation, and exploitation on Africans. This is an idea and information that entrenches in the world’s history as certain populations faced constraints in their advancements. The missionaries and colonialists largely profited from exploitation on Africa in terms of trade, wars, and resources’ acquisition. In the end, the practices of exploitation required that Africans be perceived as inferior individuals. This is a philosophy that the Western community thrived on to gain advantage of Africa’s numerous and diverse resources.

It is critical to highlight that development and advancement of Western world was largely dependent on Africa. This is a vital proposition that reacts to the perception of the colonizers and the larger Western society as the entities that brought advancement to the African population. In spite of the idea that the Western society brought some forms of technology and western civilization to the African continent, they hugely benefitted from Africa’s resources. The first type of African resource that the Western society exploited was the people. In the abominable slave trade that occurred for centuries, the colonizers traded Africans as commodities. This trade, in itself, influenced considerable amounts of revenue for the traders who thrived on high prices that slaves fetched.

The slaves were critical in the agricultural and industrial development of the American and western society. This is because the slaves were employable in huge plantations and farms as laborers. The slaves would perform arduous tasks and mechanical work that constrained their energy and development. In addition, African slaves were employable in dangerous factories and utilization of risky machinery that were critical in the industrial development of the American and larger Western society.

In addition, the African continent provided minerals, lands, and scenery. The Europeans discovered Africa in its raw state, and this suggests that there significant amounts of natural minerals in their lands. These resources were principal jewel and trade commodities such as gold and diamond. To date, these minerals have remained prominent sources of money as they fetch high and unreasonable values. In addition, there were minerals that were critical in developing the Western industries as raw materials. It is notable that lands were instrumental in according the western society with food and raw materials for their industries. This suggests that it is false to conclude that the Western society solely helped Africans towards their development since this cost the African continent a great deal.

To begin with, it is vital to clear the misconceptions that Africa is country. This is a statement that is both symbolic and realistic in itself. This suggests that while a section of the Americans hold Africa as a true country, the other section hold Africa as a one place that face the same governance. It is crucial to highlight that the second group holds Africa in this fashion because in spite of their knowledge that Africa has many countries. Africa is held as the second most populous continent that even entails adjacent Islands. In addition, the continent is circled by five seas; the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, the Indian, and the Red seas. It is crucial to highlight that the continent contains 54 countries, as sovereign states, that divide in terms of territories. Besides, the continent contains Madagascar and affiliated Islands.

Africa is large place that usually divides in terms of territories. For instance, there is the Northern Africa that consists of countries such as Tunisia and Libya. Besides, the Eastern part of Africa consists of countries such as Uganda. The Southern part of Africa consists of countries such as Botswana while the central parts of Africa consist of countries such as Zaire. Finally, there is the Western part of Africa that entails countries such as Nigeria. Each of this regions do not, however, similar patterns of climate and life. For instance, the Eastern part of Africa consists of both deserts and tropical climates. These divisions occur even within countries as single countries comprise significant diversity in terms of ecology and population.

Holding African as a country has led to the idea that the continent faces similar problems. African countries manifest different rates of economical developments and social advancements. For instance, some countries are edging towards the Western countries in terms national incomes. On the other end, other countries are trailing behind, just as some Asian countries, in their national incomes. Besides, the African countries possess different rates of stability as some face wars while others thrive on peace. Notably, the African continent entails different types of climatic and ecological conditions in terms of deserts, forests, cold climates, hot climates, rivers, and other types of natural conditions.

The notion of Africa as comprising of primitive individuals is, in itself, a primitive notion. The world has advanced in terms of education and thoughts. It therefore becomes critical to hold other people’s practices as objectively vital to the individuals who are involved in the same. This suggests that each individual possess the freedom of having given lifestyles and holding beliefs that they deem critical to them. The Western society has largely disregarded this element of thought in analyzing Africa. The word, primitive, is a subjective term that can apply to different situations. In turn, something foreign should not simply imply primitivity. The African culture, as a foreign concept to the Western way of life has unfairly acquired the labels of primitivism and inferiority. The Western society does not, however, realize that any practice can be primitive as depending on one’s beliefs. On the same light that the Americans African culture as primitive, the Africans can hold the American culture as primitive. It is, therefore, critical to respect African culture as long as it does not extend harm to other individuals.

African culture is a diverse concept that has transmitted different notions of beauty. For instance, the West Africa’s culture is a rich element that expressed in terms of women’s clothing and jewelry that created different impressions. For instance, the women had discovered and practiced the use of ivory ornaments and gold jewelry. In addition, there were diverse food and cuisines that the women practiced for social occasions and ordinary household life. These aspects differ from the narrow concepts that held African culture as limited in expressions.

In addition, it is crucial to consider Africa as a land of only black people. Africa entails countries that possess individuals of considerable diversity. For instance, it is critical to highlight that African countries entail living whites who are permanent residents of Africa. In addition, the white population divides into innumerable numbers. For instance, South Africa is a country that entails the Dutch, Afrikaans, the Germans and other divisions of the white race. Besides, Africa entails significant amounts of intermarriage that has led to blurry definitions of what constitutes tribes and communities. In other countries, there are Asians, such as Indians and Chinese, who consider Africa as their continent. These groups possess different levels of social and economic life, as some have established large businesses. These communities interestingly interact without regarding the idea that they belong to different definitions.

Besides, the western world largely holds the African continent as a place that shares a limited history. This idea about Africa might have commenced from the colonization and exploration work on Africa. When the Europeans discovered Africa, it became the point from which intellectuals recorded and analyzed Africa. However, the African continent and its people are elements that began ages before the white explorers discovered them. The Africans had practices and a history that build on different forms of advancement such as cultural beliefs and technology. From history, it records that Egypt formed the first source of civilization as it shared interesting development in literature, architecture, and technology. The Greeks adopted this civilization and transformed it into a concept that transmitted into Western nations. It is vital to realize that the African continent had long development in religion, philosophy, forms of life, and cultures that commenced before the Europeans’ discovery of Africa. For instance, certain communities of Africa had learned survival tactics in deserts and water survival skills that made them survive in their given environments.

Besides, it is narrow to classify Africa as a place of famine, wars and diseases. This is an incomprehensive view of a large place that cannot possible hold similar elements. Unknown to many Americans, Africa has thrived on a gradual development of medical technologies and professionalism that applies to given disease challenges. Africa is a place that faces unique medical challenges in terms of climate and economic scenarios. This suggests that it becomes complex to tackle diseases from general perspectives as each country faces unique health challenges. In addition, there are limited types of diseases that have led to the conclusion that Africa is full of diseases. For instance, HIV/AIDS and malaria are diseases that have occupied the American media as the definition towards disease challenges in Africa. Other countries in Africa, such as Nigeria, have world-class trained medical professionals and technology that helps the country tackle its health challenges. It is crucial to highlight that different parts of the African population, just as Americans, face financial constraints of accessing quality medical services that occur in their country.

In terms of wars, only certain African countries face wars. The African continent faces distinct challenges as regards the control of the war and their commencement. Some of the wars emerged in the pre-colonial African state that has made their resolutions an arduous task. For instance, the sharing of resources within large communities and huge populations has made resource sharing a complex task. In turn, it becomes difficult to unify the communities within sound solutions that would inject comprehensive social and economic recovery. Besides, some countries face wars because of different religions such as Islam and Christianity. Different doctrines and practices have led to intermittent conflicts between Muslims and Christians in Nigeria.

It is crucial to highlight that certain wars that still dominate the western media has considerably receded. These conflicts continue to dominate the American notion of a place that attracts conflicts. Furthermore, the African continent has prominent lands and climates that have led to large production in agricultural exports for the Western countries. This is contrary to the traditional notion of an ever-hungry population.

In conclusion, it is discernible that Africa has a diverse and wholly different side that is concealed to the Western society. This means that it is not comprehensive t view Africa as either full of idyllic beauty or disasters. From the discussion on the history, it is discernible that Africa has a long and rich history that has informed technology, arts and economics. This history would only come to the fore if the Western world comprehensively explores and discuss Africa.

Works cited

Keim, Curtis. Mistaking Africa: curiosities and inventions of the American mind. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2008. Print.

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Africa continent

QUESTION ONE

Introduction

Africa is very dynamic in culture which has a rich history in arts. Considering the dynamic status in the African culture, the African art took a very different direction in that because of the different cultures, there were different considerations in their arts. Precisely, every culture or ethnicity could be possibly having its own art. In this paper I will take I to account some specific objects and may be practices that were evidenced in specific African communities to try establish the African art.

African art

In Africa, there are some objects that are used for religious purposes. The fetish use has been rampant and very valuable in most of the communities. In their own perspective, these fetishes were majorly used with an aim to protect the individual for families or even communities that used them. Generally, there were no common fetishes to communities. However, these fetishes almost served the same roles in the African society i.e. protecting people against the harm of the evil spirits, may be to cure illness and also to guard against the bad deed of other people as well as decision makings in arguments. In this sense, fetishes were very effective and thus very powerful among Africans. (Monica, 56)

Among the Nkisi people, there was the nkondi which was basically responsible for hunting down people who did wrong in the community. These included thieves and other people who could be responsible for trouble in the society. Basically, nkondi was used to punish who could take false oaths and defaulters of treaties. Charging the nkondi into action was through invocations and provocations. For provocations, gunpowder was exploded in front of it and nails could also be hammered in it.

Despite the fact that in black Africa, there is magic but there are ranks for instance a witch doctor is a special person who specializes in talking to the veil powers and connecting them to the people. In most cases, the diviner who can also be the diviner, could act in favor of the whole community. In most of these communities, there were very little wood carvings, however there was special treatments to the trees and incase there was to be carvings, both the carver and the fetishist, Nganga, had to be there during carving.

There were several artistic practices in different communities in Africa for example there is the Eri Ibeji of the Yoruba of Nigeria who has a role to play in twin child births, the Bomana, helmet mask that is associated with the Komo power in the Mande culture who could be accompanied with dance and songs. Sacrifices could also be offered to invoke the spirits for appointments in the society. (Monica, 71)

QUESTION TWO

In African art, there different objects of art did convey some royal powers though in different ways. In the Asante, the golden stool called Bamum is believed to be heaven sent to the first Asante who is the asantehene, the king who is the osi-tutu. This golden stool does unite the people. For one to be the king he had to be lowered then raised over the stool and without the stool, no one could be the king. This stool is very important to the Asante and very sacred that no one could just sit on it and it is given the strictest protection than any other place or people in the land. This can be traced back i9n the 1896 when the Asante allowed their king to go back when it was now clear that they were losing the war against the British. Also in the year 1900, the Asante decided to plan for a war when Hudson demanded to sit on the stool. Still the same, in the year 1920 there was this African group builder who accidentally came across the golden stool and decided to take off its gold ornaments. These people were given a death penalty according to the Asante laws. In Asante’s kingdom, the golden stool is still a focal point as far as power and succession are concerned.

In addition to the as antes golden stool in Asante, there is also the throne in the Bamum state. The throne is considered to be very special in that the monarchy presented itself a festival at the palace of Nsa’ngu. This festival is always celebrated at the beginning of every January. This festival is known as Nja and it is an affirmation to the solidarity and also the wealth that is available in the Bamum state. The place with the throne is considered to be the place that should have good things, valuable bids among others. The throne is a respected place that only signifies power. These among other were some of the objects that come vividly to be used in connection to the royal power in African culture.

QUESTION THREE

It is generally agreed that cultural exchanges do play a very important in the process of art making. Cultural exchange can take place through interaction, through trade or even through approbation. Cultural exchange does enhance the sharing of different arts that do take place amongst different cultures. This can be seen in the example of the Bamum kingdom in which the king says how the palace of Nsa’ngu was renovated. You come to know why the throne is a key thing in this kingdom. It is a significant tool in this place because of the festivals that monarchy gave to it. The greatest festival i.e. the Nja takes pace every January of the year is significant for its affirmation to the solidarity and the wealth of the kingdom. The second largest festival is also taken when the king is on his throne during the festival of Nguon. The two thrones do belong to the kingdom and also gives a symbol to the might of the kingdom. (Eglash, 29)

Cultural exchanges also do enrich our trades. For instance, the Portuguese adopted the two objects that were domestically meant for use in Africa. The African saltcellars plus other objects are some of the examples of objects that were not for trade but finally ended up being trade objects. Also the ivory objects that the Europeans see valuable were initially used by Africans as decorations at homes. In exchange of pieces of brass and copper, Europeans received ivory and finally, they also go slaves from the African land.

Cultural exchanges do improve on the quality of lives that we are bound to live. Initially, Africans used to walk naked and then evolved to the use of skins. However with the coming of Europeans, Africans are nowadays very presentable for they have adopted the use of clothes. These clothes have added value to their lives as well as their beauty example is in the Edmund Fortier’s post card.

It is also true to say that cultural exchanges help us to analyze the kinds of conceptions that we can be having. Perceptions on religion creations and the world at large and our traditions are part of the cultural practices in the communities. With cultural exchanges we are able to transform our traditions and accept what looks to be logical among the majority. An example is from the kuba, central Zaire who considered their king as the God on the land. They also regarded him as the ruler of fertility and as the creator among others. The religion of Kuba is not well organized but their concepts are not logical in that some of their traditions are in place without any base. Basically cultural exchange helps to improve on our practices, arts through sharing our portions.

Conclusion

Africa as a continent has very many practices that prove to very independent and this is where its dynamite comes from. Considering all aspects of arts, we find that Africa has got rich arts but very many and may not necessarily be the same..

Works cited:

Eglash, R. Indigenous design. Rutgers, 1999Monica V. et al. A History of Art in Africa. Prentice Hall, New York, 2001Riley, M. Art in the West. New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2006.

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Date: Africa is very dynamic in culture which has a rich history in arts

QUESTION ONE

Introduction

Africa is very dynamic in culture which has a rich history in arts. Considering the dynamic status in the African culture, the African art took a very different direction in that because of the different cultures, there were different considerations in their arts. Precisely, every culture or ethnicity could be possibly having its own art. In this paper I will take I to account some specific objects and may be practices that were evidenced in specific African communities to try establish the African art.

African art

In Africa, there are some objects that are used for religious purposes. The fetish use has been rampant and very valuable in most of the communities. In their own perspective, these fetishes were majorly used with an aim to protect the individual for families or even communities that used them. Generally, there were no common fetishes to communities. However, these fetishes almost served the same roles in the African society i.e. protecting people against the harm of the evil spirits, may be to cure illness and also to guard against the bad deed of other people as well as decision makings in arguments. In this sense, fetishes were very effective and thus very powerful among Africans. (Monica, 56)

Among the Nkisi people, there was the nkondi which was basically responsible for hunting down people who did wrong in the community. These included thieves and other people who could be responsible for trouble in the society. Basically, nkondi was used to punish who could take false oaths and defaulters of treaties. Charging the nkondi into action was through invocations and provocations. For provocations, gunpowder was exploded in front of it and nails could also be hammered in it.

Despite the fact that in black Africa, there is magic but there are ranks for instance a witch doctor is a special person who specializes in talking to the veil powers and connecting them to the people. In most cases, the diviner who can also be the diviner, could act in favor of the whole community. In most of these communities, there were very little wood carvings, however there was special treatments to the trees and incase there was to be carvings, both the carver and the fetishist, Nganga, had to be there during carving.

There were several artistic practices in different communities in Africa for example there is the Eri Ibeji of the Yoruba of Nigeria who has a role to play in twin child births, the Bomana, helmet mask that is associated with the Komo power in the Mande culture who could be accompanied with dance and songs. Sacrifices could also be offered to invoke the spirits for appointments in the society. (Monica, 71)

QUESTION TWO

In African art, there different objects of art did convey some royal powers though in different ways. In the Asante, the golden stool called Bamum is believed to be heaven sent to the first Asante who is the asantehene, the king who is the osi-tutu. This golden stool does unite the people. For one to be the king he had to be lowered then raised over the stool and without the stool, no one could be the king. This stool is very important to the Asante and very sacred that no one could just sit on it and it is given the strictest protection than any other place or people in the land. This can be traced back i9n the 1896 when the Asante allowed their king to go back when it was now clear that they were losing the war against the British. Also in the year 1900, the Asante decided to plan for a war when Hudson demanded to sit on the stool. Still the same, in the year 1920 there was this African group builder who accidentally came across the golden stool and decided to take off its gold ornaments. These people were given a death penalty according to the Asante laws. In Asante’s kingdom, the golden stool is still a focal point as far as power and succession are concerned.

In addition to the as antes golden stool in Asante, there is also the throne in the Bamum state. The throne is considered to be very special in that the monarchy presented itself a festival at the palace of Nsa’ngu. This festival is always celebrated at the beginning of every January. This festival is known as Nja and it is an affirmation to the solidarity and also the wealth that is available in the Bamum state. The place with the throne is considered to be the place that should have good things, valuable bids among others. The throne is a respected place that only signifies power. These among other were some of the objects that come vividly to be used in connection to the royal power in African culture.

QUESTION THREE

It is generally agreed that cultural exchanges do play a very important in the process of art making. Cultural exchange can take place through interaction, through trade or even through approbation. Cultural exchange does enhance the sharing of different arts that do take place amongst different cultures. This can be seen in the example of the Bamum kingdom in which the king says how the palace of Nsa’ngu was renovated. You come to know why the throne is a key thing in this kingdom. It is a significant tool in this place because of the festivals that monarchy gave to it. The greatest festival i.e. the Nja takes pace every January of the year is significant for its affirmation to the solidarity and the wealth of the kingdom. The second largest festival is also taken when the king is on his throne during the festival of Nguon. The two thrones do belong to the kingdom and also gives a symbol to the might of the kingdom. (Eglash, 29)

Cultural exchanges also do enrich our trades. For instance, the Portuguese adopted the two objects that were domestically meant for use in Africa. The African saltcellars plus other objects are some of the examples of objects that were not for trade but finally ended up being trade objects. Also the ivory objects that the Europeans see valuable were initially used by Africans as decorations at homes. In exchange of pieces of brass and copper, Europeans received ivory and finally, they also go slaves from the African land.

Cultural exchanges do improve on the quality of lives that we are bound to live. Initially, Africans used to walk naked and then evolved to the use of skins. However with the coming of Europeans, Africans are nowadays very presentable for they have adopted the use of clothes. These clothes have added value to their lives as well as their beauty example is in the Edmund Fortier’s post card.

It is also true to say that cultural exchanges help us to analyze the kinds of conceptions that we can be having. Perceptions on religion creations and the world at large and our traditions are part of the cultural practices in the communities. With cultural exchanges we are able to transform our traditions and accept what looks to be logical among the majority. An example is from the kuba, central Zaire who considered their king as the God on the land. They also regarded him as the ruler of fertility and as the creator among others. The religion of Kuba is not well organized but their concepts are not logical in that some of their traditions are in place without any base. Basically cultural exchange helps to improve on our practices, arts through sharing our portions.

Conclusion

Africa as a continent has very many practices that prove to very independent and this is where its dynamite comes from. Considering all aspects of arts, we find that Africa has got rich arts but very many and may not necessarily be the same..

Works cited:

Eglash, R. Indigenous design. Rutgers, 1999Monica V. et al. A History of Art in Africa. Prentice Hall, New York, 2001Riley, M. Art in the West. New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2006.