Tuesday, September 24, 2019
Write a response to the article Alone on a Hilltop Essay
Write a response to the article Alone on a Hilltop - Essay Example What exactly hit me about this reading was the relationship between the boy and different symbols of his religion. I have learned a couple of things from this article. First, a person is nothing without a religion because it is the religion, which protects us and guides us to the right direction. Second, every religion has a different set of perspectives, rituals, and beliefs that inspire its followers. This article reminds me of the day of my first school exam when I was feeling really scared. It was totally a new feeling for me and I was feeling very confused. I did not know how the exam would go and what it would be like. At that time, I recalled what my mother had said to me to do if I feel scared during exams. She had told me to close my eyes right before the exams for some seconds, think that God is with you, and feel that you are in the arms of your mother. She said that by doing this all my fear would go away. I did exactly this on the day of exams and surprisingly all my fea r went away and I became ready to do my best in the paper. Summing it up, my personal experience and that of the boy in this article show that the relationship between a person and his/her beliefs and religion is strong enough to get the person out of every difficult
Monday, September 23, 2019
Book analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2
Book analysis - Essay Example tuation unraveled in the wake of the Great Depression in the USA (with domino effects on economies of Europe) and all the erstwhile enemies of republicanism and democracy joined ranks. This then, is how the glorious Weimar years came to an end. The ensuing political vacuum and the attendant opportunism saw the assumption of Adolf Hitler as the Fuhrer. But sadly, Nazi Germany saw the greatest degree of intolerance toward intellectual or political dissent. Weimar Germany represented the cradle of modernity for Western Civilization in more than one way. There are many high points during the early decades of twentieth century Germany. This is especially true with respect to art and literature, which are identified with the birth of Expressionism, Bauhaus architecture, discoveries in the Physics of Relativity, the naissance of Quantum Physics, Atonality in music (as pioneered by Arnold Schoenberg), Sigmund Freud and the Psychoanalysis movement, Sociology of Knowledge, etc. Before the rise of Hitler Germany boasted some of the leading luminaries in the fields of science and art, including de Broglie, Albert Einstein, Max Planck, Carl Gustav Jung and Alfred Adler. Where these intellectuals differed from earlier generations of scientists and philosophers is in making their esoteric intellectual pursuits accessible to the lay readership. 3. Amid widespread censorship and crushing of dissent during the Hitler years, were there yet notable countercurrents? How exactly did artists and intellectuals cope with mounting political suppression? Although German culture under the Nazis suffered radical decline, one cannot yet doubt the unique merits of poets such as Rilke, George and Benn. Likewise, amid the looming political darkness were the bright spots offered by the novels of Mann, Hermann Hesse and Doblin. In theatre too, Expressionism made its mark as a new genre. Likewise, Arnold Schoenberg took modernity in music to new heights. In the realm of philosophy we have had the
Sunday, September 22, 2019
Hip Hop’s Problem Essay Example for Free
Hip Hop’s Problem Essay From its birth, Hip Hop is consistently argued about between black and white America, and among the young and old. Usually, it is the negative of the subject that receives the most attention from this topic. The main problem with Hip Hop is its negative aspects, Re creation, and the unrealistic goal of achieving the American Dream. Hip Hop today is more concerned with commercializing and what sells, which takes away from the culture that was established early on. With the newly evolving era of technology, the four pillars can be looked at as mp3, music video, mix tape, and commercialism. Music is the main focus that defines Hip Hop today and continues to become even bigger than before. Music is able to connect many different people on so many levels and influence fashion, cars, speech and attitude. This is an example of how Hip Hop has gone through many generations and is still going strong. As it grows among the youth, both black and white, it is definitely taking a positive role in the African American despite contrary belief. However as the growth of Hip Hop continues the negative aspects are focused on more than anything. To solve the negative aspects of Hip Hop stricter ratings need to be put on the music, bigger fines for re creation of previous songs, and have people realize that everybody can’t be a rapper. The negative aspects of Hip Hop are a more predominate feature that are more glorified in the media than the positive ones. One prime example would be the televised daily reports of gun related issues such as school shootings or elementary students that bring weapons to school. The media immediately begins to criticize the music for being the driving force behind the violence that occurs within today’s youth. If a child brings a weapon to school, there is an assumption made immediately, by the media, that he or she has heard this on a Hip Hop song. But there are many more instances where Hip Hop is said to influence acts of violence. In the Duval county public school system, there have been over 12 gun related arrests this year. In this area, this is not a new occasion, but a reoccurring event. Even though the problem starts in the households, it seems to be blamed on Hip Hop instead. Chief Officer David Coffman, who heads the school resource officers, places the blame on Hip Hop and music videos for making youngsters feel that it is cool to carry a gun. Another great example is the event which occurred between Don Imus and the women’s basketball players of Rutgers University. Although he did use his freedom of speech and press, he used sexually and racially derogatory comments to describe the women’s basketball team. For his poor choice, consequently the media did embark on the language used in the Hip Hop culture. In my English 101 class 85% of my classmates felt Hip Hop objectify women in a negative way. In Hip Hop, the image of women is not as positive as it should be. The culture of Hip Hop chooses to degrade women continuously, which does not go unnoticed by the American population and therefore is looked down upon for it; creating yet another reason for society to discriminate against this culture. One artist that displays this negative behavior towards women is Ludacris. Though he has many uplifting songs, his creation of the song â€Å"Ho†has no other purpose than to give an explanation of the negative perception of women. Despite some negative aspects of Hip Hop it is not fair to say that Hip Hop is a leading factor in increasing violence and social problems when it is so much more than that. To establish a stance on Hip Hop saying that it is only a bad thing should not be the method that is taken. These assumptions show that the culture of Hip Hop is frequently misunderstood. Such assumptions are made because of accounts that previously occurred. Hip Hop culture now is not an explanation for those parents that neglect their children or those parents that have problems with discipline towards the children. Hip Hop is not a cause of the increase of violence this but it may be a reflection of what the artist grew up seeing. Hip Hop record labels need to have stricter ratings and parents need to be more cautious about what their kids are listening to. The media causes the image of Hip Hop to be tarnished into what we see today. Since this image is embedded in our minds, the idea and culture of Hip Hop is not as encouraging as before. The experiences and their way of expressing their life are done with the use of Hip Hop. Re creation is not a concept that is popular, but has been around for many years. The act of taking an original invention or idea and mastering it in another way shows how creative a person can be. Though it is not a simple task, it is a frequent practice in Hip Hop. This exposes the ability of a young person’s mind. Nelson George comments on the topic, stating that â€Å"We love to take things that were once out of reach†¦and reinvent the technology in our own image†(George 52). This quote is saying that anything can be turned into an aspect of Hip Hop. Its original use is meant for another purpose, but that does not limit the abilities of it. One example is the use of ability to recreate music. Most people see this as plagiarism and stealing somebody else’s song. The process involves taking a part of an original song and developing a new use for it. This can be thought of as a pastiche. This has also assisted in opening the possibilities of music that could not be explored before by simple instruments. Now, the music makers of Hip Hop are able to extend the tradition of sampling music. Instead of just an instrument and some lyrics, there is a collection of sounds that have not been heard before. In today’s society, it is difficult to be your own person. Many artist see re creation as a means to survival in the Hip Hop Industry. The music industry should make it illegal for artist to use somebody else’s work and fine artist a penalty for doing so. Many artists see re creation as a necessity and will most likely keep on doing it. The culture of Hip Hop makes the idea of self definition a necessity for survival. For African Americans of all ages, it is hard to survive in this society. The development of pride and confidence in oneself is a key in self definition. To have just enough confidence may not be suitable. There is no limit to how much you should love yourself. These words are seen as bad for a person’s characteristics. To have an indulgence in self importance can destroy a person in the eyes of others. Instead, it can be a source of power. In any person’s lifetime, he or she may pursue the â€Å"American Dream†; the idea of a big house, luxury cars, and money. In the society of today, the dream is about being a young millionaire (Kitwana 46). Hip Hop continues to glorify this unrealistic fantasy. This dream is neither achieved by everyone, nor is it handed freely. It takes long hours and hard work to accomplish the dream. Many young people in the black community want to be rich like the rappers they look up to without the hard work. In Hip Hop, the dream is the motivation for any person in any aspect of the culture. Because of this, hard work is an expectation. This dream is leading to the downfall of lower class African Americans as well as Hip Hop its self. The majority of Hip Hop is focused on those living in lower class poverty level who wants to change their situation. What they hear and see is what they use to base their future on. The American Dream is not the only motivation for young Americans to increase their work ethic. Many others have no other choice but to work extra hours daily or an extra job. This is how they grow up and what they see in Hip Hop. Sometime it is not the preferred method, but it is a necessity for survival. Bakari Kitwana gives insight on this topic, saying â€Å"Everyone wants to make it big†¦many of us can’t wait until we’re 40, or even 35†¦Although such attitudes existed in previous generations, with the Hip Hop generation, it is nearly an obsession†(Kitwana 46). The youth that are growing up seem to understand that they will not be given anything. The determination to get millions of dollars is the driving force that makes them want to work. They see the benefits of having money but also experience the downfalls of not having it. Due to the experiences, they sometimes turn to illegal activity such as selling drugs. This should not be the case, but it does give the same results. You have to create cliental, gather product, and find ways to get the most profit from it. This is similar to a kid who becomes successful in the e-commerce industry. With the e-commerce business, you must find something that interest people, create a cliental, and be able to advertise. Both of those methods are different but share one thing: the development of an entrepreneur. Along with that, hard work is forced on those that are involved in activities such as drug sales or web development for example. The tactics are not easy, but they lead traits which become very valuable later on, and can take them to their millions. As a result, Hip Hop has been a big contribution to the youth of America in negative and positive ways. The main problem with Hip Hop is its negative aspects, Re creation, and the unrealistic goal of achieving the American Dream. Although there are negative aspects stand out the most, it has influenced the youth in a way that their parents are not able to. Hip Hop is able to open their minds and help them to become more creative. The idea of sampling a song and producing a new, unheard of instrumental is a very complex practice. It does take effort to do, but it is a great exercise of the brain. Hip Hop also helps to instill confidence and pride among the youth. This is a hard lesson to learn at a young age, but it is something that can be carried on through life. Finally, it helps to change the idea of kids being lazy. Now, there are more youth that are willing to work and establish themselves financially. They are able to set goals for themselves and strive for it. Hip Hop has been around for many years. During its time of existence, it has been able to change each generation that has grown through it. Among this generation, it has had the biggest and most positive impact of all. Work Cited Cobb, William. To the Break of Dawn: A Freestyle on the Hip Hop Aesthetic. London: NYU Press, 2008. George, Nelson. Hip Hop America. Boston: Penguin (Non-Classics), 2005. Hip Hop Speaks to Children. Ebony 1 Nov. 2008: 55. Kitwana, Bakari. The Hip Hop Generation: Young Blacks and the Crisis in African American Culture. New York: Basic Ci
Saturday, September 21, 2019
The United Nations And Human Rights Essay Example for Free
The United Nations And Human Rights Essay The developments that immediately preceded the Second World War in field of state-relations irreversibly changed the landscape of the international communities. The biggest development, if not the most significant, was the establishment of the United Nations. This move to theoretically unite a war-ravaged world was ambitious and prone to many pitfalls.            Among the immediate developments that were ushered in by the creation of this supranational institution was the Human Rights Machinery. This significant progress came â€Å"[a]fter centuries of inadequate, piecemeal efforts to protect citizens from abuse by their own governments, in 1946 the international community founded a global human rights institution.  The United Nations Commission on Human Rights became the first international body empowered to promote all the human rights of all the world’s peoples. The founders assumed that improved respect for human rights would help individuals and would also serve the United Nations’ primary peacekeeping gal by eliminating repressive practices which provoked war.†[1] The importance and legitimacy of the respect for Human Rights and the international promotion of it among the different nations of the world was further â€Å"highlighted in Chapter IX of the Charter dealing with international economic and social cooperation in terms of a pledge or commitment of all Member states.†[2]            Like with many other issues in the political arena, there is a wide schism between the word and the act. â€Å"The contributions of the UN must neither be understated nor overstated. The UN has been an intellectual pioneer in the issues of economic and social development, much more than is often recognized. At the same time, there have often been omissions and distortions in its work.†[3] While the ideals proclaimed by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, through the different Conventions and texts are many, there is a vocal number of people that believe that the United Nations, together with the mentioned Commission is all rhetoric. In this, there is a â€Å"[s]trong tendency†¦to put blame for this unsatisfactory state of affairs on the United Nations and it is true that the Organization is in many respects inapt and ineffective in converting the theory of its own words into actual practice. However, those circles who for good reasons criticize the United Nations would be well advised to do some more soul-searching as to their own direct or indirect share of complicity in bringing about and maintaining structures of injustice.†[4]            The human rights machinery refers to the different organs and procedures dealing directly with human rights in the United Nations system which includes: Intergovernmental organs established on the basis of the Charter of the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, and the Commission on Human Rights. The commission on the Status of Women and the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice also address human rights issues within their respective mandates; Bodies established by human rights treaties; Reporting, communications, and investigating procedures established by policy-making organs and treaty based bodies; the parts of the United Nations Secretariat responsible for human rights activities, especially the United Nation High Commissioner for Human Rights. The Division for the Advancement of Women and the centre for International Crime Prevention have also human rights responsibilities. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Decision for the Advancement of Women adopt joint work plans.[5]       â€Å"The Charter of the United Nations, with respect to Human Rights bridged the gap between human rightly established a close link between human rights and other world-wide concerns, viz. the maintenance of peace and the promotion of economic and social development. (†¦) The United Nations played a dynamic role in strongly supporting the quest for independence of colonial countries and peoples was instrumental in terminating colonial domination and combating racial discrimination. In no other area did the United National proclaim and defend human rights principles with so much vigour as in the fields of decolonization and racial discrimination.†[6]            There is said to be three stages of differently focused activities that capture the essence of the Commission’s work in the domain of Human Rights: (1) Standard-Setting (2) Promotion (3) Protection. These three stages are essential in analyzing the work, whether in a positive or negative light, of the Commission.            The Standard-setting stage started the inception of the body of the United Nations itself and lasted a decade after (1945-1955). The most significant output of this stage, and perhaps one of the most significant in human history, was the articulation of the International Bill of Rights; and for this one must give credit to the Commission who was entrusted with this enormous task. During the first decade, the Commission â€Å"spent most of its time on the elaboration of the draft international covenants and concluded its drafting work with respect to those instruments in the mid-fifties.†[7]            â€Å"Despite adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, concern with and promotion of human rights as such often played little part in the UN’s early work on economic and social development. The fulfilment of many economic and social rights was certainly implicit in UN concerns and actions for economic and social advance, but references to rights in this work were few and far between.  Moreover, political and civil and cultural rights mostly got forgotten or ignored in economic writing on development and were treated more as a matter of political and ideological debate in the U.N. Indeed, in development discussions, the belief became popular that authoritarian regimes had some advantage and even some justification because of their ability to take the tough decisions requiredfor example, to raise the rate of savings in poor countries. It was argued that more democratic leaders would find it difficult to take these hard decisions.†[8]            Although the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was and is considered a huge achievement for the international community, the acceptance was not as ready, much like all the new ideas that come into the field, like gender mainstreaming. When a popular support for the ideas embodied in the Declaration did not appear on the horizons, the United Nations began a widespread promotional campaign, the second stage (19955-1965). â€Å"It was assumed that studies, advice and measures in the field of education and information would in the long run provide a more fruitful basis for enhancing the cause of human rights that the treaty-making process which was undertaken with the elaboration of the International Covenants.†[9]           However, this particular stage did not receive resounding success either. The interest that was sparked was not proportionate to the resources of time, energy and money expended to undertake the promotional activities. â€Å"[T]hey failed to grasp the interest and the imagination of the United Nations membership and of the public at large. Moreover, they were too far removed from the main political currents in the World Organization. The human rights program was functioning in isolation and it seemed to lack the political relevance and for that matter the impetus which is needed for dynamic evolution.†[10]            Apparently, the fact that â€Å"[i]t is one thing to draw up international standards, it is quite another thing to have those standards implemented†[11] began to painfully dawn on the Commission. It must be said, however, that this unforeseen lack of support was entirely due to the incompetence of the United Nations in general and the Commission, in particular. External factors of the current times have to be taken into consideration as well. Despite the end of the war, there was still prevalent â€Å"[d]istrust and tensions between nations and peoples, extreme disparities in economic and social conditions between and within nations, religious and ideological antagonism, persistent patterns of racial discrimination and class domination and numerous other factors, including selfishness of individual human beings, affect the realization of human rights with the various societies. It should also be taken into account that any approach from the viewpoint of violations of human rights is, in the context of inter-State cooperation, a most precarious and delicate undertaking inasmuch as it focuses mostly on weaknesses and failures.†[12]            It is undeniable, looking at the United Nations history, that the machinery met great difficulties in the human rights ideals across the world and to effectively integrate it into existing government practices. Due to the few successes of the first two stages, the stage of protection started off with a bumpy ride and is subject to much criticism, which will discussed in the later paragraphs.            Despite the shaky two decades, it is undeniable that â€Å"the Commission has contributed to the inadequate but nevertheless incremental growth of supranational authority capable of scrutinizing practices that had previously been exclusively within governments’ sovereign jurisdiction.†[13] The third stage, protection, came right after the standards were set and the same were promoted to the individuals and national governments. The protection stage is actually the collection of events, still undergoing now, that enforces the standards by â€Å"responding to specific complaints against over seventy governments. The process has increased the Commission’s visibility ad dramatically transformed its operation while exacerbating fundamental differences over whether political or economic, individual or collective rights deserve priority.†[14]            To guide the protection of the world’s population, the Commission refers to now only their shining accomplishment that was the Universal Declaration of Human Rights but other treaties such as the International Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Racial Discrimination (1966), the Convention of the Rights of the Child (1989) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. â€Å"There can be little doubt that the three greatest intellectual contributions of the United Nations have been human rights on a global scale†¦Ã¢â‚¬ [15]            Despite the pioneering efforts of the Commission, those that have resulted in both failure and success, a large number of people are highly critical of the United Nations, in general and the Commission, in particular, citing inefficiency, redundancy and an overly-bureaucratic structure as primary reasons. â€Å"American critics have made the sharpest attacks, venting their greatest anger prior to 1980 and since then against the UN in general and the Assembly in particular. The Commissions harshest critic claims that unfair procedures have been manipulated to subvert democratic governments and fundamental rights. The Commission’s defenders lament it limited impact on government practice and propose a variety of structural reforms.†[16]            One of the biggest concerns aired by the Eastern bloc is the supposed prevalence of Western values embodied in the different Declaration and Treaties. â€Å"Judging by the time spent in drafting and the norms adopted, the Commission appears to have given higher priority to Western sponsored political and civil than to Third World initiated economic and social standards.†[17] Economic concerns were definitely more pressing in the third-world countries where starvation trumped political freedom any day. Although in its defense, the Declaration did have economic rights included in the text. However, many complain that while that is true,†[t]he Universal Declaration and the two covenants give nearly consideration to economic rights, but create more effective enforcement procedures for civil liberties. The conventions on race discrimination and apartheid affirm the rights of groups as well as individuals but give no special priority to economic concerns. (†¦) The consensus decision-making procedure delayed and weakened the 1986 declaration on development. If any standard setting priority exists, the Commission has given the greatest attention to individual civil and political rights. Despite the strident rhetoric about balancing economic and political rights, the gross violations identified have involved considerably more political than economic injustice. (†¦) Complaints about forced labour, particularly involving children, have not prompted a response unless the violation involved mass killing or another top priority.†[18]            Assuming but not conceding that this prioritization were true, it must be said that such would be essential in the smooth running of an organization in order not to spread oneself too thin. This is particularly true for the United Nations because a â€Å"society must establish value priorities about which rights to protect by law and which violations to punish most severely. The international community is even more ideologically divided than its constituent members, therefore attempts to enforce universal human rights exacerbate fundamental political differences.†[19]            Among the popular criticisms of the United Nations Human Rights machinery, the most troubling would perhaps have to be the accusations of the employing double standards; standards that heavily favor Western aggression. These complaints found legitimacy in the now-infamous UN inaction during the Rwandan genocide. Furthermore, the deafening silence on the part of the UN during the American military operations against Afghanistan and Iraq hit the UN credibility hard and many more joined the others in crying foul. â€Å"Some critics have concluded that politically motivated double standards, selective enforcement and disparate treatment totally discredit the Commission’s enforcement program. When the Commission acts selectively, its exceptionally rare actions appear arbitrary and capricious. While Commission supporters also complain that too many serious violation escape scrutiny, they favor imperfect enforcement to none at all.†[20]            In conclusion, the Commission was â€Å"ill-equipped to cope with the underlying military and economic causes of the worst human rights violations. At best its measures temper and moderate the most extreme offenses. Once the killing has begun, human rights remedies, like United Nations relief for refugees, merely alleviates symptoms.†[21]            With that said, a new chapter of Human Rights’ protection through the United Nations system was ushered with the extinction of the Commission of the Human Rights in 2006. Its successor is dubbed the Human Rights Council. This brings to the playing field a shift in the field of Human Rights and is significant in several aspects. First, it addresses the issue of a much-needed ‘face-lift’ for the image of the United Nations main machine of human rights. The former Commission had its share of bad publicity and the creation of the Human Rights Council, even if will heavily base its action on those of its predecessors, makes the evolution in thinking and practice much more understandable by the general public.            Moreover, the Council ushers in a new era in which the Commission would have been hard-pressed to fit in. This misfit can perhaps be attributed to the fact that the former Commission was created during a different international field, at a time when war was still a fresh memory. In so many ways, the global community has progressed far beyond the nature of Post-World War II. Therefore, this new change will hopefully reflect mandates that would be more faithful and effective in these current times.            A cursory look at the working groups under the Human Rights Council shows that not all was changed, however, and rightly so. The Council is still carrying out the standard-setting stage, which the Commission excelled at. Under a standard-setting goal, the Council is currently looking into the expansion of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in order to more accurately portray the Human Rights’ needs of these rapidly changing times. In addition to this potential expansion, there is also a working group under the auspices of the Human Rights Council that is currently drafting a legally binding instrument for the protection of all persons from enforced disappearances. This latter on is merely a continuation of the Commission’s work.            The other working groups of the Human Rights Council do show that they are treading into new territory, which the Commission was criticized for not doing enough. Under the working groups for special procedures, there are experts on People of African Descent, Arbitrary Detention and Mercenaries.            There is incredible potential for the Council to do great work in the field of human rights and it is not weighed down by decades of bad publicity. Although it is too early in the game to call the outcome, this significant change in the United Nations framework will only be effective if the new Council learns from its predecessor’s mistakes in enforcement. Although the textual and intellectual contribution of the Commission cannot be disputed, these contemporary times need more than non-binding conventions that do not seem to scare those militant with complete disregard for the sanctity and dignity of human life.            Being a watchdog of human rights in the world cannot be constrained to formulating conventions and treaties. This was where the Commission excelled at and the Council should build on them but concentrate on actual groundwork where they are needed, on the ground and not from some lofty and comfortable climate controlled environment in New York. In many ways, this shows that the United Nations System has evolved with the times and the old complaints with the old machinery will slowly be forgotten. This is a perfect time for any enormous changes within the United Nations system in that there is an actual change of face, literally, with the new Secretary-General; therefore any new victories will be counted as part of the new Council, even if it were heavily rooted in the Commission’s work. [1] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.xiii [2] Cassese, A. ed. (1979) UN Law: Fundamental Rights. van Boven, T., United Nations and Human Rights: A critical Appraisal. p.119 [3] Jolly, R. et.al. (2004) UN Contributions to Development Thinking and Practice. Indiana: United Nations Intellectual History Project Series. p.276 [4] Cassese, A. ed. (1979) UN Law: Fundamental Rights. van Boven, T., United Nations and Human Rights: A critical Appraisal. p.120 [5] Symonides, J., (2003) Human Rights: International Protection, Monitoring, Enforcement. UNESCO Publishing. p.5 [6] Cassese, A. ed. (1979) UN Law: Fundamental Rights. van Boven, T., United Nations and Human Rights: A critical Appraisal. p.120 [7] Cassese, A. ed. (1979) UN Law: Fundamental Rights. van Boven, T., United Nations and Human Rights: A critical Appraisal. p.121 [8] Jolly, R. et.al. (2004) UN Contributions to Development Thinking and Practice. Indiana: United Nations Intellectual History Project Series. p.8 [9] Cassese, A. ed. (1979) UN Law: Fundamental Rights. van Boven, T., United Nations and Human Rights: A critical Appraisal. p.122 [10] Cassese, A. ed. (1979) UN Law: Fundamental Rights. van Boven, T., United Nations and Human Rights: A critical Appraisal. p.122 [11] Cassese, A. ed. (1979) UN Law: Fundamental Rights. van Boven, T., United Nations and Human Rights: A critical Appraisal. p.125 [12] Cassese, A. ed. (1979) UN Law: Fundamental Rights. van Boven, T., United Nations and Human Rights: A critical Appraisal. p.125 [13] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.xiii [14] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.xiii [15] Jolly, R. et.al. (2004) UN Contributions to Development Thinking and Practice. Indiana: United Nations Intellectual History Project Series. p.276 [16] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.187 [17] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.193 [18] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.193 [19] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.194 [20] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.203 [21] Tolley, H., (1987). The UN Commission on Human Rights. London: Westview Press. p.220
Friday, September 20, 2019
Stability of Islamic and Conventional Banks
Stability of Islamic and Conventional Banks 1. Ratio Analysis The performance and the stability of banks can be quantified and measured through the analysis of their financial ratios. We can have several hundreds of ratios at our disposal. However, we will use only those that are common, and of some meaning for the analysis of the banks. Also, it is important to note that we should use only major and comparable ratios in order to fully understand the financial position of these banks as compared to all those ratios that may include some vagueness in the research. Mainly five categories of these financial ratios are used to eliminate the vagueness created by redundant use of the financial heads and items from the financial statements. Hence, the five categories are: (CFA 2009, p498): Profitability Ratios Activity Ratios Liquidity Ratios Solvency Ratios Valuation Ratios However, for the banking industry, which is our main concern, we will use only the first four categories, making an exception of the Valuation category. The financial stability department of the State Bank of Pakistan, which is the central bank of this major economy in the Muslim world, and actively involved in the promotion of Islamic Banking, suggests that the financial ratios fairly reflect the stability, health and the performance of the banks. Hence, these ratios can be used for our purpose. 2. Z-score Instead of just doing the Financial Ratios Analysis, we should also do the analysis of the banks insolvency risk, which is measured by the z-score. This will be done for both the categories of banking systems: Islamic Banks; as well as the Commercial Banks. The statistic based on z-score is calculated with the help of the data on the banks expected profits, the riskiness or the variation in such profits and the capital base of the bank. In other words, the following variables help to calculate the z-score and test it, we need the profit margin, its likelihood of occurrence and the shareholders equity available to compensate in case of the negative margins (losses). A z-score represents the number of standard deviations by which the return on asset have to decrease in order to incur a loss (a negative return). Z-scores can be measured by the following formula: z = (ROA+CAP)/ÃÆ' (ROA) where: ROA (Return on Assets) = Net Income / Total Assets; CAP (Capital to Asset Ratio) = Equity / Total Assets; and ÃÆ' (ROA) = standard deviation of return on assets (proxy for the variation of return). According to the formula, the higher z-score means that the equity base and the return added on it is much higher than the potential risk to the earnings as measured by the standard deviations. Hence, such usage of the z-score testing as the test for measuring risk is recommended by many researches in the field. By the definition of the z-score here, it can be said that it directly relates to the probability of a banks insolvency. It is necessary to evaluate and understand the extent to which Islamic banks are risky as compared to conventional banks. Z-scores will play an integral role in helping us identify the risk profile of Islamic banks. 3. Regression One of the most extensively used statistical measure of conformity is the use of regression and correlation. The extent to which two different datasets match in terms of moving together is evaluated by a regression analysis. This context will look closely at how the dataset we obtained for Islamic and conventional banks will be moving in tandem with the GDP and inflation (CPI) of their respective countries. A pooled regression test will be used to perform the respective tests and statistics generated from the regression such as the R-squared value will be used to make judgments on the relationship between the profitability and growth of Islamic and conventional banks with respect to their national growth and inflation. This test is extremely as it is crucial to understand the synchronization of growth of these banks with their national economies. It would be difficult to make pre-assumptions about either Islamic or conventional banks however, it has generally been seen that while conventional banks were wiped of several billions of dollars, Islamic banks stood their ground and even grew in some countries. Thus, bearing this in mind, a pooled regression test will enable us to identify the polarity of growth of Islamic and conventional banks with their respective economies. Chapter Four: 1.1 Financial Ratio Analysis: Financial statement analysis involves comparing the firms performance with that of other firms in the same industry. In this research, we are comparing banks with banks but having two categories within the banking industry: Islamic banks and the conventional banks. Ratio analysis also involves evaluating trends of the financial position of the firm over a time period. The ratio analysis of the firms financial statements helps the management of the firm to identify problems and deficiencies and then to take actions to try to improve performance. It also helps the decision makers to make operational as well as strategic decisions that would help the firm over a long period of time. Financial statements mainly comprises of the balance sheet, the income statement and the cash flow statement. The balance sheet and the cash flow statement both report the firms position at a given point of time. It gives the situation in which the company is standing at that point of time. And the income statement tells about the performance of the companys operations over a certain time period, usually a year. In other words, the financial statement analysis is useful to help anticipate the future conditions and as a starting point for planning actions that will improve the firms future performance. But with these lengthy and complicated financial statements, it is really time consuming for the decision makers and other stake holders to confer something. Hence, the financial ratios are used to help evaluate the financial statements. These ratios are taken from the break down elements of the financial statements. These ratios are easy to read and understand rather than the whole financial statements. Profitability Ratios Profitability is what every firm is seeking. The higher the profitability, the better is the performance of a bank. The profitability ratios show the combined effects of the liquidity, the asset management, and debt on the operations of the company as the profit is what comes out in the end of the income statement and this profit is what is mainly desired by the ownership and the management of a firm. One of the most important and most often looked at category of the ratios is the profitability ratios. These ratios are integral in that they help us estimate the degree to which revenues are converted into profits. A bank may be earning extremely high revenues in comparison to its competitors however, its profitability may be low signifying a lower efficiency. On the other extreme, a low earning bank may have a higher profitability signifying a greater efficiency. Thus, it is important to compare the relative profitability of the two bank streams and analyse them over several years data. Return on Assets: The performance of the firm is often and most commonly looked at through the ratio of net income (return) to total assets. In simple words, return on assets shows that what the company is getting out as net profits from its investment in the assets of the business. The assets in a companys statements are valued on the basis of original cost. Furthermore, the total return is usually the sum of the net income and the interest paid if any on the borrowings, as it is assumed that the assets may be financed by the borrowings. Banks also do have assets employed in their business, including the loans they have offered to the customers. The return is usually the spread between the rate of borrowings and deposits, which is net of all expenses incurred. In case of Islamic banks, the net income is the net profit earned from the investments through different financial instruments such as mudarbah, murabaha, musharakah, ijarah, etc. and the assets of the Islamic banks also comprise of the investments in different schemes through Islamic modes of financing. It can be seen from the graph that the conventional banks experienced a rise in the ROAA (Return on Average Assets) during the booming period from 2002 till 2007. However, in 2007, it started to decline and has been declining since. But, during this same period, ROA for the Islamic Banks have been rising on average. Although, the financial crisis in 2007 hit both banking systems, Islamic banks experienced a relatively lesser impact. It has fallen from 2.6 in 2007 to around 2.1 in 2009. The conventional banks on average were at their peak in 2006 at almost 2.5 and since then, its been falling and has reached 1.6 in 2009. The overall decline of the conventional banks is far greater than the decline in ROAA of the Islamic Banks. Return on Equity: Shareholders, the real owners of the company, are mainly concerned about the return on the equity they have invested in the business. They need to know the profitability of their investment in the company. Hence, the net profit of the company is measured as a ratio of the equity the shareholders have invested in this ratio. The main difference in the return on assets and the return on equity is that usually, the assets are financed by both the investors (such as shareholders) and the lenders (such as the banks); and the equity reflects only the investment by the shareholders. Hence, this measure shows the rate at which the company is returning the investment to its shareholder (in absolute terms and not in cash terms, as cash is paid out in form of dividends). In terms of the banks, the equity will be the shareholders money that they have invested in the bank to make it running. This will not include any loans that the banks management has obtained for its operations or assets. If this measure is giving out high results, it means that investing in a bank as a shareholder is a profitable venture. It can be seen from the graph that from our sample of banks, the conventional banks are slightly returning a better amount than the Islamic banks especially after the crisis of 2007. In this regard, we can say that the Islamic banks have taken a bigger impact as their average Return on Average Equity (ROAE) have fallen from 25 in 2006 to around 11 in 2009 as compared to conventional banks having 26 in 2006 and falling to around 16 in 2009. There can be several possible reasons for such results. It could be that after the crisis, the investments in equity for the Islamic banks have risen, or fallen for the conventional banks. It may be possible that the investors have seen Islamic banks as a safe haven and have taken out their money from conventional banks and put it into the Islamic banks as its equity. However, it could also be possible that with so many closures in the conventional banking, the competition is thinned out and the remaining banks are making higher profits than they would have been when there was more competition. There may be one or more explanations for such results however, the most popular of these is that the very basis that caused the credit crunch crisis was not influential in the operations of an Islamic bank and thus left them unscathed to a great extent. Efficiency Ratios: Efficiency of a company can be measured in many different ways. One of the basic indicator of efficiency is that how much of the earnings are used up as expenses. The ratio of expenses to earnings shows how much is the company efficient. If the ratio is low, then it is considered to be very efficient. If its high, then there must be some problem with the company. If it is high for the whole industry, then it can be seen that the industry is not very profitable. If the ratio is near to one, it signifies serious problems for a company, be it a bank or not. This is because if the earnings and expenses are closer to each other, then there is little room for the profits and denotes that the bank is not able to manage its operations efficiently leading to a very small net profit margin. This would definitely put off investors and is highly undesirable. Hence, the lower the ratio, the better it is. It can be seen that this ratio is quite low for the conventional banks as compared to the Islamic banks, especially after 2004. The conventional banks efficiency is being steadied even during the financial crisis. The expenses are hovering to around 40 percent of the earnings, which is reasonably lower than for the Islamic banks. When looking at the Islamic banks, the expenses rose from 40 percent in 2004 to 80 percent in 2005 and slowly falling back to 60 percent during the financial crisis but staying there during 2009 as well. Hence it is also possible to see that the Islamic banks efficiency have improved during this period as this ratio has fallen significantly. However, in this regard, the Islamic banks are not as efficient as the conventional banks. But we will also not ignore the fact that our sample does not represent the whole Islamic banking industry or the conventional banking industry and the results may be completely different for different samples. Assets Turnover (a type of Activity Ratio): The asset turnover ratio indicates how hard and efficiently the firms assets are being put to use. It is also known as the sales-to-assets ratio. It shows that what each dollar of assets has produced in terms of total revenue (or sales). â€Å"Sales†in the banking industry has different names. For conventional banks, the net interest income is used instead of sales. This is the interest earned from lending minus the interest given out on deposits. However, for Islamic banks, the interest-free system, the net profit on investments of different modes of Islamic finance is used as revenue. This is the major differing element of the income statements of the two systems. From the results of this ratio, it can be seen that the Islamic banks and the conventional banks have a very close and similar trend before the financial crisis as the asset turnover keep on rising till 2006. However, this is worth noting that the ratio for Islamic banks remained a bit higher than that of conventional banks. After the 2007 crisis, the conventional banks asset turnover fell sharply from around 0.08 in 2006 to around 0.055 in 2009. Whereas for Islamic banks; this ratio fell from around 0.089 in 2006 to 0.08 in 2009. Hence, the turnover for Islamic banks was not much affected by the crisis. This result may prove worthwhile to note that Islamic banks were having less risk during the financial crisis than the conventional banks. Though insignificant at the moment, this can be an important dimension in future studies involving Islamic banks and conventional as it provides insight into the risk profile of Islamic banks viz-a-viz conventional banking. Financial Leverage: Solvency ratio shows the financial leverage of a firm. When a firm requires money more than the equity it has risen from its shareholders and from within the business, it needs to borrow. This borrowing can be from anyone including the bank. However, usually it is required to give out fixed rate as interest payment regardless of whether that money is properly utilized and gained from or not. Whether the company is in profit or loss, the interest payments on the debt has to be given out. If the profit is high, the shareholders gain as the leftover profit after interest payments goes to them. However, in case of loss, the shareholders bear the burden as well because the interest payment still has to be paid. Because of this debt increasing the profit rate to shareholders in good times and reducing it in bad times, this debt is said to create financial leverage. Debt to Equity Ratio: The debt to equity ratio is a clear measure of the percentage that a company is indebted to the external sources. It gives out the rate at which the debt is as a multiple of the equity. If the debt is less than the shareholders equity, than this ratio would be less than 1. But if there is more external debt than internal equity, than this ratio will exceed 1. And this could be really problematic for a company. However, in todays world, high debt to equity ratio is considered normal. For a bank, whether a conventional bank or an Islamic bank, this ratio just indicates the ratio of the actual owners to the external lenders. However, in case of crisis, it is usually seen that the banks to go out of the business first had a high debt to equity ratio. Islamic banks usually tend to have lower debt indebted to them. As their core principle of interest free banking may not be fulfilled if they take on debt on interest. So all the debt they have is interest free and such type of debt is difficult to obtain. However, according to the result of this ratio here shows that Islamic banks debt to equity ratio rose significantly during 2004-2005 and was nearly equal to conventional banks ratio, but then it steadied around 1.6 during the financial crisis and after it. On the other hand, during this time period this ratio for conventional banks rose to 2.6 in 2007. And then the effect of the crisis took over and it fell to around 2.1 in 2009. It can be realized from this result that the shock of the crisis made the conventional banks realized that they have stretched too far from how they should be financing themselves. Hence, either they started to pay off their debts to reduce the risk of bankruptcy or the lenders started to get strict control over them. On the other hand, the Islamic banks were more relaxed as they did not have high debts to fear from and continued keeping a similar debt to equity ratio. Liquidity Ratios: Liquidity ratios are the indication for the company to know how much current assets there are to deal with the liabilities. In case of the banks, it shows how much loans are there to give out from the deposits available. Total Loans / Total Deposits: Banks give out loans to the customers (borrowers) are assets as they are receivables. Whereas, the deposits taken from the customers (depositors) are liabilities as they are payables to the depositors upon their request. Deposit is the property of the depositors; hence its the liability on the bank to pay the depositors back their money. This ratio for banks is similar to the current ratio used for other firms. It is similar to the ratio of current assets to the current liabilities. Hence, we can see that for Islamic banks, this ratio is lower than that of the conventional banks. This may be because many different financial instruments are used to finance those who want the funding. So many Islamic banks may not show all the investments as current assets or loans in this case. Also, it may be possible that perhaps a higher profit rate is charged by the Islamic banks as compared to the interest rate charged by the conventional banks and people are reluctant to fulfil their financing needs from Islamic banks in order to avoid higher rates to pay back. As the Islamic banks are growing and gaining consumer confidence, it may also be possible that the people are depositing their savings in Islamic banks much more than they are using its money for their financing needs, for a time being. Here, it is worth noting that the financial crisis did not affect this rate significantly for both the banking systems. Total Loans / Total Assets: As discussed above, total loans can be termed as current assets as they are the receivables. Hence, this ratio is about how much part of the total assets is this receivable loan. For the sample on hand, it is worth noting that the loan to total assets ratio for the conventional banks have slowly declined during the years and not affected significantly by the crisis. However, in the same time period, this ratio for Islamic banks has risen slowly. This may show that other assets for Islamic banks have reduced as compared to main current receivable assets. Growth Analysis: Growth analysis is the analysis used to measure and compare the growth rate of a company for different heads of accounts. It could be growth in sales, growth in assets, growth in liabilities, etc. Deposits Growth: First of all, we will look at the growth of the deposits. Although the deposits for banks are the liabilities, it shows the demand for the bank by the customers. If more and more customers start depositing in a bank, the bank is said to be growing in terms of customer base. In other words, the demand for the bank is rising. From the graph taken from the sample, it can clearly be seen that the growth rate of deposits have risen sharply for the Islamic banks. However, there is a major dip after the financial crisis from 35% to 25% in 2008. But after that, it has risen back to around 34% in 2009. In case of the conventional banks, there has been a growth in the deposits, but much slower than the Islamic banks. Also, there is a major dip in growth rate from around 24% in 2006 to around 11% in 2007. And moreover, the recovery that Islamic banks have shown after the crisis was nowhere to be found in our sample of conventional banks. The deposit growth rate rose from around 11% in 2007 to just around 14% in 2009 as compared to 34% for Islamic banks. Equity Growth: The equity growth directly shows the investors (shareholders) confidence as the deposit growth showed the customer confidence in the bank. Hence, it can be said that this ratio directly measures the success of a bank because if the bank is getting success, the shareholders (investors) will be putting in more money as equity to get higher returns in terms of profits. For our sample of the banks from the two systems, we can see that there are ups and downs during the sample time period. Initially, both the conventional banks and the Islamic banks equity growth have risen till 2005. But much before the crisis happened in 2007, there was a fall in investors confidence since 2005 for the conventional banks. This has been shown by the sharp decline in the equity growth from around 49% in 2005 to a mere 12% in 2007 for the conventional banks. But after that there was a sharp increase next year and then it again fell in 2009. But when we see at the Islamic banks, their equity growth was at its highest during 2006 and 2007 at around 55% when this rate was having a free fall for the conventional banks. However, the equity growth rate for Islamic banks also had a major drop in the aftermath of the crisis in 2008 when it dropped to around 22% but then bounced back in 2009. It is worth noting that the growth rate for the last year have increased for the Islamic banks and decreased for the conventional banks, thus setting out a trend for investors confidence in favour of the Islamic banks. From this financial ratio analysis, it can be observed that the Islamic banks were affected lesser than the conventional banks. 1.2 Z-Scores In this case, z-score is the test for financial stability of the two systems. Conven z-score Islamic z-score Overall Avg z-score 2002 7.046525 11.84681784 9.446672 2003 5.77853 4.605240229 5.191885 2004 10.33028 4.238655854 7.284467 2005 8.640415 4.21893723 6.429676 2006 10.80977 9.34741143 10.07859 2007 7.954082 12.91780713 10.43594 2008 6.356607 4.69090727 5.523757 2009 6.103882 5.737315593 5.920599 Avg 7.877512 7.200386572 7.538949 The table above shows the summary of z-scores for both the banking systems and the overall z-score as an average of both. There are some surprising results here. The z-score for Islamic banks is a little less than that of the conventional banks even though the results of the financial ratio analysis showed that the Islamic banks were exposed to less risk as compared to the conventional banks during this period, especially the period of financial crisis. In other words, the conventional banks are a little more financially stable than the Islamic banks. Looking at the trend of the z-scores during our sample time period, the graph shows that on overall, conventional banks z-score was higher thus showing that they were more insolvent as compared to the Islamic banks. However, it can be seen that there was a fall in z-score before and during the crisis in 2006 and 2007 for conventional banks and only during this period, the Islamic banks were less risky. However, the dip in the aftermath of the crisis for the Islamic banks showed that they became riskier especially after the crisis in 2008 and 2009. It is worth noting here that in 2009, the z-score for the conventional banks has a downward trend and for Islamic banks, it is rising. Hence, in the future, it may be predicted when the things get stabled that the Islamic banks would become less risky and more financially stable. Conventional Islamic ROA Equity/Assets Z-Score ROA Equity/Assets Z-Score Average 2.03 0.08 7.88 2.10 0.10 7.20 In the table above, the average results are shown. There is a higher return on assets for the Islamic bank during the period on average, and also a higher share of equity in assets as compared to the conventional banks. However, the z-score on average is lower for Islamic banks as compared to the conventional banks thus telling that even though there is less ROA and equity share in the assets for the conventional banks, they are more stable financially and have lesser risk for solvency. However, as mentioned earlier, there is a rising trend for the Islamic banks at the moment. Hence, once the dust settles down, we can have a clearer picture of the future of the two systems. However, the slight variations in the z-score do not differentiate the financial stability of the two banking systems by very much. Hence, it would be unwise to conclude something here at this point of time. 1.3 Regression Analysis Overall Regression: SUMMARY OUTPUT Regression Statistics Multiple R 0.803713 R Square 0.645954 Adjusted R Square 0.173893 Standard Error 1.94228 Observations 8
Thursday, September 19, 2019
Maxine Hong Kingstons Woman Warrior Essay -- Maxine Hong Kingston Wom
Maxine Hong Kingston's Woman Warrior      Food strengthens us, without it we are weak. Eating has always been an important factor with families living in poor conditions. Often, those who could not help to produce more food are considered inferior or unworthy to eat. Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior is no exception, due to the relation it creates between eating and the strength of people. This is shown through the tale of Fa-Mu-Lan, the story of the eaters, and the references to the fellow relatives left in China.      In the tale of Fa-Mu-Lan, the narrator is given a survival test, where she has to survive a mountain trek without provisions. During that trek, the narrator finds herself weary from hunger. Hunger brings out her animal instincts, because she needs to stay strong to live. 'On the fourth and fifth days, my eyesight sharp with hunger, I saw deer and used their trails when our ways coincided. Where deer nibbled, I gathered the fungus, the fungus of immortality'; (25). The narrator is forced to search for her food to eat. The hungrier she becomes, the more feral she is. Meat also played a role in the connection between food and strength. During the beginning of her story she claimed she no longer needed meat. After she became starving, she breaks down and eats meat. '†¦I saw the rabbit had sacrificed itself for me. It had made me a gift of meat'; (26). Her will was eroded by the hunger because as her hunger increased, she became weaker and her resolve was easier t o destroy. When the narrator was not starving she was in control of her faculties. Hunger however, strips her even of vision, as she imagines things that do not exist. The narrator says, 'Hunger also changes the world when eating can't be habit, then neither can seeing. I saw two people made of gold dancing the earth's axis'; (27). Viewing two gold dancers would be wonderful to witness, however the chances are very slim. The hunger had weakened her to the point of confusion, and possibly dilution. Just as hunger weakens a person so they cannot command themselves, eating will make a person powerful and the masters of others.      The stories of the heroes who ate heaping amounts of food illustrate that those who can eat have extraordinary powers. The narrator says before, that her mother is powerful';†¦because she can eat anything – quick, pluck out the carp's eyes, one for... ..., yet Kingston continues to reference the topic throughout the book. In the chapter At the Western Place, Brave Orchid meets her sister Moon Orchid at the airport. ''†¦you're so skinny.' 'You're so fat.' 'Fat women are more beautiful than skinny women''; (118). Brave Orchid's bitterness toward American culture influenced the narrator. Fat carried not only excess lipids, it carried wealth and power in Brave Orchid's opinion. Women were more beautiful with fat because wealth enabled them to achieve their 'beauty';. The incessant use of references between strength and eating throughout the book show the narrator was influenced is some manner. The product of the influence may not have been a fat woman, but a woman educated in two cultures. Eating is vitally important in the memoir The Woman Warrior. It is regarded as a sign of strength in the book. That point is shown through Fa-Mu-Lan, the story of heroes, and through relatives in China. With those, Kingston became educated in two differing cultures, possibly influenced by both. The connection between hunger and strength is well known throughout the ages, as the old military adage states, 'An Army marches on its stomach.';
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
The Significance of Nicknames in Italian-American Culture and the Novel Christ In Concrete :: Essays Papers
The Significance of Nicknames in Italian-American Culture and the Novel Christ In Concrete Nicknames. They are something that everyone is familiar with in one way or another. However, most people have little, if any, personal experience with nicknames. In Italian-American culture, nicknames play a major role in everyday life. Nicknames are formed with a certain unspoken format, and they have a particular importance. In Italian-American culture nicknames, even though to others they may seem harsh and cruel, are terms of endearment and give a sense of belonging. â€Å"Soprannomi†in Italian means â€Å"above the name†(Mazzoni) and refers to dialect nicknames (Addario and Rulli). To the â€Å"outside world†Italian-American’s use of nicknames may bring to mind organized crime, due to negative media portrayal, with such names as Al â€Å"Scarface†Capone and Tony â€Å"The Big Tuna†Accardo (Arduini). From my personal experience, I can say that within the Italian-American culture nicknames have a much sweeter significance. Since very large, extended Italian families all were apt to dwell in close proximity to one another, nicknames were traditionally used to distinguish one branch of a family from another, and/or one individual from another (Addario and Rulli). Another very good reason for the use of nicknames comes from the â€Å"rigor of most Italian naming traditions†(Arduini). The first-born son is to be named after his paternal grandfather, and the second-born son is to be named after his maternal grandfather. Likewise, the first-born daughter is to be named after her paternal grandmother, and the second-born daughter is to be named after her maternal grandmother. The children that follow, â€Å"Lord willing†, are to be named after their godparents, not to mention the naming of children after patron saints. It goes without saying that many family members, and community members, end up with the same names. Obviously this leads to tremendous confusion when families and communiti es are gathered and talking to and about one another, which occurs frequently. Therefore there is actually a desperate need for nicknames. The most basic form of nickname assignment is the tag of â€Å"Big†and â€Å"Little†added to the oldest and youngest carriers of a name (Arduini). Although, since most Italian families are so large, this isn’t always sufficient, so nicknames have to rely on other characteristics. A very convincing example of the role that nicknames play in Italian-American life is portrayed in Pietro di Donato’s novel Christ In
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