Drug Law and Policies; A Danger to Our Freedom and Privacy Essay

Drug Law and Policies; A Danger to Our Freedom and Privacy - Essay Example The agencies concerned with drug control have acknowledged that there are more problems when some drugs are treated as illegal than when they are legalized (March, Oviedo & Romero, 2006, p27-33) This paper talks about the inappropriate moves that the government have made under the umbrella of protection as from the harm caused by drugs. Actually, the penalty for smoking a 2-inch long bang is more risky to one’s health than the smoke from the drug. The penalty is in the most case related to discrimination, induced stigmatization, exposure to poor health, escalation of drug-related crime and negative environmental impact... Everywhere in the world, the public to admit that war on drugs has the significant negative impact in their lives, in some minor case the moves succeeds in making a wrong right. Undermining of fundamental liberties and human rights are a common phenomenon that a person found d to be using drugs have to experience in the hands of the law enforcement officers. The inhuman punishments, unfair trial standards and demonization of people are just but a few weapons widely used to fight drugs (David, 2006, p17-36). Technically, the war appears not to be against drugs but the humans. To some extent, the officers go to the extreme ends of shooting down criminals without being subjected to fair trials. Often first pages of public magazines start with the crime scene in which a suspected drug lord has been gunned down at a checkpoint, this means that the war on drug permits the use of orthodox measure including a sentence to death without trial at a mere suspicion drugs abuse. The law permits po lice officers to arrest anyone suspected of committing a crime, but when it comes to the case of drug addicts, they are always subjected to harassment that includes beatings and detention for a long period of time pending investigations (William, 2014, p20-24). These detention facilities are not pleasant places, they are more like the prison, the only difference is that in a prison one is allowed to see a lawyer often making the detention facilities worse than prisons.

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS - Essay Example Operational effectiveness happens when management shows that it recognizes the employees abilities and takes initiatives to support its employees through advancements, personal development programs or other actions in high-performance environment. To achieve operations and organizational effectiveness certain factors have to come into play like resources that are essential for the performance of production activities. The operations role is to enable managers to determine and schedule the resources needed to meet business targets. Matching these resource inputs and production targets helps to achieve organizational effectiveness. This is because you are able to regulate the speed, dependability, quality and flexibility of the operations. Focus on training gives managers time to control less and allow employees to manage themselves to create a sense of employee empowerment, this helps to evaluate and gauge the technical and production capacity of the organizations resources (Dressler, 2004). A successful management strategy requires putting in place an integrated planning process, including steps to take and should take a two-tiered approach where there is free flow of information. There are various organizational strategies that lead to an effective management and organization. These include understanding previous initiatives leaders and employees to learn what worked, what did not and what gaps need to be filled, involving top management helps to increase the employees drive where the employees may be asked to share their opinions with their superiors, Identifying people who might be potential stumbling blocks or champions helps individuals understand their strengths and weaknesses and managers identify how individual behaviors might affect group dynamic. Constructing an effective communications system is also an effective strategy which

Child Care - Care For Children Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Child Care - Care For Children - Essay Example I would choose enough attractive and age-appropriate toys, books and other learning materials that would be available for the children. I would set up the room in such a way that children can move freely from one learning area to another, keeping in mind the activities that I expect would go on in a particular learning area. For instance, I would keep quiet areas such as the mini Reading nook away from noisy areas such as the blocks or manipulative area which I expect would be a-buzz with children’s productive noise. I will also prepare interesting but not overwhelming activities for the children that would follow a schedule, with the goal of eventually establishing routines. Examples would be using puppets to introduce each child, a simple story about starting school or day care, and a variety of hands-on activities such as playdough, macaroni-stringing, block play and the like. Children would feel more welcome if they see that some parts of the room have been customized for them. They are assigned cubbyholes to place their things while in school, and these are especially labeled with their own names or pictures. A memorable first day deserves a remembrance to take home such as a personally made hat from newspapers and collage materials. This is something Max can show his parents and grandparents and be proud of because he himself made it in school. Personally, I prepare myself physically and psychologically for a challenging first day. I will make sure I am well-rested and well-fed with nutritious food that would keep me energetic enough to keep up with very young children or to deal with trying moments such as tantrums and separation anxiety. This big change in the family’s schedule and lifestyle deserves an orientation. Beforehand, I can arrange for a conference with the parents (if the school does not hold its own parent orientation meeting) and Max and show

Automated Attendance Essay Example for Free

Automated Attendance Essay There are many cases in which it would be bene? cial for the University of Stellenbosch to be in possession of an automated class register system. Such a system would be of most value to students, who may make use of system reports and statistics to assess their own approach to their studies, and be kept informed about course material covered in classes attended and missed. An automated attendance recording system would be advantageous to the lecturer, by providing data on student attendances which may be correlated with a student’s academic progress. Attendance recording is an important aspect of tests and exams, where a record must be kept of students writing the paper. Finally, such a system could provide evidence of a student’s class attendance habits in cases where the University is accused by a student of providing insu? cient guidance in lectures. In such cases, the University holds no liability if it can be showed that the student was regularly absent from class. Â  Problem De? nition This project is derived from a topic suggested by Mr. H. R. Gerber for the development of an automated class attendance recording device. The device must positively identify students and provide reliable class attendance logs for the bene? t of students, lecturers and the University, as described in the previous section.Attendance logs must be stored on a centralised database in order to generate reports and statistics. Therefore, the device must be able to communicate with a central database server. Students should be able to access information and personalized reports generated by the system for e? ective self-assessment and keeping up to date. Lecturers should be able to view attendance information and be able to add information to the system. The system should also provide appropriate administration interfaces for administering the recording devices and system parameters. Â  Scope and Aims of Project As part of the original project proposal, it was speci? ed that the student identi? cation device make use of RFID scanner technology, and that the device should be able to communicate via wireless with the central database server. As such, using an RFID scanner and wireless communications is part of the project scope, however alternatives to RFID and wireless communication is discussed The scope of this project does not include an in-depth theoretical study on a particular subject. Â  Introduction to Other Chapters Chapter 2 speci? es the design process used, and states design limitations. It includes an analysis of the problem, the design process and a system level analysis. Chapter 3 and 4 contains detailed design considerations for all leaf-node components of this project, as de? ned in chapter 2 Chapter 5 contains testing and integration information. Chapter 6 contains recommendations and a conclusion to the project. Chapter 2 System Analysis and Design The design approach used in this project involves breaking the main system up into subsystems called ’branches’. Each subsystem branch may be broken up further into subbranches, and subbranches may again be broken up into ’leaf-nodes’, which represent the lowest level of subsystems. This method forms a tree-like structure overview of the system as represented in ? gure . In this way, system level analysis and design is done by looking at the overlaying structure of the system, while detail design is limited to the leaf nodes. At the lowest level, components and design methods are chosen based on functional and non-functional requirements and design constraints. Once the lowest levels of sub-systems are designed, they are integrated and tested in a ’Bottom-up’ approach until all subsystem branches are combined into the all encompassing top-level system. In essence, a ’Top-Down’ analysis and design method with ’Bottom-Up’ integration and testing process is used. Figure ow-chart representation specifying the design approach used for this project, with inherent awareness of design constraints and limitations. Focusing on designing subsystems provides an advantage in that once one sub-system’s design is completed, it may be sent in for manufacturing while design of the other subsystems can continue in parallel with manufacturing, which saves time. If one subsystem fails, it can be redesigned without in? uencing other sub-systems, and in this way valuable time is saved.

Thomas Wyatt My Galley Essay Example for Free

Thomas Wyatt My Galley Essay It is a ship struggling during a terrible storm at sea, a metaphor for depression — a mind struggling to right itself. The imagery is incredible, and it’s a beautifully written sonnet. Rhyme scheme is ABBA ACCA DEED FF. One analysis I read (linked below) said this poem was about a man who had rejected God, and this battery at sea was the consequence (because, of course, God controls the sea and the weather). It also said the author was contemplating suicide as the only way out of this misery. The word choices are violent and emotional: sharp seas mine enemy steereth with cruelness rain of tears cloud of dark disdain despairing of the port One line (â€Å"every oar a thought in readiness†) is beautiful to me because of the way the analysis below described it: That the author was trying to think his way out of this turmoil, like oars trying to right the ship, and yet he could not. Anyone who has ever been depressed or experienced hopelessness knows that trying to get oneself out of it using logical thought is useless. The end of the poem indicates that the author doesn’t even remember why he’s experiencing this trauma, and also that he has no guide (like the stars) for getting him to safety. My galley charged with forgetfulness Through sharp seas in winter nights doth pass Twene rock and rock; and eke mine enemy, alas That is my lord, steerth with cruelness And every oar a thought in readiness As though that death were light in such a case; An endless wind doth tear the sail apace Of forced sighs and trusty fearfulness A rain of tears, a cloud of dark disdain Hath done the wearied cords great hindrance Wreathed with error and eke with ignorance. The stars be hid that led me to this pain, Drowned is reason that should me comfort, And I remain despairing of the port. . Wyatt is talking about despair, and probably means religious despair (the sin of losing your faith in God). He uses the common metaphor of a ship in trouble at sea (remember that England is a seafaring island nation, so a lost ship is a powerful metaphor for the English). My galley charged with forgetfulness Thorough sharp seas in winter nights doth pass Twene rock and rock; Wyatts ship [his life] is weighed down [charged] with forgetfulness [he cannot remember what the point of life is, he cannot remember what it feels like to know God]; it is adrift on a stormy sea, at night, between rocks (and is therefore in great danger). and eke mine enemy, alas That is my lord, steerth with cruelness Wyatt feels that God is master of the ship, and that God has deliberately withdrawn Himself from Wyatt; God is steering the ship cruelly (God is deliberately hurting Wyatt) and has become Wyatts enemy, as well as being his Lord. And every oar a thought in readiness As though that death were light in such a case; A sailing ship which can no longer rely on the wind (when there is no wind, or the wind is blowing the wrong way) will sometimes use oars as an emergency solution. Wyatt is trying to think himself out of his despair (using the oars of his thought), but he is in such despair that when he thinks he only thinks of suicide as an escape from his misery (as though that death were light :: as if death was not a problem). An endless wind doth tear the sail apace Of forced sighs and trusty fearfulness A rain of tears, a cloud of dark disdain Hath done the wearied cords great hindrance Wreathed with error and eke with ignorance. Wyatt thinks of his own moaning and tears (because he is so unhappy) as the winds that are driving his ship toward the rocks (of suicide). His tears are the rain beating on the ship, and his despair and lethargy are loosening the rigging which holds the sails in place (heavy rain could loosen rigging on a sailing ship; then the sails would become loose, and a bad problem would become much worse) The stars be hid that led me to this pain, Drowned is reason that should me comfort, And I remain despairing of the port. Wyatt says he cannot see the stars (he cannot remember the reasons that once led him to believe in God), so his boat does not know where it is going to (at night a sailing boat travels by reference to the stars). Reason (Wyatts ability to understand the world he lives in) is drowned (dead; the world makes no sense to Wyatt now). And Wyatt just cant see the way out of this. The poem leaves us unsatisfied, confused, directionless; like Wyatt is.

Bargaining Power Of Suppliers

Bargaining Power Of Suppliers This report serves a number of major purposes. First of all, it seeks to understand the development of Information Systems IS/ Information Technology IT theory. Secondly, it narrows the scope to enterprise value chain to evaluate the current practice in this area. Finally, it seeks to evaluate and analyze the future of the companies studied in relation to IS/ IT. 1.2 Definition of Key Concepts The terms e-business and e-commerce are often used interchangeably but they do not mean the same thing. E-commerce means using IT to buy and sell goods and services. E-business is a broader term, covering not just goods and services exchanges, but also all forms of business conducted using electronic transmission of data and information. E-business began when customers and suppliers recognized the advantages of exchanging documents such as purchase orders and invoices electronically, rather than through the postal service. This electronic data interchange EDI could speed ordering and fulfillment dramatically. The advent of the internet allowed businesses, organizations, and individuals to publish World Wide Web pages and communicate to broader audiences. At first, web pages were mirrors of paper documents. But as they increased in sophistication, users recognized that there were things that they could do with Web pages that were not possible with paper media. As internet usage and Web development evolved, managers learned to take advantage of the internets unique nature in many ways. For example, retailers realized changing the price of an item required a few key strokes on the internet versus reprinting promotional materials and price lists in an offline environment. The transparency of the internet, or the ability for mass instantaneous sharing of information also created an almost perfectly efficient marketplace for goods and services. The next stage in the evolution of e-business was to distribute its use throughout an organization. This came in the form of intranets. Businesses created these internal internets to allow employees to communicate with one another and exchange information. Once enterprises mastered internal communication through their intranets, they turned outwards. The link to customers occurred early on. The rest of the supply chain linkage took place in the next stage of the evolution as businesses began expanding on their connection to suppliers, customers and distributors. These included adding supply chain management and customer relationship management functionality. Portals allowed customers and suppliers to link more closely with an enterprise. The current state of e-business is really c-business where the c stands for collaborative. In c-business, the boundaries among enterprises become blurred. Businesses up and down the supply chain work together to achieve objectives that maximize profitability for all of them. 1.3 Overview of the Report Section 1: Introduction Objective of the report Definition of key concepts Overview of the report Section 2: Review of Literature 2.1 Literature review 2.2 General theory 2.3 Research area 2.4 Rationale 2.5 Importance of research area 2.6 Example of e-business application Section 3: Case Analysis 3.1 Case Study 1 3.2 Case Study 2 3.3 Case Study 3 Section 4: Evaluation of the Cases 4.1 Comparison 4.2 Recommendation Section 5 Executive Summary SECTION 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 2.1 Literature Review IT/ IS has been used by companies for over forty years. Initially, their usage was primitive by todays standards, but over time, improvements in computer technology have rendered IS/ IT to be an integral part of the business. Yet, the study of IS/ IT in relation to management is a somewhat recent discipline. Initial research on IT/ IS tended to be more descriptive than empirical since the basic models that are currently used were not yet formulated. These research papers also tended to be overly optimistic about the future of IT/ IS in terms of the benefits they bring to business enterprises. Later on, research in the area took on a more balanced tone as the limitations of IS/ IT were also highlighted. It has also during this time than various strategic management models were incorporated into the framework for IS/ IT. 2.2 General Theory Now let us examine three theories that relate to e-business. 2.2.1 Porters Five Forces According to Michael Porter (1990), an industry is influenced by five major forces and he developed this idea into a comprehensive model. Termed the Five Forces Model, it has greatly influenced strategic management thinking for the past two decades. These five forces are the bargaining power of buyers, the bargaining power of suppliers, the new entrants, the threat of substitutes, and rivalry. Bargaining Power of Buyers The bargaining power of buyers refers to the influence consumers have on an industry. Generally, if consumers have very high bargaining power, there are many suppliers competing for a very limited number of buyers (Porter, 1990). As a result, it is the buyer who will dictate the price of goods and services. Buyers have greater power when there are few of them and they command a significant market share, or when they purchase a sizeable proportion of the goods produced in an industry (David, 2009). Also, buyers are powerful when they can threaten to buy products from rival firms. This is called backward integration (Griffin, 2001). On the other hand, buyers are weak if manufacturers threaten forward integration in which the manufacturers take over the distribution and retailing channels (Eitman et al, 2007). Buyers are also in a weak position if there is great difficulty in switching to alternative products and switching costs are high. Bargaining Power of Suppliers The second force is the bargaining power of suppliers (Porter, 1990). All companies that manufacture goods need to obtain raw materials from external parties or suppliers. Hence, it is imperative that companies establish good relationships with their suppliers so as to get favourable prices and a steady supply of raw material. Yet, the supplier-manufacturer relationship is rarely one of equals (Griffin, 2001). Normally, one party has the upper hand. Suppliers have greater bargaining power if there are few of them so they can dictate terms to the customers who are at their mercy (David, 2009). Threat of New Entrants The third force is the threat of new entrants (Porter, 1990). New entrants to a market can seriously affect the market share of existing members and this is a constant source of anxiety for companies. In an ideal free market system, a company can enter and exit a market with the greatest ease and that profits will be nominal. However, in the real world, there are numerous barriers to entry, some of which are the result of economics, while others are the outcome of government intervention (Rugman and Hodgetts, 1995). Threat of Substitutes The fourth is the threat of substitutes, which refers to products in other industries (Porter, 1990). If the costs of the products in a particular industry are too high, customers might switch to products in other industries. Price is not the only variable but changes in technology have the potential to make users flock to rivals (David, 2009). Rivalry Among Firms The final force in Porters framework is rivalry among firms (Porter, 1990). Rivalry is very high when there are a large number of firms in a saturated market, high fixed costs, high storage costs and low switching costs (Barney, 2007). According to Porter, an enterprise can adopt one of four strategies to deal with the five forces in its industry. They are cost leadership, differentiation, cost focus and focused differentiation. IT can assist a firm in achieving these strategies. For example, to attain low cost, the company can adopt production engineering systems whereas to achieve differentiation, it can use computer aided design. 2.2.2 Value Chain The value chain is defined as a sequence of activities that should contribute more to the ultimate value of the product than to its costs. Products produced by an organization rely on different activities of the organization and use different resources along the value chain depending on their specifications. Essentially, all products flow through the value chain, which begins with research, development and engineering and then moves through manufacturing and continues on to customers. The companys value chain is used to identify opportunities that give competitive advantage. Basically, there are two broad categories of a firms activities. They are primary activities, consisting of the creation, marketing and delivery of products and support activities which provide support for primary activities. IT is used to transform the way value activities are conducted and to improve linkages throughout the value chain to give the company greater flexibility. According to Porter and Miller 1985, IT plays a strategic role in an industry that has high information intensity in the product and value chain itself. 2.2.3 Scott Mortons Model Morton improvises and refines Porters model. Morton asserts that the five forces that influence an organizations objectives are its structure, management processes, individuals and roles, technology and strategy. These in turn contribute to five levels of IT-induced reconfiguration. At the lower degree of business transformation, they are termed evolutionary levels. At the lowest level, there is localized exploitation in which the main objectives are domestic effectiveness and efficiency. At level two, there is internal integration between different applications and systems. Cooperation and coordination enhance efficiency and effectiveness here. At a higher degree of business transformation, they are termed revolutionary levels. Level three involves business process redesign which consists of a rigorous change in the company value chain. Level four concerns business network redesign for the reconfiguration of the tasks and scopes of the enterprise network involved in the creation and delivery of products and services. The final and highest level is business scope redefinition in which there is a migration of functions across the companys borders that ultimately change the very nature of the business. 2.3 Research Area This paper focuses on the enterprise value chain of three very different companies. They are Tupperware, Toyota and Facebook. 2.4 Rationale The rationale for the selection of these three companies is to explain how e-business is applied to different industries. Tupperware is a well known manufacturer of high quality plastic containers, Toyota is the worlds largest car maker and Facebook is the biggest online social network site on earth. They are all very different businesses, yet they share one thing in common the usage of e-business in their value chain. The degree of success each business experiences through e-business vis-Ã  -vis their value chain will be discussed in the analysis section. 2.5 Importance of Research Area E-business has become an integral part of the modern corporation and is a means of achieving competitive advantage. Besides that, it also creates opportunities for many third party services. For these reasons, it is vital to critically examine what exactly e-business can do for an enterprise. To demonstrate, the following SWOT analysis is done: 2.5.1 Strengths Around the clock business operation Convenient, fast and effective Global outreach Lower operation cost Lower initial investment 2.5.2 Weaknesses No direct interaction between buyer and seller Low customer penetration 2.5.3 Opportunities The number of people using the internet is increasing daily Over time, people will grow accustomed to doing transactions online 2.5.4 Threats Considerable risks such as privacy issues, security concerns, transaction processing and business policy issues. 2.6 Examples of e-business Applications There are many examples of e-business applications, the most common being EDI which is the computer-to-computer exchange of business documents. Another example is in collaborative commerce. For example, airlines have partnered to create Orbitz, an online travel service that searches the partner airline database for flights. The site also allows users to purchase hotel rooms, rent cars and other services. SECTION 3: CASE ANALYSIS 3.1 Case Study 1: Tupperware Tupperware is a multi-billion dollar United States based manufacturer of plastic food storage containers that has a presence in over 100 countries worldwide. Recently, the company altered its distribution model to a multilevel compensation structure. This inevitably increased the volume of paperwork faced by multilevel sales consultants who found less time to do actual sales. In addition, the order entry system was insufficient to cope with peak sales demands. To overcome these problems, the company implemented MyTupperware which is a web-based order management system. The first problem was solved because the task of entering orders was shifted from distributors to sales consultants. The second problem was solved because the integrated and streamlined communications between the relevant parties and provided better support in the promotion and sales of products. 3.2 Case Study 2: Toyota From its humble beginnings in Japan, Toyota Motors emerged as the worlds largest and most profitable car maker in April 2007. It accomplished this major feat through unparalleled excellence in its production process, and indeed throughout its entire value chain. Central to this success was the Toyota Production System TPS. Initially, Toyota faced the same problems as other automobile makers including slow product design time, uneven quality of production, wastage and obsolescence. These factors hampered the companys ability to achieve competitive advantage. Consequently, Toyota critically examined its strengths weaknesses, though not in the way Western companies do. Toyota adopted the Japanese approach of kaizen, which is a philosophy of continuous improvement by eliminating wastage. By harnessing the power of IS/ IT in its e-business, the company created the TPS as a means to achieve competitive advantage. Consequently, the company achieved tremendous success and its manufacturing process was deemed the gold standard in quality manufacturing at low cost. Unfortunately, this was not to last. In the last two years, Toyota suffered its worst catastrophe in years. Cars produced by its U.S. plant suffered from faulty brakes and there were defects in cars produced by other plants. Consequently, the company made a massive recall, which seriously eroded the reputation of the company. Perhaps the company overextended itself or was lulled into a false sense of complacency. Regardless, the much vaunted TPS has come under scrutiny as people question how a system that was deemed close to perfection could cause such egregious errors. It remains to be seen how Toyota will remedy the situation. 3.3 Case Study 3: Facebook By now, the story of Facebooks founding is well known, thanks to a number of books and the Hollywood movie The Social Network. A Harvard student named Mark Zuckerberg founded the site in 2004 as an online social network for Harvard students before establishing it as a company. Though there are other online social network sites, the secret to Facebooks success lies not just in the features it provides, but the clear user interface which makes it appealing and easy to use. From its humble origins, Facebook has now over 500 million users and has been valued at US50 billion. While the company is phenomenally successful, it is constantly plagued by issues concerning its privacy. Since Facebooks business model is such that it does not charge users for the services it provides, its source of revenue comes from advertising and data mining. This has led to repeated concerns about the violation of users privacy by selling their personal information to advertising companies who publicly share such private information. In addition, there are concerns that users private information is accessible to the public with very dangerous consequences like identity theft. One major error that Facebook made was its Beacon advertising service which informed users when their friends made purchases and were involved in other activities outside of Facebook. Users did not agree to share this information and this caused a public backlash and the company had to rescind the service. Similarly, when Facebook launched its news feed feature, users baulked at the infringement of privacy. They did not want Facebook to post updates whenever they updated their profile, added friends or changed their settings. However, Zuckerberg addressed this problem much better by making a public apology and explaining the merits of this system. While some users were still resistant, the explanation won over many and today, the news feed is one of Facebooks most popular services and is emulated by other online social network sites. A third problem Facebook has is the handling of users personal information when they want to delete their profiles. Unlike other network sites, Facebook made it almost impossible for users to delete their accounts and copies of their personal information were stored indefinitely. This caused a backlash and Facebook has since made it much easier for users to delete their accounts. SECTION 4: EVALUATION OF CASES Case Security Ease of using site Transparency Effectiveness of e-business Case 1 High Average Low Highly effective Case 2 High Average Moderate Highly effective Case 3 Moderate Easy High Highly effective 4.1 Comparison Overall, it appears that of the three, Facebook has been the most successful in applying e-business since its entire business model is based on it. The other two are examples of traditional firms that employ e-business to improve their value chain. Tupperware uses the least extensive form of e-business as it is confined to its sales and after sales services rather than the manufacturing process. Toyota uses e-business extensively throughout its value chain as can be seen in the TPS. However, recent developments indicate that its e-business application may not be as successful as was previously thought. Hence, Facebook is the most successful of the three in harnessing e-business to gain competitive advantage though it must be reminded here that the company still struggles with some security issues. 4.2 Recommendation It is recommended that Tupperware uses e-business more extensively throughout its value chain to include the planning and design and manufacturing process. Toyota should reevaluate its TPS to identify weaknesses in the current system and improve them. Facebook on the other hand should use e-business to gather more feedback from its customers about its services, particularly privacy issues and take them seriously.

Mama Day and Daughters of the Dust :: African American Culture Literature Essays

Mama Day and Daughters of the Dust For emigrants of any country it is difficult to maintain the individual culture of their homeland while assimilating to the ways of the new country they have entered. For slaves of the 19th century, the acculturation process was a necessity. If they did not conform to the Western way of life, they would perish. However for some slaves, their geographic location sequestered them enough from the European worldview that they could continue to practice their own culture and religion. Most of these groups were found off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia, the exact location of two important African-American narratives – Daughters of the Dust and Mama Day. Although the islands did not offer complete sanctuary from the harshness of post-colonial American culture, it did afford the Africans living on those islands more latitude to practice their beliefs. Especially for the younger generations, there was a beckoning from the dominant culture to take part in its opportunities and advantages, which created a drawback for Africans still trying to carve their niche in the Western society. Daughters of the Dust and Mama Day are fictional narratives that vividly recount the experiences of the black slave family during the 1800’s. Although they take different narrative forms, the former as a movie and the latter as a book, there are still several important themes concerning the emerging African-American culture – a way of life that incorporates the native African worldview with the newly acquired American lifestyle – that the two stories address. Although there are differences between the two works, they are really struc tural in nature, such as plot and point of view, and are thus not necessary to address currently. Instead, it is important to focus on the values that dominate the African culture and the attitudes that enhance and interfere with their way of life in Western society. The narratives share two main themes of which all other themes can be derived. One is the struggle between the lifestyles and values of the mainland and the islands and the second is a belief in logic and science versus intuition and African folklore. For both stories the island is an integral part of the story, almost becoming a character unto itself. The nature of an island is such that it has its own personality and dynamic, which is appropriate since it is physically dislocated from the mainstream.