Why Mandarin Chinese is harder than you think

Mandarin Chinese is often described as a difficult language, sometimes one of the most difficult ones. This is not hard to understand. There are thousands of characters and strange tones! It must surely be impossible to learn for an adult foreigner! You can learn Mandarin ChineseThats nonsense of course. Naturally, if youre aiming for a very high level, it will take time, but I have met many learners  who have studied for just a few months  (albeit very diligently), and have been able to converse rather freely in Mandarin after that time. Continue such a project for a year and you will probably reach what most people would call fluent. If you want more encouragement and factors that make Chinese easy to learn, you should stop reading this article right away and check this one instead: Why Mandarin Chinese is easier than you think Chinese is actually quite hard Does that mean that all the talk about Chinese being difficult is just hot air? No, it doesnt. While the student in the article linked to above reached a decent conversational level in just 100 days (I spoke to him in person close to the end of his project), he has said himself that reaching the same level in Spanish took just a few weeks. Another way of looking at it is that Chinese isnt more difficult per step you have to take, its just that there are so many more steps than in any other language, especially compared to a language close to your own. Ive written more about this way of looking at difficult as having a vertical and a horizontal component here. But why? What makes it so hard? in this article, I will outline some of the main reasons why learning Chinese is significantly harder than learning any European language. Before we do that, though, we need to answer some basic questions: Difficult for whom? The first thing we must get straight is difficult for whom? Its meaningless to say how difficult such and such a language is to learn in comparison to other languages unless you specific who the learner is. The reason for this is not difficult to understand. Most of the time spent learning a new language is used to expand vocabulary, getting used to the grammar, mastering pronunciation and so on. If you study a language which is close to your own, this task will be much easier. For example, English shares a lot of vocabulary with other European languages, especially French. If you compare other languages that are even closer, such as Italian and Spanish or Swedish and German, the overlap is much bigger. My native language is Swedish and even though I have never studied German either formally or informally, I can still make sense of simple, written German and often understand parts of spoken German if slow and clear. This is without even having studied the language! Exactly how big an advantage this is doesnt become  clear for most people until they learn a language that has zero or almost zero overlap with your native language. Mandarin Chinese is a good example of this. There is almost no overlap with English vocabulary. This is okay at first, because common words in related language are sometimes also different, but it adds up. When you get to an advanced level and theres still no overlap between your own language and Mandarin, the sheer amount of words becomes an issue. Were talking about tens of thousands of words that all have to be learnt, not just changed a little bit from your native language. After all, its not hard for me to learn many advanced words in English: English Swedish Political conservatism Politisk konservatism Super nova Supernova Magnetic resonance Magnetisk resonans Epilepsy patient Epilepsipatient Alveolar affricate Alveolar affrikata Some of these are very logical in Chinese and in that sense, learning them in Chinese is actually easier if done from scratch compared with English or Swedish. However, that somewhat misses the point. I already know these words in Swedish, so learning them in English is really, really easy. Even if I only knew them in one language, I would automatically be able to understand them in the other. Sometimes I would even be able to say them. Guessing will sometimes do the trick! It will never do the trick in Chinese. So, for the purpose of this discussion, lets discuss how difficult Chinese is to learn for a native speaker of English, who may or may not have learnt one other language to some extent, such as French or Spanish. The situation will be almost the same for people in Europe who have learnt English apart from their native languages. What does learn Mandarin mean? Conversational fluency? Near-native mastery? We also need to discuss what we mean by learn Mandarin. Do we mean to a level where you can ask for directions, book train tickets and discuss everyday topics with native speakers in China? Do we include reading and writing, and if so, do we include handwriting? Or do we perhaps mean some kind of near-native educated level of competency, perhaps something similar to my level of English? In the other article, I discuss why learning Chinese is actually not that hard if you aim for a basic level in the spoken language. To really flip the coin here, I will lookt at more advanced proficiency and include the written language. Some of the points here are relevant for beginners and the spoken language too, of course: Characters and words -  Dont believe people who say you need only 2000 characters to become literate in Chinese, including some truly ridiculous claims that you can read most texts with less than that. With 2000 characters, you will not be able to read anything written for adult native speakers. Double the number and you come closer. Still, knowing characters is not enough, you need to know the words they make up and the grammar that governs the order in which they appear. Learning 4000 characters is not easy! In the beginning, you might think that learning characters is hard, but when youve learnt a few thousand, keeping them separate, knowing how to use them and remembering how to write theme becomes a real problem (including for native speakers I should say). Learning to write takes several times longer than learning to write a language like French.Speaking and writing -  As if learning thousands of characters isnt enough, you also need to know how to pronounce them, which is largely separate or just indirectly related to how they are written. If you can pronounce Spanish as a native speaker of English, you can sort of write it too, at least if you learn some spelling conventions. Not so in Chinese. Knowing how to say something tells you very little about how its written and vice versa. Its not true that Chinese is not phonetic at all, though, and you can make use of that, but it still makes learning much harder.Nothing for free -  I have already written about this above. If you havent learnt Chinese or any other language completely unrelated to your own, you dont know how much you have for free when your learn closely related languages. Its of course very hard to make estimates, but lets just say that there is a very big overlap between academic, medical an technical terms in European languages. You have to learn all that from scratch in Chinese.Language variation -  Chinese has several dialects and is spoken over a huge area by more than a billion people. Mandarin is the standard dialect, but there are many variations within that dialect, regional and otherwise. Its not uncommon to have several words for the same thing (look up the word Sunday for instance). We also have a very big difference between formal and colloquial vocabulary. Then we have classical Chinese, which is almost like a language within the language that often spills into modern written Chinese. Even if youre just focusing on modern Mandarin, all these other variations keep interfering and mixing things up for you.Pronunciation and tones -  While basic pronunciation is relatively easy to get down if you have the right teacher and spend the necessary time, tones are really hard to master for most learners. In isolation, yes; in words, yes; but in natural speech without thinking too much about it, no. Its really hard to feel  the difference between syllables said with the same initial and final but with another tone. Unless you are terribly talented, you wi ll probably keep making tone mistakes for the rest of your life. After a while, they wont really disturb communication that much, but it takes a while and most students never get there.Listening and reading -  In the article about why Chinese is easy to learn, I listed several things that make it easier to speak, such as no verb inflections, no gender, no tenses and so on. However, this information is still present when you communicate, its just not encoded in the written or spoken language. The words look and sound the same. This means that its easier to speak because you dont need to bother that much, but it makes listening and reading harder because you have less information and need to do much more interpreting yourself. This is a result of Chinese being an isolating language. Listening is further complicated by the fact that Mandarin has a very limited number of sounds, even including the tones, which makes it easy to mix things up and the number of homophones or near-homopho nes (words that sound the same or almost the same) is very large compared to English.Culture and mentality -  One of the major obstacles for reaching an educated native level in Chinese is the huge amount of culture you dont know about. If you study French, you share most of the cultural history and knowledge about the world with the native speakers, and even though you need to fill in the gaps that are particular to France, the general framework is the same. When most people start learning Chinese, they know almost nothing about the Chinese speaking world. Can you imagine how long it takes as an adult to learn everything about the world that you know now through years and years of schooling, living in the country, reading newspapers, books and so on? Added to this, the underlying thinking or mentality is sometimes very different. Humour doesnt always work the same way, what a Chinese person thinks is logical might not be logical to you, cultural values, norms and customs are diff erent. And so on. If you want to read more about differences in culture and mentality, I suggest a book called The Geography of Thought. Does it really matter how difficult it is? ​Now you might think that learning Chinese is really impossible, but as I said in the introduction, thats not really the case. However, as is the case with many other tasks, achieving mastery takes a long time. If you want to approach the level of an educated native speaker, were talking about a life-long commitment and a life situation that allows you to either work with the language or socialise in it. Ive studied Chinese for almost nine years and I daily come into contact with things I dont know. I expect this will never stop to be the case. Of course, I have learnt the language well enough to be able to listen, speak, read and write about almost anything I want, including specialised and technical areas Im familiar with. Almost all learners would have settled for much, much less. And rightly so, perhaps. You dont need to spend ten years or become an advanced learner for your studies to pay off. Even studying just a few months and being able to say a few things to people in China in their own language can make all the difference. Languages are not binary; they dont suddenly become useful at a certain level. Yes, they become gradually more useful the more you know, but exactly how far you want to go is up to you. Its also up to you to define what learning Mandarin means. Personally, I also think that the amount of things I dont know about the language makes learning more interesting and fun!

Essay on Analysis of the Movie, Disclosure - 4419 Words

Disclosure is a drama/thriller. The genre for this movie states, â€Å"Sex is Power†. Tom is a happily married man, a successful computer expert, and works for a major computer company â€Å"Digicom†, which is about to merge. He believes he is going to receive a promotion because of all his devotion and work for the company. Instead the job goes to Meredith, who is from another plant and with whom he was romantically involved in his bachelor days. She is now his new boss, who is very aggressive, sexy and dedicated to destroy him after he refuses to have an affair with her. She files sexual harassment under false pretenses, he charges her on the same charges however he is telling the truth. Once this is over with, Tom needs to solve a major†¦show more content†¦It was not until he got a break and found out a friend, he had tried to call the night of the meeting, had the whole evening on his answering machine that he felt in control again. Meredith always felt sh e was in control of things, if she wanted it she got it herself. Even during the mediation when they listened to the tape that proved she sexually harassed Tom, she got right back up and said that he did not matter and just because he won that she would still find a way to get rid of Tom. The only time she wavered from this was when her plan backfired and she was the one to get fired. She blamed their boss for being weak not her. There was nothing she could have done to come out on top because it was out of her hands. Tom and Meredith are more extroverts than anything. Extroversion is an orientation toward other people, events, and objects (pg. 47). They are both sociable in their work surroundings. They are able to make the buyers comfortable and are usually on their toes. Meredith seems to be more so than Tom. She is more extroverted. She tries to make the person of most influence, in this case it is her boss, more comfortable so she can gain more support than the employees that have been there a while. Tom just socializes with everyone; he does not do it to guarantee he will get a job. Going in to authoritarianism, Meredith comes off liking to be the authority butShow MoreRelatedInterpersonal Communication Analysis Of Dirty Dancing1242 Words   |  5 PagesCommunication Analysis of Dirty Dancing The term interpersonal communication often referred to as dyadic communication sounds a lot more complex than it really is. It is the communication between two people, or face-to-face interaction. There are many different characteristics that separate dyadic communication from other forms of communication, such as being more direct, personal, immediate, spontaneous, and informal. 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Identity crisis (joy luck club Essay Example For Students

Identity crisis (joy luck club Essay Identity Crisis(Joy Luck Club)Every person comes to a point in their life when they begin to search for themselves and their identity. Usually it is a long process and takes a long time with many wrong turns along the way. Family, teachers, and friends all help to develop a person into an individual and adult. Parents play the largest role in evolving a person. Amy Tan, author of the Joy Luck Club, uses this theme in her book. Four mothers have migrated to America from China because of their own struggles. They all want their daughters to grow up successful and without any of the hardships they went through. One mother, Suyuan, imparts her knowledge on her daughter through stories. The American culture influences her daughter, Jing Mei, to such a degree that it is hard for Jing Mei to understand her mothers culture and life lessons.Yet it is not until Jing Mei realizes that the key to understanding who her mother was and who she is lies in understanding her mothers life. Jing Mei spends her American life trying to pull away from her Chinese heritage, and therefore also ends up pulling away from her mother. Jing Mei does not understand the culture and does not feel it is necessary to her life. When she grows up it is not fashionable to be called by your Chinese name (26). She doesn’t use, understand, or remember the Chinese expressions her mother did, claiming she can never remember things she didn’t understand in the first place (6). Jing Mei begs her mother to buy her a transistor radio, but her mother refuses when she remembers something from her past, asking her daughter Why do you think you are missing something you never had? (13) Instead of viewing the situation from her mothers Chinese-influenced side, Jing Mei takes the American materialistic viewpoint and sulks in silence for an hour (13). By ignoring her mom and her moms advice, Jing Mei is also ignoring some of the similarities between her and her mother. Suyuan has also reje cted some of the Chinese traditions. Suyuan rejects the women-repressive Chinese traditions when she tells her daughter that she believed you could be anything you want to be in America (141). Suyuan continually tells Jing Mei her Kweilin story as a child, the story of the origins of the Joy Luck Club as well as her mothers past hardships. Yet despite the importance of the story and the events constituting the story to Suyuan, Jing Mei never thought her mothers Kweilin story was anything but a Chinese fairy tale (12). The story would have the same meaning to Jing Mei as if she were being told the story of Sleeping Beauty, or some other American bedtime story. When Jing Mei recognizes the similarities between her mother and herself she begins to understand not only her mother but herself as well. There are subtle connections and likenesses from the beginning between Jing Mei and her mother that Jing Mei does not see. The book commences with Jing Mei taking her mothers place at the mah jong table, creating a similarity between them from the beginning. Suyuan dies two months before the start of the book, and therefore is not able to tell the stories. Jing Mei has learned and must tell her stories in her place, forming another parallelism between mother and daughter. Because Suyuan is dead, Jing Mei must act in place of her mother when she goes to meet her Chinese sisters in China. Throughout the book Jing Mei takes the place of Suyuan, showing she and her mother have a unique link even with the barrier of the living world. Jing Mei finally begins to realize her identity and past when she travels in place of her mother to China to meet her two twin sisters. Suyuan had to make the hard decision to leave her twin babies on the side of the road in hopes some kind stranger would tak e them in, that way she would not have to see them die. Suyuan searches for her babies all through her life in America, sending multitudes of letters; they finally get in touch with her two months after she has died. Because her mother is not alive to meet her children, Jing Mei takes her place and the trip enables her to finally recognize her Chinese ancestry. The minute she enters China she feels different and can realize that she is becoming Chinese (306). At fifteen Jing Mei believed she was only as Chinese as her Caucasian friends (306). Yet her mother counters thoughts, telling her: Once you are born Chinese, you cannot help but feel and think Chinese (306). Once in China Jing Mei decides her mother was right and she has never really known what it meant to be Chinese (307). She has never understood her mother or her heritage. This trip is the connecting link to understanding her life. She begins to feel natural in China, thinking to herself on the train: I am in China†¦ I t feels right (312). Jing Mei sees the landscape, the people, the histories, and the families in China and sees where her mother was speaking from all of those years. She knows a little percent of her mother know (15). It becomes obvious to Jing Mei to see what part of her is Chinese; it is in her family, in her blood (331). Jing Mei finally realizes herself when she travels to China, trying to connect with her mother and searching for her identity. The longer she stays in China, the more connected Jing Mei feels to her mother, the more she feels at home, and the more she understands what her mother was trying to teach her. At last when Jing Mei embraces her sisters for the first time at the airport, and they look at the Polaroid so view their similarities, Jing Mei realizes the part of her that is Chinese is her family. She must embrace the memory of her dead mother to grasp that part of her identity.

In Sparta, citizenship brought power and privilege Essay Example For Students

In Sparta, citizenship brought power and privilege Essay , but required devotion and personal sacrifice The Laconians had a particularly strict and defined notion of citizenship. Only adult males who could prove their descent from original Doran conquerors, who had completed their training at the agoge, (the Spartan state education system which turned boys into warriors) and who had been accepted to the public messes were considered to be part of the homoioi; Spartiates or equals. With such a rigid structure in defining the men of the citizen class, at her peak Spartas military which was comprised of her citizen body, and during times of war, pereoikoi (inhabitants of outer villages of Laconia) and helots (conquered peoples who were reduced to slavery) would have numbered no more than ten thousand. Upon election to one of the public messes, the Spartan citizen was obliged to make a monthly contribution of grain, fruit and wine to his syssition (mess), and was, for the next thirty years, liable to be called for military service. He also had to dine at the messes every night, and only sickness, hunting expeditions or public sacrifices excused him from attending. Despite the expectation of total devotion to the state, Spartiates were entitled to a number of privileges strictly denied to non-Spartans. Once elected to a mess, a man was given an allotment of public land and serfs. He could participate in the Assembly, and, if married, finally able to live with his wife. The level of commitment required of a citizen to his state in Sparta was unheard of anywhere else in Greece. However, the education and training all citizens would have had to undergo was designed to instil a sense of courage, confidence and unwavering devotion to the polis, and this is why the citizens had no hesitation in making personal sacrifices if it was for the good of the state. The first active step in becoming a Spartan citizen was at the age of seven, when boys of the citizen class (and in rare cases, pereoikoi, Laconian outsiders and local royalty) were given up by their parents and put in the state education system; the agoge. The women had no trouble in letting go of their young sons because, although they were fully aware of the extreme discipline that pervaded all aspects of their sons training, it was considered to be for the good of the state that fit, healthy males be given the right to develop into defenders of the city (and it was also enforced by law). The boys were supervised at all times by a paidonomos, a Spartiate of great repute who was responsible for the education of his boys. However, any citizen had the right to discipline them if the guardian was absent. From a very young age, this reinforced the principle of prompt and unwavering obedience to authority. The agoge trained the boys for living the specific life of a warrior soldier, and therefore they were taught to read and write no more than was necessary. They were issued one cloak to last them all year, ran barefoot at all times, and were fed minimal amounts of food. The logic behind these overly harsh living conditions was that if as ever on campaign as Spartan warriors, they would be able to better endure exposure to the elements, not be inhibited by fighting on harsh terrain, and be more cunning and inventive when finding food. (Indeed, when training, the boys were encouraged to steal food but were severely punished if caught not because of the act of theft, but because of the fact that they were caught). At age thirty, the fully trained males of the agoge were to face their final test before being accepted as a Spartan citizen being elected to a public mess. Each member voted by putting a small chunk of bread into a basin called as caddichus. Depending upon whether the bread was round or flattened decided the fate of the candidate. The decision had to be unanimous, so the appearance of one flattened piece of bread representing a no vote meant that the young man was disqualified. .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 , .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .postImageUrl , .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 , .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9:hover , .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9:visited , .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9:active { border:0!important; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9:active , .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9 .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .uedbe1944f3d87052aecb85731ca45cf9:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The Metamorphosis: The Last Four Pages Essay If accepted however, the responsibilities and expectations did not end with the successful election to a mess. Now granted .

It Is Often Said That When Considering A Work Of Great Literature, The

It is often said that when considering a work of great literature, the title of such work can be just as important as the context of the story. Authors time and again wait until they have completed the context of their work to give it a title as to make sure this chosen title is the best possible representation of their work. Stated equally as often is that the significance of some of these titles is easy to recognize while in other titles, the significance is only developed gradually. The latter is the case for Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness. The author implements the literary devices of contrast, repetition and point of view to successfully convey the meaning and symbolism of his title. At first read through the short book, one may perceive the "heart of darkness" to simply be the wilderness in the center of Africa into which Marlow is headed. This in not incorrect, however the meaning of the title is multi-faceted, moving and morphing into other parts of its meaning as the story moves on. Under further scrutiny, the reader will notice Conrad's drastic use of contrast. The contrasts include that between light and dark in the grove of death, black and white of the people, ultimately between civilization and the uncivilized wilderness these men are there to colonize. A distinct barrier is set around this uncivilized are as some deep, dark, brooding place where all bad part of humanity can stir. From this, the reader can establish that a second meaning on the "heart of darkness" referred to in the title is that out of civilized society, man is believed to live in some hellish arena, in this immense darkness. Further showing this meaning as well as bringing in another is Conrad's use of repetition in his book. The most noticeable repetition in the book is the use of the title or some close variation of it to describe certain places, events, and people. The use of such phrases when describing parts of the wilderness or those things in nature only reassured the previous meaning. The use of such phrases when referring to people, such as the cry of the natives and in certain references to Kurtz implies another, rather startling meaning: that the "heart of darkness" in not a part of the world, something someone can visit and touch and explain to other people; rather, this "heart of darkness" is something inside people. One may take this only to mean the savage people in the wilderness, surrounding Kurt's Inner Station but there is more, which extends to all man. This is most clearly seen in the closing moments of the tale when the reader is returned to the boat from whence the story began. The tale is now over of Marlow's enlightenment in the center of the world, but the journey that these men are on is not completed. As the tale is told, the men notice that Marlow has been talking all night and the dawn is now approaching, however with a dark, overcast sky. This darkness cast over the water ahead of them makes it seem as though they, too, are traveling into some immense darkness. These men are not free of that darkness, and neither is anyone else. Deep down, even human has a part of some greater savagery that is inescapable and even more incomprehensible. The point of view in which the context of the short novel is conveyed is also important to the reader in establishing a meaning for the title. Beginning as a frame tale and moving into a first-person narrative and finally returning to the cruiser to end the frame is extremely powerful in conveying the meanings of Heart of Darkness. The frame introduces a separation in time that is ultimately gapped in the closing portions of the story. The gapping of the separation is important to conclude that the meanings are not simply applicable only to those of a certain place at a certain time. The meanings of the title span all geographical limits as well as all bounds of time. The main part of the context being told in the first-person by Marlow is also instrumental in conveying exactly what the

Book Report For The Book quot;the Secret Life Of Beesquot; By Sue

Book Report For The Book quot;the Secret Life Of Beesquot; By Sue Book Report For The Book the Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd – Book Report/Review Example The Secret Life of Bees The of Sue Monk Kidd’s book,The Secret Life of Bees, represents Lily, who is the central character. She lives a secret life that others are not able to understand just like the bees. Her soul and spirit are like the bee-hive to her. Others have no clue how she is complex. Lily is not like a typical one-parent child. She is irreplaceable, despite the fact that she does not understand her life. The start of each chapter of Kidd’s book has a quote from other sources about bees, which the writer personifies in the book. The beginning of chapter one has a quote stating that if a queen is out of her hive, there arises immediate indications of the lack of a queen. The chapter talks about the growth of Lily (Morrison’s, The Sacred Feminine). She grows up without a mother and shows clear signs of lack of a mother. Chapter eight has a quote stating that if one takes a bee away from its sisters, it dies after a short time. It talks about May, who is August and June’s sister, and her unique sense of empathy. She lost her twin sister, April, and since then she always wanted to die every time she sees a sign of death or anger. Personification stands out clearly throughout the book (Morrison’s, The Sacred Feminine). Bee-hives represent a symbolic parallel to the community that August has made in the pink house. Bees live, work and produce honey in bee-hives. Female bees in August’s community dominate the bee-hive and the queen bee rules over everything. The queen bee becomes the mother the other bees (Morrison’s, The Sacred Feminine). It is symbolic when August says the Virgin Mary is the mother of all women close to her. August refers to them as the Daughters of Mary. In conclusion, Kidd’s book reflects the life and life of bees in a bee-hive. The title, The Secret Life of Bees, is the most relevant and suitable title for the book.Morrison, Jessica Lynn. The Sacred Feminine. Diss. California Stat e University, Dominguez Hills, 2014.

Personal Application Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Personal Application Assignment - Essay Example I had very confusing experience in the sense that I felt that my colleagues at other departments were actually creating issues which were hindering in achievement of my objectives. I tried hard to meet my targets on time and worked closely with my customers to understand their actual requirements and as to how my organization can actually support them. However, whenever I used to forward my recommendations to other departments basically responsible for ensuring that the customers receive what they want started to create problems for me. I was specially a target because of my ability to achieve my targets and compete aggressively with my colleagues in order to develop a better career for myself and ensure a quick progression on the organizational ladder. I however, felt that my colleagues did not liked the way I started to progress in our organization. Looking back at this experience, I often feel that I should not have been involved in the overall organizational politics as it hindered my progress on a career which I liked much. I was under the impression that the individuals within an organization often support their fellow workers in order to help them to achieve the organizational objectives and in the process also allow individuals to fulfill their own objectives. However, I believe I was wrong because I failed to recognize the importance of informal networks and how they can actually affect an individual’s performance and career progression. I also believe that other departments were also struggling to meet their own targets and fulfill their own part of the responsibility. However, due to the lack of organizational attention and negligence by higher management have probably resulted into the culmination of an attitude which de-motivated them and they were hardly contributing positively towards the achievement of