Nursing Care in Rural Communities Essay

Nursing Care in Rural CommunitiesLiving in a rural community can present challenges for residents in receiving adequate health care. Many believe that rural communities present less health risks than urban communities. In actuality, they each have their own unique health problems and risks. In rural areas, the elderly population is at risk for not obtaining sufficient healthcare for numerous reasons such as knowledge deficit, lack of transportation, and financial woes. The healthcare community also faces challenges in providing healthcare in rural areas. The community health nurse plays an extremely important role in rural America. They will help ensure that the community has access to appropriate medical care and assist with referrals for financial assistance. Rural Community Health versus Urban City Health There have many debates over the years about who has the better quality of life, including less health problems, those who live in rural communities or those that live in the urban city communities. Any person that is asked, will most likely have their own opinion. However, in actuality, both have their own unique set of health problems. Kids that grow up in rural areas, particularly farming areas, have a lower incidence of asthma and breathing difficulties than kids raised in urban areas. But, on the other hand, children in rural areas, on average, consume more fat and sugar than those in urban areas. Therefore, it is no surprise that the childhood obesity rate is the highest in rural areas CITATION Bec11 l 1033 (Beck, 2011). Urban communities a higher rate of sexually transmitted diseases and more violent crimes than that in rural communities. In urban areas, there tends to be a larger impoverished population due to immigrants migrating to urban areas. When a large portion of the population is at or below poverty level, it results in poorer living conditions and difficulty obtaining adequate food, water, sewage, and health care. Because of that, there is an increased rate of preventable diseases related to lifestyles CITATION Gal12  l 1033 (Galea, Ompad, & Vlahov, 2012). Both urban and rural communities have various drug and alcohol problems. The types of drugs and population using are unique to the area. Urban areas tend to have more sources available to help those seeking it. There are more treatment centers and also clean needle exchange programs. The Elderly Population in Rural America Many elderly that live in rural communities, have lived there the majority of their lives. Many will be living alone if their spouse has previously passed away. A specific need that many may have is lack of transportation. In most rural areas, there is not public transportation available. This results in many elderly missing medical appointments, check-ups, and possibly not even making an appointment when ill. Lack of receiving appropriate medication can also be a result of being without transportation. However, there are many other contributing factors for those not taking the appropriate medications. Many elderly living in rural areas, come from families that have farmed all their lives. Farming is an industry that has its ups and downs financially, and although provided for the family at the time, many did not have money available in retirement funds. This has resulted in a monetary deficit in the aging population. Another reason the elderly population in rural areas may not recei ve the appropriate prescriptions, is knowledge deficit. Many, especially in rural areas, have grown up treating themselves and their families with home remedies. This was a cost-saving solution, and also resolved the issue of limited available medical care. There are specific medical problems that are more prevalent in rural populations. These include heart disease, skin cancers, and Alzheimer’s or a form of dementia. Chronic diseases also more predominant in the aging population of rural America, these include arthritis and hypertension CITATION Rog02 l 1033 (Rogers, 2002). Challenges for Healthcare in Rural America. There are several challenges that are widespread when providing healthcare in Rural America. In general, there are less healthcare providers and hospitals available in rural areas. If there is a hospital close, it will most likely lack many pertinent departments such as a cardiac cath lab or a labor and delivery unit. Patients will be required to relocate to a larger town, further away. This may not be possible to many rural  Americans due to lack of financial ability, lack of transportation, or the lack of education. T hey may not have been educated on the importance of the procedure. There are also many insurance companies that do not contract with rural physicians. This would deter many people from obtaining adequate medical care due to the out of pocket cost CITATION Mos08 l 1033 (Moscovice & Rosenblatt, 2008). The Role of the Community Health Nurse in Rural Settings. The community health nurse will take on many roles in rural settings. Educating about the importance of immunizations is imperative. But, also, ensuring that all community members that desire the immunizations have the ability to come to the clinic to receive them. If not, the nurse may need to develop another plan in order to meet the community’s needs. The community health nurse needs to assist the elderly with obtaining transportation for medical visits. If they are only able to establish transportation certain days of the week, if possible make appointments for that day for them. Education is a large part of any nurse’s job description. However, as a rural community health nurse, it is essential that the community is educated on disease processes and the importa nce of taking prescriptions as prescribed by the physician. Many in rural communities, will generally have their own home remedies that they have used and may not understand why a specific medication is necessary. Because of financial concerns of many in rural areas, the community health nurse will need to educate patients on medical financial assistance programs and which local providers and hospitals are contracted with their insurance companies. Urban areas and rural communities in America, each come with their own unique health problems that are specific to that area. As a rural community health nurse, it is imperative to understand what specific deficits the general rural population has related to healthcare. The community health nurse has the ability to ensure that the entire rural community has access to healthcare, adequate education related to their medical problems, and can help refer patients to assistance for transportation and financial assistance. References BIBLIOGRAPHY Beck, M. (2011). City vs. Country: Who is Healthier. Wall Street Journal. Galea, S., Ompad, D., & Vlahov, D. (2012, September). Urban Health Issues. Retrieved from Rutgers University: http://www.healthynj.org/ Moscovice, I., & Rosenblatt, R. (2008). Quality-of-Care Challenges for Rural Health. The Journal of Rural Health, 168-176. Rogers, C. (2002). The Older Population in 21st Century Rural America. Rural America, 2-10.

Study carefully the following extract from The Social Contract, and the painting The Lictors Returning to Brutus The Bodies of his Sons

Both Rousseau and David's philosophy have the same idea where David was influenced by Rousseau to a great extent. However, they have presented their ideas in different medium whereby one was on the written form whereas the other one was on the visual form. Therefore, this essay will prove their ideas in different ways which they are explored by Rousseau and David. Rousseau constructed the social contract was to solve the question of freedom, and his solution to this problem was the construction of the civil state. In other words, his idea was that living in the civil state was similar as signing a contract in which one agrees to obey the general will and not one's particular will. Rousseau wanted to show that man could live in the civil state and be free as in the state of nature. Through the grouping of citizens, each willing to surrender himself and live with others as a whole which required thinking rationally and act morally. Most importantly, by agreeing to the social contract, people gave up their physical freedom in state of nature and signing himself over to the civil state. Hence, this directed by the general will. In the first and second line of the extract, ‘a remarkable change in man' indicates that people would benefit in a change from the state of nature to civil state. He believed that in joining the civil state, people escape the slavery of appetite and fulfill themselves as human beings. Only ‘general will' makes people human. Our particular wills may want to pursue selfish ends with no regard for the people's interests. Hence, Rousseau believed that ‘general will' is a will that â€Å"it would be in each individual's best interest to think according to the general will and so escape brutish stupidity. (Blk 3, pp115). Therefore, votes must be cast to find a ‘general will'. This general will is the product of reason (Blk 3, pp122). Only then will the society benefit if citizen act according to reason and embrace the ‘general will'. Thus, in obeying the state, citizens will be obeying themselves because the ‘general will' should be what they desire. Therefore, the particular will should coincide with the will of the state because everyone wants the best. Another idea from Rousseau was â€Å"to be legimate, the authority the state has over the people must come from the people themselves† (Blk 3, pp97). In social contract, Rousseau is trying to defend a certain view about legimate authority. He argued that a state is only legimate if based on a contract between all its members, in which they give away their bad qualities in exchange for good qualities. Thus, he claimed that the goal of the government should be to secure freedom, equality, rights and justice for all within the state. Hence, he also claimed that we should abandon our inclinations and consult our reason and think as a member of the state. This had to adopt the general will. As such, people could relate Rousseau's political ideas with David's painting. It helped to ignite a passion amongst the French general public and change French politics. In Rousseau's social contract, the minorities of individuals who do not agree with the ‘general will' must not be ignored. When there is a conflict between the two, Rousseau expects that the citizen will rationalize and choose the ‘general will' over his ‘particular will'. To do otherwise would be ignoble and slavish to selfish appetite. This emphasizes duty to state over personal desires and it was this same belief which David, a painter of the Revolution subscribed to. In his painting, â€Å"The Lictors Returning to Brutus the Bodies of his sons†, David painted in such a way that the view of the spectator is at the same level and it is drawn in a horizontal space. The picture is organized into two different figure groups whereby the females are on the extreme right while the males are on the extreme left. Thus, the empty chair forms a barrier between the two halves of the painting. The group of female figures and a woman on the far right attract the attention in this picture. Their strong emotions show sadness and anxiety to grief at the sight of the corpses. The tallest woman gives a point of interest that she is turning towards her dead sons and one of her hands supports her two daughters while the other hand hopes to rush towards her dead sons. However, her two daughters could not accept the truth that the death of their family members as one was fainted and the other one used her two hands to hide her eyes. Next to them is a female who is seated at one corner as she is deeply depressed of this scene. On the left, Brutus sits impassively in the shadow of the goddess Roma and his right arm signals the lictors to bring the corpses in. He turned his back and refused to look at his dead sons. His tightly clenched toes and muscles on his arms show how tense he is. His other hand held a letter tightly. Thus, the content of the letter has something to do with his sons as they planned a plot to overthrow Brutus. Thus, David has chosen a part of history and he has painted at that moment that Brutus sacrificed his sons for the sake of politics. Hence, he has portrayed the conflicts between political duty and family allegiances. The painting became politically significant because the content reflected the Roman republican virtues and promoted the ideas of moralizing France. This painting leads our eyes along perspective lines and into the depths of the room which was blocked half-way on this picture. The column nearest to the viewer, the dark doorway and the walls on the left and the curtain screen on the right block the view of what lies behind the painting, making us focus on the action of the figures which was closer to us. Thus, it also creates a greater depth in the dark brickwork beyond a second row of columns. The colours and features of the lictors who are first to enter the room are darker then those behind them. Hence, this gives a further sense of pictorial space and takes the viewer deeper into the picture creating depth. The red cushion to the left closer to us adds to another dimensional space. Thus, the different proportions of the chairs and table add more space and depth to the picture. Light is bright and has poured into the scene with different angles. This makes the spotlight effect on the female figures which captures our attention. Bright lights also fall on the columns and empty chair, on the feet of Brutus and on the legs of the body on the second litter. It is also more evident from the shadow of the man on the left, the shadow of female group on the cloth and flooring and one of the lictor's shadows is cast on the column. We could conclude that the light is coming from the doorway from the left. These also seem to be lit in their outlines and add to the three-dimensional effect. In his painting, David chose bright colours such as red and orange costumes for the females, table cloth and empty chair. On the other hand, he also chose dark neutral colours to create a somber mood. There is a broad tonal range in it as a whole, from very bright to very dark and this creates dramatic contrasts. The figures are clearly defined and certain colours are repeated and balanced as reflected in this painting. Like David's painting, Rousseau's ideas are also very clear and well-defined. The brushwork is well-defined and shows clear facial expressions. The expressions on the female figures clearly showed their emotion reactions whereas Brutus is left alone. Brutus and his sons had different views as his sons supported the monarchy instead of him. Thus, it symbolizes that from the left are 'emotions' and from the right are ‘reasons'. Therefore, David introduces the themes of the triumph and role of reason. When looking at David's painting, it could not separate from Rousseau's ideas. As I have mentioned earlier, one must surrender himself and live with others as a whole which required thinking rationally and act morally. In other words, we should bring across the moral values that people should be noble and not possess those bad qualities that has mentioned in the extract. Last but not least, the similarity between Rousseau and David is their ideas involved human reasons and attitudes. Hence, it also grasps an emotional and passionate side of man in both painting and extract. These two medium symbolizes both political and historical context. Thus, David's Neoclassical art extolled civic virtues and emphasized morality, Rousseau was willing to sanction death as a punishment allowing for the achievement of his civil state and David's painting serves as propaganda to reflect his ideology in his painting.

Economics Commentary: Macroeconomics Essay

Areas of Syllabus your commentary relates to: Section 4: Macroeconomics Having experienced contraction from Q4 08 to Q2 09, the Canadian economy grew 5% in the fourth quarter of 2009, beating predicted forecasts. This growth was precipitated by consumer and government spending, as well as a growing housing market. There was also growth recorded in exports, with sectors such as the automotive, energy and industrial factoring into this. However, economists warn that for this growth to continue, issues such as unemployment and spotty aggregate demand must be addressed. Fiscal measures, meaning decisions made by the central governing body concerning taxation and government spending, have already been taken by the Canadian government, in the form of the fiscal stimulus package. This package has in it $12B in infrastructure spending, $7.8B meant to stimulate construction firms, $8.3 B for skills training and retraining, and several tax credits ranging from the home improvement ($1350/family) to lowered EI and income tax rates. Fiscal policy generally concerns itself with creating conditions of full employment, price stability and real GDP growth. Full employment, or an economic state where all eligible people who want to work can find employment at the prevailing wage rate, is important in achieving a state of maximum productivity in the economy. The current unemployment rate is 8.2%, above the generally accepted natural rate of unemployment. It has however fallen significantly, with a gain of 159,000 new jobs since June 2009. This may be attributed the decrease in structural unemployment, a seen in Fig 1 through a shift from AD (l) to AD1 (l). There mismatch in skills offered by Canadian workers and those demanded by firms has decreased on the diagram, perhaps through training programs. On the other hand, an increase in aggregate demand, caused by an increase in the disposable income of families may have also caused the increase in demand for labour as firms expanded or rehired laid off personnel. Price stability is also important for long term economic growth, because rampant inflation, meaning a steady and prolonged increase in the price level, is known to have several adverse effects. These include the extra costs caused by unsteady resource costs, and money losing its role as a medium of value. As the government injects more stimuli into the economy, the risk of demand pull inflation grows. Thus aggregate demand would rise; because of growth in the money supply, the price level would increase, as described by the short run equation of exchange, M=P. This increase in the money supply is provided by the Bank of Canada, and included as the Extraordinary Financing Framework in the government’s action plan. To avoid the aforementioned inflation, the Bank of Canada has several tools at its disposal. Raising the amount of reserve requirement is an interesting contractionary choice, so is raising the discount rate charged to major banks. These two together act to reduce the greatest inflationary obstacle, that is public opinion. Thus, as shown in Fig2, an increase in the interest rate results in a decrease in consumer demand for money. This decrease in demand would be useful in controlling inflation once recovery had occurred. However, in the present, the Bank of Canada is likely to concern itself with slowly increasing the money supply, and keeping a stable overnight rate. It is unknown whether the stimulus package is the cause of the rebound in the Canadian economy, this may have been caused by market forces. Additionally, the retraining programs are unlikely to have already decreased structural unemployment, as one of their major faults is the length of time needed to complete such a course. These so called time lags are problematic because once the retrained populace makes their way back into the labour market, 3-4 years may have passed, almost a full cycle of certain economies. As stated in the article, the Canadian recovery itself does not stand on stable ground, especially so given that a significant part of the EU is heavily in debt and America no yet out of its own recession, important, as 80% of Canadian imports are destined there. Whether or not the measures taken by the government with respect to stimulating the Canadian economy in the long run shall be successful remains to be seen. However, the average middle class citizen most likely has experienced the benefits of measures ranging from tax credits and reductions to funding directed to the industry they work in.

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Management Problem in Health Care Essay Example for Free

Management Problem in Health Care Essay Management Problem in Health Care Worldwide health care organizations are faced with problems everyday. Motivation is one of the many management problems in health care organizations today. Health care organizations are always working together to come up with ideas and strategies to make their organizations more successful and better for everyone to work in as well. Problem solving is an on going process in health care organizations, which have been bringing positive results for everyone working in the health care organizations. Motivation is a state of feeling or thinking in which one is energized or aroused to perform a task or engage in a particular behavior. This definition focuses on motivation as an emotional or cognitive state that is independent of action. This focus clearly distinguishes motivation from the performance of a task and its consequences. Notice, too, that motivation can be a state of either feeling or thinking, or a combination of the two. For some individuals, motivation is more a matter of feeling than thinking, while, for others, the reverse is true (Shortell Kaluzny, 2006). Motivating the people who are working under management can be a difficult task at times. Everyone is unique, none of us are the exact same and each person needs something different to become motivated and that is where the challenge comes in for the managers, finding the right motivator for the right employee. Knowing and caring about the employees needs, will help managers know what type of rewards to offer as a way to motivate their employees. Management Problem 3 The success of any organization, especially health care organizations solely depends on the skills of managers and how they present the work environment for their employees. When employees are motivated they tend to be more satisfied with their jobs and will stay with the organization much longer as a result of their satisfaction. According to a recent survey from the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society offers some ideas on how to keep them happy. First, pay a decent salary, that came through loud and clear in the survey, says Linda Hodges, executive vice president of search firm Hersher Associates, which conducted the survey with HIMSS. Salary was identified by the surveys 361 respondents as one of the main factors they use to evaluate job satisfaction or a job offer. Forty percent of those surveyed said they dont believe they are paid market value (Greene, 2002). According to Lynn, if your program examination indicates that you have done everything right but the results were not there, it is time to talk with people one-on-one. Ask each employee why the program did not have the impact you were looking for. They may have been trying as hard as they could, but only delivering a marginal performance. It is possible they are battling obstacles you cannot see. To find out what is getting in their way, ask them how you can help them improve (Lynn, 2001). Asking these questions are important when it comes to keeping your employees involved in everything, always getting their opinions on how they think it should be done and work together as a team to come up with the best solutions. This is what a good manager is made of, including his employees in everything that has to do with the job. Management Problem 4 Maslows theory was unique because he believed that each person had five needs and each need had to be met before they could go on to the next need. As the process went on, each old need lost motivational value as the new need was met. According to Shortell and Kaluzny, Maslows hierarchy of needs assumes there are five need levels that must be satisfied sequentially. 1. The physiological needs, these needs include things like air, water, food, warmth, shelter, and sex, the basic survival needs. 2. The security needs include a secure physical and emotional environment, examples include the need to be free from worry about money and job security. 3. Belongingness needs involve social processes, they include the need for love and affection and the need to be accepted by ones peers. 4. Esteem needs are actually composed of two different set of needs: the need for a positive self-image or self-respect and the need for recognition and respect from others. 5. Self-actualization needs, at the top of the hierarchy, involve realizing ones potential for continued growth and individual development (Shortell ; Kaluzny, 2006). Although, Maslows hierarchy of needs theory seems too simple for the human body, which is very complex, this is the perfect theory of motivation for us. This theory touches every aspect of our lives and how one feels about themselves and their surroundings. People who are in management positions will be wise to use this theory when it comes to motivating their employees, in any industry health care or otherwise. It does not matter which theory you think may be best to follow, interesting work and employee pay are the two biggest motivators. Management Problem 5 After identifying the motivation problems with the employees, managers need to start right away working on a plan to overcome these problems. They can start with talking with each individual employee and ask them questions. Making the employees feel like they have a part in finding the solution is a big part in motivation too. Everyone needs to feel like they are helping in some way or another. In conclusion, even though motivating your employees is a difficult task, it must be done in order to keep them happy and to keep things running smoothly. Keeping your employees happy can only bring success to their organization. The employees will love doing their jobs and they will do them well, they will come to work everyday and this will result in a cost effective organization, because the turnover rates will be less in each organization and the organizations will not have to worry about training new employees.

Stevensons The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Essay Example for Free

Stevensons The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' Essay Stevensons Jekyll and Hyde is an examination and comment on mankinds dual-nature and societys need to allow the existence of one type of behaviour. Jekyll is a product of this society and Hyde is his alter ego. Stevenson creates evil within Victorian London and explores its effect and the public reaction to it. He allows it to grow leading to tragic consequences. Evil is represented in many ways, much of which is centred on Hyde himself and societys rejection to him. Victorian London was a dark, foggy, mysterious place, there were a lot of back alleys and secret hideouts in that town, where absolutely anything could happen, London was startled by a crime of singular ferocity, a fog rolled over the city, (both p31) This was the perfect setting for a book like The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll Mr. Hyde because there wasnt a setting to create, it was already there for Stevenson to use. The book is a mysterious gothic-horror, involving murders. With London the scene is already set for a book like this, with all the dark, dingy, old and smelly back-alleys, anything could happen, some city in a nightmare. (p34) Jekyll and Hyde was in many ways, similar to the events around Jack the Ripper, it was also written at about the same time as those events happened, so it was constantly compared to it, even though the two were totally different and not related in anyway, and neither influenced the other. The reason for their comparisons is the fact that they both involved murders, both also involved people having two sides to their personalities, Hyde is the evil person, while Jekyll is the respectable public face. Jack the Ripper was a murderer, and his public face was a respectable doctor (or who they thought was a respectable doctor)`, who no one would have ever expected to be murdering people. That is directly related to the Science vs. Religion argument about people, which is also directly linked to Charles Darwins Theory of Evolution through Natural Selection, which at the time the book, Origin of Species book was published was considered as a terrible thought. Charles Darwin went far over seas in the late 1800s because he was an ecologist, someone who studies environments, ecosystems and animals. When he went over seas, he found his way eventually to the Galapagos Islands. The islands are off of the west cost of South America, and are around the equatorial area. He noticed that some species of animals had changed, evolved in different ways, depending on the environments, the island the species on animals were living on, so that that animal could, be more efficient at being able to live. This is a theory that different species of animals evolve in different ways according to their environments, this is known as The Theory of Evolution Through Natural Selection. This was, of cause, a very big thing to say, as these challenged Christian beliefs, which state that God created all beings. Darwins theory was totally different to this because he said that animals change to create new animals to suit their environments. Stevenson believed that people can have many different personalities within themselves and that they can be separated. There was a civilised, public face, and a primitive, instinctual, and quite possibly evil side to each person. He showed this by writing the book Jekyll Hyde, which shows how someone managed to separate themselves into two people, Dr. Jekyll Mr. Hyde. The Victorian times were the age of Hypocrisy, where people were expected to do/act in a certain way whether or not they agreed with those standards or not. People, especially men, as in those day men were considered more important, were expected to be polite, wear suits, act in certain ways. This is why Jekyll Hyde is much more than a gothic story, it is a criticism of Victorian ways. Jekyll is a man driven by Victorian values, to be a perfect social figure, Jekyll, gets his pleasure through Hyde, a person who doesnt care what people think, he doesnt care about Victorian values, he has no care for them, he just wants to do whatever he likes. Stevenson based Jekyll and Hyde on a dream he had, his wife woke him up from it. After the dream he complained that he didnt get to see the full dream. He kept on having this dream/nightmare, so he decided to turn it into a book. He wrote a first draft, and read it to his wife, she didnt agree with it, so he burnt the copy and re-wrote the entire story again in three days. His book was obviously also influenced by society and the fact that people are expected to act in a certain way whether they want to or not. He was brought up in Edinburgh and Stevenson loved the old, dark side of the town with the back alleys and the mysterious areas, this was the setting for the back alley in which Hydes door is situated. The idea of duplicity, living a double, both being separate, one being secret, just like Jekyll and Hyde. Stevenson had a proper upbringing, as a child he was very sickly and had a lot of nightmares, Jekyll and Hyde probably originated in his mind that early in his life. Stevenson was also highly influenced by other works, other horror stories such as ones written by Deacon Brodie, Mary Shelly, (Frankenstein), and other gothic horror writers. He used some of the ideas in other peoples ideas, as well as incorporating his own to create the book Jekyll Hyde. All of these books show how people can change, how than can be different, how they can be split into different people. Jekyll decided to conduct experiments upon himself to try and see if her could split himself up. He initially wanted to split himself into a good side and a bad side, and by doing this he hoped that he would be able to ignore the evil side, so it wouldnt affect him, leaving him as a good person ridding himself of the bad side. He decided he was going to do this when he began to think that Victorian rules were wrong, he didnt agree with the value that one must do this, or one shall not do that. He thought that was wrong. So when he spilt himself up into Jekyll and Hyde he thought he could rid himself of Hyde, but he couldnt, he realised, as Hyde he could do what he liked, and no one would care because he is still respectable Jekyll at the same time. He had no care for rules. Hyde is a brutal person, and brutal is used when you do something and you dont care about what might happen to you after. He has no care for societys rules. Brutal is associated with ape-ish behaviour, meaning that he is a lowing being. He does the brutality out of instincts, because animals like apes act totally on instincts whether they are right or wrong. Because Hyde has such an instinctive nature, he is able to get his pleasures much easier, it is easier for him to do these things, and he doesnt care what happens. Jekyll thinks he can become Hyde just when he wants his pleasures, when he wants to do what he likes. But Hyde starts to take over as a character, he starts to become the dominant person, he gets stronger. Then the transformations between Jekyll and Hyde become involuntary, uncontrolled, and unpredicted, almost as if the two personalities were fighting each other. At first Jekyll doesnt mind changing into Hyde but after a while he gets scared, because he is scared about what eh might do as Hyde, he like being him, being able to do anything he likes, but he starts to get about what he might actually do as Hyde. He is only driven to this because he cant stand Victorian society so he splits himself so he can be great in one. The thing we have to remember is that Hyde is Jekyll, Hyde is the evil essence in Jekyll, which means that Jekyll has that brutality within him, which show that everyone does, we all have these features, but ours are not spilt into different personalities. Jekyll kept Hyde being himself secret because people would want to interfere or than would be utterly scared by what they have seen, it would frighten them literally to death. (Utterson Lanyon) In Victorian London Christians would think that unleashing ones evil side is a terrible thing. It would be like unleashing a Devil within everyone. The people who are doing it would be condemned, it would be considered so terrible the consequences of doing and what the Christians thought of you would be horrific. Hyde is evil. People what to physically hurt him when they see him because he has got such a horrible face. He is brutal, he doesnt care about what he doing, he doesnt care about what people think about him, he has no care for a civilised society; which shows he has a very primitive mind. He has no conscience, he just doesnt care about anything, and he doesnt feel any regret for anything he has done, and he doesnt feel any remorse for any of the murders he has committed. He also relies totally on his instincts, he always follows his instincts like an animal. He has no moral values. He is only concerned with pleasure he gets out of being anti-social. Hyde represents evil in us all, he represents our animal ape-like instincts and origins, he is the beast in man. Hyde is used to show the reader the evil within us all, he is the essence of evil within us all. Evil is used through Hyde to show appearance and actions of an evil person. In the book, Hyde commits one, possibly two murders. The definite murder was Sir Danvers Carew who Hyde batters to death with a walking stick. The other is a little girl who Hyde trampled over, of which he felt nothing. When he trampled over the girl, he was like an animal. Hyde trampled calmly over the childs body and left her screaming on the groundit was hellish to see. (p14) trampled calmly is an oxymoron, which is something that contradicts itself. You dont imagine trampled and calmly together, you think trampled angrily, ferociously or horribly. He is like an animal a damned juggernaut (p14) like a beast, a monster, just stamping on things, crushing everything as he goes. When he was killing Carew, he was described has having insensitive cruelty (p32), he feels no remorse for what he has done to Danvers Carew. When people see him they want to kill him, his face brings a sweat out like running, (p14) he has a grotesque appearance, downright detestable, I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why.(p17) He is so ugly, an evil ugly, people cant work out why they hate his appearance, they think he has some sort of deformity, which they cant quite spot, they dont know why they hate his appearance, and they dont know why they want to kill him. Hyde is a short, detestable looking anti-social, brutal, instinctual being, who has no respect for rules. Jekyll is a tall man, very polite, quite a social man, who is very friendly. Hyde slumps along as he walks, he doesnt care about how, or where he walks, he sees himself as a free person, to do what he likes. Jekyll understands the values of Victorian Society. Jekyll is a tall man, friendly, aged. He is the total opposite of Hyde. They are opposites, in every way, apart from mental strength. Everyone in this book as something to hide. People dont want their own Hydes becoming real; Enfield is a very good friend of Utterson, they are also opposite people. Enfield goes out late at night, something a lot of people dont agree with, we never find out what he is doing, but we know he is doing something. He is the man about town. Lanyon is a very good scientist (as is Jekyll) with very good, radical ideas about science. He is afraid about what he might become if he became to good of a scientist. He is afraid of the fame, and of the importance of being such a scientist. He is afraid of what he might discover. Utterson is afraid of what might happen to him if he was to get enjoyment out of things, thats why many people think he is such a boring person, because he doesnt allow himself to experience enjoyment because he is scared of what might happen to him. E.g. He doesnt drink, because he is worried about becoming an alcoholic. Society drives these people to Hyde themselves because they are worried about what might happen to themselves, and how other people reactions. The door is a symbol of evil. It is a symbol of everything that is old and bad in the world. The fact that a door so old rotten and horrible can even be found in Victorian London means that people (like Hyde) of the same nature can be found aswell. The door is very hostile, and people are obviously not supposed to got through it because it has neither bell nor knocker (p13) showing that whoever lives there doesnt want to meet people, and more importantly, doesnt want people to meet him. The door is recognised as a bad place, it is the crowding place of tramps were they sleep in the door. The door is blistered and distained (p13) showing that it is not looked after and that is it old. It is not cared about, it is literally just a way of getting into the house inside. Some people even try to pick at the moulds on the door, to see if they could get them off, no one cares about the people doing this. No one had appeared to drive these random visitors away (p13) no one cares about the door the people around its location. It is used as a doorway to the hell that his Hydes house. It is like a gateway, and as doors are always like the place the door leads to, it shows what he is really like, what the house is really like. It is a symbolic gateway, the exact opposite of the front door, the face of everything that goes on. What people really see. The fog in Jekyll and Hyde is used as a mask to hide away things that people dont want to see/know about in the town. The fog is always present when an event is about to happen in the story, and is always used to show that something evil is happening, or about to happen, it is there around all of the events in the book. When Utterson went up to Jekylls house the air was described as full of dust (p51), even in the house, there was fog in the rooms, the fog began to lie thickly (p37) showing the evil that is present in the house. Which is the other way the fog is used, it is used to show the evil, that is actually is hiding. Another way in which Stevenson builds up tension is the use of pathetic phallacy, the weather reflects, or influences the mood, the weather is always described in a way of describing the mood. So, when evil is about it will be raining, when everything is happy, it will be sunny. In this novel Stevenson makes extensive use of adjectives to describe the main characters. Here are a few with an explanation by them; Enfield is a talkative man, loves enjoying himself, he does things that people dont know about, and what people would think badly of if they knew about them I was coming home from some place at the end of the world, about three oclock (p14) this shows that he does things he is not supposed to. Enfield is a very good friend of Utterson, a distant relation in fact, and the get along very well. Enfield is the man about town, and he enjoys life. This is another form of duplicity, that Enfield lives a double life, but we dont know what it is. Utterson is a man who refuses himself such pleases, as he is afraid about what might happen to himself. He is a boring dull lawyer or is quite ugly. He is however the centrepiece of this book as everything that happens relates to him in someway. Hyde is a small man, who is ugly to look upon He was small and very plainly dressed, (p14) He gave the impression of deformality without any nameable malformation. (p15) He looks unusual but you cant actually recognise what is wrong with him. Hyde is a small man, he doesnt care about anything and he doesnt care about who he upsets or what he does. He just wants to do what he likes. He is an evil person who wants control. He is the hidden part of Dr. Jekyll. Jekyll is an elderly man, who is also a scientist, but a better one the Lanyon. Jekyll is a respectable man who everyone likes, although he has a disagreement with Lanyon about some scientific facts, he is liked by everyone and is very happy, sometimes he looks tired. Streets of Soho are described as dark and dingy during the night, but quite open during the day. They are cobbled streets, and they are all ordered and in a geometric pattern, so everything is straight. The alley to the door is crooked and is always dark, and has a foal smell, it isnt the place for people to be hanging around. fogged city moon. (p13) full of wind and dust. (p40) The laboratory has lots of bottles and equipment lying around, it is a very old, disused, derelict place, very much left, and a few things are broken as if they are done in fits of temper, lumber of crates and bottles. (p41) A doctor and a lawyer are well educated well respected people in Victorian society, they would have been brought up to speak correctly and they would be expected to as they are in a position of authority within the hierarchy of the town. They would have been told to speak in a specific way, a told how to act. Did you ever remark that door? Indeed. (p5) I think that the old style, archaic language isnt used deliberately and is a product of the era in which the book was written. It is the formal style of Victorian England, it is the way things were done in those days, a man of rugged countenance, (p3). It is the style in which we wrote that happens to compliment the mysterious and confusing nature of the book. During the book Hydes speech gets more erratic and more informal as the book goes on, becoming more and more uncivilized. He becomes more and more evil during the book, less and less in control of himself. Tell him I cant see anyone. (p42) that isnt polite or formal at all. First person narrative is a very powerful force in the book, as it gives you a much better insight into what is going on, and it makes us feel as if we are better in touch with the book, as if we are there. Third person is very clever as you are told the story from someone who has already been told it, and you are only given selective pieces of information for good reason, so the story unfold in a order as to make the story much more powerful. I think letters are great because you are reading them as if the characters are reading them, and you read the story at the same times the characters read the letters. In conclusion Stevenson uses a range of techniques and style to convey the development of the story and make the reader feel more in touch with the events in the story. He does this to great effect making you feel as if you are there, a invisible person in the story.

Process Of Unstructured Clinical Judgement Health And Social Care Essay

Process Of Unstructured Clinical Judgement Health And Social Care Essay However, there continues to be an increasing  interest  and  expectation  on professionals from the public and the criminal justice system in regards to the potential  danger  posed by  serious  offenders  being released  back into the community and the need for the offenders to be better managed, in order  to adequately protect  the public from dangerous individuals (Doyle et el, 2002). As the assessment of risk  is made  at various stages in the management process of the violent offender, it is  extremely  crucial that mental health professionals have a structured and consistent approach to risk assessment and evaluation of violence. (Doyle et el, 2002). This paper will examine three models of risk assessment that  are used  to reduce potential danger to others, when integrating violent offenders back into the community. These three approaches are unstructured clinical judgement, structured clinical  judgement  and actuarial  assessment. It is not intended, in this paper, to explore the various instruments used in the assessment process for the  respective  actuarial and structured clinical approaches. Unstructured Clinical Judgement Unstructured clinical judgement is a process involving no specific guidelines, but relies on the individual clinicians  evaluation  having regard to the clinicians experience and qualifications (Douglas et al, 2002).  Doyle et el(2002, p650) refers to  clinical  judgement as first generation, and sees clinical judgement as allowing the clinician  complete  discretion in relation to what information the clinician will or will not take notice of in their final determination of risk level. The unstructured clinical  interview  has been widely criticised because it  is seen  as inconsistent and inherently lacks structure and a  uniform  approach  that does not allow for  test, retest reliability over time and between clinicians (Lamont et al, 2009). It  has been argued  that this inconsistency in  assessment  can lead to  incorrect  assessment of offenders, as either high or low risk due to the subjective opinion inherent in the unstructured clin ical assessment  approach  (Prentky et al, 2000). Even with these limitations discussed above the unstructured clinical  interview  is still likely to be the most widely used  approach  in relation to the offenders violence risk assessment (Kropp, 2008). Kropp (2008), postulates that the continued use of the unstructured clinical  interview  allows for idiographic analysis of the offenders  behaviour (Kropp, 2008, p205).  Doyle et al (2002) postulates, that clinical studies have shown, that clinicians using the risk analysis  method  of unstructured interview, is not as  inaccurate  as  generally  believed.  Perhaps this is due, largely to the level of experience and  clinical  qualifications of those conducting the assessment. The unstructured clinical  assessment  method  relies heavily on verbal and non verbal cues and this has the potential of influencing individual clinicians assessment of risk, and thus in turn has a high probability of over reliance in the assessment on the exhibited cues (Lamont et al, 2009).  A major flaw with the unstructured clinical interview, is the apparent lack of structured standardized methodology  being used  to  enable  a  test  retest reliability  me asure  previously mentioned.  However, the lack of consistency in the assessment approach is a  substantial  disadvantage in the use of the unstructured clinical interview.   The need for a more structured  process  allowing for  predictable  test retest reliability would  appear  to be a  necessary  component of any risk assessment in relation to violence. Actuarial Assessment Actuarial  assessment  was developed  to  assess  various risk factors that would improve on the probability of an offenders recidivism. However, Douglas et al (2002, p 625) cautions that the Actuarial  approach  is not conducive to violence prevention. The Actuarial approach relies heavily on standardized instruments to assist the clinician in predicting violence, and the majority of these instruments  has been developed  to predict future  probability  of violence amongst offenders who have a history of mental illness and or criminal offending behaviours. (Grant et al, 2004) The use of actuarial  assessment  has increased in recent years as more non clinicians  are tasked  with the responsibility of management of violent offenders such as community corrections, correctional officers and probation officers. Actuarial risk assessment methods enable staff that do not have the experience,  background  or necessary  clinical  qualifications to  conduct  a standardised clinical  assessment  of offender risk. This actuarial  assessment  method  has been found  to be extremely  helpful  when having risk assessing offenders with mental health, substance abuse and violent offenders. (Byrne et al, 2006). However, Actuarial assessments have limitations in the inability of the instruments to provide any information in relation to the management of the offender, and strategies to prevent violence (Lamont et al, 2009).  Whilst such instruments may provide transferable  test  retest reliability, there is a need for caution when the instruments  are used  within differing samples of the  test  population  used as the validation  sample  in developing the  test  (Lamont et al, 2009).  Inexperienced and  untrained  staff  may not be aware that tests  are limited  by a range of variables that may limit the reliability of the test in use. The majority of actuarial tools  were validated  in North America (Maden, 2003). This has  significant  implications when actuarial instruments  are used  in the Australian context, especially when indigenous cultural complexities are not taken into account. Doyle et al (2002) postulates that the actuarial  approach  are focused  on prediction and that risk assessment in mental health has a much broader  function  and has to be  link  closely with management and prevention (Doyle et al, 2002, p 652). Actuarial instruments rely on measures of static risk factors e.g. history of violence, gender, psychopathy and recorded so cial variables.  Therefore, static risk factors  are taken  as remaining constant.  Hanson et al (2000) argues that where the results of unstructured  clinical  opinion  are  open  to questions, the empirically based risk assessment  method  can significantly predict the risk of re offending. To rely  totally  on  static  factors that  are measured  in Actuarial instruments, and not incorporate dynamic risk factors has led to what Doyle et al (2002) has referred to as, Third Generation, or as more commonly acknowledged as structured professional judgement. Structured Professional Judgment Progression toward a structured professional  model, would  appear  to have followed a process of evolution since the 1990s.  This  progression  has developed through  acceptance  of the complexity of what risk assessment entails, and the pressures of the courts and  public  in developing an expectation of increased predictive accuracy (Borum, 1996).  Structured professional judgement brings together empirically validated risk factors, professional experience and contemporary knowledge of the patient (Lamont et al, 2009, p27).  Structured professional judgement approach requires a  broad  assessment  criteria covering both static and dynamic factors, and attempts to bridge the gap between the other approaches of unstructured clinical judgement, and actuarial  approach  (Kropp, 2008).  The incorporation of dynamic risk factors that are taking  account  of variable factors such as current emotional  level  (anger, depression, stress), social supports or lack of and willingness to participate in the treatment rehabilitation process.  The structured professional approach incorporates  dynamic  factors, which  have been found, to be also crucial in analysing  risk  of violence (Mandeville-Nordon, 2006).  Campbell et al (2009) postulates that instruments that  examine  dynamic risk factors are more  sensitive  to  recent  changes that may  influence  an increase or decrease in risk potential. Kropp (2008) reports that research has found that Structured Professional Judgement measures also  correlate  substantially  with actuarial measures. Conclusion Kroop, (2008) postulates that either a structured professional judgement approach, or an actuarial approach presents the most viable options for risk assessment of violence.  The unstructured  clinical  approach  has been widely criticised by researchers for lacking reliability, validity and accountability (Douglas et al, 2002). Kroop, (2008) also cautions that risk assessment requires the assessor to have an appropriate level of specialized knowledge and experience. This experience should be not only of offenders but also with victims.  There would  appear  to be a valid argument that unless there is consistency in  training  of those conducting risk assessments the validity and reliability of any measure, either actuarial or structured professional judgement, will fail to  give  the  level  of predictability of violence that  is sought.  Risk analysis of violence will always be burdened by the  limitation  which lies in the fact that  exact  an alyses are not  possible, and  risk  will never be totally eradicated (Lamont et al, 2009, p 31.). Doyle et al (2002) postulates that a combination of structured clinical and actuarial approaches  is warranted  to assist in risk assessment of violence. Further research appears to be warranted to improve the evaluation and  overall  effectiveness of risk management.

God Is Not Great Essays -- Literary Analysis, Christopher Hitchens

In his book God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, Christopher Hitchens dissects and criticizes the various claims of religions and the tragic events that have been caused by various religions. The title of the book sums up the arguments of Hitchens in this book in the fact that he makes many arguments of why â€Å"religion poisons everything.† The majority of the chapters in this book discuss why he believes religion to be a manmade notion that has led to more trouble than anything else in the world. Most of his focus is on the three Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism but he does fit in criticism of other religions as well. The topics he chooses to discuss range from the sketchy origins of Mormonism to the problems with circumcision. Through his various arguments, Hitchens not only claims that religion is manmade, but also that the idea of any type of divine being is absurd. Hitchens makes the argument that there is no divine being by analyzing the various faults of religion. He begins with his own religious falling out during his grade school years and from their goes on to question religion on a larger scale. He spends a good part of the book his book analyzing the wars and suffering caused by people of faith. He questions the customs and ethics of the God in various religious texts. Hitchens focuses all of the attention of the book on the negative aspects of religion and decides that due to these negative aspects of religion there is no higher power to the universe. His argument goes beyond trying to discredit religion, but he sees a call to put an end to religion. He states, â€Å"Above all, we are in need of a renewed Enlightenment, which will base itself on the proposition that the proper study of ... ...uses does have merit because throughout history religion has had its detrimental effects. What Hitchens has done with these examples is tried to present them in a way to make a person not very well informed in reasoning skills to think that religion has caused only bad. He makes statements that paint those with religious beliefs as fanatics with the main purpose of killing those who don’t believe the way they do. By not fully exploring the way in which religion has had beneficial effect, Hitchens has set up an argument that could easily convince people that religion only has negative effects. The next stop on this exploration of this book is chapters seven through nine which reviewer Geoffrey Sutton says â€Å"seems to be the center point in his book† (372). These three chapters go into in depth analysis of the Old Testament, New Testament, and Koran, respectively. God Is Not Great Essays -- Literary Analysis, Christopher Hitchens In his book God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, Christopher Hitchens dissects and criticizes the various claims of religions and the tragic events that have been caused by various religions. The title of the book sums up the arguments of Hitchens in this book in the fact that he makes many arguments of why â€Å"religion poisons everything.† The majority of the chapters in this book discuss why he believes religion to be a manmade notion that has led to more trouble than anything else in the world. Most of his focus is on the three Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism but he does fit in criticism of other religions as well. The topics he chooses to discuss range from the sketchy origins of Mormonism to the problems with circumcision. Through his various arguments, Hitchens not only claims that religion is manmade, but also that the idea of any type of divine being is absurd. Hitchens makes the argument that there is no divine being by analyzing the various faults of religion. He begins with his own religious falling out during his grade school years and from their goes on to question religion on a larger scale. He spends a good part of the book his book analyzing the wars and suffering caused by people of faith. He questions the customs and ethics of the God in various religious texts. Hitchens focuses all of the attention of the book on the negative aspects of religion and decides that due to these negative aspects of religion there is no higher power to the universe. His argument goes beyond trying to discredit religion, but he sees a call to put an end to religion. He states, â€Å"Above all, we are in need of a renewed Enlightenment, which will base itself on the proposition that the proper study of ... ...uses does have merit because throughout history religion has had its detrimental effects. What Hitchens has done with these examples is tried to present them in a way to make a person not very well informed in reasoning skills to think that religion has caused only bad. He makes statements that paint those with religious beliefs as fanatics with the main purpose of killing those who don’t believe the way they do. By not fully exploring the way in which religion has had beneficial effect, Hitchens has set up an argument that could easily convince people that religion only has negative effects. The next stop on this exploration of this book is chapters seven through nine which reviewer Geoffrey Sutton says â€Å"seems to be the center point in his book† (372). These three chapters go into in depth analysis of the Old Testament, New Testament, and Koran, respectively.

An Analysis of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s, A Very Old Man with Enormous W

A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings Analysis In Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings,† he was able to exaggerate an element of our lives in order to prove that everything we have known and come to believe is actually not what it seems. Marquez has twisted something so solid in our beliefs such as an angel, in order to help us understand that nothing can be assumed from popular belief and appearances. Upon immediate viewing of the angel, the perception of reality has changed in its entirety. All past knowledge has become irrelevant now that it has been proven false. In an instant, an entire belief system has crumbled. Pelayo and Elisenda refuse to think of this man as an angel even though he clearly was. â€Å"That was how they skipped over the inconvenience of the wings and quite intelligently concluded that he was a lonely castaway from some foreign ship wrecked by the storm.† Angels in our minds have been known as beautiful creatures that are pure and clean. They are the epitome of man’s view of perfection. Marquez has created an angel that is rank, disturbing...

Sentence Structure :: essays research papers

Independent Clause (IC) An independent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and verb and expresses a complete thought. An independent clause is a sentence. Example: Jim studied in the Sweet Shop for his chemistry quiz. (IC) Dependent Clause (DC) A dependent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and verb but does not express a complete thought. A dependent clause cannot be a sentence. Often a dependent clause is marked by a dependent marker word. Example: When Jim studied in the Sweet Shop for his chemistry quiz . . . (DC) Dependent Marker Word (DM) A dependent marker word is a word added to the beginning of an independent clause that makes it into a dependent clause. Example: When Jim studied in the Sweet Shop for his chemistry quiz, it was very noisy. (DM) Some common dependent markers are: after, although, as, as if, because, before, even if, even though, if, in order to, since, though, unless, until, whatever, when, whenever, whether, and while. Connecting dependent and independent clauses There are two types of words that can be used as connectors at the beginning of an independent clause: coordinating conjunctions and independent marker words. 1. Coordinating Conjunction (CC) The seven coordinating conjunctions used as connecting words at the beginning of an independent clause are and, but, for, or, nor, so, and yet. When the second independent clause in a sentence begins with a coordinating conjunction, a comma is needed before the coordinating conjunction: Example: Jim studied in the Sweet Shop for his chemistry quiz, but it was hard to concentrate because of the noise. (CC) 2. Independent Marker Word (IM) An independent marker word is a connecting word used at the beginning of an independent clause. These words can always begin a sentence that can stand alone. When the second independent clause in a sentence has an independent marker word, a semicolon is needed before the independent marker word. Example: Jim studied in the Sweet Shop for his chemistry quiz; however, it was hard to concentrate because of the noise. (IM) Some common independent markers are: also, consequently, furthermore, however, moreover, nevertheless, and therefore. Proper Punctuation Methods This table gives some examples of ways to combine independent and dependent clauses and shows how to punctuate them properly. IC. IC.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I went to the store. I didn't buy any bread. IC; IC.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I went to the store; I didn't buy any bread. IC, CC IC.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I went to the store, but I didn't buy any bread.

Night World : Spellbinder Chapter 13

You know, he probably only loved you because of the yemonja,† Blaise said. Thea looked up from her seat in the empty chemistry lab. It was morning break, and this was the most private place they could find at school. â€Å"Thanks, Blaise. I needed that.† But maybe it was true. She'd almost forgotten that she'd used a spell to get him in the first place. That should make a difference, she told herself. If it was all artificial, I shouldn't even miss it. She still felt as if she were encased in ice. â€Å"Did you get it?† â€Å"Sure.† Blaise tossed a ring on the high table. â€Å"I asked her if I could look at it, then pretended I dropped it in the bushes. She's still out there searching.† Thea pulled the binding spell out of her backpack. Two anatomically correct dolls, both made with the blue wax Blaise used for her jewelry. Beautiful little creatures-Blaise was an artist. The male one contained the Kleenex with Eric's blood and a single sandy hair Thea had found clinging to her shoulder. Thea put Pilar's turquoise ring around the feet of the female doll and tied it with a red thread to keep it on. She held out a hand. From her backpack, Blaise produced a corked hexagonal bottle. The liquid inside was made up of all sorts of disgusting things, including ground bezoar stone. Thea held her breath as she poured it over the two figures, which immediately began to smoke. â€Å"Now bind them together,† Blaise said, coughing and waving a hand to clear a space to breathe. â€Å"I know.† Thea took a thin scarlet ribbon seven feet long and patiently began winding it around the two figures. It wrapped them like mummies. She tucked the loose end into a loop. â€Å"And there they are,† Blaise said. â€Å"Bound till death. Congratulations. Let's see, it's ten fifteen now, so he should have forgotten your existence by about†¦ say, ten sixteen.† She reached up and her hair ran like black water through her hands as she stretched. Thea tried to smile. The pain was bad. It was as if some part of Thea's physical body had been cut off. She felt raw and bleeding and not at all able to deal with things like French or trigonometry. There must be more to life. I'll go somewhere and do something for other people; I'll work in third world countries or try to save an endangered species. But thinking about future good works didn't help the raw ache. Or the feeling that if the ache stopped she would just be numb and never be happy again. And all this for a human†¦ It didn't work anymore. She couldn't go back to her old way of thinking. Humans might be alien, but they were still people. They were as good as witches. Just different. She managed to get through the schoolday without running into Eric-which mainly meant scuttling around corridors after bells rang and being tardy for classes. She was scuttling after the last bell toward Dani's U.S. government class when she almost collided with Pilar. â€Å"Thea!† The voice was surprised. Thea looked up. Deep amber-brown eyes, framed by spiky black lashes. Pilar was looking at her very strangely. Wondering at your good luck? Thea thought. Has Eric proposed to you yet? â€Å"What?† she said. Pilar hesitated, then just shook her head and walked off. Thea ducked into the history classroom. Dani said, â€Å"Thea!† Everybody sounds the same. â€Å"Where've you been? Eric's looking all over for you.† Of course, I should have realized. Blaise was wrong-he's not just going to forget about me and walk away. He's a gentleman; he's going to tell me he's walking away. â€Å"Can I go home with you?† she asked Dani wretchedly. â€Å"I need some space.† â€Å"Thea†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Dani dragged her to a corner and looked her over with anxious eyes. â€Å"Eric really wants to find you†¦ but what's wrong?† she whispered. â€Å"Is it something about Suzanne? The old gym's still closed, isn't it?† â€Å"It's nothing to do with that.† She was about to suggest they get moving when a tall figure walked in the door. Eric. He walked straight to Thea. The kids hanging around the teacher's desk were looking. The teacher was looking. Thea felt like a freak show. â€Å"We have to talk,† Eric said flatly. She'd never seen him look quite like this before. He was pale, glassy-eyed, hollow-cheeked. He somehow managed to look as if he'd missed a week's worth of sleep since that morning. And he was right. They had to talk to end it. She had to explain that it was okay, or he'd never be able to go. I can do that. â€Å"Somewhere private,† Thea said. They left Dani and walked through the campus, past the old gym with its yellow ribbon of police tape hanging limp and still. Through the football field. Thea didn't know where they were going, and suspected Eric didn't either-they just kept moving until they were out of sight of people. The green of the tended grass gave way to yellow-green, and then brown, and then desert. Thea wrapped her arms around herself, thinking about how cold it had gotten in just a week and a half. The last trace of summer was gone. And now we're going to talk about it, she thought as Eric stopped. Okay. I don't have to think, just say the right words. She forced herself to look at him. He turned the haggard, haunted face on her and said, â€Å"I want you to stop it.† Funny choice of words. You mean end it, break it off, put it quietly out of its misery. She couldn't get all that out, so she just said, â€Å"What?† â€Å"I don't know what you're doing,† he said, â€Å"but I want it stopped. Now.† His green eyes were level. Not apologetic, more like demanding. His voice was flat. Thea had a sudden sense of shifting realities. All the hairs on her arms were standing up. Caught without a working brain, she said, â€Å"I- what are you talking about?† â€Å"You know what I'm talking about.† He was still looking at her steadily. Thea shook her head no. He shrugged. It was a you-asked-for-it shrug. â€Å"Whatever you're doing,† he said with terrible distinctness, â€Å"to try and make me like Pilar, it has got to stop. Because it's not fair to her. She's upset right now because I'm acting crazy. But I don't want to be with her. It's you I love. And if you want to get rid of me, then tell me, but don't try and foist me off on somebody else.† Thea listened to the whole speech feeling as if she were floating several feet above the ground. The sky and desert seemed too bright, not warm, just very shiny. While her brain ran around frantically like Madame Curie in a new cage, she managed to get out, â€Å"What could I possibly have to do-with you liking Pilar?† Eric looked around, found a rock, and sat on it. He stared down at his hands for a minute or so. Finally he looked up, his expression helpless. â€Å"Give me a break, Thea,† he said. â€Å"How stupid do you think I am?† Oh. â€Å"Oh.† Then she thought, don't just stand there. You bluffed him before. You talked him out of knowing he'd been bitten by a snake. For Earth's sake, you can talk him out of whatever he's thinking now. â€Å"Eric-I guess we've all been under a lot of stress†¦.† â€Å"Oh, please don't give me that.† He seemed to be talking to a clump of silver cholla, eyeing the halos of awful spines as if he might jump into them. â€Å"Please don't give me that.† He took a deep breath and spoke deliberately. â€Å"You charm snakes and read guinea pigs' minds. You cure rattler bites with a touch. You tap into people's brains. You make up magical potpourri bags and your insane cousin is the goddess Aphrodite.† He looked at her. â€Å"Did I miss anything?† Thea found another rock and backed up to it blindly. She sat. Of everything in the universe, right then what she was most aware of was her own breathing. â€Å"I have this feeling,† Eric said, watching her with his green eyes, â€Å"that you guys are in fact the descendants of good old Hecate Witch-Queen. Am I dose?† â€Å"You think you win a prize?† Thea still couldn't think, couldn't put a meaningful remark together. Could only gabble. He paused and grinned, a wry and painful grin, but the first one she'd seen today. Then the smile faded. â€Å"It's true, isn't it?† he said simply. Thea looked out over the desert, toward the huge, bare cliffs of rock in the distance. She let her eyes unfocus, soaking in the expanse of brown-green. Then she put her ringers to the bridge of her nose. She was going to do something that all her ancestors would condemn her for, something that nobody she'd grown up with would understand. â€Å"It's true,† she whispered. He breathed out, a lonely human figure in that vastness of the desert. â€Å"How long have you known?† she asked. â€Å"I†¦ don't know. I mean, I think I always sort of knew. But it wasn't possible-and you didn't want me to know. So I didn't know.† A kind of excitement was creeping into his haggardness. â€Å"It's really true, then. You can do magic.† Say it, Thea told herself. You've done everything else. Say the words to a human. â€Å"I'm a witch.† â€Å"A Hearth-Woman, I thought you called it. That's what Roz was telling me.† At that, Thea was horrified out of her daze of horror. Stricken. â€Å"Eric-you can't talk about this with Roz. You don't understand. They'll kill her.† He didn't look as shocked as she might have expected. â€Å"I knew you were scared of something. I thought it was just that people might hurt you-and your grandma.† â€Å"They will; they'll kill me. But they'll kill you and Roz, too-and your mom and any other human they think may have learned about them-â€Å" â€Å"Who will?† She looked at him, floundered a moment, and then made the ultimate betrayal of her upbringing. â€Å"It's called the Night World.† â€Å"Okay,† he said slowly, half an hour later. They were sitting side by side on his rock. Thea wasn't touching him, although her whole side was aware of his presence. â€Å"Okay, so basically, the descendants of Maya are lamia and the descendants of Hellewise are witches. And together they're all this big secret organization, the Night World.† â€Å"Yes.† Thea had to fight the instinct to whisper. â€Å"It's not just lamia and witches, though. It's shape-shifters and made vampires and werewolves and other things. All the races that the human race couldn't deal with.† â€Å"Vampires,† Eric muttered to the cholla, his eyes going glassy again. â€Å"That's what really gets me, real vampires. I don't know why, it follows logically†¦.† He looked at Thea, his gaze sharpening. â€Å"Look, if all you people have supernatural powers, why don't you just take over?† â€Å"Not enough of us,† Thea said. â€Å"And too many of you. It doesn't matter how supernatural we are.† â€Å"But, look-â€Å" â€Å"You breed much faster, have more children-and you kill us whenever you find us. The witches were on the verge of extinction before they got together with the other races and formed the Night World. And that's why Night World law is so strict about keeping our secrets from humans.† â€Å"And that's why you tried to hand me over to Pilar,† Eric said. Thea could feel his eyes on her like a physical sensation. She stared at a patch of rock nettle between her feet. â€Å"I didn't want you dead. I didn't want me dead, either.† â€Å"And they'd really kill us for being in love.† â€Å"In a minute.† He touched her shoulder. Thea could feel warmth spread from his hand and she had to work to make sure she didn't tremble. â€Å"Then we'll keep it a secret,† he said. â€Å"Eric, it's not like that. You don't understand. There's nowhere we could go, no place we could hide. The Night People are everywhere.† â€Å"And they all follow these same rules.† â€Å"Yes. It's what allows them to survive.† He breathed for a moment, then said in a voice that had gone husky, â€Å"There's got to be a way.† â€Å"That's what I let myself think-for a while.† Her own voice sounded shaky. â€Å"But we have to face reality. The only chance we have of even living through this is for us to just go our separate ways. And for you to try as hard as you can to forget me and everything I've told you.† She was trembling now, and her eyes had filled. But her hands were balled into fists and she wouldn't look at him. â€Å"Thea-â€Å" The tears spilled. â€Å"I won't be your death!† â€Å"And I can't forget you! I can't stop loving you.† â€Å"Well, and maybe that was just a spell, too,† she said, sniffling. Tears were falling straight off her face and onto the rock. Eric looked around for something to give her, then tried to wipe her wet cheeks with his thumb. She whacked his hand away. â€Å"Listen to me. You did miss something when you were adding up what I did. I also make love spells for me. I put one on you, and that's why you fell in love in the first place.† Eric didn't look impressed. â€Å"When?† â€Å"When did I put the spell on you? The day I asked you to the dance.† Eric laughed. â€Å"You-â€Å" â€Å"Thea.† He shook his head. â€Å"Look,† he said gently, â€Å"I fell in love with you before that. It was when we were out here with that snake. When we just looked at each other and†¦ and†¦ I saw you surrounded by mist and you were the most beautiful thing in the world.† He shook his head again. â€Å"And maybe that was magic, but I don't think it was any spell you were putting on me.† Thea wiped her eyes on her sleeve. Okay, so the yemonja had nothing to do with it. Anyway, love spells just seemed to bounce off Eric-even the dolls hadn't worked†¦. She bent suddenly and picked up her backpack. â€Å"And I don't know why this didn't work,† she muttered. She took out a quilted makeup bag, unzipped it, and reached inside. The dolls came out as a bundle. At first glance they looked all right. Then Thea saw it. The male doll had turned around. Instead of being face-to-face with the female doll, it had its back to her. The scarlet ribbon was still wound tightly around them. There was no way that it could have slipped, that this could have happened by accident. But the dolls had been inside the case, and the case had been inside her backpack all day. Eric was watching. â€Å"That's Pilar's ring. Hey, is that the spell on me and Pilar? Can I see it?† â€Å"Oh, why not?† Thea whispered. She felt dazed again. So it couldn't have been an accident, and no human could have done it. And no witch could have done it either. Maybe†¦ Maybe there was a magic stronger than spells. Maybe the soulmate principle was responsible, and if two people were meant to be together, nothing could keep them apart. Eric was gingerly unwinding the scarlet ribbon. â€Å"I'll give the ring back to Pilar,† he said. He reduced the binding spell to its constituent parts, put them gently back in the makeup bag. Then he looked at her. â€Å"I've always loved you,† he said. â€Å"The only question is†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He broke off and looked like the shy Eric she knew again. â€Å"Is, do you love me?† he finished at last. His voice was soft, but he was looking at her steadily. Maybe there are some things you just can't fight†¦. She made herself look at him. The image wobbled and split. â€Å"I love you,† she whispered. â€Å"I don't know what's going to happen, but I do.† They fell-slow as a dream, but still falling-into each other's arms. â€Å"There's a problem,† Thea said some time later. â€Å"Besides all the other problems. I'm going to be doing something next week, and I just need you to give me some time.† â€Å"What kind of something?† â€Å"I can't tell you.† â€Å"You have to tell me,† he said calmly, his breath against her hair. â€Å"You have to tell me everything now.† â€Å"It's magic stuff and it's dangerous-† A second too late she realized her mistake. â€Å"What do you mean, dangerous?† He straightened up. His voice told her the peaceful interlude was over. â€Å"If you think I'm going to let you do something dangerous by yourself†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He wore her down. He was good at that-even better than his sister-and Thea was no good at refusing him. In the end she told him about Suzanne Blanchet. â€Å"A dead witch,† he said. â€Å"A spirit. And a very angry one.† â€Å"And you think she's coming back,† he said. â€Å"I think she's been here all along. Maybe hanging around the old gym, which hasn't done her any good since nobody's been there assaulting dummies. But if they open it to have the Halloween party†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It'll be full of humans, all visiting those booths, all reminding her of what she hates. She can pick them off like ticks off a dog.† â€Å"Something like that. I think it could be bad. So what I've got to do is quietly lure her somewhere else and then send her back where she came from.† â€Å"And how are you going to do that?† â€Å"I don't know.† Thea rubbed her forehead. The sun was dipping toward the cliffs and long afternoon shadows had fallen across the desert. â€Å"You've got a plan,† Eric said matter-of-factly. Not you, Thea thought. I promised myself I wouldn't use you. Not even to save lives. â€Å"You've got a plan you think is dangerous for humans. For me, since I'm going to be helping you.† I will not use you†¦. â€Å"Let's make this easy on everybody. You know I'm not going to let you do it alone. We might as well take that as given and go on from there.† This is the crazy guy who ignores snakebites and attacks people with punch, she reminded herself. Do you really expect to talk him out of helping you? But if something were to happen to him†¦ The voice came back again, and Thea didn't understand it and she didn't like it at all. Would you give up everything?