Effects of Psychodrama Practice on University Students Subjective Well-Being and Hopelessness Essay Example for Free

Effects of Psychodrama Practice on University Students Subjective Well-Being and Hopelessness Essay Psychodrama can be defined as the helpful role-playing method technique usually conducted by groups. Many questions have been raised about the effects which can be caused by psychodrama on students (Blatner, Adam, 2014). This article have discussed and compiled those effects caused by psychodrama practice on university students’ subjective well-being and hopelessness, morenean approaches: Recognizing Psychodrama’s many facets, the integration of psychodrama with Bowen’s theory in couple therapy and enriching psychodrama through the use of cognitive behavioral therapy techniques Bibliography. Article summary on the effects of psychodrama practice on university students’ subjective well-being and hopelessness                  The effects of psychodrama can be either positive or negative (benefits or limitation).Psychodrama has several applications in real life today. These applications include business, training, religion, and application in business and also teaching together with psychotherapeutic application and concentrations (Blatner, Adam, 2014). Many people have made it a major part in their colleges as psychodrama trainers who puts efforts broadly with such persons (Farmer et al, 2007). The psychodrama tic tactic can be readily unified with several other approaches which relates to psychotherapy. According to Blatner, Adam, (2014), the integration of psychodrama with psychoanalysis, gestalt therapy, behavior therapies, creative arts therapies, play therapy, body therapies, family therapy, group therapy, imagination therapies and other miscellaneous psychotherapies. For example within (ASGPP) American Society for the Study of Group Psychotherapy and Psychodrama there is a sub class of psychodrama that precisely concentrate on application of psychoanalytic. Psychodrama symbolizes a full expansion and improvement of role-playing together with their applications and implementation. Although role-playing is mostly discussed, outdoor of psychodrama it has not often been considered as an intermediation but except decisiveness training, others are known by the clinician. A psychodrama tic role-playing meeting is perfect for formulating for example a university student to have an encounter with a family or friend member, employer, or maybe the colleague worker. Psychodrama have another application of addressing a wide range of matters and problems comprising those in the currently, future, and past or those that comprise the interior encounter (Farmer et al, 2007). According to Farmer et al, (2007), it can be addressed as â€Å"surplus reality,† that is those issues connected to what one might have, would have, and should have done. This can be applied to efficiently address visions and fantasies and can be applied to address worries related to â€Å"God†, â€Å"the church† or â€Å"the government† in a straight sort of manner. This can improve the well-being of a student and assist him or her in grieving through a goodbye meeting with a departed important and esteemed one. Furthermore Psychodrama can be applied to enhance specific therapy on an individual or additional therapy setup. This can assist the move a student past a deadlock or define if they are equipped for expulsion from treatment through tackling an expected challenging situation (Treadwell, 2005). Privacy is an issue in any experimental preparation groups just as it is in psychotherapy groups. Each participants is required to come to an agreement to privacy as one condition for being a fragment of this training (Blatner, Adam, 2014). The participants are also stimulated to take into account ongoing work and school interactions with other participants as they select what they unveil as a personal material. Furthermore, it will be addressed out that a moral condition for group work is to make the contestants aware that though a group trainer is forbidden by law from unveiling any material from group, also other group members do not have that same responsibility. Many ways can lead to physical injury to the participant in the process of enactment. For example, the presentation of fierce scenes, creating effects in example standing on chairs, or peoples who are bodily compromised to start with commotions which they cannot do. It is the teacher’s and therapist’s accountability to be alert of possible hazards and to shield the participants. Societal force can end up in individuals feeling constrained to participate in activities of which they may not otherwise accord. Moreover, it is stressed that this subject must be made clear with each participant with whom the therapist might use the method (Farmer et al, 2007). Psychodrama is the most approach developed by Moreno in his lifespan. Instead of being believed of as an only technique, his work would be greatly aided if utilized and recognized as actually separate mechanisms (Karatas, Zeynep, 2005). Although the efficiency of these individual mechanisms might be added up by using them in performance, there are many situations in which they can be applied in their own right. Moreno came to a conclusion that body movement, active interrelations and actions on the stage, their common familiarity or distance as stated in altitudinal terms, physical, could inform more about the troubles in interpersonal affairs than speaking (Farmer et al, 2007). The action occurring on the stage, movements and spoken words, and objects, make it probable for the character to either to complete anything he or she has been unable to, or have not known how to do it, or tried not do in actuality (Treadwell, 2005). This can be referred as act completion since it is on the psychodrama stage that the person understands the emotions and thoughts that obstruct him, plus the new sequence of behavior that will assist him to express himself independently (Treadwell, 2005). Psychodrama not only sightsees ones unexpressed feelings and thoughts, but also the conditions that have never really occurred but could have the meets with those who are actually not there. Everything can happen in psychodrama and this hidden dimension of experience can be referred as surplus reality or an extra dimension of reality. The â€Å"character’s† story or subject is at the center of the psychodrama tic presentation whereby the character is the client, patient and the subject of the conduct. The character is chosen out of the group and during the psychodrama tic process the group’s participants are the â€Å"listeners† and the source is for the enactment (Blatner, Adam, 2014). About the greatest part, the source plays the part according to the character’s comments and instructions .The organizer may direct the source but not intensively. According to Moreno, the source can be acted to the character’s creative mind in two approaches known as double and soliloquy (Treadwell, 2005). There are many methods which co-therapist use to deal with those in relationships mainly couples by use of psychodrama methods and Bowen’s theories. The authors put together the Bowens theory of differentiated individual as single who is capable to function from a position of me as different from we in couples or relationships and use psychodrama to show this functioning (Blatner, Adam, 2014). The appliance of psychodrama among couples is based on the four Bowens theories (Farmer et al, 2007). the first theory is the theory of triangle, In couples who are too cross of very far there comes a time where some misunderstanding occurs, some couples are able to solve them in a peaceful manner while others they do not manage to do so, this cause an emotional tension which leads to violence in the family. This is where the Bowens theory of triangle gets in, the theory introduces a third party in the family, which helps to solve the problem. The three party’s forms a triangle as the name suggest due to the pull of the third party. The third party can be Christian leaders, police or family friends. According to Blatner, Adam, (2014), in families, differentiated profile according to Bowen’s theory occurs when a child is born with some characteristics similar to those of one parent or grandparent or the child is born during the period of the death of one of the members of the family. The child concentrates more on the family due to the pressure from those sharing the same characteristics with him or her. This makes child to grow in a sense of WE more than I. In this case, Bowen wanted to teach couples on how to be different from others, if is to attend therapy sessions on member can attend and bring a change in the family if both are not willing to attend together (Karatas, Zeynep, 2005). The authors bring together the psychodrama and also cognitive behavioral techniques in-group settings. Those groups should have a minimum of five and maximum of ten members. The sessions should take 2 to 3 hours and total period should be 15 weeks. Those with aggressive disorders should take individual therapy (Treadwell, 2005). In the application of cognitive therapy, therapist should start with dysfunctional contemplation or thought records where the group’s members record things that affect them emotionally. The records are kept in each person’s file. During the filling of dysfunctional forms, the members should be given the samples first to guide them on how to fill them. Those forms help the therapist to know each person problem (Treadwell, 2005). Other cognitive technique is automatic thoughts, which are habitual. The therapist helps the patient to recognize them and assist the patient how to deal with them. The cognitive behavioral technique is very effective and the patient responds to it very well (Blatner, Adam, 2014). Conclusion                  From the impacts of psychodrama and its explanation we can deduce that it not only explores ones unexpressed feelings and thoughts, but also the situations that have at no time really occurred but could have the meets with those who are actually not there. Everything can happen in psychodrama and this hidden dimension of experience can be referred as surplus reality or an extra dimension of reality. Psychodrama is useful since it can be applied in business, training, religion, and application in business and also teaching together with psychotherapeutic application and concentrations. Other than benefits it can affect the participant due to its societal force which can end up in individuals feeling constrained to participate in activities of which they may not otherwise accord. Outline Psychodrama can be defined as the helpful role-playing method technique usually conducted by groups. Effects of psychodrama can be either positive or negative (benefits or limitation). Benefits include the applications in real life situations such as in business, training, religion, application in business and also teaching. Negative effects are the potential harms in terms of emotions, social culture or physical change. According to Moreno, Psychodrama is the most approach developed in his lifespan Psychodrama not only sightsees ones unexpressed feelings and thoughts, but also the conditions that have never really occurred but could have, the meets with those who are actually not there. Everything can happen in psychodrama and this hidden dimension of experience, can be referred as surplus reality or an extra dimension of reality. Bowens theories emphasizes mostly on differentiation where one refers himself as an individual. The force of the third party in a relationship helps a lot. The integration of Bowers theories and psychodrama brought a solution to those in relationships. Dysfunctional thought forms help mostly students and patients with a problem of mood regulation. During the first sessions of application cognitive technique, the students do not cooperate but later they enjoy the sessions. References Blatner, Adam (2014). Morenean Approaches: Recognizing Psychodramas Many Facets. Turk Egitim DernegiFarmer, Chris; Geller, Marcia (2007). The Integration of Psychodrama with Bowens Theories in Couples Therapy. Heldref Publications Winter Karatas, Zeynep. (2005). Effects of Psychodrama Practice on University Students Subjective Well-Being and Hopelessness Treadwell, Thomas W; Kumar, V K; Wright, Joseph H (2005). Enriching Psychodrama Through the Use of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Techniques. HELDREF PUBLICATIONS Summer Source document

Pepsi And Coca Cola Advertising And Branding Media Essay

Pepsi And Coca Cola Advertising And Branding Media Essay For my Media Discourses topic I have selected the one on Advertising and Branding. The two brands/advertisements I have chosen are none other than those of the well-recognized Pepsi Co. and Coca Cola Ltd. But to make it a bit more interesting the products I chose and will be discussing are Pepsi Max and Coke Light, the new healthy additions to both companies. Secondly, it is worth noting that to expand the semiotic aspect of the advertisements I have chosen a printed advertisement for Pepsi Max and a video advertisement for Coke Light. I believe this will cover a wider variety of factors which can be discussed and analyzed; and that if it were kept to the print media only we wouldnt have been able to cover the semiotics like music, gestures etc. Over the course of this assignment we shall study the various semiotics: colors used, the slogans, music, clothing, gestures expressions, camera angles etc used in the respective advertisements. It is amazing how everything from the simple b ottle-design, the text used in the advertisement to the whole implementation of a video advertisement is perceived differently and holds different, yet invaluable meanings. We shall further investigate the meanings of these signs plus tools used and how they can influence and affect the audiences and consumers. I shall touch the point of sex used for selling in the advertisements of such brands and name a few others who use such tactics. After the photographs and advertisements are discussed to full extent we shall examine these brands with a more holistic viewpoint, where they stand and the image they are trying to portray. To make the argument more authentic I shall incorporate examples, pictures, references from the sources I have researched from etc. even though these two brands are clichà ©d I believe they serve as a prime example in todays world of the leading brand wars and shall be insightful in the topic at hand. At the end I shall give you a bibliography of all the materi al and books I consulted as a resource for this essay. I believe the following exhaustive account of semiotics hand-in-hand with media highlights its importance in todays marketing world. Discussion: While surfing the web I came across an advertisement of Coca Cola ltd on their product Coke Light. I believe it was formed by the branding team of Coke Light and no one individual can be accredited to having made the whole advertisement. I will now try to analyze the visual communication that connected the image of the product and the consumer; for these resulting ideas benefit the sales volume and profitability of the product. As a whole, if you watch the advertisement, it portrays and targets the young, healthy and sexy people being the ones who consume Coke Light. Conforming to the cultural norms we have specific mental schemas and opinions which belong to the society we live in mostly. Based on these we perceive what we see differently. For someone like me, an advertisement of coke selling the point of sex might be more acceptable than someone with a more conservative mind-set, living in a different society. So it is important to realize that the following ad makes sense to me and appeals to me because it follows the conventions of my social life and in the same way in some aspects appeals to a much wider consumer base. For instance the iconic colors used as semiotics in this ad are popular throughout the world. Almost everyone can relate red and black to Coca Cola and this advertisement makes full use of it. Using rather beautiful models (a guy and a girl) in the ad, taking place on a beach, they play along with the wholesome, powerful theme. Red is a dominating color which grabs the attention of the viewers/consumers and leads them to act o n what appeals to their senses. This is exploited in what the woman wears, i.e. a red gown with a feminine exuberance and in the Coke (written in red) Light (written in black). This can signify the womans power and/or control and the confidence in the quality of the product. Black is what the man adorns completing the colors of the brand. Secondly, to my knowledge he wears black to keep the attention off of him in the ad at first and converge it onto the more prominent woman. The background helps and most settings are leading the focus on the tow models. The overall dressing is deemed as sexy in todays world and even though such shows are considered provocative, here they have a meaning of comfortableness and a daring nature. She furthers this persona by constantly sending subtle signals to the guy while he swims in the sea. The guy takes full notice while making no approach. Upon reaching his bench he starts buttoning up his black shirt facing the other way from the girl. What he h ears next is her opening the can of Coke Light which brings a smile on his face. Upon dressing up he turns to her as she continues trying to tempt him. They then close up on the guy to show that he has a priests collar and this puts the woman in an awkward position. But the tension is eased as the guy walks over to the girl and blesses her for having Coke Light in her hands leaving her all flattered. This gives a holy aspect to the whole advertisements and finishes off with the slogan Have a great break. Humor has been incorporated to full extent and helps immensely in the formulation of a successful and memorable commercial. Millions of hits on this ad authenticate this belief. The second advertisement that I have chosen is from a local magazine and it is of Pepsi Max. We are well aware that Pepsi and Coca Cola are direct competitors and therefore when one comes up with an idea the other follows with his own innovations. The ad is a one page picture showing a bottle as well as a can of Pepsi Max, with an effect of the can breaking through the page which is depicted as a hard, solid wall. The fact that there are flowery and bold colors come off strikingly well in the advertisement. The design of the bottle is simple with the colors red white and black used, black replacing the well known blue in the Pepsi sign. The design is minimalist with no excessive clutter or visual distractions. The formal layout of the whole ad gives a Web 2.0 vibe. It is safe to say that the picture was crafted by the local graphic designers working in the Pepsi team. This we can see from the usage of lower case letters in the new Pepsi logo which is reminiscent of the web 2.0 format. This new look shows that drinking Pepsi Max is a modern, networked and social way of living. It again focuses on the whole, on the young generation, possessing the same mythic meanings as its Coke counterpart. The logo creates familiarity with a whole new essence to the consumers based on its unique presentation. Pepsi Max has concentrated on the shape of the bottle making it newer, black in color, portraying a powerful image which is not common to other cold beverages. Upon consulting other video advertis ements of this same brand I have come to realize not much is different in the mythical meanings of both of them. They pretty much target the same young, healthy generation as a target audience, carry pretty much the same slogan and have the same marketing mix. What differs is the brand pull it brings with it and the sponsors they get. Everyone is familiar with the cola wars. The major problem faced by both of them is that of constant growth as claimed by Philip Kotler (2008). Through these advertisements both these brands are trying to achieve but one goal, i.e. to increase profitability. The various semiotics and methods used have got to relate to the brand in the end in some way or the other and in turn it is this great backing of a brand name which ensures their safe progress in the competing world. Semiotics can be handled differently as discussed by P. Kotler and G. Armstrong (2008): à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ stated by the global brand manager of Coca Cola, in Spanish speaking Coke Light ads position the soft drink as an object of desire, rather than as a way to feel good about yourself as diet Coke is positioned in the United States. This desire positioning plays off research showing that Coca-Cola Light is seen in other parts of the world as a vibrant brand that exudes sexy confidence.

Albert Einstien :: essays research papers

When you sit with a nice girl for two hours, it seems like two minutes. When you sit on a hot stove for two minutes, it seems like two hours that’s relativity. I, Albert Einstein, am a German-born American physicist. I am best known as the creator of the special and general theories of relativity. I was born in Ulm, Germany on March 14, 1879. My family owned a small business, which manufactured electric Machinery. I was a shy very child and did not talk until the age of three. At the age of twelve I taught myself Euclidean Geometry. When I was fifteen my family decided to move to Pavia but I stayed in Munich alone and finished the school year. I did not last but only a term on my one until finally I followed them to Pavia. I then tried to skip high school by taking an entrance exam to the Swiss Poly Technic, a top technical university, but I failed the art portion. So my family sent me to the Swiss town of Aarau to finish high school. I graduated from high school at the age of 17and enrolled at the ETH in Zurich. This is were I met and fell in love with a classmate named Mileva Maric who would later be my first wife. I didn’t enjoy the methods of institution there. I often cut classes and used the time to study physics on my own time or I would play my beloved violin. I passed my exams and graduated in 1900 by studying the notes of a classmate. I graduated as a secondary school teacher of mathematics and physics. In January of 1902, Mileva gave birth to our first daughter, Lieserl, but we put her up for adoption later on. In 1903 while I was working in the Swiss Patent Office I completed a range of publications in theoretical physics. I wrote these by myself. I sent one of these publications to the University of Zurich. By 1909, I was recognized throughout German-speaking Europe as a leading scientific thinker. I held professorships at the German University of Prague and at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. In 1910 my second son Eduard was born. In 1914 I advanced to the most prestigious and best paying post that a theoretical physicist could hold in central Europe, professor at the Kaiser Wilhelm Gegellschaft in Berlin.

Radio waves :: essays research papers

Science Competition Space Timeline This below is my timeline of space it should explain the many theories of how the universe came to be. It should explain about how galaxy was formed and what stage our star; the sun is in at this point in this present moment. The Time Line will take you from the moment it was created to the moment it will die. It will show each step in as much detail as I can find. The Big Bang Theory I am going to start the timeline with the big bang theory as people/scientists believe that it was at this point at which our universe was created The diagram below shows the early stages of the universe after the big bang. I am going to show you step by step how each stage happened and what it meant. The short section of the timeline below shows the short period of time, 300 million years after the big bang. Stage 1 The Big Bang-The universe began with an explosion that generated space and time, as well as all the matter and energy the universe has and will ever hold. For a small fraction of a second, the universe was an infinitely dense, hot fireball. The present theory described a peculiar form of energy that could suddenly push out the fabric of space. On a rare occasion, a process called "Inflation" can cause a vast expansion of space filled with this energy. The inflationary expansion could only be stopped when this energy had transformed into matter and energy as we know it. - Stage 2 Universe Shaped- After inflation, one millionth of a second after the Big Bang, the universe continued to expand but not nearly as quickly as it had done. As it expanded, it became less dense and cooled down. The most basic forces in nature were discovered: first gravity, then the strong forces then the weak followed by the electromagnetic forces. By the first second, the universe was made up of elementary (basic) particles and energy basic elements such as: quarks, electrons, photons, neutrinos and less familiar types. These particles smashed together to form protons and neutrons. Stage 3 Basic Elements Formed- 3 seconds after the universe had shaped Protons and neutrons came together to form the nuclei of simple elements such as: hydrogen, helium and lithium. It took another 300,000 years for electrons to be captured into orbits around those nuclei to form stable atoms.

The Dutchman - Oppression of the Black Man :: Amiri Baraka Dutchman Essays

The Dutchman - Oppression of the Black Man The Dutchman is not a play that you would take a child to. There is no optimism, no hope of a better future, and certainly no hero. It did, however, point out several flaws in society, namely the white man's oppression black men. The entire conversation between Lula and Clay demonstrates that, even as society had become more aware of the social inequalities imposed on minorities, much of society still regarded minorities with utter contempt. It did not come as a surprise that the stereotypes that both white and black individuals were present in the play despite heightened public awareness at the time. Such stereotypes are evidenced by Lula saying, ". . .you're a well-known type . . . I know the type very well," and Clay responding, "Without knowing us specifically?" (12). Stereotypes are the first walls to break through when associating with a member of another race or culture. Lula's continual concentration on Clay's "Uncle Tom" stereotype seems to be n ot simply her own ignorance, but it symbolizes the entire white people's ignorance of black people before and during the early '60's. At the end of the play, some of the root causes of most oppression--from forcing Native Americans on reservations to the lack of social equality at the time the book was written--is pointed out: tyranny of the majority and lack of sympathy for the oppressed. When Lula tells the people who are riding on the subway to "Get this man off me!," "Open the door and throw his body out," and "all of you get off at the next stop" (37), the crowd of people obeys without hesitance. The people in the subway--the majority--allow one man to be murdered and do not even give it a second thought. This is yet another metaphor for white people turning a blind eye to human suffering. Everyone gets off the subway, acting as if nothing has happened. The fact that the other

Competitive of college Submissions Essay

As a teenager in high school, the intended goal for every student is to go to college, everyone including parents, students, and other family members encourage this goal. To get into high school, there were qualifications for chosen certain high school depending on district, but not as competitive as the admissions to college. According to Sally P. Springer, college’s admissions are so competitive due to the fact of how many students apply to college each year. With that said, since there is an increase in student graduating from high school, colleges increase in cost of admission, higher GPA/test scores, and the amount of education given. The price of colleges has increased every year. Students are encouraged every day how important it is to go to college because it’s an institution of higher learning that will open doors for different careers. Unfortunately, majority of the students cannot afford the price of education when it continues to increase by the year and even with scholarships it’s too much money. Some student’s parents get paid too much money and the students do not receive financial aid, so they are left to pay out of pocket. The cost of a two year college vs. a four year is a lot less expensive and many students choose that route because the cost and because the admission is not that competitive. Furthermore, the admission requirements for students who want to go to out of state is even more competitive because of the area. According to the Sally P. Springer in the article Competitive Colleges, in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s the number of students graduating from high school has increased, and because of this most colleges compete in admission by choosing students of diverse and higher GPA standards and test scores. However this makes it harder for students have the GPA but have poor testing skills or vice versa which is a very important key for student’s admissions process. For instance, Harvard is a very prestigious University and the admissions has decreased in the year of 2012 7.1 percent admission. To qualify for Harvard you have to have the GPA of a 3.8-4.3 or have a test score of 1500. Then students are forced to go to colleges not of their choice because of hard criteria of admissions. Majority of two year colleges  require a 2.5 GPA compared to some four year the minimum requirement is a 3.0+ GPA. Moreover, some may argue that the reason why college admissions are so competitive is because colleges strive and are eager for students with higher learning. Every University and College offer different sports, majors, and organization and schools compete to be the best by having the best students. Also if a student wants to go to school in a nice area or a better setting the admissions are going to be higher. University in particular give students a better chance of reaching their career. Colleges such as University of Chicago have better programs for nursing compared to Chicago State therefore students must meet the criteria to attend the programs and that’s at any school. If Colleges was not as competitive then it will be easy for anybody and student will not work hard. Unfortunately, the best students can come from a Junior college and still receive a good paying job and the career of their choice. Wherever a student goes he/she will do what they have to do to succeed. All colleges strive for the best for students but due to the competitive admission requirements students are not allowed to peruse what they want. College is college but just because a student doesn’t meet a particular area for admission is it right to say that student would not succeed within that University or College? If colleges could be less competitive then everyone will have an equal amount or chance to get the same education as of that student went to Harvard. Works Cited Springer, Sally P, Reider, John, and Franck, Marion . Why are College’s Admission Competitive? Son Inc. Wiley. Copyright 2009. Harvard University. Admissions and Financial Aid. The President and Fellows of Harvard College. Copyright 2013. https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/application-requirements University of Chicago. Admissions and Financial Aid. 2013 < http://www.uchicago.edu/admissions/>

Runic alphabet,

Interrogated and first grade, for example, many children write â€Å"b† instead of â€Å"d,† and may sometimes confuse â€Å"p,† â€Å"q,† and â€Å"g. Teachers see these errors all the time, and gradually work to help kids fix them. But as a caring parent, should you worry? The stakes are high. DO these letter problems signal something deeper, such sidesaddle? To sort out the hype, we turned to two pros: Linda Selves, Executive Director of the New York branch of the International Dyslexia Association, and Eileen Marjoram, PhD. A past Board President of that organization, a professor of special education, and a teacher and tutor in private practice with dyslexic children for more than thirty years. Here's what they have to say when it comes to three common fears about Wesleyan, and identifying it in kindergarten and first grade children: Myth You'll know its dyslexia when a kid flips letters or misspells a lot. Fact: While some dyslexic people may do this , it's not the main problem! Dyslexia, explains Selves, â€Å"is a neurologically based learning disability† in which â€Å"people have difficulty associating sounds with letters. Lots of kids who write â€Å"b† for â€Å"d,† or reverse other letters, are just making rookie mistakes; what's more serious is when they cannot hear the â€Å"b† in â€Å"bear,† and think, instead, that it may be a â€Å"d† or â€Å"p. † Backwards letters alone re not cause for worry, according to the experts. In kindergarten, explains Marjoram, dyslexic kids will have trouble in several related areas. Taken together, these Signs indicate that a child is not making the all-important connection between letters, sounds, and word meaning. Instead of worrying yourself sick about reversed letters, â€Å"l would look further,† says Marjoram.If by the end of a full year of good instruction in kindergarten, a child can't do all or most of the following, the n it's time to be concerned: easily name all the letters of the alphabet, with most sounds detect rhyming words ear initial sounds, like the â€Å"c† in cat. Identify basic sight words like â€Å"is† or ‘the† recognize â€Å"environmental print† like the word â€Å"stop† on a roadside sign Myth #2: You can't really diagnose dyslexia until a kid is seven or eight. Fact: Kindergarten is not too early to evaluate a child. In fact, says Selves, â€Å"Early intervention is key†¦.The longer you wait, the more the problem grows. † Children quickly realize when something is wrong. Its all too easy for them to conclude, â€Å"l can't read so I must be really dumb,† Selves says. If your kindergarten does display most of the signs above, both Selves and Marjoram emphasize that you should seek an evaluation with a qualified specialist, either through your school or through independent experts such as those certified by the International Dyslexia Association. Don't let your school convince you to wait. Early intervention makes a huge difference. Http:// c mm/ magazine nee/article/ Kinder Stories, Poems, and Literature from the Viking Age 13th century Icelandic manuscript Our knowledge of the Viking people comes from several sources. One valuable source is the literature from the period. Norse people loved stories, and some of the stories and poems they themselves wrote, and that their ascendants wrote still survive. Stories about the Norse were also written by their contemporaries, including both their trading partners (such as the Arabs) and the victims of their raids (such as the Christian clerics who kept the historical records in Europe).This section describes written records the Viking-age people left behind. Language The Norse spoke Old Norse, which they called downs tuna (the Danish tongue). With minor variations, this language was spoken throughout the Norse lands during the Viking period. Old Norse is one of ten branches that cake up the Indo-European family of languages which have been spoken throughout Europe and southern Asia for the last 3000 years. Old Norse is the root language from which the modern Scandinavian languages descended, and is a close relative of modern English, Dutch, and German.During the period from 550050 AD, rapid linguistic changes occurred, which separated the Norse from other Germanic people on the European continent to the south and west. During the Viking age, language was no barrier to communication across the Norse lands; from Greenland to the Baltic, nearly the same language was spoken throughout. However, there is evidence that, despite the common language, a man's homeland could be identified by his speech.Some scholars today would go further and say that by the start of the Norse era, significant differences already existed between East Norse (Sweden and Denmark) and West Norse (Norway and the Atlantic settlements such as Iceland) dialects. Writing and Runes The footwork runic â€Å"alphabet† (so called for the sounds of the first six letters in the runic row) was in wide use throughout northern Europe from roughly the 3rd to the 12th century. At first, 24 letters were used, but in the 9th century, he footwork alphabet was simplified to 16 letters, beginning in Denmark, then rapidly spreading throughout the region.Many variations of the footwork rune row were used; one of the Danish variants is shown above. In the same way that a modern reader of English would recognize all these glyphs as representing an upper case a Viking-age reader would recognize the many ways a rune might be represented. The runes consist of straight lines, typically in the form of a vertical (a stave) with diagonal branches (twigs). The lack of any curves makes the runes easy to carve into wood, bone, or stone, which were the normal writing materials mongo the Norse.Runes are found carved graffiti-like into historical buildings and statuary not j ust in northern Europe, but all across the continent, clearly showing the extent to which the Norse roamed over Europe. The marble lion shown in the sketch to the left is from outside Piraeus, near Athens, Greece, where some unknown Norse traveler carved runic graffiti into the shoulder of the beast. Judging from the number of inscriptions found on stones in Nordic lands that were clearly intended to be seen and read, and from the number of everyday objects inscribed with runes, it is possible that such of the Norse population could read runes.Many of the inscriptions are in the form of memorial stones, such as those illustrated below on this page. These stones are highly public memorials. There's scarcely any reason to erect them if most of the population could not read them. Many everyday objects are found inscribed with the owner's name, or the maker's name, or other messages. Runic inscriptions have been found ranging from trade and legal documents such as bills of sale, all the way to coarse lavatory scribbling. Some runic inscriptions are clearly just for fun; a comb was found inscribed â€Å"l am a comb†.Some inscriptions may have been the equivalent of â€Å"Post-It' notes; one wooden Ernestine from Bergen is inscribed: â€Å"Cathy says come home†. Additional evidence of widespread literacy comes from the old Icelandic literature. In an episode from Importations (chi 34), it was not considered the least bit remarkable that a poor, unnamed Icelandic from the northern quarter was able to read the inscription on a buried treasure chest. In chapter 18 of Vigilant saga, Striker ¶g's father HLempel left a rune stick on the path where Vigorous and Transit were sure to find it as they rode to the ship that loud take them away from Iceland.On the stick were Striker ¶g's words saying she wanted to marry no other man but Vigilantly. There was no question that V(giggling would be able to read the message. > ¶r ¶our challenged Klaus to a wres tling match via a message on a rune stick in chapter 12 of Savorsla saga. Interestingly, just two chapters later, Klaus and Gar(s found runes carved on a ship naming the skipper, which Klaus was unable to read. He demanded that Grim read them. Wooden writing tablets provide additional evidence of the widespread use of runic writing among ordinary people.The tablet shown in the photos is a odder reproduction. The historic tablets are about 20-CACM high (about 8-12 in) and were filled with blackened wax within their raised borders. A pointed iron stylus was used to write in the wax (top right). The reproduction stylus in the photos is set in an antler which allows a nice grip and which can be used to smooth the wax and erase unwanted writing (bottom right). The wooden surface of historical tablets from the Norse era bear marks where the stylus broke through the wax, and the marks show that the runic alphabet Was being used.These tablets are more commonly found in rural areas, ether th an in towns, suggesting that even remote farm dwellers could read and write runes. On the other hand, objects have been found inscribed with runes which appear to be utter nonsense, or filled with errors. Perhaps it made perfect sense to the craftsman who made the object. Or perhaps, realizing that the object he just made needed to decorated with runes, but not knowing the footwork, the artisan simply made up something rune-like. The medium of choice for runic inscriptions was probably a stick or scrap of wood, which explains why few runic inscriptions are found today.Extraordinary conditions re required for the preservation of these wood scraps over the centuries since the Norse era. The runic writing shown to the right is one of a number of wooden merchant's markers excavated in Bergen. It indicates the owner's name, and was meant to be stuck in or tied to a pile of merchandise. It can be difficult to transcribe and translate runic writings. One difficulty is that there are more s ounds in the language than there are runes to represent them. Thus a single character could represent one of several sounds.Another difficulty is the variations in the various footwork alphabets that were in use ring the period. Further, archaic or otherwise unknown words were used in runic inscriptions. Runes were frequently incorporated into the isomorphic designs (left) favored by the Norse. Additionally, every effort was made to reduce the space required to inscribe the message and the number of runes that needed to be carved. So, for example, if a rune repeated, only the first rune was carved and the second discarded. Generally, there were no breaks between words or between sentences. Runes could be written left to right or right to left.The â€Å"facing† of the runes makes it clear which way to read. For inscriptions longer than one line, alternating lines were frequently written in opposite directions, first leftwards, then rightwards. Sometimes, the lines bent around at the end, so that one line reads left to right and the next line right to left and upside down. The effect is shown with English text using Roman letters to the right. Some rune stones (such as the R ¶k stone shown to the left) have text crammed onto every surface of the stone, with lines reading upwards, downwards, leftwards, and rightwards.Further, runes could be coded into other figures, called cryptic runes. The intent is not always clear. Perhaps it was meant to highlight a portion of the text, or to show off the skill of the person carving the runes. And perhaps it was meant to hide the meaning of the text to those who did not now how the runes were encoded. One example of cryptic runes are skips;near (ship runes), where the twigs adorn the stem and stern of the ship. The number of twigs in a figure indicated two numbers. The rune was coded by these two numbers.The first represented a particular TTT (grouping of runes within the footwork), and the second indicated which ru ne in the grouping was meant. Shown to he right are two figures from a series of cryptic runes in an Icelandic manuscript. Portion of rune stone with several same-stave runes Same-stave rune with missing portion restored Same-stave rune separated into individual runes Transcription into Roman letters Another example of cryptic runes is same-stave runes, in which all of the twigs branch from a single stave.The composite image to the left shows an example of this kind of runic inscription. The left image shows a small portion Of the SÃ'‘ender Kirby Stone in Denmark that uses same-stave runes for a portion of its message. The stave of interest in this example is the second room the left. The stone was damaged in this region, and a portion of this stave is missing. This part of the stone is shown in the second image, with a speculative reconstruction of the missing portion. The individual runes are shown in the next column, and the transcription into the Roman alphabet in the final co lumn.The complete message is >Orr vigil run, or â€Å"Door hallow the runes†. Another form of cryptic runes is visible at the top of the R ¶k stone, above left. With the coming of Christianity, and its educated clergy reading and writing Latin, runes were displaced by the Roman alphabet (modified to it the needs of the various northern European languages), written with pen and ink on vellum. However, runes continued to be used for many centuries, since the materials for runic writing were always readily at hand: everyone carried a knife, and a stick could be picked up from anywhere.The Viking-age people did not develop a written culture until the arrival of the church. In the Viking age, runes were used for short notes only. The Viking culture was oral, and long works were remembered using poetry. Runes certainly could have been used for longer messages in the same way as Roman characters, but hey were not. Perhaps the Norse people saw no need to preserve long works in writ ten form, even though everything was in place to do so. Only a single rune stone containing a complete poem survives, although many stones contain individual verses.In chapter 78 of Sells saga, >regular asked her father Gill to compose a memorial poem, telling him she would carve the verses into a rune stick (rises ; kefir). Whether that was common practice or not is conjectural. The R ¶k stone is an extraordinary rune stone over four meters high (13 feet) and is covered on all five sides with runic inscriptions. The front (and the beginning of the inscription) is shown to the left, and the reverse is shown in the photo above left. Many of the rune stones, particularly later ones, are memorial stones, which commemorated the dead and may have served as declarations of inheritance.The purpose of the Rook stone is subject to debate, but may well be a memorial Stone, as well. Poetry Surviving poems show a wide range of topics and tones: respectful and reverent; boastful and proud; wit ty and humorous; threatening and defiant; vile and obscene. However, scurrilous or satirical poems were banned cause of the injury they caused to the subject and to his reputation. Poems, being a divine gift from ? ¶in (the highest of the gods), were thought to have special power. Poems had the power to bestow honor on a worthy man and to remove honor from a wretch.A skillful poet could earn a valuable reward from a generous king, or save his head from an angry king, by creating a well composed poem. Poems praising a woman were banned, both because of the publicity and the possible effect it might have on her reputation, but also because of possible spell binding effects the poem might have. (Surviving love memos suggest the ban was regularly ignored. ) On hearing certain kinds of poetry (for instance, poetry implying that a man was womanish), a man was at liberty to kill the person reciting the poem. The proscribed types of poetry are described in the medieval Icelandic lowbrow G ar;g;s (K 238).Norse poetry does not have the regular rhythm and end-rhyme that one conventionally associates with poetry, but rather uses alliteration and irregular stress which falls on the most significant words in each line. Norse poetry can be divided into three classes, depending on form and content. Rune poems were usually inscribed on monuments and serve to praise an individual. They are brief and usually have a simple meter and style. Decide poems describe the Norse gods and ancient Norse heroes and their exploits. Decide poetry also has relatively simple meter and style.The stories are exciting, packed with action, and frequently contain valuable object lessons. Little can be said about the development of decide poetry, but it was probably in place and in use at the start of the Viking age. Classic poems typically praise the deeds of notable people, and they were usually written during the lifetime of the person being raised. While some of the surviving classic poetry date s from the medieval period, many of the poems are believed to date from the Viking age. The R ¶k ironstone shown above on this page records one stanza of classic poetry and dates from the middle of the 9th century.The Israeli ironstone shown to the right is the only classic verse in the elaborate dry;takeTTT meter known to have been written down in the Viking age. It dates from roughly the year 1 000 and is located in Land in Sweden. While the decide poetry is uniformly anonymous, much of the surviving classic poetry is credited to a particular tote at a particular place and time. The classic poems have complicated meters, strict patterns of alliteration, and ornate metaphoric language, with wordplay to delight the sophisticated listener. The poems usually celebrate the exploits of a particular king or leader.Since, in the Viking age, exaggeration was considered to be mockery, and since mockery' was considered a lethal insult, these poems are thought to be reliable testimony to th e events, even though (in some cases) they weren't committed to writing for centuries after their composition. Unfortunately, the factual information in such poetry tends to be limited. Classic poetry uses a variety of circumlocutions, such as kenning's. A kenning uses a phrase as a metaphor to represent an idea. The usual form is a noun, qualified by another noun in the genitive case. For instance sweat of the sword is used to mean blood, or horse of the sea to mean ship.Some of the kenning's can only be understood by someone with an extensive knowledge of the culture and of the great stories. For example, flame of the Rhine is used to mean gold but would probably be understood only by someone who is familiar with the V ¶lasagna saga in which the great gold treasure of the V ¶lulus NCAR ended up t the bottom of the river Rhine. Kenning can have multiple levels. For example, a poet might use a kenning for gold, and then use that phrase in place of the word â€Å"gold† in yet another kenning, such as flame of the sea- stead's path.Sea-stead's (ship) path is water, so flame of the water refers to gold. Some kenning's depend on hyperbole. Enemy of gold refers to a man who does not like gold and gives it away: a generous man. Some kenning's take the form of puns, such as using sky of the eel to represent ice in identifying someone as an Icelandic. The form of Norse poetry is complicated beyond the wordplay of the innings. The need to fit strict rules of alliteration and rhyming and rhythm result in verses in which multiple ideas are being formed simultaneously. (This concept is illustrated on the classic stanza page. Because Icelandic is a highly inflected language (word forms change depending on their usage in a sentence), it's possible to jumble the word order yet retain the meaning of a sentence. Norse visual arts share this property (left). Exceedingly complicated forms are used all over a figure to create a single unified image. It's been suggested that this similarity between poetry and visual arts derives from the name underlying sensibility, some innate appreciation of the baroque form in Norse culture. Because of its complexity and wordplay, wonder whether classic poetry could be understood by a listener hearing a verse for the first time.There are examples in the stories that support this belief, such as chapter 18 fog(slab saga. B ¶rids overheard a verse spoken by her brother, Gillis, in which he took credit for the killing of her husband, Programs. Not until she returned home did brd(s interpret the verse and understand its meaning. I may be overstating my case. At least one scholar of classic otter has told me that he believes the verses were easily understood by a listener in the saga age. Additionally, in an oral culture, it would be important to recall poetry without error.Because of the complexities of Norse verse, a defect in a recalled verse would be immediately apparent, since the rhyme, rhythm, or alliterati on would no longer work. Any erroneous substitution would stand out. Thus, the complexity of the verse acted as a mnemonic aid to help recall the verse and to identify errors. This built-in error detection was one of the reasons that information conveyed by poetry during the Viking age as thought to be more reliable than information in prose. The 12th century authors who first wrote the histories and stories of Iceland viewed the words of poets to be more authoritative than other oral sources.Some modern scholars disagree, and they suggest that in oral form, even poetry is unlikely to remain unchanged over long periods of time. Literature Many of the important poems were composed in the 9th through 12th century. These were part Of the oral tradition, and were kept alive by repetition as they were passed from one generation to another. Poetry was likely a major form of entertainment for the Norse. Poets were held in high regard, not only for their ability to improvise poetic entertai nment on the spot, but also because they were the repository of the shared cultural experience.They were the vessel through which the culture was passed from generation to generation. Once committed to poetry, a thought was expected to last â€Å"as long as the land is inhabited† or â€Å"as long as the Norse language is spoken†. Story-telling was a popular entertainment wherever people gathered. Faster ¶RA saga says in chapter 23 that >origami Narrations told a story while sitting on his chair in front of his booth at the Ping. People sat all around him, listening to his tale. When an unexpected downpour forced everyone to leave and seek shelter, Poor ¶Ã‚ ¶r took advantage of the opportunity and killed Door(Mr..Beginning in the 12th century, educated men in Iceland, where the oral tradition was strongest, began to write down the important stories. Iceland Was unique among European countries at this time in having a population comprised of a large number of relativ ely free, land- owning farmers. These men had the means to commission the creation of books in their own language, rather than in Latin as was the rule throughout he rest of Europe. The oral story-telling tradition of the Islanders also favored writings in the vernacular.A wide variety of material was written down in the Icelandic language. One of the first books to be written in the northern lands was the Icelandic law codes, begun in the year 11 17. Prior to this time, the law codes were remembered and recited orally by the law speaker (logs ¶Guam ¶our) at the Piping. A short time later, a history of Iceland was written known as [slandering;k (the Book of Islanders) by Air FRR ¶I (the learned) around the year 1 130. Scholars wrote books describing how to use Roman letters to represent the sounds of the Icelandic language.The First Grammatical Treatise was followed by three others. The genealogy and history of Icelandic settlers were written down in Land;MBA;k (the Book of Se ttlement)s. European literature was translated into Icelandic, including stories of the lives of saints, and learned books on topics including astronomy, natural history, and geography. Travel books were written by Icelandic visitors to Europe. New stories were written to commemorate the exploits of kings or other great leaders. Some of these books were in the form f histories, such as Homemaking's, a history of the kings of Norway.Others described contemporary events, such as the sagas of the lives of Icelandic bishops, untangling saga, a compilation of sagas describing the events in the turbulent times when the sons of Stuart b ¶r ¶arson were changing the political landscape Of the Iceland. Islanders also wrote down the stories of their ancestors. These [sledding ¶guru (Sagas of Islanders, also called family sagas) remain compelling and entertaining reading today. They are a unique and new form of story-telling unlike anything that preceded them. Most of these sagas are thou ght to have been composed between 1200 and 1400.These stories tell of the tales of farmers and chieftains living in Iceland from the 9th through the 12th century. Many of them follow families for generation after generation, from the settlement era to the commonwealth period in Iceland's history. They are distinctive in that they tell heroic tales not about heroes, but about just plain folks: the early Islanders. Although distorted by the time that separates the events depicted and the writing of the stories, the family sagas present one of the best pictures we have of Norse society. We know the names of only a very few of the writers of these works.It was not customary to put the author's name on the manuscript. However, one author who can be identified with some certainty is Snorer Sturgeon (1 179-1241). A 20th century sculpture of Snorer by Vigilant is shown to the left. Snorer feared that the tradition of composing poetry to commemorate great men and great events was dying. For this, and other reasons, he wrote the Sonora dead, a four part textbook on writing classic poetry. The book summarizes Norse mythology (necessary for the poet to understand the innings), teaches the language of poetry, and presents examples of the various verse forms.