Social Media Effecting Political Democracies World Wide Media Essay

Social Media Effecting Political Democracies World Wide Media Essay This paper will attempt to distinguish the connections between democratization and information and communications. The relationship will be addressed by focusing mainly on how the advancement of technology, in this case social media, has effected, and is effecting, political democracies world wide. In order to discuss the connections of democratisation and social media I will first attempt to provide a definition for democracy and the process of democratization. The essay will further discuss different scenarios in various countries that have either led to the declination of political empires, or assisted the rise of a political party, through the involvement of social media. Furthermore, these views will be supported by discussing the contrasting views of a cyber-utopian versus a cyber-cynic, i.e. Clay Shirky versus Evgeny Morozov, respectively. Democracy and its roots In order to understand democracy, it needs to be defined and like most concepts it is relative, like Clinton once quoted depends on how you define democracy. According to Ivo Mosley democracy is government by and for all the people which literally means the people rule'. However the definition has evolved through history, which is why it is necessary to backdate to its origins tracing it into the present. (Charles Tilly, 2007, Democracy, Cambridge University Press, New York). The word democracy originates from a Greek word demokratia and literally means people-power and this in itself is ambiguous. The ambiguity of the term aroused questions such as; did the power actually belong to the masses or specific qualified individual citizens? Many theorists believed that the word demokratia was a term exploited by enemies of democracy, said to be the elite class who were against being out voted by laymen who were classed to be economically and socially inferior. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/greekdemocracy_01.shtm) However, over the centuries democracy rose, fell and varied in character, where and when it multiplied (Charles Tilly, 2007). In the 18th century despite not being defined as democracy, the US showed interest in experimenting with the doctrine of natural freedom and equality. Their Constitution administrated a government elected by the masses and took into account to protect civil rights and liberties to some extent. (Jacqueline Newmyer, Present from the start: John Adams and America, Oxonian Review of Books, 2005, vol 4 issue 2). By the 19th century many European regimes adopted the Greek democratic model. They made effort to provide equality and citizen rights. Democracy, as a concept, can be molded according to local needs, however is not a blueprint that can be copied and pasted in all regions of the globe. It did, however, gain popularity around the 20th century; after WWII many new countries came into being due to decolonization, when democracy as a concept caught on, not because it was a norm the world valued, but because it was used as a weapon against the threat of communism. This was also the basis of the onset of the cold war. It was the war of ideologies, and democratization of the newly independent states begun. As Potter stated why has democratization been a strong impulse in some countries, a weaker or non-existent impulse in others? (1997, Democtatization, Blackwell, pg.1) He then defined democratization as political changes moving in a democratic direction (pg 3). Webster (2011) stated in his lectures that democracy is on the march, majority of the worlds states are now democratic. Amartya Sen (1999) defined democracy as A un iversal value. According to freedom house (2006) 47% of countries in the world are classified as free. Though the statistics show that the concept of democracy is being enforced around the globe, it is difficult to adapt in some parts of the world. North Korea being one of the controversial cases where they state that the country is officially the democratic peoples republic of Korea. According to modern economists North Korea is strikingly different as it is cut off from the existing world as they live in their own separate reality, where the leaders of the country maintain complete control and the masses have restricted freedom of expression; anyone opinionated against the regime can be detained. Many theorists including Potter and Barber discuss the existence of different political regimes in terms of strong and week democracies, also known as liberal and partial economy that lead to either the rise or the fall of economies. The USA being a prime example a capitalistic and democratic country enforcing democratization on nations as a tool to gain world dominance, or even to maintain their existing status as the global super-power. However the means of public expression, which is being enhanced through the internet and its various means of communication, is becoming a more accurate form of democratic thought. Social networking sites such as Facebook, Orkut, Hi5, Twitter, and even blogs has evolved to allow civil society to become more active in the governance in its countries. It has encouraged the process of bringing about a tool that enhances democracy through the true will of the people, even in strong dictatorship regimes. Within research, academics have attempted to explore civil society to explain processes of democratization by reference to societal context (laurence white head, 2002, democratization, theory 7 experience, oxford univeristy press). Macmillan defines civil society as the part of society that consists of organizations and institutions that look after people, their health and their rights. It does not include government of the family e.g NGOs, research institutes, e.t.c. http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/civil-society This leads to an interesting concept explored by Habermas which reflects suspicions on markets ability to answer democracys needs the public sphere concept that aids civil society to communicate. It focuses on social democratic perspective on information and society. Where citizens can get together and freely express their opinons. Webster lecture 2011). Benkler (2007:123) foucses on internet as one of the strong mediator to public sphere. which then gi ves birth to the rise of social media in playing a vital role in deciding the faith of these democratic nations. Gary C. Gibson December 20, 2007 a bloggist defined Democracy is about individual liberty and political primacy; corporatism and other forms of neo-authoritarianism such as socialism are about the primacy of collectives under the authority of elites. Another bloggist Rahman Haq March 21, 2008 stated Democracy is a beautiful concept not particularly for its denotative implication that puts the majority opinion into context but rather due to the values and ideals that constitute the bundles of liberties derivative of the concept. While Rayne Brit may 13 2008 commented that One of the most fantastic parts about democracy is freedom of speech everyone likes freedom of speech unless someone speaks in contradiction to them. But that is the beauty of our constitution it allows diversity of opinion. http://www.helium.com The key elements in this process of a public sphere are communication and information. How important are these to democracy and what is the link between them? The power of Communication/Information and the birth of social media In the modern society we live in, communication and information have rapidly built great importance and brought about a turning point in different sectors. (McNair, 2006:1). The information society plays a vital role in the development of the modern social analysis (webster, (2004), The Information Society Reader Routledge). The fast paced wide spreading of globalization and the rising of the network society have led this modern society to heavily depend on them, impacting the society to rely on informative communication networks that possess knowledge and views to either built or unbuilt trust, the decisive source of power. Power being the utmost important process in the society. (Communication Power, Manuell). According to Webster (2004, 2) in the wider society, the idea that we are entering a new information age, or knowledge society, is a common place. Max Weber defines social power as the probability that one actor within a social relationship will be in a position to carry out his own will, despite resistance, regardless of the basis on which this probability rests (1978,53). The ideology of social democracy a leftists political philosophy, which seeks to reform capitalism in line with principals of social justice, while upholding capitalistic approach of production, instead of creating a an entirely new socialist economic system has been the essence of debates of information. When analyzed it prominently points out the disadvantages of capitalism when providing information to its viewers: thereby suggesting that the market creates diversion, gossip and trivia, while being inadequate to supplying reliable news. In retaliation, the social democratic approach would recommend the state to intervene to make sure that the information requirements delivered to the public could be adequately met. Hence, it is understood as social democratic because of the inclination of the state intervention. A policy as such could be considered, by many, an inescapable introduction to tension seen as many of the advocates are impressionable to the growing of the spin within the literate society, the development of what they have galvanized as an antagonistic market to its inadequacies. Moreover Webster criticizes the argument that the market cannot be relied upon to produce information required to support a healthy democracy. A clear example that supports the argument of subjective and questionable informative medium is the invention of Wikipedia. A popular multilingual encyclopedia promoting free content and writers to contribute to this content from around the world. What makes it interesting is that anybody can edit an article, given the right references, using a wiki markup language eventually leading to a well balanced article including all the pros and cons. Even though Cass Sunstein10 and Brian Leither, 11 oppose citing Wikipedia, Sunstein (in Webster about Sunstein, 2006:2), states Wikipedia as an example of collective intelligence. Thus, indicating the decrease in the necessity of a public sphere. Ludovic Denoyer, Patrick Gallinari, Volume 40 Issue 1, June 2006 ACM New York, NY, USA This clearly emphasizes on Friedrich Hayeks theories of defending the free market system. He supported the principle that every human has rights and is free to make their choices. He argued against that the public sphere concept as he believed that all actions made by the consumers give messages to the market that are later adapted by them, he argued in favor of capitalism, Hayek (2002:8). Jimmy Wale stated Hayeks work is central to my own thinking about how to manage the Wikipedia project. However John Gray (1948) belonged to the conservative group who argued that free market can destroy order. He argued it is most obvious that changing the diverse world economy, on the basis of the singular model of the free market, would be an impossible task to carry out. The diversity of cultures around the world should be a self-evident reflection of the global varied economies. Thereby it would be safe to state that all economic systems are imperfect; no one system is universal, thus any attem pt to do so would result in a disaster. Yet the fantasy that the free market can and should be adopted throughout the world became for a while a litmus test of sound thinking, not only on the neo-liberal right but also in the ranks of the center left. http://www.scribd.com/doc/7221539/John-Gray-on-Free-Markets-Not-for-the-First-Time In the modern Information Age that we have entered, there is an effort to enhance brainpower by globally providing informarmation services and by implemention the power of computation as and when needed http://www.cnri.reston.va.us/what_is_internet.html. Technological innovations have given birth to information and communication mediums like television, radio, telephone etc. but one of the most powerful and upcoming media tool, a contribution to the network society is the Internet. This is considerably different from the old traditional ways, this allows more interactivity and many-to-many communication, rather than one-to-many. (THE PUBLIC SPHERE, SOCIAL NETWORKS AND PUBLIC SERVICE MEDIA, Petros Iosifidis, 31 January 201). This impacts the youth mainly gen Y and Z the focal users of this platform when they find overflowing information and rely on just this medium for rational. Murru (2009, p. 143) contributes to this thought by adding, in online contexts anyone can potentially take the role of speaker with practically no cost, thus multiplying the source of news and freeing the flux of communication and information from any sort of system control (economic or political). Webster (2010) discusses that this overflow can lead to fragmentation of users creating information cocoons that filter undesirable information. According to Losifidis (2010) the ever existent Habermasian concept of the national public sphere as discussed earlier is now said to have given birth to a multi-dimensional platform of online and social networks. The idea of networking is not new; Websters dictionary dates the term to 1940. However these networks are now rapidly growing to become significant in engrossing and influencing citizens and also playing a vital role in the communication process within which realistic and legitimate discussion takes place. He further argues that the internet and new media in terms of social media is being mis represented by extreme exaggeration and it represents technological optimism due to reasons like chaotic open to all policy, censorship, inclusiveness, partisan content, and most importantly the absence of the very essence of the public sphere extensive dialogue and critical discussion. As social media is the new phenomenon taking over the world it is giving birth to new jargons like infosphere, blogosphere, twittersphere. Participants find this platform as an ideal place to start discussions mainly on public debate and social change. Stumpel (2009) in contrast emphasizes that these new online forums, which allows people to unite in discussions to exchange veiws and knowledge either political or economical even critical in nature portrays a patten of similarity to Habermass concept of the public sphere. He argues that forums like facebook, twitter, myspace and other net spheres are public places that are outside state control where public-minded rational consensus can be developed. This widespread of information is worrysome for some. Webster (2004:76) stresses that the society must prevent them from being misled as technological developments are always socially mediated. Fukuyamas fears that over flow of information in the society will substitute the traditional community based on religion, tradition, race or culture with the modern community based on a formal social contact among rational individuals (ibid:7) But can the Net act as a public sphere where critical discourse can emerge and influence political action? The power of Social media and it effect on democracy As we experience the rise of the communication platform, there seems to be a tremendous increment in the participants to engage in public speeches which is portrayed through blogsphere and more interestingly different events have contributed to the public taking collective action by using these advance technology mediums. In 2001, when the congress voted to protect the President of Philippines President Joseph Estrada and set aside crucial evidence against him, the citizens of Philippines in anger protested against their corrupt president. Just as the decision was announced, they arranged a rally Go to EDSA wear black to mourn the death of democracy through simple forwarded text messages which later counted close to seven million. Shortly millions of people arrived, causing a shutdown of traffic in Manali. This ability of the public to arrange such a tremendous response threatened the legislators of the country and they allowed the evidence to be presented. In 3 days on this protest Estrada was gone. this was the first time social media had aided to play a part in a democratic nation to lead to a downfall of a national leader. Estrada himself blamed the text-messaging generation for his downfall. (clay shirky) Since then this strategy has been on the roll. A similar case took place In Spain in 2004 after the Madrid train bombing where text messages aided to the downfall of Spanish Prime Minister Josà © Marà ­a Aznar who inaccurately blamed basque separatists for the act while the protesters who belived that it was the doings of Al Queda forwarded the phrase who did it and arranged anti-govenment rallies on the day before the spring election http://mason.gmu.edu/~cuytioco/papers/edsa2cellphones.pdf. The Communist Party lost power in Moldova in 2009 when massive protests coordinated in part by text message, Facebook, and Twitter broke out after an obviously fraudulent election. It is widely discussed by many theorists that the internet has provided an open channel of free communication of information that has come to be known as social media tools, which would include the very popular social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter. Facebook initially being invented as a means for introduction amongst university students and further networking is now rapidly becoming notorious for open communication for people to connect their political views and thoughts. Another example is that of the Twitter Revolution In Tunisia, in reaction to a street hawker setting himself on fire, for which it was banned in the country. The revolt was being rallied and coordinated through the social site ultimately bringing protesters to the streets, and tolling up to 70 people being shot by the police.. Consequently, the revolution led the president of Tunisia to abandon his post. Tunisia has only been the initial instigation of this fire which is spreading throughout the Middle East and Northern African countries. These sites are now fuelling younger generations to turn away from broadcast media one-to-many communication of information and through the inclination towards these sites finally becoming more involved in voicing their opinions via the many-to-many communication of information amongst themselves. A further result of this is evident in the reaction of the Libyan government as they have banned the social media sites, such as Twitter and Facebook, from their local internet services on state orders. The radical action can be interpreted that even the libyan state is beginning to recognize the extent to which these media tools are evolving to becoming a loud voice echoing in the public spheres. One of the main roles that has been played by the social media is that of a watchdog and whistleblower. Furthermore in many other cases public has taken aid from these social media tools to succeed in their protests. Another social media phenomenon that is gaining popularity widely in whistle blowing is through viral media. A prime example is the major protest and lawsuits the Catholic Church faced for child abuse and rape. In 2002 The Boston Globe exposed sexual abuse in the church that spread like viral online in just a few hours. Furthermore there are so many cases now that can be found on a new social platform Wikileaks. According to BBC it is a whistle blowing website now actively effecting news. Anonymous submission are published and leaked on different area of debate. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10757263 According to shirky (2010) The potential of social media lies mainly in their support of civil society and the public sphere. As I mentioned earlier that these tools can either aid or fail in helping the activists protest, many such cases have failed to produce positive results like in March 2006 in Belarus streets were full of protest which was arranged partly by email against their President Aleksandr Lukashenkos for vote rigging however the activists failed which led to the president to actively control social media. Similarly in 2009 during the month of June when the green movement was rising the activists in Iran tried very hard by using to protest against the miscount of votes for Mir Hossein Mousavi by using all sorts of technological coordinating tools but failed miserably. The use of social media tools text messaging, e-mail, photo sharing, social networking, and the like cannot be foreseen or predicted to any foretell outcome. Thus, any attempts to create an outline on their respective effects in the political arena are more often than none to duelling anecdotes. Let us take a look at Barrack Obamas presedentail online campaign of 2004 for instance. Castells (Volume II, 2004:379) states that it is also highly used in politics by describing Obamas internet campaign as an example. The use of social media tools enabled Obama to initially overcome a large portion of the presidential nominating race; and his ability to embrace the social networking sites, such as MySpace and Facebook, was considered different which became advantageous to his campaign. This approach was considered so successful that according to Professor Thomas Patterson of Harvard University, Mr Obamas use of social media tools has led to mobilise younger generation. This has been consi dered a group which has traditionally been uninterested in politics, according to. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/7412045.stm This makes us wonder do these digital tools enhance or destroy democracy? Cyber-Utopians vs. Cyber-Cynics Cyber-utopian optimist Clay Shirky in his paper The Political Power of Social Media, that appeared in the foreign affair magazine, (http://www.economist.com/blogs/babbage/2011/01/politics_and_internet) makes a great distinction between the insturmental view and the environmental view of inetrnet freedom. He describes the instrumental approach as a means to avoid states from aiding censorship of external websites like, youtube, google, e.t.c. and thereby focuses more on the public spheres, emphasizing on the citizens speech and all the uses of digital media by private and social standards. An example that supports this was the call for anti-censorship software by Hillary Clinton, Americas secretary of state, in January 2010. This would particularly support the usage of sites such as Wikipedia and Google in states like Iran; give Burmese activists the freedom to blog without interference to blog; allow the Chinese public to utilise the use of instant messaging systems without being mon itored, among many others. However the challenges of anti-censorship software programs like Freegate and censorship-circumvention softwares like Haystack portray the hardship to weaponize social media to pursue country-specific and near-term policy goals. Many would argue that instrumental media overestimates the value of one-to-many form of communication information i.e. broadcast media while at the same time underestimating the value of many-to-many form of media communication of information i.e. social media tools including the internet. Instrumental media does provide a modest benefit to the freedom of information that it provides -confidential government information can get leaked through the open channels of information however it does not extend to the freedom of speech or assembly, which in turn the internet does provide. The popular belief about social media is a long-term tool to strengthen the civil society and the public sphere. The environmental view is the contradictitary outlook to internet freedom. A ground basis for internet freedom and environmental view is the gradual development of the public sphere which works like a forum of open to all opinions while relying on conversation information and media. Contrary to the Wests self-acclaimed view of holding the source code for democracy, the environmental view would assume that minor change occurs in political spheres without adoption of the ideas and opinions which circle in public sphere. The viewpoint professes that the access to information does not play as big of a vital role as the access to conversation. Furthermore, a public sphere is more likely to emerge as a result to the masses dissatisfaction towards economic factors in a country rather than some obscure political ideals. In contrast to Shirky, the cyber-cynic Evgeny Morozov disagrees, and states that while social media may have helped, its not clear how much it actually contributes. According to an article in the Guardian that analysed Morozovs The Net Delusion, he argues that, if read between the lines when praising technology and its advancements, you can decypher a misinterpretation of the internets political role and potential, through the combination of ignorance and a sense of utopianism. This idea was further elaborated to state that if careful measures are not ensued, the democratising power of new media will not promote democracy and freedom of thought, but an entrapment of authoritarian regimes around the globe. Critisizng cyber-utopianism, Morozov further believes that contrary to popular belief the internet is not emancipatory, and supports it through the arguement of the widely misguided belief in the example such as the one of Twitter-powered Green Movement of Iran in 2009 (pointing out figures that on the actual eve of the said elections, the participating numbers did not rise above 20,000 users), stretching it to larger heights of naive hopes that international exposure through the new media will bring a diminishing result of violence in areas around the world such as that of Africa and the Middle East. http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jan/09/net-delusion-morozov-review Morozovs arguement emphasizes the insignificant contribution of the social media tools whereas Shirky promotes the idea that however small the contribution may be the governments should accept it and promote the communication of many-to-many as it is an aspect of democracy. With the growing numbers of the West where social networks such as Twitter and Facebook are used among the masses, in the East it is only a smaller percentage that have access, or the ability, to use it. Having said that, no matter how insignificant the numbers may appear to be at this point in time Shirkys arguement brings more to the debate as it is an escalating factor which supports the point that the public sphere, through social media tools, do play a rising role in todays democratic states around the world. Morozovs arguement supporting misguided beliefs about the cyber-utopians who cannot bring about any change in world, can also be refuted that in the short-run it may not display acute figures of revoluti on supporters, or how it affects political stance, but in many countries where the social media tools is used on a day-to-day basis it surely can take the initial step to creating awareness which could, in the long-run, create a stir in a mass so large that it cannot be ignored by any democratic country. These tools probably do not hurt in the short run and might help in the long run and that they have the most dramatic effects in states where a public sphere already constrains the actions of the government. Through the promotion of pro-democratic tools put forth by the government it is also aiding authoritarian governments to track down any revolts, while infiltrating social networks and propogating their own agenda, and out-smarting their beleaguered citizens. However, the debates tend to culminate in stalemate whenever put to discussion. Access to information is far less important, politically, than access to conversation. Authoritarian governments stifle communication among their citizens because they fear, correctly, that a better-coordinated populace would constrain their ability to act without oversight. Add to essay where ever required According to Marsha Mcluhan this world is now a global village. With the spread of globalization or as Herbert Schiller (1919-2000) would term it as Americanisation there has been a rise in the technological advancement hand in hand.Webster (2010, chapter 2:20) states that globalization is leading towards the irrelevance of a public sphere, or even to the establishment of multiple public sphere. Globalization of democracy said to be western and a form of imperialism. Fernand braudel commented (1902-85) thorugh globalization there is a homogeneity of cultural practices. A more tolerant framework within the society. Yet events like the Danish Cartoonist in 2006 who drew the forbidden drawing of the Holy prophet in an insulting manner led to unrest around the world or like the event posted up on Facebook in 2009 draw Muhammed day yet again let to unrest in the muslim world speacially Pakistan where the govenment was part of the protest to delete such an offensive page makes one think ho w far true are these motions of tolerance. However thinkers like Ronfeldt (in Allison, 2002:39) claims that the internet will not divide the world, but that it will provide community, democracy, empowerment, wealth and peace. Robins and Webster (1999:226) speak of a cyberculture on the internet with its endless circuit of communication that will create global cities. The cyber-culture has also given birth to e-democratisation which leads to e-govenment and e voting. however democracy demends to surville if all votters are eligible. it aso questions wheather bloggers are now acting as e democracts. However some critizise it by calling it couch potate politics.. Castells (2001:117) further adds that digital divide is a result of virtual communities that is another form of escapism. Conclision Carruthers (2000:201) argues that the global distribution and access of all modern technologies (telephone, radio, television and the internet) must first be continued and improved before we can truly speak of its global or universal effects However, if one scrutinizes the numbers involved in the actual protests, or what leads up to them, according to Morozovs The Net Delusion one cannot be entirely sure as to the extent of influence the uprising has towards the respective governments in the countries in question; the revolt in Iran in 2009 which was caused by Twitter it was said, however according to numbers tracked the number of users on the set day of election did not rise over 20,000. Shirkys arguement refutes these statements though stating that the numbers are escalating and the masses have found an efficient and free channel to communicate amongst themselves, and the result . This instrumental view of the matter where the state intervenes with censorship may cause a further uproar and more use of softwares created to slip through the crack; softwares such as Freegate and Haysmarket. It only seems to be a matter of time before the time bomb of the social media tools will explode and cause an uncontrolable uproar that even the strongest of states cannot even handle.

Career Development Essay

In my profession as a career counsellor I will take a holistic approach to a client’s circumstances. It is important, I think, not only look at a clients career path but also to examine a clients life as a whole. Through this process, I believe, a superior decision making process will take place. To achieve this aim I will use Parson’s trait and factor (Chapter 2 Trait and Factor Theory, Applying Career Development Theory to Counselling, Richard Sharf 2006), Super’s life-span (Chapter 8, Late Adolescent and Adult Career Development, Applying Career Development Theory to Counselling, Richard Sharf 2006) and Kelly’s constructivist theories (Chapter 10, Constructvist and Narrative Approaches to Career Development, Applying Career Development Theory to Counselling, Richard Sharf 2006). I have chosen option one for my paper because this is the beginning of the counselling process. The initial contact with the client is important and sets the tone for the rest of the counselling process. The quality of the initial contact and information gathering that comes from that is invaluable to the decision making process. I will identify assessment, problem identification and formulation, and goal setting from the phases outlined in option one and discuss these from a counselling phase, practitioner beliefs, theory, and worksite perspectives. Assessment Practitioner Beliefs In the assessment stage the very foundation of the counselling function begins. Through using solid counselling skills such as making good eye contact, asking open ended questions, using continuation responses and expanding techniques I would begin to form a picture of the client’s abilities, values, personality, and interests. This process would be enhanced by the introduction of testing into the formula. The holistic approach I would advocate serves to better the client’s needs as whole, not just career related needs, and also serves as a reminder that every client is unique and has developed an exclusive view of the world and his or her relation to it. The use of eclectic theories, drawing on elements from more than one theory, is paramount in attaining the best possible results for the client and also in maintaining the holistic approach. By using theories in combination I would seek to minimize any weaknesses in any one of them. Trait and Factor Theory In the assessment phase I believe it is important to uncover where a client’s career and life choices have taken them to date, what their current aspirations and desires are and, how they see the future for themselves as a holistic endeavor. In Sharf p. 25, Applying Career Development Theory to Counselling, trait and factor is said to be â€Å"the assessment of characteristics of the person and the job†. This theory is fundamental to Parson’s trait and factor theory and represented the genesis of the career development profession, although it was known as that at the time. Parsons developed a three point process he called â€Å"vocational guidance† in which he saw a one-on one process. This theory, I believe, underpins the whole process of career development theory and, therefore, career counselling. In a counselling situation the client’s broad goal is to seek a better life for his or herself, in uncovering a client’s traits and factors a platform is built on to which the rest of the counselling function relies. Life-span Theory Super, as quoted by Sharf on p. 203 of Applying Career Development Theory to Counselling, (life-span theory) â€Å"makes use of two major concepts: life role and life stage. He espouses that important roles for an adult are, studying, working, community service, home and family, and leisure activities. The importance of these roles to an individual is governed by a person’s participation in the activity, commitment to the activity and how much the activity is valued. In gauging the salience of these factors, at a given time in the client’s history, we can discern his or her attitude to these factors at various stages of their lives. In counselling my emphasis would be on the attitude of the client at the present time and the projection of what it is likely to be in the future. Constructivist Theory On p. 63-264 of Sharf, Applying Career Development Theory to Counselling, Kelly is quoted as stating â€Å"individuals’ careers are a major means of giving one’s life role clarity and meaning. † He also proposes that each individual creates a unique perspective of their world and from this develop values around not only work but life as a whole. If one is to assist a client in achieving, the broad goal, of a better life then looking at life as a whole t hrough their own unique perspective is imperative. Worksite  At this stage of the process the client may or may not have a clear picture of what the worksite may look like. While his or her feelings over this issue are important it is relevant to consider that, in the case where a client does have a picture of a workplace, it may change as the counselling process develops. It is also important to recognize that the client may formulate an ideas around this subject at any time during the counselling process. Problem Identification and Formulation Practitioner Beliefs In my view if the preceding steps are applied with skill and thoroughness any existing problems will become evident. Having identified these problems it is necessary to formulate strategies to overcome them. Problems that may arise are lack of education, incongruence’s in attitude toward family life and the work world and self esteem issues to name but a few. Specific strategies to solve these problems are beyond the scope of this paper and I will therefore confine myself to procedures to uncover them and the theories that can be applied in formulating solutions, not the solutions themselves. Theories Having established the general traits of a client, i. e. abilities, values, personality, and interests, I would employ Super’s life-span theory and Kelly’s constructivist theory to continue to build on the platform established by trait and factor approach. In depicting a clients values by undertaking an exercises such as Super’s â€Å"life-career rainbow† an image forms as to the salience of life roles. These are child, student, leisure, citizen, worker and homemaker. The rainbow pictorially shows which of these elements has been important to the client and when. In addition I would employ the procedures, outlined in Kelly’s constructivist theory, the vocational reptest, laddering techniques and vocational card sets on a case by case basis. I have personal experience of a vocational card set when I completed the â€Å"Personality Dimensions† test at our local career counselling establishment. I found it invaluable in defining both my career objectives and revealing the kind of activities I should not consider undertaking. The question of formulating strategies for solving any inherent problems with a clients work/life roles I would engage in life space mapping as outlined on p. 1-73 from â€Å"Life Space Exploration and Description† by U. Beck in the course reading file. This interactive exercise serves as a brainstorming sessions and greatly assists the problem solving process. Worksite Having assessed the client fully and identified and solved any problems the client should be developing at least the genesis of an idea of what the worksite may look like. In order to bolster this I would encourage the client to engage in some research as to what may reasonable available to him or her. At this point I would suggest resources with labour market information such as www. orkingincanada. gc. ca, www. makingcareersense. org and www. workinfonet. bc. ca . I would strongly suggest that the client commit to having informational interviews with people in the fields of endeavor they are interested, congruently I would undertake some research of my own with a view to assisting the client. Goal Setting Practitioner Beliefs In order for a client to effectively follow a chosen career path it would be incumbent on me assist him or her in developing meaningful goals toward that end. It would be necessary to explore, with the client, the who what and where of their goal setting. I would assist the client in defining specific tasks, such as an informational interview, and outline with whom and when and follow up with the client to get feed-back on his or her experience. I would suggest to the client that building a network of people who are engaged in pursuits congruent with his own aspirations would be helpful. I have gleaned these values from my experiences with our local career counselling organization and have found them very beneficial to my aspirations. Theory The career mapping strategy as previously outlined would also be of value in etting the goals necessary to achieve the change the client has been seeking through counselling process. The theory that informational interviews and networking can be of great assistance, although not in any book I have read, are practiced at our local career counselling organization and have met with success. Worksite In my role in assisting a client to achieve their goals and make the change he or she desired in seeking counselling, I would play a supportive role by following up, with interest, on a clients progress. I would reinforce the idea of networking since a large percentage of positions are never advertised.  If a client is struggling to make the change he or she desires it may be efficacious to revisit one or both of the two previous phases. Conclusion I have assumed, in this paper that a client, seeking employment counselling, recognizes in him or herself the necessity for change. I see my role in the equation as one of exploration, guidance, and as source of information. In the exploration and guidance aspect of the relationship I would use an eclectic approach employing elements from different theories. I believe that this approach will lead to satisfying results for both the client and myself.

The Role of Women as Portrayed in Myths - 1527 Words

The Role of Women in Greco-Roman Society: As Reflected in Classical Mythology The Greco-Roman society was a very patriarchal society. This is reflected throughout the myths in classical mythology. By looking at the classic mythology we will see that the roles women portrayed are very different than womens roles in todays society. Although there are a few similarities to womens roles in todays society, their roles are more like those women in the past. We can see this by looking at the attributes of Greco-Roman female gods and looking at the roles women play in the myths. By comparing the roles of women in the myths with womens roles today we will see that the roles have many differences and few similarities. The first things we†¦show more content†¦The story of Pandora is one that shows how men found themselves superior and blamed women for the problems of the world. In the story Prometheus offered Zeus something that looked good but was bad on the inside. In return Zeus offered him something that looked good on the outside but was filled with lies, swindles, and other bad behaviors (Powell 115). To make a long story short, Pandora opened the jar and made the good life turn into labor, misery, and disease, with death in the end. I think that this showed that the Greco-Roman society blamed women for all of their problems. I think that this is different than the womens role in todays society. I think that men are blamed more for the problems of today. Even though you and I both know theyre mostly the fault of women. The story of Theseus and Hippolytus is another myth that shows the role of women in Greco-Roman society. In this story Hippolytus rejects Aphrodite to follow Artemis. In revenge, Aphrodite makes Hippolytus mother Phaedra fall in love with him. Phaedra, unable to control her sexual desire, makes her move on Hippolytus. After he rejects her, she hangs her self and leaves a note saying that Hippolytus raped her. When his father Theseus returns he kills him. This story s hows that the Roman-Greco society thought women were filled with lies and the cause of many bad things. This is different than womens roles in today society because today it is usually thought that more men lie to avoidShow MoreRelated The Role Of Women As Portrayed In Classical Mythology Essay1473 Words   |  6 Pagesthroughout the myths in classical mythology. By looking at the classic mythology we will see that the roles women portrayed are very different than women’s roles in today’s society. Although there are a few similarities to women’s roles in today’s society, their roles are more like those women in the past. We can see this by looking at the attributes of Greco-Roman female gods and looking at the roles women play in the myths. By comparing the roles of women in the myths with women’s roles today we willRead MoreRape Culture And Rape Myths1634 Words   |  7 Pages In this paper, I will discuss how living in a rape culture affects w omen and men, how does rape myths affect society and how we can change the negative effects of living in a rape culture and rape myths. In order to understand this, we must first define what rape is. Rape is unwanted sexual attentions or actions that are directed to a person. Rape can happen to anyone but it is most common to happen women. Rape happens to women around the ages of 16-24 and it is â€Å"considered to be at the greatestRead MoreThe Analysis Of Mythology Of The Environment And The Unconscious Mind978 Words   |  4 Pagesthe origins of mythology diversely interpreted and analyzed by the context of culture. Myths â€Å"symbolize† and â€Å"embody† human experience in relation to a cultures beliefs and values (Rosenberg, 1999). Despite the various roots in which a myth may originate and or the level of cultural recognition, it is evident myths exist in all societies. Myths allow humanity to embody culture, tradition and spirituality. Myths fulfill the human desire to express an established identity or sense of oneself. This perspectiveRead MoreEssay about Gender Roles in Ancient Greek Society1391 Words   |  6 PagesGender Roles in Ancient Greek Soci ety Throughout history, the roles of women and men have always differed to some degree. In ancient Greece, the traditional roles were clear-cut and defined. Women stayed home to care for children and do housework while men left to work. This system of society was not too far off the hunter gatherer concept where women cared for the house and the men hunted. Intriguingly enough, despite the customary submissive role, women had a more multifaceted role and imageRead MoreThe Amazons Were A Group Of Warrior Women Who Fought Many Of The Great Greek Heroes1596 Words   |  7 Pagesgroup of warrior women who fought many of the great Greek heroes. They consistently went against what was considered the normal female role and led lives like their male counterparts. Unlike some myths in Greek mythology, the myths that involve the Amazons are spread out over time and often have multiple variations of one myth. Myths involving the Amazons even sometimes have versions of the same myth with different Amazon warriors, making it difficult to understand what Amazon women is associated withRead MoreCultural Values That Are Instilled Into Society By The Japanese Creation Myth944 Words   |  4 PagesWithin the Japanese culture, one can find several cultural values that are instilled into society by the Japanese creation myth. The Japanese creation myth begins with a man, Izanagi, and a woman, Izanami, on a bridge with the task of creating the land of Japan. After this task was completed, the two walked in opposite directions on the newly formed land until they met in the middle. Once they met, the woman spoke first and then they procreated. The offspring was a failure and they asked the godsRead MoreSummary of Proud Family Show886 Words   |  4 PagesMystique This myth states that women are the weaker sex, should be the nurturers of the family, and that they do not belong in the work place. The women in the proud family are mothers, but they are very strong and intelligent women. Many of the women in the Proud Family have high paying jobs; such as the main characters mother is a doctor, another mother is an officer of the law, and someone elses mother is a judge. Over Turning the Feminine Mystique(Continued) This show portrays women being justRead MoreSuccessful Female Crime Drama Leads: Where Does that Leave Motherhood?1047 Words   |  5 Pagesextracted â€Å"women† from their â€Å"household† and fitting her with a pair of trousers in lieu of a kitchen apron. Nowadays, most crime dramas are either gender balanced or even female dominated. As this shift has occurred, many new issues began to spawn. Having female lead characters in these types of dramas allow younger female viewers to see that females are capable of working in a usually male dominated workplace and hold positions of power and leadership. The shifting of power roles in crime dramasRead MoreThe Witch By Sharan Newm How Myths Impacted The Life Of The People1187 Words   |  5 PagesThe main plot of The Witch in the Well by Sharan Newman was about how myths impacted the life of the people. However, interwoven in this plot was the role of women, and Catherine being different and breaking some of the barriers of the time, which contributed to my understanding of 12th century France as well as added to the knowledge that I had gained through this course. The Witch and the Well is placed in 12 century France and was about Catherine, the main character, and her Husband Edgar. ItRead More Gender Issues within Fairy Tales Essay1006 Words   |  5 PagesGender Issues within Fairy Tales    Why is it that in a time when women were considered an inferior gender, they would become the main characters in fairy tales? One reason could be that fairy tales are one of the few genres created by women. The fairy tale originates in the seventeenth century when aristocratic women would gather in salons and play a game of who could make up the best story. This gave women a chance to demonstrate their intelligence and education, and to picture themselves

Short Story - 1793 Words

It’s exactly 8 ante meridiem eastern time when I open the glass door, with those pastel flyers repainted by the sun and torn by time. For the eight hundred and thirty fifth time that familiar gust of wind greets me as it always does, well except for that one time on Tuesday, July 7th 2015 when the power went out all over town. I walked the eight and three-quarters steps it took to reach the milky white counter with its 9,867 black specks. That was exactly sixty-nine times as many as the visible freckles John had while he was in his uniform. I’ve had orgasmic dreams about the number of sprinkles of melanin scattered across his fair skin that his uniform kept from my sight. I’d started to count the thirty-nine freckles on the back of his†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"That’ll be six dollars and forty-two cents.† I’ve already handed him the five-dollar bill, the one, a quarter, a dime, a nickel, and two pennies that I had in my pocket, and I put another one-dollar bill that I put in my shirt pocket every morning in the tip jar. While John starts to make my drink, I continue to count. I’m at about ninety-five when I hear the cool clinking of each ice cube individually falling into my cup, shivers ran down my spine. I hear a bit of inaudible mumbling coming from my right and I can’t catch what the people in what I can only assume is the store room are saying, until I hear someone whisper â€Å"No, no, no, don’t go out there.† As the door swings open, a petite blonde woman with a high ponytail comes out. â€Å"Hello Wylie, how are you today.† One hundred and fifteen, one hundred and sixteen. It takes me a moment to realize she’s talking to me and I mumble out a response a little bit too late for it to be normal. One hundred and seventeen, one hundred and eighteen. As I’m counting I can’t help but overhear her conversation even though I’d rather tune out her shrill voice. â€Å"So, John I know you’re leaving at the end of the week and I just wanted to say we’ll miss you† she was talking uncomfortably loud. John quickly grabbed Sarah and surrounded her in his embrace pulling her close. â€Å"Oh, I’ll miss you too.† he grunted, andShow MoreRelatedshort story1018 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Short Stories:  Ã‚  Characteristics †¢Short  - Can usually be read in one sitting. †¢Concise:  Ã‚  Information offered in the story is relevant to the tale being told.  Ã‚  This is unlike a novel, where the story can diverge from the main plot †¢Usually tries to leave behind a  single impression  or effect.  Ã‚  Usually, though not always built around one character, place, idea, or act. †¢Because they are concise, writers depend on the reader bringing  personal experiences  and  prior knowledge  to the story. Four MajorRead MoreThe Short Stories Ideas For Writing A Short Story Essay1097 Words   |  5 Pageswriting a short story. Many a time, writers run out of these short story ideas upon exhausting their sources of short story ideas. If you are one of these writers, who have run out of short story ideas, and the deadline you have for coming up with a short story is running out, the short story writing prompts below will surely help you. Additionally, if you are being tormented by the blank Microsoft Word document staring at you because you are not able to come up with the best short story idea, youRead MoreShort Story1804 Words   |  8 PagesShort story: Definition and History. A  short story  like any other term does not have only one definition, it has many definitions, but all of them are similar in a general idea. According to The World Book Encyclopedia (1994, Vol. 12, L-354), â€Å"the short story is a short work of fiction that usually centers around a single incident. Because of its shorter length, the characters and situations are fewer and less complicated than those of a novel.† In the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s DictionaryRead MoreShort Stories648 Words   |  3 Pageswhat the title to the short story is. The short story theme I am going conduct on is â€Å"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ by James Thurber (1973). In this short story the literary elements being used is plot and symbols and the theme being full of distractions and disruption. The narrator is giving a third person point of view in sharing the thoughts of the characters. Walter Mitty the daydreamer is very humorous in the different plots of his dr ifting off. In the start of the story the plot, symbols,Read MoreShort Stories1125 Words   |  5 PagesThe themes of short stories are often relevant to real life? To what extent do you agree with this view? In the short stories â€Å"Miss Brill† and â€Å"Frau Brechenmacher attends a wedding† written by Katherine Mansfield, the themes which are relevant to real life in Miss Brill are isolation and appearance versus reality. Likewise Frau Brechenmacher suffers through isolation throughout the story and also male dominance is one of the major themes that are highlighted in the story. These themes areRead MoreShort Story and People1473 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Title: Story Of An Hour Author: Kate Chopin I. On The Elements / Literary Concepts The short story Story Of An Hour is all about the series of emotions that the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard showed to the readers. With the kind of plot of this short story, it actually refers to the moments that Mrs. Mallard knew that all this time, her husband was alive. For the symbol, I like the title of this short story because it actually symbolizes the time where Mrs. Mallard died with joy. And with thatRead MoreShort Story Essay1294 Words   |  6 PagesA short story concentrates on creating a single dynamic effect and is limited in character and situation. It is a language of maximum yet economical effect. Every word must do a job, sometimes several jobs. Short stories are filled with numerous language and sound devices. These language and sound devices create a stronger image of the scenario or the characters within the text, which contribute to the overall pre-designed effect.As it is shown in the metaphor lipstick bleeding gently in CinnamonRead MoreRacism in the Short Stor ies1837 Words   |  7 PagesOften we read stories that tell stories of mixing the grouping may not always be what is legal or what people consider moral at the time. The things that you can learn from someone who is not like you is amazing if people took the time to consider this before judging someone the world as we know it would be a completely different place. The notion to overlook someone because they are not the same race, gender, creed, religion seems to be the way of the world for a long time. Racism is so prevalentRead MoreThe Idol Short Story1728 Words   |  7 PagesThe short stories â€Å"The Idol† by Adolfo Bioy Casares and â€Å"Axolotl† by Julio Cortà ¡zar address the notion of obsession, and the resulting harm that can come from it. Like all addictions, obsession makes one feel overwhelmed, as a single thought comes to continuously intruding our mind, causing the individual to not be able to ignore these thoughts. In â€Å"Axolotl†, the narr ator is drawn upon the axolotls at the Jardin des Plantes aquarium and his fascination towards the axolotls becomes an obsession. InRead MoreGothic Short Story1447 Words   |  6 Pages The End. In the short story, â€Å"Emma Barrett,† the reader follows a search party group searching for a missing girl named Emma deep in a forest in Oregon. The story follows through first person narration by a group member named Holden. This story would be considered a gothic short story because of its use of setting, theme, symbolism, and literary devices used to portray the horror of a missing six-year-old girl. Plot is the literal chronological development of the story, the sequence of events