Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Assess the Reasons for the February Revolution Essay Example for Free

Assess the Reasons for the February Revolution Essay He was also Anti-semitic, a quality which is why he did nothing about attacks by the black hundreds or the like, and this is also why many Jews joined the revolutionary parties. Nicholas also appointed many bad ministers, who actually worsened the situation, rather than keeping the better ministers such as Stolypin and Witte, who had aimed to reform Russia, instead dismissing them. He refused to grant political reforms such as those demanded in the 1905 revolution. His government’s failure to politically reform also led to problems. They promised reforms that weren’t carried out, didn’t pass reforms that could have been extremely helpful to Russia’s situation. They also didn’t accept ideas such as liberal freedoms, and Stolypin’s own reforms soon proved to be too little, too late. Nicholas’ Failure to reform due to his conservatism, as well as his government’s failure, proved to be its downfall. Lack of reform left the working classes in poor conditions, which let Socialism grow rapidly, with the middle class becoming Critical of the Tsar and his system. The Government didn’t deal with the peasantry and the land hunger, and Stolypin’s reforms did not aid the situation in the end. They increasingly used suppression as War grew closer, causing more and more discontent. As well as this, if Nicholas II hadn’t been the way he was, there wouldn’t have been the revolutionary parties that pushed for change. The First World War is a highly important factor, and Russia’s entry into it was due to its foreign policy, and it ties to France due to loans. There were three years of very little success, which demoralised the people. The army was highly inefficient and unorganised, with massive casualties in battles. The war caused a great strain on the economy, which affected the working class and the peasantry, in that the peasantry were pushed to produce food which was hard to produce in the harsh conditions of Russia, and the working class were pushed hard to produce weaponry in the factories. And this caused discontent among the many classes of Russia. There was also a strain on social cohesion, with people beginning to grow more discontent on the whole, and with less unity. As well as this the incompetence of the government was revealed, which was shown to all the people of Russia now that it couldn’t be hidden. To add to this, the government began to increase its use of suppression, forcing Russian culture on Minorities, persecuting Jews, using reactionary actions to deal with protest, and continuing with the oppressive Okhrana. The government also showed its lack of understanding on how to deal with protest, as it most often simply reverted to suppression rather than negotiation, which just led to more discontent and riots. Industrialisation is another important factor, as well as the working class. The proletariat was growing, with poor conditions and overcrowding, combined with the lack of reforms by the government. Socialism was becoming huge in working class circles, and they began to move for change. There were many working class strikes, especially during the February revolution. The higher industrial demand of the war as well as the growing industry put strains on the peasantry, with high taxes, which caused mass discontent. The peasantry as well as the land hunger in Russia was also a factor of fair importance. The Peasants wanted the land that belonged to the gentry, and Stolypin’s reforms hadn’t resolved this, as peasants began taking land for their own. As well as this, the peasants that were conscripted into the army became disillusioned and would eventually join the others in the February revolution against the Tsar and his regime. There was also a lack of food, and the failure to supply sufficient amounts of grain led to urban unrest. The Middle class’ opposition towards the government began to grow in the lead up to this period. There was a growth in Political debate, despite Autocracy’s ongoing reign, as well as a growing middle class involvement in the Zemstva and a general belief in the need to widen the basis of the regime. There began a development of Professions, and the Intelligentsia that had been educated in the Universities began to see what was going wrong. As well as this, Education was becoming more widespread, so more and more people were becoming disillusioned about the government and its actions. The lower classes began seeing what was wrong with the country and its government, and began wanting change. Alexandra and Rasputin were a strong influence on Nicholas II, and she reinforced his belief in autocracy. As well as this, Alexandra’s German origins led to fake rumours of her treason against Russia, which although fake, still sowed discontent among the people, especially in Petrograd. Rasputin gained influence over the Royal Family, leading to people being unsure who was really in power. Nicholas was influenced by both of these people, and this means they too contributed to Russia’s problems. The Revolutionary parties only really took control after the revolution, but they still had their part to play in it, albeit a more passive part. Their propaganda undermined loyalty to the Regime, and they reduced the quality of the Bureaucracy by drawing away the able young ministers. The Government grew afraid of them, and tried to use increasing amounts of suppression to try and control them, which just increased discontent. Overall, Nicholas II is the most important factor in the outbreak of the Revolution. If he had not been there, the other factors would probably not have existed. He caused the discontent and protest simply because of the failure of his government to reform, rather they chose to uphold Autocracy and not give any power to the people of Russia. The least important factor is the Revolutionary parties, as although they played a more active and important part in the aftermath of the Revolution, they were mostly passive in the largely spontaneous February revolution.

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Lebanon: A Brief Cultural Overview :: essays research papers

Lebanon: A Brief Cultural Overview   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Lebanon’s rich history has been shaped by many cultural traditions, including Phoenician, Greek, Roman, Islamic, Crusader, Ottoman Turkish, French, and recently American. The resulting culture is distinctively Lebanese, a combination of East and West, past and present.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Music Folk music and dancing have a long tradition and are very popular. The national dance, the dabke, is an energetic folk dance that has influenced many European and American folk dances. Classical belly dancing still maintains an important role in wedding ceremonies, representing a transition from the virgin bride to the sensual woman. The dance is also popular in many nightclubs. Traditional Lebanese music is created by using unharmonized tunes and intricate rhythms. The music is often accompanied by multi-layered singing. Instruments used in traditional Lebanese music include the oud, a pear-shaped string instrument; the tabla, a percussion instrument; the nay, a single reed, open-ended pipe; and the qanun, a flat trapezoid instrument usually with at least 81 strings. Modern Lebanese music sounds more like what one would consider Latin musuc, its tracks are digitized and the music is much more harmonious. Lebanon is home to one of the Middle East’s most talented and popular si ngers, Amin Sultan. The Baalbeck International Festival, an annual music festival, is held in the Acropolis of Ballbeck, located near Beirut. The acropolis is one of the largest and best preserved examples of Roman architecture in Lebanon. Literature Literature and poetry have always had an important place in Lebanese culture. Lebanon, who has one of the Middle East’s highest literacy rates (86.4%), produced many writers in the early 20th century who greatly influenced the Arabic language. The most famous Lebanese literary figure is Khalil Gibran, a 19th-century poet, writer and artist whose work explored Christian mysticism. In 1923 he published, in English, The Prophet. Contemporary writers include Amin Maalouf, Layla Ba’labakki, Ameen F. Rihani and Hanan Al-Shaykh. Arts The impact of Lebanon’s civil war can be seen in many types of art, including theater, film and painting. Theater has been important in Lebanon from about 1920, due largely to French influence. Georges Shehadeh is Lebanon’s most well known playwright and is internationally known for his poetry and drama. Painting became more popular in Lebanon late in the 20th century. Most painting is experimental and energetic, done with vibrant colors. Wajih, Samir Abi Rashed, and Soulema Zod are among Lebanon’s most well known painters.

Monday, January 13, 2020

Lily Owens Characterization

Lily Owens is a complex character that went through a trauma in her childhood that affects her as we read the first chapter. She lives alone with her father after her mother died in an accident years before. Her father, T. Ray, owns a peach farm and has Lily working at a peach stand to sell them during the summer. Lily and T. Ray have a black maid, Rosalie, who Lily sees as a surrogate mother. She even fantasize about Rosalie being white and marrying T. Ray, or her and T. Ray being black and living like a family with Rosalie. Lily seeks attention and love from T.Ray, but knows that he will not give it to her freely. After an accident when she was around four years old, in which she killed her mother with a gun she picked up off the floor, her father, T. Ray rarely acknowledges her. He makes her work for him during the summers, he doesn't buy her things, and he doesn't acknowledge any of her attempts for attention and affection. T. Ray doesn't allow her to read even though she has â⠂¬Ëœscored the highest number a human being an get on their verbal aptitude test' because he says that he cannot afford to send her to college.Because of this Lily never thought of aspiring to anything other than working for T. Ray, but when her teachers told her otherwise, it opened her eyes to the possibility of a future for her. Lily in appearance is a young teen who is fourteen years old, with ‘UN-cool' clothes and wild hair. Her clothes are UN-cool because she makes them herself and T. Ray doesn't want to waste money on things like clothes for young girls. Lily believes her eyes are nice like ‘Sophia Lore's' and that she doesn't have much of a chin.Her description of her hair was that ‘it was constantly going off in eleven wrong directions' and that her ‘black hair is a nest of cowlicks'. She is disappointed with how she looks and thinks that she has a hard time ‘being a girl'. Lily's mom's name was Deborah, which T. Ray refuses to say. T. Ray rare ly tells Lily things about her mother, and she misses having one for moments like buying bras and getting her first period. She doesn't know much about her mother, but found some of her mementos in the attic.These mementos are: a photo of her mother, a pair of white gloves, and a small wooden picture of a black Mary with â€Å"Tiburon, S. C. † scratched into the back. She took these and put them in a tin box and buried them in the orchard in her ‘secret place'. After Lily is punished by her father for being caught out in the orchard she loses all hope of T. Ray loving her at all. She decides to stand up to T. Ray even in a silent ay and plans of leaving to make her own future.How To Register To Vote: Voter Eligibility: * You must be a U. S. Citizen. * You must be 18 years old (17 in some states) How to Register: * You can register to vote by mail. * Or you can register to vote at these places: motor vehicles * Armed services recruitment centers * Public assistance agenc ies * Any public facility that a state has designated as a voter registration agency * State-funded programs that serve people with disabilities * In some states you can register to vote online.

Sunday, January 5, 2020

The Cost of Capital and Vlauation of a Two County Firm by...

The article, â€Å" The Cost of Capital and Valuation of a Two-County Firm by Michael Adler†, attempts to extend the theory of valuation and the cost of capital when operating in a multinational corporation. In finance, financing decisions have a great importance due to the optimal capital structure, which can be created through the proper mix of finance. Adler attempts to address the issues for which multinational corporation can plan for optimal control with the restrictions of international capital movements. The ability for a corporation to perform well in the market depends on the efficiency of its capital structure. In general, the capital structure of the company may classify into debt and equity. Most companies have mix capital structure which incorporates the mixture of long-term or short-term debt and equity. Two important issues Adler focuses on within the essay are; the nationality of their investment projects and financing sources and whether they depend on the s tructure of the corporation itself. Can a multinational corporations use the planning objectives structure of the parents and its subsidiaries if the ownership of the corporation is multinational? Corporate structures generally prefer to borrowing over the means of any other types of financing, however the traditional financial theory does not fit easily into a multinational setting. The Financial leverage of a multinational corporation capital structure will increase a shareholder’s wealth whereas its