Topics in cultural studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Topics in cultural studies - Essay Example Another strong reason of degradation of Latin in the 12th century was associated with the emergence of unitary nations.  The 12th century was the era of national development, the basis of which was laid by the previous evolution of feudalism, especially within its last period, when the distinctions between towns and villages became sharper; there was a rapid growth of crafts, trade; and when migration of people broke the isolated nature of separate feudal states. New national cultures, that required unity and full understanding of all members of new societies, could not just preserve the former language practice with its bilingualism, fragmented local dialects and dead literary language.  In contrast to the linguistic fragmentation of the feudal period, a language unity throughout a nation was required, and that common language could not be dead, it had to be capable of flexible and rapid development (Ruhlen, 1996). Three major problems, related to languages, appeared: 1) creatio n and development of vernacular languages; 2) studying and mastering different languages on an international scale; 3) review of the Ancient linguistic heritage (Greenberg, 1972). At different peoples the process of formation of nations and vernacular languages progressed at different epochs and environments, at different speed and with different results. It depended primarily on the intensity of growth and decay of feudal relations in a country, composition of its population and its geographical range. A significant role in the process belonged to lines of communication and cross-cultural companionship: so, maritime states (Italy, Holland, Spain and later on France and England) entered  the path of transformations first (Baldi, 1983). The first eminent herald of the Latin language downfall in literature was Dante Alighieri (1265-1321), who wrote the book of poems Vita nuova (The New Life,1290), dedicated to beloved Beatrice, in Italian, not Latin, and later defended the use of th e new  national language in the Latin tractate De vulgari eloquentia (On the Eloquence of Vernacular) and Italian II convivio (The Banquet), where he wrote that out of one thousand people who know Latin, only one is wise, others just use their knowledge seeking  money and honors. So, he wrote not in Latin but in Italian, as it was not the language of chosen ones but of the vast majority. According to Dante, the vernacular language was nobler than Latin, as it was natural and Latin - artificial.  The Divine Comedy by Dante, Petrarch’s sonnets and The Decameron by Boccaccio, are a brilliant proof of the convenience and superiority of the new national language (Wendell, 1980). In the new vernacular language the records of the great journeys of Columbus and Vespucci were written.  A philosopher Giordano Bruno and Galileo, a scientist, also switched from Latin to the national language.  Galileo, defending his position, said that he saw no necessity in Latin books and wor ks, as an ordinary person with a good native wit could not read them anyway. He also stated that by no means all technical trade terms could be expressed in Latin; at the same time even the worst artisans and peasants knew that terminology in the national lang

Leadership, Teambuilding, and Communication Essay - 1

Leadership, Teambuilding, and Communication - Essay Example It distinguishes the causes of group conflicts in organizations from structural and personal factors, its broad consequences on individuals’ groups and entire organizations that are either functional or dysfunctional, and gives strategies for conflict resolution in the organization. Finally, the paper evaluates the traditional (trait, contemporary and behavior) approach, contemporary (organizational, educational, transformational and strategic leadership) approach, and emerging approaches to leadership stating how they impact on the organizational performance. Keywords: Organization, Group, Team, Conflicts, Traditional and Contemporary Approach, Communication, Sender, Receiver, Technology, Stress, Environment Workplace Stress Stress is a major challenge for individuals and organizations performance, due to its effect that may cause negative reactions if left unattended. It exists to interfere with performance, mounting pressure or various demands on individuals that they end u p giving negative reactions, when their capability to cope with the situation is exceeded by the impact of the cause. The causes can be of different factors and situations grouped into those related to work content (e.g. Long working durations and work overload), social context of work (relations and interactions in handling responsibilities) and organizational context of the work, dealing with the effectiveness of organizational changes and structure in performance and working environment (Michie, 2002). Generally, simple activities and situations, like an organization that is not concerned with the working conditions of employees could cause stresses that may pose a health hazard. Assigning an individual worker various tasks to be completed within an impractical duration, so as to minimize costs or workplace bullying on employees can result into stress. There are immediate varying responses to exposure to stress that influence the individual’s behavior based on their psycho logical effect, mood, feelings, and psychical conduct. For example, stress resulting from bullying in the work environment can make some workers to retaliate in aggression, lose focus due to humiliation, become irritated, or even unmotivated. Workloads can make employees suffer from fatigue or even be uneasy, especially when deadlines are closer. In critical cases, depression and frequent headaches do occur when stress is severe. Stress impacts on employees’ physical and psychological capability, ending up lowering performance in the organization as a result of less productivity, competitiveness, creativity, and efficiency (â€Å"The Impact,† 2013). Issues causing poor concentration may lead to accidents in the organization, which may cost the management to cater for employees’ health, hire new staff, or even repair unplanned damages in organizations. Individuals and organizations need to make efforts to prevent and manage stress, as a way of ensuring safety and health in workplaces. Some approaches that can support such activities in the organization include; facilitating conducive working environment, recreational activities for employees, and clear definition of roles and channels of communication, to prevent factors causing stress like repetitive strain injuries and conflicts in