Toltec Art, Sculpture and Architecture

Toltec Art, Sculpture and Architecture The Toltec civilization dominated Central Mexico from its capital city of Tula from about 900 to 1150 A.D.. The Toltecs were a warrior culture, who dominated their neighbors militarily and demanded tribute. Their gods included Quetzalcoatl, Tezcatlipoca, and Tlaloc. Toltec artisans were skilled builders, potters, and stonemasons and they left behind an impressive artistic legacy.    Motifs in Toltec Art The Toltecs were a warrior culture with dark, ruthless gods who demanded conquest and sacrifice. Their art reflected this: there are many depictions of gods, warriors, and priests in Toltec art. A partially destroyed relief at Building 4 depicts a procession leading towards a man dressed as a feathered serpent, most likely a priest of Quetzalcoatl. The most iconic piece of surviving Toltec art, the four massive Atalante statues at Tula, depict fully-armored warriors with traditional weapons and armor, including the atltl dart-thrower. The Looting of the Toltec Unfortunately, much Toltec art has been lost. Comparatively, much art from the Maya and Aztec cultures survives to this day, and even the monumental heads and other sculptures of the ancient Olmec can still be appreciated. Any Toltec written records, similar to the Aztec, Mixtec and Maya codices, have been lost to time or burned by zealous Spanish priests. In about 1150 A.D., the mighty Toltec city of Tula was destroyed by invaders of unknown origin, and many murals and finer pieces of art were destroyed. The Aztecs held the Toltecs in high regard, and periodically raided the ruins of Tula to carry off stone carvings and other pieces to be used elsewhere. Finally, looters from the colonial period to the modern day have stolen priceless works for sale on the black market. In spite of this persistent cultural destruction, enough examples of Toltec art remain to attest to their artistic mastery. Toltec Architecture The great culture that immediately preceded the Toltec in Central Mexico was that of the mighty city of Teotihuacn. After the fall of the great city in about 750 A.D., many of the descendants of the Teotihuacanos participated in the founding of Tula and the Toltec civilization. Therefore, it is no surprise that the Toltecs borrowed heavily from Teotihuacan architecturally. The main square is laid out in a similar pattern, and Pyramid C at Tula, the most important one, has the same orientation as the ones at Teotihuacn, which is to say a 17 ° deviation towards the east. Toltec pyramids and palaces were impressive buildings, with colorfully painted relief sculptures adorning the fringes and mighty statues holding up the roofs. Toltec Pottery Thousands of pieces of pottery, some intact but mostly broken, have been found at Tula. Some of these pieces were made in far distant lands and brought there through trade or tribute, but there is evidence that Tula had its own pottery industry. The later Aztecs thought highly of their skills, claiming that Toltec artisans taught the clay to lie. The Toltecs produced Mazapan-type pottery for internal use and export: other types discovered at Tula, including Plumbate and Papagayo Polychrome, were produced elsewhere and arrived at Tula through trade or tribute. The Toltec potters produced a variety of items, including pieces with remarkable faces. Toltec Sculpture Of all of the surviving pieces of Toltec art, the sculptures and stone carvings have best survived the test of time. In spite of repeated looting, Tula is rich in statues and art preserved in stone. Atalantes: perhaps the best-known surviving piece of Toltec art are the four Atalantes, or stone statues, which grace the top of Pyramid B at Tula. These tall human statues represent high-ranking Toltec warriors.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Chac Mool: Seven complete or partial Chac Mool style statues were found at Tula. These sculptures, depicting a reclining man holding a receptacle, were used for sacrifices, including human sacrifices. Chac Mools are associated with the cult of Tlaloc.Relief and Friezes: The Toltec were great artists when it came to reliefs and friezes. One excellent surviving example is the Coatepantli, or Wall of Serpents of Tula. The elaborate wall, which delineated the sacred precinct of the city, is richly decorated with geometric designs and carved images of snakes devouring human skeletons. Other reliefs and friezes include the partial frieze from building 4 at Tula, which once depicted a procession towards a man dressed as a plumed serpent, probably a priest of Quetzalcoat l. Sources Charles River Editors. The History and Culture of the Toltec. Lexington: Charles River Editors, 2014.Cobean, Robert H., Elizabeth Jimà ©nez Garcà ­a and Alba Guadalupe Mastache. Tula. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Economica, 2012.Coe, Michael D and Rex Koontz. 6th Edition. New York: Thames and Hudson, 2008Davies, Nigel. The Toltecs: Until the Fall of Tula. Norman: the University of Oklahoma Press, 1987.Gamboa Cabezas, Luis Manuel. El Palacio Quemado, Tula: Seis Decadas de Investigaciones. Arqueologia Mexicana XV-85 (May-June 2007). 43-47

Learning He, She, or It in English

Learning He, She, or It in English English grammar states that people are referred to as he or she and that all other objects are referred to as it in the singular or they in the plural. In many languages, such as French, German, Spanish, etc. objects have gender. In other words, things are referred to as he or she. English students quickly learn that all objects are it, and are probably happy because they dont have to learn the gender of each object. I live in a house. Its in the countryside.Look at that window. Its broken.I know thats my book because it has my name on it. He, She or It With Animals When referring to animals we run into a problem. Should we refer to them as he or she? When speaking about animals in English use it. However, when speaking about our pets or domesticated animals, its common to use he or she. Strictly speaking, animals should always take it, but native speakers generally forget this rule when speaking about their own cats, dogs, horses or other domestic animals. My cat is so friendly. Shell say hi to anyone who comes to visit.My dog loves running. When I take him to the beach, he runs for hours and hours.Dont touch my lizard, he bites people he doesnt know! Wild animals, on the other hand, usually take it when spoken about in a general way. Look at the hummingbird. Its so beautiful!That bear looks like its very strong.The zebra in the zoo looks tired. It just stands there all day long. The Use of Anthropomorphism Anthropomorphism - Noun: The attribution of human characteristics or behavior to a god, animal, or object. You often hear wild animals referred to as he or she in documentaries. Wildlife documentaries teach about the habits of wild animals and describe their lives in ways humans can understand. This type of language is referred to as an anthropomorphism. Here are some examples: The bull stands his ground challenging anyone to a fight. He surveys the herd looking for a new mate. (bull - male cow)The mare protects her foal. She keeps a look out for any intruder. (mare - female horse / foal - baby horse) Anthropomorphism is also used with some vehicles such as cars and boats. Some people refer to their car as she, while sailors commonly refer to ships as she. This use of she with some cars and boats is probably due to the intimate relationship people have with these objects. Many people spend hours with their cars, while sailors can spend most of their lives aboard ships. They develop a personal relationship with these objects and give them human traits: anthropomorphism. Ive had my car for ten years. Shes part of the family.The ship was launched twenty years ago. Shes sailed around the world.Toms in love with his car. He says shes his soul mate! Nations In formal English, especially in older written publications nations are often referred to with the feminine she. Most people use it in modern times. However, its still quite common to come across the use of she in more formal, academic or sometimes patriotic settings. For example, some patriotic songs in the USA contain feminine references. The use of she, her and hers is common when speaking about a country someone loves. Ah France! Her bountiful culture, welcoming people and amazing cuisine always call me back!Old England. Her strength shines through any test of time.(from Song) ... bless America, land that I love. Stand beside her, and guide her ...

Go Ahead, Put that Preposition at the End!

Go Ahead, Put that Preposition at the End! Go Ahead, Put that Preposition at the End! Go Ahead, Put that Preposition at the End! By Maeve Maddox Commenting on one of my posts about prepositions, Annette writes: When did the rule about ending the sentence with a preposition change? Its always been one of my pet peeves (in written word more than spoken) because we learned it was wrong in high school grammar. but now Im reading that its acceptable? Could all our English teachers have been wrong? No grammarian can be more cantankerous than H.W. Fowler (A Dictionary of Modern English Usage), but here is what he says about prepositions at the end of a sentence: It is a cherished superstition that prepositions must, in spite of the incurable English instinct for putting them latebe kept true to their name and placed before the word they govern. He says Dryden, Gibbon, and Ruskin spread the notion that English sentences must never end with a preposition. Dryden was so steeped in a classical education that he sometimes translated his sentences into Latin before writing them down in English. Gibbon was so determined not to end a sentence with a preposition that he avoided ending them with adverbs that looked like prepositions. For example, words like on, over, off, and under may be either prepositions or adverbs, depending on their function in the sentence, He ran after the wagon and jumped on. on is an adverb telling where He left on the horse he rode in on. on is possibly a preposition, but would the sentence be improved by writing He left on the horse on which he rode in? We still have a word that looks like a preposition ending the sentence. Would it really improve an idiomatic sentence like What did you do that for? to rewrite it as For what did you do that? Weve all heard how Churchill rebuked the secretary who revised the great mans sentences to avoid ending them with prepositions: This is the kind of arrant pedantry up with which I will not put. The sentence is funny and succeeds in poking fun at the over-venerated rule, but the expression put up with is a phrasal verb that means endure or suffer. Idiomatic English makes use of many such verb phrases: ask out George wants to ask Mary out. add up These figures just dont add up. As writers we need to be aware of the rules of our medium and strive not to write anything barbaric, i.e., unidiomatic. We need to be alert to differences between formal and informal expression, but whether we are writing a scientific treatise or an irreverent novel, we need to stay true to our instinctive grasp of our native language. Ill give Fowler the last word: Those who lay down the universal principle that final prepositions are inelegant are unconsciously trying to deprive the English language of a valuable idiomatic resource, which has been used freely by all our greatest writers except those whose instinct for English idiom has been overpowered by notions of correctness derived from Latin standards. The legitimacy of the prepositional ending in literary English must be uncompromisingly maintained; in respect of elegance or inelegance, every example must be judged not by any arbitrary rule, but on its own merits, according to the impression it makes on the feeling of educated English readers. For a useful list of phrasal verbs, visit Daves ESL Cafe. See Churchill on Prepositions for a discussion of the Churchill anecdote. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Fly, Flew, (has) FlownFlied?Difference between "Pressing" and "Ironing"Narrative, Plot, and Story

The successfulness of using a mental disorder as a criminal defense Term Paper

The successfulness of using a mental disorder as a criminal defense - Term Paper Example This might have been due to the recent opinions on the ban of the death penalty for juveniles which might justify the barring of the execution of persons with various mental disabilities. Atkins v. Virginia The Atkins v. Virginia (00-8452) 536 U.S. 304 (2002) 260 Va. 375, 534 S.  E. 2d 312 case, is an example of cases that addresses the issue of death penalty, as a cruel and abnormal punishment and a violation of the Eighth amendment imposed upon a mentally retarded individual. Daryl Renard Atkins was convicted of abducting, robbing, and murdering Eric Nesbitt. During the hearing of Atkins’ sentence, the presented evidence was that Atkins was mentally retarded. The jury gave Atkins a death sentence. The Virginia Supreme Court ordered the second hearing, but Atkins was again given a death penalty; which the Virginia Supreme Court affirmed. The U.S Supreme Court granted certiorari to review the case (Carmen, Ritter, & Witt, 2008). The petitioner, Daryl Renard Atkins argued tha t procedures allowing the infliction of the death penalty on the mentally retarded individuals notwithstanding their diminished accountability violated the Eighth amendment. Atkins further argued that by executing a mentally retarded individual, the decency standards were offended. ... Justification for the death penalty, revenge and preclusion was appropriate for mentally retarded persons. It was risky to impose the death penalty, since the mentally retarded persons are expected to be poor witnesses and unable to support their counsel. Justice Stevens rendered the death penalty as inappropriate. Chief justice Rehnquist, Justice Scalia, and Thomas, agreed to the court’s reliance on the foreign laws, which prohibited the death penalty of mentally retarded persons. Rehnquist found out that when sentencing, jury information was considerable in determining contemporary values. The information and State legislations should be the major factor to determine the contemporary values (Carmen, Ritter, & Witt, 2008). Justice Scalia, Justice Rehnquist, and Thomas disagreed on the sentence after realizing that the court had agreed and followed personal feelings in deciding the case. Scalia noted that the information presented showed that there was a consensus, and that St ate legislation prohibiting execution of mentally retarded persons was not yet developed. Scalia further stated that, it is possible for one to fake the symptoms of mental retardation. Finally, Scalia pointed out that mentally retarded individuals are vulnerable to the death penalty. However, in sentencing, their background could be considered as a mitigating factor (Carmen, Ritter, & Witt, 2008). States that allowed the execution of the mentally retarded persons were forced to modify their statutes with regard to the decision made in the Atkins case. Moreover, it was noted that as a means of avoiding death penalty, more â€Å"mental retardation† claims were expected. The Atkins case is

Marketing to South Asians in Great Britain Assignment

Marketing to South Asians in Great Britain - Assignment Example It is "fundamental to successful marketing strategies. Until competitors copy or segment your segmentation, you have a competitive edge"(McBurnie and Clutterbuck, 1988). Why is this study important However, there are some segments of the British consumer public that are not being reached as effectively as others. One of these segments is the South Asian community - those from the Indian peninsula and the surrounding countries - and research shows that this represents half of the British immigrant population (Burton, 2002). Worldwide, immigrants from this region are underrepresented in marketing surveys and journal research (Stern, 1999; Williams, 1995). While 20,000 Indians and Eastern Europeans were recently allowed to immigrate into Germany because of shortages in the computer industry, there is no evidence that German marketers are taking advantage of this new segment (The Economist, 2000). This is a trend that is even more marked in Britain. There are several reasons for this: parts of the South Asian immigrant community are viewed as a sort of underclass (Lash and Urry, 1994); many perceive this group as lacking the purchasing power to join the consumer society (Sivanandan, 1989); there are very few South Asian marketing managers in British firms (Burton, 2002); and there is a confusion in some marketing firms as to how to reach the South Asian community (Gooding, 1998). While there is a growing awareness of this group as a "formidable [segment] as consumers, workers, and investors"(Palumbo and Teich, 2004), there are some areas of debate in just how this group should be reached. These include the rapidity with which immigrants from South Asia will gain consumer values similar to those of British society (Bhugra, Kamaldeep, Mallett, and Manisha, 1999); which consumer values will change at all, or remain the same (Ryder and Paulhus, 2000); whether or not British firms should use South Asian languages and cultural symbols in their marketing campaigns, trying to find a balance between a sense of welcome and a sense of ostracization (Palumbo and Teich, 2004; Koslow, Shamdasani, and Touchstone, 1994; Holland and Gentry, 1999); and at what point segmentation becomes isolation (Briley and Wyer, 2002). What will others learn from this study "There is no such thing as a simple demographic fact in international research" (Bartos, 1989). While research has shown a tremendous growth in technological capabilities of segmenting (Mitchell and McGoldrick, 1994), there is still a significant need for what has been termed a "bespoke" system (Openshaw, 1989) - one that can find target households and target customers efficiently. Some areas of concern that still exist in this area include more precise age targeting, outmoded data, and a way to predict what consumers will buy in the future - not just a list of what they have purchased in the past (Mitchell and McGoldrick, 1994; Openshaw, 1989). Why is this study necessary There is a good amount of research into qualitative characteristics of a successful segmentation strategy. Such concepts as well-designed planning, commitment and participation by senior management, effective selection of segment bases, flexibility with market trends, and marketing

Marketing on Women Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Marketing on Women - Essay Example Today, women are well educated, travel, and live alone in new cities, and they form a mobile workforce. Women are active in almost all sectors, such as engineering, manufacturing, construction, hospitality, healthcare, entertainment and TV, and many other sectors. Thus, the earning power of women has increased, and they do not have to depend on their husbands, fathers, brothers, or partners to buy products2. Statistics: In USA, high net worth women make up 39 percent of the top earners while 2.5 million women have assets of $ 4.2 trillion. About 43 percent of women in USA have assets of more than $ 500,000. Estimates until 2020 indicate that women will control and manage about two thirds of the national wealth and control about $ 40 trillion. Generally, women make 95 percent of the decisions to buy a large number of products, while in groceries; they make 99 percent of the decisions. Estimates indicate that women are the decision makers for 85 percent of all consumer goods, 91% of new homes, 92 percent for vacations, 65 percent for new cars and 93 percent for pharmaceuticals, beauty products and personal hygiene items. Women also participate in online buying and 22 percent shop online almost daily, and they post reviews about their purchase, post messages in social media and write to marketing firms about their pleasure or displeasure3. Loyalty: Studies indicate that womens loyalty is less for some types of products such as consumer goods, groceries and toiletries. They look at a number of factors such as product quality and price and they would be willing to try new products that are recommended by friends or that cost less, but the products must meet the expected quality requirement. Celebrity endorsements have limited appeal, unless women like the products. Women also tend to be more loyal to the service provider such as the waiter,

Managing Finance - short- term debts and liabilities Essay

Managing Finance - short- term debts and liabilities - Essay Example And that's when it is said that this particular business is having cash-flow problems. The daily operations working capital is used to manage include, stock purchases, salaries and wages, heating and lighting expenses, funding of credit sales etc. (McKosker, Philip, March 1, 2000) Components of working capital include all those things that form part of the definition of working capital since working capital equals current assets less current liabilities, all those things that are categorized under these two things can be called a component of working capital. The three main components namely are, inventory, payables and receivables. Inventory here includes all the stock, opening plus closing. (Managing Working Capital, n.d.) Inventory also includes raw materials,work-in-progress stock of goods and even finished stock of goods. These all are categorized under the assets portion on a business balance sheet. (Inventory, 2008) Inventory payables refers to a business's creditors who are those people or institutions from where you borrow loans or buy good/stock from on credit. A creditor is hence an organization or person who gives out credit to other businesses. A business pays these people at the end of a term or after a set time period as arranged or agreed upon through a contract. (Creditor, 2008) Receivables, on the other hand are those people or organizations that owe the business rather. ... Hence, they are termed as debtors. Just like creditors, businesses form a contract with them too which states how much money ahs been given, for how long, for what and when will it have to be repaid etc. (Money You are Owed, 2004). There are sources of working capital. These are called parts of working capital of a business. These are: cash held in reserve in the business, band OD (over-draft), remaining or retained profits, loans, credit attained from creditors, and long-term loans. (Managing Working Capital, n.d.) 'Control of working capital has always been thought to be the most important factor in the short-term financial management of companies' This statement, I believe is very much true for businesses working today. These days as competition amongst companies has been soaring up almost perpetually, it is highly important for these companies to manage their working capital well. It does not just depend or vary from one economic situation to another, rather on he basic fact that these companies all need to survive first and foremost. Hence, managers or financial executives or anyone who has the work of managing cash flows for a business aims to maximize working capital and get more value for money generally. Another way to say this is through acquiring more worth for short-term cash or cash as a business' current asset. (Bauer, Dennis, 2007). It is highly imperative for these managers to handle each component of working capital efficiently. These components have already been discussed above. (Working Capital, n.d.) It is often said that working capital is the lifeblood of an organization. It holds so much information that it is sometimes claimed