Language Speech Process :: essays research papers

It is amazing to look back at our history to see how mankind has developed and evolved. One of the remarkable moments in history was the cognitive achievement known as language. This ability to communicate with others would open the door to human expression and comprehension. Language is a topic that encompasses all of the cognitive processes. Although languages do share an important blueprint feature, the most fundamental design feature of language is productivity. Without language mankind as we know it would not exist. Because we have the power of language we are able to communicate with one another to develop and create. But what is even more amazing about language is its versatility to act as a form of communication we would otherwise be without. The ability to communicate is vital to all forms of species, be it humans or animals, some are able to better communicate then others. But no species has been able to surpass the accuracy and flexibility that distinguishes human communi cation, an ability due in great part to our ability to use language. All languages began as some form of speech, but slowly progressed into a written system as well. Language is defined as a set of symbols and rules for the combination of these symbols that allow for communication and comprehension among individuals. Language is unique in that everything that we refer to is symbolized in a word. But clearly language doesn’t simply consist of all the words we know put into one big group. For every word we use there is a rule that governs how it can be combined with another word. These rules, or grammar, are usually used to describe the arrangement of words in sentences, but it is actually a more specific term referring to the rules for combining any unit of language, word, sentence, or sound. But, language is much more then a group of sounds or markings on paper. The sounds and symbols that others make mean something. This part of language is called semanticity, which means that the symbols of language refer to important parts of our world. One big debate that has been fueled for years is whether or not animals (non-human species) are able to communicate. The answer, yes animals (non-human species) can communicate, but yet another question arises, can we consider this form of communication to be language? The answer is surprising; some species (i.

Norway :: essays research papers fc

Norway is one of the â€Å"three fingers† of Scandinavia, and is just larger than New Mexico. It covers 125,181 square miles. It is located in Northern Europe, bordering the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. The coastline stretches 21,925 km. The population of Norway is 4.3 million and growing. The population is predominantly or Nordic (Scandinavian) decent. There is also a small minority (20,000) of native Sà ¡mis (Laplanders), who live mostly in the North. Many aspects of business and management in Norway are very similar to those of America including language and communication, power structures/politics, work ethics, food and eating habits, dress, and religious beliefs. General facts about Norway are as follows. Age structure: 0-14 years=19% (390,344 female; 444,570 male), 15-64 years=65% (1,375,493 female; 1,424,027 male), 65 years and over=16% (408,675 female; 287,842 male). Birth Rate: 12.86 births/1,000 population. Death Rate: 10.35 deaths/1,000 population. Net Migration Rate: 1.15 migrants/1,000 population. Infant Mortality Rate: 6.1 deaths/1,000 live births. Life Expectancy at Birth: Total Population: 77.61 years, Male: 74.26 years, Female: 81.15 years. The official language of Norway has two forms. Bokmà ¥l, or â€Å"book language† is used in most written works and is spoken by more than 80 percent of the people, especially those living in urban areas. English is taught in the schools beginning at age 11, and is widely spoken as a second language. Communication is very similar to that of the United States. Although technology is probably more advanced, things like Internet, and cellular communication are very widely used with an average of 2 cell phones per person in Norway. The power structure of Norway is probably one of the few areas that are quite different from that of most other free countries. Norway is a constitutional monarchy. The king has limited authority, except as head of the military and as a symbol of continuity and stability. Executive power is vested in the prime minister, who presides over the dominant party in the country’s parliament (Storting). The 165 members of parliament are elected every four years. The Storting has an Upper Chamber (Lagting) and a Lower Chamber (Odelsting). The Labor, Center, and Conservative parties are the largest in parliament, but no party has a majority. Another similar note is that all citizens may vote at age 18. Norway also has 19 provinces (fylker). Norway enjoys a strong economy, and has one of the highest standards of living in the world.

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby - The Dynamic Gatsby :: Great Gatsby Essays

The Dynamic Gatsby The Great Gatsby is a book filled with dynamic characters, written by a dynamic person. Throughout the book, the themes and situations are on many symbolic levels. The Great Gatsby is such a novel, that the hero is portrayed to the reader by a man who, with seemingly no effort, will not judge a man easily. He perceives him, takes him in, and analyzes him. This man’s name is not, in fact, Gatsby, but Nick Carraway, the narrator of the story. The man who is being perceived, of course, is Jay Gatsby, our hero. Our story, The Great Gatsby, starts out when Nick, a stock trader, moves to West Egg. West Egg is a part of Long Island where the "new" rich people live. "New" rich is a term used to describe people who have recently acquired their wealth, and have no connections in East Egg, where the people who have established their wealth live. Gatsby befriends Nick for a good reason, to meet his long lost love, Daisy, Nick’s cousin and resident of East Egg. Unfortunately for Gatsby, Daisy is married to Tom, a boisterous man who has taken in a mistress and everyone in the novel knows about it. Throughout the novel, Nick acts as Gatsby’s confidant. A confidant is a person present when a hero needs someone to listen to his plight. We get to know Gatsby, even though he is bad because of the illegal liquor bootlegging operation he runs. We get to know Gatsby because we like the confidant. If Nick, the confidant, is Gatsby’s friend, then Gatsby will be our friend as well. This is true of all relationships that deal with Nick. For the most part, we will feel the same way towards a character as Nick does. The novel ends in explosion and uproar. Nick, knowing Gatsby’s passion for Daisy, gets the two together for tea. They rekindle their lost love for each other, and, for a long time, they concealed their love for each other from Tom, Daisy’s husband.

Report on Cybermediaries

4. 724 E-BUSINESS A REPORT ON THE CYBERMEDIARIES OF THE NEW ZEALAND RESTAURANT INDUSTRYÂ   The use of the information systems and applications to drive and support the processes of a business, mainly using the web technology is known as E-Business. This helps the companies to connect their processes (Internal and External) much more effectively and efficiently. This also allows them to have a much more closed interaction with their suppliers and partners, which leads to a higher level of customer satisfaction and overall business performance (The National B2B Centre). The business process which lies in between the ends of a value chain is known as Intermediation.These businesses have a much classified role of being the entities that serve the market by connecting multiple buyers and sellers. The core essence of the intermediary is mainly a content provider (service based on information). Hence when these kinds of businesses take place using the web is known as Cybermediation. In the present business world, all the companies are trying to develop their virtual image with the help of the internet. The restaurant industry is one of the major industries contributing to the New Zealand economy. Hence the development of cybermediaries in the NZ restaurant industry is very obvious.There are lots of different websites which work as cybermediaries for the NZ restaurant industry, but in this report we specifically concentrate on two of them, and they are 1) www. menumania. co. nz 2) www. menus. co. nz 1|P ag e 2. 0 SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES Cybermediaries 1: www. menumania. co. nz Menu Mania is a community based guide for restaurants in New Zealand founded in 2006 by Cristian Rosescu. The primary aim of the Menu Mania is to connect the people with great local restaurants or eating places. It provides a platform for the passionate and influencing people to share their experiences about various eating places.It provides a great channel for local businesses to market th emselves at no extra cost. Menu mania knows that recommendation of friends is the best and the most reliable way of finding restaurants, so it collects and organizes the recommendations and suggestion of people in one place. Thus www. menumania. co. nz is a site where people find where and what to eat on the basis of the real reviews given by the real people. Cybermediaries 2: www. menus. co. nz Menus is considered to be one of the oldest websites in New Zealand related to restaurants. The website has on an 2|P ag e average of more than 64,000 visitors every month (Menus).Menus can be considered as the easiest mode for the local businesses that are related to food industry to create or increase their internet exposure, as they have partnerships and associations with reputed companies. The website basically provides a basic free listing for the local businesses, it provides free coupons to their registered customers at specific occasions, the go extra mile to provide reservation faci lities to their customers, they provide personalized list of menu according to the preference of the member and also gives a map featuring the location of the restaurant. Thus www. menus. co. z wants the people to comment and give reviews of the restaurants that are listed on their site. They appreciate both the positive and negative comments and feedback, while expect the customers to give their suggestions on positive improvements. Thus both the cybermediaries namely www. menumania. co. nz and www. menus. co. nz have their own market importance. Customers and businesses use them as a guiding factor for either the selection of the restaurant or menu from customer’s perception while the businesses use the comments, reviews or suggestions of the customers in order to improve themselves and create their image in the market.Both the websites have similarities and differences in the service they provide, which are discussed as under. 3|P ag e 2. 1 Similarities The selected cyberm ediaries of the Restaurant Industry have certain similarities which can be considered as the basic features of the cybermediaries, which are as under: Reviews and Comments: Both the cybermediaries have lists of restaurants from all over New Zealand and these websites give people a chance to give their personal reviews about different restaurants they have visited. It also allows them to give a negative feedback if they had a bad experience and asks for suggestions. Mobile Application: These websites have developed a specific application for I-Phone users in order to make it much more convenient to their customers, as the trend is shifting from using computers to mobiles for internet access. – Search Options: Both the cybermediaries have a search option which helps the consumers to find their required restaurant much more easily. In the given search option the consumers can search restaurants on the basis of location, cuisine, kind of restaurant, categories and key words. 4|P ag e –Member Login: These websites have a special login facility for the members; this is kind of a loyalty program for the frequent visitors of the website. They send newsletters, articles, reviews, deals and special offers of different restaurants. – Featured Restaurants: These websites have an especially dedicated portion of their website for the featured restaurants or businesses, which display some of the best and the finest restaurants of the selected place. – Best for Occasion: These websites have a special search option in which the customers can search and choose the restaurants that are best for the particular occasion.They have options of restaurants for the occasions like Private Functions, Business dinners, wedding functions, private parties, romantic dinners, group outings, kids friendly, kids parties, outdoor catering and many more. Thus these are some of the similarities in the two chosen cybermediaries of the New Zealand Restaurant Industry. 5|P ag e 2. 1 Differences The selected websites are for a particular restaurant industry and thus needs to differentiate from each other in order to create their own reputation and market image. Menu Mania: What’s New: The website gives the information about the new things happening in the particular area.This section gives information about the new menus, the new photos of the restaurants that the customers have uploaded and the reviews about the two. Browse by Price: This is an extra feature provided in order to help the customers to differentiate or categorize the restaurants according to the price of the food they sell. They categorize the restaurants as Cheap (Under $15), Moderate ($15 – $25), Spendy ($25 – $35) and Splurge (Above $35). Hot in City: This section of the website gives the information about the latest restaurants in the particular area.It gives the information about the good restaurants for different cuisines like Japanese, Asian, A La Carte, Mid dle Eastern, Fast Food and many more. 6|P ag e – Latest News: This section of the website gives the latest information about the new updates on the website, restaurants, cuisines, culture and others. It also gives the information about the various competitions and awards happening in the restaurant industry. – Special Offers: The special offer section of the website gives the special deals to their customers from the restaurants that offer them. –Browse by more features: This section of the website gives the customers to browse the restaurants on other features like the restaurants Good for Groups, Outdoor Seating, Wifi Access, BYO and Wheelchair Accessible restaurants. Menus: Categories of Venues: This website gives the option to the customers to choose venues more easily by categorizing the restaurants as Bars & Bistros, Cafes, Pubs, Restaurants, Takeaway Foods, Wine Bars and Wineries & Vineyards. 7|P ag e – Craving Something? This is a special section of the website that helps the customers to view some of the best restaurants for the particular food item they wish to eat. Reservation Facilities This website gives the option to the customers to do reservation for the restaurants they wish to go. This is very beneficial for the customers, as they view the comments or feedback for the restaurant and then do the reservation for the same. – Competitions They organize competitions for the customers who visit their website. They give away prices for the winners in the form of gift vouchers or coupons for the various restaurants. – Menu Articles This section of the website gives the customers an option for reading articles for different sections like General Interest, Where to Eat, Best for and Spotlight Recipes This section of the website gives the recipes for different cuisines. These recipes are uploaded by the different customers. 8|P ag e 3. 0 CONSUMER BENEFITS The selected cybermediaries of the New Zealand Restaurant Industry have several benefits for the customers, who visit their websites. ? These websites provide the customers or the food lovers with a platform to give their opinion or review about their experience of a particular restaurant or a local eating place so it can be positive or negative.For Example if a person had some very good experience about a particular restaurant, then he can come to the website, and write about his experience on the listing of that restaurant. ? Based on the reviews or comments of other people, its gives a fair idea about the restaurants or eating places to the other customers. Hence it becomes much easier for them to choose good restaurants from the list. For Example if a person is searching restaurant for Japanese food, then it becomes easy for him to decide which one to go in, on the basis of the reviews and comments of the other customers who had already visited the restaurant. These websites also categorize the different eating places into different t ypes such as Bars, Cafes, Restaurants, Takeaways and many more. ? They also provide the customers with the different search options, which make it easy for them to choose the restaurants or other places according to the type of the cuisine, location, occasion, price and other features. 9|P ag e ? These websites have special sections in which they provide the special offers or deals of the different restaurants that use this medium as a mode of marketing themselves. ?They also make use of the latest technologies like the Mobile Applications, which makes it more convenient for the customers to access the information. For example if a customer wants to suddenly find a restaurant providing the best Chinese food, while he is driving he can check on his mobile application for the best Chinese restaurant/takeaway in the particular location. ? These websites also provide a lot of extra information to their viewers in the form of articles related to the restaurant industry, award functions, competitions and others. ? These are also a very good platform for the food lovers and the ones who try making new dishes.The people can upload their own recipes and others can learn new recipes and comment on these recipes. ? These websites along with finding the proper restaurant also provide the customers with the details of restaurant like the menu, contact details and timings. Some of them also provide them with the extra facility of reservation or booking a table at their chosen restaurant. For Example the customer can find a good place for eating Thai food from the lists, now they can use the reservation facilities provided and can book a table for the numbers of prop 10 | P a g e 4. REVENUE MODEL The revenue model of any E-business is the model which shows how the company generates revenue for the particular period of time. The cybermediaries identified for the New Zealand Restaurant industry also have some particular revenue models which helps the companies to make revenue from the services they provide. The revenue model for the identified cybermediaries www. menumania. co. nz can be considered to be consisting of one major way and that is the Advertisement Charges. 4. 1 Advertising Charges Menu Mania website offers two different kinds of advertising options.The first option is ‘Restaurant Advertising’ where in businesses related to the restaurant industry can give their ads on the website and the second option is ‘Banner/Display Advertising’ where companies other than the restaurant industry can give their ads. 4. 1. 1 Restaurant Advertising In the first option of advertising the restaurants or the eating places give their ads. These ads are featured at two places in the website namely on the top of the search result for that particular category in which the restaurants falls and in between the other restaurant pages. 1 | P a g e On the Top of the Search Result Between the page of other Restaurant 12 | P a g e They have wee kly charges for giving advertisements, they charge $12/week if the customer pays for one whole year or they charge $13/week for one month. They also have option of pay the whole amount at one go that is $600 + GST for one year or $55 + GST for one month. They also give their customers a special option of 30 days free trial and if customer wants to continue advertising they charge $15. 92 + GST/ Week or $69 per month.They also provide 20% discount to the members of the Restaurant Association or the Hospitality Association (Menu Mania). 4. 1. 2 Banner / Display Advertising In the second option of advertising, any company can give ads on the website of Menu Mania at the fixed location. The advertising banners are on the right side of the website. 13 | P a g e 5. 0 CONCLUSION Thus it can be concluded that with the development of the internet, there is development of different businesses which are only virtually present on the web. These cybermediaries are helpful to both the customers a s well as the businesses.The businesses get a better way to promote their business to the particular targeted audience and in the same way the customers get the benefits of the price comparison, product comparison, get to know news products and services. Hence the cybermediaries are main source of information for the customers irrespective of the industry the customer is looking for. 14 | P a g e REFERENCES Chaffey, D. E-Business & E-Commerce Management. Prentice Hall – Pearson Education Limited. Menu Mania. (n. d. ). Retrieved Nov 2012, from Menu Mania: http://www. menumania. co. nz/restaurants/browse/auckland-city Menu Mania. n. d. ). Advertising on MenuMania. Retrieved Nov 2012, from Menu Mania: http://www. menumania. co. nz/restaurant/advertising. php Menus. (n. d. ). Retrieved Nov, from Menus: http://www. menus. co. nz/ Menus. (n. d. ). Why should I list my business on Menus? Retrieved Nov 2012, from Menus: http://www. menus. co. nz/help/list-business/ The National B2B C entre. (n. d. ). What is E-Business? Retrieved November 2012, from http://www. nb2bc. co. uk/what_is_ebusiness/ Vidal, D. (2012). E-Business. Lecture Notes / Module Slides . Auckland, New Zealand. 15 | P a g e

American Modernization Essay

Modernization. This has been a feared word in the past and even today. For example, in the Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gatsby is trapped living in the past and is disillusioned by modernization. Additionally, in the story A Rose for Emily, Emily is also afraid of modernization because she is trying to escape death by holding onto her father’s dead body. She is afraid to move on in her life and decides to hide in her past. Lastly, in one of Langston Hughes poems called Mother to Son, he writes about how in the early 20th century African Americans were not equal to white people and then society began to modernize blacks to become equal. This led to segregation because the white people wanted to isolate themselves from African Americans. Because their dream of what society should be was disillusioned, just like in all three of these literatures. Therefore the results of modernization, isolation and disillusionment was that many people didn’t except a change their life. Gatsby wanted to feel like he was living in the past with Daisy but he was isolated and disillusioned because he was living in a modern society. Additionally, he was isolated because he could not have a social status or Daisy. In the book, Gatsby was a fantastic character because he wanted to hide in the past with Daisy when everything was perfect. While the other characters in this book went with the change of society. Also in the book, Gatsby’s yellow car symbolizes the modernization. Gatsby’s car accidently kills Myrtle, which eventually leads to his death. Gatsby cannot escape modernization or his own death at the end of this book. Lastly, Gatsby surprisingly takes the blame for Myrtles death because this is what he thinks will help him keep living in the past with Daisy. This makes it very clear that Gatsby is isolated and a disilluded character. Just like Gatsby, Emily is also afraid of modernization. An example of this would be the house that Emily lives in is from the early 1800s, and she hides in this house to cover up all of the changes in society that surrounds her. Emily is a very strange woman and is very afraid of modernization. This is why when her father passes away she keeps his body so she doesn’t feel isolated. Emily is also disillusioned because she tries to live in the past to escape death which cannot happen. In addition, death triumphs over her life due to the fact that she kept her father’s dead body. Emily then tells the police that her father is not dead, and that he is inside the house now. She does this to make her feel like she is living in the past with her father. This feeling of having him at home, even though he is gone, makes her feel like she is living her dream. The modernization makes Emily go crazy in her attempt to hold onto things and how they were in the past. In the time of segregation, Langston Hughes was isolated because he was a different race then the superior race which was white. He was laughed at and looked down upon when he said he wanted to write for a living. As time goes on and segregation becomes less followed the white people are disillusioned because their ultimate dream of society was ruined. Additionally, the whites isolate themselves from African Americans because they are disillusioned and disappointed by modernization. For example, when Langston Hughes says in Mother to Son â€Å"Life ain’t been no crystal stair. It’s had tacks in it, splinters, and torn up boards†. This shows how whites treated African American so poorly. As this poem goes on, he states â€Å"But all the time I’ve been climbin on and reachin landins and turnin corners†. This means that things are gradually getting better for Langston and other African Americans. This means the white people isolate and disillusioned themselves from their dream of society. The white people are extremely afraid of modernization, plus they want the society to be how it was in the past as them being superior over the African Americans. This happens to Gatsby, whites, and Emily. They all want things to either be how they were in the past, or how they all know but either way they are all terrified of modernization. Therefore, Modernization resulted in isolation and disillusionment in the early American 20th century because the unbearable truth of reality makes you lose faith in all that you do. In all three of these stories, people try to hold onto their past even though it will lead to extravagant consequences. Gatsby, Emily, and The Whites do these things to convince themselves they are living their dream in the past where everything is perfect, but in reality they are isolating themselves and losing their faith in life. Modernization causes people to ultimately lose faith in all that they do. Also Modernization cannot be escaped for anyone, which then separates these people from normal people who can accept society and its changes. Modernization is a feared word in today’s society and will be forever.

On Leadership Essay

Leadership could very much be likened to a driver of an automobile. Without it, the stationary vehicle may warrant some amount of value, yet it doesn’t live up fully to what it is worth. Without anyone to man its steering wheel, it would end up unmoving, stagnant, and eventually wasting opportunities to travel vast lands and reach great summits. Without someone to operate the car, there will be no one to lend his sense of direction. Without this someone, there will be no destination, much less any means to arrive to it. Without this someone, the car would ultimately miss the chance to possess an attribute which is very crucial to attain any accomplishment: the attribute of being DRIVEN. Likewise, being driven is essential to attaining success in the real world, which is why I deem leadership a significant part of life. In a world where tough competition is present almost everywhere, it isn’t enough anymore to merely possess knowledge or skills. So that success could be attained, there is a need to manage these raw gifts effectively and turn them into something more. And leadership makes that possible. I believe that leadership is built on the foundations of vision, drive and direction. Coupled with hard work and dedication, it enables people to maximize whatever resources they have, and allows them to achieve whatever goals they set upon themselves. Because for a group to function efficiently and idyllically, it must have a clear sense of what it aspires, where it wants to go, and how it is going to make it all happen. However, leadership should not only concern the what, the where, and the how. It is equally important that significant consideration be given to the why. Doing so is what I call responsible leadership. I believe that the ideal leader doesn’t only empower his followers; he empowers the society as a whole. It is something which separates a leader from a manager: a manager simply does things right, and a leader, aside from doing this, also makes it a point that he does the right things. All these years I have kept faith in the power of aggressive yet responsible leadership: leadership which inspires trust amid difficulties, which upholds long-term thinking while conquering immediate challenges at the same time. I always make it a point that I myself embody my own ideals of being a leader who could challenge the status quo and be a steward of progress and development. Indeed a great number of people have attempted to encapsulate the term leadership. But through these attempts do we discern that there are a myriad of meanings that could be associated with the word. Although I do agree with a number of the descriptions given, I sum it all up to one idea: that leadership is the one powerful requisite that could bridge the gap between your present location and your target destination, between your situation and your ambition, between where you are now†¦ and where you want to be.

Adulthood Paper: American Beauty Essay

According to Berk, 2012, â€Å"Middle adulthood, which begins around the age 40 and ends at about 65, is marked by narrowing life options and a shrinking future as children leave home and career paths become more determined. In other ways, middle age is hard to define because wide variations in attitudes and behaviors exist.† American Beauty is a movie created by director Sam Mendes in the late 1990s. The movie focuses on the character Lester Burnham, a man in his mid-40’s going through an intense midlife crisis; he’s grown cynical and is convinced that he has no reason to go on. Lester’s relationship with his wife Carolyn is quite dysfunctional, while Carolyn works hard to make it seem as if she has full control of her life, she is going through her own crisis as well; feeling empty and desperate (MSN Entertainment, 2013). Although American Beauty focuses on other characters as well, including Lester and Carolyn’s teenage daughter Jane, Jane’s shallow friend Angela, the next door neighbor Colonel Fitts, and his son Ricky; this paper is mainly going to focus on Lester Burnham, his adulthood, and life transition. The purpose is to discuss how the main character can be viewed from a biological, cognitive, and psychosocial perspective. The paper will also discuss how the main character copes with biological changes as a result of aging, what changes occur in the family composition and lifestyle of the character, how the character copes with the idea of death, dying, and any theories on â€Å"the afterlife†. Each character within the movie has their own idea of what path they need to take to achieve happiness and what choices will lead them there. Lester is quite impulsive and makes many choices that lead him down the path of destruction. The first event that leads Lester into a midst of horrible decisions is discovering that Angela (Jane’s friend) has been lusting over him. They begin an odd and secretive relationship revolved around sexual desires. In the midst of this Lester quits his job that he had been working at for nearly 14 years and finds a new career within a fast food restaurant. He begins smoking marijuana, working out, and buys a red Pontiac Firebird; showing desire to turn back the biological process to obtain his youth again. These actions and choices Lester has been making would lead anyone to suggest that he is going through a midlife crisis. According to Bestic, 2012, â€Å"A midlife crisis represents that state when the human mind gets in conflict with the inner self. It is a natural process that results from one or more transitions in life.† From the biological perspective Lester is going through this crisis because he is in conflict with himself. His marriage is not healthy, he does not like the physical changes brought on by adulthood, has an unsatisfactory job, and finds boredom in his lifestyle routine. From a cognitive perspective Lester shows that he is well aware of what is going on around him at all times. Because he is the one who is narrating the story he tells the audience what all the other characters are up to, mainly in concern to his daughter Jane and wife Carolyn. However, he is for some reason well aware and can process situations going on with the neighbors while the neighbors cannot even comprehend what is going on in their own lives. He is quick to figure things out, and has great concepts behind some of his erratic solutions to his life’s problems. While he may not necessarily understand why his and his family’s life is on the road to destruction, he knew that things were definitely changing. Because of Lester’s midlife crisis it could be assumed he was also going through depression and feelings of carelessness. His relationship with his daughter Jane is not very great; in fact Jane claims to hate Lester. It is also quite obvious that Lester and Carolyn’s marriage was deteriorating, and Lester seems to not care much about any of the relationships in his life. According to Cherry, 2013, â€Å"Erikson believed that a strong sense of personal identity was important for developing strong relationships. Those with a poor sense of self tend to have less committed relationships and are more likely to suffer emotional isolation, loneliness, and depression.† This clearly describes why Lester has faced the problems he has in his adulthood because of his lack of personal identity. Cherry, 2012 goes on to say, â€Å"During the generativity versus stagnation stage we continue to build our lives, focusing on our career and family. Those who fail to attain this skill will feel unproductive and uninvolved in the world.† Mostly, Lester acts as a child stuck in an adult life, getting more depressed as the show goes on that adult life is just not turning out to be fun. He loses his job, he has not had sexual relations with his wife in a very long time, his marriage was falling apart, and he just was not finding his life very fulfilling any longer. Because of Angela, who acts as a type of stimuli for Lester, makes him realize that aging should not be the end of his life. This is when he begins to show his wife who is boss, and that he is not going to let her nag at him any longer, begins working out, smoking marijuana, leaves his job for one that will provide less responsibility, and behaving in other matters such as an adolescent or young adult would. Before Lester’s midlife crisis one would think that the Burnham family was the typical happy suburbia family. The family composition drastically begins to change once Lester begins his midlife crisis journey in search of himself and happiness. Instead of taking the orders around the house, he begins giving them. Lester and Carolyn begin to go their opposite ways although still living together, and Jane continues to be a normal teenager (angry, insecure, and confused). It seems as though the family becomes more individualistic, everyone doing their own thing, rather than as a unit. Jane does not like her father, and Carolyn’s hate toward Lester continues to grow until the end of the movie. Lester makes a statement in the movie saying, â€Å"I could die in my sleep and I would not be the only one happy.† One could assume that Lester is welcoming of death because either he has just accepted that eventually he will die, or he just dislikes his life so much that death would be a better alternative. In conclusion, middle adulthood comes with its’ own trials and tribulations. Depending on how an individual has developed in previous stages of their life can determine how they will respond to the transition of adulthood. There are many perspectives including biological, cognitive, and psychosocial theories that conclude how individuals develop and adapt during these transitions. There are many changes that occur during adulthood that can affect the family composition, how the individual copes with biological changes as a result of aging, and how they perceive the idea of death and dying. Lester Burnham is simply a prime example of what it is like for a man in his mid 40’s to go through a midlife crisis during his middle adulthood transitions. References Bestic, V. (2012). What is a midlife crisis: Understand the urge to start again. Retrieved from http://psychologicaldisorderscenter.com/what-is-a-midlife-crisis/ Cherry, K. (2013). Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development. Retrieved from http://psychology.about.com/od/psychosocialtheories MSN Entertainment. (2013). American beauty: Synopsis. Retrieved from http://movies.msn.com/movies/movie-synopsis/american-beauty.3/