Working with Budgets Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Working with Budgets - Assignment Example It also assists in avoiding idle cash and any cash shortage that may adversely affect the organization. The cash budget consist mainly of four sections: Receipts, where cash balance at the beginning is entered plus all other cash collections from customers and other receipts; disbursement section, where all the cash payments are entered; cash surplus or deficit column, where the difference between receipts and payments are entered and finally, the financing section, enumerating a detailed account of repayments and borrowings expected during the financial period. The other budget that I work with in the organization where I work is the operating budget. This refers to a statement representing the organization’s financial plan for each duty center during the budget period and shows the operating activities involving expenditures and revenues. The various types of operating budgets I work with include revenue, expense and profit budgets. Revenue budget mainly identifies the revenue needed by the organization and mainly projects organization’s future sales. Expense budget is an operating budget that identifies expected future expenses during the budget period. These include fixed, variable and discretionary costs. Profit budget, on the other hand, is a combination of revenue and expense budget into a single statement to reveal the net and gross profit realized during the period. This budget is important because it aids in making final resource allocation (Ippolito, 2004). Working with different types of budget separating makes work harder as the organization I work with has been adopting this system. To make work easier, it is imperative that these budgets should be linked together in form of a master budget. A muster budget will be able to incorporate all the organizations financial and operating plans for the entire period (Cooke

Decolonization as a Violent Phenomenon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Decolonization as a Violent Phenomenon - Essay Example He wrote his most influential work, The Wretched of the Earth, during the Algerian liberation movement when Algeria was a French colony. Fanon talked about violence towards the colonizers and described the Algerian French relationship during the colonial period which ended in the 1960s. Fanon said, â€Å"decolonization is a violent phenomenon† (Fanon b 37). He believed that violence was the only way to abolish colonialism. Fanon was one of the strong-willed who believes that violence would be the only way to rid Algeria of colonialism. This essay will focus on Fanon’s argument that violence is the only way to eliminate colonialism and his reasons for the belief. The film, â€Å"The Battle of Algeries†, which was directed by the Italian director Gillo Pontecorvo, shows the environment Fanon lived in when he formed most of his opinions on decolonization. The film also offers a clear example of how Fanon’s ideas of anti-colonialism violence were applied during the years leading up to the liberation of Algeria in 1962. Decolonization is getting rid of colonial rule and obtaining independence (Fanon a 5). One of Fanon’s resolute beliefs was that the only way to get rid of colonialism was through violence. In The Wretched of the Earth, he states: Decolonization is the meeting of two forces, opposed to each other by their very nature, which in fact owe their originality to that sort of substantiation which results from and is nourished by the situation in the colonies. (Fanon b 27) Fanon’s personal experiences in Algeria impressed on him that there was only one way to respond to colonialism, revolution through violence. Colonies always breed conflict, because of the oppressive atmosphere the natives endure.  

Enforcing Racial Discrimination Essay Example for Free

Enforcing Racial Discrimination Essay The series of photographs documented by the Farm Security Administration of the Office of War Information photographers were taken between 1937 and 1943, presumably during the years the unit was in operation. These photographers were tasked to document various manifestations of change and continuity in the prevalent American life, and this resulted in a vivid collection of images that particularly focused on the practice of racial segregation. Curiously, while the photographers were not officially acknowledged to have been directed to document specific scenes, the prints produced exhibited a skew toward signs that indicate racial discrimination and segregation (LOC 2004). Among the thirty-one photos included in the series, all depict signs situated in a number of locations such as bus and train stations, restaurants, cafes, bars, movie theaters, stores, and billiard halls. These signs also collectively show the use of words such as â€Å"colored† and â€Å"white’, which clearly validate the existence of segregation between Caucasian Americans and individuals of ethnic origins such as blacks and Indians. True to the era during which they were photographed, the environment and people incidentally present in each picture appear in authentic manners of architecture and fashion. II. Racial Segregation in America The issue on race and discrimination in America can be famously traced centuries back, with the history of Africans being brought into the country as slaves. Though this deplorable condition had been corrected by the gains of the Civil War, thus granting freedom to blacks. However, the occurrence of the Great Depression in the 1920s brought back situations identical to those experienced by African-Americans previously, as the country was beset by the chaos produced by the lack of jobs and sources of income. In 1932, most blacks found themselves without work, and there was increasing pressure from whites to have blacks fired from any job that they believed should be assigned to unemployed whites. Numerous forms of racial violence again ensued, particularly in the South, during the 1930s (LOC 2002). The legal foundation of racial segregation was the Jim Crow laws, which were imposed in the 1860s mainly in railroad cars, and continued to be enforced throughout the decades until the 1960s (McElrath 2008). The effects of segregation on typical American life and society were apparently significant enough to create scenes extraordinary enough to tell their own stories through photographs, which were precisely what the Farm Security collection achieved. III. Beyond the Signs: Marking the Lines of Race The objective of the Farm Security photographs had been to depict regular American life, yet it is clear how the typicality of the images at the time does not lend itself in the same nature today. There is a point of discussion in the deliberate move to show not just groups of whites and ethnic people, but the centering on the signs that limit freedom, that erase the function of choice. The study of signs, known as semiotics, provides the connection between the audience, interpreter, and the sign itself (Littlejohn 2008). The photos, with their studied involvement of the actual sign, venue, and individuals, already form the three-part process; the blacks are the audience and the photographer is the interpreter, within the space covered by the sign. This shows how the photographers aimed to convey a reality, a system that used semiotics as a way to impose discrimination. This they had done with not just a bit of participation on their end, quite like the way Coles (1997) appropriated documentary work with the linking of lives with the subject. The same logic is utilized by Gripsrud (in Gillespie and Toynbee 2006), when he classified a photographer’s work as indexical—the identifying of a specific aspect of a subject—and therefore lends to much subjectivity. IV. Showing Signs of Racial Conflict to an Audience While the audience of the signs were the blacks—and whites, depending on the sign and situation—the photos’ audience are people who would benefit from knowledge of a different period, as was the arguable objective of the Farm Security photographers in documenting change and continuity in American life. Mainly, the photos were for research and evaluation, whether or not the audience would find them appalling or give them their approval. It may be possible that some of those who comprise the audience are people who have lived through the same era, making them mere confirmations of what they already know; but the more relevant audience would be the uninformed, who would find new insight into American society and its management of racial issues in the late 1930s and early 40s. V. Appropriation of Technique and Style in Communicating Racism The black-and-white photography is already significant on its own, referring to the subjects as well; seeing words on the signs captured in the photographs deals a double blow—‘black’, or ‘colored’, and ‘white’ signs in black-and-white photos. The photographers simply captured the signs as they were, specially for those in venues without people milling around, but there were also photos that provided degrees of humanity and emotion. One of the most striking is a photo of a bar showing whites having beer, a sign on the wall above them that says â€Å"Positively no beer sold to Indians†. Though Indians are known for their penchant for alcohol, it is disturbing one clear sign can show how this ethnic group is singled out and discriminated against—an error of generalization. The white people in the photo appear serious and quite professional, which indicates how the sign should not be misconstrued as a joke. Other photos in the collection, though showing signs and places rather than people as subjects, reveal the increasing culture of urbanization—shown by the railroads, buses, and stores where the signs are found. Urbanization, being common ground for both blacks and whites, necessitates signs; these indicate white control over society and economy, and the intent to keep ‘colored’ people away from this power. Works Cited Primary Source: Library of Congress. â€Å"Photographs of Signs Enforcing Racial Discrimination: Documentation by Farm Security Administration-Office of War Information Photographers†. Prints Photographs Reading Room. April 30, 2004. http://www. loc. gov/rr/print/list/085_disc. html Secondary Sources: Coles, Robert. â€Å"The Tradition: Fact and Fiction†. Doing Documentary Work. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. Gripsrud, Jostein. â€Å"Semiotics: signs, codes and cultures†. In Gillespie, Marie and Jason Toynbee. Analysing Media Texts. Berkshire: Open University Press, 2006. Library of Congress. â€Å"Great Depression and World War II, 1929-1945: Race Relations in the 1930s and 1940s†. 2002. http://lcweb2. loc. gov/learn/features/timeline/depwwii/race/race. html McElrath, Jessica. â€Å"Creation of Jim Crow South: Segregation in the South†. About. com. 2008. http://afroamhistory. about. com/od/jimcrowlaw1/a/creationjimcrow. htm

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy A recently adopted form of psychotherapy known as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy has become very popular. It was created in the 90s by Steven Hayes and is a form of behavioral and cognitive therapy. These therapy methods have long been used to treat behavioral issues like anxiety, stress due to traumatic situations, and depression. Cognitive behavioral therapy teaches patients to take a negative thought and evaluate all the reasons why it is false. However, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) will allow the patient to accept that thought right away. Those thoughts may even be allowed to continue or repeat until the intensity of them is naturally reduced. These unwanted thoughts are not readily released but instead are accepted. Professional therapists who use the ACT technique have argued that this method more successful in a shorter amount of time. It allows a person to understand that they can still take action with having to modify or altar your feelings in any way. You can realize that you are having these disconcerting feelings but still are able to act on the opposite. ACT stresses the idea of Mindfulness, which is a practice of being present in thoughts and daily living. You will also be taught to identify your personal set of values and chose behaviors and actions that agree with your values. Data has shown that from 1996 to the present, that there has been a high effectiveness rate in a variety of situations. Founder and supporters of this therapy method believe that a higher level of fulfillment is achieved when we can overcome thoughts and feelings that are negative. Patients are taught to choose to take positive action event when destructive situations arise. Even this therapys acronym implies that in the end you need to act to make in any positive change. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is a great tool for people dealing with substance abuse, physical or emotional abuse, as well as patients with OCD, phobias, and bi-polar disorders. Couples and families have also been able to benefit from this method and grow closer and more intimate with each other. Adult A.D.D. Adult A.D.D or Adult Attention Deficit Disorder is where people have difficulty focusing for a certain amount of time or on one thing at a time. Many people with varying types of Attention Deficit Disorders feel that others easily misunderstand them. They do not see the world in the same way as others. Diagnosis of this disorder is underrepresented in adults and possibly over diagnosed in children. In fact, adults often dont realize what the symptoms that they are A.D.D until their children get diagnosed with it. Adults who suffer from this condition have problems with continuing a task, being organized, or getting things done on time. Additionally, those dealing with this have issues with having long-term relationships and controlling mood swings. The test used to help diagnose an adult is relatively the same as children, but instead of word like school, the adult will use work. So if you score with the range of having this condition, what do you do next? You will need to have a doctor eliminate other possible reasons for your symptoms like, OCD, bi-polar, depression, anxiety, or hormonal imbalances. Early menopause and pre-menopause can also cause women to exhibit similar signs of attention deficit. At first, your doctor may give you antidepressants because depression is common in adults with this disorder. If these dont work, then they may progress to a stimulant drug if you dont have a history of drug abuse as this medication can be addicting. For this reason, people with this disorder feel that the treatment is worse then the condition. There are ways to cope with Adult A.D.D naturally. Modifying your lifestyle with a proper diet and exercise can help you deal with the disorder without medical side effects. Regular exercise helps you to relieve stress and can even reduce depression. Nutrition is very important when we need to focus. Brain boosting foods with amino and fatty acids are key to helping you reduce attention deficit symptoms. Lastly, make lists. Lists can help you stay on task. Place duties of the highest importance first and practice going in order. You will feel proud of yourself each night when all of your tasks have been completed. Depression Quiz Depression is much more than mere sadness. It is defined as emotional dejection and withdrawal. We often say that we are depressed because something unfortunate happened during our day or we couldnt get our way. However, real depression is a clinically diagnosed condition that often needs therapy and or medication to relieve. There is a way to find out if you have a tendency toward this condition. It is called a depression quiz. This test helps you determine whether you are showing signs of being depressed by the symptoms you express. This test wont show results of how deeply this condition is felt, but it is very helpful toward getting a diagnosis and determining your state of mind. Showing your doctor this test will help him or her to ascertain the level of your condition and what steps will need to be taken. This test is geared towards making you aware of the general signs and symptoms of this condition but providing important and relevant facts. The test contains a set of questions that will determine if your condition is mild to severe, acute to chronic. You can effectively create a list of the symptoms that you are suffering from or experiencing whenever you answer yes to any of the questions. Three or more yes answers can be evidence of an acute form of depression. A temporarily depressed person will notice these symptoms reduce as the problems that caused them also fade. However, symptoms that remain over a period of a month or more can be evidence of a more serious condition. In this case, you should contact a medical professional. These symptoms consist of fatigue, insomnia, irritability, and thoughts of suicide. If you feel any of these symptoms or just a feeling that things arent right, then you should take a depression quiz. Please be aware that his test is not a substitution for a medical diagnosis. It should be used as a way to determine your state of mind and make you aware of the symptoms one can face with this condition. Show your results to your doctor to determine the next step toward mental health. Astrology Matching Marriage in this day and age is a complex endeavor. Finding your perfect soul mate has become a gamble that many couples are losing every year. Many bachelors and bachelorettes worry that they may never be able to find the right person to grow old with. People all over the world have sought various resources in find a partner. There are so many match making websites and companies that it is hard to weed out the bogus ones. However, there is one method that is an ancient way of find Mr. or Mrs. Right; its astrology matching. This practice uses a persons star signs to determine what type of mate would be the best for them. Using this type of compatibility scale you can find someone to share your life with. Astrologers gather information by using stars, planets and the sun. They believe that these elements often influence our behavior and increase the probability of finding a partner. In some cultures, parents consult astrologers to help them find a suitable husband or wife for their children. The information provided by the astrologer will influence the decision to agree with the marriage. These readings wont tell you the precise future, but it can let you know what characteristic you need to look for in a mate. These characteristics will be the most compatible to your own or balance out your weaknesses. For example, if you are shy, you may want to search for someone a little more outgoing. If you have a temper, you should look for someone more mild tempered. These things can help keep your relationship interesting and less strenuous. Knowing how that particular sign acts, thinks, and feels will give you an advantage when searching for a mate. Even when you do find a person with a compatible horoscope it isnt guaranteed that it will last. There are many variables to astrological matching that you have to consider. This technique should only be used as a tool to narrow down your search. You may be compatible with many different horoscopes, but if you are not compatible with Virgos for example, you could be aware of that. You will still have to work at any relationship. You will need to bring the best parts of your personality out to show potential suitors. Leo Astrology Symbol Individual who are born under the Leo astrology symbol or sign are those born between July 23rd and August 22nd. Leo is ruled by the Sun and their element is fire. This is considered a very independent sign. Leo is the fifth astrological sign and is from the constellation of Leo which represents the lions tail. Men born under this sign are warm and high spirited and prone to action. He loves to be the center of attention. He is highly social and his enthusiasm spreads to all his friends. He isnt just a fun time friend, but you can also depend on him when times are hard. Leos are great, natural born leaders with quality leadership skills. They are honest, loyal and positive and prefer to lead out front. They are able to relate to people from different lifestyles and are very diplomatic. Even though they are great at delegating tasks to others, they dont easily accept them. Leos are dont like to accept failure and are determined to succeed. Leos love romance with candlelit dinners and hospitality. They prefer luxury and living very comfortable. You have to stroke the Leos ego as they love praise and admiration when they have achieved something. They are naturally very sensitive creatures. Leos are very strong willed and dominant, so two together can be a serious issue. Generally Leos are generous, warm, loving, proud, and creative. However, they can also be bossy, dogmatic, conceited, interfering, and power hunger. They like children, living lavishly, quality food, business, and drama. They dislike people that are mean spirited, cheap, or small-minded. Some famous people who are also born under this sign are Woody Harrelson, Jennifer Lopez, Sandra Bullock, and Robert DeNiro. Business partnerships for any Leo would be more compatible with the Sagittarius than any other sign. They both exhibit common sense as it pertains to business and can maintain respect for each other. Leos would be better served to enter business fields like architecture, ministry, entertainment, public speaking, executive positions, education, and the political arenas. If you are a under the Leo astrology symbol or sign, you certainly can relate to some of the characteristics stated above.

F. Scott Fitzgeralds The Great Gatsby Essay -- Fitzgerald Great Gatsb

F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby The greatness of an individual can be defined in terms far beyond tangible accomplishments. In F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic American novel, The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby's greatness comes from his need to experience success and his will to achieve his dreams. Nick Carraway narrates the story, and his cousin, Daisy Buchanan, is Gatsby's love. Daisy, however, is married to Tom Buchanan, a wealthy, arrogant womanizer who despises Gatsby. Gatsby feels the need to be successful and wealthy, and his participation in a bootlegging operation allows him to acquire the wealth and social status needed to attract Daisy. In his narration, Nick focuses on Gatsby's fixation of Daisy and how he longs for her presence in his life. Gatsby's greatness comes from his power to dream, his competence in turning dreams into reality, and his absolute love for Daisy. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby uses his dreams as motivation for his existence. Fitzgerald uses wealth and social status to define Gatsby?s character, which is exemplified by his lavish parties and the dignitaries who attend them. In his formative years, Gatsby was employed by a wealthy yachtsman, Dan Cody. It is from Cody that Gatsby develops his appreciation for wealth. ?To young Gatz, resting on his oars, looking up at the railed deck, that yacht represented all the beauty and glamour in the world? (Fitzgerald 106). Fitzgerald uses this quote to mark the point at which Gatsby encounters wealth and power for the first time, and also, he uses it to symbolize Gatsby?s social standing and economic status. By comparing Gatsby?s rowboat with the luxurious yacht of Cody?s, Fitzgerald presents the idea that money and power translate into bigger and better things. The event is symbolic in that it illustrates Gatsby?s perception that wealth is a necessity. By saying that he was ?looking up? to ?all the beauty and glamour in the world,? Fitzgerald makes it evident that Gatsby idolized this lifestyle. Also, he shows that Gatsby views beauty as a materialistic quality. Gatsby?s materialistic view of beauty can be seen in his love for Daisy when Gatsby says, ?her voice is full of money? (127). This quote by Gatsby shows how he identifies his love for Daisy with his love for money. Gatsby and Daisy met in Louisville, where they fell in love with each other, however, when Gatsby lef... ...life ensconced in their very essence. Nick says that Gatsby, ?represented everything for which I had an unaffected scorn? (6). However, he is able to see through this dislike of Gatsby?s character to tell him, ?you?re worth the whole damn bunch put together? (162). In other words, Gatsby possessed the qualities of a great individual, but his reliance on material objects to show his love and his corrupt ideology prevent him from reaching his full potential as an honorable character in the work. Gatsby?s greatness is not contained in noteworthy accomplishments, his wealth, or even his pursuit of love. Gatsby possesses the power to dream. Gatsby dreamed of being wealthy and reuniting with Daisy. He fulfilled his dreams, but unlike his dreams, Gatsby?s reality was hollow. His money was made illegally and his love for Daisy was based on only that which he could buy. Gatsby?s greatness is not only present in what he dreamt for, but also, he possessed the ability to grasp his dreams and turn them into reality. Gatsby may not be a perfect character, but by living for a purpose, he is able to extract greater meaning from life, making him superior to the other characters in the novel.

A Moral Basis for the Helping Professions Essay -- Employment Careers

Our consideration of moral issues in the helping professions should go beyond decision-making in particular cases. We need a more basic set of moral attitudes that can provide the context for making these decisions, and which describe the sort of person the helping professional needs to be. The helping professional needs to be able to perform a large number of supererogatory actions. We can compare helping professionals to both saints and good parents. The work of Sarah Ruddick on the virtues that inform maternal practice can be of great help to us here. She characterizes the kind of emotional and moral attitudes that exemplify good mothers as preservative love. The attitudes that make up preservative love-humility, attentive love, holding and humor-share some common ground with the qualities of saints. The helping professional is in an unusual position in the sense that who he/she is has a strong influence on the efficacy of treatment. Morality in the helping professions needs to ta ke this into account. To be a good helping professional involves a commitment to develop into the right sort of person. The issue of morality in the helping professions is much discussed at present. Most recently, it has come up in connection with issues involving the abuse of trust in relationships of unequal psychological and emotional power. It is a good thing to raise these issues. From the clergy accused of abusing young people to therapists taking advantage of their positions to sexually or emotionally abuse their clients, actions which were formerly concealed through the vulnerability of the client and the authority of the professional need no longer be kept secret. However, this, along with issues such as involuntary incarceration and the u... ...ehavior are not immediately accessible to the will. To become a person capable of preservative love requires a strong desire to do so and a willingness to do what is necessary to develop into the sort of person who can manifest preservative love. We cannot become unselfish, humble and attentive in the same way that we can decide to follow a moral rule. We require both education in virtue and transforming self-knowledge. Notes (1) Sarah Ruddick, "Maternal Thinking" in Mothering: Essays in Feminist Theory, ed. Joyce Trebilcot ( Rowan and Allanheld, Totowa, New Jersey, 1983) p. 240. (2) Ruddick, op.cit., p.213 (3) Ruddick, op.cit., p. 217 (4) Ruddick, op.cit., p. 223 (5) See Bonnelle Strickling, "Self-Abnegation" in Feminist Perspectives: Philosopohical Essays on Method and Morals, ed. L. Code, S. Mullet and C. Overall (University of Toronto, 1983).

Linguistics and Language Essay

The term dialect (from the ancient Greek word dialektos, â€Å"discourse†, from dia, â€Å"through† + lego, â€Å"I speak†) is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language’s speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors, such as social class. [2] A dialect that is associated with a particular social class can be termed a sociolect, a dialect that is associated with a particular ethnic group can be termed as ethnolect, and a regional dialect may be termed a regiolect or topolect. The other usage refers to a language that is socially subordinate to a regional or national standard language, often historically cognate to the standard, but not a variety of it or in any other sense derived from it. Dialect: This is a complex and often misunderstood concept. For linguists, a dialect is the collection of attributes (phonetic, phonological, syntactic, morphological, and semantic) that make one group of speakers noticeably different from another group of speakers of the same language. COMMON SOURCES OF MISUNDERSTANDING: 1) DIALECT is NOT a negative term for linguists. . Often times, for example, we hear people refer to non-standard varieties of English as â€Å"dialects†, usually to say something bad about the non-standard variety (and thus about the people who speak it). This happened quite a bit during last year’s ebonics controversy. But, the term dialect refers to ANY variety of a language. Thus, by definition, we all speak a dialect of our native language. 2) DIALECT is NOT synonymous with accent. Accent is only a part of dialectal variation. Non-linguists often think accents define a dialect (or that accents alone identify people as non-native or foreign language speakers). Also, non-linguists tend to think that it’s always the â€Å"other† people that have â€Å"an accent†. So, what is â€Å"accent†? 3) ACCENT: This term refers to phonological variation, i. e.variation in pronunciation Thus, if we talk about a Southern Accent; we’re talking about a generalized property of English pronunciation in the Southern part of the US. But, Southern dialects have more than particular phonological properties. Accent is thus about pronunciation, while dialect is a broader term encompassing syntactic, morphological, and semantic properties as well. A final note on accent. WE ALL HAVE ONE! There is no such thing as a person who speaks without an accent. This is not an exercise in political correctness, by the way. It is a fact. In sum, a dialect is a particular variety of a language, and we all have a dialect. Accent refers to the phonology of a given dialect. Since we all have a dialect, we all have an accent. Idiolect: Another term that we must be familiar with is idiolect. â€Å"What’s an idiolect? † you ask, on the edge of your seat. An idiolect is simply the technical term we use to refer to the variety of language spoken by each individual speaker of the language. Just as there is variation among groups of speakers of a language, there is variation from speaker to speaker. No two speakers of a language speak identically. Each speaks her or his own particular variety of that language. Each thus speaks her or his own idiolect. Role of Dialect: Language says a lot about our identity. Americans, Australians, New Zealanders and South Africans all speak differently. When we meet somebody from a different part of the country, they may use different words, sounds or grammatical structures. A dialect is a variety of language that is characteristic of a certain area. For instance, in the Northern Cape, people refer to older people as grootmense and paper as pampier whereas in Pretoria they are called oumense and papier. If you hear colored people from Cape Town speaking Afrikaans, they sound different to Afrikaans spoken elsewhere. People from Natal speak English in different ways to people from Johannesburg etc. So often, the way we speak says a lot about where we are from, who we are and what we care about. So studying dialects is one way of validating people’s identities and ways of life. Characteristics of Dialect: There are ten characteristics of dialect. 1. Dialect can be identified by variation of grammar. 2. Dialect can be identified by variation of vocabulary. 3. Dialect can be identified by variation of prosody. 4. Dialect can be identified by variation of sentence structure. 5. Dialect can be identified by variation of figures of speech. 6. Variance of parent language by social class of speakers. 7. Variance of parent language by region inhabited by speakers. 8. Likely will not have its own written literature. 9. Likely speakers will not have state or nation of their own. 10. Likely region-specific for speakers. Difference between Dialect and Register: To describe differences we have to first understand these two terms separately. What is Dialect? A regional or social variety of a language distinguished by pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary, especially a variety of speech differing from the standard literary language or speech pattern of the culture in which it exists: Cockney is a dialect of English. What is Register? In linguistics, a register is a variety of a language used for a particular purpose or in a particular social setting. For example, when speaking in a formal setting, an English speaker may be more likely to adhere more closely to prescribed grammar, pronounce words ending in -ing with a velar nasal instead of an alveolar nasal (e.g. â€Å"walking†, not â€Å"walkin'†), choose more formal words (e. g. father vs. dad, child vs. kid, etc. ), and refrain from using contractions such as ain’t, than when speaking in an informal setting. Now it is time to differentiate both terms. A dialect is a variety of language used by different speech communities, whereas register is a variety of language associated with people’s occupation. Register is to do with variation in language use connected with topic matter. â€Å"One’s dialect shows who (or what) he/she is, while one’s register shows what he/she is doing†. Dialect is a special form of speaking belonging to a group. Register is a linguistic term used to describe changing how one talks based on the situation. 1. Dialect: a local variety of a language*, usually understood by speakers of other dialects of the same language, often without a standardized grammar or spelling, used mostly for non-formal purposes in a local community or among people coming from the same community but living in another community than that they came from. There is often no consensus if such a local language variety is a dialect or a language. The choice is usually taken on the basis of political or conventional criteria and never on linguistic ones. 2. A speech register: a way of speaking or writing including vocabulary, syntax and pronunciation (or spelling) chosen by individuals to express themselves depending on the circumstances they speak: high register (formal occasions like parliamentary speech, official documents, celebrations), low register (informal occasions, conversations among family or friends’ group). There are also many in-between registers and specialized occasions like religious services, sport events, and so on. An individual may choose his dialect as a speech register for informal occasions, and a standardized language of a larger social unit on formal occasions (often called diglossia). Register: In linguistics, one of many styles or varieties of language determined by such factors as social occasion, purpose, and audience, also called stylistic variation. More generally, register is used to indicate degrees of formality in language use. The different registers or language styles that we use are sometimes called codes. According to a linguist Robert MacNeil (1989) the example of Register is; â€Å"It fascinates me how differently we all speak in different circumstances. We have levels of formality, as in our clothing. There are very formal occasions, often requiring written English: the job application or the letter to the editor–the dark-suit, serious-tie language, with everything pressed and the lint brushed off. There is our less formal out-in-the-world language–a more comfortable suit, but still respectable. There is language for close friends in the evenings, on weekends–blue-jeans-and-sweat-shirt language, when it’s good to get the tie off. There is family language, even more relaxed, full of grammatical short cuts, family slang, echoes of old jokes that have become intimate shorthand–the language of pajamas and uncombed hair. Finally, there is the language with no clothes on; the talk of couples–murmurs, sighs, grunts–language at its least self-conscious, open, vulnerable, and primitive. † Role of Register: Its chief importance is social. It signals the kind of interaction the speaker wants, or acceptance/no acceptance of the kind of interaction expected in any situation. For instance, level of formality is a major aspect of English register. Highly formal register can signal authority, disapproval, unfriendliness. Informal register can signal various things: genuine friendliness; a fake attempt to come across as friendly; or even deliberate disrespect if the other speaker expects formal register. Choice of register can also signal social class, in areas where this is still an issue. Higher classes tend to use a more formal register in ordinary conversation. Understanding the difference between register and grammar is important, as many speakers confuse the two: particularly in thinking that only formal register is correct grammar. This can lead to major errors of register: for instance, the highly formal â€Å"It is I† is only correct in the most formal register, and using it under any other circumstances will make a speaker sound a pompous idiot to most speakers. Characteristics/ Features of Register: 1) Language Styles â€Å"Every native speaker is normally in command of several different language styles, sometimes called registers, which are varied according to the topic under discussion, the formality of the occasion, and the medium used (speech, writing, or sign). â€Å"Adapting language to suit the topic is a fairly straightforward matter. Many activities have a specialized vocabulary. If you are playing a ball game, you need to know that ‘zero’ is a duck in cricket, love in tennis, and nil in soccer. If you have a drink with friends in a pub, you need to know greetings such as: Cheers! Here’s to your good health! â€Å"Other types of variation are less clear-cut. The same person might utter any of the following three sentences, depending on the circumstances: I should be grateful if you would make less noise. Please be quiet. Shut up! Here the utterances range from a high or formal style, down to a low or informal one–and the choice of a high or low style is partly a matter of politeness. † (Jean Aitcheson, Teach You Linguistics. Hodder, 2003) 2) Participants in an Exchange â€Å"Like variation in our manner of dress, stylistic variations in language cannot be judged as appropriate or not without reference to the participants in the interchange (i. e. , speaker and listener or reader and writer). For example, you would not speak to a 5-year-old child, an intimate friend, and a professor using the same style of speech. Using the term eleemosynary ‘charitable’ would probably be inappropriate for the child and the friend, while using number one ‘urinate’ would probably be inappropriate for the friend and the professor. † (Frank Parker and Kathryn Riley, Linguistics for Non-Linguists, 3rd ed. Ellyn & Bacon, 1999) 3) Register Features â€Å"Register features are core lexical and grammatical characteristics found to some extent in almost all texts and registers. . . . â€Å"Any linguistic feature having a functional or conventional association can be distributed in a way that distinguishes among registers. Such features come from many linguistic classes, including: phonological features (pauses, intonation patterns), tense and aspect markers, pronouns and pro-verbs, questions, nominal forms (nouns, nominalizations, gerunds), passive constructions, dependent clauses (complement clauses, relative clauses, adverbial subordination), prepositional phrases, adjectives, adverbs, measures of lexical specificity (once-occurring words, type-token ratio), lexical classes (hedges, emphatics, discourse particles, stance markers), modals, specialized verb classes (speech act verbs, mental process verbs), reduced forms (contractions, that-deletions), co-ordination, negation, and grammatical devices for structuring information (clefts, extra position). â€Å" A comprehensive linguistic analysis of a register requires consideration of a representative selection of linguistic features. Analyses of these register features are necessarily quantitative, because the associated register distinctions are based on differences in the relative distribution of linguistic features. † (Douglas Biber Dimensions of Register Variation: A Cross-Linguistic Comparison. Cambridge University Press, 1995) Sociolinguistics: (Wikipedia) â€Å"Sociolinguistics is the descriptive study of the effect of any and all aspects of society, including cultural norms, expectations, and context, on the way language is used, and the effects of language use on society. Sociolinguistics differs from sociology of language in that the focus of sociolinguistics is the effect of the society on the language, while the sociology of language focuses on language’s effect on the society. Sociolinguistics overlaps to a considerable degree with pragmatics. It is historically closely related to linguistic anthropology and the distinction between the two fields has even been questioned recently. It also studies how language varieties differ between groups separated by certain social variables, e. g. , ethnicity, religion, status, gender, level of education, age, etc. , and how creation and adherence to these rules is used to categorize individuals in social or socioeconomic classes. As the usage of a language varies from place to place; language usage also varies among social classes, and it is these sociolect that sociolinguistics studies. † Sociolinguistics is the study of how language serves and is shaped by the social nature of human beings. In its broadest conception, sociolinguistics analyzes the many and diverse ways in which language and society entwine. This vast field of inquiry requires and combines insights from a number of disciplines, including linguistics, sociology, psychology and anthropology. Sociolinguistics examines the interplay of language and society, with language as the starting point. Variation is the key concept, applied to language itself and to its use. The basic premise of sociolinguistics is that language is variable and changing. As a result, language is not homogeneous — not for the individual user and not within or among groups of speakers who use the same language. By studying written records, sociolinguists also examine how language and society have interacted in the past. For example, they have tabulated the frequency of the singular pronoun thou and its replacement you in dated hand-written or printed documents and correlated changes in frequency with changes in class structure in 16th and 17th century England. This is historical sociolinguistics: the study of relationship between changes in society and changes in language over a period of time. Branches of sociolinguistics: Sociolinguistics can be defined broadly or narrowly – Broad: branch of linguistics studying those properties of language which require reference to social, including contextual, factors in their explanation Narrow: seeks to explain patterned co-variation of language and society; seeks rules to account for that variation. Some traditions of sociolinguistic investigation: 1) Linguistic variation: (sociolinguistics proper): focuses on the linguistic variable that correlates with social differences. Unit of study is language itself considered a part of linguistics. 2) Ethnography of speaking: emphasis on various aspects of context that are involved in differing interpretations of language use. Unit of analysis is not language itself but rather the users of language: the speech community generally considered part of sociology or anthropology. 3) Language planning (also applied sociolinguistics, sociology of language): emphasis on practical aspects of this study. Much about language contact issues and language use in education.