Statement of Purpose Essay Example for Free

Statement of Purpose Essay â€Å"The future belongs to those who believe in their dreams. †I firmly believe in this quote made by Eleanor Roosevelt. I have always dreamed of making it to the top in the field of business in general and that of finance in particular. However, to realize my dream I need to understand and appreciate the fact that I must arm myself with a professional degree from a reputed business school. This would be an important and decisive step in my journey towards success. A full-fledged program in finance would enable me to form a vision of business and of finance in the twenty-first century and the way it is going. The only career option in today’s competitive environment which creates an opportunity for an aspirant to pursue a career in the field of his choice is to acquire a management degree. Management qualification is a tool to build skills, gain knowledge and insight into modern business techniques At the same time and with equal mind, I recognize clearly the fact that what I wish to do would not be really possible without a robust theoretical framework and base. I fully acknowledge and appreciate the fact that I need to build up intellectual ability in me and arm myself with techniques of analysis, case studies and proper critical examination as well as the ability to acquire information and to get to the bottom of a matter. All that can come only from being part of a complete academic program that would test and try me out and in which I would grow and broaden. That is what I expect to happen to me as and when I become part of a Masters program at an outstanding university where I shall encounter the best minds engaged in constant discussion and ever absorbed in understanding not just the theoretical foundations of finance but also its new and emerging trends. What do I have to offer? First is the fact that I have done my graduation in business along with specialization in finance, which puts me in a somewhat unique position. I already have a theoretical framework that encompasses a fairly advanced and analytical view of society, its institutions and the transition that is part of those institutions in the world of today which is moving from an earlier concept of laissez faire capitalism and is becoming a global village where economic interests predominate and function as primary determinants of political action. The qualities that I have inculcated as a result of the academic ndeavors I have gone through are perseverance, patience, good communication skills, and flexible working procedures and at the same time highly disciplined working capability, qualities which I believe are absolutely necessary not just for success but also for mere survival in today’s fast paced and dynamic socio-economic environment. Most importantly I have the basic quality of self discipline and target oriented approach in consequence whereupon success is automatic. â€Å"All work and no play make Jack a dull boy†. I wish to add that I love driving and I love playing tennis and traveling. I also spend time reading about Finance books, about Finance management and about general management. I do that when I’m not listening to music, which too I love. I like watching lawn-tennis matches. Yes, with all that, I am setting out to learn as well as I can and as fast as I can at a reputed institute and pick up the training and skills of assessment, of decision making, of leadership and of communication which would benefit me to enter the complex world of business and to make my endeavors in that world profitable and advantageous. I must add that I am particularly interested in finance and look very much forward to getting into the course specifically related to finance. I see as well something equally important, namely, the fact that a program, when entered into fully and with a complete mind, builds up into an experience one can’t ever forget. A good world-class university with its vast pool of resources in terms of faculty, its up to date curriculum and its wide student membership is an active and dynamic world that provides an exposure as nothing else can. It is this exposure that I seek, as I know that it would enable me to get closer to my dream of working in the area of finance in the way I want to My role models are Mahatma Gandhi, Dhirubhai Ambani and Swami Vivekananda. Though the three come from different walks of life, each has inspired me in some or other way. In particular, their sense of leadership, their impeccable oratory and their communication skills as well as their infinite vision and talent mean a great deal to me. Finally, I believe that I would be able to steer my career in the right direction if I am armed with a professional (Masters) degree from a world renowned institute. I understand that just a qualification won’t be helpful without sincere and intelligent efforts. However, it will definitely go a long way in helping me achieve my goals. I have always been very serious about achieving my goals and to conclude, in the words of Swami Vivekananda: â€Å"Awake! Arise! Stop not till the goal is reached!!

Charlotte Perkins Gilmans Cupid in the Kitchen Essay -- Cupid

Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Cupid in the Kitchen      Ã‚  Ã‚   As a reader in the 1990's it's tempting to see Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "Cupid in the Kitchen" as revolutionary and ahead of its time. She proposes the complete professionalization of the nutritive and execretive functions of society, a radical, if not revolutionary notion. However, in the light of the fin-de-siecle birth of the modern feminist movement, Gilman is but one voice in many crying for economic and social justice for women. In effect, the rhetorical situation of 1898 demanded and created this discourse as it does all discourse (Bitzer 5). Gilman's "Cupid" is a natural and elegant response to the conditions which created it: the continuing surplus of unmarried women in Britain and America as verified by census data, and the persistent injustice of the forced domestic servitude of married women.    One need only look as far as the literature of the 1890's to see that women's issues influenced the thinking of many intellectuals. The discourse of the period is obsessed with the proper roles for women, debate about suffrage, and considerations of what to do with all the "odd women" who couldn't find husbands. As early as 1860 census data indicated that more and more women were remaining single and unmarried (Showalter viii). In an essay written for The Edinburgh Review Harriet Martineau argued that because there were not enough husbands to go around, girls should be educated and trained to be self-supporting (Showalter ix). By the end of the century the numbers of unmarried women lacking economic support reached crisis proportions. This event, as much or more than any other, precipitated the feminist movement of the late nineteenth an... ... surprise. Economics drove the rhetorical situation in which "Cupid" was produced as it drives the rhetorical situation in which we return to Gilman for enlightenment now. Similarities in the rhetorical situations of reader, subject and author create the common ground that makes Gilman seem so topical, but it is the clarity of her vision and the simple logic of her proposition that makes her work so remarkable.    Works Cited    Bitzer, Lloyd F. "The Rhetorical Situation." Philosophy & Rhetoric 1.1 (1968): 1-14. Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "Women and Economics: Cupid in the Kitchen." A World of Ideas: Essential Readings for College Writers. ed. Lee A. Jacobus (Boston: St. Martin's, 1990) 208-19. Showalter, Elaine. introduction. The Odd Women, by George Gissing (New York: Pennguin, 1983) vii-xxvi.          *        

La Liberte guidant le peuple

Art is beyond the limitations of country boundaries and its values should be shared by people from all over the world eternally. When talking about art, I have to say that France Is my favorite country for the representation of art, as the country has a long history for pursuing art and fashion since Louis XIV, the King of Sun, who Is a king keen on the pursuit of art and fashion. Therefore In this summer I took the opportunity to go to Louvre Museum In Paris to pay a visit to the famous 011 paintings in the museum.In this essay, I would like to choose one of the famous oil painting La Liberty guiding el people from my personal perspective of gendered art. On entering the museum, I could sense a strong atmosphere of history and a deep sense of reverence rose deep from my soul. Then I saw the famous painting drawn by Delicacies. In the middle of the painting is a young French lady who is calling on her villagers to fight against the Restoration of Bourbon in July Revolution.The woman is half naked in the upper part of her body, with her breasts out. On her right hand, she is holding a flag with three colors, which represent freedom, equality and philanthropist. Now the flag has become the national flag of the Republic of France. On her left hand, she was grasping a long gun with a sharp knife on It. Though she Is wearing a long dress, we can see her legs are powerful and firm, and she Is leading the soldiers to move forward across the dead bodies and the ruins of the bulldogs.The background of this painting is set before Notre Dame in Paris where there is full f the smokes from gunpowder, which shows that the war is in its hottest point. Most of the critiques believe that she is the symbol of freedom, with great passion and romantic characters. To look at the female in detail, we can find that this woman shows a temperament of masculinity different from her own gender.Different from John Burger's traditional opinion on man and woman in artistic works, which mean s that a man's presence is dependent upon the promise of power, while a women's presence expresses her own attitude to herself, or his belief that men focus on the outside while women focus on the inner part Noon Berger, 1 990), here a sense of cross-gender Identification Is emphasized In the work as a way of showing opposition to the old binary system. As a result, the symbolic meaning In this painting Is evident.Just as the view from feminist that â€Å"gender is a social construction† this painting seems to reconstruct our social norm about the binary system. Traditionally, gender is presented as biological and predetermined instead of a culturally constructed, external performance (Sloop, 2004). So although the women act like men, their female dies are inscribed with sexual frailty—a weakness that can only be matched by masculine strength as their rescuer is physically privileged (Sarah Cornfield, 2011).This painting seems to doubt that: why men should be prior to women? As is seen, on the left side of the painting, there is a dead, thin male body, whose lower part of the body Is naked. Also, beside the leg of the woman, there Is a male enemy whose seems to be begging for the forgiveness of the woman and the working class. These two characters are uncommon in the paintings, as they show the weakness of male In trench. Throughout the history of OLL painting, male Image seldom appears weaker than female image, according to the introduction of John Berger.What is more, on the painting: he is holding his gun high up his head alongside with the woman. Contrary to use a strong and matured male as the hero in the painting, the existence of a young boy, though not so powerful than a strong male, represents the hope emerging in the new world. On the left side of the woman, there are two men dressing very fashionably. They represent the emerging working class who are fighting against the Bourbon. But they are not the main characters in this painting, a s their existence is for the purpose to highlight to woman representing freedom.After all, all of the unusual and creative arrangements by the painter here in fact want to suggest us that everything old will be ruined and a new social norm based on love freedom and equality will be set up in the future. To sum up, the bold imagination, the rich implied meanings in this work all contribute to its successes during the whole history. This painting gives us a romantic and ideal feeling in the severe war, and constructs our traditional conception on gender, that women not always appear as a weak image and women can be more powerful men to some extent.However, in the same time I also admit the fact that differences between male and female do exist. And in the whole painting history, as Berger has pointed out, the â€Å"ideal† is always assumed to be male and the image of the woman is designed to flatter him. In my opinion, as long as the painting present people with the aesthetic c haracters of masculinity and femininity instead of torturing them. I admire the painter Eugene

Empress Matilda, Contender for the English Throne

Empress Matilda, also known as Empress Maud (c. February 7, 1102–September 10, 1167), the daughter of Henry I of England, is best known in history for the civil war sparked by her fight against her cousin Stephen to win the throne of England for herself and her descendants.  She was also a strong-willed and capable ruler in her own right, the wife of the Holy Roman Emperor, and the mother of Henry II of England. Fast Facts: Empress Matilda Known For: Member of the British royal family whose claim to the throne sparked a civil warAlso Known As: Empress Maud, Holy Roman Empress;  German Queen;  Queen of ItalyBorn: c. February 7, 1102 in either Winchester  or  Sutton Courtenay, EnglandParents: Henry I of England, Matilda of ScotlandDied: September 10, 1167 in Rouen, FranceSpouse(s): Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor, Geoffrey V, Count of AnjouChildren: Henry II of England, Geoffrey, Count of Nantes, William FitzEmpress Early Life Matilda was born on or about February 7, 1102, as the daughter of Henry I (Henry Longshanks or Henry Beauclerc), the Duke of Normandy and King of England. Through her father, Matilda was descended from the Norman conquerors of England, including her grandfather William I, Duke of Normandy and King of England, known as William the Conqueror. Through her mothers mother, she was descended from more kings of England: Edmund II Ironside, Ethelred II the Unready, Edgar the Peaceable, Edmund I the Magnificent, Edward I the Elder and Alfred the Great. Matilda or Maud? Maud and Matilda are variations on the same name; Matilda is the Latin form of the Saxon name Maud and was usually used in official documents, especially of Norman origin. Some writers use Empress Maud as their consistent designation for Empress Matilda. These are useful notes to distinguish this Matilda from the many other Matildas around her: Henry I had at least one illegitimate daughter also named Maud or Matilda.Robert, Earl of Gloucester, was married to a Matilda.The rival of Empress Matilda for the crown of England was her cousin Stephen, whose wife, also a cousin of the Empress, was also named Maud or Matilda.  Stephens mother, Adela of Normandy, was a sister of Henry I.The Empress Matildas mother was  Matilda of Scotland. Marriage to Henry V Matilda was betrothed to Henry V, who later became the Holy Roman Emperor, In April 1110, at the age of 8. She later married Henry V and was crowned Queen of the Romans. When Henry V died in 1125, Matilda returned to England at age 23. Matildas younger brother William, the heir to the throne of England as her fathers only surviving legitimate son, had died when the White Ship capsized in 1120. Her father Henry I, therefore, named Matilda his heir and obtained the endorsement of that claim by the nobles of the realm. At the same time, however, Henry I took a second wife in hopes of fathering another legitimate male heir following the death of his first wife. Marriage to Geoffrey of Anjou Henry next arranged a marriage between Matilda and Geoffrey le Bel, often called Geoffrey of Anjou. Geoffrey was 14 and Matilda was 25. He then called upon his good relations with Count Fulk V of Anjou to negotiate the betrothal of Matilda to Fulk’s son Geoffrey le Bel. They were soon married in June 1127. After a brief but tumultuous marriage, Matilda attempted to leave her husband. Geoffrey, however, wanted her to return and, after a royal council, Matilda was sent back to Anjou. At the same time, however, Henry I once again required his nobles to support Matilda as his successor. Geoffrey and Matilda had three sons: Henry II of England, Geoffrey, and William. Death of Henry I Matilda’s father Henry I died in December 1135. Quickly thereafter, Stephen of Blois stepped up to claim Henrys throne. Stephen was Henrys favorite nephew and had been endowed by the deceased king with both lands and riches. Despite having pledged themselves to Matilda, many of Henrys followers reneged on their pledge and followed Stephen, preferring a British male king to a female ruler with a foreign husband. Matilda and her supporters—including Robert of Gloucester and King David I of Scotland—stood up to oppose Stephen, and so began the 19-year civil war known as The Anarchy. The Anarchy For several years between 1138 and 1141, skirmishes between Matilda and Stephen led to castles and lands being taken and lost. Each time one of the contenders seemed to gain the advantage, noblemen changed sides in the war. Finally, in 1141, Matilda captured and imprisoned Stephen. She then made preparations for her coronation in London. On her arrival, however, Matilda immediately began imposing taxes and removing privileges from her soon-to-be subjects. These actions were poorly received and, before Matilda could be crowned, Stephens wife was able to raise an army against Matilda and her supporters. Unable to defeat Stephens army, Matilda retreated to Oxford and released Stephen from prison. Stephen was crowned King of England in 1141, and soon thereafter lay siege to Matilda. Matilda escaped across the Thames River to Devizes Castle, where she set up headquarters for several more years of war. Older Years Finally admitting defeat, Matilda returned to France to her husband and son. After Geoffreys death, she ruled Anjou; at the same time she worked to establish her son Henry II as the heir to the English throne. After Stephens wife and son died, Henry was able to negotiate succession to the throne with Stephen and, in 1154, Henry was crowned King of England. His wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine, became queen. Death Matilda died September 11, 1167, and was buried in Rouen at Fontevrault Abbey. Her tomb stated only that she had been the daughter of King Henry, wife of King Henry, and mother of King Henry. Legacy Matilda was an important historical figure whose battle with Stephen had a profound impact on the politics of her time. In addition, as the mother of Henry II (and the person who helped put Henry on the throne) she played an important part in the story of English succession. Sources â€Å"Empress Matilda, Lady of the English.†Ã‚  Medievalists.net, 9 Apr. 2013.â€Å"Queen Matilda, Empress Maud and the Civil War with King Stephen.†Ã‚  Historic UK.