Television Shows Based Around Family Life - 937 Words

Television shows based around family life have been around for many years. Back in the 1980’s and 1990’s, TV show families were more conservative, taught lessons ,didn’t curse at each other, and always seemed ‘perfect’. In todays age, shows show a plethora of technology, use slang, cursing, and inappropriate jokes. The show â€Å"Full House† is your typical traditional family oriented television show. The plot of the show comprised a husband and his three kids, D.J, Stephanie, and Michelle.Their mother got killed in a tragic car accident leaving the husband,Danny Tanner,his best friend Joey and brother in law Jesse to help raise the kids. Even though they don t have a mother figure to help raise the family, they all work together to live a normal, happy, healthy life. On the contrast the show â€Å"Bob’s Burgers† is a cartoon that also shares a family orientation, but shows it in a more modern way. The twenty first century show s tarts off with a family of five, A mother named Linda, Bob (The husband) and their three kids, Louise, Tina and Gene. The family owns a restaurant called ‘Bobs Burgers’ (which they also live in) and goes about their everyday lives. Each episode introduces a problem a family member goes through, whether its at school, the restaurant, or elsewhere. In the end they always resolve it and this teaches a valuable lesson through family development, comic relief, and learned morals. The first show, Full house aired its first episode in 1987 starting with â€Å"OurShow MoreRelatedReality TV: The Tearing Down of Society Essay682 Words   |  3 PagesIn today’s time, television has a broad array of shows. These programs range from children’s cartoons all the way to real-life dramas. Reality television portrays families in their everyday lives and how the typically handle dramatic situations. Although there is some truth in the family’s lifestyles and relatio nships, reality television creates a false interpretation of the way everyday families should live; moreover, the producers construct staged scenes, unrealistic images, and promote immoralityRead MoreThe Impact Of Television On Our Future Generations1345 Words   |  6 PagesSummar, Alyssa Professor Cavender ENGL-1020 February 11, 2015 The Impact of Television on our Future Generations â€Å"People are sheep. TV is the shepherd.† (Jess C. Scott, Literary Heroin) This quote has more than one truth to it. In today’s society, we rely on television for entertainment, whether that be good or bad. Television acts as a positive as well as a negative influence. According to Statistic Brain, the average person spends approximately 9 years watching TV in their lifetime. In additionRead MoreThe Negative Effects Of Reality Television1462 Words   |  6 PagesReality television shows are meant to portray the essence of reality. 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TelevisionRead MoreCultural Studies On Race And Social Classes1124 Words   |  5 Pagesour everyday life, experience and social relations; we are all categorized by our cultural â€Å"groups†, but this has changed rapidly throughout the years from one generation to the next. Cultural studies were developed in the late 1950’s, through the 1970’s by the British academic scholars. The British scholars were able engaged cultural analysis and the developed then transformed of the different fields, for example, politically, theoretically and empirically that are now represented around the worldRead MorePolitical Television : An Element Of Truth1442 Words   |  6 PagesCJ Cregg, Carrie Mathison, and Claire Underwood are all names one would know if they were a fan of political television. Political television programs have become some of the most watched and most critically acclaimed programs on television. 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During the earliest days of Televisions introduction into society, there were always shows highlighting the portrayals of mothers cooking and cleaning their homes for their husbands and children. Although, as time moved on, television and the shows that were channeled on it took a dramatic turn, leaving the days of drama free entertainment as a vast memory . Today, however, when a person turns on a televisionRead MoreIn many ways, Television has proved to be one of the worst inventions of modern times. All too often, Television is harmful because of the shows it broadcasts and the way it is used in the home1544 Words   |  7 PagesStandard pieces of equipment in most homes, watching television has become a standard activity for most families. Although there are many excellent programs, many people think television is one of the worst inventions of modern times. All too often, television is harmful because of the shows it broadcasts, the effect it has on people, and the way it is used in homes. First, heavy TV viewing leads to poor school performance. Most television broadcasters show a variety of programs 24 hours a day, giving theRead MoreFahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury And Oryx And Crake1580 Words   |  7 PagesHaving a family bond is important to the structure of society because people crave attention and the feeling of being cared for. In the novels Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury and Oryx and Crake by Margot Atwood, the importance of strong family ties is massively irrelevant due to the fact that the characters in each novel are given the illusion of actual feelings and relationships. Both stories show that family is not important to have a happy life. In Fahrenheit 451, the story takes place in a dystopian

Operations and System Management of a Car Garage Free Essays

string(54) " there are some objectives that Powell’s are lower\." OBSM Coursework Assessment – Element One Powell’s Garage Report Introduction The following report will be researching into a small garage named Powell’s, located in Illogan, Cornwall. Powell’s garage is a family business that was established in 1953. This organisation offers a range of services and products, including MOT’s, tyre replacement and full car servicing. We will write a custom essay sample on Operations and System Management of a Car Garage or any similar topic only for you Order Now Primary research will be used in order to gain data in order to examine specific factors in Powell’s garage. Slack et al. ’s five performance objectives will display which ways the organisation is thriving and in which ways they are failing. Looking at the design capacity, effective capacity and actual outputs will give an overview of how well they are using their resources within the organisation. Finally, by calculating the organisation’s capability index, a specific operation can be explored in order to highlight the reliability of the service and whether there is any potential room for improvement. Five Performance Objectives Slack et al (2004) states that there are five performance objectives that can evaluate performance of an operation. The first of these being cost, this is the ability to produce at a low cost. By pricing goods and services appropriately to the market, customers will always be attracted and it will allow for a good return to the company. Powell’s have a few competitor garages surrounding them, therefore pricing is a very important aspect of the organisation as they must keep it low enough to rival other garages, but high enough to ensure profit from their services. Quality is another performance objective and this is the ability to produce in accordance with the specifications without error. This will ensure full customer satisfaction and a high-quality reputation. It is essential that Powell’s provide a premium service as not only does it guarantee safety for their customers, but it gives them an advantage over competitors. Dependability is the ability to produce goods and services in accordance to the promises made to the customer. This could include a time deadline that the service needs to be completed by, therefore Powell’s must ensure that they fulfil any tasks given by customers’ and remain reliable or a bad reputation could circulate, resulting in less business. The ability to do things quickly in response to the customer’s demands is known as speed. This should also reduce time between orders from the customer and when they receive it again. Being a busy garage means that Powell’s must complete services as quickly as possible in order to keep up with the level of demand they receive. If this is not met, customers’ could use another organisation that can offer a quick service. Finally, the last performance objective from Slack et al. is flexibility. This is the ability to change the operation in a variety of ways. This therefore means that Powell’s must offer a wide variety of goods and services in order to fit with any customer needs and keep the amount of business high. These five performance objectives can also be linked, and these links mean that an organisation can excel in certain operations and compete with other organisations. For example, quality reduces cost and increases dependability. High quality therefore means fewer mistakes made in the operation, this leads to a reduced amount of time needed to correct any errors, and less time spent on the operation means reduced cost. This results in the customer being satisfied with the service. It will also more than likely mean they will feel confident using the organisation and will return for future business. From using primary research to study Powell’s garage, it is noticeable that quality is the most vital objective to ensure its success in their marketplace. Through questionnaires, shown as Appendix 1, and interviews with customers and within the organisation; it is quality that is the most prominent feature of Powell’s garage. This organisation deals with motor vehicles, which makes it crucial that the main priority of their services is to provide high-quality results or else the customer’s safety is at risk. The following polar diagram demonstrates the customer’s view and the manager’s view on Powell’s services and products according to Slack et al. ’s five performance objectives theory. The customer’s view is an average calculated from 20 questionnaires that were completed by customers. The manager’s view is a combined result from the two managers that work at Powell’s. As shown above, the manager’s view is quite different to that of the customers. The customers did not rate the garage as high as the manager’s but there is an agreement on the speed of the operation. Powell’s garage has two major competitors in the area that offer similar services. In order to ensure that this organisation has the edge over them, it is essential to investigate what is regarded as important by their customers and how each garage provides that service. Perceived user value (Bowman, 1998), is the best method to show customer’s opinions on the services of the three garages and will also include objectives that are not included in Slack et al. ’s theory. The two garages that are geographically closest to Powell’s are K W Autos and J K Motors. The customers were asked to rate the objectives of the garage from 0 to 10 on a questionnaire (Appendix 2), these figures were then made into an average and shown in the following table. Objective| Powell’s | K W Autos| J K Motors| Speed| 8| 8| 7| Quality| 8| 7| 7| Cost| 7| 6| 7| Dependability| 7| 8| 6| Flexibility| 7| 7| 7| Quality of Facilities| 8| 6| 5| Courtesy of Staff| 9| 6| 6| Working Hours| 7| 7| 8| The data collected from the customers was then put into a graph to demonstrate the differences between the garages more clearly. From these figures, it is clear to see that Powell’s has an overall higher rating than its competitors. Although this is very positive, there are some objectives that Powell’s are lower. You read "Operations and System Management of a Car Garage" in category "Papers" These are the operations that need to be targeted and improved in order to guarantee that K W Autos and J K Motors do not overtake Powell’s in their sales. Capacity The definition of the capacity of an operation is â€Å"the maximum level of value-added activity over a period of time that the process can achieve under normal operating conditions† (Slack et al. 2001, p. 338). Regarding this report, there are two types of capacity that are useful to Powell’s garage; design capacity and effective capacity. Design capacity is â€Å"the capacity to which its technical designers had in mind when they commissioned the operation† (Slack et al. 2001, p. 335). Effective capacity is simply design capacity minus planned loss. Therefore it is what the operation actually runs like. The capacity of Powell’s garage is simply the amount of motor vehicles that can be held in the garage at one time. Powell’s garage has a total of 7 vehicle ramps within the garage; however, 2 of these ramps are designated specifically for MOT servicing. Therefore, altogether, Powell’s can have 8 cars in its premises at one time. In terms of capacity processing, on average, Powell’s can see between 30 and 40 vehicles a week. Although, there are weeks in which it can exceed this and also weeks in which not as many vehicles pass through. Powell’s employ 6 full time mechanics; however, there are always 2 mechanics on the MOT ramps as it always full. This therefore leaves 4 full time mechanics working on 5 ramps for servicing. Straight away, understaffing is the obvious main capacity constraint, as if the garage is completely full, they do not have enough staff to service the vehicles. This would therefore be a planned loss of the organisation. Other planned losses would be mostly time consuming, for example, waiting for vehicle parts to arrive, working hours and waiting for customers to collect their car. As stated before, effective capacity is how the operation actually runs; therefore the everyday realities of a production line will contain something to slow it down. For example, staff breaks, power cuts and maintenance to tools and equipment. Powell’s design capacity (excluding the MOT services) in their garage would be for 5 vehicles to be serviced. However, there are only 4 mechanics available at one time. This means that their effective capacity is 80% of its design capacity. These losses are unavoidable but it results in Powell’s output to be reduced by 20% of what it could have. Actual output is simply effective capacity minus avoidable loss. This is essentially what is produced by the operation when the planned losses and avoidable are taken into account. Avoidable losses include mechanical failure, lighting failure or poorly trained staff. Actual output is therefore much less than the design capacity. It can only be predicted, but this would be estimated around 50%. The following diagram displays the losses against the design capacity and shows how the actual output is calculated. A ‘bottleneck’ is a micro-operation or operations that cause a process to slow down and causes output to take longer. Powell’s main bottleneck is the fact that they are understaffed. However, there are more constraints that prevent operations, these include the type of repair that the car will need, the availability of parts needed to complete the service and working hours. These all affect the processes in the organisation. Capability Index This measures the capability of an operation process within an organisation. This capability index will measure the time any operation can take regarding the services that Powell’s offers. The capability index should give the result as being greater than 1 as this will mean that Powell’s is reliable and capable. However, if the results show that the capability is less than 1, it will prove that Powell’s servicing is incapable and unreliable. The tables below show the amount of time spent servicing vehicles over one month in Powell’s garage. This was recorded from observation and from staff records. Weekly updates allowed a gradual build up of data which could then be grouped to calculate the capability index. Servicing Times| | | 30 minutes| 1 hour| 1 day| 1 hr 30 mins| 1 day| 5 hours| 45 minutes| 3 days| 30 minutes| hours| 6 days| 5 days| 1 day| 2 days| 3 days| 4 days| 3 days| 1 hour| 4 hours| 3 hours| 5 days| 2 days| 1 day| 2 hours| 2 days| 3 days| 6 days| 7 days| 30 minutes| 4 days| Servicing Times| Number of Customers| ;1 Hour| 4| 1 hour – 1 day| 8| 1 – 2 days| 4| 2 – 3 days| 3| 3 – 4 days| 4| 4 – 5 days| 2| 5 – 6 days| 2| 6; days| 3| Capability Index is calculated using the following formula: Cp = USL – LSL 6? Key Cp = Capability Index USL = Upper Specification Limit LSL = Lower Specification Limit ? = Standard Deviation From the data collected above, the USL will be 7 days and the LSL will be 0. 05 as it is in minutes. Cp = 7 – 0. 05 6? Standard Deviation was calculated using all the data collected. In this instance, 1 hour would be 0. 1 and 1 day would be 1. Standard Deviation = 2. 083849 Cp = 7 – 0. 05 6 x 2. 083849 Cp = 6. 95 12. 503094 Cp = 0. 5558624129 Cp = 0. 56 (two decimal places) USL = 7 LSL = 0. 05 This figure and the graph shows that Powell’s garage is operating at a level lower than 1, which indicates that it is not operating at the potential capacity level. Although the capability index worked out to be lower than 1, there is a variety of different service times which suggests that Powell’s offer a wide range of services and at many different time scales. There are many causes for this variation which includes; the nature of the service. The bigger the problem in the vehicle will mean that the service will take longer, and therefore take space for a longer period of time in the garage. There is also the matter of ordering external parts for the repair. This again, could take a long time as Powell’s must wait for the parts to arrive before the repair can begin. All of these variants are time costly in some way but there could be potential initiatives to reduce this. Powell’s could create more space for vehicles outside their garage, by expanding the car park from 1 to 4, this will provide an area to hold cars that require parts from an external source. This would then leave more room available in the garage for less time consuming services. This would see Powell’s garage gain more business and improve their timing for customers. An outside area would also offer a place where very small services are required, for example changing a tyre. This service takes on average 30 minutes to complete. Powell’s would save a lot of time as the car would not need to be taken into the garage or raised on the ramps. Another initiative could be to use the MOT ramps when there are no vehicles using them. This expands Powell’s capacity to 7 full servicing ramps which would provide more business and a faster operation process. An initiative that would also be very effective would be increasing the number of staff; this would allow vehicles to be serviced much quicker. Even if two mechanics worked on one vehicle, this could potentially half the time in which it takes to complete the service. This would then result in extra customer satisfaction, which in the long run would improve Powell’s reputation. It would also allow for more vehicles to be brought in to service as there would be space for that vehicle in a shorter amount of time. Word Count 2,271 References James, P. Rowland-Jones, R. ; O’Brien, L. (eds) 2009. Operations and Business Systems Management. Harlow, Pearson. Slack, N. , Chambers, S. , ; Johnston, R. , 2004. Operations Management. 4th Ed. London: Pitman Publishing. Cengage (2007) Operations, Strategy and Operations Strategy [Online] Available from: http://www. cengage. co. uk/barnes/students/sample_ch/ch2. pdf [Accessed: 26/11/2010] How to cite Operations and System Management of a Car Garage, Papers

Showcasing Tourism - Travel - Hospitality and Gastronomy

Question: Discuss about the Showcasing Tourism, Travel, Hospitality and Gastronomy. Answer: Events related to tourism in New Zealand Events Dates Description Cost Conservation week 2016 10.Sep.2016 to 18.Sep.2016 It is an event, organized by the conservation of nature department of New Zealand to bring people closer to nature. Free of cost The Daffodil Express 11.Sep.2016 It is a journey where people travel from Wellington to Carterton with Incorporated Steam to attend the daffodil festival to celebrate spring (Yeoman Yu, 2012). Adult:$89.00 Child:$55.00 NZ Craft and Design Show 21.Aug.2016 It is a unique ethical handicraft and design show, full of cultural events. Adult: $9 Child: $5 Inner bubble 26. Nov.2016 11am to27.Nov.2016 3am It is a 14hour non-stop music festival, where Electronic, Rap, Hip Hop, DnB, vocals, Dance, Reggae, and Funk will be the main attraction. Early Bird General Admission:$55.00 General Admission:$65.00 Zirka Circus 21.Aug.2016 It is an event full of daring acts, beautiful poetics balls. Adult VIP:$40.00 Child VIP:$29.00 Concession VIP:$38.00 Adult Ringside:$35.00 Child Ringside:$25.00 Concession Ringside:$33.00 Adult Elevated:$29.00 Child Elevated:$19.00 Concession Elevated:$27.00 Family Pass:$86.00 Full day wildlife tour from Dunedin September It is a full day tour to the deepest grooves of wildlife with special attraction of the penguins (Yeoman Yu, 2012). $175 per person NZ Red Cross 20th Annual book fair 26.Aug.2016 to 28.Aug.2016 It is fair of books where exclusive books of all the writers will be available with an additional discount. Free of cost Oktoberfest Auckland 16.Sep.2016 It is an auction event where the money collected will be given to charity. $50 + additional charges Iconic event in tourism According to me, the iconic event shall be the Oktoberfest Auckland because here the money collected from the auction of the items is going to be donated to the charity (Roth, 2013). This time, they are going to give the money to Prostate Cancer Foundation. This kind of charity kind of activities is encouraged and respected all over the world, there are very few organizations which think for such a noble cause (Yeoman Yu, 2012). Moreover, cancer is a fatal traumatic illness all over the universe and an event getting involved in this kind of genuine charity does earn its name to be an iconic one. This shall spread awareness as well as sympathy for the cancer patients. References Roth, K. (2013). The Oktoberfest Rearrangement.Chemviews. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/chemv.201300098 Yeoman, I. Yu, R. (2012).2050 - tomorrow's tourism. Bristol: Channel View Publications.

The Golden Age of Athens Essay Example

The Golden Age of Athens Essay In Greece, fifth-century BC was a time and place of extraordinary success, economic growth, and global power. Indeed it is now referred as being the Golden Age in the cities of Greece, especially Athens. This period lasted from around 500 to 350 BC, at this point, the cities were flowering both intellectually and culturally. Also, significant changes were made during these years; this includes changes in the fields of art, architecture, government and literature. Many important names contributed to this period, but the focus here will be Socrates for his philosophy, Sophocles as one of the three great tragedians and Pericles in the area of politics. Philosophy in ancient Greece was one of the most important intellectual studies. During the period of the Golden Age, there was a great amount of prosperity in the area of philosophy, and there was an uncountable amount of famous philosophers. Nonetheless, the three philosophers that were and still are considered the greatest of the time were Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato. The main focus here, however, will solely be Socrates as he was possibly the most thought-provoking and influential of the thinkers. He was the only one that did not write anything and instead did a lot of public speaking about his theories and ideas. So, we rely on the work of his students, â€Å"especially Plato and Xenophon† (Kemerling, Garth), to have a precise idea of the thinking of Socrates. The philosopher â€Å"invented† Socratic Teaching, which is still used today. This method of teaching consists of asking students questions instead of answers so that the student gets to think on their ow n and give a confident answer himself. He also had a philosophical method called Dialectic, which â€Å"consisted of finding the truth with rational reflection and the belief that if a statement is true it cannot lead to false consequences† (Socrates, Questia School) Anyways, philosophy under the teaching and morality of Socrate We will write a custom essay sample on The Golden Age of Athens specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Golden Age of Athens specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Golden Age of Athens specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer

How to Write a Good Essay Response

How to Write a Good Essay ResponseThere are a few sample essays that you can use to help you get your mind and heart set on writing a good essay. One of the most common topics that they use is to answer the question 'What was the purpose of life?' This one is very simple to use in an essay. Using examples is a very effective way to make your point with an essay that you can do at home.Another option for you to use in order to make a different kind of essay is to write about yourself and how you started out in your life. You can relate this example to something in your life that you had a hand in. If you are a writer, you can link this example to your writing style or to a writing topic that you may be interested in. There are many people who have trouble with this kind of essay and also the techniques that they use to improve their own writing. When writing a personal essay, be sure to avoid this problem.The last and probably the best example that you will find for writing essays is the poem. It is a great example for beginners to see what can be done. There are many ways to start with a poem and there are many poems that you can use in your own essay. What you need to remember is that when writing a poem, do not go over the top and do not write things that are too personal. The one way to find good poetry is to go to a library and look through the various titles that are available to you.Writing an essay is an important part of learning how to speak. Do not let this discourage you. Writing a good essay does not mean that you cannot connect your own life experience into the essay. You can use your experience to help your essay show what you feel. When your voice and your personality are highlighted in your essay, you will be surprised at how easy it is for people to relate to you. This is not as difficult as it seems to some people. Just be sure that you use a combination of practice essays and simple examples of essay response to help you with your essays. In an essay response, you can include an example of the most common types of questions that people ask in an essay. You can also include examples of your own personal experiences in this type of essay. These two forms of response will give you practice in writing your essay response. You can add a little bit of personal detail to your essay response if you wish.You can use different types of words in an essay response. You can choose between capitalization, grammar, and spelling. Once you have learned the basics, then you can explore using your own ideas in your responses.A good essay usually comes from several sources. If you have used the essay, then you know what you need to write to gain insight from it. Knowing that you were able to put your life into writing, will help you not only in your writing but in all areas of your life.

5 Examples of Proper Style for Proper Nouns

5 Examples of Proper Style for Proper Nouns 5 Examples of Proper Style for Proper Nouns 5 Examples of Proper Style for Proper Nouns By Mark Nichol A proper noun, also known as a proper name, is capitalized to indicate that it denotes a unique entity or phenomenon. Many entities or phenomena are widely known by their names. Sometimes, however, writers misunderstand or misrepresent the label. Here are five examples of proper nouns that illustrate the importance of verifying precise nomenclature and considering the context in which it is used. 1. Big Ben This is the official nickname, specifically, of the bell in the Elizabeth Tower, the iconic structure often used as a visual shortcut to identifying London in photographs, on television, and in films. (The tower, previously called simply the Clock Tower, was renamed in 2012 in honor of the sixtieth anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign.) However, popularly, the phrase generally refers to the clock in the tower or the tower itself. 2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention This US government agency’s official name is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but it retains the initials, CDC, of its previous designation, the Centers for Disease Control; note that the first word is plural. (A similar example is the name of the National Institutes not Institute of Health.) 3. Halley’s Comet The technical name for this peanut-shaped orbiting body roughly the size of a big-league Himalayan mountain is Comet Halley. (actually, 1P/Halley is its astronomy-catalog designation.) Because of its relative familiarity, however, due to unusually frequent reappearances (roughly every seventy-five years), it is also called Halley’s Comet. The traditional pronunciation among astronomers rhymes with alley, but, perhaps as a result of contamination from the name of the seminal rock-and-roll band Bill Haley and the Comets, most laypeople pronounce it to rhyme with daily. (No one knows how discoverer Edmund Halley pronounced his name, but I’d give the odds to the stargazers’ convention.) 4. New York The largest US city is popularly called New York (the official name is â€Å"the City of New York†), but writers should determine whether, depending on the context, it should be referred to as New York City to distinguish it from New York State. (In this designation, and in â€Å"Washington State† so as not to confuse the state with Washington, DC state is capitalized even though it’s not part of the state’s official name.) 5. Sierra Nevada The name of the mountain range forming the backbone of California a name shared by several other ranges throughout the world from the Spanish phrase meaning â€Å"snowy mountains,† should not be pluralized with the letter s, and â€Å"the Sierra Nevada Mountains† is partially redundant. (The same is true of the truncation â€Å"the Sierras†; call it â€Å"the Sierra.†) Many other geographical designations are redundant: Fujiyama translates as â€Å"Mount Fuji†; the words sahara, gobi, and negev all mean â€Å"desert†; and the first word in â€Å"Rio Grande,† as well as Avon and Don the names for rivers in England and Russia, respectively means â€Å"river.† Although it’s not wrong to use the word mount, desert, or river before or after the name of a geographic feature that means â€Å"mountain,† â€Å"desert,† or â€Å"river,† the common noun can often safely be omitted (for example, â€Å"Fujiyama,† â€Å"the Sahara,† and â€Å"the Rio Grande†). Note, too, that river, when it precedes a river’s name (for example, â€Å"the river Nile†), is always descriptive and not part of the name. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:85 Synonyms for â€Å"Help†"Gratitude" or "Gratefulness"?Glimpse and Glance: Same or Different?

Standard English Definition and Examples

Standard English Definition and Examples Standard English is a controversial term for a form of the English language that is written and spoken by educated users. Abbreviation: SE. Also known as  Standard Written English (SWE). According to Tom McArthur in The Oxford Companion to the English Language (1992), the term Standard English resists easy definition but is used as if most educated people nonetheless know precisely what it refers to. Examples and Observations The term Standard English refers to both an actual variety of language and an idealized norm of English acceptable in many social situations. As a language variety, Standard English is the language used in most public discourse and in the regular operation of American social institutions. The news media, the government, the legal profession, and the teachers in our schools and universities all view Standard English as their proper mode of communication, primarily in expository and argumentative writing, but also in public speaking.Standard English is thus different from what is normally thought of as speech in that Standard English must be taught, whereas children learn to speak naturally without being taught.(The American Heritage Guide to Contemporary Usage and Style. Houghton Mifflin, 2005We need to know Standard English, but we need to know it critically, analytically, and in the context of language history. We also need to understand the regularity of non-standard variants. If w e approach good and bad grammar in this way, the study of language will be a liberating factor- not merely freeing learners from socially stigmatized usage by replacing that usage with new linguistic manners, but educating people in what language and linguistic manners are all about.(Edwin L. Battistella, Bad Language: Are Some Words Better Than Others? Oxford University Press, 2005 Tacit Conventions of Usage [T]he conventions of linguistic usage are tacit. The rules of standard English are not legislated by a tribunal but emerge as an implicit consensus within a virtual community of writers, readers, and editors. That consensus can change over time in a process as unplanned and uncontrollable as the vagaries of fashion. No official ever decided that respectable men and women were permitted to doff their hats and gloves in the 1960s or to get pierced and tattooed in the 1990s- nor could any authority with powers short of Mao Zedong have stopped these changes. In a similar manner, centuries of respectable writers have shrugged off long-forgotten edicts by self-appointed guardians of the language, from Jonathan Swift’s denunciation of banter, mob, and sham to Strunk and White’s disparaging of to personalize, to contact, and six people (as opposed to six persons).(Steven Pinker, False Fronts in the Language Wars. Slate, May 31, 2012 The Convenience of Standard English [Standard English is that] particular variety of English which is regarded by educated people as appropriate for most types of public  discourse, including most broadcasting, almost all publication, and virtually all conversation with anyone other than intimates... Standard English is not entirely uniform around the globe: for example, American users of standard English say the first floor and Ive just gotten a letter and write center and color, while British users say ground floor and Ive just got a letter and write centre and colour. But these regional differences are few in comparison with the very high degree of agreement about which forms should count as standard. Nevertheless, standard English, like all living languages, changes over time...It is important to realize that standard English is in no way intrinsically superior to any other variety of English: in particular, it is not more logical, more grammatical, or more expressive. It is, at the bottom, a convenience: the use of a single agreed standard form, learned by speakers everywhere, minimizes uncertainty, confusion, misunderstanding, and communicative difficulty generally.(R.L. Trask, Dictionary of English Grammar. Penguin, 2000 Origins of Standard English By far the most influential factor in the rise of  Ã¢â‚¬â€¹Standard English was the importance of London as the capital of England...London English took as well as gave. It began as a Southern and ended as a Midland dialect. By the 15th century, there had come to prevail in the East Midlands a fairly uniform dialect, and the language of London agrees in all important respects with it. We can hardly doubt that the importance of the eastern counties...is largely responsible for this change. Even such Northern characteristics as are found in the standard speech seem to have entered by way of these counties. The history of Standard English is almost a history of London English. (Albert C. Baugh and Thomas Cable, A History of the English Language, 5th ed. Prentice Hall, 2002)Half-way through the 17th century, the lexicographer Thomas Blount declares that the Babel of the vernacular made England a self-stranger nation- one growing alien to itself through this diversity of available forms . He dedicates his dictionary of 1656 to the cause of having English Englished. Arguably, in this context, it is not the rise of a standard variety of language, but a new awareness of dialect and variability of discourse- the self-stranger English of the Renaissance- that best defines the linguistic culture of early modern England. (Paula Blank, The Babel of Renaissance English. The Oxford History of English, ed. by Lynda Mugglestone. Oxford University Press, 2006 Varieties of Standard English [T]here is no such thing (at present) as a Standard English which is not British or American or Australian, etc. There is no International Standard (yet), in the sense that publishers cannot currently aim at a standard which is not locally bound.(Gunnel Melchers and Philip Shaw, World Englishes: An Introduction. Arnold, 2003)