Wednesday, April 1, 2020
Synthesis of Divanillin Lab Report Essay Example
Synthesis of Divanillin Lab Report Paper The dimmer bond forms between two carbons that have each lost an electron and have one to share, The dimmer bond does not involve an oxygen, so this is called oxidative demarcation because two identical compounds are bonded at oxidized carbons. 2) Draw resonance structures for the phenotype anion: 3) Why does the dimmer bond form between the #5 Carbons? A. When the hydrogen peroxide reacts with the peroxides, 2 equivalents of a hydroxyl free radical are formed. Those free radicals take a hydrogen (including its electron) from the vanilla molecules, forming phenol free radicals. The cost stable location for the resonating electron on this free radical is on the number 5 carbon (Roth to the phenol). The resonating electrons on each vanilla free radical form a covalent bond, forming the dimmer. 4) Why is this green Chemistry? A. Green Chemistry, simply put, avoids the use and creation of toxins and waste that harms the environment. Green chemistry seeks to stop pollution from chemical production and to use fewer natural resources. This experiment is green chemistry because the reactants used and the products are all non-toxic ND sate tort the environment. In specific, this experiment involves one of the Green Chemistry developments Ryeà ¶j Noir made in the use of hydrogen peroxide for clean oxidations. The hydrogen peroxide in this experiment does not produce toxic waste like heavy metal oxidants do; it only produces water. We will write a custom essay sample on Synthesis of Divanillin Lab Report specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Synthesis of Divanillin Lab Report specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Synthesis of Divanillin Lab Report specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer
Saturday, March 7, 2020
Kinship in Sudan Buth and Mar Among the Nuer essays
Kinship in Sudan Buth and Mar Among the Nuer essays Kinship in Sudan: Buth and Mar Among the Nuer The Nuer people are one of more than one hundred ethnic groups in the northeastern African country of Sudan, which stretches stretches southward from Egypt for 2000 kilometres and westward from the Red Sea for 1500 kilometres. The Nuer are the second largest tribe in southern Sudan, numbering over one million people, according to estimates from the 1980's. Other tribes in the south include the more populous Dinka, the Shilluk, Anuak, Acholi and Lotuho, along with numerous smaller tribes. The Dinka are closely associated with the Nuer, and are often integrated into Nuer society when they reside with, or marry into a Nuer village. Principally the Nuer inhabit the swamps and expansive open grasslands on either side of the upper Nile River, and its tributaries, in the south. The south has an equatorial rainy climate, divided by a very dry season and a very wet one, and Nuer life is regulated entirely by the seasons. In the dry season only a few of the older folk remain in the village, the rest going with the cattle to water-holes or to the river bank, where summer camps are built. The Nuer are pre-emiinentaly pastoral, though they grow more millet and maize than is commonly supposed (Evans-Pritchard, 1940:16). The lives of the Nuer revolve around their herding practices, raising cattle, and the seasonal patterns of the terrain. Like many of his pastoral neighbors, the dearest possession of the Nuer is cattle, and their herds play a significant role in the economy, social structure, and religion of these communities. The Nuer cattle are used as payment for virtually everything and are also the main source o f food; they are used in purchases of land, as payment of bride price, and for milk, blood and meat. Cattle are passed down as part of inheritance, and can stay in the family for several generations. An ox or lactating cow is always a part of any religious ceremony &n...
Thursday, February 20, 2020
Selected Family Health Promotion Assessment and Initiative Essay
Selected Family Health Promotion Assessment and Initiative - Essay Example Health promotion impacts positively on health literacy centering on health related knowledge, attitudes, motivation, confidence; behavioral intentions; and, personal skills relating to healthy lifestyles. The central purpose of this paper is to examine the concepts of health and learning as outlined by the McGill model of Nursing. In light of family partnership, I visited a family three times in which I adequately familiarized with the familyââ¬â¢s health goals and concerns, their present strengths, coping strategies, and resource utilization. Selected Family Health Promotion Assessment and Initiative Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Background and Aims Health promotion refers to the process of enabling individuals to exercise control over their health and its determinants. Health promotion seeks to create an environment that is essential for the making of informed choices. Health promotion approaches include early intervention and prevention such as primary health screening and survei llance; identification of opportunities to facilitate and support healthy lifestyles choices; understanding and application of the determinants of health encompassing aspects such as societal influences on the health of individuals (Allen & Warner, 2002). Effective health promotion requires gathering of enough information regarding the identified health issue. The underpinning issues in health promotion activities include individual beliefs, knowledge and attitudes centering on the health issue (Friedman, Bowden, & Jones, 2003). This factor in inspired by the manner in which an individual thinks, which renders him/her susceptible to developing the health problem. The McGill model of nursing, whose salient features encompass health, family, collaboration, and learning was developed by F. Moyra Allen. The McGill model of nursing can be praised for its fluidity, flexibility, and functionality. The model core focus centers on health promotion, especially within the family. The goal of t he model is to bridge the gap evidenced by the absence of community resources that pursue the healthy development of families across their life span (Allen & Warner, 2002). Some of the assumptions of the model include every family has capabilities or health potential manifested by strengths, motivation, and resources that form the foundation of health promotion behavior, and the outcomes of health promotion hinges on competence in health behavior and enhanced health status. 1.2 Nature of the Home Visits The visit to Davidââ¬â¢s family was a referral made by a neighbor out of concern that the family was tackling various health issues. Since the visits are conducted at home, I had to decide the times that would be best to reach the target audiences, especially which the family members are likely to pay attention, act on the message, or find the messages more engaging. This situation meant that I must pay close attention to providing explanations for the initial phone call, and avai l an opportunity for the family to accept or reject the visit. Prior to the introductory meeting with the family, I had to prepare adequately beforehand to ensure that the meeting was successful. I made the phone call to the family and requested a home visit and expressed my desire to meet up with the whole family. The family in question was a single family comprising of a father, David, and his two teenage daughters, Natalie and Millie. I came to learn later that
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
Therapeutic Recreation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Therapeutic Recreation - Essay Example Suffering, it is thought, is reducible through objective solutions to health problems. The author believed naively that one day, every known problem to medicine would be addressed by an objective fixââ¬âwhich is a belief now breaking up in all areas of medical treatment. Unfortunately, the commitment to an objective, universal set of fixes is a false medical model for how things work in reality. Instead, the author believes human consciousness to be a tool of vast complexity to remember, contemplate, process, and think, which precludes a simplistic model of medicine. In contrast to the idea of suffering as an objective phenomenon with objective causes, the author points to extreme cases of hypochondriasis, in which a personââ¬â¢s suffering is entirely self-caused, and those who live with extreme levels of suffering, but overcome it to live joyfully. Given this wide range of how people deal with suffering, the author concludes that suffering transcends traditional medicine. Acc ordingly, ââ¬Å"suffering is a spiritual experience, intensely personal, and full of paradox and mysteryâ⬠(Oââ¬â¢Keefe, 2008). At the other end of this spectrum is the idea of leisure, which is taken to be the opposite of suffering. In leisure, one finds joy with oneââ¬â¢s activities, which is also a deeply personal and subjective issue. For both leisure and suffering, the author believes that ââ¬Å"therapeutic recreation has a wonderful giftâ⬠appealing both to the suffering and the joyful in the whole human being. It is objectionable, according to the author, that therapeutic recreation is treated by some as a distraction from the apparent seriousness of a patientââ¬â¢s situation. A patientââ¬â¢s experience in a medical ward is full of objective newsââ¬âgood and badââ¬âthat ignores the suffering and leisure of the individual patient. An apparent implication of therapeutic recreationââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"diversionâ⬠from objectivity is the thought t hat therapeutic recreation does not know or care about the seriousness of a patientââ¬â¢s situation. This, in turn, leads to an attempt by some in the field to bring therapeutic recreation on par in objectivity to the medical field that specializes in problem-solving diagnoses. At this point, one can see the author take issue with the language being used in therapeutic recreationââ¬âlanguage that is depersonalizing people and making it more difficult to understand suffering (and joy) at a humanistic level. The author predicts that patients will demand that the language being used is more accessible and humanistic: an idea that supports the theory saying therapeutic recreation should carve out a place for itself as a humanistic practice that acknowledges the spiritualistic aspects of human life. Suffering, after all, represents a very spiritual experience, given that it is represented as such in so many world religions as redemptive and necessary for meaning. Suffering, whethe r it is embodied in homelessness, oppression, poverty, starvation, or violence, affords an opportunity for experiencing emptiness (Oââ¬â¢Keefe, 2008). From redemption and emptiness, human beings have the chance to experience the highest form of joy, which comes from giving oneself to a saving power (which, the author notes, is not necessarily religious ââ¬Å"but certainly spiritualâ⬠). In addition, this suffering can be communal. Following the September 11th terrorist attacks, entire groups of people felt shared emotions. Some of these shared emotions were put at ease through
Monday, January 27, 2020
The Male Reproductive System
The Male Reproductive System Many males think they know their bodies but not many of them actually take the time to fully understand it. When I started this research topic I thought I knew everything there was to know about the male reproductive system but I was sadly mistaken. Join me in my quest to find out all there is to know about it. Males can start puberty as early as ten or as late as sixteen. Puberty, a frightening but necessary experience for boys and girls, can start unexpectedly in life. Most young males are too busy playing with friends to notice that inside their bodies, hormonal change is taking place. Puberty is the time when a boy becomes a man, or a rebellious teenager. The start of puberty is caused by the brain sending hormonal signals to the testis. During puberty growth hormone is activated and although a large growth spurt is a common occurrence for the first half of puberty it is also common to have small growth spurts in height during the second half of puberty. Males have many physical changes while entering and during puberty. The first noticeable sign of puberty is growth in testicular size. The testis will continue growing until quite a few years after the start of puberty until they have reached the normal adult size. Right after the testis has grown for about a year the shaft of the penis starts to enlarge and lengthen. Not only do the testes produce hormones but they are also the place of creation for sperm. Boys can become fertile from as early as twelve to sixteen. The first appearance of hair on a male in puberty originates on and around the testis, near and above the base of the penis and on the side of the inner thighs. The DNA Kiefiuk 2 they received from their parents could help in determining the surface area the hair covers and how long, thick or even the color of pubic hair in males. Following pubic hair boys usually find themselves growing underarm hair and leg hair. Chest hair and facial hair are not automatic in puberty as some men never get chest hair and facial hair might not appear on a man until ten years after puberty. . Some males think its a problem that they might not have entered puberty yet. For some cases, males have started puberty as late as sixteen. This is not an issue, other than the fact that bullying might occur. It is not exactly common but happens where a males body isnt ready to develop and they could be left behind while their friends are all experiencing these changes. The dreaded cracking voice can be quite an embarrassment to males in puberty. Strings in the larynx become longer and wider and the change in the vocals usually leads to instability in controlling ones voice. With due time, however, the male will no longer have a higher sounding voice but a lower, deeper voice. The penis is one of the parts of the male reproductive system that is located outside of the males body. The other is the testis. The penis is used during intercourse to enter the vagina and release seminal fluids. A males penis is usually flaccid but becomes harder and longer when aroused. Most males in their younger years will get more frequent erections than that of older males. Getting an erection involves three masses of spongy tissue resembling columns that run through it length wise. These masses are known as cavernous tissue and when the male is aroused they fill with blood. Once a male gets an erection he must either wait for Kiefiuk 3 it to go down on its own or achieve orgasm to relieve the sexual tension. The testes lie within the scrotal sac. Their purpose is to produce sperm and male sex hormones. It produces two types of male hormone: LH, Luteinizing Hormone and FSH, Follicle-Stimulating Hormone. LH is the hormone responsible for producing testosterone which in turn is responsible for what makes males different than that of females who produce estrogen instead of testosterone. The testes are fully dropped before a male enters puberty. FSH is responsible for changes in the pubic area and reproductive system. When puberty hits FSH along with LH are produced more rapidly, often causing the young male to become very hormonal. FSH causes the growth of pubic hair and growth of the testis and penis. Most human males have two testicles surrounded by the scrotum. The scrotum is a covering of skin to protect the testis from varied temperatures. When it is cold the scrotal sac rises, bringing the testis up closer to the body to warm them. When it is warm the testis relaxes and the scrotal sac lowers to give more freedom to the testis. The scrotal sac is almost saggy in look. One testicle within the scrotal sac usually hangs a little bit lower than the other. Pubic hair usually resides on the male scrotum but it is not like that for everyone, Just like how people have varied amounts of pubic hair than others. The pathway of the sperm to the oocyte involves quite the process: The testes are where sperm are manufactured in the scrotum. The epididymis is a tortuously coiled structure topping the testis, and it Kiefiuk 4 receives immature sperm from the testis and stores it several days. When ejaculation occurs, sperm is forcefully expelled from the tail of the epididymis into the deferent duct. Sperm then travels through the deferent duct through up the spermatic cord into the pelvic cavity, over the ureter to the prostate behind the bladder. Here, the vas deferens joins with the seminal vesicle to form the ejaculatory duct, which passes through the prostate and empties into the urethra. When ejaculation occurs, rhythmic muscle movements propel the sperm forward. (E) No one wants to find out that their genitals have a disease, not male or female. It does, however, happen in this world. There are so many different types of diseases that can affect the penis. The first Im going to talk about is a yeast infection. Most people believe that yeast infections can only happen in women but they are wrong. A yeast infection has the following symptoms on the males penis: -Swollen -Itchy -Blotchy -Red all over -Smells, cheesy -Flaky penis tip -White ooze from the tip of the penis That is your yeasty neighbor at home on your manhood and causing you to Kiefiuk 5 ITCH. (A) There are quite a few ways in which a person can cure or try and cure their yeast infection. Since the can be quite a few ways to obtain yeast infections such as eating moldy food, drinking alcohol or having sex with someone who has it, so naturally to cure yourself youre going to want to stop having sex, throw away the moldy food and stop drinking. After this, go see your doctor and get yourself some anti-fungi pills or cream. Another way to rid yourself of a yeast infection is by rubbing yogurt on your genitals. You could say this is the all natural approach. Also, it has been proven that vinegar and warm water mixed together and poured on the genitals can help kill the infection. Other problems with the penis which men know they can get are such things like STIs. There are so many types of venereal diseases that you can catch because you werent careful while having sex. Some diseases you might have had for a long time and never realized it, and others, you will know you have them from the physical signs on your genitals. Men, it almost seems that for a majority of men, sex is a competition: Who has the most sex, who they had it with, and for some, how long it lasted.. In high school these guys may seem so cool but chances are that because theyve given sex away so many times they picked up a few hitch hikers along the way. Chlamydia is a disease that has to be treated as soon as possible because it can cause serious health problems. 50% of males wind up with a term known as infectious urethritis which is an infection in the urethra. Side effects of Chlamydia are painful urination, fever, swollen testis and discharge from the penis. Epididymtitis can be caused Kiefiuk 6 when Chlamydia spreads to the testicles. If this happens it is possible for sperm to become sterile if you do not get treatment within six to eight weeks. Lets face it, guys we have all been there, sitting in class, perhaps sleeping when you realize, uh oh! Spontaneous erection! Your face probably grew red hoping that no one notices. Well, here is the good news. Its perfectly natural. There is nothing wrong with getting an erection. Morning erections are a perfectly normal occurrence. Some guys have complained about this as a problem and thought that there was something wrong with them but in fact its actually not normal if you dont get an erection in the morning. Why, you might ask? This is because a morning erection or morning wood as its more commonly known, is the last erection in a series of erections that happen throughout the night as men sleep. On average a male will have four to five erections during the night, averaging to last about thirty minutes a night. A male cannot have sex if their penis is flaccid and not erect.. If you try to have coitus with a flaccid penis, its not going to work. There are a few reasons for this. First, you wont be able to penetrate into the womans vagina during sex. Second, if you try and have sex with a flaccid penis it is not stimulated. If your penis isnt stimulated it is going to be a very difficult thing for a man to receive pleasure during intercourse. If a man cannot get stimulated during sex then he wont be able to reach the climax, or orgasm. A flaccid penis should become erect once sexually aroused. The reason for not being able to get an erection is most likely because that male is suffering from an erectile Kiefiuk 7 dysfunction. If this occurs you should consult your doctor. When it comes down to it, there are only two types of penises, circumcised and uncircumcised. Every man on earth is one or the other. For many men who are circumcised it usually wasnt their own choice. Circumcision usually takes place during the first year of life. A babys parents will decide whether or not to cut the foreskin from their childs penis. Studies have shown that a lot of males who are circumcised wished that they werent circumcised. Many men who arent circumcised enjoy their foreskin and say that during sex it increases pleasure. There are pros and cons to both circumcised and uncircumcised penises. Circumcised penises are cleaner and women say that they look nicer than those with foreskins. It has also been said that a circumcised penis is more pleasurable for woman during intercourse. Uncircumcised penises, however, increase pleasure for males but are harder to keep clean. If you have a foreskin you have to be sure to scrub under it to keep it clean so you dont carry around bacteria. The male orgasm is the climax during sex. During intercourse movements of the hips let a male bring his penis in and out of the vagina. This stimulates pleasure in the head and shaft of the penis. As this pleasure continues and increases, heart rate increases along with breath intake. The sperm will then travel through the male reproductive system, out of the urethra and be expelled in spurts along with seminal fluids. Safe sex is good sex. If you dont want to have a baby then youre probably going to want to use a condom. There are a variety of different sizes and types of condoms for Kiefiuk 8 males plus the numerous brands. Condom sizes dont necessarily have to do with the length of a mans penis. Most condoms base their sizes off of the girth of a penis. The main reason for a condom is to protect the female from pregnancy during intercourse and on average a condom has a 90% chance of doing this. However there is more to using a condom than just preventing pregnancy. It also helps prevent sexually transmitted infections. A condom should always be used during intercourse unless the two people who are sharing in coitus are planning on having a child. Condoms come in many different types. The mainstream type of condom used is made of latex. Latex is an excellent protector against STIs and helping to prevent pregnancy. If a person is allergic to latex there are other options such as condoms made out of a firmer plastic. They provide the same help and support as those made of latex do. Another type of condom is that made from lamb. They are proven to almost fully stop a person from getting pregnant but due to small pores throughout the condom it is very easy for STIs to be contracted. Condoms can be made in different ways to help stimulate pleasure. Some condoms may be thinner so that you feel more contact between genitals; some may have built in lube while others might even be studded. Along with this, condoms can usually be bought in different colors and even flavors. To put a condom on, you have to first open the package, never do this with scissors or your teeth for you might accidentally tear the condom. There should be a slit in the package so that you can just rip it open and pull the condom out. Once out, you take the condoms base in one hand and place it above the head of the erect penis. Once Kiefiuk 9 overtop of the penis, it is crucial that you pinch the tip of the condom to leave room for the ejaculation. Once you have gotten hold of the tip of the condom with the other hand, roll the base of the condom until the penis is fully covered. Some condoms may feel very uncomfortable so some people enjoy putting lubricant inside and sometimes outside of the condom. Using lubricant in your condoms also helps prevent the chances of it tearing during intercourse. Only water based lubricants should be used with condoms as oil-based lubes can damage the integrity of the condom. Many males get to the age when they feel that they are no longer interested in having kids. They probably by now already have children or dont feel like having any at all. There is a simple way to stop the process of impregnating a woman. A vasectomy involves a doctor making small incisions in the males scrotal sac to get to the vas deferens. The vans deferentia are then cut and cauterized or clamped shut. A great way to protect the male reproductive system from any harm is to stay abstinent all together. Abstinence is the only way to be 100% sure that youre not going to get a girl pregnant or wind up with a sexually transmitted disease. Most people that think they are staying abstinent try fooling around, such as mutual masturbation, where their genitals dont come in contact but they are still being sexually stimulated. They are wrong. You are technically keeping your v card but you are at still at risk of sexually transmitted diseases and in some cases a woman will still become pregnant even when they think they are playing it safe. It only takes one sperm to enter the oocyte and cause pregnancy. Kiefiuk 10 If a person is extremely sexually active rather than instead of having sex with every pair of legs they see they could try pleasuring themselves. This is not the best solution to sex but it is better than risking all the diseases and risk of pregnancy. Many males, especially teenagers, have tried self pleasuring at least once in their lives. Penis size is usually noted as a problem amongst males and is a big stress causer. Many guys are wondering how their penis size matches up to those of their friends. Its not gross or a sexual thing, just plain old curiosity. The fact is penis sizes vary and no penis is going to look the same. The average size of a males penis is around five to six centimeters. If you have a penis size of four to five inches its not a terrible thing. Its not the size; it is how you use it. On the other hand you might have an abnormally large penis. If a male has a large penis they probably feel superior to other males but the truth is, not only is it less pleasurable and less intimate for the male but it is also less pleasurable and can even hurt the female during intercourse. The male reproductive system is part of all guys. Every guy is born with a penis and testicles. As we develop we begin to change, its all normal and natural. As a guy you need to accept what you have and work with it, be cool, be calm, and be yourself.
Sunday, January 19, 2020
America Can Save Its Schools from Violence Essay -- Argumentative Pers
à à à à à The late 1990s brought some frightening headlines to the public consciousness. Deadly shootings were happening in our public schools (Columbine, Littleton). Unfortunately like all other events that appear for the first time, we went from being shocked and dismayed, to a feeling of numbness as they continued and continued. To understand why this is happening in American culture, we need to look at the last two decades of social evolution. We had a distortion of the classic family, an abundance of role conflict, and a move towards sensationalism in our media. We are constantly being bombarded by images of violence on the television and lyrics about acts or threats of violence on the radio. All members of society need to take an active part in a revolution of our priorities. The violence in our school systems will decrease when parents, teachers, peers, and role models start paying more attention to our students. à Breakdown of Traditional Family à Many correlations can be made between acts of violence and the breakdown of the traditional family. In a 1995 study conducted by the Council of Families in America, "50% of first marriages end in divorce"(A1). As result families have been forced to mutate. This often results in a household consisting of one parent (mom or dad) and the child/children. Typically the parent, who has custody, has a job to provide for the family. Oftentimes this leaves the child/children home alone or with some sort of caretaker (daycare, babysitter, nanny). This situation could lead to a wide array of problems. The child may not receive the attention they need from their parent that is proven to aid in the development of proper morals and values. Doctor John Gottman of the Marital an... ...ools can be curbed. à Works Cited Alexander, Kelly. "Is spanking Ever Okay?" Parent. May 2001 Vl. 76 #5: 94. Council of Families in America. "Low Marriage, High Divorce Rates Hits Kids Hard." Reuters. 4 Apr. 1995 <http://www.vix.com/pub/men/nofather/articles/usa-marriages.html: A1. Dominick, Joseph R. "Social Effects of Mass Communication." The Dynamics of Mass Communication. 6th Ed. 1999: child 1; B. Gottman, John. Marital and Family Research Institute. Pamphlet. Feb. 2001: A2. Kagan, Donald; Steven Ozment; Frank M. Turner. "The Age of Napoleon and the Triumph of Romanticism." The Western Heritage. 2001 Vl. C 7th Edition: 690. Kornblum, William. "Education and Communications Media" Sociology: In A Changing World. 2000 5th Edition: Hamburg 1992. Pearlman, Robert. "Cruelty of Culture." Time 27 Dec. 1999 Vl. 54 I. 25: 40.
Saturday, January 11, 2020
Languages and Dialects of Spain Essay
With a population of approximately 45 million Spaniards and 3. 5 million immigrants, Spain is a country of contrasts where the richness of its culture blends it up with the variety of languages and dialects used. Being one of the largest economies worldwide, and the second largest country in Europe, Spain is a very appealing destination for tourists as well as for immigrants from around the globe. Almost all Spaniards are used to speaking at least two different languages, but protecting and preserving that right has not been easy for them; Spaniards have had to struggle with war, ignorance, criticism and the governments, in order to preserve and defend what identifies them, and deal with the consequences (some of which are good and some of which are bad) of dealing with this multilingual society they have. Spanish-Town-Guides, 2002-2011) In Spain there are 17th autonomous regions, the official language spoken in each region is Spanish or Castilian, however, there are three other recognized regional languages used throughout the country (Wikipedia contributors, 2011); Catalan (spoken in Catalonia, Valencian Community, and Balearic Islands), Basque (spoken in Basque Country and Navarre), and Galician, (spoken in Galicia) (Wikipedia contributors, 2011). Distributed throughout Spain there are a variety of smaller groups or regions with their own dialects, most of them Latin derivatives (as well as the main languages); Aragonese (spoken in Aragon, Huesca and Zaragoza), Asturian (spoken in Asturias),Calo (known as the language of the gypsies), Valencian and Mallorquin (Both dialects from Catalan and spoken in Valencia and Mallorca), Extremaduran (spoken in Extremadura), Occitan (also considered as a dialect of Catalan) and Gascon (that is considered a dialect of Occitan) (About. com, 2011). Each region? government has put all the efforts to create laws to ensure that people in all regions speak and practice their own language (Council of Europe, 2011); such is the case of Catalonia which is the region where there have been more efforts to preserve language. In Catalonia, there are no places where natives do not know Catalan or any of the dialects from it, and even foreigners living there must deal with this ââ¬Å"handicapâ⬠since, in order to find a job, they need to learn to speak Catalan; otherwise, it will be very difficult to get hired, and social life can be limited as well since veryone around uses Catalan to communicate (Abanco, 1998). Spaniards, especially in Catalonia, Basque Country and Galicia have become very protective of their own languages and dialects, since they outright their extinction during Francoist period, which make them fight to ensure their languages remain being an important part, if not the most important part, of their life and their societies (Wikipedia contributors, 2011). Each region, with a language different than Castilian, is an avid defendant of their language; article 3 of the Spanish Constitution (About the Castilian and the other Spaniard languages) states: ââ¬Å"1. Castilian is the official Spanish language of the State. All Spaniards have the duty to know it and the right to use it. â⬠. ââ¬Å"2. The other Spanish languages shall also be official in the respective Self-governing Regions in accordance with their Statutes. â⬠and ââ¬Å"3.à The wealth of the different linguistic modalities of Spain is a cultural heritage which shall be specially respected and protectedâ⬠(Cortes Generales de Espana, 1978). This decree has helped to repair the damage caused during Francoist period (in which Spain was under the authoritarian dictatorship of Francisco Franco) from 1936 to 1975, when many of the regional languages were almost lost since they were forbidden; an ironic fact since general Franco was born in A Coruna, one of Galicia? s main cities, where Galician is more used than Castilian to communicate (Eric Solsten and Sandra W. Meditz, 1988). When the civil war ended, in 1975, and, in response to the oppression suffered for many years, some regions (especially Catalonia) began their efforts to preserve and enhance their languages. Thanks to those efforts Catalans can be proud to acknowledge that their languages and dialects are the most well-kept, normalized and preserved in the country, their continuous fight since the very end of war and their pride about using their language has giving them the courage to embrace and protect both, their language and their identity in such way that, in Catalonia, Castilian is limited to those who are foreigners and Catalan to natives. Unfortunately, a very different thing has happened in Galicia and Basque Country; since, by the end of war, the governments of both regions were more concerned about political affairs than preserving languages. In Basque Country, the reason for these lack of protectionism towards language was the persecution Basques suffer during the Civil War, they were accused of terrorism whenever they spoke in their own language; they were hunted and killed for this reason, and all of these actions made them a little afraid of protecting language even years after the end of war. Something similar happened in Galicia, where there were no efforts to maintain language after the war. It was years later that governments started to make efforts to preserve and rescue the language and to normalize it and make it mandatory in each school around the region, but the accurate and pure versions of them got lost with time and what new generations speak today is a mixture of old and new words adapted from the original language, but still it is quite far from the original, unaltered version of each language. The dialects in Spain share, in most of the cases, the same origin (most of the times Vulgar Latin), and the same language (for example Valencian is a dialect of Catalan); it can be thought, then, that communication in a language different than Spanish or Castilian is not that hard, and this is true but not entirely; even though these dialects come from the same sources, they differ greatly from each other; for example, in Catalonia, they use Catalan as well as in Val d? Aran; if an Occitan and a Catalan talk to each other, they will understand most of it but some words are very different, and it will take a bit of an effort to fully understand the language from one region to another. Each one of the circumstances explained above, the civil war, the immigration, the language protectionism and the normalization, are reasons to understand why Spaniards have become tolerant with languages and dialects; they have gone a long way in defending their ideals and their identity; all of the Spaniards and immigrants must pay tolerance in return to the rest of the population and accept everybody else? languages. However, not all Spaniards are sympathetic with this language protectionism, Castilian or Spanish speaking regions, such as Madrid are very less tolerant; they do not understand why one country must be separated more for languages than for borders, and this might be a valid premise, but each region has the right to protect what belongs to it. Languages, in one way, have caused separation among regions because, people consider themselves as Catalans, or Valencians, or Basques, or native of any other regions, more than they consider themselves Spaniards, and many regions are currently fighting for their independence (with no positive results so far) since they aim to be free to use their languages and dialects without being criticized and, also, be able to manage their own resources. There are many implications of having one, two or many anguages or dialects spoken in a same country or region, some of them are negative, such as this search for independence that has caused Spaniards to feel divided, not all of them feel part of the same country and many whish they were not part of the same country at all. Another implication is that communication is limited; even when all Spaniards speak Spanish, it is interesting to realize that they have both languages so acquired that they switch from one to the other in just seconds; this happens particularly with old people. As a woman married to a Catalan and having traveled to Catalonia a couple of times, I had the experience of facing this personally, people are so set in ââ¬Å"Catalan-modeâ⬠that one minute they are speaking in Spanish, and the next they are speaking in Catalan without even realizing they change back and, in my particular case, I found myself reminding everyone to talk to me in Spanish; it is an awkward situation because you can also feel like an intruder and is tiring to constantly remind everyone to speak in Spanish, and when they did speak in Castilian, it was hard for me to understand them, since it is quite different from the Spanish or Castilian we speak in Costa Rica. Another negative implication is for immigrants; my cousin moved to Barcelona eleven years ago; she got a scholarship to finish her studies in laws at ââ¬Å"Universitat de Barcelona. The first problem she had to face was the fact that all her lessons were taught in Catalan; and being a native Spanish speaker she felt very frustrated and worried, and it took many years for her to be able to understand Catalan (only understand it because she does not speak it); she is now living there and after she finished college it was very hard for her to find a job, once again the problem was the lack of Catalan; it is very challenging for a foreigner to move there since Catalans are so protective of their language that in order to find a job, people must speak Catalan. The last negative implication, from my point of view, is immigration within the country; my mother in-law was born in Galicia; she learned to speak Galician (the very limited kind of Galician that was spoken during the war) when she was little; and, at the age of nine, with almost her entire primary education finished, her family decided to move to Barcelona searching for a better life, where she had to deal with Catalan (even though during war it was forbidden to use it on the streets). The same problem happens with, for example, people with military positions, they move from one place to another during the entire military service, and they drag their families along with them; children are forced to change from one school to another and from one language to another, and this can cause confusion and frustration reflected on the studentsââ¬â¢ behavior and performance in school. Even when there are so many negative implications or consequences related to all the languages in a society, there are reasons to believe that there are also positive implications and if there are societies with this kind of structure, it is because it works somehow, no matter the problems involved. In contrast to the negative implications mentioned above, there are many other positive implications of being part of a multilingual society, to mention a few, it can be said that, in the particular case of Spain, their citizens have developed the ability to learn new languages very easily; they not only speak their official language (Castilian), they also speak they regional language (both native like) and this has helped them to develop more their listening skills and aptitude towards new languages; children are born and live in environments filled with language stimuli and learn to communicate effectively in more than one language, making things easier for them to acquire another language. Another example of a positive implication is tolerance, the cross-cultural situation Spaniards live has helped them to be more conscious about their differences and to accept everyone? s believes and culture. The continuous use of languages or dialects to interact with each other is another positive implication, since it has made them to be able to switch languages in a conversation without thinking about it; it comes natural to them since being multilingual is not an issue; it is just their reality. Spain is a multilingual society which has faced several obstacles in the way of preserving and keeping their languages and dialects, this protectionism has led to positive, but also negative consequences and implications for its citizens which, day after day deal with it and adjust to this conditions in order to be a part of the society. As challenging as it can be, Spaniards adjust to each situation in order to fit in; but of course there are also rewards involved, they are capable to appreciate and understand (at least most of them) what a long way each region has come to preserve their identity and they can embrace, and be empathetic with the reasons each region has for such protectionism.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)