Everyone has a different definition of the word hero. Dictionary.com defines a hero as; “a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities.” I do not agree with this definition for multiple reasons. The first and foremost issue I have is that it explicitly states a man. Heroes can be men, women, children, dogs, cats, et cetera. Not all heroes are brave; some just do what they need to get by. I feel that a hero is a person or animal that has persevered and…
What comes to mind when you hear the word hero? Most people think batman, wonder woman, or even a villain who turns good in the end. The definition of hero is “a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. Though there are many heroes in today's world, I want to tell you about certain individuals who have changed many people's lives for the better. Razia Jan, was born in Afghanistan and moved to the United States in 1970. She was the owner of a…
lives and different ways of coping, therefore; what one person perceives as stress may not be stress for others. Self-esteem may influence how a person handles their life stress or what situations they find to be a stressor. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary (2015) defines self-esteem as “a confidence and satisfaction in oneself.” Sports and other physical activity, may play a role in an individual’s life in increasing one’s self-esteem while reducing one’s stress. The purpose of this study is to…
Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a favela as a settlement of jerry-built shacks on the outskirts of a Brazilian city. Oxford Dictionary refers to a favela as a Brazilian shack or shantytown; a slum. There are many problems with these definitions of a favela. Most of the problems with these definitions is that they have not evolved with favelas and give a negative connotation to word favela. The definition of a favela may have been appropriate for the favelas of Rio in 1960, but modern day…
According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary (2015), the term strategy refers to a careful plan or method of achieving a particular goal usually over a long period of time. It also defines strategy as the science of employing political, economic and psychological forces to afford maximum support for espoused polices (Merriam Webster, 2015). The Business Dictionary (2015) offers another perspective, defining strategy as a method chosen to bring about…
Humankind possesses an ability to envision and cherish goals and a fragmented yet promising future. It is this dynamic, hopeful imagining that we call dreaming. What happens to us when our dreams fail to take form, when our desires and plans for achievement are stopped before they reach fruition? The human spirit that was once inspired by the forces of hope and creativity can either become reluctant or defeated, agitated or aggressive. Langston Hughes’s “Harlem” paints a simultaneously subtle…
Around the world and through many different time periods every person has encountered intolerance, extremism and duality. The idea of the aforementioned words are constant themes within the book “The River Runs Salt, Runs Sweet” by Jasmina Dervisevi-Cesic. Throughout the story Jasmina speaks of her encounters with each of these situations and how her duality allows her to learn and come to peace with the terrors she has endured. Around the world the act of intolerance is taking place. From…
What is a Muckraker? The dictionary defines it as, “one who inquires into and publishes scandal and allegations of corruption among political and business leaders.” The term Muckraker has been surrounded with a negative connotation since the term came about in 1902 under the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt. Some synonyms of the term Muckraker include Mudslinger, nitpicker and even hellion. But what most do not understand, is without the work of a Muckraker, those in which I prefer to recognize…
When you look at what the importance of leadership is you first must answer the question of what is a leader. A leader by definition is “a guiding or directing head, as of an army, movement, or political group.” (Merriam Webster Dictionary) this defines a leader but a leader is so much more. A leader is a person who can inspire others to do things they never thought they could. A leader is able to engage with others to provide purpose, motivation, and direction. My personal belief is that this…
In the first place, dictionaries with standardized and regulated words will help us maintain “conventions of usage” (Bryson, 1990, p.151). “We must agree to spell cat c-a-t and not e-l-e-p-h-a-n-t, and we must agree that by that word we mean a small furry quadruped that goes meow and sits comfortably on one’s lap and not a large lumbering beast that grows tusks and is exceeding difficult to housebreak” (Bryson, 1990, p.150). We seem to have so many names for the same items. Sub sandwich’s can…