Crusades and Pope Urban Essay Example for Free

Crusades and Pope Urban Essay The Christian Crusades occurred around the 11th and the 12th century are very many and complex. The Christian Crusades has built a tense relationship between the Christians and Islamic. This essay will explain the causes and effects of the Medieval Crusades. The importance of the holy lands as stated in the Islamic bible, Koran, and the Christian bible is the most significant cause of the Christian Crusades. Religious rivalry between the 2 religions was caused by the fact that both of these religions believed in 2 different gods. The Islam’s thought that there god was the true god whilst the Christians believed that there god was the one and true god. The fact that the Islam’s believed there god was the one and true, brought anger to the Pilgrims who were on a quest to take back the Holy lands which were Bethlehem, Nazareth and Jerusalem, which were controlled currently by the Muslims since 638AD. But as more and more pilgrims came to visit the Holy lands, Seljuk Turks, Saracens, took over the lands and denied more Pilgrimages to the Holy Lands. This brought great anger to Pope Urban II. Pope Urban II was responsible for the very first Christian Crusade. He started this by giving an extremely influential speech to all Christians in Europe and Medieval time saying that the Saracens were turning Christian Churches into Mosques which were Muslim churches. Pope Urban II then told all Christian men and European Christian Princes to go on a crusade to take back the Holy lands. The Pope also stated to these Christian men that by fighting in this holy war they would reach heaven. So the Christian Crusaders set their target on regaining one of the Holy lands which was Jerusalem. The result of the first crusade was not too good for the Muslims as 70,000 Muslims had died trying to flee from the city or fight to protect their city. A reason that explains the cause of the Christian Crusades, are the Christian men, the Knight class and Princes. Prior explains how Pope Urban II speech influences the Christian men, Knight classes and Princes of Europe to go on a crusade against their rivalry religion and to gain back the Holy Lands. Pope Urban II says to all these men that go on to their crusade, that if they do not fight back against the Saracens, god will not clear there sin. This was another reason for the Christian Crusade. Pope Urban II â€Å"blackmailing† these men to go to the Holy lands was a reason for why the Christian Crusades began in the first place. The Knight class were all men that wanted to fight. Since the age of seven, pagers, who were the first stage into becoming a knight, were taught special skills to fight. Every Crusader that was going on to gain back the lands had a sign on their tunics when they went to fight. This sign resembled St Johns Cross. The medieval Crusades have brought a strong intensity in these to religions that are still quite tense nowadays. Pope Urban II speech had urged men to go on this holy crusade and both the Koran and bible having two of the same holy places caused tension between these two religions. This essay has given the causes and effects of the holy crusades.

Personal Experience Gained From Team Working English Language Essay

Personal Experience Gained From Team Working English Language Essay Personal reflection is vital to learning, teaching, personal identity and ones research. I have learnt and explored my experience on this group project which includes a number of elements such as analysing articles and writing annotated bibliography of different articles. I also had access to learning tools like online resources, textbook material and library resources which helped me improve my writing skills as well as my ability to understand materials effectively. Sharing and discussing different ideas and amount of knowledge amongst the group also gave me a brief insight on how to deal with problems and come up with an applicable solution. I also experienced how to confront difficulties in a team work and how to resolve any sort of argument or problem and come up with something which is agreeable by everyone. While working on assignment such as this, I exercised a great opportunity of developing and enhancing my writing skills effectively and efficiently with the help of other p eoples ideas which was an advantage to me. In conclusion, Ive learnt a lot of things about myself while working with my group members in undertaking this project and also found that I am capable of achieving almost anything if I put my soul and heart into it. Has the project given you any new insights about group work? Offcourse it has. This project has given me many benefits from using group work as part of teaching and learning activities in this project. Working in teams can make work a lot more easier leading to an involving and satisfying experience for students. By engaging myself into a group, I increased my involvement in the project, put in more effort, gained greater satisfaction and became more oriented in completing the groups task. Also, working in groups can be challenging at times and it demands a set of skills. With this project, gained fair knowledge about the way task-oriented groups work and what complexity it involves. At first, it was hard for me to understand the whole process of team work and the amount of communication skills it involved but by undertaking this project in groups, I have certainly developed a stronger sense of obligation amongst the members and increased pressure towards the completion of the task. In conclusion, this project has given me a new insight about group work with an opportunity of learning group skills. These skills promoted my self-independence and less dependence on teachers. What was the thing you liked BEST about working in a group? The best thing which Ive always liked about working in a group is talking and getting to know people at first. Working in a group is a great way to practice skills youre not sure of. Some of the most important things I like when working in a group is staying organized, finishing off tasks before the deadline, enjoy working with others and rising up concerned issues if theres any. Working in groups also makes a project interesting and big as compared to doing it individually. With group work, Ive been learning more in less amount of time and also enabling myself to check on everybodys progress to see if anybody needs help. Last, but not the least, I like the fact that the amount of work in a group is divided fairly and evenly for each members so that the work is done in a timely manner and efficiently as opposed to doing it individually. What was the thing you liked LEAST about working in a group? The thing which I liked the least about working in a group is the way at times a group member would talk over other members or when a member is being a non active participant. I strongly believe that a group requires everyones participation and sincerity on a same level. Another thing I like least about working in groups is that it can become harder at times to meet up as many members are busy when others are free or vice versa. Its not like doing an assignment individually where you can work at your own pace without having to consult anyone else. Finally, the last thing I like least about working in a group is that a lot of members rely on others to do their work instead of them doing it themselves. This is not fair on other members as they have their own work to do and complete it before its deadline. What would you do differently in a group project next time? I would like to FOCUS ON THE ASSIGNMENT ITSELF What were the challenges of completing the assignment? One of the major challenges of completing the assignment was finding the right type of articles in terms of clear context and topic. Many research methods and resources were used to locate the appropriate articles and it was something which wasnt easy at all. The second major challenge was to create a proper annotated bibliography of each article which was equally as difficult as finding an article. However, the given useful websites and online resources helped me overcome this problem and made me understand the key important points involved in the process of writing annotated bibliography. Through the use of this knowledge, I was able to summarise the articles in correct format and also reference it in a proper manner. Finally, another factor that challenged me in completing the assignment was time. As I was writing out the bibliography carefully and spending more time in researching and reading the articles thoroughly, I realized that I was running short of time before the due date so I had to sharpen up my speed. What were the benefits of completing the assignment? One main benefit of completing the assignment was that it was a short summary/analysis of appropriate articles and the amount of work involved was easily distributed amongst the group members. This assignment was completed much quickly and in effective time manner as it didnt engage any sort of complexity in understanding the context and topic. Another benefit of this assignment was that it was a group one thus, giving me an experience of working closely in groups with each other and discussing the important aspects of the articles and the amount of work allocated to each members. Working in groups made this assignment easy to finish and meeting up its deadline just in time. Finally, the last benefit was that after completing this assignment, I nicely understood the concept of writing annotated bibliography in a proper manner without having any difficulties. This is a great achievement and it also helped other group members as well. Reflect on the various stages of the assignment. Stage one was about writing critical review of a chosen article. While doing this assignment, I went through prewriting, composing, revising and publishing stages of successful critical writing in terms of its context and topic. I began to realize how the process of reviewing an article is divided between positive and negative elements. A few of my writing processes reflected on Sequencing, organizing, arranging and identifying beginning, middle and end key points with topic sentences and supporting ideas. I also revised my review by adding extra information and deleting or changing unnecessary text and also corrected grammar and spelling punctuation. In the final step of this assignment, I presented the best effort by generally presenting my review and ensuring that it meets the marking criteria. The four steps which I followed lead me to decent writing skills which I developed. Stage two was about working in group and writing annotated bibliography of articles. While doing this assignment, I felt like I had a second chance of improving and getting better at writing skills and content. More over, it also made me communicate widely and broadly with my group members discussing and organising the amount of task we had to conduct as a team. This also tested my inner knowledge and made it easier for all of us to start on the assignment and call for help if difficulty arises. With the help of resources, I wrote the whole bibliography of articles effectively considering that my sentences and paragraphs cover main ideas and supporting sentences corrected in grammar, spelling and punctuation errors. The thing that I learned the most from this assignment was that time is an important factor and one must always manage it wisely. Stage three is about reflecting back on group assignment with more focus on group experience and assignment. It is more like a survey on all the experience gained throughout the various stages. These personal reflections have changed and improved my writing skills in a variety of ways. I think more broadly and wider now in terms of context and structure. In writing a review and working in group, I found that I had to push myself a little harder to succeed. In the end, I was pleased with my work. I can Comment on ideas, in terms of how they are meaningful to me and also link my observation skills to my own ideas, experience and develop a future practice. How could this assessment task be improved? This assessment task needs little bit of improvement which can be done in a number of ways. Firstly, all the appropriate inter-related assignment information and templates should be up on the website on time and all parts of it should be complete and available e.g. stage three of the assignment had a template uploaded later on along with marking guide which I think it shouldnt be like that. All the assignment details and its related parts should be uploaded at once together. Failure to do this can lead to confusion and at times, can be a problem for those students who want to get the assignment over and done with. Secondly, the amount of workload required from an assignment should be decreased as according to the weight of the assessment. For .e.g. this assignment weights approximately 6.5% of the total 20% and also requires a lot of writing and experience to answer it thus, the content and the amount of work should be reduced as its not that much worth.

Microeconomic Analysis of Netflix

Microeconomic Analysis of Netflix Introduction This paper will assess the business operations of the Netflix Company from a microeconomics viewpoint examining and discussing how factors such as products supply and demand conditions, price elasticity of demand, cost of production, market entry barriers, market share, and market structure effect Netflix’s performance in their market. The paper will start with historical overview of the Netflix Company and conclude with recommendations based on the analysis suggesting how Netflix could run its future operations to stay competitive in the entertainment market and Industry. Company History Netflix began operation in 1997 as a DVD by mail rental service (About Netflix, 2017). After many years, it has morphed into the largest online television network, with over 100 million members worldwide which streams over 125 million hours of programming per day. Its members are able to watch on multiple different devices from just about anywhere, at any time. These entertainment choices include films, television, documentaries, and original programming (About Netflix, 2017). With an enterprise value of $71.47 billion, this internet giant has changed the way we consume modern media and entertainment (Netflix Enterprise Value, 2017). Netflix has frequently invested in original programming that is generated strongly based on the trends of the consumer. This company has market insight that Nielsen ratings can’t compare with. In addition to the number of people watching programming, Netflix can also tell when users watch, how long they typically watch for, what people want to see, and much more. This information is used to provide the highest quality experience for the consumer. With a large share of the online streaming market cornered, Netflix has openly said that their biggest current competitor is sleep (Netflixs View: Internet TV is replacing linear TV, 2017). Supply and Demand Conditions Supply and demand is the availability of an outcome for a certain product and the demand for that product has on cost. Meaning that if there is a low supply with a high demand the price increases or if the supply is greater with a demand that is lower than the price will likely drop. When it comes to Netflix and its supply and demand conditions, you can see that they are also vulnerable to the same supply and demand stress as other business organizations. Netflix is constantly expanding the streaming list of content providers along with their competitors such as Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO and other premium networks. The demand for growth in these streaming companies has driven prices upwards over the last few years. The cable industry, which is what Netflix is classified under, is continuously and quickly changing.   Advances in technology have driven the demand for cable television and companies like Netflix to have easily and quickly accessible content. In 1948, cable television originated in Arkansas, Oregon, and Pennsylvania to enhance poor reception of traditional broadcast television signals in remote areas. (History of Cable, n.d.) During the 50’s and 60’s, cable subscriptions grew from 14,000 subscribers to 850,000 subscribers. From the 1990’s into the present, cable has continued to rapidly grow due to the different services that it offered customers. As customers started demanding higher quality cable service, the demand for basic cable started to decline. Satellite television originally provided more channels to their customers which increased the demand for these more extensive systems over the traditional basic cable system. Due to this high demand, the costs for these products continues to grow. The latest movement in the cable television industry is media streaming. This has caused massive growth for Netflix and similar services. Netflix has positioned itself to be a frontrunner in the media streaming industry. As a streaming provider, Netflix gives its customers the ability to watch ad free content from a large array of devices, at any time. This makes for a high demand as it gives customers more freedom than traditional cable packages. One other factor is the low cost of Netflix compared to the cost of cable subscriptions. The average monthly cable bill is over $120, which is more than a $35 average increase from the cost in 2011, while the average monthly fee for streaming services is $8 per month.   With the demand for streaming services on the rise, it is understandable that Netflix subscriptions would increase. If Netflix continues to grow its internet television concept of providing TV shows and movies that customers demand, it will hold their spot as an industry leader in the marketplace.   With very strong reception from critics and customers alike, they will need to continue with the production of original content, such as original TV series and movies, which have not only increased the demand for services, but has also increased their profits. There are few supply issues facing Netflix. In the streaming market, there are few competing firms that may threaten the market share of Netflix. These firms offer alike services at a comparable price to Netflix This means that the amount of substitutes that can supply similar quality services as Netflix are few.   The largest supply issue Netflix faces is technological change.   However, keeping up relations with various electronic devices, remaining relevant should be fairly easy. Price Elasticity and Demand Price elasticity of demand the relationship between change in the demanded quantity of a product and a change in the products price. If the price of services increase, it could affect the quantity of services demanded. There are a handful of quality substitutes for Netflix. In the cable industry itself, AT&T, Comcast, and Time-Warner, are all providers of services that compete for the same customers as Netflix. In the streaming market, Netflix competitors are other content providers such as Amazon Prime and Hulu. The major factor in this competition is pricing and content availability.  Ã‚   In 2014, Netflix increased consumer cost by $1-2 each month. While the price increase was a risky choice, it was necessary because of the rising prices of acquiring more content. Before this change, subscription plans for streaming and DVD rentals rose to $8 a month for streaming and $10 a month for streaming and DVD rentals. In 2011, this was raised again. All subscribers would have to pay $16 a month for both streaming and DVD rentals which is nearly a 60% rise in cost for the consumer. There was a large backlash from consumers as they felt that the small streaming library was not enough to justify those costs. This price increase was a way for Netflix to upgrade and expand the library content they were offering for streaming. With this price increase, Netflix lost nearly 750,000 subscribers and its stock tumbled in the following months. However, with Netflix expanding the production of their original series, this decrease of subscriber growth was only temporary. Netflix doesn†™t appear to see price elasticity as risk for their organization, but more of a prospect. As seen on the graph above, the stock and earnings of Netflix have proven to be growing at a steady rate over the last few years. Netflix has reported that the amount of watching from the average subscriber has grown in every quarter after the fourth quarter since 2011. Netflix continues to grow. In Argentina, United Kingdom, Brazil, Irelands, Chile, and Mexico is expected to make up more than a third of TV in the average household by 2020. If Netflix raised prices again, it could cause customers to other platforms because of the lower cost. On the other hand, if Netflix would lower its price, then the demand for its service could potentially increase. Netflix is a service that could be considered a luxury and not a necessity. This would provide Netflix a higher elasticity of demand. This may not be the case in the future as many people are beginning to use Netflix as their primary entertainment source. This means that in the customer’s budget, Netflix has already started to become a monthly expense, replacing standard cable services. As time goes on, it is expected that consumers will change their spending habits to completely move away from cable and move directly to streaming services which would increase the elasticity of Netflix. Although the expense is monthly, it will only be a small percentage of the consumer budget making it an inelastic demand. Because the market for media streaming is broadly defined, the number of available substitutes is low therefore it is inelastic. Netflix has shown to be profitably consistent, which allows shareholders to expand its equity as earnings are built up over time making Netflix more valuable. Money is being spent by Netflix to expand into more international markets after seeing huge success in its international growth into countries like the United Kingdom, Mexico, and Canada. This has allowed Netflix to study the trends of consumers across the world to create content that is palatable in many nations. This expansion should assist in lowering overall costs and increase the company’s profitability. Costs of Production Currently, Netflix offers streaming services on movies and TV shows. They have three subscription levels: Basic, Standard, and Premium. Netflix is currently working to grow their offerings and continue with original programming. The main cost that Netflix incurs comes from the licensing and production of their streamable titles. The cost of maintaining their content library has been quickly rising over the last five years as they expand the choices that they are offering to consumers, which can be seen in the chart below. While the largest cost for Netflix is their content, they also have various SG&A expenses, otherwise known as selling, general and administrative expenses. These expenses have also grown as the demand for their rises. From 2012 to 2015, these SG&A expenses had more than doubled. These costs have been growing as the consumer’s demand for more varied content grows and as Netflix expands into the international marketplace. This demand by consumers that Netflix has met, has resulted in a continuous growth for the Netflix Company. In 2016, the COGS had a nearly 32% increase in from the year previous. These growing costs for the most part have not prevented company growth. As you can see below, by continuing to increase the content available, Netflix has also helped itself to create strong sales growth. In 2016, Netflix experienced sales growth of 30.26%. Market Share While Netflix is the largest paid for streaming service, it has a market share of only around 12.7% (Netflix Incs Competitiveness, 2017) . The reason for this is that Netflix’s marketplace competitors are well established cable corporations and video providers that have many other products and services that would result in a higher revenue than Netflix. These companies include Amazon, Comcast, Cablevison, and Time Warner Cable. Although Netflix has strong sales growth, their profitability is lower than market competitors, with a net margin of 2.36%. Competitors in this market have an average net margin of just under 11% (NFLXs Competition by Segment and its Market Share, 2017). Due to the large capital and resources required to enter this market, Netflix will need to be aware of the streaming services provided by established cable companies and original content providers. These pose the greatest risk due to their large access to streamable content and access to existing customers. The market structure that Netflix operates under is an oligopoly. In an oligopoly, there are a few companies that control the entire market. In the streaming market, Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Are the main competitors. In this type of market, price wars have a chance of occurring.   This means if one of these companies decides to drop its prices, the others must also drop prices in order to stay competitive. Taking a look at the current state of the market, this is evident because all of the major providers have comparably priced packages for their product. With Netflix being the market leader, they have large influence over this market. If Netflix decides to reduce prices, then Hulu and Amazon must also reduce consumer cost or risk losing customers to Netflix.   Recommendations With streaming quickly becoming the industry standard in television viewing, Netflix is expected to continue to increase its hold on the industry and market. Their current COGS while increasing, has provided Netflix a strong advantage in terms of sales growth due to their original content and variety of offerings. This current strategy seems to be working well for them. While some of the most expensive options to produce are original programming, these expensive productions are key to attracting customers due to the lack of availability from other previously subscribed to services.   This will also be helpful in further securing themselves in the marketplace. As mentioned earlier it will also be important for Netflix to keep developing their technology and continue to partner with different companies to update and keep their technology modern and relevant. By persistently providing the services and integration that consumers desire, Netflix can continue to expand its service to more consumers than it currently does.   If Netflix can continue to understand the wants of the consumers, then they will remain leaders in their market. Citations About Netflix. (n.d.). Retrieved July 15, 2017, from https://media.netflix.com/en/about-netflix Caporaso, T. (n.d.). Netflixs pricing strategies are bound by the same laws of supply and demand that affect every other commercial entitys rates. Retrieved July 30, 2017, from http://www.sdcexec.com/article/11442396/netflixs-pricing-strategies-are-bound-by-the-same-laws-of-supply-and-demand-that-affect-every-other-commercial-entitys-rates History of Cable. (n.d.). Retrieved August 20, 2017, from https://www.calcable.org/learn/history-of-cable/ NFLXs Competition by Segment and its Market Share. (2017). Retrieved August 06, 2017, from https://csimarket.com/stocks/competitionSEG2.php?code=NFLX Netflix Enterprise Value. (n.d.). Retrieved July 15, 2017, from https://ycharts.com/companies/NFLX/enterprise_value Netflix Incs Competitiveness. (2017). Retrieved August 06, 2017, from https://csimarket.com/stocks/compet_glance.php?code=NFLX Netflix Inc Income Statement. (2017). Retrieved August 06, 2017, from http://quotes.wsj.com/NFLX/financials/annual/income-statement Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) Stock Chart. (n.d.). Retrieved July 30, 2017, from http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/nflx/stock-chart Netflix: revenue in 2016. (n.d.). Retrieved July 30, 2017, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/272545/annual-revenue-of-netflix/ Netflixs View: Internet TV is replacing linear TV. (n.d.). Retrieved July 15, 2017, from https://ir.netflix.com/long-term-view.cfm TV Ratings. (n.d.). Retrieved July 15, 2017, from http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/solutions/measurement/television.html

The Signalman and The Red Room are well known examples of nineteenth :: English Literature

The Signalman and The Red Room are well known examples of nineteenth century ghost stories How effectively do the authors of â€Å"The Red Room† and â€Å"The Signalman† create a sense of suspense in the story "The Signalman" and "The Red Room" are well known examples of nineteenth century ghost stories. The Signalman by Charles Dickens was written in 1865, which was the time of developing literacy. This short story was presented in three parts as it was previously in a periodical form; this technique was also used to create suspense and therefore leaves the reader at a cliff hanger after each episode, which in turn motivates the reader to read on. There were many rumors about this story as many people suggested that Dickens wrote this story as a remembrance of the day he was involved in a railway accident which killed ten people. Furthermore, He was writing in the Victorian times, when there was a massive change in technology as new inventions were created, e.g. the Train. In comparison The Red Room was written only thirty years later in 1894 by HG Wells although it feels more timeless. At that time technology had improved intensely, nevertheless Wells still imitated the old fashion gothic literature style writing, which is ironic, due to the time. Both stories have managed to engage its audience by creating suspense and tension. Besides that both stories have been written in first person, this in sequence makes it sinister, in a way because we get to know the narrator’s impressions and feelings. The authors of both stories have selected discomforting places in which to set their story, they are made more eerie because that in the 19th century time many people believed in ghosts and the supernatural. First of all The Signalman is located in a very isolated place, as the narrator describes â€Å"as solitary and dismal a place as I ever saw† This suggest that it is a remote, despondent place which is suitable for the supernatural to exist. Before even meeting the Signalman, the narrator says â€Å"steeped in the glow of an angry sunset† and â€Å"so little sunlight that it had an earthy, deadly smell† the use of pathetic-fallacy and symbolism suggests that it’s getting dark and describes a sense of imminent death. The reader is also told it is â€Å"this great dungeon† the oxymoron used suggests confinement; a place where it’s hard to escape, this therefore makes it more sinister in a way as dungeons are dark and cold and give a sense of fear. The darkness prominently reduces visibility between the narrator and the signalman as said â€Å"'I was near enough to have touched him† and

Americas Fear of Evolution :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

America's Fear of Evolution In August of 1999, the teaching of evolution in schools was banned by the state of Kansas. In Texas, educators have debated over which textbooks to use in grade school science solely by the language of evolution each text contains. In Georgia, educators talk about replacing the word "evolution" with the phrase "biological changes over time." (1) Apparently, our apprehensions about teaching the theory of evolution are popping up all over the news. In hearing these debates, one usually thinks that it is only religious groups or fanatics trying to preserve their stories by eradicating the teaching of evolution. However, I think that culturally we have trouble accepting the theory of evolution because of other stories we tell ourselves. While religion does play a large role in our stories of creation, we have many ethics and ideals outside of faith that contrast with the theory of evolution. We may have trouble facing the facts of evolution because of what it says about the human race. A ccepting the theory of evolution places us on the same level as all other species in terms of how we came into existence and how that existence will end. It means letting go of many misconceptions we hold about ourselves. For example, that humans are somehow superior or meant to wield control over the earth. It affirms that we have not been here for nearly as long as our world, and will be long gone before the world ends. Evolution, it seems to me, touches more closely on our fears about death and our place in the grand scheme of things than it does on our faith. The reason evolution comes into such great conflict with religion is because questions such as, "Where will we go after our lives here end?" are so important to us. Consequently, the fear surrounding the theory of evolution belongs not only to the religious and the fanatical, but also to anyone who has ever asked him or herself such questions. America was founded on the concepts of idealism and opportunism; we all are broug ht up to take advantage of our opportunities and succeed to the best of our abilities. The nature of evolution is to go against these ideals. Evolution occurs randomly, meaning the human race did not "earn" its place as sovereign of the earth. As Americans, we see ourselves working toward a society that is closer and closer to perfection.

The 13th of December, 1666

The events, which took place on the 13th of December 1666. Made a dramatic change in my life. First I will tell you a bit about myself. My name is Mark. I am sixteen years old and I go to St Paul high school. I have one Brother who is five years younger than me called Bill. I also have a nagging step -mum who has looked after me since I was two. My real mum died in very strange circumstances but dad will not tell me the full story so I don't know much about it. At school I used to have two best friends. They were Sarah and Will. Will has blue eyes and a lovely personality. I had known Sarah ever since I was three. Sarah's mum and my step mum got on with each other really well. Will is one of my best friends; he's the only person who can make me laugh on a bad day. I am no longer friend with them now, after that horrible day of 13th of December. It all started when I was invited to a Will's Halloween party, I loved parties especially the food and dancing. We were all having a great time dancing eating etc†¦Until after the party had ended when Will, Sarah and I played truth or dare it was all fine until it came to my turn. They dared me to go in the haunted house, which was located near by. I couldn't refuse otherwise I would have been called a chicken at school for the next year so I reluctantly agreed. Up in a dark hill where the moon shines through the bare branches which casts an eerie feel to the atmosphere and where many crows are sitting on the branches looking, and waiting for the time to strike for there next victim. Stands an old house, â€Å"The House of Death† its called by the villagers. A chill went down my spine as I was walking up the hill. Flashes of stories came rushing to my mind. I tried to convince my self that those stories were all a bunch of lies. As I got to the top of the hill I reached for the big wooden door, which was covered with graffiti. My friends stayed outside so I would go in alone. As I entered the house I put my torch on, as the light in the house was not so bright I then took a few small curious step down the long corridor the door slammed behind I suddenly jump and took a few deep breaths and don't know what to expect to happen. As I was walking down the corridor the floorboards creaked which echoed down the corridor, water was dripping from the ceiling, there was many cobwebs on the side and corners of the corridor. I wanted to turn around and just run straight through that door which I entered. But I couldn't, I would then have been called a chicken. So I carried on walking down the corridor hoping for this day to end when suddenly I heard a machine being switched on at the bottom of the corridor. â€Å"Who is it, ok jokes over come out now?† I shouted There was no response and I really started to shit my self as there was total silence again I tried to convince my self that it was Will and Sarah being immature but I was still unsure. The silence crated a really terrifying tone, which turned this dare in to a nightmare came true. My head was rushing wild with stories, images and movies of when the main character dies in trying to impress someone. I kept on telling my self that it was all nonsense. When suddenly the light started flickering to my bad luck my torch also went out. I tried to hit it back on and it wouldn't come on. I started singing to my self to take my mind of the horrifying images, which were entering my mind when suddenly somebody or someone was whispering out my name, near the end of the dark corridor. â€Å"Who is it, who are you, stop messing around now it isn't funny† I shouted There was no response and my voiced echoed around the corridor. Frighteningly the lights went out, my heart was pumping faster and faster, my feet felt as if they were stuck to the ground I couldn't move it as I was so scared I was unable to breath I was taking deep breaths. I shouted out on top of my voice † Who are you!† To my joy the lights came back and I was so relieved until I looked on the floor, there was a note saying go to the room on your left. I didn't know what to expect from this note. I got really scared as to thinking that who was behind this insane prank. I didn't know what to expect so I gathered all my courage and decided to enter the room and see what is in store for me I turned to the left and entered the room and there stood in the middle of the room my dead mother. I busted out in tears to see such a sight I was terrified and feeling a sick as she been cut open from many part of her body. I went over slowly to see my mother when suddenly I heard machines being switched on again and this time I also heard my name being called out by someone. I looked all around me to see if any one was there, I couldn't see any one but I was terrified so I ran back to the door which I came from and left. I came out with a white scared face and tears running down my cheeks. Sarah and Will looked in shock when they saw me in the state that I was in. â€Å"What happened in there are you ok,† asked Will and Sarah I told them that my dead mother was in there. Sarah was in total shock her face turned blue. But Will didn't believe me he said that my mum must have been buried as she has died. So he went to see for him self I was outside with Sarah telling her what happened, when Will came rushing out saying there's nothing there I said there is something there. We went in together and where my dead mother once laid was now missing†¦there was a silence in the room I said to my self who or what was it †¦ I'm now writing this in my dying days, My story is the truth it is not some wild fantasy made up to scare people with. Mine really did happen. The story is personal to me and telling it to anyone makes me appear insane to the outside world. I guess it does seem unbelievable in retrospect. The images of that night of the 13th of December still haunt me to this day I am hoping that you will never feel the need to show courage, as I did to my friends, because the results may not be what you expect That night I lost my friends and my sanity.

Song of Roland

The textbook displays Charlemagne as an astounding and great military leader but examines a few of his flaws as well. The Song of Roland creates the image of Charlemagne that is an extraordinary, legendary leader. They both tell about what great things he accomplished in his life, the many wars he won and how his bravery carried him through everything. The Song of Roland praised him in such a legendary way to create the impression of a heroic leader.By doing this it establishes a strong positive view of the Frankish Empire. In the ninth chapter of the Making of the West, the authors describe the Carolingian king, Charlemagne and the various views of his life that historians have. While admiring his greatness the authors analyze a few negatives about Charlemagne. For example, he liked the Pope but hated that the Pope crowned him emperor. He liked being king and calling himself king but at first didn’t want the title of Emperor.Another criticism to Charlemagne’s great wor k as a military leader is that he did all of his work winning wars and conquering lands that he destroyed the states surrounding his original empire and gaining control of them but by doing that, he lost his buffer. So soon after all the wars were finally over for Charlemagne, hew invasions started occurring on the borders of his new kingdoms. One more concern historians claim he did was what he had done when he arrived at the Saragossa Town after the winning the war with the Saxons.Apparently when he got to the city, the citizens were resisting conversion to Christianity and he wasn’t happy about it. He forced mass conversion of the Muslim citizens with the threat of his sword. This act goes against the whole idea of Christianity to be accepting of other faiths and tolerant of them. These examples only demonstrate a few criticisms to Charlemagne’s leadership but still explain that he was a great emperor overall. The Song of Roland describes Charlemagne as an amazing m ilitary leader.He had Counts and Bishops in charge of leading wars to gain lands for the Franks in every direction and he was successful in doing so. He was a very emotional man, he wept over the deaths of fellow comrades and warriors, friends and relatives. Charlemagne was also a spiritual man in that he prayed everyday and asked for God to protect the bodies of the fallen soldiers and keep them safe. The angel St. Gabriel came down to him many times to give Charlemagne advice or to encourage him to continue his missions and to fight.He fought with courage and bravery, he was afraid of nothing. After his victory against Emir, he still felt the need to serve God and all his kingdom respected him for that and obeyed his power. Charlemagne is described as a courageous, spiritual, loyal and extraordinary emperor and leader full of pride for his kingdom. All of the words Charlemagne can be indentified with help bring about the view of the Frankish Empire. Because of the things Charlemag ne did and more importantly they way he went about them, the Frankish kingdoms were viewed as prestigious and in control.They gave off the impression of high power and other kingdoms were going to have a challenge if they wanted to fight the Franks. The Making of the West textbook and the book The Song of Roland discuss how great Charlemagne was and how what he did made a difference in the view of the Frankish Empire. Although he had some flaws or contradictory actions, he was still an astounding emperor. He expanded his kingdoms and defeated many enemies. He had become a heroic military leader for the Franks and the Frankish Empire.