Marco Polo :: Biographies Biographical Essays

Marco Polo is one of the most well-known heroic travelers and traders around the world. In my paper I will discuss with you Marco Polo's life, his travels, and his visit to China to see the great Khan. Marco Polo was born in c.1254 in Venice. He was a Venetian explorer and merchant whose account of his travels in Asia was the primary source for the European image of the Far East until the late 19th century. Marco's father, Niccolà ¹, and his uncle Maffeo had traveled to China (1260-69) as merchants. When they left (1271) Venice to return to China, they were accompanied by 17-year-old Marco and two priests. Early Life Despite his enduring fame, very little was known about the personal life of Marco Polo. It is known that he was born into a leading Venetian family of merchants. He also lived during a propitious time in world history, when the height of Venice's influence as a city-state coincided with the greatest extent of Mongol conquest of Asia(Li Man Kin 9). Ruled by Kublai Khan, the Mongol Empire stretched all the way from China to Russia and the Levant. The Mongol hordes also threatened other parts of Europe, particularly Poland and Hungary, inspiring fear everywhere by their bloodthirsty advances. Yet the ruthless methods brought a measure of stability to the lands they controlled, opening up trade routes such as the famous Silk Road. Eventually,the Mongols discovered that it was more profitable to collect tribute from people than to kill them outright, and this policy too stimulated trade(Hull 23). Into this favorable atmosphere a number of European traders ventured, including the family of Marco Polo. The Polos had long- established ties in the Levant and around the Black Sea: for example, they owned property in onstantinople, and Marco's uncle, for whom he was named, had a home in Sudak in the Crimea(Rugoff 8). From Sudak, around 1260, another uncle, Maffeo, and Marco's father, Niccolà ¹, made a trading visit into Mongol territory, the land of the Golden Horde(Russia), ruled by Berke Khan. While they were there, a war broke out between Berke and the Cowan of Levant, blocking their return home. Thus Niccolà ¹ and Maffeo traveled deeper into mongol territory, moving southeast to Bukhara, which was ruled by a third Cowan. While waiting there, they met an emissary traveling farther eastward who invited them to accompany him to the court of the great Cowan, Kublai, in Cathay(modern China). In Cathay, Kublai Khan gave the Polos a friendly reception, appointed them his emissaries to the pope, and ensured their safe travel back to Europe(Steffof 10).

Comparison of two Egyptian Sculpture Relief Depicting

Comparison of two Egyptian Sculpture Relief Depicting a Man Inspecting His Stables; Ships Unloading Merchandise and Relief Block, Plucking and Roasting Fowl, Herds Crossing Water By shackles Comparison of two Egyptian Sculpture Relief Depicting a Man Inspecting His Stables; Ships Unloading Merchandise and Relief Block, Plucking and Roasting Fowl, Herds Crossing Water In Egyptian art, the greatest achievements are tomb relief, huge number of tomb relief shows the people who were rich enough at that period want to bring their rich and glory even after they dead.The Early royal relief are somewhat too idealism on the figures, heir figures on the tomb relief are usually rough on the surface. However, the technique of making tomb relief developed extremely quickly starting from the 3rd Dynasty; the techniques were already extremely advanced, and styles are increasing a lot. Using the finely detailed decoration in the tomb relief are the tradition way. This kind of technique that shows the figures standing out slightly above the Egyptian period continued through the 6th-Dynasty and into the Middle Kingdom, especially using for royal monuments. Visual-arts-cork. Com) There are many characteristics that diddle kingdom and new kingdom have are clearly crucial and a little different from each other, including the details of the techniques, color and style. The Tomb Relief from late dynasty 18 and Relief from a tomb at E-Light are the two tomb relief which have some commons and differences; both of them are tomb relief and both of them are about the farming figure, there are some figures about people working in different sections and also a lot of animals on that too. The Egyptian art's function was twofold.Firstly, the function shows the god's glory and making the passage after-life more comfortable. Then, the function Europeanizes the information and the value of the Egyptian art. The life in Egypt was generally stable such as the cultural and life; even the arts, inclu ding their architecture and sculptures, also painting, metalwork, goldsmith and ceramics. (visual-arts-cork. Com) Most of the art works in Egypt have the characteristic which is ‘highly conservative adherence to traditional rules' (Neil Collins, visual-arts-cork. Mom), it had a good affection on focus on the order rather than creativity and artistic expression. (visual-arts-cork. Com) During The Middle Kingdom, with its capital at Thebes (2000-1786 B. C. ), was a brand new age of experiment and invention which grew out of the turbulence of the First Intermediate Period (2134-c. 2000 B. C. ). (encyclopedia. Com) Most of the forms of the Old Kingdom were retained; However, the traditional unity style was changed. The development of formalism was mixed with a meticulous delicacy of craftsmanship. Precancerous. Com) There were more from the artists' inside thought, most of them were successful in tomb relief or sculpture, like the rock-cut tombs at Ban Has are outstanding for free dom of draftsmanship, and the sensitive portraits of Stories Ill ND Amendment Ill were all extremely famous and successful in doing the Egyptian arts. (Precancerous. Com) Also, their figures are more idealism on the torso but realism on their head and face, the animals were set as a line organized. (encyclopedia. Mom) The Relief from a tomb at EL-Light is from the middle kingdom, it has found reused as a door sill that in a door of a later house by the modern cemetery near the pyramid, possibly from the tomb of Ankhs. Inside the picture, ancient Egyptian outdoor life is preserved clearly. Two men sit in a tent and preparing for a meal that the tomb when will later enjoy. The man on the right plucks the feathers of a large goose, and the other one on the left roasts a duck on a spit over a low fire that he brings to glow with a fan. The other birds, a bag, and two rolled-up sheets of cloth were hanged up from a line above.Then, on the bottom of the picture, a number of cattle have Ju st emerged from swampy water, and some water spilled because the herd is on its way to higher ground. (Wall texts from Mutest) From this tomb relief, the function is a traditional Egyptian tomb relief that is showing the daily life even including the errors' lives. It reflects the life at that period, even a tiny thing like preparing for a meal. Zoom in to the lines and the expression of the three- dimensional from, the technique the sculptor used is fine and smooth. These two men' figures are not naturalism; the pose and the arrangement of the figure are neat and orderly.Especially those animals, the cattle are all the same. Additionally, one symbolist thing is the pose that the man holding the ducks neck. This tomb relief is realism on the face and idealism in the torso, also extremely well done in some specific details. The New Kingdom's art (1570-1342 B. C. ) can be seen as the final development of the traditional classic Egyptian style of the Middle Kingdom, there is a combinat ion of the drive inspiration of the Middle Kingdom and the monumental forms of the Old Kingdom. This period's painting are famous because boldness of controlled vitality and boldness.Their sculpture usually emphasis on bulk, solidity and impersonality. In some single scenes, or the works on the wall from ceiling to the floor, each figure had its place properly and was not allow to overflow its space. Then en of the most table achievements of Egyptian craft men was the technique when they put human figure in a space, it seems to be cramped or overcrowded, but the they still take control of the whole picture's balance. (visual-arts-cork. Com) Then, The Tomb Relief from late dynasty 18 is a perfect example of this period.The pictures of this relief use the cattle that being force-fed while the tomb owner followed by several retainers on the right of the picture. In the bottom of the picture, ships unload their produce that is first heaped on shore then carried away by porters. This rel ief block almost certainly came from a tomb at Memphis. With an infusion odd liberating energy and ideas from Marin, private relief work flourished in Memphis in the post-Marin period and at that period, the wealthy people more like to let the figure on the tomb relief more naturalism. Wall texts from Mutest) This way that shows the life of workers is a terrific way which be used to show the multiple stages in a developing sequence of actions, rather than the frames of a strip cartoon because it is clearer. During the Old Kingdom, the agricultural is one of the most popular themes for most of the tomb relief. (visual-arts-cork. Mom) Also, the wall paintings during that period which shows plunging, sowing harvesting and threshing the grain are all symbolist faithfully represented.It shows the herdsmen working in the pastures taking care of the cattle so prized by the ancient Egyptians even other views depict the trapping of the waterfowl especially in the Nile marshes and fishing in the river itself. (visual-arts-cork. Com) Because of these views from daily life let the sculptors were able to use their initiative and let themselves feel free and explore a little of theirs imagination and retreat. When they show the dead man and his family, it had to be more presented in regular poses as a description: larger than life, strictly proportioned, and always calm and somewhat aloof, (visual-arts-cork. Mom) However, The rural workers on the estate could be shown at their daily lives in a relaxed way, something with lives or energetic can be usually captured, and that always have an outstanding characterized which can symbolize the ancient Egyptians. (visual-arts-cork. Com) While the offering-bearers, symbolizing the funerary gifts from the estates to their rod, are depicted moving towards him in formal and stately procession, the peasants at work in the fields seem both sturdy and vigorous. (visual-arts-cork. Mom) Look inside the tomb relief techniques, it clearly sho ws the details and the meaning of the whole story, every people have their own characteristic and different poses. Further, the tomb relief from here is becoming more three-dimensional. Even when we see these two tomb relief and find out they look remarkably similar from each other, they are all about the daily life in Egyptian, they all shows the real unusual smoothly techniques that people in that period have the highly developed skill of making the tomb relief. Using tomb relief is the good way to reflect their owner's life and the dynasty they were in.The relief from a tomb at EL-Light shows the owner's power and their wealthy life; the second Tomb Relief is a little different from the first one, it show about the owner wants to be more kind, they were not like to show their glory anymore; they more want to have a kind of feeling of realism, but the way they show is mostly idealism from the torso and the heads. The most preference is the level of the three-dimensional of the tom b relief, the middle kingdom seems there is a start of doing this, then it is getting more three- dimensional until the New kingdom.

Compare and contrast two works of Art Essay

This essay will cover the similarities and differences between two Artworks † The Little fourteen -Year- Old Dancer† and † Baboon and young†. Discussion about this works of Art will be based on the field man’s analysis, thus description, analysis, interpretation and judgement on the subject matter, media and size, location and literal qualities, social, cultural and political issues surrounding the creation of the Artworks but in the form of compare and contrast. I will also discuss how these inspirational sources have contributed to my final project outcome with regard to composition and technique. Baboon and young and The little fourteen year old dancer are free-standing sculptures depicting life through different animals. These artworks are of different sizes, The little fourteen year old dancer is 104.5 cm while The baboon and young is 21cm respectively. They are both made the same media casted bronze. The fourteen year old dancer has been portrayed wearing a bronze vest and shoes, a cotton skirt and satin ribbon a combination which displays different surface qualities thus creating a strong contrast of tactile texture. This is emphasized by Ragans R. (2002: 203) by saying: What an unusual combination of textures! The figure of the Young dancer is cast in bronze. Even the vest and the ballet Shoes she wears are bronze. To that degas added a skirt made of gauzelike fabric in a stain hair ribbon. The composition comprising of a series of diagonal lines as shown by the posture of the head, torso and legs in The little fourteen year old dancer thus suggesting a subtle or calm movement are not visible on The baboon and young. The curvy and diagonal employed on skirt to show the folds have further illustrated the idea of subtle movement on the little fourteen year old dancer while on the baboon and young we see meal strips at the back of  the tail. The Baboon and young is made by Pablo Picasso around 1955while The little fourteen year old dancer was made by Edgar Degas in 1880.Picasso’s work was found in the Museum of modern art in New York and Degas’s is currently exhibited at the Metropolitan museum of Art in New York. They were both found in New York. Both of the two charming Art made using the same techniques . Picasso casted bronze as well as Degas the only difference is that Degas added cotton on the skirt a and satin ribbon. Organic shapes are mostly dominating in both sculptures as compared to geometric shapes, therefore, these bring a sense of three dimensionality or form hence resembling the nature of a Baboon and a young female dancer. They both portray a strong sense of balance though its irregular symmetry and they are static man-made artworks. In the little dancer balance have been achieved through a posture in which the head is thrown backwards and chest pushing outward while in The Baboon and young balance is achieved by a tail hanging diagonally and a baby on the chest of the Baboon pulling it forward. Space has been used effectively in both pieces. Both Artists displayed a creative use of space to render the flow of the pose. For instance, the space between the legs arms as well as the facial gaze into distance complement the action of a female dancer at the end of performance and a female Baboon after being blessed with a baby. Besides , The little dancer and The Baboon and young both have a lifelike presence and they feel like animals they represent instead of looking like them. That is they both show a real life situations. Though Picasso’s work is simplified and stylised, it is detailed in some way. By looking at the Baboon’s head which is a model of a toy car , there are human head like figures appearing on the car’s windscreen which symbolises the eyes of the baboon. There is also a grill of the same car which suggests a nose and the mudguards suggesting the baboon’s cheekbones or jaws. A thick bold curvy line under the grill of the toy car suggests the smiling mouth of a baboon. All this features symbolises a bright happy face of a baboon which indicates that it is really it’s joyful moment during a summer season. The  reason for saying it is summer is that summer is the season of reproduction and this baboon is holding it’s young one. One can tell from the gigantic smile shown on the face that the baboon has been blessed with a baby. Comparing with Picasso’s work , The little dancer ‘s pose portrays a captured moment in time during a performance. Both the facial and bodily gesture, that is the half opened eyes into infinity, and diagonal right leg suggest a moment of suspense. That is the time when the dancer has just finished a performance and taking a deep breath of relief-eye half closed, lips tightly closed and breath taken in through the nostrils. This posture shows that the Little girl is happy about what she has done and she is proud about it. Looking at a combination of her clothing we can say that this little girl is a dancer by profession. It also shows that it is summer . I say this because summer is the period of celebrations and this girl was dancing in a celebration. The design of the vest and the skirt also depicts the sense of summer. These features shows a posture that suggest the action of a flexible young female dancer at the verge of a performance thus showing how young ones are a ctive in life. Both of these impressive works were very much successful which means Picasso and Degas achieved their goals. The Baboon and young in particular evokes emotional turmoil about how females like their young ones. The little fourteen -year old dancer also shows how females accepts and promotes nature in their lives. I can say, literally, the Baboon is appreciating what is being done by The little dancer and so it does not regret having a child but instead hope that it’s young one would be successful in life like this girl. I can also say looking at The little girl we can say she is performing on the birthday party of a newly born baboon on Picasso’s work.Texture and gradation of value in both artworks gives a sense of three dimensionality and life. These artworks portray the personality of the artists who made them, that is, they are creative more especially with the use of media, styles even the way they made their pieces. Apparently the artists might have been living in an environment where there was a lot of happiness and so they are showing it in different ways. The overall view about The little fourteen-year old dancer and The baboon and young is that, they poses different qualities but are the same in some way. A great distinction can made looking at the details indicated in both sculpture’s heads. The Baboon’s head is more detailed than the, The little dancer’s but they are both free standing sculptures. Due to some features mentioned earlier in the essay, the two artworks depict the same message, they communicate how females are the happiest creatures on earth and how happiness can be shown in different ways. I equally like both of these artworks due to the fact that lots and lots of creativity is shown in both of them. They are also interesting and eye catching and they portray a strong message. These inspirational sources have contributed to my final project which is HAPPINESS. My projects shows people dancing to a traditional music thus depicting the message that even in our tradition we have our own ways of showing happiness. REFERENCE Pablo Picasso.(1950)http://home.xnet.com/~stanko/baboon.htm Edgar Degas,(1879).Olga’s Gallery ,The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA.Retrived:July 2004, from http://www.abcgallery.com/D/degas/degas47.html Janson. H.W (1995), History of Art, Harry. N. Abrams .New York Ragans R.(1999) Art talk (2ed) Mc Graw-Hill.New York

The Impact of Globalization on the Economy

The impact of globalization on the economy Globalization is one of the main features of modern society. Today it covers almost all spheres of human activity, and its influence becomes more and more obvious. To talk about the effects of globalization, it is necessary to understand its nature and the factors, sources, which led to its emergence. Today majority of scientists agree that economic globalization â€Å"is the increasing economic interdependence of national economies across the world through a rapid increase in cross-border movement of goods, service, technology, and capital†.There are several sources of globalization. The first factor is technological advances. E-mail, the Internet, and the World Wide Web have significantly lowered the costs of transportation and communication in international trade and in doing business by and large. Next reason of globalization is trade liberalization that has led to more liberal world trading system. And finally source of globaliza tion is creating globalized media, the arts, and popular culture with the widespread use of the English language for global communication.Of course there is not a complete list of the factors of globalization, but in my opinion, those mentioned sources are the most important. Globalization has significant impacts on all economies of the world, with various effects. There are heated debates around positive and negative effects of globalization. Leading pro-globalization arguments make a strong case that globalization is simply the industrial revolution that rationalizes economic activity everywhere. For instance, it affects countries’ production of goods and services.It also affects investment, both in physical capital and in human capital. It also has major effects on efficiency, productivity and competitiveness. On the other hand, scientists consider about so-called paradox of globalization: in many cases, the gap between the rich and the poor is increasingly widening. An ar rival of foreign companies and foreign capital creates a reduction of unemployment and poverty; however it can also increase the wage gap between well-educated, skilled workers and those who are not. In the short term, some of the poor will become poorer.The arrival of foreign companies into developing countries increases employment in many sectors. But those foreign companies arrive with the new technology, which extends across the country. Automation, especially in the manufacturing and agricultural sectors reduces the need for unskilled laborers. As a result, employment rate in these sectors falls. To sum up, globalization is a complex process that works in various ways and has different effects. In my opinion, some solutions are needed to reduce negative impacts of globalization and to find happy medium between developed and developing countries.

Personal Professional Development Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Professional Development - Personal Statement Example To this end, I have conducted a study and analyzed my own case, which will help me to take proper career decisions throughout my life and to achieve my professional ambitions. b. Investigation of career options: The second step is to become a career researcher. This involves identification of resources, market information, evaluation of career options and determining target organizations The following points need to be addressed: c. Focus and goal setting: The purpose of self-assessment and collection of market information is to find a focus for one's career interests. This focus emerges from the interplay of one's self-assessment and the opportunities realistically available. When one is prepared to compare how well one's skills, accomplishments, values, interests, and needs match the organization, one will then be ready to identify your career goals. One will also know the training, skills, and competencies required for his/her career, and the kinds of organizations and positions that are a good "fit" for him/her. The synthesis of information one has collected thus far will require self-reflection. d. Networking: It is an important aspect of the modern job market. ... lso know the training, skills, and competencies required for his/her career, and the kinds of organizations and positions that are a good "fit" for him/her. The synthesis of information one has collected thus far will require self-reflection. d. Networking: It is an important aspect of the modern job market. Developing, expanding and maintaining this network is a critical career development skill. It helps in remaining abreast of the current and changing environment as well as in maintaining contacts with the right persons at the right time. e. Job search skills: Apart from networking, some other important job searching skills are essential. These are resume, CV, cover letter writing, presentation, interviews and job negotiation skills. These skills enable us to properly project our strong points to the prospective employers and in getting the best possible deals. f. Career management: Managing a career is a life long process. With the job market constantly changing, we need to continuously reassess our professional development vis--vis market requirement and make up the shortcomings by following a 'learn while you earn ' approach. According to Robert H. Rouda, and Mitchell E. Kusy, Jr (Career development, personal career management and planning, Tappi journal, 1995-96), "There is an increasing need for individuals to take charge of the development of their own learning and careers for a variety of reasons: There is increasing rate of change of our organizations and in the knowledge and skills we need to perform our jobs. Career ladders are rapidly shrinking or disappearing as reorganizations lead to flatter structures. There is an ever-increasing need for us to keep learning to keep up with the rapid growth in knowledge and the rate of change of our workplace

Ecomonic Systems PowerPoint Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ecomonic Systems - PowerPoint Presentation Example To attain full utilization of the available limited, resources in a state, it entails adequate and effective apportioning, which calls for the intervention of diverse entities. For illustration, every entity has its core role that another party cannot manage effectively to accomplish. Conventional adopted economic systems encompass free market, mixed economy and planned economy (Duffy, 2008). Free Market Regime participation is minimal or all together neglected because the private and the client are the determiners in this system (Richards & Nwanna, 2010). In this system, both the consumer plus seller are liable for their actions or verdicts, which they normally implement while trading. This entails that the commodities price or value aligns with the demand or supply forces. Hence, no stringent measures regarding the prices, except that they should be fair and do not exploit the consumer, which denotes both sides benefit mutually. The market forces lies on demand, supply and ascertai ns shifting or fixing of varied commodities’ values (Richards & Nwanna, 2010). In the incidences where the demand of a certain merchandise falls contrasted to its supply, then it yields to price decline. Nevertheless, when the supply falls, the demand and value usually hike. This system usually offers absolute command on price in ascertaining apportion of resources in the market (Zhou, 2011, p. 223). The minimal involvement of the government entails ensuring order and fair prices that compare with commensurate forces of demand and supply (Zhou, 2011). Hence, prompting the sellers to be true to their ideals in exercising their privileges in a free environment (Richards & Nwanna, 2010). Contrary to other systems, issues regarding tariffs or subsidies are nonexistent. The private firms in accordance to the forces apparent in the market ascertains what to generate and when for the client. Since, the client is the determinant in deciding what to buy and depends on the occasion at disposal. Consequently, assist in utilization and apportioning of resources efficiently (Richards & Nwanna, 2010). Controlled economic system The government exercises its full right in assigning and determining to the details the verdict regarding diverse resources (Kamimura, Burani & Franca, 2011). Private lacks necessary command, thus denoting its influence is nonexistent over the economic tasks, which the regime plans. Suppose the private has to be involved, it entails that, on its part to give full compliance to resources and diverse necessities, since they are under the regime. Government is the sole determinant regarding what to fabricate, extent, value and mode proposed for sound production aimed at protecting the clientele from exploitation. The system entails that every commodity in the market must have directives emanating from the planners (Kamimura, Burani & Franca, 2011, p. 88). Contrarily, this may possess false forecasts or wrong verdicts that are divergent to the con sumer’s demand. Hence, yielding to the respective parties (consumer and private) incur loss silently for them lack the necessary authority to improve their situations. However, the system hardly experiences joblessness incidences since the government solely regulates allocation of human resource (Kamimura, Burani & Franca, 2011). Mainly, it seeks diverse opportunities to ensure that there are no such shortages, which might

Theoretical Framework Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Theoretical Framework - Assignment Example According to Duffy (1997), the three key constituents of the health promoting model include the amending factors. These factors influence behaviors that promote health by acting on the cognitive-perceptual aspects. The cognitive-perceptual aspects are a constituent of the model that control partaking in behaviors that promote health. The model also comprises of the likelihood of taking part in behavior that enhances health. Diabetes is a highly prevalent disease that is evidenced by its number seven ranking in the year 2010. Its rate increases with certain factors like age with persons between the ages of 45 and 60 been twice as likely to die from diabetes. Sandra (2002) notes that Hispanic Americans had higher diabetes risk. Lorraine et al. (2005) reports that demographic factors such as lack of knowledge on diabetes, age, minimal exercise, and been without appropriate health care all contribute to reduced individual health. Padilla & Villalobos (2007) assert that Hispanic men and women show individual health features that are poor. The poor individual health features increase the prevalence of diabetes among these persons. Pender’s health promoting model articulates for a lifestyle that enhances health. A health-enhancing lifestyle can be used by an individual to manage diabetes. Melko et al. (2010) argue that a lifestyle that enhances health is one whose day to day undertakings ensure that an individual is healthy. Duffy (1997) writes that, persons who take part in behaviors that enhance health, recognize the importance of health management; they show a great deal of control, are cognizant of the importance of quality in life, and they believed in their ability to undertake certain acts. If Hispanic men and women, along with non-Hispanic African-American women undertake behaviors that lead to a health-enhancing lifestyle like