Sunday, October 6, 2019

Neurology Clerkship eBook - Introduction Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Neurology Clerkship eBook - Introduction - Thesis Example 2. The â€Å"best† instruction for the eBook should be efficient in a way that it demands less time from the learners to allow for achievement of the goals; effective in a way that it facilitates acquisition of identified skill and knowledge by a learner; and appealing in such a way that it interests and motivates the learner, thus promoting participation in the learning task(McGrane & Lofthouse, 2012). 4. The evaluation of the instructional eBook should include evaluation of its instructional effectiveness among the Neurology clerkships and evaluation of the performance of the learners.(McGrane & Lofthouse, 2012) Information concerning evaluation of the instruction is enough for guiding revision of the instruction with the view to making it appealing, efficient, and effective. The process of determining instructional materials’ effectiveness through randomized large-scale experiments is uncommon due to its high expenses and increased time requirements. Various smaller studies have been carried out in the view of examining how effective it is to introduce new packages of instructional approaches in comparison to the existing ill-defined instructional approaches. Most of these studies offer useful information concerning exploitation of alternative instructional methods such as the development of an instructional e-Book for Neurology Clerkship among Medicine students.However, there are various limitations. One of the limitations of this study is the failure of evaluating most of the instructional approaches, especially among studies that offer useful information to practitioners and policymakers (Andrews, 2013). This is a problem that worsens with the exploitation of web-based open-source instructional materials such as the instructional eBooks. Another important issue is the constant nature of the studies even as they remain outdated and unable to suit the constantly updated instructional approaches. As such,

Saturday, October 5, 2019

Ethical Criteria and its relationship with business negotiation Essay

Ethical Criteria and its relationship with business negotiation - Essay Example The main ethical criteria in businesses are utilitarian, universalism, categorical imperative, justice views, individualism, and social justice relativism and their relation to business negations. One of the ethical criteria is the Utilitarian criterion in which a business executive makes decisions solely based on the outcomes and consequences. Many businesses use the criterion to make decisions in the provision of the greatest good and for the greatest number. The criterion ensures that the decisions made create efficiency for the organization as it struggles to achieve its goals (Ferrell & Gresham, 1985). The method also aims at increasing the productivity of the business resulting in high profits of the company or the business enterprise. When a business executive maximizes profits, he can support his action that the decision he made as for the good of the organization. The use of Unitarianism leads to productivity and efficiency in an organization but can make the executive ignore the rights of some stakeholders especially the minority group making them feel unaccepted. The users of the criterion feel that they need to protect the organizations interest and the shareholde rs. Businesses require the stakeholders to hold negotiations especially when making important decisions. The criterion does not allow free negotiations and discussions by the company’s stakeholders as a single individual makes the decision for the benefit of the company. The choice of the action to be taken is determined by the largest number of stakeholders supporting it. The categorical Imperative involves the universal practice such that everyone is allowed to practice the proposed action. Kant developed the criterion and individuals wishing to use the criterion or the test should know that they would need to adopt the morality of the action. The morality of the action is the key to the adoption of the test, and

Friday, October 4, 2019

Risk Assessment for Vertex-Speed Ltd. Durham County, UK Essay

Risk Assessment for Vertex-Speed Ltd. Durham County, UK - Essay Example Sunderland won the contract for the Micra with the promise of a 40m government grant. General Motors (GM) manufactures cars in the UK under the name Vauxhall and they also indicate that the strong British pound is making it difficult to see a profit. 5m grants ensured that the new Vectra model was produced in Ellesmere Port. This created 1,200 jobs in that city, but the old Luton plant loss 1,900 jobs when the facility moved to Ellesmere Port. Vauxhall required 5m in government grants for production to occur in the UK and not at the Antwerp, Belgium plant. GM also finds the strong pound a challenge for profitable business. Toyota has two factories in the UK at Burnaston and Deeside with over 3000 employees. The Deeside plant produces car engines. The other car markets doing well are the luxury classes such as Rolls Royce and Bentley, which are not as affected by the varying exchange rates. The UK has over 40 vehicle manufacturing plants with 40 billion of the Gross National Product with the majority of producers being foreign owned. The industry is vital to the UK and means that diversification, expansion and other adaptations are required to compete in a global market Management Focus. The plants closed or consolidated (Luton for example) have provided a method of beginning business for companies that could not afford the start up costs from the ground up (zero based production sites). Vertex-Speed Ltd has seen impressive growth and development in the last twenty years in spite of a changing market and the pound so strong against the Euro. County Durham is an ideal location with cooperation from local governments and a good reputation with consumers. 35% of our production is in the Vertex Gamma, a luxury sedan popular with the executive class. A study was ordered by Vertex-Speed Ltd regarding the feasibility of establishing an automobile factory in either Brazil or Malaysia since the majority of the Gammas produced are exported to Brazil and Malaysia. The move to a horizontally integrated Multinational Corporation (MNC) is a complicated one and many aspects of such expansion must be taken into consideration. The following assessments investigate the political, economic states of Brazil and Malaysia as well as a number of other factors such as the level of corruption and the attitudes toward foreign investors, which could determine whether it is best to consider Greenfield investment or an acquisition. A reliable supply chain and component makers are mandatory and more important than cheap labour costs (Management Focus). Risk Assessment for Brazil Country Risk- Financial Brazil has the largest economy in South America and is a country of contrasts. While not a poor country with

Thursday, October 3, 2019

Frequent Shopper Program Essay Example for Free

Frequent Shopper Program Essay The objective of this project request is to track purchases of individual customers. The customer purchases will be tracked and accumulated as loyalty points for redemption by the customer for gift items, specialty foods and other products or services as made available through partnerships with other external companies. The strategic purpose of the Frequent Shopper Program is described on the Sales Marketing page of the Kudler Fine Foods Intranet site. Purpose: Kudlers’s new initiative is tracking purchase behavior at the individual customer level and providing high value incentives through a partnership with a loyalty points program. The customer purchase behavior patterns will help Kudler refine its processes and offerings to best satisfy their values customers. Price is not the primary differentiating factor for Kudler consumers; these consumers are focused on quality and finding specialized items. Therefore, rather than providing everyday discounts to the customers for their purchase frequency like lower end markets, Kudler has partnered with a loyalty points program to provide customers with points which can be redeemed for high end gift items, airline first-class upgrades, or other specialty foods. Technology Infrastructure and Architecture The following sections of this document will provide an overview of the hardware, network, software, databases, and security requirements for the frequent shopper program. These requirements are suggestive Hardware Platform: Kudler Fine Foods currently has an elaborate network of hardware that may be used to implement the frequent shopper program. Client-Side hardware: 1. Each store uses NCR RealPOS 82XRT terminals linked to the network through a POS server. (These terminals will be used during purchasing to initiate data collection including customer ID and purchase history data for the FSP)   2.  The nineteen (at present count) corporate management and other admin personnel all utilize Dell Vostro computers running Windows 7 OS. These administration personnel also share 3 HP networked printers. (In relation to the FSP, these computers will be used by management to query and analyze customer purchase history for business service refinement. ) Server-Side Hardware: 1. POS Servers- are used to process orders from the POS terminals and connect to the Kudler network for database file storage 2. HP Blade Server system- c3000 system, Unix OS, SAP Retail SW, Print/File, Communications, Email, Storage, Web. These Servers will be used to store data regarding individual customer purchase history and queried for business analysis as well as loyalty points addition and redemption. ) Network Platform: 1. Each of the three Kudler Stores has a Local Area Network which connects together Via T3 Dedicated high speed lines. 2. Each store’s LAN is connected via 100 base T Ethernet. The communications into and out of the stores is ported through 2 Cisco routers and firewalls. 3. Each Local Area Network is also connected to the internet via 25Mbps high speed business internet connections. 4. Network Diagrams (Shown Below) Software Development Tools: 1. The Frequent Shopper Program is an additional service that will be implemented in conjunction with the existing Information Technology System used throughout Kudler Fine Foods. Because of the complexity and functionality of the existing system, it is recommended that the use of AGILE development methodologies be used to develop the FSP system and merge the application into the existing system. 2. Visual Studio 2012- This Integrated Development Environment will be used to develop the application modules and user interfaces for the FSP development. 3. The code will be implemented in the C# language. (used for module development) b. ASP. NET MVC – used to develop dynamic, interactive web based application for customers to access, monitor, and redeem loyalty points Databases: 1- Customer Table The Customer Table contains demographic data for each of Kudler’s customers. The data in this table is used to access the name and address of customers for order processing and for special mailings for anniversaries and/or birth dates, etc. Order Table The Order Table is used to record information pertinent to each Order placed with a given store. Each order will have one or more entries in the Order Line Table associated with it. 3- Order Line Table The Order Line table contains detail on items appearing on an order. One or more Order Lines are associated with each order and each Order Line references an item being purchased with its description, quantity, price, etc. 4- Item Table The Item Table stores information pertaining to products that may appear on an order. It describes goods that can be purchased from a Store. The current database tables can be re-used and combined to create the FSPoints Table The FSPoints table (Frequent Shopper Points table), will include the Customer ID and all correlating information, Item purchase history, and Item Points Value. The sum of all points’ values will be expressed and added to the Customer’s redeemable points at the end of each FSP period. User Interfaces: Describe the interface for data collection and notification to store personnel and customers. 1. The initial User Interface will remain the same at the point of sale(POS). Additional software will be added to initialize the FSP on applicable transaction.  Software modules will be initialized as needed that will collect the CustomerID as well as the individual items purchased. 2. Web Applications: Through the use of the aforementioned tools including ASP. NET and MVC, an interactive web application will be available to registered customers, and personnel to access, review, and redeem loyalty points. There will be an exclusive page created for the Frequent Shopper Program. Controls: System accuracy checks will be in place to verify unique CustomerID’s at the POS terminals. Every customer that participates in the Frequent Shopper Program will have a unique customerID. Each transaction will begin by entering this identifier which when verified for accuracy will begin collecting item purchase data. Each item is scanned at the POS, and compared to its corresponding FSPoints table to add loyalty points to the Customers FSPoint record. If the CustomerID or any items purchased to not register in the verification processing system, an exception will be returned to notify the customer and cashier at the time of purchase. Each transaction will close with a printed receipt listing the order line information, as well as the points accumulated at that transaction. A points total may be requested via the internet based Frequent Shopper Program Web application on the Kudler Fine Foods website. Security: The necessary security mechanisms need to be in place when storing and moving most data entities, especially Customer personal information. Hashing and encryption techniques will be used when sensitive data is stored in all data stores, and secure data transfer protocols (e. g. , SSL, HTTPS, and WS-Security) will be used when data is Personal Information will be secured through the use of data encryption methods and secure networking protocols when data is transmitted over the network.

Wednesday, October 2, 2019

Controversies in ECMO

Controversies in ECMO Parag Gharde, Sandeep Chauhan   Controversy is defined as â€Å"Public debate about a matter which arouses conflicting opinion.† (Oxford English Dictionary) ECMO or ECLS- To start with there is controversy regarding the name itself. There are two abbreviations that we commonly come across in literature ECMO- extracorporeal membrane oxygenation ECLS- extracorporeal life support This support system is used in different clinical settings where the reversible organ dysfunction has affected the lung, the heart or both. When lung rest is needed the veno-venous ECMO system is used and for providing cardiac rest veno-arterial system is used. The term extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) came into being when Dr. J. Donald Hill first used it successfully in a road traffic accident victim who developed acute respiratory distress syndrome after multiple blood transfusions. Since lung rest and oxygenation was the main therapeutic requirement, the life support system was named ECMO. But since this support system is now often being used in patients requiring cardiac support where the native lung is functioning well, the term ECMO is not suitable and hence the term ECLS is now in common use in clinical practice. The ECMO society itself is named as â€Å"Extracorporeal Life Support Organization-ELSO†. Therefore the reader should not get confused when they come across the terms- ECMO and ECLS, both meaning the same but to the author the term ECLS appears to be more appropriate as it can be used interchangeably whether support is required for the lung, the heart or for both. The use of the term ECMO is justified only if it is being used to support pulmonary function with the aim of giving rest to the lung. Does ELSO work? After the first successful use of ECLS in an adult, which was reported by Hill etal in 1972 (NEJM 1972; 26: 629-34.), the National Institute of Health sponsored a multicenter randomized study by Zapol etal in 1974, which showed 90% mortality in both ECLS and conventional care group. The anticipated enrolment for the study was 300 patients but the study was stopped after just 92 patients, as the death rates were similar in both the groups. This prospective randomized trial deflated the initial euphoria that was generated by the report of Hill etal. Was this supposed to be a certain miscarriage of a support system devised to deal with patients who are non-responders to conventional medical practice, even before seeing the light of the day? This study was conducted in adults with hypoxic respiratory failure and published in 1979. (JAMA 1979; 242:2193-2196). This first prospective multicenter randomized clinical trial demands a close scrutiny. During the study period a nation wide epidem ic of influenza pneumonia broke out, which might have affected the results. Though the protocol included lung rest but the inflation pressures were high compared to the present recommendation, which may have caused lung injury. VA ECLS was used rather than VV ECLS, which may be responsible for high incidence of pulmonary micro-thrombosis due to decreased pulmonary blood flow. ECMO was instituted after a mean duration of 9 days of mechanical ventilation, which in the present era has been reduced to 7 days. Morrios etal (Am J Respir Crit Care Med-1994;149(3);88) randomized 40 patients with sever ARDS to either pressure controlled inverse ratio ventilation or extracorporeal carbon dioxide removal. Survival at 30 days was not significantly different (42% in mechanical ventilation group and 33% in ECLS group). After these two randomized trials, showing failure of ECLS in the adult setup had put ECLS into disrepute despite many anecdotal mini case series and isolated case reports showing the benefits were published. The much awaited CESAR trial (Efficacy and economic assessment of Conventional ventilator support versus Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for Severe Adult Respiratory failure), a multicenter randomized controlled trial by Peek etal was published in Lancet 2009. (Lancet. 2009:374:1351-1363.) 180 patients were randomized and 90 patients were managed at the participating tertiary care centers while 90 were referred to Glenfield hospital. Five patients in the ECMO referral group died during transportation and thus the ECMO group consisted of 68 patients of which 43 survived to 6 months (63%). This study showed that survival apart from appropriate time of institution of ECLS also significantly depends on the expertise of the ECLS conducting center. There is no consensus on the optimal time for institution of ECLS. Waiting too long will result in danger of end organ dysfunction and poor outcome, while too early institution without optimizing medical therapy will expose the patient to the inherent risk of ECLS. The success in ECLS has been with neonatal acute hypoxemic respiratory failure with survival to discharge rates reaching 80%. The success story started with Bartlett etal reporting the first successful use of ECLS in a neonate in 1976. Extracorporeal carbon-dioxide removal (ECCO2R) A membrane lung is used to remove carbon dioxide in conditions of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. A low flow is required and is perfused by femoral artery-venous shunt. Low blood flow is not adequate for performing oxygenation. Morris etal conducted a randomized control trial using this device to eliminate CO2. This trial showed no difference between ECCO2R and the conventional treatment and the study was stopped after enrolling 40 patients only. The ECCO2R arm used low flow in a group of patients with severe lung disease, which warranted higher ECMO flows. Before starting the trial, the trial team had limited experience on sheep and one patient.(Am J Respir Crit Care Med,1994:149; 295-305.) Effective CO2 clearance is achieved with blood flow as little as 10-15ml/kg/min, while oxygenation requires at least 50-60 ml/kg/min of blood flow. Nova lung (Germany) produces a membrane lung, which can be perfused using femoral arterio-venous shunt, enough blood flow for CO2 removal. ECLS Vs Ventricular assist device (VAD) Patients with failing heart and waiting for heart transplant need a bridge to transplant till the time a donor heart is available. If these patients develop acute exacerbation of cardiac dysfunction, which route should be chosen- ECLS or VAD? There are no guidelines regarding this situation. The main advantage ECLS holds over VAD is in patients with bi-ventricular dysfunction, which will require a bi-VAD. VA-ECLS on other hand can support both the ventricles along with respiratory failure and refractory pulmonary artery hypertension. The only limitation is the duration of support, which at most is 4-6 weeks. Cardiac ECLS The controversy is regarding patient selection. Though ECLS guideline clearly defines presence of a reversible condition before institution of ECLS, there are situation when it’s difficult to predict if the condition is reversible and most often the decision is surgeon dependent who may have a biased opinion regarding the true indication for instituting ECLS. This usually results in financial burden, resource and manpower wastage, bad outcome, lowers the moral of the team and loss of faith in the support system (ECLS). When is the ideal time to institute ECLS in cardiac surgical patient? Is it ideal to institute ECLS directly from CPB or to initiate it later in the intensive care unit after giving a trial? It has been shown that survival benefits were more in patients who went on ECLS directly from CPB thus avoiding the ill effects of prolonged low cardiac output state or subsequent to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in the intensive care unit. Antegarde or retrograde ECLS Retrograde ECLS via femoral artery cannulation especially for cardiac support in a failing left ventricle is not a good option. The failing heart with this form of support has to compete with retrograde ECLS flow from the femoral artery cannula. This causes increase in LV wall stress and may even result in mitral regurgitation both of which increase left atrial (LA) pressure, thus affecting gas exchange due to pulmonary congestion. This may impair oxygenation and delivery of inadequately oxygenated blood to coronary and cerebral artery circulation will further worsen cardiac function and delay recovery. Therefore central ECLS with aortic cannulation has some advantage over peripheral ECLS, especially in case of cardiac support. But central ECLS takes time to initiate and is ideal in post cardiac surgery setup. In an emergency situation peripheral ECLS is easy to institute. Serial echocardiography needs to be done to rule out LA distention. If LA distention is present then placement o f an LA vent is necessary via percutaneous atrial septostomy. Some prefer retrograde ECLS because of the fact that 10-15% patients suffer from stroke when carotid artery was used for arterial cannulation in profound hypotension or arrest. Neck vessels are used in children up to 5-6 years and femoral access in older patients. Limb ischemia is common with femoral artery cannulation and may require additional distal limb perfusion. Is axillary artery cannulation a better option? This can provide sufficiently oxygenated blood to the upper body, which is lacking with retrograde flow. The issue of limb ischemia is also addressed. The decreased pulmonary blood flow in full support VA ECLS may increase the risk of thrombus formation, in the pulmonary circulation, because of lower levels of anticoagulation. Does the type of oxygenator influence outcome? In vitro studies reported problems with Biomedicus (Medtronic, USA) pump heads. Thiara etal demonstrated improved circuit durability and reduced hemolysis when changing from Biomedicus (Minimax oxygenator) circuit to a Rotaflow (Lilliput 2 oxygenator), but failed to demonstrate survival improvement. (Perfusion, 2007;22:323-26). The earlier oxygenators were spiral wound silicone membrane oxygenator (Affinity, Avecor Cardiovascular Inc, USA), and the recent multiple hollow fibers

The American Penal System Essay -- solitary confinement, punishment, se

Imagine living your life inside of an enclosed, seven by twelve foot, concrete cell. The only access you have to outside world is the small slot in the door used for delivering medication and food, and a tiny window, used by the guards to make sure you are alive and breathing. The fact that they even have to check if you are alive should be a red flag to society. You are here for twenty three hours a day with only one hour of â€Å"recreation† outside of this cell. This time can be used to shower, workout or make a phone call, but you are still isolated. You are here locked up for weeks, months, or maybe even years. Throughout this whole time, you are left alone with no meaningful activity; just yourself and your thoughts, which can eventually drive you mad. This is solitary confinement. According to the Washington Post's â€Å"The Torture of Solitude,† â€Å"The United States holds the highest number of prisoners in solitary confinement of any democratic nation...â⠂¬  This is what approximately 80,000 prisoners across America have to suffer through. This is what the rest of the United States population should consider immoral. Solitary confinement was first introduced as a â€Å"humane alternative to hanging almost two hundred years ago† (ABS News). Yet there is nothing humane about it. The American Penal System needs to ban long term solitary confinement because it is unnecessary, inhumane, and ineffective. Many sentences of solitary confinement are unnecessary because many prisoners do not deserve such a harsh punishment. Deciding to place a criminal in solitary should be a last resort. Prison is a good enough punishment for people who have committed petty crimes. It is unnecessary for them to be placed in solitary, if they are not a danger to th... ... so they can eventually learn from their wrongs. They are eventually going to be integrated back into society, so we should help them become better people. Works Cited ABC News. "Solitary Confinement: No Way Out of the Monster Factory." YouTube. YouTube, 20 Sept. 2012. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. Curtis, Abigail. "Is Solitary Confinement Torture?: Proposed Bill would Place Limits on use of Solitary Confinement in State Prison." McClatchy - Tribune Business News. Oct 24 2009. ProQuest. Web. 28 Oct. 2013 . National Geographic Society. â€Å"Explorer: Solitary Confinement.† National Geographic Channel. Web Video. 22 Nov. 2013. "NYCLU Report Exposes Inhumane, Arbitrary use of Solitary Confinement in NY State Prisons." Targeted News Service. Oct 02 2012. ProQuest. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. "The Torture of Solitude." Washington Post. 2 July 2012. Academic OneFile. Web. 28 Oct. 2013.

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

John Dryden: England’s Controversial and Exceptional Genius

John Dryden was England’s most outstanding and controversial writer for the later part of the seventeenth century, dominating the literary world as a skilled and versatile dramatist, a pioneer of literary criticism, and a respected writer of the Restoration period. With Dryden’s great literary and critical influence on the English society during the Restoration period he has made a name for himself, which will be studied and honored for years to come. John Dryden was born in Northamptonshire, in 1631. His parents were Erasmus Dryden and Mary Pickery. They were both from wealthy and respected families in Northamptonshire. The Drydens were known for wisdom and great tradition all over England and were well-equipped with large estates and vast lands (Ward 5). Dryden’s father, Erasmus, was a justice of the peace during the usurpation, and was the father of fourteen children; four sons, and ten daughters. The sons were John, Erasmus, Henry, and James; the daughters were Agness, Rose, Lucy, Mary, Martha, Elizabeth, Hester, Hannah, Abigail, and France (Kinsley 34). Dryden was also a religious man. He had as much faith in the Lord as he did in his pen. He belonged to the Church of England all his life until converting to Catholicism due to the change of the throne. He was baptized at All Saints Church in Aldwinule, Northamptonshire ten days after his birth (Hopkins 75). Dryden, growing into a young man, began his education in his hometown. There he took the basic classes. He furthered his education at Westminister School in London. Here, he attended school for about twelve hours a day, beginning and ending at six. At Westminister he studied history, geography, and study of the Scripture, plus all the basics. After Westminister he Cunningham 2 attended Cambridge University (Hopkins 14). While attending Cambridge University, he excelled to the top of his class and was a standout student. John Dryden was the greatest and most represented English man of letters of the last quarter of the seventeenth century. From the death of Milton in 1674 to his own in 1700, no other writer can compare with him in versatility and power (Sherwood 39). He was in fact a versatile writer, with his literary works consisted of tragedy, comedy, heroic play, opera, poetry, and satire. Although he did write most of his important original poems to serve some passing political purpose, he made them immortal by his literary genius (Miner 3). John Dryden was the type of man who was always busy with some great project. He would never put full time and concentration into his work. He would quickly finish a project, careless of perfection, and hurry off to begin another, which was not a tempting deal on either the author’s side nor the reader’s side because Dryden lived in a time where there were few well-printed works (Hopkins 1). So much of his work consisted of numerous errors, misprints, and lost pages. Several critics have attempted to revise and correct his work but usually for the worse ( Harth 3). Despite his popularity during the Restoration and even today, little is known about John Dryden except what is in his works. Because he wrote from the beginning through the end of the Restoration period, many literary scholars consider the end of the Restoration period to have occurred with Dryden’s death in 1700 (Miner 2). Surviving Dryden was his wife Lady Elizabeth and there were three sons, to whom he had always been a loving and careful father. John, his oldest son, followed his father in death only three years later in April of 1700. His wife, the â€Å"Widow of a poet,† died shortly after his death in the summer of 1714 at the age of 78 (Bredvold 314). Dryden certainly attained his goal of popularity especially after his death. He became this Cunningham 3 through his â€Å"achievements in verse translations, the first English author to depend for a livelihood directly on the reading public and opening the future of profitable careers for great novelists during the next two centuries† (Frost 17). The Restoration period was a time of great literature and outstanding writers, but, with all the talent in this century, there were also many problems. The Restoration was an angry time in literary history. Writers threw harsh blows at one another, not with fists but with paper and ink. It was an age of plots, oaths, vows and tests: they were woven into the â€Å"fabric of everyday life, and hardly a person in England escaped being touched by them† (Hammond 131). During this time he wrote about what was going on in life activities quite often in his work. At this time there was a major controversy over the conversion from Protestantism to Roman Catholicism. Dryden’s church was in a strange and uncomfortable position. Since the time of the Restoration it had been an underground organization because it was regarded as the enemy of the English monarchy. Some of the members have been accused, and others falsely accused, of setting plots against the crown (Hopkins 85). In 1663, Dryden, â€Å"under the cloud of some personal disgrace,† married Sir Robert Howard’s sister, Lady Elizabeth. The marriage provided no financial advantages or much compatibility for the couple, but Dryden did gain some social status because of her nobility. Because of his social success, Dryden was made a member of the Royal Society that same year. Since he was a non-participating member and did not pay his dues, his membership was later revoked. In 1664, he wrote a poem honoring his brother-in-law, Sir Robert Howard, with whom Dryden remained involved personally and professionally for some time. In 1668, he was Cunningham 4 named Poet Laureate and was offered a share in the Theater Royal’s profits in exchange for his plays. This is where he earned a large portion of his income, and ensured his financial stability for the next several years. However, in 1689 when William and Mary took the throne they replaced John Dryden, a Catholic; and made Thomas Shadwell, a Protestant, the new Poet Laureate (Verrall 6). John Dryden was a poet for about forty years. He was formally known as a â€Å"public poet† because a great amount of his poetry dealt with public issues (Harth 3). The explanation for Dryden’s late development as a poet was due to the simple fact that he had nothing to say. In Dryden’s poems, the descriptions he gave avoided unique, concrete details; he preferred general terms. When he described men and women, he gave his attention to moral qualities, not physical appearance. He usually glorified the lower social class and put the upper social class in a shadow (Sherwood 7). Many of Dryden’s poems were congested with printing errors and misspelled words, although, the reasons for this were not totally his fault. There was not a great printing process during this time and many careless mistakes in printing were caused by neglectful workers (Sargeant 10). John Dryden is a poet who left a firm impression of his character in this world; he is known as a public figure, respected literary critic, popular dramatist, and strong supporter of religion and politics (Salvaggio 13). Dryden’s poetry has been divided into two time periods of his career. The first was during the Restoration period and ended in 1667. He did not write another poem for fourteen years; during this time he was writing plays and critiques. The second period began during the later part of his life and ended in 1681 (Harth 3). Some of Dryden’s more popular poems â€Å"The Cock and the Fox,† â€Å"All For Love,† â€Å"Antony and Cleopatra,† â€Å"Absalom and Achitophal,† and his most famous â€Å"Mac Cunningham 5 Flecknoe. † In the poem â€Å"All For Love,† it portrays the love story between Cleopatra, the breath-taking, beautiful, Queen of the Nile and her lover Antony. He also knew that when writing this poem it would be nothing new to the poetic world (Dryden 14). â€Å"All For Love† is a pale, beautiful play. The theme â€Å"All For Love† was meant to be that â€Å"punishment inexorably follows vice and illicit love. Actually, the motivation of the play is a conflict between reason and passion, and it is this conflict that makes â€Å"All For Love† truly representative of the Restoration Period and the battle of ideas that settled beneath† (Dryden 25). The greatest of his poems was â€Å"Absalom and Achitophel. † He wrote this while he was Poet Laureate, the national poet of a country (Hopkins 5). In this poem he described a political predicament that is described by characters from the Bible. He uses a vast amount of symbolism in the story. â€Å"Absalom and Architophel† represents his lifelong affinity for seeing the present in terms of the past (Miner 15). One of his most famous poems is â€Å"Mac Flecknoe. † He destroys Thomas Shadwell by taking very crude and harsh blows on the man. However, Dryden refers to Shadwell’s appearance to only imply that he is fat: â€Å"A Ton of Man in thy Large bulk is writ, but sure tho’rt but a kildrekin of wit† (Sherwood 7). There is nobody of English criticism that is more alive, that brings readers more directly into contact with literature, than John Dryden. One can never predict what will arise with Dryden’s criticism, but it will be far more promising than any other (Mc Henry 25). John Dryden is known as â€Å"the father of English Criticism† (Osborn 136). But, other studies and opinions show that his critical writings are known to quite often derivative, self-contradictory, rambling, inexact, at times over-specialized, and at others too sweeping (Hopkins 137). Cunningham 6 Dryden’s earliest critical essay was written in 1664, about his first verse play, The Rival Ladies. From this date until his death in 1700, Dryden scarcely passed a year without writing a preface, an essay, a discourse, a literary biography or some piece of criticism (Osborn 179). His criticism has not been viewed in the correct ways in some cases. It has often been praised for its minor virtues, and too little admired for its major ones. â€Å"His criticism is great in contrast as well as in style† (Hammond 179). John Dryden’s critical qualities are handsome ones, preferable to most. He has confidence in his basic assumptions and more gracefully within his tradition. Another great strength of his, is that he plays example against theory and theory against example; Dryden also possesses many more admiring qualities (Hammond 5). As a well-respected critic as he is Dryden has a habit of telling what he is thinking at the time of composition. His prefaces and prologues have the quality of studio talk in which the artist speaks of what he has tried to do and how he has done better, or worse, than others. He gives his views at the time, he may have different views at other times that are more educated, but he gives the views which engage him at the moment (McHenry 39). Criticism of Dryden in the half-century following his death is sparse, and contributions from the major men of letters are disappointingly casual and undeveloped. However, most likely the best criticism of Dryden during the period after his demise comes from â€Å"Dennis, Congerer, and Garth. † There is passion as well as admiration in Dennis’s remarks for Dryden’s poetry (Bredvold 14). He is a critic more than a theorist, meaning he judges poetry thoughtfully by talking incomparably well about the poetry. However, he also likes to think and to speak of his thinking to explore and mediate literary principles. John Dryden wrote with ease and at times carelessly, but he knew where he stood (Hammond 1). Cunningham 7 His poetry was often seen as a pure, rich, metrical energy, and formally proper to the genre. â€Å"It is throughout its whole range, alive with a special kind of feeling† (Osborn 181). John Dryden was engaged in literary controversy his entire literary career and life. He feuded with famous writers such as Sir Robert Howard, Thomas Shadwell, Andrew Marvell, Thomas Rymar, and many others. Shadwell was the most unfortunate foe of them all. If he had never quarreled with Dryden he would not have been known today as one of the four great comic playwrights of the Restoration period (Dryden 1). Shadwell’s and Dryden’s literary quarrel developed by the means of critical comments in prologues, epilogues, prefaces, and dedications written between 1668 and 1678. Dryden’s â€Å"Mac Flecknoe† was a major issue in the dispute between Dryden and Shadwell (Dryden 4). In â€Å"Mac Flecknoe,† Shadwell’s memory is kept alive, but has also been branded forever as horrible writer and a disgrace to the history of English writers. â€Å"Mac Flecknoe† is Dryden’s most delightful poem. It reveals Dryden’s great writing talents as poet and satirist. As he accuses Shadwell of â€Å"borrowing† from other authors. He also indicted Shadwell of â€Å"consistently stealing,† but the charges were also greatly exaggerated. However, Dryden admitted that he was guilty of â€Å"borrowing† from other authors, but he also mentioned that Charles II said that he wished those incriminated for stealing would steal plays like Dryden’s (Dryden 18). At some point Shadwell had got on good terms with Dryden, good enough at least for Dryden to provide the prologue to one of Shadwell’s plays. It might have been the prologue the others, but still it served as a prologue to one of Shadwell’s. They had to have developed some sort of friendship or came to know each other. Then something happened and the time for reconciliation had passed. In the same year in which he wrote that prologue for Shadwell he also wrote â€Å"Mac Flecknoe† to put an Cunningham 8 end to the feuding, and Shadwell became the â€Å"unforgiven butt of his ridicule† (McHenry 47). Dryden was an exceptional author that just did not make as big as others. His literary reputation suffers greatly from the simple fact that not many know of him. He is the man who wrote â€Å"Absalom and Architophel,† â€Å"Mac Flecknoe,† and who precedes Pope. He wrote not only great satirical, but great love poems, great political poems, and great religious poems. Beyond those poems he wrote many great passages of poetry. He wrote an astounding amount of good poetry, probably more than any other poet in the language except Shakespeare and Milton (Hammond 67). The English author John Dryden called himself Neander, the â€Å"new man,† in his Essay of Dramatic Poesy, and implied that he was a spokesman for the concerns of his generation and the embodiment of it’s tastes. He achieved a prominence that supported his claim. Dryden excelled in comedy, heroic tragedy, verse satire, translation, and literary criticism; genres that his contemporaries and later readers have defined as representative of the Restoration period. John Dryden’s lasting legacy will be defined by his unequaled, excellent criticisms of literature and his outstanding poetry. He developed the model for modern English prose style and set the tone for 18th century English poetry. His memorable works helped influence much of the writings that come from England to this day. Translations are another major reason why people will remember Dryden. He took authors from previous eras works and interpreted them into something superior and moved them to a greatness previously believed unattainable. His considerable accomplishments assured Dryden’s place in literary history and, through their influence on such writers as Alexander Pope, determined the course of literary history for the next generation.