Registrar Sample Letter to Student Essay Example for Free

Registrar Sample Letter to Student Essay FOR INFORMATION ONLY ACCUMULATED FAILING GRADES Faculty: This letter is being sent to you on behalf of the Dean of your Faculty. This notice carries no academic penalty. A review of your UVic undergraduate records shows that you had accumulated five (5) or more failing grades over the course of your undergraduate studies at UVic (you may not have been assigned a failing grade in the current session). As your sessional gpa is adversely affected by any failing grades and as a low sessional gpa may cause you to become ineligible to continue your studies and be asked to withdraw from UVic (please see the sections under STANDING and WITHDRAWAL in the University Calendar) this letter is being sent to you for information only to help you avoid these possibilities. Please consider the following suggestions: 1. Choose your courses carefully 2. Avoid overloading yourself: be aware of your personal time commitment 3. Monitor your academic progress carefully on an on-going basis, being mindful of academic drop deadlines 4. Check with your department Undergraduate Advisor about course selection or to see if supplementary tutoring is available for particular problem courses 5. Talk with a Faculty Academic Advisor or the Assistant Dean to review your program/degree selection if necessary. 6. Consult Counselling Services if you require assistance with your study skills Best wishes for success in your future studies. Undergraduate Records University of Victoria FW

The Purple Rose of Cairo Essay Example for Free

The Purple Rose of Cairo Essay Film has captured and enchanted audiences since its origination with the Lumiere Brothers; and, as it developed, it began to be used to convey messages and ideas. Film started to become a creative outlet that then turned to a catalyst of philosophical thought. Film theorist Sergei Einstein expressed that film â€Å"as a work of art, understood dynamically, is just the process of arranging images in the feelings and mind of the spectator†. Thus, directors began to realize that audience manipulation was possible through the images and sounds they delivered, as well as through the way these images and sounds were presented it all has an effect of how viewers thought of and interpreted the films. This is especially clear in the German film, Triumph of Will, directed by Leni Reifenstahl. While the film is brilliantly made, with moving cameras, the utilization of long focus lenses, aerial photography, and a revolutionary approach to musical accompaniment, the film was also incredibly propagandistic and manipulative at the time of it’s release. The entire film is a vehicle to promote the ideologies of Hitler; beginning with Germany’s near-destruction in World War I and depicting Hitler as a messiah, descending from the skies to greet his vehement followers. In the opening minutes of the film, there are close-up and over-the-shoulder shots of Hitler, making him seem rather personable, adored, and somewhat noble. There are also shots of children approaching him, showing that the ideas of innocence and purity are to be seen as parallel to the views and goals Hitler himself. Aesthetically, the entire film is superbly done, and politically its manipulative powers are astonishing. By showing Germany as unified under the divine rule of Hitler, it brought the nation together and created one of the most destructive and powerful nations in the 1940s. While film can be used as propaganda, like in Nazi Germany, it can also be used to provoke thought, rather than control it, manipulate it, or deceive it. In Woody Allen’s film The Purple Rose of Cairo, the audience is pushed to move beyond the appearance of things and consider other worlds, other perspectives. For the heroine, Cecilia, film is an escape and an impossible inspiration. According to the fictitious movie (The Purple Rose of Cairo), the purple rose itself is supposed to grow in a pharaoh’s tomb the expression of a perfect love. However, no flower can grow without light making it an impossible inspiration. According to Plato, and to partially to Allen, our relationship with truth is rather grim. When we attend movies we are much like Plato’s captives, chained facing a cave wall, only seeing a world of shadows our reality is suspended. But another point is made; although we can be deceived by shadows, we are also capable of understanding and questioning anything, shadows included. Yes, film is an escape from reality and the idea of being able to truly escape a somewhat horrid life is unimaginably wonderful, but thats just it it is an idea. Change has to be brought on by oneself, not an unreliable outside source, and perfection is an illusion. I as a viewer absolutely love how Allen presents these ideologies in The Purple Rose of Cairo. He gives it an unconventional point of view, setting up a series of contrasts between perfection and imperfection, reality and illusion, loving someone and being in love with someone, that forces us to think about film as well as the actual content of the film. And this all ties back to Plato’s â€Å"Allegory of the Cave†; our life is veiled and we must aspire to leave and become less dependent on the shadow world. What is interesting is that, in the film, Allen makes the audience unsure of which world is the shadow world and which is the illusion. The perfect world becomes the film world and the false one is the desired reality. As entertainment, the film is great a nonsensical romantic comedy with a less-than-happy ending; but philosophically it goes much deeper than that, provoking audiences to think about reality and the importance of imperfection. While on the subject of imperfection, a third film demands some attention. Alejandro Amenabar’s The Sea Inside presents a whole new perspective on what perfection in life is. Many people see suicide as a selfish act removing yourself from the lives of your loved ones far earlier than they would have liked. However, the question of who is more selfish is posed. Is it the people who remove themselves when they feel no more connection to life; or the people who expect those who want to leave to stay, regardless of their misery or feelings of lacking true connection to the vibrancy of life? Thus are the questions presented to audiences upon viewing this film. In my mind, everyone should have the freedom to choose the life they want to live, or not live; and to choose what meaning they take out of said life. In Clendine’s â€Å"The Good Short Life†, it is said that we speak of living life, but never of death. That â€Å"we act as if facing death weren’t one of life’s greatest, most absorbing thrills and challenges† and that being incoherent and immobile until one only sees friends and family as â€Å"a passing cloud†. Both Clendine and Ramon didn’t want to put their loved ones through that, and taking one’s life seemed to be the best solution. Both were â€Å"vital to the end, and knew when to leave†. In my opinion, if someone has legitimate, justifiable reasons to want to leave this earth (such as a degenerative disease), that they have a right to do so. And if they cannot on their own accord due to that degenerative disease, I think that others (physicians, family members, friends) should be legally permitted to assist them. They shouldn’t be obligated to assist, but if they give consent and are willing to aid, I think they should be permitted. Mark from Breathing Lessons and Ramon were also similar on a few levels, but Mark had more hope and determination to live with dignity. Unlike Ramon who saw his life as undignified, Mark viewed it more as excessively challenging. Mark still desired life though considered suicide, but â€Å"chickened out† showing that he did truly still want to live. Ramon, however, was lost in his melancholy and nostalgia for the past, choosing to disregard the possibilities the future could bring. I think that it is a personal choice and that each individual should be given the liberty of making that choice. The phrase â€Å"dying with dignity† always reminds me of greek mythology when humiliated warriors would throw themselves on their swords for an honorable death, rather than live life in humility. I think Ramon saw his life as more humiliating and therefore wanted to throw himself on his sword, so to speak. With this, I think that the US should have a â€Å"death with dignity† law. Everyone has a right to life, as well as a right to death. Film is one of the most influential and powerful media. It’s capabilities to provoke, cultivate, and manipulate audience thought is incredible and worth studying. The innovations that film itself has gone through the amount of genres it contains, special effects, and advancements in sound all contribute to film as a whole, and all contribute to the beauty of how film is created and suspends the reality of viewers if only for an hour or two.

Justification of a Business Plan for Hotel

Justification of a Business Plan for Hotel The Justification of a Business Plan for Rebeccas Hotel Introduction The significance of business plans in all types and sizes of business organizations can never be threaten. The entrepreneurial inquiry puts the entrepreneurs in situations that require judgment. Hence, the need and identification of an approach to address these situations arise (Foss, Foss Klein, 2006, p. 4-5). Such as the justification for business plans as one of the approaches to address business problems, particularly in the event of uncertainties. The use of a business plan is one such approach as it is defined as a formal declaration of what the business wants to achieve. During uncertainties entrepreneurs should find tools to manage them (Sull, 2004, par. 2). Guinipero, Denslow, and Melton (2008) indicated that high propensity risks increase the formality of business plans. A business plan allows the anticipation of risks and improbabilities. A carefully formulated business plan should be able to communicate to stakeholders about the intended direction of the company. Through this, stakeholders should be guided with an understanding of the business situation and subsequently enable them to execute appropriate actions (Honig and Karlson, 2004, p. 30-35). To protect their interests in the business, stakeholders can be guaranteed with action in expectation of favourable business outcomes. The justification for a business plan appears to raise the significance for business successions as they posture challenges. The transition of managerial control frequently simply do not work out (Dalpiaz, Tracey Phillips, 2014, p. 3). Since this paper is based on the succession of a family business, the case study about Rebeccas family business provides insight into the important of business plans even for a small family-run hotel. This paper shall explain the importance of a business plan for Rebeccas case and consequently convince her to undertake the preparation of a business plan. Her case shall be interpret considering the mitigating factors as to why the business plan is necessary. The mitigating factors The retirement of Rebeccas parents had generally prompt the need for a business plan. Nonetheless, the presenting scenario also questions its practicality as their business is started out by her parents, has possibly overcome various business challenges, and is still currently operating, all without a business plan. The need for a business plan is followed by these conditions. Beyond these circumstances, Rebeccas succession to manage the business also presents potential threats. Though Rebeccas work as a kitchen assistant and junior cook despite having those knowledge is useful for the business since the hotel includes a restaurant, but the operation and management of a bar and hotel would require competencies which may not be sufficiently provided by her short time because she went backpacking travel in South-East Asia. Additionally, a three-year backpack travel exposure may not be suitable for Rebecca to develop an understanding of the tourism industry in their locale since the act ivities and opportunities presented in the different locations can be varied. It is important to note the difference in the tourism needs and activities of a travel destination such as the marina compared to the tourism locale Rebecca visited in her three-year adventure. On the other hand, as part of the family, she could have obtained insight into the business operations and her parents management style and business practices. Nevertheless, family-run organizations encounter unique problems due to its inherent nature (Peters Buhalis, 2004; Agyapong Boamah, 2013). Supporting literature shall clarify this in the next section. Even though Kerstin is not a part of this family but because of her relations with Rebecca and also because of her competencies and training, she can be possibly consulted about these consequences. Though small businesses are less likely to hire specialists than large corporations (Wu, Bacon, Hoque, 2014, p. 7), by moral of Rebeccas relationship to her, Kirstens expertise might be confess or at least consulted. It is, however, uncertain that her international exposure at work and the level of training would be suitable for a small family-run hotel. The nature of family-run businesses Family businesses rely on paternalism (Peters Buhalis, 2004, p. 537). Successors operate under the path of their parents especially when the founders are still around. Successors may attempt to introduce new systems and approach which may run contradicting to the family tradition when running the business. But the predecessor may not be able to let go or to completely allow the decision making processes and the management of the enterprise under the new relative-manager. The vision and goals of this relative may be inconsistent with how the parents perceive the business. Likewise, Agyapong and Boamah (2013, p. 533) described family-based relatedness in their study, which appears to produce these problems. The dynamics of family relationships may get in the way of business operations. There may be a cause of separation of the family concerns and business matters, conflicts or inefficiency may be occurred in the business. Family-run businesses are also usually characterized by informal business practices. As a result, these enterprises lack planning or the use of a systematic approach to manage the business especially when problematic activity occur. In the family businesses they commonly use improvisation by the family members (Peters Buhalis, 2004, p. 5), which lead to inconsistencies. There are no product or service standardizations or appropriate consistent controls. The informality of the practice arises from the dynamics of the family relationship. This situation is further entangled by another informal business practice which is inaccurate financial recording that results in financial losses (Peters Buhalis, 2004, p. 6). Family members also make their decisions that tend to be irrational since there appears a lack of information to guide them. In addition, misjudgement of performance indicators also occur and consequently affect the quality of future business decisions. This information could be made consistent, reliable, and more permanent when a proper business plan is created. Succession in family businesses Succession in family businesses is considered an interesting area of research. Studies focus on examining the change which aid or hinder the transfer of power to the succeeding generation, family relationships, and the process (Dalpiaz, Tracey Phillips, 2014, p. 6). A more outstanding evaluation from the studies is the causation approach which indicates that family businesses evolve linearly. In a statistical perspective, the continuity of the family business is related to certain variables which indicate the future state of the business. In the causation approach, a set of goals is identified as one of the factors in which family businesses are described to be established on. However, the goals are recognised to lack systematic process due to the informal nature of family enterprises. Nevertheless, planning, among the other components such as intentionality and resource acquisition, are essential foundations of this approach. Therefore, the continuity of the family business relies on the continuity of establishing plans. However, this time for Rebecca, a conscious formulation and systematic approach for business planning must be used. A few studies shows the reasons why business plans become critically important for family-operated businesses. The studies of Peters and Buhalis (2004) and Agyapong and Boamah (2013) provide important insights into these types of business ownership, particularly in the hotel industry. Both types of research emphasize the need for competitiveness in the industry. Peters and Buhalis (2004) claimed that the competitiveness of destinations is characterized by the domination of small businesses in the tourism and hospitality industry, as such in the case of Austria, the studys research locale. The operations of 240 small family businesses in Austrias tourism destination industry were part of the study in 2003. Research findings suggested that training is an essential element to run family businesses. In addition, a key component of this training includes the development of plans, strategies and the development of conceptualisation of new products or services among other important areas of running the family hotel business. These specific areas are being pick to emphasize the important role of business plans in the small enterprise. This research further indicate the need to develop strategic plans, both as a competitive strategy and advantage for the small family hotels. Growth and future sustainability are indicated to be the likely outcomes when strategic plans are created and then implemented. Meanwhile, Agyapong and Boamah (2013) conduct in their research the effects of business strategies and leadership in family businesses. Family hotel businesses in Ghana were the focus of this study, covering 50 small hotels in the country. The vital findings relevant to this paper is that the use of strategies, which may be provided by business plans, offer the family business the ability to predict problems, to vision the future, and to maintain flexibility. The business environment in Ghana was described to be highly competitive, and thus, the need for well-thought of strategies enable good business performance to survive in a competitive market situation. Furthermore, the unique characteristics of family businesses can be apply in implementing particular business conditions such as cost leadership and differentiation strategies (Agyapong Boamah, 2013, p. 537). In the case of Ghanas family hotel businesses, competitive strategies were purposeful to provide the assertion of survival of the 50 small hotels. Hence, the advantage of the business plan is to help the family business to be competitive in its formation. Another advantage implied in the studies is that the business plan could help support the inherent characteristics of small family businesses. Considering the scope of these two studies and similar competitive situations, those research indicate a broad-applicable situation for small family-run hotels. Alternative studies illustrate the importance of business plans for entrepreneurs in general. Brinckmann, Grichnik and Kapsa (2010, p. 24) cleverly stated in the title of their study Should entrepreneurs plan or just storm the castle? the quote of whether to create a business plan or not. This analysis study specified that planning is beneficial, although that factors such as culture and the newness of the enterprise affect the planning-performance relationship. Relevant to this, the newness of the enterprise may not be a concern for Rebeccas case, since the business has existed during her parents time. Culture appears to be a critical factor as to refer to the norms, values, and relationships within the family. Since this is identified to affect the planning-performance relationship, the guarantee of success for Rebeccas family business is yet to be determined. Besides, another research, Zahrani, Nikmaram and Latifi (2014, p.245) specified the need for developing a strategic plan, which is especially useful for succession planning. It is important for the successor to have the right outlook about the business plans. Furthermore, according to Aronoff and Ward (2014, p. 2), shared opinion help conquer conflicts within the family organizations. It is believed that since visions are reflections of values, shared visions should also result in more unify outcomes for a family business. Visions and values can be clarify when they are justify out rather than assumed. Identifying and specifying them in a business plan should help in making decisions which link to the family expectations. Conclusion Successions in family-run businesses present potential problems. This is further complicated by the inherent features of family-operated enterprises since they lack planning and is characterized by informality which results in inconsistencies, conflict, and lack of control. Research has provided evidence based on the need to develop strategic plans to ensure the future performance of the business. The planning-performance link support needs for business plans as a family-oriented business culture is identified a plausible barrier to the business success. Business plans offer the business successor a means of continuing the business with the appropriate business outlook one that reflects family vision and values. Furthermore, business plans provide a means for avoiding the consequences arising from the inherited nature of family-run enterprises. Studies specific to the hotel industry have also identified that competitive market environments can be survived by developing strategic pla ns. Presented with the benefits of developing strategies and the analysis of Rebeccas situation, Rebecca should be convinced that a means for her successful succession of the family-run hotel is through the development of a business plan. References Agyapong, A. and Boamah, R. (2013). Business strategies and competitive advantage of family hotel businesses in Ghana: The role of strategic leadership. The Journal of Applied Business Research. Volume 29. Number 2. Accessed at: cluteinstitute.com. (Accessed 15 March 2017). Aronoff, C. and Ward, J. (2016). Family business values: How to assure a legacy of continuity and success. New York: Palgrave and MacMillan. Dalpiaz, E., Tracey, P. and Phillips, N. (2014). Succession narratives in family business: The case of Alessi. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. Accessed at: https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/1810/245758/ETP%20Revision%20Final.pdf?sequence=1isAllowed=y. (Accessed 14 March 2017). Foss, Foss, and Klein, (2006). Original and derived judgment: An entrepreneurial theory of economic organization. Organization Studies. Accessed at: https://brage.bibsys.no/xmlui/bitstream/handle/11250/164282/soldp200601.pdf?sequence=1isAllowed=y. (Accessed 15 March 2017). Guinipero, L., Denslow, D., and Melton, H. (2008). Risk propensity, risk perception and business plan formalization: a conceptual investigation. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management. Volume 8. Issue 4. Accessed at: http://www.inderscienceonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1504/IJEIM.2008.022312. (Accessed 16 March 2017). Honig, B. and Karlson, T. (2004). Institutional forces and the written business plan. Journal of Management. Vol. 30. Issue 1. 29 48. Accessed at: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Benson_Honig/publication/228264253_Institutional_Forces_and_the_Written_Business_Plan/links/54ae9e6a0cf21670b35862b8.pdf. (Accessed 17 March 2017). Peters, M. and Buhalis, D. (2004). Family hotel businesses: Strategic planning and the need for education and training. Department of Strategy and Tourism Management. Center for Tourism and Service Economics. University of Innsbruck. Accessed at: http://epubs.surrey.ac.uk/1109/1/fulltext.pdf. (Accessed 14 March 2017). Sull, (2004). Disciplined entrepreneurship. MIT Sloan Management Review. Accessed at http://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/disciplined-entrepreneurship/. (Accessed 15 March 2017). Wu, N., Bacon, N. and Hoque, K. (2014). The adoption of high performance work practices in small businesses: the influence of markets, business characteristics and HR expertise. The International Journal of Human Resource Management. Accessed at: http://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/26446/1/3876_Wu.pdf. (Accessed 16 March 2017). Zahrani, M. Nikmaram, S. and Latifi, M. (2014). Impact of family business characteristics on succession planning: A case study in Tehran industrial towns. Iranian Journal of Management Studies. Vol. 7. No. 2. 243- 257. Accessed at: https://ijms.ut.ac.ir/article_36616_8ced89c13f3bb574ef88de90a9581858.pdf. (Accessed 14 March 2017).

Financial Aid Essay :: Financial Scholarship Essay

Since the day I was born, I have enjoyed story telling. My first memories are of my father spinning me tales, as I nodded off. Every night I traveled back in time through his stories. I learned of Nero's sadistic burning of Rome, Adolph Hitler's maniacal reign, and Sojourner Truth's brilliant speech. All elements of our historical heritage, for which I have great affection. When I was quite young, my father purchased our very first computer. Through his hobby, I grew to love the technical side of the world in which we live. Through the years, we have owned many computers and they each taught me something new. Due to these two loves, I have chosen to double major in history and computer science. "Jewel, you have to make it. I want you to finish what the rest of us have started. You must finish college," my grandmother has stated to me many times. No one in my family has completed a four-year degree. It is my intent to blaze a trail for my posterity, as also is my grandmother's ambition. As long as I can remember it has been my fondest dream (and my furthest goal) to attend college. From the beginning, I knew it would be an uphill climb to gain admission into a prestigious university.

Contemporary Social Theory Essay -- essays research papers

Two major approaches to contemporary social theory are the Marxian materialist approach and the structural functionalist approach. The materialist approach was developed from the work of Karl Marx, who believed that the economic order shapes society. The functionalist approach was developed from the work of Comte and Durkheim, stating that is the combination of all of society’s institutions that shapes society. An organic analogy is most often used to explain structural functionalism. The analogy represents society with the human body and social structures and institutions are represented by the body’s organs. For a human being to survive, the body must perform certain functions to solve problems and meet needs. For example, we must circulate blood, remove waste, and biologically reproduce. Survival depends on the individual organs and how they perform together. Each organ does something to keep the system going. In order for society to survive and keep order, individual institutions must effectively perform together. The institutions must perform specific functions to meet problems or satisfy needs. This is achieved by institutions such as the family, economic, educational, and religious orders. It is the make up of the interrelated institutions that form society, as the interrelated organs make up the human body.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The materialist approach argues that humans are unique because we can produce solutions for material wants and needs; that materi...

1720s and 1820a :: American History

In the 1720’s to the 1820’s there were several events, changes, and processes that occurred in America. The three events I am choosing to analyze are: The Great Awakening, The Revolution, and The Market Economy. Each one of these events had a cultural, social and economic aspect. Each one of these events had different impacts and was manifested in several different ways. The first event I will be analyzing is The Great Awakening. â€Å"The Great Awakening cut across lines of class, status, and education† (Boyer â€Å"Bonds of Empire†, P. 86). â€Å"The American Protestantism was split† (Boy â€Å"Bonds of Empire†, P. 87). â€Å"In 1741 Old and New Light Presbyterians formed rival branches that reunited in 1758 when the revivalists emerged victorious† (Boyer â€Å"Bonds of Empire†, P. 87). â€Å"Members of Anglican churches started leaving and going to New Light Presbyterians and Baptists† (Boyer â€Å"Bonds of Empire†, P. 87). â€Å"The Great Awakening stimulated the founding of new colleges unscarred by religious wars† (Boyer â€Å"Bonds of Empire†, P. 87). With the Great awakening for the cultural effect was that they found different churches for others to go to and enjoyed more. They also found colleges that are really well-known colleges today. The next event I chose to ana lyze is The Revolution. During the Revolution, there were social changes that affected several different races, classes and genders. The four groups that the Revolution had an effect on the social changes were: white men, White women, Black Americans, and Native Americas. With the Revolution effecting the white men by â€Å"wearing homespun clothing in support of boycotts of British goods (Boyer, â€Å"Defining Nationhood†, p. 128). When the Virginia planters organized militia companies in 1775, they wore plain hunting shirts so that they didn’t embarrass the poorest farmer for his clothes so that they could enlist† (Boyer, â€Å"Defining Nationhood†, p. 128). While men were out in the war the â€Å"women stayed home and managed families, households, farms and businesses on their own† (Boyer, â€Å"Defining Nationhood†, P. 129). For the Black Americans, it started to show others that slavery was not a good thing. â€Å"The war, nevertheless, presented new opportuni ties to African-Americans† (Boyer, â€Å"Defining Nationhood†, P. 130). â€Å"The slaves were even trying to escape as all the confusion that was going on and pose as a freeman† (Boyer, â€Å"Defining Nationhood†, p. 130). Even though the Revolution showed new opportunities to the African-Americans it â€Å"didn’t end slavery nor brought equality to free blacks, but it did begin a process by which slavery could be extinguished† (Boyer â€Å"Defining Nationhood†, p.

History book report Essay

It is the circumstances and the characters of the founding â€Å"brothers,† their ideological as well as personal conflicts that created the US as a nation. SUMMARY Here is a presentation of US History—the creation of a new nation that does not attempt to consolidate events into a general account that suggests the inevitability of the Declaration of Independence but examines history in light of a handful of episodes involving central personages, their passions and conflicts that reveal as much of the creation of the nation after the Constitutional Convention. At one end were the Federalists including Washington, Hamilton and Adams who believed that revolution was a necessary step in order to build US nationhood as embodied by the newly established federal government. On the other were the Republicans including Jefferson and Madison who saw revolution in its liberating character, holding the Declaration of Independence as most sacred, in contrast to the Federalists who consider the Constitution most dear. At that time, there was no notion of valid opposition. Both sides thought about the other’s position as treasonable. These are the circumstances that surround the duel between Hamilton and Barr, which led to the former’s death and cost the latter’s political career. These are the circumstances that led to Washington’s non-acceptance of a third term as well as Jefferson’s treacherous vilification of his friend, John Adams. This high level of political tension led to the compromise in 1790 to appease the Southern states, as a result of fear of the states’ secession (despite both parties’ belief that slavery was inconsistent with the principles embodied by the Revolution). In all stages of these events, the characters were aware of that they were in fact, making history. BOOK REVIEWS 1. In Bobrick’s (2000) review of the Founding Brothers, he compared the Ellis’ style to Lytton Strachey, the author of Eminent Victorians. But according to him, Ellis was different in a way that the latter never veered towards making a caricature of the characters. He described the book as â€Å"splendid†¦ humane, learned, written with flair and radiant with a calm intelligence and wit. † He also guaranteed that even those who are familiar with the â€Å"revolutionary generation† will find the book to be both captivating and enlightening of the first years of America as a nation. 2. Meanwhile, Hodgson (2002) said that Ellis’ method made possible the retention by general readers of their interest in a highly-intelligent discussion of 18th century politics. He thinks that The Founding Brothers is one of those rare books/analyses that can be read for pleasure. But despite these comments, he also notes that Ellis’ work suffers the characteristics of â€Å"American Exceptionalism† and failing to acknowledge Britain’s version of history. The Independent, where Hodgson’s review was published is a British newspaper. REACTION TO BOOK REVIEWS There is nothing surprising about the positive reviews gained by The Founding Brothers. After all, with the pervasiveness of the linear or historiographic approach, there is no doubt that the book’s manner of presentation can be characterized as a breath of fresh air. Ellis’ novel approach enabled him to indirectly give a general and probably in many ways, different accounts of history by being able to pick only six of all specific stories that could have contributed to history. This indicates not only deep knowledge of the personal lives of some characters as some reviewers point out, but also indicates a deep insight of what transpired in history as well as what as its implications and consequences. While it is true that Ellis was able to make the book more interesting to the general readers, it is arguable that the book’s â€Å"indifferent† to others’ version of history is an issue. Ellis does not claim to represent to be a version of other nations’ histories or any nation’s history for that matter. At best, what Ellis book attempts to represent is his own interpretation of history considering everything that he studied, and analyzed both as writer, researcher and historian. ENLIGHTENING Interpretations of history can be different depending on the manner of its presentation. In schools, and even in colleges, these founders are usually depicted as saints, sometimes even to the point of idolatry. Ellis presentation of these founders is an attempt to humanize them in the minds of the readers. In the end, they are not depicted purely as models of idealism, motivated by pure goodwill and love for the country, but as politicians who regardless of their real motives are affected by conflicting circumstances, and sometimes real ambition. ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT The book is already enjoyable as it is despite whatever flaws it may have. One reviewer notes the fact that some point of views, particularly those of the British were not taken into account. The writer personally do not think that such alteration, or any alteration for that matter would be necessary to cause a significant change on the effect that the book had to the readers. References Bobrick, B. (2000). The Brethren. New York Times Online. Retrieved 28 April 2009 from http://www. nytimes. com/books/00/12/10/reviews/001210. 10bobrict. html? scp=1&sq=founding%20brothers%20review%20ellis&st=cse. Ellis, J. (2001). Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation. Alfred Knopf: New York. Hodgson, G. (2002). The Apostles of the US Brought to Life. The Independent Online. Retrieved 28 Apriil 2009 from http://www. independent. co. uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/founding-brothers–the-revolutionary-generation-by-joseph-j-ellis-750973. html.