Karl marx Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Karl marx - Essay Example He intended to help the readers understand the kind of pain that these classes were being placed into by the rule that had been established in France at the time, and how the dictatorship failed to notice the plight of the commoners, which further led to a pitfall in the politics as well as economy of the country. Through his writing, Marx tried to help the people to understand that even a commoner could come to terms with the entire situation and circumstance and play the rightful part of a hero by lifting the pressure that the lower classes had been engulfed into because of the rule that persisted in the country at the time. It was leading to a major deterioration in the economy’s cycle, not to forget the happiness factors of society at large. One of his most famous quotes help to provide readers of the Brumaire with Marx’s views on an individual’s life within society at the time in France. ... anxiously conjure up the spirits of the past to their service and borrow from them names, battle cries, and costumes in order to present the new scene of world history in this time-honoured disguise and language.† By this, Marx means to throw light on how the rise of Bonaparte led to a downfall of the people and how the country suffered on the basis of their societal aspects because of harsh and unfair decisions taken by a single man. This quote means that a man has a destiny to follow, and thus he must follow the path of his life with respect to the same, while creating new opportunities for himself. Most people are under the impression that whatever is in store for them will happen eventually, however a man must try and create solution for himself to live his life with ease and peace. Life throws a number of situations and circumstances towards a person during his lifetime, and these are the opportunities that a person perceives. He must have the ability to figure out on his own what must be done in a given situation because otherwise he might end up regretting and hurting himself as well as others around him. According to Marx following a set tradition laid down by ancestors was not the way by which life was meant to be lived. He writes that it is this tradition that weighs people down in the present as they are hell bent on trying to imitate the lives that their forefathers had undergone. Even though some men try and break free from such a historical presence present in their lives, they somehow fall short at the very last moment as the past catches up with them and weighs them down. A man must be strong in his will and determination to be able to live a life for himself despite whatever he must have gone through earlier, or despite whatever hardships his family

Research Paper for Othello Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

For Othello - Research Paper Example Jealousy, that is roused by suspicion and wounded pride, which could be reactions to prejudice, makes Othello the most celebrated text that explores the powers of these debilitating factors even over someone who is considered a hero (Collie 88-9). Shakespeare’s Othello is one of the earliest texts that depict racism against blacks (Iyasere, Iyasere, and Little 326). Normally, especially during Shakespearian days, the whites are the natural protagonists while the blacks are usually portrayed as antagonists. This depiction of a hero is unusual because Othello is shown as troubled with bitterness, delusions, and self-importance (Vaughn 180). He is a dignified, brilliant, heroic, and important figure in the Venetian army, yet despite this prominent status, his own insecurities make him prey to the selfish motives of Iago, the play’s villain (Jacobsen 502). The tragic part here is that no matter how great his status is, and no matter how admired he is by the people of Venice , the war strategies that make him win several battles do not win for him his battle at home, which ultimately resulted in the tragic end of Othello and his beloved Desdemona. Iago sees Othello’s jealousy for his wife Desdemona and decides to use it to his own advantage. He is able to manipulate Othello easily, even when Iago never once presented strong evidence about Desdemona’s infidelity. In fairness to Othello, the ideas that Iago convinces him of are very likely to happen, therefore, easy to believe (Jacobsen 503-4). However, if he knows his wife Desdemona well, it is also easy to see that these accusations are not only improbable, but ridiculous as well. In a scene in the play, Iago exclaims â€Å"Ha! I like not that.† (3.3.33) and â€Å"Cassio, my lord? No, sure, I cannot think it, That he would steal away so guilty-like, Seeing you coming.† (3.3.37-9). Here, it is obvious that Iago, lacking any solid proof, tries to plant ideas in Othello’s mind through manipulation. Iago acts like he is unwilling to confess the sordid details of the scene between Desdemona and Cassio, yet all the while uses a suggestive tone and drops hints that Desdemona is having an illicit affair with Cassio. This causes Othello to demand for more details, making it appear that he is dragging information out of Iago, while the truth is that Iago leads him into that trap of suspicion. This skillful manipulation ignites jealousy in Othello that is roused by the suspicion that Iago successfully implants in his head. These suspicions that rouse his jealousy cause constant speculations by different critics. Othello’s self-loathing is one popular idea. For example, making their marriage private instead of public could mean that he does not believe he is good enough for Desdemona (Vaughn 180). Othello is also portrayed as filled with contradicting characteristics. He promotes Cassio (1.1.18-21) but shows more trust to Iago; he kills his wife Desde mona (5.2.137-8) despite professing his overwhelming love and passion for her; he also kills himself (5.2.376-7) instead of facing the consequences of his crime despite being noted for his courage and dignity. His insecurity makes him gullible to Iago’s manipulations. It can be said that even without Iago’s exploitations of his insecurities, Othello would still be susceptible to suspicions one way or another (Vaughn 181). Despites his great accomplishments and elevated status in the society,

Downsizing Definition Essay Example for Free

Downsizing Definition Essay Downsizing occurs when a company permanently reduces its workforce. Corporate downsizing is often the result of poor economic conditions or the company’s need to cut jobs in order to lower costs or maintain profitability. Downsizing may occur when one company merges with another, a product or service is cut, or the economy falters. Downsizing also occurs when employers want to â€Å"streamline† a company – this refers to corporate restructuring in order to increase profit and maximize efficiency. Downsizing results in layoffs that are often followed by other restructuring changes, such as branch closings, departmental consolidation, and other forms of cutting pay expenses. In some cases, employers are not fired, but instead become part-time or temporary workers to trim costs. In a business enterprise, downsizing is reducing the number of employees on the operating payroll. Some users distinguish downsizing from a layoff, with downsizing intended to be a permanent downscaling and a layoff intended to be a temporary downscaling in which employees may later be rehired. Businesses use several techniques in downsizing, including providing incentives to take early retirement and transfer to subsidiary companies, but the most common technique is to simply terminate the employment of a certain number of people. Recentll, countrys largest cell phone company Grameenphone, has embarked on major operational cost-cutting measures that include the downsizing of its manpower in some specific sections of the company. GrameenPhone is the largest mobile phone company in Bangladesh. In the midst of lack of communication means, GrameenPhone has introduced an effective and user-friendly mobile phone network. It has put a positive impact on the lifestyle of the people of Bangladesh.It is one of the largest cellular operator in the country. It is a joint venture enterprise between Telenor and Grameen Telecom Corporation. Telenor is the largest telecommunications company in Norway, owns 51% shares of Grameenphone. It is amongst the oldest, most sophisticated, and diversified telecom companies in the world. Grameen Telecom itself owns 35% shares, 9.5% shares are held by Marubeni Corporation in japan and the remaining 4.5% shares are held by Gonofone Development Corp in New York. In addition, three leading international financial institutions the International Finance Corporation, Asian Development Bank and the Commonwealth Development Corporation are also shareholders of GrameenPhone. The three organizations each hold three per cent of preferred shares of GrameenPhone. It was the first company to introduce GSM technology in Bangladesh. It also established the first 24-hour Call Center to support its subscribers. With the slogan Stay Close, stated goal of Grameenphone is to provide affordable telephony to the entire population of Bangladesh. At present around 4800 employees, both permanent and contractual, are working in different sections of the GP. But the sudden decision to downsize its manpower has created panic among most employees of the company that saw substantial rise in its annual profit-earning in recent years. The victims of the latest cost cutting measures are in most cases permanent employees who worked in the sales and services departments. The company has abolished its logistics services in all regional offices and in the case of sales it has reduced the number of posts and declared the remaining post vacant. Interestingly, it has asked all the sales staff either to compete a fresh for the vacant posts or take an attractive exit package. Management is saying it is a part of the business alignment process, Through a so called performance evaluation process the company is conducting termination of permanent employee who were meant to be loyal and efficient. Even in many cases employees are being forcefully asked to leave the organization. some of the employees have complained that Grameenphone’s management has threatened them to submit their resignation letter otherwise they will be mentally humiliated as well as downsized at work. From employee source it is found that in many cases the company is violating the Bangladesh Labor Act 2006 but the government or the labor law enforcement bureau is not taking any actio n. The statistic shows that last year the company profit incensement was almost 205% and the employee of the company was suppose to get a potation of the profit as per the company policy. But it never happened. As Grameenphone’s profit already is in increase as per last year’s report than the company should provide a valid reason of termination of such a large number of employment within a short time. Recently the management have introduces a new system of re-interview within the company to ensure the existing position of the individuals. Management has claimed this process as a part of performance evaluation tool which has made the employee to raise their voice against this injustice. By using such words like ‘Business Alignment’ and ‘Change in structure’ actually the company is terminating the employment of permanent employee who has given his 8 hours of every single day with loyalty to built this organization to this height. Even in some cases the company had forced some of the female employee to attend the interviews during their maternity leave and terminated their employment contract as claiming the employee is less productive for the company which is a direct violation of Bangladesh labor Act 2006. Employees have claimed that the management is not providing any written announcement or instruction but verbally they are asking to leave the organization through phone calls and general meeting. This year the government has announced 11% inflation rate but Grameenphone being a multination company has provided only 0%-5% incensement to it’s employees though it’s quarterly report shows almost 81% increase op profit with is this year. Back in 2009 Almost 1500 permanent employees are asked to leave the organization without any valid reasons but based on performance evaluation process. So how come the number of termination became so high based on performance evaluation process after a certain period of time every year? And how downsizing a large number of senior employees into junior position became ethical practice or business alignment process? As a Norwegian company people had a better expectation from Grameenphone but now it seems to be the reason behind of distraction of hundreds of employee’s career.

Sears lack of employee involvement and empowerment

Sears lack of employee involvement and empowerment Sears is a leading retailer providing merchandise and various services, which offers a wide variety of products with more than 2,300 stores in the U.S. and Canada (Sears home page). The company has a strong cultural base with effective operation systems, of which internal and external environment scans can be identified with a SWOT analysis. Internal Strengths Since established in 1886, Sears has developed a strong retail network with extensive customer database of more than 60 million Sears credit card holders (Prentice-Hall, 2003). The company has gained good reputation as a reliable retailer and great trust from consumers thanks to its flexibility in identifying need and adapting strategies to provide best service (Rucci et al., 1998). Even during the crisis period, consumers faith was basically unchanged. It has many nation-wide known brand names with focused range of products and attracts large attention from both male and female customers. Internal surveys also revealed that employees had high expectation from the company and great desire to contribute to the companys success. Internal Weaknesses During the 1980s, the company expanded its business into other fields, for instance insurance, investment and banking, real estate, which resulted in loosing strength and prestige position in its core business as a retailer (Rucci et al., 1998). It was no longer the leading company in retailing but ranked number three after Wal Mart Stores, Inc. and Kmart Corporation. Lack of focus made the company fail to follow new trends in selling and respond quickly to changes in the marketplace. Another problem was the inappropriate attitude towards consumers. The senior managers in the head office were said not to listen to customers need, which resulted in high proportion of dissatisfaction. Other factors, for instance, low inventory turnover, bad service and poor sales companion also contributed to the companys downturn. Opportunities: The company started to realise the importance of female customers and changed the image of a mans store to attract more women by offering new ranges of apparel and cosmetics (Rucci et al., 1998). On the other hand, the application of the employee customer profit chain had positive effect on operation as employee satisfaction on the Sears TPI was high and employees were highly aware of the need for performance improvement. The development of learning maps, town hall meetings, and later maps, including Voices of our customers, The Sears money flow and Ownership, seemed to significantly promote learning environment in the organisation and enhance realistic action. External Threats: The intense competition in retailing was a comparatively significant threat to the company. The industry with a variety of old names like Wal Mart and Kmart as well as new arrivals caused great pressure for Sears to compete and required the company to apply the most suitable strategies without fault to survive and develop. Main issues In a previous study, Sears used an employee-customer-profit chain to collect data from up to 800 stores and found that a five percent increase in employee satisfaction drives a 1.3 percent in customer satisfaction, which results in 0.5 percent increase in revenue growth (Rucci et al. 1998). Thus, the company itself realised the necessity to employees attitude improvement. Although the company was on the fast track of recovery, there were still many issues to be identified and tackled in order to achieve sustainable growth as described in Rucci et al. (1998). First, lack of communication and cooperation between different departments and functions in the company resulted in poor operation efficiency. Customers satisfaction had decreased significantly and it was frontline employees who seemed to know this situation the best. However, they had little opportunity to deliver their messages to the management. The next problem was lack of employee involvement and empowerment. The companys strategies and expectations were poorly transferred through to them, and thus, they were lost in ambiguity about the tasks they were assigned. Moreover, employees are not given enough creative power to have influence on the shaping of companys future. Moreover, employees had to opportunity and support to realise their personal goals. The company aimed to create a compelling and motivated working environment. In reality, however, they still had a long way to go. To some extent, the old control and command culture had prevented the company from advanced development and employees were not highly valued enough as an ultimate resource in the organisation. Misunderstanding was another major issue which the company had to pay much attention to. According to a survey conducted by Sears itself, employees believed that Sears made profit of 45 cents on each dollar while the real figure was 2 cents. This was seen as a barrier to trust. While the company had to implement some changes in operation such as cost cuttings and reduced rewards to cope with crisis, employees might oppose them because they thought the company was doing well. Consequently, there was a lack of sense of urgency and commitment to change through the company. Another point is that the company should have invested more on develop their reward practices although the company was in a crisis and struggling to survive. It becomes even more important to have reward strategies supporting business objectives during hard times as they will strengthen existing resources and help the company overcome difficulties (CIPD, 2009). Approach to reward management With the emergence of the global knowledge and service oriented economy, more attention has been paid to the value of human resource to improve operation capability and create sustainable competitive advantages (Thompson, 2002). However, it is increasingly challenging to attract, motivate and retain employees with the most appropriate reward strategy which can maximise the benefits and perceived value of the rewards at an affordable cost to the company. Although managers at Sears recognised the significance of reward management and executive incentives were based on both financial and non financial performance, they still lack of a systematic approach to the issue. Consequently, a total reward system consisting of financial and non-financial, direct as well as indirect, intrinsic and extrinsic rewards is what Sears needs to improve reward and compensation strategies and reinforce its core values. Total reward, as defined by CIPD (2011), is a concept that encompasses all aspects of work that are valued by employees, including elements such as learning and development opportunities and/or an attractive working environment, in addition to the wider pay and benefits package. Under this concept, employees are empowered and engaged in operation, and can have positive attitudes towards the company. In return, employers get to know more about staffs work life and receive commitment and high performance from employees (Zhou, Qian, Qi Lei, 2009). A useful total reward model was developed by WorldatWork (2006) with five elements as shown in Figure 1. Figure 1: Elements of Total rewards (adapted from worldatwork.org) Total reward approach helps to allocate resources properly and guarantees that all aspects of reward offering are monitored and utilised (CIPD, 2009). When all elements are delivered, employees are increasingly motivated and satisfied with the package, and thus, more engaged in fulfilling responsibilities, improve customer service and enhance performance. The company may choose different strategies from each element to give employees offers aiming at attracting, motivating and retaining them. Compensation It is widely recognised that pay plays the most important role in staff recruitment, motivation and retention process (CIPD Mercer, 2010). Pay at least needs to be set at a reasonable rate to render employees effort and contribution. Apart from fixed pay, employees can earn bonuses for better than expected performances or results achieved. It is especially suitable for Sears where bonuses can encourage employees to perform better and improve customers experience. It also keeps the companys reward package stay competitive against that of other retailers. Benefits The company needs to design a flexible benefit programme, which is available to all levels of employees, to supplement cash compensation and promote the companys image. The offerings may contain: social insurance (e.g. social security, unemployment benefits, shopping discounts, workers compensation,), group insurance (e.g. life insurance, savings, health vouchers) and paid leave (e.g. sickness, holidays, vacation). Good benefits may assist employees in avoiding financial risks and obtaining a stable life, while at the same time, mirror the companys positive values and deliver promising messages to its stakeholders (WorldatWork, 2006). Moreover, well-designed benefits schemes can even lower the expenses and make some savings (Silverman Reilly, 2003). The company can attract employees attention to the most cost effective benefits, for instance, discounted gym membership, child care facilities or cheap loans. Benefits can also be designed as a percentage of salary, then the company may avoid the fluctuation of benefit cost and transfer part of this risk to employees. For instance, employees may choose to withdraw a cash allowance of four percent of salary each year, or invest it in a health and well-being programme offered by the company. Work-Life It contains the experienced working reality in the company, which includes the physical and emotional environment (Higgs, 2006). Policies are designed with an aim to support employees to get the balance and success both at home and in the workplace. In order to achieve this element, the company needs to have an open management style in which everyone is highly involved as a strong community and empowered. There should be flexibility at workplace and great concern from management about employees health and well being, with occasional financial support, if necessarily. Performance and Recognition Performance: This is a significant component in determining the companys success, in which performance of all employees is assessed to evaluate the efficiency. The management as well as employees must invest properly on planning process to link expectations with individual, team and organisational goals. Then, feedbacks are provided to all levels of staff to examine whether performance is up to expectations and goals or not. Appropriate feedback is important as it can motivate employees and improve their working efficiency. Recognition: After performance has been assessed, recognition is psychologically necessary to appreciate ones efforts and acknowledge his/ her contributions. Public recognition is important as it not only affects ones behaviour but also has impact on the others as well (Wiscombe, 2002). Awards can be cash or non-cash (e.g. certificates, restaurant or movie tickets, verbal or written notes of thanks). It is crucial that recognition be proper and fair as the company can gain greater employees loyalty and commitment with such programmes (Boxall Purcell, 2008). Development and Career Opportunities The company is supposed to provide employees with continuous development to enhance their skills and competence as it is an important part in the psychological contract between both sides (CIPD, 2009). On the other hand, a plan for career advancement not only makes employees be more responsible to their work but also deliver greater value to the company (Higgs, 2006). For development strategies, the company may offer different learning opportunities, for instance, short term training courses, on the job learning, coaching and mentoring, leadership development. As Sears already has a corporate university, more employees should be given the chance to attend it rather than managers only. For advanced opportunities, the company may offer some internships, apprenticeships with experts, attendance on meetings and lunches with senior managers for best performers. Each employee will be consulted with individual career ladder plans so that he/ she can know clearly what to do to be promoted. The company should also consider about succession planning to prevent job gaps and operation disruption. Elements to consider Although Total Reward has been proved to be effective in many companies already, it is necessary for implementers to apply its elements in correspondence with each companys specific situation. Contractual arrangements The company must regulate clearly what benefits are offered to employees in the contract to avoid any ambiguity or misunderstanding in reward strategies. Besides, as employees may change their choices or obtain new benefits regularly, the contract needs amending accordingly. Communication to employees It is important that the company deliver the right messages to its workforce explicitly or implicitly to obtain sustainable high-performance (CIPD, 2011). The company must provide employees with enough information about benefits schemes and update regularly about new policies or offers in different forms, for instance, through intranet, posters, emails and in verbal. As many people tend not to see the true value of benefits realistically, good communication may help them to get an idea of basic mechanics of the plans and their operation (Silverman Reilly, 2003). Managers can discuss with their staffs about salary progression, potential for higher salaries, promotion possibility to give them clear vision and expectations of what they can have and how to get these benefits (Armstrong Murlis, 2004). Valuation of benefits Evaluation of the benefits schemes before and after deployment is crucial to achieve the best efficiency. Reward practitioners need to design a plan which is both cost-effective for the company and advantageous to employees. After execution, the outcomes need to be reviewed and lessons are to be learned for improvements. Cultural dynamics Reward management must be considered in the context of the organisations culture (Armstrong Brown, 2006). Companies have different styles of work culture, which significantly affect the way employees work and behave. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the companys culture thoroughly before deciding the type of reward strategy and ways to deliver them to employees. Conclusion This paper attempts to analyse Sears case study with some key drivers for change and main issues, then propose an applicable model for implementing reward management at the company. Given the urgent need to design and deploy applicable strategies for the company to follow, it is hoped that the proposal bring about expected outcomes for the companys sustainable growth in the future. Word count:

Childhood Poverty Essay -- Poverty Essays

We as Americans are extremely lucky. We live in a big country with many resources and almost all the luxuries we ever wanted. On the flip side, in America there are also many people who do not have these privileges. The lower class is a struggling class. For many years, people have been trying to pull themselves up from the lower class and the majority does not succeed. Childhood poverty is a large problem in the U.S. It is said that the poorest people in the United States are the children of the lower class. Childhood poverty could lead to a number of problems such as hunger, violence, physical and mental disabilities, educational problems, homelessness, family stress, sickness, and too-early parenthood. The sad truth is that living in poverty lowers a child’s chance to grow into a healthy, well-adjusted adult who will contribute to society. The number of people who are classified as the working class poor has increased. It has also been proven that work by itself will not keep a family out of poverty. As for government assistance for families in poverty, it has been decreasing. The government argued that families were not using all the services, which were available to them. In today’s society, the amounts of single-parent households are increasing and this is another reason for the existence of childhood poverty. Statistics show that children living in single-parent homes are five times more likely to be poor. More people are getting divorced and are also having children outside of wedlock. It has also been said that women rather than men head about 90% of single-parent families. One of the reasons why these particular families are so poor is because out of all divorced fathers, only 50% help support the... ...iggest and toughest job of you life†¦parenthood. Along with parenthood comes the largest amount of responsibility anyone has even been faced with. Their job is to raise their children, and show them the world. Everything is brand new to them, and as a parent, they are the ones who will be introducing their children to everything. The last thing any parent would want for their child is to have tem grow up in poverty. Every year we spend so much money to report to the public that there are children living in poverty. Why spend millions of dollars campaigning an issue which his already known worldwide? That money should be taken and used to help people lift their children and themselves out of poverty. Progress will not be made of we are just going to sit their and cry about it. Childhood poverty is a large issue, which has been and still needs to be dealt with.

Oxygen :: essays research papers

Oxygen content of air Objective: To measure the percent of oxygen in air and the percent of oxygen in an exhale of a breath Hypothesis: Air has more oxygen content in it rather than the exhale of a human breath. Procedure: Wash hands to remove oils Obtain 2 samples of steel wool (.7g each) Expose one sample of the wool to 35mL of vinegar solution for 1 minute Remove the wool from the solution and shake it to remove the vinegar Place the steel wool in a syringe. Put the plunger in the syringe at the 28mL mark Place the syringe a 250mL beaker that is slightly filled with water Pull the plunger until the water reaches the 0mL mark Record observations every three minutes of the water level Fill a balloon with the exhale from breath Put 100mL of water in the balloon and shake for 5 minutes Place the other sample of steel wool in another 35mL vinegar solution for one minute and clean it Put the steel wool in another syringe and then release the air from the balloon into the syringe Repeat steps 6 - 9 with this syringe. Data and observations: (THE GRAPH WILL GO HERE!!!!!) Conclusion: The oxygen combined with the steel wool in both syringes. This is apparent because rust was formed on both samples. The water came up to the 5.5mL mark on the syringe with the air in it, while the syringe with the breath only reached 4.5mL. Therefore, concluding that the oxygen content of air is higher than the oxygen content in a human breath. Albertson’s Brand Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup has many different ingredients within the steel container. These ingredients are as follows: Water, enriched egg noodles (enriched wheat flour [niacin, ferrous sulfate, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid] , eggs) chicken, salt, modified corn starch, chicken fat, dextrose, soybean oil, monosodium glutamate, soy protein isolate, natural flavoring, garlic powder, beta carbonate, sodium phosphate, paprika, and onion concentrate.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thiamine mononitrate, also known as Vitamin B, is a white crystalline powder. It has a positive reaction. The Chemical formula is C12H17N5O4S. â€Å"Thiamine Mononitrate is stable for at least 36 months when stored in the unopened container. It is stable in acid solutions at a pH less than 4.0 but deteriorates rapidly in neutral or alkaline solutions, especially when exposed to air. Moisture and contact with metal accelerates oxidation and reduction.

Mongol invasion on the Muslim world

The Mongols entered history as just one among a number of nomad tribes on the steppes of central Asia. The rise of the Mongols and the beginnings of the Mongol conquests arose out of a dramatic shift from such disunity to unity, and it was achieved through the personality and military skills of one man. In all probability he was born in 1167. He was given the name of Temuchin. The nomad world he entered was a fierce and unforgiving one of rivalry and survival skills. Like all Mongol children, Temuchin learned to ride with great skill and to handle a bow and arrows. After an eventful younger life his thoughts turned towards the opportunity of defeating his rivals and taking control of the unified Mongol tribes. Many years of warfare followed, the decisive victory being Temuchin's defeat of the Naimans. In 1206 a grand assembly was called at the source of the Onon River. A white standard symbolizing the protective spirit of the Mongols was raised. Its nine points represented the newly unified Mongol tribes. The gathering then proclaimed Temuchin as Genghis Khan (‘Universal Ruler') (Turnbull, 2003). Before we turn to the Mongols beliefs and their attitudes towards the religions of others, some general observations are in order. We cannot take it for granted that the motives for, or indeed character of, â€Å"conversion† in the thirteenth century will be identical with those we would recognize today—or certainly those which would meet with the approval of the purist. In particular, such motives might have more to do with political, diplomatic or economic considerations than with inner conviction. We should be wrong to emphasize the individualistic over against the communal, the internal over against the outward form of law or cultic practice, and the profoundly personal transformation over against the adoption of additional cultural norms. For instance, the Uighur conversion to Manichaeism in the late eighth century had owed something to economic relations with Sogdian merchants, and it has also been called—like the Khazar afghans adoption of Judaism—â€Å"a declaration of ideological independence.† (Jackson, 2001) Like earlier steppe rulers, the Mongol qaÄÅ'ans presided over public debates between representatives of different faiths. The impulse behind these events is unclear. In a recent article, Richard Foltz points out that the effect of the whole policy was to make mischief, but he stops short of suggesting that the aim was to divide and rule. It has been proposed that a debate took place at the point when the sovereign meditated a change of religious allegiance. There may be some truth in this: Juwaynis account of the conversion of the Uighurs some centuries previously, indeed, appears to be based upon the idea that such debates were always the means of bringing the ruler to a new faith. But we cannot discount the possibility that one purpose was entertainment—that the public religious disputation, in other words, was the intellectual counterpart of the bloody gladiatorial conflicts which the Mongols staged between captured enemy soldiers (Fiey, 1975). Lastly, the frontiers between different faiths were not impermeable. â€Å"Shamanism† was itself an amalgam, and we occupy no vantage point that enables us to distinguish some pristine model from accretions that might have attached themselves to the Mongols' beliefs in the few centuries preceding the rise of Chinggis Khan (Franke, Herbert 1994). A syncretistic approach had long been the hallmark of the nomads religious beliefs; it is reflected in the Secret History of the Mongols, where elements from the mythical history of the early Turks, the Khitans and other steppe and forest peoples are appropriated and integrated into the Mongolsown origin myths (Amitai-Preiss, 1996). Intent as the Mongols may have been on sharing the world only with subjects, they were also compelled to share it with a plethora of spirits, often malevolently inclined and in any case termed â€Å"demons† by Western European writers. When Rubruck's little group in 1253 passed through a difficult stretch in the Tarbaghatai range, his guide asked the friars to chant a prayer that would put the demons to flight. Diagnosis of the activity of these invisible powers, and if possible their harnessing for good purposes, was the job of the shamans; and there is no dearth of testimony that by the middle decades of the thirteenth century Mongol rulers manifested a heavy dependence upon shamans and fortune-tellers. Shamanistic activities are geared to influencing conditions in this life, not to securing an after-life. The Mongols ancestral beliefs and practices and the great world religions, in other words, were valid for different spheres: hence the â€Å"tolerant† policy of the Mongol qacans, to which we shall return (Elias, 1999). So it was not at all incongruous that a Mongol sovereign or prince should make some formal gesture towards, say, Christianity or Islam while continuing to observe the â€Å"shamanistic† practices of his forebears: Rubruck saw even those of Mà ¶ngke's wives who had no knowledge of the Christian faith venerating the cross (Charpentier, 1935). We do not have to see this as some kind of celestial insurance, as if any of the several faiths with which the Mongols were confronted might embody the Truth and so it was advisable to court them all, although the idea finds support in a speech ascribed to Qubilai by Marco Polo. On leaving the camp of the Mongol prince Sartaq, Rubruck was told, â€Å"Do not call our master a Christian: he is not a Christian; he is a Mongol.† (Heissig, 1980) Although he goes on to say that â€Å"they regard the term Christendom as the name of a people† (i.e. presumably the Franks of Europe), it is doubtful whether this necessarily supports DeWeese's contention that religion in Inner Asia was a communal affair. It may well have been so; but Rubruck (whose interpreter was proverbially inadequate) could easily have misunderstood the reason for the warning, and a different explanation comes to mind. We should notice that on several occasions the Mongol terms for religious specialists seem to have been interpreted as denoting the religious community as a whole. Rubruck, for instance, employs the Mongol word toyin (Chinese daoren, â€Å"man of the path,† i.e. Buddhist priest) as a designation for the Buddhists (â€Å"idolators†) in general (Fennell, 1983). And the use of erkeÄÅ'à ¼n (â€Å"Christian priest†) betrays a similar confusion in the thirteenth-century sources. This might explain the apparent bewilderment of the Qacan Gà ¼yà ¼g at Innocent IV's request that he become a Christian and the anger in the camp of the Mongol general Baiju over the same injunction on the part of Ascelin. The QaÄÅ'an Mà ¶ngke, too, objected when Rubruck was misrepresented as having called him a toyin. It is possible that with one exception the Mongolian lexicon recognized only religious specialists and contained no word for the respective religious community en masse. The exception was the Muslims who confronted Chinggis Khan in the shape of the powerful KhwÄ razmian Empire. Here two words were available: sartacul, employed in the Secret History to designate the KhwÄ razm-shÄ h's subjects, and dashman (from Persian dÄ nishmand, literally â€Å"learned man†), which denoted the Muslim religious class. But to the best of our knowledge the language contained no word for â€Å"Christian† or â€Å"Buddhist,† as opposed to erkeÄÅ'à ¼n or toyin for priest/monk. Even in the late thirteenth century Persian authors in the Mongol empire equated â€Å"Christian† (Persian: tarsÄ ) with â€Å"Uighur† on account of the large number of Christians among that people (Allsen, 1994). At what juncture â€Å"Shamanism† merits being called a religion, it is difficult to say. It has been proposed that in any consideration of the religious beliefs and practices of Inner Asian peoples we need to distinguish between â€Å"popular† cultic practice—â€Å"folk religion, † as Heissig calls it —and what has been termed â€Å"Tenggerism, † centered on the sky-god, i.e. those beliefs and practices associated with a monarchy based on divine sanction. DeWeese is skeptical, and sees the dichotomy as between, not two competing levels of religious thought and ritual, but â€Å"imperial† and â€Å"domestic† styles of evoking essentially the same system of religious values and practices (Amitai, 2001). A clash between the aspiring steppe emperor and the representative of popular traditions might, nevertheless, provide a framework within which we can locate the downfall of Teb Tenggeri (Kà ¶kà ¶chà ¼), the shaman who had been instrumental in Chinggis Khan's enthronement but had then got above himself and was eliminated. RashÄ «d al-DÄ «n seems to suggest that Teb Tenggeri had a following among the ordinary Mongols, who were ready to believe in his spiritual accomplishments. The difficulty with this scenario is that it was Teb Tenggeri who invoked Heaven's mandate and Chinggis Khan who disregarded it (Bundy, 1996). The notion that the early thirteenth-century Mongols worshipped the supreme sky-god, Tengri (Tenggeri), has been challenged on the basis of the way in which the term tenggeri is used in the Secret History, the only Mongolian narrative source that has come down to us. But Anatoly Khazanov makes the plausible suggestion that the Mongols were experiencing the pull of monotheism, as Tengri took on more of the attributes of the omnipotent God. Indeed, a shift is visible during the early decades of the conquest period, to judge from the comments of contemporary observers. The Mongols believed in one God, creator of all things visible and invisible, though they did not worship Him, as was fitting, reverencing idols instead. Subsequent observers, at any rate, were ready to class the Mongols as monotheistic. Rubruck assumed that they had acquired monotheism from the Uighurs. â€Å"You are not a polytheist,† Qadi HamÄ «d al-DÄ «n SÄ biq SamarqandÄ « told Qubilai Qacan during the clampdown on Islamic observance in China in the 1280s, â€Å"because you write the name of the great God at the head of your edicts (yarlighs)† (Jackson, 1994). This development, of course, made it easier for representatives of the different confessional groups to claim the Qacan as one of their own. Reference: Allsen, Thomas T. â€Å"The Rise of the Mongolian Empire and Mongolian Rule in North China.† In CHC. Vol. 6: Alien Regimes and Border States, 907–1368, eds. H. Frank and D. Twitchett. Cambridge, 1994, pp. 321–413. Amitai, Reuven. â€Å"The Conversion of Tegà ¼der Ilkhan to Islam.† JSAI, 25 (2001), pp. 15–43. Amitai-Preiss, Reuven. â€Å"Ghazan, Islam and Mongol Tradition: A View from the MamlÃ… «k Sultanate.† BSOAS, 59 (1996), pp. 1–10. Bundy, David. â€Å"The Syriac and Armenian Christian Responses to the Islamification of the Mongols.† In Medieval Christian Perceptions of Islam: A Book of Essays, ed. John Victor Tolan. New York and London, 1996, pp. 33–53. Charpentier, Jarl. â€Å"William of Rubruck and Roger Bacon.† In Hyllningsskrift tillà ¤gnad Sven Hedin pak hans 70-akrsdag den 19. Febr. 1935. Stockholm, 1935, pp. 255–67. Elias, Jamal J. â€Å"The Sufi Lords of Bahrabad: Sa'd al-Din and Sadr al-Din Hamuwayi.† Iranian Studies, 27 (1994), pp. 53–75. Endicott-West, Elizabeth. â€Å"Notes on Shamans, Fortune-tellers and yin-yang Practitioners and Civil Administration in Yà ¼an China.† In The Mongol Empire and Its Legacy, eds. R. Amitai-Preiss and D.O. Morgan. Leiden, 1999, pp. 224–39. Fennell, John. The Crisis of Medieval Russia 1200–1304. London, 1983. Fiey, J.M. â€Å"Iconographie syriaque: Hulagu, Doquz Khatun †¦et six ambons?† Le Musà ©on, 88 (1975), pp. 59–68. Foltz, Richard. â€Å"Ecumenical Mischief under the Mongols.† CAJ, 43 (1999), pp. 42–69. Franke, Herbert. From Tribal Chieftain to Universal Emperor and God. The Legitimation of the Yà ¼an Dynasty. Sitzungsberichte der bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, phil.-hist. Klasse, 2. Munich, 1978 [Reprinted in H. Franke. China under Mongol Rule. Aldershot, 1994]. Heissig, Walther. The Religions of Mongolia. Tr. Geoffrey Samuel. London, 1980. Jackson, Peter. â€Å"Christians, Barbarians and Monsters: The European Discovery of the World beyond Islam.† In The Medieval World, eds. Peter Linehan and Janet Nelson. London, 2001, pp. 93–110. Jackson, Peter. â€Å"Early Missions to the Mongols: Carpini and His Contemporaries.† In Hakluyt Society. Annual report for 1994, pp. 14–32. Stephen Turnbull, 2003. Genghis Khan & the Mongol Conquests, 1190-1400, Routledge