Welfare and Individual Responsibility

Introduction The U.S. welfare system has grown overtime from a government run system to a state run system. The rationale behind this shift is that a state run function provides a better welfare system that sufficiently addresses the needs of those involved.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Welfare and Individual Responsibility specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This includes the taxpayers who ultimately raise funds for the welfare programs. States have the discretion to prescribe the eligibility criteria and determine the length of time a family may benefit from welfare. Nevertheless, the fundamental ethical issues behind welfare still prevail. The greatest ethical issue that raises a heated debate is the extent to which individuals should be held responsible for their own well-being. According to Federal Safety Net (2013), the U.S. welfare system places the middle class ahead of individuals in severe poverty. Othe r people argue that the welfare system tends to take away pride from the able poor and fails to assist them escape poverty. Accordingly, the compassion given to the â€Å"poor† may send some signal that the so called poor are not capable of moving beyond their plight (Federal Safety Net, 2013). Application of Virtue Ethics Virtue ethics is very essential in the welfare system. According to Aristotle, a person’s quality of life is dependent on his or her ability to accomplish minimum human goals (Sumner, 1996, p.110). The ultimate goal of all human beings is to have a good, independent life. Many states have programs that focus on promoting employment for individuals so that they may stop relying on welfare. Virtue ethics concentrates on the significance of beating bad character traits such as selfishness and laziness. Rather than focusing on prescribed rules and ways of solving problems, virtue ethics concentrates on assisting people to acquire good habits such as comp assion. Aristotle further suggests that good habits enable people to control their feelings and reason. As a result, a person arrives at morally right decisions when confronted with hard choices. The parties involved in the welfare process should embrace virtue ethics so that they invoke morality in decision-making processes. The government should also use ethical principles in making choices regarding the eligibility and length of time an individual is to benefit from the welfare program. The problem with virtue ethics is that it is very difficult to determine good character traits. This is because people view things differently. Application of Care Ethics Care ethics puts emphasis on the interdependence of individuals (Jawad, 2012, p. 24). In addition, the theory promotes the significance of relationships within families and communities. Care ethics proposes that some individuals are more vulnerable than others.Advertising Looking for essay on ethics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Proponents of this theory argue on the basis of Carol Gilligan’s assertion that girls and women view morality from an empathic and caring perspective in interpersonal relationships. This theory encourages altruism, which involves caring for others’ needs and feelings. Unlike the Kantian and Platonic theories, care ethics does not separate moral thoughts from feelings (Jawad, 2012, p. 33). Care ethics is also different from the libertarian theory which encourages individual independence. Those who argue in support of welfare claim that self-interest is not the only thing that motivates people’s actions (Westfall, 1997). Human beings have an inherent duty of promoting the welfare of the society and its members. Accordingly, stable members naturally have an indomitable willingness to work and support the poor to pick up themselves and act in the same respect toward other members. Critics of care ethics con tend that the theory focuses on care without putting much inquiry into individuals giving or receiving the same. This theory does not settle claims that the welfare program puts the middle class ahead of the extremely poor people. Furthermore, care ethics fails to determine whether the relationships among care-givers and care-receivers are just (Jawad, 2012, p. 56). Conclusion There is no universally accepted way of evaluating ethical issues. Different theories attempt to solve different ethical problems. The utilitarian theory, which proposes the greatest happiness for the greatest number (Waller, 2011, p. 44, 87), can be applied in solving the welfare problem. The main purpose of utilitarianism is to maximize happiness and minimize suffering. Essentially, individuals make decisions in line with what causes them greatest pleasure. They only engage in what pleases them when given an opportunity. Some people can take advantage of the welfare system so that they receive maintenance wi thout working. Both â€Å"act utilitarianism† and â€Å"rule utilitarianism† place a great emphasis on the probable consequence of one’s actions (Waller, 2011, p.88). To some scholars, care ethics may pose a great temptation to individuals with self-interest motivation so that they choose not to work. The care ethic cannot exist on its own since it increases the chances of oppression or exploitation of care-givers. Individuals in a society expect from others, and themselves, behavior that promotes the well-being of all members. Utilitarianism advocates for individualism. This implies that the only morally relevant measure is individual welfare (Sumner, 1996, p. 67). Basing on the critical assumption that human utility is commensurable in some way and that it can be divided among individuals, welfare should be distributed in a manner that maximizes happiness and minimizes suffering.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Welfare and Individual Res ponsibility specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More References Federal Safety Net. (2013, June). Welfare Ethics. Retrieved from http://federalsafetynet.com/welfare-ethics.html Jawad, R. (2012). Religion and Faith-Based Welfare: From Wellbeing to Ways of Being. Bristol: The Policy Press. Sumner, L. W. (1996). Welfare, Happiness and Ethics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Waller, B.N. (2011). Consider Ethics: Theory, Readings, and Contemporary Issues, 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Westfall, J. (1997). The Welfare of the Community. Issues in Ethics, 8(3). Retrieved from https://legacy.scu.edu/ethics/publications/iie/v8n3/welfare.html This essay on Welfare and Individual Responsibility was written and submitted by user L1ndsey to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The trial essays

The trial essays This disturbing and vastly influential novel has been interpreted on many levels of structure and symbol; but most commentators agree that the book explores the themes of guilt, anxiety, and moral impotency in the face of some ambiguous force. Joseph K. is an employee in a bank, a man without particular qualities or abilities. He could be anyone, and in some ways he is everyone. His inconsequence makes doubly strange his arrest by the officer of the court in the large city where K. lives. He tries in vain to discover how he has aroused the suspicion of the court. His honesty is conventional; his sins, with Elsa the waitress, are conventional; and he has no striking or dangerous ambitions. He can only ask questions, and receives no answers that clarify the strange world of courts and court functionaries in which he is compelled to wander. The plight of Joseph K., consumed by guilt and condemned for a crime he does not understand by a court with which he cannot communicate, is a profound and disturbing image of man in the modern world. There are no formal charges, no procedures, and little information to guide the defendant. One of the most unsettling aspects of the novel is the continual juxtaposition of alternative hypotheses, multiple explanations, different interpretations of cause and effect, and the uncertainty it breeds. The whole rational structure of the world is undermined. Is it not better to fall into the hands of a murderer than into the dreams of a lustful woman? Friedrich Nietzsche, Also Sprach Zarathustra Chapter 1: The Arrest Conversation with Frau Grubach Then Frulein Brstner Joseph K., our hero, wakes up the morning of his thirtieth birthday expecting his breakfast to be brought to him. What he gets instead are two warders, Franz and Willem, telling him he's under arrest. He protests some, demanding to see their boss, at first thinking it must be a ...

Changan - Capital of the Han, Sui, and Tang Dynasties

Changan - Capital of the Han, Sui, and Tang Dynasties Changan is the name of one of the most important and immense ancient capital cities of ancient China. Known as the eastern terminal of the Silk Road, Changan is located in Shaanxi Province about 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) northwest of the modern town of XiAn. Changan served as capital to the leaders of the Western Han (206 BC-220 AD), Sui (581-618 CE), and Tang (618-907 AD) dynasties. ChangAn was established as a capital in 202 BC by the first Han Emperor Gaozu (ruled 206-195), and it was destroyed during the political upheaval at the end of the Tang dynasty in 904 AD. The Tang dynasty city occupied an area seven times larger than the current modern city, which itself dates to the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing(1644-1912) dynasties. Two Tang dynasty buildings still stand today―the Large and Small Wild Goose Pagodas (or palaces), built in the 8th century AD; the rest of the city is known from historical records and archaeological excavations conducted since 1956 by the Chinese Institute of Archaeology (CASS). Western Han Dynasty Capital At about AD 1, the population of ChangAn was nearly 250,000, and it was a city of international importance for its role as the eastern end of the Silk Road. The Han Dynasty city was laid out as an irregular polygon surrounded by a pounded-earth wall 12-16 meters (40-52 feet) wide at the base and more than 12 m (40 ft) high. The perimeter wall ran a total of 25.7 km (16 mi or 62 li in the measurement used by Han). The wall was pierced by 12 city gates, five of which have been excavated. Each of the gates had three gateways, each 6-8 m (20-26 ft) wide, accommodating the traffic of 3-4 adjacent carriages. A moat provided additional security, surrounding the city and measuring 8 m wide by 3 m deep (26x10 ft). There were eight main roads in Han dynasty ChangAn, each between 45-56 m (157-183 ft) wide; the longest leads from the Gate of Peace and was 5.4 km (3.4 mi) long. Each boulevard was divided into three lanes by two drainage ditches. The middle lane was 20 m (65 ft) wide and reserved exclusively for the use of the emperor. The lanes on either side averaged 12 m (40 ft) in width. Main Han Dynasty Buildings The Changle Palace compound, known as the Donggong or eastern Palace and located in the southeastern part of the city, was approximately 6 sq km (2.3 sq mi) in surface area. It served as the living quarters for the Western Han empresses. The Weiyang Palace compound or Xigong (western palace) occupied an area of 5 sq km (2 sq mi) and was located in the southwestern side of the city; it was where Han emperors held daily meetings with city officials. Its principal building was the Anterior Palace, a structure including three halls and measuring 400 m north/south and 200 m east/west (1300x650 ft). It must have towered over the city, as it was built on a foundation that was 15 m (50 ft) in height at the north end. At the north end of the Weiyang compound was the Posterior Palace and buildings that housed the imperial administration offices. The compound was surrounded by a pounded earth wall. The Gui palace compound is much larger than Weiyang but has not yet been fully excavated or at least not reported in the western literature. Administrative Buildings and Markets In a administrative facility located between the Changle and Weiyang palaces was discovered 57,000 small bones (from 5.8-7.2 cm), each of which were inscribed with the name of an article, its measurement, number, and date of manufacture; its workshop where it was created, and the names of both the artisan and the official who commissioned the object. An armory held seven storehouses, each with densely arranged weapon racks and many iron weapons. A large zone of pottery kilns that manufactured brick and tile for the palaces was located north of the armory. Two markets were identified within the northwestern corner of the Han city of ChangAn, the eastern market measuring 780x700 m (2600x2300 ft, and the western market measuring 550x420 m (1800x1400 ft). Throughout the city were foundries, mints, and pottery kilns and workshops. The pottery kilns produced funerary figures and animals, in addition to daily utensils and architectural brick and tile. In the southern suburbs of Changan were remains of ritual structures, such as the Piyong (imperial academy) and jiumiao (ancestral temples to the Nine Ancestors), both of which were established by Wang-Meng, who ruled ChangAn between 8-23 AD. The piyong was built according to Confucian architecture, a square on top of a circle; while the jiumiao was built on the contemporary but contrasting principles of Yin and Yang (female and male) and Wu Xing (5 Elements). Imperial Mausoleum Numerous tombs have been found dated to the Han Dynasty, including two imperial mausoleums, the Ba Mausoleum (Baling) of Emperor Wen (r. 179-157 BC), in an eastern suburb of the city; and the Du mausoleum (Duling) of Emperor Xuan (r. 73-49 BC) in southeastern suburbs. Duling is a typical elite Han Dynasty tomb. Within its gated, pounded earth walls are separate complexes for the burials of the emperor and empress. Each interment is centrally located within a gated rectangular surrounding wall and covered by a pyramidal pounded-earth mound. Both have a walled courtyard outside of the burial enclosure, including a retiring hall (qindian) and a side hall (biandian) where ritual activities associated with the buried person were conducted, and where the individuals royal costumes were displayed. Two burial pits contained hundreds of nude life-sized terracotta figures―they were clothed when placed there but the cloth has rotted away. The pits also included a number of pottery tiles and bricks, bronzes, gold pieces, lacquers, pottery vessels, and weapons. Also at Duling was a shared mausoleum temple with an altar, located 500 m (1600 ft) from the tombs. Satellite tombs found east of the mausoleums were built during the rulers dynasty, some of which are quite large, many of them with conical pounded earth mounds. Sui and Tang Dynasties Chang​an was called Daxing during the Sui Dynasty (581-618 AD) and it was founded in 582 AD. The city was renamed Changan by the Tang dynasty rulers and served as its capital until its destruction in 904 AD.   Daxing was designed by the Sui Emperor Wens (r. 581-604) famous architect Yuwen Kai (555-612 AD). Yuwen laid out the city with a highly formal symmetry that integrated natural scenery and lakes. The design served as a model for many other Sui and later cities. The layout was maintained through the Tang Dynasty: most of the Sui palaces were also used by Tang dynasty emperors. An enormous pounded-earth wall, 12 m (40 ft) thick at the base, enclosed an area of approximately 84 sq km (32.5 sq mi). At each of the twelve gates, a fired brick fa ¸ade led into the city. Most of the gates had three gateways, but the main Mingde Gate had five, each 5 m (16 ft) wide. The city was arranged as a set of nested districts: the guocheng (outer walls of the city describing its limits), the huangcheng or imperial district (an area of 5.2 sq km or 2 sq mi), and the gongcheng, the palace district, containing an area of 4.2 sq km (1.6 sq mi). Each district was surrounded by its own walls. Main Buildings of the Palace District The gongcheng included the Taiji Palace (or Daxing Palace during the Sui dynasty) as its central structure; an imperial garden was built to the north. Eleven great avenues or boulevards ran north to south and 14 east to west. These avenues divided the city into wards containing residences, offices, markets, and Buddhist and Daoist temples. The only two extant buildings from ancient Changan are two of those temples: the Great and Small Wild Goose Pagodas. The Temple of Heaven, located south of the city and excavated in 1999, was a circular pounded earth platform composed of four concentric stepped circular altars, stacked on top of one another to a height of between 6.75-8 m (22-26 ft) and 53 m (173 ft) in diameter. Its style was the model for the Ming and Qing Imperial Temples of Heaven in Beijing. In 1970, a hoard of 1,000 silver and gold objects, as well as jade and other precious stones called the Hejiacun Hoard was discovered at Changan. The hoard dated to 785 AD was found in an elite residence. Burials: a Sogdian in China One of the individuals involved in the Silk Road trade that was so central to the importance of ChangAn was Lord Shi, or Wirkak, a Sogdian or ethnic Iranian buried in ChangAn. Sogdiana was located in what is today Uzbekistan and western Tajikistan, and they were responsible for the central Asian oasis towns of Samarkand and Bukhara. Wirkaks tomb was discovered in 2003, and it includes elements from both Tang and Sogdian cultures. The underground square chamber was created in the Chinese style, with access provided by a ramp, an arched passageway and two doors. Inside was a stone outer sarcophagus measuring 2.5 m long x 1.5 m wide x 1.6 cm high (8.1x5x5.2 ft), lavishly decorated with painted and gilded reliefs depicting scenes of banquets, hunting, travels, caravans, and deities. On the lintel above the door are two inscriptions, naming the man as Lord Shi, a man of the nation of Shi, originally from the Western countries, who moved to Changan and was appointed sabao of Liangzhou. His name is inscribed in Sogdian as Wirkak, and it says that he died at the age of 86 in the year 579, and was married to the Lady Kang who died one month after him and was buried by his side. On the southern and eastern sides of the coffin are inscribed scenes associated with the Zoroastrian faith and in Zoroastrian fashion, the selection of the south and eastern sides to decorate corresponds to the direction the priest faces when officiating (south) and the direction of Paradise (east). Among the inscriptions is the priest-bird, which may represent the Zoroastrian deity Dahman Afrin. The scenes described the Zorastrian journey of the soul after death. Tang Sancai Pottery Tang Sancai is the general name for vividly color-glazed pottery produced during the Tang dynasty, especially between 549-846 AD. Sancai means three colors, and those colors refer typically (but not exclusively) to yellow, green and white glazes. Tang Sancai was famous for its association with the Silk Roadits style and shape were borrowed by Islamic potters at the other end of the trade network. A pottery kiln site was found at ChangAn named Liquanfang and used during the early 8th century AD. Liquanfang is one of only five known tang sancai kilns, the other four are Huangye or Gongxian Kilns in Henan Province; Xing Kiln in Hebei Province, Huangbu or Huuangbao Kiln and Xian Kiln in Shaanxi. Sources: Cui J, Rehren T, Lei Y, Cheng X, Jiang J, and Wu X. 2010. Western technical traditions of pottery making in Tang Dynasty China: chemical evidence from the Liquanfang Kiln site, Xian city. Journal of Archaeological Science 37(7):1502-1509.Grenet F, Riboud P, and Yang J. 2004. Zoroastrian scenes on a newly discovered Sogdian tomb in Xian, northern China. Studia Iranica 33:273-284.Lei Y, Feng SL, Feng XQ, and Chai ZF. 2007. A provenance study of Tang Sancai from Chinese tombs and relics by INAA. Archaeometry 49(3):483-494.Liang M. 2013. Scenes of Music-Making and Dancing in Wall Paintings of the Tang Tombs in the Xian Area. Music in Art 38(1-2):243-258.Yang X. 2001. Entry 78: Changan Capital Site at Xian, Shaanxi Province. In: Yang X, editor. Chinese Archaeology in the Twentieth Century: New Perspectives on Chinas Past. New Haven: Yale University Press. p 233-236.Yang X. 2001. Entry 79: Imperial mausoleums of the Western Han dynasty at Xian and the Xianyang Plains, Shaanxi Province. In: Yang X, editor. Chinese Archaeology in the Twentieth Century: New Perspectives on Chinas Past. New Haven: Yale University Press. p 237-242. Yang X. 2001. Entry 117: Daxing-ChangAn Capitals and Daming Palace Sites at Xian, Shaanxi province. In: Yang X, editor. Chinese Archaeology in the Twentieth Century: New Perspectives on Chinas Past. New Haven: Yale University Press. p 389-393.Yang X. 2001. Entry 122: Hoard of Gold and SIlver Objects at Hejiacum, Xian, Shaanxi province. In: Yang X, editor. Chinese Archaeology in the Twentieth Century: New Perspectives on Chinas Past. New Haven: Yale University Press. p 3412-413.

Corruption In The United States Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Corruption In The United States - Essay Example Most obseThere are few things determining corruption in the United Sates. The economic approach to corruption in the US starts with the costs and benefits facing corrupt potential public offices. As put across, corruption is actually the use of public office or power for personal gains. In American, the most rampant determinant of corruption is the ability of a public official to increase someone’s private wealth by paying that person using money from the public purse. In extreme cases, this someone could be just the public official himself. Additionally, the other means by which public officials create wealth for themselves is through the transfer of government property to private persons for their own benefit (Williams and Kenneth 6-8). For instance, the transfer of government land to traction companies in the nineteenth century is a popular form of corruption. Furthermore, the other primary form of corruption is the creation of private wealth through manipulation of office power or enforcements of legal rulings in favor of personal gains. Some recent data collected from different states in the US reveal that the rising corporate agriculture to dominate the economies of rural and farm communities is one of the most devastating events of corruption in this country’s history. The data put across that, sixty years ago, there were over six million farms dotted across the landscape of America. Later, the number declined to only two million whereby the large numbers of these are small and medium-sized operations. sized operations. Surprisingly, the bulk of profits from corporate agriculture accrue to only a few hundred super farms. Few companies control most of these farms and there are increasing cases of vertical integration. These companies are flourishing and rural communities are suffering economically, socially, and environmentally due

History of fast food restaurants in America Research Paper

History of fast food restaurants in America - Research Paper Example Fast foods include tacos, ice creams, hot dogs, fried chicken, juices, chicken nuggets, meat pies, pizzas, sausages, chips and sandwiches. Other foods that are often served in fast food restaurants are mashed potatoes, salads and chilli. One of the main characteristic of fast food restaurants is that they often maintain a limited menu, with or without seating space. This paper will analyse the history of fast food restaurants in the US tracing its development especially from the 1920s to date. Before the fast food restaurants gained ground, such foods as hamburger sandwiches and hotdogs had been big business in the early 1900s, their popularity bolstered by the holding of the St Louis World’s Fair. The first pizzeria in the United States of America opened in 1905 setting stable ground for the establishment of fast food restaurants (Famouswhy, 2010). Before the establishment of what is today known as the fast food restaurant in the US, White Castle, founded in Kansas’ Wichita was already established in 1921 (Howstuffworks, 2010). Then, most people assumed that burgers that were being sold in circuses, lunch counters, carts and fairs were of low quality. The assumption was based on the belief that hamburgers were made of soiled meat and scraps gotten from slaughterhouses. Taking note of this damning misconception, White Castles owners endeavoured to ensure that this misconception was destroyed. The founders of White Castle started to prepare their hamburgers in a manner that customers would appreciate. Their restaurants prepared the hamburgers such that clients saw how the ingredients were being mixed and the food cooked (Howstuffworks, 2010). They also painted their restaurants white and gave them names that suggested high levels of hygiene. With time, the popularity of the restaurant chain grew especially in the East and Midwest parts of the US. The

The Elephant vanishes :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In â€Å"The Elephant Vanishes Stories† by Haruki Murakami, he uses a mixture of fantasy and reality to engage the reader into the main idea of object or people disappearing. Most of his stories may seen as if they came from life but he adds mystery to each one of them when something is missing or vanishes and the circumstances around it becomes unreal.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In â€Å"The Wind-Up Bird and Tuesday’s Women† Murakami starts off by surrounding the plot around a man who quits his job for no apparent reason at all, who irons his shirts in a particular manner, and avoid the sexual urges of a woman. With these traits this can be fairly odd and he spends his day looking for a cat. The reader has no clue as to where the cat was and how his wife knew that if could possibly be in the abandoned house not to far down. She states, â€Å"My guess is that the cat’s probably in the yard of that vacant house at the end of the passage.† (Pg. 9) In this story the cat disappears and the girl who tried to help him find it has disappeared. Murakami leads the reader to believe this is reality even though [we] do not know if it is or not and no one will ever know. In this particular story it does not matter whether it is fantasy or reality because when it comes to short stories every possible detail cannot be convey in just a couple pages, something are bound to be left out on the author’s part.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another one of Haruki Murakami’s story â€Å"The Little Green Monster† is also a cross between fantasy and reality, but mostly fantasy. The narrator, whom is a woman, notices a green monster coming out of her oak tree. In reality little green monsters do not come from out of trees that could â€Å"read minds† and speak of how much they loved someone. This is completely fantasy but it is very interesting of how Murakami has changed his usual narrator of a man to a woman to show how love could come from just about anywhere in different shapes and forms and be denied.

History of the Violin and Bow Essay

Stringed instruments such as the violin and its accompanying variations have been used in music for thousands of years. The first officially recorded use of the violin was during medieval European times. The earliest form of the violin was referred to as a Fiddle and the person playing it was termed as a Fiddler. During the 15th century though, the violins began taking on a new shape and began to carve its own history in music. The evolution of the violin continued into the 16th century when it developed what was to become its final look and shape. It is this artistic representation of a violin that we still recognize and use in our present time. An Italian from Cremona named Andrea Amati, is recognized as the founder of the most famous violin making school. The violin making school is not a structure per se but more of a school of thought and characterization. It was during this time that an explosion in violin making reached as far as Europe even as Cremona remained as the home of the best violin makers in the world. The most famous of these violin making families are the Amati, Guarneri, Antonio Stradivari, Rugerri, and Bergonzi. In the music world, the finest musicians openly acknowledge the Stradivari and Guarneri violins to be the best violins ever made over the past 150 years. The Violin is a member of the string instrument family and is capable of producing a 3 octave sound range when played by skilled musicians. The sound a violin creates depends on a number of factors, the most important of which are the type of wood used to produce the body of the instrument and the type of metal strings used.. It is usually 14 inches in length and uses metal strings tightened to various degrees on tuning pegs, to produce its exceptional sound quality. A typical violin is composed of the following parts: Chin rest, F-hole, strings, tuning pegs, scroll, tailpiece, fine tuners, bridge, belly, fingerboard, neck, and back plate. The sound is produced by the instrumentalists skimming a bow over the metal strings. Violins are usually constructed to withstand the 17 pounds of downward force that is regularly applied to the 4 metal strings. But just like any stringed instrument, the Violin in itself will fail to make sweet music for the listeners if not strummed with a bow. The bow is the instrument by which a Violinist makes his instrument sing. His expertise in the use of the bow produces the violins varying tones and pitches. How a bow is shaped and the different parts that form the bow all work together to form the best bow for violin playing. A bow is most often described as an arc shaped piece of wood that has a flat horsehair piece stretched and tensioned across the wood. The tips of the bow are pointed on one end and rounded on the other. Although the violin enjoyed various incarnations as it gained popularity and was played by chamber and orchestra musicians, the violin bow did not keep up with these changes. This led to a total redesign that resulted in what is known as the modern bow. The modern bow is believed to have first made its appearance in France during the 19th century at the hands of the Tourte family. The Tourte family is considered by the violin historians to be the bow maker equivalent of the Stradivari family in violin making. The modern bow has more tension and resistance and uses Pemarnbuco wood as wood stick. Sometimes, makers will add subtle modifications to the bow in the hopes of producing a more handy and usable bow. Admittedly, not much has changed in the 150 year history of the bow. The violin and bow can be thought of in terms of milk and cookies or coffee with cream. One always enhances the best aspects of the other in order to produce a very significant experience for the person whose auditory and sensory perceptions participate in the resulting enjoyable final product of the merging of the 2 instruments. Work Cited Psarianos, Peter. (2007). Violin Bow. How Products Are Made. Retrieved October 14, 2007 from http://www. madehow. com/Volume-2/Violin-Bow. html. Skinner, Matthew. (N. A. ). The Violin and It’s History. Retrieved, October 13, 2007 from http://www. nelson. planet. org. nz/~matthew/cbt. html Sprenger, Christoph & Sprenger, Raffael. (N. A. ). The History of the Violin. Retrieved October 13, 2007 from http://www. sprengerviolins. com/e/violin_history. htm.