The Cask of Amontillad free essay sample

The Cask of Amontillado When doing anything in life there are so many alternative ways of looking at something with all of them being influenced by what you see in the world around you. A teacher may see things that contrast from a politician; a doctor as opposed to a writer. Even the differences from a man to a woman or what part of the country you grew up in can dilute one way of thinking from the next. That is why considering things in ways that you may not usually is important for understanding and critiquing certain situations and outcomes. With this train of thought, we will take a look at Edgar Allen Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado through five unique perspectives from different individuals. With each of these offering a better perception on what we know, and what we think we know. Biographical/Genetic Criticism: In an effort to better understand the story, one can look at it from a Genetic or Biographical point-of-view. Much of Edgar Allan Poe’s own personal life experiences greatly influence this story as well as many of his other works. Poe’s choice of literary style was called gothic fiction. It deals with the subjects of secrets, madness, darkness and death. This gothic style of writing is greatly influenced by disappointment and depression that followed Poe his entire life. This was caused by a number of unfortunate events in his life, including the untimely death of his birth mother and foster mother, a lifetime of poverty, and his foster father, John Allan, who disowned Poe over an argument about family matters. This argument with John Allen shows a possible reason for Montresor’s plot to murder Fortunato in The Cask of Amontillado. Montresor kills him due to his highly esteemed value of family honor. In the story, Fortunato learns that Montresor’s family moto is â€Å"Nemo me impune lacessit†, which means â€Å"No one insults me with impunity†. Fortunato insulted Montresor greatly, as the reader learns from the first line in the story, and Montresor feels that he must uphold his family honor. In that same way, Poe and his foster father John Allan fought over Allan’s other children and insulted Allan. Allan disowned him as a result, showing his value of honor to family. Understanding this value of family honor can help the reader to better understand Montresor’s motivation. Ethical Criticism: To look at it from an ethical standpoint, one must consider some of Poe’s other works. As already stated, Poe’s style of writing dealt with madness and death. The Raven is a story about a man depressed over the loss of his love, and the man goes mad over a raven that continually says to him ‘Nevermore. ’ The Tell-Tale Heart relates the story of a man who carefully and meticulously murders an elderly man who lives with him because he cannot stand the look of his false eye. Many of Edgar Allan Poe’s works involve death, madness, and murder. Knowing this can enable a reader to better grasp the tone in his story. Our main character in The Cask of Amontillado, Montresor can be construed as a generally insane person or super evil mastermind. It is my understanding that he does not have justification for the deeds and the murder he is going to commit. How can he do this and not have a guilty conscience? How he can he feel nothing? Because he is a man with no remorse, no feelings, no guilt, he either ignores or lacks that little voice that tells someone that â€Å"what you’re doing is wrong†. He feels he has suffered at the taunting of Fortunato and his revenge is legitimate. We know that Fortunato has wronged Montresor as a man of societal rank, with a slew of insults and this has been ongoing for quite some time. In Fortunatos eyes he thinks he and Montresor are old friends and that he is in fact only joking with his friend while Montresors blood secretly boils with each comment or teasing that comes out of Fortunato. Montresor ultimately gets away with this heinous crime. It is completely justified in Montresors eyes, this perfect crime. No witnesses, no body, no motive, no worries, no questions, therefore no crime has or was committed and this is just how Montresor views it. After all he buried the man alive, left him alive when he bricked up the wall in the crypt, in his insane mind he didnt actually kill Fortunato at all. Readers Response Criticism: From a reader’s point of view, the most interesting aspect to this story, is the fact that Montresor carries out this unspeakable revenge without batting an eye, without guilt. He feels justified by what he has done because he feels he has endured a thousand injuries at the hands of Fortunato. Having endured these injuries is his justification for what he plans to do to Fortunato. I also considered that Poe dresses each character in a certain way reflects each characters undeniable position in this story. The character that commits the murder Montresor is dressed in cloak (roquelare) and a mask of black silk like an outlaw or perhaps for the implication of death himself while the other, Fortunato is dressed in a jester’s outfit which really shows his innocence and ignorance in this story. One is that of evil, dark, serious, and sinister while the other is falling for the most evident of tricks, he is lacking in knowledge, a jester, and a fool. Little did Fortunato know that the joke was on him. Poe really captures each character and their true placement within this story. The fact that Montresor used Fortunatos lust for fine wine, his ultimate weakness, as a tool to lure him to his doom was that of pure diabolical genius. Even throwing in the competition that is Luchesi to seal the deal and Fortunatos fate by getting Fortunato to follow him deep into his familys crypt to meet his unfortunate demise is that of a sick man but also that of a true genius and mastermind. Montresor is a highly intelligent but evil, soulless man that gets away with the perfect untraceable crime. Psychoanalytical Criticism. Montresor takes us on a tale where he reveals that, 50 years ago, he had trapped his counterpart, Fortunato, in cave for all eternity. From his perspective he tells us that he bore the best he could of a thousand of Fortunatos injuries. When we get this, we can see a man who feels that he has lived in the shadow of another for too long. Those injuries were not physical, but in his eyes they were substantial enough for his death. Keeping in mind that Montresor is writing this a half century in the future, we can deduct that they cannot have been too much older than their mid-20s. Therefore, they likely have known one another since their childhood, so Montresor must have been feeling this for quite some time. Through this, the impression of a self-riotous man who feels he should have what Fortunato has is easy enough to infer. To compare to popular culture, the feeling of Scar from The Lion King is ever present; that feeling being a mildly innocent man, secretly carrying ulterior motives, until finally committing his awful atrocity. Fortunato is a character that is driven by his desire of wine and it ultimately puts him in a literal life or death circumstance. From the likely bias perspective of Montresor, Fortunato is seen as a fool in many ways. However, one can presume that he is well-liked since Montresor seems not to be, even though he wishes he were. Throughout the story, Montresors compliments and careful wordplay are evident. He calls him my dear Fortunato and repeatedly calls him a friend. So it appears that he may have no knowledge that Montresor has any ill will towards him until the end. To conclude, the struggle between Montressor and Fortunato may have all been psychologically in Montresors mind the entire time. The envy of a man may have resulted in the demise of another, and simply the mannerisms of one Fortunato caused his fate. The true injury was not sustained to, or from, anyone. Only the damaged interworking of a young mans mind was the true wound. Marxist Criticism: From the beginning the reader knows that the characters are of upper class and of Noble blood. But was Fortunato born into nobility as Montresor was? Let’s look at this from a Marxist approach. Not much is said of Fortunato’s past beside that he is wealthy and has earned the respect of many powerful people. Fortunato may have been part of the middle class where he was fortunate enough to slither his way into nobility. Fortunato prided himself on his connoisseurship in wine. Here is where Fortunato adopted to suit the time and opportunity to practice imposture upon the British and Austrian millionaires (Poe 1298). Could this be partially why Montresor defies Fortunato as he does? Could that be the biggest insult to Montresor, a middle class man making his way into the elite upper class? A place where no man of Fortunato’s stature belongs. Montresor fears that Fortunato has become more rich and power than he. Montresor’s says â€Å"You are happy, as once I was. You are a man to be missed† (Poe 1300). The appearance of Fortunato costume at the Carnival signifies wealth. He is found wearing a tight-fitting parti-striped dress, and his head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells (Poe 1298). There is another class distinction between the two. This time Fortunato sees himself above Montresor and reminds him when they are down walking in the catacombs. When Fortunato threw the bottle of wine upwards with gesticulation, and Fortunato asked Motresor if he knew what that signified, Montresor did not know. Fortunato then said he is not part of the brotherhood, a mason. A mason is a very powerful, persuasive organization and one can only be sworn into. Fortunato also forgot what Motresor family arms looked like. Signifying that it wasn’t important enough to remember. Here lies a power struggle between two powerful individuals. Montresor is infuriated by Fortunato’s lack of respect of Montresor nobility. Montresor uses deceit and eloquence into steering Fortunato to his death. He acts as if he has Fortunato’s best interest while plotting to kill him. In the end, before Montresor places the last brick, he recognizes Fortunato as a noble man.

Magic Johnson Essays - National Basketball Association, Michigan

Magic Johnson Report 1. Give the name of the book underlined, the author, publisher, and original date of publication. A. Magic Johnson Court Magician, by Richard Levin. The publisher is Regensteiner publishing Enterprises and the original date of publication is in 1981. 2. Discuss your subject's home life and education. A. Magic Johnson was born in Lansing on August 14, 1959. He is one of 10 children. His father's name is Earvin, Sr. His mother's name is Christine. His family believes strongly on religion and education before sports. He's not the only one though who is an athlete in his family. His little sister attended the University of South Carolina on a basketball scholarship. Her nickname was "The Sweet E." He attended Everett High School in Lansing Michigan and held a 3.5 grade point average. 3. What unusual qualities or abilities contributed to his or her success? A. A sportswriter named Fred Stabley covered games for The Lansing State Journal. He saw Earvin play against another school Holt High School. He thought that magic was unbelievable in the way that he played so he gave him the nickname "Magic". 4. Discuss several of his or her outstanding accomplishments. A. In 1977, he led Everett High to win the Michigan state basketball championship. In 1978, as a freshman at Michigan State University, he led his team to a 25 and 5 record. In 1979, he led Michigan State to win the national championships and was named its most valuable player. He decides to turn pro and he is drafted number one in the draft by the Los Angeles Lakers. In 1982, he is named the MVP of the championship series. In 1984, He was given the "Pivotal Player: Award of all-around excellence. 5. Summarize briefly three incidents that you would feature if you were to make a movie out of this book. A. I think that everything that I just mentioned in the last question would be excellent to put in a movie about Earvin "Magic" Johnson. 6. Has this book had any influence on your viewpoint, your way of thinking, or your own ambitions? A. Yes I would have to say that this book has had a big influence on my way of thinking and ambitions. I have always slacked off and thought that if I didn't get what I needed to done, that I would always have time the next day to get it done. This has taught me that success doesn't come that way, and if I want to be successful, then I need to work hard and practice the skills that will help me get through my life. Earvin Johnson is a great example of this and I will always look up to him not only as a sports star, but a great man of skill and achievement.

Free Essays on Click Thorugh Rate

Click-through rate (CTR) and Brand Awareness! The web is amazing. You can move around this medium, going "virtually" anywhere. And just think what it means to your brand to be able to generate awareness and have a two-way presence in an editorial environment that has affinity with your product or service? Yes, yes. What a powerful branding medium this could be, placing advertisers' images and messaging in an appropriate editorial context, but with the added benefit of being able to have the potential consumer communicate with the brand. What a great medium for exercising a little engagement branding, getting folks to involve themselves in brand by having brand affiliated with this two-way medium. The promise of Internet advertising has always been that it is more quantifiable than advertising offline. Being able to quantify the impact of branding, and eventually develop best practices that work best for us, is a great benefit for the Internet advertising industry. One of the measurement tools is the Click-Through Rate. The average number of click-through’s per hundred ad impressions, expressed as a percentage is a CTR. It is important to distinguish what a click-through rate does and does not measure. The CTR measures what percentage of people clicked on the ad to arrive at the destination site; it does not include the people who failed to click, yet arrived at the site later as a result of seeing the ad. Merely getting visitors to a site had value when Web site traffic was generally accepted as a measure of success. Though, the trend towards profitability, along with better tracking tools, has resulted in less interest in click-through rates. Click-through has been one of the standard ways to measure the effectiveness of online ads. They allow advertisers to track not just how many people see a particular ad, but how many are engaged enough to "click through" to the underlying Web site. Compared with traditional advertising, ... Free Essays on Click Thorugh Rate Free Essays on Click Thorugh Rate Click-through rate (CTR) and Brand Awareness! The web is amazing. You can move around this medium, going "virtually" anywhere. And just think what it means to your brand to be able to generate awareness and have a two-way presence in an editorial environment that has affinity with your product or service? Yes, yes. What a powerful branding medium this could be, placing advertisers' images and messaging in an appropriate editorial context, but with the added benefit of being able to have the potential consumer communicate with the brand. What a great medium for exercising a little engagement branding, getting folks to involve themselves in brand by having brand affiliated with this two-way medium. The promise of Internet advertising has always been that it is more quantifiable than advertising offline. Being able to quantify the impact of branding, and eventually develop best practices that work best for us, is a great benefit for the Internet advertising industry. One of the measurement tools is the Click-Through Rate. The average number of click-through’s per hundred ad impressions, expressed as a percentage is a CTR. It is important to distinguish what a click-through rate does and does not measure. The CTR measures what percentage of people clicked on the ad to arrive at the destination site; it does not include the people who failed to click, yet arrived at the site later as a result of seeing the ad. Merely getting visitors to a site had value when Web site traffic was generally accepted as a measure of success. Though, the trend towards profitability, along with better tracking tools, has resulted in less interest in click-through rates. Click-through has been one of the standard ways to measure the effectiveness of online ads. They allow advertisers to track not just how many people see a particular ad, but how many are engaged enough to "click through" to the underlying Web site. Compared with traditional advertising, ...

Deudas, mal crédito, bancarrota y efectos migratorios

Deudas, mal crà ©dito, bancarrota y efectos migratorios Al iniciar un trmite migratorio como, por ejemplo, una peticià ³n de familiar o naturalizacià ³n para obtener la ciudadanà ­a americana es comà ºn preguntarse si las deudas pendientes, un mal crà ©dito o la bancarrota  pueden afectar negativamente a la solicitud. La razà ³n de esa preocupacià ³n nace, por una parte, del requisito de tener una situacià ³n situacià ³n econà ³mica saneada para solicitar ciertos beneficios migratorios, como por ejemplo la peticià ³n de cà ³nyuge, hijos, hermanos o padres y, por otro, porque cierto tipo de deudas impide que salgan adelante peticiones migratorias.   Por su importancia, en este artà ­culo se explica en quà © casos y  cà ³mo esas situaciones pueden afectar a los casos migratorios, destacando en primer lugar cuando son irrelevantes y, en segundo lugar, cuando sà ­ se tienen en cuenta a la hora de decidir si se aprueba o no una peticià ³n migratoria. Adems, se seà ±alan quà © beneficios recibidos del gobierno se consideran carga pà ºblica y, por lo tanto, afectan negativamente y, por otro lado, cules se pueden recibir sin problemas porque no tienen consecuencias migratorias. Casos en los que las deudas y mal crà ©dito no tienen consecuencias migratorias Si se tiene una deuda por no pagar, por ejemplo, a la compaà ±Ãƒ ­a de telà ©fono, una deuda privada, la factura de un mà ©dico, etc, no tiene generalmente efectos ni consulares ni migratorios negativas. Es decir, no afecta a lo que se resuelve con respecto a la peticià ³n. Y ello es asà ­ porque se considera que son asuntos civiles. Lo mismo sucede con el mal crà ©dito. En el caso de peticiones para un familiar de la tarjeta de residencia permanente, tambià ©n conocida como  green card,  lo que importa es que el solicitante tenga ingresos y/o patrimonio  suficientes y demostrables para cubrir las obligaciones del affidavit of support, tambià ©n conocido como declaracià ³n de sostenimiento. Si tiene mal crà ©dito o deuda pendiente, es irrelevante. Casos en los que las malas finanzas sà ­ tienen efectos migratorios Cuando la deuda se convierte en un asunto penal, como por ejemplo, en una estafa u otros semejantes entonces sà ­ que tiene efectos migratorios y puede ser causa para que nieguen visas, peticiones de residencia permanente o de ciudadanà ­a por naturalizacià ³n. Tambià ©n puede ser una causa para que se impida en el control de paso migratorio  el ingreso a Estados Unidos de un extranjero. Si la deuda es con la Hacienda de Estados Unidos (IRS), tambià ©n es un problema que hay que resolver antes de iniciar los trmites con inmigracià ³n o los consulados. Si la deuda es mà ©dica y el importe de la factura lo pagà ³ Medicaid, tambià ©n puede ser muy problemtico si se considera que fue un caso de carga pà ºblica. Por ejemplo, si una mujer extranjera tiene a un bebà © en Estados Unidos y no paga por el parto y luego se regresa a su paà ­s, tanto esa mam como el pap el bebà © pueden perder la visa de turista. Con el agravante de que no hay forma de salirse de este problema en concreto. Si se trata de una deuda por no pagar pensià ³n alimenticia (child support), segà ºn las circunstancias del caso puede tener como consecuencia que no se pueden obtener visas americanas, ni la residencia permanente y la ciudadanà ­a por naturalizacià ³n. Y, en casos extremos, puede dar lugar incluso a la deportacià ³n. Incluso, dependiendo del monto de la deuda, los ciudadanos americanos pueden encontrase con que no pueden sacar el pasaporte y, por lo tanto, no pueden viajar internacionalmente. Destacar que el child support puede ser solicitado no sà ³lo para nià ±os que viven en Estados Unidos sino tambià ©n en el caso de residir en otros paà ­ses cuando tienen a al menos el padre o la madre viviendo en Estados Unidos. En estos casos, tener en cuenta que  la Embajada americana en el paà ­s de residencia del menor no puede ayudar en estos casos. La razà ³n es que este es un tema de los estados,  no del gobierno federal. Algunos paà ­ses, como  Mà ©xico, tienen firmados acuerdos de reclamo de pensià ³n alimenticia con varios estados.  En los casos en los que no hay tales acuerdos y se desea exigir el pago de dicha pensià ³n, contactar con la agencia de  child support  del estado en el que vive el pap o la mam. O contratar a un  abogado en dicho estado. Adems, tener en cuenta que el tener un pap que es estadounidense  no da automticamente derecho a adquirir la ciudadanà ­a americana  cuando se nace fuera de los Estados Unidos. Adems  que en el caso de reclamar pensiones de alimentos en el caso de nià ±os nacidos fuera de matrimonio primero es necesario  establecer legalmente la filiacià ³n. Quà © beneficios son considerados como una carga pà ºblica Uno de los requisitos legales para ser admisible a los Estados Unidos es no ser considerado una carga pà ºblica. Y es que por esta causa se pueden negar un amplio abanico de peticiones o solicitudes migratorias como, por ejemplo, una  visa no inmigrante o una visa inmigrante o el ajuste de Estatus o para adquirir la ciudadanà ­a por naturalizacià ³n. Se considera que es una carga pà ºblica haber recibido del gobierno beneficios monetarios como, por ejemplo, el Suplemento de Ingresos de Seguridad (SSI, por sus siglas en inglà ©s), o Asistencia Temporal a Familias en Necesidad  (TANF, por sus siglas en inglà ©s). Destacar que estos beneficios pueden recibir otros nombres dependiendo del estado. Por ejemplo,   en California al programa TANF se le conoce como CalWorks. Finalmente, tener en cuenta que la regla general sobre los efectos migratorios de recibir beneficios considerados como carga pà ºblica tiene importantes excepciones. Por ejemplo, asilados y refugiados pueden recibir TANF y SSI sin problemas. Quà © beneficios no se consideran carga pà ºblica Se puede recibir del gobierno sin problemas WIC para infantes y embarazadas, cupones o estampillas de alimentos, que en California reciben el nombre de Calfresh. Asimismo, se puede aceptar ayuda a la vivienda o para guarderà ­as, Headstar o Medicaid para menores. En otras palabras, recibir este tipo de  beneficios no perjudica a peticiones o solicitudes migratorias que se realicen despuà ©s. Quà © hacer si se tiene una deuda con posibles consecuencias migratorias Si se tienen dudas sobre si una deuda puede afectar negativamente a una peticià ³n migratoria, antes de presentarla es recomendable contactar con un abogado de buena reputacià ³n o con una organizacià ³n de apoyo legal a migrantes para determinar si realmente tiene impacto migratorio y, en caso afirmativo, decidir quà © pasos tomar.   Generalmente en estos casos, lo ms recomendable es contactar con la agencia encargada del cobro de la deuda (collection agency  en inglà ©s) e intentar llegar a un acuerdo sobre la cantidad a pagar y los plazos para hacerlo. Este es un artà ­culo informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

Research Proposal Thesis, Major Points, and Plan Essay

Research Proposal Thesis, Major Points, and Plan - Essay Example Firstly, the police force is responsible for handling crimes in the specific areas under their jurisdiction. This area covers at least a number of municipalities. The police are on the ground and are sometimes engaged in violent encounters involving a minor. They have a duty to protect public from these criminals. Lawyers on the other hand have an in-depth knowledge about the laws of the country. They have the ability to analyze various situations, from different points of view and hence can provide insightful information about the rights and obligations of the minors in the country in respect to violent crimes. Lastly, the human rights organization has the mandate to ensuring that the people of this country are accorded the best treatment deserved. They hold that every person has a right to life. Additionally, they ensure that the culprit (minors or adults) receive a fair trial. For a comprehensive and in-depth of the study, the study would cover several sections that are deemed crucial in gathering persuasive information. The major sections are outlined in the research plan below. The research objectives would be to answer a number of questions identified for this particular research study. The questions formulated aims at gathering information that address the objectives of the study. The questions are designed in a way that they address how the independent variables influence the dependent variables of the topic under study. The questions include: The research would be carried out by collection of primary data from the identified respondents. This activity will make use of personal interviews involving the selected respondents in the sample. The secondary data would be collected through review of literature. These materials are available in the library. The analysis of the collected data would make use of both qualitative and quantitative

Reflective paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 5

Reflective paper - Essay Example Thus, as a group, the reward power made us to create a strong relationship that resulted to improved performance. When analyzing at an organizational level, the reward power improved the profitability of the organization due to the improvement in the performance of the employees. As the result of the improved sales for Peytons, the firm attained a competitive edge. Thus, when analyzing at a global level, the firm was able to compete with other firms in the international market. During my duties, the managing director was very supportive especially when I was new in the company. This improved my attitude towards my work. At the individual level, improved attitude made me to have a positive view towards my duties that I once depicted as challenging. My attitude towards my workmates who were new to me also improved, thus I was able to ask for assistance. This implies that at the group level we viewed each other with positive attitude. Organizationally, the assistance that the MD provide d to me made me to significantly contribute to the success of the company. When looked at the global level, I became a person with strong willingness and positive attitude anywhere in work in the various parts of the world. The team I was involved was focused at meeting the deadlines by initiating a good communication system where each one of was closely connected to another. One of the notable positive behaviors of my team was that there was a clear division of duties and each one of us was able to complete the duties on time. This was a good experience that we will adopt in our future endeavors as managers and leaders. Completion of the duties also made the team to effectively work towards the achievement of the team goals. The negative team-related behavior was that there were two members who were aggressors. Every new idea that the team leader

Influencing Factors Of Foreign Tourism To Japan Cultural Studies Essay

Influencing Factors Of Foreign Tourism To Japan Cultural Studies Essay Over the last few decades, the international travel market has grown tremendously. According to the World Tourism Organization, number of international travelers reached a record of 842 million in 2006 and 898 million in 2007. The growth rate in 2007 reached 6%, which is 1.5% higher than the value of 2006. The strongest growth occurred in Africa; however, Asia Pacific region also had a great increase number of international travelers. In 2007 alone, 185 million people visited Asia. (Choi, Lee 1) International travel has become very accessible to many people because of technical advancement in transportation. For instance, it only takes about thirteen hours to get from JFK Airport in New York, United States to Narita Airport in Tokyo, Japan. Japan Airline provides travel back and forth ticket at a price of $964.33. (www.jal.com) Before the advancement in technology, any international trip took longer time and was more expensive. However, the technical development in transportation system is effectively triggering and stimulating more people to travel internationally. Large numbers of people are now interested in Asia. (Choi, Lee 1) The number of international travelers is increasing every year. What are some convincible factors that trigger people to come to Asia? Because of its diverse cultural activities, Japan is one factor that influences people to travel to Asia. Japan is an island located in the East Asia, surrounded by North Korea and South Korea. It is a small island but has potential to captivate tourist from all over the world. Before moving ahead, it is important to define terms that will be continuously discussed in this paper. What is the definition of travel? Merriam Webster Online Dictionary defines travel as To move or undergo transmission one place to another. (www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/travel) This indicates that travel is a peoples movement between relatively distant geographical location for any purpose and any duration, with or without any means of transportation. Travel also covers all the activities performed during a movement. It is a broader concept of trip. Travel can be local, regional, domestic or international. Then, who is considered a tourist? In the United States, the National Tourism Resources Review Commission (1973) defined tourist as one who travels away from home for a distance of at least 50 miles (one way) for business, pleasure, personal affairs, or any other purpose except to commute to work, whether he or she stays overnight or returns the same day. (Masberg, 67) Then why are international tourists interested in traveling to Japan? What is unique about Japan? First, knowing concise background of Japan would help to find the answers to these questions. Brief Description of Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is surrounded by the east of the Sea of Japan (also called East Sea), People of Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia and stretches from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south. Japan is composed of over 3,000 islands, making it an archipelago. The four largest islands are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku. These four main islands together accounts for 97% of Japans land area. It has sufficient rainfall for agriculture on the main islands, with no dry season. Hokkaido and northern Honshu have cold winters with good ski resorts but limited agriculture. In contrast, the two thirds of southern Honshu and the Shikoku Island and Kyushu have humid subtropical climates. Most of the islands are mountainous, many volcanic; for example, Japans highest peak, Mount Fuji, is a volcano. Japan has the worlds tenth largest population, with about 128 million people. The capital of Japan is Tokyo, located in Honshu. The government is a Parliamentary democracy. The size of Japan is about 145,856 square miles (slightly smaller than California) and Japan is homogeneous (0.6% Korean) with one language. Buddhism and Shinto are the major religions and only about 0.8% of the population is Christian. The currency of Japan is the Yen. Entering Japan is relatively easy because it is part of the visa waiver program, which means that a visa is not required for visits less than 90 days. Shopping is a main attraction in Japan; common items include Japanese handicrafts and art objects, jewelry, silks, furs, and pottery pieces. Japan has not historically looked to tourism as a major foreign income earner as it had such a huge trade surplus in the 1980s. However, from the 1990s, the government started to take an active role in promoting inbound tourism. The government is both involved in domestic and international tourism. It promotes and provides information about tourism in Japan and establishes a number of programs and offices to develop a broad variety of tourism attractions in Japan while maintaining quality of its natural environment setting. Japan also established a government organization, JNTO (Japan National Tourism Organization). JNYO is a non-profit organization established by a government, and it provides free multilingual information on travel in Japan. The most visited places by visitors are the following: Sapporo, Tohoku, Tokyo and its surrounding area, Chubu, Kansai, Chugoku, Island of Kyushu, and Okinawa Island. Sapporo, the capital of Hokkaido, hosted the 1972 winter Olympics, and it annually has a festival called the Snow Festival. It is a festival where people present gigantic snow images by famous artists. Secondly, Tohoku is located in the northeastern section of the main island of Honshu and is very famous for its hot springs. Tokyo and the surrounding areas are located in Honshu, where visitors can observe the unique blend of the East and West culture. Another most visited location is Chubu, which is the center of the main island, Honshu. The Japanese Alps are located in Chufu, and the Japanese Alps consist of beautiful scenery. Kansai, another metropolitan area in Japan besides Tokyo, also has many important temples (historical attractions) and interesting cultural festivals. Chugoku, the western end of the island of Hon shu, is known for its beautiful beaches. Many water activities are played here. The Island of Kyushu has a subtropical climate and operates 6 national parks that attract visitors. Lastly, the Island of Okinawa is a tropical island with the wealth of national beauty, such as the sunny skies and the subtropical plants. As one can see from above, Japan has a variety of attractions. It has been and will be the center of the Asian tourism market. As the center of the Asian tourism market, Japan has exclusive aspects that other Asian countries do not contain. Japan has preserved those cultural factors well enough to encourage foreigner to learn about it. Different aspects of Japan have made it possible for influencing numerous tourists to travel to Japan. Now, this essay will focus on each aspect that influences foreign tourists to travel to Japan. Those aspects include food/cuisine, Japanese traditional lodging, sports, and business. Food of Japan Japanese food is well known to the other parts of the world. Many foreigners are familiar with sushi and ramen, which are the major representation of Japanese food. Nevertheless, there are other types of Japanese cuisine that are still unknown to the foreigners yet can strongly fascinate the foreign travelers to Japan. Japanese cuisine that will be focused on this paper is Sushi, Sukiyaki and Nabemono, Tempura, Tofu and Natto, Menrui, Mochi, Tsukemono, and Ocha. Japanese cuisine is a piece of an art work. Aesthetic display of the food is considered very crucial while serving the food to the guests. Learning the context of the cuisine is one side factors that tourists can enjoy while eating the food: how the food fits into Japanese life, what its history has contributed, how it is properly chosen and consumed, and others. Japan remains one of the countries where food represents lineage, going back to history. Thus, an understating of Japanese cuisine helps one to understand the Japanese thoughts. (Donald 12) Sushi Sushi, as one of Japans most representative food, is fairly known to people. Most large cities around the world have sushi shops. Craig Claiborne defines sushi as an assortment of small morsels of freshest raw fish and seafood presents into cold rice lightly seasoned with vinegar. (Donald, 14) This definition perfectly correct; however, there are more factors to it. Sushi is a delight to the eye, a revelation to the tongue, and an engrossing culinary happening that those who have partaken will not soon forget. (Donald, 14) When one walks into a sushi shop in Japan, the master and the waiters loudly shouts Irasshaimase! This is a phrase to welcome the guests who enter the restaurant. There is usually a long counter of white cypress. Behind the counter, there are glass-cased, ice cooled array of fish fillets and shellfish, all fresh, sometimes alive. Before the main sushi dish, a waiter serves a cup of hot green tea, a small dish for soy sauce, Oshibori (hand towel), miso soup, and picked gingers to refresh ones mouth between bites. Most popular sushi menus are maguro (tuna), toro (the marbled underside of the tuna), chu-toro (a half marbled side section of the tuna), uni (sea urchin roe), ebi (shrimp, boiled or alive), tao (sea bream), ika (squid), akagai (aki shell), hamachi (young yellowtail), tako (octopus), ikura (salmon roe), anago (conger eel), awabi (abalone). The master also creates special menus that change as seasonal fish and shellfish changes. Upon hearing an order, the sushi master starts his performance. He cuts and slices the fish and shellfish delicately. Then, he scoops a double fingerful of rice, and add bits of washabi (horseradish) and quickly forms an oblong ball, firmly capped by the seafood. This is the most popularly known regional type of sushi, Nigiri sushi. Nigiri sushi originated from Edo (Tokyo) in the nineteenth century. Because of the fast speed, it is called the worlds first fast food. Sukiyaki Ronald Barthes describes Sukiyaki as a stew whose every element can be known and recognized, since it is made in front of you, on your table, without interruption while you are eating ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦It is the very essence of the market that comes to you, its freshness, its naturalness, its diversity, and even its classification, which turns the simple substance into the promise of an event. (Ronald 21) Sukiyaki is classified as a nabemono, which means food is cooked usually at the table in a single pot or pan, and is thought of as being a winter meal. There are few different ways to cook sukiyaki: Kansai (Osaka-Kyoto) area way, Kanto (Tokyo-Yokohama) area way, Nagasaki way, and others. The most well known sukiyaki is from Kansai area. In the Kansai area, a lump of beef suet is melted in the shallow iron pan over medium heat. Then very thin slice of beef are place in the bottom of the pan. After the beef color changed to brown, one put other ingredients such as tofu, mushroom, onion, and konnaku (Japanese style jelly). The liquid is then poured into the pan. The liquid is consists of soy sauce, water, little bit of sugar, and sweet sake. Knowing the right time to pour the liquid is the key to make a delicious sukiyaki. Meanwhile, one should break raw eggs into a bowl, and add little bit of soy sauce. This becomes the sauce for meat and vegetables in the sukiyaki. Meat and vegetables are dipped into this sauce right before eating. Sukiyaki gets delicious as the cooking progresses, because the juice from the beef and vegetables makes the taste fascinating. In Kanto area, the liquid is poured first, and the meat and vegetables are added to the heated liquid. This way of cooking makes Sukiyaki more like a stew that foreigners are more familiar with. In Nagasaki, the meat is grounded. This slight adjustment of meat distinctively changes the taste of the dish. Sukiyaki has been eaten since 1860, when the country was open to foreigners and the new Maiji emperor began his reign. Before, eating meat was prohibited in Japan, because the Japanese believed in Buddhism. However, Emperor Maiji changed the law and made beef and other meat available for Japanese citizens. Gradually, Japanese citizens enjoyed eating meat, and sukiyaki is one Japanese style cuisine that developed from this era. As people enjoyed eating meat, there was a famous aphorism, which said A man who does not eat beef is an uncivilized man. (Donald 25) Tempura Tempura is delicately deep-fried seafood and vegetables, served hot and crisp, lacy golden on the outside, juicy and succulent on the inside. (Donald 26) Tempura is not a traditional Japanese food. It was introduced by Portuguese when missionaries and merchants from Portugal actively visited Japan around sixteenth century. Common types of tempura that one can get in Japan are Kuruma ebi (prawn), shiba ebi (shrimp), ika (squid), kaibashira (scallop), anago (conger eel), kisu (a small fish known as sillago), haze (goby), ginpo (gunnel), megochi (flathead). Tempura should be made just before eating it. Besides being strict about the freshness of what goes inside of tempura (such as shrimp, and squid), the Japanese are picky about the batter, also known as koromo in Japanese. Koromo literary means clothes in Japanese. It should be lumpy and be filled with air bubbles so that the texture of tempura becomes lighter. Also, the coating should be thin rather than thick. Besides the crunchiness, Japanese wants to enjoy the natural taste of the material that is inside of the batter. Therefore, the batter should be practically see-through. Tofu and Natto Tofu is also well known to international community. It came from China very long time ago and became another food that represents Japanese cuisine. Tofu is one of the most protean foods. It can be boiled, broiled, baked, fried, steamed, marinated, dried, frozen, and eaten fresh. Interesting thing is that each method changes the taste of tofu completely. Baked tofu and boiled tofu tastes extremely differently. Kyoto is best known for a good tofu. Recently, there are restaurants opening up that only serve tofu. It is one food that is loved by vegetarian travelers to Japan. Natto might be unfamiliar to international travelers. It is made out of soybean, just like tofu. Natto is fermented soybeans which is rotten stinking slimly soybeans. It is somewhat similar to a ripe cheese. Natto is served in a small lump and should first be stirred with chopsticks to make it stickier. Then, raw eggs, sliced and chopped onions, soy sauce is mixed together with natto. This mixture is then eaten with hot rice. Even if the smell of natto is strong, it is still a typical breakfast menu in Japan. It is very healthy and diet helping cuisine. Menrui Menrui in Japanese means noodle types. This indicates that menrui includes all the types of noodle cuisine that is available in Japan. There are a great variety of shapes and sizes of noodle. The two most popular types of noodles are the wheat-based noodles which are associated with Osaka and the south of Japan, and buckwheat-based noodles associated with Tokyo and the north of Japan. (Donald 54) Wheat-based noodles come in a variety of shapes, but the best know type is called udon. Udon is somewhat flat and wide. Somen is another type of what-based noodle that is more slender and a bit of vegetarian oil is used in the preparation. Buckwheat-based is called soba, and it comes with a single variety: long, thin, brown in color. There are some variations of soba. People used green tea to make soba. Therefore, the color of the noodle becomes green, instead of brown. Soba and Udon can be served both hot and cold. For a hot noodle dish, a noodle is first boiled in water, then scooped out and place in a bowl. After that, toppings and other ingredients are added. Finally, broth is poured. There are great varieties for soup and toppings. For a cold dish, boiled noodle is rinsed with hold water, and served on draining screened plate that is made out of bamboo. The noodles are decorated with little bit of dried laver, and dipped into soy sauce then quickly removed from the sauce. Another major menrui is ramen. This is also originated from China; however, Japanese changed the food into its own style and taste. Now, each region of Japan developed their own style of ramen, and there are tours within Japan to go around each region and taste the different ramen. Many distinctive local version of ramen were established as the shops in each region concentrated on the varieties of soup seasonings and toppings appreciated by local people. (Naomichi, 252) Among the best known is Sapporo ramen, from Hokkaido, which features heavy noodles, a rich thick broth seasoned with miso instead of the more common soy sauce, and locally produced toppings of butter and maize. Mochi Mochi is made out of a one type of rice, mocha-gome, and it is regarded as a unique and special food. Freshly pounded mochi is very soft and easy to eat, but it quickly gets hard and must be grilled or reheated to become edible. It is eaten during the most important ritual ceremony, the New Year. On a New Years Day, a plain white mochi is toasted and served with soy sauce. A white mochi can also be put either in a soup or as is or is eaten along with the other ingredients of this festive soup. This soup is called ozoni. Mochi can be served as a dessert as well. Mochi stuffed with sweet red bean paste is called daifuku. This can be seen as the traditional Japanese dessert that was eaten with green tea. Tsukemono Tsukemono means preserved food in Japanese. Preserved food is an important part of most dietary tradition in Japan. It is pickled food, which means that the food is stored away with a quantity of salt and transformed into sour salty products that will keep for a long time. There are several type of method to pickle vegetables and fish. Kyoto is famous for its variety of traditional tsukemono. Ocha/Tea After the meal is done, the national beverage, ocha is served. Although green tea is usually associated with Japan, there are many types of teas available in Japan. Houjicha and genmaicha are two common teas that the tastes are slightly bitter. The color of those tea is rather brown than green, and it is the most affordable tea that is available in Japan. Sencha is one rank upper than houjicha and genmaicha. The leaves used in Sencha have been picked with greater care and there are no stems. The finest tea is called gyokuro. The oldest and finest bushes of leaves were used to make this tea. As one can see, Japan has a very diverse food culture. Sushi and Japanese noodles are well known cuisine that portrays the food culture of Japan. However, there is more variety of Japanese food that delivers the thoughts of Japanese. As foreign tourists find more about those cuisines, the number of tourists will continuously increase. Lodging of Japan Japan has the privilege of possessing two types of lodging: Japanese inns and western hotels. Japanese inn is called ryokan (ryo-journey, kan-mansion) in Japanese. Ryokans historical origins are strongly rooted in Japanese society, and ryokan resisted the introduction of Western forms of lodging. (Anguis, Moon 76) One can find enormous amount of information about these two types of lodging in Japan by just searching on the internet. Generally speaking, hotels show less variety, with only few categories such as resorts hotel, de luxe hotels, and so on. On the other hand, any travel magazine published for Japanese travel shows an amazing number of extremely specialized categories of ryokan, such as spa ryokan, ryokan associated with Japanese famous writers, secret ryokan, very famous ryokan, wooden built ryokan, ryokan visited by Japanese emperor, ryokan for Japanese cuisine associated with the seasons, etc. (Anguis 76) Japanese categorized ryokan into a very specific sector, so that p eople can easily find ryokan that they are looking for. Compare to the Western hotel room size, the size of ryokans room is relatively small. Moreover, the western hotels construction and management is sustained by huge capital investments, whereas ryokan does not have large capital to fund their operation. How can ryokan still compete with the western hotels in Japan? Instead of being the part of shelter along the road, ryokan has become the purpose of the travel itself. (Anguis 77) Staying in a ryokan usually follows the same pattern. Guests usually check in between three and four oclock in the afternoon. Shoes are deposited in the entrance, and picked up when guests are leaving the ryokan. Upon the arrival at ryokan, guests are greeted by a kimonoclad maid and she leads to their rooms, where she serves tea and sweets, while explaining the schedule of their stays. Visitors are encouraged to change their everyday clothes and dress on the cotton kimono, yukata. They can have an early bath time in either inside or outside baths. While the guests are away, the room is prepared for dinner. After the dinner, second bath might be encouraged while cleaning after dinner and futon spread on the tatami. (Cogswell 40) Each room is covered with tatami, straw mats. The main room has a little shrine, similar to an altar that is raised slightly from the floor at the one side of the room. Doors in ryokan are usually slide doors. Doors are made out of paper and framed in woodwork, and they are used to break up the space. Japanese architecture and design are clean and simple. Japanese buildings tend to harmoniously blend with the natural environment. Ryokan originated during Nara period (710-784). For much of the 20th century, it was just any Japanese inn that people had stayed. People somewhat had negative ideas about it since there were no privacy. For instance, the bath was communal. During steamy summers, everyone slept with their doors and windows wide open to the breeze. From the competition with the Western style hotel, the number of ryokan declined from 80 thousand in 1988 to fewer than 60 thousand in 2005. (Brown, 128) Recently however, the ryokan is trying to change the perception of people towards ryokan. For instance a group of thirty ryokan have formed The ryokan Collection to market themselves as boutique inns, with designer flourishes, architectural details and cultural authenticity. (Brown, 129) The ryokan of Kyoto, a former imperial city and a popular tourist destination, are among the first to have instituted modernizing touches-and with much flair and frills. English-speaking staff and Western-style breakfasts are now available even at the citys legendary Hiiragiya and Tawaraya ryokan-both centuries old and famed for their refined aesthetics, attention to detail, and guest lists that have included royalty and Hollywood stars. Sports in Japan (Sports Tourism) Baseball in Japan Baseball was first introduced by Horace Wilson, who was an American expatriate educator, in 1872. Since then, baseball has grown as the major sports played by Japanese. Baseball is called Yakyu ¼Ã‹â€ Ãƒ ©Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ã… ½Ãƒ §Ã‚ Ã†â€™Ã‚ ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° in Japanese. It combines Chinese character for field (à ©Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ã… ½ ya)and ball(à §Ã‚ Ã†â€™ kyu). The major event that attracted the foreigner to focus ones attention on Japanese baseball was World Baseball Classic. Japan won the championship in both 2006 and 2009. This attracted peoples attention towards Japanese style baseball. Now, tourists are willing to tour the Japanese professional baseball league and baseball arena for the professional baseball teams became the major attraction destination. Japanese professional baseball has two leagues, just like professional baseball in United States. One is called Central League, and other one is called Pacific League. Each league has six teams. The professional baseball season is eight months long and it begins on April, and a Championship is held on October. Teams play 144 games in total. Teams that are included in Central leagues are: Yomiuri Giants (Tokyo), Tokyo Yakult Swallows (Tokyo), Yokohama BayStars (Yokohama), Chunichi Dragons (Nagoya), Hanshin Tigers (Osaka), Hiroshima Toyo Carp (Hiroshima). Teams that are included in Pacific leagues are Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (Sapporo), Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles (Sendai), Saitama Seibu Lions (Saitama), Chiba Lotte Marines (Chiba), Orix Buffaloes (Osaka), Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks (Fukuoka). The professional baseball teams representing major cities of Japan. For instance, Yomiuri Giant is a professional team that is located in Tokyo. It has a dorm called Tokyo Dome, which has 45,000 seats. The average viewers of each game are 40,755. Foreign tourists are now visiting these domes of professional baseball teams, and experiencing the Japanese baseball game. Sumo in Japan Sumo wrestling is a competitive contact sport where a wrestler, also known as a rikishi, attempts to force another wrestler out of a circular ring or dohyo. The sumo wrestler also attempts to force the other to touch the ground with another body part other than the soles of the feet. Originating in Japan, it is the only country where this sport is practiced professionally. The tradition of Sumo is very antiquated. It still includes many ritual events, such as the use of salt to purify the dohyo, from the Shinto Religion. Rikishi follows the rule laid down by the Sumo Association, and professional sumo players are directed to live in sumo training stables, known as heya in Japanese. There are six Grand Sumo tournaments, also called honbasho, each year. Three of the tournaments take place at Tokyo in January, May, and September. The place where those three tournaments are held is called the Sumo Hall, Ryogoku Kokugikan in Japanese, and this place has become one of the major attraction places for people to visit in Tokyo. Another tournament is held at Osaka in March. Fifth one is held at Nagoya in July, and the last one takes place at Fukuoka in November. Each tournament begins on a Sunday and lasts for fifteen days. There are two teams in a professional sumo tournament. Each top wrestler, also referred as yokozuna, in the two divisions has one match per day, and other lower leveled wrestlers have one game every two days. The schedule is constructed in a way that the highest ranked wrestlers compete at the very end of the day. The top wrestlers match usually begins at six oclock in the evening. At the end of the fifteenth day, the wrestler who wins the most matche s wins the tournament championship. If there are ties in the score, those two wrestlers compete with each other and the winner of that game takes the championship. Since sumo is only professionally played in Japan, foreign travelers are eager to watch the game while they are visiting Japan. Japanese Festivals Festivals are called matsuri in Japan. A most eloquent form of worship, Japanese festivals are intimate, joyous encounters with the divine. (Vilhar, Anderson, 5) The image of modern Japan tends to minimize the significance of these ancient religious practices. Yet, matsuri has have been continuously provided people with a strong spiritual identity as Japanese. Although Japanese no longer perceive matsuri as a ritual ceremony, it still lays heavy emphasis on the Shinto religion originated from Japan. The act of worship culminated in the celebration of matsuri. Derived from the verb matsuru (to worship), matsuri serves as a means for the people to offer divine world their prayers, gifts, and joy. Matsuri is time for communication with their gods and ancestral spirits. Many of the matsuri is related to rice growing, the very foundation of Japanese culture. There are no certain set dates for matsuri. Dates vary from area to area. Almost every town has at least one matsuri in late summer or early autumn, usually related to the rice harvest season. During a matsuri, people go out in the streets for a memorable time. Almost every town in Japan prepares its own matsuri; however, the size of the festival varies from one town to another. Each year, approximately 100,000 people gather to attend some of the major matsuris. Major matsuris take place in large cities, such as Tokyo and Kyoto. Some people living in suburban or rural areas travel by airplane to go to the matsuris because they want to enjoy the once a year event. In contrast, some matsuris are really small, generally attracting only the local people. Indifferent of the size of the festival, one can learn about the culture and tradition of Japan through matsuris. First of all, most of the people coming to a matsuri wear Japanese traditional clothes, called Yukata. The word originates from Yukatabire, which means clothes that one wears after taking a shower. Therefore, they are made out of thin cotton. Since Japan gets very hot in the summer, people tend to were Yukata rather than other clothes. The color of the Yukata is another interesting factor that reflects Japanese culture. Women tend to wear bright colors, such as yellow, pink, and bright blue. Men tend to wear cool colors, such as grey and dark blue. These colors represent nature. Bright colors such as red and pink illustrate the flowers, and earthtone colors such as grey and dark blue represent the sky or earth. The Yukatas colors help create the very exciting and fascinating atmosphere of the Matsuri. It seems as if colorful lights are illuminating the dark summer streets of Japan. Food also makes the matsuri very interesting. All kinds of food can be found at the matsuri. There is Japanese style barbeque, ice cream, candy, Japanese style pizza, and numerous other dishes. One of the major matsuri foods is called yakisoba. The word literally means burned noodle. It is called burned since the noodle is placed on a hot steel plate, instead of being boiled with water. Cabbage, carrots, meat and special sauces are also put on the plate and mixed with noodles. Moreover, there is a lot of entertainment waiting at a matsuri. First of all, there is a game called catching the goldfish. A player is given a thin paper that has a plastic handle, which he/she uses to scoop goldfish from a small pool until the paper tears apart. This game is very difficult. However, catching the fish is no longer a goal of this game as people start playing. People cheer for the players as they watch, which provides a bonding experience with my friends and family. Japanese traditional music is played in Matsuri, and is another big part of matsuris entertainment. The special host plays Wadaiko, Japanese traditional drum, as the main instrument in the matsuri since it is the oldest instrument in Japan. Moreover, it is believed that the sound of drum motivates people. While the drums are played, many people sing the song that goes with the beat. Also, there is a dance that goes with the music. People enjoy the dance and claim to release their everyday stress through the dance. Last but not least, the fireworks are the highlight of the matsuri. In Japan, one counts the number of shots to describe the size of the fireworks. The number of the shots depends on the towns. Each shot had certain meanings. For example, there was one fireworks display that had the image of red leaves in fall. There is an urban legend. It is believed that a couple that sees the first firework in the matsuri will be able to stay together forever. However, it is important that they hold hands when they watch the fireworks. This mystical, yet adorable legend makes people want to participate even more in the matsuri. The matsuri is not just a fun event. The dress, food, games, and music of the Matsuri portrays the culture of Japan. The Matsuri has endured a long time and will continue to be celebrated by gener