How does Shakespeare adapt the holinshed chronicles to create an entertaining piece of theatre? Essay

The Holinshed Chronicles, first published in 1577, contained factual accounts of the reign of Macbeth, and was used as the source material for Shakespeare’s play ‘Macbeth’. During this essay, how Shakespeare used, edited and manipulated this information will be analysed. There are several reasons why Macbeth was a good choice for Shakespeare to base a play on. Firstly, Banquo, a character in ‘Macbeth’, was related to the current King of England and Scotland, James I, so if Shakespeare portrayed Banquo as a good person, his play would gain instant popularity with the royal family. Another reason Shakespeare was drawn to Macbeth was because the factual story of Macbeth included the predictions of three strange women, or witches, and as people in the early 17th century took witchcraft very seriously, it added extra tension for the audience, and once again suited the interests of James I, who had a well known interest in witchcraft. It was typical for Shakespeare’s plays to derive from other people’s work, for example, ‘Macbeth’ was taken from the Holinshed Chronicles. Another example of this is the play ‘Romeo and Juliet’, which was taken from an Italian poem, and turned into a play by Shakespeare. When creating ‘Macbeth’, Shakespeare’s main aims were for his play to be popular with the Royal Family, and therefore popular with the general public, which meant that he would make a lot of money from the production. It was also important that the play wasn’t too long, and was easy to perform on stage. Shakespeare included three witches from the beginning of ‘Macbeth’ to incorporate Macbeth into the central role of the play straight away. According to Holinshed, there were not only witches, but also â€Å"certeine wizzards† who prophesied about Macbeth. Rather than include too many ‘supernatural’ characters and complicate the performances on stage, Shakespeare created Hecate, a very powerful witch to make up for lack of witches and wizards from the Holinshed Chronicles. From their first appearance, the witches are in full control of what happens around them, â€Å"When shall we three meet again?† And where and how they appear. This is crucial to the play, as it gets the interest of the audience from the very first scene, because at the time when the play was first produced, there was a very strong belief about witches and the supernatural. Shakespeare is very creative with the way he uses the witches to incorporate the audience into the play. The witches often equivocate when talking to Macbeth, misleading and confusing him, â€Å"The power of man, for none of woman born shall harm Macbeth.† This technique is also effective when used to create dramatic irony, for example when it is used at the beginning of the play, â€Å"All hail Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter.† Shakespeare clearly highlighted the witches power throughout the play by using the various aforementioned techniques throughout the play. The witches language also helped for them to be taken seriously by the Shakespearean crowd, because they talked in iambic pentameter, and the people watching the play most probably wouldn’t speak like that, so it helped to give the witches an extra ‘edge’ in the performance. The inclusion of the witches in the play was of up most importance, and was most probably a factor in Shakespeare’s decision to use the story of Macbeth for his play. It must also be taken into account that the play wasn’t being performed with any effects, just a stage, so it was crucial that Shakespeare made the scenes possible to perform, (Shakespeare’s plays were never meant to be read) whilst still using some form of stagecraft. A good example of this is from the â€Å"witches dance† scene. This would have looked good on stage, but it was equally simple to perform, with no additional effects required. In ‘Macbeth’, Shakespeare portrays Duncan as a good ruler, who is well respected and liked. This conflicts with the Holinshed Chronicles, which suggest that Duncan was a terrible leader with little support or respect. Even though Shakespeare uses the Chronicles as the main source for his play, he mixes factual information with fiction, to make the play more appealing and exciting. Duncan first appears in the play in battle, and seems like a commanding character in control of his actions, but is later revealed to make errors in judgement, â€Å"He [the traitor] was a gentleman on whom I built an absolute trust.† His judgemental errors show again when he admires Macbeth’s castle, â€Å"This castle hath a pleasant seat† which will ultimately be the place of his murder. Despite this, Shakespeare again portrays him as a good king, as this is the main reason that Macbeth has doubts over his murder. One of the main reasons Shakespeare wanted to portray Duncan as a good king was to make the murder of him more dramatic. If he had portrayed Duncan as a bad monarch whom people disliked, his murder wouldn’t have been such a terrible act, and Macbeth would have faced little consequences. Instead, we are given an opportunity to see Macbeth rise to his zenith and quickly fall to his nadir shortly after in the play. Another reason for the murder of a ‘good’ Duncan was to grab the attention of an audience that were watching the play at a time when there was a great belief in the Divine Right of Kings. It is widely believed that Shakespeare changed Duncan’s character in a similar way to the other characters he portrayed differently than Holinshed – to cater to James I, the current King of England and Scotland. Throughout ‘Macbeth’, Banquo is seen as the opposite of Macbeth, where as in the Holinshed Chronicles, it’s written that Banquo was as eager as Macbeth, and willing to support him throughout his plots and kingship. We first see Banquo at the beginning of the play, with Macbeth when they meet the witches, who tell the prophecies about Macbeth. Whilst Macbeth is thinking about the prophecies and plotting his next move, Banquo shows doubts, â€Å"Are ye fantastical, or that indeed which outwardly ye show?† This highlights the contrast between Macbeth and Banquo from the beginning of the play. As the play advances, we see the relationship between the two put under great strain, as Banquo is the only person who knows about Macbeth’s plots and murder of the king, â€Å"I fear thou played’st most foully for’t.† Despite this, Banquo still pledges his loyalty to the new king, but is however murdered anyway due to the paranoia of Macbeth, and the seriousness in which Macbeth takes the witches predictions of Banquo’s children becoming king. There were several reasons why Shakespeare would have wanted to do this to Banquo’s character in ‘Macbeth’. Firstly, it highlighted the contrast between Macbeth, and his once close friend. It also highlighted Macbeth’s paranoia over the predictions of the witches, so much so that he was driven to murder his close friend to keep his throne. It is also another adaptation of Shakespeare’s that emphasises how he tried to adapt the play to suit the current king of England and Scotland, James I. At the time of writing it was believed that the king was a descendent of Banquo, so Shakespeare would have wanted to portray him as a good character, therefore gaining the approval of the Royal Family and making the play instantly popular. Macduff, a crucial character in the plot of ‘Macbeth’, is only first seen in the middle of Act 2, and plays a rather scarce role in the play. However, this does not reduce the significance that he has on the plot of the play. Macduff is suspicious of Macbeth as soon as he takes the throne, and suspects that he killed Duncan. Macduff’s suspicions of Macbeth are key to the plot, as it is he who flees to England to build an army capable of challenging Macbeth when he hears that his family have been murdered by Macbeth, â€Å"Within my sword’s length set him. If he scape, heaven forgive him too.† This is another example of a character being the friend of Macbeth at the start of the play, and turning against him as the play progresses. â€Å"Bring thou this fiend of Scotland and myself†. In productions of ‘Macbeth’, Macduff’s main scene’s, such as his campaign in England and final battle with Macbeth, are hard to produce on stage. This has resulted in many productions cutting his scene in England, and Shakespeare changing the location of Macbeth’s final battle. According to Holinshed, when Macbeth finds out about Macduff being born by Caesarean section, â€Å"Macduff was from his mother’s womb untimely ripped.† he flees, and is pursued by Macduff. However, in the play, Macbeth and Macduff fight at Dunsinane and Macbeth is ultimately slain. This is an example of how stagecraft was a major hurdle in Shakespeare’s productions, and how they were written. Shakespeare based Lady Macbeth on a person from Holinshed, Queen Gruoch of Scotland, however, he strongly exaggerates and changes the character to suit her role in the play. Lady Macbeth plays a key role in the plot of the play from the first time we see her, at the end of Act 1. Without Lady Macbeth, it is very probable that the play’s plot wouldn’t be able to exist, as it is Lady Macbeth who fuels Macbeth’s ambitions throughout the play. She is constantly twisting the thoughts of Macbeth and propelling him to do the awful things that he does throughout. In Lady Macbeth’s first appearance, when she hears of the witches predictions she calls on evil spirits to assist her in her plans for Duncan’s murder, â€Å"Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here and fill me from the crown to the toe topfull of direst cruelty.† As the play progresses, we see Lady Macbeth overpower the will and thoughts of Macbeth, for example, when she proposes the murder of Duncan, Macbeth goes back on his word, saying that he wants nothing to do with the murder. At the end of that same scene, however, Lady Macbeth has managed to manipulate his thoughts, and get him to go through with the murder, â€Å"I have given suck and know how tender ’tis to love the babe that milks me: I would, while it was smiling in my face, have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out, had I so sworn as you have done to this.† Even though it’s Lady Macbeth who is in control of events in the play, she too suffers great anxiety after all the terrible things she does. By the end of Act 3, there are signs of her conscious taking over her, with her taking no part in the murder of Macduff’s family, a major plot in Act 4, an act in which she doesn’t feature at all. By the beginning of Act 5, Lady Macbeth starts to sleepwalk, and give away everything that her and Macbeth have plotted and done, â€Å"The Thane of Fife had a wife. Where is she now? What, will these hands ne’er be clean?† This adds dramatic effect to the end of a scene to keep the audience interested in the play, and offers a different perspective on a strong looking character. Macbeth is the main character of the play, and is probably the most interesting character to analyse. We first see Macbeth in the first half of Act 1, where he is a military hero, with no real ambition but to do the best he can for his country. Throughout ‘Macbeth’, we see him manipulated by his wife and murder his way to kingship, sometimes against his will, but other times, such as when Macduff’s family are murdered, there is no mention of outside influence. Although it seems like it is Lady Macbeth who is in command of what happens to potential threats and Macbeth, she never actually commits any of the murders herself. This could suggest that she knew what consequences could come from the beginning, and wanted it to be on Macbeth’s shoulders, not hers, however, she also suffers from mental illness due to the murders later on in the play. During his transition from hero to hated villain, we see how much Macbeth is plagued by his conscience and the knowledge that what he is doing is wrong, â€Å"We will proceed no further in this business, he hath honoured me of late.† There are two factors that prevent his conscience from taking command however, the witches and Lady Macbeth, both of whom he can’t ignore. As the play progresses, Macbeth struggles to trust anyone, even his wife, who he earlier said was his â€Å"dearest partner of greatness†. This leads to the murder of a lot of people that Macbeth doesn’t trust, including Banquo, who was his good friend, and ally for a short period of time. Although he is easily manipulated, he can also manipulate other people, depending on who he’s around, for example, when talking to royalty, or important people, Macbeth could talk in verse, or iambic pentameter. He also had the ability to talk well to â€Å"low-status characters†, such as the Porter or the Murderers, speaking in prose. We also see a different side to Macbeth during his soliloquies, as we see what he is thinking at crucial parts of the play. For example, in Act 5, Scene 5, when he performs his famous â€Å"Tomorrow† soliloquy, we see an insight into his emotions and feelings about how he feels he has lost his friends and family. Shakespeare’s use of the soliloquies of Macbeth throughout the play creates a unique opportunity for the audience to see a glimpse of what Macbeth is thinking and feeling, creating a better audience response throughout, and maybe giving the audience a chance to feel sorry for Macbeth, before he dies honourably in battle. There are many different techniques that are used throughout the play, and a lot of language in different styles and formats. It is crucial to remember that Shakespeare’s plays were written in the 16th Century for the 16th Century, not for us to read in a book 400 years later. Shakespeare uses lots of imagery in his plays, which was crucial for an audience of that time, as the play was only performed on stage with no special effects, (apart from the occasional trap door†¦) so the use of imagery in the play allowed the audience to get a better picture on what was happening in the play. Shakespeare’s ability to use both iambic pentameter and prose makes ‘Macbeth’ stand out, because you are given a chance to see the intelligence of characters such as Macbeth, who use both iambic pentameter, â€Å"To know my deed, ’twere best not know my self† and prose, â€Å"I did so, and went further, which is now the point of second meeting.† The language that Shakespeare chooses to use is also crucial to understanding the relationships between characters, such as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. In the early scenes, the two use iambic pentameter when talking to eachother, which shows a trust and understanding between them. However, in the later scenes, this trust is broken, and the language used in the scenes containing these characters reflects that as their consciences start to eat away at them, â€Å"Out, damned spot! Out, I say! One, two. Why then ’tis time to do’t?† Stagecraft was of up most importance when the play was performed in the 16th century (and now) as the play was never meant to be read, just performed. With limited equipment/effects, it was difficult to produce a play that was easy to perform on stage, however, Shakespeare wrote his plays in such a way that they grabbed the attention of the audience whilst being simple to perform at the same time. A particularly good example of stagecraft is the witches’ dance from the beginning of Act 4, â€Å"Double, double told and trouble; Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.† This is particularly effective, as it can be performed easily on stage, but it also grabs the attention of the audience to keep them interested. Also, because it doesn’t require any spectacular effects, it could be performed fairly easily in 16th century Britain. Because the play is limited to a number of acts/scenes, it was necessary for Shakespeare to either miss out sections mentioned in Holinshed entirely or edit them to make them more performable. A good example of this is the final battle between Macbeth and Macduff. According to the Holinshed Chronicles, Macbeth tried to flee from his castle, but got caught by Macduff and killed. In ‘Macbeth’, the whole scene takes place at the castle. This allows the scene to be performed whole on stage, so there is no loss of tension between scenes, and it makes it easier and cheaper to perform, because less sets are required and it isn’t as broken up. In reality, Macbeth’s reign over Scotland lasted 17 years before he was killed, however, this would have been inappropriate for a play of this length, so Shakespeare had to narrow his reign down to only a few months. This helped the performance, because it made it much more dramatic, creating a better audience response. Settings of the play also had to be narrowed down, due to time, cost and convenience on stage. For example, in reality, there was lots more English involvement, and Shakespeare only covers a very small scene in England. This is because the play is explained well enough without the English scene, so it was un-necessary to add more scenes which weren’t needed. After having the chance to study the play from both the book and movie, it’s clearer what limitations Shakespeare had. For example, in a film, special effects can be added, and more scenes made available in the production. On stage however, there are more limitations, for example, when Birnam Wood ‘moves’ towards Dunsinane Castle, effects can be added in a film, but on stage you are limited to basic props and no additional technology. This changes how the audience interprets the story, because you get a better idea of how it was from a movie, with more advanced editing, compared to watching it how it was probably performed originally on stage, In conclusion, there are various ways in which the Holinshed Chronicles are adapted to make an entertaining piece of theatre, but in my opinion there are a few key points. Firstly, I think that ‘Macbeth’ has been so entertaining and successful, because there was already an interesting plot and opportunity to impress the current king. Secondly, Shakespeare’s use of iambic pentameter and prose makes the language of the play very interesting and it is clever how the information in Holinshed is twisted, manipulated and made more dramatic to create a very entertaining piece of theatre.

Individual paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Individual paper - Essay Example All these efforts are aimed at making organizations more competitive and yet these activities have one profound effect on organizational life. Human resource managers are being asked (told) to do more with fewer people. This organizational mandate places tremendous pressure on HR professionals and business leaders. It is a real challenge to maintain performance, quality and customer service with fewer people. It is the equivalent of a symphony orchestra conductor being asked to make better sounding music with fewer percussionists and smaller string, woodwind and brass sections. A tough job indeed and it is being further compounded by a shortage of skilled and motivated workers in nearly every segment of the world labour market. The present essay is an attempt to examine and discuss today’s organizations that face a range of people management challenges. To achieve organizational excellence and showcase effectiveness in the modern changing business environment, a roadmap to HR transformation is required. Generally HR department is not looked at as a revenue generating model unless it takes up recruitment consultancy services and delivery of outsourced HR services. It has to understand the prevailing lacunae, have a vision, build a model, validate and implement the delivery approach to make itself a revenue model. More reasonably its HR department has transactional, functional specialization and business strategy units. The focus of HR is to work better, faster and cheaper. Recruiting benefits, administration, training, performance management and record maintenance fall under the transactional services. The crucial strategic planning, knowledge management, career and organizational development fall under the business strategy mode. HR will now tend to have a dual approach of employee-oriented and customer-oriented focus. Many large companies across the world continue to club HR

Implications of the 2012 US elections for the policy making bodies in Essay

Implications of the 2012 US elections for the policy making bodies in the US federal government - Essay Example Furthermore, the analysis will seek to at least minimally explain to what extent the election results have impressed upon the shareholders (inclusive of the President and legislators) of the need to either seek compromise or push single-mindedly towards a highly partisan solution to each and every issue that may face them in the coming years leading up to the next election. As a means to understand this, the key changes that have been effected before and after the November 2012 election will be analyzed. Due to the intrinsically liked nature of the way that the Electoral College and the popular vote within a given state or region is linked, the two have a way of tracking with one another; albeit representing two somewhat different variants (Brown 419). For instance, the 2012 presidential election saw Mr. Romney accrue around 47% of the popular vote and carry 23 states whereas President Obama obtained 51% of the vote and carried 27 states. This of course translated to a victory for Pr esident Obama and the subsequent plurality of Electoral College votes that propelled him to re-election. Naturally, as compared to the two other forms of election results which will herein be discussed, the election for president does not have the same level of nuance. For instance, the overall total number of states won is not important; overall victory of course is. Unlike the Senate or the House of Representatives where an increasing number of seats gives another party a proportionate increase in the power it yields within such a chamber, the victory of the president is less nuanced. In this way, the overall nature of whether the president won in a landslide or won election by a very small margin matters little for the direction that the given president might chose to pursue policy goals and implementation within his term. Of course this is not to say that a first term president will not be mindful of the extent to which he experiences broad based support; quite the contrary. Rat her, it is merely meant to serve as an indication that the presidential election is a much different type of election than those which take place to make up the two houses of legislature. With respect to the Senate, a great deal of change was not incorporated as a result of the election results of 2012. For instance, the 2012 elections incrementally bettered the Democratic position in the Senate by increasing their majority by two seats (53 as compared to 51 previously), it did not provide a fundamental shift in power such as would allow either party to approach issues from a primarily different method of action. Conversely, the result of the US House of Representatives was somewhat different than the result that has thus far been discussed in the Senate. Compared to the last election, the Republicans lost 8 seats to settle at 234 whereas the Democrats of course picked up these 8 seats to settle their total at 201. This of course combined to ensure that the Republican party still ma intained a majority within the House; however, it is of course not a super majority or one that can be used in concert with the Democratically controlled Senate to affect any real level of partisan goals. With respect to the overall policy implications that the aforementioned situation is likely to entail, it will necessarily be a divergence from

LukoilBP Comparison Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

LukoilBP Comparison - Case Study Example Nonetheless, its performance in boosting its market value has been described as hyper in nature as evidenced by the graph below: This ratio is the company's share price at year end divided by basic income per share. Basic earnings per ordinary share amounts are calculated by dividing the profit for the year attributable to ordinary shareholders by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the year. The average number of shares outstanding excludes treasury shares and the shares held by the employee share ownership plans. The following tables detail BP and OAO LUKOIL share price, basic income per share and the price to earnings ratio: BP, having wider operations than LUKOIL, registers a higher P/E ratio. However, computing for the rate of change of the P/E, it is found that LUKOIL is registering much higher growth than BP. The results are shown below: With this information, it can be seen that LUKOIL registers double digits for the P/E ratio. This growth essentially tells the investor that LUKOIL is outperforming BP. Although the investor can expect higher returns for BP, this may not be the case in the future as LUKOIL's P/E growth rate is double that of BP. Basically, the P/E ratio is expected to increase as Basic Earning Per Share are also up with share price also expected to increase because of the good performance of LUKOIL. ... Sample Computation: ( LUKOIL 2005) P/E = Share Price / Basic Earnings Per Share = 59.40 / 7.91 = 7.51 BP, having wider operations than LUKOIL, registers a higher P/E ratio. However, computing for the rate of change of the P/E, it is found that LUKOIL is registering much higher growth than BP. The results are shown below: Table 4. Rate of Change Profile P/E Rate of Change (%) 2003-2004 2004-2005 LUKOIL 13.62 28.60__ BP 6.07 12.36__ The computation for the rate of change was carried on using the following equation: Rate of Change = ( P/E for Year End - P/E for the Previous Year End) * 100% P/E for the Previous Year End With this information, it can be seen that LUKOIL registers double digits for the P/E ratio. This growth essentially tells the investor that LUKOIL is outperforming BP. Although the investor can expect higher returns for BP, this may not be the case in the future as LUKOIL's P/E growth rate is double that of BP. Forecast The most recent available projection for LUKOIL is a 9M 2006 projections and is conveniently compared to 9M 2005. It is shown below: Table 5. Financial Forecast Source: 2006 Financial Results from www.lukoil.ru/ investorcenter Basically, the P/E ratio is expected to increase as Basic Earning Per Share are also up with share price also expected to increase because of the good performance of LUKOIL. The company is currently very aggressive in entering and capturing a major portion of the US market. It has already purchased rights to Getty and its oil distribution facilities in the US. With regards to BP, the P/E ratio is forecasted to increase as well

EEC Position Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

EEC Position Paper - Essay Example While some claim that it is entirely possible to communicate with young babies by using a series of sign language based gestures, others argue that it can inhibit actual language development in the long term. This position paper strives to examine both sides of this issue in order to make an informed determination as to the efficacy of using baby sign language. One of the main arguments revolving around whether or not to use sign language with babies involves the notion that teaching signs to babies will help them to learn more words. It seems that little to no research affirms this belief, however, as it is more likely that body signs and symbols may simply improvement methods of communications between the two parties, and enable the parent to understand what the baby is actually trying to say. While this is certainly important, particularly for frustrated parents who simply cannot determine what their baby might be upset about, it does not indicate that babies actually are learning through the process (DeLoache & Chiong, 2009). To be clear, however, there are still many scholars that do contend that a combination of verbal speech and body or hand gestures can contribute to a baby expanding their vocabulary at an early age. This has been one of the disagreements that make advocating such a position, either in favor or against, so difficul t. It is important to note that baby sign language does not refer to American Sign Language, as it is more talking about communicative gestures made specifically between parents and their young babies. While it is possible to teach a baby American Sign Language, it would be similar to using any type of verbal language, and is not the focus of this study. When referring to the use of baby sign language, however, scholars are typically referring to the action of encouraging babies

How is Text Messaging Affecting Teen Literacy Research Paper

How is Text Messaging Affecting Teen Literacy - Research Paper Example This paper illustrates that as the microprocessor was being developed, information flow between people was at a higher speed and communication flourished. The entry of the internet saw a change in the entire literacy face. People no longer read books, magazines and newspapers but they are reading online. Recent developments in internet technology have seen an emergence of different ways of communication. People no longer sit down and read lengthy novels as literacy has come to be characterised by short texts on phones and computers. A 2009 study of the University of Alabama found that â€Å"Text messaging has surely given our society a quick means through which to communicate, taking out the need for capitalisation, punctuation, the use and knowledge of sentence structure and the detail that make good statements great†. The current world has seen literacy get its definition from the technology that is used to transfer it. A text message language differs from that of an email. Formal language may still be present in the 21st century but it is probably different from the formal language of the 1950s. In the year 2011, the Oxford English Dictionary included an additional text speak lingo in its lexicon. They include LOL – laugh out loud, OMG – oh my god/gosh/goodness, FYI – for your information, BFF – best friends forever, and IMHO – in my honest/humble opinion. Furthermore, the study revealed that some of the expressions used have a history that shows different usage of the same acronyms. For instance, the st

Risky Behaviors in Teens Essay Example for Free

Risky Behaviors in Teens Essay â€Å"Teens are at high behavioral risk for acquiring most STDs. Teenagers and young adults are more likely than other age groups to have multiple sex partners, to engage in unprotected sex, and, for young women, to choose sexual partners older than themselves. Moreover, young women are biologically more susceptible to chlamydia, gonorrhea and HIV. † (http://www. cdc. gov/std/Trends2000/trends2000. pd). In the United States alone teen births are extremely high, they represent about 10 percent of 4 million births each year. Not only does having a child during the teenage years causes social, emotional, and physical problems it also cost the United States 9 billion dollars a year. When having unprotected sex, not only pregnancy is a concern but receiving a sexually transmitted disease is a huge concern as well. In order to treat STDs in America it cost the government $17 million a year. The two most common STDs that teenagers catch are chlamydia, and gonorrhea. As a public health official it is important to know why do teenagers continually put themselves in situations that can alter their lives. Another thing public officials need to look into is the adolescents psychosexual health. There have been so many studies looking at the vantage point on the amount STDs, abortions, and pregnancies teens have. Now that depression is a growing concern in adolescents today, looking into the correlation between sexual activity and depression will be of great help to the public health community (Kosunen,Heino, Rimpela, and Laippala). In order to find these answers we must first examine two human behavioral theories: 1) Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory and 2) the attachment theory. Once we have the answers to the question of why, then we can start the prevention of teen pregnancies and the spread of STDs amongst our youth. Bronfenbrenner is the leading contributor to the ecological systems theory. The ecological theory uses four types of roles and norms that shape children’s development. In order to make the theory is easy-to-understand Bronfenbrenner described it as the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macro system. It is stated that, â€Å"This theory looks at a child’s development within the context of the system of relationships that form his or her environment. Bronfenbrenner’s theory defines complex â€Å"layers† of environment, each having an effect on a child’s development. This theory has recently been renamed â€Å"bio ecological systems theory† to emphasize that a child’s own biology is a primary environment fueling her development. The interaction between factors in the child’s maturing biology, his immediate family/community environment, and the societal landscape fuels and steers his development. Changes or conflict in any one layer will ripple throughout other layers. To study a child’s development then, we must look not only at the child and her immediate environment, but also at the interaction of the larger environment as well† (http://pt3. nl. edu/paquetteryanwebquest. pdf). The microsystem is where the child has direct daily contact with certain structures. The microsystem includes the child’s family, school, daycare, and the child’s neighborhood. Since this is the most important part of the ecological system the relationships have an impact that can go into different directions(both away from the child and towards the child). For example, a child’s parents may affect his beliefs and behavior; however, the child also affects the behavior and beliefs of the parent. Bronfenbrenner calls these bi-directional influences, and he shows how they occur among all levels of environment. The interaction of structures within a layer and interactions of structures between layers is key to this theory. At the microsystem level, bi-directional influences are strongest and have the greatest impact on the child. However, interactions at outer levels can still impact the inner structures. † ((http://pt3. nl. edu/paquetteryanwebquest. pdf). The mesosystem is the connection between the child’s microsystems. This can be the connection between the teacher and the child’s parents. The exosystem is the layer where the child does not function directly. This could be the parent’s work place or work schedule; even though the child does not function directly in this atmosphere the child can still feel the positive or negative consequences associated with the interaction. The macrosystem consists of the child’s culture, values, customs, and laws. For example if the child’s culture believes that it takes a village to raise a child, not only will mom and dad punish you but Ms.  Susie the next door neighbor will too. This gives the parent’s many more resources in order to raise their child in the appropriate way. â€Å"Attachment theory describes the dynamics of long-term relationships between humans especially as within families and between life-long friends. Its most important tenet is that an infant needs to develop a relationship with at least one primary caregiver for social and emotional development to occur normally, and that further relationships build on the patterns developed in the first relationships. Attachment theory is an interdisciplinary study encompassing the fields of psychological, evolution , and ethological theory. † (http://www. absoluteastronomy. com/topics/Attachment_theory). For a lot of adolescents, going into the teen years can be a very stressful transition. This met with a lot of intense challenges and changes. During this time the teen is moving away from his or her parents as their primary attachments figure and are looking towards their friends to be their primary attachment theory. If the teen’s friends are engaging in risky behaviors such as having more than one sexual partners, having unprotected sex, and etc. he teen is more likely to engage in the same type of behavior(Tracey and Shaver p. 2). â€Å"Adolescents interact simultaneously in several social spheressuch as family, peer, and neighborhood systemsthat can serve to either restrain or promote individual behaviors† (DiClemente, Salazar, Crosby, Rosenthalp. 1). The roles of the parents are very important; studies have shown that if parents are more focused on their child’s wellbeing and know the whereabouts of their child, the adolescent is less likely to engage in risky behaviors (Voisin and DiClemente p. ). in understanding how the ecological theory works, if the child or adolescent is surrounded by teen pregnancy, risky behaviors, and the prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases this adolescent will believe that this behavior is okay. It is important for the adolescent to have support inside and outside of his or hers home. It is a belief that teen pregnancy and STDs can be prevented, but the question is how do public health officials began to combat these problems? In January 2011 Frayser high school made national news because 90 girls were pregnant who currently attended the school. â€Å"In Memphis, the teen pregnancy rate is between 15 percent and 20 percent – and in Frayser, the rate is 26 percent, said Deborah Hester Harrison, executive director of Memphis’ Girls Inc. It’s no surprise that Harrison places at least part of the blame on the media, such as the popular MTV shows â€Å"16 and Pregnant† and â€Å"Teen Mom. † (http://fieldnotes. msnbc. msn. com/_news/2011/01/14/5841767-90-pregnancies-at-o ne-high-school). In order for Memphis to fight this epidemic, they have received funding from the Center of Disease Control (CDC) in order to conduct a youth risk behaviors survey and implement effective policies, programs, and practices to avoid, prevent, and reduce sexual risk behaviors among students that contribute to HIV infection, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and pregnancy. (http://www. cdc. gov/healthyyouth/states/locals/tn-memphis. htm). The youth risk behavior survey shows that 90% of teenagers in Memphis do not use protection when having intercourse. The survey also shows that over 60% of teens have had sex are sexually active. Memphis City Schools are implementing a lot of different programs that will teach teens the importance of using protection during sex and the different effects that STDs and pregnancy can have on their lives (http://www. cdc. gov/healthyyouth/states/locals/tn-memphis. htm#1). It is a well-known fact that parents play an important part in their child’s development, there should be a free parenting class to parents that will teach them how to deal with their teens risky behaviors. Also teachers need to be better trained on how they deal with a student’s situation. Schools represent another socializing agent for adolescents and can be a significant source of support. This may be particularly important for many high-risk teenagers, whose families may lack adequate resources and parental support. Adolescents who believe that they are receiving high levels of support in school and feel that they are connected to teachers are less likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors compared with peers reporting less school support or teacher connectedness† (DiClemente, Salazar, Crosby, Rosenthal, p. 1). By involving the parents and teachers into the preventive process teen pregnancy and STDs will decline.