William Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice - 1320 Words

In England’s history, the Elizabethan era was notorious for its anti-Semitism. Jews were segregated by being forced to wear a red hat when outside of the ghetto, and were treated as inferior to the rest of the city. William Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice exhibits the prejudicial attitudes of his era. Antonio, a Christian merchant, makes a deal with Shylock, a Jewish moneylender. Shylock uses it as an opportunity to exact revenge by demanding a pound of Antonio’s flesh if he does not meet his end of the bargain. By pitting the majority of his characters against Shylock, Shakespeare portrays Shylock in a way that discriminates against all Jews. The interactions that Shylock has with Antonio, Jessica, and Portia clearly enforce the idea of anti-Semitism. Shakespeare demonstrates prejudice towards Jews through Antonio’s relationship with Shylock; the bond made between the two Venetians and the trial scene prove the anti-Semitic nature of the play. In the first scene between the two characters, their hatred is introduced and explained. When Antonio and Shylock are discussing the bond, Antonio makes rude comments directly towards Shylock. After he calls him several names, including â€Å"the devil† and â€Å"an evil soul† (1.3.98*online version*), Antonio tells Shylock that he will continue to discriminate against him whether or not the deal is made: â€Å"I am as like to call thee so again, to spet on thee again, to spurn thee too† (1.3.98-99). Antonio is open about his dislikeShow MoreRelatedWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice Essay1624 Words   |  7 PagesWilliam Shakespeare s comedy The Merchant of Venice uses contrasting religions to draw out major themes through the ethnic divides that are exemplified. The play expresses the extreme cultural divide between the Jews and Christians through a legal contract between two men. The rivalry between the two men, Shylock and Antonio is clear from the beginning of the play and only intensifies as it continues on. Modern day readers most likely take away a slightly different message from the play than whatRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice2269 Words   |  10 PagesSamantha Hansen ENG 314 Brother Brugger 12.15.14 The Question of Shylock It is hard to read The Merchant of Venice without finding at least one character to sympathize with. The unforgettable villain Shylock as well as Portia, Shakespeare’s first and one of his most famous heroines are arguably some of this plays most beloved characters. But, is Shylock really the villain? Or is he a victim of circumstance? Shylock’s insistence for a pound of flesh has made him one of literatures most memorableRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1970 Words   |  8 Pagesthe titles are reflective of the protagonists featured within. For example, the famous titles of Julius Caesar and Hamlet tell the tragedies of those respective characters. However, when it comes to William Shakespeare’s fourteenth play, The Merchant of Venice, it can be argued that Antonio, the merchant, is not who the play is about. In fact, there is not just one character, but instead multiple that fit the description of the protagonist. The main plot, or rather p lots, of the play revolve aroundRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1315 Words   |  6 PagesIn The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare the play is based upon the hierarchy between Christian men and Jewish men. A character by the name of Bassanio borrows money from his friend Antonio, and Antonio borrows the money from Shylock to give to Bassanio. Eventually, Antonio cannot pay the money back because his ships have supposedly sunk. Therefore, he comes close to death because he signed a bond with Shylock stating that Shylock would get a pound of his flesh if the bond was not repaidRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1532 Words   |  7 Pagesuseless dialogue can make readers skip over what seems like a false beginning to a good story. But think about this: what if those seemingly lengthy, extra, useless words were actually important? For example, the opening 115 lines of William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice are provide minimal support to the story at first glance. In these lines, Antonio and his friends are discussing the dynamics of happiness and sadness in order to find the root of Antonio’s sad mood. This portion of the play givesRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Merchant Of Venice988 Words   |  4 PagesAs I finished reading Merchant of Venice by Shakespeare, I realized that the struggle of the play gyrates around whether justice is truly served and is morality advocated or manipulated by those in authority. The struggle between the principles of justice have caused many readers to question the interaction between the definition of morality and justice. The bond that causes readers to take a closer look throughout the play originates from Shylock’s desire for vengeance and Antonio’s desireRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1532 Words   |  7 Pagesfundamentalist Americans. The ills of money-lending from the Eastern perspective have been fodder for Western literature for centuries, replete with illustrations that mirror the differences and similarities in East-West cultural norms. In William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, money-lending has gone awry. In Act I, Scene iii, the Italian Antonio seeks to borrow 3,000 ducats from the Jewish Shylock, and Shylock intends to charge him interest, which is against Jewish economic-religious principles (BateRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice Essay1275 Words   |  6 PagesShakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice is so alike to our financially afflicted world. The rules of law and commerce are subject to deceptive manipulation, fear of the other overwhelms respect for a common humanity, duplicity is the norm, sexuality is a vehicle for ambition, and money drives and wraps almost every action. It is a classic tale that includes important details of the financial crisis in the Unit ed States during 2007-2009. Shakespeare’s Venice, like the New York of his time - and theRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice2059 Words   |  9 Pagesin The Merchant of Venice resembles a folktale known as â€Å"A Pound of Flesh† (325). Artese supports his supposition with background context and parallels between the two story lines. Literary versions of the pound of flesh story circulated during the sixteenth century and were collected since the nineteenth century because of the plot’s longevity and populairity Shakespeare would have been familiar with pound of flesh stories (326). Human commodification is a central issue in both The Merchant of VeniceRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The Merchant Of Venice1616 Words   |  7 PagesThe Merchant of Venice offers another unique perspective on crossdressing as it existed on the English Renaissance stage. Howard suggests that Portia’s crossdressing is â€Å"more disruptive than Violaâ€⠄¢s† (Howard, p. 433) because Portia herself was an unruly woman to begin with. Portia has become the master of her own destiny with the passing of her father, for she is referred to as the Lord of Belmont now that no man exists to fill such a role. What remains of the patriarchal authority, particularly

Washington Irvings Rip Van Winkle Shapes American...

Washington Irvings Rip Van Winkle Shapes American Culture Darkness...lowers upon my mind, and the times are so hard they sicken my soul, says Washington Irving in a letter to a friend (Letters 446). This statement reveals Irvings intense emotional condition, and in many ways indicates the intense social atmosphere as well as his personal conflicts, during the composition of The Sketch Book. Upon the bankruptcy of his familys fortune, of which he depended on solely for his monetary security, Irving found himself flung into the galling mortifications of independence (Letters 487). In response to this trauma, he sailed to England to regain his composure and hopefully secure his stake as a writer so he could provide for†¦show more content†¦And this incapacitation resulted in great despondency until one night when speaking to Van Wart (the owner of the house where he stayed). Upon Van Warts attempts to cheer him, Irvings mind suddenly let loose and thoughts came with a rush, faster than he could write them (Williams 168). This is an excerpt describing the night he wrote The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle: ...for being fettered so long by the ice of long mental despondency. Until morning and through the small hours he wrote. At morning the June sun shone through the shutters, revealing him still bent over his table. The Van Warts at breakfast looked up to see him enter, radiant, the fresh manuscript in his hand. He said it had all come back to him; Sleepy Hollow had awakened him from his long dull, desponding slumber; and then he read the first chapters of Rip Van Winkle (Williams 169). The composition of these sketches was sporadic in nature and it seems as if the Muses opened up their floodgates on Irving that night. This aspect of the composition of these stories, as well The Sketch Book as a whole, adds somewhat of a romantic atmosphere on Irving as a writer. Because so many want to believe that authors somehow transcend normal human efforts, and their hands and minds are just vessels for the words, thoughts, andShow MoreRelatedSymbolism In Rip Van Winkle1165 Words   |  5 PagesWashington Irving Rip Van Winkle, a short story written by Washington Irving, is set in the Dutch culture of pre-Revolutionary war in New York and is based on a German folktale. Rip is a farmer that goes into the Kaatskill mountains to get away from his wife but ends up drinking a strange liquor, falls asleep, wakes up 20 years later to find out that the world around him has changed dramatically including the death of his wife and his children growing up. In the story of Rip Van Winkle, Irving intertwinesRead MoreWashington Irving Essay665 Words   |  3 PagesWashington Irving Diedrich Knickerbocker; Geoffrey Crayon; Henry A. Buchanan; Jonathan Oldstyle. All were famous writers of the nineteenth century. All had one important thing in common-they are all one man-Washington Irving. Using these pen names, among many, Irving developed a legacy of utilizing European culture to cultivate American aspects of literature. Fred Lewis Pattee asserted, American short story began in 1819 wit Washington Irving. (Gale Group 4) Irving is best known forRead More The Search for America in Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow3267 Words   |  14 Pagesfor America in Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the early to mid-1800s, Washington Irving was an immensely popular writer heralded as one of the great American writers.   Irvings importance lies especially in Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, the sketches in which he creates the vision of the alternate America(n).   His critique of American society through his main characters-Rip and Ichabod-and the towns in which they live gives shape to an AmericaRead MoreEarly American Literature Essay1511 Words   |  7 Pageswith the triumph of American independence, many at the time saw this as a divine sign that America and her people were destined for greatness. Greatness came with a strong nation and thousands of poems and stories that still shape our nation. The recent revolution greatly expressed the heart of the American people. However, it would take another fifty years of development throughout American before it produced the first great generation of American writers such as, Washington I rving, Ralph WaldoRead MoreWashington Irving and Romanticism Essays1611 Words   |  7 PagesThe short stories of Washington Irving are examples of the literary movement of Romanticism and its characteristics which are evidenced in this author’s works. These characteristics are sometimes found in abundant quantities or limited amounts in each of his short stories. However, no matter what short story Washington Irving wrote, the Age of Romanticism and its defining characteristics are found in each of his selections. So, too, do each of the author’s short stories present a unique study about

Chemical Fertilizer vs. Organic Fertilizers free essay sample

Agriculture is the most primitive occupation of the people which mainly needs land to grow different crops for food and as raw materials for different industries. Industrial use of agriculture for supplying raw materials came much later. Originally land was used for agriculture to supply food for human beings by the use of organic manures particularly animal dung. At the beginning land was used in its natural form to grow food. Land contains natural humus that supplies nutrients for crop. But people began to think that natural fertility of land cannot supply sufficient food crops for human to survive. This belief became concrete when Thomas Robert Malthus wrote in 1798 that population grows at a faster rate than the growth of food by the famous quote, â€Å"food grows at arithmetic progression and population grows at geometric progression. † As we cannot survive without food; so we have to grow more food to feed the fast growing population. To grow more food we have to add plant nutrition and research on plant nutrition began perhaps in 19th century after the publication of Malthusian Theory. In the 19th century a German chemist Justus von Liebig started the modern science of plant nutrition denouncing the vitalist theory of humus. For the first time he argued the importance of ammonia and in later course tried to promote the idea of using inorganic minerals to plant nutrition. Thus the concept of using fertilizer began and different types of inorganic fertilizer are manufactured and in this manner Erling Johnson in 1927 developed an industrial method of producing nitrophosphate. During the 19th century in England fertilizer companies were established and commercial production of inorganic fertilizer began and the debate on uses of organic versus inorganic was also started. In India widespread use of inorganic fertilizer began in 1968 which ushered a Green Revolution by large production of wheat using High Yielding Varieties of Seeds (HYV Seeds) ‘The HYV Seeds was first introduced in India by Dr. Norman Borlaug and the credit for introducing the Green Revolution goes to Dr. M. S. Swaminathan WHAT ARE FERTILIZERS? Fertilizers can be defined as a chemical or natural substance added to soil to increase its fertility. Fertilizers contain nutrients that promote plant growth. Created from numerous ingredients, derived from animals and commercial products, fertilizers are necessary for maximizing a plants health and size. Fertilizers can be composed of organic or inorganic material of natural or synthetic origin that is added to a soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants. Manure and compounds contain nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, which are spread on or worked into soil to increase capacity of crop yield. Fertilizers are available in various forms. The most classic form is solid fertilizer found in granulated or powdered forms. The next most common form is liquid fertilizer. It has some advantages like its effectiveness is immediate and its coverage is wide. There are also slow-release fertilizers most notably fertilizer spikes, tabs, etc. which reduce the problem of burning the plants due to excess nitrogen. Recently, organic fertilizer is on high rise as people are resorting to environmental friendly (or green) products. Though organic fertilizers usually contain a lower concentration of nutrients, this lower concentration avoids complication of nitrogen burn harming the plants. Moreover ,organic fertilizers such as compost and worm castings break down slowly into complex organic structures (humus) which constructs the soils structure and moisture- and nutrient-retaining capabilities. CLASSIFICATION OF FERTILIZERS: Fertilizers can be broadly classified into two types: (1)Organic Fertilizers or Chemical Fertilizers (2)Inorganic Fertilizers Chemical Fertilizers: A chemical fertilizer may be as defined as any inorganic material of wholly or partially synthetic origin that is added to the soil to sustain plant growth. Since chemical fertilizers are synthetically derived from inorganic materials , they may have some harmful acids, which stunt the growth of microorganisms found in the soil helpful for plant growth naturally. They’re mostly rich in the three essential nutrients needed for plant growth viz. nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium popularly known as â€Å"NPK†. Some examples of chemical fertilizers are ammonium sulphate , ammonium phosphate, ammonium nitrate, urea, ammonium chloride ,etc. ADVANTAGES OF CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS: Some of the major advantages of using chemical fertilizers are as following: (1)Commercial chemical fertilizers have the advantage of predictability and reliability. (2)Formulations of this type of fertilizers are blended with accuracy and we can buy different blends for different types of plants as per our requirement. (3)Commercial chemical fertilizers contains a balanced distribution of the three main essential nutrients needed for plant growth: nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. The amount of percentage of the three main ingredients is listed in an order on the fertilizer labels as the N-P-K ratio. 4) In addition to these three basic nutrients some fertilizer formulations may also contain iron, sulfur and cooper. Commercial formulated fertilizers allow us to know exactly which nutrients we’re giving our plants. DISADVANTAGES OF CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS: Some of the major disadvantages of using chemical fertilizers are as following: (1)Cont inuous use of chemical fertilizers led to degradation of soil health as farmers are now forced to use more and more chemical fertilizers to achieve the same production level thus making the cost of cultivation high. (2)Commercial chemical fertilizers are more expensive than natural fertilizers. 3)Some fertilizers may contain ingredients that may have high acid content or toxic substances which may burn our skin or affect adversely to our respiratory system. (4)We also need to mix and measure them accurately. If we use access of the fertilizers than it can kill our plants. (5)Chemical fertilizers escape from soil and pollute groundwater, lakes, rivers, kill bacteria and other microorganisms in the soil making it infertile. ORGANIC FERTILIZERS: Organic fertilizers are fertilizer compounds that contain one or more than one kinds of organic matter. The ingredients may include animal or vegetable matter or a combination of the two. Some naturally occurring organic materials are chicken litter, manure, worm castings, compost, seaweed, guano, bone meal or naturally occurring mineral deposits for e. g. saltpeter can be used to form organic fertilizers. Poultry litter and cattle dung often create environmental and disposal problems, making their use as a constituent of fertilizer. Bones of dead animals can be processed into phosphate-rich bone meal; however, most are simply buried in landfills. Recent studies show that urine can also be improved by converting it to struvite , which already has been experimented by a Dutch firm using human urine. The conversion is performed by adding magnesium to the urine. The economical advantage of using urine as fertilizer is that it contains a large amount of phosphorus which is an important ingredient for plant growth. Leguminous cover crops are also grown to enrich soil as a green manure through nitrogen fixation from the atmosphere; as well as phosphorus (through nutrient mobilization) content of soils. ADVANTAGES OF ORGANIC FERTILIZERS: Some of the major advantages of using organic fertilizers are as following: (1) Organic fertilizers are known to improve biodiversity , soil life and long-term productivity of soil, and may prove a large depository for excess carbon dioxide. (2) Organic nutrients increase the abundance of soil organisms by providing organic matter and micronutrients for organisms such as fungal mycorrhiza , bacteria (which aid plants in absorbing nutrients), and can drastically reduce external inputs of pesticides and chemical fertilizer, at the cost of decreased yield. 3) In nature, decomposition of organic matter creates a natural fertilizer. Applying organic compost or well-aged herbivore manure adds nutrient-rich organic material to the soil, improving quality and texture of the soil. (4) Adding organic material to the soil improves and increases its ability to hold water; reduces erosion from water and wind; increases soil organic matter; improves soil structure and tilth ;decreases compaction and crusting of the soil; and raises soil phosphate. (5) Natural fertilizers are less likely to burn tender, young plants as they are less concentrated in acid and toxic substances than chemical fertilizers. 6)Natural fertilizers are cheap, easily available and easy to handle. DISADVANTAGES OF ORGANIC FERTILIZERS: Some of the major disadvantages of organic fertilizers are as following: (1) The nutrients in organic fertilizers are not equal and unevenly distributed. Moreover organic fertilizers may contain pathogens and other disease causing organisms if not properly composted. (2) Nutrient contents are variable and their release to available forms that the plant can use may not occur at the right plant growth stage. (3) Natural fertilizers are slow in breaking down the nutrients it contains to the growing plants/crops requires. 4) Many natural fertilizers, such as manure, seaweed or fish oil are quite smelly as they release foul odour and are too offensive to use on indoor plants. (5)Gathering natural materials, such as animaldung, grass clippings and leaves, to add to the compost pile is labor-intensive and time-consuming. (6) Organic materials break down at different rates, so the composition and content of organic fertilizer is never consistent. Therefore from the above given Advantages and Disadvantages of chemical as well as organic fertilizers we can draw the following comparisions between the two: ? NPK Ratio: In chemical fertilizer it is 20 to 60% but in organic fertilizer it is about 14%. ?Rate of production: Immediate supply in case of chemical fertilizer and in case of organic fertilizer its release is slow. ?Source: Chemical fertilizers are manufactured from synthetic material but it is reverse in case of organic fertilizers as they are made from materials derived from living things. ?Preparation: Chemical fertilizers are artificially prepared but organic fertilizers are prepared naturally and that is why one can prepare organic fertilizers, themselves or can also buy. Cost: Chemical fertilizers are costly but organic fertilizers are cheap and easily affordable. ?Nutrients: Chemical fertilizers have equal distribution of three essential nutrients: phosphorous, nitrogen, potassium but The nutrients in organic fertilizers are not equal and unevenly distributed. ?Effect on environment: Both has some effect on environment but the larger effect is being created by chemical ferti lizers. CONCLUSION: Population on this earth is increasing day by day but the crop yield is not sufficient. So in order to keep the pace organic fertilizers were insufficient, thus modern techniques of farming were introduced which includes chemical fertilizers. But when people came to know the drawbacks of these chemical fertilizers ,people started making a transition to organic farming. Thus we come to a conclusion that neither of chemical fertilizer nor organic fertilizers are fully/wholly perfect. It is a controversial matter in the society that people are opposing the use of chemical fertilizer and supporting to use organic fertilizers. They say that it is more eco friendly and safer to people sustaining on earth. It may be a misconception to believe that just because a fertilizer is organic, it is automatically safer. Whatever may be the contradiction and controversy of the use of chemical fertilizer over organic fertilizers or vice-versa ,it is the duty of the people of a society , agricultural sectors as well as Governments to implement and invent new fertilizers which coexist the characteristics of both chemical and organic fertilizers and make our surroundings clean and mother earth pollution free.

Aphra Behn essays

Aphra Behn essays [...] a Devil on't the Woman damns the Poet. Aphra Behn, Preface to The Lucky Chance Aphra Behn (1640-1689) was not the first woman writer; neither was she the only woman writer of her day. But Aphra Behn holds the singular distinction of being the first professional woman writer in the English language. That's right, ladies Aphra Behn was the first woman writer who did it for money. It was a natural choice for this young woman, a recent spy for the crown and a widow at the age of 26, to turn to selling herself (in a manner of speaking) in order to survive.Many other women of the period did so; but instead of novels and plays, they sold something much more fundamental and far more common. Single women, whether spinsters or widows, often allowed themselves to be kept by rich men of the commons and nobility alike. Mrs. Behn chose not to sell herself but her wits and words, and was branded a whore for her efforts. Not much is known of her origins. Most biographers seem to agree she was born Aphra Johnson in or around 1640, and that she acquired her education and her connections at court through a noble childhood friend for whom her mother acted as a wet-nurse. She very likely traveled with her family to Surinam in her early 20s; at the age of 26, after having been briefly married to a Mr. Behn (of which nothing is known), she went to Antwerp as a spy for the crown. The mission was singularly unsuccessful, and she returned to England a debtor (very likely serving a short term in prison). When she got out, she began to write, at first "for bread," but soon she made it clear that she was writing not only for money but for fame and also to fulfill what she called "my masculine part, the poet in me" clearly asserting her rights as an artist despite her gender. She ...

The French Revolution1 essays

The French Revolution1 essays There was a loud thunk as the blade hit, and then a roar of the crowd as another noblemans head was raised, after being cut off. The French Revolution (1789-1795) was one if not the most bloodiest revolutions ever in history. There were three social classes in France known as the Estates-General. The French revolutionists took the phrase Liberty, Equality, Fraternity as their slogan into battle (Comptons Interactive Encyclopedia). They were out to win equality, even if it meant sacrificing their own lives for it. Stands between King Louis XVI and the Estates-General are what caused the revolution. Despite their efforts to bring France to a new form government, one, which would serve the common people, France still fell into a state of corruption. The Estates-General were made up of the clergy, nobles, and the common people. It was known to have been around since 1302 (Comptons Inter. Encyclopedia) but wasnt really used again until 1788 when King Louis XVI was forced to call the almost forgotten body together again. Most all of the taxes were paid by the common people (third estate), very little were paid by the other two estates. This was one of the reasons that caused the treasury to go dry, which made Louis XVI call the Estates-General together. King Louis XVI greeted the Estates-General warmly on May 5 1789. Sirs, this day which my heart awaited since a long time has finally arrived and I see myself surrounded by the representatives of the nation which I am honored to command. The debt of the state, already immense on my coming to the throne, has accumulated during my reign. The increase in tax has been the unavoidable result and had been rendered more painful by their unequal distribution. (The Fr. Rev. and the Estates-Gen.pg.2) Louis decided to start making the first and second estates pay some taxes, still not as much as the third estate. This did how...

Gateway art Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Gateway art - Assignment Example She adds voice to her portraits by including calligraphy on the images, one of the calligraphy is a poem by feminist contemporary Iranian poet. Farrokhzad was one of the renowned Iran female poets whose work enticed Neshat to include in her paintings. Artistically works and poems were the main channels the Muslim women could use in revolution against their frustrations with the social and cultural restrictions. Following Iranian unveiling in 1936 the Irans women bodies were unveiled, subsequently female poets and artists like Neshat started revealing their thoughts, emotions and desire (Meskimmon, 2012). Neshat portrays Iranian women determination in executing their mission by the picture of her self-cladding in a black chador with her rifle aiming at the viewer. This portrait is unlike the others that do not direct their weapons at the audience the black veil leaves only the upper part of her face visible. Neshat grew up in an era before the Islamic revolution when Shahs government was trying to promote secular culture. She employs the art of photography in self-expression when she displays the characteristics of Iranian society culture and traditions. All the images covered in the women of Allah illustrate the theme of bound restriction, silence, old-fashioned and the violent Muslim women (Sheybani, 1999). Historically Islam religion and believes hold it that a womans body is a battleground for several kinds of rhetoric and political ideology. Neshat uses photography in exploring the relation between a Muslim woman and the positions that she inhabits. The traditional arrangements of the western democratic society were making efforts in eliminating difference and boundaries, comparatively contrary to Islamic culture where Islamic men and women holding different spaces are meant to come together to create a cohesive unit. Women of Allah series was Neshats artwork after visiting Iran in 1990 she makes a

The Benefits of Understanding Financial Ratios Essay

The Benefits of Understanding Financial Ratios - Essay Example Within the questions that were considered were the specific ratios CFAs use to measure liquidity, long-term debt paying ability, and probability; and what are the relative importance of specific financial ratios. While there were sixty-ratios considered, a number of prominent points emerged. In these regards, it’s noted that a single ratio oftentimes functions to measure more than one aspect of financial health. One example is that a ratio of days’ sales measures both liquidity and profitability. In terms of the most important financial ratio, analysts placed the most emphasis on return on equity after tax. b) Specification of thesis – main point The main point thesis of the article is that financial analysis places great emphasis on the corporate annual report and the financial ratios that examine it. A further thesis is that financial ratios have a varying degree of importance in terms of a variety of financial categories, specifically liquidity, long-term debt paying ability, and profitability. c) Supporting opinions/reasons There is a great body of research that supports the notion that financial ratios are an integral part of determining a firm’s financial performance. ... al to measuring a business’ financial performance and future viability; in addition they add the DuPont Ratio as a significant financial ratio for analysis. Financial ratios have also been extended to examine the financial strength of a firm when enlisting an underwriter before an IPO; this perspective was noted by Quantitative Applications in Economics & Finance (2008). Another prominent perspective was advanced by Kaufman (1995). Kaufman (1995) considered that bank failures are oftentimes linked and anticipated by the key financial ratio of low capital-to-assets. d) Opposing opinions/reasons While there are a number of strong elements supporting these understandings of financial rations, there are also a number of opposing perspectives. One perspective, as proposed by Ming-Yuan, Meng-Feng, et all (2007), argues that instead of financial ratios, behavioral determinants of firms’ oversees financing policies function as the primary analytic criteria. This study examined behavioral factors of, â€Å"(1) persistence behavior effects, (2) mental account effects, (3) the year of the company, (4) attraction effect, (5) character qualifications of managers and (6) overseas investment effects† (Ming-Yuan, Meng-Feng, et all 2007, pg. 183) in attempting to determine financial strength. The study revealed that there were statistically significant correlations between behavioral aspects and firms’ oversees financing decisions. Even more notable, financial ratios were not influential in these decisions. Another prominent consideration was that advanced by Pantos (2008). Pantos (2008) argues that previous arguments, specifically those of Emm and Gay (2005), that high concentration ratios can demonstrate significant risk implications in over-the-counter derivatives markets are