Jane Eyre Essay Free Essays

In the novel Jane Ere, Charlotte Bronze describes and expresses the life of the protagonist, Jane, through the character’s own eyes. As Jane begins to explain her story to the reader, It Is shown fairly quickly that she leads, perhaps not a terrible, but an ill-fated life. Bronze uses this to her full advantage, swirling different styles into the tale through Cane’s sense of self or outlook on the world, her discovery of the truths of her relationships, and the bizarre events that take place over the course of the story. We will write a custom essay sample on Jane Eyre Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now These styles are romantic and gothic, and Bronze incorporates aspects from OTOH In her novel in a way that they smoothly advance the story. The style Bronze uses for Jeans personality Is romantic. Bronze gives Jane very romantic character traits. Jane may at first be considered a very common or ordinary person but she is in truth very original, â€Å"[when Rochester expresses his surprise that she is thus]† (). Even Mr.. Rochester, one of the few people she’s become close to, is surprised to discover how unique Cane’s mind is. It Is her mind, in fact, that he comes to love so much. Another clear example of romanticism is how Jane freely expresses herself, â€Å"It was Bessie†¦ UT I did not stir†¦ I was not disposed to care much for the nursemaid’s transitory anger, and I was disposed to bask In her youthful lightness of heart. I just put my two arms around her and said, ‘Come, Bessie! Don’t scold! ‘ the action was†¦ Frank and fearless† (36). Even as a young child Jane was rather bold, and this trait only grew more as she aged. She does not hesitate to express herself even with Mr.. Rochester, who was in a higher social class than herself. Being individual, thoughtful and expressing things freely, which Jane is and does, are all elements of a mantic writing style, clearly showing that Bronze uses this style In her novel. The style Bronze uses for many of the settings In Cane’s life Is gothic. The events and settings that happen throughout Cane’s life tend to have a supernatural or dark feel to them. Shortly after Jane had agreed to marry Mr.. Rochester for the first time there was a great storm, â€Å"It [the chestnut-tree] writhed and groaned†¦ [It] had been struck by lightning†¦ And half of it split away/’ (275-76). This is an example of gothic elements because what happens to the tree represents what Is going to happen In he near future, giving It a supernatural effect. The tree comes to represent Cane’s and Mr.. Rochester relationship: how they part ways, then come back together after a time. The school that Jane goes to as a child and young woman is described as a very gloomy place; the girls at Elwood were forced to go outside for an hour in the cramped garden, where it was so cold that they developed chilblains. After which, there was no solace because the students didn’t have enough food to revive, or fire to warm (59-60). Nearly all the children were hungry and cold; It was not until the bring that It began to get warmer and soul the students were starved. Besides that, an even darker event happened at Elwood – many students, including her friend Helen, die of typhus. The presence of desolation, gloom, and mysterious events all point to Bronze having used gothic traits in her writing. Throughout the novel, Bronze combines both romantic and gothic writing styles. She does this very well, so that the reader doesn’t feel as if the story Is disjointed or awkward. After Jane and Mr.. Rochester’s wedding Is stopped, Mr.. Rochester shows Bertha, who is a schizophrenic. Knowing now that she cannot marry Edward, and she does not want to become his mistress, Jane decides to leave Threefold for good (316-320). The romantic trait of this situation was that Jane decided to leave, even though she really did not want to, because she had to do what was best for her. The gothic aspect was Mr.. Rochester’s wife; a mad-woman who was living in his attic and had tried to kill him multiple times. After about a year, Jane is once more drawn to Mr.. Rochester; Jane hears Mr.. Rochester’s voice call out to her right before she is about to agree to marrying SST. John and decides that night that she will leave SST. John and the others to pursue what she wants, and that is to find out what became of Edward (456-459). The gothic, clearly, is how Jane can hear Mr.. Rochester call out to her even though they are miles and miles apart. The romantic is that, once again, Jane decides on what she is going to do based on what best for her, as an individual. In both of these situations, the romantic and gothic aspects come together and add interest to Bronze’s novel. In conclusion, Charlotte Bronze’s novel, Jane Ere combines romantic and gothic rating styles fluently in order to tell Cane’s story. The romantic elements were usually infused to Cane’s own character; the way she thought, her personality, and the way she lived her life. It was the settings and events that took place, however, that held the gothic elements; Elwood, the storm, Mr.. Rochester’s wife Bertha, and how she came back to Mr.. Rochester himself for Just a few examples. The way Bronze accomplished this feat is what drew in many people to reading, then consequently liking, her works and these affects continues to this day. How to cite Jane Eyre Essay, Essays

Barclays Bank - Regulatory Framework Of Financial Reporting

Question: Discuss the accounting policies of Barclays Bank Plc. Answer: Introduction Barclays is a British multinational financial and banking administrations which has its headquarters within London. The bank has widespread operations in investment and wholesale banking, retail, wealth management, credit cards emulated by mortgage lending. It has operations in atleast 50 nations along with divisions and subsidiaries having almost 48 million clients. In accordance with 31 December 2011 Barclays had complete resources of US$2.42 trillion, the seventh-biggest of any bank around the world (Zineldin, 2012). This particular bank is sorted out inside these business groups: Business and Retail Banking, corporate and investment banking, wealth and investment management. The Corporate and Investment Banking, Wealth and Investment Management group embodies 3 specialties units: Corporate banking; Investment banking and Investment and wealth management. The Business and retail Banking group incorporate 4 specialties units: Business banking and Africa Retail (counting Absa Group); Europe Retail and Business Banking; and UK Retail; Barclaycard (Mastercard and advance procurement); and last but not the least, the business banking (Barclays, 2014). As a centered global bank, Barclays offers an incorporated diverse range of services and products across retail banks, investment banking, wealth management and corpoarte banking. They serve people, little and expansive organizations, enterprises, foundations and governments. Barclays tries to fulfill the needs of their clients and customers by providing a balanced value within an extensive variety of products and services and in this manner convey a smoother cash flow and effective returns. Then again, they don't try to offer all things to all individuals. The competitive advantage of Barclays emerges from the diversity and scale of their business and the quality, relationships and character of their people. The investments within the subsidiaries incorporate Absa Group Limited that is located in South Africa, Barclaycard, Barclays Africa, Barclays Croatia, Barclays France, Barclays India, Barclays Investment Bank, Barclays Private Clients International, Barclays Morocco, Barclay Pakistan, Barclays Partner Finance and etc. Regulatory Framework of Financial Reporting The integrity within the financial statements is supported by the control environment relating to the formation of the annual reports. In such manner, the Committee gives priority to the considertation of the consequences of the evaluations Groups turnbull, its Sarbanes-Oxley s404 inward process related to internal control and the unlucky deficiency of any evidences related to misrepresentation identifying with matters related to financial reporting (Zeff, 2010). The Committee likewise fulfilled itself that there were relevant processes related to verification and standards by which senior administration validated an exactness of the genuine content and a procedure to back up the representations to the external auditors made by the board. It did this by developing arguments over the yields from the Disclosure Committee's audit of the annual statements, incorporating an evaluation of disclosure controls and methodologies, and by requesting that the administration should make a clarifi cation and proof the premise on which the representations were made to the auditors (Garrett, 2014). The Disclosure Committee is an administration advisory group, led by the Director of the Group Finance, who makes a consideration of the content, exactness and disclosure tone, reporting its decisions to the Board Audit Committee and Executive Group Committee. The Committee also made a consideration of the reports from the inward and external auditor identifying with these viewpoints. Likewise, the control isssues in the IT environment are also discussed by the Committee, which are liable to plans related to remediation. Extra measures have been taken, including compensation controls, to guarantee that the controls over the frameworks supporting the money related reporting methods can be depended upon (Graham, 2010). The Committee was fulfilled, given the consequences of the testing of the controls related to compensating, that the respectability of the financial control environment was relevant. One other real component of the process related to financial reporting incorporates the key estimates and assumptions or judgments that definitely must be made. In front of publication of the half-year and entire year comes about, the Committee makes an analysis in detail the principle assumptions and judgements made by administration. There is an additional consideration as to whether, in those ranges where the policy is associated to the accounting decisions may be made, suitable approaches had been chosen. The prudent judgement judgments have been made as to financial reporting, that the financial statements give a genuine and reasonable perspective of the financial position of the company and that the analysis is made on an independent basis by the auditors in the interest of their owners is both effective and objective. Likewise, the Committee also discusses about control issues in the IT environment, which are liable to plans related to remediation (Dunn, 2013). The Disclosure Committee is an administration advisory group, led by the Group Finance Director, which considers the content, exactness and tone of the disclosures, reporting its decisions to the Group Executive Committee and the Board Audit Committee. The Committee additionally considered reports from the inward and external auditor identifying with these viewpoints. Accounting Policies The carrying value of goodwill is determined as per IFRS 3 Business Combinations IAS 36 Impairment of Assets. The Goodwill evolves on the acquisition of joint ventures and associates, subsidiaries, and signifies to the overabundance of the FV i.e. purchase faire value and acquisition thought over the FV of the Group's share of the assets gained and the liabilities and unexpected liabilities accepted on the date of the obtaining. Goodwill is looked into every year for impedance, or all the more much of the time when there are signs that impairment may have happened. This is further illustrated below: The test includes contrasting the carrying value of goodwill and the present estimation of the pretax CFs i.e. cash flows, marked down at an interest rate that mirrors the innate risks, of the (CGU) i.e. cash generation unit to which the goodwill relates, or the fair value of Cash Generation Unit if it is higher. If any other company within the same industry is to be compared in accordance with the impairment of assets and goodwill, then the Royal Bank of Scotland can be a better option here (Barclays , 2013). The intangible assets incorporate goodwill emerging on the acquisition of joint ventures and subsidiaries. Goodwill on the acquisition of a subsidiary is the overabundance of the FVof the transferred consideration, the FV of any current interest for the subsidiary and the measure of any non-controlling interest measured either at its share of the subsidiary's net resources over the Group's interest for the net FV of the subsidiary's identifiable resources, liabilities and unfor eseen liabilities. Goodwill emerges on the acquisition of a joint venture when the investment cost surpasses the share of the group of the net fair value of the joint venture's identifiable resources and liabilities. Goodwill is measured at starting cost less any resulting losses impairment. Goodwill emerging on the acquisition of associates is incorporated inside their carrying amounts. The increase or loss on the disposal of joint venture, associate and subsidiary incorporates the carrying value of any related goodwill. The internally generated goodwill and brands is written off when they are incurred. Direct expenses identifying with the development of inward utilize a software that are promoted once specialized plausibility and financial feasibility have been made. These expenses incorporate finance, the expenses of materials and administrations, and specifically attributable overheads. Capitalization of expenses stops when the product is fit for working as proposed (Clark, 2012 ). Amid and after improvement, accumulated expenses are surveyed for disability against the advantages that the product is required to produce. Expenses brought about before the foundation of specialized feasibility and financial practicality are expensed as acquired similar to every single preparing cost and general overheads. The expenses of licenses to utilize PC programming that are relied upon to create economic advantages past one year also gets capitalized. Financial Instruments The financial instruments of the company include Corporate bonds, Government Bonds, Equities, Asset backed securities, Commercial real estate loans etc. The financial risks faced by the company include the following: A credit risk is the measure of potential for default that is intrinsic in a given extension of credit or debt investment. A bank or a financial specialist in different sorts of bonds conveys a level of credit risk on any conductance of transaction. Evaluating the level of risk included is fundamental before finishing any sort of lending or investment transaction Funding risk is the likelihood that a business may not have entry to the financing it needs at a moderate rate. Regularly, a strategies for success to utilize a blend of equity and credit financing to finance its operations. The expense of financing is the interest that the organization needs to pay to secure the external funds. A business can just envision the future interest rate on a wellspring of funds. The risk that the credit business may change and funds get to be more lavish is the subsidizing risk in a business' financing arrangement (Chisnall, 2012). Market risk is the normal risk connected with the estimation of a group of assets or ventures. A speculation's worth is liable to the financial changes and events of the marketplace. Hence, huge positive or negative changes in the business sector might seriously affect the estimation of investments or assets held by organizations or people. A case of this on a vast scale is the U.S. lodging rise of 2005-2008; sub-prime home loans kept in touch with people not able to reimburse the credits conveyed high hazard for loan specialists. The bubble burst that gets to be unsustainable, setting off a major financial collapse in the mortgage and banking industries. Measures The following measures were taken by Barclays for managing the risk mentioned above. Asked for particular reports and analysis on these matters assessed the potential effect on financing expenses and streams of a credit rating agency minimization, given the loss of sovereign support scoring and potential administration activities to keep up the liquidity scope Assessed the potential effect on planned deposit balance of an increment in interest rates and accessible administration activities. Followed advancement against target capital and influence degrees and accessible administration activities to accomplish the target, debating normal reports from Barclays' Treasurer. Evaluated the quality of risk set up to guarantee that growth remains inside the risk appetite. Accounting policies of the company to recognise post-employment benefits The incentives for an employee incorporate shares and shares option, and also offering representatives the chance to purchase shares on positive terms. The expense associated with representative services got in admiration of the shares or offer alternatives conceded is perceived in accordance with the pay explanation over the period that employees give services, by and large the period between the date the grant is allowed or advised and the date for vesting of the options or shares. The general expense of the award is computed utilizing the quantity of shares and options anticipated that would vest and the FV of the shares or alternatives at the grant date(Barclays, 2014). The quantity of options and shares anticipated that would vest considers the probability that service and performance terms that are incorporated in the conditions of the award will be met. Inability to meet the non-vesting condition is dealt with as a cancellation, bringing about a speeding up of recognition of the expense of the employee services. The reasonable estimation of shares is the business sector value administering on the date of grant, now and again changed in accordance with transfer-ability restrictions. The FV of granted options is resolved utilizing alternative models being estimated to gauge the quantities of shares prone to vesting. These consider the options exercise price, the current offer value, the rate of interest that is risk free, the normal instability of the offer cost over the life of the alternative and other significant components. Economic situations that must be met in place for the award to vest are likewise reflected in the FV of the award, just li ke some other non-vesting conditions , for example, keeping on making installments into a share based scheme related to savings. Different employee benefits trusts secured by the Group hold shares in Barclays PLC to meet commitments under the Barclays offer based installment plans. The total number of Barclays shares held in these employee benefit trusts at 31 December 2014 was 5.2 million (2013: 3.2 million). Profit rights have been waived on these shares. The aggregate market value of the shares held in trust in view of the year end share price of 2.43 (2013: 2.72) was 12.6m (2013: 8.7m). This is further illustrated below: References Barclays , 2013. Barclays Annual Report 2013, s.l.: Barclays. Barclays, 2014. Barclays Annual Report 2014, s.l.: Barclays. Chisnall, P., 2012. The way ahead on financial instruments: the banks have their say. Balance Sheet, 9(4), pp. 11-21. Clark, K. N., 2012. The Effects of Sarbanes Oxley on Current Financial Reporting Standards, s.l.: Liberty University. Dunn, P., 2013. The Impact of Insider Power on Fraudulent Financial Reporting. Journal of Management, 30(3), pp. 397-412. Garrett, J., 2014. Trust and Financial Reporting Quality. Journal of Accounting Research, 52(5), pp. 1087-1125. Graham, J. R., 2010. The economic implications of corporate financial reporting. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 40(5), pp. 3-73. Zeff, S. A., 2010. Some obstacles to global financial reporting comparability and convergence at a high level of quality. The British Accounting Review, 39(2), pp. 290-302. Zineldin, M., 2012. Bank strategic positioning and some determinants of bank selection. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 14(6), pp. 12-22.

St. Polycarp Bishop and Martyr free essay sample

Indeed, Irenaeus also noted that Anicetus conceded to Polycarp in the Church the celebration of the Eucharist, by way of showing him respect; Anicetus and Polycarp parted in peace leaving the question unsettled. .Outside of the account of St. Stephen’s Martyrdom as recorded in Acts chapter 7, the letter entitled â€Å"The Martyrdom of Polycarp† is considered one of the earliest, genuine accounts of Christian martyrdom, and is one of the very few genuine accounts from the actual age of the persecutions.In reading the account of his Martyrdom, I noticed some similarities between Polycarp’s execution and the events that led up to it and that of Jesus’s own crucifixion. 1) A member of his own household betrayed Polycarp, Judas betrayed Christ. â€Å" since those that betrayed him were of his own household. The Irenarch then (whose office is the same as that of the Cleronomus ), by name Herod, hastened to bring him into the stadium. We will write a custom essay sample on St. Polycarp Bishop and Martyr or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This all happened] that he might fulfill his special lot, being made a partaker of Christ, and that they who betrayed him might undergo the punishment of Judas himself. ( from The Martyrdom of Polycarp) 2) Both prayed prior to their arrest 3) Jesus was nailed to a crossSo at length the lawless men, seeing that his body could not be consumed by the fire, ordered an executioner to go up to him and stab him with a dagger. And when he had done this, there came forth [a dove and] a quantity of blood, so that it extinguished the fire; and all the multitude marvelled that there should be so great a difference between the unbelievers and the elect. † (from The Martyrdom of Polycarp). Polycarps life and death provides an inspirational example for all Christians. He gave his earthly life for Christ, and in the midst of his sacrifice, he gained eternal life. |

Dancing Ghost Halloween Science Magic Trick

Dancing Ghost Halloween Science Magic Trick This Halloween, make a paper ghost dance in the air, as if by magic! This is a simple and educational holiday science project. Dancing Ghost Materials Light-weight paper works best for this project, such as tissue paper, paper towels, toilet paper or printer paper. paperscissorsballoon Make the Ghost Dance! Cut a ghost shape out of the paper. If you cant cut out a ghost or draw one freehand, search Google images for paper ghost cut-out and print a pattern.Blow up the balloon and tie it off.Rub the balloon on dry hair.Slowly edge the balloon toward the paper ghost. You can make the ghost move in response to the balloon and even make it dance in the air. How It Works When you rub a balloon on your hair, some of the electrons from your hair move over to the balloon, producing a charge of static electricity. The electrons have a negative charge. They are attracted to objects that have a positive electrical charge, like paper. Even though static electricity is invisible, it is powerful enough to draw the paper toward it. When the paper and balloon come into contact, the charge is neutralized and the paper falls back down. More Projects More Halloween Science ProjectsScience Halloween Jack-o-LanternsBend Water With Static ElectricityWater Into Blood Science Trick

Water Supply Jacksonville Florida Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Water Supply Jacksonville Florida - Essay Example In the year 2014, the Florida department of environmental protection performed a detailed assessment of the water system for potential contaminants (Jacksonville Electric Authority, 2014). The potential contaminants are the major grid with 49 sources and the Ponce de Leon grid with three sources. However, further studies on the potential pollutants portrayed a lower to moderate rate of susceptibility. The water in the region is hard water. The question is what is hard water? Affirmatively water can be described as hard water if it contains high levels of minerals that are dissolved. The minerals are such as magnesium and calcium. However, hard water does not pose a health risk, on the contrary, calcium and magnesium is important to human health (Jacksonville Electric Authority, 2014). Most individuals use the magnesium as antacids or common supplements. Hard water may leave spots on utensils; however, this can be removed by use of vinegar. Conclusively the water supply in Florida is safe for the health of the residents. Considerably the hard water in the region does not pose any health implications. Nevertheless, the spots it leaves on utensils can be removed by use of vinegar.

Introduction to the Special Section on Dramatic Play Essay - 1

Introduction to the Special Section on Dramatic Play - Essay Example Dreams can occur in any of four stages of sleep. But the most memorable and flamboyant dreams occur in REM sleep or last stage of sleep. Sleep cycle reiterates itself about four to five times on average per night, but can be repeated as many as seven times. Therefore, one can imagine why people have different dreams during one night. But, mostly people only remember the dreams that happen during the time they are about to wake up. People don’t remember those dreams don’t mean they never happened. Some people think that they don’t dream at all but in reality, they do but just don’t remember what they dreamt about (Porter, 1987). How did Freud use dreams to help people understand their behaviors? What evidence did he use to support the contention that dream analysis is a valid way of treating mental illnesses? Did the evidence he provide support his claims?   Psychotherapy is a way that the dream material is examined clinically. It is vital to realize that dream is never used by you itself. When you are telling someone about your dream, it is not possible to portray the images you supposed while you were sleeping. Putting dream into words is a flawed endeavor to explain what you witnessed. Freud advised that dreams may reproduce our unconscious and unrecognized desires and fears. He said that person’s dreams are interpretations of psychological well being. He suggested that the unconscious disturbances in the thoughts of people are depicted in dreams and mental health is enhanced by interpreting the dreams (Zimbardo, Johnson & McCann, 2009). The idea that Freud brought about dreams harvest little bolster within modern psychology. His overuse and use of the symbolization occurring within dreams, and the symbols was representative of sexual organs which bore little credence at that time and even lesser psychoanalysis that had that

The Feeding Of The Five Thousand Religion Essay

The Feeding Of The Five Thousand Religion Essay Meier believes the version of the feeding of the five thousand story from Mark 8: 14-21, when compared to the second feeding miracle, is a redaction; that is being reworded. This comment is loosely based on the fact that the disciples did not experience the miracle face to face (vis-à  -vis). The version of John has similarities from the one in Mark 8: 1-10, said while the same cannot be said about the one found in Mark 6:32-44; it cannot be found. For example, the question of whence occurs in both Mark 8: 4 and John 6:5. The main difficulty that Meir has is the John story of the feed story is independent on the version found in the book of Mark. He feels it does not make sense that the version found in Mark 8 is considered the redaction of Mark 6, if the one found in John 8 share much similarities with that of Mark 6, instead of version in Mark 8. He is aware that many people run into problems when trying to explain such a thing. Meier questions how is it that Mark creates a reword ing of the story, that shares many key points with John 6 and not Mark 8; Mark 6 and John 6 share the feeding story with the five thousand people fed with five loaves of bread and two fishes, while the Mark version feeds four thousand people with seven loaves and a few fishes. On the other note, they both share the Greek name for baskets (two hundred pennyworth of bread), as opposed to Mark 8. According to Meier, Mark 6:32-44 has the greatest numbers of parallels with the independent version of John 6: 1 15. The theory that Mark 6 is a Marcan redaction based solely on Mark 8 is unsustainable. Not only is John 6 is the independent version of the feeding, but also that Mark 6 and Mark 8 represent two different versions of the feeding miracle; both were spread in the pre-Marcan tradition of the first Christian generation. There has been great debates on which elements should be assigned to tradition or redaction in the feeding stories based in Mark 6, Mark 8 and John 6. Meier believes some redaction traits are more in the open. The Johnanne version takes great care in letting the reader know that Jesus already knows what Philip is going to do, even as Philip ask John for information. Another redaction intervention can be found in John 6:4, with the mention of Passover; which is more debatable. The best way in indicating the essential elements of the primitive feeding story is to list the elements most prevalent in at least two out of the three stories, or even from the three. Since John has the independent version of the feeding story, it makes sense for the John version and one of the Marcan versions to be used. According to Meier, the way to tell which version of the feeding of the multitude is primitive it would have to contain the following elements: The Setup (which is the temporal and geographic al setting, the introduction of the characters, and the need to be met). The setting is on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, which is an uninhabited, desolate place. The actors include Jesus, his disciples and a large crowd that had followed due to the miracles performed by Christ. The dialogue in presenting the problem, Jesus and his disciples discuss on the subject about the lack of food for the multitude; there are only five loaves and two fishes. The lack of supplies is pretty obvious. The command in which Jesus tells the crowd to relax on the grass brings the setup to an end and provides the connection to the miracle proper (which is the words and deeds that affect the miracle and the awareness of the miracle taking place). Jesus takes the five loaves, give thanks, he breaks them and gives it to his disciples to distribute, same thing with the fish. Everyone is filled. The Conclusion is the confirmation that the miracle actually happened: There are twelve baskets full of leftov er bread, as the multitude have become full. Other possible conclusions are that Jesus dismisses the crowd, found in the Mark versions, or the crowd acclaims Jesus, found in Johns version. During Jesus pubic ministries, many have believed he performed miracles of exorcism and doubt that the feeding of the multitude goes back to any event in his lifetime. One of the reasons is that many commentators believe the feeding story was strongly influenced by old testament stories, particularly the story of Elisha feeding one hundred people with twenty barley loaves found in 2 Kings 4:42 44, the accounts of Jesus actions over the bread and wine at the Last Supper, and from the regular repetition of the words and actions of Jesus in early Christian worship. It is from these stories that many critics believe the feeding of the multitude arose in the early church. In Meiers view, each sources have left their individual mark on the various versions of the story; some versions more than others. It still remains to be proven if Jewish and Christian influences had any part with creating the Gospel miracle story. The Old Testament story that has the most in common of the feeding of th e multitude is the miracle of feeding by the prophet Elisha. In 2 Kings 4:42-44, a man comes from Baalshalisha, brings Elisha an offering of twenty loaves of barley bread. Elisha orders his servant to give the bread to the people to eat. The servant questions how this amount of bread can satisfy them. Elisha repeats his command with a small prophecy from Yahweh They shall eat and there will be some left over (v 43). The servant obeys and the prophecy is fulfilled (v 44). The parallels of the both feeding of the multitude stories are obvious: (1) The prophets apparent impossible order: a prophets orders his servant to feed a large group of people with a known small amount of bread (20 loaves to hundred men, 5 loaves for five thousand), (2) Bread with some other foodstuff , (3) The objection from his servant: the servant does not understand what is to happen, so he protests and stresses the impossibility of satisfying one hundred people with twenty loaves, (4) The prophets insistent c ommand: overriding his servants objection, insisting the order be carried out as planned, (5) The miracle and its confirmation by way of surplus: when the order is obeyed, the people are fed and there is leftover bread present. In order for another miracle to seem even greater, the number of people fed would naturally be increased in the Gospel story (from one hundred to four or five thousand), and the number of loaves on hand would naturally be decreased (from twenty to seven thousand or five thousand). At the same time, there are apparent differences between the Elisha and the Gospel feeding miracles. (1) There is no exact geographical or temporal setting to the Elisha story, unlike the feeding of the multitude (ex by the Sea of Galilee, near Passover, in the late afternoon), (2) In 2 Kings, there is nothing said of a crowd following Elisha. (3) There is no description to who the hundred people are and it is unclear where they came from in this concise story. (4) There is no indication that the hundred people were suffering from great hunger, lack of food or are unable to get any food by normal means. (5) The miracle story in 2 Kings begins with the surprising command of Elisha, with no preparation, background, or motivation in the narrative. When compared, the conversation between Jesus and his disciples setup the problem of the peoples lack of food before any food is present on site. (6) In the Gospels, the disciples are the ones that supply and locate the little food, and they d o so only after the story is under way. (7) Jesus first commands the crowd to sit on the grass, performing the Jewish household ritual for beginning a formal meal, which does not happen in the Elisha story; including the fish. (8) The questions and objections of the disciples precede his actual order, thus introducing the miracle proper. (9) The amount of leftovers in the Elishas story is unknown, compared to the twelve or seven baskets of bread left over in the Gospel narratives. (10) The basic structure of the concise Elisha story is based on prophecy and fulfillment, not so much the Gospel story. There are many other parallels that some versions of the Gospel story have with the Elisha story; but the parallels are not necessarily part of the most primitive form of the Gospel miracle of feeding. For example, the notion that the bread is barley is found only in Johns version (6:9, 13) of the Gospel story; the same adjective used in the Elisha story. While the mention of barley might be a relic from the primitive form of the Gospel story preserved in John, it is also possible that Johns version is late and secondary. Another possible explanation of the specification of barley loaves, John mentions that the miracle takes place near Passover (which is the time of the barley harvest). In other words, Johns notion that the bread was barley might simply be his way of emphasizing his beloved Passover symbolism. That goes to show that every parallel found between the present Gospel versions of Jesus feeding of the multitude and the Elisha story does not go back to the primitive form of the Gospel story. Even though the Elisha story shares a number of basic elements with the primitive version of the Gospel story, there is much in the Gospel miracle not found in 2 Kings 4:42-44. The other major text suggested as sources for the feeding miracle are the various forms of Jesus words and actions over the bread and wine at the Last Supper. According to Meier, not all commentators agree that the feeding miracle was affected by the Last Supper. Among the two Marcan and the one Johanne versions, the overtones of the Last Supper seem more evident in the structure of the second Marcan story. In Mark 8: 6-7, it says (over the bread) And taking the seven loaves of bread, giving thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciplesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Over the fish) and pronouncing a blessing over them, he commanded them also to be set out, and they ate. At the Last Supper, Jesus said And taking the loaf of bread, giving thanks, he broke it and gave it to the disciplesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Over the cup) giving thanks or pronouncing a blessing, he gave it to them and they all drank. It is obvious that they share similarities in words. In the second Marcan version, there is a delay in the mentioning of the fish. This causes the bread to dominate the story from the beginning to the end. In the Marcan version of the Last Supper (Mark 14:22 -23), Jesus first pronounces a blessing over the bread and then gives thanks over the wine, with the same participles, in reverse order, that are used in Mark 8:6-7. The parallel with the Last Supper narrative is not quite clear in the first version of the feeding miracle, and less clear in John 6. The commentators that reject the Last Supper as a parallel stress the actions of Jesus over the bread and wine was merely the thanksgiving to God, as done by the head of a Jewish household over the bread that is broken to begin a formal meal. While there is some truth to this claim, it does not take into account a number of factors. (1) Mark 8:1-10 is so significant in the debate is because the tradition has evidently been carefully altered to provide a balanced pattern of giving thanks and then pronouncing a blessing over the dishes of food. The parallel of thanksgiving or blessings over the bread first and then over the side dish (fish) does not match the original Jewish ritual of thanksgiving; but matches the narrative of Jesus parallel thanksgiving or blessing over the bread and wine. (2) Within the context of the Synoptic Gospels, it really misses the point to say that the actions of Jesus over the bread and fish are similar to ones of a Jewish host at a formal meal; the actions of Jesus over the bread do not echo with those of the Synoptic Jesus at the Last Supper. (3) The isolated version of the feeding miracle found in Mark 8:6-7 are mostly likely later developments in the tradition of the Gospel story. Neither the Last Supper nor the Elisha story can prove the presence of fish alongside the bread. The fish tends to be increasingly downplayed in most of the Gospel versions of the feeding story; they are a primitive element rather than a later development in the tradition. In Meiers opinion, there is no explanation for their presence in all the versions of the story of some originating event in the life of Jesus. The earliest form of the feeding miracle available to us does not seem to have crossed with Elisha or Last Supper motifs and some of the elements of the earliest form (notably the fish are not explainable on the g rounds of the Elisha and Last Supper traditions. Rather, the account of Jesus feeding the multitude was defected. The stories of Elisha and the Last Supper do not seem to have created the Gospel feeding miracle. (4) Although the feeding miracle concerns the multiplication of loaves and fish, in every version of the feeding miracle the fish falls into the background. The subject is kept mostly on the bread, probably because the bread offers a direct cross-reference to the Last Supper. As seen in the second Marcan version of the feeding miracle (Mark 8:1-10), the story speaks almost entirely of loaves of bread or leftover pieces of bread. A few fish is only mentioned in one verse (8:7). Meier takes an unbiased position. On one hand, he rejects the views of the commentators that the Elisha story or the Last Supper had any influence on the feeding miracle. The parallels are so clear. On the other hand, the parallels are not much that the origin of the feeding miracle narrative can be en tirely explained merely by application to the Elisha story or the Last Supper tradition. The Elisha story and Last Supper tradition cannot completely explain the origin of the story of Jesus feeding the multitude. The question that comes into place is whether there are indications that some historical event in Jesus ministry may be behind the early Christian narrative? The answer comes from two criteria of historicity. (1) When compared to most Gospel miracle stories, the feeding miracle is supported by an unusually strong verification of multiple sources. It is not only verified independently in both Mark and John, but also two variant forms (cycles) of the tradition lying behind Marks Gospel; each one begins with one version of the feeding miracle (Mark 6:32-44 and Mark 8:1-10). Before the cycles were created, the two versions of the feeding miracle would have spread as independent units, the first version attracting itself to the story of Jesus walking on the water (a development that can be witnessed in John 6), while the second version did not receive much detail. B ehind all the versions of the miracle story, it would have had some primitive form. (2) Jesus normally spoke of the coming kingdom of God under the image of a banquet. The emphasis of a banquet or festival meal as an image of the kingdom were not just words spoken; it played an important role in Jesus actions as well. Jesus has been known for his presence at festival banquets (Mark 2:15-17; Matthew 11:18-19; Luke 7:33-34). Based on Meiers opinion, in comparison to the various celebrations of table fellowship hosted by Jesus, the most memorable one was the feeding of the multitude; due to the unusual number of participants; also this one was held at the Sea of Galilee, rather than in a town or village. Some have suggested that Jesus and his disciples shared what little food they had with others, which influenced the rest of the crowd (especially the rich people present in the crowd) by their good example to share their supplies until all were fed. Other critics came up with the assumption that Jesus hid supplies of food in a cave and made his disciples distribute it to the crowd. Albert Schweitzer gave his own twist; Jesus gave everyone in the crowd a piece of bread as a symbol of the heavenly banquet to come; the meal was thus the antitype of the messianic feastà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦a sacrament of redemption. Meier believes the sources do not allow us to specify the details of the event, especially since the influence of both the Elisha miracle story and the Last Supper tradition on the retelling of the story in Christian decades. Whether something actually miraculous happened is not open to verification by the means of a historian; it ultimately depends on a persons worldview, not what historical investigation can tell us about the event. In the last analysis, nothing connects these widely different stories together. For some time, it has seemed that at least one link, non-historically, would connect all the natural miracles together. But now the common link has been broken by the story of Jesus feeding the multitude, in Meiers view, that goes back to some memorable meal of the public ministry. Once again, the common category called nature miracles is viewed to be an illusion. According to Daniel Harrington, the story of the miracle feeding is the only miracle of Jesus proved in all four Gopsels, and the only one that is recounted in two forms. The feedings occur in the wilderness or desolate places and are gift miracles similar to the water from the rock (Exod 17:1-7) and the miraculous feeding of the Israelites through manna in the wilderness (Exod 16:1-36). Daniel says the Wisdom tradition feeding is linked with teaching and bread is linked with knowledge. Harrington states the closest the story in the Old Testament that parallels the miracle story found in Mark is the feeding story of Elisha; he agrees with Meier. In both stories, the main characters (Jesus, Elisha) give an impossible order involving a small amount of food and a large crowd to feed. In both cases, there is food left over even though there are more people than there is food. The narrative follows the general structure of a miracle story with a setting that describes a situation of need, a request, the mighty work itself, and some demonstration of the action. There are a number of elements that brings up the question of relations between the two Marcian feedings. They have similarity in setting, content, and structure but also, significant differeneces. The differences are the number of individuals in the crowd (5000 vs. 4000), the amount of food originally available, and the disclosure between Jesus and the disciples. Harrington points out that in Mark 8:1-10, the disciples give no indication of knowing that Jesus will perform his mighty work, even after the participating in the feeding of Mark 6:30-44. There have been various proposals to help relate the narratives: (1) there was a single early narrative that took different forms in the tradition, (2) Mark 8: 1-10 is an early pre-Markan narrative that Mark uses to compose the one found in Mark 6:30-44 ( which can detested by Meier, himself); and (3) there were two different pre-Marcian versions of the story and both were edited by Mark. There is a belief by the majority of interpreters that there was an early narrative that the individual evangelists reworked and adapted to their theological perspectives. Harrington agrees with Meier on the thought that all the feeding stories and the Last Supp narrative, despite the significant differences, describe Jesus saying a blessing or a prayer of thanksgiving; taking bread, breaking it, and giving it to disciples or crowds to eat. The similarities outweigh the differences. One option that should be avoided is the belief that the people were so moved by the words of Jesus that they divided their food with others, as Meier also stated. The narrative rather gives a picture of Jesus as compassionate toward the hungry people and concerned about their physical hunger. Harrington believed a church that invokes the name of Jesus must be concerned about the spiritual and physical hungers of people today. According to William Lane, the account of the feeding of the multitude has a particular significance in the framework of Marks Gospel. The elaborate introduction (Mark 6:30-34), the extended dialogue with the disciples (Mark 6:35-38) , the frequent references to this occasion (Mark 6: 52; 8:17-21) and the sequel in the feeding of the four thousand (Mark 8:1-10), shows that the evangelist regarded this event as crucial for understanding the dignity of Jesus. The book of Mark shows the glory of God unveiled through the abundant provision of bread in the wilderness where Jesus is Israels faithful shepherd. The extended conversation of Jesus with his disciples concerning bread is the distinctive element in the Marcan account of the feeding of the multitude, as Meier would agree with. Overall, I do believe the feeding of the five thousand found in Mark 8 is the redaction of Mark 6. It only makes sense, because the version of the story in Mark 6 and John 6 share many similiarities , compared to the version in Mark 8; Mark 6 and John 6 share the feeding the story with the five thousand people fed with five loaves of bread and two fishes, while the Mark 8 version feeds four thousand people with seven loaves of bread and two fishes. It goes to show that the feeding story found in John 6 is the independent version of the feeding miracle and that Mark versions represent two different versions of the feeding miracle. Growing up in the church, I would say that I strongly disagree with Meirs belief that Jesus performed miracles of exorcism, during his public ministries. I was taught that Jesus performed miraculous works because he had compassion and love for his people, and wanted his disciples and follows to witness the good works of the Lord, his Father. I do agree that the Old Testaments stories (particularly the story of the Elisha feeding) and the Last Supper do share many similarities, but I do not see substantial evidence to say that these two stories influenced the miracle feeding of the five thousand. As Meier said it, I also believe it still remains to be proven if Jewish and Christian influences had any part with creating the Gospel miracle story. Even though the Last Supper has parallels with the miracle feeding story found in Mark 8, the parallel in Mark 6 is not quite clear and less clear in John 6. Like Meier, I believe the actions of Jesus over the bread and wine was him giving than ksgiving to God, also done by the head of a Jewish household over the bread that is broken to begin a formal meal and sometime he acts out constantly. The parallel of thanksgiving or blessings over the bread first and then over the fish does not resemble the original Jewish ritual of Thanksgiving; only the narrative of Jesus parallel over the bread and wine. I also agree with Meier that the Elisha Story and the Last Supper tradition cannot completely explain the origin of the story of Jesus feeding the multitude. It is debatable as to whether there are any indications that some historical event in Jesus ministry may be behind the early Christian miracle stories. I do believe the emphasis of a banquet or festival meal as a image of the kingdom were not words spoken, but played an important role in Jesus actions; he was known for his presence at festival banquets. I strongly agree with Meier that the most memorable banquet or festival meal is the feeding of the multitude. Growing up, I always knew and was aware of the feeding miracle; I knew a little bit of the Last Supper and knew nothing of the Elisha story. Personally, the feeding story was one of the stories that always stuck to me. I believe that whether something miraculous happening in the feeding miracle depends on a persons worldview, not from the results of the historical investigation of an event. It is up to everyone to do their own result and have their own beliefs.