Thursday, October 31, 2019

Economics case assignment module 01 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economics case assignment module 01 - Essay Example In the contrary, trifling manufactures which provides small amount of needs of a small number of people also employ small number of workmen. Division of labour is much observed since all of them are working in one workhouse. To take an example, B dressmaking that was operated by Mr. Joe employed 3 dressmakers. His business location was in the heart of a small town. Long before, his 3 dressmakers were used to finish a maximum of 5 or a minimum of 3 dresses a day. However, there produce was insufficient enough, so he came up to the idea of dividing the whole work into branches instead of hiring additional dressmakers. His dressmakers were task to do a particular part of the dress instead of sewing it alone. The work was divided to around 6 so each of the workers was assigned to do 2. The first one shaped and cut the cloth; the second one made the collar, the third sewed the sleeve and so on until all the parts were sewed together and the dress was made. After couple of weeks, the diffe rence was quiet obvious, from the minimum of 9 dresses to around 30 dresses daily. And the work showed much excellent! Hence the division of labour increases the productivity of the workmen because employing a simpler and particular task enhances their skill. Repeating one or two tasks is not as difficult as doing the whole work. Perhaps, a particular dressmaker who was used to sew dresses may not feel difficulty in doing his job but became lazy in using different machines in completing a dress. The several stages undergone may become complicated for him; he may put less concentration on them; whereas, if he only focused shaping and cutting the cloth, its repetitions would result to a greater part of his dexterity. Secondly, Smith’s idea about invisible hand is linked to his concept of self-interest. Every individual struggles to get what he wants. He works hard to fulfill his dreams.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Pfizer Case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Pfizer - Case Study Example In this way, without a lineup of potential breakthroughs in the pipes, the level to which the firm can continue to rely on cash cows that are soon to go off patent is severely constrained. As yet another example of the focus that the firm had on the development and introduction of runaway successes such as Lipitor, the firm had positioned itself as primarily a research and development organization that was hopefully able to introduce profitable drugs into the market on a regular basis as a means of ensuring that the profitability and cash flow of the company stayed intact. However, this positioning strategy was out of sync with market demands due to the fact that the rapidly evolving nature of other competitors meant that lower cost research and development was being performed by a host of competitors; thereby greatly reducing the profit margin and potential profit margins that such a runaway discovery such as Lipitor could yield. As a way to formulate strategy, the firm sought to integrate OTC markets and generic branding to its repertoire; however, the main money supply for the firm was still tasked towards developing new drug lines. This of course did not support t he strategic vision that leadership espoused. Though the strategic vision was sound, the lack of funding meant that it was not fully able to respond to the markets and the completive environment in which it hoped to

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Working With Different Service User Groups

Working With Different Service User Groups Explore the challenges faced by the differences in working with three Service User Groups adults, older people and children. Discuss how, by drawing on relevant life course theories, your communication skills would need to be modified in order to meet these challenges and remain effective, anti-discriminatory and anti-oppressive. Interacting via communication with Service users is of one of the highest important aims for social / care workers providing care. Each individual case is unique and I will be explaining how communication skills differ from each person to the next. There are many different life course theories that can be used to explain how a person develops through the stages of life. In this assignment I will be looking at Eric Bernes Transactional analysis for the adult group and showing how adults have to change their tone and manner as they are seen as the teachers for the next generation. I will be explaining Cunning and Henrys Disengagement theory as this is a very important phase for older people and communication can be limited because of the perils of old age. Also I will be looking at Piagets cognitive development theory and Bolwbys attachment theory in relation to children and how these theories affect communication. Eriksons eight stages of psychosocial development contains elements for all three age groups so I will be looking briefly at the different stages involved, and I will also be looking at any challenges that occur within the groups and what skills are needed to overcome this via social work / care workers. Interacting via communication with Service users is of one of the highest important aims for social / care workers providing care. Each individual case is unique and I will be explaining how communication skills differ from each one person to the next. There are many different life course theories that can be used to explain how a person goes through the stages of life. For adults I will be taking you through Eric Bernes Transactional analysis and for the elderly group I will look at Cunning and Henry Disengagement Theory and how this affects communication for the older generation and then I will be looking at Piagets cognitive development theory and Bowlbys attachment theory and how these theories affect communication within the childrens group. Then I will be showing how Eriksons eight stages of psychosocial development are involved in all three service user groups and I will also be looking at any challenges that occur within the groups and what skills are needed to overcome this via social work / care workers. A life course is the advancement a person takes from birth to cessation (Crawford and Walker, 2003 p. 3) Also (Newman and Newman, 2007 p. 185) shows the life course as a perspective which helps to explain how altering societal predicaments affect development and combination of the phases of family and work life over a number of years. (Fiske, 1982 p. 2) explains communication as being an action that every person can identify with, by talking, listening to the television or distributing knowledge these are all forms of communication. He describes two main studies of communication as being either an expression of words or a creation and replacement of meanings. If we take a look at the Transactional analysis theory (Woods, 2010) shows that Eric Bernes theory was about ego states which are parent, adult and child. It covers a wide range of exclusive advancement including communication, behaviour and personality. Looking at adult communication he saw this as being the main voice used to influence the whole learning process. He believes that if someone is talking in a childish manner automatically the adult will respond with a voice of authority, either in a sarcastic tone or a caring parenting manner. (Chapman, 1995) also shows that transactional analysis is used for therapeutic, personal development and communication; it helps a person understand ones self. To communicate we use our own feelings which can shift at any one given time, and to reply we will use the exact way of thinking. So to have stable conversations an adult needs to act interested to what is being said and show the person speaking that they have their full attention and thi s will make for a stronger relationship between them both. Favourable communication according to (Weger and Polcar, 2002) is the basic domain of an interpersonal friendship. If you offer support and are willing to provide comfort through good and bad times then this will in turn be a healthy natural relationship. (Wolvin, 2010 p.144) believes the art of communication is to listen, with doing this you are better able to understand the concept of communicating, and then you can identify and evaluate the question helping you to make sense of it. Behavioural issues can be defined by a persons determined state, they show up as objectives and by using these objectives a person will come up with a way of achieving their potential via talking. So by communicating it is up to the individual to put as much information into the conversation so the recipient can define their answer to make it a purposeful state (Ackoff, 1958) (Nussbaum, 2000) states that elderly people have to regularly change their lifestyle to adapt to adjustments associated with getting older. Age can cause many challenges for communication, examples are: memory loss or loss of hearing. Because of these it could take considerable time for any acknowledgement whilst trying to communicate, they may tend to make inaccurate sentences and be less sensitive about issues that may otherwise hurt someone elses feelings. There are many theories linked to prosperous aging examples of these are: continuity theory, activity theory, socioemotional selectivity theory and disengagement theory. Looking at the disengagement theory (Maddox, 1964) states that the disengagement is the final stage of the life course process. Life goals are a very important phrase in everybodys life and this seems to extend through to the older generation also. The belief is that psychological departure leads to total exclusion from the older persons social life, and without this communication will be very limited as they may not have any family of friends visiting on a daily basis. Communication with older people can be a complicated process. At the time when it is needed the most communication seems to be a burden because of the life processes which come with the old age. To overcome some of the frustrations of speaking to an older person if you allow extra time for them to speak and sit face to face with them, then if there is any hearing loss at least the person can watch your lips to understand what you are saying to them. If you speak slowly and clearly or even write down some of the conversation to explain in a bit more detail this then will help the person immensely and by doing this you are showing respect and helpfulness towards to person you are talking to (Robinson et al. 2006) There are many challenges involved with working with older people, (Hepple, 2004) shows there are many approaches that can be used to try and boost communication issues. Group and behavioural approach or reality familiarisation is widely used to try and amend the forgotten memories. Whichever approach is used will depend mainly on the resources of the institution that is providing the care plan for the service users involved. Looking at Piagets cognitive development (Feldman, 2004) believes that his work was not the dominant competitor for a while but now it has accomplished extensive significance to researchers again. Some critics thought his work was to complex and to widespread but his stages still form the basis of the developing mind. (Boeree, 1999) shows the stages of development for a child as being the Sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operations and the formal operations stage. According to (Koprowska, 2005 p. 97) a baby within the first couple of months will try and make blubbering noises in response to you talking to them and will only start trying to develop simple words by the age of one. So the best means of communication with young children would be via play and interaction. Children do not enjoy sitting for long periods of time so by drawing or innovative games could be the easiest way for communication to take place for the younger age groups in Piagets stages. (Geddes, 2007) believes that using Bowlbys attachment theory will help in the understanding of sensitive experiences which in turn helps you to communicate with young children. The basis of communication is to show your inner self via your feelings, thoughts and creativity. So by looking at Bowlby, the attachment for a child will help with their future experiences if the start of their life is one of security within a family unit. The child then will be able to examine the world and if there are any pressures they can always return to their safe haven for security. With a negative attachment a child will struggle with communication and relationships. They tend to be insecure and prefer to keep themselves to themselves as they dont respond well to any attention and can start to be disruptive and aggressive because they feel vulnerable and out of their depth. The Children Act 1989 sets out the rights of the child, so the child needs to engage in any outcomes that will modify their lives and future. Social workers need impressive skills in communication as there are many barriers that can stop any interaction with the child so they need the ability to be able to cope under any form of pressure or obstacle placed before them. Social workers deal with many families and young children all with very different backgrounds examples of these are: children who are leaving care, children who have behavioural problems and children who may have health problems or disabilities, each case is different so the social worker needs to be able to produce a care plan and have the skills in place to communicate on every different level to provide the best possible care for the service users involved. (Koprowska, 2005 p. 94) Eriksons eight stages of psychosocial development involve all three age groups, when looking at children Eriksons stages progress through at least four of them. (Adoption media, 1995) states that if a child wants to proceed onto the next stage they need to complete the one before. A child will develop trust if well cared for and be insecure if not; this will show up in all the stages there is a negative to every positive. So a child will only learn from what they are taught and if they are shown the right way to develop through the various stages then as they become parents they will be secure and happy to show their children the right upbringing to carry on the process to the next generation. (Zastrow and Ashman, 2007 p. 444) states that the seventh stage of Eriksons life development is Generativity versus stagnation. Generativity is instructing family and friends to make improvements in their lives to make the future better for their offspring. This will involve safeguarding and improving the lives of future generations for a better quality of life. Stagnation on the other hand is the selfish side of the stage, adults who only think about their own needs and are not willing to take anyone elses feelings into consideration. (Greene and Kropf, 2009 p. 90) shows Eriksons final stage as being Integrity versus Despair. Absoluteness is achieved if the person involved has leaded a full and complete life, dealing with everyday disappointments as well as accomplishments successfully. Despair on the other hand is for the people who fear death and the ones who have not accomplished everything they wanted to do in their lives and wish for another chance to achieve this. If communication is not sort in the identity stage (Sanchez, 2002) states that this could affect self confidence in later life. New ideas start from communication, a person needs to be able to express their thoughts and feelings. Interpersonal communication through all of Eriksons stages will help an individual have a healthy developed identity. (SCIE 2010) shows how social workers have to work by their codes of ethics and values showing respect, empathy and a genuine helpfulness towards the service user they are working with. They will always provide a complete care package to help empower the individual to deliver the best possible outcome. If the social care worker uses an interpersonal approach this in turn will guide the service user to help them decide how their care is achieved and help make the decision process a group decision, so communication is a key element to this approach which will then help with the relationship between the user and the social care worker. To summarise there are many different ways to communicate with the three service user groups. People who work in the social work/care sector are trained to be able to customise their expertise to care and communicate at all levels. If the care worker shows empathy and helpfulness they will get more back from the service user then they would if you started the conversation with an aggressive attitude. Service users what to be listened to, they want you to understand what care they expect. You will have to change the way you speak in all different circumstances, speaking to children will be completely different to speaking to an adult or an elderly person. Body language and facial gestures also show as an important part of communicating with someone, even repeating what the other has said will show that you are taking them seriously. You need to be able to change your approach for all different situations and use different interventions to cater for each individual seeking care. Word count 2055

Friday, October 25, 2019

Sexual Reproduction of Spiders Essay -- Biology Animal Insect Sex Mati

One of the largest issues in animal sexual reproduction is the conflict of interests between the female and the male of the species. For example, multiple mating has been shown to greatly increase the fertilization rate for the male, but recent studies have shown that multiple mating also benefits the female. The demonstrated benefit to the female is â€Å"sequential female choice;† that is, the ability (on the part of the female) to allow the fertilization of her egg clutch with more viable offspring. However, this presents an inherent conflict of interest in that sperm competition may lower the fertilization success rates of the species. Sexual cannibalism (when the female consumes the male near the time of copulation) is a striking manifestation of a sexual conflict of interest. If the female consumes the male prior to insemination, she gains the nutritional benefits but the male loses his ability to reproduce. However, if the female consumes the male after insemination, the costs and benefits to each party are not so clear. It is beneficial to both the male and female to increase the fecundity of the female, increasing the reproductive chances of the male as well, but if the female mates again the male loses any apparent benefit. Some spiders seem to have resolved this problem in favor of both sexes such as the redback spider, Latrodectus hasselti. Experiments involving polygamy in this species revealed that cannibalized males had greater fertilization success because these males mated longer and the cannibalistic females tended not to mate again. This shows that a compromise is struck between the two sexes. The female gains the benefit of the nutrition from the stoma of the male while the male limits the competition fro... ...or her offspring. Sexual cannibalism is found to greatly benefit fertilization. That is, if after copulation, the female eats the male, the amount of clutch sired becomes twice as much as in the cases when he survives. Finally, males who are cannibalized by females have a higher share of paternity. However, the probability of being cannibalized makes most males willing to sometimes avoid copulation, which greatly reduces sexual competition. The conflict of sexes remains unsolved, as female prefer to cannibalize males for benefits of the progeny, males always try to escape in order to fertilize more eggs of other females. Bibliography: Elgar, Mark A. and Schneider, Jutta M.. "Sexual cannibalism and sperm competition in the golden orb-web spider Nephila plumipes (Araneoidea): female and male perspectives." Behavioral Ecology, Vol. 12, No. 5, 2001. 547-552.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Common Biases and Errors in Decision-Making Process

COMMON BIASES AND ERRORS IN DECISION-MAKING PROCESS In addition to engaging in bounded rationality, an accumulating body of research tells us that decision makers allow systematic biases and errors to creep into their judgments. These come out of attempts to shortcut the decision process. To minimize effort and avoid difficult trade-offs, people tend to rely too heavily on experience, impulses, gut feelings, and convenient aâ‚ ¬? rules of thumb. aâ‚ ¬? In many instances, these shortcuts are helpful. However, they can lead to severe distortions from rationality.The following highlights the most common distortions. Overconfidence Bias:  Itaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s been said that aâ‚ ¬? no problem in judgment and decision making is more prevalent and more potentially catastrophic than overconfidence. aâ‚ ¬? When weaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re given factual questions and asked to judge the probability that our answers are correct, we tend to be far too optimistic. For instance, studies have fo und that, when people say theyaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re 65 to 70% confident that theyaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re right, they were actually correct only about 50% of the time. And when they say theyaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re 100% sure, they tended to be 70 to 85% correct.From an organizational standpoint, one of the more interesting findings related to overconfidence is that those individuals whose intellectual and interpersonal abilities are weakest are most likely to overestimate their performance and ability. So as mangers and employees become more knowledgeable about an issue, the less likely they are to display overconfidence. Overconfidence is most likely to surface when organizational members are considering issues or problems that are outside their area of expertise. Anchoring Bias:  The anchoring bias is a tendency to fixate on initial information as a starting point.Once set, we then fail to adequately adjust for subsequent information. The anchoring bias occurs because our mind appears to give a d isproportionate amount of emphasis to the first information it receives. So initial impressions, ideas, process, and estimates carry undue weight relative to information received later. Anchors are widely used by professional people such as advertising writers, managers, politicians, real estate agents, and lawyersaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬ where persuasion skills are important For instance, in a mock jury trial, one set of jurors was asked by the plaintiffaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s attorney to make an award in the range of Rs. million to Rs. 25 million. Another set of jurors was asked for an award in the range of Rs. 25 million to 75 million. Consistent with the anchoring bias, the median awards were Rs. 5 million versus Rs. 25 million in the two conditions. Consider the role of anchoring in negotiations and interviews. Any time a negotiation takes place, so does anchoring. As soon as someone states a number, your ability to objectively ignore that number has been compromised. For instance, when a prosp ective employer asks how much you were making in your prior job, your answer typically anchors the employeraâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s offer.Most of us understand this and upwardly aâ‚ ¬? adjustaâ‚ ¬? our previous salary in the hope that it will encourage our employer to offer us more. Anchoring can distort employment interviews. The initial information you might get interviewing a job candidate is likely to anchor your assessment of the applicant and unduly influence how you interpret information that you obtain later. Confirmation Bias:  The rational decision-making process assumes that we objectively gather information. But we donaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t. We selectively gather information.The information bias represents a specific case of selective perception. We seek out information that reaffirms our past choices, and we discount information that contradicts past judgments. We also tend to accept information at face value that confirms our preconceived views, while being critical and skep tical of information that challenges these views. The information we gather is typically biased toward supporting views we already hold. This confirmation bias influences where we go to collect evidence because we tend to seek out places that are more likely to tell us what we want to hear.It also leads us to give too much weight to supporting information and too little to contradictory information. Availability Bias:  Many more people suffer from fear of flying than fear of driving in a car. The reason is that many people think flying is more dangerous. If flying on a commercial airline was as dangerous as driving, the equivalent of two 747s filled to capacity would have to crash every week, killing all aboard, to match the risk of being killed in a car accident.But the media give a lot more attention to air accidents, so we tend to overstate the risk of flying and understate the risk of driving. This illustrates an example of the availability bias, which is the tendency for peop le to base their judgments on information that is readily available to them. Events that evoke emotions, that are particularly vivid, or that have occurred more recently tend to be more available in our memory. As a result, we tend to be prone to overestimating unlikely events like an airplane crash.The availability bias can also explain why managers, when doing annual performance appraisals, tend to give more weight to recent behaviors of an employee than those behaviors of six or nine months ago. Escalation of Commitment Error:  Another distortion that creeps into decisions in practice is a tendency to escalate commitment when a decision stream represents a series of decisions. Escalation of commitment refers to staying with a decision even when there is clear evidence that itaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s wrong.An example of this is of my friend, who has been dating a woman for about four years. He admitted that things werenaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t going too well in their relationship; he informed m e that he was going to marry the woman. A bit surprised by his decision, I asked him why. He responded: aâ‚ ¬? I have a lot invested in the relationship! aâ‚ ¬? It has been well documented that individuals escalate commitment to a failing course of action when they view themselves as a responsible for the failure. That is they aâ‚ ¬? throw good money after badaâ‚ ¬? o demonstrate that their initial decision wasnaâ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t wrong and to avoid having to admit they made a mistake. Escalation of commitment is also congruent with evidence that people try to appear consistent in what they say and do. Increasing commitment to previous actions conveys consistency. Escalation of commitment has obvious implications for managerial decisions. Many an organization has suffered large losses because a manager was determined to prove his or her original decision was right by continuing to commit resources to what was a lost cause from the beginning.In addition, consistency is a cha racteristic often associated with effective leaders. So managers, in an effort to appear effective, may be motivated to be consistent when switching to another course of action. In reality, effective managers are those who are able to differentiate between situations in which persistence will pay off and situations in which it will not. http://www. citeman. com/384-common-biases-and-errors-in-decision-making-process. html

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Jan Van Eyck Madonna in the Church

Madonna in a Church is a small oil panel on oak by Flemish painter Jan van Check. Madonna in a church was made between c. 1438-1440. Van Check has been traditionally credited with the invention of painting in oils, and, although this is incorrect, there is no doubt that he was the real master of the technique. The use of oil paints is very significant in this artworks luminescent quality and presentation of space. The artist creates a new relationship between the viewer and the picture.There is an illusion of a modern, tatterdemalion's scene and through this new more attraction, lifelike approach, the viewer becomes connected to the painting, not Just in physical terms, but socially, spiritually and emotionally as well. † The minute we look at it the shimmering quality of the art stands out. Being only 12. 25†³ x 5. 5†³ it's clear why its elaboration is so astonishing. The painting is very long compared to its width, emphasizing the size of the Madonna and the tall st ructure of the church that it portrays.The artwork has brilliant intense warm colors, dominating brown and red and the light illustrated with light yellow. On Madonna in a Church, the artist represents a variety of subjects with striking legalism in microscopic detail. The pigment was suspended in a layer of oil that also trapped light, this way Van Check created a Jewel-like medium. On the Madonna's crown and Jewelry we see shiny precious metals and gems and also, with the help of this technique he could give a life like impression to light. The colors are so luminous that the passage of five hundred years has barely diminished them.There are so many details and elements to discover on the painting that the eye has a constant exercise inside the picture. From the first view we can tell that the artwork is narrative and descriptive. Van Check had a sharp edged look of the world but he put this look into a fictional environment. The painting was stolen in 1877 and the frame was not f ound. Despite this absence we still have an impression of a frame because the cathedral interior is viewed at an angle. From this perspective the doorway has a frame effect to the painting.The shape of the doorway is round, following the ceiling and with this circle effect leading our eyes to the main figure, Mary. † Van Check has followed traditional theology; his realist art displayed in iconic and allusive forms the Church's teachings and popular piety. Yet at the same time, he played with symbolism, which is evidently present in the artwork. The Madonna's size is surreal, very big in proportion to the interior of the exceptionally beautiful church. This is a symbolic niche, giving her all the importance. Byzantine painters used this method for the same purpose.In the background, angels appear to be singing from hymn books or saying Mass before her altar. † The image of light has a heavy vision, the rays of the sun come supernaturally from the north to strike through the glass and hit the floor with breathtaking realism. Two lolls of sunlight on the floor in front of Mary come from a direction that defies natural law. Therefore the light is mystical, a symbol of God. We can see it penetrating the church Just as the Holy Ghost entered and impregnated the body of the Virgin, in direct opposition to the laws of flesh.The perspective and lighting seem to be so natural, until we think about it we don't see that it's unnatural, and that it is actually a sacred light. Maybe this is a way to express that what is religious was incorporated into everyday life, that even a Heavenly light had to become like daylight under Jan Van Cock's paintbrush. The virgin takes her place in the center, gently swaying, she seem to follow her own gaze. Her hair is red; throughout the ages red-haired women have had significance in the arts. They are viewed as unique and mystical, Just like Mary.She has a beautiful tracery behind her: wooden carving, the stories of her life . It is especially important in the Northern Renaissance, because they used the Juxtaposition of the presented sacred character and then an object or artwork of the exact same personage on the picture, referring to Biblical times. We see a sculpture of Christ behind her, while the baby Jesus is in her arms. She is presented in the everyday life of those people living in the 15th century and part of their modern culture. The church is richly decorated, in the Gothic style.Jan Van Check pays attention to detail in his painting of architectural interiors, done with unrelenting accuracy. The church is an important symbol of Marry chastity. It's an Ideal church, Jan Van Cock's fantasy of a perfect interior to enthrone Mary. This is a way to represent the heavenly sphere in an environment that the people of the time period can recognize. Concluding from the small size of the painting, it was not a painting designed for a huge Gothic church where most paintings were much bigger in proporti on. It was probably made for a wealthy man at the time.In the Renaissance it was common for wealthy people to collect artworks, it had a social significance. Above this, religious paintings and prayer books were manifestations of commitment to prayer. The Flemish didn't limit their demonstration of piety to the public realm, the individuals commissioned artworks for private use in their homes as well. † Ideology of the time also influenced the painting. The Madonna is holding the child that is supposed to be Christ. Her face is turned away from the child, achieving a less engaged look. The scene is all about her.In Van Cock's painting, the child is a realistic baby; emphasizing the humanity of Christ. The interpretation of this can be the fact that Mary was a human, and in the Renaissance, humanism had a very big impact. After the neglected human dimension of the Middle Ages, the Renaissance brings humanity in focus again with the development of art, technology, and inventions . † Van Check gives Mary three roles: Mother of Christ, the personification of the Christian Church and Queen of Heaven, the latter apparent from her Jewel-studded crown.The painting is majestic and luminous, it lights up like a dream. But at the same time the message is both worldly and devout, the artist set out to satisfy both demands, but in a form of realism that contained within itself a playful, even ironic attitude towards the relations existing between individuals, society and religion. Sources: Graham, Jenny. Inventing van Check: the remaking of an artist for the modern age. Oxford: Berg, 2007. Print. Harrison, Craig. Jan van Check: the play of realism. London: Reaction Books ;, 1991. 188. Print.