Thursday, October 3, 2019
Political Leadership: Napoleon Bonaparte
Political Leadership: Napoleon Bonaparte Political Leadership: Napoleon A study in political leadership: Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte is one of the most contentious and polarising figures in world history. Some historians such as J David Markham and David P Jordan believe him to be the epitome of the revolutionary struggles that preceded him and indeed the natural continuation of the French Revolution. Others such as Paul Johnson and Claude Ribbe see Napoleon as an autocratic ruler who not only used and abused the French Revolution but also proceeded to rule in a totalitarian manner. These contrasting views do, to some extent, illustrate how adept Napoleon was as a political leader. In changing and unsettled conditions that called for both a strong leader and paradoxically the lessons of the Revolution of representation by plebiscite and the throwing away of the ‘Ancien Regime’, Napoleon was in effect able to straddle both divides so successfully it is still difficult to get to the bottom of his leadership. I will show how through Napoleons skill, hard work, intelligence and even luc k, he was not only able to straddle this divide but set and achieve his goals in every area of French society and government, and indeed Europe. Most people know Napoleon by the wars that bear his name in the early 19th century, the fatalities caused by these and the Empire he built. It is clear that Napoleon had aims which were military by design and goals which could only be carried out by military ends and though these are clearly an integral part of his leadership, it is important to note that his social and political tasks were as important, if not more significant, when looking at Napoleon as a political leader. It is the social and political aspects of his rule that I shall focus on. Napoleon’s swift ascent to power, in 1799, on the back of the French Revolutions successes and ultimately it’s failures, found France in a weak position both internally and in Europe. The Revolution had introduced such massive change in social and political arenas from that of the ‘Ancien Regime’, that France did not have a workable position on every aspect of life in France from the economy, education and government to the church. There were hostile nations eyeing the French land in its moment of weakness, especially Austria and Prussia, which only served to hasten the need for internal workings. Napoleon therefore had two key tasks in front of him which themselves incorporated multiple key goals – make France workable again and keep France and its territories secure from hostile states. As Markham declares, â€Å"France was looking for someone who could preserve the benefits of the Revolution while bringing credibility back to government†Napoleon was very clever in his leadership in that he did not have an overbearing ideology, differing with both the revolutionaries and the ‘Ancien Regime’ and with this he had an exceptional understanding of where he needed to position himself to not only remain strong in his own position, but to build a strong France and Empire, as Dwyer states: â€Å"Napoleon eliminated the factionalism that had torn the country apart†¦ The introduction of a unified code of law†¦ monetary and financial reforms and the Concordat with the Catholic Church†¦ Were all designed to create the social, economic and political stability necessary to consolidate and maintain power.†The results of this meant that the positions Napoleon took on the domestic issues at hand are remarkable in essence to that of Tony Blair and the ‘third way’ doctrine. As Norman Davies states, â€Å"The eventual offspring (of Napoleons legislative agenda) often consisted of strange hybrid creatures, neither ancien fish nor revolutionary fowl.†For instance the Revolution dismantled all hereditary titles and classed every citizen as the same, Napoleon however created his own hierarchical system based on merit, thus at the same time creating the much-needed stability of the time without betraying everything that the Revolution stood for. Indeed the ‘Code Napoleon’, the grand law system Napoleon created was, as Davies says, â€Å"a middle path between the Roman law of the south and the customary law of the north, between egalitarian principles of 1789 and authoritarian, propertied reaction of the Directory.†Further pointing out Napoleons success is Emsley in ‘Napoleon’: â€Å"Napoleon Brought internal stability to France after the upheaval of the revolution. He fostered reconciliation between old and new elites and restored the Catholic Church – on his own terms. The 15 years of Napoleons rule witnessed significant reorganisation within France.†It is clear then that Napoleon did succeed in his goals of creating a stable and strong France capable of governing and maintaining its position – in fact expanding it’s position – on the world stage. However it is simply not enough to state what ideology – or lack thereof – Napoleon followed in determining what kind of political leader he was. It is important to state how he worked in creating his legislative agenda and how effective this was in his political leadership throughout his rule. Napoleon is fabled for his long hours and incredible ability to not only dictate multiple memos and letters, legislation and law, at the same sitting for vast periods of time but for also using vast quantities of information accurately from the top of his head. â€Å"He (Napoleon) was extremely hard working and able†¦ When in Paris he was known regularly to work through much of the night, going to bed at 10pm, rising at 2am†¦ His days in Paris were then filled with meetings, readings and correcting documents and receiving petitions, with food being eaten while he was standing or on the move. His insatiable thirst for, ability to absorb, knowledge enabled him to discuss science with scientists, and to debate, at high level and with experts, history, geography, literature†¦ He expected regular reports†¦ and he read them.†Napoleons clear controlling nature and ambition does provide strength in his political leadership. A strength in so much as that it is this mans desire and drive which not only got him to his goals but enabled him to ensure that things were being run the way he envisioned them, the right way. This way of dealing with leadership could be down to the good fortune that Napoleon undoubtedly seemed to gain during his career both on the way up and while in power, as Markham puts it, â€Å"Some†¦ have suggested that he (Napoleon) simply had incredible luck and was always at the right place at the right time. The latter was certainly often true†¦ The trip to Egypt come(s) to mind.†But this sense of good fortune and wanting to make the most of it may not be the reason for Napoleons controlling way in power. Before he gained power his ambition and jealousy of those in power at the time is widely quoted, â€Å"I wish to undermine the Republican party, but only for my own prof it and not that of the ancient dynasty†¦ As for me†¦ I have tasted authority and I will not give it up. I have decided that if I cannot be the master I will leave France.†It would seem then that the seeds for his controlling and overbearing nature as a political leader were sewn before he even encountered power. This leads on to both his clear weakness and ultimately his failure as a political leader. Not only the insistence on controlling and influencing all aspects of the legislative agenda but then the tight grip he held those implementing the agendas in, meant that as Johnson states, â€Å"He (Napoleon) could not rule on a long-term basis. No one has ever been faster than he was at overturning existing governments, setting up new administrations, and imposing constitutions to fit them. None lasted more than a few years, some only a few months†¦ It always bore hallmarks of his impatience and his lack of tenacity in sustaining the long haul.†It would seem paradoxical that though his great task and success was bringing stability and competence in the management of French affairs at home, as the Empire grew, so did the inability in controlling it all. This is probably understandable when you look at some occasions where this controlling nature is highlighted such as, â€Å"In o ne week, shortly after becoming Viceroy of Italy, Eugene de Beauharnais received 21 letters providing advice and instructions, some of them running to several pages (from Napoleon).†It is precisely this level of detail and control that helped make France so strong and stable, which ultimately made the control of the empire so uncontrollable and unstable. The lack of heirs to manipulate and have ready to follow him in power may well have been part of this weakness in his leadership. It is hard to imagine he would have pressed so hard, so long for an empire as big as he did if he understood that he had someone he could mould into his place and watch continue his work, this too might have compounded his controlling nature. The fact that the siblings he had, after he put them into power in differing nations, his brother Joseph in Spain for instance, let him down so miserably in the majority of cases, could have contributed in this regard as well. All this leads to his political and military overstretching which would eventually lead to his downfall. Part of the legacy of Napoleon, as much as a tool for his control over both the people of France and the empire, and a continuation of his character as a political leader, was his great ability in propaganda. â€Å"Nothing lies like a Napoleonic bulletin.†Is a common understanding of the power Napoleon had in the art of getting the masses and the elite to understand and support what he wanted them to understand and support, a lot of what we would call ‘spin’ nowadays, just as much as propaganda. Markham explains the role Napoleon used propaganda in effectively: â€Å"In media-centred times†¦ we take for granted advertising and propaganda†¦ In Napoleon’s lifetime, such self-promotion was not nearly so widespread†¦ Napoleon, however, realised the value of such activities and was quick to use them to promote his rise to power. His proclamations, bulletins and letters to the government were all written with his own interests in mind†¦ His Italian and Egyptian campaigns became, in the eyes of the public, crusades of good against evil, those of an enlightened hero against the barbarians.†So not only was he a political leader of great ambition, confidence, intelligence, hard work, luck and control but also a leader who knew how to use new techniques and harness them for his and the nations own ends. Like many leaders however it was many of these same qualities that brought so much glory, which also brought the end. The overt confidence and control, pushing the hard working man to pursue too much, too soon without doubting, or allowing those around him to question enough, the merits of certain decisions. Why I mention propaganda as a part of Napoleons legacy is because Napoleon used it as such throughout his time in power, via portraits, sculptures and even after he left power through the written word in his autobiography. â€Å"Napoleon had always been conscious of how to best portray himself and his achievements†¦ Napoleon manipulated the arts and the media towards his personal glory†¦ Artists were commissioned and prizes were offered for works celebrating key moments of his career. Historical accuracy was less important than the image presented in both paintings and sculptures.†To a large extent this clever way of trying to secure a legacy has worked. When looking at Napoleon we undoubtedly think of pictures and paintings we have seen. For some people seeing Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres’ portrait of Napoleon on the imperial throne or the famous image of Napoleon crossing the Alps by Jacques Louis David, is all they have to go on, Napoleon from these image s looks very much how he wanted to be remembered, a successful, dashing, Emperor. There are other aspects of course to his legacy, one major part being that he brought Europe, especially what we now call Germany and central Europe, not only up to date in terms of the political and social institutions inside the nations, but also economically as well. On top of this before Napoleon controlled mainland Europe with his Empire, Europe was made up of many, often splintered, states. After Napoleon left power for good in 1815, the face of Europe looked completely different. The state structure, divided up by the Allies, was completely different and much of the current state system is therefore part of Napoleon’s legacy. For instance â€Å"Thomas Nipperdey began his acclaimed history of nineteenth-century Germany with the words ‘In the beginning was Napoleon.’†The other significant legacy Napoleon left was the ‘Code Napoleon’, the sets of laws, governing system and administration. As Emsley states, â€Å"The administrative system and structures that were to govern France for the nineteenth and twentieth centuries were essentially those that emerged during the Consulate.†And you can see exactly why the ‘Code Napoleon’ did survive, â€Å"The universal rights of citizenship, and of equality before the law, were confirmed. In family law, civil marriage and divorce were retained†¦ This Code has profoundly influenced the social development of at least thirty countries.†It is clear that Napoleon Bonaparte was a very astute and complex political leader and also one of great importance. Napoleons determination and ambition to succeed may well have been the reason behind both his rise and fall. â€Å"Few individuals have had more impact on history than Napoleon Bonaparte. He is the grandest possible refutation of those determinists who hold that events are governed by forces, classes, economics, and geography rather than by the power of wills of men and women†¦ Few persons of ambition have failed to see Bonaparte as an exemplar or a spur.†Though I do not agree with all the sentiments in the last quote, I agree with the latter. The sheer brilliance of the man, who, however you look at it has come from a background of mediocrity and middle class, to rule France in a way which benefited both himself, his nation and Europe as a whole, is an inspiring example certainly to me. His genius is of course exceptional, but the attention to detail, the hard working mentality and the ability to successfully negotiate a tough balancing act, is equally as inspiring. He clearly had some flaws both personally and politically but I take my inspiration not so much from every policy he passed but what attitude he held, and that is nothing but inspiring. Bibliography Davies, Norman (1997) Europe – A History. Pimlico. Dwyer, Philip G. – edited by (2001) Napoleon and Europe. Pearson Education. Dwyer, Philip G. and Forrest, Alan – edited by – (2007) Napoleon and his Empire – Europe, 1804-1814. Palgrave Macmillan. Emsley, Clive (2003) Napoleon – Conquest, Reform and Reorganisation. Pearson Education. Johnson, Paul (2002) Napoleon. Phoenix. Markham, J. David (2003) Napoleon’s Road to Glory – Triumphs, Defeats and Immortality. Brassey’s. McLynn, Frank (1997) Napoleon – A Biography. Pimlico. Lesson plan: defining aims Lesson plan: defining aims Lesson plan: Defining Aims What is a lesson plan? Before we do anything we must plan what to do, how to do, why to do and when to do. Also in the teaching, a teacher must plan what he wants to teach the students, why he wants teach and how to teach. The first thing that a teacher must do is preparing a lesson. It is called a lesson plan. What is a lesson plan? These are many definitions of lesson plan.                A lesson plan is a teachers detailed description of the course of instruction for an individual lesson or a teachers document used to plan a lesson. (en.wikipedia.org)                A writing noting the method of delivery, and the specific goals and timeline associated to the delivery of the lesson content. (longwood.com)                An organized outline for single instructional period. it is a necessary guide for the instructor in that it tells what do you do, in what order to do it, and what procedure to use in teaching the material of a lesson (www.dynamicflight.com)                A written document used in planning a presentation. (wps.prenhall.com)                A teacher-developed and teacher-written study plan that guides instruction. It contains an outline of the important, points of a lesson arranged in (natomagroup.com)                In my opinion, a lesson plan is a teachers document planning for teaching. How to do the lesson plan?                The first thing a teacher must do is decide on the lesson plans focus. The teacher creates one idea or question they want the students to explore or answer. Next, the teacher creates classroom activities that correlate with the established ideas or question. This includes individual and group activities. A lesson plan must correlate with the text book the class uses. The school or the teacher usually selects the text book or provides teachers with a limited text book choice for particular unit. The teacher must take great care and select the most appropriate book for the student. A good lesson plan can reflect interests and need of students. It incorporates best practices for the education filed. The lesson plan correlate with the teachers philosophy of education. Which is that the teacher feels is the purpose of the student. Lesson plan is preferable, because it allows a teacher to create various research, writing, speaking , and reading assignment. How to consider lesson plan? To know who the students are. Know ability levels, backgrounds, interest levels, attention spans, ability to work together in groups, prior knowledge and learning experience, special need or accommodations, and learning preferences. This my not happen as quickly as you would like, but it is important for designing instruction that will meet the needs of your student. Thats key in successful teaching and learning. To know the content. It is important for you to research the subject matter that you will be teaching. You should also utilize curriculum guides published by the state in which you teach and the local school district that employs you. It is also a good idea to know the national standards and state standards that drive curriculum frameworks and that will give you a lot of information relative to your subject area. TeAch-nology.com has a large number of links that will help you to search for information relative to that subject matter you are employed to teach. one link that can help is as follows To know the materials that are available to help you teach for success. Take and keep an inventory of the materials and resources that are available to you as a teacher. for example: technology , software, audio/visuals, teacher mentors, community resource, equipment, manipulative, library resources, local guest speakers, volunteers, or any materials that can assist you in teaching Planning For Instruction                Before the teacher starts teaching, the teacher must plan for instruction in order to make successfully in teaching. Content The teacher must list the important facts, key concepts, skills, or key vocabulary terms that you intend to cover. You can also prepare an outline with key learning outcomes. Remember to refer to your curriculum guides. Goals To identify the aims or that you want your students to achieve as result of the lesson you plan to teach. goals are end produce and are sometimes broad in nature. Goals relate directly to the knowledge and skill you identify. Goals determine purpose, aim, and rationale for what you your students will engage in during class time. The goals are typically written broad educational or unit goals adhering to state or national curriculum standards. Objectives To identify the objectives that you hope your students will achieve in the tasks that will engage them in the learning process. objectives are behavioral in nature and are specific to performance. Objectives tell what you will be observing in student performance and describe criteria by which you can measure performance against. In many way, objectives represent indicators of performance that tell you, the teacher, to what extent a student is progressing in any given task. Instructional objectives can start with. A given that describes a condition that enables your students to perform any given task. A given could be any activity, a specific set of direction ,materials needed to perform a task, any assignment, for anything that set up a condition for students to engage in the task being observed and measure for performance. The heart of the objective is the task that the student is expected to perform. it is probably one of the most important part of the lesson plan becaus e it is student centered and outcome based. Objectives can range form easy to hard tasks depending on student abilities Materials List the materials and recourses that will be need for the lesson to be successful, the teacher also use technology resources needs to achieve objectives. Introduction Describe or list a focusing event or attention grabber that will motivate the students to want to pay attention and learn about what the teacher plan to teach. It will depend on the ages and stage and of the students and will rely on students interests and backgrounds. The teacher must remember to get the students to attend and respond to the introduction will set the stage for the rest of lesson. Development Describe how the teacher plans to model or explain what the teacher wants the students to do. Modeling the learning behaviors the teacher expects of his students is a powerful development tool and provides demonstration that students can then imitate or practice on they town. During development, models of teaching are used to facilitate students learning. Models can include direct instruction, inquiry, information processing strategies, or cooperative learning strategies. Practice The teacher must list or describe ways in which the teacher will provide opportunities for the students to practice what the teacher wants the students to learn. The more opportunities the teacher provides, the better chance they have to master the expected outcomes. These opportunities are in classroom assignments or tasks that give the teacher, the chance to guide and monitor progress. Independent Practice The teacher should list or describe ways to provide opportunities for the students to complete assignments to measure progress against the goal of instruction. These assignments are meant to give the teacher s the chance to determine whether students have truly mastered the expected outcomes. Remember to only plan for task that the teacher believes students can accomplish without guidance. Accommodations The teacher should list or describe ways that the teacher will differentiate instruction according to students needs. This can include any curricular adaptations that are needed to meet special needs students. Checking for Understanding To list or describe ways that the teacher will check for understanding. Assessment and ongoing feedback are necessary for monitoring progress. This can include questioning, conferencing, or journal writing. Closure To list or describe ways that can wrap up a lesson. This can include telling students in the most important concepts that were covered in lesson, asking the students what they thought were the key concepts, or preparing them for the next lesson building upon what was presented. The key is to leave the students with an imprint of what the teacher hope to achieve in any given lesson. Evaluation The teacher must list or describe the ways to assess or measure the student success in achieving the outcomes that the teacher planed to reach. This can include a variety of ways to evaluate student performance. Aims Aims are general statements briefly outlining the content of the training being offer. Well written objectives are much more specific and should clarify the aims in more detail. Well written aims and objectives will help to provide a sound basis for identifying the content of a course or training program. Defining Aims Aims provide the teacher with the goal of the teaching-learning process. In other words, you know your destination when you begin instruction. They answer the question, what are the students supposed to know or be able to do once the unit or lesson is completed? Aims provide a clear framework for assessment is, after all, an effort to determine to what extent students have reached or achieved the objective. Aims provide the students direction and a goal for learning. Students have a better opportunity to stay the course when they know the goal of the learning. Ruth Hamilton wrote about the aims and sub-aims, by no means exhaustive by in http://www.philseflsupport.com/lessonplanaims.htm. Introducing and practicing new vocabulary. Revising previously taught vocabulary. Introducing a new grammatical point. Introducing new functional language. Revising or reviewing one or more grammatical points. Revising or reviewing functional exponents. Giving controlled/less-controlled/freer practice of a language point. Contrasting two (or more) grammatical points. Contrasting two (or more) functional exponents. Warmers/icebreakers getting to know your students. 11. Raising awareness/ear training and/or practicing aspects of phonology: a) pronunciation of phonemes/individual sounds b) word stress c) sentence stress d) intonation e) features of connected speech Error correction work (usually revising previously taught language) Self-access work. Learner training. Developing reading skills prediction/skimming/scanning/inferring, etc. Developing listening skills prediction/gist/for specific information/inference, etc. Examples of Aims The students can pronounce the words correctly. The students can tell the meaning of words. The students can ask and answer the direction to the bus station. The students can write the sentences about daily life. The students can read a short passage and answer the questions. My English Class Before I start my teaching English, I always prepare my lesson by planning what I will teach my students; the contents, the objectives or aims, materials or instruments, worksheets, and activities that I will use in the class. I use the varied activities in my English class such as games and songs depend on the contents in that period. The important thing that I must do is write the aims or the objectives of learning and tell the students what they are able to do after the learning. The teacher can check how the students success in the lesson by using the assignments, the test or any activities. References Mitchell, Diana, and Stephen Tchudi. (1999). Exploring and Teaching the English Language Arts. (4th Ed.) Boston, MA: Allyn Bacon. Raymond W. Donny Lee, Jr.(2004). Writing Learning Objectives for Unit and Lesson Plans. Tip of writing Objectives. http://www.okbu.edu/academics/natsc/ed. http://www.teach-nology.com en.wikipedia.org longwood.com natomagroup.com/basecamp/infodev/tpdhandbook/glossary.doc www.dynamicflight.com http://wps.prenhall.com Function : Asking and answering about time, routine, or activities. Teaching Procedure/Activities : Warm up/Lead in: The teacher lets the students play the number game. The teacher shows the clock and asks the students about the time. Then tells the students about the purpose of learning. Presentation: The teacher presents the vocabulary about the time. The teacher pronounces the words correctly and lets the students repeat. The teacher asks the questions about activities or routines and answers the questions. The teacher explains how to use the words and how to tell the time. Practice: The students practice by asking and answering the questions in pairs about the time and activities or routines. The teacher asks the students about their activities or routines. Checks the correct answers. Production: The teacher lets the students do the assignments by writing the sentences about their routines. Materials: word cards a clock pictures about activities Evaluation and measurement: Observing in the class Correcting the assignment
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