The Aesthetic and the Academic-Are They at Odds in English Literature at A level?

This discussion largely concerns a single essay written at English A level. The essay is only a fragment of evidence yet it provides a rich stimulus for thought and speculation about the nature of English at this level of study. The subject of the essay is poetry - more specifically, the poetry of Sylvia Plath. What might be expected of such an essay? What responses to poetry might be possible within it?     

Dimensions of intercultural effectiveness: Culture specific or culture general?

Abe and Wiseman (1983) replicated Hammer, Gudykunst, and Wiseman's (1978) study of the dimensions of intercultural effectiveness. Subjects for the Hammer et al. study were Americans living in another culture for at least 3 months, whereas Abe and Wiseman's subjects were Japanese tourists in the United States. Three dimensions emerged in the original study and five in the replication. Abe and Wiseman interpret these differences as evidence for a culture-specific interpretation of intercultural effectiveness. The argument presented in this paper is that Abe and Wiseman's data do not support a culture-specific interpretation. Rather, it presents relatively unequivocal evidence for a culture-general interpretation. Differences in the two factor structures are explained in terms of sample size and length of stay.