Monday, September 30, 2019

Principles of Management Essay

1. Discuss three (3) different methods of effecting change. Use practical examples from your experience or knowledge, and describe your experience in implementing change. Change will not be effortlessly implemented without an implementation plan or a framework. Change is often implemented in order to resolve issues, concerns, or setbacks to make situations or conditions more desirable. (National Defense University, 2008) It must then follow a process, called research, in order to identify what changes are to be made and how changes are to be implemented. The initial step is to identify the problem or the issue that is to be resolved through change. Next, there should be sufficient background information that supports the pressing need for change. Then it is time to come up with several changes that are suited to solve the problem. Once the most important plan of change is determined, the question of how the change will be implemented should be answered. This includes the plan of action, rules and regulations, etc. Overall, the implementation plan abovementioned solidifies the need to implement change, and becomes a guide to direct an organization in realizing its goals by lessening confusion and ambiguity. Another method to effect change is to involve everyone concerned. In this way, individuals easily accept and adapt to the changes lessening pressure, stress, confusion, and chaos. Moreover, information circulated for everyone involved should be clear, extensive, flexible, and reasonable. For instance, there is a need to revamp the structure of organization through reappointment. Therefore, laying out the reasons for such action is important. These reasons should be evenhanded and logical. Reappointing, hiring, or even laying off should also be reasonable and explicated to employees. The change should also be open to pleas and petitions from employees with consideration to accomplishments, position, character, etc. The entire process is most effectively done through a meeting, with the aid of a well-researched and written report containing all necessary information. (Actalpha, 2008) In this way, change in the structure of the organization, as an example, is unquestionable and easily accepted due to facts. Personally, being informed about future changes makes it easy to accept expected results and outcomes, and lessens fear, resistance and difficulties to implement changes. Lastly, it is most important to set rules to follow on how everyone is to observe the changes implemented. Consistency is vital in allowing effortless adaptation of changes and the facilitation of submission to these changes. Monitoring and supervision would assist in accomplishing this method of change management. (Caroll, 2008) 2. Why are most organizations and individuals resistant to change? What can managers do to facilitate change? As the saying goes, change is inevitable. Although organizations cannot avoid having to implement changes every now and then, its members are more often than not resistant to change. This is because change is accompanied by adjustment and undeterminable outcomes. For organizations, resistance to change is mainly caused by the fear of loss or defeat once changes are implemented. (Bacal, 2008) Organizations and its members are driven by success and the accomplishment or realization of organizational goals and objectives. The primary purpose of change is to improve organizational structure and atmosphere; however, there is always the fear of failure or a letdown if changes that are implemented backfires and does not prove to be sufficient nor appropriate to develop and redirect the organizational situation. To lessen these fears, ambiguity, or apprehensions regarding organizational changes, the manager should be able to utilize his command to facilitate change. As aforementioned in order to answer the previous question, managers should be able to assure the organization and its members that a change is necessary. Assessing all the aspects related to change is also needed. It is the most basic and the most important process in facilitating change. This is carried out through extensive research analysis, plan mapping, formulation of action plans or process maps, etc. These written reports and plans shall be distributed to everyone involved who will be affected by the planned changes to be implemented. Once information is distributed to the members of the organization, managers should conduct a training program or a seminar workshop to initiate a discussion about the issues related to the type of change, and to prepare members of the organization for changes in roles and responsibilities, rules and regulations, salary, etc. through training and workshop. (Southeast Association of Facilitators, 2007) After the training program or seminar workshop, the management is now able to implement the changes formally. At this point, rules and regulations should be observed strictly and consistently in order to sustain the transition from the old to the new working situation or environment.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Balance Scorecard Essay

Develop the strategic objectives for your business in the format of a balanced scorecard. The strategic objectives are measures of attaining your vision and mission. As you develop them consider the vision, mission, and values for your business and the outcomes of your SWOTT analysis. Consider the following four quadrants of the balanced scorecard when developing your strategic objectives: Shareholder Value or Financial Perspective, includes strategic objectives in areas such as: Market share Revenues and costs Profitability Competitive position Customer Value Perspective, includes strategic objectives in areas such as: Customer retention or turnover Customer satisfaction Customer value Process or Internal Operations Perspective, includes strategic objectives in areas such as: Measure of process performance Productivity or productivity improvement Operations metrics Learning and Growth (Employee) Perspective, includes strategic objectives in areas such as: Employee satisfaction Employee turnover or retention Level of organizational capability Nature of organizational culture or climate Technological innovation Develop at least two strategic objectives for each of the following four balanced scorecard areas identified above (Financial, Customer, Process, Learning and Growth). Your objectives should be selected, in part, based on an evaluation of a number of potential alternatives to the issues and/or opportunities identified in the SWOTT Analysis paper and table you completed in Week Three. Base your solutions on a ranking of alternative solutions that i†¦ Get complete A+ tutorial here – https://bitly.com/12C4Fhk If you have a hard time with schedules, try using routines. Schedules generally involve plans that are timed, while routines are generally habitual procedures. If scheduling doesn’t work for you, try implementing a routine with basic guidelines. They don’t need to be done in a particular order or at specific times, but they can be used to make a list for completing your daily tasks. Business – Management Individual Strategic Plan, Part III: Balanced Scorecard Resource: Exhibit 7-1 in Ch. 7 of Strategic Management Develop the strategic objectives for your business in the format of a  balanced scorecard. The strategic objectives are measures of attaining your vision and mission. As you develop them consider the vision, mission, and values for your business and the outcomes of your SWOTT analysis. Consider the following four quadrants of the balanced scorecard when developing your strategic objectives:  · Shareholder Value or Financial Perspective, includes strategic objectives in areas such as:   Market share   Revenues and costs   Profitability   Competitive position  · Customer Value Perspective, includes strategic objectives in areas such as:   Customer retention or turnover   Customer satisfaction   Customer value  · Process or Internal Operations Perspective, includes strategic objectives in areas such as:   Measure of process performance   Productivity or productivity improvement   Operations metrics  · Learning and Growth (Employee) Perspective, includes strategic objectives in areas such as:   Employee satisfaction   Employee turnover or retention   Level of organizational capability   Nature of organizational culture or climate   Technological innovation Develop at least three strategic objectives for each of the following four balanced scorecard areas identified above (Financial, Customer, Process, Learning and Growth). Your objectives should be selected, in part, based on an evaluation of a number of potential alternatives to the issues and/or opportunities identified in the SWOTT Analysis paper and table you completed in Week Three. Base your solutions on a ranking of alternative solutions that includes an identification of potential risks and mitigation plans, and a stakeholder analysis that includes†¦

Saturday, September 28, 2019

3 mistakes of my life Essay

1. Review of ‘The3 Mistakes OfMy Life’By- ShubhamBhutada. 2. ï‚›Name Of Book :The 3 mistakesof my lifeï‚›Author :Chetan Bhagatï‚›Publisher : Rupa Booksï‚›Price: `95 3. CharactersIt’s the story about three friendsOmi, Govind and Ishaan. The storyis presented through Govind’seyes and it’s his three mistakes oflife that are presented along.Govind is, interested in coming upon his own in life, through business. 4. Ish is cricket player whose passionlies in playing, teaching andwatching cricket. Omi is a priest‘sson who doesn’t have anyambition of his own and justmoves along with his two friends. 5. Storyï‚› The book is based on real life events.What follows is a mix of cricket,religion, business, love and friendship.ï‚›Story begins with Bhagat receivingan e-mail from Govind who hadtaken many sleeping pill.ï‚›Govind set up Cricket Shop alongwith his friends in the templecompound with Omi’s family’s help. 6. ï‚›The shop prospers as Ishaancoaches young boys in cricket andGovind teaches maths to someboys and Ishaan’ sister Vidya.ï‚›They want to expand business innew mall in city. They select theprime location in mall for their shopand pay the advance. 7. ï‚›Omi’s Bittoo Mama (maternal uncle),a communal party man bent onconverting the young into fighters inthe name of Hinduism and wantsthat these boys should work for theresecular party.ï‚›Ishan then meets Ali, a Muslim childmaster with reflex condition hit eachball for a six but can’t play more thanan over due to weakness. 8. ï‚›They agreed to provide cricketcoaching and maths tuitions free ofcost to Ali. Ali displays the talent whichIshaan never had and Ali’s destinybecomes his own.ï‚›It is the Republic day, earthquakecame in Gujarat. Mall in which theyhad booked shop get fully destroyed.Money invested (`110000) in mall shopturns into first big mistake of Govind. 9. ï‚›They endure great pains to take Aliall the way to Sydney at thesuggestion of one of the Australianplayers. There, Ali is offered acontract on the condition that hehave to become an Australiancitizen is refused by Ali.ï‚›Govind falls in love with Vidya . Thatwas his second big mistake. 10. ï‚›Bittoo Mama sends his son andOmi’s mother with other Sevak toAyodhya. On their return journeyMuslim mob put on fire the bogie ofSevaks. In that Mama lost his son.ï‚›Ahmedabad burns in riot fires.Bittoo mama with his party workerskills Ali’s family. Now mama wantsto kill Ali. 11. ï‚›Omi dies while saving Ali fromMama’s attack.ï‚›Ishaan finds out about Vidya andGovind, a betrayal he does notforgive.ï‚›Govind while protecting Ali formMama make his third mistake. Dueto a second delay a blade ofmama’s trishul jabbed Ali’s Wrist. 12. ï‚›After these events Ishaan not talkwith Govind for more than twoyears. These events lead Govind tohis death-bed and that is when hewrites the email to Chetan. Chetan Bhagat trigger thereconciliation between Ish andGovind, rekindle the love betweenGovind and Vidya & instill in himthe desire to stay alive. 13. Commentï‚›Content: The Three Mistakes of myLife’ is a story well told. Book hasmany interesting settings andsituation.ï‚›Language: This book is written simplyand has the quality that makes onewant to read the book cover tocover in one sitting. 14. ï‚›Other: None of reason for saving Aliare based on the fact that hes aMuslim, or they save Ali out of anymoral obligation apart from thefact that he is a potentialcricketing great. Chetans notionsof nationalism and patriotism arejust too immature and simplistic. 15. Conclusionï‚›Many times our dreams crash intopieces by unexpected events butwith support from people around, wecan get back on track, focus andrebuild our dreams.ï‚›Life will have many setbacks. Peopleclose to you will hurt you. But youdon’t break it off. You don’t hurtthem more. You try to heal it. 16. Thank You†¦

Friday, September 27, 2019

Response paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 7

Response paper - Essay Example Countries like China and India are in the development phase and are looking to establish themselves more in the international economy. For this purpose, they require more and more energy and as this energy is produced, more greenhouse gases would be emitted. The US and European countries, on the other hand, can afford to invest in the development of Clean Technology because they are well-developed. International cooperation asks all the countries to take certain measures to reduce the GHG. Such measures are acceptable for developed countries but under-developed countries cannot afford to comply with such requirements because of their energy needs. When these countries do not comply with international treaties, the other countries also pull out of such treaties. Apart from the economic needs, countries may also opt not to comply with a treaty because they do not want to follow the lead of Western countries. For instance, history tells us that China rarely followed the lead of US on ma ny occasions. The treaties made for better environment can work only when they are harmonized and every country contributes. This has not been the case in the Montreal Protocol and the Copenhagen

Thursday, September 26, 2019

How Stress Management and Decision Making affect the Hospitality and Essay

How Stress Management and Decision Making affect the Hospitality and Events Industry - Essay Example A combination exhibiting of any of these conditions is normally a good indicator that a person is experiencing stress. In addition to these physical symptoms of stress, over time stress can end up affecting a person’s immune system to the point whereby the person easily gets sick, low fertility, stress can also cause someone to experience lower back, shoulders and neck pain form the constant muscle tension that results from stress. Skin conditions, muscle and lung problems are also greatly worsened by stress (Banyard, 2009). Psychological Effects of Stress In addition to the physical symptoms of stress, there are also some psychological effects of stress that can severely affect a person’s thoughts and emotions. These include tendencies by persons suffering from stress to worry too much about relatively small and unimportant things; the person may also feel tired or even jumpy all the time in addition to finding it to be invariably difficult for them to focus on even si mple mundane tasks. A person will also tend to constantly imagine that bad things are happening or almost happening in addition to their feeling cranky, having a short temper that causes them to keep on yelling at others for no apparent reason which ultimately causes them to feel extremely frustrated (Fink, 2010). Consequences of Stress and Coping Behaviors in the Hospitality and Events Industry There have been a few studies conducted focusing on investigating the consequences of stress in the hospitality industry. Some of these consequences of stress include sleep disorders, annoyance, nervousness, high blood pressure, heart diseases, lack of appetite and smoking among others (Topaloglu and Tuna, 1998). Studies conducted by Bymer et al. (1991) aimed at trying to examine stress and the subsequent coping mechanisms specifically in the hospitality industry among managers working in 23 hotels across the United States indicated that job stressors had a negative impact on how the manager s conducted their managerial duties as well affecting the employee attitudes at the various hotels resulting in high numbers of on-the-job accidents, turnover, sick days, absenteeism low levels of productivity and job satisfaction (Landy and Conte 2010). The Relationship between Stress and Work Performance The Inverted U is one of the oldest and most important stress management ideas used to try and establish the relationship that exists between stress and work performance. When the pressure being exerted on a person

Gambling in Australia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Gambling in Australia - Essay Example This has impacted on families, government, the society and employee, due to the addiction provided by the gambling activities. To control the gambling activities in Australia, states have been passing legislations that are aimed at regulating the gaming activities. The Papua New Guinea in 2007 passed one of these resolutions aimed at regulating land based and online gaming activities. This regulation was aimed at granting casino license to any gambling service provider based in Australia or foreign (Diaconu, 2010). The Vanuatu parliament had enacted such regulations in 2000, seeking to limit the players’ age limit and controlling the gaming activities through strict control of the gambling criteria. The problem of alcohol intake and smoking has been that as passive gaming increases, the rate at which the gamers smoke and take alcohol drastically increase. The drug addiction has led the Australian Gaming Council to undertake initiatives of sensitizing the gamers concerning resp onsible gaming activities (Australian Gaming Council, 2008). According to Fabianson (2010), the gambling activities and the alcohol related intake in passive gaming have been on the rise in low level education class of people, with males dominating the gaming activities. ... The Australian National Drugs Strategy, ANDS argues that gambling has resulted to increased rates of social problems. Gambling as the ANDS elaborates affects a larger population than the individual and pathological gambling is listed as an impulsive control disorder. The disorders are driven by the arousal, pleasure and gratification. The ANDS report elaborates that recurrent gambling behavior that leads to addiction results to significant disruptions in family, personal, vocational, social lives. The compulsive behavior has resulted to job losses as employees are addicted, and they have to take the gaming activity to fulfill the string desired in gambling addiction. This is aggravated by the heavy drugs intake that results from the passive gaming activities, and has exposed many gamers to health risks (Diaconu, 2010). The Australian gambling sector has however been instrumental to the economy of the country despite the social impact it has created. It is estimated that in 2001-2002 Australians gambled away AUD 13.8 billion (Clark, Cho & Hoyler, 2010). The gambling industry created more than 9000 new jobs in three years from 2001, and as Fabiasnson (2010) argues, gambling has been a good source of income to the government through heavy taxation, and other levies that result from gaming activities. Gambling clubs as Fabianson further elaborates have been involved in many communal based projects in initiating developments in many parts of Australian communities, as a requirement to channel part of their proceed to the public good. The gaming activities have been instrumental in the economy and development as a source of income to the governments in Australia. Despite the positive side of

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Correctional philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Correctional philosophy - Essay Example Clearly, the war on drugs has dramatically increased the influx of inmates to the correctional system. Admittedly, stiffer sentences for drug offenders are not an effective way to deal with the problem. Had it been so, the picture would have been different by now. In addition, it is quite expensive to detain all the drug offenders. At present 59% of the jail inmates are drug offenders. Despite all these efforts and expenditure, the amount of drug captured is just 10%, and most of the people arrested on drug charges are just drug users, not drug dealers. That means the dealers and the real culprits manage to evade punishment even now, and government spends lots of money on keeping the drug users in jails. Thus, it is clear that stiffer sentences will not deter drug use in any way. Instead, what is more useful is to focus on education programs through schools and health services. As far as people feel to use drugs, they will find them at any cost and as far as people want them, drug dealers will continue their supply, and no closing up of border will help. So, the best way out is to ca tch people young through schools and other awareness programs, which are less expensive and more

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Strategic Marketing Plan For Red Bull Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Strategic Marketing Plan For Red Bull - Essay Example Summary of the task The study aims towards designing a marketing plan for Red Bull. Background Red Bulls is a twenty five years old company that has been selling energy drink. In the year 1980, Dietrich Mateschitz founded Red Bull, inspired by a functional drink originated from Far East. He created the energy drink and promoted it through a unique marketing concept. In its early days it was sold in the home market of Austria but today Red Bull is sold in more than 165 countries. Red Bull is not only a new product but has given birth to a totally new category of product. Today Red Bull has sold more than 35 billion cans (Red Bull GmbH, n.d.). Outline The marketing plan of Red Bull covers the following Product: Non-caffeine drinks for the kids and other people who do not drink for energy purpose. Place: Designing an expansion plan through which the company can operate in other geographical areas. Price: Red Bull will be implementing some cost reduction techniques so that the price of t he products can be reduced. Promotion: Red Bull will be promoting their new product through social networking site, public relationship activities etc. At the same time they will also promote their current product as â€Å"safe to drink†. Strategic Marketing Plan Marketing Audit Marketing audit is defined as the process of â€Å"comprehensive, systematic, independent and periodic examination of a company’s or business unit’s marketing environment, objectives, strategies and activities with a view of determining problem areas and opportunities and recommending a plan of action to improve the company’s marketing performance† (Avasarikar and Chordiya, 2007, p. 4.15). Marketing audit helps in increasing the profitability of the company (Kotler, 1999). Red Bull deals in energy drinks with various tastes targeted towards young people who are involved into strenuous work starting from athletes and weight lifter to common man working in office. The marketi ng audit is done through SWOT analysis that highlights on the internal, external and competitor analysis. Based on results the issues are identified. Internal analysis Strength Market leadership: In the year 2012 the company has sold total of 5.226 billion cans all over the world. This figure represented a 12.8% increase in the sales as compared to the figures of 2011. The company is the global leader in energy drinks. The company has a market share of 70% in the world. Even the other drinks offered by other companies are also facing competition in front of Red Bull. Figure 1: Red Bull’s Net Sales and Cans sold in 2010-12. (Source: Euromonitor International, 2013) Millward Brown (2010, cited by Bodner, 2011) stated that Red Bull is positioned at 79th position amongst all the global brands worth 8,154 billion dollar. It is positioned at fourth rank amongst all the popular brands in soft drinks like before Sprite and Fanta but behind Coke (Zero, Lights and Diets), Coca Cola and Pepsi. Coke and Coca Cola are the third largest brands all over the

Monday, September 23, 2019

Planning task Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Planning task - Essay Example Ask students to think about how the early Egyptians computed for the dimensions and what kind of measuring units they used. The Base Area depends on the shape, there are different formulas for triangle, square, etc. But the Lateral Area is surprisingly simple. Just multiply the perimeter by the side length and divide by 2. This is because the sides are always triangles and the triangle formula is base times height divided by 2 Education today has undergone various transformations from days of old. Schools at present may have similar goals of optimizing students’ learning and maximizing their potentials but may have differing philosophies, approaches and educational strategies in fulfilling these goals. â€Å"Predictably, the traditional teacher-centered model in which knowledge is â€Å"transmitted† from teacher to learner is rapidly being replaced by alternative models of instruction (e.g., learner-centered, constructivist, and sociocultural ideas) in which the emphasis is on guiding and supporting students as they learn to construct their understanding of the culture and communities of which they are a part (Brown et al., 1993; Brown, Collins, & Duguid, 1989; Cobb, 1994; Collins, 1990; Duffy & Cunningham, 1996; Pea, 1993). In the process of shifting our attention to the constructive activity of the learner, we recognize the need to anchor learning in real-world or authentic contexts that make learning meaningful and purposeful. â€Å" (Bonk & Cunningham, 1998, p.27). The lesson plans prepared above were meant to combine old and new methods of teaching and learning. It has the elements of both teacher-directed as well as learner-centred learning activities. Math concepts and problem solving still need teacher demonstrations, but it also needs practical application for the students to be able to appreciate it. The theories of Piaget and Vygotsky were based on their predecessors’. â€Å"Piaget believed that children create knowledge through

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Religion and Grand Zoroastrian Nation Essay Example for Free

Religion and Grand Zoroastrian Nation Essay It fills my heart with joy unspeakable to rise in response to the warm and cordial welcome which you have given us. I thank you in the name of the most ancient order of monks in the world; I thank you in the name of the mother of religions; and I thank you in the name of the millions and millions of Hindu people of all classes and sects. My thanks, also to some of the speakers on this platform who, referring to the delegates from the Orient, have told you that these men from far-off nations may well claim the honour of bearing to different lands the idea of toleration. I am proud to belong to a religion which has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance. We believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true. I am proud to belong to a nation, which has sheltered the persecuted, and the refugees of all religion and all nations of the earth. I am proud to tell you that we have gathered in our bosom the purest remnant of the Israelites, who came to southern India and took refuge with us in the very year in which their holy temple was shattered to pieces by Roman tyranny. I am proud to belong to the religion, which has sheltered and is still fostering the remnant of the grand Zoroastrian nation. I will quote to you, brethren, a few lines from a hymn which I remember to have repeated from my earliest boyhood, which is every day repeated by millions of human beings: ‘As the different streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in the sea, so, O Lord, the different paths which men take through different tendencies various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee’. Quoted from Siva Mahimnah Stotram 7. The present convention, which is one of the most august assemblies ever held, is in itself a vindication a declaration to the world of the wonderful doctrine preached in the Gita: ‘Whosoever comes to Me, through whatsoever form I reach him; all men are struggling through paths which in the end lead to Me’. Quoted from Geeta 4:11. Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism, have long possessed this beautiful earth. They have filled the earth with violence, drenched it often and often with human blood, destroyed civilization, and sent whole nations to despair. Had it not been for these horrible demons, human society would be far more advanced  than it is now. But their time is come; and I fervently hope that the bell that tolled this morning in honour of this convention may be the death-knell of all fanaticism, of all persecutions with the sword or with the pen, and of all uncharitable feelings between persons wend ing their way to the same goal.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

British Standards of Sustainability

British Standards of Sustainability Abstract The following report is based on the use of British Standards to look at the impact it has on a product development process from the beginning of its lifecycle to the end when it decomposes. With the world today at the state it is, the pollution and the resources are being used up at an un-regenerate able rate. It is more important than ever to recycle and perform our manufacturing processes in an environmentally sustainable manner. Hence, the modern environmental legislations have been designed and applied in manners as such to focus on not only manufacturing process but also the end of life cycle and the recycling and upcycle options. BS8887- 1:2006 (MADE) looks at design from Manufacture, Assembly, Disassembly and End of life, the key aspects this legislation will cover and target are at remanufacture, recycling and efficient and sustainable ways to proceed to the end of life of the product. The main aim of legislations as such is to become more environmentally friendly and to cre ate a more sustainable environment for the generation of tomorrow. However, there are many such legislations that every manufacturer in the region has to follow which covers areas not covered by the particular legislation mentioned above. There are many various other legislations and regulations which ensure that the rules and regulations are followed strictly and the quality of the production is maintained at an optimum with respect to production and environment. Contents Abstract ..1 Glossary: 3 Introduction: 4 Research Methodology: .4 Principle of MADE: 4 Product Design Assessment: 5 Manufacture of Design: (MADE): .. 5 Assembly (MADE): 6 Disassembly (MADE): .. 6 End of Life Processing (MADE): .. 7 Benefits of MADE: . 7 Design for the Environment (DFE): ..9 BS887 1:.. 9 BS8900: .. 9 ISO 14001: . 9 ISO 14025: .. 10 Designing a product for the environment and how it is contributing to the sustainability: .10 4 Methods to assess a product for their impacts on the environment: .12 Reference and Bibliography ..13 Glossary: PDS- Product Design specification MADE- Manufacture, Assembly, Disassembly and End of life BS- British Standard PDA- Product Design Assessment DFE: Design for Environment FEA: Finite element analysis EIA: Environmental impact assessment LCA: Life cycle assessment MET: Material energy toxicity matrix EEA: Environmental performance indicator WEEE: Waste electronic and electrical equipment Introduction: The report shows how the idea of sustainability is implemented through various steps of production and manufacture with the help of the guidelines put into place by the British Standards. The main purpose behind these legislation and guidelines is to make the companies and the manufacturers aware of the harmful impacts of the manufacturing process as well as the effect of bad material selection during production and end of life cycle. The use of strict guidelines and fines to put these legislations and rules in place helps by maintaining the sustainability process of our environment as well as by funding the awareness programs and the research on new concepts and technology regarding sustainable environment. This report shows the impact of different legislations on the manufacturing process of the industrial fans and the different steps taken to make sure the process is environmentally friendly and supports the sustainability of the environment even during disassembly and end of life cycle. Another form of legislation which provides guidance for the company to perform their operation in a sustainable manner with respect to environment is ISO 14001, ISO 14001 however focuses more on efficient utilisation of water and energy usage with minimum wastage. Together these legislations and laws promotes the idea of sustainable environment and aids for its further research on sustainability and new technology to make the manufacturing process more efficient and environmentally conservative. Research Methodology: To gather the information and data required for the report two major types of sources were used: Research on the internet and through the British standard articles and awareness packets. The manufacturing process of the product is analysed and reviewed under the legislations and rules BS887 and MADE to find out the changes the law has made on the manufacturing process to adapt the process and make it more eco-friendly and sustainable. The legislations and sources for the research are mentioned in the bibliography and on appropriate sections. The company has also done various eco-friendly tests and published articles on its results which can and have been sourced and used as a part of research for the report. Principle of MADE: MADE: Manufacture, Assembly, Disassembly and End of life. The principle objective of the MADE standard is to make sure the product is able to be either decomposed in an eco-friendly manner or recycled after the end of its life cycle to make sure the environment is not affected by the product. The use of MADE ensures the correct materials are selected for manufacture and the idea of eco-friendly and sustainable environment is kept in mind when choosing the material for the product with respect to the impact the use of the material will have on the environment during the its life cycle and after the end of the life cycle. As of today the materials chosen in the product we see are still not very focused on making the environment clean and conservative for the future, more than half of the product we use today are still dumped in landfills after the end of its life cycle which is harming and degrading the environment. Hence the main purpose of the MADE standard is to make the companys an d the manufacturers aware of the needs of our environment and to make sure appropriate materials are chosen for the products which can be either recycled or de-composed in a conservative manner after end of its life cycle. Product Design Assessment: The product being chosen to perform the analysis on is a normal house hold blender. The theory of MADE principles is going to be used for the analysis and to find out the effects a normal house blender has on our environment. The analysis helps us find solutions and improvements for the product to be better suited for the environment and to help maintain the sustainability of environment. The image above shows example of a common house hold blender. Manufacture of Design: (MADE): The manufacturing process of the blender consist of multiple pieces being moulded and shaped and then joined together to make the blender functional and operational. The materials in use for the manufacturing of the blender are also of various combination. However, the blender is shaped in a very simple shape which makes it fairly easier to manufacture the common house hold blender. The plastic jar of the blender is composed of a material called PP (Polypropylene Plastic) shaped and moulded through a process called injection moulding process. The moulding process is performed by heating up the material to its melting point and injecting it to a cooled die where it is cooled down and moulded to its shape. The process is a very cheap method of manufacturing which also requires very low level of energy usage. The blade of the blender on the other hand is stainless steel shaped into small sharp blade like structure which cut and blend the fruits/vegetables/ spices inserted into the jar of the blender. It is essential that the blade is made of stainless steel which has no chances of forming rust in the environment where it operates since food that we eat is being blended in the machine and hence could cause potentially illness for the user. To make sure the steel being used is stainless there should be at least 10.5% chromium in the steel, the presence of the protective iron chromium oxide allows the steel to avoid corrosions and rust. In order for the blender to be considered safe for daily house hold purposes and for it to pass the British safety standard it is vital that the blade for the blenders are of stainless steel. The manufacturing method used to produce the blades for the blenders is the Spinning method. The method is performed by using machinery which is mounted on a forming block against the stainless steel which is pressed on a forming block to rotate. The process in itself is not really expensive or energy consuming but it will be more economical and financially benefitting to produce at bulk with big batches. The graph above shows how the price is affected with the batch size and shows how ordering at bulk with big numbers is more economical. Assembly (MADE): The design of the blender is pretty simple for assembly which requires very little time and knowledge to assemble and use. After the assembly of the blade in the jar all the parts are easily accessible and well fitted to make sure the blender is accessible and easy to use able to be cleaned fitted and opened making it easier to use and clean for household use. The design and the mechanism of the parts are very simple making the parts easy to access worldwide in case it needs repair or fixing. The source of the materials are all minimalistic and easy to access making it easier to be sourced locally making it easier and cheaper to manufacture. The cardboard of the packaging is also recyclable and eco-friendly making it more sustainable friendly for the environment. Disassembly (MADE): The blender consists of various different parts, which are easily constructed and assembled. The use of simple parts makes it easy to operate and assemble the blender along its life cycle. Not only that the use of simple and easy parts makes it easy to disassemble as well helps in the end of life cycle for recycle or upcycle. The use of basic and fairly simple materials for manufacturing and assembly makes it easy to disassemble and end the life cycle in a conservative manner. End of Life Processing (MADE): Due to the presence of heavy carbon emissions and the state that our environment is in it is essential that all the manufacturers have a plan for the end of life cycle to deal with the product in an eco-friendly and conservative manner. The company and the manufacturers need to have a plan for the management of the product even after the items have been sold and passed on to the customers. It is essential for the product to be able to keep up with the customer demand and meet the standards that have been placed for the products hence the End of the life processing is one of the most important steps as well. Preserving our environment and keeping it alive for the future is one of the main issues and things we deal with today in our daily life and it is essential that we respect it in order to maintain the balance in our food chain and the environment. The use of stainless steel hence makes perfect sense as it is theoretically 100 % recyclable. Another key features which promotes the use of stainless steel is that it is very durable and has a long life of several decades. However, if the product has reached its end of lifecycle or has damages in it then it can easily be replaced and separated from its housing and framework. As stainless steel has no damaging effect when in contact with soil or water it can be easily re-moulded in different kinds of moulds to reuse and recycle. Polypropylene (PP) is another material not only being used in the manufacturing of the blender but also one of the most recycled and reused material around us today. With nearly everything around us being made of some kind of plastic it is essential we recycle these materials in order to help keep our environment clean and pollution free. All the different kinds of plastic being used in production today are numbered 1-7 depending on the type of plastic and their properties. However, the body of the blender is made up of quite tough PP, which will require a special technique to recycle called the quaternary recycling process. To perform the process on such plastics which are being recycled it is incinerated at temperature of up to 900 to 1000 Degree Celsius. The use of the method can cut the waste plastic by around 80% and completely prevent pollutant escaping to the atmosphere as well. Common examples of recycled PP can be Battery Cables, Brushes, Bins, signal lights, etc. Hence the recycling and re use of every kind of plastic including the PP helps to keep our environment clean and make a more of a sustainable approach. Benefits of MADE: The use of the MADE theory of analysis help us to find out of the flaws present in the blender. Comparing the usage process to the manufacturing and the designing process there is lots of usage during the manufacturing phase comparatively to the very little usage of energy during the operational life of the blender. The graph above shows how it requires an excessive amount of energy during its production phase but very little during its operational and usage life cycle. By finding a more energy efficient method for production and design of the blender the company could be improving in its earning and the profit margin achieved through each sale. As mentioned above in the report the use of the recycling and upcycling process on the materials can be very helpful and cost effective when either purchasing or producing the blender. The use of recycling and eco-friendly components also help to create a good image with the customers and gain their trust. Also using less dense materials, recycle and remade parts for production may help to make a more sustainable and eco-friendly approach. Design for the Environment (DFE): Design for Environment (DFE) can be defined as process of designing to minimize the environmental impacts and ensuring products are sustainable and eco-friendly throughout the products life cycle. The main concepts and sections that are covered and assessed by the concept of DFE are: Sustainability in relation to its influence on industry Designing a product with respect to the environment and how it is contributing to the sustainability of the environment 4 Methods to assess a product for their impacts on the environment Sustainability in relation to its influence on industry: According to The Bruntland Commission, sustainability is a development that meets the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The BSIs overarching sustainability standard BS 8900 Guidance for managing sustainable development defines sustainability as an enduring, balanced approach to economic activity, environmental responsibility and social progress. The product life cycle of the company is assessed to find out the sustainability of a company and its products. With the help of these types of assessment performed by recognised bodies like the British Standard and other companys it adds a more sustainable and eco-friendly approach to its company and its products. The achievement of approval and recognition from organisations like BS8900 can lead to approval from other organisation as such which could give them further recognition and qualification in order to achieve greater vision and solidity as well as building trust and confidence for the company and its products. Having achieved the recognition from the organisations they can also benefit from less taxation, social and green branding and a higher level of understanding on recycling and the possible different ways possible to recycle. There are also many other types of UK/EU legislation and standards that can have influence on the industries improvement towards more sustainable earth: BS887 1: The specific standard BS887 1 is different from other standards because it does not teach or give instruction to the designers on how to design or seek the manufacturing process. The standard rather provides methodology for ordering the output of the process and maximises the possibility of the most efficient ways to manufacture, assemble and solve the problem of end of life for the product. The standard also focuses on the most efficient and cost effective ways to produce the design and the products. BS8900: This standard and legislation is based on the guidance provided to manage sustainable development and to make sure sustainable practise are taking place in the industry. The standard helps the company to grow and cut out un-necessary actions taking place in the company like bribery, abuse, oppression and corruptions, enabling the company to stand on integrity. ISO 14001: ISO 14001 is an environmental management system standard which fully focuses on the environment. ISO 14001 helps to promote the effective and efficient environmental management from the company. It also controls the management of energy, consumables and waste; enabling strict energy management system. This will help the company benefit from appropriate amount of energy being used for the corresponding purposes and limiting the level of carbon emissions into the atmosphere making it a more eco-friendly and sustainable company. ISO 14025: This standard addresses the procedures for creating environmental declarations and labels. This helps to make sure there are standardised logos which represent how green and eco-friendly the company or the manufacturer is. The standardised logos indicate the level of carbon footprint in a product and can help either gain the company a good image or a bad one depending on their performance and the stickers in the packaging. Designing a product for the environment and how it is contributing to the sustainability: Designing a product for the environment (DFE) process provides huge contributions towards making a business or a product highly sustainable and environmentally friendly. The objective of DFE in simple words is to reduce or prevent various different kinds of pollutions and also highlight the risks to humans and environment. DFE aims to improve products, processes and life cycle by approaching the design of the product it is also aimed to reduce the potential impacts the environment and humans may have to face or come up against. DFE applies its principles throughout the stage of its product life cycle focusing on making the steps more environmentally friendly and loss polluting hence resulting in cleaner and sustainable products. The direct result from implementation of DFE in the products life cycle can lead to prevention of various different kinds of pollution as well as reduction on the amount of toxic/ hazardous waste and chemical in the landfills. The picture above shows an example of a product life cycle which when under DFE legislation is focused in making the steps and their results more environmentally friendly and conservative. The extraction process of the raw materials is going to be the most energy consuming and time consuming process of all. This is where various sources are either dug or mined to retrieve the natural resources for the manufacturing process hence there is going to be large amount pollution and energy usage. However, this can be countered by making use of the recycling process heavily and by designing the product to be as recyclable as possible, hence less natural resources have to be destroyed for raw materials to make the products. During the process of manufacturing the various different kinds of production methods and techniques use different levels of energy and produce different levels of waste output. With the varying level of waste and usage it is hard to maintain and control the level of wastage for the manufacturing process however if the techniques and methods of manufacturing are used at its highest efficiency level the wastage is controlled to a limit and everything is controllable and manageable to a limit. Also using less dense material and energy efficient machinery can be vital during manufacturing to control the level of pollutants produced and to conserve the environment. Also by using local sourced raw material and making use of simple designs on the product it can help by a huge margin to control the level of carbon footprints produced and pollution being caused throughout the product life cycle. Making your sources locally based allows you to control the amount of pollutants emitted during the transportation phase the shorter the journey for the transportation the less the amount of carbon footprint emitted hence it helps a great deal to be able to source locally and produce your material from raw materials around you. Also choices can be made depending on the type of transportation chosen to export / transfer your product to the market, for e.g.: Transport through sea would probably cause less pollution than if chosen to transport through air or road. The usage period of the life cycle is when the product is operational and in use by the customer or the user. This is when the actual product that has been designed and manufactured is at it life cycle in the hand of the customer. However, there are also various ways which can help to make the product more sustainable and environmentally friendly one of them being the product is designed in a manner where it can be used more than once after it life span runs out for e.g. rechargeable batteries. Recycling is the step where the finished material at the end of their life cycle has an option to either become a useless waste / a pollutant to the environment or to be reused in either the same product or any other product being manufactured by the manufacturers. However, the step of recycling as well is affected with the mixture and materials being used in the product. A product with complex mixed materials would make it harder and the process of recycling longer to making it more harmful and un-sanitary for the environment. Also a simpler plain material would make it easier as well as less energy consuming to recycle the materials compared to a complex material which would have to be separated and grouped before the recycling process is applied to it. However, there are some products which cannot be recycled and need to be buried in landfills. Unless and until the buried product fully di composes and breaks down which it take a long time to it is not a sustainable method of end of life. Therefore, especially with products which cannot be recycled and need to be buried in the ground it is essential that there is no toxic material in the product which can harm the environment and the ecosystem where they are buried. 4 Methods to assess a product for their impacts on the environment: Method Description Advantage Disadvantage 1 Environmental impact assessment (EIA) Assess the possible impacts of a product towards the environmental, social and economic effects. Clearly shows you the negative impact on environment and sustainable issues. Only partial assessment is performed. 2 Environmental Impact of Products (EIPRO) Very research based analytical approach. Extremely detailed in its finding. Data received is accurate. Solutions for present and future problems can be accessed and planned. The impact the product has on the environment can be visualised before production. Very time consuming and financially not efficient enough. 3 Life cycle assessment (LCA) Assesses all the industrial system from acquiring raw materials right through to waste disposals. The environmental impact of the process can be measured at each stage of the cycle. Excellent results of environmental impact. Good comparison of results so that decision can be made to decide which method is best for the environment. Supports business strategy and research development Extremely costly. Extremely time consuming. 4 Publicly Available Specification PAS2050 Gives methodology to measure greenhouse gas emission throughout the products life cycle Benchmark to compare it with suppliers. Good image with the customer due to eco friendliness Could have a negative affect with the customers if the product isnt really eco-friendly. Reference and Bibliography http://www.bssa.org.uk/sectors.php?id=99. Last accessed 20 March 2015. Wrap org. (May 2010). Environment assessment of consumer electronic products. Available: http://www2.wrap.org.uk/downloads/Environmental_assessment_of_consumer_electronic_products.3d08bcb8.10214.pdf. Last accessed 13 March 2015. Standard Publications à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ·Ãƒ ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  BS8887-1 Design for Manufacture, Assembly, Disassembly and End of Life Processing à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ·Ãƒ ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚   ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ·Ãƒ ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚   ISO 14040 Life Cycle Assessment Standard à ¯Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ·Ãƒ ¯Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚   ISO 14025 -Procedure of creating environmental declarations LFA. http://www.british-gypsum.com/about-us/sustainability/life-cycle-assessments Christina Goodrick. (March 2006). Design for waste minimisation within a food blender. Available: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/article/Science-Progress/159026488.html. Last accessed 13 March 2015. JEM. (May 2009). Adaptable design: concepts, methods, and application. Available: http://www.sustainelectronics.illinois.edu/NSFworkshop/Reading/Adaptable%20Design%20Concepts,%20Methods,%20and%20Applications.pdf. Last accessed 20 March 2015. Azom. (28 November 2012). Polypropylene (PP) (C3H6) Plastic Recycling. Available: http://www.azom.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=7899. Last accessed 20 March 2015. Unknown. (June 2011). Environmental aspects of stainless steel.Available:

Friday, September 20, 2019

The Cannabis Debate Essay -- Weed Marijuana Legalization Medical Essay

The Cannabis Debate The Federal Government of the United States doesn't condone the use of marijuana and any schedule I drugs at the present time, which is any substance that has no current medical use and is a mind altering drug. Under new circumstances in California and Arizona, there is a temporary Bill that has been passed legalizing the schedule I drug for medical use, known as Act 215: Medical use limited to cancer patients and individuals with the disease glaucoma. Individuals that are of consequence are punishable by law and the severity level of punishment is increased from using, to growing, and intent to distribute. Controversy has erupted from the legalization of marijuana for its potential medical, industrial, economic, and environmental benefits. Many have taken government restrictions to new levels of ideological debate, such as reading in them as an attack on personal Freedom Amendment. With controversy and advanced technology, individuals can now voice their opinions is to find out why the subject matter of cannabis is on the internet. The purpose of my research is to find out why the subject matter of cannabis is on the internet. I will discuss why people are interested in the subject and the arguments that they present on the internet. My research will focus on the aspects of freedom of choice, legalization, medical aspects, industrial economic activity and usage among college students. The internet contains many web sites addressing the subject of drugs. The most prevalent and debated topic in the present time is cannabis, a green plant that has been around since the ancient Greeks. Early usage dates back as far as ancient China in a tea form to cure or tame wild children that were disobedient and trou... ...htm(5 March 1997). Green Panthers. "Green Panthers" http://www.greenpanthers.org/welcome.htm(20 March 1997). Mercury Center. "Harnessing Hemp: Environmental, Economic vision drives move to legalize industrial hemp"http://www.sjmercury.com/special/reprints/mari8.htm (27 March 1997). Heretik. "Heretik's Hemp page" http://freethought.tamu.edu/~heretik/(3 April 1997). High Times. "High Times" http://www.hightimes.com/ht/welcome.html (5 March 1997). "Marijuana as Medicine:A Plea for Reconsideration" http://www.calyx.net/~olsen/medical/lester.html (25 March 1997). "NORML"http://www.xs4all.nl/~mlap/norml/jun953.html(1 April 1997). Tom. "Tom's Views On Prohibition In America" http://www.televar.com/~thawkins/tomview.html (20 March 1997). "Washington State Marijuana/Hemp Legalization Initiative" http://www.hemp.net/hipws/intro.html (20 March 1997).

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Mans Discovery Of Fossil Fuels Could Be His Downfall. Discus Essay

Throughout the entire history of mankind, the technological advancements that civilisations have made have always been tied in with the development of energy sources. The first human energy technology was fire, along with human labour as the major energy source. This has bee supplemented by animals for agriculture and transportation since at least the dawn of agriculture some 10,000 years ago. Wind and waterpower for milling grain have also been used nearly as long. The development of the steam engine by George Stephenson in the late 1700’s was the technological breakthrough that led to the industrial revolution. For the first time in human history transportation could be provided without the use of domesticated animals. Steam engines were used in steam locomotives, steam tractors and steam ships (B.Nebel and R.Wright 1995). Stationary steam engines were rapidly established in all the major industries. The major fuel for steam engines was firewood. By the end of the 1800’s, the demand for energy was ever increasing and firewood around industrial centres was becoming scarce. This led to a switch to coal as the major source for fuel and energy. As well as powering steam engines coal became widely used for heating, cooking and industrial processes. Air pollution during the Industrial revolution was far worse than anything seen today. Apart from the smoke and fumes obscuring visibility, they also caused major health problems to the inhabitants of the industrial areas reducing life expectancies, predominantly with respiratory diseases. The simultaneous development of the internal combustion engine, well drilling technology and the capacity to refine crude oil into gasoline and other liquid fuels (B. Nebel et al 1995) in the late 1880’s, produced an alternative to steam power. Air pollution was greatly reduced as coal-fired steam engines and gasoline and diesel engines, and fuel oil furnaces replaced furnaces. Due to the length of time it takes to change from one energy technology to another, it was not until the late 1940’s that oil surpassed coal as the worlds major energy source. World oil use peaked in 1979 when daily production passed 66 million barrels per day (W.Cunningham et al 1993). This was not without problems however. In 1973, the recognition of the increasing dependence of industrialised nations on oil along ... ...nder normal conditions. Extraction of fossil fuels is a dirty and dangerous business, with associated diseases of workers and environmental pollution, such as dust from mining and spills from tankers transporting oil. As can be seen from the various points discussed, the civilisation that we inhabit today is very much dependent on fossil fuels, without them the level of technology that we take for granted today would not exist. The economical, political, social and environmental issued associated with them show the problems of mans dependence on them. With increasing worldwide demand, and declining supplies, every effort needs to be made by governments to find solutions to these problems. This has already started today, with developments in alternative energy sources such as nuclear power, which raises its own issues, and the move towards solar and other renewable energy sources. References Cunningham. W.P and Saigo B.W (1995). Environmental Science: A Global Concern. W.C.B, Bubuque. Nebel B.J and Wright R.T (1993). Environmental Science. Prentice Hall, New Jersey. Pickering K.T and Owen L.A (1995). An Introduction to Global Environmental Issues. Routledge, London and New York.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Controversial Television Advertising Essay -- TV Media

Controversial Television Advertising We all know from our personal experience that one person’s idea of something offensive often differs from another’s. This essay is to determine the consequences towards negative advertising towards certain controversial products/services and why they are so offensive. All major media organizations need advertising to exist, that's how they pay their bills. At the same time, though, each organization sets its own advertising standards. Some ads a media company will simply refuse to accept (Peart, Karen N). Concerns have been raised about Beer advertising, Cigarette advertising, Sex advertising, Political advertising, and food advertising to children. Alcohol advertising is a primary concern for many Americans who believe that alcohol advertising in media directly influences the frequency of underage drinking. While drinking among youth and young adults has declined over the last six years, a recent study by the Justice Department found that 25% of 15-17 year olds said they drink. Junior and senior high school students drink 35% wine coolers, and consume 1.1 billion cans of beer annually. An alcoholic beverage industry sponsored poll of parents found that 73% of respondents believed that alcoholic beverage advertising is a major contributor to underage drinking (Century Council, 1990). It is also one of the most heavily advertised products in the United States. The alcohol industry generates more than $65 billion a year in revenue and spends more than $1 billion a year on advertising. The advertising budget for one beer -- Budweiser -- is more than the entire federal budget for research on alcoholism and alcohol use. Unfortunately , young people and heavy drinkers are the primary targets of... ...udewijn de Blij. (06/07/2006). Tobacco advertising www.factsheets.globalink.org Nick Higham, BBC media correspondent (04). Confusion over junk food ads. Dr. Joseph Mercola with Rachael Droege (05). Four Ways Junk Food Marketing Targets Your Kids Wikipedia. Sex in Advertising. Pediatric Studies Link TV Advertising with 'Global Fattening' (March 29, 2006) Campaign for Tobacco free kids. â€Å"Still Targeting kids† www.tobaccofreekids.org Christopher Gilson & Harold Berkman (1980). Advertising. Shanto Iyengar & Markus Prior (June 1999). Political Advertising. Gregory Rose, Victoria Bush, & Lynn Kahle (1998). Journal of Advertising Wayne Friedman (2/2006). Courting Kids, Networks Aim Younger. David Waller, Kim Fam, & Zafer Erdogan (2005) The Journal of Consumer Marketing. Vol. 22 Breast for Success. Dahila Lithwick (2004)

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

“A Conversation with My Father” by Grace Paley

Grace Paley combined several elements and devices in her short story â€Å"A Conversation with My Father†. The most striking themes in this short story are abandonment and family relationships.In this new story, the daughter is describing facts, whereas the father wants a more complete description, full of details. Following this, we see that the daughter prefers to be optimistic, while the father prefers reality.This is illustrated by the following quotes: â€Å"No, Pa, it could really happen that way, it’s a funny world nowadays†, and to this, the father replies â€Å"No†¦ Truth first. She will slide back.† Her story describes the life of a mother and her son, and how she becomes a junkie to remain close to her son, who has become a junkie. In the end, the son quits the drugs world, but the mother cannot.Her son leaves her, introducing the element of abandonment in the story. This theme is pursued further, but in between lines. For example, the son left his mother at a critical time, when she needed him most, whereas the narrator stayed with her dad, even in his dying days.The father does not believe that the woman in his daughter’s story is strong enough and that even though she manages to quit doing drugs, she will fall back. I would tend to agree with him, because a lot of substance abusers, who quit, eventually, fall back. Her story is too optimistic, with a sense of denial for the tragedy.As the story ends, the father says â€Å"Tragedy! You too. When will you look it in the face?† Again, here we wonder whether the tragedy refers to the mother/son situation, or the fact that he will be dying soon. Earlier on, the father had said â€Å"what a tragedy. The end of a person.†And again, here the daughter refuses to accept that this is the end†¦whether it is the end of the mother or her father. This all relates to hope. When she started her story, she was determined to have hope in her story, to demons trate that â€Å"everyone†¦deserves the open destiny of life.† I find it ironical, as she tries her best to present the story with an open end, with plenty of hope. However, when she read the story, her father says that it does not communicate hope.It’s the â€Å"end†. On a lighter tone, there is another obvious pair of ironical sentence. The father says â€Å"Doesn’t anyone have the time to run down to City Hall before they jump into bed† and to this his daughter replies â€Å"In real life, yes. But in my stories, no.† I find this ironical, as nowadays the opposite is true.Today, in real life, people jump to bed and then get married, or never get married. This is a contrast between then and now, and how the people, as well as literature, have changed.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Directors Use of Techniques in “Chocolat”

Individuality versus conformity is a fine line that people in society walk along. This has been shown in Chocolat, released in 2000 and directed by Lasse Hallstrom. Where Vianne and her chocolate shop represent individuality and the Comte represents conformity. Hallstrom uses various film and dramatic techniques to convey this idea to the audience. In Chocolat, the Comte has a big influence on how the townspeople feel and what they feel they should be doing. This means that the Comte is the pinnacle of control in the town and he feels that everyone should conform to the long standing traditions.The Comtes’ control over the town is quite strong as shown in the opening scene, where all of the townspeople are shown to be conforming to each other. In this scene the costumes of the townspeople are all dark colours and similar as including the Comte. This shows that the townspeople are conforming all the time, even in what they are wearing. There is a voice over narration in the fir st part of the opening scene and this line; â€Å"If you lived in this town you knew what was expected of you†, shows how controlling the Comte is and that the townspeople did not want to break conformity.There is a camera shot in this scene that is from Anouks point of view looking up at the Comte. This shows his powerful figure and his control over the townspeople. These techniques show that Comte is a very controlling figure and he likes to impose his feelings and thoughts on to the townspeople. Viannes presence in the town has the opposite effect to that of the Comte. Vianne is a very individual person and this starts to rub off on to the townspeople.She has her own way of doing things, for example not attending church, which is against the values that the Comte has instilled in the townspeople. Viannes individuality is shown in scene four where she is setting up her shop. There are close up shots of the traditional sculptures that Vianne is placing in her shop. These con trast greatly against the statue shown in the town square and show how different Vianne is to the rest of the town. Vianne is always wearing a piece of clothing that is red whichstands out from the clothing of the townspeople. When she takes in Josephine, she also starts to wearing bright colours. These costumes show Viannes effect on the townspeople and her individuality. In this scene, the images of townspeople peering round at her shop or looking through the cracks in the newspaper into the shop show their curiosity towards Vianne and the idea of individuality that she presents to them. Viannes influences the town through her presence in their lives and her knowledge of individuality that she displays towards them.The Comtes control is fighting against the effect of Vianne just the same as conformity is against individuality. Both characters want the townspeople to see the world their way. This is shown in scene six where Vianne opens her shop for the first time. In this scene th e Comtes house is shown and it has very dark lighting and they style of it is very old fashioned. This shows that the Comte is trying to set an example of what he feels the town should be like and that it should conform to his ideals.The Comtes control over the town is shown in the reactions of the townspeople when they discover that Vianne is running a chocolate shop. Their reactions include â€Å"This certainly is different†, which reveals information that the town has no other shops like this one and that it is new and individual. The music that plays while the townspeople are looking at or entering the shop is bright and tempting. This is a presentation of what is happening and of what is to come from the influence of Viannes individuality on the townspeople.The Comte and Vianne have opposite effects on the townspeople, trying to make them conform or affecting their individuality. The line between conformity and individuality is very fine. The Comte and Vianne represent d ifferent extremes of this line. Their influence on the townspeople is very strong and affects all of the townspeople differently. The Comte wants the townspeople to conform as one and he uses his authority to try and achieve this, but Viannes presence and her individuality drives a change in the thoughts of the townspeople and eventually the Comte.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Masterpieces of English Literature

The world of English literature has produced many diverse and astoundingly amazing works. Two of the most hailed pieces of literature to have graced the lives of readers throughout the ages are Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. These two poems have been around for a great number of years and have created many ripples across the lake of time. Despite its ancient roots, Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight continue to be regarded as two the greatest masterpieces of English literature.This essay will try to show the impact that these two different poems have had on English literature. It will show that despite the age of both poems, they continue to be relevant up to this very day. This essay will show that it is very much important to continue the reading, the study and the appreciation of these works, Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, as well as the other masterful pieces of English literature that have been available to schools and readers for a very long time.BeowulfLet us first dissect the epic poem, Beowulf, before we continue with the discussion of the importance of these two pieces. Beowulf was believed to have been written around the time 700 A.D. by an Anglo-Saxon poet. To this day, no one truly knows who wrote the poem but the last surviving manuscript of the poem was found to date back to the time 1000 A.D. and was speculated to have been in the hand of two different scribes. The original manuscript of Beowulf was written in the vernacular, Old English. (Melissa, 1997)The importance of this piece to the entirety of English literature is both very simple and complex. To put it straightforwardly, Beowulf is the oldest surviving poem to have been written in Old English. This is of great importance because all of the poems recovered from that era were found to have been written in Latin. (Anonymous, 2006)The importance of Beowulf in English literature, and in fact to the whole of world literature, is very clear even up to this very day. Because of the wars and battles raging across Europe in those earlier decades, very few literary manuscripts were able to survive. Beowulf, in fact, is the beacon and representative of the meager ten percent of the poetry written in Old English that have survived up to today. (Meyerhoff, 2006) What sets Beowulf apart from its other very few Old English counterparts is that it is an epic poem. In Britain, it has been accepted as a national epic. This is despite the debates and contestations regarding its merits as an epic poem.The mere fact that Beowulf has survived time and history and is available to us today among the very small population of Old English works is enough to prod us to continue in our appreciation and study of the piece. But another importance of the literary piece remains in just that fact, that it has survived an era from which only very few literary works have. This suggests that scholars and even simple individuals are able to take a glimpse at the cul ture and traditions of that time.Through Beowulf, we are able to see what these individuals held as important and what factors, both literary and in reality, they took into consideration. We say this not in a manner that will suggest taking Beowulf word for word as a historical timeline but rather in a manner that suggests reading deeper into Beowulf and understanding the thoughts and the emotions of the author. One such aspect of the epic poem that sheds light upon the culture of the said time is its constant use of the theme of Christianity. Although it is supposedly written in a pagan setting, the Christian theme in the poem is highly evident and unmistakable to any of its readers. (Yeager, 1999)Perhaps the most amazing part about Beowulf as an epic poem is its resilience as a literary piece. Even though it has much merit as an aged piece and as a standard bearer of Old English poetry, Beowulf would not have survived throughout time if it did not have any other merits. The most i mportant aspect of the epic poem, to my mind, is the fact that despite its age, it still continues to strike every reader deeply. It still calls forth the same emotions among its readers.This is perhaps due to the way it was written. Although the events and places seen in the epic are strange to us, at the very core of the story, we find the same values and interests that are inherent in us even to this very day.   Beowulf is so well-written that even to this day, it continues to enthrall and connect with its diverse readership. No matter how old you are, no matter what country you come from, you are able to recognize the masterful workmanship put into creating Beowulf.Sir Gawain and the Green KnightAnother much acclaimed piece of English literature is Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. It was believed to have been written some time during the fourteenth century. It is considered to be a metrical romance, a romantic tale written in poetic form, about the life of Sir Gawain. (Weston, 1900)Gawain was one of the more talked about characters of the Arthurian tradition. He far outstrips many of King Arthur’s knights in the number of romantic exploits written about his character. In Sir Gawain and the Green Knigh, Gawain exemplifies many of the virtues considered to be important in men of his stature. (Harper) This adds to the importance of the piece itself. With the different virtues that Sir Gawain is seen to have in the romantic poem, readers can easily see what the culture of the 14th century was like.The virtues and culture held to be of importance during that time are extolled clearly in the character of Sir Gawain and can easily be identified through his various actions and descriptions in the poem. This is in contrast to other poems and literary pieces written about Gawain wherein he was portrayed as a flawed and even sometimes brutish character.The importance of this piece may lie in the fact that its author was able to keep up a play of words wherei n the reader can derive several different interpretations. This allowed for many different reactions and critics regarding the piece. (Goodlad, 1987)This is probably what kept the piece alive for so long. With regards to literature, it has opened the way for readers to regard different pieces with more wariness, viewing these pieces as perhaps holding more interpretations than that initially viewed.It also holds much importance as a literary piece that defied the genre from which it came. Instead of relinquishing to the trend of producing literary pieces that were straightforward and direct in their presentation of storylines and themes, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’s wordplay and alliterative presentation brought a new style of writing to the fore. To this day, we can witness many new pieces of literature that have taken tot his style of writing providing readers with much more thought-provoking and reflection-inducing pieces. It is safe to say that Sir Gawain and the Gre en Knight has done much to enrich English literature.ReferencesAnonymous. (2006). Beowulf. Spark Notes Retrieved 7 January 2008 from http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/beowulf/context.htmlGoodlad, L. (1987) The Gamnes of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Comitatus: A Journal of Medieval and Renaissance Studies, 18(1), Retrieved 7 January 2008 from http://repositories.cdlib.org/cmrs/comitatus/vol18/iss1/art4Harper, R. Gawain. The Camelot Project at the University of Rochester Retrieved 7 January 2008 from http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/cphome.stmMeyerhoff, S. (2006). The Question of Genre in Byliny and Beowulf. The Journal of Russian and Asian Studies, 4, Retrieved 7 January 2008 from http://www.sras.org/news2.phtml?m=629&print=1Snell, M. (1997) Beowulf. About.com Retrieved 7 January 2008 from http://historymedren.about.com/od/beowulf/p/beowulf.htmWeston, J. L. (1900) Sir Gawain and the Green Knight Retrieved 7 January 2008 from http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/sggk.htmYeager, R. (1999) Why Read Beowulf? Humanities, 20(2) Retrieved 7 January 2008 from http://www.neh.gov/news/humanities/1999-03/yeager.html

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Gender Equality Essay

As a female working in a professional environment and living in a society that promotes economic, social and cultural rights I often find myself concerned with gender equality. Sometimes I feel that gender equality is just a myth, because, I have yet to see women promoted or granted the same salaries as their male counterparts in the workplace, or treated equally in society. Gender equality is the measurable equal representation of women and men; however, it does not imply that women and men are the same, but that they have equal value and should be accorded equal treatment. Women desire to live and work in a world where the equal dignity and worth of every individual is respected and valued. Women desire equal pay for equal work. This is one of the areas where gender equality is rarely seen. All too often women are paid less than men for doing the same work. Even though women hold some of the same job titles as men in their field of work, salaries are usually not equal. Another area of gender equality is suffrage (the right to vote). This area of gender equality does not extend to all the women in the world. Women in Saudi Arabia does not have the right t to vote; in the USA right wing commentators say that women should never have been given the right to vote(IPPF.Org). Other discrimination against women and girls includes gender-based violence, economic discrimination, and reproductive health inequities. A key topic has been women’s rights affording the ability to control their own fertility. This is absolutely fundamental to women’s empowerment and equality. When a woman can plan her family, she can plan the rest of her life. When she is healthy, she can be more productive. And when her reproductive right, which includes the right to decide the number, timing and spacing of her children, and to make decisions regarding reproduction free of discrimination, coercion, or violence. Despite many international agreements affirming their human rights, women are likely to be poor and illiterate, compared to men. . They usually have less access than men to medical care, property ownership, credit, training and employment. They are far less likely than men to be  politically active and far more likely to be victims of domestic violence(UNFPA.Org). It’s also about political will. Until each nation embrace policies to integrate women into leadership like their counterparts, women will not be viewed as equal throughout the world. Therefore, gender equality implies a society in which women and men enjoy the same opportunities, outcomes, rights and obligations in all aspects of life. Gender equality includes sharing equally in the distribution of power, influence, opportunities, financial independence, and access to education and jobs. A critical aspect of promoting gender equality is the empowerment of women to manage their own lives and personal ambitions. The roles that men and women play in society are not biologically determined — they are socially determined, changing and changeable. Some see them as being justified or required by culture or religion, however, these roles vary widely by locality and change over time(UNFPA.Org). References IPPF.Org (N.D) What is gender equality? Retrieved from http://ippf.org/our-work/what-we-do/gender/what-gender-equality Zahidi, Saadia(2014, January 22) How women will dominate the workplace BRIC by BRIC Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/22/opinion/how-women-will-dominate-the-workplace-bric/index.html UNFPA.Org(N.d.) Empowering Women Retrieved from http://www.unfpa.org/gender/empowerment.htm

Friday, September 13, 2019

Advanced Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Essay

Advanced Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease - Essay Example Health promotion builds the capacities of individual members in the society to take charge over health determinants collectively in order to attain a positive change. The Ottawa Charter indentified three approaches for health promotion. These include advocacy for health to establish the necessary environment for sustainable health in the community. Enabling all persons to attain optimum health potential is the second approach and finally mediating between various stakeholders and interests in the society with the objective of achieving health. The three approaches are reinforced by five prioritized areas of action, included in the Ottawa Charter of health promotion. These areas include building healthy public policy, establish supportive environment for health and strengthening the community action for health. The fourth priority action area is developing personal skills and finally reorientation of health services.Health promotion is a broad and multidimensional approach that involv es other stakeholders, besides the basic healthcare providers and this underscores the importance of building a healthy public policy. Health promotion policy places health issues on the agenda of policy makers in all relevant sectors and in every level. By so doing, it directs and increases their awareness on the effects of their decisions on public health. Building healthy public policy also enables the policy makers to accept their roles and responsibilities in the maintenance of health in the society. To create an appropriate healthy public policy involves application of diverse methods, including the enactment of laws, formulating monetary or fiscal measures, taxation and encouraging organizational change. According to WHO (2008), the approaches are coordinated leading to health, and improvement of

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Sun Shines Enterprise Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Sun Shines Enterprise - Case Study Example Quality improvement can be achieved through several strategies. One of them is called Hoshin Kanri. This means translating the organizational objectives and goals into measurable actions and strategies. This involves focusing on the available resources too limited priority issues. For instance, Abby’s main concern is the maintenance of quality at the hotels. This can be achieved by using all the resources available including the employees to deliver high quality. This can be done by use of tools such as the Total Quality Management (TQM) tools (Collier & Evans 2009). Another way quality can be promoted is through â€Å"Kaizen† which is continuous improvement. The highest quality cannot be achieved in a single day. The organization should be ready to keep on improving the services and products in order to satisfy the customers’ needs. It could also be done through the use of Poka Yoke strategy (Collier & Evans 2009).

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Just War Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Just War Theory - Essay Example However, two problems arise when trying to justify the use of JWT in shaping the United States and allies’ strategies in Afghanistan, where it is fighting an untraditional enemy that does not share the same kind of ethical ideals. The first problem arises from the thought of each of two sides in the nontraditional war as moral agents, when one has clearly rejected the moral code the other follows. Since a moral code sets the ethical guidelines governing a community, when one party does not accept the moral code, the one that does accept the code is not obligated to follow that code. For instance, it is generally accepted that killing an animal that is known to be dangerous is ethical, insofar as doing so protects other members of the moral community from being harmed. Similarly, if a nontraditional army does not accept these rules of conduct, like the animal, it is well within the moral right of the traditional one to ensure its enemy does not harm another member of the moral community. From this assumption that militaries are moral agents, and the fact that moral codes provide the ethical guidelines for the community, an entity that does not accept the moral code is not obligated to ethical treatment accordi ng to this code. A war is nothing more than murder of other human beings; but instead of being punishable murder, it is sanctioned by states. JTW theory proposes the means by which one can create a more ethical war, but it does not address the issue of whether war itself is ethical. This relatively conservative answer to whether JTW applies to a nontraditional war is supplemented by a second problem, which is tangentially addressed in â€Å"The Call to Arms†1. This issue has to deal with the source of JTW moral prescriptions, and whether a nontraditional fighting force like that seen in Afghanistan is to be dealt with ethical principles based on notions like â€Å"Christian love† or within the tradition

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

'Character is fate'. Is this statement shown to be true in Oedipus and Essay

'Character is fate'. Is this statement shown to be true in Oedipus and Hamlet - Essay Example Moreover, renowned soothsayers, seers, astrologists and numerologists also used to augur about the life and glorious deeds would be performed by the outstanding personalities and charismatic spiritual, political, military and religious leaders, belonging to various societies of the globe, many years before their birth even. The present study aims to discuss the theory character is fate in the light of the classical plays Oedipus the King and Hamlet produced by Sophocles and William Shakespeare respectively. Celebrated poet and distinguished playwright of ancient Greece Sophocles has described the role of fate in the life and character of humans in his magnum opus Oedipus the King. â€Å"Sophocles’ Oedipus the King is a classic work of literature that opens our minds to the possibility of preordained destiny, which is a timeless theory that holds as much importance in our lives today is it did for those who lived in Sophocles’ time.† (associatedcontent.com) The re markable tragic play vehemently declares destiny as the regulatory authority that controls every important event and incident taking place in human life in such a way that man startles at the silent entrance of both blessings and calamities in his life, where neither any triumph is the outcome of his character, nor any intentional performance or misdeed committed by him is the only cause to invite the misfortunes. As a result, humans appear to be powerless to combat with the misfortunes had been predetermined by Nature for their life. Thus, the entire struggle made by them to escape the most obnoxious incidents of life end in utter fiasco subsequently. Though, the critics also disagree with the notion incurred while interpreting the play that the control of fate over character has been expressed by the author. They are of the opinion that the author has reflected upon the flaws and faults of character, which pave the way towards the fateful end of the protagonist character Oedipus. Since it were Oedipus’s parents, King Laius and Queen Jocasta, who acted upon the piece of advice made by the soothsayer regarding their son’s life by ordering decree to kill Oedipus by throwing him from the hill, they themselves invited the wrath of Nature for their misdeed and malafide intention of killing their innocence infant Oedipus. In addition, Oedipus also displayed unnecessary aggression during his encounter with King Laius, and challenged him to fight and killed him subsequently. Moreover, he also showed extraordinary valour and gallantry while killing the monster, which reveals the impatience and lack of prudence in him. However, these were not the great faults enough for the ruination of the family. However, the blunder mistake made by the King and the Queen by ordering the killing of their innocence child reflected their ruthlessness and caused the fateful end of the family eventually. The plays reveals that the soothsayer had warned the King and Queen th at their newly born child would, on growing

People and Organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

People and Organisation - Essay Example It is important for any organization to cater to the needs of its employees and ensure they are motivated, competent, and knowledgeable enough to align their personal goals with the organization's goals. This in turn helps in achieving customer satisfaction. In today's every changing dynamic world where the corporate environment is changing every moment, it is mandatory to realize the employees as an organization's most important asset as it is them who make or break an organization. They are competent to handle and properly use critical information and are motivated to handle the responsibilities bestowed upon them. For this purpose, a separate department is designated usually named as the 'human resource' department and this is present in almost every contemporary organization. These departments are responsible to attract the proficient work force present to work in their organization. Human Resource management relates to the activities that are undertaken to attract, develop and maintain an effective workforce within an organization. Over the past decade, human resource management has gotten rid of the 'personnel' image and has gained recognition as a vital player in corporate strategy. To achieve this purpose, managements try to ensure that they inculcate such a corporate culture in the organization that fosters the growth of employees as an individual. It is very important to maintain employee satisfaction because if employees are not comfortable in the workplace and they don't find the space that they need to work effectively, they might not be motivated adequately to work in the cause of the organization. The corporate culture prevailing in an organization indicates how the employees of the organization might react to the changes that are taking or are allowed to react to the changes. ORGANIZATIONAL ANALYSIS Declining sales might be a symptom of a problem that is prevailing in an organization. The real dilemma is not understanding the root of the problem. Organizational analysis helps in the root of the problem that exists in a certain company. Incorrect assessment of the problem might lead to further imperfections. Therefore, correct diagnosis of problem is equally important. There are many tools that are used to analyze and evaluate organizations. The most common ones are SWOT analysis, Scoping, Questionnaires and systematic constellations. These methods mainly use information from the employees and evaluate it to understand the underlying problem that an organization is facing and helps to then map out a strategy for the organization to follow. The real world out there is more complex and intricate then mentioned in the books that we study or come across. It is very difficult to then comprehend the real life situations and evaluate them on the basis of the concepts that have been studied. MANAGING CHANGES IN AN ORGANIZATION Change is a phenomenon that always accompanies major disapprovals by everyone who is being affected by the process. In large organizations, managing a change is gigantic task that is bestowed upon the management for the betterment of the organizati

Monday, September 9, 2019

Personal Budgets in the UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Personal Budgets in the UK - Essay Example According to the paper, in response to the increasing demand and the rising public expectations based on choice and quality, the government decided to act. It set out to transform the way in which care and support were offered for the older and disabled adults. At the heart of this transformation was a very powerful idea that would potentially revolutionize how the disabled and older persons received their care. The idea was basically based on personalization. That is, instead of commissioning care and support services for people living in its area, the local authority would provide eligible persons with their own personal budgets so they could acquire help and assistance that would be more attuned to their individual needs and circumstances. Personalization is aimed at giving the people more choice and control over the kind of support they acquire. It is defined as the ability of an individual to determine what type of support to get despite the mode of payment used by the one seeki ng healthcare services. These may include direct payment or personal budgets. Direct ayments are defined as the direct cash payments given to service users in lieu of community services that are in demand based on assessments done they are aimed at giving a wider choice to the clients. Personal budgets on the other hand describe the allocations given to users after assessment which meets their assessed needs fully. This is all in part of the government’s wider agenda to improve efficacy and responsiveness of public services. These personal budgets can provide flexibility, choice and control to the service users. Further, they can improve health and well-being and ultimately, user satisfaction.  

Sunday, September 8, 2019

The Efficient Market Hypothesis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Efficient Market Hypothesis - Essay Example In this way, only information bears the power to move market prices. There happens to be three levels of market efficiency as delineated by Fama (1970) viz. weak, semi-strong and strong. According to Fama (1970), weak form of market efficiency that market prices are affected by a stock's past performance and previous returns. The semi strong form of market efficiency suggests that market prices reflect all the available information. This degree of market efficiency exists when there are no under or over valued securities in the market and when new information affects market prices very rapidly. The strong form of market efficiency elaborates that all types of information, whether public or private, affects market price of securities. Despite the importance of the Efficient Market Hypothesis, its validity is highly debatable in the literature which is discussed in this essay. According to the Efficient Market Hypothesis, stock prices move in negative and positive directions while responding to information and announcement of events. However, there has been staunch concern owing to market anomalies that indicate deviations from Efficient Market Hypothesis such as Holiday effect [e.g. Ariel (1990)], Monday effect [e.g. French (1980)], November effect [e.g. Bhabra, Dhillon and Ramirez (1999)], January effect [e.g. Bhardwaj and Brooks (1992)] and P/E ratio effect [e.g. Basu (1977)]. Critics are also of the view that movements in stock prices also reflect psychological factors and irrationality on the part of investors [e.g. La Porta, Lakonishok, Shliefer, and Vishny (1997), Shleifer and Summers (1990) etc.]. There has also been significant evidence that economic conditions great affect stock returns [e.g. Schwert (1989)]. The following paragraphs examine the Efficient

Saturday, September 7, 2019

Hist101 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Hist101 - Research Paper Example Working in a secret Committee of Five, Thomas Jefferson authored the Declaration of Independence. The import of this is that being involved in this effort would have automatically attracted the death penalty for Jefferson and the entire committee, since secession from Britain was considered treasonous. The Declaration of the American independence would go a long way to protect the American ideals of democracy and freedom, than any other document1. Thomas Jefferson was also responsible for the passing of the Statute of Religious Freedom in Virginia. The bill was a landmark and radical piece of legislation since it cemented religious freedom in the US and gave individuals the rights and freedoms to pursue their religious convictions. Jefferson also inspired the founding of the University of Virginia, since he believed in a vibrant nation and personal freedom, as the values which the university would perpetuate. To Jefferson, it is only by making education accessible that the freedoms guaranteed in the Declaration of the American independence and the Statute of Religious Freedom would become meaningful2. It was during Thomas Jefferson’s presidency that Britain conducted search and seizures of US ships and woo many American sailors into joining the British navy. Because of this, America had to repeatedly recruit the navy. At the time, America was not strong enough to parallel Britain’s financial and military might. Thus, this incident could not be apportioned to Jefferson as his failure. Because of this, Jefferson still remains the patron and author of civil rights and freedoms and democracy in the United States. The main difference between Jacksonian Democrats and the Whigs in their understanding of American freedom and politics is that while Whigs wanted to maintain the political and socioeconomic status quo that had been

Friday, September 6, 2019

The Unknown Citizen Explication Essay Example for Free

The Unknown Citizen Explication Essay Several conflicts are dramatized in The Unknown Citizen, the most prominent being: conformity of the middle class, government manipulation, and the loss of individualism to the standards of an average citizen. The speaker of this poem is non-traditional as the poem is, in fact, an inscription on a â€Å"marble monument erected by the State. † The inscription is dedicated to a â€Å"JS/07 M 378†Ã¢â‚¬â€presumably, â€Å"The Unknown Citizen,† although this term only appears in the title. The Unknown Citizen is essentially an elegy, a lament for the dead, written by either a government official or a strong believer in the government. This becomes clear through the speaker’s repeated use of possession, such as in line 12, â€Å"†¦our Social Psychology workers found†¦Ã¢â‚¬  and â€Å"Our researchers into public opinion are content†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (22). These references establish the poem’s criticism of government manipulation and very closely mirror the same notions within the novel 1984. The speaker offers insight into just how severe this government infiltration is, mentioning an active â€Å"Bureau of Statistics† (1), a â€Å"Health-card† administered to all citizens (17), and personal information drawn from â€Å"†¦reports on his conduct†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (3). Another conflict that arises within the poem is that of a dominating middle class. The author defines the â€Å"Modern Man†Ã¢â‚¬â€which is also capitalized to represent a distinct faction—as one who possesses all the â€Å"necessities,† including: â€Å"a phonograph, a radio, a car, and a Frigidaire† (21). The poem becomes almost satirical here. The speaker continues, â€Å"He was married and added five children to the population†¦the right number for a parent of his generation† (25-26). The poet outlines society and the government’s idea of the ideal middle class modern man, however, with much irony. Regardless, with this elegy, the author intends to praise the life of the unknown citizen, but succeeds only in detailing the fact that his life was undisruptive and that he closely followed the expectations of a rigid society. Among his â€Å"praises,† for example: â€Å"When there was peace, he was for peace: when there was war, he went† (24). In this, it becomes clear to the reader that you do not want to be an average citizen; you do not want this to be your elegy. Some critics argue this, however, as Auden stating that there is nothing disgraceful in being unknown. The poem is, above all, a satire of the way conformity hinders the individual and leaves ridiculous and solely external distinctions between human beings. Auden presents an allegory in The Unknown Citizen that begins even before the poem itself. The phrase â€Å"Unknown Citizen† appears only once—in the title. This term is an immediate allusion to and parody of the â€Å"Unknown Soldier,† especially considering the details of who the poem is dedicated to and the fact that it is found on a marble monument, much like those one might expect to see in Washington, D. C. here the United States is home to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The â€Å"Unknown Solider† is a soldier who cannot be recognized after being found in battle. This sometimes-controversial idea can be interpreted to mean that many people die as unknowns because they lived uninfluential lives. Aside from this large allegory, the poem uses only a few rhetorical devices. In line four, for example, â€Å"†¦in the modern sense of an old-fashioned word, he was a saint† is quite an exaggeration because being â€Å"one against whom there was no official complaint† is hardly saintly (2). Another example, in line 20, is â€Å"†¦had everything necessary to the Modern Man. † If this were not an exaggeration, it would be extremely disturbing to agree that all one needs are the classic symbols of a squeaky-clean 1930s home: a car, a radio, and a refrigerator. This 1930s theme continues in two particular allusions. In line eight, it is written that the citizen was employed by â€Å"Fudge Motors, Inc. † which closely resembles the automobile giant of both then and now, Ford Motors, Inc. , but is, through â€Å"fudge,† slightly more appealing. Next, in line 18, are mentions of the groups â€Å"Producers Research† and â€Å"High-Grade Living† which are likely allusions to Consumer Reports and Good Housekeeping, respectively. Both U. S. publications are tokens of a middle class, â€Å"perfect† society. The Unknown Citizen consists of both patterned meter and rhyme, however, both are inconsistent. The meter is loosely anapestic, meaning that each metrical foot consists of two unstressed beats followed by a stressed beat. Line one is an example of such: â€Å"He was found by the Bureau of Statistics to be. † Other anapestic lines are scattered throughout the poem. The rhyme scheme begins as ABAB and then, in line 9, proceeds for some time in rhyming couplets. These patterns are occasionally broken, however. Consistent or not, this rhyme does create a sort of melodious sound while reading. Some lines even resemble the simplistic and song-like style of nursery rhymes. For example: â€Å"Yet he wasn’t a scab or odd in his views/ For his Union reports that he paid his dues† (9-10). This type of sound is rather merry and is a stark contrast to the less-than-celebratory subject matter, which is yet another development of irony. The poem, because of how it rhymes, is also highly particular, almost robotic or even â€Å"perfect,† which parallels to the citizen’s â€Å"perfect† life. Auden completes the poem masterfully by leaving two questions on the monument— questions that any reader would beg after such an elegy. The speaker asks â€Å"Was he free? Was he happy? † and is immediately defensive upon answering, an obvious tone shift. Although the speaker insists that â€Å"had anything been wrong, we should certainly have heard† (29), it is impossible to trust a government that erects expensive marble statues in honor of nothing more than numbers, statistics, and the status quo.