Faulkner’s and Morrison’s Notions of Parenting

In literature of fictional realism, the difficulty of storytelling often lies in creating a believable atmosphere, in order for the reader to identify with the characters and surroundings. The theme and plot may well be stylish and inspirational, but without plausible characters or a practical setting, the atmosphere of suspended belief the author is striving for can be marred by the simple obscurity of the key elements of character development, functional setting, and writing style appropriate to the story itself. If an author is skilled enough to successfully employ these crucial elements, and have a solid story to boot, then great writing is created. Such is the case with William Faulkner and Toni Morrison. Faulkner’s novel As I Lay Dying and Morrison’s Pulitzer- and Nobel-prize winning novel Beloved express the damage that can be caused through either excess of devotion or indifferent neglect of the respective parent. Both writers maintain focus on the development of the characters, create an active and believable setting, and employ appropriate writing styles to successfully convey their social commentaries. In As I Lay Dying, Faulkner introduces his characters, the Bundren family, as simple country folk faced with grave circumstances. Addie, the mother of the family, is on her deathbed, and not much longer for the world. The household is in a state of despair, performing their perfunctory duties, but with a pronounced lack of enthusiasm. Anse, worrying himself on the front porch, puts it simply after telling his son Vardaman to wash his hands: â€Å"But I just cant seem to get no heart in it,† (Faulkner, 38). Neither Anse nor any other members of the household seem to have any clue as to how to react to the forthcoming tragedy, outside of dispensing their feeble grasp of pathos. Even Tull, the Bundrens’ nearby neighbor, comments on Anse in pity: â€Å"†¦the only burden Anse Bundren’s ever had is himself†¦I think to myself he aint that less of a man or he couldn’t a bore himself this long. † (Faulkner, 73). This simple statement by Tull is a testimony to Anse’s burden as a father and husband. Anse recognizes his failings as both patraiarch and devoted husband; it is that weight that ignites a sudden surge of faithfulness to his wife and urges him upon the journey to respect her last wishes of a burial in Jefferson. Faulkner further establishes the Bundrens as incapable of grasping appropriateness as Cash stands outside of his mother’s window, in her full view, nailing and sawing together the coffin in which she will be laid to rest. The irony is that Addie wants to see it being constructed: â€Å"[Addie was] Lying there with her head propped up so she could watch Cash building the coffin,† (Faulkner, 23). Faulkner is commenting not only on the family’s dim grasp of appropriateness, but on the mother’s part as well, and the reader is left to wonder the reasoning behind Addie’s decision to watch her son build her coffin. In this light, Addie can seem cold towards her children, in that she is looming over Cash’s shoulder as he goes about the grim task of constructing his dying mother’s coffin. In actuality, Addie holds her son in reverence and is transmitting that care using the only method she was taught, by merely paying attention to him. Looking at the characters individually in order to circumscribe a mediocre upbringing, Faulkner’s careful construction of the characters implies the damage the parents have inflicted by their relative indifference. Vardaman remains in a state of reluctance and confusion, simply because no one in the family, least of all the parents, takes the time to fully explain the circumstances. He cannot grasp death’s finality and begins to panic when his mother is placed into the coffin post-mortem: â€Å"Are you going to nail it shut, Cash? Nail it? Nail it? † (Faulkner, 65). His incredulity incites him to action, and the episode spins into Vardaman’s notion to drill holes into the coffin so that she might breathe. Unfortunately, Vardaman misjudges the body’s position and â€Å"When they taken the lid off they found that two of [the drill-holes] had bored on into her face,† (73). The whole of the scene focuses on the fact that Vardaman was acting out of concern and love for his mother, but with disastrous results. This is a vehicle Faulkner employs throughout the novel, that bad ideas are often accompanied by good intentions, which re-emphasizes the tacit misunderstanding of a sound family dynamic. There is an abject, obscure devotion, but the family, including Addie, has had an impossible time of setting that devotion in concrete terms. But it is Faulkner’s use of language to skillfully transition into Addie’s sole monologue that explicates his willingness to peg complex irony into an otherwise straightforward novel. Faulkner utilizes the family’s inability to communicate as a launching point for Addie’s monologue, which centers on the idea that words are often lacking in function. Addie represents Faulkner’s commendable language skills by evoking great sorrow in a single stroke. While previous monologues of other characters create a mosaic of separate sadnesses, it is through Addie that the reader is pulled into pointed and exacted depths of human misery. Moreover, her frank manner of speech serves Faulkner’s purpose of cold accuracy as Addie despairs in her position of responsibility she never wanted nor feel she deserves: â€Å"I knew that that word [love] was like the others; just a shape to fill a lack; that when the right time came, you wouldn’t need a word for that anymore than for pride or fear†, (Faulkner, 172). Devin Mckernan, in his article Conflict of the Feminine in As I Lay Dying, comments on this move by Faulkner: â€Å"That this would be Faulkner’s take on language is obviously ironic, as he depends on his words to not only live but perpetuate his own concepts and beliefs,† (9). Addie’s statement of words being insufficient to fill a particular void is Faulkner’s method of projecting his own frustration at the feebleness and insubstantiality of words. Addie summarizes the futility of spoken words in situations where speech is neither necessary nor fulfilling of any definitive purpose. So automatically her lack of faith in the communication of words is relayed to her children, whom she neglects to communicate effectively with, and Vardaman’s vacancy, Jewel’s bitterness, and Dewey Dell’s airiness reflect Addie’s poor maternal instincts. Too, she is objecting her husband Anse’s reference to ‘love’. For Addie, as for Faulkner, the conveyance of deep-felt emotions or thoughts or ideas or beliefs cannot be hammered down in such abstract terminology; words such as ‘love’ and ‘pride’ are both ambiguous and subjective, hence meaningless. This outlook proves Addie a failed mother and a bitter wife, which is transmuted upon the family and reflects in their dim sense of family. Faulkner’s tact lies in the brevity of Addie’s monologue to express Addie’s resentment of words of feeling: â€Å"†¦sin and love and fear are just sounds that people who have never sinned nor loved nor feared have for what they never had and cannot have until they forget the words,† (174). Clearly, the language is disparaging of the abstract nature of words, but subtly Faulkner is urging the reader to think for himself and what those abstract words mean to each individual, or if they should have a meaning attached to them in the first place. There still remains the implied love that Anse has for his family. After Cash breaks his leg, Anse comes up with the idea of setting the leg into cement as a remedy. This episode is the most profound example of Anse’s poor fathering yet, and the fact that he does not realize the damage being done until a neighbor points out the worsening injury is further evidence of Faulkner desiring his audience to grasp the absoluteness of parental failing: â€Å"Cash’s leg and foot turned black†¦ ‘Didn’t none of you have more sense than that? ’ Mr. Gillespie said,† (Faulkner, 224). Here is the penultimate example of Anse impacting his children out of ignorance, but not for lack of caring. It must be noted that Faulkner still implies a general air of tenderness warmth as Anse â€Å"just aimed to help [Cash],† (ibid), but without the common sense to do anything but the first hare-brained idea he could muster. This scene is also an example of Faulkner’s use of a dynamic setting to deliver the theme of the husband finally finding devotion enough for his wife, but, like Addie, viewing the children as burdensome. For Faulkner, Yoknapatawpha county and its rural Mississippi surroundings provide the requisite set of trials and misfortunes the Bundrens must overcome to deliver Addie safely to Jefferson. On the way they encounter a fierce river that drowns their mule team, providing the first example of the roughness of the terrain as a force to be reckoned with: â€Å"†¦I see the mules come rolling up slow up out of the water, their legs spraddled stiff like they had balked upside down†¦,† (Faulkner, 154). This episode still outlines a familial love between the characters, because it was Anse’s bull-headed devotion to Addie’s dying wish of burial in Jefferson that made the sojourn necessary in the first place, and come what may he would deliver her no matter how rough the road gets, and in spite of his bitterness towards his family. Faulkner weaves the setting further into his tale by making the novel one of necessary travel. As stated earlier, the primary goal of the Bundrens is to deliver Addie to her final resting place in Jefferson. The gathering rain, the swollen, mule-drowning river, and the instance of Cash’s broken leg all provide Faulkner with ample opportunity to make the setting as threatening as Anse’s stubborn devotion. The risks run by the family are outweighed by Anse’s final attempt to do right by Addie, a fact to which Anse is either oblivious or indifferent. Faulkner succeeds in his goal to incorporate as much of the setting to drive his novel and further express the mishaps of Anse’s bumbling paternal figure. As I Lay Dying is regarded as a giant of literary fiction, encompassing stout and functional characters, a dynamic and threatening setting, and a style of versification as subtle as it is simple to relay the message of parental ignorance and neglect. And Toni Morrison, in her novel Beloved, is equally successful in her characterizations, her setting, and her expressive language, but to deliver a message of hope from the most down-trodden, the ex-slaves of post-Civil war society. Morrison rides the road opposite Faulkner, ensuring the proper level of complexity in her characters, taming her setting to nurture as well as inflict tragedy, and designing her language on a more intricate level. Morrison’s characters are not permitted the lack of intimacy like the Bundren family. Sethe, the matriarchal central figure of the story, operates on a far deeper and more complex level than the sum total of the Bundrens combined. She is strong-willed yet vulnerable, fierce yet devoted, at times simple and straightforward in thought, and at other times profound and insightful. In the opening scene, Paul D comments to himself on the nature of Sethe â€Å"†¦the one with iron eyes and backbone to match,† (Morrison, 9). In Sethe, the reader is given a strong character who is also burdened with her charges, Denver and Beloved. But Sethe differs from Anse in her willingness to accept that burden, accept her children and try to raise them up correctly, insofar as her past and her present will allow her. Morrison takes care to create Sethe as a proper mother figure, weaving into her narrative the harrowing story of Sethe’s escape from Sweet Home, integrating Denver’s birth on a grounded rowboat, and illustrating the automatic response of maternal care for Beloved upon Beloved’s entrance into the novel. These two very human flaws are central for Sethe’s internal struggles. She holds her head high in pride, as an escaped ex-slave who has (mostly) succeeded in putting her grim past behind her: â€Å"No more running-from nothing. I will never run from another thing on this earth,† (Morrison, 15). This early declaration from Sethe provides the context for the reader to understand her position; that as a mother escaping from slavery’s treachery caused her to duck and run, but as a woman having overcome that trial she is in firm refusal to let any further hardships force her to turn tail and bail. So it is the shame of having to run, as necessary as that escape was, coupled with the pride of having survived the grisly cruelty of slavery that constitutes much of Sethe’s psychological makeup. This past, however, will lead Sethe down a road of what can be viewed as either temporary psychosis or the pinnacle of devoted motherhood. In one of the most crucial scenes of the novel, the slavehunters have discovered Sethe and her children hiding out in a shed at the back of 124. Sethe, well aware of the inhumanity of the men surrounding her, slays her child, cutting its throat. When the men enter, they find Sethe â€Å"holding a blood-soaked child to her chest with one hand and an infant by the heels in the other,† (Morrison, 149). The other infant is Denver, whom Stamp Paid saves from â€Å"the arch of its mother’s swing,† (ibid). At first glance, this scenario seems strikingly cruel, but Sethe’s personal history as a slave, and therefore her knowledge of its terrors, drives her to commit the unspeakable infanticide: in Sethe’s mind, she had no choice but to save her children from the horrendous fate of slavery by murdering them. This episode portrays the duality of Sethe’s unfortunate past as always having an effect on her well-being and that of her children; she is devoted as a mother, but so much so that she assumes her child’s immediate death is preferable to the inhumanities of slavery. For Morrison, Paul D represents an odd secondary paternal figure, that of the bedraggled former slave male willing to sacrifice his own pride and paset at the chance of a content â€Å"normal† life with Sethe. But this life includes Denver, and from the outset Paul D is aware of Denver’s resentment towards him, not necessarily as a father figure, but as a stranger and a threat to the relationship between Denver and Sethe. Paul D is Morrison’s definintion of an aloof father, aware of his conspicuousness to Denver, and Denver believing that he has no intention of attempting the role of father. Midway through the novel, the reader encounters a crucial moment, as Paul D has been seduced and taken by Beloved, but he is willing to tell Sethe the truth. Paul D finally musters the courage to tell her of his infidelity, and Morrison is sure to highlight Sethe’s courage: â€Å"†¦already ready to accept, release or excuse an in-need-or-trouble man†¦because she didn’t believe any of them†¦ could measure up,† (Morrison, 128). In this statement, Morrison portrays Sethe as she has been from the outset of the story, iron-willed and accustomed well enough to disappointment than to let some wild man from her distant past ruin her by shucking off and discarding her. This outlook is due to Morrison’s extensive development of her character, making Sethe that much more plausible, in the sense that her disturbing past bears down so heavily on her present decision. The established mindset of overcoming any difficulty sets her jaw before she even knows what the issue is that Paul D is referring to. Too, there is an expectant despair in the statement, since Sethe’s past is so loaded with tragedy that she is reluctant to believe anything else is possible. This theme, the inability to completely conquer one’s own past demons, will further define Morrison’s complexity in regard to Sethe and Paul D’s incompatibility as a functional parental pair. Sethe and Paul D are strong central characters but are reluctant to revisit the mutual history that has so bound them, even in the light of a functional and content relationship. As stated by Arlene R. Keizer, â€Å"†¦the knowledge [from Sethe’s and Paul D’s slavery history] that might sustain them spiritually is consigned to the same forbidden area as the knowledge that might destroy them,† (Keizer, 2). Keizer touches on two main points that prove Sethe and Paul D inaccessible as parental figures: one, their shared history is too violent to revisit, hence any former knowledge of upbringing is null and void; and two, this forbidden area constitutes a large portion of their personalities, so any parenting they might attempt would only be a partial reflection of the whole person. Morrison ensures that the past setting of her characters binds them as strong as the present setting. The span of years passed in degradation and submission still wound and hinder both Sethe’s and Paul D’s further attempts to encompass a functional family life. Here a key difference arises between Morrison and Faulkner. Faulkner’s setting is present-focused, concentrating on the immediate actions and linear motion of the story to carry his failed parent theme. His characters can’t see but the road ahead of them, and plod along with a dim view of what is and what still might be, with little to no reference to any previous tragedy. The Bundrens’ past is reflected upon briefly, but merely in passing and without the gravity and great triumph intermingled with tragedy that Morrison employs. Morrison establishes the past as vital to the characters’ growth or retardation, where the strengths and weaknesses are exposed fully in their profound self-reflections, and their past will ultimately haunt them, especially Sethe and Paul D crippling their abilities as parental figures. Often enough, the characters have found methods and means to dissuade the past from surfacing too much, as when Sethe rubs Paul D’s knee, likening the soothing repetitive action to kneading flour into dough: â€Å"Working, working dough. Nothing better than that to start the day’s serious work of beating back the past,† (Morrison, 73). Here, the reader is drawn back to the fact that a collective past such as Sethe’s and Paul D’s must be confronted daily and fiercely, lest the despair it might breed ruin their lives and all that they have worked for. But it is the physical manifestation of Beloved and her move into 124 that wreaks the most havoc, and attempts to crush the semblance of a family Sethe and Paul D were attempting to find. Beloved’s entrance into the novel signifies dual emotions for Sethe, particularly since the longer Beloved lingers, the more willing Sethe is to please and obey her. Beloved completed Sethe in a way that neither Denver nor Paul D could. Sethe becomes doting, gradually sacrificing herself as Beloved grows fatter while â€Å"Sethe pleaded for forgiveness, counting, listing again and again her reasons,† (Morrison, 242). Convinced that Beloved is actually the spirit of her murdered daughter, Sethe is driven to madness by outpouring the devotion she robbed herself of with Beloved’s murder. it is unclear whether or not Beloved is truly the spirit of the child she has slain, but the representation of Sethe’s morbid past is definitely represented. As Jean Wyatt comments, â€Å"Beloved [is] able to articulate infantile feelings that ordinarily remain unspoken,† (Wyatt, 231). Wyatt’s statement encompasses the fullness of the problem. In the literal sense, the reader is drawn to the fact that adult Beloved can speak fully of the murder and articulate her resentment, her bitterness, and demand reasoning from Sethe, which gradually breaks Sethe down into madness. Figuratively, Beloved’s communication serve as a continous reminder of Sethe’s most profound and secret mistake of murdering her daughter. Beloved is a cruel and vindictive spirit, prying Sethe from the care of Denver without Sethe’s full awareness, and capitalizing on Sethe’s regret to the point of Sethe being driven mad. At this point in the novel, a drastic change occurs in Denver. Sethe now dotes upon Beloved incessantly, to the point that Sethe’s health begins to fail and she is driven further into a harmful obsession for Beloved’s well-being. This incites Denver to action, and through her despairing over her mother, Denver dives headlong into maturity, going about town asking for help in the exorcising of Beloved’s malignant spirit. The town gathers and amidst Sethe’s mistaking Mr. Bodwin for Schoolteacher and Sethe’s subsequent attempt to kill him, Beloved vanishes. This episode is Morrison’s most profound irony regarding Sethe as the maternal figure; that by neglecting Denver in favor of Beloved, Denver blooms into a fully grown woman, and succeeds in saving her mother from the terrible spirit of Beloved. The metaphor of the past as a force that requires â€Å"beating back† is crucial also to understanding Morrison’s method of incorporating figurative speech into her novel; the text is rife with similes, metaphors, and euphemisms: â€Å"†¦when trouble rode bareback among them.. or when Amy refers to the whip scars on Sethe’s back as â€Å" a chokecherry tree† (Morrison, 249, 79). These metaphors are Morrison’s most powerful vehicle in delivering her message of hope, where trouble becomes a beast to be tamed and the cruel scars of Sethe’s past are likened to the pleasing image of a tree. It is this language that separates Morrison from Faulkner the most, since Faulkner maintains simple language for a simple people, while Morrison enriches her characters with complex metaphors to fully grasp the potency of those insubstantial words that ever fail to convey a complete meaning. Both Beloved and As I Lay Dying incorporate the three elements of character development, realistic setting, and a sound approach to language use in order to convey their separate messages. Faulkner proves Anse’s and Addie’s failed parenting through his simple-minded but plausible country folks, the fierce and dynamic setting they work within, and the unsophisticated language and writing that epitomizes the questionable decisions and motivations of the parents. Morrison achieves a similar end as her parental characters operate on a more complex thought level, with all the restraints and reassurances of the past. Too, her setting revolves around both the present and the past to create an expansive environment to learn and grow from, and her use of the higher language of metaphor and her final ironic twist implies a mental and spiritual depth that Faulkner’s Bundren family never attains.

Is Price the Only Factor That Determines a Buyer’s Decision Essay

When consuming products and services, customers pay attention to several factors to make sure that they have made a sensible decision. Perhaps, the very first thing to be taken into account, under some circumstances, is price. However, it should not always be the sole consideration for purchasing decisions. From my point of view, apart from price, there are other determinants that can have a strong impact on a buyer’s decision, namely quality, buyer psychology and commitments that a firm offers its customers. To begin with, it can be said for sure that for most wise consumers, the quality of products or services is remembered long whereas the price is soon forgotten. When people make up their mind to consume something, they definitely want it to be worthy of their money. To be more specific, they are willing to have their ideal products although their prices can, sometimes, be very costly simply because of their durability. Long-lasting products are preferable, especially for careful consumers who are always in pursuit of the stability of the products. From another context, in terms of buyer psychology, many customers are not afraid of high cost to own certain products since not only do the products serve their needs, but they also help them to express their fashion-consciousness and status. For example, fashionable clothes enjoy increasing demand from celebrities every year though the producers set high prices. In addition, pricing low does not always work, even it can be counter-productive because consumers may assume that the products are below normal standards or the firm is going bankruptcy, which may lead to the damage of the company’s image and prestige. Last but not least, commitments to customers that a producer makes are also of great importance. These commitments usually come along with guarantees or after-sales services. Customers may pay higher amount of money for the products, however, in exchange, they are certain that they can have substitutes or indemnities when problems associated with the products happen. In other word, regardless of high prices, consumers are satisfied because they are offered certainty. In these cases, prices are also not the matter. In general, price is a significant factor that affects buyer decisions, but it is not the only determinants. Wise customers always seek for perfection from the products or services; hence, price should only be one of the aspects to be considered.

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Creations of Ancient Egypt Visual Art - Essay Example This perfection in art brings out the fact that to some extent the art these people create shaped and formed them to become who they are. The Egyptian sculptures and paintings portrayed nature and everyday activities like hunting sprees, family life, and daily chores among others. Apart from the paintings and sculptures, relief art was also used mostly to show all forms of activities from feasting to working, and from learning to dance and so on. Art formed a very vital component of the Egyptian’s lifestyle, through it they learned to adorn themselves with beauty and enhance their lives in the world by using elegant jewelry, finely carved furniture, and other cosmetic vessels. The great influence of art in the Egyptian culture at this time can be attributed to the strong art base that was instituted in previous kingdoms. The previous kingdoms and specifically the old Egyptian kingdom saw the birth of some of the most sophisticated forms of arts never seen in history. It is in this time period that hieroglyphic writing reached its sophistication with other techniques of craft being developed to a high level of professionalism. Ever since this time Egyptian art has become the epitome of the importance of religion and a means of offering respect to death and the dead. Art was esteemed in nearly all spheres making it possible for it to influence and to some level create the Egyptian, culture and belief system. Lloyd argues that the Egyptian art influenced almost everything ranging from their day to day activities to major events and ceremonies.

Individual Economic Issues Simulation Paper Essay Example for Free

Individual Economic Issues Simulation Paper Essay Review the Health Care Economics Issues HMO Simulation exercise posted on your student web page. Follow the Wk 4 WEB LINK â€Å"Understanding Economic Issues for HMO’s†. This exercise is for your learning experience only. Do not post any screen short from the exercise as part of your assignment. Economic Issues Simulation Paper Prepare a 1,050- to ,1400 paper in which you present a profile of each company including the demographics of the employees, the health care risk factors (potential areas of high utilization), and the premiums the company is willing to pay. Apply each plan, Castor Standard and Castor Enhanced to each company, Constructit and E-editor, to determine which plan best meets the healthcare needs of the employees – ignore Dearden. As a representative of Castor insurance, your job is to maximize profit and minimize risk for the company. Based on your analysis of potential utilization, give at least two reasons why each plan could be selected for each company. Then select one of the two companies and state which plan you would select to sell to that company? What are the reasons for this decision? Why did you not select the other plan offered? Your paper should be organized so that each question serves as a subheading followed by the discussion, i.e. Two Reasons Why Each Plan Could Be Selected, Which Plan Selected and Reasons for the Decision, and Why the Other Plan Were Eliminated. Include a Title page and a Conclusion. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines as described in team the Assignment Format – Easy Version document. Follow the Wk 4 Individual  Assignment Outline document posted in the Course Materials forum located just below the Chat Room. Post your a To get this material copy and paste link to browser https://bitly.com/1wyPcrf Think about your resume from day one. Yes, you want your diploma to be the feature point of the resume. However, you also want to put anything else you can on it. Work-study, summer job or internship experience is a big plus. Also cultivate opportunities through extra-curricular activities that appeal to you. General Questions General General Questions Review the Health Care Economics Issues HMO Simulation exercise posted on your student web page. Follow the Wk 4 WEB LINK â€Å"Understanding Economic Issues for HMO’s†. This exercise is for your learning experience only. Do not post any screen short from the exercise as part of your assignment. Economic Issues Simulation Paper Prepare a 1,050- to ,1400 paper in which you present a profile of each company including the demographics of the employees, the health care risk factors (potential areas of high utilization), and the premiums the company is willing to pay. Apply each plan, Castor Standard and Castor Enhanced to each company, Constructit and E-editor, to determine which plan best meets the healthcare needs of the employees – ignore Dearden. As a representative of Castor insurance, your job is to maximize profit and minimize risk for the company. Based on your analysis of potential utilization, give at least two reasons why each plan could be selected for each company. Then select one of the two companies and state which plan you would select to sell to that company? What are the reasons for this decision? Why did you not select the other plan offered? Your paper should be organized so that each question serves as a subheading followed by the discussion, i.e. Two Reasons Why Each Plan Could Be Selected, Which Plan Selected and Reasons for the Decision, and Why the Other Plan Were Eliminated. Include a Title page and a Conclusion. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines as described in team the Assignment Format – Easy Version document. Follow the Wk 4 Individual Assignment Outline document posted in the Course Materials forum located just below the Chat Room. Post your assignment in the Assignment Section on your student web page. Post an Individual Certificate of Originality along with your assignment – do not include the Certificate as part of your assignment.

A Comparison of Free

A Comparison of Freedom Documents Essay †¢ Throughout most of U.S. history, in most locations, what race has been in the majority? What is the common ancestral background of most members of this group? The United States is a very diverse country, racially and ethnically. Six races are officially recognized in the U.S. and they are White, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and there are also the people of two or more races; a race which is called Some other race is also used in the census and other surveys, but is not official. Throughout U.S. history White Americans are the racial majority, with a 72% share of the U.S. population, according to the 2010 US Census. The majority of the 300 million people currently living in the United States are descended from European immigrants who have arrived in the past 400 years. †¢ What are some of the larger racial minorities in U.S. history? What have been the common ancestral backgrounds of each of these groups? When did each become a significant or notable minority group? Some of the larger racial minorities in U.S. history are American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, and Native Hawaiian. Some of the common ancestral backgrounds of each of these groups are: Asian American-The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent. African American- African Americans make up the second largest racial and ethnic minority in the United States. Most African Americans are of West and Central African descent and are descendants of enslaved blacks within the boundaries of the present United States. Hispanics and Latino Americans- Hispanic thus includes persons from Spain and Spanish-speaking Latin Americans excluding Brazilians while Latino excludes persons from Spain but includes both Spanish-speaking and Portuguese-speaking Latin Americans. †¢ In what ways have laws been used to enforce discrimination? Provide examples. These laws were intended against which racial minorities? Affirmative action of the courts and prison systems which discriminates against Blacks and Hispanics, gives them 20% longer sentences, targets their neighborhoods, racially profiles, weakens minority neighborhoods electorally, created the culture of fatherless homes as a reaction to the Civil Rights Movement, fills prisons with low-level offenders for petty drug offenses, with illegal searches and in some states; where those crimes have been decriminalized anyways and disproportionately targets minority youths in instances where white youths would be dealt with informally, which is masked by Affirmative Action which largely benefits white women and Jews anyways. There were also the Convict codes, which were used to put Blacks back on the plantation, the loitering laws, the Blogs Act which targeted Blacks and Mexicans for marijuana until it was realized whites use it more, the sentences disparity between crack and cocaine at a 100 to 1 ratio, the lynch laws and various others. †¢ In what ways have laws been used to eliminate discrimination? Provide examples. Did the laws work to eliminate discrimination? There are some laws and act that are anti-discrimination. 1) Age Discrimination Act of 1975 is a law which prohibits discrimination based on age in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance, for instance, financial assistance to schools and colleges, provided by U.S. Department of Education. 2) The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) is a law that was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1990. 3) The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 (Hart-Celler Act, INS, Act of 1965, Pub.L. 89-236) abolished the National Origins Formula that had been in place in the United States since the Immigration Act of 1924.

Characterize The Protagonist

Characterize The Protagonist Thesis Statement: The narrator, who originally loves animals and his wife, turns violent towards them and even kills his wife, because of alcohol addiction. Alcohol addiction as a form of illness, its consequences and examples from personal experience. In the â€Å"The Black Cat† (1843) by Edgar Allan Poe, the protagonist and his wife love animals and have a number of them. The protagonist favorite pet was a black cat named Pluto. Because of his addiction to alcohol he ends up killing his favorite pet and his wife. The narrator, who originally loves animals and his wife, turns violent towards them and even kills his wife, because of alcohol addiction. Alcohol addiction as a form of illness, its consequences and examples from personal experience. In the biging of the story, the narrator is a day before he dies and explains the reasons why he is in prison. Firstly he mention that he is always fond of animals and his wife also shard this love. They had a number of pets, including the cat named Pluto of which the narrator was particularly fond of. As the story goes on the narrator addiction to alcohol got worse taking the best out of him. His illness drives him to have dilutions of the cat that avoiding him while he was drunk. And later on drives him to kill his wife. It seems to me that a clear explanation of his addiction is not given in the story. Around that time of the story alcohol was something many men got addicted to. Perhaps we could say that poverty and such issues had something to do with the problem. But still one can only assume. We could also assume that a reason as to why he became addicted to alcohol was because he hadnt a really strong personality. According to the narrator the problem with the alcohol progressed gradually and although in the beginning he only spoke harshly to his wife, he went on to physically abuse her as well.   That story strongly reminds me of my father and me. My personal experiences are the following. When it comes to my father it seems that he was shearing the same motive as the protagonist of the story. In the time when my father had a problem with alcohol was a time when he had financial and personal problems. At that time us family was just beginning to expand and us family business had suffered blow. Our family was counting of him to provide for everything and he couldnt keep up. Because of that he began drinking. He had mention to me that during that period the alcohol was helped him to escape reality temporally. The result from drinking was frustration and anger; he was rude and angry towards us. Those are of the similarities I noticed between the narrator and my father. To sum up, people with alcohol problems usually are having problems in their lives and they are trying to escape from them in order fell good or not to feel anything at all. Alcohol leads to many consequences physical and social ones as well. Perhaps the people that end up having such addictions already suffer from health, social and other problems, but in my opinion it usually happens to weaker characters. People with strong personalities tend to have a better control over their lives, and even though both the narrator could have been a strong character, just like my father he could be going through a rough phase in his life.

The Clouds :: essays research papers

CLOUDS Production The setting of the Clouds requires two doors in the skene, one representing Strepsiades's house and the other, the Thinkery, both in the city of Athens. The play begins with Strepsiades and Pheidippides sleeping in their beds. Since the ancient Greek theater had no curtain, these two men in their beds had to be carried out in full view of the audience by stagehands (probably slaves) and placed in front of one of the doors of the skene representing Strepsiades's house. The audience was no doubt expected to imagine that this was an indoor scene, because it was not usual for Greeks to sleep outside. This assumption is strengthened by the fact that, since Pheidippides is sleeping under five blankets, the weather is cool, which would make it even less likely that this was intended as an outdoor scene. The method of presenting the scholarly activities that go on inside the Thinkery is by no means certain. K. J. Dover (Aristophanic Comedy, Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1972, 107) suggests two possibilities. The students could come out of the door of the skene carrying their apparatus with them, which they could leave behind when they go back inside. Another possibility is that a screen made of canvas and wood with a door, held from behind by stagehands, could conceal the students until Strepsiades asks that the door be opened. The stagehands then could remove this screen revealing the students and their equipment. When the students are ordered to go back inside, they could go through a door of the skene which then would become the door of the Thinkery for the rest of the play. One other aspect of production needs to be mentioned. Socrates first appears in the play suspended in air. The means of his suspension is undoubtedly the mechane, which in tragedy is mostly used for gods, but in comedy is used for any character who needs to fly or just be in the air. Aristophanes's Comic Portrait of Socrates Although there is something of the real Socrates1 in the character of the same name in the Clouds, it is clear that Aristophanes's depiction of Socrates in the Clouds is in good part a comic distortion. Socrates was a well-known figure in Athens who was popularly perceived as an intellectual. Aristophanes, taking advantage of this popular perception, arbitrarily places him at the head of the Thinkery, in which subjects such as rhetoric and astronomy are taught.

Short Story Essay examples -- essays research papers

There was a girl named Kandy, she was 15 years old. Her life was extremely boring, all she ever did was go to school, go on her computer, eat and sleep. She spent all summer on her computer. She was really good with HTML and spent her free time making web sites. Kandy didn't have many friends and rarely talked to guys because she was shy and unconfident about her looks. That's why she went into chat rooms. She made a web site with pictures of herself on it and told people in chat rooms to go there. A lot of people would tell her how pretty she was and some would say she was ugly. That made her feel awful. When anyone would say anything nice to her, she wouldn't believe them and think that they were just making fun of her. She only had one real friend that she could talk to, her name was Ang.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  School was starting next week and Kandy has to go shopping for new clothes. That was the only thing she enjoyed more than being on her computer. She absolutely loved clothes. Kandy was very girlie and always wore high heels, nail polish, jewelry, make up and plenty of lip gloss. After deciding that she wanted to be different, she bought shoes that weren't high heels.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first day of school started and Kandy was in 10th grade. Her new clothes got her a lot of attention, everyone complimented her about how they loved what she was wearing. That was the only thing she was confident about, her clothes. She knew that her style was awesome. Her best friend, Ang, was in two of her classes. Kandy thought that this would be the best year of school because she never had any friends in any of her classes before. Turns out they both had the same lunch. They would talk up by the road, on the sidewalk, to Speedway everyday for lunch. For some reason people would always honk at them and one day a girl yelled out the window and called them sluts. Obviously because she was jealous. The first few days of school went by fast, then kept getting slower and slower.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After a few days, Kandy saw this really hot guy named Jesse. But of course she was to shy to talk to him. She thought that if she told him how she felt about him that he wouldn't like her and think that she was ugly. So she didn't say anything. Kandy and Ang both had a friend named Gary. Kandy told Gary about how she liked Jesse but she didn't realize that he was friends with Jesse. Gary told Jesse that Kandy li... ...d he was buying her a present. Pulling out a wrapped box, Gary handed it to Kandy. She quickly opened it to find a beautiful necklace. She put it on and hugged him. They had enough of shopping, and went to see a movie. Kandy suggested a horror movie, so she had an excuse to get close to Gary. Too bad they didn't get to see most of the movie, because they were making out. That was the best five dollars she ever spent. Holding hands, Gary walked Kandy and Ang to their car. She said good bye and drove off.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When Kandy got home, she went on her computer to her chat room, messaged her online friends and told them how she wasn't going to be on there any more. They asked why and she explained to them how she has a boyfriend now and she doesn't need them. They were heartbroken, but she didn't care, she only cared about Gary.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The next day, Gary called her and said that he feels uncomfortable being around her and scared to even say hi. He asked her if it was all right if they would just be friends. She said sure, hung up on him, and started to cry.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After a few days she forgot all about him, and continued with her chatting, and found a new guy to become obsessed with.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Nutrition Workout Log Essay

Did you meet your nutritional goal? Explain why you did or why you did not meet your goal. Yes I met my goal because I only drank one can of soda for dinner in a whole day. Usually I drink about 3 a day, so I’m trying to lower my soda intake everyday. Explain why your nutritional goal is important to maintain health. My nutritional goal is important to maintain good health because the acid is high in soda. I realized that soda eats the inner layer of your stomach and also eats the enamel off your teeth. Did you encounter any challenges as you strived to meet your goal? Yes, It was hard for me to reach my goal because im used to drinking soda multiple times a day. I started drinking more water so it got my mind off of drinking soda. Did pursuing your nutritional goal enhance your physical activity in any way? Why or why not? Yes, when I drank less soda I realized that I wasn’t as tired, and also wasn’t as hungry. When I worked out I had more energy and felt better about myself. Fitness Test Comparison: (worth 20 points) Repeat the body composition fitness test from the Getting Started lesson. Compare your original body composition result (body mass index or BMI) with your current body composition result(body mass index or BMI). Write out your original score and status, along with your current score and status. Original score ___26. 2_______ Current score ___24. 7________ Did your results improve? Why or why not? Yes my results improved since the beginning. I’ve been working out more and eating healthier food to try and make myself better off in the long run. Date Warm-Up Physical Activity Intensity (Light, Medium, or High) Cool-Down Mins 10/17/12 Body stretches Running Medium- High

Unchopping a Tree Summary

SUMMARY OF UNCHOPPING A TREE by William Stanley Merwin Merwin’s Unchopping a Tree is a procedural essay as we can infer from the title alone. Here, Merwin describes what it takes for one to put together again a tree that has been cut down. Note that the author is very accurate in his steps so as to ensure that the tree will be exactly what it was when the rebuilding is done. According to Merwin, we have to start with the leave sand all others that belong to the tree’s crowning glory.They have to be put back exactly the way they used to be. Everything that used to be there has to be there again—exactly the way it was. Next in line is the trunk. Everything has to fit like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. There must not be a single misplaced splinter. The next thing to do is to raise the trunk and place it on the stump. This, he says, is no small enterprise because you have to use the proper fixative and that is difficult since, as he says, â€Å"again we have no dup licate for the original substance†.Now for the last step—we lower the splintered trunk unto the stump. Here, you have to gather the chips and sawdust and they must be returned to their former positions. Another problem is presented in this last step—bark sawdust decomposes very quickly if exposed to the elements. Once that problem is dealt with, you now have to find a translucent adhesive that is not so rigid. So your tree is now erected but is still held upright by the support of the scaffolding.And you take a restless night. In the morning, you remove the scaffolding. You cross your fingers in hope that the gentle breeze won’t push the tree over and that’s all you can do. And there we can conclude that a tree is really difficult to â€Å"unchop†. But, may I ask, why do we easily take down trees? Would we still find it easy to chop a lot of trees down once we’d experience unchopping just one tree?

Argumentative Essay: Plastic Bags vs Paper Bags Essay

One drizzling day, Aling Saling bought half a kilo of rice. It was put in a brown paper bag which the 40-year-old housewife held at the bottom, all 10 fingers at full stretch. But one side of the bag ruptured, too weak to hold even its meagre content. Aling Saling coddled her torn paper bag like a baby to keep what was left of her precious rice from spilling onto the wet pavement. She was torn: should she kneel and pick up her rice one grain at a time or take refuge from the rain and protect what was left? She walked on, her shoulders hunched over her bag. Her experience captured the essence of the continuing debate about the plastic ban, which has resulted in the shift to the use of paper bags. Our world today is experiencing an environmental dilemma particularly on the numerous solid wastes around us. This is what pushed the government to implement an ordinance that would ban plastic bags and use paper bags instead. But did the government thought of the possible environmental effects that this alternative might bring? Are they positively aware that using paper bags as a replacement for plastic bags could be of much help to mankind and to our environment? The use of plastic bags had been banned for the reason that it clogs sewers and drainage canals that lead to floods and other environmental damage. But, what people do not know is that it comes with a lot of benefits. First, plastic bags are cheap, reusable and can be recycled even when wet and can hold heavy weights compared to paper bags. Second, they use less energy when it comes to their production and it generates less atmospheric pollution when produced and transported and third, it is more weather friendly compared to paper bags and for it to be made, trees do not need to be cut. These are the main benefits of using plastic bags not only to the environment but also to mankind. Noli Jimenez on his article â€Å"Biodegradable Plastic Bags†, believed that plastic bags are a wonder of modern technology because it can be made very hin with minimal raw material and are still strong enough to carry a heavy load of shopping. He also said that no other carry-all container can hold 2,500 times its own weight and stay strong even when wet. Even though a lot of people consider paper as a more eco-friendly option than plastic, some of them do not know that the creation of a plastic bag requires 40% less energy than that of a paper bag. In addition, paper bag production requires 50% more water pollution and 70% more air pollution than plastic bag production. Furthermore, to make one ton of paper, 17 trees need to be cut and none for plastic; furthermore, a gallon of potable water from public supply is used per paper bag while only one gallon of water is used to make an estimated of 116 to 125 plastic bags. Paper bags do not have handles making it more difficult to carry and are less preferred for reuse because they cannot hold heavy loads and is unrecoverable when wet. Plastic bags, on the other hand have handles that makes it more convenient to reuse and can still be used even when wet, making it more useful and handy. Carlito Soon, PPIA director and board member of the Packaging Institute of the Philippines, said that a total ban on plastic bags would not solve the problem and will only result to 600,000 employees losing their jobs. On the aforementioned complications on the use of paper bags, it also has its advantages. For instance, it is biodegradable and decomposes easily than plastic bags. It does not clog sewers and is not visible in landfill or waterways. When one ton of paper bags is reused or recycled, three cubic meters of landfill space is saved and 13-17 trees are spared. On top of that, paper bags do not emit many harmful effects on the environment and to man. Banning plastic bags is not the best solution after all for it can be of great help to our environment and to mankind. We cannot just ignore its benefits and considering the fact that it is eco-friendly in its own ways; therefore, I say that plastic bags should be managed and people should know how to dispose them properly instead of banning it. In addition, it is the misuse and improper disposal of plastic bags that causes damage to our environment, not the product itself. I have nothing against the government but just to reconsider the usage of plastic bags again. Who knows? Maybe at this point, chemists might be thinking of ways to improve the composition of plastic bags making it more eco-friendly providing less pollution to our environment and less harm to man.

PSY 435 Full Course Material Essay

PSY 435 Entire Course All Assignments Weeks 1-5 http://homeworktimes.com/downloads/psy-435-entire-course-assignments-weeks-1-5/ For More Tutorial Visit: http://homeworktimes.com For any Information Email Us: Uopguides@gmail.com PSy 435 Week 1 Industrial Organizational Psychology Worksheet(1) PSy 435 Week 2 Job Analysis Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 3 Employee Selection and Training Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 4 Improving Organization Retention Paper PSy 435 Week 4 Learning Team Assignment Outline(1) PSy 435 Week 5 Leadership and Performance Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 5 Working with Employees Portfolio(1) PSY 435 Entire Course All Assignments Weeks 1-5 http://homeworktimes.com/downloads/psy-435-entire-course-assignments-weeks-1-5/ For More Tutorial Visit: http://homeworktimes.com For any Information Email Us: Uopguides@gmail.com PSy 435 Week 1 Industrial Organizational Psychology Worksheet(1) PSy 435 Week 2 Job Analysis Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 3 Employee Selection and Training Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 4 Improving Organization Retention Paper PSy 435 Week 4 Learning Team Assignment Outline(1) PSy 435 Week 5 Leadership and Performance Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 5 Working with Employees Portfolio(1) PSY 435 Entire Course All Assignments Weeks 1-5 http://homeworktimes.com/downloads/psy-435-entire-course-assignments-weeks-1-5/ For More Tutorial Visit: http://homeworktimes.com For any Information Email Us: Uopguides@gmail.com PSy 435 Week 1 Industrial Organizational Psychology Worksheet(1) PSy 435 Week 2 Job Analysis Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 3 Employee Selection and Training Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 4 Improving Organization Retention Paper PSy 435 Week 4 Learning Team Assignment Outline(1) PSy 435 Week 5 Leadership and Performance Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 5 Working with Employees Portfolio(1) PSY 435 Entire Course All Assignments Weeks 1-5 http://homeworktimes.com/downloads/psy-435-entire-course-assignments-weeks-1-5/ For More Tutorial Visit: http://homeworktimes.com For any Information Email Us: Uopguides@gmail.com PSy 435 Week 1 Industrial Organizational Psychology Worksheet(1) PSy 435 Week 2 Job Analysis Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 3 Employee Selection and Training Paper(1) PSy 435 Week 4 Improving Organization Retention Paper PSy 435 Week 4 Learning Team Assignment Outline(1) PSy 435 Week 5 Leadership and Performance Paper(1)

Case study for bronchial asthma

To rule out other possible conditions — such as a respiratory infection or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) — your doctor will do a physical exam and ask you questions about your signs and symptoms and about any other health problems. Tests to measure lung function You may also be given lung (pulmonary) function tests to determine how much air moves in and out as you breathe. These tests may include: Spirometry. This test estimates the narrowing of your bronchial tubes by checking how much air you can exhale after a deep breath and how fast you can breathe out. Peak flow. A peak flow meter is a simple device that measures how hard you can breathe out. Lower than usual peak flow readings are a sign your lungs may not be working as well and that your asthma may be getting worse. Your doctor will give you instructions on how to track and deal with low peak flow readings. Lung function tests often are done before and after taking a bronchodilator (brong-koh-DIE-lay-tur), such as albuterol, to open your airways. If your lung function improves with use of a bronchodilator, its likely you have asthma. Tests and diagnosis By Mayo Clinic staff Physical exam To rule out other possible conditions — such as a respiratory infection or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) — your doctor will do a physical exam and ask you questions about your signs and symptoms and about any other health problems. Tests to measure lung function You may also be given lung (pulmonary) function tests to determine how much air moves in and out as you breathe. These tests may include: Spirometry. This test estimates the narrowing of your bronchial tubes by checking how much air you can exhale after a deep breath and how fast you can breathe out. Peak flow. A peak flow meter is a simple device that measures how hard you can breathe out. Lower than usual peak flow readings are a sign your lungs may not be working as well and that your asthma may be getting worse. Your doctor will give you instructions on how to track and deal with low peak flow readings. Lung function tests often are done before and after taking a bronchodilator (brong-koh-DIE-lay-tur), such as albuterol, to open your airways. If your lung function improves with use of a bronchodilator, its likely you have asthma.

Health Care Reform and Effect on Prescription Drug Costs Research Paper

Health Care Reform and Effect on Prescription Drug Costs - Research Paper Example Introduction The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or PPACA, and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, better known as Health Care reform law enacted on March 23, 2010 have been viewed with both appreciation and concerns by the major stakeholders of the health care system. Healthcare reform legislation’s general impact and consequences on the prices of prescription drugs are not quite easy to comprehend, by the fact that certain provisions will not take effect for several years, courts actions and rulings, conflicts and contentions at state level, or partisan stand in Congress and Senate could cause significant delays or major revisions to the legislation. Nonetheless, there is going to have significant impact on the healthcare economy and bottom line of manufacturers as there are many provisions in the health-care-reform law that are likely to have the direct or indirect consequence of increasing the volume of product sales that include prescript ion drugs. The supply chain of prescription drugs from manufacturers to consumers has a series of stakeholders, for example, wholesalers, pharmacies, and insurers. The impact of any legislation on prices is quite complex due to intricate mechanisms of fixing prices that involve many stakeholders in the value chain. The price paid by a pharmacy to buy a brand-name drug from the manufacturers is generally not the net cost of buying the drug from the manufacturer because manufacturers give discounts/rebates on brand name drugs to insurers. There are many different prices paid along the supply chain. It will be interesting to analyze the impact of new reform law on the prescription drugs. Healthcare System before the Enactment of Reform Law The current U.S. system of federal healthcare came into being in 1965 through Congress’s amendment of the Social Security Act and the establishment of Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare began as a national health insurance program for persons age 65 and over, regardless of income or wealth. In 1973, coverage was extended for those on disability for at least two consecutive years. Medicare provides enrollees with a basic program of hospital insurance and supplementary assistance program to aid in paying healthcare bills (Raffel and Raffel 1994). Through this, everyone who is old enough receives some healthcare.   Medicaid is also a national health insurance program, but it is administered by states and it can potentially assist a broader range of people than Medicare. It serves to provide services for the â€Å"categorically needy,† such as those who are blind, aged, or disabled, and for the â€Å"medically needy,† those who can afford to live, but cannot afford to pay for medical care (Raffel and Raffel 1994). People may enroll in these independent health insurance plans through their employer or on their own if they can pay for it.  It is meant for a person with high medical costs and is not old enough. H owever, financial burdens greatly limit the system’s accessibility. Census estimates from 1999 indicate that 43 million Americans live without health insurance even though 75 percent of them have a full-time job or live in a household with at least one member working full-time (Mueller 2001) for Medicare. The Americans

Price and promoting Starbucks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Price and promoting Starbucks - Essay Example e growth in a market with price fluctuations; and upholds Starbucks commitment to purchase high-quality product in a socially responsible manner† (9). Starbucks likewise implements differentiated pricing strategies depending on diverse target markets. Smith disclosed that Starbucks pricing strategy at the lower end of the market as the â€Å"mark-to-market pricing strategy. Basic coffee at Starbucks may be somewhat more expensive than the watered down swill they call coffee at a low end diner, but it is priced competitively within its peer category† (Smith par. 5). On the other hand, at the higher end of the target market, Starbucks implements that â€Å"differentiated-value pricing strategy. In this category, the competition is weaker and Starbucks does have stronger pricing power. They can price in proportion to the value customers place on having a high quality and highly customized product† (Smith par. 7). promotion (Tewell, Odom and Snider 18). The Starbucks Back to Basics article written by NewMyer, et al. has emphasized the organization as implementing a pull promotional strategy; meaning, they promote directly to the customers (NewMyer, Fox and Kelsay 3). Carmichael emphasized that since bulk of their customers return to get the next cup of coffee or purchase some food items at Starbucks, â€Å"company executives feel that improving the in-store customer experience is a much more effective means of advertising than via Starbucks commercials. Starbucks encourages the promotion of their stores as a ‘third home’, providing comfortable chairs for customers to relax and spend time in, playing music and providing outlets for people to plug their laptops into† (Carmichael par. 4). However, Starbucks has also acknowledged that using social media as a means to promote various products and activities. As reported by Noff, â€Å"overall Starbucks’s social media strategy integrates many different elements into the mix and combined together, these elements

Total Quality Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Total Quality Management - Essay Example TQM has been designed for companies that are operating in various disciplines and for this reason, each company has different uses and implementation technique of TQM. However, there are organizations that fail to implement TQM at an operational level. Some of the reasons for the failure are as follows:Â   Rigid Organizational CultureOne of the key reasons for failure of TQM is that the implementation of this process requires patience and agility and it requires flexibility in organizational culture. Organizations are required to change their paradigm from a functional to customer focus approach. Organizations that are unable to cope up with this approach can face detrimental consequences because implementation of TQM is not easy and it requires mobility to changing customer needs and business trends. Not every organization can cope up to such changes and this is certainly one of the reasons of failed implementation of TQM.Resistance to ChangeIf a company wants to implement TQM, it should first communicate to its employees the importance of TQM. Every single employee, from the lowest to the highest hierarchical level, should be accepting and willing to adopt this organizational change (Donaldson & Munir, 2013). However, such changes are not successful at times because some employees do not want to come out of their comfort zone and resist to any sort of change. Employees fail to understand the importance of this activity and do not understand that this will improve the productivity and profitability of the company.

Differences Between Concrete and Virtual Manipulatives in Preparing Thesis

Differences Between Concrete and Virtual Manipulatives in Preparing 10th Grade Math Students for Standardized Tests - Thesis Example PAPPAS Montclair State University Montclair, NJ June 2012 ______________________________________ Thesis advisor: Dr. Ken Wolff Copyright  © 2012 by John G. Pappas. All rights reserved. INTRODUCTION The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there were any differences in student achievement when students had the use of either concrete (also called physical) manipulatives or virtual manipulatives while studying the same mathematical topic at the 10th grade level. The topics were aligned with the objectives defined by the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards and included problems typical to those found on standardized tests such as the New Jersey High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA). Years ago, mathematics instructors would implement techniques incorporating concrete manipulatives to facilitate the students’ understanding of concepts through the engagement of the senses. Apart from the traditional writing on the board, topics would become more simplified and even exciting when instructors utilized visual, audio and kinesthetic tools for young students to grasp mathematics more readily. Use of concrete manipulatives in the classroom such as cuisenaire rods, mini cubes, patterned blocks, fraction slices, base-ten blocks, and square tiles enabled students to forge relationships with the abstract thus assisting students in observing a more practical application of mathematics. Since the 21st century, however, it was found that these instruments are too elementary especially when instructors attempt to re-introduce the same concepts to upper level high school or even college students. Also in the technological age when computers continue to evolve and pervade the classroom, students are averting their attention to more virtual presentations. As such, programmes on virtual manipulatives have been engineered to stimulate learning, engage and encourage the youth to be technology-savvy. By testing the different contributions of both concrete and virtual manipulatives in a 10th grade setting, findings would confirm the advantages and even disadvantages of each technique for this particular age bracket (15-16 years). It was expected that concrete manipulatives be more effective for younger minds in elementary school than with an older studentship. Moreover, it was estimated that the virtual manipulatives would be best suited for the upper students in view of the sweeping popularity of computers in the classroom and their familiarity with items of a technological nature. Standardized tests are referred to those compulsory assessments taken at the termination of every school year by students. These examinations determine the success rate of students to understand subject taught, of teachers and by extension schools to communicate information to produce high-achieving students. The effectiveness of standardized tests is very hotly debated especially with the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act (2001). On one hand , standardized tests regard use the results of specifically stated standards to measure proficiency levels of students in Mathematics,

Nathaniel hawthorne Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nathaniel hawthorne - Essay Example Particularly, I will compare these protagonists, Hilda and Prynne Hester. The Marble Faun is a story that tells of Donatello, a faun, who found himself among the human race. The narrative explored themes such as innocence corrupted by passion, the progress from a guilty despair to penitence and responsibility, and happiness regained but tinged with sorrow. This would also be the theme examined in The Scarlet Letter as the novel criticized the Puritan morality with characters created to challenge not only traditional basis of morality but also the more recent foundation in the gender conventions of the nineteenth century. Few characters are more objectionable to the modern reader than Hawthorne’s Hilda, the daughter of the Puritans. She is accused of being egotistic and frigid, and her rejection of Miriam is considered inexcusable. The principle that Hilda represented was that of a mortal’s first duty to his own salvation. While Hawthorne sufficiently underscored the objectionable characteristics of Hilda as seen and highlighted by other characters, he strived to suggest that the unswerving virtue in the pursuit of her salvation, though others may find selfish, is a valid and important religious conduct. He stressed this through Kenyon’s character: while he depended upon a reasoned morality, he believed that Hilda’s heart knows the truth and that like a steel blade to which she is twice compared, she sliced a clear distinction between good and evil. In the end, in an approach that would also be employed in Scarlet Letter’s Prynne, Hawthorne, would not condemn but so ften Hilda’s flaws as some form of redemption. The daughter of the Puritan was placed in a position to that in which she had found Miriam when she rejected her and hence, carried an overwhelming burden and needs to confide in someone. The ensuing experiences would let us find Hilda changed. She still affirmed that there

Leadership and Management in Nursing Research Paper

Leadership and Management in Nursing - Research Paper Example No doubt, Nurses in superior clinical practice incorporate education, research, management, leadership, and consultation into their clinical role. They function in uncompetitive relationships with nursing peers, physicians, professionals, and others who influence the health environment. (McLoughlin 1992). If we analyze then we come to know that In this era of high business competitiveness, organizations function in a dynamic and altering environment and as a result, it has to be adaptive to stay ahead of the violent competition. No doubt, healthcare organizations today be familiar with that human resource (HR) is their key asset to ahead an edge over the competition and attaining health organizational success and efficiency. Thus, human resource management (HRM) has now become an up-and-coming field in the business earth and a key element for staying side by side of competition. This research will spotlight on what HRM has to present and how those at the top and HR managers be supposed to work jointly to attain organizational effectiveness. Current HRM leadership and management theory and concepts will also be discussed and interpret into carrying out and from there, its advantages and disadvantages will be highlighted. According to Effective Management of Nurses According to the expert analysis, Advanced Practice Nurses like further primary care providers, have a compulsion to a supporter for abused patients. Specialization of household violence case management holds great possible to address domestic aggression efficiently (Epstein, 1999).  

Investigative Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Investigative Report - Essay Example Supermarket employees followed closely at 43%, retail employees at 35%, hospital employees at 33%, and manufacturing employees at 28% (Pedneault 16). As the world continues to experience social changes, it is likely that companies will experience more employee theft incidences as jobs increasingly become temporary and employees continue to change jobs or maintain multiple careers. As a manufacturing company, New York Rubber Company has experienced several cases of employee theft. In the first half of 2013 alone, at least 15 cases of employee theft have been recorded by the security department. The losses that the organization has incurred as a result of employee theft within the period totals at least $140,000. Going by the statistics, it is beyond doubt that employee theft is an issue that should be taken seriously. Employee thefts impact negatively on consumers and the operations of New York Rubber Company at large. In this respect, we need to understand what employee theft entails so as to be able to formulate better control and prevention measures. Employee theft is not only of interest to us as an activity that must be prevented or regulated, but because it also shows the state of health of the relationship between employees and employers. This report investigates employee theft in the workplace and its consequences. Finally, the report will investigate the causes and use evidence to suggest possible solutions to employee theft in an organization. Employee theft remains one of the major concerns for many companies today. Research indicates that employee theft is commonplace in many companies. Employee theft is an unethical act that employees should not engage in when working for any company or organization. According to the ethical code of conduct, employees are required to refrain from stealing from a company as noted by Barefoot (5).

Elements of Marketing Essay Example for Free

Elements of Marketing Essay There are several views and definition of marketing. The most widely accepted definition is that of the American Marketing Association, the professional organization for marketing practitioners and educators, which defines marketing as â€Å"the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives† Elements of Marketing Marketing Research Marketing is by definition a process of planning and executing to meet consumer needs. It understands what are actual consumer wants and needs. Marketing research is the process in which collection of data by systematically helps to identify consumer’s needs. The Four Ps The heart of marketing strategy is the development of a response to market palace. Marketing by definition explains the concept of execution, pricing, promotion and right placement of goods, ideas and services. To respond to customers, a good organization develop product according to willingness of its purchaser, identify appropriate place for availability and finally and promote its product to create familiarity in its customers mind. Product, Price, Place and promotions are four Ps of marketing which are use many organizations to define its marketing strategy. Product: Product represents goods, services, or ideas offered by a firm. Price: Price focuses on what customers are willing to pay for services. What price actually suits to consumer to buy goods? A company provides good or services and a customer willing to exchange dollars to satisfy its needs. Place: Place represents the way or specific area in which company will distribute its goods or provide services to its customers. This decision company takes after careful and effective marketing research. Promotion: The final P represents promotion. Historically it is renowned with advertisement which is mean marketing. Promotions activities involve creating awareness in consumers mind to understand how they can meet their needs. Second approach is to define STP’s STP (segmentation, Targeting, Positioning) Segmentation: It is Process of dividing the market according to similarities that exist among the various subgroups within the market. The similarities may be common characteristics or common needs and desires. One of the main reasons for using market segmentation is to help companies to better understand the needs of a specific customer base. Mass marketing assumes that all customers are the same and will respond to the same advertising. By looking at ways in which potential customer groups are different from each other, the marketing message can be better targeted to the needs and wants of those people. Market segmentation strategies that meet these criteria can cover wide range of consumer characteristics. Subsets may be defined by basic demographics like age, race, or gender, for example. Other qualities, like educational background or income can also be used, as can location. Some of the potentially most powerful variables by which to segment a market are behavioral ones, including social class, lifestyle, and interests.

BMW Human Resources Policy

BMW Human Resources Policy Organisations, Analysis and Policy REPORT To: Senior Management From: Group Accountant Date: 2nd May 2005 Subject: BMW Organisational Analysis andHuman Resources Policies This report will provide a detailed analysis of BMWscurrent corporate appraisal analysis. This will help to identify the companyscurrent strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. This will help thecompanies decision makers understand where the organisation is now. The reportwill also critically evaluate BMWs human resources policy as a key area of theorganisation. We will highlight how BMW has strategically responded to thedrivers for change in terms of its structure, conduct and performance. Finally,offer recommendations for the future development and improvements in humanresource management, and how those will impact on its organisational structure,conduct and performance. Company Background The BMW Group is the only manufacturer of automobiles andmotorcycles worldwide that concentrates entirely on premium standards andoutstanding quality for all its brands and across all relevant segments. With the brands BMW, MINI andRolls-Royce Motor Cars, the BMW Group has been focussing on selected premiumsegments in the international automobile market since the year 2000. In thesucceeding years, the launch of the BMW 1 Series meant an expansion of themodel range in the premium segment of the lower middle class and the BMW 6Series did likewise in the segment of the large CoupÃÆ'Â ©s and Convertibles. TheMINI marque was launched and production began in the Oxford plant in 2001. In2003, the BMW Group assumed marque responsibility for Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.At the same time, the Worldwide Head Office and Manufacturing Plant inGoodwood, GB, was built. ( AnInternal and corporate analysis in terms of strength, weaknesses, opportunitiesand threats (SWOT) will assist in gaining an understanding of where BMW iscurrently in terms of strengths and where improvement is required within thebusiness and what outside environmental threats it may face as well as what newopportunities are available to the company in the short and medium term. Figure 1:BMW SWOT Analysis STRENGTHS Diverse ranges of Products BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce Strong Cash Flow Position Increase turnover and trading profits Strong Balance Sheet Worlds leading Premium Quality Automobile Manufacturer Brand Awareness Human resources Capabilities to turn resources into advantages OPPORTUNITIES New Products Market shift to globalisation Innovation Alliances Customers demand change to more comfortable and relevantly cheap cars Diversification New Technologies in Automobiles WEAKNESSES Perception of High Prices Customer disinterest Environmental issues: Pollutions Buyer sophistication and knowledge Substitute products or technologies THREATS New existing competition Volatility in Price of Fuel New legislations Consequences of the oil crisis September 11th Economic recession Market shift to globalisation Takeover bids Far-East Automobile companies expansion Extremely high competition for customers and resources The Five Forces Model Figure2: Five Forces Model ACCA Paper 3.5 (2001) Threats from Potential entrants Suppliers Bargaining power Competitive Rivalry Buyers Bargaining power Threats from Substitutes Porterexplains that there are five forces inherent in a market, which will jointlydetermine the intensity of competition and profitability of BMW and theautomobile industry. The first is the threat posed by new entrants, the highcapital expenditure and confidence of customers represent significant barriersto entry and the market is also sensitive to reputation. However, the emergentof low cost manufactures do pose a significant threat (as illustrated by figure2). There is an opportunity in the low price/ low economy (fast) sector. MaybeHyundai or Daewoo could consider introducing a low cost sport saloon. The second is the threats from substitutes, as thereare many make and model of other premium branded cars, hence, Jaguar, MercedesBenz, Audi etc. The third force is the threats from the bargaining power ofbuyers, is this strong for both BMW and the entire automobile industry with alarge number of alternative suppliers, hence, the aggressive pricing strategy.This results in a very str ong competitive rivalry in the industry. This isintensified as a result of little or no differentiation in the basic productoffered. Finally the threats from the suppliers bargaining power, this isfairly low in the automobile industry, due to dual sourcing strategies, using arange of alternative sources of supply for parts. The five forces analysis gives an improved understandingof the degree of competition within the business environment. The analysisshows that the automotive industry is highly competitive, with buyerspossessing and exerting a very powerful influence to the large number ofsubstitute brands available to them. BMW Human Resources Policy In response to a changing business environment BMW isbeing more business and service focus. In the past decade the organisation hasbecome much more proactive, dealing with new concepts to become more serviceand customer focus oriented. The structure of the organisation has beenredefined to deal with the new ways of operating. Organisational structuredefines important relationship within the business for achieving businessobjectives. At the same time it helps to define the new business culture withinBMW. Culture exists with the minds and hearts of BMWs employees andcontributes to business strategies of the organisation. Therefore, BMWs humanresources policies are critical in the organisations structure, conduct andperformance. Competitive pressures on BMW and national economies haveincreased markedly in recent decades. Therefore, organisations are constantlychanging, as powerful entities have arisen at the international level, theEuropean Union being a good example and multinational corporations increasinglydominate particular sectors such as cars. New competitions are emerging andforcing older companies to adopt or reform to survive. Different structuresaffect the way in which human resources are managed. BMW like all otherbusinesses require the same basic human resources activities like recruitment,development and training, appraisal and reward systems, and control andfeedback mechanisms. Organisational structures are influenced by culture.Employees have strong feelings towards the organisations they work for. Germanfirms have inherently a flat, less rigid structures. The McKinsey 7 S modelis often used to identify all the areas that make up an organisation.Structure, Style, Staff are three such areas. BMW has an equal opportunities none sexual discriminatingculture within its organisation. BMW actively supports young female executivesand gives females insight into the field of technology. BMW also offersextensive training for all level of staffs; BMW Groups Trainee PromotionProgramme (TPP) provides the perfect combination of theoretical studies andpractical work. BMW Group trainees receive many benefits in addition to theirpay, other social payments such as holiday and Christmas bonuses, meal andtravelling expenses subsidies, health programme and PC training. BMW claims that it does not see its staff as a cost factorbut as an essential performance factor. Also the employees are referred to asassociates rather that works. BMW in its human resources policy states thatany policy that is not oriented towards its associates will lead to negativecost effects in the long-run. As a future-oriented company, we seek to pursue anexemplary, creative and associate-oriented human resources policy, makingsignificant contributions to business success through our human resourcesactivities. The human resources policy of the BMW Group is an integral featureof our overall corporate policy in both strategic and operative decisions. (Corporate appraisal (or SWOT analysis) consists of the internal appraisal ofthe organisations strength and weaknesses and an external appraisal of theopportunities and threats open to organisations in competition within industry.

Illegal Downloading Of Movies Media Essay

Illegal Downloading Of Movies Media Essay Looking at the story of Jerome Bixbys The Man from Earth movie piracy might not be a threat to the movie industry, but a chance to promote and finance small-budget independent films. The producers of this movie approached internet piracy in a different way, as they embraced internet piracy and thanked illegal downloaders for helping to spread the buzz about the movie (Morozov, 2007). When Eric Wilkinson, the producer of the movie, found out that their movie was posted on a popular piracy blog called Releaselog, he did not do the most common thing, meaning to sue the downloaders, but thanked the Releaselog community for piracy because they were actually helping sales. (Morozov, 2007). Living in a world full of user-generated content, the downloaders gave the movie great ratings on IMDb (The Internet Movie Database) that resulted in ranking increase from 11.235th to 5th and furthermore ranked 1st in the categories independent and science fiction film (Morozov, 2007). Consequently sales increased as the movie got a great promotion. In addition to that, the producer posted a comment on Releaselog asking for voluntary donations for The Man from Earth resulting in additional generated money. Using The Man from Earth as an example, it becomes obvious that movie piracy actually inherits benefits for the movie industry as Jeanne Rose says in her article Movie Piracy: What Seems Evil is Actually Beneficial to the Entertainment Business. By gaining more web attention, people get informed about a movie they under most circumstances would have never heard of. People might use illegal copies of movies to check if the first minutes are interesting for them, to see the movie later in the cinema or on DVD (Rose, 2011). Additionally to that, parents might have a look at the content of the movie to see if it is appropriate for their children to see. Looking at the fact that a trip to the cinema with the whole family is expensive, it is a great thing for parents the check the movie beforehand. (Rose, 2011). One might say that instead of illegal downloading movies to check them for content you could simply watch the movie trailer, but facing the reality, trailers do often represent t he movie in a more positive way then the actual movie is or hide specific scenes to keep the tension in the movie itself. A new study about piracy created by a coalition of academic researches called Social Science Research Counsel shows a different perspective on the situation than industry-sponsored studies usually do. In general piracy studies tell their readers that the movie industry is suffering because of decreasing sales, as many people simply download a movie instead of going to the cinema or buying/renting the DVD. Looking at the fact that these studies are financed from movie companies, it becomes pretty obvious that they will not tell about other reasons than piracy. The new and independent study gives a different perspective on the whole situation: Given the fact that people in general suffer from a bad economy, but also low prices on digital technology and high prices on media goods are the reason for decreased sales in the movie industry (Ernesto, 2011). Visiting the cinema with your family involves spending a lot of money. Imagine living in a low-economy country like South Africa, the pr ice for a DVD in relation to the price in the US or Europe is five to ten times higher (Ernesto, 2011). Even though the movie industry spent huge amounts of money in anti-piracy education, the authors of the study could not find no significant stigma attached to piracy in any of the countries examined (Ernesto, 2011). International movie fans often have a problem to supply themselves with the latest movies or TV shows in a legal way. Being a movie fan in some countries like Germany is very hard, as you have to wait a long time before you can actually see a movie in original tone in a legal way. Using Germany as an example, every movie shown in the cinema is translated and synchronized in the German language. This consequently leads to three different ways to see a movie in the original tone: Going in a different country to see the movie, wait for the DVD release which is often 1 year after the initial release in the United States or download the movie illegal. Facing these three ways it becomes obvious which way is the most common. Looking at legal online stores like iTunes it is illegal to create an US account as a European citizen to purchase your favorite TV show episodes legally. Looking at the situation from a different point of view shows that movie piracy may have benefits for the movie industry. Movie piracy in terms of small budget independent films is able to promote them due to user generated content websites like IMDb, which actually results in more sales. It is also helpful for people to have a better first-look on a movie to decide whether they want to spend their hard earned money on a movie or not. In addition to that people in many countries are excluded from seeing movies when they are originally released which results in unhappy cineastes. Combining these different ideas with the fact that most studies are movie