Web 2.0 Applications Essay Example for Free

Web 2.0 Applications Essay O’Reilly (2006) in his Commencement Speech at UC Berkley , clarified that the certified Web 2. 0 application is where there is a proportionality between the quantity of clients and the advancement of the application. Along these lines, it is contended that the basic belief of Web 2. 0 is having the option to successfully tackle the ingenuity of everybody in the gathering. This sort of advancement is a stage forward when contrasted with the past condition of the web where the Web as a stage stayed a bewildering wreckage of trendy expressions with no genuine clearness. Spolsky(2005) concurred with this expressing Web 2.0 is â€Å"a large, unclear, shapeless haze of unadulterated engineering nothingness† and that â€Å"when individuals utilize the term Web 2. 0, I generally feel a tad more ridiculous for the remainder of the day. † Although this is clearly obvious, in this particular sense, the idea of the Web 2. 0 application is the same old thing at all to the World Wide Web. The term Web 2. 0 is utilized when a read-compose part of the Web is utilized in a participatory manner that really makes more prominent shared information for all. It was the across the board appropriation of sites, wikis, MySpace and other read-compose methods that introduced a typical I-compose and-everybody peruses it utilization design (Hinchcliffe 2006). The idea of Weblog or Blogging has been characterized by Drezner and Farrell (2004) as â€Å"A page with negligible to no outside altering, giving on-line critique, occasionally refreshed and introduced backward sequential request, with hyperlinks to other online sources. † Yet despite the fact that this definition exists, different analysts, for example, Nardi et al (2004) express that weblogs presently available in the web have an incredible assorted variety that is there is anything but a solitary predominant style of action in the net. Others (Dyrud , Worley Quible, 2005) concur with this yet on the hand, they communicated that there is something basic to all online journals and that is they are basically a setting so as to share data (paying little mind to the sum and way) between individuals, gatherings, and associations. As per Blood (2000) there are basically two kinds of weblog: those that underscore the journal and remark angle, and those that accentuate hyperlinks. The previous may try to impact more extensive popular supposition, or just to raise the profile of the blogger; the last go about as a channel framework, seeing what exists on the Web and suggesting content that may hold any importance with guests. In the event that bloggers commit errors in the data they distribute, they depend on their companions to call attention to any mistakes (Johnson and Kaye 2004) †this sentence is very ‘stand alone’ you may wish to present the possibility of power of power of Web 2. 0 innovations (which will apparently canvassed again in Wikis and so on) . In this way, Blogs have extraordinary highlights that conventional web media doesn't have. Around 2. 7 million bloggers update their online journals at any rate week by week. As indicated by Technorati, new blog creation keeps on developing Figure X shows the quantity of new sites made every day, from January 2004 to January 2006: As was referenced above, there are different kinds of online journals and every variety gives the data to the client as various as could reasonably be expected. Variables to be considered are the sort of the media to be utilized so as to move the data, the gadget that is utilized, the class, the lawful status of the distributers, blog web indexes, and blogging networks and registries. One changing thought to online journals is the sort of media that is utilized so as to share the message from the individual/association that would need to give the message to the beneficiary of the message. Take for instance; a video blog is known as a video blog, a blog that is involved connects to different destinations or systems is known as a linklog. Another sort of blog that contains a progression of sets of representations is known as a sketchblog and another sort like a sketchblog is known as a photoblog †one that involves photographs being shared, transferred and downloaded.

What is Gender Identity?

The human body is astounding. What's more, despite the fact that there are numerous specialists that direct examinations on human life systems, there are such a large number of inquiries that are unanswered still right up 'til today. Be that as it may, what we do know has helped numerous individuals and keeps on profiting certain hypotheses that have been made over numerous hundreds of years. One piece of the human body that has loads of addressed and unanswered inquiries is sexual orientation character. There are numerous elements with regards to sexual orientation personality. A few people think just: Men go about as men, ladies go about as ladies, and man to be with lady. It has been believed to be the â€Å"right way† for a long time. In any case, individuals are altogether extraordinary and to feel that single direction is the correct way would be a misconception of how the body functions and what can befall the human body if something is off key. Sex personality can be characterized as a person’s internal feeling of being male or female. Sexual orientation personality is accepted to be created during youth an impact of how the youngster was raised by guardians and cultural impacts. At the point when the kid arrives at pubescence, the impacts are fortified by hormones. Is sex personality an aftereffect of nature of sustain? What are the natural factors that assume a job in sexual orientation character? What is the contrast between how the male and female create? Does nature or sustain assume a greater job in sexual orientation character? This will all be talked about later on in this exposition, alongside a portion of the contentions about sexual character and how proof from biopsychology may help settle these contentions. There are numerous jobs that have an impact in sexual separation, just as sex character. A portion of those jobs are attached to organic elements or nature but then others might be connected to ecological impacts or support. It is difficult to know all the subtleties, yet we do know a lot of how the body of a male versus the body of a female. The job of natural variables is generally subject to hormones in the body framework, just as qualities, gonads, chromosomes, and life systems. During adolescence, levels of flowing gonadal hormones are low, regenerative organs are youthful, and guys and females contrast little when all is said in done appearance (Pinel 2009). At the point when a youngster arrives at pubescence, the body rolls out critical improvements. These progressions can be seen and even heard, yet these progressions are additionally extraordinary in a kid than in a young lady. While both male and female have numerous likenesses, both additionally include numerous distinctions inside the body. The distinctions in chromosomes and hormones are what finishes the normal advancement of a kid into a grown-up and at last chooses whether the sex of an individual is male or female during childbirth. When talking about hormones, the vast majority will consider testosterone for men and estrogens for ladies. Yet, truth be told, ladies produce testosterone and men produce estrogen. The thing that matters is the proportion where the body delivers these two kinds of hormones. Men produce more testosterone and ladies produce more estrogen. There are numerous distinctions like the model above in the collections of male and female. Increments in the arrival of gonadotropic hormone and adrenocorticotropic hormone cause the gonads and adrenal cortex to expand their arrival of gonadal and adrenal hormones, which thusly start the development of the private parts and the improvement of auxiliary sex attributes (Pinel 2009). Alongside organic jobs, it is additionally accepted that nature or encompassing of an individual might be a factor of sexual orientation personality. A portion of these sustain factors incorporate one’s self-idea, social and political mentalities, and discernments and connections about others. Family, peers, tutoring, strict preparing, broad communications, and mainstream society are only a couple of the operators through which sexual orientation socialization occurs (Crossman, 2012). Through this assessment, making an end on which has a greater amount of an effect on sex character, nature or sustain, is a hard choice to make. Perusing and becoming aware of accounts of people’s sexual orientation personality emergency has a draw towards nature, yet support despite everything has a major job in sex way of life too. Sexual orientation personality shapes how we consider others and ourselves and furthermore impacts our practices (Crossman, 2012). For instance, sex contrasts exist in the probability of medication and liquor misuse, fierce conduct, gloom, and forceful driving. Sex character likewise has a particularly solid impact on our sentiments about our appearance and our self-perception, particularly for females (Crossman, 2012). Each of these can be connected both to natural and condition factors. The story that may have the most clear factor is the account of the twin that lost his penis. In the wake of losing his penis to a circumcision methodology, the specialist prompted the guardians to let specialists play out a medical procedure in which they maim the kid and make a counterfeit vagina, and raising the kid as a female. The guardians concurred, however it would later demonstrate that their kid was not acting or needing to go about as a young lady. Truth be told, the youngster needed to do things that an ordinary man would do and checked out any female exercises, such as playing with dolls. Indeed, even with treatment, the youngster despite everything created as a man would. When drawn closer with an estrogen routine at twelve years old, the youngster disliking the progressions of the estrogen. At fourteen, the now adolescent chose to live as a male. Not long after, the twin’s father chose to impart reality to his child. Presently the child could have a personality of himself as well as of his sex. He mentioned androgen treatment and medical procedure that would evacuate the bosom and make a penis. The man recaptured utilization of his new penis with the assistance of androgen treatment, however was always unable to duplicate offspring of his own. At long last, the specialists and guardians couldn't change how the kid felt within. Exactly what amount of impact does sustain have on sexual orientation personality? It could simply rely upon the circumstance in itself. There are numerous contentions that encompass sexual orientation character. Scholars have thought of their own sentiments and perspectives in regards to sex and the why sexual orientation disparity exist. Functionalist scholars contend that men fill instrumental jobs in the public arena while ladies fill expressive jobs, which attempts to the advantage of society (Crossman, 2012). Further, it is our socialization into recommended jobs that is the main impetus behind sexual orientation imbalance. For instance, these scholars see wage imbalances as the consequence of decisions ladies make, which include family jobs that contend with their work jobs (Crossman, 2012). Emblematic interactionists take a gander at sexual orientation from the small scale point of view and look at sex definition on an everyday level. For instance, men are bound to intrude on ladies in discussions and their workspaces by and large reflect more noteworthy force. These scholars likewise center around how sexual orientation jobs are disguised by guys and females (Crossman, 2012). Struggle scholars see ladies as hindered as a result of intensity imbalances among ladies and men that are incorporated with the social structure. For instance, from this perspective, wage disparities that exist among people result from men’s notable capacity to degrade women’s work and advantage as a gathering from the administrations that women’s work gives (Crossman, 2012). Women's activist hypothesis developed out of the women’s development and plans to comprehend the situation of ladies in the public eye for the sole reason for improving their situation in the public arena. There are four significant structures that have created out of women's activist hypothesis: liberal women's liberation, communist woman's rights, radical woman's rights, and multiracial women's liberation. Individuals will consistently have their own conclusion about sex (Crossman, 2012). There may never be an approach to unravel these contentions, not until there is logical evidence or individuals can settle on which supposition they accept is all obvious. Sexual orientation personality is one’s feeling of being male or female. Both organic (nature) variables and condition (sustain) impacts assume jobs in both sexual separation and sex character. Hormones are the greatest natural factor and the greatest condition impact is the means by which one is raised in their adolescence. During the assessment, I have contemplated nature being to a greater degree a factor with regards to sex character, however have reached the resolution that it might rely upon the circumstance of an individual. During that time of research, numerous individuals have contended over sex character and sexual orientation imbalance. Scholars have shaped numerous suppositions encompassing sex personality and except if there is a logical confirmation the contention may proceed. References Pinel, J. P. J. (2009). Biopsychology (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon. Crossman, A. (2012). About.com. Retrieved from http://sociology.about.com/od/Disciplines/a/Sociology-Of-Gender.htm

You made it to the waitlist, but who said that you need to wait

You made it to the waitlist, but who said that you need to wait If youve been placed on a schools waitlist, congratulations! You werent rejected, and many are accepted each year from waitlists. As an MBA Admissions Consultant, I advise my clients not to sit back and wait, at least not in most cases. Working to get accepted from a waitlist is simply another step in the MBA admissions process. Here are some points to consider: 1. Carefully read the email you received from the school. Some schools tell you not to do anything more than just wait. If they say that, then you take a risk if you try communicating with themâ€"so you probably should just sit tight. 2. Luckily, most schools will not ask you to do nothing. In that case, you need to launch a subtle but active campaign to get accepted from the waitlist. Be careful, since schools change their rules every year. For example, Harvard Business School used to instruct waitlisted applicants not to do anything. This year, it changed its instructions to leave it up to you as to whether or not to add materials to your application. So Id recommend taking advantage of that opportunity. First of all, assess where your application may have been weak. If youre brave, call someone you know in the schools admissions department or the person who interviewed you, and see what you can learn about areas where you need to strengthen your application. Then submit information to address that area. For example, you might: a. Submit an additional recommendation. If you worked with an admissions consultant, the chances are good that s/he helped you to decide which recommenders to use right away and which one or two to save for use should you get placed on a waitlist. Often, theres someone at your employer, perhaps a higher level executive, who wasnt your day-to-day supervisor but is a true leader and knows one when he sees one. Or you can consider getting a well-known alumnus or business leader to recommend you. b. Submit a series of letters. Start with one that thanks the admissions office for putting you on the waitlist, and makes it clear that you are still eager to go the school and wish to remain on the waitlist. Reinforce something strong about you. Then in a couple of weeks, send a follow-up letter that emphasizes things youve done since you first applied and that make you a stronger candidate. If your GPA was a bit weak, talk about courses youve taken recently where you got great grades. If your GMAT was a problem, submit a new, higher score. Tell the committee about new leadership responsibilities youve had at work, new accomplishments, volunteer charity leadership, etc. One of your goals should be to keep yourself at the forefront of the admission committee’s minds, so when an opening occurs, they consider you before others. c.. Possibly visit the school again. One of my very first clients lived in California and was waitlisted at MIT Sloan. He had already been accepted by Wharton but wanted to get accepted by MIT Sloan. He flew out twice to the school and managed to meet both times with the Admissions Director. She was impressed and he eventually was accepted. Be careful to not become an annoyance. Always use discretion regarding the frequency with which you follow up with schools. But unless the school has said not to do so, you can take control of the post-waitlist process. In many cases, your follow-up will make the difference between getting off the waitlist and settling for your second choice school. Need guidance in your MBA/EMBA Application process? Maximize your applications with help from The Essay Experts MBA Admissions Consulting Services. Or feel free to email me directly at larryessayexpert@gmail.com. Larry Sochrin

Jane Austen s The King Of The Time - 1219 Words

(Hook sentence.) The Regency is a specific part of the much larger Georgian era, which spreads throughout the rules of the King George s. Regency is considered to be from 1811 to 1820 as the king of the time, George III, was deemed unfit to rule because of a mental illness, causing his son to be instated as his proxy, Prince Regent. Under the rule of the Prince Regent, life was transformed into a decade of social standings, where income and the amount of land you inherited determined your worth to many people. Women of this time were expected to be beautiful, well-mannered, and have good connections, so that they could easily achieve an advantageous marriage. Jane Austen lived almost her whole life in this time, which perhaps is the†¦show more content†¦He believes she has â€Å"more of quickness than her sisters,† and they often converse in amusement about the people around them (Austen 3). Since they aren t of a high society, they are constantly entertained with the desperate attempts of women who strive to marry a man of the greatest advantage. This causes Elizabeth to think highly of her ability to discern the people around her. Since she has never been proved wrong, an innate stubbornness from it was created. Pride over this has caused her to be quick to judge as she sees fit. This trait is especially shown in her first interaction with Mr. Darcy, a wealthy, seemingly proud, and handsome gentleman. The people of Hertfordshire county consider him to be the â€Å"most disagreeable man in the world† (Austen 8). She comes to agree with the gossip when she overhears him commenting that she is â€Å"not handsome enough to tempt [him],† (Austen 9). As they spend more time together he starts to develop feelings for her, but does not act on it because of her lower class. Here we can see how his pride and societal upbringing gives him a preconception against others. Her prejudice against him causes her to see everything he says or does in a negative light. Throughout the novel, this use of pride and prejudice leads to many misunderstandings about the true character of the people in it. The introducement of Mr. Wickham, a handsome man from Darcy’s past, proves to progress the story as an influence Elizabeth s prejudice.

The Rise Of Free Trade - 1243 Words

Introduction: Free Trade: The Rise of Free Trade: According to Adam Smith’s 1776 Wealth of Nations, which other economic historians like, McCulLoch (1825) , Blaugh (1978) and Heckscher (1994), have replicated, Mercantilism was a dominant economic theory prevalent across Europe throughout the 17th to the 18th century with limited empirical evidence (Benjamin Hav Mitra-Kahn, 2011). The theoretical contrasts between researchers throughout the mercantilist age originate from the difference in how researchers and policymakers defined the economy. According to Smith, the principal reasons of mercantilist policies were â€Å"to diminish as much as possible the importation of foreign goods for home consumption, and to increase as much as possible†¦show more content†¦Using this, Smith established a formative contribution to commercial policy theory and concluded that even though the protection of domestic industries does increase the overall employment and output, it does not imply it is beneficial. A proper understanding of the determinants of calculating real income was required to the access the true effect of trade restrictions. He stated that individuals deploy their resources in support of the industry that would bring in the maximum revenue for them. Smith made this the backbone of his economic framework; profitability leads to fulfilling of the needs and wants of the society, in turn leading to increasing the national income to its maximum capacity. Thus, for this reason and following human rights to give individuals the liberty to do what they seek, the competitive market was the best tool for profit maximization and optimum allocation of resources (DA Irwin, 1996). Smith believed that the government did not have any direct role in dictating terms for market processes, nonetheless, the administration was fundamental for supporting the market systems as a social foundation for the market to work more viably. Smith then went on to talk about opportunity costs and his perception of this concept. He believed that at any given time in an economy, the resources (capital and labor) are fixed and in order to increase the output of one sector the output of another sector had to be sacrificed. This could be done only by

New Weapons that Changed the Way of the Samurai Free Essays

New weapons that changed the way of the samurai A Samurai Sword symbolizes and means the Samurai’s prestige and his skills in battle. It is a measure of his stature in society. To all samurai it’s their prize possession and it is worn proudly by its master – until the teppo was introduced. We will write a custom essay sample on New Weapons that Changed the Way of the Samurai or any similar topic only for you Order Now The samurai considered it as dishonorable to tradition. This changed the way samurai fight and changed their view to samurai swords. The teppo is an example of a weapon that changed the way of samurai – it was introduced in the 16 century in Japan through Portuguese trade. They were easy to use and deadly. The teppo were produced on a large scale by Japanese gunsmiths since introduced. By the end of the 16th century, there were more firearms any European nation. [pic] (†¦picture of the traditional weapons used by the samurai before guns were introduced†¦) The Battle of Nagashino is a great example of a turning point between swords and guns. Oda Nobunaga made deadly use of the teppo at the Battle of Nagashino in 1575, leading to the end of the famous Takeda clan. Guns can wipe out a whole clan in just one battle. It was considered very deadly. In the movie ‘The Last Samurai’ it strongly relates to the concept of guns taking over traditional samurai swords and guns destroying loyal samurai clans. The film’s plot is loosely based on the 1877 Satsuma Rebellion led by Saigo Takamori, and also on the story of Jules Brunet, a French army captain who fought alongside Enomoto Takeaki in the Boshin War. It also gives an enhanced and better understanding of how these weapons can be deadly to the traditions of the samurai and the changes that are happening when these weapons are introduced. Introducing these weapons to the samurai was a mistake that the Portuguese made. The samurai would have been better without the guns and weapons that were introduced by foreigners. Samurai teachings can still be found today in modern day society with the martial art Kendo, meaning the way of the sword. Samurai Raid a Japanese  Village The lonely village on the Far East side of Japan encountered a group of vicious samurai last week that attacked the tiny village. Many possessions have been stolen from these poor villagers. These villagers were brutally beaten with a bamboo sticks in order to entertain these vicious fighters. They were left with bruises, body aches and pains. The villagers are furious and wish for revenge on these fighters. [pic] (†¦A picture drawn by one of the local villagers on what they saw and suffered in the raid†¦ ) The Chief of the village has announced a public meeting with the local villagers to discuss the actions that need to be taken in order to receive revenge on the people that brought terror and pain in the incident that has occurred last week. We interviewed one of the local villagers – he said he lost all his gold plates that were passed down from past generations and were meant to be past down to future generations – he cannot fulfil his ancestors wishes. He is very disappointed and angry for his loss. The villagers suffered a great loss. They have little left, not even enough to feed a family for more than one week. The villagers were suffering with food loss before the raid but now they have to suffer even more. Fake samurai swords are being sold to the public.. Beware Yesterday morning when merchants come and sell their goods a man in his late 20’s spotted samurai swords for sale. He asked the merchant the price of the swords. The merchant told the man he would sell the sword to the man for only ? 1,000. The man thought he was very lucky and immediately bought the sword. He took the sword home happily. [pic] (†¦the image of the sword the man bought for ? 1,000†¦) When he got home he realised the sword was a fake because it didn’t have the sharpness a true sword would have. He was very angry and decided to go and confront the merchant. When he arrived at the same place he got the sword, the merchant was nowhere to be seen. The man was very disappointed that he wasted ? 1,000 on a fake sword. He notified the local guards – they are still searching for the merchant. The Merchant was wearing a blur robe, has a long black beard and a scar on his right cheek. If you think you have found the merchant please notify the local guard. Samurai to hold meeting for the production of fake samurai swords†¦ As you know about the article about a man buying a samurai sword the other day and found it was a fake. It has been announced by the chief samurai that there would be a meeting with all the daimyo’s and discuss the action that need to be taken to catch the merchant that was selling this illegal swords to poor villagers. We interviewed the man and he said ‘†¦ I am so happy that the samurai are following this merchant that has taken my money in return of a piece of metal that is useless to me†¦ ‘ So please if you have any information on this suspicious merchant, please notify your local guard. Nitobe was not the first person to document Japanese chivalry in this way According to the Japanese dictionary Shogakukan Kokugo Daijiten, â€Å"Bushido is defined as a unique philosophy (ronri) that spread through the warrior class from the Muromachi (chusei) period. † In Bushido: The Soul of Japan (1899), author Nitobe Inazo wrote: â€Å"†¦ Bushido, then, is the code of moral principles which the samurai were required or instructed to observe†¦ More frequently it is a code unuttered and unwritten†¦ It was an organic growth of decades and centuries of military career. † According to the editors of Monumenta Nipponica, â€Å"Tens of thousands of documents survive from the medieval period†¦ Only a few have been translated into English, or are likely ever to appear in translation. † One of the oldest English-language academic journals in the field of Asian studies, much of Dr. Steenstrup’s significant findings were written for Monumenta Nipponica. In his text Feudal and Modern Japan (1896) Historian Arthur May Knapp wrote: â€Å"The samurai of thirty years ago had behind him a thousand years of training in the law of honor, obedience, duty, and self-sacrifice†¦.. It was not needed to create or establish them. As a child he had but to be instructed, as indeed he was from his earliest years, in the etiquette of self-immolation. The fine instinct of honor demanding it was in the very blood†¦ † Translation of documents related to bushido began in the 1970s with Dr. Carl Steenstrup, who performed a lifetime of research into the ethical codes of famous Samurai clans including Hojo Soun and Imagawa Ryoshun. Steenstrup’s 1977 dissertation at Harvard University was entitled â€Å"Hojo Shigetoki (1198–1261) and his Role in the History of Political and Ethical Ideas in Japan†. The stylings of bushido have existed in the Japanese literature from the earliest recorded literary history of Japan predating the introduction of Confucian ethic from China. The Kojiki is Japan’s oldest extant book. Written in AD 712, it contains passages about Yamato Takeru, the son of the Emperor Keiko. It provides an early indication of the values and literary self-image of the Bushido ideal, including references to the use and admiration of the sword by Japanese warriors. Yamato Takeru may be considered the rough ideal of the Japanese warrior to come. He is sincere and loyal, slicing up his father’s enemies â€Å"like melons†, full willing to combat the enemy single-handed, unbending and yet not unfeeling, as can be seen in his laments for lost wives and homeland. Most importantly, his portrayal in the Kojiki embodies an early example of the appeal of the warrior-poet. Published by Sephora Hidalgo and Maranie Ing BUSHIDO From the Bushido literature of the 13th to 16th Centuries, there exists an abundance of literary references to the ideals of Bushido. In his 1979 Dissertation, Dr Carl Steenstrup noted that 13th and 14th century writings (gunki) â€Å"portrayed the bushi in their natural element, war, eulogizing such virtues as reckless bravery, fierce family pride, and selfless, at times senseless devotion of master and man. Compiled in 1371, the Heike Monogatari chronicles the struggle between the Minamoto and Taira clans for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century—a conflict known as the Gempei War. Clearly depicted throughout the Heike Monogatari is the ideal of the cultivated warrior. The warriors in the Heike Monogatari served as models for the educated warriors of later generations, and the ideals depicted by them were n ot assumed to be beyond reach. Rather, these ideals were vigorously pursued in the upper echelons of warrior society and recommended as the proper form of the Japanese man of arms. By the time of Imagawa Ryoshun’s Regulations at the beginning of the 15th century, the bushido ideal was fairly clear, and the term itself came into widespread use. As illustrated by these various writings and house codes, bushido already encompasses loyalty to one’s master, filial piety, and reverence to the Emperor. Bushido includes compassion for those of lower station, and for the preservation of one’s name. Early bushido literature further enforces the requirement to conduct oneself with calmness, fairness, justice, and propriety. The relationship between learning and the way of the warrior is clearly articulated, one being a natural partner to the other. Finding a proper death in battle, for the cause of one’s lord, also features strongly at this point in history. [pic]Japanese samurai in Armour,1860s. Photograph by Felice Beato ———————– Kendo lessons from ages 6 to 16 First 3 lessons free go to www. kendolessons. com phone master Shitzo and Yoda for more info: 100 200 300 It starts at 6:00pm to 8:00pm with Master Shitzo private and non private with Master Yoda at the morning 8am to noon free food as well. [pic] Uniforms are provided when enrolled into course New weapon factory sale [pic] 28/29 Convict ST Liverfarm. Close to Toshiba’s land Call Rambo at 1234566787 for more information on the weapons available or about the factory Quick before it’s too late†¦. Join and experience war Join the army and get new swords and armour. Join now at the Red Cross tent in the middle of the field at Toshiba land. [pic] Contact Chief Yuki Monish at sunrise and sunset: 174635 26337 or at www. joinsamuraiarmy. com How to cite New Weapons that Changed the Way of the Samurai, Essay examples

Waiting Line Management free essay sample

However, being satisfied with the service seems to be insufficient for customers to remain loyal. Creating customer loyalty is even more crucial than just satisfying them. The paper aims to investigate how customers weigh up their service satisfaction and waiting time satisfaction in order to determine whether they will remain loyal or not. Design/methodology/approach – A survey was conducted in the Belgian health care industry. The final sample includes 946 respondents. Regression analyses were performed and the Baron and Kenny method used to test moderator and mediator impacts of variables. Findings – The results confirm that waiting time satisfaction is not only a service satisfaction determinant, but it also moderates the satisfaction-loyalty relationship. Moreover, determinants of customer waiting time satisfaction include the perceived waiting time, the satisfaction with information provided in case of delays, and the satisfaction with the waiting environment. In addition, it is shown that waiting time satisfaction is a complete mediating variable in the perceived waiting time and service satisfaction link. Originality/value – The paper suggests several implications about the waiting time impacts on service satisfaction and customer loyalty. They show the importance of this variable in the service process and explain how to improve it. Keywords Customer loyalty, Customer satisfaction, Service levels Paper type Research paper Introduction Many service companies worry about the length of their queues because customer waiting time is considered as having a negative influence on consumer service perception. Time is valued by both partners. On the one hand, service companies may lose transactions if waiting time is too long; and on the other, consumers consider waiting time as a sacrifice to get the service. It is one of the reasons that more and more service customer-oriented companies position their offer on time advantage for consumers. Lovelock and Gummesson (2004) insist on the central role played by time in most services and recommend paying more attention to improving the understanding of how customers perceive, budget, consume and value time. Several research studies focus on the relationship between waiting time and satisfaction (Hui and Tse, 1996; Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). Many other studies The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www. emeraldinsight. com/0960-4529. htm MSQ 17,2 174 Managing Service Quality Vol. 17 No. 2, 2007 pp. 174-193 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0960-4529 DOI 10. 1108/09604520710735182 emphasize the link between customer satisfaction and their loyalty (e. g. , Anderson, 1994; Dick and Basu, 1994; Fornell et al. 1996; Selnes, 2001; Mittal and Kamakura, 2001; Olsen, 2002). Very few studies focus on the influence of waiting time satisfaction on loyalty and that is confined to the fast food industry (Law et al. , 2004). To the best of our knowledge, no study has yet evaluated the influence of waiting time or waiting time satisfaction on the satisfaction-loyalty relationship. The objective of this research is threefold. We look into the determinants of waiting time s atisfaction and examine the mediating role of the latter variable between these determinants and the service satisfaction. We also investigate the influence of customer waiting time satisfaction on the existing relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty. A major contribution to this research is the consideration of waiting time satisfaction as a factor that, in addition to being a determinant of customer satisfaction, may also moderate the satisfaction-loyalty relationship. Conceptual background Waiting time Service perishability gives rise to many problems for service providers and these intensify when service demand fluctuates. To tackle this major problem, firms adopt strategies to match capacity and demand (Bateson and Hoffman, 1999; Lovelock and Lapert, 1999; Zeithaml and Bitner, 2002). One of the first strategies adopted is to flex capacity to meet demand. During periods of peak demand, the organization expands its capacity by adding new resources such as people, facilities and equipment. Second, companies may try to smooth demand. Companies can motivate consumers by making their offer more attractive during low demand periods. Companies may also choose to use reservation in order to spread the demand evenly. However, even with booking, service providers experience difficulties in minimizing delay in service delivery. When demand and capacity cannot be aligned, waiting line strategies can still be found. Among waiting line strategies, we find making wait more fun or tolerable, differentiating waiting customers and choosing an appropriate waiting line configuration (Zeithaml and Bitner, 2002). Despite the implementation of all these strategies, when customer waiting time is too long, companies may indeed make consumers dissatisfied. Service providers may even miss one or several sale occasions; and even worse lose a loyal customer, despite an effective service recovery strategy. But what characterizes a long waiting time? The waiting time has four aspects: objective, subjective, cognitive and affective: (1) The objective waiting time is the elapsed time as measured by a stopwatch by customers before being served (Davis and Vollman, 1990; Katz et al. , 1991; Taylor, 1994). (2) The subjective waiting time is the customers’ estimation of time waited. In previous research studies, the subjective aspect is measured by means of the perceived waiting time (Hui and Tse, 1996; Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). Unsurprisingly, the estimated time depends on objectively measured elapsed time (Hornick, 1984; Pruyn and Smidts, 1998; Antonides et al. , 2002). (3) The cognitive aspect of the wait is the consumers’ evaluation of the wait as being (or not being) acceptable, reasonable, tolerable (Durrande-Moreau, 1999) as well as considered to be short versus long (Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). Waiting time influence 175 4) The affective aspect of the wait consists of emotional responses to waiting such as irritation, boredom, frustration, stress, pleasure, happiness, etc . . . (Taylor, 1994; Hui and Tse, 1996; Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). According to Pruyn and Smidts (1998), these affective and cognitive aspects form the appraisal of the wait. In this study, we use waiting time satisfaction as being the main variable measuring customer evaluation of the wait. According to Maister (1985), the gap between the perception and expectation for waiting experience determines the customer satisfaction with waiting. Davis and Heineke (1994) specify Maister’s definition, replacing â€Å"perception† by â€Å"performance interpretation†, noting that perception depends on both the customer’s interpretation of the service encounter and the actual service performance. During the last decade, many definitions of overall satisfaction have been proposed, underlining the cognitive and/or affective constituents of the concept (Oliver, 1993). Regarding waiting time, both aspects seem to be appropriate (Durrande-Moreau, 1999). Consequently, we consider waiting time satisfaction as a post-experience, judgmental evaluation including both cognitive and affective aspects of waiting; and measuring the extent to which the perceived waiting period matches the customer’s expectations for a specific transaction. Determinants of waiting time satisfaction Several factors are considered as leading to evaluation of wait (Maister, 1985). Past results show evidence that the objective and subjective waiting time have negative effects on affective and cognitive responses to waiting. Indeed, Taylor (1994) shows that delay (measured by a combination of objective and subjective aspects) significantly influences the feelings of anger. Moreover, Pruyn and Smidts (1998) find that the perceived waiting time affects the cognitive dimension of the wait appraisal. Consequently, we do consider perceived waiting time as a determinant of waiting time satisfaction. On the other hand, we do not take into account the objective waiting time for two reasons. First, previous research studies in the psychophysics and marketing literature show a significant correlation between perceived and objective measures of time. Second, customer reactions to waiting are more strongly influenced by the subjective component of waiting time than by the objective one (Hornick, 1984; Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). Indeed, real waiting time is an antecedent of perceived waiting time rather than an antecedent of waiting time satisfaction (Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). Therefore as presented in our conceptual model shown in Figure 1, we expect that: H1. The perceived waiting time will negatively affect the customer waiting time satisfaction. Others variables determine waiting time satisfaction. These factors are the information provided in case of delay (Hui and Tse, 1996; Antonides et al. , 2002) and the characteristics of the waiting environment (Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). In addition to being considered as an economic cost, waiting has an adverse psychological effect; consumers facing uncertainty about the wait length, experience significant stress. Studies have suggested that any information on the waiting duration can reduce the uncertainty of the wait and lower the overall level of stress experienced by consumers (Maister, 1985). Previous research highlights the impact of queuing information and waiting duration information on the cognitive and affective aspect of the wait when the wait is long (Hui and Tse, 1996) and during busy periods (Clemmer and Schneider, MSQ 17,2 176 1989). Moreover, the uncertainty influences service evaluation through consumers’ affective responses to the wait (Taylor, 1994). Consequently, we suggest that reducing the uncertainty by providing satisfying information about the delay will positively influence customer waiting time satisfaction: H2. Customer satisfaction with information provided in case of delay will positively influence their waiting time satisfaction. The attractiveness of the waiting environment is related to its physical design in terms of comfort, space and decor. Service environment influences the affective aspects of waiting time (Baker and Cameron, 1996). A pleasant environment promotes positive feelings within consumers. Pruyn and Smidts (1998) show that perceived attractiveness positively influences the affective response to the wait, a known component of waiting time satisfaction. So, we anticipate that satisfaction with the environment will positively affect the customer satisfaction with waiting time: H3. The greater the satisfaction with the environment, the more waiting time satisfaction. In our conceptual framework, we consider the waiting time satisfaction as a key variable. No other studies explicitly used this specific construct. Pruyn and Smidts (1998) used the appraisal of the wait as a central concept in their theoretical framework. The appraisal of the wait included two components: the cognitive and the affective aspects of wait. In their operationalization of the construct, they used these two components separately. To our knowledge, no other research has included the three determinants in the same model. Waiting time satisfaction and services satisfaction Along with income and price, time can be considered as a constraint in consumer purchasing choice (Becker, 1965; Umesh et al. , 1989). In choosing a service provider, Figure 1. Waiting time satisfaction: its hypothetical determinants and effects on the satisfaction-loyalty relationship Waiting time influence 177 onsumers weigh up a number of benefits against the money, effort, and psychic costs of buying and using the service; time spent in obtaining the service is just such a cost. The authors consider waiting time satisfaction and service satisfaction as being two constructs related to a specific transaction. Service satisfaction is the overall evaluation of the service transaction and waiting time satisfaction is a determinant of the latter. Several stu dies show that delays have negative effects on the overall service evaluation (Katz et al. , 1991; Taylor, 1994; Hui and Tse, 1996; Kumar et al. , 1997; Dube? Rioux et al. , 1989); and, more precisely, on satisfaction with the service (Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). Furthermore, customers’ anger and their evaluation of punctuality affect the overall service performance (Taylor, 1994). Similarly, Hui and Tse (1996) find that the affective response to the wait influences the service evaluation. Moreover, Pruyn and Smidts (1998) demonstrate that the appraisal of wait, i. e. both cognitive and affective dimensions, positively influence the service satisfaction. Therefore we hypothesize that: H4. Waiting time satisfaction will positively influence the satisfaction with the service. Authors do not agree on the role of the perceived waiting time – whether it directly or indirectly influences (through the cognitive and/or the affective component of waiting time satisfaction) the service evaluation. Hui and Tse’s (1996) results indicate that the perceived waiting duration and the affective response to the wait separately have an impact on the service evaluation. On the other hand, Pruyn and Smidts (1998) demonstrate that perceived waiting time influences the service satisfaction through the appraisal of wait (i. e. both cognitive and affective dimensions). Consistent with Pruyn and Smidts (1998), we expect that waiting time satisfaction will have a complete mediating role in the relationship between the perceived waiting time and the service satisfaction. Indeed, once waiting time satisfaction is considered as being a determinant of the service satisfaction, the perceived waiting time effect on the service satisfaction will disappear: H5. The perceived waiting time will have no direct impact on the service satisfaction but will have an indirect impact through its influence on waiting time satisfaction. Information provided in case of delay is not expected to have a direct effect on the service satisfaction. Indeed, according to Hui and Tse’s (1996) information about delay influences the service evaluation through the effect on the acceptability of the wait and on the affective response to delays. Therefore, we expect that: H6. The satisfaction with the information provided in case of delay will have no direct impact on the service satisfaction but will have an impact through its influence on waiting time satisfaction. On the other hand, the environment is expected to have a direct effect on service satisfaction in addition to its indirect effect mentioned in H3. In service literature, tangibility is considered to be a dimension of perceived service quality (Parasuraman et al. , 1988). This tangible dimension refers, inter alia, to the service facilities, decors, brochures, signage and employees’ appearance. Rust and Oliver (1993) treat the service environment as a particular component of quality. They focus on the structure of the internal and external environments to provide quality service. Pruyn and Smidts (1998) show that the perceived attractiveness of the environment influences the service satisfaction in addition to the appraisal of the wait. Thus, we propose that: MSQ 17,2 178 H7. The satisfaction with the waiting environment will have a direct impact on service satisfaction. From service satisfaction to service loyalty The weight of evidence from previous studies suggests that customers’ evaluation of waiting time negatively affects the customer satisfaction. Law et al. (2004) focus on the effect of waiting time and service dimensions on repurchasing behavior and customer satisfaction. Their results indicate that difference in waiting time and wait satisfaction respectively influences customer satisfaction and repurchasing frequency, dependently on the timing of the visit. They demonstrate the interest of evaluating the effect waiting time satisfaction has on the behavioral dimension of loyalty. However, no author has investigated how waiting time impacts on the customer’s satisfaction-loyalty relationship with the service provider. Building the link between customers’ satisfaction and loyalty is a priority for companies who have allocated many resources to evaluate their customers’ satisfaction. Indeed, customer retention is of prime importance. The cost of retaining an existing customer is less than the cost of acquiring a new one, or maintaining a newly acquired customer (Reichheld, 1996). Several studies show evidence that there is a direct and strongly positive link between customer satisfaction and loyalty (Fornell, 1992; Anderson, 1994). Customer satisfaction is recognized as being an antecedent of customer loyalty (Anderson, 1994; Dick and Basu, 1994; Fornell et al. , 1996; Bolton, 1998; Mittal and Kamakura, 2001). Moreover, prior research questioned the linear relationship between satisfaction and customer loyalty (Anderson and Mittal, 2000; Bowman and Narayandas, 2001). The form of the relationship varies according to the industry, the competitiveness and the customers’ willingness/constraint to pursue the relationship (Jones and Sasser, 1995; Mittal and Baldasare, 1996). Nevertheless, customer satisfaction is not the only predictor of customer loyalty (Reichheld, 1996). Other factors such as switching barriers (Patterson and Smith, 2003) and customer characteristics (Mittal and Kamakura, 2001) affect customer loyalty. The complexity of the relationship between satisfaction and loyalty has lead several authors (Bloemer and De Ruyter, 1999; Homburg and Giering, 2001) to study moderator effects. Among moderating variables, we find personal characteristics such as demographic and psychological variables (e. g. variety seeking, age and income) (Homburg and Giering, 2001). In this research, we investigate the effect of waiting time satisfaction on the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Waiting time satisfaction can also be considered as a personal variable resulting from an evaluation of the interaction between the service provider and the client. This interaction concerns not only the wait, but also the waiting condition (see H1-H3). We expect that waiting time satisfaction will have a moderating effect on the link between service satisfaction and loyalty. A moderator effect implies that the moderator variable (the waiting time satisfaction) modifies the form of the relationship (i. e. the slope of the regression line) between the independent variable (the service satisfaction) and the dependent variable (the loyalty). In other words, the effect of the service satisfaction on loyalty varies according to the satisfaction with the waiting time. Indeed, the relationship between satisfaction and loyalty will be stronger when customers are dissatisfied with waiting time than the contrary. More precisely, when customers are not satisfied with waiting time, the service satisfaction should be higher to ensure customer loyalty. Customers are prepared to wait longer when the service satisfaction is high than when it is low. Waiting time influence 179 They may consider the waiting time as a sacrifice required to obtain a high level of service quality. If customer satisfaction with the service is low, they may not accept to put up with a long wait. Therefore, they may be disloyal with the service provider on the next purchasing occasion. Thus, we hypothesize that: H8. Waiting time satisfaction will moderate the effect of service satisfaction on loyalty. Method Survey procedure The data collected concern the waiting experiences of radiological outpatients in six hospitals in Belgium. Each of these hospital sites are different in size and are situated in various regions, all of an urban or semi-urban character. The Belgian health care industry, and particularly this type of service, is characterized as being competitive. Patients have the freedom to choose their hospital. Services studied include all types of radiological examination such as X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging, scan, Doppler, mammography and similar services . . . The study was conducted from Monday to Friday over three consecutive weeks. In spring 2003, each adult patient having an appointment in one of the radiological units received a self-administrated satisfaction questionnaire completed by patients before leaving the hospital. The final sample was composed of 946 adults. A total of 64 percent of the respondents were female and their ages covered the whole range from 18 to 92 (mean 54). Measures To measure the perceived waiting time, respondents were invited to classify the delay of their scheduled appointment into one of predefined categories: less than 30 minutes (79 percent of respondents), between 30 minutes and one hour (18 percent), and more than one hour (3 percent). Consistent with Pruyn and Smidts (1998), who find that the maximum acceptable waiting time for the majority of patients does not exceed 30 minutes, we consider two principal categories: more or less than 30 minutes. Waiting time satisfaction, the satisfaction with information provided in case of delay and the satisfaction with the waiting environment were measured on five-point scales (ranging from highly unsatisfactory to highly satisfactory). One item was used for each concept except for the satisfaction with the waiting environment for which three items were used. These three items were: (1) comfort in the waiting room; (2) seating availability in the waiting room; and (3) the appearance and de? cor of the premises. These items reveal to be one-dimensional (a factor analysis indicates that the three items load on the same factor and explain 80 percent of the total variance) with a good reliability (Cronbach alpha ? 0:87). A composite scale representing satisfaction with the waiting environment was formed by averaging these items. Then, the overall satisfaction of the patients’ visit to the radiological unit was measured by asking subjects to give their global evaluation of the service experience (on five-point semantic scale ranging from highly dissatisfied to highly satisfied). Outpatients’ loyalty was assessed by asking respondents if they intended to recommend this service unit to relatives and their intention to choose the same hospital in case of necessity to undergo MSQ 17,2 180 another radiological examination (on five-point semantic scale from certainly not to certainly). These variables represent the behavioral-intention dimension of loyalty (Zeithaml et al. , 1996; Chauduri and Holbrook, 2001). This scale appears to be one-dimensional (a factor analysis reveals that the two items load on the same factor and explain 89. 75 percent of the total variance) with a high reliability (Cronbach alpha ? :88). A composite scaled was formed with these two items. Finally, two questions enabled to distinguish patients in terms of their age and sex. Results Determinants of waiting time satisfaction In order to study the determinants of waiting time satisfaction, we performed a regression analysis. The results are presented in Table I. The dependent variabl e is waiting time satisfaction and the independent variables[1] are the perceived waiting time, the satisfaction with the information provided in case of delay and the satisfaction with the waiting environment.

Lake Isle of Innisfree free essay sample

Introduction: The poem I chose was â€Å"The Lake Isle of Innisfree† by William Butler Yeats, and the song I chose was â€Å"Pocket Full of Sunshine† by Natasha Bedingfield. A harmony with nature and peace is the main focus of these diverse works. William Yeats Background Information -Yeats had a life-long interest in mysticism and philosophy. -An abundance of his poems included the setting of his homeland, Ireland. -As an adult, Yeats often yearned for and desired the quiet life in Sligo. His carefree child-life experience in this serene environment inspired him to write The Lake Isle of Innisfree. Theme Statement One may often desire a simplistic way of life and aspire to reach harmony with nature in order to escape the chaos of modern society. Summary of â€Å"The Lake Isle of Innisfree† -The speaker, which we infer to be Butler, says he is going to â€Å"Innisfree†, whichis a place in West Ireland. We will write a custom essay sample on Lake Isle of Innisfree or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Yeats didnt invent it but his creation made this setting more whimsical and made it seem immortal. -He adventures to this magical place to build a simple, quaint cabin where he will have a bean garden and honeybee hive. -The purpose of this trip is to reach a state of peace. He is drawn to the rural area of Innisfree and wants to leave his urban environment to experience a state of serenity. 1st Stanza 1 I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree, 2 And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made: 3 Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee; 4 And live alone in the bee-loud glade. -The first and second lines are basically saying how the speaker wants to go to this place of wonder â€Å"Innisfree† to live peacefully and alone in a cabin. -An image of a cabin surrounded by a bean garden and a hive for honey bee’s to roam freely is depicted in the third and fourth lines in the first stanza. 2nd Stanza 5 And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow, 6 Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings; 7 There midnights all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow, 8 And evening full of the linnets wings. Line 5 is basically stating why the speaker wants to go to Innisfree, its for peace and peace of mind. Lines 6, 7, and 8 are generally placing the image of nightfall and encompassing this beautiful environment as he says â€Å"midnight’s all a glimmer†. 3rd Stanza 9 I will arise and go now, for always night and day 10 I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore; 11 While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey, 12 I hear it in the deep hearts core. Line 9 is almost a reminder that the speaker is not necessarily at this island. Line 10 is an image of the island Line 11 mentions how the speaker is in an urban area as he mentions grey pavement and the roadway. Line 12 mentions the speaker’s passion and longing to visit this Isle of Innisfree. Sound Devices in The Lake Isle of Innisfree: Structure: 3 stanzas with four lines each Because each stanza is four lines, this poem is an example of a quatrain. Rhyming Scheme- ABABCDCDEFEF Lyric Poem The rhythm and rhyming scheme adds to the poem’s soft, dreamy and hypnotic tone. Alliteration I will arise andgo now, andgo to Innisfree, And a smallcabin build there, ofclay and wattles made; Nine bean rows will Ihave there, ahive for thehoneybee, Andlive alone in the bee-loud glade. And I shall havesome peace there, for peace comes droppingslow I hearlake waterlapping withlow sounds by the shore -As you can see alliteration is present in those following lines Assonance- ‘I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree’ Line 1 has the repeated short i sounds in will and Innisfree† which is an example of assonance. And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made: In line 2, youll hear two more examples of assonance small and wattles repeat one a sound ‘I hear it in the deep hearts core. ’? Note in this last line of the poem the ‘ea and ‘ee’ sounds in this line. These sounds reveal a tone or mood of longing in the poet. Allusion- â€Å"Nine bean-rows† This is an allusion to Henry David Thoreau’s transcendental writings in â€Å"Walden†. In this poem he mentions wishing to have nine bean rows and a hive for the honey bee. Henry Thoreau, American author and poet, had nine bean rows near his cabin at Walden Pond. Imagery â€Å"And live alone in the bee-loud glade† ; â€Å"midnight’s all a glimmer† ; â€Å"water lapping with low sounds by the shore† , These lines give the reader the sights of a swarm of bees, of nighttime and gives us sense of calmness and tranquility. Metaphor And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow -The slow, simple pace of life resembles peacefulness, and serenity (line 5) Symbol Innisfree Yeats uses â€Å"Innisfree† as a symbol. The Lake Isle of Innisfree is used to show that there is a place for everyone to find serenity. It allows people to escape the constant pressure of city life. It allows one to be worry and stress free and take the time to appreciate nature. Innisfree is ultimately the symbol of inner peace and freedom. ________________________________________________________________________ Theme Statement Repeated One may often desire a simplistic way of life and aspire to reach harmony with nature in order to escape the chaos of modern society. Pocket Full of Sunshine – Natasha Bedingfield Pocket Full of Sunshine By Natasha Bedingfield I got a pocket, got a pocketful of sunshine. I am in a happy state I got a love, and I know that its all mine. I have reached peace Oh, oh whoa Do what you want, but youre never gonna break me. You will not bring me down Sticks and stones are never gonna shake me. I will not let you affect my disposition No, oh whoa Take me away (take me away) I want to go somewhere without chaos and cruelness A secret place (a secret place)Somewhere, by my self where no one will be able to intrude A sweet escape (a sweet escape)A serene place where I can peacefully think Take me away (take me away)I want to leave now Take me away (take me away)Let me find a place free of all the turmoil and madness To better days (to better days) To a place where I can be myself and live as I once was Take me away (take me away)Take me to this place of peace A hiding place (a hiding place)A place where I can escape all this madness I got a pocket, got a pocketful of sunshine. REPEAT (chorus) I got a love, and I know that its all mine. Oh, oh whoa Do what you want, but youre never gonna break me. REPEAT Sticks and stones are never gonna shake me. No, oh whoa I got a pocket, got a pocketful of sunshine. REPEAT I got a love, and I know that its all mine. Oh, oh whoa Wish that you could, but you aintgonna own me. I will not allow you to take over Do anything you can to control me. You may try to overpower my emotions but will fail, as I am stronger now Oh, oh no Take me away (take me away) REPEAT A secret place (a secret place) A sweet escape (a sweet escape) Take me away (take me away) Take me away (take me away) REPEAT To better days (to better days) Take me away (take me away) A hiding place (a hiding place) Theres a place that I go,There is somewhere I go to escape That nobody knows. Where no one may bother me Summary: The song Pocket Full of Sunshine is basically mentioning how no one can make her unhappy, or in a weary state due to one’s hurtful and crude remarks. She is basically stating she is always content with herself and no one can change that. When she may be in an unhappy state due to other people’s opinions or her surroundings, she goes to a place where she can contemplate, reflect and may become happy or in a state of peace again without crude remarks bothering her. Main 2 stanzas Take me away (take me away) I want to go somewhere without chaos and cruelness A secret place (a secret place)Somewhere, by my self where no one will be able to intrude A sweet escape (a sweet escape)A serene place where I can peacefully think Take me away (take me away)I want to leave now Take me away (take me away)Let me find a place free of all the turmoil and madness To better days (to better days) To a place where I can be myself and live as I once was Take me away (take me away)Take me to this place of peace A hiding place (a hiding place)A place where I can escape all this madness These two stanzas mainly embody main focus of the poem as both William Butler and Natasha Bedingfield share the craving to reconnect with nature. Nature here is presented as a place of tranquility and peace; and a place where one can be themself. ____________________________ Sound Devices: Repetition Rhyme Refrain Obvious repetition of the chorus takes place as well as rhyme. Assonance: â€Å"Take me away, a secret place. A sweet escape, take me away. Take me away, to better days. Take me away, a hiding place. † As show assonance take place throughout this song. ________________________________________________________________________ Conclusion: In conclusion, many similarities may be pinpointed in two fairly different works. The theme of the love of nature as an escape can be identified throughout both the song and poem.

Marketing In A Time of Globalization †Marketing Essay

Marketing In A Time of Globalization – Marketing Essay Free Online Research Papers Marketing In A Time of Globalization Marketing Essay In my limited 31 years on this planet, I have seen much development and evolution of the English language. From slang words like â€Å"metro-sexual† to words like gigabyte that describe new technologies and services never seen before in history, there have been millions of new words introduced into society. Globalization is another such word that has evolved due to an interesting phenomenon sparked by factors such as the internet, ease of traveling and television. In this paper I will discuss globalization and a hopefully answer a few questions sparked by this new â€Å"buzz word† of the 21st century. The WikiPedia describes globalization as the worldwide phenomenon of technological, economic, and cultural change, as brought about by expanding facilities for intercommunication and interdependency between traditionally isolate cultures. Dramatically increased international trade and finance have established a medium wherein deeper cultural exchanges have taken place - greatly increasing the impact of global issues at the local scale. (Wikipedia) In short, globalization is the bringing together or the swapping of cultural ingredients among peoples of different cultures and countries. I found this picture on the internet and it drove the globalization point home. (Wikipedia.com) If this picture does not support the clashing of cultures I do not know what does. There are many trade theories that support the idea of globalization. The Heckscher-Ohlin theorem states that a country which is capital-abundant will export the capital-intensive good. Likewise, the country which is labor-abundant will export the labor-intensive good. Each country exports that good which it produces relatively better than the other country. In this model a countrys advantage in production arises solely from its relative factor abundance. (internationalecon) The Heckscher-Ohlin theory basically says that countries will trade with those countries that have things that they need. This is the basis for international trade; quid pro quo. This â€Å"this for that† attitude among nations has really supported the fusion of culture. Prebisch-Singer Thesis also supports the idea of globalization. This thesis states that the price of products traded with other countries fall dramatically over time; therefore an increase in trading is needed to keep profits up. (bss.sfsu.edu) This means more business partnerships and more countries are reliant upon each other. This dependency and relationship between countries have really played a key role in the rapid globalization of the modern day world. Money might be the root of all evil, but it also can smooth out relations among super powers if both parties are getting what they want out of the deal. Two major drivers of globalization have been the break down of trade barriers and technology. Technology in particular has changed many aspect of modern life. Services such as the internet which allows for global communication at a seconds notice and the unadulterated exchange of information among individuals in opposite sides of the world have played a key role in the merging of cultures. The degradation of trade barriers have allowed for more business and exchanges to happen between countries. There has even been a lot of talk lately about lifting the trade embargo against Cuba. Money talks, and when it does, people listen. The people of Cuba would greatly benefit not only financially from trade lines with the US, but they would also benefit in social and economical ways as well. Globalization has affected almost every aspect of American life. It is pretty normal for me to have a piece of cold pizza for breakfast (Italian cuisine), go to lunch down the street at PF Chang’s, (Chinese cuisine) and then finish up a nice dinner that night at Tres Amigos, (Mexican cuisine). Another more important affect of globalization is in the work environment. In this politically correct world we live in, it is imperative that each person in a work environment feels comfortable in their environment. With many cultures coming together around the water cooler each day, it is imperative that employees and employers are knowledgeable about other cultures and peoples. Marketing is another area of life effected by globalization. In previous marketing classes, we learned that it is imperative to find your target market before marketing your product. What if that target market is of another culture? What if you want to target your product to multiple genres and cultures? Every culture is different and reacts to marketing differently. Wal-Mart, saturated in the US, has been looking over seas for more potential shoppers. Lately they have been targeting China; Wal-Mart has spent millions of dollars in research figuring out how to market to the Chinese people. Regional trade blocs are intergovernmental associations that manage and promote trade activities for specific regions of the world. (ucatlas). Some well known trading blocs include the EU (European Union; see Map 1), NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement; see Map 2), MERCOSUR (Mercado Comun del Cono Sur, also known as Southern Common Markets (SCCM); see Map 3), and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations; see Map 4). The following maps show trade data for 2001 (UNCTAD 2002). Map 1 Map 2 Map 3 Map 4 http://ucatlas.ucsc.edu/trade/subtheme_trade_blocs.php NAFTA is the trade bloc that affects North America the most. January 1, 2004 marks the tenth anniversary of the North American Free Trade Agreement’s implementation. NAFTA promoters including many of the world’s largest corporations promised it would create hundreds of thousands of new high-wage U.S. jobs, raise living standards in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, improve environmental conditions and transform Mexico from a poor developing country into a booming new market for U.S. exports. (citizen.org) The EU has become the most powerful trading bloc in the world with a GDP now exceeding that of the United States. In fact, the EU is currently exporting 813 billion dollars worth of goods and services. The creation of the euro as a single currency for 12 EU members has led to ever closer economic links. The EU has found it difficult to shed its protectionist past based on the idea of self-sufficiency in agriculture which limits agricultural exports from the other countries. (revisioncaptain.com) The importance of the EU is the fact that Europe is a huge economic partner with the United States. If they fail, then our strong economic ties would put a huge strain on our economy as well. Globalization has been a bi-product of the rapid expansion of peoples of different nations and cultures clashing. Sparked by monetary funds and kept up by the thought of a more prosperous and comfortable lifestyle, countries will continue to merge their cultures as our peoples merge their living, business and vacation geographic locations. References Http://www.Wikipedia.com Http://www.Sticky-Marketing.com Http://www.Learnthat.com http://ucatlas.ucsc.edu/trade/subtheme_trade_blocs.php http://ucatlas.ucsc.edu/trade/subtheme_trade_blocs.php citizen.org/trade/nafta revisionguru.co.uk/economics/blocsex.htm Research Papers on Marketing In A Time of Globalization - Marketing EssayDefinition of Export QuotasPETSTEL analysis of IndiaAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceCapital PunishmentGenetic Engineering

See document Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

See document - Essay Example Company senior managers heading public companies prepared deceptive statements to blow up the prices of the company stock, apparently undermining the trust of the public in the integrity of financial market and regulators. The corporate scandals are usually perpetrated by several people who understand the organization’s every single detail, with most collaborating parties being people with high standing in the society. Most executives in failed corporations admit receiving enormous bonuses and backdated stock options to warrant that they will make wealth from investing in their company; not considering whether their performance made the share price increase or go down. Other unethical behaviors have resulted in the downfall of corporations, poor performance and negative publicity. As a result, the aspect of ethics in organizations has increasingly gained prominence due to distrust on organizational leaders (Loe, Ferrell & Mansfield, 2000) This study seeks to examine some of th e corporate failures, reasons behind their fall, as well as a close examination as to where blame may be assigned. Of specific importance, Enron downfall and Satyam scandals will be useful in examining ethics behind corporations’ failure. The paper will also look at the theories that expound on the subject of ethical governance in organizations. Ethics is a significant pillar in the modern corporate arena and corporate governance. Organizations have learnt useful lessons from the above cases on the danger that unethical decisions can bring in any organizations. As David Thoreau once said, â€Å"it is truthfully sufficiently said that a firm has no conscience; but a company of conscientious men is a corporation with ethics†. This statement carries a lot of meaning with it as to the significance of upholding ethics in organizations. The subject of what constitutes ethical behavior in organizations remains a debatable subject due to the wide ranging opinions of what const itutes ethics, and what ethics is not. Nevertheless, many organizations have embraced ethical codes stating their leading philosophical guidelines and organizational values. Ethical codes that are successful highlight the obligations of organizations to shareholders, the behavior anticipated of employees, and ethical parameters of the organization. Ethical codes are intended to impact on employee behavior, and are also referred to as corporate ethics statements. Business ethics field deals with questions as to whether a particular business practices are acceptable. Controversial business ethics issues arise on a daily basis in every organization, and this calls for organizational members to exercise their conscience as Thoreau said. For illustration, an accountant may face an ethical dilemma in his/her course of duty that may compromise her decision. For instance, if an accountant discovers inaccuracies in a client’s auditing report, he/she may opt to report the inaccuracy. O n the other hand, reporting such an inadequacy may result in the auditing company fired by the client for disclosing the inadequacies. This confusion leaves the accountant at crossroads as to what practice is acceptable. Business ethics require that organizational members to conform to sound moral principles. Special consideration has to be put into perspective when applying the concept of ethics in business. One is that businesses are formed with the aim of making a profit, and therefore, businesses

Case study about business law Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

About business law - Case Study Example The other tactic was using the illegalities of other investors – to silence them over the infringement of their intellectual property rights. That was the case with Sony, where BYD challenged the validity of their patents in Japan. Another tactic was the careful copying of patents to ensure that they did not match all design patents, like the case was with the F3. Another tactic was the illegal acquisition of the trade secrets of other companies, for example, that was the case with the documents retrieved from the systems of Foxconn (Li et al. a 3-5). The learning-by-hiring strategy is unlawful, as it offers a highway through which the patent rights of employers are transferred to rival employers or businesses. Due to its unlawful nature, an aggressive assertion and protection of patent rights can reduce the departure of these skilled workers. The tactic of adopting the intellectual property of others and hiding behind their illegality in the area of rights protection is illeg al, but cannot be proved, especially in the cases where the property’s patent ownership cannot be proved. That was the case with Sony, where their patent ownership in Japan was challenged. ... of trade secrets through the unlawful efforts of insider aides at victim companies is unlawful – as the practice amounts to trade secret theft (espionage) therefore BYD could be prosecuted for this action, if it is that they committed the crime (Li et al. a 5). The management practices at Foxconn, which have contributed to the strategy of BYD include that the company should have engaged in continual monitoring of the market, to ensure that the infringement of its Intellectual property was reported before it caused damage. The company’s greatest loss of trade secrets was caused by its lack of a system to restrict access to trade secrets and information. For example, the company could ensure that non-complete business agreements and non-disclosure were addressed fully and effectively, as it was the cause for the shift of its experts to BYD. Proper information security measures could also have been developed to secure vital information – to ensure that their trade s ecrets and vital information were safe (Stender et al. 30). Part 2 The options available to Foxconn include IP management strategies and litigation options. The strengths and weaknesses of the strategy of the administrative system used by Foxconn include the following: it requires less load of evidence, it is cost effective and the process is faster. The weaknesses include that low penalties are offered – which does not stop repeat offenders. Further, the raids conducted may not be authentic – which may allow the items seized to reach the market. The use of the judicial system presents the strengths that they would get damages for infringement and intense pressure would be exerted on the infringers. The weaknesses of the process include that it may cost the company high litigation costs, it may

Kingdom Of Heaven | Summary | Analysis

Kingdom Of Heaven | Summary | Analysis Kingdom of Heaven by Ridley Scott is a modern film about the Crusades, set in 1184 centered on Balian of Ibelin. The film is presented as a conscious piece of historical fiction and the majority of the film follows closely with historical records. (Wikipedia) William Monahan, the films writer, has included several fictional characters and dramatized the relationships between characters to increase the films artistic and commercial appeal. Ridley Scott makes an effort to promote Christian/Muslim peace in the Holy Land and downplays traditional Religious viewpoints. The films cinematography is visually stunning and the battle scenes are intense. (Radcliffe) Overall, the film is enjoyable to watch, although it is quite long. The Directors Cut Edition has a running time of 189 Minutes. Kingdom of Heaven is a fictional historical action film with the main theme of promoting peaceful coexistence between religions. The film begins in a remote French village as Balian, a blacksmith, is devastated over his wifes suicide. Balian meets a group of Crusaders led by Baron Godfrey of Ibelin, who reveals himself to be Balians father. This part of the storyline deviates from historical records because Baron Godfrey is a fictional character and Balian is from Ibelin. (Wikipedia Balian de Ibelin) After killing the town priest, Balian joins Baron Godfrey on his Crusade to Jerusalem with hope of redemption and forgiveness for his sins. During Balians quest to Jerusalem he is Knighted and after his father Godfreys death, is recognized as Baron of Ibelin in Jerusalem. Scott depicts Jerusalem as a city where Christians and Saracens live in peace under King Baldwin IV. King Baldwin IV the Leper ruled Jerusalem from 1174-1185. Jerusalems political arena is complex, as the Knights Templar, led by Guy de Lusignan and Raynald of Chà ¢tillon, Tiberius, the Marshal of Jerusalem, and Princess Sybilla all are seeking to increase their own power. The Knights Templar led by the films Arch-Villian, Guy de Lusignan are the primary Villians and portrayed by Scott as mercenaries, seeking profit and attacking Muslims because God wills it. (Kingdom of Heaven 2005) Princess Sybilla and Balian begin a relationship when she visits Ibelin. This part of the story is fictional and my feeling is that Scott intended to make the film more appealing to women by adding a romantic affair between the main characters. The Knights Templar attack a Muslim trade caravan that is under protection of Saladin, the leader of the Muslim army. Saladin is a Muslim historical figure that led the Muslim Army in opposition to the Crusaders and ruled over Egypt, Syria, and Damascus. (Maalouf 1984) This attack sets into motion a course of events that ends with Saladin gaining control of Jerusalem in the films final scenes. Saladin attacks Kerak, Raynalds castle as retribution for his crimes. During the battle, Balian and his men are captured while trying to defend the villagers. Because Balian had displayed mercy by releasing one of Saladins servants earlier in the film, Saladin releases Balian and a temporary truce is negotiated between the Muslims and Christians. This is an example of the films main theme and prominent sub-theme of doing good deeds for others. Shortly after the battle, King Baldwin passes away, leaving Sybillas son, Baldwin V King of Jerusalem. Historical records indicate that Saladin did attac k Kerak in 1183 and 1184, but was repelled by the Crusaders. (Wikipedia Siege of Kerak) In addition, King Baldwin IV did not pass away immediately after the Siege of Kerak, he passed away in 1185. Scott indicates a bias toward the Muslims in this part of the film; he depicts the Knights Templar and Raynald as warmongers and the films villains. Raynald and Guy are against peace between the Christians and Muslims. King Baldwin Vs reign over Jerusalem is temporary because Princess Sybilla euthanizes her son out of compassion, as she finds that he is also a Leper. This part of the film is fictional, King Baldwin V was not a Leper, but he did pass away in 1186, just one year after becoming King. (Wikipedia King Baldwin V) Sybilla crowns Guy de Lusignan as King and he immediately instructs Raynald to wage war against Saladin. Raynald and Guy lead the Knights Templar to battle against Balians advice. Saladin massacres the Raynalds Army at the Battle of Hattin and personally beheads Raynald. This was Saladins plan all along; he knew Guy and the Knights Templar would attack first. After Balian survives an assassination attempt ordered by Guy, he joins Tiberius in Jerusalem which is now virtually defenseless against Saladins Army. By showing the aftermath of the Battle of Hattin, that God has punished an evil man and his followers belligerent actions with death, Scott reinforces the films primary them e of encouraging peaceful coexistence between religions and sub-theme, that doing good deeds for others is being religious. Tiberius and his men abandon Balian and the people of Jerusalem, leaving no Knights to defend the city. This part of the film shows how Balians values have changed during the film. Before Balian left on his Crusade, he had lost faith in religion and himself, and now he is a confident and selfless leader, who stays in Jerusalem only to defend the cities people. (Kingdom of Heaven 2005) Scott shows a bias toward the Christian point of view in the films final scenes and audience should feel a strong sympathy to the Christians as they are defending innocent people. In preparation for the battle with Saladin, Balian Knights many of the villagers to improve morale. Balian is outnumbered by Saladins men and his only hope is to protect the city long enough to force Saladin to make a deal to protect the people of Jerusalem. Balian and his men successfully withstand a barrage of bombs from Saladins Trebuchets and attacks from his Army for three days. During the battle, Balian is a successful Commander, although he is injured while fighting with a Muslim. On the third day, Saladin is able to breach Jerusalems walls overpower Balians men. Balian is able to negotiate the peaceful surrender of Jerusalem with Saladin only because he threatens to destroy the city and all religious artifacts, both Muslim and Christian if the battle continues. This scene is based in fact as records indicate that Balian de Ibelin did negotiate the surrender of Jerusalem to Saladin, but that Saladin was offered a ransom for all Christians to leave Jerusalem unharmed. (Wikipedia Balian de Ibelin) The film ends with Balian and Sybilla in the remote French Village where the story began. King Richard of England and his men ride along searching for the defender of Jerusalem and Balian replies, I am a blacksmith. (Kingdom of Heaven 2005 ) Ridley Scott conveys his primary theme with his final message that Nearly a thousand years later, peace in the Kingdom of Heaven remains elusive. Throughout the film we see evidence that Scott is promoting peaceful coexistence between religions. King Baldwin IV states, A man must choose to do good deeds instead of evil and Your Soul is in control of your own. Balian consistently supports this theme by resisting violence, by refusing to fight over his horse, releasing Guy de Langston after the final duel and many other times during the film. Ridley Scott has disguised Kingdom of Heaven as a visually pleasing historical action film; Scott wants his audience to realize the futility of war and the value of peaceful coexistence between all religions. http://blogcritics.org/video/article/movie-review-kingdom-of-heaven1/ Maalouf, Amin. 1984. Crusades Through Arab Eyes. Online E-Reserve Edition. London: Al Saqi Books. Kingdom of Heaven: Directors Cut Edition. 2005. Directed by Ridley Scott. 189 Min. Century City, CA: 20th Century Fox. Blu-Ray.

Western Art Exhibition Critique

The show â€Å"Renoir in the 20th Century† is a group art exhibit of the French artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir and his friends, held at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), exhibiting from February 14 to May 9, 2010. The paintings on exhibit are the works Renoir finished in the last 30 years of his life, included in the 6,000 art pieces he finished throughout his entire career. The gallery literature lists his displayed work as â€Å"decorative, classical, and a highly personal interpretation of the Grand Tradition. The artists that Renoir influenced throughout his life and are also on display at the LACMA with their paintings, drawings and sculptures are Picasso, Matisse, Maillol and Bonnard. The art works in the public display by Renoir consist of women, children and family members with only a few self-portraits. No landscape or still life is evident in this show, as in his earlier Impressionism shows. But what makes it important is that the art work is good, as compared to years of negative art reviews by critics, who have turned their backs on this notable artist in his later years. Painting until he died in 1919, Renoir was an unpretentious and very humble artist, even though he always wanted to be the best at what he did. He had become well-established during the Impressionism years because of his talent and this attitude. However, his successful art period was quickly followed by years of wondering if he could ever paint again. I’m starting to know how to paint. It has taken me over fifty years’ work to get this far and it’s not finished yet,† declared the artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) in 1913, at a time when a major exhibition of his work, including the large nudes painted at the turn of the twentieth century, was in the show at the Bernheim Jeune gallery in Paris. When Renoir followed other artists, such as Monet, into Impressionism it w as considered by the art world as a huge movement away from Realism – the historical work of past artists that almost appeared to imitate life. The year 1869 had brought a new style of art called Impressionism into the world, developed by artists Renoir and Monet. At the beginning of the art movement, the works of both artists were so much alike it was as if their still life and landscape art blended together into one joyful union with colors to match the feelings. Using unmixed primary colors, the work had a look about it unlike any other. The dark earthy tones and heavy dedicated brush strokes of the previous masters were gone. By 1880, Renoir had begun to move away from Impressionism even though he was highly sought for his unique colors and rainbow palette style, especially in his nudes and body forms. However, deep inside he felt he had â€Å"wrung Impressionism dry. † These feelings are because his work of the human form had always been more traditional than other artists of the Impressionism group, and he was feeling as if it was pulling him away from what he felt was right for him. Renoir's return from an Italy trip in 1982 left him doubting Impressionism even more, with his work changing so much that critics, patrons and other artists felt he was going downhill with his art ability. At this time, late Renoir artwork was beginning to be considered bad Renoir work. Showing with the Impressionists, the painter [Renoir] is reported to have lamented to a dealer, â€Å"I've come to the conclusion that I can neither paint nor draw. † Looking at the show one is inclined to mumble, â€Å"Indeed. Renoir eventually left Impressionism, returning to the full-bodied female nude and children he enjoyed doing, instead of landscape and outdoors. After studying in Italy, he discovered the importance of drawing prior to painting. According to the art exhibit literature, the work of Gabriel and Jean that Renoir painted in 1895, a painting of his infant son and nanny, demonstrated this fact. Prior to its painting, he worked on preparatory drawings of the painting before he started. This was difficult He had become so mesmerized with the child's infant gown he spent hours on the painting, while quickly painting over the face of Gabrielle whom he really did not want to paint, refusing her several times prior to this. â€Å"He [Jean] said that in his father's paintings, everyone looked as if they were brothers and sisters. We are all Renoir's children in the paintings,† Jean Renoir said. † Severely in pain with rheumatoid arthritis, his hands became completely gnarled and he became wheelchair-bound. In as much pain as he was, he still painted for years. Paintings like Jean as a Huntsman shows a full-length portrait of his son, Jean, referred to as a modern â€Å"Blue Boy. † The work appears as a work of the old masters, with the gallery listings describing it as similar to the work of Spanish artist Diego Velazquez, which exemplified Renoir's work with â€Å"great art of the past† – with Jean posing for several months while his father painted under extreme pain throughout the process. According to the LACMA literature for the show, the painting remained with Renoir until his death, and then was given to LACMA by Renoir's son, Jean, in 1979. Subject matter of his final years were nudes, girls at a piano, children with their nannies – turning his back on his Impressionism style he had been so involved with earlier in his life. The light brush strokes disappeared, with Renoir returning to the style of the old masters such as Rubens. With hands appearing as old tree stumps, he had mastered the use of color and brush strokes toward his final years. To paint, he wrapped fabric around his gnarled fingers while clamping a paintbrush between the thumb and first of his right hand, appearing gaunt and emaciated. But he still painted for hours because if he quit, the pain may actually destroy him. The art display â€Å"Renoir in the 20th Century† Los Angeles County Museum of Art demonstrates how far Renoir had come artistically toward the end of his life. Instead of â€Å"Bad Renoir art† in his later years, it was the best he had ever done with a glowing to his skin tone other artists could not compete with. Becoming more and more of an art master who was dedicated to his work helped him overcome his physical pain. Through this, he worked to re-develop and refine the traditional forms and methods into an exquisite art form he had always preferred. Nowhere is this success more apparent than in the art exhibit of Renoir and his friends.

Commentary for “The May Poles and Their Queen” Essay

When reading the Greek myth Orpheus, I was immediately struck by the heroism of the central character. Orpheus is the classic male hero, overcoming all obstacles to bring back his beloved Eurydice, only to be eventually thwarted by something even more powerful than his heroism: his own love. Because of the essentially classical, romanticized nature of Orpheus, I felt it would be an ideal source text for a modern-day interpretation. In order to gain a better understanding of the text, I initially adopted, in Stuart Hall’s terms, the ‘preferred’ reading; that is, how the audience are ‘meant’ to read a text, who they are expected to empathise with and what conclusions they are meant to draw. Applying Greimas’s structuralist scheme, I found it easy to identify Orpheus as the ‘subject’ or, according to Propp’s ‘spheres of influence’, the ‘hero’. Orpheus can also be identified as Propp’s ‘donor’ figure through his extraordinary skill at playing the lyre, which provides him with apparently limitless power when it comes to charming the gods of the underworld. The ‘sender’ would be Eurydice, for dying and subsequently ‘sending’ Orpheus on his quest to the underworld. The ‘villain’ could be Aristaeus for chasing Eurydice, or any of the creatures of the underworld for opposing Orpheus. Alternatively, and perhaps more interestingly, the ‘villain’ could be Orpheus’s own love, which is so strong it forces him to look back, and lose his wife forever. Eurydice can also be identified as Greimas’s ‘object’ or Propp’s ‘princess’: the ‘object’ of Orpheus’s quest, whose only ‘skill’ is to be desired by the ‘subject’, Orpheus. I also applied Tzvetan Tordorov’s theory that there is a similar narrative framework to all stories. For Todorov, a story usually begins with a state of peace and harmony, an ‘equilibrium’: Orpheus has his love, his music and is happy. This then evolves into ‘disruption’: Eurydice dies and Orpheus must journey to the underworld to bring her back. Then Orpheus attempts to repair the ‘disequilibrium’, by charming the creatures of the underworld. Next, according to Todorov, a ‘new equilibrium’ is often found. However, in Orpheus, this is not the case. Eurydice is left in the underworld and Orpheus’s head is left singing alone in the upper world, still crying out for his lost love, unable to find his ‘new equilibrium’ by being denied even unity in death. Applying these structuralist theories, I found, only served to emphasize the essentially patriarchal nature of the myth. The literary theorist Terry Eagleton talks of how â€Å"[a text’s] blindnesses, what it does not say and how it does not say it†¦ [is] maybe as important as what it articulates† (Eagleton, 1996) i.e. the ‘untold’ story, the ‘gaps’ in the original tale, can allow for additional perspectives other than the conventional, ‘preferred’ reading. In reference to Orpheus, I felt that the character of Eurydice, and her account of events, was a very important ‘blindness’, which had been largely ignored by Greek mythology. Because of this, I decided to adopt a more ‘oppositional reading’, as Hall would characterise it, and subsequently, a more ‘feminist’ approach, making Eurydice the classic hero. This opened up a variety of possibilities to me concerning the other roles. Could Orpheus (or Christian in my re-working) now become the ‘villain’, his ‘quest’, from her perspective, becoming more akin to a ‘hunting down’? The ‘object’ could now become Edie’s desire to be recognised and appreciated. Could Christian’s ‘underworld’ not be Edie’s ‘new equilibrium’? I also thought it would be interesting to strip Christian of his ‘donor’ role by making his musical talent all a faà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ade. I felt that it was a perfectly reasonable reading of the original text to believe that the reason Orpheus ‘required’ Eurydice was simply to act as his ‘muse’ and inspire him to create beautiful music. By interpreting Orpheus’ need for Eurydice on a more literal level, I could make Edie the one who was the true musician. This makes Christian’s need for her all the more desperate as, without Edie, Christian feels he can no longer be a successful musician, as is the case in the original text. I also felt that the tale of Orpheus had almost become too romanticized and was subsequently open to a parody. Consequently, I tried to create a carnivalesque interpretation, that is, exaggerate some of the key aspects of the characters until they almost become ‘grotesque’, in order to evoke humour. I decided to make my target audience aged 14-18, as I felt that they would feel comfortable with the modern-day, often egotistical, music culture, and also be open to, and appreciate, the attempt to invert the original tale’s gender stereotyping. As I wanted to create a visually dynamic as well as linguistically comical piece, I chose the genre of a television drama: a genre likely to appeal to my target audience. This also allows the piece to suddenly break out of realism in order to give the drama a distinctly surreal edge, for example, the impromptu arrival of the snake. I felt the addition of this element of ‘magical realism’ to the piece would add to the farcical nature and heighten the comedy. The opening few scenes are key to establishing the tone of the piece, and also the characters’ relationships. The opening scene of a â€Å"rock band† performing on stage is designed to grab the viewer’s attention, whilst also appealing to my target audience. Christian uses the informal register of the archetypal ‘rock star’: â€Å"We’ve been Christian and the May Poles! Goodnight!† This type of lexis has connotations of arrogance and vanity, which is designed to contrast with the stupidity of Orpheus’s kilt and also the band name ‘Christian and the May Poles’, a pun on the original ‘Maenads’. By having Edie backstage, providing the real musical talent, she initially appears a relatively oppressed, marginalised character: always forced to stay in the background: â€Å"Yeah. Well, I ain’t ‘Christian’, am I?† There is a sense that Edie has accepted the belief imposed upon her by Christian: that she is simply an accessory to his success. I gave her a distinct Northern accent in order to appear more ‘down to earth’ than her ‘rock star’ counterpart, and also to appeal more to the audience as the ‘under-dog’. Throughout, Christian is portrayed as the archetypal, vain, male ‘rock star’. I attempted to emphasize this vanity linguistically, through his self-obsessed use of language – â€Å"You’ve already got flowers. My flowers. Flowers handpicked by moi† – and also through his obsession with his eyebrows. I felt that by giving this conventionally ‘effeminate’ concern to both Christian and Al, I could further parody the ‘strong’ male stereotype associated with Greek myths. One of the key changes that I made to the original text was that in my drama, Edie runs away from Christian as opposed to â€Å"Aristaeus†. She is also willingly ‘bitten’ by the snake. By having Edie willingly leave Christian for the ‘underworld’, this is in keeping with my overall ‘feminist’ angle of approach, as it now becomes Edie’s ‘quest’ to find her role as a performer. Instead of making the characters of my ‘underworld’ subtly linked to the characters in the original myth, I decided on overstating their most obvious physical features in order to provide an out and out carnivalesque adaptation. Because of this, I decided that a theatre would be an ideal setting, and, by drawing inspiration from the character of the serpent, introduced the idea of a pantomime production of the Bible in the hope that this would generate further humour. Deliberately playing with the notion of stereotypes, that is foregrounding the whole issue, was also a comic device. Just as Christian is the ‘stereotypical rock star’, so all the characters of the underworld are stereotypical actors, as I felt this would add a new angle to these conventionally frightening characters. The use of ‘stock’ figures and the language associated with them, – such as the ‘wise’ Yorkshiremen – would also speed up audience recognition and mean the characters would not need to be individually introduced. In earlier drafts, I had attempted to give the beginning a more serious edge, in order to contrast with the absurdity of the underworld. I had incorporated monologues, in the style of Jim Cartwright’s Road, in an attempt to provide greater character insight. However, these monologues seemed to ‘jar’ with the other scenes and make the beginning appear ‘flat’, without really adding to the piece. Although they established the characters, they did so in a rather bland, pedestrian way, so these scenes were reworked. However, I still felt I had to emphasize the difference between the characters of the ‘upper world’ and those of the ‘underworld’ and one of the main ways I did this was through my choice of language. Because my chosen setting was a theatre, I wanted to give the language of the ‘underworld’ a distinct theatrical edge. One of the ways I tried to achieve this was through my use of â€Å"luvvies'† discourse, for example, the Serpent’s line â€Å"How marvellous!†, an indication of the affected register of language associated with the theatre. This inflated speech is in immediate contrast to both Christian and Edie’s more ‘down to earth’, Northern dialect and I tried to emphasize this contrast by having the two types of speech juxtaposed in order that they might ‘break against’ each other and subsequently, generate humour: â€Å"Greetings Child/Who the hell are you?† Another theatrical device which I made use of was the ‘one liner’ – a device associated with pantomime – in the hope that this would make the piece feel like a â€Å"pantomime production of Orpheus† as it were. For example the serpent’s ‘one-liner’ â€Å"I’m playing the serpent incidentally† attempts to add humour by overstatement, as I interpreted this character on a literal level and made my serpent, an actor â€Å"wearing a giant green snake costume†. This line also refers to both the pantomime production of the Bible and the original Greek myth. It will inform viewers already familiar with the myth that the ‘descent into the underworld’ is about to begin, and provide a ‘sneak preview’ into future events. The ‘wise men’, Rod, Bob and Todd were added to act as a Cerebus figure. I gave them each a pint of beer in order that they might ‘foam at the mouth’ as Cerebus was famed for doing, and made them â€Å"drunk and†¦ quite menacing† in order to, like Cerebus, be perceived as ‘vicious’. Through their physical similarity and the syntactical correspondency of their language, they are designed to appear like a ‘club-act’, finishing off each other’s sentences in an almost ‘pantomime patter’ style, in order to ‘gang up’ on Christian: â€Å"We are wise men./The wise men of Yorkshire†. I also made them speak simultaneously, in order to appear as though they are ‘one being with three heads’: â€Å"We know!† I transformed the original mythological character of Charon into another actor, Little Ron. I combined many of the traditional aspects of Charon such as the hood and cape, with sunglasses in order to contrast with Charon’s ‘blazing eyes’ motif. I also made him exceptionally short in order to dismiss any preconceptions which the audience may have of Charon being ‘spooky’ and ‘all powerful’. As opposed to Orpheus paying Charon ‘one silver coin’ to descend in the underworld, Christian instead gives Little Ron a cigarette. I felt this fitted in with my modern-day outlook and also would add a comical element by effectively having â€Å"God† smoking. One of the most dramatic changes I made to the original tale was that in my version, Edie chooses to stay in the ‘underworld’, and it is she, as opposed to Des/Hades, who sends Christian back to the ‘upper world’ with the dismissive remark â€Å"I’m an actress, Chris†. By changing the original ending, Edie has found her real existence in the underworld, and to her, it is the upper world which is full of misery. Christian, however becomes a classic picture of male melancholy: â€Å"homeless and unable to even strum his guitar.† He is an allusion to the current crisis in masculinity, a phenomenon often voiced in the media, his ‘traditional role’ as the performer taken over by his female counterpart: abandoned for â€Å"Keith Harris†. Because of this, Christian feels his masculinity has been threatened. This is then made ironic by his final effeminate cry of â€Å"My tweezers!† In the final scene, I had Edie â€Å"smiling sadistically† as she plucks her eyebrows, indicative of her mocking of Christian, a reversal of the original patriarchal tale. For whereas in the original text, it is the ‘hero’ Orpheus who ‘goes on his quest and fails’, in my transformation it is the ‘heroine’ Edie, who not only sets off on her ‘quest’ but also succeeds and ultimately, it is she who ‘comes out on top’. BIBLIOGRAPHY Philip, Neil. The Illustrated Book of Myths, (DK, 2000) Hughes, Ted. Ted Hughes’ Collected Plays for Children, (Faber, 2001) Widdicombe, Rupert. The Sunday Times, (4 September 1994, CINEMA, pages 10-11) Ross, Alison and Greatrex, Jen. A2 English Language and Literature, (Heinemann, 2001) Eagleton, Terry. Literary Theory, An Introduction (Blackwell, 1996) Machery, Pierre. A Theory of Literary Production (Routlege and Kegan Paul. 1978) Graves, Robert. The Greek Myths:1 (Penguin, 1955) Vogler, Christopher. The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers (Michael Wiese Productions, 1998) Cartwright, Jim. Road (Samuel French, 1989)