Moral Crusade or Personal Vendetta Essay Example

Moral Crusade or Personal Vendetta Essay Abigail is not the only opportunist in Salem. The Putnams, whose daughter was one of the young women dancing in the woods, also seize the opportunity. Thomas Putnam is a greedy landowner in Salem. He systematically accuses his neighbours of witchcraft so that he might purchase their land after they hang. Like Abigail, there is a hidden agenda guiding Thomas Putnam, namely his greed for land. He too will stop at nothing to satisfy his greed. Miller has incorporated this into the play as The Royal Charter was revoked in 1692 and land ownership deeds became invalid creating a crisis of property rights. Individuals no longer felt secure with their landholdings thus feuds broke out regarding property rights and deeds of ownership. Ann Putnam also used the witchcraft trials for her own means. Mrs Putnam believes that a witch is responsible for the deaths of her seven infant children. She is resentful of Rebecca Nurse who has a large family and who has a reputation for good Christian deeds. Reverend Parris is the minister of the Christian puritan society in Salem. At the start of the play he discovers the girls dancing in the woods. One of the girls is his daughter, Betty, who falls ill after the event, and Abigail is his niece. We will write a custom essay sample on Moral Crusade or Personal Vendetta specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Moral Crusade or Personal Vendetta specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Moral Crusade or Personal Vendetta specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Therefore, Reverend Parris is terrified of the consequences of their actions. This is more so as he feels that he is unpopular with many of the congregation I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now, just when some good respect is rising for me in the parish, you compromise my very character. Parris has used his sermons to demand money and possessions and thus divided the village. He believes people are plotting against him and a faction plans to force him to leave Salem so he attempts to strengthen his authority through the witch trials thereby using them for his own means. After Parris receives a death threat, and hears of a rebellion against the court in Andover, where there have been similar witch trials, Parris fears that the hanging of two such upstanding citizens as Rebecca Nurse and John Proctor will incite a rebellion in Salem, similar to the one in Andover. The reason he gives is that postponement now speaks of floundering on my part. He is not so much concerned about the lives of those condemned as about his own reputations. To determine if witchcraft is to blame for Bettys illness, Parris summons Hale, a Reverend from the Boston area. Unlike most of the other characters, Reverend Hale has nothing to gain from the trials and executions. He is a well meaning scholar with a reputation for knowledge and expertise symbolised by the many books he carries on entering the play. He also feels he can put the people of Salem at ease regarding their concerns about witchcraft. He does this by exhorting Tituba, the black slave, and the other girls to confess and denounce others to save themselves. When he succeeds he cries, glory to God, it is broken, they are free! Reverend Hale is on a moral crusade, striving for justice unlike many of the other characters. He is impressed by Elizabeth Proctors strong Christian faith. He is critical of John Proctors poor record of attendance at church and is dismayed at finding that John Proctor cannot remember the Ten Commandments. Ironically, the only of the Ten Commandments that he cannot name is, Thou shalt not commit adultery. Although Hale remains determined not to declare witchcraft unless he can prove it, he is taken in by the expectations of the people of Salem and begins by taking their evidence at face value. Later on, however, he attempts to correct his shortcomings when he realizes that Abigail is a fraud. Hale then devotes himself to attempting to persuade the other prisoners to confess in order to avoid executions. However, he does not realise that lies would only reinforce the slanders the court has already committed. Hales faith is severely tested in the play but although he questions his own faith he does not abandon religion altogether. The other character in the play who does not use the trials for his gain is the Deputy Governor, Danforth, who represents the authority of church and state. Danforth refuses to admit possibilities outside the strict confines of the church and he applies the law with a rigid harshness. Although he may be viewed as a villainous character who does not want to open his mind to the reality of the court being duped by a group of teenage girls after signing so many death warrants, he may also be viewed as someone on a moral crusade which results in his ruthless character. Although not on a moral crusade themselves, characters such as Rebecca Nurse and Elizabeth Proctor are morally upright within the community. They are honest and will not confess to witchcraft as they would be confessing to something they had not done. Rebecca Nurse serves as a symbol of goodness and reason. Her character is impeccable, and her reputation flawless. At the outset she dismisses the behaviour of the young girls as part of their adolescence. She makes it quite clear that any searching for the devil based on the behaviour of the girls is, in itself, evil. Elizabeth and Rebecca Nurse show courage and calmness amidst the climate of fear and hysteria. The character analysis of the main people and their motives in the witch hunt trials shows Millers ability to create complex characters. Although Miller wrote a historical play set in the Puritan period, by inference, the McCarthy period, it is essentially a play about people and the human condition. Miller is adept at removing the outer covering of his characters to expose the inner workings as in a crucible. However, the historical setting of the play has affected style of language and the way the play has been written. He comments, No one can really know what their lives were like, neither can anyone know exactly how they spoke. Miller does not claim to have written a historically accurate play but he uses expressions which may have been used by the Puritan community. These include the use of Goody instead of Mrs; Id admire to know, instead of Id like very much to know, and open with me, instead of tell me the truth. Miller also makes some grammatical changes from modern usage; the verb to be is often changed; it were for it was and it be for it is. The tense of a verb is sometimes changed She gives instead of She gave. Furthermore, the West Indian slave, Tituba, is given her own dialect Devil, him be a pleasure, man in Barbados, him be singin and dancin Miller also drops the g at the end of words such as goin, beatin to denote a dialect. To add to the Puritanical setting Miller makes references to events in the Bible. Reverend Hale trying to persuade Elizabeth to confess says I have gone this three month like our Lord into the wilderness. Earlier, speaking of Abigail, Elizabeth Proctor says, where she walks the crowd will part like the sea for Israel. Thus, without claiming to be totally accurate, Arthur Miller has created the impression of a rural, deeply religious society. As well as the language, rooms are sparsely furnished and severe Puritan costumes are used. This creates an austere tone. Moreover, even more important than the language and setting, Miller makes some of the characters morally vocal. People had principles and lived and died by them. Faith, conduct and society pervaded their lives. This is demonstrated particularly by the character of Goody Nurse and also John Procter who works hard to build a defence for those accused and finally decides to die rather than lose his good name by admitting to witchcraft. Miller uses the historical setting as an opportunity to express the dramatic use of hysteria. The general hysteria that spreads through the community of Salem after the first mention of witchcraft is used to induce an atmosphere of anxiety and guilt which brings out superstitious fears. The witchcraft is both caused and fuelled by fear and it is this fear that is the motivating force that leads neighbour to accuse neighbour and generates hysteria. The most powerful and dramatic of these is the girls hysteria when they pretend to be possessed. The climax to this hysteria appears at the end of Act III in the court when reverend Hale feels anguished at the way the witch hunt is being carried out. Despite John Proctors admission of adultery and his wifes lying to deny it, Reverend Hale is prepared to defend them and starts accusing Abigail of falsehood and pretence. This is a dangerous moment for Abigail and the other girls. She starts looking up at the ceiling and screams at a yellow bird which she says is Mary, trying to scratch her face. The other girls gape at the ceiling, seeing the bird, they start repeating every word that Mary says. This has a terrifying hypnotic effect on Mary, and also the audience. The action at the end of this scene is a demonstration of the power of hysteria to paralyse thought. This is one of the dramatic climaxes of the play. The important technique of delaying is used to great effect. To build up a climax, hints, clues and suggestions must be given earlier in the play, many of them left purposely unanswered so that the audience is kept wondering. An example of the way Miller develops climax within an act is Elizabeths fears at the beginning of Act Two; Marys reporting, later in the act, that Elizabeths name had been mentioned in court; Hales questioning of John and Elizabeth until she denies the existence of witches; Giless report that his wife and Rebecca Nurse had been arrested; and the climax to the act, Elizabeth being arrested herself. Millers use of lighting adds another dimension to the symbolism of the novel. The play begins in Act One with the morning sunlight, which streams through the leaded panes of the narrow window. There is a candle which still burns. The atmosphere is dim and dark to signify ignorance and evil. In Act Two, the door opening on the fields outside, must give a feeling of light and space and the stage direction to Act Three, which is the General Court indicates there is sunlight pouring through two high windows. This shows some goodness and truth trying to vanquish ignorance and evil. Act four opens in darkness but for the moonlight seeping through the bars of the cell; but by the end of the act, when Elizabeth grips the bars of the window, the new sun is pouring in upon her face. The word new in this last stage direction is a clue to the effect Miller wants the lighting to create. The narrow minded community cannot shut out the sun and moon. The new sunlight and gentle moonlight are symbols of an unconfined world outside and are emblems of hope in a world gone mad. The light which is a symbol of truth and hope floods in at the end because Proctor chooses to go to his death rather than sign a false confession. In The Crucible, Arthur Miller has created a work set in a historical period of Puritan Culture. He has used themes and events concerning witchcraft, superstition, the devil and fear, which were largely true in colonist America in the 1690s. He has also drawn parallels with the Puritan culture and that of the McCarthy trial during the 1950s. Miller has done this though narrative techniques which contain long comments on the background and on the characters which are given details by use of language, tone and setting. Therefore, this detailed characterisation makes The Crucible much more than a play in two parallel historical settings. It transcends historical backgrounds. Miller has produced a play which explores repression, resolution, fear and the response to it by the human conscience. It is a play in which private grudges and feuding erupts into controversies that overwhelm an entire community. The problems of a single man, according to Miller, are not enough to contain the truth of the human situation. Proctors conscience is the focus of the play. The initial situation of the play is well devised to prevent the social forces that later provide the major conflict for Proctor as he becomes aware of the witch hunts and reveals his temper, his strengths and weaknesses. At times it seems that evil may win over blind justice. Proctor is a proud and strong man whose one mistake causes his own downfall. The relentless forces of evil in this melodrama are inevitable. The balance between order and freedom, which once existed, as displayed by the character of Proctor is being destroyed. Social and personal conflicts are dramatised in his destruction. This is done by fraud and a self-imposed hypnotism on the part of a society in panic. The climax suggests a symbolic end of an era, the waste of human lives and the confused state of a mankind whose personal disaster shatters the balance of the world. Order to this shattered state is restored by the hero making a personal sacrifice. Some of the characters in The Crucible respond by behaving as though they are on a moral crusade and morally upright characters like Rebecca Nurse and John Proctor end up facing dilemmas of conscience and in conflict with authority. They would rather die than lose their good name by signing to witchcraft. However, a majority and insecurity are driven by fear to manipulate the situation for their own purposes and misinterpret events for their own end, until finally the situation and the events are out of control. An atmosphere of hysterical suspicion is created which drives people. Miller has created this. Miller has created this atmosphere in The Crucible by the use of technical features such as characterisation, language, stage directions and lighting.

Border Security essays

Border Security essays The terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in September 11, 2001 or commonly known as 9/11 made America join the ranks of countries that suffered from the effects of terrorism for decades such as the France, United Kingdom, Germany and Italy. Americas innocence was since this terrorist incident is of greater enormity compared to other terrorist events that occurred and in terms of the socio-political impact, the message was brought home that no one is safe and it was time to close ranks and protect the homeland from future incidents such as 9/11. The U.S. governments initial response to 9/11was the rapid implementation of the Patriot Act of 2001 or completely known as Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001. The legislation contains sections that defines and effects controls and measures in the fight against terrorism such as (Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, 2001): Enhanced domestic security against terrorism; Abatement of international money laundering and anti-terrorist financing; Removal of obstacles to investigating terrorism; Provision for victims of terrorism, public safety officers and their families; Increased information sharing for critical infrastructure protection; Strengthening the criminal laws against terrorism; and Aside from the enactment of the Patriot Act, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was stood up through House Resolution 5005 Homeland Security Act of 2002. The primary mandate of the Department of Homeland Security or DHS is to prevent terrorist attacks within and reduce the vulnerability to terrorism of the United States (Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, 2002). By being the focal point of the U.S. response to terrorism, the DHS absorbed some major government agencies ...

White Paper 33 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

White Paper 33 - Essay Example The age group of between 18 and 24 years reported the highest incidence of application of social media with high percentages of users seeking services through the media. The age group for example reported that about 60 percent of females social media users apply it in soliciting services while about 57 percent of the group’s male social media users sought services through it. Application of social media was also identified among the elderly population, above 65 years, in which about 33 percent of the group relies on social media for obtaining services. The rate at which individuals use social media is also high with about half of the studied population using the social media at least once in a month and about 10 percent of the people using the media on a daily basis (Destination, p. 1). The report further identifies consumers’ power in selecting their mode of communication, whether such mode is applicable to their target recipients or not. This therefore identifies a disadvantage to those organizations that do not use social media. It further identifies an advantage to organization whose strategies have merged marketing with customer care. Further, a satisfactory response in the social media promotes furthers application by about 70 percent as opposed to a non-satisfactory experience that is only likely to promote social media application by 17 percent. About 70 percent of the media users are also likely to re-use the media following satisfactory services. Proper use of social media is therefore necessary for organizations. Such applications can be achieved through channels such as facebook pages, which are the most popular, followed by organizations’ blogs, and twitter (Destination, p. 1). Destination. â€Å"Consumers demand service through social media.† DestinationCRM. October 26, 2012. Web. November 9, 2012.

Preventing Re-Hospitalization - Research Paper

Preventing Re-Hospitalization - - Research Paper Example The only solution is improving chronic disease management which yields savings on a predictable basis. Though there has been much advancement in the curing of chronic diseases and in this case heart failure (HF), it still remains the core cause of hospitalizations in many nations and is linked with high mortality and morbidity, high medical care costs, and particularly in impaired quality of life. The different new approaches to heart failure care that have been investigated in clinical trials have raised the complexity of the treatment (Stromberg, 2002). The latest meta analyses indicates that, in addition to optimal pharmacological treatment or curing, the care of heart failure patients by a multidisciplinary team lowers rehospitalization and mortality rates and improves the quality of life of patients.(Van der Wal & Van Veldhuisen, 2005). A North-American survey of an intervention that involved telephoned contact and home visits by an HF specialized nurse after hospital discharge revealed that the intervention effectively reduced mortality and morbidity rates (The Lewin Group, 2008). During all visits, care givers of the patients were invited to listen to the instructions. After being discharged, patients were randomized to receive, systematic telephone contact for a three month investigational time or to receive the common care that comprised of the follow-up of the patient at the return appointment at the outpatient clinic without any telephone contact (GESICA, 2005). A single telephone contact per week was done in the first month, accompanied by one every 15 days in the second month and a single every 15 days in third month summing up to eight calls per patient. Telephone calls had to begin seven days after the release from the hospital, aiming and reinforcing and emphasizing instructions that were received during hospitalization and monitoring symptoms and signs of de-compensation and investigating probable visits to rehospitilizations and the emergency unit. Studied Outcomes The scores for the levels of heart failure knowledge and awareness of self-care were considered as primary results. The frequency of visits to the emergency care unit, deaths at the end of the three month duration and re-hospitalizations were considered as secondary results (Whellan, & Hasselblad, 2005). Study Limitations Some of the study limitations were: some of the patients could not be located at the start of the intervention and after the three month duration due to blocked telephone numbers or wrong telephone numbers. Another limitation of the study was the patient's economic and social statuses and cultural norms. On the other hand, the three-month duration of the study was perhaps too short for the patients to change the health behaviors and habits to the extent that could lower the rate of visits to the emergency care unit, death and re-hospitalizations (Folz, Friedenzohn , DeFrancesco et al., 2003). Performance Measures related to Discharge Educatio n to Patients with Heart Failure Performance measures are used to determine whether a firm or an organization is meeting its patient focused goals and

Common Assessment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Common Assessment - Research Paper Example As such, the process of job analysis requires as much information as possible that puts the job description that is the frequent outcome of the analysis together. Other outcomes may include the recruiting plans, advertisements and postings of positions, and the performance development plans within the performance management system The activities involved in job analysis include the following: one of the most fundamental activities here is the review of the current job responsibilities of the current employees of the Johnson Enterprises. This should be done with a view to making these responsibilities relevant to the current times while at the same time making the employees more efficient, effective and as productive as possible. The result of this is a competitive enterprise. Job analysis also involves doing the internet research and also viewing the sample job description both online and offline and highlighting those jobs that happen to be similar. Job analysis also involves the an alysis of duties related to the work of the employees in an organization, in this case, Johnson Enterprises. ... uccess of an enterprise since it ensures that the organization emulates positive attributes of another thereby leading to its upward movement and realization of its broad objectives. Another very fundamental aspect of the job analysis includes the articulation of the most significant results or contributions required from the position. Job analysis has to specify the major job functions or duties, common personal interactions, work tasks, skills or competencies, critical situations faced by incumbents, the work related knowledge, physical abilities, career paths, work environment factors and work experience requirements. Also, very significant is the decision making authority, training requirements, certification requirements, related job families, competency models, and determination of the hiring criteria and the definition of new positions (Jackson, Schuler, & Werner, 2011). The analysis should move forward to communicate the said job responsibilities and identify the training con tent needs while reconstructing jobs and businesses and determining appropriate measures for performance appraisals. Legal Implications of Job analysis There are certain legal implications related to the process of job analysis. Certain legal, uniform guidelines exist with respect to job analysis. A job analysis ought to describe every important work behaviors, the relative significance of these behaviors and difficulty levels. A validity study on job analysis should be based on review information about the job. Any of these studies ought to be based on a legal procedure that is acceptable by law. All the important work behaviors should be supported by law (Kleynhans, 2006). In a situation whereby the work behavior is not observable as should always be the case the analysis should identify

Market Competitiveness In The Malaysian Poultry Supply Chain Economics Essay

Market Competitiveness In The Malaysian Poultry Supply Chain Economics Essay The structure of the Malaysian poultry industry is different from the one that existed in the nineties, due largely to vertical coordination and integration. Independent and self-operated activities that once dominated the production system have been replaced by contracts and outright ownership and operation of the production by integrators. By this many individual poultry processing companies own almost all aspects of production-breeding farms, multiplication farms, hatcheries, feed mills, some broiler growing farms, and processing plants. The structure therefore, involve an aspect of integrated production-marketing systems which involves a single firm owning and operating every aspect of production from importing parent stock to marketing packaged chicken-meats in company owned outlets. For instance the ex-farm level has been dominated by the integrators because there are only four (4) companies controlling 100% share of the importation of the breeder birds. The four integrated com panies are Ayamas breeder Farm Sdn Bhd, CAB breeding Farm Sdn Bhd, Charoen Pokphand Farm sdn Bhd and Leong Hup Poultry Farm Sdn Bhd. There are ninety two (92) Parent stock (multiplication) farms owned by twenty five (25) separate companies. According to DVS (2012) report ten (10) of these multiplication companies are owned and operated by integrators. There are fifty three (53) hatcheries in Peninsular Malaysia, thirty one or more than 58% of the hatcheries owned and operated by integrators. The total day-old chicks (DOC) production in 2011 by the industry was estimated at 653,006,812 million chicks, and the integrators contributed 70.75% of the total (DVS, 2011). The Department of Statistics (DOS) Malaysia report on the census of agricultural establishments shows there are only 292 poultry farming establishments registered in Malaysia as against more than 3,500 reported by DVS suggesting that integrators are likely to owned and operate multiple farms and that a number of independen t operated farms are not formally registered. Report from DVS, (2011) have shown that Malaysian broiler-chicken industry control 62.56% of the total chicken meat supply in the Peninsular Malaysia and non-integrators control 21.4% share of the supply. Problem statement Although the integrating production system allows the firm to achieve economies of scale, decrease transactions costs, as well as the ability to closely monitor product quality at every stage of production by controlling all inputs and processes at every level. However, on the other hand the traditional structure-conduct-performance paradigm hypothesized that the level of concentration in a particular market will influence the degree of competition among firms in that market. Markets that are highly concentrated (few large firms dominating the market) are less competitive than markets where concentration is low. As such, according to the hypothesis, firms in less competitive environment charge higher prices and reap monopolistic profits. A higher price above marginal cost implies inefficient allocation of resources and the resulting implication is production inefficiency. A concentrated industry structure could therefore weaken the efficiency and effectiveness of market performance. In view of this, the study is aimed to evaluate the indicators of competition in the supply chain of the Malaysian poultry industry. Objective of the Study In broad sense the objective of the study is to evaluate the indicators of competitiveness of the Malaysian poultry industry supply chain; specifically To assess the structure, conduct and market performance of the Malaysian poultry supply chain To determine the strategic behaviours of the firms and relationship among supply chain participants of the industry. To describe the farm-retail-wholesale price spread along the supply chain to observe symmetry or otherwise in the price transmission process within the industry as an indicator of price setter and taker Theoretical Framework and Methodology The concept of S-C-P which emanated from industrial organization studies primarily to analyze the competitive conditions in industries by examining how the industry structure relates to market conduct and its performance was explored in this study. The S-C-P framework postulates that as market structure deviates from the ideal perfect competition, the extent of competitiveness of the market will decrease and consequently a decline in market efficiency (Scarborough and Kydd, 1992). The S-C-P Model Concentration Ratio classification Market structure CR4 CR8 Highly concentrated 75-100 Moderately concentrated 50-75 slightly concentrated 25-50 Atomistic 0-25

Media Case Study in Friends Tv Show

Case Study Introduction The society of nowadays is filled with advertisements, messages, films, blogs, technology, etc. The meanings that they carry have to be transmitted to the audience through different media. (Branston and Stafford, 2006) It appears important for the receiver to analyse and understand the meanings carried by each type of medium. In order to do so, the different â€Å"vehicles† used by media have to be identified. Different vehicle theories include: semiotics, genres, narratives, representation, audiences, etc. Ibidem) And while they all have to be gathered and related to form a medium, these theories have on their own signs to be interpreted by the viewer. Media has to construct meanings about the world in order to represent it appropriately or logically enough for the audience to understand, and make sense out of what they are seeing. (O’Sullivan etal. , 1994) Representations of the world have to be understood by the audience. It allows an easier a nd faster understanding of what media is trying to portray and by doing so saves time needed to achieve other goals o since the media has limits of time and space. (Wilson, 1993) For instance, T. V. hows, in order to save time and capture viewers in the story faster, resort to stereotypes â€Å"There may be a shared recognition of the world as represented through familiar or dominant images and ideas† (O’Sullivan etal. , 1994) A good example of a type of media that uses representations as a way to help audience identify with the world presented on T. V. is the very popular show named: Friends. It debuted in 1994 through NBC and moved on to become one of the shows with the highest rate in television. It won multiple awards during its time on air until its end in May 2004. In 2002 the show won an Emmy for outstanding comedy series. (TBS. om, 2009) It had a big cultural impact, for instance, phrases from the sitcom became common in American slang, and songs from the show became very famous around the globe. It is a sitcom that presents the life of six friends (3 males and 3 females) middle aged, middle class who live in New York. They live close to each other and spend a lot of time together discussing very different themes. They all have different personalities and different backgrounds but compliment each other comically. This case study will analyse through the theory of representations, the stereotypes presented by the female characters: Rachel, Phoebe and Monica. pic] The Representations When referring to representations in the media, it is important to notice that stereotypes are present very often. Especially in a commercial T. V. show such as Friends, creators have to turn into cultural stereotypes in order for the audience to easily and quickly identify each role; who plays whom in a story and, in certain situations, justify their actions. â€Å"Within the media, limits of time and space plus the desire of achieving rapid audience recognit ion have obliged the stereotypical representations to be constructed and portrayed†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Wilson, 1993) The role of Rachel Green represents the rich bimbo girl. She comes from a wealthy background, her father, is a successful doctor able to provide her and her sisters with a fancy childhood. She has never worked, is not self sufficient, and as mention in chapter 12 of season 6 â€Å"The one with the joke† (Blinkx. com, 2000) she is always trying to please others. She is in many ways an exaggeration of a spoiled American girl. Rachel is dumb, lost, and she does not know what she wants. According to Wilson (1993) stereotypes have to be exaggerated or maximised, since there is a necessity for audience recognition. If there is no recognition then it becomes a commercial failure. For this reason the character of Rachel is exaggerated. She cries over anything, she is afraid of commitment, irresponsible, and does not want to take care of anyone as much as she wants to be taken care of. But there is a necessity for her to form part of the group of friends. Her irresponsibility can be very funny, guys always want to date her because she is pretty. In a sitcom of its genre (comedy) the familiar is necessary and comfortable (Branston and Stafford, 2006) for this reason, someone has to play the pretty, spoiled one. The sets of characters and values portrayed by Rachel involve in it a diversity that the audience can relate her to. Whether it means that they identify with her and her actions (for example, girls with good economic status), or see in her someone they know, or maybe even look up to her. On the other hand, the role of Monica Geller represents the controlling responsible one. Her character is the opposite from Rachel, obsessive-compulsive, and very competitive. She is probably the more mature female of the show. She comes from a suburban middle class family, known for having overweight during high school, she is Rachel’s best friend, but admire and envied her during youth. She likes to be in charge of everything, plans every detail and enjoys serving other. Her representation in the show is maximised, her obsession for order and cleanness is exaggerated, but this traits help the viewer to identify her and categorise her as the â€Å"mother hen† of the group. (Warnerbros. com, 2009) Although she was pretty the audience tends to forget this fact and relate her more with the need of a responsible one in the group. As mention above, there is comfort in familiarity, in this case the role of Monica becomes funny when the audience relates her actions with reality, for instance, mothers cleaning the mess left by little children. She is referenced to in the chapter mention above as â€Å"high maintenance† American slang to refer the fact that she needs a lot of attention and everything has to be done the way she likes it. She goes ahead and proves it by then forcing Chandler (her boyfriend) to learn a speech and mention that she is not â€Å"high maintenance. What this scene is portraying is an irony that proves how embroidered stereotypes can be a useful tool in sitcoms since they are funny. By evoking irony, the media uses stereotypes and disguise them as jokes allowing the label to become somewhat acceptable and familiar. (Branston and Stafford, 2006) Finally, the role of Phoebe Buffay who represents the hippie one. An eccentric character, who enjoys from playing music but is not really g ood, she does not care what others think about her. Phoebe’s character is a very sensitive one who goes beyond to help others, she is not interested in conventional things such as marriage, babies, or money. But rather she is concern with environmental, spiritual issues. With a troubled past, she became homeless at age 14 (Warnerbros. com, 2009). She is very dumb but knows how to play and have fun with others. The circumstances of this character are ironic and funny. Once again, creators of the show play with exaggeration of personalities and portray the obliged hippie New Yorker. Phoebe’s character is a clear example of how stereotypes are not always wrong (Branston and Stafford, 2006) , and they do portray reality but in a magnified way. New York is a city known for its extravagant movements regarding animals, and vegetarianism among others. So Phoebe played that side of New York which is radical. Conclusion The three characters above represent not only labels for people of their own circumstances but also they represent 3 very common stereotypes in which women can be categorised in the media; the sex object, the mother, and the friend. The three characters are also very different from each other going from the little princess, to the tough one, to the weird one. But in many ways these stereotypes are not always negative, they are not rigid or unchanging, and they help the audience to identify and differentiate the 3 characters. According to O’Sullivan etal. 1994) the media production is based on the need to please the audience. For this reason, if certain values or believes predominate in media output it will be due to the fact that society is sharing such same values and believes. In the case of â€Å"Friends† such conceptions of people from specific backgrounds in America are constantly presented in soci eties’ believes and therefore portrayed with this specific characters in the show. Ideologies work through symbolic codes, (O’Sullivan etsl, 1994) and because the media cannot speak directly to the audience it uses semiotics. These signs are represented with people through stereotypes. It is important to understand and analysed the latter so that there is a better understanding of society and culture. People uses stereotypes everyday to achieve a mental understanding of the society and the people they meet in their everyday lives. But even when stereotypes portray the real world in many aspects, it is important to notice that they are also often exaggerated and closed and they limit a viewer’s point of view of a determined group or person. They can be funny and helpful but the media should understand that portraying a group of people using stereotypes can cause negative cultural impact. Stereotypes should not become prejudices or send an erroneous message to the audience. When recurring to stereotypes, the media has to be very sensitive and take care of every detail as to portray people openly with no set rules and as accurate as possible. This was well achieved by â€Å"Friends† T. V. show since characters evolve, acquire new characteristics their personalities changed and they all achieved their goals. References Branston, G. and Stafford, R. ( 2006) The Media Student’s Book. 4th ed. Routledge. U. K. Pp. 141-156 Blinkx. com (no date) Friends. The one with the joke. Retrieved online on 3rd October 2009 from: http://www. blinkx. com/video/friends-the-one-with-the-joke/CljtsymVdOFbvw5xENhNNQ O’Sullivan, T. etal. (1994) Studying the media. An Introduction. St. Martin’s Press Inc. New York, U. S. A. Pp 113, 115, 117, 122, and 125. Tbs. com (2009) Friends, About the show. Retrieved online on 3rd October 2009 from : http://www. tbs. com/stories/story/0,,268,00. html Wilson, S. (1993) Mass Media, Mass Culture. 3rd ed. Mc Graw Hill. United States. Pp. 225-236 Warnerbros. com (2009) Friends. Retrieved online on 3rd October 2009 from: http://www. warnervideo. com/friends15/

Pan-Europa Foods

ASSIGNMENT I: Multi Projects Inc. EVALUATING THE CASE STUDY AND PROPOSING A SOLUTION Student Names: Clement Nsala, Thapelo Monyere, Samuel Phiri, and G. Chabane DUE DATE: 16th March 2011 Executive Summary This report evaluated the current problems being faced by Multi Projects, Inc. which is a well established consulting firm employing a strong workforce of 400 people and is enjoying good business from previous clients as well as targeting projects from growing companies. The report identified problems that are affecting the smooth running of the firm.It identified the main problems affecting the firm as over utilization of resources, poor communication and failure to call project kick off meeting. Other problems identified were, over reliance on one resource person, misrepresentation of facts by personnel as well as Problem of running a matrix organization structure. The report recommended the firm to continue using the matrix organizational structure and explore the possibility of creating a position for a programme manager, improve on its communication skills acro ss all functions.There is need for a management development programme for all their project managers. It further suggested the firm to develop more of their systems engineers support and expose them in challenging projects so that they gain the experience and exposure. There was another recommendation to manage people’s working hours and overtime carefully so that they are within legal limits. Introduction There are various organisational structures that firms can use to mange their business.These include functional, pure project and matrix type organizational structure. Matrix-Type Organisation Structure is a mixture of functional and pure project organisation structure and is used by companies that work on several projects at the same time. It is a structure that provides projects and customer focus as well as retaining functional experts and individuals can be assigned to various projects at the same time depending on the situation at hand.Both the project manager and the functional manager have responsibilities on the project team where the functional manager identifies who to be assigned to the project and how tasks will be implemented and where the project manager is the link between the customer, the project and the company. Multi Projects Inc. is a consulting firm with a complement of 400 employees which has a multiple projects running at the same time for various clients most of which are from previous projects due to its good reputation in customer satisfaction.It also needs to expand its customer base by targeting growing companies for future business and has adopted the matrix type organisation structure. Evaluation of the Case Study Although Multi Projects Inc. embarks on several projects at the same time and has a good reputation of satisfying its customers, it is faced with a number of challenges and upon evaluating the Multi Projects Inc. the following challenges were identified as discussed below. It has been observed that Multi Project s Inc. as been awarded a project by the Growin Corporation which it has been long proposed and no feedback has been heard for some time and it was good news to Multi Projects Inc. since it was also their wish to do business with Growin Cooperation. Upon receiving the news from Growin Cooperation, the project manager (Jeff Armstrong) who was drawing the project proposal on behalf of Multi Projects Inc. got too excited as he has been looking forward to embark on a challenging project as well as the Growin Cooperation Project.However, the Project Manager did not call a project kick-off meeting which its aim is to involve all stakeholders and map a better way forward to better handle the project within all agreed budgets and time frame. Project kick off meeting is the best opportunity for a project manager to energize his or her team. Although a project kick off meeting appears to be a simple meeting with stakeholders of the project, a successful project kick off meeting requires proper planning. Available: http://www. tutorialspoint. om/managementy_concept/project_kick_off_meeting. htm, 2011 The other challenge facing the firm is poor communication skills displayed by Jeff. It has been discovered that there are no proper communication channel and plans in the firm. This is evident because in the case study, Jeff displayed un professional conduct by knocking on everyone’s door and inspiring Tyler to his project despite the fact that he is engaged in another project which is of utmost importance to the firm. His approach was unbecoming and it is lack of respect for others in a work place.In a work place and for a company to achieve its objective, it should have a proper communication skills and plan in place so as to build trust and confidence for both employees and clients. Jeff has been seen interrupting Jennifer without considering what Jennifer was doing to tell her he wanted to have Tyler in the Growin’s project. This was not good communication a nd also lack of respect for others. Jeff also implied that Tyler wanted to work on the Growin Project whereas in the actual fact it was not the case. This was misrepresentation of facts which was a result of poor communication skills.Jeff Armstrong failed to display interpersonal relationship with his work mates/peers. The way he approached Jennifer about engaging Tyler on the Growin project was like giving her instruction on what to do in her department whereas Jennifer being Tyler’s functional manger was the one to assign a system engineer to that project. The way he approached Julie on the same issue also is a cause for concern as he interrupted her in her meeting. It has also been observed that Jeff was an ambitious and arrogant individual who would do anything he could to get what he wanted.This is unhealthy for an organisation and can lead to the possibilities of loosing existing and prominent clients. If all other managers go with Jeff, chances are that they may lose b usiness from both Growin and Goodold projects. Goodold awarded Multi Projects Inc. the project because they were promised that Tyler will be working on the project and once he is moved to the Growin Project, Multi Projects Inc. would not have honoured their agreement and Goodold may feel betrayed hence terminate the agreement. Another identified challenge was over reliance on one resource person to implement projects.Over reliance on one resource person is very risky for a company and was a result of lack of delegation and transfer of skills. It is very crucial in an organisation to transfer skills between team members so that the organisation functions fully under any circumstances. The dangers associated with gate keeping (keeping all to oneself) are that if the person that is being relied upon resigns from the company or otherwise, the firm is going to face huge problems in executing projects at hand as well as those, that it intends to acquire as this is going to lead to lead to not satisfying the customer or the project sponsors.It is very imperative for a firm to adopt an in house development aimed at skill transfer so that it positions itself better for any circumstance that may arise. If Tyler had transferred his skills to other team members, conflict regarding the Growin Project would have been avoided and hence assign one of the system engineers. Over reliance on one person is unhealthy for both the institution and an individual because he would be over worked and over stretched and in the final analysis the production would be lowered and customer satisfaction is compromised.Once customer satisfaction is compromised, existing, prominent and aspiring clients may lose trust in the firm and eventually terminate deals with them. Since Project managers in Multi Projects Inc. over rely on Tyler Bonilla and managers wanted him to work on their projects at the same time, it is likely to experience a situation where other projects would not meet deadlines th us resulting in schedule overrun. The effects of this schedule overrun will ultimately result in the executive spending more time in building customer relations.Another identified challenge was the Problem of running a matrix organization structure. A Matrix Organisation Structure is very good for organisations that are conducting multiple projects all at the same time. This type of organisational structure has a dual reporting structure which requires establishing guidelines for communication plans. If there are no guidelines established lack of balance of power between project and functional mangers may create conflicts between them regarding priorities, work assignments, technical approaches to the work and changes of team members between projects.It is stated in the ehow. co. uk that â€Å"drawbacks of matrix structure include unclear reporting channels and orders, according to the International Journal of Project Management. Since the workforce is responsible both to the depar tmental manager and the project manager, there is a danger of confusion and duplication of effort. For example, an individual assigned to a particular project may find it difficult to work efficiently because of conflicting orders given by the department manager†. Available: http://www. ehow. co. uk/list_6706504_basic-types-organizational-structures. tml#ixzz1G6J8UkEl Another challenge identified during the case study evaluation is that Multi Projects Inc. does not have the position for the programme manager who is the overseer of all projects in an organization. Projectmanagementcertification. com states that â€Å"the programme managers role include resolving any outstanding issues among project teams that cannot be resolved within the team as well as assigning project managers and assisting in project team staffing†. Available: http//projectmanagementcertification. org/managernotes/rules_and_responsibilities. html.If Multi Projects Inc, had this position conflicts ca used by Jeff would not have been experienced because the programme manager would have guided Jeff Armstrong on how to go about it rather than moving around and displayed his ignorance before his peers. PROPOSED SOLUTIONS 1. Project Kick – Off Meeting It is imperative for the kick off meeting to be called by the project manager so that he takes all stakeholders to the project on board. Project kick off meetings are aimed at avoiding conflicts that may arise during the project implementation as well agreeing with functional manager’s about resources allocation.Dennis Lock (2007:325) states that, â€Å"The first execution action of the project manager is usually to call an initial meeting, often called the ‘kick – off’ meeting, which gives the project manager the opportunity to outline the main features of the project to managers whose departments will work on the project, and to the most senior design staff and other key people†. This is the me eting Jeff Armstrong was supposed to call for after his appointment as the project manager so as to assemble his project team and get support and commitment to his project from the functional managers.A lot of issues regarding the project are discussed in this meeting and chief among others is the project risk. The newly assembled project team has to assess all the risks that they might face which might affect the progress of the project and then develop ways to minimize or overcome them. â€Å"If the organization is a matrix, the task is more difficult – even getting people to attend the meeting becomes a question more of invitation and persuasion rather than issuing a direct summons† Dennis Lock (2007:325). 2. Lack of Communication SkillsGood communication skills are an essential skill for project managers since they are the responsible for communication with the client, project team and executive management in the company. Meredith and Mantel (2003:137), defines the benefits of good communication as â€Å"In order to meet the demands of the job of project manager – acquiring adequate resources, acquiring and motivating personnel, dealing with obstacles, making project goal trade – offs, handling failure and fear of failure, and maintaining the appropriate patterns of communication – the project manager must be a highly skilled negotiator†.Suppose Jeff had practised some of these fine skills therefore there wouldn’t have been any conflict at all regarding the request for the release of Tyler for the Growin project. Jennifer as the systems manager was supposed to call for an urgent meeting with Jeff, Julie and all her systems engineers to explain the criticality of the Goodold project and solicit for alternative ideas regarding secondment of a systems engineer to the Growin project on a temporary basis until Tyler completes his assignment on Goodold project.Tyler is supposed to be sent for some short courses on delegation skills soon after the Goodold project. Julie was supposed to postpone her trip so as to attend this important meeting because it has an effect on her project. Clements and Gido (2009:310) state that, â€Å"Effective communication establishes credibility and builds trust†. Jeff needs to learn and improve on the soft skills of communication so as to gain credibility and trust among his new project team so that they could all pull together for the deliverance of the Growin project objective. Projectsmart. om states that, ‘communication is so important to project success that it has been referred to as the lifeblood of a project by more than one practitioner. Jack Vinson talks about the importance of communication across project interfaces – interfaces being boundaries between different groups within an extended project team. He views interfaces as constraints that limit project success. On reflection, I realised that many project communication issues I'v e encountered have, in fact, occurred at interfaces. In this post I explore the notion of an interface as an obstacle to project communication’.Available: http/www. projectsmart. co. uk/obstacle-to-project-communicatio. html Projectmanagementskills. com also states that ‘an accomplished manager in any capacity must be able to communicate effectively whether you are getting the latest budget figures from accounting down the hall or contacting the CEO of a large corporation with the updated schedule’. Available: http/www. projectmanagementskill. com/communication. html 3. Over – Reliance On One Resource Person / Lack of Delegation Tyler is expected to take advantage of the matrix organization structure that Multi Projects, Inc.Company is using so as to impart and transfer his knowledge and skills to the junior systems engineers in the company. Clements and Gido (2009:412) states that â€Å"The matrix type organization provides opportunities for people in th e functional components to pursue career development through assignment to various types of projects†. This is the opportunity that Tyler must be utilising in knowledge transfer, coaching and mentoring junior system engineers so that he doesn’t carry most of the workload. Failure to implement that will only cause him â€Å"burn out† due to working on too many projects and spending too many overtime hours.In his case he could delegate responsibility but still retains accountability so that he maintains the excellent reputation he has with the clients for Multi Projects, Inc. Company. â€Å"Great delegations build trust, develop skills in those to whom the tasks have been delegated and free the leader to work on other things†: http://www. teal. org. uk/EasyPrint/epdelegati. htm Tyler should be encouraged to meet regularly with Jennifer instead of once a month so that he keeps her updated on his progress and problems that he is encountering.This can help Jenn ifer realise what intervention methods she can implement so as to help him. She can send him to short courses on delegation among other development courses. 4. Lack of respect / Misrepresentation of Facts Successful project managers need to be very good leaders and managers as well at the same time. Jeff needs for to be a good manager so that he command trust from his project team members as well as work colleagues. Lack of respect and misrepresentation of facts can cause people to loose trust in him. Multi Projects, Inc.Company should be best, advised to run a competency based assessment system to evaluate all their project managers’ skills. It might not only be Jeff who in any case has showed his lack of respect and misrepresentation of facts which must be taken seriously because consultancy firms are more customers – focused. The project manager needs to gain credibility amongst customers as well as the project team that he is leading by being honest. Once a need is identified, amongst all the project managers for training and development, therefore there is need for training to be scheduled as soon as possible.This will ultimately transform Jeff to not only earn his team’s respect but also their trust and commitment, as well to the project. 5. Problem of Running A Matrix Organization Structure A matrix organization structure is a hybrid set up consisting of a functional and pure project type organizational structure. There is team work between the project manager who is responsible for delivering the project and the functional manager who is responsible for availing the resources needed to deliver the project. Multi Projects, Inc. Company is encouraged to continue running their business using the matrix organization structure.This set up is more customers focused and lines of communication are very clear and dual in nature. The project manager is the one who communicates with the customer and top management. When problems are imminent the project team communicates directly with the project manager as well as their functional managers. In this way there is a greater chance that problems will be identified and rectified on time. There is efficient utilization of resources and skills are transferred from project to project because people with common discipline are grouped together and learn from one another.Multi Projects, Inc. Company runs too many projects all at the same time and this matrix organization structure is more ideal for their operations. Clements and Gido, (2009) relates that, â€Å"It’s appropriate for companies that are working on multiple projects at any one time and projects that vary in size and complexity† for using matrix organizational structure. 6. No Position For A Programme Manager The programme manager is the head of the projects management office and project managers report to him as well as the projects support office staff.When projects come up in the organization, he assi gns a project manager to the project and at times one project manager can be assigned several different projects depending on the criticality of the project. If Multi Projects, Inc. Company had a position for a programme manager, the conflict that was caused by Jeff would have been solved amicably because one of the responsibilities of the programme manager is to resolve priority conflicts between projects competing for resources within the same organization. Clements and Gido (2009), re-enforces the importance of the position of

Free Essays on Description Of T. Mann

Heinrich Manns novel paints a portrait of the Second Reich through the eyes of Diedrich Hessling, an unconsequential little man who bullied his way into society using superpatriotism (he even curls his mustache so that it resembles the emperors) and nationalism as a crutch, finally gaining status as a prominent conservative businessman, in the process being metamorphosed into a mini-Kaiser. His struggle was a reflection of the Second Reichs attempt at world domination through nationalism and Social Darwinism. His use of patriotism to the emperor was used when he manipulates someone into stating that the Hohenzollerns were Jews, accusing him of lese-majeste. At that mans trial, Diedrich is accurately portrayed as "an average man, with a commonplace mind,... without courage so long as things are going badly for him and tremendously self-important as soon as they had turned in his favour" Diedrich doesnt hesitate to make alliances when expedient and to boost his star higher, such as his association with his nemesis, Napoleon Fischer, a Social Democrat machinist at his factory. On one occasion, to cover up his own mistake in miscalculating the dimensions of the New Patent Cylinder Machine, he bribed Fischer to sabotage the machine so that he had a case to return it. Later, the two agreed to help each other in their political ambitions. Thus Diedrich used his patriotism and anti-Social Democratic stance as ways to boost himself onward and upward, yet willing to make alliances with his alleged enemies, similar to the way Bismarck used nationalism as a tool to rally the Liberals against his wars against Austria and the south German states against France, all for his own personal power. The importance of Wilhelm IIs attempted surpassing of Bismarck must be reiterated. Diedrichs colleague warns people of the danger of any man emulating Bismarck: "Weak and pacifistic by nature, he becomes noisy and dangerous. Without a doubt the victori... Free Essays on Description Of T. Mann Free Essays on Description Of T. Mann Heinrich Manns novel paints a portrait of the Second Reich through the eyes of Diedrich Hessling, an unconsequential little man who bullied his way into society using superpatriotism (he even curls his mustache so that it resembles the emperors) and nationalism as a crutch, finally gaining status as a prominent conservative businessman, in the process being metamorphosed into a mini-Kaiser. His struggle was a reflection of the Second Reichs attempt at world domination through nationalism and Social Darwinism. His use of patriotism to the emperor was used when he manipulates someone into stating that the Hohenzollerns were Jews, accusing him of lese-majeste. At that mans trial, Diedrich is accurately portrayed as "an average man, with a commonplace mind,... without courage so long as things are going badly for him and tremendously self-important as soon as they had turned in his favour" Diedrich doesnt hesitate to make alliances when expedient and to boost his star higher, such as his association with his nemesis, Napoleon Fischer, a Social Democrat machinist at his factory. On one occasion, to cover up his own mistake in miscalculating the dimensions of the New Patent Cylinder Machine, he bribed Fischer to sabotage the machine so that he had a case to return it. Later, the two agreed to help each other in their political ambitions. Thus Diedrich used his patriotism and anti-Social Democratic stance as ways to boost himself onward and upward, yet willing to make alliances with his alleged enemies, similar to the way Bismarck used nationalism as a tool to rally the Liberals against his wars against Austria and the south German states against France, all for his own personal power. The importance of Wilhelm IIs attempted surpassing of Bismarck must be reiterated. Diedrichs colleague warns people of the danger of any man emulating Bismarck: "Weak and pacifistic by nature, he becomes noisy and dangerous. Without a doubt the victori...

International Experience and Debates Surrounding Pro-poor Touris

International Experience and Debates Surrounding Pro-poor Touris Free Online Research Papers According to Roe and Urguhart (2001) tourism is one of the world’s largest industries, generating an estimated 11% of global gross domestic product (GDP), employing 200 million people and transporting nearly 700 million international travelers per year- a figure that is expected to double by 2020. Roe and Urhuhart made several observations about pro-poor tourism and made the following summary:- developing countries currently have only a minority share of international tourism market (approximately 30%) but this is growing, international tourism arrival in developing countries have grown by an average of 9.5% per year since 1990 , compared to 4.6% worldwide and tourism industry makes important contributions to the economies of developing countries, particularly to foreign exchange earnings, employment and GDP ( Roe and Urguhart, 2001: 01). Hence this essay provides a critical and comprehensive survey of existing writings on pro-poor tourism strategies focusing on international experience from a South African perspective. It mainly focuses on current pro-poor debates and practice in tourism at an international level and the impacts on the South African tourism industry. The essay aims to address the advantages and disadvantages of those experiences. The debates and experiences are assessed in terms of the three basic pro-poor tourism strategies, namely: strategies focused on economic benefits, strategies to enhance other (non-cash) livelihood benefits and strategies focused on policy, process and participation (PPT Strategies, Sheet No.2). The essay achieves all this objectives by firstly trying to explain and define PPT in broader terms. Then the rest of the essay is dedicated on a comprehensive and detailed critical analysis of the application of the three strategies for pro-poor tourism. Pro-poor tourism: Broader definition Pro-poor tourism is defined as tourism that generates net benefits for the poor (Roe and Urguhart, 2001). Roe and Urguhart argue that benefits may be economic, but they may also be social, environmental or cultural. As such pro-poor tourism cannot be a special product or sector of tourism, but an approach to the industry. The most common and distinctive feature of pro-poor tourism is that it puts poor people and poverty at the centre. Then it focuses on tourism as one part of the household, local and natural economies and environment that affect them. According to Ashley et al. (2001) pro-poor tourism overlaps with, but is different from, the sustainable tourism agenda. Sustainable tourism has tended to â€Å"focus on environmental concerns. However the concept is now broadening to include social, economic and cultural aspects but benefits to local people are generally of secondary importance. In contrast, pro-poor tourism aims to expand opportunities, and places net benefits to the poor as a goal in itself, to which environmental concerns should contribute† (Deloitte Touche, 1999:14). PPT focuses more on countries of the South, not on mainstream destinations in the North. Poverty is the core focus, rather than one element of (mainly environmental) sustainability. Roe and Urguhart (2001) maintain that current sustainable tourism debates start with mainstream destinations as priority and targets environmental concerns with social issues towards the periphery. Hence they argue that â€Å"current approach to ‘sustainable tourism’ fails to take into account the links between poverty, environment and development. In a world of growing inequality, there can be no doubt that attacking poverty is a critical component of sustainable development† (2001: 05). It is inevitable that given the definition of PPT, strategies for making tourism pro-poor focus specifically on unlocking opportunities for the poor within tourism, rather than expanding the overall size of the sector (Roe and Urguhart, 2001). It is for this reason that Ashley et al. (2001) argue that a wide range of actions are needed to increase benefits to the poor from tourism. These go well â€Å"beyond simply promoting community tourism, although at the grass-roots level to develop enterprises and local capacity is one key component. Efforts are also needed on marketing, employment opportunities, linkages with the established private sector, policy and regulation, and participation in decision-making† (2001: viii). Ashley et al. argue that the focus and scale of PPT interventions vary enormously, â€Å"from one private enterprise seeking to expand economic opportunities for poor neighbours, to a national programme enhancing participation by the poor at all levels. Strategies can be grouped into three types: expanding economic benefits for the poor; addressing non-economic impacts; and developing pro-poor policies (2001: ix). Strategies focused on economic benefits The main objective of PPT is to ensure that tourism generates benefit for the poor. To this end Roe and Urguhart (2001) identify three key goals. Expanding business opportunities for the poor through small enterprises, particularly in the informal sector; expanding employment opportunities for the poor and enhancing collective benefits through collective community income. However tourism is often seen as an industry where foreign interests dominate, a view which is considered a misrepresentation in many ways by the 1999 Deloitte Touche report on sustainable tourism and poverty elimination study. The report concludes that overall tourism is characterized by small and medium sized business. The diagram below illustrates the structure of how the international tourism industry can contribute to pro-poor strategies; the make up of domestic tourism is very similar to the role of intermediaries between the customer in the originating market and the supplier of various products. Hence services in the destination is of critical importance for pro-poor tourism to flourish. Fig. 1: Structure of the International Tourism Industry (after Deloitte Touche, 1999, 7) One threat to PPT is foreign influence through customer requirements. Many developing countries package their tourism products according to international standards and regulations, which means they have to satisfy the needs and aspirations of the international tourists irrespective of the local needs. This brings us to the debates about economic significance of donor to developing countries. Donors and Tourism It is a fact that in most if not all developing countries â€Å"external funding [for tourism] may be required and justified to cover the substantial transaction costs of establishing partnerships, developing skills and revising policies† (Ashley et al., 2001: ix). The Deloitte Touche report (1999) maintains that donors have influenced the way in which the industry has developed in the last 20 years, with support traditionally focused on macro-economic objectives- particularly maximizing foreign exchange earning through international tourism. However the report argues that what counts as pro-poor strategy must be able to â€Å"tilt the tourism cake† (2001:13). Such strategy could be at the grassroots, national policy or international levels. The problem is that while many donors are involved in tourism activities few see it as a key development sector. The report maintains that only some donors specifically address finance institutions and others with specific mandates that can be linked to tourism. As far as donors are concerned it is clear that there are two contrasting views on the relevance of tourism to poverty elimination. The Deloitte Touche report concludes that a number of donors whose aim is poverty alleviation do not consider that tourism compares with other sectors such as agriculture, primary health and education as a means for poverty alleviation. On the other hand there are â€Å"some donors who argue that tourism will have a major impact on the livelihoods of poor people and that intervention is essential to maximize the benefits and minimize the costs for poor people, or even that tourism has substantial to contribute to broader based growth, which will not be realized without intervention† (Deloitte Touche, 1999: 16). Economic significance of tourism to developing countries According to Ashley et al. (2001) developing countries currently have only minority share of international tourism market but their share is growing. International tourism arrivals in developing countries â€Å"have grown by an average of 9.5 per cent per year since 1990, in aggregate across developing countries, compared to a growth of 4.6 per cent in arrivals world-wide† (Deloitte Touche, 1999:08). Goodwin (2000) argues that tourism is the principal export for one third of developing countries. Tourism brings â€Å"relatively powerful consumers to Southern countries, potentially an important market for local entrepreneurs and an engine for local sustainable economic development (Goodwin, 2000:01). According to the Deloitte Touche (1999) report tourism’s contribution to GDP varies from 3-5 per cent in Nepal and Kenya to 25 per cent in Jamaica, contribution to employment is estimated at 6-7 per cent in India and South Africa. There is consent that â€Å"tourism data does not provide full picture of its economic significance. Statistics cover the contribution of international tourism to national GDP. They hide the substance of domestic tourism (and may under-estimate regional tourists traveling by land), and the importance of tourism to a local economy† (Deloitte Touche, 1999: 09). This is an interesting point when looking into the current South African tourism portfolio. The majority of South Africa’s arrivals (72%), of which 92% originate from SADAC come by road (www.satour.org). Hence in analyzing South Africa’s tourism growth strategy (2002) both air travel out of Africa as well as the road travellers’ different behaviours were taken into consideration. It was for â€Å"the first time the South African Tourism Organization rolled out survey at eleven land border posts to attempt to understand these land travellers better. The key finding from the land traveler work was tha t these travellers should not be ignored and are important source of revenue for many of the provinces. In fact for many of the provinces, the land travellers account for more than 50% of their annual revenues† (ibid.). However it is a fact that for pro-poor tourism to flourish it takes more than economic benefits, non-economic impacts are also critical. Strategies focused on non-economic impacts Pro-poor tourism should not just only be pursued in commercial or economic benefits to the poor, but environmental or ethical concerns must also be considered. Hence capacity building, training and empowerment of the poor; mitigating the environment impact of tourism on the poor and addressing social and cultural impacts of tourism are very important in pro-poor strategies (Roe and Urguhart, 2001:06). Most of these objectives are captured through donor activities in tourism. It is a fact that donors have influenced the way tourism has developed in the last 20 years, with support traditionally focused on macro-economic objectives. According to the Deloitte Touche report (1999) environmental and social issues have received increasing attention and three trends have emerged: Since the 1992 Earth Summit there has been an enormous amount of activity focused on ‘greening’ the tourism industry. An increase in community-based tourism focusing on nature-based tourism in and around protected areas as a mechanism for biodiversity conservation. Cultural heritage initiatives such as those initiated by the World Bank, have increased, both in response to concerns about the threat which globalization poses to communities who place a high value on their local and cultural identity and as part of programmes for broadly-defined environmental and social sustainability. (Deloitte Touche report, (1999: 13). Although several donors now have poverty elimination as their overall goal, tourism interventions are mainly driven by other sub-objectives such as private sector growth or conservation rather than seen as a pro-poor tourism activity. Impacts of tourism on the poor Goodwin (2000) argues that assessing the livelihood impacts of tourism is not a matter of counting jobs or wage income. Tourism affects the livelihoods of the poor in multiple ways- economically, environmentally, socially and culturally (Deloitte Touche report, 1999). Impacts on livelihoods and not just income need to be assessed along with the variety of positive and negative affects, According to Goodwin (2000) waged employment can be sufficient to lift a household from insecure to secure but it may only be available to a minority, and not to the poor. Goodwin maintains that work as a tourist guide, although casual, is often of high status and relatively well paid. Tourism can have both positive and negative impacts. On the positive side, â€Å"tourism can generate funds for investment in health, education and other assets, provide infrastructure, stimulate development of social capital, strengthen sustainable management of natural resources, and create a demand for improved assets (especially education). On the negative side, tourism can reduce local access to natural resources, draw heavily upon local infrastructure, and disrupt social networks (Goodwin, 2000: 03). In most cases tourism affects the livelihoods of the poor by giving them access to assets and infrastructure which were previously not available. â€Å"A participatory assessment of livelihood impacts revealed that impacts on natural capital, particularly grazing resources, and access to physical infrastructure are more important to most members than the nearly 50 new jobs† (Goodwin, 2000:03). However, there are various instances where local residents lost access to local natural resources. â€Å"A comparative study by Shah and Gupta provides a range of examples. On Boracay Island in the Philippine, one quarter of the Island has been bought by outside corporations, generating a crisis in water supply and only limited infrastructure benefits for residents. Similarly in Bali, Indonesia, prime agricultural land and water supplies have been diverted for large hotels and golf courses while at Pangandaran (Java, Indinesia) village beach land, traditionally used for grazing, repairing boats and nets, and festivals, was sold to entrepreneurs for a 5-star hotel† (Ashley et al. 2001:23). Tourism can also have positive or negative cultural impacts on the poor. According to Goodwin (2000) socio-cultural intrusion by tourists is often cited as a negative impact. Certainly sexual exploitation particularly affects the poorest women, girls and young men. Goodwin argues that tourism can also increase the value attributed to minority cultures by national policy-makers. The overall balance of positive and negative livelihood impacts will vary enormously between situations, among people and over time, and particularly in the extent to which local priorities are able to influence the planning process (ibid.). It is of critical importance that government must recognize and acknowledge the input of all stakeholders in tourism development. Hence government must include tourism development at governmental policy framework. Strategies focused on policy/process reform Strategies focused on policy reform can best be summarized as building a more supportive policy and planning framework to address poverty and promoting participation from the poor and to bring the private sector into pro-poor partnerships. Despite all these unambiguous strategies there are still some sections of society where tourism is only seen as belonging to the private sector. However experience has suggested that successful sustainable requires close collaboration between government and the private sector. Ashley et al. (2001) argue that government, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, community organizations and the poor themselves all have critical and very different roles to play in PPT. The private sector can be directly involved in pro-poor partnerships. According to the Deloitte Touche report government need to work with the private sector in â€Å"establishing national and regional parameters for the industry (e.g. via tourist boards, service provision and controlling it (e.g. via land use planning)† (1999:21). There is much that only government can do, so a leading role for government in PPT is of pivotal importance and a great advantage. It is of critical importance that government commits itself in taking tourism at a higher and policy framework level. This means that government must integrate tourism into planning at the national level if it is to fulfill broad-based development objectives. However the Deloitte Touche report (1999) concludes that many governments see tourism as a means to generate foreign exchange rather than to address poverty. Hence it is critical that governments take tourism seriously and intervene at local, national and international level when developing tourism policies. At local level government can support small Micro enterprises by giving support to community tourism initiatives through SME support (credit, training, non-financial services) (Delotte and Touche, 1999:16). Government must encourage tourism development in rural areas, through technical assistance, funding local programmes, or infrastructure. In many cases this support is driven by conservation objectives- a focus on protected areas and biodiversity inevitably leads to a rural focus† ( Ashley et al., 2001: 32). Government must also make it possible for joint ventures between communities and private operators to take place and blossom through policy and legislation. At national level government must create a policy framework for private-sector driven tourism development which is broad-based, creating employment and empowerment in the depressed regions. According to the Deloitte Touche report â€Å"key policy elements include: the use of planning to encourage private investors to expand linkages; granting tenure over land to communities via land claims or leases; and close integration with other sectors such as infrastructure† (1999:17). At international level governments throughout the world try to work together for the alliances for sustainable tourism. In 1996 the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), World Tourism Organization and the Earth Council, joined together to launch an action plan entitled â€Å"Agenda 21 for the Travel Tourism Industry: Towards environmentally sustainable development†- a sectional sustainable development programme based on the results of the Rio Earth Summit in 1992† (WTTO IHRA, 1999:03). The agenda was adopted by 182 governments which adopted a comprehensive program of action that provide a global blueprint for accelerating sustainable [tourism] development (ibid.). Conclusion The most common and distinctive feature of pro-poor tourism is that it puts poor people and poverty at the centre. Pro-poor tourism aims to expand opportunities, and places net benefits to the poor as a goal in itself. It focuses more on countries of the South, not on mainstream destinations in the North. It is obvious that the success of pro-poor tourism lies on its strategies, which are expanding economic benefits for the poor; addressing non-economic impacts; and developing pro-poor policies. It is of critical importance that government commits itself at incorporating tourism at policy framework level. However by and large pro-poor tourism requires close collaboration between government and the private sector. The government, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, community organizations and the poor themselves all have critical and very different roles to play in PPT. Reference list Ashley, C., Boyd, C. and Goodwin, H., 2000: Pro-poor Tourism: Putting Poverty at the Heart of the Tourism Agenda, Natural Resource Perpective 61, Overseas Development Institute, London. Ashley, C., Goodwin, H. and Roe, D., 2001: Pro-poor Tourism Strategies: Expanding Opportunities for the Poor, Pro-Poor Briefing Paper 1, ODI, London Ashley, C., Roe, D. and Goodwin, H., 2001: Pro-poor Tourism Strategies: Making Tourism Work for the Poor- A Review of Experience, Pro-Poor Tourism Report No.1, ODI, London Cattarinich, X., 2001: Pro-poor Tourism Initiatives in Developing Countries: An Analysis of Secondary Case Studies, PPT Working Paper 8, ODI, London. Deloitte Touche, IIED and ODI, 1999: Sustainable Tourism and Poverty Elimination Study, Report prepared for the Department for International Development, London. Goodwin, H., 2000: Pro-poor Tourism: Opportunities for Sustainable Local Development, Development and Cooperation, No. 5, 12-14. Roe, D. and Urguhart., 2001: Pro-Poor Tourism: Harnessing the World’s Largest Industry for the World’s poor, IIED’s work in preparation for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg 2002). Shah, K. and Gupta, V., 2000: Tourism, the Poor and Other Stakeholders: Experience in Asia, Overseas Development Institute, London. South African Tourism, 2002: Tourism Growth Strategy, Illovo Research Papers on International Experience and Debates Surrounding Pro-poor TourisPETSTEL analysis of IndiaDefinition of Export QuotasInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of Self19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeTwilight of the UAW

Provide critical arguments in support or against the statement that Essay

Provide critical arguments in support or against the statement that 'Leaders from Enron are accountable for its downfall as th - Essay Example Though the company seems to be very highly praised by outsiders but internally the company had a much decentralized decision making structure and financial control system which made very difficult for outsiders to get a clear view of the company activities and its operations (O’Rourke, 2007, p.199). This problem is not only due to the poor managerial performance but also due to the departmental issues which are involved in the process of ruining the ethical values and the principles of the company. The executives and the managers are the primary people responsible for the downfall of the company for not maintaining the corporate culture and transparencies in the business process. If the operational management team have worked in a proper manner in full force it could have been possible for Enron Corporation to escape the tragedy (Spedding & Rose, 2007, p.543). About the company Enron being one of the most innovative companies in America for six consecutive years and was ranked 7th on the fortune 500 companies. The Houston, Texas based firm was considered as one of the greatest energy trading companies of the world (Sterling, 2002, p.111). In the year 2000 the company reached its summit with above 19,000 people and approximately with a annual revenue of more than $100 billion. The mission statement of the CEO Kenneth Lay was not only to become the greatest company in the energy sector but also to become the world largest company. With the deregulation in the energy sector during 1980’s the business became very risky both for the customer as well as for the companies. At this critical situation Enron came with an indigenous solution of leveraging its large network of pipelines for the construction of the gas bank to act as intermediary in the transaction process which in turns lowers the risk in the market. Enron introduced a concept of buying and selling on a certain dates at a certain price with an extra premium to ensure safety against risk. The man behind this innovative idea came from the CEO and President of the firm Jeffrey Skilling. He then introduced many more products along with the gas bank. The products include various derivatives of energy and swap for Enron’s trading partners and stakeholders (Fusaro & Miller, 2002, p.31). These products give the option to the people to buy gas in the future at a predetermined fixed price which gives the company the opportunity to trade at a fixed price even when the market price is floating. This innovative strategy gave the firm immense opportunity growth irrespective of the market condition (Lawrence & Weber, n.d., p. 450-451). Rise of Enron With the new innovative way of business Skilling began to change the whole corporate culture of Enron. He recruited the best professionals from the industry to compete with the largest and most prestigious investment banks. With the immense growth and reputation for the outsiders the internal culture slowly transformed to a darker t one. With the harshest employee ranking system,

Humanities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 4

Humanities - Essay Example The statue of david is a sculpture of a nude man standing and represents the heroic David of the bible. The eyes of the sculpture are turned towards Rome in what looks like a stare of warning. On the other hand, the Pieta depicts the dead body of Jesus on the laps of his mother, Mary. The sculpture portrays a balance of classical beauty and renaissance ideals. Michelangelo’s works were entirely involved in the services of the Catholic Church (Creighton 25). He was a man of pessimism in his poetry and optimist in his artwork. He is considered to be one of the greatest artists and architect during the Renaissance period. His artwork consisted of paintings and sculptures that revealed humanity in its natural state. The renaissance was a period between 1500 and1700. During this period there was a rebirth of interest in the ideas of the classical period. In this period the ideas of Hippocrates and Galen were studied and the four humors become the focus of medical treatments and bloodletting became very popular (Lobenstine 78). Science began in this period (renaissance period) and it changed (got replaced) superstition into medicine. This period also saw the founding of the royal society, in the year 1660, a body of leading scientists. People in this period had to be educated and had to have knowledge in both science and arts like Leonardo da Vinci (Lobenstine 83). He was well known for his art works (like the Mona Lisa) and he was also a scientist and regularly attended dissections. The reformation happened during this period largely as people were thinking about the things around them and were not ready to accept what had always been. During the renaissance period (1517) Martin Luther brought out a list of things that he thought were wrong with the church to a door of a church in Wittenberg in Germany. These ideas threatened the Catholic Church as many people liked them and protested about the Catholic Church, these people came to be known as the Protestants