Key Developments Within Coso 2013-15 - 1508 Words

IMPLEMENTATION Key Developments within COSO 2013-15 †¢ COSO released an updated internal control- integrated framework in 2013 which will supersede the 1992 framework by Dec 14 2014 †¢ The SEC has stated the staff intends to monitor the transition for issuers using the 1992 Framework to evaluate rather any staff of commission action will be needed in the future. As the Framework was updated on Dec 14 2014 the staff that still abide by the 1992 Framework are likely to be questioned by the SEC regarding whether or not the 1992 Framework is a suitable framework †¢ It is recommended that the SEC registrants that are subject to reporting requirements related to internal controls (ICRF) use the 2013 framework for reporting periods ending after Dec†¦show more content†¦(pcaobus) The Importance of the COSO Framework †¢ The objective for COSO updating the framework included clarifying requirements for effective internal control, addressing relevant changes in business that introduce or elevate the risk of achieving entity objectives, †¢ The 2013 framework includes two new requirements –each of the five components of internal control and relevant principles is present and functioning-the five components of internal control operate together in an integrated manner †¢ The seventeen principles laid out in the 2013 framework are fundamental concepts that are associated with the five components of internal control. The 2013 framework requires that each relevant principle be present and functioning in order to demonstrate that all five components are present and functioning †¢ COSO does not believe that the additional criteria changed what is required for an effective system of internal control over financial reporting. Even so as managers and internal auditors access the design and effectiveness of the companies ICFR they may identify internal control deficits that require remediation during 2014. The COSO Framework The COSO Framework is made of five interrelated parts that are essential to successfully operating a business. These components are: I. Control

Leopold Sedar Free Essays

Leopold Sedar Senghor (9 October 1906 – 20 December 2001) Leopold Sedar Senghor was born in Joal,  Afrique Occidentale Francaise  (French West Africa now Republic of Senegal), to a Serer (third largest ethnic group in Senegal) Father and Roman Catholic mother. In 1928 Senghor traveled to Paris to continue his studies on a partial scholarship. He became the first black African to become an  agrege, the top qualification for a teacher in the French education system, and became a professor of African languages and civilization at the  Ecole Nationale de la France d’Outre-Mer. We will write a custom essay sample on Leopold Sedar or any similar topic only for you Order Now When Senegal achieved independence in 1960, Senghor was elected its first president. He retired from the presidency on 31 December 1960. Senghor retired to France, became the first black African member of the French Academy in 1984, and published his memoir,  (‘That Which I Believe: Negritude, Frenchness, and Universal Civilization’) in 1988. He died at Verson, France, on 20 December 2001. Philosophy: Leopold Sedar Senghor believes that every African shares certain distinctive and innate characteristics, values and aesthetics. Negritude is the active rooting of an Black identity in this inescapable and natural African essence. (The major premise of Negritude is therefore that one’s biological make-up (race) defines one’s outer (skin color) as well as inner (spirit/essence) traits. It is a concept which holds that there is a ‘shared culture and subjectivity and spiritual essence’ among members of the same racial group. Instead of rejecting the (colonialist) theory that race defines one’s being; Negritude rejects the assumption that the African is inherently inferior to the â€Å"white man†. To Senghor, this makes Negritude a weapon against colonialism and an ‘instrument of liberation’. To Senghor, the African essence is externalized in a distinctive culture and philosophy. This claim is supported by Senghor’s assertion that Negritude – the rooting of identity in one’s natural essence – is ‘diametrically opposed to the traditional philosophy of Europe’ (the colonizer). To Senghor, European philosophy is ‘essentially static, objective†¦ It is founded on separation and opposition: on analysis and conflict’. In contrast, African philosophy is based on ‘unity’, balance, negotiation and an appreciation of ‘movement and rhythm’. Senghor’s idea of â€Å"Negritude† posits an essence for blacks who are intuitive, sensual, and creative. In other words, he argues that blacks have a unique essence, with out which the â€Å"civilization of the Universal† would be incomplete. (This is reminiscent of Du Bois’ belief that Blacks have a particular value to add to world history). This essence, according to Senghor, is opposite from the white essence, which is based in reason and objectivity. How to cite Leopold Sedar, Essay examples

Rigadoon free essay sample

The Rolando originated as a Baroque folk dance In southern France between 1600 and 1750. Regarding, Rigatoni, Rigmarole, Rigid;n and Irrigation are common alternative spellings for the dance named after a dance master from Marseille named Regard. Traditionally, the Falklands was associated with the provinces of Various, Languages, Dauphin, and Provence in southern France and became popular as a court dance during the reign of Louis XIV. The popularity of the dance spread quickly from Paris and Versailles to England and Germany. The Regarding was especially popular in England where more than one type ofRegarding was known and several Irrigations in 6/8 meter appeared In George Buckrams An Easy Introduction to Dancing (1738). The duple Regarding was used widely in French ballets and operas. Occasionally, somewhat stylized Irrigations were included In Instrumental suites, usually after the Serenade movement along with one or more other popular dances. The Regarding dance features couples moving in a lively pace to an upbeat duple meter. We will write a custom essay sample on Rigadoon or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Encyclopedia Britannica asserts that couples engaged in jumping, running and turning as part of their sequence. This description supports the idea hat critics saw Baroque music and dancing as having a boldness not seen in earlier court balls. The Regarding dance contains four-bar phrases usually with an upbeat and a static harmony in addition to the duple meter. There is also a rhythmic accent on the opening two measures. The Bourne and Regarding dances are practically indistinguishable in musical and cerographical terms. They both are lively duple meter dances with a southern French origin. The Allemande, Gavotte, Gaillardia and Paean are other types of French dances with the Religions duple-time measure.

Six thinking hats Essays - Hats, Educational Psychology,

Six thinking hats Six Thinking Hats' is an important and powerful technique. It is used to look at decisions from a number of important perspectives. This forces you to move outside your habitual thinking style, and helps you to get a more rounded view of a situation. This tool was created by Edward de Bono in his book '6 Thinking Hats'. Many successful people think from a very rational, positive viewpoint. This is part of the reason that they are successful. Often, though, they may fail to look at a problem from an emotional, intuitive, creative or negative viewpoint. This can mean that they underestimate resistance to plans, fail to make creative leaps and do not make essential contingency plans. Similarly, pessimists may be excessively defensive, and more emotional people may fail to look at decisions calmly and rationally. If you look at a problem with the 'Six Thinking Hats' technique, then you will solve it using all approaches. Your decisions and plans will mix ambition, skill in execution, public sensitivity, creativity and good contingency planning. How to Use the Tool You can use Six Thinking Hats in meetings or on your own. In meetings it has the benefit of blocking the confrontations that happen when people with different thinking styles discuss the same problem. Each 'Thinking Hat' is a different style of thinking. These are explained below: White Hat: With this thinking hat you focus on the data available. Look at the information you have, and see what you can learn from it. Look for gaps in your knowledge, and either try to fill them or take account of them. This is where you analyze past trends, and try to extrapolate from historical data. Red Hat: 'Wearing' the red hat, you look at problems using intuition, gut reaction, and emotion. Also try to think how other people will react emotionally. Try to understand the responses of people who do not fully know your reasoning. Black Hat: Using black hat thinking, look at all the bad points of the decision. Look at it cautiously and defensively. Try to see why it might not work. This is important because it highlights the weak points in a plan. It allows you to eliminate them, alter them, or prepare contingency plans to counter them. Black Hat thinking helps to make your plans 'tougher' and more resilient. It can also help you to spot fatal flaws and risks before you embark on a course of action. Black Hat thinking is one of the real benefits of this technique, as many successful people get so used to thinking positively that often they cannot see problems in advance. This leaves them under-prepared for difficulties. Yellow Hat: The yellow hat helps you to think positively. It is the optimistic viewpoint that helps you to see all the benefits of the decision and the value in it. Yellow Hat thinking helps you to keep going when everything looks gloomy and difficult. Green Hat: The Green Hat stands for creativity. This is where you can develop creative solutions to a problem. It is a freewheeling way of thinking, in which there is little criticism of ideas. A whole range of creativity tools can help you here. Blue Hat: The Blue Hat stands for process control. This is the hat worn by people chairing meetings. When running into difficulties because ideas are running dry, they may direct activity into Green Hat thinking. When contingency plans are needed, they will ask for Black Hat thinking, etc. A variant of this technique is to look at problems from the point of view of different professionals (e.g. doctors, architects, sales directors, etc.) or different customers. Example The directors of a property company are looking at whether they should construct a new office building. The economy is doing well, and the amount of vacant office space is reducing sharply. As part of their decision they decide to use the 6 Thinking Hats technique during a planning meeting. Looking at the problem with the White Hat, they analyze the data they have. They examine the trend in vacant office space, which shows a sharp reduction. They anticipate that by the time the office block would be completed, that there will be a severe shortage of office space. Current government projections show steady economic growth for at least the construction period. With Red Hat

Applying Learning Models in a Particular Setting

Applying Learning Models in a Particular Setting There are different ways to achieve the desired behavior in children. Researchers have developed a number of theories and learning models that provide valuable insights into peculiarities of people’s behavior and learning. Each theory can be applicable in many settings but there are also cases when only certain models can be employed, as the rest of them will be inefficient.Advertising We will write a custom critical writing sample on Applying Learning Models in a Particular Setting specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In the present case, it is possible to consider the following learning models: generalized imitation and over-imitation, vicarious reinforcement, operant learning model as well as social learning of aggression.  It is clear that spanking is the least appropriate method to show the child that stealing is bad. Bandura’s research shows that aggression leads to aggressive behavior in the majority of cases (Hart Kritsonis, 2006). Thus, children who observed violent behavior simply imitated it in similar situations. Notably, boys and girls were almost equally aggressive. Hence, spanking Ben will make the boy think that any inappropriate behavior should lead to aggression (spanking, in this case). The boy will use the same method when he will face situations in which somebody will act inappropriately. Ben will inevitably spank other children, as he will not know any other way to react to improper behavior. This can have even more serious implications as the behavior learned in the childhood may remain during adulthood. Ben may think that aggression and physical violence can be used in many situations in the future. More so, spanking is also impossible to utilize in the present case. According to Bandura, if aggressive behavior is accompanied by certain type of reinforcement (for example, social approval), this behavior will be used in similar settings (Hart Kritsonis, 2006). As for the pres ent case, the reaction of the owner of the shop can be regarded as social approval. The owner says that Ben’s caregiver should spank the boy. Hence, Ben will see that many people (at least, two adults) think that spanking (aggression, violence) is the most acceptable way to respond to inappropriate behavior. Clearly, it is better to use another social learning model to teach Ben that stealing is bad. Although punishment can be employed, it should not be associated with violence or aggression. At that, it can be more appropriate to utilize reinforcement in this case. It is necessary to evaluate a number of learning models to choose the most appropriate one.Advertising Looking for critical writing on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More It is possible to start with over-imitation and generalization. Children often imitate other people’s (often adults’) behavior even without any reinforcement (Chance, 2008). This can be explained by historical preconditioning as people’s survival often depended on their ability to imitate certain behavior of models. However, in the present case, the boy does not imitate his caregiver’s behavior and does not follow her instructions. Hence, Ben’s desire to have a gum is stronger than his willingness to imitate certain behavior.  Operant learning model can be applied in this case and lead to positive results. This learning model implies the use of positive and negative reinforcement as well as negative and positive punishment (Chance, 2008). Skinner, who was one of the pioneers in this field, conducted a number of experiments with mice placed in, the so-called, Skinner’s box. Thus, when the mouse’s behavior was appropriate positive reinforcer was provided or negative reinfocer was taken away. Punishment was also used. Thus, it is believed that the use of these tools helps to achieve the necessary goals. In the present case, the boy can be punished, which will teach him that certain behavior (stealing) can lead to undesirable consequences (punishment). Later, positive reinforcement can be used to show that desirable behavior can be rewarded (by buying some fruit or something of value to Ben). In the present case, vicarious reinforcement can also be employed. Fox and Bailenson (2009) note that this model has proved to be effective in many settings. Thus, people (especially children) are more likely to imitate certain behavior when they observe that another person is rewarded for it. Likewise, people do not behave in a certain way if they see that others have been punished for it. Fox and Bailenson (2009) conduct an experiment with the use of technology; they note that the model is efficient and can be applicable in many cases.  However, in the case with Ben, it is better to use a combination of operant learning and vicarious reinforcement. It is possible to develop a modification p rogram to teach Ben that stealing is bad, based on the two models. Thus, in the first place, it is possible to work out some preventive measures. It is necessary to be more attentive when shopping with Ben. It is necessary to discuss his wants and explain why he cannot have this or that product. Thus, the caregiver should have explained to Ben why he could not have the gum. The boy should understand why he could not have the gum (which can be a punishment, response to certain health problem, desire to be healthier and so on).Advertising We will write a custom critical writing sample on Applying Learning Models in a Particular Setting specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Besides, it is important to make Ben understand that stealing is bad. Vicarious punishment and reinforcement can be used in this case. It is possible to watch some cartoons and movies with Ben. These should be stories concerning stealing. The caregiver should talk to Ben and discuss the reasons why stealing is bad. It is possible to discuss the feelings of the person whose things have been stolen and ask Ben if he felt fine in such situations. Of course, the thief should be punished in the cartoons and movies watched. It can be beneficial to watch a video where a child is praised for behaving in a proper way. All these materials can be found online. Clearly, it is necessary to undertake certain steps while being in the shop. Ben’s caregiver can explain to Ben that stealing is bad and that his behavior is inappropriate. Ben should say sorry and it is possible to ask him to explain why he took the gum after all. Of course, Ben will give the gum back to the owner. Ben’s caregiver should praise the boy for such a good and brave behavior. She should tell Ben that it is quite difficult to confess in such bad deeds and only brave boys can do that. Of course, it is important to add that brave boys also never steal, as they prefer talking every thing over and trying to obtain what they want without shameful cheating. In conclusion, it is possible to note that the present case can be an example of the use of a combination of vicarious reinforcement and operant learning model. The boy has to learn a lesson that stealing is bad. Punishment as well as vicarious reinforcement and positive reinforcement can be used to make Ben understand that stealing is inappropriate. It is also important to note that Ben’s caregiver should be more attentive and more informative next time. The boy should understand why exactly he cannot have this or that product. Reference List Chance, P. (2008). Learning and behavior: Active learning edition. Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning. Fox, J., Bailenson, J.N. (2009). Virtual self-modeling: The effects of vicarious reinforcement and identification on exercise behaviors. Media Psychology, 12, 1-25.Advertising Looking for critical writing on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Hart, K.E., Kritsonis, W.A. (2006). Critical analysis of an original writing on social learning theory: Imitation of film-mediated aggressive models by: Albert Bandura, Dorothea Ross and Sheila A. Ross (1963). National Forum of Applied Educational Research Journal, 19(3), 1-7.

Hamlet Study Guide

Hamlet Study Guide The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is one of William Shakespeare’s best-known works and one of the most widely-read plays in the English language. Estimated to have been written between 1599 and 1602, Hamlet was one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays at the time of its release, and has remained hugely influential since its creation. Fast Facts: Hamlet Full Title: The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of DenmarkAuthor: William ShakespeareYear Published: Between 1599 and 1602Genre: TragedyType of Work: PlayOriginal Language: EnglishThemes: Appearance vs. Reality; Revenge and Action vs. Inaction; Death, Guilt, and the AfterlifeMajor Characters: Hamlet, Claudius, Polonius, Ophelia, Laertes, Gertrude, Fortinbras, Horatio, The Ghost, Rosencrantz GuildensternFun Fact: Shakespeare’s son, who died at age 11, was named Hamnet; he may have been an inspiration for the tragic character Hamlet. Plot Summary Hamlet is the story of the events that take place after the king of Denmark is found dead. His son, Hamlet, is visited by the kings ghost, who tells him that Hamlet’s uncle Claudius was the murderer. Hamlet resolves to kill Claudius and avenge his fathers death, but he struggles with the morality of his decision and finds himself unable to act. To fool Claudius into thinking he knows nothing about the murder, Hamlet pretends to be insane; however, Hamlet’s actual mental state becomes less and less certain throughout the play. Meanwhile, when Claudius begins to realize Hamlet knows more than he lets on, he plots to kill him. Hamlet, though, is smart; much of the play depicts his brilliant wordplay and cunning outmaneuvers of the king’s courtiers- until, of course, the play’s tragic ending, which sees most of the royal family killed. Major Characters Hamlet. The protagonist of the story, Hamlet is the prince of Denmark and the son of the murdered king. Possessing a melancholy and depressive disposition, he struggles throughout the play with his inability to act on his desire for revenge. Claudius. The current king of Denmark and the brother of the king, Hamlets late father. Claudius murdered the former king and married his wife Gertrude, stealing Hamlet’s right to succeed his father. Polonius. The father of Ophelia and Laertes and advisor to the king. Obsequious, pedantic, and scheming, Polonius is killed by Hamlet. Ophelia. Hamlet’s love interest and Polonius’s daughter. She aims to please her father and is deeply troubled by Hamlet’s madness, but goes mad herself by the end of the play. Laertes. Polonius’s son. He is a man of action, in direct contrast to Hamlet, and is ready to take his revenge as soon as he discovers Hamlet’s hand in the destruction of his father and sister. Gertrude. The queen of Denmark, Hamlet’s mother, and Claudius’s wife. She was married to the old king, but was unfaithful to him with Claudius. Fortinbras. The prince of Norway, who eventually becomes king of Denmark after Hamlets death. Horatio. Hamlet’s best friend from university, who serves as a foil to Hamlet. The Ghost. Hamlet’s dead father, the former king of Denmark. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Hamlet’s childhood friends, whom Hamlet outwits at every turn. Major Themes Appearance vs. Reality. Is the ghost really Hamlet’s dead father? Is Claudius lying? Hamlet must continually grapple with his inability to trust his own interpretation of events, which keeps him in a state of inaction. Death, Guilt, and the Afterlife. Hamlet frequently wonders about the mystery of death. Tied to these thoughts is always the question of guilt, and whether or not his soul- or the soul of another, like Claudius- will wind up in heaven or hell. Revenge and Action vs. Inaction. Although the play is about revenge, Hamlet continually delays the act. Connected to this theme is the question of the afterlife, doubts about which seem to stay Hamlet’s hand. Literary Style Hamlet has had remarkable literary significance from its first performance, which is estimated to have taken place between 1599 and 1602, influencing writers as varied as John Milton, Johann Wilhelm von Goethe, George Eliot, and David Foster Wallace.  It is a tragedy, a genre with roots in classical Greek theatre; however, Shakespeare ignores Aristotle’s injunction for a play to focus primarily on action, not character. Instead, the play follows the twists and turns of Hamlet’s moral struggle much more through soliloquies than plot. The play was written during the reign of Elizabeth I. There are numerous early versions of the play still in existence; each, however, has different lines, so it is the job of the editor to decide which version to publish, and accounts for the many explanatory notes in editions of Shakespeare. About the Author William Shakespeare is arguably the highest-regarded writer in the English language. Although his exact date of birth is unknown, he was baptized in Stratford-Upon-Avon in 1564 and married Anne Hathaway at age 18. Sometime between the ages of 20 and 30, Shakespeare moved to London to start his career in theatre. He worked as an actor and a writer, as well as a part-time owner of the theatre troupe the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, later known as the King’s Men. Since little information about commoners was retained at the time, not much is known about Shakespeare, leading to ongoing questions about his life, his inspiration, and the authorship of his plays.

Trust and trustees Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Trust and trustees - Essay Example The assumption that many have is that they are protected under the legal framework of â€Å"common law marriage.† Tina and Luke can exemplify this fact since they lived for several years and upon breakdown of the relationship, Luke was in a fix upon the sale of the house since Tina didn’t consider him or the contribution he had made towards the renovation of the place they both considered home. This paper will try to give an in-depth analysis of this case study by exploring the current law that governs relationship breakdown for cohabitees, the rights that Luke has on Tina’s flat and how he can get his share of the property back. ‘A patchwork of legal rules’ are entailed in the legal rights available to cohabitants upon relationship breakdown.2 This is because the procedure of reclaiming a right over a property in a cohabiting situation is complex, expensive and uncertain to rely on and not applicable to family circumstances.3 This can be highlighted by the disparity that exists with the relief available to married couples under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 (MCA)4, which enables the court to deal with the entirety of a couple’s assets and provide for complete discretion when making orders, with the courts ‘largely left to get on with it for themselves.’.5 In Luke and Tina’s situation, the property under contention was registered at the Land Registry in Tina’s sole name. In sole ownership cases, the difficulty arises for the non-legal owner who must traverse their way through strict property law and complex equitable principles under the Trust of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996, which is supposed to establish an equitable interest in the property.6 There are also complications that arise in regard to joint ownership cases and this precedence has been hugely used to determine the cases of cohabitee. The

Emerging Technology in Solar Energy Research Paper

Emerging Technology in Solar Energy - Research Paper Example Solar energy has been used towards providing heat and light in different parts of the world by using many techniques. These technologies are ever-emerging and are used in variety of methods from producing electricity, thermal energy, architecture, artificial photosynthesis, solar photovoltaic and heating. All these technologies are further divided into the passive or active solar technologies depending on their utilization of sunlight from capturing it to distributing it in certain ways. Active solar procedures incorporate the utilization of photovoltaic boards and thermalcollecting methods to contain the solar energy. Passive solar procedures include turning a structure to the Sun, selecting materials with good warm mass or light scattering properties, and outlining spaces that characteristically circle air. Emerging Technologies in Active Solar Energy By the very essence of the word, Solar, the utilization of Sunlight towards producing electricity through concentrated solar power (CSP) or photovoltaic (PV) is amongst the rapidly growing technology of the time. Both of the technologies use a separate method towards the accumulation of electricity. In Concentrated Solar Power system, the sun beams are collected towards a small or a large area and then focused towards one area where the sunlight is converted into electric current through photovoltaic effect.

A View From A Bridge - analysis of act i scene 5 Essay Example for Free

A View From A Bridge analysis of act i scene 5 Essay I have chosen Nicolas cage because he is strong but not very strong and he has a good American accent. This scene is probably the most important scene of the play as there is so much action and it is the first real time you see any conflict between the characters. The scene starts when the characters have just finished their dinner and they start talking about Italy and what is like there, but it is a short lived conversation as Rodolpho and Eddie soon have a full fledged argument. After the argument Eddie offers Marco and Rodolpho some tickets to watch boxing and then offers to teach Rodolpho how to box but it looks more like Eddie is questioning Rodolpho about his sexuality. Even though Marco was on Eddie s side (You come home early now. ) before the boxing he catches on to Eddies scheme of making Rodolpho look weak and shows his supremacy over Eddie in strength by lifting a chair with one hand when Eddie could not, this is to stop Eddie making Rodolpho look like a fool. The five characters in this scene are: Eddie, Marco, Rodolpho, Beatrice and Catherine. Eddie has the most active part in the scene with fighting arguing and just talking about Italy. He starts off the scene by talking to Marco about Marcos jobs (They pay all right on them boats? ) and other things in Italy such as oranges and lemons (I heard they paint oranges to make them look orange). He then starts arguing with Rodolpho about Catherine and how late she has been staying out recently (she was never out on the street till twelve oclock at night). He then tries to make Rodolpho look bad by teaching him how to box and stunning Rodolpho briefly (he feints with his left and lands with his right. It mildly staggers Rodolpho. ). The scenes end and as Marco lifts the chair Eddie starts to look worried as Marco looks triumphant (Marco is face to face with Eddie, a strained tension gripping his eyes and jaw, his neck stiff, the chair raised like a weapon over Eddies head-and he transforms what might appear like a glare of warning into a smile of triumph, and Eddies grin vanishes as he absorbs the look). Marco seems to be a quiet but strong figure in a household and has quite a lot to do. Marco begins the scene talking about his wife and kids (Beatrice: Your wife is gettin the money alright, Marco? Marco: Oh, yes. She bought medicine for my boy. ), jobs and Italy in general, he is also reading a letter from his wife (He has been reading a letter. ). He then watches as Eddie and Rodolpho argue and box and then stands as Rodolpho staggers (Marco rises. ). Originally Marco tries to calm it down subtly, (No, Beatrice if he does wrong you must tell him. What does he do wrong? ) but by the end of the scene he obviously thinks that he needs to show to Eddie who is boss. Rodolpho begins the scene by trying and failing to enter the conversation about Italy (Once we went to Yugoslavia.), but just ends up aggravating Eddie and getting himself into a large argument with Eddie (Rodolpho: Its more strict in our town. Its not so free. Eddie: It aint so free here either, Rodolpho, like you think. ). He then gets taught to fight by Eddie and gets his own back by dancing with Catherine (Dance Catherine come), while earlier he knew there was tension and did not want to dance incase he would aggravate Eddie (Catherine: you wanna dance, Rodolpho? Rodolpho: No I-Im tired). Beatrice: right from the beginning you can tell that Beatrice is on the side of Catherine and Rodolpho (Go ahead, dance, Rodolpho. ), but she starts off the scene by joining in the conversation about Italy and Marcos life and family. She always seems to be the peacemaker (Thats enough, Eddie; he did pretty good, though. ) although she is on the side of Rodolpho and Catherine ( She watches them dance; Eddie turns his head away. ). She then looks on as Marco lifts the chair when Eddie could not (Beatrice and Eddie watch him. ). Finally Catherine: she is probably the most important character in this scene, not so much for her lines but for the reason that she is the subject that the other characters are arguing about (I have respect for her, Eddie. I do anything wrong? ). At the beginning of the scene she tries to get Rodolpho and Eddie talking (They went to Africa once. On a fishing boat [Eddie glances at her. ] Its true Eddie. ), but it just makes Eddie talk to Marco. She then is called upon to back up Rodolpho by Beatrice but seems to be shy (Beatrice: Well, you said the movie ended late, didnt you? Catherine: Yeah. ). She end s the scene by dancing with Rodolpho (Rodolpho takes her in his arms. They dance.) and then watches the fight for supremacy (Rodolpho and Catherine have stopped dancing as Marco raises the chair over his head. ). Since the beginning of the United States of America, it has been known as a unified country and as a country of with no hereditary class barrier, yet the American world has changed since the 1800s. Until 1880 anyone who had enough money to get there could get into America. Even though the government put restrictions on the amount of immigrants allowed to enter the country, 23. 5 million new immigrants entered America from 1880 -1920, most of these immigrants where Irish, Italian or Jewish from Eastern Europe. In 1920 almost 70% of New York people were immigrants or children of immigrants. This resulted in large ghettos of ethnic communities all over New York. Even though America was meant to be the land where every one had equal rights, many people were racist. The government tried to change their people instead of accepting them: Cultural Assimilation. They were forced to learn English and change from their own ways to the customs of America. In 1950 the Displaced Persons Commission enforced a huge intelligence investigation into immigrants in America. Their purpose was to try and get rid of all illegal immigrants in American society, this leads on to the question that Arthur Miller brings up in the play about loyalty and what it means to be an American and as this play was written in the 1950s this whole story is relevant to what was happening at that time in America. Immigrants were also thought to be members of fascist or communist parties in 1940, by 1950 anti-communism was so intense that members of the government such as senator Joe McCarthy and Richard Nixon took advantage of peoples strong feelings and gained power from their exploits. McCarthy had so much power that he was able to accuse anybody and get him or her sent to prison or even executed. This resulted in a witch-hunt, because anyone could be accused on the slightest excuse what so ever. Many famous people where accused of being a communist, even the author of this play, Arthur Miller, was accused but he was one of the lucky ones by getting off scot free (probably because he married Marilyn Monroe). Other famous people included many movie directors and scriptwriters who were some of the early victims, they were given the nickname The Hollywood Ten. All this anti-communism resulted in thousands losing their jobs and losing any chance of getting another one and was one of the great injustices of the twentieth century.

Sigmund Freud as a Dream Analyst Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research

Sigmund Freud as a Dream Analyst You step out of your car onto this amazing white sand beach. You walk toward the water and notice all of these beautiful women coming toward you and saying your name. As you start to lay the charm down you notice that one of them is chewing on your leg. Then all of a sudden all of them are taking huge bites out of you and ripping you apart. You try to escape but you seem to be unable to do anything in your defense. AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! All of a sudden you awake in a frantic scream. You realize you are still in one piece and that no beautiful women really want you, you are just the same loser you were the day before. Dreams such as this one I described above happen to millions of people all over the world every time they stop to take a little nap or when they are asleep at night. Why do we dream? What do they mean? Why do humans as well as animals have dreams that sometimes fit into our daily life and others seem to be way out of the ordinary and have no significance in our lives? Throughout history human beings have sought to understand the meaning of dreams. The ancient Egyptians believed dreams possessed oracular or all knowing power. In the Bible, for example, there are many instances where people have gained power or went on hunger strikes because of dreams. Other cultures have interpreted dreams as inspirational, healing, or an alternative to reality. Many Indian tribes believed that dreams were what were expected of the future. Dreams have been a part of life for hundreds and hundreds of years and many people have various feelings about what they mean and why we have them (Sleep Disorders). There was one man though, who has changed the world's point of view on dreams. His name... ...(rev. ed) New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966 Mahoney, Maria F. Meaning in Dreams and Dreaming Citadel Press: Copyright Maria F Mahoney, 1966 Machenzie, Norm Ian Dreams and Dreaming Aldus Books Limited, London, 1965 Gyn, Lynn The Dream Emporium. 2000. March 29, 2002 http://dreamemporium.com/ Green, Ariadne Ancient Symbols. 2000. March 29, 2002 http://psychology.about.com/library/weekly/aa111501j.htm?terms=Dream+symbols Tiger's Nest 2000. March 29, 2002 http://www.frii.com/~tigrnest/drmart.htm Dreams and Their Meanings Copyright 2001 by PageWise, Inc. http://mtmt.essortment.com/dreamsmeanings_rfee.htm "Sigmund Freud" Thinkquest Library Website April 22, 2002 http://library.thinkquest.org/17039/Normal/freud.html "The Dreaming Life" Sleep Disorders April 19, 2002 <http://sleepdisorders.about.com/library/weekly/aa021101a.htm?terms=Bible+and+dreams> Sigmund Freud as a Dream Analyst Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research Sigmund Freud as a Dream Analyst You step out of your car onto this amazing white sand beach. You walk toward the water and notice all of these beautiful women coming toward you and saying your name. As you start to lay the charm down you notice that one of them is chewing on your leg. Then all of a sudden all of them are taking huge bites out of you and ripping you apart. You try to escape but you seem to be unable to do anything in your defense. AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! All of a sudden you awake in a frantic scream. You realize you are still in one piece and that no beautiful women really want you, you are just the same loser you were the day before. Dreams such as this one I described above happen to millions of people all over the world every time they stop to take a little nap or when they are asleep at night. Why do we dream? What do they mean? Why do humans as well as animals have dreams that sometimes fit into our daily life and others seem to be way out of the ordinary and have no significance in our lives? Throughout history human beings have sought to understand the meaning of dreams. The ancient Egyptians believed dreams possessed oracular or all knowing power. In the Bible, for example, there are many instances where people have gained power or went on hunger strikes because of dreams. Other cultures have interpreted dreams as inspirational, healing, or an alternative to reality. Many Indian tribes believed that dreams were what were expected of the future. Dreams have been a part of life for hundreds and hundreds of years and many people have various feelings about what they mean and why we have them (Sleep Disorders). There was one man though, who has changed the world's point of view on dreams. His name... ...(rev. ed) New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966 Mahoney, Maria F. Meaning in Dreams and Dreaming Citadel Press: Copyright Maria F Mahoney, 1966 Machenzie, Norm Ian Dreams and Dreaming Aldus Books Limited, London, 1965 Gyn, Lynn The Dream Emporium. 2000. March 29, 2002 http://dreamemporium.com/ Green, Ariadne Ancient Symbols. 2000. March 29, 2002 http://psychology.about.com/library/weekly/aa111501j.htm?terms=Dream+symbols Tiger's Nest 2000. March 29, 2002 http://www.frii.com/~tigrnest/drmart.htm Dreams and Their Meanings Copyright 2001 by PageWise, Inc. http://mtmt.essortment.com/dreamsmeanings_rfee.htm "Sigmund Freud" Thinkquest Library Website April 22, 2002 http://library.thinkquest.org/17039/Normal/freud.html "The Dreaming Life" Sleep Disorders April 19, 2002 <http://sleepdisorders.about.com/library/weekly/aa021101a.htm?terms=Bible+and+dreams>

DuBois and Washington: Realism in Fiction Essay

In both DuBois’ work, The Souls of Black Folk, and Washington’s work, Up from Slavery, the reader is presented with viewpoints of emancipation from the oppressive slavery of being controlled under the harmful influences of the white elite. The stories of rising above one’s personal struggle and finding freedom during a time corrupt with racism and classism are illustrated by both authors. In reading these tales, one is presented with a picture of the importance of the black person, with the spiritual journey in finding personal meaning and pride in an environment of hatred and misunderstanding. While DuBois presents the black situation somewhat like a folktale, with more instances of fiction being woven throughout the realism of the work, Washington presents a work more related to nonfiction, with stronger elements of realism which strengthens the truth of his writing. The way Dubois crafts his tale is one of passion and imagery, beautiful prose with aims to serve the senses as much as the intellect. However, in this way, he is prone to flights of fancy and wandering from realism and the important points of social justice. Although he describes his own personal situation quite well and in colorful detail, one is sometimes left wondering about his point, whether he is aiming to make a strong contribution to a cause or a simply a strong contribution to the love of painting with words. He writes that the social walls were â€Å"straight and stubborn to the whitest, but relentlessly tall, narrow, and unscalable to sons of night who must plod darkly on in resignation† (8). Although there’s beauty here, one notes an element of self pity and ignorance of the true social movement of his time, the flight into fantasy and rejection of realism. Washington is more apt to speak plainly, with a somewhat determined sense of realism in his aim to produce a nonfictional autobiography. Facts are given out in abundance, objective truths which the reader can surely hold and place in a sense of assured reality. He describes his own life and pursuits in fairly stark detail, promoting a sense of uprising and a simple yet eloquent narrative of his own personal journey. In a quote about his father, Washington states that he â€Å"was an unfortunate victim of the institution which the nation unhappily had grafted upon it at that time† (3). While the reader can ascertain a sense of reality in his picture of his father and the national social situation, one is still left somewhat disturbed by the lack of a true sense of outrage in the governmental situation, the lack of social justice, and the contribution of his own father to the oppressive regime. While Washington presents his tale more realistically than DuBois, both men could have presented their tales with more assured sense of the ethical dilemma of their time, sparked with a true sense of urgency in aiming for social justice. Works Cited DuBois, W. (2007). The Souls of Black Folk. Oxford University Press. Washington, B. (1986). Up from slavery. Penguin Classics.

International Marketing Essay

UK is one of the major centers for commerce and international business in the world. It is one country that has had to raise its economy through free trade and other business related portfolios. It later developed to principles of liberalization of international trade and investments in order for it to expand and grow especially in the 20th century. It has been able to attract large investments from multinational countries in order to meet the demand for the larger British population thereby minimizing unemployment rates. This paper will therefore examine the investment opportunities and challenges in UK (Office for National Statistics, UK 2006). Foreign investments Opportunities The UK has very many opportunities in terms of foreign investments. It is one of the fifth largest economies in the world and second in the European Union. The country’s capital, which is London, is considered a haven of investments especially in the financial sector. The country has a GDP of $ 2. 1 trillion and a GDP growth rate of 2 %. (2007 estimates). Most of the opportunities lie in the service sector (Office for National Statistics, UK 2006) Industries UK has very many industries that can be invested in by any foreign country and the major ones are; agriculture, telecommunications, manufacture, fishing and tourism. The UK is one of the leading countries in agricultural exports and this is the main driving force for its economy. (Bailey, 1999) International trade statistics Major exports The dollar value for most of the export trading has been improving due to increase in demand for exports going by recent statistics on total exports from the UK. The trend however has been found to be fluctuating and that it depends on other factors such as; political stability, foreign policies etc. (Office for National Statistics, UK 2006) The major exports the country has been undertaking are the agricultural produce; wheat, rice, maize and tea. In the manufacturing the sector, the country exports agricultural machinery such the tractors and its implements, food, tobacco, paper, printing, textiles, paper and publishing. In the service sector, the country has developed high-tech networks in the telecommunications industry. The leading company in this sector is Vodafone and it has also gone global in its service provision. Major imports The major imports that are imported to the country include automobiles, horticultural produce, tea, coffee, and oil. The dollar value for most of the imports is low as the demand for the products reduces in the country. The dollar value increases when oil products become scarce due to international demand. (Bailey, 1999) Balance of payments situation According to the Office of National statistics, the manufacturing industry accounted for approximately 19% of all the national output in UK last year and also made up to 16% of all the employment in the country. The British economy does not however depend entirely on this and it may decline in the next two to three decades. Other industries are coming up especially the service sectors with a view to balance payments situation in regard to treasury bills. (Office for National Statistics, UK 2006) Exchange rates Exchange rates in the UK have been changing since the year 1999 and today, the exchange rates are way below the 0. 54 mark. This can be attributed to the changing events of the decade and globalization (Bailey, 1999). The following table shows the changing exchange rates-over the counter- for the Sterling pound, Euros and the dollars. Year ? /USD USD/? ?/EUR EUR/? 2005 ? 0. 5500 $1. 821 ? 0. 6842 â‚ ¬1. 463 2006 ? 0. 5426 $1. 859 ? 0. 6815 â‚ ¬1. 467 Source: Office for National Statistics, UK 2006 Trade restrictions 1. Embargoes Embargoes are political trade tools that are put by trading bodies or governments in order to support a justified peace process. Trade embargoes in the UK has been used to support either the EU or the UN in order to deny individuals the opportunity to use money from international trade in buying weapons of mass destruction. This will be used for the purpose of containing retrogressive countries the financial capability to use trading activities for insecurity purposes. Such countries which have been blacklisted by the UK include; Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Zimbabwe etc. (Neid, 1988) 2. Quotas Tradable quotas are policy instruments aimed at restraining trade of certain commodities in the UK. Limiting the production or importation of non-environmentally friendly automobiles can reduce taking for example greenhouse gases. The UK has been able to meet its environmental objective through the implementation of quotas systems. (Neid, 1988) 3. Import taxes Import taxes are designed to protect local industries from international competitors who may be financially stronger than them. This strategy has been utilized by the UK in order to protect vulnerable sectors of its economy. Although it allows importation of textiles, the country charges high import taxes on all unprocessed hides and skins to protect its local industries. (Lawrence, 2002) 4. Tariffs Trade tariffs are the main hindrance to trading between two countries. These trade tariffs depend with policies formulated by individual countries concerning how the countries wish to conduct its trading. The United Kingdom has however developed a smooth and business free environment for most countries in Africa, Asia and the U. S. this has made investment more conducive for many multinational firms. (Neid, 1988) 5. Licensing Licensing is one of the techniques used to promote international trading. The UK has been able to utilize licensing agreements with other international firms to boost its trading. The country has also been able to license many international firms to operate in the country as a means of encouraging investments. (Lawrence, 2002) 6. Custom duties Custom duties are one of the main sources misunderstandings between countries due to the fact that they favor the home-based industries. Custom duties are usually employed by the government top curb influx of external products into the country. The UK has been able to utilize this remedy effectively especially in sectors which the government feels threatened such as energy, education, transport and manufacturing. (Bailey, 1999) Extend of economic activity not included in cash income transactions The extent, to which other economic activities which does not include cash income transactions, is not wide and especially that the economy is entirely dependent on two core industries. I. e. service and manufacturing. The rest which may not involve cash transactions. (Neid, 1988) Counter trades The UK has used counter trade strategies to improve their international presence in almost all its sectors. Counter trades function effectively when the trading countries agree on issues such as import duties, taxes and tariffs (Bailey, 1999). Labour force The UK labor force currently stands at 31 million going by 2007 statistics. Majority of this labor force are concentrated in the private sector and some of them in the public sector. Most of the employees in sectors such as the health sector may have been imported to the country to serve as nurse this has been caused by the worldwide shortage of the same. The unemployment rates in UK currently stand at 5. 4 %( 2007 estimates) most of whom are fresh graduates and the poorly educated young men and women in the country. (Office for National Statistics, UK 2006) Inflation rates The inflation rate for the UK as at 31st December, 2006, was 2. 3% and a poverty rate of 17 % by then. The inflation however, fluctuates depending on the economic situation of the country (Office for National Statistics, UK 2006) Developments in science and technology UK is one of the European counties which have invested heavily on innovation and technology. Almost all sectors of its economy are coping up with changes in technology. The country is using technology as means of out-competing its competitors in the manufacturing and service sectors. That is why most firms in the country are investing in research and development. The government has been able to utilize 5. 4 % of the GNP on R&D in the last fiscal year ending March 31, 2007. The technological skills of the current labor force in the UK can be rated good depending on which sector one is referring to. With reasonable levels of literacy (79% at the moment), the country’s population can improve. (Office for National Statistics, UK 2006) Conclusion There is a team of science and technology promoters under the department of UK Trade and Investment whose role is to help firms realize their international potential through partnership support and knowledge transfer. It mainly enhances competitiveness of companies trading in the UK and also those involved in international trade. The UK has been able to attract high quality foreign direct investments through this department which offers guidance and direction including available opportunities and marketing. References Bailey, M.(1999): Exchange rate trends and trade performance; Waldwick Archive, Vol 12 Ferguson, N (2004): Empire, The rise and demise of the British world order and the lessons for global investments. Basic Books, Oxford, p 90 Lawrence H. (2002): Exchange rate between the United States dollar and forty other countries and its effects on investment, Macmillan, Washington. P 34-40 Neid H. (1988): Multinational investment strategies in British Isles, Routlegde, UK. P 122-131 Office for National Statistics (UK 2006): The Official Yearbook of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. P 45-57

Descartes & matrix essays

Descartes & matrix essays Matrix is an interesting movie because it examines very basic questions of philosophy. The existence of human being, the reality of this world we live and the questions of the reliability of human mind are examined during the movie. When examined deeply, it is found that the philosophy of Matrix has very common features with the philosophy of Descartes. The dream metaphor, the deception of people by a malignant demon, the reliability of certain physical truths, and split of mind and body are the most significant ones. But there are also some significant differences, since the possibility of dreaming is remained as a possibility for Descartes whereas in the movie it is realized. Moreover, the existence of God is another big difference since Descartes is a strong believer but movie ignores the existence of God. In the movie Matrix, before Neo discovers the reality, Morpheus asks Neo Have you ever had a dream, Neo, that you were so sure was real? and he continues, What if you were unable to wake from that dream, Neo? How would you know the difference between the dream world and the real world? In the movie, the dream, which Neo woke, was his own life. He could not sense that the world in which he is living is just a dream. The whole story of the movie is started up by the wake-up of Neo and some other people from their dreams, namely the Matrix. The most surprising similarity between the Matrix and the philosophy of Descartes is the dream metaphor. Descartes, similarly, asserts that we might be in a dream in which, even if we realize that we are dreaming we could not wake up. Descartes started to build his argument by giving examples of real life such as How often, asleep at night, am I convinced of just such familiar events - that I am here in my dressing gown, sitting by the fire - when in fact I am lying undressed in bed (75). The objects in our dreams are sam...

A Sociological View of Rastafarianism

A Sociological View of Rastafarianism Essay Organized religion is a duality between the religion and the church which represents it. Sometimes the representation of the religion is marred and flawed to those who view it because of the bureaucracy contained within. Unknown to those who gaze upon the dissolved morals and values of what is perceived to be the contradiction known as modern religion, it was never intended to be this way. Most religions started off as a sect, a minor detail on the fringes of the society it never wanted to represent. Rastfarianism is such a sect. The differences between Rastafarianism and a normal mainstream religion are numberless, including: no set membership, no authoritative leader, no offices of authority, no trained clergy and no involvement with the world as a whole. Rastafarianism is based upon an underrepresented minority which needed hope in the face in utter demise. According to Max Weber, religion emerges to satisfy a social need. In treating suffering as a symptom of odiousness in the ey es of gods and as a sign of secret guilt, religion has psychologically met a very general need (Weber 271). Rastafarianism emerges in the slums of Kingston, Jamaica in the 1930s to meet the needs of the poor, unskilled black Jamaicans who needed a hope. The social situation which was emerging in the 1930s which called for this need was as follows. Jamaica was a commonwealth of the British Empire. It had recently, around 1884, received a write in clause to their constitution which stipulated if the new government did not succeed and the economic life of Jamaica were to suffer because of it, the political constitution would be amended or abolished to meet new conditions. Black Jamaicans had a taste for power in their mouths and in 1938, this erupted in labor riots and violence. This act did nothing for their cause. It would still be 30 years until Jamaica received its independence. Blacks in Jamaica were the victims of social stratification which left them at the bottom rung of the la dder. They had menial jobs such as field worker or an attendant at the sugar plant, if they had jobs at all. The blacks were suffering as a people and as an organized group. Ethopianism had been introduced to Jamaica in 1784 by George Liele, by adding it to the name of his Baptist church, hoping to graft itself onto the African religion of Jamaican slaves. But the movement to embody the Ethiopian ideology par excellence was the Back to Africa movement of Marcus Garvey (Barret 76). He saw African civilization as anterior to all others and used bible verses which were easily interpretable to portray Africans as the chosen people mentioned in the bible, as in Psalm 68: Princes shall come out if Egypt and Ethiopia shall stretch forth his hands onto God (Barret 78). Garveys persistence culminated in the crowning of Ras Tafari as Negus of Ethiopia. He took the name Haile Selassie and added King of Kings and the Lion in the Tribe of Judah, placing himself in the legendary line of King Solo man, and therefore, in the same line as Jesus Christ of Roman Catholicism. Out of this came Rastafarianism which took over Jamaica at a time when it was in a low tide economically and socially. Socially, people experienced the brunt of the Depression as well as disaster due to a devastating hurricane. Politically, colonialism gripped the country and the future of the masses looked hopeless. Any doctrine which that promised a better hope and a better day was ripe for hearing (Barret 84). Weber analyzed conditions such as these as a theodicy of suffering. One can explain suffering and injustice by refrying to individual sin committed in former life, to the guilt of ancestors . . . to the wickedness of all people. As compensatory promised one can refer to hopes of the individual for a better life in the future of this world or to the for the successors, or to a better life in the hereafter (Weber 275). In other words, those who are disadvantaged in a situation (the poor, hopeless, black Jamaicans) will be rewarded. The poor people have a decided advantage in the Rastas view, since they are forced to look into themselves and confront the basic reality of human existence and only there can God be found (Owens 173) Their negative situation will be turned into a positive one (transvaluation) because they are the truly righteous, or so they believed. Rastafarianism was more than a religion to the people of Jamaica, it was a hope. It was their escape from the the rational e veryday world. This theodicy of suffering, in which the underprivileged and underrepresented Jamaicans believed, was compensation for the deplorable state in which they found themselves. The Rastafarian way of living and their everyday activities began as a deviant social behavior, but rather was a routinization of the masses into one cohesive unit, following the same general creed under different principles. This point can be seen most specifically in the modern Rastafarian hairstyles. In traditional Rastafarianism most Rastas do not cut their hair but allow it to grow naturally long matted strands or locks. These locks are in accordance with the Leviticus 21:5: They shall not make baldness upon their head (Johnson-Hill 25). But in todays Rastafarianism, their are men who will not grow facial hair or locks in accordance to their position in the work place and in society, but still believe in the faith of and consider themselves a part of the Rastafarian religion. This process of electing points on a subject in which a followers ideas converge with is called elective affinity, as coined by Max Weber. This elective affinity concerning Rastafarianism was spurred by cha rismatic prophets of the belief system such as Marcus Garvey, Haile Selassie, and Samuel Brown. All of these men preached to the negatively privileged strata which existed in the Jamaican slums and the impoverished Jamaican parishes. The underprivileged strata became a status group in a sociological point of view when they selected Rastafarianism and Haile Selassie as their god. This annunciation and promise led these impoverished blacks into a status group known as Rastafarians. This elective affinity between underprivileged Jamaicans and Rastafarians was seen most directly in a change in diet to follow Kosher food laws, a change in hair style, the use of a different language, and a the use of a holy weed; ganja. These highly visible symbols served as a solidification of a persons elective affinity and a public statement of their beliefs. To become a member of the Rastafarian status group was to embrace the lifestyle and the conceptual livity of a personal relationship with nature, in a pure organic way (Johnson-Hill 25). The Rastafarian lifestyle, at its early core, was based upon responses to social actions cast forth by the Jamaican bureaucracy. These actions exist on the guise of a messianic hope which is generally known as Ethiopia or Africa (Barret 117). The first reaction is aggression, which was exemplified by the social struggles for equality or even acknowledgment by the economically challenged island residents. The second reaction is acceptance. This ambivalence toward the situation is more of a standstill than anything else. The act of accepting ones own unfortunate situation negates the aggression and action of the previous step. This is where the Messianic values began to seep into the Rastafarian watershed. With these people and this clear-cut fashion only among them and under other very particular conditions, the suffering of a peoples community, rather than the suffering of the individual, became the object of hope for religious salvation (Weber 273). Rastafarian men and women began to forget their own individual struggles and rely on the preaching from Haile Selassie to comfort them as a group. Individuality is looked down upon in the Rastafarian religion. The status group or strata will suffer as a whole, not as individual pieces of a puzzle. Every Rastafarian considers himself an authoritative spokesman for Selassie. It is consequently unthinkable that one of the brethren should assume special prerogatives in speaking for the Emperor (Owens 43). READ: Education Starts at Home EssayThe third and final response to social action by Rastafarians is avoidance. This act is predominated by the view that Jamaica is Babylon and Ethiopia is Zion. This metaphor implying hopelessness in Jamaica acts very much, in Marxian terminology, as an opiate. This outlook on everyday life does not produce action, rather it reduces it. Another example of this can be seen economically. The Rastafarians generally represent the lowest segment of the Jamaican social class . . . This level of Jamaican society represents the largest body on unemployed and underemployed and the greatest number of unemployables . . . (Barret 115). This fact is well known among the Rastafarians and it is partially why many are in the religion, acceptance into a social class which is higher than their own. They have mostly given up on employment besides that of home produced items which are pawned to tourists or others within the Rastafarian movement. Their is no motivatio n to produce economically because most of the industry within Jamaica during the early Rastafarian period was controlled by the British land owners. Working for these British men would have been a direct violation of their religious creed; The white person is inferior to the black person (Barret 104) and The Black person is the reincarnation of ancient Israel, who, at the hand of the White person, has been in exile to Jamaica (Barret 104). This ties into Webers Theodicy of Suffering because to suffer economically is to suffer through all aspects of ones life. But, many times, as previously illustrated, an ambivalence to end suffering leaves one still in the same peculiar situation. Without a motive to change, there is not change in a cultures motives. So, the early Rastafarians suffered not from a theodicy of suffering which was merely and only forced upon them by the white Jamaican bureaucracy; but rather a self- imposed and self-induced level of their suffering. This way of viewing Rastafarian all changed as time passed. Social strata are decisive for the development of a religion (Weber 282) and as the social strata which embodies this religion began to change, the religion changed proportionately with it. This can be seen in contrasting the previous three social reactions just stated: aggression, acceptance and avoidance. As the general body of Rastafarianism began to grow old and pass away, so did many of their ideas and rationalitys concerning the religion in which they were a part. These views were handed down to the new, younger members of the Rastafarian religion and updated substantially to concur with the new time period and the new state of Rastafarians in Jamaica. Largely, there is no need for one to use aggression to prove equality in Jamaica. The modern Rastafarian, rather is a symbol of the Jamaican lifestyle and one can almost mistakenly assume all Jamaicans embody the Rastafarian way of thinking and lifestyle. The newly indep endent Jamaica uses aspects of the traditional Rastafarian to promote its tourism industry: such as the reggae music which originally symbolized the suffering of black Jamaicans, the dread locks which represented the I-tal way of organic living and the artifacts and cultural productions of such Rastafarian artisans. Rastafarians no longer accept their status as a constant; an unchanging fact which merely misrepresents them in popular culture. They have began to work on their economic status within the Jamaican community. Rastafarians now occupy enviable positions in Jamaica. There are Rasta physicians, pharmacists, professors, journalists, pilots, teachers . . . to name only a few of their trades and professions (Barret 243). They are willing to educate their children to become productive citizens of the country, which is evident in the formation of Rasta primary and secondary schools and the possibility of a Rasta university within Jamaica. Rastafarians now have control over their own destiny within the scope of mass media and their ultimate portrayal. With the advent of educated and world minded Rastafarians, the Rastafarian movement has proliferated out of Jamaica and into the mainstream of the world, including both the United States and England. The final large change concerning Rastafarians is avoidance. Instead of avoiding the problems in Jamaica and praying for a magical repatriation to Ethiopia, they have first decided to repair the problems which exist in Jamaica before they leave for Zion. This new brethren is focused on change and one way they have decided to accomplish this is through political action. Rastafarians are traditionally apolitical; they do not vote. Their word for politics is politricks, which sums up their perception of the political game (Barret 220). With the election of a pro Rastafarian prime minister, Michael Manley, Rastafarians were encouraged to use their constitutional rights and vote. There is no way of telling how many Rastafarians voted or continue to vote, but their role in Jamaican culture requires them to be addressed and noticed. The act of being spoken to and about in a public forum is just aspect in which indirectly they have traversed out of the avoidance stage. Rastafarians also no l onger avoid the media. Rather, they embrace it and use it to their advantage. This is evident is the many quotes and passages contained within Leonard Barrets book and the relative ease of access he obtained many on these passages. The Rastafarian culture is moving toward the future, and as Weber stated, changing with the social strata, which is changing with the times. It can then be inferred Rastafarianism is a constantly updated and evolving entity, modernizing as the world does so as well. But this evolving modern entity did not always keeps its modernity defined. Many of the actions of Rastafarianism worked against modernity and favored a complete stand still in all actions of life. In effect, the pain of the poor black Jamaica strata directly led into a form of ambivalence which militated against social and economic change; in essence, the status group of Rastafarians and their beliefs acted as an opiate against socioeconomic change. Religion is the opium of the people (Marx 54). This opium like quality leads directly into a state of false consciousness, which ties in directly with Webers theodicy of suffering. Both of these militate against socieconomic change by giving a check of approval to a negative situation. In this way, Marx and Weber are showing the flaws in the Rastafarian system. The inherent flaw of giving false hope or false consciousness to a people based on a system (Rastafarian) which at its base complies with stagnant situations and life styles. At t he same time, Marxism can be interpreted as a direct conflict with itself. The Rastafarian movement occupies not only an opiate status, but a status of opposition as well. The Rastafarian movement was founded originally as an opposition to the bureaucratic ways of the ruling class. The religion modeled greatly an American democratic way of thinking: by the people for the people. The people are the underrepresented and under appreciated blacks of Jamaica. In comparison with a Weberian sociological thought process, they both agree upon Rastafarian as basically an evolution. This plays more into Marxs favor because of the direct correlation between themselves. Like the Rastafarian evolution, in which they retreated on many of their former beliefs and creeds, Marx also did the same according to the time he was writing in. So, a direct comparison can be made through the evolution of Marx and Rastafarianism; both occur because of the rise of modernity and culture around them, directly eff ecting the person or group in question. READ: Theories on and Analysis of Information Management in KFCMarx and Weber also collide in beliefs on the idea of theodicy of suffering. Weber believed religion emerges to fulfill a social need. The poor, black, Jamaicans needed hope, and with their economic status, suffering was a major part. Taken on a face value then, the Jamaican culture can be divided into two distinct classes: theodicy of suffering and theodicy of good fortune. The former group, those who indirectly believe in a theodicy of suffering, are alienated from the latter group. Within the suffering group, there is alienation among members due to separation from product. The product, in this case, is their religion. Now all of the members of the Rastafarian status group belong to Rastafarianism as a whole, but there are sects within the sect, which are different from each other. For an example, the emergence of the uptown Rasta which differs in belief system from Rastafarianism as a whole. The alienation comes in the fact that the people, not as one unified group, but as a large organization of individuals are single entities and none speak for the religion. Criticism of this can be found in a previously mentioned Joseph Owens quote (see page four, first paragraph). Although each member is a spokesman for Selassie, is unthinkable to assume each member of the brethren might have something different to say? This leads to alienation among those within the same sect. The previously stated belief contrasts with a Weberian point of view as well. In a Marxian view of thought, the poor should try to revolt against their ruling bureaucracy. This appropriation is further determined by the manner in which it must be effected. It can only be effected through a union, which by the character of the proletariat itself can again only be a universal one, and through a revolution . . . (Marx 192). There is a flaw under the question: how can a society revolt through Marxism and still be prone against change, an opiate in Marxian view, to their own standing within the community? Karl Marx would see this as a complete oxymoron. Rastafarianism should benefit the social group, not allow it to stop progression and merely graze the lips of those who chose it, giving them a short and unsatisfying taste of what is available to them. This yearning for more should lead the people into a full economic and political revolt against this bourgeoisie. While relatively similar to a Marxian point of view, Durkheimian sociology sees Rastafarianism as a social entity. This religion was originally associated as Jamaican poor and the term Rasta and poor, black Jamaican could be used interchangeable. And with this association, Rastafarianism emerged to regulate the desires of the Jamaican poor. It brought about a solidarity among the lowest status class which served as a jumping point into embracing their situations. Thus, the religion is inseparable from the groups which contain it. This occupies the ideas of Weber in that if the religion is inseparable from the groups which contain it, then, the religion will indirectly evolve as the group evolves. This basically complies with the Weberian point of view that religious beliefs change along with the strata which embody them. Also, if Rastafarianism is a social entity, it therefore must have risen out of the need for a social set of values, complying with the Weberian ideal of religion em erging to satisfy a social need. This Durkheimian point of view also crosses paths with the views of Karl Marx. If religion brings about solidarity among a status group which happens to be underprivileged, revolution is a possible following steps. One person may revolt, but one needs masses along the same ideals to successfully revolt. By integrating society, one brings the society or group on the same consciousness, although it may be a false consciousness. No matter rational or irrational, the motives exist and can be accomplished with aid of a charismatic prophet, in this case, Marcus Garvey or Samuel Brown. To update this idea, there is a popular t-shirt which states Never underestimate stupid people in large groups. The same could be applied to a Marxian and Durkheimian point of view. Their t-shirt might say Never underestimate the power of alienated oppressed on the same intellectual level.Durkheim and Weber do disagree on some levels. One of them being the role of individuality within religion. A Durkheimian point of view toward individuality could not characterize the Rastafarian movement because it believes one should embrace all the exists, but do not include each other. This directly violates the Rastafarians belief in an I-n-I mentality. This implies a three-fold relationship between any individual self, Jah God, and other selves (Johnson-Hill 23). Max Weber sees religion as a unification of a people, which is evident in his distinction between strata and status. Rastafarianism is a status group, individuality is left behind at the strata before seemingly advancing into a higher level of consciousness, complete with its own symbols, language and customs, especially marijuana usage. Although the beliefs of a religion change, the essence of the religion does not. This is supported by Weber with the idea that changes in a decisive stratum lead to a change of beliefs. This is opposed by Durkheim stating a religion as a whole has lasted because it performs a social function; it integrat es those involved within it. The falsity is what people believe. So, if people change, the religion changes with the people, not necessarily minor beliefs within it. It is a cycle which includes the transfer of old gods to new gods, completely changing the religion with society. Rastafarianism has not faded away, and in fact has spread its brethren among many areas of the world. The Rastafarian movement is no longer a mere revolutionary movement; it has become a part of the establishment, a part of officialdom (Barret 245). Rastafarianism may have started on the fringes of Jamaican society, but it now a representation of what it considered hell. In terms of an outsider, Jamaica is no longer Babylon, it is now Rastafaria, a step on the way to utopian Zion. Rastafarianism is now an integration of all of Jamaican society rather that just one social strata. Its changes have moved along with the changes of Jamaica as a nation. The people of Jamaica are interchangeable with Rastafarianism. It is ironic which a group so hating of their own environment would become such a force as to represent it to the world. Rastafarianism is truly by the people, for the people.

Distribution strategies within the marketing mix Essay - 1

Distribution strategies within the marketing mix - Essay Example However, wholesalers are incapable of marketing the products and also eat a big chunk of the profit. In such a scenario, telemarketing plays an important role for a company. The article is highly relevant from point of view of Distribution Strategies because with changing nature of businesses, the proliferation of technology and shorter product cycles, the distribution strategies must also evolve. A large number of customers are getting used to Internet and e-commerce. Telemarketing has been existent for a long time as an effective sales channel. However with growing customer base and complexity, larger organizations need to take help of specialized brokers and agents to take advantage of economies of scale. It saves considerable long-term costs for the company as well. Also the use of wholesalers for distribution must be though over rigorously. While they are a vital link in the distribution chain, they also act as a cost centre for a company. Economically, it may not make sense for small organizations to use external agents or brokers for this purpose. However, in order to venture into foreign markets, they may be required in small