Drilling vs Solar Power

I choose solar power over drilling oil. I chose this â€Å"side† because drilling oil is hazardous to the environment. Solar energy is from energy directly from the sun’s radiation and Drilling is coming from below the ocean floor. The oil spill in the gulf 2010 was devastating to the environment and is still being looked at as one of the worst environmental disasters of all time. Solar power is better for the environment and we can use it for years to come. The key habits for hindering my thinking when looking at the opposing view, was stereotyping that oil drilling is not safe and causes a lot of problems for the environment because of what I heard in the news. I was also was resistance to change, I don’t like change but when it comes to the environment I believe we have to stand up for what we believe in. I also used the â€Å"mine is better habit† where I thought my opinion was the right one until I researched the topic. After researching I found out that oil spills can be devastating to wildlife. Drilling oil creates jobs which is influential for the economy. In return solar power is better for the environment because it uses natural process for energy. In order for solar energy to work you must have temperature, it is an important factor that may affect the performance of solar power. I still believe that solar power is more beneficent because we are protecting our wild life and environment. What I can do to overcome my habits hindering my thinking is to not be resistant to change. Try and not believe that my opinion is the right one, I have to do my research so I can back up what I am saying. Try not to stereotype that all drilling is bad. I need to examine my first impression of the problems and issues. I need to research all views of the situation and then determine what is best. I did research benefits of solar power and drilling and then researched the disadvantages of both I stand by my choice that if I had to choose between the two I would still choose solar power. I found both topics to be intriguing and informative.

First-Time Buyers Essay

Housing is a common asset that most people regard as their biggest financial asset and the largest make-up of their wealth; the purchase of a house is usually one of the largest investments an individual will make, and therefore lower house prices may encourage more people to consider purchasing housing, serving as a more affordable investment. On the obvious side a fall in house prices will only encourage further demand for housing. A demand & supply analysis will show that the falling prices should theoretically allow individuals who are considering buying a house but holding back due to fluctuations in prices finally take the jump onto the property ladder – falling prices provides an incentive for individuals to make this large investment, particularly as in the long term the value of housing may also increase depending on the state of the economy. While falling prices may indicate a slump in an economy, it provides an excellent chance for people who previously may have not been able to afford a purchase to do so. It is also important to take into account that housing is also a necessity in any part of the personal life cycle, and therefore any fall in prices will create an opportunity and incentive. It also does not necessarily mean that first-time buyers must look to make a large investment immediately; extract two suggests that lower prices may allow considerers to think of renting property as an early ‘alternative’, helping save up for a single cash deposit which would then in turn allow first-timers to climb onto the property ladder. However, as stated in extract two falling house prices does not necessarily indicate a good environment for contemplating investors to finally make the choice of investing; there are numerous other costs to consider such as the availability of mortgages, described as ‘dropping to its lowest level for more than a decade’. The lack of mortgages may in fact serve as a deterrent to first-time buyers, preventing them from climbing onto the property ladder as there are numerous other costs to consider. Extract two also states that lenders have refused to drop their interest rates in line with the governmental cuts, and once again this will only provide a disincentive to first-time buyers no matter how low the price of housing falls. Rising unemployment and cuts in the subsidies budget towards building affordable homes will also serve to undermine confidence in the housing market. While the governmental cut in subsidies towards funding new affordable homes may not have a direct impact on a first-time buyers decision, it is important to note that this policy will contribute to the level of confidence in the housing market, an example being lenders no longer willing to cut their interest rates following suit of the government doing so; the government is offering little support in the housing market and many are therefore not willing to take the risks. The people that will lose out from this ultimately are the first-time buyers who will be deterred from making such a large investment particularly if lenders and the government provide little confidence in this market. Therefore, while the fall in housing prices may incentivise first-time buyers to some degree overall it is likely to only have a limited effect, as many buyers will still be put off by the inability to receive mortgages as well as the other numerous financial costs involved.

Microfinance provides both opportunities and challenges for women Essay

Microfinance provides both opportunities and challenges for women. Critically discuss with reference to at least one case study - Essay Example Land titling, it is believed, gives the poor a way out of poverty and integrating them into the markets. But many land titling programs as development projects do not take into account gender inequalities. Land lies at the heart of agrarian economies; which includes much of the developing world. Traditionally it has formed the basis of power, social status and is a vital productive resource. For rural women, however, the unequal ownership and control of this valued asset has become a critical factor that has created and reinforced gender inequality. World wide, in many rural societies women, like men, are active farmers and play substantial roles in primary agriculture production. Yet, they own very little land and are instead dependent upon social and customary provisions for indirect use as daughters, wives, mothers and community members (Agrawal, 1996). These rights are linked primarily to access, which do not grant security when traditional family structures dissolve in the case of divorce, desertion, widowhood and separation (Agrawal, 1989). This is especially relevant in todays context which is characterized by globalization, land commoditization, HIV/AIDs epidemic and increased feminization of agriculture (Agrawal, 1996, Whitehead and Tsikata, 2003, Razavi, 2009). According to Agrawal (1996), the idea of male bread-winner underlies the justification of men as legitimate owners of land; as it is assumed that sons will take care of mothers, while husbands and brothers will take care of wives and sisters respectively. Drawing upon the existing feminist literature, the paper seeks to draw out the arguments for womens land rights as a development intervention paradigm which maintain that it will lead to equality, empowerment, welfare and efficiency; followed by the discussions on the difficulties of its enforcement and consequences given existing cultural norms. The paper then discusses two case studies to highlight the benefits that have accrued

Research of Barclays Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Research of Barclays - Essay Example It also sponsored many big and major events also. This list of sponsorships may include Premier League, certain sports events e.g. tennis, golf and foot ball tournaments, the Churchill cup etc. Barclays is the second largest bank in the United States (Salz, 2013). There are also certain controversies which are associated with the name of Barclays as it is very usual matter that every banking institution is usually supposed to be involved in the money corruption cases. Same is the case with Barclays, most of the competitors tried to create a bad word of mouth regarding the Barclays bank but it was not successful and the popularity of the Barclays bank is still in the minds of its potential customers (Skinner, 2011). Need for Marketing Research: Due to difference in the customer needs and choices the Barclays bank is also trying to serve them at every level. That is the reason of having different banking products and services so that customers of different segments can be targeted easi ly (the Beans Group, 2012). When any company has such a versatile kind of target market and customers then there is a need of market research so that new and prevailing trends in the market can be analyzed efficiently. The promotional tools of the banking products and services would also be different for different customers. While doing market research the company should be capable of covering costs and also sell the product at a profit. They should also be able to handle the expected problems of the new segment (FAO Corporate document Repository). Marketing Research at Barclays: There is so much competition in the banking industry that every bank has to be vigilant about the opportunities arising in the customer market so that it can be grabbed at once and then have a first mover advantage in offering new services to its potential customers. To achieve this vigilance by the company the marketing research should be very much active and effective also. Marketing research actually mea ns to collect the customer related data from the market segments and thus analyzing it in comparison with the company’s resources and also the cost involved. This marketing research also helps to devise future plans for the company. Barclays have analyzed the potential in the students target market and thus do a market research to find out whether this would be a profitable decision to launch any product regarding this segment (Havard Business School, 2013). Barclays have considered the students as the major segment to be invested in. They did a marketing research in order to analyze the potential of this specific market segment (Elizabeth, 2012). Barclays has a competitive advantage over other companies due to the geographic area it has covered (Barclays PLC Bank Annual Report, 2012). On the basis of this advantage Barclays can compete over them in the future also by serving more and more segments. The research and development department of the Barclays is very effective. Th e research team provides actionable ideas that are based on the consumer preferences (Barclays PLC Bank Annual Report, 2012). At first the company which is going for market research should focus on its own image created in the customer’s eye (Gerber). In this way it can be easily analyzed that how the population of that segment will perceive that company’s product. The research and development department at Barclays efficiently try to cover all the possible segments of the consumer market and even also made valuations and other

Fuell cell technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Fuell cell technology - Essay Example It does not take a great deal of environmental knowledge to realize that the effect that humans are having upon the environment has produced noticeable side effects. Although technology has aided in making life easier, the fact of the matter is that many of the negative impacts that humans are currently displaying upon the environment are the direct result of the technological advancement that has been realized within the past few hundred years. Almost invariably, the negative impact that humans have upon the environment is both the result of the production process of passenger cars as well as the pollutant nature in which they oftentimes operate. Once again, technology, within the past few decades, has aided automobile manufacturers in greatly reducing emissions; however, the fact of the matter is that within the current technology of engine designed and means of transportation that is practiced, there is only a certain amount that can be improved without moving on to a new more sus tainable and efficient process. As a function of this unique juncture that exists, this analysis will pay a particular level of interest with regards to fuel-cell technology, the use of CNG, and LPG fuels as well as seeking to measure their overall efficiency, abundance, and cleanliness with respect to the environment. Fuel cell technology Though it may seem as something that is only been around for a relatively short period of time, the fuel-cell can trace its basic principle back as far as 1893; discovered by Sir William Grove. More recently NASA utilized the same principles of the fuel-cell in seeking to power space exploration vehicles; such as the moon car that was used on the Apollo mission. As technology has increased, fuel cells and become much more popular within the consumer market; even powering homes around the world. At its most basic level, the fuel cell is nothing more than a battery which is powered by hydrogen. In comparison to the fuel efficiency of such a mechanis m, one should consider the fact that the energy content in a single kilogram of hydrogen is greater than three times the same amount of gasoline. Moreover, as any introductory chemistry lesson will make plainly evident, hydrogen is the most common element within the entire universe; making this an ideal fuel to exploit without the necessary drawbacks that fossil fuels bear. However, environmentally speaking, the greatest advantage of hydrogen is the fact that the process of burning hydrogen as fuel creates no exhaust rather than mere water and oxygen. With regards to the overall drawback, the greatest of these is the fact that storing and readily retrieving the hydrogen any useful state has provided researchers with many difficulties. The fuel-cell benefits on the mechanical level of fuel cell can be used to provide motion to a vehicle by producing electricity which then drives an electric motor providing power to the wheels. Due to fact that fuel cells do not have any specific omis sions, such as carbon, the net exhaust of this process is environmentally neutral. Moreover, and perhaps more importantly from the engineering standpoint, the fuel-cell represents a more efficient transfer of energy as compared to internal combustion engines (upwards of 40%

Organizational Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Organizational Analysis - Essay Example How ICT has been beneficial and harmful to organizations has been addressed in this essay along with a discussion of how worker community is getting impacted and suggestive measures to improvise upon the use of strategic ICT in organizations. Before proceeding onto describing the positives and negatives of ICT, it is imperative to first understand its meaning. In general parlance, information and communication technologies assist in the processing and management of information and data on large scale. Applying it specifically to business scenarios reveal unique aspects of ICT in the domains of decision making, support systems, office automations, networking and electronic forms of interaction between employees of an organization (Andriessen & Koopman 1996, p.321). Thus, ICT in organizations started as a facilitating and cost saving tool but now has assumed the role of a strategic business partner where competencies and resources are being derived from the use of ICT. In this light, the emergence of Web 2.0 is the biggest achievement of ICT worldwide minimizing distance between boundaries and making the world round. Data converted into digital form can be stored in large amounts on systems and computers which makes storage easy and portable to organizations. Traditionally, information saved in black and white used to get distorted by various means and no evidences were available when needed. By storing data and information in electronic format, anyone can have access to it 24*7 and limitations of distance, time and speed have been done away with by use of ICTs in organizations. This is the prime supporter behind online businesses and bank and other monetary transactions operating in real time. Concepts of video conferencing and other modes of interaction are saving both time and cost for companies. Availability of information 24*7 has made organizations more

How do the Bankers Bonuses Affect the Investment Behaviour Research Paper

How do the Bankers Bonuses Affect the Investment Behaviour - Research Paper Example The concerns and the perception have changes and numerous controversial ideas have changed the bankers’ bonuses ideologies significantly. Therefore, the research aims at identifying and analyzing the effects of bankers’ bonuses to the banking investment especially in relation to the performance of the banks. The main aim of the bonus banking is to balance long-term and short-term value creation and satisfying accountability of the stakeholders with the intent of attracting, retaining, and motivation talent. However, what is the underlying reality of this motivational system The research shall answer this concern by seeking the  response to the following question: In the journal, Banker’s pay structure and Risk, John Thanassoulis addresses the contrasting problems facing the banks and bankers. According to Thanassoulis, these contrasting banking problems are embedded in the competitive labor market where the banks are seeking best talents. Additionally, Thanassoulis notes that banks often use various motivation efforts that vary with the remuneration. However, the introduction of the remunerations motivations makes banks risk shifting problems by creating incentives that will only inflate the early earnings of the managers. In most cases, the management of some bonuses is of deferred optimally. Thanassoulis further notes that

EEOC Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

EEOC - Essay Example EEOC is a regulatory or a supervising body which is awarded with the function of ensuring that laws that are federal in nature are being followed by organization. These laws have made discrimination based on various aspects completely illegal. The main responsibility in the case of age discrimination of EEOC is to work as an investigator of age related discrimination charges that have been levied on employers who have at least 20 people working in their workforce (Findlaw, 2014). Once the investigate and figure out that charges levied are true, the EEOC tries to settle the case with the employer and if the charge settlement does not take place then EEOC files a law suit from the side of the employee who has experienced discriminatory practices. They even play the role of educator and they try to make sure that age related discriminatory practices do not occur by educating the employers and employees. In case of age related discrimination the federal laws state that it is the role of the employer to not to fire or hire or make decisions regarding compensation, benefits and training for employers on the basis of their respective age. But these laws are only limited to employees and applicants who age between 40 and 65. The law clearly states that employees should not be divided and provided less burdens and benefits in contrast to their age, and this clause even includes discrimination that is related to age and is conducted in terms of paying wages (Eeoc.gov, 2014). Employers are even restricted from printing as well as publishing material that is considered discriminatory on the basis of age. For example: employers may advertise positions based on ages and may restrict those who are above 40 from applying. Such advertisements are considered unlawful. The law even states that elements such as retirement as well as insurance plan should not even influence an

“The Vanishing Red” †Robert Frost Essay Example for Free

â€Å"The Vanishing Red† – Robert Frost Essay The images in the poem â€Å"The Vanishing Red† by poet Robert Frost stay with a reader for many years. The narrative of a murder and the starling imagery of the mill all play into the tenacity of this poem and lend to it’s lasting quality as a piece of substantial literature of the twentieth century. This is at odds with the explicated narrative of the poem, which instead describes a forgetful nation that makes its way on the broken backs and death of a people it is quick to forget. The act of forgetting is operant in lines 9 through 13: â€Å"You can’t get back and see it as he saw it. / It’s too long a story to go into now. / You’d have to have been there and lived it. / Then you wouldn’t have looked on it as just a matter / Of who began it between the two races.† In these lines Frost adamantly states that the murder of the last red man, the Native American in the poem, stands for the act of the entire history of the colonization of the United States. He talks about the acts of aggression between one side and the other with a cautious understatement in the words â€Å"just a matter.† The clear truth of the matter is that the Miller, standing point in the poem as the American Government, is a murderer and makes no compunction about what he does. This is attested to in lines 6 and 7, â€Å"Whose business—if I take it on myself / Whose business—but why talk round the barn?— / When it’s just that I hold with getting a thing done with?† The fact he is the miller, in control of the place of the act, combines with the amount of control he holds over other by refusing to license them to laugh. These powers are tantamount to the amount of control the government holds over its people. The people being controlled in this work are given only the faintest shadow of recognition as individuals. They are introduced as â€Å"The man with the meal sack† down in line 27. The man who does not get what is said but leaves, content to let the Miller go on with business as he sees fit, since he has a sack full of meal over his shoulder. The government has fed the people, however, there is clear indication that the people will have some concern later with the choice of the word â€Å"—then† tacked on, as if an arbitrary afterthought. A hungry people, be it for food, money, land, or change, are less likely to question their government than those who are content. The choice of the Mill as the location of the murder leads the reader into the heart of the Frost’s understanding of what was occurring at the time that the people allowed such horrific things to occur. The Mill, with its general noise and large turning wheels, grinding away not only the grains but also now bone and blood, stands as a monument to the revolution of industry. The images of the salmon and sturgeon, likewise flopping in the water, though not truly there, behave as a two-fold force. They are both other dying forces of nature as old as the Native American man, and at the same time they are strong and beautiful creatures that yearly fling themselves into the maw of death in an attempt to continue their species. Like the salmon and the sturgeon the â€Å"Vanishing Red† falls to the exploitation of the White capitalist government without a cry of foul from the onlookers. Throughout the poem Frost uses language ripe with symbolic meaning to address the murder of a people and the silence of a new nation that watched it happen. While ‘Red’ is often seen as a derogatory term for Native Americans when this poem is studied at length it is quite clear that the culprit and the true beast is the Miller and the silent man.

Women in the Civil War Essay Example for Free

Women in the Civil War Essay Historians agree that World War II changed life for American women in the 20th century. The Civil War had just as great an impact on the lives of American women in the 19th century. (http://www.defenselink.mil) Staying at home, women could help the war effort by running businesses, making clothes, and taking care of their farms, but some women wanted to do more. Some women went to become nurses and helped wounded soldiers, some became spies, and still others posed as men and enlisted in armies, almost all women did their best to help during the civil war. Over 3,000 women served as nurses between 1861 and 1865. Since nursing schools were not established until 1873 they had no formal training. Many had no work experience outside the home. (http://www.northnet.org) As nurses, women worked in hospitals taking care of wounded soldiers. The novelist Louisa May Alcott described the soldiers as riddled with shot and shell and torn and shattered. Two famous nurses were Mary Edwards Walker, who earned a Congressional Medal Honor for her medical service, and Clara Barton. Clara Barton was known as the Angel of the Battlefield, she used her home as a warehouse to store medical supplies, and with the help of her friends, she distributed them to troops. When the government began to send adequate supplies, she began an organization to locate missing soldiers. In 1869, she founded the American Red Cross, after traveling abroad. Dorthea Dix, who originally worked towards improving the care of mentally ill people, was recruited as the superintendent o f the Union army nurses. She made hospitals, oversaw sewing societies, helped get medical supplies, and recruited and trained women to be nurses. Her requirements in a nurse were strict not too young, not too pretty, and of strict moral character. She preferred farm women accustomed to the sight of blood. Nurses wore only plain brown or black dresses with no hoop skirts, jewelry, or accessories and no curls. (http://www.northnet.org) Many women became nurses to care for loved ones who had been injured in battle. Maria Eastman Olmstead Eldred, Ellon McCormick Looby, and Alvira Beech Robinson were a few nurses who left their homes to care for their injured husbands. (http://www.northnet.org) Many of the nurses were unprepared for the challenges and horrors that would face them. However, surrounded by death, confronted with the mangled bodies of soldiers and piles of loose limbs,  they persevered. Other women took a more active role in helping with the war and became spies. Two such women spies were Ginnie and Lottie Moon. They were two sisters who spied for the Confederates during the war. They were born in Virginia but moved to Oxford, Ohio when they were young. Their home, The Moon House is a historic site in Oxford. Emmeline Piggott was another spy and smuggler. She carried supplies and messages in large pockets under her full skirts. After doing this many times, she was caught, arrested, and imprisoned. However, she was released and sent home eventually. Elizabeth C. Howland was another successful Confederate spy. She sent her young son and daughter to carry messages. The young children, appearing innocent, were allowed to pass through enemy lines. (http://userpages.aug.com) One of the most famous female spies was Belle Boyd. After the war, she became an actress and was know on stage as La Belle Rebelle. Her real name was Isabelle Boyd, she was born in Martinsburg, West Virginia in 1844. Near the beginning of the war, she helped in traditional ways, rolling bandages and raising money for the Confederate forces, but that soon changed. Union soldiers occupied Martinsburg in July of 1861; Boyd mingled with Union officers and learned some of their plans. She told the Confederate forces all that she had heard. Boyd continued to spy for the Confederates and delivered messages for Maj. John S. Mosby. She was arrested by Union forces and held in Washington until she developed typhoid and was paroled in a prisoner exchange. Elizabeth Van Lew, a Union spy, accomplished much more than Boyd. Born in Richmond, Virginia, she despised slavery. She freed all of her family slaves and even bought other slaves to free them as well. She often visited Union prisoners held in Richmond, she took them food and medicine. Many of the prisoners had heard Confederate plans after they were captured, and Van Lew invented a code to send what they knew to Union forces. Her neighbors called her Crazy Bet, and she decided to act the part. She talked to herself, dressed in old and battered clothes, and did not comb her hair. All of Richmond thought that Crazy Bets sympathy for the Union was part of her madness. Van Lew also got one of her former slaves, Elizabeth Bowser, a job as a house servant for Jefferson Davis. Together, they collected and passed a great deal of information to the North. (http://www.defenselink.mil) Nancy Hart  served as a Confederate scout, guide, and spy; she carried messages between Southern Armies. She went to isolated Federal outposts, pretending to be a peddler, to report their strength, population, and vulnerability to General Jackson. Hart was twenty years old when she was captured and jailed, with guards constantly patrolling the building. Nancy gained the trust of one of her guards, got his weapon from him, shot him, and escaped. (http://userpages.aug.com) You will see by this paper that on the 15th day of November 1866 I enlisted in the United States army at St. Louis, in the Thirty-eighth United States Infantry Company A, Capt. Charles E. Clarke commanding. (http://www.buffalosoldier.net) Cathay Williams or William Cathay was a former slave, liberated by the Union who wanted to help in the war effort. She joined the war but before her three years were finished, she decided that she wanted to leave the army and complained of pains in her side, and rheumatism in her knees. The doctor who examined her discovered that she was a woman and she was discharged. (http://www.buffalosoldier.net) Other women who served as men were Sarah Emma Edmonds, alias Franklin Thompson, Jennie Hodgers who served and fought for three years as Albert Cashier, and a woman known only as Emily, who ran away from home at 19 and joined the drum corps of a Michigan Regiment. (http://userpages.aug.com) She was shot and her sex discovered, while dying she at first refused to give her real name but eventually agreed to dictate a letter to her father in Brooklyn. Forgive your dying daughter. I have but a few moments to live. My native soil drinks my blood. I expected to deliver my country but the fates would not have it so. I am content to die. Pray forgive me Emily. (http://userpages.aug.com) I think that if women had not helped as much as they did during the Civil War, it could have been completely different. These women greatly expanded the scope of expected persona of women in the 19th century. From La Belle Rebelle to 19 year old Emily, everyone helped in their own way.

Ford Motor Business Analysis

Ford Motor Business Analysis Introduction: Ford Motor company is one at the worlds largest manufacturers of automobiles and the worlds largest producer of trucks. Under the leadership at the Henry ford, the company implemented the assembly lime method of mass production and made the cars affordable for middle-class consumers. Ford is the second largest vehicle maker in the United States based on overall sales, trading only general motors corporation. Fords subsidiaries include the Hertz corporation, the worlds largest car rental company, and the worlds largest provider at automotive financing. Ford markets vehicles under the brands of ford, Lincoln, Mazda, Mercury and Volvo. Ford introduces methods for large scale manufacturing of cars and large-scale management of and individual workforce using elaborately engineering manufacturing sequence typified by moving assembly lines. Ford is currently the fourth largest automaker in the world based on number of vehicles sold annually. In addition to the Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brands, Ford also owns Volvo cars of Sweden, small stake in Mazda of Japan and Aston Martin of England. Fords former U.K subsidiaries Jaguar and Land Rover were sold to Tata motors of India in March 2008. Vision: Become the worlds leading company in the automobile products and services. Production of the largest numbers of cars with the simplest design and for lowest possible cost. Mission: Production of affordable vehicles for general public, with their mission, â€Å"put the world on wheels† Commitment in providing outstanding product and service for a globally diverse family, with proud heritage. Objective: Mass consumption of products with mass production, by increasing productivity. Doing the right things for customers who are society, people and environment. Five years strategy analysis of Ford There has been a sales down Ford motor company has applied different market strategy to maintain the position in new market for the current product. Ford continues to plan the special edition models of Mustang. Ford could put the next generation Mustang on the world market developed in Australia in around the 2012 or 2013. The fusion, which is now rides modified Mazda 6 platform, is likely to move to Fords global EUCD platform around the 2018 or 218 modal year. Since a long, the Ford is focusing on gaining and maintaining competitive advantages in this hyper competitive climate during the difficult economic environment. It had now faced the downturn in its sales and lost in market shares in the global perspective market, comparing to Far East Manufactures such as Hyundai. The strategies it has been persuading are; I. Differentiation: Differentiation is the offering the products or services which are uniquely different from those of its competitors. The Ford is defining the new range of products with differential quality of fuel efficiency, technology and aesthetics. It is continuing to introduce eco-boost engines for environment safety, fuel saving technology, six speed transmissions across wide range of vehicles. It has adopted most top safety features (roll stability, break support radar) for more convenience in all of its brands (Flex, Escape, Lincon MKS and Mercury Mariner e.t.c). It has also evaded technology like Active park assistant, Navigator, sexy Body Style, Interior etc. Ford is still continuing to introduce the advance form of battery technology through vehicles electrification programs. II. Cost Leadership: This is a strategy where the organisation enables itself to provide the product and services at a cost less than any other competitors. Ford as the innovative company is persuading competitive pricing strategies to its products and services. Comparing to its major rival competitors like Toyota and Hyundai, Fords pricing strategies is competitive with reference to the new technologies that it incorporates. However, the decline sales data and the decreasing customer confidence have displayed the importance of restructuring the pricing strategy to gain competitive advantage against competitors. Therefore Ford is moving towards the virtual tie on pricing level with high quality gain, superior style and interior, and fuel economy technologies. III. Focus: This is the strategy where the organisation targets its product and services at a given sector of market with great accuracy and with deft of capabilities and knowledge to support its position in the sector. Ford is establishing global marketing sales and service operations to integrate and drive more consistent and compelling connection with costumer around the world. It is implementing the ‘One Ford marketing vision to enhance cost saving and higher quality communication. It is expanding the licensed merchandise around the world to enhance the Ford brand image. Ford is focusing on new global small cars, Fiesta, Fusion, mid cars and utilities to achieve the more balanced global portfolio. The Ansoff matrix: Various strategic models can be employed to analyze and make marketing decisions. The Ansoff Matrix is well known classic strategy building model developed by H. Igor Anssof. The purpose of this model is to analyse the organizations approach to its product and markets. It plays an invaluable role in ascertaining whether an appropriate marketing strategy is being pursued and revels the possible, new opportunity. i. Market penetration: Ford with the wide range of product portfolio can look further penetrating its current market with its existing products. It is persuading strategies like ‘One Ford and ‘Global Marketing vision to provide high quality communication about its product and services. Its can further develop cost efficiency with quality and innovations to penetrate market all around the world. Due to relatively low risk involve in this strategy, the Ford Company can look forward to increase the substantial market portfolio by introducing new product features, competitive pricing and technologies. ii. Product development: This strategy means absolutely new products to make them more suitable to known market. Ford is investing in new smaller fuel efficiency vehicles to achieve more balanced global product market. It is applying ‘One Ford marketing techniques to convey high level communication, and expanding licensing merchandise all around the world to capture new markets. Therefore, it is very essential to ford to enhance brand imaging to achieve competitive success. This includes integrating companys marketing team members, global agencies and suppliers. iii. Market development: This strategy emphasis on expanding markets beyond those in which current products are sold. To enhance market development, Ford needs to understand the requirement and culture of the new market. The effective cost evaluation and perfect pricing is necessary with reference to its competitors. Therefore primary focus is need to be given on the quality in the minimum cost, in comparison to the competitors, to capture newer markets like China, India, Hongkong etc. The market entry risk is higher; therefore it is necessary to understand market behaviour. iv. Diversification: This strategy means new product to the new market. Ford is introducing the new products in coming year with global vision of ‘One Ford. It is introducing ‘new small car, plug-in-hybrids, battery powered vehicles and many more with smart technologies, economical and environmental friendly. Therefore it must consider on cost efficiency, reliability and its competitors activities. Due to high risk associated with this strategy, a great deal of market research is needed to be carried out before investing in new markets. Above are the strategic options available to turnaround Ford into sustainable strategic options. The ford comparing to other competitors, it lacks clear assessment in its pricing strategies, despite of its quality and technology. In this current economic downturn, customers are lacking confidence, thus Ford need to take step to move forward with its smart technologies, style and affordability. Conclusion: The Ford motor company is growing profitable global automotive company. It is streamlining and globalizing operations, to introduce more products that customer really want and value. It has aggressively restructured its operations to match production to demand, and it has shifted to a more balanced product line up offering the highest quality, safety, and value and fuel economy. The hard work global team as positioned Ford to survive the current recession, and succeed to earn good amount of profit in the third quarter of 2009. Ford is undergoing to most rapid and far ranging transformation, so that it can lead into the future with great new products.

Free Essays - Wrinkle in Time :: Wrinkle in Time Essays

  Wrinkle in Time By Madeline L ´Engle In Willstead town, in North Carolina strange things are happening. Do you want to know more? Well in A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, a wonderful writer tells all the weird things that are happening.   The setting of this story is on North Carolina, at the town of Willstead in the year of 2005.   One day Margaret was left by the Aliens when she was two- months old at planet Earth, and was found by the Murrie’s, a nice couple, that had one year of marriage. Several years had passed and Margaret grew up like a normal girl. Now she has twin brothers and a Collie dog. At school everybody thinks that she is a freak, but she is a ten-year-old girl, with beautiful eyes and a lot of intelligence. She is an alien but no one knows not even her. Margaret came to Earth by a computer fraud that caused a wrinkle in time. An old woman called Mrs. Whatsit came to Earth with a job to take Margaret back. She visits Margaret and buys her nice things to win Margaret’s confidence. Mrs. Whatsit lived in the middle of the woods. One day a robbery had been reported to the police. It was a missing blanket and the thief was Mrs. Whatsit because she needed a lot of warmth because planet Earth was too cold for them. The Tesseract that is the name of the species that Margaret and Mrs. Whatsit belong to. At school some rare people that were the same species of Margaret went to do a contest.  Ã‚   Margaret won the contest but this was no contest this were a series of exams that they had to do to Margaret to see if she could live in her home planet and see if she was fit to live there. Mrs. Whatsit was there and after the exams she sat down Margaret and started telling everything about her species and how she got here. At first Margaret didn’t believe it but afterwards she started understanding all the things she had passed through all alone with no one that could understand her. Mrs. Whatsit tells Margaret if she wants to go back where she is supposed to be and she stayed thinking and told her sh e would tell her later. Each day Mrs. Whatsit and Margaret went together to the park and Mrs.

Comparing Virtue and Vice in Garrick’s Romeo and Juliet and Bowdler’s R

Virtue versus vice is of great concern in the 18th century, an issue that causes a major shift in the presentation of plays on the stage. Stage writers adapted well-known plays to meet the criteria and expectations of the time. Contributing to the overall acceptance of virtue on stage is the enforcement of decency and cleanliness by both the ruling class and the audience. A famous actor of the time, David Garrick, not only abided by these rules but also worked them to his advantage. Garrick packed theater houses with his talent and versatility as an actor, while at the same time promoting an acceptance of cleaner versions of plays. Many of these adapted plays were by Shakespeare, though Garrick himself wrote plays that were as universally accepted. Audiences today may criticize the inadequacy of these adaptations, but during the 18th century audiences expected and loved them. What were these changes exactly and where did they originate? Garrick himself does not begin this movement towards virtue, but simply accepts the changes present. In 1698, Jeremy Collier wrote A Short View of the Immortality and Profaneness of the English Stage. This piece strongly attacks the current conditions of the theater and the various "immoral" works by certain authors currently published. The Longman Anthology of British Literature writes, "by portraying wickedness in ways that give delight, [Jeremy Collier] argued contemporary plays cultivated in their audiences the vices of their characters" (2270 Longman Anthology of British Literature). These authors include such notable minds as John Dryden, William Congreve and William Wycherley. Collier especially criticizes the profane use of language and the abuse of clergy all of which, he felt, manage... ...sctn=1 Garrick, David. The Dramatic Works of David Garrick, Esq. Vo. 1 London, 1798. Greenbalt, ed. The Norton Shakespeare Based on theOxford Edition. New York: London, 1997. Frye, Northrop. "Essay date 1986." Mark W. Scott, ed. pgs 575-579. Hume, Robert D. "Before the Bard: Shakespeare in Early Eighteenth-Century London." ELH 64.1 (1997): 41-75. November 14, 2000. <http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/elh/v064/64.1hume.html>. Jameson, Anna Brownell. "Essay date 1833." Mark W. Scott, ed. pgs 423-425. Knight, Joseph. "David Garrick" Literature Criticism from 1400 to 1800. Vol. 15. November 7, 2000. http://galenet.com/serv/LitRC/hitsc=1&b=17171779&savedsrch=&NR=Garrick&OP=contains&DT=Author+RE. Scott, Mark W. ed. Shakespeare Criticism. Kansas City: Gale Research Company, 1987. Ulrici, Hermann. "Essay date 1847." Mark W. Scott, ed. pgs 427-428.

Coca Cola and Innocent: an Innocent Partnership?

This paper, alma to discuss and discover what brought Peeps- Co organization Interest upon a company that In appearance Is at their antipode. Coca-Cola and Innocent: what interest? It is public knowledge that the beverage giant Pepsi- co had their shares of scandals and marketing mishaps as already discussed during our week 2 assignment. A market segment whew re the organization is lacking presence and weight is the healthy segment and the image of â€Å"Innocence† is absent from the corporation brand.The Innocent company Brand image Is strong, co marred to competitor In salary market segments, due to the name strength which Implies In m y opinion, strong ethics, transparency and stakeholders respect. Coca cola, In perennial competition with Pepsi- co. Tries to gain market advantage, further eroded after the Pepsi â€Å"agreement to distribute Tamping Plus fruit- flavored beverage† (Beverage Industry, 2010).The acquisition of Interests in a Company such as Innocent (The Guardian, 200 & Beverage Industry, 2010) could prove an interesting market entry for the soft drinks giant as we shall not forget Coca- Cola failed attempt to enter the European healthy drinks market. Since then the â€Å"company has tried to Improve its UK Image.

Anne Lamott’s Overture: Lily Pads

Anne Lamott’s â€Å"Overture: Lily Pads†, presents a chain of stumbled steps throughout her life by showing that each stagger has made her stronger and demonstrated that every misfortune and tribulation of her existence has allowed her to become one step closer to God. My objective is to obtain an enhanced understanding of the nature and function of Anne Lamott’s journey into her selected religion, which ends with her choosing Christianity by accepting Jesus’ everlasting love into her life. I will explain her journey as well as how I think she understands the concept of being â€Å"born again†. I wish to present how her definition, perspective and understanding resembles or possibly even differs from that of my own, enabling me to examine and understand from another’s point of view. Anne Lamott’s mother and father were far from that of faith and had the mindset that believing meant that you were dim-witted. I think Lamott’s father had a huge impact on her prolonged journey into Christianity as she clearly explains his hatred of the faith. Growing up yearning for his contentment and approval she pretends to dismiss God to make him happy. Her journey starts with a love for Catholic Church. Her ideas and perception of God stemmed from her friends beliefs and her own youthful personal viewpoints. She grew up in a house overflowing with alcohol, pot, and atheism, altogether unmistakably interfering with her walk with Christ. As a child she prayed alone: â€Å"I just know I always believed and that I did not tell a soul† (Lamott 624). The quote shows the loneliness and confusion she must have experience at such a young age. Later Lamott begins to surround herself with her friend’s family who all read the bible, quote scripture and pray for their children each day, finally influencing her in a way that she seems comfortable and eager about. But as Lamott entered her mid teens she gradually drifted from faith and replaced it with alcohol, drugs and sex. I believe college made an enormous impact on why she chose Christianity as her religion of choice. She becomes drawn to Judaism as an effect of having many Jewish college friends, but doesn't actually convert. However after reading a Christian bible story in one of her classes she states, â€Å"I left class believing – accepting – that there was a God† (Lamott 635). Throughout the next few pages her views on Christianity continue to change, as she goes back and forth from having faith in Christ to revisiting her drug and sex crazed life. The meeting of a new preacher and visiting the Church from time to time guides her the way back to God. Towards the last few pages of the writing Lamott is visited by Jesus after illness following a recent abortion, evaporating all of her disbeliefs, fears and enabling her to gradually dispose of the things she felt was immoral in her life, ending with a solid and blessed foundation of trust and faith. Anne Lamott clearly expresses the highs and lows of her Christian walk, enabling the audience to grasp the variety of influences and furthermore illustrating that her spirituality is actually the tie that binds them all together. My understanding of the concept being â€Å"born again† refers to being born from above. From my viewpoint being â€Å"born again† means knowing that God and Jesus are real. Being overflowed with the Holy Spirit that brings the sensation of peace and understanding. To be born again is being forgiven for all past sin, no matter what obscurities or crimes you have committed in the past, as the glorious mercy of God is given freely. To be born again is to wipe your slate clean, to eliminate all bad habits and sins as well as sticking to the rules of the bible. Anne Lamott’s teenage understanding of â€Å"born again† was that of a negative one as a result of her newly saved English teacher. Lamott writes; â€Å"I wept in Sue’s class at the betrayal, and the gentle patronizing efforts to console me† (631). This was a consequence of her teacher’s decision to now portray and educate her student’s through Christ’s eyes. This had a negative effect on Lamott, leading her in the opposite direction of Jesus, forcing her to obtain aggravated and argumentative behavior towards other Christians. Anne Lamott’s passage describes the moment of her conversion into Christianity, she writes; â€Å"I hung my head and said â€Å"Fuck it: I quite. I took a long deep breath and said out loud, â€Å"All right. You can come in† (643). My personal idea of being born again perhaps wouldn’t include coarse language and just ‘allowing† Jesus in, but would include graveling at his feet, praying and yearning for his forgiveness of all my thoughtless sins. Which is why Anne Lamott’s understanding of being saved differs so very much from my own. Nearing the end of the text we learn of Anne Lamott’s baptism, following pregnancy through a man she was dating. This additionally shows the difference between my own and Lamott’s beliefs. It demonstrates that she isn’t completely following Gods will, untraditionally creating a human life outside of the family structure God intended for every child. In ‘Corinthians 7:2’ of the ‘Holy Bible’ it explains that countless sinful people have immoral sex outside of wedlock and should first be married, so the saved can fulfill their passions in a moral way. Although I consider myself to be a fresh believer, I feel that I should practice Gods requests, in return teaching me right from wrong. Although Anne Lamott’s Christian beliefs may not be considered perfect to some, in her defense she does not pretend to have her life entirely in order. It is a remarkable story of how Jesus has had such a prominent impact on her life. ‘Overture: Lily Pads’ is a clear and genuine example for any reader to relate to, as it is similar to our own journeys in life. It immediately goes to show that what we believe in the beginning is not always the conclusion we come to in the end. However the journey is all about the ride, helping us to grasp the process and exercise what we discover along the way.

Introduction of Sociology Essay

1. I think that sociologist should try to reform society, based on what they have studied about sociology. Because the main job of those sociologists is to study and research about the society and the human behavior, they are the ones who understand it the best. As a result, they should reform it, not others. 2. If I were a sociologist, I would use all of sociological perspectives, because each perspective has its own advantage and disadvantage. * Symbolic Interactionism: According to the symbolic interaction’s perspective, people attach meanings to symbols, and then they act according to their subjective interpretation of these symbols. Conversation is an interaction of symbols between individuals who constantly interpret the world around them. Of course, anything can serve as a symbol as long as it refers to something beyond itself. However, with the example about applying Symbolic Interactionism to U.S. marriages and divorces over time, this perspective just shows the sligh ting the influence of social forces and institutions on individual interactions. * Functional Analysis (Functionalism, and structural functionalism) each aspect of society is interdependent and contributes to society’s functioning as a whole. This basic approach can be applied to any social group, whether an entire society, a college, or even a group as small as a family. Nevertheless, when any social group loses function, functionalism does not encourage people to take an active role in changing their social environment. * Conflict Theory: conflict theorists stress that society is composed of group that are competing with one another for scarce resources. However, with the example about Feminist, the conflict perspective shows that women are more powerful in making headway in their historical struggle with men. As the result, the combination of 3 perspectives is the best sociological perspective I would use.

Three Strategies or Practices Identified in the Chapter

Discuss three strategies or practices identified in the chapter that you feel are most important in planning, composing, and revising professional documents. Which of these do you use? Which part of the process do you spend more time on: revising, editing, or proofreading? Why? The three most important practices in planning, composing, and revising professional documents are: -Analyzing the problem, defining the purpose of the document, and analyzing my audience. -Provide accurate, concise, and complete information. Getting feedback from someone else. Before beginning a document you must assess the purpose of your writing, and who your audience is. Once you know what you are writing about, and whom you are writing it to, then begins the formulation of ideas. I personally first review documents that relate to the topic and create key points to include in my writing. After you begin creating a thought process aligned with your writing, start free writing. During your free writing proce ss, try not to deviate from your points.Provide accurate information, be concise and to the point, and complete your thoughts. Now that you feel you have drafted all the appropriate key points, and all the information you wanted to include, begin reviewing. During this review process, check for grammatical errors, conciseness, and that your thoughts are delivered for clear comprehension. Now that you feel you have created a professional document, put it to the test. Most important for me, is letting someone else read it. You may get some criticism, but better by one person than a large number of readers.At this time you can make the appropriate adjustments, and feel more confident in the message you are relaying. All the techniques I mentioned is the process I use to compose writing documents. These steps were helpful in my success as a proficient writer. Proofreading is the most important aspect, and what I spend most of my time on. This is your last chance to impress your reader a nd make sure your writing represents you, and shows your commitment to your work. Locker, K. O. , & Kienzler, D. S. (2010). Business and Administrative Communication. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

Black Men and Public Space

Darkness is known for its negative undertone. In earlier times, we saw darkness as an interpretation of evil; likewise, light represented God and all good. From literature we, as a society, have built what later became social rules, giving rise to things such as prejudice. In Brent Staples essay â€Å"Black Men and Public Space† this is clearly shown by the authors own experiences of antipathy and hostility towards him caused by his own self. In â€Å"Black Men and Public Space†, Brent Staples begins by coming to the realization of the way he’d be viewed for the rest of his life. He describes feelings of uneasiness towards his newfound self-image. It all came to him one evening in an ally where his tall frame walked behind a young woman. She proceeded to perceive him as a threat to her safety even her life, and race off into the night. Later on his –problem- took a deeper hit on him when even as a professional this image continued to follow him. It evolved into harm for himself when he is mistaken for a thief several times. Toward the end the author learns how to manage this issue by cleaning his image, and controlling his rage toward the ones who considered a criminal. Consistent rejection can cause a man –or woman to see the world as of one color or the other, to the extremes. Thus creating a situation of self-blame where one might think and accept that every bad incident its their own fault. He is blaming himself for actions that occur without actual intent of the so-called attacker. In â€Å"Black Men and Public Space,† Staples writes, â€Å"My first victim was a woman† (566). This phrase creates a dark tone that only gets clearer as the essay moves on. The image of – the victim- is passed onto the author itself. And the fact that is proclaiming himself as an aggressor indicates that he has acknowledged this as a reality. In today’s society, people have the tendency to change how they –act and react- toward certain groups of people, places of interaction, friends and strangers. It can range from lowering safety standards when ones home, to the point of running from someone that, by mistake, its portrayed and related to something harmful. This can create a unique experience, most of the time being of uneasiness and stress. Staples write, â€Å"I First began to know the unwieldy inheritance I’d come into- the ability to alter public space in an ugly way† (566). It is clearly stated in the previews quote that the author is now experimenting a new way of social awareness that it’s brought upon him by just being that way he is. It is surprising how fast people tend to judge yet it also can be way of protection. Even though the author might not be the real aggressor that does not takes the fact that another man like him could be the authentic one. Today’s civilization has grown with fear. Fear of loosing what’s theirs, fear of the police, fear of politics, fear of what’s unknown and different. Sometimes this can manifest in avoidance of the subject but in some occasions it can be a little more –active-. Staples writes, â€Å"And I soon gathered that being perceived as dangerous it’s a hazard in itself† (567). As a result of his dangerous association the author realizes that it’s unsafe to be outside too. As some women tend to opt just to sprint away from you, some men might choose to fight the problem. This brings concerns to the author who apart form being socially un-welcome is now threatened by his own naturally built image. Fear is accompanied by a need for survival. Some animals grow being dominant, creating fear to control. Other just decide to hide hoping not to be involved into precarious situations. In â€Å"Black Men and Public Space†, Staples describes, â€Å"I chose, perhaps unconsciously, to remain a shadow – timid, but a survivor† (568). Staples explain that he took the –smaller animal- path and tries to remain un-recognizable in order for him to have a safer journey around avoiding confrontation. Is easier to hide that to fight but in the long run that –easiness- brings other problems, where self-blame can evolve to depression and self-depreciation. It comes a time in every man’s life when he has to choose between himself and society. When he has to decide whether to stand on his own or simply hide his true self in order to escape confrontation, arguments and possible rejection. Most people have a tendency to – go with the flow- be just like everyone else. Staple writes, â€Å"I now take precautions to make myself less threatening† (568). This quote describes the idea previously expressed. He chooses to alter his image to make his journey safer. In order to add this newer safer self, he must subtract what he was before, losing his identity. In Staples essay â€Å"Black Men and Public Space†, big issues are explored and described in a way that we can relate to without getting lost in the context. On a narrow sense the essay can be viewed as how the author goes through the realization of how he is pictured, moving to the changes he has to make to be -socially- less threatening. Doing this one can go a process of depression and losing identity. This is just the example of only one person but this case is not reserved to him only, it happens to almost everyone and in many different levels. We are 6,602,224,175 humans suffering form all kind of unreal and unfair treatment and as a result, hate and resentment are created, and in fact they are he main cause of racism and un fair treatment towards others thus creating a vicious cycle from which we need to get out in order for humans to walk though these crowded streets in harmony. Work Cited Brent Staples. â€Å"Black Men and Public Space†. Four in One: Rhetoric, Reader, Research Guide, and Handbook. Eds. Eduard A. Dornan and Robert Dees. 5th Edition. Boston: Longman, 2011. 167-169. Print Black Men and Public Space Darkness is known for its negative undertone. In earlier times, we saw darkness as an interpretation of evil; likewise, light represented God and all good. From literature we, as a society, have built what later became social rules, giving rise to things such as prejudice. In Brent Staples essay â€Å"Black Men and Public Space† this is clearly shown by the authors own experiences of antipathy and hostility towards him caused by his own self. In â€Å"Black Men and Public Space†, Brent Staples begins by coming to the realization of the way he’d be viewed for the rest of his life. He describes feelings of uneasiness towards his newfound self-image. It all came to him one evening in an ally where his tall frame walked behind a young woman. She proceeded to perceive him as a threat to her safety even her life, and race off into the night. Later on his –problem- took a deeper hit on him when even as a professional this image continued to follow him. It evolved into harm for himself when he is mistaken for a thief several times. Toward the end the author learns how to manage this issue by cleaning his image, and controlling his rage toward the ones who considered a criminal. Consistent rejection can cause a man –or woman to see the world as of one color or the other, to the extremes. Thus creating a situation of self-blame where one might think and accept that every bad incident its their own fault. He is blaming himself for actions that occur without actual intent of the so-called attacker. In â€Å"Black Men and Public Space,† Staples writes, â€Å"My first victim was a woman† (566). This phrase creates a dark tone that only gets clearer as the essay moves on. The image of – the victim- is passed onto the author itself. And the fact that is proclaiming himself as an aggressor indicates that he has acknowledged this as a reality. In today’s society, people have the tendency to change how they –act and react- toward certain groups of people, places of interaction, friends and strangers. It can range from lowering safety standards when ones home, to the point of running from someone that, by mistake, its portrayed and related to something harmful. This can create a unique experience, most of the time being of uneasiness and stress. Staples write, â€Å"I First began to know the unwieldy inheritance I’d come into- the ability to alter public space in an ugly way† (566). It is clearly stated in the previews quote that the author is now experimenting a new way of social awareness that it’s brought upon him by just being that way he is. It is surprising how fast people tend to judge yet it also can be way of protection. Even though the author might not be the real aggressor that does not takes the fact that another man like him could be the authentic one. Today’s civilization has grown with fear. Fear of loosing what’s theirs, fear of the police, fear of politics, fear of what’s unknown and different. Sometimes this can manifest in avoidance of the subject but in some occasions it can be a little more –active-. Staples writes, â€Å"And I soon gathered that being perceived as dangerous it’s a hazard in itself† (567). As a result of his dangerous association the author realizes that it’s unsafe to be outside too. As some women tend to opt just to sprint away from you, some men might choose to fight the problem. This brings concerns to the author who apart form being socially un-welcome is now threatened by his own naturally built image. Fear is accompanied by a need for survival. Some animals grow being dominant, creating fear to control. Other just decide to hide hoping not to be involved into precarious situations. In â€Å"Black Men and Public Space†, Staples describes, â€Å"I chose, perhaps unconsciously, to remain a shadow – timid, but a survivor† (568). Staples explain that he took the –smaller animal- path and tries to remain un-recognizable in order for him to have a safer journey around avoiding confrontation. Is easier to hide that to fight but in the long run that –easiness- brings other problems, where self-blame can evolve to depression and self-depreciation. It comes a time in every man’s life when he has to choose between himself and society. When he has to decide whether to stand on his own or simply hide his true self in order to escape confrontation, arguments and possible rejection. Most people have a tendency to – go with the flow- be just like everyone else. Staple writes, â€Å"I now take precautions to make myself less threatening† (568). This quote describes the idea previously expressed. He chooses to alter his image to make his journey safer. In order to add this newer safer self, he must subtract what he was before, losing his identity. In Staples essay â€Å"Black Men and Public Space†, big issues are explored and described in a way that we can relate to without getting lost in the context. On a narrow sense the essay can be viewed as how the author goes through the realization of how he is pictured, moving to the changes he has to make to be -socially- less threatening. Doing this one can go a process of depression and losing identity. This is just the example of only one person but this case is not reserved to him only, it happens to almost everyone and in many different levels. We are 6,602,224,175 humans suffering form all kind of unreal and unfair treatment and as a result, hate and resentment are created, and in fact they are he main cause of racism and un fair treatment towards others thus creating a vicious cycle from which we need to get out in order for humans to walk though these crowded streets in harmony. Work Cited Brent Staples. â€Å"Black Men and Public Space†. Four in One: Rhetoric, Reader, Research Guide, and Handbook. Eds. Eduard A. Dornan and Robert Dees. 5th Edition. Boston: Longman, 2011. 167-169. Print Black Men And Public Space Black Men and Public Space Black Men and Public Space Black Men and Public Space

Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Proposal - Essay Example As such, the SNS developers have to develop strategies that will attract more people. It is clear that people would prefer to work with SNSs that meet their current needs and those that have a personalized interaction. According to Romm-Livermore and Setzekorn (2009) one of the main factor that drives people into social network services is the connection the service creates with other people from all over the world. In addition to this, Caviglione et al. (2013) say that people are more attracted to a social network service if it is able to meet their needs and help them solve the needs. With this understanding, the following research work takes a closer look at some of the determinants of user acceptance of a social network services. As stated earlier, there are multiple SNS platforms out therefore but the main difference among them is the number of people who have signed up for the services. This aims to establish the main factors that drive people into particular SNS and not any other. The last decade has seen a dramatic take over by the Social Network Services and slowly, the industry has been dominated with more and more platform. However, there is a significance difference in terms of the number of user in each platform. By considering this, there are two categories; one group made up of the highest number and the second group of platforms that are almost unknown and have very few people. Matejic (2015) raises concern on the dominance of Facebook and twitter over the rest of the social media platforms. This raises the question as to what really drives people into these platforms. In addition to this, it is important to analyze the impacts of the Social Network Services to the society in general. In this, both the benefits and the negative impacts should be considered. According to SeÃŒ nac et al. (2013) there is

Chapter 1- What is Geomorphology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Chapter 1- What is Geomorphology - Essay Example The earth’s conspicuous features are landforms. These conspicuous features vary in lifespan (days-millennia-eons) and size (molehills-mountains). Geomorphology deliberates the landforms and the processes shaping them; because the processes, forms and their interrelationships are essential to landforms’ development and origin. Form is considered to be manifested in three aspects; constitution, mass flow and configuration (Huggett, 2011). However, these variables of form differ from dynamic variables (force, momentum, stress, energy influx and power) linked to geomorphic processes (Huggett, 2011). The difference of the variables can be explained as follows. For instance, a beach’s scenario is adopted for the explanation. The constitutional properties comprise grain shape, grains’ mean diameter, grains’ sorting and the beach’s moisture content. Dynamic variables combine the water currents’ drag stress and human beings’ and burrowing animals’ forces. Configurational properties consist of beach’s water depth, slope’s angle, form profile, while mass flow variables encompass deposition, erosion and transport rates. Geomorphic processes refer to the diverse physical and chemical avenues through which the surface of the earth experience modifications. These processes are compelled by forces originating outside the earth (extraterrestrial processes), in atmosphere and near the surface of the earth (exogene/ exogenic processes) and inside the earth (endogene/ endogenic processes). The geomorphic processes include transferring and transforming processes linked to ice, gravity, water, wind and weathering (Huggett, 2011). Geomorphic enquiries rely on linkages between process and form; each aspect, form or process, influences the other. Therefore, geomorphic process influences, and is in turn influenced by

Does Alexander The Great Merit His Exalted Historical Reputation Essay

Does Alexander The Great Merit His Exalted Historical Reputation - Essay Example The author has rightly presented that Alexander was a military leader who led from the front, a trait that imbued his soldiers with confidence and enthusiasm. The researcher states that in a Greek context he commanded the loyalty and following of almost all the Greek city states and he made it a point never to step on the sovereignty and traditions of the Greek city states. This essay discusses that Alexander’s vision as a conqueror aimed at forging a cultural, economic and political unity between Macedonia and the Asian territories he annexed to his empire. However, from the research it can be comprehended that Alexander as a military leader happened to be impulsive and it was just owing to his good luck that he escaped getting killed in many of his foolhardy ventures. The author has rightly presented that many a times Alexander failed to understand the aspirations and sentiments of his loyal Macedonian troops, which resulted in resentment and discontent amongst them. The pre sent research has identified that Alexander merely focused on conquering new territories in Asia, without evincing the ability to install stable and lasting administrative machinery in them. This paper illustrates that the fame Alexander accrued is well deserved in the sense that the dream he embarked on happened to be too big and ambitious, ever to be attempted by a mortal in the world history.

Online grocery shopping Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Online grocery shopping - Essay Example With the age of growing technology and internet popularity, marketing has become easier because customers have an opportunity to post reviews about products and have others access it before making decisions. Companies can use the reviews to improve their products and develop others that match customer’s needs. As a marketing manager of Miou Company Ltd, I will examine literature review to understand traits of internet shoppers, their general shopping orientation, their web-usage-related lifestyle, and their psychographic characteristics. In addition, I will evaluate their motivations for shopping groceries online, their perceptions of the advantages and disadvantages of shopping online for groceries and situational factors that may elicit online purchase of groceries. Miou Company that has a chain of national supermarkets in Australia intends to open an online grocery-shopping website to counter the challenge posed by fast growing online shopping. One of the first things to co nsider in the research is seeking to understand the traits of internet shoppers. Internet shoppers tend to rely on feedback reviews about products and services done by those who have already been served by the company. According to Zhu and Zhang, a recent survey reveals that 24% of internet users’ access online reviews before paying for a service delivered offline. Such reviews have become an important marketing tool because companies post information about their products, engineer online forums and chats about the products where they proactively advice their consumers to spread the gospel of their products. Through use of internet, companies have managed to manipulate customer’s reviews and influence their decisions (Zhu and Zhang, 2010). Chevalier and Mayzlin agree to the character of online customers that depend on reviews. They argue that customer ratings significantly influence product sales especially in the book industry where customers read review texts in addi tion to review statistics (Chevalier & Mayzlin, 2006) Secondly, a market researcher must seek to understand customer’s general shopping orientation. The advancement of World Wide Web has enabled many companies to transact online and customers to do web shopping. Electronic shopping is growing by day and thus has become an important trend that influences the markets. Therefore, to identify the opportunity a researcher needs to identify the determinants of a customer’s online purchase intention. Since managers need to make a decision, the opportunity becomes the problem. A small sample will help in understanding the impacts of shopping orientations. According to Ling, a research run to determine shopping orientations, online trust, and prior online purchase experience to the customer purchase intention reveals that impulse purchase intention brand orientation, quality orientation, and prior online experience have a positive impact to the customer online purchase intentio n (Ling, 2010). Online shopping experience is different from the traditional consumer behaviour, which calls for marketers to explore the determinants of customer online intention among web shoppers. Forsythe and Shi concurs with this argument and states that online shopping poses special risks on the side of the customer, which makes trust an important aspect for a transaction to take place (Forsythe, Shi,

Breaking the Cultural Barrier to Medicine Essay

Breaking the Cultural Barrier to Medicine - Essay Example As a compliment to that effort, we need to address our state grants to achieve that goal. Our higher educational institutions need to address this problem by establishing new educational programs, increasing cultural competence, and recruiting for diversity. Health care cultural competency begins with communication. Communication is more than simply knowing the language. Health seeking behaviors are affected by cultural mores and University cultural educational programs should focus on acquiring skills that can elicit the patient's response and define the illness and treatment within their social context (Kirpalani et al. 2006 p.1116). This should also be applied to patients who have limited literacy as these patients usually have less awareness of disease management (Frist 2005 p.447). A grant to establish a course curriculum in diversity communication is a necessary first step to reducing the disparity in the health of our citizens. These skills moderate the patient's participation in medical decisions and treatment. Communication is more than simply learning the language and the medical terminology. Communication must be culture based. University educational programs that address cultural sensitivity to assure that the caregiver is adequately communicating within the patient's cultural context are imperative. Grants are required to establish a curriculum that would relate the attitudes that ethnic populations may have in respect to illness, medicine, and surgery. Failure to understand the cultural context of minority medicine can result in a perception of insensitivity. A patient who feels like they are being treated unfairly will be less prone to seek treatment. A course in cultural communication could alleviate many communication problems. Grants should also be directed towards diseases that have been identified as minority prevalent. The addition of a University course relating the strategies designed to reduce risk among minority populations is needed. Cardiovascular disease in the Arabic and Farsi speaking communities and Sickle-cell disease among African-Americans are two examples. Because studies have indicated that genetics are involved in some health related issues between racial and ethnic groups, training that focuses on recognition of the problem is essential (McBride 2005 p. 181). By recognizing ethnic trends in disease prevalence, caregivers can design programs for early intervention and develop appropriate pharmaceutical requirements. Medical school should also include training on the appropriate handling of the issue of death and dying within different cultures. Knowing the role of privacy and the perception of bad news can prolong patient survival. According to Misra-Hebert (2003), "People in many cultures believe that informing the patient of a terminal diagnosis may hasten death" (p.298). A cultural sensitivity to this issue would also include an awareness of the cultural issues that surround the care of the dying as well as the expression of grief. University medical schools require grants to initiate a curriculum that addresses death and dying in diverse cultures. Adequate cultural competency would necessitate the inclusion of the awareness of this issue. State grants should also

MGT540 - Management of Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

MGT540 - Management of Change - Essay Example Change is an important and vital aspect of almost every company. To exists in the fast moving and ever changing world the companies have to bring change in its operations. For example with the invention of computer and information technology, almost every company has to incorporate the use of information technology to compete in the changing business situations. Change often makes the member of the company to shift from their comfort zone to adopt the change brought in the organization. This often makes the employees to resist the new change. Thus the change brought in the organization has to be managed in a proper way so that the change can be implemented in the organization by dealing with the resistance in a tactical and planned way. In this project the change management done by ICICI bank during 1997 and after the merger of Bank of Madura has been analyzed. Change management theory Change is a constant ingredient of the organization. Every organization passes through two types of change during its life time. One is the continuous change and the second one is the radical change. Continuous change faces very little resistance and is managed by the manager or the supervisors effectively. The major concern for the company is to manage the radical change which faces the maximum resistance. The organizations are quite complex, therefore the organizational problems related to the human factor is also quite difficult to handle. The first thing which the organization faces when any change is brought in the organization is the resistance created by the attitude, personalities and incompetency of the employees. More over if any transfer of power takes place due to the change brought in the organization, can cause the employees to resist the change (Bolman and Deal, 2011, n.d.). Therefore this change has to be managed in a planned way. Every organization has to bring change for some or the other reasons. There are various internal and external reasons which initiate ch ange in an organization like change in market conditions, change in technology, change in type of competition, change in organizational ideas etc (Kanawaty, 1991, p.4). Change in an organization can also be brought in an organization due to some internal factors which are solely related with the organization. These factors can range from change in the organizational strategy or the business to change in managers or change in employees profile or attitude or change in equipments used by the employees. Among all the internal changes, change in business strategy is a reason which gives a major domino effect. If the strategy of a business changes then to implement that strategy many changes has to be brought in the organization which may include change in equipments, change in managers, change in the number of employees or/ and change in profile of the employees. In the early 90s the change which was brought in the ICICI was due to change in strategy. Change in an organization can also be a result due to change in government policies and globalization. Globalization can affect the organization’s policy to a greater extent initiating a major change in the organizational strategies of the business. Suppose an organization has major market share in a country but due to the entrants of the foreign companies in the market the company has to deal and compete with those firms too therefore the company has

Poverty and social violence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Poverty and social violence - Essay Example Los Olvidados, The Young and the Damned; tackles the unethical behaviours that destroy the children who are linked to the future of tomorrow. The problem is aggravated by the poverty levels in the society; Bunnel captures the vices experienced in the big modern cities. Los Olvidados depicts Mexico at the doorsill of modernization where moral values of the Mexicans appear compromised. There appears use of vulgar language in the story where Eljaibo calls a young boy a ‘pansy’ for refusing to smoke. El Jiabo symbolizes the extent of evil in the modern Mexico; the society there appears that the Mexican society disregards respect for peoples’ opinion (Wilcox, 112). Peer pressure: The meeting between Pedro and ElJaibo appears a wrong decision for Pedro. Most of the times El Jaibo commits crimes; Pedro is usually his scapegoat. Pedro killed Julian; because, Julian, reported him to the police, who came and arrested him. Pedro hoarded the information from the police; this costs him a lot in the end. Pedro became an accomplice when he refused to talk it to authoritative people to clear the air. Pedro got a job at the blacksmith; El Jiabo heard of it and paid Pedro a visit where he stole from the blacksmith destroying Pedro’s new job and sent to prison. ... The issue of theft is dealt within the film; evident when El Jaibo organizes robbery against Don Camel, a blind man. The society foregoes the needs of the less fortunate and oppresses them further. El Jaibo proves wrong influence when he stole from Pedro’s boss; the result was nasty as Pedro lose his job and is taken to prison. While still in Prison, Pedro encountered El Jaibo, who steals the money he had been given to run the principal’s errands. This time Pedro feels that he had tolerated enough with El Jaibo and pursues him. El Jaibo ended up murdering Pedro and flees. These episodes emphasize the need to stay away from peer pressure. The issue of theft comes in from the character El Jaibo who steals everything he comes from everyone he meets including his friends (Wilcox, 134). The theme of death proves evident in the story when El Jaibo started by killing Julian. Pedro saw what happened and kept quiet thinking that he was being a friend. Later on in the scene El Ja ibo ends up killing Pedro. El Jaibo proves a tough criminal who ended up dying in the story (Wilcox, 187). Terror and loneliness: The author symbolizes this by referring to the satisfaction of a mother’s milk. Carmelo the blind man consumes goat milk with the hope that it cleanses the body. Meche, cleans her legs using milk with the hope that it rejuvenates her beat whilst big eyes sucks the teat of a cow when hungry. The characters display an element of desperation and the hunger of comfort from the nest available living thing which is the domestic animals in this case. Pedro tragically pleads for her mother’s love; the mother feels betrayed by Pedro’s lazy behavior of stealing. She wonders why she should love someone who humiliates her in the eyes of the society. Pedro’s actions prove

Ethics in the journalism Essay Example for Free

Ethics in the journalism Essay Ethics in the journalism sector is not a new issue of debate. Journalism ethics has been described as a dysfunctional ethical discourse by Iggers (as cited by Mccabe, 1999). The role of media is always very important in manufacturing the consent of people and develops a view regarding any particular issue. However the way news is collected, compiled and presented is always a question of debate. Citizens get the information regarding the social problems. The media has the capacity to bring the change. The traditional media is based on the maturity of the information, published news and different other subjects. Media has moved from its traditional role of observer to the change agent within the society (Mccabe, 1999, p. 199). The role of technology in media presentation has been very crucial in the recent past. The information is available easily on the website. â€Å"The Internet blurs traditional categories like professional versus amateur, published versus unpublished, and public versus private. Existing rules for the ethical conduct of human subjects research that rely on these categories are thus difficult to extend to this new medium. † (Bruckman, n. d. ) Information available on the various websites makes it convenient and handy. However, the reliability of information available at this source is questionable. The referencing of the sources from which information has been obtained and how the credit has been given is always important in order to maintain the ethical standards of the journalism in this internet age.

The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho Santiago Analysis

The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho Santiago Analysis Paulo Coelhos magical novel follows the adventure of Santiago, a young Sheppard from an Andalusian town who disobeyed his fathers will for him to become a priest. For this reason Santiago can be described as a determined, curious as well as adventurous child as he leads his sheep through the unknown deserts. At the beginning of the novel, we see Santiago at an abandoned church, where he has been having reoccurring dreams of a hidden treasure found at the Pyramids of Egypt. Having no knowledge of omens or Personal Legends at that point, he shrugged off this dream until he decided to visit a fortune-teller. Both she and an old man (whom he meets shortly afterward) tell him that he has a quest in life that he must realize, and that is a part of his existence. While pursuing his journey, he learns a fair bit about the world around him. Although he has been grateful to have trusted individuals such as Melchizedek, there were many negative lessons learned such as depression (the Crystal Me rchant), distant love (the bakers daughter) as well as deceit (the thief that stole his money). All of these obstacles held Santiago back on his quest to finding his Personal Legend. However, as the reoccurring quote When you want something, all the universe conspires to help you achieve it (Coelho, 62) remains engraved in his head, his levels of motivation are once again replenished. There are a number of occasions when Santiago is forced to make choices that could alter the outcome of his journey. For example, he had to give up being a Sheppard and sell his sheep in order to have enough money to be able to finance his voyage to Egypt, in hopes of finding his treasure. I find Santiago to be a dynamic character as he matures and finds true love near the end of the book. He has come to learn about the different languages of the world, of the soul and unite himself with his environment. The Soul of the World is one of the biggest spiritual advancements that Santiago discovers througho ut his journey for his Personal Legend. This term is almost directly associated with collective worship. All of these worshippers from different religions worship a certain mystery. But in the end, all of the religions point towards the same mystery that is the true Soul of the World. Santiagos dynamic qualities are more apparent near the end of the book, where he almost gives up completely on pursuing his Personal Legend. Like the Crystal Merchant, he starts to show more materialistic qualities and deems that his current possessions are satisfactory for him and that the journey towards a supplementary but greater treasure is not necessary. Evidence of this is found when Santiago tells the Alchemist I have already found my treasure. I have a camel, I have my money from the crystal shop, and I have fifty gold pieces (Coelho, 115). By the end of the novel, Santiago has acquired a lot of experienced, mostly gained by the knowledge of the Alchemist. Santiago learned to relinquish fear by listening to his heart, which guided him in the right direction and ultimately guided him to his treasure, which was found at the sycamore tree in the abandoned church at the beginning of the novel. Santiagos understanding of the Soul of the World is at its highest point during the event where Santiago was forced to turn himself into the wind by a bunch of warriors from the desert. At that point, Coelho uses figurative techniques in order to bring life to the sun, the desert, the wind as well as the heavens. The use of personification attributed to these elements demonstrates how much Santiago has learned and deepened his understanding of the world. Santiagos experience has brought him to understand the universal language of the world and is thus able to communicate with these inanimate elements. If there was one thing I discovered by the end of this novel, it is that the character of Santiago can be symbolic to the way we live our own personal lives. Like each and every one of us, we have character flaws that can often keep us from achieving our goals in life. Although most of us do not rely on omens in order to know if we are on the right track, we often rely on others invaluable sources such as our family members and friends who provide moral support to help achieve our Personal Legend. Obstacles will surely be met (we have seen many throughout Santiagos journey) however thanks to the help of characters such as the Englishman and the Alchemist, Santiago was finally be able to fulfill his destiny and finally reunite himself with Fatima, the girl of his dreams. ISU Journals: Personal Legend In Paulo Coelhos The Alchemist the author puts a lot of emphasis on Personal Legends. Upon Santiagos quest, he meets a stranger who later reveals himself as Melchizedek, the king of Salem. He reveals to Santiago an important moral rule, in which consists the foundation of Coelhos whole novel: Following ones own Personal Legend. The king describes this legend as A point in someones life where everything is clear, everything is possible. They are not afraid to dream and to yearn for everything they would like to see happen to them in their lives (Coelho, 21). Furthermore, the king explains how there will be difficult obstacles to overcome in the path to realising the personal Legend. One of the obstacles presented in Part 1 of the book is a young boy who agreed to help lead him towards the Egyptian Pyramids for a cost. Little did the innocent boy know that the boy was in fact a thief and that dishonesty runs rampant in the city of Tangier. A second instance is when Santiago meets an Ar abic Crystal merchant, a man who has maintained his shop for over thirty years at the top of a hilly street. Through the crystal merchants character in Part One of the novel, we can see that he was unable to fulfill his own Personal Legend (which was to travel to the Mecca). While reading this particular instance of the novel, I felt that the merchants character greatly contrasts the protagonists quest into pursuing his own destiny. Phrases such as he had been in the same place for thirty years there was a time and it was too late to do anything else really show how much faith the merchant lost in his personal dreams. I found that this really affected Santiagos morality and hence, I listed this figure as an obstacle to the fulfillment of Santiagos Personal Legend. Nonetheless the boys depression was soon relieved once the old merchant offered to help the young boy to fulfill what he once dreamed of doing. ISU Journals: Sheep At the beginning of Paulo Coelhos The Alchemist we are brought upon the idea of the symbolism of the young Santiagos flock of sheep. Santiagos flock of sheep are first presented at the beginning of the novel. The Sheppard and his flock had ventured through the countryside of Andalusia for the past two years in search of food and water. Both the animals and their master have certainly formed a solid bond of friendship and it is explicitly shown in the text when Santiago explains They are so used to me that they know my schedule (Coelho, 4). He would read to them regularly, commentate on the views that they passed by while pursuing their journey and comfort them when they would begin to stir. Santiago also comments that the amount of knowledge and understanding that he received from his sheep is quite superior to that of a book. Although Santiagos gratitude and expressed love for his sheep are inevitable, the greater symbolism lies in the feelings of disgust that he has towards them. While reading the novel, I have noticed instances where Santiago says that the only things that sheep care about are food and water. The simplicity of happiness for animals is greatly contrasted with that of humans. Santiago is amazed by how careless the sheep are of their surroundings so long as they are provided with nourishment. This brought me to recognize that the limited perspectives on life of these sheep could in fact be paralleled with that of the Crystal Merchant as well as the baker. Evidence of this is shown when Santiago says If I became a monster today and decided to kill them, one by one, they would become aware only after most of the flock had been slaughtered.(Coelho, 7) Similarly to the Crystal Merchant and the baker, the sheep care nothing else but their material desires (being the food and water). In the case of the Crystal Merchant, he is too preoccupied with his boring daily life (for more than thirty years) and the desire that everything remains the same. According to the king of Salem, individuals who present similar characteristics to the merchant are unable to fully neither understand nor appreciate their purpose in life, nor the creations of God. This is one of the reasons that have kept them from pursuing their destiny. Setting/ Epoch Paulo Coelhos The Alchemist has numerous settings which progress along with the novel. For instance, the beginning of the story is taken place in the lands of Spain. Evidence of this is shown primarily by the name of the protagonist: Santiago and by the fact that the boy first sets off his journey in the region of Andalusia. Also, there is a passage in the story making relevance to the Moorish invasion over Spain The girl was typical of the region of Andalusia, with flowing black hair, and eyes that vaguely recalled the Moorish conquerors. (Coelho, 5) By this quote alone, we can already assume that the storys epoch is set in a pre-modern context (several centuries ago) during the time in which most technologies such as computers, cellphones were absent. Also, caravans as means of transportation are not used as much in the modern era as opposed to in the story. Additionally, the following quote provides proof of the setting by revealing the type of currency The next day, he gave his s on a pouch that held three ancient Spanish gold coins (Coelho, 9). In addition to the epoch, Alchemy was a practice that had been abandoned years ago as it had been confirmed that you could not turn any stone into another by simply melting it and waiting several years. The setting shifts to another Spanish town located in Andalusia called Tarifa. It is at this landmark that Santiago meets with the king of Salem and is given instructions on pursuing his Personal Legend. Evidence of this is shown when the author describes the scenery and mentions that At the highest point in Tarifa, there is an old fort. Built by the Moors. (Coelho, 33)The plot line shifts continents and is currently found in a city called Tangier, which is found in Morocco (North Africa). We can confirm this setting because we find that the main language is Arabic, which Santiago isnt accustomed to. Clues such as the gigantic pipe (Coelho, 34) which can also be referred to as a shisha; women with their faces covered (34) and priests that climbed to the tops of towers and chanted (34) all suggest an Arabic (Muslim) community. The final setting is in the Sahara desert, in which Santiago crosses in order to get to Egypt. Once again, clues such as the Al Fayoum oasis which is located near the Nile River as well as the Arabic people confirm the final major setting of the novel. Plot summary Paulo Coelhos The Alchemist follows the story of a young Andalusian boy named Santiago whose adventure begins after having a reoccurring dream about him and a mysterious treasure found in the Pyramids of Egypt. Piqued by curiosity, the young encounters numerous individuals, who influence his journey (both positively and negatively) to his treasure. Some of these individuals include: the Gypsy, the king of Salem, the thief at Tangier port, the Crystal Merchant, the baker, the Englishman, Fatima as well as the Alchemist himself. The main event in the story is set when Santiago is forced to make a series of sacrifices in order to obtain his Personal Legend. For example, the first instance is when he follows the king of Salems advice to sell his sheep and to travel to Tangier. The King teaches Santiago about omens which aid Santiago in making the right decisions. However, the young boy got robbed and therefore got a job at a Crystal merchants shop. There, he was able to teach the merchant on the meanings of life and how he shouldnt have given up on pursuing his own Personal Legend to one day travel to the Mecca. By making enough money, Santiago is able to pay his way across the Sahara desert towards the sands of Egypt by means of a caravan. He then encounters an Englishman, who has also set himself on a journey in order to find his Personal Legend (to become an Alchemist). Through this man, Santiago learns about alchemy and the amount of difficulty associated with it. Arriving at an oasis, Santiago envisions a horde of men attacking the desert and warns the chieftains. They were successfully able to defend against these men and Santiago finds the opportunity to meet the Alchemist in person. The Alchemist teaches the boy an innumerable amount of valuable lessons such as listening to ones heart, never giving up, understanding the Soul of the World etc. Santiago is put to the ultimate test when he has been captured by a group of Arabic soldiers and ordered him to turn himself into the wind as a display of his magical powers. By linking his heart to the Soul of the World, Santiago communicates with the sun, the wind and The Hand that Wrote All which invoked a powerful storm that brought Santiago to the other side of the hostile camp. Santiago and the Alchemist were free and Santiago finally makes it to the Pyramids of Egypt. However, Santiago is severely beaten and robbed at his final destination. One of the men describes his own dream as having seen a treasure buried at an abandoned church beside a Sycamore tree in Spain. Alarmed, Santiago finally understood this meaning and found his own treasure which has been at the starting point of his whole journey. Author relevance/ Writing Style Paulo Coelho is the author of one of the most compelling books that I and many others have ever read. I believe that the character of Santiago is easily portrayed by the author himself as both undergo a quest of self-freedom and to find their own happiness. Similar to Santiagos job as a Sheppard, Paulos dream of becoming a writer was heavily frowned upon by the members of his family. His mother told him that his father was a very bright engineer and that becoming a writer wasnt a job that got a lot of praise. As a matter of fact, Santiagos parents were equally perplexed about his dream of becoming a Sheppard. Unlike Coelhos family however, the young boys parents accepted his dream quicker than the author. The turning of point of Paulos life was when he walked the 500 plus mile Road of Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain. During this pilgrimage, Paulo had a spiritual awakening and therefore had a different view on life. This part of his life had a great impact on his award winning novel. It is without a doubt that the protagonists name had been inspired by the city of Santiago de Compostela. Similar to the sheep in the novel, Coelho lived his life solely on food and water and wasnt living his life in order to pursue his Personal Legend, which was to become a full-time writer. The obstacles that Coelho have faced in order to become a writer, and therefore fulfilling his own Personal Legend, are paralleled to Santiagos own obstacles in the novel. Depression, thievery as well as physical assault are things that both the author and Santiago have undergone before realising their dream. Unlike Coelho however, Santiago had moral guidance as well as charms (Urim and Thummim) in order to guide him to realise his quest with better ease. After having read the authors biography, I find that Santiagos journey was not necessarily an adventure to find a material treasure, but also a pilgrimage for a spiritual awakening (similar to Coelhos path). Important messages such as listening to ones heart, following ones dream, understanding the Soul of the World etc. are things that Coelho himself has also endured. During his pilgrimage, he has ultimately formed a bond with nature and it is very apparent in his writing style when he brings inanimate elements such as the sun and wind to life. Coelho has a very interesting style of writing that appeals a lot to me personally. Many books nowadays are several hundreds of pages long and focusing too much on scenery/setting that often detract readers from understanding any type of moral or life-changing message. Similar to my literary compositions, I strive to only include key points and keep most text-fillers out. Although The Alchemist is a very short novel, Coelho avoids many unnece ssary descriptions such as the scenery, characters and his use of imagery is very limited. Even having completed the novel, we do not know of many of the characters age nor their physical appearance. The reason being is that Coelho neglected most of these useless elements to develop the storys main message: to follow ones Personal Legend. Using a linear progression of writing, the author keeps the story rolling with plot-relevant details such as what the character is doing. Themes/Connections I believe one of the most important messages in this whole novel is to simply follow ones dream. Although this cheesy theme has been recycled many times and can be found in various films and literary works alike, Coelhos writing style is what sets his book apart from the others. For example, the authors use of Alchemy greatly enforces the books central theme. As the practice of Alchemy is to transform an ordinary stone (particularly lead, in this book) to gold, we can metaphorically associate Santiago to a block of lead. The process of alchemy does take several years and this is also associated with the time that Santiago spent in the Spanish pastures, Tarifa, Tangier and the desert in order to better understand his Personal Legend. Once Santiago met the Alchemist (the final piece to the puzzle) he got a crash course on spiritual awakening, listening to his heart/soul and communicating with nature. That was the final process in which Santiago needed to undergo in order for him to be fully transformed from a piece of lead to gold, hence fulfilling his Personal Legend and finding his treasure under the sycamore tree at the abandoned church. Im sure that most of us can relate to this particular theme as we all have had our personal aspirations or goals during our lifetime. When looking at most successful people in the world such as Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Bill Gates or even Steve Jobbs, they didnt lives solely off food and water as the Crystal Merchant, Baker and Santiagos sheep did. They did have material possessions at the time but the difference is that they made risks in their lives in order to achieve their dreams (whatever they may be). The same applies to Santiago, when he made a huge sacrifice of giving up his sheep to get money in order to travel to Egypt. Many novels illustrate some form of sacrifice in order to fulfill their own dreams. Using the books theory, Mother Theresa was also an ordinary woman, who was ordained a Saint several years ago after devoting herself to help the poor. Although I have not figured out my Personal Legend yet, I believe that the book points out important problems with the world around us. I see the Crystal Merchant as a metaphor to the Average Joe of the modern era. A person that is solely content with his material possessions and the ways things are. Even Newtons first law of physics (inertia) shows us that our body loves to be found at a same position and attempts to resist to changes. Consequently, a lot of us dont travel far enough from our comfort zone because we are either scared of the unknown or scared that we will falter. Literary Devices/Predictions In Coelhos novel, the most prominent and important literary device is foreshadowing. My predictions set for my novel are heavily based on the clues I encounter from the reoccurring elements of foreshadowing. However, other literary devices such as irony, metaphors, personifications, symbols, motifs, themes are also included in the novel. The first prediction that I made within the first couple of pages of the novel was his dream about having sought out his Personal Legend in the Pyramids of Egypt along with the help of a boy. Before having completed the book, I assumed that this boy was to be later revealed as an alchemist; however the identity of this boy remains concealed. This element of foreshadowing plays a big role in the overall progression of the book as it is this incident that sparks the whole story line as it initiates him to talk to the Gypsy, in which he later encounters the king of Salem etc. After all of Santiagos influences, Ive came to the conclusion that he would nonetheless have a change in his personality one way or another. Since Santiagos journey relies heavily on the use of omens, it is easy to predict future events and the decisions that he will make in order to accomplish a task. For example, Ive predicted that the Crystal Merchant would surely travel to the Mecca to realise his Personal Legend after having encountered Santiago and deemed him as a good omen. Ive also predicted Santiagos loss of hope and that he would ultimately give up his journey after he packed up his bags to return to Spain. However, I later discovered that the omens of Urim and Thummim have signalled to Santiago that he must not give up and must in fact continue his journey to find his Personal Legend. Further on in the story, I noticed that Santiago and the Alchemist have encountered hostile Arabic soldiers on their way to the Pyramids. I then noted that travelling in such an area would le ad to their eventual capture. On the note of literary devices, personification played a grand role in the development of the climax (human traits were given to the sun, wind as well as the Hand that Wrote All). The story alludes to many characters throughout history as well as mythology. For example, Biblical allusion is made towards the king of Jerusalem Melchizedek who brought bread and wine and offered a blessing (Urim and Thummim in The Alchemist) to Abraham after he won a harsh battle. Also, in the novels prologue, there is allusion to the Greek mythologys Narcissus. This character brings to our attention that everyone is a part of the Soul of the World. Evidence of this is shown when the lake mentions I weep for Narcissus, but I never noticed that Narcissus was beautiful. I weep because, each time he knelt beside my banks, I could see, in the depths of his eyes, my own beauty reflected (Coelho, X).