Angelina Jolie Speech Essay

Introduction When she is not working as the UN Goodwill Ambassador, she’ll be acting or directing another film, or looking after her six adorable children. a. Today I will be speaking about the amazing Angelina Jolie, my inspiration in so many aspects of life and a truly amazing woman. b. I will cover three main areas with regards to her life and  accomplishments. My first point will be about her career and family. Second, I will be mentioning her involvement in various worldwide humanitarian activities. Finally, I will also mention her support for medical health.  (Insert Connective: First, I will give a brief introduction to the life of Angelina Jolie†¨ Identify type: Transitions) I.  Body – (include citations of sources) Angelina Jolie Voight was born on June 4th, 1975. She started acting at a young age and soon became a very successful actress. You may have seen her act in films such as Mr. and Mrs. Smith and Maleficent. a. She is also an accomplished film director and has won various awards in the film industry, including Academy Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards and Golden Globe Awards. (Hollywood Life, Angelina Jolie) b. In her personal life, she is married to fellow actor Brad Pitt. i. They have 6 children, of whom three are adopted, and three are their own biological children. ii. Angelina Jolie is a strong supporter for adoption of children from all over the world, and her support can be seen in her actions. 1. Three of her children were adopted from Cambodia, Ethiopia and Vietnam c. The adoption of her first child from Cambodia bridged the change of her image from ordinary actress to humanitarian worker, which she further developed in the following years. (Insert Connective: Now that I have spoken about Angelina Jolie’s career as  an actress as well as her participation in overseas adoption, I will now speak about her humanitarian work. identify type: Signposting) II.  In an interview, Angelina Jolie mentioned that she was first exposed to what other people around the world faced in 2001, when filming in Cambodia. (UNHCR, Fact Sheet) d. After seeing the suffering in Cambodia, Angelina Jolie contacted the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and offered her help. This truly kick-started her humanitarian efforts in the world, as she was then named a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, with the aim to focus on refugees and displaced people during conflict. iii.She has since visited over 30 countries during her time as a ambassador. iv. She has been brave in the locations she has visited. 2. For example she visited Sudan during the internal conflict, Chad during the civil war as well as Iraq and Libya during the Libyan revolution. e. Angelina Jolie has also set up and financed many charity organisations, such as the Maddox-Jolie-Pitt Foundation, dedicated to community development and environmental conservation in Cambodia. (MJPAsia) All of this intensive humanitarian work has earned her the status as youngest recipient of the Jean Hersholt Award for humanitarian activities in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts. (The Star, Humanitarian Work) (Insert Connective: My third and final point will cover Angelina Jolie’s support for physical and mental health in women identify type: Sign posting) III.  In a New York Times article titled â€Å"My Medical Choice†, Angelina Jolie made headlines across the world when she announced that she underwent a double mastectomy so she could prevent chances of breast cancer. (Nytimes, My Medical Choice) f. This courageous choice was made due to the fact that she carried a gene which increased the risk of both Ovarian and Breast cancer. (Breast Cancer Screening, The Guardian) g. This choice raised a new awareness of people suffering from breast cancer, as well as the various options women faced with the disease. h. She also revealed that she had battled anorexia and self harm earlier in her life, and has openly supported various charities with regards to mental health and depression in youth and adults. II.  Conclusion Angelina Jolie has accomplished so much in her life, and has become a role model not only for her own children but also for so many of us in the world. a. She has used her celebrity status to do humanitarian work and inspire many people. I will conclude my speech with a quote by Angelina Jolie, which I find inspirational and relevant to our lives. â€Å"No matter what you have gone through in your youth, it is about who you choose to be in life. You can define your own destiny. You can be stronger than a very difficult past and overcome it.† (SMH, Angelina Jolie Interview) Thank you very much, and I hope you have also come to appreciate Angelina Jolie as an amazing and inspirational person. Bibliography (use APA / MLA style) Hollywood Life (2012, April 21). Angelina Jolie. hollyoodlife.com. Retrieved September 12, 2014, from http://hollywoodlife.com/celeb/angelina-jolie/ UNHCR (2009, November 13) Angelina Jolie Fact Sheet. unhcr.org. Retrieved September 12, 2014 from http://www.unhcr.org/pages/49db77906.html The Star (2013, Nov 18) Angelina Jolie receives her Jean Hersholt Humanitarian award. thestar.com. Retrieved September 12, 2014) from http:// www.thestar.com/entertainment/stargazing_blog/2013/11/angelina_jolie_receives_her_jean_hersholt_humanitarian_award.html Nytimes (2013, May 14) My Medical Choice. nytimes.com Retrieved September 11th, 2014 from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/opinion/my-medicalchoice.html?_r=0 Ingham, A. (2014, August 18). Breast Cancer Screening on the Rise Since Angelina Jolie. guardianlv.com. Retrieved September 12, 2014, from http:// guardianlv.com/2014/08/breast-cancer-screening-on-the-rise-since-angelinajolie/ Maddox Jolie Pitt Asia. (2008, May 2). MJPAsia. http://www.mjpasia.org Retrieved September 12, 2014, from http://www.mjpasia.org Lifetime TV (2014, April 29) Angelina Jolie Biography lifetimetv.co.uk/Retrieved September 12, 2014, from http://www.lifetimetv.co.uk/biography/ biography-angelina-jolie Sydney Morning Herald (2011, December 16) Angelina Jolie Interview Kung Fu Panda 2 smh.com.au Retrieved September 12, 2014 from http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/angelina-jolie-proud-to-be-likepo-20111216-1oxzg.html

Albert Bandura Theory Essay

Albert Bandura’s theory (The Bobo Doll Experiment) states that children learn aggressive behavior through the media, and by observing others and the environment. He stated that many individuals believed that aggression will produce reinforcements. â€Å"These reinforcements can formulate into reduction of tension, gaining financial rewards, or gaining the praise of others, or building self-esteem† (Siegel, 1992, p. 171). Bandura believes that this aggressive like behavior is stemmed from a process called aggressive modeling. I disagree with this theory because there are too many people in the world to base his theory on something that is not even factual. There are many factors when considering a child’s behavior. Does that child have a violent nature? Is that child a natural introvert? These variables play a huge part when considering if a child will respond to violence. An introvert child is a child who is better off being alone (Dictionary.com). They shelter within themselves. They draw energy and confidence from being alone and staying to themselves. A child like this tends to shy away from groups and group activities. Often times, violent crimes and aggressive behavior are spawned by a group or gang of likeminded people. Introverted children will more than likely not be involved with such gathering of behavior. According to an article, Children and TV Violence, Sarah Davis (2010) indicated that â€Å"While some children emulate the violence they see on the TV, more introverted children get scared instead† (www.livestrong.com). Sometimes, children just take a natural attraction to violent behavior. It does not necessarily have anything to do with the upbringing or environmental state. In some cases, the best parents have the worst children. No one is responsible for the outcome of that child’s behavior but the child itself. The child is the only beholder of what they decide to become in the future. For example, I know a set of twin boys who were both brought up in the same household. They attended the same school and were exposed to the same environment. Yet, the younger twin led a life of aggressive behavior and made a career of being out of being a criminal. However, the older twin chose a path of positivity. He graduated from high school and went to college. He also recently got engaged and is now working on a career in Business. However, his brother is currently serving a sentence for burglary and aggravated assault with the intent to do bodily harm. This simple comparison with these twin boys is called the Classical Choice Theory. The Classical Choice Theory has evolved into modern rational choice theory, which argues that criminals are rational decision makers: before choosing to commit crimes, criminals evaluate the benefits and costs of the contemplate criminal act; their choice is structured by the fear of punishment (Siegel, 2011, p. 13). This theory states that criminals or children who commit crimes have the rational choice to commit crimes without any influence of their environment, other people or the media. Others might not agree with me on the Albert Bandura Theory, stating that the media, other people and the environment are some reasons for negative behavior of a child. Parenting a child is not a science; it cannot be put into a scientific method and used to rear and develop a child. However, each child is different; therefore, each technique has to be executed accordingly to a child’s behavior. Unfortunately, some children live in low income societies and are exposed to violence. Nevertheless, if you rear a child with the proper guidance, that child still withholds his future in his hands. Each child has the ultimate say-so of what they will or will not do when it is time for them to make that dangerous choice. References (N/A) (N/D) Introvert Retrieved on July 31, 2012 http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/introvert?s=t Davis, S.(2010). Children and tv violence. Retrieved August 6,2012, from http://www.livestrong.com/article/75671-children-tv-violence/#ixzz22mr0G2ui Rathus A. Spencer (2012). Psych. 51. Mason, Ohio: Wadsworth. Cengage Learning. Siegal, L. J. (2011). Criminology: The core (4th ed.). Florence, KY: Wadsworth Publishing.

Figurative Language versus Literal Language Essay - 9

Figurative Language versus Literal Language - Essay Example The phrase, â€Å"a piece of cake† does not literally mean a task that can be easily completed. As an idiom, however, that is what it means. The image that the idiom conjures up has a lot to do with the meaning that it is given (Amphiboly, n.d.). An amphiboly refers to an ambiguity that is created as a result of the grammatical structure of that sentence. This may be the result of the different meanings that may result from the positioning of marks of punctuation. An analogy refers to a device of figurative language whereby meaning is transferred to make something clear. A certain process or thing is talked of in terms of another to make others understand its essence. One may take the example of the analogy between a tube and the mechanism of water travel within a plant that is often used in botany classrooms, to understand the concept of an analogy. A flame word is something that is used as a substitute for another word or process that can then be used independent of the original word. It can be used since the original word is not used in common parlance or also probably because the flame word is what is used within a coterie of people who may understand the word. It can then be used as a means of developing a group with an understanding of certain secret words (Urban Dictionary, n.d.). One of the most celebrated devices of the figures of speech, metaphor refers to the substitution of one idea with the other so as to qualify the first one. In this device, the characteristics of one object are transferred to the other. The two objects may have no apparent relation and metaphors are often used by poets to shock readers in this way. When a person is referred to as a ‘cheetah on the track’, their exceptional speed is sought to be highlighted through the metaphor. Hyperbole is a figure of speech whereby something is exaggerated to a great extent. The reader is aware of the

Comparing one of the three Illinois State Budget Crisis topics Essay

Comparing one of the three Illinois State Budget Crisis topics (pensions, state borrowing and infrastructure) with the same issue in other jurisdictions (US or non-US) - Essay Example The Governor’s proposal to reduce the states spending could lessen the impacts of the financial mess. However, the move would in the future raise cost of living adjustments for workers, rose retirement age and reduced pensions for higher salaried citizens. Budget documents had previously in 2011 projected 1100 layoffs in a proposal to reduce state spending and, consequently, close particular state offices (Yaccino, 2012). The move to cut pension benefits implied a violation of the constitution that formed the umbrella of workers protecting them against the grim consequences of such changes. The article critically analyzes the Illinois State Budget Crisis as published as published by the New York Times editors. The paper compares the crisis to Canadian jurisdictions and applies the methods Canadian state previously utilized to contain a predicament of a similar nature. The essay will offer an integrated approach t the topic of study. The state’s financial crisis made the workers become uncertain about their retirements while at the same time straining the state’s budget and sinking credit ratings. Political leaders agreed to solve the financial shortfalls by cutting the pension benefits. The union and state workers celebrated the court ruling (Davey, 2015). However, critics viewed the ruling as capable of escalating the state’s financial challenges. The State Representative Elaine Nekritz, a Democrat, defined the extent of the challenge as more difficult and painful. The Democrat officials previously held numerous debates with the unions for several years while discussing a way forward to solve the state’s issue. The unions, however, opposed the proposals to cut the pension benefits. The officials, surprisingly, argued that in the essence of the state’s economic situation, they would pass into law the bill that proposes a cut in the pension benefits. The reporter notes that the state experienced a pension finance deficit

'The great strength of the market is that it is a decentralised means Essay

'The great strength of the market is that it is a decentralised means of resource allocation.' Discuss - Essay Example However, the markets deviate because of the demand and supply levels that shape the market conditions. The following context is a depth discussion of free market enterprise economies with incorporation of the liberalists and socialists approaches. Innovation The free market economies are crucial for general growth of a country as the production factors seem to coincide with the market forces in exploitation of resources to achieve improvement in lives through the satisfaction of consumer needs (Lightenstein, 2005:56). Economists argue that free markets comprise of sellers of different products and buyers to the different products and the extent at which these factors prevail without coercion is the best of economic growth. Mainly, supply of the products is dependent on demand levels prevailing in the market. A supplier defines a particular need for a product in the market and depicts on the best method of solving the consumer need (Block, and Block, 2008:58). At this point, the suppl ier shall indulge in the process of developing a product tailored to cater for the anticipated need. Producers to new products in a free market find ease in accessing value through the effective ascertainment of anticipated needs from the target consumers. This occurs from the essence that the consumer expresses the needs he feels deprived of and at that point, the innovative and knowledgeable producer gains access to a product idea (Kasper, 2006:122). A producer should depict the market eyed on and establish the probable rate of competition that may prevail in the market. Economists hold on innovation as of critical value to enhancing production and increased economic performances at the long run (Barth, Lin, and Wihlborg, 2012:43). For example, a new product in a free market enterprise encourages different producers to derive a norm that producing towards the different consumer needs could be beneficial to the urge to grow. As Smith established in the 18th century, suppliers deriv e the urge to produce just as the consumers derive the urge to purchase a given. Studies depict that innovative supply of products is positive to growth in the economy. For example, a new product in the market would imply to a new demand and supply module that will include a monopolistic competition approach. The law is that the product will gain a gradual increase in the level of demand and slowly incline in accordance to the purchase model (Lightenstein, 2005:59). This process shall implicate a level of returns on investment to the producer who shall in turn engage in production of more output to cater for the raising demand. At this point, producers shall stand the threat of competition in the absence of substitute commodities in the market. Free market economists embrace monopolistic competition as ideal in that different suppliers have distinct products thus will attract different buyers. Therefore, monopolistic competition is relative to decreased rivalry (Kasper, 2006:124). T he libertarians hold on free market as ideal to the distribution of wealth and equity to the entire society in general. For example, the new products shall lead to the creation of employment rates for knowledgeable and innovative individuals. This labor force shall derive earnings from the initial demand of the product at the initial price (Barth, Lin, and Wihlborg, 2012:45). With the opposing factors remaining constant, the product demand shall increase accordingly and will be the yields to the producer. Hence, increased production

Response letter to Simon Wiesenthal from the book Sunflower Essay

Response letter to Simon Wiesenthal from the book Sunflower - Essay Example I would have felt the same. Indeed, this question is hard to answer because I have no experience, although you have described the situation vividly. In addition, it is much easier to say yes and get done with it especially when you have not identified yourself in other people’s lives. I have understood why you cannot answer the request of the dying man. It is because you have so many burdens in your heart, and the wound is still fresh. The symbol of sunflower always reminds you the connection of living and the dead. Envy was in your heart because even though that man cannot claim for your forgiveness; there will be a sunflower on his tomb. Sunflower is also a reminder of the lives that had been taken due to Holocaust. During that time, when the man asked for your forgiveness, the measurement you used was the sunflower. It directs you to the decision you had made -- to be silent and walk away. Pain is extremely difficult to handle. It will haunt you even when you are asleep. Pain will make your dreams and hopes vanished. My criticism to your behavior will later lead to my answer to your question: Are the Nazis worthy of Jews’ forgiveness? In behalf of 6 million Jews that died, can I forgive that man who participated in eliminating my family, friends, and ra ce? When faith and moral values combine, the answer to that question is yes. Within the context of your story, you have never found absolute peace because even at the end of your life, you will ask a similar question. Although you have been called as the conscience of the Holocaust, your past decision haunts you. Forgiveness is the key to free yourself from the nightmare of the Holocaust. Moreover, forgiveness is associated with letting go. It does not signify that you will forget what had happened in the past, but freeing yourself from anger and hatred. It will lead to healing and restoring your stolen

Paper 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Paper 3 - Essay Example Who among them was right, is it the City management or is it Uriah? Arguments raised by the two parties will help in determining the case. On his part, Uriah felt that his actions were justified while the City felt that they were justified in their decision to fire the employee. In the arguments that I shall hereby raise, I will look at both sides of the arguments and why they felt they were justified in their actions. Moreover, I will also explore the possibilities in both cases. Discussions to the case As opposed to crimes which are public, torts are private wrongs committed by people or businesses. Unintentional torts, also known as negligence are defined as the situation whereby a person has either failed to do something or has done something that a reasonable person in his or her own right mind would not do and the another person has suffered harm as a result of the foreseeable action or inaction (Cooke, 2007). The action that has either been committed or omitted is what is refe rred to as negligence. In the case of Uriah versus the City, Uriah acted in due negligence and breached his duty of care. This was against the ethics of business which requires that an employee should at all times portray a behavior or character that in no way will dent the image of the company, whether on duty or off duty. Failure by any employee to observe the code of ethics could attract severe consequences, even dismissal. According to Miller (2012), many businesses take their codes of ethics with increased levels of seriousness as they value how their customers judge them in accordance to the image of the employees. With the high levels of competition due to globalization, no business is ready to let anything to chance in maintaining their public image and stay ahead of their competition. In essence, the dismissal of Uriah was backed by ethics of the business. In particular, Uriah would cost the business its image as few customers would like being served by a night club dancer. Clubs are associated with all mannerisms of immorality and bad behavior. Contrary to this, the modern business environment is concerned about image, ethics and morals. Employees such as Uriah thus find themselves on the wrong due to their actions. Miller & Jentz, (2010) observe that businesses have increasingly shunned away unethical behavior such as alcoholism, drug abuse among other socially unaccepted behavior. Some even restrict the areas in which their employees need to reside in, the type of social places that they can hang out in and the dress codes. All this is supposed to show their customers that they understand what it means to be ethically responsible. As part of the corporate social responsibility, businesses are required to be on the front line in promoting moral behaviorisms in the society. They can only survive this through keeping employees who are ethically responsible. It is due to these reasons that the City decided to fire Uriah for being a night club dancer. O n his part, Uriah was justified in a number of ways to take part in the night club dance as a part time job. However, his argument would be tricky as he had to put into consideration the damages his actions would have caused the company. Although he had acted in violation of the codes of ethics, business morals require that an

Marketing Strategy College Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Marketing Strategy College - Essay Example These products will be marketed with unique capabilities and innovative designs that would differentiate it from its competitors. The products would be positioned as a highly differentiated product that adds value to the customers. The high-technology market is very much competitive with existing rivalry between successful companies such as Apple, Hewlett-Packard and Dell. Each company desires leadership in the market and utilizes aggressive marketing strategies in order to position their products as the preferred product in the technology market. EJ's Innovation and More will be playing in the same market and would compete with these companies. The company aims to market its desktops and laptops in all the fifty states of United States and its territories. It is the goal of the company to penetrate the US market and acquire its share. The high-technology market can be segmented according to the different operating variables of the customers and their buying behavior. The table below summarizes the segmentation in the technology market. The end-users are mostly working in technology professions. The customers are made up of commercial artists, designers and creators. They are interested in the number of capabilities and the latest developments in computing. They are innovators who look for new ways to produce better service in their profession. They buy value-added computers at par with the value for their money. Pioneers (Secondary Target Segment of EJ's Innovation & More) The end-users are lured by friendly design of the product, technical support and reassurance from marketers. The customers are made up of high-tech managers and their assistants. They want computers that satisfy their need for status but are easy to use. Companies mostly purchase their computers. Skeptics The end-users have few motivations with few inhibitions to adopt technologies. The customers are made up of home producers and parents who prefer computers that can be used for a variety of purposes and are not highly priced. Paranoids The end-users should be offered high levels of reassurance about the safety and security of technologies. The customers are mostly businesses that deal with sensitive materials such as banks and government agencies. Laggards The end-users may be reached out by being offered streamlined and easy-to-use offerings. The customers are mostly modern students who prefer economical packages. Service Quality Joseph Juran, a quality management guru, emphasized the role of management and stressed the definition of good quality as satisfying customer requirements and demand (Beckford, 2002). In service quality, the perception of the customer is ultimately the measurement of quality such that measuring customer satisfaction is the most common method of determining quality. However, the issues which determine customer satisfaction are varied and are often affected with the mood of the customer as with the provision of service (Rowbotham, Galloway, & Azhashemi, 2007). The customers tend to evaluate service quality through personal comparison with what they expect against what they perceive and experience. Several factors can influence

Ismg 3000 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Ismg 3000 - Essay Example Conversely, Barton himself was hired as a function of the belief that he could inject some fresh blood and new perspective into the way that the organization operates. Due to the fact that the same tired techniques had been tried over and over under Davies’ leadership with little to no affect, Barton was ultimately viewed as a way in which a blank slate could be created and the organization could move forward from a fresh point without the baggage that Davies engendered. This is due to the fact that IT touches so many different aspects of the firm in somewhat imperceptible ways. Whereas the affect of a new marketing strategy can be uniformly measured, the effect of procurement of new and more efficient IT systems and the integration of a greater level of IT expertise within the field means that the overall synergy that is created is something that is difficult to narrow down to but a few statistics and figures. Moreover, when one realizes that the rate of expenditure as compared to the rate of return, this too is problematic due to the fact that the rate of return on investment is not immediately or rapidly realized. Ultimately, it does matter due to the fact that as soon as key functions of IT are removed, the organization itself would necessarily come stumbling to a halt. An example of this can be seen in the way that a firm would no longer be able to support a key data package that is necessary for operational effectiveness. With such an integral and key component of the firm no longer operations, the means by which business is conducted is necessarily reduced; thereby reducing the competitive advantage of the firm and the total outreach and scope that it could hope to appeal to. With regards to my current firm, this can best be described as an IT situation that is strategic. Rather than providing a support function or merely aiding the organization in developing a product, my firm is one that provides a hands

Mass Media Influence on the Society Proposal Essay Example for Free

Mass Media Influence on the Society Proposal Essay In the last 50 years, the influence of the media on the society has grown exponentially with the advance of technology. Mass media is a major force in modern culture, particularly in America. All lot of times they refer to this as a mediated culture where media reflects and creates the culture. If you look in the past, first there was the post offices and telegram, and then they build the radio, newspaper and magazines, later television and now internet. Mass media is all about communication whether spoken, written or broadcast that reaches a large audience. This includes movies, magazines, radio, television, advertising, the internet and so forth. But how is mass media influencing our society. This question is what drives me to writing this proposal. To do this research I will be using Internet, e-books and other researches done on this topic to really understand this subject and based on the result of my analysis I will present my findings and conclusion on the questions. Read more:Â  Essay About Media Influences on Society Research Question How is mass media influencing our society? Sub Questions: 1. How does mass media influence work? 2. What are the effects of media? 3. What kind of impact does mass media have on our youth? Introduction If you ask around most of the people will tell you that media is really influencing people. But how is mass media really influencing our way of living. Before discussing the influence of mass media on society it is important to point out the 3 basic functions of mass media. The basic function of media is to provide entertainment, education and news/ information. The most important function of media is to provide news and information to the masses. That is why the present era is known as the information age. People need news or information for different reasons, on one hand it can be used to socialize and on the other to make decisions and formulate opinions. Entertainment would be the other function where it is mostly used to amuse in present day hectic environment. Educating the masses about their rights, moral, social and religious obligations is another important function of mass media. Due to globalization a huge number of people depend on communication and information to stay connected to the world and their daily activities like education, work, health care, socialization and travel. If you look at a common person he or she wakes up each morning and checks newspaper or television news which he or she uses for basing their decisions.

Low Cost Leadership Strategy

Low Cost Leadership Strategy In the world of businesses today, every organization definitely needs information systems in their way of doing business. Laudon and Laudon define information system as a set of interrelated components that retrieve, process, store and distribute the information to support the decision making in an organization. In fact, those who acquire a decent information system would eliminate those who dont have to fight against it. The ever changing world of information technology brings new challenges for every organization to set up an information system that would provide numerous advantages. According to Laudon and Laudon (2009), there are six main reasons why business are investing millions of dollar in information system and technologies, among them are operational excellence; new products, services, and business models; customer and supplier intimacy; improved decision making; competitive advantage and last but not least, survival. Therefore, Aalsmeer Flower Auction (will be known as Aalsmeer throughout the research paper) who is encountering several problems would need the help of information system to overcome the problems. 2.0 Information strategy 2.1 Analysis of current situation Aalsmeer is facing threats from various sources and should utilize the information technology today in defending their business. Laudon and Laudon (2009) believe that the more successfully a firm can align the information technology with business goals, the more profitable it will be. Apart from that, business people who claim themselves do not understand information technology will pay a hefty price in poor performance (Laudon and Laudon, 2009). In the market today, electronic driven flower market is becoming more and more dominant than the traditional way of doing business. Besides, the competitive environments among the retailers encourage them to merge and forming a larger company with an increased in demanding power. Indeed, they are demanding fresher products, more varieties, smaller quantities and multiple deliveries and this inevitably exert pressures on Aalsmeer who needs to change their way of doing business in order to survive. It is advisable for Aalsmeer to adopt a new strategy for the organization to achieve their business objectives and ensure competitive advantage in the industry. The objectives of Aalsmeer at the moment are: Enable innovation for the business processing methods Redefine the value chain to reduce transaction costs Integrate smoothly with wholesalers and retailers Increase the market share to increase profit 2.2 Low-cost leadership strategy After examine the current situation of Aalsmeer, low-cost leadership strategy is undoubtedly the most suitable for the company now. Low-cost leadership strategy is centered on the capability of Aalsmeer to produce and deliver the products of high quality at low costs. A company having low-cost leadership when extends its value to customers expectation, can further strengthen its strategic position in the market place, (Alagse, n.d). In fact, information systems could be use to lower the operational costs and hence, lower prices for the customers. The typical example is Wal-Mart, which is a company continuously relies heavily on information system to reduce costs and this leads them to one of the largest profitable company. They replenish the products as soon as the customers make payments at the cashier. The computers collect information from the stores and send it to suppliers and therefore, Wal-Mart does not need to spend large amount of money on maintaining large inventories. Aalsmeer offer relatively standardized products with features that are acceptable to customers; in other words, with minimum differentiation at the lowest competitive price. In addition, Aalsmeer who are suggested to follow a low-cost leadership strategy need to maintain constant efforts aimed at lowering their costs, but yet creating values for the customers. Such efforts include investing in technologies, establishing tight control of production and overhead costs, minimizing the cost of sales and services. Specifically, investing technologies means to develop a new information system for Aalsmeer to achieve the objectives stated earlier which would be discuss later on this proposal. Implementing the strategy means Aalsmeer must consider its value chain of primary and secondary activities and effectively link them to be successful. The critical focus now is to increase the efficiency of how the business process. In detail, processes and procedures of selling flowers to customers must be simplified, achieving efficiency and effectiveness and last but not least, monitoring the cost of activities provided by others that interface with the companys inbound and outbound logistics. For instance, the delivery travel costs. Moreover, when Aalsmeer successfully implements the low-cost leadership strategy, it can still obtain a high return even when the Porters five competitive forces are strong. Porters five forces Explanation Traditional competitors When Aalsmeer is offering the lowest cost in the market, the competitors will undoubtedly consider competing in a price war, and even if it does, Aalsmeer will still continue to earn profit after the competitors compete away their profits. Customers If there is any customers tends to drive prices below the cost of the next most efficient company, that company might choose to exit the market and leaves the low-cost company with a monopoly position. Therefore, customers would lose bargaining powers when that happens since low-cost company would be in a position that has power to raise the prices. New market entrants Aalsmeer who successfully utilize the low-cost strategy generally will sell in large volume to earn high profit. This indirectly creates a barrier for the new entrants who need to enter the industry at large scale (large enough to achieve the same economies of scale with low-cost company). Suppliers Once Aalsmeer achieve the lowest cost in the market, it enables them to absorb a greater amount of cost increases from suppliers before it must raise prices charged to customers. Moreover, Aalsmeer who will be dominating the market may force the suppliers to hold down the level of price increases, reducing the power of suppliers. Substitute products and services Aalsmeer, as a low-cost leader will be in a more attractive position relative to the substitutes. They could reduce prices to maintain the price-value relationship to retain customers from going to the electronic driven market. 2.3 Enterprise Resource Planning The information system that is suggested for Aalsmeer would be the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), which can be define as a set of integrated programs capable of managing a companys vital business operations for an entire multi-site, global organization. ERP attempts to integrate the key business processes of an entire firm into a single software system that allows information to flow seamlessly throughout the organization. For instance, the transactions with customers and flower growers. Indeed, the key to ERP is real time monitoring of business functions, which allows timely analysis of key issues such as quality, availability, customer satisfaction, performance and availability. It is a set of integrated software modules and a central database that enable data to be shared by many different business processes and functional units throughout the enterprise (Curtis Cobham, 2005). Sources: extolcorp ERP functional units Financial and accounting The Aalsmeer is facing challenges from the electronically driven flower markets and due to this reason, it is vital for them to have a complete accounting system. All the transaction ought to be recorded quickly with no error or minimal error in order to let the other departments to take the next actions immediately. It also includes cash management and forecasting, credit management and financial reporting. It would gives Aalsmeer an edge if they could forecast the cash flow and make important decisions when necessary such as, stop buying stock of flowers when they flower markets are down in particular period. Human Resource Since consumers are demanding fresher products, more varieties and smaller quantities, the human resource definitely needs an information system that can divide the jobs to each employees from each department of the organization. Therefore, the company could satisfy the demands from the consumers. Besides, human resource process also involves performance management and travel expense reporting. The new system could do a performance analysis of the current situation and make necessary changes to it. Apart from that, the travel expenses such as petrol fees can be monitored closely to avoid any extra expenses being used. Manufacturing and production Whereas the manufacturing and production processes includes mainly the procurement process, which is the action of obtaining flowers at the operational level. As the problems stated, the growers are becoming more professional and starting to utilize the electronic way of selling their flowers. The system could manage the inventory effectively by not wasting any extra capital to rent the inventory, or having insufficient place to keep the flowers. This is to ensure the flowers are in good quality control and further strengthen the links between wholesalers and retailers when they actually get what is ideal for themselves. Supply Chain Management It is composed of three sub processes: demand planning, supply planning and demand fulfillment. Demand planning is to understand the customers buying patterns and then develop aggregate long-term or short term forecast of demand on the flowers. Whereas the supply planning includes the strategic inventory with distribution planning and demand fulfillment is to provide a fast, accurate and reliable delivery for customer orders. It also helps to determine what type of supplies is required, what quantities are needed to meet the demand, and how the shipments of supplies and products to customers are to be scheduled, monitored and controlled. Customer Relationship Management A system that helps in all aspects of customer encounters, including marketing and advertising, customer service after the sale and programs that retain loyal customers. Aalsmeer ought to understand the needs of current and potential customers to increase customer retention and loyalty, which leads to a bigger market share. With the processing system capturing data of every customer with the company, Aalsmeer would then know the best way to sell the flowers based on the analysis such as customer preference, time of purchasing, ways of purchasing and many more. This could ensure an increase in efficiency of the selling force and then, increase the productivity by focusing on the most profitable customers. 2.4 Advantages of ERP Agile manufacturing underpins the success of Smart car, DailerChryslers city car brand. Smart has successfully responded quickly to customer demands ever since they have adopted the ERP system from Baan, the Dutch software vendor (Geoff Nairn, 2003, as cited in Curtis Cobham, 2005). The optimized production is due to shorter processes but yet still came out with reliable products. Advantages Explanation Improvement of Work Process It ensures good work processes based on best practices which lead to increased efficiency. In this case, the ERP could helps in reducing costs for the organization, such as human resourcing or transaction cost. Besides, it eliminates the problem of synchronizing changes between multiple systems and provides a top-down view of the enterprise at anytime. Increase in Access to Data for Operational Decision Making The data is integrated from all the departments in the organization to provide excellent support for operational decision making. In addition, it allows the company to provide greater customer service and support, strengthen customer and supplier relationship, and also generates new business opportunities. The system connects the necessary software for accurate forecasting and this allows inventory levels to be kept at maximum efficiency. 3.0 Methodology 3.1 System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) Kay. R (2004) believes that System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is a model created for an organization when adopting a new information system. In fact, SDLC is a sequential series of steps to build an information system and it is one of the most common development strategies. It is best to follow the SDLC which consists of five phases: system planning, system analysis, system design, system implementation, system operation and maintenance. The phases are interconnected by the inputs and outputs, and if the previous phase has poor outputs, the rest would be affected. 3.1.1 System Planning The first phase of SDLC is system planning, which happen when there is a request of a new system. Aalsmeer realizes that they need a new information strategy in order to remain strong player in the market. A preliminary investigation ought to be conducted to review the existing system and identify the problems. Indeed, a feasibility study could be carried out to identify whether the proposed new system is feasible to be implemented. If the new system is possible, practicable, reasonable and applicable in four main aspects, then the management should invest on it in order to get benefits in a long term. Aspects Why? Technical feasibility To determine whether a new IS can be developed with available technical resources. Does Aalsmeer Flower Auction have the hardware, software and equipments? Can it be developed with current technology? Economic feasibility To determine whether the new IS has a reasonable cost despite the changes it will brings Can Aalsmeer Flower Auction bear with the cost? Operational feasibility To determine if the new IS will be used effectively and efficiently after it is developed Are the changes to business operation minimal? Schedule feasibility To determine whether the new IS can be developed within an acceptable time frame? After conducting the feasibility test, Aalsmeer could then decide the actions to be taken based on the preliminary investigation report. 3.1.2 System Analysis Next, it is the system analysis phase, where the purpose is for Aalsmeer to learn how to improve the existing system, and then determine what the new system should do in order to achieve the goals. Therefore, the organization could find some facts about the current system, such as the strength and weakness of it and produce a report with what is required in the new system. Requirement Anticipation Requirement Specification Requirement Investigation In fact, Aalsmeer could gather the facts by study existing documentation, interview with employees, observation and questionnaire. Then, operational details and performance criteria need to be specified and examined, i.e. the speed of the ERP system after developed. After that, this phase carefully analyzes the information and then prepares a system requirement document which should include managements and users requirements, and recommended plan to develop the new ERP. 3.1.3 System Design This is the phase where after the management level has decided to develop a new system for the organization. A blueprint, which is a detailed plan that satisfied all requirements specified, needed to be develop at this phase. Aalsmeers management should discuss this with all the employees in order to develop a system that satisfies everyone. Programs related are written, tested and documented by the analyst. In addition, internal and external controls are to be designed to ensure the system would be reliable, accurate, maintainable at any time and secure. Lastly, this phase would end up with system design specification where the blueprint is presented to managements and the actual users for review and approval. 3.1.4 System Implementation At this phase, the developed ERP system will be installed in the organization. In addition, operational documentation and procedures of the new ERP system are prepared for the Aalsmeer employees. The employees would need to attend classes to be trained in order to utilize the system effectively. This is a phase of conversion from old system to new system. Indeed, the new system is a huge and complex one, so Aalsmeer could install the software step by step and therefore, it would not crash the whole system when some particular department has problem using it. Aalsmeer could create a legal contract that indicates the system is approved and will be signed by users and stakeholders (Stair Reynolds, 2008). A post-implementation system evaluation could be done to access the quality of the system. Apart from that, it is to examine whether the system operates ideally and are the costs and benefits within the earlier expectations. 3.1.5 System Maintenance This phase is an on-going process as the purpose is to support the operation of the system through proper maintenance, enhancement and protection. Under the maintenance process, any broken hardware is repaired or replaced to avoid any surprising break down. Besides that, the Aalsmeer needs to optimize the system to make the system run smoothly. For example, by compressing the data base, or delete the old and unused files. When there are any errors detected, modification should be done as soon as possible (Stair Reynolds, 2008). On the other hand, enhancement is needed at particular time interval to increase the system capability such as adding more hard disk space to store a large database of customer information. In addition, new functionalities and features could be added when there is a change in the ways of doing business. Lastly, the protection on the system to ensure it is not attacked by any virus or hackers. The firewall of the system is configured and monitored to minimize the chances of being attacked. Besides, backing up the database is definitely a good way to protect all the customer information which is private and confidential. King Stairs Software (n.d.) mentioned that a proper backup strategy is vital for business as well as personal users. 4.0 Impacts and effectiveness of ERP Systems changeover can be effected in some ways which not only has certain benefits, there will be drawbacks as well (Curtis Cobham, 2005). 4.1 Organization The purpose of this research is to identify a way for Aalsameer to strengthen itself in the market. It is believed that the company is able to reduce the operational cost, due to the effectiveness of the system to finish up the work in lesser time given. The new system would emphasize on the information technologies, where the large amount number of workers is no longer needed. Apart from that, the organization can offer lower cost compared to rivals. The ERP system enable the organization to fight with the electronically driven market and thus, accelerating the business growth. Besides, the budget saved can be use on the marketing campaign to promote the new system of organization to public, and thus, they would be well aware of the new operating business model. However, Aalsameer should consider whether the system supports the business objectives (OBrien Marakas, 2008). If the system does fully support the business objectives, it is worth to be invested even though they may face problems on capital, when hiring the system vendors to develop it. If the system does not support the objectives, Aalsmeer may need to re-consider the actions taken before. 4.2 Management Whereas for the management level, the reports statement such as invoice, can be generated through online now. It saves the time for everyone the processing time is cut down in a systematic way. To top it off, it reduces the workload easily and the burden of management level can be taken off. Therefore, it increases the efficiency of management level since they can rely on the ERP system more than before. By using a complete and efficient ERP system, it also reduces the error or mistake which could possibly occur when the work is done by human alone. The process of paper work simply becomes easier, simpler and faster for management and they could put more attention on other problems. For example, searching for more potential customers via new marketing communications. On the other hand, they can put more emphasis on matters that could possibly cut down the operational cost such as downsizing the number of workers in the organization. Since the organization is utilizing the ERP system now, it is possible to rely on the technology instead of human hand to do the work. However in reality, it may be difficult for the management to layoff the employees who may be had work for the company long time, but it is essential to make the decision as it benefits the organization, after all. 4.3 Employees Certainly, there would be several impacts on the employee of the organization, who is the direct users of the new ERP system. Firstly, it may create a chaos in them, where the new system would take over their position by terminating them. Besides, elderly employees who are not familiar with new technology, or not used to changes in working environment will definitely suffer in using ERP when the system is installed. Indeed, employees who are not good at adapting to the surrounding will face hardships this may create a negative environment in the organization. However, it is believed that after few months, they will eventually find themselves comfortable with the ERP. Moreover, the new system will ease the burden of the employees, and increase the time for them to focus on their work. For instance, they can provide a good and reliable quality of customer service which in long term, will bring up the reputation of Aalsmeer Flower Auction. Moreover, since the ordering and payment are all done online now, it simplifies the working process. Indeed, employee would be more ambitious in completing their tasks. 5.0 Conclusion All in all, Aalsmeer definitely needs a new information strategy as well as a new information system in order to achieve the business objectives. Ideas suggested to Aalsmeer are considered carefully and it is believed as the best way for the organization now. If Aalsmeer would to follow the proposal carefully, they would achieve the business objectives and make a success in the market today. References Books Curtis, G. Cobham, D., 2005. Business Information Systems. 5th ed. Edinburgh Gate: Pearson Education Limited Laudon, K.C. Laudon, J.P., 2007. Essentials of business Information Systems. 7th ed. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall. Laudon, K.C. Laudon, J.P., 2009. Essentials of management Information System. 8th ed. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall. OBrien J.A. Marakas, G.M., 2008. Introduction to Information Systems. 14th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Stair, R.M. Reynolds, G.W., 2008. Principles of Information Systems: a managerial approach. 8th ed. Boston: Thomson Course Technology. Websites Alagse, n.d. Promoting through leadership . [Online] Available at: http://www.alagse.com/strategy/s10.php [Accessed 2 April 2010] Kay, R., 2002. QuickStudy: System Development Life Cycle. [Online] Available at: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/71151/System_Development_Life_Cycle [Accessed 5 April 2010] King Stairs Software, n.d. The importance of backup. [Online] Available at: http://www.kingstairs.com/articles/doc0003.html [Accessed 24 April 2010] Extol, 2006. Secured Enterprise Application. [Online] Available at: http://www.extolcorp.com/solution/sea_ecerp.html [Accessed 25 April 2010]

The Red Tent: My Reaction :: essays research papers

In her book, The Red Tent, Anita Diamant attempts to expound upon the foundations laid by the Torah by way of midrashim. In doing so, parts of her stories tend to stray from the original biblical text. The following essay will explore this and several other aspects of the book as they relate to the Torah and modern midrash.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the first differences I recognized was the description of Leah’s eyes. In Genesis 29:17, Leah’s eyes are described as weak. Diamant dispels this ‘rumor’, saying that Leah’s eyes, one blue and one green, â€Å"made others weak† because most people had difficulty looking her in the face. By making this small adjustment, Diamant is able to create a connection between Jacob and Leah that the Bible neglects. The Bible says only that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah, which tends to give the impression that Leah was unloved. Diamant says that Jacob was able to look Leah in the eye without any trouble and never made any comment regarding them. This is significant because it shows that Jacob overlooked a flaw in Leah that most others seemed unable to ignore, and the physical attraction between them that she later addressed in the seven days following their marriage (which was a single night in the Bible) seems to make more s ense. In addition, their discussion in the tent concluding that Jacob was to emerge after the week â€Å"feigning anger â€Å" is a midrash provides an explanation as to why Jacob slept with Leah and still complained to Laban that he had been tricked. Diamant makes Jacob appear to be more of a gentleman than the Bible does, and thus, a more likeable main character in her novel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In The Red Tent, Diamant created people not mentioned in the Torah. One such person was Ruti, Laban’s last wife. Laban beat Ruti badly and frequently for no apparent reason. In Diamant’s book, Ruti’s fairly small role serves as a clear reason for the reader to dislike Laban. Until Ruti is introduced, besides being a drunk and making love to sheep, we find Laban to be little more than pathetic. Including Ruti in the story adds another dimesion to Laban’s character; one of cruelty and aggression. At this point, Diamant makes Laban begin to fit the novelistic â€Å"bad guy† mold quite well, and the reader finds him more repulsive than ever before. His daughters pay little attention to Ruti and ignore the evidence of their father’s abusiveness because Ruti is â€Å"the mother of their sons’ rivals, their material enemy.

America Online: Is It For Me? :: essays research papers

America Online: Is It For Me? You have probably heard of the Internet, but you weren't really sure if it was for you. You thought about it, but after all it costs so much and things like pornography and improper language are used everywhere, right? Wrong! Perhaps, I can convince you that America Online will be worth your time and money. One of the main reasons that people don't go online is that they think that it costs too much. America Online or AOL doesn't really cost all that much. When you sign on you get from 10 to 50 hours free, depending on the software that you download. Once you run out of free hours you may choose to stay online with a monthly fee. This monthly fee can be either $9.95 or $19.95 depending on how many hours you plan on using. If you are concerned that your children will visit web pages you prefer that they don't, then you can put parental guards on that don't allow them to visit those web pages. If you aren't familiar with web pages, they are basically ads that you look at containing information about the company, person, or product. Also you can sign your child on as a child or teen which keeps them out of restricted areas. Perhaps your main concern is people finding out things that you don't want them to. They only know as much as you tell them. If they ask for your password, credit card number, or any other personal info, you don't have to tell them that information. When you first sign on AOL staff will ask for things like name, age, address, phone number, and your credit card or checking account number. These things remain confidential and are used only for billing purposes. If anyone ask for personal information you can easily report them to AOL. When someone is reported they are either warned or kicked off the Internet. You can also report people that swear or use any kind of offensive words. Many of the chat rooms are guarded by "online hosts" or people that belong to AOL. These "guards" make sure nothing bad happens in chat rooms. You can be sure that there are AOL staff in the romance rooms, especially, because that is where the most foul and vulgar language takes place. If you are too young to be in the room, they will tell you to leave and go to a room where people your age belong. The world "online" also offers thousands of Reference sources like Groliers Multimedia Encyclopedia and over 100 magazines.

To Kill A Mockingbird: Scene Analysis :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  An important scene found in the movie To Kill A Mockingbird is a scene concerning Mr. Tate recoiling upon the outcaste, Boo Radley, and unraveling a new perception of friendship. Atticus Finch (played by Gregory Peck), his daughter Jean-Louise Finch, also known as Scout (played by Mary Badham), and Boo Radley (played by Robert Duvall) all play an important role in the scene. As scout relates what had happened, she notices a man in the corner of the bedroom behind the door. She identifies the mysterious man as the one who grabbed Mr. Ewell and carried Jem home when she says, â€Å"Why, there he is Mr. Tate. He can tell you his name . . .† The sheriff, Mr. Tate, moves the bedroom door revealing in the light a frightened, gentle, and pale Boo Radley. And as he conveys a loving look, Scout gazes at him and smiles. In the meanwhile, Atticus had already introduced Scout to Boo. Then, Scout and Boo hold hands and walk over to the side of Jem’s bed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The challenge of taking a novel and translating it into film falls into the work of the screenwriter. The Academy Award winning screenplay was faithfully adapted by screenwriter Horton Foote from the 1960 novel of the same name, To Kill A Mockingbird. For the most part, Foote utilizes Harper Lee’s words. There is, however, one noticeable formality seen in the movie and not in the book. This formality takes place when Boo appears and Atticus states, â€Å"Miss Jean-Louise . . .† Her name does not appear this way in the book but does in the movie in order to exert a certain idealistic fervor of the Finch household that belongs in every household that adults should be respectful and well-spoken.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A screenplay is entirely useless unless if there are actors to bring it to life. When Mary Badham leans against the bedpost and wraps her hands around it, she is implying that, at least at first, there is reason for Scout to fear Boo. But then Mary Badham puts her hand out towards Boo effectively inviting him back into society. And when the young six-year-old actress smiles, Robert Duvall (playing Boo) immediately enters a relaxed state which demonstrates the character’s affection and trust of children. During this time, Atticus (played by Gregory Peck) pulls out a handkerchief as a sign of nervousness, and also to imply that men feel very uncomfortable during emotional situations.

Applied Linguistics Essay

American linguist Selinker put forward the hypothesis- interlanguage in 1969. He believed there were five cognitive processes to construct interlanguange. They are language transfer, transfer of training, language learning strategy, and language communication strategy and overgeneralization of target language linguistic material. I have some experiences regarding those aspects during my ten years’ English learning. As to the language transfer, I once equated â€Å"individualism† with â€Å"ä ¸ ªÃ¤ º ºÃ¤ ¸ »Ã¤ ¹â€°Ã¢â‚¬  in Chinese. Now I know they are different in the American and Chinese culture. For the second point, due to my first English teacher’ wrong instruction of pronunciation, I now still cannot pronounce some words correctly and I have to make great effort to overcome the problem. Another example is that when I see a foreigner on a street, the greeting come to my mind is still â€Å"How are you?† No matter what the foreigner would answer, my answer to that would still be â€Å"I’m fine too, thank you!† The reason was that our former English textbooks (in junior and senior high) didn’t attach much importance to language communication. The strategy of learning language, according to Selinker, is some methods that students adopt to accumulate language rules. One middle school student I taught when I was his family teacher tended to memorize the simpler sentences. For instance, when I taught him â€Å"That’s very kind of you† and â€Å"thank you†, he chose to remember the latter one. Communication strategy is that students use easy and practical notional words and omit function words. For example, some foreign students who are learning Chinese may say,â€Å"我åŽ »Ã§Å"‹ä »â€"ï ¼Å'ä »â€"æŠ ½Ã§Æ'Ÿï ¼Å'çÅ"‹ç” µÃ¨ §â€ Ã¢â‚¬ , which meansâ€Å"我åŽ »Ã§Å"‹ä »â€"æâ€" ¶Ã¯ ¼Å'ä »â€"Ã¥Å" ¨Ã¦Å  ½Ã§ â‚¬Ã§Æ'ŸçÅ"‹ç” µÃ¨ §â€ Ã¢â‚¬ . Finally, if students over generalize target language linguistic material, they may make wrong sentences, like the following: — I like to play with childrens. — It was very difficult to watered the plants. — I like to drive bicycle. Therefore, this hypothesis is practical in helping language learners to aware their problems that may occur during learning process. Moreover, it  demonstrates its significance in a way second language teachers could apply it to their instruction experience.

Existentialism in Camus and Kafka Essay

Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis and Albert Camus’ The Outsider, both feature protagonists in situations out of which arise existentialist values. Existentialism is a philosophy that emphasizes the uniqueness and isolation of the individual experience in a hostile or indifferent universe, regards human existence as unexplainable, and stresses freedom of choice and responsibility for the consequences of one’s acts. In The Metamorphosis the protagonist, Gregor Samsa, realizes his existentialism towards the end of the novella. In contrast, Monsieur Meursault, the protagonist in The Outsider, knows of his existentialism, only realizing his life’s lack of meaning moments after he is sentenced to death. Despite the somewhat absurd nature of The Metamorphosis, and the realistic nature of The Outsider, similar values are communicated to the reader. The easiest to pick out being that it is up to the individual to create his/her own life, and that the inhuman behaviour presented by both protagonists will eventually lead to very bad things; namely death in both novellas. These deaths are, however, very different, as are the methods through which Kafka and Camus have made each novel nothing but `a philosophy put into images’. Meursault (the narrator) in The Stranger only sees and only wants to see the absolute truth in society. The reader’s first encounter with him†¦ Mama died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got a telegram from the home: â€Å"Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours. † That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday. †¦ immediately gives an impression of a lack of emotion towards the demise of his mother. This lack of emotion highlights the existentialist ideal that we all die, so it doesn’t matter what life we have while we are alive. We simply exist, as did Meursault. It becomes apparent, as the novella unfolds, that Meursault has acquired an animal like indifference towards society. His interactions with his neighbour Raymond are an example of his indifferences. It never dawns upon Meursault that society does not condone his interactions with the pimp, avoided by his community. Meursault simply acts to fill his time. Being a single man, he has a lot of time to fill, and finds the weekends passing particularly slowly. While the scene passes slowly before Meursault, Camus’ text flows quickly. He uses short sharp sentences to convey an atmosphere devoid of emotion or feeling. This is especially effective between pages 21 and 24, at the end of chapter two, when Meursault is giving a descriptive narrative of the life outside his window on a typical Sunday. He ends the chapter saying `†¦ one more Sunday was over†¦ nothing had changed. ‘ Existentialism is present in nearly all of Meursault’s interactions with society. One such piece of evidence supporting Meursault’s existentialism is his interaction with Marie. His association is merely sexual and physical. Meursault uses Marie to help him pass his time: he spends an entire Saturday with her. When questioned about love and marriage, Meursault’s replies show indifference through their nothingness. Meursault is existentialist to the extent that he couldn’t care less about the path his life (or lack of one) takes. The reader is constantly bombarded with short phrases revealing ever more Meursault’s worthless outlook on a worthless existence. Examples of this come in the form of Meursault confining himself to only one room in his apartment, his ignorance to social expectations, his mindless identification with old Salamano and his dog, and most importantly his disregard for human life and the consequences for the removal of it. As mentioned in the above definition of existentialism, it stresses the responsibility for ones own actions. When Meursault comes to trial for killing the Arab, he finally realises that he can’t take the responsibility. This is the main turning point as far as existentialism is concerned in The Outsider. Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis is equally as philosophical. The novella is written as a metaphor, with a very strong sense of vivid realism. The metaphor is for any situation in which someone tries to break free form a social norm, only to fall; failing to convince the society that his/her action is just. The protagonist, Gregor Samsa, brought society against him when he questioned his life as a travelling salesperson. Social expectations had put him in his place, but he decided, although the reader may assume quite subconsciously, that it was not the place for him. His wish to remove all social burdens from his shoulders is first illustrated to him through his transformation into a `monstrous vermin. ‘ The protagonist was the narrator in The Outsider, a man who told the story of his demise from existentialism, only to find he needed a life just before his chances were taken away. The Metamorphosis, on the other hand, is narrated on the third person, where the reader receives an unbiased view of Gregor Samsa’s attempts to become existentialist. Where Camus used short `to the point’ statements to show existentialism, Kafka has filled his novella with colourful descriptive literal language, in an attempt to point out the depth in any situation, such as Gregor’s many squirming legs, his visualisation of his room becoming ever smaller and ever more bland, and the descriptive nature with which the fatal apple becomes lodged in Gregor’s back and eventually allows him to die. The Outsider’s Meursault is existentialist, finding a need for a meaning to life only when his is about to be taken. In The Metamorphosis, Gregor Samsa, on the other hand, has a meaning to his life, and wishes it away. The gradual move towards existentialism in Kafka’s novella runs throughout, from the moment Gregor wakes up as a bug; until the moment he breaths no more. Gregor shows that he knows his life has meaning when at the beginning of the novella he is more concerned about how he will fulfil his social purpose than what he will do about being a bug. Albert Camus said that `we get into the habit of living before acquiring the habit of thinking. In that race which daily hastens us towards death, the body maintains its irreparable lead. ?In The Metamorphosis, Gregor thinks about his position, throwing his body into dismay, eventually leading to his death. As Gregor is further shunned by society for not conforming, represented in the novella quite dramatically by Gregor being a dung beetle among humans, he starts to forget any shred of meaning his life can have. He searches beyond his room for a meaning to life, but the further he ponders, the harder society hits him. `You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life. ?Gregor realized his existentialism taking him over, as he gave his life to the destiny he had for it created. Having read both novellas, a reader could come to the conclusion that both feature a definite theme of existentialism, while The Outsider is centred on a protagonist who recognises the need to change from existentialism, and The Metamorphosis around one that recognises existentialism’s presence in society. At the end of each, the protagonist either dies or is awaiting death. The deaths are brought about by a destiny the Meursault thought he couldn’t change, and Gregor brought upon himself. Meursault realised too late that he wouldn’t be able to take responsibility for his actions. It was only when he was forced by the trial to delve into his memory (something that he had little use for as an existentialist) that he recognised how he had shaped his own end. Life did have meaning to him then, and his was: †¦ only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate. Gregor Samsa allowed his life to end upon realising that he was free from society, but also that existentialism rendered him useless. Before his death, his `indifference to everything was much too deep for him to have gotten on his back and scrubbed himself clean†¦ ?From Gregor’s point of view, Franz Kafka was correct in saying `A first sign of the beginning of understanding is the wish to die. ‘ The end of The Outsider sees a man ready to start again, but ready too late. The conclusion of The Metamorphosis, however, serves not only to allow the Samsa family a chance to start again, but also to highlight that even following Gregor’s horrific ordeal his family will put Gregor’s sister through the same process that lead Gregor to his death. Gregor’s sister’s life is given a meaning, and the reader often hopes that she recognises it and respects it. The Metamorphosis highlights that one must engage in social interaction to have a meaning in life, while portraying the grim hopelessness of a life determined by social interaction. The Outsider, on the other hand, follows an idea that quietly not conforming will only hurt oneself. An existentialist might argue that to hurt oneself would not matter, in hurting oneself (especially the way in which Meursault did by killing the Arab); one is giving one’s life a meaning. Even if that meaning is sufferance, the agony will still end one day, as it is destined to, removing all meaning from all life. The two novellas give an honest outline of existentialism, and give, in both cases, existentialism the negative property that it leads to death. The authors were both highly regarded by their respective peers. Camus was existentialist, and Camus referred to Kafka as an absurdist-existentialist. Both have produced works bringing to light the grim reality of existentialism, yet neither has created an advertisement for it. It could even be said that the novellas where written to give meaning to the lives of the authors, and to stop society taking the roads of the protagonists. After all, who wants their indifference to change only when they’re threatened with lawful murder? And who wants to die a worthless bug? words:1668.

Phantom of the Opera

The Phantom of the Opera, directed by Joel Schumacher , is an adaptation of the Broadway musical The Phantom of the Opera, music and book by Andrew Llyod Webber. The musical The Phantom of the Opera is based on the novel by Gaston Leroux. The movie stars Gerard Butler as The Phantom, Emmy Rossum as Christine, and Patrick Wilson as Raoul, in the leading roles. While watching the movie, you can't help but notice all of the spectacular sets. Each of the sets matches the time period perfectly and the details that are put into the sets is beyond mazing.The Phantoms underground lair is a great example of an exquisitely detailed set. The lights and the sets work together hand in hand to create an atmosphere of mystery and sadness. The lights depict the pre electric era when stage lighting was done with gas light. It provided a warm-looking environment. An example of this lighting would also be the Phantoms lair. While he uses an abundance of candles, those candles still create shadows in wh ich he hides his deformity. The costumes and make up in this movie are absolutely phenomenal.They portray the extravagance of the opera performers using bright and colorful make up and huge dresses, to the simple and lightly colored white dresses that Christine wears that represents her youthful purity and innocence. Christine's lack of makeup enhances her look of youthful innocence also. The Phantom, on the other hand, with his stark white mask, his black slicked back hair, and sweeping black cape represents the mystery of the character. The direction of this movie starts with it being well cast, especially the three main roles.The lead actors are realistically portrayed, while the characters taking part in the opera performance are more presentational. The gravelly sound of Gerard Butlers voice add s to the tragedy of his character, the Phantom. In the direction of the movie, Joel Schumacher aids with the development of his actors characters. One thing that stood out for me was wh en the Phantom leads Christine down to his underground lair, and all she's looking at is him. She is memorized by the Phantoms mystery and almost starts to fall in love with him.The overall theme of this movie is love goes deeper than what is shown on the outside. When Christine pulls of the Phantoms mask for the second time, she finally sees what his deformity is. The fact that she is not disgusted and appalled by what she sees shows that she really truly loves him for who he is and not what he looks like underneath the mask. The Phantom of the Opera is by far one of the best movies I have honestly ever seen. It has such a beautiful and powerful message that I think everyone can learn something from watching the movie. Phantom of the Opera The Phantom of the Opera, directed by Joel Schumacher , is an adaptation of the Broadway musical The Phantom of the Opera, music and book by Andrew Llyod Webber. The musical The Phantom of the Opera is based on the novel by Gaston Leroux. The movie stars Gerard Butler as The Phantom, Emmy Rossum as Christine, and Patrick Wilson as Raoul, in the leading roles. While watching the movie, you can't help but notice all of the spectacular sets. Each of the sets matches the time period perfectly and the details that are put into the sets is beyond mazing.The Phantoms underground lair is a great example of an exquisitely detailed set. The lights and the sets work together hand in hand to create an atmosphere of mystery and sadness. The lights depict the pre electric era when stage lighting was done with gas light. It provided a warm-looking environment. An example of this lighting would also be the Phantoms lair. While he uses an abundance of candles, those candles still create shadows in wh ich he hides his deformity. The costumes and make up in this movie are absolutely phenomenal.They portray the extravagance of the opera performers using bright and colorful make up and huge dresses, to the simple and lightly colored white dresses that Christine wears that represents her youthful purity and innocence. Christine's lack of makeup enhances her look of youthful innocence also. The Phantom, on the other hand, with his stark white mask, his black slicked back hair, and sweeping black cape represents the mystery of the character. The direction of this movie starts with it being well cast, especially the three main roles.The lead actors are realistically portrayed, while the characters taking part in the opera performance are more presentational. The gravelly sound of Gerard Butlers voice add s to the tragedy of his character, the Phantom. In the direction of the movie, Joel Schumacher aids with the development of his actors characters. One thing that stood out for me was wh en the Phantom leads Christine down to his underground lair, and all she's looking at is him. She is memorized by the Phantoms mystery and almost starts to fall in love with him.The overall theme of this movie is love goes deeper than what is shown on the outside. When Christine pulls of the Phantoms mask for the second time, she finally sees what his deformity is. The fact that she is not disgusted and appalled by what she sees shows that she really truly loves him for who he is and not what he looks like underneath the mask. The Phantom of the Opera is by far one of the best movies I have honestly ever seen. It has such a beautiful and powerful message that I think everyone can learn something from watching the movie.

Enron scandal Essay

Enron shocked the world from being â€Å"America’s most innovative company† to America’s biggest corporate bankruptcy at its time. At its peak, Enron was America’s seventh largest corporation.From the 1990’s until the fall of 2001, Enron was famous throughout the business world and was known as an innovator, technology powerhouse, and a corporation with no fear. The sudden fall of Enron in the end of 2001 shattered not just the business world but also the lives of their employees. Enron gave the illusion that it was a steady company with good revenue but that was not the case, a large part of Enron’s profits were made of paper. Their huge debts and information about hiding losses gave a big problem to the company and in the late 2001 Enron declared bankruptcy under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. Kenneth Lay (Founder and CEO), Jeffrey Skilling (CEO) and Andy Fastow (CFO) found that Enron wasn’t making money so what the y did is implemented along with the approval of Arthur Andersen the â€Å"future value accounting.† This type of accounting was to predict the future profit that Enron was going to make and list it as part of there future profit to the shareholders. This creative accounting lead to Fastow to create â€Å"outside companies† that were directly involved with Enron to hide the losses the companies made. These companies were named after Star Wars characters. As Enron announced big numbers to Wall Street, people began to take notice of this company and started to buy shares of the company. Enron even encouraged their employees to buy shares of Enron and the price of Enron was going up to as high as $90. Enron executives were bullies to the investment companies. When a financial adviser questioned their firms regarding Enron stock, Enron would pay the firm to get rid of the employee. As Enron got bigger, the company was collecting more losses and hiding them well. Enron hit the top when their stock hit $90 and then things were starting to fall apart. A writer at Forbes magazine cal led Enron telling them that she was going to release an article about Enron and not releasing their financial statements. Enron executives flew to New York telling her not to release the article but the next week, Forbes released the article questioning Enron’s financial.

The role of magic in A Midsummers Nights Dream Research Paper

The role of magic in A Midsummers Nights Dream - Research Paper Example Patriarchal dominance is given a thorough overview within the play and revealed through making humor at the expense of its proprietary nature. The play explores the many ways in which love manifests, allowing for its exaltation as well as its trivialization. The play embodies a duality of mythologies from which to create its discourse. While the nature of the fairy is relative to the mythologies of Europe, the play takes place in the setting of Athens, thus bringing into mind the Greek mythologies. This convergence of mythological settings and universes provides a heightened sense of the supernatural within the play. In addition, as the time period of the Renaissance was a time when humanism was the philosophical standard, it is possible that beyond the mythological parallels, there is a contrast intended between the reason of classicism and the magic of the fairy realm. Therefore, the setting provides multiple levels of consideration, creating a world in which contrast and continuit y are both within the framework of the setting. This setting provides a structure in which the shifting shape of the emotion can be explored as it represents contrasts of differing beliefs. Love is often considered to be a magical emotional element in the human experience. In Shakespeare’s fantastical play, magic creates a complication of human emotions by the influence of the fae, As the fae are not human, but creatures of myth and fantasy, their association to love is both more cold and more passionate than that of human love. Therefore, the consequences of love and the intermix of emotional play that is done by the fairy folk becomes a reflection of the nature of man through a sense of exaggeration (Dowd and Pallata 558). As the play is considered to be a romantic comedy, there is an emphasis on love, but the elements of structure and expectation is how the play is formulated in order to convey the message that Shakespeare intended. Thus, while love is of a primary importa nce, the fulfillment of the expectations of complications that get in the way of love which are finally overcome, naturally leads towards an end which includes marriage (Nostbakken and Shakespeare 3). In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the complications are created first through the unrequited love within the human world, then through the magic within the fairy world as the fairies choose to interfere for their own amusement. The first complication in the human realm is that of Hermia as she loves Lysander while her father has demanded that she marry Demetrius. If she refuses to marry Demetrius she is given two choices by her father, Theseus; â€Å"Either to die the death, or abjure/ Forever the society of men† (Shakespeare Act 1: Scene 1: lines 65-66). Hermia has been given the choice to either love whom her father has chosen to be her husband or to live without love as a nun. The alternative to both is death. This firmly establishes the human world for its patriarchal nat ure. Males have the control over the future of females, thus their own desires are immaterial to the desires of the male. However, in the fairy world, this patriarchal power is less relevant. The magic in the fairy realm provides an opportunity to make

Reading response LN 4 Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reading response LN 4 - Article Example At this point, it is worth questioning this view, as visual humor also has a huge place in the context of humor. Still, more needs to be done to evaluate the place of visual humor in the humor in general. What percentage does visual humor take and is the same comparable to the verbal humor? Upon completing this research, it will be possible to understand and explain the gap between visual humor and verbal humor. On another note, I find it captivating when the authors indicate that verbal humor migrates to the visual aspect (Hempelmann & Samson, 2008). It is at this position that one would really question which humor takes the greatest percentage. Yet another question would focus on the extent of correlation between visual humor and verbal humor. Can the two do without each other, and if not, in what domains? I also tend to agree with the authors when they indicate that conversation is possible through cartoons (Hempelmann & Samson, 2008). In my opinion, I am convinced that one can read humor from cartoons even without seeing the writing explaining what the cartons means. In this context, it is worth justifying that each of the humors plays a pivotal role in their own way. I am also convinced that either of the humors can replace the other in terms of relaying messages to its readers. The only disparity will be the profundity and intensity of the message relayed. For instance, if the cartoon is accompanied by text, then it brings out a stronger message as opposed to verbal humor. Pictures can be indicated to be more appealing as opposed to the verbal messages that leave its audience with the task of interpreting the intended message. From the arguments, it is only reasonable to attest to the verity that visual humor plays a major role in evoking humor over the verbal one. I agree with the authors when they indicate that versions of visual humor that

International Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

International Finance - Essay Example Furthermore, the models have been estimated with Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimates of the output gap in relation to the unemployment gap and use these two figures of the same period along with one-year-ahead forecasts for determining the inflation level in order to compare with the real economic activity. Thus, the article provides an assessment of four models with specified Taylor rule. Moreover, the performances of conventional monetary, Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), and interest rate differential model have been evaluated for comparing each of the four models (Molodtsova & Papell, 2010). Due to the unavailability of euro or dollar exchange rates till 1999 when the euro had been introduced, rolling regressions methods have been used to predict the exchange rate changing from the year 1999 along with 26 observations for each regression. However, the number of observations has been kept constant while deriving the results from the year ending 20 07 with 37 predictions, all the way through to 2010, with 45 predictions. The results have further been represented through three test statistics, namely, ‘ratio of the mean squared prediction errors (MSPE) of the linear and random walk models, DMW test of Diebold and Marino (1995) along with West (1996) and the CW test of Clark and West (2006)’ with the significant values of McCracken (Molodtsova & Papell, 2010). The results derived from the Taylor rule fundamentals model reveal an attractive apparent pattern. It has been observed that along with the variables of that period and rising inflation, MSPE of the Taylor rule model is lesser compared to MSPE of the random walk model. Furthermore, utilizing the CW and DMW tests at 5% or higher level for the early predictions of year ended 2007, it has been noted that the random walk null can be discarded in favor of the Taylor rule model. Therefore, following the number of predictions increase, the strength of the rejections increased which hit the highest level in 2008. However, from the next quarter of 2008, the strength of the rejections started to decline and thus, climbed to the extreme level of financial crisis thereby, favoring the Taylor rule specifications sharply. In 2009, the ‘phoenix’ Taylor rule forecasting evolved which was discarded in favor of Taylor rule models at 1% implication level for all specifications between 2009 and 2010. Although the pattern of results has similarities with the inflation level in the beginning of 2008, the strength of the rejections is weaker. Furthermore, the results derived from forecasted variables are weaker than actual variables from that period (Molodtsova & Papell, 2010). Mark (1995) theories focused on obtaining a set of long-run fundamentals from the different models which helped in evaluating out-of-sample forecasts on the basis of the difference between the present exchange rate and its value in the long run. Another part of the theory u ses the interest rate obscured by Taylor rule whereas, Molodtsova and Papell (2009) uses the variables that are utilized in Taylor rules to estimate the exchange rate predictions. Furthermore, the Taylor rule fundamentals model helps to evaluate the correlation between the exchange rate and a number of variables that

CH s 310 - Summary In Your Own Words Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

CH s 310 - Summary In Your Own Words - Essay Example The song exists in the album Los Lobos del Este de Los Angeles produced in 1978 by Los Lobos. El Tilingo Lingo epitomizes the approaches, experiences, and attitude of Mexican laborers and farmworkers. The song El Tilingo Lingo Jimenez comprises outstanding lead melodies based on the rhythmic styles of requinteros like uis DelfiƒÂ ­n and Lino ChiƒÂ ¡vez. El Tilingo involves syncopated and vigorous plucking on twin harps and involves profound play of guitar accompanied with five sequences of strings, which adds the appeal to the listeners. The singers appear lively and all through, they show intricate percussive and unique footwork and the instruments. Singer Conjunto Hueyapan seeks to integrate the zapateado into the son both as separate and integral integrity during the performance. In addition, El Tilingo Lingo Jimenez displays colorful and brilliant lead vocals. They help exhibit elegant jarocho singing panache. Thus, the song is an absolute passion and essential constituent of

Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide - Essay Example As of 31st December 2007, Starwood group’s portfolio included a total of 897 Hotels with 275,000 rooms across 100 countries that primarily cater to the upscale markets of the lodging industry. The company employs about 145,000 people and has its headquarters in White Plains, New York (Starwood, 2008). It is clear that the level of competition in the hotel and lodging sector is very high. Hence it is essential that Starwood has to undertake immediate efforts to improve its services and market share in order to survive in this competitive environment. This consultancy report will analyze the company’s current situation and aim at improving the organization on the whole. This method is based on the product life cycle theory. This provides a means to correctly give importance to the product portfolio of a business unit. It is essential that companies have a combination of both high growth products as well as low growth products. The diagram below explains the BCG Matrix. Stars refer to businesses use huge amounts of cash and also generate large amounts of monies as well. Here the company has a high growth as well as high market share. These generally include businesses that have a large market share in a fast-growing industry. These businesses do generate cash, however, this is very limited as all of it is required to be used to keep in sync with the rapid growth. Businesses that are successful in this area mature to become ‘cash cows’, as the industry matures. Cash Cows, this is where the investments are low and the growth is also low, however, the profits and cash generation should be high. Businesses with a large market in a slow-growing industry fall into this category. The investments are low for these kinds of business units however these generate cash that can be used as investments in other business units.

Report of Electronic Commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Report of Electronic Commerce - Essay Example A conclusion will then summarise the findings and present the final thought. E-commerce is buying and selling of goods and services online, usually through the internet (Information System Audit and Control Association, 2006, p.218 - 222). Global electronic commerce revenue for 2000 was in the region of $286 billion; a figure which was expected to increase to $500 billion in 2001 and to $3 trillion by 2004. 'According to Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG), an industry body for electronic retailing, British online retail sales rose by more than 60% from a year earlier in June 2006, totaling 2.26bn that month. British online retail sales totaled 13.5bn in the first half of 2006, according to IMRG' (Global Technology Forum, 2006). This rapid increase reflects the fact that electronic commerce has a number of advantages over paper-based commerce: in particular, speed and reducing the cost of doing business. E-commerce allows organisations to reach to a wider range of audience than what a traditional brick-and-mortar shop can ever do. With e-commerce, companies can serve globally. The entire world becomes the target market depending on the type of business. For a book store like Glasgow Books, this presents an opportunity to extend to not only in Glasgow but throughout Scotland and perhaps in other parts of Europe as well, with passage of time. Availability An online shop is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. The customers can read about the books, and can make transactions any time they like, through the comfort of their homes, without having to physically come to the shop for making purchases. Low Costs In the long run, technology costs to establish an online book store is much lesser than what it must spend to maintain a physical store. The cost of advertising and marketing over the internet is minimal. Customer Relationship Management E-Commerce solutions provide an effective way to keep in contact with customers, record customers' likes and dislikes, and develop a targeted marketing campaign as per the customers' tastes and wants. For example, Glasgow Books, by using an e-commerce system, can keep records of customers' preferences for books and can contact customers as and when new editions and/ or new books relating to that particular subject arrive. Accurate Armour, a manufacturer of military models, developed their website in 2003 when

Compare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Compare - Essay Example Though they were written 114 years apart, both individuals reinforce the importance of providing liberty and freedom for all men, illustrating that freedom has been a major issue in history that has caught the attention of very prominent historical figures. King makes sure that the reader understands that oppression is a danger to those who deserve freedom. He insists that it must be demanded by individuals who are being oppressed if there are to be any changes to tyranny or domination by hostile forces desiring to limit the liberties of members of society. King believes that in order for positive changes to occur for securing liberty, action must be initiated immediately. King is concerned that â€Å"do nothingism† of American culture (King para. 23) serves as a catalyst for denying independence, therefore trying to spark action with the audience, the clergymen, to emphasize the importance of African-Americans in taking responsibility for securing their own self-determination against oppressive forces in society. Thoreau, additionally, is attempting to spark action in the reader with the concepts and descriptions described in his essay. Thoreau asks men to take autonomy in assessing the role of government in the lives of citizens in order to provide more freedoms and liberties. Thoreau tries to spark action with the audience about the role of government, asking the reader to consider what type of government would be most appropriate for providing respect, which he believes is a step toward making progress in removing the oppressive force of government tyranny. Much like King, Thoreau sees influence of domineering regimes in society that try to remove choice and free will as being unacceptable and ones that require direct action by thoughtful members of society. King considers, in his letter, that the rights of men, whether black or white, are God-given and guaranteed to all citizens. He emphasizes the moral responsibility of providing liberties to all c itizens, using God as an appropriate reference to get the reader motivated to take action for their own autonomy from oppression. He believes that the unjust laws of men are dangerous because it conflicts with God’s intentions about equality of men, suggesting that any law which does this is largely unjust. Thoreau has a very similar view, however without the strong religious connotations that are present in King’s work. Thoreau sees the notion of moral conscience as being the foundations of what provides liberty and independence, much like King seeing the powerful government as being unjust and without conscience for securing the well-being of men. Thoreau compares the military of the time as being forced to fight against their own consciences by strong government, making them only a silhouette of what actually constitutes inherent humanity in men. The comparison with King’s work in this case is that government represents a danger to the God-given or in-borne e thics and morality of humankind. Thoreau compares military men as machines, coerced to remove their principles and ethical attitudes in order to serve the state. Similarly, King describes the forced complacency of historical slaves to this same type of obligation to serve the oppressor that leads to social insensitivity for the needs of fellow men. Thoreau also references the voting process, believing that it does nothing at all for securing virtue and liberty in