Myself, the Writer Essay

Every human being in this world has what he or she enjoys doing. On my part, I have a liking for writing and it has become my hobby since my high school years. I developed fondness towards the art of writing after having been encouraged by my language teacher. She used to do a lot of writing and had written several books and articles that were published in journals, magazines, and newspapers. She used to write on virtually every topic especially on issues that were emergent within the society. This teacher became my role model. This paper shall give a summary of the reasons and challenges I meet during writing. Reasons and Challenges in Writing: As stated earlier in the introduction, I developed my desire in writing during my high school days and from that time I have enjoyed every bit of my hobby, writing on almost every topic in the day to day life in the society. One of the main reasons as to why I have a liking for writing is that I have a strong yearning to progress in writing. Writing also assists me in developing new skills and advancing knowledge on various subjects. Writing also helps me in expressing my feelings (Hodges, p 9). There are however many challenges that I encounter in writing. Extra caution is needed when writing due to the strict rules and legislations that have been established to govern writing. These acts to limit the extent to which an individual would wish to express his/her ideas (Elbow, p 12). Writing can also be a challenge in that finding the right words does not come easy. Writing requires total commitment and it may be discouraging especially when you are unable to come up with the necessary words that would express a phenomenon (Elbow, p 26). Writing can not be done in a haphazard manner and therefore requires adequate time and vast research on the topic. Writers get frustrated when some topics of interest do not have enough information upon conducting research. Conclusion: Writing is part and parcel of my life and despite the challenges that I face, I am determined to overcome them and excel. It is only through writing that the unspoken minds can be read and understood. Just like any other field, success in writing requires total commitment. Work Cited: Elbow, Peter. Writing with power: techniques for mastering the writing process, (2nd edn) 1998. Oxford University Press US; ISBN 0195120175, 9780195120172 Hodges, Richard, E. â€Å"The Conventions of Writing. † In Handbook of Research on Teaching the English Language Arts, ed. James Flood, Julie M. Jensen, Diane Lapp, and James R. Squire. 1991. New York: Macmillan.

Positive Behavior Essay

Reinforcement is a consequence following a behavior that could increase the probability of the behavior (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007). Reinforcement helps the behavior to be strong enough that it can occur naturally within its one’s environment or can be a part of an intervention plan that teaches new behaviors (Sulzer-Azaroff & Mayor, 1991). Reinforcement is an important concept in operant conditioning and an important part of learning process. B. F. Skinner accepted this technique to modify reinforcement and punishment as well as extinction reinforcement. It increases a negative behavior, or a positive behavior. In Operant Learning, there are two types of behaviors positive and negative. Reinforcement is something that is part of everyone’s life and rewards are given to enforce positive behaviors. Positive reinforcement is something that is done to increase a response from someone. Educators are often involved in positive reinforcement. It helps the students give the desired behavior that is desired by the teacher. Teachers can impact student’s life positively by dealing with their behavior and by using a reward system. Being an Educator, there must be stability to effectively manage a classroom of students. Sometimes being faced with challenges in managing a student’s behavior becomes overwhelming especially students with behavior problems. Students are often very hard to teach and to get them focused on the information that’s being given to them because of the disruptive behaviors, but having some type of intervention plan in place helps to deal with the behavior problems. Although, teachers like to think they can handle things on their own sometimes before going to an administrator for an discipline referral, but because of the problems behavior sometimes being so bad, the student has to get involved with the discipline principal. The behavior could cause suspension from school in-school or out-of-school for a period of time awaiting a hearing. However, positive reinforcement does work for some students in the classroom. In my classroom environment the students gets positive reinforcement by letting them go to the computer lab, watch an educational movie, library, free time, or play music while they work and giving small snacks. These are some of the things that we do for positive reinforcement in the classroom. If positive reinforcement worked for everyone it would be a good thing, but some students do not care to be rewarded for good behavior. However, every student should want to do the right thing and not depend on someone giving them something in order to do well. Negative reinforcement is also a theory of Operant Learning. According to B. F. Skinner’s( 1953) theory on â€Å"operant conditioning† Skinner says that to be rewarded has more effect if it does not happen. If one was rewarded constantly the effect would be greater than the rewards that are usually given. If a student doesn’t know when they are being rewarded, they will control and behave themselves more so than anyone who knows the time the rewards are given out. Negative reinforcement is when certain incentives or items are removed after a particular behavior is exhibited. Although it is very unlikely that the behavior may not ever happen again, it is decreased. The negative behavior is increased if a student is stopping, moving or avoiding a negative outcome. It should never be thought of as a punishment. Positive reinforcement is always adding something positive to increase the behavior, but negative reinforcement is taking something that is negative to increase a behavior. Negative reinforcement is also when you do something to keep from being punished for it. An example is if â€Å"I nagged my son about keeping his room clean and he cleans it to avoid me nagging him to clean it. † Reinforcement is something that happens all the time in everyone’s everyday life. Making a plan for a child that is in special education is very important. To set the goals and objectives, it has to be in written form. To write a plan for setting goals and objectives takes some thought. First of all one must know what an objective is. Since I have been working in the education field, I have had to learn many things. I learned while sitting in an IEP that the teacher must have goals and objectives for the student. The objective gives information of what you want to learn and to be able to show evidence of what you have learned. The objective is important and it must be well taught to help with the evaluating content of the goals. It leaves not enough room for reason. In writing an objective there are uniqueness that should be communicated and they are the accomplishment of an objective. This is a statement of what is anticipated of the learner. Circumstances are actually what the student can do or how the task can be performed. The standard of the objective tells how the student performed the assignment so that it will be acknowledged. Writing objectives should be about how much or how well of what someone will do and by when. For example; â€Å"Alicia will show respect for others, her peers and adults, her ideas, thoughts, opinion, personal space and property. † Alicia should do this independently 90% of the time. Since Alicia is having problems with respecting others, she has to sit away from the group until she apologizes to all of her teachers and peers. Once she does this, she can return back to the group. Alicia likes being with the group, so she finally decides to apologize to everyone. The data was collected by Informal Assessment and Data Collection. Another example would be Alicia needs to follow directions without arguing with the teacher 1 out of 4 times a day as measured by observation, weekly observation and charting the outcome. Everything we do have a consequence whether it’s positive or negative. However, to get a positive stimulus one must increase the behavior to something positive. To get a negative behavior, do something that is not acceptable. It is always wise to try and increase the student’s behavior by positive reinforcement and definitely not by punishment. Doing something that is positive to decrease the negative behavior is always the right thing to do. Reinforcements of both behaviors are something that is done on a daily basis of everyday life. Today because people operate by their environment, (Martin & Pear, 1999) we all look for reinforcement in our lives rather it’s at work, with our friends, or family. All behaviors eventually become a way of growth. As for reinforcement, it will be more successful if the intensity and the magnitude of enforcers is greater ( Mittenberger, 2008). So, the bottom line is that Positive Reinforcement should be used in the classroom to help those students that are experiencing behavior problems. Special Education Teachers should take into consideration of positive reinforcement to better help their students to be successful.

The Failure of Gatsby’s American Dream

The Failure of Gatsby’s American Dream In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous novel, The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby is portrayed as being an admirable, wealthy, kind, and genuinely impressive man. However, that being said, he is also portrayed as pretentious, deceptive, criminal, and most importantly to the plot, completely insatiable. Even though the novel’s narrator, Nick Carraway, heavily sympathizes with Gatsby, he has many character flaws that ultimately assure the failure of his â€Å"dream†, and even lead to his untimely demise. The first bit from the novel that demonstrates Gatsby’s inability to be content, is the fact that he is not Jay Gatsby. It is learned about halfway through the novel that Jay Gatsby from California is actually a man names James Gatz, who comes from Chicago. The fact that Gatsby fabricated his past and lives his life under an alias shows that he is unable to be content even with his own origins. To go through the trouble of making up an entire past for himself rather than simply revealing the truth shows that either he was too ashamed to tell of his family for his financial background, or as is more likely, he found it to be boring. By very nature, Gatsby craves excitement and adventure. In order to make himself seem more exciting and adventurous, he became Jay Gatsby. After examining that, it’s best to look at Gatsby’s chosen vocation. Although Gatsby claims to have his money from being born of a wealthy family from the West, he is later revealed to have earned his money from the illegal business of manufacturing and selling bootlegged liquor. Seeing Gatsby use criminal means to achieve wealth and the â€Å"American Dream† demonstrates how desperately he wants to be taken seriously. Using his fake persona and fool-proof criminal processes to get wealth and social status means to him that most certainly, he could not be looked down upon or judged for being born of a lower class family and not having any of his own wealth to speak of. Working in the criminal underground also means, however, that he would make very few social connections, and have few true friends, bringing me to my next point. Gatsby desperately longs for personal relationships. This is apparent in everything from the way he desperately clings to his love of Daisy to his willingness to allow Ewing Kilspringer, whom Gatsby barely knows, to sponge off him and virtually live at his mansion. Since the adventure and excitement of his fake persona and his criminal lifestyle are not enough to satisfy Gatsby, he figures that the only way to obtain true happiness would be through interactions with people, who can be around him and always admire his accomplishments and somehow complete him. However, Gatsby is unable to make social connections because of his own social awkwardness, which as becomes more and more apparent, he compensates for with his wealth and possessions. The best example of this is Gatsby’s parties, in which the guests all have an excellent time, and know of Gatsby, but know almost nothing about him, even to the point where nobody seems to know where he even came from. Gatsby’s awkwardness and fear of real people causes him to close himself off even at his own parties, and hope that somehow the good time people have will make them admire him more (which, oddly, seems to work). The desire for intimate personal relationships becomes Gatsby’s own version of â€Å"The American Dream† which manifests itself most strongly in his â€Å"love† for Daisy Buchanan. Daisy and Gatsby were briefly lovers before Gatsby was sent off to the First World War. Having been the last person who Gatsby felt any true emotions toward, Daisy becomes the object of his desire, affections, and now, his energy and will to achieve. Gatsby’s dream however is crushed by the realization that Daisy is not the ideal person who he thinks she is. Since Gatsby is a lover of fantasy and exaggeration, he holds all people to an impossible standard of how he thinks people should be, even himself. The real Daisy is almost too shallow to really love, as is most evidenced by the way she is so emotionally moved by some silk shirts that Gatsby has, calling them the most beautiful things she has ever seen. Despite the fact that Daisy is not who Gatsby wants her to be, he clings to her, either realizing his impossible standard, or so far into his delusion that he is unable to see her as anything but ideal despite her major character flaws. Beginning an affair, the two plot to stand up to Daisy’s abusive husband Tom, and run away together. When the plan finally has the chance to come to fruition, however, Daisy is unable to tell Tom that she does not love him. The reason for this is not because Gatsby is undeserving, but because he is so insatiable, and unstoppably ambitious to the point that he doesn’t know what he truly wants, that he is unable to actually achieve anything that might make a true difference in his life. Tom on the other hand, while rude and pushy and genuinely unkind, knows exactly hat he wants and has no problems in simply taking it. After a car crash kills Tom’s lover, Myrtle, Gatsby attempts one more act of gallantry in order to prove his worth and determination. He takes the blame for Myrtle’s death in an attempt to save Daisy, who was really to blame. As Gatsby stops to finally take in all that he has accomplished, and finally appreciate what he has (symbolized by him f inally using his pool) he is murdered by George Wilson, Myrtle’s husband who then takes his own life. Oddly enough, after Wilson’s murder/suicide, the reader is then struck by the striking similarities between Wilson and Gatsby. They both tired of being taken advantage of, they both loved a woman who was not real, and they both longed for true companionship. The only difference is that one of them was able to achieve greatly on a more worldly level, which despite his large personal shortcomings, made him into that person of his own creation that he had so desperately wanted to be: The Great Gatsby.

Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Article Example It also assists local and state education organizations in advancing their statistical systems, and examine and report on educational activities in different nations. The main focus of this report is to look at gaps in educational participation and attainment between males and females of different races. This report is relevant to my research in that it will also examine children in poverty and minority groups and education. It asserts that postsecondary attendance rates are largely lower for students from various racial and ethnical groups and lower socioeconomic backgrounds in comparison to Asians and Whites. In 2010, as consistently since 1980, a limited number of male than female 18-24 year olds were either enrolled in graduate school or college. There is also a difference in postsecondary attainment for females and males. According to the report, in 2010, 21% of children under age 18 were living in poverty. The poverty rate for people who were non-white was higher than that of t he white population. This prevented the underprivileged population from accessing higher education (Ross & Kena 2012, p. 5). . College Student Alliance, 2011, Breaking barriers: a strategy for equal access to higher education, College Student Alliance. Retrieved from http://collegestudentalliance.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/Breaking-Barriers.pdf This is a suitable academic resource because a large number of students from numerous groups are still under represented in colleges, universities, and other institutions of higher learning. According to this resource, students from various groups are not efficiently represented in higher institutions of education in Ontario. In line with the resource, enhancing access to higher education for the underrepresented groups is largely perceived to be necessary in establishing a more equitable society and to challenging in the increasingly knowledge based economy. The last ten years has witnessed a tremendous increase in research on people who are not pursuing higher education, reasons for not attending, and ways to promote their participation. People experience interplay between different complicated barriers. They may be motivational, informational, and financial barriers. Financial barriers comprise debt aversion in an aid system or lack of funds to pursue higher education. Informational barriers entail insufficient information regarding financial assistance, mainly, benefits, and costs. 80% of learners aged between 20 and 24 from households earning more than $100,000 pursue higher education and 60% of learners from households earning below $25,000 pursue higher education. Almost half of youth in the top income quarter attend university in comparison a quarter of the youth in the lower income quartile. Among the recommendations include, one, the Ontario government commit to have secondary school learners visit a campus as part of the curriculum. Two, the government should continue aiding early outreach as a way of acce ssing post-secondary education. Three, the government should set an objective for the education system to augment post-secondary participation rates (College Student Alliance 2011, p. 30). Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, 2013, Higher education: the fair access challenge,

De-oxy-ribonuclease enzyme Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

De-oxy-ribonuclease enzyme - Research Paper Example Proteins play critical roles in the cell, a factor that has helped scientists appreciate the salient significance of these molecules. Some cell proteins serve as enzymes, a role that involves the catalysis of all cellular processes. Proteins exhibit a high level of specialization, a factor that is evident in the structure and function of enzymes in the cell. Moreover, depending on the functions, proteins exhibit diverse structural adaptations. The role played by enzymes cannot receive any form of underestimation because cells would be unable to run processes at the required speed, and this would retard growth processes (Petsko&Ringe, 2004). Otherproteins are structural and include keratin, silk, ligaments, and tendons. There is also evidence that proteins are of significant use as contractile molecules. In, addition, proteins play a critical role in the immunes system as antibodies that recognize antigens and work towards eliminating them. Proteins are also critical in cell transport . Cells interactions and processes require signal both signal molecules and receptors, and biologists have identified such critical molecules as proteins. Structure of Proteins Proteins exhibit four different levels of their structure. It is worth noting that the basic components of proteins are amino acids. Scientists have described the existence of twenty different amino acids that are critical in building the wide range of proteins that perform the functions described above. The order and number of the amino acids making up each protein depend on the role played by each protein. Moreover, there is variation of protein structure across different species (Rigden, 2009). The simplest level of protein structure is the primary structure defined by its linear sequence of all the amino acids making up a certain protein, listed in three letter word abbreviations. This being the simplest form of any protein helps in highlighting the individual amino acids making up each chain. Usually, th e linkage between these amino acids is through covalent bonds that define the peptide bond existing between the amino acids. The second level of protein structure is the secondary structure characterized by the formation of regular structures that biochemists have described as helices and beta sheets. Hydrogen bonds facilitate the formation of such regular structures within the lengthy polypeptide chains of amino acids (Buxbaum, 2007. The hydrogen bonds only occur between carbon and oxygen molecules and between hygrogen and nitrogen molecules. Helices have been described as loose coils of amino acids with each turn consisting of three amino acid residues and additional atoms from the next amino acid. The coiling in alpha helices occurs in a clockwise direction. On the other hand, beta sheets have polypeptide chains folded in a manner that makes the regular structures be enjoined alongside each other. The third level of the protein structure is a three dimensional representation of a ll the polypeptide chains and other secondary structures. The structure remains in place because of ionic interactions, hydrogen bonds, sulfur bridges, and van der waals forces. The fourth level of structure is the quaternary structure defined by a specific complex shape taken by the different polypeptide chains with different forces holding up the structure (Whitford, 2005). Figure one Levels of Protein Structure De-oxy-ribonuclease This is one of the critical enzymes found in both higher

Business Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Business Ethics - Essay Example The organization is headquartered at Canary Wharf, London, United Kingdom. HSBC Holdings Plc was founded by Sir Thomas Sutherland in the year 1865. Officially HSBC Holdings Plc was established during the year 1991. Forbes magazine has announced HSBC as 6th largest publicly traded organization. Intraday market capitalization of the company is $122.65 billion (Yahoo Finance, 2012). Product & Service Mix HSBC focuses on delivering various services like investment banking services, retail banking services, global private banking and wealth management. The company has emerged as one of the leading banking service provider internationally. Company products comprises of long term and short term loans, current and savings account, insurance schemes, credit cards, fixed deposits and advisory services. Brief SWOT Analysis Strength Weakness The bank has established global scale operation and prolonged international network. The company has created strong cash reserve ratio which helps them to d iversify business operation HSBC has reduced volatility of cash flow by using diversified revenue mix. Strong financial muscles of HSBC have helped them to create sustainable corporate strategy. The bank has experienced not only asset quality deterioration but profit margin shrinkage also. Market capitalization of HSBC has declined due to poor performance of SBUs. HSBC has low control over unlawful activities like money laundering in the currency trading process Opportunities Threat HSBC has the opportunity to increase enterprise value by controlling existing portfolio. HSBC can expand business in emerging market such as Asia and Latin America. They can increase market share by focusing on low interest mortgage business. Entering emerging market will not be easy for HSBC due to strict regulatory framework of countries like India (Reserve bank of India) and China. Retail deposit might increase funding cost for HSBC in near future (Source: HSBC, 2011) Business Ethics Business ethics h as evolved as a significant management concern for organizations in present time. Many organizations in USA have understood the importance of business ethics and have therefore designed ethical assistance lines for employees to report business and ethical concern to top level management. Following diagram can be used to understand importance of ethical assistance lines for organizations. (Source: Ferrell, Fraedrich, and Ferrell, 2012, p.222) Academic scholars have dissected business ethics into two parts like Descriptive Business Ethics (morality of a business is justified by ethical rules for fair trade policy in this model) and Normative Business Ethics (this is a supportive model which specifies after work required decreasing or discouraging unfair trade practices). Business ethics covers variety of issues like political situation, legal framework of the system, economic responsibility and moral values of business organization (Brenkert, 2004, p. 188). Research scholars have poin ted out that business ethics can work in multidimensional manner in order to fulfil various organizational issues. Hooker has underpinned following guidelines for business ethics. Organizations need to establish a transparent and fair incentive and remuneration structure for top level executives. Organizations need to follow government rule in order to discourage stakeholders from doing illegal activities Leading companies should encourage healthy competition by allowing small firms to enter in business environment.

Enterprise and Entrepreneurial Management Essay - 3

Enterprise and Entrepreneurial Management - Essay Example The process involves generation of multiple ideas in the minds of the respective entrepreneur. The person may screen and reach at a various different ideas with each one having its unique pros and cons. Such ideas are generally in a raw format without much technical analysis being done on them. Idea generation is extremely significant because idea is the stone that is polished at the various stages of a business plan. An idea arises mostly from the personal interests and perception of the entrepreneur. It is something that is related to the behavioural nature and professional mindset of the entrepreneur. For instance a medical professional might develop an idea for surgical equipment retailing, a good cook might think of opening a restaurant and the like. It is always better to work out on those areas which relates to the interest of entrepreneur. It is as good as a business firm diversifying into a related product line. If the entrepreneur is familiar with the idea, it would be conv enient for him/her to manage it. Therefore, the first question an aspiring entrepreneur should ask is what interests them the most and is there an opportunity lying in the market for the same. This thought can give rise to more specific ideas. Strategic Objectives: Strategic objectives or just business objectives refer to the actual purposes of the business for which the business actually exists. It is considered as the focal point of all the major activities of the business. The strategic objectives of a business are usually encompassed in the terms Vision and Mission. Vision is the future outlook of the business and Mission is the actual purpose as well as course of action to be taken to... The researcher states that in the case of a successful enterprise, a detailed and comprehensive Business Plan is the primary step which ensures the overall course of action of the business. In most cases, a business plan is created to explain and illustrate the vision you have for your business, and to persuade others to help you achieve that vision. Topfer states that starting a business without enough planning is like setting a journey without deciding on the destination. In most cases, small businesses simply ignore the process of business planning. There are various different reasons which actually become hurdle in the formulation of the Business Plan including time constraints, resource constraints and more importantly expertise constraints. But irrespective of the size of the business, it is always beneficial to have a clearly charted out plan. Business plans are required not only for planning the future of the business but also for the availing financing options. All financial institutions assist with the capital requirement of the company only after a careful study of the prospects of the business. Such an analysis is possible only with the help of a detailed and comprehensive business plan. This paper highlights the entrepreneurial characteristics. There are several literatures that discuss the qualities and skills required for becoming a successful entrepreneur. Most of such literatures discuss almost the same characteristics.

Friedreich's Ataxia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Friedreich's Ataxia - Essay Example Loss of frataxin in the system results in deregulation of iron levels in the mitochondria causing oxidative stress that kills the cells. This leads to a degeneration of the spinal cord, brain, and nerve communications to the muscles. Symptoms are generally manifested early in life between the ages of 5 and 25. Diagnosis is usually accomplished by observing symptoms and self-reporting of symptoms. Symptoms can include spinal curvature, impaired swallowing, deformed feet, and cardiomyopathy (impaired heart muscles). In addition, with the identification of the specific genes responsible, genetic testing can be done to accurately diagnosis the disease. A family history of Friedreich's Ataxia is also an indicator used in diagnosis. As with many of the ataxias, there is not a cure but there are regimens indicated to treat the specific symptoms. Treatment for Friedreich's ataxia generally requires the close cooperation of multiple physicians in several disciplines. The main overall goal for the patient is to remain in good health by a healthy diet and good physical exercise. Diabetes is often closely correlated with Friedreich's Ataxia and treatment consists of insulin. Further treatment is administered on an as needed basis. Propranolol, a beta blocker, may be prescribed to control muscle spasms.

Taxi Driver by Julia Phillips and Michael Phillips Essay

Taxi Driver by Julia Phillips and Michael Phillips - Essay Example However, mise-en-scene techniques and slow moving camera shots soon reveal Travis’s point of view, positioning a subjective view of Travis’s world. The film uses camera movement and cinematography together with mise-en-scene at the outset to establish the tensions that build up to the violence. The film opens with the credits in the foreground of a taxi coming out of the steam of a street at night. A montage reveals rain beating against the taxi’s windshield. In the meantime, the yellow taxi is accented by rain and neon lights that bring it into sharp focus. Travis’s eyes can be seen moving from one image outside of the taxi to another as he travels Times Square and 42nd Street. The viewer sees what Travis sees: prostitutes, couples, and pornographic theatres visited by men. The camera alternates from the inside of the Taxi where Travis’s watchful eyes are moving and observing, to outside of the taxi to show the audience what Travis sees. These scen es are juxtaposed against a more tranquil, ordinary and inescapably artificial world. The camera takes the viewers to a campaign headquarters with red and white colours and signs and slogans that appear to be inconsistent with the world that Travis observes from his taxi. Travis sees the world as inherently diseased and is on a mission to root out violence, disease and decadence. He becomes infatuated with Betsy, a campaign worker played by Cybill Shepherd. Point of view via mise-en-scene is displayed through scenes in which Travis’s point of view and his disconnect and social isolation comes across. For example, in an attempt to connect with Betsy, Travis gets it right the first time when he has coffee with her. On his next date with Betsy, he takes her to a seedy, sexual film. Betsy is no doubt offended by this effort at connection. By taking this approach, the viewer is drawn into and observes the distorted mind of Travis at work. Camera movements and mise-en-scene functio n to highlight Travis’s distorted mind and subjective point of view. For example, the camera picks up views of New York City that demonstrate just how Travis sees the world around him. A camera shot from inside Travis’s taxi picks up drug addicts and prostitutes. This is the world that Travis sees and is distracted by. He does not see beyond these images and forms his opinion of the outside world accordingly. The camera, by showing a view outside the taxi that selects drug addicts and prostitutes takes the viewer into the disturbed mind of Travis. This is world that Travis sees and is fixated on. A world diseased and decaying and in need of cleansing. Mise-en-scene is also used to demonstrate contradictions. The camera depicts a seemingly ordinary man, dressed neatly and appearing to be respectful and naive. Yet, the camera follows and depicts Travis visiting seedy theatres and writing letters to his parents that reveal that Travis would like to live an ordinary life, but is trapped by his perceptions of a diseased world. In his letters to his parents, Travis unrealistically himself as a working man on the verge of marrying a respectable woman (Betsy) when it is well known by the time of writing, that Travis has been rejected by Betsy. Therefore, the underlying message is that there are contradictions between that which occurs in Travis’s mind and the world in which he actually lives. The contradictions are reaching a fever pitch and this is

The Level of Customer Satisfaction of Grameen Phone Limited Dissertation

The Level of Customer Satisfaction of Grameen Phone Limited - Dissertation Example 1.0 Introduction 1.1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION The academic program is the building up of the theoretical knowledge about business administration, which is the base of practical knowledge. The program is an attempt to provide the business students an orientation to a real life business situation in which we can observe and evaluate the use and applicability of the theoretical concepts, which were taught in the classrooms. As per norm this report is the requirement of the fulfillment of the internship program. This report titled â€Å"Assessing the Level of Customer Satisfaction of Grameenphone.† 1.2 OBJECTIVES: 1.2.1 Primary Objectives ïÆ'Ëœ To discuss about telecommunication business in Bangladesh. ïÆ'Ëœ To present a background and introduction of Grameenphone Ltd. ïÆ'Ëœ To focus on the business and operations of the company. ïÆ'Ëœ To discuss about the activity of the Customer Service Division of Grameenphone Ltd. ïÆ'Ëœ Compare other operators with Grameenphone Ltd. ïÆ'Ëœ To focus on the most resent after sales service improvement and market position of Grameenphone Ltd. ïÆ'Ëœ To find out the satisfaction level of Grameenphone subscribers. ïÆ'Ëœ To specify the areas of dissatisfaction of the Grameenphone users. ïÆ'Ëœ Identify the findings of analysis and recommend based on the findings. 1.2.2 Secondary Objectives: ïÆ'Ëœ To have knowledge on Grameenphone Ltd. and mobile industry. ïÆ'Ëœ To improve corresponding and report writing ability. 1.3 SCOPE The scope of the study is limited within the telecommunication industry of Bangladesh. It is also limited within the organization of Grameenphone, especially in the Customer Service Division of the company. Here I discussed with the topics related to the after sales customer satisfaction of Grameenphone Ltd. 1.4 Significance of the study GP knows that in near future, the sell will sluggish down and all the activities will occur through targeting the after sell services. And for that GP always wants to give their priority to this sector. All the activities GrameenPhone Ltd. based on their service. Mobile operators are mainly selling their service to their customers. And in that competition Grameen Phone provides best quality service to their customers. So being an employee of GrameenPhone Ltd. it's an honor to find out the customer satisfaction level. However today the competition is raising and it's create an opportunity to the customers for choose better one. As a result the telecom organizations are now not only looking for capture new customer but also retain the present and past customers too. For that they are now completely focus on their service level. So it's very important for GrameenPhone Ltd. to keep their service level up always as they did previous. The rationale of this study is to

Strategies To Control Climate Change Essay Example for Free

Strategies To Control Climate Change Essay One proposal to answer to the problem of global warming is a lot simpler in theory than it is in practice. Given the rate of economic growth of many of the developing countries and the shift of production to the lesser developed countries, the implementation of any global protocols is easier to imagine than to implement (Torn and Harte, 2006). Greenhouse gases, which are cited as one of the main causes of global warming, are most commonly emitted from the highly industrialized countries and the less developed countries which rely heavily on industrial machinery for production. The problem in this scenario is that by cutting back on the emission of greenhouse gases, a majority of the world’s production of most major goods will be affected. The economic costs not to mention the technological impediments that preventing the shift to more environmentally friendly methods make the reduction of these greenhouse gases extremely difficult (Rudiman, 2005). There have been steps that have been taken to reduce the levels of greenhouse gases. In order to address the situation of global warming, many countries have participated in the worlds primary international agreement on combating global warming which is the Kyoto Protocol. An amendment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol binds signatory countries to reduce their emissions of CO2 and five other greenhouse gases. In the alternative, it allows these countries to engage in emissions trading if they are able to maintain or increase emissions of these gases (Wigley, 2007). The problem with this protocol, however, is that it exempts developing countries from meeting emission standards in Kyoto (Choi and Fisher, 2003). Some of the countries that have been excluded from this list are China and India, who are ranked as the second and third largest emitters of CO2, behind the United States. In addition, the United States and other Asian countries such as South Korea, China, Australia, Japan and India created a coalition named Asia-Pacific Partnership for Clean Development and Climate which upholds the objective of fostering technical partnership in the taking measures in order to prevent global warming (WMO, 2005). This coalition aims to design new procedures that will facilitate the growth of each country without inflicting any harm to the environment. One of the coalition’s programs in the Methane to Market initiative which reduces the amount of methane gas produced by industries through the employment of equipment that captures methane gas as soon as it is produced. South Korea and its partner countries are still searching for a protocol that would help determine the allowable concentration of gas emissions in each country. However, there is still strong criticism on whether this protocol reflects the current economic standards of South Korea because it has been observed that developing countries often aim to achieve the same standards as that of developed countries, even if it entails some form of circumvention of gas emission laws of the country. In the United States, energy guidelines have been designed in order to foster energy efficiency and environmental cleanliness. One of the most visible programs in Energy Star which is a diversification of appliances that would promote emissions that contain less radiation and gases. Energy Star logos are often observed in appliances such as refrigerators, televisions and microwave ovens. In addition, the Department of Transported has initiated the annual monitoring of gas emissions from all types of vehicles. This directive has successfully been followed because the requirement of gas emission checking was linked to the annual registration of vehicles. Should a vehicle be determined to be excessively emitting gases, the owner of the vehicle is required to fix this technical problem with his vehicle first before the vehicle is issued any registration documents. This stringent law is thus difficult to be ignored and all vehicle operators are then educated in terms of the importance of checking their vehicle’s gas emissions regularly.

Science Neutralizing Lakes Essay Example for Free

Science Neutralizing Lakes Essay Part 1 – Design a strategy for neutralizing Fish Lake What do I know? (What do I remember about the neutralization reaction) Neutralization is when an acid and base are mixed together to me an ionic compound or which are 7 on the pH scale or pure water, it is also when a base and acid are mixed to make it in a neutral state. What am I wondering? (What are your rough ideas to fix an acidified lake?) I will be finding a base that will work the most effective way, also I will find a base that can fix a large amount of acidified lake water with a base that can neutralize it with less then the acidified lake water, I will also look for a base that can make sulfuric acid neutral As a class we got options to what we will conduct this experiment with the base I choose is Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and for the indicator to show that this will make it neutral is the Universal Indictor I choose that indicator because it has a wide color spectrum when being neutralized. Predictions How much base do you think do you think it will take to neutralize 5mL of acidified lake water? Why? I believe that it will take a little less then 5mL to neutralize it because it will rapidly dissolve and neutralize it. I also know because sodium hydroxide is very responsive once added it will take effect. Balanced Chemical Formula for Sodium hydroxide and Sulfuric Acid (Acidic Lake water) NaOH + H2SO4 - NaHSO4 + H2O How will you know when you have added the correct amount of base and why? I will be using the universal indicator when first added it will first be red, orange, and yellow thus meaning it’s an acid. I will know when it’s fully neutralized when it turns green, blue, and violet. I choose this indicator because it has a wide spectrum of colors, which can help me indicate if I have added the right amount of base. Experimental Set-up and procedure 1. First get all safety equipment needed (safety goggles, and glasses) 2. Receive a test tube 3. Add about 10 drops of acidified lake water to the test tube (10 drops = 5mL) 4. Receive your Indictor (universal indictor) 5. Add about 2 drops of the universal indictor to the acidified lake water 6. Acidified lake water turned orange which meant it was a acid 7. Then I received sodium hydroxide (NaOH) 8. I filled a dropper with NaOH 9. I dropped NaOH into the acidified lake water I seen drastic changes right away with the indictor it started to change right away 10. I added NaOH to the acidified lake water until the indictor turned into a color which was recognized as a base or neutral 11. It took about 9 drops which is less then 5mL to fully neutralize the acid in the water 12. I then recorded all my data to a piece of paper to keep for future references 13. At the end of this experiment I also conducted a next one all the previous steps above were followed but the base was changed to get a comparison 14. To complete my second experiment I used calcium carbonate (CaCo3) 15. I followed previous steps above 16. I added calcium carbonate (CaCo3) to the acidified lake water 17. It took about 15 – 20 drops of (Caco3) to neutralize the acid from the water 18. At the end of these experiments all equipment that I used was cleaned up and stored away to its proper location Record Lake water Acid | Indicator | Base | Observations| What volume of acidic lake water did you neutralize ?I used 10 drops of acidic lake water which is = to 5mL.| What indictor did you choose?Universal indicator I choose that because there is a wide color spectrum so you will see the neutralization when it’s happening.| What base did you choose?I choose sodium hydroxide because it can get the job done and rapidly neutralize acidic water. | How much base was needed to neutralize the acid? What else did you observe?It took about 9 drops of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) which is less then 5mL, I also noticed when adding NaOH the water started to neutralize right away you were able to see the indictor turning purple due to the fact that it was turning into a base.| Reflect Make conclusion by referring to your predictions from step 1. Did your data support these predictions? Why or why not? If not how has your thinking changed? My predictions were correct, my data did support these predictions I say that because when I conducted this experiment I did in fact use less then 5mL I used 9 drops of sodium hydroxide, which is about 4.8 mL. when I conducted this experiment I did have a worry it might be over 5mL because I was not sure my research prior to this lab. I also did know I added the right amount of indicator because when conducting this lab/experiment the indictor turned fully purple thus meaning it was neutralized. When using the universal indicator it has a wide color spectrum, which means it has different colors. When it’s an acid the color will be red, orange, and yellow. When it’s a base it will be green, blue, and violet. MSDS I kept this in mind when using these chemicals in this experiment In large amounts of NaOH is very harmful to human health also other life, I did keep that in mind but I did further research, when I did my research it did state when adding small amounts gradually it will dissolve with out a problem when adding large amounts will cause a problem to wild life and also human life. Small amounts will dissolve over time then add in more once dissolved. Suggest one way in which you could improve your experimental procedure. One way I could of improved in this experimental procedure is to get different bases to get a different observation, which will be a better base. It will be more effective because we have a wider range of bases, which could lead to better solutions.

Culture Impact On International Business

Culture Impact On International Business Whereas traditional International Business research has been concerned with economic/legal issues and organizational forms and structures, the importance of culture has become increasingly important in the last two decades, largely as a result of the classic work of Hofstede (1980). Culture has been shown to impact on International Business, especially on the aspect of group performance (Gibson, 1999). This paper mainly analyzes the impact of culture on International Business. And in order to analysis it well, firstly we will talk about the definition, levels and Hofstedes theory of culture in the section 2. Then in section 3, we discuss the adverse and beneficial impact on International Business respectively in detail. Section 4 concludes. What is culture? Terpstra and David (1991, p.6) defined culture as , a learned, shared, compelling, interrelated set of symbols whose meanings provide a set of orientations for members of a society. And the aspects of culture include value and beliefs, communication, norms of behavior, customs and art, music, dance, sport (Morrison, 2006, p.169). It is essential for us to obtain the knowledge of culture because we communicate with each other through language; anticipate how business partners and customers are likely to respond; distinguish between what is considered right or wrong, acceptable or offensive and identify with other managers, provide knowledge to meet and negotiate with them. There are at least three levels of culture: National culture Nations are distinguishable from each other by a shared cultural history, such as language, religion, ethnic or racial identity. Together, these distinguishing characteristics blend into a national culture, which influences family life, education, organizational culture and economic and political structures (Morrison, 2006, p.172). Organizational or corporate culture Morrison (2006, p.195) indicated that the characteristics of organizational culture include: Common language and shared terminology; Norms of behavior, such as relations between management and employees; Preferences for formal or informal means of communication within the company and with associated companies; Dominant values of the organization, such as high product quality and customer orientation; Degree of empowerment of employees throughout the organization; and Systems of rules that specify dos and donts of employee behavior. Professional culture Professional cultures form as people, who span individual organizations, share a set of norms, values and beliefs related to their occupation (Van Maanen and Barley, 1984; Jordan, 1990; Trice and Beyer, 1993) Morrison (2006, p.191-192) mentioned that differences in national values and attitudes have been the subject of considerable research. Hofstede (1994) has developed a theory to categorize and quantify cultural differences between nations, which allowing us to compare national cultures. The cultural dimensions are: Power distance: the extent to which members of society accept the unequal distribution of power inside organizations. Uncertainty avoidance: how members of a society cope with the uncertainties of everyday life. Individualism: the extent to which individuals perceive themselves as independent and autonomous beings (as opposed to collectivism, in which people see themselves as integrated into ingroups). Masculinity: the degree to which people prefer values of success/competition over modesty/concern for others (as opposed to femininity, which denotes sensitivity, caring and an emphasis on quality of life). Long-term vs. short-term orientation: peoples time perspectives in their daily lives. How does culture impact on International Business? International business refers to business activities that straddle two or more countries (Morrison, 2006, p.5). As the rapid growth of globalization, more and more international business such as Joint Venture have emerged and developed fast. Therefore, it is very essential to talk about the elements which influence the international business. And one of the crucial elements will be analyzed in this paper is culture. As discussed above, cultures are different from countries to countries. For international business, grasping the cultural differences between the global and the local is the key to build long-term relationship and obtain success. For example, in Asian cultures, doing business is not confined merely to working hours, but blends into social occasions such as meals together, where bonds of trust are built and where sensitivity to cultural values and norms can be critical (Morrison, 2006, p.169). The other example is in joint ventures, the need for cooperation and trust between partners is the key to long-term success. Blending the culture of different locations into a distinctive corporate culture can strengthen the sense of corporate identity, but poses considerable challenges for international managers. The global merger-between countries of different national cultures-is an illustration of the difficulties that can arise when strong national cultures clash (Morrison, 2006, p.195-196) In each case, achieving a successful outcome, in both the initial agreement and the long-term business relationship, will depend on sensitivity to differences in languages, value systems and norms of behavior between themselves and their hosts. In short, being attuned to cultural differences can directly affect the success or failure of the project (Morrison, 2006, p.168). Pothukuchi et al.s (2002) findings suggest that cultural differences stemming from national, organizational and professional cultures have influence on international alliance performance. Li, Lam and Qian (2001) also pointed out that national culture can influence managerial decision-making, leadership style and human resource management practices and all these factors influence a firms performance in acquiring and deploying resources (Puffer, 1993; House, Hanges, et al. 1999). The adverse effect of culture in International Business Sirmon and Lane (2004) explained that the influence of national culture is strong and long lasting. For example, Hofstede (1991) found that national culture explains 50% of the differences in managers attitudes, beliefs, and values. Thus, national culture differences between alliance partners can challenge the development of successful relationships. Park and Ungson (1997) supplemented that these challenges result partially from the lack of shared norms or values and this lack of common understanding may undermine the partners interpretation of each others strategic intent, which is crucial in global markets and partnerships (Hitt et al., 1995). Further, a lack of shared norms and values may reduce effective communication (Rao and Schmidt, 1998), trust (Aulakh et al., 1996; Doney et al., 1998) and knowledge sharing in joint ventures (Parkhe, 1991; Mohr and Spekman, 1994; Lyles and Salk, 1996). These problems, in turn, have been found to lead to lower alliance performance (Lane et al. , 2001). Whats more, differences in national culture can disrupt collaboration and learning between alliance partners (Lane and Beamish, 1990; Parkhe, 1991; Lyles and Salk, 1996; Hennart and Zeng, 2002). Sirmon and Lane (2004) explained this opinion in detail as following: an international alliances performance is driven by the alliances effectiveness in achieving its primary value-creating activities. Resource complementarity between alliance partners is often a necessary condition to optimize this value creation (Harrison et al., 2001). However, in order to share, combine and leverage complementary resources, the partners employees must interact effectively. And the cultural differences inhibit international alliance partners employees ability to interact effectively. Not only that national culture differences between alliance partners can challenge the development of successful relationships and the achievement of effectiveness in the alliances primary value-creating activities, but also the organizational culture differences can. Whereas national culture relates primarily to deep-seated values, organizational culture relates primarily to shared beliefs in organizational practices and processes (Hofstede et al., 1990). Sirmon and Lane (2004) found that organizational culture is important to the success of mergers and acquisitions. Weber et al. (1996) found that dissimilar organizational cultures between acquirer and target decreased top managers cooperation and increased negative attitudes toward the merger. Generally, similarity of partners organizational culture increases partner learning, satisfaction and effectiveness of interactions, whereas differences in organizational culture decrease these positive outcomes. In short, decreased learning, satisfaction and effectiveness of interactions impede the business processes used to share combine and leverage resources such as knowledge, relationships and physical assets. Thus partners with dissimilar organizational cultures will be less likely to effectively achieve the alliances primary value-creating activities. Research suggested that national and organizational culture differences between the employees of international companies affect their interactions, but Sirmon and Lane (2004) expanded the consideration of cultural differences to include professional culture differences. They stated that professional culture differences are often the most relevant and salient cultural differences that the interacting employees face, and thus professional culture differences are the most disruptive to the alliances effectiveness in achieving its primary value-creating activities. Professional cultures develop through the socialization that individuals receive during their occupational education and training (Van Maanen and Barley, 1984; Jordan, 1990) This initial socialization is then reinforced through their professional experiences and interactions that lead to a broad understanding of how their occupation should be conducted (Brown and Duguid, 1991; Lave and Wenger, 1991). Sirmon and Lane (2004) stated that it is disappointing when international alliance partners require employees from different professional cultures to interface in the primary value-creating activity of the alliance. The reason is because these employees lack a common basis from which to interact effectively due to their distinct occupational socialization and resulting professional cultures. First, individuals from separate professional cultures lack a shared set of basic knowledge because their occupational socialization involved different content material, which is reinforced by different professional experiences. Second, these individuals often lack experience communicating with an auditing audience outside their professional culture. Thus communication between individuals from separate professional cultures is impaired. Both of these factors impede the finding of common ground from which the relationship can develop and produce value (Lane and Lubatkin, 1998). In such cases, the development of basic routines is required to help establish a base of shared knowledge in order to communicate adequately. Developing such routines requires time, which leads to increased expenses and could lead to increased frustration (Park and Ungson, 1997). Even if these two obstacles can be adequately overcome, individuals from different professional cultures may still have deeply ingrained preferences in their approach to solving problems (Brown and Duguid, 1991; Lave and Wenger, 1991). These differences may be difficult to overcome, as the employees may reflect the not-invented-here syndrome, which is the resistance to the utilization of knowledge created elsewhere (Michailova and Husted, 2003). Further, attempts to compromise in the approach taken in problem-solving is likely to lead to less desirable outcomes. For example, if a compromise is reached, and members from both professional cultures abandon their preferred problem-solving approach, both effectively eliminate a significant amount of their valuable tacit knowledge. Likewise, if either member abandons their preferred problem-solving approach, the alliance has effectively lost the expertise of one half of its contributing members. The challenges discussed above inhibit the effective interaction of individuals from different professional cultures within an international alliance. This then decreases the likelihood that the alliances pooled complementary resources will be shared, combined and leveraged in a manner that effectively achieves the alliances primary value-creating activities. In one noteworthy study, Barkema and Vermeulen (1997) examined the influence of differences in partners national cultures on international alliance performance using Hofstedes (1980, 1991) dimensions of national culture. They found that partner differences in two of the dimensions (uncertainty avoidance and long-term orientation) had a strong negative relationship with the survival of the collaboration over several different periods. However, the other three dimensions of national culture (individualism, power distance, masculinity) did not. Differences in uncertainty avoidance and long-term orientation could represent differences in how partners perceive and adapt to opportunities and threats in their environment (Schneider, 1991; Schneider and De Meyer, 1991), and thus may be more difficult to resolve than differences along the other three dimensions, which represent attitudes towards personnel. In conclusion, cultural differences have adverse impact on the performance of international business. The beneficial effect of culture in International Business Sirmon and Lane (2004) stated that other evidence suggests that differences in national culture can be beneficial. Because managers tend to be more aware of the potential challenges when working with foreign partners, they may be more willing to spend effort on avoiding misunderstandings in international alliances than they would in domestic alliances (Very et al., 1996). In such cases, differences in national culture can lead to high-level communication and a more sustained collaboration (Shenkar and Zeira, 1992; Park and Ungson, 1997). Thus, in some cases, increased national culture differences can lead to higher international alliance performance (Morosini et al., 1998). In addition, societal culture per se may also be seen as part of a firms resources, leading to a competitive advantage (Porter, 1991; Dunning and Bansal, 1997). Porter (1991) pointed out that the competitive advantage of firms could be derived from the greater commitment. Dunning and Bansal (1997) further suggested that this greater commitment might well be based on cultural values observed in some countries, and not in others. For example, many individualistic cultures, such as US, may have an advantage in technological assets, whilst many collectivistic cultures, such as Japan, may benefit from the ways in which they organize their workforce and establish relations between contractors, suppliers and joint venture partners (Dunning and Bansal, 1997). With their different competitive advantages, firms may adopt different strategies. If manager of these firms adopt appropriate strategies by making use of the competitive advantages derived from cultural values, these firms may achieve great success. There is another example exhibit the beneficial effect on the International Business. According to Hofstedes dimensions of national culture Li, Lam and Qian (2001) stated that, long-term orientation means focusing on the future. With this long-term orientation, people in East Asia such as China are more likely to emphasize education and training, and practice persistence, thriftiness and the delay of immediate gratification. Wuhan City, which is known as Chicago in China contacted New World, a major Hong Kong developer, to negotiate a loan to complete an airport-linking expressway project. Focusing on building a long-term relationship with Wuhan City, New World soon agreed to provide the loan without discussing details traditionally seen in western-style negotiations. According to Cheng (1997), an impassioned plea for help from Wuhans public work chief, Zhang Ke Xiao, led to a handshake gamble without sight of a feasibility study or a contract. (p.30). With this relationship-oriented negotiation, New World set up good ties with the government in Wuhan City and other Chinese cities. These relationships proved very helpful during later negotiations in China. In fact, many overseas Chinese firms adopt a similar approach. Tung (1982) has also observed this long-term perspective, claiming that the Chinese have a different concept of time, as compared to that of the Western world, they are interested in building the basis for long-term relationships. Essentially, this means that once a foreign firm has gained their trust and has demonstrated its goodwill and willingness to lend assistance to the country, the Chinese will try to reciprocate in kind, whenever possible. (p. 30) In conclusion, cultural differences also have beneficial impact on the performance of international business. Conclusion This paper analyzes how culture impact on the International Business. It turns out that culture has either adverse or beneficial effect on the International Business performance. On the adverse aspect of culture, Sirmon and Lane (2004) indicated that national culture differences between alliance partners can challenge the development of successful relationships. Further, a lack of shared norms and values may reduce effective communication (Rao and Schmidt, 1998), trust (Aulakh et al., 1996; Doney et al., 1998) and knowledge sharing in joint ventures (Parkhe, 1991; Mohr and Spekman, 1994; Lyles and Salk, 1996). These problems, in turn, have been found to lead to lower alliance performance (Lane et al., 2001). Whats more, Weber et al. (1996) found that dissimilar organizational cultures between acquirer and target decreased top managers cooperation and increased negative attitudes toward the merger. Sirmon and Lane (2004) expanded the consideration of professional culture differences, which are often the most relevant and salient cultural differences that the interacting employees face. And it is disappointing when international alliance partners require employees from different professional cultures to interface in the primary value-creating activity of the alliance. The reason is because these employees lack a common basis from which to interact effectively due to their distinct occupational socialization and resulting professional cultures. On the beneficial aspect of culture, managers may be more willing to spend effort on avoiding misunderstandings in international alliances than they would in domestic alliances. In such cases, differences in national culture can lead to high-level communication and a more sustained collaboration (Shenkar and Zeira, 1992; Park and Ungson, 1997). In addition, Porter (1991) pointed out that the competitive advantage of firms could be derived from the greater commitment based on cultural values observed in some countries, and not in others. For example, the long-term orientation in China leads to a helpful long-term relationship between international businesses.

Analysis Of Writers Paulo Frei Essay -- essays research papers

Perspectives in the Arts   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The stories behind a piece of art are infinite. The reasons the artist produced the piece is only one explanation behind the work. Even so, who is to know the specific thoughts the artist was thinking at the time? As each art critic may conclude his own analysis of an artwork, who is right and who is wrong? Just as students challenge the information that is supposedly â€Å"deposited† in them by the teacher in the classroom setting, art challenges the belief- that information can only be used as it was intended, which is highly rare in our day and age. The concept of perspectivism falls into place in this scenario. Art is perceived differently by varying individuals. There can be millions of interpretations that exist for one piece of artwork, however none more or less correct than the next interpretation. Similar to teachers depositing information to the students, each student may receive the information in different contexts. Whose to say whether or not the students’ interpretation is wrong? As writer John Berger points out the concept of reproducing art, in his essay â€Å"Ways of Seeing,† he addresses the idea how perspectives change completely when an artwork is reproduced to be used in a different context. As this is done, new thoughts and interpretations are created, thus can be seen as a progression of ideas. Writer Paulo Freire used the idea that â€Å"knowledge emerges only through invention and re-invention(Freire 348)† in his essay, â€Å"The ‘Banking’ Concept of Education.† This idea is the essence of what Berger is trying to point out through the reproducing of art. That the reproduction of art is basically the â€Å"re-invention† of the ideas and interpretations that already exist. And thus only through the re-invention of art, new ideas and new interpretations can be formed, a progression of ideas, achieving true knowledge.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"[Art] becomes information of a sort, and, like all information, it is either put to use or ignored(Berger 120)†. Each individual sees art differently, images become information that is incorporated with the individual’s own knowledge and personality. As art is reproduced over and over again in different contexts, the artist’s original purpose of the image is altered, a progression from old ideas to new ideas. Clearly one can see how the original intended purp... ... of an image, even more ideas and thoughts are evoked. These reproductions now represented in new contexts bear new ideas that are to looked upon in a different manner for these images, â€Å"like all information, have to hold their own against all the other information being continually transmitted(Berger 123)†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The idea that surrounds an image having one clear message has been proved to be obsolete. Information cannot be used in one single manner. Matter of fact, there are just too many variables regarding perspectivism, individuality, and personal knowledge that prohibits a single idea that is to be received universally. Berger’s reproduction of art only further implicates the ideas that already exists, and takes it to the next level of thinking, incorporating new ideas that originally may have had no relevance whatsoever, the progression of ideas, so to speak. As art challenges the belief- that information can only be used as it was intended, the conclusion is that information can be used in innumerable ways. Information was meant to be challenged, evoking new challenges and new thoughts and ideas in a never ending cycle of progression from old to new.

personal essay- The Girl In Pink :: essays research papers

It's seven o'clock and Megan's alarm has just gone off. Up out of bed and into the closet she goes to find her wardrobe for the morning. The closet door opens to sunlight shining through the open blinds inside the large walk-in closet. To the left and right are haning masses of pink clothes, dresses, jeans, and, in one corner, a couple of employee tee shirts for the movie theare and some black work pants. Se carefully selects her favorite pink halter top, a lighter pink jacket, and a denim skirt. "Time to meet my public," she says to herself. She treks down the stairs, passing me. I just woke up. "Why are you up so early sister?" "Class," I reply. "Oh." Time for breakfast. "Mom, will you make me some eggs? Sunny side up?," Megan asks with a toss of her hair. "Sure hon." The family computer is turned on and Megan thinks to herself, "Which cute boys have emailed me today?" "Seth wrote to me, mom!" Mom smiles, "are you going to write back?" "Are you crazy! If I write back this soon, Ill look desterate and needy. I'll do it this weekend." She starts responding to some of her girlfriends' emails, a quick one or two lines each, and then moves on. A plate of eggs and toast and a glass of orange juice is set at her seat at the dining room table. Without closing anything on the computer, she prances over to pick at her breakfast. Half way through, she stops eating and goes toweigh herself. I pass her again in the hallway. "Are you going in the bathroom?" E ask. "Yes." Great. Well, I guess I'm done inthere now. She doesn't run any water or anything. It just seems to have slipped her mind that she has a huge murror in her room, too. Half an hour later, Megan emerges from the bathrom with perfect hair and flawless make up to compliment her outfit.

African American History: Heritage, not Hate :: American America History

African American History: "Heritage, not Hate" When exploring African-American history, the most important things to focus on are that because of the times, black people were enslaved and treated poorly. They endured it all and worked hard to rise above the boundaries of slavery and prejudice. However, the most portentous aspect of African-American history is that it's heritage; it's history; and it's over. Jane Minor was born as Gensey Snow around the late 1700's or early 1800's. She was born into slavery and freed around 1825 when she changed her name. During her slavery, she faced the hardships of being a black female slave in the 1800's. Despite that, she earned a living after her emancipation by caring for the sick. With what money she had, she bought the freedoms of other women and children. She was an admirable woman. Sally Hemmings was born in 1773 as a slave of Thomas Jefferson. However, historians found that she was much more than that. Later, it was discovered that she bore one of Jefferson's children. This perhaps could have been the reason she was given special treatment and was allowed to go to Paris with Mary Jefferson. Although, it has not been proven so. Sally's accomplishments included learning French and playing the harpsichord. Her freedom came in 1826 when Jefferson died. Nat Turner was born on October 2, 1800 in Southampton County, VA to enslaved parents. He ran away from his master at 21 years old for religious reasons. Then, he traveled as a minister and spoke to slaves. On August 22, 1831, he killed his owners. He and a band of other slaves went on killing whites, and he was captured in 1831. There, he was hung and skinned. As anyone can see, the preceding people faced suffering at the hands of others. Slavery was wrong. Yet, each person persevered and won his or her own battles one way or another. It took years and a lot of work. Being a part of history, it should be respected as just so.

Costco Case Study Essay

Jim Sinegal and Jeff Brotman in Seattle Washington founded Costco Wholesale in 1993. Costco merged with Price Club, and doubled their market share in the wholesale industry. They became an immediate leader in the industry. Costco’s sales model is to sell a wide variety of products for low prices at a high volume. These brand-name products are sold at a discounted price to their members. Customers of Costco must pay a membership fee in order to purchase their merchandise. Their focus is on customer satisfaction and a guaranteed low price for its members. They have managed to maintain a large customer base using this balance where both small business and personal needs can be met simultaneous. Problem Statement Costco could increase their shareholders return on investment by making changes to their business model. They are currently doing favorably with their customers and employees, but need to maximizing their potential and increase revenue. Costco seeks to increase more of the market share in the industry from Sam’s Club, their largest competitor. This can be accomplished by continuing with their growth strategy to open more warehouses, increase their membership, and to upgrading their merchandising techniques to motivate members to shop more often. Analysis * Costco currently has 429 warehouses US; 82 warehouses in Canada; and 81 warehouses internationally * They have realized an increase in comparable warehouse sales of 7% in the US and 16% internationally * 14.2% increase in net sales * Costco currently employs 92,000 full-time employees and 72,000 part-time employees * Members include: Gold star 25,000; business 6,300; business add-on primary4,000; and additional card holders 28,700 * The gross margin has increased by 10.69% as a percent of net sales Alternatives * Costco can increase revenue by raising membership fees * Revenues can also be increased by removing the 15% on product markups * Reducing the number of employees receiving health benefits will increase revenue Recommendation The recommendation for Costco is to implement changes in their wages for their employees, benefits packages, and raising membership fees. Implementation The recommended changes can be gradually implemented throughout the company. The increase in membership fees would be the easiest to do first. Negotiating new rates for employee benefits will help reduce these costs associated with providing insurance. Costco can pay their employees less to be more competitive with the wages of Sam’s Club. Summary Costco’s current growth strategy is to open warehouses, execute merchandising techniques to increase customer shopping, and to increase their membership. These efforts are an attempt to increase their shareholders return on investment. Costco has focused more on customer satisfaction and pleasing their employees. They have managed to increase their revenues annually without building many stores as Wal-Mart. Costco has 417 US warehouses while Wal-Mart has 3,800. Wal-Mart has been aggressive in pursuing international acquisition by increasing the human spirit South Africa and the UK. Strategy to attract more members relies on the members doing a larger percent of their shopping with Costco. Chief Executive Officer Craig Jelinek has been keeping prices low and adding more service areas, such as vision centers, to increase store visits. (Townsend, 2012) They want to reward these members by allowing them the opportunity to purchase big-ticket items at a low price. The members will be motivated to return on a weekly or monthly basis in order to have the opportunity to purchase these limited deals. Costco has been using the term â€Å"treasure hunt† for years to explain why up to a fifth of its stock is limited-quantity items that are in the store for as little as a week. (Gibson, 2011) This strategy has shown some increases, but will need modifications. Strengths Costco currently has about 64 million cardholders and members. The company has managed to provide great customer service, which has resulted in members renewing their subscriptions. Employees receive an array of benefits within a month of their starting date. The generous benefits package that employees receive help build loyalty to the company and its mission to their customers. Members are taken care of by the employees, and employees are taken care of by the organization. This is fostered a positive environment that has landed Costco several awards. Costco provides their customers with one-time opportunities to purchase products and services that may not be available at other warehouses. The merchandise sold to Costco’s members has value to be of high quality and low price. They continue to be dominant in the retail wholesaler market because of the selection and quality of the merchandise offered. Weaknesses Costco faces the burden of finding adequate merchandise in the current financial crisis. Consumers are not buying large ticket items due to a decrease disposable income. The demand for large volume purchases has decreased with the increase of single-parent families. The high-volume low price model has continued to work, but the economic recession has slowed its growth. Costco’s employees make a higher wage than Sam’s employees do. These employees also benefit from a multitude of costly benefits. These expenses have caused the company to accrue less revenue. It will be difficult to maintain their profit margin under the circumstances. Any decline in membership renewals would decrease revenues. The plan to increase warehouses may infringe on their current stores. The expenses associated with building the warehouse could negatively affect their sales in such tough economic times. Although they are behind Sam’s Club in number of facilities, this is not the best time to expand. Opportunities Costco has the potential to continue to expand on their diverse offerings. By refining their business model, Costco have the opportunity to ride the broader economic trends to bigger profits and take customers from their rivals. Consumers are being more selective among the discounters such as Costco and Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart has seen an increase in competition from Costco for market share. Despite efforts by rival Sam’s Club, a unit of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., to improve merchandise in its warehouse clubs, Costco continues to notch higher revenue out of fewer stores in the U.S. (Zimmerman, 2011) Providing value to its members could result in Costco stealing Sam’s Club’s customers. There are still opportunities for Costco to expand the number of warehouses. This is a major part of their growth strategy to assist in building a larger customer base. There are reasonable expansion ideas that will help Costco. They can increase their brand internationally through expansion and by becoming a leader in social responsibility. Threats A major threat for Costco is potential for continued economic downturns. Customers are being more selective with their disposable income, and have chosen to downsize. Smaller quantities products have become more attractive due to these bad economic times. Costco must continue to market to the more affluent customers. The presence of price competition amongst customers and vendors will require Costco to carefully negotiate reasonable prices for the merchandise. Costco has to walk a fine line between absorbing the costs and passing them to customers because of its positioning as a warehouse club that, while catering to generally higher-end consumers, does have a reputation for offering decent prices. Competing internationally, poses the threat of economic instability abroad. Costco does not have a global presence and Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club. Sam’s Club and BJ’s will always pose a threat to Costco. Solution Our recommendation to the Costco management would be to implement an increase in the membership fees. â€Å"While the increased fees could add 20 cents to 25 cents to earnings per share over the next two years as memberships are renewed, Janney analyst David Strasser expects roughly half of the fee increase will be used to hold down prices†(Wohl, 2011). Costco employee’s compensation should be adjusted competitively to their competitors. The number of employees receiving benefits reduced to relieve expenses. We recommend that Costco increased to 15% placed on the product markups to 20%. Implementing these recommendations will result in an increase in company revenue and the shareholders return on investment. Implementation * A 10% increase in membership fees will begin in the next quarter * Increased the product mark up from 15% to 20% * Adjust the employee compensation to 10% of the market value * Increased revenue will be added to the shareholders return on investment References Gibson, E. (2011, July 09). Stores find success by focusing on the bargain hunt. USA Today. Retrieved from http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/industries/retail/2011-07-09-stores-bar gain-hunt_n.htm Talley, K. (2011, May 26). Costco feels inflation’s effect.WSJ. Retrieved from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304520804576344900721794900.html Townsend, M. (2012, October 10). Costco profit tops estimates as low prices drive traffic. Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved from http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-10-10/costco-profit-tops-analysts-estimates-as-prices-drive-traffic Wohl, J. (2011). Costco raises membership fees; profit misses view. Reuters, Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/05/us-costco-idUSTRE7942D620111005 Zimmerman, A. (2011, September 02). Costco ceo to step down. WSJ. Retrieved from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903895904576544883964721042.html

“Growing Old” †a Poem by Matthew Arnold Essay

What is it to grow old? Is it to lose the glory of the form, The lustre of the eye? Is it for beauty to forego her wreath? Yes, but not for this alone. Is it to feel our strength Not our bloom only, but our strength decay? Is it to feel each limb Grow stiffer, every function less exact, Each nerve more weakly strung? Yes, this, and more! but not, Ah, ’tis not what in youth we dreamed ‘twould be! ‘Tis not to have our life Mellowed and softened as with sunset-glow, A golden day’s decline! ‘Tis not to see the world As from a height, with rapt prophetic eyes, And heart profoundly stirred; And weep, and feel the fulness of the past, The years that are no more! It is to spend long days And not once feel that we were ever young. It is to add, immured In the hot prison of the present, month To month with weary pain. It is to suffer this, And feel but half, and feebly, what we feel: Deep in our hidden heart Festers the dull remembrance of a change, But no emotion none. It is last stage of all When we are frozen up within, and quite The phantom of ourselves, To hear the world applaud the hollow ghost Which blamed the living man. Harneet Banga When we are younger we often imagine how great it would be to be older. However, when we are older, we can no longer enjoy life the way we used to, due to our physical body. Therefore the poem â€Å"Growing Old† by Matthew Arnold, basically interprets, that we should enjoy the present time we are given in life rather than looking forward to a time we think we’ll enjoy. Matthew Arnold has described the elderly people and the meaning of the poem, right through the poem, with the help of poetic devices. The specific idea of imagery of this poem appears to be related directly to the passage on old age people. For example, â€Å"Grow stiffer, every function less exact,† this quote states that once you’re older, the body of an old age person becomes stiffer, and they function less exact, this quotes states imagery because they describe how an old person feels and how their brain functions as well. In each stanza, Arnold has answered the question he posed in the first stanza which is, â€Å"What is it to grow old?† in each stanza that question is answered. Since the theme of this poem is about Old people, there are many symbols in this poem that describe the theme of the poem, and we could use this poetic device which is symbolism. The words such as, â€Å"old, wreath, last stage, stiffer, strength decay, etc† are words in the poem that symbolises growing old, basically symbolising the meaning of the poem. Simile is when you compare two nouns, and Arnold has used this device to explain how it feels to be old, â€Å"As from a height, with rapt prophetic eyes,† the words used in this example, have no common interest with one another, but it still demonstrates the meaning of the poem. Harneet Banga A dictionary definition of the word elderly will probably has something to do with mature and aged people, but the connation to describe the word elderly in the poem are, â€Å"Is it to lose the glory of the form,† or â€Å"The lustre of the eye† this is the connation version of describing the meaning of the poem, which are old people. This fantastic poem is missing one thing which would probably make this poem sound much better, which is the rhyming of the poem, it always lets people get into the poem, but unfortunately this wasn’t used in the poem. Since this poem doesn’t have a rhyme scheme, the meter of this poem is irregular; it doesn’t follow the â€Å"da Dum da Dum da Dum da Dum† style, it has come up with another original and unique style for the readers to figure out the meaning of the poem. Alliteration wasn’t common in this poem, let’s say it was hardly used; alliteration is having the same letter in one line couple o f times, â€Å"And feel but half, and feebly, what we feel:† Arnold uses this line in an alliteration way to describe how old age people feel, they basically feel in an extremely pathetically way. There are much more poetic devices used in this poem, assonance has a great impact on the poems meaning. Assonance is a repetition of the sound of vowel throughout the stanza, and in the poem they have repeated a vowel throughout a line in a stanza. For example, â€Å"Not our bloom only, but our strength decay?† the vowel â€Å"O† is used throughout this line of the poem, creating assonance and a meaning to the poem. The word old is being repeated constantly all through the poem, Arnold doesn’t say old in every stanza, but he does use similar words to describe old, and answers the question which he asked in the beginning of the poem, which is â€Å"What is it to grow old?† Matthew Arnold has described the meaning of the poem through all these poetic devices, for example the imagery is used in the poem to give us an image of an elderly person and how they feel. All these poetic devices have contributed to the poem in an extremely well manner, and with these poetic devices, the meaning of the poem became clearer.

China Lost Girls

China’s Lost Girls China is largest population in the world because of that Chinese government decided a policy which is one-child policy. A family has only one child, but some case a family can have second child if they pay to government. One of big issue in China is balance of gender which means man’s population is much larger than female’s. Chinese people want to have a boy because a man carries the family name in Chinese culture; therefore, thousands of Chinese girls are aborted, hidden, abandoned, or even killed. Some of these girls are adapted to American family, but adaption takes more than a year.Many American families are waiting for adopted child. After they apply adoption, they can receive adopted child’s picture; however, they have to wait about one year to meet the child and cannot know anything about their adopted child until they meet them. In addition, the American families paid few thousands dollar for adoption, and the money goes to Chine se government. On the other hand, other girls stay their entire childhood in institution of child welfare or their parents or relative sold them. Many Chinese girls are sold to somewhere and their life is horrible.For example, a girl was beaten up and broke her leg and arm so that some organization save these female, or other organization campaign for sexual equality. In conclusion, this issue is bigger and bigger in China; therefore, few years later many men cannot marry because of imbalance of gender problem. And also, most families have only one child in their family so that many kids are spoiled in China. I knew about china's one child policy but I did not know boys are so important than girls; even girls are aborted, hidden, abandoned, or even killed. I was so surprised.I am happy for those girls who were adapted to American family; however, still many other girls have tough life. I think that this is very difficult issue because population of China is huge; however, government has to think about different way to reduce population. Otherwise, girls are kidnap more often because women have to give a birth, but if women are not enough population, a family cannot continue to have descendant. In addition, there are a lot of spoiled children because of one child policy in China so that it might makes unhealthy or violence country in future.

How Did the Constitution Guard Against Tyranny Essay

Have you ever wondered what the US would be like if our government was a tyranny? Well, thanks to our founding fathers for creating a strong constitution, we don’t have to worry about that. The constitution was written in 1787 in Philadelphia. The problem was that the existing government that was under the Articles Of Confederation wasn’t very successful. Therefore, the fifty-five delegates representing twelve out of the thirteen states came together to tweak our constitution to create a strong government without allowing one person, or group of people to have too much power. The framers used the Constitution to protect against Tyranny in three ways federalism, separation of powers, and checks and balances. One way that the framers protected against Tyranny was through federalism. â€Å"The different governments will each control each other, at the same time will be controlled by itself. † (Document A) By separating the two different governments ,it creates a double security to the rights of the people Commentary, and the two control each other and itself. Read more: Tyranny constitution essay This guards from a tyranny because it keeps the power completely separated between central and state government but keeping the power even at the same time, so that one doesn’t inherit too much. Document A states that powers given to the central government include: regulate trade, conduct foreign relations, provide an army and navy, declare war, print and coin money, set up post offices, and make immigration laws. Powers given to the states include: set up local governments, hold elections, establish schools, pass marriage and divorce laws, and regulate in-state business. The two different parts government hold their own different powers and responsibilities that are both limited and shared to keep it fair. This guards from tyranny because it splits up the rolls between the central and state government but still keeps them even. Federalism is one of the main ways framers used to protect against tyranny. Another way the framers used the Constitution to protect against tyranny was separation of powers. â€Å"(L)iberty requires that the three great departments of power should be separate and distinct. (Document B) For our government to be successful we much create three main levels of government where powers are distributed. This guards from tyranny because it makes sure that no branch has more power than one another because they check each other. Document B states that in the Constitution article 1 section 1, article 2 section 1 clause 1, and article 3 section are about the three separate branches in our government and what responsibilities that each o ne holds. With our government having three different branches each one has its own limited powers that make a democracy possible. This guards against tyranny because no branch overpowers each other, nobody gets too much power, and the powers are evenly distributed. Separation of powers is one of the main things framers used to protect against tyranny. A third way that the framers used the Constitution protects against tyranny was checks and balances. â€Å"†¦ The constant aim is to divide and arrange the several offices in such a manner as that they check on the other†¦ The main goal is to make sure that each of the three branches have control over each other but still separated. This protects against tyranny because each branch has powers the control one another. In document C it states how each level of government limits and balances each other out to keep the powers even, and how our government is constitutional. Each different part of the government has three separate branches t he uses the Method checks and balances to keep power even and to have control over each other. This guards from tyranny because by keeping all of them limited with what they can do and in control of each other keeps it from one branch getting more power than another. Checks and balances is one of the main things the framers used to protect against tyranny. Federalism, Separation of powers, and checks and balances were the three ways that the framers used the constitution to protects our government against a tyranny. Paragraph 1 came from document A stating how federalism played a part in protecting against tyranny by creating double security for the people. Paragraph 2 came from document B stating how the separation of powers played a part in protecting against tyranny by creating three branches of government with separate powers. Paragraph 3 came from document c stating how checks and balances played a part in protecting against tyranny by making sure each branch had certain powers and also controlled each other at the same time. The founding fathers took advantage of the holes in the Articles of Confederation and used their knowledge to create a stronger constitution that today still guards from tyranny affecting our government.

Strategic Management Real insurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Strategic Management Real insurance - Essay Example Insurance provision flourishes on records and the skill to strategise information from a range of diverse sources to issue course of actions and supervise. Consequently the rapidly growing division in the insurance business is the incorporation of wide-ranging business processes, for instance underwriting policies, executing policy controller services, and reporting argues into workflow structures. Sensitive industry antagonism, augmented customer hopes and requirements for larger effectiveness are chief drivers shoving the insurance business to reassess its tactics and to adjust its long-established in use processes. Insurance organisations, such as Real Insurance, should gather the advantages of modernised Web-based flow mechanisation, lessening expenses of operations and cutting decision making time. By employing online automation, Real can divest the vastness of this practice and enhance profits by giving end users direct access to their records online instantaneously and letting them to deal their own service requests, ask for an excerpt and even join and download a policy (Liang, 2000). Sharing and swap of confidential information between numerous public and corporations need by insurance industries. The test is how to achieve this harmlessly and cost effectively while promising customer trustworthiness and keeping high levels of customer satisfaction. Likewise it is essential to certify that only authorised staff can access restricted consumer statistics or supervise claim records in line with the Privacy laws. This process can be considered a great innovation by handing over not only information access but also operational transactions to the end user. The revolution will have the following impact on the insurance industry (Cockburn, 2001): Upgrading level of service to clients, Noteworthy cost reduction Versatile flexible, groups and products presented, Updated procedural effectiveness Better control of technology. 2. Outline of the analysis with reasons of the selections The link between Knowledge Management and Strategy (Zack, 1999) is the key to Web-based Insurance Structure of Real Insurance and will enable this organisation to find gap between knowledge and strategy (Refer figure 1). Figure 1: 2.1 Modernised form of Insurance The function of Internet and associated information technologies is to create and allocate insurance functionalities. In an advanced sense, it

Innocence and disilussion in Desiree's Baby Essay

Innocence and disilussion in Desiree's Baby - Essay Example Why it seemed but yesterday that Desiree was little more than a baby herself." Desiree’s Baby† by Kate Chopin is a touching tale of how both love and pride affect all our actions. Love is a quality gifted only to some people. "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." On the other hand, Pride has the opposite effect because it is egged on by a hatred of falling below ones standards. Pride makes a person so selfish because it centers on â€Å"self† and is totally destructive. Kate Chopin depicts the protagonist Desiree as a "beautiful and gentle, affectionate and sincere young woman."(p. 31) and then shuttles between the love and pride that effects all the choices made by all the characters in the story. Kate Chopin’s â€Å"Desiree’s Baby,† is so realistic in its portrayal because of her creation of lifelike and believable characters. She relies on a lot of symbolism and imagery lending depth and innocence to her characters. To highlight social divisions she uses color imagery such as black and white. She also uses Biblical connotations such as comparing Desiree with God and Armand to Satan. Chopin brings Desiree’s innocence forward when she wholly accepts Armand’s love for not guessing that he has a deep seated desire as well as hatred towards her racial background. Armand’s world seems ironic as he builds up an image of white supremacy and traps himself within its walls. Armand goes to the extent of discarding Desiree and getting involved with a white mistress, La Blanche. Though she is fair – skinned, yet she is of mixed blood from a slave background. The actual irony is that Armand is dark- skinned and evil but portrays himself as white and good. Desiree is so innocent and childlike and does not guess what is going through Armand’s mind. Though Armand knows well about the truth of his ancestry, yet he has