The structure and development of curriculum

The construction and development of course of study involves many characteristics, including how it is organised, the ends to be achieved in instruction, procedures of instruction, larning and appraisal, and eventually how it the course of study will provide for the hereafter scholars. We will detect how the course of study model is broken into these classs to organize the construction and development. Department of Education and Training ( 2008 ) Queensland course of study criterion demands province â€Å" All schools are required to develop and keep up-to-date course of study programs in audience with the school community. This planning ensures that appraisal, instruction and coverage match the intended course of study. † ( Department of Education and Training, 2008 ) Curriculum planning is divided into three degrees in schools, whole-school course of study, plan the sequence of larning across all twelvemonth degrees, program each twelvemonth degree, term and unit. The cours e of study procedure is to educate scholars, develop accomplishments and cognition so they will be able to lend within society. To specify course of study in footings of a papers which includes inside informations about ends or aims, content, learning techniques, rating and appraisal is the cardinal values that represent educating. The Department of Education and preparation of Queensland ( 2008 ) states the course of study is â€Å" all the planned acquisition that is offered and enacted by a school. † The model of Queensland course of study includes a acquisition environment, resources, learning attacks and schemes, appraisal and plans methods, values relationships, and behaviors between equals and instructors. All these elements are linked and supply the experiences that contribute to scholars larning. â€Å" A good course of study has each of these elements aligned so that intended acquisition is what is assessed and what pupils achieve. † ( Department of Education and Training, 2008 ) .Therefore, this papers attempts to widen the focal point on specifying a specific position on what a scholar can carry through under the counsel of school acquisition. Curriculum is organised through range and sequencing. Scope refers to the degree and the agreement of the course of study elements that occur across topics, while, sequence refers to the interrupting the content and acquisition experiences into manageable stairss to ease acquisition over a period of clip. Example of range and sequence used in schools is the grammar range and sequence which each twelvemonth degree will cover a selected component of grammar. Year two ( 2 ) instructors teach larning elements of nouns, by placing appellative words, word edifice with nouns, and twelvemonth six ( 6 ) will utilize the elements of complex genitive nouns, introduce abstract and common nouns. The range considers the procedures or accomplishments that occur in topics. Scoping is structured how topics are taught through activities or incorporating units. Scope and Sequence provides information for instructors about the literacy genres, numeracy chances and demands, and possibilities for utilizing ICT in the acquisition plan for each of the Key Learning Areas in each twelvemonth. By utilizing the range and sequence administration it allows instructors to concentrate chiefly on the intended course of study, supplying support for instructors on what to learn, how to learn it and how to measure it. Therefore, leting instructors to do the most of larning in their category. â€Å" The sequences for each Key Learning Area outline nine old ages of schooling. In peculiar, the learning descriptions sketching what is indispensable for pupils to cognize, understand and be able to make by the terminal of Old ages 3, 5, 7, and 9 are critical for future acquisition and progress.. † ( Department of Education and Training, 2008 ) Within each of the eight Key larning Areas: English, Health and Physical Education, Languages other than English ( LOTE ) , Mathematics, Science, Studies of Society and Environment, Technology and The Arts there is a sequence, statements depicting what indispensable acquisition is to be addressed within the Queensland Curriculum. Using the range and sequence acquisition depict what the scholar does as a consequence of the acquisition chances and environment hence provides a consequence, or result of the learning procedure: The construction of the Queensland course of study relates to several theoretical accounts of course of study, the process-based theoretical account affecting consecutive stages of course of study design and development relates to Tyler ‘s theoretical account of course of study, which includes aims followed by content or acquisition experiences, so utilizing a method or organizing larning experiences such as range and sequencing, and eventually rating or appraisal. But, the Queensland model of course of study besides relates to Skilbeck ‘s theoretical account because â€Å" A course of study that maximises the acquisition of all pupils is one that recognises and celebrates diverseness and engages all pupils in intellectually disputing larning experiences. It provides pupils with clear guidelines on what they are larning and how they will be assessed. It involves a scope of learning schemes to run into different larning demands and explicit learning to scaffold pupils â⠂¬Ëœ larning so that they develop and consolidate the needed cognition and accomplishments to run into the awaited hereafter demands of work and citizenship. † ( Department of Education and Training, 2008 ) Skilbeck ‘s Situation theoretical account examines the chief context and needs that continues throughout the procedure of development and execution of plans hebdomadal or day-to-day instruction. The consideration of these factors stairss in the course of study procedure of state of affairs analysis, end preparation. plan edifice, reading and execution and feedback, appraisal & A ; Reconstruction. Skilbeck ‘s theoretical account, to the full considers the ‘situation ‘ or context of the course of study holding external factors and internal factors. The external factors includeCultural and societal alterations outlooks and alterationsRelationships between grownups and kids, community premises and valuesEducational system demands e.g. policy statements, appraisal processsChanging nature of capable affairSupport systemsExpected flow of resourcesInternal FactorsStudents pupil: aptitudes, abilities and educational demandsTeachers values, attitudes, accomplishments, cognition, experience, particular strengths and failings, functionsSchool ethos and constructions and decision-making construction, power sharingResourcesProblems and defects in the bing course of studySchool communityThe intent or end of instruction is to advance instruction and acquisition construction within a schoolroom and or school environment, is to do the most of a scholars ‘ acquisition and support scholars to accomplish their full potency. That larning experiences connect with bing cognition and accomplishments, pupils educational learning encourage a deeper apprehension and that scholars can link purposeful. The rules found in the Model policy provinces â€Å" Quality course of study maximizes each pupil ‘s educational potency All instruction and acquisition should be founded in the belief that, with good instruction, the right support and sufficient clip, every pupil can develop cognition, accomplishments and understanding to accomplish at higher degrees. Teachers need to believe in their pupils as scholars, have high outlooks, and see themselves as responsible for bettering the learning accomplishment of their pupils. † ( Department of Education and Training, 2008 ) The development of the course of study involves a course of study for all learning facets of the indispensable ways of working and knowledge guaranting that scholars are engaged with acquisition and develop their cognition and apprehension. â€Å" This includes advancing excellence through a course of study that supports all pupils to develop a deep apprehension of of import capable affair and the rational tools and schemes to believe for themselves and to pull off their ain acquisition † ( Department of Education and Training, 2008 ) . Curriculum engages scholars with schemes to develop sound apprehension. Teachers using these larning activities will steer scholars, to work towards constructing on their cognition, by using, explicating, interpretation, and processing. Guaranting that a scholar will accomplish and take part within their acquisition is an intended portion of the course of study. Teaching and larning patterns within a school environment promote the pupil to maximize their educational potency. Through good instruction, back uping scholars, it will help with the developing their cognition and apprehension. .Therefore, scholars are prosecuting with support and scaffolding between each other to derive farther apprehension, guaranting that the cirrculum provides pupils the key tools and schemes to believe for themselves and larn how to pull off their acquisition. The quality appraisal of pupil acquisition is an go oning class of action of roll uping relevant informations to find what a scholar knows, understands and reflect on country of the course of study that need support. The rules of appraisal require appraisal be applicable, and should supply dependable information on the scholars accomplishments. Students should cognize what they have to larn and what the standard or criterion will be set for assessment undertakings. Learners showing their high order of thought, they can use their new accomplishment to other contents. By supplying feedback, it will supply scholars to reflect on their acquisition and place different stairss to better. Assessment is to reflect on the apprehension of their acquisition. â€Å" Achievement of the intended course of study including the quality or criterion of accomplishment, assessment patterns should besides play an educative function for pupils, enabling them to reflect on their acquisition -particularly misconceptions and spreads in their cognition – and take some duty for their ain ongoing acquisition † . ( Department of Education and Training, 2008 ) . This new coevals has wholly different larning manners these demands should be considered in schoolroom instruction ; engineering plays an built-in portion within today ‘s society. Learners are prosecuting larning to suit with new engineerings. â€Å" The course of study should reflect and construct on the digital literacy ‘s that pupils already have. † ( Department of Education and Training, 2008 ) Therefore, in decision, schools course of studies make the critical part to the pupil ‘s hereafter, wellbeing, prosperity, and societal society accomplishments. The course of study needs to work towards developing capablenesss, every bit good as accomplishing outcome ends in the gaining of specific cognition. The course of study must travel beyond merely schooling foundation of instruction ; these accomplishments are farther required in the workplace, community and recreational milieus. The course of study is one manner to anchor the construct of life-long acquisition in a cognition society. Quality instruction and acquisition patterns within a school environment promote the pupil to maximize their educational potency. Through good instruction, back uping scholars, it will help with the developing their cognition and apprehension. .MentionsBrady L: Kenndy, K. ( 2007 ) . Cirriculum Construction ( 3rd ed. ) . Pearson Education Australia.Department of Education and Training. ( 200 8 ) . Department of Education and Training. Retrieved March 10, 2010, from P-12 Curriculum Framework: hypertext transfer protocol: //education.qld.gov.au/curriculum/framework/p-12/index.htmlMarsh, C. ( 2003 ) . Cardinal Concepts for understanding cirriculum. New York: RoutledgeFalner.Nicholls, A.. Nicholls, H.. ( 1978 ) . Developing a cirriculum. London: Biling & A ; Sons Ltd.Queensland Studies Authority. ( 2010 ) . Queensland Studies Authority. Retrieved March 2, 2010, from hypertext transfer protocol: //www.qsa.qld.edu.au/

Alcoholism and its effects on society Essay

The alcohol is a terrible disease that effects not only your own body and mental health but also it effects everybody who surrounds you. By being an alcoholic you are experiencing all different types of problems. It can be either a problem with a lack of money that will bring you to the friends who are going to get tired of it sooner or later, or alcohol will ruin your healthy relationship with your family and your lovely kids. People who are suffering from this disease are usually not successful in anything they are trying to do. Alcohol is simply ruining your life. Alcohol and financial problems We consider an alcohol as a drug that makes you addicted to it really quick. Person will be thinking that one drink will not do anything to him/her, and that might be right. The next time that person will be thinking that if one drink did absolutely nothing to him/her then what could happen with two drinks. And he/she will be keep on going and going until they will reach that point where they realize that they are a typical alcoholics. It’s just like that story with a frog. â€Å"If you put a frog into the bowl with a temperature lower than her body’s, she will jump out immediately. If you put her into the bowl with exact the same temperature as her body or a little bit wormer then she will stay in there. You can be increasing the temperature but the frog will still stay in there because she is not feeling the difference, and she will be there until she literally cooks alive.† Same thing happens to the alcoholics, they are simply not feeling any difference in the ir body temperature. They will be just drinking until they either pass out or just â€Å"cook alive†. Thru all this times they will be spending a quite a bit of money and since they are drinking and keep on wasting time to go buy drinks, that means they are not working most of these days, simply because they are drunk. That can cause them losing their job. The costs of alcohol increase as the alcoholic person builds tolerance to the drug in his or her system. Let’s assume that a beer cost $5 per six pack. That means they will be spending more than $500 a year. If they would stop drinking and  start saving those money, they would’ve easily go to Cuba every year, but instead they choose alcohol. Alcoholics will just keep on spending money until they will reach that point where they will have neither money, neither a life around them and they will think that it’s time to stop now, but no. They are not going to be able to do it that easily, because they are way too addicted to it now! At that point alcoholics will try to go to the hospital where they can get some treatment. According to the website Drug Rehabs, a week at some live-in treatment centers can cost the patient several thousand dollars, as much as a luxury hotel. Also another way they can lose their money is by causing damage not just to themselves but to others as well. The alcoholic person can easily hit another car, that will not only cause a mechanical damages but also in the worst case it can cause death to the innocent person. All this consequences will tear apart the alcoholic. And that’s where they might collapse and commit a suicide. Alcohol and friends Friends is one of the most important things to have in the life. They are always there to provide support and to help thru the hardest times. Friends are playing a big role in any anybody’s life. When person under the effect of alcohol he/she don’t understand all of importance. They can easily harm their best friend, assault their best friend or even kill without even knowing why they are doing it. Of course friends will try to help, they will do everything possible to get that person out of that situation. And he/she still will be drinking and enjoying the moment, they are not going to stick around for that long. Maybe after that person wakes next morning sober and will try to say sorry to their friends. They are not going to be there anymore, because they give a chance to change but unfortunately it wasn’t as important as a beer. In other way if that person have a non-drinking company then it will be easier for him to influence all of his friends just to join him or at list one, then to go thru all this treatments. The alcoholic might ruin the whole life of that person, their dreams, future, maybe even a family, just by influencing him to have some shoots with you every other day. Also there have been so many situation where drunk friend was driving his other friends and suddenly he lost control and all of them died. Alcohol and relationship problems Alcoholism are likely to cause harm for anyone in a relationship with the sufferer. People who find themselves in a romantic relationship with an alcoholic may end up making excuses for their lack of attendances or improper conduct at social functions. Family problems, such as arguing, bickering, stonewalling, withdrawal, and generally poor communication can be find in any couple/family who have an alcoholic person. Families rely heavily on one another for support. This includes both financial and emotional support, which alcoholism can erode over time. Alcoholic person cannot provide neither a money for food and cloth, neither a roof above their head. Families rely heavily on one another for support. That support can easily be demolished by a stupid intoxicated liquid. When alcoholics where trying to build that relationship to have a better life for theirs children and themselves. Instead of fighting thru that, trying to be better they simply gave up and said no to everything they h ad. Now the only thing they will have is a castle out of empty beer bottles. Alcoholic Parents and Children Having an alcoholic parent is one of the worst things that could happen to the child. Children are likely to experience a number of problems related to the parents when alcoholism is involved. They may experience neglect or physical and mental abuse as a parent loses awareness of their actions due to the effects of alcohol. After all of that children might find problems with their own social development. An alcoholic parent unwilling or unable to support the child’s endeavors. This can range from missed events such as soccer games to birthday parties. Kids who are grow up in a family with one or more alcoholics often have emotional problems. Their homes are filled with conflict, tension and stress. As a result many children’s feel depressed and anxious. They might be even afraid to go to school, wet their beds, cry or have night mares. At the end they simply can isolate themselves or develop fears. Children who are living with alcoholics have a higher chance of becoming an alcoholic themselves and they will likely try their first drink before or during their teenage years. In conclusion I would like to say that all this problems would never happened if there was no alcohol involved. There would never been any children who are becoming  alcoholics at age of 15 just because their parents were doing that as well. There would have never happened any innocent deaths due to impaired driving that involve innocent people. None of this problems would never have been raised if only you just had said NO I’m not drinking. Why make it complicated, your life would’ve been much easier. As Jim Carrey said â€Å"I’m very serious about no alcohol, no drugs. Life is too beautiful.† References List http://www.ehow.com/list_7354573_financial-problems-alcoholics.html#ixzz2nLIDaemf http://www.alcoholic.org/research/do-you-have-to-be-an-alcoholic-to-experience-problems/ The story with a frog is from my head. I red it long time ago in one article. I wrote this in case you will ask for the references and where I got from. Alcohol and children – source: Book – Alcohol by Judy Monroe 1994 http://drgaryseeman.com/resources/arel.php http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/alcohol.html#u9Y6JPEWjc6Fzyra.99 http://www.alcoholaddict.info/alcohol-addiction/alcoholism-affects.html

Buffalo Bill’s Defunct

â€Å" Buffalo Bill’s Defunct† Joey Willoughby ENG 125 Introduction to Literature Instructor: Katie Newbanks 5/16/2011 Buffalo Bill’s Defunct E. E. Cumming’s,† Buffalo Bill’s Defunct† is a somewhat difficult poem to interpret. The poem displays peculiarities of sound structure, as well as line and stanza. What we don’t see, in this poem, is as vital to our understanding of the poem, as what we do see. â€Å" Buffalo Bill’s Defunct† is an extremely short poetic piece consisting of only eleven lines and is a free verse, open form classification of poetry in reference to mortality.The poem can also be considered as onomatopoeia in nature due to the utilization of words to represent sound. The nature of the poem is also based on a centralized protestation of death of an individual that provided enjoyment to the lives of others. Example: how do you like your blueeyed boy Mister Death. Cummings sarcastically refers to â₠¬Å"blueeyed boy† as simply another deceased person, as opposed to his earlier depiction of Buffalo Bill’s appearance as a â€Å"handsome man† with many accomplishments in life.My interpretation of the poem is that he appears to be saying to Mister Death †You took him, but you’re not going to get any enjoyment from doing so. † Cummings is essentially blaming Mister Death and insinuates to him that he will give Buffalo Bill new life. There were many composites of this particular poem that captured my attention at the very beginning of the analysis. The particular style of wording of the poem (structurally) suggests to me an arrowhead. This is significant as in life Buffalo Bill, a frontier scout was associated with Native Americans and was a wild west outlaw.The unconventional syntax, style of language, and lack of punctuation also attracted my attention to the poem. Cummings also uses eccentric topography and word arrangement in his work. Exampl e: The word Defunct, (line 2) is an eye catching word as it dwells in a space where one would expect to visualize the word â€Å"dead† or â€Å"deceased. † (Clugston, R. W. ) Single words are presented to the reader as complete lines. Example: (line 1) Buffalo Bill’s, (line 2) Defunct, (line 7) Jesus, and (line 11) Mister Death.The only capitalization of words are (line 7) Jesus, (line 1) Buffalo Bill’s and (line 11) Mister Death. â€Å"Buffalo Bill and Mr. Death enclose the poetic material and â€Å"Jesus† is set apart by itself, to the furthermost right extremes of the poem. Example: (line 1) the beginning – Buffalo Bill’s and (line 11) Mister Death at the poem’s end. (Clugston, R. W. ) The word arrangement also attracted my attention. Example: (line 6) â€Å"onetwothreefour pigeons† and (line 6) â€Å"justlikethat. †This presentation of words is known as neologisms, which is defined as a new usage of a word.Th ese visual effects are intended to assist in the translation of what we read. Example: ( eye;gt;voice;gt;ear) so that we recognize the stress in each instance. For example, in (line 6) â€Å"onetwothreefour pigeons† one can almost hear the short, sharp sounds of the gunshots in the rapid fire shooting of the clay pigeons. I believe that poetry is meant to be heard. â€Å"Buffalo Bill’s Defunct† definitely provided this sensory effect, as I could almost hear the gunshots via reading the words of the poem.This type of word arrangement could also be an indication that Cummings possessed a great admiration for Buffalo Bill’s shooting prowess and is a direct reference also, to the â€Å"Wild West Show† circa (1890) where Buffalo Bill performed in his later years. In (line 7) of â€Å"Buffalo Bill’s Defunct,† Cummings uses the single word â€Å"Jesus† which was quite baffling to me. I came to the conclusion that this provided a contr ast between â€Å"Jesus† who is typically referred to in the light of love and peace, while Buffalo Bill was notorious for fights and etc.In comparison of Buffalo Bill and Jesus both are noted to have an association with the death process. (Clugston, R. W. ) Metaphorically speaking, Cummings utilized two very opposing characters in his poem, Buffalo Bill and Jesus. The metaphoric process is very unique in the fact that it sets objects which are unlike together and hones in on getting the reader to acknowledge the resemblance between the two. In (lines 4 -5), Buffalo Bill’s horse is an excellent sensory image, as one can almost visualize the gray-colored, sleek steed with Buffalo Bill as rider galloping across the plains.This signifies that the poem possesses aesthetic merit, as we envision the beauty of this mighty stallion. (Clugston, R. W. ) The differences between speech and poetic form affected my experience of the poem by allowing me to put myself in Cummingâ€⠄¢s position and actually feel what he was feeling as he wrote the poem. Cummings is saying, Okay, Buffalo Bill is dead, but he will forever be remembered as he was when he was living. â€Å"You can’t take that away, Mister Death!Perhaps the final rhetoric question to Mister Death says it better: â€Å" how do you like your blueeyed boy† He is essentially telling Mister Death that (you have him, but you do not have in your possession what we had. )(Clugston, R. W. ) â€Å"Buffalo Bill’s Defunct,† addresses a common human experience â€Å"death† and puts emphasis on the fact that those who have passed over are gone, but not forgotten. E. E. Cummings, â€Å"Buffalo Bill’s Defunct is a somewhat difficult poem to interpret.The poem displays peculiarities of sound structure, as well as line and stanza. What we don’t see is as vital to our understanding of the poem, as what we do see. Here’s to Buffalo Bill. May he remain as alive in our lives today as when he rode his handsome stallion in the â€Å"Wild West Show† of yesteryear. References Clugston, R. W. (2010) Journey into Literature, San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. http: www. content. ashford. edu Table 1 Insert Table Title Here Figure Captions Figure 1. Insert figure caption here.

Teaching and Learning Reading Skills Research Paper

Teaching and Learning Reading Skills - Research Paper Example This paper illustrates that various types of media that are available in the society that discourages the students to read more are very accessible. Television, movies, and the like do not require anybody to learn how to read. The mere fact that people should only open their eyes and listen to what is projected on the screen without reading anything leads students to become uninterested in reading. At school, there is not as much student interaction during the reading classes, thus the more the students stay uninterested. Identifying students’ learning strategies are as important as identifying the different teaching strategies that the teachers should implement in a classroom. Children, at a young age, require activities that would make them interested in participating in a reading class. If there are not enough activities that would engage them in learning and developing their skills, more likely, the students would lose focus and resort to disinterest. Specific teaching tec hniques such as additional exercises and activities are necessary to encourage the students to read further. One of the most common teaching techniques that the author has observed among the teachers back in elementary was the focus on the vocabulary words in a reading class rather than the content and comprehension. There are more vocabulary exercises than those that require comprehension and analysis that may have been a lot more interesting for the children than the memorization and use of the words that teachers thought were important for the students to focus on. There are no doubt vocabulary skills should be improved as well, however, reading classes should not put much weight on the definition of the difficult words, but rather, the understanding of the students to the ideas that the reading exercises present. In addition, reading activities were but a part of the language book. Reading comprehension exercises were limited to only a few questions for which no further exercise s are added.

Power Relations and the Reporting of International News Essay

Power Relations and the Reporting of International News - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that globalization has brought huge changes in this world. Virtually, there are no life segments in which globalization failed to make an impact. In politics, economics, education, business as well as in social and cultural activities, globalization has brought huge changes. Journalism or reporting of international news is another area in which globalization was able to bring significant changes. It should be noted that the power relations have been changed drastically after the collapse of former the Soviet Union. Earlier, America and the Soviet Union were the undisputed superpowers in this world and the majority of the other countries were keen on establishing the political relationship with these countries. It should be noted that majority of the communist countries took aside of the Soviet Union whereas a majority of the capitalist countries joined hands with America during the cold war period. As a result of that, the media in differen t countries started to make and report news wither in favor of America or in favor of Soviet Union, based on the political relationship of their mother country with the superpowers. In other words, neutrality in the reporting of international news has been severely damaged during the cold war period. At the same time, the destruction of Soviet Union, as well as the introduction of globalization, has changed the reporting of international news drastically. America became the undisputed leader in global politics after the destruction of Soviet Union, even though China is rapidly becoming the second superpower in the world. Moreover, â€Å"the forces of  resurgent market liberalism, the decline of public service broadcasting, the global collapse of dictatorships and the outbreak of the so-called ‘catching up’ or ‘velvet’ revolutions of 1989-1991† have contributed heavily to the changes in the global reporting styles. In short, the rapid changes in the global political and economic spectra have contributed heavily to the changes in the reporting of international events.

Cash for Grades Research Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Cash for Grades Research Project - Essay Example Long-term, cash for grades programs are not effective and do not produce the desired educational outcomes which schools hope they will. â€Å"Paying students to behave is totally immoral. How will kids react when the money stops?† (Gill and Lam, 7). This is a good point which reinforces the idea that these programs are not effective long-term. Local high school and university budgets are strained, especially during times of economic difficulty, therefore supporting these programs indefinitely would not be possible from the budget viewpoint. There is bound to be an emotional reaction in students when these programs can no longer be supported which could actually de-motivate students to learn. Therefore, short-term they definitely can motivate students to achieve higher test scores or to absorb class materials, however long-term there are too many potential negative outcomes. These would be expensive programs, especially if, short-term, these programs motivated students to achieve very high grades so that a higher percentage of students achieved A grades. The end result of ending these programs due to budget problems could cause serious academic learning problems with students who had become accustomed to this added incentive. On a different note, the achievement gap between rich and poor students exists because of the quality of life differences for each socio-economic group. In psychology, Abraham Maslow identified a hierarchy of needs, common needs shared by all people in society, which identify physiological needs as the most primary (Weiten and Lloyd, 2005). Physiological needs include shelter, clothing, food and other basic life essentials. Maslow offers that people cannot achieve any greater contribution to becoming a better member of society until these basic needs are satisfied. People with higher economic means do not concern themselves as much with

The Factors that Affect Online Buying Decisions Essay

The Factors that Affect Online Buying Decisions - Essay Example It is generally expected that with the Internet, national and geographical boundaries should become irrelevant when engaging in business exchanges; consequently, global expansion on the Internet could promise greater customer reach and profits. However, although the adoption rate of Internet shopping is relatively high in the West, it is still generally unpopular in the East (Lee et al., 2004, 545). The above assumptions which present the current conditions regarding the use and the evaluation of an Internet site from a consumers’ perspective, although completed regarding the issues targeted they can, however, be been criticised as limited to the geographical aspect of the Internet usage. The current paper examines the online activity from the aspect of the transactions made, mostly the online shopping. Under these terms, the factors that affect the relevant decision are being examined in order to provide a specific and complete view on the issue. The use of research tools, su ch as questionnaires, has been evaluated as necessary in order to gather empirical information regarding the specific subject. Moreover, the data revealed are being analyzed and compared between them but also with the views of the literature, so that the formulation of a integrate result to be achieved at the highest possible level. According to a British Computer Society research (Kavanagh, 2005), online shoppers are starting to desert the High Street; however, the same survey also shows that many people are being excluded from electronic services. According to the above survey (which was conducted by interviewing a representative sample of 2,113 people aged over 15) about 35% of the people surveyed shop online — and nearly one-fifth of these now choose to shop online rather than visit the High Street; in addition, although 46% still prefer the High Street, 36% have no preference, again suggesting wide acceptance of online shopping.  

Course Project - Best Buy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Course Project - Best Buy - Research Paper Example In 1981, Schulze attended a weeklong management seminar which made him take a step in expanding the Sound of Music’s to include VCRs and other appliances. Later on in 1984 he introduced the superstore format which greatly expanded warehouse sizes and product offerings leading to quick capture a large portion of the market (Pederson & Gant, 2004). During the late 1980s, competitive companies were established since they realized the huge profits made by Best Buy Company from the superstore format and from the sale of hot ticket consumer items such as VCRs (Pederson & Gant, 2004). Highland Superstores a chief competitor to Best Buy Company, made it decline its net earnings after entering Best Buy’s core Twin Cities market in early 1987 (Pederson & Gant, 2004). For some time, both companies benefited from the market share increases and profits, but finally the market was overcrowded by other stores who were competing for the same dollars. The decreased profits by Best Buy Company made Schulze come up with the idea of building Concept II stores in 1989, which would make the company more noticeable from the competition since the average customer recognized little difference among the superstores (Votteler, 2002). The idea behind Concept II stores was to ensure that shoppers were entering electronic discount stores which had limited need for sales aid and a desire for hassle free buying which would ensure no waiting for merchandise from the back room or switching from counter to counter. Thus, the Best Buy stores would have well stocked showrooms, fewer salespeople, more self help product information, one stop purchasing of products and answer centers for those with questions. These were some of the best effective strategies used by Best Buy Company to fight off competition. In April 1991, Highland stores exited the metropolitan area, conceding defeat and

Critical evaluation and incorporation of change management tools for Essay - 1

Critical evaluation and incorporation of change management tools for Kiribati - Essay Example An acute managerial crisis may be implicated in the observed multi-perspective problems of Kiribati. Kiribati, therefore, serves as an ideal case study on emphasising the role of management in realizing the development of a particular state or people. A proper analysis of the problems facing this state and their possible solutions is a milestone in management. Some problems facing Kiribati includes; (Goldberg, 2013). Infrastructure is of great concern in Kiribati. There is only one road passing through Kiribati and the name of the road is unknown. Also, the available airstrip is poorly developed and very dusty. The airport is serving as children’s playground as children run after the landing plane. Poor infrastructure has limited access to the rest of Kiribati and hence low exploitation of its resources. Other infrastructure such as electricity is not mentioned, implying that the state might be experiencing no real economic growth. Industrialization in such a setup is a real mystery. Poor infrastructure in Kiribati has closed the region to the rest of the world as there is limited access to the region and its resources (Goldberg, 2013). Ecoterrorism is a term coined by Kiribati President Anote Tong.It refers to gradual and progressive advancement of Pacific Ocean water to the island. The president notes that there is an estimated 3mm rise in ocean water per year. Kiribati Island is therefore referred to as the drowning island. The ecoterrorism, therefore, puts the president in a great dilemma. On one hand, the president has a responsibility of attracting foreign investors. On the other hand, he has a to devise a plan on how to move the I-Kiribati to a safer destination to protect them from future drowning. Very few investors apart from the fishing company can accept investing in such a place. The I-Kiribati lives in great fear of the ocean. The ecoterrorism forms one of the worst problems to Kiribati (Goldberg, 2013). Kiribati is faced

TopShop - The Marketing Story Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

TopShop - The Marketing Story - Essay Example Fashion customers are ever demanding for something new, original and creative for a marketer it is very tough and demanding to provide for. TopShop a leading UK chain of fashion clothing and accessories which caters for this need for the highly fashion conscious market. This store has risen to cult status and is one leading brand name in high street fashion. What makes TopShop click? TopShop implements aggressive marketing strategies. It is constantly there in the minds of people. The positioning is extremely strong. Marketing strategies have to be designed and modified according to the market conditions.This is required for the success of the strategies. We are going to analyse the designing and implementation of various marketing strategies as per the changing external environment. Let us look into history of TopShop. TopShop was launched in 1964. It is a branch of Arcadia group. It started with a concept of high end fashion. Today TopShop doesn’t attract only high end shopp ers. It is a fashion destination for ramp and catwalk fashion seekers as well. It is an excellent example of high end meets catwalk. The flagship store is located at oxford circus with a whopping 90,000 square feet area where the daily footfall is 200 000 and more customers and almost more than half of them shop something or the other in the other. Marketing Strategies implemented by TopShop: 1. Logic of high end meets catwalk: Catwalk fashion is inaccessible, not wearable and expensive for a common fashion seeker. Combining the cost and the cuts makes TopShop click. This enables to provide for maximum fresh looks in a given season for the shop and increases sales. 2. Cost: TopShop costs are perfectly balanced, not being cheap and not being expensive either. 3. All in one shopping experience: TopShop provides accessories, bags, shoes, etc. under one roof. For men’s shopping it provides game zones, relaxing zones etc. So shopping is not perceived as a cumbersome and compulsory activity as usually perceived by men. 4. Supply matching with the demand: Fashion marketer needs to cater the market at a top speed. TopShop keeps pace with the demand by aggressive supply to the shops and chain it has set up. 5. Personalised services: TopShop has set up personalised advisors for guiding fashion seekers. Topshop takes pride in the fact that these style advisors are like walking catalogues on the shop and are available for help. 6. Celebrity branding: TopShop has always roped in celebrities like Kate Moss, Beyonce, Victoria Beckham for its promotion adding to the glamour quotient of the shop 7. Supporting new designers: TopShop supports upcoming designers to showcase their work. This gives the shop an advantage of setting new trends in the market with fresh cheerful designs PEST Analysis for TopShop This analysis is used for analysing external factors affecting an organization. All the marketing strategies mentioned above have helped TopShop set up in the domestic e nvironment. As confirmed by SWOT analysis and life cycle curve, TopShop now needs to look beyond the national boundaries. TopShop with its aggressive expansion plan has already stated that it intends to move abroad for an excellent growth opportunity. Let us analyse TopShop’s current marketing strategies with respect to the external environment of emerging economies where TopShop is set to expand: 1. Political factors: Description: For business to survive, sustain and grow a stable political environment is required. The degree on intervention a government will have in businesses and economy also makes a difference for the business. Political decisions make or mar the businesses. What is also needed to be seen is the development of infrastructure and education of the workforce, both directly connected with the political factor in PESTEL affecting businesses. UK: Political environment is stable. TopShop has seen various governments coming from the headquarters of Conservative o r Labour Party. However the government has managed to provide excellent

The NASCAR Market Essay Example for Free

The NASCAR Market Essay I love to watch NASCAR (National Association of Stock Car Racing) races on television.  Ã‚   The action is fast paced and the thrill and anticipation, the waiting for the next crash is addictive.   Although sporting events are great venues for advertising, NASCAR events are pure marketing heaven. If you ever watch one and analyze the production, you can not miss the fact that even the cars themselves are commercials that compel you to stare at brand names of products every second. Car related industries profit greatly by paid commercial breaks in television programming and â€Å"on car† endorsements.    This type of on car advertising is ideal for the racing circuit, effectively presenting a product advertisement that is clearly seen and focused upon throughout the entire racing event. In his article, Dale Zooms to the front of the endorsements, Bruce Horovitz writes that since the drivers themselves are the stars, driver endorsements actually pay them more than winning the races.   He also says that marketing sales jumped from $50 million in 1990 to $2 billion in 2003.   With these statistics in mind, marketing research is essential in order to present a product, at a sellable price to a demographically correct market. Chris Jones states in his article, NASCAR Sponsors: Drive-By Marketing that â€Å"on car† advertising is viewed as a sure thing with guaranteed return of investment since 189 million households viewed televised NASCAR Winston Cup series races in 2003, advertisers can count on both high exposure as well as a wide geographic range of that exposure. Since these racing are so saturated with advertising and marketing, right down to cars being identified by their sponsors (i.e. the NAPA car), and the target audience is usually the male American blue collar worker, scheduling of the race days are usually planned and televised on weekends, with the sponsors in mind. With over $50 million in marketing sales being seen per year due to NASCAR sporting events, it is a certainty that the four P’s (product, pricing, place and promotion) are being utilized better in the NASCAR arena better than just any other venue today. BIBLIOGRAPHY Horovitz, Bruce  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2/12/2004 Dale Zooms to the front of the endorsements,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   USA Today, McLean, Virginia Jones Chris  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   3/7/2004 NASCAR Sponsors: Drive-By Marketing, Las Vegas-Review Journal, Las Vegas, Nevada

Wuthering Heights by Silvia Plath Essay Example for Free

Wuthering Heights by Silvia Plath Essay  «Wuthering Heights » is a poem written by an American poet Sylvia Plath and is based on a novel of the same name by Emily Bronte. In order to convey her internal feelings of despair and disappointment, Sylvia uses a certain tone, structure, and a number of stylistic devises. Below is a descriptive analysis of how she manages to do so, and an interpretation of a poem’s meaning stanza by stanza. From the beginning of the first line, Sylvia Plath sets a depressive and negative tone to her poem. The horizons ring me like faggots†- is the first line of the poem, and yet it already suggests how desolate the place from where she looks at them is. With the use of personification â€Å"ring me† she creates an aural image of ringing, which enhances the solitude she experiences, as ears tend to ring in a silent place. Horizons are â€Å"titled and disparate†, where the word â€Å"disparate† echoes the word â€Å"despair†, in its turn implying that she is in a desperate emotional state. Through using a metaphor â€Å"touched by a match†, referring to the horizons, and saying that â€Å"they might warm me†, she not only acknowledges the reader of the coldness she feels, but also expresses hope that the horizons might warm her. However, the hope soon dissolves, along with the horizons in the last two lines of the poem- â€Å"But they only dissolve and dissolve, Like a series of promises, as I step forward†. Through repetition she enhances the bitterness she feels from the disappointment, and compares the warmth that was neglected to her, to the promises that were made to her but were never kept. The enjambment of the sentence structure between the last two lines is another proof to the possible connection between the horizons and promises. Such connection might mean that it is her allusion to her husband- a poet Ted Hughes that has not been loyal to her despite the vows given during their marriage. With the use of the word â€Å"me†, the readers become aware of the fact that Sylvia writes it in the first person inclusive and describes her own experience, which in its turns raises their feeling of compassion towards her and once again suggests that this poem might have been dedicated to her ex husband. With the following second stanza the tone of the poem becomes more depressing. By saying that â€Å"there is no life higher than the grasstops or the hearts of sheep†, she creates boundaries to the vastness of life, limiting and comparing its essence to that of a plant’s and an animal’s, leaving the humans out of the poem. The depressive mood degrades the tone and atmosphere to an extent of filling it with death and fatality. If Sylvia pays â€Å"the roots of the heather too close attention†, they will â€Å"whiten her bones among them†. The combination of the words â€Å"bones† and â€Å"white† in one sentence might suggest that the roots will bring her death; since the skin of a corpse turns white due to the lack of blood, and bones are the leftovers of a dead hence both are associated with mortality. As opposed to the first stanza, the second stanza takes her to a completely different place. Grasstops, sheep, the roots of heather- all surround her, whereas in the first stanza she is completely alone in a huge desolate space. The change in her surroundings suggests her movement across the moorland, but at the same time it points out the maintenance of her demoralized emotional state and the lack of a positive change about it. The tone of despair and loneliness is carried on to the proceeding stanzas, and is more evident in the last two. By saying that â€Å"Water limpid as the solitudes that flee through my fingers†, Sylvia shows the reader her abstract idea of being alone with the help of a consonance- â€Å"as- solitude† and â€Å"flee- fingers†. The â€Å"s† sound helps the reader imagine the literal hardness of solitude, as well as its transparency by being able to flow through her fingers with the â€Å"f† sounds. This in its turn indicates solitude’s double nature and Sylvia’s inability to neither control nor change it. In lines four and five Sylvia for the first time creates an image of nothing being straight- â€Å"hollow doorsteps go from grass to grass; lintel and sill have unhinged themselves†. By using the repetition â€Å"grass to grass†, she mimics the slowness of doorsteps’ steps, and personifies the doorsteps by giving them the ability to go. She also uses personification to describe how lintel and sill unhinge themselves, which once again reflects upon the presence of chaos and despair in her surroundings. By mentioning doorsteps, hinges and sills, she for the first time acknowledges the existence of humans in the past, and their current absence from the world that has been taken over by nature. The removal of all people but herself from the world not only enhances the bitterness she feels towards them, but also marks her egocentric nature as she is not willing to accept any advanced living thing but herself, preferring the nature instead. The fourth stanza ends with a repetition of the words â€Å"black stone, black stone†. As the air blows, Sylvia creates an aural image of the air moaning those words with the repetition technique, which slows down the speed of their pronouncement. At the same time, the air therefore is personified as it is given the ability to speak. This emphasizes the death and coldness present during the absence of life not only around her but also within her, as she is the only person that can hear the air say it. In the fifth, the final stanza of the poem the tone remains depressing and yet the ending suggests the possible appearance of hope. The paragraph begins with the reinforced idea of Sylvia being the only â€Å"upright† living thing- â€Å"The sky leans on me, me, the one upright among all horizontals†. Besides personifying the sky, she is also using the repetition â€Å"me, me† to stress the importance of being upright, and at the same time the solitude it brings her when everything else is horizontal. She then personifies the grass as it is â€Å"beating its head distractedly†, but it is also a contradiction since grass ought to be strong in order to survive in such cruel conditions. The fact that a grass beats its head may also reflect Sylvia’s unstable state of mind, which adds the feelings of compassion and grief to the atmosphere of the tone. Unlike other personifications that Sylvia Plath uses in this poem, the personification of a grass suggests her sympathy and familiarity towards it. She calls it â€Å"too delicate for a life in such company†, assuming that â€Å"darkness terrifies it†. This involvement with the description of what grass has to go through may imply that Sylvia describes her own life whilst comparing its hardship to that of a grass. The last two sentences are significant in a sense that Sylvia gives the reader a chance to decide whether the hope appears or does not. With the use of sibilance â€Å"black as†, she contrasts the blackness with the whiteness from the â€Å"light† that the house exerts. This is the first time she mentions the possible existence of human beings around her, and this raises hope as the â€Å"lights gleam like a small change† in the dreadful and dark surroundings. However, the presence of light may also mean that the rest of the world has fallen into absolute darkness, and the small light in the distance will soon die under its pressure. According to facts Sylvia Plath has committed suicide on February 11th, 1963 and this is when both interpretations undergo amalgamation to suggest that she may have had space for hope in her heart, but in reality her life was oppressing her to an extent of leading her life to a tragic end. According to the above analysis, the poem is written in the first person narrative where Sylvia gives a vivid image of her life hrough using literary devices to set the tone of despair and loneliness. Personally, I think Sylvia Plath communicates her internal troubles intensely and passionately. Through the description of landscape, the action of nature within it, the roles of colour and light- she is able to paint a picture of her life clearly enough for the reader to understand her message, and yet she disguises some aspects of the poem through imagery and metaphors to let the reader interpret and relate to the poem in a personal way. By introducing light into the poem, Sylvia twists the ending and confuses the reader, forcing him to reconsider his assumptions regarding the poem’s tone, meaning and the resolution. In case of Sylvia Plath’s life, the hope is lost in the end of it and annihilation takes over. However, because the poem lacks any names and includes the reader into it with the word â€Å"me†, the reader is left with his own imagination to decide whether the tone and the resolution take on a positive note, or fall into a greater despair.

Weldon Hand Tools Case Study

Weldon Hand Tools Case Study This report discusses designing a production process to produce Weldon hand tool, the product detail, the time for assembling each element as well as the sales focus of the product are all given in the case study. The report first start with calculating the number of staff required for each volume of work per quarterly for the two years period of the sales forecast ,then looks at the required technology and facility to assemble the product, it then further discuss proposed design layout for assembling operation, lastly the report discusses the likely adjustment of the propose layout should the demands increases and finally the report ends with conclusion recommending the need to balance between demands and capacity in a well organised production that supply the market with a reliable, and fairly price tool. Staffing In terms of determining how many staff is needed to work in assembling of smoothing plane manufacturing plant, given the sales forecast for the next two years we assume that each employerto works 35 hours per week for 48 weeks a year excluding the holidays. For simplicity this report will only show the calculation of the 1st quarter, the 2nd and the last quarter of the 2nd year of sales forecast of the staff required and the rest is provide as shown in the table in fig 1 below. 2.1- Calculation 1st Quarter The required number of staff for the sales volume in the next two years.We first calculate the total time available per quarterly. The sales forecast for the first quarter is 98,000 units and given that it takes 1.60 minutes to assemble one unit, the time needed to assemble the 98,000 units will be 98,000 X 1.60= 156800 minutes. In assuming the full time workers work 35 hours a week (7 hour a day for 5 working days) one worker working 12 weeks will be 35 hrs X 12weeks X 60 minutes=25200 mins Therefore number of worker that is needed for manufacturing 98,000 units will be 156800/25200= 6.222 This will be equivalent to 7 people as there is no fraction of people 2.2- Calculation 2nd Quarter The sales forecast for this quarter is 140,000 units, therefore the time requires to assemble it is 140,000 X 1.6 = 224000 From equation 1 the time available for one worker will be 35 hrs X 12weeks X 60 minutes= 25200 mins Hence the number of staff required will be 224000/25200 = 8.888 equivalent to 9 people Subsequently every quarter is calculated the same till the last quarter. Therefore the sales forecast for the last quarter of the 2nd year is 230,000 units and given that it takes 1.60 minutes to assemble one unit the time needed to assemble will be 230,000 units will be 230,000 X 1.60= 368,000 minutes. Therefore the number of people required to work for the quarter will be. Since it was assume that full time workers working 35 hours a week (7 hour a day for 5 working days) one worker working for 12 weeks will be 35 hrs X 12weeks X 60 minutes=25200 mins Therefore number of worker that is needed for manufacturing 98,000 unit will be 368,000/25200= 14.603 This will be equivalent to 15 people as there is no fraction of people. In conclusion we see the demand is not constant and there is inflation and deflation in demand to solve this we either employ more worker or ask the existing staff to do some extra over time when ever demand increase Facilities and technology Since the sales forecast shows a high demand selecting the required facilities and technology in designing the manufacturing process for Weldon hand tools is very crucial therefore the first and foremost things to consider is the size of the facility and if there is room for expansion .the operation process and the required work force We need to have in place capital and labour, proper planning of the process, research on customer requirement, seminars and training to compete in the market as the sales forecast shows increase and decrease in demand and finally managing the inventory by having warehouse for the stocks Assembling smoothing plane can be divided into three major area, fly pressing, bench operation andwrapping, other than fly pressing which requires pressingmachine,the general operation is reasonably simple so some of the technology and facilities required are Press machines for press operation Customised kits for efficient bench operation Stapler, truck, and wrapping bench for easy handling of tools and wrapping Design layout Design layout is significant process in operation management ,the flow of the layout very much relies on the volume and variety characteristic which shapes the overall design (Slack et al, 2010).The decision as to which layout type to adopt will be influenced by an understanding of their relative advantages and disadvantages (Slack et al, 2010). Therefore in order to design the layout we need first to identify the type of manufacturing process that smoothing planes is. As per the case study and according to its sales focus there is indication that this is high volume output and low variety operation and so this can be class as a mass process manufacturing process and so product base layout is the appropriate design layout.Since that the new product has a similar design with little variation, the design layout can be the same as the small variation does not affect the fundamental production process. Finally the main factors that determine the design layout in this case study is the ease in which expansion can be made to meet the increasing demand, focusing on the process to combine flexibility with a minimum lead timeare the main The layout therefore can be organised in simple and flexible manner so as to enhance the speed of production and reduce inventory while meeting the expected increase of demand The first task is solely a fly press operation in order to minimise idle time between the work stations. The operation will be organised such as each unit recovers the goods from the previous unit 4.1- Layout stages S0 by numbering the element available to assemble the task 1-12 so as to calculate the number of e stages required for the product layout. This is worked out by requiring the cycle time, even though the cycle time for each quarter was shown in the above table in Fiq1, we will show the calculation of how it was arrive , but in term of calculating the stages we only need the sales of the first quarter Since the sales forecast for the first quarter is 98,000 unit and given that it takes 1.60 minutes to assemble one unit, its assume that full time workers work 35 hours a week (7 hour a day for 5 working days)the net time available for work in 12 weeks(1st quarter) will be 35 hrs. X 12weeks X 60 minutes=25200 minutes Therefore the required cycle time =total time available/work volume 25200/98000= 0.257 mins No of stages required will be = total volume /cycle time 1.6/0.257 = 6.222= 7 stages Having known the number of stages we then list the element 1-2 and draw the precedence diagram to calculate the balancing loss Element 1: Assemble poke subassembly 0.12 Element 2: Fit poke subassembly to frog 0.10 Element 3: Rivet adjusting level to frog 0.15 Element 4: Press adjusting nut screw to frog 0.08 Element 5: Fit adjusting nut to frog 0.15 Element 6: Fit frog screw to frog 0.05 Element 7: Fit knob to base 0.15 Element 8: Fit handle to base 0.17 Element 9: Fit frog subassembly to base 0.15 Element 10: Assemble blade subassembly 0.08 Element 11: Assemble blade subassembly, clamp and label to base and adjust 0.20 Element 12: Make up box and wrap plane, pack and stock 0.20 Fiq3below displays the final distribution of work after breaking down the process into different stages of the long thin arrangement, the advantage is that its an ideal way of arranging flexible and expandable operation., makes moving and handling materials between unit effective and as well as providing adequate amount of floor space . 0.15 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¢ 0.08 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚   à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¡ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ £ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¤ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¦ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¨ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ª à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ «Ã‚   0. 12 0.10 0.08 0.15 0.05 0.15 0.17 0.15à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ © 0.20 0.20 Fig2 Element listing and precedence diagram 4.2- Calculating balancing loss 0.15 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¢ 0.08 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚   à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¡ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ £ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¤ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¦ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¨ à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ª à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ «Ã‚   0. 12 0.10 0.08 0.15 0.05 0.15 0.17 0.15à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ © 0.20 0.20 Stage1 stage2 satge3 stage4 satge5 stage6 stage7 stage8 Cycle time = 0.26 0.23 0.23 0.22 0.20 0.20 0.20 0.17 0.15 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Idle time of every cycle =(0.26-0.22)+(0.26-0.25)+(0.26-0.20)+(0.26-0.15)+(0.26-0.17)+(0.26-0.23)+(0.26-0.20)+0.26-0.20) = 0.45 Balance loss = 0.45/8 0.26 = 21.6 % Fig 3 Allocation of element to stages and balancing loss for Weldon hand tool fig2 Meeting the demand In meeting increasing demand the above design layout can be adjusted by rearranging the stages. The conventional arrangement of the eight stages was to arrange them in one line and each stage takes 0.257 minutes (cycle time) worth of work; however this can be rearranged in to four shorter lines each stage with 0.514 minutes worth of work will give the same output. So following this conclusion the stages could be arranged in 8 parallel stages each responsible for the whole worked content, the advantage is that it will save time for product transportation both within the site and the nearby building where facilities are located, create plenty of space within the site hence enhancing easy expansion to meet increase in demand and finally the inventory will also assist to place the product well in stock Lastly the above layout has concentrated on the labour time effectiveness of assembling one unit per hour per person,however concentrating on speed and quickness of machines may encounter any competition of demand and capacity Conclusion In operational management capacity planning such knowing what is the size of the facilities, the geographical location and the row material for the production process is fundamental, crucial and necessary To successful manage the Weldon hand tool manufacturing process its desirable that the layout be design in a flexible way to rearrange stages that will create more rooms for expansion so as to meet future demands and capacity. The flexibility also makes the transportation (moving and handling) of materials between unit effective Finally at the moment the sales forecast does not predicts smooth distribution of demand to encounter this problem of inflation and deflation of the sales, marketing the product through sales promotion could improve the demand distribution to a smooth increase throughout the quarters.

Andrina by George Mackay Brown Essay -- Critical Essay Short Story Eng

"Andrina" by George Mackay Brown A short story in which an element of mystery plays an important part is "Andrina" by George Mackay Brown, a celebrated author from Orkney. "Andrina" like many of his other works has a spiritual aspect with common themes such as the cycle of the seasons, betrayal, hope and regeneration. "Andrina" is set in Orkney, a perfect location for this tale because of its mystical atmosphere. The haunting, spiritual atmosphere created through the language Geroge Mackay Brown uses adds to the overall effect of the story. In the short story an old seaman receives regular visits from a young lady, Andrina. Then one day she does not come. The same day the narrator falls ill. He soon recovers and goes in search of Andrina whom he has missed during his illness. He can find no one in the village who knows anything about her. This increases the mystery surrounding her character. It is not until the end of the story that he discovers that Andrina is the ghost of his grand-daughter. This news come in a letter which had remained unopened since his illness. The short story has a very unusual narrative structure with an embedded narrative surrounded by an outer frame narrative. The embedded narrative takes us back in time and introduces us to the sea captains past. He narrates the main body of the story in past tense. But the exposition, narrative hook and resolution are all delivered in past tense. This is significant as it represents the cyclical nature of Mackay Browns work. This may also be significant as the reader could take it to mean that all throughout the story the old sea captain knows the ending as the tense change would suggest he does. The authors use of foreshadowing gives the read... ...he news which came in the letter allows the old sea captain to let go of his past and appreciated the physical elements of his life; "where she was dust, a new time was brightening earth and sea". This line demonstrates how the old sea captain is letting go of the troubles which haunt him and the relationship with Andrina. This is very effective in giving resolution both to the old seaman and the reader. The short story has a suitably ambiguous ending as we do not know if Andrina's presence was real or merely a figment of the lonely captains imagination. Nevertheless she certainly brightened up his winter. In conclusion, the development of the mystery surrounding Andrina in the narrative creates suspense and makes Mackay Brown's short story extremely satisfying. He successfully maintains a ghostly and mysterious atmosphere in this unnerving short story.

Ways Shakespeare builds dramatic tension in Act 2 scene 2 of Henry V :: essays research papers

In what ways does Shakespeare build up dramatic tension in Act 2 scene 2 of ?Henry V Act 2 is broken into three major parts. Henry decides to play a game which will set the trap for the traitors. The next part is when Henry explodes, expressing his anger. The last part is when Henry turns positive and changes the subject and looks towards France. But in scene 1 we meet the common characters. These would have been the sort of people that Henry would of socialised with when he was younger. This is a huge contrast to which Henry is during scene 2.As he is very serious and cunning. Act 2 scene 2 starts with the entrance of the three Lords. Exeter, Bedford and Westmoreland. This immediately shows us that we are going to expect seriousness and significance within this scene. Bedford starts by saying ?Fore God his grace is bold to trust these traitors.? This is a reference to the Divine Right Of Kings. The idea that a king's right to rule comes from God and that he is answerable to God alone. But with this reference the audience would worry about Henry Iv?s Interruption. After Edward III died the reign passed on to Richard II. But he quickly became un popular. People accused him of being cursed. Richard II exiled Henry IV for 6 years but when he returned he over threw Richard and became King. He then had a son Named Henry V. But this interrupted the Divine Right of Kings. Everyone would think that he would have the same problem. But once Henry IV died, Henry Became King and showed great leader ship and courage. ?Henry V? was written to inspire and to convey a message that would prevent civil war in Britain, as Elizabeth I was old and dying without an heir and so civil could break out and manipulate the country with out control. The theatre would be a place of spreading political and opinionated ideas around the country . So Shakespeare has written a play to inspire and warn the audience about the consequences it could have. So as there wasn?t many newspapers it was a good place to convey a moral or a story. Shakespeare uses several techniques. To keep the audience in suspense, Shakespeare uses machiavellianism. Machiavellianism is a word which describes a persons tendency to deceive or to manipulate.

Economic Theories Applied to the New Economy Essay -- Sony Economics B

Economic Theories Applied to the New Economy Discuss the extent to which the economic theories in the Market’s Reader can be applied to the â€Å"New Economy†. (50 marks) A) Discuss the extent to which the economic theories in the Market’s Reader can be applied to the â€Å"New Economy†. (50 marks) In this question, I will define the old and new Economy, then I will mention the main characters of New Economy and what is different between new and old Economy. After that, I will discuss the role of knowledge, innovation, and individual creative and competitive as the primary resource needed to create economic wealth. Then, I will discuss Innovation reduce costs and improve product quality and how advances technology achieve the cost reduction and reserve the economic scale in good level. finally I will Study the Economic theories in market reader, clearifing how it could use and ably in the new economy. It may be helpful to describe the â€Å"old economy† before I talk about the â€Å"new economy.† From around 1938 to 1974, the economy was built on a manufacturing base geared toward standardized production (It was manual labor) (1). It was organized into stable, hierarchical and generally autocratic organizations. These organizations achieved a competitive edge in the market by making standardized products faster and more economically. They focused on incremental cost reductions and a national marketplace. This is how success and prosperity were achieved in most courtiers, examples of type of organization could be found in textile and steel mills. This economic order began breaking down between the mid-1970s and the early 1990s. The crisis included both textiles and steel in a period of transition from the old economic order to the new one. a lot of countries loss their competitive edge because other countries were making things faster and cheaper. The cheap labor which had brought industries to the South was being very cheap. At the same time, workers also began wanting a higher standard of living, wanting cars, televisions, washing machines, better clothes and homes, wanting a chance to educate their children. Text Box: source: http://www.calumet.purdue.edu/management/hrm_sum.htmlThe new economy is emerging as a knowledge- and idea-based economy. In this new economy, the key to success and prosperity is the extent to which t... ...er design and high prices. The year also marked the company's restructuring of its sales and distribution channels. In addition to the existing structures based on product categories, a new organization was set to be established, that would focus exclusively on mass-retailers, in an attempt to foster close knitted relationships and improve communications with its consumers. The strategies that Sony must continue to pursue are: it must keep itself ahead of the change curve. In order to do so, the company must be able anticipate the direction of the change. Second, it must be able to focus and make the change happen. Also, Sony as a company needs to redefine itself from a business perspective, demonstrating that Sony is a consumer electronics products company, not a gaming company. For the market of consumer electronics is an ever-growing market and will always be significantly greater than the target market for games, which only includes a small segment consisting mainly of children and teenagers. However, from a holistic point of view, Sony should strengthen and maximize the brand value of its core sectors- electronics, games and content (music and picture).

Create dramatic tension Essay

English Coursework- How does Miller use Eddie to create dramatic tension for the audience in ‘A View From A Bridge’?  We could say that ‘A View from a bridge,’ is a tragedy for a number of reasons. Most importantly, if we compare the work of Arthur Miller to a Greek tragedy, we can immediately draw a parallel.  In a Greek tragedy, the hero or protagonist always has a fatal flaw or harmatia in his character. This causes him to make a bad decision, or to commit an unnatural act, which then spirals into the characters peripeteia or eventual downfall. He must then learn his mistake, suffer for his unnatural act and (usually) die. Another important characteristic of a Greek tragedy is the chorus. Usually a single character takes this role and is used to summarize the play, introduce new characters, and explain any action taking place.  The two important things that make the chorus speaker different from an ordinary character are that he can speak directly with the audience, but cannot intervene at any point in the play- a useful device for creating dramatic tension. The idea of a tragic protagonist is illustrated in ‘A View from a bridge,’ using Eddie Carbone, a typical ‘Joe Bloggs’ created by Miller to illustrate an ordinary person, or representative of a nation or class.  Eddie is a very ordinary man, decent, hard working and charitable, a man no one could dislike. This is significant because it causes the audience to feel both pity and fear for the character of Eddie. However, like the protagonist of an ancient drama, he has a fatal flaw or harmatia, in the form of the lust he harbors for his niece Catherine.  Eddie does not really understand his improper desire for Catherine, and thus is unable to hide it from those around him or from the audience. In him, we see this primitive impulse naked, or exposed. This explains Alfieri’s remark at the end of the play, when he says that Eddie â€Å"allowed himself to be wholly known.’  It is Eddie’s desire for Catherine that drives him into making a wrong decision. When the cousins Marco and Rodolpho arrive from Italy, and Catherine falls for Rodolpho, Eddie’s jealousy overboils in the form of a bad decision in this case -calling the Immigration Bureau. The consequences, both social and psychological, of this wrong action, destroy him. As Aristotle said,’ at best, a tragic hero would evoke pity and terror from the audience if he is neither thoroughly good nor thoroughly evil, but a mixture of both.’ This is a perfect combination to create dramatic tension for the audience, because as the audience is ordinary, or mortal like Eddie, we feel terror when we see him make a bad decision, because we know that we are capable of making a bad judgement too. Thus we feel pity for Eddie, as his ‘crime’ doesn’t seem evil enough for the degree of suffering he goes through. It seems his suffering is disproportionate to his flaw. The terror felt by the audience is greatly added to by Alfieri, the chorus speaker, who is used throughout the play to promote a sense of tragedy and inevitability, largely due to the fact that he cannot intervene. This leaves the audience powerless to watch the plot ‘run its bloody course,’ linking back to the idea of inescapable fate or destiny. This makes for a powerful dramatic device, as the audience are compelled to watch what will become of Eddie, even though, deep down, we are almost certain of his untimely end. Alfieri is also important, as he helps to summarize the play, introduce new characters, and explain any action taking place. He also helps clarify the plot to the audience, and hints at underlying themes in the rest of the book -especially the links to justice, poverty, and tragedy. He presents the idea of justice in Sicilian communities by mentioning Yale and other gangsters, and highlights how important justice is to Italians.

Minnesota Micromotors, Inc. Marketing Simulation Essay

As I get further and further along in this simulation, I have noticed that I am beginning to understand what it takes as a marketing manager in order to be successful. Careful considerations must be made to be sure that the right decisions benefit both Minnesota Micromotors, Inc., and our customers. Our success comes from our customers’ success and loyalty that they have with this company. In finding ways to incorporate the important factors that matter most to our customers is what will bring in new customers and keep our existing ones around for the long hall. My strategy for Minnesota Micromotors, Inc. that I have entered into the simulation game for 2015 Q2 were based on similar factors that I had used in the previous quarters. Like in prior quarters, I tend to base my decision strategy on the customers satisfaction of the overall product and pricing. I also find that it is important to base my decisions on the income statement from prior quarters as well to see where I co uld adjust things to work in my favor. I am still having issues discovering what needs to change in order to increase the weak areas and to find what is lacking to get this issue resolved. In 2015 Q2, I chose to change my sales force from 26% on Segments A and B down to 25% and increase Segments C and D from 24% to 25%. I think by giving all segments the same percentage may in fact even things out. I then made the decision to increase the power to size ratio from $47K up to $100K, and the thermal resistance feature from $48K up to $100K. In doing so, spending as much as $100K – $500K per year could result in both the power to size ratio and the thermal resistance after several years. I find this to be an important factor that can increase profitability for Minnesota Micromotors, Inc. in the future.

Apple Business Marketing Strategy

Apple Business Marketing Strategy |1 1 Introduction Apple is one of the leading companies in IT industry and during the last decade it has created a high level successful brand image and blazed the trail for the personal computer industry with its innovative products and strong marketing strategies.Apple Inc. has incorporated numerous features that are unique and well known in the market today. We consider that there are several Apple products with several appealing features such as: iMac, iPod, iPhone and iPad. These products represent a revolutionary era for the development of Apple. By placing such products in the market, Apple Inc. has attracted a lot of customers in one way or another. Highly advanced technology, simplicity and design, and the sense of luxury are the main features integrated in these products. Moreover the comfort and convenience that these products provide are very crucial.This market plan aims to analyse the marketing strategies that have been used by Apple In c. in order to develop its worldwide domination in all aspects of the computers (PC, Laptops and Tablets), digital music players, mobile phones, and multimedia and telecommunication industries. Furthermore, the core competence and company mission will be analysed in order to determine which focus points Apple should try to enhance in the future. 1. 1 Company Background Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne established Apple on April 1, 1976 in order to sell the Apple 1 computer kit that was hand built by Steve Wozniak.Demand convinced Jobs that there was a distinct market for small computers and with a clear vision and consumer friendly product, Apple went public in 1980 and became the most successful initial public offering since Ford Motor Company in 1956. Meanwhile, Steve Jobs left the company and stiff external competition with other companies such as IBM and Microsoft throughout the 1980s nearly forced apple into bankruptcy by the mid-1990s. However, to stay afloat, Apple started to innovate their PC products lines and expand into the digital music players industry. Apple was a company that was based on innovation and when I left Apple we were ten years ahead of anybody else. It took Microsoft ten years to copy Windows† said Steve Jobs. In 2001, apple introduced its new innovated iPod portable digital audio player. The product was phenomenally successful at the time (over 100 million units were sold within six years). In the last decade, Apple has achieved unparalleled success in different markets and now designs, manufactures and markets PCs, Mobile Phones and Music player with its unique applications and iTune software.However, Apple’s revolutionary CEO, Steve Jobs, passed away in 2011, and today Apple continues to lead in industry in innovation with its award-wining computers, OS X operating system and iLife professional applications. Apple Business Marketing Strategy |2 2 Situational Analysis Apple makes enormous efforts to different iate its products from its competitors by developing products that have already been out in the market, making them exclusive and giving them new features. In most of the scenarios Apple has not been the first to the market and as a result, the risk of being first to the market is lower.Moreover, Apple always focuses on one rather than many. Compare to their closest competitor, Samsung, Apple make people and customers excited and wait for their new technology and product. For instance, by introducing Siri technology (which had already been existed before Apple iPhone 4s) Apple could make the iPhone 4s special from other smartphones at the time which the leads Apple commands a one third share of the smartphone market. However, the iPhone and iPad have combined to help iOS dominate competing mobile operating systems with a two-thirds share of the market.The graph below indicates that after Apple introduced the iPhone 4s, the iOS market share has reached to the peak of 61% among all th e smartphones. Figure 1: Smartphones Market share *Retrieved from http://seekingalpha. com/article/839661-the-iphone-s-growth-rate-has-peaked on 24/11/2012 2. 1 Market Growth Apple Inc. ’s Market started growing in 1997 then decreased slightly, until 2000. From then on it is steeply growing. Starting in the U. S. , after the comeback of Steve Jobs, Apple started selling overseas as well.Since many of Apple’s parts and products are produced outside the U. S. (Europe and Asia), not only are the production costs lower, but Apple also got to have better insights in those markets According to the latest Apple annual report announcement, Apple Inc. has made the total net sales of 156,508 million dollar in 2012 which as compare with 2010 it is considerably increased by 240%. The financial history of Apple over the past three years is shown by the table below which illustrates a very successful growth. Apple Business Marketing Strategy 3 Figure2: Apple annual financial report *Retrieved from http://investor. apple. com/financials. cfm on 24/11/12 However, the largest income of the Apple has come from the iPhone product which approximately consists of 58% the entire products have been sold by them. Furthermore, the enormous increase of Apple income is done by introducing iPad mini as their one of recent product. According to the Apple announcement in November 2012, they have sold three million iPads in just three days which is their biggest achievement in the last decade. . 2 Porter Five Forces Analysis Porter five forces analysis will be used to determine the attractiveness of the market and to analyse the needs and trends in the macro-environment. It is also used to identify the situation of iPhone, iPod, iPad and iMac among its competitors and customers, and clarify what the general environment for their operations is. 2. 2. 1 The Bargaining Power of Buyers Generally, Apple buyers have not many options for a specific product and one of the biggest issu e for the customers is the high price.In this market segmentation, the buyer concentration is medium, since a lot of young people are using iPod or Mac from apple, so they think iPhone will be a revolution mobile phone that contains a lot of especially features. Apple intends to introduce one model per year whereas Samsung gives variety of options with lower prices. As it is mentioned earlier, Apple focuses on â€Å"One† rather than â€Å"Many† which it makes customers think this is something special from the others. 2. 2. 2 The bargaining power of suppliersAlmost 90% of the Apple products are procured and manufactured by other suppliers which are mainly the chipmakers and touch-sensitive display producer (for touch screen products). Apple Inc. has been cooperated with many chipset produce manufactories for long time, including Intel Apple Business Marketing Strategy |4 (Provided CPU), Micron Technology (Provided digital camera CMOS) and Samsung (Flash memory chip). A lot of chipset producers have a good long term relationship with Apple Inc. Therefore, the bargaining power of supplier is low. 2. 2. The threat of new entrants Since there are considerable investments to be made for setting up PC industry, new entrants would be reluctant. Though there is scope for white-box PC’s having a share of 35% world-wide in 2006, but since the existing companies have created strong branding awareness, this threat would be low. 2. 2. 4 The threat of substitute products The more differentiation of product the less likely the switch to a substitute will occur. Of prices are higher then, the company with the higher price has to provide justification for the increase.But what makes Apple the winning company among the very competition intense sector in several industries that they work in, is their unique brand image and customer loyalty. However, with technology undergoing paradigm shifts, coping with these changes can make life difficult for the players i n the sector. 2. 2. 5 The intensity of competitive rivalry Apple faces stiff competition from Dell, HP, IBM and Microsoft in the computer industry and Samsung and HTC in the mobile and tablet industry. However, in the Digital Music industry apple dominate among all its competitors.Moreover, there is one important factor which makes industries less competitive including the brand equity and expensive switching costs. Overall, the intensity of competitive rivalry is medium high in most of the markets that apple is involved in. 2. 3 SWOT Analysis 2. 3. 1 Strengths Apple’s current strengths are the huge market share they possess when it comes to music players, iTunes as well as mobile phones (iPhone), tablets (iPad), and personal computers (MacBook and iMac). 2. 3. 2 Weaknesses A weakness that recently occurred is that one of Apples founders passed away.Steve Jobs, one of the big inventors and main persons in Apple died earlier this year after a long time struggle against his can cer. Timothy D. Cook was announced as the new CEO, after being chief executive officer. Critics have claimed Timothy does not have the same charisma and visions like Steve Jobs had, and it is just a matter of time before Apple will lose its edge to their competitors. Apple has also been criticized for its latest product, the launch of Apple iPhone 5. 2. 3. 3 OpportunitiesTo reverse this downward trend of negative critics, Apple has to continue developing its product and be extra cautious about what the market and consumers want. They have to be more creative in design and invent new and improved products to meet the expectations from the market. They do not have to necessarily invent the iPhone or iPad again. But to meet the threats they would have to improve their products and create an urge for their new products so they can conserve their market shares and sell more products and eventually capture bigger market shares. Apple Business Marketing Strategy 5 2. 3. 4 Threats As it is mentioned earlier, Samsung lead position in the mobile phone market after they released their new mobile phone Galaxy S3. Their products are based on the Android operative system, while Apple’s system is based on their OS X system. Sony and Nokia (Windows mobile phone) have also recently managed to capture huge market shares from Apple and Samsung and in the future they might overtake them. 3 Marketing Strategies 3. 1 Products Apple has a solid track record of innovation in different markets, often changing the way we view those markets entirely.Apple in most of the time has not been First to the Market and according to the â€Å"five secrets of the world’s best marketing machine† by Steve M. Chazin the former Apple Marketing executive, Apple tries to make something good greater. A clear example for this could be the iMac. At the time iMac was introduced by Apple there were Windows All-in-one computers competing with Apple but what actually made iMac so special was its unique design, free of noise and being fast CPUs inside a thin monitor.Steve Chazin believes that The Mac, iPad, iPod, iTunes and iPhone are all successful because they were late to market and improved on existing designs and functionality. Apple does one thing very well and that is, making complex things easy and elegant, It is no coincidence that Apple users compliment about the exceptional user interface of their iPads, iPods or iPhones. In addition, Apple tries to exert control over the users’ experience with its products. So, apart from the hardware, the company also develops the software so that the user has the best possible experience. . 2 Pricing Strategy Apple is usually referred to as the technology industry’s â€Å"high-price† leader. However, of late, the company has been offering its products at lower price points in a clear effort to expand its market. Even so, Apple, at the launch of its products, targets early adopters with higher-than-c ompetition prices. It initially adopts skimming strategy and later launches lower-price versions with fewer features or launches a newer version while continuing to sell older versions at lower price. 3. 3 Promotion StrategyApple’s promotion strategy is centred on creating hype. The late Steve Jobs, founder of Apple, was known for hyping up. His theatrical style and panache were successful in creating excitement before the launch of Apple products. These efforts have succeeded in making Apple products aspirational. 3. 3. 1 People Buy what Other People Have If you look at when apple was promoting iPod on TV adverts, they did not show and focus on the product like other adverts you would watch on television, instead there were a long white headsets that could show other people you have an Apple iPod.The other reason that Apple only advertise Apple Business Marketing Strategy |6 long white headsets with white iPods and they did not show a closed-up picture of their product is th at they do not want to only sell their product to customers; however, they want people to experience of joining to a special and exclusive Apple lifestyle and to become a part of iPod community which allows them to buy music through their unique software program (iTunes) and put their music in whatever order they want. 3. 3. 2 Help your Customers Help youWhen Apple first introduced their PowerBook, they made them outstanding buy making them in silver colour and have big Apple logo at the back so owners can feel proud and to be different therefore they try to show it off to other people. Apple earned nearly 40% market share on the back of early PowerBooks users. 3. 3. 3 TV shows and Movies Apple relies heavily on working closely with Hollywood in order to promote their product. This gives them opportunity to get their product used by Hollywood stars which have an enormous influence on public. . 4 Placing and Distribution Channels Apple works with number of network providers that they deal with the placing. However, online shopping from Apple. com or giving order in store for a new launched product can take up to two weeks due to the high demand. 4 Conclusion â€Å"An Apple computer on every desk† –Steve Jobs. Apple Inc. states its vision very clearly. They have changed our life with their products and services. They have demonstrated the world, that a human has a strong capacity to create huge things with a big impact.The analysis of the different elements of a marketing plan outline the various aspects involved in the penetration of a new market and the successful launch of a new product or service. Being aware of its own position and capabilities, and seeing opportunities in a new trend a company can enter a new market and develop. On its way, the company has to use its strength, respect its internal weaknesses and consider the outer world with its opportunities and threads Apple Business Marketing Strategy |7 5 Bibliography ? 5 secrets of world 's best marketing machine. 2007). Retrieved 11 24, 2012, from Marketing Apple: http://www. marketingapple. com/Marketing_Apple_eBook. pdf ? Apple Sells Three Million iPads in Three Days. (2012, November 5). Retrieved 11 24, 2012, from Apple: http://www. apple. com/pr/library/2012/11/05Apple-Sells-Three-Million-iPadsin-Three-Days. html ? APPLE THREE-YEAR FINANCIAL HISTORY. (2012, October ). Retrieved 11 21, 2012, from shareholder: http://files. shareholder. com/downloads/AAPL/2199577444x0x444195/E7A8FE5F-883546AB-ACC2-6FA28DFB546D/Three_Yr_Financial_History. pdf

Irish People and Father Flynn

In order to answer the broad question, the term ‘possibility’ will be analysed in the context of the characters of the texts and in the ‘possibility’ for their personal growth and opportunity for change, be it spiritual, physical or emotional. The essay will focus thematically on four chosen texts: James Joyce’s The Sisters and Langston Hughes’ poems I, too, New Yorkers and Harlem. Firstly this essay will analyse how the city of Dublin represented in The Sisters is shown, through Joyce’s literary devices, to both offer and restrict possibility for each of its central characters.Key themes identified will then be used as a basis for further analysis of how these themes are more widely represented within the selected New York poems to either confirm or refute Lehan’s statement that ‘The city both offers and restricts possibility’. Textual analysis of The Sisters reveals numerous literary devices that explicate the theme of the repression of possibility by the city of its people.Throughout, Joyce uses symbolism, metaphors, and ellipsis to emphasise his themes whilst allowing the reader to infer its meanings without the need to describe them explicitly. The italicised words ’paralysis’, ‘gnomon’ and ‘simony’ (page 1) is one such technique and immediately underscores the physical, spiritual and religious restrictions found within the story that Dubliners symbolises as a ‘paralysis’ (p1) of the city and its people.The story’s young, intelligent, and sensitive (unnamed) protagonist comes to experience first-hand the reality of paralysis and death: he achieves his desire to ‘look upon’ (p1) both the physical paralysis and death of Father Flynn, with whom he was ‘great friends’ (p2) and the more subtle psychological ‘paralysis’ of those around him – his Aunt, Uncle Jack, Eliza and Nanny Flynn and Mr Cotter. The story shows that the Dublin adults are mentally immobilised – metaphorically paralysed, by their conformity to the conventions of their city lives, for them, the beliefs of the Irish church is a given.Eliza, Cotter and the church men consider Flynn and not the church to be the cause of his predicament ‘the duties of the priesthood was too much for him’ (p9). They appear unable to acknowledge the truth of a priest ‘nearly smothered’ (p4) by his understanding of the demands of his – and their- church. The perceptive boy, finds the adults surrounding him ‘tiresome’ (p1) and notices how Nannie Flynn’s skirt was hooked ‘clumsily’ (p6).His judgemental and sometimes precocious style seems at times somewhat harsh ‘the old woman’s mutterings distracted me’ (p6) and his character seemingly reflects the ‘scrupulous’ nature of Father Flynn. The friendship between this fatherless boy and the priest also offered important possibilities for growth to our protagonist, he was taught ‘a great deal’ (p2) such as ‘how to pronounce Latin properly’, told stories ‘about Napoleon Bonaparte’ and was questioned until he ‘could make no answer’ (p6).This education, when contrasted to the ‘principle’ of education described by his Uncle as a ‘cold bath’ (p2), is something that, without Father Flynn, the boy might not have had access to. The question of whether, in the ‘sensation of freedom’ from (p4)Flynn’s death, the boy takes up this possibility for change or succumbs to the paralysis caused by the restrictions of the city is one which Joyce leaves unanswered. In the case of Father Flynn the city of Dublin both offered and restricted possibility.From a lower class upbringing in ‘Irishtown’ (p9) Flynn was able to travel to, and be educated in, ‘the Irish col lege in Rome’ (p5). Yet once he returned to the city and took up his post, he became the ‘disappointed’ (p9), Father Flynn who was paralysed by his ‘too scrupulous’ (p9) nature. Perhaps this is a reference to the potentially paralysing psychological disorder ‘scrupulosity’ which would explain his ‘nervous’ (p10) disposition and his failed attempts to perform his office – represented by the symbolic chalice that ‘contained nothing’ (p9) and the ‘idle chalice’ (p10) he ‘loosely retained’ (p6) in death.The story’s namesakes, the Flynn sisters, were perhaps the most restricted by their Dublin lives. Flynn’s economically and socially impoverished siblings lived with him in the ‘unassuming shop, registered under the vague name of Drapery’ (p3) have been forced to receive the debilitating legacy of a ‘truculent’ (p6) defector whose fortunes once t ook him to college in Rome. Their lack of education becomes apparent through Eliza’s malapropisms ‘freeman’s General’(p8) and ‘rheumatic wheels’ (p9) and the fact they remain unmarried is made clear through the address of ‘Miss Flynn’ (p8).The sacrifices the sisters made for their brother’s career within the Irish church, is clearly represented by the symbolic communion of sherry and cream crackers when they receive the boy and his Aunt into the death-room, all highlight the sacrifices they have made. Joyce does not veil his opinion that the Catholic Church is responsible for a large portion of Dubliner’s paralysis of will and also hints at another malefactor: England. The death notice on the door of the shop on ‘Great Britain Street’ (p3) states that the priest died on 1st July 1895.This date coincides with the Battle of the Boyne (1690) in which Catholic supporters of James II were defeated by William III in a defeat that ‘brought death to the Irish hopes for national and religious freedom. ’(Walzl, 1965, p45) . The date is also that of the Feast of the Most Precious Blood which is symbolic of Father Flynn, his strokes, the broken chalice and the communion served in the death-room. This analysis has demonstrated a number of themes in The Sisters that restrict (paralyse) the possibility of its characters growth, and fewer that display the offering.The paralysis of its character’s resolution for change, caused by the restrictions of the city, is a theme that is also echoed throughout the rest of Dubliners. Joyce presents the city as an ever present â€Å"channel of poverty and inaction† (p. 35) which often leads to a life of â€Å"commonplace sacrifices closing in final craziness† (p. 33). Trapped by poverty and political and religious repression, Joyce's citizens cannot summon  the hope or energy that Gallaher  from ‘A Little Cloudâ€⠄¢ did, to â€Å"revolt against the dull inelegance† of the city (p. 68). However, Joyce's portrait of Dublin is not entirely bleak.Joyce could simply have condemned Dublin, as  Gallaher  does, or followed the example of Duffy, who, in A Painful Case, seeks refuge in brittle, lonely seclusion. But Joyce chose the more challenging course of confronting and accepting the loss of the ‘dear’ in ‘dear, dirty Dublin. ’ (p70) The city’s ability to supress its citizens hope of, or will to change, is something that it is clear, the paralysed characters of The Sisters had experienced, and it is this theme that this essay will now explore further, in an attempt to draw conclusions as to the validity of Lehan’s statement.The chosen Langston Hughes’ poems I, too, Harlem and New Yorkers display continuity of the theme of ‘paralysis’ through the restriction of a city on its citizens although in differing ways and to differing e xtents. Langston Hughes’ poem, I, too, is a poem whose main character is in complete contrast to the those of Joyce. Hughes positions the readers to feel the emotions of guilt and sympathy by applying his personal narration and allows the readers to recognise the inequality of the ‘darker brother’ who is sent ‘to eat in the kitchen /when company comes’ (lines 3-4).The isolation of the ‘darker brother’, his presence an embarrassment to the people around him, serves to anger and motivate his determination for change that is so differing to that of Joyce’s Dublin characters. When he ironically states, ‘But I laugh,/And eat well,/ And grow strong’ (5-7) the speaker is making clear his determination to utilise even the worst situation as an opportunity for growth. Hughes’ use of humour and irony demonstrates this positivity and certainty of change for the future which is in complete contrast to that of Joyce’ s characters.The physical symmetry of the anthem-like poem centres around the line ‘tomorrow’ (8) and seems to gain momentum and passion, as he defiantly promises white America that he will not be spoken for ‘Tomorrow, /I’ll be at the table/ when company comes. / nobody’ll dare say to me,/ eat in the kitchen [†¦] they’ll see how beautiful I am’ (8-16). Hughes positions the reader to feel both sympathy and admiration in the statement, ‘and be ashamed’ (17).The word ‘beautiful’ seemingly symbolises both the speaker’s skin colour and his cultural heritage, his pride demonstrating that he does not want to change himself so the city will accept him, but for the ‘white’ city to awake from its own paralysis and to actively accept change by valuing their separate and distinctive black culture, establishing that he, acting as a representative for the rest of his culture, is as part of the city a s â€Å"I [he] too am [is] America† (18).The theme of ‘paralysis’ is also present in Hughes’ poem Harlem albeit in different way to that of I, too. The speaker’s tone of disdain towards the city is instantly clear through the powerful imagery of it being situated on ‘the edge of hell’ (line 1). This is then compounded by the frequent punctuation and repetition of ‘old’ (3-5), successfully portraying the tedium and hopelessness that it is clear the speaker feels about the situation.The narrative uses the term ‘we’ suggesting that, like I, too, that the speaker is not just speaking as himself but acting as a ‘voice’ for a wider, black culture. When he speaks of the price increase of sugar, bread and the ‘new tax on cigarettes’ (11) he suggests political repression, when he speaks of the job they ‘never could get/and can’t have now/Because we’re coloured’ (13-15 ) he displays his embitterment towards the city and its reluctance to change. The feeling of hopelessness is carried through to the end of the poem, ‘We remember. a sombre statement echoing the ‘remembering of old lies’ (5) from the beginning and accurately portraying the sense of time passed over which they have been ‘patient’ (5) despite what ‘they told us before’ (5). The sense of hopelessness present within the speaker, and by association the African-American culture, is one that Hughes is suggesting has been gradually attained through their sacrifices for, and repression by, the city in which they live, much like that of Joyce’s Dublin upon his characters.The third poem which this essay will use to explore the validity of Lehan’s statement is that of New Yorkers. The first stanza opens introducing the male character as that of a native New Yorker ‘I was born here’ (line 1), the internal rhyme of ‘that ’s no lie, he said/right here beneath God’s sky’ (2-3) draws attention to the apparent need to reassure the female character that he was telling the truth, the implication being that they had been subject to previous dishonesty.If, like in Hughes’ other two poems we assume that each ‘voice’ represents the voice of their particular cultures we can infer a deeper meaning to the previous statement: that the female voice who ‘wasn’t born here’ (4) represents the new immigrants, the statement therefore seemingly echoing the ‘old lies’ seen in Hughes’ Harlem that promised of better possibilities. ‘where I come from/folks work hard/all their lives/ until they die/ and never own no parts/of earth nor sky’(6-11) Hughes draws attention to her belief of the better possibilities that the city would offer and the fact that they were misguided, by his use f her believing she could own a piece of ‘s ky’ (11). The repetition of the word also serves to demonstrate the similarities between the ‘sky’ of the place from which the immigrant originates and that of the city’s despite her initial beliefs that the city would offer more ‘Now what’ve I got? ’ (13). The following declaration of love ‘You! ’ (14) acts to convey that an unexpected possibility for emotional growth has been offered. However the hint of irony in the final line ‘The same old spark! perhaps implies that she has closed her mind to her original dreams of expanding possibilities, for what might be a temporary ‘flame’. In conclusion, Hughes’ poems, like The Sisters, all indicate the offering of, and restrictions on, the possibilities within a city and therefore confirm Lehan’s statement. Both authors, upon first glance, seemingly highlight more restrictions than opportunities. It is important to remember however, that as each c ity changes, so do the opportunities and restrictions offered, and at the time of writing, both cities were in a period of dramatic change, to which there is always resistance.At the conclusion of The Sisters we are left wondering how much of a character's plight is due to the city’s restrictions Joyce so specifically illuminates, and how much is due to human qualities that transcend environment. Perhaps the lesson in both Joyce’s and Hughes’ work, is that a city is made up of individual characters, and as long as its individuals remain backward-facing, without hope and closed to change, they will be paralysed from seeing the possibilities that the city has to offer them.Word Count 2186 Bibliography †¢ A230 Assignment Guide,( 2010) TMA 04, Open University press †¢ Bremen, B (1984) â€Å"He Was Too Scrupulous Always†: A Re-Examination of Joyce's â€Å"The Sisters† James Joyce Quarterly  , Vol. 22, No. 1 pp. 55-66 †¢ Haslam, S & Asbe e, S (2012) The Twentieth Century, Twentieth-Century Cities, Open University Press †¢ Haslam, S & Asbee, S (2012) The Twentieth Century, ‘Readings for part 1’, Open University Press James Joyce (2000 [1914]) Dubliners (with an introduction and notes by Terence Brown), Penguin Modern Classics, London, Penguin. †¢ Walzl, F (1965) The life chronology of the Dubliners , James Joyce Quarterley Websites: †¢ A230-11J, Study Guide: Week 26: Extra Resources, Milton Keynes, The Open University, http://learn. open. ac. uk/file. php/7066/ebook_a230_book3_pt1_chpt4_langston-hughes-poetry_l3. pdf (accessed 21st March 2012) †¢ http://us. penguingroup. com/static/rguides/us/dubliners. html