Theories and Principles Unit 4 Dtlls Essay Example

Theories and Principles Unit 4 Dtlls Essay In psychology and education, learning is commonly defined as a process that brings together cognitive, behaviour and Humanists elements. This assignment shows the concept of the relevant theories and principles of learning and communication; select and critically analysed of how I plan to deliver these strategies in my own teaching; and reflect on the impact that these insights have had on my own practice and professional development. What is the definition of theory? To me theory is something which is explained to you, a system of ideas intended to explain something, one based on general overview. A definition of principles, to me is to be opinionated on how I feel towards chosen topic. Geoff Petty (2009) states that, `every teacher and every learner has a theory about learning. ’ To able to conclude my own theories and principles on planning and enabling learning I need to learn what is accepted to others. Research I understand there are many different theories relating to teaching and learning. Those that I have looked at are Behaviourist, Cognitive and Humanists elements. These are not new concepts. Although that some of these theorists are descended their work is still use into practices. Behaviourism is primarily associated with Pavlov (classical conditioning) in Russia; and with Thorndike, Watson and particularly Skinner in the United States (operant conditioning). In educational surroundings, behaviourism implies the dominance of the teacher, as in behaviour modification programmes. It can, however, be applied to an understanding of unintended learning. We will write a custom essay sample on Theories and Principles Unit 4 Dtlls specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Theories and Principles Unit 4 Dtlls specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Theories and Principles Unit 4 Dtlls specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Classical conditioning in its simplest form is a type of conditioning associates by an external stimulus; in Pavlov original experiment this was a bell, with the arrival of a second stimulus which was the food, this resulted in a response to the bell which would have been achieved previously by the food. Frederic Skinner’s work was influenced by Pavlov’s experiment and the ideas of John Watson, father of behaviourism. His interest in stimulus-response of how humans reacted to various situations became fascinating. Skinner developed teaching machines, so students could learn, uncovering answers for an immediate â€Å"reward†. Humanistic, humanism and humanist are terms in psychology relating to an approach which studies the whole person and the uniqueness of each individual by emphasizing the study of the person overall. This behaviour clarifies the ability of learners to respond to the lesson. John Holt, How Children Fail (1964) states that â€Å"the school system could destroy the minds and emotions of young children. His blistering attack accused schools of inducing fear in pupils, and humiliating, ridiculing and devaluing them† This is a very generalised point of view due, to the fact that Holt is tarnishing all schools with the same reputation. However, it is important not to completely dismiss his views, as the point he makes about fear of failure is something we must be aware of in our teaching. In another humanistic approach which also fits within the humanistic spectrum is that proposed by Malcolm Knowles (1913-1977) his studies focus on adult education which was formed in 1946. Formal programs were for those sponsored by educational institutions, such as universities, high and trade schools in America. He implemented that adult education was pointed to the friendly and informal surroundings. This enhanced adult learners to take more responsibility for their destiny as they mature through the learning process. Cognitive learning theory is about how to learn rather than what to learn i. e. how to write a report, how to recall specific facts, how to use learning to solve problems or be creative. Cognitivism is â€Å"the psychology of learning which emphasizes on how we think and gain knowledge. Theorists are intrigued and want to understand how problem solving changes throughout childhood, how cultural differences affect the way we view our own achievements, language development. Theories such as Jerome Bruner (1915) and Lev Vygostsky (1896) expressed the view that `expository teaching’ deprived learners of the chance to think for them, however Vygostsky approach `Zone of proximal development’ focused on the concept that what a learner could do today with they could do alone tomorrow. The behaviourist approach can encourage me to understand what motivates my learners and to challenge them on what goals they wish to achieve through their learning. These techniques can influence and can allow me to shape and enhance my learners into behaving in an acceptable way through Skinner’s theory of `Positive or Negative Reinforcement’. As a research a bi product of this will develop my learner way of analysing. This encourages a comfortable learning environment for all learners. Negative reinforces are ones that increase the chance that a behaviour will occur when it is removed. Punishments are events that decrease the frequency of behaviour that it follows (Skinner, 2003) Take the learner in the classroom that ontinually talk s to his neighbour; it reinforces his behaviour to continue, but if the teacher punishes him by having him stand up in front of the whole class and apologies, he will be more likely to refrain on talking again. Skinner believes that behaviour could be altered by using positive and negative types of reinforcement. Remember negative reinforcement is not punishment. If I have not covered everything on t he original lesson plan, learning can however be measured making assessment and planning for next session easier. By constantly revisiting certain topics and using Question and Answers learners have an understanding on what they are learning and why. This would not be the case for all, based on behaviour modification there are also disadvantages to this approach. Repetitive learning may encourage some learners to remember information but it doesn’t necessary mean they have understood the concept. Some learners will not be confident to admit this and just produced the required answers without knowing how they got to the answers. How do we include rewards and why the reason for them? As a teacher I tried to implement these when suitable for all learners. If this is not done then the whole process will become confusing and motivation will be lost. This theory can tend to lead myself towards the `pedagogical approach to learning’. As covering that the Humanistic approach is relied for individuals to explore their own interest and curiosities this will assure them to grow into fully functioning, self-trusting, and independent people. All individuals are unique and have an inborn drive to achieve their maximum potential. This I can relate too with the learners that I teach, once they have discovered their own personality this will generally relate to their chosen career options this will give learners to have free will in the learning experience and can effect on the change of their knowledge. I use the Humanistic approach to learning within my classroom as practical is a massive contribute to my teaching. Carl Rogers, in freedom to learn (1969) states that self-directed learning delivers the considerable educational advantages of independent learning. Advantages which I find to this are that by meeting learners needs, each learner will feel valued and respected. This will help build up a level of trust between the learner and teacher resulting to excellent communication. When planning and delivering lessons, I include various activities to allow this to happen. At the end of each lesson I find that group discussions give the learners freedom to induce new ideas and to listen to their peers opinions. This gives them the tools to feel empowered and have control over how they learn. This sounds like a perfect andragogical approach but could have some disadvantages. We know that Bruner’s cognitivists approach to learning is basis on emphasizing active restructuring of knowledge through own experience of life. With this theory the learner draws on his/her own past experience and acknowledges new facts, relationships and truths. Students interact with the world by exploring; asking questions and interpretation what is relevant to the subject. I. e. when tackling new ideas the learner relies on the teacher to give them the correct answer, assuming the teacher is in their comfort zone. To allow learners to achieve this transformation is by working in groups which encourages them to socially interact with one another which will then lead to process of learning, As a result this method students may be more likely to remember the concept and knowledge discovered on their own. Another strategy often used in my classroom involves embedding questions, which allows the learners to find out the answers to the problem before setting their task. This may again relate to their personal experience. Often organising school trips (exhibition, real life theatre) can allow the learners to interact with real life situations. I allow for discussion/debates around specific questions relating to that topic that I have structured to initiate points that are relevant to their learning. These theories have made me think differently to my own practise in the way I plan my lessons, which methods of delivery I use as well as how I assess what types of learning has taken place. I teach in a secondary school environment, where the learners go thought a transition from KS3, KS4 KS5. The course is practical, but there are some elements of theoretical methods which gives learners the chance to demonstrate skills in a performance environment. I agree that planning for lesson is a strong area for me and my learners. As a result, I will always construct the delivery of my own teaching including the three learning domains. I found that the Bruner strategy had the most impact on my teaching from both a practical and professional point of view. This has enabled me to encourage my learner’s involvement by utilising these methods. It has now become a natural part of my lessons, which involves incorporating QA as well as discussions to assess that learning has taken place in the Affective domain. My confidence has developed as a result, as well as my learner’s needs and communication is now at an all time high in the classroom. These areas are now a massive part as to how I deliver a lesson, as well as ensuring that communication flows both ways. After conducting research into the theories of learning, I have realised there are some improvements that need be made. One of these involves giving my learners more freedom and responsibility with the answers, rather than prompting them. I believe this simple change can breed confidence and progress for both me and the learners. Bibliography Skinner, B. F (Reprint 2003). The Technology of Teaching. Cambridge, MA: B. F. Skinner Foundation Petty, G (Reprint 2009). A Practice Guide Teaching Today. N. Thornes Forth Edition Holt, J C 1923- 1985 (revised edition) Classics in child development Knowles, M. and Swanson R. A, The Adult Learner: The definitive classic in adult education and human resources Harkin, J. , Turner, G. and Dawn, T. (2001). Teaching Young Adults. London, Routledge. Rogers. C and J. H Freiberg (Third Edition) Freedom to learn

20 Cause and Effect Essay Topics Climate Change Issues You Should Discuss in Your Paper

20 Cause and Effect Essay Topics Climate Change Issues You Should Discuss in Your Paper If you are facing an essay on the economics of climate change, you need to first settle on a topic. Below are twenty great topics that you might be able to use for your writing assignment: The Growth of Solar Panel Installation Jobs Birds Change Migration Patterns and Other Animals Are Going Extinct because of Loss of Natural Habitat How Warmer Climates Kill Krill Shrimp and Influence Human Food Supply and Economic Costs How Scientists Measure Climate Change and Predict Problematic Changes in Weather How Melting Ice Caps Discourage Frequency of Hurricanes but Increase Severity How Climate Change Adversely Affects Agriculture Leading to Increased Economic Costs and Social Instability How Rising Sea Levels and More Severe Storms Affect Animals and Their Habitats Leading to Issues of National Security and Food Shortages The History of Solar Energy and Wind Energy Solar Thermal Energy and the Capture of Sun with Curved Mirrors Compared to Historical Solar Energy Methods How Wind Energy Derives from Solar Energy by Way of the Sun’s Hot Air Raising to Meet With Cooler Air Wind and Kinetic Energy Being Converted Into Electricity Compared To Costs of Traditional Energy How Capturing Wind Energy Requires Kinetic Energy with Electric Turbines Is Similar to Windmill Energy Collection How Wind Energy Fields Have Created Wind Energy Jobs How Economic Growth Is Affected by Climate Change How Faster Onset of Droughts and Food Shortages Influences Social Stability How Natural Disasters Like Floods or Hurricanes Threaten National Security How Humanitarian Crises Following Climate Change Require Government Responses How Military Assistance for Climate Change Disasters Increases the Need for Advanced Planning and Environmental Re-evaluation How Changes in Environmental Policy for Climate Change Require Additional Time and Money from Governments How Military Assistance for Climate Change Disasters Increases the Need for Environmental Re-evaluation Sample Cause Effect Essay on How Wind Energy Fields Have Created Wind Energy Jobs The process of capturing wind and solar energy takes the kinetic energy and turns it into electrical energy such as what a windmill does. To do this, a wind energy system is used which contains two electric turbines. The first is the vertical-axis and the second is the horizontal-axis. There is a tower to attract the wind, attached to an enclosed generator, the two blades which cause the rotation, and the electric equipment. When the wind and solar energy is collected and converted, it is transferred to nearing power lines. Currently, some turbines have a capacity to produce 5,000 kilowatts (kW) of energy. The average turbine, however, produces a mere 1,000 kW of energy. A kilowatt is one thousand watts which is measured as one kilowatt per hour. It takes a 50-watt light bulb left on for twenty hours to consume on kilowatt hour. Outside determinants of the energy produced from wind energy is based on the wind speed. The average wind speed needed for average productivity is winds blow ing at a rate of nine miles per hours. Typically, wind turbines run about sixty-five to ninety percent of the time, depending on winds. Wind energy is produced by the turbines at wind power plants which consist of a conglomerate of machines all functioning next to one another. Wind energy jobs are now becoming very prominent throughout the United States as the effort to go green and protect the environment moves forth. Wind energy jobs are available for both manual positions as well as high and low level administrative positions. A director of Grid Development is a higher end position within wind energy jobs. This position is the type to oversee the execution of strategic plans across a given business region which covers new transmission development opportunities. These wind energy jobs would include responsibilities such as negotiating between business partners to achieve the best parameters and terms of agreement alongside working with legal departments to draft final agreement documents. Regional stakeholders are responsible for input on current and future relationships to strategic partners. Therefore these wind energy jobs require constant evaluation for new opportunities and presenting proposals and company objectives. Other requirements for wind ene rgy jobs would be a slight knowledge of the field of wind energy with experience as a preferred measure. Positions of this nature do have higher requirements such as corporate development and finance experience, a Bachelor’s degree in business or engineering most often, as well as leadership experience. Wind energy jobs also include the position of Residential Energy Sales. Like any major company, field sales staff is needed to identify areas wherein energy efficiency needs improvement, as well as determining insulation levels within residential areas, any road blocks which might inhibit weather. These wind energy jobs also require sales teams to explain how wind energy is efficient, less expensive, and what measure would be needed for homeowners to begin using said energy forms. Energy auditors are required for wind energy jobs as their positions develop and manage energy audit programs which are responsible for calculating monthly and annual costs for residential and commercial buildings. Maintaining the advancement of wind energy as an efficient and sustainable energy source, and staying informed about technological advances in the field of wind energy as an alternative method are all viable qualities this type of personnel would require. Duties of these wind energy jobs would be maintaining energy reduction projects, developing new strategies for the reduction of environmental impact, and building energy audit programs within the wind energy industry. Other tasks would be analyzing historical energy uses, consumption patterns, any anomalies, and then taking said information to determine any target areas for improvement. Other more remedial duties would be reviewing documents, maintaining staff, schedules, and performance. Of course other options for wind energy jobs include alternative energy instructors or professional teachers, wind energy sales, mechanical engineers, mechanical designers, technical program managers, energy services specialists, marketing specialists, front desk receptionists, engineers, proposal coordinators, helpdesk specialists, construction managers, chief marketing officers, instructors, freelance writers, net programmers, campaign specialists, director of facility operations, sales professionals, software engineers, and controls engineers. Many of the aforementioned positions require a Bachelor’s degree in either engineering or business with ample room for growth and development. Some of the more astute positions require a Master’s degree in any of the related areas of study, and many seek individuals with experience in the given field or a passion for wind energy. References Brainard, Lael, Abigail Jones, and Nigel Purvis.  Climate Change And Global Poverty. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press, 2009. Print. Chichilnisky, Graciela.  The Economics Of Climate Change. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar, 2010. Print. Helm, Dieter, and Cameron Hepburn.  The Economics And Politics Of Climate Change. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009. Print. Navarra, A, and Laurence Tubiana.  Regional Assessment Of Climate Change In The Mediterranean. Dordrecht: Springer, 2013. Print. Nordhaus, William D.  Managing The Global Commons. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1994. Print. Owen, Anthony David, and Nick Hanley.  The Economics Of Climate Change. London: Routledge, 2004. Print. Shackleton, Robert.  The Economics Of Climate Change. Washington, DC: Congress of the U.S., Congressional Budget Office, 2003. Print.

Case Of Location Choice For Existing Organisation Business Essay

Case Of Location Choice For Existing Organisation Business Essay for an organisation. One of the key features of a conversion process manufacturing system is the efficiency with which the products services are transferred to the customers.This fact will include the determination of where to place the plant or facility.The selection of location is a key-decision as large investment is made in building plant and machinery. It is not advisable or not possible to change the location very often. So an improper location of plant may lead to waste of all the investments made in building and machinery, equipment. Before a location for a plant is selected, long range forecasts should be made anticipating future needs of the company. The plant location should be based on the company’s expansion plan and policy, diversification plan for the products, changing market conditions, the changing sources of raw materials and many other factors that influence the choice of the location decision. The purpose of the location study is to find an optimum locati on one that will result in the greatest advantage to the organization. The need for selecting a suitable location arises because of three situations. When starting a new organisation, i.e., location choice for the first time. In case of existing organisation. In case of Global Location. In Case of Location Choice for the First Time or New Organisations Cost economies are always important while selecting a location for the first time, but should keep in mind the cost of long-term business/organisational objectives. The following are the factors to be considered while selecting the location for the new organisations: Identification of region: The organisational objectives along with the various long-term considerations about marketing, technology, internal organisational strengths and weaknesses, region specific resources and business environment, legal-governmental environment, social environment and geographical environment suggest a suitable region for locating the operations facil ity. Choice of a site within a region: Once the suitable region is identified, the next step is choosing the best site from an available set. Choice of a site is less dependent on the organisation’s long-term strategies. Evaluation of alternative sites for their tangible and intangible costs will resolve facilities-location problem. The problem of location of a site within the region can be approached with the following cost-oriented non-interactive model, i.e., dimensional analysis. Dimensional analysis: If all the costs were tangible and quantifiable, the comparison and selection of a site is easy. The location with the least cost is selected. In most of the cases intangible costs which are expressed in relative terms than in absolute terms. Their relative merits and demerits of sites can also be compared easily. Since both tangible and intangible costs need to be considered for a selection of a site, dimensional analysis is used. In Case of Location Choice for Existing Org anisation In this case a manufacturing plant has to fit into a multi-plant operations strategy. That is, additional plant location in the same premises and elsewhere under following circumstances: Plant manufacturing distinct products. Manufacturing plant supplying to specific market area.

Governmental Reinvention and Privatization Essay

Governmental Reinvention and Privatization - Essay Example It begins with a description of the publications that most often have been associated with the reinvention movement. The primary purpose of the paper, however, is to review reinvention's assumptions, themes, and purposes. It concludes by presenting critical views of REGO's approach and some assumptions toward human resource reforming. For decades the civil service, also known as the merit system, has been accused of being too narrowly focused on protecting government employees from political or personal favoritism. It also has been criticized for not adequately supporting managerial objectives and organizational missions. These kinds of complaints constitute the motivating force behind reinventing government (REGO), which one notable scholar called the most energetic and robust reform movement in the past half-century (Light, 1994, 63). Human resources constitute the most influential of all factors that bear on the quality of an organization's products and services. If employees are not well trained, focused, and committed, then high quality organizational performance is not likely to materialize. This is the basic reasoning that underpins organizational concern for how human resources are managed. It is a logic that applies to both the private and public sectors. REGO claims that the traditional public sector em ployment principles of fitness and merit can coexist with increased managerial discretion and greater employee independence. It also contends that flexibility and innovation can be combined with a system that demands high levels of accountability and equity. (Thompson and Riccucci, 1998) The reinvention critique extends to most areas of government, in addition to targeting many of its recommendations at the civil service. Reinventing Government Reports Management reform is not new to the federal government. At least one major reform initiative has been undertaken every decade of the twentieth century. As Shafritz et al. (2001) report, they "all began with an assumption that government . . . was broken, fragmented, badly organized, and incapable of performing at a level acceptable to the public" (p. 61). The 1980s and 1990s were times during which an extraordinary amount of government reform activity took place (Peters, 1996, p. vii). One scholar of public sector change says the period reflected the greatest pressure ever placed on the U.S. government to innovate (Light 1994, p. 63). The reform movement is not just a United States phenomenon. The National Academy of Public Administration claims that "government performance and accountability is an issue throughout the world" (1995, p. 61). In announcing the creation of the National Performance Review, President Clinton stated that one of its principal goals was "to change the culture of our national bureaucracy away from complacency and entitlement toward initiative and empowerment" (National Performance Review, 1993, p. 1). This may be as succinct a summary of reinvention as

Gender Studies about the family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Gender Studies about the family - Essay Example tion, on the other hand, depends on the ability of the other to  acquire  the most  excellent  species  or the higher number of mates basing on the degree of  difference  in reproduction (Marlene 8).  Birds with longer tails  illustrate  sexual  selection  as they attract more females contrast to the ones with shorter tails despite their risk as an easy  target  prey  and  hardship  in flying.  Females tend to  differentiate  the  little  differences amongst the mates and they prefer to mate with individuals who posses exaggerated behavior. These characters also  aid  in their survival (Marlene 9). Biologically, people might  deny  the differences of structure composition and hormones among men and women; they differ on the significance for gender values and qualities regarding the differences. Organization in the brain has also been used to determine the sex difference as in the case where females are more  superior  in  their verbal skills than men, because woman are  dominant  in the left-brain while men are better in the  image  and spatial skills because of their right  brain  dominance.  The physical differences between males and females  bring  about the  division  whereby men are more aggressive than women and have stronger muscles while females have  a better adapted pelvis  for childbearing.  Men’s aggressiveness helps them in their social life because it acts as a defensive mechanism. Parenting  is profoundly based  on gender. This is because being a father, or a mother means different things to the parents. In the act of preference, gender  is illustrated  by the issue of how men treat their sons and daughters with difference. The importance of a man relating to a woman is  essential  because it helps both parties  evaluate  whether they are a family man or a  wife. In parenting, labor  division  is  dominant  because men engage in public  category  of working hard to  support  the family while women, on the other hand, fall in the category of child

Samsung Case Analysis Essay Example for Free

Samsung Case Analysis Essay 1. HISTORY Samsung Electronics is a South Korean multinational electronics and information technology company. It is the chief subsidiary of the Samsung Group that was established in 1969, and its headquarters is located in Samsung Town, Seoul. Samsung Electronics is one of the largest electronics producers in Asia, and its product line includes semiconductors, televisions, telecommunication equipment, computers and many other kinds of home appliances. The Samsung Electronics unit was created to get into the prosperous television and consumer electronics industry. Its first product was a small simple black-and-white television which was sold in the early 1970s. The division developed a diverse line of consumer electronics, and while in its beginning products was only sold domestically; exporting goods began a few years later. It took the company savvy management and huge investments in research and development, but Samsung Electronics expanded their products to creating color televisions and a variety of other consumer electronics and appliances. The company manufactured, shipped and sold a broad range of these appliances and electronic products worldwide by the 1980s. The fast progress and success of Samsung Electronics was not a surprise to people who knew the founder of the Samsung Group, Byung Chull Lee, a highly praised Korean entrepreneur. He overcame several obstacles with the small trading company he founded in 1938. Starting with a $2,000 nest egg and 40 employees, he was one of the ten largest trading companies when the Korean War started. The conquest of Soeul by the North Korean army forced him to give up his operations in 1950. However, one year after losing almost all his inventories and relocating to Pusan, Lee started the company over again with the help of the savings of one of his managers. After only one year, the company had experienced unimaginable growth and its assets twenty folded.Lee, being an entrepreneur that was always looking for more opportunities, founded Cheil Sugar, a sugar refinery in 1953, which became a very profitable business that allowed him to expand into a wide variety of markets. These included insurance, broadcasting, securities and even department stores. Lee was heavily criticized for some of his actions, such as building the â€Å"first manufacturing facility in South Korea after the Korean War† but many of his companies prospered under his vision of making Samsung the leader in every industry he entered. Despite facing major setbacks and fighting political battles in the 1960s, Samsung generated revenues over US $100 million annually. Lee not only broke into â€Å"the mass communication industry by launching a radio and television station†, but also founded Samsung Electronics. Entering the manufacturing televisions and electronics components industry, one that was under the control of US and European companies, seemed to be a risky venture, but Lee succeeded with the help of the national government. The head of the state, Park Chung-Hee encouraged the growth of dominating domestic industries in contradiction to his predecessor, who ruled with favoritism and corruption in order to keep his power. Park protected major industries and the larger companies in South Korea from foreign competition and gave out financial assistance as a part of his economic growth plan. The Samsung Group was one of the main beneficiaries, profiting from the ban on several countries to import consumer electronics, thereby eliminating the big competitors in the home market. As the company was trying to establish itself in the television industry, it added consumer products and appliances to its product lines. In addition to the ban on imports from certain countries, the government also prohibited foreign companies to invest into Samsung, while Samsung was still allowed to invest in overseas businesses. As a consequence, Samsung Electronics rapidly controlled parts of the home market while it also started exported successfully. As Lee had already predicted in the first decade of its existence, Samsungs Electronics division was the main industry for the company’s future. To ensure that Samsung became a major player, he entered the semiconductor business in 1978. Government regulations again played in the entrepreneur’s favor, as foreign telecommunication equipment manufacturers were required to provide semiconductor technology in return for access to the Korean market. In 1983, after receiving proprietary technology from Micron (USA) and Sharp (Japan), Samsung became the first Korean manufacturer of DRAM (dynamic random access memory) chips. Producing relatively low-tech DRAM chips at a lower cost, Samsung Electronics became a large supplier to computer and electronics manufacturers throughout the entire world within the next couple years. Samsung Electronics increased its efforts on other electronics operations in the meantime as well. Assembly plants were built in Portugal (1982), New York (1984) and England (1987). Together these plants produced 1,700,000 televisions, 700,000 microwave ovens and 300,000 VCRs. Thus, Samsung Groups annual revenues rose to $24 billion in 1987 (from $1.3 billion ten years earlier), which equated about a fifth of South Koreas entire GDP. Most of that growth resulted of Samsungs Electronics success. Despite the death of its founder Byung-Chull Lee, sales for the Samsung Group almost triple folded between 1987 and 1992. His successor, his son Kun-Hee Lee, did not only recognize the importance of the electronics division but moved it to the core of the Group. He combined several divisions and removed some operations while introducing different ideas that were put in place to enhance product quality and employee motivation. Lee focused on pushing Samsung to become a technological leader in the semiconductor, electronics and communication industry and doubled research and development investments. He was also credited for intensifying partnering efforts with foreign businesses to make Samsung the pioneer in the semiconductor technology. During the 1990s, Samsung underwent a groundbreaking change. After Samsung begins to reinvent through design (1993), sets up its in-house design school (â€Å"The Innovative Design Lab of Samsung†) and hires design consultancy IDEO to help develop computer monitors (1994), its biggest change had yet to follow. With the appointment of Yun Jong Yong as the President and CEO, Samsung changed its strategy drastically. Despite making profits as an established low cost supplier of many components to larger and well-known companies as well as providing customers with lower-priced appliances that were more affordable than the more expensive products by brands such as Sony, Yun was worried about the company’s future. He could not envision the company continued success on a low cost strategy with products whose technology had been developed by others. Yun believed that it was not secure to expect to be continuously able to scout for low-cost production locations successfully while retaining high volumes of production. This concern mainly a rose out of the emergence of many low-cost producing countries such as China. The CEOs scare became reality as within the first year of his tenure serious financial trouble threatened the company’s survival. Huge debt and the economic crisis in Asian resulted in the loss of millions of dollars and Yun stated that â€Å"if we continued, we would have gone belly-up within three or four years.† (Dess, 2010, p. C123). A turn-around was the much needed consequence. After trying to continuously compete in a price-cutting environment and increasing volume throughout the economic recession, Samsung Electronics had to lay off more than one-third of its workforce, which accumulated to about 30,000 employees. To get rid of its large inventory, many factories were closed down for more than 60 days. The company also sold off $2 billion worth of business that it perceived to be with minimal significance for its future. Yun decided to move Samsung’s future away from a company based on a lower-cost strategy to one emphasizing product development that woul d ultimately impress their consumers with their attractive design and advanced technology. Developing Samsung into a premium brand was the vision of the leader, and he recruited new managers. Yun removed the seniority-based system and put a merit-based system for advancement in place. These efforts resulted in the construction of newly designed products such as the largest flat-panel televisions, cell phones with new features (Cameras, PDAs, etc.) and thinner notebooks and computers than ever before. Hiring Eric Kim, a marketing whiz, who changed the advertisement agencies from 55 to one to create the same brand image anywhere in the world, worked hard to place a more upscale image of Samsung products into consumers’ minds. To undermine this perception, Samsung pulled out its products of big discounters such as Wal-Mart or Kmart and placed these into more expensive retailers (e.g. Best Buy, Circuit City). Yun was aware of the fact that the company would only be able to maintain its higher profit margins if the firm was able to bring its products faster to the market than its competitors. To ensure a sustaining model of this competitive advantage, the CEO removed several layers of bureaucracy to win approval for new products, budgets and marketing plans. Second steps to maintain an advantage are the huge investments in key technologies. The company has invested more than any of its rivals in research and development (RD), as it almost puts 9% of its revenues aside just for RD. To decrease the time of innovative product development, the large number of designers and engineers that are working in 17 locations throughout the entire world are not only facing the pressure from their own management but also competes with outsiders. Samsung attributes these strategies to its success in the effort of decreasing the time from a â€Å"new product concept to rollout† (Dess, 2010, p. C124). from over a year to â€Å"as little as five months† (Dess, 2010, p. C124). The determined work of the firms top manager, designers and engineers in the firms VIP center is at the core of the products rapid innovation and production. The reduced complexity for project teams in the design cycle’s early stages allows the company to move its products quicker to manufacturing while reducing problems and costs. Jung, a senior manager of the center states, explains that: â€Å"Seventy to eighty percent of quality, cost and delivery time is determined in the initial stages of a product.† (Dess, 2010, p. C124). A senior VP of Best Buy, George Danko, affirmed that â€Å"they will get a product to market a lot fast than their counterparts.† (Dess, 2010,p. C125). Among Samsungs first-to-market products are the first voice activated phones, handsets with MP3 Players and digital cameras that send photos over global systems for mobile communications networks. In addition to that, the firm was first to market projection TVs using new chips from Texas Instruments that employ digital-light processing. (Dess, 2010, p. C125).Yun envisioned that the company’s digital technology advances can result in a po ssibility of dominating the â€Å"digital home†, a home where he envisions that all appliances (from computers to refrigerators) are linked to each other and are capable of adapting to the personal needs of every individual consumer. One of the first products that have been brought to the market includes NEXiO, a combination of a cell phone and a handheld computer, or the Zipel, a refrigerator that has a 15-inch touch screen in its door that allows consumers to browse the web. To emphasize the importance of design, Yun implemented quarterly design meetings with top executives and opened or expanded design centers in San Francisco, London, Tokyo, Los Angeles and Shanghai. Additionally, the post of chief design officer was created who ensures that designers can get their ideas to top managers. (Dess, 2010, p. C125). Despite all the improvements that Samsung Electronics made since the mid-1990s, Lee Yoon Woo replaced Yun as the CEO in May 2008. After a tax evasion scandal that involved the parent firm Samsung Group, a major-shakeup along the top executives occurred that not only reassigned over half of its executives to new positions but also introduced many younger executives to various leadership teams. The purpose of the restructuring was to increase efforts and deal better with the prevailing bad economic conditions. Samsung went into the economic recession with a market value of over $100 billion, thus placing them in an elite market position shared only with three other Asian firms. Samsung moved past big players on the market such as Nokia, Sony and Motorola, thanks to their revolutionary products. The efforts to improve design by overhauling it design every two years has been paying off and Samsung won well over 200 awards from internationally prestigious design institutions since 2006. Even though Samsung prides itself of having lower cost structure compared to most of its rivals, the firm experienced its first quarterly losses in the last three months of 2008, when the company lost $14.4 million. This is Samsungs first net loss since it began reporting quarterly results in 2000. The overproduction of memory chips and liquid crystal displays (LCDs) worldwide was mentioned as the main reason resulting in a quarterly loss. Despite recording a quarterly loss, the company still made a yearly profit in 2008 and has increased its revenues steadily in the past decade. Samsung underwent two major restructures in the last three years, one in 2009 when the company began to slim down operations into two divisions from the five separate ones it had the year before. It also appointed Choi Gee Sung the new CEO shortly after the company made him the head of the newly formed digital media and communications unit. Chois appointment was a breakthrough for Samsung Electronic as it previously only picked top managers that had their backgrounds in engineering. In December 2010, Samsung underwent the second restructuring as it switched its management style from the single CEO system of the previous year to a two person management team. Choi Gee Sung remained the CEO of the company but was named Vice President and Lee Jae Yong is now the President and COO (Chief Operating Operator). The firm also added a digital imaging business division so that Samsung Electronic currently consists of eight divisions. (FundingUniverse, 1999) 2. VISION As Samsung stated in its new motto, the company’s vision for the decade is to Inspire the World, Create the Future. his new vision reflects Samsung commitment to inspiring its communities by supplying Samsungs three key strengths: â€Å"New Technology,† â€Å"Innovative Products,† and â€Å"Creative Solutions.† Samsung has also established three strategic approaches in its management: â€Å"Creativity,† â€Å"Partnership,† and â€Å"Talent.† As part of this vision, Samsung has mapped out a specific plan of reaching $400 billion in revenue and becoming one of the world’s top five brands by 2020. Samsung states that it looks forward to increase its diversity by exploring new territories, including health, medicine, and biotechnology. (Samsung, 2010) 3. BUSINESS DIVISIONS 1. Visual Display Business Samsung Electronics has achieved the world’s No. 1 market share in TVs for five years in a row since 2006. After establishing the new market for LED TVs in 2009, the firm has extended its competitive lead with sales of 45.11 million TVs. That included 39.26 million flat panel TVs in 2010, as the Full HD 3D LED TV became readily available. Samsung also leads in the next generation market with total sales of 3D TVs (2 million in 2010). Samsung Electronics announced a monthly record this past October 2011 as it sold more than 1 million units in the United States. A company official was stated: â€Å"Selling over 1 million units in the North American market in just one month is a first for the company, but it is also unprecedented in the industrys history.† According to the official, the company was experiencing increased demand in the â€Å"premium TVs , e.g. the 3D and especially smart TVs, which were just released in 2011 and featured Full HD picture quality and Smart Hub options. Samsung announced that the global share of its 3D TVs came to over fifty percent as of last months ending. Meanwhile plasma display panel (PDP) TVs also reached 40%. [pic] (Samsung,2010) 3.2. IT Solution Business After the implementing of Samsung’s global marketing strategy for mobile PCs, Samsung Electronics realized rapid growth and reached sales of 10 million units in 2010 worldwide. The firm launched a printer for consumers that supports mobile printing. Samsung Electronics provides business customers with a complete product line, including the first dual core CPU-equipped printer on the market, a multifunction printer and an A3 copier. The easy-to-use features and the products powerful performance secured second global market share in the A4 laser printer category in 2010. Samsung Electronics led the world market in the categories of mono laser multifunction printers and color laser multifunction printers for the second consecutive year. In the future, the firm expects to achieve strong growth by launching an ultra-light high-performance laptop for the premium market and by bolstering its business-to-business (B2B) product line. Samsung Electronics anticipates continuing growth in the printer business in the upcoming years. [pic] (Samsung, 2010) 3.3. Digital Appliance Business Samsung Electronics is strengthening its brand image by introducing premium home appliances that offer essential services for daily life. In 2010, innovative products such as the twin cooling side by-side refrigerator; the front loader washer with vibration-reduction technology, the energy-efficient air conditioner; and air purifiers with humidification that maintain clean air quality in rooms resulted in great response worldwide. Samsung brought innovate, smart appliances to the market that deliver gracious and convenient lifestyle options such as Samsung’s autobot vacuum cleaner that cleans rooms automatically. Other products include kitchen ranges and microwaves that offer cooking features suitable for anybody. Samsung Electronics will extend its market leadership by releasing additional premium appliances. These will be supported by strong marketing with the purpose of becoming the world’s most trusted digital appliance brand. [pic] (Samsung, 2010) 3.4. Mobile Communication Business In 2010, Samsung Electronics reinforced its market leadership by achieving sales of 280 million mobile phones worldwide. This number is up 23% compared to 2009. The flagship GALAXY S model posted sales of 10 million units, while the GALAXY Tab also led the Android tablet PC market, earning great customer reviews. The firms leadership in full touch and messaging mobile phones continued in both advanced and emerging markets. Samsung Electronics plans to aggressively challenge a vey competitively growing market. It launched the GALAXY S II, the company’s flagship smartphone, only one day after Apple announced the new iPhone 4S and the Samsung phone received great feedback. The firm plans to keep expanding and improving its unique mobile solutions as it strengthens its competitive lead in both services and content. [pic] (Samsung, 2010) 5. Telecommunication System Business Samsung Electronics develops forward-looking products for two major 4G platforms, the Long Term Evolution (LTE) and the Mobile WiMAX (WiBRO). In 2010, the firm established the first LTE commercial services network in the US and currently expands in North America, Asia and Europe. Mobile WiMAX—introduced by Samsung Electronics and adopted as a global standard in 2007—has been experiencing dramatic growth in major mobile communications markets, including the US, Japan and Saudi Arabia. Based on its established technology leadership, the firm is expecting to lead the worldwide mobile broadband market in the upcoming years. [pic] (Samsung, 2010) 6. Digital Imaging Business Samsung Electronics is working hard on its brand image and recognition to become a premium brand by introducing a rising number of premium digital cameras and digital camcorders. The product line of interchangeable lens digital cameras was extended in the last year and the newly released mirror less digital camera (NX11) secured the firms competitive lead over professional optical brands. Samsung plans to continue to debut world-first and world-best cameras such the ST700 Dual View camera (which offers excellent image quality plus fun and convenient self-portrait option), the EX1 (the world’s first ultra-wide F1.8 zoom lens), the SH100 (which features Wi-Fi (DLNA) functionality) and many others. [pic] (Samsung, 2010) 7. Semiconductor Business Samsung is the worlds second largest semiconductor manufacturer and is the industry sales and technology leader in the areas of DRAM, SRAM, NAND Flash and TFT-LCDs. A key partner and premier supplier to the global IT industry, Samsung Electronics offers the widest range of advanced semiconductor devices and solutions for PC, server and mobile applications. The firm intends to play a major role in the growth of the green IT industry as they implement their Green Memory strategy, which emphasizes high-performance memory products with lower power consumption. Samsung Electronics differentiated product competitiveness has awarded the company the No.1 position in the worldwide memory market for 18 years in a row. The company consistently leads the industry, and began the world’s first mass production of 30nm-class 2Gb DDR3 DRAM, 30nm-class 4Gb LPDDR2 DRAM, 20nm-class NAND flash memory, 512GB SSD and more. In the storage systems division, the firm introduced high-capacity hard disk drives (HDDs) to the market, including a 2.5 inch 334GB HDD and a 3.5 inch 667GB HDD. [pic](Samsung, 2010) 8. LCD Business Being the industry leader, Samsung Electronics has achieved the No. 1 market share for LCD panels for nine consecutive years. The industry-first active 3D technology supports True 240Hz for 3D TV, which has reinforced Samsung’s leadership.Samsung released trendsetting displays as such as an LCD panel for the tablet PC (which offers vivid colors at a wide viewing angle), a low-power IT panel built with advanced LED backlight technology and more innovations were key to the firms leadership. In 2011, Samsung has been improving its product leadership as they developed differentiated offerings, including ultra-large panel technology, a full range of LED LCD panels, high-value IT products and DID panels. For the future, Samsung stays committed to research and development to produce tomorrows best products. That includes focusing on an oxide semiconductor panel, plastic LCD, transparent LCD and developing high efficiency solar modules. The firm’s goal is to develop the industr y’s most efficient and highest quality products. [pic] (Samsung, 2010) 4. FINANCIAL INFORMATION Samsung Electronics has been increasing its sales from 2008 till 2010 by more than 10% annually. These are extraordinary numbers, given the economic circumstances in todays (western) world. Despite big investments in research and development, the firm managed to almost double its net income from 2008 to 2009 and almost triple it from 2008 to 2010. [pic] (Samsung, 2010) Samsung Electronics experienced an increase in revenue in the first 6 month of the fiscal year of 2011 compared to the first two quarters in the previous year. However, this increase in revenue did not result in an increased operational profit in that period. As shown in appendix 1, the main reason for the decline in operational profits are two factors: increased cost of sales and increased research and development expenses. Stock Information Samsung Electronics stock trades on the stock markets in Seoul, London, and Luxemburg. Samsung Electronics stock is listed on the Korean Stock Exchange as 005930. As the chart below indicates, Samsung Electronics stock price has been considerably grown in the last two decades. However, it experienced many setbacks, the latest ones in the latter of half of 2008 and beginning of 2009 as well as during the third quarter of 2011’s fiscal year. The worldwide economic recession and first quarter losses in last decades in the fourth quarter of the year 2008 were responsible for the declining demand of stocks, while this year’s first half decline is probably most attributed to the slowing world economy. However, the stock price rose to the level of the years beginning in the late summer this year. 1 KRW (South Korean Won) = 0.00089 US Dollar (as of 11/9/11) [pic] (Market Watch, 2011) Financial RatiosRatio data as of 06/30/2011 [pic] (Bloomberg Businessweek, 2011) In the following, I will discuss three major financial ratios. 1. Return on Assets: Return on Assets is an indicator of how profitable a company is relative to its total assets. The ratio gives an understanding of how efficient management is at using its assets to generate earning. Samsung Electronics Return on Assets is 6.87%, a number that is a little below industry average and shows that the company can definitely improve its efficiency. 2. Cash Ratio: The cash ratio is the most conservative ratio for measuring liquidity and is often used during periods of economic turmoil because cash is the most important asset many companies possess in difficult times. If a company has a ready supply of cash, it can survive sudden drops in sales that might put another less liquid company out of business. Samsung Electronics Cash Ratio (1.6x) is generally speaking a decent number and as indicated above an above average number compared to the industry. 3. Total Debt/Equity The total debt/equity ratio is calculated by dividing the firm’s total liabilities by stockholders equity and indicated what proportion of equity and debt the company is using to finance its assets. High debt/equity ratios generally mean therefore that a company has been aggressive in financing its growth with debt, which can result in unstable earnings as a result of the additional interest expenses. Samsung Electronics 11.6x Total debt/equity ratio is a high number that gives some room for concern, as high interest rates could have a negative impact on the companies financials. 5. SWOT Analysis The SWOT analysis will examine the internal and external factors influencing Samsung Electronics. It will identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for the company. Samsung electronics has many strengths that can be pointed out. First, they are a very innovative company. As part of their new strategy they have begun developing its own products rather than copying those of other firms. In fact, they invest 9% of their revenues into research and development. This has helped them to gain a competitive edge. Also they switched to a merit-based system for advancement rather than a seniority based system. We believe this is effective because it will motivate employees to work harder knowing that if they perform, they can advance with the company. Interior competition is also healthy to a certain extent. Samsung encourages its two divisions to compete with each other to boost sales and innovation. Also Samsung is very efficient and effective in their product development process as well as getting the product to market. They lead the industry in this and can get a new product developed and released in as little as five months. Another key strength is their brand name. Samsung is recognizable all over the world as a top quality company. Next it is important to exploit Samsung’s weaknesses as a company in order to identify their key issues. The first is interior competition. Note that this was also listed in strengths, but if pushed to far can be a detriment to the company. Too much competition between divisions could cause a loss of focus on the company’s overall vision and more focus on beating each other. This could also cause the divisions to think more short-term rather than focus on sustainability. Also, the company is reluctant to branch out into music, movies and the game industry. Branching out could increase their revenues tremendously and sky rocket the company’s business. Their former low cost structure should be pointed out as well because they focused less on quality and more on cost, which essentially kept them from becoming a premium brand that appeals to a more luxury consumer demand. Overall Samsung has many opportunities to take advantage of. The first is their innovation; with this they hope to expand into creating the full â€Å"digital home† experience. This means that they wish to change the way our homes our designed and essentially used with the use of their technology. This could be a huge cash cow for the company and could create a constant stream of revenues. In addition, they could begin to aggressively pursue and acquire other technology companies in markets that they are not currently in. They have already started this with the failed attempt to acquire SanDisk, a company that makes storage cards and other such products. Furthermore, they should continue to build new factories around the area in low cost areas. Keeping production costs low is a key factor in increasing and maintaining the highest possible profit margin. Due to the innovation and research of Samsung they could penetrate many new markets as well as expand market share. Samsung Electronics also faces many external threats. The current economic state of key areas such as the United States has caused a large decline in demand. This means that they have a large amount of inventory sitting in warehouses. This could put a damper on a company’s financial situation due to holding costs and a decrease in revenues. Also if there is an overcapacity in global production this could drive down prices. When prices are driven down; profit margin decreases and your company could feel the financial impact. Lastly, there is a large amount of competition in the industry. It is important to stay innovative and one step ahead of your competitors to m aintain market share. 6. Porter’s Five Forces The threat of new entrants is relatively low in this industry. The majority of the companies in this industry are established and operating at a very high output. It is hard to enter the market due to the extremely high amounts of costs put forward to research and development, as well as bringing your product to the consumer. Next, there are very many substitutes to the products that Samsung offers. There are many companies competing in the electronics field and they are constantly looking to gain market share. Also companies in the technology industry are constantly copying each other’s innovations in hopes of improving them. The bargaining power of the buyers is high in this industry. The consumer has a large array of options and substitute products. This enables them to have a large impact on the price of the product. This is why it is important to keep your prices competitive. The bargaining power of suppliers for Samsung Electronics is low. This is due to the large market share that the company has. The company develops and manufactures their products in house, which enables them to have more control over their complete supply chain. Ultimately this helps them to be more efficient and keep costs down. Within the electronic industry, there is a very large threat of competition. They face strict competitors such as Sony, Panasonic, Hitachi, Philips, and Sharp to name a couple. This is why it is important to stay innovative and keep emphasis on quality, as well as satisfying your consumers’ needs. 7. Problems There are many problems that Samsung faces as a company. We do not believe they are being aggressive enough in entering new markets. The cost of losing opportunity while it is there could be detrimental to the company. Also, because the technology business is always rapidly changing, they could lose sight on the overall long-term growth of the company. Samsung also has very high operating costs because of the constant amount of research and development they use. The company should actively seek ways to become more efficient to keep costs low. High costs and lack of demand have caused their profit margins to decrease. A lack of an internal distribution system could also drive costs up. A problem in the general environment that diminished Samsung’s return is the global economic slowing growth (or in parts also recessions) that Samsung has to keep considering carefully in its product investments and overall company strategy. Our own research conducted in the local Best Buy store also pointed out that even though Samsung’s smart phone series Galaxy is growing in market share, it consistently has lacks and downtimes, which frustrates many of the customers. 8. Solutions/Suggestions There are many possible solutions to some of the internal and external issues that Samsung is experiencing. First, we believe that Samsung should branch out into music, movies and the game industry. This could help the company to expand in a positive manor and could open up many new markets to them as well. Next it is important to keep planning for long-term sustainable growth. Samsung should continuously invest in new technology to keep its market share. Also, they should take full advantage of opportunities to acquire other business entities in new markets. They should take a proactive approach to expansion to help them gain and maintain a competitive edge. The company should also keep looking for new ways to keep their operating and manufacturing costs low. They could even look into bringing their distributors in house by buying them out, or even implement their own distribution division. This could be very effective in keeping distribution costs low. Samsung also has to solve the ongoing problems with its leading smart phone on the market, the Galaxy. Bibliography Dess, G., Lumpkin, G, Eisner, A. Strategic Management Text and Cases.(2010). New York, New York, McGraw-Hill Irwin FundingUniverse. (1999). FundingUniverse. Retrieved 11 10, 2011, from Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.: http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Samsung-Electronics-Co-Ltd-company-History.html Samsung. (2010). Samsung. Retrieved 11 10, 2011, from Samsung Electronics: http://www.samsung.com/us/aboutsamsung/ir/financialinformation/annualreport/downloads/2010/SECAR2010_Eng_Final.pdf Market Watch. (2011, 11 9). MarketWatch. Retrieved 11 10, 2011, from Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. GDR Pfd. 144A: http://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/ssngy Bloomberg Businessweek. (2011, 11 10). Businessweek. Retrieved 11 10, 2011, from SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO LTD : http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/financials/ratios.asp?ticker=005930:KS

Femininity Versus Androgyny in The Laugh of the Medusa and A Room of Ones Own :: A Room of Ones Own Essays

Femininity Versus Androgyny in The Laugh of the Medusa and A Room of One's Own      Ã‚  Ã‚   There is much debate in feminist circles over the "best" way to liberate women through writing. Some argue that a female writer should, in an effort to recapture her stolen identity, attack her oppressive influences and embrace her femininity, simultaneously fostering dimorphic literary, linguistic, and social arenas. Others contend that the feminization of writing pigeonholes women into an artistic slave morality, a mindset that expends creative energy on battle and not production, and inefficiently overturns stereotypes and foments positive social change; rather, one should lose gender self-consciousness and write androgynously.    Hà ©là ¨ne Cixous and Virginia Woolf, in "The Laugh of the Medusa" and "A Room of One's Own," respectively, epitomize these opposing ideologies, highlighting different historical sources for women's literary persecution, theorizing divergent plans for women's progress, and stylistically mirroring their ideas. Ultimately, the primary difference is in each philosophy's time frame and belief over how much influence writing has to "empower," to borrow a current feminist buzzword. For Cixous, women's writing goes hand in hand with women's liberation: "Writing is precisely the very possibility of change, the space that can serve as a springboard for subversive thought, the precursory movement of a transformation of social and cultural structures" (311). Woolf, however, sees women's writing as emblematic of and dependent on women's progress in general; only with "a room of her own and five hundred a year," through widespread social change, will her fictional Mary Carmichael "be a poet" (9 4).    One of Cixous's main intents is "to break up, to destroy" (309). This destruction of injustice colors her entire perspective; much of her essay is devoted to reaction, to toppling the tyranny of men. Men's writing, she argues, "is a locus where the repression of women has been perpetuated, over and over, more or less consciously, and...has grossly exaggerated all the signs of sexual opposition" (311). Cixous compares women's self-image to that of disenfranchised blacks: "They can be taught that their territory is black: because you are Africa, you are black. Your continent is dark. Dark is dangerous...And so we have internalized this horror of the dark" (310). Through these cultural judgments, men "have made for women an antinarcissism!...They have constructed the infamous logic of antilove" (310). She connects this antilove most strongly with self-loathing for the body: "We've been turned away from our bodies, shamefully taught to ignore them, to strike them with that stupid sexual modesty" (315).

The Language of Mistrust and Fear

From the beginning, Bram Stoker makes it clear that Count Dracula should be viewed as The Other, a psychological distinction that has been used to describe the way people view the world in â€Å"them† and â€Å"us†. Stoker uses the concept of The Other to show how different Dracula is from the English and to create an underlying tension between the remaining characters and the vampire. He also uses the psychological distinction as a means of preventing the characters from determining the nature of the vampire earlier as they are aware that they have societal differences from the count.The characters choose to overlook many of the first warnings of the oddness of the Count because they were afraid they were acting out of a misunderstanding about the cultural differences. Stoker manages to establish Count Dracula as the other easily within the first chapter of the novel. In the first chapter, the impressions we have of Count Dracula all come from Jonathan Harker’s journal and Stoker establishes early on that Harker is uncomfortable with his surroundings.â€Å"The impression I had was that we were leaving the West and entering the East; the most western of splendid bridges over the Danube, which is here of noble width and depth, took us among the traditions of Turkish rule† (Stoker, Chapter 1). Even in his writing, Stoker decides to play up the strangeness of the land with the strange spelling of Budapest as Buda-Pesth. He establishes immediately that Harker is leaving the civilized world and going to a completely different land.He uses the lure and the mystique of â€Å"the East† to establish the difference all within the first paragraph of the book that Count Dracula is different from everyone else. As Harker travels inland, we learn that the count is from the edge of Hungary near the Carpathian Mountains, â€Å"one of the wildest and least known portions of Europe. † (Chapter 1) This is another attempt by the author to establish that Dracula is weird, and unlike the other characters. By claiming that he is from a wild and unknown region, Stoker is relying on the themes of Romanticism to imply that he is potentially evil and dangerous.And just a few paragraphs later he tells us that â€Å"I read that every known superstition in the world is gathered into the horseshoe of the Carpathians, as if it were the centre of some sort of imaginative whirlpool; if so my stay may be very interesting. † (Chapter 1). These lines establish clearly that Harker believes the people of Hungary to be less educated and different from the people of England. Furthermore, by establishing that he has heard they are a superstitious folk, he can justify their odd behavior to himself and not question the decisions that he is making (going alone to the Count’s castle despite their warnings).Throughout the novel, Stoker relies on the concept of the other to isolate his main characters from the world around them an d never is this as evident as in Harker’s initial journey to meet the count. All along the way, Harker is the tourist, intrigued and yet critical of local population. â€Å"The women looked pretty, except when you got near them, but they were very clumsy about the waist. † (Chapter 1) He describes the traditional dress and the more rotund nature of the populace as â€Å"clumsy about the waist† emphasizing the fashion of the time in Britain to be very thin with corsets cinching the waist in even farther.And, to the men, he is even less generous. The strangest figures we saw were the Slovaks, who were more barbarian than the rest, with their big cow-boy hats, great baggy dirty-white trousers, white linen shirts, and enormous heavy leather belts, nearly a foot wide, all studded over with brass nails. They wore high boots, with their trousers tucked into them, and had long black hair and heavy black moustaches. They are very picturesque, but do not look prepossessin g. On the stage they would be set down at once as some old Oriental band of brigands.They are, however, I am told, very harmless and rather wanting in natural self-assertion. To the average reader at the time of this writing, Stoker’s words about the people of Europe would have been strange and more than a bit fearsome, driven by the fear of the unknown. The author, realizing this, includes that very observation in Harker’s journal, when he hastens to explain that despite the many odd things in his journal, he had not overindulged in either food or drink, going so far as to list what he has eaten.There too, Stoker attempts to make the reader revile the locals with a comparison of their dinner to the â€Å"simple style of the London cat's meat! † (Chapter 1). Having established the physical differences between the inhabitants of Eastern Europe and those in London and draw attention to their different manner of dress and food, Stoker is ready to cut the last tie w hich might bind the two groups together: religion. On the eve of Harker’s approach to Dracula’s castle, the innkeeper’s wife attempts to prevent him from going.She relays the fear that something untoward will happen to him at the Castle and begs him to take her crucifix. I did not know what to do, for, as an English Churchman, I have been taught to regard such things as in some measure idolatrous, and yet it seemed so ungracious to refuse an old lady meaning so well and in such a state of mind. She saw, I suppose, the doubt in my face, for she put the rosary round my neck and said, â€Å"For your mother's sake,† and went out of the room. I am writing up this part of the diary whilst I am waiting for the coach, which is, of course, late; and the crucifix is still round my neck.(Chapter 1) In this short passage, Stoker firmly establishes that the Hungarians are not like the English, establishing them firmly as The Other, but he also manages to establish the ir humanity. When the woman asks him to take the crucifix, â€Å"For your mother’s sake†, Stoker overcomes the barrier between them, pointing to a common bond among all humans, the love of a mother for her child. This is done for two reasons: first, to illustrate to the reader that the oddities of the count are in fact unnatural and second, to begin to create a mood, to explain the beginnings of the fear that Harker feels as he approaches the castle.The reader is meant to feel that Harker’s observations about his trepidation as he approaches the castle at midnight are justified, that he is not merely some frightened little boy who starts at the darkness. This concept that the fear might be justified is building all along Harker’s journey to the castle and might have built more if he had understood the languages his fellow passengers spoke, Stoker writes, again playing to the classical definition of the other as someone outside our normal understanding, se parated by culture, religion and sometimes, by language.Then, in a subtle criticism of the Carpathians, another form of creating distance between groups, Harker observes that the roads and rough and that the driver seemed to â€Å"fly over it with a feverish haste. † (Chapter 1) This observation is meant to again set the people apart from the English who, it is implied, would never think of driving at such a pace and would have most certainly kept the road in better repair. â€Å"I was told that this road is in summertime excellent, but that it had not yet been put in order after the winter snows.In this respect it is different from the general run of roads in the Carpathians, for it is an old tradition that they are not to be kept in too good order. Of old the Hospadars would not repair them, lest the Turk should think that they were preparing to bring in foreign troops, and so hasten the war which was always really at loading point. † (Chapter 1). Even in his discuss ion of the fear of the Turks, Stoker is driving a wedge between the English and the Hungarians, as the British never feared invasion from aggressive neighbors thanks to the fact that they were on an island.This is just another means of driving a stake between the two cultures. For the normally reserved British, the thought of strangers giving Harker gifts along the way also helps to establish the difference between the cultures. â€Å"One by one several of the passengers offered me gifts, which they pressed upon me with an earnestness which would take no denial. These were certainly of an odd and varied kind, but each was given in simple good faith, with a kindly word, and a blessing, and that same strange mixture of fear-meaning movements which I had seen outside the hotel at Bistritz– the sign of the cross and the guard against the evil eye.† (Chapter 1). This passage actually plays on English attitudes in two matters: First, it would have been unconscionable to give a random gift to a stranger and make him feel that he must accept it. Second, the fact that they were actively demonstrating their religion and superstition was an act the British of the time would have found completely unacceptable. The British largely believed that church, the Church of England, was something you did when you went to services and not something to be practiced at any other time.Furthermore, the concept that you would let someone catch you making a hex sign of any sort was simply unbelievable. The British would simply be too polite to have anything in common with these heathens, further establishing them as The Other. In the end, Stoker’s work is masterful at clearly establishing the differences between class lines and cultures and creating The Other on numerous different levels. He establishes that Mina and Jonathan are the others when compared to Lucy and her well-to-go friends, both of them having been raised with next to nothing.He establishes Renfield a s the other via his madness and his actions during his fall to Dracula’s control and even Lucy is somewhat established in this manner, being the least learned and scientific of the group. Stoker made each of the characters unique and bound them to one another, but also invested in making clear divides between them to create an additional tension and confusion in the book that is just complicated by the arrival of Count Dracula. Upon the count’s arrival in London, he is regarded as exotic and interesting, a facet as completely a portion of The Other as the fear and trepidation.Often we are fascinated by those things that are different from us and we desire to see them, to learn more about them and even to imitate them while still holding them at a distance, knowing that they are not like we are. The fact that Stoker felt it necessary to establish this extreme difference when Dracula could easily have become the other certainly by virtue of being a creature of the night implies that Stoker was perhaps attempting to force the scholars that would read his novel to recognize a certain xenophobia within their culture.His depiction of the Eastern Europeans as highly different, almost medieval compare to the bustling and modern London can hardly be considered accidental. Stoker clearly had some thoughts about the way that the British observed the world around them and made Harker the extreme viewpoint of that British charm. Harker had to be an extreme, the most British of British subjects in his observations for stoker to force his audience to see how absurd such characterizations could be. Works Cited Stoker, Bram. â€Å"Dracula† Accessed at http://www. literature. org/authors/stoker-bram/dracula/chapter-01. html, December 9, 2007.

Arranged Marriage 1

Original Essay Marriage is commonly defined as the relationship between two people of opposite sex known as husband and wife, and it is a key to bring them happiness. Therefore, choosing a husband and wife is one of the most important decisions for everyone’s life because a marriage can bring either a happy life or an unhappy life. In many countries in the world, and especially in the western countries, a man or woman can choose their own partner. In contrast, in some countries like Cambodia, parents arrange their children’s marriage. However, if we take a closer look at arranged marriages, there are some contrasting ideas about them in our society. We can easily acknowledge that parents have more life experience, but this does not necessarily assure that they will always choose the right spouse for their child. In fact, arranged marriage generally has both advantages and disadvantages. One of the most important advantages to arranged marriage is having a good financial security and living condition. Of course, Money doesn’t automatically bring a good happiness, but the lack of money can cause lots of troubles in the family and stresses in any relationship. In Cambodian tradition, parents often involve transfers of property to their marrying children, and hopefully they wish to bring their children with a very good financial and living condition. For example, some Cambodian parents give property such as house, land, money and jewelry to the new couple after getting married, and they have an important role in solving any problems happening to their married children. In addition, parents have greater life experiences than their children; therefore, they can usually make a better decision or judgment. For instance, In Cambodian culture, many parents always think carefully about whom their children should marry, and most of their thoughts focus on financial situation, family status and individual behavior because they strongly believe that if their children get married to a husband or wife who has these things, problem will not happen. The second advantage of the arranged marriage is that children can bring gratefulness and honor to their family. Cambodian people believe in Buddhism. In Buddhism, People believe in returning gratitude to their parents, and hildren have an obligation to maintain their family’s honor. Marrying into a good family is considered to be a way of returning gratitude to parents, especially for a young girl. Moreover, getting married to someone that is arranged by parents is recognized that children obey Khmer traditional culture and respect their parents gratefully. For example, when a daughter get married to man that is selected by her parents, she w ill be considered a grateful daughter because everything she behaves doesn’t go against Khmer tradition. The third advantage is that parents can end a very big and important duty in their life. Traditionally, it is an obligation for Cambodian parents to choose and arrange marriage for their children so that their family’s reputation and honor can be retained. Generally, Cambodian children live with their parents until they get married, and parents have a lot of responsibilities for their children. Choosing marriage partner for their children is one of the most important responsibilities during their life. For instance, from the time their children were born until the time they get married parents have to do a lot of duties such as taking care of their children’s health, earning money to support the basic needs and education for their children and looking for children’s marriage partner either. After getting married, children have their own responsibility and they have to follow the ways their parents behave toward them. Therefore, parents do not need to responsible for such heavy burdens anymore.

Free Essays on Deontological

DEONTOLOGICAL - This type of theory claims that there are features within the actions themselves which determine whether or not they are right. These features define the extent to which the actions conform with recognized moral duties. For example, driving while drunk violates the duty to â€Å"above all do no harm.† The duties derive from various sources, such as religion, biology, psychology, metaphysics, culture, language, etc. Depending on the deontological theory, these duties may be absolute (no exceptions), prima facie (can only be overridden by a more important duty), or conditional (only hold under specified circumstances). Deontological theories do not consider consequences to be important when determining whether or not an action is ethical. It doesn’t matter if the drunk driver made it home safely. Driving drunk was still wrong because the intention to drive drunk was wrong (or to drink alcohol when one knows one needs to drive). Immanuel Kant's ethical theory is deontological. He claims that actions are only morally right when they are done out of duty. He sees moral duties as unchanging laws for human conduct. He believes that morality is derived from the ability to think rationally, which enables beings to be free. If one is not free, then one cannot be held responsible. Thus only free individuals are moral agents and all free individuals are capable of acting out of reason. Kant’s moral theory is largely focused on protecting and promoting the free action of rational beings. Three formulations of his categorical imperative are derived from this moral foundation: (Kant) Always act out of duty, in accordance with a good will (I.e. One does the right thing because one recognizes that it is the right thing to do, not because it pleases you to do it or will promote good consequences.). (pp. 25-26.) Always act as if the maxim of thy action were to become by thy will a Universal Law of Nature (i.e. Are you willing to... Free Essays on Deontological Free Essays on Deontological DEONTOLOGICAL - This type of theory claims that there are features within the actions themselves which determine whether or not they are right. These features define the extent to which the actions conform with recognized moral duties. For example, driving while drunk violates the duty to â€Å"above all do no harm.† The duties derive from various sources, such as religion, biology, psychology, metaphysics, culture, language, etc. Depending on the deontological theory, these duties may be absolute (no exceptions), prima facie (can only be overridden by a more important duty), or conditional (only hold under specified circumstances). Deontological theories do not consider consequences to be important when determining whether or not an action is ethical. It doesn’t matter if the drunk driver made it home safely. Driving drunk was still wrong because the intention to drive drunk was wrong (or to drink alcohol when one knows one needs to drive). Immanuel Kant's ethical theory is deontological. He claims that actions are only morally right when they are done out of duty. He sees moral duties as unchanging laws for human conduct. He believes that morality is derived from the ability to think rationally, which enables beings to be free. If one is not free, then one cannot be held responsible. Thus only free individuals are moral agents and all free individuals are capable of acting out of reason. Kant’s moral theory is largely focused on protecting and promoting the free action of rational beings. Three formulations of his categorical imperative are derived from this moral foundation: (Kant) Always act out of duty, in accordance with a good will (I.e. One does the right thing because one recognizes that it is the right thing to do, not because it pleases you to do it or will promote good consequences.). (pp. 25-26.) Always act as if the maxim of thy action were to become by thy will a Universal Law of Nature (i.e. Are you willing to...

Auditing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Auditing - Essay Example A high net profit margin indicates that a company converts its sales into profits fast. The net profit margin also considers costs associated with the sale of products. There are several factors which triggered a decrease in the net profit margins. They include: a. Inventories Even though, a company treats inventories as an asset in the balance sheet, the cost of sales are not reported until a sale is actually made. Therefore, it is possible to calculate the cost of sales in inventories. However, market fluctuations can reduce the value of inventories which in turn lead to devaluation of net profit margins. An economic slowdown leads to slow moving inventories and decreases company sales and causes a negative impact on net profit margins. b. Price changes Changes in price affect the number of units sold which in turn influences the profits. It is challenging to price items correctly especially in a perfect market. Therefore, the price point of a product is a primary factor responsibl e for decreasing net profit margin. A decrease in price may in turn cause a decrease in net profit margins. c. ... Examples include rent, salaries and depreciation expenses. Even though, these costs do not change based on the volume or production and sales, they still influence the net profit margin. The gross profit margin is calculated as gross profit as a percentage of sales. According to Pamela and Frank (2010), an increase in gross profit margin from one period to another can be caused by one of the following factors: a) Increase in sales volume which in turn affect sales and the cost of sales b) Increase in sales price which affect sales revenue c) Reduction in the cost of production which affects cost of goods sold. Q2- Transactions or accounts that require additional audit effort The following are the transactions or accounts which require additional audit effort based on question one above: Revenues Operating expenses Inventories Cost of goods sold Q3- Additional Audit work In some situations, an auditor may perform additional procedures in order to determine the reliability of the under lying data (Spencer 2010). The auditor should get evidence from multiple sources depending on the risk of material misstatement and the quality and quantity of audit evidence required. Obtaining evidence from different sources or types increases the level of assurance. The additional audit procedures may include Computer-assisted audit techniques (CAATs) and substantive tests. CAATs help in identifying anomalies from the selected items. However, audit evidence may be gotten from items not selected since the auditor uses professional judgment. Substantive tests entail the activities performed by the auditor during the audit so as to obtain evidence regarding the completeness, validity and accuracy of the account balances and the

Conclusion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Conclusion - Essay Example It is quite apparent from the study that Primark has indeed created a niche for itself even in these challenging times. In fact, the strategy of competitors to label Primark as a 'cheap' brand while making efforts to label their own brands as premium ones' has not worked to their advantage. Instead Primark seems to have taken a lead in understanding the requirements of the common consumer and offering them value for money. Primark seems to believe in market penetration strategy, while passing on maximum benefits to the consumer and thus playing the volume game. Primark has opened up stores in UK and Ireland at vantage points, the places most frequented by the common consumer. Thus saving on the marketing communication costs to a great extent. Today marketing communication forms an integral cost component of any business proposition. If a company can save on this expenditure to some extent while making itself visible amongst the existing and prospective customers, then it helps in lev eraging the economies of scale. These costs can be passed on to the workforce, which motivates them for pooling their efforts in a better manner, thus coming out with quality products. In fact this chain of events has been quite ably used by Primark to the advantage of its own business prospects as well as to the advantage of its workforce. Motivational theories discussed during the study clearly suggest that if the needs of the fellow human beings are taken care of, they are bound to come out with their optimum performance. Effective management of the workforce lends credence to the notion that a company is being managed professionally. Primark, while charging less from its customers, has maintained good industrial relations. As the returned questionnaire indicates, the workforce is not too unhappy with the HR policies of the company, which appear to be employee friendly. As pointed out in the study, the kind of attention paid to employees' care, by the MNCs is an indication towards the level of competition and the innovative methods devised to sail ahead in these competitive times. The higher levels of turnover of the workforce, in Parimark, could be explained by the fact that in an intensely competitive world the rival companies are always on the lookout for experienced workforce. The workforce, particularly the yout h segment, also is on the lookout for making quick bucks, so they don't attach too much importance to the loyalty part and hop on to the company with better payment packages. The higher levels of employee turnover also results in some cost escalation to the company, as it has to incur fresh costs on recruitment and training of the workforce. The newer workforce also requires some time to adjust to the working environment and this could have some effect on the efficiency of the service being provided to the customer. On the other hand, it can also be stated that the young blood brings renewed enthusiasm and more energy to the working environment. As the questionnaire points out the younger lot is there to make some quick money during their free time or vacation period. Therefore it good that Primark does attach too much loyalty strings to the job profile. This, in a way helps in offsetting the disadvantage resulting from the extra efforts being put into recruiting and retaining the work force. It goes to the credit of