An Analysis of Globalization: Constructivism, Commercial Liberalism and Marxism Essay

Globalization is perhaps the most defining characteristic of the 21st century. The American push for free market ideals, facilitated by the advent of the Internet and other communication technologies, has led to the increased interaction and interrelatedness of people. Therefore, globalization also raises interesting implications for the field of international relations. How can this monumental event be analyzed? Globalization and its consequences can be interpreted and dissected through three major schools of thought: constructivism, commercial liberalism, and Marxism. A modified Marxist view can explain the starting causes of globalization but not modern day causes, international liberalism can explain the resulting global â€Å"macropeace†, and constructivism can explain counter-reactive â€Å"microwars† prevalent in the international system. To begin, Marxism is based on a critique of capitalism and normative commitment to communism. Marxism has various strains, but Marxism-Leninism and neo-Marxism deliver the most cogent analysis of globalization. Robert Gilpin, in his article â€Å"The Political Economy of International Relations† identifies four components of Marxism-Leninism; Marx conceived three of the points, and the final is Lenin’s own modification. First is the law of disproportionality which attacks the idea of supply and demand. Since capitalists can produce goods easier than consumers can purchase them, free market economies will always over-produce certain goods. Next is the law of capital concentration. Since competition forces capitalists to produce efficiently or face extinction, capital eventually accumulates in the hands of a select few. This disparity will ultimately fuel the anger of the proletariat and lead to social revolution. Third is the law of falling profit rate. Marx predicted a complex chain reaction, where labor-saving devices would fuel under-consumption, overproduction, and mass unemployment. However, when the social revolution did not occur in the post-World War I era, Lenin revamped Marx’s communist ideology with his fourth law, the law of uneven development. Lenin asserts that the revolution failed to occur, because capitalists had used imperialism as a metaphorical release valve. Developed nations had managed to dump their goods and capital in colonies and simultaneously acquire cheap raw materials. This outlet and source of inputs relieved the pressure on capitalism, allowing it to continue for the time being. The second variation of Marxism pertinent to globalization is neo-Marxism, specifically Wallerstein’s piece, â€Å"Core and Periphery. † Core states occupy power positions in the international system and can perpetuate a system where they remain in power over the periphery. Core states have two defining characteristics: â€Å"strong state machinery, coupled with a national culture†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The periphery states are characteristically weak, and could even exist as merely a colony. They lack unity through a national cultural and have very weak state mechanisms: either a corrupt and bloated bureaucracy or a virtually non-existent one. Wallerstein alleges that the current international system is one of core states exploiting periphery states. In the article, â€Å"Globalization and the Trade in Human Body Parts,† Harrison attributes the causes of globalization to a massive crisis of both â€Å"capital accumulation and of state legitimacy† in the 1970s. According to him, capitalist states of the West faced an inability to produce the correct quantity and distribution of goods, consistent with Marxism. Furthermore, the push for efficiency led to advent of labor-saving devices and the accumulation of capital in the hands of the few. All of these occurrences caused the high unemployment and inflation characteristic of the mid-1970s. As goods and capital piled up with high levels of joblessness, â€Å"compromises that had underpinned the post-welfare state gave way once more to conflict between labor and capital. † This conflict embodies the final death rattle of capitalism before a revolution topples it. However, globalization utilized the Leninist â€Å"release valve† and stabilized the developed countries’ free market system. According to Harrison, cheap inputs and vast new markets for consumption allowed Western nations to resolve its crises of capitalism and legitimacy. He defines globalization as â€Å"the establishment of world-wide exchanges in labour, trade, technology, and capital between nations possessing different economic, military, and political powers. † Since globalization has an inherent pro-liberal, capitalist bias, it creates unfair exchanges. Harrison argues that the market for human body parts follows this pattern and mimics other unequal exchanges between developed and developing countries. In this particular market, the organ donors tend to originate from developing nations like India, Argentina, and China. The recipients tend to live in developed nations, with the most transplants performed in the US with Europe closely behind. Harrison defines this flow of organs and transplants as exploitation. All in all, the causes of globalization rest in capitalism’s desperate bid for viability. However, Harrison’s proposed causes for the start of globalization do not completely make sense. His explanation through the Marxist paradigm correctly pinpoints economic incentive as the overarching objective for globalization. Developed nations, full of goods and capital, perpetually search for outlets for their goods and for natural resource sources. This assumption fundamentally underlies the theory of the free market. However, Harrison looks to the 1970s, to the start of visible globalization, and links a crisis of capital accumulation to the economic turbulence of the 1970s. But, from the perspective presented in Kirshner’s article â€Å"Keynes, Legacies and Inquiries,† the problems instead stem from supply-shocks, creating cost-push inflation and recession. A supply shock results in inadequate levels of aggregate supply to meet aggregate demand. The OPEC oil embargo of the mid-1970s, starting in 1973, delivered this effect and caused the intense stagflation of the time. Therefore, macroeconomics is partially in conflict with the Marxist view of globalization. Developed nations did not face â€Å"a crisis of capital accumulation;† instead, they faced a crisis of productive capabilities. Due to the lack of crude oil, producers could not create enough goods to meet the demand. Therefore it makes more sense that developed nations pushed for a global economy to secure cheap natural resources, rather than look for more sources of demand. The idea of capital accumulation crisis must be abandoned, along with the ominous predictions of violent revolution. After such considerations, a theory of macroeconomic Marxism succinctly locates the starting origins of globalization. However, this explanation delivers an increasingly poor explanation for modern day globalization and its progression past initial causes. The economies of developing nations have gone through a tertiarization process, defined as the transition of an economy into predominantly service-oriented jobs. This change has led to decreased manufacturing and decreased American exports. Marxism offered a convincing argument in the 1970s and early 1980s, when America had a large trade surplus and a minor trade deficit. However, America’s trade deficit has ballooned to astronomical proportions as the shift away from manufacturing has become more pronounced. Therefore, the idea of developed nations, or core states, exploiting and preying upon developing nations, or periphery states, for markets no longer makes sense. What can explain globalization in the 1990s through the modern day? With the rise of East Asian NICs, as Steven Haggard’s article names them, and developing nations like India and China, wealthy nations have grown increasingly dependent on their cheap goods. As these poorer manufacturing-based powers rise, they hold much more power on the world stage. Huntington supports this assertion in his article, â€Å"The Clash of Civilizations,† stating that â€Å"non-Western civilizations no longer remain the objects of history†¦but join the West as the movers and shapers of history. † This non-Western empowerment deeply contradicts all strains of Marxism, which contain some rich-poor exploitative element. Neo-Marxism and Harrison’s fundamental argument places globalization in the context of wealthy nations using capitalism and unequal exchanges to take advantage of poorer nations. However, core states of economic power no longer completely dictate the rules of the game, and use periphery states as dumping grounds for goods. Instead, the opposite has occurred; rising periphery states have begun to rapidly manufacture goods and export them to the core. This inversion of Marxism explains the continued push of globalization, now fueled by the flow of goods from developing to developed nations. This interaction can even be exploitative in the opposite direction. For example, America has accumulated an enormous trade deficit with China. This burgeoning trade deficit is very advantageous to China, strengthening the value of its currency. However, Kishner describes the deleterious effects of this occurrence in his article, stating that it â€Å"forces the burden of international adjustments on deficit countries†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The disproportion also weakens the dollar and erodes confidence in its ability to store value. Gilpin also alludes to the positive and negative effects of a trade surplus in â€Å"Politics of Transnational Economic Relations,† mentioning how America tolerated the 1. 5 billion trade surplus that Japan enjoyed in the 1970s. America has tried to use rhetoric and diplomacy to resolve this issue but does not dare to use any stronger tools due to its dependency on China as a trading partner. In this example, China gains economic power at the expense of the American dollar. Developing countries sometimes occupy the throne of power on key issues; this reversal deeply contradicts Marxism. Finally, commercial liberalism can be used to understand the effects of globalization. According to commercial liberalist Richard Rosecrance’s article â€Å"The Rise of the Trading State,† trade, capitalism, and free markets are forces of peace. Commercial liberalists believe in the use of trade to forge communication and connections with other nations. Eventually, a net of economic interdependence will form, which discourages war. War in this environment destroys trade opportunities, and therefore, increases the political consequence of declaring war. These strains of thinkers in turn consider imperialist interests to be in utter conflict with trading interests. A country either chooses to embrace free markets and trade or impose heavy mercantilist restrictions. According to this theory, peace occurs when a country trades autonomy and the quest of national power for more extensive access to resources of the world. Markets further facilitate peace by allowing the spread of culture and understanding. This trading and cultural exchange eventually leads to a peaceful world of trading states, rather than various imperialist nations competing for hegemony. In â€Å"Jihad vs. McWorld,† Barber identifies two occurrences closely linked to globalization that ironically oppose and engender each other simultaneously. First is the argument of a global â€Å"macropeace,† facilitated by global trade. Barber makes the argument that no nation is truly independent, connected by everything from the environment to pandemics. Barber further postulates that â€Å"positive economic forces that have globalism as their conscious object† act to bind nations together. These forces have also deeply eroded national sovereignty as multinational corporations and international banking systems lack any national identity and do not reflect any particular nationhood. These global economic devices do not exist under the jurisdiction of any individual nation, which according to Barber, has renewed efforts for international peace through an international economy. Concurrently, this system has also turned â€Å"religion, culture, and ethnic identity† into â€Å"marginal elements of a working identity. † This erosion of differences facilitates a peace throughout the world, with the pursuit of wealth undermining any war like tendencies. Furthermore, Barber talks about the mingling of culture as well as trade, describing this concept as â€Å"a product of pop culture driven by expansionist commerce. † The idea of globalization also refers to the cultural imperialism of the West. More youth around the world idoloize American pop culture figures, like Michael Jackson or Lady Gaga. Foreign children drink Coco-Cola and salivate over Harley-Davidson motorcycles and Cadillac cars. American culture has permeated the entire world from pop icons to the golden arches of McDonalds; this fact is undeniable. This intermingling of culture again facilitates cooperation and understanding between nations, decreasing the chance of war. Barber’s argument is a convincing argument of commercial liberalism. The essence of this paradigm’s argument is the idea of commerce breeding interdependence. This fact could not be clearer now, during the most devastating economic collapse in over eighty years. As Eurozone nations flounder, the American stock markets dip and rise, based on news of their actions. This certainly smacks of a deep, systemic structure in which consequences for one nation affect many other nations as well. In such a system, a broad scale war would be most disadvantageous, as damage to one nations’ economy would impact the whole. Furthermore, cultural exchanges between nations certainly seem to have brought people closer, as the world becomes an increasingly smaller place. This two-pronged event has created a world where all-out war between states is now politically unattractive and economically unfathomable. Barber’s analysis explains both the market independence and the increased level of cultural mixing in the world; it also explains why wars between two nations have grown rare in the post-Cold War era. Nevertheless, a significant counterargument can be made through to this idea. Many argue that although much of the conflict is not between states, war does still exist. The whole world has not entered Barber’s â€Å"future in shimmery pastels, a busy portrait†¦with fast music, fast computers, and fast food†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Even more would argue that much of the world abhors the cultural influence of the US, citing it as immoral or hedonistic. Huntington mentions a return-to-roots sensation among non-Western states, with states starting to turn in and focus on their own regional identities. With many nations like Saudi Arabia and Iran still practicing religious law passionately and pockets of ethnic warfare still existing in Africa, it sometimes seems counterintuitive to talk of a global peace. However, the identification of a counter-reaction to the globalization can explain all these seeming contradictions. Barber identifies this point through the use of constructivism. Constructivism makes the argument that knowledge of the event does matter in truly understanding an international occurrence. In Henry Nau’s article, â€Å"Why We Fight over Foreign Policy,† he strongly focuses on the political, economic, social identity of a state or states when defining constructivism, emphasizing â€Å"the ideas, norms, and values†¦that shape their discourse and identity. † Constructivists believe that ideas and ideology drive nations to act in certain ways, often creating positive relationships with similar countries and harboring hostility toward those different. Constructivism does have one major disadvantage: it cannot make a policy prescription for a problem. However, it does often prove poignant in analysis of current events and in prediction of future events. This perspective is immensely effective in understanding Barber’s argument and refuting the aforementioned criticism. His argument is bipartite; after identifying the macropeace, he identifies a phenomenon that he nicknames â€Å"jihad,† referring to any violence motivated by â€Å"dogmatic and violent particularism. † This form of conflict relates to the construction of one’s identity, whether by ethnicity, language, religion, etc. According to Barber, violence stems from people of differing identities resisting the homogenizing influence of globalization. It can be seen as a reactionary event to the growing uniformity of the world to Western cultural norms and ideas, facilitated by the unification of national markets. This return-to-roots search for identity eventually takes a violent form against those who have differing identities. This causes the various â€Å"microwars,† defined as most regional conflicts between two groups, rather than states. Barber cites examples of many people, fighting identity-based war on the pretext of self-determination, including Jews, Kurds, Arabs, and Ossetians. These conflicts are the essence of constructivism, isolating identity-based differences as a major source of international conflict. However, Barber’s constructivist theory is not without detractors. Samuel Huntington, author of the â€Å"Clash of Civilizations,† has a different idea of the world. He describes vast swaths of land as individual civilizations and describes conflict on two levels: the micro-level where small groups in different civilizations struggle and the macro-level where states from different civilizations for hegemony. He does not define terrorism as a reaction to American globalization and the erosion of Islamic identity, but instead as conflict between Islamic and Western civilizations. Barber contrastingly defines conflict as intracivilizational, rather than transcivilizational, between people â€Å"without countries inhabiting nations that they just cannot call their own. † Huntington also predicts that future conflict will grow bloodier, due to increasing awareness of civilizational divides and these conflicts â€Å"will occur along the cultural fault lines separating civilizations. † In opposition, Barber portends a future in which the macropeace will ultimately win out; although, â€Å"jihad† will continue to be seen spontaneously. Despite the intuitive nature of Huntington’s theory and predictions, it is simply too reductionist and parsimonious to adequately explain the complex world of international relations. He omits whole continents in his argument and completely assumes homogeneity within civilizations. These criticisms are eloquently expressed in Katzenstein’s article â€Å"A World of Plural and Pluralistic Civilizations. † He voices the same fundamental disagreement as Barber, that civilizations are not internally uniform. He describes them, not as simply larger nations, but as â€Å"loosely coupled† and â€Å"internally differentiated. † This idea of differentiation supports Barber’s assertions, agreeing with the idea of major clashes occurring within civilizations, rather than between civilizations. Katzenstein also references that this fact has been proven with both qualitative and statistical means. In this regard, Huntington seems rather flippant, disregarding empiricism for an intuitive, simple theory. Despite a smooth and logical premise, Huntington’s opinions about the world can be quickly refuted. Huntington’s predictions about the future also seem less accurate than Barber’s, because Huntington neglects an important facet of the world. Huntington does not mention economic interdependence at all in his piece, despite its overwhelming influence in every facet of life. Utilizing Rosecrane’s theory of trading states, economic self-interest will cause the macropeace to win out, consistent with Barber. Globalization is unavoidable. Its methods and consequences are ubiquitous, from the food one eats to the job prospects one faces. It has had both negative and positive effects on the world, facilitating both economic prosperity and global terrorism. The initial causes of globalization can be analyzed with a modified Marxist viewpoint. However, as the phenomenon has progressed, Marxism no longer provides a convincing argument. The intricate economic web connecting the nations of the world through globalization can be understood through commercial liberalism. The contrasting sectarian violence also resulting from globalization can be understood through constructivism. As globalization changes and as America’s role on the world stage grows, these analyses will mostly likely grow and develop as well.

Eve white vs Real eve

Simmer was diagnosed with multiple personality disorder. She was one of the first cases doctors had ever come across. With being such a special case, Chris was asked if she would be interested in having a movie made about her life. Chris and her family decided to peruse the movie, but not to use her real name. The directors of the film decided to give her the name of Eve White. However, there were parts of the movie that did not happen In real life or were twisted In the making of The Three Faces of Eve.Having a disorder Like Chris was diagnosed with Is not only hard to the patient, but also hard for friends and family. In Chris' life she had a loving husband and two children. Eve was In a bad relationship where she did not love her husband and a young daughter, Bonnie who she adored. When Eve White turned Into Eve Black, a rollicking young woman with a sly grin, she would physically harm Bonnie and would be extremely mean to her the little girl. Eve Black strangled Bonnie one day an d happened to Chris' eldest daughter as well when a different personality came out.Chris' children say that none of their mother's personalities ever hurt them, but they defiantly had their favorites, which they got across in the movie. Bonnie enjoyed when Cane's personality came out because she was kind and playful with her. In the movie Jane finds a man who she falls in love with, but does not feel as if she could marry him because she has more than one personality. They ended up getting married which was a true story from Chris' life.However, in the movie they did not put in that they did not tell anyone about her disorder because her new husband Don and their children would have to move because the neighbors would not wanting her to live by them because she is â€Å"crazy. † The Faces of Eve was based off of Chris' life, but Chris had 22 personalities instead of Just three. In the movie when both Eves' leave the body for good she is having a flashback to when her grandmot her had died. Eve is screaming about how her mother made her kiss the casket when she did not want too.Chris was furious that they put the blame on her mother in the movie when it was really her neighbor who made her do it. This flashback happened the day that the Eves' left her body for good and Jane stayed and she was cured for the rest of her life. This was a complete lie. Chris was cured for a little bit, but after a few months she realized the blackouts were coming back and more personalities were forming. For 44 years of Chris' life she had 22 different personalities who had control of her life.Chris Simmer has a book she wrote, I am Eve, and a movie, Three Faces of Eve all about her life and her Journey through her disorder. Chris and Eve were essentially the same person, but come across differently In the movie and her real life story. Chris' life was much more difficult than It made It seem In the movie. Chris shared her story, not for the money, but to spread the word for others out there who are dealing with the same disorder to let them know that they are not alone. She also shared her runner to let others know what she went through because she was one of the first cases to be diagnosed.Eve white vs.. Real eve By marshland were parts of the movie that did not happen in real life or were twisted in the making of The Three Faces of Eve. Having a disorder like Chris was diagnosed with is not loving husband and two children. Eve was in a bad relationship where she did not turned into Eve Black, a rollicking young woman with a sly grin, she would physically same person, but come across differently in the movie and her real life story. Chris' life was much more difficult than it made it seem in the movie. Chris shared her

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Soc project 2 - Essay Example They eventually find a place where they connect with one of them and then start life over the place. The traditional life they leave is depicted when they carry their luggage in a skin that they later on use as the covering material for their houses (National Film Board of Canada, 1967). The cultural theme is set in a way that woman does chores that are quite different from those undertaken by men in any traditional society. As men keep themselves busy with construction of their Eskimos it is clearly shown that there is close relationship between the family members when their female counterparts assists them by carrying stones to put around the Eskimo. This film gives out the real picture of what happened in the Eskimo life and way of life before the days of the European acculturation. The cultural and the economic life majorly depended on the use of land and fishing. Life over the arctic regions was totally rigorous. Men and women of the Eskimos purely struggled to make the ends mee t. (National Film Board of Canada, 1967) The traditional way of life is fully portrayed in a manner that it shows women doing their chores in a way that is totally different from the modern set ups where people use modern means of food preparation, storage, transportation and housing system; in this set up it is very traditional. The traditional chores that were particular distributed according to gender and this is clearly shown when men take most of their time to do heavy jobs associated with their masculinity nature and women take the chores that are associated with their feminine nature such as taking care of the children and food preparation. There is that kind of mutual agreement and respect that is shown amongst the family members where the child obeys the orders of the mother, the man and the woman show that close relationship of a wife and a husband. The use of gestures is widely used in the movie especially when

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Vacation tours to Europe invariably package visits to disparate regions: cities, mountains, and the seaside. Bundling, a type of second degree price discrimination, is most profitable when: 9. Which of the following pricing policies best identifies when a product should be expanded, maintained, or discontinued? 10. ____ is a new product pricing strategy which results in a high initial product price. This price is reduced over time as demand at the higher price is satisfied. 11. Which of the following is not among the functions of contract? 12. Mac trucks and their dealers would likely have an organizational form of 13. Contracts are distinguished from tactical alliances by which of the following characteristics: 14. Which of the following are not approaches to resolving the principal-agent problem? 15. When retail bicycle dealers advertise and perform warranty repairs but do not deliver the personal selling message that Schwinn has designed as part of the marketing plan but cannot observe at less than prohibitive cost, the manufacturer has encountered a problem of ____. 16. ____ occurs whenever a third party receives or bears costs arising from an economic transaction in which the individual (or group) is not a direct participant. 17. The antitrust laws regulate all of the following business decisions except ____. 18. The sentiment for increased deregulation in the late 1970s and early 1980s has been felt most significantly in the price regulation of 19. The Herfindahl-Hirschman index (also shortened to just the Herfindahl index) is a measure of 20. The lower the barriers to entry and exit, the more nearly a market structure fits the ____ market model. 21. If the acceptance of Project A makes it impossible to accept Project B, these projects are: 22. Cost-benefit analysis is the public sector counterpart to ____ used in private, profit-oriented firms. 23. The weights used in calculating the firms weighted-average cost of capital are equal to the proportion of debt and equity ____. 24. In order to help assure that all relevant factors will be considered, the capital-expenditure selection process should include the following steps except: 25. The social rate of discount is best approximated by: 1. Theoretically, in a long-run cost function: 2. The degree of operating leverage is equal to the ____ change in ____ divided by the ____ change in ____. 3. Which of the following is not an assumption of the linear breakeven model: 4. In the linear breakeven model, the breakeven sales volume (in dollars) can be found by multiplying the breakeven sales volume (in units) by: 5. In the linear breakeven model, the difference between selling price per unit and variable cost per unit is referred to as: 6. The short-run cost function is: 7. The problems of asymmetric information exchange arise ultimately because 8. A firm in pure competition would shut down when: 9. An experience good is one that: 10. In the purely competitive case, marginal revenue (MR) is equal to: 11. If price exceeds average costs under pure competition, ____ firms will enter the industry, supply will ____, and price will be driven ____. 12. Buyers anticipate that the temporary warehouse seller of unbranded computer equipment will 13. What is the profit maximization point for a firm in a purely competitive environment? 14. The practice by telephone companies of charging lower long-distance rates at night than during the day is an example of: 15. The demand curve facing the firm in ____ is the same as the industry demand curve. 16. Declining cost industries 17. Of the following, which is not an economic rationale for public utility regulation? 18. When the cross elasticity of demand between one product and all other products is low, one is generally referring to a(n) ____ situation. 19. Regulatory agencies engage in all of the following activities except _______. 20. Barometric price leadership exists when 21. A cartel is a situation where firms in the industry 22. The existence of a kinked demand curve under oligopoly conditions may result in 23. Some industries that have rigid prices. In those industries, we tend to 24. If a cartel seeks to maximize profits, the market share (or quota) for each firm should be set at a level such that the ____ of all firms is identical. 25. A(n) ____ is characterized by a relatively small number of firms producing a product.

Myth Of Sisyphus And The Allegory Cave Essay Example for Free

Myth Of Sisyphus And The Allegory Cave Essay In the world of philosophy, it is widely known conception that Socrates and Plato had been the first few philosophers. A friend of mine once told me that some things that are said by philosophers could be footnoted to Plato. However, the validity of this statement may still be dubitable or debatable. But there is a point in this statement. It would then be hard for me to identify which philosopher had presented a compelling vision of the struggles and meaning of human life. Plato had presented as an idealist may have claimed that the man from the cave who had accepted the glaring sun would have to be the person who had sought the truth. Taking out the metaphorical aspect in the allegory, it seems that what Plato wants to convey is that man and his folly could not be reined at times especially when they are presented with the Truth. A man then who is trying to present this Truth would then be deemed as insane or they would shun his/her assertions as false or even wrong (Brians). On the other hand, Camus has presented us with a different side of human nature. Upon reading the Myth, I could fairly deduce that Camus wanted to convey the idea that Sisyphus’ ordeal could be taken in twofold. First is that it may just be pure torture to not be able to fulfill an ultimate goal and it could be seen as a victory on his part viz. being able to fulfill the destiny and be happy about it (Keefer). Reading what was said above and reading further the original text, there seems to be a connection between the two philosophers. The connection here is that Plato in his search for the truth is like Camus’ where it could be inferred that Camus’ discussion about life in general could mean finding the truth about life by doing the best we could in what we have in life. The connection may be arbitrary for others but this is what I could fairly deduce, so far. This certain connection then is making it hard for me to actually choose which philosopher had best described the meaning and struggles of human life. I could always go for the idiosyncratic or eccentric way that people tend to cling to ignorance and half-truths, which would be taken here as the little ‘t,’ or I could always go for the peculiar way where people would tend to find happiness in the absurd. Whichever philosopher I would choose, it would still trickle down to one idea, which is that the meaning and struggles that is present in human life could no longer be grasped in just choosing between the two philosophers. What they could present to us though is that a certain view about it but taking this question into the big picture would make it hard for a person to actually present an answer as quickly as one could blink the eye. Alas, the specifications had been set. In lieu of what were mentioned above, it is in great belief that Albert Camus has presented us a unique and dark approach in the struggles and meaning of human life. Not because his time is much closer than the present time but his approach has given me a new perspective that Plato did not. Camus, description of human life could be construed as something ‘absurd. ’ It seems that he believed in finding happiness in the absurdities that are presented to us and still say that â€Å"all is well (Keefer). † In a way, his assertion could be observed through other people in this world. Some people rejoice in the merest things and some people find it hard to be happy about the simplest things. To sum up what constitutes human nature and life would take me a lifetime or more to make me come up with an answer. What could be done though is the speculation that Camus’ claim could be justified in few of the people that I know. What is essentially a big score for Camus’ work is that he had been able to deduce a certain aspect of human nature and life where there are those who could rejoice in the mundane thinking that this is their life and the struggles that they have vary with such embracing of life. Plato, by using his works, could be deemed as an idealist. His concept of the world of forms and world of objects (â€Å"The Philosophy of Plato†), itself could be a way to rationalize his idealism. Yet, Plato had been one of the first few philosophers of his time and his deductions are commendable. This would not mean though that Plato would not have his flaws. One of this could be his assertion that man would continually find truths and few or nobody could be able to truly grasp the Truth since this Truth resides in the world of forms and it is what could be found in our soul (â€Å"The Philosophy of Plato†). What could be presented to us then is the replica of those Truths. This assertion may have been reasonable enough but as the course of the changing path of philosophy, Plato’s work could now be compared to other philosophers. The struggle then that a person would have according to Plato is to be able to find the truth and hopefully discover the big ‘T,’ Truth (Brians). In this aspect, what could be the strongest point that the opposition could present then is the fact that indeed some people are still struggling to find the truth. The meaning of life or our real identity is few of the truths that could still be found. This may be a big point for the opposition but not all of the people would believe this as so. They would naturally attribute this as curiosity that we have regarding the concept of life and some people usually get lost along the way that they tend to just accept the absurdities that are happening around them. Finding the meaning of life and wondering about the struggles that presents us would have taken us a lifetime. It is actually a tedious and sometimes a disappointing exercise. Yet most of the people are still, consciously or unconsciously, tries to resolve this big matter. I may not be in a position to prescribe how a person would be able to achieve these feats but I may be able to give out my own opinions about it. Choosing Camus’ work would definitely imply that I am under the impression that human life and conditions would not be easily resolved by trying to look for it in the form of the big ‘T’ or Truth like Plato had insinuated in his allegory. It is in my opinion that some people would not be actually be able to find the real meaning of life but he/she could more or less find a certain idea of what it would mean to live out the life that he/she has. Camus had summed it up through his Myth. In a way, it would be up to us on how we would be able to address the jackpot question that is life. We may be the defeated hero or we could take it out as the defiance against the forever frustration of the question and try to live out the life that we already know it to be. Although this would not necessarily mean stagnation but it would be called embracing what we have and try to make it our own ultimate goal to succeed. This mean then that people would be able to change the course or path that they could take especially when it could change in the long run. The only assertion that I could make then is that it would then depend on perspectives. Work Cited Article from the link given : Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus The Allegory of the cave. htm The Philosophy of Plato. 2002. September 21, 2007. http://radicalacademy. com/philplato1. htm.

Case Study Stanbic Bank Tanzania Essay

Case Study Stanbic Bank Tanzania Essay Stanbic Tanzania is one of members of the Standard Bank Group. Idea of establishment of Standard Bank Group was brought by group of business men in 1857 due to economic prosperity in Port Elizabeth in South Africa, which was the major port and was used to the export of wool. The man behind the Idea was John Paterson who with fellow business men wanted to establish the Standard bank of Port Elizabeth. This idea did not work due to fear of competition from the existing of the two banks. Paterson sailed to England to search for support of British Investors. Patersons efforts were successful and in April 1860, a prospectus for The Standard Bank of British South Africa was published in London. In 1862 The Standard Bank of British South Africa was established. On 15 October 1862 the bank was incorporated and registered as a limited liability company. Its capital was fixed at à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤1,000,000 with 10,000 shares of à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¤100 each. The Standard Bank of British South Africa op eration commenced in 1863 and Port Elizabeth remained to the Bank Head Quarters. In 1883 the word British was dropped from the name. In 1962 a subsidiary company was formed to carry business in South and South West Africa (now Namibia) under the banks old name. The name Standard Bank Limited was adopted for the holding company in England (subsequently to become Standard Chartered Bank plc). Standard Bank Group was established in 1969 as Standard Bank Investment Corporation the holding company of SBSA. Standard Chartered sold its 39% stake in Standard Bank Group in 1987, transferring complete ownership of the holding company to South Africa. The Standard Bank group, based in Johannesburg, South Africa, has total assets of about US$81 billion and employs about 35 000 people worldwide. Its network spans 17 sub-Saharan countries (including South Africa) and extends to 21 countries on other continents, including the key financial centres of Europe, the United States and Asia. In addition to banking, Standard Bank has a strategic interest in the insurance industry through its control of the Liberty Group, one of Africas leading life offices and financial services groups. The group has one of the biggest single networks of banking services in Africa. Through this network we offer a wide range of banking products and services which are delivered through more than 1 000 points of representation in 17 African countries (including Tanzania). We are active in international and cross-border transactions and in those areas liaise closely with Standard Bank Corporate and Investment Banking and Standard Bank London. We offer a wide range of financial products and services in the following markets: Personal We are committed to providing our customers with the security, convenience and value for money they expect from an international bank with African roots. As such, we offer you a range of products and services that enhances your banking experience. Business We recognise that as a Business Banking customer you lead a busy life. Through our comprehensive service offering we aim to simplify your financial transactions so you can spend more time on your business and less time on your banking. Corporate and Investment Our corporate structure ensures that we are able to provide customized products and services to both established customers as well as newer, entrepreneurial companies. By focusing on personalised solutions and ongoing financial product development, we are committed to delivering solutions that support our clientssuccess where it matters most. Stanbic Tanzania background Stanbic Bank Tanzania was established in 1995 by Standard Bank group to take over operations of the defunct Meridien Biao Bank Tanzania limited. Stanbic Bank Tanzania is one of the members under the Standard Bank group. The bank has eight branches: City branch in Dar es Salaam Main branch in Dar es Salaam Industrial branch in Dar es Salaam Mayfair branch in Dar es Salaam Arusha branch in Arusha Moshi branch in Moshi Mwanza branch in Mwanza Mbeya branch in Mbeya Stanbic Centre branch in Dar es Salam Vision and values of Standard Bank group Our vision We aspire to be a leading emerging markets financial services organisation. Stanbic bank core values Serving our customers Stanbic Bank aim to do everything in their power to ensure that their customers are provided with the products, services and solutions to suit their needs, provided that everything they do for them is based on sound business principles. Growing our people Stanbic Bank encourages and helps their people to develop to their full potential, and measure their leaders on how well they grow and challenge the people they lead. Delivering to shareholders The Standard bank understands that they earn the right to exist by providing appropriate long-term returns to their shareholders. The bank tries extremely hard to meet various targets and deliver on their commitments. Being proactive Standard Bank strives to stay ahead by anticipating rather than reacting, but their actions are always carefully considered. Working in teams The bank, and all aspects of their work, is interdependent. The bank also appreciates that, as teams, they can achieve much greater things than as individuals. They value teams within and across business units, divisions and countries. Guarding against arrogance Bank has confidence in its ability to achieve ambitious goals and celebrate success, but it must never allow itself to become arrogant. Respecting each other Standard Bank staff has the highest regard for the dignity of all people. They do respect each other and what Standard Bank stands for. The bank recognises that there are corresponding obligations associated with our individual rights. Upholding the highest levels of integrity The banks entire business model is based on trust and integrity as perceived by its stakeholders, especially their customers. SWOT analysis Stanbic strengths Performance oriented (rewards) staff. Stanbic Bank uses Performance index as a key to success. Staffs are rewarded based on their performance. This has built a culture which has encouraged the bank staff to deal more with corporate clients with big business. Portfolio diversification Competitive advantage on products offered by the bank. The Bank offer a wide range of products which are more competitive compare to other banks. Among other products includes, Capital and investment products, Assert and vehicle financing, Home loans, affordable agricultural loans with a guarantee up to 70% of the acquired loan. Networking with internationals hence meeting customers expectations. Standard Bank group operates in more than 37 countries worldwide hence form a large network with their customers. This means customer can easily operated to any of Standard Bank group branch conveniently. Security system in the branches. The Bank has invested much on Technology especially on security hence provide insurance of customer assets both financial and non financial Wide range of currency, due to its wide network coverage the Bank operates with a range of currency hence become more convenience to more of its customer compare to local Banks in Tanzania Weather index insurance in agricultural products. More recently Agriculture in Tanzania has become a top priority nation agenda. Stanbic Bank Tanzania offer affordable loans with guaranteed to 70 percent to its customers. Apart from that the bank has adopted Weather index insurance in connection with agricultural loans. This has attracted more customers to operate with Stanbic Bank. Weakness Small branch network in Tanzania,-Currently Stanbic Tanzania has on 11 branches in Tanzania which in this case do not reach its customer in most of the regions. Apart from small Branch networks, Stanbic Bank has been focusing more on corporate clients leaving behind the retail customer occupying the big populations in Tanzania. Opportunity Branch network expansion in other region Retail banking Competitive products not offered in other areas Threats Fraudulent as it not local as multinational organisation Competition Chapters 2 Organisation structure What is organisation? Organisation is defined as group of individuals, large or small that cooperate under direction of executive leadership in accomplishment of certain common objective (by Keith Devis). Louis defined organisation as a process of identifying and grouping the work performed, defining and delegating responsibility and authority and establishing relationship for the purpose of enabling people to work most effective together to accomplish the indented objective. Organisation can also be defined as form of any human association for attainment of common purpose. From above definitions it is clear that any organisation have main four components namely task, people, structure and Technology. Task is the purpose of an organisation existence. Every organisation has specific objectives to be accomplished that define its existence by producing outputs in terms of goods and services. People are the workforce or human part of the organisation which help in performing different function in the organisa tion. To ensure that different task are well coordinated organisation must have structure which tells the basic arrangement of people in the organisation. Technology is the intellectual and mechanical process used to transform inputs into products and services. Definition and types of organisation structure Mintzberg,( 1979:2) defined organisation structure as the sum total ways in which it divides its labour into distinct task and achieves the coordination among them Organisation structure is framework of policies and rules within which lines of authority, communication and rights and duties of people are identified and arranged. Mintzberg further differentiated Organisation structure to be formal or informal. Roles, power and responsibilities are delegated, controlled and coordinated through the organisation structure. Organisation structure also determines how communication is done between levels of management. The type of the organisation structure mostly depends on objectives and strategies set by of the organisation to achieve the objectives. In organisation with a centralized structure, most of the decisions are centered to the top management while in decentralised structures powers for decision making is distributed where departments have varied degree of autonomy. The organisation structure determine the approach in which it operates and its performance. The Structure allows the responsibilities for different functions and processes to be clearly allocated to different departments and employees. The structure also determines level of resources utilization, it also monitors the activities of the organisation and organisation structure promotes the accountability for areas of work. The erroneous organisation structure will hinder the success of the organisation business. Organisational structures should aim to maximize the efficiency and success of the Organisation. An effective organisational structure will facilitate working relationships between various sections of the organisation. It will retain order and command at the same time promoting flexibility and creativity The organizational structure is mainly influenced by internal factors such as size, product and skills of the workforce influence. The chain of command will lengthen and the spans of control will widen as the business of the organisation. The higher the level of skill each employee has the more the business will make use of the matrix structure to maximize these skills across the organization. Burns and Stalker (1961) introduced the notion of two different types of structure i.e. The Mechanistic structure which is characterised by rigid divisions of activities, clearly defined roles and hierarchically organised authority and The Organic Structure which consists of more fluid and flexible working arrangements. Organic Mechanistic Channels of Communication Open with free information flow throughout the organization Operating styles Allowed to vary freely Authority for decisions Based on the expertise of the individual Free Adaptation By the organization to changing circumstance Emphasis on getting things done unconstrained by formally laid down procedures Loose informal control with emphasis on norm of cooperation Flexible on-job behaviour permitted to be shaped by the requirement Decision Making participation and group consensus Highly structured, restricted information flow Must be uniform and restricted Based on formal line management position Reluctant Adaptation Emphasis on formally laid down procedures Tight control Constrained on-job behaviour Only superiors make decisions Firms with Mechanistic structures pursue centralised decision making arrangements, strict enforcement of adherence to rules and procedures, rigid control over information content and flows, and carefully designed reporting relationships (Slevin and Covin, 1997). Organic structure on the other hand, reflects an organisations emphasis on delegation, participation, creativity, openness and adaptability (Brouthers et al, 2000). Mechanistic structures are preferable for analyzing new products and processes and for implementing such entrepreneurial endeavors, as concentrated power often prevents imaginative solutions of problems. On the other hand Organic structures are enhancing the use of rational strategic decision-making by providing the flexibility needed to take advantages of market opportunities or minimize a competitive threat. The pursuit of shareholders value by private firms may be facilitated by the flexibility afforded by Organic structures. Hence it also proves the positive relationship between organic organization structures and private ownership Mechanistic organization tends to offer a less suitable environment for managing the creativity and the innovation process. On the other hand organic system is adapted to solve problem in unstable conditions, when new and unfamiliar problems arise. This entails the importance of designing an effective organisation structure which will be flexible and able to respond to future demands and development. The effective structure will be able to adapt changing environmental influences and also will be able to provide social satisfaction for employees in the organisation. A poor organisational structure make good performance impossible no matter how good individual Managers may be. Poor structures are likely to have low motivation and morale to employees, slow and poor decisions, not cost effective and they are likely not to quickly respond to new opportunities. There are two specific principal of general interest in when structuring the organisation i.e. the span of control and the chain of command which need to be balanced in designing the effective organisation structure although there is no a right combination effective to every organisation.. Span of control Mullins 2009 defines span of control as the number of subordinates who report directly to a given manager or supervisor. V.A. Graicunas developed a mathematical formula for span of control which show the limitation of number of subordinates who can effectively be supervised by a Manager. The number of subordinates is determined by total direct and cross relationships R= n (2n/n+n-1) Where n is the number of subordinates and R is the number of interrelationships. Urwick supported the idea of Graicunas and suggested that span of control should not exceed 5 and at most six direct subordinates whose works interconnect. However from Woodwards study span of control varies from organisations depending on type of technology and production systems. Mullins further pointed other factor influencing the span of control includes: Nature of the organisation, complexity of work, range of responsibilities, similarity of function Ability and personal qualities of the manager Amount of time manager is available to spend on subordinates Ability and training of subordinates Effectiveness of co-ordination nature of communication Physical location of the organisation Length of the command chain Importance of span of control With wider span of control: It is difficult to supervise subordinates effectively and may stress more the mangers Planning and development, training and control may suffer Wide span of control may limit opportunities to grow Too wide span of control may result to slowness to adapt to changes On the other hand with too narrow span of control It may lead to problem of coordination and consistency in decision making and hinder effective communication across the organisation Morale and initiative of subordinates may suffer due to close to a level of supervision It increases administrative costs It can lead to additional level of authority in the organisation creating unnecessary long chain of command. Chain of command This refers to the number of different levels in the structure of the organisation, the chain, or the hierarchical command. The chain of command establishes the vertical graduation of authority and responsibility and framework for superior-subordinate relationship. A clear line of authority and responsibility is necessary for the effective operations of the organisations. Few chains of command will help decision making and fasten communication in the organisation. Types of organisation structures Tall organisation structures A tall organisation structure has relative many levels of management and supervision with long chain of command from the top to the bottom of the organisation. Tall structure normally do not exceed 8 levels of management because number of levels decrease span of controls. The tall organisation structures have the following advantage Span of control is narrow where each manager has small number of employees to supervise hence easy to control. There is clear management structure There is clear distinction on function of each layer hence clear line of responsibility and control In the tall organisation structure there is clear succession and promotion ladder. However there is some disadvantage of the Tall organisation structure Freedom and responsibilities for each employee is very restricted There is slow decision making as approval may be required from each level of authority. Communication is slow as it takes place through many levels of management Tall structure has high costs of management as managers for each level are paid more than their subordinates. Flat organisation structure On the other hand unlike tall organisation structure a flat organisation have relatively few layers or may be just one layer of management. This means that there is shorter and wide span of control. Small organisations usually opt for flat organisation structure since it has small number of management layers. Flat organisation structure there is greater communication between Management and employees which influence better team spirit and it is less bureaucracy hence quick decision making. Flat structure has less cost of Management due to fewer level or layers of management. However among other constrain of flat organisation structure includes; Employees may be controlled by more than one manager hence employee may be confused on the reporting channels, Organisation growth may be hindered with this type of structure, Structure is limited to small organisations and hence do not fit to big organisations Function of each department or person could be distorted and amalgamate into the job roles of others.   Hierarchical organisation structure An organisation where employees are ranked at various levels within the organisation is known as hierarchical, each level is one above the other. At each level in the sequence, a person has a number of workers directly reporting to him/her, within their span of control. Under this type of structure there is a tall hierarchical organisation which has many levels and a flat hierarchical organisation will only have a few. The way authority is organized is a typical pyramid shape. A traditional hierarchical structure clearly defines each employees role within the organisation and defines the nature of their relationship with other employees. Hierarchical organisations are often tall with narrow spans of control, which gets wider as we move down the structure. They are often centralised with the most important decisions being taken by senior management.   Ã‚   In the twentieth century as organisations grow bigger, hierarchical organisations were popular because they could ensure command and control of the organisation. However with the advent of globalisation and widespread use of technology, in the 1990s tall hierarchical organisations began to downsize and reduce their workforce. Technology was able to carry out many of the functions previously carried out by humans. The Hierarchical Organisations have the following main advantages Authority and responsibilities are clearly defined There is a clear defined career growth of members of the organisation The hierarchical organisation structure create environment which favour effective use of specialist managers The structure makes employees to be very loyal to their department within the organisation. On the other hand hierarchical structure has disadvantages This structure tend to be bureaucratic and respond slowly to changing so as to meet customers needs and Markets within which the organisation operates Poor communication within the organisation especially for horizontal communication Poor decision making as it may only focus to individual department rather than the organisation as a whole. Centralised and decentralised organisation structure In a centralised organisation head office (or a few senior managers) will retain the major responsibilities and powers. Conversely decentralised organisations will spread responsibility for specific decisions across various outlets and lower level managers, including branches or units located away from head office/head quarters. An example of a decentralised structure is Tesco the supermarket chain. Each store of Tesco has a store manager who can make certain decisions concerning their store. The store manager is responsible to a regional manager. Organisations may also decide that a combination of centralisation and decentralisation is more effective. For example functions such as accounting and purchasing may be centralised to save costs. Whilst tasks such as recruitment may be decentralised as units away from head office may have staffing needs specific only to them.   Ã‚   Certain organisations implement vertical decentralisation which means that they have handed the power to make certain decisions, down the hierarchy of their organisation. Vertical decentralisation increases the input; people at the bottom of the organisation chart have in decision making.    Horizontal decentralisation spreads responsibility across the organisation. A good example of this is the implementation of new technology across the whole business. This implementation will be the sole responsibility of technology specialists Senior managers enjoy greater control over the organisation. The use of standardised procedures can results in cost savings. Decisions can be made to benefit the organisations as a whole. Whereas a decision made by a department manager may benefit their department, but disadvantage other departments. The organisation can benefit from the decision making of experienced senior managers. In uncertain times the organisation will need strong leadership and pull in the same direction. It is believed that strong leadership is often best given from above Disadvantages Senior managers have time to concentrate on the most important decisions (as the other decisions can be undertaken by other people down the organisation structure. Decision making is a form of empowerment. Empowerment can increase motivation and therefore mean that staff output increases. People lower down the chain have a greater understanding of the environment they work in and the people (customers and colleagues) that they interact with.   This knowledge skills and experience may enable them to make more effective decisions than senior managers. Empowerment will enable departments and their employees to respond faster to changes and new challenges. Whereas it may take senior managers longer to appreciate that business needs have changed. Empowerment makes it easier for people to accept and make a success of more responsibility. (http://www.learnmanagement2.com/) Matrix Organisation Structure Matrix organization is an attempt to combine functional and pure project organizations to couple the positive aspects of both and minimize the negative. Matrix organisation structure is widely used in many industries such as automotive industry. Each staff member is a member of 2 distinct organizations Advantages of matrix organisation structure Project as a point of emphasis PM takes the responsibility for managing the project. Project has reasonable access to all required resources without having to maintain them draws from the functional resource pool as required Less anxiety about what happens when the project is completed Response to client is as rapid as pure project Project has access to the administrative units of the parent firm to maintain consistency w/ policies, practices and procedures With several projects in work, matrix offers a better companywide balancing of resources Matrix organizations span the extremes of the organization spectrum from functional to pure project. Disadvantages include: Delicate balance of focus of decision making power between Project Manager and functional manager Multiple projects have to be monitored as a set to derive the benefits of a matrix organization Strong matrix organizations have problems shutting down projects similar to pure project organizations Division of decision making responsibilities between Project Manager (administrative decisions) and functional manager (technological decisions) is complex and not so clear for the operating Project Manager Project members have at least two bosses, the functional and the Project Manager. This can lead to confusion and disorder. Stanbic Bank Tanzania Organisation structure Based on aforementioned types of organisation structure and their feature Stanbic Bank Tanzania has adapted flat organisation structure with wider span of control and few levels of authority. In the Stanbic bank structure there is greater and quick communication between Management and employees which influence better team spirit and it is less bureaucracy hence quick decision making. The structure has less cost of Management due to fewer level or layers of management. However Stanbic Bank organisation structure has a number of disadvantages such as employees may be controlled by more than one manager hence employee may be confused on the reporting channels. This type of structure may hinder organisation growth as the case we have seen with Stanbic Tanzania with only 11 branches countrywide compared to other bank like National Microfinance Bank with 138 branch and was established 1997.function of each department in this type of organisation structure could be distorted and amalgamated into job of others. Flat organisation structure is normally limited to small organisation hence may not be suitable for a fast growing with large network Bank worldwide like Standard Bank group in which Stanbic bank is part of. Recommended organisation structure Chapter 3: Organisation culture and behaviour 3.1 Organisation culture Organisational culture is a system of shared values and beliefs about what are important, what behaviours are appropriate and about feelings and relationships internally and externally .Values and cultures need to be unique to the organisation, widely shared and reflected in daily practice and relevant to the company purpose and strategy. But there is no single best culture (http://www.cipd.co.uk/research/_visionandvalues). On the other hand Armstrong, (2007) defined organisation culture as the pattern of values, norms, beliefs, attitudes and assumptions that may not have been expressed but shape the ways in which people in organizations behave and things get done. Other definition for organisation culture includes: A pattern of basic assumptions invented, discovered or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with the problems of external adaptation and internal integration that has worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to these problems. Schein (1985) Culture is the commonly held beliefs, attitudes and values that exist in an organization. Put more simply, culture is the way we do things around here Furnham and Gunter (1993) Culture is one of those terms that is difficult to express definitely, but everyone knows it when they sense it. One can tell the culture of an organization by looking at the office arrangement of furniture, what they boast about, what employees wear, language used etc. similar to what you can use to get a feeling about someones personality The concept of culture is principally important when attempting to manage organisation change. Most managers and other practitioners have realised that, despite the best-laid down plans, organisational change should include not only changing structures and procedures, but also changing of the corporate culture as well. Most of the literature generated over the past decade about the concept of organizational culture especially in regards to understanding how to change organizational culture. Organizational change efforts are noticed to fail most of the time. These failures have been related to lack of understanding about the strong role of culture and the role the it plays in organizations. That has become one of the important reasons that many strategic planners currently place more emphasis on identifying strategic values as the way they do mission and vision. Successful organisations are characterised by strong values and a strong guiding vision that communicates what behaviour is appropriate and what is not.

Unattainable Things in The Great Gatsby :: Great Gatsby Essays

Unattainable Things in The Great Gatsby      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The roaring twenties. Cars were the things to have and a party was the place to be.   Everybody wanted something. F. Scott Fitzgerald's book, The Great Gatsby, describes the events that happen to eight people during the summer of 1922. In the book, people went from west to east because something they desired was in the east; unfortunatly in the end those 'somethings' were unattainable.         Ã‚  Ã‚   ...I decided to go east and learn the   Ã‚  Ã‚   bond business.   Everybody I knew was   Ã‚  Ã‚   in the bond business so I supposed it   Ã‚  Ã‚   could support one more single man. All   Ã‚  Ã‚   my aunts and uncles talked it over as   Ã‚  Ã‚   if they were choosing a prep school   Ã‚  Ã‚   for me...       Nick went to the east to make money.   He was from the midwest, and even though his family was doing pretty well in the money department, Nick wanted to make his own money. By going from the midwest to the east, Fitzgerald shows Nick's desire to have more money.   After spending the summer in the east and seeing how money affects people, he decides to go back west.         Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I see now that this has been a   Ã‚  Ã‚   story of the west,   after all-Tom   Ã‚  Ã‚   and Gatsby,   Daisy and Jordan and   Ã‚  Ã‚   I,   were all westerners and and   Ã‚  Ã‚   perhaps we possessed some deficiency   Ã‚  Ã‚   in common which made us subtly   Ã‚  Ã‚   unadaptable to eastern life.       In other words, after finding out what the east was really like, Nick lost his interest in being in the east and returned to the west.            Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Gatsby came east looking for another type of money - Daisy.   Gatsby and Daisy had last seen each other about five years before, when they were dating. Then Gatsby had to go to war.   While he was away in war, Daisy met Tom and then married Tom.   Daisy had always been rich and thought that in order to get Daisy back, he need to have money and be able to give Daisy anything she wanted.   He found out that Daisy was in the east and went to go try to get her back.         Ã‚  Ã‚   ...I thought of Gatsby's wonder when

Terrorism - No Public Discourse on Terror :: Argumentative Persuasive Topics

No Public Discourse on Terror Rep. Barbara Lee (D-California) said the following in casting the lone vote against giving President Bush full congressional approval for carrying out his War on Terrorism as he sees fit: I am convinced that military action will not prevent further acts of international terrorism against the United States. This is a very complex and complicated matter. . . . However difficult this vote may be, some of us must urge the use of restraint. Our country is in a state of mourning. Some of us must say, let us step back for a moment. Let us just pause for a minute and think through the implications of our actions today so that this does not spiral out of control. . . . I have agonized over this vote, but I came to grips with it today and I came to grips with opposing this resolution during the very painful yet very beautiful memorial service. As a member of the clergy so eloquently said, "As we act, let us not become the evil that we deplore." I agree. But what is striking to me as a linguist is the use of negatives in the statement: "not prevent," "restraint" (inherently negative), "not spiral out of control," "not become the evil that we deplore.'' Friends are circulating a petition calling for "Justice without vengeance." "Without" has another implicit negative. It is not that these negative statements are wrong. But what is needed is a positive form of discourse. There is one. The central concept is that of "responsibility," which is at the heart of progressive/liberal morality (See Moral Politics). Progressive/liberal morality begins with empathy, the ability to understand others and feel what they feel. That is presupposed in responsibility-responsibility for oneself, for protection, for the care of those who need care, and for the community. Those were the values that we saw at work among the rescue workers in New York right after the attack. Responsibility requires competence and effectiveness. If you are to deal responsibly with terrorism, you must deal effectively with all its causes: religious, social, and enabling causes.

Macbeth. Progression of a Tragic Hero

Kevin Durran Ms. Bural ENG3U1-02 November 27, 2011 Macbeth, the Progression of a Tragic Hero â€Å"In tragedy people are tested by great suffering and must face decisions of ultimate consequence. Some meet the challenge with deeds of despicable cruelty, while others demonstrate their ability to confront and surpass adversity, winning our admiration and proving the greatness of human potential† (Aristotle). The character Macbeth is an archetypal paragon in Shakespearean literature; he truly embodies the title of the tragic hero.The aspects that lead to the Protagonist’s downfall are countless; three major factors contribute to his progression to the tragic hero. The first being the prophecies from the witches, Lady Macbeth’s malicious influence that disoriented his counsel and lastly his ambition to achieve greatness by becoming King. Curiosity and tragedy have gone hand in hand throughout history; the aphorism â€Å"Curiosity killed the cat† can be personi fied through Macbeth’s demise as his curiosity is remedied by the witch’s prophecies.The witch’s vague foretelling only lead Macbeth to curiosity, by stating the two titles he does not have â€Å"All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter! † (I, III, 49-50) inciting Macbeth’s confusion to be solved from the counsel of his wife. While each prophecy is said his level of curiosity increases. Another example of Macbeth’s curiosity is shown through his hallucinations as he goes forth with the murder of Duncan, â€Å"Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand?Come let me clutch thee†¦ a dagger of the mind, a false creation†¦ Hear not my steps, which way they walk, for fear† (2, I, 41-42, 46, 65). The quote projects . Macbeth tends to format his ideal future by using false prophecies which in turn rid him of his worries and concerns for these prophecies p rophesised that he will stay king. To assuage Macbeth’s curiosity he wanted the prophecies to make him what he wanted to hear. The definition of Emasculation is to make a man less of a man through verbal influence; such examples of this are shown from the character Lady Macbeth, who contributes to Macbeth’s downfall.Lady Macbeth has shown countless times why she is such a large factor to Macbeth’s demise; she is portrayed as a manipulative prick. By ultimately forcing Macbeth to go along and murder Duncan she introduces him to the beginning of his tragedy, because of her planning out the murder she ultimately distorts his judgement. After the shaky Macbeth assassinated his dear king, the audience will notice a change in character as regret as a noble Macbeth turns into a depressed and confused King.Duncan’s murder was just the beginning, to maintain his authority and reign over Scotland he continued to kill because murder at the time seemed to ensure his title. Lady Macbeth is considered a large factor in the progression of Macbeth an honourable nobleman to the tragic hero; she relayed the concept of murder to him initiating his fulfillment of his deep dark desires. Macbeth’s ambition is minor factor in his progression towards him being the tragic hero. His ambition alone was never such a striving force, Lady Macbeth’s emasculation magnified/provoked thoughts of Duncan’s murder.His ambition was never so great that he would actually assassinate his king but the medleys of the prophecies which added to his level of curiosity awakened his dormant aspirations. The emasculation he received from his wife added to his ambitions, as almost he was challenged to murder the king, this shows a great example of his fall from loyalty to the tragic hero. With these new factors adding to his ambition, greed, lust, violence combines to a malicious power hungry tyrant. â€Å"Tragedy occurs when noble or great persons are led, th rough pride or a secret flaw in their personalities, to suffering that changes their fortune.The tragic hero must begin in a high position and end in death or some sort of degraded role†. The whole play inevitably showed character change, of not only Macbeth but others around him influence by the acts he committed. His ambition, emasculation, the witch’s prophecies and excessive ambition lead to his demise. The character Macbeth is an archetypal paragon in Shakespearean literature; he truly embodies the title of the tragic hero. Quotes: EMASCULATION: Macbeth says of his wife: â€Å"undaunted mettle should compose/ Nothing but males. † (I, vii, 73-74).He notices his wife's unnatural, unwomanly strength and ambition, and he feels that only men should have such power. Lady Macbeth says: â€Å"†¦ unsex me here,/ And fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full/ Of direst cruelty† (I, v, 41-44). She is calling for the strength to cast away the guilt of the crime, and she realizes she needs to suppress all femininity in order to pull through. She also says: â€Å"make thick my blood,/ stop up the access and passage to remorse. â€Å"(I, v, 43-44). and: â€Å"Come to my woman's breasts,/ And take my milk for gall, you murdering ministers. (I, vii, 47-48). She needs to suppress her femininity to chalk up the strength to conquer her conscience. Curiosity: act 1 scene 2 All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis! |   |   50| Second Witch  | All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! |   | Third Witch  . â€Å"Beware Macduff, Beware the Thane of Fife! † and â€Å"The power of man, for none of woman born/Shall harm Macbeth† and then finally â€Å"Macbeth shall never vanquished be, until/ Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinaine Hill/ Shall come against him. Read more:  http://wiki. answers. com/Q/What_was_the_three_witches_prophecy_to_Macbeth#ixzz1eg86iOxiAMIBTION| All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter! | | Quote #1BANQUO [†¦] My noble partner You greet with present grace and great prediction Of noble having and of royal hope, That he seems rapt withal. To me you speak not. If you can look into the seeds of time, And say which grain will grow and which will not, Speak then to me, who neither beg nor fear Your favors nor your hate. (1. 3. 2)|After hearing the witches predict that Macbeth will be Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland, Banquo notes that his friend is â€Å"rapt withal,† suggesting that Macbeth is consumed or entranced by the prophecy. Banquo is eager to hear what the witches have in store for him and we can see that Banquo is ambitious – he's pleased as punch when he learns his heirs will be kings (even though he will never wear the crown). Yet, Banquo  never  takes drastic measures to gain power for himself or his heirs, which makes him a foil to Macbeth who, eventually, will stop at nothing to secure his power.Macbeth's tragic flaw is excessive ambition; ambition by itself is not a bad thing. But Macbeth's ambition gets the best of him, and he begins to feel â€Å"bulletproof† — no man born of woman can kill him and he will come to ruin when Birnam Wood doth come to high Dunsinane Hill. How can a man NOT be born of woman? And how can a wood move? But Macbeth's undoing comes when he allows Fleance to escape. He returns with the army disguised as trees that move toward Dunsinane and Macduff was â€Å"untim'ly ripped from his mother's womb. † Fleance's escape is the beginning of his undoing. Quote #2MACBETHMy thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical, Shakes so my single state of man that function Is smother'd in surmise, and nothing is But what is not. (1. 3. 9)| After the weird sisters predict that Macbeth will be king, his thoughts turn to â€Å"murder,† which the sisters have said  nothingabout. Could it be that the witches' prophesy awakens within Macbeth a murderous ambition that was there all along? Quote #3MACBETH [Aside] The Prince of Cumberland! That is a step On which I must fall down, or else o'erleap, For in my way it lies. Stars, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires.The eye wink at the hand; yet let that be Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see. (1. 4. 4)| By the time Malcolm is proclaimed Prince of Cumberland and heir to the throne of Scotland, Macbeth is willing to push all morality aside. He knows that killing Duncan in order to become king is wrong, which is why he says it's necessary to hide his â€Å"black and deep† desires. Here, ambition is portrayed as something dark and ugly. 33  Ã‚  Ã‚  Is this a dagger which I see before me, 34  Ã‚  Ã‚  The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee. 35  Ã‚  Ã‚  I have thee not, and yet I see thee still. 36  Ã‚  Ã‚  Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible 7  Ã‚  Ã‚  To feeling as to sight? or art thou but 38  Ã‚  Ã‚  A dagger of the mind, a false c reation, 39  Ã‚  Ã‚  Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain? > ACT 2, SCENE 1, LINE 33-39 Hear not my steps, which way they walk, for fear 58  Ã‚  Ã‚  Thy very stones prate of my whereabout, 59  Ã‚  Ã‚  And take the present horror from the time, 60  Ã‚  Ã‚  Which now suits with it. Whiles I threat, he lives:     61  Ã‚  Ã‚  Words to the heat of deeds too cold breath gives. (Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand? Come let me clutch thee†¦ a dagger of the mind, a false creation†¦ Hear not my steps, which way they walk, for fear) 33-34, 38, 57)

Appreciation of ‘The Tyger’ Essay

Subject matter Blake is this poem gives a description of the tiger, describing vividly its appearance, its structure, its beauty and its terror. As well as describing the tiger, the poet also tries to explain how he pictures the creation of the tiger, as well as the terror of the creator (who created such a fearsome and awesome creature). Purpose The poet’s purpose in this poem is to describe something that fascinates him. The tiger in his view is a powerful, yet beautiful creature, a creature so powerful that it is terrifying. However, the poet also attempts to comprehend its creator, God. He shows that if the creation is powerful and terrifying, and asks the question how powerful must be the creator? The poet clearly expresses that he is very afraid of the power of God, and what God is able to do. Throughout the poem the poet expresses his admiration, his wonder and his fear, this poem is as much a study of the tiger as a study of God. Emotion Though the poem is mostly descriptive, the poet gives the reader some clues of the emotions that he feels. On the face of this poem, it seems to be a poem about a nature. However, looking further into the poem one can see that the poem is a very religious poem. One of the most dominant emotion that one can feel when reading the poem is the wonder and awe. Whether it is at the tiger or at God, Blake shows much wonder; as shown in the extract in verse 1: ‘And what shoulder & what art, Could twist thy heart?’ Blake describes the colours of the tiger’s fur as ‘burning’, as though the fur of the tiger was a fire itself. This fire is carried on into verse two where Blake describes that there is a fire burning in the eyes of the tiger.. In line 3 and 4 of verse 1 Blake turns his attention to the creator: ‘What immortal hand or eye, Could frame thy fearful symmetry.’ His wonders about what the hands and eyes of God are like. Blake sees the tiger as a creation of a great craftsman, a work of art. The most important parts of a craftsman are his eyes and his hands. They are a craftsman’s most important tools, allowing him to craft the image he has in his imagination. This idea could have been influenced by Blake’s work as a engraver. The other dominant emotion in the poem is the fear shown by Blake. His is very afraid of the tiger. Yet his is even more afraid of God the creator of such an awesome beast. This is a sometimes a feature of Christians to be ‘God-fearing’ people. This fear can be seen in the following extracts: ‘What dread hand? & what dread feet?’ ‘In what furnace was thy brain?’ ‘Dare its deadly terrors clasp’ The extracts above show how much Blake fears the tiger. He is afraid of the tiger’s claws, and the image in Blake’s mind is a beast created from the furnace of heaven and hammered out by a master craftsman. This dreaded ferocious inspires much fear in Blake, even though he admires its beauty ‘What immortal hand or eye, Dare frame thy fearful symmetry.’ Blake tries to imagine the power required to create the tiger. He tries to picture what being could create the tiger. The picture of this powerful and yet very skilful craftsman is very daunting to Blake. What person would dare take this fearsome beast out of the furnaces, hammer it into an elegant yet very potent shape. What person could twist the shape of the sinews of the tiger’s heart and create a burning fur coat and burning eyes? The image of this creation is very frightful to Blake, let alone the God, the person who hammered, twisted, and shaped this beast. It should also be noted the ‘could’ was replaced with ‘dare’. This shows that first Blake only thought about the ability, skill, power and strength needed to create the tiger. Later on at the end of the poem, Blake is thinking about the nerve and the daring required to create the tiger. Craftsmanship Structure The poem has a very regular structure, it is divided into six stanzas, each with four lines. The first stanza is repeated in the last stanza but ‘could’ in line four is replaced with ‘dare’. Each line is approximately the same length in words and syllables. Each stanza is used to address one point about God or the tiger. The poem seems also to be structured in the thought process of the poet. First he looks at the tiger itself, describing its prominent features. The poem then tries to picture the creation process of the tiger, and the workshop of this great craftsman. The poet then tries to move on to this creator or craftsman himself. He wonders whether God was content with this creation, and wonders about the more heavenly creature: the stars and the angels. Language The language used in the poem is very vocative. Throughout the poem the poet seems to be talking to the tiger. He seems to be enquiring about the origins of the tiger: ‘What the hammer? What the chain? In what furnace was thy brain?’ He is asking the tiger as though the tiger is a friend of the poet (the use of thou and thee). The poet seems to the reader as a thinker trying to find out the answer to a very difficult question. The poet is asking questions that can not be answered for very little is known about God. The language is also very striking, very vivid and effective. The language catch the reader’s attention and is imaginative. It is very appropriate to the poem itself, the language increases the fear and adds effect to the wonder. The words does deliver the message that the poet intends. Much of the language helps to strike the fear into the minds of the readers. When reading this poem, one can not help but feel a sense of awe to the tiger and God. Imagery In the poem there are no striking examples of similes and metaphors, but the poet does use a large amount of personification. He personifies God as a craftsman or a blacksmith: ‘And what shoulder & what art, Could twist the sinews of thy heart? The poet seems to apply his own life experiences to his image of God. He sees God as this craftsman working by a furnace like himself. He sees the material the God uses to create as metallic. In the process of creation, God works like a blacksmith, heating the metal until the critical point is reached, the metal is then taken out and hammered into shape. This process repeats until the perfect shape is reached. Once the work is finished, God must be pleased and proud of his creations like other artists. The poet also personifies the tiger, addressing the tiger as if the tiger was able to understand him. He asks the tiger questions as though the tiger was able to answer him and explain to him what the poet does not understand. The poet also personifies the stars: ‘When the stars threw down their spears , And watered the heavens with their tears;’ The poet sees the stars as the angels of heaven, throwing down their weapons and crying at such a wonderful creation. The poet makes the reader see God as a human with tow sides, power and the strength represented by the tiger, while the gentle caring side represented by the lamb. This in many ways is the symbolism used throughout the poem by the poet. Movement There is not real rhythm or movement to the poem itself. There are no real rhythmic qualities in the poem. However, when read out loud, the poem should be read out slowly, and loudly. This adds to the effect of the poem, it gives one more time to process the carefully chose words. It would make the poem more effective and allow the listener to truly appreciate the poem. Sounds The most significant sound feature of the poem is its rhyming scheme. Each stanza rhymes in the form of AABB, with the exception of the last line of the first and last stanza of the poem. The poet uses neither onomatopoeia nor alliteration nor assonance. In fact the poem uses very little sound features. I do however think that onomatopoeia could have been used to help the reader to imagine the sounds of this great workshop that Blake pictures in his mind. It would help the reader reach a better level of understanding. It would have also made the poem more affective. The poem is very strong with the visual part of the imagery, however, without the sounds, the perception of the poet’s idea is incomplete. For example, if the poet included the bangs, clangs of the workshop, or even included the growls and the roars of the tiger. This would have increased one’s sense of wonder and awe. Other sound features such as alliteration and assonance, I feel, would not have been as effective and would not have helped the understanding of the poet’s imagination. Summary The poem has had a very strong impact on me. The poem has made me aware that the world is made up of fierceness and strength (shown in the tiger) as well as gentleness and peace (as shown in the lamb). Blake’s tiger is a very terrifying and dynamic creation, which apart from being seen to represent the fiercer side of God, could also be seen to represent the forces of evil lurking in our world. This evil seems to be able to hide in the cover of the darkness of the night, and haunts our minds through our dreams and especially our nightmares. Blake’s lamb (Did he who made the lamb also make thee?) apart from being a symbol of Gods gentle and loving side, can also be seen as a symbol of all the good in the world; the caring, the love and the kindness shown in Jesus Christ himself. The poem, as I have already noted, is a very visual poem. Though it is read, the poem inspires us to try and picture what he sees. The words of the poem create very vivid, clear and striking images in the reader or listener’s minds. We see dynamic beast with awesome features, a skilful and great craftsman working laboriously in his great workshop. Inside the workshop burns a great furnace with huge and very hot fire. The craftsman hammers and twists the shape of the creation, and when finally he has completed this marvellous work, he is proud and smiles. The angels around this creator all weep and throw down their weapons at the sight of this marvel. The only flaw that I have noted is the lack of use of sound features. This poem, as I have already mentioned, would more complete if the reader can hear the sounds of the workshop and hear the weeps of the angels or even the deafening roars of the tiger as it first leaps out of the furnace as a complete creation. This does not flaw the poem in a significant way, but I feel that it would improve the poem and make the poem more effective Blake made use of sound features.