Kaleidoscopic: An Analysis of “The Wasteland” by T.S. Eliot Essay

T.S. Eliot’s â€Å"The Wasteland† is known for its kaleidoscopic and fragmented form, with the converging of different styles from different movements of poetry; the employment of a wide range of metaphorical devices (from allusions to the decidedly Christian quest for the Holy Grail, to references about ancient Greece, and more pagan origins – the diversity of allusions from different cultures only serves to raise the universality of the poem’s theme); and the wealth of convolutions of the poem as a whole, jumping from one scene to another in an abrupt and disconcerting lack of traditional cohesion. There are rapid shifts not only in imagery and perspective, but also in setting, and in subject. And yet the poem is unified by its overall theme of despair – despair and futility in the midst and at the inevitable end of man’s search for peace and contentment. Man subjects himself to a baffled search for spiritual peace, when, in the end, he must be resigned that the search is, after all that time, futile, even never-ending. It is this futility and despair that grounds the â€Å"fragments† of the poem, the so-called â€Å"bigger picture,† making it into that which the poem strives to attain. A technique that Eliot employs is the deliberate â€Å"scattering† of connected passages that discuss one subject. As an exploration of the theme, he carries it further by â€Å"dissecting† the subject, offering hints and foreshadowing in earlier parts of the poem, then places the other divisions into a variation of sections. Malcolm Bradbury and James McFarlane, in their introductory essay â€Å"Name and Nature of Modernism† for Modernism, 1890-1930, encapsulates the fragmented form of the poem: â€Å"Modernist works frequently tend to be ordered, then, not on the sequence of historical time or the evolving sequence of character, from history or story, as in realism and naturalism; they tend to work spatially through layers of consciousness, working towards a logic of metaphor or form† (p.50). The Modernist poem’s multiplicity in layers exploits the poetic form in that insights and epiphanies are not procured at face value, that the reader must take it upon himself to discover and explore the layers and exposition. Also, the collage-like quality of this Modernist poem tore through the traditional forms of poetry and poetics, in its audacious experimentation. Jerome Rothenberg and Pierre Joris in their introductory essay for Poems for the Millennium say, â€Å"A characteristic of modern art (and poetry) so defined . . . has been the questioning of art itself as a discrete and bounded category† (p.8). The poet and the poem continue to push at the boundaries, insisting that the boundaries should not even be existent – an intention that â€Å"The Wasteland† succeeds in carrying out. Although the many convolutions and intricacies in â€Å"The Wasteland† evoke the initial impression of fragmentation, there are interlocking themes and content, if not passages reminiscent of others, found throughout the poem. Part of Eliot’s poetics is, underneath all the references from other fragments of literature and all levels of allusions, there are images that shall mirror another, and then another, though they may be as subtle as a single word in a line, through they may be scattered throughout the entire length of the poem. One example of this resonance can be found in Eliot’s mention of drowning, or death by water. The â€Å"narrative† is prophesied near the beginning of the poem, lines 46 and 47 say, â€Å"Here, said she, / Is your card, the drowned Phoenician sailor,† followed with the ominous statement, â€Å"Fear death by water† in line 55, found in the same section. It is essential to note that among the ancient Mediterranean people, it was the Phoenicians who became known for expertise in sailing and navigation, mastering the rather challenging task of sailing against the wind, making headway little by little, by tacking back and forth (Black). Eliot provides this information through a prophesy by one of the many characters in the poem, Madame Sosostris, a clairvoyant. This adds another dimension to the resonance of the passage because, as well as being part of a group of references, its very position as being the first the readers encounter in the poem provides and carries out its intention of foretelling the future. Eliot then continues to explore this theme, in almost teasing narrative, throughout the poem. The next reference is found in part three, or The Fire Sermon. In line 220 – 221, the sailor is mentioned again in, â€Å"At the violet hour, the evening hour that strives / Homeward, and brings the sailor home from sea.† Interestingly, this is imparted in the form of another prophecy of sorts – this time from the blind seer Tiresias. This passage offers a kind of build-up by narrating the usual routine of a sailor in one of his less tragic days at work. The statement is an aside, a mere commentary at the larger picture painted by The Fire Sermon, although in its simplicity and subtlety, the passage succeeds in presenting that the Phoenician sailor is supposed to come home from a hard day (and night’s) work at the sea. Which makes it all the more tragic, as these resonant images culminate, fittingly enough, in part four, titled Death by Water. Everything comes together in this part of the poem. The skilled yet unfortunate Phoenician sailor is named, Phlebas, and we witness his fate, that which has long been hinted at from different parts of the poem. Phlebas dies, â€Å". . . a current under sea / Picked his bones in whispers (line 315).† And he dies, not for want of expertise in his profession, but by forgetting â€Å". . . the cry of gulls, and the deep sea swell / and the profit and loss (lines 313 to 314)† – readers get the impression that Phlebas was preoccupied, in reflection of matters known only to him. In him readers behold another character of Eliot’s, who emulates a theme of the poem, that human beings are in a continuous search for some sort of peace or contentment, yet they must resign ourselves to a life of futility and despair. Death by Water concludes with a note, some words of caution, still reminding the reader of the Phoenician sailor’s skill, his promise, regardless of his tragic death: â€Å"O you who turn the wheel and look to windward, / Consider Phlebas, who was once handsome and tall as you.† Aside from being a critique of traditional form and the very definition of art and poetry, the poem also became a critique of the current social condition. Published in the aftermath of World War I, which had been the most destructive war in history at that point, many believed that the poem was an â€Å"indictment of post-war European culture and as an expression of disillusionment in contemporary society, which Eliot believed to be culturally barren.† Despair was the consensual mood of nations, and salvation seemed bleak at the time. â€Å"The Wasteland† encapsulated that consensus, that attitude, displaying one of the characteristic of Modernism, which â€Å"is the one art that responds to the scenario of our chaos† (Bradbury and McFarlane, 27). And the stylized fragmentation of the poem serves to thrust that aim further, form functioning to serve the subject matter. â€Å"The Wasteland† as a Modernist poem employs daring experimentation of style, from sudden shifts in form and style and subject, to the division of narrative style and exposition. Passages reminiscent of each other are found throughout the poem, carrying with it the theme of the poem like an interconnection of veins throughout a human body. It is a critique of the times, and of the times before that had shaped the current situation. As Rothenberg and Joris state, â€Å"The most interesting works of poetry and art are those that question their own shapes and forms, and by implication the shapes and forms of whatever preceded them† (p. 11). Works Cited Black, Bob. â€Å"Borne by the Wind: The Lure and Lore of Sailing.† Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2006. CD-ROM. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 2005. Bradbury, Malcolm and James McFarlane. Modernism, 1890-1930. Sussex: Harvester Press, 1879. Harmon, William. â€Å"T.S. Eliot.† Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2006. CD-ROM. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 2005. Ramazani, Jahan, Richard Ellmann and Robert O’Clair, eds. The Norton Anthology of Modern and Contemporary Poetry. New York: W. W. Norton, 2003.   Rothenberg, Jerome and Pierre Joris, eds. Poems for the Millenium: the University of California Book of Modern and Postmodern Poetry. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998.

Biographical Approach to Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” Essay

Literature is always said to be the echo of life. It reflects the time, the mind’s state, and author’s life. Whenever one looks into any literature piece, they do not only read what is on the text but also try to understand the context that matters. These contexts include the life of the author, the era it was written, the social condition during the time it was set, and others. There are many ways in which a literary piece can be read and interpreted. The act of interpreting a literary text is called literary criticism. As said by Lamb (2003), literary criticism is an attempt to assess and comprehend the creative writing, the literature of an author. In this paper, the researcher uses a type of literary criticism to institute the meaning of the text. The researcher uses biographical approach to literary criticism. Eagleton (1996) describes this approach as a strategy of relating the author’s life and thoughts to his/her works. This allows the reader to understand elements employed in the work, plus to relate works to authorial meaning and readers. MHS Composition Guide states that there are central biographical questions needed to reflect on in taking this approach. These questions are: †¢ What biographical facts has the author used in the text? †¢ What biographical facts has the author changed? †¢ What insights do we acquire about the author’s life by reading the text? †¢ How do these facts and insights increase (or diminish) our understanding of the text? These questions wil used in the development of the body of this paper. In this paper, the researcher also attempts to give assessment in life to her short story, and to the main character of the short story â€Å"The Story of an Hour†. Horward (2005) states that Katherine O’Flaherty, also known as Kate Chopin, was one of the most renowned female writers of her time. Her universal themes are what made her extraordinary. She wrote several short stories including â€Å"The Story of an Hour†, â€Å"Euphrase†, â€Å"Mrs. Mobry’s Reason†, â€Å"A Shameful Affair† and many others. Kate Chopin was raised into a home of women in St. Louis. This had been a very big influence to her writings, mainly on her views about feminism – views about women. Chopin was later widowed at 32, and there she started writing for herself and for her six children. Chopin was an extensive reader that is why she was able to write stories of herself into creative ones. In the early 1970’s, it was the resurrection of women’s rights movements, and Kate Chopin was one of those contributors to the occurrence. She contributed a lot with her writings about women, daytime dramas, the feminine mystique, women’s liberation, Mars vs. Venus, self-help and open marriages. Definitely, Kate Chopin’s early experiences had a great influence on her writings. One of her celebrated short stories is â€Å"The Story of an Hour† and it is entirely famous not only in American Literature – but also in the world. While reading the short story, the reader finds connection between the life of the author and the life of the main character of the short story. These connections are the similarities that the reader had taken into consideration: Chopin and Her Father’s Loss One of the main events in the story is a loss of someone very important, more particularly, Mrs. Mallard’s husband’s loss. Josephine, Mrs. Mallard’s sister, had brought the sad message that there was a railroad disaster and of those listed as ‘killed’ was Brently Mallard, who was Mrs. Mallard’s husband. In Kate’s life, she had lost someone too, in a railroad accident in 1855 to a train accident. A Widow Mrs. Mallard is sooner or later, assumed to be a widow, but readers will soon find out that Mr. Mallard is alive. In Kate’s life, his father had widowed her mother. Both experienced having lost someone very special and as well as being widowed but definitely, their responses to the loss may entirely be different. In the end, before she would have learned about Brently’s return from the accident, Louise died of heart disease – of joy that kills. This suggests that she had a monstrous joy, because it killed and consumed her to death. Perhaps, Chopin would just let Louise die instead of seeing Brently again, wherein she will be living like a prison again. Freedom for Women In â€Å"The Story of An Hour†, Chopin has made no suggestion to the readers that Mrs. Mallard was sorry for her husband’s loss. Instead, she has uttered ‘over under her breath’: â€Å"free, free, and free! †, which suggests how happy Mrs. Mallard is to have lost her husband, because she has now freedom of herself. The joy she senses in possessing her freedom is something which consumes her. In Kate’s life, she was used to write about resurgence of women’s rights. She experience a period when there was this declined and confinement of women’s public needs like education, the vote, rights to her own property and her own children. Those events drove her to write this kind of feminist text instead of choosing other universal themes. Briefly, the title of this novel, â€Å"The Story of an Hour† is a image of the feelings provoked by the main character, Louise Mallard. In connection to this, it can be confirmed that this novel is a reference to Kate Chopin’s life since most of the events in Louise’s life are similar, or at least made a great influence to that of the story, â€Å"The Story of an Hour†. The biographical approach made by the researcher accomplishes its purpose because an understanding able of the issues behind the book went through by tracing the history and life of Kate Chopin. Literature can bring us to the world of the author. Therefore, this research established that literature reflects the time, state of mind, and the life of the author through understanding the connection between Kate Chopin and Mrs. Mallard in the short story, â€Å"The Story of an Hour. † References: Original Text: References Chopin, K. (1976). The Awakening and Selected Stories of Kate Chopin. New York: Signet Classic. Eagleton, T. (1996). Biographical Approach. An introduction to Literary Theories (2 ed. ) University of Minnesota Press. Horward, A. ( 2005). A Woman Ahead of Her Time. Retrieved 28 April 2010 from: http://www. angelfire. com/nv/English243/Chopin. html Lamb, A. (2003). The topic: literary criticism. Retrieved 24 April 2010 from:

Public Health Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Public Health - Essay Example The initiative was to provide good sanitation and reduces cases of mortality and morbidity causes by infectious diseases in major cities and areas inhabited by population with lower living standards. The term was also used in 19th century when epidemiologist John Snow realised that the outbreak of infectious diseases such as cholera was a result of environment. He pointed out that the water pump in London town contributed to cholera outbreak and closing it will be solution (Turnock, 2008). Based on the definition of public health, it requires different aspects to be achieved so as to accomplish its meaning. Some of the aspects underlined in the definition of public health are prevention of diseases, prolonging life and promotion of health and efficiency. This is done through education, control of infectious diseases, providing information to the population on maintenance of personal hygiene and management and development of health facilities to assist in provision of healthcare (Turnock 2008). Studying public health is significant to the country and population in general. Studying provides a clear path in tackling complex issues relating to healthcare such as provision of accessible services, control of infectious diseases, and reduction of environmental hazards, curb issues of drug and substance abuse and violence. Studying of the subjects provide an opportunity to specialize in different fields. Additionally, it integrates different professionals such as journalists, teachers, environmentalist, scientist and attorneys working together to provide a safe environment and improve health. Study provides an opportunity to serve local, national and international population (Turnock 2008). United States more of their budget on health issues than any other country in the world. Based on 2004 studies, U.S. per-capita spending was $ 6096. This is double that of Canada which was at

Human Resource Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 15

Human Resource Management - Essay Example Once a top executive realises that no matter how hard he struggles for his organisation, all he will receive is his fixed salary, the performance levels of the executive will begin to recede. The removal of incentive is effectively the removal of motivation on the job for such positions. It must also be realised that when such executives join office their primary motivation is the challenge posed by the new position. Once an executive figures out how to manage the new position, the real motivation begins to disappear from the job. In order to keep motivation on the job to a high level, it would be desirable to use a fixed and variable pay structure to serve as the executive’s motivation. On another note, this pay structure aids in ensuring that the executive treats his job more seriously than before because his financial stakes are involved with the performance of the organisation. While it may be considered as cumbersome by some top executives but this model ensures that the organisation pays the executive back in proportion to their

Letters about Wars and Trade (1760) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Letters about Wars and Trade (1760) - Essay Example The team comprised of skilled men from all lifestyles. They included soldiers, farmers, and artisans with one mind to find readily exploitable land and use its inhabitants as slaves. John Smith was admitted to the colony in 1608 with the main purpose to consolidate the colony, subordinate the natives, and make the colony profitable. This was a hard task for Smith who quite the operation after he suffered a wound. Additionally, his harsh leadership did not work well to consolidate the natives but alienated even his own subordinates (Lankford 18). The task of consolidating colonies did not end after Smith quit in 1609 but continued under Captain Christopher Newport. The team managed to meet some of their targets including getting slaves for cheap labour. However, the team with slaves acted defiantly and its work productivity was much lesser compared to the settlers. The natives worked unwillingly producing very low results in the tasks delegated to them. In addition, not all settlers e ngaged in real work because others proved superior. One major hindrance to consolidation of colonies the threat other colonies posed to it. For instance, a colony could abduct a ship from a rival colony after a trade harvesting and steal form them all they had gathered. This resulted to weak colonies without the necessary material support. Ancient Trade Trade started under the leadership of Newport who took some men on an expedition in Peninsula. Newport had one goal in mind to find mineral resources and to open up trade with the natives in the land. Normally, the trade involved was barter trade that included exchange of goods for other goods. At first, it was neither possible to convince the natives to trade with them, nor find the goods that the team had targeted to collect from the inhabitants. The natives had prior knowledge of attacks from previous colonies, which made them hide their corn. Trust between traders did not exist those days that would enable flow of goods form one colony to another or form one place to another. Previous colonies that visited the inhabitants had done more harm than good, which made the inhabitants targeted to trade with withdraw and refuse to trade (Lankford 18). Poor means of transport hindered trade in this era. When Newport and his men arrived Jamestown, they were half-sick, complaining, tired with toil, and hungry. This describes the poor means of transport that made them spend thousand of hours travelling to their destinations. Additionally, the types of goods described for barter exchange include logs, corn, tar, pitch, soap ashes, cheese, far, and animals. Poor transport hindered progress in trade and encouraged colonies to war. In addition, ancient trade lacked professionalism. Nations who refused to trade with another had to be threatened or made pay in another manner to comply. For instance, after president returned from amongst the woods and discovered that the ship laid idle with no goods for trade, he opted to thr eaten the community to a revenge mission of his imprisonment. The nation complied by making peace through giving of their corn, fish, and fowl. The leaders of trade crews seemed knowledgeable and were willing to go an extra mile to ensure that their ships were loaded on their way back. However, this type of trade in these ancient times was not sustainable because it included trading of animals,

Job analysis & job evaluation Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Job analysis & job evaluation - Term Paper Example The globe nowadays is growing at a rampant rate and has come under development and expansion in every field of life whether it is social,economic,environmental,or political. The advancement in technologies has left an indelible imprint on the world of commerce where competition has become the significant aspect for all the businesses and corporations The trends of the recent years also portray that companies are confronting challenges at an unprecedented rate and in order to stay in the market and generate profits, they need to work in an effective and efficient manner. A corporation comprises of many internal departments or divisions such as finance, human resource, sales, marketing and many more on which the company’s structure rests. The department that is of prime importance for any organization is its human resource division, which focuses on employee management. The human resource management arena includes several procedures, methods, practices, and courses of actions th at come under the basis of rules, regulations, and policies of the department (Aswathappa, 2005). The data or the information related to â€Å"job duties, responsibilities, tasks, environment, and essential and required skills and abilities that are in need to perform the job comes under identification and determination by the HR personnel† (Aswathappa, 2005). ... Whereas, looking at the other end of the spectrum, job evaluation is the process that assesses the value and worth of the position or job in the employment industry, than an organization creates. Job description is the elementary and fundamental aspect for the evaluation of a job. As an outcome of job evaluation, the salary structure comes under assignment to the employee. The job evaluation focuses and aims to provide people with a fair, unbiased, and impartial ground for all the jobs. One of the prime chores of job evaluation is to set up and develop hierarchy and structure in the organization, based on job requirements and specifications. Pay structure’s foundation lays on job structure. Through internal consistency in job structures, HR personnel are able to identify and distinguish the discrepancies in job characteristics as job descriptions are the basis of it (Aswathappa, 2005). Compensation is another element of an HR function. Compensation is the worth of the work car ried out that, an employee gets in return, not only in the form of monetary reward but also in the form of financial returns, substantial services, and other employment relationship benefits. While establishing a compensation strategy HR personnel evaluates the association of compensation to the business strategies, external environment and internal HR circumstances and based on it they formulate the strategic compensation positions. In addition, the HR personnel analyze the gaps by making a comparison between objectives and the actual strategic positions. Once the HR personnel identify the gap, they then design compensation programs in order to overcome those gaps, and pursue it. The HR subdivision of the company develops the compensation programs that must maximum comply with

Partners in Health and Zanmi Lasante; Assignment

Partners in Health and Zanmi Lasante; - Assignment Example Organizational culture: Partners in Health, is a nonprofit organization comprising of healthcare workers and professionals who share in its mission statement and goals. Its programs are steered by the board of Trustees (Partners in Health, 2009). Strengths: The strengths of Partners in Health lie in its building of partnerships with like-minded organizations. By using the expertise of the world’s leading academic and medical institutions, it has maximized on its ability (Partners in Health, 2009). Partners: Partners in Health, partners with various organizations like; COPE Project, PACT, Last Mile Health, Project Muso, Possible, and Village Health Works to deliver on its mandate. It gets funding from well-wishers and fund raising (Partners in Health, 2009). Through this examination of PIH, it is evident that there exist disparities in global health especially between the rich and the poor. However, noble and philanthropic individuals like Bill Gates have noted of these disparities and are at the forefront in supporting healthcare projects aimed at helping the poor just like PIH (Herper, 2011). Through his foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, he has supported vaccination programs around the world (NEWSFOCUS, 2006). PIH and Bill Gates are examples of efforts geared towards a better, healthier

Assingment 4 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Assingment 4 - Assignment Example This paper will hence focus on how the leadership skills will lead to technical competence by a leader. The paper will also show an evaluation of the skills against my own skills and how I will acquire and/ or strengthen my skill of leadership as I progress in my future leadership. In order to be an effective leader, one needs to possess various leadership skills. In addition, a team leader needs to exhibit distinct leadership traits, behavior, styles and qualities. As a leader one needs to be able to provide awareness of unity to all members of the team. The members will also have the ability to develop interpersonal relationship where every member gets a chance to learn from each other and contribute to work. In order to enhance togetherness towards achieving our common goal, a leader must portray leadership qualities and skills. The leadership skills include: listening ability, awarding credit to the team members, honesty, effective communication, ability to stick to strategies an d goals, ability to beat anxiety and shape character, service oriented, accountable and responsible, empathy, and keeping cool. In using these leadership skills a team leader needs to adopt various leadership styles to ensure the team achieves their goals effectively and efficiently. A combination of different styles of leadership works well in any environment especially where the public is involved. Some of the leadership styles used in showing the mentioned skills include: authoritarian style of leadership, a leader in this case remains strict and offer close regulation and control, policies and procedures given to the team members. In order to attain success, close supervision is necessary; a leadership style of democracy is another one, here a leader involves team members in decision making through enhancing team members’ interest and practicing social equity and equality. This style will also include debate, discussion and sharing of encouragement and ideas of the team s o as the team can feel good about their involvement in the team. Transactional leadership style will allow for motivation of the team members through a reward system. These leadership styles will be combined with the leadership skills in order to bring about the technical competence of the leader and the success of the team. Leadership skills such as listening ability, awarding credit to the team members, honesty, effective communication, and ability to stick to strategies and goals are very important for a leader who is looking forward to technical competence. For instance, listening ability skill; the leader will often pay much attention to their teams. The team members may be holding grievances among them that may impact on the success of the tasks assigned. When a leader listens to his or her team members, he or she gives them a chance and opportunity for innovations and continuous improvement. Such leaders encourage learning from each other through sharing experiences of gains and losses as well. Team members become close and open to their leader when the leader shows willingness to listen and handle their concerns and issues affecting their tasks. Therefore it’s vital for a leader to have the skill to listen to their followers. Another effective leadership skill for effective

Achilles Essay Example for Free

Achilles Essay Achilles set the model or heroism in the western world. Do you think Odysseus is a better model? Why or why not? The two heroes have their different characteristics and contributions to the English Literature. They were known by their every heroism acts, honored with their people and envied by their enemies. Odysseus was portrayed as a hero by the Greek because of his many virtues and, considered as a villainous falsifier by the Romans. (http/www:wikipwedia. com). He portrayed inconstant characteristics as a hero. He’s known to be cunning and deceitful, tricky and wise. One of the most influential Greek Champions of the Trojan War, a friend of Achilles whom he had convinced to join with Menelaus (King of Spartan) troops in sailing through Troy, and retrieve Helen (mistress of the King) that was abducted by Paris of Troy. Though, he tried to avoid from coming since an oracle prophesized that he’ll be delayed long in returning home if he went, but Palamedes placed his son in front of the plough which forced him to go. He became one of the most trusted advisers and counselors. He helped and brought the battle to victory. Just before the war begun, he accompanied Menelaus and Palemedes in an attempt to negotiate Helen’s peaceful return. Menelaus made unpersuasive emotional arguments, but his arguments almost persuaded the Trojan court to hand her over. He was indeed a hero of the Greek because of his strength and intelligence, his irresistible approach towards negotiations of the land’s boundaries and properties. On the other hand, Achilles was too a Greek hero of the Trojan War, the central character and the greatest warrior of Homer’s lliad, which takes for its theme the Wrath of Achilles. (http/www: google. com). He was known as the quickest and the most handsome of the heroes assembled against Troy. His great relationship with his friend Patroclus, who wore his armor the time he’s slain by Hector. On the movie â€Å"Troy†, he became more of a hero when he turned back and join the war to save the woman he first held as a captive at the first time they conquered one of the places of Troy. He showed passionate love with the Troy Princess and tried to keep her when King Menelaus invaded and murdered the King of Troy. Though, he presented a hubristic personality, however, his soft side was revealed by the time he fell in love with the Princess, being a good and trusted friend of Patroclus also. Achilles was invulnerable on all his body except for his heel, and was killed in battle by an arrow to the heel. (The movie is very visible on this part. ) Both Odysseus and Achilles were great, intelligent and peerless warriors. They were also in love when they’re forced to join the war. The first saved his son from placing in front of the plough and the later being so brave that he fear no kings, lived according to his will and desire, and went to save his Princess from danger. And though, Achilles was killed during the war and Odysseus was trying to get his armor away from Agamemnon. For me, they are just fair of becoming great models to everyone. They are heroes and great models in their own way and right.

To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Example for Free

To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Frank Barron, a professor in Psychology once said, â€Å"Never take a persons dignity: it is worth everything to them, and nothing to you. † Scout Finch is a wise, young and respectful girl who lives in a little town in Alabama called Maycomb. Scout lives with her older brother Jem Finch and her father Atticus Finch. Scout has a fuse when it comes to her temper, so when something sets her off she shows it. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the character of Scout Finch is revealed to the reader as a respectful character through standing up for her father, and respecting her Uncle Jack in forgiving him for what he had done wrong to her. Scout is respectful and also loyal to her father Atticus. By standing up for her father to whoever has a negative opinion about him, Scout shows how loyal and courteous she really is to her father. Scout may not be too fond with the fact that Atticus is helping out an African American man, but she does respect his decision and intends on supporting her father regardless. Scout will always support Atticus if she has to and shows every person in the town of Maycomb just who really is the bigger person in the entire situation. Scout shows respect for her father when she declares to her immature cousin â€Å"he is not! I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about but you better cut it out this red hot minute† (Lee 110). Just as Scouts respect is seen toward her father Atticus, it can also be seen towards her Uncle Jack. Scout is reverential and also forgiving of her Uncle Jack. By giving her Uncle Jack a second chance after he decided to give Scout a beating for a crime that she did not commit against her cousin, Scout is being a merciful person. Scout is also considerate about the situation because she is aware that her uncle does not know the entire story or the truth of what actually happened between Scout and her cousin. After Scouts uncle attempts to reason with Scout about the situation and Scout tells her uncle the truth, the problem gets resolved. Scout shows real character and how respectful, forgiving, and how fair of a person she really is when she admits to her Uncle Jack â€Å"I reckon I love you even after what you did† (Lee 112). Because of Scouts reaction to this incident and how she was able to resolve it, Lee created Scouts character in this book to show how forgiving, understanding, and respectful someone could be. Harper Lee once said â€Å"Im no idealist to believe firmly in the integrity of our courts and in the jury system that is no ideal to me, it is a living, working reality. Gentlemen, a court is no better than each man of you sitting before me on this jury. A court is only as sound as its jury, and a jury is only as sound as the men who make it up. † Lee portrayed the character of Scout Finch as the way she did to demonstrate to the readers of To Kill a Mockingbird that all people in this world are different, yet the same, and it does not matter if a person is black, white, tall, short, fat, skinny, old, young, redneck or hillbilly, no matter who the person is because that person is a human being and has all of the same rights as everyone else in this world. Scout Finch shows the readers that she may not be sure about a lot of different things but she does understand that no two people are alike and Scout demonstrates that throughout the entire book with the different ways she deals with different challenges which may come her way. In Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout Finch is portrayed as a young girl of morals and mature wisdom in her life and her surroundings. A girl like scout in today’s society may be seen as a rebel for speaking her mind and standing up for what she believes in. Though family loyalty still exists in today’s society, it has become less and less of a forgiving and compassionate society toward others. Scouts compassion for loyalty, truth and forgiveness help her to stay grounded and work through life which are strong characteristics for anyone. In today’s society, these characteristics are more important than ever because today’s standards are good, better, and the best.

Theories in Audience Research

Theories in Audience Research Communication as a complex process which is text have both an explicit and an implicit agenda. (Ruddock, 2001). According to Ruddock, persuasion is achieved not only through information but also through controlling how people make sense of information as nowadays mass media were persuasive on so far as they offered audiences seductive ‘knowledge positions’ that made sense of a chaotic world. (Ruddock, 2001, p.222). Stuart Hall argue that messages have a complex structure of dominance because at each stage they are, imprinted by institutional power relations. (Hall, 1980). Furthermore, in a particular stages a message only can be received at recognizable or appropriate stage where the message is to be used or understood at least somewhat against the grain. (Hall, 1980). This means that power relations at the point to production, will loosely fit those at the point of consumption. (Hall, 1980). In this way, the communication circuit is also a circuit which reproduces a pattern of domination. (Hall, 1980). Hall theory is ideological only and media is powerful when audiences encode from it. There are three challenges of encoding and decoding, Hall argued that (i) meaning is not simply fixed or determined by the sender (ii) the message is never transparent (iii) the audience is not a passive recipient of meaning. (Hall 1973). According to Hall, encoding and decoding is conventional model of communication to be found within mass communications research. This model moves in a linear fashion from the ‘sender’ through the ‘message’ to the ‘receiver’. (RED: 253). According to this model, the sender creates the message and fixes its meaning, which can only be transparently when communicated to the recipient. Hall theory on communication process is system can distort message which receiver might not getting the message they want to or expect (RED: 253). On the other hand, Hall are more on interested on the different way audiences generate and react from the message rather than discover the meaning. (RED: 253). The example implies in Hall t heory are the sender of information will never will be perceived by the target audience in the way they expect because of the chain of discourse. Furthermore, when we recognize that these circumstances will result in messages being imprinted by institutional power-relations as they pass through these stages which we will realize that a message cannot be transparent, because there can be no ‘raw’ presentation of any information. (Hall, 1973). Besides, this reasons also extend to the moment of consumption and distribution which is Uses and Gratification the theory states that consumers are not a passive audience but an active recipients of meaning. (Hall, 1973). On the other hand, the decoding of messages is a complex process which making sense by audience and it will shaped by the imprints of reception, social and economic relations and structures of understanding before any kind of practice or consciousness can be happen. (Hall, 1973). Besides, consumers are for both wh ich is receivers and as a source to understanding of a message. The description as a ’lack of fit’ between the ‘encoders’ as producers and ‘decoders’ as a consumers is an unpredictability because of the codes offered by mass media through conveyed messages to receiver can be interpreted in three ways which is through a dominant reading where the receiver accepts and reproduces the code. (Hall, 1973). For a negotiated reading, normally the code is accepted but partly only shared thus an oppositional reading is the receiver understands the reading but rejects the code. (Hall, 1973). According to Hall notes, â€Å"hierarchically organized into dominant or preferred meanings† (p. 513), some knowledge become institutionalized because there is a preferred reading that is imprinted by a social order (institutional/political/ideological). (Hall, 1973). He argues that although we have polysemy, or multiple meanings, we do not have pluralism. Thi s will result in some messages from the media becoming commonsense constructs, as we enforce certain semantic domains and† rule items into and out of their appropriate meaning-sets† (p. 514). When consumers are faced with messages, and make sense of them within the hegemony of dominant code, they will reproduce already dominant definitions. (Hall, 1973). Hall were insert a semiotic paradigm into a social framework which to clearing the way for both which is textualist and ethnographic work. (Hall, 1973). Hall’s essay has been important to the study of media which is fieldwork like David Morley. He has proceeded model has been criticized for his model which is sender, message and receiver. (Agosto de, 2006) According to Agosto, it is a concentration on the level of message exchange and for the absence of a structured conception of the different moments as a complex structure of relations. (Agosto de, 2006). On Halls theory, his has own militant, position, where he insists that the ‘preferred reading’ is undoubtedly a property of the text which means can be identified on the analysis itself. (Hall 1994). In my opinion, if Hall is right on the textual analysis there are still has many important place in audience work rather than many subsequent scholars have recognized it. However, we cannot deny that textual analysis by dissolving the text into its readings or contextual uses, the question still remains as to the nature of the text that we should analyze. (Agosto de, 2006) At one time, under the influence of structuralist theories of language and meaning (de Saussure 1974; Hall 1981) it seemed obvious that content analysis could be of little help, because of the way in which it disaggregates texts into their atomized constituent parts and according to structuralism to gives them their meanings. (Agosto de, 2006) Besides, as we know from many studies of viewing practices peop le from the whole actually do not consume whole texts on television even though they still do in cinema. (Agosto de, 2006) In plus, in the age of the remote control device, they watch cannibalized schedules of their own construction, as they jump from one bit of programming to another which the structural relations within any one programme will be irrelevant, except in that particular sub-category of viewing in which people will sit down and watch the their favourite programmes. (Agosto de, 2006). Acoording to David Morley’s research involving Nationwide has become an important study when concerning audiences. Morley outlined three hypothetical position which the reader might occupy dominant reading whereas the reader shares the programmes ‘code’ Code means systems of values, attitudes, beliefs and assumptions and fully accepts by the programmes as to be ‘preferred reading’ Furthermore, negotiated reading is the reader partially shares the programmes code and its preferred reading, however they modify it which reflects their position and interest. (Hall, 1973). Oppositional reading is where the reader does not share the programme’s code and completely rejects the preferred reading, which brings an alternative frame of interpretation. (Hall, 1973). A further, fundamental problem about matters of interpretation is raised by Condit (1989) and Caragee (1990) who both argue that many audience scholars have exaggerated the extent of the polyse my of meanings of media texts and ignored the limits placed by texts themselves on the process of interpretation. (Agosto de, 2006). Their argument that most texts have meanings which are perfectly clear to the majority of their readers who only differ in their evaluation of them, takes us back to another unresolved issue raised long ago by John Corner (1981). This concerns the need to disentangle the elements of comprehension and evaluation which are intertwined in the Encoding or Decoding model. This takes into deep water, as Hall`s original (1973) argument was that, in any society characterized by significant cultural divisions, and thus a `systematically distorted` system of communication (Habermas 1970) the elements of comprehension and evaluation will inevitably be intertwined with some kinds of interpretations dismissed by more powerful others as merely `misunderstandings`. (Agosto de, 2006) The unresolved difficulty here is that the price of analytical clarity, if we attem pt to too neatly divide matters of interpretation and evaluation, may be to disassemble the empirical conjunction of these issues and thus to evacuate from the model the very questions of cultural power which it was designed to address (Hall, 1973). Yet further important questions remain about the status of another of the model’s central categories that of the `oppositional reading`. It may well be that the original model, in its search for overtly political forms of opposition to the culturally dominant order, overvalues ‘oppositional’ rather than ‘negotiated’ decodings. (Agosto de, 2006) Moreover, it is by no means clear that an audience’s refusal to even engage with a text sufficiently to make any decoding of it and it irrelevance to their concerns which is the position of many people in the UK, in relation to much of contemporary news and current affairs programming is less of an oppositional reading than one which is at least sufficiently engaged by a text to bother to `disagree` with it. (Agosto de, 2006). As Dominique Pasquier (2003) argues, the ‘indifferent audience’ may be one of the key issues for contemporary audience research. (Agosto de, 2006) Sociologist David Morley argues that ‘members of a given subculture will tend to share a cultural orientation towards decoding messages in particular ways. (Agosto de, 2006) Their individual â€Å"readings† of messages will be framed by shared cultural formations and practices’. In conclusion Morley claims that an individual’s ‘decoding’ of TV programmed are not reduced to a direct consequence of social class position. (Agosto de, 2006). It is always a question of how social position, as it articulated through particular discourses, produces specific kind of readings or decoding. (Agosto de, 2006) These readings can be seen to be patterned by the way in which the structure of access to different discourses is determined by social position’ (Agosto de, 2006) Therefore, the meaning of text will be constructed differently according to the discourses brought by the reader. (Agosto de, 2006) Fiskes Theory suggests that people naturally categorized events that take place in their reality in reference to texts they have experienced in the past which means he is suggesting we all create a context for what we are seeing through intertextual referencing. (Fiske, 1992). People tend to believe that genre is based on real life, however, the human mind tends to give real life events context and genre based on those created in texts. This can apply to generally speaking, any genre. For example, the horror film, when something super natural takes place in real life people may relate it to a text based on ghosts if an object might randomly fall off a shelf in a supposedly haunted location on a ghost walk, people will witness this in reference to things they have seen in the exorcist or other such films. (Agosto de, 2006). According to Marxism Theory is a ‘simple idea is that the policy process, far from being a rational weighing up of alternatives, is driven by powerful socio-economic forces that set the agenda, structure decision makers choices, constraints implementation and ensure that the interests of the most powerful (or of the system as a whole) determines the outputs and the outcomes of the political system. (John, 1992). According to Barry the state’s function is to protect and reproduce capitalism. Public policies thus reflect the role of the state in trying to regulate the economy and ensure social and political stability. (Barry, n.d.).In other words, the state formulates and implementation policy to reflects the interests of capitalism and the capitalist or the ruling class. (Barry, n.d.). The control over ideas through media and process of socialization on more generally, such as education. This is no dominant ideology compared to Hall theory which is system can be distort. Marxist is a capitalist mode of production and it is concentrated of nature power which is critical and it is overthrow the system. (Barry, n.d). Bibliography Barker, M. (2003) ‘I have seen the future and it is not here yet.’ Paper to ARSRP conference Ruddock, Andy (2001) Understanding Audiences: Theory and Method, Sage: London. Fiske, J (1987). Active Audiences. In Television Culture (pp.62-68). London: Routledge. Morley, D. (2006). Unanswered questions in audience research [Electronic Version]. The communication Review, 9(2), 101-121. Peter John, (1992). Analyzing Public Policy 1999. P.92.

Tom’s closing speech in The Glass Menagerie -- English Literature Tenn

Tom’s closing speech in The Glass Menagerie Tom’s closing speech in The Glass Menagerie is very emotional and ironic. However, this monologue is somewhat ambiguous and doesn’t implicitly state whether Tom found the adventure he sought. It seems as though he never returned to St. Louis, and spent the remainder of his life wandering from place to place. This is inferred when he says,† I didn’t go to the moon, I went much further-for time is the longest distance between two places†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Throughout the play, the fire escape has been a symbol of Tom’s entrance and exit into both his reality and his dream world. He tells us that his departure marked the last time he â€Å"descended the steps of this fire-escape†, thus permanently embarking on his journey of solitude into what was once only a part of his dream world. From the statement, â€Å"(I) followed, from then on, in my father’s footsteps..† the reader can see that Tom acknowledges that he has chosen a path which is very similar to that of his father’s. In recognising this fact, Tom also admits that he abandoned his family just like Mr. Wingfield did. Tom’s journey does not seem to bring the escape and excitement that he had always longed for. He says, â€Å"The cities swept about me like dead leaves..† This description does not sound as though it comes from a traveller who is ecstatic about visiting different parts of the world. Cities are anything but dead; on the contrary, they are vibrant and full of life, and persons who are artistically inclined tend to be attracted to bustling cities. By categorising all the cities as dead leaves, Tom classifies them as similar entities in which he notices no individuality, uniqueness or excitement. He cannot relish in the beau... ...scape, and she will most likely carry this pain for the rest of her life. It also symbolises Tom’s final farewell to her. Essentially, this monologue reveals that Tom’s escape has not been as complete or as perfect as he had hoped. While he has escaped the physical limitations of the Wingfield apartment and the restrictions of his job at the warehouse, memories from his past and feelings of regret seem to create an intangible prison for Tom. He has been unable to remove himself from the coffin and leave all the nails untouched, as was his former desire. His statement of â€Å"I am more faithful than I intended to be!† alludes to the fact that he is fully cognisant that he has left his family to struggle with the consequences of his departure. The Glass Menagerie ends with Tom’s life being exactly opposite to the one he had foreseen when he planned his escape.

Chinese Immigrants :: essays research papers

Chinese Immigrants lived in really poor conditions. Small rooms were packed full of 20 to 30 immigrants. Rats and mice were everywhere, and catching diseases were often and deadly. Since there were no good vaccinations, many died from diseases caught from their workers. Sometimes the dirt would be inches high. Living in these conditions would be very harsh, yet still more and more immigrants from China came to mine and work on the railroad. The Chinese played a very important, yet dangerous job building the railroads. They would be lowered in small buckets down cliff faces to stick explosives in the side of the cliff, then be brought back up. Many people died from either galling off ledges or being blown up, and it was sick and sad to watch your friend being blown up. The Chinese were willing to do this because it was basically the only thing that they could do. Discrimination against them was high, so they wanted to do something that they would not be made fun of doing. They were willing to work for low pay, since even as low as their salary would be, it would still be more than they got paid in China, because of overcrowding and the Civil War. I think that Chinese railroad workers were definitely exploited by the owners. With very low wages, and poor working conditions, I don’t see why the Chinese put up with that. The owners didn’t really care for them like they did for white people. Also, the owners convinced the Chinese that work would be safe, saying that nobody would get hurt. This made them feel better about dangerous jobs, but after many deaths, the immigrants found out that it was not safe at all. "Whereas,...California and pacific coast having proved that...The Chinese and their competition with free white labor is one of the greatest evils...Therefore be it Resolved, that we rid this monstrous evil by urging the United States congress the necessity of... prohibiting the immigration of Chinese.

Reservation

Republic of the Philippines Batangas State University Governor Pablo Borbon, Main Campus II College of Engineering, Architecture, Fine Arts and Computing Sciences PASSENGER RESERVATON SYSTEM Presented by: Atienza, Zarah Jane C. Caringal, Clariza Jane R. Castor, Chiara R. Fondevilla, Rolan A. Mendoza, Ana Marie P. BSIT- 3102 Presented to: Ms. Amy U. Aclan nstrctor Executive Summary The ABC Bus Corporation has approached a new way in reserving their accommodating their passenger by creating a computerize bus reservation systems that aims to provide user excellent services.Bus reservation system deals with maintenance of records of details of each passenger who had reserved a seat for a journey for various places in Bangalore. The said bus reservation company has 60 routes operating from Bangalore among those are the regular or ordinary, semi-luxury and super-deluxe buses. These systems should contain information about its passenger like date of reservation, their destination, and numbe r of seats and cancellation of their reservation. The system should meet the requirements of the business to make it interactive and user friendly.Our project is to computerize traveling company to manage data, so that all the transactions become fast and lessen any possibly error in transaction like calculation mistake, bill generation and other things. It replaces all the paper work. It keeps records of all bills also, giving to ensure 100% successful implementation of the computerized Bus reservation system. It also shows reports of the transaction done by the company to monitor their daily operation. Objective/s Main Objective: To develop an effective and functional passenger reservation system. Specific Objectives: a.To record data of various routes originating from Bangalore b. To verify that the total distance travelled by each passenger does not exceeded 3000km. c. To provide a facility for cancellation. Analysis Traveling is a large growing business in or country. Bus reser vation system deals with maintenance of records of details of each passenger who had reserved a seat for a journey. It also includes maintenance of information like schedule and details of each bus. We observed the working of the Bus reservation system and after going through it, we get to know that there are many operations, which they have to do manually.It takes a lot of time and causes many errors. Due to this, sometimes a lot of problems occur and they were facing many disputes with customers. To solve the above problem, and further maintaining records of items, seat availability for customers, price of per seat, bill generation and other things, we are offering this proposal of reservation system. Our reservation system has two modules. First module helps him to reserve a ticket. Using second module he can cancel a reserved ticket. Requirements Definition Functional Requirements a. Should be able to create a new login for accessing the reservation facility. . See current reser vations on different buses along with the details. c. The system should automatically show amount of money needs to be pay for selected seats. Non- Functional Requirements a. The administrator shall usually do anything on the system in all forms. Administrator is responsible for updating and maintenance of the systems content such as adding/ removing information about the system. b. Customers are people who shall use the Passenger Reservation System. To use this service the customer should have the basic computer using ability. Process Model Data Model E- R Diagram Use Case Input/Output design

Hazel Case Essay

1.Hazel’s customers will most likely judge her quality based on how well their lawns are doing and by looking at the state of her other customers’ gardens as well. The customers will also weight the services she provides with the price she’s asking for. And the most important is her knowledge about gardening and how committed she is. Lawns should be taken care of regularly so she should manage her time precisely not to miss an appointment or neglect a certain garden. 2.a. Like any other business forecasting is a vital part of the operations. Forecasting is needed to manage inventory, time and cash expenditures. With forecasting Hazel will be able to predict demand thus will be able to book her two part timers for certain dates. With forecasts she will also be able to get enough quantities of the fertilizers and tools she needs for the job. A forecast will also tell her when there will be available time required for her machine’s maintenance. b. The inventory Hazel must have is fertilizers and seeds. One of the most important decision that Hazel must do on a regular basis is how much to order of each based on the shipping cost of each order and the available space she has for storage in order to minimize her cost (Economic Order Quantity). Hazel must also pay attention to the fertilizers and seeds’ expiry dates so that they don’t go unused. c. Hazel needs to schedule her appointment and her machines’ maintenance time. Once appointments are set for each employee she has to assign the time slots between herself and her workers. Weather conditions can drive her to reschedule as well as health conditions if she or one of her part time workers get sick and can’t go to the appointment and something personal of importance comes up suddenly. d. The quality of her work especially in the industry she chose is very important. Based on the quality of her work more customers will come asking for her services and she can then raise her prices. e. The maintenance that Hazel has to do is for the equipments she uses. She has to make sure all machines are in good conditions and that all the blades and scissors are sharp enough. 3.a. Working for a company brings a steady foreseen income but is subject to the risk of getting laid off like it happened to Hazel before or maybe salary cuts during economic downturns. On the other hand working privately has the risk of not getting any orders for a period of time. The private business thing requires full commitment even if she has to skip some of her personal obligations; on the other hand working for a company has defined working hours. b. Not expanding the business would limit Hazel’s revenues and profits and losing one customer would have a significant negative impact on her operations. In contrast, expanding the business might also have some drawbacks because it will require an initial capital injection from her side to buy more equipments needed, she will have to hire permanent employees to run the business, she will be required to pay close attention to the quality of service that her employees are performing. All of these extra expenses might outweigh the extra profit she will get from the expansion so forecasts will play an vital role in her decisions on whether to expand or not. c. Launching a website would help Hazel reach a clientele she can’t possibly reach via marketing between her neighbors. However, the website she launches might get her more orders than she can possibly fulfill with her current capacity. Another important factor is that the website will need someone to monitor it and tak e care of it and if not enough orders come from the website then it won’t be worth its extra cost. 4.If the ordinance is passed Hazel can offer a new service to her clients which is moving their clippings. The advantages of the new service would be that it will bring her extra profit and it will be considered a dependent line of business that she can offer not only to the clients she cuts the lawn for but for anyone interested. The disadvantages would be the cost of getting new vehicles and new employees for the new business line and the complexity of running two different business lines simultaneously. 5.I think Hazel should send him the check first because she had given them her work (even if it wasn’t documented) and second because this would encourage other workers to share their ideas and not fear that she won’t pay them given they are only part timers. Another important thing is that this worker can spread the word that she didn’t pay him which will create a bad image of her in the market. The cost she will be incurring is the monetary value of the check . 6.a. The business Hazel deals in is affected by many other factors other than her work such as weather conditions and plants reactions to fertilizers. This outside effect requires more attention from Hazel’s side to make sure her quality does not vary dramatically because if that happens she might lose her credibility. b. If weather conditions are favorable then demand would probably decrease but if the conditions are unfavorable then the lawns would require more care from her side. According to the demand her inventory levels have to be set. 7.Hazel can consider offering a one month package, or a 6 month package or an annual one where the clients sign a contract with her for the whole period. Hazel can also offer bundle services in which she offers two of her services at a discounted price. Such offers would help Hazel attract more customers, will help her predict demand and will eliminate the risk of getting no new orders for a period of time.

Charmed

Running head: CHARMED: MY FAVORITE TV SHOW Charmed: My Favorite TV Show Tolby Markham Kaplan University LS 526-01: Academic and Professional Writing for Graduate Students CHARMED: MY FAVORITE TV SHOW Charmed: My Favorite TV Show Charmed, I’m sure! Are you? Charmed is the story of The Charmed Ones – the most powerful good witches the world has ever known, whose job is to protect the innocent and not blow their cover. When their grandmother, Grams, suffers a heart attack, Prue, Piper and Phoebe Halliwell move back into the family manor in San Francisco where Phoebe discovers the legendary Book of Shadows hidden in the attic.Reading aloud a mystical incantation, the three sisters receive their Wiccan powers, which are needed to fight off evil. Despite wanting normal lives,  The Charmed Ones fight evil beings every day and have always been the most powerful source of good witches and good magic the world has ever seen. The perception of witches in American culture has und ergone a radical transformation in the last century as Americans have become familiar with scientific explanations for supernatural events.Because of this, there has been much less genuine fear or hysteria regarding the supposed use of occult magic. Yet the popularity of witches in America persists even today. In fact, the frequent appearances of witches in television and film have gradually changed the way most Americans think about witches. The most notable change has been in the presentation of women in these roles—from the evil, traditional â€Å"hag† witches in early works like Disney’s  Snow White  to the much more attractive and benevolent Halliwell sisters of the television series  Charmed.Magic in itself is fascinating. Having such a tremendous power id amazing and the responsibilities that come with it are enormous. Fighting demons, evil witches and warlords and CHARMED: MY FAVORITE TV SHOW the ultimate bad guy â€Å"The Source† is what th e Halliwell sisters are born and even one dies for. The three sisters, Prue, Piper, Phoebe and later Paige have such powers combined that they try to save the world everyday while trying to sustain a normal mortal life like everyone else in the world.The first in the line, Melinda Warren was burned at the stake but before this, she foresaw that each coming generation of witches in her family would grow stronger and stronger, culminating in the arrival of three sisters – the strongest good witches the world had ever seen; the three sisters would form the Power of Three making them the most powerful magical force ever to exist. The effect of a Power of Three bond being formed is that all the members' powers are pooled together into a  Collective. One of the benefits of this bond is  High Resistance.Of course, the downsides of this are that the amount of power one gains from this is relative to the level of the other beings involved, with the above example assuming that the beings involved are (at least more or less) the same strength. Another downside of this is that if one member dies it weakens the Collective, making the other members easier to kill off with the death of each member. However, on the flip side, more powerful (and hence higher level) beings are harder to kill/affect with ones powers than lower level ones i. e.Piper and the other various Charmed Ones have been shown to have taken direct hits from all kinds of attacks such as Fire and Energy Balls and live many times over whereas such attacks would vanquish any other magical creature instantly. The Triad  are also highly resilient to Piper's combustion power whereas other lower CHARMED: MY FAVORITE TV SHOW level demons usually disintegrate within seconds. Therefore this particular con is easily balanced out. Then there is the fact that this collective interconnects all of the members to each other in various metaphysical ways.Certain spells cast on one member may affect the others thr ough this interconnection such as when Prue was magically turned evil, causing Piper and Phoebe to turn evil also. A Power of Three bond can be broken in several ways. If the members use their powers on each other in a negative manner or atmosphere then the bond will be broken. Fortunately, this may be reformed by all of the members reconnecting with each other emotionally or something to that effect. For example, when the Charmed Ones used their powers on each other during an argument it shattered their Power of Three.However, later on they all got over the argument and showed their solidarity as a sister (which is where their Power of Three comes from) and hence reformed it. Another way, mentioned above, would be if one of the members died. Although this event is less likely the implications are more severe as the collective would be weakened beyond repair. Each sister has a distinctive power to help aid them in vanquishing the evil beings. The sisters’ powers are as follow s: * Prue Halliwell, played by Shannen Doherty, had the power of telekinesis and astral projection. CHARMED: MY FAVORITE TV SHOW Piper Halliwell, played by Holly Marie Combs, had the power to freeze time and also held the power of molecular combustion. With the death of Prue, Piper becomes the most powerful of all three sisters; * Phoebe Halliwell, played by Alyssa Milano, had the power of premonition, levitation and empathy, and * Paige Matthews, played by Rose McGowan, had the power to orb and telekinetic orbing. Rose took on the role of the third sister when Shannen left the show at the end of season three. During the show’s eight year run, Charmed was nominated for 30 awards and won 18.Just to name a few: * In 2006, Charmed became the longest running hour-long series featuring all female leads (Mitovich, 2006), and * Holly Marie Combs (Piper) was named the third greatest with in television history, only behind Samantha (Bewitched) and Willow (Buffy). In this same list was Alyssa Milano (Phoebe) at number seven, Shannen Doherty (Prue) at number tem and Rose McGowan (Paige) at number thirteen (Greenberger, 2012). To sum it up, if you enjoy the supernatural or if you like special effects, Charmed is the show for you.Charmed was a television series on the WB Television Network which ran from 1998 thru 2006 (IMDb, 2012). The show is now shown Monday thru Friday on the drama network TNT, from 7am to 8am and 8am to 9am (Turner Broadcasting Systems, Inc. , 2012). CHARMED: MY FAVORITE TV SHOW References IMDb. (2012, August 24). Retrieved from An Amazon Company: www. imdb. com Turner Broadcasting Systems, Inc. (2012, August 25). Retrieved from A Time Warner Company: www. tntdrama. com Greenberger, R. (2012, August 23). ComicMix. Retrieved from ComicMix, LLC: www. comicmix. com Mitovich, M. (2006). Charmed Hits a Final? Milestone. New York City: TV Guide.

Advertising AIDA Model

AIDA Model ATTENTION A = PAN-TASTIC OFFER FREE PIZZA INTEREST I = Hot Online 1 =RM 22 = Hot Online 2 = RM 29 = Hot Take-Away 1 = RM 19 = Hot Take-Away 2 = RM 26. 90 = Add RM 3 to upgrade to Supremes Pan Pizza DESIRE D = The image of delicious Pizza ACTION A = PIZZA HUT ONLINE ORDERING- www. pizzahut. com. my- = Halal Logo = Valid until 15 December 2011 ADVERTISER In Wichita, brothers Frank and Dan Carney opened the first Pizza Hut restaurant on June 15, 1958. They had been approached by the owner of a small building who wanted a nice neighbourhood business, and had read the Post's article about pizza.The Carneys borrowed $600 from their mother, located John Bender, an airman from McConnell Air Force Base who had worked as a pizza cook, purchased some secondhand equipment and were ready for business. The first night, they gave away pizza to interest potential customers. Many people ask how Pizza Hut got its name. When the Carneys were setting up that first restaurant, the building has a sign with room for just nine characters. They wanted to use â€Å"pizza† in the name, which left room for a word with only three characters. A family member suggested the uilding looked like a hut†¦. and Pizza Hut was born. 1959 :  Pizza Hut is incorporated and the first franchise unit opens in Topeka, Kansas. 1965 :  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Putt-Putt to Pizza Hut† musical jingle is developed for Pizza Hut's first television commercial. 1967 :  A Pizza Hut restaurant was built in five days by franchisees at the Oklahoma State Fair. World's largest pizza (six feet in diameter) is baked and served at the grand opening of the Fort Worth, Texas Pizza Hut. 1968 :  International market entered with the opening of the first Pizza Hut in Surrey, B. C. , Canada.Pizza Hut serves a million people a week at its 310 locations. 1977 :  Super Supreme is introduced. Pizza Hut opens its 3,000th unit in Arlington, Texas. 1980 :  Pan Pizza is introduced throughout the system. 1983 :  Personal Pan Pizza, with a five-minute guarantee, is introduced. Pizza Hut serves one and a half million pounds of pasta annually. Pizza Hut employs 10,000 teenagers from 16 to 19 years of age. 1984 :  BOOK IT! National reading incentive program is launched with 200,00 elementary students enrolled. 1988 :  Hand Tossed Traditional Pizza is introduced.Pizza Hut celebrates its 30th anniversary with a total of more than 6,000 restaurants and delivery units worldwide. 1990 :  Pizza Hut delivers more than 1,349,000 pizzas on Superbowl Sunday, about 7,000 pies per minute. 1995 :  Pizza Hut launches the â€Å"You'll Love The Stuff We're Made Of† campaign. Buffalo Wings soar onto the menu. Pizzeria Stuffed Crust Pizza is introduced which immediately sets company sales records. 1998 :  Surrey Place Pizza Hut celebrates its 30th year of business! ADVERTISING AGENCY Pizza Hut Hands Digital, Social Media to MartinE-commerce Business Goes to Huge Yum Brands' Pizza Hut has handed digital marketing and social media to its lead agency, Interpublic Group of Cos. ‘  Martin Agency. Sibling agency Huge has been tapped to handle Pizza Hut's e-commerce business. Both moves occurred without a review. Digital marketing was previously handled by Dallas-based indie agency IMC. The move to hand digital marketing and social media to Martin â€Å"was made to help fully integrate our digital and advertising initiatives,† according to a Pizza Hut spokesman.Huge, meanwhile, will be responsible for the pizza chain's online ordering site as well as setting overall e-commerce strategy. IMC's swan song for Pizza Hut were the recently released iPad and Android apps, as well as an updated iPhone app. Pizza Hut in 2009 launched the pizza category's first iPhone app, which has since been downloaded nearly 3 million times. The Pizza Hut spokesman said that Huge will simply â€Å"fine-tune† the online ordering platform, rather than revamp it. Pizza Hut in recent years has prioritized online ordering, as have rivals Papa John's and Domino's, making for a heated race to digital dominance.All three chains in the past have said that they hope to do about half of their business online. In April 2010 Pizza Hut had unveiled a simpler online ordering platform — customers can now order a pizza in two clicks — built by IMC and QuickOrder, Chicago. Papa John's was the first of the three big chains to offer online ordering, though Pizza Hut built industry-first ordering platforms for not only the iPhone but also Facebook, and Domino's made waves with its Pizza Tracker. Pizza Hut chief marketer Kurt Kane last year  pinned a sales turnaround on $10 pizzas and two-click ordering.Indeed, its 2010 U. S. same-store sales were up about 8%, although that growth was tempered by the chain's first-quarter 2011 earnings: U. S. same-store sales were down 3%. Pizza Hut in 2010 spent $217. 4 million on measured media spending, up 9. 7% from the prior year, according to Kantar. MEDIA The Marketing Communications Mix To ensure that our message manages to reach as much of the target audience as possible we have chosen to use the following communication approach. This approach uses a combination of advertising using two media forms, the internet and television.In accordance with the advertising, sales promotions and public relations will be carried out to hopefully guarantee the success of the campaign. Television The creation of television provided a new opportunity for widespread effective advertising. When viewing advertisements the public assesses what the advert conveys and how it conveys this message. This causes the public to evaluate aspects such as presentation, creative appeal as well as of course the message. Therefore due to impact that this powerful audio-visual tool can have on the audience, it is imperative that much consideration is given to the impression that is portrayed.One major benefit of television advertising is that it has a very high level of penetration. Statistics have shown that in the United Kingdom on average the public watches television for '28 hours per person per week' (Nationmaster, 2009). This therefore provides a lucrative possibility for many corporations. Due to the audio-visual possibilities that television advertising provides it gives the advertisers an opportunity to utilize the creative potential and fully portray the message desired which consequently helps the brand to achieve its aspired goals.For the television advertisement, a brand such as Pizza Hut should produce adverts that are creative and entertaining but also ensures that the core message is clearly communicated. The advertisement must be appealing to keep the attention of the audience to hopefully limit the effect that surrounding noise and distractions may have. There is a tendency of many consumers to directly link the credibility of a brand with the credibility of the medium, and television advertisi ng is perceived as a highly credible source to most audiences.Therefore the credibility of the Pizza Hut campaign has high chances of being enhanced if it associated with TV adverts. The television advertisement for the new campaign needs to be positively engaging on the emotional and psychological grounds. Our basic aim is to implement the pull strategy to create a demand for this new product category via the mass media. The target audience for the pizza hut campaign is the health conscious segment, but health consciousness is reflected in varied shades for different individuals, and this consideration is depicted in the television advertisement.The advertisement shows an ordinary British family consisting of a mother, a father and two teenagers; a son and a daughter. They are discussing what to have for dinner at the dining table. One option that is discussed is pizza, and it shows the four different perspectives of having pizza for dinner. The mother's standpoint is that pizza wo uldn't be suitable as it is unhealthy and lacks proper nutrients for the family, while the daughter's perspective is that she would have motivational conflicts due to the high calorie count and the diet she as been carrying out, the son also may have a similar negative perspective due an extensive work-out schedule that he has been keeping to and doesn't want to ruin and that father may be worried about blood pressure and cholesterol that are common with his age and therefore the consensus is not to order a pizza even though everyone would enjoy the experience. A pizza base appears magically on their table and tops itself up with all the healthy ingredients like vegetables/grilled lean whit meat/low fat cheese etc, which adds to the health quotient of a pizza.The advert now describes the complete new range of healthy Pizzas from Pizza Hut. This advertisement aims to appeal to its audiences through an emotional stance. Understanding a mother's basic instinct to ensure the family keep s healthy, understanding many teenager's insecurities as well as understanding the worries about health for the majority of the aging population. The psychological perspective of this advert would be that people are enjoying a pizza without experiencing cognitive dissonance.The advert would have a strong visual appeal to create the sense that it would be delicious and full of flavour, this would be carried out with visually appealing colours of the topping as well as the surrounding background of the advert. The slogan used for this advert is â€Å"Pizzas Just Got Healthier. † This is a clear, strong slogan and it also communicates the core idea of the whole advertising campaign in lucid, simple language which is easily retained by consumers. The slogan also is able to depict an image of the brand which cares about its customer's health through an product innovation.The sales promotion that is integrated into the campaign will be shown at the end of the advert with a change i n the tonal quality of the speaker, this is aimed at getting the audience to pay attention at the moment when the majority of the information is relayed. Refer to Appendix A for story board. The last but not the least the advert would be following the Association Guideline within â€Å"C4'S Golden Guidelines†; the television advertisement will be aired throughout a entertainment/comedy section, throughout the time period of 6pm to 8 pm.This time period would be a high reach period as it after school and work when more members of the family are at home. It would be most viable to relate the advert to the shared territory and common targeting aspect of the Association Guidelines. Internet Advertising The internet is described by many as a one of the most important inventions of the century. It has been a part of a major revolution in technological development worldwide. With the advent of web based advertising in 1994, it has become an extremely convenient method for many brand s to reach to the greater masses at a relatively lower cost in comparison to traditional media.The current generation is highly dependent on the internet, and therefore advertising online in the form of banner ads, button ads, pop ups are the smart and viable options for many reputed brands. Potter (1994) ‘estimates that web based marketing results in ten times the units sold at one tenth of the advertising budget, and that's one of the most important reasons to opt for an online advert. ‘ An added bonus also is that consumers have the option of watching the advert as many times as they wish and so are able to obtain all the information that the advert provides.The new Pizza Hut campaign focuses mainly on giving healthier alternatives when visiting Pizza Hut, mainly in the forms ‘Healthy Pizzas'. This should be highlighted clearly to the audience as this should create an interest that may cause possible customers to acquire more information about the campaign. Anot her rationale for using web based advertising is the higher chance of an instantaneous purchase, as long as there is a option of purchasing the product or service. This impulse purchase effect will occur especially with food producers such as Pizza Hut, as it satisfies a physiological need in Maslow's hierarchy of needs.To hopefully ensure a purchase it would be advisable for Pizza Hut to have an option of â€Å"Order Now† and a link to the website. Public Relations Harris (1998) indicates the ‘purpose of marketing PR is to gain awareness, stimulate sales, facilitate communication, and build relationships between consumers and companies and brands. ‘ This opportunity is an interesting prospect for Pizza Hut and alongside advertising may enable the campaign to reach more of the target audience.Pizza Hut can use its public relations agency to promote its products, services as well as its corporate identity. This is especially useful as the campaign is aiming for an image change, public relations will help communicate this change to many different groups of stakeholders. Corporate public relations is responsible for establishing understanding and trust with individuals who have a potential or actual interest in the organisation, (Kitchen, 1997). According to Gruning (1992), ‘corporate PR is the management of communication between an organisation and its publics. These may include health organisations, local businesses, local education authorities and potential customers along with many more groups. Pizza Hut can use and associate ‘the high credibility attached to this form of communication. ‘ (Fill et al, 2005) to create credibility and maintain the credibility of the brand. In order for Pizza Hut to be effective when carrying out its public relations, it will introduce newsletters informing the previously mentioned groups of what they are trying to do in its new health campaign.Pizza Hut could also evaluate the effectiveness of its public relations by offering readers the chance to comment on the company and any articles through the feedback form at the back of the newsletter. Pizza Hut has decided to put together an article with a major newspaper publisher about obesity levels and the new Pizza Hut healthy campaign. Public relations are often important at more of a corporate level and without this option Pizza Hut would struggle to be seen as a major food outlet. This can be seen as a form of publicity.Pizza Hut should also conduct a certain amount of public relations to its internal stakeholders such as staff and external stakeholders. Internally the employee magazine should be used and these cues should ‘develop images and perceptions' (Fill, 2005) in the mind of the stakeholders, internally as well as externally. Therefore the ability for public relations to reach a medium size audience and also portray a credible image indicates that Pizza Hut should be using PR as one of its communication to ols.It must not be ignored however that public relations is more effective when integrated with other communication tools. By combining such tools as advertising with public relations it is possible to gain full national coverage something that would not necessarily be possible with other communication tools. Sales Promotions The institute of sales promotion (2004) defines sales promotion as a ‘planned and implemented activity that both enhances product or service appeal and changes customer behaviour positively in return for an additional benefit for purchase or participation'. Yeshin, 2006) According to Yeshin (2006) sales promotion can function on three levels by communicating, catching the customer's attention at the point of purchase'(Yeshin, 2006) as well as providing extra information that may influence the purchase decision. Sales promotions can also provide an incentive by offering ‘some form of direct inducement, either immediate or delayed, which changed the p erceptual base of the purchasing decision. ‘ (Yeshin, 2006) Sales promotions can also advance the purchasing decision and ‘invite the consumer to engage in an immediate transaction. (Yeshin, 2006) Therefore there is a strong rationale for using sales promotions in the new Pizza Hut campaign. The ability to create a product trial and sampling is necessary aspect for the success of the campaign. Once attracting customers to try the new healthier pizza range, this hopefully will encourage repeat purchases and create a loyalty to the brand. Through this loyalty there will hopefully be an increase in frequency of purchase as well as different usage. The sales promotions that Pizza Hut are planning on integrating into the campaign are such as a grouping with ‘Innocent Smoothies. Innocent Smoothies is a good association with this campaign as it is a well known smoothie brand which is related heavily with being healthy and prides itself on only using ‘100% natural, h ealthy renewable ingredients. ‘ (Innocent Drinks, 2009) have also already had success with the health conscious target audience already and so will create added value in the mind of this audience. The promotion that Pizza Hut is running is a ‘Meal Deal' in which a choice of healthy pizzas accompanied with either an innocent smoothie or a side salad. This ‘Meal Deal' will be set at ? . 99. Through these promotions there will hopefully be an increase in market share due to brand switching. A pull strategy will occur in which consumer decides to choose Pizza Hut over competing brands. Unlike some other tools of marketing communication, which work over a longer term, sales promotion produces rapid results and return on investment is often substantial. However it will be used along side with other marketing communication tools for this campaign so as to bring about an integrated marketing communication approach. SUPPLIERS / VENDOR

Case Study Analysis of Casual Togs

There is a wide range of problems that may adversely affect the progress and competitiveness of organizations. These include structural problems, communication, management issues and failure to embrace change. Given that there is no fixed approach to management that is ideal for all organizations, each company has to ensure that it adopts the most ideal approach, which can be determined by several factors in the internal and external factors that are specific to the company (Hill et al., 2014). Businesses also need to ensure that they are flexible enough to promptly change in response to the adjustments that might be taking place in the tastes and preferences of their clients or even the tactics that their competitors in the industry are using. Companies that are not flexible enough might fail to maintain their relevance towards their target market segments and lose their competitive edge (Carter et al., 2013). This report presents a case analysis of Casual Togs, a women’s apparel company that is known for its moderately priced products. Most of the company’s products are blouses, shorts and knit dresses. In the analysis, the report highlights the problems that are being faced by the company and the factors that might have contributed to these issues. The importance of addressing these issues in a business is that it provides a guidance or basis for formulating strategies that will help to improve the company’s performance. The report also provides recommendations for Cy, Casual Togs’ principal stockholder, on the changes that he needs to make in the company. It also provides recommendations on how the company should change its management practice, structure and response to change, so as to avoid a recurrence or the problems it faces. The major problems facing the firm With reference to the case study of Casual Togs, there are a number of problems that are currently being faced by the company. One of these is that many of its products are being returned by consumers because of their low quality. For any business, the quality of products that are offered to clients is among the key attributes that determine its performance in the market (Bhardwaj Fairhurst, 2010). For Casual Togs, this also led to the loss of a major portion of its old loyal consumers. It also posed a challenge to the company in attracting new clients. Consequences of this issue include a drop in the company’s revenue and its overall brand position in the industry. It has also been outlined in the case study that the company also faces stiff competition from companies that have long been in the apparels industry as well as new upcoming ones. Another issue that faces Casual Togs lies in the human resource department. The company has failed to attract the necessary skills for it to run successfully. This is evidenced by the halt in the construction of the company’s distribution centre in the middle of the construction, which was attributed to the fact that the company did not get a qualified person who could supervise the construction project. In addition to this, two of the company’s designers resigned. This contributed to a drop in the company’s overall production in its nine centres by approximately 15%. The fact that Andy Johnson, the company’s budget manager and Sol Green, the market analyst could not speak to one another also clearly depicts a communication flaw among the employees in the firm. Judy, who was the company’s vice president, is also depicted in the case study as being aggressive in her communication with other employees. There are several incidents mentioned in the case study that highlight the failure by a section of the company’s executives and employees to embrace change. For instance, Judy objected most of the proposed changes, arguing that they were either too expensive or that they had been suggested by incompetent individuals. Another incident was when Andy rejected suggestions that were made by Bill Smith, his assistant, on new approaches that could be used in the collation and analysis of daily sales printouts so as to make better sales forecasts. Even though there are several other issues that are faced by Casual Togs in its operations, three main issues have been outlined in this section. These include the decline in the company’s competitiveness, human resource issues and the resistance to change among a section of the company’s staff. Causes of the Problems The first problem about the company is the fact that it is losing its old customers, and more of its products are being returned as a result of either poor quality or late delivery to customers. For any business to effectively win over the loyalty of its target customers, it has to be dependable in terms of the products and services it delivers (Dervitsiotis, 2011). Prolonged incidences of poor quality products and services or inconsistencies tend to repel customers. As earlier mentioned, there is high competition on the apparel and fashion industry, which also increases the purchasing power of buyers. Failure of one company meet consumer expectations, regardless of how slightly the gap may be, will make even the loyal customers to switch brands (Talib et al., 2011). Late delivery of products to customers also denotes the incompetence of the department that is concerned with the delivery of the company’s products. Another issue that is affecting Casual Togs lies in the human resource management approaches. With reference to the case study presented, there is evidence of a lack of equal of opportunities for career advancement in the company. An example is Andy, who had worked with the company for 15 years without any promotion because was not related with the other managers and was also of a different nationality. According to Choi et al. (2012), one of the causes of employee turnover is the failure of organizations to provide all the employees with a chance to attain their ultimate career goals. The aggressive nature with which Judy addresses employees in the organization also intimidates the employees and lowers their self esteem. This has an adverse effect on the organizational commitment of employees and has and ultimately, affects their levels of productivity (Adler, 2013; Lutgen-Sandvik Tracy, 2012). The issue of rigidity and failure to embrace change has also contributed to the problems being faced by Casual Togs. One of the organizational aspects that have led to this is the fact that Cy, the company’s president gave all the departmental heads the freedom to make decisions that they considered to be fit for the organization. Whereas it can be argued as an approach that is relevant to the present-day business environment, it poses a challenge to decision making when rapid change are to be made because the opinions of every departmental supervisor have to be considered (Myers et al., 2012). These factors have affected the effectiveness with which Casual Togs adjusts in response to the changes in the market, leading to its dwindling performance. This shows the need for organizations to be flexible enough to maintain its relevance to the target markets (Dervitsiotis, 2011). This section has presented some of the main factors that have led to the existence of the issues that faced by Casual Togs. These include the failure of the company to adhere to quality in the design of its products and the failure to motivate employees, which adversely affects their levels of commitment. Several measures have to be put in place to ensure that the earlier mentioned issues have been overcome. Suggestions for changes to be implemented by Cy, Casual Togs’ President In regard to the issues that have been earlier identified, there are different approaches that ought to be used to change the current situation of the organization. With regard to the quality issues that have led to a loss of clients by the company and increased returns of goods, the direct measure that has to be taken is to ensure that the designers of the company’s apparel products pay attention to detail so as to enhance the quality of the products (Bhardwaj Fairhurst, 2010). There is also a need to intensify the quality management process to ensure that defective products are minimized (Rosenfeld, 2012). As presented in the case study, market research that is carried out mainly focuses in the levels of sales that should be expected in certain seasons. However, it is also vital for the organization to incorporate the on-going trends in fashion so as to effectively address customer needs (Witell et al., 2011). Human resources in any organization are among the most valuable assets, and have a key contribution towards its overall success. However, it is vital for organizations to motivate them so as to increase their productivity and organizational commitment (Bratton Gold, 2012). One of issues that are evident at Casual Togs is that employees from a certain nationality are more likely to be promoted than the other employees. In this regard, Cy, the company’s president, needs to ensure that an equality policy is implemented to provide all employees with an equal chance of promotion within the organizational ranks (Giuliano et al., 2011). This will not only motivate employees to work more, but will also attract talented job seekers. The management meetings that were held between managers and other departmental leaders within the organization were informal, marred with emotionally charged arguments, shouting and door slamming. This is a clear indication of the failure to recognize authority an order during these meetings. It is also quite unlikely that such meetings met the intended objectives. To avoid recurrence of such scenarios, the company’s president needs to change the way board meetings are held from informal to formal (Diefenbach Todnem, 2012). This will instil a sense of order, and will increase the possibilities of attaining the goals set to be met in the meetings. In the presented case, there is evidence of interference of departmental operations by managers or vice presidents of different departments. An individual from a different department could question an action carried out in another department that has no connection to his. Whereas there is need for cross-functional communication and cooperation within an organization (Hongjun Yajia, 2012), such interferences as those depicted at Casual Togs are destructive. To limit this, the company’s president needs to change the structure of the organization (Deb, 2009). Suggestions to prevent future issues at Casual Togs To prevent future problems from occurring at the organization, it is necessary for Casual Togs to ensure that it makes the necessary adjustments. These include structural changes, management practices and their response to changes taking place in the competitive environment. Suggestions for change are provided in further detail below. Management Practice There are a number of changes that ought to be made in the management practices of Casual Togs. The individual in management that raises concern in the case study is Judy, the vice president. Her aggression towards employees, as well as her interference with operations across all departments within the organization, has to be addressed. Given that she is among the majority shareholders in the company and related to the president, there is no possibility of sacking her from the position she holds. Instead, she needs to be encouraged to attend management seminars so as to improve her employee management approach (Bratton Gold, 2012). Rather than being autocratic in her management and aggressive in communicating with other employees in the organization, she needs to change and become a persuasive or democratic in her management and assertive in communication (Adler, 2013). In persuasive management, managers provide a clear explanation to their employees as to why they have made a certa in decision. In democratic management, employees are allowed to make suggestions in the decision making process, and the opinion with the highest votes is selected (Hill et al., 2014). By being assertive in communication, points or arguments are firmly put across to other employees, but respect is still maintained (Adler, 2013). Cy’s approach of management is too lenient to departmental heads within the organizations. This has also affected the way in which he handles suppliers, who often take advantage of his leniency to secure tenders even though they are supplying products at a higher price. Even though his consultative approach to management allows departmental heads to take part in decision making, there is still a need for him to exercise authority, especially when holding meetings with them (Diefenbach Sillince, 2012). Structural Change Before making a suggestion on the structural changes that ought to be implemented in the organization, it is vital to describe the organizational structure of Casual Togs as depicted in the case study. Based on the informal nature of meetings between departmental heads and the company’s president and the lack of a clear hierarchy of authority in the firm, it can be argued that the organizational structure of the company is adhocratic (Deb, 2009). Even though such a structure is ideal in encouraging creativity and innovation among employees and effectively adjusting with the changes in the market, it also has several demerits. These include a difficulty to solve routine problems that may arise in the organization, an unclear line of authority and high exposure of the organization to risk (Diefenbach Todnem, 2012). With reference to the case study, even though Judy is the vice president, she seems to have more authority that the company’s president, Cy. In this regard, the company needs to consider changing its structure to a more formal and well structured bureaucratic structure (Dervitsiotis, 2011). Even though such structures are known to limit innovation and creativity within the organization, it may be ideal for Casual Togs for a number of reasons. These include easing the decision making process, reduction of the exposure to risk and the acknowledgement of a certain structure of authority that has to be adhered to (Bratton Gold, 2012). Implementing such a structure is likely to eliminate the emotionally charged informal meetings’ scenarios and also the interference of individuals like Judy in all organizational departments. Responding to Changes in the Competitive Environment Based on the fact that the apparels industry is highly competitive and dynamic, it is also necessary for the company to be flexible enough and ready to implement changes that will maintain its relevance to the target markets (Rugman et al., 2012). One of the measures that have to be undertaken to attain this objective is to intensify market research and carry it out on a regular basis. This could be through seeking customer feedback or studying the changing trends through observation. Market research also involves studying the tactics or strategies that are being used by competing companies in the industry (Witell et al., 2011). It is through these market research efforts that the Casual Togs will be able to adjust its product designs and marketing strategies to fit the market preferences while at the same time ensuring that it effectively competes with other players in the market. Maintaining a competitive edge in the industry also depends on the skills that the company has in its human resource force (Dervitsiotis, 2011). It is important for Casual Togs to hire employees that are not only qualified, but also innovative enough to come up with designs that will be well accepted by the target markets. Innovation can also be nurtured among employees in the organization by utilizing appropriate motivational and reward strategies (Wright et al., 2012). Workers at Casual Togs also need to be informed on the inevitability of change in organizations, and why they should always be ready for it. By so doing, resistance to change among employees will be reduced. Some of the changes that may need to be implemented at Casual Togs include technological advancements in the production of its apparel and alteration of product designs to reflect the needs in the market (Myers et al., 2012). Conclusion and Recommendations Conclusion This report has presented a case study analysis of Casual Togs, a fashion business that mainly deals in the manufacture and distribution of women’s apparels. After two decades of operation, the company’s performance in the market dropped due because of a number of reasons, which have been highlighted in the report. One of these is the poor quality of products, which led to an increase in the volume of returned products. It also led to the withdrawal of many old customers. Another issue that has been identified is the failure to keep employees motivated enough to increase their organizational commitment. The causes of these issues at Casual Togs have also been presented in the paper, as well as some suggestions on how the president of the company can make the necessary changes to improve the situation at the company. Suggestions that have been provides comprise of management changes, structural changes and how the company can respond faster to changes and competition in the market. Further recommendations that can improve the company’s brand position are presented hereunder. Recommendations In order for the company to appeal to a wider market and increase its returns, it needs to consider expanding its product line. As opposed to the current products that only target ladies, Casual Togs can also consider introducing men’s and children’s clothes. As presented in the case, the products that the company distributes are mainly shorts, blouses and some knit dresses. Introduction of other female apparel like skirts, trench coats and pants can also be advantageous for the company. The case has also highlighted the high costs of production that the company incurs. Though some of these costs are inevitable, the company can reduce the overall costs by using appropriate lean production strategies, which are aimed to minimize the cost and maximize production. Some of the approaches that can be used include minimization or even elimination of errors in the design and production of products and standardization of work processes. In terms of human resource management, the company needs to ensure that it hires and strives to maintain talented and innovative employees that will contribute towards its progress in the market. Some of the approaches to motivation include offering them a reasonable remuneration and rewarding them for unique contribution. Given that the fashion industry is quite competitive, failure to motivate and retain skilled employees may tempt them to cross over and work for competitor companies, which may be detrimental for Casual Togs. References Adler, G., 2013. Management Communication. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Bhardwaj, V. Fairhurst, A., 2010. Fast fashion: response to changes in the fashion industry. The International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, 20(1), pp.165-73. Bratton, J. Gold, J., 2012. Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice (5th edition). London: Palgrave. Carter, M.Z., Armenakis, A.A., Feild, H.S. Mossholder, K.W., 2013. Transformational leadership, relationship quality, and employee performance during continuous incremental organizational change. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 34(7), pp.942-58. Choi, S., Cheong, K.K. Feinberg, R.A., 2012. Moderating effects of supervisor support, monetary rewards, and career paths on the relationship between job burnout and turnover intentions in the context of call centers. Managing Service Quality, 22(5), pp.492-516. Deb, T., 2009. Managing Human Resource And Industrial Relations. Excel Books. Dervitsiotis, K.N., 2011. The challenge of adaptation through innovation based on the quality of the innovation process. Total Quality Management Business Excellence, 22(5), pp.553-66. Diefenbach, T. Sillince, J.A., 2012. Crossing of Boundaries–Subordinates’ Challenges to Organisational Hierarchy. Research in the Sociology of Organizations, 35, pp.171-201. Diefenbach, T. Todnem, R., 2012. Reinventing Hierarchy and Bureaucracy: From the Bureau to Network Organizations. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing. Giuliano, L., Levine, D.I. Leonard, J., 2011. Racial Bias in the Manager-Employee Relationship An Analysis of Quits, Dismissals, and Promotions at a Large Retail Firm. Journal of Human Resources, 46(1), pp.26-52. Hill, C., Jones, G?. Schilling, ?M., 2014. Strategic Management: Theory: An Integrated Approach. Mason: Cengage Learning. Hongjun, L. Yajia, G., 2012. Study on Chain Companies Human Resources Management. Information and Business Intelligence, 267, pp.227-32. Lutgen-Sandvik, P. Tracy, S.J., 2012. Answering Five Key Questions About Workplace Bullying How Communication Scholarship Provides Thought Leadership for Transforming Abuse at Work. Management Communication Quarterly, 26(1), pp.3-47. Myers, P., Hulks, S. Wiggins, L., 2012. Organizational Change: Perspectives on Theory and Practice. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Rosenfeld, S.A., 2012. Competitive Manufacturing: New Strategies for Regional Development. New Jersey: Transaction Publishers. Rugman, A.M., Oh, C.H. Lim, D.S., 2012. The regional and global competitiveness of multinational firms. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 40(2), pp.218-35. Talib, F., Rahman, Z. Qureshi, M., 2011. A study of total quality management and supply chain management practices. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 60(3), pp.268-88. Witell, L., Kristensson, P., Gustafsson, A. Lofgren, M., 2011. Idea generation: customer co-creation versus traditional market research techniques. Journal of Service Management, 22(2), pp.140-59. Wright, B.E., Moynihan, D.P. Pandey, S.K., 2012. Pulling the Levers: Transformational Leadership, Public Service, Motivation, and Mission Valence. Public Administration Review, 72(2), p.206–215. Case Study Analysis of Casual Togs There is a wide range of problems that may adversely affect the progress and competitiveness of organizations. These include structural problems, communication, management issues and failure to embrace change. Given that there is no fixed approach to management that is ideal for all organizations, each company has to ensure that it adopts the most ideal approach, which can be determined by several factors in the internal and external factors that are specific to the company (Hill et al., 2014). Businesses also need to ensure that they are flexible enough to promptly change in response to the adjustments that might be taking place in the tastes and preferences of their clients or even the tactics that their competitors in the industry are using. Companies that are not flexible enough might fail to maintain their relevance towards their target market segments and lose their competitive edge (Carter et al., 2013). This report presents a case analysis of Casual Togs, a women’s apparel company that is known for its moderately priced products. Most of the company’s products are blouses, shorts and knit dresses. In the analysis, the report highlights the problems that are being faced by the company and the factors that might have contributed to these issues. The importance of addressing these issues in a business is that it provides a guidance or basis for formulating strategies that will help to improve the company’s performance. The report also provides recommendations for Cy, Casual Togs’ principal stockholder, on the changes that he needs to make in the company. It also provides recommendations on how the company should change its management practice, structure and response to change, so as to avoid a recurrence or the problems it faces. The major problems facing the firm With reference to the case study of Casual Togs, there are a number of problems that are currently being faced by the company. One of these is that many of its products are being returned by consumers because of their low quality. For any business, the quality of products that are offered to clients is among the key attributes that determine its performance in the market (Bhardwaj Fairhurst, 2010). For Casual Togs, this also led to the loss of a major portion of its old loyal consumers. It also posed a challenge to the company in attracting new clients. Consequences of this issue include a drop in the company’s revenue and its overall brand position in the industry. It has also been outlined in the case study that the company also faces stiff competition from companies that have long been in the apparels industry as well as new upcoming ones. Another issue that faces Casual Togs lies in the human resource department. The company has failed to attract the necessary skills for it to run successfully. This is evidenced by the halt in the construction of the company’s distribution centre in the middle of the construction, which was attributed to the fact that the company did not get a qualified person who could supervise the construction project. In addition to this, two of the company’s designers resigned. This contributed to a drop in the company’s overall production in its nine centres by approximately 15%. The fact that Andy Johnson, the company’s budget manager and Sol Green, the market analyst could not speak to one another also clearly depicts a communication flaw among the employees in the firm. Judy, who was the company’s vice president, is also depicted in the case study as being aggressive in her communication with other employees. There are several incidents mentioned in the case study that highlight the failure by a section of the company’s executives and employees to embrace change. For instance, Judy objected most of the proposed changes, arguing that they were either too expensive or that they had been suggested by incompetent individuals. Another incident was when Andy rejected suggestions that were made by Bill Smith, his assistant, on new approaches that could be used in the collation and analysis of daily sales printouts so as to make better sales forecasts. Even though there are several other issues that are faced by Casual Togs in its operations, three main issues have been outlined in this section. These include the decline in the company’s competitiveness, human resource issues and the resistance to change among a section of the company’s staff. Causes of the Problems The first problem about the company is the fact that it is losing its old customers, and more of its products are being returned as a result of either poor quality or late delivery to customers. For any business to effectively win over the loyalty of its target customers, it has to be dependable in terms of the products and services it delivers (Dervitsiotis, 2011). Prolonged incidences of poor quality products and services or inconsistencies tend to repel customers. As earlier mentioned, there is high competition on the apparel and fashion industry, which also increases the purchasing power of buyers. Failure of one company meet consumer expectations, regardless of how slightly the gap may be, will make even the loyal customers to switch brands (Talib et al., 2011). Late delivery of products to customers also denotes the incompetence of the department that is concerned with the delivery of the company’s products. Another issue that is affecting Casual Togs lies in the human resource management approaches. With reference to the case study presented, there is evidence of a lack of equal of opportunities for career advancement in the company. An example is Andy, who had worked with the company for 15 years without any promotion because was not related with the other managers and was also of a different nationality. According to Choi et al. (2012), one of the causes of employee turnover is the failure of organizations to provide all the employees with a chance to attain their ultimate career goals. The aggressive nature with which Judy addresses employees in the organization also intimidates the employees and lowers their self esteem. This has an adverse effect on the organizational commitment of employees and has and ultimately, affects their levels of productivity (Adler, 2013; Lutgen-Sandvik Tracy, 2012). The issue of rigidity and failure to embrace change has also contributed to the problems being faced by Casual Togs. One of the organizational aspects that have led to this is the fact that Cy, the company’s president gave all the departmental heads the freedom to make decisions that they considered to be fit for the organization. Whereas it can be argued as an approach that is relevant to the present-day business environment, it poses a challenge to decision making when rapid change are to be made because the opinions of every departmental supervisor have to be considered (Myers et al., 2012). These factors have affected the effectiveness with which Casual Togs adjusts in response to the changes in the market, leading to its dwindling performance. This shows the need for organizations to be flexible enough to maintain its relevance to the target markets (Dervitsiotis, 2011). This section has presented some of the main factors that have led to the existence of the issues that faced by Casual Togs. These include the failure of the company to adhere to quality in the design of its products and the failure to motivate employees, which adversely affects their levels of commitment. Several measures have to be put in place to ensure that the earlier mentioned issues have been overcome. Suggestions for changes to be implemented by Cy, Casual Togs’ President In regard to the issues that have been earlier identified, there are different approaches that ought to be used to change the current situation of the organization. With regard to the quality issues that have led to a loss of clients by the company and increased returns of goods, the direct measure that has to be taken is to ensure that the designers of the company’s apparel products pay attention to detail so as to enhance the quality of the products (Bhardwaj Fairhurst, 2010). There is also a need to intensify the quality management process to ensure that defective products are minimized (Rosenfeld, 2012). As presented in the case study, market research that is carried out mainly focuses in the levels of sales that should be expected in certain seasons. However, it is also vital for the organization to incorporate the on-going trends in fashion so as to effectively address customer needs (Witell et al., 2011). Human resources in any organization are among the most valuable assets, and have a key contribution towards its overall success. However, it is vital for organizations to motivate them so as to increase their productivity and organizational commitment (Bratton Gold, 2012). One of issues that are evident at Casual Togs is that employees from a certain nationality are more likely to be promoted than the other employees. In this regard, Cy, the company’s president, needs to ensure that an equality policy is implemented to provide all employees with an equal chance of promotion within the organizational ranks (Giuliano et al., 2011). This will not only motivate employees to work more, but will also attract talented job seekers. The management meetings that were held between managers and other departmental leaders within the organization were informal, marred with emotionally charged arguments, shouting and door slamming. This is a clear indication of the failure to recognize authority an order during these meetings. It is also quite unlikely that such meetings met the intended objectives. To avoid recurrence of such scenarios, the company’s president needs to change the way board meetings are held from informal to formal (Diefenbach Todnem, 2012). This will instil a sense of order, and will increase the possibilities of attaining the goals set to be met in the meetings. In the presented case, there is evidence of interference of departmental operations by managers or vice presidents of different departments. An individual from a different department could question an action carried out in another department that has no connection to his. Whereas there is need for cross-functional communication and cooperation within an organization (Hongjun Yajia, 2012), such interferences as those depicted at Casual Togs are destructive. To limit this, the company’s president needs to change the structure of the organization (Deb, 2009). Suggestions to prevent future issues at Casual Togs To prevent future problems from occurring at the organization, it is necessary for Casual Togs to ensure that it makes the necessary adjustments. These include structural changes, management practices and their response to changes taking place in the competitive environment. Suggestions for change are provided in further detail below. Management Practice There are a number of changes that ought to be made in the management practices of Casual Togs. The individual in management that raises concern in the case study is Judy, the vice president. Her aggression towards employees, as well as her interference with operations across all departments within the organization, has to be addressed. Given that she is among the majority shareholders in the company and related to the president, there is no possibility of sacking her from the position she holds. Instead, she needs to be encouraged to attend management seminars so as to improve her employee management approach (Bratton Gold, 2012). Rather than being autocratic in her management and aggressive in communicating with other employees in the organization, she needs to change and become a persuasive or democratic in her management and assertive in communication (Adler, 2013). In persuasive management, managers provide a clear explanation to their employees as to why they have made a certa in decision. In democratic management, employees are allowed to make suggestions in the decision making process, and the opinion with the highest votes is selected (Hill et al., 2014). By being assertive in communication, points or arguments are firmly put across to other employees, but respect is still maintained (Adler, 2013). Cy’s approach of management is too lenient to departmental heads within the organizations. This has also affected the way in which he handles suppliers, who often take advantage of his leniency to secure tenders even though they are supplying products at a higher price. Even though his consultative approach to management allows departmental heads to take part in decision making, there is still a need for him to exercise authority, especially when holding meetings with them (Diefenbach Sillince, 2012). Structural Change Before making a suggestion on the structural changes that ought to be implemented in the organization, it is vital to describe the organizational structure of Casual Togs as depicted in the case study. Based on the informal nature of meetings between departmental heads and the company’s president and the lack of a clear hierarchy of authority in the firm, it can be argued that the organizational structure of the company is adhocratic (Deb, 2009). Even though such a structure is ideal in encouraging creativity and innovation among employees and effectively adjusting with the changes in the market, it also has several demerits. These include a difficulty to solve routine problems that may arise in the organization, an unclear line of authority and high exposure of the organization to risk (Diefenbach Todnem, 2012). With reference to the case study, even though Judy is the vice president, she seems to have more authority that the company’s president, Cy. In this regard, the company needs to consider changing its structure to a more formal and well structured bureaucratic structure (Dervitsiotis, 2011). Even though such structures are known to limit innovation and creativity within the organization, it may be ideal for Casual Togs for a number of reasons. These include easing the decision making process, reduction of the exposure to risk and the acknowledgement of a certain structure of authority that has to be adhered to (Bratton Gold, 2012). Implementing such a structure is likely to eliminate the emotionally charged informal meetings’ scenarios and also the interference of individuals like Judy in all organizational departments. Responding to Changes in the Competitive Environment Based on the fact that the apparels industry is highly competitive and dynamic, it is also necessary for the company to be flexible enough and ready to implement changes that will maintain its relevance to the target markets (Rugman et al., 2012). One of the measures that have to be undertaken to attain this objective is to intensify market research and carry it out on a regular basis. This could be through seeking customer feedback or studying the changing trends through observation. Market research also involves studying the tactics or strategies that are being used by competing companies in the industry (Witell et al., 2011). It is through these market research efforts that the Casual Togs will be able to adjust its product designs and marketing strategies to fit the market preferences while at the same time ensuring that it effectively competes with other players in the market. Maintaining a competitive edge in the industry also depends on the skills that the company has in its human resource force (Dervitsiotis, 2011). It is important for Casual Togs to hire employees that are not only qualified, but also innovative enough to come up with designs that will be well accepted by the target markets. Innovation can also be nurtured among employees in the organization by utilizing appropriate motivational and reward strategies (Wright et al., 2012). Workers at Casual Togs also need to be informed on the inevitability of change in organizations, and why they should always be ready for it. By so doing, resistance to change among employees will be reduced. Some of the changes that may need to be implemented at Casual Togs include technological advancements in the production of its apparel and alteration of product designs to reflect the needs in the market (Myers et al., 2012). Conclusion and Recommendations Conclusion This report has presented a case study analysis of Casual Togs, a fashion business that mainly deals in the manufacture and distribution of women’s apparels. After two decades of operation, the company’s performance in the market dropped due because of a number of reasons, which have been highlighted in the report. One of these is the poor quality of products, which led to an increase in the volume of returned products. It also led to the withdrawal of many old customers. Another issue that has been identified is the failure to keep employees motivated enough to increase their organizational commitment. The causes of these issues at Casual Togs have also been presented in the paper, as well as some suggestions on how the president of the company can make the necessary changes to improve the situation at the company. Suggestions that have been provides comprise of management changes, structural changes and how the company can respond faster to changes and competition in the market. Further recommendations that can improve the company’s brand position are presented hereunder. Recommendations In order for the company to appeal to a wider market and increase its returns, it needs to consider expanding its product line. As opposed to the current products that only target ladies, Casual Togs can also consider introducing men’s and children’s clothes. As presented in the case, the products that the company distributes are mainly shorts, blouses and some knit dresses. Introduction of other female apparel like skirts, trench coats and pants can also be advantageous for the company. The case has also highlighted the high costs of production that the company incurs. Though some of these costs are inevitable, the company can reduce the overall costs by using appropriate lean production strategies, which are aimed to minimize the cost and maximize production. Some of the approaches that can be used include minimization or even elimination of errors in the design and production of products and standardization of work processes. 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