Defining theme of The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon Essay

Defining theme of The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon - Essay Example Thomas Pynchon gives the message that nature constantly moves life from order to disorder. It is worth noting, at this level, that Pynchon publishes the book following his full knowledge of history, pop culture, and paranoia whose identity cannot be easily recognized or combined. Entropy creates a patterned system that is tight and whose progression is unavoidable. The pattern also appears chaotic in nature. Pynchon’s theme of entropy focuses on America’s movement of culture to modernism. This movement seems unstoppable because culture is not static and is representative of trends in societies other than America. Analysis Pynchon centers on entropy from the start of the novel. His introduction to the learner contains this information. Pynchon shows his dissatisfaction in the introduction by explaining that his works seem to be out of various abuses on paper. The abuse to him is overwriting. Analysis of this assertion leads to the conclusion that Thomas Pynchon deliberat ely the dislike as a stylistic device. He claims in his personal critique that writers, in most cases, develop themes for characters. In his effort to introduce entropy, Pynchon avers that characters should generate themes in the novels through their personalities. He arranges his work to flow in a way that gives rise to entropy as the main idea put across. ... Oedipa does this continuously while refining them. This is a comparison to Pynchon’s assertion that characters in novels should generate themes and the other way round (Pynchon, 1965, 51). Just as Oedipa attempts to refine the stories after testing them, the author changes literary renditions in the best way. Furthermore, Oedipa creates a mystery to the reader by finding substantial leeways through coincidence but under very odd circumstances. The mystery involves either comprehending whether life is very amorphous that actions only occur through coincidence and affect people’s live greatly or if it is so void that characters such as Oedipa begin to imagine what they can do because of availability of unlimited information. Oedipa’s quest brings out the theme of entropy. The author combines ideas from other disciplines of studies such as physics and sociology to invoke the concepts of entropy. In addition to the two disciplines, he uses philosophical phenomena to underscore the main concept. The author creates a closed world that is an equivalent of physics’ closed system where particles move in a disorderly way. People and information in Pynchon’s world move in the same way towards entropy. In the continuation of his metaphor, Oedipa moves to correct the disorder from the ugly situations in the closed system. Considering the fact that she develops a closed world, it is difficult to understand whether Oedipa will succeed in her efforts or it is a process in futility. If she succeeds, then she will put truths in a world full of controversies. However, if she fails, she will have faced the normal actions of the world where it

Virginia Hamilton Essay Example for Free

Virginia Hamilton Essay Virginia Esther Hamilton was born on March 12, 1934 in Yellow Springs, Ohio. She was the youngest of 5 children. She lived on a farm with her family ever since her grandfather Levi Perry was brought as a baby through the underground railroad. Virginia proved to be a wonderful learner, especially when it came to writing. She graduated as one of the best students from her high school. She then attended Antioch College, but soon decided to transfer to Ohio State University. Virginia dreamed of becoming an author and decided to major in literature and creative writing. Virginia soon moved to New York in 1958 where she worked as a museum receptionist, cost accountant, and nightclub singer. Even while doing all these activities, she kept on trying to become an author. She began to study at the New School for Social Research. In 1960 met Arnold Adoff, a teacher who loved poetry. They soon married. Since Arnold could now make money for them, Virginia kept her full attention on writing. However, her writing took a break when she gave birth to two children. Virginia and Arnold soon built their dream house back in Yellow Springs where they both focused on literature. Soon, Virginia became one of the most well known authors in the U. S. During her entire lifetime, she had published 41 extremely popular books. The genres of her books differed, but in them there was much feeling and emotion. Some of her stories described the lives  of African Americans. Virginia won many awards for youth literature. February 19th, 2002 was a sad day for America, as Virginia Esther Hamilton’s death had arrived. Breast cancer had done too much damage. However, the Hamilton family’s blood was still Virginia’s granddaughter Anaya Grace Adoff, was born on November 26, 2008 and is still living today. Virginia is still known as one of America’s most honored writers of children’s literature and will always be.

Julius Caesar: Background Knowledge Is Needed To Understand Play :: essays research papers

Julius Caesar: Background Knowledge Is Needed To Understand Play   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Having a good background and knowledge of the history of Rome is very helpful to understand Shakespeare's play, Julius Caesar. The setting of this play took place hundreds of years ago, so if one knows a little bit of Roman history, it would help very much in understanding what is going on in the play.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It is important to know about the connection, or relationship that there once was between Caesar and Pompey. When Crassus died, Pompey and Caesar were left as twin rulers of Rome. As one could imagine, each wanted to be the only ruler, so a struggle broke out between them. Caesar defeated Pompey and his army in an important battle, and went on later to defeat Pompey's two sons. It is after that fifth and last triumph, at the time they are celebrating, when the play opens. To understand the play even better, one should be aware of Brutus' (one of the conspirators against Caesar) ancestors, the Tarquins. Nearly five hundred years before Caesar was even born, a cruel, unscrupulous leading family had seized the riens of power and had set themselves up as kings. From that point on, the people of Rome hated kings, and they bounded themselves together by a solemn oath never to tolerate a monarch, and it was formally enacted into law that if any man wish that the monarchy should be restored, he was to be declared a public enemy and be put to death.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Brutus and the rest of the conspirators had killed Caesar, but they made an error, which was letting Mark Antony, one of Caesar's friends live. Antony later united with Bepidus and Octavius, to go against Brutus, Cassius, and the other conspirators. At the battle of Philippi, in Thrace, Brutus and Cassius took their own lives when their army was destroyed. Just as Caesar and Pompey had struggled for the world when Cassus died, so now when Bepidus died, Antony and Octavius were left confronting each other. Octavius held Rome and Europe; Antony held the East. Antony allied with Cleopatra and were planning to rule the world from Alexandria, Cleopatra's capital. Their navies met Octavius' off the shore of Actium, in Greece. Octavius conquered decisively, and both Antony and

Development Of Buddhist Education

Buddhism has greatly influenced present day Vietnam. The rise of its civilization can be traced through the effect of Buddhism on the different dynasties. The early wars won by Vietnam can be associated with Buddhist leaders and even the faith that kept the people together during the years of suffering was Buddhism. It has been proclaimed before as the national religion of the country because of its contribution to society and it is only fitting that it be included in the education of Vietnamese children.To gain a better understanding of the development of Buddhist education in Vietnam, we need to know first the roots and development of Buddhism as a religion, what are its beliefs, how it affected the lives of the Vietnamese populace, how it was integrated to education and from thereon discuss the developments that went through up to contemporary times. Buddhism: Origin and Teachings Buddhism originated from southern Nepal around 530 B. C. as an offshoot of Hinduism. Gautama Buddha, â€Å"a prince who bridled at the formalism of Hinduism as it was being interpreted by the priestly caste of Brahmans† , was its founder.He spent years meditating and wandering as an ascetic until he discovered the path of enlightenment to nirvana. Nirvana according to him is â€Å"the world of endless serenity in which one is freed from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. † Buddhism espouses that there are four noble truths – man is born to suffer in successive lives, earthly pleasures and possessions are the cause of this suffering, man shall be delivered from suffering upon cessation of this craving, and following the eight fold path, man shall achieved deliverance – and through this he shall receive salvation.The foundation of the Buddhist concept of morality and right behavior, the eightfold path, consists of right views, or sincerity in leading a religious life; right intention, or honesty in judgment; right speech, or sincerity in speech; right conduct, or sincerity in work; right livelihood, or sincerity in making a living; right effort, or sincerity in aspiration; right mindfulness, or sincerity in memory; and right concentration, or sincerity in meditation†. It is the most important religion in Vietnam.Unlike other religions, â€Å"Vietnamese Buddhism stays on earth rather than ascends up to heaven, attaches to exorcism and prayers for wealth, happiness and longevity rather than heads toward nirvana. † Most Vietnamese practice Mahayana Buddhism rather than its Hindu counterpart. The doctrinal distinction between the two consists of their differing views of Gautama Buddha: the Mahayana school teaches that Gautama was only one of many â€Å"enlightened ones† manifesting the fundamental divine power of the universe; the Theravada school teaches that Gautama was the one-and-only enlightened one and the great teacher, but that he was not divine.The Mahayana sect holds further that laypersons can attain n irvana, whereas the Theravada school believes that only ordained monks and nuns can do so. The beginnings of Buddhism in Vietnam The early beginnings of Buddhism may be traced back from as early as 300 B. C. It was said that Therevada Buddhism have been â€Å"imported directly into Vietnam from India through sea routes since the 2nd century A. D. † Although some believe that â€Å"Buddhism spread first from China to Vietnam's Red River Delta region in approximately the second century A.D. , and then from India to the southern Mekong Delta area at some time between the third and the sixth centuries† , evidence shows that Buddhism reached Vietnam even before it entered China. In the past, Vietnam was very much like the intersection between India and China. At that time, either walking, or by boat, people made a trip from India to China or vice versa, in doing so they must cross Vietnam. Vietnam, therefore, was a good place to stop by for foreign business people as well a s Buddhist monks.Back to 3rd century BC, after King Asoka organized the Third Council -a Conference to Collect the Dharma- at Pataliputra, India, he sent 9 Buddhist monk delegates overseas. The monks went from Afghanistan to the Mediterranean to teach Dharma. One of these, lead by Sona and Uttara went to Burma then Indochina, including Viet Nam. Now, in Haiphong -60miles north east of HaNoi- there is a memorial tower to commemorate King Asoka that was built by local Vietnamese Buddhists at that time to express their gratitude to King Asoka.From that evidence, we may come up with conclusion that Buddhism came to Vietnam as early as 300 years BC, even before China. Then in the second century, Buddhism in Vietnam became more popular and developed with the contributions of Marajivaka, K’Ang Seng Houei, Tchi Kiang Liang three great Buddhist monks who came from India and a local scholar, Mecu Fo. Because Mecu Fo is a key character in Buddhism’s development in Vietnam, we sho uld take a closer look at him. He was Vietnamese or might have been born and raised in a great Chinese-Vietnamese family.We must take into consideration that his place of birth was not originally a Chinese territory, it was just annexed to China from Vietnam. Since he was skilled in Chinese education, he used this skill in order to convert more people into Buddhism. Mecu Fo was mandarin and took advantage of his position to teach his people about Buddhism. Due to his contributions in the propagation and spread of Buddhism in Vietnam, he is considered as the first ever Buddhist lay man in Vietnam. Buddhism: Its Role in Liberation and Its Golden AgeDuring the Ly and the Tran dynasties, Buddhism achieved a golden age in Vietnam. It was during the time of Emperor TRAN NHAN TONG that the first Vietnamese Meditation, Truc Lam Yen Tu was founded , this however did not come until 1010 several decades after Vietnam’s independence from China. However, it is accurate to say that Buddhis m was a very important element in the country’s fight for freedom. For several centuries, the Chinese conquered Vietnam and ruled the people with an iron hand.The Chinese’s main objective was to transform Vietnam into another Chinese territory and annex it afterwards to mainland China. In order to achieve their goal, great atrocities were done to the people both physically and psychologically, the Chinese even employed Sinicization or cultural invasion in order to uproot Vietnamese culture from its citizens and replace it with theirs to ease the annexation. Despite the suffering, there was one thing that kept the Vietnamese people from breaking down and it was their religion.By living on the teachings of Buddhism, the people believed that the wicked shall eventually be punished and that they should keep on surviving until that day comes. During the Chinese rule, revolutions such as that led by two sister trung aimed at liberation were attempted but to no avail. In thes e revolts, Buddhism also played a great role, its temples became the common meeting grounds for freedom fighters and the perfect place to mobilize troops. Finally, in 939 a Vietnamese general named NGO QUYEN, led the Vietnamese people to victory over the Chinese on the decisive battle on Bach Dang river thus ending the Chinese rule.After the war, Buddhist monks in coordination with the newly established government tried to build the kingdom. To show his gratitude, the emperor Dinh Tien Hoang helped organize the Shangha and named Khuong Viet and Phapthuan, both Buddhist monks, as his national security adviser and Secretary of State respectively. Another major milestone for Buddhism during this dynasty was that it was declared as the national religion by the emperor, who was himself a Buddhist.The establishment of the kingdom was coupled with several hardships, the most crucial of all is the threat of another Chinese invasion. Although at first was a mere thought among the people, it became clear when a Chinese spy disguised as a delegate for diplomatic relations entered Vietnam to size up its military power. Upon entering Vietnam, the first person the delegate met was a ferry-man who was to take him to the capital, he was however surprised when the ferry-man was able to converse with him at a level worthy of government office.When the delegate arrived and conversed with Vietnam’s national Security adviser, he concluded based on his meeting with the ferry man and Khuong Viet that Vietnam was well-prepared for an invasion and that invading it would be disastrous. Apparently, the ferry-man who amazed and confused the delegate with the level of learning of a mere ferry-man was Phaptuan in disguise. In the end, the two highest-ranking monks were responsible for averting a possible attack through their diplomatic skills and it forever went on in history as the first diplomatic war won by Vietnam.After more than 30 years, the Chinese began to strengthen its mil itary force on the borders of Vietnam resulting to an election of a fitting leader to decide on the course of action on the said threat. The leader chosen was a talented, kind and high moral man, he was the Commander in Chief of the army and is known as Ly Cong Uan, thus started the Ly Dynasty. Ly Cong Uan was a Buddhist monk raised by Zen Master Van Hanh in a Buddhist temple who then became his national adviser. Under his reign, 300 Buddhist temples were built and the Sangha was well organized with over 1000 monks. He incorporated Buddhist teaching in all aspects of governance.

Change management simulation Essay

As the rapid development of modern economy and the increasingly fierce market competition, the demand of how to manage organization change is increasing. Especially for leaders in both large and small companies, the ability of dealing with change is so significant. In many case, the main reason for company bankruptcy is that leaders fail to cope with organization environment change properly. The demise of many fortune 500 companies in the 1980s and 1990s suggests that the leaders of these companies were ineffective in responding to changes in the business environment; they were unable to overcome rigidities in their firms until it was too late. (Beer, M. & N. Nohria. 2000) In order to improve my learning about managing organization change, I did change management simulation four days ago. Then I am going to talk about the detail of my stimulation. In this simulation, I was the CEO of Spectrum Sunglass Company. For this company, the future is bright due to the growing sunglass market. However, from many professional articles I read, I learned that sustainable development is significant for business, our company should offer some new sunglass products to customers who concern about Spectrum’s environmental impact. Moreover, new products can also differentiate our products from competitors’ and provide us more sales opportunities. But unfortunately, some of my colleagues doesn’t agree with my points, the CFO of my company thinks green raw materials may be so expensive that will influence the profit margins of Spectrum. Then my  mission is to persuade Spectrum’s managers to adopt my proposal. PROCESS RECORDING Week 0 – Week 2 Firstly, I conducted private interviews, I interview Michelle Barth, the executive assistant; Nancy Kerr, the director of product innovation and Yao Li, the director of process innovation. For my assistant, I think I should discuss with her first if I have a proposal. And the other two people are in innovation department, it’s easier for them to accept my opinion than others. After that, I told a ‘success’ story to the three same people to convince them deeply and hope them help me persuade other colleagues. Successful diversity need strong commitment from top management. (Beer, M., R. A. Eisenstat, & B. Spector, 1990) Week 3 to Week 5 In the third week, I issued an email notice to the whole company to tell them my opinion and obtain initial feedback from them. I think it’s important to let them understand my opinion and persuade them to support my opinion. Then I hold town hall meetings to talk about my opinion face to face, to know my colleague’s opinion, after that week, walk the talk was followed. Week 7 – Week 9 In the seventh week, I got the consultant’s support, at this time, the people who was interested in my opinion was greatly increased. From the seventeenth week to the ninety week, I provide both external skill-building and internal skill-building to some people in our organization, the purpose is to let them know well about the skill that my proposal needs and make them believe the advantage of my proposal, after these two levers I used, some people began to adopt my proposal. I think these two levers are effective. Week 13 In the thirtieth week, I announced goals and deadlines of Spectrum. I told my company my determination to change, to produce new products. After that, five people began to try my opinion. Week 23 Ten weeks later, I revised reward system, I hope I can use a special way to let them know the significance of changing. After that, I repeated to use the former effective levers to persuade my colleagues. Week 64 – Week 65 In the sixty four week, I posted progress reports of my company, to show the development of the new product, two more people adopted my proposal. At this time, I have already achieved most people’s adoption, in order to convince more people, I decided to continue my work. I also conducted pilot project the following week, I want to see the marketing condition of the new sunglass product, to find its drawbacks and relative developing ways. Week 74 – Week 75 In the seventy four week, I privately confront resister Louise Orysh to ask his opinion about new products and why she doesn’t adopt it, to know the weakness of the new product and how to reform. Then I restructured organization the following week. Week 91 – Week 93 During the ninety one to ninety three weeks, I provided internal skill-building and external building again, and then, my initiative achieved all the managers’ adoption. CHANGING MANAGEMENT ASSESSMENT Now I will assess my work. As a change agent, I have 20 adopters of sustainability initiative in the management team at Spectrum, I persuaded all the managers adopt my proposal successfully. I have succeed in bringing about a significant organization change and creating a bright future for both Spectrum and the environment. So, I think I am an effective change agent. But I also have some deficiencies on my changing management practices. Although I attained 20 adaptors, I spend 93 weeks to get this result, it’s really a long time. The change efficiency ratio is only 0.22. I have to say my work is effective but not efficient, I still need to shorten working time to improve change efficiency. The flexibility and speed is also important in changing management. (Kanter, R. M., B. Stein & T. D. Jick. 1992.) From managing organizational change, I learned that the need for knowledge about how to manage organization change efficiently and effectively is continually rising. If there was a code that could unlock our understanding how change might best be changed, it hadn’t yet be broken. (Beer, M. & N. Nohria. 2000) But break the code may be not the best way to  manage change. The core of organization change is that change what is invalid and remain what is effective. A successful organization know how to overcome the antibody of refusing innovation, seize appropriate opportunities and avoid risks. Furthermore, the central challenge is not strategy, not systems, not culture. These elements and many others can be very important, but the core problem without question is behavior. (Kotter, J. & D. Cohen. 2002.) So changing behavior is the core of changing organization management. Revitalization is one kind of organization change, it involves enhancing the abilities of and contributions made by, managers, workers, and the organization sa a whole to cope with an increasingly competitive environment. (Beer, M. 1990) In summary, I still have some deficiency during this change management simulation. For next time I am going to lead change, when I catch up with a changing opinion, I will notice all the company managers about it, to seek for their advisements. The core of organization changing is human’s behavior, if they agree with my initiative, it’s easy to change their behaviors. I think I should give every manager an equal chance to learn about my proposal and state their own opinion, this way is more acceptable for the managers. So I will hold town meeting first. Moreover, I would like to take some measures to persuade managers adopt my proposal, such as clarify organizational values and conduct private interviews. Finally, I will provide internal skill-building and external skill-building to the rest managers who still doesn’t agree with me, and I can also privately confront resisters to ask the reason he disagree with me. I think through improving what I listed above, I will enhance the efficiency of changing management and achieve most adaptors in shortest time. Reference Beer, M. 1990. The Critical Path to Corporate Renewal. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Beer, M., R. A. Eisenstat, and B. Spector. 1990. Why change programs don’t produce change. Harvard Business Review (November–December): 2-11. Beer, M., and N. Nohria. 2000. Breaking the Code of Change. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Kotter, J., and D. Cohen. 2002. The Heart of Change. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Kanter, R. M., B. Stein, and T. D. Jick. 1992. The Challenge of Organizational Change: How Companies Experience It and Leaders Guide It. New York: Free Press.

wetland essays

wetland essays There are many reasons why the preservation and construction of wetlands should be promoted. I however believe that three of the strongest reasons include, (1) saving wetlands for their water purification purposes (2) Maintaining wetlands for activities such as sport fishing, hunting, and trapping finally (3) Preserving wetlands for flood control. Wetlands provide an invaluable resource to lakes and streams everywhere, Water Purification. Not only can we rely on natural wetlands to purify lakes and streams, but we can also create wetlands to purify our municipal wastewater. Wetlands provide a place for suspended solids to settle. They also help to remove organic material. Wetland plants can uptake up to 150 kilograms of Phosphorous per year and up to 2500 kilograms of Nitrogen per year. Not only do these plants uptake nutrients that can eutrophicate lakes, but they reduce wind velocity which avoids the resuspension of materials. Wetlands provide that perfect habitat for many species of wildlife. Especially game species such as fish, ducks, and furbearers. Wetlands are important fisheries and they provide ideal feeding and breeding grounds for many species of fish. Many millions of dollars each year are spent of fishing equipment and tackle, and permits, so not only does the preservation of wetlands mean an increased catch, but it also means, that the money spent helps go toward habitat acquisition. Hunting, another recreational activity, which is enjoyed by many Americans, also generates millions of dollars. It allows many people to get out and enjoy what nature has to offer, and also allows them to put a meal on the table at the same time. ...

Agnes Macphail Biography

Agnes Macphail Biography About Agnes Macphail: Agnes Macphail was the first Canadian woman to be a member of parliament, and one of the first two women elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Considered a feminist in her time, Agnes Macphail supported issues like prison reform, disarmament, international cooperation and old age pensions. Agnes Macphail also founded the Elizabeth Fry Society of Canada, a group working with and for women in the justice system. Birth: March 24, 1890 in Proton Township, Grey County, Ontario Death: February 13, 1954 in Toronto, Ontario Education: Teachers college - Stratford, Ontario Profession: Teacher and columnist Political Parties: Progressive PartyCo-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) Federal Ridings (Electoral Districts): Grey South EastGrey Bruce Provincial Riding (Electoral District): York East Political Career of Agnes Macphail: Agnes Macphail was elected to the House of Commons in 1921, in the first Canadian federal election in which women had the vote or could run for office. Agnes Macphail was the first woman to be elected to the House of Commons.Agnes Macphail was the first woman appointed as a member of a Canadian delegation to the League of Nations, where she was an active member of the World Disarmament Committee.Agnes Macphail became the first president of the Ontario CCF when it was established in 1932.Agnes Macphail was a major influence in the establishment of the Archambault Commission on prison reform in 1935.She was defeated in the 1940 general election.Agnes Macphail wrote a column on agriculture issues for the Globe and Mail.She was first elected to the Ontario Legislative Assembly in 1943, becoming one of the two first women to be elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.She was defeated in the Ontario election in 1945.Agnes Macphail was re-elected to the Ontario Legislative Assembly i n 1948. Agnes Macphail contributed to the adoption of Ontarios first equal pay legislation in 1951.

Get aware of various scholarships for Industrial Engineering students

Get aware of various scholarships for Industrial Engineering students Engineering Scholarships for Everyone Industrial Engineering is a challenging, complicated and practical field of studying. If you decide to choose Industrial Engineering, then you should understand that you are to specialize in designing, analyzing and managing production systems, the procedure of creation, including budgeting, human recourses and technology. If you are in this sphere then you should also learn deeply math and extensive science, as they are the basis for successful engineering ideas realization. The main aim of studying is not only to provide students with necessary knowledge but also to prepare them to be involved in the manufacturing and industry on all positions. Nowadays there exists a great demand for skilled technicians and directors who will manage the industrial engineering process in the proper way. Fortunately, there are lots of scholarships which are offered by colleges, professional companies which are encouraging and supporting young specialists in the sphere of engineering. College scholarships in the USA Almost each school which has the department of industrial engineering will offer its students various scholarships. Here are some of them. University of Washington College of Engineering The Ron Crockett Scholarship Fund is a great chance for those who want to connect their life with industrial engineering in the Washington University. The awards provides the most outstanding and talented students with tuition discounts. If you want to be among them, you should be really wise and ambitious and apply till April 1. Texas Tech University College of Engineering Students of industrial engineering are generously awarded with scholarships. Everything depends on your own features, achievements and personal criteria which are checked during the admission process. So you are welcome to apply as soon as possible to check which funding package you may receive. Virginia Tech College of Engineering This college is a home for dozens of scholarships for the most talented and skilled students. The majority of awards go to freshman, still transfer students are also given some scholarships. The process of getting an award is quite easy: you send your application, then it`s transferred to the Department of Industrial Engineering, they check your studying success and their need. So if you struggle to reach something bigger then you are welcome. Scholarships from private organizations in the US There is also a variety of independent organizations which provide students with such scholarships. Check out some of them! Institute of Industrial Engineers This scholarship is available for student members only. It`s created for those who are to continue their work in the field of engineering and reach success. Only those students are encouraged with this scholarship, the main features of which are the following: Undergraduate students with GPA score of at least 3.4 may apply for this scholarship; You can receive up to $4,000 per year, still if you are ambitious and show leader skills then you get preference; A.O. Putnam Memorial Scholarship is offered to industrial engineering students who study anywhere in the USA. Students are chosen on the basis of academic achievements and financial needs, the award is $600; Marcus Scholarship offers $1000 for those who are talented and shows the interest in the future development of engineering. ASCO Numatics This scholarship is sponsored by the Emerson Company, which is in the leads for the century. Students who are interested and successful in the research work and future career in the industrial engineering get $5000 award and there are also a few grants for $1000. Such skills as leadership and knowledge, future plans, past contributions into the development of engineering are taken into account while choosing the winners. If you are doing really good, then you may get an invitation of an internship with the company. Set your plans and try to implement them into life. Before choosing a university check the scholarships they offer, as they can be both your financial aid and a good chance to develop your skills. These programs will make you more self-confident, you will probably work harder. Everything is possible till you want it.

Abrahamic Religions Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Abrahamic Religions Review - Essay Example istrust between the West and Islamic states can be traced to biased Western media and government authorities that started from the Iranian Revolution up to the Gulf War, and even to the present. Clearly, there are political and economic agenda involved in these misrepresentations of Islam by Western media. In chapter eleven of Global Islamic Politics, Husain shows that Western media and administrations have a love/hate relationship with Islamic states, where America supported authoritarian Islamic regimes that reinforced the former's political and economic hegemony, and then the U.S. was forced to support new administrations that the people themselves established, like what happened after the Iranian Revolution. The War on Terror demonstrates that though Bush differentiated peace-loving Muslims from terrorists, the political and media rhetoric emphasized suspicion against Islamists, which as a whole, as Husain stresses, cannot be generalized as violent revolutionaries. Chapter twelve addresses the growing anti-Americanism attitudes and practices in the Middle East, due to the historical interventions of the U.S. in Islamic states that predominantly served the former's interests and assisted in the repression of these states' subordinates. Quinn traces the history of prejudice and discrimination against Muslims much farther into history, because of lack of information and interaction between Christians and Muslims during the early times. This ignorance and poor experience of Muslim religion and culture created a wide range of bigoted images about Islam. Quinn asserts that non-Muslims' local needs and aspirations became the ?rism(Quinn 161) by which Islam and Muslims are perceived, which affected how the former created and spread Islamic images. Said confirms the... Abrahamic Religions Review These resources also demonstrate the vast misrepresentation of Arab and Muslim cultures and religions in the Western media, because of political and religious agenda of core state nations. Some articles further provide feasible and simple solutions that can help alleviate the distrust between the West and Islamic societIslam and Christianity are different religions, but their â€Å"common root† (Quinn 172) should be enough to bind their believers in the modern world. Bulliet, in The Case for Islamo-Christian Civilization, provides a broad historical and comparative analyses of the rise of Islamo-Christian Civilization and he contends that Christianity and Islam should be viewed as â€Å"fraternal twins† (15). He concentrates on the co-existing growth of Islamic and Christian thinking during the ninth century and even several centuries after that. He emphasizes the importance of understanding that the â€Å"past and future of the West cannot be fully comprehended withou t appreciation of the twinned relationship it has had with Islam over some fourteen centuries. The same is true of the Islamic world† (Bulliet 45). ies and to potentially foster multicultural and multireligious tolerance and respect, while also helping Islamic societies achieve domestic goals and interests. Said confirms the negative and incomplete images of Islam projected by Western media and authorities in â€Å"Covering Islam.† He complains on how some influential Western journalists have successfully equated â€Å"fundamentalism† and Islam, and how political interests colored and slanted Western news reporting about any news that concern Muslims or Islam.

The Problem of Unwanted Births and the Awarding of Damages on a Public Essay

The Problem of Unwanted Births and the Awarding of Damages on a Public Policy Basis - Essay Example case a blessing.3 The circumstances posed to the Court of Appeal in Emeh required that it find some form of reconciliation between the two different stances of Udale and of Thake, though it was distinct from these two cases because the child had been born with disabilities. As a result, the damages awarded were restricted to those extra costs incurred as a result of the unwanted child’s disabilities, though the court claimed that it had awarded full costs. The approach as contained in Damages for the Birth of a Child4 suggests that Emeh was a result of the equation of unwanted pregnancy with consequential economic loss, and the damages were thus calculated according to â€Å"reasonably foreseeable financial loss directly caused by the unexpected pregnancy†.5 This approach was arguably taken too far in the decision of Benarr & Another v. Kettering Health Authority6in which it was held that damages could extend to private education of the unwanted child. ... the courts in relation to the decision of Emeh, and Ognall J in a subsequent similar case expressed his discomfort with a law that awards damages to the mother of a child, particularly if it is healthy; he said: â€Å"but there it is: that is the law†.8 Although the approach of the courts appears to be undecided on this matter, it is argued by some that awarding damages for both healthy and disabled unwanted children is perfectly acceptable according to principles of tort law,9 though decisions of the court have disagreed with this contention.10 There appears to be a major problem surrounding the distinction between unwanted healthy children and unwanted disabled children, and whether full or partial damages are to be awarded to both.11 It is suggested that the failure of the court in McFarlane to restrict its application to disabled children has caused an array of confusing exceptions to be created by subsequent cases on the topic.12 Yet what is the public policy behind the a pproach of the courts? It was claimed in Rees v Darlington Memorial Hospital NHS Trust13 that there are major public policy implications for making public bodies that are funded by the public to pay large sums of money to parents of healthy children.14 Such an approach has claimed that awarding damages for healthy unwanted children simply takes the law of tort â€Å"too far†.15 While this would seem to be a reasonably grounded policy which aims to establish the importance of causing healthy unwanted pregnancies and unhealthy unwanted pregnancies, highlighting the graver financial (and psychological) inconvenience of the latter, it has attracted much criticism.16 Such criticism is however warranted if one is to view the normal application of tort law which functions to award damages to healthy

Dynamic Behaviours of Vehicle Tyres Dissertation

Dynamic Behaviours of Vehicle Tyres - Dissertation Example Nearly all forms of vehicles utilise tyres in order to interface engine energy with the road. Vehicles use tyres for a number of different purposes since vehicle tyres control a number of different driving characteristics. In the simplest terms, vehicle tyres are responsible directly for road traction, steering control, supporting the vehicle’s load and for braking control. In addition, vehicle tyres serve as an important part of the overall suspension by providing the initial cushion against shocks for vehicles travelling on the road. Modern vehicle tyres are constructed in a rather complicated fashion. The complication in construction arises from the need to deal with a number of different functions that vehicle tyres have to perform. The mechanical properties of any typical vehicle tyre tend to delineate the tyre’s particular behavioural characteristics in response to various kinds of inputs. Vehicle tyres are subject to a number of inputs including steering changes, torque from the vehicle’s engine, loading from the vehicle’s weight etc. These inputs tend to produce a number of varied outputs such as deflection in the vehicle tyre while rolling and other forces in the vertical and lateral directions. Most of the mechanical properties exhibited by vehicle tyres are closely related to each other and any changes in one property are sure to affect the others. For this reason, it is essential that research be carried out on how these characteristics and properties can be described and related to each other. A number of attempts have been done in order to develop a robust working vehicle tyres model that is able to satisfy all kinds of vehicular input. However, the current success of these models is limited given the fact that most models are only able to satisfactorily predict the outcome for one mode of vehicle tyre behaviour. Current research supports separate tyre behaviour models for rigid and non-rigid surfaces. The detailed cons truction of a vehicle tyre is presented in the figure shown below. Figure 1 - Components of a radial tyre sourced from (Karaytug, 2009) The figure above clearly depicts the construction of a typical vehicle tyre. The first layer is composed of a tread which is followed by a cap ply. The tread serves as the outermost surface of the tyre and is generally created out of specially vulcanised rubber in order to withstand various kinds of loads from the road surface. Generally in terms of the rubber involved in constructing a tyre, the tread rubber is the hardest. These sections are followed by the belt which serves as the sandwiching surface for the top surface of the vehicle tyre and its lower surface. The belt serves as a flexible interface between two harder sections of

Homeopathy degree-Anatomy & Physiology module- Written assessment Essay

Homeopathy degree-Anatomy & Physiology module- Written assessment - Essay Example 33). However, some plausible risk factors which should be looked at before diagnosis are genetics and aging. A patient with the disease might have inherited it from their mothers. The malady has been suggested to result from changes in chromosomes or genes. Therefore the patient’s history on this malady should be well established based on the medical pedigree, (Cooke & Trickey 2002, pp. 50). The disease is commonly experienced by women aged around 25 to 35 years old as well as women in postmenopausal age. Post menopausal women are characterized by high levels of aromatase and the hormone progesterone resistance. However, it should not be a surprise if it is reported in young girl of age 11, (Garcia-Velasco & Rizk 2010, p. 19). Some of the complications which might be realized apart from infertility related to scars formed in the process of endometriosis and due to release of cytokines and other chemical agents which interfere with reproduction are chronic pelvic pains and endometriomas (large cysts). All these defects might be related to treatment procedure such as hormone treatment which might result in release of the said chemicals and some medical implants done during surgery which may block gastrointestinal tracts. Generally the referred red flags are the age, severity of the disease, genetics and probably the reoccurrence of the disease as a complication. (Storck 2 011, p. 1) Hormone treatment: Hormone treatment is done to improve symptoms such as painful menstruations, painful intercourse and painful pelvic by suppressing endometriosis. The drugs administered t break the cycle of incentive and bleeding includes progesterone pills or injections, gonadotropin and danazol (Stops the production of estrogen by the ovaries), contraceptive pills (prescribed for mild endometriosis in young women), and mirena coil (reduces the amount of blood flow during menstruation), (Tulandi & Redwine 2004, p. 31). Surgery can be pelvic

School uniform Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

School uniform - Research Paper Example Furthermore, Wiseman and Hunt also cite an example on the successful program brought out by the imposition of school uniform to students in Long Beach, California where a dramatic decrease of student violence had occurred after a year it was imposed (200). Former U.S President Bill Clinton also suggests the use of school uniforms for public schools in order to lessen the cases of violence and gang wars to happen (qtd. in Brunsma). This initiated the introduction of school uniforms in the public schools in the U.S.   Ebert and Culyer note that the imposition of school uniforms lessens the unequivocal existence of financial disparity among students (213). Since the wealthy students will wear the same clothes as with the less privileged, the latter will not feel inferior, and thus, increasing their self esteem. Bullying cases will be lessened and prevented since the rich can no longer make fun of their classmates who cannot afford to buy branded and signature clothes.  The implement ation of school uniforms diminishes distractions of students from unnecessary contemplation of what to wear every day, thus, focusing their attention more to school academics (Ebert and Culyer 213). This would greatly improve the students’ academic performance since their attention will be focused more on their subjects rather than on the effort in looking good and being on fashion all the time. Peer pressure to be wearing what is in for fashion and to dress expensively will also lessen; thus, students focus their efforts. more in learning and studying (Larson 180). Performance at school will greatly improve, since they look good and smart in a school uniform; they tend to perform better at school. Oneil implies that when students put on a school uniform every day, this will give them a connotation that they have to take their education seriously (61). When they see their parents going to work wearing their business suits and attires every day, students will also get motivated to practice a business-like approach in dealing with their studies since they are wearing a uniform themselves to school. Not only that they look smart in a uniform, they also look proper and neat in a uniform. School uniforms are economical and practical as compared with buying fashionable clothes since students will just have to repeatedly wear their uniforms everyday (Oneil 61). Parents favor school uniforms more than not wearing one because they will not be pressured with their children to buy designer clothes for them to fit in the ostracizing crowd (Oneil 62). They will just have to buy a set of

Homeopathy degree-Anatomy & Physiology module- Written assessment Essay

Homeopathy degree-Anatomy & Physiology module- Written assessment - Essay Example 33). However, some plausible risk factors which should be looked at before diagnosis are genetics and aging. A patient with the disease might have inherited it from their mothers. The malady has been suggested to result from changes in chromosomes or genes. Therefore the patient’s history on this malady should be well established based on the medical pedigree, (Cooke & Trickey 2002, pp. 50). The disease is commonly experienced by women aged around 25 to 35 years old as well as women in postmenopausal age. Post menopausal women are characterized by high levels of aromatase and the hormone progesterone resistance. However, it should not be a surprise if it is reported in young girl of age 11, (Garcia-Velasco & Rizk 2010, p. 19). Some of the complications which might be realized apart from infertility related to scars formed in the process of endometriosis and due to release of cytokines and other chemical agents which interfere with reproduction are chronic pelvic pains and endometriomas (large cysts). All these defects might be related to treatment procedure such as hormone treatment which might result in release of the said chemicals and some medical implants done during surgery which may block gastrointestinal tracts. Generally the referred red flags are the age, severity of the disease, genetics and probably the reoccurrence of the disease as a complication. (Storck 2 011, p. 1) Hormone treatment: Hormone treatment is done to improve symptoms such as painful menstruations, painful intercourse and painful pelvic by suppressing endometriosis. The drugs administered t break the cycle of incentive and bleeding includes progesterone pills or injections, gonadotropin and danazol (Stops the production of estrogen by the ovaries), contraceptive pills (prescribed for mild endometriosis in young women), and mirena coil (reduces the amount of blood flow during menstruation), (Tulandi & Redwine 2004, p. 31). Surgery can be pelvic

Information Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Information Management - Essay Example There are basically 10 principles that ensure Information Management is done effectively and successfully. These 10 principles make Information Management easy and the organization experiences much better results if they follow these. The 10 principles are: Organizations have very complex environments in which it is necessary to implement concrete solutions. There are a lot of challenges when planning and implementing information management projects. All these challenges have to be over taken. When these complexities arise project teams often try to find easy and simple solutions, which is wrong. In reality complexity cannot be avoided and the easiest way to solve it is to find new approaches to information management that recognize and manage this complexity. Information management systems are only successful if they are actually used by staff, and it is not sufficient to simply focus on installing the software centrally. In practice, most information management systems need the active participation of staff throughout the organization. Meaning that adoption by staff to the information system is essential. Information management projects must always be designed so that they deliver tangible and visible benefits. This means that mostly information management projects are very valuable but when asked it can be difficult to show the return on investment. For example, improving the information accessible to call center staff can have a very observable and tangible impact on customer service. Business Needs should be given importance Some organizations try to prioritize projects according to the technology to be deployed meaning that if newer technology is being used the project is given the highest priority; this is not a meaningful approach. Instead of using this method projects should be prioritize according to how they address the business needs. Move step by step There is no single project that wills solve all the information management problems of an organization. In reality, anyone who tries to design the complete information management solution will be trapped in 'analysis paralysis' that is the inability to get out of the planning process. Hence journey of a thousand steps should be taken that is small changes should be made in the information management practices that eventually result in the perfect process later. Strong Leadership If an organization wants effective information management they need to concentrate on organizational and cultural changes. Strong leadership can only achieve these objectives. Hence effective and successful information management is a result of strong leadership. Avoid Risks While providing solutions for complex issues of any organizations as we discussed in the 1st principle it is very necessary to study all the risks involved. All the solutions that are provided have risks involved while implementing them. Identifying those risks and avoiding them using risk management is necessary and quite achievable. Extensive Communication Effective

Mr Clean “You gotta love a man who clean” Essay Example for Free

Mr Clean â€Å"You gotta love a man who clean† Essay Companies have many objectives when advertising their products and services. These objectives vary according to their industries, available distribution channels, and overall marketing strategies. The key to all advertising is attracting the right buyers. These are people who are more apt to buy a companys wares based on demographics like age and income, for example. Advertising should also repeat their messages often enough to familiarize consumers with their offerings. One of the major objectives of advertising is to increase sales and profits. Advertising is generally intended to motivate potential or current customers to behave in the way you desire. The specific messages, and the ways you want them to act vary based on your current position in the market and the money you have to invest in promotion. Normally, though, and objectives change over time as your company grows. For super bowl 2017, dozens of companies are rushing to generate buzz for themselves by releasing advertisements that are funny, emotional or edgy. While the big game was a week away, cleaning brand Mr. Clean clearly had the early edge in that regard. Mr. Clean has gotten buff and sexy for his Super Bowl ad debut. Procter Gamble has released its first-ever Super Bowl ad for Mr. Clean.  The 30-second spot features the iconic but refreshed character whos still bald and muscular but seems a little younger and sexier than his old self. Entitled Cleaner of Your Dreams, the mostly wordless and portray Mr. Clean showing up at a suburban red-haired house. The woman appears to be frustrated by a stain on her stove, before Mr. Clean, the iconic mascot of the brand, shows up in all his erotic glory. As the sensual music plays, the two characters clean the house, culminating in Mr. Clean mopping the floor in a muscle white shirt and extremely tight white pants that show off his assets. Mr. Clean sashays and dances as he moves and cleans from kitchen to  bathroom, to  the living  room as music pulses. The blissed-out homemaker also begins to sway to the musics vibe before a voice calls out her name.Sarah? Sarah? as the fantasy concludes. She opens her eyes and its her  tubby, lazy mate  standi ng before her. Clean enough? he asks. She crashes into his arms as they both collapse on the  couch. Then You gotta love a man who cleans pops across the screen. The idea behind the whole ad is to make cleaning attractive to men and challenge the idea that women are the only ones who would be interested in a cleaning product. According to HYPERLINK http://ibtimes.com, ibtimes.com 172 million views tune in to the super bowl and 59% were men. â€Å"Theres no better way to reach a co-ed audience than the Super Bowl, Procter Gamble vice president Martin Hettich told the website. And the subject were broaching with Mr. Clean really is for a co-ed audience, because its talking about cleaning and how men and women divide up the chores. And theres still a way to go. According to data gathered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2014, 83 percent of women reported doing household work, while just 65 percent of men said the same. Online, however, the ad was met with a broad range of reactions. Some liked the cheeky rebranding of the character, while others described themselves as uncomfortable with the idea of a sexualized Mr. Clean. Either way, the video has been a success in driving conversation about the brand, as it racked up nearly 450,000 views in a day on YouTube. (Per time magazine) This ad is different from the other Mr. Clean ads from way back when. It doesn’t create the issue of branding a female as a â€Å"housewife†. The other Mr. Clean advertisement considered females to be domestic wives who depend on their husbands for money and a house to clean. Manipulation is one of many worries that continue to be an issue with advertisements because many people find it unfair. Gender  roles persuade  people by establishing a minor feeling of a female and a wondrous feeling of a male. Note that advertisements glorify stereotypes of the female as a housewife with zero education and a great sense of style. On the other hand, male advertisements showcase males to be the provider of the household who is dependent on his wife or mother for food, clean clothes, and a bed to sleep on. According to Luuk Lagerwerf, Charlotte M.J. van Hooijdonk, and Ayalies Korenberg, â€Å"Advertisements containing connection are better comprehended than are advertisements containing similarity† (1840). If there is a relation between an advertisement and a person, the person will feel the need of buying that particular product.

Changes On Employees Retention And Performance In Kfc

Changes On Employees Retention And Performance In Kfc Employees are considered as the best resources particularly in the service business sector. Also employees are the key stakeholders who are affected mostly due to organisational management or ownership change. Downsizing and rightsizing are some of the key issues resulting from the mergers and acquisitions globally and this affects the international policies and strategies of the multinationals. Also employees policies are mostly at stake. This issue is, therefore, being analysed to study the impacts of frequent ownership changes in KFC particularly from 1971 to 1986 on the employees retention and growth. As KFC is a global giant in fast-food / service business sector and faced frequent ownership changes in a short span of time so this case can add value to the reader of this report and other businesses to understand the relation of employees retention, performance and productivity with the leadership / ownership issues and how such situation can be dealt. Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) An Introduction In 1930 KFC was launched and the mission was to provide quality, service and cleanliness (QSC) to the customers and consumers. Competition level was very low in the industry particularly in the domestic market. KFC growth was good in its initial decades but with the increasing competition in the domestic market the cake size started squeezing. Popeyes, the major competitor for KFC, was born in 1972 which comes second with a share (12.7%) and KFC (55.2%) (http://lidan.y3k.org/blog/en/2004/04/kfcs-localization-strategies-in-china/). In early 1950s KFC went in the foreign market (http://www.kfc.com/about/history.asp ). 3.0 Research Question Did the past frequent ownership changes in KFC have an impact on the employees retention and performance? 4.0 Objectives The key objectives of this study are to; Assess whether frequent ownership changes affect managerial policies Study whether the frequent ownership changes have an impact on employees retention rate Evaluate the impacts of organisational ownership change son employees performance Literature Review Fast-food is considered as convenience food that can be cooked and served very quickly. On the average, 1/5th of the population of the USA (which is approximately 45 million people) eats every day in a fast-food restaurant. The term fast-food denotes speed in both food preparation and customer service, as well as speed in customer eating habits. The designation, quick service (http://www.answers.com/topic/fast-food?cat=entertainment ) has been traditionally preferred by the restaurant industry. There are certain forces which makes an industry attractive globally. As fast-food industry grew in the USA competition also became tough in the domestic market. Industry faced maturity stage (http://www.kfc.com/about/history.asp). At this stage of industry life cycle companies started entering in the foreign markets in order to survive. The doors for industrial growth and reforms had opened due to the economic revolution after World War II. Governments needed the foreign businesses to come and participate in the economic development of the country. For example China relaxed its policies regarding the western service businesses particularly agricultural modernisation plans of China needed poultry industry to grow (http://www.franchisetochina.com/h3.htm). Fast-food is considered as economical and easy to cook food. Chicken is relatively cheaper ingredient as compared to mutton and beef. Also chicken growth is economical because it grows faster and consumes fewer inputs. In many Asian and Latin Americans countries chicken is traditional food. These all factors lead to economies of scale for fast food industry particularly related with chicken meals. Consumer market has changed tremendously. Drivers like global economic reforms and higher divorce rate in the USA have led to more female workers (http://lidan.y3k.org/blog/en/2004/04/kfcs-localization-strategies-in-china/) and they need ready meal to save time. The average mother of a child under 15 spends more on fast food every year than on books, music, movies and video games combined, according to a new report (Mindlin, 2008). Health conscious consumers taste has also changed. People like to have some light meal during work hours (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/sub jects/f/fast_food_industry/index.html). These forces made the industry attractive and increased the potential and demand of fast-food in the world. Fast-food industry apparently has a localisation approach. McDonalds, Pizza Hut, KFC, etc have adapted their organisational culture and menu according to host country culture and values. Particularly KFC deployed localisation strategies in China and McDonalds removed pork from its menu in India. Figure 2 below explains that a balance is necessary to achieve a successful strategic move in the foreign market. Respond locally through learning the cultural values of host country and integrate them with the companys global core values. Global Integration Local Responsiveness Cross Boundary Learning Fast-food industry flourished in the USA during the last centaury. The chicken segment was the 5th in terms of sales in the fast-food industry and there were few competitors as compared to other segments. For instance the sandwich chain segment which included McDonalds, Burger King and Wendy had 12 competitors while KFC had only 5. KFC was the overall 6th biggest (http://lidan.net/blog/2004/04/kfcs_localization_strategies_in_china.html). In 1999 fast-food industry sales rose by 5.4% with around 0.8 million restaurants in the USA and during the same period full service restaurants grew by 7%. Gradually the due to saturation in the sector companies started exiting the industry (like Boston was acquired by McDonalds) or decided to enter in the foreign markets. Domestically the chicken market seemed saturated and the growth rate in the USA was only 1% (http://lidan.y3k.org/blog/en/2004/04/kfcs-localization-strategies-in-china/). According to available literature, the estimated annual worth of the UK fast-food market is  £7.82 billion (Keynote 2003), equal to an average spend of  £20/month/adult (Schrà ¶der and McEachern, 2005). Due to busier consumer lifestyles and dual-working families with children emphasis is increasingly being placed on quick meal solutions (Atkins and Bowler 2001). Therefore there is a market growth of 19% in fast-food since 1998 (Keynote 2003). For service business sector, particularly, manpower or employees are key resources to gain profitability (Heskett and Sasser, 1994). Take figure 3 below. Customer loyalty stimulates profit and growth in the business and customers loyalty is a direct result of the customer satisfaction. Satisfaction is largely influenced by the services value provided to the customers and consumers and this value is created by the loyal, satisfied and productive employees. However employees satisfaction is resulted primarily from the high-quality support services and policies that enable the employees to deliver results to the customers (http://hbr.org/1994/03/putting-the-service-profit-chain-to-work/ar/1). Service Value Chain This model reveals that employees are key resources particularly for the service business organisations. Streamlined organisational processes and consistency in the organisational policies help facilitate the employees in service industry (particularly) to deliver quality services to the customers and add value with efficient performance to achieve sustainable growth and profitability. However consistent policies and long term strategic planning also need stability in the organisations management (http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Or-Pr/Planning.html) and author also understands that the organisational ownership change should not influence and change the organisational policies especially employees policies in the service business sector at a stroke or right from day one rather lead time should be given to the employees and other stakeholders so that everybody can adjust with the changing environment. Employees are considered as a companys live hood. If employees in an organisation are highly motivated and proactive, every effort will be done by the employees to achieve the organisational goals as well as keep track of industry performance to address any potential challenges. This two-prong approach builds an organisations stability. On the other hand with low motivation level of employees an organisation is completely vulnerable to both internal and external challenges because the employees are not going the extra mile to maintain the organisations stability and thus unstable organisation ultimately underperforms (http://www.ehow.com/how-does_5407144_employee-motivation-impact-organizational-performance_.html). In todays work environment want a relaxed and hygienic work environment and have fun with a balance between the life, work and family (http://humanresources.about.com/od/motivationrewardretention/Employee_Motivation_Recognition_Rewards_Retention.htm). Literature also reveals that key employee retention is critical to the long term health and success of any business or organistaion. Managers agree that managers ole is key to retain best employees to ensure business success (http://humanresources.about.com/od/retention/a/more_retention.htm). Important organising principles include organisational values in designing HRM polices. Compensation and developing an individual are deeply related with the satisfaction and commitment of the employees which mean particularly in the service business sector employee retention and growth with performance also depends on managements policies at strategic board level (Rosete, 2006). Employees retention in the quick service industry is key to success of the business. Quick service companies retain the most desirable employees by recognizing employees contribution to the organisation because recognition is an effective leadership tool that motivates the employees and acknowledges the efforts and creativity or willingness of employees to exert extra effort. The biggest problem for the quick service industry and which creates major drains of profit and human resources is employee turnover. According to a report the annualised turnover rate of employees was 16% in 2000. The same turnover numbers as related to the quick service industry are employees 150% and management 20%. The cost of turnover shares an average cost of replacing an employee is equal to the annual salary plus benefits. In the aftermath of industry downsizing, employee loyalty is also on decline. There is 11% decline in the workers commitment. However leadership (which means a consistent organisationa l policies with least possible changes) is key to retain and develop employees because the quick service industry has a direct correlation of sales, profits as compared to employee turnover (Forrer and Guerrieri, 2002). Organisational culture is developed by the management policies and leadership style. once established, the organisational culture is highly resistant to change. Employees tend to stick to a set way of working. However frequent management or ownership changes also change the working pattern and organisational goals. This may make the employees more resistant with decreased performance (Tom and Michael, 2000). In 1930 KFC was launched with a mission to provide quality, service and cleanliness (QSC) to the customers. KFC grew well in domestic market but later competition became hard in the local market. McDonalds, Wendy, Boston etc had entered in the market leading to shrunken market size. The major competitor for KFC, Popeyes, was born in 1972 which comes second with a share (12.7%) and KFC (55.2%) (http://lidan.y3k.org/blog/en/2004/04/kfcs-localization-strategies-in-china/). In 1950s KFC went in the foreign market (http://www.kfc.com/about/history.asp). Thus KFC earned first mover advantage and brand recognition. In 1964 it entered the UK, in 1970s Japan and Asia Pacific, in 1987 China and in 1990s South Asia (http://www.kfc.com/about/history.asp). KFC has a multi domestic strategy (http://mason.gmu.edu/~tgoddar1/m411wk7.htm) to enter the foreign markets because of cultural, economical, social, legal and political factors in the host countries and this strategy also resulted in certain benefits which include; helped KFC to react to high pressures for local responsiveness, to tailor products to meet customer needs in each country of operation, to create wholly owned foreign divisions and to help core competencies transfer from home country. In addition to this; access to resources and skills in the host country, differentiation advantage through combined core competences, becoming the dominant competitor, increased profits and reduced bureaucratic costs were some of the factors to adopt multi domestic strategy. Market Entry Strategies Few Examples KFCs international composition provides a mix of foreign market entry strategies (please refer to figure 4). KFC enters the foreign / international market either through joint venture or company-owned foreign subsidiary. However mostly KFC expands its global franchise network. This is also important to know that organisational culture of KFC is mostly decentralised at operational level because franchisees are business partner or allies of KFC and the KFCs employees policies are implemented through franchising channel. It is also important here to note that organisational culture must be matched or aligned with the national culture or domestic culture. KFC is a global organisation working in many countries around the globe. KFC core organisational culture must be adapted in the host culture so that employees in the host country and customers in the host country can adopt and adapt KFCs themes and menu easily and there should be no communication gaps. This also helps facilitate the emp loyees to adjust with the organisational culture and deliver quality services to the customers. A high demand for services has been created due to the socioeconomic development in 1980s and 1990s (Davis, 2000). This reflects the potential for service businesses growth like the fast-food businesses. In recognition of the distinct nature of transitional markets (Arnold and Quelch 1998), many foreign companies have sought other ways to compete with the domestic or local offerings by clothing their brands in local costumes (Belk, 2000). According to Zhou and Hui (2003) localisation of language, product characteristics, advertising content and even product meanings is a common way accepted by the multinationals in most transitional economies. Hofstede (1980) states that culture is a complex and multifaceted construct. One of the basic dimensions of the culture is individualism collectivism. Individualistic culture stresses on independence, freedom, high levels of competition, achievement and pleasure. However the collectivistic culture has a tendency to embrace the interdependency, family security, social hierarchies, low level of the competition and cooperation (Triandis, 1993). Also advertising is a type of shared or social communication. It is reflective and indicates or specifies cultural values and norms (http://lidan.y3k.org/blog/en/2004/04/kfcs-localization-strategies-in-china/). As cultural differences are reflected by the advertising and advertising appeals which are specific approaches or ways advertisers use to communicate the customers needs and wants (Bovee and Arens, 1989), should manifest such differences across the countries. Collectivism involves the subordination of personal interests to the goals of the group and stresses on sharing, cooperation and coordination and a group welfare concern (Zhang and Neelankavil, 1997). Sometimes minor differences in the culture put major impacts on the strategies of the companies which may affect positively or negatively the employees and the customers. Some cultures are very open to franchising especially for western businesses. An example is the UK and Europe. There are big franchising association or bodies in such countries for example British Franchise Association promoting and accrediting excellence in franchising and European Franchise Federation whose aims and objectives include promotion of franchising in European countries, protecting the franchise industry with Code of Ethics, encouraging and developing franchising in European countries, requesting the interest of franchising to international organisations, promoting European franchising worldwide, serving the members along with the exchange of documentation and information between the national association or federations in Europe and in the world (http://www.thebfa.org/index.asp). Such big platforms secure the franchisors even during the recession or economic downturn or situations like credit crunch periods and provide security to foreign businesses in the host countries to come and invest in a relatively risk free environment. Also franchising is cost effective, time saving, secure and easy to learn way to enter a new country. This reflects that a right foreign market entry strategy may help reduce the impacts of recession or economic downturns (if any) but also the cultural implications need to be integrated in the organisational employees strategies so that talent retention and development can be facilitated. But it is also important to note from the following paragraphs that organisational cultures are dependent on the leadership (owners) policies and practices and a consistent policy should be there to gain long lasting profitability and employees performance with minimum organisational changes. Literature reveals that KFC has faced a lot of managerial and organisational changes since KFCs inception. The changes occurred mostly due to the changes in the ownership (or better to say in the leadership). Colonel Sanders first sold KFC in 1964 to a small group of investors that eventually took KFC public. Heublein, Inc, purchased KFC in early seventies (in 1971) and was highly involved in day to day operations. R. J. Reynolds then acquired Heublein in 1982. R. J. Reynolds had a more laid back approach and allowed business as usual at KFC. Finally in 1986, KFC was acquired by PepsiCo, which was trying to grow the quick service restaurant segment. PepsiCo, which presently runs Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC, has a management style and corporate culture significantly different from that of KFC. PepsiCo has a consumer product orientation. In 1992, KFC did another reorganisation in the middle management ranks. KFC eliminated 250 out of the 1500 management positions at corporate and gave the responsibilities restaurant franchises and marketing managers (http://kelley_keith.tripod.com/mgmnt5313.html). KFC history reveals that Heublein favoured a franchising strategy but had a low RD budgets, Reynolds strategy was to leave the managers with freedom to run units with managerial expertise and PepsiCo though provided heavy financial backing to KFC but PepsiCos hard employees policies resulted in dissatisfaction, high turnover and decreased loyalty of the employees. A service business cannot afford employees dissatisfaction (Irfan, 2008 and http://lidan.y3k.org/blog/en/2004/04/kfcs-localization-strategies-in-china/ http://www.reocities.com/TimesSquare/1848/kfc.html). Literature review reveals that the weaknesses of KFC have been determined as confusing corporate direction due to selling and reselling of KFC. KFC was sold three times between 1971 and 1986. However the organisational culture of KFC and PepsiCo are conflicting with each other. KFC was based on a laid back approach while PepsiCo culture has a fast track attitude. Since the acquisition KFC employees lacked the job security that KFC employees enjoyed before. Also top management turnovers like top managers of the KFC were replaced by the PepsiCos own management have changed the organisational culture and leadership style which is creating job insecurity in the organisation (http://ivythesis.typepad.com/term_paper_topics/2009/09/kentucky-fried-chicken-and-the-global-fast-food-industry.html). In conclusion from the information above it can be revealed that mergers and acquisitions are good for business growth but when ownership changes the resulting changes in the polices and culture of the organisation not only threaten the employees but also develop a resistant to change. This sometimes leads to employees turnover or decreased performance. It does not mean that organisational change is not healthy for the organisational growth but there should be a reasonable frequency and in the organisational change pattern and particularly in the service business sector where employees are key resources to deliver value to the customers because losing skilled staff due to frequent change in the organisational policies (and sometimes change in organisational culture to which the skilled staff has stuck) may result in losing the right employees and business profitability and performance may decline. To conclude this further following methodology has been suggested in the literature to analyse such cases; A case study has been suggested as a useful approach when the area of research is relatively unknown (Marschan-Piekkari and Welch, 2004). It is a more flexible approach suited to different types of research questions and is most frequently used approach in business studies particularly international business. It has been suggested that case studies involve data collection through multiple primary and/or secondary sources such as verbal reports, personal interviews, observation and written reports (Marschan-Piekkari and Welch, 2004). Accordingly, the secondary research in this case study will involve written reports, journal articles, online information etc. 6.0 Methodology To conclude this further following methodology has been suggested in the literature to analyse such cases; A case study has been suggested as a useful approach when the area of research is relatively unknown (Marschan-Piekkari and Welch, 2004). It is a more flexible approach suited to different types of research questions and is most frequently used approach in business studies particularly international business. It has been suggested that case studies involve data collection through multiple primary and/or secondary sources such as verbal reports, personal interviews, observation and written reports (Marschan-Piekkari and Welch, 2004). Accordingly, the secondary research in this case study will involve written reports, journal articles, online information etc. The study will be an analytical case study involving secondary research. A number of business models and frameworks like service value chain, Bartlett and Ghoshal and Total Global Strategy George S. Yip will be used to analyse the situation at macro and micro levels. To meet the criteria for analytical approach (Dubey, 2009) the facts of information already available will be used and analysis of these facts will be done to make a critical evaluation of the material. It is important that there must be sufficient information to characterise, analyse and explain the unique features of the case, as well as to point out the characteristics and properties that are common to several cases or case studies. Finally, this approach relies on the integrative powers of research: the ability to study an object with many dimensions and then to draw the various elements together in a cohesive interpretation (Marschan-Piekkari and Welch, 2004). So where the area of research is relatively not known a more flexible approach which can suit the different types of research questions will be a case study approach. Also through secondary research the already available information and data is used and analysed to answer the research question but important issue is to understand that the data and information should be sufficient enough to analyse the unique features of the issue or case. 7.0 Limitations There are following limitations in this case study; Being a case study it will be focused on one company only and can give no additional analyses for the competitors business situations. Primary research is not part of the methodology in this case study. Primary research can add value by validating the past or historical information (gathered by the secondary research) under current business circumstances.

Essay example --

In today’s society, people are debating whether or not gardening is beneficial to one’s health or just a waste of taxpaying dollars. By growing our own food, we know exactly what we are eating and its nutritional value. Gardening is used as an escape from the real world and can be rather relaxing. I, for one, found gardening to be fun. What I enjoyed most was sorting the vegetables to distinguish the good from the bad. There are many pros to community gardening. Some of them include the health benefits, bringing the entire community together, and economic growth. I would first like to point out the health benefits of growing our own foods. How foods are grown or raised can impact both your health and the environment. By growing our own foods, we become aware of how natural the crops are when they are free of pesticides and other chemicals deemed dangerous for the human population’s health. Organic fruits and vegetables are grown in safe soil and farmers are not allowed to use pesticides or harmful chemicals. The First Lady, Michelle Obama, is a leading force in the fight for better ...

Sample Essay †The Role of Women Essay

The transition from early 19th century England to late 20th century Australia reveals an overwhelming shift in the dominant discourses and ideologies surrounding the role of women. While Jane Austen composed her seminal 1813 romance Pride and Prejudice against the social and historical backdrop of Regency England, a time when patriarchal ideals governed notions of femininity, Fay Weldon’s 1984 epistolary novel Letters to Alice bears the hallmarks of post-feminist women’s liberation and agency. However, through close examination of the intertextual connections woven between this pair of texts, it emerges that not only does Weldon’s text take form as a didactic treatise to her young nice that reflects her own contemporary views on women and women writers, her letters prompt an unquestioningly feminist re-reading of Austen’s representation of women in her own literary works. As a result, it is these connections that yield the recognition that despite the contextual divide separating this pair of texts, both authors are irrevocably bound in their purpose to didactically challenge the politically charged representation and role of women in their respective cultural spheres. Composed in the late 20th century – an era where feminist discourses of equality were deeply entrenched in political and academic spheres – Weldon’s text is narratively shaped as a didactic novel addressed to her fictionalised ‘green haired punk’ niece, using the epistolary form to both instruct and demonstrate the power of literature â€Å"with its capital L† to function as a vehicle for women to both change and challenge dominant social conventions and values. To achieve these means, it is no coincidence that Weldon is seen to appropriate the epistolary form – â€Å"a popular form of fiction at the time† used by female writers such as Austen herself- to create a intertextual connection that transcends the contextual gap separating each text to promote a specifically feminist view of writers and the function of â€Å"Literature†. Here, Weldon is herself the embodiment of her self-described breed of â€Å"strong women, wo men who work, think, earn, have independent habits†. Her authoritative didacticisms to the burgeoning writer Alice -â€Å"simply speak†¦and you will be listened to. And eventually,  even enjoy your captive audience† – symbolically demonstrate the legacy of feminist ideals that were initially catalysed through early Regency female authors such as Austen whose patriarchal context kept their revolutionary works â€Å"shelter[ed] behind the cloak of anonymity†. Given the modern context of Letters to Alice, it is undeniable that Weldon writes from a discourse of female agency when she informs Alice that to enter the â€Å"immortal† â€Å"City of Invention†, she must metaphorically â€Å"swim against the stream of communal ideas† and â€Å"demonstrate to the reader the limitations of convention† that societies inscribe upon its populace as â€Å"unquestioned beliefs†. The strong tone employed in such directives highlight that from Weldon’s feminist perspective, the value of female authorship and literature is derived from the capacity of one’s own personal value system to morally guide or catalyse a transformation in its readership: â€Å"Readers need and seek moral guidance†¦They need an example, in the light of which they can examine themselves, [and] understand themselves.† Simply put, Weldon’s Letters to Alice is a text that is highly political in purpose; it prompts a strong consideration of the function of literature to catalyse notions of female empowerment through both changing and challenging dominant social conventions and values. Taking into account Weldon’s didacticisms regarding female authorship and social change, it becomes apparent that the intertextual connections to Jane Austen weaved within Letters to Alice prompt an undeniably feminist re-evaluation of her representation of Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. While separated by the historical divide of almost two centuries, Weldon’s instruction for her niece to â€Å"swim against the stream of communal ideas† can be seen to resonate in Austen’s idealistic protagonist Elizabeth Bennet, a character who transgresses against the dominant values that governed Regency England; and whose personal virtues triumphed over the restrictions of her era. Weldon’s didactic assertion that female author’s must work to â€Å"demonstrate to the reader the limitations of convention† undeniably connect with and transform perceptions of Austen’s Elizabeth, framing and augmenting her personal values of rationalit y and wit as they shine through the text. This is particularly evident through her strong authoritative tone in declarative statements: â€Å"I shall be very fit to see  Jane – which is all I want†, which work alongside uncharacteristic images of female activity: â€Å"springing over puddles to with impatient activity [gave her] a face glowing with the warmth of exercise† to undermine a social value system that links feminine propriety with explicit passivity. Such aspects of her character are further augmented through Austen inscribing Elizabeth’s dialogue with a strongly comedic tone of satire and irony. She delights in intellectually challenging the supposedly superior intellect of Mr Darcy in a series of playful exchanges: â€Å"I am convinced that one good sonnet will stave [love] entirely away†; â€Å"your defect is to hate everybody†. In considering these connections, Weldon’s text can be seen to invoke a renewed reading of Elizabeth, positioning her as a didactic figure that planted the early seeds of feminist discourse from which Letters to Alice was composed: â€Å"[She] pay[ed] paying attention to the subtle demands of human dignity rather than the cruder ones of established convention†¦prodding [civilisation] quicker and faster along the slow difficult road that has led us out of barbarity into civilisation† Ultimately, examination of the intertextual connections between Letters to Alice and Pride and Prejudice yield a recognition that while Weldon’s text instructs young Alice on contemporary views on women and women writers from a late 19th century context, it also catalyses a re-evaluation of Austen’s representation of Elizabeth Bennet, reframing interpretations of her character as one who challenges the dominant value systems of gender. As a result, it is these connections that incite the realisation that despite the contextual divide separating this pair of texts, both authors are irrevocably bound in their purpose to didactically challenge the politically charged representation and role of women in their respective cultural spheres.

Courage can be applied and used in almost every aspect of life Essay

Definitions are meant to help us understand different concepts all around us. A definition allows us to communicate something that needed to be said. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the definition of the word definition is â€Å"the action of defining, or stating exactly what a thing is, or what a word means† in a sense where it will help us understand its meaning. Definitions provide insight to the meaning of something. At times we may feel like we know a word but cannot clearly come up with a way to define it and that is when definitions come into play providing clarity for a word. They help us understand everything around us, from peoples ideas to their feelings, to all sorts of concepts of ideology and life. Without definitions we would not know what anything would be, mean, act for, and so on. Definitions are an essential part of life that helps us cope with many things by helping us understand a broader perspective of objects and ideas. As a freshman in English class, one of our assignments was to read â€Å"Solitude and Leadership† by William Deresiewicz which is an extended definition of the words solitude and leadership. William Deresiewicz used different methods to define the two words including quotes, examples, characteristics, and reference to Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, which in my case was one of the hardest novels I had to read. One of the definitions Deresiewicz gives us is â€Å"solitude means being alone, and leadership necessitates the presence of others†, both words contradicting themselves. Deresiewicz uses a series of characteristics to define the words, which included words such as courage, independence, thinking, creativity, honor, concentration, honesty, introspection, friendship, and morality among others. Courage was one characteristic that stood out to me. Courage can be interpreted in many ways. According to the Oxford English Dictionary one way, courage is defined as â€Å"the heart as a seat of feeling, thought, etc.; spirit, mind, disposition, nature.† Another definition that was provided was that courage is â€Å"applied to a persons spirit† and yet another definition was â€Å"spirit, liveliness, lustiness, vigor, vital force or energy.† All three definitions contained the word â€Å"spirit† in them, and I believe that ones spirit is really important in relation to courage because it is what keeps  us going. I can say that courage drives our spirit because without courage we would not do the many things that we have done and will do. For example, we would not talk to someone we really like without having the courage to go up to him or her right? According to the essay by Deresiewics, there is two types of courage one being â€Å"physical† which he says we â€Å"all possess in abundance† and â€Å"moral courage†, which is the courage that allows us to â€Å"stand up† for what we â€Å"believe† (175). Courage drives us to the many things we do in everyday life whether it is something simple like having â€Å"the courage to argues† our â€Å"ideas† or something adventurous like skydiving (175). To myself, courage contains some of the same characteristics, but I can out it into different words. Courage is a quality of mind or spirit that leads one to make certain decisions. Defining courage this way makes much more sense to me. Courage is very important because without it we probably would not be in certain situations we are in. For example, without courage I would not be three hundred ninety four miles away from home all on my own living with someone who was once a complete stranger to me. I believe that that took tons of courage from me. Without courage many of us would not be away home our homes starting our college careers, which will prepare us for our future careers. Courage is a drive one must have to keep our spirit going. As a freshman in college, I have set goals that I hope to achieve by the end of the year. I believe that courage can help achieve many goals. For example, one of my goals is to leave here with the courage to take up more rigorous classes next year. Taking up more challenging courses is definitely going to require courage because college can already be difficult for some and taking up more can be a harder task. Another goal I wish to accomplish is to learn from all that will be done this year and apply it to the future. This goal can also take a bit of courage because learning from mistakes and applying the experience onto the future can be difficult. Courage is a really important characteristic to contain. No matter what age or situation, courage is extremely important, just having the mentality of wanting to do something and being able to do it says a lot about a person’s character. After reading the â€Å"Solitude and Leadership† I suddenly realize that there  are many things that take part in building character. Courage goes a very long way. It helps us decide on certain ideas, gestures, etc. Being able to take the essay and go onto defining a word in my own terms, like in the essay, took courage because many people can judge my ideology but having that courage the author spoke about and arguing for my own idea took courage. Courage can be applied and used in almost every aspect of life. Sometimes all you need in life is a bit of courage to get you through a certain situation in life because â€Å"at such moments, all you really have is yourself† (182). Works Cited â€Å"definition, n.†. OED Online. 2012. Oxford University Press. 29 October 2012 . â€Å"courage, n.†. OED Online. 2012. Oxford University Press. 29 October 2012 . Deresiewicz, William. â€Å"Solitude and Leadership.† The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2011. Ed. Dave Eggers. New York: Houghton, 20122. 169-182. Print.

Analogy of Nature vs Nurture

The Human Genome Project, which has attracted its fair share of controversy, set out in the early 1990s to map all 25,000 genes of the human genome (â€Å"About†). The hope was that such discoveries would provide a roadmap to the specific genes which could â€Å"allow us to accurately predict who will develop heart disease, become violent, or become homosexual† (Young). Psychologists, however, have countered this process by pointing out the importance of environmental factors to overall social development. Professor Robert Plomin of the Institute of Psychiatry in London says that â€Å"individual differences in complex traits are due at least as much to environmental influences as they are to genetic influences† (qtd. in Young). This is, in essence, a modern-day battle of nature versus nurture. In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein the conflict is perfectly encapsulated in the character of the monster; is he inherently evil and bloodthirsty, or did harsh societal treatment force him to be that way? It is an age-old question, still yet to be solved. However, through her writing and characterization it becomes clear that the monster began life as fresh and innocent as a regular newborn baby. He only became a true â€Å"monster† in the archetypal sense after enduring hatred and isolation at the hands of the humans he so longed to be. He is, in effect, nurtured into being the murderer that he becomes. Despite his unnatural birth, Frankenstein's creation still exudes the freshness and naivety of a young child discovering things for the first time. The prime example of this is his discovery of fire: â€Å"I found a fire which had been left by some wandering beggars†¦ in my joy I thrust my hand into the live embers, but quickly drew it out again with a cry of pain† (Shelley 89). He obviously has no life experiences to guide his actions and spends his first few weeks investigating and trying to understand the world around him, much like a newborn would. He even says that â€Å"no distinct ideas occupied my mind† (Shelley 88). This is not a being born a raving lunatic, his mind awash with murderous thoughts. He is simply a blank slate. Once he begins to distinguish light and sound, he continues his fresh exploration, discovering such things as animals, foliage, and warmth. At one point he wanders into an old man's hut, scaring him off. He doesn't intend to cause the man harm, nor does the reaction his appearance receives cause him any emotional distress or give rise to vengeance. He is not the being that he is by the end of the novel, a clear indication of the influence of social and environmental factors on development. In fact, it is not until he sees the De Lacey family for the first time that he begins to truly grasp basic emotions like happiness and sadness; until that point he had only known physical pain and hunger. The De Laceys are essentially the monster's first nurturers, however unknowing they may be. By observing them he becomes aware of human relationships, human emotions, and even human history. He develops a high level empathy for the family; their trials and tribulations were his, and when their were sad so was he. In a way he is exhibiting a highly pure and limited form of emotional expression and understanding for, much like a very young child or even a pet, his own feelings are greatly influenced by, and reflective of, those around him. Since the family provides the basis for the monster's impression of humans, he originally thinks fairly highly of them. The monster, who had started out taking some of their food for his own survival, stopped doing so when he â€Å"found out that in doing this [he] inflicted pain on the cottagers† (Shelley 96). To make amends he instead gathers firewood for them, and is filled with satisfaction upon knowing that he saved them from even a small amount of hardship. It is from the De Laceys that he first learns of kindness and love, and of the bonds of family and friendship. If he was truly born a monster it is doubtful that he would have any capacity whatsoever for empathy and love. At this point in the novel, though, it's quite apparent that the so-called â€Å"demon† has a interior that belies his frightening exterior appearance. The monster also learns how to read, write, and speak by intently observing the De Laceys. This act of humanization further endears the family to him, and is his major step towards joining human society. Of course this is all thrown out the window when, after meticulously planning on how to reveal his presence to the family, they receive him with less than open arms: Felix violently ejects him from their cottage, while Safie runs away in disgust and Agatha faints upon seeing his form. This is the first of several traumatic experiences with the human race that totally throws the monster's worldview out-of-whack; where before he saw only gentleness and love he soon comes to associate humans with hatred and violence. Next the monster gets shot after saving a girl from drowning in a river. However he still does not respond violently towards either the girl or the attacker; instead he merely wanders off, injured and confused. It would seem that he has yet to become the violent murderer the majority of the story sees him as. At this point, though, he does vow â€Å"eternal hatred and vengeance on all mankind† (Shelley 126), which is a far cry from the admiration he expressed for their race only days before. This is the turning point in the monster's behavior; from here on out his thought process is radically changed. Society and mankind have totally rejected him by this time, and again like a child he takes these insults to heart and responds in a somewhat over-the-top manner. The monster's brutal murder of William, Frankenstein's younger brother, is the first occurrence to truly display any sort of demonic tendencies. By this point, though, his heart and mind have been shaped by nearly two years of life experiences, many of them negative. After all, he lives, apart from observing the De Laceys, in total isolation. He is then deemed a monster by all of society, and cast out. He is even shot for doing a heroic deed. Add on his knowledge of the bloody history of human civilization (which is filled with war and revenge) and his exposure and identification with Satan in Milton's Paradise Lost and it is not entirely surprising to see his mindset so rapidly altered. Of course he goes on to kill many more of Frankenstein's loved ones, and eventually indirectly causes the death of Frankenstein himself, though these heinous crimes are born out of a lack of nurture, not simply just his natural personality. In fact, like many serial killers before and after him, the monster lacks any sort of parental figure. His father, Frankenstein, was so disgusted by him that he ran away and never came back. History has shown us that growing up fatherless can have severe ramifications upon a child's psyche and development. Numerous sociologists and psychologists have come to the conclusion that a fatherless childhood increases the likelihood that said child will turn to a life of crime or depression, and with 70% of long-term prison inmates and 72% of adolescent murderers coming from fatherless homes that assumption appears to be correct (Popenoe). This is a clear endorsement of the importance of nurture over nature in that this environmental change has such a large effect on the future of these children. Many, of course, come to resent and hate the man who walked out on them. This is the case with the monster, whose quest for vengeance against his creator provides the main plot of the novel. The monster falls victim to the numerous environmental forces working against him, from societal isolation to the abandonment of his father. His ultimate personality is filled with rage and anger, though it is not without the kinder traits he picked up from the De Lacey family. He confesses at the end of the novel of his remorse at his crimes: â€Å"No guilt, no mischief, no malignity, no misery can be comparable to mine† (Shelley 203). Two of the most important quotes, though, appear at the end of the novel as well: the monster essentially conveys Shelley's exact point in the nature vs. nurture battle when he says that his â€Å"heart was fashioned to be susceptible of love and sympathy† (Shelley 202) and that he â€Å"cannot believe that [he is] the same creature whose thoughts were once filled with sublime and transcendent visions of the beauty and majesty of goodness† (Shelley 204). Even he recognizes the changes that have taken place inside his own psyche, and he understands that it is his life experiences and environment that is to blame for this. In these final quotes, he also makes it clear that he started out life fresh and new, without a demonic cell in his body, and that his first experiences were those of kindness and joy. It was not until after his mind began to form that he was exposed to the concepts of hatred and vengeance. With the character of Frankenstein's monster, Shelley has created not only one of the most iconic misunderstood villains of literature but also formed an entire thesis on the concept of nature versus nurture in human development. By making the monster a blank slate, and morphing his personality based upon the different cataclysmic events that shape his life, Shelley clearly states her support for the nurture side of the argument. In a way the entire novel could be seen as an argument in defense of the belief that it is the child's environment and form of nurture received (be it good, bad, or non-existent) that provides the basis for their personality and character. Of course genetics does play a role in such areas. People are generally not born serial killers, nor are they born as charitable saints. Parenting plays a huge role in early development, as many professionals have proven, and the monster's lack of a single parent largely attributes to his personality defects. This point, combined with the isolation and hatred that he endured, are the reasons that he turned towards a path of murder and destruction.