Farenheit 451 Essay

There is a novel published in the 1950s with a title of Fahrenheit 451. The book was published by Ray Bradbury and involves a futuristic plot where most of the things in the society are in chaotic state. This novel was a success in the contemporary times of the 50Ð ²Ãâ€šÃ¢â€ž ¢s and now, you could write a Fahrenheit 451 essay as a school paper requirement. Before you begin writing such an essay, it is important that you first read the novel. This is the case for all types of essays that need to tackle a certain material. Much like writing a Macbeth essay or a Romeo and Juliet essay, a Fahrenheit 451 essay is written only after the writer has completed reading the book. So what are the possible types of essays that we can write for Fahrenheit 451 essay? One can talk about a novel by using different approaches in writing an essay. One good example is a narrative essay. You can re-tell the story in the novel and summarize the whole thing for your readers to have an idea about it. A narrative essay is not all about fictional story from the writer. It may also involve any types of stories that may even come from an actual source. Be careful when you summarize the story in Fahrenheit 451 because you only need to compress the details of the book into your paper. You can write an argumentative essay that will talk about a specific notion or idea in Fahrenheit 451. For example, you may argue that the book projects an idea of chaos and disturbing scenarios to the readers. These factors may contribute to the feeling of doubt among the readers that could make them uncomfortable in a psychological perspective. Of course, there is another side of an argument where the story could be a well-done preparation for the readers on what they should expect of the future. A Fahrenheit 451 essay can also be in the form of a character analysis essay. You can talk about the major persona in the novel and discuss how each one contributed to the success of the story. You may also write about the central character and analyze who that character is in our present society. Start with the central character by the name of Guy Montag who happens to be a firefighter. Analyze his character and discuss his main role in the plot of the novel. One more essay type for a Fahrenheit 451 essay can be in the form of a critical analysis essay. Write about the story in a way that you tend to dig much deeper into the realms of the authorÐ ²Ãâ€šÃ¢â€ž ¢s imagination. Discover new things about the central message of the whole story and what lessons we can learn from it.

William Shakespeare Symbolic Plays

Symbols play major roles in everyday situations whether it is in real life, novels, or even movies. In fact, more and more authors nowadays are learning from older play-writers such as William Shakespeare by reading and analyzing their plays. They learn how to develop their novels by incorporating symbols based on action or drama. There are several examples of William Shakespeare’s famous plays that have numerous symbols that tie the story together which include Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, & Julius Caesar.However, the most notable play written by Shakespeare is Macbeth. The play Macbeth written by the world- renowned play-writer William Shakespeare is a play that symbols tie the story together. Three key symbols that emerge in the play are a crown, a crystal ball, and lastly, hallucinations. Every one of these symbols represents a variety of concepts in Macbeth. The first of the three major symbols that tie the play together is the crown. In general, a crown is a symbol that rep resents royalty, authority, leadership, etc.There are many things that come to mind when you think of crown, however, this play changes everything. In Macbeth, the crown represents a variety of concepts and issues that change the fact that characters lives forever. It causes loyal characters such as Macbeth to commit many dreaded acts being numerous counts of murder. Macbeth wouldn’t have gone on with the plan if Lady Macbeth didn’t want as much as she did convince her husband to murder all those people by saying, â€Å"From this time Such I account thy love. Art thou afraid To be in thine act and valor. (Act 1, Scene 7, Page 59, Lines 38-40) When she attired those words, it convinced Macbeth to go along with the original plan. But when he becomes king, and all the murders are done with he begins mistrusting people so he tells himself, â€Å"To be thus is nothing. But to be safety. † (Act 3, Scene 1, Page 15, Line 53) As a result, Macbeth frequently talks to th e witches and they give him different prophecies that give him the confidence he needs to remain king. The second major symbol in the play is hallucination, which is found numerous times and is shown to be a problem mainly because of the murders.Macbeth says to himself shortly after killing Duncan â€Å"Whence is that knocking? How am not with me when every noise appalls me? What hands are here? Ha! They pluck out mine eyes. Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood Clean from my hand? No this hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine. Making the green one red. † (Act 2, Scene 2, Page 81, Lines 60- 63) Macbeth had another time where the hallucination caused him to see the ghost of Banquet which he told the ghost â€Å"Thou canst not say I did it: never shake thy gory locks at me. (Act 3 Scene 4 Page 143, Lines 63-64) The hallucination of the ghost of Banquet represented the guilt from all the crimes that Macbeth had committed. After that scene Macbeth g radually becomes even crazier than he already was and becomes very reckless with his power. Clearly, he was very emotionally unstable as he continues to commit murders. All the hallucinations are a big factor of why Macbeth was unsteady and ended up dying. The third and final major symbol of this play is the crystal ball, which represents looking into the future.I made a choice to make the symbol crystal ball symbolize the prophecies that the witches continuously give Macbeth. Crystal balls typically represent fortune-tellers and the future. That is what started the whole problem and that is the witches and their prophecies for Macbeth. If their prophecies did not take place, Macbeth still would have been Duncan’s loyal general and close friend, but the three witches came to Macbeth and told him, First Witch: â€Å"All hail, Macbeth! Hail to thee, thane of Glacis! † Second Witch: â€Å"All hail, Macbeth!Hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! † Third Witch â€Å"All hai l, Macbeth! Hail to the thane of Cawdor! † That is what caused him to kill the king who thought very highly of him who even gave him the honor of becoming the Thane of Cawdor. Afterwards, when he is knee deep in the murders, he goes back to the witches so that he can attain more prophecies. This time, just to manipulate him, they tell him. First Apparition: â€Å"Macbeth! Macbeth! Macbeth! Beware Macduff. Beware the thane of Fife. Dismiss me. Enough. † Second Apparition â€Å"Macbeth!Macbeth! Macbeth! Be bloody, bold, and resolute; Laugh to scorn the power of man, for none of women born shall harm Macbeth. † Third Apparition â€Å"Be lion-mettled, proud and take no care who chafes, who frets, or where conspirers are. Macbeth shall never vanquished be until Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill Shall come against him. † Through the witches’ prophecies, Macbeth gained a load of confidence, which lead him to his eventual death. That is why the cryst al ball prophecies told is a major symbol in the play.In the play Macbeth, written by the world renowned writer, William Shakespeare, the symbols tie the story together. Three major symbols that are shown often in the play are the crown, the crystal ball, and the hallucinations. These symbols represent a variety of concepts that can be interpreted to the progress of the play. The crown signifies the division of power occurring throughout the play, the hallucinations symbolize the problems occurring in Macbeth's life, and finally the crystal ball represents the prophecies and the events that will happen in the future.

Police officers Essay

Have you ever been in a situation where you find yourself stuck between facing consequences for things you haven’t done and giving in to someone who seems to be on a power trip and is taking advantage of their superiority over you? Whether it be a manager taking advantage of his power in the work place or a police man or woman doing unnecessary and over the top things to you. Abuse of power seems to be a common thing in some police officers every day life and this is not okay. It is very apparent what a police officers job is and that is to protect and serve the community and make sure that real criminals are being served justice, however; some may come across police officers that use the fact that they have badges and weapons to their advantage in order to basically become a bully instead of a hero. Of course not all police officers are corrupt, most are actually doing their job and are concerned with the safety of all people and not just their own but those few that are corr upt need to be stopped and be punished for their police brutality and/or abuse of power. So the question is, are police men and women being evaluated thoroughly enough so as not to hire corrupt officers? Are police officers being punished and or brought to justice because of their wrong doings? In this paper I will bring some cases of police brutality and or abuse of police powers to your attention as well as if and how police are being punished because of their illegal or down right cruel behavior. Becoming a police officer is far from an easy task as it should be, but why is it that after so much questioning and tests of integrity and moral values citizens are becoming more and more victimized by police officers? In my opinion police officers are not being as extensively tested for a corrupt mind set as we are led to believe they are. Possible police officers are asked questions on a polygraph test that mostly tie in with the questions asked in the application process so as to get details and obviously the truth out of anything remotely suspicious on the application. These questions mostly having to do with drug use or theft and anything that may prove an officer to be dishonest about questions already asked prior to the polygraph. These questions however rarely have to do with how officers view a citizens race, religion, gender, levels of class, etc. For example, a police officer is not asked in a polygraph test if he does not like Muslim people or if he is disgusted by gay individuals.

Techniques in Financial Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Techniques in Financial Analysis - Essay Example Naked DSL was named the product of the year by the Australian PC Magazine. IIN has grown both organically through innovative product development and inorganically by merging with many smaller ISPs. (b) The company has experienced strong growth through the launch of telephony products and deployment of DSLAM infrastructure. With a range of telephony services that include add-on voice and broadband services, IIN offers their own telephone service resulting in a lower line rental price for its customers. In 2006, IIN introduced its DSLAM infrastructure into telephone exchanges across Australia. DSLAM allowed a speed of over 1.5 Mbit/s with a maximum download of 24 Mbit/s. The potential risk with the product development strategy is the possibility of changes in product line and pricing owing to close competition from other major players such as the regulatory conflict with Telstra. Another medium term growth strategy is the inorganic route of acquisitions. In the early 2000s, IIN expande d nationwide by acquiring RuralNet Tas Access, Granite Internet and so on. In 2003, the biggest acquisition of ihug Ltd. followed. Residential ISP business and trademarks of rival OzEmail followed in 2005. After a hiatus, IIN recommenced its acquisition strategy to acquire Perth-based ISPs, Up’n’away and Westnet. Potential risks for acquisition include synergy and funding risks. When IIN acquired OzEmail, the business side remained with its US-parent, MCI but the retail business was neglected. OzEmail moved very late into ADSL and by 2006, IIN had abandoned the OzEmail brand. Fund-raising for acquisitions is a major concern. In 2006, IIN requested a share trading halt after its share value slid by 50%. There was uncertainty from IIN’s bankers as the company had capital raising issues and thus, unable to honour the bank’s covenants. As the third largest ISP, IIN has utilised its brand for strategic purposes. To increase its market share in metros and regio nal Australia, the company has invested in the â€Å"Hallelujah† and the â€Å"Humanology† brand campaigns. A new hi-tech wireless home gateway, ‘BoB’, is featured in its â€Å"Hallelujah† campaign. The increased brand investment has led to increased sales across its businesses. The company has launched its next phase in brand expansion. A potential risk to the brand strategy of IIN is the existing competition in the ISP segment. There are over 600 ISPs in Australia with Telstra leading the market with 43% market share. The second largest player, Optus holds 11% market share. IIN with its 8% share will need to increase its footprint in Australia to compete with the large players and aid its brand recall with customers. Question 2: Liquidity (136/150 words) (a) 2009 Current Ratio = Current Assets/Current Liabilities ($’000) = 46,939/81,763 = 0.6 2008 Current Ratio = 34,494/77,511 = 0.4 2009 Acid Test Ratio = Current Assets–Inventories-P repayments/Current ($’000) Liabilities-Bank Overdraft = 46,939–1,078-13,981/81,763-501 = 0.4 2008 Acid Test Ratio = 34,494-1,073-8,922/77,511-2,846 = 0.3 (b) IIN’s availability of cash and other current assets to cover accounts payable, short-term debt and other liabilities stands at 0.6 in 2009. The current ratio has improved from 0.4 in 2008 to 0.6 There is an increase in the acid-test ratio from 0.3 in 2008 to 0.4 in 2009. The acid test ratio is a more stringent test, incorporating only those assets that can be converted to cash quickly. Current and

Voter Identification Legislation and Mediation Assignment

Voter Identification Legislation and Mediation - Assignment Example Such a situation calls for a mediation party to step in and resolve the matter. One of the famous mediation initiatives in the history of America involved Holder stepping in to address the rights of voting. The Holder Jr. mediation had the minority voters and poor people vs. the Justice Department were the primary parties as the issue involved the two with the Justice Department doing injustice to the minority voters. In this case, Attorney Holder Jr. stepped in to address the minorities voting groups claims that the Justice Department had made it harder for them to participate in the voting exercise (Savage, 2011). In his mediation process, Holder promised these voting groups that new laws on elections had to be enacted and the laws will be in such a way that they will not discriminate any voting group. To achieve this, he had to hear out the side of the Justice Department as they played a role in enacting such laws. Holder went ahead to suggest that new discrimination laws patterns had to be put in place for the best interests of the nation. According to him, the main reason for such conflicts was the manner in which race had continued to possess many officials serving the state. The Justice Department was also accused of standing in the way of the meeting that was to take place in Louisiana parish which excluded officeholders that were black (Savage, 2011). This showed that the Justice Department was the main cause of this conflict. Holder went ahead to point out that such kinds of fraud were witnessed too infrequently to be used as a basis for this discrimination. The end result was that the states that had been affected by this issue ended up adopting registration systems for voters that were not cumbersome and allowed every citizen to exercise their basic right. Mediation proved to be the best means of settling the above conflict as the only way out was facilitate an agreement between the Justice Department and the minority voters groups.     

Land Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 5

Land Law - Essay Example Secondly, it must be a right that is capable of being transferred under the force of law and in this case, a right that comes with conditions could be limited where the conditions are not met3. Finally, the right to a given piece of land must last over a reasonable number of time and must not be one that changes frequently4. In the case of National Provincial Bank Ltd V Ainsworth, it was held that a deserted wifes rights to property she was occupying was not enough be recognised in English Law. Although she fulfilled some conditions, her right to land was not granted in the case. However, in other instances, equity generated by proprietary estoppel is recognised as a property right capable of binding third parties. This paper will critically discuss the case of the â€Å"deserted wifes equity† in the case above and the position of proprietary estoppel. They will all be examined and evaluated on the basis of their components and their merits in relation to UK land law. This will provide the basis for the explanation and justification of the legal worth and power of the two concepts in UK land law. In the case at hand, Mr. and Mrs. Ainsworth lived in Sussex. The land was registered in the name of Mr. Ainsworth. Mr. Ainsworth however moved out in 1957. Mrs. Ainsworth occupied the property and remained in charge whilst Mr. Ainsworth was living away from the house. In 1958, Mr. Ainsworth borrowed  £1,000 from the National Provincial Bank and used their Sussex house as the charge or collateral for the loan. In 1962, Mr. Ainsworth fell back in the repayment of the loan to the bank. The bank moved to take possession of the house. Mrs. Ainsworth refused to leave the house. The bank sought a possession order. This is because Mrs. Ainsworths right to the property was based on the equitable right to control the bank. The banks claim was to seek an order for specific performance meant to equitably dispossess Mrs. Ainsworth of the property. On the other hand, Mrs.

Econometrics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Econometrics - Assignment Example Frequently Box and Jenkin’s is an iterative method and there may be competing candidates to describe a series. To achieve stationarity or remove trend two techniques are usually applied. The first one involves fitting either a parametric model or a spline function. In this case the ARMA model is applied to the residuals. Alternatively, Box and Jenkins recommended taking suitable differences of the process to achieve stationarity. Here the assumption is that the original series is ARIMA and the difference gives rise to the ARMA series. To determine whether the series has been reduced to a stationary series, one may look at the autocorrelations. For a stationary series, the autocorrelation sequence would converge to 0 quickly as lag increases. The time plot given in Figure 2 is already a stationary series as there is no evidence of any trend. Both autocorrelation plot and partial autocorrelation plot need to be looked at simultaneously. The partial autocorrelation become 0 at lag p+1 or greater when the process is AR(p). Strictly speaking the largest PAC is at lag 2 and the second largest at lag 24. These are the only two significant partial autocorrelations. When consider the ACF at lag 24, no significance is noted. However at lag 16 ACF is significant, but no corresponding significance is noted in PACF. The two components of the observation vector y, the predicted part X ÃŽ ²-hat, and the residual y - X ÃŽ ²-hat are orthogonal. They are uncorrelated and since they follow multivariate normal distribution, they are also independent. Any function of the predicted random vector and any function of the residual vector will also be independently distributed. Using (9) and (12) given in Lecture 5 and using the result that ratio of two independent chi-square variables divided by their respective degrees of freedom, follows an F distribution with proper d.f. the F-statistic for testing parameter of linear regression

Character evaluation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Character evaluation - Essay Example It is concluded that Sara as a film character is well-developed and not one-dimensional like other film heros and villains are.    The main theme of the film, faith, is embodied by the character of Sara Crewe. Growing up  to a rich family in India, Sara believes that all girls are princesses. As a young girl, she was encouraged by her father to believe in such things as magic. As a result, Sara became more in touch with the fantasy world than in the banal realities of life. She enjoys reliving and retelling the story of Ramayana, takes pleasure in reading books and playing with expensive dolls, and most importantly, appreciates a world of make-believe that is driven by fantasy. Her being open to the arts, emotions, unconventional ideas, and adventure is what brings life to the movie. Saras open nature has influenced the way she was perceived and treated by the schools headmistress, Miss Minchin, the students, and the servant girl, Becky. During her fist week at school, Sara became an instant favorite among the students because of her ability to tell the story of Ramayana in such a creative and  engaging manner. By imagining that she could talk to her dead mother in heaven, Sara was able to remove the tantrums of Lottie who also lost her mother as a young child. In one of the most  memorable scenes  in the film, a flower vendor offers Sara a bright yellow flower and utters the phrase "For the princess." Sara received the flower with a smile and then, like a princess, took a bow. A turning point in the film, this scene established that all girls are, indeed, princesses regardless of their social and economic status. Saras being open led her to acknowledge and believe what her father has been telling her all along, and which was re-affirmed by the flower vend or.    Sara also acted with a sense of duty, self-discipline, and achievement. Because Sara knew the French language by heart, she felt it was her duty to teach the other students on her free time.

Why do you think you should be considered for this acholarship Scholarship Essay

Why do you think you should be considered for this acholarship - Scholarship Essay Example nd of country I hail from which is now-developing geographically, economically and emotionally, expressing how important this scholarship is to me would be an essential beginning. I am from Haiti, and finished all my schooling here. As the world knows, it is a place where â€Å"just in 35 seconds,† it had to give up many friends, families, schools, churches and hospitals to the devastating earthquake in 2010, a couple of years after it had seen the massive flooding too. Its ever sensitive geographical location is currently in the tight recovering mood which needs assistance from its own people from all corners of the planet, it mainly needs motivation from the within. Being a very part of it, I feel not only responsible to give it back the necessary assistance, I also believe that it is a gift to work where I am needed. Considering my past educational qualifications, my outreach abilities and my experience so far, I am confident I can make a significant difference in many lives as a registered nurse. Although, Haiti is right now in a hopeful shape, where school enrollment increased, vaccination rates and pre-natal coverage increased, and malnutrition among children and mortality rates declined; it still has 0.25 % of physicians and 0.8 % hospital beds for every 1000 people, about 620,000 cholera cases, and several hundred thousands of displaced people still in the camps. More than anything else, through an education program aided by this scholarship, my kind of passionate to-be registered nurses can tremendously contribute to the vulnerable, Haiti. Taking this as the right occasion, I must thank the board of this scholarship to have brought in such an opportunity for students like me to pursue their dream career. I am certain that this scholarship will not only be a key contributor for my financial struggle, it will eventually make me the person who can make a difference in people’s lives. My qualifications, my experiences, my background and not the least, my

Accounting-IFRS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Accounting-IFRS - Essay Example This difference between the IFRS and the GAAP is the core of other differences between the two standards. A major difference between the two standards is the way revenue is recognized. The GAAP has more extensive guidelines on revenue recognition compared to the IFRS. The IFRS has two standards of dealing with revenue recognition while the GAAP provides several concepts as well as detailed rules to deal with revenue recognition in different industries. The IFRS requires revenue to be recognized when it is likely that the benefits associated with a transaction can be traced to the entity and quantified reliably. In contrasts, the GAAP provides criterion for determinable or fixed pricing in revenue recognition. In this case revenue cannot be recognized until the amount of the revenue is ascertained. This implies that under the IFRS revenue that is not of a set amount is recognized earlier as compared to the GAAP (Erchinger, and Winfried 124). Another point of difference between the two standards is in relation to financial assets. The IFRS only provides two standards to deal with financial assets while the GAAP has extensive guidelines that apply in various industries. While the IFRS classifies assets into various categories, the GAAP classifies financial assets into pronouncements. The GAAP looks into the legal form of the entity while classifying financial assets while the IFRS considers the nature of the instrument. Financial asset classification is important as this affects income statements and the entities equity. Different classification of financial assets by the two standards can significantly affect the amount in the entity‘s financial statements. There is also a major difference in the manner the two standards treat intangible assets. While the GAAP does not allow for capitalization of internally incurred costs related to development, the IFRS allows for this capitalization when certain criteria are met. In relation to asset impairment, the IFRS

Friedrich Nietzsche’s Influence on Hitler Essay Example for Free

Friedrich Nietzsche’s Influence on Hitler Essay Friedrich Nietzsche had broached the idea of Ubermensch (translated as Superman) as one of the core features of his philosophy. This idea which set the stage for individualism by touching on concepts of self-surpassing and self-mastery is explicitly propounded in his most famous work, Thus Spake Zarathustra where the protagonist, Zarathustra said: I teach you the superman. Man is something that is to be surpassed. What have you done to surpass man? The Superman is the meaning of the earth. Let your will say: The Superman shall be the meaning of the earth! I conjure you, my brethren, remain true to the earth, and believe not those who speak unto you of superearthly hopes! Poisoners are thy, whether they now it or not. Despisers of life are they, decaying ones and poisoned ones themselves, of whom the earth is weary: so away with them! (Nietzsche, 1999: 3) This, together with another concept introduced by Nietzsche, the will to power had triggered in Hitler a narcissistic interpretation of Nietzsches philosophy where Hitler most certainly identified himself, and served as his justification for his concept of racial superiority. Although Nietzsche may not have intended to influence Hitler towards anti-Semitism, it was in his language to which Hitlers distortion could be attributed. His use of the concepts whole-man and half-man as well as master morality and slave morality as means towards the achievement of a new order gave Hitler a ground for his Anti-Semitic ideas. Nietzsche believed that noble morality, in contrast to slave morality, contributed towards the improvement of the race. Nietzsche describes the nobles as people who see themselves as creators of civilization, saviors of the all and protectors of everyone from everything contemptible (Nietzsche, 1999). Meanwhile, the slaves are those who see the nobles as oppressive and themselves, the oppressed, being incapable of production and giving rise to their resentment towards creativity. As Hitler sees them, through their inherently oppressed status, they induce in the nobles a feeling of guilt and resentment towards their own superhuman status, hindering their own productivity and thus, serve as a bar against the realization of their full potential. To him, the salvation of humanity dwells only in the hands of the nobility and definitely not in the slaves. In Mein Kampf, Hitler writes: A human community appears well organized only if it facilitates the labors of these creative forces in the most helpful way and applies them in a manner beneficial to all†¦ In this it must proceed from the principle that the salvation of mankind has never lain in the masses, but in its creative minds, which must therefore really be regarded as benefactors of the human race (Hitler, 1971: 367). Compounded by Hitlers narcissistic interpretation, his identification with the Superman, and his anti-Semitic philosophy, it is not surprising that Hitler would identify himself with the nobles who, applying Nietzsches concept of will to power and Nietzsche’s affirmation of the existence of destroyers of the earth who must be eliminated: â€Å"Poisoners are thy, whether they now it or not. Despisers of life are they, decaying ones and poisoned ones themselves, of whom the earth is weary: so away with them! (Nietzsche, 1999: 3) must have felt the urge to cleanse the race from such impurities as the slaves who prevent the human race from reaching the zenith of civilization and whom he most likely associated with the Jews. His determination of the nobles and slaves in the real world can be best demonstrated in Mein Kampf: The most unbeautiful thing there can be in human life is and remains the yoke of slavery. Or do these schwabing [? ] decadents view the present lot of the German people as aesthetic? Certainly we dont have to discuss these matters with the Jews, the most modern inventors of this cultural perfume. Their whole existence is an embodied protest against the aesthetics of the lords image (Hitler, 1971; 154). In Hitlers mind, this facilitation of the labor of creative forces involves mass killings to an end of racial extinction. For Nietzsche, it is the Superman who would create a new morality in order to harness the will to power and destroy slave moralities. He believes that with an increase in greatness in a man, there is a contemporaneous increase in his wickedness and terribleness. This is justified because such increase in wickedness and terribleness are the only means to bring the status of humanity to a higher state; a means to surpass himself; to move away from the lesser creature that he was; as consistent with the purpose of the Superman. In Thus Spake Zarathustra, Nietzsche, through his protagonist said: Man is something that is to be surpassed. What have you done to surpass man? All beings hitherto have created something beyond themselves: and you want to be the ebb of that great tide, and would rather go back to the beast than surpass man? What is the ape to man? A laughing-stock, a thing of shame. And just the same shall man be to the Superman: a laughing-stock, a thing of shame (Nietzsche, 1999: 3). If it is true that Hitler was influenced by Nietzsche’s writings, Hitler read Nietzsche’s â€Å"terribleness† to mean the need for brutality and destruction in order to refine humanity and remove all traces of imperfection to achieve a race of Superhumans. Humanity can only be cleansed of imperfection if such lesser human beings are prevented from interbreeding, propagating their genes to allow further continuance of the slave line, To Hitler, this is the only means to which a Superman, that is, referring to himself, can rule the world. In Mein Kampf, he says: †¦when the highest type of man has previously conquered and subjected the world to an extent that makes him the sole ruler of the earth (Hitler, 1971: 288). Extermination, then, becomes an essential element for the realization of Hitler’s utopia. He, in his own hands sought the application of Darwin’s evolution by ruthlessly eliminating his â€Å"weaker† and â€Å"lower† human beings. According to him: â€Å"Those who want to live, let them fight, and those who do not want to fight in this world of eternal struggle do not deserve to live (Hitler, 1971: 289). † That said, for Hitler, mass killings and the use of violence can be justified if only for the purpose of saving mankind from the slaves who are the sole source of its degeneration, that is, those who lack the motivation for self-preservation and those who impose guilt on the nobles by perpetually seeking others help. His resolve was characterized by alienating any manifestation of slavery by exterminating them. It cannot be gainsaid that Hitler used Nietzsche’s philosophy to justify his own. What Hitler had done however, cannot in any way be imputed to Nietzsche. Reading all of Nietzsche’s works as a whole, one cannot help but doubt whether Nietzsche truly shared whatever anti-Semitic sentiments that prevailed during their time. At most, the resultant justification that Hitler was able to get hold of from Nietzsche was merely a product of his megalomaniacal search for an intelligent bearing to support his propaganda and to further cultivate his delusions of grandeur and personal hatred against specific races, accepting what phrases that apply to his vision and rejecting those that did not. Works Cited Hitler, A. (1924). Mein Kampf (James Murphy, Trans. ): NL: Fredonia Books. (Original work published 1927-1927). Nietzsche, F. (1999). Thus Spoke Zarathustra (Thomas Common, Trans. ): New York: Dover Publications. (Original Work published 1883-1885).

American Literature Essay Example for Free

American Literature Essay Works of art reflect the influences of the period, during which artists have created them. Any form of art exposes the trends prevailing in the period of time when the art was created. Paintings belonging to varied periods differ from each other, as the artists follow a style that is reminiscent of the period they lived in. Two such paintings which reflect the periods in which they were painted are Kindred Spirits by American Asher Durand and The Gross Clinic by American Thomas Eakins. The painting Kindred Spirits, painted in 1849 reflects Romanticism whereas the painting The Gross Clinic reflects Realism. In this paper we will analyze these two paintings and focus on the differences in ideas and attitudes expressed through the paintings. Differences The painting Kindred Spirits reflects the period of Romanticism during which the emphasis was placed on the depiction of feral nature in paintings. In this painting, Asher Durand has captured a rich and vibrant natural landscape. Although the painting depicts Thomas Cole and William Cullen Bryant, the natural landscape is more prominent in the painting. The natural features like Catskill Mountains, the Fawns Leap and the Kaaterskill Falls are incorporated in the landscape. Durand has removed himself from the painting and decided to include Cole whom he wanted to honor through his painting. But the one of the major characteristics of Durand’s landscape paintings is visible in this painting also and that is depiction of harmonious nature. â€Å"Durand’s landscapes almost always move toward harmony, and he located his own vision of landscape solidly within the aesthetic category of the beautiful, as this term was understood in the nineteenth century. † (PecK). The minute details of nature are highlighted by Durand. The depiction of a real landscape points out that Durand wished to bring forth a realist image of the nature rather than an idealized one where an imaginary landscape is depicted in a painting. The aesthetic beauty of nature is revered and admired by Durand. The painting The Gross Clinic presents a view which differs vastly from Romanticism. Being a realist painting, The Gross Clinic depicts a surgical theater where a surgery is being carried. A real event of surgery is depicted on the canvas, in spite of the fact that the scene was horrific. Through this painting, Eakins presents the reality of life in an audacious manner. The realist attitude of Eakins towards life is portrayed through his painting. The conditions in which a surgery was performed during the nineteenth century are presented in the painting. The painting Kindred Spirits provides a beautiful view of nature which is pleasant and soothing whereas the painting The Gross Clinic disturbs the mind of the looker. Eakins was more interested in the events that occurred in real life and he insisted on capturing those events in a realistic way. His painting The Gross Clinic is one such painting that focuses on a real event which is painful and disturbing but necessary to understand the life of that period. The atmosphere in a surgical theater, the naked human body and a distressed woman provide a grim but real picture of life. The display of nudity which prevailed in late Nineteenth Century is included in this painting in form of the naked human body upon which surgery is being performed. The pleasing beauty of nature, which is represented in the painting Kindred Spirits, contrasts with the horrifying depiction of a surgery in The Gross Clinic. Works Cited Peck, Daniel. Unlikely Kindred Spirits: A New Vision of Landscape in the Works of Henry David Thoreau and Asher B. Durand. American Literary History. 17:4(2005) 687-713. http://alh. oxfordjournals. org/cgi/content/ful

A Language Game Can Be Used Philosophy Essay

A Language Game Can Be Used Philosophy Essay A language game can be used as a metaphor for organisations. This is how post modern theorists think we should now look at firms; in terms of text. This will allow them to look and analyse organisations from a different perspective as they believe theories such as Taylorism are now becoming obsolete. This essay looks at language games in terms of three philosophers: Wittgenstein, Foucault and Derrida. The essay will also look at how organisation can be described as a result of such language games. According to Wittgenstein a Language game can be described as language and the actions into which it is woven into (Goldstein, 2004, p. 546). To be able to imagine language in this sense means to imagine a form of life. Forms of life are the various types of activities undertaken by humans, in this sense we look at them as speech, this leads to the perception that our forms of life are complicated because of the complexity of the language games we partake in. In his later work of Philosophical Investigations, section 23, Wittgenstein lists some of the language games that humans play: Giving orders and obeying them, Describing the appearance of an object, or giving its measurements, constructing an object from a description (a drawing), (Wittgenstein, 1958). We unknowingly take part in language games every day and each game has its own rules and goals. Wittgenstein pays little attention to the players in language games, and suggests that it would be almost impossible for two language players to have the same linguistic pragmability, (Kopytko, 2007). This means that each human player is unique in terms of experience in a social context. An example of a player would be a child learning to talk. In Wittgensteins Language games, the words we use to speak are the objects used in the game. For Wittgenstein the rules the most important factor in a language game. Although a rule cannot be defined, Wittgenstein applies it to the family resemblance concept, words which are used in one game may be used in another; they are all deeply intertwined. Each community has a slightly different set of rules for language games, depending on the understanding, certainty and awareness of the rules. Therefore humans that are playing language games they may have different rules and there may be confusion in understanding each other, for example two food retailers may have the same objectives but use different language games between staff to define these objectives e.g. stocktake/inventory. For rules to be followed in language games a certain amount of foreknowledge is needed to be able to understand them, Wittgenstein believes that for one to understand the rule they must be able to apply it (Kopytko, 2007). Grammar within language also enforces a network of rules which determine which l inguistic moves make sense and which do not. For example, one cannot say that I know I have a brain because of the doubt and scepticism about knowing something that has not been seen. Wittgenstein argues that there is not final set of rules that we follow and they are constantly changing. In the beginning of Philosophical Investigations, Wittgenstein criticises his earlier work in Tractatus. In Tractatus he attempts to produce a universally true language about reality, (Jorgensen, 2006, p. 5). The assumption here is that every word has its own meaning and this meaning is in conjunction with the word. Augustines work in Confessions follows this idea, and suggests that there is no difference between kinds of words. However, Wittgenstein now proposes that this is a very primitive way of perceiving how language functions. In Philosophical Investigations, he uses the example of five red apples and questions how the shopkeeper knows what to do with the three words when no such question of the meaning of the words came into thought. These primitive forms of language are used by children when they are learning to talk. The ostensive teaching of words is used to teach children a primitive language; it allows them to associate between an object and a word. To establish differen t understandings using ostensive teaching, a different form of training would need to be used for that particular use of the word. For example, a button, one is used on a computer to switch it on or off, another is used to open doors within a building and a third is a button on a cardigan, which connects the material. The point is that words do not only have one meaning and that there is no one single characteristic that characterizes one word (Jorgensen, 2006, p. 6), leading to the assumption that words are polysemic. By looking at Language in terms of multiple meanings allows us to see that language is not an isolated phenomena (Jorgensen, 2006) but something that is dependent on the experiences that we have had and the way human players perceive things. Wittgenstein describes language as an ancient city: a maze of little streets and squares, of old and new houses, and of houses with additions from various periods; and this surrounded by a multitude of new boroughs with straight regular streets and uniform houses (Wittgenstein, 1958, p. 18). This quote describes how Wittgenstein sees language and suggests that language is not permanent, but something that is constantly changing with traditions. It also describes how new language games come into existence whilst others become forgotten. The change that occurs however is always dependent on history and the contextual rules of the game. This quote also leads to Wittgenstein being able to clarify that no word has a definitive meaning and therefore there is no common essence that characterises language (Jorgensen, 2006). Therefore it can be said that language games do not all have something in common, but they are connected by family resemblance, a rule of language games. This concept, in troduced by Wittgenstein, is a metaphor saying that languages all look alike in the same way family members do. We see a complicated network of similarities overlapping and criss-crossing: sometimes overall similarities, sometimes similarities of detail (Wittgenstein, 1958, p. 66). Thus language is called language as they are similar or look alike, just like organisations. As there is no essential core of a word, to find a meaning for a word, one should investigate the different uses of the word; this common factor is the family resemblance. The Private Vs Public Language argument is a topic which Wittgenstein devotes a section of Philosophical Investigations to. Wittgenstein believes in a public language and that private games do not make sense. The individual words of this language are to refer to what can only be known to the person speaking; to his immediate private sensations. So another person cannot understand the language (Wittgenstein, 1958). Even though private language experiences are real for individuals, the phrase is an oxymoron as it means making sure that the rules of the game are being followed which is an impossible task as the rules are indefinable. The concept of a private language means we are restricted in what we say, as we cannot express all of our experiences, for example only one can know when they are in pain, no one else can share that pain, they can only experience the description of the given pain. A public language is needed otherwise we would not be able to communicate in society therefore the goal of public language is communication between human players. Alongside language games are knowing and doubting games, these games relate to uncertainty in language. Wittgenstein uses the example of here is one hand (Wittgenstein, 1979), this ostensive definition is making an empirical claim which allows us to make sense of things. If humans were to doubt that a hand exists then we would make very little sense of language. Wittgenstein suggests that a proposition such as here is a hand must be looked at in context or it would by meaningless. We take these types of propositions for granted and must accept that these sorts of propositions should not be doubted or questioned. In each language game played, the rules of the game may be doubted if they are unclear or indefinite. In On Certainty, Wittgenstein compares these types of propositions to a river bed, and within a river the river bed must stay in place and not be doubted to allow the river of language to flow smoothly through it, (Sparknotes, 2012). Knowing and certainty link together as if you propose that you know something, you must be certain of it, for if you are not certain of a fact then you cannot be certain of the meaning of the words you are using either. To say you know something removes the doubt from the language game. However we must have a degree of certainty within the language games to make sense and agree on things. One of the overall goals of Wittgensteins Language games is not to solve philosophical problems but to dissolve them. For example although he criticises Augustines theory of pointing and naming things, he does not attempt to replace it with another theory of language but he wants us to see that we do not need a theory to describe the link between language and reality. Another goal of language games is to allow us to see past misleading pictures that our cultures complicate through communication, meaning that by using a public language and understanding the rules of the games we should understand more about language. A second theorist is Foucault who is known for his work on discourse which concerns the manufacturing of knowledge through language (Hall, 1997). For him, a main purpose of his work is to show how individuals in the present are subordinated by particular discourses or language games (Jorgensen, 2006, p. 19). He believes that in modern day organisations power is embedded in the rules of language games and regulates and controls how the games are played. For example, when we begin a new job, we are taught by managers who control and limit how much we know about the company and what we can do within the company through the power they have within the workplace. Having this authoritative voice allows them to judge others. This suggests that the key players in Foucaults language games are professionals: teachers, managers, doctors, Politians and prison guards. These professionals establish the norms of society and create docile bodies within institutions so that the bodies are controllable . One of the rules that Foucault applies to language games is that non-appropriate topics are disregarded within a discourse, for example within a meeting in an organisation it would be appropriate to talk about profit and loss not what you are doing at the weekend. The professionals within institutions use objects as control mechanisms. Examples of these are timetables and the panoptican. The timetable is an object within a language game as they tell people where to go at particular times e.g. the language that is written on the timetable controls the daily routine of a factory worker; they have set times to start work, have breaks and finish work. Another object is the panoptican is a vertical form of surveillance and produces self monitoring of individuals through fear. These objects of language games are there to sustain the games and enforce rules on the individuals and within each of these objects there are different rules to different language games. Leading on from this for Foucault one of the most significant forces shaping our experience is languageWe not only use language to explain ideas and feelings to others, we use it to explain things to ourselves (Danaher, 2000, p. 31). This proposes that everything we do is surrounded or influe nced by language, written or spoken. By affecting everything we do shows how powerful language can be. Knowledge and power are not seen as negative aspects and are produced by episteme which also holds them together. According to Foucault domains of knowledge and relations of power are intrinsically tied together, and this fundamental intertwinement is what is referred to by that hybrid power/knowledge (Oksala, 2007, p. 48). This hybrid is possessed by the professionals within society, they normalise and enforce what should be considered as knowledge. For example when we go to work, we generally accept what the manager tells us to be true and do not question their knowledge about the company or job that needs doing. This leads to the conclusion that truth and knowledge are the result of scientific discourse and that Power and knowledge are fundamental in language as they reinforce truth. It is the goal of language games to shape knowledge and power relations through episteme, this is the mega game which makes all other games possible. Derrida is another philosopher who has studied language and the games that humans play. Derrida believes that we should look at process instead of the structure of things. So deep does structure run in our mental habits that when we try to analyse process we turn it into structure. Derridas task has been to reverse this predilection and show that process is primary to structure (Cooper, 1989, p. 480). This suggests that we naturally look at the structure of things and not the process of how they happen, by looking at the process will allow us to make more sense of things. Derrida believes that humans are the players within his language games of deconstruction and differà ©nce. Derridas views of discourse analysis are exhibited through deconstruction, this refers to moving away from structures towards a processual approach so that one can see and grapple with natural contradictions. Undecidability is used to explain deconstruction through looking at binary opposites e.g. high/low and manager/employee. This leads to the assumption that these terms cannot exist without each other as without them they would not make sense; a common example of this is Schrodingers Cat in the box. Derrida uses the term logocentrism within his work, by this he meant that language is simply a mechanism that communicates thoughts. This is a problem for deconstruction as it is faced with the issue of how to open up a text without merely endorsing the wider framework to which its terms belong (Wood, 1987, p. 32). To prevent this occurring Derrida employs overturning and metahporization. These are processes of deconstruction which allow us to look at language as the product of meaning through diffà ©rence and dissemination. Diffà ©rence comes from Saussures concept of signs and it is an important concept to Derridas view of process. Differà ©nce embodies two meanings which govern the production of meaning; diffà ©rer can mean to be deferred or to differ in space. Differed relates to Derridas Semiotics. A sign and its meaning are both members of diachronic or temporal series of that signs occurrences and the simultaneous patter of that related to signs in language. The reference to both of these is essential to the signs meaning. The meaning of each sign is relative to this combination of present and absent signs (Cahoone, 2012). This means that signs can be looked at in two ways, the first is by looking at the historical path of the word, the second is by looking at what other signs are related to it. For example when we look up a word in the dictionary it leads us another meaning of a word, it is an endless chain of meanings, i.e. signs are polysemic. From this, leads us to one of Derridas rules of language there is no outside of the text, by this he means there is no access to the real world except through language (Bennett, 2004, p. 30), therefore there cannot be any meaning outside context because there is nothing we know or have experienced that isnt in context. The second meaning to differ in space, refers to a differentiation which he also terms spacing and which prevents any sign from having a self-enclosed identity, (Deutscher, 2005, p. 31). This suggests that a fixed meaning of a word cannot exist and a sign can have more than one identity based on the context in which it is placed, for example the word organisation has different meanings depending on the context in which it is being used. The above links to the objects of language games, in terms of Derridas work they are the meanings of signs, and having already concluded there is no one meaning to a sign, the goal of Derridas game is to therefore look at meanings or rules of signs and attempt to understand them by stabilising the rules. To do this humans must have experience in the context of the sign they are trying to understand and the meaning they come to will be based on past experiences of that. It is clear that comparisons can be made between the authors on their theories of language games. Firstly, a contrast in Wittgenstein and Derridas work. Wittgenstein suggests that language games should be played through speech and his work reflects this, however Derrida proposes that language games should be in the form of writing. Although both theorists do agree on the concept of multiple meanings as they both believe that words/signs have an indefinite number of meanings depending on the context in which the word is being used. Another comparison is between Foucault and Wittgenstein who both think that we are constrained by our language and that we can only speak based on the language we have experienced, this links with private language games. A final comparison is of Derrida and Foucault who both use timetables in their work to describe forms of control through language. By using the work of all three theorists I think that organisations can be described in terms of language games. Organisations can be described using Wittgensteins and Derridas theories of multiple meanings in this way as when problems occur new solutions are found, however these solutions come with more problems so it is an endless cycle where no one solution will solve a problem, just like there is no one meaning of a word, this relates to Tamara, an endless story. A family resemblance may also be used to describe an organisation as although they do look the same, there are vital differences between each organisation, such as management structures and shift patterns. Also by using the private language argument, each individual within an organisation will have had different experiences within their job role, meaning that they cannot express all of their thoughts as there will not be a common public language at all times, this also links to Tamara as each individual experience is uni que. Using Derrida and Foucaults example of a timetable within language games is another way of interpreting an organisation, as it is something that is used everyday within an organisation, such as specifically timed lunch breaks and clocking in cards. This form of self surveillance is regulated by language from managers and superiors within the organisation. In addition, in line with Derridas work, it is important to look at organisations in terms of arenas of processes and to look at the outcomes, not look at them as structures. Finally Foucaults players within a language are the professionals. Within an organisation these are the managers and it is their voices that set the rules of the language game within that organisation i.e. we accept what they say as the truth because of the power and knowledge that the manager has. In conclusion if organisations were to be looked at in terms of text it would allow us to interpret organisations differently and look for different ways of so lving problems. This linguistic turn is a way of using text as a metaphor to give us the correct tools to use in organisations.

College Admissions Essay: Woman of the Year -- College Admissions Essa

Woman of the Year "You have just been named the 2015 Man/Woman of the Year. For what achievement are you being honored, and how did your college education help you reach your goal?" I sprint up the stairs to my shabby apartment, taking them two at time. I've had a long day at work and I need to jump into the shower before I meet a client for a dinner date. I fumble for the key with my right hand. When the stubborn door finally opens, I fly into the apartment and kick the door closed behind me. I punch the play button on my answering machine while getting ready to take a shower. The first message is from my client saying he will be a little late. Good. Ten extra minutes. The second message is the chairman of the Person of the Year contest telling me that I had been... College Admissions Essay: Woman of the Year -- College Admissions Essa Woman of the Year "You have just been named the 2015 Man/Woman of the Year. For what achievement are you being honored, and how did your college education help you reach your goal?" I sprint up the stairs to my shabby apartment, taking them two at time. I've had a long day at work and I need to jump into the shower before I meet a client for a dinner date. I fumble for the key with my right hand. When the stubborn door finally opens, I fly into the apartment and kick the door closed behind me. I punch the play button on my answering machine while getting ready to take a shower. The first message is from my client saying he will be a little late. Good. Ten extra minutes. The second message is the chairman of the Person of the Year contest telling me that I had been...

Simon as the Christ Life Figure in The Lord of the Flies Essay

The Lord of the Flies was written by William Golding. Simon is one of the major characters in this novel. Simon’s character lives by what is morally right as opposed to the rest of the island. Simon represents essential human goodness. There are many biblical parallels in the Lord of the Flies that result in Simon being compared to Christ.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One reason Simon is regarded as the Christ figure in Lord of the Flies is that he commits many selfless acts just like Jesus Christ did. Simon chooses to stay and help Ralph build huts rather than go play with the other inhabitants. Ralph compliments Simon by saying â€Å"Simon. He Helps. All the rest rushed off. He’s done as much as I have† (54). Golding also illustrates Simon’s generosity when â€Å"Simon pulled off the choicest fr...

The Golden House of Nero :: essays papers

The Golden House of Nero After years of fighting and civil wars, order was finally established throughout the Roman empire during the first century AD with the rule of Augustus. Peace and prosperity followed with the reign of Augustus and with the emperors that came into control after him, and it was during this time that Roman architecture began to move away from the traditional Hellenistic and Greek influences and generate its own style. It was also during this time that Rome was subjected to numerous horrendous fires that destroyed much of the city when it was under the control of the emperor Nero. Considered a tyrant and self-centered even for an aristocrat at the time, Nero became very unpopular towards the end of his reign, but not before he was able to commission the construction of a marvelous villa for himself stretching over two hundred acres in the center of Rome where the fires had destroyed most of the original buildings. Commonly called The Golden House of Nero, it was originally given the more formal name of Domus Aurea, and was and still is considered one of the most extravagant projects ever ordered by a Roman emperor to be created. The most significant and majestic feature of the Domus Aurea is the Esquiline wing, or the main palace, located about two hundred meters northeast of the Coliseum, formally known as the Flavian Amphitheater. After the fires of 104 AD, Trajan had his engineers fill in the Esquiline wing of the Domus Aurea so as to secure the elevated terrace for his Baths. By covering the Esquiline wing with earth, it was free from pillaging, fires, considerable wearing from weather, and other harmful effects over the years. Unfortunately, only a sizable fragment remains of the palace, and the original extent of the scores of rooms that have been recovered is unknown. Much can be extrapolated from these remaining bits of the structure, though, and like a puzzle, archeologist and architects have been able to piece together the scraps and come to fairly detailed conclusions. One major point that has been looked at closely but has not been completely decided upon is the original number of stories the palace contained. There are no indications of a second story beyond the two narrow staircases back in the upper north service area of the wing.

Echr

The Right to Freedom of Expression and Religion This chapter includes two rights: a) the freedom of opinion and expression and b) the freedom of conscience and religion. Although these are two distinctive rights, they are in the same group as they both entail essential conditions for individual personal development. These rights are juxtaposed because freedom of expression is a quintessential aspect of the freedom to hold, practice and share one’s religious beliefs. It is important to note, however, that the freedom of expression is subject to more restrictions than the freedom of religion.A. The right to freedom of opinion and expression The freedom of expression is a right without which other rights are difficult to acquire and defend. The right to freedom of expression is rooted in the 17th century struggle of European legislators for freedom of speech. The world has seen a continuing struggle for the freedom of expression, including the freedom of speech and freedom of the press, often going hand in hand with the endeavour to limit the power of governments.The freedom of expression can be considered an essential aspect of the individual’s defence against government, just as the suppression of the freedom of expression is essential to tyranny. Human rights defenders also rely heavily on this right to challenge government indifference to or infliction of human rights abuses. As freedom of expression is a foundation for religious and political activities, it is often exercised in concert with the right to freedom of thought and assembly. Under present international Conventions, state obligations in relation to freedom of expression are absolute and immediate.At the same time, as with other forms of liberty, completely unrestricted freedom of expression may lead to the infringement on the rights of others. The freedom of expression has been hedged in by a number of limitations and restrictions, often more extensively than other rights. Historicall y, most limitations have dealt with the expression of sentiments contrary to prevailing institutions or religious, political or other beliefs. In addition, in times of war, governments often restrict the freedom of expression in the interest of national security.Like in the US Supreme Court decided in the Schenk vs. United States- case. As a cornerstone of democracy, the complexity and importance of freedom of expression has lead to extensive case-law before national courts and international supervisory mechanisms. Standards International human rights law recognises a spectrum of expression, ranging from those forms that must be protected to those that must be punished. Article 19 of both the UDHR and the ICCPR establish the freedom of opinion and expression.Article 19 UDHR stipulates: ‘everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. ’ The regional Conventions also contain provisions regarding the freedom of expression: Article 10 ECHR, Article 13 ACHR and Article 9 ACHPR. The freedom of expression and opinion is a complex right that includes the freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds through any media.The exercise of this right ‘carries with it special duties and responsibilities’ (see Article 19 ICCPR and Article 10 ECHR). Therefore, in general, certain restrictions or limitations on the freedom of expression are permitted under human rights law. Thus, Article 20(2) of the ICCPR requires states parties to prohibit ‘advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence. ’ CERD also requires states parties to prohibit certain hostile expressions.Article 19 ICCPR stipulates that these limitations ‘shall only be such as are provided by law and are necessary: a) for respect of the rights or reputations of others; b) for the protection of national security or public order (ordre public), or of public health or morals’. In addition, Article 10 ECHR explicitly gives the state broad discretion in licensing of the media. In the Inter-American system, the Inter-American Court has dealt with freedom of expression in Advisory Opinion No. 5 on ‘Membership in an Association Prescribed by Law for the Practice of Journalism’.A strong correlation between freedom of expression and the right to gain access to information in order to form and express opinions has been recognised in the Inter-American System. In June, 2006, the OAS General Assembly adopted a Resolution that ‘urge[d] the States to respect and promote respect for everyone’s access to public information and to promote the adoption of any necessary legislative or other types of provisions to ensure its recognition and effective application. â€⠄¢ In the African system, the ‘Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression in Africa’ was adopted by the African Commission in 2002.It stresses the ‘fundamental importance of freedom of expression as an individual human right, as a cornerstone of democracy and as a means of ensuring respect for all human rights and freedoms’. The Danish Cartoon Controversy What has become known as the Danish cartoon controversy exemplifies the precarious balance between freedom of expression and the repression of expression. In 2006 a Danish newspaper published a series of cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammed as a possible terrorist, in one instance with a bomb in his turban.Many Muslims were outraged because depictions of Mohammed are prohibited in the majority of Muslim communities and likening Muslims to terrorists could incite discrimination and prejudice. Other factions upheld the right of the paper to publish the cartoons as a freedom of expression issue. Th e Danish cartoon incident sparked mass demonstrations throughout the world resulting in death and extensive damage of property in addition to sparking a fiery debate on international law, freedom of expression and permissible limitations of this right. * SupervisionThe freedom of expression is reduced by possible limitations under several international standards mentioned above. Moreover, freedom of expression and its internationally accepted limitations can be distorted by government initiatives through propaganda, control of the media and various other measures aimed at restricting the press, e. g. , licensing requirements, economic measures or restrictions on access to information. The right to freedom of expression has engendered a substantial body of case-law, in which both the right itself as well its limitations have been further defined.Under the auspices of the European system, the European Court has stated that freedom of expression:  Ã‚   [C]onstitutes one of the essent ial foundations of such a (democratic) society, one of the basic working conditions for its progress and for the development of every man. [†¦ ] It is applicable not only to ‘information’ or ‘ideas’ that are favourably received or regarded as inoffensive or as a matter of indifference, but also to those that offend, shock or disturb the State or any sector of the population.Such are the demands of that pluralism, tolerance and broadmindedness without which there is no ‘democratic society’ (Handyside v. The United Kingdom). Many cases have been brought before the former European Commission and the Court regarding the freedom of expression; several deal with the rights of journalists to freedom of expression. Case law zoeken!!! In the Chorherr judgment of August 1993 the Court dealt with an application concerning the applicant’s arrest, detention and conviction for breach of the peace after he had refused to stop distributing leaflets and exhibiting placards at a military parade.The Court held that the interfer- ence was â€Å"prescribed by law† and that there were legitimate grounds based on Article 10  §2 (prevention of disorder) for regarding the interfer- ence as â€Å"necessary in a democratic society†. The Court has established that, according to the protection granted by the American Convention, the right to freedom of thought and expression includes ‘not only the right and freedom to express one’s own thoughts, but also the right and freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds’ (Lopez Alvarez et al. . Honduras). On this note the Court has held that the state has a positive obligation to ensure that laws and regulations governing restrictions to access to state-held information comply with the Convention’s parameters and restrictions may only be applied for the reasons allowed by the Convention; this also relates to the decisions on thi s issue adopted by domestic bodies (Claudio Reyes et al. v. Chile). In the African system, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has addressed the right to freedom of expression in diverse realms.It has, inter alia, found the detention of members of opposition parties and trade unions under legislation outlawing all political opposition during a state of emergency a violation of the freedom of expression; it has found that the failure of a state to investigate attacks against journalists violates their right to express and disseminate information and opinions and also violates the public’s right to receive such information and opinions (Sir Dawda K. Jawara v.The Gambia, Communications 147/95 and 149/96). The Commission has held that state harassment with the aim of disrupting legitimate activities of an organisation that informs and educates people about their rights constitutes a clear violation of the right to freedom of expression. Recognising the impo rtance of freedom of expression, international fora and national governments have sought to promote additional standards to protect particular elements of this right.Several governments have enacted legislation to improve access to information; to provide adequate access to media; to protect employees from reprisals for disclosing illegal activities of their employers; and to provide data protection so that individuals have access to their personal files held by public authorities and to ensure that such information is withheld from all persons not expressly entitled to it. International organisations have addressed the implementation and supervision of the right to freedom of expression by, for instance, appointing experts on the issue.B. The right to freedom of conscience and religion The guarantees of freedom of conscience and religion are closely related to other substantive rights. For instance, the rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association are fundamental to ho lding religious beliefs and practising one’s religion. Thoughts and views are intangible before they have been expressed, and convictions are valuable for a person only if he or she can express them. The private freedom of thought and religion is an absolute right that does not permit any limitation.The guarantee of the value of freedom of thought and religion implies that one cannot be subjected to treatment intended to change one’s process of thinking, be forced to express thoughts, to change opinion, or to divulge a religious conviction; thus, the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion, belief and opinion is closely associated with the right to privacy. No sanction may be imposed for holding any view, or for changing religion or conviction; and the freedom of thought and religion protects against indoctrination by the state.The public aspect of the freedom, the right to manifest one’s belief in worship, observance, practice or teaching, is subject to limitations and defining the meaning of the freedom is complex; for instance, may refusal to serve in the military or pay taxes be justified on grounds of religion? Many states include guarantees for the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief in their constitutional traditions; in laws and regulations provisions are incorporated to prevent and punish interference with legitimate manifestations of religion or belief.Nevertheless, violations of the principles of non-discrimination and tolerance in the area of religion or belief are extensive; millions of people enjoy the freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief only to a limited extent. Most human rights Conventions do not allow governments to impose as many limitations on freedom of religion as on comparable rights such as freedom of assembly and freedom of expression.In the last decades increasing political attention has been given to the freedom of religion, notably in Europe, in the light of rel igious intolerance. 1. STANDARDS One of the first standards for protection against religious intolerance was the founding document of the Republic of the United Netherlands, the Union of Utrecht from 1579, which stipulated that no one will be persecuted because of his religion. With the founding of the United Nations, protection against religious intolerance found its way into modern international standard setting.All regional Conventions contain provisions regarding the freedom of thought and religion: Article 9 ECHR defines the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion in the same words as Article 18 ICCPR. The First Protocol to the ECHR includes a provision ensuring education and teaching in conformity with the parents’ religious and philosophical convictions. Supervision The international supervisory bodies have dealt with a number of communications regarding violations of the freedom of thought and religion.The Human Rights Committee has dealt with several ind ividual communications regarding freedom of thought and religion. For instance, the Committee has found forbidding prisoners wearing a beard and worshipping at religious services and taking away their prayer books a violation of this right. The Committee affirms that: ‘[T]he freedom to manifest religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching encompasses a broad range of acts and that the concept of worship extends to ritual and ceremonial acts giving expression to belief, as well as various practices integral to such acts’ (Boodoo v.Trinidad and Tobago). The Committee has, however, found that requiring a Sikh who wears a turban in daily life to wear a safety-helmet at work does not violate his right to religious freedom (Singh Bhinder v. Canada). Similarly, the European Court of Human Rights held that refusing a Muslim medical student entry into classes and examinations in accordance with a school ban on head scarves upheld the principles of secularism and equality between men and women and was necessary in a democratic society (Leyla Sahin v.Turkey). In recent years the Committee has departed from its previous jurisprudence, stating that conscientious objection to military service can be derived from Article 18 ICCPR (General Comment 22). In this General Comment, the Committee, inter alia, ‘views with concern any tendency to discriminate against any religion or belief for any reasons, including the fact that they are newly established, or represent religious minorities that may be the subject of hostility by a predominant religious community’.The Committee states, inter alia, that Article 18(2) bars coercion that would impair the right to retain one’s religion or belief, including threats of violence and that designated state religions may not serve as justifications of violations of the right to freedom of religion. The ‘Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Ba sed on Religion or Belief’ stipulates that all states must take effective measures to prevent and eliminate discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief.Within the regional systems several cases regarding freedom of thought and religion have been brought before the supervisory mechanisms. The European Court of Human Rights has decided numerous cases regarding the right to freedom of conscience and religion, many of which have dealt with the freedom of religion in Greece. Article 9 protects non-religious beliefs; the Court has said that the values of the article are the foundation of a democratic society: ‘It is, in its religious dimension, one of the most vital elements that go to make up the identity of believers and their conception of life, but is also a precious asset for theists, agnostics, sceptics and the unconcerned’ (Kokkinakis v. Greece). Further to indoctrination, the Court has made a distinction between ‘improper proseltysm’ and â €˜bearing witness to Christianity’, the former possibly entailing brainwashing or violence (Kokkinakis v. Greece). Finally, in a controversial communication regarding assisted suicide, it was stated that freedom of thought under Article 8, that had hitherto included beliefs such as veganism and pacifism, could be applied to the applicant’s belief in and support for the notion of assisted suicide for herself.This was rejected by the Court as her claims did not involve a form of manifestation of a religion or belief, through worship, teaching, practice or observance as described in the ICCPR (Pretty v. The United Kingdom), citing, inter alia, a case where the European Commission had found that not all acts which are motivated by religion or belief constitute ‘religious practice’ (Arrowsmith v. The United Kingdom).In regard to the right to freedom of conscience and religion under the Inter- American system, the Commission has ruled on a number of cases con cerning Jehovah’s witnesses and legitimate limitations of the right. The Commission has found that prosecuting members of that religion for refusing to swear oaths of allegiance, recognise the state and its symbols and to serve in the military is a violation of the right (Jehovah’s Witnesses v. Argentina (Case 2137)). Case of Plan de Sanchez Massacre v. Guatemala (Series C No. 105)). The African Commission has also dealt with the freedom of religion; it has, for instance, found harassment of Jehovah’s witnesses and religious leaders, assassinations and death threats aimed at them and destruction of religious structures in violation of the right (Free Legal Assistance Group, Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights, Union Interafricaine des Droits de l’Homme, Les Temoins de Jehovah v.Zaire, Communications 25/89, 47/90, 56/91, 100/93). It has also stipulated that the expulsion of political activists was denying them, inter alia, the right to freedom of co nscience in violation of Article 8 ACPHR (Amnesty International v. Zambia, Communication 212/98).

Don Delillo’s Videotape Essay

The plot of Don Delillo’s Videotape is strange enough as it is; a twelve year old girl is playing with a video camera while in the back seat of their family car. Thinking it is fun to do so, she points the camera out the back window and starts recording the man driving the car behind them. It is not long before the girl and her video camera become witness to the man being fatally shot, and her video becomes widely publicized thereafter. The introduction of the story is with the role of the twelve year old girl in the entire structure of the story. How she gets involved, and the after-effects of her involvement all form the basic concepts and structure of the story. Careful readers will note several complications within the storyline itself that develop surrounding the young girl. The first is her reaction to keep the video camera running even during the actual shooting itself. Being in the process of witnessing a murder in cold blood, the child is faced with the conflict of stopping the recording or satisfying a morbid fascination to continue watching. Ultimately, the child is unable to resist, possibly because of the curiosity that comes with the experience of seeing something new. However, Videotape does not just focus on the child and her story. It tells of the people watching it on television afterwards, specifically of a couple’s reaction to it. In the story, while the wife seems relatively uninterested in the real-life drama going on in the video, the husband displays the same morbid fascination with the murder similar to that earlier demonstrated by the child. The irony of the situation is such that while the idea of seeing the murder of a fellow human being in real life is repulsive enough, seeing it in a different form seems to effectively change the circumstances surrounding it, making it acceptable even. The conclusion of the story ultimately reveals the unfortunate side of man that revels in others’ loss when presented in a manner so usually associated with mass entertainment.

Silver Fiddle

Silver Fiddle Construction 1) Identify potential risks associated with this project. Try to come up with at least five different risks. Now that we have clearly defined the key aspects and variables associated with this project. A brief description of the risks I identified begins with Silver Fiddle’s practice of using subcontractors. * Silver Fiddle routinely subcontracts build work to local subcontractors. As previously discussed, Silver Fiddle is scheduled to build eleven homes this year, and these homes will be built in a local housing market which can be described as â€Å"booming†.Since the Czopek home is scheduled to be built within five months, our concern is that there will be a lack of subcontractors available to work on the home, given the booming housing market and the multiple homes being constructed simultaneously. We feel a well-designed time estimation based upon parametric procedures would help identify when specific subcontractors would be needed, allo wing Silver Fiddle to â€Å"book† each subcontractor for the correct time required in advance. Simply put, parametric procedures are methods of estimating based upon data from past projects.This old data is then used to devise a cost, or in this case, a timeline, which is relevant to the new procedure. This is based upon the similarities between the legacy project data and the current project scope. These similarities are key for parametric procedures to yield accurate estimates. An alternate means of mitigating this risk is to identify a secondary set of subcontractors who are not in the local area and likely to be available during the forecasted time. * The next risk we identified was the possibility of not meeting the five month deadline for completion.We felt this was in part due to a lack of equipment and manpower. Since Silver Fiddle will be completing eleven other homes, the availability of their organic, or in house workers, along with their high-cost, high-use, limit ed availability equipment such as Earth movers, excavators and the like, may be restricted * The availability of building supplies is another risk we feel is relevant to the project. With a number of other homes being built by Silver Fiddle coupled with a brisk housing market comprised of other homes being uilt simultaneously by other builders, a shortage of building materials is a real possibility. Since Silver Fiddle specializes in custom built homes, there is also a possibility that the Czopek have selected their home particulars, such as fixtures and other details from local vendors who may or may not have those items in stock when the time comes to purchase and install them. Other supplies in short demand could be items such as lumber, concrete, plywood, shingles, drywall and other construction materials. * Since Silver Fiddle only employs a bookkeeper part time, we feel this presents an opportunity for risk.Without a full-time bookkeeper, it would be easy for Silver Fiddle to lose track of costs, manpower scheduling and severely impede their ability to monitor the overall progress of the project. Additionally, we feel this could also prevent Silver Fiddle from having real-time evaluation capability of other aspects of the project. * The final significant risk my firm identified is the possibility of not meeting the established budget ceiling of $320,000. There are many variables which we feel could cause the cost of build to exceed the budget.Some of those variables include having to pay a premium for in-demand subcontractors, the cost of buying and shipping materials and/or unique detailed items not locally available, and the rising cost of fuel for heavy construction equipment. Another variable which could cause the project to exceed the budget is scope creep. We feel that developing a responsible time-phased budget along with the establishment of common sense phase gates would help reduce unexpected costs and ensure the project remained on track finan cially. ) Use a risk assessment matrix similar to figure 7. 4 to analyze identified risks. The risk assessment form at Figure 1 provides a graphic representation of the risks we previously introduced and identified. Although in our previous discussion, we provided detailed information about each risk, the risk assessment form includes additional information on our evaluation of the likelihood and impact of each risk. Figure 1. Risk Assessment Form Risk Event| Likelihood| Impact| Detection Difficulty|Lack of preferred subcontractors| 3| 4| 2| Exceeding five month deadline| 4| 2| 2| Lack of available building supplies| 2| 3| 1| Inadequate oversight due to bookkeeper continuity| 4| 4| 1| Exceeding the budget| 2| 4| 1| In reviewing the likelihood and impact data from Figure 1, it is clear we feel that it is very likely that the project will exceed the five month deadline and, without proactive measures now, inadequate oversight will result from the current bookkeeper arrangement.The hig h likelihood we assign to exceeding the time limit is due to a great number of variables upon which the construction time is dependent. Should any one of these variables, such as lack of personnel, key equipment, supplies, etc. become problematic, it would impact other dependent variables, ultimately causing the project to exceed the deadline. Additionally, the customers have already expressed their preference to extend the deadline if it means a cost savings, and that is another scenario which may impact the completion date.The fact that the customer has given approval for extending the due date in favor of saving money demonstrates that a firm deadline is not a major consideration for the customer and is the reason we assign an impact factor of 2 for this event. On the other hand, we assigned a likelihood factor of 2 to exceeding the budget since we feel the budget will be scrutinized over the life of the build, reducing the likelihood that it will become an issue, and an impact f actor of 4 due to its importance to the customer.We assigned a likelihood factor of 4 to inadequate project oversight due to lack of a full-time bookkeeper. We also assigned an impact factor of 4 to this risk event as well, since lack of fiscal oversight would render it nearly impossible to monitor and curb costs, which is a priority of the customers. 3) Develop a risk response matrix similar to figure 7. 7 to outline how would deal with each of the risks. Let’s review our risk response matrix, located at Figure 2. This matrix provides responses and contingency plans for each risk event. Figure 2. Risk Response MatrixRisk Event| Response| Contingency Plan| Trigger | Who is Responsible| Lack of preferred subcontractors| Use parametric procedures to design a time estimation schedule| Use an alternate set of contractors from outside the local area| Subcontractors report they are unavailable for the project| Project manager| Exceeding five month deadline| Use resource leveling to smooth resource allocation and use heuristics| Lease equipment and operators| Resource leveling efforts are unsuccessful at smoothing allocations| Project manager| Lack of available building supplies| Advance purchase and store known needed supplies| Source multiple vendors for detailed items for customer wants| Should be done immediately| Construction foreman| Inadequate oversight due to bookkeeper continuity| Make current, part-time bookkeeper a full-time employee| Hire another bookkeeper to augment current bookkeeper’s hours| Should be done immediately| Office manager| Exceeding the budget| Develop a time-phased budget| Develop and implement project phase gates| Upon completion of project scope| Project manager| In evaluating each risk, we have done our best to not only develop a common sense response action in the event each risk occurs, but also to identify an emergency contingency plan for each risk event as well. Additionally, we have identified â€Å"trigger† events, or events which would indicate response actions and/or contingency plans should be implemented. Finally, we have assigned responsibility for the monitoring or each risk and the implementation of the response plans.

Blue Nile Study Questions

Marking Scheme Mid Semester Exams Lecturers: Anthony Oboe Spool and Robert Amok-LIndsay Section A (40 Marks) Provide Short and concise answers 1 Explain the term sustainable competitive advantage and why it is so Important to a winning business strategy. (5 marks) Suggested Answer A company achieves sustainable competitive advantage when an attractive number or buyers prefer its products/services over those of rivals and when the basis for this preference can be maintained over time.Competitive advantage could stem from offering lower prices than competitors for equivalent benefits or providing unique benefits that more than offset a higher price. (3 marks) Sustainable competitive advantage is necessary for a firm to win in the market place. It is required for a strategy to deliver on strategic and financial objectives (2 marks) 2. Using examples briefly explain and state the Importance of each of the following a) Strategic vision Strategic vision represents the destination that mana gement seeks to take a firm.Ford's vision â€Å"A car in every garage† Importance Give the organization a sense of direction Inform company personnel and other stakeholders what management wants Its business to look like Spur company personnel to action Provide managers with a reference point to (2. 5 marks for explanation and any 2 points mentioned as importance of strategic vision) b) Strategic mission Strategic mission of a firm focuses on its present business purpose. Strategic mission highlight the present products and services, types of customers served and how it intends to do that.Examples Beacon Books: â€Å"To inspire and equip business executives and entrepreneurs with essential information and knowledge they require for professional and personal growth† Google: â€Å"To organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful† Importance: It focuses the business by identifying the boundaries of the current business It distinguis hes a firm from others and gives it an identity of its own. (2. 5 marks) (5 marks) 3. Explain the meaning and significance of each of the following: a. Strategic group mapping A strategic group is a cluster of firms in an industry with similar competitive approaches and market positions. Strategic group mapping entails plotting firms in n industry on a two-variable map using pairs of these differentiating characteristics e. G. Product line breadth, distribution channel use, geographic coverage, price, quality etc. It helps firms to know their positions in the industry versus their rivals It helps firms to know which competitors to focus on in their quest to make strategic moves It helps them to know which positions in the market or industry are attractive to players in the market. 2. 5 marks for explanation of strategic group mapping and any of the above points mentioned) b. ) The bargaining power of suppliers Bargaining power of suppliers defines the extent to which suppliers of in puts to competing firms in an industry are able to dictate the price, quality, quantity and even timing of supplies to these firms. The bargaining power of suppliers has an impact on the cost, profitability and a firm's ability to satisfy its customers and for that matter its competitiveness. Powerful 4.Identify and briefly explain any two of the factors that influence the strength or intensity of competitive rivalry among an industry member firms. (5 marks) Factors Competitors are active in making fresh moves to improve market standing and easiness performance Slow market growth Number of rivals increases and rivals are of equal size and competitive capability Buyer costs to switch brands are low Industry conditions tempt rivals to use price cuts or other competitive weapons to boost volume e. . Perishable or seasonal A successful strategic move carries a big payoff Outsiders acquire weak firms in the industry and use their resources to transform new firms into major market contend ers (5 marks for any two of the above factors mentioned and explained) 5†¦ Identify and briefly explain any two factors that lead to strong bargaining power on the part of suppliers. (5 marks)Industry members incur high costs in switching their purchases to alternative suppliers Needed inputs are in short supply Supplier provides a differentiated input that enhances the quality of performance of sellers' products or is a valuable part of sellers' production process There are only a few suppliers of a specific input Some suppliers threaten to integrate forward (5 marks for any two of the above factors mentioned and explained) strength and leverage of buyers. 5 marks) Buyer switching costs to competing brands or substitutes are low Buyers are large and can demand concessions Large-volume purchases by buyers are important to sellers Buyer demand is weak or declining Only a few buyers exists Identity of buyer adds prestige to seller's list of customers Quantity and quality of infor mation available to buyers improves Buyers have ability to postpone purchases until later Buyers threaten to integrate backward (5 marks for any two of the above factors mentioned and discussed) 7.Using examples explain the difference between a core competence, and a distinctive competence. A core competence is a well-performed internal activity central to a company's competitiveness and profitability. It tends to relate to a firm's ability to perform activities that are critical for success in an industry e. G. A better after-sale service capability A distinctive competence is a competitively valuable activity a company performs better than its rivals.For example Toast's low cost, high quality manufacturing of automobiles â€Å"Lean Production† is far superior to that of other automakers, (5 marks for explanation and establishing the difference between core competence and distinctive competence) 8. What is benchmarking and why is it a strategically important analytical tool? (5 marks) Benchmark focuses on cross-company comparisons of how certain activities are reformed and costs associated with these activities. It looks at things such as purchase of materials, management of inventories, getting new products to the market and so on. 2 marks) Identify best and most efficient means of performing various value chain activities Learn what is the best way to perform a particular activity from those companies who have demonstrated that they are â€Å"best-in-industry' or â€Å"best-in-world† at performing the activity Learn what other firms do to perform an activity at lower cost Figure out what actions to take to improve a company's own cost competitiveness (3 marks for NY 2 points identified and explained) Section B (80 marks 1 . Analyze the competitive forces confronting Blue Nile and other online retail jeweler's.Do a five-forces analysis to support your answer. State the relative strength of each competitive force. Below is a representative five -forces model of competition for the online Jewelry business: Rivalry among online Jeweler's?a moderate to strong competitive force that is likely to intensify in the years ahead. Students should conclude that rivalry among Blue Nile and other online Jeweler's is normal to moderate, but it is likely to grow ore intense (owing to the success that Blue Nile is enjoying).Rivalry is centered on such factors as Price and value delivered to customers Selection and breadth/variety of product offerings Ability to customize and customization options The caliber and trustworthiness of the information/guidance provided to online shoppers (educational information, in-depth product information, access to professional grading reports, and so on) Image/reputation Customer service User friendliness of web site?search functionality, ease of browsing through all the selections, finding and understanding the information provided, etc.Refund and return policies Advertising and promotion?Much of the adv ertising/promotion is being done online, but the online Jewelry business is not one that is a heavy user of TV, radio, and newspaper advertising on a regular basis. Word-of-mouth is a fairly big factor Most online Jewelry competitors pursued either a differentiation strategy to try to set themselves apart or else tried to attract shoppers via the appeal of very low prices (which entailed employing a low-cost strategy).Some rivals focused their efforts narrowly on particular Jewelry items/product categories while others had broad reduce lines. Several factors were working to affect rivalry among industry participants: All rivals seem to be actively and busily trying to attract Jewelry shoppers to their websites, partly via online advertising and promotional initiatives (including search engine listings)?fresh strategic initiatives on the part of various rivals heightens rivalry. Low switching costs on the part of buyers?it is simple for people shopping for jewelry online to locate an d visit competitor web sites.Rivalry decreases when the rate of market growth rises?sales of Jewelry online seem o be growing briskly (with the sales increases coming at the expense of brick-and mortar Jewelry retailers). There is reason to suspect that the online Jewelry segment of the overall retail Jewelry industry is in its infancy (an emerging business or industry in its own right); hence, online sales of Jewelry are likely to grow faster than sales of Jewelry in general?a condition which will act to contain rivalry among online jeweler's.Rivalry increases when one or more rivals are dissatisfied with their market position and launch moves to bolster their standing at the expense of rivals. A case can be Dade that Blue Nile and most all of its online rivals are â€Å"dissatisfied† and thus are likely to make further moves to bolster their market standing, image, and sales. Rivalry increases as the product offerings of rivals become more standardized? many of the online J eweler's seems to be offering shopper many of the same things? wide selection, customization, educational information, access to grading reports, and so on.We see the differentiation among online Jewelry rivals as growing smaller/ weaker, not larger/stronger?with the possible exception of reputation/image, where Blue Nile seems to be the standout leader. Threat of entry?a moderate to strong competitive force Blue Niles success and growing reputation will almost certainly draw more competitors into online Jewelry sales. The barriers to entry into the online segment of the Jewelry industry are moderately The costs of developing a Web site.Developing supply chain relationships Developing order fulfillment capability and achieving short delivery times Expenditures for advertising and promotion needed to draw visitors to a web site and build a trustworthy reputation/image. In addition, students should see that the pool of entry candidates is probably fairly rage?especially for brick-and- mortar retailers already in the Jewelry business. Hence, the entry threat in upcoming years should be viewed as fairly strong. There would seem to be ample opportunity for new entrants to gain a market foothold and to achieve a level of sales high to be profitable.But the longer a company delays entry, the harder it will be to compete effectively against online Jeweler's like Blue Nile that have built a clientele and that have formidable images/reputations. Competition from substitute sellers of Jewelry?a very strong competitive force. Obviously, Jewelry shoppers have many other options for buying Jewelry than from online retailers. Traditional brick-and-mortar Jewelry retailers have the lion's share of the market and currently are the retailers of choice for the big majority of Jewelry shoppers. Hence, the competition that online Jeweler's face from other Jewelry retailers is quite formidable.In addition, there are hordes of possible substitutes for Jewelry altogether (but most peo ple are unlikely to see these alternatives as good substitutes). Consequently, students should conclude that substitutes for buying Jewelry online re a strong competitive force, given that Acceptable substitute sources for purchasing Jewelry are readily available and the prices charged by some of these substitute types of Jeweler's are reasonably competitive Buyer costs to switch to substitute types of Jewelry retailers are relatively low Many consumers are familiar with and comfortable with buying Jewelry from other than online Jewelry retailers.The bargaining power and leverage of suppliers to the online Jewelry retailers and jeweler-supplier collaboration?a moderately strong competitive force, especially as encores the suppliers of diamonds/gems and other Jewelry items. Students should recognize that the suppliers of gems/diamonds/]leery items have considerable bargaining power and leverage in determining the prices and terms at which they will supply their products.Yes, there ar e many alternative suppliers, and it would seem relatively easy for a it is doubtful that suppliers compete aggressively with one another on price?in other words, switching suppliers is unlikely to lead to acquiring a particular gem of particular quality at a lower price.There is no evidence in the case that suppliers of monads/gems compete with one another on the basis of price (indeed, with the exception of Blue Nile and other online Jeweler's, there is little evidence that price competition is active in the market for fine Jewelry?that is, rival Jeweler's are not aggressively trying to compete with one another by selling a diamond of given cut, clarity, grade, etc. At a lower price than their rivals). Blue Niles lower prices stem from its lower costs of doing business, not from the fact that it obtains diamonds/ gems at lower prices than do traditional retail Jeweler's.What is important for students to recognize here is that Blue Niles close elaboration with its diamond/gem suppl iers has resulted in giving it a lower cost value chain as compared to traditional Main Street Jeweler's. The distinctive feature of Blue Niles supply chain was its arrangements with leading diamond and gem suppliers that allowed it to display the suppliers' diamonds and gems on its web site; some of these arrangement entailed multi-year agreements whereby designated diamonds of the suppliers were offered to online consumers only at Blue Niles websites.Blue Niles suppliers represented more than half of the total supply of high-quality diamonds in the U. S. Blue Nile did not actually purchase a diamond or gem from these suppliers until an order was placed by a customer; this enabled Blue Nile to minimize the costs associated with carrying large inventories and limited its risk of potential mark-downs. Other online Jeweler's seem to have similar collaborative arrangements with their diamond/gem suppliers.These collaborative arrangements offer a sizable cost advantage over Main Street Jeweler's?these cost- saving arrangements put added competitive pressure on traditional local Jeweler's because such collaboration (and the resulting lower cost business model) puts them t a cost disadvantage. The bargaining power and leverage of Jewelry shoppers?a weak competitive force Individuals have little power to bargain for a lower price on the Jewelry items they are looking to purchase (except perhaps in the case of very expensive items where some price haggling is often fairly normal).Individuals can, of course, choose to buy or not buy at the marked price but no one individual is usually in a position to enter into direct negotiations over the terms and conditions under which he or she will purchase a diamond ring or other Jewelry item from an online retailer. Any individual an certainly opt to buy from one retailer rather than another, but this does not equate to bargaining and exerting leverage.Conclusions concerning the overall strength of competitive forces: Competiti ve pressures in online Jewelry retailing are strong but not overwhelming so (the best evidence for this is Blue Niles record of attracting new customers and growing its sales at a rapid clip?a convincing sign that it is able to successfully contend with the prevailing competitive forces). Currently, we see competition from substitute types of forces.The entry of new competitors could also prove to be significant, if one or more f the new entrants have a well-recognized and trusted brand name and if such entrants opt to price their products competitively versus the prices charged by Blue Nile. Moreover, while competition is fairly strong, it is not so strong as to prevent companies like Blue Nile from being profitable. The online Jewelry retailing portion of the Jewelry industry is rather attractive from the standpoint of promising growth and attractive long-term profitability?Blue Nile is demonstrating that its business model and strategy are quite attractive.This is the big reason why new entry can be expected. But online sales of fine Jewelry is likely to remain a relatively small fraction of total sales of fine Jewelry for years to come?traditional brick-and-mortar local jeweler's are not going to be driven out of business by online Jeweler's in the foreseeable future. (5 Marks for each point well discussed with the appropriate verdict or conclusion on each competitive force) 2. Do a SOOT analysis of Blue Nile. What are key conclusions you can draw about the its situation?Blue Niles Resource Strengths and Competitive Assets the current market leader in the online retail Jewelry segment by a wide margin AAA teeter known brand name and reputation than rivals AAA first-rate strategy and business model AAA broad and attractive product line from customers to choose from AAA user-friendly web site with good search functionality and very good educational information A sizable and competitively potent cost advantage over traditional local Jewelry stores due to lean operating costs and a cost-effective supply chain Its collaborative partnership arrangements with important diamond/gem suppliers Good product customization and order fulfillment capabilities (core competencies) Blue Niles ability o grow sales with very little incremental capital investment Blue Niles Resource Weaknesses and Competitive Liabilities Limited brand name recognition?many shoppers for fine Jewelry have never heard of Blue Nile Limited financial resources relative to bigger and better-known retail Jewelry chains There is nothing proprietary about Blue Niles strategy and business model?both are subject to imitation by rivals Market Opportunities Geographic expansion?entry into the markets of foreign countries Lots of room to grow the business by attracting customers away from traditional local Jewelry stores in the U. S. ?Blue Nile still has such a relatively small market share of the total market for fine Jewelry in the U. S. That it can continue to employ its current st rategy for many years. The more that the word spreads about Blue Niles attractive prices and quality the more it stands to steal away customers from traditional local Jeweler's.Product line expansion External Threats to Blue Niles Future Well-Being The entry of more online Jewelry rivals that opt to employ much the same strategy and business model?especially if these new entrants should be retailers that have a brand name that is more widely recognized and trusted than Blue Niles. Diamond/ gem suppliers either become less willing for Blue Nile to display their inventories on Blue Niles web site or decide not to renew their multi-year agreements with Blue Nile whereby certain designated diamonds in their inventories are offered to online consumers only at Blue Niles websites. (Blue Niles suppliers represented more than half of the total supply of high-quality diamonds in the U. S. Untold numbers of people shopping for fine Jewelry are very leery of buying fine Jewel online and thus a re not likely to ever be customers of Blue Nile Key Pointed and Conclusions Blue Niles strategy, business model, resource strengths, and competitive capabilities put it in a very strong market position to succeed in the online retail Jewelry business in the upcoming years?it is easy to understand why the company has been extremely successful in growing its sales over the past several years. Blue Nile would seem to have a sustainable cost advantage over traditional brick-and mortar retailers of fine Jewelry. Blue Nile has no resource weaknesses that make it highly vulnerable to competitive attack from local Jeweler's.