A narrative account of a multilingual informant Essay

A narrative account of a multilingual informant - Essay Example Thus, this essay aims to utilize both primary and secondary sources and also online information to delineate comparisons, inconsistencies, gaps and flaws that are linked with blended communities. To begin the multilingual informant is known as Chinedu. He is multilingual speaker who practices at least three distinct languages within her community which is Igbo, Swahili and Pidgin. Beardsmore (2008) asserts that multilingual speaker communicate in divergent languages in their daily lives whether it’s in relation to their profession, education, family et cetera. This is because there is a special function of language they utilize, such as at home the distinct language mother tongue is most commonly used to communicate with their family, while if it concerns communication outside family life, especially at workplace they will speak in standard English as it is an official language used for internal an office administration. Chinedu was sent to Britain right after he graduated fro m college. But before he first came to Britain at that time, he had studied English for more than three, and yet he could not speak English at all. In order for him to speak English better, he was extremely fascinated about moving to the United Kingdom. He expected his teacher would teach him English so that he could how speak English. Although he never enjoyed English learning in Nigeria, he always adored his English teacher who had a lot of knowledge of English grammar and sentence structures that assisted him learn English. They taught him their secret skills in memorizing vocabularies is a systematic way, and they taught him how to asses sentences to right answers on a test without comprehending the meaning of the texts. There are many diverse multiplicities of diversity in the UK and Britain is now viewed as a multilingual community. A lot of individuals have come to this place for many sophisticated reason ranging from seeking asylum, employment chances, and education to suppo rt a better way of living. For that reason migration is transforming the linguistic landscape of Britain. The increase in immigrants coming from South Asian, Afro Caribbean and also Commonwealth countries has had a huge effect on what British speak, with languages from those areas seeing sharp increase in usage (Edwards, 2004). Most of the members of the communities are former British colonies. Those immigrants have immigrated to Britain and have created communities with other members with similar interests in connection to culture, religion and customs to fit and to have a sense of belonging. The community that Chinedu found himself in is a community which was created by individuals who migrated in search of better education or employment opportunities. Diasporas is seen as a community of individuals who are bound by some shared history, race or religion. Diaspora brings together communities which are not rather nation, not really religion, not really homesickness, yet they still h ave something to do with nation, religion, longings for homes which might not even exist. These are collectivities and communities which go beyond geological spaces and historical experiences. There are huge numbers of individuals who exist in one place and yet they feel closely related to each other. Thereby, there a lot of ways in which communities are created and this might be through language, music, culinary tastes, religion and so on (Lueng et al., 1997). Chinedu

Expository essay Essay Example for Free

Expository essay Essay Expository writing is a life skill. More than any other type of writing, expository writing is a daily requirement of most careers. Understanding and following the proven steps of the writing process helps all writers, including students, master the expository essay. Expository Essay Structure Usually, the expository essay is composed of five paragraphs. The introductory paragraph contains the thesis or main idea. The next three paragraphs, or body of the essay, provide details in support of the thesis. The concluding paragraph restates the main idea and ties together the major points of essay. Here are expository essay tips for each part of the essay structure and writing process: 1. Prewriting for the Expository Essay In the prewriting phase of writing an expository essay, students should take time to brainstorm about the topic and main idea. Next, do research and take notes. Create an outline showing the information to be presented in each paragraph, organized in a logical sequence. 2. Drafting the Expository Essay When creating the initial draft of an expository essay, consider the following suggestions: The most important sentence in the introductory paragraph is the topic sentence, which states the thesis or main idea of the essay. The thesis should be clearly stated without giving an opinion or taking a position. A good thesis is well defined, with a manageable scope that can be adequately addressed within a five-paragraph essay. Each of the three body paragraphs should cover a separate point that develops the essay’s thesis. The sentences of each paragraph should offer facts and examples in support of the paragraph’s topic. The concluding paragraph should reinforce the thesis and the main supporting ideas. Do not introduce new material in the conclusion. Since an expository essay discusses an event, situation, or the views of others, and not a personal experience, students should write in the third person (â€Å"he,† â€Å"she,† or â€Å"it†), and avoid â€Å"I† or â€Å"you† sentences. 3. Revising the Expository Essay In the revision phase, students review, modify, and reorganize their work with the goal of making it the best it can be. Keep these considerations in mind: Does the essay give an unbiased analysis that unfolds logically, using relevant facts and examples? Has the information been clearly and effectively communicated to the reader? Watch out for â€Å"paragraph sprawl,† which occurs when the writer loses focus and veers from the topic by introducing unnecessary details. Is the sentence structure varied? Is the word choice precise? Do the transitions between sentences and paragraphs help the reader’s understanding? Does the concluding paragraph communicate the value and meaning of the thesis and key supporting ideas? If the essay is still missing the mark, take another look at the topic sentence. A solid thesis statement leads to a solid essay. Once the thesis works, the rest of the essay falls into place more easily. 4. Editing the Expository Essay Next, proofread and correct errors in grammar and mechanics, and edit to improve style and clarity. While an expository essay should be clear and concise, it can also be lively and engaging. Having a friend read the essay helps writers edit with a fresh perspective. 5. Publishing the Expository Essay Sharing an expository essay with the rest of the class can be both exciting and intimidating. Remember, there isn’t a writer on earth who isn’t sensitive about his or her own work. The important thing is to learn from the experience and use the feedback to make the next essay better. Essay Variations Essay writing is a huge part of a education today. Most students must learn to write various kinds of essays during their academic careers, including different types of expository essay writing: Definition essays explain the meaning of a word, term, or concept. The topic can be a concrete subject such as an animal or tree, or it can be an abstract term, such as freedom or love. This type of essay should discuss the word’s denotation (literal or dictionary definition), as well as its connotation or the associations that a word usually brings to mind. Classification essays break down a broad subject or idea into categories and groups. The writer organizes the essay by starting with the most general category and then defines and gives examples of each specific classification. Compare and contrast essays describe the similarities and differences between two or more people, places, or things. Comparison tells how things are alike and contrast shows how they are different. Cause and effect essays explain how things affect each other and depend on each other. The writer identifies a clear relationship between two subjects, focusing on why things happen (causes) and/or what happens as a result (effects). â€Å"How to† essays, sometimes called process essays, explain a procedure, step-by-step process, or how to do something with the goal of instructing the reader.

Significance of Chapter 5 in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Essay

Comment on Chapter 5’s significance in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Famous writer, Mary Shelley was born in London in 1797. She was the daughter of writer William Godwin and Mary Wollstonecraft. Shelley’s mother sadly died while giving birth to her. This was an influence included in the later successful novel ‘Frankenstein’. At 19, she married poet Percy Shelley, who she married in 1816. Together, Mary and Percy had five children, but only one survived past childhood. This tragedy, along with the early death of her mother influenced Mary Shelley's theme linking creation with death. She started to write Frankenstein at the age of 18, completing it in less than a year. She said the idea came to her in a dream, and dreams are created by unrelated events, and memories. Science became one of the main influences for Shelley’s novel. At the time, the influences of the scientific world became fascinating to everyone. The idea of bringing people back to life was being tested by some of the most intelligent minds. The main character in the story, Victor, grew up in Geneva, where Mary Shelley wrote the novel. Whilst staying there, Mary, Percy and Byron then met ‘Monk’ Lewis who was famous for writing supernatural novels. Byron’s group talked for hours on end, and reading ghost stories. He challenged the group to write a ghost story – Frankenstein. Frankenstein is a gothic fantasy novel as it features horrifying events, stormy and dark settings, satanic imagery and themes of revenge and pursuit. The novel was purposely written to shock and scare readers. The novel has been suggested to be a romantic, psychological, social, political tale. However, I think that it is a philosophical tale. Certain events which... ...ontrast to this statement a little bit later on, ‘†¦and I selected his features as beautiful’ - Victor goes from negative to positive. Another significant aspect of chapter 5, is Shelley’s description of Victor’s nightmare, which shows how disturbed he is by his creation. Shelley immediately links the ‘birth’ with death, and mentions Elizabeth, Victor kissing her while she is being killed. ‘†¦imprinted the first kiss on he lips, they became livid with the hue of death.’ This is ironic because Elizabeth is murdered later on in the story, by Victor’s creation. Shelley also uses a variety of motifs. ‘By dim and yellow light of the moon’, this phrase is associated with the monster, as it appears when the monster is created. When the monster threatens revenge, it comes across as an eerie moment. ‘One hand was stretched out’. This is again, a different motif.

Using one case study film assess the relationship between the industrial context and the representation

The representation of gender in the British film industry throughout the 1960s can be seen in a variety of examples and can be seen as indicative of a general shift in cultural attitudes. In this assignment, we shall be concerning ourselves with the film Goldfinger in particular. Goldfinger was made in 1964 by the British film company (SPHP, 1964). What is of particular interest in this film is the iconic portrayal of the female character that spawned something of a tradition for depictions of idealised femininity.We will pay particular interest to the significance of her role in relation to the rest of the characters in the film. However, we shall first outline a number of industrial and cultural changes that were occurring throughout the 60s in the British film industry. The British film industry of the 1960s saw a degree of significant changes that reflected the cultural mood of this period throughout greater western culture (Coates & Topham 1968).For example, the notion of popula r culture was becoming highly marketable at this time and the subsequent move away from WWII was becoming something of an artistic focus (Laing, 1986). Essentially, Hollywood was promoting a new liberalisation that incorporated sexual imagery as a counter to traditional gender roles based upon social utility (Ewen & Ewen, 1982, p. 37). Although this was embraced throughout the film world, it affected the British film industry in two notable ways. This is given by Curtis who states that,‘’What was striking to us – an audience of artists, writers, journalists and filmmakers – was the assumption evident in all these films, that making cinema could be a first-person-singular affair, and that film language could be as complex and highly individual. In contrast, The films supported by the one source of public funding at the time, the British Film Institute's Experimental Film Fund, were very definitely cinema shorts, stepping-stones to cinema features. ’à ¢â‚¬â„¢ (Laing, 1992, p. 258)This use of short film techniques in which quick iconic symbolism was used in relation to characters made for a mutual embrace of the film techniques being produced by Hollywood. This incorporated sexual and iconic symbolism at its fore (Nuttal, 1968). This was a distinct detraction from the emerging realist depictions found in the dickens-like portrayals common to the kitchen sink drama or the playfulness of slap stick that had gone before (Hebdige, 1988). However, it is perhaps unwise to think of the industry as becoming entirely divorced of its British artistic tradition.Rather, Thompson states that, â€Å"We must remember the ‘underground' of the ballad singer and the fairground which handed on traditions to the nineteenth century; for in these ways the ‘inarticulate' conserve certain values – a spontaneity and capacity for enjoyment and mutual loyalties – despite the inhibiting pressures of magistrates, mill-owners, and Me thodists. † (Thompson, 1963, p. 63) It is with this notion of Hollywood driven sexual symbolism and the British tradition of mutual loyalties that we will now turn to the example of Goldfinger and the depiction of gender.Goldfinger was cast in the genre of the international spy film indicative of the archetypical male hero James Bond (Cohan & Hark, 1993). It features Bond as the main protagonist and Goldfinger as the main antagonist. However, it also involves the depiction of strong and sexualised female characters in crucial roles. In this, we see that although the females are highly sexualised objects and in many ways used by the two main protagonists, they are not subordinate or peripheral to the plot (Hebdige, 1988).This sexualised empowerment is articulated by their being made indicative to the overall consequence of the film. The leading lady is an intelligent and very beautiful woman caught between the loyalties of the two opposing characters. She is modelled on the for mer depictions of beauty founded in the 40s and 50s as seen in Marlin Monroe (Nixon, 2003). However, unlike Marilyn Monroe who was portrayed as a sexually exploitative and superficially unintelligent female figure, she is given as an intelligent woman caught in an ethical dilemma.This clearly highlights the implementation of the depiction of the female in line with Hollywood at this time (Murphy, 2004). However, with the character traits of intelligence and up front honesty and naivety, this is perhaps indicative of the British tradition and the mutual loyalties that drive the spontaneity of the plot. Unintentionally playing upon Bond’s sympathies, she is taken away from Goldfinger and given the approval of the Bond character. However, in her death scene we see the significance of her betrayal.Essentially, she is cast in Gold, which is indicative of the title, and left to die. However, this form of martyrdom is not a moral consequence of her flirtation between characters, but rather an idealisation of the power of iconic female sexuality (Mort, 2004). Furthermore, it evokes a cosmopolitan reference by symbolising the Egyptian sexual princess Cleopatra. In doing so, this reflects a strong use iconic sexuality to superficially relate to the international, cosmopolitan domain (Green, 1998).In summary, it would appear from the depiction of gender of the film Goldfinger, that British film was moving to incorporate a cosmopolitan portrayal in relation to the changes in culture of the time. It would appear that in the depiction of gender, sexuality was an explicit ingredient as was the case in Hollywood films. However, rather abandoning all sense of British tradition, the use of sexual symbolism was employed through a plot involving mixed loyalties and unseen conditional forces. BibliographyCoates K Topham A (1968) Industrial Democracy in Great Britain: a book of readings and witnesses for workers control London: MacGibbon and Kee (ed. ) Cohan, S. , & Hark, I, R. , (1993) Screening the Male New York: Routledge Ewen, S. , & Ewen, E. , (1982) Channels of Desire Minnesota: University of Minnesota Goldfinger, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, (1964) Green, P. , (1998) Cracks in the Pedestal Massachusetts: University of Massachusetts Press Hebdige, D. , (1988) Hiding in the Light London: Comedia Laing, S., (1986) Representations of Working Class Life 1951-1964 London: Macmillan Mort, F. , (1996) Cultures of Consumption: Masculinities and Social Space in late twentieth-century Britain. London: Routledge. Murphy, P. F. (2004) â€Å"Introduction†, in Murphy, P. F. (ed. ) Feminism and Masculinities, pp. 1-21. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Nixon, S. , (2003) Advertising Cultures: Gender, Commerce, Creativity. London: SAGE. Nuttal, J. , (1968) Bomb Culture London: MacGibbon and Kee Thompson, E, P. , (1968) The Making of the English Working Class Harmondsworth: Penguin

Blanche Dubois and Tom Wingfield’s Struggle Between Fantasy and Reality

Blanche DuBois and Tom Wingfield’s Struggle Between Fantasy and Reality The two characters, Blanche DuBois from A Streetcar Named Desire and Tom Wingfield of The Glass Menagerie, both share an intense struggle between fantasy and reality in their lives causing dependency upon alcohol. Blanch DuBois approaches as a high class Southern Belle who depends upon others to care for her, but in reality she thrives on her self-proclaimed royalty. Meanwhile, Tom Wingfield is a pessimistic character who deprives his life working at a shoe factory for his mother and sister while living in the shadows of his father. Both these characters also develop a dependency upon alcohol to overcome conflicts they are faced with. Blanche’s struggle occurs after losing all she had back home in Belle Reve except her trunk of clothes and props, but is exposed to the hash reality of the real world where she cannot cope and must depend on others. One example, such as Stanley Kowalski’s friend, Mitch, whom she instantly wants to marry to be saved from her current degrading lifestyle. â€Å"Ms. DuBois says that she is on vacation at the Kowalski’s, but in fact has lost the family mansion, Belle Reve, and her teaching position due to her sexual indiscretions, the last one with a 17-year-old boy while earning a reputation for sleeping with men indiscriminately, in the meantime pretending to be a Southern bell (Magill pars. 1-2). Blanche is so caught up in her fantasy world that she even had relations with the delivery boy, as well, so she may mask her age with youth and to have control of another. Tom finds himself struggling to fulfill his dreams of writing poetry. This is due to his working at the local shoe factory so he can support his family. â€Å"Mr. Wingfield is desperately unhappy in his warehouse job, and finds himself standing on the fire-escape to the apartment in his hopes of one day fleeing to pursue his dreams as his father did (Bloom pars. 15-16). Tom is always speaking of how he is held down from his hopes, goals, dreams, and ambitions stuck in the shoe factory making a lousy salary for his family, made up of a sick sister and delirious mother. Tom cannot accept the reality that surrounds him and is always contemplating about his dream life, which he is kept from achieving. Blanche, like Tom, abuses alcohol to escape her struggles between fantasy and reality. Blanche is noticeably an abuser of alcohol as she is found constantly sipping away at liquor to forget her past, which her conscience knows is guilty. Tom is said to be at â€Å"the movies,† meanwhile he is actually out at the bars all hours of the night. This is Tom’s way of temporarily escaping his home and forgetting his duties that trap and prevent him from accomplishing his goals in life. Neither character was in need of alcohol, but abused it to an intolerable level, where they consumed it when facing rough times or troubling memories that followed. Also, in both plays these two characters hid the fact that they ever even consumed liquor, while they were always drinking in complete denial. The two characters, Blanche DuBois from A Streetcar Named Desire and Tom Wingfield of The Glass Menagerie, both share an intense struggle between fantasy and reality in their lives causing dependency upon alcohol. Blanche’s inability to cope with the real world alone makes her a weak character. She cannot live independently and has lost all that once made her life, back in Belle Reve, due to her confused relationship with a student of hers. Tom, on the contrary, has a strong character that is chipped away at over time due to the tormenting lifestyle he must live to support his family. After time this strong foundation of character diminishes as Tom wants to flee his stationary life back at home. 1. Magill Book Reviews 1990/03/15 2. Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations: The Glass Menagerie; 1988, p31-41, 11p 3. Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature; Letter D, pN. PAG, 1p 4. Tennessee Williams. A Streetcar Named Desire. Harold Bloom – editor. Publisher: Chelsea House. Place of Publication: New York. 1988. 5. Tennessee Williams. The Glass Menagerie. Harold Bloom – editor. Publisher: Chelsea House. Place of Publication: New York. 1988.

Facts about Spain essays

Facts about Spain essays The Iberian people from North Africa were one of the first to arrive in Spain in about 1000 BC. They were followed by the Celts from the north and the Phoenicians from the Mediterranean. The Romans came in the 3rd century BC, and became the dominant power over the next few centuries. The Romans had a great impact on Spain as their laws, languages and customs were adopted by the Spanish people. In 409 AD, Roman Spain was invaded by Germanic tribes who established a Visigothic kingdom in the country. They ruled until 711, when the Muslims from North Africa (known as Moors) conquered most of Spain. The Muslim rule lasted in Spain for the next 800 years during which arts and sciences flourished. The next phase in Spanish history started with the re-conquest of the country by the Christians. In the 15th century the Muslims were defeated by the Catholic Christian Monarchs and expelled from the country. This was the start of the Golden Period' in Spanish history during which Columbus discovered America in 1492 and Spain became a major colonial power The Spanish empire began to weaken in the 18th and 19th centuries after a series of expensive wars with France, Britain and the USA. Its decisive defeat in the American-Spanish war of 1898 signaled the end of the Another significant episode in Spain's history is the Civil War of 1936-39 between the Nationalists supported by the Nazis, and the Republicans supported by the Soviets and foreign idealists. The defeat of the Republicans led to a 35-year fascist rule by General Franco. Spain is now a democratic country, member of the European Union (EU) and a famous ...

Purpose of Urban Greenbelts

Purpose of Urban Greenbelts The term â€Å"greenbelt† refers to any area of undeveloped natural land that has been set aside near urban or developed land to provide open space, offer light recreational opportunities, or contain development. And, yes, the natural greenbelts along areas of Southeast Asia’s coastlines, including the region’s mangrove forests, served as buffers and helped to prevent even greater loss of life from the December 2004 tsunami. The Importance of Greenbelts in Urban Areas Greenbelts in and around urban areas have probably not saved any lives, but they are important nonetheless to the ecological health of any given region. The various plants and trees in greenbelts serve as organic sponges for various forms of pollution, and as storehouses of ​carbon dioxide to help offset global climate change. â€Å"Trees are an important part of the city infrastructure,† says Gary Moll of American Forests. Because of the many benefits trees provide to cities, Moll likes to refer to them as the â€Å"ultimate urban multi-taskers.† Urban Greenbelts Provide Links to Nature Greenbelts are also important to help urban dwellers feel more connected to nature. Dr. S.C. Sharma of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research in India believes that all cities should â€Å"earmark certain areas for the development of greenbelts [to] bring life and color to the concrete jungle and [a] healthy environment to the urbanites.† While urban living may hold important advantages over rural living, feeling disconnected from nature is a serious drawback of city life. Greenbelts Help to Limit Urban Sprawl Greenbelts are also important in efforts to limit sprawl, which is the tendency for cities to spread out and encroach on rural lands and wildlife habitat. Three U.S. states- Oregon, Washington,  and Tennessee- require their largest cities to establish so-called â€Å"urban growth boundaries† to limit sprawl through the establishment of planned greenbelts. Meanwhile, the cities of Minneapolis, Virginia Beach, Miami,  and Anchorage have created urban growth boundaries on their own. In California’s Bay Area, the nonprofit Greenbelt Alliance has successfully lobbied for the establishment of 21 urban growth boundaries across four counties surrounding the city of San Francisco. Greenbelts Around the World The concept has also caught on in Canada, with the cities of Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver adopting similar mandates for the creation of greenbelts to improve land use. Urban greenbelts can also be found in and around larger cities in Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Are Greenbelts Essential to World Peace? The greenbelt concept has even spread to rural areas, such as those in East Africa. Womens’ rights and environmental activist Wangari Maathai launched the Green Belt Movement in Kenya in 1977 as a grassroots tree-planting program to address the challenges of deforestation, soil erosion and lack of water in her home country. To date, her organization has overseen the planting of 40 million trees across Africa. In 2004, Maathai was the first environmentalist to be awarded the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize. Why peace? â€Å"There can be no peace without equitable development, and there can be no development without sustainable management of the environment in a democratic and peaceful space,† said Maathai in her Nobel acceptance speech. EarthTalk is a regular feature of E/The Environmental Magazine. Selected EarthTalk columns are reprinted on About Environmental Issues by permission of the editors of E. Edited by Frederic Beaudry

Dissertation Thesis

Dissertation Thesis Dissertation Thesis Dissertation Thesis Tips To start speaking about creating a dissertation thesis, it is necessary to make clear what a thesis is. Within the past few years the term thesis has acquired an additional meaning. Now the third meaning of this word is document, dissertation. But in this paper we shall speak about a thesis as a conjecture, an essential part of any dissertation. Well, a thesis is a conjecture, which must be supported by evidence a dissertation writer collects. Therefore, a dissertation is a lengthy piece of writing that argues to defend a particular dissertation thesis. The research, conducted by a dissertation writer to support a thesis, must be original and substantial. A dissertation is created not only to show a writers ability to gather, synthesize ad analyze evidence, but also to demonstrate his original contribution to a particular field. The scientific method of research means that a dissertation writer starts with a conjecture, and after that provides evidence w hich supports or denies it. So before writing a dissertation to defend a dissertation thesis, it is necessary to collect evidence, supporting this thesis. Students face with unexpected difficulties, as it appears that the most difficult aspect of dissertation is not creating a dissertation thesis and collecting evidence, but organizing them into a coherent form. Writing a dissertation, it is important to keep in the forefront of ones mind that any argument is being constructed to defend a dissertation thesis. It is important to think about the main dissertation idea as you write, is this way you will be protected from danger of writing useless pages, which are away from the main path. Every paragraph you write should be about the central argument, giving additional evidence, synthesis of evaluation of evidence, related to your dissertation thesis. While you write, remember that every statement of your dissertation must be supported by original work or by a reference to a particul ar published paper. Avoid a mere reproducing of the material you found, you should use the results of a scientists work as a fact and refer the reader of your dissertation to the source. Moreover, keep in mind that your dissertation must be written according to the rules of formal grammar. Well, we hope that the stated above tips will be useful for you, and now the nature of dissertation thesis is clear. So, maybe it is high time to start looking for a topic that will interest you particularly.

Islam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Islam - Essay Example Being the youngest of world’s great few religions, Islam has gained huge significance and is followed by a very large population. People from very diverse backgrounds follow Islam. The day of Hajj when all these people irrespective of their identity, caste, creed, color, race, nationality, sect and ethnicity unite to recite Kalima, offer prayers and stand in one row shoulder to shoulder with each other. It is generally thought that Islam begins with the birth of Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H), which is not the case. Islam existed way before the birth of Holy soul. The Holy Quran testifies this fact with the following verse Anyone who opposes Gabriel should know that he has brought down this (the Quran) into your heart, in accordance with Gods will, confirming previous scriptures, and providing guidance and good news for the believers (Surah 2:97).(Origin of Islam—Quranic Revelation, 2002). There is not a distinct difference between the spiritual and luxurious factors of lifesty le in Islam; all factors of a Muslims lifestyle are to be focused to providing Allah. Islam extended almost instantly beyond its homeland in the Arabian Peninsula, and now has considerable impact in African-American, throughout Japan, European countries, and America. (Patheos Library, 2008). In the course of almost six hundreds of years, from VII to XIII AD, Islamic society has shown its visibility in a continuous conversation with other societies and societies. In the last example, this visibility was marketed by the soul of religious and social patience existing in the Oikumene of the Arab-Muslim Caliphate, which expanded from the Indus to Gibraltar. The Nearby knowledge and Ancient purpose became element areas of the Islamic religious lifestyle. In circumstances of political, legal and religious pluralism within the structure of Islam, the designers of the traditional lifestyle of the Arab-Muslim ancient were not only

Operations Management Definition Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Operations Management Definition - Essay Example According to Westland (n.d., pp. 1), project is defined as to perform certain activities for the completion or execution of work which is planned to get delivered within a specific time. Projects have specific characteristics. For example, they are unique i.e. every project is different from the other. Another example is that there is certain amount of money in which they have to be completed in a specific time. Operations:According to Shim and Siegel (1999, pp.2), operations can be defined as the labor undertaken for making goods and services available. They have to be completed in time set by the customer and the manufacturer.Project and Operations ManagementAccording to Shim and Siegel (1999, pp.2), project and operations management is the management of all the processes or in other words, activities which are associated to the manufacturing of goods and services. According to Westland (n.d., pp.1), the project can be completed with the help of certain apparatus and dexterity. Wit h the help of talented people and good management project can be completed with success. With the help of dexterity, cleverness and skill the risks associated with in a project can be reduced. Experienced people are hired in management for this purpose. The tools or apparatus used to complete a project related to building a house may include pens, gauges, nails, wood, budgeting, CAD software and checklists etc. Methods or processes used for completing a project are divided in different and small tasks.

Java Programing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Java Programing - Assignment Example Java is also simple in that software that can run in small machines can be constructed in java. This feature in java enable clean definition of of interfaces and makes it possible to provide reusable software. Object orientation focuses on the design on the data or objects and on the interfaces to it. Java language has an extensive library of routines for easily coping with TCP/IP protocols like Http and ftp. This allows java application to open and access objects across the net via URLs with the same ease the programmers are used to accessing a local file system. Java is a very environmentally flexible language since it can be easily run in multiple operating system. An interface can be multiply-inherited and they can be used in a more flexible way than the usual rigid class inheritance structure. Java one can compute a data type name and have it trivially dynamically linked into the running system. By making interconnections between modules later in the execution of the program, java will completely avoid problems and make the use of object-oriented paradigm much more straightforward, Libraries can freely add new methods and instance variables without any effect on their clients. Shows a set of use cases and actors (a special kind of class) and their relationships. Use case diagrams address the static use case view of a system, these diagrams are important in organizing and modeling the behaviors of a system. The goal of the use case is to identify all the features that the users of the system expects the system to support, but it does not reveal any details about the implementations of these features. The system can be run in systems from windows XP that has MS_Access as the database management software. The hardware minimum hardware requirements of the system that will be used to implement the system are Pentium II and above. Ram of -1gb and at-list a hard disk capacity of 20gb. This are the images in the system that users will upload

Project risk analysis and assessment in oil and gas industry Essay

Project risk analysis and assessment in oil and gas industry - Essay Example However, the main aim of this paper is to focus on limitations and problems of the tools and techniques of project risk analysis and assessment.   Risk and uncertainty examination has a few limitation and pitfalls in the principal idea. Every one of these strategies makes solid component of intervention and absence of crucial premise in risk and uncertainty examination. These insufficiencies will bring about shameful treatment of uncertainties. Those limits are exhibited here to give the pursuer a reflection on the utilization of current risk and uncertainty investigation in the down to earth instance of the reasonable undertaking stage (Perminova et al, 2008). Focus the discriminating parameter for subject of examination. This basis can be addressed. Sensitivity examination is not vulnerability investigation. Sensitivity just concerns on yield result as adjustment of info parameter. Dubious info parameter is not decided through utilization of sensitivity examination. The investigation on how dubious information parameter is excluded in this investigation. The target of risk and uncertainty examination is to anticipate future execution of dubious noticeable amounts that are not known at the season of examination. Envision the impact of oil stores to combined NPV of a field. In the event that saves has substantial measure of oil contained, venture NPV may be positive. Something else, NPV may be negative on the grounds that cost will be higher than oil deals given that saves are beneath sure measure of worth. Sensitivity investigation is led to explore how oil stores affects NPV. It has nothing to do with how indeterminate the stores, vulner ability of stores beneath certain quality, or total likelihood of stores in the middle of high and low esteem. Sensitivity investigation is not used to focus unverifiable data parameter for risk and uncertainty

Gulf Coast Medical Center Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Gulf Coast Medical Center - Essay Example On the other hand, the presence of radiologists and the hospital administrators will ensure understanding of the issues with delay in scheduling procedures with the facility. Therefore, while physicians would be able to more easily identify the likely problems causing the unusually long time each procedure takes, the administrators and managed care companies might be better able to identify issues related with time it takes physicians to schedule a slot at the facility. The Shewhart Cycle proposes a four-step process of continuous quality improvement which includes: Act, Plan, Check and Do (Shewhart, 1980). Creating a work group to identify the relevant issues with the facility is obviously the first step, i.e. 'Acting'. The outcome of deliberations of the work group which will identify the relevant issues and propose steps towards resolving these issues is the Planning stage. The outcome of the work group will be critically appraised in the light of activities and practices of competitors and what is obtainable in evidence based practice, for viability; which is the 'check' process. Lastly, once the feasibility of these recommendations has been ascertained, implementation will follow. Reduction in the time and processes required for physicians to get a procedure slot in the facility by 40% after six months and keeping up with what is obtainable from competitors within th... Improving customer perception of the facility through better cleanliness, reduced charges and increased follow up screens. d: Measuring the Success of the Work Group The success of these measures would be measured by Reduction in the time per case from 1.5 hours per case to 55mins per case in the first six months and down to the national average of 50mins per case after 12months. Reduction in the time and processes required for physicians to get a procedure slot in the facility by 40% after six months and keeping up with what is obtainable from competitors within the next 18months. Better customer perception of the facility as measured by increased return rates for follow up screens and better customer satisfaction feedbacks. 2. Dealing with Physician Perforation Rates The medical profession being a human endeavor is prone to errors, miscalculations and other human errors, and the endoscopy services is not an exception. Several government documents have acknowledged the fact that medical error is a human fact (Linda, et al., 1999). Therefore, perforation after colonoscopy is no an unusual thing, however, the rates should not be too high. Thus to deal with the high physician perforation rates in the Gulf Coast Endoscopy Facility, the first step would be to get better commitment from physicians. The facility should be able to ensure that physicians get a procedure slot without having to go through so much time wasting processes and requirements. Furthermore, the facility should be placed in a better competitive position, through cleaner and tidier environment, better facilities, so that the improve customer levels will encourage the physicians to do better jobs (Wennberg, 2005, Kaiser Family Foundation, 2004). However, besides the

Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited Essay

Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all - Essay Example Knowledge is power and without knowledge we cannot progress as a human. Knowledge is what distinguished an ignorant person from a man of intelligence. The power of knowledge cannot be ignored in any society. On the other hand, imagination is the mother of all knowledge. Imagination is what enables us to form a mental of something that cannot be comprehended through the senses. It is what enables men to stumble upon great inventions and the ability to build a mental sense for great achievements. Imagination is more important than knowledge because without imagination, men cannot achieve new things. Imagination is what empowers us to dream of things that can be achieved which eventually lead to knowledge. â€Å"Knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution" (Einstein). Therefore, I completely agree with Einstein’s quote that imagination is more important than knowledge as imagination goes beyond limit wherea s, knowledge has its limitations. According to the Cambridge dictionary, knowledge is defined as â€Å"understanding of or information about a subject which a person gets by experience or study, and which is either in a persons mind or known by people generally† (Knowledge n.d.). Knowledge is gained through experiences, skills and personal abilities. The main sources of knowledge can be traced to instinct, reason and intuitions. In order to compete in a highly competitive world, knowledge is essential. Knowledge is what makes a man powerful and it also enables him to compete with others. Knowledge is man’s ability to develop concepts and materialize them into reality through manipulations and calculations. It also enables a person to make the right judgments which are pivotal for every human being. â€Å"Knowledge concerns itself with what is present to the senses, but is also a stored and shared repository of publicly acceptable thoughts, many frozen into physical

Gulf Coast Medical Center Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Gulf Coast Medical Center - Essay Example On the other hand, the presence of radiologists and the hospital administrators will ensure understanding of the issues with delay in scheduling procedures with the facility. Therefore, while physicians would be able to more easily identify the likely problems causing the unusually long time each procedure takes, the administrators and managed care companies might be better able to identify issues related with time it takes physicians to schedule a slot at the facility. The Shewhart Cycle proposes a four-step process of continuous quality improvement which includes: Act, Plan, Check and Do (Shewhart, 1980). Creating a work group to identify the relevant issues with the facility is obviously the first step, i.e. 'Acting'. The outcome of deliberations of the work group which will identify the relevant issues and propose steps towards resolving these issues is the Planning stage. The outcome of the work group will be critically appraised in the light of activities and practices of competitors and what is obtainable in evidence based practice, for viability; which is the 'check' process. Lastly, once the feasibility of these recommendations has been ascertained, implementation will follow. Reduction in the time and processes required for physicians to get a procedure slot in the facility by 40% after six months and keeping up with what is obtainable from competitors within th... Improving customer perception of the facility through better cleanliness, reduced charges and increased follow up screens. d: Measuring the Success of the Work Group The success of these measures would be measured by Reduction in the time per case from 1.5 hours per case to 55mins per case in the first six months and down to the national average of 50mins per case after 12months. Reduction in the time and processes required for physicians to get a procedure slot in the facility by 40% after six months and keeping up with what is obtainable from competitors within the next 18months. Better customer perception of the facility as measured by increased return rates for follow up screens and better customer satisfaction feedbacks. 2. Dealing with Physician Perforation Rates The medical profession being a human endeavor is prone to errors, miscalculations and other human errors, and the endoscopy services is not an exception. Several government documents have acknowledged the fact that medical error is a human fact (Linda, et al., 1999). Therefore, perforation after colonoscopy is no an unusual thing, however, the rates should not be too high. Thus to deal with the high physician perforation rates in the Gulf Coast Endoscopy Facility, the first step would be to get better commitment from physicians. The facility should be able to ensure that physicians get a procedure slot without having to go through so much time wasting processes and requirements. Furthermore, the facility should be placed in a better competitive position, through cleaner and tidier environment, better facilities, so that the improve customer levels will encourage the physicians to do better jobs (Wennberg, 2005, Kaiser Family Foundation, 2004). However, besides the

Assessment of an enterprise-level business system Essay

Assessment of an enterprise-level business system - Essay Example At the end this write up would set forth the criteria for establishing the acceptability or otherwise of the business process mapping tools and suggest any improved tools. In fact all this considerations can be answered in the concept of business process reengineering. It was in the early 1990s that many US corporations, and subsequently companies all over the world, began to adopt the concept of business process reengineering (BPR) to obtain long lost competitiveness that they had lost during the previous decade. The primary feature of BPR is the sole focus on business processes, rather than functional organizational structures. Davenport (1993) defines a (business) process as "a structured, measured set of activities designed to produce a specific output for a particular customer or market. It implies a strong emphasis on how work is done within an organization, in contrast to a product focus's emphasis on what. A process is thus a specific ordering of work activities across time and space, with a beginning and an end, and clearly defined inputs and outputs: a structure for action. ... Taking a process approach implies adopting the customer's point of view. Processes are the structure by which an organization does what is necessary to produce value for its customers." 1 Hammer & Champy's (1993) definition can be considered as a subset of Davenport's. They define a process as "a collection of activities that takes one or more kinds of input and creates an output that is of value to the customer." Whereas Johansson et. al. (1993) defines a process as, "a set of linked activities that take an input and transform it to create an output. Ideally, the transformation that occurs in the process should add value to the input and create an output that is more useful and effective to the recipient either upstream or downstream." This definitions lead us to chief feature of a business process viz. Definability, Order, Customer, Value adding, Embeddedness and Cross functionality. In order to gain an understanding of the various processes involved in the organization which completes its business system information pertaining to above features of the business processes needs to be collected. There can be essentially two approaches to collection of such data-one , the primary data collection and, two, the secondary data collection. With in these approaches primary data could be collected through face to face interviews with key personnel responsible for such processes and a broader based questionnaire approach can be used for the operative employees. Secondary data sources can be rich and can range from industry publications to in-house examination of manuals, sales and marketing registers, financial accounts, accounting vouchers to Board minutes to minutes of the various committees of the Board and other executive committees. 2 The process of business process mapping can follow two approaches. Davenport and Short (1990) have identified two basic methods for process identification, which they termed "targeted" and "comprehensive" methods. Targeted methods take their starting point in the identification of a relatively small number of processes being critical to the business, which are

Physicians Clash over Medical Ethics in Death Penalty Cases Essay Example for Free

Physicians Clash over Medical Ethics in Death Penalty Cases Essay The news clipping is mainly about the dilemma doctors face. They are trained to save people. They did not choose their profession to punish law-violating citizens. Specifically, this topic has been given hype by Dr. Marc Stern who quit on his job of being the head doctor in the state of Washington’s prison whose responsibilities included maintaining the lethal injection table in order for the next death sentence. In the past several years, according to the article, medical ethics and death penalty has clashed. There are a number of instances in the past where doctors bailed out of the execution causing delay in the death penalty; case in point: Michael Morales. The article also stated that the problem does not stop here. This ethical dilemma against professional participation needs careful and further study. Capital punishment and justice would be difficult to serve if all doctors are concerned about ethics. Experts went as far as predicting capital punishment could end because of this ethical issues. Ethical dilemma The whole article is about ethical dilemma. Doctors do not want to continue participating in capital punishment (overseeing death penalties) as this poses ethical issues for them. Most of them belive the punishment is cruel and unusual. Also, doctors are trained to save lives and not to end it. Personal thoughts on the matter I understand that being an object to end another person’s life when one is trained to help save it could have severe impact on one’s conscience. The human world has become civilized enough over the course of history to preserve one another. It is even more emphasized in a doctor’s profession where preservation of mankind has been his chosen field and career. However, if all doctors feel this way, I can see the nation revolting. Without a trained professional in the death sentence chamber, there is no way an execution will happen. I can foresee various forms of protests because somehow, justice must be served according to the laws of the state. The person in death sentence was found guilty of an offense that demerits him his life. The family and friends of his victim/s have turned into the law for support to the injustice done to them. The law cannot fail these people because doctors cannot do their state-given responsibilities. There must be some doctors out there that are willing to do the job. I am not saying that the state must find conscienceless professional so that the death penalty can still be observed. There must be some doctors in the field that understand their moral obligations and their obligations to the state. Like it or not, the prosecution must be finished. They cannot let the convicted criminal die in the hands of non-professionals nor can they let the families and friends of the victims live in injustice.

Watch Industry And Strategy Of Titan Watches

Watch Industry And Strategy Of Titan Watches Today, a wristwatch is considered as much of a status symbol as a device to tell time. The watches and jewellery has not been immune to the economic climate and the whole industry suffered in late 2008 and in 2009 as consumer confidence fell and people became more cautious about their spending. The overall jewellery and watches market grew by 10% since 2005 to reach  £4.8 billion in 2010 and Mintel forecasts 11% growth for the jewellery and watches market over next five years. 2011 is also going to be the year to invest in mens jewellery. Stephen Webster presented a strong case for mens jewellery at IJL in September 2010, and assuming male customer only want watches and the odd signet or chain could lead to missing out on a potential wealth of customer. Its not that male customers dont want it: they just dont know they want it. Men arent like women and theyre not used to thinking about what to wear, explain Webster. But once a man is bejewelled, theres no looking back. They also dont wait for special occasions like woman do, and they can go from zero to jewellery enthusiast in no time. Market research company Mintels September 2010 report Watches and Jewellery Retailing UK found that 20% of male respondent said they like receiving jewellery as a gift, and 12% said that they had purchased all of their own jewellery. So the market is clearly there to be exploited. http://www.retail-jeweller.com/trends/in-with-the-new-2011-trends/5020089.article Rocketing gold prices and recession have led many consumers to buy silver jewellery instead of gold, with almost one in five people wearing more silver jewellery than gold, rising to nearly three in ten women; particularly young people aged 15 24. The affordability and disposability of many costume jewellery items means that customers are more willing to experiment and try new looks without denting their bank balances Young men aged under- 35 are more open to paying higher amounts for a watch as they typically do not wear jewellery to express their individuality or consumer spending power. Some 86% of consumers wear a watch, but nearly 40% only a new one when their old one is broken. Converging the watchs main function with health benefits would be one way of helping create new reasons for purchase. http://oxygen.mintel.com/sinatra/oxygen/display/id=479809 Executive Summary: https://www.keynote.co.uk/market-intelligence/view/product/10331/chapter/0 Many Brands and companies are constantly reinvigorating their businesses and positioning them for growth. There is a constant need to innovate, reinvigorate, update, recalibrate, or just simply fend off the competition in an effort to better explain ,why buy me. In the market for the brand and product offerings is created by positioning. It reaches a certain type of consumers and delivers benefits that meet the needs of several key target groups and users. Actual Approach of a company or brands positioning in the marketplace depends on how it communicates the benefits and product attributes to consumers and users. As a result positioning of a company and/or product seeks to further distance itself from competitors based on a host of items, but most notably on five key issues: Price, Quality, Product Attributes, Distribution, and Usage Occasions. In recent times, consumerism has undergone a sea change. Consumers today are well informed about the products, as compared to earlier times. Hence, the market has become customer centric. Recognizing the importance of the customer is business structure; companies have started effecting brand repositioning exercise on regular basis. In the recent times, a major brand repositioning exercise has been planned by Titian Industries Ltd in order to provide more to its customers. The company has its new position. This study will help to understand the revived positioning strategies of TITAN watches. An analysis of repositioning strategies of Titan also forms of the study. Firstly it is important to understand the overall wrist watch industry in UK. Secondly to study the brand positioning and re-positioning strategy of Titan wrist watches and to find out whether the loyal consumers of TITAN watches aware of the new positioning strategies of the company and how they perceive them. To study primary and secondary data have been used. Analysis UK wrist watch industry and brand repositioning strategies of TITAN Company has been analysed and completed on the basis of secondary data. Internet, journals, books and magazines have been used for this purpose. Project comprises conducting a questionnaire survey. (function() { var scribd = document.createElement("script"); scribd.type = "text/javascript"; scribd.async = true; scribd.src = "https://www.scribd.com/javascripts/embed_code/inject.js"; var s = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(scribd, s); })() Introduction: 1.1 Theory and concepts: A business has two and only two basic functions: marketing and innovation Peter Drucker To maintain business relevance and market position, it is important to continuously innovate and invent brand image in the market to pace with change and intense competitive pressure in the marketplace. In this context, brand repositioning and other revitalization strategies have become a business imperative for battling brand erosion. The appeal of brand repositioning is further heightened by the rising costs and high risk associated with launching a new brand. Increase in the cost and high risk related with launching a new brand that is a part of brand reposition.Brand reposition has received very importance in the marketing literature and mostly been treated as a variation of brand positioning. Reposition can be required as the market changes and new opportunities occur. In order to reach the customer which was never targeted at first can also be targeted with brand reposition. In order to change its image in the market it is important to focus towards brand repositioning, although it is one of the toughest and hardest actions in marketing to reposition a familiar brand. According to Solomon, position strategy is an essential part in the marketing efforts because companies have to use the elements in the marketing mix to influence the customers understanding the position. There has to be several choices to be, so to as to be in more attractive and relevant position. It is important for the person who is reposition for the reposition to know and understand why reposition is necessary and its need, and if the offer is the one that will change or just the brand name. While repositioning it is important to undertake and understand all the risk factors that is likely to affect it in the market. A company risks its credibility and reliability more while repositioning its brand in the market and the need for a thorough strategy is very important to avoid any occurrence. Some analyst argues that to successfully reposition a established brand name is almost impossible because repositioning of a brand can make the most loyal customer to switch brand. If the brand is eroded then brand reposition becomes important. Numerous attempts to reposition brand in the market may fail which is testified by many company for example while soft drink has successfully been able to connect with the youth though they exist for 40 years in the market but at the same Levis, jeans has been losing its market share to newcomers such as The Gap despite numerous campaigns designed to reposition the brand trend. 1.2 Literature Review: The reposition strategy is defined into three stages that is: Introductory Elaboration Fortification This involves the introduction of a new or a repositioned brand, seeking underline the brands value over others, and to broaden the brand position. It is truly hard to change the customers perceived attitude towards a brand, and therefore the risk is great that the attempt to repositioning might fail. After rolling out the strategy, it is time to modify the proposition through update of the personality and through repositioning. There pros and cons with both of this segments and it is great significance that they are truly calculate when deciding the next step in the process. To understand it more deeply http://htmlimg4.scribdassets.com/55f3acalz4nfgla/images/10-81b5e3fa9c/000.jpg Figure 1: Stages in brand strategy development. When a company modifies or change something that is already there in the market established in the mind of the customer that is called as repositioning. Different profession and individuals have different meaning and understanding towards Repositioning. There are few different definitions and greater understanding about this concept: Repositioning is a change, principally about triggering the vision, mission and value in a new direction that is more suited f or the brand in the future- Brand manager consultant. Principally, reposition concerns changing the consumers perception of the brand PR consultant. Repositioning is built upon the change of unique and differentiated associations with the brand in some kind of direction; it is about having a balance between the category party and differentiation when using reposition strategies (Leading Brand strategies) From these definitions, it is obvious that reposition is about moving something to more attractive and relevant position. Reposition direction is often decided as to what a company wants to achieve. There is also a visible relation between price and quantity aspects. When a company perceives the market as a demand curve, the purpose is to down stretch or upward curve. When moving up and there is a need for reaching the premium segment and expand up wards. Figure: The principle of reposition. When striving towards a new position in the market, it is important to understand those consumers are limited. Peoples minds select what to remember and it is important to convince the consumers with greater arguments. The market always strive for change which is rapid and therefore repositioning can be necessary to meet these demands, newer and stronger arguments have to be established to convinced them to stay as loyal customers. As repositioning is a very complicated matter and therefore there are no detailed theories or models. Aim for repositioning is different for different person, and the only connection between all the different theories is that repositioning is moving something from somewhere towards a greater position at the market. Corstjens and Doyle (1989) identified three types of repositioning strategies: Zero repositioning, which is not a repositioning at all since the firm maintains its initial strategy in the face of a changing environment. Gradual repositioning, where the firm performs incremental, continuous adjustments to its positioning strategy to reflect the evolution of its environment; and Radical repositioning that corresponds to a discontinuous shift towards a new target market and /or a new competitive advantage. After learning the repositioning of several brands from the UK market, the following 8 types of repositioning have been identified. These are: Increasing relevance to the consumer Increasing occasions for use Making the brand serious Falling sales Bringing in new customers Making the rand contemporary Differentiate from other brands Changed market conditions A four phased brand repositioning approach can be followed to achieve the intended benfits- Phase I. Determining the current status of the brand Phase II. What does the brand stand for today? Phase III. Developing the brand positioning platforms Phase IV. Refining the brand Positioning and Management Presentation The advantages that can be derived from brand repositioning exercises can be summarized as: Value over others Updated personality Relevant position The risks associated with such strategies are: Loss of focus Neglecting original customers Losing credibility for the brand Confusing the brand Therefore, brand repositioning is more difficult than initially positioning a brand because one must first help the customer UNLEARN the current brand positioning This can be done by: Carefully crafted communication New products, packaging Associations with other brands ( co- branding, co- marketing, ingredient branding, strategic alliances, etc) that reinforce the new brand positioning. This exercise is so critical to an organizations success that the organizations and its marketing/brand management leader should develop it, preferably with the help and facilitation of an outside brand positioning expert. Research Methodology: 2.1 Objectives To study the current scenario of UK wrist watch industry. To review the brand positioning strategies of different sub-brands of watches. To analyze the brand repositioning strategies of watches. To study consumer awareness and perception about the brand repositioning strategies of watches. This study will help to understand the gap in its communication strategy regarding brand repositioning exercises and the further measures to be taken for effective marketing communications. 2.2 Limitations: The study is confined to London area only There is possibility of sampling errors in the study The responses of the consumers may not be genuine Questionnaire may not be comprehensive 2.3 Sources of Data Collection: The relevant data was collected from both primary sources and secondary sources. The starting point of my information gathering has been the secondary sources such as internet, books, and journals and so on. Firstly, brand positioning and repositioning strategies of Titan, secondary sources such as internet, insurance magazines, and journals and so on. Then I conducted a consumer awareness survey on brand repositioning strategies undertaken by Titan watches in recent times. 2.4 Sampling: To conduct sampling of 50 loyal consumers of Titan and in the age group of 20 30 years for this study. Since Titan has taken up brand repositioning strategies since January 2011, consumers who have seen the previous and new campaigns have been targeted. 2.5 Primary data: Data was collected through an interview schedule, consisting of both open ended and closed ended questions. It consisted of the parameters like reasons consumers brand preference, recollection of earlier tagline and advertisement, brand ambassador of Titan awareness of new tagline and campaign featuring sportsmen and actors from International body and so on. The data was collected through e-mails, telephone contacts and one to one personal interviews. Industry Overview UK Watch industry: Market report examines the UK jewellery and watches market, total sales of jewellery and watches in the UK fluctuated between 2004 and 2008, and fell by 2.8% in the latter year to finish the review period at  £4.33 billion. The declining sales in 2008 can be largely attributed to the global economic downturn and UK recession, which have had a negative impact on nearly all industries. Initially, the luxury end of the market was relatively unaffected by the downturn, but by the end of 2008 and 2009, it had begun to take effect. The jewellery and Watches market has become increasingly competitive in recent years. Although the industry has always been fragmented with a wide range of suppliers and retailers, developments in online retailing have contributed to it becoming increasingly transparent for information on pricing and availability. This has been a positive trend, especially for many smaller brands that previously were not able to deal directly with consumers. Some larger retailers, as well as a few independents, have also developed transactional sites to deal with this demand. With around a third of the UK population owning a piece of precious jewellery and nearly in ten owning a watch, products have a high rate of consumer penetration. The downturn in the UK economy is unlikely to show reversal in 2009, and this will continue to affect all areas of consumer spending. It seems the concepts of a wrist watch have become that of a status symbol rather than a practical chronometer. According to a survey that suggest one in seven people in the UK has no need for watch, apart from as a fashion accessory. Gadgets such as iPods, laptops and mobile phone, represent threat to the watch industry, survey conducted by Mintel. Even in the age of iPhones, people spend huge amount of money on a quality time piece, with high-end brands such as Rolex and Tag Heuer adorning blinged up wrist of rappers, bankers and fashionistas alike. http://www.wharf.co.uk/2010/11/why-wrist-watches-are-dialling.html SWOT ANALYSIS OF THE UK WATCH INDUSTRY: Strengths: Watch industry is growing industry which faster rate As the population is rising, the watch market is also expanding Customers are not very price sensitive as far as quality watch is concerned Weakness: There is not much advertising done by watch industry No innovation in products There are few number of exclusive showrooms that reduces the consumers accessibility to the product There are few marketers, who are concentrated only upon a particular niche segment (Tag Heuer ) Opportunities: There is more need of fashionable luxury watch and fine luxury watch brands that can be targeted in UK, as customers are more like trendsetter and fashionable. UK especially London is a metropolitan city which makes it more attractive for the new company. Youth are more brand conscious than their predecessors. That leads to the expansion of the market for branded watches. Threats: There are many foreign players entering in the race Too many players will dilute the market and the profit margin. Mobile phones acting as substitutes of the watches. The Indian watch industry began in the year 1961 with the commissioning of the watch division of Titan. The first watch model manufactured by HMT was the Janata model in the year 1962. HMT was the leader in the watch market till the Tatas formed Titan watches in association with Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation in the year 1987. They took a major strategy decision, which later changed the face of the Indian watch market to manufacture only quartz watches. Liberalisation in 1992 and removal of quantitative restrictions due to WTO has opened the doors for many the Indian market viz. Tissot, Swatch, Omega, Rado, TAGHeuer. The import duties on watches are falling which makes the Indian market look attractive for the global majors like Casio, Swatch and Citizen. Company Profile: Overview Titan is the largest watch company in India and the sixth largest in the world. Titan manufactures over 7 million watches per annum and has a customer base over 65 million. An industry was established in 1984 as a joint venture between the Tata Group and the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation. The company brought the shift in the Indian watch market, offering quartz technology with International styling, manufactured in a state-of-the art factory at Hosur, Tamil Nadu. Leveraging its understanding of different segments in the watch market, the company launched a second independent watch brand Sonata, as a value brand to those seeking buy functionally styled watches at affordable prices. In addition it focused on the youth with its third brand fastrack. In two decades the company has built an impressive watch business to become Indias largest manufacturer and the worlds sixth manufacturer of watches. This has mainly been achieved by developing a formidable distribution network. The company has amongst the worlds largest retail chain of exclusive retail showrooms for watches called The world of Titan spread over 100 towns. It also has multi brand outlets named Time Zone, service centers and dealer outlets. Globally Titan has a presence in over 30 countries through its marketing subsidiaries. The company has watch assembly plants at Dehradun (UP) and Baddi ( Himachal Pradesh) and a plant manufacturing electronic circuit boards in Goa. The majority stake in the company is held by the promoters, with Tidco having 28 percent of the shares and Tata Group companies owning 25 percent of the shares. Public holding in the company is around 28 per cent. The rest of the stake is held by foreign institutions, non resident Indians, mutual funds and other institutions. It has also premium fashion watches by acquiring a license for global brands such as Tommy Hilfiger and Hugo Boss, while. It has also in its portfolio its first Swiss Made watch brand Xylys. 1995, the company diversified into jewellery under the brand Tanishq to capitalize on fragmented market operating with no brands in urban cities. In 2005, the launched its second Jewellery brand, GoldPlus, for capitalizing on the opportunity in small towns and rural India. The company has now diversified into fashion Eyewear by launching Fastrack Eye-Gear sunglasses, as well as Prescription Eyewear. TITAN WATCHES: BRAND POSITIONING STRATEGIES Overall strategies: Since its introduction, Titan has been positioned as a premium brand, providing high quality products. Titan is struggling to have a strong brand image in UK market due to its numerous sub-brands that caters to different segments in India. It follows different positioning strategies; these strategies can also be analyzed as given below: Attribute Positioning: When the company launched its products, it was the first to bring quartz watches to Indian market. The company successfully leveraged this to penetrate the market. Raga, Classique and Regalia come under this strategy. Classique positioned as elegant corporate wear that leaves a quiet, but definite impression and fusion of function and sophistication. Regalia ranger represents the elegant-wear. Raga has been differentiate and positioned as exclusive watch. The Raga and Silver Raga collection is elegant, delicate and feminine with each piece truly unique. User Positioning: Titan caters to several user groups children (the Dash), sportspersons and adventurers. The fastrack range is seen as being contemporary, reliable and sturdy. The advertising, packaging and merchandising of this range is young, cool and vibrant. Benefit Positioning: Titan seeks to differentiate its offering on the basis of superior style and attractiveness which is offered by fastrack Digital range. Competitors Positioning: With the entry of several foreign watchmakers into the market, Titan had to encounter the threat. Most the entrants are catering to the upper end of the market Omega, Cartier etc. Quality or Price Positioning: In the overseas market, especially in Europe where it is competing with Swiss and Japanese watches, it is positioning itself as value-for-money (less than Swiss watches and higher than Japanese), attractively styled and of good quality. TITAN WATCHES: BRAND RE-POSITIONING STRATEGIES FOR GLOBALISATION Titan has managed to get fair market in Middle East and Africa but its failure in Europe was a downturn for the Company as the return was not as good as investment made for the expansion. Titan has decided to revamp its flagship watch brand in Europe mainly in UK. Titan wants to reposition it more youthful and relevant to the changing times. Titan has entered the International markets in 1989 through the export of watch movements. Titans first global footprint was placed in the UAE the largest market in the Middle East then it moved towards Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia and few markets in Africa. Though it faced strong competition, it reached the sales of 100,000 watches within a year of its launch. It started to move globally and moves towards Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives and Nepal. After its extensive survey, it concluded that it needs good reason to stock the brand. Titan needs to re-position its brand image in the UK market. And so Titan decided to against soft option of driving its globalization through private label exports. It would launch its product under its own brand with market positioning Therefore Titan found a massive advertising campaign to create brand awareness. It also participated in the fair which showcases the worlds biggest watch brand in the world. http://www.moodiereport.com/images/luxury_watch_tables_jan10_04.jpg http://www.moodiereport.com/images/luxury_watch_tables_jan10_05.jpg CONCLUSION: The suggestions to improve consumer awareness about brand repositioning strategy of Titan are as follows: To increase its visibility, Titan Company can sponsor events similar to fashion shows which all latest designs launched are displayed. This is important as it has a great effect on different segments of the customers in different ways. It is important to have Tie up with radio channels and television to broadcast and telecast its advertisement about various sales promotion from time to time. RD needs more investment as customer expectations are changing rapidly. It should focus more on introducing more varieties and luxury items in the market at regular interval. Introduce exclusive collection for working women which is more contemporary and complements any fashion styles. Tie up with international watch brands to make the product stronger in the market. To use internet to spread awareness among consumer about the brand. (function() { var scribd = document.createElement("script"); scribd.type = "text/javascript"; scribd.async = true; scribd.src = "https://www.scribd.com/javascripts/embed_code/inject.js"; var s = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(scribd, s); })()

The Gender Battle in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Essay -- Frankenstein

The Gender Battle in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein The fight for domination amongst the sexes is a battle as old as civilization, where the ideas of gender hierarchies first began. These conflicts often manifest themselves unwittingly through literature, showing subtle signs of deeper tension that has ensued for centuries. The struggle between masculine and feminine becomes apparent through Frankenstein, a battle that results in the death of the potentially most powerful figure in the book. Frankenstein yields characters motivated by complicated thinking, specifically the title character, Victor Frankenstein. Victor is a brilliant 19th century Swiss scientist who succeeds in generating life with electricity, creating a creature that eventually turns on his master and begins a reign of terror wherever he roams. Understanding Victor in relation to feminist studies is possible through examining his actions regarding the monster’s request of Frankenstein to fashion him a partner. Unable to win the love of his maker, Frankenstein, or his makeshift step brother, man, the monster believes the only being capable of loving him would be a creature equally horrifying as himself. Frankenstein initially refuses to comply with the demand because of guilt he already feels for the evil his monster has done. Eventually moved to pity, Frankenstein agrees to design a female on the grounds that she and her mate will "quit the neighbourhood of man" and never be seen again (Shelley 144). Victor partially completes the project before he "[tears] the thing to pieces," reasoning that he cannot have any part of making another creature who, like her mate, could become a "curse upon mankind" (Shelley 144-145). His decision seems noble to the reader, as we... ...ect mankind, but rather a wish to keep order in the masculine world. Destroying the female monster ensures that there is no feminine force created the male counterpart cannot combat, be that Victor or the monster. The female monster is a symbol in Frankenstein of an unstoppable feminine force. Only through the demise of such a character is Victor Frankenstein assured that he has not allowed that force to commandeer the control he and mankind have over femininity. Works Cited Kiely, Robert. The Romantic Novel in England, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press, 1972. Liggins, Emma 2000. 'The Medical Gaze and the Female Corpse: Looking at Bodies in Shelley's Frankenstein' Studies in the Novel, number 32: 129-146 Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. Ed. D.L. Macdonald and Kathleen Scherf. Peterborough: Broadview Press, 1994. The Gender Battle in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Essay -- Frankenstein The Gender Battle in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein The fight for domination amongst the sexes is a battle as old as civilization, where the ideas of gender hierarchies first began. These conflicts often manifest themselves unwittingly through literature, showing subtle signs of deeper tension that has ensued for centuries. The struggle between masculine and feminine becomes apparent through Frankenstein, a battle that results in the death of the potentially most powerful figure in the book. Frankenstein yields characters motivated by complicated thinking, specifically the title character, Victor Frankenstein. Victor is a brilliant 19th century Swiss scientist who succeeds in generating life with electricity, creating a creature that eventually turns on his master and begins a reign of terror wherever he roams. Understanding Victor in relation to feminist studies is possible through examining his actions regarding the monster’s request of Frankenstein to fashion him a partner. Unable to win the love of his maker, Frankenstein, or his makeshift step brother, man, the monster believes the only being capable of loving him would be a creature equally horrifying as himself. Frankenstein initially refuses to comply with the demand because of guilt he already feels for the evil his monster has done. Eventually moved to pity, Frankenstein agrees to design a female on the grounds that she and her mate will "quit the neighbourhood of man" and never be seen again (Shelley 144). Victor partially completes the project before he "[tears] the thing to pieces," reasoning that he cannot have any part of making another creature who, like her mate, could become a "curse upon mankind" (Shelley 144-145). His decision seems noble to the reader, as we... ...ect mankind, but rather a wish to keep order in the masculine world. Destroying the female monster ensures that there is no feminine force created the male counterpart cannot combat, be that Victor or the monster. The female monster is a symbol in Frankenstein of an unstoppable feminine force. Only through the demise of such a character is Victor Frankenstein assured that he has not allowed that force to commandeer the control he and mankind have over femininity. Works Cited Kiely, Robert. The Romantic Novel in England, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press, 1972. Liggins, Emma 2000. 'The Medical Gaze and the Female Corpse: Looking at Bodies in Shelley's Frankenstein' Studies in the Novel, number 32: 129-146 Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. Ed. D.L. Macdonald and Kathleen Scherf. Peterborough: Broadview Press, 1994.

Aluminium is the third most common element on Earth after oxygen and silicon

Aluminium is the third most common element on Earth after oxygen and silicon. The aluminium industry had a Gross Domestic Product of $3.1 billion in1997/98, ranking the aluminium industry amongst Australia's leading manufacturers and employs over 16000 people directly. The total value of export earnings was about $6.3 billion in 1998/99, second only to coal as an export industry for Australia. These facts underline the fact that the aluminium industry is a major asset to Australia and is world competitive. Aluminium is important to us currently and is used from everything from soft drink cans to car bodies to window frames. Aluminium is lightweight, strong, long-lasting, highly corrosion resistant as a protective oxide coating is naturally generated, is an excellent heat and electricity conductor, has good reflective properties, is very ductile, completely impermeable and odourless and totally recyclable. Despite this, less than 200 tonnes in 1885 were produced compared to approximately 22 million tonnes in 1998 – plus some 5 million tonnes of recycled Aluminium. This is because aluminium is so highly oxidized that it can be only refined using huge amounts of electricity and electricity did not become readily available until this century. Thus, it is known as the metal of the 20th century. There are three process involved in the manufacture of Aluminium: Bauxite mining, alumina refinery and aluminium smelting. Raw Materials – Cryolite (Na3AlF6). Sodium Aluminium Fluoride. This reduces the temperature needed to electrolyse the aluminium reducing the cost. It was originally obtained from mines in Greenland, but the supply has depleted and it is now produced synthetically. – Aluminium fluoride (AlF3), calcium fluoride (CaF2) and Lithium Fluoride (LiF) which play the part of reducing the melting point of the mixture. – Alumina (Al2O3). This is obtained from bauxite, a red rock-like material, which also contains a lot of unwanted substances. Bauxite is mined in Western Australia, Queensland and Northern Territory. Bauxite mining leaves a lot of barren areas which will be investigated later. Bauxite and alumina are stored in storage bunkers. To produce aluminium metal, bauxite has to be concentrated, thus removing most impurities. Bauxite is crushed and washed to remove some of the clay and sand then dried in kilns. This is because crushed bauxite is easier to transport. The ore is loaded onto trucks, railway cars, or conveyor belts and transported to ships or refinery. The concentration of bauxite into alumina is called the Bayer process as shown below. Note that the red mud from the refinery must be carefully disposed of and this will be explore in Environmental factors. The Chemical Process To refine aluminium from alumina which contains both aluminium and oxygen, electrolysis is used, in a process known as the Hall-Heroult process. Alumina has to be liquefied (it is mixed with cryolite to reduce melting temperatures) and each cell is supplied with four to six volts and 150,000 amps of electricity. The sequence of creation is: All pots are covered so that exhaust gases are drawn into a large fume duct (will be explored later). As this involves consumable anodes, the pots cannot be sealed and every time a pot is opened, a small quantity of volatile gases escapes. For the safety and comfort of workers, the potroom needs to be well ventilated and the workers need breathing protection equipment. So much electricity is needed in this process that many smelters are located near hydro-electric plants or have their own power stations such as Alcoa which mines brown coal to generate electricity that meets 50% of its energy requirements. Approximately 16 kWh of energy is needed to produce one kg of molten metal in the Hall-Heroult Process compared to a theoretical energy of 6.34 kWh per kg of molten metal. Two main causes of this are the reoxidation of aluminium metal by carbon dioxide and high temperature, as well as side reactions wasting energy. Computers are now being used to monitor each pot continuously and set a best voltage for any particular condition reducing energy consumption. Covering the top of the anodes with an insulator to prevent them burning off and improved quality of carbon anodes reduces energy loss. Australia's comparatively has a low consumption of power for each kilogram of aluminium produced. Research is currently being done to find an alternative extraction process and the two main ways are through carbon reduction and electrolysis of aluminium chloride. The Product Aluminium, Al a Group III element is the product that results. Its properties and uses were discussed above. Other than the pure substance, alloys are also made containing copper, magnesium, manganese, chromium, silicon, nickel, iron and zinc. Quality control issues include the issue that normal refining processes do not remove all the impurities from aluminium, so most commonly used industrial aluminium already has small amounts of impurities alloyed with it. Fortunately, this makes aluminium stronger but remains easy to bend. Some alloys are less suitable for extrusion than others, requiring higher pressures, allowing only low extrusion speeds and/or having less than acceptable surface finish and section complexity. Aluminium sheets which are rolled from ingots are not flat when produced from the rolling mills. To flatten it, they are stretched between heavy-duty hydraulically-operated grips. A Micro Alignment Telescope with sweep optical square is used to check the flatness within specified tolerance to ensure the quality. One random sample for each batch of the aluminium and its alloy ingots undergo an optical spectrometry analysis to ensure that the results lie within the limits determined by Australian specification. The by-products and waste products of this product are carbon dioxide and fluoride gases as well as sulphur and nitrogen oxides. Carbon dioxide gas is a greenhouse gas and large amounts of fluorides are toxic. Sulphur and nitrogen oxides are acid rain gases. Therefore these need to be controlled and this will be investigated below in Environmental Factors. The aluminium and its alloy ingots or its processed equivalents are packed and distributed through shipping. Approximately 78% of all aluminium produced in Victoria is exported. Location Australia has six aluminium smelters located in Tasmania (one), Victoria (two), New South Wales (two) and Queensland (one). However Bauxite mines are in Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia. This is because the energy costs are too high to set up a plant near the mines but in Tasmania, Victoria and New South Wales electricity is cheap. As lots of electricity is used in the electrolysis, it is cheaper to transport the bauxite to the smelters than to set up a smelter near the mines and pay higher costs for electricity. Other factors that are taken into account include the labour force available (generally higher near cities), transportation of the aluminium produced (so the smelter has to be near ports, railway stations or highways), geographic factors (smelters are built in residential areas where the land is cheap) and legal factors (whether the sounds and the activities such as the fumes released and the transportation of aluminium using trucks would affect nearby residential properties who could sue). Environmental By recycling aluminium, approximately 95% of the energy (approximately 2 billion kWh of electricity) otherwise required to produce the primary metal aluminium can be saved. This makes the aluminium cheaper to manufacture as well as reduce the rapid depletion of non-renewable fossil fuels to produce electricity. When land is mined for Bauxite, active reforestation must be carried out to ensure the stability of the environment as well as ensuring that the soil left over doesn't erode and cause mud slides. Extreme care must be taken with the handling and disposal of red mud from the refineries. This is usually pumped into dams which are sealed with impervious material to prevent pollution of surrounding countryside. The manufacture of aluminium produces carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, fluoride gas, a toxic gas and other exhaust gases (such as the sulphur and nitrate oxides) that can potentially be harmful. To combat their pollution, all pots are covered and the fumes are drawn into a fume duct where the gases pass through beds of alumina which adsorbs over 99%of the fluoride. All cryolite needs to be manufactured synthetically and suitable fluorides are expensive and so they need to be recovered. The gases then pass through dust filter bags and a dry scrubber and treatment facilities to remove the greenhouse and other gases and only clean air is released. Although manufacture of aluminium uses a lot of energy and other options to mine aluminium are being investigated (as shown above), the use of aluminium itself has saved a large amount of energy because they are strong and light. It is estimated that 1,230 litres of petrol was saved in cars that used 64 kg of aluminium instead of other metals and this saved more than five times the energy required to produce each kilogram of aluminium used in the car.

Cosi character profiles and backdrops

The main once is obviously the theatre but the more in depth backgrounds Is the movement of the people In the real world. The Vietnam Moratorium, which was fighting for the government to return all the troops from the Vietnam War and the Sexual Revolution, which was a social movement that fought against the traditional codes towards to sexual relationships. The Vietnam Moratorium The moratorium was a mass demonstration against involvement in the Vietnam War.The demonstration took place throughout the US on October 1 5th, 1969 Jerome Groomsman's call for a general strike, if the war was still going by October, is what sparked the moratorium movement. It was announced In December of 1969, that not only would American troops would be brought home, but one Australian troop would also be brought home towards the middle of 1970. This of course did not stop the moratorium movement. Australian demonstrators continued to make plans for more rallies and continued to demand the removal of all t he troops.The strength of the moratorium movement greatly shocked the Australian government. They were shocked at the level of anti- AR and even anti-government feeling that was spreading throughout the country. The third moratorium in June 1971 closed the Centre. In Melbourne, on 30 June 1971, there was march of nearly 100,000 people. By this time public opinion was beginning to turn decisively against conscription and Australian involvement in the war. Sexual Revolution The sass's were also known as a time of ‘Sexual Liberation'. They fought for the acceptance of sex outside of heterosexual and marriages.Their aim was to make contraception, public nudity, premarital sex and homosexuality all normal. This also included the legalization of abortion. A new, sexualities popular culture swung into Australian life in the sass's, and it seemed everyone wanted to be apart of it. Watching a porn film at the local movie theatre and looking through a sex advice manual in public were bo th markers that the Sexual Revolution was taking action. An outgrowth of the countercultures began with casting aside traditional sexual restraints and gave the starting gun to a decade of eroticism and experimentation.Australians broke many sexual rules during this era including interracial dating, open homosexuality, communal living, casual nudity and dirty language. Sexual activity mongo the younger generations sparked widely as well. Designers also took advantage of the new era by producing mini skirts, hot pants, halter-tops and clothes designed to show off a woman's body. â€Å"Coos fan Tutee† was an opera that was written by Mozart and was first performed in 1790 is based on a pair of male friends that test their girlfriend's loyalty to their relationships.The name roughly translates to â€Å"Women are like that†. The name suggests that the opera is about how women are unable to stay faithful to their beloved and often go around with other men behind the back of their relationships. The first performance was held in Vienna and since 1790 the opera has been revamped to sometimes more modern themes and held in theatres all over the world. Louis Anorak's semi-autobiographical play, Coos is a touching portrayal of the opera that is acted by patients in a Melbourne mental institution.All of these themes are incorporated into the play that Lewis wrote based on his experiences during the moratorium and the sexual revolution about Coos fan Tutee. They all tie in together and they all make their own parallel to Lewis and his life; they all have a habit of getting in the way. Many of the patients are very passionate about the events occurring outside their asylum walls, as it is the only thing they have to concentrate on, so it seems they put all their time and effort into creating something beautiful. Julies character is significant in a number of ways.Firstly, she is very opposed to the idea of love. She always thought that love was being foolish and stupid. † IN another example, Julie and Lucy aver very similar. Julie says about men and fidelity: â€Å"l don't like men's double standards, I guess. Men want women to deceive them because it will prove their worst thoughts about women. Whereas Lucy believes that men wasn't women to â€Å"pretend they're true and faithful. † Julie in a small way is an alternated version of Lucy who Just happens to be living in a mental asylum. She is a character who brings Lewis into a new and strange world.

The Old, Bald, Toothless Angel

The supposed angel in the story A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings by Gabriel Garcia Marquez differs from the usual conception of angels with the following characteristics: its physical appearance, its effect upon the community, and the paranormal occurrences of its presence. The usual conception on the images of angels are romanticized – images of blonde children with small, white wings and rosy cheeks. However, the ‘angel’ in Marquez’s story is described as an old man, dirty, smelly, and possesses rotting wings. â€Å"He was dressed like a ragpicker. There were only a few faded hairs left on his bald skull and very few teeth in his mouth, and his pitiful condition of a drenched great-grandfather had taken away any sense of grandeur he might have had. His huge buzzard wings, dirty and half-plucked, were forever tangled in mud† (Marquez, 387). In addition, the use of the word ‘enormous’ used to described the old man’s wings are strewn with mud and rotting, full of small insects and parasites. The characters in the story immediately perceive the old man to be a fallen angel, because of the state of his wings. Also, the enormity of the wings give emphasis on Marquez use of the magic realism genre in the story. The shape and size of the wings may be exaggerated in a realistic point of view but the use of enormous gives the reader a more realistic approach to the old man. It also presents an ordinary experience on part of the characters – since Pelayo and Elisenda did not express shock of the old man’s appearance but of his condition – lying in the mud and in a downcast state. As the story revolves on the theme of magical realism, the characters in the story do not express shock over the old man’s appearance. They exhibit behaviour as though they see kinds of magical creatures often in their lives. Indeed, the first reaction of the couple is more a contradiction toward the whole theme of the story – a realistic perspective. They deduced that the old man may be a castaway from a ship across the sea that was wrecked by some storm. They based their judgement when they tried to ask the old man and responded in a strong sailor’s voice with a foreign dialect. However, the couple was not convinced and decided to ask a woman who had experience with such matters. The old woman needed only a glance and immediately concluded that the old man was an angel sent to take the couple’s ailing child (Marquez, 388). Thus, the themes of magic and realism come together from different point of views. The old man’s effect on the community, upon hearing the suggestion of the old woman, also became magical in one point. As exhibited by the behaviour of the townspeople in the story, they immediately associate the angel with various miracles and scenarios – that the angel was sent to be the leader of the world, to be a five star general in order to end wars, and such. The angel is also viewed by the community not as a supernatural creature but rather as a circus animal. After all the commotion the old man brought to the community, the couple decided to charge a fee for everybody who wanted to see the angel. Its popularity declined when a circus act visited the town with a spider-lady as its main attraction. The people favored the spider-woman over the angel as the spider had a personal story on why she turned to such while the angel did nothing but sit on the chicken coop. Marquez presents an alternative conception of the angel – that the spider, with all its grotesquery and exhibiting usual emotions like pain and emotional suffering, greatly amused the people rather than an old, mute angel rotting in its place. People favored amusement, even if the object is supernatural in nature. Apart from this, Marquez presents the angel to be a mere object of interest for only a limited time until the townspeople shifted their attention toward the spider. Angels are often regarded to be holy beings, that are capable of miracles, and provides ‘good’ in people’s lives. But the angel in the story remains isolated from the community and only act as though he had no care of his condition. His characteristics were also a downfall toward the perception of the community – he was old, toothless, with rotting wings and a pronounced stench. Even though the old man was first conceived as an angel, people did not pay the same amount of attention compared to the spider-woman, who exhibited an emotional plight that greatly amused the people. The paranormal presence of the angel did not stir bewilderment on the characters of the story – instead they presented keen interest and ill-disguised curiosity. Also, their immediate association of the old man as a universal solution to all their worldly-problems became the definitive character of the angel. Yet, they did not bother to place the angel in greater prominence, as they ignored him until one day, he grew new wings and began to fly toward the ocean horizon. The disappearance of the angel also coincided with the growth of Pelayo and Elisenda’s child, and deduced that the angel took away the child’s sickness. And because of the fee they charged to see the angel, the couple became rich from their profits. Marquez persuades the reader into a personal interpretation of the old man – just like the people in the story. He presents the old man with its characteristics and it is up to the reader to decide whether it is an angel or not. However, Marquez also utilizes several peculiar situations and characteristics that coincide with the angel’s presence in the story. His enormous wings is the main point. It appears as though it was nothing out of the extraordinary; that the characters in the story were accustomed to seeing wings deeply implanted in a person’s structure. Also, as the angel grew another set of wings, it could have been assumed that it would resemble the pearly-white color of a real angel but the old man’s wings were that of a scarecrow (Marquez, 392). Marquez leaves room for interpretation on the part of the reader as to what the old man really is. He presents a wholly different perspective of an angel, as presented by the examples of the people in which the old revolved upon. It may be an angel or just an old, toothless man with enormous wings.