Farewell to Arms

People often find meaning in their lives by devoting themselves to a certain passion or conviction. In Ernest Hemingway’s A uk/farewell-to-manzanar-2/">Farewell to Arms, individuals struggle to find meaning and order in an otherwise chaotic and war-torn world. For example, Frederic Henry, who has little sense of direction or purpose from his demoralization from war, seems to find solace in love, which serves as the conviction Frederic needs to obtain peace and stability. Although his attempts to find order fail and lead to great suffering for him, Frederic ends up maturing greatly, with a better understanding of life.Hemingway uses Frederic’s conflict between his duty as a soldier and his love for Catherine to demonstrate that maturity and true solace come from following a conviction and gracefully accepting the hardships that may follow. Frederic begins the war as a naive and detached young man seeking for a purpose in life to guide him through life’s troubles. He lacks the conviction needed for him to direct his decisions and live a meaningful life; he thus tries to find structure by enrolling in the war.However, since he is an American with little connection to Italy, Frederic does not have a viable reason to feel committed to the Italian army, evident when he says: â€Å"Well, I knew I would not be killed. Not in this war. It did not have anything to do with me† (37). Even the promise of honor and the duties of patriotism mean little to Henry. Frederic voices his opinion of the irrationality of the war rhetoric by saying: â€Å"I had seen nothing sacred, and the things that were glorious had no glory and the sacrifices were like the stockyards at Chicago if nothing was done with the meat except to bury it† (185).Despite the romanticized ideals about the war, Frederic feels that countless people were dying, not in dignity but in futility, and were rewarded with a disregard that is comparable to animals getting slaughtered i n stockyards only to be buried right after. Frederic is unwilling to sacrifice for the war, as he feels neither an attachment to the Italian army’s cause nor an interest in the patriotic war rhetoric. Frederic slowly restores the passionate and expressive side of him that was lost from the war; his love for Catherine outweighs his loyalty to the army, enabling him to flee the war and find peace.As he talks with Frederic about the void in their lives of religion, Count Greffi states: â€Å"you are in love. Do not forget that is a religious feeling† (237). True to the Count’s remark, both Frederic and Catherine treat their love with a religious devotion. As a result, Frederic develops a sense of meaning and purpose by isolating himself with Catherine, away from the chaotic and corrupt world around them. He finally finds peace when he separates himself from his chaotic surroundings to follow his desire: â€Å"I was going to forget the war.I had made a separate pea ce† (243). His newfound sense of purpose is strong enough that Frederic can bring himself to ignore the potential risks of abandoning his military obligation in favor of following his passion. Frederic suffers through great heartbreak by following his desires rather than his moral duty, but through these experiences, he obtains wisdom and an acceptance of life’s tragedies. After Catherine’s tragic death, he acknowledges that â€Å"I haven’t any life at all anymore† (300).Fredric realizes too late that Catherine was mistakenly the only source of order and strength in his life and is truly devastated as a result. But, as he says when talking to the priest about peasants fighting in the Italian army: â€Å"They were beaten to start with. They were beaten when they took them from their farms and put them in the army. That is why the peasant has wisdom, because he is defeated from the start. Put him in power and see how wise he is† (179). Frederic himself believes that enduring hardships leads to a greater wisdom and understanding of the world.As if predicting the tragic end of his relationship, Frederic says: â€Å"If people bring so much courage to this world the world has to kill them to break them, so of course it kills them. The world breaks every one and afterward many are strong at the broken places† (249). Frederic, through his own suffering, is forced to understand that peace and stability must come from within himself, not from external means such as people or institutions, for the world is cruel and unpredictable.Because of the suffering that ensued from following his conviction, Frederic is able to obtain a wisdom that would be unattainable had he not done so. The love Frederic feels for Catherine outweighs the moral obligation he feels to the Italian army and gives him something to live for. Though he initially suffers from his growing pains, at the end of the story, he is noticeably more mature and accep ting of his hardships. Ultimately, Frederic’s love and his military obligation, two of his many solaces to the chaos during the war, serve merely as stepping stones in his search for true meaning in life.

Macbeth †Does the Lady Lead to Macbeth’s Demise? Essay

But his lady, a deeply ambitious woman who is thirsty for power, takes the witch’s false prophecies as words of wisdom and ignites a fire in Macbeth’s heart. A fire for the desire of power that only innocent blood can put out. Lady Macbeth, who lusts for power, leads Macbeth into the world of evil and brings him nothing but demise to his genuine character, just to quench her thirst. In the beginning of the play, the three witches cast their net of false prophecies on Macbeth, which he easily avoids. Later, he writes a letter to Lady Macbeth explaining the incident. After learning about the witch’s false prophecies, Lady Macbeth’s heart starts to throb. Her imagination takes her on new levels of evilness and greed. Now, all she is thinking about is â€Å"The good news† that was in the letter. Her witty little brain is up to no good, planning the quickest route to the crown that will rest on Macbeth’s head. â€Å"O, never shall sun that morrow see! † (Macbeth, act 1, scene IV) she said, in a simple manner, she expresses that Duncan spending the night at Macbeth’s castle, will not live to Patel 2 see tomorrow. â€Å"Look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under’t. † (Macbeth, act 1, Scene IV) she says to Macbeth, basically telling him to be evil on the inside but appear innocent on the outside. Lady Macbeth will lead Macbeth to his own demise. Lady Macbeth’s ability to influence and convince Macbeth is great. â€Å"Was the hope drunk? Wherein you dressed yourself? Hath it slept since? And wakes it now, to look so green and pale at what it did so freely? From this time such I account thy love. (Macbeth, act 1, scene 7, line 35) She plays around with innocent Macbeth, questioning his love for her after he tries to stop the mayhem of the murder and backs out. â€Å"What beast was ’t, then, that made you break this enterprise to me? When you durst do it, then you were a man; and to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man. † (Macbeth, act 1, scene 7, line 48) Lady Macbeth questions Macbeth’s manhood, which infuriates him to the extent where he decides to go thru with her strategy to acquire the crown. Lady Macbeth knows exactly how to exploit poor Macbeth. Under the evil Lady Macbeth’s influence, Macbeth is a monster in the making. Lady Macbeth manipulates Macbeth to an extent where Macbeth turns into an insecure and a sly person. â€Å"My hands are of your color, but I shame to wear a heart so white. † (Macbeth, act 2, scene 2, line 64) Lady Macbeth addresses Macbeth as a weak hearted when he’s horrified and overwhelmed after he murders Duncan. Once he did the ‘dirty work’ upon commands from the Lady, he committed numerous acts of horror to keep the secret hidden. It begins when he brutally murders two innocent guards and ends with his own demise along with many other deaths. He turns into an insecure monster; he kills anyone who is considered a threat to him. He murders Banquo, his best friend and Patel 3 attempts to murder Fleonce, Banquo’s son who is going to be a king, according to the witches. â€Å"We have scorched the snake, not killed it. † (Macbeth, act 3, scene 2, line 15) Macbeth’s words after his men kill Banquo but not his son. Macbeth has really turned evil, all due to Lady Macbeth. He has indeed turned into a dangerous serpent on the inside and an innocent flower on the outside. Lady Macbeth has succeeded; she got what she wanted. She is the primary cause of Macbeth’s destruction. She manipulated and pressured Macbeth, which transformed him into a lunatic that died a sad death. Even the greatest man fell because of a lady. Lady Macbeth’s influence was strong and hypnotizing. She was his end, his demise, his regrets, she destroyed Macbeth.

Do We Need Mass Immigration?

According to the author Anthony Brown (â€Å"1Britain does not have a declining workforce, but the fastest growing workforce in Europe. This is largely due to the increase in retirement age of women from 60 to 65between 2010 and 2020. The Government Actuary Service predicts that, with zero net immigration, the workforce will grow by 1.2m by 2020, from 36.89m in2000 to 38.127 in 2020†.)   In his point of view immigrations currently configured increases inequality-ties in the UK because it causes a massive redistribution of wealth from those who compete with immigrants in the labor market (who tend to be poor, and suffer lower wages), to those who employ them (who tend to be rich, and enjoy lower costs and bigger profits). This effect swell documented in the US. In addition, in the UK, with its tight property market, those who win are those who already own property, particularly those who rent it out; and those who lose are those who rent their homes and those trying to get on the property ladder. Again, this is generally a redistribution of wealth from poor to rich Immigration. in allowing people to move to where the can maximize their welfare and get maximum return on their skills, is a definite force for good in the world, so longs it doesn’t lead to unbalanced, unsustainable and destabilizing population flows. Therefore, the UK government should aim at policies that allow as free a movement of people as is compatible with having balanced and sustain-able migration, as has been achieved within the EU. Britain 1. This is taken from the book of Do We Need Mass Immigration by Anthony Browney. Should initiate negotiations on having an open border policy with other high-income countries such as Japan, where migration flows are likely to be limited, balanced and beneficial. The Human Rights Principles that Underlie this Work: The author assumes that in this book certain human rights principles,Which I believe should be inalienable and should not beCompromised for political expediency. †¢ Everyone has the right not to be subjected to discrimination of any sort, including racial discrimination. †¢ Everyone has the right to be accepted as a full and equal citizen in the country they were born and grew up in.Ethnic minorities born in the UK are as British as a white person whose family has been here for centuries. It is deeply unjust that in certain Middle East states, and formerly in Germany, immigrant workers’ children who are born in the country and have lived in it all their lives are denied citizenship. White Zimbabweans who were born there, and indeed whose families emigrated there generations ago, have a right to be considered full Zimbabweans. †¢ Every nation has the right to decide who can move there and who can’t. States have a fundamental right to protect the integrity of their borders. †¢ Everyone with a genuine fear of persecution by their government should have the right  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   to asylum. The result is that Immigration is more characterized by distortion, denial and hostility to debate than any other public issue. Such a distorted, one-sided debate would be Inconceivable in any other area of such national importance, whether economics, law and order, or defence.As public concern about immigration has grown, so the Pro-immigrationists imperative to promote more immigration has meant that all counter arguments have had to be neutralized, even if that means a complete U-turn on Previously held positions. (â€Å"2In the late 1990s, governments of all major industrialized nations signed passionate communiquà ©s about how mass unemployment was the biggest problem facing modern society†). Then immigration reared its head, and suddenly it is mass   labor shortages that are the biggest problem of our time. From labor surplus to labor shortage in a few short years—how intellectual fashions flutter in the political wind. In the US, there is an anti-immigration group made up explicitly of ethnic minorities, called the Diversity Alliance, founded by an immigrant from Vietnam who worked in the immigration industry before concluding it was getting out of hand. They conducted an opinion poll which showed that 65 per cent of black Americans favour a moratorium on legal immigration. One of the leading immigration reform journalists in the US is Michelle Malkin, an Asian-American, and author of Invasion. Many of the founders of the black rights movement in the US were anti-immigrant,because of the effect immigration was having in undermining African-Americans in the labour market There are many other motives to oppose immigration which are honourable and nothing to do with racism. Samuel Gompers, the founder of the American Federation of Labor, was a Jewish immigrant who supported the early twentieth-century immigration cut-off in the US. In a 1924 letter to Congress, Gompers wrote(â€Å"Every effort to enact immigration legislation must expect to meet a number of hostile forces and, in particular, two hostile forces of considerable strength†). One of these is composed of corporation Employers who desire to employ physical strength at the lowest possible wage and who prefer a rapidly revolving labor supply at low wages to a regular supply of American wage-earners at fair wages. The other is composed of racial groups in the United States who oppose all restrictive legislation because they want the doors left open for an influx of their countrymen. The brief description in his point of view   is not anti-immigration or anti-immigrant, but argues that the current record wave of immigration is unsustainable and both detrimental to the interests of many people in Britain and against the wishes of the majority of people in Britain. It argues that Britain does not have a moral duty to accept immigration, and that immigration is ineffective as a global development policy. It argues for immigration that is balanced, with equal numbers of people coming and going and that is in the interests of people in Britain rather than Justin the interests of potential immigrants, recent immigrants and businesses that like cheap labor. The immigration system should command the acceptance and confidence of the people of Britain. It also argues that the government should pursue an open borders policy in so far as this is compatible with balanced and sustainable migration, such as negotiating an open border policy with Japan. The UK is experiencing the highest levels of net immigration in its history, quadrupling the rate of population growth and adding 543,000 to the population in the last three years, and 1.02m to the population between 1992 and2000.The level of net legal immigration has grown from 35,000in 1993 to 183,000 in 2000 (the difference between 482,000 (  Ã‚   2. This is also from the same source as above mentioned page no 23) arriving and 299,000 leaving). On top of this is an unknown amount of illegal immigration .Unless immigration declines, it will add more than two million people every ten years. The Government Actuary Service estimates that with immigration of 195,000 a year(very close to the present level of legal immigration), the UK population will grow from 59.8m in 2000 to 68.0m in 2031.On present trends, around 6m of the 8m increase in population will move to London and the South East. This is a completely different phenomenon from earlier waves of immigration, such as Huguenots, Jews and Ugandan Asians, all of whom were forced to leave their Bibliography 1. Brittain, A.W. (1991) ‘Anticipated Child Loss to Migration and Sustained High Fertility in an East Caribbean Population’, Social Biology Vol. 38 No. 1-2 pp. 94-112 2. Coleman, D. (November 2000) ‘Migration to Europe: critique of the new establishment consensus’, speech to Workshop on Demographic Specificity and Integration of Migrants, Federal Institute of Population Research, Germany. 3. By James Antle:   ‘The Myth Of Mynority Natural Republicans.† 4. Shaw, C. (2001) ‘United Kingdom Population Trends in the 21st Century’, Population Trends 103 London: The Stationery Office. 5. Webs.      

Juvenile Crime and Socio-economic Factors Term Paper

Juvenile Crime and Socio-economic Factors - Term Paper Example No one is a born criminal and it is evident that the surrounding socio economic environment acts as an important ingredient and a positive catalyst in turning a young boy or girl into a vicious criminal who might be breaking some one’s house or threatening some one at his/her gun point. In the following paragraphs a detailed investigative analysis has been led to explore the different avenues through which these socio economic factors make their inroad into young blossoms to turn them into dried hays waiting to be ignited with faintest of sparks and provocation. Before moving into details it is worth mentioning that the following analysis would be based on a set of socio economic indicators that comprises of; family, socio-economic class and factors that also includes community factors, educational background, urbanization, media, exclusion and influence of the peers. Family: Juvenile period is the formative period of human life and family plays the most critical role in this juncture. A family with healthy atmosphere cultivate the socially acceptable norms within the siblings that help them to grow into responsible, matured social being in the long run. In sharp contrast a family that is subject to unhealthy environment and does not provide enough psychological nourishment towards the siblings might be considered as the breeding ground for juvenile criminals who in no time would become a social menace. Metaphorically a tree determines the kind of fruit it is going to produce in future. A strong statistical evidence might be produced here a â€Å"study of 250 boys found that among boys at age 10, the strongest predictors of later convictions for violent offenses (up to age 45) were poor parental supervision, parental conflict, and parental aggression, including harsh, punitive discipline.† (Shader, 6) Again if the seniors of a family are already engaged into anti social activities, then the child manages to witness such activities on a regular bas is and that work as a kindergarten, ironically for criminal lessons. Going by social process theory, individuals react to such conflict situations with hostility and anti social activities (Zarka). It is worth mentioning a study in this respect that was â€Å"carried out in prisons in the United States reveals that families involved in criminal activities tend to push their younger members towards violating the law. More than two-third of those interviewed had relatives who were incarcerated; for 25 per cent it was a father and for another 25 per cent a brother or sister.† (chapter 7: Juvenile Delinquency, 196) Evidence has also been found that a family where peace and love are distant issues between couples and that displays continuous marital disorder results in creating an environment that eventually promotes juvenile delinquency. This is also true for families with evidence of divorce, though at the end it depends much on family unity than on single or double parenthood. Socio-economic class and factors including community: It seems that children from economically weak background tend to be more into juvenile crime. This socio-economic class based idea held strong in 1950s and 1960s. However statistical analysis since 1960s revealed that youths belonging to the economically middleclass are also almost equally into juvenile delinquency. This is in accordance to the social structure theory of crime, which explains

Business Organisation and policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business Organisation and policy - Essay Example The PESTLE analysis is an important tool for understanding main environmental forces affecting global pharmaceutical industry based on data on political, economical, socio-cultural, legal and environmental concerns analysis provides. Political factors affecting pharmaceutical industry are in most cases interlinked as governments work to establish regulatory frameworks to govern both state and international issues involved in the industry. Therefore, governments have introduced both formal and informal rules to manage the industry through measures that include taxation policies, trade restrictions and tariffs, political stability. Apart from providing an enabling environment through political stability, governments have supported this industry based on the understanding of the role of healthy citizenry to economic development of the country. Pharmaceuticals have therefore worked with governments in introducing drugs to different countries based on the understanding of their importance to the wellbeing of a country. Governments have also moved to create monopolies in the industry as powerful buyers of drugs for controlling expenditure in states’ health care systems (Smith, 2012). Therefore, political arena influences regulations concerning practices of pharmaceutical business and depends on government practices that supports healthcare as an important contributor to welfare of the nation. Political goodwill from the government is important for the pharmaceutical industry especially with regard to patent from period covering experiments to release into the market. Renewal of patents is a concern for manufacturers in the industry especially due to the long period it takes for manufacturers to conduct research, test, then release drugs for human consumption. Given that patents exist for approximately twenty years, political goodwill is necessary for the renewal of such contracts to allow manufacturers proceed

The Creation of the Bill of Rights and U.S. Constitution Research Paper

The Creation of the Bill of Rights and U.S. Constitution - Research Paper Example This current status comes from the original decision of the founders of the USA to formulate and adopt a Constitution and a Bill of Rights for what was then the Union, in order to begin the country that is today the United States of America. The Constitution was adopted in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by the Constitutional Convention, on September 17, 1787 (Spaeth & Smith, 1991, p.1). Today the Constitution acts as the most powerful law in the USA, controlling the Federal Government, its relationship with State Governments, the Courts and the citizens of the USA, as well as non-citizens living within the US (For Know-It-Alls, 2008, p.2). It established the three branches of government – in the first three Articles of the Constitution – and also the federal system by which the USA is governed. In addition to the total Constitution, the first ten Amendments to the Constitution form the Bill of Rights, which limit the power of the Federal Government, and give basic human ri ghts, such as of property ownership and freedom of speech, association and other liberties, to the citizens of the USA (AmericansGoverning.org, website). These Amendments were proposed to the First United Stated Congress by James Madison and adopted by the House of Representatives on August 21, 1789 (Spaeth & Smith, 1991, p.22). ... ution the loose union of States tied together by the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union (For Know-It-Alls, 2008, p.3), but the individual States were not adhering to the rules of the Confederation, particularly in terms of money: they were not contributing to the national budget – and by 1786, the budget really just consisted of foreign debt which could not be paid by the Union (AmericansGoverning.org, website). In addition to this, the threats from international powers and from pirates, even, were making it clear that the Union was not functioning as an effective nation. Often, individual States were not attending Confederation meetings and not acting together in any meaningful way. Individual States were violating the peace treaty between Great Britain and the United States (The Treaty of Paris, 1783). States could not pay for defense and no real defense force could be raised on a federal level. All of these circumstances meant that Congress had become extremely i neffectual and legislation and all decision-making were being hampered severely. State representatives were not arriving at Congress – for five months up to April 1786, for example, there had been only three days when nine States – the number required to pass any proposal – were present in Congress. At the same time, as mentioned, States were acting unilaterally in international relations, and within their own legislatures, completely independently of Congress. In short, the Congress was no longer the government (Spaeth & Smith, 1991, p.15-18). Thus in September 1786, the plans were made to meet in Philadelphia in order to amend the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union in the hope that the Union could be more effectively structured, and begin to function as a nation. By June 16,

Business and sustainability Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business and sustainability - Essay Example However, the introduction of the approach that â€Å"cleantech† offers is something of a different entity entirely. As such, cleantech necessarily refers to the way in which technology can be utilized both as a means of providing a diminished negative impact upon the environment as well as providing a superior level of performance at lower cost. In such a way, cleantech is able to not only benefit the interests of the natural environment but also benefit the interests of stakeholders within the firm that seek to maximize revenue by increasing efficiency and productivity. In such a way, the utilization of cleantech comes to be something of a win – win situation. Whereas it is oftentimes seen that businesses and industry can only maximize profits through increasing production, cleantech necessarily promotes the understanding that changes in technology necessarily promote increase in efficiency that has a positive impact upon overall profits as well as a diminished negativ e impact that the process of production might necessarily engaged the environment. As a function of understanding and describing cleantech to a more full and complete degree, the following analysis will be concentric upon the means by which cleantech is ultimately the definition of a sustainable business. Before delving directly and answering whether cleantech is or is not the hallmark of sustainability, it must be necessary to understand the cleantech, and the application thereof, necessitates that the industry/firm in question be perennially aware and cognizant of whatever changes might be taking place within the technological environment. The reason that this awareness is so necessary is due to the fact that the firm will not be able to integrate with these technological changes and thereby enhance their overall efficiency unless they are continually seeking means by which the process in which they engage can be streamlined. Although cleantech represents an important progression with regards to the way in which business/industry seeks to integrate both with the needs to generate income and the needs to preserve the environment, it would not be fair to say that sustainable business is all about cleantech. The reason for this is due to the fact that sustainability and business cannot and should not be defined based upon cleantech alone. In such a way, cleantech should be viewed as a process and means whereby a firm/industry can seek to benefit itself with the tangential benefit of benefitting the environment. Although this is a net positive for all players involved, it nonetheless does not have sustainability as its primary mission or goal. Instead, it merely allows for the ancillary benefit of environmental consciousness. An obvious example of the way in which cleantech works in order to benefit both the company and the environment would necessarily be the utilization of a better and more efficient process of production than had previously been employed. Mor eover, the process itself is not the sole contingent category; instead, the actual inputs to the process or the building or facility within which the product is created can also include components of cleantech. In short, cleanteach is not restricted to a simplistic understanding of the components of any particular project. As such, the range and scope of materials and processes which it includes is so broad as

Research Essay Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Essay - Research Proposal Example Graphics, not words, typically announced the name of a place of business within the towns and villages which were conveniently given names such as the â€Å"Golden Lion† or the â€Å"Boar’s Head.† This seemingly primitive use of symbols to provide a quick and easy message to customers continues to be used today in the form of company logos. Study of these various means of expression has provided historians with much information about the social issues and available technology of the time in which they were created. While graphic design has thus had a long and uninterrupted history, â€Å"the turn of a century precipitates introspection† (Meggs, 2005) and causes us to take a new look at the graphic art of our own world to ascertain what it is saying about our world. â€Å"As shapers of messages and images, Graphic Designers have an obligation to contribute meaningfully to a public understanding of environmental and social issues. Graphic designers have a r esponsibility to adapt new technology and to express their zeitgeist by inventing new forms and new ways of expressing ideas† (Meggs, 2005). The insights that the depth and variety of 20th century graphic design provides regarding the profound changes happening in today’s graphic design industry are revealed in the various art forms that have developed over time. Contemporary graphics are designed to be more functional and effective in response to social issues and technology which has helped designers to be more efficient in working today. The roots of what today’s researchers identify as the modern period are generally recognized to be twined about the natural forms and artistic investigations of the Arts and Crafts Movement of the 1860s and the Art Nouveau movement of the 1890s. William Morris is the acknowledged founder of the Arts and Crafts Movement in direct response to the ever-encroaching and dehumanizing standardization of

Issue of increase in the length of annual report Essay

Issue of increase in the length of annual report - Essay Example All of this means that a prospective reader of the report will have to analyze a large number of pages to reach to appropriate conclusion. The analysis of this report is to analyze the issues arising out of increase in the length of annual reports. The first section of the essay covers the major reasons of increase in length. The second section analyzes the impact of the larger size in terms of effectiveness of communication to appropriate stakeholders and the problems therein. We will then conclude with the possible solutions to the problems identified. Reasons for increase in the length of annual report One of the primary reasons for the increase in the length of the annual report is the imposition with regards to the representation of information in annual reports. The various statutory laws and the mandatory disclosure that the organizations have to make in their annual reports: Director’s reports including business review: This section which has been made mandatory by the Companies Act (CA 2006) shall cover the performance of the company including analysis of the significant developments happening in the company and the industry, analysis of key financial indicators, the trends in the industry, employee information, the macro and industry level environment factors along with social and community issues and initiatives. The operating and Financial Review: These guidelines published by the ASB’s reporting statement have made it voluntary for organizations to publish the operating and financial review. For example discussion on investment in intangible assets such as brands and liquidity is a very important requirement for organizations. The 2008 Annual report of Reed Elsevier and Great Portland Estate’s annual report such discussions in length. Corporate Governance disclosure: The Listing Rules, The Disclosure and Transparency Rules (DTR), The Combined Code and supporting guidance make it mandatory for a firm listed in UK to make stateme nt of its application and compliance to the main principles of the Code. There are additional requirements imposed on by the Turnbull Guidance (on internal controls), the ‘FRC Guidance’ on audit committees. The organization is also required to ascertain its status as a going concern in the annual report through appropriate explanations. Some of the other additional items that are required as per various statutory laws in the annual reports include: Responsibility statement from the appropriate selected member Director’s liabilities for disclosures Information on gap between gender pay Greenhouse gas emissions Audit The Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) has also resulted in additional business review requirements in the annual reports of the listed organizations. Material contracts: Lord Sainsbury in 2006 also suggested adding certain important material contracts of the firm with suppliers as well as buyers that have a significant impact on the business. Certain annual reports contain certain information that is not relevant to any of the stakeholders. In addition, organizations also indulge in reporting information that does not change from year to year in annual reports. Immaterial disclosures that make it difficult for the reader to identify and analyze relevant information also increase the length of annual report. Such type of information has been called ‘clutter’ by the ASB. Majority of the clutter in the annual

Price Leadership in Coffee Shops Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Price Leadership in Coffee Shops - Coursework Example All of these coffee shops have specific strategic moves for them to obtain substantial market share, competitive advantage and long-term existence in their industry. Their ultimate goal is to increase profitability, which is the bottom line. However, one of the obvious strategies that can be identified when it comes to how these coffee shops compete with each other is based through the price of their product offerings. The proponent visited these three coffee shops and recorded the recent prices of their product offerings which include Cappucino, Cafee Latte, Chai Latte, Americano, Mocha, Espresso, and Hot Chocolate. The actual raw data gathered by the proponent are shown in Appendix 1 to 3. Common product offerings among the three coffee shops are Cappucino, Cafee Latte, Americano, Mocha, Espresso and Hot Chocolate. Each of these product offerings has corresponding three kinds of prices namely for small, regular and large categories. The corresponding prices of each category of offerings are shown in Tables 1 to 3. For visual identification of differences in the respective prices of the offerings of the three coffee shops, a bar graph is used in plotting the raw data from Appendix 1 to 3. In most of the categories of product offerings from among the three coffee shops and as shown in the previous tables, Starbucks seems to be in the lead when it comes to pricing. From regular category of product offerings, Starbucks’ prices for its product offerings are relatively higher than those of Costa Coffee’s. The same trend is observed from regular to large category types of offerings. Starbucks relatively prevailed over than the prices of Costa Coffee and Caffe Nero. As stated earlier, Starbucks had more than 700 stores in 2009 and more than half of them are in London. This company is still growing and in fact, has dominated in its industry. The very proof is its

Against Same Sex Marriage Essay Example for Free

Against Same Sex Marriage Essay The legalization of the marriage between same sex couples will permanently change the rite of marriage in our society. The legalization of homosexual marriage will quickly destroy the traditional family. Marriage is the institution that forms and upholds for society, the cultural and social values and symbol related to procreation. That is, it establishes the values that govern the transmission of human life to the next generation and the nurturing of that life in the basic societal unit, the family. Through marriage our society works out the relationship of two people who will together create and nurture a new generation. To change the definition of marriage to include same sex marriage couples would destroy its capacity to function in many ways. It could no longer represent procreative relationships of opposite sex marriages.Reproduction is the fundamental occurrence on which the future of life depends. It is the primary reason why marriage is so important to society. In same sex marriages procreation would be eliminated entirely. First, when the state sanctions homosexual relationships and gives them its blessing, the younger generation becomes confused about sexual identity and quickly loses its understanding of lifelong commitments, emotional bonding, sexual purity, the role of children in a family, and from spiritual prospective, the sanctity of marriage. Marriage is reduced to a partnership that provides attractive benefits and sexual convenience. Cohabitation and short term relationships are the inevitable result. Second, the introduction of legalized gay marriages will lead to polygamy and other alternatives to the one man, on woman unions. Why will gay marriage set the table for polygamy? Because there is no place to stop once the line has been crossed. Historically, the definition of marriage has rested on a foundation of tradition, legal precedent, theology, and the overwhelming support of the people. After the introduction of marriage between homosexuals it will be supported by nothing more substantiated than the opinion of a single judge or by a black-robed panel of justices (Marriage under Fire). After their decision, the family will consist of little more than someones interpretation of rights. Given that unstable legal judgment, it is certain some self-possessed judge, somewhere, will soon rule that three men or three women can marry. How about group marriage or marriage between cousins, or marriage between parent and child? How about marriage between a man and his animal? Anything allegedly linked to civil rights will be doable. The legal underpinnings for marriage will have been destroyed. These other couples restricted from marrying are not equivalent to homosexual couples, but are necessary to illustrate that marriage is heavily regulated, and for good reason. When a state recognizes a marriage, it bestows upon the couple certain benefits which are costly to both the state and other individuals. Collecting a deceased spouses social security, claiming an extra tax exemption for a spouse, and having the right to be covered under a spouses health insurance policy are just a few examples of its costly benefits associated with marriage. In a sense, a married couple receives a subsidy. A marriage between two unrelated heterosexuals is likely to result in a family with children. For this reason, states have, in varying degrees, restricted from marriage, couples unlikely to produce children. One may argue that lesbians are capable of procreating via artificial insemination, so the state does have an interest in recognizing lesbian marriages, but a lesbians sexual relationship, committed or not, has no bearing on her ability to reproduce (Single Parent: What Helps, What Hurts). However, there is ample evidence that children need both female and male parent for proper development. It is essential for a child to be nurtured by parents of both sexes if a child is to learn to function in a society made up of both sexes (Life without Father). With the legalization of homosexual marriage, every public school in the nation will be required to teach that this lifestyle is the moral equivalent of traditional marriage between a woman and a man. Textbooks, even in conservative states, will have to depict man/man and woman/woman relationships and stories written for children as young as elementary or even kindergarten, will have to give equal space to homosexuals. Every public school will also be forced to teach that same sex marriage and homosexuality are perfectly normal. They will teach little boys  and little girls that husband and wife and father and moother are merely optional for a family and therfore, meaningless (No Gay Marriage). Same sex families deny children either a mother or father. In certain cases, the same sex family is not driven by the needs of children, but rather by the radical wishes of a small group of adults. Thousands of published social science, psychological and medical studies show that children living in fatherless families, on average, suffer dramatically in every measure of well-being. These children suffer from higher levels of loneliness, physical or mental illness, behavior problems, educa tional failure or criminal troubles. The third reason marriage between homosexuals will destroy traditional marriage is that this is the ultimate goal of activists, and they will not stop until they achieve it. Homosexual activists, with their inner power and exhilaration, feel the political climate is right to tell us what they have wanted all along. Gay marriages are likely to do for gay rights what the rallying cry of abortion on demand did for the Equal Rights Amendment and the womens movement. It diverts the real debate on every level. It reduces the cause of gay rights to a single issue. But the real deal is most gays and lesbians do not want to marry each other. They do not want to entangle themselves in all sorts of legal constraints (Single Parent What Helps, What Hurts). In a perfect democratic world, gay marriage would be an option for those who want it. However, this world is not a perfect democracy, and the fight for gay marriage is the wrong fight at the wrong time (Focus on Family). In conclusion, the reason for excluding same sex couples from marriage matters: If the reason for denying homosexual marriage is that we have no respect for same sex couples and their relationships and want to give the message that homosexuality is wrong, then that is discrimination and that is wrong. On the other hand, if the reason is to keep the very nature, essence and substance of marriage intact, and the essence is to protect the procreative relationship, then excluding same sex couples from marriage is ethically acceptable. This such refusal is not discrimination. Ethics requires us to take the least invasive, least restrictive alternative, reasonably available and likely to be effective in achieving a justified  goal. Maintaining a traditional marriage and legally recognizing same sex partnerships fulfills that ethical requirement (Why Marriage Matters). Gay and lesbian people have a right to form meaningful relationships. They do not have a right to redefine marriage for all of us. What will happen to society if marriage becomes anything or everything or nothing? The short answer is that the state will lose its compelling interest in marital relationships altogether. After marriage has been redefined, divorces will be obtained instantly, will not involve a court, and will take on the status of a drivers license or hunting permit. With the family out of the way, all rights and privileges of marriage will accrue to gay and lesbian partners without the legal entanglements and commitments associated with it. These are a few reasons why I am against homosexual marriage. Legalizing it will change everything, especially the institution of the family. Every society needs natural marriage- as many men as possible each finding a woman, caring for and committing himself exclusively to her- working together to create and raise the next generation.

Sherlock Holmes and The Speckled Band Essay Example for Free

Sherlock Holmes and The Speckled Band Essay Watson takes notes for Holmes as well as accompanying him to dangerous situations and even tales a gun with him. Watson is never busy as a doctor but has medical knowledge. He shares the same code of honour as Holmess rights and wrong. The villains are less realistic than the characters of Holmes and Watson, using more exaggeration. Dr. Grimsby Roylott has a connection with gypsies and went to India with them and brought back dangerous exotic animals with are a red herring in the story. He is a doctor like Dr. Watson with specialist knowledge. He is a brutal bully who insults Sherlock Holmes. John Clay is the least developed of the three characters and a little like Moriatry with a sense of mystery, bright and intelligent. Moriarty is Sherlock Holmess equal adversary and a criminal genius (good gone wrong). Once he has lost most of his power he becomes even more dangerous on a professional level for Sherlock Holmes himself. Moriarty will devote his whole energies to revenging himself upon Holmes. He tracks Holmes down very effectively and seemingly, takes him to his death. The Sherlock Holmes stories have a very unique setting and use of descriptive atmosphere. When Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson get to Reichenbach falls you get a very distinct sense of mystery, dangerous and dramatic like we as the reader kind of guess whats going to happen. There is lots of detail to London, Baker Street, country house with varied settings to give tremendous atmosphere and mystery. This comes into effect in the Red Headed League and The Final Point especially. The style and structure is very simple, its written in first person narrator by Dr. Watson. Direct speech brings alive different charters and personalities. Descriptions of charters and settings are a reason to the plot. The Speckled Band is a muscular mystery, the Red Headed League is to do with the values of property and money, The Final Point is politics and crime put together and they all have a moral code at the heart of the stories which is to bring bad people to justice. The Speckled Band and Red Headed League has a straight forward structure with the problem introduced and eventually solved by Holmes. However in The Final Point Dr. Watson is forced to use detective powers demonstrated to him by his friend Holmes in realising both Holmes and Moriatry are dead. Between 1887 and 1927, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote sixty Sherlock Holmes stories, and his great Canon has become the most praised, most studied, and best-known chapter in the history of detective fiction. Over twenty thousand publications pertaining to the Sherlock Holmes phenomenon are known to have been published, most of them historical and critical studies. In addition, however, almost since the first stories appeared, such was their uniqueness and extraordinary attraction that other authors began writing stories based on or derived from them. A new genre had appeared: pastiches; parodies; burlesques; and stories that attempted to copy or rival the great detective himself. This is why Sherlock Holmes is the most popular, entertaining and strong examples of popular crime writing which is still read a century later. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Arthur Conan Doyle section.

Analysis Of British Petroleum And Its Competitive Environment Management Essay

Analysis Of British Petroleum And Its Competitive Environment Management Essay This report highlights three aspects of business development and market growth for British Petroleum considering the competitive environment of BP, the key business strategies of BP for five years and the resources and capabilities that are available to BP for the last five years. The competitive environment point towards new capabilities that BP has developed for years to maintain competitive advantage. Competitive advantage has been analyzed using Porters model and it is suggested that differentiation and focus could be a response to changing market conditions. The competitive environment is also affected by factors such as brand image and reputation as related to social responsibility and environmental awareness. BPs strategies have focused on IT outsourcing to energy efficiency, leadership building and stakeholder management, application of resources and technologies, safety as well as climate change concerns. BPs investments have led to sustained production and volume growth and this is expected beyond 2010. BPs capabilities and financial resources received a boost with the rise of oil prices and growing demands worldwide with BP main businesses being in petrochemicals, petroleum refining, and oil and gas exploration and production. 1. Competitive Environment of BP BP is a diversified energy products company engaged in oil and gas explorations and development or production and transportation of crude oil and natural gas. BP is responsible for refining, marketing, transportation, sale of gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel and other petroleum products; and the production, marketing and sale of petrochemicals. The global oil and gas industry being high competitive show that with expanse and success of a company, capabilities are stronger and competitors could have problems understanding or imitating these. So developing new capabilities would be essential in maintaining competitive advantage. Competitive advantage is attained when capabilities are neither simple and highly imitable nor too complex that defies internal steering and control. Capabilities that grow through use are considered critical to success and BP and other similar companies will have to develop such capabilities (Kay, 1993). A resource based view suggests that sustainable competitive advantage could help in developing existing and new resources and capabilities in response to changing market conditions. Knowledge and knowledge management are related to value creating assets and helps in competitive advantage. As far as the competitive environment is concerned, there could be sufficient competition in the main markets of BP although world energy markets are unaffected by government policies and changes. The global economy and globalization could be some of the factors that have triggered competition in the world market and more so for the oil and gas industry (Bowman and Faulkner, 1997). The oil industry has been dominated by a few major international oil companies, including BP, Shell, ExxonMobil and Chevron along with companies of the gulf states. Seven major oil companies produced, transported and refined as well as marketed two thirds of the oil supply around the world for several years. State owned oil companies as in Saudi Arabia, Gulf and OPEDC countries are the largest suppliers of crude oil even today. Aramco has produced more than four times as much oil as ExxonMobil which is the largest private sector oil company and ExxonMobil produces twice as much oil and gas. Gazprom is anot her such company which is majority-controlled by the Russian government but also privatized and is responsible for more than 20% of world production and of exports of natural gas. The oil industry and companies in the OPEC states have diversified into refining, marketing and petrochemicals, but these may be of secondary importance when considered on a global basis although the contributions of such companies are important in certain regional markets. There are also problems of environmental awareness and corporate responsibility and BPs strategies have been framed by these considerations. Sarkis and Tamarkin (2005) addressed the ways of reducing greenhouse gases and organizations involved in reducing emissions and with emergent markets. Investment in equipment could help reduce emissions and could boost sales. However there could be a faster price rise and projects may not be economically feasible leading to the need for more stringent regulations. Real options analysis is considered an important tool for the energy industry and the energy industry is still completely influenced by greenhouse gas policies drawing attention to emissions and the role of controlling greenhouse gas emissions within the industry. 2. Key business strategies of BP over the past five years. Analysis using Porters generic strategies to discuss why this strategy was pursued or changed. Some of the key directions towards strategy included energy efficiency with BP operations such as considering the price of carbon in investment decisions and promoting low cost energy pathways through gas or power generation. The company also plans to make continued investments in alternative energy with bio fuels, wind and solar or carbon sequestration and investments in research and technology. Companies focus on safe and reliable operations with continued journey in personal safety and implements operating management system with compliance. The people efforts are on building capabilities and leadership behaviors and performances help in restoring revenues or reducing complexity and costs. Apart from the culture of leadership and restructuring, building skills and capability and diversity or reward for performance are important elements of company strategy. BP already identified new regions of access for its operations including Iraq, Indonesia, Jordan, and new acreage in Gulf of Mexico and Egypt. The reserves and resource replacement are at 12%-250% and production growth was at 4% (Hayward et al, 2010). The success story of the company has been projected as governance and shareholder alignment, safer operations and volume growth as well as steady financial performance. 2010 expected performance has been projected at $4 billion investment, production growth of 1-2%, focus on cost efficiency and development of projects with an average 1-2% volume growth until 2015 with increased potential and sustained growth to 2020. Resource bases and sources of growth beyond 2015 has been marked through expanding deepwater, leveraging expertise in gas and managing the giant oil fields of the world and enabling application of technology. The focus of the company has been on cost and capital efficiency and profit growth and diversifying the portfolio with a growing resource base. A momentum on costs and strategies and operations and an average 1-2% volume growth was expected until 2015 (Hayward et al, 2010). BP is also shown as having increased potential to sustain growth to 2020 and changes in the process could drive capital and cost efficiency. Fuel value chains through quality and integration could mean right markets and right locations for logistics and refineries and quality products and brands through marketing and channel management. BP has also highlighted supply optimization and trading and common processes at the back office. Among its infrastructural changes, BP has undergone major rebuilds of CDU to process heavy crude and for the manufacture of crude oil and also new world scale sulphur removal and gas oil hydro treating units. Refinery infrastructure upgrade shows location advantage. The market share possibilities discussed showed 40% capital employed in growth markets with leading technologies and strong customer relationships with margin share growth and premium brands. The company also gives importance to safety and efficiency, quality and integration and application of resources and technology and the emphasis provided is on safe and reliable operations. In the next 2-3 years over $2billion of pre tax performance opportunity was also identified. Costs were at 2004 levels with their refinery modification in 2012 (Hayward et al, 2010). The strategy of the company was given as a focus on the growth of profits as well as cost and capital efficiency through upstream production and downstream strategies are higher turnaround and cost efficiency. Alternative energy is seen as focused and disciplined with higher corporate efficiency and strategic growth. The focus on strategy is based on profit growth and use of alternative energy, as also a focus on corporate performance and efficiency and on cost and capital efficiency. BP was among the first multinational companies that joined in the merging consensus to address climate change (Kolk and Levy, 2001). BP has focused on a strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and along with solar energy, BPs other lines of business are seen as exploration, oil and chemicals. However as far as BPs position towards climate change is concerned, analysts have tried to examine Is BP reacting to inevitable environmental pressures, but conducting business as usual, or is BP seizing the moment and opportunity and using global climate change as a doorway to a new business model for the 21st century? This seems an important analysis as it marks whether BP is projecting a new business model through the climate change focus or simply responding to the global environmental pressures and challenges and whether the climate change focus within its strategy would be positive or negative for BP (Lowe et al, 1998). As far as the analysis of BPs strategies are concerned, Porter has argued that any firms strength would ultimately depend on cost advantages and differentiation. The generic strategies that should be followed by any firm for success have been given as cost leadership, differentiation and focus (Porter, 1998). Cost leadership is attained through low cost of materials and integration decisions and differentiation strategy offers unique products and attributes to clients giving a competitive edge, and focus provides a narrow market focus so that specific needs of segments are met. Porters general strategies could explain the key business strategies adopted by BP in the last five years and these were related to climate change as well as cost and capital efficiency and profits. Juris (1998) suggested that in the UK it is possible to move from a monopoly of one company dominating the market to a competitive environment with many players and this is true even in the natural oil and gas industry without significant structural reforms within the business environment, although this could be expensive. Structural reforms and innovation brings about differentiation and launch of products and services that the consumer perceives to be different, Any form of change or deregulation must be accompanied by regulatory and institutional frameworks and all entrants to the market should be given equal rights. With cooperation between the government and industry participants, there has to be mechanisms for appropriate balancing and operating. BP will also have to follow these regulations towards market balance despite being a major player. Industry participants have tried to reach a consensus on how to enhance the existing framework that could make markets more efficient. British oil and gas industry will have to effectively give more time and resources to developing a tariff structure for pipeline capacity and transportation services in tariff markets (Juris, 1998). BP has a role to play in stabilizing tariffs that could make the markets efficient. Cross (1995) highlighted outsourcing as a BP strategy and explained how the BP Exploration Operating Company, $13 billion division of British Petroleum Company explores and produces oil and gas and outsourcers all IT operations in efforts to cut costs and get more flexible higher quality IT resources to improve business. At BP exploration it was decided that the company no longer needed technologies that provided business information to employees and this could be outsourced. There were problems encountered with internal IT departments and the old and new machines as well as the need to focus on technological details rather than wider more important business issues led to the need for outsourcing these to technicians. As far as BPs technology strategy is concerned, BP diverted its IT support through outsourcing. Outsourcing helped in the reshaping of the IT department. At BP information technology was used as utility for operations to develop application and supply processing power as also to provide technology support. This is now given to outsourcing providers and the company buys generic applications or contracts the work. The IT department is expected to improve business rather than be an internal group that simply meets supply of the company. The company however has a different IT strategy and does not rely on a single supplier for all IT needs although this could make BP to escalate its fees and become more rigid in its services. At the same time selective outsourcing and division of IT operations led to strain on management resources. BPs IT strategy focused on buying IT services from multiple suppliers although these could be delivered in a way as if by single supplier. Contractors delivered services to 42 BP businesses worldwide. The subcontracts were also performed effectively and the cornerstone of the BP outsourcing strategy was to use services from multiple suppliers and yet project them as one. The IT department is kept separate from Operations so that the IT managers could independently work on the business rather than get involved in technicalities. Several IT services including large and small providers were used for outsourcing which was however a difficult task but had the benefits of reduced fixed costs, im proved service, and access to new ideas and technologies (Cross, 1995). However the downsides were the technical issues and the danger of operations and management getting loaded with IT problems. 3. Resources and capabilities of BP over the five years, and analysis of the extent to which the company has aligned its resources and capabilities to its business strategies The alignment or use of resources and capabilities to shape business strategies of the company shows that BP placed a great emphasis on infrastructure and profit growth by building its resources and through partnering and strategic alliances. BP has built its larger base by organizing around the smaller business units and the company has several smaller business units that work together and the resources are available easily and quickly. The company follows a decentralization strategy with its various units having independent operations although there are differing views on whether this has been particularly helpful or led to original thinking. New approaches to BP business showed how the BP business could successfully steer through crises although the recent focus has been on BPs strategy towards climate change (Kolk and Levy, 2001). Considering the changes in BP strategy, it has been noted that BP had a politicized bureaucracy managed matrix structure and with the complexity performance declined and the company faced financial crisis. In recent years however BP has reported highest profits $4 billion in the third quarter of 2004 alone. The high prices of crude oil added to the profits although the companys cost efficient operations were key to strong performance. The company also absorbed two oil companies Amoco and Arco and other companies and the acquisitions helped in the expanse and scope and several strategic and organizational changes added to the remarkable turnaround in the companys performance (Roberts, 2005). BPs transformation came as it divested unrelated lines of business and divided business into units with three basic businesses with upstream oil and gas exploration and production, downstream petroleum refining and marketing and petrochemicals. There were different functioning markets and the unit s were run independently adding to the strategic advantage of the company. The company presentations showed that the US refining portfolio was fully operational and US convenience retail helped in reducing marketing footprint with cash costs down by 15% in 2008. $4billion was invested by the company for alternative energy since 2006 and employee count was reduced to 7500 and cash costs were also reduced by billions in 2009, bringing down the overall expenses of the company (Hayward et al, 2010). Among other strategic directions of the company are using solar energy as alternative energy and fuel and BP has been successfully developing the solar energy potential as one of the greener sustainable sources of energy. BP corporate strategy has also been focused on issues of climate change (Kolk and Levy, 2001) and there are two directions to this strategy. One is the potential advantage in corporate reputation and image if BP is projected as green and clean company which controls its business units and functions according to global climate conditions, and the other is the possibility of a new business model within which BP could work and using of solar energy as green energy is already a step towards this motive. In the last five years BP resources and capabilities have changed drastically. Along with addition of BP solar energy, there has been increased investments and increased profits with higher oil prices. BP has also potentially expanded its reach and operations across many new regions and continued to add new resources and capabilities including material and financial to fulfil its strategic directions. The business strategies of BP have been primarily geared towards profitability and corporate responsibility so along with cost leadership, focus, innovation, differentiation and climate change, BP had diversified and categorized its business units along with mergers and acquisitions.

Masculinity in Charlotte Brontes Jane Eyre :: Charlotte Bronte Jane Eyre Essays

Masculinity in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre Throughout the novel 'Jane Eyre' we meet 5 male characters. Immediately we can notice that the number of female characters outweighs the number of male characters. It feels as though BrontÃÆ'Â « is trying to tell us that overall women will come out more influential and powerful than men. Indeed power is what our male characters have in common. Their power however alters from character to character. This is the common version of masculinity portrayed by Bront throughout 'Jane Eyre'. Many men at the time of the novel were very powerful, this power varied from wealth, influential positions and even whom you knew. Women were not entitled to their own opinions and their husbands or fathers made all the decisions. Jane however defies the conventions of the time. She has her own opinions and is not prepared to take orders from the powerful men in the novel. With power comes other traits, and this is where we can differentiate between the characters. Brocklehurst and St John both have power through the position they hold (Brocklehurst being in charge of the girls' school and St John being a parson), whereas John Reed and Rochester have power through wealth. Mr Lloyd (the apothecary) is perhaps the only man in the novel without any real power and he is the only person who listens to Jane. Rochester's masculinity is the most important, as he represents the best and worst of a man. His masculinity is typical of this period and he is shown ordering Jane around, 'bring me my horse', most women were obliging to men as they were the authority in society, although Jane resents this authority and wants to do things her own way. So from this we can see that the masculinity he shows typical of the time and incredibly dominant and powerful over women in the novel, especially Jane. As the novel progresses however Rochester becomes less masculine during the fire at Thornfield he loses everything, here we can compare him to Jane because; at the beginning she too doesn't have anything. In loosing everything he loses his masculinity and power. He no longer has his house, 'I saw blackened ruins'. His house is part of his power and this is no longer there. He also looses his sight and his hand, Jane becomes his, 'eyes and hands', and Rochester is reliant on her, 'I led him out of the wet wild wood'. The role of the dominant one is reversed. Here Rochester shows very little masculinity as he is now not in charge. Jane saves Rochester but equally he saves her, from St Masculinity in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre :: Charlotte Bronte Jane Eyre Essays Masculinity in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre Throughout the novel 'Jane Eyre' we meet 5 male characters. Immediately we can notice that the number of female characters outweighs the number of male characters. It feels as though BrontÃÆ'Â « is trying to tell us that overall women will come out more influential and powerful than men. Indeed power is what our male characters have in common. Their power however alters from character to character. This is the common version of masculinity portrayed by Bront throughout 'Jane Eyre'. Many men at the time of the novel were very powerful, this power varied from wealth, influential positions and even whom you knew. Women were not entitled to their own opinions and their husbands or fathers made all the decisions. Jane however defies the conventions of the time. She has her own opinions and is not prepared to take orders from the powerful men in the novel. With power comes other traits, and this is where we can differentiate between the characters. Brocklehurst and St John both have power through the position they hold (Brocklehurst being in charge of the girls' school and St John being a parson), whereas John Reed and Rochester have power through wealth. Mr Lloyd (the apothecary) is perhaps the only man in the novel without any real power and he is the only person who listens to Jane. Rochester's masculinity is the most important, as he represents the best and worst of a man. His masculinity is typical of this period and he is shown ordering Jane around, 'bring me my horse', most women were obliging to men as they were the authority in society, although Jane resents this authority and wants to do things her own way. So from this we can see that the masculinity he shows typical of the time and incredibly dominant and powerful over women in the novel, especially Jane. As the novel progresses however Rochester becomes less masculine during the fire at Thornfield he loses everything, here we can compare him to Jane because; at the beginning she too doesn't have anything. In loosing everything he loses his masculinity and power. He no longer has his house, 'I saw blackened ruins'. His house is part of his power and this is no longer there. He also looses his sight and his hand, Jane becomes his, 'eyes and hands', and Rochester is reliant on her, 'I led him out of the wet wild wood'. The role of the dominant one is reversed. Here Rochester shows very little masculinity as he is now not in charge. Jane saves Rochester but equally he saves her, from St

Optics :: essays research papers

Aim: To examine characteristics of a converging lens and the images they create. Also to examine the focal length and how the focus point may be found and developing rules for locating an image via ray drawings and the intersection of rays. Chromatic aberration will also be explored and why it happens. Theory: Both lenses and mirrors have a principle axis, yet a lens has two focal points as opposed to a mirror that has only one. When considering converging lenses, the primary focal point (PF) can be found on the opposite side of the lens in regards to the light. The secondary focal point (SF) being on the same side as the light source. Focus points on thin double convex lenses are located at either side of the lens, measured from the middle of the lens itself (see below). Chromatic aberration is a problem of converging lenses that will also be explored in this experiment. A description of each image produced will also be given (attitude, type, magnification and location). Apparatus: The main tools (apparatus) used in the experiment consist of a ray box containing cards which allow one, two, three or four rays onto a sheet of paper at a time so that rays path from the box to the mirror will be able to be traced. Also two (2) different types of converging lenses, one being cylindrical while the other being spherical, the difference being that the spherical one is used for viewing, the cylindrical one for use with the ray box. These lenses are one of many different sorts of lenses in the "lens box". The use of a ruler would also be helpful so that accurate measurements may be taken. Method: 1. A cylindrical lens was placed on paper and traced around, a principal axis was drawn making sure that it's at rights angles to the lens. The ray box was switched on (exposing only one ray) and lined up parallel to the principle axis, a mark where the ray leaves the box was made as well as where it hits the lens (on both sides) and where the ray bisects the principle axis. After this, the ray box was removed and using a ruler, rays were accurately drawn. The focus point (f) was measured to be of length 7.3cm (7.25). 2. The lens was replaced back on a sheet of paper with ray box emitting three rays, the middle ray lined up on the principle axis, marks were made where the ray's intersected at on the principle axis and this was measured to be the primary focus point.

Forbidden Desire in Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Essay

Forbidden Desire in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream In his play A Midsummer Night's Dream, William Shakespeare explores the conflict of forbidden desire, as revealed through the experience of four young lovers dwelling in ancient Greece. Hermia and Lysander are two of these lovers, and their desire to marry one another is prohibited by Hermia's father Egeus, and enforced by the governor of Athenian law-King Theseus. Hermia is informed that she may only agree to one of three undesirable choices: marry Demetrius unwillingly, submit to an austere, celibate life as a nun, or face certain execution. Confronted with these dreadful options, Hermia agrees to flee from Athens towards the remote house of Lysanders' widowed aunt, in the wood of Greece. While wandering in this nearby wood, Hermia and Lysander lose their way in the silent, moonlit night, and drift into sleep. Here-away from the prohibitions of rational Greek civilization-Shakespeare plunges his audience into the psychological realm of his characters, by developing the dream-filled , darkened wilderness of Greece as a medium offering access to the unconscious realm of his characters. In the ensuing forest scenes, Shakespeare blends fiction with fantasy, and ultimately allows his characters to confront the boundaries of consciousness and unconsciousness, thus resolving the conflict of socially repressed desire. The departure of Hermia and Lysander from the city of Athens to the wood intentionally coincides with the first appearance of fantasy in the play. In Act 2, Scene 1, Robin Goodfellow (also known as Puck the mischievous spirit), and a fairy, enter into the plot outside the perimeter of Athens; with the entrance of these otherworldly figures, Shakespeare is ... ...er Night's Dream is comedic in nature, it provides serious insight into the importance of fantasy and desire to humanity-especially amidst certain intellectual thought in advancing civilization. A Midsummer Night's Dream demonstrates that fantasy is inseparably interconnected with desire, existent both within the imagination, and within the unconscious. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. "A Midsummer Night's Dream." The Norton Shakespeare.Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. W.W. Norton and Co: New York, 1997. 1.1, 65-67. 2.2, 155. 4.1, 167. 5.1, 1-8. Freud, Sigmund. "The Interpretation of Dreams." Literary Theory: An Anthology. Julie Rivkin, and Michael Ryan, eds. Blackwell: Malden, Massachussets. 2000. 148 Freud, Sigmund. "The Uncanny." Literary Theory: An Anthology. Julie Rivkin, and Michael Ryan, eds. Blackwell: Malden, Massachussets. 2000. 166.

Sustainability and Environmental Standards

Sustainability and Environmental Standards: Seeking Competitive Distinction at Damai Lovina Villas . Executive Summary Throughout this analysis, my purpose is to clarify and condense the information so the reader will have a better understanding at the end of the analysis. This analysis will be broken up into six categories; the executive summary, issue statement, alternatives analysis, recommendations, actions and implementations, and data analysis. In the issue statement, there will be a brief overview on how the hotel companies and the environmental regulations clashed.Throughout the alternative analysis we will discuss different alternatives that Damai could have focused on to benefit and sustain his hotels. As we move to the recommendations our group will give clear advice on how we would’ve handled the situation. Actions and implementations will implement the steps that Damai took to clean up his name and benefit the locals that were on the island. The data analysis will be a break up of data to better explain the situation at hand. Issue Statement:One of the major issues impacting the Hotels was that the environmental regulations were lacking since existing standards were not enforced and growth often was promoted to the detriment of the environment. For years the Balinese government had promoted sand dredging to enlarge the island for more hotel development off the port of Benoa. By the continued dredging of the sand, this would in effect alter the water currents and the new currents have eroded the natural beaches bordering the town Sanur.Dredging projects rarely involved environmental impact studies or guaranteed protection of natural areas as required by law. Tourism was the island only source of income, but this source of income was causing serious social and environmental problems. For example the drinking water often slowed to a trickle during daylight hours due almost exclusively to the high demand for water in the resort area of Nusa Dua. Also the lack of a centralized waste collection system has encouraged alternative solution such as the formation of an informal collection system.Many hotels and residents left used paper and plastic outside of their properties. Despite these challenges the system successfully diverted a significant amount of waste from the landfill. Data analysis: As the benefits of advertising proactive environmental efforts were recognized by global hospitality hotels targeted environmentally conscious customers to gain competitive advantage as a result of which helped non luxury hotels command premium prices of $30/night in a very competitive industry. Marketing sustainability shows that participation in a VEP could be costly depending on the program.Adopting a formal EMS and certifying it IDO 141001 may typically cost $270-$1370 per employee depending on the extent to which the company had instituted proactive environmental and continual improvement procedures prior to implementing a formalize d Ems. Although more than a dozen VEPs and eco-labeling programs targeted the hotel industry by 2006 only handful of these were available to Indonesia hotel. Alternatives analysis: Damai has several alternatives to ultimately benefit and sustain its hotel.Damai could of considered voluntary environmental programs and take the risk of the hotels luxury to take a negative impact by lacking integration that can possibly have a major impact in the long run. Another alternative damai could of pursued was a better marketing strategy that fully described everything about the hotel in regards to its environment, community status overall. This could have been achieved through a brief slideshow that offered key components of information on the website or brochure developed by Damai.Damai should focus less on advertising its produces of food and more on the sustainability efforts. A better description and more detailed amount of information given about the hotels sustainability efforts along w ith other factors will ultimately create more attraction for business. Recommendations: So at to expand capacity by constructing additional rooms, Damai should ensure that existing room were filled and that the restaurant operated above its current 65% occupancy. This will bring improvement in the business as Knape hoped to better integrate Damai into the local network of eco-hotels and eco-tours.Damai should continue to rely on its website and local travels agents to promote the hotel’s sustainability vision because Damai’s website was the primary vehicle for marketing hotel’s various sustainability efforts which directed environmentally conscious customers to an organic resort link to learn about the hotel’s sustainability vision. Besides, these local travel agents will play an important role by promoting the hotel’s sustainability vision to customers, which will benefit the industry. . Action And Implementation:Through a partnership with IPSA, D amai helped the farming and fishing communities remediate the effects of management techniques that could be harmful to the environment and public health. The burning of agriculture impaired air quality and human health, which comes from the hundreds of small farms that operate in a single community. The hotel work towards teaching farmers composting methods and organic growing practices, using IPSA products to increase the pace of decomposition. Damai utilized a water recycling system that directed used guest water to on site tanks.All wastewater was filtered through a series to tanks containing volcanic rock, porous rubber, and sand and then reused in the hotel gardens. Even waste from the toilets, was then collected and treated using natural enzymes to break down the organic waste. This waste was then passed through a series of filters and re used in the hotel gardens. One of the hotel big implementations came when it decided that they should join forces with local farmers to rec laim eroded topsoil. Damai built a series of large rock wall filters in the river that ran through the property creating a series of waterfalls.At the bottom of each waterfall was a large pool of water that captured much of the topsoil from the hotel pools to reduce the need for chemical fertilizers. Question: 1. The relationship between tourism and social/environmental issues in Bali was every thing that was resulted from tourism had impacts on society and environment of Bali. Although tourism plays an important role in Bali’s economic growth and financing, it also caused serious social and environmental problems. Bali’s hotel alone required 260 liters of water per second, which was an amount equivalent to the typical water consumption of 50,000 villagers when drinking water in Denpasar often slowed to a trickle during daylight hours due almost exclusively to the high demand for water in the resort area of Nusa Dua to the south. Besides this Hotel and retail chains ha d avoided locating in Lovina Beach of Bali because it was less accessible than South Bali. 2. Bali’s environmental status was affected by different government polices like the government’s focus on energy development and resource extraction, close relationship with developers, and lack of budgetary caused many citizens to lose faith in its ability or intent to protect Bali’s environment.Environmental regulations in Bali was lacking since existing standard were not enforced and growth often was promoted to the detriment of the environment. The Balinese government had promoted sand grudging enlarging the island for more hotel development off the port of Benoa. Dredging projects rarely involved environmental impacts studies or guaranteed protection of natural areas as required by law and when they did was almost never monitored for accuracy. The island had one government-operated landfill that was located outside Denpasar on reclaimed tidal land.Like many landfills in emerging economies, it lacked controls to guard against groundwater contamination. 3. Firms did not need to wait for government in order to take action in addressing Bali’s social and environmental issues. Many Balinese began to get discouraged of how the government handled the environmental and social issues that occurred. Instead Balinese citizens took matters into their own hands and decided to rely more on communal code guided by strong social norms to influence behaviors 4. Damai’s focus was to sustain and distinguish their hotels.Since damai did not participate in the idea of voluntary environmental programs they were able to avoid the luxury status of the hotel to downgrade. It complemented the sustainability program because the hotels reputation remained the same by relying on other factors such as the website and travel agents that have the potential to create a positive impact. 5. There are numerous sustainability activities Damai had already implemented. Which activities can be described as pollution prevention, product stewardship, clean technology/innovation, and sustainability vision?Pollution prevention: Damai has made an impact on the local surrounding when it comes to preventing pollution, for example normally at the end of each growing season, traditional farming practices involving the burning of agriculture waste to generate ash for the fertilizing of the next year crops. But hundreds of farmers in the community lack the knowledge on how the burning of agriculture impaired the air quality and the human health. The continued of burning of agriculture drive a greatly needed source of income which is tourist away from the community due to poor air quality.Damai solution for this is through partnership with local farmers to educate them about different ways of making fertilizer, which is through the different composing methods and organic growing practices using products from IPSA, which would increase the pace of decompositio n. Product stewardship: Damai shift from paying a deposer contractor to lovina Beach, to pick up the hotel’s solid waste, which transports the waste back to a dispensary, had proven costly. So Damai develop an environmental efficient way by transporting plastic and bottle containers to their respective suppliers to be recycled and reuse.To save cost of the purchasing of the purchasing of water, the Damai hotel use waste from the toilets, which are collected and treated using natural enzymes to break down the organic waste. This waste then passed through a series of filters, which is then re-used in the hotel’s gardens. By doing this implementation of treating waste from the hotel, Damie water conservation efforts reduced hotel water use by 75%. Clean technology/innovation: Hotel works closely with local famers and village leaders to develop the best possible way to reclaim the community eroded topsoil.The eroded topsoil came about because of traditional irrigation wate r systems, and monsoon rains, which caused fertile topsoil to flow from the rice paddies and drain into the ocean. The problem of the loss of topsoil loss prompted more farmers to rely on chemical fertilizers to grow their crops. Damai address this issue by building a series of large rock wall filters in the river that ran through the property creating a series of waterfalls. At the bottom of each waterfall was a large pool of water that captured much of the topsoil lost from the seven villages surrounding the hotel.This showed the hotels continued efforts to better the community through is efforts, Damai went on to encouraged the local farms to reclaim their topsoil from the hotel pools to reduce the need for chemical fertilizers. Sustainability Vision? The hotel had chosen to refrain from promoting its sustainability focus in guest rooms, restaurant and gardens. Damai also decided not to involve guest in an optional linen reuse program in order to maintain its luxury status, even though such programs had become popular in the US and European hospitality industry. . How does Damai’s current sustainability focus compare to the environmental performance criteria listed in the VEPs listed in case Exhibits C-H? Damai did not participate in any VEPs. However, the hotel was considering if it would be beneficial for the hotel to participate in the VEPs. Damai was not able to expand its capacity by constructing additional rooms; the most important way to improve the hotel was to ensure that existing rooms were filled and that the restaurant operated above its current 65% occupancy.By doing this, Damai had integrated itself into local network of eco hotels and eco tours. Damai has different sectors in which its market itself whether marketing through its website which directed environmentally conscious customers to an â€Å"organic Resort† link which help customers learn about the hotel’s sustainability vision. Damai provided travel agents with in formation about the hotel, some the travel agents began to market the hotel as being environmentally conscious by advertising that Damai produces 80% of its food local gardens. 7.Best Green Hotels and others have no financial charge listed. A 10% expense on lodging charge has to be paid by the owner that lists on the Eco Lodge even though the website is free of charge to utilize. The number of rooms and workers determine the fees for Global Green 21. Hotels with less than or equal to five workers or less than ten rooms pay $395, whereas hotels with less than or equal to 50 works or 70 or less rooms pay $1610. An independent external auditor must also be appointed along with the cost of becoming ISO 14001 certified. . I recommend that Damai join the Eco Lodge Program. The program offers ways to tutor guests and staff of environmental protection by recycling trash and water. Partaking in this program allows Damai to network with members who are not wasteful and proved to contribute to environmental protection. It also gives his future customers a way to view Damai on the Internet, which has over 600 travel agencies. Although there is a 10% commission it doesn’t compare to the benefits Damai will receive from being on the site.

Affirmative Action is Reverse Discrimination Essay

Racial discrimination has long been an issue especially in the United States which is considered as a melting pot of different people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Black people have experienced extreme even radical form of discrimination for centuries, but now, the black people found an ally in the affirmative action policy. This policy, after some time of implementation sparked debate since some people, even the blacks themselves, say that giving racial preferences is never a good thing. The policy has affected admission aspects in schools and employment in jobs. Two job applicants, a white male and a black male, even with the same qualifications, the black male will likely get the job because of racial preference provided by affirmative action. Black people are being given a definite advantage and white people would find this an unfair treatment. The same goes for school admission policies where minorities are being given a higher preference over white people in order to maintain a diverse student body. Thesis Affirmative action laws were made to eliminate or reduce discriminatory acts but there are numerous claims that these laws have reversed the tide. Affirmative actions laws may no longer be considered fair in this current setting since it only results in reverse discrimination and it is no longer an effective means of providing opportunities for minority groups. This reverse discrimination is constituted by racial preferences for blacks. This racial preference clouds the judgment of many educational institutions and employers since racial background is being analyzed instead of just the plain qualifications which some white people might find inappropriate. Affirmative action was envisioned to put an end to racial discrimination especially against black people. Under this policy, black people were given higher preferences in job and in admission policies in universities. This is however not an answer to eliminating discrimination. Instead of giving higher preferences to those people who are being discriminated such as the black people, a better alternative solution to racial discrimination would be to find steps to eliminate discriminatory acts and leveling the field so that all people from different ethnic backgrounds will be presented with equal opportunities. Since the black people are being given higher preferences, this may appear as a form of discrimination against white people. Affirmative action, instead of fulfilling its intention of eliminating discrimination, rather contributes to it. One of the major focuses of the affirmative action debate is its inclusion in university admission policies which show higher preferences for black applicants. Many people have been calling for the ban of the use of affirmative action in the public arena. Voters in California, Washington and Michigan have already submitted amendments to their state constitutions that would prohibit the use of affirmative action in the public setting (Prince & Ryan, 2007). According to actor and columnist Joseph Phillips, affirmative action is not an issue of nondiscrimination, it is now about racial preferences. He emphasized on the point that racial preferences is not an effective way of fighting racism, instead, it brings about negative stereotypes especially in the educational sector wherein it pertains to a person’s intellectual capacity and academic capabilities (Prince & Ryan, 2007). In a Supreme Court ruling in 2003 which involves the University of Michigan which makes use of racial preferences in its admission policies, the court highlighted the goal of having a diverse student body which is brought about by affirmative action but critics say that this decision by the court would only spark more law suits and that the critics of affirmative action would continue to put pressure on the Department of Education to discontinue the use of the policy (Marklein, 2003). Evidences have been presented regarding the effects of affirmative action; however, these evidences always seem imperfect and ambiguous. A review of the policy during the Clinton administration indicated that active federal enforcement of the policy in the 1970s resulted in government contractors moderately increasing the hiring of minority workers. Studies have indicated that there is only a meager increase in the employment of black males. Employment share of black males in contractor firms in 1974 was 5. 8 percent and this figure only increased to 6. 7 percent in 1980. On the other hand, the increase in non-contractor firms was from 5. 3 percent to 5. 9 percent. Also, a substantial number of black government employees got their jobs or promotion to managerial rank because of affirmative action even if qualifications are questionable (Galston). In the education sector, it was only during the height of the affirmative action policy that the enrollment of black people was on a steady rise. From only 4. 9 percent in 1955, black enrollment went up to 7. 8 percent in 1970. The figure further increased to 9. 1 percent in 1980 and 11. 3 percent in 1990. On the other hand, according to a report from the Census Bureau, Hispanics holding bachelor’s degrees or other advanced degrees went up to 9 percent in 1994 from only 5 percent in 1970 while the rate for blacks is 12. 9 percent from 4. 5 percent (Galston). Another issue that rises with affirmative action is that minority groups may gain an image of inferiority since the whites may think that a black student was able to enter the university or a black person is able to get a job only because of affirmative action even if the black person has all the necessary qualifications (Hoffman). Overall, the past 30 years has been fruitful for the black people as they generally lived better lives with better education and income all because of racial preferences. This has resulted into what Seymour Martin Lipset classifies as a â€Å"growing differentiation† within the community of black people from the growing black middle class to the ghetto poor. The affirmative action program would work better if it would remove barriers for those who have the credentials to succeed instead of giving them a definite advantage in admissions. Anti-Thesis Supporters of affirmative action make use of the argument that it is necessary for the people compensate for years of discriminations against blacks. Many black people approve of affirmative action because it provides recompense against the discrimination that they have experienced and endured in the past but not all black people share this kind of insight. Steele said that, theoretically, affirmative action is in moral symmetry with fairness. She described the policy as reformist and corrective as well as repentant and redemptive. The country is trying to make up for its sins and wants to correct it but black people will lose more than what they will gain from the policy (Steele). Some also argue that it is difficult to remove stereotyping and discrimination without the policy and that it is needed to maintain diversity. Another argument states that affirmative action should continue because racism still exists in this society. The argument that affirmative action is needed for the white people to compensate for the discrimination against blacks is shrouded in hatred and appears as a form of retaliation against the white people. However, retaliation will not improve the situation. It might even spark more discrimination against black people if affirmative action policies continue to be implemented and this could lead to more hatred and discrimination against the minority groups. According to Kimberle Crenshaw, a professor of law at the University of California, affirmative actions removes the obstacles so that people from the minority groups can qualify and compete. With affirmative action, blacks, Hispanics and other minority group find it easier to get a job because of racial preferences geared toward these minorities (Prince & Ryan, 2007). Affirmative action exists because there is discrimination, if there is no discriminations, affirmative action would not be needed in this society. The fact that affirmative action exists is because there is still discrimination and it is still needed in the current setting. Those who believe that affirmative action is in conflict with their interest must be made to see what benefits it provides to the society. Racism is still dominant in the United States which is why affirmative action must stay (Noguera, 1996). According to Linda Chavez, founder and president of the Center for Equal Opportunity, the Michigan University case speaks of admission and scholarship programs for minority groups which make use of substantially different standards and must include the racial background. People against the policy said that they will take their case to the ballots but the court has already made it clear that it is the university’s prerogative to include race in the admission policy to ensure the diversity of the student body (Marklein, 2003). The 2003 Supreme Court ruling allowed admission officials to consider race in the selection process. Colleges and universities have no obligation to use racial preferences but they may adopt such policies to meet a satisfactory level of student diversity. Arthur Coleman, a former official under the Department of Education said that adopting diversity is a choice and is not mandated by any law or policy. According to a survey by Public Agenda, 79 percent of Americans agreed that it is important for schools to have a diverse student body while only 54 percent approved of affirmative action programs. In a separate poll conducted by Gallup before the court handed out its ruling, only 49 percent said that they are in favor of affirmative action while 43 percent said that they are not in favor (Marklein, 2003). Synthesis Affirmative action was made to eliminate discrimination but discrimination would not likely be eliminated if the method used to eliminate it is discriminating in itself since it results in a reverse discrimination. Instead of blacks being discriminated, the white people are now the ones being discriminated because of racial preferences given to black people in school admission policies and employment opportunities. Arguing that affirmative action is fair because blacks were once discriminated to a great extent is not valid since it is only driven by hatred towards white people who were discriminating the blacks and other minorities (Steele). Also, continuing affirmative actions only causes white people to hate the blacks because of the racial preferences that they are being handed. White people who believe that they have the qualifications but are turned down while a black person gets in may think that affirmative action gave him a disadvantage and not because the black person is really qualified (Hoffman). Affirmative action will not eliminate racial discrimination but it rather contributes to it. The policy may have its benefits every now and then, but generally, it is no longer applicable in the current setting as more and more white people are feeling the negative effects of the policy. It does remove barriers so that people from minorities can compete but it comes with a price. They gain an image of inferiority because people may think that it is only because of affirmative action that they have reached a certain level of success and not because they are really qualified (Hoffman). The Supreme Court has handed out its decision in the Michigan University case and the decision maintained that the school may use the race as part of the admission policy to maintain the diversity of the student body. Even without affirmative action, colleges can use race as a basis of application to meet a desired rate of student diversity since having a diverse student body promotes a better learning environment (Marklein, 2003). Ultimately, data indicates that affirmative action is no longer effective which means that it is time to adopt an alternative policy (Galston). A better way of embracing diversity would be to encourage minorities from a young age to work for their goals and get a good education. Assisting people from poor socio-economic backgrounds to gain resources and motivation should also be done so that they will also be competent when it comes to school admission and job-seeking. This is a lot better than giving them preferential treatment because they would not be treated as inferiors (Hoffman). Conclusion To conclude, affirmative action may have been an effective way of reducing racial discrimination against minorities, but now, it is no longer applicable to be used in the current setting since it results in reverse discrimination. The white people are now put in a seat that was once held by other minorities. Affirmative action might trigger hate targeted towards the blacks and other minorities because of the reverse discrimination. The policy which gives racial preferences also connects inferiority with minority groups. A better way of eliminating discrimination is by leveling the playing field not by racial preferences but by providing equal opportunities for whites and minority groups. References Prince, Andrew & Ryan, Erica. 21 November 2007. Is it Time to End Affirmative Action?. National Public Radio. Retrieved July 8, 2008 from http://www. npr. org/templates/story/story. php? storyId=16337441 Marklein, Mary Beth. 24 June 2003. Despite ruling, affirmative action debate is far fr