Symbolism in Young Goodman Brown Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Symbolism in Young Goodman Brown - Essay Example Young Goodman Brown is a satire on Puritanism and what Hawthorne perceives to be its hypocrisies. Hawthorne employs an abundance of symbolisms all throughout the narrative to create an atmosphere of evil deeply lurking behind the faces of the characters in the story behind their benevolent faà §ade. The story revolves around a young man named Goodman Brown and one particular night in his life which would forever change his life and his perception of the people and the world around him. That one night is the night when Goodman Brown is to finally determine whether he would finally succumb to the temptation of becoming a part of a witches’ coven in Salem. As he walks through the forest to the predetermined meeting place where he would take his official vow to the group, he sees a lot of things which makes him vacillate with his decision. He sees the people he often sees in the church, people who are known for their piety, wisdom and kindness, people who serve in the high positions of the government. He sees his old catechism teacher and spiritual counselor, the Salem’s minister, Deacon Gookin, other pious people and even his young wife, Faith in the company of the devil. This last revelation is the last straw that broke the camel’s back, so to speak. Brown de cides to embrace evil having lost the wife he wants to be good for. In the rite held at the unholy altar, as Satan is about to put the mark of baptism on his and his wife’s heads, Brown makes his last stand and cries out in protest and urges his wife to resist the devil. He suddenly finds himself alone and back in the middle of the forest. Goodman Brown lives the rest of his life a miserable man, still wondering whether what he went through was real or merely a dream. Nevertheless, he remains suspicious of all the people around him and even of his wife and lives his life in isolation from the people in his

'' cross-cultural influences the kinds of HRM strategies between china Essay

'' cross-cultural influences the kinds of HRM strategies between china and Austrelia''† - Essay Example With this, these companies adapt to the human resource protocols and labor laws where they operate while incorporating the same business ethics that they have set up in their home base (Wright, et al., n.d.). Outsourcing has been around since the late 70’s where the production of brand name companies were set up in countries where labor is cheap. One of the countries that is lucrative for these outsourcing companies is China because of its’ cheap labor costs (Wright, et al., n.d.). Even though expatriates are brought in to oversee the operations of these companies, the workplace culture of the host country is still evident in setting up their human resource policies. Policies such as reprimanding a subordinate or career growth are influenced by the culture which is prevalent in the country. One good example for this is a multinational company that will set up their operations in China. While the company will implement their company core values and business code of ethics, human resource managers still apply the strong work culture of the Chinese. Also setting up these multinational companies in a country such as China does not mean that the company will not comply with China’s labor laws (Zhao, n.d.). The same can be said when a Chinese firm sets up their operations in Australia. The Chinese owned company has to comply with the existing labor laws of Australia in order for them to operate their businesses. At the same time, they also practice the company core values which have been set up and may be formulated in Chinese workplace setting (OReilly & Chatman, 1996). This paper will discuss cross cultural differences in human resource management procedures and what problems arise from such settings. The paper will also discuss the advantages and disadvantages of such cross cultural settings. Another topic that will

The Disability Representation In The Media

The Disability Representation In The Media My personal reasons for choosing this dissertation topic stem from an interest in how media representations shape the attitudes of wider society. I feel it is important to note that I am writing as a non-disabled student with the view that disability studies and research should not just be the interests of disabled people. Issues of inequality and social injustice need to be considered by all members of society, while ensuring that the views, definitions and experiences of the particular group remain central to the discussion. It has been made apparent that the voices of disabled people have been absent from discussion because of the assumption that they need others to speak them and decide on their needs (Barton, 1993). Dominant views of disability dictate that it is a personal problem of the individual, based on biological impairment. However, I strongly advocate a social model of disability which emphasises that oppression and discrimination by society is the cause of experiences of disability. I plan to make this my main approach in writing my dissertation. Barton (1996, pg. 5) describes disability studies within the field of Sociology as an emancipatory project and argues that the fundamental question we must ask ourselves is whether the sociological imagination contributes to the benefit of disabled people (original emphasis) I believe that any research which aims to illuminate the prejudices implicit in cultural representations of disability, are necessary pursuits and it is vital to seriously consider the reasoning behind research projects as well as the ultimate impact they are aimed to have on particular groups. There has been many publications regarding disability and media representation in recent times which highlights that disability, impairment and disabled people are being frequently misrepresented in the mass media. Research has also suggested that such media representations have an alarming affect on the attitudes of the public. This issue can be divided into three key areas, the use of disability stereotypes, the use of specific language and images of disability and the under-representation of people with impairments working within the mass media. Pressures from disabled activists and legislation such as the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 2005 have brought this issue onto the agenda and worked to improve the rights of disabled people. An increasing awareness of the issues has resulted. However, the extent of this awareness is debatable as there is still much work to be done in tackling the negative and disempowering portrayals within the media and the current views of society. It is clear that the media has not made sufficient changes and therefore this issue remains extremely relevant. My aim is to explore the representations of disabled people to see whether any changes have been made. 1.3.3 Can Disability be represented positively? It is safe to say that the majority of media depictions of Disability and impairment are incorrect and exclude people with impairments from participation within media production. During my search for literature on the issue of disability and the media, I found that a substantial amount of studies were very critical of the media and focus only on negative stereotypical portrayals with an inclusion of recommendations for their demise. An example which I plan to use in my literature review chapter is Barnes (1992) disabling imagery and the media which ambitiously attempts to deal with all aspects of the media in misrepresenting disability. Despite such an extensive collection of studies in this area, there is very little literature which focuses on the representation of disability by disabled people themselves. It could be argued that there are not enough media sources which involve disabled people of which to analyse. However very recently I am pleasantly surprised to see that there ar e a few emerging. Notable examples include the Channel 4 mockumentary Cast Offs in which six characters with different impairments live together on an island. The show highlights many disability issues and challenges stereotypes of disability. Themes include sexuality, disabled identity and the exclusion of disabled actors and actresses from television (Wilde, 2009). Other media sources which feature disabled people include, Britains Missing Top Model and Dancing on Wheels. Although this is a step in the right direction, the inclusion of individuals with impairments on TV has been restricted mainly to reality TV which offers little insight into the lives of disabled people; instead they are centred on strength and achievement despite the individuals impairment rather than a celebration of disabled identities. The new American musical drama Glee has considered disability issues within its plot lines, this included the use of wheel chairs during a performance in order to educate the a ble-bodied performers on the importance of considering the needs of wheel chair user Artie and the difficulty in getting around the high school from his perspective because of the lack of ramps and accessible doors. Unfortunately however, the character of Artie is played by a non-wheel chair user and so any positive aspects of disability representation in the show are practically reversed by the exclusion of disabled actors and actresses from participating. 1.3.4 The Sun and Ouch! I wanted to choose two online sources for my study which were imposing in terms of disability representation and portrayal. Tabloid newspapers are notorious for depicting various groups inaccurately and producing sensationalised media in order to sell newspapers. The Sun is a daily tabloid newspaper which is among the highest in circulation in the world (The Newspaper Marketing Agency, 2010). The use of disablist language is common in tabloid newspapers and often in the broadsheets too. Reports regularly provide distorted representations of the experience of disability and focus on stereotypical assumptions (Barnes, 1991). This topic will be expanded further in chapter three. I chose The Sun because of its popularity in the UK and because tabloid news is a major source of information for the general public, I will be using articles from The Sun online website. After selecting a tabloid source for my study I began searching for an online source which involved the self-representation o f disabled people, I dismissed many websites because they were charity based, political in nature, or simply provided information and advice for disabled people without necessarily being based on the views and experiences of this group. Examples of websites I considered include Radar and Disability Now. I chose Ouch! because it is not centred on disability politics and aims to reflect the lives and experiences of disabled people (See Ouch! 2010, http://www.bbc.co.uk/ouch/about.shtml). The website consists of articles, blogs, podcasts as well as other features. The writers and contributors are not concerned with political correctness but seek to offer insights into the topics that are important to disabled people and those with a stakehold in disability such as family and friends. To ensure that representations and portrayals of disability are suitable, the Ouch! team are disabled themselves. My first impressions of the website and its content were that it is very humour based and do es not take itself too seriously. It is friendly, accessible and taps into the ordinary, everyday experiences of disability. This is why I decided it would be a suitable source for comparison with a more mainstream media source. 1.4 Structuring my Dissertation My dissertation will consist of six key sections. The first is my introduction which will outline the topic of study, along with my reasons for choosing it and my aims. Chapter two will historicise disability using the work of Barnes (1991, 1996, and 1997). Chapter three will discuss the existing literature which relates to my topic, this will include studies of media representation and disability, a discussion of the political models of disability and the key terms involved in the debate. In chapter four I will discuss my methods of research, including how I selected my sources and an examination of the strengths and weaknesses of my chosen method of content analysis. I will also consider any ethical implications of the study in this chapter. Chapter five will be my most important section, in this I will present and discuss my findings. The final chapter (chapter six) will be focused on my concluding the study. It will relate my findings to the objectives presented in the introducti on and the issues raised in my literature review. It will also include a reflection of my chosen methodology and a summary of the dissertation. 2.0 The History of Disability In order to understand the representations and societal perceptions of disability today, it is necessary to study a history of Disability. The attitudes and practices of the past have a vital influence on present day beliefs. Barnes (1997) argues that the lives of Disabled people in history have been overlooked in favour of an emphasis on medical perspectives and it is clear that many disabled people experience exclusion from mainstream society. This is evident in such areas as employment, in which 45% of disabled people of working age are excluded from. It has been found also that disabled people tend to have lower earnings, with disabled men earning on average  £1.50 less per hour than non-disabled men (Hyde, 2001). As a result, many disabled people live in poverty or are at risk of poverty. Discrimination can also be seen within the education system welfare, housing, leisure and environment and planning. The evidence that disabled people experience sever economic deprivation and social disadvantage is overwhelming and no longer in dispute, whether it be from the governments own commissioned research, from research institutes and academics or from disabled people themselves. (Oliver, 2003, pg. 312). Historically, people with impairments have long been oppressed and marginalised. Hostile treatment, pity and ignorance are common disabling experiences. Barnes (1997 and 1991) claims that perceptions of disability are rooted in ancient Greek and Roman history, he discusses how the cultures of the western world are based on the achievements of the ancient Greeks who built their existence on slavery. Greek society was extremely violent, male dominated and prone to war. They had a strong value for physical and mental strength and any weaknesses and flaws were not tolerated. Such a concern for perfection meant that the infanticide of sick and disabled children was very common. In Greek philosophy, the gods and goddesses were idealised representations of perfect humanity (Dutton cited in Barnes, 1997, pg 13). The only god who was physically imperfect was Hephaestus, this Greek God was rejected by his parents because of his grotesque appearance and labelled a cripple by his wife Aphrodite who committed adultery with a more aesthetically pleasing lover. This mythology is significant as it is a clear source of the links made between impairment and sexuality today as many of us assume that disabled people are unable or do not want to have a sex life. When the Romans conquered Greece and expanded their empire, the values of strength, individualism and able-bodiedness were inherited with it. The Romans also advocated the infanticide of weak children and ridiculed people who acquired impairment during their life course. Many roman games involved using individuals with impairment as comedy acts for the amusement of others. Although both the Greeks and Romans attempted to develop treatments for impairments, they were reserved mainly for those with power and wealth (Garland, 1995). Another foundation of our thoughts and beliefs of disability can be found in the western religions of Christianity and Judaism. Religion in ancient societies viewed disability as anti-religious and a reflection of sin or immoral behaviour. Barnes cites many references from religious texts which imply that impairment is a consequence of bad behaviour. For example, in Deuteronomy (27-27) it states that immorality will be punished by blindness. In contrast to Greek and roman society, the Jewish faith opposed infanticide and encouraged its members to care for the less fortunate this is also a feature of subsequent religions stemming from the Judaism, such as Islam and Christianity. People with impairments were accepted by the community, but as objects of neediness and charity. This was a key feature of Christianity. Consequently, they were viewed only in terms of their impairment and treated as incomplete human beings in need of sympathy (Barnes, 1997). During the Middle Ages disability was associated with evil and superstition and people with impairments were treated with extreme hostility. Children born with impairments were believed to of been sent by the devil as a result of parents involvement in witchcraft and other black arts. This association with evil was very strongly held in Britain during this time and was reflected in art and literature, Shakespeares Richard III is a good illustration of this, Richard is portrayed as physically and mentally deformed despite having no physical impairment. He is destined to only be successful as a villain which perpetuates the negative stereotype of impairment and evil. Just as in the ancient world, disabled people were ridiculed during the middle ages in many forms. Analyses of joke books from this time reveal that impairments such as insanity and idiocy were used as sources of humour. Many individuals with visible impairments were displayed as objects of entertainment (Barnes, 1997). The 18th and 19th century saw the transition from agricultural subsistence to factory production during the industrial revolution and urbanisation process. This brought with it a decline in religious authority and the growth of science and rationality. The development of utilitarian philosophy which emphasised the importance of pleasing the majority at the expense of minority groups created a new found value for individuality and progress. These developments provided justification for the beliefs and practices of the past and can be cited as a starting point for the disability issues which are visible today. These include the development and prioritisation of a medical model of Disability, in which the body and impairment are viewed in individualistic terms rather than social, cultural and political. The institutional prejudice and discrimination of people with impairments in everyday social life is a second issue of Disability theorists. The popularity of eugenic ideas during the mi d twentieth century and the murder of thousands of disabled people, as well as other oppressed minority groups during the second world war is another significant point in modern history and many scientists still advocate Social Darwinist ideals and view human imperfections (both physical and mental) as a societal threat, a threat that needs to be eradicated (Barnes, 1996). The rise of the disability movement in the 1960s saw the development of the Union of the Physically Impaired Against Segregation (UPIAS), the establishment of such organisations and the activism of disabled people resulted in a re-classification of disability as distinct from impairment and social in nature as opposed to medical (Barnes, 1997). Disability became defined as the disadvantages caused by social institutions and environments which effectively exclude people from participation (UPIAS, 1976). This was later adapted by other organisations such as the British Council of Disabled People (BCODP) and the Disabled Peoples International (DPI) (Barnes, 1997). Eventually, this new understanding of disability became known as the Social Model of Disability (Oliver, 1996a). Disability theory will be discussed further in my literature review (Chapter 3) with an analysis of both the medical and social models of Disability. 3.0 Literature Review 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Disability and Impairment: Key terms in the debate Disability is difficult to conceptualise because of its multi-dimensional and complex nature. The term can be used in many different contexts and from different perspectives which means there is little consensus on its definition (Altman, 2001). Classifications associated with a medical model of disability are based on a distinction between impairment disability and handicap impairment is defined as functional limitations to do with the body, disability is when an individual cannot function normally because if this impairment, and handicap refers to an inability to participate in social life (Oliver, 1990). The main problem with such classifications is that the individual impairment is considered to be the most important factor and reinforces an individual definition in which functional limitations predominate. Thus, disability is viewed in terms of an individuals personal inability to function (Barton, 1993 pg. 237). This model has had a powerful influence in shaping not just social policy, but societal attitudes and behavior. In reality, many disabled people have rejected this understanding of disability. Instead disability refers to failures in the structural environment to meet the needs of all individuals. The Disabled Peoples International (1981) put forward the following definition which better fits the views of disabled people. Impairment is the functional limitation within the individual caused by physical, mental or sensory impairment. Disability is the loss or limitation of opportunities to take part in the normal life of the community on an equal level with others due to physical and social barriers. In relation to my content analysis research, I will be looking to identify how disability is conceptualised and the type of language used both in The Sun and Ouch! 3.3 The Language of Disability The first and most important thing to remember about discussions of language and disability is that they arise because disabled people experience discrimination daily and are denied the same rights and opportunities as the rest of the population. Apart from the fact that words can be deeply hurtful to disabled individuals, they have power and are used extensively to justify oppression (Barnes, 1993, pg 8). The power of language is a significant topic of discussion in the area of disability studies. While we assume that the primary purpose of language is to aid communication, Oliver (1994, pg. 4) argues that it is also about politics, domination and control and I am inclined to agree. The development of language is not based on consensus of meaning but rather through the ability of some groups to force their meaning and understanding of others. This form of cultural domination is visible in many forms, the imposition of the spoken word on deaf people and sexist language directed at women are both suitable examples (Oliver, 1989, pg.1). The misconceptions that society has of disability are caused as well reinforced by the use of disablist language. Many of the abusive terms directed at disabled people are well circulated and familiar to most of the population. moron cripple spastic idiot mong dwarf midget lunatic the list is endless (Clark and Marsh, 2002). This kind of terminology has t he power to promote prejudice and discrimination against disabled people. As mentioned in the previous section (3.2) the DPI re-defined impairment and disability in line with the reality that disability is rooted in social injustice. This means that the language used by both the media and wider society ought to reflect a social model of disability in which society discriminates against those who do not conform to the ideals of an able-bodied society. Disablist language such as the disabled or people with disabilities are unacceptable yet commonly used by the press and the population generally. Individuals do not have disabilities, they have impairments. Phrases such as the disabled objectify the individual and impose a particular label on their identity which is based solely on their impairment. Disabled people as opposed to people with disabilities is more appropriate as it implies that the disability belongs to society, whereas the latter makes it the property of the person (Barne s, 1991 and 1992). Within the British press, the aforementioned terms, particularly cripple and handicap are used regularly. This is usually within a sentimental and patronising context. For example stories in which disabled individuals display bravery despite of their disability or handicap or instances where individuals have made personal scarifies to help a disabled individual or group. These generally involve the use of emotive language, such as wheelchair bound afflicted sufferer victim and so on (Barnes, 1991). To summarise, much of the language that is used in discussions of disability are based on an individualistic/medical understanding of the nature of disability. They are not developed from the experiences of disabled people, but rather from the perceptions of others. While conducting my study I will be interested to see which kinds of terminology and language are used in the newspaper articles from my sample. 3.4 Disability Theory: the Medical model and the Social model The medical model of disability has formed the basis of commonsense assumptions and beliefs about the nature of disability. This perspective focuses on the individual and his or her impairment. It imposes a presumption of biological or physiological inferiority upon disabled persons (Hahn, 1985). Medical views attribute physical and intellectual impairments as constituting disability, while denying its social and political nature. Oliver (1983 and 1996a) prefers the term individual model and argues that medicalisation is one element of this, along with psychological aspects. Medical accounts amount to a personal tragedy theory of disability (Oliver, 1990 and Finkelstein, 1980) in which disability simply happens to individuals and is personal to them, it implies that any difficulties are a direct result of impairments (Finkelstein, 1993) this forms the basis of everyday beliefs. In terms of rehabilitation, emphasis has been placed on functional limitations of an individual and attempt s to find ways of preventing, curing or (failing these) caring for disabled people (Marks cited in Williams, 2001 pg 125). As mentioned throughout this dissertation, this way of understanding disability has been heavily criticised by disabled people and disability has been re-conceptualised as a social and political problem through the work of disabled groups in the 1960s (Barnes, 1997). Disability theory has roughly been divided into American and British contributions. I will briefly outline the work of American sociologists, however I am more concerned with the work of British authors as it better relates to my dissertation and its theoretical standpoint. American writers during the 1960s challenged the idea that individual medical conditions or impairments were the cause of disability. Goffman (1963) discuses the role of stigma in spoiling (pg. 15) a persons social identity, one of the forms of stigma he identifies derives from physical abnormalities. He also identifies that disability is socially constructed and concludes that the attitudes of professional contributes to experiences of disability. St one (cited in Barnes, 1997) argues that the social construction of disability is based on the power of the sate in restricting welfare to those who require it. The importance of work and production in industrialised society has meant that those who are unable to participate are in need of assistance from the state, who along with medical professionals, are able to define disability as an individual problem and determine the level of access to welfare and other state services. Other writers, notably Albrecht (cited in Barnes, 1997) point out that disability has been controlled and transformed into commercial enterprise (pg. 6) he claims that societies produce different forms of illness, impairment and disability. The ways in which these are interpreted is dependent on economic factors he argues. American functionalist/interactionist accounts of disability are derivative of Parsonian ideas and focus on the role of being sick which is expected of disabled people and considered to be a form of deviance (Oliver, 1996b). The liberal values that exist in an industrial (and post- industrial) society place importance on personal responsibility and a strong work ethic, deviancy is created when an individual is unable to conform to these ideals. Writers have also argued that people with impairments are dependent on medical professionals who assist in the psychological accommodation of a disabled identity (pg. 21) and provide rehabilitation. The main criticisms made of the American tradition are that they over look the significance of social and economic factors central to experiences of disability. They also fail to take into account the perspectives of disabled people themselves, both these points form the main focus of British writers which I will turn to next. British theorists have been much more critical in their assessments of disability and have explicitly expressed their arguments about the oppression, prejudice and discrimination that many disabled people encounter on a routine basis. A number of writers have approached disability in society through a materialist or Marxist analysis, focusing on economic and political factors. Others have highlighted the importance of the subjective experiences of disability and the role of culture. References have been made to the importance of gender, ethnicity, class, sexuality and other social factors which shape individual understandings of disability (Barnes, 1997). Theorists who use a materialist framework claim that oppression is caused by economic structures. The lives of disabled people have little value in a capitalist society as they are deemed unable to contribute to economic and social life (Riddell, 1996). Finkelstein (1980) identifies three phases in history with regard to societal re action to impairment . In the first, pre-industrial phase people with impairments were not excluded from economic life and the notion of disability did not exist. This was because work was subsistence based and aimed at providing basic food and amenities for survival. Communities needed all the labour they could get from its members (Barnes and Mercer, 2003). The second phase was that of industrial capitalism during the 19th century, both Oliver (1990) and Finkelstein (1980) argue that during this time Disability developed along side capitalist production and free market enterprise. The rise of factory production and the intense levels of speed and control involved meant that disabled workers were not welcome in the work place. Processes of urbanisation created fragmented communities and weakened family networks. The growth of towns and cities to house the work force were geographically and structurally inadequate for disabled people and contributed to their segregation from wider s ociety and the introduction of residential institutions (Barnes and Mercer, 2003). For Finkelstein, it was at this point that people with impairments became a distinctly oppressed group, he argues that in phase the use of technology and the activism of disabled people will end oppression and disability will cease to be viewed in individualistic or medical terms (Barnes, 1997). Perhaps the growth of the internet and websites like BBC Ouch! mark the beginning of this phase. Oliver (1990) also discusses capitalism and disability, he applies Marxist ideas about the power of ideology to argue that the values which form the basis of social practice and culture conceptualised disability as a personal tragedy and aided the development of the individual model. Critics of Finkelstein and Olivers materialist analyses of disability argue that they over look the individual experiences of disability, rather than treat disabled people as a homogenous group. The social model needs to be reconceptualised with this in mind and from a postmodernist perspective which recognises diversity (Shakespeare, 1994, Morris, 1991, Crow, 1992). These writers discuss the prejudiced attitudes towards disabled people through culture, as material explanations fall short in explaining why discrimination exists and how disablist culture produces it. *incomplete* 3.5 Media representation of Disability and effects on the audience The stereotypical portrayal of disabled people within popular culture is one of the most significant factors contributing to the discrimination of disabled people. Hunt (1966) argues that disabled people represent an other in society and pose a threat to the able-bodied values entrenched in its structure. He describes this threat as being divided into five forms, as unfortunate, useless, different, oppressed and sick (pg. 146). Disabled people are considered unfortunate because of the belief that they are unable to lead a full life. They are useless because they cannot contribute economically, different because they do not conform to normal expectations of a human being and marked out as members of a minority group (pg. 150). Finally, they are oppressed and sick because they do not fit in, for the able-bodied, normal world we are representations of many of the things they most fear- tragedy, loss, dark and the unknown contact with us throws up in peoples faces the fact of sickness an d death in the world (pg. 155-156). Hunts arguments about the way disability is understood in western culture are applicable today in studying the misconceptions which are reproduced by the media. As discussed in Chapter Two, such misconceptions stem from the beliefs and practices of the past and have become firmly ingrained within society. Disablist attitudes become normalised through a process of social learning (Barnes, 1991) however, the extent and nature of this process is open to debate and many argue that there is no real way of knowing how he media influences perception. There have been many studies which have investigated the cultural portrayals of disability, some examples follow. 3.5.1 Disabling imagery and the media by Colin Barnes. The focus of this study is the portrayal of disabled people in the media and its stereotypical nature. Using secondary data from the content analysis studies of various organizations, Barnes (1992) identifies several stereotypes of disabled people produced within the media. These are: the disabled person as pitiable and pathetic as an object of violence as sinister and evil as atmosphere or curio as super cripple as an object of ridicule as their own worst enemy as a burden as sexually abnormal , as incapable of participating in community life and as normal (Barnes, 1992, pg 3). Rather than focus on particular aspects of the media, Barnes chose to study all aspects of the media, including the press, radio, television, books and so on. He argues that media depictions of disability contribute to experiences of discrimination in a significant way. He goes on to reiterate that the poverty experienced by disabled people cannot be explained by the traditional model which suggests individua l physical or intellectual limitations to be the root cause. It is caused by reactive environments and disabling barriers. Thus disability refers to a complex system of social constraints imposed on disabled people by a highly discriminatory society (Barnes, 1992, pg. 5). As mentioned in Chapter T7wo, stereotypical assumptions about disability stem from the beliefs and practices of earlier times, they are embedded in the very structure of society and are expressed in all institutions- ed

Language: The True Tale of the Great Gatsby Essay -- The Great Gatsby

Language: The True Tale of the Great Gatsby The Jazz age was a time of glamour, sparkle, parties, music, the extreme rich, the extreme poor, and the exultation of lawlessness; F. Scoot Fitzgerald was no exception. Fitzgerald was enamored by the life of money, status, and beautiful people on a hopeless spiral into self destruction. The moral decadence of America became a prevailing theme in the works of Fitzgerald, taking birth fully within The Great Gatsby. This novel is brought to life by narrator Nick Carraway who is a moral Midwestern man, infatuated, much as Fitzgerald was, by the parties and pizzazz of the east. Gatsby is a mysterious rich man, taken by love, but caught up in the deviant nature of the days. The morals of the entire cast in this ballet are as whimsical as the sheets of Jazz music that emanated from the musicians of the day. This constant change of character was always more eloquently explained by the language Fitzgerald used, than the actual plot of the story. The language that Fitzgerald used within te story, was more indicative to the actual story than the plot itself. While the character analysis of many of the characters may seem incomplete, by simply analyzing the words that were used to describe the characters and their surroundings, one can derive an in-depth hypothesis about each. One can first see this use of language by looking at the point of view that the characters are seen in. Nick, the narrator, comes to Long Island, completely drawn by riches. Without even realizing it, Nick equates money to beauty and happiness. Fitzgerald’s use of language through Nick, always describes daisy as entrancing, beautiful, charming, tempting, sumptuous, and many other sexual, beautiful words; ... ...arn more about the character themselves. It is this that makes Fitzgerald the great author of the Jazz age and The Great Gatsby the great book of this age. Many people have argued that if it weren’t for jazz music, the culture of that age would not have been born. It is not the plot that is the primary bearer of symbolism and themes within The Great GatsbyI, rather it was the language. The language, that like jazz, told a whole story in a few scales. Jazz was the soul of the culture, it was their feelings and emotions on scales and scores. The case is the same with language of The Great Gatsby. The language is the soul of the novel, the lungs through which the theme breathes its life. Works Cited F. Scott Fitzgerald. The Great Gatsby. New York London Toronto Sydney Singapore: First Scribner Paperback Fiction Edition Published by Simon & Schuster, 1995*

Critical Success Factors of Mobile Telephony Companies

CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS OF THE MOBILE TELEPHONY COMPANIES OPERATING IN THE EASTERN REGION BY : AMARTYA DHAR(08BS0000240) ICFAI BUSINESS SCHOOL 10. 12. 09 CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS OF MOBILE TELEPHONY COMPANIES OPERATING IN THE EASTERN REGION SUBMITTED BY : AMARTYA DHAR(08BS0000240) SUBMITTED TO :PROF BHASKAR BASU 2 ABSTRACT: India, the world’s fastest-growing mobile services market, has added a record 16. 02 million new wireless subscribers in March 2009, which are the highest ever additions in a single month till now. As the country continues to add around 10-11 million new connections each month, the target of 500 million telephone subscribers by 2010 is expected to be met in advance. 3 INTRODUCTION: The Indian mobile telephony industry is highly competitive with increasing number of players the companies are on the lookout for factors differentiating their service from the competitors. When a business takes a product to market, whether it is a basic product like corn or a highly engineered offering like the digital camera the company must make the product itself compelling (Frances X. Frei HBR April 2008). With price cuts and attractive rental schemes being offered by each and every service provider the two above mentioned factors are no longer the factors which can guarantee a large consumer base . That is why the mobile telephony companies are continuously on the lookout for factors which can give them a competitive edge. This project is an effort to find out the critical success factors which are necessary for the success of a mobile telephony company in the present scenario. The data have been collected through secondary research , primary research with the help of questionnaires was also done. CURRENT INDIAN TELECOM SECTOR SCENARIO: India’s telecom sector has made rapid progress since the announcement of the National Telecom Policy – 1999 (NTP-1999). Since 2000, the telecom sector has been a key contributor to the Indian economy’s impressive performance registering sustained high growth rates. Predominantly, over the last three years, the telecom sector has gr own remarkably in the range of 29% – 47%. Growth in mobile phones was the principal driver for telecom growth in the country as they have been in other parts of the world. Currently, India continues to be one of the fastest growing telecommunication markets in the world. A progressive regulatory regime, network expansion by operators, reduction in tariffs and cost of handsets, which essentially make the service affordable for the common users, all acted as demand booster to the growth of the telecom sector. Growth of the Telecom Sector in India: Year (End March) 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 Mobile Fixed Total Additions (during calendar year) 21. 84 (28. 5) 41. 96 (42. 4) 65. 54 (46. 7) 94. 65 (46. 0) 129. 21 (43. 0) 35. 61 56. 5 98. 78 165. 11 261. 09 391. 76 40. 92 41. 42 41. 54 40. 75 39. 42 37. 96 76. 53 98. 37 140. 32 205. 86 300. 51 429. 72 5 The mobile sector has grown from around 10 million subscribers in 2002 to around 35. 61million in 2003-04. The year 2004 was a watershed year for the fixed-line services in India, as mobile subscribers outnumbered fixed phone subscribers. In October 2004, the number of mobile phone users in India has crossed the number of fixed-line subscribers for the first time. So the year 2004 can be viewed upon as a landmark year in the history of Indian mobile telephony. Today, the mobile subscribers are not only much more than the land-line subscriber in the country, but their number is also increasing at a much faster pace. This was along the expected lines as, for the past few years, mobile phone subscriptions are growing at much faster rate than fixed phone subscriptions with almost all leading operators focusing more on wireless. Consequently, between March 2005 and March 2009, the country has added around 335 million new wireless subscribers to reach a total of 391. 76 million; however, the fixed line subscriptions have declined by 3. 46 million, down to 37. 6 million over the same period, partly reflecting the substitution effect. During the year 2008-09 around 0. 13 million average subscribers per month surrendered their land-line phone services except in the month of March which witnessed net additions of0. 23 million new subscribers. However, the telecom analysts opine that the fixed line telephony segment is definitely poised for growth in the coming years as the telephone operators are increasingly focusing on enhancing broadband penetration levels in the country and looking at introducing new value added services to enhance the experience of customers. BSNL is planning to use new technologies such as internet protocol television (IPTV) for tapping the fixed-line market. Tele-density: Tele-density (the number of telephone subscribers per 100 people)grew initially slowly from 7. 2 in March2004 to 12. 8 in March 2006, but thereafter galloped to a level of 36. 9 in March 2009 . Notwithstanding such remarkable achievement, it is necessary to note that India still lags far behind countries like Brazil and China, where the tele-density is over 50. China’s subscriber base is whopping. According to the China’s Ministry of Information Industry (MII), by the end of calendar 2007, China’s gross subscriber base consisting of fixed and mobile users had touched 912 million. Of the gross subscribers’ base, mobile subscribers have numbered 547 million and 6 fixed-line subscribers about 365 million at the end of December 2007. However, India’s tele-density is much higher compared to the neighboring countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. The telecom subscriber base in the fiscal year 2008-09 has reached a new milestone, as more than 129. 1 million telephone subscribers have been added during April 2008 – March2009 registering a growth of 43%. As indicated in the Table , the growth of mobile phone subscribers during the fiscal year 2008-09 has been phenomenal at 50%. Total subscribers & Teledensity In India 7 Monthly Growth Rate Of India’s Telephone subscribers 2008-09 The mobile subscriber base in the country is growing at su ch a fast pace that mobile operators are breaking the record for net additions almost every second month. India, the world’s fastest-growing mobile services market, has added a record 16. 2 million new wireless subscribers in March 2009, which are the highest ever additions in a single month till now. As per telecom analysts, this was the highest growth recorded within a 30-day period in any country. The previous best was 15. 41 million in January 2009. Consequently, the total number of mobile subscribers [(GSM, CDMA & WLL (F)] at the end of March 2009 has touched 391. 76 million as compared to 315. 31 million in September 2008 and 261. 09 million in March 2008. In recent years, smaller towns have fuelled further growth in mobile telephony . An interesting revelation is that currently, the cellular subscriber base is growing at a faster rate in Circles B and C as compared to Circle A and metropolitan cities. Interestingly, the bulk of the new mobile users are from the rural areas. As the country continues to add about 10-11 million new connections each month, the target of 500 million telephone subscribers by 2010 is expected to be met in advance. 8 RECENT DEVELOPMENTS: Acquisitions: Sahara India Investment Corporation has acquired 11. 7% stake in Chennai-based telecom company STel Ltd, for an undisclosed amount. STel has licences to operate in several northern and eastern states. As per telecom analysts the deal can be worth around Rs 250 crore, if STel’s stake sale in Bahrain Telecommunications earlier this year is taken as the benchmark. Cell Phone for Rural Areas: A mobile phone that can be charged by a common pencil battery cell will be launched by next year. Techtium, the Israeli hybrid battery manufacturer is having discussions with various cellular phone manufacturing companies to make and market these low-cost handsets. This technology will be revolutionary, especially for rural areas in countries where availability of power is a major problem. The company has already launched a mobile phone in collaboration with Philips, which not only runs on the lithium battery, but also uses a single AAA battery as aback-up option. Investments Telecom player Aircel Ltd will be investing Rs 1,000 crore in Andhra Pradesh (AP) by 9 December 2009, as part of its $5 billion pan-India expansion plan spread over the next 3 to 5 years. The amount will be used to build base stations, install switches, create a data centre and enhance retail presence in AP. New Ventures India’s fifth largest telecom service provider, Aircel has launched its GSM mobile services in India’s financial capital, Mumbai, Maharashtra. The company is the seventh service provider in Mumbai’s saturated market and has to compete with six well established telecomcompanies – Airtel, MTNL, Vodafone Essar, Idea, Reliance, Tata Teleservices and Loop Mobile. Aircel has around 1,000 cell sites in Mumbai and will be increasing it to around 2,000 sites by the year-end. The company has presence in 17 circles among 22 circles in the country. Maxis Communications (Malaysia) holds a majority stake of 74% in Aircel. The company commenced operations in 1999 and became the leading mobile operator in Tamil Nadu within 18 months. Aircel began its outward expansion in 2005 and met with unprecedented success in the Eastern frontier circles. Tata Communications (formerly VSNL) an Rs 800 crore data and communications service provider company, has announced its participation in the $600 million new West AfricanCable System (WACS). The consortium includes Angola Telecom, Broadband Infraco, Cable &Wireless, MTN, Telecom Nambia, Portugal Telecom, Sotelco, Telkom SA, Togo Telecom and Vodacom. The operators have recently signed a construction and maintenance agreement and supply contract for the implementation of the WACS. ZTE Chinese telecom equipment provider, which has provided infrastructure to Indian telecom companies like Reliance Communication, Tata Teleservices, Aircel and Loop Telecom, has found a novel way to expand business in India. Recently, ZTE has tied up with China Development Bank for financing mobile operators in India for upgradation of the telecom infrastructure. The new strategy adopted by ZTE is not only to compete with existing, well established players like Ericsson, Nokia-Siemens, but also to increase its market share in India’s fastest growing telecom sector. 10 With 35. 53 Million net additions during the Quarter, Total Wireless (GSM + CDMA) subscriber base increased to 427. 28 Million at the end of June-09, and wireless Tele-density reached 36. 64. 4. Wireline subscriber base declined to 37. 54 Million at the end ofJune-09, taking the wireline teledensity to 3. 22. 5. Internet subscribers increased to 14. 5 million at the end of June2009 registering a quarterly growth rate of 3. 80%. However, this growth rate is lower than the growth rate seen in the previous quarter (5. 3%). 6. Share of Broadband subscription in total Internet subscription increased from 46% in Mar-09 to 47% in June-09. 86. 66% of the Broadband subscribers are using Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) technology. 7. Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) for GSM-Full Mobil ity service declined by 10% from Rs. 205 in QE Mar-09 to Rs. 185 in QE Jun-09. 11 8. ARPU for CDMA – Full mobility service declined by 7. 2% from Rs. 99 in QE Mar-09 to Rs. 2 in QE June-09 9. ARPU for dialup Internet usage increased by 2. 97% from Rs. 236. 47 in QE March 2009 to Rs 243. 50 for the quarter endingJune 2009 10. MOU per subscriber for GSM – Full mobility service continued to show a declining trend. It declined by 6. 19% from 484 in QE Mar-09 to 454 in QE Jun-09. The outgoing MOUs declined by 5. 30% and incoming by 7. 04%. 11. MOU per subscriber for CDMA-full mobility service declined by 4% from 357 (Q. E March 2009) to 342 (Q. E June 2009). The Outgoing MOUs declined by 2. 7% and Incoming MOUs declined by 5. 2%. 12. Gross Revenue (GR) nd Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) of Telecom Sector for the QE June-09 has been Rs 39,108. 33 Crore and Rs. 29,732. 52 Crore respectively. There has been a reduction of 3. 3% in GR as compared to previous quarter. AGR has shown slight increase of 0. 02% vis-a-vis previous quarter. 13. Average licence fee as percentage of AGR is 8. 43% in June-09 as against 8. 4% in previous quarter. 14. The wireline Service Providers met the QoS parameters of Customer Care Service (Closures)and Response time to the customer for assistance [%age of calls answered (electronically)within 20 sec] 15. The performance of wireline servce providers improved as compared to the previous quarter, in respect of parameters Provision of Telephones, Faults repaired by next working day,Mean Time to Repair, Call Completion Rate, Customer Care Services (Shifts and Additional Facilities) and Time taken for refund of deposits 16. The wireline service performance has deteriorated in this quarter, as compared to the previous quarter, in respect of Faults incidences, Metering & billing credibility, Response time to the customer for assistance [%age of calls answered (electronically) within 40 sec & %age of calls answered by operator (voice to voice)]. 2 Market Share – Rural & Urban 25. 225. 6% 74. 4% 13 Service Area wise Access (Wireless +Wireline) Subscribers 14 Subscribers (Rural & Urban) & Market share: 15 List of Cellular Mobile (GSM & CDMA) Service Providers currently providing service [As on 30th June 2009]: The operators currently operating in Kolkata are Airtel,Vodafone ,Tata Teleser vices,Idea, Reliance telecom, Aircel group, BSNL etc. Bharti is the leading service provider in this region . 16 CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTOR: Critical Success Factors (CSF’s) are the critical factors or activities required for ensuring the success your business. The term was initially used in the world of data analysis, and business analysis. Critical Success Factors have been used significantly to present or identify a few key factors that organizations should focus on to be successful. critical success factors refer to â€Å"the limited number of areas in which satisfactory results will ensure successful competitive performance for the individual, department, or organization†. Identifying CSF's is important as it allows firms to focus their efforts on building their capabilities to meet the CSF's, or even allow firms to decide if they have the capability to build the requirements necessary to meet Critical Success Factors (CSF's). Types of Critical Success Factor There are four basic types of CSF's They are: 1. Industry CSF's resulting from specific industry characteristics; 2. Strategy CSF's resulting from the chosen competitive strategy of the business; 3. Environmental CSF's resulting from economic or technological changes; and 4. Temporal CSF's resulting from internal organizational needs and changes. Five key sources of Critical Success Factors MAIN ASPECTS OF Critical Success Factors and their use in analysis CSF's are tailored to a firm's or manager's particular situation as different 17 situations (e. g. industry, division, individual) lead to different critical success factors. Rockart and Bullen presented five key sources of CSF's: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The industry, Competitive strategy and industry position, Environmental factors, Temporal factors, and Managerial position (if considered from an individual's point of view). Each of these factors is explained in greater detail below. The Industry Critical success factor Industry: There are some CSF's common to all companies operating within the same industry. Different industries will have unique, industryspecific CSF's An industry's set of characteristics define its own CSF's Different industries will thus have different CSF's, for example research into the CSF's for the Call centre, manufacturing, retail, business services, health care and education sectors showed each to be different after starting with a hypothesis of all sectors having their CSF's as market orientation, learning orientation, entrepreneurial management style and organizational flexibility. In reality each organization has its own unique goals so while these may be some industry standard – not all firms in one industry will have identical CSF's. Some trade associations offer benchmarking across possible common CSF's. Competitive strategy and Competitive position or strategy: The nature of position in the marketplace or the adopted 18 industry position Critical success factor strategy to gain market share gives rise to CSF's Differing strategies and positions have different CSF's Not all firms in an industry will have the same CSF's in a particular industry. A firm's current position in the industry (where it is relative to other competitors in the industry and also the market leader), its strategy, and its resources and capabilities will define its CSF's The values of an organization, its target market etc will all impact the CSF's that are appropriate for it at a given point in time. Environmental Factors Critical success factor Environmental changes: Economic, regulatory, political, and demographic changes create CSF's for an organization. These relate to environmental actors that are not in the control of the organization but which an organization must consider in developing CSF's Examples for these are the industry regulation, political development and economic performance of a country, and population trends. An example of environmental factors affecting an organization could be a de-merger. Temporal Factors Temporal factors: These relate to short-term situations, often crises. These CSF's may be important, but are usually short-liv ed. Temporal factors are temporary or one-off CSF's resulting from a specific event necessitating their inclusion. Theoretically these would include a firm which â€Å"lost executives as a result of a plane crash requiring a critical success factor of rebuilding the executive Critical success factor Critical success factor Critical success factor 19 group†. Practically, with the evolution and integration of markets globally, one could argue that temporal factors are not temporal anymore as they could exist regularly in organizations. For example, a firm aggressively building its business internationally would have a need for a core group of executives in its new markets. Thus, it would have the CSF of â€Å"building the executive group in a specific market† and it could have this every year for different markets. Managerial Position Critical success factor Critical success factor Managerial role: An individual role may generate CSF's as performance in a specific manager's area of responsibility may be deemed critical to the success of an organization. Managerial position. This is important if CSF's are considered from an individual's point of view. For example, manufacturing managers who would typically have the following CSF's: product quality, inventory control and cash control. In organizations with departments focused on customer relationships, a CSF for managers in these departments may be customer relationship management. INFORMATION FOR WRITING CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS: (CSF's) For the organization following the CSF method, the foundation for writing good CSF's is a good understanding of the environment, the industry and the organization In order to do so, this requires the use of information that is readily available in the public domain. Externally, industry information can be sourced from industry associations, news articles, trade associations, prospectuses of competitors, and equity/analyst reports to name some sources. These would all be helpful in building knowledge of the 20 environment, the industry and competitors. Internally, there should be enough sources available to management from which to build on their knowledge of the organization. In most cases, these won't even have to be anything published as managers are expected to have a good understanding of their organization Together, the external and internal information already provides the basis from which discussion on CSF's could begin. USING CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR STRATEGIC AND BUSINESS PLANNING: I have considered t following factors to be the critical success factors for the mobile service providers of the eastern region. 1) CONCEIVE AND DESIGN: a)GSM b)CDMA 21 c)3G 2) HUMAN RESOURCE: 3) MARKET: a) Advertising b) Sales offers c) Network Coverage. ) Customer Service e) Value Added Service. 4) MANAGEMENT: a) Planning. b) Organizational Structure. 5) FINANCE: a) Budget System. 22 FINDINGS: The cellular subscriber base is growing at a faster rate in West Bengal, Bihar, Kerala,Himachal Pradesh, Punjab as compared to Maharashtra, Tamilnadu, Andra Pradesh and metropolitan cities. The number of subscribers for the urban sector is more for every service provider in comparison with the rural sector, the monthly addition of new subscribers for the urban sector is also more than the rural sector . The period april 2008-march2009 has saw a phenomenonal addition of 129. 1 million telephone subscribers, an increase of 43%. Total wireless (GSM + CDMA) subscriber base increased from 391. 76 million in march -09 to 427. 29 million at the end of june-09, showing a growth of 9. 07%. Airtel and Vodafone was found out to be leading service providers of Kolkata. 23 REFERENCES: 1)www. trai. gov. in 2)Harvard Business Review (Article by Frances X. Frei—April 2008) 3)Harvard Business Review(Article by Christopher W. Hart—March 2007) 4)www. hindu. com 5)Competitive strategy by Michael E. Porter 6)Competitive Advantage by Michael E. Porter 24

Death Penalty in the United States Essay

I used to think that if you were convicted of murder, that you deserve the same fate as your victim, death. The death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment. I believe â€Å"The death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights. It is the premeditated and cold-blooded killing of a human being by the state in the name of justice. It violates the right to life. It is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. There can never be any justification for torture or for cruel treatment.† Is it not right for our children to be taught that killing is right. It does not solve the problem at hand. If a person is put to death for a crime he/she committed, I do not see how that would teach that person not to commit that crime again. The death penalty is considered a way out in a matter of few minutes for most of the criminals. A criminal is not scared of death, just an easy way out to keep from facing what is ahead for them.The death penalty diminishes all of us. We do not gain anything from it. The Constitution forbids cruel punishment, so the death penalty has proven again to be Unconstitutional. There are innocent people being killed due to human judgment error. With the increasing, use of DNA Testing available today an end to innocent people being put to death can be stopped due to human judgment error. There is a lot of cost associated with the appeal and re-appeals in our system for the government and the state. The hours, time, and hard work put in from lawyers and judges is quite lengthy and can occupy a lot of time in our system. There has been a lot study to determine whether future murderers are deterred by the death penalty. In my research Dr. Jeffrey Fagan of Columbia University states â€Å"There is no reliable, scientifically sound evidence that shows that executions can exert a deterrent effect. These flaws and omissions in a body of scientific evidence render it unreliable as a basis for law or policy that generate life-and-death decisions.† The eye for an eye temperament is slowly becoming unpopular. Taking the life of a murderer is disproportionate punishment. The ones with the least  resources are the most unfortunate. We do not have our rapists, raped or torture the tortures, so why do we kill the killers or murder the murderers? Statistics show that the death penalty is racist. Prosecutors are more likely to seek a death penalty on African Americans at three times the rate when the victims are white than of white defendants in cases where the victims are white. The killers of white victims are treated more severely than people who kill minorities, when it comes to deciding what charges to bring. In conclusion, Capital Punishment is a moral of dishonor. References Clear, T. R., Cole, G. F., & Reisig, M. D. (2011). American corrections (9th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. ISBN: 9780495807483. Death penalty and race. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.amnestyusa.org/our- work/issues/death-penalty/us-death-penalty facts/death-penalty-and-race Dna testing and death penalty. (n.d.). Retrieved from (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.aclu.org/capital-punishment/dna-testing-and-death-penalty Deterrence studies. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/discussion-recent- deterrence-studies Fagan, J. (n.d.). Death penalty. Retrieved from Retrieved from Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law, http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/FaganDeterrence.pdf