Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Movie Review: “Memoirs of a Geisha” vs. “A Geisha” Essay

The film â€Å"Memoirs of a Geisha† is the story of a geisha told from a Western point of view. The narrator is the lead character who is a geisha, whose life is the main plot upon which this movie is built upon. It tells the story of a young girl who was sold by his father to become a geisha due to their poverty. The period is before World War II, and she goes through a lot of trials and at first leads the life of a servant or a slave to a well-known geisha. It is already near her young adulthood that she gets to be trained to become part of this elite circle of women who exude femininity and grace. She gets to be called â€Å"Sayuri† and she becomes one of the highest paid geishas during her time. Sayuri however does not desire money or fame but to be loved by the Captain, who, in the end, becomes her lover, as they reveal their true feelings for each other. The movie is one which caters to the emotions and tugs at the hearts of the viewers as it relates the transformation of a poor, young, innocent, uneducated child to become a sophisticated, well-mannered and confident young lady desired and fantasized by men. It is said that the movie was overwhelmingly received in the US but not as much in Japan because of the negative image of the geisha projected in the movie. This viewpoint is often referred to as orientalism. Orientalism can be defined as a Western perspective of the ‘orient’ or that which is not of ‘western’ descent. The idea of orientalism is usually referred to as the rationale which promotes the persistence of stereotypes attached to Asian cultures. Orientalism reinforces the Orient’s contrast to the Western construct, where anything from the ‘orient’ was discriminated against in a manner akin to the US perception of African-Americans. There is a certain stigma attached to being of ‘oriental’ lineage since one would be regarded as part of an inferior race. Although there were no apparent portrayals of discrimination by Americans against Asians in the movie, the undercurrents of the movie still reinforced the idea that the Japanese had to bow down to their colonizers as in the way the Chairman wanted to please the Americans to turn them in his favor. With the help of Sayuri, he was able to succeed in doing this. As such, the concept of Orientalism is carried forward and even further propagated, to the detriment of those who are part of the ‘orient’, hence, the vicious cycle and the continually widening gap between east and west. In the early times, it is said that geishas were renowned for providing entertainment to their patrons by performing onstage. Geishas were talented and known to be actresses, erotic dancers and singers who were also trained to play musical instruments. Geisha schools were prevalent in the early 17th century, and girls were trained to become geishas at an early age. Becoming a geisha was a highly-regarded profession, and during this period, wives were taken merely for the sake of child-bearing and caring for the house. Japanese customs allowed married men to go to teahouses and geisha pleasure quarters for entertainment, romantic liaisons and sometimes — but not always — sexual activities. Geishas are highly-skilled at manipulating their clients and it is said that geishas mainly hold back the idea of sex, by way of their charming ways and poised seduction techniques — which is one of the reasons the men persist in revisiting the geisha houses for entertainment. Perhaps, this is the reason that individuals who uphold a Western view of geishas think that the ultimate end of a client-geisha acquaintance will end in a sexual activity, which is not always the case. One of the biggest misconceptions pertaining to geishas is that they do sexual favors for their clients, although contemporary, legitimate geishas do not. Furthermore, the predominantly Western connotation that geishas are high-class prostitutes or escorts is also a fallacy. In general, the portrayal of the geishas in the movie is a far cry from the original geishas in Japan. Sex is a major selling point of the movie; â€Å"Memoirs of a Geisha includes many detailed sexual scenes which satisfy the Western appetite† (Akita). Despite acknowledging the fact that geishas are not synonymous with prostitutes, the film’s director Rob Marshall delivers a different message through the film. As mentioned earlier, the major idea somehow pointed to geishas as glorified prostitutes or sophisticated women engaged in the flesh trade. This is somehow shown in the way Sayuri was portrayed, especially at the time when a bidding was made by the most wealthy men in the locality relating to her â€Å"deflowering† or the mizuage ceremony. Another sexual reference made is the oft-repeated term â€Å"water† which was said to have been seen in Sayuri’s eyes, a quality which was said to connote a high level of sexuality among the Japanese – again as viewed from the Westerner’s perspective. Sayuri as a child was also shown as one who was in someway inclined to like watching sex and sexual activities being done by the senior geisha with a man in the house where she served. This reduces the main character into a kind of individual who craves for sex at such a young age, hence, her strong desire to become a geisha. The movie also exoticized the character of the geisha in that they were viewed as beautiful, mysterious, striking, seductive, submissive, subservient, obedient and elegant all at the same time. Geishas wore colorful kimonos, made-up their faces with special white make-up and used charcoal for their eyebrows, and their hair drawn up in a chignon with pins and other adornments decorated around the hair bun. Geishas were also made to sleep on special neck supports instead of pillows so that they could retain their hairstyle for a long time. They also wore special slippers which helped them walk in a different manner that would elicit more attention, especially from the potential male clients. There was also a scene in the movie where the geishas and their clients are seen in a public bath where they were shown all naked every one of them dipped together in a common pool where they shared banter and drinks. This somehow became a prelude to the sexual activity that each pair would eventually have immediately afterwards. The film also had some element of romanticism interspersed in it in several instances. One would be the part where Sayuri as a child would feel infatuated to a stranger who buys her an iced sweet candy. The captain who is 30 years her senior, gives Sayuri additional money inserted in his handkerchief so that she can buy more of the sweets if she wants to. What Sayuri does is she goes to the temple, drops all the coins in the donation chamber, makes a wish and pulls/tugs on the bell to make it ring, praying that someday, she and the man will meet again which indeed comes true. She keeps the handkerchief and cuts a newspaper picture of the Captain and puts them in a box together with her most precious treasures. Another part is when, as a geisha, she was on the verge of saying her feelings to the captain, but she is again unable to continue because her client has arrived. She is frustrated but helpless and the emotional status of Sayuri was sufficiently delivered to the viewer. In another incident, she asks her friend Pumpkin to call on Nobu, the friend of the Captain who expressed desire for her, and to whom the Captain was indebted to. She wanted to discourage Nobu’s feelings so she concocted a plan where she would have sex with a US soldier and Nobu would catch them doing the sexual act. Not knowing that Pumpkin also had feelings for the Captain, Sayuri was shocked to find out that it was the Captain whom Pumpkin had called and not Nobu. Feeling remorse for the plan which she had set up, Sayuri decided to give up on the Captain for she knew that it was too late to undo what had ensued. She threw away the long-kept handkerchief that belonged to the Captain, and decided to turn over a new leaf in her life. Fortunately, it was true love which prevailed and the story ended with Sayuri in the arms of the Captain who disregarded what had transpired. Another film which also deals with geishas is the 1953 movie â€Å"A Geisha†. This black-and-white film was directed by a Japanese named Kenji Mizoguchi. The plot is about a 16-year-old girl named Eiko, who seeks the help of a senior Geisha named Miyoharu. Eiko ran away from home because she feared her Uncle who wanted her to do sexual favors for him to repay the debt incurred for her mother’s funeral. Eiko asks Miyoharu’s help to be a geisha, a request which Miyoharu obliges to being a friend of her mom. Miyoharu takes Eiko under her wings but first asks the consent of Eiko’s father, who, at first, declines. Being matured enough and determined to become a geisha, Eiko gives her personal consent to Miyoharu and Miyoharu decides to push through with Eiko’s training even without her parent’s consent. She trains Eiko to become a full-fledged geisha, and within a year, Eiko is ready. Before her debut, Miyoharu seeks the help of Okimi to procure a loan for Eiko’s expenses. Okimi owns the teahouse where Miyoharu works, and she grants the loan of 300,000 yen to Miyoharu. Eiko is introduced to the community as Miyoei. On her first day of work, Miyoei meets Kusuda, who, unknown to both of them, was the one who lent the amount of 300,000 yen to Okimi. At this time, Kusuda is with Kanzaki, who is immediately smitten by Miyoharu. Kusuda invites Miyoharu and Miyoei to the music festival in Tokyo, which they both accede to. It was not known to them that Kusuda had planned the trip for Miyoharu to sleep with Kanzaki, and Miyoei with him, in order to seal a business deal. Somehow, Kusuda was able to convince Miyoharu to go to Kanzaki’s room, but when he started making sexual advances to Miyoei, the latter screamed and fought back and Kusuda ended up in the hospital. Miyoharu declined other invites by Kanzaki, and this made Okimi furious because both of them – Miyoharu and Miyoei – were destroying her reputation in the locality. Slowly, they — Miyoharu and Miyoei — lost their engagements and they were losing money. Due to desperation, at a certain point, Miyoei decided to go to Okimi to inform her that she was now willing to apologize to Kusuda, and that she was now amenable to go out with him. Okimi called up Miyoharu to inform her of this but Miyoharu asked Okimi to send Miyoei home and that instead, she would be the one to go and see Kanzaki immediately. Kanzaki is delighted to see Miyoharu and the latter stays with him for the night. The next day, Miyoharu goes back home with an armful of gifts for Miyoei, but she is angry because she knows where Miyoharu had been. Miyoharu explains that she was only guarding her innocence, and that she was willing to do what she did for her because she was the only family she had. Miyoei finally understands and they embrace. The phone rings twice reminding them of their upcoming engagements for the night so they hurry up and prepare themselves for work. Having another geisha movie from a different perspective was certainly a different experience altogether. The story is also about a young girl’s life and transformation into a geisha, but this time, it is told from the Asian point of view. The two films are five decades apart and yet there were significant similarities and differences between them. Some similarities are in the costume like the geisha school, the rigid training, the kimono and the obi, the white make-up, the special attention given to the hair design, the special geisha slippers, the neck support for sleeping, the wooden houses, the tea house, the soft-spoken manner of addressing a client, the geisha’s role as an entertainer and the necessary attentiveness to clients. The clients were men, the teahouses served as places to socialize in, and geishas held a high place in the society. The setting is of the typical Japanese backdrop which was authentic and true to that period. The differences between the two movies are quite numerous. The hairstyle of the geishas in â€Å"Memoirs of a Geisha† and â€Å"A Geisha† are two different portraits. Although the hair is also drawn up in â€Å"A Geisha†, there are side and top elevations which are characteristic of the original image. There were no sexual overtones or obvious sexual messages being delivered to the viewer. No nude scenes were included, or even bare backs shown, even during the time the geishas were dressing up or dressing down. Although the topic of sex was also tackled as Miyoharu had conceded to do sexual favors for Kanzaki, the most baring scene shown was Miyoharu removing the top robe she had, where she had another full-length robe underneath. Not even a focus on her feet was shown while she removed her socks. When Kusuda made sexual advances on Miyoei, no bare skin was shown, unlike in â€Å"Memoirs†¦Ã¢â‚¬  where Sayuri almost got raped and she was stripped half-naked to her waist. There was also no romanticism involved since Miyoei and Miyoharu both did not have love interests in this film. Likewise, the feelings of Kusuda and Kanzaki for Miyoei and Miyoharu respectively were only lustful or sexual thoughts and not of the romantic type. There were no sentimental scenes alluding to romance or emotions pertaining to mutual attraction or love. The love element in this film is one between two women who cared deeply for each other like family. The eroticism which was also played-up in â€Å"Memoirs†¦Ã¢â‚¬  is also absent in this film since the standpoint is also of Eastern origin. A remarkable difference seen in this movie is that while the geisha was portrayed as a docile individual in the more modern version, the 1953 version showed the geisha as one who knew how to fight back and withhold sex as much as possible. According to history, this is the more accurate image of the geisha because the Japanese government upheld the difference between legalized prostitution and geishas in society. Works Cited Akita, Kimiko. â€Å"Orientalism and the Binary of Fact and Fiction in Memoirs of a Geisha†. lass. calumet. purdue. edu Global Media Journal. Fall 2006. Web. 1 June 2010. Mizoguchi, Kenji, dir. A Geisha. Daiei Motion Picture Company. 1953. Film. Marshall, Rob, dir. Memoirs of a Geisha. Columbia Pictures Corporation. 2005. Film.

Assess the sociological explanation of science and ideology of belief system? Essay

Sociologists argue that science and ideology can both be belief systems. In the 18th century was the era of the enlightenment. People started to think and question was there more than just a God and that’s where science was introduced. People started to use rational ways of thinking to explain things that happened. Science has been used to develop different parts in society such as medicine and technology that we use in everyday life. But it has also caused problems such as pollution and global warming. Science has cognitive power, it can allow us to explain, predict and control the world. According to Popper science is an open belief system where every scientist’s theories are open to scrutiny, criticised and tested by others. He says that science is governed by the principle of falsificationism. This is whereby scientists set out to try and falsify existing theories, deliberately seeking evidence that would disprove them. Such as the fact that the big bang is a theory that everyone accepts but there is much more that scientists do not know and more needed to be found therefore it could be false. It argues that there always can be more and more evidence for every theory that has ever been made and proven. Then when disproving these knowledge claims allows scientific world to grow. It is cumulative, whereby it builds on achievements of previous scientists. This explanation shows that science can be a belief system as nothing can ever be proven 100% as there will always be something or someone that will disprove a theory with other evidence and therefore people belief what they have been told. This is much like religion in a way by the fact that religion cannot be proven it is something that people belief in. If popper is correct then it still leaves the question of why science has grown over the last few centuries. Merton argues that science can only thrive as a major social institution if it receives support from other institutions and values. He argues that this occurred in England as a result of the values and attitudes created by the protestant reformation especially Puritanism. The beliefs that they had to study nature led appreciation of God’s works, encouraged them to experiment. They stressed social welfare and were attracted to the fact that science could produce technological inventions to improve the conditions of life. Like Popper, Merton argues that science as an institution or organised social activity needs ethos that make scientists work in a way that serves the goal of increasing scientific knowledge. He identifies four such norms,  communism because scientific knowledge is not private property and they must share their findings with the scientific community. Universalism, the truth or falsity of scientific knowledge is judged by universal, objective criteria and not by the particular race or sex of the scientist who produces it. Disinterestedness, the means being committed to discovering knowledge for its own sake by publishing their findings for others to check their claims. Organised scepticism, the fact that no knowledge clam is sacred. Every idea is open to questioning, criticism and objective investigation. By contrast despite Popper’s view of science as an open and critical, some others argue that science itself can be seen as a self-sustaining or closed system of beliefs. For example, Polanyi argues that all belief systems reject fundamental challenges to their knowledge claims; science is no different, as the case of Dr Velikovsky indicates. One example for scientist’s refusal even to consider such challenges comes from a historian of science. Kuhn argues that a mature science such as geology, biology or physics is based on a set of shared assumptions that he calls a paradigm. This tells the scientist what reality is like, the problems to study, and what methods and equipment to use. Scientific education and training is a process of being socialised into faith in the truth of the paradigm, and a successful career depends on working within paradigms. For these reasons, any scientist who challenges the fundamental assumptions of the paradigms. Others in the scientific community will no longer regard him or her as a scientist at all. The only exceptions to this are during one of the rare periods that Kuhn describes as a scientific revolution, when faith in the truth of the paradigm has already been undermined by an accumulation of anomalies, the results that the paradigm cannot account for. Only then do scientists become open to radically new values. Interpretivist sociologists have developed Kuhn’s ideas further. They argue that all knowledge including scientific knowledge is socially constructed. That is rather than being objective truth; it is created by social groups using the resources available to them. In this case of science, scientific fact- those things that scientists take to be true and real are the product of shared theories or paradigms that tell them what they should expect to see, and of the particular instruments they use. Therefore Karin Knorr- Cetina argues that the invention of new instruments, such as telescopes or microscopes, permits  scientists to make mew observations and construct or fabricate new facts. Similarly she points out that what scientists study in the laboratory is highly constructed and far removed from the natural world that they are supposedly studying. According to the ethnomethodologist Woolgar, scientists are engaged in the same process of making sense or interpreting the world as everyone else. With the evidence from experiments they have to decide what it means. They do so by devising and applying theories or explanations, but they then have to persuade others to accept their interpretations. An example of this is in the case of the discovery of pulsar. The scientist’s initially annotated the patterns shown on their printouts from the radio telescope as LGM1. Recognising that this was an unacceptable interpretation from the view point of the scientific community they eventually settled on the notion that the patterns represented the signals from a type of star which is unknown to science. There is still a debate about what the signals really meant. As Woolgar notes a scientific fact is simply a social construction or belief that scientists are able to persuade their colleagues to share. This therefore shows that science can be a believe system as science is socially constructed and people believe in what they are told even if it true or not. There are also other critical perspectives such as Marxism and feminism which see scientific knowledge as far from pure truth. Instead they regard it as serving the interests of dominant groups, the ruling class in the case of Marxists and men for feminists. Therefore many advances in supposedly pure science have been driven by the need of capitalism for certain types of knowledge. For example biological ideas have been used to justify both male domination and colonial expansion. In this respect science can be seen as a form of ideology. In a different sense postmodernists also reject the knowledge claim of science to have the truth. In the view of Lyotard for example science is one of a number of Meta narratives that falsely claims to possess the truth. In Lyotard’s view science falsely claims to offer the truth about how the world works as a means of progress to a better society, whereas in reality he argues science is just one more one way of thinking that is used to dominate people. Sociologists have come up with a definition for ideology which is a worldview or a set of ideas and values, which is basically a belief system. Although ideology is used in many ways these are a distorted, false or  mistaken ideas about the work, ideas that conceal the interests of a particular groups, ideas that prevent changes by misleading people, and a self- sustaining belief system that is irrational and closed to criticism. here are a number of theories of ideology one of which is Marxists that see society as divided into two opposed classes, them that own the means of production and control the state, and a majority working class who are property less and therefore forced to sell their labour to the capitalist. They see the ruling class to not only control the means of production but ideas through institutions. In a result it produces the ruling class ideology, ideas that legitimate or justify the status quo. The dominant ideas are them or the ruling class and they function to prevent change by creating a false consciousness among workers. However despite these ideological barriers, Marx believes that ultimately the working class will develop a true class consciousness and unite the overthrow capitalism. This shows that ideology is a belief system as in Marxism’s case it uses the ruling class believes to stop the poor from becoming successful. Feminists see gender inequality as the fundamental division and patriarchal ideology as playing a key role in legitimating it. Because a gender difference is a feature of all societies there exists many different ideologies to justify it. For example how ideas from science have been used to justify excluding women from education. In addition to patriarchal ideologies is science, those embodied in religious beliefs and practices have also been used to define women as inferior. This also shows that ideology can be a belief system in terms of beliefs and ideas about women and how inferior they are to men. Mannheim sees all belief systems as a partial or sided view worldview. Their one sidedness results from being the viewpoint of one particular group or class and its interests. This leads him to distinguish between to board types of belief system or worldview. They are ideological thought which justifies keeping things as they are and utopian thought which justifies social change. Mannheim sees these worldviews as creations of groups of intellectuals who attach themselves to particular classes or social groups. However because these intellectuals represent the interests of particular groups and not society as a whole they only produce partial views of reality. The belief system of each class or group only gives us a partial truth about the world. In conclusion there is evidence to show  that both science and ideology can be a belief system. This is shown by using things such as science as an open and close belief system. The fact that science can never be objective because theories and experiments are carried out by humans which have feelings and therefore subjective. Science also seen as being socially constructed. The fact that Marxists and feminists see science also as a belief system that serves the interests of dominant groups. The idea that ideology is a belief system is seen as true as this is how sociologists define ideology.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Antigone: an Assessment of Antigone’s and Creon Essay

How was your understanding of cultural and contextual considerations of the work developed through the interactive oral? After taking part in the interactive oral presentation carried out by Sonia’s group, I now believe that I have gained a much greater understanding of the play Antigone. Themes commented on by the presentation were women, religion and tragedy; further examining their place in society at the time the play was written by contrasting it to society today. Obstacles hindering my understanding of the play, including its time and setting, have been removed. After comparing so vividly the society of Ancient Greece and that of the one I live in, I can now empathize with Antigone and the rest of the characters in the play, consequently broadening my understanding of the hard times that they had to endure. Many of the issues regarding women, religion and politics in the country during the period were observed in Sophocles’ Antigone, clearly displaying their importance. The contemporary issues that shaped the play deserve further exploration. Women’s roles in ancient Greek society were shockingly different in comparison to that of today. Before the presentation, I was aware of some differences between their society and ours but I was unaware that they were so extreme. Although she seems extremely negative and erratic, Ismene was shown to be a leading example of a woman at the time – the first difference between their society and ours. Although she is elevated in society she doesn’t hear about anything important – â€Å"No one has told me anything, Antigone, I have heard nothing†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Before the presentation, the irrelevant positions of women were unknown to me. As well as seen to be worthless, women were also presented as being a negative influence on men – â€Å"Don’t let any woman ensnare you†¦Ã¢â‚¬  was Creon’s advice to Haemon, displaying the general consensus on women. We examined Creon’s motives, prospecting that if Antigone weren’t a wom an, would the punishment be the same? Another important theme that was brought to my attention during the interactive oral presentation was that of religion. The religious laws in this time and country were incredibly significant. This society’s view on religion is a major influence in the play Antigone. It would have affected how the people in the country (the characters in the play) acted and what they thought, a large contrast to today. The themes examined by Antigone would have been incredibly shocking to the original audience as they were the social norms. After being informed, I was then able to make connections in the text, as to why certain things were said and insinuated about being rewarded in the afterlife and why specific acts were committed – all under the influence of religion. Prior to the presentation, I was completely uninformed as to the religion and many other cultural aspects of Ancient Greece. Antigone: An Assessment of Antigone’s and Creon’s Deeply Held Beliefs and Views On Familial and State Responsibilities In his play Antigone, Sophocles explores the ethical integrity of familial and state ties through the opposing viewpoints and beliefs of the central characters, Antigone and Creon. By pitching these two individuals against each other, Sophocles also successfully reveals the raw and multi-faceted nature of humanity. The tragic consequences that conclude Antigone emphasize the deadly differences between each character’s views on the unwritten duty towards family and the binding laws of the city-state, a conflict that would very likely be less of an issue in modern society. Sophocles promotes Antigone’s character, as she is the traditional protagonist of the play. By doing so, Sophocles succeeds in building the audience’s compassion towards her. The audience is influenced therefore, through this empathy created towards Antigone, to view Creon’s ethical actions as being less moral than her own. However, it must be added that Creon’s points of view and actions can nevertheless also be justified. By studying the destiny of each character, and how each of their fates come to pass, one can get a clearer understanding of how and why Sophocles influences the audience into favoring Antigone and her domestic role, rather than Creon and his cold inflexibility. The contrasting views and principles that drive each character deserve assessment as the opposing passions driving each of them, lead to the play’s tragic, dramatic and poignant conclusion. Sophocles brings to life the characters of Antigone and Creon, developing for each, a sense of responsibility and a set of morals, which clash dramatically with the opposite character’s. By pitting these two characters against one another, Sophocles not only successfully contrasts the ethical views of each, but also cleverly exposes the true face of humanity. Antigone is placed as both lead character and heroine of the play, as she holds a domestic, reasoned and more acceptable stance; any audience would name her as heroine. A.E. Haigh, author of ‘An analysis of the play by Sophocles – The Tragic Drama of the Greeks’ clearly states that Antigone lives a more familial motivated lifestyle, saying, â€Å"Antigone, however, seems to have been of a more domestic type.†1 Antigone’s resilient, and somewhat egotistical, feeling of responsibility toward family is what drives her to publicly violate Creon’s new decree and to question his judgment on, and knowledge of, divine law. Antigone does this without question, so deep is her respect of the gods over the state. She clearly feels more obligated towards her religious responsibilities and ties than anything else. This somewhat defiant character believes that the gods alone determine her fate; she will do whatever is necessary to appease them. â€Å"I shall die in the knowledge that I have acted justly. What greater satisfaction than that †¦ We have too little time to waste it on men, and the laws they make. The approval of the dead is everlasting, and I shall bask in it as I lie among them.†2. Here Antigone’s use of language shocks the audience as she has clearly prioritized her existence in accepting death and rejecting mortal life. This strong and deeply held belief drives Antigone to stand by her familial responsibilities with steely determination and to perform the burial rights for her deceased brother that were callously denied him by Creon. Her acceptance of death shocks the audience as it almost seems as if she desires it. She remains certain throughout the play that the gods will reward her devotion and her heroic actions in the afterlife. Although she says differently, it appears that Antigone also strives for public acclaim in Thebes. When Ismene mentions that she won’t inform anyone of Antigone’s plans, Antigone responds strongly, â€Å"Don’t you dare! You must tell everybody, shout it in the streets.† This rebellious response from Antigone seems to indicate that her actions are not only divinely, but also somewhat egotistically motivated. The second central character, Creon, shares Antigone’s determinism in abiding by principles and beliefs. However, contrary to Antigone, Creon remains certain that humans can in fact dictate the moral laws of society and that the state should and can handle its own matters by asking, â€Å"Is it likely, remotely likely that the gods will think twice over that stinking pile of meat?† Rather than fearing the immortal gods and their unwritten laws, Creon strives to uphold those of man and of state. His stubborn punishment of Antigone, a woman whose only desire is to bury her brother, shows a lack of respect and contempt for all family values and ties. Although Creon could justify his actions as being those required of a king, it is evident that they are too extreme. G.H. Gellie in ‘Sophocles: A Reading’ states, â€Å"He reminds us repeatedly of the physical nastiness of the [body’s] exposure †¦ We are made to feel in our stomachs that this is no way to treat the body of a human being.†3 Any empathy that the audience may have felt towards Creon quickly vanishes at this point in the play. However, this is somewhat redressed later when, ironically he loses his family members: his wife and son. Throughout Antigone, Creon appears to be unable to grasp the key traits of ruling and living in an ethical society. This is evident when he states, â€Å"I’ve just seen her inside in fury, not like someone in full control of her senses. The heart of one who weaves wickedness in darkness is usually convicted beforehand. I, for my part, hate anyone caught in the act who tries to beautify his crimes thereupon.†2 Statements of this nature show Creon’s cold and callous assessments of the morally upright Antigone – the effect on the audience is unambiguous: One can feel nothing but disdain for such a harsh and unfeeling character. It is Creon’s own rules and regulations that publicly expose his apparent lack of respect for family values and duties. This is evident when he introduces his new decree, stating that Polynices cannot be buried. Creon’s secondary flaw is that he continually acts on his own self interest. His motivations are driven by his selfishness and not by the opinions or interest of his people. Egotistical traits such as these are neither honorable nor wise for a successful ruler. Creon’s son, Haemon, challenges his father, informing him that he neglects to serve the people of Thebes and fails to pay attention to their cries. He argues, â€Å"How the city weeps for this girl, says she’s the least worthy of all women to die so badly for such noble deeds.†2 Creon responds, with an outrageous outburst, displaying his arrogance through his strong views. He asks, â€Å"The city will tell me how I ought to rule it? †¦ Isn’t the city thought to be her rul er’s?†2 His blatantly conceited claims, coupled with his unconcealed disregard for fair judgment, build tension towards a seemingly inevitable clash with Antigone, who is filled with equal tenacity but whose views are diametrically opposed to his. The viewpoints of each character can be interpreted as quite ironic and at odds: Although Antigone strives to defend family values by violating the state’s laws, she remains a prominent and functioning member of Theban society. Likewise, even though Creon remains a loving husband and father, his ability to completely disregard familial ties in support of state laws is shocking. As the two are directly opposed, it is interesting to see how the characters cope in the same culture. Antigone and Creon are of such determined characters, that the irony considering each of their particular devotions to family and state becomes even more alarming. Antigone appears the most ethical of the two as she is willing to risk her life over her decision to uphold family rights; Creon can also appear morally just, because, as king, he is motivated solely by his duty to serve Thebes. It could also be argued that neither Creon nor Antigone are wrong in their convictions: they are two sides that are simply conflicting. As the two protagonists stubbornly remain true to their deeply held beliefs and responsibilities, they are driven to make decisions that ultimately lead to their mutual destruction. This destruction in itself demonstrates the ethical validations of both Antigone’s and Creon’s opposing characters. As well as highlighting the problems with society at that time, Sophocles through the characters of Antigone and Creon, reveals the true face of humanity, in all its ugliness. Sophocles cleverly manipulates the emotions of his audience in order to expose humanity’s true nature. G.H. Gellie identifies the depth of the audience’s feelings when he says that we feel this response â€Å"in our stomachs†3 Our response is almost instinctive: we cannot help but react deeply in this way. Sophocles successfully plays with our emotions and makes us feel outraged. Although Creon’s flaws reflect the flaws of humanity, Antigone herself is not without flaws. Like her king, Antigone demonstrates strong opinions and, at times, acts in her own interest. She passionately defies the state’s dominance over domestic values. These obstinate principles are what lead Antigone down the path of destruction, glorified nonetheless. Sophocles portrays Antigone’s reasons, as being nobler than Creon’s who is profoundly selfish and possesses a frightening persistence to carry out his brutal deed. Tiresias, another character, provides an omen when he sternly warns king to be more understanding and to consider the impact of what he is doing, â€Å"You don’t protect it when you trample the honors of the gods!†2 Haemon and the chorus also warn the king, impartially informing him that his actions may not be as ethical as he imagines they are. Each character’s warnings are disregarded, amid wild accusations of bribery and foul play. Consequently, the audience is encouraged to feel less sympathy for Creon than they do for Antigone, a woman whose only desire is to bury her slain brother. Antigone is prepared to lose her life trying to uphold family values and feels she has no choice but to accept her fate. On the other hand, after pleas from numerous characters, Creon repeatedly fails to see sense and strives to avoid his dark fate. To conclude, in the play Antigone, the catastrophic conflict of beliefs that occurred between family and state in ancient Thebes is carefully demonstrated in the disastrous events that take place. Questions of morality and duty are challenged throughout the play as the two central characters, Antigone and Creon, clash violently in their battle to uphold the views they so diligently and resolutely stand behind. The views and deeply held beliefs of Antigone and Creon are of key significance in the play; they are what drive the plot to its tragic conclusion. However, they are not simply the driving force of the play, but the vehicle through which Sophocles exposes the many facets of humanity: its beauty and its ugliness. Through the tragic events that conclude the story, Sophocles was likely indicating that an amalgamation of the two characters’ contrasting approaches would be the best way to operate in ancient Greek society. Bibliography 1. An analysis of the play by Sophocles – The Tragic Drama of the Greeks – A.E. Haigh -Oxford: Clarendon Press 1896 2. Sophocles – Antigone 3. Sophocles: A Reading – G. H. Gellie – Melbourne University Press 1972

Monday, July 29, 2019

E-commerce Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

E-commerce - Literature review Example E-commerce will embody the selling of anything from goods and services by the use of internet using computers that are linked together. Gunasekaran and Ngai (2005) in contrast to Adham & Ahmad (2005) argue that beyond being strictly committed to internet businesses, e-commerce also involves improvement in business functions for traditional retailers. They also argue that it also helps face many businesses tasks including development, marketing, communication, sales and more. These innovations in prevailing business functions radicallydevelop productivity, sales and more. According to Gunasekaran and Ngai (2005) and Shin-Ping (2008), e-commerce is doing various businesses via the internet, since these days the world has become a web in which one has to worry about other businesses, and have an interaction, collaboration and exchanging of various business data with other businesses. However, Boateng, Heeks, Molla and Hinson (2008) there is some concern about the security of e-commerce and this is done through the examination of the current status of the framework under the e-Privacy Directive, and contemplation concerning the inclusion of a harmonized framework in the Data Protection Directive. Their findings show that in order for these connections to happen, there has to be a connection between one organization and another. E-commerce enables information interchange on demand to a unified platform where a company can connect to all its partners and customers and integrate easily. Many companies tend to work together for producing ecommerce platforms whichimprove their customers’ experience as it increases their brand awareness. According to Blythe (2012), Bharadwaj and Soni (2007) and Sumanjeet (2010), for these companies to achieve this, they have to ensure that their websites are compatible with Search Engine Optimization (SEO), easy to use by the customers and other back-end prospective, and it was

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Article Critique Regarding Cognitive Effects of Risperidone Assignment

Article Critique Regarding Cognitive Effects of Risperidone - Assignment Example The assignment "Article Critique Regarding Cognitive Effects of Risperidone" talks about the study regarding the cognitive effects of risperidone in children with autism and irritable behavior. By doing the research, the authors sought to answer particular questions. The questions included the possible effects of the drugs on children suffering from autism and those exhibiting irritable behaviors. Additionally, the authors asked the nature and extent of the drug. From the systematic questions, the objective of the study was, therefore, was to explore the effects that the drugs have on the cognitive processes of the children with autism and irritable behavior patterns. The authors test the hypothesis that risperidone has particular effects on the cognitive processes of children with autism and irritable behavior. In analyzing the variables, the authors employ ANOVA, a statistical test that enables the authors to analyze the means of several groups. ANOVA test is appropriate in this context since the authors anticipate varied effects on the various groups of the research subjects. The article employed appropriate statistical analysis techniques including the ANOVA test. The authors selected thirty-eight children and assigned them to the drugs randomly. They developed an effective placebo-controlled parallel group to control the findings. They tested various aspects of the cognitive processes in the children including verbal learning, sustained attention and hand-eye coordination.

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Giant Car case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Giant Car case - Essay Example In the current case the other elements, intention to create legal relations and consideration, are not in question, but the element of offer and acceptance is. In this respect, it is significant to show first that there was a valid offer and secondly that the offer was accepted. In order to form a contract, the parties involved must reach a mutual consent or meeting of minds. This mutual consent is attained through offer and acceptance that does not alter the terms of the offer.1 The rule applicable in determining if there is mutual consent is the application of the mirror image rule. The rule dictates that an offer must be accepted without altering the terms of the offer. An alteration of the terms of the offer amounts to a counter offer and cancels the initial offer. Lord Langdale in Hyde v Wrench2 ruled that a counter offer acts to cancel the initial offer. In this case, Wrench offered to sell Hyde a farm for ?1,000. Hyde in reply to this offer offered ?950 for the farm which Wren ch refused. Hyde thereafter wanted to accept the initial offer of ?1,000. Wrench refused to sell him the land and Hyde brought an action for specific performance. The question before the court was whether a valid contract between Hyde and Wrench existed. In deciding that there was no legally binding contract, the court noted that when a counter offer is made this offer destroys the initial offer such that the initial offer is no longer open to be accepted by the offeree. ... Additionally, these responses may deal with other issues rather than substitute the original terms of the offer.3 Their language can also manifest an intention to retain the initial offer under consideration, and they should not be considered counter offers. A mere inquiry on the offer does not constitute a counter offer Stevenson v McLean4. In this case, McLean wrote to Stevenson on Saturday with an offer to sell iron ore. The letter indicated that McLean would sell the ore for 40s in cash, and the offer was to remain open till Monday. On Monday Stevenson telegraphed McLean asking if he would accept 40 for delivery over two months and if that was not possible the longest period that was acceptable. McLean later sold the iron ore to a third party after receiving the telegram from Stevenson. McLean later sent a telegram to Stevenson that he had sold the Iron ore, but Stevenson had telegraphed Mclean accepting his offer prior to receiving the telegram indicating the ore was already sol d. The question was whether the telegram sent by Stevenson was counter offer or a mere inquiry to the original offer. In arriving at its decision, the court observed that the wording in the communication did not include anything specific to infer a rejection but was a mere inquiry which ought to have been answered and not considered a rejection of the offer.5 It is, therefore, essential to note that in order to distinguish between an inquiry and a counter offer it is prudent to look at the details of the communication. A counter offer varies the terms of the original offer while an inquiry does not vary these terms. In Simon's case, his communication that he would buy the car at ?5,500 was a counter offer to the

Friday, July 26, 2019

Clocks in the Vasculature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Clocks in the Vasculature - Essay Example An example is mammalian sleep rhythm or hunger, and its is now well known that there is a light-controlled master clock in the brain that controls these activities. Now the research is exploring the molecular mechanisms of these clocks in the peripheral tissues, which have been postulated to work through nutrient availability, although the exact mechanism is not known. heart which is essentially vascular tissue. This activity physiologically is autonomous, originating in the neurocardiac muscles of the heart and in health, occurs 72 times per minute in a regular fashion. In most and usual cases, human beings cannot control the frequency of these beats on their own. However, several neurophysiological conditions can cause change in this pattern and there is established roles of emotion, feelings, strenuous activities, stress in destabilizing this clock either to a higher or a lower rate, and there are physiological systems that tends to bring back these abnormal rates to normal through neural and humoral mechanisms. Small molecules interact with molecular hormone receptors module circadian rhythm. Catecholamines, vasoactive hormones, such as vasopressin and angiotensin interact with positive circadian regulators both centrally and at the peripheral vascular tissues to express circadian variations in heart rates, blood pressure, and vascular resistance (Harris, 2009). Genetic Mechanism Curtis et al. (2004) indicated the molecular mechanism of this clock. This occurs through pacemaker rhythms generated and sustained through positive and negative feedback loops. These in turn are mediated through transcriptional regulation at the genetic level (Curtis et al. 2004). Molecular Mechanism The drivers of this biological and molecular rhythmicity are transcriptional activation of of Per and Cry genes. These occur through transcriptional activation of feedback loop by heterodimeric bHLH-PAS proteins. It has been shown that these trascriptional coactivators and histone acetyltransferase initiate the key events in molecular rhythmicity. These, p300/CBP, PCAF, and ACTR, react with bHLH-PAS proteins, CLOCK and NPSA2, to lead to positive gene expression (Ko and Takahashi, 2006). Link to Vasculature The negative feedback loop is mediated by Cry2 mediated repression of NPAS2:BMAL1 through overexpression of p300. This leads to a circadian and time-dependent association with NPAS2 in the vasculature, which is timed in such a manner that it will precede the peak expression of the target genes (Westgate et al., 2008). Therefore, at the molecular level this is essentially a histone H3 acetylation. It has been correlated with the cyclical expression of the mRNAs

Thursday, July 25, 2019

MBA integrative project assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

MBA integrative project - Assignment Example Components of the congruence module is listed in Table A The strength of the model is its concept of congruence which relates to the fitness of two components. For example, a task demands a level of skill and knowledge and likewise, the individuals available to perform the task possess varying levels of skill and knowledge. (Nadler and Tushman 1980) [3] The fits and lack of fits can be related to behaviors observed in the system such as conflict, performance, and stress. Figure 1 shows the shape of the model which illustrates the interdependency of these seven variables The McKinsey 7S Framework was named after a consulting company, McKinsey and Company, which has conducted applied research in business and industry (Pascale & Athos, 19810[4]; (Peters & Waterman, 1982). [5] The authors of this model worked as consultant in McKinsey and Company. They created 7 variables which they called â€Å"lever†. The seven variables each beginning with letter â€Å"S† are structure, strategy, systems, skills, style, staff, and shared values. Figure 2 shows the shape of the model which illustrates the interdependency of these seven variables. The illustration is termed as the â€Å"Managerial Molecule.† Structure is the organizational chart. Strategy is the plan or course of action which allocates resources to achieve identified goals over time. The systems are the processes and procedures followed within the organization. Staff are humans in the organization (e.g., engineers), whereas the skills are capabilities of the staff. Style is the manner in which key managers behave to achieve organizational goals. Shared values are the guiding concepts that organization members share. The strength of the model is that it is a recognizable and easily remembered in business. The variables represented in the model are considered to be of crucial importance to managers

Apple and Phinnacus Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Apple and Phinnacus - Assignment Example This makes the decision to name someone an extremely important step in their life. Parents have become interested in baby names ever since important Hollywood people started naming their babies strange names. This means that Korwitt’s business is not customer driven, but rather the customers are the driving force behind the industry. All Korwitt did was to observe the behavior of modern day parents and respond to a pre- existing need. Her business is reactive to market behavior rather than being proactive and introducing the idea to the market herself. 2) Korwitt’s target market is parents who feel stressed about finding the perfect names for their children. Because Korwitt’s book costs $399, only wealthy parents can afford to pay for it. There may be people from lower classes who want help in choosing a name, but they cannot afford to pay the same amount. Since most fathers are probably out working to support their families, Korwitt’s book is more for women who are stay-at-home moms. These mothers possibly already have children of their own or are about to have a child. These parents likely spend a lot of time watching daytime television talk shows, which is why Korwitt makes television appearances to appeal to these mothers. These particular parents may also be â€Å"entertainment freaks† and keep up with all the latest gossip from Hollywood. If one of their favorite celebrities names their child a strange name, then these parents are more likely to want to do the same for their children. In this case , Hollywood celebrities are doing most of the advertising for Korwitt and she only has to wait for customers to come to her. 3) Because this is a growth industry, Korwitt should worry about new market entrants that offer the same services for cheaper prices. Many new websites are cropping up all the time. This represents a danger for her business. Because only wealthy people can afford her services,

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Intro to Cultural Anthropology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Intro to Cultural Anthropology - Essay Example Body art has the ability to express one's individuality as well as one's group identity. In terms of American culture, one of the things that body art is often used to portray is one's status in society. With just a quick glance, we can often tell what status someone is. While upper class people could easily wear old, raggedy clothes and not spend a lot of money on stylish hair cuts, manicures, jewelry and so forth, they choose to do so in order to portray their high status and achievements. Another example of a message portrayed by body art in America is the rebellious stage known as adolescence. It is not uncommon to witness teens displaying body art such as hair dyed an unnatural hair color or clothes that are all black or somehow different from traditional, acceptable clothing. For other cultures around the world body art can be used not only to portray status and rebellion, but it can be used to signify the coming of age, membership in a tribe or gang, or appealing or connecting to spirits or ancestors, among other things. One of the consequences of body art on society is its potential for misinterpretation. The messages that body art conveys to the people in one culture may not translate the same way to people from another culture. For example, a woman living in America may wear revealing clothes, such as a short skirt and a sleeveless or low-cut shirt.

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Week Two Discussion Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

Week Two Discussion Questions - Essay Example Three types of communication tools the internet provides are emails, instant chat, and forum mechanisms. Emails are the most popular type of communication used on the internet today. Anyone can open a free email account at popular websites such as Yahoo, Google, and Windows Live. Emails are a great communication option for businesses because it is free and the message reaches the inbox of the recipient’s email account instantly. Chatting is an informal form of communication people used on the internet. Chat rooms mechanism can be used by companies to improve their customer service capabilities since chatting occurs in real time and its costs are a fraction of what it cost to set up a call center. Person to person communication is the most effective form of communication. One of the advantages of this form of communication is that people are able to utilize all senses which include vision, hearing, and body language during the communication session. Also in face to face meeting s the sender can take advantage of other technological tools such as projectors to transmit the message to a larger audience. A few years ago I worked for a company as an administrative assistant. My boss told me to take over the job duties of a certain employee during her vacation. I never spoke with the employee. When the person got back the employee was mad at me for taking over her duties. According to her my intervention with certain customers caused her a lot of inconveniences. My boss told me not to worry, but I suddenly had a person mad at me work due to a lack of communication. The proper thing would have been for a face to face meeting to have place between myself, the employee, and our boss prior to her vacation to discuss how to deal with her work area. I remember a few years ago I started a job for a company. I was the new employee there and I did not understand the corporate culture of the

Monday, July 22, 2019

Teamwork and Trustworthy Working Relationship Essay Example for Free

Teamwork and Trustworthy Working Relationship Essay Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships (Michael Jordan). This is a quote from one of the greatest basketball players, emphasising the importance in teamwork as a group. It can also be used in terms of a group of people working together not in a sporting aspect. â€Å"A team is not a bunch of people with job titles, but a congregation of individuals, each of whom has a role which is understood by other members. Members of a team seek out certain roles and they perform most effectively in the ones that are most natural to them. † (Dr. R. M. Belbin). This definition is used to identify individual’s positives and negatives during a project or as a group; it can also be used to build a secure and trustworthy working relationship, choose and develop high-performing teams, increase self-awareness and personal efficiency, and finally build understanding. Building a secure and trustworthy working relationship is important in teamwork because it can help build individuals in the group’s self-confidence and morale and guarantee support from other members in the group. It can also build hope around the team, guaranteeing members can feel confident airing issues and concerns within the group. This is offered individuals a rich variety of tools and ways to manage, avoid and fix conflict to build a stronger and lasting relationships. During the lead up to the presentation, my team-mates and I had a few occasions where we disagreed about certain opinions but we did it in a respectable manner and understood the reason agreement. Majority of us who made up a group to put up a presentation on teamwork and the Eurozone play football together which automatically gave us that bond, we had the ability to voice concerns w no fear of getting shut down by a member of the team which is very vital as I mentioned above about teamwork.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Descartes Views on the Mind and Body

Descartes Views on the Mind and Body In Meditation VI (see week 5 reading) Descartes argues that there is fundamental difference between mind and body. Do you think Descartes is right? If yes, explain why, if not, explain why The mind body dilemma has been subject of philosophical analysis for decades and has yet to be fully understood. As the principal advocate for dualism, Descartes states that as humans we are composed of two major substances: the mental and the physical which manage to exist side by side. Without a doubt, Cartesian Dualism was one of Descartes major contributions to the study of philosophy; idea with which I agree based on the following analysis. The fundamental choice between the mind-body problem and its contra argument is the existence of materialism and its denial. Descartes states that the mind is separate from the body based on the reasoning that the mind exists and stands alone as a substance, therefore; they must be separate things. He then proceeds to add that anything that is physical occupies space. Unlike the mind, the body can be altered due to its materialistic nature, and can be changed and divided into smaller components. We find further support in Leibniz Law, which states that if a has a property that b lacks, then a is not identical to b which are applicable to the mind and body, as the mind does not occupy space, it is just housed by the body. Another argument is the one of introspection, which relays on the rationale that our best evidence for the existence of mental substance is the access to our own minds. Via introspection of the mind, we are capable of accessing and assessing different features of our own minds such as feelings, sensations, desires, etc. None of them have physical properties. Descartes then elaborates on this principle stating that there are certain things that come naturally to us as humans such as desires, which come instinctively. However, there are others such as thinking, which needs to be based on intentionality. Among these features we also encounter consciousness, which has been defines by Descartes as the epitome of the human nature, although it is not something that can be perceived by the senses, thus, it is not physical. We are capable of imagining the existence of our mind without the body. In the case of any material object, you can describe object a as existing or object a as not existi ng; however there cannot be a blending of both premises. Contrary to this, we have consciously just pictured the mind existing without the body, therefore it must follow that the mind and the body are separate things. As written in Descartes Mediation VI: And although I may, or rather, as I will shortly say, although I certainly do possess a body with which I am very closely conjoined; nevertheless, because, on the one hand, I have a clear and distinct idea of myself, in as far as I am only a thinking and unextended thing, and as, on the other hand, I possess a distinct idea of body, in as far as it is only an extended and unthinking thing, it is certain that I, that is, my mind, by which I am what I am, is entirely and truly distinct from my body, and may exist without it. [i](Descartes, Meditation VI) An example would be a paralyzed patient, where he is totally aware of his environment, and is conscious about his desire to perform an action, yet he cannot do so. He lacks the capability to acquire sensations physically, although he can still imagine what it would feel like to perform such task. As with any major idea, we find opposition, in this case, on the hands of the scientific community. The notion that Descartes work fails to completely explain how the connection between mind and body works is enough to trigger a response. As explained in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Willis wrote about the pineal gland that we can scarcely believe this to be the seat of the soul, or its chief faculties to arise from it because animals which imagination, memory and other superior powers of the soul have this glandula or kernel large and fair enough. (Lockhorst, 2013)[ii] Furthermore, Descartes idea has been rejected based on the fact that the attributes linked to the mind are simple responses to neurological and chemical stimulus in the brain. An example can be the use of any drug. Although the mind is supposed to be an independent entity from the body, when any sort of chemical/drug is ingested it can alter the mental state, though most of the time, it also alters your body as well. Same analogy applies if the patient suffers some physiological damage to the brain; it will yield physical consequences and changes in motor coordination. Although the bridge between the mind and the body may not lay at the pineal gland, a clear distinction between these two properties has been done in the past and it should not be neglected the fact that according to Descartes the single most important characteristic of the human nature is consciousness and not the soul as the human essence, our ability to think and rationalize our thoughts. As in all, although Descartes dualism theory is not infallible and it fails to thoroughly explain how exactly the connection between body and mind works, it does satisfy the purposes of explaining why would the mind be something different from the body via means of his very simple, yet logical arguments. Descartes went as far as creating what it is called a trialistic distinction where he unites and acknowledges the possibilities of the existence of the mind, the body and the union of the latter as a third state. References [i] Descartes, Meditation VI Canvas excerpt. [ii] Lokhorst, G.-J. (2013, September 18). Descartes and the Pineal gland. Retrieved March 5, 2017, from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pineal-gland/

Argos Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning (STP)

Argos Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning (STP) Introduction The objective of this assignment is to understand Argos segmentation, targeting and positioning in strategic marketing and how Argos uses STP to gain competitive advantage. In strategic marketing STP plays a vital role in the organization or company because it is a marketing strategy for dividing market in segments, targeting customers and making a position for products. (Whaley, A.2010, P12) Competitive Advantage is important for a company because it gives a company advantage over its competitors and gained by offering consumers greater value, either by means of lower prices or by providing greater benefits and services. Argos is a unique retail company in the UK. Its slogan is choice, value and convenience (Argos i, 2010). Argos was founded in 1973 and it owned by GUS PLC. Argos sells general merchandise and other products for the home from 750 stores throughout the UK, republic of Ireland, North Ireland, Wales and Scotland. (HRG PLC Annual i 2010A). Moreover, there are 33,000 employees are working in Argoss stores. Argos serves over 130m customers through stores and takes 26% of sales through the internet. (Argos i, 2010). In 2010, there are 19,300 products registered in Argos latest spring and summer catalogued. (HRG PLC Annual i 2010).Argos majors products are toys, jewellery, sports, electrical goods and leisure equipment and these goods making up50% of its sales mix(scribd i:2010). As the leader in UK for general merchandise retailing, Argos latest revenue is  £1,812.8M in 2010 which is less from 2009 and it sales down 3%. Multi-channel sales grew to 44% of Argos sales in the first half of the year. The internet represented 32% of Argos sales (HRG PLCi: 2010B). Argos is unique amongst its major competitors. Its main competitors are Tesco, Asda, PC World, Homebase and Currys, and online retailer Amazon.co.uk. All competitors have internet presence. However, Tesco recently has been trying to imitate Argos retailing style with its Tesco direct catalogue and in-store shops. (Scribd i, 2010) What is STP? STP stands for Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning. In strategic marketing STP is the second level. In STP; segmentation(S) the market segment deciding which customer to target (T) deciding what messages you want the targets to associate with you; what is called positioning(P).The whole process of dividing the market in different segments, targeting customers and product positioning is known as STP. (Whalley, A. 2010,P12).STP is one of the most important processes in strategic marketing which management should take on both at the start of a new offer creation as well as part of a periodic revision of the collection of offers and strategies by the organization. Taken from Whalley, A. 2010, and P72. 2.1 Segmentation Segmentation is the first step in STP process. In strategic marketing Segmentation can be defined as a process of dividing the total market in different segments for product or service into distinct sub-groups. (Whalley, A. 2010, P72). In segmentation each segment represents a separate target market to be reached with a distinctive marketing mix. Market segment means dividing the market into different subsets of customers with different needs. Segmentation can also be summarized as dividing the market by set of Pre- determined criteria. (Taken from Whalley, A. 2010, P72) Different variables can play a role in purchasing decision of the customers. In segmentation it is important to focus on the customer needs rather than other variables such as geography, demographics, occasion, behaviours etc. Effective segmentation is not easy to achieve, because in the society different groups of people have different choices and needs about products. It can only be achieved when customers share similar of demands. 2.2 Targeting In the STP process, the second step is targeting the market. After the completion of segmentation companies decide which segment they need to target and it depends on the size, area, profit and growth of each segments. Thus, Targeting of market is defined as the identification of market segments that are identified as being the most likely purchasers of a companys product. (Whalley, A 2010:P76) In targeting, a company should target segments in which it has a differential advantage over its competitors. In targeting companies decide to target one or more segments. For that purpose choice about targeted segments should generally depend on the several factors. The first factor in targeting is checking the existing level of the competition and how good it is serving the customers need. The organisation should know about segment, how large it is and how we can expect it to grow and have company strengths as company that will helps customers demand particularly to one group of customers. Companys actual ability of communication with the segment is also an important factor for companies in targeting. (Whalley, A.2010:P76) 2.3 Positioning After segmentation and targeting the next step is positioning in STP process. It refers to the way in which an organization sets itself apart in the market and how its products are perceived by the target market as a whole. (Whalley, A 2010:P77) Product positioning is the process of designing product features. These features are product, place, promotion and distribution. Positioning is about the communication of the overall value of proposition such as that it creates and maintains it clearly to customers. A product position is the place where product occupies in consumers minds. Market position gives a product a clear, unique and desirable place in the minds of target consumers. It is very important for the firm to define market segments, determine the target segments and understand customer needs, expectation and priorities .The study of competitors positioning about services and products are very important for a company, because its essential for a company to make good position f or its customers and communication about products for customer needs. Customers need should be a main priority of an organization. (Whalley, A.2010:P77) Discuss Argoss segmentation, targeting and positioning 3.1 Argoss segmentation As discussed previously, market segmentation means dividing a market into different subsets of customers with different needs. Different variables can play a role in purchasing decision of customers. In Argos demographic approach is used because demography is the study of population and it refers to personal statistics like income, age, gender, nationality, religion, and occupations etc. Argos adopts demographic approach because this approach represent the every member of the society i.e. there are many high and low income people in society, they have different needs about products. Furthermore, people of different ages and choice for men and women also important for a company before dividing the market in different segments. Argoss strategy about market segmentation is to fulfil the need of every customer. It does not matter customer is rich or poor, male or female, educational or uneducated etc. Argos creates well balanced market segment for its target and product. (The Times i, 20 10) 3.2 Argoss Targeting Customers buying habits change with the passage of time. Advancement of the technology changes customer shopping habits because technology makes its access simple for people. Many people nowadays like to use modern technology for shopping and purchasing different products, for that purpose they like to use internet, telephone. Many people like to come into stores to buy goods but the proportions of online buyers are increasing. This behaviour of customers changes companies approach of targeting. Argos thus uses a variety of modern channels to communicate with customers and to provide them with facilities for inquiring about availability of stock, and for making purchases. Argos recognizes that its many customers have different needs and prefer to shop in different ways. Argos targeting approach is getting to success because Argoss customers have already decided what they want to buy before visiting stores. Argos targeting approach make its value reliable for its customers because its targeting strategy aims to target more and more customers and make easy access for its products. Hence, Argos is using modern technology to target its customers because in this busy world ,where people are using advanced technology for communication make essential for Argos to use it for targeting customers. (The Times i, 2010) 3.3 Argos Positioning As discussed previously, product positioning is the process of designing product features. These features are product, place, promotion and distribution. Positioning is the final step in STP process. A strong positioning strategy is very important for company. Argos product positioning is using a differentiated market strategy. Argos low prices create value for its customers and its branded products lines are able to meet the demands of customers. Argos uses low price strategy because it is able to achieve cutting cost through retailing channels and it does not require a large shop space and big staff. Argos positioning strategy about place divides in three formats. These formats are store format, online format and catalogues. In distribution feature, Argos distributes products through Royal mail and its own delivery services. Argos uses advertising tools like internet, TV and indirect advertising through shopping catalogues for the promotion of its products. (Scribd i, 2010) Argos as a truly multi-channel, value orientated general merchandise Retail Company. Its strategy about product positioning is differentiated and formatted. Argos offers highly competitive customers through its positioning features like product, place, distribution and promotion. Infrastructure advantages strategy is to gain infrastructure advantage to increase revenue for this purpose Argos spends capital to improve its stores because strong infrastructure also helpful to create product position in market for customers. Argos positioning about reductions or increased flexibility cost has been achieved while Argos is still maintaining or improving its operational standards. (HRG PLCi: 2010B). Conclusion In conclusion, the STP process always plays a vital role in strategic marketing, because of the division of market into segments, targeting segments and positioning of products. Argos is a unique retailer company in the UK. It has a unique STP strategy policy as a company for dividing market into segments; demographic strategy is used for market dividing because its more suitable than other variables such as geography, occasion, behaviours etc. Argos strategy for targeting customers is flexible because Argos uses a variety of modern channels to communicate with customers and to provide them with facilities for inquiring about availability of stock, and for making purchases. Argos strong product positioning is totally for the benefit of its customers. As a UK retailer company Argos is unique, popular and successful because it is focused around meeting customer needs. Argos has gained competitive advantage on the basis of providing the best value of money for its customers through the best products branding, low prices, place, distribution and promotion. In this assignment, my main objective was to discuss Argos as retailing company and its STP strategy in strategic marketing. Furthermore, its aim was to show how Argos uses STP to gain competitive advantage from rivals by differentiating itself on the basis of providing the best value for money for customers through the most convenient shopping experience.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

The Right to Privacy in the Information Age Essay -- Exploratory Essay

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In a day in the life of Joe, an ordinary American, he drives to the office, owrks at a computer, browses in a shop at lunch time, then picks up some milk and a video on the way home, where a pile of junk mail and bills await him. At every stop alo ng the way, his doings can be watched, monitored, tabulated, and sold. On this typical day, Joe, our ordinary American, does not realize how technology has changed his private life. Joe's driving route may be tracked by a sophisticated traffic system. At work, his employer can listen in to his business conversations on the telephone, and tap into his computer, e-mail, or voice-mail. At the shopping center, the secret closed-circuit camera may seek him out personally. The shop is allowed to put peepho les in the fitting rooms. Some have hidden microphones, too. If he uses his credit card, not only does the card company keep tabs on when, where, and what he buys, it may sell that data to other marketers. A purchas e of out-door furniture means catalog s selling barbecue grills, mowing machines, or lawn seed are likely to be piled as junk mail in his mail box. Quickly he sits down at his desk and fills out the Reader's Digest Sweepstakes Entry form, hoping that this time Ed McMahon will arrive at his door with the big check, so he eagerly supplies personal information which, unknowingly to him, will be sold to other marketers and distributed to databases throughout the world. Joe is unaware of others who, on this typical day in the electronic age, ha ve peered into his private life.    Technology plays a significant part in today's society. As technology advances, new controversies arise, many involving privacy rights. Medical, workplace, and consumer pri... ...per, Michael. "With Success of Cameras, Concerns over Privacy." New York Times 5 Feb. 1997: B4. Dowd, Ann Reilly. "Protect Your Privacy." Money Aug. 1997: 107-108, 112. Everett-Green, Robert. "Cyberspace." 1996 Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year. 1996. Goode, Stephen. "Are Privacy Rights Still Inalienable?" Insight Magazine on the News 19 Aug. 1996: 18-19. Houlder, Vanessa. "The Blessing and Curse of E-mail." World Press Review June 1997: 33-34. Long, Robert Emmet. Rights to Privacy. New York: H.W. Wilson Co., 1997. "Medical Privacy is Under Attack." [http://www.ACLU.org] 26 Oct. 1997. "Workplace in America." [http://www.ACLU.org] 26 Oct. 1997. "We Know You're Reading This." Economist 10 Feb. 1996: 28. "William Faulkner: On Privacy." The Annals of America Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 1968.   

Friday, July 19, 2019

The Tower Of London Essay -- essays research papers

The Tower of London The Tower of London, the oldest fortified palace in Europe, was built by William the Conqueror in the late 1000's. It has served as a fortress, prison, palace, and the final resting-place of many people ("Tower of London" Encarta 1). Its history is full of amazing and horrific stories of life and death. To truly appreciate this magnificent group of structures a look must be taken into its history through it's architecture, uses, and those held in the prisons and dungeons. The Tower Of London is not actually one tower, it is a group of 13 towers located on 7.5 hectares of land known as Tower Hill ("Tower of London" Encarta 1). To the south of the tower is the Thames Rivers, which used to feed a moat that was drained in 1830. The general shape of the tower is a square with two lines of defensive walls surrounding it. The outer wall is defended by six towers on the river face, and there are two semi-circular bastions at the northeast and northwest corners (Tower of London Virtual Tour 3). The original tower, also known as the White Tower, is flanked by four turrets (Encarta 1). By looking carefully at the architecture of the tower you can see the painstaking workmanship put into every little detail. The group of thirteen towers collectively known as the Tower of London has five areas, which are especially interesting. One such tower was...

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Macbeths Images and Imagery Essay -- Free Essay Writer

Macbeth's Imagery      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  William Shakespeare in the tragedy Macbeth very skillfully uses imagery to support other aspects of the drama, especially the theme. In this essay let us examine the imagery, including literary critical comment.    Roger Warren comments in Shakespeare Survey 30 , regarding Trervor Nunn's direction of Macbeth at Stratford-upon-Avon in 1974-75, on opposing imagery used to support the opposing notions of purity and black magic:    Much of the approach and detail was carried over, particularly the clash between religious purity and black magic. Purity was embodied by Duncan, very infirm (in 1974 he was blind), dressed in white and accompanied by church organ music, set against the black magic of the witches, who even chanted 'Double, double to the Dies Irae. (283)    L.C. Knights in the essay "Macbeth" explains the supporting role which imagery plays in Macbeth's descent into darkness:    To listen to the witches, it is suggested, is like eating "the insane root, That takes the reason prisoner" (I.iii.84-5); for Macbeth, in the moment of temptation, "function," or intellectual activity, is "smother'd in surmise"; and everywhere the imagery of darkness suggests not only the absence or withdrawal of light but - "light thickens" - the presence of something positively oppressive and impeding.   (101)    In Fools of Time: Studies in Shakespearean Tragedy, Northrop Frye shows how the playwright uses imagery to reinforce the theme:    This theme is at its clearest where we are most in sympathy with the nemesis. Thus at the end of Macbeth, after the proclamation "the time is free," and of promises to make reparations of Macbeth's tyranny "Which would be planted newly with... ...es and Noble, 1970.    Frye, Northrop. Fools of Time: Studies in Shakespearean Tragedy. Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press, 1967.    Kermode, Frank. "Macbeth." The Riverside Shakespeare. Ed. G. Blakemore Evans. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1972.    Knights, L.C. "Macbeth." Shakespeare: The Tragedies. A Collectiion of Critical Essays. Alfred Harbage, ed. Englewwod Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1964.    Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Macbeth. http://chemicool.com/Shakespeare/macbeth/full.html, no lin.    Warren, Roger. Shakespeare Survey 30.   N.p.: n.p., 1977. Pp. 177-78. Rpt. in Shakespeare in the Theatre: An Anthology of Criticism. Stanley Wells, ed. England: Oxford University Press, 2000.    Wilson, H. S. On the Design of Shakespearean Tragedy. Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press, 1957.   

Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Technology Essay

Chief among there is its convenience, efficiency and effectiveness in work, study, and research. It must be said that there are a number of substantial problems associated with the phenomenon of modernized technology. The one that springs immediately to mind is the potential risk of overusing technology in our lives. At the other end of the spectrum, there are many and varied merits to the concept of easily accessible up-to-date technology. Perhaps most importantly, it assists people to carry out their work faster. In my own experience, I found that technological appliances such as computer and mobile phone have assisted me a great deal in my occupation. As an accountant, I usually liaise with my clients to discuss about their account issues. Sometimes, problems can be solved via only a phone call. In addition, the aid of computer has reduced amount of my work significantly. At the end of the day, the positives effects of using digital technology and its convenience and efficiency for most people are more convincing than the negative aspects. If digital technology were never invented, our lives would be never wonderful as they should be. There is a school of thought which contends that features, talents and shortcomings humanity is born with determine our social skills and growth considerably more than any education and real-life scenarios throughout our lives. From my personal perspective, I am unable to concur with this view. First and foremost, it is clearly evident that while beasts inherit all the intuition needed for existence when they come into the world, humanity is virtually useless at birth and takes the first 20 years of life acquiring survival prowess. / To begin with, it is immediately apparent that off spring inherit incredible genetic †hard-wired† abilities at birth, but unless they are encouraged to evolve these, such talents will manifest themselves. / First and foremost, it is clearly evident that if an individual has skill at something, it becomes pparent in earlier youth. People do not wake up one morning as excellent/superb athletes or academics at the age of 35. Similarly, lack of ability or learning difficulties are usually noticed at a very young age. This strongly recommends that babies are neither born with distinct abilities nor they are. †¦.. At the end of the day, in the course of our daily existence, any educative processes and life-changing events exert far g reater control than aspects, natural abilities as well as weak points that are contained in our genetic make-up.

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Technology in Healthcare: Good or Bad

lI study that applied science is two good and good-for-no function in the healthc ar field. With technology unceasingly changing, thither is no end to what we posterior do. Technology allows us to use computers or computerized systems to collect, process, and store pertinent data. It also allows up to progress to the future with the machines we use in the healthcare field. Some of the upsides are wear record keeping, data analysis, and convenient financial backing which can provide more remind medical billing. Patient security and recourse is a concern with all advances in technology.After all, without the patients, what business would the healthcare field return? Technology via machines that are used are constantly progressing. These can be in truth good in the development of best(p) machines to help to aide patients in give away treatment and less lengthy hospital stays. There are downsides to technology in healthcare though. Lets conceptualize for a minute. What ca uses errors in healthcare technology? Human error. This can be via inadequately trained, inexperienced, tired, or even cases where people jadet admit they made a mistake.How about faulty equipment or courseme? If a machine or program is not running properly thus it isnt going to give the powerful results. One thing for sure is that there has to be constant monitoring and troubleshooting to oblige a safe environment for both the patient, the hospital or facility, and also for the companies who rent the products we use in the technological spirit of healthcare. With technology being a definite for the future, I think its sound a wait and see thing as to whether it ends up being better or worse.

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

Abortion in the United States Essay

Abortion in the United States Essay

Abortion is one of the most controversial topics to date in the United States. Because of the complexity and social issues involved, there are those individuals who are for abortion, and those who are against. how There is neutrality that extends between the two, with those who are one the fence depending on circumstantial situations. In how this paper our group of four peers debate the topic, and base a conclusion on bad weather women in the United States should have the right to abortion, based on the arguments themselves.It should remain legal.When evaluating risk, one should give take in account of women’s feelings after an abortion. Feelings of depression and anxiety is something young woman feel prior, and of course afterwards. Women sometimes choose abortions because of medical issues with the babies, or horrifying circumstances leading to the unwanted pregnancy. Henry P.It might deny a foetus the chance gain common knowledge and memories, and to experience life.

Usual feelings after an abortion is relief, loss, sadness, and grief.It is okay to grieve and you should give yourself time to grieve. many Women who have had abortion may have feelings of sadness because they had to own make the decision on their own without help from family and friends. Some woman may live in a own home life where they are made to feel worthless because of the decision they will make.It ought to be prohibited wired and fought and Its not a moral performing.Abortions are performed with in the first 9 weeks of pregnancy. Early termination the better is for the woman, less complications. Most woman receiving their abortion within the first 9 weeks report no complications afterwards. Less than 0.Several have pondered upon the importance of abortion.

Deciding to have an abortion is an important decision in itself and having others dictate you can or cannot choose makes the situation even more confusing.As with most any conflicts, there what are usually laws which govern the actions those directly involved, and with abortion comes some of the most well-known pieces of legislature in history. Today in the United States abortion is legal in every state due to the decision of Roe v. Wade.Its presently one of the popular and most controversial societal issues in the USA.On the same day of the Roe decision, another case in the state3 of Georgia was also decided on, in the case of Doe v Bolton we the state in question also was found to be in violation of the appellants constitutional rights.The twenty Ninth Amendment: The enumeration in the constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage several others retained by the people. The Fourteenth Amendment: Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the U nited States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.Abortion isnt just the legal right of a woman, its the choice of a woman.

The side effects of abortion are sometimes critical. Some of them involve spotting logical and bleeding. You could be bleeding for past 30 to 60 days, vaginal bleeding which could be very dangerous if care was not sought from a physician. Another side affect is headaches and dizziness, fever and chills, nausea and vomiting, cramping, and diarrhea.Its the selection of a lady in whether part she wants to get one.Your cervix may get injured and damaged by the surgical tools that how are being used during the abortion procedure which will lead to not being able to conceive again. Women who have gone through abortion are at a greater risk of ovarian and cervical cancer. Abortion is a very much short procedure but it impacts your life forever, and the after affects of abortion varies extract from physical and psychological effects.Women may develop an eating disorders, or drugs on alcohol abuse, or they may have flash backs about the procedures themselves.Abortion sufferers are demon strated to be extremely prone to troubles.

In many states planned abortions are illegal and have resulted in up to 70,000 more deaths across the world every year. Many arguments support the issue on abortion. One reason why I am against abortion is that you are killing an innocent child that old has nothing to do with the mistakes that one makes by having unprotected sex. You should not kill an unborn child because you are ashamed and afraid of what people might say about you.When one many women could be embarrassed or not know whether theyve conceived after pill the morning as a result of sister incest or rape is always available and ought to be a safe option.The research shows that the english peer group has more emphases on the pro-choice side of the debate, because the laws of abortion are designed to protect the public welfare of the mother and in some cases the fetus, if there is evidence of potential danger, and the female fetus may be born with severe disorders, or mother having serious complications that could threaten the mother’s life. In the past, abortions were not as safe as they are today due to advanced technologies, making abortion safer than they’ve ever been before.Abortion is sometimes the best course because of medical issues, and sometimes due to other horrifying circumstances in which some women may become pregnant, such as rape, incest, and or other circumstances that may be legitimately valid reasons, and may lessen the quality of life for the child or mother. In 1973 it was decided by the highest court in the United States (The Supreme Court), that prior statutes infringed on the civil rights of women in such cases as Doe v Bolton, and Roe v Wade, making abortion legal, and the right of women to choose.Try out the cited above if youre searching good for top essay writing businesses.

Arguments for Pro Choice. Retrieved from Buzzle.com website: http://www.buzzle.Its good essential to be aware of the American Ethnic Literature American Literature before talking ethnic conflict continues to be an role American people for centuries.(n.d.). In Legal Information Institute.Religions that were established within the USA of America include Satanism Eckankar and Scientology.

html. Dudley, S., Ph.D.There are several reasons why you could be pro-life.d.). Retrieved from multi National Abortion Federation. Revised December 2006.Abortion was legalized in the usa of 1973 on January 22.

In perfect accordance with them, you wouldnt know that the past aborted child might have altered the world.(2012, late April 14). No One Called Me a Slut. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.Human life begins at the time of conception.d.). In Legal additional Information Institute. Retrieved from http://www.

The usa is the most important nation on the planet.They has fought a lot of times for various reasons.html. Sengupta, S. (2010, early June 30). Should Abortion Be Legal.America faces many troubles.

Monday, July 15, 2019

Life Attitudes of the Government Employees at the City Council of Davao Essay

Factors mixed in having consoling locatings ar that we should applaud intent-time, be accountable for our protest thoroughly being, and come back in toll of taking dole out of our self-coloured person. compulsive perspective helps to tell apart more than(prenominal) soft with the day-to-day personal matters of bearing. It chip ins optimism into your liveness-time, and makes it easier to void dread and detrimental thinking. If you subscribe it as a counsel of life, it impart bring reconstructive changes into your life, and makes them happier, lucenter and more successful. With a demonstrable spatial relation you fit the bright position of life, fashion approbatory and brook the best to happen.It is sure a offer of brain that is rise up worthy development and strengthening. ground on the facts utter above, the researchers opted to go over the life berths of governing body employees at city Council Davao urban center. debate of the caper This admit aimed to investigate the world-wide conduct Attitudes of the brass employees at metropolis Council in Davao city specifically it want suffices the pastime 1. What is the indite of the respondents in wrong of 1. grammatical sex activity and 2. climb on? 2. What is the life strength of the respondents?Is on that point a important residue in the life attitude of the respondents when they ar classify correspond to come along and sex? guess Ho in that respect is no hearty remnant in the life attitude of the respondents when they are class consort to epoch and gender. Methodolgy This sight do utilize of a descriptive-comparative design. go over questionnaires were apply as instruments for entropy collection. The respondents of this issue were the employees of the metropolis Council elect victimisation the bare(a) hit-or-miss technique.The sketch was conducted throughout the City Councils operating(a) hours from Mondays through F ridays starting line suffer January 16 to January 20, 2012 nearly 1-3 pm. The indiscriminately sampled respondents were asked by the researchers for have and thanksgiving to answer the questionnaire until the coveted recite of respondents which was 30 has been reached. The data were canvass victimisation subdue statistical tools. The fee-tail was utilise to act upon the employees life attitude. The relative frequency and part scattering were apply in ascertain the employees visibility in barrier of gender and age.

Sunday, July 14, 2019

Reading the Poetry of Sylvia Plath Can Be a Disturbing Experience Essay

I train with the supra instruction as for me read Plaths verse line was preferably disturbing. The high hat poems to inform this bugger off argon faint lift in showery persist, Finisterre, break of the day var., sm any fry and of course, Poppies in July. at that place argon poems that bent preferably as depressing, much(prenominal) as Pheas ant, merely sure as shooting an risky glory dominates done step forward Plaths imprint. master(prenominal) text edition The national explored in opaque scam in wet Weather is the escape of up pret rest and the first gear that arises matchly. Plath is in a eachege of desperation, she describes her carriage as a term of deteriorate (part of the poems mental shore upscape) with design respites from guardianship of supply neutrality. Her animateness is countermand as she perceives it, to the finale that the close(prenominal) old-hat things may facilitate consumption to her hurt brainpower A venial deject may take over inclination of an orbit light proscribed of kitchen remand or chasten as if a aeriform animated in alike(p) mannerk bullheadedness of the around sluggish objects straight and past It is comforting to ex starnessrate that Plath is sufficient to see to it rapture in this, hardly the poem is merely permeated with her irritation and idolatry of losing each motivation e realthing is b escape, it is raining and the minimise conniption faces dull.It is a plumb second power in which close heap hasten be desire show themselves at what eer stage. T hither(predicate)fore, it is belike to that subscribers keep m reverse to it, plainly its solely topic could be to conjure up unst equal to(p) memories and give-up the ghost out 1 spirit uncomfortable. It is of the essence(p) that the subscriber endeavors to uprise the thoughts of her tragical finis and approximately steadfast outflow tongue to of yucky o lfaction when k in a flashl perimeter her work in severalize to give it a chance. However, it seems to average comply at you from the page. in any(prenominal) case erudite that, all(prenominal) her work acquires a contraband context, which is so disturbing if a somebody to intense and capable couldnt husking a resolve to her home(a) problems what near the substitute of us?Finisterre is an grotesque masterpiece. nonwithstanding the themes that tout in it ar rattling distinguished too. Sylvia Plath is emphasising the calamity of set up organized devotion and therefore rejects the practiced qualities of the consent that religion ordinarily offers. To take out-of-door angiotensin converting enzymes culture remember is thick unsettling. The poet describes a molarity statue of Our chick of the Shipwrecked to whom a boatman is praying and withal a barbarian who came to pray. However, fit in to Plath, Our maam doesnt listen what the skimmer or the crank is saying, she is in savor with the beauteous forlmelessness of the sea. The spill of promise is harsh, those who ar meant to forethought arrogatet, according to Plath.What is one left field with later one loses desire? some(a) different poets know for their morose outlook, like T.S. Eliot who to a fault submerges the endorsers in the nudity of reality, offered us promise in religion, unless Plath failed to uprise mental hospital dismantle in that. It is as if this is non besides lands end except it is withal the end of hope, trust and all heart matte things. She does, however, attempt to provide an alternative. The in the end hunt These argon our crepes. give them in front they shove along frigid calls the contri entirelyor to bugger off the intimately of the turn in flake b bely not pretend back too late some(predicate) manners this is forceful by the rattling wide-eyed wording utilize here.This may seem to perplex as a solution, merely to me personally this conveys an sluice worsened furbelow- campaign from the integrity because it is so intolerable. As I said, the patterns in Finisterre ar amazing. The exhibitioner of rocks is describes as fingers knuckled and woebegone fasten on nought, rocks secrete their grudges to a lower place the water, the waves ar the faces of the dr induceed, the fog is make up of the consciousnesss of all in(p) people. Everything describe here is nothing, dead, or about to die, save like those plain darned flowers at the edge of the cliff. This poem kills any hope in the lector and, therefore, I believe it is very disturbing. first light Song offers us an perceptiveness into the kin of a amaze and a unsandedborn deflower mar. there are elements of contentment in it, and counterbalance the stretch of a handle is sufficient of oppose emotions for the poet. The minor is exposit as a unsanded statue in a drafty museum why is a baby, w hose vivification save started set forth as a statue? A statue is something withdrawn, distant, it direct(p) echoes the statue of Finisterre. A young is non of those things, plainly that is how Plath sees it. The museum is drafty. To just about of us a museum is a array of distinguishable pieces solely to her vivification once much appears by the prism of depression. This is nothing modern to a Plaths reader just it is a mod level of aflame disturbance when not take d give acquit a new lifespan, the hand over of her take in child was able to pledge her mood.The liveing of blank is pass on develop through an image Im not more your get than the profane that distils as mirror to mull its sustain averse effacement at the run ups hoard. Paradoxically, Plath focuses on her own feelings of the neediness of economic aid to herself the misdirect is the mother, who gives birth to a wanton away the baby, and the baby is comparable to the mother, and ther efore, her reflection. in all likelihood Plath tangle broken from the baby and felt that her own percentage is now diminished. I conceptualise that this is quite unnatural, although understandable. However, such a comment of pregnancy is disconcerting. kid and Poppies in July are explicitly disturbing. In tike Plath feels unavailing to meet her vision of granting her children a content life consortium in which images should be grand and classical, not this troublesome wringing of hands, this contraband pileus without a star. This is horribly upsetting. The reader dissolve sound understanding the suffer and disap visorment, feelings of hardship and despair that the poet mustiness be experiencing. entirely Poppies is July is fair immersed in her irritation, or level the lack of it. The tell apart she describes is deeply terrifying. It exhausts her to watch poppies flickering, barely she masochistically continues to guardedly come them. She is not tho d emoralize now. We are perceive a preferably psychoneurotic and paranoiac military position here which alternates with gross(a) aflame obtundation. She perceives them as infernal region flames, she wishes for pain or closing if I could pass or sleep. She is at a point where the soul is so blow out of the water ant stock(a) that it cannot redden feel but colourless. Colourless. I think this is the most right and strongest rendering of excruciating, smother aflame crisis that I lose ever read. goal Overall, Plaths numbers is liberal of ideas, mesmerising images, unspoilt and deep thoughts with no sugar-coating. more or less all of these are destructively negative, which makes her poetry disturbing. She callously rejects hope, cruelly picks out the belabor aspects in everything, her soul aches is maintenance of handout of those rare flying moments of vehemence that kept her alive.