Social Movement Theory, The Explanatory Value of Social Movement Case Study

Social Movement Theory, The Explanatory Value of Social Movement Theory - Case Study Example The root cause for the existence of social movement has been deciphered to be discomfort and isolation within society. People come together to form collective associations only because they are not able to dwell within society in a stable and peaceful manner. Islamic activism in the Middle East is one of the main forms of such discomfort because it has brought to light the kind of violence and terrorism that a group of people are subjecting to in the name of God. This social movement theory helps individuals to come to terms with their wants and needs and form organizations and societies among their own with a view to achieving all that they desire without getting into conflicts with others. However, this has not been as successful as writers and thinkers would have liked, and proof of that is the violence that has been suppressing the Middle East. In order to understand the key concepts of this theory, one must gauge into the political sphere within which the movement develops; every political atmosphere contains a very dynamic interest and consists of government intervention whether positive or negative, constraints on the people, and challenges that need to be faced by the people forming the organization. Similarly, the concept of Intifada had also been incepted within a very politically and economically exploited environment due to the unbearable lifestyle that Palestinians were forced to survive under the purview of. Anwar Al-Awlaki for example, became the face of Western Jihad because of the tensions that were going on in Egypt. He took on a form of his own movement with a view to make progress within his country and try and surmise the demands that the already powerful aspects of society had. It is not an easy task to simply eradicate every ‘wrong doing’ that occurs in society. This is directed towards these social groups that take to violence and terror when their

Royal Selangor IT System And Cloud Computing

Royal Selangor IT System And Cloud Computing 1. Introduction This report is commissioned by the request of Royal Selangor International (RS) for the purpose of analyzing existing IT infrastructure and draw out recommendations for RS to adopt to cloud computing technology. The current IT infrastructure that operates RSs business processes are analyzed. Data for the analysis are collected through interviews with RS management representatives. Based on these data and comparison with available cloud computing solutions, recommendation on the adoption of cloud computing are derived for RSs considerations. 1.1. Background Royal Selangors core business is retailing pewter artifacts and jewelleries. RS is a private owned company manufacturing and retailing fine quality pewter artifacts products worldwide and is now the largest pewter artifacts producer in the world. Founded in 1885 and based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, RS has expanded leaps and bounds to international recognition and has won several prestigious awards. The company recently celebrated its 125 years anniversary. The homepage URL of the Royal Selangor is http://www.royalselangor.com RS currently operates 3 brands under the company. RS on its own crafts and retails the pewter artifacts, Selberan which retails fine jewellery and Comyns, a brand that has 350 years old legacy in silversmiths. (Bernama 2011) RSs products are marketed through 3 channels as follows; RS owned flagship stores which are located at prominent shopping districts around the world, including London, Tokyo, Melbourne and Toronto. Distribution network to reputable retailers around the world. Online shop that serves both distributors and customers. The major part of RSs success is through the online retailing. RS are the pioneer in setting up its business for online shopping. It has enabled RS to spread its business internationally to distributors and also directly to end users. RS was awarded the CIO award in 2001 which recognizes the genius is IT implementation and strategy. (International 2001) The online shop has also provided RS channel to communicate with the customer and improves its services. RS has also established worldwide offices with warehousing facilities in major markets such as Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Britain and North America.   1.2. Corporate Structure RS is a family run business since it was first founded in 1885. Through 4 generations, the business has been passed on to succeeding family members. RS organization structure for the manufacturing business is as per Attachment A. The Managing Director is supported by two General Managers, managing and overlooking the entire operations from raw materials, production, research and development, marketing, e-commerce up to distribution and international marketing. Each section operates on its IT system for reporting and thorough tracking of the raw materials up to storage and distribution. Further detail analysis of the IT system of RS will be captured in Part 2. RSs Company Policy states the ambition of the company to maintain its status among the forerunners of the industry and to strive for excellence by being ahead of competition. In align with this policy, RS has adapted well with new IT systems to further improve its services to the customers. This is proven when RS opened its online store 10 years ago in 1996 while many industry players are still skeptical about online store. (Yee 2007) RS has structured its operations to run on a systematic IT infrastructure. Business processes of the group include the following: Financial department Human resource management Manufacturing Distribution Marketing Warehousing Customer relation management. 2. IT Infrastructure With over 1000 different products to be manufactured and distributed across local branches in Malaysia and also to 20 other countries directly, RS requires a system that could provide up-to-date and accurate information to the people involved. RS had embarked on various marketing strategies to expand the organisation and in the year 1996, ventured into the e-commerce with RS online shop and website promotion and advertising (International 2001). The subsequent business strategies, marketing, e-commerce system and web development have since been developed in-house to the specific needs of the organisation and RS wanting more control in its development and deployment. (Yoon Kit, Yong 2011, pers. comm., 1 April) Critical business processes especially for manufacturing and the retailing are being integrated and streamlined for speedier processing and better performance for the organisation. For the manufacturing department, integration and real-time updating of information for raw materials, work-in-progress and final goods are vital for the organisation to be leaner. Enterprise applications have the capability to provide accurate buying trends of customers and the information gathered have translate into a better inventory management for the organisation and also to the customers. As for the design team, IT is needed to speed up the design period and can help to transform new ideas into great products. Design information can be used for quick and clear generation of manufacturing ready drawings and used for virtual prototyping. All this can offer distinct advantage to RS over their competitors such as new products were created in pewter with an additional animated storybook. (Bao Shan, Yip 2011, pers. comm., 3 April) Retailing staff will benefit from the information on customers and also inventory to better serve the customer. Fast response and also delivery scheduling can help the retail staff to close sales deal quicker. Besides that, online marketing tools such as social networking are used to promote products actively. For RS, the strategic role of IT is very clear and it is for creating a competitive advantage over their competitors. (Yee 2007) 2.1. Computer Hardware Platforms For the routine tasks, desktop computers and laptops from Dell and HP running on Intel or AMD processors are provided. For the design team, Apple IMac is used as it is more suited for the modelling and designing purposes.   The mainframes are located in-house and consist of HP and Dell servers. These are dedicated for the critical applications such as the enterprise resource planning system (ERP), Storage Area Network, private automatic branch exchange (PABX) and the network systems between the offices and also the online shop. Cashiers at the respective branches are utilizing Point of Sales (POS) Terminals connected to the main servers for daily transaction processing. 2.2. Operating System Platforms For the general desktop computing or client level, RS is using Windows based operating system to manage the resources and activities of the computers. The Apple computers are supported with IMac OS X system. For the servers, RS is using Samba / Linux Server OS systems which are open sourced and it is easily adaptable to different servers and software. Centralised updates and patches are provided in-house by RS IT staff. 2.3. Enterprise Software Application RS is currently using the Baan ERP system and it was deployed in the year 1999. The system is used mainly in manufacturing, finance, human resource and warehousing. The Baan Client is running on the Windows based operating system. The selection of Baan was based on the capability of the manufacturing module of the Baan ERP system. 2.4. Networking / Telecommunication RS requires a reliable network and telecommunications setup because of the global presence and extensive distribution channels to more than 20 countries such as Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, China, Australia, United Kingdom, Canada and United States of America. Locally, there are about 21 outlets nationwide. They are using Unifi fibre optics broadband services provided by Telekom Malaysia. This is for the standard activities such as internet and correspondences and the network is managed via Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) suite. As for the dedicated leased line, it is connected to the offices and branches via the Cisco Networks. Cisco Core Switch provides the entire organisation connectivity for their Enterprise Data Routing and with the switching capability of the Intelligent Bandwidth helps to ensure optimum availability to their office and branches worldwide. Inter-office communication is using Lotus Notes as the integrated desktop client option for accessing e-mail and calendaring. The main office is utilizing PABX phone system which is able to support an enterprise wide phone and fax machines where as the branches are connected via standard public switched telephone networks. 2.5. Data management and Storage The Data management and storage for RS is quite large as it is to ensure that all product designs are archived and kept for future reference. The other requirement of the organisation is to provide a shared folder running on the server as the depository of the new product designs in use by the organisation. The major usage of a 20 tetrabyte space is for the designs of the products and the accessibility of the information by various departments. Baan ERP application and database usage accounts for about 200 gigabyte space and the Lotus Notes application takes up about 150 gigabyte space. The physical hardware for the storage comes from various original equipment manufacturer (OEM) sources and the main supplier is Dell. The hardware components are Dell / EMC CX3 which is utilizing Small Computer System Interface (SCSI)/Fibre hard disk for key production system. 2.6. Internet Platforms The key internet sites for RS are the online shop/e-commerce and the visitor center homepage. The other sites under the group are Comyns and Selberan which is also under the support of RS IT department. The web site was built with customers in mind it is to be used as a two-way communication channel for customers, as well as a one-to-one marketing and fulfilment tool. The web hosting of these sites has been outsourced to CSC to ensure service availability and network latency. These webhosting servers are running on the latest iteration of Microsoft IIS Servers. The website are maintained with Linux / Apache / MySQL / Perl/PHP/Python package as it is open-source and it is easily adaptable to suit RS applications. 2.7. Consultants and System Integrators Most of the system integration work is done in house leveraging on the knowledge available. Currently, RS is getting external consultant support for the Baan ERP systems when required. The e-commerce system initially was out sourced but due to the specific needs of the organisation, it is now fully developed and maintained in house. Others system integrators or consultants are being appointed when necessary. Issues that were identified are as follows:- To ensure interoperability between each systems. RS have basically two systems to ensure its interoperability which are the CRM and the ERP applications. As for the other platforms such as servers and data center, the software used are open source whereby customisation would be easier. Ensure constant communication and connection between shared information worldwide. The need to access to data and inventory in real-time and reliably. Maintain a well integrated and smooth supply chain especially for the online shop. It needs to be updated constantly and best practices are to be employed and cascade down to the operation levels. Implementation will be a major stumbling block due to the manufacturing processes being labour intensive. Maintenance of software and hardware systems 24/7. For storage, the challenge is managing the data and managing the systems that house the data. Software tools that track and manage storage resources efficiently are in high demand for these reasons. IT staff retention proved to be difficult. Internally, the IT department is supporting on hardware troubleshooting whereas the service or troubleshooting support will be provided by the external team of consultants. The current staff skill is sufficient to maintain and operate the system effectively. However, the staff education at the operator level is still lacking. Constant training and retraining is required. Cost reduction is actively pursued whenever there is chance as budget is always constrained. Since data storage continues to grow at 40% to 60% per year, the challenge is amplified to try to get the most from any new storage purchase. Challenges that are constantly faced by RS are listed below and a few are being actively pursued by RS. To maintain operation excellence in the whole value chain design, manufacture, distribution and retailing not only locally but also worldwide. Leaner production and shorter processing time and delivery schedules are key focus area for continuous improvements. (International 2001) To innovate and re-invent the â€Å"wheel† for the retailing and marketing of the products by using IT. Constantly RS need to find ways to market their products as the current marketing channel in local and overseas retail shops, on-line shop, corporate customers and the visitor center / showroom is not adequate. Currently each competitor in pewter ware has their very own website and they are promoting their products on line, retails shops and also at their main showroom (Tumasek 2011). RS have to look at the industry of premium giftware as well which would consider a worldwide market. Search Engine Optimisation programs, partnership with search engines and partnerships with other websites are areas to focus more in order to penetrate further into the international market. (Shankar 2003) To retain customers and to attract new customers are important. Major competitors such as Tumasek, Oriental Pewter, Mariwasa and Pewter Arts are constantly challenging RS. New designs and faster production and roll-out of products would ensure a greater market share. Providing better and more personal touch to customer service will benefit in the long run as customers would have greater perception of the product not only in terms of quality but also the service that comes with it. (Shankar, 2003) To constantly review the business strategies and if necessary upgrade or adapt the current system based on the specific needs of the organisation. The final call is that any new product or system purchased should move towards lower costs, better processes and common management.(Yee 2007) Strategies such as using setting up websites in native languages of the country they are going to market the product. Open source plays an important role with the servers in RS. (Yoon Kit, Yong 2011, pers. comm., 1 April) Most of the infrastructure servers are on Linux which gives flexibility in rolling out new servers as well as replicating our administration. RS uses a lot of the virtual machine ware so it is now easier to deploy new test and production servers on demand without having to submit capital expenditure and commission new machines. Constant updating of information and also skills related to open source would be vital for RS. 3. Cloud Computing   Cloud computing obtained its name from the metaphor for internet which represents an area on the network that resides outside (cloud) but is required to make the network complete. The control of the cloud is an external partys concern which is hosted and maintained by other parties and does not need the interference of the internal parties (Velte et al. 2010, p. 3). Examining the Cloud computing, it is basically a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources. These resources include networks, servers, storage, applications, and services that can be provided to the customers to assist its daily operations. As explained in NIST document, Cloud computing consists of five essential characteristics, three service models, and four deployment models (Mell Grance January 2011, pp. 2-3). The 5 Essential Characteristics On-demand self-service. Services are available to the customer at all times and without any need for intervention by the service provider. Broad network access. The system is web based and can be accessed from any internet enabled device such as through mobile devices, thin or thick client platforms. Resource pooling. The provider of the cloud computing services uses physical or virtual resources to serve multiple customers with different needs. The customer generally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of the provided resources. Rapid elasticity. Customers can scale up or scale down according to their own requirements. Additional services can be purchased at any time. Measured service. Customers accessing the system are easily tracked and controlled by means of storage, processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts. The 3 Service Models Cloud Software as a Service (SaaS). The provider offers an application that the customer can be accessed by different client platforms such as a normal client computer. The software is web based and does not reside in the customers computers. The devices only need to interface via a thin client interface such as the Web browser. The consumer does not need to physically install the software. Cloud Platform as a Service (PaaS). The capability provided to the customer to develop applications using the programming languages and tools provided by the provider. The customer will only have control of the application developed using the platform provided. Cloud Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). The provider only provides the infrastructure to the customer. The customer controls its own software and applications but has no control over the cloud infrastructure. The 4 Deployment Models Private cloud. The cloud services are provided to only one organization. Community cloud. The cloud services are shared by few organizations Public cloud. The cloud services are made available to the general public or a large industry group and are owned by an organization selling cloud services. Hybrid cloud. The mixture of two or more cloud deployment models which runs on a standard or propriety technology. To summarize the definition of cloud computing, it is where software, platform or infrastructure services that are made available to the customers at all times. The customers have relieved itself from the concerns of operating and maintaining the physical aspects of the system and enable them to focus on its core competencies.  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Before exploring the adoption of Royal Selangor with cloud computing, the advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing will be explored in following chapters below to examine further the key positives that will help the company. Figure 3.1 illustrates the advantages and disadvantages of Cloud Computing. 3.1. Advantages of Cloud Computing 3.1.1. Financial Benefits Cloud computing provides new solutions for all sizes of businesses and industries. When modern businesses looks for ways to cut operating cost without losing much productivity, cloud computing serves to be a key part to assist the business to achieve the target. By improving server utilization and decreasing the number of servers, significant cost reductions can be seen and additionally, future capital expenditure can be controlled. Normally servers are designed to have redundancy as well as spares for future expansions. This translates to capital expenditures spent for facilities that are not utilized. Cloud computing provides enables the customer to only pay the amount of usages utilized which translates to cost reductions.   Also, theres a reduction in physical server depreciation cost. As pointed out above, fewer servers maintained by the company means less depreciation costs. In addition, it also directly reflects to energy consumption and facilities cost. Reduced servers require less energy to operate and smaller facilities. When a true comparison is done, using a fully cost model, the decision weighs more favourably towards cloud computing. And when the other advantages are taken into account then cloud computing can really stack up as a viable option (Group 2009, p. 6) . 3.1.2. Technological benefits Cloud computing has the ability for the system to expand and contract automatically based on the demand of the customer. For software, new users can be assigned to the system and start using almost immediately without much complications. The resource platforms such as storage, networks and servers are available on-demand and again do not require much intervention or effort by the customer to prepare the system. More significantly is the redundancy and back-up system available to the customer, ensuring that the data are safe and protected. 3.1.3. Operational benefits In terms of operations benefits, this can be referred as outsourcing the IT system and delegating the risk management. Service providers have to ensure that the system is available at any time and redundancy provided. The problems that have been concerns for companies running physical hardware, servers and data centers can now shift the risks to the service provider. Access to the system is also improved as it can be accessed from anywhere through an internet enabled device. This improved operation excellence as data are always available at anywhere, anytime to the users of cloud computing. 3.1.4. Environmental Benefits By using lesser servers through servers consolidation, energy consumption of the IT system is drastically decreased. This translates to lower and more efficient energy consumption. 3.1.5. Competitive Advantage Businesses can be more competitive by adopting to cloud computing. Cloud computing provide a quick and efficient start up for any small or medium size businesses. This enables them to have almost similar capacity as larger established companies in terms of IT systems. Also, with data easily available, it enables businesses in general to be more agile and response quicker to market. 3.2. Disadvantages of Cloud Computing While the advantages of cloud look promising, there are also disadvantages to the cloud services such as below:- 3.2.1. Security issues There is a need to look at the security aspect for cloud. The security risks that come with cloud computing ranges from user access, recovery, regulatory compliance and long term viability.   Sensitive data processed/stored externally brings with it an inherent level of risk, because outsourced services bypass the physical, logical and personnel controls† from in-house programs. The controls of user access and also content management access would need to be transparent and clear so customers are not worried about their data being compromised. (Brodkin 2008) 3.2.2. Lack of control For cloud computing, the hardware and software could be based in multiple locations all around the world compare to in-house systems. The control on the storage and security of the data will be the under the jurisdiction of the cloud vendor and users do not have much control over it. Performance and upgrading of the applications and data protection will be relying on the timeliness or scheduling of the vendors to update their software. 3.2.3. Lock-in to cloud vendors Users should be aware of the risk of lock-in to the cloud vendors. The consideration will be on whether in the future there is the need for changes or replacement of the software/platform/infrastructure selected initially and thus switching cost will be incurred. Based on the three types of cloud computing, the service and platform will have some sort of impact and difficulty if there is a need to change vendors. Selection of vendors that provide minimum lock-in should be preferred. (Petri 2010) There is also the need to ensure that the data that is held with the vendor will remain available even if they have been acquired or merge with other larger vendors. 3.2.4. Reliability on cloud functionality Cloud vendors based their business on providing high up-time and downtimes should be kept to a minimum. Overall hardware and network reliability from cloud vendors are considered to be at par or above par comparing to the average data center. However, there are instances when there is downtime and this would be considered to be unacceptable if it is too long and economic losses are being factored in. A few vendors will have strict service level agreements (SLAs) that provide themselves with a method of controlling the downtime. (ENKI 2011) Besides the downtime from servers, we need to look at the downtime created due to non internet service such as connection and bandwidth availability. There might be problem when the internet connection is not available or not sufficient to support the functionality of the applications. This would totally render the cloud application a total failure. 3.2.5. Data segregation Data stored in the cloud is generally in a shared environment and it is placed within the same location as other users. There is the need to ensure that the data is fully secured and only the authorised user can access it and the cloud provider should proof that encryption schemes were designed and tested by experienced specialists. Data can be totally unusable if there is complication during the de-cryption procedure. (Brodkin 2008) 3.2.6. Recovery of Data and Services There would be difficulty in accessing the data and service provided in the cloud as the user would not have any information on where the data is or how it is being stored. In the event of disaster, the cloud provider would need to setup a proper data recovery or restoration. There would be question on when can be data be ready for use once they initiate the recovery process. (Brodkin 2008) 4. Recommendation of cloud computing adoption/adaption The findings from above are analyzed against the factors that forms the Competitive Forces Model for IT Infrastructure (Laudon Laudon 2010, p. 223). This will provide an outline of RSs requirement to adopt cloud computing as its IT infrastructure. 4.1. Market demand for organisations services Internet sales have always been the forefront business of RS. 80% of RSs sales are from the online shop. (Yee 2007) Considering future trends, the e-commerce will keep on expanding and improving. The market demand is and has proven to be in abundance for RS to venture. With cloud computing, RSs operation can be more streamlined and improved and meet customers demands. 4.2. RS business strategy RS strive to be the best pewter manufacturer in the world and maintain its competitive edge over competitors. (Khay Chong, Saw 2011, pers. comm., 5 April) 4.3. RS IT strategy, infrastructure and cost RS plans to use IT to gain competitive edge over their competitors and to maintain their market position. The strategy has proven to be useful as it was acknowledge by the CIO Asia Award in 2001 and Intelligent Enterprise: Asias Intelligent 20 award for the E-commerce operations.(International 2001) Ventures into social media marketing and web collaboration with overseas online shop have provided the exposure and advertising advantage for them such as partnership with John Lewis (http://www.johnlewis.com) or Wesell Royal Selangor (http://www.wesellroyalselangor.co.uk/). 4.4. RS Information technology assessment Current setup is very centralized and all located within the main HQ. From the IT infrastructure study, we find that the hardware and software used within the organization are considered to be reasonable and commonly used in all industries. The use of open source have also help in ensuring that the system can be modified and be made better as they use it with constant upgrading. However the weakness could lie with the staff availability. With cloud computing, it is a perfect IT infrastructure for RS to adopt. Switching to cloud computing provides a feasible solution for RS to maintain its businesses outside of Malaysia with the same IT infrastructure. 4.5. Competitors IT Services In evaluating RSs competitors IT services, two main competitors namely Tumasek Pewter and Oriental Pewter are analyzed. Both Tumasek Pewters (http://www.tumasek.com/home.htm) and Oriental pewters (http://www.orientalpewter.com.my/home.htm) website does not have online shop. RS is the leader in pewter industry as its main competitors are not having the same IT services as RS. This is even more a reason for RS to adopt cloud computing. As the start-up of IT system are faster through cloud computing, the competitors will definitely offer the same services in the near future. By adopting cloud computing first, RS can be ahead of competition. 4.6. IT infrastructure investment in pewter/retail industry For retail industry, capital spending in 2008-09 at John Lewis (RS partner) was  £404m, compared with  £363m in the previous year. About  £30m represents investment in efficiency projects such as new Oracle finance systems recently implemented in Waitrose and the firms head office, and investment in maintaining and modernising its IT set-up. (Mari 2009) Investment into IT for manufacturing is continuing to grow for Asian manufacturer and focus is on cloud based applications capability to increase the efficiency of the organization such as gaining insight on customer behaviour, improve efficiency and productivity of manufacturing operations and in the supply chain from supplier and also to customers. (Yap 2011). Under the Malaysias Economic Transformation Programme, the wholesale and retail and tourism industry are place in the forefront of Malaysias economic development. Few key areas were earmarked for development and the key area with IT investment would be the globalisation of our products by means of virtual retail platform or malls. Investment of about RM 1.3 billion will be spent on this area which can help competitors of RS to develop their online shop. (PEMANDU 2010) RS is well aligned to adopt to cloud computing. Moving into cloud for an established firm like RS requires a strong management vision statement and support for the migration. Strategies had to be developed to enable the migration to be completed flawlessly and most important, without hampering any existing business processes. Strategies to be taken by RS are as follows; Business Review To establish the key objectives, tools that can be use is SMARTA objectives which is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely and Agreed. ( Williams 2010, p. 102 ) Project Management To setup a Project management team to manage the migration and keep all stakeholders satisfied. An Implementation plan will provide the necessary clear procedures for the migration. ( Williams 2010, p. 113 ) Adoption to cloud system shall be done according to recommended solutions as below; For the routine communications and content management, RS would be wise to look at the various applications offered from cloud computing. This would probably relieve some of the bottleneck for support currently faced by RS IT departments staff. Part of the RS marketing channel to corporate users would be beneficial if there was an application similar to what is being offered by Sales.Force.com. The sales value chain from i

Ozzie Freedman Portrayed as a Hero Essay example -- essays research pa

Ozzie Freedman Portrayed as a Hero   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A hero can be defined as one who inspires through manners and actions; who leads through personal example. Under this definition, the character Ozzie Freedman from Philip Roth’s â€Å"The Conversion of the Jews† (1959) can be classified as a hero. The sections of Discoveries: Fifty Stories of the Quest (Schechter & Semekis 1992): The Call, The Other, The Journey, Helpers and Guides, The Treasure, and Transformation, can be applied to the story about Ozzie to support it’s inclusion in this class, entitled â€Å"Myth of the Hero†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The chapter on The Call describes that a hero may be â€Å"on the brink of a decisive change† (21) and they â€Å"perceive the danger of remaining where they are† (22). The hero must be â€Å"ready †¦ to leave [his] old, familiar [life] behind and move on to something new† (23). In â€Å"The Conversion of the Jews†, we see Ozzie questioning his faith and going against the Jewish teaching by believing that God could â€Å"let a woman have a baby without having intercourse† (384). He stood up to the rabbi in class and was prepared to defend his questioning and beliefs.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Other is a character who embodies the exact opposite personality of the protagonist. According to Schechter & Semekis, the Other causes self-revelation in the protagonist, which his journey would not begin without. In Roth’s story, Itzie is Ozzie’s best friend, who does not question authority or his faith, quite the opposite of Ozzie. He gives Ozzie a hard time for always asking questions and speaking out in class. (‘â€Å"What do you open your mouth all the time for?†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (383)). Ozzie realizes he doesn’t want to be like Itzie and blindly accept the Jewish belief about Jesus. He defends his right to question something in order to seek validity, and says, ‘â€Å"Itz, I thought it over for a solid hour, and now I’m convinced God could do it.†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Discoveries describes The Journey as a portrayal of â€Å"how difficult the hero’s quest is† (8). In Roth’s story, Ozzie faces â€Å"external enemies, agents of conservatism or conformity that must be overcome† (Schechter & Semekis, 8). He is speaking out against the Jewish religion, saying that he believes God could impregnate a woman without her having intercourse. When he delivers this defiance to Rabbi Binder, he is... ...nbsp;  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  By applying the theory of the hero’s journey as found in Discoveries: Fifty Stories of the Quest and applying it to Roth’s â€Å"The Conversion of the Jews†, we see that the character Ozzie Freedman truly fits the title of a hero. Ozzie questions his religious beliefs and is not ashamed to bring forth his insight and seek answers and new ways of thinking. He winds up teaching his mentor a lesson in religion and sets out to have his message heard, despite the possibility of ridicule and even death. Once he realizes he has a different belief than the people of the Jewish religion, he understands his life will never be the same and that he cannot go back to the Jewish belief that God is not able to produce a child without intercourse. Ozzie gets his message across, that one should never be punished for his beliefs, and he is then born into a new day and a new life journey. Works Cited Roth, Philip. â€Å"The Conversion of the Jews.† Discoveries: Fifty Stories of the Quest. 2nd ed. Harold Schechter and Jonna Gormely Semekis. New York: Oxford, 1992. Schechter, Harold, and Jonna Gormely Semekis. Discoveries: Fifty Stories of the Quest. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford, 1992.

The Importance of External Factors in Influencing the Conducting

The Importance of External Factors In Influencing The Conducting Of US Foreign Policy To answer the essay question, external factors are indeed important in influencing the conducting of American foreign policy, as they are for all countries. They are important because they determine the direction American foreign policy takes, and with it, can drastically alter the futures of entire countries (Iraq & Afghanistan post 9/11).This essay will devote itself to exploring and explaining how each external factor is important and influential, and proceed to back it up by providing historic and modern examples detailing its effect on US foreign policy, and the end results. These external factors that will be explored are (sequentially) strategic interests of other nations, geographically-based vulnerabilities of the USA in relation to economic and military interests and finally the successes of grass roots revolution in the Arab Spring in upending both long-standing allies and enemies, and it s effect on traditional US foreign policy stances.The first external factor is the strategic interests of both allies and enemies across the world. Due to the USA’s current position as a hyper-power with a global presence, its influence and interests often collide with those interests or spheres of influence of other nations, ranging from allies such as the United Kingdom, Israel and Poland, to long-time rivals such as the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China or find itself involved in a conflict between two different nations (such as the Falklands issue or the current Israel-Iran crisis).In such situations where the USA must interact with other involved nation-states, the USA has either attempted to compromise with the other parties involved in an attempt to reach an amicable solution or fully backed a local ally/pursued its own objectives to the detriment of local nation-states.One of the more notable examples of the first is in the long-running nego tiations with North Korea, where six-country negotiations (featuring Russia, America, China, Japan and both Koreas) have been ongoing since 2003, primarily concerning North Korea’s nuclear program but also the normalization of trade, demilitarization and normalization of diplomatic relations.In no less than six different rounds of negotiations (with a seventh one starting in 2012), the United States has sat down for talks with the isolationist North Koreans, attempting to reach an agreement to the satisfaction of all the regional powers involved, an agreement that would see international concerns over North Korea’s nuclear program addressed, as well as pave a way towards future reunification.While talks have continually broken down or bore little fruit, this is more so due to unrealistic North Korean demands and various violations than the USA negotiating under false pretenses or seeking personal advancement. The North Korean talks in particular stand as a specific cas e where the USA has and continues to work alongside regional powers for the benefit of all involved. The second approach taken by the USA is that of fully favoring one side or party in a conflict or situation (usually a long-term ally or one of more relevance) over the other side, sometimes to its own eventual detriment.A prime example of this would be the Israel-Palestine situation in the Middle East today. While the United States has several allies among the Arab nations (Jordan, the Gulf states, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, formerly Egypt†¦), it has always prioritized Israel as its main ally in the region, providing it with billions of dollars yearly in grants, equipping it with some of the most advanced military technology in the world and sharing intelligence since the 1950s.As a result of these incredibly close ties to the Jewish state, the United States is often viewed as responsible or linked to Israel’s actions, while at the same benefiting from its use as a local proxy . So mutually linked however are the two nation-states, that it has directly anchored the USA into the morass of the Israeli-Palestine situation, an action that has often invited Arab rage against the Americans, most infamously concerning Al Qaeda and the 9/11 attack.While pure political/strategic matters are a critical and pervasive external factor in US foreign policy, there is also a backdrop of geography-based concerns that are particularly dangerous to the US’s foreign policy aims. The first element of geographic factor is an economic concern relating the international shipping lanes such as those of the Persian Gulf, while the second element is a military one, involving the supplying of NATO military forces in the land-locked status of Afghanistan.The first element is the more globally threatening one, as shipping lanes such as those of the Panama Canal (Central America), the Horn of Africa (East Africa) and the Hormuz Straits (Persian Gulf) are economic chokepoints, im portant to not only a hyper-power as the USA but the entire world economy. They are important because they are integral waterways in the world economy, shipping massive amounts of Persian Gulf oil daily across the world to countries such as India, China and the USA (nearly 46% of the world’s seaborne petroleum is shipped through both areas together).For the US specifically however, the Persian Gulf is a life-line that cannot be severed, even for a brief period. In 2006 for example, U. S. gross oil imports from the Persian Gulf were 2. 2 million barrels per day, accounting for 17 percent of the US total net oil imports. As such, oil-client states such as India, China, America, and Britain among others have warships detailed to the regions to protect and ensure safe shipping, as well as dealing with piracy.The USA specifically maintains its 5th Fleet in the area, being responsible for the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea and the Gulfs of Aden & Oman. The second elemen t, the military one is far more US-centric, however. Ever since the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, NATO forces in the country have been reliant on supply routes going through Pakistan in order to continue operating. As reported by CJ Radin, the supply route starts at the Pakistani port of Karachi, where ships dock and offload their supplies onto trucks.The trucks then drive through Pakistan and enter Afghanistan through either the Khyber Pass near Peshawar or through the Chaman crossing near Quetta. However, due to multiple incidents (the OBL Abbottabad raid, drone airstrikes killing Pakistani citizens, various cross-border raids, Pakistani covert support to Taliban cells, Taliban ambushes of supply convoys from the Pakistani border, etc†¦), the relationship between Pakistan and the USA has grown strained, first limiting and then stopping the supplies landing from Karachi.As a whole, the Pakistani route was quite crucial to the NATO military effort, being the closest and most developed friendly port/road network into Afghanistan. Without supplies, NAO faced a struggle to continue their operations against resilient Taliban cells, a struggle that was slowly relieved by the slow build up of a northern network over the course of the last four years through Russia, Turkey and various Baltic, Caucasian & Central Asian states.This network has two different routes, one starting at a Baltic port, then by rail through Russia, Kazakhstan, and then to Uzbekistan before reaching NATO, while the other brings supplies by ship or rail to a Georgian port on the Black Sea, then by rail through Georgia and Azerbaijan, by ferry across the Caspian Sea, and by rail again through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, though it is reportedly by far the most limited.Overall, nearly 35% of US supplies in April 2010, 50% in April 2011, and 55%-65% in July-Sept 2011 came from the new northern network, while other NATO forces received roughly 40% the northern network. These instances both ind icate the striking lengths that the USA is affected by such vulnerabilities, as well as how strongly they are tied to American economic and military instances. In discussing American interests in regions such as Central Asia and the Middle East, one cannot ignore the effects of the Arab Spring.While much ink has devoted to this subject since 2011, here in this essay I will only focus on its affect on traditional US foreign policy stances. To put it simply, since the Cold War, the United States has gained a habit of often backing authoritarian or despotic regimes, monarchies such as Saudi Arabia and Iran (prior to the Islamic Revolution) or strongman republics such as Yemen and Pakistan.These countries repressed their citizenry, yet as long as they were American allies, they were celebrated, or even praised as loyal and as champions of stability and good, while other authoritarian regimes received lambasting and sanctions and other punishments. While Iraq received democracy and liber ation from Saddam, while Condoleezza Rice spoke of the violence wrecked upon Hamas-ruled Gaza and Hezballoh-influenced Lebanon as the â€Å"birth pangs of a new Middle East†, it was the Arab Spring that brought forth a new Middle East.Over a dozen homegrown instances of civil resistance, of rebellion, of revolution, successful or otherwise, all attempted and/or achieved without US prompting. In Libya, in Egypt, in Tunisia, Yemen, long-standing regimes have fallen. Authentic democracies are starting to develop, democracies with no inherent ties or links to the United States, with no reason to reach out to them directly. If I can quote Noam Chomsky on one thing, it’s that the USA cannot count on these new governments to be as friendly or welcoming as their predecessors.It can’t treat these new governments as their predecessors, it can’t control their opinions on Israel or Iran, it can’t easily buy their loyalties, not as things are still unfolding. I n effect, the United States now has to come up with new policies, new strategies to deal with these countries, to decide on continuing pre-existing deals or renegotiate new ones. In conclusion, there are several very important external factors that influence how American foreign policy is conducted, and they are truly important.Learning to how to recognize and compromise in order to accept the strategic interests of other nations, how to handle the geographic limitations and vulnerabilities that often define or control the options available in a situation, and how to adapt to dealing with lesser, developing nations that while democratic are not favorable to you or your interests. Bibliography CJ Radin, 2011, Focus ‘Analysis: The US-Pakistan relationship and the critical factor of supply’ [online] 4 December. Available: Daily Mail Reporter, 2011, Focus: ‘Pakistan gives US two week ultimatum’ [online] 8 November. Available: http://www. dailymail. co. uk/news /article-2066488/Pakistan-gives-US-2-week-ultimatum-abandon-secret-airbase-closes-border. html Cox, M. and Stoke, D. , 2008, US Foreign Policy, Oxford: Oxford University Press Lansford, T. , 2003, A Bitter Harvest: US Foreign Policy & Afghanistan, Ashgate Holsti, O. , 2006, Making American Foreign Policy, Routledge DeAlkatine, N. , 2012, American Diplomacy: Interpreting the Arab Spring, Journal, Range 1996, Available from UWE Library

Media and Nursing Essay

The differences between nurses at the associate degree level verses the competencies of a baccalaureate degree level is skill and education. Skills and knowledge are needed to provide safe and competent care regardless of what level of nursing that you are pursuing. According to the journal, Associate degree level nurses are trained more so at the bedside level. The Baccalaureate level nurse are trained to think and critically and solve problems. The Associate level nurse are trained to asses and look for abnormal findings such as abnormal blood pressures, a CHF patient with a significant weight gain in twenty four hours. The Baccalaureate level nurses are trained to think critically and solve problems. Although both levels are required to use critical thinking skills to pass the state board exam, the baccalaureate level nursing goes more in depth on how to utilize these skills. The Associate Nurse basically provides care for the patient, this includes completing all activities of daily living, assessing the skin, obtaining vital signs, obtaining lab samples, starting peripheral lines or administering intravenous fluids. The Baccalaureate level nurse educate the patient and attempt to prevent worsening conditions, the baccalaureate level nurse also instructs and educates the patient to monitor their surgical sites for signs and symptoms of infections such as redness, swelling, or drainage and to report the findings immediately. The BSN advises and instructs the patient to report signs and symptoms of pain at the earliest onset. The BSN advises the patient on the importance of reporting these findings. The Baccalaureate Nurse is in most cases a charge nurse who deals with staffing issues and deals with unit emergencies as they may arise. A senior Associate level nurse may be a charge nurse based on years of experience, knowledge and practice. Although both levels must have clinical competence they have different levels of knowledge used in the practice of nursing. According to the Journal of Professional Nursing Issue in May 2008, the educational preparation of nurses must provide the necessary skills and foundation for graduates to practice at a level of competency and safety (www. library. gcu. edu). This writer has personally witnessed a BSN level urse; actually a couple, that are new graduates who are not competent. They were obtaining blood pressures and was not sure how to place the cuff on properly or where to place the stethoscope on the patient’s arm and then they asked, â€Å" how do you know which on is the systolic and which is diastolic. This writer was frantic but as an associate level nurse eager to assist these new graduates on the proper way of obtaining a blood pressure and they were very appreciative. In thinking about this question further about entry into practice, I had to do some reflection. As I come from an AD program, I have to say that for the time (graduated 2007), and for the expectations of entry-level RN practice at that time, I received the most complete and comprehensive education that I could have ever asked for at Florida Gateway College in Lake City, Florida. I knew I was prepared to begin working as a safe, competent professional and I quickly learned as I worked alongside new BSN graduates that I was more clinically prepared in many ways. That being said, I also knew that if I wanted to have more choice with regard to my future, I would have to pursue at minimum a BSN. So, I find a definitive answered to the question posed to be difficult. Regarding ENTRY into practice, I believe that an AD program prepared nurse can be a huge asset to nursing practice, and in many ways is more prepared now than even I was with regard to some issues (e. g. : critical thinking and competency and skills). In light of the current shortage, as well as other issues, the reality is that AD program graduates are here to stay, due to the fact that they are geared for bedside nursing and the acute care setting is becoming more prominent. I do believe that if possible, a student should pursue BSN education in the nearest future to advance in knowledge and education, but there are often obstacles to that for some students. This nurse has enjoyed being at the AND level working closely with the patients at the bedside, working closely with the Primary Care Providers and all of the members of the Interdisciplinary team, but now I feel that there are more marketable opportunities as a BSN level nurse. At the end of the day it does not matter what level nursing you are on, you must keep the patient’s best interest as far as safety and education level at heart. The more you enhance and advance your knowledge the more you can teach your patients about prevention and safety. The health care field is however becoming more demanding as far as medically and requiring employees to be technology savvy. So to summarize, the AND level nurse is trained for the bedside and the BSN level nurse is trained more so to think critically and to solve problems.

The Unreal City of T.S. Eliot Essays

The Unreal City of T.S. Eliot Essays The Unreal City of T.S. Eliot Essay The Unreal City of T.S. Eliot Essay A parallel can be drawn between T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land’s bleak landscape and pessimistic view of society’s future, and the modernist films of the German Expressionism film movement in the early 1920s. Films such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Robert Weine, 1920), The Last Laugh (F.W. Murnau, 1924) and Metropolis (Fritz Lang, 1927) will be the basis for this comparison to Eliot’s text. The pessimism pervading a post-WWI society, especially in the urban sphere, will be examined, along with demonstrating how all of these texts display a tendency towards experimentation in form, often with the intention of expressing a deeper psychological meaning. T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land displays anxieties surrounding the pointlessness, or directionlessness, of the modern human being. He sees society as a collection lost children, falling to conformity and abandoning their culture. In section I, when he conjures up notions of crowds with ‘each man [having] fixed his eyes before his feet’, (Eliot l. 66) the comparison to Fritz Lang’s Metropolis is abundantly clear. In the below figure, one can clearly see the how Lang and Eliot had similar anxieties surrounding the growing tendency towards conformity in the modern era. In section II, this language becomes even stronger with Eliot questioning the direction the members of his society are taking: â€Å"What shall I do now? What shall I do?What shall we do tomorrow? What shall we ever do?† (ll. 131-134), he questions â€Å"Are you alive, or not? Is there nothing in your head?† (l.126), and concludes that everyone is so brainless that they are merely playing a game and ‘waiting for a knock upon the door’ (l.138). This idea of a society so mindless that individuals collectively have no brain to question the system, and walk willingly into the end of their unfulfilled lives, is exactly the same idea Lang was illustrating in perhaps the most famous scene in Metropolis. The scene in qu

E-Procurement And E-Logistics The WritePass Journal

E-Procurement And E-Logistics WRITEPASS CUSTOM ESSAY WRITING Business Management Dissertation Ideas E-Procurement And E-Logistics } Ross, D. F. 2010. Â  Introduction to Supply Chain Management Technologies. London, CRC Press. William C. 2003. The true meaning of supply chain management. Logistics Management, June 2003, Vol. 42, Issue 6.

Charles Law Example Problem

Charles Law Example Problem Charles law is a special case of the ideal gas law in which the pressure of a gas is constant. Charles law states that volume is proportional to the absolute temperature of a gas at constant pressure. Doubling the temperature of gas doubles its volume, so long as the pressure and quantity of the gas are unchanged.  This example problem shows how to use Charles law to solve a gas law problem. Charles Law Example Problem A 600 mL sample of nitrogen is heated from 27  °C to 77  °C at constant pressure. What is the final volume?Solution: The first step to solving gas law problems should be converting all temperatures to absolute temperatures. In other words, if the temperature is given in Celsius or Fahrenheit, convert it to Kelvin. This is the most common place mistakes are made in this type of homework problem.T K 273  °CTi initial temperature 27  °CTi K 273 27Ti K 300 KTf final temperature 77  °CTf K 273 77Tf K 350 KThe next step is to use Charles law to find the final volume. Charles law is expressed as:Vi/Ti Vf/TfwhereVi and Ti is the initial volume and temperatureVf and Tf is the final volume and temperatureSolve the equation for Vf:Vf ViTf/TiEnter the known values and solve for Vf.Vf (600 mL)(350 K)/(300 K)Vf 700 mLAnswer:The final volume after heating will be 700 mL. More Examples of Charles Law If Charles Law seems irrelevant to real life situations, think again! Here are several examples of situations in which Charles Law is at play. By understanding the basics of the law, youll know what to expect in a variety of real-world situations. By knowing how to solve a problem using Charles Law, you can make predictions and even start to plan new inventions. If you take a basketball outside on a cold day, the ball shrinks a bit as the temperature is decreased. This is also the case with any inflated object and explains why its a good idea to check the pressure in your car tires when the temperature drops.If you over-inflate a pool float on a hot day, it can swell in the sun and burst.Pop-up turkey thermometers work based on Charles law. As the turkey cooks, the gas inside the thermometer expands until it can pop the plunger. Examples of Other Gas Laws Charles law is only one of the special cases of the ideal gas law that you may encounter. Each of the laws is named for the person who formulated it. Its good to be able to tell the gas laws apart and cite examples of each one. As automobile tires heat up during driving, their pressure increases. (Amontons Law: Doubling temperature doubles pressure at constant volume and mass.)When you blow bubbles underwater, they expand as they rise to the surface. (Boyles Law: Doubling pressure halves volume, at constant temperature and mass.)Inhaling fills the lungs with air and expands their volume. (Avogadros Law: Doubling the mass or number of moles of a gas doubles the volume at constant temperature and pressure.)

Sales and Advertising marketing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Sales and Advertising marketing - Assignment Example Their main aim has been to capture the young audience especially male who have been the main users of the app. The management at subway has ceased this opportunity to front their ads in this android platform. This move is a timely one for subway with expectations that the number of hours in watching the video game through this app will rise in the next three years (Chung, 2015). The rate of growth by this app has continuously tapped many audiences from opponent game contest that has caused them a lot of discomforts amid increasing competition from the e-sport app. However the calculation of these figures should be done with caution to avoid exaggerations caused by overlapped usage This article focuses on the mobile gadget, which runs on an android platform as a media of its dissemination. This is probably because of the wide variety of these gadgets available to users. These devices range from smart phones to tablet available from diverse dealers, which are very common among numerous users especially among youths. The major points covered in this article are the growth rate in the usage of this app which is combined with the age that is prevalent in using the app. Similarly, the article outlines the reason for the involvement of Subway in the article at length and clearly points out its benefit to them. Finally the reading stresses on the future expected position in the market which aims to encourage even more endorsers. Subway’s use of this media to promote their ads is an important step in the Canadian advertising industry as it acts as a benchmark to others in the market. This article articulates the success of apps as an advertisement strategy where many industries can reach many clients through the mobile gadgets where the apps run. The potential of the apps for future market is clearly demonstrated when the article emphasizes on the expected growth in coming years. This aids advertising sector to devise appropriate advertisements meant

Executive Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 11

Executive Summary - Essay Example With respect to the element of place, the company has retail stores in every place with target consumers. Proportional presence and wide availability in regional markets enables timely delivery of products to both domestic and international consumers. In order to provide the right product at the right time, Old Navy employs selective distribution techniques in linking producers with consumers through distribution facilities in consumer markets. Theoretically, effective promotion and pricing techniques are among the essential pillars of a strong marketing strategy. Old Navy employs promotional strategies like television advertisements, visual merchandisers, social media marketing and drive-by campaigns using celebrities. All these promotional approaches are meant to not only enhance publicity of the company’s products but also promote the fun side of shoppers’ experience. With respect to the element of pricing, Old Navy uses approaches like pricing flexibility, markups and psychological pricing techniques. These approaches are synchronized with sales-oriented objectives in order to enhance the competitive aspects of Old Navy. Aside from the aforementioned approaches, Old Navy also employs pricing incentives like discounting, credit card rewards and coupons. All pricing approaches are meant to entice customers into buying Old Navy products. Old Navy is a brand that has become well known throughout most of Northern America. As an apparel company, it serves the needs of its clients by providing quality goods at an affordable price. Such apparel consists of maternity clothing, footwear, and clothes for newborns. Not only does Old Navy focus on apparel, but it also offers a wide range of accessories for customers to choose from when shopping. The company, a subsidiary of Gap Inc., tries to stay at the forefront of current fashion trends in order to retain its customer’s interests. Old Navy’s goal is to make

Environmental Issues in Business Transactions Essay

Environmental Issues in Business Transactions - Essay Example In January 2000 after finalizing the purchased amount of seven million dollars and obtaining the assurance of Tyco that the Plant is compliant to existing environmental laws Shan finalized the acquisition of the Plant from Tyco. To reiterate this assurance the purchase contract stipulated that Tyco â€Å"will be responsible for any losses arising out of environmental clean-ups, fines or penalties†. After the purchase of the Plant, Shan discovered that it would cost more than two million dollars to make the Plant compliant to federal and state environmental laws. Shan also discovered that the potential fines and penalties for the non-compliance to environmental state and federal laws could amount to more than one billion dollars. Shan thru its owners tried in several instances to persuade Tyco to buy back the Plant at the same cost or pay for the necessary remediation cost to make the Plant comply with state and federal environmental laws. ... the final report was sent to the Chief Executive Officer of Tyco, the report was accompanied by a request from Shan for assistance in making the Plant compliant. However, Tyco ignored the report including the request. Thereafter, Shan reiterated its offer for Tyco to just buy back the Plant for the same amount it was bought to which, Tyco declined. In December 2003, Shan voluntarily reported to the Environmental Protection Agency that the Plant is not compliant to state and federal regulations. At around the same time Shan also met with the Tyco officials who promised to send documents that would prove that the Plant was in compliance with the regulations set by state and federal laws. Perusing over the documents sent over by Tyco it was determined that Tyco was not doing its responsibility to make sure that the Plant are compliant to regulations under state and federal environmental laws. On the last day of 2003, they filed a case against Tyco for breach of contract. In April 2004, the Plant was visited by state and federal environmental authorities and naturally found it non-compliant to environmental laws. It was determined that it was Tyco who suggested that environmental auditors examine the Plant. Based on their findings the state and federal environmental authorities issued a cease-and-desist order that affected forty percent of the Plant’s operating capacity. That could have greatly diminished its earning capacity thus its initiative to make the Plant compliant to environmental state and federal laws. In June 2004, Shan appealed the cease-and-desist order by asserting that the environmental problem was an issue inherited from Tyco, the previous owner. The appeal contained the findings of the independent consultants showing the extent of the violation in the

See notes below disscuss the concepts APPROACH, DESIGN and PROCEDURE Essay

See notes below disscuss the concepts APPROACH, DESIGN and PROCEDURE according to Richards and Rodgers (2001) framework - Essay Example It was only after the emergence of psychology as a branch of science that interest on the evolution of methods based on the research findings of how human acquire learning and how they respond to different modes of teaching took a paradigm shift. And as part of a changing world system, the methods have also evolved to become more effective over the years. (Anthony, E.M. 1963). Most of us learn to speak at least two languages. Our first language (L1) is known as our native language, and is acquired from our childhood years. The Second Language (L2), also known as foreign language, is acquired as taught in schools, or by living in a state where another language is spoken. Acquiring the first language in most situations is as effortless as learning normal routines. We learn it because we are exposed to it most of the time. On the other hand, learning a another new language calls for greater effort and dedication, and persistent application of the trial and error methodology. (Sally Morrison). The emphasis on this type of language teaching is on how an individual can successfully grasp a second language over a given period of time. It is suitable for the classroom as well as the individual student, because every student who wants to learn a new language has different learning needs, and the instructor has to choose the right method to be used in teaching the classroom which can be easily understood by everyone and does not alienate any student in the class. (JoAnn (Jodi) Crandall, p.3). The existence of various methods for learning the second language has made the task for instructors simpler albeit more strenuous. On the one hand, they have a fine array of systematic learning to suit different needs and tastes. On the other, they have the unenviable task of studying each method separately, and then they choose the method best suited for the purpose. 3. Approach, Design and Procedure Richards and Rodgers developed a three levels framework to help instructors in choosing the right method. The three levels: Approach, Design, and Procedure, are interrelated to each other as the content of each level directly affects the contents of the other levels. Richards and Rodgers implied that in order to select the best method, we should look at each method as a separate series of theories and applications, and that the methods can be evaluated by comparing and coordinating the three interrelated levels. Now let us define the three levels first. (Richards, J. and T. Rodgers. 1986). Approach Approach refers to a particular theory that supports and serves as a foundation of any methodology. No methods exist alone unsupported by theoretical views, and that is why methods and theories must be viewed together. Design is the creation of

Contract Law Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Contract Law - Case Study Example As a consequence, Alan loses 15,000 on advertising, 7,000 on advanced bookings and 8,000 prospective profit from a wedding party who wanted to take over the whole restaurant for one night. (a) Standards of Contractual Duty : The general rule is that performance of a contract should be precise and exact. A party performing an obligation under a contract must perform that obligation exactly within the time frame set by the contract and exactly to the standard required by the contract. Whether the alleged performance satisfies this criterion is a question to be answered by construing the contract, so as to see what the parties meant by performance, and then applying the ascertained facts to that construction, to see whether that which has been done corresponds to that which was promised. If there is a slightest deviation from the terms of the contract, the party not in default will be entitled to say that the contract has not been performed, will be entitled to sue for damages for breach, and, in certain cases, to elect to be discharged(Re Moore&Co. and Landauer & Co.)(1) It can be said that only if the deviation is microscopic will the contract be taken to have been cor rectly performed, for de minimis non curat lex(2) A party who does not render precise and exact performance of a contract is nevertheless exceptionally treated as having performed to some extent where that party has attempted(tendered) performance but the other party has prevented that performance, and in certain cases where there has been partial performance of an entire obligation. In Alan's case ASL had a contractual duty to supply the oven on time as per the terms of the contract, something they didn't do. It was not that they could not have performed it as it was not an impossible task to perform. It was rather that they chose not to do it. Stipulations as to time for performance in Contract Law : Where a time was fixed for performance of an undertaking by one of the parties to the contract, the common law as a general rule held this to be 'of the essence of the contract'. This phrase is often used but is capable of causing confusion because the question relates not to the contract as a whole but to the particular term that has been breached.(3) If the condition as to time was not fulfilled, the other party might treat the contract as broken and elect to terminate it.(4) For instance, in a contract for the sale of a flat where time was slated to be of the essence, the vendor was entitled to terminate when the purchaser tendered the price 10 minutes late.(5) In Alan's case 'time was an essence of the contract' Everything at Alan's end depended on him getting the timely supply of the oven from ASL. Discharge of Contract by Breach : If one of the two parties to a contract breaks an obligation which the contract imposes, a new obligation will in every case arise - an obligation to pay damages to the other party in respect of any loss or damage sustained by the breach. Besides this, there are circumstances under which the breach not only gives rise to a right of action for damages but also gives the innocent party the right to decide not to render further performance under the contract and to be discharged from its obligations.(6) In principle, an innocent party who does not

Career Managment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Career Managment - Assignment Example The starting salary for this position is  £16,000 per year. As the individual gains experience and skill, they can earn over  £100,000 per year. This position is similar to compliance in that the individual can do consultancy, they can also do a variety of other jobs. In this capacity, they use a wider array of business skills than the Compliance Analyst. This job is for people who like variety because they can do â€Å"business advisory, taxation, audit and assurance, corporate recovery and insolvency, corporate finance, forensic accounting and compliance†. The Investment Manager focuses on providing investment information to their clients. These investments could be anything from â€Å"equities, bonds, property, and cash†. The clients for this position well are large corporations with a lot of money to invest or individuals. Investment manager works closely with investment analysis that analyses the investments on a regular basis. The best way to talk about similarities and differences is through an understanding of their skills and experience that is needed. All three positions require people skills. The Management Consultancy and Investment Analysis also state that the candidate must be strong in numerical skills and numerical reasoning. The compliance position needs excellent report writing skills but the other two do not list this as necessary. All three positions require the ability to work with teams. The Management Consultancy and Investment Analyst also require a background in business. The entry-level qualifications are very similar. It is suggested that a graduate programme is necessary.

Contract Law Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Contract Law - Case Study Example As a consequence, Alan loses 15,000 on advertising, 7,000 on advanced bookings and 8,000 prospective profit from a wedding party who wanted to take over the whole restaurant for one night. (a) Standards of Contractual Duty : The general rule is that performance of a contract should be precise and exact. A party performing an obligation under a contract must perform that obligation exactly within the time frame set by the contract and exactly to the standard required by the contract. Whether the alleged performance satisfies this criterion is a question to be answered by construing the contract, so as to see what the parties meant by performance, and then applying the ascertained facts to that construction, to see whether that which has been done corresponds to that which was promised. If there is a slightest deviation from the terms of the contract, the party not in default will be entitled to say that the contract has not been performed, will be entitled to sue for damages for breach, and, in certain cases, to elect to be discharged(Re Moore&Co. and Landauer & Co.)(1) It can be said that only if the deviation is microscopic will the contract be taken to have been cor rectly performed, for de minimis non curat lex(2) A party who does not render precise and exact performance of a contract is nevertheless exceptionally treated as having performed to some extent where that party has attempted(tendered) performance but the other party has prevented that performance, and in certain cases where there has been partial performance of an entire obligation. In Alan's case ASL had a contractual duty to supply the oven on time as per the terms of the contract, something they didn't do. It was not that they could not have performed it as it was not an impossible task to perform. It was rather that they chose not to do it. Stipulations as to time for performance in Contract Law : Where a time was fixed for performance of an undertaking by one of the parties to the contract, the common law as a general rule held this to be 'of the essence of the contract'. This phrase is often used but is capable of causing confusion because the question relates not to the contract as a whole but to the particular term that has been breached.(3) If the condition as to time was not fulfilled, the other party might treat the contract as broken and elect to terminate it.(4) For instance, in a contract for the sale of a flat where time was slated to be of the essence, the vendor was entitled to terminate when the purchaser tendered the price 10 minutes late.(5) In Alan's case 'time was an essence of the contract' Everything at Alan's end depended on him getting the timely supply of the oven from ASL. Discharge of Contract by Breach : If one of the two parties to a contract breaks an obligation which the contract imposes, a new obligation will in every case arise - an obligation to pay damages to the other party in respect of any loss or damage sustained by the breach. Besides this, there are circumstances under which the breach not only gives rise to a right of action for damages but also gives the innocent party the right to decide not to render further performance under the contract and to be discharged from its obligations.(6) In principle, an innocent party who does not

Family law coursework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Family law coursework - Essay Example By virtue of Section 12 of the Matrimonial Causes Act, Harold’s marriage is voidable and as such can be annulled. Section 12 (d) provides that a marriage is voidable if ‘†¦either party to the marriage did not validly consent to it, whether in consequence of duress, mistake, unsoundness of mind or otherwise2 Harold clearly did not exercise free will when he married Wendy. She threatened his livelihood by warning that she would tell Harold’s employers of his previous convictions for crimes of dishonesty. It is not unreasonable to assume that Harold married Wendy as a means of silencing Wendy and holding onto his job. What amounts to duress is not always clear. Early on, Butt J determined that a series of incidents perpetuated by the husband against the wife was capable of amounting to duress. In this particular case the husband somehow managed to trick the wife into assuming his debts, then refused to help her discharge them unless she agreed to marry him. Once he finally got her before the appropriate Justice of the Peace, he once again threatened to shoot her if she did not go through with the marriage. Butt J allowed the decree of nullity on the grounds that the wife had not honestly consented to the matrimonial union.3 Duress is not always founded on extreme application of pressure as witnessed in the case above. The facts of Buckland v Buckland are rather similar to Harold’s case. In Buckland’s case, a man developed a platonic relationship with a minor and was charged with corrupting a minor. His solicitor advised him that should he marry the minor, he could avoid facing a term of imprisonment. The man married the minor and subsequently petitioned the courts for a decree of nullity. Lord Scarman held that since the man reasonably feared going to prison his consent was not genuine.4 Some authority exist for the construction of duress to be aligned with an actual threat to

Thomas Hobbs Theory On Human Nature And Ethics Philosophy Essay

Thomas Hobbs Theory On Human Nature And Ethics Philosophy Essay Many people are content with the way things are. I believe that the majority of todays civilization is in a neutral state of understanding and dont really care to know how this state of contentment became. One word can sum up the many reasons that things are the way they are today that word is fear. Throughout history, there are examples of how certain events can happen that will cause people to become overwhelmed with fear. Part of the reason for this, is these events have shaken the confidence that many will have in their various leaders and political systems. Once this takes place, it means that the social fabric holding society together, will completely deteriorate. When this happens a majority of people will begin to fend for themselves, versus attempting to work within the social frame work. In some cases, a new society will quickly emerge to fill this void because the masses are desperate for some kind of law and order. To achieve this objective, many will often give up their personal freedoms for the benefit of the group. A good example of this form previous times can be seen in Germany after the end of World War I. Where, the majority of the people would lose confidence in their leaders, because of the economic and social upheavals that were occurring. (Holocaust Encycl opedia )This is significant, because it shows how the loss of confidence in a political / social system can have devastating consequences down the road. To understand this aspect of human nature and how ethics affects thinking one can examine the ideas of Thomas Hobbes. I will illustrate Thomas Hobbes theory on human nature and ethics by using William Goldings Lord of the Flies. I will also attempt to use firsthand knowledge of the state of nature that still exists in some societies in todays modern times. Together, these two elements will provide insights as to how Hobbes theories can explain human nature and ethics. Thomas Hobbes discusses his different ideas on human nature and the role of ethics in a multi-volume work that he wrote called Leviathan. Wherein all he would write a total of four volumes underscoring his views. Volume one (Of Man), volume two (Of Common-wealth), volume three (Of Christian Common-wealth), and volume four (Of the Kingdom of Darkness), of these volumes, volume one is where Hobbes establishes the basic foundation for his theories, as he would use the other volumes to elaborate on specific aspects of his theory. (Hobbes Moral and Political Philosophy) At the heart of Hobbes political and social philosophy is his social contract theory. This merely means that the people will have an agreement with the government for certain protections, economic well being, and freedom. This balance between the people and the government is what Hobbes refers to as civilization. This state of civilization is made possible by human laws or as Hobbes states Lex naturalis. With Hobbes social contract theory people are willing give up a certain amount of their freedoms, to receive the above benefits from the government or Leviathan. According to Hobbes, this is the basic social foundation that exists in all societies around the globe, (with some kind of balance taking place in one form or another). (Hobbes Moral and Political Philosophy) Yet, when you look further, it is clear that there will be times that these kinds of social contracts will become no longer valid. Once this is occurs, is when a state of nature exists or as Hobbes states Jus natural. This is where everyone would have the right, to do any actions or activities of their choosing. The reason why, is because there are no rules or regulation to guide the actions of everyone. At which point, more people would begin to use these activities as a way to achieve their own objectives and survival. When this takes place, it means that there will be a constant state of war between everyone in society. A survival of the fittest mentality quickly sets in and takes shape. At which point, the overall quality of life will decline, while the rates of what civilization refers to as immortality, increases. To escape this atmosphere of lawlessness, the people will form some kind of social contract with each other. This is when they will create a society and government th at will have the authority over everyone. Where, they will establish various rules and regulations, by having the people surrender a certain amount of their natural rights, to achieve order. The overall abuses that could occur at the hands of the government are a small price that is being paid to be a part of civil society. As a result, Hobbes believes that a strong central government can be able to achieve this objective, by effectively controlling and providing the services that the people require. This is significant, because it shows how within all societies there is some form of social contract that will exist on a certain level. The problem occurs when there is break down in society. People will revert to a more animalistic type of survival, creating increased amounts of instability. It is at this point, that new societies could emerge, to address these changing realities that are taking place. (Hobbes Moral and Political Philosophy). In order to determine the relevance of Hobbes theories, we will examine them by comparing his ideas with William Goldings book Lord of the Flies. Where, this piece of literature discusses the basic foundation of human nature in comparison with law and order. This will provide the insights, as to how the social contract theory is the basic foundation for societies around the world. In Lord of the Flies, the story begins in the midst of war with a plane evacuating a group of schoolboys. The plane is shot down over a deserted tropical island. Two of the boys, Ralph and Piggy, discover a conch shell on the beach and Piggy realizes it could be used as a horn to summon the other boys. Once assembled, the boys elect a leader and begin devising a way to be rescued. Ultimately Ralph is chosen as their leader, and Ralph appoints another boy, Jack, to be in charge of the boys who will hunt food for the entire group. Ralph, Jack, and another boy, Simon, set off on an expedition to explore the island. When they return, Ralph decides that they must light a signal fire to attract the attention of passing ships. The boys succeed in igniting some dead wood by focusing sunlight through the lenses of Piggys eyeglasses. However, the boys pay more attention to playing than to monitoring the fire, and the flames quickly engulf the forest. A large swath of dead wood burns out of con trol, and one of the youngest boys in the group disappears, presumably having burned to death. At first, the boys enjoy their life without grown-ups and spend much of their time splashing in the water and playing games. Ralph, however, complains that they should be maintaining the signal fire and building huts for shelter. The hunters fail in their attempt to catch a wild pig, but their leader, Jack, becomes increasingly preoccupied with the act of hunting. When a ship passes by on the horizon one day, Ralph and Piggy notice that the signal fire which had been the hunters responsibility to maintain had burned out. Furious, Ralph confronts Jack, but the Jack has just returned with his first kill, and all the hunters seemed to be enchanted while reenacting the chase in a kind of wild dance. Piggy criticizes Jack, and then hits Piggy. Ralph blows the conch shell and reprimands the boys in a speech intended to restore order. At the meeting, it quickly becomes clear that some of the boys have started to become afraid. The littlest boys, known as littluns, have been troubled by nightmares from the beginning, and now the boys believe that there is some sort of beast or monster lurking on the island. The older boys try to convince the others at the meeting to think rationally, asking where such a monster could possibly hide during the daytime. One of the littluns suggests that it hides in the sea, a proposition that strikes fear in the entire group. Not long after the meeting, some military planes engage in a battle high above the island. The boys, asleep below, do not notice the flashing lights and explosions in the clouds. A parachutist drifts to earth on the signal-fire mountain, dead. Sam and Eric, the twins responsible for watching the fire at night, are asleep and do not see the parachutist land. When the twins wake up, they see the enormous silhouette of his parachute and hear the strange flapping noises it makes. Thinking the noises that they here are that of the beast, they rush back to the camp in terror and report that the beast has attacked them. The boys organize a hunting expedition to search for the beastie. Jack and Ralph, who are increasingly at odds, travel up the mountain. They see the silhouette of the parachute from a distance and think that it looks like a huge, deformed ape. The group holds a meeting at which Jack and Ralph tell the others of the sighting. Jack says that Ralph is a coward and that he should be removed from office, but the other boys refuse to vote Ralph out of power. Jack angrily runs away down the beach, calling all the hunters to join him. Ralph rallies the remaining boys to build a new signal fire, this time on the beach rather than on the mountain. They obey, but before they have finished the task, most of them have slipped away to join Jack. Jack declares himself the leader of the new tribe of hunters and organizes a hunt and a violent, ritual slaughter of a sow to solemnize the occasion. The hunters then decapitate the sow and place its head on a sharpened stake in the jungle as an offering to the beast. Later, encountering the bloody, fly-covered head, Simon has a terrible vision, during which it seems to him that the head is speaking. The voice, which he imagines as belonging to the Lord of the Flies, says that Simon will never escape him, for he exists within all men. Simon faints. When he wakes up, he goes to the mountain, where he sees the dead parachutist. Understanding then that the beast does not exist externally but rather within each individual boy, Simon travels to the beach to tell the others what he has seen. But the others are in the midst of an elaborate feast even Ralph and Piggy have joined Jacks feast and when they see Simons emerge from the jungle, they fall upon him and kill him with their bare hands. The following morning, Ralph and Piggy discuss what they have done. Jacks hunters attack them and their few followers and steal Piggys glasses in the process. Ralphs group travels to Jacks stronghold in an attempt to make Jack see reason, but Jack orders Sam and Eric tied up and fights with Ralph. In the ensuing battle, one boy, Roger, rolls a boulder down the mountain, killing Piggy and shattering the conch shell. Ralph barely manages to escape the ensuing onslaught. Ralph hides for the rest of the night and the following day, while the others hunt him like an animal. Jack has the other boys ignite the forest in order to smoke Ralph out of his hiding place. Ralph stays in the forest, where he discovers and destroys the sows head, but eventually, he is forced out onto the beach, where he knows the other boys will soon arrive to kill him. Ralph collapses in exhaustion, but when he looks up, he sees a British naval officer standing over him. The officers ship noticed the fire raging in the jungle. The other boys reach the beach and stop in their tracks at the sight of the officer. Amazed at the spectacle of this group of bloodthirsty, savag e children, the officer asks Ralph to explain. Ralph is overwhelmed by the knowledge that he is safe but, thinking about what has happened on the island, he begins to weep. The other boys begin to sob as well. The officer turns his back so that the boys may regain their composure. The plot and the story of in Lord of the Flies, underscores the different views that Hobbes would have on how societies were structured. In Lord of the Flies, the boys were somewhat traumatized from the plane crash and the backdrop of the war. This would create the basic foundation, for the overall amounts of fear that they would have, when they first arrived on the island. This fear was hidden, as the social contract that existed in the military school would remain in place in the beginning. Over the course of time, the lack of rules and these fears would begin to take on a life of their own. As it would work similar to a cancer, that would eat away at the old social contract theory. Once this began to occur, it meant that no one would take responsibility for maintaining this basic foundation. At which point, the social structure began to unravel, with the lack of rules (state of nature) and fear manifesting the changes that were occurring. Where, the majority would begin to become victims of their own fear, by believing the fact that monster was on the island. It is at this point, that the state of nature would take over and two different sub societies would emerge (one loyal to Ralph and the other loyal to Jack). This rivalry would cause the boys to engage in actions that were prohibited, in the society they came from. As their fears about the monster attacking them, would force them to kill one of their own. When confronted with this reality, the state of nature would continue to evolve in a perverse way, by denying what happened. As the majority of the boys, would seek out Ralph, in an effort to kill him. It is as this point that a total state of nature exists, as the old social contract has been destroyed and a new sub society has been created in its place. This confirms the ideas of Hobbes, by highlighting how a social contract exists on some level within all societies. This is because the various rivalries as well as individual competition; have caused many people to seek out: safety, comfort and protection. When this take place, it means that the actions of individual will begin to change, based upon these new social norms that exist. In Lord of the Flies, this is best illustrated at the end of the book, with Ralph becoming the hunted. As the former social contract that existed at the military school was: no long relevant. Instead, a state of nature took place, with a new social contract theory emerging. Where, Jacks group will dominate and determine what is best for everyone. This is significant, because it highlights how shifts can occur in all societies. Where, when the people will become fearful and lose faith in the leadership is when, changes will take place. It is at this point, that they will seek out new social contract, as the underlying confusion from the state of nature, will force everyone in this direction. At the same time, it can cause the ethical views that someone would have about various issues to change, based upon the underlying state of nature. Using the book Lord of the Flies, the changes in ethics occurred with the indiscriminate killings of the other boys. As this state of nature and the lack of rules, would allow this kind of behavior to be acceptable. At which point, the underlying social contract and the ability to enforce the different rules will change. This is important, because it underscores how the ethics of someone, will be influenced based upon the overall state of nature. Clearly, the book Lord of the Flies highlights how Hobbes theories on human nature and ethics are correct. Where, a social contract, that exists in all societies; will form a basic foundation for how various individuals will behave. This will affect the ethics of everyone, as the different rules and regulations will determine the most acceptable behavior. When the people lose confidence in the social contract that exists, a state of nature (lawlessness) will begin to take shape. Over the course of time, this will cause the individual to act differently, as they do not have the social contract restricting their actions. However, a constant state of battle exists within society, as the lack of ethics will cause everyone to constantly clash with each other. To provide some sort of stability, a social contract is created between: the people in society and the government they have. Where, the people are agreeing to lose a certain amount of their natural freedoms, in order to have some kin d of stability in their lives. The trade off, is not engaging in various activities allowed in a state of nature. In doing so, the social contract will have an impact upon the ethics and behavior of everyone within society.

Creon’s Perspective in Oedipus Rex and Sophocles Antigone :: Antigone essays

Creon’s Perspective in Oedipus Rex and Antigone   Ã‚   The role of the king in the time of Greek tragedies was simultaneously desired and dreaded because of the king's responsibility to the people and because of the effects of the position on the king's character. Creon reveals such ambivalent thoughts towards the kingship in his speech defending himself from Oedipus's conspiracy accusation in Oedipus the King; these ambivalent thoughts reveal much about the nature of the kingship, especially in conjunction with Creon's later actions in Antigone.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In attempting to refute Oedipus's assertion that Creon has taken part in a conspiracy to obtain the kingship, Creon evaluates the nature of the kingship and of his present role. First, he says, "Consider, first, if you think any one/ would choose to rule and fear rather than rule and sleep" (36.584-585). By this, Creon means that the main difference between his position and the king's is that of the accompanying action to ruling. In both positions, one is a ruler who holds great power over the state. However, the king is placed in a greater place of accountability to the people. This accountability is what Creon says inspires "fear" in the king, for if affairs of state or of the people fall into decline, the king is the first person whom the citizenry look to blame. This is analogous to executive leaders throughout history, as one can see in looking at American presidents and the correlation between the present conditions and events of the nation to the public's opinion of the president, regardless of the actual impact that his decisions may have made in these conditions. Creon maintains that he has the same amount of power as the king but without the accountability that inevitably leads a king to distress. Creon's reasoning concerning the equality between his power and Oedipus's leads him to state:    I was not born with such a frantic yearning to be a king- but to do what kings do. And so it is with every one who has learned wisdom and self-control. (36.587-590)    He means that he has never desired the position of king, because he sees no advantage over his present position in the state. Rather, he sees the disadvantage of the fear that accompanies the position of king. Creon has evaluated this situation for his circumstances and then goes further in stating that anyone with wisdom and self-control would come to such a conclusion as well.

Barn Burning Essay -- essays papers

Barn Burning "Barn Burning" is a sad story because it very clearly shows the classical struggle between the "privileged" and the "underprivileged" classes. Time after time emotions of despair surface from both the protagonist and the antagonist involved in the story. This story outlines two distinct protagonists and two distinct antagonists. The first two are Colonel Sartoris Snopes ("Sarty") and his father Abner Snopes ("Ab"). Sarty is the protagonist surrounded by his father antagonism whereas Ab is the protagonist antagonized by the social structure and the struggle that is imposed on him and his family. The economic status of the main characters is poor, without hope of improving their condition, and at the mercy of a quasi-feudal system in North America during the late 1800's. Being a sharecropper, Ab and his family had to share half or two-thirds of the harvest with the landowner and out of their share pay for the necessities of life. As a result of this status, Ab and his family know from the start what the future will hold -- hard work for their landlord and mere survival for them. No hope for advancement prevails throughout the story. Sarty, his brother and the twin sisters have no access to education, as they must spend their time working in the fields or at home performing familial duties. Nutrition is lacking "He could smell the coffee from the room where they would presently eat the cold food remaining from the mid-afternoon meal" . As a consequence, poor health combined with inadequate opportunity results in low morale. A morale which the writer is identifying with the middle class of his times "that same quality which in later years would cause his descendants to over-run the engine bef... ...ther!" and "The boy said nothing. Enemy! Enemy! he thought; for a moment he could not even see, could not see that the Justice's face was kindly." The story's emotional turns are clearly defined by Sarty's thoughts and Ab's actions. Sarty's dilemma and Ab's frustrations continually grab the reader, serving up a series of emotionally laden dilemmas: Given the circumstances of the story, is Ab's barn burning justified? Should Sarty tell the landlord that Ab was responsible for burning down the barn? Is the outdated sociological "Blaming the Victim" theory valid? Is the lose-win arrangement between sharecropper and landowner a morally acceptable one? Burning a barn or any act of economic despair in the form of vandalism is definitely not condoned. However the strange thing is the all of these questions need not to be asked, if economic injustice was not prevalent.