Dr. Martin Luther King s Letter From Birmingham Jail

On April 16, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote what has become known as the â€Å"Letter from Birmingham Jail.† A long document, it was addressed to Birmingham’s local clergymen because they had been critical of his work and ideas. Dr. King believed their criticism was in good faith, and pointed out that he was in Birmingham because he had been invited by the local affiliate of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, showing the religious commonalities between himself and the clergymen. However, his presence in Birmingham was not only, or even primarily, because of the invitation, but rather because he felt there was such terrible racial injustice in Birmingham that it merited national attention. Dr. King explained that although he†¦show more content†¦King believed that his movement and method of nonviolent protest could include both of these groups. He offered a constructive approach to both of these groups to fight against segregation and bigotry whereby nobody got hurt. To Dr. King, it was especially important that he be seen as a genuine member of the black community in Birmingham to further his appeal and heighten his ability to bring people together. Bigger obstacles than simply being an outsider lay ahead of Dr. King An important step in Birmingham was to address the local clergymen’s concerns that his activism was creating too much tension. He was heavily criticized for staging marches and sit-ins rather than negotiating peace with the local authorities, and he was quite willing to admit that negotiation was a worthwhile way to achieve a goal. However, he also subscribed to the legal maxim that justice delayed is justice denied, meaning that if an injury is not redressed in a timely fashion, it is the same as having no redress at all. Dr. King also felt that negotiation would not lead to true change, and would only lead to appeasement. He penned, â€Å"We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.† (King, 2). He understood that as hard as he worked against violence, it was necessary to create nonviolent tension in order to achieve his goal of equal rights for Blacks in America. He was also not afraid of tension thatShow MoreRelatedAntigone And Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. s Letter From Birmingham Jail1233 Words   |  5 PagesIn Sophocles’ Antigone and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s â€Å"Letter from Birmingham Jail†, Antigone and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. used resistance against powerful leaders to follow their morals and make a statement. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s approach towards the reconstruction of society’s cultural understanding of segregation used civil disobedience in a more public and large-scale approach, whereas Antigone’s use of civil disobedience defied the law in a much more private, small-scale way toRead More Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s Letter From a Birmingham Jail Essays1088 Words   |  5 PagesDr. Martin Luther King Jr.s â€Å"Letter From a Birmingham Jail† In King’s essay, â€Å"Letter From Birmingham Jail†, King brilliantly employs the use of several rhetorical strategies that are pivotal in successfully influencing critics of his philosophical views on civil disobedience. King’s eloquent appeal to the logical, emotional, and most notably, moral and spiritual side of his audience, serves to make â€Å"Letter From Birmingham Jail† one of the most moving and persuasive literary pieces of the 20thRead Moreâ€Å"a Comparison of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’S ‘I Have a Dream’ Speech and ‘Letter from a Birmingham Jail’†.1444 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"A Comparison of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech and ‘Letter from a Birmingham Jail’†. 9% Similarity Born in Atlanta Georgia in 1929, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., conceivably lived as one of the greatest social and religious leaders in a country where a group of its citizens had to endure excruciating conditions of disenfranchisement, inferiority and degradation of a second class citizenship by reasons of race, color or origin. In effort to condemn allRead MoreLetter From Birmingham Jail Analysis1617 Words   |  7 Pages1960’s faced solely due to the melanin in their skin (King 2). Among these African Americans was the reverend, doctor, humanist, husband, and Civil Rights activist, Mr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King was a middle class, black man with a life-long devotion of implementing ethnic equality to African Americans nationwide. Following one of Rev. King’s peaceful protests in Birmingham, Alabama, he was jailed on accounts of â€Å"parading without a permit† (King 3). While in jail, Martin Luther King, JrRead MoreEssay on Letter From Birmingham Ja il, by Martin Luther King Jr.742 Words   |  3 PagesDr. Martin Luther King Jr. one of many great influential speakers wrote a life changing letter after being arrested for peacefully protesting African American rights. While sitting in jail Dr. King received a letter from clergymen questioning his motives and timings for being in Birmingham. In a response Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. writes a â€Å"Letter from Birmingham Jail† vividly expressing physical and emotional purposes for his presence in Birmingham, AL. First, in the â€Å"Letter from Birmingham Jail†Read MoreMartin Luther King Jr : Letter From Birmingham Jail Essay1678 Words   |  7 Pages Martin Luther King Jr: Letter from Birmingham Jail Hao Ran Hu SUNY Broome Hao Ran Hu Global History Professor St.Clair 2016 Martin Luther King Jr: Letter from Birmingham Jail One of the interesting Documents in World History is the ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’ by Martin Luther King Jr who was born as Michael King in 1929 in Atlanta. His parents were partRead MoreLetter from Birmingham Jail, by Martin Luther King Jr. Essay938 Words   |  4 Pages Is it not ironic that Martin Luther King Jr. s, â€Å"Letter from Birmingham Jail†, which testifies to his struggle for Civil Rights; not only contradicts the time Martin Luther King wrote it in, but also echoes the same sentiments of today’s moral causes and laws? . Dr. King (*) then known as Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr. wrote the Letter to Birmingham in response to his fellow clergymen’s criticisms of him being locked up for his actions in Birmingham’s Civil Rights protest. The letter’sRead MoreLetter From The Birmingham County Jail844 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"Letter from the Birmingham County Jail† Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the leader of the Civil Rights Movement. The Civil Rights Movement was a time in which African Americans were setting out to end segregation, specifically in the south. During this time period, African Americans were treated unequally from the white people. African Americans were unable to eat in the same restaurants, shop in the same stores, or even drink out of the same drinking fountain. Dr. King had a vision that one dayRead MoreLetter From A Birmingham Jail972 Words   |  4 PagesRhetorical Analysis: Letter from a Birmingham Jail Racism is part of America’s history. Historical leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr. brought the Injustice problems to the light. King, Jr. â€Å"Letters from a Birmingham Jail confronts racism in the United States of America through his response letter to the clergymen criticism, while he is in jail due to holding a protest in Birmingham, Alabama. King, Jr. wrote â€Å"Letter from a Birmingham Jail† to defend the non-violent protest. He claims that the protestRead MoreLetter From Birmingham Jail By Dr. Martin Luther King1510 Words   |  7 PagesLetter from Birmingham Jail was a letter written by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from a solitary confinement cell in Birmingham, Alabama. Some portions of the letter were written and gradually smuggled out by King s lawyer on scraps of paper including, by some reports, rough jailhouse toilet paper. Violent racist terror against African Americans was so horrible in Birmingham in the summer of 1963 that the city was being referr ed to by some locals as â€Å"Bombingham†. King had been arrested while participating

Inappropriate Behavior in the Workplace - 2391 Words

Inappropriate Behavior What civil rights laws may prohibit Marwan’s conduct with his fellow co-worker? â€Å"The definition of sexual harassment stated in the EEOC Guidelines and accepted by the U.S. Supreme Court is â€Å"unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature,† which implicitly or explicitly make submission a term or condition of employment; make employment decisions related to the individual dependent on submission to or rejection of such conduct, or have the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment (Kubasek, 2009, p. 600).† Do those laws apply to his conduct toward the park guest? Yes, they do insomuch as his unwanted sexual advances†¦show more content†¦The nature of the employment is most likely ‘at will’, in which the employer and employee are free at any time to terminate the employment (Kubasek, 2009). If the employment manual laid out grounds for termination and did not include ‘at will’, there is a possibility that a court would rule that the employee reasonably took the printed manual at face value, although in this particular case the employer would be able to counter with misconduct which is also assumed to be in said manual under just cause for termination (Kubasek, 2009). What actions and steps should Studio Five take against Marwan? In Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc., the court determined that circumstances were to be taken into account when determining whether a work environment was made hostile or abusive and some of those circumstances were the frequency, the severity, and the physical or verbal nature of the harassment (Kubasek, 2009). Given that the employee’s conduct in this situation met all of those criteria in that it was frequent, threatening and physical, discipline should not be considered and the employment should be immediately terminated. Explain what actions you considered and why you either recommendShow MoreRelatedHaving Effective Policies In Place Is Important When Dealing1283 Words   |  6 Pagesbe very helpful by providing guidelines to user behavior through general principles. If this policy was not implemented, employees would not have an idea of the behavior expected when using the computers at Escape. Some of the problems that can arise as consequences are that they could use the computers for their personal use like social media, checking their email, buying online, watching videos or movies, listening to music, or even do inappropriate things with computers. Also, if employees clickRead MoreCriminal Justice Interns Observations Of Misconduct : An Exploratory Study Essay798 Words   |  4 Pagesjustice system reported that they had observed behavior they suspected to be illegal behavior for a law enforcement agency. (CITE). 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Even though workplace politics exists in every profession, the effects of horizontal violence, or bullying, in nursing is a costly behavior. Nurses feel devalued in the workplace and experience psychological effects. Patients are likely to experience less favorable outcomes, and retention is difficult costing facilities large amounts of money to recruit and hire replacements. Types of violence Horizontal violence is physical and or verbal behavior that is believed by the recipientRead MorePreventing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace1166 Words   |  5 PagesPreventing Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Does the phrase â€Å"That’s what she said.† sound familiar? The phrase is from the popular hit television series The Office. The guy behind this popular quote is none other than Dunder Mifflin’s Michael Scott. This quote is not only inappropriate but it is also a form of sexual harassment and Michael Scott is the king of sexual harassment. 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It gives examples of what sexual harassment is and knowing how to identify sexual harassment in an organization. This essay takes information from different articles describing sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace. It gives scenarios and examples of sexual harassment. It also explains

Traditional and Innovative Promotional Strategies †MyAssignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about the Traditional and Innovative Promotional Strategies. Answer: Introduction: Veggie burger is the newly introduced product of Burger King, which is one of the well-known burger brands operating all over the world. The company introduces the new product in the market as a newly formed strategy that it is planning to aim. The Veggie burger is made keeping in mind the nutritious needs of the customers. The burger is made up of some of the nest available real vegetables and whole grains. The grains have been freshly bought from the Morningstar Farms. The toppings for the burger are made of fresh lettuce, white onions, pickles, ketchup, juicy tomatoes and mayo. For extra taste, there are some extra flavors of toasted sesame seed. The product is designed to offer right amount of nutrition to people and meet their nutrition need because of its low calorie, right amount of protein, fats and other nutrients (Veggie Burger, 2017). The targeting strategy focus at the type of customers the company will target with its products. Accordingly, the company decides the content and design of the product. Similarly, the Veggies burger is introduced by Burger King have targeted the young generation, vegetarians and health conscious people (Veggie Burger, 2017). This is because the teenagers love having snacks on daily basis and health conscious people will get to eat something tasty along with caring for their health. Thus targeting is based on demographic and psychographic segmenting the customers. Positioning is the image that the brand makes in front of their customers about their product (Hollensen, 2015). With the introduction of Veggie Burger, Burger King has positioned itself as one of the healthy brand serving healthy snacks for customers (Veggie Burger, 2017). It has tried to placed itself on the mind of the people as a healthy fast food brand. The brand is inventing this new strategy in the marketing to cope up with the tough competition. Packaging is one of the most important strategies adopted by any brand to increase its brand recognition. Similarly, Burger King has changed its packaging strategy for its new Veggie burger product in order to make it easily recognized by the customers (Veggie Burger, 2017). The brand usually used a glass shaped box to offer to is customers with a empty white space for customer comment. For the new burger, the company has used paper-packaging system to make the burger attractive to the customers. According to Harrington, et al., (2017) product strategy is one of the most important strategies for the business to grow. Products are the main tool by which the business carries out its expansion strategy. The product strategy that Burger King has recently planned is a Veggie Burger to present itself differently in the fast food market. The brand has introduced many kinds of fast food products from time to time according to their expanding strategy. Thus, this time the veggie burger is a newly designed healthy food that the company is introducing. As stated by Aghaie, et al., (2014) pricing strategy is one of most crucial marketing strategy that helps the organization decide about their customers and further success process. Pricing strategy includes various types of pricing level such as premium pricing, competitive pricing and others. Burger king has also decided to introduce its new veggie burger at a competitive price of $3.29 This is because its main customers will be teenagers and college goers that are health conscious and love having fast food. Thus in order to make the burger affordable for these non-earners, the brand has followed such pricing strategy. Thus, pricing strategy is made with the aim of attracting maximum customers. According to Teimouri,et al., (2015), place is considered as the idea that the brand consider to distribute its product to the customers from various places. Distribution channels include physical stores, outlets and online channels. The distribution channel used by burger king for offering its product to the customers are physical stores, outlets and online. The company maintains its own stores and online website from which the customer can provide the product. Online channel is best because the young customers are mainly active in the online channels. According to Momin et al., (2014), positioning is the best way to increase your recognition among customers. Promotional strategy is done according to the aim of the brand to reach the type of customers. Thus, burger king is introducing a product that aims at targeting the young generation. Thus for the purpose the company is strategizing social media, television commercials to target the customers. Young customers are very active in social media and would be targeted easily. Moreover, the office goers and college students can also be easily targeted by it. Importance of Service Dominant(SD) Burger King sells veggie burgers around the world. This fast food industry is so successful that the company is trying to launch its burgers in other vegetarian friendly market in the world. The importance of service dominant industry is that it focuses from the perspective of the customers. These cover all the economic and social impact of the business. Social media is providing functionality that is critical in this service dominant industry. The centralized manufacturing industry helps in creating benefits of scale and it also helps in interaction with the customers. Burger King is trying to create a value proposal that will help to compete with the other low priced burger companies and thus this has created a dominant logic. Building relationship with the customers is not only intrinsic to the entire marketing process of Burger King but to the industry as a whole. The employees are identified as the service providers in Burger King and they satisfy the customers. The service domi nant logic has argued that communication must be characterized by dialog and communication. This marketing conversation is considered as an integral part of the marketing process and Burger King can control the entire situation. According to Lusch Nambisan (2015), the service dominant logic is related with three important aspects. It can be referred to as a major paradigm shift and considered as an alternative form of marketing. Marketing is regarded as a continuous economic and social process which has been trying to focus on the operational resources. The key drivers which are associated with the service dominant logic are the competitiveness of the firm, collaboration and applied knowledge. Gronroos Gummerus (2014) has predicted that the service dominant logic also enhances the understanding of the discontinuous innovation that are trying to implement significant change on the customers creation of market value and its impact on the market share. The collaborative competence is regarded as the main determinant in the acquisition of competitive advantage of the firm. The firms can help in attaining the competitive advantage through engagement of the customers and creation of value network in production p rocess. The 7Ps of the marketing process is an important tool for the businesses men and it helps the marketers to determine the offerings of the product. These 7ps are the marketing tactics help to satisfy the customers in the targeted market. The front line employees of Burger King can be retained through the provision of recognition and reward system. The front line employee wants to get appreciation for their services. The management must appreciate the employees and share how their extra hard work has helped the organization. Burger King has set up the reward system and thus this has incentivize the ideas and innovation which has helped in the further development of the company. According to Aguinis (2013), the monetary reward for the employees serves as a powerful motivator for the company. This monetary reward lays positive outcome such as retention of the employees in the long run. This benefit of monetary reward helps the employees to develop a sense of entitlement. Thus, it can be said that monetary reward helps in job enrichment and acts as an important motivator for the employees. Burger King provides quick services in the restaurant. There is also a provision of take away services provided by the outlets of Burger King. Burger King has many major suppliers. Planning requires trust and collaboration with the employees and this was visible in the retail outlets of Burger King. The customers can place online orders and get their burgers delivered within a short span of time. They also provide assurance of the delivery process and the customers are satisfied with the entire process. Moreover, the customers can also place orders in the store through a phone call. The representatives deliver the burgers from the nearest store of Burger King. According to Harrington et al., (2017) the delivery process of the company plays an important role in retaining its customers and creating competitiveness in the market. The quality and the convenience factors are also an important predictor of retaining the customers of Burger King. There is limited seating arrangement in the retail outlets of Burger King. The interior area of the outlets of Burger King are systematically designed and it is attractive for the customers. The in-house staffs of Burger King provide a warm service of hospitality. There is parking provision for the customers of Kings Burger. Moreover, the customers who visits the stores frequently get free passes for parking. Kings Burger also provides passes to the customers for special occasions or sports events. Burger King has more than 15000 franchise outlets globally which are in operational. The raw materials that are used by Burger King are sourced by third party providers. The customers are aware of the services which are provided by Kings Burger. It has been found that to compete with other competitors in this industry. Kings Burger must include more items in its product range. The company is trying hard to compete with its competitors. The customers had to wait for a short span of time to get their items delivered. On the other hand, the actual delivery time of Kings Burger is high than the expected time. The company must try to improve these process and it must hire more employees to provide quick delivery. There is also a huge communication gap among the customers because only a few section of the people are aware of its services and products. In this competitive market, the customers are aware of the services provided by Mac Donalds and Dominos. Therefore, Burger King must try to improve its promotional strategy. According to Harrington et al., (2016) Burger King tried to focus more on the service quality rather than the product quality. Relationship Marketing The IT platform of Burger King has increased its competitive advantage over its competitors such as Mac Donalds. Burger King has tried to launch various promotional approaches so as to increase its sales and consumption of its product. The customers also has the provision to pay through their websites. The volume of frequency rewards helps in the creation of financial bond. The customers are rewarded with different discount coupons if they frequently visit the stores. The idea of cross selling can be applied by the management committee of Burger King. When any new customer visits the store, they can try to the family packages at a much cheaper rate. This has improved the sales of Burger King. According to Keiningham et al., (2014), the idea of cross selling has improved customer satisfaction. The customization bonds has also improved the sales and profitability of Kings Burger. The use of various social media tools such as Facebook, Instagram has helped in attracting more customers. The customers are also sent various discount coupons through e-mail and SMS and thus this has improved the sales of Burger King. According to Xiao(2015),it is important to know the preferences of the customers so as to improve its service quality The use of balance scorecard by the management committee of Kings Burger has helped in providing a clear idea to its customers. The targeted growth rate that the company is trying to achieve in the next few years are described and explained clearly to its employees. This will help the management to keep a track of the performance of the front line employees to improve the sales of the company (Nrreklit Mitchell, 2014). The employees will work according to the target set by the company. As, a result, this will improve the internal business of Burger King. The customers will get an idea of the product quality. Moreover, the balance scorecard gives a clear idea of the future plans which are to be taken by the company. According to Boscia McAfee (2014), innovation, post sale service and operations are regarded as the main internal business perspective of the company. It has been found that from the market share, customer acquisition, customer profitability and customer retention are th e main outcome measures of the company. Social/Ethical Marketing Burger King will use green marketing strategy to produce, reclaim and promote its product. The home delivery service that is provided by Burger King is eco-friendly. The burgers are packed in paper box and are sent to the customers. Moreover, the services that are provided in the stores of Burger King are eco-friendly. According to Cheema et al.,(2015) he impact of green marketing mix ahs improved customer satisfaction and customer loyalty of Burger King. This corporate image has laid significant contribution and positive relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Burger King has tried to discontinue its beef products and planned to create a fundraising burger. This has increased the global media coverage and it will take more time to capture the market. According to Khan et al., (2016) the cultural differences creates effectiveness of the social media metrics in loyalty and brand recommendations. The fast food industry has been improving considerable sales during the last quarter. The net sales has improved by more than 70% whereas the revenue of the company has declined by 26.5%. The global re-franchising transactions and the currency movement has increased the revenue of the company. The RACE model is used to measure customer dissatisfaction. It has been found that the management committee is trying to carry out research to measure customer dissatisfaction (De Mooij, 2013). It has been found that the customers are dissatisfied because they did not receive quality products against the price paid by them. The competitors are delivering higher quality products at the same rate. Burger king is also taking various types of action plan so as to attract more customers. As Burger King is specialized in veggie burgers, the company must try to include some products and this will help to compete with the other competitors in the market. In terms of communication, the customers must cl early communicate with the management committee about their likes and dislikes, this will help the company to improve its product range, and thus they can satisfy the customers accordingly. It is necessary to evaluate the needs and demands of the customers and then implement the changes in the product or improve its product quality (Gouillart., 2014). Customer touchpoints Customer touch points are the main brand points that are associated with customer contact. It is important to identify the touch point and it is regarded as the first step towards the creation of the customers map. The customers can also judge their satisfaction before purchasing a product or a service. The customers can interact with the front line employees of Kings Burger and know their products that are existing or the products which will be innovated by them in the future. The management will know the demands of the customers and they can improve their line of business. The touchpoints map also helps to improve customer satisfaction and this leads to good customer experience. The customers can also interact via e-mail to highlight their grievances if they are not satisfied with the products which are provided by Kings Burger. Kings Burger must also improve its advertisement strategy so as to attract more customers. Unlike its competitors such as Mac Donalds, SUBWAY and Dominos i t must attract its customers through advertisements. The customers will also be satisfied if they get to observe the live preparation of burger like its other competitors. Moreover, this will also enable the customers to judge the quality of the product. Kings Burger will provide training to its frontline employees and it will help in the development of new skills. Moreover, the customers must also trust the employees and thus the frontline employees will solve their problem. Relevant strategies There are certain relevant strategies that must be taken by Kings Burger to resolve the customer issues and problems. When Kings Burger tries to expand its business, they must focus on the experience of the customers and they need to consider on the touch points. Kings Burger must try to ensure that the customers are happy with the product and this is possible through proper interaction. Kings Burger must also try to upgrade its product and they must try to resolve the technical issues of the company. This will help the customers to get their products delivered within their stipulated time. The frontline employees can also serve the customers if they are provided with extra knowledge and training. This is possible only through interactions with the customers. The employees must have an extended and in-depth knowledge of the product and they must have the capability to convince the customers. Kings Burger must also provide attractive discounts to the customers in festive seasons unlike its other competitors. The customers are also provided with an option to purchase the second veggie burger at a discounted price after the purchase of the first burger. References Aghaie, M., Vahedi, E., Asadollahi, A., Safari-Kahreh, M. (2014). An empirical Investigating to Effects of services Marketing mix on Brand Dimensions in Order to enhance brand Equity in the Tehrans Chain Stores.Research Journal of Recent Sciences ISSN,2277, 2502. Aguinis, H., Joo, H., Gottfredson, R. K. (2013). What monetary rewards can and cannot do: How to show employees the money.Business Horizons,56(2), 241-249. Boscia, M. W., McAfee, R. B. (2014). Using the balance scorecard approach: A group exercise.Developments in Business Simulation and Experiential Learning,35. Cheema, S., Durrani, A. B., Khokhar, M. F., Pasha, A. T. (2015). Influence of Green Marketing Mix and Customer Fulfillment: An Empirical Study. De Mooij, M. (2013).Global marketing and advertising: Understanding cultural paradoxes. Sage Publications. Grnroos, C., Gummerus, J. (2014). The service revolution and its marketing implications: service logic vs service-dominant logic.Managing service quality,24(3), 206-229. Harrington, R. J., Harrington, R. J., Ottenbacher, M. C., Ottenbacher, M. C., Fauser, S., Fauser, S. (2017). QSR brand value: Marketing mix dimensions among McDonalds, KFC, Burger King, Subway and Starbucks.International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management,29(1), 551-570. Gouillart, F. (2014). The race to implement co-creation of value with stakeholders: five approaches to competitive advantage.Strategy Leadership,42(1), 2-8. Keiningham, T., Gupta, S., Aksoy, L., Buoye, A. (2014). The high price of customer satisfaction.MIT Sloan Management Review,55(3), 37. Khan, I., Khan, I., Dongping, H., Dongping, H., Wahab, A., Wahab, A. (2016). Does culture matter in effectiveness of social media marketing strategy? An investigation of brand fan pages.Aslib Journal of Information Management,68(6), 694-715. Lusch, R. F., Nambisan, S. (2015). Service innovation: A service-dominant logic perspective.Mis Quarterly,39(1). Momin, B., Neri, A., McCausland, K., Duke, J., Hansen, H., Kahende, J., ... Stewart, S. L. (2014). Traditional and innovative promotional strategies of tobacco cessation services: a review of the literature.Journal of community health,39(4), 800-809. Nrreklit, H., Mitchell, F. (2014). Contemporary issues on the balance scorecard.Journal of Accounting Organizational Change,10(4). Teimouri, H., Ebrahimi, S., Rezaei, M., Jenab, K., Khoury, S. (2015). Social Marketing Mix Dimensions as Determinants of Brand Loyalty: A Case Study.Annals of Management Science,4(2), 6. Veggie Burger. (2017).BURGER KING. Retrieved 17 November 2017, from https://www.bk.com/menu-item/veggie-burger Xiao, J. (2015). A service improvement plan for the local catering Bar Fino. Hollensen, S. (2015).Marketing management: A relationship approach. Pearson Education.

When I visited my local dental surgery Essay Example

When I visited my local dental surgery Essay When I visited my local dental surgery I noticed that they use a manual filing system and I felt that they could benefit from having computerised version, as it would save both time and effort for the receptionists. The organisation The Dent Care Ltd is a medium size dental surgery based in Burnt Oak. The clinic deals with all aspects of primary dental care that includes regular inspection checks (every 6 months), teeth extraction, fillings, capping and bridging to denture fitting. All work is carried out under local anaesthetic. Where major prolonged work is required they are referred to specialist dental clinic where work can be carried out under sudation. The clinic is owned in partnership by the three dental surgeons and each has a dental nurse and two receptionists all of whom are computer literate and can operate the PC without much difficulty. We will write a custom essay sample on When I visited my local dental surgery specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on When I visited my local dental surgery specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on When I visited my local dental surgery specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer At the moment, the clinic has an 80386 Compaq PC and a HP desk Jet Printer that the receptionist use for typing letters, invoices using Microsoft Word. The patients appointments are hand written in a yearly planner that they use. The planner simply has a day and times of 15 mins intervals and 5 columns. The columns are headed with the names of the three Dental surgeons. Data collection To understand the current system, three methods of data collections were considered. 1. Questionnaire to all staff Advantages Disadvantages Quick way of collecting information from large number of people. Difficult to plan questions to collect complex data Useful if people are not available for interviews Cannot probe responses. Useful if people work in different parts of the office. Some find it easier to give honest accurate answers. 2. Interview the staff Advantages Disadvantages If well planned and questions are structured in advance lot of detailed information can be captured. People may not be fully truthful. Allows probing of responses to seek clarification or ask additional questions. People may not feel comfortable being interviewed. Takes up lot of time. 3. Observe the staff doing their job. Advantages Disadvantages See unusual things that users may not be aware of. Takes up lot of time. See the efficiency of the system. People suspicious of being watched. See which user needs access to what information See what people do with the information Understand the whole process easily, as different users carry out different parts of the process. Technique used As this is a small friendly dental surgery, questionnaire technique was rejected, as everyone was happy to be observed and interviewed. Questions planned for the interview are available in appendix A. Notes from the interview are available in Appendix B. Observation notes are available in Appendix C. Customer documents collected are available in Appendix D. Current system Process of making an appointment. When a patient calls to make an appointment, they normally speak to the receptionist. The receptionist asks which consult they are registered with, date ; time they wish to attend and checks in the yearly planner if the requested time slot is available on that day. If the slot is not available then the receptionist suggests alternate times that available either on that day on another day in that week. Once the appoint is agreed, the patient name is written in the book at the agreed time and a patient appointment reminder card is filled out by hand and given to the patient. Process of seeing the dental surgeon. When the patient arrives at the clinic, they see the receptionist and say either their name or time of appointment or say which surgeon they are here to see and at what time. The receptionist looks at the yearly planner and confirms the appointment. She marks the planner with a tick to indicate the patient has arrived and asks the patient to wait. She checks her manual file system and take out the patients records. Seeing the dental surgeon The patient record is passed to the dental surgeon who looks at last appointment notes in the patients records and then the dental nurse calls the patient in. After the treatment The dental nurse shows what treatment was carried out and passes the patient records back to the receptionist. The receptionist looks at the work sheet and any other notes and books a follow-up appointment if required or discharge the patient. The receptionist looks up the chart that shows the process of various treatments that is written on a page and tells the patients how much they need to pay. Processing patient payment The customer has the option of paying by cash, by credit card or delaying payment until the end of their treatment where follow-up appointments are needed. If payments are paid she writes paid next to the treatment detail else leaves it blank if it is to be paid later. The receptionist then hand writes a receipt for the payment received and hands it to the patient. The problem The problems with the way the surgery runs at the moment are: 1. When making an appointment for the patient, the receptionist has to go through a whole column of untidy hand written appointments and to look for time slots. This is keeping the patient on the telephone far longer then is necessary. 2. When the surgery is very busy, time is wasted as one receptionist is kept waiting with a patient until the other receptionist has finished using the yearly planner. 3. Client information is sometimes not written down. 4. Records are sometimes left on the receptionist desks. 5. Time is wasted moving records around from the receptionist to the dental nurse to the dental surgeon and back again. 6. Time is looking for records that have not been filed away. 7. Time is wasted when record sheets are sometimes left out of the patients records file. 8. Sometimes appoints are not recorded on the yearly planner. 9. Sometimes the writing is difficult to read. 10. Having to look up a treatment cost item on a page of paper leads to mistakes. 11. A PC was purchased but is not fully utilised (used for word-processing only). Current computer specification: 80386 33Mhz processor 32 Mb RAM 1.44Mb floppy Disk drive EGA graphs adaptor, EGA monitor 100Mb hard disk drive Mouse, Keyboard Windows 95, Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint HP ink jet printer. Problem with this hardware ; software Supplier does, not support software, the motherboard is too slow to run modern software and upgrading with more hard disk and memory is too costly. User Requirements The people that would use the new system are: the two receptionists, the three Dental Surgeons and sometimes the three Dental Nurse. Both receptionists will have the ability to: 1. Register new patients. Check which surgeon has least number of patients? If all full, refer patient to another clinic. Otherwise take down following data for each member of the family being registered: Medical number, full name, gender, age, address, postcode, contact numbers A menu form needs to have a selection button to add new record. Access will be used for this data. 2. Delete patients record if they fail to attend two of the six monthly check-ups. Need to add two six-monthly check indicators. Letters needs to go out to them requesting them to make appointment if its been six months since last check date. Date of last appointment needs to be recorded. 3. Edit patient record. The menu form needs to have a button to update an existing record. Receptionist need to search for a record based on patients full name and be able to select to view full patient details. She can change data and the record must be resaved before they exit. A save exit button is required on the edit patient details form. 4. View patient records using surname. A query menu form button is needed to allow viewing of records by surname. 5. View patients by surgeon. A query menu form button is needed to allow viewing of patients by surgeon. 6. Record payment state (paid, postpone payment, no charge) The patient record needs to have payment field, and amount outstanding, with three options for data. (paid, deferred, free). If amount is paid, a receipt must be printed. 7. A appointment form is required that allows new appoints to be booked, existing appoints to be confirmed, existing appointment to be deleted. The Appointment data record is needed that records, patients name. The record needs to have, surgeon name, date, time with 15 mins intervals. Beginning at 9.00 and ending with 6.00P.M. These should be set defaulted to available, a patient name is entered in this field if appoint is made and reset to available if appointment is cancelled. Appointment menu form must have two options a phone appointment or surgery follow-up appointment. The surgery follow-up appointment must print the appointment card. (This may be better done in spreadsheet, this will not be implemented) 8. View available appointments must show all available time slots at a glance for that day. It needs to show only what is available by surgeon. (Will not be implemented) 9. Training: require short training on how to use the newly developed system. Project Plan. The overall project is to be carried out in three phases, and only phase 1 will be implemented at this time: Phase1 : A single user system for the two receptionist to share. Phase2: A multi user system allowing both receptionists the use of the system at the same time. Phase3: A multi user records access for the dental surgeons. Proposed solution: A small and effective database system is to be developed that can handle the above user requirements. The user requirements 7 and 8 will not be implemented at this stage due to timescales available. Database software options: Access or Excel What are the similarities between excel and Access? * They both have a form view and a table view * They can input data * They can produce tables * They have Form view * They can both do queries * They can add or delete records * They can both have Validation, which is when the computer checks the information being put in the computer is sensible. i.e. if it has 11 spaces for a telephone or mobile number and you enter twelve it wont let you move on. It also changes mistakes if it thinks they are wrong. What are the differences? * In Access you have to chose a field * In access you have to make the first field the key field which is a unique number so that you can not mistake it for anything else * In Access you have wizards to help you create tables, forms, and reports * Access is a relational database which means you can link together tables * In Access its easier to do Mail Merge and produce reports. * Excel specializes in number processing and modeling where as access special in data management. Proposed hardware A suitable specification I think they need is: * 512mb RAM, 80 Gb Hard Drive * 2.8 GHz processor * 56K modem, Keyboard, Mouse * 128Mb 3D Video graphics adaptor, 17 flat screen monitor * Ink jet printer * CD RW drive, 1.44Mb floppy * 100Mbit Ethernet network card. Reasons for choosing this specification: Computer is fast and can run all modern software. Large amount of RAM to allow multiple tasks to be run. CD RW drive allows reliable backing ups of data. Network card will be required for multi user system. A large flat screen monitor is selected to save space in a small reception room. A small ink jet printer is selected because the demand for printing is quite small. Proposed Software Specifications * MS Office 2000 professional software suite MsWord, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Outlook, * Operating System Windows XP I have chosen Windows XP, as it is the latest of the Windows. It is easy to use, allows multi-access accounts to be setup for different users. Application Suite, as it is cheaper than buying each program separately. It also allows strong data portability between various applications for example, create process models on spreadsheets, Use Access for patients records storage and queries and do Mail Merge with Word for generating payment receipts and printing follow-up appointment card. Access has the additional advantages of being able to validate data, sort data by various options, perform searches, create a standard reports and merge with other packages like a word processor to allow standardized letters. Hardware Options: A lap top and a Desk top similar spec computers were compared to determine the best value. Desktop : Pentathlon Thunderbird ( Supplier: http://www.pentathlondirect.co.uk ) * 266MHz FSB Motherboard with Athlon XP2000 Processor * 64Mbmax Integrated 3D graphics, * 256mb RAM, 40GB, 17 inch monitor * CD Re-Writer , CD-ROM Drive * 56K Modem * 3.5 Floppy Disk Drive * Keyboard , Mouse 3 years parts and labour return to manufacturer. Supplied with original Microsoft XP installation CD and all drivers for Windows 95/98/ME/2000 and XP Price: à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ 475 including VAT Laptop Supplier: http://www.thelaptopsite.com Reference LAP03-829021 Manufacturer Hewlett Packard Model Evo NX9005 Processor AMD Athlon 2000 Memory 256mb HDD 30gb FDD 1.44 FDD CDROM/DVD DVD/CDRW Operating System Windows XP Professional Display 14.1 tft Condition New Manufacturers Warranty Price: à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ 799 including VAT I have decided to recommend a desktop tower computer rather then a lap top because: Desktop comes with a larger screen size, it can be placed on the floor under the desk and out of sight; it is much cheaper then a similar spec laptop. The price of the desktop recommended will be approximately à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½1200. DESIGN All forms will be designed in this style. This will ensure everything looks similar for the user. Item Text details Text Position Colour Background Main Heading Font:20:Italic:Bold Centered Blue Form colour Labels Font: 14: Bold Left aligned Black Form colour Buttons Font:12:Bold Centre Black grey Forms N/A N/A N/A Dark Cyan background Compulsory data Font:12: Left Black Light orange Optional data Font:12 Left Black Light green Diagram showing the major components of the inputs and outputs User FORMS Design: Query1. Purpose: View patients belonging to a specified surgeon. Input: Surgeon name Process: Query database to look all patients against name given. Output: shows gender, forename, surname, contact numbers for all patients found. Query 2. View patient details. Input: Patient forename and surname Process: Query database to look for all patients against forename and surname. Output: Show full record details about the patient Pressing new patient Button brings up this form Database design New patient record Field Name Type Length Required Indexed Validation Duplicates Record ID Auto Number Primary key Yes No No No Medical No text 20 chars Yes No No No Gender text 1 char Yes No M/F Yes Forename text 20chars Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Surname text 20 char Yes Yes Type Check (cap first letter) Yes House No text 10 char Yes No No Yes Address1 text 50 chars Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Address2 text 20 char Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Address3 text 20 char Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Address 4 text 20 char Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Post code text 9 char Yes No Type Check (ccnn ccnn) yes Day time No text 12 char Yes No Character check Yes Mobile No text 12 char Yes No Character Check Yes DOB Date 10 char Yes No Type Check Yes Last appointment Date 10 char Yes No Type Check Yes Expiry date date 10 Char Yes No Type Check Yes Reminder status Text 1 char Yes No Y/N Yes Payment status Text 10 chars Yes No Paid, Defer, Free Yes Amount due Currency Integer No Yes Type Check Yes Surgeons table Field Name Type Length Required Indexed Validation Duplicates Surgeon ID Auto Number Primary key Yes No N/A No Title Text 4 char Yes No Dr, Mr, Mrs, Miss Yes Forename Text 20 Char Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Surname Text 20 Char Yes Yes Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Address1 Text 50 Char Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Address2 Text 20 Char Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Address3 Text 20 Char Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Address4 Text 20 Char Yes No Type Check (cap first letter) Yes Post Code Text 9 Char Yes No Type Check (ccnn ccnn) Yes Home No Text 12 char Yes No Character Check Yes Mob No Text 12 char Yes No Character Check Yes Surgery Table Field Name Type Length Required Indexed Validation Duplicates Patient ID Number Long Integer Yes Yes field key No Surgeon ID Number Long Integer Yes Yes field key No Diagram showing how the tables are linked together by key fields. Appendix A Questions for the interview 1. When patients joins the clinic what information do you record.? 2. When patient makes an appointment what information do you take down? 3. When patient arrives for his treatment, how do you note who is waiting for which surgeon? 4. When a person needs a follow-up appointment what do you record? 5. What additional tasks do you perform for a follow-up appointment? 6. How do you record information about patient payments of treatment? 7. What difficulties do you experience when you become very busy? 8. What happens to patients that you cannot deal with? 9. How do you track patients for different surgeons? 10. How many people are there working at the surgery? 11. How do you know how much to charge for different treatments? 12. Do patients cancel appoints? 13. What happens when they do this? Appendix B Answers given at interview A.1 When a new patients comes to register with us, we know the number of new patients that each surgeon will take. If they can take on new patients, then, we ask them to fill in a form about their medical details otherwise we refer them to another dental surgery. We then check the form and ask them to sign their declaration. We ask for their medical card and record the number as well as their names and address details. We also ask for details about their family members and their details. A.2 We take down their first name and surname and record it in our appointment planner against the surgeons name and time of appointment. The planner allows us to make appointments every 15 mins. A3. Yes, when a patient arrives, they usually say the time of their appointment and their name. We write a tick against their name, which indicates they are wait in reception. A4. We do the same as we did before as if the patient is making a new appointment but we know their name and surgeons name so simply agree on suitable time? A5. When we agree on the appointment time and day, we fill in a appoint card with the date and time details and hand it to the patient. We also ask about them to see if they wish to pay today or pay for everything at the end of the treatment. Most patients prefer to pay as treatment is being carried out. Some do decide they will pay the total amount at the end. We also have patients that dont have to pay if they are on job seeker allowance or social security benefit. A6. We make a note on the treatment card, if they have paid or deferred payment or no charge. If they pay we write out a receipt for them. A7. I find it very frustrating when we have people making queries and we have to wait for the appointment planner to be freed up before we can deal with the patient. We sometimes spend time looking for patient sheets in the filing cabinet which one of us has not filed and may be lying on the desk. Sometimes we dont get the treatment sheet and have to ask the dental nurse to look for it the surgeons treatment room and the customer is kept waiting. A8. The dental surgeon refers the patient to the specialist clinic. This involves writing to the clinic and requesting an appointment. It can three to four weeks for the appointment to come. A9. We file each patient records in different filing cabinet and on the planner we write down the name of the surgeon so that his patients are under his named column. A10. There are the three surgeons, three medical nurse and two of us at reception. A11. We have a list of treatments and prices against them. The surgeon writes down what treatment he has carried out and calculates the total. A12/13. Yes, quite often, all we do is put a diagonal line across it and make a new appointment. If they cancel before 48 hours, we do not charge them, otherwise we charge them à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½20. Appendix C Notes taken during observation Observing the surgeon: Receptionist takes the notes from the filing cabinet and passes it to the nurse. The surgeon checks his last notes. The nurse calls the patient in. The treatment is carried out and the surgeon writes, the treatment he carried out and indicates if follow-up appointment is needed, he makes a brief notes about what he needs to do next time. The patient leaves the treatment room and the nurse returns the patient file to the receptionist desk. The next patient is the called in. Observing the Dental Nurse: Dental nurses are only involved in fetching and returning the patients records to and from the surgeon and assisting the surgeon. They do not write anything on the patients notes. Observing the Receptionist: Confirmed what the receptionist said she did with customer handling process. All information given during the interview was correct. Also observed the time wasted when the clinic becomes busy and how frustrated they become having to share a single appointment planner. The times they take to write out the receipt and appointment card is quite effective, but it takes a lower priority to ensuring surgeons receives the patients records and are not waiting. This means keeping the customer waiting longer then is necessary. Customer are frequently kept waiting as they try to pay for treatment or make follow-up appointments. New people arriving are given higher priority.

Achebe portrayed Ekwefi(TM)s relationship Essays

Achebe portrayed Ekwefi(TM)s relationship Essays Achebe portrayed Ekwefi(TM)s relationship Paper Achebe portrayed Ekwefi(TM)s relationship Paper The relationship between Okonkwo and his second with Ekwefi come across in various chapters of the novels; snippets of their relationship make a clearer picture as the novel progresses. Looking at Achebes language choices and narrative viewpoint their relationship shows a mixture of both anger and caring which comes apparent in the few scenes where Okonkwo lets his guard down around her. The fist glance at their relationship is a negative view as we see Okonkwo beating then shooting at his wife for going out Okonkwo heard it and ran madly into his room for the loaded gun, ran out again and aimed at her Okonkwo is easily angered this is apparent in all of his relationships with people but it also give Ekwefi a sense of character, strong willed as the wife who had just been beaten murmured something about guns that never shot showing a defiant streak then again resurfaces when she goes to look for her daughter and showing when she needs to be she possess a fiery spirit. In spite of this we learn there was a strong bond between them many years ago when she was the village beauty Okonkwo had won her heart a few years later she ran away from her husband and came to live with Okonkwo It shows there certainly was a mutual feeling between them as time has passed we see that it is not as apparent. Okonkwos reputation as a cold and fearless warrior plays a large part of his apparent detachment from Ekwefi and as such we get the sense that he does not care about her greatly however rare moments in the book give an alternative idea. In chapter 11 when Enzima is taken and Ekwefi follows we see Okonkwo come to find her tears of gratitude filled her eyes. Okonkwo has always considered showing emotion to be weak but this shows us that beneath his exterior he does care. The narrative defining their relationship is somewhat fractured; switching between the past and present day. Achebe hints that Okonkwo has the closest bond with Ekwefi opposed to his other wives he knew it must only be Ekwefi. Of his three wives Ekwefi was the only one who would have the audacity to bang on his door thus giving us the impression he knows her best. The two characters are fairly alike in subtle ways put across by Achebe Ekwefi had become a very bitter woman. Was the only person in the happy company who went about with a cloud on her brow while Okonkwo describing his father his love of talk had grown with age and sickness. It tried Okonkwos patience beyond words Both have become somewhat cynical of others and it can be a common grounding point in their uneven relationship. Their relationship was founded upon physical intimacy even in those days he was not a man of many words. He just carried her into his bed and in the darkness began to feel around her waist for the loose end of the cloth Achebe uses this to suggest their relationship has become more confrontational with age as Okonkwo has taken more wives and children and in several instances simply lashes out at her a little more I said a little. Are you deaf? Okonkwo roared at her. Achebes narrative technique is more observatory than judgemental telling there relationship without leaning in favour of one or the other, without clouding the issue and as such Achebe gives a raw and honest sense to there relationship; seeing both the bad side and the good. Achebes description of their relationship gives a clearer understanding of the characters as individuals through how they act towards one another both caringly and aggressively and as such is an exploration into the Ibo culture itself. Ekwefi is Okonkwos second wife. Once a village beauty, she ran away from her home and husband to marry Okonkwo. She was smitten with Okonkwo when he beat the notorious Cat in a legendary wrestling match. Though its kind of romantic the Ekwefi ran away and eloped with Okonkwo, it turns out hes not Prince Charming. Ekwefi, like Okonkwos other two wives, suffers quite a bit under his forceful and aggressive rule of the household. At one point, just because he was in a bad mood, Okonkwo beat Ekwefi badly and even threatened to kill her with his gun. Regardless, Ekwefi is the most spirited of Okonkwos wives and frequently stands up to him and talks back. Ekwefis life has been full of sadness. She has bad luck with bearing children; despite giving birth to ten children, only one has survived. Thus, she nurtures a deep bond with her single daughter, Ezinma. Achebe paints Ekwefi as an extremely devoted mother. Her pain and bitterness in losing nine other children leads her to treasure her one daughter even above life itself. She dotes over and spoils her child, allowing her treats forbidden to other children and building a deep relationship of trust. Ekwefis history of loss and bitterness renders her a strong woman, capable of withstanding much pain and disappointment. This also leads to a sense of boldness in her, a rather unfeminine characteristic that sometimes annoys Okonkwo. She has the audacity to knock on his door at night and to talk back to him when he accuses her of killing a banana tree. But she also takes her punishment with gritted teeth and without complaint. This kind of strength and boldness has something masculine about it, which emerges even more strongly in her daughter, Ezinma. Though not explicitly stated, we think Ekwefi might be Okonkwos favorite wife, just like Ezinma is his favorite daughter. Achebe has portrayed the relationship between Okonkwo and second wife, Ekwefi, throughout various chapters in the novel. Achebe uses several language features to emphasise their relationship or lack of it in some cases. Achebe uses narrative viewpoint and choice of language to help demonstrate the contrast of anger with love and affection they share between them.

Blackbeards Last Stand - the Death of Blackbeard

Blackbeard's Last Stand - the Death of Blackbeard Edward Blackbeard Teach (1680? - 1718) was a notorious English pirate who was active in the Caribbean and coast of North America from 1716 to 1718. He made a deal with the governor of North Carolina in 1718 and for a time operated out of the many inlets and bays of the Carolina coast. Locals soon tired of his predations, however, and an expedition launched by the Governor of Virginia caught up with him in Ocracoke Inlet. After a furious battle, Blackbeard was killed on November 22, 1718. Blackbeard the Pirate Edward Teach fought as a Privateer in Queen Anne’s War (1702-1713). When the war ended, Teach, like many of his shipmates, went pirate. In 1716 he joined the crew of Benjamin Hornigold, then one of the most dangerous pirates in the Caribbean. Teach showed promise and was soon given his own command. When Hornigold accepted a pardon in 1717, Teach stepped into his shoes. It was about this time that he became â€Å"Blackbeard† and started to intimidate his foes with his demonic appearance. For about a year, he terrorized the Caribbean and the southeastern coast of the present-day USA. Blackbeard Goes Legit By mid-1718, Blackbeard was the most feared pirate in the Caribbean and possibly the world. He had a 40 gun flagship, the Queen Annes Revenge, and a small fleet captained by loyal subordinates. His fame had become so great that his victims, upon seeing Blackbeards distinctive flag of a skeleton spearing a heart, usually simply surrendered, trading their cargo for their lives. But Blackbeard tired of the life and intentionally sank his flagship, absconding with the loot and a few of his favorite men. In the summer of 1718, he went to Governor Charles Eden of North Carolina and accepted a pardon. A Crooked Business Blackbeard may have wanted to go legit, but it certainly didnt last long. He soon entered into a deal with Eden by which he would continue to raid the seas and the Governor would cover for him. The first thing Eden did for Blackbeard was to officially license his remaining ship, the Adventure, as a war trophy, therefore allowing him to keep it. On another occasion, Blackbeard took a French ship laden with goods including cocoa. After putting the French sailors on another ship, he sailed his prize back, where he declared that he and his men had found it adrift and unmanned: the Governor promptly awarded them salvage rights†¦and kept a little for himself, too, of course. Blackbeard’s Life Blackbeard did settle down, to an extent. He married the daughter of a local plantation owner and built a home on Ocracoke Island. He would often go out and drink and carouse with the locals. On one occasion, pirate Captain Charles Vane came seeking Blackbeard, to try and lure him back to the Caribbean, but Blackbeard had a good thing going and politely refused. Vane and his men stayed on Ocracoke for a week and Vane, Teach and their men had a rum-soaked party. According to Captain Charles Johnson, Blackbeard would occasionally let his men have their way with his young wife, but there is no other evidence to support this and it appears to simply be a nasty rumor of the time. To Catch a Pirate Local sailors and merchants soon tired of this legendary pirate haunting the inlets of North Carolina. Suspecting that Eden was in cahoots with Blackbeard, they took their complaints to Alexander Spotswood, Governor of neighboring Virginia, who had no love for pirates or for Eden. There were two British war sloops in Virginia at the time: the Pearl and the Lyme. Spotswood made arrangements to hire some 50 sailors and soldiers off of these ships and put a Lieutenant Robert Maynard in charge of the expedition. Since the sloops were too large to chase Blackbeard into shallow inlets, Spotswood also provided two light ships. Hunt for Blackbeard The two small ships, the Ranger and the Jane, scouting along the coast for the well-known pirate. Blackbeards haunts were well known, and it didnt take Maynard too long to find him. Late in the day on November 21, 1718, they sighted Blackbeard off of Ocracoke Island  but decided to delay the attack until the next day. Meanwhile, Blackbeard and his men were drinking all night as they entertained a fellow smuggler. Blackbeard’s Final Battle Fortunately for Maynard, many of Blackbeards men were ashore. On the morning of the 22nd, the Ranger and the Jane tried to sneak up on the Adventure, but both became stuck on sandbars and Blackbeard and his men couldnt help but notice them. There was a verbal exchange between Maynard and Blackbeard: according to Captain Charles Johnson, Blackbeard said: Damnation seize my soul if I give you quarters, or take any from you. As the Ranger and the Jane came closer, the pirates fired their cannons, killing several sailors and stalling the Ranger. On the Jane, Maynard hid many of his men below decks, disguising his numbers. A lucky shot severed the rope attached to one of the Adventures sails, making escape impossible for the pirates. Who Killed Blackbeard?: The Jane pulled up to the Adventure, and the pirates, thinking they had an advantage, boarded the smaller vessel. The soldiers came out of the hold and Blackbeard and his men found themselves outnumbered. Blackbeard himself was a demon in battle, fighting on despite what was later described as five gun wounds and 20 cuts by sword or cutlass. Blackbeard fought one-on-one with Maynard and was about to kill him when a British sailor gave the pirate a cut on the neck: a second hack severed his head. Blackbeards men fought on  but outnumbered and with their leader gone, they eventually surrendered. Aftermath of Blackbeard’s Death Blackbeards head was mounted on the bowsprit of the Adventure, as it was needed for proof that the pirate was dead in order to collect a sizeable bounty. According to local legend, the pirates decapitated body was thrown into the water, where it swam around the ship several times before sinking. More of Blackbeards crew, including his boatswain Israel Hands, were captured on land. Thirteen were hanged. Hands avoided the noose by testifying against the rest and because a pardon offer arrived in time to save him. Blackbeards head was hung from a pole on the Hampton River: the place is now known as Blackbeards Point. Some locals claim that his ghost haunts the area. Maynard had found papers on board the Adventure which implicated Eden and the Secretary of the Colony, Tobias Knight, in Blackbeards crimes. Eden was never charged with anything and Knight was eventually acquitted in spite of the fact that he had stolen goods in his home. Maynard became very famous because of his defeat of the mighty pirate. He eventually sued his superior officers, who decided to share the bounty money for Blackbeard with all crew members of the Lyme and Pearl, and not only those ones who had actually taken part in the raid. Blackbeards death marked his passing from man to legend. In death, he has become far more important than he ever was in life. He has come to symbolize all pirates, which in turn have come to symbolize freedom and adventure. His death is certainly part of his legend: he died on his feet, a pirate to the very last. No discussion of pirates is complete without Blackbeard and his violent end. Sources Cordingly, David. Under the Black Flag. Random House Trade Paperbacks, 1996, New York. Defoe, Daniel. A General History of the Pyrates. Edited by Manuel Schonhorn. Mineola: Dover Publications, 1972/1999. Konstam, Angus. The World Atlas of Pirates. The Lyons Press, October 1, 2009. Woodard, Colin. The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down. Mariner Books, 2008.

Summary the content into bullet point Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Summary the content into bullet point - Essay Example During the second quarter, Amazon recorded a loss of 27 cents per share that is equivalent to $126 million in net loss. The loss of higher than that recorded during the first quarter, $7 million that is equivalent to 2 cents per share loss. Although Tom Szkutak, Amazon’s Chief Financial Officer, maintains that the company will continue to invest, it is recording losses in shares and drop in its stock price. Amazon is currently investing in innovative products including digital content and trading in consumer electronics. Its current investments are intended to compete other companies such as Apple Inc and Google Inc. On Thursday, 24 July 201, Amazon also experienced a fall in shares by 10 percent in late trade and a 27 cents loss per share. Seetharaman, Deepa and Orr, Bernard. Amazons heavy investing eats into bottom line, shares drop. Reuters. Web. Thu, Jul 24, 2014. Accessed Thu, Jul 24, 2014.

Vienna, Austria Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Vienna, Austria - Essay Example The researcher of this essay aims to provide a brief description of Vienna, that is the capital of Austria and also one of the nine States of Austria. The population of Vienna is 1.6 million today, so that Vienna is the largest city of Austria as well as its cultural, economic and political center. The city lies on both sides of the River Danube, and only 60 kilometers off Austria's Eastern border. Vienna lies in the South East corner of Central Europe and is close to the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. The Wienerwald (Vienna Woods) and the foothills of the Eastern Alps begin shortly after the western suburbs of Vienna. The city was the capital of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy between 1867 and 1918. Today, Vienna city is composed of 23 districts, which though have their own names, are also numbered. However, the elections in these subdivisions are held on the district level, which gives the representatives the political clout. The researcher states that Vienna is famous for bea utiful architecture and breathtaking buildings, history and culture. Cafà © Society, the place to take a break from sightseeing, was invented in Vienna. One of the attractions of Vienna is State of Opera, that was built in the late 1800s. At once the Inner city was surrounded by defensive walls known as Innere Stadt, today it is within Ringstrasse, that is a broad boulevard, lined with imposing buildings, monuments, and parks, such as Gothic St Stephen's Cathedral, which has 113 m steeple that can be seen from most parts of Vienna. (Austria, 1) In Vienna a number of United Nations offices and various international institutions and companies are located. Some of these major institutions are: United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) (Vienna, 1). Vienna has a long tradition of art and culture in the areas of theatre, opera, classical music and fine arts. Burgtheater together with its branch, the Akademietheater, is considered to be one of the best theatres in the German-speaking world. The other theatres offering high quality entertainment are: Volkstheater Wien and the Theater in der Josefstadt. There are also other many theatres offering excellent quality in performing arts like modern, experimental plays or cabaret. Two theatres, Staatsoper and the Volksoper offer great opportunities to the Opera lovers. At Wiener Musikverein, the well -known theatre, concerts of classical music are performed. The Theater an der Wien has become famous in the recent years for hosting premiers of the musicals. Even in many Roman Catholic churches in central Vienna a number of religious and other music is organized. Vienna is famous for its glorious architecture. The buildings are made with beautiful designs of Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and typical Austrian Biedermeier styles. The Secession, Karlsplatz Metropolitan Railway Station, and the Kirche am Steinhof by Otto Wagner rank among the best-known examples of Art Nouveau in the world. The Lipizzaner stallions of the Spanish Riding School, the Vienna Boys' Choir (Wiener Sngerknaben), Wiener Schnitzel, Sachertorte, and various pastries, including the bagel are some of the other special features of Vienna. Viennese Kathreintanzn is the best-known folk dancing of Vienna. In the Vienna city, also located are a number of educational institutes, universities, professional colleges and gymnasiums. There are a number of museums in Vienna of which the most famous is Hofburg, the former imperial palace that was built during the 13th century (Austria, 1). The treasury of this museum holds the imperial jewels. Kunsthistorisches Museum is located directly opposite to Hofburg; it houses a number paintings made by the old masters. Then there is Leopold Museum that displays works of the Viennese Secession, Viennese Modernism and

Jean Baudrillards concept of the orders of simulacra Essay Example for Free

Jean Baudrillards concept of the orders of simulacra Essay A commodity appears at first sight, a very trivial thing, and easily understood. Its analysis shows that it is in reality, a very queer thing, abounding in metaphysical subtleties and theological niceties (Marx). It has long been a condition of western culture to act for the accumulation of material objects. This is in part due to the capitalist nature of the world within which we live. Marx identifies in The Critique of Capitalism the emergence of two new classes of people, namely capitalists and labourers. The term capitalist describes any person who has personal ownership of capital, which consists of raw materials, instruments of labour and means of subsistence (Marx). In contrast a labourer has only the value of his labour (life activity), which he exchanges with the capitalist for a wage and as such the worker sinks to the level of commodity (Marx). Because the labourer produces for the capitalist a commodity of greater value than that of his wages and in addition those wages are paid back to the capitalist in return for subsistence, therefore social control in exerted over the working class, whilst providing the capitalist with excess commodity. The labourer consentingly becomes a slave to the system on which he depends. In addition Marx states that as the relation between capitalist and labourer (manufacturer and consumer) develops, so competition between rival capitalists becomes apparent. In effect the capitalist is forced to capture more of the market by selling goods more cheaply by the consolidation and exploitation of labour power e.g. by machinery. Such a strategy ultimately limits the demand for labour and so new industries must be developed for exploitation. These new industries are necessary because capital exists only in relation to its ability to command labour and social control and as such they reciprocally condition the existence of each other (Marx). These forced increases in demand and therefore production are evident in the contemporary world market. Important to the development of Capitalism is the use of money which abstracts labour and commodity values to a common unit for the purpose of trade. In effect the labourer discovers that the product of his activity is not the object of his activity (Marx) thus a level of abstraction occurs, which was consistent with the modernist values of the time. Karl Marx and early capitalism were mainly concerned with production which remains important but it was Situationist, Guy Debord, who gave the first insights into late capitalism and the theories that best apply to todays world economics and culture of commodities. Debord, in his book The Society of the Spectacle, bases his examination of commodities around consumption, media, information and technology. As such Debord suggests that in societies where modern conditions of production prevail, all of life presents itself as an immense accumulation of spectacles. Everything that was directly lived has moved away into a representation. By this he means to describe the world and its products as mere appearances, where the real meanings and values of commodities are translated into signs. Essentially it is a world vision that has been objectified (Debord). Debord explains the phenomenon of the spectacle as resulting from the ever increasing production of capitalism. Because competition between capitalists inevitably leads to an excess of produce, so consumer demand must be increased. Such an increase is controllable by the spectacle as the real consumer becomes a consumer of illusions, (Debord) so he can be manipulated to believe he must consume beyond the basic necessity for survival e.g. leisure products. Therefore the spectacles form and content are identically the total justification of the existing systems conditions and goals (Debord). The spectacle is mediated in society as information or propaganda, as advertisement or direct entertainment consumption, (Debord). The effects of the mediated spectacle tend to lead the consumer to an experience of alienation as the consumers want for commodities is dictated to serve and maintain capitalism. In addition the spectacle constantly reinforces itself, for example the television, which is in itself a product of the spectacle that is then used by the capitalist to implement the advertisement of other spectacles. Essentially the spectacle is the nightmare of imprisoned modern society (Debord) and explains the transition from the degradation of being into having to having into appearing (Debord). Jean Baudrillard took Marxs Critique of Capitalism and Debords The Society of the Spectacle to their conclusions with his own theory of simulation and simulacra. Similar to the idea of the spectacle, Baudrillard describes a world where the subject of everything has been replaced by a semiological value that has become more important than the original, real meaning of the object. This object he calls a simulacra. In Simulacra and Simulation Baudrillard adds extra complexity to these ideas by establishing a hierarchy of simulation, which he gives four orders. In the first order the object is a copy of an original and so can be linked to a basic reality, for example a photograph of an actual event. The second order of simulation misrepresents the original subject; in the example the photography has been digitally manipulated in Photoshop to present a non-occurrence. In the third order a reality is recreated from a simulation of an original reality, when in fact, through the process of simulacra, the original has been lost, e.g. a scene is recreated from the digitally manipulated photograph of the original event. Finally, the forth order of simulation is the combined process of the first, second and third order to such an extent that the object bears no relation to reality or the original, for example the photograph has become a virtual reality. In this instance the link between reality and the signifying systems is almost impossible to ascertain, thus creating a hyper-reality. It is the use of one simulacra as a basis for the formation of another simulacra that shows the first signs of relevance to post modernity. Consequently, in post modernism, everything is understood in relation to everything that has come before, which in design manifests itself in referencing. Post modernism is also concerned with the fact that there is no right or wrong and essentially that no real truth exists. It is of course possible for a sign to make a transition through all four of the orders of simulation, constantly abstracting meaning and widening the gap between simulation and reality. However due to the complexity of repeated abstraction and signification it becomes necessary for an amount of speculation and simplification to occur when examining transitional examples. If we take, for example, the now famous emblem of automotive company Rolls Royce, it becomes apparent the extent to which a symbolic object can be re-simulated, each time loosing a part of its original meaning. Spirit of Ecstasy, designed by sculptor Charles Sykes and mass produced in 1911, is a cast metal emblem representing the figurine of a girl with arms outstretched to hold the folds of her gown blowing in the breeze. To the present day this emblem has been displayed on the bonnets of Rolls Royce cars and is the first order of simulation in terms of it being a representation of a real person from which the sculpture has been modelled. The object also references the figure heads of classic sailing ships in an attempt to convey the automotive product as an elegant, quite and reliable vehicle, which were the mediated associations with the brand during the early development of the company. In this instance the object enters the third order of simulation as a real event (model posing for sculptor) is created from an existing symbolic object (sailing boat figure heads) in order to be recreated as a new symbolic object (Spirit of Ecstasy emblem). At this point it is important to note that this example as an investigation could examine many more stages of referencing prior to the signs use as figure heads, though this could prove too difficult and inaccurate, again reinforcing the existence of a hyper-reality. The tea pot, designed by Michael Graves in 1985 for Alessi, brings the symbol to its conclusion. The tea pot employs a plastic emblem of a bird that is attached to the spout of the kettle and creates a whistling noise when the water is boiled. This creates a pun between the whistling of a kettle and the singing of bird but more importantly, its similar visual appearance (i.e. the wings of the bird and the outstretched arms and gown of the girl) makes a reference of Rolls Royce cars. Because during the late 20th century the values associated with Rolls Royce have matured to convey the brand as one of top class and status, so it are these value that are associated with Graves tea pot, supposed to the original associations that Rolls Royce was referencing from classic sailing ships. Therefore the product has clearly entered the forth order of simulation is it holds no relation to the original meaning that the original object as sign attempted to represent. Also, by referencing past signs, it can be described as a post modern object. Like Debord, Baudrillard agreed that simulation was important to the survival of capitalism as it, through mediation, can control the level of consumption within society. Baudrillard used the term valorisation to describe the process through which symbolic objects attain value. An excellent example of valorisation is Pokemon cards, which are essentially printed illustrations on card and so their use value is very low. However, via mediation, Pokemon cards have been given a simulated symbolic value that has made them desirable and powerful as a commodity. As well as design, Baudrillards theory of simulation and simulacra has also proved influential in film making, for example in The Matrix, directed by the Wachowski brothers. The Matrix is set in the future at a time when the real world has been reduced to a desert waste land by a war between humanity and machines; after the invention of artificial intelligence. Because the machines are dependant on solar power, the humans have caused the equivalent of a nuclear winter by blocking out sunlight. This has caused the machines to retaliate by imprisoning humans in gel filled pods so that energy can be extracted from them in the form of heat. In order to control the humans in this procedure a computer simulated world called the matrix exists, that all of the imprisoned humans are connected to, living their lives in what they believe is the late 20th century, oblivious to the fact that their real bodies are in stasis in the real world. The film therefore acts as a metaphor for contemporary western cultures. Firstly the matrix is an existence of the fourth order of simulation in that it is a system of mere signs that are completely detached from reality, i.e. hyper-reality. Just as in contemporary cultures, the people who live in the matrix are unaware that they are controlled by a system through simulation. You are a slave, neo, like everyone else you were born into bondage, born into a prison that you cannot smell or taste or touch, a prison for your mind What is the matrix? Control. The matrix is a computer generated dream world built to keep us under control in order to change a human being into this (he holds up a copper battery) (Morpheus talking to Neo, The Matrix). In addition the film suggests that the prisoners of the Matrix are also dependant upon it, to the extent that they will fight to protect it. Baudrillards idea of mediasation appears in the film when it is suggested that there was a machine spawning a whole race of machines (Morpheus talking to Neo, The Matrix), thus the social control of the machines (mediation of signs) increasingly exert themselves with every new generation. Interestingly The Matrix seems to offer a solution to simulation and social control by the system, which is one of enlightenment. Once Neo understands the systems and can see the signs (computer code) of the matrix for what they really are, then he can choose to follow a different set of rules thus gaining control of his environment. As well as a theological basis on Baudrillard, The Matrix tends to convey the story via symbolic references and thus is post modern by nature. For example the follow the white rabbit scene employs a tattoo of a white rabbit, which is referenced from Alice in Wonderland in order to convey the uncertainty in discovering the truth of an alternate reality. In the same scene Neo also opens a copy Baudrillards Simulacra and Simulation in effect reinforcing links to that element of the film. In conclusion, I have identified the main themes surrounding Baudrillards orders of simulacra and simulation, shown how they relate to modern and post modern design and have given contemporary examples of their use in product design and film making. I believe that such an understanding of simulation has served well to better understanding referencing in post modernity. References Debord, G., (1977) The Society of the Spectacle, Black Red Poster, M., (1998) Jean Baudrillard: Selected Writings, Polity Press Tucker, R. C., (1978) The Marx Engels Reader Second Edition, Norton Company Bibliography Hebdige, D., (1994) Hiding in the Light, Routledge http://www.geneseo.edu/~bicket/panop/baudrillard.ht http://www.artisanitorium.thehydden.com/nonfiction/film/matrix.htm http://www.rolls-roycemotorcars.com/master_frame.html

Nuclear Fusion a Feasible Source of Power Essay -- Energy Power Global

Is Nuclear Fusion a Feasible Source of Power? Abstract: Nuclear fusion may be an effective solution to the energy problem in today?s world. Fusion is environmentally friendly and has the potential to generate massive amounts of power. It is evident that the Sun?s power is fueled by nuclear fusion. Recent advancements such as ITER and NIF may bring us closer to being able to use fusion. We find that nuclear fusion is a long-term solution to a continuing problem. Introduction: Since the Industrial Age, energy from fossil fuels has become widespread. In recent times, the depletion of fossil fuels is forcing humanity to search for other alternatives, such as nuclear fusion. Fusion has been an attractive method of energy for a long time. In 1982, Princeton University experimented with the magnetic confinement Tokamak: a donut shaped accelerator designed to create massive amounts of heat. In 1998, JET built on the technology to create the largest Tokamak ever made. The ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) project is currently working on a colossal undertaking to create a Tokamak that can produce more energy than it consumes. This project combines the efforts of many nations and will be constructed in class. Meanwhile, the NIF (National Ignition Facility) in Livermore is attempting to use lasers to generate a completely different fusion: inertial confinement fusion. Both ITER and NIF are slated for completion in 2030. Fusion is a difficult hurdle for scientists to tackle because scientists cannot currently find a method to produce more energy than the process consumes. The JET is the most cost effective fusion reactor in terms of power. However, the ratio of energy production to energy cons... ...century? Reference Chatellier, Michel, (2001). Sources of Energy. CEA. Retrieved July 24, 2005 from http://www-fusionmagnetique. cea.fr/gb/energies/energie03.htm ITER (2005, July 22). Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved July 24, 2005, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITER Nuclear Fusion (2005, July 21). Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved July 24, 2005, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_fusion Parfit, Michael (2005). Future Power Where Will the World Get its Next Energy Fix. National Geographic, August 2005. Retrieved August 2, 2005, from http://www7.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0508/feature1/fulltext.html Platt, Charles (1998). What if Cold Fusion is Real?. Wired, 6.11. Retrieved August 3, 2005, from http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/6.11/coldfusion.html Cover image courtesy of: http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/archives/03-04/dec13.html

The World of the Shining Prince: Court Life in Japan

Ivan Morris’ The World of the Shining Prince: Court Life in Japan is an appraisal and an attempt to restore the imaginary life of Prince Genji in the highly illustrious Lady Murasaki’s Genji Monogatari and, for the most part, to portray Japan’s regal, entrenched, strange yet vibrant world. The manuscript was both a source of pleasure to those who would want to enjoy the splendor of literature and a good source of knowledge regarding the Land of the Rising Sun – its history and culture – details that even history failed to recount. This book has, beyond a doubt, disclosed the most intriguing and accomplished culture in our world, mulled over Japan’s classical age of marriage politics and the turbulent political currents of court life, the rise of aristocracy, Buddhists’ and Confucians’ doctrines of salvation and impermanence, the pursuit for elegance and refinement, the roles men and women play, over and above women’s role in the patriarchal society during their time. Physically, little was known about the odd yet amusing country which was â€Å"divided into large estates ruled by feudal baronies, dominated by military men who for over a century had kept the islands in a state of almost perpetual warfare,† (p. xxiii). There was already a well-established religion, rooted in Buddhism and Confucianism. Religious leaders are, in general, wealthy, powerful, and often wielded political influence that they, at times, oppose with secular authorities in supervising the territories. Provincial warriors also rose during the Heian period. Although, the West might have thought of their supreme power since they are physically trained, samurai warriors enjoyed no prestige among the nobles. It was only later that they ascended, which eventually lead to taking power. The Heian epoch is indubitably considered the peak of the Japanese imperial court where sovereignty lays upon the emperor. Nonetheless, power was wielded by aristocratic families, particularly the Fujiwara clan. The emperor upholds dominion over most of the territory. But, he did not have much supremacy to rule with equal firmness over all of this vast territory compared to the aristocrats. The latter filtered out into various ranks. And it had been palpable that the imperative factor in determining an individual’s rank that time was the overall status of one’s extended family. In other words, hereditary privilege is an overwhelming factor in one’s general status. This is why landed gentry would most likely choose to marry those belonging in the upper crust for their personal gain and sustained stature. Aptitude and knowledge might enable someone to advance to some extent, but there was little room for social mobility. The members of the Japanese court have, indeed, lived opulent lives, concerning themselves with works of art aside from their primary occupation of managing lands and came to depend on a system of private estates (shoen) for revenues. A paradoxical fact of the condition of the lower class was also shown in the masterpiece and was noticed by Morris. Ignorant peasants in their society produce nearly all of the country’s wealth but for the most part are experiencing a filthy and wobbly life. The members of the imperial families put land tillers to work to enrich themselves rather than for the benefit of the whole country. Indeed, in the political sense, the period is known for the height of control of the noble families. On the other hand, Heian Japan is also noted for its cult of beauty. In other words, it is a culture that has put emphasis on â€Å"beautiful things† or the â€Å"splendid things. † History would tell us that the aristocrats, particularly the Fujiwara clan, fostered a court culture which devote much of their time on refined tastes and elegant aesthetic pursuits. Since the upper-class Heian life were believed to be confined in their palaces, men and women rarely venture the world outside their homes, â€Å"almost claustrophobic in nature, and living an indoor life to a large extent,† (p. 167), most of them had sufficient leisure time, giving them enough time to develop artistry. Consequently, they became great patrons of poetry, painting, calligraphy, music, dancing, and landscape gardening. Poetry, in fact, became one of the most important skills to develop. The mastery of its technique was necessary in both social exchanges and formal poetic gatherings. The central figure in the Tale of Genji, to whom this book was attributed, dwelt remotely from his relatives and would exchange notes, messages, or poems once they get to see each other, especially during family gatherings. Other spare time activities include sketching and painting depicted in Morris’ account of Genji’s sketches of the sea and the hills, during the Prince’s banishment in Suma, and arrived at a conclusion that â€Å"they were almost all amateur artists,† (p. 186). A popular form of drawing consisted of sketches of men and women. It appears that these sketches were erotic (p. 86), however, there were no other details provided that will substantiate the truth of this claim. But what is apparent is the influence of the Chinese even in the arts. These portrayals reveal to us a particular age and civilization of the extraordinarily sophisticated Japan – a part of the world away from the cultivation of the West, a country so outlandish yet very rich when it comes to art, literature, and culture. The remarkable sense of aesthetics, as Morris noted, and the extent to which aesthetic beauty substituted for moral goodness both defined the characteristic of this ancient society. The other element that should be taken into consideration during the Heian Period is the position of women in the society. The world before is, undeniably, patriarchal. Women are considered inferior to male; a mere shadow to male’s existence; living without freedom; living without name. However, Morris was able to point out women’s position in the society that time. To know that women in Heian Japan were economically independent, or at least semi-dependent, surprised him. He added that they also benefit from total subordination from the domineering sex. This would suggest that Heian women, so long as they are financially stable, can do whatever it is that pleases them, without men dictating it. It is true that women are not quite affiliated politically, yet they were able to do well out of the freedoms that the Western women were not able to enjoy. Although, women were by and large branded as inferior, they could legally inherit and even own properties, as well as engage themselves in all sorts of leisurely activities. In fact, most of Heian prose writers were women. Lady Murasaki, who wrote the Genji Monogatari, along with other world-renowned writers flourished during this period. According to Morris, many of the women then had their own houses and being economically independent, were free to have such relations as they wished and also to terminate them. Part of their freedom is that they could refuse their favor to a man,; they could keep him waiting; they could send him away at any time; or replace him by another lover. This freedom was perceived by Morris as promiscuous, freedom that he himself was not able to characterize during his time. The society that surrounds them is filled with male supremacy but women in this period had a niche of their own – a nook that they know can satisfy them in some ways, in spite of the fierce standards of conduct during that time. Morris also stressed out the intricate relation between men and women of this milieu. Men can only converse with women if the latter were behind curtains. And there were even characters who lived apart from their female relatives and would see them rarely. Morris (p. 167) viewed this as an exaggerated case of formality with regard to the relation of men and women. Incongruously, though, there were some characters like Prince Niou who go to bed with Naka no Kimi on their first meeting and for Kashiwagi to do the same with Prince Nyosan before they have spoken to each other (p. 167). This gives us the impression that women are again classed according to their economic potential. Women can have freedom only if they can keep up with the challenges freedom entails. Women can have their choices granted so long as they can cope with the consequences of their decisions. In Morris’ account of the Shining Prince’s world, we were able to have a glimpse of a paradise located at one part of the globe. Their exquisite traditions, highly majestic politics, the rise and fall of aristocracy, exceptional artistic expression, the pursuit of elegance, and fascinating literature have been one of the world’s wonderful crafts ever hewn in the history of mankind. Overall, Morris’ attempt to discuss the narrative of an Eastern country was a brave endeavor to overcome Western ignorance. He was able to bridge distinct cultures, bringing forth understanding and high regard of unique civilizations, and in turn, minimizing indifference. There may have been lapses in the judgment of Morris regarding Japan’s mysteries, however, somehow his work was able to give a picture of Heian society of aristocratic reign, astonishing veneration for beauty and sophistication, and finally for the depiction of the interesting roles men and women played during that period of classical Japan. Indeed, Morris has produced a work of art that will not only entertain you about Japan’s lovely mysteries but enfold an interesting tale of the efflorescence of an ancient civilization.