Business Financing and the Capital Structure Essay

The financial marketplace is the area where companies engaged in financial trading are able to get capital to run. The financial market can also be referred to as capital markets. Stock markets are the place where companies come to trade among themselves; they represent individual investors or corporate investors. Trade in stocks has been deemed among the most lucrative areas a person can trade in; the returns are good. Stocks can simply be defined as shares bought for trading purposes and profits gained are ploughed back into the U.S. economy. (Saccomani and Chambers, 2008) Trade in U.S. financial markets offer various benefits; an organization can get loans to fund their activities through floating of bonds. When organizations are able to run efficiently then everybody gets to benefit, the government benefits through increased tax collection and more people get employed. The stock market offer individuals an avenue to put their money in lucrative stock instruments where the funds are managed by financial experts. Individuals do not have to worry about their limited financial expertise because at the stock markets well informed brokers or their employees will help them. Individuals are offered a variety of trading avenues which involves minimal labor and less capital intensive. (Saccomani and Chambers, 2008) The Federal Reserve is a name that is used to define the Central Bank in America. The bank was a creation of U.S. Congress for purpose of offering a safer and easier trading environment in America. The Fed is tasked with the management of the American monetary policy. They also regulate banks as well as monitoring risks at the stock markets. The Fed is comprised of seven members; who constitute the board of governors. Members of the board also constitute the F.O.M.C. (Federal Open Markets Committee); this committee decides on what interest rates to be charged by banks as well as purchase of treasuries. The Fed`s primary role is that of regulation. (Ltaifa et al, 2009) The Fed chairman`s role is that of a supervisor; he is tasked with the role of bringing the board to consensus of various monetary issues. The chairman is a presidential appointee hence he reports to the president from time to time on the country`s financial matters. The chairman also has the responsibility of steering the committee on interest rates. (Ltaifa et al, 2009) Departments or components of the Fed Reserve need to play their respective roles effectively so as to take the country in to financial success. The chairman should always maintain a steady control of all fiscal policies. The board should not enact self-centered policies that may endanger the banking sector or stock markets. The board and the chairman have to make prudent assessments of U.S. financial performance before taking any steps meant at changing any monetary policy. Interest rates affect the economy; particularly the spending power of individuals. The rates charged on bank loans lays a heavy burden on citizens; the net effect is loans become expensive hence doing business becomes harder. Higher interest rates on returns at the stock markets offer a reversed effect to the citizen; this brings about more disposable income because the return on investment is higher. (Batten and Szilagvi, 2011) The world suffers when markets get affected by whatever elements; this happens because the various economies around the world are interconnected hence any financial downfall of one will weaken the other. The Euro zone crisis is one such example where a problem begins in one country but after sometime affects a number of countries within same geographical location; countries that trade together. In the U.S. such a crisis occurred between 2007-2010, individuals found themselves not being able to finance their loans and other credit obligations. Care and keenness is needed when one wishes to traverse this terrain. References Saccomanni, F., & Chambers, A. (2008).  Managing international financial instability: National tamers versus global tigers. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Ltaifa, Navil Ben, Kaendera, Stella, & Dixit, S. V. S. (2009).  Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Exchange Rates and Policies in Sub-saharan Africa. Intl Monetary Fund. Batten, J., & Szilagyi, P. G. (2011).  The impact of the global financial crisis on emerging financial markets. Bingley, U.K: Emerald. Source document

People Have Become Overly Dependent on Technology Essay

1. Introduction The last half-century ago, many countries are undeveloped and developing. They need to focus on the economic indicators such as GDP but without concern about environmental issues. Over the past three decades, people are being to concern about the environmental issues because of unbalance development between economic and environmental. Recently, sustainable development was first used in the 1980’s to express concern around the world. In this report is to identify the existing strategies and practices within hotels through literature and corporate communications materials. The report will use the in-depth interview and analyze data and discuss the findings with the method. Finally, the report will make a conclusion and recommendation for the selected topic. Read more: Dependence on Technology Essay 2. Literature Review a) Definition of Sustainable Development Sustainable development is a wider development which includes social and natural capacities. Based on the Brundtland Commission in Kirk (1997), sustainable development â€Å"meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs†. There are two key concepts to achieve it as well as adaptations to the tourism industry in the form of sustainable tourism. i) the concept of ‘needs’, in particular the essential needs of the world’s poor, to which overriding priority should be given; and ii) the idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the environment’s ability to meet present and future needs. b) â€Å"Sustainable marketing† Middleton and Hawkins’s concept of sustainable marketing was environmental and financial goals must balance because it depends on each other. There are three â€Å"E†s to support the sustainable marketing strategy. i) Economy – it is making revenue or income; ii) Ecology – it is making environmental quality; iii) Equity – it is giving a better distribution of the benefits of tourism. Middleton and Hawkins said that a hotel’s marketing and design will decide the types of tourists, who will stay there, and what kinds of need they will have and what kind of effects they will have on the local environment. Middleton and Hawkins also mention 10 â€Å"R†s for organizations to achieve the sustainable marketing strategy. They are: Recognize environmental problems, Refuse any damaging activities, Reduce waste and resources, Replace environmentally questionable activities, Re-use – consider of re-using potential waste, Recycle, Re-engineer organizational structures, Retrain employees in environmental issues, Reward successful attainment of environmental objectives, Reeducate employees and customers, to benefit the environment. Agenda 21 also suggested the actions can be done by public. There are: assessment of the capacity of the destination’s systems to become sustainable; training, education, and public awareness; facilitating exchange of sustainable tourism information between developed and developing countries; providing for the participation of all sectors of society; design of new tourism products; measuring progress. c) Environmental management system (ISO 14001) ISO 14001 is for environmental management. Its standards or guidelines to help organizations by standardizing some key environmental analysis tools. It also guides the organization to have a complete environmental management system, and meet customers, industry, and legislation limits. Under the ISO14001, companies need to do are as follows: i) minimize harmful effects on the environment caused by its activities; ii) to conform to applicable regulatory requirements; iii) to achieve continual improvement of its environmental performance. 3. Methodology It is using qualitative method to make a research. There are different types of qualitative research methods including in-depth interviews, focus groups, case studies, ethnography and phenomenology. Our group is choosing in-depth interview for this report. In-depth Interview An in-depth interview is an open-ended, discovery-oriented method that is  well suited for describing both program processes and outcomes from the perspective of the target audience or key stakeholder. The goal of the interview is to explore the respondent’s point of view, feelings and perspectives deeply. Advantages of in-depth interview 1) Learning about the respondents’ views It is not similar with focus group which focuses on the group mainly. It makes the effective qualitative method by receiving respondents’ perspective, feelings and recommendations. It gives an opportunity of how people explain things too. 2) Precise and detailed information There is less time delay between the interviewee and interviewer that can answer the question immediately and the process is spontaneous. The interview can be recorded by in tape with the permission of the respondents. So, the information will more precise and detailed with using this method and running smooth when having the interview. 3) Dispassionate judgment Some people will affected by others’ view point when they answer questions. However, in-depth interview will not happen during the interview. Disadvantages of in-depth interview 1) Slow process An in-depth interview is a slow process because the respondents will spend much more time to explain some jargons or analyze his/her opinions. Interviewer plays an important role in in-depth interview. 2) Respondents’ view may distract the main content Respondents will not concentrate on the main content of the interview or may not serve the purpose of the taking an interview. So interviewer need to remind the interviewees concentrate back to the main content of the topic. In order to prevent being directed to wrong direction, group also needs to sieve unwanted information from the interview. 3) Side tracking from the answer Interviewer should use both tape recording and notes taking which decrease the possibilities of side tracking the discussion during the interview. Otherwise, the report may be directed to the wrong direction too. b) Sampling and Data Collecting Method To enrich our data and information, we invited interviewees who are hotels’ managers in Hong Kong. They are: i) Leanne Chan – Communications Manager at Island Shangri-La Hong Kong, ii) Karen Wong – Communications Manager at L’hotel Island South, iii) Eric Chan – Marketing Manager at Hotel Nikko Hong Kong We sent almost 10 letters to target hotel which obtain ISO 14001 certification. After few days, we received some reply from hotels. Then we sent back an invitation letters to explain the reason in conducting this research. Finally, three successful invitations we invited with a 20 minutes in-depth interview. The below questions are prepared by the group. The questionnaire is less structure. The in-depth interview aims to be semi-structured that can explore more during the interview. 1) Why this industry is a focus of growing environmental concern? 2) What is the role of the hotel sector in tourism development, and/or sustainable development in a region or nation? 3) Is the customer purchase behavior to stimulate tourism industry to concern about environmental protection? 4) What is the response of the hospitality and tourism industry to achieve the sustainable development? Those questions are open-ended questions in order to get a range of answers from the interviewees. Interviewees will not affect by others’ point of views during the in-depth interview, thus, open-ended questions is suitable for it. Interviewer will collect a range of data for analysis and discussion. 4. Qualitative Data Analysis and Discussion Government concern about environmental protection The tourism industry was originally focused on the industries such as heavy industry, whereas all people are concern about environmental effects. The tourism industry is the one of the focus industry, directly creating 218,000 jobs in Hong Kong and accounting for 9.5% of the Hong Kong’s GPD. Tourism is increasingly considered a power for economic development. This is importance to concern about environmental protection because Hong Kong government has to regulate and enforce legislation for environmental protection as tourism develops. Air transport, as part of the industry, contributes significantly to tertiary environmental problems caused by various factors. Air transport generates the most carbon dioxide per passenger kilometer of all travel methods, and is held responsible for 3.5% of global warming, likely to rise to 15% by 2050 (Friends of the Earth, 2000). Hotel plays key role in sustainable development The tourism industry development is rapid increasing, especially hotel industry play a key role in the development with a shape in GDP. However, tourism industry brings some conflicts to Hong Kong such as noise, space, welfare, inflation and so forth. The impact of the hotel sector depends to a great degree on the types of tourists that are targeted. At one extreme the â€Å"explorers†, â€Å"wilderness lover/anthropologist†, and â€Å"experiential† tourists make few demands on natural resources, expect less amenities and cultural facilities, also do not require arrive to the destination easily. At the other extreme, psychocentric tourists demand resources of the type, quality, and quantity they enjoy at home. Depending on which segments targeted by hotels, therefore, environmental, economic, and socio-cultural impacts can be evaluated. Hotels have a considerable potential role in the development of the local economy. This potential remains, however, mainly unrealized with the exception of some exceptionally modern companies and those of the eco-tourism or sustainable tourism bent. Three environmentally-friendly hotels and related businesses that claim to use elements of sustainable  development or environmental friendliness will now be examined such as establish an environmental policy, design an environmental planning, training staffs to enhance the awareness of environmental protection, operation control and so on. â€Å"Green tourists† stimulate hotels to â€Å"change† â€Å"Green tourists† means people are concern about environmental issues including wildlife, transport, conservation, use of resources, pollution, construction and planning, sports activities, and practices of tourism firm themselves. Recently, customers’ purchase behavior tend to purchase environmentally friendly products. But there are some limitation to produce environmentally friendly products by hotels which are cost, persuasion, and competitiveness. However, hotels need to â€Å"change† their strategy for their products, otherwise, customer will not purchase those products without concern about environmental. There are some sources of effect on undecided consumer: i) pressure group such as Friends of the Earth, ii) personal organic experiences from friends, family and travelers, iii) media such as newspaper, internet, iv) the tourism itself, and iv) government in destination country. The response of the hospitality and tourism industry for sustainable products There are two basic methods to achieve green marketing. The first is â€Å"business as usual, colored green† where lip service and green marketing are added so the environment becomes another marketing tool. The second is a â€Å"fundamental change in attitude regarding the role of firms in relation to the environment†. A â€Å"fundamental† method may be termed sustainable business, incorporating concepts like â€Å"eco-efficiency†. It also obtains benefit from three aspects of sustainable development which are economy, environment, and social factors. Another response is ecotourism. There are lots of definitions of the ecotourism. The Ecotourism Society, for instance, defines ecotourism as: â€Å"responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and sustains the well-being of local people† (Ecotourism Society, 2000). The  same concepts within the ecotourism are including carrying capacity, conservation, education and/or interpretation, environmental impact assessments, limits of acceptable change, and visitor impact management. 5. Conclusion and Recommendations a) Conclusion The main conclusion is mention that the agreement on the sustainable development within tourism industry and much more significantly in the future. Hotels play a key role on the sustainable development; â€Å"green tourists† lead to â€Å"change† hotel attitude on environmental friendly; and hotel industry response positively with the sustainable development. The in-depth interview method is small number of interviewees; some interviewees may not provide information deeply because of privacy or confidential information. b) Recommendation Prepare the interview The team is less prepare for the interview. The team should make appointments with interviewees and without giving too much detail on the topic. And then read again the interview grid and memories it. The team also needs to prepare the recorder, wear the casual dress. To work the study immediately after finishes the interview First impressions after the interview are to be written right after interview as well as the same day. Also the transcription should be done as soon as possible after the interview. Other recommendation †¢ Interviews are too short and do not able to get enough information expected; a good interview must hold at least one hour or even more, and result in a hand writing around thousand lines, which was far from the case for the majority of partners; †¢ Lack of using follow up questions allowing a real conversation and a search in depth for useful explanations; †¢ Not enough questions allowing understanding clearly what the interviewees told to the interviewer; †¢ Probably not enough learning  about the question before the interviews; †¢ Some of the above difficulties may be due to the lack of former experience by the persons who involved the interview, as well as to the limited time allowed per interview in the study. 6. References Bull, A. (1993). The economics of travel and tourism. Melbourne, Australia: Pitman Publishing. Cooper, H. M. (1989). Integrating research: A guide for literature reviews (2nd edition). Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications. Fletcher, K. (n.d). Striving for excellence: Communicating environmental quality in the hotel industry. London: International Hotels Environment Initiative. Forte, J. (1994). Environmentally-friendly management in hotels. In B. Taylor, C. Hutchinson, S. Pollack, & R. Tapper (Eds.) Environmental Management Handbook. Pitman Publishing. Smith, G. D., Arnold, D. R., & Bizzell, B. G. (1991). Business strategy and policy. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Kirk, D. (1997) Environmental management for hotels. Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann. Kotler, P. (1999). Marketing: Millennium Edition. Prentice Hall. Hughes, G. (1995). The cultural construction of sustainable tourism. Tourism Management 16(1), 49- 59. Aragà ³n-Correa, J. A. (1998). Strategic proactivity and firm approach to the natural environment. Academy of Management Journal 41 Boyd, S. W., & Butler R.W. (1996). Managing ecotourism: an opportunity spectrum approach. Tourism Management 17 Ecotourism Society (2000). Frequently asked questions. [On-line]. Available: http://www.ecotourism.org/faq.html. Accessed 15/08/00. Friends of the Earth (2000). Plane crazy: Airport growth in the UK. [On-line]. Available: http://www.foe.co.uk/camps/attran/pubs/plane_intro.htm. Accessed 20/01/00.

Analyzing the Impact of the Audis Daughter Ads to the 51st Super Bowl

Analyzing the Impact of the Audi's Daughter Ads to the 51st Super Bowl Audi’s â€Å"Daughter† Anyone who watches the news or goes on the internet or even just has friends knows that the United States is going through tough times now. A change in the presidency has put people in arms and riots and marches have broken out all across this great land. This nation has never been more divided. Which is what fueled many ads for the 51st Super Bowl including Audi’s â€Å"Daughter†. As a young blonde girl races through the street against her male friends, her father voices over his thoughts of the importance of her. He worries over how he will tell her what she is worth, specifically as a woman. She wins the race, and the father hopes for a future where people are not judged by their gender but by who they are on the inside. As the United States has broken out in multiple women’s marches across the country there is no better time than now to come out with a commercial that promotes women. As we dive deeper into this commercial and discover why it is popular we first must look at whether it is a central route or peripheral route. Because of the main message behind the blog and how it makes the audience feel I believe that it is a central route. There are no famous people or comical jokes, it’s a deep message that the audience gets behind. I feel that when ads try to go down this â€Å"route† they can either be a hit or miss. You can make everyone like your commercial if you add in a lot of famous people, beautiful pictures, or comedic effects. But if you have a deep message and most people don’t agree with it, then your commercial is surely going to fall flat. We all have â€Å"attitudes† towards ideas, specifically political ones like feminism. Luckily â€Å"girl power† is very strong right now, and the majority attitude towards it is a positive one, which is why this ad is popular. This commercial is definitely not about the â€Å"steak† and it’s not really about the â€Å"sizzle† either. We only briefly see the car at the end of the ad, the commercial is more about what that brand is for. Like coke is for happiness and friendship, Audi is for specifically â€Å"Equal pay†, and it also generally gives us the feel that it is for equality. That type of brand is something that people can get behind since they feel like they too are promoting equality. Which is why this commercial on is fulfilling â€Å"self-actualization† on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. We want to good people who change things in the world and make it for the better. And if we join this ‘brand’ we can say that we are changing the world. This ad has positive oriented motives. It gives us a sense of hope as the man is at first worried that he won’t be able to tell his daughter all that she is truly worth, but then as the ad plays through he dreams of a day where girls are not worth any less than guys, and considers that that day is almost here. All of us has a mother or sister, if we are selves are not girls. When we consider our interpersonal influences we are all affected by equal pay and gender equality. And our culture, especially at this time in our nation’s history, is really pushing for it too. It might not seem obvious that an ad is more than just funny jokes or famous faces. Whether serious or funny, ads do things for a reason. They research their target audience thoroughly and strive to get into their mind and give them something that the viewers themselves didn’t even know what they wanted. We could have just gotten videos of women’s marches and Audi cars driving through supporting the events. Audi could have come out with so many other options, but instead, they gave us a father worrying about his young daughter. It’s almost like a call to action. She’s young, and she doesn’t realize that she may be worth less than her boy counterparts, but she doesn’t have worry about that. Because we can fix it. And that is what Audi sold to their audience.

Child and Adolescent Psychology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Child and Adolescent Psychology - Essay Example The infancy period is of no exception to this rule. First of all, it is important to dispel any claim that the infancy period or the first year of child development is insignificant and it won’t make any difference at such a young age just because a baby, such as in the case of Tyree, will be sleeping most of the time anyway. In Erikson’s theory of psychosocial analysis, the first stage of development focuses on the experiences of an infant in the culmination of what Erikson would term as Trust versus Mistrust. According to Santrock, this stage is characterized by a sense of trust that requires â€Å"a feeling of physical comfort and a minimal amount of fear and apprehension about the future† and thus â€Å"trust in infancy sets the stage for a lifelong expectation that the world will be a good and pleasant place to live in† (2004). In relation to the physical needs of an infant, it is widely recognized that proximodistal principle growth and development follow from the center of the body outward. â€Å"During infancy and early childhood, the limbs continue to grow faster than the hands and feet† and thus â€Å"children first develop the ability to use their upper arms and legs† (Papalia et al., 2007). With this kept in mind, it is best to choose Child Care A which have a lot of tunnels for crawling and resting. More tunnels mean more opportunities for exercise and as such this environment will be more conducive for Tyree’s gross and fine motor coordination and skills. In relation to the cognitive needs of an infant, the cognitive ability to perceive and handle information is being influenced by the surroundings of an infant and this largely relates to their future intelligence. â€Å"Much information-processing research with infants is based on habituation, a type of learning in which repeated or continuous exposure to a stimulus reduces attention to that stimulus† and â€Å"As infants habituate, they transform the novel into the

Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 8

Assignment - Essay Example Unfortunately, neither person usually gets exactly what one wants. This can lead to angry feelings later.† (ICANS, par. 4) The rationales for my choice of the compromising style in negotiating are as follows: (1) both arguments from the two (2) negotiating parties are taken into account, (2) my personality, behavior and preferences are geared towards meeting half way, (3) based on experience, I realized that a compromising style benefits both parties in such a way that both come to a point where they agree to meet certain conditions which satisfy both their objectives, and (4) the objectives of both parties are partially (not exactly) met. The compromising style has the following advantages: (1) both sides agree or reach an agreement which is amenable to both, (2) terms or conditions of the arguments are both taken into account, (3) fair because neither wins or loses. On the other hand, the disadvantages of this style are as follows: (1) neither person gets exactly what each wants, (2) can lead to frustrated or angry feelings later, and (3) in some cases, it may not be possible, or even desirable, to split it down the middle (Lewicki & Hiam 2006:170) The compromising style is frequently used when trading commodities. A seller pegs the price of a commodity at a certain amount or level. Buyers, usually opt to negotiate purchasing that commodity at a lower price. For example, we were looking for a second-hand van to purchase. The seller sells the van at $5000. We try to negotiate to purchase the van at $4500. The compromising style is applied when both seller and buyer meets at a halfway price, e.g. $4750, to consummate the sale. By this type of transaction, we are already happy with the results. The compromising style is not always applicable in all transactions especially when the decision does not involve monetary terms. There was one instance when I wanted to trade my cell phone for a more advanced model. The trader would assess the market

ARO Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

ARO - Assignment Example Ebola cuts across nearly all the mutual commitments of global health, medicine, and science anthropologists. This is because the tragedy exposed the political economy of illness and health, demonstrates how the movement of technology and science ceases or flows, and exposes the drawbacks of thrilling solutions to structural issues (Abromowitz, 2014). Additionally, Ebola emergency brings to light the outcomes of health with regard to reconfigured social relations created by the development and health regimes of governance. Ebola also tragically emphasizes racialized reasoning that determines the lives that count. As anthropologists, action-centered attitude is fundamental during such emergencies, since such approach would improve ethnographic expertise response in the affected nations. In order to improve the current situation of Ebola in West Africa today, Abromowitz (2014) suggested several things that anthropologists can use to connect the local and global populations in understanding the crisis. First, anthropologists can train epidemiologists on death counting in this region. This would work well in closing the gap between actual deaths and counted Ebola deaths, thus offering crucial information on movement, patterning, and expansion of the tragedy. Additionally, community anthropologists can observe the Ebola response systematically and report on, interpret, and explain existing local approaches. This will make it possible to make sense of local concepts and ideas, behaviors, and beliefs and suggests ways that are actionable. Given the noise around Ebola, anthropologists are expected to detect and track emerging risks amidst Ebola noise such as black market flows. Within the affected areas, anthropologists can hold multidisciplinary university based groups t o assist in real time tracking of the disease (Abromowitz, 2014). The role of such groups would be to evaluate the political,

Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Leadership - Essay Example It further assumed that leadership traits are intrinsic rather than extrinsic which, simply stated, means that great leaders are born rather made. This was a very traditional view and has come a long way since its inception (Cherry, 2012). The second in line was the Trait Theory which was used from the 1930’s to 1940’s. This emphasized that great leaders whether born or made should have certain qualities and traits like creativity, intelligence, responsibility and other related values. This model focused entirely on the analysis of the mental, physical and social characteristics to help understand what combinations are found among great leaders. Nonetheless, it was concluded that traits are not solely responsible for the success of a leader. Hence, the Behavioral Theory emerged in the 1950’s (Cherry, 2012). This theory emphasized the behaviors of a great leader to help realize a common behavior necessary to be a great leader. It defined that a great leader would either be concerned with the task at hand or with the people under him. The Contingency Theory of 1960’s argued that to truly understand the leadership potential different situations have to be analyzed. This means that under certain conditions some leaders perform well while in other conditions they might do poorly. Therefore, the leadership potential is contingent on the situation in which the leader is placed. The 1970’s saw the rise of Transactional Leadership Theories, whose foundation was based on the mutual benefit that both the leader and the follower derive from the overall leadership experience (N.A., Leadership Theories, 2012). This transaction between the two should have some sort of reinforcement to ensure that positive outcomes are reiterated while the negative behaviors are subdued. The most recent Leadership Theory to have surfaced is mostly referred to by the professionals as the Transformational Leadership Theory. The essence of this theory is to esta blish a strong relationship between the leader and the follower through interaction to help build up trust. The direct results are seen in the form of increased motivation for both the leaders and the followers. The leaders exercise their charismatic personalities and persuasive nature to influence those around them. The use of flexible regulations ensures the followers feel a sense of belonging and can relate to the leader and its purpose in achieving the goals. (N.A., Leadership Theories, 2012) The most relevant theory at present times is the Transformational Theory. This theory was initially introduced by the leadership expert James MacGregor Burns, who said such a leadership can be witnessed when â€Å"leaders and followers make each other to advance to a higher level of moral and motivation.† (Cherry, Transformational Leadership, 2012) Such leaders exhibit strong vision and personality to motivate their followers and pursue a common goal. A transformational leader is ori ented toward long-term goals and focuses on the development of new

European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)-Italy Term Paper

European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)-Italy - Term Paper Example The German dominance in the European Union may have caused a lot of trouble in the policy implementation for economic terms. More than this, the recent recession is believed to have an impact on the economies of the world. This paper wishes to depict the mission and structure of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in creating a direct connection towards the detrimental effects the cluster has made to Italy. Moreover, the economic state of Italy will then be described based on the output of fiscal and monetary policies of the country and aligned with the trade and foreign investment scheme. The European Sovereign Debt Crisis will then be discussed focusing on Italy’s experience during the crisis, and the causes of the crisis will also be explicated. Finally, a conclusive remark, which states the general perspective of the researcher, will be sighted in the conclusion. 2.0 Mission and Structure of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) The greatest problem that was faced by the European nations centered on how to build a sole market for capital, goods, and services and entities amid Member States that have interrelated economies, aligned with manifold currencies, and inconstant, weak forex rates. The construction of the EMU was an optimum alternative in curing such detrimental European problem (Liebscher). The errands of the EMU are in delved into three significant activities: to implement an efficient monetary policy aligned with price stability; to harmonize the economic policies in the Member States and; (3) to ensure the fluent operation of the sole market . The monetary policy’s focal objective is price stability. If a nation wants to achieve a free-market economy, price stability should be its priority. The Eurosystem’s prior goal is to sustain price stability because the latter reflects a pre-state of a maintainable economic progress and proliferating employment rate (Liebscher 378). The EMU would assist its Member States about public finances, which are aligned with the meeting of fiscal debt and deficit requirement (379). Lastly, institutional stability is also the target of the EMU wherein Member States are required to undergo institutional reforms (382). 3.0 Economic State of Italy 3.1 Fiscal and Monetary Policies Fiscal policy is the alterations in federal taxes and government expenditure in order to attain macroeconomic goals. Monetary policy, on the other hand, is the action executed by the European Central Bank and the national bank to manage the accessibility of cash and interest rates in achieving goals. Fiscal policy is essential to restrain the prejudice done by the state in terms of deficiency. This policy serves as a barrier for the government overspending, deficiency issues, and restrictions in implementing discretionary rules. When intense pressure attacks the economy, wherein monetary policy’s efficiency dissolves, fiscal policy can be a remedy to resolve the pecuniary issues (Liebscher 3 79). In terms of fiscal policies, there has to be 0.5 percent of yearly development of the gross domestic product of the country as stipulated by the reformed Pact (Marino, Momigliano, and Rizza 445). In 1997, Italy had accumulated a 1.4 percent of GDP, which was the end of the consolidation proceedings of the 1990s. When Italy was reformed, especially on the accounts of stability and economic growth, the grounds for the formulation of the policies were stipulated from the event. In fact, the Bank of Italy

Greenhouse Gas Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Greenhouse Gas - Research Paper Example This gas largely contributes to the occurrence of greenhouse effect in terms of generating large amount of heat in the earth surface. Relevant measures for reducing the impact of greenhouse gas on the environment might include working collectively in accordance with Community Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plans (Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center, 2011). CFC- It stands for chlorofluorocarbon. It generally relates to a gas or an organic compound that is formed with the combination of chlorine with fluorocarbons. CFC is mainly utilized for the purpose of creating refrigerants, propellants and also as solvents. Its mass emissions can create openings/holes in the atmosphere’s ozone layer. Also, it can result in creating mass depletion of ozone. However, appropriate measures can be taken for conserving the environment and the overall atmosphere from the ill-effects of CFC. Hydro fluorocarbons (HFCs) can well act as a substitute for CFC as it contains certain chemicals that are not as harmful as the components like that of CFC (Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center, 2011). Air Pollution (Carbon Monoxide) - The addition of harmful gases, biological materials as well as particulates and various other waste particles eventually makes the air to be polluted causing various sorts of diseases to the humans and animals. In this similar concern, Carbon Monoxide can be duly considered to be one of the most harmful gases which pollute air by a greater level. Pollution of air by a greater level can lead to serious impacts such as degradation of air. However, it can be controlled by installation of proper smoke emission systems in the factories and introducing pollution testing centers among others. (Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center, 2011). Water Conservation-The various resources of water and their forms of purity ultimately determines that whether water is clean or not. It is worth mentioning that the level up to which the resources of water are conserved might also result in making pure supply of clean water which can be typically acknowledged as water conservation. However, by adopting along with executing latest and effective water recycling methods as well as water initiative programs, the significant aspect of water conservation program can be enhanced by a significant level (O swego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center, 2011). Land Pollution-It broadly refers to the degradation of the surfaces of the earth and land. It can be affirmed from a broader outlook that the misutilization of land and its resources impose adverse impact upon the overall environment by a greater degree. However, by following certain affective measures such as afforestation, contour ploughing as well as terracing methods and construction of dams among others can lessen air pollution by a certain degree (Oswego City School District Regents Exam Prep Center, 2011). u06d1 In this part, relevant discussions pertaining to Polylactic Acid (PLA) Decomposition technology and the pros as well as cons associated with this technology will be highlighted upon. It can be apparently viewed that this particular technology has both advantages along with disadvantages. In terms of advantages, it can be affirmed that the corn-based plastics do not require much of oil and also ensure less use of traditional plastics. With the execution of the aforesaid technology, this particular plastic segment might prove in

Annotate bibliography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Annotate bibliography - Essay Example Thus, all the authors were accredited medical practitioners in wellness programs. Consequently, all the articles selected were secondary sources since information pertaining to workplace wellness programs were derived from pre existing data of existing employer workplace programs. The article delves into the identification of risk factors affecting employee health, and consequently formulating appropriate mitigation mechanisms that are concomitant to workplace lifestyle and logical change process. Moreover, the authors have cited employer initiatives for actively involving and engaging workers in the wellness program. The sole aim is for workers to have a healthier personal outlook, minimize workplace stress and better working environment. Consequently, intervention wellness programs highlighted include the creation of health education plan against smoking, healthy nutrition choice, weight loss program, control of alcohol consumption, and individual stress reduction regiments. Lastly, the article defines the ultimate goals employee wellness programs. These are to increase employer and employee satisfaction through the decrease in absenteeism, enhanced productivity, and better interpersonal relationship between all the actors in the work environment. The article reiterates the importance of wellness programs to both employees and community at large. Consequently, the authors state that workplace health and wellness programs extends to the community by raising awareness on preventive measures for common diseases, like diabetes, obesity, cardio vascular disease, and high blood pressure. Furthermore, Edelman et al. emphasize on the importance of creating wellness as well as motivating employees to participate in the program. Thus, the authors recommend employee programs such as flexible work hours, sufficient break periods, psychosocial support, and reward systems for workers actively involved in the wellness

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Essay Example for Free

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Essay This fiction book takes you on the adventures of the twelve year old Percy Jackson as he discovers who he really is. Being a demigod, a child of a Greek god and a mortal woman, Percy is in for the ride of his life. Percy Jackson is not what you would consider to be normal; aside from having ADHD and dyslexia strange things just seem to happen to him and no one seems to understand. His last epidemic was while on a field trip to a local art museum in New York his pre-algebra teacher, Mrs. Dodd, attacked him revealing that she was one of three Furies; he ended up getting expelled making this the sixth boarding school to kick him out. Now up until recently he believed the legends he heard in his Latin class about the Greek gods were just stories but lately he has started to reconsider. Scared and confused he is sent back to his mom, Sally Jackson, and his step-father, Gabe. Gabe has always hated Percy and to be completely honest Percy looks at him as a lazy, drunk, gabling mess that has no respect for anyone but himself, but Percy’s mom lets Gabe mistreat her saying, â€Å"he provides for the family Percy its fine. Sensing the confusion and even anger in Percy’s countenance Sally decides to take him to Long- Island for a three day vacation. The cabin they stay in holds so many memories about Percy’s father that he asks questions about him even though he already knows the answer. Sally answers†¦.. Cautiously because if Percy found out his father was a Greek god he would become a very big target and for Percy’s safety she keeps her answers vague. Sally can sense Percy isn’t telling her what really happened at school but she doesn’t pry she just keeps saying if you want to talk I’m here. After a long day Sally and Percy find their way to bed. Percy, just lying there unable to sleep, starts to wonder what his dad was like, what his best friend Grover is doing, and if he didn’t have such a terrible step-dad his life would be so much easier. And just when he started to slip off into unconsciousness he heard a very loud banging at the door. Both Sally and Percy awoke with a start; who could be at the door in the dead of night? Sally ran to the door to find Grover Underwood, Percy’s best friend from Yancy Academy, standing in the rain with a look of fear in his face. At first Percy is ecstatic to see him but soon he realizes that something is very wrong. Grover is a satyr and is very in tune with the Greek god world unlike Percy and was sent to protect Percy. Grover came to warn Sally that the Furies were after Percy and that they had to get Percy to Camp Half-Blood as soon as possible. Sally pushes the boys to the car and drives as fast as she can. Percy having no idea what is going on and so Grover explains where they are going. He says Camp Half- Blood is a camp for kids that are demigods so they can train and be protected from the monsters of the underworld. Then as they approach the camp something smashes their car sending them flying through the air the boys and Sally start running for the trees, where just beyond the tree line lays the camp. As the start up the hill a minotaur grabs Sally and squeezes her into a fine gold powder. Distraught Percy charges the minotaur and heads up breaking one of the horns off and the minotaur runs off into the woods; while the boys narrowly escape to the camp. With Percy knowing so little about his dad he does not know who his father is and stays in the Hermes Cabin, under Luke Castellan. The kids seem nice but Percy really doesn’t understand what he is in for. One night they are playing a game of capture the flag when Percy gets wounded. As he is stumbling around he steps in the stream and is instantly healed and green tridents appear above his head, revealing he is the son of Poseidon, the god of the sea. This would be a bad thing if the gods hadn’t made an oath to stop having children; but the camp cheered and congratulated Percy on this discovery. Now that the camp knew who Percy’s father was they could better explain who he was and what he was capable of doing. After training for the entire summer Chiron, Percy’s mentor suggested that Percy should be granted a quest. Percy accepted and chose Grover and Annabeth, a friend he made at camp, to take the journey with him. The quest required the kids to find the entrance to the Underworld, find Zeus’s master bolt and return it before the summer Solstice. The kids encountered monsters, other gods, and the Furies all which seemed to be no challenge for this group of kids which became the best of friends. Now I’m not going to tell you the ending of this book because you can read it for yourself but it’s amazing how three unlikely eople can come together to achieve great things. This book was very exciting once I started reading it, I could not put it down. This book obviously is fiction and is kind of contradictory to Christian beliefs as in more than one God so I wouldn’t recommend the book because of that; but if you can keep in mind that it is just a story it is a extremely exciting book .

Globalization and Youth Essay Example for Free

Globalization and Youth Essay Globalization and Culture mean different things to different people and the emerging generation will shape the future of both. There has been cultural implications are central to understanding human side of globalization in youth culture as a whole. Youth are important but the society does not realize this because they are paying attention to more the cultural side of the problem. No longer is it a question of whether globalization is having an impact on all aspects of human life; the more pressing question being asked today is what that impact entails. The core goal is to explore the situated effects of the era in which we are living now on the global and local cultures of young people† according to Jacqueline Kennelly. The youth have come to represent both the moral decline of eroding social fabric and the hope for a new and creative response to challenging times in which global youth cultures have responded to that incorporates the limits and possibilities of the contemporary era. There have been many laws that have made children and the youth enter into the market in ways they should not. The implications of this situation is that young people are now required to turn inward- to themselves and in some cases their families in order to respond to enormous uncertainties and risk associated with modern life. Youth studies appear to have increased on how we need to represent local youth identities and social practices within international, transnational or global contexts. This challenge is repeated across many different types of study and worked through in a variety ways. There is a common thread that will help young people’s identities and lives today must or should be understood with reference to global phenomena and frameworks and in terms of how they can negotiate and are formed in the intersection of local and global contexts. People are beginning to question about youth identities today, one of the key problems is that young people do not realize the gains and losses these youth are facing in the local and global comparison. Many of these studies have realized that youth research examines the impact of globalization on the youth experience and identity and in various ways engages with the local and global dualism as conceptual frameworks that have been studied throughout the years. These studies show more of strengths than weaknesses due to the global levels in focus with the local, national and global levels. The youth have been studied for many years which mean there is a lot to more research about how globalization will affect the many concerns today. Contemporary youth research is conducted in the era of cultural globalization and this means that it can cause more trouble to what is being studied. Globalization in youth is something hard to explain but it is easy to explain when talking about the world as a whole. It shows that youth do have a big impact on the world because they are learning to set an example for when they grow up to show that they can make changes as their role models have. Academic youth and culture have been long understood as inseparable and closely related to one another since education is important if they want to have good paying careers. Most of this information is based on the ethnic culture since we have different types it is hard to know which ones will be successful and who will be the troublemakers. The context of globalization processes understanding and the preservation of ethnic self-identity has become important value for that reason our youth needs to understand that the lifestyle is different from what it was a few years ago because youth are using more technology and seem to know more about situations before the adults tend to know. As Sam George states â€Å" Young people have a symbiotic relationship with globalization that accelerates its influence in their lives†, and studies have shown that people have been denied the existence of globalization of culture. As explained it is widely agreed that there is no such thing as global culture, but it has not been figured out and it hard to explain since youth and globalization have different aspects. It is difficult to discern between global and local influences between the spatial effects of globalization in our everyday lives. This is a special issue that needs to be addressed to the point that the youth cultural spaces that have been immune to social inequalities. As explained in many of these articles we see that youth have created new social and cultural spaces in the global and local communities that experience problems with race, class and gender all over the world. I think youth need to have more focus because everyday in the news something is going on with children getting into trouble or dying for unknown reasons. Such as getting shot for wearing a hoodie or taking unknown drugs that affect them by hanging around bad influences this is an example of how youth culture By mapping and troubling how these frameworks operate in recent research about youth and globalization, Kennelly â€Å"asks how researchers interpret that represent apparent transformations in their lives. † Education also plays an important role in the youth culture because the education systems are organized nationally and there has been suspicion that globalization has been on the rise in these communities according to Julie McLeod. Global or transnational changes do not simply happen in global either and can manifest in particular places and times. As Kenneth Hultqvist (2003) argues while there â€Å" is nothing global or general per se,† globalizing trends and ideas are made â€Å"global by being inserted and translated and put to work on various local (national) contexts†. There have been many studies that can be used and be understood about many ideas and truths about young people in today’s society. It also involves looking at local translations and not only of global discourses in the economic processed and how it impacts the experience of young people. The word Globalization has been widely used in the last ten years of the last century especially after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Globalization appeared clearly in a period a little more than ten years and was based in the USA after the collapse of the socialist bloc . Thus globalization moved in rapid leaps skipping time phases especially after the Information and communication revolution, the arm race, the unipolar hegemony over third-world countries and countries of the previous socialist bloc . Globalization was introduced at the beginning as a modernizing aspect that brings about changes in the scientific block. Globalization was introduced at the beginning as a modernizing aspect that brings about changes in the scientific, just like cultural and political fields that aims at linking economic and technological advancement associating things to establish a new global civilization that is in the interests of the global centre that produces technology and leads the phenomena of the flow of commodities, services, construction and other things prevailing in western countries, especially America , to other countries and third world countries in particular. And we believe that globalization especially cultural globalization has different impacts because at first glance, the concept of globalization calls for the unification of ideas, values and ways of thinking among different peoples of the world as a means providing a broad area of mutual understanding and bringing people closer and securing world peace and these are all goals worth respect and appreciation . This triggered more inquiries about globalization; its nature, facts, illusions, advantages, disadvantages and how to deal with it. According to Nadine Dolby and Fazal Rizvi (2008), â€Å"consider the different forms and intensification of youth mobility- physical, imagined,virtual,desired,enforced- across both local and global spaces. † People in different regions are caught up in the continual circulation of global culture, through all types of media, movies and the internet; this is has recently changed since the circumstances that young people inhabit are different from the past. Young people are affected by the local and global dynamic is represented as a part of how they become modern and it not really understood in social or political shapes the young peoples daily lives. There is a fact that globalization represents the local as acted upon, as powerless in the face of global forces and it is argued that power is not confined to the global. As explained by Jacqueline Kennelly not resolving potential debates and argues that an important and fruitful direction for youth studies can be found in more historically enriched approaches to researching â€Å"young people today†. As discussed in many of these articles about youth culture has given me a better perspective of how that are existent throughout the world. The notion is that the late modern condition of globalization is influenced by such forces that are being met by powerfully globalizing forces. Multiple research has been done throughout the world with economic, academic and other resources has been essential because there has been global, political and social forces causing all the young people from being privileged like other countries. Young people are at the very heart of this unfolding global economic and cultural order. Also to acknowledge the effects of national location with all the local and global relations with the contemporary youth has caused many problems and needs to be changed right away without it becoming a major problem. Many discussions have been done about youth culture in different countries because some people may want to know what is going on with youth especially in global communities since we cannot be close to them.

Analysis of The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

Analysis of The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton Context By the time the bloody chaos of the First World War finally came to an end on November 11, 1918, the American novelist Edith Wharton had already been living as an expatriate in Paris for five years. During that time, she had essentially ceased to write fiction and had turned her energies instead to the Allied effort by providing war relief for soldiers and refugees. Her devotion and enthusiasm for her work was, in fact, enough to win her the French Legion of Honor. By the end of the war, however, Wharton found herself disturbed by what she saw as the profound social disruptions that had been brought on by the war. In the months after the armistice, she again picked up her pen to write what many critics consider to be her war novel. One would be hard pressed, however, to find any elements within The Age of Innocence that even remotely address the disruption and the bloodshed of the First World War. Set in 1870s New York, Whartons novel depicts a society that is in many ways the antithesis of war-devastated Europe. Old New York, Whartons term to describe this wealthy and elite class at the top of the developing citys social hierarchy, was a society utterly intent on maintaining its own rigid stability. To Wharton, Old New York imposed on its members set rules and expectations for practically everything: manners, fashions, behaviors, and even conversations. Those who breached the social code were punished, with exquisite politeness, by the other members. The differences between the fractured society following the First World War and the Old New York of The Age of Innocence are without a doubt dramatic. However, there is more of a connection between them than may first appear. Edith Wharton herself was born into the claustrophobic world of Old New York. When she began, at the age of fifty-seven, to write what would become her Pulitzer-prize winning novel, she had already witnessed an astounding amount of social change. Both horrified and fascinated by the chaos and the freedom of the new century as it headed towards modernism and war, Wharton was prompted to compare this new age with that of her own past. The Age of Innocence, then, stands as both a personal recollection of the culture of Whartons youth and an historical study of an old-fashioned world on the brink of profound and permanent change. It is believed that the expression keeping up with the Joneses once specifically referred to Edith Jones Whartons parents, who were known throughout New York for their lavish social gatherings. Born into such an atmosphere of opulence, Wharton had access to all the privileges of an upper- class upbringing: education, travel, and the assurance of a good marriage. Yet for all the luxury of her youth, Wharton felt her individuality continually stifled by the rigid expectations and narrow perspectives of her class. Not surprisingly, these sentiments become central themes in The Age of Innocence. Unhappily married at an early age to a man thirteen years her senior, Wharton faced, like Ellen Olenska, the temptations of adultery and the censure of divorce. As a writer, too, Wharton faced the criticisms of her class, who disdained and feared what they called the bohemian life of artists and writers. Post-war Paris was a far cry from this stifling environment, and Wharton was interested in tracing the differences between her past and present not only on a personal level, but also a historico-anthropological level. By the end of the War, rigid Old New York appeared as a lost world, a defunct civilization that bore little similarity to the present era. Like many authors of her time, Wharton was interested in evolutionary theories and the newly developing field of anthropology. To a great extent, it is this interest in the sociology of Old New York that gives the novel its keen sense of detached irony. While post-Civil War New York saw itself as the pinnacle of civilization, Wharton undercuts this picture by comparing its unbending societal customs to those of the most primitive tribes. Plot Overview Newland Archer couldnt be more pleased with his recent engagement to the beautiful debutante May Welland. However, his world is thrown upside down by the sensational arrival of Mays cousin, Countess Ellen Olenska. Recently returned to America after separating from her husband, a philandering Polish count, Countess Olenska shocks the staid New York aristocracy with her revealing clothes, carefree manners, and rumors of adultery. Because the Countesss family, headed by the powerful Mrs. Manson Mingott, have chosen to reintroduce her into good society, Archer and May feel it necessary to befriend her. As Archer comes to better know the Countess, he begins to appreciate her unconventional views on New York society. Meanwhile, Archer becomes increasingly disillusioned with his new fianceà ©, May. He begins to see her as the manufactured product of her class: polite, innocent, and utterly devoid of personal opinion and sense of self. The Countess Olenska soon announces her intention of divorcing her husband. While Archer supports her desire for freedom, he feels compelled to act on behalf of the Mingott family and persuade Ellen to remain married. At a friends cottage near Hudson, Archer realizes that he is in love with Ellen. He abruptly leaves the next day for Florida, where he is reunited with May and her parents, who are there on vacation. There, he presses May to shorten their engagement. May becomes suspicious and asks him if his hurry to get married is prompted by the fear that he is marrying the wrong person. Archer reassures May that he is in love with her. Back in New York, Archer calls on Ellen, and Archer admits that he is in love with her. Just then, a telegram arrives from May, announcing that her parents have pushed forward the wedding date. After their wedding and honeymoon in Europe, Archer and May settle down to married life in New York. Over time, Archers memory of Ellen fades to a wistful image. But on vacation in Newport, he is reunited with her, and Ellen promises not to return to Europe as long as she and Newland do not act upon their love for each other. Back in New York, Archer learns that Count Olenski wants his wife to return to him and that Ellen has refused. After the stroke of her grandmother, Ellen returns to New York to care for her. She and Archer agree to consummate their affair. But suddenly, Ellen announces her intention to return to Europe. May throws a farewell party for Ellen, and after the guests leave, May announces to Archer that she is pregnant and that she told Ellen her news two weeks earlier. Twenty-five years pass. In that time, the Archers have had three children and May has died from pneumonia. Now Archers son convinces him to travel to France. There, they arrange to visit the Countess Olenska at her Paris apartment. However, at the last minute Archer sends his son alone to visit her, content instead to live with his memories of the past. Character List Newland Archer The novels protagonist. Archer is a wealthy young lawyer married to the beautiful debutante May Welland. He is in love, however, with Mays cousin Countess Ellen Olenska, who represents to him the freedom missing from the suffocating environment of the New York aristocracy. Archer is torn between his duty to May and to his family, and his passion for Ellen. In the end, he remains faithful to his wife and comes to be known in society as a philanthropist and civic figure. Countess Ellen Olenska Mays cousin and Mrs. Manson Mingotts granddaughter. Ellen was educated and raised in Europe. There, she married a Polish count, who cheated on her and prompted her to leave him. Upon her return to New York family, she hopes to be reintegrated to American life, but she finds only judgmentality and stifling mores. Her behavior is deemed too unorthodox for her to fit in to Old New York. To Archer, however, she is free and truly alive, her own person. May Welland The dewy-eyed and artless young thing who marries Archer. May appears to be unassailably innocent. Over time, Archer comes to see her as the living embodiment of New York society: incapable of thinking on her own, conditioned to act as she is expected. Despite her apparent innocence, May is not as naà ¯ve as Newland thinks. However, she remains a loyal wife even after she suspects that Newland is having an affair with Countess Olenska. Mrs. Manson Mingott Grandmother to May and Ellen, Mrs. Mingott is a fat and fiery old aristocratic lady who wields great influence over the New York clan. While her moral standards are irreproachable, she has some unorthodox social views. She insists on family solidarity and remains confident in Ellen, supporting her financially when she leaves New York to return to Europe. Henry and Louisa van der Luyden The descendants of pre-Revolutionary Dutch aristocracy, this elderly couple is the last word in social authority. They are last in a long line of powerful social leaders. Very quiet and non-adventurous people, they are rarely seen in public and only rarely invite guests to their solemn Madison Avenue mansion. Julius Beaufort Little is known about this British bankers past, but it is widely rumored that he left Europe after some shady business deals. With his elaborate annual balls, Beaufort is one of the most important and lavish hosts of New York entertainment. Following a scandalous business failure, he is swiftly exiled from good society. Mrs. Archer and Janey Archer Mother and sister of Archer, these two women act almost like sisters. Somewhat socially timid, they love to gossip, grow ferns, and make lace. While they are devoted to Archer, they are nonetheless frequently shocked by his social views. Lawrence Lefferts Widely considered to be the arbiter of good taste and moral values, Lefferts is also a huge gossip and an unfaithful husband. There are suspicions that he courted Countess Olenska soon after her arrival and was soundly rejected. Sillerton Jackson An elderly gentleman and good friend of the Archer family. Jackson is the unofficial archivist of all New York gossip and family history. Medora Manson The eccentric old aunt of Ellens, Medora raised her after the deaths of Ellens parents. A penniless itinerant, she is repeatedly widowed, and is tolerated by society only because of her family connections. Ned Winsett The bohemian journalist friend of Archer. Ned Winsett is one of the few people with whom Archer can really converse. He sees him as both an emblem of social freedom and its immense costs. Mrs. Lemuel Struthers Although as heir to a shoe polish fortune Mrs. Struthers is considered common, she becomes a popular hostess known for her artistic gatherings. Summary The novel opens in the new opera house, where all of New Yorks high society has assembled in its expensive box seats to see and to be seen. Newland Archer, the protagonist, has just arrived fashionably late and joins his friends in time for the climax of the opera. As he glances across the filled theater, he spots May Welland, his new fianceà ©, seated in the box of her aristocratic old grandmother, Mrs. Manson Mingott. Archer, struck anew by her pure and innocent beauty, dreams of blissful married life with May. His reverie is abruptly interrupted by his acquaintance Larry Lefferts, who notices a stranger entering the Mingott box. A slim young woman wearing a theatrical and low-cut dress takes a seat in the box, seemingly unconscious of all the attention she attracts. With shock, Archer realizes that this woman is no other than the Countess Ellen Olenska, cousin to May Welland, who has returned to New York after having lived abroad for many years. Lefferts, considered to be the authority on form, or style and fashion, and Sillerton Jackson, the unofficial archivist of all family histories and scandals within the upper class, are both shocked that the Countess would appear in good society with the rest of her family. We learn through their gossip that it is rumored that she had left her unfaithful husband, a Polish count. Newland admires the fiery and somewhat unorthodox determination of Mrs. Manson Mingott to support this black sheep of her family by not only hosting her indefinitely in her home, but also by allowing her to appear publicly in the family box at the Opera. Yet at the same time he is bothered that all of New York society will see such a scandalous figure sitting next to his innocent young fiancee. As the men continue to gossip, Archer feel compelled to take decisive action. As the fiancà © of May Welland, he decides that he has the responsibility to defend the Mingott clan. During intermission, he hurries over to the Mingott box. Although no words are exchanged between May and himself as to the reason for his sudden appearance, she shows her understanding of the situation and her gratitude to Archer with her smile. Both she and Archer are aware that by appearing in the Mingott box with the Countess Olenska, Archer is demonstrating his connection to that family and his support of their decision to include the Countess in their social activities. Archer is introduced to Olenska, who was one of his childhood playmates. He is struck by her flippant, friendly manners and finds her descriptions of New York society rather disrespectful. After the opera, many of the wealthy New York families attend the annual ball at the Beaufort residence. Julius Beaufort, we learn, is a handsome, charming, and disreputable Englishman with a shady financial history and a strong tendency toward infidelity; his wife Regina is a pretty but dull woman of reputable family background. Although many consider the Beauforts to be common, no one would ever pass their elaborate and ostentatious balls, which provide a cornerstone for New York social activities. At the ball, Archer and May officially announce their engagement. In a moment alone together in the conservatory, they express their happiness. May suddenly asks Archer to announce their engagement to her cousin Ellen Olenska. Ellen, to the relief of her family, did not attend the Beauforts ball. Analysis In the opening chapter of The Age of Innocence, Wharton immediately evokes a specific time, a place, and a society. Her panoramic description of the opera is highly effective as an introductory setting, for it not only acclimates the reader to the fashions and entertainment preferences of Old New York, but it also presents the members of this society as if they were an assembly, a closely-knit collection of individuals and families. The fact that everyone in good society attends the opera demonstrates immediately their similar tastes in art and entertainment. Yet the opera does not serve merely as a bonding activity for the very rich. Indeed, the members of the audience scrutinize each other far more than the opera itself, singling out in particular the fashions and manners of their peers. One goes to the opera to see and to be seen, to judge and to be judged. This may explain why Wharton is quick to introduce two characters who are otherwise minor to the plot. She singles Larry Lefferts out of the crowd as the foremost authority on form. Form, or a code that indicates the acceptable tastes in fashion and manners, is extremely important to this society, which is so concerned with appearances. And an unusual dress or a flippant attitude may, in fact, signify more than just a lack of taste but also a lack of proper moral values. Such a potential wantonness threatens to destabilize the delicate existing code and is therefore judged harshly. In addition to Lefferts, Wharton pauses over the character of Sillerton Jackson, the unofficial archivist of family histories. Not only does Jackson know every blood and marital relationship within the tight clan of Old New York, he also knows each familys scandals, whether real or rumored. Thanks to Jackson, ones private history does not remain a secret for long. Here and throughout the novel, Wharton employs certain imagery by which to portray Old New York society. She describes the evening at the opera as an extremely predictable event: one arrives there fashionably late, every family has a carriage waiting for them at the entrance, and even the ball at Beauforts that follows is an annual tradition. On a basic level, Whartons language indicates how boring such a world can be; no one acts differently from anyone else and there is no variation in the course of events from year to year. In the following chapters, Archer will become more and more frustrated with the monotony of this stultifying environment. On a more symbolic level, Wharton ironically compares the traditional behaviors and codes of cultured Old New York with those of primitive or ancient cultures. Both are obsessed with ritual events and behaviors, she indicates, and Archers concern with acceptable behavior is no different from the totem terrors that had ruled the destinies of his forefathers thousands of years ago. It is, of course, the arrival of Countess Ellen Olenska that brings tension to this perfectly ordered scene. Thanks to the good memory and loose tongue of Sillerton Jackson, Ellens appearance is preceded by her reputation. It is important to note Jacksons exclamation upon seeing Ellen in her familys opera box: I didnt think the Mingotts would have tried it on. With this statement is the implication that the actions of an individual reflect upon the family. Jackson is shocked not only because a woman of somewhat ill repute is seen amongst good society, but also because her family is choosing to support such a black sheep. Newland Archer is aware of the crucial importance of the Mingott familys sense of solidarity. When he sees how his friends negatively respond to the appearance of Ellen, he rushes over to the Mingott family box. Since May is a member of this family and Archer soon will be, it is his duty to defend their decision to include Ellen. Simply by appearing in the Mingott box, Archer is sending a clear non-verbal signal to the rest of the New York clan. This gesture, just like Mays grateful glance at Archer, is a subtle but unequivocal form of communication. Throughout the novel, Wharton must interpret these actions for her readers, for often the spoken words of her characters do not contain as much meaning as (and in some cases relate the opposite meaning of) the gesture. In the third chapter, the character of Julius Beaufort provides a clear example of the discrepancy of appearance versus reality. His personal history is spotty at best, and he is notorious for his womanizing. But because of his immaculate dress and public display of manners and hospitality, he is accepted by the New York clan. As long as Beaufort-or anyone, for that matter-can hide the unpleasantness of his past, he will be welcomed into good society. Chapters 4-6 Summary As is expected of all newly engaged couples, Archer and May begin a series of betrothal visits to their friends and relatives. The first is to Mrs. Manson Mingott, who lives by herself in a grand and unorthodox mansion near Central Park. Because of her tremendous obesity, she is confined to her house; but because of her social influence, she is not isolated from the rest of society. Mrs. Mingott happily receives the couple and instructs May on wedding preparations. As they are about to take their leave, Ellen Olenska returns home from shopping with Julius Beaufort. Archer notices that Mrs. Mingott greets them both cordially; she does not seem to consider it improper, as he does, that a married man should be seen in daylight with a recently-separated woman. As Archer leaves, he speaks briefly to the Countess about his engagement to May. She is very pleased and asks Archer to call on her soon. As Archer leaves, he inwardly remarks that the Countesss behavior with Beaufort is most likely acceptable in Europe. All the same, he is glad he is marrying a member of his own New York clan. The next evening Sillerton Jackson dines with Archer and Archers mother and sister at their home. Jackson and the two women are eager to gossip about the arrival of the Countess Olenska. When the conversation inevitably drifts to discussing her appearance in public with Beaufort, Archer shocks his family by claiming that she has the right to go where she chooses and that he hopes the Countess will get a divorce from her brutish husband, even if such things are seldom done. He remarks that he is tired of a double standard for the affairs of men and women and that it is time for women to be as free as men. Alone in his study after dinner, Archer contemplates his approaching marriage to May. Regarding her picture, he wonders to what extent she is the product of her society. Recalling his assertion at dinner that women should have the same freedoms as men, he now concludes that the nice women of his class were brought up to never desire freedom. Archer suddenly realizes that although he wants his future wife to be free and to form her own thoughts, she has been carefully trained by her family not to possess such traits. To him, May is innocent because she is ignorant. While he remains unwavering in his decision to marry her, he begins to feel that his marriage will not be entirely what he had previously expected. A few days later, the Mingott family is in great distress. After having sent out invitations for a formal dinner to be held in honor of the Countess Olenska, they have received refusals from practically all of the invites. It is clear that New York has decided to scorn the Count ess Olenska by not attending her welcoming dinner. In protest, Archer appeals to his mother to talk with Henry and Louisa van der Luyden. The van der Luydens, a frail old couple who are seldom seen in public and receive only their most intimate friends at home, are regarded as the most powerful and most elite figures in New York society. Archer hopes that their influence can atone for the slight that has been dealt to the Countess and her family. Analysis Chapter 4 opens with one of the most humorous character sketches in the novel. The immensely large Mrs. Manson Mingott is an intriguing character to Archer because of her slightly unorthodox living arrangement and her candid way of speaking. Because of her impeccable moral character and high societal status, her free style of conversation does not scandalize others or disrupt the given social standards. As such, she can easily get away with making some perceptive and occasionally critical insights into the society of Old New York. When Beaufort arrives with Countess Olenska at Mrs. Mingotts home, she asks him if he will be inviting Mrs. Lemuel Struthers and remarks that New York is in need of new blood and new money. While Old New York is intensely close-knit and hostile to nouveau-riche outsiders, it is also in risk of isolating itself completely from the rest of the world, to the detriment of its own health. The character of Newland Archer also takes on several nuances in these cha pters. In the opening Opera scene, Archer appears to be as preoccupied with correct appearances as his friends. At Mrs. Mingotts house, Wharton demonstrates how Archers thoughts on form depart from the norm. He admires Mrs. Mingotts strong personality and the slight sense of impropriety in the arrangement of her house. Yet Archer is relieved when he discovers that Ellen is out for the day, for he fears the controversy associated with her. His acceptance of unconventionality, then, is limited. Mrs. Mingotts harmless banter is not nearly as destabilizing as Ellens behavior in walking in public with Beaufort, which threatens the social code to which Archer is accustomed. In chapters five and six, we also get a glimpse into Archers thoughts on women. At dinner with his family and Sillerton Jackson, Archer attempts to defend Ellens right to have an affair following the infidelities of her husbands by proclaiming that women should be as free as men when it came to their personal relations hips. Yet Archers attempts at gender equality are belied by many of his other comments. Later that evening, he remarks to Jackson that he is sick of the hypocrisy that would bury alive a woman of her age if her husband prefers to live with harlots. While he does here defend Ellens right to manage her own affairs, he labels other women who have made similar choices as harlots. Archer also shows his unequal treatment of women in regards to his own past. In the novels elliptical allusions to his former mistress, Archer is always inclined to judge her actions harshly. Archer is also led to wonder about the usefulness of asserting such rights for women. Although he loves and admires May, he sees that she has been brought up to be a nice woman, one who would never request the right to have an affair. With this revelation, Archer begins to realize just how circumscribed the lives of May and other women in New York society really are. They have been brought up never to question inequalities or double standards. In fact, it is as if they are not even aware that such inequalities exist. They exist in a state of perpetual innocence, untroubled by what they do not know. With this revelation, Archer becomes further disillusioned with the strict codes of Old New York. Chapters 7-9 Summary At the van der Luydens formal and ostentatious Madison Avenue home, Archer and his mother relate the slight given to the Countess Olenska. The van der Luydens decide to stand by the Countess on principle: if her family has already decided to support her admittance into society, the rest of society must support their decision. To make amends, the van der Luydens decide to include the Countess at their reception for the Duke of St. Austrey. In the course of the next week, before attending the reception for the Duke, Archer learns much about the past of the Countess Olenska. After the early deaths of her itinerant parents, Ellen was left under the guardianship of her aunt Medora Manson, an eccentric and frequently widowed woman. After the death of Medoras most recent husband, she packed up and left with Ellen in tow. For years nothing was heard of them, until news reached New York that Ellen had married the extremely wealthy Polish Count Olenski. A few years later, the marriage ended in disaster, and Ellen decided to return to her New York family to recuperate. After learning of Ellens history, Archer is curious to see how-if at all-she will adapt to New York society. At the Dukes reception, the Countess raises eyebrows by appearing late and somewhat disheveled. After dinner, she leaves the side of the Duke (with whom she is expected to converse) in order to talk with Archer. They discuss, primarily, his engagement to May. The Countess reveals her ignorance of New York social customs by asking Archer if the marriage was arranged. When Archer corrects her, she embarrassedly admits that she often forgets that what is bad in European culture is good, by contrast, in American culture. As the conversation is interrupted by the other guests, Countess Olenska bids Archer to call on her at her new home the next day. Archer arrives late at the Countesss shabby, slightly bohemian flat that following day, only to find her away. He decides to wait in her living room until she returns. While he waits, he examines the room, which is artfully decorated with European bric-a-brac and exotic works of art. To Archer, who is used to the standardized Italian art appreciated by those in his class, the Countesss furnishings are novel and intriguing. Suddenly, from the window he sees the Countess descend from Beauforts cab. Inside the flat, Archer is interested by the Countesss novel, if slightly shocking, opinions on the fashions and the families of Old New York. She, in turn, looks to Archer for advice about fitting in to the New York clan. When he explains how misleading appearances are in New York, Ellen responds by bursting into tears. She remarks to Archer that the most lonely aspect of living in New York is that she is required to live around well-meaning people who insist that she pretend to be someone she is not in order to spare them any unpleasantness. Their conversation is interrupted by the entrance of the Duke and Mrs. Lemuel Struthers. Archer leaves, somewhat relieved to be spared any more upsetting emotion. As he stops by the florist to send May her daily bouquet of lilies-of- the-valley, he decides impulsively to send a bouquet of yellow roses to Countess Olenska. Analysis Wharton commences Chapter 7 with a detailed account of the nature of the power structure and chain of command within the tight-knit high society of New York. As the sole descendants of one of the most wealthy and aristocratic families in the city, Henry and Louisa van der Luyden serve as legislatures, executives, and judges in regards to certain social problems. It is they who determine the laws of family solidarity. Because Ellens family supports her, everyone outside the family must honor their decision and treat her as one of them. It is also they who judge the severity of the offense against Ellen Olenska; Wharton describes them as the Court of last appeals. And finally, it is they who decide that action must be taken to amend for the insult. By inviting the Countess to their formal reception for the Duke, the van der Luydens send an unmistakable message to those who have previously slighted Ellen. Wharton makes her depiction of the van der Luydens ironic by several different means. First of all, she shows the inconsistencies between the van der Luydens as individuals and as leaders. For all the stuffy splendor of their house and the formal quality of their interview with the Archers, Henry and Louisa are shy and retiring people who dont much like to entertain. They seldom leave their home, due both to health problems and a genuine fear of venturing out in public. Secondly, Wharton describes them in anthropological terms. The van der Luydens are mouth pieces of some remote ancestral authority which fate compelled them to wield. Wharton subtly hints that there is something primitive about the van der Luydens influence over society and that their power is due more to wealth and bloodline than to their capability and temperament. For a society that prides itself on its high culture, such a hierarchy of power seems rather crude and primeval. And finally, Whartons physical description of this harmless old couple involves a large amount of death imagery. Louisa looks like she was rather gruesomely preserved in the airless atmosphere of a perfectly irreproachable existence. This is not unlike the way Wharton sees Mrs. Mingott as a doomed city trapped under her own weight in Chapter 4. In both these cases, Whartons juxtaposition of authority figures with death imagery indicates the ineffectual nature of their power. Ruled by such archaic individuals, Old New York potentially faces a waning of power itself, or even extinction. In Chapters 8 and 9, we begin to get a better grasp of Ellens personality. Up until this point, we have seen Ellen primarily through the eyes of others: through the gossip at the opera and through Archers opinions based on their brief encounters. Now the picture of Ellen becomes more complete through the recounting of her personal history, the descriptions of her exotically furnished apartment, and through her own conversations with Archer. The very nature of their discussion proves to Archer Ellens foreignness and her lack of traditional manners. Unlike May and the rest of New York who communicate indirectly through glances and euphemistic speech, Ellen is quite candid in her opinions. She directly criticizes

Comparing the Tragic Hero in Things Fall Apart and Heart of Darkness Es

The Tragic Hero in Things Fall Apart and Heart of Darkness A tragic hero could be considered a "noble person with a fatal flaw" or "an opponent of society who is willing to take action that 'sensible people' might applaud but never perform themselves". In Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart and Joseph Conrads's Heart of Darkness, two characters, Okonkwo and Kurtz, have some qualities which could categorize them as tragic heroes. However, only the reader's interpretation of the characters' actions will determine if they are tragic heroes or not. In his Ibo society, Okonkwo would certainly be considered a "noble person". Not only has he worked his way up from poverty to become one of the leading men of Umuofia, but he has also been deemed one of the greatest warriors and wrestlers in the land. "Okonkwo was well known throughout the nine villages and even beyond. His fame rested on solid personal achievements", (Achebe 3). Due to the exemplary actions, Okonkwo has gained respect from his fellow tribesmen. Okonkwo has also taken two titles in his clan and he is a member of the egwugwu, which demonstrates his leadership capabilities and the power and "nobility" he holds in Umuofia. Despite his skills in those areas, Okonkwo does have a "fatal flaw". "His whole life was dominated by fear, the fear of failure and of weakness", (Achebe 13). Unoka, Okonkwo's father, was considered an "agbala", or a woman, because he was soft and not masculine enough. Okonkwo had also hated his father because he was em- barrassed by him, so his life's passion is to be the polar opposite of him. Due to this fear, Okonkwo held in his emotions and acted hard, which ultimately made him weak, because a s... ...o appears to have more qualities of a tragic hero than Kurtz. Achebe had created Okonkwo with some nobility, and he definitely had a fatal flaw; his fear of weakness ultimately culminated into his death. Also, Okonkwo had opposed the white society and some of his fellow tribesmen. However, his clan did not approve of his final action: suicide. Due to this fact, Okonkwo can never be a true tragic he- ro. Now, Kurtz never was considered to be a noble man by society's standards and he didn't really have a flaw; instead, he had the ability to persuade and manipulate people to his advantage, which would not be a flaw for his sake. Kurtz was a mixed man of society; he opposed some parts while accepting others. Despite this, both characters have exhibited some characteristics of a tragic hero and only the reader's response can determine their roles. Â  

Genhis Khan The Great Essay -- essays research papers

His name struck anguish in the hearts across Asia, yet he remains an icon to the people of Mongolia. He could slay thousands without flinching. He was considered one of the most barbaric people ever, yet he ruled fairly. He gave his enemies one simple choice: surrender and be enslaved, or die. By consistently enforcing discipline, rewarding skill and allegiance, and punishing those who opposed him, he established a vast empire. His empire was far greater than Alexander the Great. Meet the man behind the myths, the incomparable Genghis Khan. Yisugei was relived after his son, Temujin was born. The chief thought that the boy was going to be a worthy successor to his throne. Temujin had a fire in his eye according to the people of the town. By the time he was four, he was already using a bow and arrow set. He was very good because he practiced for hours everyday. By the time he was seven he was excellent in battle skills. However tragedy struck that year. Yisugei was murdered by a local tribe. His family tried to overcome it but the people left the tribe and joined other tribes. A few people stayed but they also left after a while. Temujin and his family lived off berries, animals, and plants.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Temujin started working harder on his archery. He was one of the best in the land by the time he was eleven. By eleven seventy-three, Temujin had risen, he became chief of a tribe. People noted how fierce he was and how he had no mercy. He was engaged to Botei in eleven seventy-five. They were married in eleven seventy-eight. After the marriage, a tribe kidnapped Botei. Temujin was outraged. He attacked the tribe and slaughtered them all. This was the first time when Temujin killed everyone in a tribe. He showed the world his bad side. He rescued Botei in eleven-eighty and she never fell under any more harm again.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Following the massacre of the tribe, Temujin killed his half-brother. He found out that his brother was a spy for a local tribe. With the massacre and the murder of his brother, people knew that Temujin was not joking around. People started getting scared of Temujin. The fear that they had would not disappear until they died.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Temujin kept on conquering local lands. He was enthroned Genghis Khan is 1206. Genghis Khan means “strong ruler.';   Ã‚  Ã‚  ... ...hat he ruled because he was feared so much and it is not good if a leader is feared. People were initially scared of the Khan but after time the loyal people were not scared. The Khan was very easy to get along with only if a person was loyal to his cause.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  All though he was a fierce man with strict rules, he was very loving. He cared for his people. He helped everyone he could. He would let himself starve if another person needed food. If a disaster struck he rushed supplies to the area. He gave many people, food and money.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Temujin is not known as much as other leaders. When people think of leaders, Temujin usually doesn’t appear in their minds. He was one of the greatest leaders of all time, if not the greatest. He unified all of Asia, with his massive empire. He punished those who disobeyed him and rewarded the highly skilled. He shared his things with the common people. His legend is still intact. The Mongolians are full of pride when someone mentions Genghis Khan. “Eternal Heaven chose Genghis Khan and his descendants and made us a gift of the whole Earth, from east to west.'; (Ratchnevsky, 159)

Essay --

George Washington was the first President of the United States. He was elected on April 30, 1789 Washington had the respect of everyone. Washington had many intriguing qualities. An example would be his quality of concern for his men. Throughout the Revolutionary War, Washington lost many of the battles, but he chose to lose them, rather than to win and risk all of his men’s lives. He made tactical retreats to save his men. George Washington, our first President, won over the hearts and earned the respect of the people of the United States because of his strong character, and not because of his political genius. In fact he never even went to college, due to lack of money. George Washington had the respect of not only politicians, lawyers, wealthy plantation owners, but also the respect of people who were not considered to be people. Such peoples included slaves and women. A man named Phyllis Wheatley became the first black poet of America. He talks about Washington’s greatness at the Siege of Boston in one of his poems, claiming virtue to always be at his side. Another poem was wri...

The Cinema Effect: Illusion, Reality, and the Moving Image Matthew Buckingham: a Man in the Crowd

A Mirrored Image of Reality Realism is a realm of art that focuses on an individual’s perspective of the real world through the use of varying mediums. In historical times artist have always and everywhere sought to expand the subject matter of their work as well as the media in which they work. It would be accurate to say that the history of political suppression of the arts from Egyptian times to Byzantium to Nazism and Zhdanovism is a manifestation of attempts to limit or abolish expansion of artistic subject matter or new forms or styles.The drive to break out of the boundaries of conventional representation arises from the need to express new experiences and perspectives. And as innovations in artistic media reflect parallel technical discoveries and inventions, so also does the drive to expand the horizons of subject matter reflecting fundamental changes in social relations, social needs, and social values and objectives. In the â€Å"Cinema Effect Illusions, Reality, a nd the Moving Image† exhibition the various artists seek to create works that integrate cinema into our perceived notion of reality.Amongst the artists featured in the exhibition is Matthew Buckingham. Matthew Buckingham does a twenty minute film based off of Edgar Allan Poe’s â€Å"The Man in the crowd† also the same name of his film. Edgar Allan Poe’s â€Å"The man in the crowd† is a narrative and not an actual film. Buckingham after reading the narrative was struck with how the story could be a metaphor and paradigm for the question of nonfiction filmmaking itself, Buckingham’s film is a silent film produced in black and white.There are many parallels with Poe’s narrative and Buckingham’s film. Buckingham’s film provides the visual aspect of Poe’s narrative. But, Buckingham’s film is more contemporary, he changes the setting of the film from nineteenth century Paris to that of modern day Vienna. Poe didnà ¢â‚¬â„¢t know London and details are borrowed from Dickens, Poe’s London sounds more like New York versus nineteenth century London. The details that Poe uses come from a review that Poe did of a story by Dickens.Poe fictionalizes the story by saying, â€Å"they covered and crossed the edges of the city† which would have been impossible to do at that time, his description sounds more like modern day Vienna . With Poe’s â€Å"The man in the crowd† one man is following a complete stranger but it is unclear whether or not the follower is ever aware that he is being followed or if he ever acknowledges the man that follows him; the difference with Buckingham is that he adds another character, he introduces the camera as a character in the film.Edgar Allan Poe’s story is from one mans point of view, a man sits at a coffee shop and watches people walk by and describes them, of the people he sees walk by him he is intrigued by an elderly gentleman who walk s by him, and then the man in the coffee shop begins to follow him. A man simply becomes interested in another mans manner and then he commits himself to following him secretly for a twenty-four hour period in hopes to learn something about the man . In this time frame, the elderly gentleman goes through out London in a distorted fashion going from one place to another in no particular path or reason.Matthew Buckingham’s version begins with a young man dressed in a black t-shirt and dark colored pants in a cafe. In is the only portion of the film where there is some dialogue, which is heard. The young man sits at a table with a large window that pears into the downtown area of Vienna, there are many people that walk by him and catch his eye. While he sits an older man dressed in a suit walks by and catches his attention. From this point on the young man begins to follow the older gentleman in the suit.Throughout the duration of the film the younger man secretly follows the ol der gentleman. The older gentleman does not appear to sense that he is being followed, the man go to various places, there is no clear destination a parallel with Poe’s story but the older man of the two does not appear to be disoriented in any way whereas in Poe’s story the man is intrigued by the older man because of his distorted state. In the film most of the scenes only feature the older man, there are very few scenes where the man walks around crowed areas and spaces allowing the viewer to only focus on this man.There is one part in the film where the man being followed acknowledges his follower, the men are both walking through what appears to be a walking through a bush garden, at this point the man in the suit starts running as if he realizes that someone is following him, but he never turns around to acknowledge the man following him from this point on the man in the suit has disappeared from the film but he is then show in another scene. In the following sce ne this is the first time that the younger man is introduced in the film.Throughout the film only the back of the man in the suit is seen we never get a full view of either of the men, now, in this scene the camera is introduced as another character in the film. Before this point in the film is was ambiguous to know whether the younger man was also the camera guy but know it is clear that he is apart of the film as a character. The following scene begins to follow the man in the suit again but this time the viewer is able to get a closer view of him.Both men stand right next to each other and the angle of the camera shifts between the two men. There is a shift in the film the older man becomes a little more unaware and disoriented as the film continues. The man in the suit begins walks into a crowded area and he looks as if he is trying to find someone or something, at this point both men are close enough to each other to the point where they can physically embrace one another. The older man is preoccupied in his thoughts that he literally brushes past the other man and leaves the building they are in quickly.Transitioning in the film the older man goes to a train station and he at this point appears very disoriented and confused he walks in the station and looks as if he is going to board one of the trains but stops himself and leaves. At this point the man is back outside and the focus shifts from the older man as people walk in front of him and he seems lost within the crowd, night falls and the man is becomes the focus again and he continues to walk aimlessly. He then goes into a bar and he is amongst the many people in the bar, once he leaves it is completely dark and the film ends.This film exemplifies a type of realism because it depicts a realistic aspect of everyday life without exaggeration. The actual film is based on one man; the film follows him throughout one twenty-four hour period. The only unrealistic aspect of the film is the film itself, tha t someone is secretly following another person. The mans actions in the film follow everyday activity. Buckingham created a film that even allows the viewer to be superimposed within it. The film is displayed from two projectors. The projector is freestanding and has the appearance of a window, just like that of the window in the cafe where the film begins.So once we superimpose ourselves in front of the projector we are now apart of the film. The film becomes real and apart of the viewers reality because even the viewer can experience what is going on and be apart. The viewer now takes the role of the camera or the person following the man and experience what is going on. Also the man in the crowd is a relatable character we can all identify with the man in the crowd. The man that was followed was chosen randomly, he had no idea he was being followed and he had no distinguishable traits that would make he an obvious candidate. Buckingham’s film is similar to a performance by Vito Acconci.Vito Acconci does a performance similar to that of what Buckingham does in his film whereas Acconci follows a man around without his permission. Both artists push the boundaries of what art is and its interactions with life and its reality. Both artists with their work blur the line of artist and the perceived audience/subject. These works can be classified as avant-garde and how they move away from the considered standards and characteristics of art and what it should be art without a specific form and directed perception. In this same manner Matthew Buckingham’s film is similar to the photos of Jeff Wall.Jeff Wall uses photography to capture the different aspects of our reality and perceived real life. One of Jeff Wall’s photos is â€Å"A view from an Apartment†, in this photo Wall depicts an ordinary scene amongst two roommates, but he has altered the photo slightly to make the photo appear more realistic, he uses this image to depict two differ ent aspects of our reality. His work like that of Buckingham’s discusses our social ideas of the world. Like that of photography film is able to capture a moment as it happens, with technological advances in both there is the ability to go back and change or manipulate the imagery to something else.With both artist they are able to make their art appear as if it were natural and unchanged. Buckingham’s film appears natural and organic without any manipulation, but the characters of the film where all aware of each other and Buckingham’s concept and idea for this film thus making this reality artificial. There are interesting and informative accounts of art ranging from strict formalism to psychoanalysis, but that these had best be registered and tested against more general scientific theories of human society and culture.When this is done, the content of the work of art can be related to the means of scientific, realistic and empirical theories of culture and so ciety. This film addresses social concerns within society. The concept of the film and the film itself push the boundary of what is socially acceptable as art. Buckingham’s film does push the boundary of what is socially accepted for him to follow another person without their permission and to further document this as a film.