Musical Analysis; Comparing ‘Tonight’ with ‘Maria’; West Side Story.

Comparing Tonight with Maria (Both from ‘West side story’) (Tonight also known as balcony scene – Tony and Maria sing together. Maria – sang by Tony. ) The piece ‘Tonight’ begins in B maj; it opens with Tony stating â€Å"the most beautiful sound I ever heard† this is sang in a very recitative style; mainly monotone (D) – rubato. This makes his words seem the prominent element – stressing the drama. The gentile bassoon plays a descending line – while the horn plays a simplified version ~ this ‘decent’ becomes a theme in Tony and Maria’s relationship. It also plunges Toney into a dream world. This opening line leads swiftly on to the theme of ‘Maria’. Throughout the song there are many variations on ‘Maria’ – however the first time (bar 28) a perfect 4th is used between the ‘Ma + ‘ri’; the ‘a’ is a dissonant – yet is warmed by the sound of the horn (emphasising the ri-a). The instrumentation is thin here- mainly heterophonic , working with the triplets which diminish the rhythm and increase the tension. In bar 4; the ‘a’ of Maria is resolved on to a D (rather than an E) – this is a descending min 3rd, however the oboe doesn’t resolve- this creates anticipation and leads the music on demonstrating that the song is to grow- reflecting Tony’s feelings for Maria- yet clashing slightly and creating an element of pain- foreshadowing the ‘later’ tragedy. From bar 8, on to bar 9; After the sequential transformation ‘up a tone’ in bar 8 the music changes again as if onto an ‘Aria’ section. It does so on the ‘Ma’ to the ‘ri’ – The ‘ri’ is sang on an A natural (appoggatura) –making a dim 5th. The instrumentation thickens here, timps and double bass are also added , the bass plays pizz, and its rhythm goes slightly Latin – similar to much of the dance music throughout the musical – and all this creates a colourful image in the listeners head – reflecting the image of Maria in Tony’s head. Bar 15; Instrumentation thickens here as the clarinets, Horns, and trumpets are added, as the music progresses, bar 17; the oboes are added. In bars 18 and 19 there are two descending lines linking and building up to the 6th variation of ‘Maria’; the flute is added in bar 19, and the trombones are added in bar 20. Full orchestration on the 6th variation of Maria; this variation of Maria is a descending phrase, as it moves down a tone each time: Also rhythmically augmented. Middle syllable is an appoggiatura. {draw:frame} The phrase continues to descend with â€Å"say it loud and there’s music playing†. There is also a diminuendo in bar 23 and the violins take on a more prominent role – this makes the music seem more romantic and soft, Bernstein has used word painting here as Tony describes Maria’s name as soft â€Å"almost like praying†, plus on the word ‘praying’ there’s a per5th. In bar 28, the 6th in-between the ‘ri +a’ _(like the 1st version of Maria, but last note turned upside down)_ becomes a countermelody, the theme is played in the contrabass; this constant repeat of ‘Maria’ demonstrates Tony’s worship for her. In bar 48, the theme is demonstrated in thicker texture again – it leads to an operatic recitative style line from Tony ppp (while the accompaniment is simply semibreves) far from the ‘Latin style dance atmosphere’ demonstrated previously. {draw:frame} Finally in Bar 51 there is one more variation of ‘Maria’ – reminiscent of the first version – but with a per5th (ma-ri), the ‘a’(G) is held for about the last two bars; underneath this, an Eb is held making the ‘a’ sound like a discord. This creates a certain pain about the last note – foreshadowing future events, suggesting that its all going to end with pain. The balcony scene also begins in Bmaj – and opens with a descending line, reminiscent of ‘Maria’ – linking the two songs and making the ‘descending line’ a theme in their relationship. In bar 3 the theme from Maria is echoed in the violins. This opening piece of music (1-29) is very important; it acts as an underscore – reminiscing previous songs, as it gently continues and goes through many temporary modulations. In Bar 30 the vocals begin; (Only Maria sings) the instrumentation is thin – with violins holding sustained notes creating a tense, hesitant yet romantic atmosphere. The descending line theme ‘augmented’ in the bass. The tempo is marked as andantino, little faster – as the tension increases. All this forces the vocal melody to be exposed, (making the soloistmore important) demonstrating their vulnerability and innocence. At bar 32 a contrabass is added, marked pizz, – this adds an amazing gently pulsating, heartbeat rhythmical effect – creating much excitement; reflecting their emoticons. draw:frame} The vocal melody is still very exposed and prominent as it rises above the accompaniment in broken chords. In bar 37 Tony sings alone, as he says â€Å"Maria† there is a perfect5th between the ‘Ma-ri’ like the actual song, ‘Maria’ – again linking the two songs. Maria then sings solo, for one bar only, she re peats his name twice – echoing his actions, this makes the duet seem more conversational – enhancing the drama. Bar 42; Allegretto – always a little faster, the heart beat rhythm is still present – retaining the excited and heightened emoticons.

Hip-Hop Generation: Its Influence on Youth Culture Essay

Civil Rights- dejure and defacto equality; integration Headquarters – South, Northern Cities Examples – Martin Luther King, Jr. (N.A.A.C.P./Black Church) The Strategy in action Racial Justice – defacto equality; seperation to achieve equality or to create a black state, economy, or society Headquarters – Northern Cities, West, National Chapter (N.O.I./B.P.P.S.D.) Example 1: Honorable Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X (Malcolm Little) Muhammad Ali (Cassius Clay), N.O.I. Example 2: Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale (B.P.P.S.D.) The strategy in action III. Stigmatization, class, and the Welfare State Excluded Agricultural and Domestic workers, many of whom were black or from other minority groups This creates two misconceptions in regards to welfare, and it may have also help institutionalize poverty in black and other minority groups By the id-1970s and early-1980s, stigmatization is fully institutionalized through Reaganomics Legitimized vs. de-legitimized Legitimized- are things that are defended by the state. State sanctioned, approved, taxed and legal activity De-legitimized –non-state sanctioned, non-approved, not taxed, or illegal activity. (Black or grey or underground market) 1) Politics, roots and synthesis locations associated with rap’s birth Political Topics, Ambitions, awareness, anger, etc. + Style of toasts over dub music, live, improvisational soul music, use of samples =Blending of the first two, equipment such as mixers, samplers, open location 2) Black Nationalism’s â€Å"Apex† and Destruction (West Oakland) Internal Colony- (the hood) the literal (or more commonly) figurative understanding of inner-city black, brown, and poor ghettoes as a separate political body, economic market, and social realm 3) The Dub and the Black Arts Movement (Kingston, Jamaica) â€Å"Dub† Music and Influence – late 1960s-early 1970s The Congos – Heart of the Congos 1/28/14 – Chapter on Malcolm X -Grandmaster Flash -Kool Keith – Literal disillusionment – when a leader begins to change their idea and becomes more radical with their ideas – Capitalism/imperialism – (imperialism- capitalism is happening on a global scale) (capitalism) Robin Kelley Demagogue – Predicted his own death 1) Robert Moses – architect that designed the South Bronx Hip-Hop Graffiti (Tagging) Breaking (Battle) DJing (Turntablism) Fashion/Style (affects hi and low income society) Rapping Rap- use of spoken word over sampled instrumentation; one of five elements of hip-hop culture Hyperghetto or neo-liberialism- The state has withdrawn benefits from people in low-society 3) Factors and Questions – The Politics of Abandonment? Political? Economic? W/drawl of jobs being sent to suburbs or nowhere at all Social? Needles given in parks, and the social damage it does Technological? – Connections to Roots/Dubs? – Gang Issues? 4) The Founding Fathers DJ Kool Herc- first DJ to loop records Afrika Bambaata (Zulu Nation)- ran w/ a gang called Black Spades who entered a contest and took a trip to Europe and came back and decided to recruit his members and started Zulu Nation.. Also a DJ Grandmaster Flash- Trained in engineering, and modifies the turntables Clock Theory – Artist used tape to show where to start song on disks 5) Key Subgenres Party Rap Gangsta Rap Socially Conscious Rap Politically Conscious Rap Alternative Rap Other genres, sub genres, etc. 1) Overall Contribution of the Scene; Key Observations 2) The setting, Factors, and Question 3)Major Players 4) Major Successors

Nutrition †Food Essay

In our today’s society, especially western countries, the issue of fast food seems to be at the top of every health related debate. As these debates become more controversial, the question of who bears the responsibility remains unanswered. In his essay, Don’t Blame the Eater, David Zinczenko attempts to answer this key question by placing the greater responsibility of America’s obesity and other fast food related health issues on the fast food industries. Contrary to Zinczenko’s argument, Raldy Balko, in his essay, What You Eat Is Your Business, states that, people should take ownership of their health and well-being, and are therefore responsible for what and how they eat. Although both Zinczenko and Balko address the issue of responsibility, though with contrast, but valid arguments, Zinczenko seems to present a more convincing argument due to the way in which he explains the politics of food, the way in which our lifestyles are altered by what we eat, and things we can do to change the way we see food and its role in our lives. Although Zinczenko hold consumers responsible to an extent, he blames the fast food industries for the rising rate of obesity and other health issues related to fast food due to their failure to provide labels for their products. Zinczenko convincingly supports his claim by noting statistical data that shows the rise in money spent to treat diabetes. â€Å"Before 1994, diabetes in children was generally caused by a genetic disorder only 5 percent of childhood cases were obesity related, or Type 2 diabetes. Today, according to the National Institutes of Health, Type 2 diabetes accounts for at least 30 percent of all new childhood cases of diabetes in this country†(Zinczenko 392). He argues that, if the fast food companies are regulated so that they are responsible for their food contents, by providing proper labels, than consumers will make informed food choices. Contrary to Zinczenko, Balko argues that what one eats should be a matter of personal responsibility. To Balko’s credit, I believe that people should take personal responsibility for their health by adding a sensible diet and exercise to their routines. Where I differ from Balko is when he says that government restrictions on food are a result of people making poor food choices. According to Balko, â€Å"a society where everyone is responsible for everyone else’s well-being is a society more apt to accept government restrictions† (397). I think Balko’s argument in this regard, is a selfish one, and is an attempt to exempt the rich from paying their fair share of taxes that would otherwise benefit the poor or some middle families who cannot afford the high cost of health insurance. Both Zinczenko and Balko seem to agree on the rising health costs that are somehow a result of fast food, these two authors seem to differ on reasons. Zinczenko argues that health care cost is on the rise because of diseases caused by fast food due to the failure of fast food companies to provide labels and that consumers should not be blame for it. However, Balko argues that it is so that, we allow the â€Å"government to come between us and our waistline† (396). Balko states that, the more the government continues to fund health issues that are direct attribute of poor food/health choices, the more people will continue to dine on fast food and engage not in an effective diet and exercise regimen. (398) The growth of the fast food industry and the rate at which fast food is consumed is so fast, and its accompanying risks of obesity and related cardiovascular diseases have become a societal epidemic. Zinczenko blames the fast food industries for the spring in the rate to which obesity have grown in the United States. Even though Zinczenko is right about the rising rate of obesity, and that the consumption of fast food forms part of its etiology, the thesis of his argument cannot be proven and therefore cannot form the basis for his claims against the fast food companies since there are other contributing factors regarding the cause, onset, and progression of obesity. Obesity is also biologically linked. These biological attributors include: genetics, hormones, enzymes, and vitamins and minerals. Some people have fat in their genes that, no matter what they do, they are just fat. Others have issues with hormonal imbalances and or inadequate enzymatic actions that would aid in the adequate digestion and absorption of certain foods. Fast food is just one of the many environmental attributes associated with obesity. So Zinczenko can accurately make his case against the fast food industries for providing labels so as to enable consumers make informed food choices and not a case of obesity. Sometimes, people are too fast to pass judgment on others, especially people that are obese. I am equally guilty of the accusation myself. I work as a nurse at a nursing home facility and, in most cases, when staff member comes to me complaining of headache, first thing I say to them is; let’s check your blood pressure and, God forbid, the blood pressure is elevated, or if that person just look fat to me, my next comment is, it is because of all the junk you eat. My judgment, though may be incorrect, is based on the fact that most of these staff members are single parents, live in inner cities, and have a total commute time of two hours to and from work. Not to mention, some of them have more than one job. However, these people are being made to feel guilty about something that is totally out their control. In most instances, their wages aren’t even enough to meet up with their rents and utilities bills. Fast food comes handy in such instance where one can spend ten dollars and get ten cheeseburgers to feed a family of three to five versus going to the grocery store where each healthy ingredient is almost equivalent to the price of the entire dinner comprising of fast food. People fall back on fast food because it is cheap. Zinczenko explains that his parents were split up and that he had to live with his mother who worked long hours just to make the monthly bills. â€Å"Lunch and dinner, for me, was a daily choice between McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken or Pizza Hut. † (Zinczenko 391). In Zinczenko’s case, his lifestyle is altered because fast food is his only option since his family is dysfunctional. His single mother has to work very hard to pay bills and provide him a meal. It doesn’t matter the kind of meal. A meal is a meal, especially for someone who doesn’t have the time to prepare a home cooked meal. The people afflicted with fast food related obesity are not to blame for what they eat because they have very little or no options regarding what they eat due to all of the above reasons. However, to Balko’s point, while people may not have the option about what they eat, they have the option to control how they eat. Zinczenko states in his essay that fast food is â€Å"the only available options for an American kid to get an affordable meal†, and so, he urges his readers not to â€Å"blame the Eater† (392). But as with Zinczenko, we are well aware of the role fast food play in our lives. We understand that, though fast may be one, or the only available meal choice that we have, the way we eat can help us determine the role these foods play in our lives. Zinczenko supports his argument about the role food play in his life by giving information about his pre-college weight. â€Å"By age 15, I had packed 212 pounds of torpid tallow on my once lanky 5-foot-10 frame† (392). Even Zinczenko believes that, consumers are as equally responsible for the way they eat. However, he maintains his argument that the fast food companies bare the greater responsibility. In conclusion, both the eater and the producer are responsible for fast food related obesity, but I believe that the fast industries should bare the greater responsibility. Fast food companies must provide their consumers with proper food labels that enable them to make inform decision about what they eat. Label should not be falsified or misleading, like in the example giving by Zinczenko about the misleading label on the â€Å"chicken salad† (393). He refers to the salad as not healthy and that it is a caloric death- trap aimed at eaters who will not suspect it. Although Balko makes some really good points, his objectives seem to me as a means to an end. Zinczenko cautions that there are few or no alternatives to what we eat and that things have to change. Balko cautions that allowing food regulations for labels means letting the government between you and your waistline. In either case, we as a people have a responsibility to consider what and how we eat.

Discuss the media representation of 'Somalian piracy'. Is 'piracy' an Essay

Discuss the media representation of 'Somalian piracy'. Is 'piracy' an accurate term for what is taking place off the coa - Essay Example Furthermore, the unique dynamics of Islamization, poverty, and the effects that 20 years of incessant civil war on the only truly failed state in the world has had on the way in which Somalia and the issue of â€Å"piracy† has developed will be discussed within the lens of media representation of the issue (Samatar 2010, p. 1380). Merriam Webster’s dictionary broadly defines piracy as â€Å"an act of violence or robbery at sea†. Such a broad definition leaves little room for prevarication concerning whether or not the actions taken by groups of Somalis over the past decade or so can be understood as piracy or not. However, a more important test of determination is of course the question of how tactics, objectives, and operational mechanisms differ when one compares current Somali piracy with that of the earlier more traditional understandings of the word. What is unique with regards to Somali piracy is the fact that the actual material goods that the ships which are arrested by them are often of secondary or tertiary importance. Of primal importance is the money which can be extracted from shipping companies, governments, or interested loved-ones of the crew members of the ships which have been captured. This serves as a fundamental deviation from traditional piracy in that this is the ultimate goal which the Somali pirates pursue as opposed to a secondary or tertiary goal that traditional piracy was engaged with (Murphy 2011, p. 19). For the traditional definition of piracy on the high seas, the requisition of the goods was of primary importance with the lives and health of the crew being much lower on the list of interests that the pirates dealt with. Ultimately, in the traditional understanding of piracy, the lives of those which were captured were worth little unless it was believed that an added amount of money could be extracted by ransoming them off to interested governments, families, or trade representatives. This shift in the dyna mic that piracy has taken within the modern world is a unique hallmark of the Somali understanding of the term. Instead of seeking to acquire and sell tens of millions of dollars worth of ships and goods, the Somali pirates are almost exclusively disinterested in such an operation; instead concerned with seeking to ransom the ship, its contents, and the crew itself to interested parties the world over (Pham 2010, p. 330). The media’s interpretation of piracy in Somalia has been one that has traditionally missed the point. Although the actual day to day occurrences of piracy and associated deaths are recounted within world media, little to no attention is paid to the preceding determinants with regards to the underlying reason why piracy is currently taking place to such a high degree within Somalia (Hanson 2012, p. 524). There are a number of reasons for this media misrepresentation; however, it is the belief of this author that a large degree for the hesitancy with which Wes tern media has sought to discuss and analyze the underlying reasons for Somali piracy is the level of culpability that the West continues to feel with regards to t

Gender and Surrealism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Gender and Surrealism - Essay Example The paper "Gender and Surrealism" analyzes surrealism art in the context of gender. It would equally be necessary to indicate that surrealism had emanated as a movement, which encompassed both literature and art, and had flourished in Europe in between the first and Second World War. It should clearly be noted that surrealism, as many believe, is not a negation theory, but a positive expression through different literature and art, that support certain positive attributes in the society. It depicted directly the scenario as it was in the post world war Europe, where politics and culture had enjoyed great dominance. In the early 1900, surrealists had a dear tendency to shape constructions to relay and depict sexuality and gender, and to be more specific, masculinity. Many feminist personalities by then had forged criticism on the surrealist approaches of gender, where the woman’s body had been deemed to be of symptomatic of the man misogyny. The man, during that time, was seen to have great influence on how the woman thought about him, considering the man had been integrated fully in the vision to bring peace during and after the World War I. The feminists continue to criticize surrealism, insisting that it was meant to be a male movement and fellowship. This is amidst the celebration of women surrealists such as Dorothea Tunning and Leonora Carrington, who liven between 1971 and 2011. The critics have been on the basis that the movement has continuously pioneered negative attributes relating to women.

Emotion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Emotion - Essay Example Motivational and emotional processes give rise to a natural gift n the environment known as interaction. [2] Motivation is the desire, the willingness to do something, it is an experienced emotion. In order to understand motivation well its relationship with emotion should be understood. A person living goes through emotions when he/she achieves or does not achieve something in live. The emotions help the person to experience the benefit that was brought through achievement and the disadvantages of the lack of achievement. In emotion there is a hidden tendency to avoid something that is harmful and also has a motivational factor towards things that benefit them and lead them to act. Motivation minimizes the fear of existence and gives a feeling of safety, security and avoids fear. In order to obtain something in life you really wanted, you need to be highly motivational and not thinking about others opinion of it and aiming at it to win. [1] Somatic Theories: It lies under biological approach and was established in 1884 by William James. In this theory he states that a changed situation leads to the bodily changes which results in emotional experience revealing stirring facts about the perceptions. For example, encountering a bear in the woods results in the heart beating faster producing adrenaline. This adrenaline results in the emotion of fear rising. Cannon-Bard Theory: it also lies under the biological approach a... by James (as mentioned above) but he criticizes that the bodily changes does not just give rise to an emotion but they motivate the person to act upon it. Therefore on an encounter with a bear, fear raises and due to this emotion the person is motivated to move away from the place of danger by running away as fast as he can. Schaster's Theory: It lies under the cognitive approach and was established in 1962 by Schaster. In this emotion is thought to be the part of physiological arousal and cognitive interpretation. In this respect some experiment were conduct on varied arousal on the introduction of adrenaline as the participants were put in different situations. In this the cognitive along with the release of adrenaline in the participants or a gesture together motivation the participant into a response. For instance, when there an encounter with the bear, the adrenaline is released and the heart starts to beat at a faster rate showing that the sight of the bear is a danger and resulting in the fear arising and the person running away from the endangered area. [3] Conclusion Emotion is a spontaneous response that arises in a person due to the change in the situation resulting in the feeling of fear, happiness, anger and rage being displayed which in turn motivates the person to take action relating to the emotion. Work cited: 1) Abdulla Zarqa. "What's Your Motive" [Internet], Available at , Accessed on July 21, 2007 2) "Emotion" [Internet], Available at , Accessed on July 21, 2007 3) "In search of emotion: A brief historical review" [Internet], Available at

Industry Solutions and Services Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Industry Solutions and Services - Assignment Example The report concentrates on the factors that enable the development of products and services in a customer oriented manner. The organizational structure depends on the product and services the company develops and offers. This affects the working of functional divisions of the organization. To manufacture the customized products and services ZBZ Company should have a separate unit additional to that of production unit for installation purposes of the hardware the company produces. In the previous context the company used to manufacture and market the products for a large customer base and the installation process used to be done by distributors or assemblers of the hardware into a computer. Now this is not the case and the comp [any needs a separate division in marketing and sales department for the purpose of discussing the needs of the customers. The findings of the department should be conveyed to the production and installation departments for enabling the development of customized products. The work of the scheduling department previously used to be about the planning of production, distribution and marketing. Now the scheduling department can be assigned the work of appointments with the industry leaders to discuss about the customization of the products and to convey the results to the production department. The involvement of production department managers in the discussions of the customization processes with the customers also should be a duty of scheduling department. Previously the scheduling department was not supposed to interact with the customers but now it is inevitable. The customization of the product will decide the internal time variances in the production and marketing activities. The functional divisions of the organization have the responsibilities of marketing function making the production accountable for standards and variances. The responsibility of quality control now will be increased and this division needs much rapport with the production division to avoid the lapses in customized products. This needs the revision of traditional structures in the org anization. The organizational structure in the customized products manufacturing will receive information in the following manner. The marketing division will pass information about the customer requirements to manufacturing division and that division will pass them on to the design division, planning and cost estimation divisions. The design, planning and cost estimating divisions can coordinate their activities with manufacturing or production division to know the feasibility of the project and the priorities of the customers. After this the feedback will sent to marketing division and in turn the information is sent to customers. This sharing of information can be enabled by the scheduling department. This sharing of information from customer to all the crucial departments in the organization will achieve near zero defect in the quality. In the previous structure of the company standards are guiding forces for performing, monitoring and controlling all the activities of the compa ny. In the course of manufacturing customized products, the Quality Zero Defect, Maintenance Zero Breakdown, Materials Zero Inventory, Business Processes Zero

Ec3002 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Ec3002 - Essay Example in several distinct ways: they increase the flow of Foreign Direct Investments, speed up the internationalization of knowledge transfer, improve and increase international trade and globalize R&D activities. Generally, a multinational enterprise â€Å"that engages in foreign direct investment (FDI) and owns or, in some way, controls value-added activities in more than one country† (Dunning & Lundan 3). This definition, however, is subject to considerable criticism, for scholars in economic studies seek to distinguish between multinational enterprises that participate in â€Å"foreign-owned production and those that have increased overseas commitments† (Dunning & Lundan 3). Nevertheless, these deviations in the definition of multinational enterprises does not have anything to do with the role which MNEs play in the processes of globalization. It would be fair to say that MNEs have already turned into the essential components of the daily economic routine. MNEs play one of the dominant roles in competitive markets and are not the last drivers of globalization in the world. MNEs increase and speed up globalization via increased foreign direct investments (FDI), increased know ledge transfer, growth of the international trade, and internationalization of R&D activities. Foreign direct investments (FDI) have already become an essential feature of the deepening economic globalization. The integration of global markets and the growing number of MNEs reflect in ever rising FDI flows (Markusen & Venables 185). The second half of the 1980s was marked with the rapid advancement of the international FDI opportunities which, obviously, became the starting point of what we currently know as globalization (Markusen & Venables 186). During the six consecutive years, the worldwide stocks of FDI almost doubled and continued to grow during the 1990s (Markusen & Venables 187). Such increase in FDI is easy to explain by the growing number of MNEs, which seek to invest their resources

Corporate Cultures and Their Impact on Recruitment and Retention Essay

Corporate Cultures and Their Impact on Recruitment and Retention - Essay Example The study suggests that global companies are realizing the importance and need to invest in the human ‘capital’. They can no longer take people for granted and sit back. Global economy is expanding, business opportunities growing but the available workforce steadily reducing. A culturally strong organization succeeds in attracting and retaining the top talent and can expect to climb the ladder of success. By the close of the twentieth century, business houses came to accept that people, not cash, buildings, or equipments differentiate one company from another. Corporate culture is moving into the limelight and proving to be an untapped asset for employees and businesses alike. Researches have shown that at the time of economic turndown the companies having strong and adaptive cultures are better able to handle the financial crisis than those with weak and poorly defined cultures. The right combination of people and culture can mean the difference between the financial su ccess and failure. As technology advances corporate culture will assume an even bigger role especially in the IT sector as competition increases. Organizations today recognize the need to attract the right brains to thrive in the competitive market and retain the employees. The norms of an organization are transmitted from generation to generation and are responsible for its financial success, which is the ultimate goal of any business organization. Understanding and assessing the company culture at every stage is vital.

4g and 3g Network Essay Example for Free

4g and 3g Network Essay In this paper I will be discussing the different wireless networks, 3G and 4G. I will compare and contrast the 3G wireless networks to 4G networks. This essay shall also distinguish which wireless network has the fastest download speeds and service availability. I will identify the competition between the 3G and 4G networks, and which service customers prefer to use. I also will provide which phone services such as Verizon and ATT have the most network coverage throughout America. Concluding this article I would like for the reader to get a better understanding with the comparison of the 3G and 4G wireless networks. The 3G service is a high speed to information and voice services, made within the 3G wireless network. A 3G network is a high-speed wireless network, offering speeds of at least 144 kilobits per second. For comparison, a dial-up Internet connection on a computer offers about 56 kilobits per second. The 3G network is a tremendous difference offering a faster speed for internet access. In your daily use of this wireless network, you will notice the 3G network vary. Factors such as signal, location and, and network traffic all come into play (Liane, Cassavoy 2013). The 4G network is the newest mobile broadband service. Network companies such as Sprint, T-Mobile, and, Verizon have jumped on the bandwagon. See more: Unemployment problems and solutions essay   Unlike 3G, 4G has a connection capable of 100Mbps with high mobility†¦ up to 1Gbps with low mobility (Wi-Fi range) (Dachis 2010). Even though there access is different because one is an upgraded system, they both is still allow for consumers to access the internet and have clearer calling service. The architecture for both systems is used on a wide area. Nonetheless 4G has been integrated on a wireless LAN network and 3G is a wide area cell base, which notes that 3G is used for voice and information network (Moore 2010). The user’s perception of these networks will be that they will be able to access the web from these at higher speeds, especially with a 4G network. There are three different types of 4G that are used in the different wireless networks. On the graph from Adam Dachis article, he has listed these networks and their providers. Sprint uses WiMax; this speed is listed as an average downstream of 3-6 mbps, 10mbs peak and its 10x faster than 3G. Its coverage is nationwide covering major cities and markets. The monthly cost or user perception will be $60 for an unlimited 4G data and 5GB of a 3G data. The compatibility of the operating system is through all OS (via mobile) Hotspot. Verizon uses the LTE network, with a downstream of 5-12 mbps and an upstream of 2-5 mbps. Its coverage is listed in 38 markets and 60 major airports on December 5, 2010 with full nation-wide coverage by 2013. The monthly cost is set for $50 for 5GB, $80 for 10GB and $10 a GB for overages. The compatibility of the operating system is through Windows only (at the launch of MAC OS X support). GoingWimax.com has listed backward compatibility for LTE is with GSM and HSPA; and that WiMax is compatible with updates standard of Mobile WiMax and the previous standard of fixed Wimax. WiBro is an internet based system that is also used for service with cell phones. Its backward compatibility is based same database system as Wimax which is WiMax standard. HSPA+ is used by T-Mobile with a peak downstream of 21mbps peak upstream of 5.7mbps with up to 3x faster than 3G. The coverage provided is Nationwide of many major cities and markets. All of these providers have proven service, but it is just up to consumer on which service they prefer. The competition between the 4G carriers has become so fierce because consumers are looking for bargains and the best service; such as how faster is the speed of the data network, the monthly payment, the coverage of the network service, the devices that are offered by the providers and the value of service. Sprint had a head start with introduction of 4G. They have excellent coverage over the United States allowing for data nationwide. Sprint is the only one of the carriers to advertise average speeds and just peak rates (Moore 2010). Moore (2010) has found that Verizon has the best speed, T-Mobile and Sprint tied with the most affective cost margin, Sprint provided the device options to consumers and best value. Verizon has been able to cover more markets because LTE has been so popular. Verizon set the stage over ATT by expanding their markets to more consumers. Verizon is able to have more mbps than ATT as well. Verizon exceeded 5 Mbps during 82 percent of our download tests and 66 percent of our upload tests; ATT surpassed this number in only 68 percent of our download tests and 40 percent of our upload tests (Moore 2012). Head-to-head comparison of these two networks measures performance over the first quarter of 2012 and across multiple markets, throwing Verizon’s more mature LTE network together with ATT’s nascent one to see what performance each offers consumers. (Moore 2012) In conclusion 3G and 4G are both still reliable services. They allow users to successfully communicate over the internet and through their mobile devices. 4G will allow new/ old consumers to purchase more high tech devices for the convenience of modern technology and communication. This essay has shown that 4G is the newer model with more services and applications to be provided. It is now the most sort after network on the market, with its speed of 100Mbps of high mobility. The fight over the best network will continue in the future. Consumers are constantly researching for the newer, better, and fastest networks available. According to Moore 2010 Sprint has proven so far to be the best network, but surely Verizon and ATT are on the rise. They are following close behind to be the top network themselves. The competition is growing the quarters, so more than likely Sprint maybe surpassed by another device or network only time will tell. References Admin. 2009. â€Å"What Is the Difference Between WiMax and LTE? Re GoingWimax.com. http://www.goingwimax.com/what-is-the-difference-between-wimax-and-lte-4155/ Cassavoy, Liane. 2013. What is 3G Service? Received from About.com. http://cellphones.about.com/od/glossary/g/3G_definition.htm Dachis, Adam. 2010. Everything You Need To Know About 4G Mobile Broadband. Received from Lifehacker.com. http://lifehacker.com/5706644/everything-you-need-to-know-about-4g-mobile-broadband Kayne R. What is WiBro? WiseGeek. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-wibro.htm Moore, Bill. 2012. Solving the LTE Puzzle: Comparing LTE Performance. Received from Gidaom.com, http://gigaom.com/2012/04/14/solving-the-lte-puzzle-comparing-lte-performance/

Toyota Business Strategy In Global Environment Marketing Essay

Toyota Business Strategy In Global Environment Marketing Essay There have been two reasons of arbitrariness at work to evolve Toyota from its very humble beginning to a world renowned car maker. Firstly, the oil crisis of mid 1970s became an exogenous jolt that increased the demand for smaller and fuel-efficient vehicles in the U.S. Toyota was a making these cars and the U.S buyers who would never have bought Toyota cars , were stirred to make the purchase for the first time. Many of them got pleasantly surprised by the value offered by Toyota and became long term customers as oil prices soared. The oil crisis, in a sense, proved a welcome break and a critical incident to get entrance to the main-stream of the automobile market in U.S. The Toyota Production System can be called a paradox as on one side, all activities, production flows and connections in a Toyota plant are inflexibly scripted. Yet, its operations are extremely flexible and quite responsive to consumer demands, at the same time. It is considered that the very inflexibility of the operations which makes flexibilities reality. It is because of the operations can be regarded as constant series of controlled experiments. Upon defining any specification, it is actually making a hypothesis which can then be examined in action. This scientific method way is not forced on its workforce rather ingrained in them. It inspires them to indulge in the type of tested and experiments that are generally accepted as the basis of a learning organisation. The Toyota Production System evolved from the day to day working of the company over a long period and has actually never been written down as a manual. Toyota builds up all its working operations as experiments and i ngrains the scientific method to its workforce. The first step establishes how workers do their job. The second is how they interact with each other. The third is about the construction of the production lines. Lastly, how workers can learn to improve. Every production path, link, and action planned on these steps should have built-in tests which can indicate problems straight away. And this apparently inflexible system is made so flexible and adaptive to its ever changing environment through the repeated responses to those in built tests. This made it well positioned in the mist of 1970s oil crisis. Toyota coming from the Japan where size and fuel economy were big issues then in the U. S. But after the Oil crisis, Toyota just had want the U.S consumers were looking for in a dramatically changed environment. According to Louis Pasture, Fortune favours the prepared mind, and this small piece of fortune could have proved useless had Toyota made poorer cars. But instead, U.S consumers straight away realized its quality which was a reflection of its tradition and strategy of production excellence, of reduction in costs and defects and improvement in the quality. The use of thorough standardization to achieve a strategic flexibility is an apparent paradox at the centre of Toyotas excellent quality and efficiency through making a lot more predictable quality and timing outcomes than possible otherwise. Common architecture, standardization of the processes and reusability are the concepts and tools included in this kind of principle. Taking waste out of the product development process is absolute critical. Actually, standardization of skills, processes and designs enable for the customization of specific programme, broader individual responsibility and a JIT HR strategy, more elastic capacities for product development and quite a few other benefits. The ministry of international trade and industry (MITI) encouraged Japanese firm to enter to automobile industry despite establish competitors from the West by imposing high tariffs discouraging import and prohibiting foreign ownership. Post-war conditions put Japan into a country lacking significant capital, so that Japan had to rely mostly on producing its own technology. Toyota family vehicles are preferred and popular. Toyota needs to develop new technology to enhance their diesel engines, to make less pollution which will impact the low CO2 emission in environment, and which will be socially benefit for the world. Toyota needs consistent policies, regulations and incentives to accelerate technology and acceptance of technology. Toyota overall technology is good but its electric cars have an issue of less battery time etc. In Toyota the process of decision making is mostly done by the top level management according to the facts and findings of the research departments. Toyota got very strict organisational structure in order to achieve their high goals in international market. Firstly Taiichi Ohno was the guy who basically designed their management style and gave the Toyotas most famous concept of Toyota production system or lean manufacturing system. According to Ohno work means the production of the perfect goods only, because he thinks that if a machine is not producing the perfect goods then it is not in good working condition or maybe not working. This concept tells us that Toyota is very quality conscious. But actually now Toyota is being questioned about the quality after millions of recalls and hundreds of accidents in last four months to Toyota drivers. But actually in Toyota when the decision making is done then the workers are really pushed hard by the managers to achieve the targets. And thats why currently Toyota is facing problem with Brake override system and they had to recall millions of cars, because software problem related to brake and acceleration system and in some models gas pedal sticks with the floor pad. All competitors of Toyota are already using this brake override Technology but Toyota was slow to understand this technology but now they are saying that in future this system will be available in all Toyota upcoming cars. But honestly speaking in U.S Toyotas reputation has been reduced tremendously after some accidents due to their mistakes. And now currently at first place Toyota should do something to get the customer confidence back to prosper in future market. http://www.mainstreet.com/article/smart-spending/autos/what-toyota-should-have-done-brake-override?page=1 http://www.egmcartech.com/2010/02/26/inaba-toyota-shouldve-done-a-better-job-sharing-information-with-lawmakers/ Toyota needs to improve the knowledge management system because only then they can learn from their past mistakes and their solutions and by doing so they can make a strategy to avoid those mistakes in future. Toyota should be quick to spot new technologies those are highly recommended by different markets for the safety of the road users. Try to design products for different regions according to the needs of local people where the final product will be used. As company want to be more globalised then we should try to build a database in which everything is available for each and every individual who is working in Toyota anywhere in the world. There should be a system through which company can communicate more effectively to decrease the safety defect issues in products around the globe. Always try to consider local knowledge about the industry before designing any type of vehicle for local people and presenting or marketing it around the globe. Try to do more than competitors in every market to please the consumer, because this will contribute to brand loyalty and then people will have more confidence to buy a Toyota product. As Toyota want to compete in the international market in more countries then marketing strategy for each country or region should be different and according to the local way of thinking. Toyota should try to localise production and supply base to avoid expenses like storage and transportation. And it also enables them work more quickly and efficiently in most of the times. Find workers which are needed for the job and develop them according to the needs of the company to achieve high and efficient productivity. Toyota should always keep a look on all types of suppliers and their product quality because its directly related with the Toyotas product quality. As product designs and technologies are changing day by day thats why Toyota should not indulge itself to long term contracts with suppliers. Train and encourage innovative people working within the company to create something new and exciting for international markets according to the demand of public and international standards. There should be no compromise on the user safety of the product in any kind of circumstances. For the purpose of more globalization of Toyota supply chain management should be improved to oblige the commitments in international market. Dealers working with Toyota motors should be trained in such a way that customer service and support should be their main priority. The decisions that are concerned with the environment in which the firm operates, the entire resources, owner of company and the interface between the two are known as strategic decision. Here are some of the characteristic of strategic decision Strategic decisions play an important role for an organisation. These decisions may be related to the new resources, organising others or reallocating others. Strategic decision deal with the threats and opportunities with harmonizing organizational resource capabilities. Strategic decisions are long term decision. Strategic decisions are what is our future panning and these decisions are made very carefully. Strategic decisions are always arranged according to the organisation mission and vision. These decisions are related to the overall planning of the organisation. These decisions deal with the organisation growth that how we have to do planning for the successful future of the organisation. Strategic are always at the top most level, as these deal with the future so these decision are always uncertain and involve lot of risk. Strategic decisions are complex in nature. Figure 1 Strategic decisions are always designed to help the senior management to improve the quality of their decisions. The whole process of strategic decision gives all the participants a good grasp of modern concept of strategic analysis. However all the decision are made by the managers and the people at the senior level but strategic decision will help the managers that how to deal with the process of decision making. Cost leadership mean to gain the competitive advantage over the rivals in market. In order to gain the competitive advantage firms always try to recruit cheap labour and produce the goods at low cost. Firms try to sell their products at average price to gain higher profits than its rivals or they sell their products below the average industry price to the higher market share. However it does not mean that low cost always lead to low price of the product. If you are the only producer of the product in the market then you can produce the product at the low price and can sell the product at your desired price. Some of the organisations are very good in that strategy, such as Toyota, they are not producing high quality autos at low price level, but they have their brand name and use high quality marketing skills to maintain a premium price policy. (www.marketingteacher.com). (www.coursework4you.co.uk) Figure 1 Micheal poters generic model (1985) Just in time: Just in time mean what is needed, when its needed and the quantity needed. In order to produce a large number of products such as automobile, which consist of almost 30,000 parts, it is very important to create a detailed production plan, for example. If we work on the production plan we can eliminate so many factors like waste, inconsistencies in production and work, and unreasonable requirement and this all can lead to an improved productivity of product. Toyota use pull approach for the production like kanban card paced pull strategy to minimize the inventory level. In the pull strategy customer demands the product and pull it out from the delivery channel. This is because when the demand and the production of the product in very high and it is used to decrease the lead time. Differentiating your product what is also call a pull strategy in these days is basically a genuine pull strategy. And all thye marketing approach is diverted to this pull strategy. The just in time pioneer Toyota using pull strategy which manages there inventory level in the cost effective away and stringent possible way that does not mean that the product is made and pushed to the customer but it is produced in response to the customer. This strategy is becoming common now a days and every firm tries to follows this strategy. Toyota is using a cacr electronic to increase the communication between people, society and automobile. To achieve their goal they have dividing ITS in to five basic areas to work on. So by the managing and coordinating the relation between them the plan is main tain the high growth and development which is called as total Mobility Company. The first car that has the more complex and sophisticated function which include onboard computers and sensor which control the car function and second they are providing the multimedia for their vehicles which represent the new field for the mobile communication. Conceptual diagram of the Kanban System Two kinds of kanban (the production instruction kanban and the parts retrieval kanban) are used for managing parts. (www2.toyota.co.jp) http://www.managementstudyguide.com/strategic-decisions.htm http://tools.ashridge.org.uk/website/content.nsf/FileLibrary/4C8918B0EA4CDB988025718E00558E14/$file/STDC.pdf http://www2.toyota.co.jp/en/vision/production_system/just.html Inside the mind of Toyota: management principles for enduring growth   By Satoshi Hino ..page number 327 edition 2006 Information technology strategies: how leading firms use IT to gain an advantage   By William V. Rapp..page number 149..152edition 2002 http://www.marketingteacher.com/Lessons/lesson_generic_strategies.htm http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml http://www.coursework4you.co.uk/essays-and-dissertations/porter-generic-strategies.php As we know that Toyota is the leading automobile company but to gain the competitive advantage on its rivals in automobile industry is not so easy. There are many competitive challenges which Toyota is facing in the global market environment. Basically competitive challenges are a research offering design to help asset management, to improve the productivity and effectiveness of a business and to maintain the standard performance against competitors. Competitive challenges are confront in annual competitive challenges report on the competitive dynamics of the industry. Competitive challenges identify the inefficiencies in an organisation. It also examine the; profitability, productivity, asset growth, and product competitiveness, customer satisfaction and marketing. Senior managers are enabling to plan business strategic objectives by highlighting the areas of success and failure compared to peers. It allows you to clearly identify sales resource efficiency. http://www.greenwich.com/WMA/products_services/comp_chal/comp_chal_home visited 29/03/10 at 21.20 Toyota is great example of what happens when your competitors build a strategic advantage by setting a high standard in a critical area. For more than two decades Toyota and Honda have been the quality leaders in attracting car buyers who wants better reliability and quality in their vehicles. In Dec-2009, the economists described the problem of quality issues which Toyota is facing and how it is trying to deal with them. Akio Toyoda the president of company recognises that there is need for an innovative design to beat competitors. That may be challenge. Toyotas success has been built on its reliability and standard of quality. http://www.baldrige.com/sector/business/toyotas-strategic-challenge/ To maintain quality standards and building an innovative design is not an easy task. Toyota never compromise on quality but still having problems due to its massive production. Consequently, to establish in the global market the three main technologies, TPS (Toyota production system, TDS (Toyota development system), TMS (Toyota marketing system) should be established and strengthened. http://williamghunter.net/images/toyota_management_structure.png Management structure at Toyota In global market a firm face number of challenges these challenges the effect the competitive and determines how the firm can achieve economies of scale in multi countries environment. In striving to develop a strategy that will make it more competitive, the firm must deal with four interrelated challenges of global marketing strategy. To bring the change and be innovative is very big challenge for every firm and for Toyota as well. Rapid change pervades product development, production processes and it also builds the competitive pressure as customers more mobile and is exposed new ideas through new global media. Introducing a new model every year has become compulsory which incurs high cost and also keeps in consideration the taste, culture and infrastructure of the area. Rapid change has both positive and negative aspects. To bring a positive change you have to be very care full about the utilization of resources effectively. For instance, we know very well that Toyota launched its new model Prius and the car has a manufacture fault. It was a good change but lake of quality management and now faced a huge loss and company recalled for its 8.5 million cars because of its accelerator and floor mat problem. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8505402.stm http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=enq=four+challenges+of+global+marketmeta=aq=faqi=aql=oq=gs_rfai= Another challenge which most of the companies face is complexity of managing international operations. Technological advances enable management to control operations on a broader geographic scale but at the same time these advances add complexity, as management has to analyse tools and skills to handle the international infrastructure. As we know Toyota is already facing a quality problem because of its massive production. As we know Toyota mostly designed its all product in Japan according to the local environment and launches the same product in the international market. It increases the complexity of product. Yet it is difficult for the organization which elevates quantity its main goal instead to focus on providing the highest quality. Toyota is putting more pressure on their supplier to increase their production without listening to their possible effects on quality. This is because of in experience Toyota managers and rapid expansion. The level of complexity increase when Toyot a introduced a hybrid vehicle, the Prius with its two power sources which requires greater engineering expertise. http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/02/toyota_the_downside_of_hyper_g.html Increasing competition in global market brings another challenge to Toyota at all stages of involvement in international market. In countries such as India, China, Malaysia the threat of competition is more because, their own domestic market is opening up to foreign competition, increasing more awareness of international market opportunities. Competition can be on different basis like delivering superior quality to consumers. However Toyotas success on global market depends on knowledge accumulation and effective use of resources. Introduction of hybrid car by Toyota is one of great example of building a competitive advantage and capturing the global market. http://www.hoovers.com/company/Toyota_Motor_Corporation/crxxsi-1.html http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=enq=four+challenges+of+global+marketmeta=aq=faqi=aql=oq=gs_rfai= This challenge relates to the firms social responsibilities in the global market place. Environmental issues for example, to limit pollution of the atmosphere through the emission of gases and other toxic substances is one of the challenges Toyota is facing. To produce and design which are environmentally friendly is very challenging. Rapid change, higher competition and increased complexity in the global market make it more difficult. To become environment friendly Toyota has come a long way since they launch their first hybrid car ten years ago. http://www.design21sdn.com/organizations/196/posts/997 These are some problems which is Toyota facing from last few years. The problems started in 1998 with Toyotas luxury car Lexus and now Toyota again in trouble with its newly launched Prius hybrid car. After becoming the giant of automobile Toyota looks bit careless. But when we talk to Toyotas representatives then we found that the reality is different. After the recent scenario people have started thinking about Toyota. In the light of Toyotas recent quality failure we can easily say that Toyota is only focusing on massive production. We can say if Toyota start focusing on some current issues which company facing now then Toyota can gain its lost repute easily. References Inside the mind of Toyota: management principles for enduring growth   By Satoshi Hino ..page number 327 edition 2006 Information technology strategies: how leading firms use IT to gain an advantage   By William V. Rapp..page number 149..152edition 2002 http://www.thinkingmanagers.com/companies/toyota.php http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/02/can_toyota_hansei_its_way_out.html http://www.mainstreet.com/article/smart-spending/autos/what-toyota-should-have-done-brake-override?page=1 http://www.egmcartech.com/2010/02/26/inaba-toyota-shouldve-done-a-better-job-sharing-information-with-lawmakers/ http://www.managementstudyguide.com/strategic-decisions.htm http://tools.ashridge.org.uk/website/content.nsf/FileLibrary/4C8918B0EA4CDB988025718E00558E14/$file/STDC.pdf http://www2.toyota.co.jp/en/vision/production_system/just.html http://www.marketingteacher.com/Lessons/lesson_generic_strategies.htm http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml http://www.coursework4you.co.uk/essays-and-dissertations/porter-generic-strategies.php http://www.greenwich.com/WMA/products_services/comp_chal/comp_chal_home visited 29/03/10 at 21.20 http://www.baldrige.com/sector/business/toyotas-strategic-challenge/ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8505402.stm http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=enq=four+challenges+of+global+marketmeta=aq=faqi=aql=oq=gs_rfai= http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2010/02/toyota_the_downside_of_hyper_g.html http://www.hoovers.com/company/Toyota_Motor_Corporation/crxxsi-1.html http://www.design21sdn.com/organizations/196/posts/997 http://www.fastlane.com.au/News_Toyota/vision_2010.htm http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100210132838AAHTQJm http://www.fastlane.com.au/News_Toyota/vision_2010.htm http://www.mainstreet.com/article/smart-spending/autos/what-toyota-should-have-done-brake-override?page=1 http://www.egmcartech.com/2010/02/26/inaba-toyota-shouldve-done-a-better-job-sharing-information-with-lawmakers/ www.marketingteacher.com www.coursework4you.co.uk http://www.managementstudyguide.com/strategic-decisions.htm http://tools.ashridge.org.uk/website/content.nsf/FileLibrary/4C8918B0EA4CDB988025718E00558E14/$file/STDC.pdf http://www2.toyota.co.jp/en/vision/production_system/just.html http://www.marketingteacher.com/Lessons/lesson_generic_strategies.htm http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml http://www.coursework4you.co.uk/essays-and-dissertations/porter-generic-strategies.php http://www.greenwich.com/WMA/products_services/comp_chal/comp_chal_home visited 29/03/10 at 21.20 http://www.baldrige.com/sector/business/toyotas-strategic-challenge/ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8505402.stm http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=enq=four+challenges+of+global+marketmeta=aq=faqi=aql=oq=gs_rfai= http://www.design21sdn.com/organizations/196/posts/997

Monitoring The Technological Economic And Social Environments Marketing Essay

Monitoring The Technological Economic And Social Environments Marketing Essay Introduction In this day and age, the technological, economic and social environments are developing at a rapid pace, also it plays a crucial role in deciding consumption. The technological, economic and social environments belong to the marketing environment. According to Kotler (2004, p. 87) marketing environment can be defined as consisting of the actors and forces outside marketing that affect markers ability to develop and maintain successful relationships with its target customers. The marketing environment offers both opportunities and threats. Some assert that the monitoring of the technological, economic and social environments greatly contributes to anticipating customer requirements. However, others consider that it is not the significant element for anticipating although it sometimes proves successful. This essay will attempt to demonstrate that the monitoring of the technological, economic and social environments greatly contributes to anticipating customer requirements, although it also brings some problems, and companies should constantly watch and adapt to the marketing environment in order to seek opportunities and ward off threats. To demonstrate this, this essay will show in three aspects, the monitoring of the technological, economic and social environments and how far they can anticipate customer requirements respectively. At the same time, the problems of the monitoring will be discussed. The monitoring of the technological environment The technological environment is perhaps one of the fastest changing factors in the marketing environment. Kotler (2004, p. 107) told about technology, as follow: Technology has released such wonders as penicillin, organ transplants, notebook computer and the Internet. It has also released such horrors as nuclear missiles, chemical weapons and assault rifles, and such mixed blessings as cars, televisions and credit cards. Some concede the significance of the technological environment but also propose that keeping pace with technological changes is becoming more challenging for companies today. For one thing, the technological life cycle is getting shorter. Take mobile phones as an example: 10 years ago, mobile phones were basically used to communicate, nowadays the functions of mobiles include Multimedia playback device, high-speed web browser, camera, Bluetooth and so on. The update pace of the technological environment is too fast to always track. For another thing, technology and innovations require heavy investment in research and development. For instance, the development of a drug is an enormously expensive process. According to the published average cost of drug development is approximately $800million (John and Ezekiel, 2005). The increasing cost of research and development makes it more difficult to master a wide range of technologies, even for big companies. However, it is a trend that technology develops faster and faster which means the development of society. Obviously, new technology would replace old technology which means that when old industries overlooked new technologies, their business declined. Hence, the companies must track technological trends and aware whether or not these changes will affect their products continued ability to satisfy customer needs. Also, there are some solutions for the high research and development budgets including collaborating with other companies to develop new products and technologies, acquiring smaller, innovative companies which cannot afford to develop and commercialise new products and technologies (Kotler, 2004, p. 108). Furthermore, the corporations may recover their expenses through charging a high price for the new products and innovation after monopolizing the market (John and Ezekiel, 2005). Consequently, it is essential for a company to stay ahead of others and update their own technology before it becomes outdated. Marketers need to understand the changing technological environment and how new technologies can satisfy customer needs. Example can be found in the case of Toyota Prius which are introduced in 2000 as their first hybrid car. As for the technologies used in Prius, Kotler wrote: The electric motor starts the car and operates at low speeds, using a nickel metal-hydride battery. At higher speeds, the Prius automatically switches to the internal combustion engine. Under normal motorway driving conditions, it should get 28 km per litre. (2004, p. 121) The Prius would get twice as many kilometres per litre of petrol, it costs about  £4,000 more than the Toyota Echo, although they are almost the same car. In spite of its high price, it has achieved great success after it was introduced. Kotler clearly highlighted the success: Between July and October 2000, Toyota sold 2,610 Priuses and had difficulty keeping up with demand. By the end of October 2000, the cars were waitlisted until January. (2004, p. 121) Toyota spend  £200 million on the whole marketing budget of the Prius in 2002, the reason why Toyota spend so much on it is competition and the new opportunities of new technology. Kotler (2004, p. 122) also pointed out that all car manufacturers have plans to move to hybrids to raise petrol mileage and lower emissions, including Ford, DaimlerChrysler and General Motors. It is clear that there are many reasons why people may want a revolutionary car. Some enthusiasts are crazy about scientific and technological advances and want the newest products. Others rebel against fuel price increase and prefer less-fuel consuming cars with hi-tech. Toyota acquired what their customers want and how new technologies can serve customer needs, as a result, it obtained significant success in the campaign of hybrid cars. To summarize, the technological environment is perhaps the most dramatic element to decide our consumption which creates both threats and new opportunities, therefore, to anticipate the customer requirements, marketers should watch the following trends in technology and try to adapt to these changes. They must stay ahead of trends so that they can make new marketing strategies, rather than becoming outdated and suffering the business decline. The monitoring of the economic environment The economic environment consists of factors that affect consumer purchasing power and spending patterns. It is manifest that consumer purchasing power is a vital factor in economic environment. Nowadays, the financial crisis still has detrimental impacts upon varies domains. Some studies have indicated that around 50% of businesses failed in the first three years of economic crisis, and a number of business closures have been the byproduct of an uncertain economy. However, several companies have withstood the test of time, such as Banco Popular, Ford Motor Co., Coca-Cola, Johnson Johnson and Sears (Caribbean Business, 2008). In this situation, how far the monitoring of economic environment can help to anticipate the customer requirements has become a heated topic. Examples would be mentioned as follow: One example is that according to Howard and Begun (2001), the economy crisis has made bargain-hunting rage, even high-end brands are trying to lower their prices, such as The May Conde Nast Traveler featured an unprecedented list of Cheap Chic hotels. Zagat also published its first Americas Best Meal Deals. And after dying out in the rich early 90s, the Blue Light Special is booming again at Kmart with a different image. It is as thrifty as before, but now it is also prevalent among the youth. Another example is that the National Association of Resale and Thrift Shops, which represent more than 1,000 thrift, resale and consignment shop members nationwide, conducted a survey which showed that fourth-quarter 2008 sales were up an average of 30 percent in more than 71 percent of the stores (Consumers Making the Shift to Thrift, 2009). All these successful cases demonstrate that the marketers should always monitor the major trends and shift their marketing strategies to satisfy their cus tomer needs. As we can see, when countries experience an economic collapse or an economic recession, consumer purchasing power would reduce which lead to consumers spending more carefully and seeking greater value in the products and services they buy. The successful companies notice this information and take swift steps to satisfy the customer needs which make they survive the economic recession, even create new opportunities for them. Moreover, customer spending pattern is also significant in the economic environment. Hence, marketers should also watch the changes of customer spending pattern. For example, to curb its greatly increasing population, the Chinese governments make laws to limit families to one child only. As a result, Chinese children tend to be over-spoiled and fussed as never before. Several studies show that parents in the average Beijing household spend about 40 percent of their income on their cherished only child. This trend has encouraged toy companies including Denmarks Lego Group, Japans Bandai Company (known for its Mighty Morphin Power Rangers) and Americas Mattel to enter the Chinese market (Marketing: Chinas (only) children get the royal treatment, 1995). The example shows the significance of monitoring of the customer spending pattern and reveals that marketers should determine how economic trends affect spending pattern and how they translate into marketing threats and opportunities for the companies. Nevertheless, some argue that the monitoring of economic environment cannot be always valid to anticipate the customer requirements. For instance, the luxury market is insulated from the economic decline, PwC partner Guy Gillon asserted that within the wider luxury sector, only 16% of consumers said that the economic crisis had resulted in a significant decline in their expense. PwC was commissioned by Abta to carry out exclusive researches to coincide with the inaugural Luxury Travel Forum, which attracts almost 100 delegates (Buyers rich and willing but getting more savvy, 2009). Consumers who have greatest purchasing power are likely to belong to the higher-income groups, whose higher-incomes mean that their spending patterns are less susceptible to economic changes than those of lower-income groups. Therefore, it seems that the monitoring of economic environment does not have great help in this situation. It is conceded that the monitoring of economic environment is not always effective, but it is still extremely important to anticipate customer requirements. Changes in major economic variables such as income, cost of living, spending pattern have a large impact on the market. Companies watch these variables by using economic forecasting. Companies do not have to be closed down in an economic downturn or in a boom. With proper warnings, they can take advantages of changes in the economic environment. The monitoring of the social environment Social environment in this essay refers to a host of domains including demographic, political and cultural environment. Kotler (2004, p. 91) clearly defined the demographic environment: Demography is the study of human populations in terms of size, density, location, age, gender, race, occupation and other statistics. The demographic environment is of considerable interest to marketers because it involves people, and people make up markets. Demographic changing greatly influences the market requirements, such as a growing population means growing customer needs to satisfy, and then marketers are able to anticipate customer needs for some products and services. Also, marketing decisions are strongly affected by developments in the political environment. The political environment includes laws, government agencies and pressure groups that influence and limit various organizations and individuals, such as legislation regulating business, growth of public interest groups and increased emphasis on ethics and socially responsible actions (Kotler, 2004, p. 109). In addition, the cultural environment which is made up of institutions and other forces affects societys basic values, perceptions, preferences and behaviors. Individuals shape their basic beliefs and values when growing up in a certain society. The cultural environment plays a vital role in marketing decisions making, marketers must be aware of these cultural influenc es and how these influences might vary across societies (Kotler, 2004, p. 111). All of these elements have some impact on consumption, when marketers attempt to anticipate the customer needs, they should aware of all of these elements and how they influence the customer requirements, thereby making their marketing strategies appropriately. To demonstrate the importance of monitoring the social environment to anticipate customer needs, we take the monitoring of demographic environment as an example: According to Kotler (2004, p. 91), demographic environment refers to population size and growth trends, changing age structure of a population, the changing family, rising number of educated people and so on. Demographic shifts have important implications for marketing managers. For example, the rising ageing population will make a growing demand for healthcare products, pensions and services to cater to older consumer needs. According to Bentley and Ross (2006), the over-50s are becoming more comfortable with technology. An independent report conducted by Saga Holidays found that rather than keeping away from new media, over a quarter (27%) of the 1,000 people aged 50 and over questioned purchase goods online. The same analysis discovered that a third (37%) regularly send text messages. Meanwhile, a recent survey by Continental Research of the growth of the so-called silver surfer market revealed that in the last year, home Internet use among the over-55s has increased by more than 50%, growing from 2.9 million in 2004, to 4.4 million in 2005. The findings will remind travel companies to capture this fast-growing and affluent section of the holidaying public. Sagas website provides a good example of how travel retailers can target older travelers. At web design consultancy Foviance, director Catriona Campbell considered companies that want to capture older web users need to make their websites accessible and simple to use. To build on its brand as an over-50s specialist, Saga launched an online travel shop, SAGAtravelshop.com last month. The website makes consumers able to buy dynamically package trips as well as buy package holidays. The charity Help the Aged (Ageing Europe faces up to need for pension reform, 2003, p. 18) pointed out that now over-60s are more affluent and active, with lifestyles that are more similar to those of people in their 40s and 50s. Indeed, some companies, like Saga Holiday, are already aware of this demographic shift and adapting p roduct marketing and design to cater to older consumer demands. The changing family also plays a vital role in the demographic environment. The changing family which means the notion of the ideal family -mum, dad and two kids- has lately been changed. People are marrying later and having fewer children. Also, the number of working women is increasing including working mothers. This trend has boomed the child day-care business, cleaning and catering services, increased consumption of convenience foods, career-oriented womens clothing and many other business opportunities. For instance, Britain and America are around the top of both the convenience-food league and the working-woman league. The increasing of working women is pushing the time-saving trend and the consumption of time-saving products like convenience foods. Mark Price, who is the marketing director of Waitrose, Britains top-of-the-range supermarket, pointed out that the companys biggest item in meals at its Canary Wharf (London) branch is the ready-mixed Caesar salad in a box. It costs  £1 ($1.70) less if you buy all the ingredients and mix them yourself, however, people prefer the convenient but expensive one. Ready meals from supermarkets become increasingly popular in Britain. Ten years ago, the sector barely existed while now it is worth  £1.5 billion and is growing at 6% a year. These days, Tesco launches 1,200 new convenience products a year and the variety boosts consumption at the same time (Make it convenient, 2003). Also, it is difficult to monitoring the demographic, political and cultural environments at the same time, and it is complicated to analyze all elements to anticipate the customer requirements. Furthermore, similar to the economic environment, some cases prove that the monitoring of the social environment to anticipating customer requirements cannot be always valid, especially when some unpredictable affairs happens, Yang and Li (2008) showed that in the April of 2008, Carrefour which is a French retail firm encounter a sudden crisis in China. The crisis stems from the widely spreading posts on the BBS, with some political reasons the posts call on all Chinese people not to go shopping in Carrefour on 1st May. And this appeal achieved a huge number of netizens supports. The survey of whether or not boycott Carrefour conducted by Sina Finance showed that over 560,000 users asserted that they would not go to Carrefour in the whole month. It is not difficult to image that what a large l oss for Carrefour, however, it is cannot be monitored because Carrefour is extremely popular in China which have 73 hypermarkets, 8 supermarkets and 8 champions around the China. To conclude, although it is difficult to monitor the social environment and the monitoring is not always valid to anticipate customer requirements, there is no doubt that the monitoring of social environment greatly contributes to anticipating customer requirements. Therefore, the smart marketers know how to track the demographic trends and indicate what their target customers want, and then take swift actions to cater this situation. Conclusion In summary, this essay has attempted to demonstrate that the monitoring of the technological, economic and social environments greatly contributes to anticipating customer requirements, although it also brings some problems, and companies should constantly watch and adapt to the marketing environment in order to seek opportunities and ward off threats. However, it is difficult to imagine a time when all the problems can be resolved, the situation is certainly hopeful and suggests real developments may be made in the future.

The Yellow Wallpaper -- essays research papers

Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper is a short story that deals with many different issues that woman in the 19th century had to deal with on a daily basis. Some of these issues were within their control, but many of them were outside of the realm of control for women. The main point that I will focus on is how restricted societal roles can cause insanity. I will do this by deciphering the meaning of the "yellow wallpaper" and its symbolism. In my opinion, I believe that once we get a better understanding of the author's interest in this subject area and get a feel for life in the 19th century, then we will have a better understanding of the story. First, let's take a look at the background of Gilman before and after she wrote The Yellow Wallpaper. Gilman lived during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and she definitely had her fair share of troubles. Her biggest struggle in life was living within the constraints of a society that put women in a class apart from everyone else; when in her heart she felt that she was an equal counterpart to men. She suffered depression from this problem for many years, until finally she was seem by a world-famous neurologist, Dr. Weir Mitchell, who simply prescribed her with rest. This "rest period" sent her into an even deeper state of depression, which she didn't come out of until she tried to resume her normal life, along with joining the American Woman Suffrage Association as a writer and active participant. Unfortunately, Gilman's life got so bad that her condition got worse and she fell to the insanity level, eventually causing her to commit suicide with chloroform. Now that we have a little background on the author, we can take a closer look at the actual work and its characters. The two main characters of the story a narrator and her husband, John, and the story takes place in the 19th century. Life for the two is like most other marriages in this time frame, only the narrator is not like most other wives. She has this inner desire to be free from the societal roles that confine her and to focus on her writing, while John in content with his life and thinks that his wife overreacts to everything. Traditionally, in this era, the man was responsible for taking care of the woman both financially and emotionally, while the woman was solely responsible for remaining at home. This w... ...John comes home and finds the door locked. He begs her to open it and she tells him "The key is down by the front door under a plantain leaf!" (Gilman 669) When he comes back and opens the door, he sees her ripping the rest of the paper off the wall, with the rope tied around her and he faints. This is when John realizes that his wife has reached the point of hysteria and is insane. But, the narrator sees it differently. She declares that she is now free by saying: "I've got out at last,..in spite of you and Jane! And I've pulled off most of the paper, so you can't put me back!" (Gilman 669) The one theme that I pulled out of The Yellow Wallpaper only cracks the surface of understanding this story. The wallpaper was used by Gilman as a medium to expose the constraints that were placed upon women in the 19th century. The same constraints that she utterly despised and tried so hard to get rid of them. The narrator's overexposure to the wallpaper was just like Gilman's overexposure to societal roles. They both needed to get out in order to keep their minds intact. Eventually they both did, but it took a long time and a big toll on their mental health and psyche. The Yellow Wallpaper -- essays research papers Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper is a short story that deals with many different issues that woman in the 19th century had to deal with on a daily basis. Some of these issues were within their control, but many of them were outside of the realm of control for women. The main point that I will focus on is how restricted societal roles can cause insanity. I will do this by deciphering the meaning of the "yellow wallpaper" and its symbolism. In my opinion, I believe that once we get a better understanding of the author's interest in this subject area and get a feel for life in the 19th century, then we will have a better understanding of the story. First, let's take a look at the background of Gilman before and after she wrote The Yellow Wallpaper. Gilman lived during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and she definitely had her fair share of troubles. Her biggest struggle in life was living within the constraints of a society that put women in a class apart from everyone else; when in her heart she felt that she was an equal counterpart to men. She suffered depression from this problem for many years, until finally she was seem by a world-famous neurologist, Dr. Weir Mitchell, who simply prescribed her with rest. This "rest period" sent her into an even deeper state of depression, which she didn't come out of until she tried to resume her normal life, along with joining the American Woman Suffrage Association as a writer and active participant. Unfortunately, Gilman's life got so bad that her condition got worse and she fell to the insanity level, eventually causing her to commit suicide with chloroform. Now that we have a little background on the author, we can take a closer look at the actual work and its characters. The two main characters of the story a narrator and her husband, John, and the story takes place in the 19th century. Life for the two is like most other marriages in this time frame, only the narrator is not like most other wives. She has this inner desire to be free from the societal roles that confine her and to focus on her writing, while John in content with his life and thinks that his wife overreacts to everything. Traditionally, in this era, the man was responsible for taking care of the woman both financially and emotionally, while the woman was solely responsible for remaining at home. This w... ...John comes home and finds the door locked. He begs her to open it and she tells him "The key is down by the front door under a plantain leaf!" (Gilman 669) When he comes back and opens the door, he sees her ripping the rest of the paper off the wall, with the rope tied around her and he faints. This is when John realizes that his wife has reached the point of hysteria and is insane. But, the narrator sees it differently. She declares that she is now free by saying: "I've got out at last,..in spite of you and Jane! And I've pulled off most of the paper, so you can't put me back!" (Gilman 669) The one theme that I pulled out of The Yellow Wallpaper only cracks the surface of understanding this story. The wallpaper was used by Gilman as a medium to expose the constraints that were placed upon women in the 19th century. The same constraints that she utterly despised and tried so hard to get rid of them. The narrator's overexposure to the wallpaper was just like Gilman's overexposure to societal roles. They both needed to get out in order to keep their minds intact. Eventually they both did, but it took a long time and a big toll on their mental health and psyche.

Mayans :: History

Mayans The Mayans believe that Mother Earth was a gigantic monster. It was an alligator, toad, and a turtle combined. Above her was a sky with a layer for each planet and spheres of movement for the sun and the moon. Below her was the underworld where heavenly bodies passed when out of sight. All around her were the spirits of rain and thunder. The deities of the food plants and animals attended her. All nature was alive and it was constantly dying and being reborn (Burland 1771). The Mayans are American Indian people who lived in southern Mexico (Miller "Maya" Grolier). The Yucatan was the center of the Mayan civilization from about the 1st century B.C. ("Yucantan" Grolier). They flourished in Mexico and central America from 250 to 1600 A.D. ("History of Agriculture" Grolier). Their ancestors had crossed the Bering land Bridge from Asia (Miller "Maya" Grolier). Honduras was once a part of the Mayan Empire. It had flourished between 250 and 950 A.D. (Seligson "Honduras" Grolier). The Mayans also had lived in Mexican states: Yucantan and Chiapas, British Honduras, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador (Burland 1770) By 1200 B.C., they had dominated trade routes. The trade routes extended from the modern Mexico state of Guerrero to Costa Rica (Miller "Maya" Grolier). The Mayans had constant cultural and commercial contact from other tribes such as the Aztecs. They were with the central and coastal Mexican civilization that had influenced them and influenced other cultures (Harrison "History of Latin America" Grolier). The Mayans worshiped peace deities (Matthews 45). They also worshiped a creator who lived beyond the sky, and believed it was male and female. Mayans also believed that males were more important (Burland 1771). They explain this with the fact that man came first (Thompson Internet). They also believe in satisfying the creators and fear death. The Mayans had similar beliefs of creation and similar and not similar gods with the Greeks, had a belief in a Heaven and a Hell, four attempts at making humans and three different worlds made. The Greeks had believed there was nothing, that the world began with Chaos, which is similar to the Mayan belief that there was no Earth, no sun and no moon. The only existence was the house of Gucumatz, which is Heaven where the father and mother of all creatures lived. The other is the house of the Ahauab de Xibalba, which is Hell.

Toni Morrison’s Beloved: The Modern Gothic Novel

The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept that Toni Morrison’s Beloved is a modern Gothic novel. It can be argued that Morrison uses many techniques derived from the Gothic period to master her story of Sethe, a former slave haunted by the ghost of her murdered daughter, Beloved. It is the many interwoven techniques of storytelling that make this novel a challenge to analyze but also so integral to the telling of America’s collective past. The novel encompasses trauma, making the reader uncomfortable with its subject matter.Morrison tells a story not told before while weaving the spectacular into a very real situation. This novel makes the reader question, not only the content but how it is being conveyed, while masterfully, also complex in nature. Part of what makes Beloved and other modern Gothic novels so enthralling is its ability to convey mystery, darkness; the unknown as a realism to the reader. It parts its characters in situations that seem completely interesting, gives them a past that is tragic, maybe somewhat scandalous and puts the characters in a limbo of an unfamiliar place, where mystical events happen.The modern Gothic novel builds from a varied thematic past where such techniques in conveying story seemed romantic in flavor but also horrific and fantastic. Prime examples of the Gothic novel come from the Bronte sisters. Both of them take a faraway location usually shrouded fog and create a mysterious romantic leading man whose behavior borders on villainous. They make the female overcome with lust for this anti-hero, painting the picture of a female character in distress, needing the strength of their man and his love. In this respect, the Gothic novel creates an atmosphere of suspense as strange events happen to the main character.This notion of Magical Realism is not a new storytelling technique, but a forgotten one in need of evolution. The paragraph below examines in greater detail Gothic novel themes as a means of comparison for the modern Gothic novel, the Magical Realism used more and more today. Gothic Elements When many readers think of the Gothic novel, they think of horror, fantasy stories but what they do not think of is the beauty, the humanity conveyed in earlier works by the Bronte sisters. When considering the Gothic tradition, modern readers think of Anne Rice’s Vampire series and classic horror like Shelley’s Frankenstein, Bram Stroker’s Dracula.Not many think of the tradition has its roots in Wuthering Heights. The paragraphs below will touch on this foundation and discuss how modern authors like Morrison, Rice and even the King of Horror Stephen King find their writer’s wisdom in the true Gothic style. It is interesting to see how many such as King deviate from the style at times to write a more gory tale while Morrison relies on more thematic techniques of storytelling which require exploration of the character’s psyche. Another good example of realism incorporating suspense with a fantastic element is Henry James’ Turn of the Screw:I stopped short on emerging from one of the plantation and coming into view of the house. What arrested me on the spot—and with shock much greater than any vision had allowed for—was the sense that my imagination had, in a flash, turned real. (25-6) The Gothic tradition is based in extremes. Traditionalists from the cannon like Stephen Dailly claim the Gothic novel â€Å"get its names from the barbarous Goths that invaded England during the medieval period† (1). Still many Gothic elements are founded in the mysterious and exotic (Dailly 1).Characteristics are founded in the following elements: (1) morbid setting, (2) extreme characters: woman in distress and a villainess romantic hero, (3) mystical themes bordering on horror such as ghosts and strange visions or dreams, and (4) death and rampant dysfunctional sexuality. Not all elements are present but the majorit y is in novels like Beloved, Wuthering Heights and Interview with a Vampire. These elements make such reading, while uncomfortable, delicious in breaking some set rules. Gothic novels create a taboo, the reader recognizes as a guilty pleasure.The first unsettling effect Gothic displays is the dark disturbing setting of a foreign place sometimes a castle. This is meant to dull the senses, throw the situation off guard (Berenbaum 23). Part of what makes the setting so eerie is the pretense that the main character usually female is not supposed to be there but is put into the situation because of a family member’s sudden death and her loss of social status. She is often painted as the innocent victim; pure and angelic (Devendra 19) but generally conflicted by her past tragedy or lustful thoughts for her foil; the romantic anti-hero.While this may shock the reader, while the anti-hero like Heathcliff or Lestat should be generally hated because of his past indiscretions; she canno t help but see his humanity and beauty. It is the societal struggle that makes him interesting and creates the romantic dream for the female in distress. It gives her something to hold on to during the tough times she faces. This is also creates great conflict for both the reader and characters which is the ultimate element of Gothic â€Å"cannot exist without pain† and here in lies the paradox â€Å"that pleasure is found in pain† (Berenbaum 30).While the argument can be made that Beloved displays many modern traits like Magical Realism, one can also argue that these were stolen from the Gothic tradition. The entire novel is shrouded in mystery, in gloom based from trauma. It is this trauma born out of post-Reconstructionism and the former slave experience that becomes the taboo. It is the guilty pleasure for many readers as they strive to understand the novel’s true meaning. Much of the mystery or confusion is created by Morrison’s storytelling techniqu e of flashback.What makes the novel uncomfortable is Morrison’s structure for a non-linear storyline. At times the reader does not know they are in the middle of a flashback and this adds to the building of emotion. Valerie Smith argues this flashback technique or method of telling the story in circles makes waves as it feeds off itself over and over while remaining unconvoluted; it still â€Å"limits hegemonic authoritarian systems of knowledge† (346). Much of what we believe about the story is based on what Morrison is educating the reader about.This explains not only the setting of the story but the historical context and Sethe’s inability to assimilate into her own present time to tell her account. The flashbacks continue in circles acting as symbolic technique to explain how life works. It is the historical taboo of post-slavery that influences the reader’s reasoning because there is nothing that can be done to intervene. There is nothing that the re ader can do to make Sethe’s present condition better except continue reading but this acts as a motivation to keep the reader glued (Spargo 118).This can be seen in other post-traumatic accounts found in modern literature such as Sophie’s Choice. This type of historical influence creates taboo, the shock but it is not applicable to just the African American experience but to the human experience. Gothic Setting and the Far Away Location Much of the novel happens in the setting of memory, the continued revisiting of one moment in time and how the decision for a mother to murder her own child impacts her present.The setting of Beloved uses flashback to create gloominess but it is the feeling of Sethe and other residents of the house traveling not only in physical distance but also the passage of time that creates a haunting quality. While she is stuck in the past, she is also stuck in her new home in Ohio on 124 Bluestone Road. Part of what makes the setting gloomy is no t just the historical context of recovering from human bondage but it is the collective notion and ideology of the passage of time. Not even time can heal the wounds.The Underground Railroad while found in many undisclosed physical locations is really a state of mind but so is that period of history called Reconstructionism. For the novel, setting is more about time and characterization but as Margaret Atwood discusses â€Å"the setting is similarly divided: the countryside near Cincinnati, where the central characters have ended up, and a slave-hold plantation in Kentucky† (par 2). But the setting is also defined by people who believe in magic, folklore but also influenced by a broken society where they are themselves ghosts; shells of people.While there is the memory of physical removal from Africa, there is also the notion of that: Slaves are motherless, fatherless, deprived of their mates, their children, their kin. It is a world in which people suddenly vanish and are ne ver seen again†¦as a matter of everyday legal policy† (Atwood par 7). Sethe: Female in Distress, Exploring the Unknown, and Horror/Terror Elements Sethe is the female in distress but not in the traditionalist view of Gothic female character. She is a feminist. She is defined by her past, conflicted by her past decisions and not blinded by lust for an anti-hero.Much of her is defined by her sexuality as a powerful tool. While her decision to murder her daughter made her powerful as she gave her child freedom in death that she still cannot attain in life; it takes on a shocking quality for the reader and can be seen in sexual symbolism later in the novel. In a time when slaves are seen as property, worth less than a cow or a dog to the white man, she pulls above this lack of humanity and uses her sexuality as a tool to facilitate her survival. This does not make her actions right on moral grounds but makes her a strong female role model in literature.Throughout the canon, t he female sex is seen as taboo, symbolic in fruit and nature. Beloved has sexual overtones because of Sethe’s ability to bear fruit. This is a common symbol found in literature; motherhood; the bearing of fruit and nourishing the child with milk. What makes Beloved different in expressing these overtones is when they happen. These sexual symbols present themselves as Beloved’s ghost materializes. Sethe begins to lactate when Beloved appears, â€Å"Just like the day she arrived at 124—sure enough, she had milk enough for all† (106). Is the ghost manifesting in Sethe or is this past of post-trauma?Or is it Sethe’s decent into insanity? Later she continues to use this tool as a means of acquiring proper burial for her daughter. While many readers would be appalled by such an action, others would see how because of slavery, Sethe does not see herself of any value. Rape is not something brutal to her but the notion of not giving her offspring a proper b urial is. She believes that without this burial the soul cannot return home to God, but how does this explain Beloved showing up later. Because Sethe is still struggling with the past, so does the ghost?It is from the setting and the past that the horror element; the impending doom that the flashbacks carry emotionally; the unknown is born out of her being trapped in the house and her belief in the supernatural. It could be the ghost is just a figment of her imagination as a post-trauma sufferer. Atwood writes, â€Å"the day had gone blue without its sun, but she could still make out the black silhouettes of trees in the meadow beyond† (par 16). The past is constantly impacting her present. The doom and gloom of the past is surrounding her, trapping her in that house.This only intensifies the haunting that the ghost represents. It is the element of the ghost that furthers the notion of the unknown for the reader and allows one to analyze Sethe’s character. It is the ha unting that brings her story to the forefront of attention, acting as a catalyst for her to grow and deal with the circumstances of the past. Before she can make a better life for herself, she must descend into madness. It is the pure physicality of the haunting that remains true to the Gothic tradition and not necessarily the horror. Today’s reader associates horror with gore thanks to the blood and guts of Hollywood.True Gothic does not rely on blood but the suspense built from the unknown. It is the fear of the unknown, the life without love that makes the story so compelling. â€Å"And, for some reason she could not immediately account for, the moment she got close enough to see the face, Sethe’s bladder filled to capacity† (Morrison 54). While the house is physically haunted by Beloved’s ghost, it is also haunted by the collective experience of all its residents. The story is told not only in flashback but also from different points of view. This add s to the suspense but building eeriness.While the ghost is grown up, it has the mentality of a toddler while her sister Denver’s attitude is that typical of a boy crazy teenager. As it seems the trauma acts as a haunting embodied by the ghost, as the trauma becomes more real; it comes to the surface of Sethe’s reality; the more terror-ridden Beloved can be felt to Sethe and the others. As Sethe starts to deal with the past, Beloved starts to slip away. â€Å"She feels her thickness thinning, dissolving into nothing† (Morrison 129). Still by using varying points of view allows for differing tones of morality.While no one can blame Sethe for her actions, in a way not only does Paul D lack compassion for her situation because her inability to share her story, while this fact distresses her a lot, she is punishing herself by allowing the trauma to continue. It is in her need to identify herself by a man that weakens her ability to learn from the ghost. It builds the suspense of the unknown further. By allowing the unknown to takeover, she is riddled with fear of Paul D leaving, and taking her esteem with him. She is afraid of anything changing and possibly surrendering to her guilt.Morrison works to create the doubt that Beloved’s ghost is even real. Is she just a by product of Sethe’s trauma? A real ghost, a lost soul trying to get to Heaven? Is she a coping mechanism created by the folklore of post-slavery life? Is she a combination of things, a means for explaining the unexplainable? Or just a literary device? Maybe she is just part of the journey into the unknown that Sethe must take in order to heal from her experiences. In many ways, the ghost leaving is part of Sethe’s growth process and redemption.By making the ghost a real person, physical to everyone, it is allowing Sethe to acknowledge Beloved’s existence. This in itself has a powerful cleansing influence upon her character. She starts acting differently, stronger and less defined by her setting and the people around her. First of all, she leaves the house to go to a picnic in which Sethe stands up to the white man. In this way, she now defined by her self-esteem and her own humanity and not the past. No longer is she a shell of a woman but someone who can function in reality.The scene in which the ghost leaves is a pivotal moment for Sethe but also the other women of her new community. By unloading the baggage of Beloved’s death, she is about to have a future. The picnic acts a coming together of strong women with knowledge of who they are. While they are defined by their collective past, they are also looking to the future for the first time. It is only in the realization that Sethe is not alone that she rediscovers her strength as a person (272). She allows herself a taste of humanity. This story works to capture the essence of slavery’s aftermath for its characters.It tells a truth created in flashback and ghost st ory. It aims to create mysticism only memory can illustrate. â€Å"The novel is meant to give grief a body, to make it palpable† (Gates 29). The characters are trapped in the present because they are imprisoned by the horrors of slavery. They are literally held hostage in their home, isolated from the outside world. In many ways Beloved represents a geographically realistic neo-slave narrative by presenting in flashback the experiences of Sethe. This story also has the fantastic element of a ghost who later becomes flesh and bone.The paragraphs below explore the characters memories and the magical realism of a ghost. Memory affects the character of Sethe in a way that illustrates the pain and grief of her past enslavement. Sethe is living with the memory of killing her two old year daughter to save her from the horror of slavery while she herself was struggling to attain freedom. As a result of this action, she is unable to forgive herself and lives trapped in this memory. As much as this is a very private pain, it dominates her and comes to life in her house.The memory affects the other occupants of the house and even drives her sons to leave. Sethe believes that nothing can destroy a memory, not even destroying the physical evidence. The following quote exhibits this idea: It's so hard for me to believe in [time]. Some things go. Pass on. Some things just stay. I used to think it was my rememory. . . . But it's not. Places, places are still there. If a house burns down, it's gone, but the place-the picture of it-stays, and not just in my rememory, but out there, in the world. (Morrison 36)In essence, this means that the soul takes every experience with it. I believe her relationship with this memory only deepens over time and does not change for the better. Even the attempt to leave her happy with her new marriage leaves the reader feeling that she is still coping. Morrison writes, â€Å"the future was a matter of keeping the past at bay. The ‘ better life' she believed she and Denver were living was simply not that other one† (42). This signifies that her memories leave her static in the present. It is almost as if nothing new can happen to her until she lets the past go.Still this is likely as Morrison writes â€Å"but her brain was not interested in the future. Loaded with the past and hungry for more, it left her no room to imagine, let alone plan for, the next day† (70). It is through the flashback images the reader learns of slavery and Sethe’s experience escaping but it also through Morrison’s description of the present that reader begins to understand the environment of Reconstruction. These are people still being defined by their enslavement. â€Å"The future was sunset; the past something to leave behind.And if it didn't stay behind, well, you might have to stomp it out. Slave life; freed life-every day was a test and a trial. Nothing could be counted on in a world where even when you were a solution you were a problem† (256). This theme is never so evident than with Morrison’s use of magical realism in the form of Beloved the ghost. â€Å"This awkward spirit shakes the furniture, puts tiny handprints on the cakes, shatters mirrors, Sethe and Denver live stolidly in the chaos, emotionally frozen† (Gates 28). The physical ghost acts as an embodiment of Sethe’s sorrow and guilt.The consequence of Beloved’s actions only feed Sethe’s inability to function in the present. Whether or not the ghost is an embodiment of Sethe’s guilt, insanity, folklore, an actual real ghost, the symbolic representation of the house’s negative feelings due to historical context, or the collective sadness and unknown of the residents’ terror; remains to be seen. This is an unknown; a mystery Morrison leaves for the reader to decide. Conclusion In conclusion, Beloved connected with the reader on many levels. In times of war and t ragedy, such themes are not uncommon.One is reminded of Sophie’s Choice where the heroine had to make a similar yet devastating decision about her children. Still Morrison used a ghost to exhibit just how much the past has followed Sethe. Such technique can be found in other modern novels by Isabelle Allende and Gabriel Garcia-Marquez where the fantastic take on realistic qualities. The purpose of this paper was to explore the concept that Toni Morrison’s Beloved is a modern Gothic novel. It can be argued that Morrison used many techniques derived from the Gothic period to master her story of Sethe, a former slave haunted by the ghost of her murdered daughter, Beloved.The novel has many interwoven techniques of storytelling that make reading a challenge to analyze but also so integral to the telling of America’s collective past. As a collective, our history has pain that can be found beautiful. The novel encompassed trauma, making the reader uncomfortable with i ts subject matter, mainly Sethe’s sexuality as a powerful, feministic tool. Morrison tells a story not told before while weaving the spectacular into a very real situation and therefore created a much different storytelling style furthering the evolution of the modern novel.This novel made the reader question, not only the content but how it was being conveyed, while masterfully, also complex in nature. While it is considered a modern novel, it redefined many Gothic elements. Part of what made Beloved and other modern Gothic novels so enthralling was its ability to convey mystery, darkness; the unknown as a realism to the reader. It put its characters in situations that seemed completely interesting, gave them a past that was tragic, maybe somewhat scandalous and put the characters in a limbo of an unfamiliar place, where mystical events happened.Works Cited Atwood, Margaret. â€Å"Jaunted By Their Nightmares. † New York Times 13 Sept. 1987, natl. ed. : Arts and Entert ainment section. Atwood explains Morrison’s story of grief and death of Sethe’s little girl touching on Slavery’s influence on modern society. She looks at Gothic techniques used to tell a modern story while discussing Sethe’s insanity and humanity. Berenbaum, Linda. The Gothic Imagination. East Brunswick, New Jersey: Associated University Press, Ltd. , 1948. This author analyzes Wuthering Heights from the thematic view point of Gothic novel stylings.She looks to Bronte’s writing as a means of justifying the non-horror of Gothic novels but the humanity involved. In doing this, she paints the novel as being very Gothic and also scary. In this respect, the argument backfires but also legitimizes the Gothic novel as a genre. Dailly, Stephen. â€Å"The Gothic Novel. † Online. Internet. Available FTP: http://www. btinternet. com/Stephen. dailly/writing/resources/gothic. htm Devendra, Varma, The Gothic Flame. London: Arthur Baker Ltd. , and Morris on and Gibb Ltd. , 1957.Author looks to traditional thematic elements of Gothic novel to argue that Gothic novels display two worlds. He also looks to history to back up this point. Gates, Henry Louis and Appiah, K. A. , ed. Toni Morrison: Critical Perspectives Past and Present. New York: Amistad Press, Inc. , 1993. Editors analyze Toni Morrison’s writing, specifically Beloved in order to argue that the novel does not reflect the negative victimism of slavery but uses storytelling as a means to entertain such a serious subject. They argue that Beloved can also be seen as ghost story.James, Henry. Turn of the Screw. New York: Pocket Books, 1941 James’ tale of suspense and woman haunting the man who done her wrong and is one of the first times in literature a ghost seems realistic. Morrison, Toni. Beloved. New York: Penguin Books, 1987. Morrison’s groundbreaking story of one woman’s life after slavery and ghosts that remain in the present. This story by usi ng flashbacks tells the story of a woman murdering her baby daughter so that that daughter does not have to live in slavery. This novel displays how one’s action’s continues to live on inside of them and later materialize as a ghost.It also conveys how even in American modern society, the collective history still remains in shadows and needs to be addressed, no matter how uncomfortable. Smith, Valerie. â€Å"Circling the Subject: History and Narrative in Beloved. † Toni Morrison: Critical Perspectives Past and Present. Ed. Henry Louis Gates Jr. and K. A. Appiah. New York: Amistad, 1993. 342-55. Smith analyzes Morrison’s use of flashback as a cyclical technique not used before in literature. Spargo, R. Clifton. â€Å"Trauma and the spectres of enslavement in Morrison’s Beloved. † Mosaic 35. 1 (2002): 113-130. Spargo discusses history as a grounds for telling fictional stories.