The Power of Mission and Vision … What’s Yours

The Power of Mission and Vision †¦ What’s Yours Why Have a Mission and Vision Anyway? And What Does It All Mean? Creating a mission and vision statement can be a formidable task. Large companies spend weeks and months on the process. When used to full advantage, a mission and vision truly underlie a company’s business model and become what employees and clients/customers align to. If someone is not excited about the company’s mission and vision, that person is not a good fit for the organization. ActionCOACH, my business coaching company, defines vision as strategic intent- why the entity exists; it is a statement against which all decisions can be measured. Mission, by comparison, is a practical description of how the ultimate vision will be achieved. Of course you can have a mission and vision whether you are a job seeker or a business owner. As you read the story of The Essay Expert’s mission and vision, I invite you to consider what your mission and vision would be. If you create one you like, please share it in the comments. The Essay Expert’s Mission and Vision Journey The Essay Expert did not have a mission statement for probably its first year. When I created one, it sounded right and it stuck (it also was a relatively easy process given that I was the only person who had to approve of it!). Here it is: The Essay Expert works intensively and personally with job seekers, college applicants and companies, to create powerfully written job search and marketing content. Our clients achieve unprecedented success in moving their careers, education and businesses to the next level. That mission statement does state how my company will achieve its ultimate goal. But without a vision statement, that ultimate goal was not defined. Then, last year in a business coaching meeting, Susan Thomson encouraged me to craft a vision statement to complement the mission. The vision I created was this: To empower people and companies to be confident and unstoppable in reaching their goals. This seemed like a statement with a higher purpose and goal that I believe in. And I have been using it. Each time I have considered bringing in a new writer, I have read this mission to them and ask for their thoughts on it, introducing them to the culture of my company. Inevitably, the writers I have chosen for my team have been very committed to contributing to the success of The Essay Expert’s clients. They have been truly aligned with my mission and vision, and I have never had a problem with a writer not being fully committed to The Essay Expert’s clients. Be Careful What You Vision For†¦ However, I have also encountered some issues when I have demanded more time and corrections from my writers than some other resume writing companies they have worked with. Why was this happening? Why were my writers feeling frustrated with my commitment to excellence? Two weeks ago, I discovered through a brief coaching session with Dr. Bob Wright that my company’s mission and vision were part of the problem. They were all about our company’s clients, and not about our team! This was a blind spot for me up until Bob pointed it out, and it was quite a revelation. I now realize that my company’s mission and vision must be not just about the work we do, but about who we are as a company and as human beings working together. To that end, my new vision and mission are â€Å"in progress† and will include something like this: We bring out the best in our clients and each other as a team of writers. We are committed to excellence. We strive to write more effectively, communicate more effectively, and showcase the brilliance in ourselves and in everyone we touch. Can you imagine a company where everyone is aligned with this philosophy? Where we are all working together toward excellence, becoming our best selves while supporting our clients to do the same? That’s a company I would want to work for! What is your mission and vision for yourself or your company? Please share below.

5 Top Tips on Travel Writing

5 Top Tips on Travel Writing 5 Top Tips on Travel Writing Travel writing is one of the most popular types of non-fiction. And if you’re someone with a love of both literature and globetrotting, travel writing offers a fantastic opportunity to combine the two! Here, then, are a few top tips for budding travel writers to help get you started. 1. Read Other Travel Writing The best starting point if you’re new to travel writing is to read other authors. There are many types and styles of travel writing out there. So we suggest reading a little bit of everything, from blog posts to book-length travelogues, to find inspiration if you’re not already sure what to write. 2. Picking a Subject To stand out from the crowd, your travel writing needs to offer something unique. Part of this will be your written voice, but what you are writing about is equally important, so you’ll want to pick a great destination to focus on. Finding somewhere interesting that nobody has written about before is the dream, so you might want to look beyond the famous beaten track for strange or unusual attractions. Alternatively, if you are writing about a familiar place, look for an angle that nobody has used before. It helps if you do more than just lie on the beach, too. 3. Paint a Picture Your writing should conjure an image of the places you describe, so use sensory language wherever possible. If you can communicate some of the views, sounds and smells you’ve experienced, your reader will feel more like they’ve been there. Rich, descriptive writing is therefore crucial. Of course, a literal picture can help as well, so don’t forget to pack a camera! 4. Tell a Story Travel writing is about more than just facts. It’s about your experience of a place or journey. As such, you need to take your reader on a journey, too! One tip in this respect is remembering that the best travel writing is more than just descriptive. It may also have: Characters (e.g., people you meet along the way or travel companions) Themes (e.g., issues or events that recur throughout your journey) A plot (e.g., your goal, such as visiting every museum in Cumbria) Make sure not to miss the Derwent Pencil Museum, especially if you like big pencils.(Photo: Stinglehammer/wikimedia) Keep in mind that travel writing is creative writing, even if it is non-fiction. You may even want to twist the facts to tell a better story. Or go full Hunter S. Thompson and blur the lines between fact and fiction entirely. We wouldnt suggest taking as many drugs as he did, though. 5. The Benefits of Fact Checking Assuming you’re not fictionalizing your journey too much, you may want to do some fact checking on things you’ve learned when you get home. For instance, before repeating what that odd man in the plaza told you about Piacenza being founded by a champion chicken farmer as a luxury resort for poultry, get online and do some reading. You can still include the anecdote if it turns out to be untrue. You just don’t have to present it as a fact. And if you handle the fact checking, we’ll be happy to help with the proofreading once you have a first draft ready!

Youth Development Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Youth Development - Case Study Example Emotions Management- this refers to the recognition and appreciation of emotions and developing appropriate ways to express them. Purpose Development- one develops career goals; they commit to personal interests and activities. They also establish a robust interpersonal commitment. Identity Development- individuals develop and humanize values. There is also personalization of values and congruence creation and development. Autonomy toward Independence- in this vector, individuals increase and establish and emotional freedom. Identity establishment- an individual does acknowledgment indifference of identity. They base the identity on ethnic background, personal orientation and even on gender. Interpersonal relations development- individuals appreciate aspects of interpersonal tolerance, differences in culture and finally the creation of sound intimate relationships. Bartleby is able to get everyone to pretend that they are rehearsing for a recital, while, in the real sense, he engages the class in taking photographs to make IDs. This is even emphasized by Bartleby’s decision to create his own ‘sham’ S.H.I.T school and go ahead to pocket his father’s ten thousand dollars given as a fee for the first semester. Lack of school ethics also shows in the decision of students to have them engaged in alcohol consumption, drug abuse and illicit sexual relations with one another in school. In addition, such classroom subjects designed, such as ‘Do Nothing 101 and ‘The Art of Sleeping’ points a lot on the degree of moral decadence in the fake school, so established by Bartleby and friends. Cognition and intellectual development- this is expounded by the manner in which the Bartleby and his friends had difficulties learning in an environment regimented with clearly drawn up policy guidelines, rules, guidelines and strict curriculum. So much that they had to be rejected by many institutions. Bartleby [especially] does not intellec tually thrive in a regimented school environment alike to the majority of his friends.

Strategic Management and Governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Strategic Management and Governance - Essay Example According to research, the inclusion of sustainable considerations in the process of formulation usually forms the basis of sustainable competitive advantage for most of the firms. In this relation, it is apparent that it is essential to have a sustainability focus during the formulation of strategy. Subsequently, it is important to critically analyze how this process has helped firms to achieve complete sustainable competitive advantage. Besides, this paper will also evaluate the relevance of the sustainable considerations during the formulation of strategy when an economic recession period is being experienced. In strategy formulation, sustainable consideration refers to environmental, social and economic considerations use din strategy formulation. Therefore, there is a great importance that lies in the ability to consolidate various factors that play a certain role in the organization of effective processes and activities within any organization or firm. In the current environment, there are various environmental, social and economic terms that have been developed to refer to the concept of sustainable development. This is in relation to the organization. The most common ones are corporate social responsibility, sustainability and corporate citizenry. The aspect of sustainability is based on one of the simplest principles. It entails the need to put everything that is required for survival and wellbeing independent on the natural environment in either a direct or indirect way. In this sense, with sustainability, human beings and nature are able to create and sustain an environment that produces product harmony. In turn, this environment can permit the fulfillment of the economic and social requirements among other needs of the present and future generations. Sustainability is a crucial element in the process of corporate management where environmental, financial and social performance in the effort to achieve competitive

An African American Fight for Respect Essay Example for Free

An African American Fight for Respect Essay For thousands of years women have been fighting for many things, one of the most important being respect. Some people may think respect for a woman is simply holding the door for her as she walks through, pulling her chair out for her before she is seated, or maybe just standing when she leaves the table; but respect is so much more than that. Respect is a feeling of deep admiration for someone elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achievements. Respect is a feeling that cannot just be given to someone, it is a feeling that must be earned, fought for, or rewarded. For the African American woman, respect did not come by so easily no matter how hard they fought or even if they earned it. Examples of the African American woman fighting for her respect, has once upon a time been one of the many themes during all literary periods. The two works that I chose have the similar theme of respect. The literary pieces are â€Å"Sweat† by Zora Neale Hurston and â€Å"The Color Purple† by Alice Walker. These two works show the same theme of respect for black women and the struggle for it from men. Though both stories have comparisons that could go on for days, they just as well have their differences by the way the handle the theme of respect. Alice Walker has been writing stories and poetry for many years. As a graduate of Spelman College she was given great opportunities and was given a solid education. Women’s rights and respect has always been two topics close to Alice’s heart. It has been said, that â€Å"Alice Walker expresses the struggles of black people, particularly women, and their lives in a racist, sexist, and violent society. † Her writings also lean more towards the roles of black women through culture and history. On March 3, 2008 Alice Walker was arrested on International Women’s Day for crossing the police line at a rally in front of The White House. Walker has set a standard and has never had any need or want to change it. Of the many stories that Alice Walker has written, the one that stands out the most to me dealing with the female struggle for respect is the story made movie and musical, â€Å"The Color Purple. † â€Å"The Color Purple,† is a story written in 1982 that has won multiple awards and recognitions for its not so classy taste and realistic views. Some of these awards being from the Blue Ribbon Awards, Black Movie Awards, Golden Globe Awards, eleven nominations during the Oscars, and plenty more. The main characters in â€Å"The Color Purple,† are Celie Harris Johnson and Mister Albert Johnson. Celie has been abused since she was just a young girl; she had two children by her father Leonard and she is forced to marry Albert, a young widower, by the age of fourteen. During her years of being married to Albert, she is taunted, disrespected, beaten, and abused up until she turns her life around when she meets Shug Avery, a well-known Jazz singer, who comes to live with the couple. Shug takes it upon herself to help Celie raise her self-confidence so she can not only stand up to her husband and demand respect, but to feel beautiful about herself inside and out. By the end of the story, Celie stands up to Avery and is finally reconnected with the family that was once taken away from her. Another great black female author who proudly carries the theme of respect in her stories is Zora Neale Hurston. Hurston, a graduate of Howard University, was a well-known author during the Harlem Renaissance. Hurston is most known for her famous literary piece entitled, â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God† which caught the eyes of readers around the world. Like Alice Walker, Zora Neale Hurston has also won multiple awards for her fabulous novels, short stories, and poems. The story â€Å"Sweat† written by Zora Neale Hurston takes place in a small all black town located near Orlando, Florida. This story, like many others with disrespect towards the wife, starts off with husband Sykes taunting his wife Delia by tricking her into thinking that the whip he throws over her shoulders is a snake, knowing she is deadly terrified of them. Throughout the story, Delia deals with infidelity, abuse, rumors, and taunting from her husband. Towards the end of the story, her husband buys a rattlesnake and refuses to take it back where he found it from, knowing his wife is terrified. In the end, that very snake gets loose, bites, and kills him; Delia stands their watching him die. The website articlemyriad. com states â€Å"The reader can speculate on whether or not Delia was too afraid to move to get help for her husband, but it is the general consensus that she purposefully let him die. While you could argue both, if you are going to contend that she was just afraid, you’d better take a closer look at the text before trying to defend your point. † One of the greatest comparisons in this story is the lack of respect the husbands have for their wives, a marriage is supposed to be filled with trust, respect, love, and honesty, all of which the two marriages in â€Å"The Color Purple† and â€Å"Sweat† lacked. Although there are many comparisons, there were also contrasts in the two stories, although not exactly easy to find with a closed mind. A contrast in these two stories to me that stood out the most were the personalities of the two wives in the stories. In â€Å"The Color Purple,† Celie is abused and taken advantage of, but holds a quiet tongue until the end; Delia in â€Å"Sweat† is abused and taken advantage of , but she always speaks her mind and portrays her true feelings towards something. With these two stories I felt it was good to have the personalities of the women who wanted respect to be completely different so that I could compare and contrast just a bit more clearly. One was more hidden and kept feelings to herself, the other more outgoing and stronger like all women should be. In conclusion, respect for women, especially blacks, has been a subject that will always be discussed and fought for. Zora Neale Hurston and Alice Walker described the struggle for respect in many similar and different ways. I stated earlier that for thousands of years women have been fighting for many things, one of the most important being respect and that respect was a feeling that cannot just be given to someone, it is a feeling that must be earned, fought for, or rewarded. I am proud of the long way that not only African American women have come, but women all race and I am blessed to have such profound women to look up to. Women in the past who have fought for our rights set a high standard for the rest of us to follow and I look forward to doing just so. Works Cited 1. The Norton Anthology of African American Literature: Second Edition Henry Louis Gates Jr. Nellie Y. McKay.

Imaginative Freedom of Birches :: Robert Frost Birches Essays

Imaginative Freedom of Birches        Ã‚  Ã‚   In "Birches" (Mountain Interval, 1916) Frost begins to probe the power of his redemptive imagination as it moves from its playful phase toward the brink of dangerous transcendence. The movement into transcendence is a movement into a realm of radical imaginative freedom where (because redemption has succeeded too well) all possibilities of engagement with the common realities of experience are dissolved. In its moderation, a redemptive consciousness motivates union between selves as we have seen in "The Generations of Men," or in any number of Frost's love poems. But in its extreme forms, redemptive consciousness can become self-defeating as it presses the imaginative man into deepest isolation. "Birches" begins by evoking its core image against the background of a darkly wooded landscape: When I see birches bend to left and right Across the lines of straighter darker trees, I like to think some boy's been swinging them. But swinging doesn't bend them down to stay As ice storms do. The pliable, malleable quality of the birch tree captures the poet's attention and kicks off his meditation. Perhaps young boys don't bend birches down to stay, but swing them they do and thus bend them momentarily. Those "straighter, darker trees," like the trees of "Into My Own" that "scarcely show the breeze," stand ominously free from human manipulation, menacing in their irresponsiveness to acts of the will. The malleability of the birches is not total, however, and the poet is forced to admit this fact into the presence of his desire, like it or not. The ultimate shape of mature birch trees is the work of objective natural force, not human activity. Yet after conceding the boundaries of imagination's subjective world, the poet seems not to have constricted himself but to have been released.   Ã‚  Ã‚   Often you must have seen them Loaded with ice a sunny winter morning After a rain. They click upon themselves As the breeze rises, and turn many-colored As the stir cracks and crazes their enamel. Soon the sun's warmth makes them shed crystal shells Shattering and avalanching on the snow crust-- Such heaps of broken glass to sweep away You'd think the inner dome of heaven had fallen. Fascinated as he is by the show of loveliness before him, and admiring as be is of nature as it performs the potter's art, cracking and crazing the enamel of ice coating on the birch trees, it is not finally the thing itself (the ice-coated trees) that interests the poet but the strange association be is tempted to make: "You'd think the inner dome of heaven had fallen.

American Civil War and United Fruit Company Essay

In, â€Å"Testimony: Death of a Guatemalan Village,† Victor Montejo describes events surrounding the military regimes occurring throughout Guatemala. The book itself is an eyewitness account detailing one instance of violence between the indigenous peoples village’s â€Å"civil patrol† and the army. This occurrence leads to the execution and imprisonment of many villagers. Even though the book is mainly a testimony by one person, in which he discusses the personal conflicts and struggle between himself and the army, the account is structured around the Guatemalan civil war and the conflict between the government and civilians. The Guatemalan Civil War occurred between the years 1960 to 1996. It was a battle between the government of Guatemala and the numerous leftist rebel groups who were supported by the Mayan indigenous, poor, and working class. This civil war began as the many poor realized that their government had little concern for them, as the elites in the country owned most of the land. Much of the land was also owned by multinational corporations, such as the U. S. wned â€Å"United Fruit Company† in the 1940s and 50s. The result of this unequal land ownership, which also contributed to an unbalanced distribution of wealth, led to an oppressed population living in extreme poverty. These local hardships were ultimately the driving force behind the rebellious leftist groups As military leaders began to have control of the government by the 1960’s and through the 1970s, physical violence became a method used to overthrow political opposition. As other countries in Latin America had their own revolutions; Guatemalan citizens looked to them as a source of inspiration for their attempts to take control of their country. The example of Cuba became a stepping stone and a clear example for Guatemala as Fidel Castro was successful throughout the Cuban Revolution in Cuba and was able to overthrow the Batista family. Other examples included the Sandinista guerilla movement who successfully completed a revolution in Nicaragua in 1979, and in El Salvador where the FMLN guerillas also appeared to be having similar results. However, these regimes are appealing at first, but after having them continue for long periods, much conflict ensued which contributed to much loss for the poor rebels and their fight for sovereignty. Looking at Montejo’s testimony, Maria Lupe’s testimony, and the cold war in Guatemala; we will examine how these violent regimes appeared to the civilians, their effects on society, and their connection to the civil war. Victor Montejo describes several political instances that have led to the people’s desire for a revolt against the acting government. He mentions that former president Lucas Garcia left many things â€Å"undone;† though not much information is given for background information of Garcia, we can conclude that he was responsible for the growth of the military’s power and an initial cause for the dissent of the poor. He also mentions Garcia’s successor, president Efrain Rios Montt and his lack on taking the government out of the hand of the military. Montejo states â€Å"no president would be able to control the situation because the military were the ones in charge. Later on Montejo reveals that under Lucas Garcia’s administration’s military; â€Å"paramilitary, police, and priests, were kidnapped, tortured, and killed; or rather anyone who had influence in the town who spoke out against the government. † As the government paved ways to try to economically stabilize the state, many of its poor suffered, and regimes occurred to support the poor, leading many to suspect communistic or socialist identities, and a desire for government change. With the military being in control, with help and support coming from the U.  S. , the army was used to stamp out the leftist guerrillas who were pushing for a new government that would support the people. Looking at Montejo’s testimony, we see the creations of civil patrols, a group of men designated by the military government to protect their town from the guerillas. However, some of these patrolmen were thought to also secretly support the guerrillas and under a confused set of operations, attacked the army and; according to Montejo’s testimony, many villagers were killed. The army also rob and burn down parts of the village. In one case, a young man who was part of the patrols is shot and as he laid dying, reveals that the uniform worn (in that particular day) by the army was similar to the ones the guerrillas would wear, except that the guerrillas didn’t cause any harm as they walk through the village. This has a lot to say about how the civilians saw the government’s military, and how they saw their repressive state; being something they had to do without question due to fear. Taking a look at the testimony alone, we can also see how society was effected. Out of Montejo’s brief background detailing the ailures of the presidents and the absolute repression faced by the civilians, we can conclude that the governments force to keep the guerillas unsuccessful was limited and pushed society into rebellions. In other words, as the army continued to torture and persecute the innocent, many found it necessary to fall into the hands of the guerrillas in order to stamp out their oppression. Maria Lupe’s account is similar to Montejos. She describes her hardships as a house wife, working on a plantation of a rich land owner. Her husband worked for 50 cents per day, and her payment was in food. She mentions moving closer to the north in a town called Ixcan, hoping for better jobs. At about two years the member of the guerrilla army for the poor began entering the town, recruiting people, and telling them that they were fighting so that they could all live better lives. After she had met with the guerrillas, she realized that their interests were aligned with hers. The guerillas and â€Å"companeros† as the group was called, effected society for the better; they were able to construct support within the community, almost â€Å"communistic† in style; sharing food, selling materials, and taking care of each other. She mentions that spies were beginning to infiltrate the village and set up a military commissioner. Just as Montejo, suspicion of guerrilla collaboration was dangerous and could lead to death. She eventually becomes involved with this group which enables her to feel secure, and at some point is given arms for protection. She also mentions that the †companeros† made efforts to include women and support women’s roles in society, outside of the home, giving women more of a say in the community. We see an opposite reaction as to how the civilians felt about the guerrillas that is only slightly mentioned in Montejo’s testimony through the eyes of the dying patrolmen when he mentions that the guerrillas never attack them. The government military’s efforts was to remove any dissent, particularly those of the guerrillas. The hatred for them is revealed in Montejos testimony, as he is constantly beaten by the army because of the suspicion of him being a guerrilla. He eventually flees the country for fear that they may target him again under false pretenses. In Lupe’s account the military is the enemy, and when suspicion arises, she is arrested and detained for several months, leaving behind her children; she later flees and leaves the community, having to work for low wages again in another town. Lupe’s case shines a light upon the guerrillas, they are almost portrayed as saviors. She never discusses the government’s military repression into great detail, but we see here that civilians showed a bit of amnesty toward the guerrillas and favored their motives against the repressive government. The history of these conflicts stem from the effects of the Guatemalan civil war. Initially, it began as a â€Å"social revolution,† a stance against neo-colonialism. Through 1944 to 1954, Guatemala experienced the â€Å"Ten Years of Spring† a time when two democratically elected Presidents; Arevalo and Arbenz, stressed reform, nationalism, and new constitutions. The Arbenz reforms stressed the importance to remove any outside corporations and instead focused on independent commerce within the country. He was able to move Guatemala from a semi-colonial system to an independent country. He did this by moving the country’s economy from a feudal system to a more capitalistic one. He was also able to raise the standard of living for most of the population. In order to do so, he confiscated large estates and redistributed them to the peasants, he also seized unused â€Å"United Fruit Company† and railroad lands to benefit his people. His most controversial step was his opposition to the â€Å"Declaration of Caracas,† which aligned all of Latin America with the United States to ensure the â€Å"success† of democracy. He instead supported solidarity against U. S. interventions. This lead to wide speculation by the Eisenhower administration, and concluded that Guatemala was moving toward communism. This led to a huge U. S. infiltration on the Guatemalan government. The U. S. trained and armed proxy forces in Honduras who later joined the conservative Guatemalan military to overthrow Arbenz. These coups are the ones who will become responsible for the military takeover that plagued Guatemala for many years, and which are highlighted in Montejo’s and Lupe’s accounts. By June 1954 a new military junta in Guatemala formed, supported by the U. S. nd established the â€Å"National Committee of Defense Against Communism,† which allowed for the arrest and death penalty of â€Å"subversive† activities. By September 1954, General Carlos Castillo Armas, who was supported by the U. S. becomes president of Guatemala. He then forces society to reverse many of the Abrenz reforms; revoking voting rights for illiterates, which made up half of the population, forced peasants to leave the acquired lands, banned political parties and peasant organizations, and restored the secret police. By the 1960s, a 36 year civil war had begun, with the U. S. supporting the authoritarian government. With the onset of the civil war, we see the outcomes which shaped Montejo’s and Lupe’s testimony, and the hardships the civilians faced and the effects on society; being banished from lands that were given to them, having to abandon jobs and a thriving economy due to outside efforts to contain â€Å"communism. † For three decades the civil war was fought, a fight, one might say, to reclaim what belonged to Guatemala from greedy outsiders and those wanting to ensure their own success, while the poor Indians had no say in government and were forced to remain loyal to a government that did not share in their interests. Luckily, the civil war came to an end and the violent regimes once waged ceased. However, through the eyes of Montejo and Lupe, we are able to see the lives of the civilians that had to live under the repressed state and the attitudes these people shared for their government, leaving an important legacy for all people to witness, that regimes started by the poor where necessary in order to create a society where everyone had an equal share to the same rights as the elites.

Interpretation and Analysis of Lost Boy Lost Girl Essay

a. Setting: â€Å"Lost Boy Lost Girl†, by Peter Straub, is based primarily in the hometown of the protagonist, Timothy Underhill. It is a mid-western city by the name of â€Å"Millhaven† in Illinois. Some believe that the town is based loosely on Straub’s hometown of Milwaukee. The chief setting of the novel is an abandoned house on 3323 North Michigan Street, a custom built house with secret passageways, staircases, a torture chamber and chutes for corpses. The locale of a small town, along with the eerie â€Å"murder house† is perfectly appropriate for the story. To Tim Underhill, it appears â€Å"surreal†. This lends to the tale a sort of gothic and intimidating feel. Had the story been set in some other place, it would have lacked the forbidding atmosphere that Millhaven imparts. The author, Peter Straub does a commendable job of representing and defining the settings, so as to give the readers an authentic sense of the place. b. Major characters: Two of the major characters of the novel are Timothy Underhill and Mark Underhill. 1. Tim Underhill: Tim Underhill is the protagonist of the story and narrates a major portion of it. A writer living in New York, he seldom returns to his hometown of Millhaven and is not very close to his brother, Phillip. In fact, Tim and Phillip share a sort of strained relationship. Tim appears a serious fellow, although there are instances wherein he chooses to possess a sense of humor. He quips, â€Å"Once you take someone’s word about an invisible man, you are playing with his racquet on his court, and it is no use pretending otherwise† (p. 142). Perhaps the most prominent and apparent aspect of Tim Underhill’s character is his love for his nephew, Mark. He refuses to relinquish his quest for the boy and investigates the murders occurring in the town, resolving to get to the bottom of things. This is clearly induced by his affection for Mark, of course combined with his pursuit for the truth. Like many other small-town folk, Tim is a man who would not easily forgo his morals or principles. When faced with a decision, he will always take the one which is morally right, as for example, his decision to stay back in Millhaven upon his nephew’s disappearance and his perseverance in trying to find him. At the climax of the novel, we can see that Tim Underhill’s character has changed a good deal. His relationship with his brother, his thoughts and his beliefs has been altered considerably. 2. Mark Underhill: Mark Underhill is the son of Phillip and Nancy Underhill. Fifteen years of age, he is â€Å"†¦restless; unfocussed; afflicted with.. a budding arrogance† (p. 5). His behavior, sense of dressing and language (judging especially from the emails he sends to Tim) are all illustrative of him being an average teenage boy. He becomes obsessed with a house in their neighborhood and suddenly disappears one day. He has, in Tim’s opinion â€Å"a good and tender heart†. He is sensitive to other’s feelings and we can sometimes observe that he is slightly smarter than the other characters. The account of Mark’s mother’s funeral, through his eyes, portrays vividly his affection for her and his anguish at her death. Towards the end, however, we see a more mature Mark. One who has undergone a transformation of sorts. He emerges stronger and more prudent than he was before the whole ordeal. c. Horror Fiction Formula:   Ã¢â‚¬Å"Lost Boy Lost Girl† remains quite true to the â€Å"horror fiction formula† throughout. The small town of Millhaven, with its simple and innocent inhabitants forms the perfect setting for the novel. The townsfolk are orderly and peaceable. Their lives, however are disrupted by a â€Å"monster† that seems to be dwelling in a house in their neighborhood. The monster is believed to be a pedophile and a serial killer who is kidnapping young boys. A spirit, one of a little girl, also inhabits this said house. Straub has very astutely merged the human with the supernatural to give the whole story an eerie and disturbing feel. The townsfolk, Tim and Phillip Underhill in particular, embark on finding this crazed kidnapper and killer. Although the monster is dealt with in the end, the lives and convictions of the people of the town are altered forever. That being said, there are portions of the story that are not entirely associated with the â€Å"horror fiction formula†. The transformation of the spirit of the girl into a â€Å"good spirit†, the depiction of dysfunctional families such as that of the Underhills and the transition of a boy into a man are some of the aspects that Straub deals with that do not essentially comply with a horror novel’s customary description. d. Levels of Horror: Terror: Following the disappearance of Mark Underhill and other adolescent boys, the reader is made aware of the fact that a terror lurks in the darkness, but it can only be sensed, not seen. Straub has done a remarkable job of keeping the reader intrigued by keeping the identity of the â€Å"monster† under wraps. The level of terror is, however, not sustained. The â€Å"monster† is revealed to the audience later on in the story. Horror: Towards the second half of the book, the reader becomes conscious of the form of terror(s), that is, the little girl’s spirit and the serial killer. Once they are disclosed, the novel takes on the level of horror. The killer and the spirit are described in detail for the reader’s benefit. Revulsion: Straub chooses to scare his readers psychologically rather than with the spilling of blood and guts. Nevertheless, the novel contains various illustrations of repulsive and horrific events of graphic nature. For instance, the scene of Nancy Underhill lying dead and nude in the bathtub, with her wrists slit and a plastic bag over her head is sure to make the reader wince. Furthermore, the character sketch of the killer and the description of Mark hearing footfalls of the ghost which was like â€Å"hearing someone stepping down a passage within his own head† convey a powerful sense of fright and dread. Most incidents, nonetheless, are not of a gory disposition.

Global Web Services †The Web Solution Your Business Is Looking For

Global Web Services – The Web Solution Your Business Is Looking For Free Online Research Papers Global Web Services The Web Solution Your Business Is Looking For Executive summary Global Web Services is a new company specialized in website design and hosting for small business in France. We are now focused in the Latin and Chinese communities which have established small enterprises in France and that are currently searching for new, low cost, advertising opportunities. In order to offer the best price to our customers, our whole company is organized around a low cost strategy that takes advantage of globalization, outsourcing and the latest internet technologies to satisfy our primary criteria, which is to bring value to our customers. Because we know that low cost means nothing if there is no quality involved, our company is currently implementing a Total Quality Management system that allow us to bring to the customer exactly what he is asking for. From the standardized brief taking in the first interview to the final customer’s survey our processes are normalized which, in itself, constitutes the best warranty that our clients get exactly what the have asked for. We invite you to read carefully the following marketing program which also constitutes our business offer to you. We hope you will find in our starting company a great business opportunity. We also want to invite you to visit us at www.gws.com if you would like to know anything else about our business or to simply contact us at sales@mittica.com Table of contents Executive summary 1 Table of contents 3 Current market situation 5 Who are our clients? 6 Offer design 7 Opportunity and issue analysis 8 Internal Opportunities: 8 Low-cost site hosting in US 8 Professional design crews 8 Motivated Sales force 9 External opportunities: 9 Huge market demand 9 Competitive price 10 Threats 10 Internal threats 10 People 10 Physical evidence 10 External threats 11 Marketing Strategy 11 Outsourcing 12 Hosting and Domain Registration 12 Labor force 13 Specialization and Commercial Alliances 14 Localization 15 Custom made solutions 15 Multi language solutions 15 Pricing 16 Action programs 16 Financial projections 17 Assumptions 17 Cash Flow projection 22 Current market situation The website design industry in France for small business is very fragmented with no company getting anywhere near a dominant position. This is indeed a big opportunity for a specialized company like Global Web Services which is highly adaptable and can establish quickly a niche position. Small businesses themselves, these companies rely on web engine positioning, and in event based campaigns like the latest Salon des Entrepreneurs, to acquire new clients. E-mail marketing is also another powerful tool for this industry and they try to make the most out of it, by limiting pricing and availability of services to registered visitors of their web pages . Direct sales, either door to door or by telephone are not very used in this industry, probably because of the difficulty involved in choosing the right target. The most competed market is the pre-designed one which is also the cheapest option available for the consumer. A person or an enterprise looking to set up a website can just get into the internet and buy a pro-forma of a web site for just 500 euros, which will then fill it himself with his own content (pictures and text). Of course it comes with the sacrifice of originality and gives very little room to particular needs or customization. Sharply contrasting with this situation is the upper end of the market, where there are just a few big players like Microsoft, ORACLE and SAP with the necessary competences to offer very complex, custom made database and office integration tools that also include, as a plus, the corporate websites. Who are our clients? Our clients are small business with no more than 10 employees, located in the metropolitan France which are owned by immigrants coming from the South American region or China which are interested in finding new ways of promoting their business. For our clients a website is the opportunity of obtaining a more corporative image, get a low-cost permanent showroom for their business. In terms of the stage in the purchase decision process, our clients are, for the most part, first time prospects, who have not yet purchased a corporate website. Due to their ethnical origin they feel more comfortable doing business in their own language (sometimes there is just a great language problem). It is also more likely that they would want to buy from a vendor who understands their business, who explains things well, and whom they can trust. Special attention is given to the fact that as first time prospects, our customers require a considerable amount of information which is supported by our sales force, and, of course, our own website . Offer design We have developed different offers for different types of industries. It can either be consumer industries or service industries. As a matter of fact, the type of industry does not change much in our business because it’s the clients that provide the text that they wish to include in their website. We of course make sure that the website maintains our client’s corporate identity because a website has to be just an extension of an already established corporate identity. Our design crews are capable of making websites according to clients’ requirements, no matter what industry they are in. For example, a travel agency might need to put many images of the countries that they are promoting; a telecommunication company would require specific charts to show tariffs of different destinations; an independent movie studio might want to put some videos of their distribution. All personalisation can be realised by our professional design crews located in their home countries that achieve the same quality at much lower prices than in France. Being small businesses themselves, our customers are price oriented, they do not have big budgets just destined to website creation and maintenance, and nevertheless they want the same design quality and functionality of a medium or big company website. Nonetheless, technically speaking, these companies belong to the category of small or medium sized companies and their websites are normally simple in terms of technical resources, time required and complexity. Concrete examples Let’s think for a moment about the owner of a tà ©là ©boutique, (call shop), where people can make cheap phone calls, local or international, to a fixed phone or to a mobile. It can be a pizzeria or Indian restaurant with delivery service, a Chinese traiteur, a dry-cleaning service. Someone of our sales team can go into one of Chinese restaurants and discuss with the owner to find out a solution that corresponds to his or her needs. Our clients can either have their own tailor-made website or purchase a ready-to-use model to which our design crew would make some minor modifications, for example, adding some images provided by the client. It all depends on the clients’ different requirements and budgets. Opportunity and issue analysis Internal Opportunities: Low-cost site hosting in US As we host our clients’ sites in the United States instead of Europe, the hosting cost for our clients is much lower than if they do it in France. It is an important advantage in terms of budget saving. Low site hosting does not necessarily mean low quality. Our clients are provided with a complete set of services just as what they could have in France. The networks we choose are very stable with excellent maintenance and 24 x 7 timely technical support in case of problem, which remains rare. Professional design crews We have a pool of professional website designers in low labour cost countries, like mainland China, and Colombia. All of our design crews are professionals with a lot of experience in this field. They have already designed various types of websites for clients in different industries and work very efficiently. They understand clients’ needs very well and can adapt to correspond to clients’ requirements. Motivated Sales force Our sales team is made up of college students recruited in France and work part time mainly being remunerated with commissions which are determined by their sales results. The advantage of recruiting students is that they have generally well educated and have adequate knowledge and theories of the business world. They are eager to apply what they have learned in theory into the real world. More to the point, both GWS and they will benefit from the full month of training which is the starting point of the internship in our company. They also have flexible hours, some have free mornings, and others just the afternoons or the evenings and that allows them to work without affecting their studies while giving us the possibility of reach multiple targets like restaurants and pubs. The most part of our recruits are foreign students studying in France because of their language ability to communicate with the clients. There is also the fact that foreign students, for the most part, have financial constraints and are motivated to earn a little bit more by themselves to lessen their family’s heavy burden. Handling the heavy part of the sales and also being the company mentors are the more experienced salesmen and women who earn a basic salary of 2695 euros plus a variable pay that depends on the sales commissions. These are the people finalizing the sales process and in charge of taking the full brief from the customer. External opportunities: Huge market demand We have found a big, neglected market in the ethnic communities which is most of the times just relying in simple technicians or in particular persons (not enterprises). Most of our clients are the proud owners of a small business or a family business and they are very good at what they do, they also recognize the advantages of setting up a website for their companies but lack the technical expertise and necessary contacts to make it happen. That’s exactly what we can provide. Competitive price As we are fully capable to lower any certifiable business offer by 20% in France and our potential clients are very price oriented, we have an unbeatable advantage over our competitors. Threats Internal threats As any other service company we are facing threats too, mainly coming from the two additional Ps in the service marketing: people and physical evidence. People As our design crews are subcontracted companies, they also have clients in their respective home country, thus it is possible that they prioritize their work at hand and not be punctual when working for us. We, of course have the advantage of a bigger budget and the easy to use of our TQM assurance system. Physical evidence We do not have a huge office and our sales force is mainly students working part time. To our potential clients we might not be the most credible web design company. Our solution is to add as much physical evidence as possible, for example, we can require our sales force to wear relatively formal outfits when going to see clients, better with a portable computer with which he or she can show the client concretely what we have to offer, our achieved work and explain, with the added advantage of speaking our client’s mother language, why we are cheaper and how much we are cheaper. External threats Our biggest weakness is that our model is easily copied. Another company can just start hiring web designers outside the EU space. Luckily, and due mainly to the rigidity of the French laws, we have some time to consolidate ourselves before this actually happens. Besides the fact that our whole company is organized around a low cost strategy (very difficult to copy), we are aware of this threat and we can respond with a three pronged defence: We can assure quality and we will have a better brand awareness. Our profit margin is quite high, so we could undergo a price war. We have designed a program that gradually adds value to our offer trough our business associates capabilities and by adding value to our core offer. For example we can offer our clients three free modifications of their site once it is finished. Marketing Strategy Taking advantage of the Voip technologies and of the virtual office integration technologies our company has defined a low cost strategy which will be present at all times in our company. From the web hosting, to the design and actual construction of a web site we maintain a global scope that allow us to take advantage of economies of scale, spare capacity and low labor costs. We also aim for low cost with our regular staff in France who have the opportunity of developing their normal work tasks in virtual offices where they have regular virtual meetings and share presentations regularly. Of course, being environmentally friendly, here at Discount Web Pages we have a zero paper policy which is consistent with our TQM system. This virtual office feature is not only loved by our people who, for the most part will work at home or will be visiting our clients, but allows us to maintain a very little office in Paris which is complemented with the regular renting of a meeting and conference room where our sales force receives training. Outsourcing Hosting and Domain Registration More than 70% percent of the websites in the world are physically located in the United States, effectively creating a very competitive economy of scale that currently (after the dot com bubble went of) has a moderate spare capacity and is fully scalable. Service is excellent also, not just because it takes advantage of the world class infrastructure of the United States (power supply, culturally centered on customers, stable macroeconomic conditions). With prices ranging from $5, 95 to $30 per month, for medium range hosting services this is a competitive advantage that we are willing to translate directly to our customers with the compromise that we will find the best value offer for their needs. Additionally we are willing to offer our clients a â€Å".com† domain registration which is open for business all around the world and that is currently the most affordable alternative. With an average of $20 per year, the â€Å".com† constitutes a very good value proposition which contrasts sharply with the EU$ 45 of the â€Å".fr† domain registration which will also be available for our most traditional clients. Labor force As both, a labor and technology intensive industry, the website design industry can benefit greatly from outsourcing because it can effectively cut production costs to more than half. First, there is a benefit to be obtained from the localized pricing of the software producer companies (Computer Assisted Design Packages like Macromedia Dream weaver, Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft FrontPage, etc.) which can go as low as 35% percent less, depending on the country and the particular company policies . Global Web Services will benefit directly from this policies in the case of our in house designers and translators and indirectly, in the case of our sub contractors. Professional services are also cheaper in developing countries which give us the opportunity to sub contract most of our services at a 50% discount most of the times while attracting the best workforce available because of our good salaries . Specialization and Commercial Alliances Always bringing value to our customers, Global Web Services, have established a set of strategic joint ventures with business that share our same market philosophy. This empowers us to focus on our core business while offering a very complete solution without a significant price increase. We have made a brief description of each one of them, as well as an analysis to the added value they provide to our clients. Turner Translations – www.turnertranslations.com This well established multi language translation business located in the United States provides our clients with the ability to set up multi language websites at very competitive prices because they also outsource in Latin America. The Sweat Shop – www.the-sweatshop.com Based in Bogot Colombia, this small company boost a top of the market designers crew at below the average price. Customers needing special designs, or even whole corporate image studies can rely on us to translate directly their needs to this company or even contact them directly via our top of the line virtual office capabilities. This is also a very good business opportunity for GWS because it gives us the opportunity to further differentiate ourselves from other non-branded website designers. Alleati – www.alleati.com Based also in Bogot, Colombia, this medium company is specialized in back end solutions that allow companies to enhance their websites with advanced database technologies. Professional Business Consulting Services Recognizing that our clients are mostly family business of immigrants that are looking for ways to grow in the close future we have pulled together a database of professional business consultants of certified MBA level that are willing to provide marketing and Financial consulting services in languages other than French or English. Localization Custom made solutions Our goal is to be the company that better understands our niche of the market, our company is able to function in the client’s native language, and more to the point, is willing to undergo a process of three interviews (more if they are needed) on which our client first defines his needs, second has the opportunity of seeing and correcting a beta version of his website and, finally sees the final product and has the opportunity to make the final changes. Each of these interviews is documented in a standardized document designed under the standards of our Total Quality Management system. In order to assure this objective, we have created a two tier sales force which is going to provide a very professional assistance to our clients. Multi language solutions Based on the fact that most of our clients are targeting both, the French mainstream market and also, ethnic customers that would prefer to visit a website that speaks their mother tongue, our crew offers dual language websites as par of our regular business proposition. That fact alone, gives us a great business advantage over the local competition. Pricing Because the biggest part of our workforce is not located in the euro area and that we have very little fixed costs (plus other benefits of globalization already explained), we are able to make a very bold business proposition to our potential customers: â€Å"we are willing to better your best offer by 20% with at least the same quality and feature definitions†. This is a plus to the fact that we offer custom made solutions, contrary to the pre-defined templates that seem to be the norm for the French market and that we speak the same language that our customers (language and culturally speaking). Action programs As a new company based in Paris, Global Web Solutions is committed to the following objectives that will guarantee maximum profitability to our shareholders. Obtain at least 25% of market share in the Latin and Chinese small and medium enterprises sector in Paris by September 30 2005. Set a milestone of 100 customers served by October of 2005. Obtain our international Quality Assurance Certificate by February 2006. Because we always have in mind that sales mean nothing if our Company does not also progress financially, we are planning to achieve an early breakeven point after just 10 (January 2006) months of commercial operation. As our first year commitment we are focused on obtaining a 35% market share (Chinese and Latin) of the Parisian market (LA and Chinese smb’s) before 2005 is over. That will allow us to establish a strong base of operations in Paris which will effectively function both, as showcase and as a stronghold to capture the whole French market. Capitalizing the experience with the Chinese and Latin Markets, we will establish an African division by the second half of 2006. For our second year and taking advantage of our acquired experience and our dominant position in Paris, we are aiming to achieve a national market share of 40% by the end of March 2006. By the end of the same year, we are aiming to achieve a dominant position in the French metropolitan market. We expect to have a profit of 400.000 euros by the end of 2006. Finally, by the end of the first half of 2007, we hope to have gained enough cash flow and goodwill, to make the leap to other EU area countries. Our Company will do that with the added funds that an Initial Public Offering in the French stock market will provide. Financial projections Financially speaking this project has very interesting features due to the scalability of the business and the low level of true fixed costs. Assumptions The very conservative assumptions used to construct this model are listed as follows (please see the appendix one for the complete cash flow projection of the first two years of operations): Sales progression: We have estimated that our level of sales is going to grow 40% during the first ten months of operations and then, due mainly to the level of quality issues, this growth is going to stabilize around a monthly 9% during the second year of operations. We have also projected that the composition of our sales is going to be 80% type I (very simple web sites) 10 Type II (websites with more than 10 web pages), 7% type III and we will have a 3% of the very complicated type IV (database setup and complete corporate solution) France-based Salaries: We have made a distinction between the two different types of employees the company has. Interns are actually cheaper in terms of contributions to the state because health insurance is still a responsibility of the school. Type of employee Base salary / hour % for the state % company contribution Total to pay/hour Total / Month Stagier $ 2.14 0.35 0.2 $ 3.32 $ 464.38 Expert salesman $ 11.00 0.23 0.4 $ 17.93 $ 2,510.20 Management Salary (starting) $ 21.43 0.35 0.4 $ 28.93 $ 4,050.00 Other fixed costs: We have also identified and projected a list of costs. Concept Monthly Cost Rent for 65 sq meters business $ 1500.00 Electricity + gas/month $ 350.00 Telephones/month $ 500.00 Company Registration costs $ 1,000.00 Offshore contacts (1 web designer) $ 700.00 Variable Costs: These costs depend on the actual level of sales and are given per unit of sales. Please take notice that ignoring for a moment our French fixed costs, the cost of a very simple; two language website is just 220 euros. Variable costs (projected averages) Hosting services $ 30.00 Web domain registration $ 50.00 Website design $ 30.00 Website construction $ 80.00 Translation (one language) $ 30.00 sub total $ 220.00 Database implementation level 1 $ 500.00 Database implementation level 2 $ 900.00 Flyer design and printing $ 1,200.00 Prices: Prices GWS Maintenance /month Industry average Complexity level 1 (1-10 pages) tailor made $ 350.00 $ 59.50 $ 900 Complexity level 2 (1-10 pages 2 languages) $ 1,200.00 $ 204.00 $ 1500 Complexity level 3 (1-10 pages + database level 1) $ 2,000.00 $ 340.00 $ 3000 Complexity level 4 (1-10 pages + database level 2) $ 2,500.00 $ 425.00 depends on complexity Flash web design $ 300.00 n/a $ 500 Java development $ 500.00 n/a depends on complexity Mail app setup $ 100.00 $ 17.00 free Expected Inflation: 2%. Our prices will increase accordingly. Tax rate: 40%. We have ignored the fact that start-up companies have access to financing and some government tax breaks. Cash Flow projection Based on the previous assumptions we can easily assure our shareholders that we will easily achieve our first financial objective, which is to break even at the end of the tenth month of operations (December 2005). Research Papers on Global Web Services - The Web Solution Your Business Is Looking ForAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaOpen Architechture a white paperThe Project Managment Office SystemIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalPETSTEL analysis of IndiaDefinition of Export QuotasBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfTwilight of the UAWMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This Nice

3 Sentences with Dangling Modifiers

3 Sentences with Dangling Modifiers 3 Sentences with Dangling Modifiers 3 Sentences with Dangling Modifiers By Mark Nichol Coming from my inexhaustible supply of dangling modifiers, you will find this post a helpful exercise in how to spot this type of error. That lead sentence, of course, contains a dangling modifier, a phrase providing additional information about a sentence’s subject that does not associate directly with the subject. In this case, because the subject is you, the implication is that you, dear reader, rather than the contents of this post, are coming from the stated source. The sentence is better presented as follows: â€Å"You will find this post, coming from my inexhaustible supply of dangling modifiers, a helpful exercise in how to spot this type of error.† Here are a few sentences with the same class of mistake, followed by my suggested solutions: 1. â€Å"As the only one with a Muslim-sounding name in class, people turned to her on questions about Islam. This sentence refers to â€Å"people† representing a heretofore unmentioned individual’s classmates rather than that person, as â€Å"the only one with a Muslim-sounding name in class,† so the initial modifying phrase should be revised to clearly identify the person consulted as described: â€Å"Because she was the only person in the class with a Muslim-sounding name, people turned to her on questions about Islam. (Also, the statement contains not only a dangling modifier but also a misplaced modifier two distinct phenomena: The positioning of â€Å"in class† is not incorrect, but the phrase is best relocated earlier in the sentence, as I have done in my revision.) However, the person could also be explicitly introduced as the subject of the sentence: â€Å"As the only person in class with a Muslim-sounding name, she was the one people turned to on questions about Islam.† 2. â€Å"After leaving Chez Fez, this chef’s culinary talents have reached the highest level at his new restaurant.† The implication in this sentence, as constructed, is that the chef’s culinary talents somehow detached themselves from his being and found their zenith elsewhere. To reflect the writer’s true meaning, the modifier could be revised to refer to the actual subject (with an additional replacement of after with since): â€Å"Since this chef left Chez Fez, his culinary talents have reached the highest level at his new restaurant.† Alternatively, the subject of the sentence must be unequivocally altered to refer to the chef himself, not his talents, which did leave his previous place of employment but did so as part of him: â€Å"Since leaving Chez Fez, this chef has found that his culinary talents have reached the highest level at his new restaurant.† 3. â€Å"As the foundation of Western civilization, learning about ancient Greece provides students a solid grounding in many of the philosophies that shape modern life and thought in the Western world.† It is not learning about ancient Greece but ancient Greece itself that should be posited as the foundation of Western civilization. Begin the sentence with the reference to ancient Greece: â€Å"Ancient Greece is the foundation of Western civilization, and learning about it provides students a solid grounding in many of the philosophies that shape modern life and thought in the Western world.† Another option is to begin with the participial phrase â€Å"Learning about ancient Greece† and making the phrase â€Å"as the foundation of Western civilization† an interspersed parenthetical: â€Å"Learning about ancient Greece, the foundation of Western civilization, provides students a solid grounding in many of the philosophies that shape modern life and thought in the Western world.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:When to use "on" and when to use "in"Social vs. Societal7 Sound Techniques for Effective Writing

Arranged Marriages within the Indian and Chinese Cultures Research Paper

Arranged Marriages within the Indian and Chinese Cultures - Research Paper Example Arranged marriage should not be confused with forced marriage in which one party is forced to get married to another. Arranged marriages are the responsibilities of older family members, parents, matchmaking agents or trusted parties. In some cultures, courting is not prevalent. Spouses are brought together by their parents. In this case, it is the responsibility of the parent to see to it that his or her child passes the marital rites. This way, the adult children see it as a norm. The people who are responsible for the arrangement marriages might be subjective to emotional infatuation and come up with illogical decisions. In either case, intra-generational relationships supersede marital relationships. Following the partners sharing some factors, it is believed that some form of understanding develops between the couple and the relationship lasts. Discussion Arranged marriages are practiced in China and India with the sole aim of maintaining the social caste. Families bring the chi ldren together so that they may keep the family ties strong. In India, arranged marriages, though discouraged, are widely practiced. The parents see it as their personal responsibility to ensure that their children pass their marital rites. The legal age for marriages in India is 18 for females and 21 for males. However, through arranged marriages, family members marry their girls as early as 15 but the marriages consummated after the ages of 18 (Seymour and Seymour 132). In China, arranged marriages are practiced at a low rate because the pace of technology in the country does not allow for conservation of some cultural practices. Females are supposed to marry at the age of 21 and 23 for males. This means that the parents can only seek for suitors for the children at the right age. However, in China, people are given the right to choose their partners and it is only after they have made their choices that the parents can intervene in wedding preparations (Fox 191). Similarities Arr anged marriages are common in the Chinese and Indian cultures. These two cultures share a number of factors they put into consideration when coming up with the best match. Among the major factors is that of religion. In both cultures, it is believed that the preference should be given to the people sharing same spiritual and religious beliefs. Culture and caste is also another most common factor considered in both cultures. When picking on the matches, food habits, language, and region are considered so that the couple shares the same culture (Fox 182). The reputation of each party together with that of the family and friends that directly affect the reputation of the party is considered. One can have a good reputation but fail to be selected because of the bad reputation of his or her friends or family members. Dowry is an extremely important factor for both cultures, thus, a match would be selected from people sharing the same social class. A lady from a wealthy family background would have a match selected from a gentleman with a similar family background (Reaves 4). Vocation is another factor considered in both cultures. However, the location of the man matters more than that of the woman. The man has to provide for the family and as a result, he should be with a substantial amount of income.  

The Ballets Russes Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The Ballets Russes - Research Paper Example Uniting different forms of art one artistic whole that organizes the material and spiritual environment is what artistic synthesis is all about. This concept implies the creation of a qualitatively and new phenomenon or art that cannot then be reduced to the sum of its original component sums. The new product becomes the imaginative, the compositional and the ideological unity of these components that form the various parts. Be they music, painting or dance. The Ballets Russes became the first internationally performing dance company that featured an intricate design by several outstanding artists, a variety of choreographers and a blend of music and beautiful synthesis of art. The common effect in space and time arrangements, the unity of the various components, their proportion, their coordination in scale and the rhythm generate several marvelous and variable artistic qualities. These enhance the apprehension of art and establish an idea that is developed on several planes. The sy nthesis of art has a comprehensive and emotional effect on the person who encounters it, appealing to several of his senses all at once. This concept has had many great educational and social possibilities that have been adopted by a number of productions and performances through the history of performance. There are various syntheses that have been practiced throughout the history of art. For instance, monumental art and architecture have always been united leading to the creation of an artistic synthesis where painting and sculpture, while still performing their own tasks, have also enhanced and interpreted the work of architecture in itself. This form of plastic and spatial synthesis sometimes also includes the decorative art that is applied to bring out the environment of man, his desires and pleasure. It is this aspect of art that the Ballet Russes maximized on. The Ballets Russes There has been a history of synthesis of the temporal arts such as poetry and music that are chara cterized by different genres of vocals such as: popular song, cantata, art song, opera, and oratio. There are several works that have utilized this concept to create an innovative form of art. These include motion picture, theater and of course ballet. Painting, music and dance are synthetic in their own nature. In uniting the creative works of the painter, the singer and the dance, a whole new world of art is aesthetically united (Jordan & Lopukhov, p. 24). These are the possibilities that were utilized by the Ballets Russes. The Ballets Russes, also known as the Russian Ballets, was a travelling ballet company from Russia that performed from 1909 to 1929 in several countries. It was directed by Sergei Diaghilev and is regarded as one of the greatest ballet companies, if not the greatest, in the 20th century (Brewer, Diaghilev’s Golden Age; Culture24.org). His work was based on the philosophy that â€Å"art is free and life is paralyzed.† It is important to note that by this time, Diaghilev had already enjoyed success in Paris a year before, in 1908 before his company originally started to perform. In that year, he presented to the Parisians a season of the Russian art, their music and opera. It is this presentation that got him the invitation the following year to present ballet and opera. The dancers of Ballets Russes came from the ballet school in St. Petersburg, the Imperial Ballet. After the Russian Revolution several Russians were exiled to Paris. This formed the training ground for the next generation of dancers. They featured a variety of works from a variety of artists. When the director died the company’s dancers scattered and its assets were claimed by creditors. It was later revived under the name Ballet Russ de Monte Carlo by Colonel Wassily de Basil and an associate Rene Blum in 1932. The company combined new art, dance and music and created a sensation that reached all the corners of the world.