The Sun Rising

This is a dramatic poem where the speaker and his lover are in bed together. The speaker personifies the sun, and is speaking to it throughout the poem. As the sunlight comes through the windows, the speaker tells the sun to leave them alone. He seems to feel that their life together is complete, and that the sun is being a nuisance. He then tells the sun that his lover is worth more than anything the sun can ever find outside their bedroom. It is a love poem of an unusual kind.In this poem, composed in the form of a dramatic monologue, the poet lover is angered at the Sun and calls it names for disturbing the time him and his lover are spendong together. . He addresses the Sun as â€Å"busy old fool†. He calls it unruly because, by peeping in to the bedroom through windows and curtains it disturbs the lovers. The poet-lover tells the Sun that lovers’ seasons do not run to its motions. He advises the Sun to go and do such routine and dull jobs like chiding late-schoolbo ys and apprentices, waking up court-huntsmen and peasants.The expression â€Å"country ants† is imagery. It refers to the peasants, drudging like ants. However, the poet and his lover are not like ‘them', they are superior to all that is going on around them and they should not be disturbed. They get up with the Sun and toil the whole day, till sunset. Love knows no season, no climates. It is not affected by time. In this section of the poem we come across personification like â€Å"busy old fool† and â€Å"saucy pedantic wretch† to show the annoyance the poet has at this intruder.The poet’s wit is apparent when he tells the Sun that he has no reason to think that his beams are â€Å"so reverend and strong†. The poet lover could eclipse and could the beams of the Sun with a wink. He does not do so because he does not wish to â€Å"loose her sight so long. † This indicates that the love between the poet and his lover is so obsessive, so strong and has such potency that he does not even want to lose sight of her for her second. The Sun travels all over the world in twenty four hours. The poet asks the Sun to go round the world, see all Kings, come back tomorrow and say ifDonne uses hyperbole to exaggerate the importance of himself and his lover, â€Å"in one bed lay†- he is insinuating that all important elements of the world are there in the their bed and in their room. They are everything. To Donne, this moment with his love means everything and he describes it as such. The same imagery continues in the concluding verse of the poem where â€Å"She’s all States, and all Princes I†. The poet’s mistress is all States. She is the world. The Sun can shine over only half of the world at one time. The lovers, on the contrary, are the world.It logically follows that the Sun is â€Å"half as happy as we†. When we come to this part of the poem we notice a shift in the mood of the poet. Th e Sun is no longer the â€Å"busy old fool† or the â€Å"saucy pedantic wretch† of the first verse or stanza. It is now an aged fellow in need of ease. The poet offers it the needed ease; the Sun’s duty now is warming the world. It warms only half of the world at a time. By shining on the lover’s bed it can shine over the whole world at a time. â€Å"Let the bed be the centre and the walls the sphere† of the Sun with this arrangement the aged Sun can do its duties with ease.At the beginning of the poem the poet asked the Sun to go away from there. Now he invites the Sun to go round their bed and shine on them. He does not want to lose his lovers sigh for even a second- shows how much he loves her. The poet addresses the sun as a person and rebukes the sun because it has wakened him and his lover from their sleep. He demands to know why lovers should obey time. He also shows his dominance over the sun, calling it a ‘saucy pedantic wretchâ€⠄¢ and tells the sun to bother other people instead such as late school boys or workers imploring or more time to sleep.He tells the sun to find the royal court people and farmers to let them start their day instead of controlling the lovers, because time does not exist in love and unlike season or climate or sun, love doesn’t change. Hours, days and months are just silly, useless measures. The poet challenges the sun about its strength, that the sun isn’t is high and mighty because he can make it disappear by winking, except he doesn’t want to lose sight of his lover. He teases the sun that his lover’s eyes are so beautiful and bright that it can blind the sun.He tells he sun to go to far away countries like India or stay because the entire world is with him in the bed. The sun can also find kings but he and his lover are so superior that even the kings will say the most important people are in his room, ‘all here in one bed lay’. The poet c laims that his lover is ‘all states’ and in fact the whole world itself and he is the ‘prince’ that rules it, nothing else exists other than them. They are the celebrity, and even other princes want to mimic them.He declares that honour and science are nothing compared to their love and that the sun is only half as happy as they are. He says the sun is old and so it should rest because its duty is to warm the world and since they are the world, the sun has completed its duty. Then, the poet cleverly turns the sun’s refusal to leave into a show of its generosity and by shining at them, it has centered itself upon the room of his love and so they are the sun, the center of the universe

The Overcoat

Meanings and Indeterminacy in Gogol's â€Å"The Overcoat† Author(s): Victor Brombert Reviewed work(s): Source: Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 135, No. 4 (Dec. , 1991), pp. 569-575 Published by: American Philosophical Society Stable URL: http://www. jstor. org/stable/986817 . Accessed: 25/01/2012 04:09 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www. jstor. org/page/info/about/policies/terms. sp JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email  protected] org. American Philosophical Society is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society. h ttp://www. jstor. org Indeterminacy Meanings and in Gogol's The Overcoat* VICTOR BROMBERT Henry Putnam University Professorof Romanceand ComparativeLiterature Princeton University kaky Akakyevich is the central characterof Gogol's story TheOvercoat. Although Dostoyevsky gave common currency to the term â€Å"antihero† in Notes from Underground,it is Gogol's Akaky Akakyevich who is the genuine, unmitigated, and seemingly unredeemable antihero. For Dostoyevsky's anti-heroic paradoxalist, afflicted with hypertrophia of the consciousness, is well-read, cerebral, incurably bookish, and talkative. Akaky Akakyevich is hardly aware, and almost inarticulate. Gogol's artistic wager was to try to articulate this inarticulateness. The story, in its plot line, is simple. A most unremarkable copying clerk in a St. Petersburg ministry-bald, pockmarked, short-sighted, and the scapegoat of his colleagues who invent cruel ways of mocking himdiscovers one day that his pathetically threadbare coat no longer protects him against the fierce winter wind. The tailor he consults categorically refuses to repair the coat which is now beyond repair, and empts Akaky Akakyevich into having a new overcoat made, one totally beyond his means, but which by dint of enormous sacrifices, he manages to acquire and wear with a newly discovered sense of pride. But his happiness lasts only one short day. Crossing a deserted quarter at night, he is attacked by two thieves who knock him to the ground and steal his coat. Drenched, frozen, deeply upset, brutally reprimanded by a superior whose help he dared seek, A kaky develops a fever, becomes delirious, and dies. One can hardly speak of an interesting plot line. Yet this simple story lends itself to orgies of interpretations. In fact, there may be as many interpretations as there are readers. The Overcoatcan be read as a parable, a hermeneutic puzzle, an exercise in meaninglessness. But to begin with, there is the temptation to read it seriously as satire with a social and * Read 9 November 1990. PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY, VOL. 135, NO. 4, 1991 569 570 VICTOR BROMBERT moral message. In The Nose, Gogol had already made fun of the rankconsciousness and venality of civil servants. In The Overcoat, he seems to deride systematically the parasitical, lazy, phony, world of Russian officialdom, whose members are the impotent mediators of a hierarchy of ineffectual power structure in which every subordinate fears and apes his superior. Early Russian critics, convinced that literature must have a moral message, read such a denunciatory and corrective satirical intention into the story even though it is clear that Gogol constantly shifts his tone, defends no apparent norm, and systematically ironizes any possible â€Å"serious† message. There is of course the temptation to read The Overcoatas a tale of compassion, as a plea for brotherhood. The pathetically defenseless little clerk, taunted and persecuted by the group, remains blissfully oblivious to the cruel pranks of which he is the butt, intent on his humble copying activity. Only when the jokes become too outrageous, or interfere with his work, does he protest ever so mildly. But here the tone of the story seems to change. For Gogol introduces a young man, recently appointed to the same office, who is on the point of sharing in the general fun, and who is suddenly struck by the strange notes in Akaky's voice which touch his heart with pity and make him suddenly see everything in a very different light. A true revelation emanating from an â€Å"unnatural† (neestestvennyi) power allows him to hear other words behind Akaky's banal entreaty to be left alone. What he hears are the deeply penetrating, unspoken words echoing with poignant significance: â€Å"I am thy brother. And with this voice from behind the voice comes the shocked awareness of how much â€Å"inhumanity† there is in human beings, how much brutality lurks in what goes as civilized society and civilized behavior. The apparent lesson in humanity given by the scapegoat victim seems, in the immediate context, to have an almost religious character, especially if one relates it to the narrator's comments, after Akaky's death, on ho w a man of meekness who bore the sneers and insults of his fellow human beings disappeared from this world, but who, before his agony, had a vision of the bright visitant (svetluy gost). The man of meekness, the man of sorrows, like the unspoken but clearly heard â€Å"I am thy brother,† seems to have a Christian, if not Christological, resonance. But we forget Akaky's name, and that we are not allowed to do. For the patronymic appellation not only stresses the principle of repetition (Akaky's first name being exactly the same as his father's), but the funny sound repetition is even funnier because the syllable kak = like (tak kak = just as) embeds the principle of sameness in Akaky's name, determining, it would seem, his single-minded, life-long activity of copying and implicit condemnation to sameness. Regarding the many years Akaky served in the same department, Gogol observes that he â€Å"remained in exactly the same place, in exactly the same position, in exactly the same job, doing exactly the same kind of work, to wit copying official documents. † But there is better (or worse) especially to Russian ears, for kakatj GOGOL'S THE OVERCOAT 571 (from the Greek cacos = bad, evil) is children's talk for defecate, and caca in many languages refers to human excrement. To be afflicted with such a name clearly relates to the garbage being regularly dumped on Akaky as he walks in the street, and to his being treated with no more respect by the caretakers than a common fly. The cruel verbal fun around the syllable kak extends beyond the character's name, and contaminates Gogol's text. Gogol indulges in seemingly endless variations on the words tak, kak,kakoi,kakoi-to,kakikh-to,vot-kak,neekak,takoi, takaya,kaknibut, (just so, that's how, in no way, somehow, and so on) which in the translation disappear altogether. The exploitations of sound effects or sound meanings clearly correspond to a poet's fascination with the prestigious cacophonic resources of ordinary speech. 1 One last point about the choice of Akaky's name, specifically the Christian act of â€Å"christening†: according to custom, the calendar was opened at random and several saints' names (Mokkia, Sossia), including the name of the martyr Khozdazat, were considered, only to be rejected by the mother because they sounded so strange. Akaky was chosen because that was the name of the father. But Acacius, a holy monk of Sinai, was also a saint and martyr, and we find ourselves-especially since the Greek prefix a (Acacius) signifies: not bad, therefore good, meek, humble, obedient-back to the religious motif. If Akaky continues to copy for his own pleasure at home, this is in large part because the bliss of copying has a specifically monastic resonance. Gogol does indeed refer to his copying as a â€Å"labor of love. † Here a new temptation assails the reader. Should The Overcoatnot be read as hagiography in a banal modern context, or at the very least as a parody of hagiography? A number of elements seem to lend support to such a reading of the story in or against the perspective of the traditional lives of the saints: the humble task of copying documents, reference to the theme of the martyr (muchenik),salvational terminology, sacrificial motifs or communion (â€Å"I am thy brother†), Akaky's visions and ecstasies, his own apparitions from beyond the grave. But the most telling analogy with hagiographic lore is the conversion-effect on others, first on the young man who has a revelation of a voice that is not of this world (svet), and toward the end he self-admiring, domineering, Very Important Person on whom Akaky's ghost-like apparition makes a neverto-be-forgotten impression. 2 The overcoat itself can take on religious connotations because clothing, in the symbolism of the Bible and orthodox liturgy, often represents righteousness and salvation. The only trouble with such an interpretation-and Gogol has written Meditations on the Divine Liturgy wh ich 1 Boris Eichenbaum speaks of Gogol's â€Å"phonic inscriptions† and â€Å"sound-semantics† in â€Å"How ‘The Overcoat' is Made,† in Gogol from the Twentieth Century, ed. Robert A. Maguire, Princeton University Press, 1974, p. 280. 2 See John Schillinger, â€Å"Gogol's ‘The Overcoat'as a Travesty of Hagiography,† Slavic and East EuropeanJournal, Spring 1972, 16, 1: 36-41. 572 VICTOR BROMBERT refer to the priest's robe of righteousness as a garment of salvation3-is that the coat can have an opposite symbolic significance, that of hiding the truth. Hence the traditional image of disrobing to reveal the naked self. In addition, there are many other possible meanings quite remote from the religious sphere: the metonymic displacement of the libido (the Russian word for overcoat- shinel- is appropriately feminine), the effects of virilization (in his new coat, Akaky surprises himself in the act of running after some woman in the street! ), loss of innocence and loss of â€Å"original celibacy. â€Å"4 The coat itself thus turns out to be a form of temptation (material acquisition, vanity, pride), and the devilish tailor is the agent of this temptation just as the writer or narrator (who in fact is he? â€Å"tempts† the reader into a succession of vacuous and mutually canceling interpretations. This provocative writer-reader relationship, sustained throughout the narration, casts a special light on Akaky's fundamental activity of copying- the act of writing in its purest form. It does not take much imagination (our modern critics discover self-referentiality everywhere) to see in Akaky's c opying an analogue of the writer's activity. And like the proverbially absorbed writer or scholar, he is obsessed by his writing to the point of finding himself in the middle of the street while thinking that he is in the middle of a sentence. This self-absorbed and selfreferential nature of Gogol's act of writing might be seen to imply a negative attitude toward the referential world, toward all that which is not writing. Much like Flaubert, who dreamt of composing a â€Å"book about nothing,† and whom contemporary critics like to view as an apostle of self-referential, intransitive literature, Gogol yearns for monastic withdrawal. Flaubert was haunted by the figures of the monk and the saint. Similarly, Gogol explained in a letter: â€Å"It is not the poet's business to worm his way into the world's marketplace. Like a silent monk, he lives in the world without belonging to it . . . â€Å"5 Pushed to a logical extreme, this sense of the radical deceptiveness of life calls into question worldly authority, and leads to a destabilizing stance that challenges the principle of authority, a subversive gesta of which the real hero is the artist himself. There is indeed something devilish about Gogol's narrative voice. It has already been suggested that the devil makes an appearance in the figure of the tailor who tempts Akaky into buying the coat. This caricature of the sartorial artist who quite literally is the creator of the overcoat, this ex-serf sitting with his legs crossed under him like a Turkish pasha, has diabolical earmarks: he is a â€Å"one-eyed devil† living at the end of a black staircase; he has a de3 See Anthony Hippisley, â€Å"Gogol's ‘The Overcoat':A further Interpretation,† Slavic and East EuropeanJournal, Summer, 1976, 20, 2: 121-129. Hippisley points out (p. 123) that Gogol, in his Meditations on the Divine Liturgy quotes Psalms 132:9: â€Å"Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness .. † 4 The expression is Charles Bernheimer's, in his fine essay â€Å"Cloaking the Self: The Literary Space of Gogol's ‘Overcoat,†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ PMLA, January 1975, 90, 1: 53-61. 5 Letter to Pogodin, quoted by Charles Bernheimer (op. cit. , p. 53) and Donald Fanger, The Creationof Nikolai Gogol, Harvard University Press, 1979. GOGOL'S THE OVERCOAT 573 formed big toenail, hard and thick as a tortoise shell; he handles a thricereferred-to snuff box on which the face of a general has been effaced (the devil is faceless); he seems to be nudged by the devil and charges â€Å"the devil knows what prices. 6 This verbal playfulness seems to extend to the narrator himself, who undercuts his own narration in truly diabolical fashion by means of grotesque hyperbolizing, mixtures of realistic and parodistic elements, sudden shifts from the rational to the irrational, and elliptical displacements from epic triviality to unrestrained fantasy. Indulging in a game of mirages and fog-like uncertainties, the narrator subverts the logical progression of his story. Ultimately, even the ghost is debunked, and we are back in the blackness of quotidian reality. In the Russian text, these shifts in tone and textual instabilities are even more insidious, since everything seems to blur into the undifferentiated flow of seemingly endless paragraphs. This merging of discontinuities undermines any sense of plot, undercuts the notion of subject, and suggests at every point that what is told is another story, thereby teasing the reader into endless interpretations that can neither be stabilized nor stopped. Some of this is the inevitable result of a mimesis of inarticulateness, a narrative style that is the imitative substitute for Akaky's manner of communicating mostly through prepositions, adverbs, and â€Å"such parts of speech as have no meaning whatsoever. † But the strategy of destabilization and fragmented diction also has a deeper subversive purpose. The non sequiturs and hesitations reveal the arbitrariness of any fictional structure, and in the last analysis subvert any auctorial authority. The concluding page of The Nose represents an authorial critique of the story as incomprehensible and useless. The mediating self-negator is the fictionalized narrator identified in The Overcoat as the raskazyvaiushyi-the narrating one. And this narrator, occasionally pretending to be ignorant or semi-ignorant (like Cervantes's narrative voice as of the very first sentence of Don Quixote) does not know in what town, on what day, on what street the action takes placein fact, complains of loss of memory. All this, however, only accentuates the possible importance of the unknowable and the unsayable, while protecting the protagonist's sacred privacy. The narrator clumsily speculates on what Akaky might or might not have said to himself as he stares at an erotic window display in the elegant quarter of St. Petersburg, and he concludes: â€Å"But perhaps he never even said anything at all to himself. For it is impossible to delve into a person's mind [in Russian, literally: to creep into a person's soul]. The Overcoat is thus marked by conflicting and enigmatic signals, pointing to oxymoronic textures of meanings. Inversions hint at conver6 Dmitry Chizhevsky, who stresses the presence of the Devil in â€Å"The Overcoat,†writes: â€Å"As someone who was well read in religious literature, as a connoisseur and collector of folklore materials-from popular songs and legends-Gogol of course knew about the Christian and folk tradition that the Devil is faceless† (â€Å"About Go gol's ‘Overcoat,†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ in Gogol from the Twentieth Century, p. 20). 574 VICTOR BROMBERT sions. What is seemingly up is in fact seen to be down, while the reverse is equally true. The downtrodden creature turns out to be capable of heroic sacrifices, while the powerfully constituted VIP with the appearance of a bogatyr(hero) is cut down to human size by fright. On the other hand, when Akaky's fall is likened to a disaster such as destroys the czars and other great ones of this earth, one may well feel that Gogol is ironic about all heroic poses, heroic values, and heroic figures. When Akaky wears the new coat, his pulse beats faster, his bearing seems to indicate a newly discovered sense of purpose (tzel), his eyes have an audacious gleam, he appears somehow to have almost become virile. Yet the overcoat is also the emblem of false values, of trivial passion, of a silly reason for a human downfall. One might wish therefore to read a deeper significance into these mutually canceling interpretations. In English, the word passion is fraught with a multiple significance: in the ordinary sense, it denotes intense and even overwhelming emotion, especially of love; yet etymologically, it signifies suffering. Love and suffering are of course linked in a grotesque manner in The Overcoat. Whether such love and such suffering are commensurate with any objective reality remains unresolved in this story which seems to say that any love is great no matter what its object, that love is all-powerful; and conversely, that any passion can drag one down, that the more intense it seems, the emptier it is. Gogol's style is in itself an admirable instrument of ambivalence: enlarging trivia, and thereby trivializing what we may for a moment be tempted to take as significant. What complicates Gogol's text for the reader is that it is not a case of simple ambivalence. It will not do to praise Gogol as a compassionate realist with an ethical message or to see him as a playful anti-realist indulging in overwrought imagery and in the reflections of distorting mirrors. The hard fact is that Gogol is a protean writer whose simultaneity of possible meanings allows for no respite and no comfortable univocal mess age. If the narrator is center stage, it is because ultimately he becomes a performer, a buffoonish actor mimicking incoherence itself. Intelligent readers of Gogol-Boris Eichenbaum, Vladimir Nabokov, Victor Erlich, Charles Bernheimer, Donald Fanger8-have in varying degrees and with different emphases, understood that rather than indulging in a feast of ideas to be taken seriously, Gogol delighted in verbal acts as a game-a game that implied the autonomy of narrative style, a declaration of artistic independence, and a thorough deflation of l'esprit de serieux. I am largely indebted to Dmitry Chizhevsky who has admirably shown how the repeated and incongruous use of the adverb â€Å"even† (daje) breaks up the logical train of thoughts, enlarges trivia, and frustrates the reader by making the insignificant seem significant, and vice versa. Such a narrative strategy is related by Chizhevsky to the semantic oscillations of the text (â€Å"About Gogol's ‘Overcoat,'† in Gog ol from the Twentieth Century, pp. 295-322). 8 Boris Eichenbaum, op. cit. Vladimir Nabokov, Nikolai Gogol, New Directions, 1944; Victor Erlich, Gogol, Yale University Press, 1969; Charles Bernheimer, op. cit. ; Donald Fanger, op. cit. GOGOL'S THE OVERCOAT 575 Perhaps there is an underlying autobiographic urge in The Overcoat, and the verbal clowning and narrative pirouettes are telling a story in which the irrational takes on an exorcising and liberating virtue-much as the idiosyncrasies of Dostoyevsky's Notes from Undergroundpresent a vehement protest against spiritually deadening rationality. What is certain is that Gogol needs to wear a mask. Haunted by the monsters born of his imagination, afraid to be unmasked, Gogol literally disappears in his writing by becoming a multiplicity of voices. 9 But there is a danger in depicting Gogol as an escape artist struggling against his own demons at the same time as he struggles against the repressive reality he wishes to deny. Similarly, there is the risk of considerable distortion in the determination of formalist and post-structuralist critics to draw Gogol to the camp of radical modernity by seeing him exclusively concerned with speech acts and sheer rhetoricity. Polyvalence does not mean the absence of meaning. The real problem, much as in the case of Flaubert, who complained of the plethora of subjects and inflationary overfill of meanings, is that over-abundance and multiplicity become principles of indeterminacy. Excess is related to emptiness. Similarly, Gogol seems torn between the futility of experience and the futility of writing about it, between the conviction that writing is the only salvation, and that it is powerless to say the unsayable-aware at all points of the gulf between signifier and signified. Nabokov may have come closest to the heart of Gogol's dark playfulness when he wrote: â€Å"The gaps and black holes in the texture of Gogol's style imply flaws in the texture of life itself. . 10 To this one might add, however, that the hollowness of the gaps, the terrifying absence, is also an absence/presence: a void that asks to be filled by the interpretive act. The dialectics of negativity, so dependent on the antiheroic mode embodied by Akaky, displace the production of meaning from the almost non-existent character and undecidable text to the creative reader. Victor Erlich has very convincingly discussed Gogol's motif of the mask and tendency to â€Å"speak in somebody else's voice† in his chapter â€Å"The Great Impersonator† in Gogol, op. cit. , pp. 210-223. Gogol himself writes: â€Å"If anyone had seen the monsters that issued from my pen, at first for my own purposes alone-he would certainly have shuddered† (quoted by Valery Bryusov in his essay â⠂¬Å"Burnt to Ashes,† reproduced in Gogolfrom the Twentieth Century, p. 111). 10Vladimir Nabokov, Nikolai Gogol, op. cit. , p. 143.

Why countries find it so difficult to agree climate change targets Coursework

Why countries find it so difficult to agree climate change targets. You should also offer potential solutions to the barriers that you identify - Coursework Example tes) while in the quest of strengthening their respective economic muscles, this has ensued to the present day’s adverse environmental effects (Berger, 2010). For instance, in Ukraine where climate change has adversely affected agriculture through persistent droughts (Lagutov, 2012, p. 78). Consequently, these droughts have yielded to crops’ failure, which in turn prompts the entire region’s populations experience food insecurity. This is a grievous predicament as the state’s economy somehow wholly relies on agriculture. Conversely, some scholars have contended climate alterations experienced in the region are favorable but not all parts of the entire state (Lagutov, 2012). Similarly, alteration in climate has led to heightened temperature levels in Japan leading to augmenting of Japan’s unnecessary morbidity and mortality (Ford & Berrang-Ford, 2011, p. 190). This is due to heat waves mainly associated with varied illnesses, which could have not bee n in existence if there were effective measures to shun climate degradation. Some of the illnesses associated with this climate mishap commonly experienced include cramps and heat exhaustion whereby the latter with delayed attention graduates to heatstroke, which augments the state’s mortality (Ford & Berrang-Ford, 2011). These alterations are adverse to numerous people especially those may be experiencing other chronic maladies. This is because extent of worsening of a given malady normally depends on one’s physical strength (Ford & Berrang-Ford, 2011). This is quite evident based on incidents that to date have remained in the annals of history as most grievous occurrences ever occurred and whose effects are still felt presently by varied life forms. These mishaps embrace Deepwater Horizon oil spill (Mexico), Chernobyl (Ukraine), Fukushima and Sayano-Shushenskaya power station (Russia) though some of the respective states contend their occurrence was due to inescapabl e structural failures. In the case of

Counterfeiting and Pricing in China and UK Dissertation - 1

Counterfeiting and Pricing in China and UK - Dissertation Example Counterfeiting a product is a type of cheating the consumers. â€Å"Counterfeiting is such a problem in China that it may drive away some foreign investors that manufacture designer label goods, companies warn. They say that despite efforts by the authorities, they were still losing millions of dollars in revenues because of availability of counterfeit products† (International Management, Phatak, 2006)† (Designer Concern Over Mainland Fakes Threatens Future Investment 2002). Now a day, fashion industry is seen using the counterfeit products on a large scale. More number of designers is using the style and color of the same product which are being designed by the other designers. Girls of young age are attracted towards it, as when different colors emerge of the same design. Such consumers believe that the label name, brand name, and recognizing characteristics of design such as color, logo, outline, and models are very precious. Consumers will have the difficult dilemma whether they use a counterfeit product or an original. Fashion counterfeits may perform as a risk-free test form, make attention between consumers, and create them increase constructive word-of-mouth to other customers. When compared fashionable products to physical appearances, the customers will choose either the counterfeit products or the original one depending on the convenience for shopping, or income as both offer a better appearance irrespective of its product and service quality. "Counterfeiters serve customers who aspire to own luxury goods but who are unable or unwilling to pay for the real thing† ... A greater part of counterfeit commodities bought in the UK are purchased after the importing of those commodities into the country. The majority of clients buys counterfeit products deliberately; while some consumers have been mislead to purchase counterfeits as they supposed were legitimate at the point of sale. 2.3 Mass Production of Counterfeit Products: Products in huge demand can be produced on the basis of the equal or similar features, often enclosed and branded in means to create them indifferent from the existing one. â€Å"The most popular counterfeit market is clothing, followed by shoes, watches, leather goods, and jewelry. Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Burberry, Tiffany, Prada, Hermes, Chanel, Dior, Yves St Laurent, and Cartier are frequently pirated. Knockoffs of fashion brands are usually manufactured in China, South Korea, Taiwan, and South America.† (Ritson 2007). The counterfeit products are then sold through counterpart markets, or even familiarize into the product supply series. Without the expenses of the other similar products, the counterfeits are rated particularly with regard to the competitors. Owing to the viable circumference, in a number of marketplaces in some division of the world, counterfeit goods are faraway more widespread than the previous products. When compared to UK with regard to the counterfeit products, half of the unsafe products come from china. â€Å"Counterfeiting requires advanced and costly production equipment is seen as limiting the number of parties that would engage in infringing activities. For example, the automobiles or products of similar complexity are difficult targets for counterfeiters, even if they can utilize

The Role of Salt in UK Diet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

The Role of Salt in UK Diet - Essay Example This report approves any talk of salt consumption stirs up in the mind the general public the picture of domestic cooking as a favourite seasoning and as a preservative for food preparations that are made for staying. In the same manner manufactured food products use salt for taste purposes and as a preservative. The presence of salt in manufactured food products is high and has an impact on the continued consumption levels of salt. There is evidence to suggest that an individual’s daily intake of salt can be influenced by the habitual intake of salt in the consumption of food stuffs as the taste buds adjust for the intake of salt. Elevated or lower intake of salt cause the taste of the individual to adjust to a different optimum level of salt intake. This essay makes a conclusion that salt is an essential part of our diet, because of its sodium content. Consumption of salt in excess of the physiological requirements of the human body increases the risk of diseases like high blood pressure and stomach cancer. In the United Kingdom the dietary intake of salt is in excess of the recommended 6g per day. A major portion of dietary salt comes from food products of the manufactured food industry and not from domestic use in cooking or at the table. FSA has set targets for the voluntary reduction of the percentage of salt in 85 products of the manufactured food industry with the hope that this reduction in the percentage of salt in these products would contribute to a reduction in the daily consumption of salt in the United Kingdom.

Islamic history Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Islamic history - Research Paper Example For this reason, it made him the legitimate successor to the Prophet. This implied that all other rulers were not legitimate. The Ottomans and Safavis rulers also used religion to legitimize their rule through the use of propaganda. From the safavid reading, the semi-secret Shi’ite had a propaganda that taught that all rulers of Islam were illegitimate and that the head of the Muslim community who is the Imam would one day appear and over through the mighty in order to set things right. This meant that the person who will over through the mighty rulers would be the one chosen by God.1 The rulers legitimized their rule by indicating that whoever God has given power or authority, no person can be able to resist. This prevented any person to go against or challenge a ruler who has been put into power by God.2 According to the report of the Carmelite mission, religion was put in display by building large mosques where people went to pray.3 Religion was also seen through the rituals that people performed. A good example was the use of prayers where people went to mosques for prayers thrice a day. This was in the morning, noon, and in the evening. Before prayers, people wash and call the name of God and â€Å"Ali in their prayers.4 Religion is also put on display through their daily activities.5 The Persians were allowed to have one wife who was placed in special places called the saraglios. These women were closely protected and hidden. The rulers’ use of religion changed it for their own benefit. They used religion to present themselves as gods especially to their soldiers. This was to the extent that soldiers went to fight without armor because they believed that their leaders are protecting them. Others went into battles without armor because they were willing to die for their monarch.6 When going into battles, most of these men fought in the name of the rulers because they considered them to be prophets and gods.7 The rulers also personalized

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon - Essay Example It is said that the best martial art movies are those that do not have fighting but personal excellence. The heroes used in these films are those that transcend gravity, space and the limitations of the body and mind fears. For example, in a fighting movie, the characters are portraying hatred for one another by fighting, but in a martial arts movie, these characters tend to be celebrating their powers together with one another. This film is also one of those that have been known for its display of heroism and power and the victory of an individual over collectivism. The film increased the popularity of the strong heroes and was one of the first American films in a foreign language that gained so much popularity and praise. The movie has been a presentation of complete levels of Tao, love, life, and tradition. It is basically a life story of Yu Chiao-lung (Jen) depicted showing an account of the way in which the real self can be seen and comprehended intuitively to the Tao. Jen’s journey can be described as the path from the dragon to the Phoenix, transformation of emotion to compassion or natural virtue to spiritual virtue. The film was based partially on the chivalric novel in China which gives a certain traditional representation in the characters. It not only emphasizes on the characters but also has a philosophical aspect included. The main characters in the film are each significant in their own position and hold the certain touch of symbolism in their role. Li Mu-bai had entered a Taoist monastery and was becoming the expert of sword fighting in Wudan School and was a very well known person throughout China especially for his gungfu. He had a weapon, Green Destiny, and it was 400 years old and it had special powers. This shows that the sword holds symbolism in the film and throughout it is used as a special power rather than a weapon to harm others.  

Reflection on second Presidential debate 2012 Essay

Reflection on second Presidential debate 2012 - Essay Example One of Obama’s strengths is that he spoke with a calm confidence that allowed him to think and answer soberly the attacks that have been thrown at him. He answered every question very clearly and he seemed extremely comfortable answering all the questions, knowing just how to answer them in a professional manner. I did not find any weakness for Obama in this debate. Romney’s strength is that, he is very good at pointing out the issues which are public concerns and used that to clarify the issues with Obama. His weakness is his obvious inability to send his points across very well regarding what he wants to do and he was not able to defend himself with reasonable answers when Obama questioned him. This debate helped Obama gain enormous support especially from among the middle class and the women because he did a great performance showing that he is going to support them in many areas. On the contrary, this debate hurt Romney because he did not do a good job in answering the questions. I am inclined to support Obama because I like his platform on supporting education for everyone and trying to create equality in the society. I don’t like the platform of Romney which is focusing only on supporting and seeking benefit for the rich people like

Failed Products Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Failed Products - Essay Example This product was abandoned just a few weeks after its launch and the initial version was resurrected with a new name; Classic Coke† (Robert, 1995). The second product that flopped is Crystal Pepsi which was launched in 1990s as clear cola. This brand lacked lemon/lime flavor unlike the rest of other clear carbonated drinks. It also lacked usual cola flavor. In spite of a costly media blitz, Crystal Pepsi failed to catch on and Pepsi incurred millions of dollars guessing at straws and never recovered fully. This was a big blunder that their competitors learnt from; never change a color that is acceptable to your consumers. Lastly Ben-Gay Aspirin is another example of product failure. Thus having a famous name behind a product that is new does not guarantee success-at times it can be an obstacle if the brand is closely tied to one image or product. Ben-Gay is famous for its exceptional strong smell-and its pain-reducing balm’s burning/warming sensation on its getting in touch with skin.However this wasn’t an excellent fit for Ben-Gay aspirin launch by Pfizer decades ago. Whereas the products were related in that both were designed for pain relief, consumers could not get a taste for swallowing a tablet with a brand they related to burning sensation. Ben-Gay erred in attaching a popular name to something entirely out of character. They should have used a different brand name (Michael,

Costco retail store-santa clarita Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Costco retail store-santa clarita - Essay Example The company’s typical warehouses measure and average 143,000 squire feet and the outlets operate approximately seven days a week. The core outlets comprise about 3300-3800 dynamic stock. The company’s reported total revenue for year ending August 2012 were $ 99 billion while the income was $ 2.8 billion. The company’s assets many fold surpass their liabilities indicating a stable company (Costco wholesale 1). Costco store layout, visual merchandising, customer service Store Layout There is a constant movement of items and sometimes confuse the price tags and disorient regular customers. This may mislead customers and they may be embarrassed when they are making payments at the teller. The store is fairly clean and the items are generally well organized and tidy. Similar items are located in close proximity hence this makes things easier for the customer. The stores have a specious layout for ample air circulation. There are fire equipments located strategically f or ease of access. The high number of shoppers especially children accompanied by their children make the place especially the alleys very crowded. The concept of having food courts, gas stations, chemists, optical section, salon among others is well designed and located strategically within the outlets. Staff attendees are strategically located within the lane to help assist customers in need. The image below represents a spacious food court and a raised ceiling for ample air circulation.... Their return and exchange policies are great and the staff are helpful. On one occasion, I experienced poor packaging for items purchased since some of them were in poor shape when I received them. I once experienced discrimination and have seen these happen to others in different occasions. The checking out process is supposed to be same for all but some in these occasions some undergo thorough check while a few are allowed with minimal checks. The waiting experience is sometime terrible with customers having to wait for up to 30 minutes after having paid just to be checked out. Despite commendable job by a majority of the staff, a few are still rude and unfriendly to customers. Once I enquired about location of some items from one staff member only to be told to keep looking. My brother once narrated how the management favored a staff in a disputed case and the same supervisor who intervened at the floor in favor of the staff was the same who was assigned to resolve the case. Costc o feedback mechanism is excellent because the outlets allows patrons to air suggestions and reviews through the suggestion boxes, online platforms and user generated networks. The outlet has many affiliate links online where one can leave comments for further actions. Some of the shopping carts have trash inside any occasionally used by children for play. Although most staff show genuine willingness to help shoppers, some probably the new employees often are either not confident or lack the knowledge on what to do. Some of them definitely need more training and motivation. The store offers sampling from time-to-time enabling shoppers to test and experience varieties and consequently make better purchase

Planning and Organizing Meetings Essay Example for Free

Planning and Organizing Meetings Essay Planning ahead of time is one virtue of Christian leaders. There are a lot of pointers that you need to remind yourself when planning and organizing meetings for your organization. There are details that you need to check because planning a meeting is not just calling people to come together and talking with each other without anything in mind to accomplish. First Things First Prayer is an important discipline for Christian leaders especially in terms of planning and organizing. This is the first and foremost thing that you should do. You should ask the wisdom of God and ask Him to let you know the tasks that are at hand in the organization. This is the time when you allow the Holy Spirit to guide you and to let you possess strength that you need. Secondly, set your objectives. As said earlier, calling a meeting is not just getting people in to meet and talk at certain place and time. You should set your objectives even before you call people to come. What do you want to achieve after the meeting is done? Be sure that your objectives are specific, measurable, attainable, reasonable and time-bound. Part of your objectives is planning for the agenda. Setting the agenda means that you need to identify the most important things to go first and the least important to take the lower priority. Thirdly, identify the people that you want to be in the meeting. Will there be people from other organization? Do you need a committee to help you out in contacting people? As a Christian organizing a meeting, it is necessary that you consult people according to their availability so won’t be missing out someone on the date that you will set. Also, identify the place where you will be holding the meeting. Is it conducive to the activities that are involved in the meeting? Do you need food as you talk together? The Important Things When planning, you should make sure that you get the important things under a checklist. Sometimes there are details that we think is important but are actually necessary. On the other hand, we may left out important things that are basically needed. Make a roster of the participants of the meeting. List the names of people and check or cross the name out when they already confirmed or not. List also the equipment that you need and check if they are available on the day and time of your meeting. What about the logistics and financial implications of the meeting? Make a budget and be sure that it is attainable and you will have it released in time for your use. After the Meeting Planning and organizing meeting do not end after the meeting is already done. Your responsibility as the organizer does not end when the meeting ends. During the meeting, you should have talked about a lot of important things that needs action or implementation thereafter. As such, do not lose your checklist. After the meeting you will need another again. Evaluate if your objectives were met, if not, what you can do after to meet them. After the meeting, be in gratitude to all those who attended. Your meeting is only the take off of another planning and organizing so you should plan well your starting point.

Business Essays Business Plan

Business Essays Business Plan Business Plan Introduction To assess the viability of Star of India’s business plan, it is useful to consider three aspects of the plan: Suitability – concerned with whether the business plan fits the internal and external environment that Star of India operates in Acceptability – this refers to stakeholders’ expectations of the business plan Feasibility – this relates to how achievable the business plan is This report will address all three aspects and show whether the plan is viable under each. Suitability Suitability is concerned with analysing Star of India’s business plan based on an analysis of its internal and external environment to obtain its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths and Weaknesses Star of India’s strengths and weaknesses, derived from an analysis of its internal resources reveal the following: Money This is a definite strength as the return on capital employed (ROCE), gross and net margins are impressive ROCE calculated as net profit divided by capital employed and multiplied by 100 is 112% for the year ROCE reveals the amount of profit earned from the injection of capital or net assets into the business.   This high ROCE is due to the high net profit made from Star of India’s operations Gross margin calculated as gross profit divided by sales multiplied by a 100 is 75% Gross margin reveals that Star of India is efficient in converting the cost of goods sold into income from sales Net margin is calculated as net profit divided by sales and multiplied by 100 – i.e. 46% It compares how much profit Star of India makes when compared with  £1 of income.   It shows how effective the business will be in controlling its expenses These figures show that the plan is suitable from a financial perspective. Break-even is expected to occur between August and September, by which time the total sales revenue will equal total cost for the period.   The margin of safety, i.e. the excess of expected sales over break-even sales is approximately  £490,000 (i.e. total sales for the year minus total sales from April – August 2006). Marketing Marketing is a key consideration.   Good money is being spent on advertising.   Advertising in the industry is mainly through word of mouth and leaflets.   By advertising through television and radio, the possibility to gain increased business is real. As Star of India is an unknown quantity, it is vital that a lot of effort and money should go into marketing.   However, the business could use its considerable profits to invest more in Marketing/advertising. The price being charged for its dishes contributes to the high profits, but the question that needs to be addressed here is, is it suitable to achieve competitive advantage?   If the prices are below or match industry average then it is suitable – if not, then customers would rather go to an established competitor.   The prices charged are competitive. The plan has accounted for seasonal variation as demand should rightly decrease during the summer months due to holidays. Opportunities and Threats In this industry, the main issues are: The extent of competitive rivalry The social behaviour of the population Power of customers Health and safety issues Because the competition is fierce, Star of India must ensure the prices it charges at least matches the industry average.   Otherwise, customers (who have a lot of choice due to the numerous competitors) will eat elsewhere, bearing in mind Star of India is a new entrant to the restaurant business.   Therefore, matching industry average could be a threat as the Star of India brand is yet to be discovered and trusted People eat a lot outside their homes nowadays (social behaviour) due to increasingly busy lifestyles, this consequently means that the opportunities for getting a good customer base exist. Health and safety issues are very important to the government (who can close down business if unsatisfied with their health and safety initiatives or lack of it) and customers would basically like to eat in a clean environment – this provides an opportunity for Star of India. Acceptability For the business plan to be acceptable, it must meet the needs of the main stakeholders, who in this case are: The owner The customers The Government The employees These people will have different needs.   The business plan, on the whole will be acceptable to these shareholders due to the following: The owner The owner is interested in: Making a profit Increasing the number of customers Reducing costs The plan reveals that all of these will be met. As mentioned previously, ROCE, gross margin and net margin forecasts are impressive indeed and would no doubt exceed the management’s expectations especially during the first year of operation.   There is also a positive cash flow in all but one month.   This is important for the business to be able to honour its credit commitments as they fall due.   Star of India can also use the profits to grow the business.   The plan also indicates an increase in the customer base, starting with 1820 customers in April and ending the year with a forecast of 7000.   Again, this indicates a growth plan, which should be acceptable to the owner. Although costs will be rising, this will be at a slower rate than revenue – again, this is acceptable. The customers will be interested in obtaining quality food, at competitive prices in a clean environment, delivered with good customer service.   Star of India is confident of achieving all of these. To achieve the service needs of customers, the employees need to be well trained and highly motivated.   The plan for the next financial year is to use the profits to train and develop new and existing employees and also to reward them through incentives. The government needs to ensure that Health and Safety standards are being met, taxes are being paid and that customers and employees are not being exploited – consequently, Star of India is confident that the government will be acceptable. Feasibility The employee and management are experienced, therefore, delivering quality food through superior customer service is feasible. The business plan reveals there are enough resources to meet the costs of the business – arguably too much resource.   How many new businesses could make such vast amounts of money?   The plan has barriers in the form of competitive rivalry, so the forecasts could be at risk of being regarded as too optimistic, admittedly. The prices charged may need to be reviewed, if they are too high.   Even if they reflect industry prices, it would be advisable to lower them as Star of India is a new business.   This will ensure more customers who are made aware through advertising, will be attracted to the eatery, thus making the sales forecasts more realistic.   This could be done as a promotion, for instance, for six months. More money could also be allocated to advertising from the vast amount of profit to ensure the optimistic customer targets are achieved. Conclusion The plan is very viable, when taken into account its suitability and acceptability. However, although it appears feasible, Star of India could be a bit cleverer to achieve high market share and thus competitive advantage by cutting its prices – this should make it more feasible. The business should be an immense success if these factors are taken into account.   BIBLIOGRAPHY www.bized.ac.ukwww.businessknowhow.comwww.moneychimp.comwww.nonprofits.orgwww.smalltownmarketing.comwww.unb.ca

Changes in Marriage Equality Laws

Changes in Marriage Equality Laws Compare and contrast how your views of a traditional nuclear family, cohabitation and sexuality might differ from those of your parents. The ever changing world as we know it has led to differences in lifestyles and contemporary views towards how families should be run in modern society but the core values of family life still remain the same. Families are still mediums whereby people can enjoy security, companionship and a refuge from an often harsh and uncaring world. Structures of families have changed along with society in general but the traditional nuclear family of mother, father and children still remains an ideal. Many variations of the traditional nuclear family have arisen in the years since world war 2 that have changed the current generations views to that of our parents and grandparents generations. In previous generations the mother was expected to look after the household and not partake in paid employment while the father was considered the bread winner and sole source of income for the family. This perception of the nuclear family has changed vastly due to major changes in social structure, education, the feminist movement etc. These forces have changed how we view the modern family along with the increase in cohabitation, decline in marriage, rise in divorce rates and the prolonged postponement of union formation. Single-sex marriages, single-parent families, cohabitation and single living have increased in regularity. Increases in the rate of divorce has lead to a growth in the popularity of cohabitation whereby more couples live with each other before marriage, somewhat as a testing period, and couples are marrying later in life. Marriage has become less relevant in our generation compared to the golden age of marriage during the 50s and 60s where marriage was an important institution in society. Changes in laws such as those concerning same-sex marriage have led to this attitude. In the last two decades there has been a dramatic increase in cohabitation in the US. Between 1970 and 1994, the number of unmarried couples living together rose from about 500,000 to almost 3.7 million. Between 1965-74 just 11% of marriages were preceded by cohabitation whereas between 1980-84 44% of all marriages involved at least one spouse who had cohabited (1). Cohabitation has been prevalent in previous generations where couples were unable to marry due to the fact that they werent able to afford marriage or were not lawfully able to marry. Couples also believe that it is easier to end a cohabiting relationship than it is to end a marriage. For one tenth of cohabiters, cohabitation is a long term relationship which does not lead to marriage (1). In the space of a couple of decades cohabitation has nearly replaced marriage as the regular choice of a first union. In France, a massive rise in cohabitation occurred between 1965 and 1995 when the proportion of couples starting their union by cohabitation increased from 10% to 90% (2). During the 1990s marriage was still the superior marker for first union entry in the south of Europe whereas in juxtaposition most western and northern European countries and the United States cohabitation had surpassed marriage as the preamble for first partnership. The mean age for which people enter marriage has increased for many reasons. The prolonging of many transitions to adult life(finishing education, leaving the parental household, starting a first job) along with the rise in young adults entering unions without marriage has added to the mean age. Nowadays marriage is no longer seen as the singularly appropriate avenue for childbearing. People who decide to have a child do not feel rushed into marriage and being pregnant is not seen as a determinant for marriage. This attitude can be compared to those of prior generations where pregnancy before marriage was frowned upon and unmarried cohabitation did not last very long due to social pressure. In our parents generations the normal route of marriage followed by childbearing has been steadily replaced by a number of different pathways: in some countries, the sequence of cohabitation followed by marriage and then childbearing has become the most common path, while in other societies, cohabitation first followed by first or second birth and then marriage has become the most popular pattern and an increasing number of couples with children opt to not marry at all (3). In the United States the number of children born to parents who cohabitate nearly doubled between 1984 and 1994, growing from 6% to 11% (4). In recent times marriage instability has increased, this along with less-stable living arrangements have led to an increase in the numbers of single parent families and a high frequency of single motherhood across Europe. In Europe a substantial percentage of children are exposed to living with a single parent before reaching the age of 15. The total exposure ranged from 11-18 percent in Southern Europe (Italy and Spain), Belgium, Poland, and Slovenia; to 39-41 percent in Austria, Germany, and Latvia; and, outside of Europe, to a very high level of 52 percent in the United States (these figures are period life table estimates based on the FFS data). In agreement with the evidence provided by the census data in Table 6 above, the authors argue that, while the pace of family change has varied across countries, the shift of childrearing from married parents to single mothers is universal in Western societies, and has been proceeding faster than the shift to cohabiting parents and stepfa milies (5). In our parents and grandparents generations there was a fundamental belief that marital union should be between a man and a woman. Same sex couples were shunned and granted none of the rights that were enjoyed my heterosexual couples. Throughout the world same sex couples and those in support of equal rights for same sex couples have campaigned for what they feel are basic human rights that should apply to everyone; the right to have their relationship recognised lawfully and the right to marry. Homosexuality has gradually become decriminalised since the 60s in most countries but is still criminal in some countries run by religious laws. Pressure from these groups seeking equality for same sex couples and recognition of their union along with the increase in cohabitation has led to law reforms that allow these couples to achieve a specific legal status when the register their partnerships. Although same sex couples are gaining momentum in their continuous battles to secure recognition there are still pockets of resistance and intolerance. The introduction of civil partnership to the United Kingdom has granted same sex couples more rights including employment, pension and inheritance related rights. This increase in rights is a stark contrast compared to the limited rights allocated to same sex couples in our parents and grandparents times. References Cohabitation: A Snapshot by Hilda Rodriguez, 1998 Cohabitation is here to stay by Touleman, 1997 Children born outside marriage in France and their parents: recognitions and legitimations since 1965 by Munoz-PÃÆ'Â ©rez, F., and F. Prioux, 2000 Larry Bumpass, 2002 Shifting childrearing to single mothers. Results from 17 Western countries by Heuveline, P., J. M. Timberlake, and F. F. Furstenberg, Jr., 2003

The Sniper Essay -- English Literature Essays

The Sniper "The Sniper" places a strong emphasis on the evils of war, and yet paints a vivid image of mankind's qualities and their society. Employing the technique of describing one particular sniper to symbolise a general subject, readers are able to gain a deep insight into the evils of war. In this story, the assembly of setting, contrasting characters and themes of fanaticism and division of loyalties are vital to conveying the horror of war. On the other hand, "The Sniper" also discusses the power of war, depicting it as the decider of life and death for men. Its force is further emphasised when neighbours are turned into enemies under war's influence. The setting of the story, Dublin, has been written in such a way that only highly negative images are conveyed to portray evil. From the beginning to the end, Dublin is seen as an insecure, fearful, and vulnerable town abundant with weapons of war and associated horror.  ¡Ã‚ §Dublin lay enveloped in darkness ¡Ã‚ ¨ instantly transmits a sense of mystery, weariness and fear. This negative image is strengthened by  ¡Ã‚ §Around the beleaguered Four Courts the heavy guns roared. Here and there through the city machine guns and rifles broke the silence of the night, spasmodically like dogs barking on lone farm. ¡Ã‚ ¨ Dublin can be almost compared to a person, who has struggled under stress and is now defeated. The city is empty, apart from the roar of  ¡Ã‚ §machine guns and rifles ¡Ã‚ ¨ which have converted the city not a place of misery and ba... The Sniper Essay -- English Literature Essays The Sniper "The Sniper" places a strong emphasis on the evils of war, and yet paints a vivid image of mankind's qualities and their society. Employing the technique of describing one particular sniper to symbolise a general subject, readers are able to gain a deep insight into the evils of war. In this story, the assembly of setting, contrasting characters and themes of fanaticism and division of loyalties are vital to conveying the horror of war. On the other hand, "The Sniper" also discusses the power of war, depicting it as the decider of life and death for men. Its force is further emphasised when neighbours are turned into enemies under war's influence. The setting of the story, Dublin, has been written in such a way that only highly negative images are conveyed to portray evil. From the beginning to the end, Dublin is seen as an insecure, fearful, and vulnerable town abundant with weapons of war and associated horror.  ¡Ã‚ §Dublin lay enveloped in darkness ¡Ã‚ ¨ instantly transmits a sense of mystery, weariness and fear. This negative image is strengthened by  ¡Ã‚ §Around the beleaguered Four Courts the heavy guns roared. Here and there through the city machine guns and rifles broke the silence of the night, spasmodically like dogs barking on lone farm. ¡Ã‚ ¨ Dublin can be almost compared to a person, who has struggled under stress and is now defeated. The city is empty, apart from the roar of  ¡Ã‚ §machine guns and rifles ¡Ã‚ ¨ which have converted the city not a place of misery and ba...

Anthropomorphized Creativity :: Philosophy Philosophical Papers

Anthropomorphized Creativity It starts at 2 o'clock in the morning, a blank sheet in front of your eyes and a blank brain behind. Whether for grades, for money, for for glory, for love, or for self respect, you have to put your thoughts down in a coherent form, but you cannot. You beg for the ability to shift out of neutral and get writing, but it doesn't come. And like any human being since we started carving into bone and shaping clay, you start to put in your mind's eye a face to what you are seeking. It has eyes, brows, a nose, and of course, a slight contemptuous smirk. That same tendency that has lead to the fashioning of idols now comes to you. "The secret of creativeness," (Carl Jung's phrase) like the philosopher's stone, is an abstraction that has tempted many great minds into building theoretical structures that try to explain the creative process, and that fail to do so for a majority of creative artists. Jung calls it a "transcendental problem which the psychologist cannot answer but can only describe." In his essay "The Artist" Jung attempts to describe the creative process using the ideas and metaphors of his eponymous theories. These attempt to replace the artist, a living, breathing human being, with abstractions according to which the artist is an "impersonal creative process." While I recently read through his essay "The Artist," and through Nathaniel Hawthorne's story "The Artist of the Beautiful," what came to my mind were those authors whose own creative processes did not fit Hawthorne's and Jung's notions. I can only chalk this up to my contrarian nature and to my choice of authors. Although more likely, it is because of my own idolatry. The author Harlan Ellison doesn't relish being asked about the secret of creativeness, at least so far as it pertains to himself. Questions about it prompt him to give a brief explanation of how he gets his ideas from a mail order business in Schenectady, New York. (They also cause him to change colors all through the spectrum.) His glib response points to the difficulty of describing the creative process in a way that will carry from one artist over to many. The challenge is compounded by the prejudices we have about the human mind in general. Every idea about the human mind is an abstraction that cannot but repel as many people as it attracts.

IV Lawsuit Essay -- Medicine Healthcare Nursing

Most patients who enter the hospital for care have some form of intravenous therapy during their stay, whether it is in the emergency room or on inpatient floors. IV catheters are vital and are the fastest way to administer life saving medications. At times inserting or replacing a peripheral IV catheter can be challenging especially when the patient has poor circulation or poor venous access. In healthcare today Peripheral IV insertion lawsuits are on the rise due to its invasive character and unanticipated outcomes. In a lawsuit by Sheivia Graves against Brookwood Medical Center in Birmingham â€Å"alleges that a difficult and painful IV start performed by a nurse at Brookwood Medical Corner caused permanent Nerve damages.† (Steinriede (2010) Steinriede (2010) found the following: The nurse who started the infusion first tried the left arm, then the left hand and finally the back of the right hand. As soon as the infusion started, Ms. Graves "began experiencing severe pain in her right hand and [it] caused her to start crying," according to court documents. When Ms. Graves complained to the physician who began infusing anesthetics through the IV, he told her "they were already behind and that she would just have to endure it. Just after the GI exam, Ms. Graves looked at her hand and noticed that it was swollen "like a boxing glove,"(Steinriede, 2010) The hospital was able to argue effectively that other factors that the patient was experiencing at the time such as iron deficiency anemia, ulcerative colitis and fact that patient had received blood transfusions could have also cause nerve damage. (Steinriede, 2010) Also documented by the nurse was that the right arm was swollen prior to the peripheral IV insertion and that she ... ...ws, the awards are based on the determination of the percentage of fault of both parties.† (Evan, M. & Aiken, T., 2009, pp 184) Works Cited Evan, M. & Aiken, T., (2009): Nursing Law and Liability. J.T. Catalano (5th ed.) Nursing Now! Today’s Issues Tomorrows Trends .Philadelphia, PA: F.A.Davis Masoorli, S., (2008) Extravasation: Prevention is the Best Treatment. Nursing Spectrum retrieved from http://news.nurse.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008304080015 Spader, C., (2006, May 8) IV Insertion-Still a Special Skill. Nursing Spectrum retrieved from http://news.nurse.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006605080330 Steinriede, K., (2010, November 5) Lawsuit: Did a Painful IV Start Cause Nerve Damage? Patient’s hand was swollen like a boxing glove during GI procedure. Outpatient surgery Magazine retrieved from http://www.outpatientsurgery.net/news/2010/11/5

Child Abuse in the 1950

Child Abuse When you read articles over child abuse and see the damage that has been caused and what has become of child abuse in today’s society the result is sickening. Child abuse has become a more common thing in today’s society. The fact that there are people in this world, who not only abuse but also neglect their children without consequence, because they are not caught, is even worse. Thankfully, there are many ways today to help save a child who suffers from child abuse. Child protection in America has been in action since the colonial period; â€Å"The history of child protection in America is divisible into three eras.The first era extends from colonial times to 1875 and may be referred to as the era before organized child protection. The second era spans 1875 to 1962 and witnessed the creating and growth of organized child protection through nongovernmental child protection societies. The year 1962 marks the beginning of the third or modern era: the era of government-sponsored child protective services. †(Myers, 1). Since the 1950s many laws have been implemented in order to protect children and keep them safe in our country.Children have become increasingly safer over the past fifty years, largely because of the effect of Henry Kempe’s article, â€Å"The Battered Child Syndrome† which lead to more informed doctors, better media coverage, and more effective protection and reporting laws. John Caffey was a pediatric radiologist born in 1895. He later became known as the â€Å"father of pediatric radiology† (Girdany, 1978). In 1946, Caffey released an article called â€Å"Multiple Fractures in the Long Bones of Infants Suffering from Chronic Subdural Hematoma† based on long bone fractures in infants.In his study he examined â€Å"6 patients who exhibited 23 fractures and 4 contusions of long bones. †(Caffey) in which he concluded suffered from chronic subdural hematoma. Although he could not prov e anything, his observations seemed to be unexplained to say the least, â€Å"There was neither clinical nor roentgen evidence to support the idea that pre-existing systemic or localized skeletal disease weakened the bones and made them unusually vulnerable to trauma. †(Caffey). With that observation he came to the conclusion that â€Å"the long bones were injured and fractured during convulsive seizures.There is little evidence to support such a postulate. In not a single case did fresh fractures appear immediately following the convulsive seizure and complete fractures occurred in patients who only had mild convulsions . . . [To] our knowledge, fractures of convulsive origin in the long bones have never been demonstrated in the common severe convulsive diseases of infancy and childhood such as lead poisoning, meningitis, cerebral neoplasm and hypocalcemic tetancy. †(Caffey) but he still had doubts, because there was little evidence to support such theories.He came to the conclusion that â€Å"the fractures appear to be of traumatic origin but the traumatic episodes and the casual mechanism remain obscure. †(Caffey). Caffey’s work and the article he published hinted at possibility of child abuse in such cases that he treated but could never be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. After the publishing of â€Å"Multiple Fractures in the Long Bones of Infants Suffering from Chronic Subdural Hematoma,† it grasped the attention of many doctors who became interested in the signs of child abuse. In 1962 pediatrician Henry Kempe and his colleagues published the article known as â€Å"The Battered Child Syndrome†. Kempe played leading role in bringing child abuse to national attention during the 1960’s and 1970’s. †(Myers, 455). In Kempe’s work he stated â€Å"the battered-child syndrome is a term used by us to characterize a clinical condition in young children who have received serious physical abuse , generally from a parent or foster parent. † (Kempe, Silverman, Steele, Droegemueller, and Silver, 143). To collect data to further his research, Kempe and his fellow colleagues â€Å"undertook a nation-wide survey of hospitals which were asked to indicate the incident of this syndrome in a one-year period. (Kempe, Silverman, Steele, Droegemueller, and Silver, 143). After the survey he found the results that â€Å"Among 71 hospitals replying, 302 such cases were reported to have occurred; 33 of the children died; and 85 suffered permanent brain injury. † (Kempe, Silverman, Steele, Droegemueller, and Silver, 143). To continue his research he also â€Å"surveyed 77 District Attorneys who reported that they had knowledge of 447 cases in a similar one-year period. Of these, 45 died, and 29 suffered permanent brain damage. † (Kempe, Silverman, Steele, Droegemueller, and Silver, 143).Once â€Å"The Battered Child Syndrome† was published the public and media be came more aware of child abuse and many reforms were implemented. â€Å"Amendments to the Social Security Act were made. In the same year, the federal Children’s Bureau convened two meetings to determine how the Bureau could more effectively help states respond to child abuse. † (Myers, 456). It is said that â€Å"Attendees at the meetings, including Henry Kempe . . . [recommended] state legislation requiring doctors to report suspicions of abuse to police or child welfare. † (Myers, 456).By making these changes and requiring doctors to report suspicions of abuse all states had reporting laws by 1967. In 1962 the Social Security Act was amended which made changes to the child welfare provisions. In the following provision, â€Å"Beginning July 1, 1963, State child welfare plans must provide for coordination their services with the services provided for dependent children. † (Cohen, Ball, 3). Vincent De Francis stated that the 1962 amendments â€Å"for th e first time, identified Child Protective Services as part of all public child welfare. †(Myers, 455).Media Coverage brought child abuse to the attention of the general public. To help bring child abuse into the eye of the media and national public, Newsweek article â€Å"When They’re Angry† quoted Kempe; â€Å"One day last November, we had four battered children in our pediatrics ward. Two died in the hospital and one died at home four weeks later. . . [The] battered child syndrome isn’t a reportable disease, but it damn well ought to be. † (Myers, 455). Stating this in Newsweek definitely brought attention to the situation at hand. As the media became more involved and reporting laws were made, more and more cases were reported. By 1974, some 60,000 cases were reported. In 1980, the number exceeded one million. By 1990, reports topped two million, and in 2000, reports hovered around three million. In the early twenty-first century, reports decline d but remained high. † (Myers, 456). Although those statistics are high the cases are being reported and action is being taken in order to protect our children. The increase in public awareness called for stricter laws and protection of children in abusive situations. In today’s society we have Foster care and orphanages to help with the problems that come from abusive situations. In the early days, foster care was viewed as a major advance and as the best solution for many dependent children. † (Myers, 456 ) That being said foster care was a way out for children in abusive situations and acted as a safe haven. â€Å"In the last quarter of the twentieth century, however, some came to view foster care as a problem rather than as a solution . . . [nearly] half a million children are in foster care at any point in time and that too many children get â€Å"stuck† in out-of-home care. † (Myers, 456) With that being said, there are some negative things tha t come along with the comfort of a foster home; â€Å"children of color . . [are] sadly overrepresented among foster children. Yet, despite problems, foster care remains a safe haven for many abused and neglected children. † (Myers, 456) Along with protection of children there were also stricter laws, and the government became more involved in child abuse and protection. â€Å"Due in substantial measure . . . [Congress] assumed a leadership role with passage of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974 (CAPTA). † (Myers, 456). CAPTA acted as a guide line to federal funds throughout the government to â€Å"improve the state response to physical abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse.CAPTA focused particular attention on improved investigation and reporting. † (Myers, 456). By creating CAPTA it allowed people to become more familiar with investigation and reporting’s of child abuse throughout the nation. â€Å"In addition, CAPTA provided funds for tra ining, for regional multidisciplinary centers focused on child abuse and neglect, and for demonstration projects. † (Myers, 456). With the creation of CAPTA responsibility for administering was placed in a new agency known as the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect. The center funded important research on maltreatment. † (Myers, 456). CAPTA has had a major role in shaping todays nationwide system of governmental child protective services. CAPTA marked â€Å"the final passing of privately funded, nongovernmental child protection societies. † (Myers, 457). All of this was able to happen simply because the attention the media brought to the reality of child abuse and that it can happen to anybody. Laws were implemented in order to better protect children and make reporting of child abuse cases easier. By the late 1970s, government-sponsored child protective services spanned the nation, settling into urban and rural areas alike. †(Myers, 454). Along with sponsored child protective services, since 1974 laws and provisions relating to child abuse have been more frequent. Most importantly, Child protective services and Child Welfare gave opportunities to children who were in abusive situations. To focus more on child protection, â€Å"the 1962 amendments required states to pledge that by July 1, 1975, they would make child welfare services available statewide. (Myers, 455) By making that a law this fueled the expansion of child-welfare services as well as protective services. In 1967, Congress declared that all states were required to have reporting laws, which means that any suspicious child abuse that is happening must be reported. Once reporting laws were in effect, â€Å"the prevalence of child abuse and neglect came into focus. †(Myers, 456). By demanding reporting laws it really opened up people’s eyes when it came to child abuse and neglect and how it can affect a child.Beginning in 1974, legislation has been pass ed to help fund child welfare and protection. By doing that the nation can depend on the system and believe that it isn’t going anywhere. Since it is now funded by the government, it can help a child in a situation such as neglect have a positive outlook, and the child can be taken care of in the best way possible. In October of 1984, congress created the Child Abuse Amendments of 1984 with a â€Å"purpose to extend and improve provisions of laws relating to child abuse and neglect and adoption†(Childrens Bureau, 21).This amendment â€Å"required states to have in place procedures with State protective systems to respond to the reporting of medical neglect, including instances of withholding medically indicated treatment from disabled infants with life threatening conditions. †(Children’s Bureau, 21). With this amendment in act, any faulty observations made must be reported when the child’s health and neglect comes into question. This is important because it makes doctors more alert when they examine their patients, especially children. When it comes to a child, abuse is something that cannot be taken lightly.Since the 1950s our government has worked to keep the children of this nation safe. They have implemented many laws and provisions. There are many options children in abusive situations have in order to better their lives. Since the 1950s, our children have become safer because of laws that have been created. Child abuse is not something to be taken lightly, and the government and public alike need to constantly strive to better the lives of children in this country. Work Cited: Child Abuse Caffey, John. (1946): n. page. Web. 6 Nov. 2012. . Cohen, Wilbur J. , and Robert M. Ball. â€Å"Public Welfare Amendments of 1962 and Proposal for Health Insurance for the Aged. †Ã‚  Social Security. N. p. , n. d. Web. 5 Nov 2012. . Girdany, Bertram R.. â€Å"John Caffey, 1895-1978. † . American Journal of Roentgenology, n. d. Web. 5 Nov 2012.

An Argument for Civil Disobedience

An Argument for Civil Disobedience Are acts of civil disobedience ever appropriate? According to American history, acts of disobedience in the face of tyranny are not only appropriate but expected. The very fabric of this nation was shaped by acts of civil disobedience and rebellion. Human morality is not always defined by governmental regulations and when those regulations are in direct defiance of morality, it is the people’s obligation to stand with their beliefs and change the government.The United States of America as we know it was created by acts of disobedience. Thoreau states â€Å"the character inherent in the American people has done all that has been accomplished†. Our own founding fathers embodied the principles of disobedience by rebelling against the tyranny of England by writing the Declaration of Independence because their morality conflicted with English governmental policies. Even colonists, refusing to be over taxed on imports, were responsible for t he Boston Tea Party.The freedom we enjoy today was the direct result of disobedience. The government created by our founding fathers was not immune to its own conflict with moral conscience leading to disobedience and rebellion. For example, the civil rights movement of the 1960’s was fueled by acts of civil disobedience. When Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat, her passive defiance personified civil disobedience. In the minds of civil rights leaders, the Jim Crow laws which defined segregation were inappropriate. They believed skin color did not define human worth.Civil rights activists actively defied the government, changing policies, and earning equal rights for all races. Our current presidential administration is not immune to defiance. In the passage â€Å"Civil Disobedience†, Thoreau summarizes that elected officials can pervert the concepts of government and its power to satisfy personal agendas. The Obama administration and its efforts toward gun control have spurred a new generation of disobedient citizens across the nation. Ordinarily law abiding citizens are purchasing guns and ammunition at an alarming rate and are daring the government to take them away.Americans even use social media, such as Facebook, to challenge the disarming of its citizens. Law enforcement officials are writing statements vowing to disallow federal officials to confiscate the guns our president is trying to ban. If our past dictates our future, the people will prevail and President Obama will fail. The spirit of the American people is by definition, disobedient. Our conscience refuses to allow government to abuse its citizens physically, mentally, or financially. â€Å"The government is best which governs not at all. † -Henry David Thoreau

Guess, Inc.

Guess? , Inc. What started as a small family owned jeans boutique has flourished into a global lifestyle brand. Guess? , Inc. currently designs, markets, distributes, and licenses a leading lifestyle collection of contemporary apparel and accessories for men, women, and children that mirror the American lifestyle, while grasping European fashion sensibilities. While the foundation of Guess, Inc. ’s history and massive success can be attributed to their roots in the sale of jeans, Guess, Inc. has now expanded globally, granting licenses for the manufacture and distribution of a full line of product categories. Guess, Inc. perates in 87 countries, with the majority of the stores in the U. S. and Canada. As of 2010, Guess has 1292 stores, 504 in North America, 441 in Europe, and 347 in South East Asia (Breif History of the Company and the Marciano Brothers). The company has agreements with 17 licensees. Throughout the past 30 years, Guess, Inc. has made every effort to maintain t heir status as a global phenomenon. History CEO and Chairman, Maurice Marciano, and Co-Chairman,  Paul Marciano The epitome of a successful family business, Guess, Inc was founded in 1981 by the four Marciano brothers, Georges, Armand, Paul, and Maurice (Guess? Inc. ). They came equipped with experience in the fashion industry, having previously owned and operated a chain of twelve retail stores in France (Guess, Inc. ). The brothers moved to California from Marseilles, France in 1977, where Guess was born, starting as a small jeans company. Georges Marciano was the designer of the jeans, and the brothers gave them the name â€Å"Guess† as they believed that word to be easy to pronounce due to their limited English (Guess, Inc. ). The company’s original jeans were innovative for its time, stone-washed, made to fit tightly, and featured zippers at the ankles. They called this the â€Å"Marilyn Jean† (Guess, Inc. ), and the style lived up to its name, with a sexy, unique style and attitude. They had a softer feel and lighter colors than typical denim jeans. They also featured the classic Guess triangle on the back pocket, which would soon become the distinctive Guess trademark. Believing strongly in his family’s jean business, Georges flew to New York, and convinced Bloomingdale’s to display 30 pairs of his European-style jeans on consignment in the Bloomingdale’s flagship New York store (Guess, Inc. ). Within three hours, Bloomingdale’s sold out every pair. Demand for the jeans soon skyrocketed, and the brothers would find themselves overwhelmed. Though he possessed no previous advertising experience, the brothers appointed Paul Marciano as their advertising director, in hope of expanding their capital. This proved to be wildly successful, as Paul would design an ad campaign that would revolutionize the way jeans and other clothing were sold. Seeking to take a different direction from the typical studio design, Paul brought the models and the jeans outdoors, using grainy black-and-white photography. He had the models show off the jeans using provocative poses, which would later be described by Forbes Magazine as â€Å"catering to teenage cravings for sex, power, attention, and self-love†¦electric not only with sexuality, but with an implicit brutality and exhibitionism as well. † (GUESS INC (NYSE: GES) | Balance Sheet). These controversial ads would quickly create a household name for Guess. By the end of 1982, their jeans produced about $12 million in revenue (Guess, Inc. ). Over the next 15 years, Guess would grow from a company of 30 pairs of jeans, to a globally diversified billion-dollar empire. Legal Battles Overwhelmed by their increasing costs to produce, the Marciano brothers sought a solution to expand their capital and access cheaper foreign labor. In July 1983, they signed an agreement with the Nakash brothers of the company Jordache which would entitle the Nakash brothers to 50% ownership of Guess, Inc. in exchange for $4. 8 million, as well as the use of Jordache’s Hong Kong manufacturing plants (Guess, Inc. ). This deal also licensed Jordache to produce a new line of jeans, entitled Gasoline, using parts of Guess designs in a lower-priced line. However, Guess made a mistake in putting their trust in the Nakash brothers, and neglecting to provide written assurances in the agreement to protect each company against creating knock-off’s of each other’s designs. This mistake would soon come back to haunt them, in their biggest legal battle to date. The Marcianos sued the Nakash brothers on charges of unfair competition, accusing them of using their position on the Guess board of directors and their access to Guess designs in the Hong King plant to produce clothing in their Jordache line that were clear knockoffs of Guess designs. In the suit, the Marcianos sought to null the 1983 agreement that had given Nakashes ownership of half of Guess (Guess, Inc. ). This battle would continue for the next five years, eventually ending with the two sets of brothers settling out of court, and the Marcianos regaining full control of the business. Estimated attorney fees were as high as $10 million per year for each side (Guess, Inc. ). This was an ugly legal battle that cost Guess Inc. an unnecessary amount of funds. 1982 also bought a smaller legal battle with Jeff Hamilton, Inc. Guess sought to enter the menswear market by obtaining a licensing agreement with this company. Under this agreement, Jeff Hamilton, Inc would market a line of clothing under the Guess name in exchange for a 7% royalty fee (Guess, Inc. ). However, Guess soon decided that Hamilton was targeting the young men’s market too strongly, and did not approve of Hamilton’s â€Å"dumping† of Guess merchandise in large discount stores, which was hurting the label’s high-end image. Guess sought to terminate the license agreement, which they eventually succeeded in doing in 1986. This extensive legal battle resulted in a slow growth for Guess menswear. Marketing & Promotional Strategies Guess is backed by their corporate mission statement; â€Å"At Guess, we are committed to being a worldwide leader in the fashion industry. We will deliver products and services of uncompromising quality and integrity consistent with our brand and our image. We are committed to listening and responding to the needs of our customers, associates and business partners, and honor their individual value. We are dedicated to personal and professional enrichment through an environment of open communication, creativity, teamwork, trust, and respect. We continue to give back to the community, support humanity, and protect the environment as part of our responsibility. We remain committed to an entrepreneurial spirit that fuels the growth of our Company and increased shareholder value. Through principled leadership we will embrace diversity, cultivate strength, pride and passion to align our personal life and our professional life. (The Guess Mission Statement). The target customer for Guess is a young, affluent adult, between the ages of 18 and 32. Guess makes every effort to live by this mission statement every day, and uses a variety of creative marketing and promotional strategies to further entice the target customer to purchase Guess products. The mission statement is executed everyday in Guess, Inc’s corporate strategy, which focuses on the long term. Guess is a global compa ny known for their quality, trend-setting styles, and marketing creativity. In realizing the importance of diversity, and consumers’ needs to constantly have something new, Guess never fails to bring forward new products and images to keep their name alive. While originally gaining momentum with their jeans, Guess now manufacturers and distributes a wide range of product lines. Once realizing their success, in the 80’s, the Marciano brothers decided to increase their potential, and expand beyond men’s and women’s jeans. Baby GUESS? , GUESS? watches, GUESS? footwear, GUESS? eyewear, and GUESS? fragrances were introduced. Wishing to continue their expansion, Guess introduced even more products in the late 90’s, including an entire collection of GUESS handbags, active wear, jewelry, swimwear, innerwear, leather, belts, neckwear, and men’s classics (CITE- annual report). Around the millennium, Guess introduced their website, opening the company to a whole other world of potential. Guess operates in 6 different store concepts in an attempt to appeal to a variety of different markets. The original GUESS? retail stores carry a full assortment of full-priced Guess products, including men’s and women’s merchandise, and licensed products. GUESS? factory outlet stores are primarily located in outlet malls, and sell a select assortment of men’s and women’s apparel and licensed products at lower price points. GUESS by MARCIANO stores were introduced in the summer of 2004 (GUESS INC (NYSE: GES) | Balance Sheet), in an attempt to recapture the company’s glamorous image. The Marciano chain offers apparel and accessories that are sexy, yet sophisticated. The target market for these stores is slightly older customers interested in higher-end clothing and accessories such as ritzy evening dresses and fancy jeans. G by GUESS stores offers Guess products at a lower price point than Guess retail stores, in order to target a wider demographic. These stores carry apparel for men and women, as well as a full line of accessories and footwear. Products in this line provide a more fun, youthful image; fashion-forward, yet not cutting edge fashion. GUESS? accessories stores sell GUESS? and GUESS by Marciano labeled accessory products. Finally, GUESS also operates in an e-commerce segment, with websites in 6 different languages (Maurice Marciano and Marciano). Guess is known for their iconic black-and-white print advertisements and logos that have maintained a level of consistency throughout the company’s history. The aim of Guess advertisements is to place more of an emphasis on the brand image than on the actual products (Maurice Marciano and Marciano). All Guess advertisements use similar themes and images, primarily using outdoor images. Guess images have been showcased in international print campaigns in virtually all major magazines, on television, billboards, bus shelters, and advertisements throughout the world. The image of the Guess model has become a pop culture icon in the history of fashion advertising. Guess model, Anna Nicole Smith, in the early 1990’s Drew Barrymore Adriana Lima Paris HIlton Guess brought forth the faces of many future supermodels in their sexy promotional campaigns, including names such as Anna Nicole Smith, Claudia, Schiffer, , Drew Barrymore, Jessica Miller, Cindy Taylor, Minki Van Der Westhuizen, and Shana Zadrick (Guess? Inc. News- Company Information). Iconic models, actresses and all-round sex-bombs have all pouted and posed for these successful Guess ad campaigns. It goes without saying that Guess has been such an influential brand in the fashion world. Sales Trends & Financial Data For the first quarter of 2012, Guess, Inc reported net earnings of $42. 7 million. This was a 15. 2% decrease from the first quarter of the fiscal year 2011, in which Guess, Inc. reported net earnings of $50. 3 million (Guess? , Inc. Reports First Quarter Results). Balance Sheet from www. FORBES. com For the entire year, ending January 29 ,2011, net earnings for Guess, Inc were reported at $289. 5 million, an increase of 19. %, with gross profit increasing to $1090. 2 million, an increase of 15. 8%. Total net revenue increased to $2,487. 3 million, and gross margin decreased from the previous year to 43. 8% of total revenues (Maurice Marciano and Marciano). The decrease in gross margin was attributed to the negative impact of the stronger U. S. dollar on product purchases, increased occupancy costs due to retail expansion in Europe, lower initial mark-ups in Europe , and higher markdowns in the North American retail segment (Maurice Marciano and Marciano). Earnings from operations were reported at $404. million, a 12. 8% increase from the prior year, and other income, including interest income and expense, totaled $16. 7 million (Maurice Marciano and Marciano). As of January 29, 2011, Guess, Inc. had $442. 1 million in cash and cash equivalents, down $60. 0 million from 2010. In breaking down all of their marketing segments, Guess, Inc found that once again, the largest increase in gross profit came from their European segment. In Europe, revenues increased 23. 2% to $920. 3 million. Revenues produced by other segments were reported as follows: North American Retail- Net Revenue: $1069. 9 million * Earnings from Operations: $122. 6 million * Operation Margin: 11. 5% Asia- * Net Revenue: $53. 6 million * Earnings from Operation: $28. 6million * Operating Margin: 14. 3% North American Wholesale- * Net Revenue: $181. 0 million * Earnings from Ope rations: $46. 2 million * Operating Margin: 25. 5% (Maurice Marciano and Marciano) Despite setbacks from their legal battles (The Marciano brothers believed they would have exceeded $1 billion in sales by their 10th anniversary, had it not been for the court cases) (Guess? Inc. ), Guess sales flourished from the very beginning. 1984 brought sales of $150 million, and in 1987, the company reached profits of $100 million, with sales reaching $350 million (Guess, Inc. ). At that time, Guess retail stores grew to 19 locations, and sales reached $575 million in 1990 (Guess, Inc. ). In 1991, Guess strategically increased their advertising budget to $22 million. This worked in their favor, as the company earned enough profits to add 33 more stores by the end of the year, including the European flagship store in Florence, Italy. Sales slowed during the recession in the early 1990’s (Guess, Inc. ). However, the men’s collection took an opposite approach, and sales skyrocketed, with a 41% sales growth in 1991 alone (Guess, Inc. ). By the end of the year, menswear sales would account for 40 of total company sales. During this time, Guess also began to see the extensive opportunities available with international sales, as licensing arrangements introduced Guess to over a dozen countries, causing a significant increase in revenues. By 1993, Guess had reached an estimated $700 million in sales (Guess, Inc. . During this time, Georges Marciano decided to step down from his position as CEO, and sell his 40% of the company to his brothers for around $200 million. Maurice was then named CEO, and took over direction of design. Guess then stepped up their promotional campaign, looking to fuel its future growth. Licensing became a vital part of total revenues, with products now including home furnishings, i nfant wear, and junior knit wear (Guess, Inc. ). Meanwhile, sales continued to grow, now focusing on more accessories as well. In 1994, sales of Guess watches exceeded $100 million and footwear more than $60 million. Guess became a publicly traded company in 1996 (Guess, Inc. ). Hoping to continue their uninterrupted success, Guess was disappointed when 1997 sales began to drop. To compensate, Guess created a new line of high-end jeans called Premium Denim for men and women. However, this proved to be another disappointment, and the market share was lost due to competitive pressures and a terrible retail environment. In 1999, Guess decided to start their first e-commerce store (www. guess. om), which gave their sales a much-needed boost. Even in critical times, Guess was able to open 56 new stores in 2000. Annual sales would increase by 32% with the introduction of G Brand, a new complete line of high quality unisexual jeans wear that used Italian denim and European designs. At the end of 2000, Guess had 212 stores in the U. S. and Canada. In 2001, Guess implemented a new marketing strategy in order to keep their profits rising. With these new strong marketing methods, Guess was able to increase their sales, and open 24 new stores in the U. S. and Canada, a total of 249 stores. Guess continues their success over the next several years. As of 2010, Guess has 1292 stores, 504 in North America, 441 in Europe, and 347 in South East Asia (Breif History of the Company and the Marciano Brothers). Looking towards the year ending January 28, 2012, Guess, Inc. expects new revenues to range from $2. 74 billion to $2. 80 billion (Guess? , Inc. Reports First Quarter Results). Operating margins are expected to be between $16. 5%, while diluted earnings per share are expected to be in the range of $3. 30 to $3. 50 (Guess? , Inc. Reports First Quarter Results). SWOT Analysis Like any business, Guess must analyze each of their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, and implement a strategy of using each of these aspects to their advantage. Strengths A quick overview of the strengths of Guess, Inc. include maintaining a strong and diversified brand portfolio, a global full lifestyle brand, an effective management team, and solid capital structure. Guess produces a brand that portrays a fun, fashionable, and sexy image, which is developed and maintained worldwide. Guess maintain a massive level of global success, with stores in 85 countries besides the U. S. and Canada. Because of this global diversification, the company is still able to grow, even in tough economic times. International growth remains one of Guess, Inc’s top strengths. Another major advantage Guess has is their use of multiple distribution channels. Not a company to focus solely on one channel, Guess Inc uses retail, wholesale, e-commerce, as well as licensing distribution to sell their products. This proves as a preventative benefit, as their operating results are not relying solely on the performance on one single channel. This also allows Guess, Inc to quickly adapt to ay changes in the distribution or retail environment of any one particular region. Adding to their diversity, Guess also relies on multiple store concepts, including flagship GUESS? full-priced retail stores, GUESS? factory outlet stores, GUESS by MARCIANO stores, G by GUESS stores, GUESS? Accessories stores, and GUESS? kids stores (Maurice Marciano and Marciano). This allows Guess to target multiple demographics in different regions. Weaknesses Like any company, Guess, Inc must also identify their weaknesses. A quick overview of the weaknesses of Guess, Inc. include maintaining a business in a highly promotional environment, the highly competitive nature of the apparel industry, discretionary spending being dictated by the situation in the global economy, and the narrow focus on women’s apparel. While Guess has very diversified products, and targets women, men, as well as children, their heavy focus on women’s apparel could be seen as a big weakness. Only 10% of Guess consumers are men, boys, or babies (Maurice Marciano and Marciano), which may indicate a lack of balance of promotional activities. Guess should assign more of their promotional budget to focusing on these areas, rather than attempting to portray an image of solely a women’s retailer. This also creates an opportunity for competitors to gain control over these sectors. While Guess stores may be growing rapidly in other countries, they must continue to be careful not to saturate the market. Opportunities A quick overview of the opportunities for Guess, Inc. include growing demand in foreign countries, such as China, under-penetrated markets in Europe, growth in the U. S. , and alliances by leasing. The Guess e-commerce environment improves customer relations, and creates an alternative shopping environment. In realizing this, Guess has the opportunity to increase their profits significantly by continuing to offer a wide range of products and keep up with an ever-changing economy. Technology proves to be a great opportunity for Guess, as they can benefit from consumer’s need for convenience. Guess men’s clothing category also has the biggest potential and room for growth. If Guess takes advantage of that, they will allow themselves the potential for a tremendous increase in profits. Guess should also take advantage of the new business casual trend, whereas smart casual clothing is becoming more and more acceptable in professional offices, and more people are looking for an acceptable replacement for their suits, ties, and other â€Å"formal† business attire. Threats A quick overview of the threats against Guess, Inc. include continued weakness in global consumer spending, low entry cost for competitors in the apparel market, changes to import tariffs, quotas, and taxes, and increases in energy and raw materials prices. Competitors are always considered one of a business’s greatest threats. The apparel industry is highly competitive, which may cause difficulties for Guess in the future. During a recession or uncertain economic conditions, consumers may be faced with reduced confidence and spending habits, resulting in a slow-down in sales and profits. While relationships with international markets and suppliers prove to be a steady strength for Guess, there are also threats involved. Since Guess does not own or operate any production facilities of their own (CITE- annual report), they depend heavily on foreign suppliers and manufacturers to produce products of top quality, and exactly to their specifications. Since Guess is a global business, there revenues could inadvertently be affected by factors beyond their control, such as recessions in foreign countries, political instability which may interrupt trade with foreign vendors, reduced global demand, significant fluxations in the value of the dollar against foreign currencies, or local business practices that do not conform to legal or ethical guidelines. Furthermore, Maurice and Paul Marciano currently hold 33% ownership of Guess shares, which is a very significant percentage. Their interests may differ from those of other stockholders, which could present a potential threat to the nature of the business. Competition One of Guess, Inc’s top competitors is Abercrombie and Fitch. Similar to Guess, Abercrombie's positioning strategy involves the use of sexually overt advertising positioned to appeal to young adult markets. Unlike Guess, Abercrombie and Fitch advertisements often depict nudity, alcohol consumption and assorted sexual behaviors. Guess chooses to take a less scandalous approach, and maintain a softer, more classical image. Abercrombie ; Fitch does not have a mass market approach to its advertising. It places print ads in 4 magazines: Vanity Fair, Interview, Out, and Rolling Stone. Abercrombie ; Fitch is well positioned for the future, however it is necessary for them to continue to move forward in their efforts to maintain a new, trendy image. In the face of a falling economy, Abercrombie's advertising stands out to an audience that has been exposed to a lot of noisy ads. In comparison to Guess, Abercrombie has the advantage of selling products under four different concepts, Abercrombie & Fitch, Abercrombie, Hollister, and RUEHL. This provides the added benefit of appealing to different markets and demographics under completely different names, whereas Guess will only sell products with the Guess name , allowing Guess limited access to the market. GUESS? In the Future Immediate strategies to make Guess bigger and better would be to focus more of their advertising and promotional capabilities to their menswear collection. In the near future, I would recommend opening individual Guess for Men stores, which would open the door to an entire new demographic, increasing the potential for an immeasurable amount of profits. Focusing on new markets in Europe should also prove to be beneficial for the company. Currently, this market is under-penetrated, but has great potential for expansion in the future. As for a long term growth strategy, Guess needs to continue increasing their retail presence and expanding internationally. Guess has an excellent retail strategy which needs to be executed in each region of the world. Looking towards the long term, Guess should consider forming an alliance with a major competitor in the market, such as BEBE or Levi’s. Both of these companies have showed evidence of trying to come up with new styles in an attempt to keep up with Guess (Guess? , Inc. ), and are equally dominating the market for jeans and/or casual wear. Merging with either of these companies would prove to be tremendously profitable for Guess, as it would eliminate much of the competition, as well as allow them to dominate more of the market. Celebrating their 30th anniversary this year, Guess, Inc. is now bigger and better than ever, and growth shows no signs of slowing down. As long as they continue to leverage their presence globally and execute their mission statement and creative promotional strategies, Guess will continue to stay on top of the fashion world. Works Cited â€Å"Breif History of the Company and the Marciano Brothers. 25 June 2009. Guess, Inc. 1 May 2011 . â€Å"Guess, Inc. † Funding Universe. 27 May 2011 . â€Å"Guess? Inc. News- Company Information. † New York Times 2011. â€Å"Guess? , Inc. † 2011. Hoover's Company Information. May 2011 ;http://proquest. umi. com. ezproxy. library. berkeley. org/pqdweb? index=4;did=168188551;SrchMode=1;sid=1;Fmt=3;VInst=PROD;VType=PQD;RQT=309;VName=PQD;TS= 1307571605;clientId=11195;. Guess? , Inc. Reports First Quarter Results. Fiscal Results for the First Quarter Ended April 30, 2011. Los Angeles, CA: PR Newswire, 2011. â€Å"Marcianos Go Full Time Now at Guess. † Women's Wear Daily 16 6 1990: 1. Maurice Marciano, Chairman of the Board, Guess, Inc. and Paul, CEO & Vice Chairman of the Board, Guess, Inc Marciano. â€Å"Guess? , Inc Annual Report 2010. † Annual Report. 2010. â€Å"The Guess Mission Statement. † Guess, Inc. 2011 . ——————————————–