Mean Girls

Celebrity Culture in Mean Girls Mean Girls, written by Tina Fey and directed by Mark Waters, takes Its viewers through high school from the perspective of Caddy Heron, a young girl who never known what â€Å"high school† genuinely meant. Upon arrival, she makes friends with Janis and Diana, who were in the stereotypical â€Å"unpopular† crowd. They warn her to stay away from â€Å"The Plastics†, an exclusive clique that includes three drama-filled girls who are superficial, spiteful, and have vicious attitudes that obtain their power and fame from beauty and glamour.However, â€Å"The Plastics† ask Caddy to Join them. Caddy, Janis, and Diana together plot against the leader of The Plastics, Regina George, the most monstrous of them all. In reality, the more time Caddy spends with The Plastics, the more she starts to actually become one. The Plastics themselves show how monstrous qualities are formed in celebrity culture, while the use of Caddy is the perfe ct example of how culture builds up celebrities to break them back down. The Plastics took Caddy, someone who was naive and candid, and turned her Into something she Is not through the manipulation of their own standards and rules.Celebrity culture heavily relies on qualities of manipulation. This was done through thru burn book, etc Rumors and lies are one are heavily used in manipulation. This is the epitome of celebrity gossip, shown in Mean Girls through Regina George. Regina finds out Caddy has a crush on Aaron Samuels, her ex boyfriend, and promises Caddy that she would talk to Aaron for her; however, Regina fabricates lies to Aaron; â€Å"She [Caddy] writes all over her notebook ‘Mrs.. Aaron Samuels'. And she made this tee-shirt that says, ‘l heart Aaron', and she wears it under all her clothes†¦She saved this Kleenex you used and she said she's going to do some kind of African voodoo with it to make you like her†. Evidence In nineteenth century litera ture Is provided In Frankincense, when Victor Frankincense manipulates his monster through lies: He tells his monster he would create a female companion for him, and afterward declares â€Å"Bygone! I do break my promise: never will I create another like yourself, equal in deformity and wickedness† and proceeds â€Å"to [tear] to pieces the thing on which [he] was engaged† (175).Both Regina and Victor broke their promises, developing a kind of behavior that is so focused on policing others, they almost seem to lose track of themselves; they are so busy broadcasting what they hate, and so focused on consumption of their rival with their loathsome fascination, they do not realize their own personalities turn monstrous. They become so engrossed in this idea, they are unable to distinguish that this hate they developed is the sole reason for their viciousness and misery.This happens when one must realize one's own identity Is crafted from the act of hating. It almost seems Like superficial celebrities In celebrity ultra love, yet hate, to be hated; yet they love the act of hating, and use this hate to surround their world. This kind of â€Å"high school† attitude filled with rumors and Lies that Regina possesses exists in the celebrity world, and if it continues, it will influence animosity and disgust, that a world of peace, accuracy, and love may no longer be accomplished. Another key to manipulation is secrecy.There are countless examples of this in Mean Girls. For example, the scene of The Plastics when they are all on the phone; When Gretchen was on the phone with Caddy, it turned out to be a three-way call with Regina, but Caddy didn't know. This complexity progress when viewers realize the girls are all interlinked, all on the phone with each other on separate lines; Karen gets a call from Regina, puts her on hold, and proceeds to talk to Gretchen and says, â€Å"It's Regina, she wants to hang out tonight but she told me not to tell yo u†.This is similar to the theme of secrecy in Frankincense: Victor states, â€Å"The world to me, is a secret, which I desired to discover† (26), â€Å"l have one secret, Elizabeth, a dreadful one; when revealed to you, it will chill your frame with horror† (218), and he refuses to tell the secret to his audience, telling them to â€Å"listen patiently until the end of [his] story, with which [he] is acquainted with† (44). This is similar to Mantilla, where â€Å"[her father] has a secret grief that destroys [them] both: but [he] must permit [Mantilla] to win this secret from [him]† (47).The fact that one possesses a secret, holds it vital, and purposely shields it from the world acknowledges a kind of unmoral sin, or practical wrongdoing; celebrities allow these secrets to internally eat them alive like in Frankincense and Mantilla, or whether it makes their behavior more aggressive eke in Mean Girls, these secrets have the ability to change and ma nipulate others. In celebrity culture, a secret is a form of power, yet vulnerability – a secret itself could stand for everything one can't see.The public blows these secrets up with crazy ideas and provides evidence with the theories they project onto it. The secret could mean nothing, yet everything, at the same time. This is because that a secret exists. It does not matter what the secret actually is, because the people who spread the knowledge of the secret form its monstrosity. The people have ample opportunity to take control, seceding as a whole or individuals whether they want to make up a rumor, lie, tell the truth, say nothing, or contribute to the situation.The people are monsters, because they take complete control over the situation. An example of this is all of Lord's â€Å"fans† who (most likely) made her miserable because they did not approve of the physical appearance of her boyfriend. [A concluding sentence is needed here] Manipulation is also acquir ed through self-pity, which is shown in Mean Girls with the Burn Book. The Burn Book, which belongs to Regina George, is a book essentially signed to bully her classmates: it has students' pictures with mean phrases, secrets, and other things about them.Regina takes her book, puts her own picture on it, and writes something mean about herself. She then reports it to her school's principal and says, â€Å"l found it in the girl's bathroom! It's so mean†. This is similar to when Victor seeks sympathy from Elizabeth in Frankincense: â€Å"If you knew what I have suffered from, and what I may yet endure, you would endeavor to let me taste the quiet, and freedom from despair, that this one day at least permits me to enjoy' (222).In The Complete Poems and Selected Letters of John Keats, in a short poem called â€Å"When I have Fears†, self-pity is asked for when Keats shows he is in pain, likes the pain, and wants to be acknowledged for his pain: â€Å"Of the wide world I stand alone, and think Till love and fame to nothingness do sink† (301). Just like Keats and Shelley, their own needs. Regina did this Just so she could get Caddy in trouble, Frankincense did this to make it look like it wasn't entirely his fault for the monster's actions, and Keats uses his fans' sympathy to become liked.The public falls into a part of this ultra, where one blames someone else; even the victims themselves get blamed for fault. Besides from celebrities' success, looks, and wealth, it is not uncommon for the public to condone that they are people, humans, Just like them. The public is essentially casting a negative eye upon themselves. Celebrities have people who work with them to help mold their image, but the impossible standards of beauty and perfection they try to fulfill originates from the endless, harsh scrutiny the public places upon them.When a celebrity breaks this image, or differs from the norm, they automatically are seen as monstrous, resulting in sneering and degrading comments from fans. This monstrosity on the celebrities has a counter-effect on the fans; every time there is a mean comment, they are normalizing harsh Judgment, extreme reactions, and offensive language. Celebrity culture takes the blame on how the public has developed a cruel society, through self-pity. Another quality of manipulation used in celebrity culture is feigning their own innocence; this is seen quite often in Mean Girls.Gretchen bullies Regina for violating the rules of their â€Å"girl world† by wearing sweatpants on Monday, and Regina lams she is forced to wear sweatpants because, â€Å"sweatpants are all that fits [her] right now', implying she is â€Å"innocent† because it is not her fault she has to wear those. Another scene is where Regina claims innocence is during lecture, (â€Å"workshop†), in the gym, after the Burn Book is discovered: Regina claims, â€Å"Can I Just say we don't have a clique problem at this sch ool, and some of us shouldn't have to take this workshops because some of us are victims in this situation? Regina implies she is â€Å"innocent†, and she herself is a victim. The teacher responds, â€Å"That's probably rue, how many of you have ever felt personally victimize by Regina George? † Actual innocence and feigning innocence is a huge role in Frankincense: though Victor blames himself for the monster killing his family, despite his creation, he convinces himself that he is â€Å"innocent† and expresses how he feels like the victim. Victor is a contradiction: he is innocent, yet, uses that to his advantage to feign his innocence.He is innocent because he has never intended his creation to turn into an actual form of monstrosity, but yet, feigns innocence by his hiding his guilt and hiding his knowledge about his family's deaths. Victor's innocence decreases over time throughout the novel; his â€Å"UN-innocent† behavior destroys the monster's inn ocence. Victor is performing an act that could be considered â€Å"monstrous† in manipulation by taking away the genuine innocence of one who was never given a chance to prove that innocence. At first Victor decides to â€Å"at least listen to [the monster's] tale† (105), but later on, he decides to â€Å"tore to pieces†¦ The thing on which the creature's] future existence he depended for happiness† (190), not giving the monster a chance to uphold its promise. Celebrities start out with genuine innocence, become corrupted, and may attempt to feign their innocence through their roles – However, once celebrities feign their innocence they are portrayed as â€Å"monstrous†, they are not given a chance to stick up for themselves properly without media and public interference. Lindsay Loan, off the set of Mean Girls, got into drugs, which could â€Å"feign innocence†, and assume that she had no role in her fans doing drugs.According to Good Charlotte, this kind of manipulation is the price of having a lifestyle of â€Å"the rich and the famous† (song lyrics). The most vital quality in manipulation is the key tactic in order to be able to get away with spreading rumors and lies, maintain secrecy, create self-pity, and feign illness. Control itself is the piece that connects all of these qualities. Throughout Mean Girls, there are many scenes were one of The Plastics are in control: At the talent show at school, Regina demands for Gretchen to switch sides with Caddy. When Gretchen protests, Regina says, â€Å"Right now you're getting on my last nerve.Switch! † Gretchen acknowledges this control by obeying. Caddy was also acknowledging control hen she fulfills Region's invite to eat lunch with them â€Å"everyday for the rest of the week†. In the beginning of the movie, Regina took control of Caddy social life. Halfway through, Caddy became the center of attention; she gained control of Region's previ ous fame and publicity and made it her own. The previous examples also hint at some aspect of control. Control is also seen in Frankincense, where the monster says, Mimi are my creator, but I am your master;-obey! (174). Victor chooses condone the monster, and the monster responds by taking control, killing all of Victor's family embers. Control in Charitable is implied when Geraldine takes on a role of masculinity: â€Å"lay down by the maiden's side: And in her arms the maid she took† (250-251). In The Major Works, â€Å"Farewell to a Lady' by Lord Byron shows how a woman's beauty takes control of his life: â€Å"In flight I shall be surely wise, Escaping from temptation's snare; I cannot view my Paradise, Without the wish of dwelling there† (1).By the word â€Å"flight†, viewers can assume he is going to commit suicide as a means to control the elimination of all ties with the Earthly Paradise's temptation. This kind of intro can relate to monstrosity and ce lebrity culture in a number of ways; first, one can see that the society of celebrity culture is so monstrously powerful, it is out of the control of the public to change it. Only the celebrities themselves have control of their own lives and culture and how they want to live it.Second, celebrity culture has so much control and influence over their audience, that they are not only controlling their own lives, but dominating American culture as a whole. By celebrities constantly sleeping with one another, taking part in the lies, secrecy, self-pity, and feigning their innocence inspires the public to act in the same manner. Third, by the news being so obsessed with the daily lives of celebrities, it almost implies as if they are encouraging the public to become more and more like celebrity stalkers.Lastly, they manipulate the public into believing their redefined definition of happiness, which solely consists of money, fame, and beauty. Rumors, lies, secrecy, self-pity, feigning inno cence, and control all tangle together to layer and overlap and form manipulation; celebrity manipulators do not only have control of their own world, but also wish to control the world of others. This allows them to occupy both worlds at the same time, with their rules, in their way: how much more control could a person possibly want?These qualities of manipulation in celebrity culture are allowing people to lose touch with things that are the most important in life, like friends and family. Celebrity culture is so controlling that it even takes over the roles of others. In Celebrity Culture: Are Americans Too Focused on Celebrities, Tompkins, a group an example of how celebrities are taking the roles of [super] heroes: â€Å"When I ask allege and high school students who their heroes are, they usually name celebrities, such as athletes or movie stars, not names that did something heroic or noteworthy. (Tompkins 4). Celebrity culture is now one of our prime sources of entertainmen t; ultimately, celebrity culture manipulates to control their audience's society in such a monstrous way so they are not able to distinguish the difference between genuine importance and the importance of celebrity news. One day, I fear genuinely important news, (politics, world news, emergency issues) will be ignored unless it is presented as a source of entertainment, like celebrity culture. Mean Girls Stacy Gregg Sociology M/W 11:30 Sociological Themes Sociology is everywhere we look, its everything thing we are, and can be described within everything we do. The traditional focuses of sociology have included social stratification, social class, culture, social mobility, religion, secularization, law, and deviance. As all spheres of human activity are affected by the interplay between social structure and individual agency, sociology has gradually expanded its focus to further subjects, such as health, medical, military and penal institutions, the Internet, and the role of social activity in the development of scientific knowledge.Looking through films you can see many sociological themes. I chose to look at â€Å"Mean Girls† and pull the sociological themes out. Mean Girls is a movie about a girl, Cady, who moves to the US from Africa and starts at a new school. She immediately befriends two outcasts, who explain the school's social scene. There are a group of three girls ( the â€Å"Plastics†) who are popular, malicious and rule the school. As a trick, these three girls befriend Cady.Her outcast friends encourage her to hang out with the Plastics to see what they do. But as she spends more time with them, she becomes more and more like them, backstabbing, mean, self-obsessed, and superficial. When Cady and the leader of the Plastics go after the same guy, she begins to plot their destruction, and starts sabotaging the girls in worse and worse ways. Eventually she separates from her original friends and her Plastic friends.When the entire school finds out about some of the terrible things the Plastics have said about them by finding a â€Å"Burn Book† everyone turns against the Plastics and Cady. Eventually, she must apologize to everyone she hurt and begin to find a way to become a better person. The first sociological theme I would like to address is stereotypes. A stereotype is defined as a widely held but fixed and oversimplified imag e or idea of a particular type of person or thing.Mean Girls portrays high school stereo types rather well, at school there are groups such as try-hards, wannabes, burn-outs, band geeks, nerds, the popular girls, the jocks and art freaks. All the girls wants to be a plastic so to speak and they all display it in different ways like how the girls who eat nothing are trying to be thin so they can be like the plastics, but the girls who eat their feelings are also trying to be a plastic but by eating they are showing I don’t care what anybody thinks of me, which is a popular trait.Then when everyone is explaining Regina George and one girl says â€Å"One time she punched me in the face†¦ It was awesome! † this implies that this â€Å"wannabe† made contact with Regina George even though it is contact most people don't what it is contact nonetheless which she hopes has passed on a bit of Regina George's popularity. References: (2011, 04). â€Å"Mean Girls† Analysis. StudyMode. com. Retrieved 04, 2011, from http://www. studymode. com/essays/Mean-Girls-Analysis-676080. html Mean Girls Celebrity Culture in Mean Girls Mean Girls, written by Tina Fey and directed by Mark Waters, takes Its viewers through high school from the perspective of Caddy Heron, a young girl who never known what â€Å"high school† genuinely meant. Upon arrival, she makes friends with Janis and Diana, who were in the stereotypical â€Å"unpopular† crowd. They warn her to stay away from â€Å"The Plastics†, an exclusive clique that includes three drama-filled girls who are superficial, spiteful, and have vicious attitudes that obtain their power and fame from beauty and glamour.However, â€Å"The Plastics† ask Caddy to Join them. Caddy, Janis, and Diana together plot against the leader of The Plastics, Regina George, the most monstrous of them all. In reality, the more time Caddy spends with The Plastics, the more she starts to actually become one. The Plastics themselves show how monstrous qualities are formed in celebrity culture, while the use of Caddy is the perfe ct example of how culture builds up celebrities to break them back down. The Plastics took Caddy, someone who was naive and candid, and turned her Into something she Is not through the manipulation of their own standards and rules.Celebrity culture heavily relies on qualities of manipulation. This was done through thru burn book, etc Rumors and lies are one are heavily used in manipulation. This is the epitome of celebrity gossip, shown in Mean Girls through Regina George. Regina finds out Caddy has a crush on Aaron Samuels, her ex boyfriend, and promises Caddy that she would talk to Aaron for her; however, Regina fabricates lies to Aaron; â€Å"She [Caddy] writes all over her notebook ‘Mrs.. Aaron Samuels'. And she made this tee-shirt that says, ‘l heart Aaron', and she wears it under all her clothes†¦She saved this Kleenex you used and she said she's going to do some kind of African voodoo with it to make you like her†. Evidence In nineteenth century litera ture Is provided In Frankincense, when Victor Frankincense manipulates his monster through lies: He tells his monster he would create a female companion for him, and afterward declares â€Å"Bygone! I do break my promise: never will I create another like yourself, equal in deformity and wickedness† and proceeds â€Å"to [tear] to pieces the thing on which [he] was engaged† (175).Both Regina and Victor broke their promises, developing a kind of behavior that is so focused on policing others, they almost seem to lose track of themselves; they are so busy broadcasting what they hate, and so focused on consumption of their rival with their loathsome fascination, they do not realize their own personalities turn monstrous. They become so engrossed in this idea, they are unable to distinguish that this hate they developed is the sole reason for their viciousness and misery.This happens when one must realize one's own identity Is crafted from the act of hating. It almost seems Like superficial celebrities In celebrity ultra love, yet hate, to be hated; yet they love the act of hating, and use this hate to surround their world. This kind of â€Å"high school† attitude filled with rumors and Lies that Regina possesses exists in the celebrity world, and if it continues, it will influence animosity and disgust, that a world of peace, accuracy, and love may no longer be accomplished. Another key to manipulation is secrecy.There are countless examples of this in Mean Girls. For example, the scene of The Plastics when they are all on the phone; When Gretchen was on the phone with Caddy, it turned out to be a three-way call with Regina, but Caddy didn't know. This complexity progress when viewers realize the girls are all interlinked, all on the phone with each other on separate lines; Karen gets a call from Regina, puts her on hold, and proceeds to talk to Gretchen and says, â€Å"It's Regina, she wants to hang out tonight but she told me not to tell yo u†.This is similar to the theme of secrecy in Frankincense: Victor states, â€Å"The world to me, is a secret, which I desired to discover† (26), â€Å"l have one secret, Elizabeth, a dreadful one; when revealed to you, it will chill your frame with horror† (218), and he refuses to tell the secret to his audience, telling them to â€Å"listen patiently until the end of [his] story, with which [he] is acquainted with† (44). This is similar to Mantilla, where â€Å"[her father] has a secret grief that destroys [them] both: but [he] must permit [Mantilla] to win this secret from [him]† (47).The fact that one possesses a secret, holds it vital, and purposely shields it from the world acknowledges a kind of unmoral sin, or practical wrongdoing; celebrities allow these secrets to internally eat them alive like in Frankincense and Mantilla, or whether it makes their behavior more aggressive eke in Mean Girls, these secrets have the ability to change and ma nipulate others. In celebrity culture, a secret is a form of power, yet vulnerability – a secret itself could stand for everything one can't see.The public blows these secrets up with crazy ideas and provides evidence with the theories they project onto it. The secret could mean nothing, yet everything, at the same time. This is because that a secret exists. It does not matter what the secret actually is, because the people who spread the knowledge of the secret form its monstrosity. The people have ample opportunity to take control, seceding as a whole or individuals whether they want to make up a rumor, lie, tell the truth, say nothing, or contribute to the situation.The people are monsters, because they take complete control over the situation. An example of this is all of Lord's â€Å"fans† who (most likely) made her miserable because they did not approve of the physical appearance of her boyfriend. [A concluding sentence is needed here] Manipulation is also acquir ed through self-pity, which is shown in Mean Girls with the Burn Book. The Burn Book, which belongs to Regina George, is a book essentially signed to bully her classmates: it has students' pictures with mean phrases, secrets, and other things about them.Regina takes her book, puts her own picture on it, and writes something mean about herself. She then reports it to her school's principal and says, â€Å"l found it in the girl's bathroom! It's so mean†. This is similar to when Victor seeks sympathy from Elizabeth in Frankincense: â€Å"If you knew what I have suffered from, and what I may yet endure, you would endeavor to let me taste the quiet, and freedom from despair, that this one day at least permits me to enjoy' (222).In The Complete Poems and Selected Letters of John Keats, in a short poem called â€Å"When I have Fears†, self-pity is asked for when Keats shows he is in pain, likes the pain, and wants to be acknowledged for his pain: â€Å"Of the wide world I stand alone, and think Till love and fame to nothingness do sink† (301). Just like Keats and Shelley, their own needs. Regina did this Just so she could get Caddy in trouble, Frankincense did this to make it look like it wasn't entirely his fault for the monster's actions, and Keats uses his fans' sympathy to become liked.The public falls into a part of this ultra, where one blames someone else; even the victims themselves get blamed for fault. Besides from celebrities' success, looks, and wealth, it is not uncommon for the public to condone that they are people, humans, Just like them. The public is essentially casting a negative eye upon themselves. Celebrities have people who work with them to help mold their image, but the impossible standards of beauty and perfection they try to fulfill originates from the endless, harsh scrutiny the public places upon them.When a celebrity breaks this image, or differs from the norm, they automatically are seen as monstrous, resulting in sneering and degrading comments from fans. This monstrosity on the celebrities has a counter-effect on the fans; every time there is a mean comment, they are normalizing harsh Judgment, extreme reactions, and offensive language. Celebrity culture takes the blame on how the public has developed a cruel society, through self-pity. Another quality of manipulation used in celebrity culture is feigning their own innocence; this is seen quite often in Mean Girls.Gretchen bullies Regina for violating the rules of their â€Å"girl world† by wearing sweatpants on Monday, and Regina lams she is forced to wear sweatpants because, â€Å"sweatpants are all that fits [her] right now', implying she is â€Å"innocent† because it is not her fault she has to wear those. Another scene is where Regina claims innocence is during lecture, (â€Å"workshop†), in the gym, after the Burn Book is discovered: Regina claims, â€Å"Can I Just say we don't have a clique problem at this sch ool, and some of us shouldn't have to take this workshops because some of us are victims in this situation? Regina implies she is â€Å"innocent†, and she herself is a victim. The teacher responds, â€Å"That's probably rue, how many of you have ever felt personally victimize by Regina George? † Actual innocence and feigning innocence is a huge role in Frankincense: though Victor blames himself for the monster killing his family, despite his creation, he convinces himself that he is â€Å"innocent† and expresses how he feels like the victim. Victor is a contradiction: he is innocent, yet, uses that to his advantage to feign his innocence.He is innocent because he has never intended his creation to turn into an actual form of monstrosity, but yet, feigns innocence by his hiding his guilt and hiding his knowledge about his family's deaths. Victor's innocence decreases over time throughout the novel; his â€Å"UN-innocent† behavior destroys the monster's inn ocence. Victor is performing an act that could be considered â€Å"monstrous† in manipulation by taking away the genuine innocence of one who was never given a chance to prove that innocence. At first Victor decides to â€Å"at least listen to [the monster's] tale† (105), but later on, he decides to â€Å"tore to pieces†¦ The thing on which the creature's] future existence he depended for happiness† (190), not giving the monster a chance to uphold its promise. Celebrities start out with genuine innocence, become corrupted, and may attempt to feign their innocence through their roles – However, once celebrities feign their innocence they are portrayed as â€Å"monstrous†, they are not given a chance to stick up for themselves properly without media and public interference. Lindsay Loan, off the set of Mean Girls, got into drugs, which could â€Å"feign innocence†, and assume that she had no role in her fans doing drugs.According to Good Charlotte, this kind of manipulation is the price of having a lifestyle of â€Å"the rich and the famous† (song lyrics). The most vital quality in manipulation is the key tactic in order to be able to get away with spreading rumors and lies, maintain secrecy, create self-pity, and feign illness. Control itself is the piece that connects all of these qualities. Throughout Mean Girls, there are many scenes were one of The Plastics are in control: At the talent show at school, Regina demands for Gretchen to switch sides with Caddy. When Gretchen protests, Regina says, â€Å"Right now you're getting on my last nerve.Switch! † Gretchen acknowledges this control by obeying. Caddy was also acknowledging control hen she fulfills Region's invite to eat lunch with them â€Å"everyday for the rest of the week†. In the beginning of the movie, Regina took control of Caddy social life. Halfway through, Caddy became the center of attention; she gained control of Region's previ ous fame and publicity and made it her own. The previous examples also hint at some aspect of control. Control is also seen in Frankincense, where the monster says, Mimi are my creator, but I am your master;-obey! (174). Victor chooses condone the monster, and the monster responds by taking control, killing all of Victor's family embers. Control in Charitable is implied when Geraldine takes on a role of masculinity: â€Å"lay down by the maiden's side: And in her arms the maid she took† (250-251). In The Major Works, â€Å"Farewell to a Lady' by Lord Byron shows how a woman's beauty takes control of his life: â€Å"In flight I shall be surely wise, Escaping from temptation's snare; I cannot view my Paradise, Without the wish of dwelling there† (1).By the word â€Å"flight†, viewers can assume he is going to commit suicide as a means to control the elimination of all ties with the Earthly Paradise's temptation. This kind of intro can relate to monstrosity and ce lebrity culture in a number of ways; first, one can see that the society of celebrity culture is so monstrously powerful, it is out of the control of the public to change it. Only the celebrities themselves have control of their own lives and culture and how they want to live it.Second, celebrity culture has so much control and influence over their audience, that they are not only controlling their own lives, but dominating American culture as a whole. By celebrities constantly sleeping with one another, taking part in the lies, secrecy, self-pity, and feigning their innocence inspires the public to act in the same manner. Third, by the news being so obsessed with the daily lives of celebrities, it almost implies as if they are encouraging the public to become more and more like celebrity stalkers.Lastly, they manipulate the public into believing their redefined definition of happiness, which solely consists of money, fame, and beauty. Rumors, lies, secrecy, self-pity, feigning inno cence, and control all tangle together to layer and overlap and form manipulation; celebrity manipulators do not only have control of their own world, but also wish to control the world of others. This allows them to occupy both worlds at the same time, with their rules, in their way: how much more control could a person possibly want?These qualities of manipulation in celebrity culture are allowing people to lose touch with things that are the most important in life, like friends and family. Celebrity culture is so controlling that it even takes over the roles of others. In Celebrity Culture: Are Americans Too Focused on Celebrities, Tompkins, a group an example of how celebrities are taking the roles of [super] heroes: â€Å"When I ask allege and high school students who their heroes are, they usually name celebrities, such as athletes or movie stars, not names that did something heroic or noteworthy. (Tompkins 4). Celebrity culture is now one of our prime sources of entertainmen t; ultimately, celebrity culture manipulates to control their audience's society in such a monstrous way so they are not able to distinguish the difference between genuine importance and the importance of celebrity news. One day, I fear genuinely important news, (politics, world news, emergency issues) will be ignored unless it is presented as a source of entertainment, like celebrity culture.

The Role Christianity Played Throughout the Light and Truth of Slavery: Aaron’s History

The Role Christianity Played Throughout The Light and Truth of Slavery: Aaron's History In 1845 Aaron is telling a story, a story of his life as a slave; which was documented through The Light and Truth of Slavery: Aaron's History. Aaron, a former slave, notes that he escaped from the South and became a â€Å"poor way-faring Bondman,† where he lectured in churches and public buildings throughout the North during the first half of the 19th century. Aaron advocates the political platform of the Liberty Party because of that party's attempt to pass legislation abolishing slavery as unconstitutional.He also suggests that abolishing slavery would not have the feared financial repercussions on the South but would, instead, financially benefit the South and the nation as a whole. In some ways religion meant nothing at all when it came to slaves and slave owners, but in another sense people took it very serious. Aaron starts his story by speaking about Mr. Harrison, William Henry Harr ison who was running for president at that time. Aaron speaks about how caucasian people spoke so highly of Harrison when in actuality he was doing nothing different than any other person.Harrison was still turning hungry kids away but as Aaron says â€Å"Now what more can you expect from a slaveholding man, for you can expect nothing more† (Aaron 3). Aarons view on slavery connected with religon and politics as well. At this time almost everyone’s religion was christianity, and according to the bible; Every is equal. Aaron could never understand how someone could claim to be a Christian, but promote un-christian like qualities to the world. Although slaves were enslaved, that did not keep them away from their religion. Enslaved men and women kept the rites, rituals, and cosmologies of Africa alive in America through stories, healing arts, song, and other forms of cultural expression, creating a spiritual space apart from the white European world. † (Sambol-Tosco 1). If a slave who was beaten, and treated as if they were not even close to human could stick to their religion and live by the words of the bible, how could a person who had no one holding them back do the same. Slave owners used Christianity as an excuse for how they treated slaves in the 19th century.Throughout the narrative, Aaron is on a journey to use his religion to get others on his side and to prove his point on what he thought religion was all about, but he is faced with people who want to help in along his journey, and also people who could care less about him or if he ate that day. While on his journey he traveled through towns such as Elizabethtown, Foxboro, Wrentham and many more. While on his journey through these many different towns, Aaron ran into many Northern abolitionists who Aaron called â€Å"wolves and sheep clothing† (Aaron 7).When he says this he means it as someone that looks harmless (like a sheep), but is actually not (like a wolf), but is just pretending or disguised. These people pretended to want to help him but then refused to help him in his time of need. While on his journey he also ran into other things that did not make him very happy. He blames southern ministers for hypocrisy, because while they were preaching holiness, they were taking advantage of female slaves. While in Elizabethtown he came into contact with a man that thought it was okay to say things like â€Å"he cut up with his female slaves, more than he did his own wife† (Aaron 3).These are all things that confused Aaron and made him want to continue his journey to promote Christianity, so that people could see it that way that he did. The Bible can be used to support particular viewpoints, and slavery is no exception. There are numerous references to slavery in the Bible which can be interpreted to condemn or either condone this practice (Reddie). Except for murder, slavery has to be one of the most immoral things a person can do. Yet slavery is talked about throughout the Bible in both the Old and New Testaments.The Bible clearly approves of slavery in many passages, and it goes so far as to tell how to obtain slaves, and how hard you can beat them. Many Christians will try to ignore the moral problems of slavery by saying that these slaves were actually servants or indentured servants, like the slave owners did. While many slaves may have worked as household servants, that doesn't mean that they were not slaves who were bought, sold, and treated worse than livestock.When people think about slavery, they think about how bad it is and how it has ruined people but what they do not think about is that once, it was just a way of live. â€Å"Historical records show that Islam and Christianity played an important role in enslavement in Africa† (Reddie). Ever since slaves were being captured from Africa, Christians have witnessed this act and have done nothing about it, so what would that change now that slavery has been going on for many years; and that is what Aaron was trying to prevent. While promoting his religion, that meant promotion freedom as well.Aaron was very big on slaves getting their freedom like he did. Throughout the narrative, Aaron told stories about the things brutality he had witnessed when it came to the slaves. As free people, people today do not think about how important freedom is because they have always been free, but they do not see that without freedom you are nothing. â€Å"A poor slave being on his deathbed, begged of his master to give him his liberty before he died, ‘I want to die free massa. ‘ His master replied, you are going to die soon, what good will your liberty do? ‘O master, I want to die free. He said to the slave, ‘you are free. ‘ ‘But do write it master, I want to see it on paper. ‘ At his earnest request he wrote that he was free, the slave took it in his trembling hand, looked at it with a smile and exclaimed, à ¢â‚¬ËœO how beautiful, O how beautiful,' and soon fell asleep in the arms of death† (Aaron 8). † It is amazing how a person could want freedom so bad, that they would even want their family members to say that they died a free man. Slave owners did not see it the same way, freedom was a privilege slave owners thought, not a right.Aaron wanted everyone to be free, because he was and by spreading his thoughts about religion he thought that would help. On his journey, Aaron ran into many abolitionists that he thought were trying to save the slaves. While some were using Christian scriptures to diffuse slavery, others were searching through the Bible to end it. Even even ran into Quakers, since their establishment in the mid 17th century, Quakers had faced persecution for their beliefs which stated that everyone was â€Å"equal in the sight of God† and capable of receiving the â€Å"light of God's spirit and wisdom†, including Africans.Several of their founders , including George Fox and Benjamin Lay, encouraged fellow congregants to stop owning slaves, and by 1696, Quakers in Pennsylvania officially declared their opposition to the importation of enslaved Africans into North America. Quakers in Philadelphia and London debated slavery at their yearly meetings in the 1750s, became required reading for abolitionists on both sides of the Atlantic (Reddie). Aaron was eager to find out that there were other people willing to help him abolish slavery through religion and willing to do almost anything to get it done.

How have anthropologists responded to colonialism in different Essay - 2

How have anthropologists responded to colonialism in different historical moments - Essay Example In some cases, anthropology is into smaller units namely linguistic, bodily, archaeology and cultural anthropology. Therefore, anthropology seeks to understand the various facets of culture within a given society therefore reflects on the tools, techniques, values, beliefs, economic mechanisms, social institutions and struggles of prestige within any given societal setting (Pritchard, 1969, p.30). With a wider spec, applied anthropological study helps in solving modern problems. Anthropologists not only use colonialism as a historical object of observation but also as a technique of control, which emerged from colonial dialect. Anthropology categorizes colonialism in dissimilar ways. The anthropology of colonialism categorically seeks to determine contemporary anthropology in relation to the colonial background under which it emerged. Ethno history on the other hand, seeks to draw boundaries between history and anthropology, neo-Marxism and feminism for instance fuel economic interes t of change and consequently in colonialism among the peasant societies in relation to their mode of production and form of economy. Anthropology of colonialism’s notions, through culture and method, has always turned out to have specific colonial functions or uses (Asad, 1973, p.5). Evans-Pritchard, in his book, â€Å"The Nuer†, indicates that society surrounding the Nuer people happens through groups and cattle. The Nuer is a pastoralist community residing along the upper part of the Nile. Their social structure was drawn from individualistic perspectives and lacked laws and leaders. Social order in society was maintained based on societal values and tribe orientation within a lineage system (Pritchard, 1940, p.9). From a scholarly perspective however, â€Å"The Nuer† is an intensive ethnographic study coined by Evans-Pritchard about the unusual and interesting people. To this people, economic relationships are of social nature hence everything that the people of this ethnic setting do, is bound by the factor that they belong to one community and they are therefore bound by their relation by productive system. Evans Pritchard, through his book therefore emphasizes on the lack of laws, government, political organizations and authority in the social systems of the Nuer hence a paradox in their political structure. He denotes that classification among these people is only in their relation to other political setups and it arises because of tribal hostility and aggression. This therefore means that, the availability of tension brings about sense of form. Because of this, social life therefore balances wrongs and individuals within the society. Through Evans-Pritchard’s writings, it is clearly indicating that through anthropologies colonialism should actually be analyzed as a culture, which has an origin from colonial control, which is set on a historical background, in this case, therefore, culture and history supplement each other in the manner in which they relate. In order to understand this interesting relationship, one ought to know the classifications and functions of culture through the history of colonial governments. Through the understanding of Evans-Pritchard’s work, we can deduce that anthropologists and historians in most instances agree that we all ought to be sensitive to contexts. The Nuer, therefore,

Should government invest in small businesses Essay

Should government invest in small businesses - Essay Example Small businesses are very important for economic growth of a country. According to FSB, small and medium sized businesses contribute over 98 per cent of all businesses within an area (Ibbotson and Moran, 2005, pp. 556-563). In London, small businesses contribute significantly by providing job opportunities to unemployed people. The GDP of the entire United Kingdom is highly contributed by small and medium-sized entrepreneurs. In the year 2012, the Federation of Small Businesses surveyed 200 small businesses in London. Small businesses reported that they had better opportunities in entire London during Olympics and games. People from different countries visited London during games and sports. It helped most of the SMEs to earn huge profits. Small businesses are important because they lead to new innovations in marketing strategies. Most of the SMEs’ entrepreneurs belong from a lower age-group in London as per the report of FSB. Young people have the potential to convert their i nitiatives to application, which has sustained the market till now. Government investment in small businesses can provide better chances for small business to grow and develop, which in-turn can help in the economic development of London. The Prime Minister of United Kingdom has brought forward some evidential facts during the CBI speech on 25th of October. The Prime Minister mentioned that the existing small businesses since 2002 have proved to be very beneficial for the economic growth of United Kingdom especially London.

Article critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 7

Article critique - Essay Example rticle discusses clearly the results of the research, noting that there are still a good number of parents who are not well-informed about oral hygiene. For instance, it has been found out that the use of the right amount of toothpaste is not followed by most children. The researchers find this as important information because the chemical contents of toothpastes can be harmful especially for children who have high tendencies of swallowing instead of spitting out the toothpaste. Moreover, they also discovered that not many parents teach their children to floss. Other negative discoveries include the lack of knowledge regarding the importance of every meal and adding more fruits and vegetables in children’s diet. However, parents appear to be well-informed about the ill-effects of fruit juices and other sugary drinks and foods and they also encourage their children to brush their teeth at least twice a day. The article covered all the necessary information about the study and a ll the issues regarding oral hygiene and the participation of parents/guardians have been addressed. The information given is relevant and the interpretation of data is complete and accurate, giving a clear picture of the result gathered from the

EA frameworks Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

EA frameworks - Research Paper Example An architected system will frequently provide a pervasive "appearance and experience" that makes the whole systems more identifiable and consequently make the systems simpler and rather easy to learn and use (Finneran). From the perspectives of a lot of people of the industry, there is nothing considered to be vital for the transactions of the business than the utilization of working descriptions. It could as well be presumed that nothing is extra isolated." An architectural method provides operational descriptions as a part of its extensive business terminology furthermore consequently help widespread establishment of business strategies and enforcement methods. Additionally, the enterprise architecture provides a deep understanding into business process improvement (equally in total quality management (or TQM) and/or re-engineering) by describing preliminary business procedural paradigm and makes the consequence reliance so significant to the development of business procedures and methodologies. Moreover, the enterprise architecture provides a useful technique to speak about the architecture mechanisms to the objectives of the business as well as specific goals to be achieved, therefore providing impending into the business inspiration in terms of both the data as well as procedures of the business (Finneran) and (wikipedia-1). An effectively managed enterprise architecture scheme looks for to support the handy information management transactions, to the level that is rather possible as well as gives assured utilization of metrics to efficiently estimate the quality as well as amount of both the business procedure plus the productivity supported for information technology. An enterprise architecture framework assembles cooperative techniques, tools, procedure standards, artifact descriptions, orientation models plus management carried out by

Alfred Stieglitz's Photograph of Marcel Duchamp's Fountain Term Paper

Alfred Stieglitz's Photograph of Marcel Duchamp's Fountain - Term Paper Example The paper "Alfred Stieglitz's Photograph of Marcel Duchamp's Fountain" focuses on analysis and research about Alfred Stieglitz's photograph of Marcel Duchamp's Fountain art work. Stieglitz placed the ‘Fountain’ at the viewer’s eye level, brought it close, and magnified its presence. He further rotated it slightly on its axis to set up just a touch of tension, and lighted it from above such that it looks dramatically isolated against its setting yet also veiled, moody and mysterious. Duchamp’s ‘the Fountain’ is viewed through the eyes of Albert Stieglitz. The photograph is white in color that is made of the spectrum of colors. It is made of porcelain which is a polished/breakable material. Stieglitz took an ordinary object, gave it meaning by positioning it in such a way that its useful significance was overshadowed by the new one with a new title and a new point of view, thus creating a whole new thought for that object. Alfred Stieglitz life s panned from 1864 to 1946. Stieglitz was the most respected photographer of his time, and he fought for the recognition of photography as a valid form of art. He is one of the figures who revolutionized the American photography. Luminous-Lint finds it hard to imagine the direction that photography would have taken without the involvement of Stieglitz. He was a promoter of other people’s works, illuminating them with his photo works. The ‘Fountain’ was brought to 291, and when it was there it was photographed by Stieglitz who was greatly amused by Duchamp’s ‘Fountain’.

What I have learned in this class Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

What I have learned in this class - Essay Example My introduction to this class laid the groundwork for a clear understanding of construction project management. I understood that this class was not going to teach me everything I need to know about this topic, but that learning is a lifelong process. Many valuable lessons can be learned from others. It may be valuable to try and think about problems in a different context and from a different perspective. It the construction industry, as in many industries, it is often the soft-side or people aspect of engineering that makes the difference. Remember that people are often the most important part of a process. People plus process equal product. So I will remember to use my education in context, learn from others, and continue to expand my knowledge of construction project management. The construction industry is very unique. Construction can be run in an open shop, union shop, or merit shop. Residential construction consists of building places for people to live such as houses or apartment building. Commercial and institutional construction consists of building structures such as office buildings. Infrastructure construction is usually civil engineering projects such as highways, bridges, or waterworks. Industrial construction involves manufacturing or power projects. The construction industry is unique, always changing, not always extremely technical, doesn’t always contain a lot of data or standardization, has a large number of participants and people involved. There has been a lot of legislation to monitor the construction industry such as requiring bids on jobs and controlling wage rates. Computers are being used more and more in the construction industry. The quality and quantity of labor in this industry are declining. Material, equipment, labor, an d management are blending more and more on the global scale. Vendors and suppliers are becoming more involved at the construction

Radio report about jazz Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Radio report about jazz - Essay Example Ultimately, Blakey sets in the performance with his drum thus blending the mix proportionately. Benny Golson finds his way again after two and quarter minutes with his saxophone that purposes to offer liveliness and reality to the band. Lee Morgan halts but the other musicians maintain their respective roles in the band. Bobby Timmons seems to enjoy the music as he is seen very vibrant and also seems to follow everything closely. One can clearly notice the sounding of the drum set that Blakey bring into play to add rhythm to the piece. All the five band members now come in but the trumpet is higher in pitch and tune, something that is noticeable. Lee Morgan seems to struggle so as to hit higher notes to maintain the pitch and to also upkeep with the rest in the performance. The jazz slows down and picks rhythmically. Blakey is seen stepping from behind the kit and gives a brief introduction about their platter that he does in a rush. Lee Morgan is the solo who seems more involved in this piece. Morgan is likely to have found solace in his trumpet that he deliberately sounds consistently to blend the music. The trumpet is the most conspicuous in the entire piece thus Morgan is a key element in the band as he carries on strongly even when his colleagues slow down or even remain silent at some instances. He is seen to struggle to deliver the highest pitch ever in the performance but he still perseveres on. Only at some few instances does he rest although not so long like some other members. Lee progresses with success to the last point of the performance with a lot energy, lively and composed. Moanin’ Moanin’ was performed live in Belgium in 1958. The band members include Art Blakey, Benny Golson, Bobby Timmons, Lee Morgan and Jymie Merritt who play the drums, saxophone, piano, trumpet and the bass respectively. This song is a rendition about the projects title that plays for nearly fifteen minutes and is basically a joyful piece of music more so to those who like the studio. Noticeably, the camera work has been done with excellence that makes the performance clear. The piece starts by the solo engaging the audience who in turn applaud the message. The piano kicks off the performance as others join the accompaniment. Benny with his saxophone and the trumpet rest at some intervals after which the trumpet carries on for the better part of the piece with others on board too. At this point Benny stops and rests for the others to continue but joins at some point after which the trumpet rests. All except the trumpet are live and active with the applause from the being noticed. I remember Clifford I remember Clifford is the title of the jazz that was written by Benny Golson who played tenor saxophone. This was done to commit to memory the life of Clifford Brown, who played the trumpet, after his death in an accident. These two were great band mates the entire album pays tribute to Brown with Lee morgan for trumpet, Art Blakey with his drums, Jymie Merritt for bass and Bobby Timmons playing the piano all on board. Timmons is seen moving his foot inconspicuously counting in the number being also in the speed and tone of the music. The entire band heightens the speed and pitch charging ahead where Golson and Morgan howl at the top of their ability thus displaying their prowess and might while at the same time revealing their respective insight and

Simulaitons Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Simulaitons - Essay Example In the present case, the optimum solution is obtained for- Profit maximized ($1254) when Tables for 4=10, Tables for 2=8, wait staff=3 and kitchen staff=2. Loss of sales is least ($941). Other than the proposed alternatives, we can have two more possible solutions. There are basically, two areas of concern namely- Order taking and the ovens. The speed of operation at both these places directly influences the waiting time. Therefore, the optimal automation of these two areas would do a great deal of good even if there were initial investments to be made. A) Given the significant downtime and relocation costs, once you have decided to reconfigure equipment to improve process layout, how do you balance the immediate production requirements versus future needs for the facility There must always be a scope for future improvement, and so in order to achieve this, there must always be an effort for finding out better alternatives and under the present situation, the existing production must not stop, and so the best option for this would be to relocate only one thing at a time. This will ensure that current production stays unaffected and there is scope for future additions into any vacant space. B) The "cost of delay" is an important cost t

Explain How External Environment Influence Essay Example for Free

Explain How External Environment Influence Essay External environment aims to help an organisation to obtain opportunities and threats that will affect the organisation’s competitive situation. External opportunities are characteristics of the external environment that have the potential to help the organization achieve or exceed its strategic goals. External threats are characteristics of the external environment that may prevent the organization from achieving its strategic goals. Therefore, organisations must formulate appropriate strategies to take advantage of the opportunities while overcome the threats in order to achieve their strategic goals. The external environment consists of variables that are outside the organization and not typically within the short-run control of top management. They may be general forces within the macro or remote environment, which consists of political-legal, economic, socio-cultural, technological forces – usually called PEST. Political-legal force influences strategy formulation through government and law intervention. For example, the environment law requires the world’s automobile manufacturers to reduce emission of green house gasses, and therefore these manufacturers have to reformulate their product strategy. Economic force influences strategy formulation through economic growth, interest rates, exchange rates and the inflation rate. For example, exchange rates affect the costs of exporting goods and the supply and price of imported goods in an economy, and thus influence strategy formulation of exporters. Socio-cultural force is about the cultural aspects, health consciousness, population growth rate, age distribution, career attitudes and emphasis on safety. Trends in social-cultural factors affect the demand for a companys products and how that company operates. For example, increasing health consciousness can influence strategy formulation of fast-food companies that may have to adopt product innovation strategy. Technological factors include technological aspects such as R;D activity, automation, technology incentives and the rate of technological change. For example, rapid development of the information technology has significantly influenced the strategy formulation of logistics service providers who are now able to provide superior express services. There may be specific forces within the micro or near environment, which involves analyzing the threat from the new entrant, rivalry among the existing players, pressure from the buyers, pressure from the suppliers and pressure from the substitutes. This is introduced in Porter’s Five-Forces Model. Profitable markets that yield high returns will attract new firms which eventually will decrease profitability for all firms in the industry unless the entry of new firms can be blocked by incumbents. The existing firms therefore need to formulate new strategies against potential entrants. For most industries, the intensity of competitive rivalry is the major determinant of the competitiveness of the industry. For example, high intensity of competitive rivalry in the automobile industry forces competitors such as Ford, Honda, to form strategic alliances or adopts the strategy of M;A. The bargaining power of buyers is the ability of customers to put the firm under pressure. For example, strong bargaining power of buyers in the computer industry put Dell under pressure. To deal with such pressure, Dell has to focus on relationship marketing strategy by offering value-added services to its customers. The bargaining power of suppliers is also described as the market of inputs. Suppliers of raw materials, components, labor, and services (such as expertise) to the firm can be a source of power over the firm, when there are few substitutes. Suppliers may refuse to work with the firm, or charge excessively high prices for unique resources such as Microsoft software and Intel chips which affects the formulation of price strategy of PC makers. The existence of products outside of the realm of the common product boundaries increases the propensity of customers to switch to alternatives. In order to retain customers, companies must formulate appropriate strategies to compete with the substitutes. For example, milk producers compete with soy milk producers. However, strategy formulation is also influenced by the degree of turbulence of the external environment. A high degree of turbulence exists if changeability is high and predictability is low. Companies need to formulate strategies based on the planned prescriptive approach if turbulence is low, whereas based on the unplanned emergent approach if turbulence is high. How organizations overcome environmental changes? Organisations need to deal with environmental changes with appropriate strategies. First, organisations may choose to wait and see. Such strategy has its advantages and disadvantages. For example, facing a significant technological change, some companies may choose to integrate the new technology into their products. If they are successful, the rest companies’ ‘wait and see’ strategy is obviously unwise. However, if they failed, the rest companies’ ‘wait and see’ strategy appears wise. As a result, strategic decision making is impacted on and opportunities may either be lost or capitalised on. Second, organisations may choose to change in response to environmental changes through either proactive or reactive. Proactive change involves actively attempting to make alterations to the work place and its practices. Companies that take a proactive approach to change are often trying to avoid a potential future threat or to capitalize on a potential future opportunity. Reactive change occurs when an organization makes changes in its practices after some threat or opportunity has already occurred in the external environment. As an example of the difference, assume that a hotel executive learns about the increase in the number of Malaysians who want to travel with their pets. The hotel executive creates a plan to reserve certain rooms in many hotel locations for travelers with pets and to advertise this new amenity, even before travelers begin asking about such accommodations. This would be a proactive response to change because it was made in anticipation of customer demand. However, a reactive approach to change would occur if hotel executives had waited to enact such a change until many hotel managers had received repeated requests from guests to accommodate their pets and were denied rooms. In reality, companies may use a combination of both proactive and reactive approaches. Proactive approach is highly common when an industry is new with little or no change. The bellwether company entering the industry is making all of the strategic decisions or being proactive. However, because of its success, competitors gradually enter the market, resulting in the turbulent change of the competitive environment. Consequently, the reactive change is on the part of the new competitors as well as the bellwether company. To overcome environmental changes, companies may also choose the merger or acquisition strategy. A merger is defined as the joining of two or more organizations to constitute a new combined, legal entity. An acquisition is defined as the purchase of more than 50 percent of the voting shares of one organization by another, but the two organizations are still separate legal entities with the acquiring organization running as the parent company and another as a subsidiary. For example, recent study discloses that the merger and acquisition strategy in the global automobile industry will be further enhanced in the near future in order to deal with the threat of global financial crisis which decreased the consumers’ disposable income and increased the debt of auto makers and suppliers that have to save their organisations through merger and acquisition Ddiscuss the importance of organisational culture in strategy implementation Organisational culture can be defined â€Å"as the system of shared beliefs and values that guide and direct the behaviour of members, can have a strong influence on daily organisational behaviour and performance. † (1) Reflection to leadership Successful strategy implementation needs strategic leadership. Strategic leadership is the ability of influencing others to voluntarily make decisions that enhance prospects for the organisation’s long-term success while maintaining short-term financial stability. It includes determining the firm’s strategic direction, aligning the firm’s strategy with its culture, modelling and communicating high ethical standards, and initiating, shaping and implementing changes in the firm’s strategy, when necessary. Strategic leadership sets the firm’s direction by developing and communicating a vision of future and inspires the organization’s members to move in that direction. (2) Enable to create mission vision The vision is the source and the main idea of a company. The mission aims to give the direction which presents the unique scope of business, its vision nd specific competence competitive advantages, and to tell employees, consumers, and shareholder what the firm is. For example, IBM’s vision is: solutions for a small planet. Mission is: At IBM, we strive to lead in the invention, development and manufacture of the industrys most advanced information technologies, including computer systems, software, sto rage systems and microelectronics. Create a shared vision to manage strategic change: objectives and vision of both individuals and organization should coincide. There should be no conflict between them. Senior managers need to constantly and consistently communicate the vision not only to inform but also to overcome resistance through proper communication. Strategy implementers have to convince all those concerned that the change is not superficial. The actions taken have to be credible, highly visible and unmistakably indicative of management’s seriousness to new strategic initiatives and associated changes. (3) Help to create a better strategy (4) Staff motivation Strategy implementation requires special motivation to achieve objectives. The motivation system functions according to the qualities and mechanisms of motivation, which is developed during the stage of entry strategy preparation. First and foremost, this system has to inspire employees involved in the process of strategy development and implementation to orient their mindset toward a strategic way of thinking. Formalizing the strategic motivation system includes establishing a system of daily incentives for employees, especially those who are responsible for strategy development and implementation. The formal system is presented in a document, where all suggestions about motivation and incentives are developed and described. It includes all moral, social, and financial instruments of motivation of individual employees and groups of employees. Special recognition and awards should be given to those who go above and beyond in creating and implementing strategic ideas. (5) Increase or enhance adaptability skills How to use organisation culture to develop competitive advantages 1. Develop CA An organization that is able to maintain a positive culture is likely to enjoy many benefits. When organization members identify with the culture, the work environment tends to be more enjoyable, which boosts morale. This leads to increased levels of teamwork, sharing of information, and openness to new ideas. The resulting increased interaction among employees activates learning and continuous improvement because information flows more freely throughout the organization. Additionally, such a culture helps to attract and retain top employees. For example, Wal-Mart’s founder, Sam Walton, showed concern and respect for his employees from the company’s inception. This created an environment of trust that persists to this day. Walton also modeled the behavior that he desired from his employees, especially customer service (both to internal and external customers), by visiting his stores, meeting customers, and greeting employees by their first names. Walton also embraced and encouraged change in order to remain competitive, and developed employees by having them work in a variety of positions. Wal-Mart considers its culture the key to its success, and to this day employees continue to think about how Sam would have done it’’ when making decisions. 2. Proactive ; reactive Today’s globally-competitive business environment has made a positive corporate culture a critical aspect of success for firms. No longer just a competitive advantage, it has become a prerequisite for success, allowing companies to attract and retain top employees. Therefore, where the culture is serving to lower morale, it is recommended that management take proactive rather than reactive steps to change the corporate culture using a top-down approach, establishing a new vision and demonstrating new behavior consistent with the revised vision. 2. Ability to change 3. Strong learning curve

History of forensic medicine Essay Example for Free

History of forensic medicine Essay The necessity of understanding the reasons why a loved one suddenly becomes missing, his/her whereabouts difficult to trace and the difficulty of establishing the probability of that person’s survival is one of the many realities of families today. Should threats actually pose on a person’s life or the missing member left traces of his/her whereabouts are stuffs that not only fill the minds of those who are after detective stories; these are matters that provide meaning and hope for those families and individuals with real, missing loved ones. The popularity of shows on television such as CSI and police crime stories in a weekly slot has virtually lined almost all of networks around the globe. Films and theaters make sure they profit and usually they do whenever they strike the old formula of suspense and crime. Embedded in these formats is the dependable work of forensic medicine and the people behind it. It is no wonder that many children and adolescents today list the job of a forensic specialist as one of their ambitions. Purpose of the Paper Forensic medicine is a distinct discipline dedicated to accomplish the ultimate which is to solve crimes and prevent, limit or reduce its occurrence with the application of a wide-ranging field of sciences in response to inquiries in relation to the legal set-up. It utilizes scientific methods and the application of pharmacology and other related schemes in the pursuit of justice. Basically derived from the time of the Romans when both the accused and the accuser are given their day in â€Å"court† to present their speeches to persuade the court of the issues of their cases; today, an intricate system of a combination of knowledge from different sectors is used to achieve the purposes of the legal system. It uses modern technology and the expertise of behavioral sciences in law enforcement. Myths have been built around notorious serial killers and rightly so, because many of those who perpetrate such heinous activities manage to cause people to tremble just by hearing stories about their â€Å"exploits. Many were astounded by such names or tags as â€Å"BTK† and others like him who tried to carve their names in history though rather infamously. More modern types in the likes of Ted Bundy for instance and the â€Å"happy face† killer still evoke fear as well amazement that such people do exist. What was more amazing though is that they had been caught and that the breakthrough of forensic medicine in the early years to its modern developments had made the capture more successful and a credit to the science. In the case of jack the Ripper, he was popularized in London many years ago, around 1880, when this man started to murder prostitutes in the East End portion of this metropolis. He was never caught and his identity remained clouded in mystery. But the details as to the methods of his killing (or ripping) and whether he reaped them or not (his victims) became known only when the developments that had brought forensic medicine to the forefront started to become available (Barbee, 2006). The paper is written to explain, enlighten where forensic medicine is today and where it started. With the view that many of high profiled cases were solved due to the advances in the field which includes computer and digital forensics, use of forensic analysis tools of all kinds i. e. , sampling techniques, and a host of other manners of gathering evidence, the author seeks to establish the history of forensic medicine in precis. Problem Statement The literature today is rich to provide an enthusiast and serious student of the field with sufficient information concerning the issue on how this particular discipline emerged. It therefore seeks to answer the following question: What is forensic medicine and what are the major developments that helped established its place in the legal system? Basing on that primary inquiry, the following are the paper’s sub-problem statements: o How is forensic medicine defined? o What are the developmental milestones significant in the understanding of the discipline? o What are the current medical and scientific breakthroughs that are being employed in the application of forensic medicine? o What are its successes in terms of accomplishments as solving such high profiled crimes as BTK and insights into the legendary Jack the Ripper? What are its failures and the deficiencies in the system that needs to be improved and addressed? Definition of Terms Forensic medicine is a distinct science that â€Å"involves the principles and techniques that identify evidence at a crime scene† (UKTV people, 2007). Crime scene investigation refers to the protocol that peopl e in the uniform employs whenever a crime occurs such as the incidence of murder that brings the trained to examine the scene of the crime. The intention is to find traces or clues that might lead to the solution of the crime (UKTV people, 2007). DNA which represents the chemical Deoxyribonucleic Acid, is the â€Å"chemical found in virtually every cell in the body and which carries genetic information from one generation to the next. When translated, this information determines our physical characteristics and directs all the chemical processes in the body† (UKTV people, 2007). Fingerprint evidence. â€Å"Fingerprint evidence rests on two basic principles: A persons friction ridge patterns the swirled skin on their fingertips never change and no two people have the same pattern of friction ridges. † (UKTV people, 2007). Ballistics.  The science of ballistics is often a highly important element in finding out who did the â€Å"killing. † It deals with the motion, behavior and effects of bullets. Theoretical Framework ~On criminality: Factors contributing to the incidence This refers to the body of knowledge that provides a basis to the current understanding of the different facets of the field. There are various scientific viewpoints where criminality is concerned and its reduction and prevention as goals. The author attempts to discuss various theoretical perspectives as knowledge base for the strength of its proposition. Sociologists, in an attempt to explain and point out the reasons behind delinquency, have concluded that there are connections between specific youth behaviors with the home environment, family background, the neighborhood, associations, and many other aspects that together, or separately affect the formative years of young people’s social environment. Delinquent children usually come from a background of difficult circumstances. Parental alcoholism, poverty, breakdown of family, abusive conditions in the home, death of parents during armed conflicts or drug overdose, and the HIV/AIDS scourge, and etc. re some of the various reasons that can leave children virtually orphaned. One or both parents may be physically present, but because of irresponsibility on their part (if even one of them is addicted to drugs or alcoholic), a child may grow developing certain ways and attitudes that are directly/indirectly caused by the parent/s addiction or drug-related behavior. In this case, true delinquency lies on the parents; and the children are, in a way, orphaned or unaccompanied, and without any means of subsistence which, in the first place, the parents’ fundamental responsibility to provide. Generally, and increasingly, these children are born and/or raised without a father. They are first in the line of those who are at greatest risk of falling into juvenile delinquency. Without noticing it as it is typical of any youth to be lacking in prudence, with newly embraced group, the gang, a corresponding subculture starts to assimilate them, and before long, they start to engage in activities of adult criminal groups. It is usually after being engaged in criminal activities for an extended period of time with its accompanying consequences (such as ending up in prison or rehabilitation institutions for drug addicts) that delinquents realize they are into a very dangerous zone. A large portion of all juvenile violations (between two-thirds and three-quarters) are perpetrated by youths who are members of certain gangs (Venkatesh, 1997). Unlike in school and their family, these have no strict rules to be followed except loyalty to the group. It gives young people esteem when they somehow feel they are the â€Å"rule† in themselves. This is the lure of gangs. It gives the promise of fulfillment to would be delinquents. Popularity, access to the powerful figures on the streets, freedom to express one’s self, as well as easy flow of money (if the gang is also involved in some illegal activities such as drug dealings, which is common in most gangs) are seemingly within grasp of anybody who just have the guts to dare (OJJDP, Mar. 2003).

Tesco: Recruitment and selection

Tesco: Recruitment and selection As a member of the HR department I need to research and make a report in order to check the quality of new staff being hired. The aim of this report is to explore what are the best means of testing and hiring new employees. It will also look into some benefits and drawbacks of recruitment process in two successful companies which are Tesco and McDonalds. Consequently, I will outline some suggestion which I think is the best for our company. 2.0 Procedures The information is collected from internet and using secondary research to gather data for my report. 3.0 Findings 3.1 Recruitment and selection methods of Tesco Tesco is the largest private sector employer and operating over 13 countries outside the UK. There is increasing all the time in the number of both store-based and non-store. In addition, in order to achieve business objectives, Tesco needs to make sure that they have the right number of workers in the right positions at the right time. In order to do this, Tesco has a step by step process of recruitment and selection to appeal applicants for both operational and managerial roles. As the company is growing, it is important for Tesco to have workforce planning which is future needs for people in term of locations, numbers and skills. The reason why may people want to work in Tesco is that it has store all over country (UK) so people can work in a location where they live. Furthermore, some jobs such as cashier do not need too high education requirement. As regards of recruitment, Tesco advertises vacancies in different methods. The process of recruiting depends on the job available. Firstly, Tesco looks at internal Talent Plan to fill posts. The lists of current employees who looking for a move or on promotion will be consider. If nobody is suitable in this talent plan, Tesco use internal advertising to post in intranet. However, external recruitment, the vacancies are posted in the Tesco websites or external vacancies board. When making applicant online for managerial position, the chosen applicants must have an interview. Consequently, people who are selected will attendance at an assessment centre for selecting process. Having the CV or register at Jobcentre Plus, candidates who interested in stored based jobs can apply stores in Tesco. The store prepares a waiting list of application which is not selected and calls them if vacancies become available. Furthermore, for the jobs with more specialists such as pharmacist, baker the e xternal recruitment method will be used for example radio, magazine, television. As far as the selection are concerned, it involve in selecting a suitable candidates from applicants by using the job specification and job description. The important part of the selection process is screening candidates. This is ensure that people are selected have matched with the job requirements. Initially, each applicants CV which summarises the candidates education and job experience will be looked cautiously by the Human Resources in Tesco. The firm also provides a job type match on careers web page. Hence they can see where they fit or not. A person who passes screening attend assessment centre will be invited to second interview. If they are successful, they will receive an offer letter and contract. The assessment centre is take place in store and is run by managers. It will give to candidate several tasks which include problem solving, team working. For example, how they react when customer make a complaint; team work together to make sure that the stock is ready and every shelf is provided; changing the shift work and nights. These exercises can help candidate to deal with real problems at work. 3.2 Advantage of these method in Tesco With respect to recruitment process, Tesco will try to find the most cost-effective way of attracting people. Although it is not cheap to advertise on television and magazines, this is essential to get the right type of people for the vacancies. It is easy for applicants to seek about available jobs and also has a simple application process throughout the Tesco website. First of all, by using internal recruitment in Tesco lead to cut the cost of recruiting workers from outside. This is due to less training and orientation required In addition, the HR department know more about the candidates ability. This will increase productivity of current employee and stronger commitment to the company. There are a number of benefits by using external recruitment method. Because of new people, they will bring in Tesco new perspectives and ideas. Furthermore, Tesco have more choice to choose candidates; they have a wider range of experience. 3.3 Disadvantage of these method in Tesco As regards to internal recruitment, the number of applicants can be limited. Owing to already known about strength and weakness of candidate, Tesco could not have new ideas from outside. In addition, another vacancy will be creating which need to be filled. On the other hand, in external recruitment, it has more expensive because of advertising and longer process. The selection process might not be effective enough to find the best applicant. 3.4 Recruitment and selection methods of McDonalds McDonalds is a one of the largest scale employer. Most workers are paid by the hour and those people called as crew members. Their jobs are to prepare the food and serve customers in order to make the restaurants run more efficiency. McDonald attracting many people because they can work as part time job so it appeal a lot of students who are studying at college or university. With respect to recruiting hourly-paid workers McDonalds have created a two-step application process for potential crew members. Firstly, all candidates must do the psychometric test and then they need to go online and fill the application. Once successful, the candidate will be invited to a restaurant for an on job experience (oje) and interview. The purposes of OJE give a good opportunity to evaluate the candidates customer service skills, how they get on with other member in McDonald and allows candidate to see whether or not suits with working environment. After that, the candidate will work in customer facing areas about 2 day assessment and will be given full instruction on what to do. Consequently, they have a final interview with manager who will give the decision about the applicant. When crew member have been hired, they have to attend a welcome meeting to demonstrate their skills and behaviours. This meeting will show an overview of the company and then candidate must do h ealth safety and food safety test online. 3.5 Benefits and drawbacks of these methods in McDonalds As we can see, the way McDonalds recruitment people it appeal more people to apply because they offer employee with many rewards and bonus. This also increases competition between employees to get prizes. They also provide good working condition which help workers more flexible at work. One of the interesting in recruitment stage is an on job experience. That mean candidate will show all of their skill to deal with customers. The other thing here is that people are easily to find out and apply quickly which save a lot of time. On the other hand, there are some drawbacks of these methods. Firstly, owing to more reward, this lead to increasing cost for company. Secondly, it appeals many students who do not have any previous experience. As a result of this, they will take time to learn and therefore reduce productivity of restaurants. 4.0 Conclusion From my point of view, both companies have good recruitment and selection policy depends on what they are doing. McDonald believes that employees are a vital role in the company to achieve the success of the restaurants. Their aim is to recruit the best people and keep them by offering on-going training related to their position, therefore promoting them when they are ready. The recruitment policies to fulfil its aim. However, Tesco believes that workforce planning is vital for business. They have strong organisational structures. Furthermore, Tesco provides the friendly ways of applying for vacancies and a reliable approach to recruitment and selection. 5.0 Recommendation Having finished research and analyses the recruitment process in both company, I would like to recommend some suggestion for our company which are application online, advertise on TV, using job specification and job description. First of all, application online help people easily to apply and attracting more people is due to developing of technology nowadays. Secondly, advertising is good way to grab attention of people. The reason is that most people like watching TV in leisure times. Although advertising is expensive in the short run, we will have better results in the long run. If we have the right employee, they will contribute to our company for a long time. Finally, when we have many applicants, using job specification and description are the good ways to choose the right person. These documents help us get the overview of candidates; what the qualification they have and their experience. Words: 1507

An Analysis of John Updikes A&P :: John Updike A&P

Interpretation of A&P  Ã‚   This Story takes place in 1961, in a small New England town's A&P grocery store.   Sammy, the narrator, is introduced as a grocery checker and an observer of the store's patrons.   He finds himself fascinated by a particular group of girls.   Just in from the beach and still in their bathing suits, they are a stark contrast, to the otherwise plain store interior.   As they go about their errands, Sammy observes the reactions, of the other customers, to this trio of young women.   He uses the word "Sheep" to describe the store regulars, as they seem to follow one and other, in their actions and reactions.   The girls, however, appear to be unique in all aspects of their beings: walking, down the isles, against the grain: going barefoot and in swim suits, amongst the properly attired clientele. They are different and this is what catches and holds Sammy's attention.   He sees them in such detail, that he can even see the queen of the bunch.   Sammy observes their moveme nts and gestures, up until the time of their checkout.   At which point, they are confronted by the store manager and chastised for their unacceptable appearance.   He believes their attire to be indecent.   Sammy, feeling that the managerial display was unnecessary and unduly embarrassing for the girls, decides to quit his position as checker.   Thought he knows that his decision may be hasty, he knows that he has to follow through and he can never go back.   He leaves, with a clean conscious, but the burden of not knowing what the future has in store.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This story represents a coming-of-age for Sammy.   Though it takes place over the period of a few minutes, it represents a much larger process of maturation.   From the time the girls enter the grocery store, to the moment they leave, you can see changes in Sammy.   At first, he sees only the physicality of the girls:   how they look and what they are wearing, seem to be his only observations.   As the story progresses, he notices the interactions between the girls, and he even determines the hierarchy of the small dynamic.   He observes their actions and how they affect the other patrons of the business.   Rather, how the other people view the girl's actions.   His thought process is maturing and he starts to see things as an adult might see them.

Essay --

What are our objective for today? †¢ Overview of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) †¢ Overview of health insurance coverage requirements in 2014 †¢ Explore media resources to learn about the Affordable Care Act †¢ Overview of Kaiser’s plan to advertise and implement affordable care †¢ Review and evaluation of Kaiser’s presentation of the ACA †¢ Affordable Healthcare is Here! †¢ On March 23, 2010, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) became federal law. It is one of the most significant reforms of the Healthcare system in a century (Hicks & Nicols, 2012). Beginning January 1, 2014, affordable Healthcare insurance will be made available to all American citizens and residents. †¢ Affordable Health Care 2014 †¢ The Affordable Care Act was developed to increase the accessibility, quality, and affordability of health care insurance in the United States. Individuals who are able to afford health care, must obtain health care coverage by 2014. The consequence of course is a monthly fee and/or tax penalties (this excludes those that meet certain financial criteria) †¢ (unknown, Understanding Health Care Reform, 2013) What Affordable Care Provides The law provides for: ï  ¶ Health benefits to all ï  ¶ Free preventative services ï  ¶ Improves Medicaid and CHIP programs ï  ¶ Mandates larger companies insure employees ï  ¶ Creates a Marketplace to compare and enroll in low cost insurance plans (unknown, Affordable Care Act Summary, 2013) What Affordable Care Eliminates The law eliminates: ï  ¶ Pre-existing conditions ï  ¶ Insurance companies dropping coverage ï  ¶ Gender discrimination in charges (unknown, Affordable Care Act Summary, 2013) Types of coverage? ïÆ'Ëœ Through your employer †¢ You are already covered and don’t have to do anything unless contacted by your insu... ...back in 2010. The delay in implementation of health care reform created disinterest and a sense that reform would never happen. ïÆ'Ëœ Mixed messages * Political partisan issues- all of us have heard the republican party criticizing health care reform. This has been confusing to some and infuriating to others, but it has definitely impacted the confidence most people have in health care reform (Moore, 2013). One of the fundamental goals of any individual is for health and well-being. Health care reform seems like an answer to our prayers. It promises a change in health care delivery; to provide better care for more people at reduced costs. Whether or not the Affordable Care Act accomplishes this goal remains to be seen. In the long term, we may find it was a brilliant plan, by educated minds, to provide our country with a healthy and more promising future.

Fear in Lord of the Flies Essays -- Lord of the Flies William Golding

Fear in Lord of the Flies In the novel the Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, fear is the cause of all of the problems that take place on the island. At first, the island is thought to be splendid and a paradise, but as the boys' stay on the island increases, so, too, do their fears. The boys soon become afraid of each other and soon after that the boys break up and fight because of the fear. The boys' original fears are of what they think are beasts. "Then people started getting frightened" (Golding, 88). This was spoken by Ralph at an assembly because he knew that things were breaking up and he also knew why. It was the fear. In the novel the Lord of the Flies, fear is the root of the trouble that is caused on the island. The boys' fear turns into fear of each other after only a short time on the island. Many of the boys leave Ralph and join Jack's tribe of hunters because Jack provides them with fun. Jack's tribe goes hunting and has feasts and everyone, even if it is only for a short time, forgets about the beast and ignores it. After a while, though, some of the boys are in Jack's tribe because of their fear, but not their fear of the beast. They stay in Jack's group because they are afraid of Jack and, eventually, Roger. Jack controls them all by showing he is merciless; He's going to beat Wilfred. What for? Robert shook his head doubtfully. I don't know. He didn't say. He got angry and made us tie Wilfred up (176). Jack beats up members of his tribe for no reason at all, except to instill upon them the fear of himself. Soon, everyone is afraid of Roger also. The twins are forced to join Jack's tribe and are terrified of Roger. "You don't know Roger. He's a terror." "-and t... ...ic, see a beast sitting on top of the mountain and Ralph, Jack and Roger confirm what the twins saw, there is complete fear. No one is willing to walk alone or even to go deep into the forests, except for Simon. The boys are terrified and this is when things start to break up. Now, the fear moves on from what they think is the beast to something much more dangerous. Now, they are afraid of each other. At first the island is thought to be a paradise by the boys. It is a dream come true. The boys are living every child's fantasy. Then things start to go horribly wrong. Fear sets in. In this novel, William Golding illustrates that fear is everywhere and can wreak havoc on many things. In this case the boys become afraid of each other and for all of them survival becomes impossible. They eventually they realize that dreams can easily turn into nightmares.

Algerian War

Most of the African countries have at one time of another been engaged into warfare, either as a struggle for liberation from the colonialism or as a response from the bad governance which has characterized most parts of this continent. I believe that some of these struggles are justified since they led to liberation of the masses. For example the fight to draw away the colonialist was a noble cause since it brought independence in this region. The colonial powers were only up to satisfy their greedy appetite for resources from Africa leaving the continent bare with depleted resources.They were determined to milk Africa dry and perhaps this explains why they clung to the colonies for so long such that they had to be thrown away either through armed struggles or through international pressure. Some of the colonies were determined to make African countries their overseas territories so that they can continue oppressing the Africans. One such rule was the French government which wanted to extend their unwelcome stay in Algeria culminating into a struggle which had massive effects some of which are still felt today.One of the countries in Africa where the struggle for independence was quite remarkable and will for ever be in the history books is Algeria. In this paper I will attempt to explore the causes of this war that brought hope to the Algerian people and changed the course of their history forever. I will explain the course of the war analyzing the events which took place, and finally look at the effects of this struggle both in Algeria and France. (Windrow, M and Chappell 1997 5) This country was colonized by the French who occupied it for since early 1830s. They ruled this country for close to one hundred and fifty years.By 1954 the Algerians had become tired, weary and fed up by this occupation. They have had enough and they were ready to liberate themselves. In 1954 they waged a war which went down to the history as one of the fiercest in the history of i ndependence struggle. This was the climax of their aggression and humiliation they had undergone for the last one hundred years. They were so determined such that nothing would have turned them back. The forces were ready, they enjoyed massive support form the international bodies more so from their Arab neighbor who also wanted to see one of their neighbor redeemed from the chains of colonization.This conflict erupted exactly fifty years ago, despite being an independence struggle; a war is a war, something which leads to loss of life and destruction of property. It was an ugly war that dominated the world press to almost the same extent as other wars that have been fought in the world in the recent past. (Windrow, M and Chappell, M 1997 p3) The war ended with a win for the French side but the situation in Algeria had changed, despite the win they had to grant the people of Algeria the freedom they had been yearning.A question crops up, what could have happened if the Algerians won the war? Would they have tried to extend their territory beyond the curved borders? These are pertinent issues whose answers can not be direct. For one it would have been almost impossible for the Algerian freedom fighters to win given the level of the armies for the two sides. The French ha d a well coordinated force while Algerians only depended on militias who were not properly coordinated. Again the issue of weapons comes up; the French had access to modern and sophisticated weapons which Algerians could only have dreamed of.This war had many unique features; it was a three- and finally four-edged struggle between the French government, the European colonists and the Algerian nationalists and finally Charles de Gaulle. All these parties to the contest were pursuing different interests. The war left Algeria deeply bruised as a nation. It had some serious implication that no one could have imagined, its effect were not only felt in this North African country but also way back in France. (Shields,J 2007 27) Causes of the WarTo understand the real causes of this conflict it is important that we try to get a real situation of Algeria at that moment and in the past. This information will shed some light on why the Algerian people wanted to be free. Windrow and Chappell argue that the conflict was purely economical and social â€Å"some seventy five percent of the Muslims population were illiterate and they suffered chronic unemployment†p3. Therefore for these people to be liberated from the serious problems they were facing they had to get rid of the forces which they felt that were undermining their efforts to lead a better life.By the time the war was erupting Algeria had been under French occupation for close to a century where the territory was being reoffered to as a French overseas province. Windrow and Cappell observed that only a small percentage of the Muslims population in this country enjoyed the French citizenry rights where one was privilege d to own property. By this time the Muslims population had rose to eight millions. This population could not have survived under the conditions that prevailed in Algeria where the economy was not performing well and then their condition was not all that good.This level of poverty which has been described as abject greatly contributed to this conflict. I believe that when a society is subjected to conditions which are inhuman they will rise up and demand what is rightfully theirs. This is exactly what happened in Algeria. The people were generally tired of being subjected to suffering by foreigners, they wanted to live a decent life, though they wanted to solve things in a peaceful manner conflict could not have been avoided since the French government was adamant and they wanted to continue with the occupation of this resource rich country.(Shields, J 2007 28) The Algerians were dissatisfied with the treatment by the French government as second class citizens. They felt that this be ing country and they had every right to live in it and more so like any other person. In my research I have gathered that this is a problem that existed in all the African colonies where African faced serious discrimination. They were treated badly and subjected to unimaginable sufferings. Most of these people did not enjoy the privileges which the other races were entitled to.They were regarded as low class who should be civilized though the process of assimilation. When people are treated in such a horrible manner as happened in Algeria, eventually they will be fed with the situation and demand what is rightfully their. This is what the Algerians did; they were tired of such an environment where they could not enjoy full rights like anybody else. They had to look for a way to solve their problem, they did not foresee a situation where for the French colonial government would grant them independence through a silver platter.They were determined to go all the way and ensure their fr eedom. Algerians were determined to pursue their independence; it is in this struggle that nationalism and its elements are shown. The Algerian War was started mainly revolting Algerian mobilization which sought freedom on the premises of bad polices which segregated the people especially those cultures which did not speak in French. (Nehma, A and Zeleza, P 2008 56) During the Second World War, Algerians were actively involved both local and those of the European descent, they fought for France.In return they were supposed to be handsomely rewarded for their efforts. This is a promise that the French government never kept. These world war soldiers were disoriented since when the colonial government did not keep its promise. They felt betrayed; they had to find alternatives so that they can survive the hard time that ensued. They were easy target for the recruits because of their hostility to the government that never kept its promise. These soldiers were actively involved in the fre edom struggle for Algeria, perhaps to punish the French colonial government for neglecting them.This something that happened all over the continent, Africans were enrolled to fight for foreign countries and in the return they were to get some favors from the colonial governments. In Kenya the freedom fighters who were popularly known as the Mau Mau were mostly soldiers who had been recruited to fight for British overseas. On return they were supposed to be given land. Just like the French counterparts in Algeria the British colonial government did not honor its promise. The soldiers formed the group to fight for the freedom in that country and also to teach the colonial government a lesson (Windrow, M and Chappell 1997 5)My argument is that nationalism played a big role in the struggle for independence in this country. The Algerians were motivated by their desire to maintain cultural freedom and also reversion of the state to the rightful owners, who were the Algerian people. When t he French people set their foot in this land they were determined to get this country. they used all manner of tactics to subject the indigenous people to their rule. Rapes,killings and many other barbaric acts were committed to the Algerians in the name of conquered the country. The French army burned harvests emptied granaries and many other unfortunate things.This caused great resentment between the two groups, this hate grew reaching climax during the freedom struggle. Algerian resistance was vigorous though it was only for a short time; they were not prepared to fight foreign forces who wanted to take what is rightfully theirs. When it came to the freedom struggle they had learnt their lessons and were more determined than ever to ensure they were left free to rule their country as they wished. From the resistance which was mounted during the colonization period an insurgency which will later come to liberate the country was born.There arose some cultural tension between the Mu slims and the French people a type of resentment that lasted until this period and later came to yield to the type of aggression witnessed during the independence war. (Nehma, A and Zeleza, P 2008 58) Course of the war In the wee hours of 1st November 1954 the group called National Liberation Front was ready to start the liberation struggle, they launched massive attacks in different areas of Algeria They targeted the military and police posts, public areas among other crucial areas controlled by the colonial government.The group called on all the Muslims in Algeria to rise up against a regime that was oppressive and bring back sanity own their country where all people especially the indigenous Africans could be treated with respect. What would have happened if the people of Algeria did not rally behind this call to liberate themselves? I believe that the colonial government was very much determined to retain this country. Once it is rich in oil resources among other minerals. There fore by granting independence or ceasing power would transfer control of these resources to the Africans.Settlers would not have liked the idea since they had grown to, like the country and what they were getting from here. (Williams, N et al 2007 78) The government responded with massive force against this insurgency from the people who were labeled as terrorists. Would people who were fighting to liberate the masses be labeled as terrorist? In my opinion the FLA fighters were not terrorists rather they were group of people who were responding to an oppressive regime. Many leaders have been labeled as terrorists but times have proved them right.One such leaders was the former freedom fighter from South Africa who later became the President and one of the most popular and respected men in the world. Nelson Mandela was a terrorist according to the apartheid rulers of South Africa but to his people he was a hero. The same case applies the freedom fighter in Algeria the French governme nt declared these people as terror agents but to the Algerians they were heroes who can be relied on to make their motherland free once more. (Williams, N et al 2007 79)As the FLN spread their activities across the country, many European farmers in the country side were forced to sell their farms and belonging and shifted to the capital where they sought refuge. Here they pressured the government to take a stern action against the militias. The colons started organizing their own form of retaliation where they grouped some militias whom would attack the FLN members allover the country especially in Algiers. The Europeans called on the government to declare a state of emergency so that it can deal with the situation properly.(Williams, N et al 2007 78) The war took an ugly twist when the FLN fighters started to attack the civilians. This happened way back in August 1955,a great massacre of the civilian was reported near Phillippeville,the attack was carried out by the freedom fighter s. Intially the group had an operation tactic where it was only targeting the military and government properties. Now with the direct target of the people they were supposed to be fighting for complicated the matter. Perhaps this happens in every war. The civilians who in most cases are innocent get bruised.This killing was largely condemned and it prompted the French government to step up its effort on the war. Innocent lives had been lost including those who were not involved inn the war, the children and women. In response to this attack the government claimed to have killed more than one thousand guerillas. FLN gave some conflicting reports by claiming that more than twelve thousand Muslims died on retaliatory attacks coming from the French colonial government and the colon vigilante groups. (Alexandar, M and Keiger, J 2002 78)By 1956 it is estimated that the French government had already commission more than 400,000 troops to help crush the resistance that was mounting in this colony. They realized that it would not be an easy task to fight the groups that were coming up more so when they were using guerilla tactic and applying terrorism methods to fight the French government and its supporters. In the freedom fight there were Algerians who supporting the government . There were close to one hundred and eighty Muslim Algerians who were in the French forces and most of them were fighting as volunteers.In my opinion I believe that these people were supporting the government because they wanted the status quo to remain. They were already benefiting from the system and changes where freedom will be granted their normal lives will be affected. Most of these volunteers have been assimilated into the French system and have been accorded full French citizenship. To them they were fighting for their country but to the rest of the Algerians they were traitors, who had betrayed the noble cause to liberate the country. In 1956 and 1957 the violence escalated, it took a complete new dimension where the civilians were not spared by two warring sides.The military arm of the FLN used the tactics of hit and run where they recorded huge success. They avoided direct attacks or confrontation with the French troops. I believe that the group did this to avoid a situation where they would be overwhelmed by the French might. It is a known fact that the French troops had superior weapons than the militia groups. The war was proving to be complicated affairs for the French troops since the adoption of the hit and run tactics. It was becoming hard for the forces to get them since they were mixing with the civilians once they have launched an attack.This tactic has been used by many fighters who believe that the enemy has the power and the might to defeat them. To their advantage they rely on the expertise of their fighter’s training them on the tactics which can be described as terrorist like where they attack the enemy in the areas where attacks are l east expected. Kidnapping was also used, those commonly targeted were the collaborators especially the officials and those civilian who refused to support the revolutionary movement were not spared either, they were murdered. (Alexandar, M and Keiger, J 2002 79)The fact that the revolutionary group was forcing people to support them clearly shows that not all the Algerians supported the war as a means to get what they wanted. They are those who believed that there are other avenues which could have been employed and the ugly situation that prevailed at the moment could have been avoided. To some extent I tend to agree with this group which preferred peaceful means to the struggle against freedom, may be the destruction that was being witnessed at this moment would have been avoided. So many lives had been lost and yet freedom had not come by this year.Would it have been possible for the French government to enter into the negotiation with the so called militias? Perhaps this seemed like a mirage but eventually this happened later. The use of coercive methods on the fellow countrymen shows that the group had not inspired the whole Muslim population to rally behind them in the course. The group continued to gain ground by having control over region which were previously government controlled. In these regions they instituted some temporary authorities where they were able to collect taxes and also recruit fighters. The groups had to do this so that it can get some revenue to support itself .This was very vital for their survival. (Alistair, H 2006 18) French troops were forced to go back to the drawing board and come up with the new methods of fighting. In 1957 French General instituted a system where the country was divided into the sectors. Each sector was allocated a troop which had a role of suppressing the rebels’ activities. This method proved to be effective since the revolutionaries activities were greatly reduced in some of the areas. Barriers we re also placed in the borders so that the fighters who were coming from the neighboring countries could not gain access.Morocco and Tunisia being close neighbors to this North African country were hosting some of the fighters and even helping the revolutionary groups’ finacially. This type of help has been common in every part of Africa. There are wars which are financed by the neighboring countries when they have some vested interest. For these two countries they were obliged to help since a friendly Muslim community needed liberation. (Alistair, H 2006 18) The French military started to ruthlessly attack those areas that they thought had been supporting the rebels.They applied the principle of collective responsibility where all the villages cooperating with guerillas in any way whether sheltering or paying taxes to them were bombed. Those villages which were unreachable remote areas were raided through the air. A supervisory system where these villages were put on all time surveillance was instituted. This was to prevent the villagers from helping the rebels inn whatever way. There were areas especially in the mountainous region of Algeria where close to two million people were removed and transferred to the plains.This shows the determination these forces had to completely finish the revolutionary movement. If the French government was so determined to see to it that resistance has been crashed would they have used less time and resources negotiating with the so called rebel group? I believe this is an option that they were not ready to explore since they wanted to continue calling the shots in this country and again they would have been seen as a weak country entering into negotiation with a weak group-so they thought. In my observation France was afraid of repeating the same mistake as was in the Indochina war.They did not want to be seen as a though they were losing their grip and hence their position in the world political arena. They had to fig ht this war till the end and losing to them was not an option. (Yasher,F 1989 98) Back home in France there was a feeling that the situation has to be brought in to contol. Many were calling for the return of Charles de Guella return to power so that he can sort out the situation to the favor of his motherland and avoid a humiliation that will bruise the image of this mighty nation. (Hurd,E 2007 55).Charles was seen as the only figure that would rally the nation and give it the proper direction. Indeed his return was greeted by many as a good sign where the hostilities would be ended. His return was perhaps greeted with almost the same jubilation Americas president elect Barrack Obama got when he was elected the forty forth occupant of the white house. The Muslims in Algeria were now tired of this warfare which had destroyed most of what they had. They wanted a break from this ugly situation. And the man occupying the top seat in France was the solution to their problem.(Yasher, F 1 989 98) By the 1958 the rebels had been pushed to the wall, the French army was gaining grounds. They had won the military control in almost all the regions in the country. In the preceding year’s pressure was mounting on France to grant Algeria its independence. Charles was determined towards this course but he was getting some opposition from the settlers who felt that he had betrayed them. They even attempted unsuccessfully to topple him. Talks with rebels were instituted paving way for a free nation. The aftermathAlgeria's people dream to be an independent nation was finally granted. But I would ask was it worth this much? Many people had died in the course of this war. Both sides suffered heavy casualties. This is a situation that could have been avoided if men and women had let reason to prevail but man being a selfish animal who is determined to destroy had to do all that he can to ensure he is not humiliated. France was fighting for her position in the global politics ,on the same hand Algeria was fighting for recogniton in the world map as a sovereign nation.Their course was the same only that one was being denied by the other a chance to fulfill its course. (Hurd,E 2007 55) One conflict gave rise to another,it is funny how we solve one problem and in the process antoher crops. No wonder one philosopher said â€Å" man lives to solve problems without them life has no meaning†. The problem in Algeria was deepened by the crisis which engulfed the movement that was very vocal in the freedom struggle. Ahmed Bella was becoming very popular and in the process he wa challenging the leadership of the prime minsiter Ben Khedda.He later came to be elected the premier in an electionwhich was described as one sided. He announced that Algeria was not going to support any side as far as the world politics were concerned. He made friendship with Kennedy,Castro and many other leaders. This was in the an aim of consolidating his power and at the same time make Algeria a daring to those countries who could have provided aid. In an African style he did not last long he was desposed and put in a house arrest. This dispostiton was masterminded by the elements who were not happy with the Algeria’s progress.They are the vestigial elements that were left by the colonialist. Most of the problems being experienced in this nation can be traced way back to the algerian war and colonisation. The determination of the FLN government to hold on power and the oppositon mounting fromm the muslim fundamentalst groups have made this nation to be at war. (Hurd,E 2007 55) William ,N et al(2007) describe the Algerian war as nastier than the vietnam independence war(p44). Algeria as a french department had a lot instake. It was home to milions of settlers from europe who wanted to protect their intersts at all the cost.They felt betrayed by the man many thought would bring a solution to the algerian problem. They were not ready to enter in to the n egotiation or yield to any demands made by the Algerians. French government which has beeen described in many occasssions as half hearted reform did not convinvce the people of Algeria otherwise. The analysis of the situation indicate that algerians were more determined than ever,the repression directed to them by the french forces only gave them more energy to continue with the struggle. The situation in Algeria threatened to break France as anation .A couple was planned where a regime that was seen as incapable of handling the situation was to be replaced. The situation was saved by Charles de Guella who was called upon to rescue the nation. French positon in the global positon was in an all time low. (William ,N et al 2007She has been humiliated again,she was losing her colonies in a very horrible way. Her ego had been seriously bruised. This greatly affectred the nation pride,even Charles government was not soared either despite his popularity. He was facing more problem than on e could have imagined.He was losing colonies,immigration and unemployment was rising. Voilent strikes broke out in paris,this was a common thing from know on. These events can be traced back to the aftermath of the Algerian war which left the nation image seruios injured. Perhaps this was more serios than the defeat frace suffered during the Pro-Russian wars. (Hurd,E 2007 55) Conclusion The Algerian war represents the African struggle from the oppressive colonial regime but a question crops up when I look at the situation in most of the African countries.Some of them are in a bad shape than they were during the colonial time. What happened in this countries is that colonialist were subsituted by dictatorship. A good example is Zimbabwe,the county is on its knees due to the years of misrule,many other nations are in the near blink not because of the foreign domination but from the mismanagement which has characterized these nations for along time. It is high time that africa as a con tinent wake up to reality,rise up and embrace the true democracy. the one which will end the civil war in algeria and many other parts of Africa.The solutions lie within,pressure from the outside world can only bring temporary solution but the bigger picture lies within the continent to come up with solution that will bring conflicts to an end. The solidarity exprewssed by the people of algeria and the determination to gain independence should serve as an example to all those nations experiencing chaos.Work citedWindrow,M and Chappell,M. Algerian War 1954-62,Osprey Publishing co. (1997).Shields, J. The extreme Right in France,Routledge(2007).Nehma,A and Zeleza,P. The Roots of African Conflicts,The cause and Costs,Ohio University Press(2008).Williams,N,Berry,O ,Fallon,S and Catherine,N. Algerian War,Lonely Planet(2007).Alexander,M and Keiger,J. France and Algerian War,Taylor and Francis (2002).Alistair,H. A savage War of Peace:Algeria 1954-1962,New York Books(2006).Yashir,F. The Medi terrenen:Prospects of a New Intergration,New York,United Nations University Press(1989).Hurd,E. The Politics of Secularism in international Relations,Princetown,Princetown University Press.