Monday, September 30, 2019

Interview of Friar Lawrence and Nurse Essay

Judge: John Henry Lawrence enter the dock. Put your hand on the Bible and say after me, I swear to tell the truth, whole truth and nothing but the truth. I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The Jury are now open to ask you questions, you are bound by the book to keep to the truth. Jury: What was you relationship with Romeo? I have been a great friend of Romeo ever since he was a little boy. He has always trusted me and he told me things he would not have told to anyone else. Romeo respected me and took my advice. I blame myself for his death and I am very sorry. Jury: What part did you play in this tragedy? I tried my best to unite two people who were very much in love. Yes, I did perform the marriage ceremony but I did it in good faith, I never knew what atrocities it would bring about. I also tried to help Romeo and Juliet when they were in trouble. After Romeo was exiled I helped arrange his escape to Mantua, for, you understand it might be possible for them to meet there. When I gave Juliet the drug I thought that I was doing the right thing. She was in a mess, she couldn’t tell her parents so with my knowledge of herbal remedies I supplied her with the draught. She would have taken her own life there and then if I had not. When Romeo was dead and Juliet would not leave him I deserted her. I could have saved her life I know but I was too cowardly to face up to my actions. Jury: What were your motives in this tragedy? I wanted to help a very good friend to be happy and preserve the marriage. I suppose I also hoped that performing this marriage ceremony would help unite the two sides from their conflict. Jury: Whose fault do you think the deaths are? I blame myself more than anyone else. I played the largest part, however, I suppose it would not have happened if there had not been many smaller things contributing. For example, if there had never been a conflict. Nobody was to know that it would end in death. Jury: What part do you think you were to blame for particularly? I was responsible for setting in motion a series of actions that lead to the marriage, the arrangements for the meetings and the drugs for Juliet. I didn’t save Juliet from herself. Judge:John Henry Lawrence please leave the dock. Anne Falton please mount to the dock. Put your hand on the Bible and say after me, I swear to tell the truth, whole truth and nothing but the truth. I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The Jury are now open to ask you questions, you are bound by the book to keep to the truth. Jury: What was your relationship with Juliet? Well, I was almost like a second mother to her, I was her wet nurse you know, she born at the same time as my daughter Susan who passed away God rest her soul. I have looked after ever since. Juliet was always a very nice young lady never doing anything naughty. I was her closest friend she used to tell me all her secrets but she didn’t tell me her plan before she died. Jury: What part did you play in this tragedy? I knew all the time that Juliet had gone off and married that Romeo, I never knew it would come to this. Romeo was a nice young chap as well. He wasn’t as good-looking or as clever as Paris though, not at all, no! The only other matter I was involved in was organising Romeo’s night with Juliet, that took a lot of organising that did. Jury: What were your motives in this tragedy? All I wanted was to see Juliet happily married with a nice young man. I wouldn’t have been persuaded to take part in this conspiracy but Juliet begged and begged me not to tell his Lordship. Jury: Whose fault do you think the deaths are? Not mine and that’s for sure, I always said that, that Romeo would lead her up to no good, he looked nice and all that but he had a look about him. I think Romeo lead her into it, he always was the bad sort, coming from a Montague family and all that†¦ Jury: What part do you think you were to blame for particularly? It wasn’t anything to do with me, if I had gone to his Lordship about the marriage she’d have killed herself sure as sure, like the good Friar said she was going to†¦ Judge: Anne Falton, leave the dock. The Jury will now leave to come to a decision. 1 hour later: Verdict: Death by Misadventure.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Zoe’s Tale PART III PROLOGUE

I lifted up my dad's PDA and counted off the seconds with the two thousand other people in the room. â€Å"Five! Four! Three! Two! One!† And then there was no noise, because everyone's attention – and I mean everyone's – was glued to the monitors peppered around the Magellan's common area. The screens, which had held starry skies in them, were blank and black, and everyone was holding their breath, waiting for what came next. A world appeared, green and blue. And we all went insane. Because it was our world. It was Roanoke, our new home. We would be the first people to land there, the first people to settle there, the first people to live our lives there. And we celebrated seeing it for that first time, we two thousand settlers of Roanoke, all crammed into that common area, hugging and kissing and singing â€Å"Auld Lang Syne,† because, well, what else do you sing when you come to a new world? A new world, new beginnings, a new year, a new life. New everything. I hugged my best friend Gretchen and we hollered into the microphone I had been using to count down the seconds, and hopped up and down like idiots. When we stopped hopping, a whisper in my ear. â€Å"So beautiful,† Enzo said. I turned to look at him, at this gorgeous, beautiful boy who I was seriously considering making my boyfriend. He was a perfect combination: heart-flutteringly pretty and apparently entirely ignorant of the fact, because he'd been spending the last week trying to charm me with his words, of all things. Words! Like he didn't get the teenage boy manual on how to be completely inarticulate around girls. I appreciated the effort. And I appreciated the fact that when he whispered his words, he was looking at me and not the planet. I glanced over at my parents about six meters away, kissing to celebrate the arrival. That seemed like a good idea. I reached my hand behind Enzo's head to draw him to me and planted one right on his lips. Our first kiss. New world, new life, new boyfriend. What can I say. I was caught up in the moment. Enzo didn't complain. â€Å"‘O brave new world, that has such people in it,'† he said, after I let him breathe again. I smiled at him, my arms still around his neck. â€Å"You've been saving that up,† I said. â€Å"Maybe,† he admitted. â€Å"I wanted you to have a quality first kiss moment.† See. Most sixteen-year-old boys would have used a kiss as an excuse to dive straight for the boobs. He used it as an excuse for Shakespeare. A girl could do worse. â€Å"You're adorable,† I said, kissed him again, then gave him a playful push and launched myself into my parents, breaking up their canoodling and demanding their attention. The two of them were our colony's leaders, and soon enough they would barely have time to breathe. It was best I get in some quality time while I could. We hugged and laughed and then Gretchen yanked me back toward her. â€Å"Look what I have,† she said, and thrust her PDA in my face. It showed a vidcap of me and Enzo kissing. â€Å"You evil little thing,† I said. â€Å"It's amazing,† Gretchen said. â€Å"It actually looks like you're trying to swallow his entire face.† â€Å"Stop it,† I said. â€Å"See? Look,† Gretchen tapped a button, and the vidcap played in slow motion. â€Å"Right there. You're mauling him. Like his lips were made of chocolate.† I was trying very hard not to laugh, because she was actually right about that. â€Å"Wench,† I said. â€Å"Give me that.† I snatched the PDA from her with one hand, erased the file, and handed it back. â€Å"There. Thank you.† â€Å"Oh, no,† Gretchen said, mildly, taking the PDA. â€Å"Learned your lesson about violating the privacy of others?† I said. â€Å"Oh, yes,† Gretchen said. â€Å"Good,† I said. â€Å"Of course, you already forwarded it to everyone we know before you showed it to me, didn't you?† â€Å"Maybe,† Gretchen said, and put her hand to her mouth, eyes wide. â€Å"Evil,† I said, admiringly. â€Å"Thank you,† Gretchen said, and curtsied. â€Å"Just remember I know where you live,† I said. â€Å"For the rest of our lives,† Gretchen said, and then we did embarrassingly girly squeals and had another hug. Living the rest of your life with the same two thousand people ran the risk of being dead-bang boring, but not with Gretchen around. We unhugged and then I looked around to see who else I wanted to celebrate with. Enzo was hovering in the background, but he was smart enough to know that I'd get back to him. I looked over and saw Savitri Guntupalli, my parents' assistant, conferring with my dad very seriously about something. Savitri: She was smart and capable and could be wicked funny, but she was always working. I got between her and Dad and demanded a hug. Yes, I was all about the hugs. But, you know, look: You only get to see your new world for the first time once. â€Å"Zoe,† Dad said, â€Å"can I have my PDA back?† I had taken Dad's PDA because he'd set the exact time the Magellan would skip from the Phoenix system to Roanoke, and used it to count off the last few minutes before the jump. I had my own PDA, of course; it was in my pocket. No doubt the vid-cap of me smooching Enzo was waiting for me in my in-box, just like it was in the in-boxes of all our friends. I made a note to myself to plot revenge against Gretchen. Sweet, merciless revenge. Involving witnesses. And farm animals. But for now I gave Dad back his PDA, gave him a peck on his cheek, and found my way back to Enzo. â€Å"So,† Enzo said, and smiled. God, he was even charming when monosyllabic. The rational part of my brain was lecturing me about how infatuation makes everything seem better than it is; the irrational part (meaning, most of me) was telling the rational part to get well and truly stuffed. â€Å"So,† I said back, not nearly as charmingly, but Enzo didn't seem to notice. â€Å"I was talking to Magdy,† Enzo said. â€Å"Uh-oh,† I said. â€Å"Magdy's not so bad,† Enzo said. â€Å"Sure, for certain values of ‘not so bad,' meaning ‘bad,'† I said. â€Å"And he said that he was talking to some of the Magellan crew,† Enzo said, forging along (charmingly). â€Å"They told him about an observation lounge on the crew level that's usually empty. He says we could get a great view of the planet there.† I glanced over Enzo's shoulder, where Magdy was talking animatedly to Gretchen (or at her, depending on one's point of view). â€Å"I don't think the planet is what he's hoping to view,† I said. Enzo glanced back. â€Å"Maybe not,† he said. â€Å"Although to be fair to Magdy, certain people aren't exactly trying hard not to be viewed.† I crooked an eyebrow at that; it was true enough, although I knew Gretchen was more into the flirting than anything else. â€Å"And what about you?† I said. â€Å"What are you hoping to see?† Enzo smiled and held up his hands, disarmingly. â€Å"Zoe,† he said. â€Å"I just got to kiss you. I think I want to work on that a little more before moving on to anything else.† â€Å"Ooh, nicely said,† I said. â€Å"Do these lines work on all the girls?† â€Å"You're the first girl I've tried them on,† Enzo said. â€Å"So you'll have to let me know.† I actually blushed, and gave him a hug. â€Å"So far, so good,† I said. â€Å"Good,† Enzo said. â€Å"Also, you know. I've seen your bodyguards. I don't think I want them to use me for target practice.† â€Å"What?† I said, mock-shocked. â€Å"You're not frightened of Hickory and Dickory, are you? They're not even here.† Actually, Enzo has a perfectly good reason to be utterly terrified of Hickory and Dickory, who were already vaguely suspicious of him and would happily cycle him out an airlock if he did anything stupid with me. But there was no reason to let him know that yet. Good rule of thumb: When your relationship is minutes old, don't freak out the new squeeze. And anyway, Hickory and Dickory were sitting out this celebration. They were aware they made most of the humans nervous. â€Å"I was actually thinking of your parents,† Enzo said. â€Å"Although they seem to be missing, too.† Enzo motioned with his head to where John and Jane had been standing a few minutes before; now neither of them were there. I saw Savitri leaving the common area as well, as if she suddenly had someplace to be. â€Å"I wonder where they went,† I said, mostly to myself. â€Å"They're the colony leaders,† Enzo said. â€Å"Maybe now they have to start working.† â€Å"Maybe,† I said. It was unusual for either John or Jane to disappear without telling me where they were going; it was just a common courtesy. I fought back the urge to message them on my PDA. â€Å"So, the observation lounge,† Enzo said, getting himself back to the topic at hand. â€Å"You want to check it out?† â€Å"It's on the crew deck,† I said. â€Å"You think we might get in trouble?† â€Å"Maybe,† Enzo said. â€Å"But what can they do? Make us walk the plank? At worst they'll just tell us to get lost. And until then we'll have a heck of a view.† â€Å"All right,† I said. â€Å"But if Magdy turns into all tentacles, I'm leaving. There are some things I don't need to see.† Enzo laughed. â€Å"Fair enough,† he said, and I snuggled into him a little. This new boyfriend thing was turning out just fine. We spent some more time celebrating with our friends and their families. Then, after things had settled down enough, we followed Magdy and Gretchen through the Magellan and toward the crew observation lounge. I thought sneaking into the crew area might be a problem; not only was it easy, but a crew member coming out of an entrance held it open for us. â€Å"Security is not a huge issue here on the Magellan,† Gretchen said, back to me and Enzo, then looked down at our clasped hands and smiled at me. She was evil, sure, but she was also happy for me. The observation lounge was where it was advertised to be, but alas for Magdy's nefarious plans, it was not empty as promised; four Magellan crew members sat at a table, intent in a conversation. I glanced over to Magdy, who looked like he had just swallowed a fork. I found this rather amusing myself. Poor, poor Magdy. Frustration became him. â€Å"Look,† Enzo said, and still holding my hand, guided me to a huge observation window. Roanoke filled the view, gorgeously green, fully illuminated with her sun behind us, more breathtaking in person than she was on the monitors. Seeing something with your own eyes makes a difference. It was the most beautiful thing I think I'd ever seen. Roanoke. Our world. â€Å"Wrong place,† I heard, barely, from the conversation at the table to the left of me. I glanced over at the table. The four Magellan crew there were so engaged in their conversation and so closed in to each other that it looked like most of their bodies were actually on the table rather than in their seats. One of the crew was sitting with his back to me, but I could see the other three, two men and a woman. The expression on their faces was grim. I have a habit of listening in to other people's conversations. It's not a bad habit unless you get caught. The way not to get caught is to make sure it looks like your attention is somewhere else. I dropped my hand from Enzo's and took a step toward the observation lounge window. This got me closer to the table while at the same time keeping Enzo from whispering sweet nothings in my ear. I kept myself visually intent on Roanoke. â€Å"You don't just miss,† one of the crew members was saying. â€Å"And the captain sure as hell doesn't. He could put the Magellan in orbit around a pebble if he wanted to.† The crew member with his back to me said something low, which I couldn't hear. â€Å"That's crap,† said the first crew member. â€Å"How many ships have actually gone missing in the last twenty years? In the last fifty? No one gets lost anymore.† â€Å"What are you thinking?† I jumped, which made Enzo jump. â€Å"Sorry,† he said, as I turned to give him an exasperated look. I put a finger to my lips to shush him, and then motioned with my eyes at the table now behind me. Enzo glanced behind me and saw the table. What? he mouthed. I shook my head a tiny bit to tell him he shouldn't distract me anymore. He gave me a strange look. I took his hand again to let him know I wasn't upset with him, but then focused my attention back to the table. † – calm. We don't know anything yet,† said another voice, this one belonging (I think) to the woman. â€Å"Who else knows about this?† Another mutter from the crew member facing away from me. â€Å"Good. We need to keep it that way,† she said. â€Å"I'll clamp down on things in my department if I hear anything, but it only works if we all do it.† â€Å"It won't stop the crew from talking,† said someone else. â€Å"No, but it'll slow down the rumors, and that's good enough until we know what's really happened,† the woman said. Yet another mutter. â€Å"Well, if it's true, then we have bigger problems, don't we?† said the woman, and all the strain she was experiencing was suddenly clear in her voice. I shuddered a little; Enzo felt it through my hand and looked at me, concerned. I gave him a serious hug. It meant losing the rest of the conversational thread, but at the moment, it's what I wanted. Priorities change. There was the sound of chairs pushing back. I turned and the crew members – it was pretty clear they were actually officers – were already heading toward the door. I broke away from Enzo to get the attention of the one closest to me, the one who had had his back to me earlier. I tapped him on the shoulder; he turned and seemed very surprised to see me. â€Å"Who are you?† he said. â€Å"Has something happened to the Magellan?† I asked. The best way to learn stuff is not to get distracted, for example, by questions relating to one's identity. The man actually scowled, which is something I'd read about but had never actually seen someone do, until now. â€Å"You were listening to our conversation.† â€Å"Is the ship lost?† I asked. â€Å"Do we know where we are? Is something wrong with the ship?† He took a step back, like the questions were actually hitting him. I should have taken a step forward and pressed him. I didn't. He regained his footing and looked past me to Enzo and Gretchen and Magdy, who were all looking at us. Then he realized who we were, and straightened up. â€Å"You kids aren't supposed to be here. Get out, or I'll have ship's security throw you out. Get back to your families.† He turned to go. I reached toward him again. â€Å"Sir, wait,† I said. He ignored me and walked out of the lounge. â€Å"What's going on?† Magdy asked me, from across the room. â€Å"I don't want to get in trouble because you've pissed off some random crew member.† I shot Magdy a look, and turned to look out the window again. Roanoke still hung there, blue and green. But suddenly not as beautiful. Suddenly unfamiliar. Suddenly threatening. Enzo put his hand on my shoulder. â€Å"What is it, Zoe?† he said. I kept staring out the window. â€Å"I think we're lost,† I said. â€Å"Why?† Gretchen asked. She had come up beside me. â€Å"What were they talking about?† â€Å"I couldn't hear it all,† I said. â€Å"But it sounded like they were saying we're not where we're supposed to be.† I pointed to the planet. â€Å"That this isn't Roanoke.† â€Å"That's crazy,† Magdy said. â€Å"Of course it's crazy,† I said. â€Å"Doesn't mean it might not be true.† I pulled out my PDA from my pocket and tried to connect with Dad. No answer. I tried connecting to Mom. No answer. â€Å"Gretchen,† I said. â€Å"Would you try calling your dad?† Gretchen's dad was on the colonial council my parents headed up. â€Å"He's not answering,† she said, after a minute. â€Å"It doesn't mean anything bad,† Enzo said. â€Å"We did just skip to a new planet. Maybe they're busy with that.† â€Å"Maybe they're still celebrating,† Magdy said. Gretchen smacked him upside the head. â€Å"You really are childish, Magdy,† she said. Magdy rubbed the side of his head and shut up. This evening was not going anything like he had planned. Gretchen turned to me. â€Å"What do you think we should do?† â€Å"I don't know,† I said. â€Å"They were talking about keeping the crew from talking. It means some of them might know what's going on. It won't take long to get to the colonists.† â€Å"It's already gotten to the colonists,† Enzo said. â€Å"We're colonists.† â€Å"We might want to tell someone,† Gretchen said. â€Å"I think your parents and my dad need to know, at least.† I glanced down at her PDA. â€Å"I think they might know already,† I said. â€Å"We should make sure,† she said. So we left the observation lounge and went looking for our parents. We didn't find them; they were in a council meeting. I did find Hickory and Dickory, or rather, they found me. â€Å"I think I should go,† Enzo said, after they'd stared at him, unblinking, for a minute. It wasn't meant as intimidation; they don't blink at all. I gave him a peck on the cheek. He and Magdy left. â€Å"I'm going to listen around,† Gretchen said. â€Å"See what people are saying.† â€Å"All right,† I said. â€Å"Me too.† I held up my PDA. â€Å"Let me know what you hear.† She left. I turned to Hickory and Dickory. â€Å"You two,† I said. â€Å"You were in your room earlier.† â€Å"We came looking for you,† Hickory said. It was the talker of the two. Dickory could talk, but it was always a surprise when it happened. â€Å"Why?† I said. â€Å"I was perfectly safe before. I've been perfectly safe since we left Phoenix Station. The Magellan is entirely threat-free. The only thing you've been good for this entire trip is scaring the crap out of Enzo. Why are you looking for me now?† â€Å"Things have changed,† Hickory said. â€Å"What do you mean?† I asked, but then my PDA vibrated. It was Gretchen. â€Å"That was fast,† I said. â€Å"I just ran into Mika,† she said. â€Å"You won't believe what she said a crew member just told her brother.† The adult colonists may have been either clueless or tight-lipped, but the Roanoke teenage rumor mill was in full swing. In the next hour, this is what we â€Å"learned†: That during the skip to Roanoke, the Magellan had wandered too close to a star and had been thrown out of the galaxy. That there was a mutiny and the first officer had relieved Captain Zane of command because of incompetence. That Captain Zane shot his own traitorous first officer right there on the bridge and said he'd shoot anyone who tried to help him. That the computer systems had failed just before the skip, and we didn't know where we were. That aliens had attacked the ship and were floating out there, deciding whether to finish us off. That Roanoke was poisonous to human life and if we landed there we'd die. That there was a core breach in the engine room, whatever that meant, and that the Magellan was this close to blowing up. That ecoterrorists had hacked into the Magellan's computer systems and sent us off in another direction so that we couldn't ruin another planet. No, wait, it was wildcat colonists-turned-pirates who hacked in, and they were planning to steal our colony supplies because their own were running low. No, wait, it was mutinous crew members who were going to steal our supplies and leave us stranded on the planet. No, wait, it wasn't thieving crew, wildcat pirates or ecoterrorists, it was just some idiot programmer who messed up the code, and now we don't know where we are. No, wait, nothing's wrong, this is just the standard operating procedure. There's not a thing wrong, now stop bothering the crew and let us work, damn it. I want to be clear about something: We knew most of this was crap and nonsense. But what was underneath all the crap and nonsense was just as important: Confusion and unease had spread through the crew of the Magellan, and from them, to us. It moved fast. It told any number of lies – not to lie but to try to make sense of something. Something that happened. Something that shouldn't have happened. Through all of this, nothing from Mom or Dad, or Gretchen's dad, or any of the colony council, all the members of which had suddenly found themselves called into a meeting. The common room, previously deserted after the new world celebrations, began to fill up again. This time people weren't celebrating. They looked confused, and concerned and tense, and some of them were beginning to look angry. â€Å"This isn't going to turn out well,† Gretchen said to me when we reunited. â€Å"How are you doing?† I said. She shrugged. â€Å"Something's happening, that's for sure. Everyone's on edge. It's putting me on edge.† â€Å"Don't go crazy on me,† I said. â€Å"Then there won't be anyone to hold me back when I lose it.† â€Å"Oh, well, for your sake then,† Gretchen said, and rolled her eyes dramatically. â€Å"Well. At least now I'm not having to fight off Magdy.† â€Å"I like how you can see the bright side of any situation,† I said. â€Å"Thanks,† she said. â€Å"How are you?† â€Å"Honestly?† I asked. She nodded. â€Å"Scared as hell.† â€Å"Thank God,† she said. â€Å"It's not only me.† She held up her thumb and finger and marked the tiny space between them. â€Å"For the last half hour I've been this close to peeing myself.† I took a step back. Gretchen laughed. The ship's intercom kicked on. â€Å"This is Captain Zane,† a man's voice said. â€Å"This is a general message for passengers and crew. All crew will assemble in their respective department conference rooms in ten minutes, 2330 ship time. All passengers will assemble in the passenger common area in ten minutes, 2330 ship time. Passengers, this is a mandatory assembly. You will be addressed by your colony leaders.† The intercom went dead. â€Å"Come on,† I said to Gretchen, and pointed to the platform where, earlier in the evening, she and I counted down the seconds until we were at our new world. â€Å"We should get a good place.† â€Å"It's going to get crowded in here,† she said. I pointed to Hickory and Dickory. â€Å"They'll be with us. You know how everyone gives them all the space they want.† Gretchen looked up at the two of them, and I realized that she wasn't terribly fond of them either. Minutes later the council came streaming in from one of the common area side doors and made their way to the platform. Gretchen and I stood in the front, Hickory and Dickory behind us, and at least five feet on every side. Alien bodyguards create their own buffer zone. A whisper in my ear. â€Å"Hey,† Enzo said. I looked over to him and smiled. â€Å"I wondered if you were going to be here,† I said. â€Å"It's an all-colonist meeting,† he said. â€Å"Not here, in general,† I said. â€Å"Here.† â€Å"Oh,† Enzo said. â€Å"I took a chance that your bodyguards wouldn't stab me.† â€Å"I'm glad you did,† I said. I took his hand. On the platform, John Perry, the colony leader, my dad, came forward and picked up the microphone that still lay there from earlier in the evening. His eyes met mine as he reached down to pick it up. Here's the thing to know about my dad. He's smart, he's good at what he does, and almost all the time, his eyes look like he's about to start laughing. He finds most things funny. He makes most things funny. When he looked at me as he picked up the microphone, his eyes were dark, and heavy, and as serious as I had ever seen them. When I saw them I was reminded, no matter how young he looked, how old he really was. For as much as he could make light of things, he was a man who had seen trouble more than once in his life. And he was seeing it again. Now, with us. For all of us. Everyone else would know it as soon as he opened his mouth to tell them, but right then was when I knew – when I saw the truth of our situation. We were lost.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Failure of Chinas Cultural Revolution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Failure of Chinas Cultural Revolution - Essay Example The Red Guards generation benefited from neither Maoist socialism nor Dengist reform. Mao's revolution abandoned them, sweeping them out of urban centers; Deng's reform left them on the sidelines when China moved to embrace the market. In Mao's era, the Red Guards generation was the poorest of all poor Chinese, living at the lowest income level. This poverty impeded they are exploiting the opportunities of Deng's reforms. The increasing costs of economic reform often started with them, further diminishing their capacity for competing in the market. Mao's revolution made them poor, forcing them to live a terrible life without economic liberty or any chance of improvement. It was even more painful when Deng's reform left them poor while Deng's regime glorified the rich (Tsou, 1996). Ever since they had been forced into society, they had been living on an income that only kept body and soul together. For those in the cities, working life began with an apprenticeship in factories, at 18 Yuan a month. When Deng's reform began, they had climbed to the second lowest grade of China's eight-grade salary system for workers, having a monthly salary of less than 40 Yuan. In the 1970s and early 1980s, this salary allowed them some small savings, but it often took them 1 or 2 years before they could buy a Shanghai-produced watch or bicycle, each priced at around 150 Yuan. Of those who went to the countryside, a minority was assigned to the military-imitated 'farming corps'. (Dutton, 2004)They first lived on a monthly subsidy of about 15 Yuan and later, when they had to pay for their own food, on a stipend system with '285 dimes' a month, as one sent-down youth mocked it. The majority had been forced into the villages and lived on a 'points system'  Ã‚  of people's communes. If a sent-down youth became a ten-points laborer (the highest rank), his (or her) 1-day work in most areas was valued at 30-50 cents on the village's account. If he worked over 330 days, at the end of t he year he might get 40-60 Yuan after the deduction of the costs of the grain and other agricultural products he had received during the year. In a few areas ten-points a day was worth over 1 Yuan, but in many areas ten-points a day was worth 20, 10 or only 7 cents. Even worse, the sent-down youths were often not regarded as ten-points laborers. (Yang, 1997) Those in the cities were among the poorest because they were at the bottom of the urban salary ladder that was framed on seniority. Those in the 'farming corps' were among the poorest because they were treated as the lowest ranked 'farming soldiers' (bingtuan Shashi), while others in their 'corps' were either 'farming officers' or 'farming workers', living on a slightly higher salary.

Friday, September 27, 2019

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

Narcolepsy - Essay Example It is seen that narcolepsy originates in individuals who have a high number of DR-2 haplotype antigens which target the leukocytes. The cause of this high number remains unknown however it has been suggested that narcolepsy is an inherited feature. The DR-2 antigen is not a clinical feature for the diagnosis of narcolepsy as it may also be found in normal individuals hence the tests of DR-2 antigens is not suggested for these patients. A more recent research shows that a neurotransmitter known as hypocretin is deficient in the patients suffering from narcolepsy. Hypocretin is secreted from the lateral neurons located in the hypothalamus and it is seen that around 75% of the patients suffering from narcolepsy do not have appropriate amounts of hypocretin in their cerebrospinal fluid. Narcolepsy is related to both kinds of sleep as it affects them both simultaneously. The start and end point of both REM and NREM sleep are disturbed in narcoleptics which leads to frequent disturbances w hen they sleep. In other words these narcoleptics tend to awake frequently because of these impairments (Peacock & Benca 2010; Feldman 2003). The most frequent symptoms of narcolepsy in patients are related to excessive daytime sleeping in which individuals tend to sleep at unusual instances of eating and driving. This is the most obvious symptom in patients suffering from narcolepsy. Narcoleptics also show the symptom of cataplexy in which the muscle tone of the narcoleptics is reduced at certain instances. This muscle tone is a reversible process but this is the first clinical feature suffered by the narcoleptics. Sleep paralysis is also suffered by these patients frequently as they are unable to move during the beginning or the ending of the sleep. They also exhibit automatic behaviors and hallucinations in their normal routine which can be frightful for these patients (Feldman 2003). Narcolepsy can be diagnosed with

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Independent African American Film Producers Research Paper

Independent African American Film Producers - Research Paper Example Independent African American Film Producers Independent film producers are professional producers who make feature films that are mostly produced outside the confines of the system of major studios (Levy 29). In addition to production, as well as distribution, through independent companies, these producers can also distribute and/or produce their films via major studio subsidiaries. These films are also characterized by marketing them as a limited release, although there are times when the marketing campaigns can be done through wide release (Reid 48). Prior to distributing the films, independent film producers will screen their movies at film festivals. This paper will seek to give the biography of three independent African American film producers; Tyler Perry, Spike Lee, and Ivan Dixon. Biography of Tyler Perry Born in New Orleans on 13 September 1969, Tyler Perry had a difficult childhood. He has had to forge his career in the entertainment industry, in which he has made various successful plays, films, and even written books that have ended up on the best-sellers list. According to him, his childhood was difficult in a family with three other siblings where his early life was punctuated by corporal punishment by his father (Uschan 30). He once attempted to kill himself to escape what he fathomed to be a difficult life. In an attempt to forge a life away from his father, the man born Emmitt Perry Jr. changed his name to Tyler and dropped out of high school, although he did go on to earn a GED general equivalent later on in his life. He only discovered his passion after trying his hand at several unfulfilling employment opportunities. Watching Oprah Winfrey on television, he was inspired by an independent filmmaker’s comments on the show about how personal breakthroughs could be brought about by difficult experiences (Uschan 31). Starting by writing a series of letters that he addressed to himself, Perry used his experiences to create his first musical I Know I Have Been Changed. While touching on the subject of his abuse as a child, Perry also touched on forgiveness, an aspect of his films that has been ever-present, reflecting the seriousness he takes his faith as a Christian (Uschan 31). His first showing of the musical in 1992 only drew an audience of 30 people. Perry was disappointed but determined and took odd jobs to fund h is reworking of the project. Although he staged his show in various American cities, he was still not successful and had to live in his car for a while. Perry finally got his breakthrough in 1998 with the musical I Know I Have Been Changed, for which rented the Atlanta franchise of House of Blues. Soon he began to draw sell out crowds, forcing the musical to be moved to a theater with more sitting space (Uschan 36). He followed up this musical with an adaptation of Woman Thou Art Loosed, a book by Televangelist T.D. Jakes, which also proved popular with audiences, particularly African Americans. However, it was his next project, I Can Do Bad All By Myself that brought him the success he had been craving and introduced Madea, his most famous character. He based the character of Madea on mature women in his life, including his mother, choosing to play the character by wearing a drag and changing his voice. Madea made her screen debut in Diary of a Mad Black Woman in 2001 and making su bsequent popular appearances in Madea’s Class Reunion and Madea’s Family Reunion, for which Perry toured extensively around the country in support of his films (Uschan 36). Diary of a Mad Black Woman proved a hit at the box office, starring Steve Harris and Kimberly Elise as an adulterous husband, and scorned wife respectively. Perry himself made an

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

British Government Promises Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

British Government Promises - Essay Example This paper stresses that  French gained control of Lebanon as well as Turkish Cilicia with Britain gaining Palestine, Jordan as areas of Bagdad and Persian Gulf. The agreement however failed to indicate complete ownership of the territories, but rather a complete control; through governmental and administrative levels.From this study it is clear that each of the three agreements had conflicts with the McMahon-Hussein Correspondence agreement evidenced in that the real cause for Britain making the agreement was never disclosed. The real cause was to help defeat the Ottoman Empire in the war that had become an ally of Germany (MacQueen,  2013). Conflict in the Sykes-Picot Agreement is evidenced in the fact that the allies focused on means of dividing the previous Arab lands among themselves as opposed to granting independence and the lands back to Arabs as promised. The Arabs therefore were left in the dark of the planned actions. The Balfour Declaration conflict results from givin g the land previously owned by Arabs to the Jews. Palestine declaration as home to the Jews served in fulfilling the interests of Jewish Zionists as keeping the promise made between Britain and Palestines when the Palestines were encouraged to revolt against the Ottoman Empire.  The reasons behind the British making these promises were based on selflessness and individual gain. Britain was wary of Germany and Ottoman Empire support for Germany and thus involved the Arabs to help in the war.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Foundation Degree in Health and Social Care year 2 Literature review

Foundation Degree in Health and Social Care year 2 - Literature review Example An examination of an array of literature documents various areas of weakness in addressing the problem. However, the literature review also finds that the measures that are often taken are not misinformed, only that they are not all that is required in addressing the problem. In order to deal address cases of alcohol abuse among the youthful population, understanding the causes of alcohol abuse is important. There is the need to understand the causes of alcohol abuse examine the implications of every approach and come up with a regulatory framework that is well informed. Indeed, as highlighted, the most feasible approach of addressing the problem of alcohol abuse amongst the children is that which recognizes the need of adopted concerted approaches, as opposed to inclining only a few approaches. Modifiable risk habits, including smoking, alcohol consumption, drug consumption, bad diet as well as physical inactivity, both personal and collectively, contribute to morbidity as well as death throughout life. Critically, risk habits are common among the children and the urge to engage in habits rises with an increase in age in teenage years, often extending into adulthood. A couple of surveys have illustrated clustering of habits that are risky, and statistics from the United States, Canada and England show that between six and thirteen percent of teenagers smoke daily, imbibe alcohol and consume illegal drugs (Tonkiss, 2004). The crucial question is how these could be addressed. This paper seeks to evaluate the current approaches to alcohol abuse among children in London and proceeds to offer some recommendations about the problem. The cases of alcohol abuse in London, as well as other drugs and other concerns are well documented. Initiation of risk habits at an early stage is connected to indulgence in many risk habits both in early teenage as well as late teenage and simultaneous involvement in such habits during teenage is linked to

Monday, September 23, 2019

Q4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Q4 - Essay Example When some partners do not avail essential information for use in the measurement of ROI, the process becomes more complex. This is an issue that mainly affects the inter-organizational systems whose returns are not quantifiable (Jones and Price, 2004). The human resources involved in data collection may not be competent in some organizations. The inconsistency of data in different partners is a major drawback for the process of ROI measurement. On the other hand, the complex models applied in the measurement and the formulas in some cases are puzzling to the human resources, thereby making it impossible to come up with perfect results. This problem occurs due to lack of user friendly methods of measuring ROI. Garware Polyester Ltd. is among the organizations that have failed in the measurement of ROI in inter-organizational systems implementation. In this case, the problem was the fact that information systems provide both tangible and intangible benefits, and it impossible to accura tely provide data for the intangible gains (Parr and Shanks, 2000). 2. What are the major services offered by IS service providers in the customization of inter-organizational IS implementations? Please provide examples from your organization or an organization you are familiar.   Customization involves setting up of the new software in the organizations so that the parameters so that they can match the requirements of the business. In an inter-organizational IS implementation, the presence of the IS service provider is important to ensure that the systems are user friendly. After customization that requires highly specialized skills, the IS providers, for example Allied Learning Solutions presents the users of the IS with software that assists them in learning (Nebraska and Fox, 2003). This is important in ensuring that the human resources in

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Historical Research Method Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Historical Method - Research Paper Example The historical research method applies to all study fields because it covers their origins, development, theories, crisis, and personalities (Golder, 2011). Both qualitative and quantitative variables can be utilized in the collection of historical data. The historical research method comprises the guidelines and techniques by which researchers use primary, secondary, and other sources to research and document history. There is an increasing need for a historical perspective in business and business management. It is anticipated that a â€Å"historic turn† might aid the study of business less deterministic and more humanistic, ethical, and managerially relevant (Clarke, 2009). The methodology applied There is no specific way of conducting historical research, though the following steps must be followed Identification of research topic and formulating the research question This is the first step in any academic research. Researchers obtain their topic concepts distinct sources such as the accomplishments of a person, current issues in education, the relationship between events, and an educational policy or laws (Detzner & Adler, 2010). Data gathering or Literature review This step involves spotting, locating, and collecting data on the research topic. The information sources are contained in documents such as records, newspapers, relics, photographs, and interviews (oral history) with people who have experienced or have knowledge of the research subject. Evaluation and assessment of materials Each data source must be evaluated and assessed for accuracy and authenticity because it can negatively be affected by aspects such as economic conditions, prejudice, and political climate. In addition, it is important to pass sources in either external criticism; the process of determining the trustworthiness, authenticity, or validity, or internal criticism; the process of determining the accuracy or reliability of the information collected. Firsthand information b y event witnesses, for example, are taken as viable or accurate and reliable. Data synthesis and report writing Synthesis are the selecting, structuring, and analyzing the materials gathered into central concepts and topical themes. They joined to form an important and meaningful report for the business. A literature review of where and how historical research method is used in the academic "business" literature This will give a description of the relevant literature in business. Historical research method can be used in market research to enable organizations to stay fine-tuned in business. It can help organizations to penetrate the wants and needs of customers and the techniques of how to meet these desires more effectively and efficiently. The documentation of earlier events may indicate ideas of marketing products, which may be incorporated in the current market. Such ideas make access to customers easy. It is important to analyze the potential competitors that have been in plac e since old times and position an organization properly to remain competitive in the markets (Dona, 2010).  Ã‚  

Saturday, September 21, 2019

On the Road by Jack Kerouac Essay Example for Free

On the Road by Jack Kerouac Essay â€Å"On the Road† by Jack Kerouac is largely autobiographical work attributed to the genre of stems of consciousness creation. The novel is based on the author’s spontaneous trips with his friends across mid-century America. The novel is deeply inspired by poetry, jazz and drug experiences. The author has changed many of the names, but most references are claimed to be real-world counterparts. In the five parts and sixteen chapters the author describes restless and crazy journeys of Dean, Sal and his friends across the country. Dean Moriarty plays important role in the novel progression as he symbolizes the changeable nature of human relations and the dark side of society. Nevertheless, he pushes and inspires other to act towards their destinies symbolizing changes and shifts. Dean is certainly negative character, though he has positive impact of Sal – one of the protagonists – as he makes his stronger and more confident. Dean lives in San Francisco, travels across the country. Kerouac defines Dean as â€Å"the perfect guy for the road because he actually was born on the road†. (p. 0) However, he presents Dean as wild and mad character stressing that it is his craziness and energy that affects others to act. Dean drinks a lot, uses drugs and has many women. Moreover, he is a father of four children from two different women. Dean manages to change the life values of Sal. For example, before Sal meets Dean, he had â€Å"just gotten over a serious illness that†¦had something to do with†¦my feeling that everything was dead†. (p. 10) Dean’s character can be defined as embodiment of the whirlwind day and as Sal’s shifts from the East to the West Coast. Dean symbolizes changes acting as mechanism for movement beginning. Dean is zealous and wild personality, though he is captivating as well. Sal says about Dean: â€Å"the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . (p. 14-15) Therefore, Dean’s character plays crucial role for Sal’s development as personality, as well as he is the embodiment of passion for life and constant activity.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Study of alberto Giacometti

Study of alberto Giacometti When working on Units 1 and 2 I was drawn to the human body and this was shown in my work. The human body has always been an interest so this is why I decided to study portraits for Unit 3. There were several things about portraits that interested me. First of all the idea of drawing/painting a portrait of someone and getting it to resemble that person was an exciting idea for me. At a younger age I was interested in getting a likeness of the models I would draw. I wanted to develop that ability. In the past when I had drawn from life I had only used pencil. By choosing this as my theme I knew this would give me the chance to draw portraits using other media. The first artist who helped me start this project was Pablo Picasso. I spent much time studying Picasso by looking at his different periods. I started with his African inspired work. However it wasnt until I studied his Rose and Blue Period that I really became interested in portraits. It was this era of his work that inspired me to study portraits. His works in the Blue Period captured my imagination. I feel they are powerful in capturing mood and emotion through Picassos use of colour, realism etc. This was something that pushed me in the direction of portraiture. I wanted to capture mood and emotion in my portraits. He was the inspiration that led me to study other artists including Giacometti and Lucian Freud. I studied artists which had relevance to my work and to the themes I wanted to explore. Alberto Giacometti: The first artist which I studied was Giacometti. The son of a painter, Alberto Giacometti was born in Stampa on October 10th 1901. He began to draw and model at an early age and in 1919 he enrolled at the École des Arts-et-Mà ©tiers in Geneva. He travelled in Italy in 1920-1921. He studied with the sculptor Émile Antoine Bourdelle at the Acadà ©mie de la Grande Chaumià ©re in Paris from 1922-1925. After sharing a studio in Paris with his brother Diego from 1925-1927, Giacometti set up his own. He would often use his brother Diego as a model. I studied his portrait of Jean Genet. Giacomettis technique with line drawing and gesture was something I wanted to explore through my own work. Another painting which reminded me of his style was a portrait of Giacometti. I chose this portrait because of the artists style in gesture drawing. I was interested by his ability to capture his models expressions through line and gesture drawing. I used this technique in my initial sketches in order to feel my way around the subject. Something that I found very interesting was choice in colour. The colours he uses in this particular portrait are all very warm (consisting of different shades of browns). They give a feeling of warmth and comfort yet the expression on the models face appears quite sad and cold. I found this to be somewhat of a paradox. This use of expressive colour I found very exciting and was a concept that led to more research for my project. I decided to paint a self portrait keeping these paints in mind. It led to the creation of a self portrait in this style using similar colours too. One technique the artist has used that I tried to show in my work was the layering of paint thickly. I felt this added volume and history to the portrait. Giacometti uses strong and thick layers of paint in order to emphasise the contrast between light and dark. He paints a dark figure on light background. I found the texture of the brush strokes very interesting but also hard to create in my own work. Giacometti usually focused on sculptures of the human body and for one of many portraits he created, this one shows how skilful he was at creating figures. I think the main aspect, of his paintings I have studied, that captures my interest is his style of painting. He uses free brush strokes and brush strokes which are applied like the crosshatching pencil strokes in a drawing. The shapes he creates with these brush strokes I think are most effective. I have tried to use mark making in my own work in this way. Francis Bacon: Having completed my self portrait I began to feel that it would be a good idea to try and capture expression in my work. I was interested in Francis Bacons expressions that he created in his models faces. Often distorting the faces, Bacons portraits and self portraits push the boundaries in portrait painting. The mood in his paintings is often sombre. Bacon uses dark colours such as dark green, blue and black. Much of his work conveys feelings of suffering and despair. His work is similar to that of cubist style painting and reminds me of Picassos work, such as the Demoiselles dAvignon, in particular the facial expressions of the figures. I studied The Screaming Pope. Bacon completed this painting after being inspired by Velazquezs portrait of Pope Innocent X in 1953. Bacon creates a claustrophobic and nightmarish scene. The figure of the pope is ghost-like. He looks dead or like he is dying. There is a haunted feel about the painting. The screaming face of the pope and the strokes down the painting adds to the horror of the image. One can almost hear his cries. I am not sure why Bacon decided to create such a horrific image of a religious figure who is seen by many as someone holy and graceful. Bacon may be expressing his feeling toward religion or to the concept of the pope. The fact that Bacon was a catholic who later came out as homosexual, perhaps he was suffering from quiet retribution. He may also have been challenging the status of the pope, shocking the public. Bacon had asthma as well as allergies to horses and dogs. During his attacks, he was given morphine, a strong drug, which may explain some of the creative expression in his work which have the quality of drug hallucinations. I am interested in this portrait; the colours convey a sense of horror. The use of purple and gold compliment each other very well but also signify riches and royalty. The black shadows in the background may represent growing shadows around the figure. The use of these colours and the dark aggressive feeling Bacon creates are very effective. When looking at the painting one can almost feel shivers down ones spine. The fact that you can see through the figures robes and that no legs are visible adds to the horror of this painting. After studying this painting I felt compelled to create a piece aiming to capture emotion in a similar way. I wanted to capture the expression in my portrait as Bacon did. I did another self portrait however this one differed from the first. I used different shades of blue acrylic paint. I did not however paint the whole face. Focusing from the nose down to the neck I painted a piece in which my mouth was wide open. I did this to try and capture a similar atmosphere which Bacon captured in The Screaming Pope. By focussing on the shapes created by the lips and cheeks, I was pleased with the result. However I think that perhaps the texture of the hardboard breaks up the brush strokes and makes the brush marks difficult to see. Lucian Freud: When it came to studying Lucian Freud I was amazed by the way he creates skin texture. One of his finest pieces of work was his self portrait entitled Reflection. Portraits and nudes are Freuds specialties and with this piece it is clear to see why. The thing I found most fascinating about this piece of art is the texture of the flesh. Freud seems to capture the raw and ugly nature of the human flesh. In this self portrait Freud has successfully captured every wrinkle and crevice on the face. He uses strong contrast in shadow and highlights and this is something I took into consideration with future paintings. His brushstrokes are carefully applied to create an accurate portrait, whereas Giacomettis portraits and figure drawings have a more abstract quality. Lucian Freuds portraits are so realistic that they become almost surreal. Freud captures every shadow and highlight in a meticulous manner and I was interested in achieving something similar in my own work. There is a strong significance about the colours and paint he uses: I want paint to work as flesh my portraits to be of people, not like them. Not having the look of the sitter, being them as far as I am concerned the paint is the person. I want it to work for me just as flesh does. www.about.com/painting Freud uses a granular pigment called cremnitz white to achieve his unique painting of the flesh. I mixed sand with paint to give more texture to my paint to imitate the texture. I thoroughly enjoyed working with it. I felt it added character to the portrait and made the texture of the skin far more interesting. I found the texture of the hair quite intriguing. I liked the rough and coarse look Freud creates and it was an option to try and achieve a similar look when painting my models hair. However the hair was probably the thing I had most trouble with. I struggled with texture and colour. Perhaps I should have spent more time studying how artists paint hair put it into practice before applying it to a large portrait. The expression in Freuds self portrait is interesting in relation to what it is I am trying to achieve in my work. I have looked closely at the forehead: the lines created from the artists frown. This was something else that I wanted to achieve in my own work. Final Pieces Self Portrait: This portrait was inspired by the portrait of Giacometti which I studied. Using similar colours I attempted to get that similarity to his work. For a first attempt I do not believe I achieved this. I did however succeed in getting a self portrait to actually look like me. This was a great boost of confidence for a first self portrait. From this piece I learned that I should create the background and plan it at the early stages of the portrait. I learned that the background is just as important as the face when creating mood or atmosphere. Oil Pastels on Brown Paper: This was the first time I used oil pastels for a large piece. My aim was to try and set a mood of strong emotion, so I went for feelings of anger and rage. This idea was inspired from paintings from artists such as Picasso and Bacon who use colour to manipulate the mood of their work. I used a strong red to achieve this, combined with black for shadows, orange for mediums and yellow and white for highlights. I drew from life. While looking in a mirror I tried to draw myself with an expression of anger. From this piece I learned how effective colour is in a portrait. For example I could have used a different colour other than red and a different feeling of emotion may have been evoked. Open Mouth Acrylic on hardboard: The aim with this piece was to capture emotion, a feeling of pain, fear or shock. I thought the use of different shades of blue would emphasise these feelings. This was influenced by works from Francis Bacon. The emotion in some of his paintings such as The Screaming Pope appealed to me and I wanted to portray that emotion through my work. However, I decided to take a different approach. Rather than painting my whole face I focused only on the bottom half, from the end of the nose down to the chin. My intention was to capture the emotion from just the open mouth, as I felt that is where most of the strong feelings of emotion exist in Bacons The Screaming Pope. Eyes can often show a persons true feelings, so I wanted achieve this without painting the eyes. The recycling of the hardboard was chosen to give myself experience working with other material. I used the rough side of the board to add texture and to give the piece some more character. In all I felt I had successfully created feelings such as pain and fear through not just my use of a cold colour like blue, but by focusing on the wide open mouth. Portrait of Brother: On A3 paper, I drew a portrait of my brother in pencil, from life. Before this I had practiced drawing portraits in pencil from photographs. This was to prepare me for drawing from life. I wanted to get an idea of shading, proportion, texture, etc. It was a challenge drawing from life as I was quite comfortable with drawing from photographs, however I needed to take that step in order to develop my skills in drawing portraits. Looking at the portrait now I see it lacks in volume. An obvious problem was that I only had a 4B and 6B pencil, so I learned the importance of having different grades of pencils. The portrait required more time in capturing the highlights and shadows. I also had a slight problem with measurements, as the eyes were a little out of proportion. I learned to spend more time in studying shading and to be stricter with my measurements. After drawing this portrait I then photocopied it. Working with the photocopies I tried to capture mood atmosphere by adding colour. I used blue oil pastels in the picture which ultimately led to a colder mood. I also tried to get a different effect. After colouring the picture I scrunched up the paper into a ball and dampened it with water. This then led to cracks on the page which I felt added to the mood, perhaps suggesting a mood of feeling cold and broken, etc. I then used a photocopy to draw it in a larger scale and with different material. Drawing on a sheet of brown paper larger than A2 I used chalk pastels with colours like orange, yellow and blue to try and get different effects. However I soon learned that there is a right way and a wrong way to use brown paper. I used the smoother side of the sheet which led to problems. It proved very difficult to work with as the chalk did not stick well. Portrait of Mother Pencil Charcoal: with this piece I drew my mother from life at a profile view. This was the first time I had drew someone at this angle, so I was interested to see how it would compare with my previous portraits. I used pencils grading from 2B up to 6B. I also used a rubber for the strong highlights that appeared on her hair. I found it challenging doing a profile view. I found that I had to be much more aware of the measurements from the ear to the eye and from the eye to the bridge of the nose. This was quite a challenge but I feel I was quite successful in getting the measurements quite accurate. I achieved a likeness in the drawing to my mothers face so this I felt was an achievement. I then moved on to a bigger piece using this drawing as a guide. On A2 grey card, I created a charcoal copy of the drawing. First however, because of our schools lack of resources, I was restricted to using a sheet of card, which was of poor quality. It had a shiny texture that did no agree with the charcoal. To solve this problem I mixed grey paint with sand. This changed the colour of the sheet but also made it rougher to allow the charcoal to stick. My measurements were a little off this time leading to a failure in getting a likeness to the model. I used the black of the charcoal for the dark shadings, the grey pain acted as a medium and I used white chalk for the highlights. From this I learned that it is possible to create better textures with the use of substances such as sand mixed with paint. I also learned that I have to be even stricter with my measurements as the charcoal piece was less accurate in comparison to the pencil drawing. Portrait of Tom: I drew a classmate from life using charcoal. When drawing this I wanted to explore different effects from light. I did it in a dark room with one office lamp. I feel I was quite successful in getting a likeness. My proportion has become more accurate. I then painted a final piece from this charcoal drawing. This I found a challenge as it is the largest portrait I have done yet. My aim was to get a Lucian Freud look and feel to it. I painted on the background first as I had learned from the past that it was easier to work in this progression. I painted thick brush strokes to create texture. I used shades of cream and pink for the skin colour. Then for the highlights I mixed sand with paint to give more texture to my paint to imitate the texture of Freuds cremnitz. I enjoyed working with this as it created an unusual and interesting texture. It proved to be effective in contrasting the highlights with shadows. The size was important as I wanted to experience with working on something large scale also I felt it would have a larger impact.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

The Philosophy of Sex and Gender in Russia Essay examples -- Feminism

The Philosophy of Sex and Gender in Russia This presentation focuses on the main philosophical approaches toward analyzing the notions of "sex" and "gender" in Russia since the nineteenth century. I analyze the conceptions and ideas which were developed by Aleksey Khomyakov, Nicolai Chernyshevsky, Leo Tolstoy, Fedor Dostoevsky, Vladimir Solovyov and some other philosophers. Then, I discuss the concept of emancipation of women within the framework of Marxist-Leninist theory, which played a role in the state's "women's philosophy" in the Soviet period, and within the existing modern viewpoints. My methodology is based on concepts and guidelines developed in feminist philosophy. One of the goals, as put forward by feminist philosophy, is to discover the gender determinateness of the metatheoretical foundations of science and traditional Western humanitarianism and of philosophy. This problem can be quite successfully solved on the basis of Western philosophic studies. Russian philosophy, however, has not so far become a subject of feminist analysis either in Russia or in the West. Therefore, my research in this field could be considered rather novel. This presentation focuses on the main philosophical approaches toward analyzing the notions of "sex" and "gender" in Russia. First of all, I mean the last century's philosophy of sex and the theology of gender, the concept of emancipation of women within the framework of the Marxist-Leninist theory of women's emancipation, which played the role of state "women's philosophy" in the Soviet period, and the existing modern viewpoints. My methodology is based on concepts and guidelines, developed in the feminist philosophy and presented inter alia in the works of Genevieve Lloyd, ... ...a and R.Tong. Gender/Body/Knowledge: Feminist Reconstructions of Being and Knowing. (1989).Ed.Alison M. Jaggar and Susan R. Bordo. Harding S. and Hintikka M. (eds) (1983). Discovering Reality: Feminist Perspectives on Epistemology, Metaphysics and Philosophy of Science. Khomyakov A. (1988). About old and new. In Russian. Kollontai A. (1909). Social basis of women's question. In Russian. Lloyd G. (1984). The Man of Reason. The "Male" and "Female" in Western Philosophy. Tolstoy, L. (1987). Collection of works, vol. 11. In Russian. Solovyov V. (1988). Collection of works in two volums.. Moscow. t. 2. In Russian. Solovyov V. (1911). Russia and Universal Chirch. Moscow. In Russian. Voronina O. (1994). The Mythology of Women's Emancipation in the USSR as the Foundation for a Policy of Discrimination. In Women in Russia (ed. by A.Posadskaya ).

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Can Haiti be Saved? Essay -- Countries of The World

Introduction Haiti is most commonly referred to as the poorest nation in the western hemisphere with 80% of its population living in poverty. The country is plagued with the misfortunes of natural disasters, a history of extensive debts, and a poor social system. When looking at the country today, there seems to be little productivity. However, most are unaware that Haiti was once one of the richest colonies in the New World. Much like today, the exports were agricultural and textile products such as tobacco, cocoa beans, coffee, fruit, and cotton. As opposed to being viewed as a failed state, Haiti was France’s prized possession, named the â€Å"Pearl of the Antilles†. The colony was extremely profitable as a result of the slave trade and produced more than half of the world’s sugar (Watkins, 2012). The country today is a stark contrast. In the following paper, I will discuss how Haiti became a developing nation. Additionally, I will analyze several of the Haitiâ₠¬â„¢s current economic policies and their hindrance on the further development of the country. Background In order to understand Haiti’s current economic situation, it is important to know about the country’s past. As stated previously, Haiti was once referred to as the Pearl of the Antilles. However, the slave revolts that finally secured Haiti’s independence in 1804 ruined plantations across the island. Afterwards, the newly freed Haitians attempted to resume the large scale production. But, this effort was a failed one. Eventually, the plantations were distributed in the form of small scale farms. It is important to note, though, that these farms were mainly government owned and began a long history of government property ownership (Watkins, 2012). Further... ...Watkins, T. (2012, April 02). Department of economics. Retrieved from http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/haiti.htm Mackey, R. (2010, August 16). France asked to return money ‘extorted’ from haiti. Retrieved from http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/16/france-asked-to-return-money-extorted-from-haiti/ Dunkel, G. (2003, October 16). U.s. embargoes against haiti -- from 1806 to 2003 . Retrieved from http://www.iacenter.org/haiti/embargoes.htm Ives, K. (2010, July 14). Land ownership at the crux of haiti's stalled reconstruction. Retrieved from http://upsidedownworld.org/main/news-briefs-archives-68/2589-land-ownership-at-the-crux-of-haitis-stalled-reconstruction Transparency.org. (2011). Retrieved from http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2011/results/ SICE. (2012). Foreign trade information systmes. Retrieved from http://sice.oas.org/ctyindex/HTI/HTINatlDocs_e.asp

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Free Affirmative Action Essays - Affirmative Action is Discrimination :: affirmative action argumentative persuasive

Affirmative Action is Discrimination Affirmative action is a plan designed to end discrimination by guaranteeing minorities will be hired, regardless of race or gender. While our country hires such groups based upon these guarantees, the qualifications of such people are occasionally overlooked. Many believe that affirmative action is a very effective plan; however, the population which opposes such action frequently includes people of various minorities, as well as many others who have been wronged by this plan In several cases, this plan causes minorities to be perceived as being under-qualified when hired; in addition, it also causes a new minority, the white male. Our government must acknowledge the fact that affirmative action is not putting an end to discrimination; in all actuality, this plan has succeeded in creating new minorities, and more reasons for discrimination. Affirmative action frequently causes qualified employees to be looked down upon because some believe them to be "affirmative action hires". Two of my female relatives are currently on the police force; as a result, I have encountered many discriminatory comments pertaining to their positions. The first remark I usually receive suggests that they were hired for their position solely based on gender. Another comment which I usually receive is, "Well, being a woman probably didn't hurt their resume." Both of my relatives are very good at their jobs; one was even on the popular television show, Cops. Neither of them are "wimps", yet most males look down upon them as being hired because of affirmative action. This type of criticism is received by many minorities holding good jobs, whether they are qualified or not. To quote William Reynolds, assistant attorney general in the civil rights division: In many cases, affirmative action takes away from legitimate minority success. People look at the black banker downtown who has made it on his own and say, "He got his job because of affirmative action." Or, an employer hires a few talented minority people who would have succeeded anyway and says, "Those are my affirmative-action hires." (26) In this particular case, affirmative action may, or may not, have been the reason for hiring, yet that is what most perceive.

How Does Steinbeck Present Disadvantaged Characters

Explore some of the ways in which Steinbeck presents disadvantaged characters in the novel In 1937, the American author John Steinbeck published ‘Of mice and Men'. Set in the Salinas Valley of California, it conveys the story of the struggles of the American people during ‘The Great Depression'. The Great Depression was a massive devastation throughout the whole of America where people suffered and the economy was at a huge crisis. The Unemployment rose from 3% to 26% and many people had died, showing how hard the citizens coped to survive in-between this difficult period.The Americans were in a depriving financial state full of high inflation after an economic fall known as the ‘The Wall Street Crash' The nation only helped themselves by believing in their own dreams, which meant mostly to have their own lands, be rich and live a good-life- â€Å"The American Dream†. This ideology gave the public hopes of life and something to work towards. John Steinbeck do es not only explore how people struggled for their American dream, but also describes how difficult this melancholy period in history was for the â€Å"lesser† group of individuals at the time: the disadvantaged characters.Lennie, a big simple-minded character, is a highly disadvantaged individual due to poor mental health. As Lennie is one of the predominant characters in ‘Of Mice and Men’, he is perhaps the least dynamic. He experiences no change in developing or growing in mental or practical abilities; the plain figure remains as illustrated at the start of the opening pages in the novel. Although his character is displayed in this way, despite being under privileged he is based as a central protagonists in the story. Steinbeck conveys a general initiative to his readers that, Lennie’s actions make great affection.Being basic makes his choices morally incorrect- this shows his difficulties. Steinbeck uses the character of Lennie to symbolise the mental ly underprivileged people of this period. â€Å"Let's have different colour rabbits, George. †Pg 16 â€Å"Just ain’t bright†24 Steinbeck shows his readers the stage of which Lennie's mind is developed; still like a child's, even though he is a fully-grown man. From the start of the novella, the reader must know that Steinbeck creates an illustration of Lennie as sadly being doomed, and must be sympathetic towards him.This is a construction built to present to the reader at the current time of the 1920's a huge disadvantage to the mentally handicapped society. The simple-minded character of Lennie also leads him to lack in responsibility and trust. He is shown to have no knowledge of any financial or general life problems, therefore Steinbeck creates a main part for George to play in, and this is where he has to take the weight on his shoulders for Lennie. †if you jus' happen to get in trouble like you always done before, I want you to come right here an' h ide in the brush†, †Leggo his hand, Lennie†, 64 You tol' me to George,†64 The author is trying to portray an image to his readers that Lennie cannot think for his self and has to be controlled; this is another big under privilege towards the mentally handicapped people. Lennie also speaks without grammatical sense and this shows he is uneducated and not taught to talk proper English, â€Å"they was so little† pg 11 â€Å"Don't tell nobody† PG61 Lastly the biggest let down for the simple minded figure is not being able to adapt a level of understanding to the normal person , Lennie cannot tell the strength he applies or has when used.This makes him very innocent when attacking someone without knowing, He also loves to pet animals and furry material but while this process, as he is a strong figure, he kills the being. †'Don't you go yellin', he said, and shook her; and her body flopped like a fish. And then she was still, for Lennie had brok en her neck. †90 The author uses the word ‘and' repetitively showing how dramatic the moment is. Steinbeck depicts towards his audience that Lennie was only trying to quite Curley’s wife but accidentally fails as he cannot handle his abnormal great strength.This use of dramatics and panic shows where Lennie is innocent. From my view I think Lennie is also based upon the theme of an animal, there are areas where Steinbeck refers to Lennie as animal like â€Å"He’s as strong as a bull† â€Å"the way a bear drags his pours† In addition, Steinbeck uses the comparison of Candy's dog and Lennie to depict the value and status of less mentally capable individuals. Just how candy's dog is eradicated once he becomes ‘useless', the same image is created for Lennie as his fate is controlled and chosen by the ‘normal' ranch hands.Similarly, The death of Lennie, is constructed as an illustration towards the readers that his own friend kills him because it is a ‘necessity'. The author is portraying to his readers that even George, Lennie's tightest companion, shoots him out of sympathy so his friend does not go through the wrath of Curley's torturing death. This conveys to us that the people of the 1930's thought it was right to choose a death of a mentally handicapped because it was ‘obligatory',Of mice and men, shows a greater emphasised picture, where a very close friendship is ended.The dramatics used by Steinbeck when showing us George kills his best colleague Lennie, tells the reader how life was a great hardship for the discrimination against the mentally handicapped, especially when it was very unlikely to see two friends travelling together. The book demonstrates this concept by putting the ‘rights' of a dog identical to the ‘rights' of a mentally incapable person. Today, this sought of situation is taken seriously, where the rights for any being is equally judged. Steinbeck presents another character which I think is one of the most hindered upon-Crooks.Crooks is highly discriminated, especially at this time, because he is black. He is a black man that lives in America at the time of segregation from the colour of his skin. This was tragic and sad for the black community as they were marginal. Living as a black man being employed was one of the most hardest job, this caused a lot of unemployment for the ‘coloured' public . The only upper hand crooks had was a job in the ranch, it still was very risky, the boss beat him for no reason, but this was all he could do for a living. S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't go to the bunk house and play rummy 'cause you was black. †72. Steinbeck often demonstrates towards his audience that Crooks is a victim of isolation and loneliness, this illustrates the high level of prejudice and separation against the black ethnic minority of the 1930s. Crooks use of the word ‘S'pose' twice in short time to s how the emphasis of his feelings. The appearance and physical disability of Crooks also makes him impoverished, he has a crooked back and thus is called by the name ‘Crooks ‘. Now and then he poured a few drops of the liniment into his pink-palmed hand and reached up under his shirt to rub again.He flexed his muscles against his back and shivered. †67. Steinbeck provides his readers with a description for the appearance of Crooks. This description shows us where ‘Crooks' is named by the ranch hands. When Steinbeck uses this method, he produces nicknames to portray to his readers how the men do not take any interest in knowing a full name; this shows the loneliness. The black community was often assaulted by the white public, this was a great hardship in the 1930's. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny. †80 â€Å"Crooks had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality, no ego- nothing to arouse either like or dislike. †80. The black minority was too downgraded and this quote is evident. When any black man spoke for his self, he was threatened and could not fight on. Steinbeck expresses to his readers how life was for the black people when abused. As he is black, Crooks is segregated from the other workers, this causes a great amount of desolation, he is trapped in solitude day and night and resorts to reading books.In the novel, when Lennie enters Crooks room, at first his reaction is to be alone and unwanted but then his lack of unsociability wins over him and allows Lennie to set in. During his conversation, Crooks reveals his sorrow of being alone, segregated and divined from others. â€Å"I seen it over an’ over a guy talkin’ to another guy and it don’t make no difference if he don’t hear or understand. † He is referring to Lennie but actually talking of himself. Steinbeck creates an image to his reader, how the life of someone already disliked, depriv es as he is lonely and separated.In the 1930's, Steinbeck shows his readers where the black people's status stood and where they were disadvantaged. The use of the word ‘n**ger' was normal for people to remark, this just portrays how downgraded the black community were. I think as Crooks was in the bracket of an ethnic minority, he was extremely unlucky and discriminated, the author shows us another disadvantaged character based at the time of the novella. From the perspective of Curley's wife, I think that John Steinbeck uses analogy to represent the place for woman and how they were the underdogs towards the men.Living in the male world, Curleys wife is mostly shown as a bad sign as she is an uncommon person in the ranch. She undergoes a difficult and antagonistic period through her life. â€Å"You wasn't no good. You ain't no good now, you lousy tart†94 â€Å"Well, ain't she a looloo? †51 â€Å"I ain't seen that much of her, PG 51 When whit describes her as t his it shows what they think of her, also the emphasis of George speaking when saying, â€Å"I ain't seen that much of her,† shows the care and intensity that he does not give when he replies. In the beginning of the novel, Steinbeck introduces Curley’s wife through Candy’s description.The critical comments leave the reader to have a negative opinion; as she seems to be a woman in a male world. ‘I’ve seen her give slim the eye†¦ an’ I’ve seen her give Carlson the eye. ’ (pg 29)    By classifying Curley’s wife as a ’flirt’, she is effectively prohibited from the men. There are certain areas where Curleys wife's image is described evil and unhappy, Steinbeck tries to portray towards his readers that when she is there the mood is struck negatively and falls immediately at her presence, â€Å"Both men glanced up, for the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off. A girl was standing there looking in.She had full, rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up. Her fingernails were red. Her hair hung in little rolled clusters, like sausages. She wore a cotton house dress and red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers. â€Å"I'm lookin' for Curley,†she said. Her voice had a nasal, brittle quality. †PG 32 From this extract of the book, there are different ways in which the author describes Curley's wife as a cynical approach at this moment of the story. Steinbeck shows us that as soon as she comes in the sunlight is cut off- blocking the admirable scene.Even with the clothing, Curley's wife wears a lot of the colour red conveying the evil colour and the emphasis of her voice when she speaks,† Her voice had a nasal, brittle quality. † Steinbeck describes the disadvantages women had when she is first illustrated. Throughout the book, Curley's wife's character is fairly mysterious and complicated. She is continuously referred to as her husband's belonging or possession, this shows us where she is unidentified, through this misidentification we can figure out her status as a woman; she did not need to be known.Steinbeck’s use of identification against Curley’s wife is her most disadvantage. When someone has no identification, it describes to the reader where his or her reputation is, the name Curley’s wife portrays an image that her name is a tool, owned by her husband and is not much importance. Through the book she is foreshadowed in many areas, where her sly flirty actions lead to hazardous trouble, despite this matter, when reading between the lines, the reader is made to show some part of sympathy to express towards her.The author also uses other ways to describe the loneliness and emotions in the book, words like ‘solitaire' (meaning ‘ a card game played by one person), shows us how he referred to the people working at the ranch as desolate and unsocial, he also uses nick names, except for George and Lennie, such as â€Å"Slim† or â€Å"Curley†, this is another sign, of the low and sad mood. In the novel, there are a few areas where the writer presents short snappy sentences to show the effects, â€Å"The silence came into the room. And the silence lasted†. 9 Additionally, Steinbeck chooses the use of circulation in situations, just like a life cycle, In each chapter the setting in the beginning is the setting at the end, this conveys a message that the situation always ends at point one, , for example Lennie and George have a dream in the beginning which is just a plain dream that has no hope, it develops as the book stages itself at chapter 3 ,in the middle, there is sudden hope and it looks like an easy grab, but it circulates and drops back down, where Lennie kills Curley's wife, this illustrates the method of death and that there is no hope left.John Steinbeck the author reveals to his audience how, in a gene ral view, people were highly disadvantaged especially at the time of discrimination towards them. He mentions three obvious characters , Lennie, Crooks and Curley's wife. These individuals all have main deficiencies and all have different types of disadvantages. Steinbeck uses a mentally handicapped individual, a black physically disabled man and a women in a male's world, this shows us an occurring pattern from the author, trying to describe the sadness and discrimination to people at the time of ‘The Great Depression'The novel, ‘Of Mice and Men’ depicts to the readers how the daily struggles for the working class were, being greatly underprivileged and the reality of failing plans for a living, resembling ‘The American Dream’. John Steinbeck shows his audience individuals who constantly face one problem after another. Moreover, he describes people of America who struggled a torrid time through â€Å"Survival of the fittest†, especially the di scriminated.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Nestle Case Study

NESTLE CASE STUDY With reference to the Nestle case study, provide one example which clearly illustrates a link between topics or concepts drawn from at least two pre-requisite modules. The Nestle case study provides a number of examples which illustrate links between Strategic management, Methods of Enquiry and Accounting for decision making concepts. Nestle is one of the oldest of all multinational business. Nowadays, Nestle is one of the biggest food and nutrition companies in 86 countries in the world. Hill, 2009 pp). Nestle was involved with a range of acquisitions in the last years in order to extend its line of products and try to expand on a geographical scale. Since its sales are reducing in developed markets, Nestle has the opportunity to expand business in up and coming countries, which is going to generate more profit for the company. Up and coming countries is one sector that Nestle is going to invest money in because it has the potential to be a strong and attractive ma rket.Nestle feels confident in doing so because in such countries population economy and technology has experienced a rapid growth. (Datamonitor, 2006). Nestles long-term strategy is to identify the quickly expanding countries first and get into the market as soon as possible in order to take advantage of other competitors. However, it first has to hold the leading position in the developed markets where it is currently placed. Also Nestle has to hire local managers and staff in the developing markets that understand the local market dynamic and culture.As explained above there is a link between Nestle’s strategy and the Strategic management, because companies employ managers from respective countries in the local companies due to the fact that they understand the local market dynamics. By hiring local manager they can take advantage of the local knowledge and own culture of the country. FIGURE 1 Figure 1 Source: Own diagram It is a huge advantage that Nestle works with local managers in fast rising emerging countries. As a result, Nestle will have quick results which lead to quick profits.As we can see in FIGURE 1 above, Nestle is closely related to the Strategic management module because companies will have a range of research(reports) on fast growing countries. Therefore, they will have the ability to balance the services they are able to provide (food, cereals, coffee, chocolate, drinks, ice cream, etc) (Nestle 2011), with the price that customers are willing to pay. For example, if people cannot afford the Nestle products then they will not expand in such countries but focus their attention and invest in countries where people are able to buy their products.Also, Nestle is connected with methods of enquiry with Emerging markets. Companies will have less space to roam around and make decision considering that much of their movements are controlled by the market reaction. This means that emerging markets are countries with social or business activiti es in the process of rapid growth and industrialization. The Nestle case study as clearly explained above illustrates a good link with the Strategic Management/Methods of Enquiry and the Market dynamic/Emerging markets respectively. Does it make sense for Nestle to focus its growth efforts on emerging markets? Why?The recent financial crisis that reverberated throughout the globe was a clear indicator of the interdependence and the codependence that globalization has created while simultaneously making it clear to everyone that the emerging economies, especially those that make up BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) are more resilient than western economies, thus making them engines of growth that have helped the recovery effort in the last few years. Therefore from that point of view alone it can be stated that yes, Nestle’s strategy to focus its growth efforts in developing or emerging markets is indeed a sound one.However this does not mean that the ability of these mar kets to recover faster than the western economies should bebe sole reason for such a decision. Rather there are many more and varying reasons that need to be taken into consideration. The onset of globalization for one thing has helped uplift the living standards of many in China and India and millions of families have climbed out of poverty and are able to aspire to better life styles and a better standard of living, thus creating new markets companies like Nestle (Latshaw and Choi, 2002, pp. 7). Next as has been stated in the case study, the number of individuals who can be considered as middle class in these two economies alone will exceed 700 million in the coming decade, which is more than the entire population of 500 million in the European region or the 300 million in the United States, thus making this a very lucrative market for Nestle and one that needs to be exploited with immediate effect (Crook, Bratton, Street & Ketchen, 2006, pp. 09 – 412). Besides the above Ne stle as a multi national company has a decentralised structure and has often emphasised the need for attracting, recruiting and selecting host country nationals to be employed in its’ manufacturing plants across the world and this again is a very strategic and wise decision (Cesnovar, 2006, pp. 227 – 229).By decreasing unemployment rates, being socially responsible corporate citizen and helping to uplift the standard of living in these regions of the world, the company is earning the respect of the population, which can soon be converted to public relations win, thus it can be stated that this strategy makes immense sense at the present time (Mclean, 2006, pp. 36).Last but not least it should also be stated that by gaining ‘first mover advantage’ of providing basic food stuffs through which brand loyalty is created the company stands to gain much as most consumers will not switch to other brands but rather decide to stick with the trusted brand even when t hey are ready to move to the more upscale and upmarket products that are provided by the company (Gratton, Hailey, Stiles & Truss, 1999).Therefore it can be stated that from every point of view, whether it is as a consumer products manufacturer or an employer, Nestle stands to gain much through this growth strategy of focusing on emerging markets. What is the company's strategy with regard to business development in emerging markets- Does this strategy make sense- From an organizational perspective, what is required for this strategy to work effectively?As is clear from the information that has been provided in the case study, Nestle uses a variety of different strategies to develop its business activities and markets in the emerging markets. While many maybe of the opinion that only one or two strategies should be used in order to ensure that synergies of scale are gained and that there is consistency across the operations, such a customization of strategy to meet the specific need s of an economy is highly commendable (Marshall, Smith & Buxton, 2009, pp. 4 – 18). For instance in countries like India and China, Nestle has entered the market by providing low cost brand name basic food stuff like condensed milk and infant formula, in doing so the company has also located its manufacturing plants within the countries and the regions, employed host country nationals and helped uplift their living standards.Thus not only has the company provided them with a livelihood by employing them and purchasing local produce from local farmers and businessman, but in doing so has also created loyalty to its brand, which is something priceless (Karake-Shalhoub, 1999). As the living standards and the income levels of these individuals and entrepreneurs increase, they will no doubt continue to be loyal to the Nestle brand and purchase the more upscale and products that are sold by the company, when they are ready to move from basic food stuffs to more branded and upscale foods stuffs like cookies and chocolate.Likewise another strategy that is being used by the company is to enter markets like Nigeria and China and invest in basic infrastructure to ensure smooth distribution channels, while many may see this as a waste, in the long run, the company has gained a strong foothold in the marketplace, created job opportunities and further increased the visibility of its brand nd thus increased entry barriers for the competition (Sims, 2003), thus it can be stated that this is indeed a very good business development strategy that is being followed by the company at the present time. From an organisational perspective for an a strategy to work effectively it is necessary to ensure that the strategy is developed in such a manner that it would fit the market needs and help the company to gain a comparative advantage (Oladunjoye & Onyeaso, 2007, pp. 92 – 598). Based on everything that has been stated above and the manner in which Nestle’s is cur rently operating in China, India, Africa, the Middle East and Eastern Europe, it is clear that the company has adopted many different successful strategies that are helping it to gain a competitive edge in these markets while continuing to benefit from the ‘first mover’ advantage that it has created for itself. Through research on NESTLE, identify appropriate performance indicators.Once you have gathered relevant data on these, undertake a performance analysis of the company over the last five years. What does the analysis tell you about the success or otherwise of the strategy adopted by the company? An analysis of Nestle’s performance indicates that the Company has been able to improve its performance over the years. The sales of the Company reached a record of US $73 billion, and growth in profits was 20. 7% in 2005. In 2005, Europe amounted to 30% of sales, Americas 34%, and Asia, Oceania and Africa 17% of the sales.Nestle is aware that it need to adjust its offering if it is to reach its target of 5-6% growth per year. (Country Monitor, 2006). Public Image – In a world that is becoming increasingly complex, consumer needs and wants continue to become more sophisticated on a daily basis. Unlike in the past when companies could simply mass produce and sell products to the end user, today, consumers are demanding more not only in terms of pricing and quality but also in terms of corporate social responsibility.Therefore it is necessary for Nestle to continuously monitor and manage its public image and it is also very important from a strategic perspective that the company is seen as a socially responsible corporate citizen (Niederhut-Bollmann & Theuvsen, 2008, 63 – 68). Compared to many other multi national companies, Nestle’s has not earned the public ire for being irresponsible socially, however as the global slave trade for chocolate manufacturers comes to light it is essential that Nestle’s looks at ways an d means to ensure that it is not ensnared in such a public relations nightmare.Sales Growth – This is a very important performance indicators and should give the company a sense of its successes and failures in terms of strategy. Currently the company has been doing very well on this front and should carefully monitor the external and the internal environments for any factors that may pose a threat to its continued success in this area (Roberts, 2001, pp, 25 – 28). Following a growth strategy in emerging markets is actually a very good strategy that has paid off and continues to pay off, however this does not mean that the company can afford to be laid back on this score.Market Share – By gaining ‘first mover advantage’ the company has been able to gain and retain its market share through the years, however it is also necessary that the company continues to learn from its past mistakes in Japan and other countries, where it did not take the competit ion seriously and therefore has lost much in terms of market share that it could otherwise have gained (Odagiri, 1992).Blue Ocean Strategies – As markets continue to mature and other markets continue to develop it is imperative that the company focuses its attention on research and development and creates ‘blue oceans’ in order to find new markets (Gubman, 2004, pp. 13). This is something that Nestle is currently lagging at and needs to pay particular attention to with immediate effect.Based on everything that has been stated above it is therefore clear that while the company does excel in areas such as managing its public image and sales growth, there is much more improvement needed to be made in the search for innovative market strategies that will help force it to success in the future. How would you describe Nestle's strategic posture at the corporate level; is it pursuing a global strategy, a multidomestic strategy an international strategy or a transnationa l strategy? Figure 2 – Which Structure to Choose? Source: http://www. wiziq. com/tutorial/380-International-StrategyIllustrated above is a depiction of the different corporate level strategies that can be adopted by multi national companies the world over. Such strategy is often chosen on the degree of need for global integration and local market responsiveness (Kaplan and Norton, 2001, pp. 87). Based on the information that has been provided in the case study it is clear that Nestle is a company that need to gain a high level of local market responsiveness due to the variety of different business development related strategies that is pursuing in different parts of the world.For instance while in the Middle East it has entered the markets by building five different lines of products that it hopes will be distributed across the region as trade barriers fall, in countries like China and India, it is pursuing a different strategy of meeting the basic food needs of the populatio n with items such as infant formula and condensed milk. It is the intention of the company in these markets that once standards of living increase, they can leave these Niche markets and provide consumers with more upscale and upmarket products like chocolates and cookies.Further it can also be stated that as a company with only 1% of its revenue being earned in the home country and 8000 different brands, global integration is a must (Lowson, 2002). Therefore it is the opinion of the writer that Nestle need to choose between the multi domestic strategy and a transnational strategy and not swing from one to another, because doing so would only result in the company loosing focus of its final aim, which is to be a global consumer food products leader (George, 2007, pp. 6 – 71). Based on the information that has been provided in the case study it is the opinion of the writer that Nestle’s should choose a transnational strategy because it balances both the global integrati on needs of the company and the local market responsiveness that is necessary to ensure that the company’s products will be competitive and continue to meet the needs of the local population in the emerging markets that it is operating in (Marks, 2005, pp. 1).While many maybe of the opinion that the company should continue to pursue its multi domestic strategy as it has worked well for it in the past, the changing needs of the global environment and the development taking place in the emerging markets make it necessary to gain synergies of scale and global integration for the many brands that it has under its belt and therefore a transnational strategy is the best option for Nestle’s in the future (Barney and Hesterly, 2008).Does this overall strategic posture make sense given the markets and countries that Nestle participates in? Why? The overall strategic posture of Nestle makes a lot of sense given the fact that it is operating in virtually every country in the worl d, with a huge presence in the emerging markets. According to Hill (2006), that multidomestic strategy is appropriate in a market where the pressures for local responsiveness is very high and as a results the pressures for the cost reduction is low.Especially, pressures for local responsiveness can be very high in some productions, such as food, chocolates, dairy nutrition and etc. From the time when consumers have many national differences in tastes and preferences, distribution channels, competitive conditions, business practices, culture and government policies in the markets in which Nestle operates, therefore following a multidomestic strategy is beneficial for the Company.The difference in cultures and purchasing power (Prahalad et al, 1998) in the middle class population in emerging markets imply that in order for a first mover to gain advantage, it must be willing to adapt its product and offer in accordance with the needs of the local market. Figure 3 Source: http://www. do cstoc. com/docs/5632428/Ethnocentric-Polycentric-Geocentric-Diagr ams As stated in the previous section the overall strategy that is currently being followed by Nestle’s is one that focuses on local market responsiveness over global integration, which in effect results in a multi domestic strategy (Shackman, 2007, pp. 79 – 488). It is no doubt however that such a strategy has indeed helped the company to gain the level of success that it currently enjoys in emerging markets, and therefore can be considered as good. However we should always remember that strategies should promise equal or more success in the future as they do for the company today (Cabrera and Cabrera, 2003, pp. 41) and therefore reviewing the strategy from such an angle would work to the benefit of the company in the long run.The company currently follows a regiocentric attitude as is clear from the illustrations above, while it can be reiterated that this type of structure and strategy works to the ad vantage of the company, in the long run as the emerging markets being to mature and the company continues on its mergers and acquisitions strategies to enter new markets in Eastern Europe, it will become essential that the company gains some level of global synergy and integration (Mcwilliams, Van Fleet, & Wright, 2001, pp. 1).Therefore it is the recommendation of the writer that the company begins to embark on a transnational strategy with a Geocentric attitude, which will eventually help it to have a more global view with flexibility to make necessary changes at local level whenever and as frequently as needed (Donaldson & O'Toole, 2002). Therefore in conclusion it can be stated that even though the current strategic posture makes sense, it needs to be reviewed and modified if the company is to continue to penetrate, gain and retain market share in the emerging economies as well as the developed economies the world over (Mockler, 1999).Is Nestle's management structure and philosop hy aligned with its overall strategic posture? The overall structure and the strategy of the company as stated previously and has been made clear to the reader throughout the case study, is that the company pursues a multi domestic strategy, due to the need to have a high responsiveness to the local market needs (Drejer, 2002).While this is impressive, the company goes further to also ensure that it is staffed by local nationals in the host countries and that power and authority is decentralised as much as possible, again indicating that the management structure is indeed very much aligned to its philosophy of local autonomy and its multi domestic strategy (Silverman, 2002).However instead of relying on the local managers alone, the company also has a pool of at least 700 expatriate managers who travel from one country to another ensuring that the local and regional strategies of the company are upheld and global integration is a possibility (Mintzberg & Rose, 2003, pp. 70 – 277), while this may sound like a sound and often a wise move on the part of the company, the fact that none of the regional international managers get involved in local level stratey design and the fact that none of the local level managers are involved in the global strategy design and development leaves a disconnect that can cost the company dearly in the long run and therefore it is necessary to take a close look at the integration of both and make changes wherever necessary (Betz, 2001).Based on everything that has been stated above, it is therefore the opinion of the writer that greater global integration is necessary as the company moves forward and hopes to retain its place as a market leader by gaining large shares of the market in emerging economies, which it has strived hard to build over the last few decades. In effect it is therefore necessary to ensure that there is high levels of global integration and simultaneously ensure that there is high levels of local market re sponsiveness as well (Lefkowith, 2001, pp. 20).As stated previously this is only possible if the company follows a transnational strategy and this strategy and philosophy should be made a possibility by changing the current management structure within the company to one that allows for regional managers to gain an understanding of local issues and challenges and vice versa. This will help the company to align its goals and objectives both on an international local level and thus be more integrated in both spheres. Read more: http://www. ukessays. com/essays/marketing/nestle-case-study-assinemnt-marketin Nestle Case Study NESTLE CASE STUDY With reference to the Nestle case study, provide one example which clearly illustrates a link between topics or concepts drawn from at least two pre-requisite modules. The Nestle case study provides a number of examples which illustrate links between Strategic management, Methods of Enquiry and Accounting for decision making concepts. Nestle is one of the oldest of all multinational business. Nowadays, Nestle is one of the biggest food and nutrition companies in 86 countries in the world. Hill, 2009 pp). Nestle was involved with a range of acquisitions in the last years in order to extend its line of products and try to expand on a geographical scale. Since its sales are reducing in developed markets, Nestle has the opportunity to expand business in up and coming countries, which is going to generate more profit for the company. Up and coming countries is one sector that Nestle is going to invest money in because it has the potential to be a strong and attractive ma rket.Nestle feels confident in doing so because in such countries population economy and technology has experienced a rapid growth. (Datamonitor, 2006). Nestles long-term strategy is to identify the quickly expanding countries first and get into the market as soon as possible in order to take advantage of other competitors. However, it first has to hold the leading position in the developed markets where it is currently placed. Also Nestle has to hire local managers and staff in the developing markets that understand the local market dynamic and culture.As explained above there is a link between Nestle’s strategy and the Strategic management, because companies employ managers from respective countries in the local companies due to the fact that they understand the local market dynamics. By hiring local manager they can take advantage of the local knowledge and own culture of the country. FIGURE 1 Figure 1 Source: Own diagram It is a huge advantage that Nestle works with local managers in fast rising emerging countries. As a result, Nestle will have quick results which lead to quick profits.As we can see in FIGURE 1 above, Nestle is closely related to the Strategic management module because companies will have a range of research(reports) on fast growing countries. Therefore, they will have the ability to balance the services they are able to provide (food, cereals, coffee, chocolate, drinks, ice cream, etc) (Nestle 2011), with the price that customers are willing to pay. For example, if people cannot afford the Nestle products then they will not expand in such countries but focus their attention and invest in countries where people are able to buy their products.Also, Nestle is connected with methods of enquiry with Emerging markets. Companies will have less space to roam around and make decision considering that much of their movements are controlled by the market reaction. This means that emerging markets are countries with social or business activiti es in the process of rapid growth and industrialization. The Nestle case study as clearly explained above illustrates a good link with the Strategic Management/Methods of Enquiry and the Market dynamic/Emerging markets respectively. Does it make sense for Nestle to focus its growth efforts on emerging markets? Why?The recent financial crisis that reverberated throughout the globe was a clear indicator of the interdependence and the codependence that globalization has created while simultaneously making it clear to everyone that the emerging economies, especially those that make up BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) are more resilient than western economies, thus making them engines of growth that have helped the recovery effort in the last few years. Therefore from that point of view alone it can be stated that yes, Nestle’s strategy to focus its growth efforts in developing or emerging markets is indeed a sound one.However this does not mean that the ability of these mar kets to recover faster than the western economies should bebe sole reason for such a decision. Rather there are many more and varying reasons that need to be taken into consideration. The onset of globalization for one thing has helped uplift the living standards of many in China and India and millions of families have climbed out of poverty and are able to aspire to better life styles and a better standard of living, thus creating new markets companies like Nestle (Latshaw and Choi, 2002, pp. 7). Next as has been stated in the case study, the number of individuals who can be considered as middle class in these two economies alone will exceed 700 million in the coming decade, which is more than the entire population of 500 million in the European region or the 300 million in the United States, thus making this a very lucrative market for Nestle and one that needs to be exploited with immediate effect (Crook, Bratton, Street & Ketchen, 2006, pp. 09 – 412). Besides the above Ne stle as a multi national company has a decentralised structure and has often emphasised the need for attracting, recruiting and selecting host country nationals to be employed in its’ manufacturing plants across the world and this again is a very strategic and wise decision (Cesnovar, 2006, pp. 227 – 229).By decreasing unemployment rates, being socially responsible corporate citizen and helping to uplift the standard of living in these regions of the world, the company is earning the respect of the population, which can soon be converted to public relations win, thus it can be stated that this strategy makes immense sense at the present time (Mclean, 2006, pp. 36).Last but not least it should also be stated that by gaining ‘first mover advantage’ of providing basic food stuffs through which brand loyalty is created the company stands to gain much as most consumers will not switch to other brands but rather decide to stick with the trusted brand even when t hey are ready to move to the more upscale and upmarket products that are provided by the company (Gratton, Hailey, Stiles & Truss, 1999).Therefore it can be stated that from every point of view, whether it is as a consumer products manufacturer or an employer, Nestle stands to gain much through this growth strategy of focusing on emerging markets. What is the company's strategy with regard to business development in emerging markets- Does this strategy make sense- From an organizational perspective, what is required for this strategy to work effectively?As is clear from the information that has been provided in the case study, Nestle uses a variety of different strategies to develop its business activities and markets in the emerging markets. While many maybe of the opinion that only one or two strategies should be used in order to ensure that synergies of scale are gained and that there is consistency across the operations, such a customization of strategy to meet the specific need s of an economy is highly commendable (Marshall, Smith & Buxton, 2009, pp. 4 – 18). For instance in countries like India and China, Nestle has entered the market by providing low cost brand name basic food stuff like condensed milk and infant formula, in doing so the company has also located its manufacturing plants within the countries and the regions, employed host country nationals and helped uplift their living standards.Thus not only has the company provided them with a livelihood by employing them and purchasing local produce from local farmers and businessman, but in doing so has also created loyalty to its brand, which is something priceless (Karake-Shalhoub, 1999). As the living standards and the income levels of these individuals and entrepreneurs increase, they will no doubt continue to be loyal to the Nestle brand and purchase the more upscale and products that are sold by the company, when they are ready to move from basic food stuffs to more branded and upscale foods stuffs like cookies and chocolate.Likewise another strategy that is being used by the company is to enter markets like Nigeria and China and invest in basic infrastructure to ensure smooth distribution channels, while many may see this as a waste, in the long run, the company has gained a strong foothold in the marketplace, created job opportunities and further increased the visibility of its brand nd thus increased entry barriers for the competition (Sims, 2003), thus it can be stated that this is indeed a very good business development strategy that is being followed by the company at the present time. From an organisational perspective for an a strategy to work effectively it is necessary to ensure that the strategy is developed in such a manner that it would fit the market needs and help the company to gain a comparative advantage (Oladunjoye & Onyeaso, 2007, pp. 92 – 598). Based on everything that has been stated above and the manner in which Nestle’s is cur rently operating in China, India, Africa, the Middle East and Eastern Europe, it is clear that the company has adopted many different successful strategies that are helping it to gain a competitive edge in these markets while continuing to benefit from the ‘first mover’ advantage that it has created for itself. Through research on NESTLE, identify appropriate performance indicators.Once you have gathered relevant data on these, undertake a performance analysis of the company over the last five years. What does the analysis tell you about the success or otherwise of the strategy adopted by the company? An analysis of Nestle’s performance indicates that the Company has been able to improve its performance over the years. The sales of the Company reached a record of US $73 billion, and growth in profits was 20. 7% in 2005. In 2005, Europe amounted to 30% of sales, Americas 34%, and Asia, Oceania and Africa 17% of the sales.Nestle is aware that it need to adjust its offering if it is to reach its target of 5-6% growth per year. (Country Monitor, 2006). Public Image – In a world that is becoming increasingly complex, consumer needs and wants continue to become more sophisticated on a daily basis. Unlike in the past when companies could simply mass produce and sell products to the end user, today, consumers are demanding more not only in terms of pricing and quality but also in terms of corporate social responsibility.Therefore it is necessary for Nestle to continuously monitor and manage its public image and it is also very important from a strategic perspective that the company is seen as a socially responsible corporate citizen (Niederhut-Bollmann & Theuvsen, 2008, 63 – 68). Compared to many other multi national companies, Nestle’s has not earned the public ire for being irresponsible socially, however as the global slave trade for chocolate manufacturers comes to light it is essential that Nestle’s looks at ways an d means to ensure that it is not ensnared in such a public relations nightmare.Sales Growth – This is a very important performance indicators and should give the company a sense of its successes and failures in terms of strategy. Currently the company has been doing very well on this front and should carefully monitor the external and the internal environments for any factors that may pose a threat to its continued success in this area (Roberts, 2001, pp, 25 – 28). Following a growth strategy in emerging markets is actually a very good strategy that has paid off and continues to pay off, however this does not mean that the company can afford to be laid back on this score.Market Share – By gaining ‘first mover advantage’ the company has been able to gain and retain its market share through the years, however it is also necessary that the company continues to learn from its past mistakes in Japan and other countries, where it did not take the competit ion seriously and therefore has lost much in terms of market share that it could otherwise have gained (Odagiri, 1992).Blue Ocean Strategies – As markets continue to mature and other markets continue to develop it is imperative that the company focuses its attention on research and development and creates ‘blue oceans’ in order to find new markets (Gubman, 2004, pp. 13). This is something that Nestle is currently lagging at and needs to pay particular attention to with immediate effect.Based on everything that has been stated above it is therefore clear that while the company does excel in areas such as managing its public image and sales growth, there is much more improvement needed to be made in the search for innovative market strategies that will help force it to success in the future. How would you describe Nestle's strategic posture at the corporate level; is it pursuing a global strategy, a multidomestic strategy an international strategy or a transnationa l strategy? Figure 2 – Which Structure to Choose? Source: http://www. wiziq. com/tutorial/380-International-StrategyIllustrated above is a depiction of the different corporate level strategies that can be adopted by multi national companies the world over. Such strategy is often chosen on the degree of need for global integration and local market responsiveness (Kaplan and Norton, 2001, pp. 87). Based on the information that has been provided in the case study it is clear that Nestle is a company that need to gain a high level of local market responsiveness due to the variety of different business development related strategies that is pursuing in different parts of the world.For instance while in the Middle East it has entered the markets by building five different lines of products that it hopes will be distributed across the region as trade barriers fall, in countries like China and India, it is pursuing a different strategy of meeting the basic food needs of the populatio n with items such as infant formula and condensed milk. It is the intention of the company in these markets that once standards of living increase, they can leave these Niche markets and provide consumers with more upscale and upmarket products like chocolates and cookies.Further it can also be stated that as a company with only 1% of its revenue being earned in the home country and 8000 different brands, global integration is a must (Lowson, 2002). Therefore it is the opinion of the writer that Nestle need to choose between the multi domestic strategy and a transnational strategy and not swing from one to another, because doing so would only result in the company loosing focus of its final aim, which is to be a global consumer food products leader (George, 2007, pp. 6 – 71). Based on the information that has been provided in the case study it is the opinion of the writer that Nestle’s should choose a transnational strategy because it balances both the global integrati on needs of the company and the local market responsiveness that is necessary to ensure that the company’s products will be competitive and continue to meet the needs of the local population in the emerging markets that it is operating in (Marks, 2005, pp. 1).While many maybe of the opinion that the company should continue to pursue its multi domestic strategy as it has worked well for it in the past, the changing needs of the global environment and the development taking place in the emerging markets make it necessary to gain synergies of scale and global integration for the many brands that it has under its belt and therefore a transnational strategy is the best option for Nestle’s in the future (Barney and Hesterly, 2008).Does this overall strategic posture make sense given the markets and countries that Nestle participates in? Why? The overall strategic posture of Nestle makes a lot of sense given the fact that it is operating in virtually every country in the worl d, with a huge presence in the emerging markets. According to Hill (2006), that multidomestic strategy is appropriate in a market where the pressures for local responsiveness is very high and as a results the pressures for the cost reduction is low.Especially, pressures for local responsiveness can be very high in some productions, such as food, chocolates, dairy nutrition and etc. From the time when consumers have many national differences in tastes and preferences, distribution channels, competitive conditions, business practices, culture and government policies in the markets in which Nestle operates, therefore following a multidomestic strategy is beneficial for the Company.The difference in cultures and purchasing power (Prahalad et al, 1998) in the middle class population in emerging markets imply that in order for a first mover to gain advantage, it must be willing to adapt its product and offer in accordance with the needs of the local market. Figure 3 Source: http://www. do cstoc. com/docs/5632428/Ethnocentric-Polycentric-Geocentric-Diagr ams As stated in the previous section the overall strategy that is currently being followed by Nestle’s is one that focuses on local market responsiveness over global integration, which in effect results in a multi domestic strategy (Shackman, 2007, pp. 79 – 488). It is no doubt however that such a strategy has indeed helped the company to gain the level of success that it currently enjoys in emerging markets, and therefore can be considered as good. However we should always remember that strategies should promise equal or more success in the future as they do for the company today (Cabrera and Cabrera, 2003, pp. 41) and therefore reviewing the strategy from such an angle would work to the benefit of the company in the long run.The company currently follows a regiocentric attitude as is clear from the illustrations above, while it can be reiterated that this type of structure and strategy works to the ad vantage of the company, in the long run as the emerging markets being to mature and the company continues on its mergers and acquisitions strategies to enter new markets in Eastern Europe, it will become essential that the company gains some level of global synergy and integration (Mcwilliams, Van Fleet, & Wright, 2001, pp. 1).Therefore it is the recommendation of the writer that the company begins to embark on a transnational strategy with a Geocentric attitude, which will eventually help it to have a more global view with flexibility to make necessary changes at local level whenever and as frequently as needed (Donaldson & O'Toole, 2002). Therefore in conclusion it can be stated that even though the current strategic posture makes sense, it needs to be reviewed and modified if the company is to continue to penetrate, gain and retain market share in the emerging economies as well as the developed economies the world over (Mockler, 1999).Is Nestle's management structure and philosop hy aligned with its overall strategic posture? The overall structure and the strategy of the company as stated previously and has been made clear to the reader throughout the case study, is that the company pursues a multi domestic strategy, due to the need to have a high responsiveness to the local market needs (Drejer, 2002).While this is impressive, the company goes further to also ensure that it is staffed by local nationals in the host countries and that power and authority is decentralised as much as possible, again indicating that the management structure is indeed very much aligned to its philosophy of local autonomy and its multi domestic strategy (Silverman, 2002).However instead of relying on the local managers alone, the company also has a pool of at least 700 expatriate managers who travel from one country to another ensuring that the local and regional strategies of the company are upheld and global integration is a possibility (Mintzberg & Rose, 2003, pp. 70 – 277), while this may sound like a sound and often a wise move on the part of the company, the fact that none of the regional international managers get involved in local level stratey design and the fact that none of the local level managers are involved in the global strategy design and development leaves a disconnect that can cost the company dearly in the long run and therefore it is necessary to take a close look at the integration of both and make changes wherever necessary (Betz, 2001).Based on everything that has been stated above, it is therefore the opinion of the writer that greater global integration is necessary as the company moves forward and hopes to retain its place as a market leader by gaining large shares of the market in emerging economies, which it has strived hard to build over the last few decades. In effect it is therefore necessary to ensure that there is high levels of global integration and simultaneously ensure that there is high levels of local market re sponsiveness as well (Lefkowith, 2001, pp. 20).As stated previously this is only possible if the company follows a transnational strategy and this strategy and philosophy should be made a possibility by changing the current management structure within the company to one that allows for regional managers to gain an understanding of local issues and challenges and vice versa. This will help the company to align its goals and objectives both on an international local level and thus be more integrated in both spheres. Read more: http://www. ukessays. com/essays/marketing/nestle-case-study-assinemnt-marketin