The Emerging Trends or Challenges in the Management of Organizations

The Emerging Trends or Challenges in the Management of Organizations The Emerging Trends or Challenges in the Management of Organizations INTRODUCTION Organizational Behavior studies encompass the study of organizations from multiple viewpoints, methods, and levels of analysis. Whenever people interact in organizations, many factors come into play. Modern organizational studies attempt to understand and model these factors. Like all modernist social sciences, organizational studies seek to control, predict, and explain. There is some controversy over the ethics of controlling workers' behavior.As such, organizational behavior has at times been accused of being the scientific tool of the powerful. Those accusations notwithstanding, Organizational behavior can play a major role in organizational development and success. One of the main goals of organizational theorists is, according to Simms (1994) â€Å"to revitalize organizational theory and develop a better conceptualization of org anizational life. † An organizational theorist should carefully consider levels assumptions being made in theory, and is concerned to help managers and administrators. [1] Organizational behavior is currently a growing field.Organizational studies departments generally form part of business schools, although many universities also have industrial psychology and industrial economics programs. The field is highly influential in the business world. Organizational behavior is becoming more important in the global economy as people with diverse backgrounds and cultural values have to work together effectively and efficiently. It is also under increasing criticism as a field for its ethnocentric and pro-capitalist assumptions. Views on management have changed substantially over the past century – particularly in the past few decades.Organizations have entered a new era characterized by rapid, dramatic and turbulent changes. The accelerated pace of change has transformed how w ork is performed by employees in diverse organizations. Change has truly become an inherent and integral part of organizational life. Several emerging trends are impacting organizational life. Of these emerging trends, five will be examined in this paper: globalization, diversity, flexibility, flat, and networks. These five emerging trends create tensions for organizational leaders and employees as they go through waves of changes in their organizations.These tensions present opportunities as well as threats, and if these tensions are not managed well, they will result in dysfunctional and dire organizational outcomes at the end of any change process. CHALLENGES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF ORGANIZATIONS GLOBALIZATION Organizations operate in a global economy that is characterized by greater and more intense competition, and at the same time, greater economic interdependence and collaboration. More products and services are being consumed outside of their country of origin than ever before as globalization brings about greater convergence in terms of consumer tastes and preferences.Yet at the same time, in the midst of greater convergence, there is the opposite force of divergence at work where companies have to adapt corporate and business strategies, marketing plans, and production efforts to local domestic markets. To stay competitive, more organizations are embracing offshore outsourcing. Many functions are being shifted to India, the Philippines, Malaysia, and other countries for their low labor costs, high levels of workforce education, and technological advantages.According to the 2002-2003 Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Workplace Forecast, companies such as Ford, General Motors, and Nestle employ more people outside of their headquarters countries than within those countries. [1] Almost any company, whether in manufacturing or services, can find some part of its work that can be done off site. Communication and information sharing are occurring a cross the globe in multiple languages and multiple cultures. Global competition and global cooperation coexist in the new world economy.One major consequence of globalization is greater mobility in international capital and labor markets. This creates a global marketplace where there is more opportunity, because there are more potential customers. However, there is also more competition, as local companies have to compete with foreign companies for customers. According to Dani Rodrik, professor of international political economy at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, the processes associated with the global integration of markets for goods, services, and capital have created two sources of tensions. 1] First, reduced barriers to trade and investment accentuate the asymmetries between groups that can cross international borders, and those that cannot. In the first category are owners of capital, highly skilled workers, and many professionals. Unskilled and semiskilled workers and most middle managers belong in the second category. [1] Second, globalization engenders conflicts within and between nations over domestic norms and the social institutions that embody them.As the technology for manufactured goods becomes standardized and diffused internationally, nations with very different sets of values, norms, institutions, and collective preferences begin to compete head on in markets for similar goods. Trade becomes contentious when it unleashes forces that undermine the norms implicit in local or domestic workplace practices. [1] Professor Rodrik concluded that â€Å"the most serious challenge for the world economy in the years ahead lies in making globalization compatible with domestic social and political stability† (Rodrik 1997, p. 2).This implies ensuring that international economic integration does not lead to domestic social disintegration. Organizations that are confronted with this challenge will have to manage the tension created by the globa l integration versus local disintegration dilemma. The overall picture as a consequence of globalization is one of turbulence and uncertainty, in which a variety of contradictory processes present a wide range of both opportunities and threats that defy established ways of doing business and working in organizations. Integration and exclusion coexist uneasily side-by-side in organizations.For example, many apparent dichotomies or paradoxes—competitions versus collaboration, market forces versus state intervention, global actions versus local solutions—are losing their sharp edges as contradictory forces appear to converge and reinforce each other in organizations across the globe. Companies that compete fiercely in some markets form strategic alliances in others; government guidance and regulation are required to make markets work effectively; and â€Å"think globally, act locally† has been adopted as business strategy (or as a mantra) to deal with the challenge s of doing business in the globalize economy.As organizations transform themselves to stay competitive, they will need to confront and resolve some, if not all, of these dichotomies or paradoxes. [1] On another level, because of globalization, the fates of people living and working in different parts of the world are becoming intertwined. Global events may have significant local impact. September 11, 2001 has been called the â€Å"day that changed the world†. Heightened security concerns are changing expectations for people in organizations, and the role of organizations themselves.The threat of terrorism continues to be an ongoing concern worldwide. It has created a renewed focus on workplace security as employees experience a heightened sense of vulnerability in the workplace. Employee monitoring and screening are occurring more frequently. Concern over travel for business purposes is resulting in the increased use of alternate forms of communication such as teleconferencin g and videoconferencing. [1] DIVERSITY Globalization is impacting how organizations compete with each other.In combination with changing demographics, globalization is causing a rapid increase in diversity in organizations. Never before have people been required to work together with colleagues and customers from so many different cultures and countries. Diversity is moving American society away from â€Å"mass society† to â€Å"mosaic society†. Organizations reflect this â€Å"mosaic society† in their more diverse workforce (in terms of not only race, ethnic or culture but also in terms of age, sexual orientation, and other demographic variables).More than ever, people have to interact and communicate with others who come from diverse backgrounds. This in turn has meant that employees need new relational skills to succeed. An emerging stream of research in international management has called these new relational skills â€Å"cultural intelligence†. Cultu ral intelligence is defined as the capability to adapt effectively across different national, organizational and professional cultures (Earley, Ang and Tan, 2005). More managers take up global work assignments in industries around the world.They learn how to work with people who not only think and communicate differently but also do things differently. Managers will need to develop their cultural intelligence to manage greater diversity in organizations. [1] Diversity in organizations will continue to increase. The world population is growing at a high rate in developing countries, while remaining stable or decreasing in the developed world. The result will be income inequities and economic opportunity leading to increased immigration and migration within and between nations.More temporary workers will be used for specific tasks, and there will be a greater demand for highly skilled workers. People of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds possess different attitudes, values, and norms. Increasing cultural diversity in both public and private sector organizations focuses attention on the distinctions between ethnic and cultural groups in their attitudes and performance at work. This greater focus can result in the tension between finding similarities and accentuating differences in the face of greater diversity in organizations.There is an on-going debate between the heterogenists and the homogenists concerning the impact of greater diversity in organizations. The heterogenists contend that diverse or heterogeneous groups in organizations have performance advantages over homogeneous groups while the homogenists take the opposing view—that homogeneous groups are more advantageous than heterogeneous or diverse groups in organizations. [2] According to the heterogenists, organizations with greater diversity have an advantage in attracting and retaining the best available human talent.The exceptional capabilities of women and minorities offer a rich labo r pool for organizations to tap. When organizations attract, retain, and promote maximum utilization of people from diverse cultural backgrounds, they gain competitive advantage and sustain the highest quality of human resources. [2] Organizations with greater diversity can understand and penetrate wider and enhanced markets. Not only do these organizations embrace a diverse workforce internally, they are better suited to serve a diverse external clientele.Organizations with greater diversity also display higher creativity and innovation. Especially in research-oriented and high technology organizations, the array of talents provided by a gender- and ethnic-diverse organization becomes invaluable. Heterogeneous or diverse groups display better problem solving ability as they are more capable of avoiding the consequences of groupthink, compared to highly cohesive and homogeneous groups that are more susceptible to conformity. [2] On the other hand, greater organizational diversity ha s its drawbacks.With the benefits of diversity come organizational costs. Too much diversity can lead to dysfunctional outcomes. Diversity increases ambiguity, complexity, and confusion. Organizations with greater diversity may have difficulty reaching consensus and implementing solutions. In many organizations, diversity can produce negative dynamics such as ethnocentrism, stereotyping and cultural clashes. [2] The homogenists argue that homogeneous groups often outperform culturally diverse groups, especially where there is a serious communication problem.Cross-cultural training is necessary to enable culturally diverse groups to live up to their potential and overcome communication difficulties. The diversity movement, according to the homogenists, has the potential to polarize different social groups and harm productivity while breeding cynicism and resentment, heightening intergroup frictions and tensions, and lowering productivity, just the opposite of what managing diversity is intended to accomplish. 2] The challenge therefore is for management to manage the tension produced by heterogeneity versus homogeneity. If properly managed, organizations can reap the benefits of greater diversity. Aside from proper management, organizations need to learn to appreciate and value diversity before the benefits of diversity can be fully realized. To achieve this, diversity training programs may help people in organizations understand and value diversity. FLEXIBILITY Globalization and diversity trends are forcing organizations to become more flexible and adaptable.To be able to function globally and to embrace diversity, leaders and employees in organizations have to become more flexible and develop a wider repertoire of skills and strategies in working with diverse groups of people in the workplace as well as in the marketplace. The response to increased diversity has, in many cases, been increased organizational flexibility. Some organizations allow workers to hav e very different work arrangements (e. g. flex-time) and payment schedules. Some organizations (and workers) have found it convenient to treat some workers as independent consultants rather than employees.In certain occupations, advances in communication and information technologies have enabled telecommuting —working at home via computer. One consequence of this is the blurring of boundaries between work and home, and where and when work occurs. The benefits of greater flexibility may be countered by the negative consequences of working 24/7 including higher stress and burnout. The response to increased competition, however, has resulted in a tension generated by the demands to be flexible and yet maintain some stability as changes are implemented in organizations.To stay competitive, organizations are constantly changing and restructuring to increase flexibility and decrease costs. Business process reengineering, business process out-sourcing, job redesign, and other approa ches to optimize business processes have been implemented to increase operational and process efficiency while reducing the costs of doing business. Changes in business and operational processes need time to stabilize for employees to learn the new processes, become familiar with them, and be able to operate effectively and efficiently.Yet, competitive pressures can cause organizations to go through a series of changes without giving employees adequate time for learning and training, and for the benefits of the change to be fully realized in the organization. FLAT In a greater competitive marketplace, speed or response time is critical. How organizations response to customers and other stakeholders or be the first to market may make a significant difference as time is at a premium. Organizations that can develop new technologies faster or can adapt to changes in the market faster are the ones that will survive the competition.To maximize response time, organizations have been flatte ning their hierarchies and structures, in addition to other initiatives such as downsizing and networking. Flat organizations make decisions more quickly because each person is closer to the ultimate decision-makers. There are fewer levels of management, and workers are empowered to make decisions. Decision-making becomes decentralized. However, flat organizations create a new tension between decentralization and centralization. Among the drivers of decentralization are communications technologies that allow companies to push decision-making away from the core.Proponents of decentralization emphasize the idea that less hierarchical organizations mirror the efficiencies of the networks that enable them: they are faster, more resilient, more responsive, more flexible and more innovative. Also, they argue, people who work within decentralized organizations feel empowered and energized. They do not need to focus on the chain of command and they do not feel constrained by it. Organizatio ns are caught between the opposing forces of centralization and decentralization.They want to leverage the opportunities offered by decentralization and create more nimble and forceful organizations, but they cannot always do so because the forces of centralization come into play. There are obvious benefits to centralization as control is comparatively tighter and accountability is clearer compared to a flatter, more decentralized organizational structure. Take the example of IT operations. The key to a centralized organization's success is its responsiveness. If the centralized operation can be responsive to the needs of the business, then that approach can make sense.Several companies, such as DaimlerChrysler and PepsiCo, have migrated back to centralizing IT operations after attempts at decentralization. [3] The debate over the centralization versus decentralization of operations in organizations is an enduring one. It is an age-old battle of standardization versus autonomy, corp orate efficiency versus local effectiveness and pressure on costs and resources versus accommodation of specific local needs. [4] Vacillation between centralization and decentralization is both non-productive and unnecessary.Organizations, as they desire to become flatter, will need to be clear about how they need to respond to the tension between centralization and decentralization. [4] NETWORKS Organizations that flatten tend to encourage horizontal communication among workers. Rather than working through the organizational hierarchy, it is often faster for workers who need to coordinate with each other simply to communicate directly. Such organizations are highly networked. Another meaning of networked organizations refers to their relations to other organizations.Organizations that have downsized to just their core competencies must then outsource all the functions that used to be done in-house. To avoid losing time and effort managing contracts with suppliers, organizations hav e learned to develop close ties to their suppliers so that social mechanisms of coordination replace legal mechanisms, which are slow and costly. Networked organizations are particularly important in industries with complex products where technologies and customer needs change rapidly, such as in high technology industries.Close ties among a set of companies enables them to work with each other in ways that are faster than arms-length contracts would permit, and yet retains the flexibility of being able to drop the relationship if needed (as opposed to performing the function in-house). The trend towards networked organizations and structures create a new tension between interdependence and independence. The forces of aggregation and disaggregation throw up new challenges for organizations, for example, the use of independent contractors, joint ventures, strategic partnerships and alliances even with competitors. 1] One advantage of networks is that organizations have greater flexib ility and thus they can become more competitive in the global marketplace. Another advantage is that organizations do not require that many resources such as employee benefits, office space, and financing for new business ventures. [1] On the other hand, networks have distinct disadvantages. Organizations may find it more difficult to control quality of goods or services as they now have to depend on their partners in the networks to deliver the quality that is desired.Legal and contracting expertise as well as negotiation expertise will also be important for networks. Alternative forms of control may need to be developed to control quality. Alternative mechanisms for coordination may also need to be developed to manage the growing constellation and sometimes tenuous nature of other partner organizations in the network. [1] CONCLUSION All the five trends – Globalization, Diversity, Flexibility, Flat, and Network and the tensions they produce result in greater organizational o r system complexity for both leaders and employees in organizations. The tensions produced by these trends cannot be solved.They have to be managed. Effective approaches in organizational change will involve not one strategy but many alternatives and will require leaders and employees to develop greater resilience in confronting these tensions. Change–Trends and Tensions in Organizations |Trends |Tensions | |1. Globalization |Global versus Local | |2. Diversity |Heterogeneity versus Homogeneity | |3.Flexibility |Flexibility versus Stability | |4. Flat |Centralization versus Decentralization | |5. Networks |Interdependence versus Independence | Planning and managing change, both cultural and technological, is one of the most challenging elements of a leader in an organization. Obviously, the more a leader can plan in anticipation of a change, the better he/she serves her subordinates or employees and the organization.Diagnosing the causes of change and structuring a program to promote a smooth transition to the new process, structure, and so on, is critical to the leader as well as the management’s success.BIBLIOGRAPHY [1] -No Author– â€Å"Trends in Organizational Change†. Available at http://www. referenceforbusiness. com/management/Tr-Z/Trends-in-Organizational-Change. html

Eating Disorder Essay

A few years ago, Britney Spears and her entourage swept through my boss’s office. As she sashayed past, I blushed and stammered and leaned over my desk to shake her hand. She looked right into my eyes and smiled her pageant smile, and I confess, I felt dizzy. I immediately rang up friends to report my celebrity encounter, saying: â€Å"She had on a gorgeous, floor-length white fur coat! Her skin was blotchy!† I’ve never been much of a Britney fan, so why the contact high? Why should I care? For that matter, why should any of us? Celebrities are fascinating because they live in a parallel universe—one that looks and feels just like ours yet is light-years beyond our reach. Stars cry to Diane Sawyer about their problems—failed marriages, hardscrabble upbringings, bad career decisions—and we can relate. The paparazzi catch them in wet hair and a stained T-shirt, and we’re thrilled. They’re ordinary folks, just like us. And yet†¦ Stars live in another world entirely, one that makes our lives seem woefully dull by comparison. The teary chat with Diane quickly turns to the subject of a recent $10 million film fee and honorary United Nations ambassadorship. The magazines that specialize in gotcha snapshots of schleppy-looking celebs also feature Cameron Diaz wrapped in a $15,000 couture gown and glowing with youth, money and star power. We’re left hanging—and we want more. It’s easy to blame the media for this cognitive whiplash. But the real celebrity spinmeister is our  own mind, which tricks us into believing the stars are our lovers and our social intimates. Celebrity culture plays to all of our innate tendencies: We’re built to view anyone we recognize as an acquaintance ripe for gossip or for romance, hence our powerful interest in Anna Kournikova’s sex life. Since catching sight of a beautiful face bathes the brain in pleasing chemicals, George Clooney’s killer smile is impossible to ignore. But when celebrities are both our intimate daily companions and as distant as the heavens above, it’s hard to know just how to think of them. Reality TV further confuses the picture by transforming ordinary folk into bold-faced names without warning. Even celebrities themselves are not immune to celebrity watching: Magazines print pictures of Demi Moore and â€Å"Bachelorette† Trista Rehn reading the very same gossip magazines that stalk them. â€Å"Most pushers are users, don’t you think?† says top Hollywood publicist Michael Levine. â€Å"And, by the way, it’s not the worst thing in the world to do.† Celebrities tap into powerful motivational systems designed to foster romantic love and to urge us to find a mate. Stars summon our most human yearnings: to love, admire, copy and, of course, to gossip and to jeer. It’s only natural that we get pulled into their gravitational field. Exclusive: Fan’s brain transformed by celebrity power! John Lennon infuriated the faithful when he said the Beatles were more popular than Jesus, but he wasn’t the first to suggest that celebrity culture was taking the place of religion. With its myths, its rituals (the red carpet walk, the Super Bowl ring, the handprints outside Grauman’s Chinese Theater) and its ability to immortalize, it fills a similar cultural niche. In a secular society our need for ritualized idol worship can be displaced onto stars, speculates psychologist James Houran, formerly of the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and now director of psychological studies for True Beginnings dating service. Nonreligious people tend to be more interested in celebrity culture, he’s found, and Houran speculates that for them, celebrity fills some of the same roles the church fills for believers, like the desire to admire the powerful and the drive to fit into a community of people with shared values. Leo Braudy, author of The Frenzy of Renown: Fame and its History, suggests that celebrities are more like Christian calendar saints than like spiritual  authorities (Tiger Woods, patron saint of arriviste golfers; or Jimmy Carter, protector of down-home liberal farmers?). â€Å"Celebrities have their aura—a debased version of charisma† that stems from their all-powerful captivating presence, Braudy says. Much like spiritual guidance, celebrity-watching can be inspiring, or at least help us muster the will to tackle our own problems. â€Å"Celebrities motivate us to make it,† says Helen Fisher, an anthropologist at Rutgers University in New Jersey. Oprah Winfrey suffered through poverty, sexual abuse and racial discrimination to become the wealthiest woman in media. Lance Armstrong survived advanced testicular cancer and went on to win the Tour de France five times. Star-watching can also simply point the way to a grander, more dramatic way of living, publicist Levine says. â€Å"We live lives more dedicated to safety or quiet desperation, and we transcend this by connecting with bigger lives—those of the stars,† he says. â€Å"We’re afraid to eat that fatty muffin, but Ozzy Osborne isn’t.† Don’t I know you?! Celebrities are also common currency in our socially fractured world. Depressed college coeds and laid-off factory workers both spend hours watching Anna Nicole Smith on late night television; Mexican villagers trade theories with hometown friends about who killed rapper Tupac Shakur; and Liberian and German businessmen critique David Beckham’s plays before hammering out deals. My friend Britney Spears was, in fact, the top international Internet search of 2003. In our global village, the best targets for gossip are the faces we all know. We are born to dish dirt, evolutionary psychologists agree; it’s the most efficient way to navigate society and to determine who is trustworthy. They also point out that when our brains evolved, anybody with a familiar face was an â€Å"in-group† member, a person whose alliances and enmities were important to keep track of.

Executive Brief on 'Google in China' Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Executive Brief on 'Google in China' - Essay Example Within 3 years of launch of its website, Google garnered 30% of the share of total web search industry. (Google 2008) Later, due to its reluctance to apologize for allowing certain illegal sites to be obtained through its search results for Chinese users, it faced some regulation process from the Chinese government, banning several features of it. Following that, some malicious attacks on their Chinese servers and Gmail through alleged sources from China, Google reported in January 2010 as putting its operations in China in abeyance. A lot has been discussed about this move and several notions have been posed from several quarters. Decisions are yet to happen in a unanimous manner from all parties. Google’s stand on continuing its operations in China has presented an interesting proposition for analyzing the pros and cons of its decision. The current scenario is such that both the parties could lose out on major opportunities if Google decides to continue its suspended action in China. Google could lose out to its competitors of China and may end up losing out a major stake of its business from the fastest establishing super power of the world. At the same time, China’s rules and regulations are in correspondence to the rule of government, thereby disabling itself from any change of its course with respect to Google. The report aims at identifying the different factors such as the internal and external contributors, providing key inputs on the current strategy followed by both the parties involved, and depicting a possible movement of the market according to the different decisions that might be taken in future. Google established its Google China (Google.cn) in 2006. The first step of its strategy was to obey to the rules of the government prohibiting certain search results accessible to its users. The second step was to

The sub‐prime crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

The sub†prime crisis - Essay Example taking their toll on the modern economies however with prudent monetary policy and effective risk management practices, the future episodes of such nature may be avoided. Getting consumer credit through various financial institutions especially banks requires consumers to maintain a certain degree of credit rating in order to qualify for those loans. Unlike large corporate companies, consumers or rather individuals pose a different challenge and dynamics to financial institutions to cater their needs for credit and formal funding requirements of these individuals. It is because of this reason that various banks and financial institutions have developed their internal rating methodologies which they assign to various consumers asking for credit. Banks than through their internal as well external credit scores or ratings decide to whom they should provide the credit. These criteria of credit rating often are designed to be tough since Banks in order to avoid defaults, tighten their criteria to extend the credit to these customers. However, due to increasing needs of those customers, whose credit history or their credit ratings do not fall under the cri teria laid down by the banks, banks try to accommodate them also. Sub-prime lending is the part of that phenomenon. â€Å"Sub-Prime lending typically has been characterized as lending at relatively costly interest rates and fees to credit impaired or otherwise high risk borrowers.†Error: Reference source not found. Subprime loans are among the newly popular mortgage products, such as interest-only loans, for people with strained budgets, including first-time buyers. Homeowners increasingly use them to refinance and consolidate household debts when their credit scores fall in the wake of bankruptcy, high medical bills, or other setbacks.Error: Reference source not found. It is generally believed that the subprime borrowers emerge due to lack of the good credit history on their back and since there number grew

Contrasts between Sanders's definition of pornography with the Supreme Essay

Contrasts between Sanders's definition of pornography with the Supreme court's definition - Essay Example On the other hand, the opponents have stood firm to criticize it with the argument that freedom of expression is limited and is not guaranteed on aspects that ruin people’s morality. Some feminists have also criticised it on grounds of propagating gender violence and stereotyping. Sanders’ definition of pornography is vastly different from the Supreme Court’s definition.   Sanders defines pornography as turning of the human body into a commodity that can be sold and be used in transactions like other goods in the market. He further mentions that the act separates the body from the self (Sanders105). The definition of obscenity according to the United States laws emanates from Hicklin standard that was later embraced by the Supreme Court. In the case, Rosen versus United States, it became apparent that the Supreme Court had adopted the definition of obscenity to comprise any material that has potential to corrupt minds that are open to such immoral influences, i t further bound the individual whose hands the material may be found (Blue 79). The law depicted some inconsistencies with Sanders’ definition. The test was found inappropriate and the Supreme Court had to adopt the Roth test for obscenity. The Roth test was a slight milestone to the definition of pornography. Despite the effort, no harmony is evident with the sanders’ definition. ... The Supreme Court has no concrete definition of pornography since it does not have a law that limits on its own. However, the justice system has adopted the law of obscenity. This law leaves many gray areas that provide an enabling environment for pornography in the society. Justice Stewart is well remembered for his stand on obscenity when he reckoned that â€Å"I know it when I see it† (Blue 80). This brings much controversy since different individuals will exhibit different opinions, therefore lacking a standardised way of dealing with such crimes. Pornography issues have been dealt with a lot of disparity. Sander makes it clear that the act of engaging in trade with human bodies has no bounds. In 1968, the Supreme Court suspended the viewing of sexual content by children but upheld their viewing by adults. In a landmark ruling made in the case of Butler versus Michigan in1957, it was established that the adults should not be stooped too low and be categorised similarly as children ( National Academies 6). This type of variable obscenity creates not only amoral crisis but also a constitutional crisis, since the bill of rights gives an equal regard for all citizens. The major setback to such a ruling is the inability to distinguish the consumer of the sexual content given that children can access the same media that is used by adults. The thoughts raised by Sanders in his definition can be universally accepted. This is because they encourage morality, respect for human rights and dignity as well as the need to protect self from being tarnished by the shameful acts of pornography. In real terms, the focus of the supreme on promoting responsible social behaviour is limited and very inconsistent. The fact that the Supreme Court has a leeway to

Editing of Video and Sound in the Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Editing of Video and Sound in the - Movie Review Example Videoââ€"  There are a total of about 30 shots for the 310-second clip, which yields an average shot length (ASL) of 10 seconds.ââ€"  There were notable long takes (lasting more than 15 seconds), which include :1-:37 (soldier 1 walks in the hallway), :49-1:16 (soldier 2 in the sitting in the toilet), 2:51-3:14 (soldier 3 enters the toilet), 3:20:3:39 (soldier 3 talks to soldier 2) and short takes, such as 3:57-3:58 (gunshot), 3:59-4:00 (close-up shot of soldier 2), 4:55 (soldier 1 shouts), and slow-motion at 3:56-3:58 (soldier falls). The unusually long takes set the contemplative and suspenseful tone of the film. The short takes, meanwhile, emphasize the climactic moments of the sequence and highlight the tension felt by the characters.Soundââ€"  There was a non-diegetic (off-screen) musical accompaniment which consisted of two musical instruments that played in slow tempo. The dark and high-pitched background music combined with the predominantly quiet diegetic (on-screen) en vironment seemed to warn of an impending tragedy/doom.ââ€"  Several sound effects including the loading of the magazine (1:09-1:15, 1:47-1:48), the clanking of the rifle (2:15-2:17, 2:23-2:24), the loading of the rifle (2:28-2:31), and gunshots (3:57, 3:56) were included. A deep, moaning sound was heard from 3:57-4:00. Aside from the dialogue and background music, these sound effects were the only type of sound heard in the sequence, which tend to highlight violence and monstrosity.

Aristotle Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Aristotle - Essay Example p.)Aristotle reaches the threshold of spirituality but stumbles there. He is unable to cross the final hurdle to the land of the divine, where bliss alone reigns. It is the conflict –free land of peace, with no secular dualities. The question is how to reach the level of eternal and universal truth? Aristotle’s ethical theory is incomplete and creates a vacuum. How can an ethical man know about the correctness of a moral decision? His theory does not explain how to act morally and it suffers from lack of specifics. There is a â€Å"brain† behind the working and functioning of this entire cosmos of which humankind is the part. A brain that is par-excellence, supreme and extraordinary! The top-scientists of this world are unable to withstand its power. One has no option but to agree that such an out of the world genius could only be hailed as God. In this context, let me give a practical example. Take it that we are in a railway station waiting for the arrival of d estination train. We have a heavy suitcase that consists of apparel and currency notes. All of a sudden, we are required to go somewhere for a short while. But the suitcase is heavy and we are not comfortable to carry the suitcase while rushing over there. In such a situation, will we handover the suitcase to some unknown person with whom we are not acquainted with? No! Never! Suppose some of our known person, our neighbor with whom we are well-acquainted with, or a relative happens to be there? Undoubtedly, we will trust that known individual, handover the suitcase to him and will go for the intended purpose, without any worry. A known person is worthy of trust. Meaning, introduction and knowledge are the foundation stones of the edifice of trust. It is but natural, that which is worth the trust, is worthy of love as well. To such an individual we will handover without hesitation the costliest of the things. Meaning, at the root of all this procedure is—knowing or introducti on! For the glow it is necessary to light the bulb. For enjoying the taste, it is necessary to eat the item. Just by watching the game from the gallery, one will not be able to gauge the level of enthusiasm that goes on in the heart of the player on the ground. To know that he has to be the player, take active part in the game, and reach the ground, after its practice. For a student of science, it is not sufficient, if he learns some theorems and the theory part of the syllabus. He has to reach out to the laboratory, and it is necessary for him to do the experiments. On the same line, in the field of practical vision of God, only study of texts, discussions and meditation, are not adequate to reach the goal. Practically experience and view the glorious procession of divine designs and creations within! Aristotle does not have a clear picture about the inner world. Therefore he falters and his arguments are incomplete. They reach the dead end. Theoretical wisdom is not adequate to re ach the level of â€Å"eternal and universal truth.† Now the question arises, after all, how this matchless world has been accommodated in this tiny human body? In what form and by adopting which procedure one can have the practical vision of its entire details? Let me illustrate this position through a scenario: Once a Realized Soul, (one who knows the â€Å"eternal and universal truth†) was giving a spiritual discourse. Amongst the audience, one intellectual Surgeon (Doctor) was there. The moment he heard that human body was the abode of the Lord and an inner world exists within, he was unable to digest that reasoning and was agitated much. He expressed his doubts about what was told in the spiritual discourse. Putting forth the arguments he questioned RS (Realized Soul), â€Å"

What gendered relationship(s) does your cultural role or practice Essay

What gendered relationship(s) does your cultural role or practice encourage - Essay Example Basically, gender is developed under the influence of culture. Male or female gender roles have been shaped in certain social and national contexts. Therefore, culture depends on gender roles and gender roles depend on culture. If we try to speak figuratively, a dilemma of culture-gender relationship interdependence may be compared with a chicken and egg riddle. Gender role and culture relationship In the context of a given situation on the example taken from Bangladesh and Cambodian cultures, we would further claim that gender role and culture interdependence has been currently interpreted from a different perspective: i.e. with the cultural changes in these countries, gender roles have been also gradually changed. Situation 1 In Bangladesh, like in many other countries, there have always existed differences between â€Å"women’s/men’s work†. With the growth of garment trade policies in this country, many women became a part of a labor force. The norms of purdah (female seclusion) have been changed and women became employees in this field of activity. Moreover, earlier women were not greatly visible in the city of Dhaka, but there is much more women in the streets than earlier. Consequently, we can suppose that there is a consequent shift in women’s roles in their families and at work. We can explain this change of gender role as the result of socio-economical situation in the country. Further on, these changes were borrowed by culture and finally, they were reflected on women’s gender roles. Situation 2 The following changes of gender roles shown on the example of Cambodian culture had different triggers. It is possible to illustrate gender role change in Cambodia by the following saying: â€Å"men are a piece of gold, and women are a piece of cloth. The piece of gold, when it is dropped in mud, is still a piece of gold. But a piece of cloth, once it’s stained, it’s stained forever† (Questions about Culture). Currently, modern Cambodian women do not want to live their lives in accordance with this saying. They consider it to be unfair and irrelevant. There is a need for social justice and equal attitude to men and women. For example, male criminals cannot be considered â€Å"a piece of gold† and widows should have a chance to put a virginal piece of cloth on them. As far as we can see, political, social and economical triggers have launched gender role-cultural accents shift in Cambodia. Therefore, from a modern westerner’s point of view, it is relevant to claim that gender role principles explained by Virginia Woolf are not relevant to the greatest extent. Bangladesh or Cambodia does not have enough money, but their women are on their road to fight for their renovated and reinterpreted gender roles. The ideas of Brady, Pollitt and Tannen may be foun d more relevant in the modern context. Social stereotypes, political, social and economical changes have reached the minds of contemporaries and have triggered changes in gender roles. Therefore, in order to encourage equal and fair opportunities for further development of self-identities, personal professionalism directed on favorable social interactions between men and women, it is relevant to introduce political, social and economical changes internationally. Moreover, a western position concerning equal relationships between men and women is on the way of implementation in the countries of the Third World. Thus, it should be noted that gender role perception in the

Critical Path - Project Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critical Path - Project Management - Assignment Example This process provides us a total time taken by the project. For assessing the total time we use above mentioned methods to find out the main project completion and development time. Through this time we obtain a project time line for the project execution. Here we also assign appropriate sequence to each activity of the project. Through these assigned activity sequencing, the expansion of a project network diagram is developed. This procedure is pretty time intense if completed with hand. Luckily, there are development organization software tools that can build network illustrations although there can be an illustration where we have to perform it by hand. One of the main causes for building a plan organization network drawing is to decide the elasticity inside the network (Kerzner, 2006) and (Field & Keller, 2007). Total float is the time obtainable for holding-up an activity devoid of delay end Date of the plan. The entire float of a task is then the biggest probable delay in finishing of this task that will not reason a delay in the achievement of the whole project. This recommends the subsequent instinctive notion: (Kerzner, 2006) and (Burke, 1999): The process of the determining the total float of a project activity involves the assessment of the total delaying an activity with no delay end Date of the plan. The total float of a project activity is the largest possible delay in the completion of that task that will not cause a delay in the accomplishment of the whole project (Kerzner, 2006). The assessment of the critical path provides a better overview of the project duration and more critical activates as well as their management. In the assessment of the critical activates of the project we determine their total float. Total float of the project if equal to zero then that activity denotes as the critical activity (Gray & Larson, 2006). The CP (critical path) is the best times path in the course of the network

Jewish teaching within family Essay Example for Free

Jewish teaching within family Essay In this essay I will look at what Jews believe they must do to bring up and care for their family, what rabbis say on this and what is written in the bible. The first thing I will examine is contraception many Jews consider a large family as a blessing from god and for this reason see contraception as a hindrance and interference with the divine plan. God formed the world. He created it not to remain empty; he made it to be populated Isaiah but on the other hand Judaism regards preserving life as of much importance or more. Where there may be complications or a hazard to the woman if she falls pregnant contraception should be used . using contraceptives for convenience how ever is not regarded as an excuse i. e. paying for their TV instead of having children is not considered acceptable in Judaism. Judaism considers it wrong for anyone Jew or not to have sex out of marriage, although it does not attach a stigma to a child born out of wedlock. Within Jewish marriage sexual behaviour is guided by a code of conduct from the torah in which a man and his wife are not allowed to have sexual relations during the wifes menstruation period and for an entire week after couples find this actually strengthens their marriage with each buying each other gifts or doing other non physical acts, after this a woman is supposed to go to a pool called a mikveh where she immerses her entire body in water, this is supposed to create an atmosphere almost like the engagement period. A wife returning from the mikveh is as fresh to her husband as on their wedding day. Parents and children: Judaism teaches that parents and children have a certain responsibilities towards each other. Honour your father and mother a rabbi once said this works both ways he said this is not only an instruction to the child but also to the parent make yourselves the kind of people your child wants to respect. Parents are expected to feed clothe, and educate their children, and see that they can support themselves. Teach your son a trade says the Talmud or teach him to become a robber. They are supposed to teach them basic survival skills like swimming and a craft they are also supposed to teach them some things about the world like dont accept lifts from strangers which is considered as basic common in some places but in Judaism these are considered as religious obligations. They also are supposed to teach them morale obligations and to be morale people. They are given guidance and a guide sometimes it is necessary to punish a child says the Talmud but do not threaten to do so either do it right away or let it drop. Children are supposed to be as equally respectful to their parents though see that they eat and drink, and take them where they need to go Talmud. They must treat their parents with respect and avoid hurting them. `

Why Do Nations Engage In Trade?

Why Do Nations Engage In Trade? Regional Economic Integration: Why is it happening? Why do nations engage in trade? Provide examples of the levels of economic integration. The reason why the Regional Economic Integration is happening because nowadays we have the open market in which every countries or state can have the free trade to others countries. This integration results from regional economic integration blocs in which member countries agree to eliminate tariffs and other restrictions on the cross-national flow of products, services, capital and in more advanced stages labor within the bloc (3). One of the most important things that lead to this integration is the globalization. It affects no on many types of life including the economy. So that, this is a significance to have the Economic integration in order to have the better economy in which the globalization is making its effects on. Nations engage in economic integration because each country cannot produce all the goods and services it needs. Therefore, countries produce what they are good at and have abundant supply of raw materials, and then they trade another country in exchange for something that they need. Some countries trade with other nations for particular goods and services because they either lack the technology to produce the goods themselves or the other countries can do it cheaper. One country may have the advance at producing high quality cabinets and entertainment stands for large screen televisions. Another country may have the resources for producing goods but they donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have the technology. It would benefit both countries to trade with one another for their different but complementary goods and services. There are several levels of the regional economic integration which are the Free Trade Area, The Custom Union, The Common Market, and The Economic Union. The Free Trade Area is the least restrictive form of economic integration among countries. In a free trade area, all barriers to trade among member countries are removed. (1) Therefore, goods and services are freely traded among member countries in much the same way that they flow freely between, for example, Southeast Asia and America. There are no discriminatory taxes, quotas tariffs, or other trade barriers are allowed. Sometimes a free trade area is formed only for certain classes of goods and services. The most notable feature of a free trade area is that each member country is free to set any tariffs, quotas, or other restriction that it chooses for trade with countries outside the free trade area. European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) are one of the biggest free trade areas in the world. The customs union is one step further along the spectrum of economic integration. Like a free trade area, it eliminates trade barriers between member countries and adopts a common external trade policy (2) in goods and services among themselves. One of the biggest customs unions is the Andean Pact. It has Bolivia, Columbia, Ecuador, and Peru as its members. In addition, however, the customs union establishes a common trade policy with respect to nonmembers. Typically, this takes the form of a common external tariff, whereby imports from nonmembers are subject to the same tariff when sold to any member country. Tariff revenues are then shared among members according to a perspective formula. The common market has no barriers to trade among members and has a common external trade policy like the customs union. Additionally, the common market removes restrictions on the movement of the factors of production (labor, capital, and technology) across borders. (2) Thus, restrictions on immigration, emigration, and cross-border investment are abolished. When factors of production are freely mobile, then capital, labor, and technology may be employed in their most productive uses. An economic union has the free flow of products and factors of production between members, a common external trade policy, a common currency, a harmonized tax rate, and a common monetary and fiscal policy.(2) EU is the most important economic in the world in which almost European countries are the members. It has the great effect to the world economy. The creation of a true economic union requires integration of economic policies in addition to the free movement of goods, services, and factors of production across borders. Under an economic union, members would harmonize monetary policies, taxation, and government spending. In addition, a common currency would be used by all members. This could be accomplished by membersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ countries agreeing to a common currency or in effect, by a system of fixed exchange rates. Clearly, the formation of an economic union requires nations to surrender a large measure of their formation of an economic union requires nations to surrende r a large measure of their national sovereignty. Needless to say, the barriers to full economic union are quite strong. Our global political system is built on the autonomy and supreme power of the nation-state, and attempts to undermine the authority of the state will undoubtedly always encounter opposition. As a result, no true economic unions are in effect today. Montessori Education: Principles, Philosophy And Practice Montessori Education: Principles, Philosophy And Practice The Montessori Method developed initially at the first Casa dei Bambini that Montessori established in 1906 in San Lorenzo in Rome. As with modern Montessori education, the basic principles were straightforward. First, Montessori believed that children were innate knowledge seekers and that they taught themselves. As she expressed it, young learners were self-creating. Second, Montessori believed that, at each stage of development, education should include and evolve within prepared environments, environments that enabled children to take on accountability for their own learning as they engaged the processes relevant to becoming able and actu alized adults and citizens. More specifically, according to the American Montessori Society (AMS), Montessoris pedagogy stressed the following critical and structuring notions: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The aim of Montessori education is to foster competent, responsible, adaptive citizens who are lifelong learners and problem solvers; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Learning occurs in an inquiring, cooperative, nurturing atmosphere. Students increase their own knowledge through both self- and teacher-initiated experiences; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Learning takes place through the senses. Students learn by manipulating materials and interacting with others. These meaningful experiences are precursors to the abstract understanding of ideas; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The individual is considered as a whole. The physical, emotional, social, aesthetic, spiritual, and cognitive needs and interests are inseparable and equally important; [and] à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Respect and caring attitudes for oneself, others, the environment, and all life are necessary. 5 Pedagogically, perhaps the most important, and most famous, emphases are Montessoris conceptualizations of the prepared environment and the developmental plane. According to the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI, founded by Montessori herself in 1929), the prepared environment of the Montessori classroom is one where children are free to respond to their natural tendency to work [and where their] innate passion[s] for learning [are] encouraged by giving them opportunities to engage in spontaneous, purposeful activities with the guidance of a trained adult. [Here, and t]hrough their work, the children develop concentration and joyful self-discipline.] Within a framework of order, [they] progress at their own pace and rhythm, according to their individual capabilities. 6 These are environments that allow [children] to take responsibility for their own education, giving them the opportunity to become human beings able to function independently and hence interdependently. 7 From this view, the prepared environment is one that can be designed to facilitate maximum independent learning and exploration by the child, one in which there is a variety of activity as well as a great deal of movement. In this situation, according to the Montessori approach, this necessary preparedness enables children [to] work on activities of their own choice at their own pace. Further, [t]hey [children] experience a blend of freedom and self-discipline in a place especially designed to meet their developmental needs. 8 The notion of prepared environment is related, moreover, to the manipulation of learning materials and to the understanding of normalization. From the Montessorian view, materials are to be accessible (e.g., placed on appropriately high or low shelves) and available for individual student choice, interest, and use. They are, to a large extent, fully the responsibility of students-regardless of age (e.g., students obtain, return, and maintain them). More pedagogically precise, these materials aim at inducing activity, isolating a particular learning quality (e.g., comparison and contrast, size, color, shape, etc.), and inducing self-correctivity (i.e., students can perceive errors relative to their learning via the materials and correct them without [or with minimal] adult intervention) and interrelationality (i.e., that the various materials [should] build one upon the others). 9 Normalization, for Montessori, meant not its typical (or normal) definition of conformity and what is normal but, instead, a developmental process, one inextricably tied to the appropriate preparation of the pedagogical environment. Montessori obs erved that children do best in schools (and education more broadly) given maximal freedom in an environment designed to meet their unique growth and personal and social needs. Through continued work with materials that held their interest, selected independently from within the prepared environment, Montessori noted that children eventually acquired an increased sense of satisfaction, self, and inner fulfillment. The course through which this evolution occurred defined for her the nature and significance of normalization. As she wrote in The Absorbent Mind: Only normalized children, aided by their environment, show in their subsequent development those wonderful powers that we describe: spontaneous discipline, continuous and happy work, social sentiments of help and sympathy for others à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ An interesting piece of work, freely chosen, which has the virtue of inducing concentration rather than fatigue, adds to the childs energies and mental capacities, and leads him [or her] to self-mastery à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ One is tempted to say that the children are performing spiritual exercises, having found the path of self-perfectionment and of ascent to the inner heights of the soul. 10 As E. M. Standing, in Maria Montessori: Her Life and Work, defined the characteristics of normalization, they are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Love of order à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Love of work à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Spontaneous concentration à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Attachment to reality à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Love of silence and of working alone à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Sublimation of the possessive instinct à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ [The p]ower to act from real choice à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Obedience à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Independence and initiative à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Spontaneous self-discipline à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Joy As the North American Montessori Teachers Association (NAMTA) says, Montessori believed that these are the truly normal characteristics of childhood, which emerge when childrens developmental needs are met. 11 The idea of developmental plane designates the transitions that occur during the birth through adulthood evolution of human beings. According to AMI, the specific planes are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Birth to age six: children are sensorial explorers, constructing their intellects by absorbing every aspect of their environment, their language[,] and their culture; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Age six to age twelve: children become conceptual explorers[; they] develop their powers of abstraction and imagination, and apply their knowledge to discover and expand their worlds further; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Age twelve to age eighteen: children become humanistic explorers, seeking to understand their place in society and their opportunity to contribute to it; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Age eighteen to age twenty-four: as young adults, [individuals] become specialized explorers, seeking a niche from which to contribute to universal dialogue. 12 More specifically, Montessori classrooms are divided into three-year groups, the purpose of which, according to Montessoris theories and observations, is to facilitate precisely and appropriately the continuum of growth and learning via human interaction and personal development and exploration, here both in terms of the individual and the social. 13 The multi-age divisions of the Montessori program are (1) parent-infant (ages 0-3), preschool (ages 3-6), lower and upper elementary (ages 6-9 and 9-12), and middle school (ages 12-14). Again, each presents its own precise purposes, materials, and activities and methodologies. 14 And yet Montessorian curriculum and instruction can be both complex and multiple, formal as well as unpredictable and less than rigid. Consider the following applied example. At the elementary level, the expectations of the learner and the appropriate pedagogical principles include: 1. Lesson repetition among students individually, that is after the initial presentation by the teacher, in order to concretize abstract concepts; 2. Cross-curriculum webbing; 3. The view that ability is individual-adults and children work to the potential of each person, not to the average; 4. Ever-deepening interest on the part of the learner; 5. The perspective that respect, freedom, and responsibility are interdependent. Our question, of course, is what these might mean in practice. Lesson repetition implies recurrence and redundancy-not in a negative way but as individually developed experiences in an effort to habitualize, routinize, and conceptualize key (especially unfamiliar) ideas, such as, perhaps, counting and various other mathematical notions. Webbing suggests that each new idea leads to-and connects with-others, whether presented earlier or presented later. The individual nature of ability, as opposed to the average level of students, indicates focusing on children moving forward according to their own singular lesson paces without unwarranted stigmatizations and without undue pressure to track. The idea of ever-increasing interest insinuates learners follow their own natural curiosities and inclinations (a la Kilpatrick?), particularly vis-à  -vis engaging the essential question of why? Lastly, regarding the case of the interconnectedness of ideas, such as respect, freedom, and responsibility, Montessori understandings suggest a relationship among values, culture, growth, success, and maturity, settings important, ultimately, to both liberal and conservative critics of contemporary American public schooling. DEFENDING PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND MONTESSORI EDUCATION According to NAMTA, well over 200 U.S. public schools are now Montessori-oriented, a number that continues to grow. 15 When viewed within the context of other contemporary public (though, granted, sometimes private as well) school reform trends (e.g., Waldorf education, charter schools, vouchers, public school choice), the commitment to Montessori public education seems to support at least two significant points. First, it represents, to some extent, the present dissatisfaction with traditional public schooling (or at least dominant images of it). Second, it supports the notion that another way-Montessori, Waldorf, and so on-might provide and prove to be a better way (especially within the contexts of the No Child Left Behind Act and standards-based educational reform). Fundamentally, Montessori education offers but one alternative to the criticisms leveled at public schools from critics both of the political and pedagogical left and the political and pedagogical right. The standard right-wing critique centers on the beliefs that schools today are failing because they (1) have standards that are too low, (2) replicate the worthless theories and perspectives of the liberal educational establishment, (3) maintain a monopoly, (4) focus on self-esteem (and the like) over content, (5) rely on progressive methods at the expense of direct instruction, (6) have privileged cultural relativism over traditional values and character, (7) have usurped the power and position of parents, and (8) misguidedly throw more money at schools even though this is neither (from this view) a solution to educational problems nor the answer to educational improvement. 16 The standard left-wing critique is that schools fail students because they (1) stifle freedom and creativity in favor of conformity and discipline, (2) are dominated by noneducators (e.g., corporations, politicians, managers, test companies), (3) are too centrally controlled, (4) focus too much on fact- based, standardized content, (5) are too traditional in terms of assessment and instructional methods, (6) hyperemphasize homogeneity at the expense of diversity and difference, (7) neglect neighborhoods and local communities, and (8) are underfunded. 17 Conceivably, of course, one could make a case in favor of the truth or utility of either or both of these critiques (although, indeed, we are more sympathetic to contemporary left-based criticisms). And, most likely, Montessori educators and other interested stakeholders probably possess and espouse a range of viewpoints relative to the overall effectiveness of traditional public schooling. Yet, what the Montessori approach does is co nnect with the concerns many (though not necessarily most) parents have (rightly or wrongly) that, at least broadly speaking, American public schools are failing or at least not up to snuff. While our own position is that this is not inevitably the case, 18 even so, Montessori education provides one appropriate and legitimate response to dominant modes of public schooling that can be consistent with a multitude of philosophical, pedagogical, political, and sociocultural goals. In fact, arguably, Montessorianism takes seriously the apprehensions of the entire spectrum of educational criticism (relative to official schooling). It emphasizes, for example, freedom, mastery, diversity, scientific research and methodologies, formal curriculum, individuality, fairness, planning, and hard work (among others)-each of which to some extent can meet the demands of both conservatives and liberals (if not others). That is not to say, of course, that the Montessori system is perfect-obviously, it is not. Yet, it does favorably compare with many aspects of more established modes of public education. According to NAMTA, the quintessential (and implicitly negative) characteristics of contemporary public school classrooms are their propensities toward: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Textbooks, pencil and paper, worksheets and dittos à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Working and learning without emphasis on social development à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Narrow, unit-driven curriculum à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Individual subjects à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Block time, period lessons à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Single-graded classrooms à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Students [who are] passive, quiet, in desks à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Students [who] fit [the] mold of [their] school[s] à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Students [who] leave for special help à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Product-focused report cards 19 Although, to some, this version of traditional education might seem to describe perfectly only the conservative agenda, increasingly it can be seen to characterize what we have previously called the liberal-conservative consensus and to indicate the current will-to-standardize or the standardization imperative of both the liberal and conservative race to the middle of the road. 20 In contrast, NAMTA characterizes the Montessori approach as favoring: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Prepared kinesthetic materials with incorporated control of error [and] specially developed reference materials à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Working and learning matched to the social development of the child à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Unified, internationally developed curriculum à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Integrated subjects and learning based on developmental psychology à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Uninterrupted work cycles à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Multi-age classrooms à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ [A setting in which students are] active [and] talking, with periods of spontaneous quiet [and] freedom to move à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ [A setting in which] school[s] meet the needs of students à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ [A setting in which special] help comes to students à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Process-focused assessment, skills checklists, [and] mastery benchmarks 21 In effect, Montessori education provides parents and students an alternative option within the standard frameworks of public schooling. For those (generally liberal) critics who believe that traditional public education stifles freedom, individuality, and creativity, Montessori instruction offers spontaneity, choice, and creative student-centeredness. For those (generally conservative) critics who believe that public education has been dumbed down, is anti-knowledge, and is too touchy-feely, Montessori instruction offers hard work, discipline (in the most positive sense), and an emphasis on fundamental skills. CONCLUSIONS Montessori education in the public schools raises a number of questions, yet it implies, as well, a number of productive and pedagogically sound principles and practices. Some of the difficulties with the historical criticisms of the Montessori approach include such concerns as immutability versus evolution (i.e., the extent to which Montessori education changes or the extent to which it should or must change), truth or universality (i.e., the degree to which it implies a structure that can, or does, meet the needs of all individual students), and teacher education (i.e., the potential conflict between individual interpretation, creativity, and independence and individual teacher conformity and disciplinarity). At the extremes, these issues (rightly or wrongly, for good or bad) weigh heavily on the capacity of the Montessori approach to meet its educational agendas and its stated purposes. On the other hand, Montessori education represents a little known alternative to more traditional modes of public schooling; most members of the citizenry have no idea that such a state of affairs even exists. When most people think of public schools-their own, their childrens-they think of a homogeneous setting of traditionalism or of progressivism-either way, the same setup for everyone. Yet Montessori education demonstrates the diversity-often little understood, even unknown-that characterizes contemporary teaching and learning. This is most often, we think, quite a good thing. In any event, it presents the condition of effective methods regardless of ones political or pedagogical orientation-that is, whether one is conservative, liberal, reactionary, or radical. There is more going on, that is, than most people perceive. And, most profoundly, the Montessori effort-the movement-is on the ascendancy. In the end, with respect to public education, the Montessori philosophy and its attendant methodologies imply something new, ironically new given the long and successful history of Maria Montessoris efforts and influences. If nothing else, it remains, after all this time, an option worth exploring and taking seriously. It is a viewpoint that should be reconsidered, reckoned with, and continuously and rigorously pursued. It is, that is, not the same old thing.

Hamlet: Shakespeare Tragic Hero :: Shakespeare Hamlet Essays

Hamlet: Shakespeare Tragic Hero   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In Shakespeare's play, Hamlet, the main character is a classic example of a Shakespearean tragic hero.   Hamlet is considered to be a tragic hero because he has a tragic flaw that in the end, is the cause of his downfall.   The play is an example of a Shakespearean tragic play because it has all of the characteristics of the tragic play.   As defined by Aristotle, a tragic play has a beginning, middle, and end; unity of time and place; a tragic hero; and the concept of catharsis.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One of the main reasons this play is considered a tragic play is because the main character is a tragic hero.   Hamlet's tragic flaw is he spends too much time thinking and not enough time acting.   This is the opposite of Shakespeare's play, Macbeth, in which the tragic hero spends too much time acting, and not enough time thinking.   Hamlet dwells too much on whether or not to act on something, and by the time he decides to act, it is too late.   When Hamlet finally decides to kill Claudius, he sees him praying and decides to wait longer.   The next time he gets a chance to kill Claudius he takes it, but by then it was too late.   Hamlet was killed as well.   He could have prevented his downfall if it wasn't for his tragic flaw.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another reason Hamlet is a classic example of Shakespearean tragedy is because it incorporates the idea of catharsis.   Aristotle defined catharsis as the purging of the emotions of fear and pity.   In the play, Claudius has the emotion of fear because he is afraid of Hamlet knowing that he killed his father.   Claudius knows that Hamlet is capable of killing him.   He knows that he cannot kill Hamlet to protect himself or to prevent the people from knowing who killed the king because the people love Hamlet too much.   Claudius feels pity after he sees the "Mouse Trap" because he realizes what he had done was wrong now that Hamlet knows the truth behind the matter.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Hamlet is a tragic play because it has a beginning, middle, and end, and takes place in a short period of time.   The play has a specific beginning, which consists of Hamlet seeing his father and considering what to do about it.   The middle is one of the actions that he took, the "Mouse Trap."   This set the course for the end, which was when the whole ending fencing scene takes place, when Hamlet and most of the other main Hamlet: Shakespeare Tragic Hero :: Shakespeare Hamlet Essays Hamlet: Shakespeare Tragic Hero   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In Shakespeare's play, Hamlet, the main character is a classic example of a Shakespearean tragic hero.   Hamlet is considered to be a tragic hero because he has a tragic flaw that in the end, is the cause of his downfall.   The play is an example of a Shakespearean tragic play because it has all of the characteristics of the tragic play.   As defined by Aristotle, a tragic play has a beginning, middle, and end; unity of time and place; a tragic hero; and the concept of catharsis.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One of the main reasons this play is considered a tragic play is because the main character is a tragic hero.   Hamlet's tragic flaw is he spends too much time thinking and not enough time acting.   This is the opposite of Shakespeare's play, Macbeth, in which the tragic hero spends too much time acting, and not enough time thinking.   Hamlet dwells too much on whether or not to act on something, and by the time he decides to act, it is too late.   When Hamlet finally decides to kill Claudius, he sees him praying and decides to wait longer.   The next time he gets a chance to kill Claudius he takes it, but by then it was too late.   Hamlet was killed as well.   He could have prevented his downfall if it wasn't for his tragic flaw.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another reason Hamlet is a classic example of Shakespearean tragedy is because it incorporates the idea of catharsis.   Aristotle defined catharsis as the purging of the emotions of fear and pity.   In the play, Claudius has the emotion of fear because he is afraid of Hamlet knowing that he killed his father.   Claudius knows that Hamlet is capable of killing him.   He knows that he cannot kill Hamlet to protect himself or to prevent the people from knowing who killed the king because the people love Hamlet too much.   Claudius feels pity after he sees the "Mouse Trap" because he realizes what he had done was wrong now that Hamlet knows the truth behind the matter.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Hamlet is a tragic play because it has a beginning, middle, and end, and takes place in a short period of time.   The play has a specific beginning, which consists of Hamlet seeing his father and considering what to do about it.   The middle is one of the actions that he took, the "Mouse Trap."   This set the course for the end, which was when the whole ending fencing scene takes place, when Hamlet and most of the other main

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4) What does the future hold for the fashion industry in France? With many of Paris’ fashion houses being over a century old, it is necessary that the houses to have successors for their head designers. In recent years, houses such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent and Balmain have acknowledged new head designers and creative directors. When houses are changing such a critical role in their brand, they must be extremely careful that the successor will keep the essence of what made the brand respected for so many years. Parisian houses are recognized for taking ample time in doing so, and they usually make the best choice. In the near future, Paris and the rest of the â€Å"Big Four† will be facing some new competition. The Top 5 Quickest Emerging Fashion Markets are the major South American countries, China, Turkey, the UAE and Kazakhstan (Top 5 Emerging Markets†¦). Many Asian and Middle Eastern cities are quickly edging their way up the Top 20 Fashion Capitals List. The rapidly expanding Middle Eastern city of Dubai provides very â€Å"western world† lifestyle. The growth of Dubai has been constant since 1966 when oil was discovered in their land. In such a short time period, Dubai has gone from dependent upon trade and labor to the 22nd most expensive city in the world, and the most expensive in the Middle East. Many luxury brands that are coveted in Europe and the US like Hermes, Cartier and Louis Vuitton have thrived in this wealthy, metropolitan area. As of 2012, it was number 31 on the Top Fashion Capitals list and #1 in the Middle East according to the Global Language Monitor. With the influences of surrounding countries being a bit more ethnic, the cultural diversity is very strong. India is known for their rich, elaborat... ...the fashion industry for hundreds of years, as it is home to the world’s leading designers and has imbedded a natural sense of effortless style in its residents. Paris Fashion Week is the finale of the four fashion weeks and is still depended upon for dictating next season’s trends. The world’s most glamorous names in fashion like Yves Saint Laurent, Coco Chanel, Lanvin, Louis Vuitton, Hermes and many more are still based out of the city. Paris was home to the first fashion house and it was the city to coin the terms of haute couture and prà ªt-à  -porter. To this day use they implement high standards and use unions to protect these sects of the industry. It is home to the Golden Triangle; shopping districts of Champs-Elysà ©es, Avenue Montaigne and Avenue Marceau. For these, and plenty of other reasons, France can still rightly claim its title of world fashion capital.

Nationalism of the Roundhouse Kick: Traditional Japanese Martial Arts

There are many aspects of Japanese culture and society that make it one of the most well-liked countries in the world today, at least according to the Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index. The technological innovations stemming from the country and the reputation of companies such as Honda, Toyota, Nintendo, and Sony make for an international focus on Japan’s industrial prowess. Added to that is the ever-rising popularity of manga and anime, and altogether, they form a strong nationalist feeling in Japan, yet entirely different from the nationalism of the wartime period. However, there is another facet of Japanese culture rooted in historical significance that evokes an alternate sense of pride within the population: martial arts. It is important not only to look at the physical aspects of these martial arts tradition, but the mental ones as well. Through the historical background of types of Japanese martial arts such as karate-do, jujutsu, aikido, and kenjutsu, the progress ion of the arts and a break from their origins, and eventually their place in Japanese sports and society today (karate, judo, kendo, and sumo), we will see how Japanese martial arts shifted back and forth between military and physical philosophy, and pacifist and Zen-like philosophy. To begin, it is generally difficult to pinpoint a consensus date for the commencement of a martial arts tradition in Japan because the learning of these arts was mostly done orally and through practice. It is by and large agreed upon that all of the Oriental martial arts have their roots in China, from the founder of Zen Buddhism, the Indian monk Bodhidarma (Daruma for the Japanese), in the 6th century. The principles of Zen Buddhism would later be reflected in most of the ph... ...sian Martial Arts 3, no. 4 (1994): 63-75. Official Website of the Olympic Movement. Athletes. http://www.olympic.org/athletes, (assessed April 3, 2012). Saotome Mitsugi. The Princples of Aikido. Boston: Shambhala, 1989. Skidmore, Max J. â€Å"Oriental Contributions to Western Popular Culture: The Martial Arts,† Journal of Popular Culture 25, no. 1 (1991): 129-148. Sumo. Japan Guide. http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2080.html, (assessed April 3, 2012). Suzuki Tatsuo, Karate-Do. New York: Perigee Books, 1984. Tan, Kevin S. Y. â€Å"Constructing a Martial Tradition: Rethinking a Popular History of Karaet-dou.† Journal of Sport and Social Issues 26, no. 2 (2004): 169-192, doi: 10.1177/0193723504264772. World Karate Federation. 20th World Karate Federation Championship Results. http://www.wkf. net/index.php? option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=58, (assessed April 3, 2012).

Denver International Airport Baggage Handling System Essay

1. Evaluate the implementation of Denver International Airport Baggage Handling System. What are the top 3 factors that lead to the projects failure? Who is most at fault? The DIA automated baggage-handling system had its uncertainties and risks like in any other project but the challenges faced were mainly due to the poor planning, 1st of its kind in terms of size of the project and underestimation of complexity of the whole project. There are many problems encountered by the project and the top 3 factors that lead to the project failure were: 1. Scope, time-schedule and budget commitments – Planning. The master plan for DIA was developed by the various experts in the respective fields but there was a fundamental strategic error as DIA had adopted the build-design project meaning building the airport while designing it. The airport’s Project Management team had assumed that individual airlines would make their own baggage handling arrangements. In 1991, the airport’s Project Management team changed their strategy and realized that if an integrated system was to be built, they needed to take responsibility back from the individual airlines and run the project themselves. This change in strategy came a little more than two years prior to the airport’s planned opening date and the timing of the decision was in large part the trigger behind the excessive schedule pressure the project was exposed to. BAE and the airport Project Management team made another major mistake during the negotiations. Although the airlines were the key stakeholders in the system they were excluded from the discussions during the project defining and planning stage. When the stakeholders are finally engaged, they demand for significant changes on the project that required modifications as the project went along. 2. Leadership The project was oversold by political leaders who used the airport initiative as a platform to revive their economy. Pena won the election and committed by the public promise. There was a transfer of authority to from Pena to Wellington Webb as the new mayor, who followed the predecessor administration’s emphasis and also didn’t ensure the commitment of the major carriers. The City of Denver and a consultant team shared the leadership of the DIA project. It quickly became clear that shared leadership was doing duplicate duties and not efficient. The project was financed by many sources where all wanted to have a say, making it increasingly more difficult to coordinate and accommodate different administrative, political and social interests. On top of that, the management had no experience of building automated baggage systems, but it assumed the responsibilities any way without making necessary changes in the management team. The respective teams were working of silos and the leader failed to enforce structure for collaboration and feasibility of the overall project monitoring. One month after BAE was awarded the contract, the head of DIA project resigned. 3. Communication difficulties. The channels to communicate among the city, the project management team, the consultant, DAE and airlines were never well defined. Everyone had their own tracking systems for the activities and there were several copies of everything. They tried to merge them into one central database and it took 3 years to get it to work. BAE felt being restricted to access anywhere they wanted which was granted in the initial negotiation and other construction works were hindering BAE progress, there were no clear communication channel to raise their predicament. The large number of airport entities involved increased the complexity in effective communication and everyone had its unique requirements and timeline to meet. 2. As Gene Di Fonso, what would you have done differently to avoid the problems faced at the end of the case? If I am Gene Di Fonso, I would use the project life cycle as the foundation for managing this project. I will make sure that all the stages of Defining, Planning, Executing and Closing are thought through and discussed with the experts thoroughly. Especially, when comes to dealing with the hyped up City of Denver project which has government, social, economic influences and timeline to meet for DBO repayments. The product life cycle would have enforced a structure to think critically before accepting or negotiating the contract. Both the defining and the planning stage would have provided a good assessment whether to pursue such a complex with limited timeline even though the revenue and BAE image of doing such big project is overwhelming. The downside of project failure and inability to complete the project on time would be a blow to BAE image in the public eye. Before entering into the executing stage, both the defining and planning stage would ensure the contract entails the terms and conditions and also include all the limitations, all the technical requirements in the building infrastructure stated with the realistic timeline and the deliverables stated upfront. All major stakeholders have to be involved in the project defining stage for actual feedback and requirements to be clearly stated that no changes allowed after signing of contract and should be enfored Minimally, all these stages have to be followed through as a project manager. The more complex the project, more time needed to tackle uncertainties to complete the project and it is also necessary to form a highly skilled project management team in order to complete the project successfully. I feel that Di Fonso knowing the tight timeline with lots of external influences such as the political, economical and social factors, it would be a best decision to stay focused as initially planned and commitment with United Airlines unless all the contractual terms determined after going through the detailed defining and planning can be accepted by all the stakeholders. 3. How should Di Fonso respond to Mayor Webb’s decision to impose a $12,000 per day penalty and the requirement that BAE assume the $50 million cost of building a conventional tug-and-cart baggage system? I feel that it is not entirely BAE fault for the failure of the automated baggage system project. There were other external factors involved that worked against the whole project. So, Di Fonso is not entirely at fault and should fall back on his contract with the City and negotiate the legal terms. There were provisions and requirements, especially permanent power requirement, were made explicit and in addition unrestricted access for BAE equipment and priority in any areas to install the system due to tight timeline were agreed and accepted by the Denver officials. Definitely, the contract was not adhered to and Di Fonso has high chance to sue the City for the breach of contract.

The Count of Monte Cristo and King Lear

It is man’s path to struggle with his destiny and writers have long written about such a battle in a man’s inner soul. In the works of Alexandre Dumas and William Shakespeare such a battle is best described in their comparable works, â€Å"The Count of Monte Cristo† and â€Å"King Lear†. It is the purpose of this paper to present either novel, and the main male protagonists in the stories and pit them against each other as well as have them share in their twined destiny of faults, failures and eventual redemption.Dumas weaves a story about a man, Edmond Dantes whose life becomes entangled in another man’s vengeance and is subsequently doomed to life imprisonment. These actions are out of the protagonist’s control as he is neither aware of the person for whom the letter is intended that he is carrying to Paris (it is actually supposed to be given to Bonapartist father) nor of the rival against him, Danglars. It would thus appear as though Dant es is allowing his destiny to be overtaken from his free will.In Shakespeare’s â€Å"King Lear† Lear also allows to be a rather flotsam figure on his own path, being lead this way and that, not from a guidance of reason but by happenstance, bad luck, and fate. Blindness is recognized in the play by Lear’s grotesque nature and how he cannot stand to see the world, or kingdom he created. In King Lear’s distrust of his daughters he one by one makes himself disowned by them I prithee, daughter, do not make me mad. I will not trouble thee, my child; farewell.We'll no more meet, no more see one another. But yet thou art my flesh, my blood, my daughter; Or rather a disease that's in my flesh, Which I must needs call mine. Thou art a boil, A plague sore, an embossed carbuncle In my corrupted blood. But I'll not chide thee. Let shame come when it will, I do not call it. I do not bid the Thunder-bearer shoot Nor tell tales of thee to high-judging Jove. Mend when th ou canst; be better at thy leisure; I can be patient, I can stay with Regan, I and my hundred knights.† (Shakespeare II. iv. 1514). Blindness is a factor in either author’s tale. For Dumas, he allows his character to remain faithful to himself but also he makes him blind to the events and circumstances surrounding him. Dantes is sent to prison, but it is in prison where he finds Abbe Faria, who teaches his about philosophy, languages, music, history, and it is in this knowledge that Dumas allows the hero to gain self confidence that he would not have otherwise come to had he not been imprisoned.It seems that either author depends a great deal upon unusual circumstances and luck (either perceived as good or bad luck) to progress the plot forward for the characters. Both characters have to face where their loyalties lie, or where the people’s loyalties lie who surround them. In â€Å"King Lear† the focus of the married daughters who are proven to be evil and usurpers of their fathers power while the younger daughter, the innocent unmarried one proves to be the only supporter King Lear has although he blindingly distrusts her from act one.The theme of â€Å"King Lear† is suitably that of loyalty from the female caste whether in faithfulness or disloyalty. With the theme of loyalty there must also be a theme of vengeance as these two factors often walk hand in hand. It is proper for Dantes to want to seek vengeance on an unjust act done to him out of jealousy from Danglars. Although it takes Dantes nine years for his plan to put into action, it takes Lear merely three acts for his vengeance to take shape on Cordelia’s life and Lear’s blindness. For, what is the purpose of having a protagonist who does not learn anything?Lear learns of his mistakes with distrusting his daughter Cordelia and by trusting his other daughters- therefore, because he was blind to this distrust in a metaphorical sense he must be made blind p hysically in order to find redemption for his actions. Dumas takes a different approach in his protagonist’s story. Dumas gives Dantes an education as well as a treasure but the idea of vengeance swallows any joy he may have gleaned from his newly found position in life as the Count of Monte Cristo. It is with a heavy heart (after finding out about his father’s death) that Dantes goes to Marseilles and then on to other European cities.Despite this occupying thought of revenge, Dantes does manage to try and save Caderousse, but is unable to help the man because Caderousse's greed is his downfall. Although he is given two chances of redemption from Dantes he falls into a life of crime and is killed. Both authors need to have progression, change or punishment in their works in order for the reader to find the humanity in the protagonists, for, without their humanity Dantes’ revenge would be a fool’s errand and Lear would not have blinded himself after seeing the error of his ways.The parallels of greed in political power (another form of the grotesque in Shakespeare’s play) are presented in how Goneril and Regan seek political power by their ability to strip the King of all his train of followers, by rejecting the King’s title, and turning him out into the storm, â€Å"†¦entreat him by no means to stay† (III. 1. 297). Also, Edmund has high political aspirations by allowing Gloucester to be blinded for his own political gain, â€Å"Hang him instantly [Regan]†¦Pluck out his eyes [Goneril]† (III. 7. 4-5), and he usurps Edgar’s legitimate title as the future Earl of Gloucester.Furthermore, Kent and Edgar both lose their nobility, the Earl of Kent is banished for his honest defense of Cordelia, and Edgar loses his claim to nobility through the deceit and trickery of Edmund. Political greed was also seen with Caderousse as well as Dantes’ other enemies who have grown wealthy and more corrup t since he has been in prison. Both author’s hinge their characters on the edge of redemption and give them each a scenario in which they can either grasp this ultimate gift and be free of blame or hate, or they can become criminals of love and honor.The authors are the same in this account, they allow their protagonists to find their redemption: For Lear, it is blindness, for Dantes it is shown in the mercy he gives to his enemy Danglars. In their redemption either man finds love again: Cordelia’s for her father Lear and Haydee for Dantes. Bibliography Dumas, Alexandre. â€Å"The Count of Monte Cristo†. Penguin Classic. 1992. Shakespeare, William. â€Å"King Lear†. Penguin Classic. 1998.

Kinkos

After the reorganization, management layers in the company’s hierarchy were reduced from twelve layers to six. The top management level was represented by the Chief Executive Officer. The company has a centralized approach of management. Many of the decisions that had been made in the stores were made by top management. The concentration of decision-making authority at the upper levels of an organization is often justified based on the need to achieve better coordination and consistency in all the organization activities, operations and policies. Span of Control The Executive Vice President of operations has direct authority over the Vice President of marketing and two general managers for retail operations, operations support, and real estate. These general managers, on the other hand, have a direct control over 18 operations directors. These operations directors have control over the seventy-four district managers and the human resource and technology staff. Grouping Activities in FedEx Kinko’s Office and Print Services, Inc. The company was reorganized by geographical region- East, West, Central, and International. Partners who owned the largest group of stores headed up their regional divisions. The stores have been reorganized into a hub- and- spoke configuration. Does Kinko’s use an organic or mechanistic system to achieve integration? Kinko’s uses a mechanistic system to achieve integration. We can see that FedEx Kinko’s Office and Print Services, Inc. has exemplified the characteristics of highly formalized and â€Å"bureaucratic† organizations. Kinkos’s was relatively a large company; hence, a mechanistic system is very appropriate in order to manage and monitor all stores. In addition, we can notice that managers provide a considerable direction and control over the other.   The company is highly centralized, wherein all the decisions were made by top-level positions. All the operations of the company and the working behavior of the employees are governed by the instruction and decisions issued by superiors. The company has a hierarchic structure of control of authority. In line to this, there is a vertical direction of communication through the organization. All the interaction made is form top to bottom. The company is highly standardized. Qualifications for top executives have been standardized. Each person must be a strong team player, had previously been with successful organization and each held job with high accountability. The company also used formal specification of methods in the performance of a job. In fact, all stores were connected through the Internet so that jobs could be allocated, distributed, or shared, as the need arose. There is a precise definition of obligation for each position or role. For instance, each operation director has the responsibility on the profit and loss in a distinct geographical market. All of these characteristics exemplified by the company have resembled the characteristics of a mechanistic system. References Allen, Gemmy. (1998). Organizing Process. Retrieved April 1, 2008