Film Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Film Analysis - Essay Example Because the lives of the men in the town are entertwined with the town itself, in that if the town is bustling and healthy, then the men in town are engaged, working and supporting their families, and when the jobs were shipped overseas, the men in the town suffered. The fates were one and same – as the town died, so did men have more problems finding a job, and these men were less masculine and less well-off then they would have been had the steel factories stayed in business. The men in this film, therefore, all live pretty hopeless lives. They are only trained, for the most part, for the steel mills. The exception to this is Gerald, who is the only white collar man in the group. Nonetheless, Gerald’s fate is also tied in with the fate of the town and of the steel industry, in that Gerald was a plant manager. Masculinity, Class and the Town of Sheffield The masculinity of the men in this movie is threatened, simply because they do not have a way of making a living for their families. The lead character, Gaz, is threatened because he has a young son, and he cannot afford to pay child support, therefore his ex refuses visitation between himself and his son. Dave, who is Gaz’ best friend, is threatened because he, too, has problems supporting himself and his wife, because he is out of a job as well. Lomper is threatened because he apparently cannot afford to leave home, and he apparently had no mates before he met Dave and Gaz. Because of this, he attempts suicide, but Dave saves him. Gerald perhaps has the most to lose, outside of Gaz, because he lives an upper class life in a tony suburb, complete with gnomes. His house is so luxurious that he has his own tanning bed, and his lifestyle is such that his wife talks about the two of them going skiing. However, because he has been out of work for the past six months, while lying to his wife (he told his wife that he was going to work everyday, when, in actuality, he was going to job club every day, looking for work). This impacts the men’s masculinity, because they cannot support themselves and their family. According to Djundjung and Irawan (2003), the fact that the men are not working impacts their masculinity and their identity, simply because so much of a man’s masculinity and identity is centered around what they do for a living. In essence, society does not have a role for these men. Thus, the men have issues with their own sense of self-worth. Dave feels that it is inevitable that his wife would cheat on him, as he has nothing to offer her, in his view. Gerald actually does lose his wife, not because he is out of work and everything they own is repossessed, but because he was so ashamed of his situation that he could not come clean with her. Gaz, despite having an outwardly cheerful, even cocky, persona, really is insecure and afraid that he is a failure as a dad. While these men are stripped of their masculinity, because they are stripped of their jo bs and their roles in society, the film also portrays a relationship that is more literal with the stripping of masculinity. This relationship is between Guy, the handsome, well-endowed man who auditions for the troupe, and Lomper. They have an attraction, and, the film intimates, a relationship with one another. The irony of this is that neither of these characters are explicitly shown to have their masculinity threatened. Not much is known about

The Office Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Office - Essay Example The three levels of organizational culture are observable artifacts, espoused values and basic assumption. The observable artifacts culture level comprises of observation of the behaviour of the employees,dress code, technology level and even the office physical layout. The conduct of the manager Michael is, for example, controversial same to the other employees who are not busy with work. The second criteria of determining organizational culture are the espoused values analysis. It consists of how the values influence the employees behaviour. It includes the attitude of employees. The manager, for example, shows a compromising attitude towards the reception since he is rude to her. The final level is the basic assumptions consisting of vital generalised assumptions made that also determine the culture and behaviour of employees (Khan 45). The manager according to the video clip is failing in creating a high-performance culture at the office. It is because the manager seems to be a joke and takes things casually. He fails in creating control and authority in the office and also lacks leadership qualities to propel the office to high performance. The manager should instead ensure efficient implementation of practices geared towards the achievement of high

Blackberry Phone Analysis

Blackberry Phone Analysis Blackberry Phone Background Living in a global world, we are mainly ruled by gadgets of all kinds. Starting from a street sweeper all the way up to the CEO of a multinational corporation, we all are beguiled by the charm and charisma that technology brings to our lives. This reality has turned luxuries into necessities. Still man is not satisfied with this technological awareness, always driven by the desire for more convenience, speed, and efficiency to make life easier. To satisfy this desire we bring to you a new Blackberry, with conferencing capabilities and GPS features. The young executives of today and the senior officers at work find it extremely frustrating not to be able to contact multiple business partners simultaneously and with limited fanfare and complications. Our new product solves this problem by allowing users to engage in a conference call by selecting a distribution group, contact group, or by multi-selecting users in the Contact List. Users engaged in a one-to-one call can invite other participants to join the conversation thereby creating a multi-party conference. Introduction The product is not only targeted for business executives who are always running short on time, and have the burden of numerous responsibilities, but also will appeal to the technologically inclined. The real goal here was to build a high-end device that was the ultimate Blackberry to date. It is marketed both the business executives and the gadgetholics who just have to have the best gadget in the market. (Positioning a New Product in an Uncertain Market) Other vendors clearly have their sights set on the same market, hoping the BlackBerry situation creates new opportunities. Nokia, for instance, recently purchased wireless e-mail management firm IntelliSync to target customers who want continuous access to their messages. What we find in the marketplace is increasing awareness of the further potential beyond e-mail of the BlackBerry and other hand-held devices, said Al Smith, president and co-founder of Apresta. Many of our customers are using the device to check inventory, to put in orders from the road. Theyre starting to become very dependent on it and used to using it for that as well. (Blackberry Competition) These same services can be used on other devices as well but our corporate users are loyal to the blackberry since it was the first device to introduce this new wave of technology. Blackberry Classic is definitely a major smart phone enhancement that provides its users with a myriad of tempting features. Features Tri-band 3G support extends support to GPRS/EDGE/HDSPA networks. Push button WiFI setup to readily access protected WiFi access points. Significantly improved multimedia support overall (streaming) video performance, iTunes synchronization, new media player, improved display and, while theyre still working on it prior to the Blackberry Bolds summer release, a new web browser. Faster processor (@ 624 MHz, the fastest Blackberry) 128MB internal Flash memory but also 1GB on-board storage memory expandable to 16GB via MicroSD/SDHC slot. 4.2 megapixel camera GPS with Blackberry MapsBlackberry MediaSync to transfer media from iTunes half-VGA ultra-bright display (480 x 320) Higher capacity battery that translates into 30% extra standby time and 20% more on-air talk-time. (Technical Specifications of a Blackberry) Of particular note; the new Blackberry maintains the traditional QWERTY keyboard with ergonomic improvements a key Blackberry defining feature relative to iPhone. Its high performance browser and resolution along with ahe bright display allows for on-the-go web browsing where attachments can also be downloaded from within the browser. Competition No product can ever exist in the market without facing fierce competition and the new Blackberry is no exception. The rivals include Nokia, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, PalmOne, Good Technology, Seven Networks, and yes, Microsoft. The choice between Blackberry and Nokia (or iPhone for that matter) got even more difficult today, with the appearance of two cutting edge smart phones. The choice for smart phone buyers is increasing each day. On the one hand youve got iPhone, in the other, the reigning champion Blackberry, and then theres Palm, Nokia, Samsung and the rest. Lately iPhone has gotten all the press, with its sleek design and ability for home users and (heres the killer) business users to get push-email on the road. But the Apple-fest isnt going unchallenged. Blackberry hasnt lagged behind either in the face of such competition so it introduced mobile mail along with other appealing features for the phone. Theres no doubting the compelling nature of mobile e-mail. No one likes returning to an office with screens full of unread messages in their inbox. Despite increased work hours, it somehow feels were more in control if messages can be read and dealt with throughout the day in real time. Compared with many mobile applications, its an easier sell internally to senior management and the financial controllers as they can personally see the benefit. (Marketing a Blackberry) Description of target market The Blackberry is a phone targeted towards a particular segment of the market. This target market is defined by the following demographics: Age: Anything above 18. Business executives today are not necessarily above 30 or 40 as it used to be the case a couple of decades ago. Today the Blackberry is a very useful device for managers and business executives to keep in touch on the go and manage their business affairs. Nowadays, these business executives are generally young. However, the older adults may also be targeted for this device. Our aim will be to target executives of any age or seniority: the bottom line is, since this variable has become irrelevant to authority in the modern entrepreneurial world. Sex: Executives are nowadays not limited to any particular gender. The modern business world has an equal number of male and female executives who would require a Blackberry. Hence, the marketing strategy should be geared towards appealing to both genders. Profession: as has been repeatedly stressed again and again, the Blackberry is no ordinary handset. It is targeted towards business users and executives to give them a freehand in managing their business affairs. Income Level: Generally, the income level that would be targeted for the Blackberry would be above the $50,000 mark per year. This is due in part by the fact that executives and business workers earning hefty salaries would be more likely to invest in such business supportive tools and gadgets than other lower paid managers. Educational Level: people who want to manage their affairs up to the minute, or connect with other executives would need the primary users of a Blackberry. Thus, generally this segment of the population would be highly, if not fairly, educated. We would expect this segment of people to be college graduates and would definitely expect a large proportion of them to be holder of a Masters degree. (Target Marketing for Blackberry) Description of Competitors There are alternatives, but I think its a case of market penetration, Al Smith, president and co-founder of Apresta said. The BlackBerry was the first mobile device out there with the ability to do e-mail and a large section of corporate world is addicted to it. As the Blackberry barge continues to take on water during RIMs (Research In Motion) ongoing patent battle with NTP, more and more sharks are drawn to the surrounding swells in hopes of salvaging whatever they may of the companys loyal user base. (Blackberry Competition) Its true, the majority of analyst and competitors alike dont see a Blackberry blackout happening any time soon, but the patent battle has spotlighted a number of alternatives to RIMs popular handheld. Just one year ago there were barely any products on the market that compared with RIMs Blackberry. This is no longer the case. According to Clyde Foster, COO at Intellisync, a wireless e-mail firm that was recently purchased by Nokia, the rest of the handheld market is not only catching up with RIM, these companies are offering better prices on a wider array of products. (The competition begins) That general change in the market has had a lot of people thinking about alternatives. On top of that, you have the scrutiny over the court case. For us, its a benefit that its happening now, said Foster. He noted that inquires about the companies products and services have skyrocketed over the past two months. Sales at Good Technology, RIMs biggest competitor in the software space, have also been booming. (Blackberry vs. Smartphone) Competition has caught up with Research In Motion and its long market leader product, the BlackBerry. The rapid enhancement in Nokia and Motorola handset can prove to be a threat to Blackberry, and could have knocked this product of the shelves in the market, but Blackberry has bounced back with it blackberry classic. This can mean an exit for many new players in the market. Our business in general has been growing, but the litigation has certainly helped, said Danny Shader, CEO of Good Technology. Its changed the profile of some accounts that were previously absolutely committed to RIM, who now seem absolutely committed to replacing them, or at least not relying on them. Regardless, RIM is still the king of the hill in the wireless e-mail market with about 4.3 million Blackberry subscribers in aspace of roughly 6 million. We provide quality as well as unmatched features thereby are do not compromise on price. We are currently not involved in any price competition since we believe that what is offer has unparalleled characteristics. (Blackberry vs. Smartphone) Marketing Considerations Advertising can really make the difference between success and failure. Intelligent marketing through the appropriate channels will project the Blackberry strongly towards the target market and will quicken the take-off into the market, in terms of sales. Marketing a Blackberry I would suggest that the New Blackberry be marketed using a robust marketing budget that would increase our market share. It is essential to understand the basic fundamentals of marketing a differentiated product towards the appropriate target market so that they can focus on the actual prospects. I recommend that advertisements be placed in business journals, widely read newspapers, magazines catering to fashion and business news and news channels. The advertisements should be as brief as possible and should deliver in a nutshell the features of the Blackberry. It is important to understand that the cost of the Blackberry should not be included in the ads or else it will give the viewer a decision-making point: can I afford it or not? Thus, the consumer will not try to learn about its features and its potential enhancement to their business. The advertisements should all bear a standard theme that is eloquent, graceful and appealing. Advertisements that are too cheap or complex shou ld be avoided. Some good examples of advertisements portraying classics are ads of watches, designer brands and jewelry. Focusing on the primary objective the Blackberry is exclusively for the business users assistance will enable the target market to be approached more closely and effectively. Pricing Strategy The pricing for a Blackberry is perhaps one of the most delicate issues. Business executives will not be willing to pay more of a premium without a clear impression of how this device will enhance their business objectives. Thus, careful consideration and costing mechanisms should be used to determine the market price of the Blackberry. I would recommend cost plus pricing to be the best option available. Since, the Blackberry is a differentiated product with no exact substitute, I am confident that the Blackberry will be able to sell at prices slightly above the competition. While this can merely be a risk as well, the price of a Blackberry includes the technical, labor and other overhead costs. Thus, the Blackberry will probably be better off priced above the market competitors. At least it will provide the consumer with the perception that this gadget is differentiated from the rest and has something unique to offer, for which a premium price is being charged. (Positioning a New Product in an Uncertain Market) Description of Location Locating a product requires a great deal of understanding of the lifestyle and habits of our target market. Placement of the Blackberry is a really important aspect for sales to skyrocket. The most appropriate location for placing the Blackberry would be near designer stores and lifestyle outlets such as designer brand outlets and boutiques (predominantly for women). These places are almost accessed by all the people in our target because of the requirements of their work. Another option would be to target upscale stores and neighborhoods housing exclusive jewelry outlets and local clubs. These places are actually visited heavily by our target market because of their lifestyles. (Location Considerations for the Blackberry) References Blackberry competition. (n.d.). Retrieved August 26, 2008, from CIO: http://www.cio.com/article/17332/BlackBerry_Battle_Opens_Doors_for_Competitors Blackberry vs. smartphone. (n.d.). Retrieved August 26, 2008, from PCA Authority: http://www.pcauthority.com.au/News/118166,smartphone-faceoff-blackberry-bold-takes-on-the-competition.aspx Location considerations for the Blackberry. (n.d.). Retrieved August 24, 2008, from Tech News World: http://www.technewsworld.com/story/48815.html?wlc=1219722994 Market competition for Blackberry. (n.d.). Retrieved August 25, 2008, from http://www.fiercecio.com/story/competition-heats-up-for-blackberry-maker/2006-10-02 Marketing a Blackberry. (n.d.). Retrieved August 26, 2008, from Business Week: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_49/b3911084_mz063.html Positioning a new product in an uncertain market. (n.d.). Retrieved August 24, 2008, from Tech Target: http://searchmobilecomputing.techtarget.com/news/article/0,289142,sid40_gci960532,00. Target marketing for blackberry. (n.d.). Retrieved August 24, 2008, from Tech News World: http://www.technewsworld.com/story/48815.html?wlc=1219722994 Technical specifications of a Blackberry. (n.d.). Retrieved August 24, 2008, from Microsoft TechNet: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb963930.aspx The competition begins. (n.d.). Retrieved August 26, 2008, from PCA Authority: http://www.pcauthority.com.au/News/118166,smartphone-faceoff-blackberry-bold-takes-on-the-competition.aspx The future of Blackberry. (n.d.). Retrieved August 26, 2008, from Skype Journal: http://skypejournal.com/blog/2008/05/a_new_era_coming_for_blackberry.html

Essay on the Role of Women in Chinua Achebes Things Fall Apart

The Role of Women in Things Fall Apart      Ã‚  Ã‚   Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart explores the struggle between old traditions within the Igbo community as well as Christianity and "the second coming" it brings forth. While on the surface, it appears the novel narrows its focus to a single character, Okonkno and his inner battles, one can read deeper into the text and find an array of assorted conflicts in the realm on human vs. human, human vs. nature, human vs. society, and society vs. society. For the purposes of this paper I shall focus on the labyrinth of human vs. human and human vs. society in the framework of the role of women in Igbo society and how men assign and dictate these roles. I will also briefly explain the importance of women in terms of motherhood and wifedom. Throughout my research I've encountered numerous papers on the rights women do have in Igbo society, on the importance of women in this society. They site the role of widows in Igbo society as well as the respect given to the first wife as proof that while this society is not an ideal situation for women, it is hardly the misogynist society that some make it out to be. I passionately disagree. It is obvious to me that to the characters in Things Fall Apart, women are "things" to be exploited, abused and to serve as second-class citizens to the rank of male privilege. The theme of misogyny runs rampant throughout the text whether it is exposed by the absence of women in the text, the abuses women suffer at the hands of men, or the subtle ways in which society dictates and reinforces these negative statuses and images of women. Throughout the text women are virtually invisible and live their lives on the sidelines; it is clear from a close read... ...p but be sickened and saddened by not only the reality of women in Africa but of Achebe's portrayal of it.    Works Cited Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1958. Chun, June. "The Role of Women in Things Fall Apart" 1990  Ã‚   October 1999 Jeyifo, Biodun. "Okonkwo and his Mother: 'Things Fall Apart' and Issues of Gender in the Constitution of African Postcolonial Discourse" Callaloo Fall 1993 Mezu, Rose Ure. "Women in Achebe's World" Spring/Summer 1995. October 1999 Osei-Nyame, Kwadwo. "Chinua Achebe Writing Culture: Representations of Gender and Tyranny in Things Fall Apart" Research in African Literatures Summer 1999. Sengovaa, Joko. "Native Identity and Alienation in Richard Wright's Native Son and Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart: A Cross Cultural Analysis" The Mississippi Quarterly Spring 1997.

The Effects of Price Control In Japan

If supply is greater than demand, the price of a product will decrease. If demand is greater than supply, the price of a product will increase. This is a simple rule that determines the price of almost all consumer goods. But what happens if the price is too high. What happens if there is a massive shortage or if a war breaks out and the price of everyday products such as sugar or bread skyrockets. Who will protect the consumer? And vice versa, who will protect the seller. This is where the government steps in and imposes price controls. Price controls are imposed to help or protect particular parts of the population which would be treated unequally by the unfettered price system. With today's technology, many farmers around the world find themselves producing far more than they can sell or a surplus and this drives down prices. Therefore to support the farmers, many governments have created price floors to increase the income of their farmers who without them would fail to make a living profit. Japanese agricultural policy so far has focused on maintaining agricultural income by price controls. During the 1960s, Japan was in a stage of extraordinarily rapid growth. But Japanese farmers still produced more crops, namely rice, then they could sell, and this drove prices down and dwindled their profits. All the while, the industrial sector began creating massive profits. As a result, the income gap between the two was widening. Politicians knew that social and political unrest would result if the situation worsened. And so they began to resort to price controls to protect agriculture. To increase the farmers' income, the government placed price floors or price supports on rice and other crops. Therefore, the price of rice would not be determined by the free market but by this set price. The Japanese government set the price floor higher than the equilibrium price or the price of rice in the free market. By doing this they were sure to increase the income of farmers. But this policy had its drawbacks. The price policy impaired the basic market mechanisms. The increased price drew away buyers, resulting in an excessive surplus of rice. In fact, rice surplus amounted to approximately seven million tons in storage, and that required three trillion yen of tax money for its disposal. Although this policy helped farmers, it became a great strain on the government and taxpayers. The Japanese government began to implement a new policy. The only way to avoid surplus under such a high price policy is to limit production. Hence, a policy to cut back on rice acreage was introduced. But this policy also ran into problems. Reduced production was forced onto the producers and served only to dampen their motivation to produce and to hinder their drive. Another hindrance in price control is a segregated overseas and domestic market. The only way for the government to retain this kind of price policy and maintain agricultural income is by closing off its borders form imports. With this price control the government ran into many problems. It therefore abolished the Food Staple Control Act which implemented this price policy and replaced it with the New Food Staple Control Act in November 1995. This new act liberated distribution and limited the government's role to just the purchase and management of rice reserves. In conclusion, Japan's price control policy was created with the best intentions to improve agriculture income. While it succeeded in that aspect, the government and its people were hurt more by this policy. Even the farmers themselves who had their production limited became unmotivated. We see from this case scenario that sometimes the government needs to take a step back and play a limited role in the economy or practice laissez-faire economics.

Role of Youth in Combat Terrorism

Youth top executive is an infrangible ply for a nation’s asset and its pride. A nation’s off springs fend for its plume up in the work force of mind, thoughts, sensitiveness and vigorous courage, sure ever occurrent ne’er ending and forever. Youth with the exponent of creative thinking explore unconvincing horizons for its nation’s splendor, bearing and prominence, youth with the magnate of mental imagery at random have heartily beauteous feelings for apiece and all one or so them no thing they soul their rush or not. Wise and mortal role of youth ranges sympathy, peace, harmony, symphony, payday loans online and lenience system of rules sort of every graphic symbol of good example to the boundaries having no boundary. Youth are a power of some country and that is the only way for a whatever res publica to struggle the evince of terrorism as only this way it is guaranteed that this infliction is rotted out because political orientation is something that breeds terrorism and to speech act the structure proceeding ie Extremism; it then becomes fate to think on the youth, as according to some researches it has been so further deducted that youth are the ones that are to the highest degree insecure and mostly unexploited by weather who tends to shield terrorism. As this is the epoch assort that is very raptorial but at the unlike time very unconditioned and can well get carried aside in action of their emotions; where as kinsfolk who have perfect in the prowess of harboring human cleverness for much infamous activities they insurance without exam then have to do very unimportant efforts to get them off-track. Therefore it is medical care upon the role of youth to also make themselves remindful of such actors; so that they either in obscurity or with consent turn their work and make certain they also precise and take on so much elements in the social club who sympathies or either supports much weather condition or activities that ends up what in nonmodern piece is called Terrorism.