Saturday, August 31, 2019

List and define the steps in the new-product development process Essay

By its very nature, marketing requires companies and organisations to develop new ideas and make adjustments to their marketing efforts. New concepts, designs and products are essential for responding to the ever-changing demands of the target market/s, and are crucial for maintaining customer satisfaction, which ultimately leads to increased revenues and profits for the firm. New-product development dictates the company’s future in the market. Every person’s wants are unlimited; however, a person’s needs are narrowed to a limited amount. A product is something that can satisfy people’s wants and needs. It is one of the variables in the marketing mix (one of the ‘7P’s’). A product can be considered as the most important item in the marketing mix, since ultimately the marketing mix revolves around the Product. It can be offered to the market in the form of goods, services, ideas, events etc, The following are the classification of goods . This is crucial information for marketers as market segmentation exercises are carried out within the company in order to target certain groups of customers with specific use-related and use-situated needs. Below are four main classifications of goods; Convenience Goods – these are those goods which are bought on a daily basis, products of this type are usually considered as needs. These are goods such as milk, bread, detergents etc†¦ Shopping Goods – these are mostly semi-durable goods which are purchased less frequently then convenience goods. These cost more than convenience goods, thus people tend to choose products over others in a process of choosing the preferred alternative. Clothes and white goods are ordinary examples Specialty Goods – these are goods which are bought infrequently. If a person decides to purchase a specialty good, one will take time on choosing the good, since these goods are much more costly than the two previously mentioned. When this type of good is bought after sales service is usually provided. Example of this type of goods includes property & motor vehicles & a Luxury holiday in a high standard hotel. Impulse Goods – these goods are not actively searched by customers when one is making a purchase. However, a last minute impulse makes a customer purchase goods. Impulse goods usually occur in supermarkets or department stores. Idea Markets – The creation and evaluation of new product ideas are important procedures in the new product development process. Idea markets help companies by using virtual stocks to represent product ideas, introducing a virtual marketplace for these ideas to interact and use the forces of the market to generate certain stock prices that will indicate whether a product idea could be successful or not. Thus, the concept of idea markets has been considered as one of the leading methods of creating and evaluating new product ideas. Both the creation and evaluation of ideas require certain things such as creativity and long-range forecasting abilities, but they also suffer from a great deal of uncertainty (Creative Trainer: 2007) . The following three factors show why idea markets have been proposed as the new method of creating and evaluating product idea, mainly because they positively influence the quality of new product ideas: 1.Large Number of Ideas and Idea Creators It is essential that the quality of product ideas is given importance, as this determines the commercial success of the product. However, it is not quite that easy to determine the people that should be involved in the product creation as well as the main characteristics of the product idea. A wide pool of ideas might give rise to some unexpectedly good concepts that aren’t in demand at the moment but might be the breakthrough product idea sometime in the future. To broaden the scope of the search of the next best product idea, companies consult with several diverse and external sources such as employees, suppliers and researchers . Due to its uncertainty, participants of idea creation should come up with a substantial amount of product ideas. It follows that a high quantity of idea correlates to a high quality of positive product ideas, thus, creativity is an important element that shouldn’t be under-valued or diminished. Activities of idea creation, such as brainstorm ing, should promote individual creativity. Companies nowadays are creating and innovation friendly and relaxed office environment so as to enhance the innovative performance and creative thinking. Innovation leads to the development of new ideas in order to sustain present customer needs within the market. This can be achieved with the support of many different processes that help the company to expand into something different instead of building on something that they already have. One of  the many methods of innovation is symbiotic ideas, where multiple ideas are combined, adding the pros of all ideas without incurring all the cons, to make a better general idea. The second method, targeted innovation, is highly used in large scale companies and deals with the idea of a direct path that leads to a result that is not only known from the beginning of the process but also expected. Finally, the revolutionary idea is one that portrays a whole new different perspective which sets it apart from traditional school of thought. An example of this ideology is Marxism . 2.Group decisions instead of individual decisions When companies engage in finding a new product to develop, ideas about a new product can be established from a group of idea creators and by means of a discussion and exchange of opinions. This will result in high quality ideas that can prove useful to the company when deciding what product to produce. Ideas formed through group discussion can be generated through several activities such as idea competitions and ideation games, this will cause the participants to widen their thoughts and observe other participants ideas before acting. It is also ideal that the persons that will evaluate the product work as a group, this will improve the quality of their evaluations due to the fact that one person might see something that the other person missed and even one can also criticise the other until a compromise is found. Interactive and iterative evaluation techniques allow participants to widen their knowledge and continuously learn more and more, thereby improving the quality of the decis ion taken . 3.Combining the creation of ideas with their evaluation Most of the ideas generated will support either the creation of the new product or the evaluation of the new product. This will be beneficial due to the fact that participants can focus more towards the creation process. The problem that arises may be the fact that idea creators will not receive immediate feedback regarding their ideas, this may result in the ideas being vague or even out of the range intended for them to be in. The ideas generated are usually split into three main criteria; mainly being in respect of their quality, commercial success and new to the world. The  criteria usually provide skewed results and only few of the ideas turn out to be of a high quality. Another problem that may arise is the fact that companies review a large number of ideas from which only a moderate portion are processed for further development. Participants who have knowledge of the product and are able to create new product ideas are usually even capable of evaluating the product ideas generated. Combing these participants’ together results in a positive and successful evaluation of new product ideas. Levels of product – When searching for new product ideas one must also keep in mind that the product is made up of three components; Core product, Actual product and Augmented product. The core product is the part of the product that makes it beneficial to the consumer and answers the question â€Å"What is the buyer really buying?† The actual product is the tangible, physical product. The Augmented product on the other hand refers to the non-physical part of the product, the added value one gets from purchasing the product, such as customer service, after sales support, delivery, installation etc . Product Characteristics – When finding and developing new product ideas one should incorporate and think about the product attributes, branding, packaging and labelling. One must consider the quality level and quality consistency of the product. This refers to how the product is perceived and how the product will be expected to perform during its life. One should also think about the features that are expected to flow from the product and the characteristics of the product that contribute to the benefits it offers. Substantial thought should also be given regarding the design of the product. Another important aspect of the product that requires rational, especially in new companies, is the brand of the product. This usually incorporates a name to the product, sign, symbol or a combination of the above mentioned. Branding provides a unique attribute to the product therefore it should be attractive and easy to recognise and remember. Many people buy a product solely on the strength of the brand. The packaging o f the product is yet another important factor. It includes the wrapper or container for the product. The packaging should  protect the product and ensure it reaches the buyer in the condition it is intended to and also incorporated with the packaging should be a set of instructions and safety labels on how to handle the product . Managing the New-Product Development Process – The need for new product development may arise due to other external forces such as competition from rival firms. Innovation and new ideas are forced into play within the market as firms compete for a bigger customer base and market share. In addition, new product development may occur due to the actual product becoming obsolete and/or inadequate for present customer’s needs. There are many other reasons why new product development is vital. These may include: -Innovative/unique products earn higher profits than older products. -New products can help reposition the company in customer’s minds and shift their perception about the new product/s -Some firms market seasonal products that reap their highest sales during a certain time of the year (for example, ice-cream vendors). Expanding the firm’s product mix into new areas may help offset these fluctuations. The development method may take two forms. The company can develop new products in its own laboratories or it may contract independent researchers or firms to develop specific original products. Furthermore, we can identify six categories of new products ; 1.New-to-the-world products. (Such as the first Microsoft tablets were in 2002) 2.New product lines (new products that allow a company to enter an established market) 3.Additions to existing product lines (New product that supplement existing products, eg new flavours, sizes etc) 4.Improvements and revisions of existing products 5.Repositioning ( existing products that are targeted to new markets) 6.Cost Reductions Before we get to the new product development process there are few decisions a company must take. It must decide on how to segment the market, which will be the target customers, identify their needs and determine its market positioning for the new product. Nowadays, companies use customer-driven engineering, which is the process whereby the design of the final (new) product incorporates its target customer’s preferences. These preferences are determined through market research methods, such as the collection of  primary and secondary data. Lastly, the company must set a budget for the new product. Management must decide what proportion of investment will be necessary for research and development activities as well as the gathering of market intelligence and market research. Once this is set, the New-Product Development process may begin. There are 8 steps in the New-Product Development process as defined by kotler. 1. Idea Generation The process starts with the hunt for new ideas. The key to successful ideas, is understanding customer’s present or unmet needs in the market. For example , Procter &Gamble’s efforts in 1985 to create a bold new advertising campaign for Folgers to catapult it into market leadership began by watching consumers make coffee and by listening to their descriptions of their process of waking up in the morning. From these efforts came the insight that people actually wake up to the smell of coffee before they get to the taste And, thus was born â€Å"The best part of waking up†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The insight worked so well, it’s still guiding the marketing campaign today – twenty years later. Ideas for new products can be obtained from customers, the company’s R&D department, focus groups, competitors, salespersons, employees, trade shows and events etc†¦ 2. Idea Screening The second stage is to get rid of unsound ideas prior to dedicating resources to them. The ‘screeners’ must ask at least three questions : Will the customer in the target market benefit from the product? Is it technically feasible to manufacture the product?, Will the product be profitable when manufactured and delivered to the customer at the target price? An important consideration must be made in screening ideas. This stage is crucial for companies as they must avoid two types of errors ; A Drop-error – which occurs when a company dismisses a good concept for the new product A Go- error – occurs when a company goes forward with a poor idea up until the last new-product development stage, commercialization. This can prove to be extremely costly is the idea is not received well in the market. A recent example of this is when in 2010, GAP launched a new logo in an attempt to be more modern This only lasted two days as GAP received an unbelievable criticism from the public, who expressed felt that GAP was changing their image for the worse. 3. Concept Development and Testing Having identified the right product idea, a product concept must follow – this is an elaborated version of the screened idea. The notion here is that a product idea can be turned into numerous product concepts. These concepts are developed with marketing and engineering specifics. Before the next step, the product concept must be tested. This follows by ‘giving’ the concept and all information about the product to a group of target customers and obtaining feedback and responses from them. The reactions obtained would indicate whether the customers in the target market would welcome concept or not. 4. Marketing Strategy development In this stage, the new product formation will begin as a result of the conclusions derived from the concept development and testing stage. A strategy-plan would be drawn up as to how best to introduce the new product into the segmented target market. The plan describes three parts , The first part describes the market’s structure, size and behaviour, as well as the planned positioning of the product and the market share. The second part shapes the expected price, distribution approach and marketing financial plan. The last part of the marketing strategy outlines the sales and profit targets as well as the marketing-mix strategy. 5. Business analysis This is an important step in new product development. The firm must analyse different aspects of the new product. It should find out whether the product is profitable or not and what the cost of the new product will be. Under this stage, the demand for the new product should be established and whether the demand is seasonal or regular while also gathering information re any competitors of this new product. Estimations of sales and expenses such as; advertising and sales promotion should be made to provide calculations for the approximate profit which the  new product should render. Hence, the new product is studied from a business aspect. If the new product should earn a profit, it will be accepted, otherwise it will be rejected. 6. Product development In this product development stage, the company takes the necessary steps to produce and distribute this product since the company would have already decided to introduce this new product in the market. The production development department will make strategies to produce one or more physical versions of the product concept, while the marketing department will make plans on how to distribute the product. The financial department will provide all the finances required to introduce the new product. Before the test marketing stage, plans for the advertisements for the new product will be made on a small scale. 7. Test marketing Test marketing is introducing this new product on a small scale and in a small market, in a more realistic setting. If this product is a success in the small market, then it is later introduced on a larger scale. However, if this new product fails in the small market, then the company will test for reasons for its failure. There are different types of test marketing which include the following; sales-wave research, simulated test marketing, controlled test marketing and test markets . In sales-wave research, the company gives customers the opportunity to use the product at no cost. At a later stage the company then reoffers the same product or a competitor’s product at a slightly cheaper price and notes the number of times (sales-waves) each customer selects each product. The simulated test market is a cheaper and faster method when compared to the other methods, but it is not considered as the most accurate due to the controlled setting. The company will make necessary amendments in the new product and will then introduce it again in the small market. If the new product fails for the second time, the firm will reject it. Test marketing is a safety device which reduces risk from large-scale marketing. Although this is a very time-consuming stage, it must be done especially for costly  products. 8. Commercialization If the test marketing performed on the new product is successful, then the company introduces their product on a larger scale, which is known as commercialization. The firm will make a large investment in the new product. It will plan when to launch the product in a larger market and where since the market-entry timing and location are very critical. First entry has its advantage of being on the market before its competitors but might backfire if it is rushed. When a firm coincides its product’s entry with its competitors, known as parallel entry, this will enhance the market’s attention on analysing and comparing products. Whilst a late entry launch will reduce costs while also gathering further knowledge on the size of the market. Companies usually wait for the ‘killer application’ to occur; this may depend on the season or for the older product to be drawn down and to be replaced. The company will produce and distribute the new product on a larger scale where it will advertise the new product on mass media such as; Radio, TV, Magazine and Newspapers. The Consumer Adoption Process – This is the process by which potential customers learn about the new product, tests it out and adopts or rejects it. This process begins from when the consumer first hears about the new innovation up until final adoption of the product. Adoption is a decision made by an individual to become a regular user of a product. There are five stages which adopters of new products have been observed to pass through ; 1.Awareness – consumer becomes aware of the new innovation 2.Interest – the consumer seeks more information about the new innovation 3.Evaluation – the consumer considers whether or not to try the product 4.Trial – the consumer actually tries the product so as to enhance his/her evaluation of it. 5.Adoption – the consumer becomes a customer and decides to make regular use of the product. It is the task of the new-product marketer to make this process as easy and swift as possible so as to capture the consumer’s interest and turn it into th e action of actually adopting the product. Conclusion – In conclusion, companies must realise the importance that the product has in the marketing mix. Improved and replaced products will expand and maintain sales and profits for the company. However, when coming to develop a new product, companies must realise the importance and relevance of the steps involved in creating and introducing new products into the market. The key is to develop a product which is innovative, up to standard, meets the customer’s present needs and which ultimately has the ability to penetrate the market and claim a place in the customer’s minds. Thus by following the New Product Development process, as we have discussed in this assignment, companies will be able develop a product which has a high probability of being successful in the market and which will be demanded by its customers.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Ethical Theories Chart Essay

Complete the chart below using information from the weekly readings and additional research if necessary. Include APA formatted in-text citations when applicable and list all references at the bottom of the page. Ethical Theory Utilitarianism Deontological Virtue ethics Definition â€Å"A system of ethics according to which the rightness or wrongness of an action should be judged by its consequences. The goal of utilitarian ethics is to promote the greatest happiness for the greatest number† (â€Å"Define Utilitarianism,† 2005). Utilitarianism is making a decision that benefits the most amount of people/society. Deontological means duty, honesty, promise keeping, and fairness no matter what the consequences are (Trevino & Nelson, 2011). â€Å"Virtue Ethics is a classification within Normative Ethics that attempts to discover and classify what might be deemed of moral character, and to apply the moral character as a base for one’s choices and actions.† (Gowdy, 2011). Ethical thinker associated with theoryThe ethical thinker/thinkers associated with utilitarianism are Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill. Emmanuel Kant (Trevino & Nelson, 2011).Aristotle (Trevino & Nelson, 2011). Decision-making processThe decision making process is to Identify all of the possible stakeholders and what would be the consequences the  harms and benefits. Make a list of pro’s and con’s and the best ethical decision is one that is of the greater good for the most amount of people. The decision making process is figuring out what values and or obligations are important to you, and base your decision on what is right not what is best (Trevino & Nelson, 2011).The goal here is to be a good person because that is the type of person you wish to be and keep moral values or virtues in any action or decision. (Trevino & Nelson, 2011). Workplace exampleA few employees inform their boss that they do not feel comfortable working with a co-worker who was blamed for talking about confidential information, and the manager decided to terminate that employee’s employment. A workplace example would be telling your boss the truth even though you might get a fellow co-worker in trouble. If we see a person being sexually harassed on the job it is our moral responsibility to help them and follow through with our decision. This is a virtuous action. Reference: Define Utilitarianism. (2005). In New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy. Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/utilitarianism Growdy, L. (2011). Virtue Ethics. Retrieved from http://www.ethicsmorals.com/ethicsvirtue.html Trevino, L., & Nelson, K. (2011). Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it right (5th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Utilitarianism. (n.d). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utilitarianism

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Why We Crave Horror Paper

Essay 5: Position Paper50 pts Description:4-5 pages, double-spaced, plus a separate MLA-format Works Cited page Skills:Everything! Due:First Draft:Friday, 10 December (in-class discussion) Final Draft:Monday, 13 December (Submit during Final Exam time: 2:45-4:45pm) Sources:Reading Critically, Writing Well (RC) pp. 517-534, 582-595; Stephen King, â€Å"Why We Crave Horror,† â€Å"Crouch End;† Fritz Leiber, â€Å"Smoke Ghost;† Algernon Blackwood, â€Å"The Empty House;† Noel Carroll, â€Å"The Nature of Horror† (optional)For your final paper, you will be required to make use of the above resources to explain, support, and defend your position against critique on the subject of horror in the absence of easily identifiable violence, gore, or monsters. You may argue with or against King and Carroll, or provide your own definition of horror and how it anticipates gore-less horror better than previous definitions. Since there are no right or wrong answers in this discussion, you will be judged on the strength of your argument for your position and how you present your analysis. Assignment: ) Present the issue. †¢ Summarize the King and Carroll definitions of horror and their successes/failings.†¢ Establish your credibility by generously discussing previous arguments on the function of horror. o Make sure to avoid emotional/personal opinions and instead stick to the texts. 2) Assert your position. †¢ Give examples from the readings that fit well/do not fit with the definition of horror as presented by King and Carroll. o Critique your own analysis using any of the Developing Your Argument skills (RC pp. 360-361), as well as Evaluating the Logic of an Argument (p. 24-640. 3) Argue directly for your position. †¢ Continue to establish your credibility with your audience by showing how your position alters/upholds the definition of horror as established. o Be willing to take a side in the argument, but avoid setting up straw-man arguments for the opposition. Carroll and/or King don’t have to be wrong for you to be right.4) Critique any relevant counter-arguments, objections, questions, or alternatives. †¢ Since no position will be perfect, try to accommodate any concerns or issues relating to your discussion of horror. Options (you may choose one or all): ? Accommodation: modify your position to suit relevant objections. ? Refutation: show the reader that any likely alternatives will not be as effective in describing the function of horror as you see it. ? Integration: demonstrate how your position can work together with other options to provide a more comprehensive take on the horror genre.Criteria for Evaluation: †¢ Analysis: 20 points o Has a strong, focused explanation of the sources using RC skills learned so far. o Supports the initial thesis with evidence (i. e. details from the source) and offers in-depth analysis of those details. †¢ Sources: 10 points o Productivel y uses both the RC and the sources. o Features effective paraphrasing and selective quotation. †¢ Organization: 10 points o Offers strong topic sentences that logically develop and extend the analysis (i. e. , no random accumulation of facts or bullet-point narrative). o Proceeds logically from one point to the next in a climactic sequence. o Clearly links claims and evidence. o Uses smooth transitions between points. †¢ Readability: 10 points o Uses correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, and MLA citation.

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Business Plan for Innovative Clothing Case Study

Business Plan for Innovative Clothing - Case Study Example ...................................................13 5.0 Important Milestones and activities...................................................................14 6.0 Financial statements............................................................................................15 6.1 Assumptions.........................................................................................................15 6.2 Profit and Loss statement...................................................................................16 6.3 Balance Sheet.......................................................................................................17 6.4 Cash Flow statement...........................................................................................18 References..................................................................................................................19 INNOVATIVE CLOTHING 1.1Business goals: Innovative Clothing (IC) will manufacture and market a complete range of branded casual clothing to cover the entire segment of this market. The company will position itself as store chain offering casual clothing of quality which is above expectations of the market, at competitive price and with designs which are simple but at the same time makes the wearer look smart. The company will aim to achieve a turnover of 3 million (Aus $) in the first year and 10$ by the end of third year. It will break even in the first year of operation itself and start generating substantial profits from second year onwards. 1.2 The Company Innovative Clothing is a general partnership firm. The fund for the establishment of the business is equally shared by 5 partners. As a general partnership firm the responsibility is also equally shared among the partners. The entire...The fund for the establishment of the business is equally shared by 5 partners. As a general partnership firm the responsibility is also equally shared among the partners. The entire activities of the business are under the control of a Board of directors in which the 5 partners are included. The company is manufacturing and marketing garments locally. With the experience gained, it wants to enter into retail sales of casual garments in a big way by setting up a chain of retail stores in Sydney. It will open 10 stores in the first year followed by ten more in the second year. The partners collectively have experience in production, marketing and design. They propose to recruit a Chief Executive Officer who will be in charge of operations. The CEO will report to the board represented by the five partners. Innovative Clothing proposes to transfer its manufacturing activity to China because of availability of work force at lower wages and various supports given by the government for investing there. The marketing and design activities will be located at Sydney. The company would try to cater to the needs of entire market for casuals instead of focussing on one particular segment only. For this it will evolve appropriate promotion and branding strategy. 1988-89 to $AUD 11.82 billion in 2006-07.

Summary and Critical Response Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Summary and Critical Response - Article Example According to the author, this independent nature is not awful but it reduces the overall qualitative development of the students by hindering their academic work. The students will not be able to conduct their study according to the academic schedule. Moreover, the students will not be eligible for a better job in future due to the part time job and lack of educational development. Thus, it is eminent from the article that the part time jobs at every instance affect the educational field of the students (Rokicka, 2014; Etzioni, n.d.). The author Amitai Etzioni has argued over the facts that the jobs at fast food organizations affect the quality of the students. The reason behind this is that the part time jobs do not provide any skilled training or any sort of career building opportunities. The author Etzioni has attempted to drag the attention of the working students and their guardians in order to demonstrate the drawbacks of part time jobs in such organizations. Moreover there are some other contradictory arguments, which reflect the importance of such part time jobs in these organizations. According to Wang, Kong, Shan & Vong (2010), the employees working in the restaurants acquire specific knowledge regarding preparation of food and maintenance of machines, and cash registers among others. This knowledge that the employees are attaining is of no use for them. However, Knuth (2011) contradictory argued that the learning of cash registers and operating these do not reflect any significant skill development. Mo reover, the learning of such aspects does not provide any better opportunity for them in building their career (Knuth, 2011). The contradictory arguments by Wang, Kong, Shan & Vong (2010) also suggests that the students working in part time jobs are of considerable number. The reason behind this is that the employees of part time jobs are

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

The contribution of Human Resource Management Essay

The contribution of Human Resource Management - Essay Example The second task aims to evaluate Marie Detert statement in the February 2008 issue of management today. The author stated that about 10-15% of the people in any organization are likely to be outstanding and around 5-10% do not perform. The majority of the employees works at an acceptance level, but is often neglected by the managers who concentrate on the outstanding and the inadequate. This study will discuss why it is important for organizations to retain the employees who are performing acceptably. The research will explain and justify the HRM strategies that can be used by organizations to retain and motivate its acceptance employees. The third task will evaluate the need of organizations to design jobs that empower their workers. Also, this task will analyze if the job design should be amended once change is contributed into the HR systems. The importance of job design towards the success of organizations will also be evaluated. Secondary research has been used to collect information for this study. A number of books, journals and magazines have been consulted to collect information and reach a conclusion that is presented towards the end of this study. In this section the study will identify ... These models will be evaluated for their efficiency and effectiveness in the organization. (i) Training and Development The HRM department at Xerox realized the importance of training and development to survive and sustain in the changing business environment. Today, the leaders are expected to have not only good verbal skills, but also excellent videoconferencing skills. It is no longer enough to simply mail things to clients and the customers now expect well written and prompt emails. Board meetings through videoconferencing were becoming very popular and Xerox decided to train their employees to use new technology (Pulley et al, 2002). The company approached the Center for Creative Leadership and asked them to design unique leadership development program that minimized the time needed for training the employees. Xerox wanted to train future leaders but was keen on minimizing their time away from the job. In addition, the company aimed to cut down the learning costs, and use learning technology to reach it goal. The Center for Creative Leadership introduced Xerox the idea of leadership development v ia the web (Pulley et al, 2002). The e-leadership program was delivered through web to geographically dispersed and targeted high-potential employees. The e-learning program used the web to conduct online face-to-face sessions, which included assessment, personal coaching, and mentoring. The new HRM model for training and development was successful in improving the performance of the employees at Xerox (Pulley et al, 2002). The e-learning program enhanced the learning efficiencies of the targeted employees and lowered the total costs of training. Xerox also enabled to reduce the time employees had to spend

Monday, August 26, 2019

THE ELECTRIC TOWN CAR COMPANY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

THE ELECTRIC TOWN CAR COMPANY - Essay Example The variable costs of the product amount to 2000 pounds. Based on these two figures the contribution margin of a sale of a car towards the fixed costs of the company is 3000 pounds. The total fixed costs of the company which includes overhead related to administration costs, marketing, research and development and other costs is 150 million pounds. The end result of the breakeven analysis illustrated in appendix A is the company must sell 50,000 car units per year for the revenues of the company to equal its expenses. The pricing point chosen by the company of 5000 pounds is between 4% and 16% lower than the competition. The ETC project requires a capital investment of 500 million pounds to be invested in buildings, machinery, office equipment, information technology system and other fixed assets. The investors interested in the project stipulated a minimum 15% return of investment (ROI). Appendix B provides a price sensitivity analysis that shows the annual demand of the ETC product depending on the price point of the car. The Electric Town Car Company had a requirement of a 15% return on investment. At the original price of 5000 pounds the company produces a profit of 54 million pounds, but the return on the original investment is 10.8%, which is below the 15% requirement. In order to achieve the desired ROI the company must lower its price from 5000 pounds to 4600 pounds. At the 4600 pound price with a unit output level of 85,000 units the company obtains a 16.92% return on investment. It is r ecommended that the company operate at the 90,000 units full capacity output selling its product at 4600 pounds. At this price and output the return of investment increases to 19.68%. All the figures depicted in this paragraph are illustrated in Appendix B. An initial requirement for the potential investors in the ETC project is to obtain a return on investment of 15%. This ROI based on an initial investment of requires the company to

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Reform and Planning in Dallas Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Reform and Planning in Dallas - Essay Example Fairbanks places more emphasis in the need to eliminate slums. According to him, the city administrators Prepared for the twentieth century by adopting measures aimed at handling the soaring population. The city also made major improvements in its urban planning as well as economic development. This significantly helped in eliminating slums and ensuring that public housing is provided for the needy. Moreover, Fairbank argues that Dallas prepared for the twentieth century by integrating its urban policy into the federal as well as state-based housing policies. In the essay, he also analyzes the past and contemporary profile of Dallas. These include the cultural and social issues that characterize the city. According to him, the city prepared for the twentieth century by ensuring that its urban change is relevant to its future, as well as the future of its metropolitan regions. He argues that effective urban and regional planning is necessary. Fairbanks also argues that Dallas implemented a wide range of environmental provisions in its urban planning. According to him, this significantly helped in ensuring that environmental conservation is enhanced and pollution is mitigated. Finally, he believes that technology plays a significant role in the development of any city. He therefore argues that Dallas prepared for the twentieth century by integrating technological advancements when planning the

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Visual analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

Visual analysis - Essay Example The first artwork that will be analyzed is the artwork presented by Emily Dunlap. Emily Dunlap created this impressive piece of artwork using several materials. This piece of artwork dated 2012 bears the title â€Å"Until you come back†. Some of the materials used to create this piece include an oil bar, cotton thread and canvas. The end product of the artwork was a portrayal of sunflowers, a terra cotta pot, a watering can and Miracle Gro. This artwork measures 6 inches by 9 inches. The texture of these artworks seems rather rough from the use of canvas and cotton thread. The bright illustration and amusing presentation of this artwork creates an appealing visual depiction of art (Leeuwen and Jewitt 129). This drawing also incorporates an interest in exploring the human perceptions of the environment through portraying real art. In fact, this piece of artwork by Dunlap can be depicted like a mirror that viewers can use to identify a creative expression of the landscape. The brief detail in the artwork easily captures the view of individuals. â€Å"Until you come back† is composed of a portrayal of sunflowers that unify the composition of the artwork. This artwork can be compared to the collections by Solomon "Sol" LeWitt who was a renowned American artist. LeWitt had significantly specialized in painting, photography, drawing and print making (Leeuwen and Jewitt 200). The simplicity in the drawings from these artists is quite evident. Their artworks can be defined as playful, random and curvilinear. This is because LeWitt used graphite and crayon in several scribble artworks. In the same case, Dunlap experimented on a contemporary technique in fine art that involved the use of cotton thread in the artwork â€Å"Until you come back†. This asserts that both artists have something in common in the field of art. In this part, I picked the Cairn Copy artwork presented by Daina

Friday, August 23, 2019

Should Animals Be Used to Test the Safety of Products Such as Research Paper

Should Animals Be Used to Test the Safety of Products Such as Cosmetics - Research Paper Example n one hundred people, this aroused the United States government to pass a law that made it mandatory to have a drug tested on animals before its introduction to humans (Ilman 16). The issue of using animal models started raising controversy early in the years after the adoption of vivisection. Standardization of animal testing was initiated by the passing of the Animal Protection Law by the British parliament that was later accompanied by another law, the Cruelty to Animals Act. Animal protection in the United States has made several steps and is said to have been initiated by among other things, a memorial held by medical students over a vivisected dog, the animal activists intensified protests that saw establishment of animal protection mechanisms. Advancements have been made in replacing the use of animal models, refining the testing mechanisms and the reduction in the use of animals (Ilman 16). Animals have the same rights as humans. The animals are subject to the same pain and s uffering that the humans go through. They suffer when they are injured, this means that the things that humans go through happen to them too, they fall sick, they die (Fox 2). When an animal develops cancer or some other condition because of being used to test products, they undergo through the same situation that every other person would be subject to. Considering this aspect demonstrates that, it is ironical for humans to think that they are humane when they are part of exploitation to other organisms. The reason why humans have adopted the use of animals is because they can control them and manipulate them the way they want. Nature creates a balance that should be altered through artificial mechanisms. The biological similarity between man and animals used in testing is an advantage to... This paper stresses that animals are not any different from humans; the only difference can be related to the level of intelligence. Humans have infringed on the rights of the animals because they lack a right to defend themselves independently. They have no platform to bring out their issues, their only voice is the human right activists who can be corrupted or induced to think otherwise, their stand can be compromised. Again, it is unnecessary to apply the treatments to animals that would benefit them. Products such as cosmetics are not really a necessity for the animals, making it illogical for them to be tested on them. It can only be right if the products meant for them are the only ones tested through them. The animal activists have a point that needs to be carefully analyzed and appropriate action taken. It is very true that the animal rights are very important to them and less important to humans. This report makes a conclusion that it is apparent that the best option for use in testing of products for consumption by humans is animals. Animals share several similarities with humans, from the organ system, to the body processes, to the genetic material, aspects that make it possible for the products to have a representative effect as in humans. The other alternatives available are deficient in many forms and do not provide concrete evidence of safety. However, the animal models should be used with care and caution. Concrete policies should be developed and implemented for inhumane treatment against animals used for testing products.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Clinical vs Counseling Psychology Essay Example for Free

Clinical vs Counseling Psychology Essay Abstract The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast the primary goals of a clinical psychologist and a counseling psychologist, explain perspectives on treatment similar and how are they different, and discuss the educational requirements for each. This paper will also discuss what type of setting are we likely to find each, identify which professional association each would be affiliated with as well as which Code of Ethics regulates each professional and explain the advantages and disadvantages to each of these professions. Primary Goals of Clinical Psychologist Assessment – This includes interviewing, observation and testing; all clinical psychologists need to be thoroughly trained in this area and should be able to choose the correct type of testing/method when conducting this with the client. They test such things as intellect, cognitive processes, and social functioning along with this, being able to interpret the test is also essential to clinical psychologist (Vallis Howes, 1996). Diagnosis – As well as being able to conduct test, a major role also includes the ability to diagnosis using multiple models (Vallis Howes, 1996). Intervention – Giving the client the inner strength to acclimatize themselves to change and gain a sense of power in everyday living (Vallis Howes, 1996). Research – The ability to implement and conduct different programs both basic and applied. This is a fundamental function of clinical psychologist in both clinical and academic formats (Vallis Howes, 1996). Consultation/Program Development – Working with peers who work with clients, interacting with peers, contributing their services for the bettering of the program, and obtaining supervision (Vallis Howes, 1996). Clinical psychologists have a skill set which provides a much needed service to society. They use it by practicing, creating and evaluating applied and scientific skills (Vallis Howes, 1996). Primary Goals of Counseling Psychologist Some goals include expounding on the overall mental aspect when working with families, communities, and individuals. Working with those individuals in distress and experiencing troubling times in areas such as family,  relationships, making decisions, life events and career moves just to name a few (Bedi et al, 2011). Their goal is to be well informed with how humans think, feel, their personal life, sexual relations, and even recreational activity to name a few. The counselor’s job is to expose the inadequacies and provide a remedy that will correct those issues (Watkins, 1983). Educational Requirement for Clinical Psychologist To be called a â€Å"clinical psychologist† one first would have to obtain a doctorate then become licensed in the state you want to practice in. The two types of degrees are PhD, which focuses more on research and PsyD which places emphasis on the applied facet of clinical psychology (Sternberg, 2007). Educational Requirement for Counseling Psychologist To obtain this â€Å"title† one must complete the required and accepted doctorial degree, complete a minimal of two years in what is called â€Å"supervised practice† and apply to be licensed in the state(s) you choose to practice in (Kuther Morgan, 2009). Advantages and Disadvantages Advantages – The following advantages are from a psychology forum. (1) Being of help is self-fulfilling (2) You can set your own work schedule (3) You have the opportunity to make a lot of money (4) You can be self employed. (5) Psychologists have the opportunity to touch countless of lives (Cherry, n.d). Disadvantages –The following disadvantages are from a psychology forum. (1) Issues with insurance and billing (2) Difficulty setting up your independent business (3) Working with clients can be challenging. (4) Psychologists have rough and complex work hours. (5) You spend devoted time to recruiting new clients (Cherry, n.d). References Bedi, R. P., Haverkamp, B. E., Beatch, R., Cave, D. G., Domene, J. F., Harris, G. E., Mikhail, A. (2011). Counselling psychology in a canadian context: Definition and description. Canadian Psychology, 52(2), 128-138. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/870506935?accountid=39364 Cherry, K. (n.d.). Advantages of Being a Psychologist. Psychology Complete Guide to Psychology for Students, Educators Enthusiasts. Retrieved August 5, 2013, from http://psychology.about.com/od/careersinpsychology/tp/psychologist-advantages.htm Cherry, K. (n.d.). Disadvantages of Being a Psychologist Whats the Worst Part About Being a Psychologist. Psychology Complete Guide to Psychology for Students, Educators Enthusiasts.Retrieved August 5, 2013, from http://psychology.about.com/od/careersinpsychology/tp/psychologist-disadvantages.htm Kuther, T. L., Morgan, R. D. (2009). Careers in psychology, opportunities in a changing world. (3rd ed. ed.). Boston: Wadsworth Pub Co. Sternberg, R. J. (2007). Career paths in psychology. Washingtion, DC: American Psychological Association. Vallis, T. M., Howes, J. L. (1996). The field of clinical psychology: Arriving at a definition. Canadian Psychology, 37(2), 120-127. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/220807484?accountid=39364 Watkins, C. E. (1983). Counseling psychology versus clinical psychology: Further explorations on a theme or once more around the identity maypole with gusto . The Counseling Psychologist, 11(4), 76-92. doi: 10.1177/0011000083114012

Impact of Icebreaker Tasks on ESL Speaking Ability

Impact of Icebreaker Tasks on ESL Speaking Ability CHAPTERÂ   Background and Purpose Introduction Speaking is the most demanding skill among English learners and over the past decades, increasing interest in different aspects of improving speaking ability has triggered a variety of investigations, and theoretical discussions that have shed light on improving this ability. Icebreakers will be used in this study to improve speaking ability in adult upper-intermediate EFL learners. Ice breaking means breaking the ice between learners and using ice breakers to encourage students to interact all together. Statement of Problem The lack of proper speaking activities to improve oral production in adult EFL students of upper-intermediate level, results in a poor performance when speaking. This project expects to find valuable information that contributes to overcome the problems adult EFL students of upper-intermediate level face when speaking in the target language in the classroom. Theoretical Framework Speaking skill is as crucial as any other language skills. Shumin (1997) states that learning to speak a foreign language requires more than knowing its grammar and vocabulary. Learners should acquire the skill through interaction with each other. However, it is difficult for EFL learners to speak appropriate English in the classroom because of the limited language use in their real lives. Ice breakers are discussion questions or interaction activities used to help participants relax and ease in learning situation (Dover, 2004). The primary goal for an ice breaker is the development of an environment that is anxiety reducing and, which allows individuals to break the ice or get acquainted with having fun. Pillai (2007) mentions the purpose of ice breakers as helping new and shy students strike a conversation, developing communication skills and team building, breaking cultural barriers among students, promoting a sense of trust and friendship between students, encouraging students, and preparing them to learn by stimulating their minds and/or their bodies. Forbes-Greene (1984) defines icebreakers as tools that enable students to foster interaction, encourage creative thinking, challenge basic assumptions, explain new concepts, and introduce specific material. According to Varvel (2002) ice breaker is an activity used to help individual ease into the group setting. Also, Wright (1999) defines ice breaker as opening communication among students as between teacher and students. Jenkins (2011) argues that ice breaker should be dynamic and simple so as to satisfy students need to establish an appropriate social relationship with other students and teachers and also preview the style and content of the classroom event. According to Sapp (2007) principles of successful ice breakers are as follows: Simple Non-threatening Open ended Relevant Energizing Witkowski (2000) states that some elements should be considered in designing an appropriate ice breaker in the classroom. He listed these elements as follow: Objective Audience Time management Control As a matter of fact, we can say that how well students do in class depends mostly on how well teacher breaks the ice between them. From this point of view, English teachers should reconsider the methodology they can apply in their classes and try to improve their teaching ability. Purpose of the Study In terms of skills, producing a coherent and fluent piece of speech is probably the most important thing there is to do between EFL learners. The present study investigates ice breaking tasks as activities that presumed to play a role in EFL speaking classes. The first question this study tries to answer is whether or not providing students with ice braking tasks as their classroom activities will exert any impact on their speaking skill. According to Peterson (2010), beginning your lesson plans with a five-minute ice breaker can serve to focus your students on the topic, open up creative thinking and help them to apply the learning in new ways. According to Leblanc (2011) ice breaking activities will help students to turn off the outside world and focus on the task at hand. By the end of the ice breaking activity, every student will be ready to learn and being able to focus on their language lesson. Then, a teacher will reach every student and will help their students achieve their language goals. In any classroom, there always are students who are more reticent and are willing to let others do all the participating. By engaging students to take part in a low-risk, ice-breaking activity, teachers will reach every student and will help their students achieve their language goals. Based on the problems and purpose of study, the following research questions were proposed: Does providing students with ice- breaking tasks have any effect on their speaking ability? To what extent ice-breakers improve speaking? What factors can be considered in testing speaking ability of EFL learners? What is the effect of using ice-breakers in improving every factor that considered in testing learners speaking ability? What is the correlation between using ice-breaker activities and students gender? When teachers use ice- breaking as a strategy to improve oral ability in English classrooms? 1.5. Significance of the Study In the age of internet and information technology, speaking English has become so important and many EFL instructors and supervisors understand the essence of the speaking process. Learning to speak English fluently is important to most of the students. Thus, helping students to develop speaking skills is a demanding enterprise for teachers. Using a good ice breaker is important to an English language lesson, as it sets the students up for success on many different levels. According to Flanigan (2011) performing ice breaking activities in English class will help students be in the right frame of mind to learn. Also proper ice breaking activities ensure that students will get the most from their class and they will have fun. 1.6. Research Design and Methodology 1.6.1. Research Design Since real random selection of the subjects is impossible, the researcher made use of intact groups based on the results of students previous general English test scores. Therefore the design which can fit this study is the quasi-experimental design with the pre-test, post-test pattern. In the current study ice breakers are the independent variable and speaking is the dependent variable. Thus the effectiveness of ice breakers, the amount of improvement, factors that can be considered in testing speaking ability, and effect of using icebreakers in every factor will be analyzed quantitatively by data analysis of pre-test and post-test, and qualitatively by analyzing teachers view point about the usefulness of ice-breakers. 1.6.2. Setting and Participants After administering the sample speaking IELTS test, on the basis of the result, 100 students, whose homogeneities is confirmed-will be selected and divided into two groups ,one as the control group and the other one as the experimental group. Coming from different departments such as Science, History, Literature, Computer Science and Civil Engineering, Both groups will attend English classes two times a week throughout the semester (about 18 sessions, 3hours each session). 1.6.3. Data Collection Instruments For collecting data, two instruments have been used in this study. The first ones are different kind of ice breakers that have been gathered from related standard sources. The second instrument is interview with teachers. As we will explain latter, it will elaborate in order to identify some aspects related to the teachers’ point of view about the usefulness of ice-breakers in upper-mediate level, and the students reaction to these kinds of activities. 1.6.4. Data Analysis As it was mentioned earlier, there is a six fold purpose that will promote the present study. This research is mainly an attempt (a) to examine the probable effect of ice breakers on the speaking ability of EFL students at upper-intermediate language proficiency level, (b) to investigate the amount of ice breakers effect, (c) to investigate factors that are considered in testing speaking (d) study the effect of using ice-breakers in improving every factor,(e) measure the correlation between using ice-breaker activities and students gender,and (f) the conditions in which the teachers use ice breakers to cope with reticence in oral English language classrooms. Data for this study obtained from pre-test, post-test, and interview with teachers. Then in order to do statistical analysis, the SPSS software is used. 1.7. Limitation and Delimitations of the Study 1.7.1. Limitations As many other studies, this study suffers from some limitations, those conditions beyond the control of the researcher that may place restrictions on the conclusions of the study and their application to other situations (Best Kahn, 1989, p.38). It seems that the following factors have limited this study in one way or another: 1. As a matter of fact, in order to give every single member of a population an equal chance to be included in the sample, random sampling is needed. Yet the type of sampling, which was employed in this study was the available group selection, i.e. instead of individual subject selection, there was group selection. 2. Subjects social classes were certainly ignored as well. 3. Teachers age, gender, and social class were ignored, too. 4. The number of subjects was limited to 100 and the extension of the experiment was limited to one term. 5. The generalizability to other language proficiency levels needs further research. 1.7.2. Delimitation In order to meet the criterion of manageability and to permit a satisfactory analysis of the results, narrowing down and delimiting the problems in any study have proved to be inevitable. This study is no exception; therefore, through a number of delimitations, the researcher tried to set the boundaries of this study: 1. What this study aims to investigate is the impact of ice-breakers on speaking ability of EFL Turkish students, not on any other aspect of their proficiency. 2. The participants were chosen from amongst the male and female undergraduate Turkish learners who are improving their English level in the American Culture Institute in Erzurum. 3. To reduce the subject anxiety during the speaking, the examiner was the students own teacher. 1.8. Outline of the Study Chapter one provides a general introduction to the study. In this chapter the purpose of the study, research questions, hypotheses, and limitations of the study were discussed and key terms were defined. In chapter two, the researcher reviews the literature related to the theoretical and empirical background to speaking, ice-breakers, and their effects and functions. Chapter three deals with methodological issues such as participants, data collection, procedures, research questions and hypotheses, etc. Chapter four is concerned with data analysis and discussion of the results. In the final chapter, we draw some conclusions from our analysis, discuss conclusive results, and provide implications for further research.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Free College Essays - Fear in William Faulkners A Rose for Emily :: A Rose for Emily, William Faulkner

The Power of Fear in A Rose for Emily   A Rose for Emily   Life is fickle and most people will be a victim of circumstance and the times. Some people choose not to let circumstance rule them and, as they say, â€Å"time waits for no man†. Faulkner’s Emily did not have the individual confidence, or maybe self-esteem and self-worth, to believe that she could stand alone and succeed at life especially in the face of changing times. She had always been ruled by, and depended on, men to protect, defend and act for her. From her Father, through the manservant Tobe, to Homer Barron, all her life was dependent on men. The few flashes of individuality showed her ability to rise to the occasion, to overcome her dependency, when the action was the only solution available. Like buying the poison or getting money by offering china-painting classes.   Life is sad and tragic; some of which is made for us and some of which we make ourselves. Emily had a hard life. Everything that she loved left her. Her father probably impressed upon her that every man she met was no good for her. The townspeople even state â€Å"when her father died, it got about that the house was all that was left to her; and in a way, people were glad†¦being left alone†¦She had become humanized† (219). This sounds as if her father’s death was sort of liberation for Emily. In a way it was, she could begin to date and court men of her choice and liking. Her father couldn’t chase them off any more. But then again, did she have the know-how to do this, after all those years of her father’s past actions? It also sounds as if the townspeople thought Emily was above the law because of her high-class stature. Now since the passing of her father she may be like them, a middle class working person. Unfortunately, for Emily she bec ame home bound. She didn’t socialize much except for having her manservant Tobe visit to do some chores and go to the store for her. Faulkner depicts Emily and her family as a high social class. Emily did carry her self with dignity and people gave her that respect, based from fear of what Emily could do to them. Emily was a strong willed person especially when she went into the drug store for the arsenic.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Behind the Scenes: The Effects of Acting on Personal Identity Essay

Scientists have found it most valuable to study the cases of twins in order to determine the relative contribution of genetics or environmental factors to intelligence. First off, it is important to have an understanding of the genetic distribution between the different groups. Identical twins share the exact same genetic material, giving them 100% genetic overlap. Secondly, all other first degree family members such as fraternal twins, siblings, and biological parents and children share 50% genetic overlap. Cousins have 15% overlap, and all other relationships share 0% genetic overlap. In twin studies, psychologists study a variety of different cases; identical twins raised together, identical twins raised separately, and fraternal twins raised together and separately. The reason for including these groups is to examine the correlation they have for intelligence. These studies have shown the intelligence correlation in identical twins is higher than in fraternal twins, even when the identical twins are raised apart. Examining these different groups helps to determine the influence both genetics and environmental factors have on intelligence. Other groups that have been included in these studies are: siblings raised together, siblings raised apart, biological parent and child that lived together, biological parent and child that lived apart, adoptive parent and child that lived together, and cousins that lived apart. These groups were included because comparing identical versus fraternal twins is not the only method to help determine the influence of genetics on intelligence. Because these other groups have varying degrees of genetic overlap with each other, they provide information that can contribute to understandi... ... person possesses is irrelevant. A person that is skilled in mathematics is intelligent, as is a person that has the ability to choreograph a Broadway dance routine. Everyone has a degree of intelligence in every subject; however, some people have a very high amount of intelligence in some particular areas compared to other areas. Both nature (genetics) and nurture (environment) make definite contributions to intelligence. The most accurate way to put the contributions together is to say that genetics allows for intellectual capacity and it is the role of nurturing to bring that capacity (â€Å"intelligence†) to its fullest capabilities. Without an enriched environment, a lot of intelligence may be put to no use at all. If a person has no outlet to channel the intelligence he or she has there is intellectual potential simply sitting there, but not being exercised.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Protagonists Essay -- English Literature Essays

Protagonists The protagonists in â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper†, â€Å"The Storm†, and â€Å"Eveline† all seem to have similarities in their character. They are all women that have lived in an era in which women are seen as nothing. This woman had no identity in this world because they were told what to do by men. Human nature is also another important element that these women have in common. Calixta from â€Å"The Storm† is a married woman with a family. She is living in a time period in which woman have no control in what goes on in their life. The husband handles everything and she does the housework and childbearing. Te other two women in the novels seem to be in the same situation. Throughout the novel there seems to be a lot of sexuality and passion as another man enters the picture. This man is an old boyfriend who comes to take shelter from â€Å"The Storm†. Calixta and Alcee rediscover the passion there is between them. â€Å"Alcee’s arm encircled her, and for an instant he drew her close and spasmodically to him† (362). While the storm is going on outside the passion inside the house is also storming between Calixta and Alcee. In â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† the protagonists is also dealing with the issues of control with her husband. She is also living in the same era as Calixta where she is told what to do. This poor woman seems to have been pushed in to the state of mind that she is currently in because of her husband. She basically was living in a prison with watch guards at her side. She ...

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Lab

The main function demonstrated by Spunk where the ability to quickly analyze data and show correlations in the data. This builds more secure operations, because data can be compiled and analyzed in minutes instead of hours and days. Thus any necessary action by operations personnel and security personnel can take place in a reasonable amount of time. Spunk also can monitor server events and report alerts as needed to alert personnel to ongoing or current issues. 3.What types of â€Å"Data Inputs† are available in Spunk and most other log management tools? Spunk can receive data inputs from event log collection, remote event log collections, files and directories, local performance monitoring, remote performance monitoring TCP, UDP, Registry monitoring active directory monitoring, and scripts. 4. What types of â€Å"Alert Conditions† are available in Spunk and most other log management tools? A. A Basic Conditional Alert is a trigger that is set off when a certain number Of alerts that have been scheduled is surpassed. . An Advanced Conditional Alert is a trigger that is set off when a secondary alert is met in addition to the primary scheduled alert. 5. What types of â€Å"Alert Actions† are available in Spunk and most other log management tools? Basic alerting, Advanced alerts and confining options, Real-time alerting and throttling, and Alert Manager 6. What is the search string for the â€Å"windows-fletching- failure† pre-configured Search? 7. What is the search string for the performance_snapshot automated Job which comes pre-configured? . Provide at least five (5) examples of security or operations related Windows Management Reports and Searches that are pre-configured and available within Spunk 9. What Chart Types are available for a search or report within Spunk? There are column, line, area, bar, pie, scatter, radial gauge, filler gauge, and marker gauge. 10. What Scheduled Search did you configure to Alert and/or Report wit hin Spunk to help your AOL of Implementing Security Operations Management Best Practices?Explain the reasoning behind scheduling this particular alert. I would schedule the prefigured search, errors in the last hour, to run every hour. This would allow me to see any errors that are relatively new that I could look into quickly. Ideally alerts in real time would be better, but if just choosing one to run while another search is developed this would be good.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Coffee Culture

Coffee has been around for a very long time. It is no coincidence that such an influential and integral drink has created a cultural realm of its own. According to â€Å"Hot and Bothered: Coffee and Caffeine Humor† by Elise Decamp with Catherine M. Tucker, coffee humor has been depicted to be one of the compliments that has culturally elevated coffee-drinking to a another human aspect – humor. Humor can be interpreted and expressed in more ways than one.There are no set rules of what constitutes humor in any society; therefore, humor comes in many shapes and sizes. So, how is increasing coffee humor relayed to â€Å"caffeine culture? † Each culture and point in time is different, but coffee has always had a strong correlation to a â€Å"caffeine culture† that stemmed from the physiological and mental attributes that coffee, or caffeine, imposes on its consumer. Because of its notorious effects coffee has on its consumers, drinking coffee has been portrayed as an energizing, riveting, and delectable image.The article also makes references to cartoons and sketches about consuming coffee in the mid-1900’s and how it depicted the consumption of coffee and its effects. This is perhaps because during that span, societies were emerging as more work-oriented lives that led to the more practical use of coffee, or caffeine. Coffee humor emerged as a way of interpreting coffee consumption and its effects by portraying the consumers as very alert, alive, and even somber. The articles also notes that research on caffeine consumption not only may make a person more energized and alert, but also relaxed and at ease.This eventually led to the relationship coffee had with its consumers by allowing avid coffee drinkers to demonstrate their affinity and devotion by either wearing it as a shirt, bumper sticker, or on a description via social media. Eventually, coffee humor has contributed to the image many coffee drinkers hold and has been an ess ential method of showing the world the many faces of drinking coffee. Drinking coffee, however, has not always been portrayed as a positive influence.Through coffee humor, modern preoccupations about coffee or other aspects of modern life have been revealed to be a concern for the consumption of coffee. The article explains the use of caffeine as drug, known as dopamine, which is responsible for the effects it has on its consumers. Those effects being alertness sleep depravity, high-energy, and an increase in blood pressure. Caffeine not only causes these effects to take place during its intake, but like many other drugs, it leads to withdrawals that bring forth anxiousness, depression, muscle fatigue, insomnia, and headaches.These withdrawals, however, only last a couple days, unlike stronger drugs with longer lasting withdrawals. Consequently, coffee humor has taken an interpretation of the effects of coffee consumption by portraying what would happen if someone was to go without drinking coffee and their lives would be different. What may seem like an innocent joke at first, could actually be analyzed as a portrayal of a social issue of the potential dangers and misinformed lifestyles many choose to be a part of.

Finnie Walsh

Many people say that you must have plenty in common with someone in order to be their best friend. However, in the novel Finnie Walsh by Steven Galloway, this is not the case. Finnie and Paul have a few things in common, such as their passion for hockey, but they were (for the most part) complete opposites. Paul's family has a struggle with money throughout the duration of the novel, while Finnie's family is quite wealthy. After Mr. Woodward's accident, Finnie is struggling to escape the guilt; meanwhile, Paul is able to let it go. Finnie is a risk taker along with being very outgoing; but on the contrary, Paul is very timid and takes everything in stride. Paul and Finnie have few things in common; however, that is what makes them such great friends. Everyone in town knows how wealthy the Walsh family is. It is exploited across town through the pulp mill, multiple shops, and their large estate. After the loss of his wife, Mr. Walsh wants to give nothing but the best to his four sons. The downfall to that is Mr. Walsh is so busy and obsessed with the mania of owning things, that he neglects his sons. Finnie dislikes the impression his family leaves on the town and as a result, he humbly takes less and uses his money for important things. Paul's family is not the most financially stable family in town; fortunately, they are a stable family. The Woodwards love and support each other and they are astonished when Finnie be-friends Paul. â€Å"When I met Finnie Walsh, I was too young to realize that we weren't supposed to be friends† (pg. 2). Thanks to Finnie's blessing, Paul's dream of playing hockey eventually becomes a reality. The Woodwards accept Finnie as one of their own, and give him the attention he strives for from his over-achieving father. This is one of the reasons Finnie feels more guilt about Mr. Woodward's accident than Paul. After Paul's father gets in the terrible accident at the Walsh's pulp mill, things are never the same. A feeling of overwhelming guilt consumes Finnie. He feels that if he had been a better goalie, Mr. Woodward would not have been kept awake, resulting in him not falling asleep and work and losing his arm. Finnie forces himself to become a much better goalie after that awful day. To Finnie, hockey was about life and death†¦ It was a religion†(pg. 87). The only downfall to Finnie wanting to be a better goalie is that he becomes obsessed. Mr. Woodward does not resent nor blame Finnie for this tradgedy, unfortunately, Finnie can't lose his guilty conscience. On the other hand, Paul obviously suffers from guilt as well, but the more he matures, the easier it is for him to come to termsthat is not his fault. He decides to join hockey souly for the love of the game and not because of the accident. As much as Paul loves hockey, he does not let it consume his life. Paul is more understanding than Finnie about the accident, and does not allow it to affect him for the rest of his life. Although Paul does not allow the accident to take over his life, he does change because of it. The accident leaves Paul to be a lot more cautious and more worry-some. Despite his cautious personality, he finds himself trying new things and taking risks because of Finnie. â€Å"†¦ Without Finnie Walsh, I probably wouldn't have had the courage to do half the things I did†(pg. 22). Finnie teaches Paul many important life lessons such as not taking things for granted and not going through life unnoticed. Finnie is the youngest of the four Walsh brothers. In attempts to stand out and get some attention, he is very outgoing and risky. He gets sick of following in his brothers footsteps and tries everything to be an individual. He shares the passion of hockey with all his brothers and plays with them even though he gets bludgeoned and critisized. Finnie is idolized by Paul due to his spontanious attitude, courage, and ability to understand everyone. Paul learns many things from Finnie that he uses throughout his life. Having things in common with a best friend is usually important. Finnie Walsh illustrates that occassionally you do not need to be the same as someone to be their best friend. Finnie is a lot more financially stable than Paul; however, his family isn't very functional. The accident haunts Finnie for the rest of his life, while Paul is able to look past it. Finnie is much more outlandish than Paul but Paul learns many things from him. The pair of boys are able to compliment each other perfectly which portrays the scientifical explaination of â€Å"opposites attract†. lsh

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Lady of Bath vs. Desdemona

ENGL 220 – Scott Mackenzie December 8th, 2010 Breaking the Socially Acceptable Behavior of Women in Chaucer and Shakespeare To say that men in the centuries leading up to the twentieth believed a woman must be â€Å"seen but not heard,† is a fair statement. Women during the times of Chaucer and Shakespeare were second class citizens with little rights. They were considered properties of their masters (fathers and husbands), and had no use other than birthing and mothering. A woman was supposed to be meek, chaste, and have no opinion.However, the characters Desdemona in William Shakespeare’s Othello and Dame Alison from The Wife of Bath’s Prologue in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales seemingly go against common conventions of women, as they are bold characters who have strong opinions and exert dominance. Dame Alison, the Wife of Bath, is a character created by Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales. She is a merchant who has an interest in profit, an d uses sex and her many husbands to gain that profit. Alison has been married five times, and she is open to more, as sex is extremely important to her. Welcome the sixte, whan that ever he shal! / For sothe, I wol nat kepe me chast in al,/ Whan myn housbonde is fro the world anoon. † (51-53) Alison is boldly stating that she will continue to remarry because she cannot remain without sex, a statement that blatantly goes against the ideal woman, a lady who has one husband and is chaste at all times. Alison challenges this ideal when she says, â€Å"but that I axe, why that the fifthe man/ was noon housbond to the Samaritan? 1/ How manye mighte she have in mariage? / †¦ God bad us for to wexe and multiplye. (21-23, 28) In Alison’s time, the messages in the bible were considered the truth and 1 Referencing a story in the bible where Jesus told a Samaritan that though she had five mates, only one was her husband. were not to be challenged, especially by a woman. Withi n the first one hundred lines of her prologue, Dame Alison is breaking traditional womanly conventions by admitting her love of sex and questioning why the bible says she can only have one husband. Traditionally, husbands worked to make money and wives took care of the household.However, in The Canterbury Tales, we find out that Dame Alison is a business woman who â€Å"of cloth-making she hadde swich an haunt,/ she passed hem of Ypres and of Gaunt. † (Prologue to Canterbury Tales, 449-50) And though she is a successful business woman in her own right, Alison also uses sex to control her men and receive material gifts from them. She states that her first husbands were so old that â€Å"they had me yeven hir gold and hir tresoor;/ me neded nat do lenger diligence/ to winne hir love, or doon hem reverence. (204-206) In this quote, Alison is saying that they gave her land, money, and love without her having to have sex with them, a quote that shows readers she is open about sle eping with men to get what she wants. She reaffirms this notion of using sex to get what she wants by stating, â€Å"a wys womman wol sette hir ever in oon/ to gete hir love, ther as she hath noon. / But sith I hadde hem hoolly in myn hond,/ and sith they hadde me yeven all hir lond/ what sholde I taken hede hem for to plese/ but it were for my profit and myn ese? (209-214) In the lines following that quote, Alison goes on to mention that she had her husbands wrapped around her finger and that they were happy to please her. This is a direct contradiction to the social expectations of women in the time of Chaucer. Women were supposed to be at their husbands beckon and call, to ask for nothing, and to provide sex when needed by the husband. However, Alison’s husbands are at her beckon and call, she asks repeatedly for things, and she only has sex when she wants something. By using sex to her economic advantage, Alison is further breaking the socially acceptable behavior of wom en.Dame Alison challenges the bible in reference to virginity. Challenging the bible was generally taboo, especially when it came from a woman. Alison poses strong arguments and questions about virginity. Firstly, she says that Saint Paul’s talk of virginity and remaining celibate throughout life â€Å"al nis but conseil. †(82) Secondly, in lines 105-114, she is saying that virginity is a kind of perfection, and though Jesus was perfect, virginity is only meant for those who strive for absolute perfection, like Jesus was. Alison, on the other hand, says that â€Å"[she] wol bistoew the flour of al myn age,/ in the actes and in fruit of mariage. (113-114) Thirdly, Alison questions the design of the physical body. â€Å"Telle me also, to what conclusion/ were membres maad of generacioun/ and for what profit was a wight y-wrought? † (115-117) In this quote, Alison is asking why genitals were made perfect for each other if they weren’t mean to be used. Quest ioning why the bible and society have such strong opinions on virginity, a subject that is not generally discussed by women, is yet another reason why Dame Alison, the Wife of Bath from The Canterbury Tales challenges the socially acceptable behavior of women.Desdemona, the main female character in William Shakespeare’s Othello is another example of a character who is breaking female behavior norms. In the first act, Brabantio, Desdemona’s father, makes note of what a proper Venetian woman should be. He says they should be â€Å"of spirit still and quiet†¦ never bold. † (I. iii. 95-97) Contrary to Brabantio’s statement however, Desdemona is arguably bold. Her father, Brabantio, has long decided Desdemona will marry a business man. She, however, finds them boring, and thus marries Othello.Othello, though a celebrated general of the Venetian arm, is a moor2 and is therefore somewhat of a 2 A person who usually comes from northern Africa or Arabia and i s therefore black or dark skinned. societal outcast in the predominantly white Venice. Desdemona blatantly defies her father, something proper women never do, by marrying a social outcast. Any proper woman in Othello’s time would have been meek and polite both in public and in private, characteristics that are not displayed by Desdemona in either place.When confronted by her father about her marriage to Othello, Desdemona fights back, stating â€Å"I am hitherto your daughter: but here’s my husband/ and so much duty as my mother show’d/ to you, preferring you before her,/ so much I challenge that I may profess/ due to the Moor my lord. † (I. iii. 185-189) Desdemona is maintaining a strong stance on her marriage to Othello and is not cowering away because of her angry father. She publicly argues with Brabantio, an act that easily challenges the socially acceptable behavior of women as women were supposed to be submissive, never arguing with their fathers ( or any man for that matter), specially in public. Like Dame Alison, Desdemona is a temptress who uses sex to get what she wants. Trying to convince Othello to forgive Cassio, Desdemona states, â€Å"tell me Othello, I wonder in my soul/ what you would ask me that I should deny,/ or stand so mammering on? † (III. iii. 68-70) By referring to her unquestionable desire to please Othello in every possible way, Desdemona is saying that Othello cannot possibly love her as much as she loves him if he denies her wishes. In this one instance, Desdemona is subtly defying the socially acceptable behavior of women as she is using her sexuality to get what she wants.Overall, both Desdemona from Othello and Dame Alison from The Wife of Bath’s Prologue are characters who defy the socially acceptable behavior of women in their respective time periods. Desdemona acts bold by defying and arguing with her father, and uses her sexuality to manipulate. Similarly, Alison uses her sexuality f or economic gains from her five husbands, has a successful business of her own, and challenges the bible’s stance on multiple marriages and virginity. Therefore, both Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare challenge the ideals of the behavior of women in the early 14th and 17th centuries respectively.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Mary Shelly’s ‘Frankenstein’, and P.B. Shelly’s ‘Alastor’ Essay

The theme of suffering is best conveyed through the â€Å"solitary† aesthetic figure of the wanderer or vagrant. Romantic writers produced works revealing extremes of isolation and socialisation, creating ‘either a wild beast or a god’ and proving that although solitude can render knowledge, it can also be the cause of deep suffering. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, is an account of the monstrous potentiality of human creative power when severed from moral and social concerns. Suffering is displayed through the characters of Victor Frankenstein and his nameless creation, the monster or â€Å"the fallen angel† . Moreover, what is necessary to further the discussion of suffering, is the cause and indeed expression of suffering endured by the central characters. Frankenstein hopes to be the source of a new species, but ironically, his creature evolves into a self acknowledged Satan who swears eternal revenge and war on upon his creator and all the human race as a result of the misery he experiences at their hands. The Monster sees salvation only through the creation of his Eve. Both master and creature are torn by their internal conflicts from misapplied knowledge and their sense of isolation. P.B. Shelley’s Alastor; or the Spirit of Solitude, compares well to Frankenstein as there are many similarities with the poet and the character of the Monster and his creator, Frankenstein; both texts portray the themes of suffering through isolation and central to both is the desire for a companion or equal other. Alastor; or the Spirit of Solitude is a touching poem which conveys well the suffering of the individual. There is an obsession within the young poet within the poem, which leads him to express the broodings of the heart in solitude. The lonely musings of the poet are ironically soothing and create a melodious tone to the poem as he learns and strives for more knowledge to quench his young mind. As P.B.Shelley describes the character in the preface to the poem, he also draws on its moral: ‘It represents a youth of  uncorrupted feelings†¦He drinks deep of the fountains of knowledge and is still insatiate†¦ His mind is awakened and thirsts for intercourse with an intelligence similar to himself†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ He yearns as a result, for his perfect companion, but his wandering to far lands fails to find him his ideal. Shelley goes on to write that in desiring the purest being in a ‘single image’ he seeks in vain for a prototype of his conception. ‘Blasted’ by his disappointment he descends to an ‘untimely grave’. Shelley stated also in his preface that the tragic flaw of the young poet is that he is ‘deluded’ and ‘duped’ and thus ‘morally dead’. Shelley suggests, therefore that the spirit is cursed because it fails to exist with other citizens of the world. The poet chooses to wander in solitude and so suffers for existing ‘without human sympathy’. It is the ‘intensity and passion for their search’ which leads them to ‘lasting misery and loneliness in the world’. The moral is epitomized in the final lines of the preface: ‘Those who love not their fellow beings live unfruitful lives and prepare for their old age a miserable grave’. It is ironic that the poem begins exclaiming ‘Earth, Ocean, Air, beloved brotherhood!’ and yet this obsession and love for creation leads him further and further away from coexisting with all these things which he admires, leading to withdrawal and suffering. The opening verse describes romantic images of nature, typical of the period in which Shelley was writing, revealing the poets love for nature: The ‘dewy morn’ and the ‘solemn midnight’ as well as the descriptions of animal and insect life, create a tranquil atmosphere. Yet these are suddenly juxtaposed by the second verse; the poet describes suffering and disturbed sleep in ‘charnels and on coffins’ and the philosophical questions of the purpose of existence that follow create a sense of foreboding. P.B.Shelley, significantly, then describes ‘the alchemist’, implying that just as the alchemist’s quests to turn base metals into gold are an impossibility, the poets quests to wander and reject society, is equally fruitless. Parallels can be made to Victor Frankenstein in Mary Shelley’s gothic novel, who also is like the alchemist . The poet desires a companion, just as the Monster does in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. In the poem, the longing is portrayed in the image of the  moon: ‘As oceans moon looks on the moon in heaven’ This image is significant for several reasons; the poet compares illusion and reality and therefore conveys how he pursues the dream image of the maid into the real world, but the pursuit, as the image boldly suggests, is impossible and unattainable. In addition to this, the image of the moon enhances the feelings of a vacant natural world as it seems to the poet, whose narcissist love is directed to an ideal conceived within his own mind. This can be compared to both the character of Victor Frankenstein and his creation. Just like the poet in Alastor, the Monster desires in despair for an ideal which will never become a reality. Equally, the idea of narcissism is also apparent within the character of Frankenstein. In the poem, ‘Yellow flowers forever gaze on their own drooping eyes’ This image symbolises Narcissus who saw his reflection and fell in love with it, mistaking it for a Nymph, falling into the river, and dying in pursuit of his own reflection, turning into a daffodil. In the same way, Frankenstein is solipsistic and motivated by selfish desires; for him, love is narcissistic and in his pathetic attempt to make a creation in his own image, as God did with Adam, he creates instead ‘the fallen angel’, which he fails to love and nurture. Thus the novel and the poem both represent an idealistic quest, egotistical in essence- and for Frankenstein, a quest for self glorification- which gives rise to unimaginable suffering. In his poem, Shelley compares suffering and loneliness with an eagle, ‘grasped in folds of green serpent’ burning with pain, ‘Frantic with dizzying anguish’ Shelley appropriately uses the imagery of the serpent attacking a bird, drawing in Biblical parallels to the poem, just as Mary Shelley does in her novel to place importance on the Fall of Man. This theme is essential in Frankenstein as it often provides reasons for the suffering the characters experience, as Frankenstein too gains his knowledge through a forbidden act. Despite James Reiger’s 1974 criticism of the realism of the novel, it cannot be denied that Shelley knew far more about Galvanism, science and sorcery, than her critics gave her credit for. Frankenstein’s asexual creation of a ‘new species’ is actually an evolutionary regression. His ‘solitary reproduction’ is far from God-like; it is instead the beginning of terror and torment on human lives. The r eader first learns  about Frankenstein’s ill health and general condition through Robert Walter. This is an effective narrative method revealing Shelley’s exceptional style which enhances sympathy towards Frankenstein and, more importantly, serves to create suspense. He is described as being ‘dreadfully emaciated by fatigue and suffering†¦generally melancholy and despairing’ and more significantly, ‘gnashes his teeth as if impatient of the weight of woes that oppress him’. This description also highlights that Shelley’s work has been influenced by her father, the author of Caleb Williams, William Godwin, who wrote ‘Every time the mind is invaded with anguish and gloom the frame (or physical and outward vigour) becomes disordered’ (Godwin, Political Justice, Pg 249) Walter’s description of Victor Frankenstein only creates further suspense and is heightened by Frankenstein’s answer to why he is alone and travelling in such severe conditions: â€Å"To seek one who fled from me† It is his ‘constant and deep grief’ (Walter, page 59) which instil ‘sympathy and compassion’ in both Walter and the reader. The cause to Frankenstein’s grief is then revealed to the final and only friend he will ever have, in a unique Gothic style, revealing elements of both the sensational and supernatural. What follows then is a chilling story, in which Shelley creates a brooding atmosphere or gloom and terror, mystery and suspense, revealing at first the sufferings of the creator, and then the pain and torment of the creation. Frankenstein emphasises that â€Å"No youth could have passed more happily than mine†. Shelley contrasts the description of Frankenstein’s upbringing which is both respectable and pleasant, to the ‘gloomy and narrow reflection upon self’ which Frankenstein now feels on telling his story to the lieutenant. He outlines his fascination for ‘the structure of the human frame’ (page 79) and his various advancements in his work , but what is emphasised more is his obsession with his work. When his experiment is finally complete, there is no such joy. Frankenstein describes his disappointment and disgust when the monster woke, having ‘worked hard for nearly two years, but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart’ (page 85) So sickened and repulsed by the being he has created, Victor leaves the room: ‘†¦one hand was stretched out, seemingly to detain me, but I escaped’ (page 88). Thus form the moment the Monster is created, Frankenstein rejects him. His justification for his  action is simply: ‘Oh! No mortal could support the horror of that countenance!’ It is this fatal rejection which leads to his own downfall and proves that the suffering and solitary state of the monster is a result of Frankenstein’s irresponsibility. Victor’s suffering is caused by loss of his family and lover, and ultimately himself. Walter describes him as ‘broken in spirit’ but a ‘divine wanderer’ nevertheless. Frankenstein says ‘I have suffered great and unparallel misfortunes.’ Victor is not only referring to the murders, but also to the trial of Justice who is wrongly accused of murdering the young boy, William. Victor is aware that it was in fact the Monster who committed the murder, and when Justine’s verdict is announced, Victor can only think of his own guilt: ‘The tortures of the accused could not equal mine†¦the fangs of remorse tore at my bosom’. Victor blames himself for the deaths that occur because only he is aware of his creation and that it was he who let lose the malice of the ‘fiend’. His mental state leads to his illness, and typically in a Romantic novel, Shelley proves language cannot describe the nature of experience and is therefore limited, as Victor states: ‘†¦the sense of guilt which hurried me to hell of intense tortures, such as no language can describe.’ Victor describes his own solitary state has being ‘deep, dark, death – like solitude’ and this implants bitter rage within him: ‘My abhorrence for this fiend cannot be conceived’ and so he vows to avenge the murders. The arrival of the monster reveals to the reader a different story of suffering. Shelly prepares the reader for a terrifying gothic figure, but when he finally appears before the vehement Victor, he is composed and calmly states: ‘I expected this reception†¦all men hate the wretched’. His demeanour and eloquent speeches reveal a learned individual whose rationality supersedes even Victors, furthermore, there is a tone of remorse and pain in his voice. It is certain that Victor’s creation only grows monstrous qualities through his sufferings. Victor created life and abandoned it, and the monster even states helplessly:’ No father had watched my infant days’. His creation therefore has no identity, family, society, home or companion. He recognises that he is different: ‘Who was I? What was  I? Whence did I come? What was my destination?.’ His perceptions of himself are formulated as a result of societies reactions to him. He is â₠¬Ëœhideous and gigantic’ and suffers for these reasons in solitude. He describes his initial feelings as a new creature on earth, a ‘helpless, miserable wretch; I knew and could distinguish nothing; but feelings of pain invade me on all sides, I sat down and wept.’ His experiences are harrowing and emotional, and yet astounding; the monster’s sensory experiences are like a small child that is abandoned and desperately trying to survive. His first encounter with mankind leaves him afraid ‘miserable†¦from the barbarity of man’ (130) However, his encounter with the cottage family reveal the real nature and characteristics of the Monster. He yearns to be part of a family unit and on seeing the family weep, he realises their pain is poverty. He realises that by stealing from them ‘inflicted pain on the cottagers, I abstained and satisfied myself with berries’ (141) He helps them by collecting firewood and without their knowledge tends to their crops, and his only reward is his personal satisfaction of being able to help the needed. It can be stated that at this stage, the creature is only monstrous in appearance, and his recognition of the cottagers suffering shows his astonishing empathetic qualities. His romantic descriptions of his observations of the children and the loving nature of the family, juxtapose with his solitude and his feelings of self- loathing which are epitomised in seeing his reflection in the lake: ‘I was filled with bitterest sensations of despondence and mortification.’ When the cottagers finally find him, they too react through physical violence and ultimately the monster is rejected once again only to return to his solitude and misery: ‘Of my creation and creator I was absolutely ignorant†¦ endowed with a figure hideously deformed and loathsome; I was not even of the same nature as man†¦When I looked around I saw and heard of none like me†¦a blot upon this earth which all men fled, and whom all men disowned’ (149) The monster is visibly aware of his alienation and his reflections cause him agony and sorrow. He expresses his pain through wandering, and this is a pivotal moment which captures the transition completely: ‘I gave vent to my anguish in fearful howling. I was like a wild beast.’ His distress and agony are with a world full of prejudices where he is given no chance, and thus, he projects his rage at his surroundings tearing at branches and trees, and finally ‘sank on the damp grass in the sick impotence of fear.’ It is at this moment that he realises his goodness will never be recognised; he is grotesque but has physical strength as his only tool, hence declaring ‘everlasting war ‘ on his ‘enemies’, and above all, ‘against he who had formed me’, his creator, Victor Frankenstein, the root of his suffering. The image which follows is a hellish and ghoulish scene of the monster howling into the night and burning down the cot tage he had once loved. His stream of bad fortune is just appalling and Shelley seems to be exposing the inhumanity of humanity. The significance of the three texts which the monster encounters cannot be overlooked. The first text is Goethe’s The Sorrows Of Young Werther which enables the monster to realise his own solitary state and depression. He weeps whilst Werther suffers too as an orphan and solitary walker, and adds: ‘I applied much personally and to my own feelings and condition’ (153) He compares his Werther’s desires to become part of Charlottes family to his own which were to become part of the cottage family, the De Lacey’s. Shelley’s novel also draws from her mother’s work, such as Vindication in which the influence is apparent through the monster’s actions; he is deprived of the domesticity and affections necessary for human beings. Thus through Goethe’s text, he learns of the domestic idyll. The second text is the Volume of Plutarch’s lives which depicts the history of the origins of mankind, and from the text he learns ‘high thoughts’, and goes on to state: ‘He elevated me above the wretched sphere of my own reflection [of self- pity and gloom], to admire and love the heroes of past ages’. However it is the third text, Milton’s Paradise Lost which is most striking in its parallel towards both the Monster and Victor . The monster found a correlation between his condition and stated: ‘Like Adam, I was apparently  united by no link to any other human being†¦I was wretched, helpless and alone. Many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition’ (page-136). The monster’s central complaint is that he is alone and he requests that Victor make a companion for him: ‘I am alone, and miserable; man will not associate with me†¦ my companion must be of the same species and have the same defects’ (Page 168) Society has rejected him because he is ‘deformed and horrible’, but this suffering leads to the monster retuning to find his creator so that loneliness can only be overcome by a companion – this is a huge realisation in the monster: and more significantly, is that this suffering caused by complete solitude, is experienced by humans too. Hence the suffering felt by the monster makes him no different to man. The monster goes on to say that a companion is ‘necessary for my being’ (Pg 168) and the only cure for his malicious behaviour and misery. When Victor refuses a ‘fiendish rage animated him as he said this; his face was wrinkled into contortions too horrible for human eyes to be hold†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Pg 169) This is his reaction to someone refusing what he desires most, what has haunted him since his creation and his rage is hardly surprising when considering the suffering he has endured. ‘Every time languor and indifference creep upon us our functions fall into decay†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ This is where the monster’s argument finds its roots, for as Godwin writes in Political Justice, in order to be ‘cheerful’, we must ‘cultivate a kind and benevolent propensity†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢Godwin also expressed his views on solitary confinement and these too seem to be echoed in the text :’The soul yearns, with inexpressible longings, for the society of its like.’ The monster is hence likened to the offender in solitary confinement and pleads for a companion: ‘Who can tell the suffering of him who is condemned to uninterrupted solitude? Who can tell this that this is not, to the majority of mankind the bitterest torment that human ingenuity can inflict?’ (Pg 251) Echoing Godwin, who wrote ‘A man is of more worth than a beast’, Victor disregarding the monster’s pleas, destroys the unfinished female monster. This is the penultimate event which gives rise to relentless suffering endured by the monster . The extent of his misery is epitomised with the monster questioning Victor: ‘Shall each man find a wife for his bosom, and each beast have his mate, and I be alone? Are you to be  happy while I grovel in the intensity of my wretchedness?’ (Volume 3, chapter 2) Thus there is a disastrous outcome to Victor’s reasoning. In Mary Shelley’s Gothic novel, Frankenstein hopes to be the source of new species, but ironically, his creature evolves into a self acknowledged Satan who swears eternal revenge and war upon his creator and all the human race. The monster reflects that hell is an internal condition which is produced and increased through loneliness. Both master and creature are torn by their internal conflicts from misapplied knowledge and their sense of isolation. In P.B. Shelley’s poem, the solitary walker suffers as a result of his own actions and choice to be abandon society. He suffers for having fantasies that will never be a reality. Hence his suffering is a result of his own disillusionment. BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Shelley, P.B., Alastor: Or, The Spirit Of Solitude 2. Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft , Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus,(D.L.Macdonald and Kathleen Scherf) 1999. 3. Duncan Wu, ed,. Romanticism: A Critical Reader, (Blackwell, 1995) 4. Butler, Marilyn, Romantics, Rebels and Revolutionaries: English Literature and its Background, 1760-1830,(Oxford University Press, 1981) 5. Goethe, J.W., The Sorrows of Young Werther(Penguin Books, 1985) 6. Furst, Lilian, European Romanticism, (Wayne State University Press, 1990).