Saturday, August 31, 2019

Role of Young Minds in Shaping India’s Path Towards

Essay Title Role of Young Minds in shaping India’s path towards becoming a Superpower Name : Dhruv Tripathi College Name : University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun Course : B. A. LL. B. 3rd Semester E-mail : [email  protected] com Introduction Young generation now has a lot of responsibility in making  India  a Super Power. We have done well in certain aspects; however, we need to go a very long way still. The growth in GDP, growth in Exports, employment opportunities, increase in literacy, reduction in poverty etc. itself cannot make  India  a Super Power. Many would agree that  India  is rich, but, Indians are poor.We need to manage the growth properly and we need to ensure that all Indians prosper and Human Rights are protected. The increasing gap between rich and poor is not good for the country and it results in revolution one-day and system will get affected if people resort to extremism. It is very important to concentrate on infrastructure dev elopment in the Country in order to attract FDI and in order to support Industry which creates plenty of employment opportunities. But, there won’t be any meaning for the development unless we are able to provide certain basic things to the citizens of this country.In  India, with cast playing a big role and with lot of poverty and as every citizen has a right to vote, there is scope for muscle power and money power in politics rather ability and commitment to serve the people. The younger generation can not stay away from politics just because politics are corrupt and they should be mature enough to understand things and to serve the people. There are many issues we need to concentrate and it is the responsibility of younger generation to take the challenge and to act in a matured way rather resorting to extremism or pessimism.I would like to express my views on few challenging issues in this country : Youth into Politics: Many people criticize politicians so easily and we talk about political corruption very frequently rather thinking towards the solution. I do believe that great people in this country did think about the ways to reform our politics. We have brought some reforms to Peoples Representative Act, we are discussing about the tendency of buying votes, not allowing people with criminal background in contesting elections and also about State funding.I have heard a discussion on public funding of political parties, but, I know that it is very difficult to deal with this issue too and even drafting a regulation providing public funding will not be any easy issue and it will lead to so many other complications. Great people have concluded that the public funding will not solve the problem of election expenditure. Many also opine that spending lot of money in elections and buying votes may not guarantee success, however, not spending money in elections can guarantee defeat. This is a fact.As such, I we need not think too much about this issues and Election Commission is there to enforce its regulations and it will be doing its job. Media: Media is no more independent now and the people are not in a position to rely on media reports unless the issues is disused clearly. Media can do so many things really and it can reform this society. However, they are very busy with their issues and keeping their TRP ratings intact. They say that they need not have a responsibility and they can not do charity. There is a merit in the argument of media too, but, public interest is above all.However, it is very difficult to regulate media and there should be awareness among the people that what media says need not be correct. The issue is very important and we need to find ways as to how to prevent the media in damaging society and as to whether it is possible to regulate the media. Education & Health Care: Today many software engineers and other educated employed in good companies taking good remuneration. Many of these did study in  Go vernment  Schools  and colleges and they did struggle with poverty.Despite the poverty and other issues, they could grow and achieve positions in life now. However, now, these software engineers employed in good companies and taking good remuneration finding it difficult to get their children educated. If this is the situation for the educated and employed, then, what about people living below poverty line? Still, in this country, substantial number of people lives Below Poverty Line. I strongly believe that we can not get away with this Education and Health Care through Schemes and Privatization.State Governments have a big role to play in imparting education and in providing Health Care. Our Governments have lot of money in their hands now with industrial and overall growth, but, they spend all the money towards achieving their political agenda. If this country can not provide education to the people Below Poverty Line at free of cost, then, we may have to pay a very heavy pri ce for that and we will also see internal revolution. It is such a sensitive issue now and we can not ignore this. Agriculture Farmers do face lot of difficulties with the middlemen.The problems of our farmers to be understood and State Governments should give utmost priority as to how to protect our Agriculture. We can not ignore our Agriculture which provides livelihood to majority of Indians even now either directly or indirectly. Our State Government Agri Departments should function efficiently addressing the problems of the farmers from time to time. We need to maintain a modest Agri growth while focusing on the Industrial Growth. We need to concentrate on both. Legal System There is a lot of talk about our legal system.How come we claim that we are developed unless our rights are duly protected with due process of law? We need not look at the role of Police, the investigation, the corruption in Police Department and other issues while we talk about legal system. Yes, we need g ood police men, investigators and we need to have a mechanism where the orders of the Court are implemented effectively and speedily. The role of Police and connected issues need not necessarily be merged while talk about legal reforms. Because, the police reforms are directly connected to politics and political leadership.That’s a bigger issue. We need to have a serious look at our court infrastructure, the quality of judges, the work culture, and the quality of legal professionals, the procedural issues and other connected things. We can not ignore our legal system anymore. I know that there are complications in bringing reforms in our legal system. There can be resistance from the legal professionals when the Government or the authorities push forward certain reforms. But, we need not have a clear plan as to how to go ahead and we must be able to effectively deal with the resistance too.Youth of this country should not be scared at the problems and we need to find solution s in order make our country a Super Power. There is no problem without solution and we need to find the solutions. Industrial Growth and the ‘Sustainable Development’ Environment is most important for the society and that is why even the developed countries talk so much about protection of environment. Industrial growth will have a define impact on environment; however, we cannot ignore the industrial growth if  India  needs to compete with the rest of the world and if  India  needs to reduce the rate of poverty.It is also true that there can be people with vested interests who will always try to hamper the industrial growth. A careful balance is to be made in this regard. Youth of this Country should also be concerned at our environment and it’s the responsibility of any Government to protect the environment. There can be public pressure in the right direction and at the same time, people should be aware of the vested interest groups hampering the growth referring to environment. Transparency in all Government DepartmentsThere is some change when it comes to functioning of Government Departments now. With technological revolution and with e-governance, many departments are computerized and we do not know as to whether the effort is sincere or an ‘eye-wash’. But, there is a change and we can know about the government, rules and regulations etc. through Internet now. This is a welcome change and Right to Information Act forces the public servants now to be transparent and to maintain the records properly, as otherwise, they will be fixed one day.The corrupt officials in various Government Departments find various ways hampering the reform process. Many Government Departments are supposed to provide the vital information and information about complaining authority. However, we may not find this information and no one talks at the responsibility. The intention with which a provision is made to form Trade Unions is also bei ng misused often leading to blackmailing Governments. Governments should be in a position to deal with any contingency of this kind and every department should have a clear plan as to how to counter these kinds of problems.

Friday, August 30, 2019

How Does Steinbeck Present the Character of Curleys Wife

How does Steinbeck present the character of Curleys Wife? In this essay I am going to be assessing the character Curleys Wife from Steinbeck’s book Of Mice And Men. The book is set in the 1930s during the Great Depression it features two farm workers called George and Lennie. The travel around together in search of work sharing a dream of a place of their own, a small ranch where they can live and work for themselves. It tells the story of how violence may erupt to destroy those dreams.Curleys wife is a character in the book who from the brief encounters with her is presented in two ways. Firstly the dangerous, flirtatious character who isn’t trusted by the rest of the ranch workers but then later one we realize how she is just a victim of loneliness with her being the only girl on the ranch and how she too has an incomplete American Dream to pursue an acting career. Curleys wife is a very important character and is heavily involved in the outcome of the story when Geor ge ends up shooting Lennie however there is the question of her innocence.Before we meet Curleys wife, Steinbeck deliberately gives us a first impression of her to let us know their honest views on her with Candy and Georges conversation. Candy starts by saying â€Å"Wait’ll you see Curleys wife. †, this makes us anticipated of her and gives us an expectation of what is going to be said about her. During the conversation the only positive thing said was that she was â€Å"purty†. She is portrayed as being flirty and not satisfied with her husband when Candy claims â€Å"Married two weeks and got the eye?Maybe that’s why Curleys pants is full of ants. † This makes the reader think because if they were newlywed they should be on their honeymoon period however one is overly flirtatious and the metaphor â€Å"pants is full of ants† shows the others paranoid over her, this gives us the sense something’s not right with their relationship. S teinbeck exaggerates the use of the phrase â€Å"the eye† to mirror the fact she repeatedly flirts with the men in search of attention.Steinbeck describes her negatively when he refers to her as a â€Å"tart† when Candy says â€Å"well i think Curleys married†¦ a tart†, the ellipsis shows Candy’s unsure whether he should refer to her in such an insulting manner but he chooses to anyway. The conversation prejudices Curleys wife before we even meet her and the fact George thinks she will be trouble prepares the reader for future events. Steinbeck uses his description of Curleys wife carefully to give us a certain first impression on her before finding out more about her. The escription starts with â€Å"the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off†, the light being cut off could be foreshadowing her being the obstacle that would eventually ruin George and Lennies hopes and dreams. Steinbeck then calls her a â€Å"girl† rather than a woman implying her youth and vulnerability, he continues keeps her unnamed to uphold the prejudice women faced in the 1930’s and to show the oppressive misogyny posed against her and how she is only seen through her relation to Curley and is ultimately a possession of his, unworthy of a unique identity.Steinbeck also claims she was â€Å"looking in† showing her as an outsider who doesn’t really fit in and when she does look in, it’s to see something she hopes to have in the future, friendship. When Steinbeck starts to describe her appearance he starts with â€Å"she had full rouged lips and wide spaced eyes, heavily made up† this makes us realise she hides her face with makeup showing her self-consciousness and gives the impression she is trying to look older however it’s not working by her previously being referred to as a â€Å"girl†.Steinbeck repeats the word red when he says â€Å"her fingernails were red† and then †Å"red ostrich feathers†, the noun red has many meanings for example, love but it also means danger and stop. This could again be showing signs of what the future could hold for her and how her desire for love becomes a great danger when leading to her death. Her facial features are a great contrast to her â€Å"nasal, brittle† voice that implies she’s about to break.Curleys wife is provocative with her body language as she is described to have â€Å"put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward† and â€Å"she looked at her fingernails†, she is very conscious of the affect she has on men and uses this to her advantage however her inappropriate clothes and her behavior I think are designed to provoke interest and attention rather than to invite intimacy, we later learn this is because of her loneliness in her marriage to Curley.Her loneliness is clear by her constant asking of the whereabouts of Cu rley proving she is just looking for an excuse to continue her conversation with the ranch workers. The perceptions we make of Curley's wife are corrupted from the views of the ranch hands. Because sexuality is her only weapon she is referred to by George as ‘jailbait' and ‘ a tart' ‘Jesus what a tramp. ‘ George has reason to be weary of her presence especially with Lenny around and the incident in Weed. Listen to me you crazy bastard†¦ Don't you even look at that bitch. He is concerned about Lennie safety because he knows he won’t be able to resist her. The next time Steinbeck presents Curleys wife is in her conversation with Lennie, Candy and Crooks. In this extract we see how Curleys wife clearly enjoys having power over others and because she is the only girl on the ranch she is prone to discrimination by being made to feel like one of Curleys possessions.We first get this impression when she refers to them as â€Å" a bunch of bindle stiffs – a nigger an’ a dum-dum and a lousy ol’ sheep†, Curleys wife wouldn’t dare say these insults to anyone else but she would to these three men purely because one is older, one is mentally challenged and the other is a black man who in the 1930’s faced larger discrimination than girls. However her vulnerability is still shown when she asks â€Å"whatta ya think I am, a kid? †.The use of this rhetorical question makes us remember how she doesn’t want to be thought of as a little kid linking Back to when Steinbeck repeatedly called her a â€Å"girl† rather than a woman giving us the impression that even she realises how lowly she is thought of in the ranch so Steinbeck makes her speak â€Å"contemptuously† to show how she thinks they are beneath her. This scene adds to making the reader dislike her and see her as the downfall of the men in the story. Steinbeck lets us learn more about Curleys wife in the final scene be fore her death.Here we learn that she too has her own dream just like all the other men on the ranch, her dream was to become a movie star in Hollywood and here we also see a completely different side to her initial flirtatious character we originally meet. Curleys wife’s naivety is demonstrable in her approach and attitude towards her dream. â€Å"I coulda made something of myself† she refuses to accept that her dream had a very little chance of coming true, when she says â€Å"maybe I will yet† she uses her dream as an escape from her loveless marriage and pitiful life; she is deluded that her dream will be realised and clings to the hope of a better life.Curleys wife also blames others for the breakdown of her dream, especially her mother, â€Å"My ol’ lady wouldn’t let me†¦. if I’d went I wouldn’t be livin’ like this you bet† she is using her mother as a scapegoat for the failure of her dream, and her current si tuation. Therefore by marrying Curley, she has managed to escape her mother who she feels is responsible for preventing her from achieving her dream of being a movie star. â€Å"an I coulda sat in them big hotels†, Curleys wife’s dream revolves on what could have been, she yearns for luxuries and attention,.Like the men she desires friendship, but her dream is more materialistic; she seeks the attention she feels she deserves. When Curleys wife is telling Lennie about her dream, Steinbeck states that â€Å"Her words tumbled out in passion of communication as though she hurried before her listener could be taken away† This links to her desperation for someone to talk to and how she yearns for some sort of interaction. Curleys wife dream makes her more vulnerable and human. Steinbeck recreates this impression by portraying her innocence in death.Steinbeck uses very specific language when describing how Curleys wife was murdered by Lennie. In this extract we see ho w she underestimated Lennie’s great strength and this is proven when she says â€Å"Jus’ like a big baby†, we as readers know he is capable of murder and we know he is anything but a big baby adding to the tension. Steinbeck does give us a moment of hope when he remembers his Aunt Clara who he has occasionally forgotten, this gives us hope that he will remember Georges warnings on Curleys wife but this isn’t the case.Curleys wife invites Lennie to feel her hair after hearing about his love of stroking soft things and she soon realises her mistake when she goes â€Å"Don’t you muss it up† and when Lennie refuses to let go she cries â€Å"let go† â€Å"you let go† the use of these short sentences lets us realise her panic. Steinbeck declares how she â€Å"writhed to be free† this could really mean how she ached to be free of the ranch and of Curley.Then when he adds how â€Å"her hoarse cry came out† it creates a ma jor contrast to when she wasn’t heard by the men and when her voice is needed the most she is being stifled. He even mentions how her â€Å"eyes were wild with terror†, they aren’t being described with being heavily made up. When Curleys wife is killed Steinbeck ensures the readers sympathy for Lennie is maintained. The reader sees the killing as an inevitable consequence of Lennie’s bear-like strength and Curleys wife’s desire for attention.The use of the simile â€Å"and he shook her and her body flopped like a fish† creates an unsympathetic image, further emphasised with the alliterative â€Å"f†, as we tend not to feel sorry for dying fish in the way we may for a different animal. The sympathy the reader may feel for Curleys wife is weakened with â€Å"and she was still, for Lennie had broken her neck† as this seems harsh. This tone reminds the reader that Lennie would not have wanted to break her neck it was just something that happened so, even though he has committed a terrible act, the reader does not fully blame Lennie.The repetition of the natural imagery, including the clear link to the animalistic imagery when Curleys hand was crushed as he â€Å"flopped like a fish on a line†, both links Curley and his wife as the enemy, but also reminds the reader of Lennie’s early description as a bear, reiterated with his â€Å"paw†-like hands throughout the novel. Because of this, it seems clear that this was both inevitable and natural as bears do kill fish, and Steinbeck could be highlighting the predatory nature of the world; it could also suggest that Steinbeck was trying to show the constancy of the natural world and Lennie is just another victim in this world.However when Curleys wife is dead Steinbeck seems to show her the respect she deserves as his description of Curleys wife after her death is evidently more complimentary than previous occasions. He starts by saying â€Å"T he meanness and the planning and the discontent and the aches for attention was all gone from her face† this straight away lets us realise that only from her death we see the other side to her, the side that was unhappy with her marriage and her life, her incomplete dream and the constant craving for a companion and all this because of her death simply disappears.Steinbeck also uses words such as â€Å"sweet and young† to project Curleys wife more positively as a pretty, young woman, free of all mean qualities. This contrasts to the other times he referred to her as a â€Å"girl† because this time he is reflecting her purity rather than her childlike features. When he says â€Å"Now her rouged lips and her reddened cheeks made her seem alive and sleeping very lightly† it shows us what her life could have been like if she were to have completed it to its full potential. The way Steinbeck portrays her now is a lot more poetic showing his respect.In my conclu sion I think Steinbeck manages to portray two sides to Curleys Wife in the book Of Mice and Men. The first side is the misunderstood girl who isn’t trusted and her need for company and a friend is mistaken for a flirtatious troublemaker. However at the end of the novel Steinbeck makes her intentions clear and shares her dream of becoming a Hollywood movie star giving the readers the chance to see the vulnerable side of her, the one that shows her as not wanting but needing somebody to talk to.The need for such things is what caused her death. Lennie was keeping her company and she needed this so much that she was willing to let him harm her, and in this case kill her. Steinbeck also shows her differently in death as well. He gives Curleys wife respect and describes her as being beautiful and majorly contrasts the provocative way he did beforehand. How Does Steinbeck Present the Character of Curleys Wife How does Steinbeck present the character of Curleys Wife? In this essay I am going to be assessing the character Curleys Wife from Steinbeck’s book Of Mice And Men. The book is set in the 1930s during the Great Depression it features two farm workers called George and Lennie. The travel around together in search of work sharing a dream of a place of their own, a small ranch where they can live and work for themselves. It tells the story of how violence may erupt to destroy those dreams.Curleys wife is a character in the book who from the brief encounters with her is presented in two ways. Firstly the dangerous, flirtatious character who isn’t trusted by the rest of the ranch workers but then later one we realize how she is just a victim of loneliness with her being the only girl on the ranch and how she too has an incomplete American Dream to pursue an acting career. Curleys wife is a very important character and is heavily involved in the outcome of the story when Geor ge ends up shooting Lennie however there is the question of her innocence.Before we meet Curleys wife, Steinbeck deliberately gives us a first impression of her to let us know their honest views on her with Candy and Georges conversation. Candy starts by saying â€Å"Wait’ll you see Curleys wife. †, this makes us anticipated of her and gives us an expectation of what is going to be said about her. During the conversation the only positive thing said was that she was â€Å"purty†. She is portrayed as being flirty and not satisfied with her husband when Candy claims â€Å"Married two weeks and got the eye?Maybe that’s why Curleys pants is full of ants. † This makes the reader think because if they were newlywed they should be on their honeymoon period however one is overly flirtatious and the metaphor â€Å"pants is full of ants† shows the others paranoid over her, this gives us the sense something’s not right with their relationship. S teinbeck exaggerates the use of the phrase â€Å"the eye† to mirror the fact she repeatedly flirts with the men in search of attention.Steinbeck describes her negatively when he refers to her as a â€Å"tart† when Candy says â€Å"well i think Curleys married†¦ a tart†, the ellipsis shows Candy’s unsure whether he should refer to her in such an insulting manner but he chooses to anyway. The conversation prejudices Curleys wife before we even meet her and the fact George thinks she will be trouble prepares the reader for future events. Steinbeck uses his description of Curleys wife carefully to give us a certain first impression on her before finding out more about her. The escription starts with â€Å"the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off†, the light being cut off could be foreshadowing her being the obstacle that would eventually ruin George and Lennies hopes and dreams. Steinbeck then calls her a â€Å"girl† rather than a woman implying her youth and vulnerability, he continues keeps her unnamed to uphold the prejudice women faced in the 1930’s and to show the oppressive misogyny posed against her and how she is only seen through her relation to Curley and is ultimately a possession of his, unworthy of a unique identity.Steinbeck also claims she was â€Å"looking in† showing her as an outsider who doesn’t really fit in and when she does look in, it’s to see something she hopes to have in the future, friendship. When Steinbeck starts to describe her appearance he starts with â€Å"she had full rouged lips and wide spaced eyes, heavily made up† this makes us realise she hides her face with makeup showing her self-consciousness and gives the impression she is trying to look older however it’s not working by her previously being referred to as a â€Å"girl†.Steinbeck repeats the word red when he says â€Å"her fingernails were red† and then †Å"red ostrich feathers†, the noun red has many meanings for example, love but it also means danger and stop. This could again be showing signs of what the future could hold for her and how her desire for love becomes a great danger when leading to her death. Her facial features are a great contrast to her â€Å"nasal, brittle† voice that implies she’s about to break.Curleys wife is provocative with her body language as she is described to have â€Å"put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward† and â€Å"she looked at her fingernails†, she is very conscious of the affect she has on men and uses this to her advantage however her inappropriate clothes and her behavior I think are designed to provoke interest and attention rather than to invite intimacy, we later learn this is because of her loneliness in her marriage to Curley.Her loneliness is clear by her constant asking of the whereabouts of Cu rley proving she is just looking for an excuse to continue her conversation with the ranch workers. The perceptions we make of Curley's wife are corrupted from the views of the ranch hands. Because sexuality is her only weapon she is referred to by George as ‘jailbait' and ‘ a tart' ‘Jesus what a tramp. ‘ George has reason to be weary of her presence especially with Lenny around and the incident in Weed. Listen to me you crazy bastard†¦ Don't you even look at that bitch. He is concerned about Lennie safety because he knows he won’t be able to resist her. The next time Steinbeck presents Curleys wife is in her conversation with Lennie, Candy and Crooks. In this extract we see how Curleys wife clearly enjoys having power over others and because she is the only girl on the ranch she is prone to discrimination by being made to feel like one of Curleys possessions.We first get this impression when she refers to them as â€Å" a bunch of bindle stiffs – a nigger an’ a dum-dum and a lousy ol’ sheep†, Curleys wife wouldn’t dare say these insults to anyone else but she would to these three men purely because one is older, one is mentally challenged and the other is a black man who in the 1930’s faced larger discrimination than girls. However her vulnerability is still shown when she asks â€Å"whatta ya think I am, a kid? †.The use of this rhetorical question makes us remember how she doesn’t want to be thought of as a little kid linking Back to when Steinbeck repeatedly called her a â€Å"girl† rather than a woman giving us the impression that even she realises how lowly she is thought of in the ranch so Steinbeck makes her speak â€Å"contemptuously† to show how she thinks they are beneath her. This scene adds to making the reader dislike her and see her as the downfall of the men in the story. Steinbeck lets us learn more about Curleys wife in the final scene be fore her death.Here we learn that she too has her own dream just like all the other men on the ranch, her dream was to become a movie star in Hollywood and here we also see a completely different side to her initial flirtatious character we originally meet. Curleys wife’s naivety is demonstrable in her approach and attitude towards her dream. â€Å"I coulda made something of myself† she refuses to accept that her dream had a very little chance of coming true, when she says â€Å"maybe I will yet† she uses her dream as an escape from her loveless marriage and pitiful life; she is deluded that her dream will be realised and clings to the hope of a better life.Curleys wife also blames others for the breakdown of her dream, especially her mother, â€Å"My ol’ lady wouldn’t let me†¦. if I’d went I wouldn’t be livin’ like this you bet† she is using her mother as a scapegoat for the failure of her dream, and her current si tuation. Therefore by marrying Curley, she has managed to escape her mother who she feels is responsible for preventing her from achieving her dream of being a movie star. â€Å"an I coulda sat in them big hotels†, Curleys wife’s dream revolves on what could have been, she yearns for luxuries and attention,.Like the men she desires friendship, but her dream is more materialistic; she seeks the attention she feels she deserves. When Curleys wife is telling Lennie about her dream, Steinbeck states that â€Å"Her words tumbled out in passion of communication as though she hurried before her listener could be taken away† This links to her desperation for someone to talk to and how she yearns for some sort of interaction. Curleys wife dream makes her more vulnerable and human. Steinbeck recreates this impression by portraying her innocence in death.Steinbeck uses very specific language when describing how Curleys wife was murdered by Lennie. In this extract we see ho w she underestimated Lennie’s great strength and this is proven when she says â€Å"Jus’ like a big baby†, we as readers know he is capable of murder and we know he is anything but a big baby adding to the tension. Steinbeck does give us a moment of hope when he remembers his Aunt Clara who he has occasionally forgotten, this gives us hope that he will remember Georges warnings on Curleys wife but this isn’t the case.Curleys wife invites Lennie to feel her hair after hearing about his love of stroking soft things and she soon realises her mistake when she goes â€Å"Don’t you muss it up† and when Lennie refuses to let go she cries â€Å"let go† â€Å"you let go† the use of these short sentences lets us realise her panic. Steinbeck declares how she â€Å"writhed to be free† this could really mean how she ached to be free of the ranch and of Curley.Then when he adds how â€Å"her hoarse cry came out† it creates a ma jor contrast to when she wasn’t heard by the men and when her voice is needed the most she is being stifled. He even mentions how her â€Å"eyes were wild with terror†, they aren’t being described with being heavily made up. When Curleys wife is killed Steinbeck ensures the readers sympathy for Lennie is maintained. The reader sees the killing as an inevitable consequence of Lennie’s bear-like strength and Curleys wife’s desire for attention.The use of the simile â€Å"and he shook her and her body flopped like a fish† creates an unsympathetic image, further emphasised with the alliterative â€Å"f†, as we tend not to feel sorry for dying fish in the way we may for a different animal. The sympathy the reader may feel for Curleys wife is weakened with â€Å"and she was still, for Lennie had broken her neck† as this seems harsh. This tone reminds the reader that Lennie would not have wanted to break her neck it was just something that happened so, even though he has committed a terrible act, the reader does not fully blame Lennie.The repetition of the natural imagery, including the clear link to the animalistic imagery when Curleys hand was crushed as he â€Å"flopped like a fish on a line†, both links Curley and his wife as the enemy, but also reminds the reader of Lennie’s early description as a bear, reiterated with his â€Å"paw†-like hands throughout the novel. Because of this, it seems clear that this was both inevitable and natural as bears do kill fish, and Steinbeck could be highlighting the predatory nature of the world; it could also suggest that Steinbeck was trying to show the constancy of the natural world and Lennie is just another victim in this world.However when Curleys wife is dead Steinbeck seems to show her the respect she deserves as his description of Curleys wife after her death is evidently more complimentary than previous occasions. He starts by saying â€Å"T he meanness and the planning and the discontent and the aches for attention was all gone from her face† this straight away lets us realise that only from her death we see the other side to her, the side that was unhappy with her marriage and her life, her incomplete dream and the constant craving for a companion and all this because of her death simply disappears.Steinbeck also uses words such as â€Å"sweet and young† to project Curleys wife more positively as a pretty, young woman, free of all mean qualities. This contrasts to the other times he referred to her as a â€Å"girl† because this time he is reflecting her purity rather than her childlike features. When he says â€Å"Now her rouged lips and her reddened cheeks made her seem alive and sleeping very lightly† it shows us what her life could have been like if she were to have completed it to its full potential. The way Steinbeck portrays her now is a lot more poetic showing his respect.In my conclu sion I think Steinbeck manages to portray two sides to Curleys Wife in the book Of Mice and Men. The first side is the misunderstood girl who isn’t trusted and her need for company and a friend is mistaken for a flirtatious troublemaker. However at the end of the novel Steinbeck makes her intentions clear and shares her dream of becoming a Hollywood movie star giving the readers the chance to see the vulnerable side of her, the one that shows her as not wanting but needing somebody to talk to.The need for such things is what caused her death. Lennie was keeping her company and she needed this so much that she was willing to let him harm her, and in this case kill her. Steinbeck also shows her differently in death as well. He gives Curleys wife respect and describes her as being beautiful and majorly contrasts the provocative way he did beforehand.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

The Action of Tiger Conservation

The Action of Tiger Conservation As the population of tiger in the world dwindles nowadays, everyone has the responsibility for the conservation of tiger especially tiger range countries. Over the past 100 years, tiger numbers have declined by 95 percent which leave only 3,200 and three sub-species have become extinct – with a fourth not seen in the wild for over 25 years (World Wild Fund for Nature [WWF] International, 2008). Since it is estimated that wild tiger number halved to 3,200, we can stop this decline if we act together now.In the countries where tiger population is facing extinction, government, conservation groups, and corporation have stepped many efforts to recover the threat of extinction. Government plays a vital role in taking steps to conserve population of tiger because without them a tiger conservation policy cannot be implemented. All of the governments throughout the species' ratige demonstrate greater resolve and lasting commitments to conserve tigers a nd their habitats, as well as to stop all trade in tiger products from wild and captive-bred sources (Dinerstein et al. , 2007).In Malaysia, the Department of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia which under Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Government of Malaysia has introduced the National Tiger Action Plan for Malaysia in the year 2008. The aim of the Plan is to double the population of Malayan tigers from 500 to about 1,000 in the nation’s Central Forest Spine by 2020. This Plan identifies four objectives towards achieving following goal: 1. Secure the Central Forest Spine with strictly protected priority areas in landscapes connected with corridors. 2. Provide effective and long-term protection of tigers and their prey. . Promote and practice ecologically sound land-use, compatible with tiger conservation outside the priority areas. 4. Apply science in monitoring the efficacy of conservation actions and improving the knowledge of tiger ecology. (De partment of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia [DWNP], 2008). Furthermore, the vigilance of the Anti-Smuggling Unit officers and the Department of Wildlife and National Parks’ Wildlife Crime Unit prevented the smugglers from slipping their illicit haul through the Malaysia-Thailand border and into the illegal trade in tigers and their parts.Besides that, the law is being amended and other more stringent regulations are being finalized which allow for higher fines and longer jail sentences for poaching tigers. This is because as it stands, taking a tiger or any part of a tiger is an offense under the Protection of Wild Life Act 1972 which allows for a maximum fine of RM15,000 (USD4,000), a jail term of up to five years, or both. This is paltry compared to the fortune awaiting the smuggler when his illegal haul is finally sold (John ; Shepherd, 2009).According to the World Wild Fund for Nature (2008), India is home to the world’s largest population of tigers in the wild which is nearly to half of the world’s tigers or 1,400 of the 3,500 tigers. A major concerted conservation effort by the government known as Project Tiger. Project Tiger is a wildlife conservation movement initially spearheaded in India in 1972 by Indira Gandhi, the prime minister of the Republic of India from 1966 to 1977 to protect the Bengal Tigers.The project aims at tiger conservation in specially constituted tiger reserves representative of various biogeographical regions throughout India. Under the flagship Project Tiger program, the central government allocated a budget of USD17. 75 million to Indian tiger reserves during ninth five-year plan from 1997 to 2002 (Dinerstein et al. , 2007). The fundamental accomplishment has been the establishment of over 25 well-monitored tiger reserves in reclaimed land where human development is categorically forbidden.The program has been credited with tripling the number of wild Bengal tigers from roughly 1,200 in 1973 to over 3,500 in the 1990s. However, after that tiger conservation in India used to focus on an exhaustive, census-based attempt which known as tiger census to determine exact tiger numbers. A report was stated that the wild tiger population in India declined by 60% to approximately 1,411 by using tiger-census technique. It is noted in the report that the decrease of tiger population can be attributed directly to poaching.Now it has shifted to population sampling based on the mapping software known as Geographic Information Systems (GIS). In place of the tiger census, India’s Ministry of the Environment and Forests has launched a GIS-based program that monitors habitat. The new system uses a sample-based approach to estimate tiger populations and to evaluate whether tiger habitat is increasing, decreasing, or stable (Bobechko ; Stockton, 2004). Following the release of the report, the Indian government also pledged $153 million to further fund the Project Tiger initiative, se t-up a Tiger Protection Force to combat oachers, and fund the relocation of up to 200,000 villagers to minimise human-tiger interaction. Additionally, eight new tiger reserves in India are being set up. Indian officials successfully started a project to reintroduce the tigers into the Sariska Tiger Reserve. The Ranthambore National Park is often cited as a major success by Indian officials against poaching. On the other hand, India was seeking the support of World Bank and multilateral leader in highlighting efforts to keep alive India’s national emblem, the near-extinct wild tiger (Lamont, 2010).In Thailand, government of Thailand hosts world’s first inter-ministerial meeting on wild tiger conservation. The 1st Asian Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation will be held at the resort of Hua Hin, Thailand from January 27-30, hosted by the Royal Government of Thailand and co-organized by the World Bank, Save the Tiger Fund and other partners of the Global Tiger Init iative. All 13 tiger range countries were represented in Hua Hin. They include Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand, and Vietnam.It marks the first time that ministers from tiger range countries will come together to find ways to work together on tiger conservation. At the 1st Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation, governments from the 13 tiger range countries (TRCs) showed unprecedented unanimity around the ambitious goal of total protection of critical tiger habitats and doubling the global number of wild tigers by 2022, the next Year of the Tiger. Thailand, the conference host, announced new commitments to improve and expand wildlife patrolling efforts.It was the first ever meeting of high-level representatives of the TRCs to discuss wild tiger conservation and signaled powerful convergence of political will, solidarity, and recognition of the urgency of the crisis facing the iconic symbol of Asiaâ €™s biodiversity. The meeting in Thailand was the latest concerted effort by governments and wildlife conservation experts set in motion by the Global Tiger Initiative (GTI) to date to consider local, national, and regional plans to address tiger conservation issues.Experts and practitioners of conservation in the TRCs continued discussions on best practices and adoption of policies embracing locally-targeted ‘tiger-friendly’ strategies in areas such as smart green infrastructure and landscape and park management, building on work from a conference on wildlife enforcement in Pattaya, Thailand last year, and the Kathmandu Global Tiger Workshop held in Nepal in October 2009 (Global Tiger Initiative, 2010). Thailand, the host government used the Hua Hin Ministerial meeting as a platform to announce new commitments, including expanding its Smart wildlife patrolling program in the Western Forest Complex.Thailand's Western Forest Complex – a 6,900 square mile (18,0 00 square kilometers) network of parks and wildlife reserves can potentially support some 2,000 tigers, making it one of the world's strongholds for these emblematic big cats, according to a new study by Thailand's Department of National Park, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation and the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society. The Western Forest Complex currently supports an estimated 720 tigers. These tiger densities were lower than those reported by Wildlife Conservation Society scientists from some protected areas in India with similar habitat, but better enforcement.For example, tiger densities of as many as 12 tigers per 100 square kilometers were measured in India's Nagarahole, Bandipur and Kanha forests, as opposed to four tigers per 100 square kilometers in Thailand's Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary. The Hua Hin Declaration was unanimously adopted by delegates at the ministerial meeting, reflecting minister-level agreement among the TRCs to redouble efforts on the groun d to halt the decline of tigers and assist in recovery of habitats (Wildlife Conservation Society, 2008).Where national governments supported in part by conservation groups, make a consistent and substantial commitments to tiger conservation, tiger do recover. Thus, conservation groups such as Malaysian Conservation Alliance of Tigers (MYCAT), World Wild Fund for Nature (WWF), and play a big part in taking steps to conserve population of tiger. Malaysian Conservation Alliance of Tigers is a joint programme of four non-governmental organization – the Malaysian Nature Society, WWF-Malaysia, TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, and Wildlife Conservation Society Malaysia Programme.MYCAT is established in 2003 because challenges to tiger conservation are multi-faceted and reaching solutions requires an integrated conservation approach. MYCAT was created to take a holistic approach to conservation by consolidating the resources and strength of the partners to produce a cohesive plan to save the tiger. MYCAT works in partnership with the Department of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia for integrated tiger conservation programme in Malaysia. MYCAT is the collaborative latform for the implementation of National Tiger Action Plan. MYCAT’s role is to increase communication and opportunities for collaboration among the partners whose tiger conservation priorities include habitat protection, human conflict resolution, law enforcement, monitoring of illegal trade, research, education, and public awareness. For example, MYCAT organized Race Against Time: Tiger Day at Zoo Negara, Kuala Lumpur on December 16, 2007. This nationwide awareness campaign is to reduce the incidence of people consuming tigers and tigers’ prey in all forms.Many people getting their hands dirty making plaster casts of tiger footprints, learning about the cruelty of snares, playing wildlife games and much more. Thousands took their first step in saving wild tigers by signing the pe tition for improved legislation. Furthermore, MYCAT had set up the 24-hour Tiger Crime Hotline at 019 356 4194 to encourage public reporting of possible crimes against and their prey. The need for a 24-hour hotline is clear: poachers and smugglers don’t just work between 9-5.The 24-hour Tiger Crime Hotline allows everyone to easily report suspected wildlife crimes or send report to [email  protected] net (Malaysian Nature Society, 2006). The World Wild Fund for Nature (WWF) is one of the largest international conservation groups. In this year, 2010, WWF has placed tigers at the top of their conservation priorities, fearing that the Chinese Year of the Tiger might hasten their extinction by spurring demand for the animal's body parts (Lamont ; WWF Global, 2010).Attaching top priority to remaining wild tiger populations around the world, WWF will witness the organization redoubling its efforts to preserve habitat and to give remaining species of wild tigers an earnest boost i n their struggle to remain viable. WWF has launched the â€Å"Tx2: Double or Nothing† tiger conservation campaign. WWF's Tx2 campaign aims to  put in place the necessary conditions to  double the wild tiger population by the next Year of the Tiger in 2022.The Tx2 campaign is all about setting the right conditions to enable our tiger population to double naturally in the wild. Monitoring of tiger populations, increasing patrol teams to reduce poaching threats and protecting tiger habitats are some of the ways to achieve this. Throughout 2010, WWF is focusing efforts on  securing emergency funds to halt poaching in the most critical tiger landscapes, securing political will and action to double wild tiger numbers, and protecting tiger habitat at an unprecedented scale, including clamping down hard on the illegal tiger trade.In addition, WWF outlined the current top 10 trouble spots for tigers in a first time interactive map that provides a unique overview of threats faced by wild tigers (WWF Global, 2010). Other than that, WWF-India strengthens patrolling capacity of Panna Tiger Reserve with vehicles. With the aim of strengthening tiger protection, WWF-India has supported Madhya Pradesh’s Panna Tiger Reserve with a four-wheeler and four motorcycles. The formal handover ceremony happened on Jan 26, 2010, the 60th anniversary of India becoming a republic.The vehicles are expected to strengthen the monitoring capacity of the staff of the tiger reserve and thereby deter poachers. They will help observe the tigers which were recently translocated here. In addition, they will be used to oversee the process of repopulation of Panna through future translocations (WWF-India, 2010). TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, is an international conservation group dedicated to ensure that trade in wild plants and animals are not threat to the conservation of nature.TRAFFIC is a joint programme of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the World Conse rvation Union (IUCN). TRAFFIC also works in close co-operation with the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). TRAFFIC has done many works to conserve tigers. TRAFFIC monitors wildlife markets in Asia and elsewhere by identifying any tiger parts being traded (there are many fake â€Å"tiger parts† in circulation) and informing the appropriate authorities of required action to curb such trade.TRAFFIC also works with enforcement authorities and governments to take action to protect Tigers. For example, TRAFFIC India recently provided metal detectors and training to help park guards detect the use of illegal metal snares in Tiger reserves. TRAFFIC is also developing a database to monitor all seizures and trade in tiger parts. It is being modeled on ETIS, a database that has proved successful for monitoring illegal ivory trade and ensuring effective action is taken to curtail it.TRAFFIC also helps to raise aware ness about the conservation plight of wild Tigers. Besides that, TRAFFIC are also committed to assisting the Global Tiger Forum (GTF) and tiger range states with any technical assistance necessary to help the GTF fulfill its full potential as a significant global force for tiger conservation (TRAFFIC, 2008). On the other hand, the continuous decline in wild tiger populations worldwide which adversely impact both the biodiversity system and national heritage have also led to corporation heightening tiger conservation efforts globally.Thus, corporation also can play a role in taking steps to conserve the population of tiger. In Malaysia, the country's leading financial services group, Maybank which bears the face of the Malayan tiger as its iconic emblem, is taking action by entering into a two-year partnership with the Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers (MYCAT) in an effort to bring the plight of the Malayan tiger to the forefront. Maybank will be contributing RM1 million tow ards a dedicated outreach and research programme being spearheaded by MYCAT.While Maybank has been involved in supporting tigers in Malaysia's zoos, the rapidly declining tiger populations worldwide and appalling rate of poaching of tigers in our country have led us to take firmer action this time around towards the conservation of wild tigers as part of our golden jubilee corporate responsibility activities. As a result, Maybank decided to provide funds that will be used mainly by scientists to conduct research that aims to gather data that will help us conserve the fast-declining Malayan tiger from extinction.The Maybank & MYCAT alliance will also focus on raising public awareness among our rural and urban communities, and providing enforcement support to the authorities by assisting in collecting accurate, real-time information on wildlife crimes (Low, 2010). As a corporation, Maybank view this as an ideal opportunity to encourage our employees and the communities we operate in t o learn more about the importance of biodiversity balance and the role conservation efforts can play in protecting our Malayan tiger, a national heritage.This partnership also serves to remind people that nature is not just a commodity to be extracted or taken for granted, and if we are to progress, it must be with sustainability in mind. The project funded by Maybank will go towards supporting MYCAT in implementing the National Tiger Action Plan 2008-2020 – specifically research that aims to enhance the sustainability of the population of tigers and their preys by securing a safe dispersal tiger corridor at Sungai Yu, the last forest linkage between the Main Range and Taman Negara in Pahang along the Gua Musang-Kuala Lipis trunk road.Agricultural expansion along the road has created a forest bottleneck and there is only about a 10km stretch of forest left connecting these environmentally sensitive areas. The research will determine the response of wildlife to the past develo pment and current landuse patterns and establish benchmark data for future management. It will also estimate the tiger density in western Taman Negara and compare it to that of ten years go. Maybank's support will allow the public and policy makers to be informed of practical solutions based on careful research.Maybank employees will also have the opportunity to participate in the outreach programme as volunteers. Among the year-long activities planned with MYCAT are roadshows mainly at night markets and conservation education programmes in schools to create awareness among key communities in the country (Maybank, 2010). Nokia India, the leading mobile communications company in partnership with WWF-India, one of the largest conservation organizations in the country to save the tiger.Globally, Nokia’s environmental strategy is to drive the use of safe substances and materials in products, improve the energy efficiency of products and create effective take-back and recycling pr ograms. Energy efficiency and climate strategy are other important areas of continuous performance improvement by Nokia. Nokia has been involved in several conservation initiatives with the WWF Global Network. Nokia is extending this global vision to focus on local environment through its partnership with WWF by extend the relationship with WWF-India through Nokia in India.This is an important step in bringing corporate institutional support for conservation, significantly tiger conservation in India. This is also an important beginning at this critical time for conservation in our India. In July 27, 2008, Nokia India unveiled the ‘Tiger Wall of Hope’ in New Delhi as part of their support initiative for the Tiger Conservation programme of WWF India. The ‘Tiger Wall of Hope’ that has been created out of original pugmarks embedded in Plaster of Paris encased in acrylic are a grim reminder of the critical numbers of tigers left in the wild.As part of the assoc iation, Nokia and WWF-India will work towards providing education to the villagers for sustainable development, increasing awareness on tiger conservation, and identifying alternative livelihood programmes for the villagers around National Parks, specifically the Ranthambore National Park. Furthermore, Nokia will work with WWF in the following areas around Ranthambore to strengthen the existing community institutions and development of further institutions of the community to facilitate community empowerment, to provide education for sustainable development and ommunication outreach to the school teachers and students, villagers-including men and women, civil society communities around the Park and the forest personnel, and to strengthen sustainable and alternative livelihood programmes, to link them with existing schemes of other line departments of the Government of Rajasthan. In addition, Nokia has a robust community involvement program in Sriperumbudur, Chennai around its manufa cturing facility that has contributed immensely in improving the socio-economic fabric of the region and its employees.It is a matter of great privilege for Nokia India to be associated with WWF for the cause of tiger conservation that needs immediate intervention. This endeavor for tiger conservation is an extension of our commitment towards creating a positive impact on the society beyond Nokia’s technology, products, and services. (WWF-India, 2008) While the tiger as a wild species will most likely not go extinct within the next half century, its current trajectory is catastrophic.If this trend continues, the current range will shrink even further, and wild populations will disappear from many more places, or dwindle to the point of ecological extinction, in which their numbers are too few to play their role as top predator in the ecosystem. Leaving room for wide-ranging mammals such as tigers is vital and must become part of an effort to incorporate wildlife conservation into national and regional development agendas. Over the decades, we have realized that this problem is transnational and that science, economics, culture, public policy, and international dialogue all bear on preserving the tiger and its habitat.Conserving tigers, tiger habitat, and the natural capital they encompass must be part of the calculus that will continue to fuel Asia's growing prosperity (Dinerstein et al. , 2007). According to George Schaller, â€Å"Future generations would be truly saddened that this century had so little foresight, so little compassion, such lack of generosity of spirit for the future that it would eliminate one of the most beautiful and dramatic animals that the world has ever seen. † (DWNP, 2008)

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

The Interest Rating to Develop a Theory of Liquidity Preference Essay

The Interest Rating to Develop a Theory of Liquidity Preference - Essay Example When the economy is doing well, the corporate cash flows rise above what is required to pay the debt off. This leads to speculative euphoria where this act of borrowing and lending goes on and reaches a point where the borrowers are no longer able to pay off the debt. As borrowers are no longer able to pay back, it leads to financial crises where banks do not have liquidity. As a result of the borrowers’ default, banks further tighten their lending, which means that even deserving borrowers that could pay back do not get access to capital in such circumstances. According to Minsky, these swings are a part of a free market economy and cannot be avoided unless there is the provision of a government enforced the regulation. Mishkin, on the other hand, focused on the role of asymmetric information in the financial system. This essentially means that one party in the transaction has less information than the other party. For example, a lender is not aware of the potential ways in which the borrower is going to use the money, but in case the money is lost, it is always the lender who is at the losing end. This asymmetric information creates two problems, namely the adverse selection and the moral hazard. Adverse selection is a trend in which lenders choose borrowers who can pay a higher interest, knowing that they can pay higher interest because their business is riskier and hence there is a greater chance of losing the money on the part of the lender. The interest rate on such investments is quite exaggerated to reflect the risk premium. Moral hazard occurs when the borrowers may choose to invest the money in activities that are undesirable from the lenders’ point of view or else they simply do not work. As this loss is to be borne by the lenders, they will refrain from lending thus causing a financial crisis. Mishkin concentrates on interest rates to develop a theory of liquidity  preference.  

Innovating assesment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Innovating assesment - Assignment Example Innovation is the use of new knowledge to offer new products and services that are required by the customer in the market. To say that innovation has a complex nature is to refer to the process of innovation not only as a creation or invention of a novel idea, but to refer to innovation as to comprise of the activities involved in its implementation and development. According to Van de Ven, (1986, p. 591), innovation has been defined as the ‘’development and implementation of new ideas by people who over time engage in transactions with others within changing institutional and organizational context.’’ This thus makes it accentuate its context dependency and also its social, political, collective and temporal nature. It has been observed therefore that, scholars who aspire to understand the emergence and development of innovation have always recognized that innovation is a complex, iterative and a dynamic process which cannot be separated from its broader c oncept, (Barrett & Walsham, 1999). Over the years, researchers have observed innovation to move from less complex models which do not capture its complexity to more complex and in-depth inductive studies that show the development of innovation over time, (Edwards, 2000). ... fluid models which portray the innovative process is distinguished by Wolfe (1994) in a review of the organization innovation literature, and importantly noting that linear models of innovations were not followed by the innovations which develop within the organizations, but instead, the innovations originated through an ‘’iterative process with many feedback together with feed forward cycles (p. 411). Following the results of a very recent research that was published between 1997 and 2002, it was confirmed unequivocally that non-linearity of innovation in an organization is likened to a form of social structuring having attendant intricate and interactive effects, (Anderson, De Dreu, & Nijstad, 2004). Within the social system, theories of innovation are fundamentally considered as theories of change. Innovation can take two models; the linear and the non-linear models of innovation. The linear model is always considered to be a simpler model of innovation. This model ha s received recognition since the 1940s and claims that, ‘’innovation originates from the nursery of basic research.’’ It tries to compare innovation with a growing child, who goes through school and to the university to full time employment (Chia, 1996). Innovation on the other hand begins from the basic research to development, and finally to the marketplace. This linear model of innovation contains some elements of truth, but misses the fact that innovation may come from the other way round. This is to say, the linear model takes it that innovation may only come from researchers and neglects the fact that it might also result from consumers, users and efforts to solve certain practical problems (Czarniawska, 2005). The model also overstates the contribution the basic research makes to the

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Women and Children of the Crusades Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Women and Children of the Crusades - Essay Example The movement, nevertheless, is documented to happen sometime between Easter and the Pentecost and spread across northern France, Flanders, and Western Germany.1 As for women, their roles in the crusades are often not well-documented, most likely because of their gender, although some scholars have started to examine the chronicles and annals more closely to examine women’s participation in the crusades.2 Sources note that women played diverse roles during the crusades and that their home based functions should not be overlooked at all, since they kept the household and businesses alive, while their male family members were away, or died in the crusades.3 The Children’s Crusade is an effort to reclaim the Holy Land from the infidels, while the women played diverse direct and indirect roles in the military, spiritual, and financial aspect of the Crusades. The Children’s Crusade has been argued as a reaction of the disappointed youth with the crusaders, because they have not yet reclaimed Jerusalem from the infidels. They were made of children and other adolescents, who aimed to reach the Holy Land and retrieve it from the Muslims. Madden calls the Children’s Crusade as not a real crusade, but more of a collection of uprisings and processions, where the core medieval belief is that poverty will help them achieve their holy goals.4 This can be rooted that Jesus favored the poor over the rich, and so they must have believed that if the poor led the crusades, their victory will also be assured by Jesus Christ.5 Since this crusade by the children was a popular movement, its origins and developments are difficult to trace. None of the participants wrote about the event in a firsthand manner, for instance, as in the more official forms of crusades.6 In â€Å"The Children’s Crusade,† Munro reviews the veracity of the chronicles regarding the Children’s Crusade. She notes that for accounts regarding the French children, the most reliable sources are the unspecified chroniclers of Laon, Mortemer, Jumieges, and Andres.7 She notes that these writers markedly illustrated the same movement, but few facts are presented except for one of them. She provides brief accounts from each, where the story of the holy shepherd boy called Stephen can be narrated. On June, 1212, Stephen from the village of Cloyes, near Vendome, declared that the Lord had appeared to him, dressed as a poor pilgrim, had taken bread from him, and had provided him a letter to bring to the King of France.8 He travelled to S. Denis with shepherds of his own age and there the Lord performed numerous miracles through him, as many have witnessed.9 There were also many other boys who went with him and performed miracles. Numerous children joined them, as if they were to be long-term followers of the holy boy Stephen whom they all perceived as their master and prince.10 The bands, made of girls, boys, adolescents and several older persons, parade d through the cities, castles, towns, and villages, holding banners, candles, and crosses, and censers, singing in their language, â€Å"Lord God, exalt Christianity! Lord God, restore to us the true cross.†11 They sang these words and many more, which attracted more followers to the procession. When the children were asked by their parents or others where they would go, they would shout in unison: â€Å"To God.†12 The children could not be stopped initially, but based on the records of Jumieges, they went home when they got hungry.13 The Laon chronicle stated that the king, upon consultation with the masters of the University of Paris about this matter, finally ordered the children to go back home.14 The other two chroniclers do not provide any ending to this procession. As for the prevalence of the movement, one

Monday, August 26, 2019

Contract & Purchase Negotiation Creating a Deadlock Flinching Essay

Contract & Purchase Negotiation Creating a Deadlock Flinching - Essay Example Deadlocks in negotiations can be overcome through the set aside tactic; changing the mood from competitive or resistive to cooperative; introducing deadlines; changing the negotiating team to find conforming match to other party or to ease emotional baggage etc. Flinching is a manipulative tactic used by offerees in contract negotiations. No matter how sweet an offer is, offerees would act indignantly to conceal their joy as way to convince the offerors that their offer or proposal is not sufficiently good. Flinching can take such forms: gasping for air suddenly, shaking of the head and visible expressions of shock, disappointment, and surprise. However, as offeror you can overcome flinching technique by sticking to your initial request and avoiding statements such as, lets now look the costs because they can force you into concessions. On the other hand, offerees can neutralize ‘flinching’ by using questions to get to the bottom of the proposed terms to determine if the other party is trying pulling a fast one or is being honest with the stated

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Madness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Madness - Essay Example Finally after years of hospital visits, therapy, and lots of different types of medicine, Mayra found a routine that has worked for her so far. Like Mayra has proven and other people with Bipolar disorder know, this illness has no cure. It is a lifelong process of taking medicines to alleviate the symptoms of the disorder. Over the years the more doctors have learned about being Bipolar. When Mayra was first diagnosed, she got a generic Bipolar diagnosis. Now there is two different types of Bipolar; Bipolar I and Bipolar II. It was once thought that a person had long manic phases and long depressed phases, but as Mayra has shown her moods changed daily. Today doctors know more, but more research and study is needed. Like many people with Bipolar disorder, Mayra self medicated since her adolescence. Alcohol to come down or take the edge off her manic phases, pills to chase away the blues. After being hospitalized for her eating disorder, Mayra stopped taking pills. However her alcohol intake increased for years. She was also a cutter. After an almost near death experience after slitting her veins, she stopped regular cutting. Mayra did not receive help sooner than her thirties, even though diagnosed with Bipolar ten years earlier, because she did not take the disease seriously. Finally Mayra had to face the fact that she was never going to be normal, but with medicine could live with the disease. Once she stopped drinking, she still did not take the disease seriously. Only after addressing her illness, did Mayra find a tenuous balance with medicine and therapy. wards, medicine, detox, AA, and therapy. At first diagnosed with anorexia/bulimia, Mayra was hospitalized for that. The goal for treating anorexia/bulimia is to get a patient to eat. The weight Mayra gained or lost was more important than her mental state. They grouped her with other anorexia/bulimia patients that were depressed. The medicine Prozac might have helped Mayra with

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Project Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 18

Project Management - Essay Example Based on the assessment, project improvement plans are designed (P3M3, 2014). In such context, the study will use a case organization to understand the functionality of Project Management Maturity Model in real world business project scenario. The case organization is Construction Company that specializes in handling real estate and facility management projects. For sake of confidentiality, name and operational detail of the Construction Company will not be revealed throughout this paper. AXELOS Limited (2013) reported that P3M3 involves three types of managements such as, 1- Portfolio Management (management control, financial management and benefits management), 2- Programme Management (financial management, risk management and stakeholder engagement) and 3- Project Management (risk management, organizational governance and resource management). These three models are self sufficient and there are no interdependencies between them. Therefore, independently assessing particular management model does not decrease importance of other management models. Interesting fact is that organizational maturity and project management maturity are conceptualized as divergent ideas. Organizational maturity is defined as comparative level of advancement for organizations such as using actively used policies, having established practices and standards. More mature organizations are expected to have well established standards, policies, organizational hierarchy and practices (Demir an d KocabaÅŸ, 2010; Kerzner, 2013 and Cooke-Davies and Arzymanow, 2003). On contrary, Project Management Institute (2007) defined project management maturity as the phase where organizations successfully initiate projects, plan activities, execute planned activities, monitor outcome of activities and control outcome of individual projects. Therefore, it can be assumed that organizations get assurance of continuous improvement during project management maturity

Friday, August 23, 2019

Analysis and your opinions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Analysis and your opinions - Essay Example Yet, he is the one to produce conscious moral difference between good and evil. Uncontrollable and shameless desires make him insane eventually and that is the main point Socrates presents in his theory. Callicles also elaborated a philosophical notion for us, desires if satisfied can generate happiness and if they can not satisfy some of the desires or wishes then power produces insanity. The insanity to attain the unattainable by any means and this perspective is guilt proof, which produces further fantasy based ideas. Gaddafi would be called a servant of his desire, who would jump from one desire to the other to gain happiness and would eventually end up being more frustrated instead of contended. The logic I comprehend in this response is that happiness is neither linked to power nor to the achievement of desires. Secondly, soul or morality of a person defines his comprehension of justified acts. When one person has dissuaded his soul with persistent torturing and violent acts, how would he be able to feel joy or pleasure and when he will not be able to feel it, he will indulge in more devilish acts to attain the sentiment of happiness. Student 2: The desire is the main criteria of measuring the evilness of the dictator. Illicit sexual desires and advances also lead to illegal attainment of such pleasures. Again, when such actions are taken by a person he never gets enough of it, the desire increases and the spiral (of desires) against him gets

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Historical Development of the 1960s Essay Example for Free

Historical Development of the 1960s Essay Historical Development of the 1960s Introduction            Of the many historical eras, the 1960 era is regarded as one of the most controversial eras ever in the history of America. However, this was not the anticipation that most of American citizens had. At the very beginning of the 1960s, many believed that this was perhaps the most promising era yet. They even dubbed this era the golden age. The expectations of the people intensified in 1961 when John F. Kennedy took the office of the president. His charisma and enthusiasm won the hearts and trust of the American people. They strongly believed that his government would provide solutions to the major problems that they were facing at the time. However, to the surprise of many, the decade turned out to be the complete opposite of what they had expected. The president himself was assassinated, a chaotic storm characterized by protests by civil rights movements engulfed the country, and instead of the war in Vietnam coming to a halt, it intensified. This essay will strive to create an interconnection between these events which shaped up the 1960s. It will tackle incidents relating to the free speech movement, the Vietnamwar, the Black Panther Party, Rock-n-roll, and the women’s movement, also known as the feminist movement, as witnessed in this decade.            An issue that had been a thorn in the flesh of the American people was coexistence of the white Americans and the African-Americans. Though the slave trade had been abolished by this time, issues of discrimination were still rampant in society. The African Americans would hence dedicate themselves to fighting for equality for their people in this society. At the very beginning of 1960, some four black students defied the norms of society at that particular time and sat down at a white’s-only lunch counter. Their actions were succeeded by demonstrations at that counter every day, drawing the nation’s attention.            6 years down the line, the African-American community still wanted society to regard them as equal with the rest of the Americans and this led to the formation of the Black Panther Party. It was originally known as the Black panther Party of self-defense but the name changed. This party movement was however founded for the sole purpose of eradicating police brutality in African-American neighborhoods. However, with the rapid expansion of the party and the start of a publication, the objectives of the party had diversified. This diversification meant that the party was keener on social empowerment thus disregarding the exclusivity of race. This however sparked up problems within the party since the radical members differed in opinion with the members that were in support of their socialistic cause. This made the party’s political motive to be disoriented and the government at that time considered the party as a national threat.            The Black community of the United States was not the only entity that was fighting for its civil rights. Gender inequality was still a societal vice that America was struggling with. During this time, men were given more opportunities as compared to women in virtually every field and this led to the second wave of the feminist movement. The job market viewed women as the less productive species. One of the reasons why this notion was upheld was because the women needed time off when they delivered and most employers believed the assertion that women would quit their job when they got pregnant. More to this, the society had branded the man as the provider of the home. It was therefore argued that men needed jobs and better paythan women because of the fact that there were people who were dependent on them. Generally, society had defined the place of a woman as the home; whether she was educated or not.            In 1963, Betty Freidan wrote a book, The Feminine Mystique. This book highlighted the frustration of the educated housewives and how society had forcefully put them in a state of dissatisfaction. What shocked many is the fact that she defied society’s assumption that women found satisfaction in only serving their families. This book stirred a revolutionary movement, one which historians refer to as the second wave of the feminist movement. This movement saw society begin to give women more chances in schools, the job market and also in matters involving remuneration.            From the historical facts available from this era, it is evident that civil rights protests and demonstrations were the order of the day. Even students took the liberty of staging their own protests during this period. The Free Speech Movement was the name given to the protests that the students staged. This movement took place in 1964-1965 at the University of California, Berkley, when students were expressing their discontentment on the ban that the school administration had imposed on on-campus political activities. The students rationale for the protests was that this ban was infringement of their academic freedom and right to free speech. The students felt that they could do more than just confine themselves to books. The objectives of the movement had been put in place way before the movement began when students in the campus formed a political party that enabled them to get involved in off-campus political and societal issues.            The students used this platform to source funds from campus students to support civil rights causes. However, this right was exclusively granted to the political clubs in the school and this is what prompted the school to impose the ban on on-campus political activities. Though the students were doing this out of good will, society was of a contrary opinion. For this reason, voters gave the governor seat to Ronald Regan in 1966 whose campaign forte was to make good the mess that the Berkley students had made.            Events in this era were not just restricted to the local scene. The events that America was involved in during this era also crossed boarders. America had been in conflict with Vietnam since the 1950’s. With the election of J. F. Kennedy, Americans were hopeful that this conflict was finally going to come to an end following his campaign theme; his government had answers to America’s biggest problems. However, these hopes seemed to go down the drain in 1963 when Kennedy was assassinated. The hopes of the American people were now in Lyndon B. Johnson’s hands. His government had two wars to fight; the war against poverty, and the war in Vietnam.            However, Johnson had committed himself to establishing an anti-communist south-Vietnam, a trait he had inherited from his predecessors in their solidarity to the country. For this reason, he had to make a choice to forego the war on poverty to attend to the war in Vietnam. More to this, the president had gained the support of the congress and they gave him the authorization to protect the American soldiers and their allies by all means necessary. The prolongation of the war caused a divide in the nation. Some were in support of the war, others protested against the war, whereas others fled to neighboring Canada to avoid being drafted into the war.            Amidst all these events that were happening, people needed something to give them an escape from it all even if it was temporary. Entertainment was the surest way of attaining such. In this era, the most common form of entertainment was music. Rock-n-rollwas the most popular music genre at the time. The developments in this genre were referred to as invasions and were named on the basis of where they originated from. The British invasion occurred in the early 1960s. In mid 1960s, garage rock was unveiled. The genre was common in North America. The genre gained this name because it was played by armatures at the comfort of their homes in their garages. However, this genre barely made it past the 1960s as it was replaced by other genres. Conclusion            The 1960s era, as highlighted above was a rather event-full one in the American history. Though it may seem like the era did not live up to its expectation as the golden age, it can be argued that to some extent it did. This is because the events during this time acted as milestones especially with regards to civil rights issues. However, the prolongation of the war in Vietnam did injustice to the country as it caused a divide. In conclusion, the 1960s were not shy of historical events. References Fischer, Klaus P.  America in White, Black, and Gray: The Stormy 1960s. New York [u.a.: Continuum, 2006. Print. Source document

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Energy drink Essay Example for Free

Energy drink Essay Introduction The marketing mix (tool largely used by marketers) is composed of the tactics being developed by a company in the 4 Ps areas: product, price, place and promotion, to assist them in pursuing their objectives. These variables have to be carefully managed by the organisation to meet the need of the defined target group. In this essay, we are going to focus on the product variable of the marketing mix. Phillip Kotler has defined the product as: anything that can be offered to a market to satisfy a want or need (Philip Kotler, Marketing Management, 2000). The product, but also its name and packaging, have a major impact on the brand positioning. They are fundamental tools in helping the company to induce trial and repeat purchase; they are also invaluable to achieve the desired awareness levels and to form positive attitudes among both customers and perspective customers. Highly profitable and attractive (giving the trend that consumers are increasingly looking for convenient drinks that boost their energy levels), the energy drinks market is highly competitive. A Mintels research (Market Trends category analysis, June 2004, www.PreparedFoods. com), found little brand loyalty among consumers of energy drinks, and a willingness to try a new product if the brand of choice is not available. This suggest the possibility that consumer could be swayed by the appeal of an intriguing package for instance. In this context, we will try to analyse, with the help of the example of the energy drinks, the importance of the naming and packaging tactics employed by the brands to differentiate their offer from the competition (given that the generic attributes of the energy drinks, in terms of composition, are quite similar). 1 Naming and Packaging: marketing mix tools of the product 1. 1 The products levels Philip Kotler, in Principles of Marketing, suggested that a product should be viewed in three levels (a division between five products levels has also been identified by the author but in our case, we are going to keep the simpler scheme of three levels). (source : www. learnmarketing. net/product. htm, 14/09/2004) The core product (level one) represents the core function of the product, a generic attribute that will be identical to all products on a specific market. For example, the main attribute a customer is willing to find when buying an energy drink is a liquid which composition will comprise ingredients that boost his or her energy levels (caffeine, guarana, taurine ) The actual product (level two) involves the brand, the packaging and the possible added features (benefits) that are provided to differentiate the companys product from its competitors. In the case of the energy drinks, if all of them actually provide a liquid that increase energy levels, some of them are sold in cans, other in plastic bottles or in aluminium bottles, using different designs and volumes. The augmented product (level three) is composed of the different additional non-tangible benefits that the company is offering to the customer. This comprises normally added services such as after-sales service, warranties, delivery It is difficult for a company providing energy drinks to differentiate itself from the competition through this kind of attributes. This is why we decided to focus on the second level of the energy beverages, their name and package. (www. learnmarketing.net/product. htm, 14/09/2004) First, what lies behind the concepts of naming and packaging? 1. 2 Naming The naming of the product, service or company is called branding. A brand or name is the label that consumers associate with your product. For this reason, a brand or name should help communicate the products positioning and its inherent drama for the consumer (Roman G. Hiebing Jr and Scott W. Cooper; The successful marketing plan, a disciplined and comprehensive approach; 2003). McCarthy, Perreault and Quester define branding as the use of a name, symbol, design or combination of the three to identify a product and more particularly a brand name as a word, letter, or group of words or letters used to identify a product (Basic Marketing, a managerial approach; 1997). 1. 2. 1 The visual distinctiveness of a brand The name is composed of the title by which the company, product, or service is commonly known and the graphic forms of identification, including symbols, logotypes or signatures, tag lines, and representative characters (Roman G.Hiebing Jr and Scott W. Cooper; The successful marketing plan, a disciplined and comprehensive approach; 2003). Some products, as paper clips, or energy drinks, are poorly differentiated by their physical attributes. One of the marketers tasks will be then to develop the brand in terms of its name and its graphic identity (logo), to communicate its differences. Nowadays, the consumers have an astonishing and increasing array of choice. In parallel, their available time to research products and make purchase decisions is decreasing. The importance of having a distinctive name is critical to securing competitive advantage, even more for the products such as the energy drinks, which core specificities have become insufficient to make a real difference. Consumers must be able to recognize the company in its name, logo, graphics and brands slogan; these must provide means of identifying the product as different from that of the competitors, create a visual and verbal distinctiveness. For example, the name and logo of Ralph Lauren (a polo player) have become high means of recognition for the brand. Coca-cola is one of the best-known names in the world (even the characters type can be identified and recognized by the customer nowadays). Some companies, which offer different product lines, can use manufacturer brands, a name provided specifically for a product or collection of products that is different from the manufacturers one. For example, Powerade is the sport beverage supplied by Coca-Cola. Pepsi-Co sells a sport drink line under the name Gatorade. If the name is the more important element of the brand, one mustnt forget that a brand cant be simply reduced to its name. What is important are the positive associations that are going to be related to the brand in the customers mind (Philip Kotler, Marketing Management, 2000). 1. 2. 2 Selecting the right name A good brand name can help create brand familiarity (really important in the case of energy drinks). In general, good brand names are:  · short and simple (easy to recognize and remember)  · easy to pronounce  · should be able to be pronounced in all languages  · suggestive of product benefits (but not too generic)  · avoid any potentially undesirable connotation or image. (Roman G. Hiebing Jr and Scott W. Cooper; The successful marketing plan, a disciplined and comprehensive approach; 2003). 1. 3 Packaging 1. 3. 1 Definition For manufacturers, packaging holds and protects the product and assists in communicating the products attributes and image. For retailers and service firms, packaging is the inside and outside environment that houses and dispenses the product/services (stores, offices, etc ), and it helps communicate the companys attributes and image (Roman G. Hiebing Jr and Scott W. Cooper; The successful marketing plan, a disciplined and comprehensive approach; 2003). Kotler has defined the packaging as the activities of designing and producing the container for a product (Philip Kotler, Marketing Management, 2000). 1. 3. 2 The functions of packaging Three functions lay behind the concept of packaging: protection, facilitating the product usage and communication. At its basic level, the package serves to protect the product (prevent breakage, exposure to light, exposure to air, spoilage ) and, in some cases, to hold or to contain it. Packaging also plays a role in protecting the consumer as well. Then, the package has a facilitative role in the use of the product (shape, size, fact that it can be resealed ). Finally, the products package represents a strong communication tool, at two levels. First, the package will comprise indications on the brand name, the product category definition, the composition, the flavour, warnings, directions Second, packaging also serves an important role in promotion. Its design, size, shape, materials, colour, text and brand mark should appeal to the target market. For example, yoghurt designated to the women on diet will not have the same package than yoghurt targeting the children. Besides, in todays cluttered environment, where tens of thousands of brands are fighting for the shoppers attention, consumers are making more and more purchase decisions at the point of sale. This is why the package, through graphics and colours that are attractive, plays an important role in getting the product noticed in the selves (to encourage impulse purchase for instance). (Philip Kotler, Marketing Management, 2000; Roman G. Hiebing Jr and Scott W. Cooper; The successful marketing plan, a disciplined and comprehensive approach; 2003). 1. 3. 3 The importance of packaging Packaging is a critical marketing tool. It can make an important difference from the competition by meeting customers needs more effectively. A better box, wrapper, bottle or can may help to emphasize the distinctiveness or novelty of a product or even result in the opening of a new market. It can even improve the product by making it easier or safer to use and then increase its value in the customers mind. Used correctly, the package can then underline the brand image, convey qualities such as freshness, fashion and quality (McCarthy, Perreault Quester; Basic Marketing, a managerial approach; 1997). It is important that the packaging elements align with the rest of the marketing strategy to support it (pricing, advertising and other marketing tools). For example, an expensive perfume would rather be sold in a crystal bottle than in a plastic one, to underline and support the prestigious image (Philip Kotler, Marketing Management, 2000). 2 Packaging and Naming for the energy drink industry 2. 1 Industry overview. As a relatively new style of beverage in Australia (appearing in the mid 90s), energy drinks, sometimes known as smart drinks, were originally designed to give people a boost. Other benefits advertised by these products are improved concentration, endurance, stamina and the ability to help combat fatigue (www. education. theage. com. au/pagedetail. asp? intpageid=69strsection=studentsintsectionid=0, 29/09/2004). Lifestyles are moving faster. People seem to have become time poor and tend to work harder and play harder. These drinks are for those who need to pack more hours into their day. (Glenn Martin, general manager, Frucor Beverages, The Age, May 2, 2001). Typically including a high caffeine level as well as vitamins, amino acids and herbal extracts, they usually sell for about $2 $3. 5 for 250 ml, making them a relatively expensive soft-drink alternative. (www. education. theage. com. au/pagedetail. asp? intpageid=69strsection=studentsintsectionid=0, 27/09/2004). Initially popular in nightclubs and hotels, the energy drink market has been booming during the past few years in Australia, and these beverages are now widely available in supermarkets and convenience stores. Although this market is somewhat new in Australia, it is the fastest growing area of the soft-drink market. (www. education. theage. com. au/pagedetail. asp? intpageid=69strsection=studentsintsectionid=0, 27/09/2004). 2. 1. 1 Leading brands on the Australian market In 2002, the energy drink sales were dominated by four brands in Australia: Frucor Beverages Limiteds V (remaining by far the most significant player with 35% volume share), Red Bull Australias Red Bull, Coca-Cola Amatils Lift Plus and the Red Eye Companys Red Eye. With a clever marketing and promotional tactics, V managed to cope with the growing competition and to increase its market share between 2000 and 2002, targeting at teenagers and young adults through the sponsoring of youth oriented events and advertising during youth programming (Euromonitor International, Soft Drinks in Australia, August 2004). However, in the latter part of this same period, the best growth was performed by Coca-Cola Amatils Lift Plus, which volume share increased from 5% in 2000 to 14% in 2002, to the detriment of the Red Eye brand which lost market share by the same amount. Red Bull signed, in 2003, a distribution deal with Cadbury Schweppes to solve its volume share decline over the recent years by accessing the groups strong sale network. (Euromonitor International, Soft Drinks in Australia, August 2004). Considering the huge number of small brands existing today on the energy drink market, we decided to illustrate our study using exclusively the example of these 4 leaders. 2. 1. 2 Target market of the energy drinks The potential customers initially consisted in 90% of young and trendy people (club scene, extreme sports), nocturnal revellers, trendsetters and clubbers. Nowadays, the group of customers has evolved and includes:  · long distance drivers, especially people who work during the night or even employees working out of the office and rushing from appointment to appointment who have come to appreciate Energy Drinks as a good way to wake them up,  · top-level as well as free time sportsmen like snowboarders, mountain bikers, free climbers and downhill racers but also people going to the gym or participating in a triathlon, · pupils or students under stress who use the energy drinks as a new substitute of coffee. Users of Energy Drinks buy/drink them to be mentally and physically top fit and wide awake. They are dynamic, health conscious, achievement-orientated and active, in their jobs as well as in their spare time. Most of them are young but there is an increased interest in these products coming from an older age group of the population. (www. fortunecity. com/tinpan/clapton/843/energydrinks. html#eda, 29/09/2004). 2. 2 Packaging issues and trends on the energy beverage market Due to its growing competitive context, the energy drinks sector saw packaging used as an essential element in establishing brand identity. Consequently, the emergence of plastic bottles was far less pronounced in this sector than in any other soft-drinks sector. 2. 2. 1 Capacity and materials When Red Bull entered the Australian market in 1999, the company employed its trademark slim can and made it an immediate sign of recognition for the energy drink product. The brand wanted to use this as a point of differentiation to help consumers distinguish these highly caffeinated drinks from their carbonate counterparts, and competitors such as Lift Plus, V and Black Stallion followed this example to benefit from the association consumer would make between 250ml can and the type of product (Spark Gale, Sports and energy drink market expanding faster than other soft drinks, Food Drink Weekly, February 23, 2004). This can size not only differentiate the product from the usual soft drink but also, according to the manufacturers, encourages only moderate consumption at any one time, because of the high caffeine content. Indeed, the energy drinks market has suffered from claims that excessive consumption of caffeine can cause a rise in blood pressure and can trigger events such as heart problems and strokes in some people (Euromonitor International, Global Packaging: Key Trends, www. euromonitor. com. library. vu. edu. au/gmid/default.asp, 20/09/2004) The initial choice of many energy drinks producers for the can packaging has also been determined according to the purpose of the beverage and the needs of its target market. Indeed, the design of the package and its material had to answer the requirements of people responding to the growing trend for eating and drinking on-the-move, had to offer at the same time convenience, solidity, to be light-weighted, easy to handle (the 250 mL format appears more convenient than the usual 330 mL size). Single-serve products also allow busy consumers, to drink in the car, office and in school, which happened to be essential to appeal to a broaden target market as it is now (Marsha Barancik, Bottle cans have magnetic attraction, Beverage Industry, March 2003). In fact, when the product entered the market, it was sold in major part in bars, pubs and nightclubs and convenience stores, but as brand like V and Red Bull started to gain distinctive brand identities the started to sell through supermarkets. In this context the 250mL aluminium can presented another advantage since it was an easy shape to offer in multipack that could fit in shelves optimally, and appealed to consumers because of the lower unit prices offered and the ease of transport to their homes (Euromonitor International, Soft Drinks in Australia, August 2004). However, the need for differentiating from competitors and for acquiring a strong brand equity, related to number entry the industry saw these last year, pushed the company to innovate, creating packagings that would differ from the overused 250 mL aluminium can. This need happened to strengthen with the addition of supermarket as a channel of distribution: the number of product and beverages that competed with the brand on the purchase decisional process was suddenly more diverse. To that extent, Red Eye used glass packaging as a strategy (that happened to be successful), to build brand loyalty among its consumers and to break with the expected can packaging offered by competitors. Since then, Lift Plus and V also offered a glass format to differentiate themselves from other canned energy drink brands (Global Packaging: Key Trends, www. euromonitor. com. library. vu. edu. au/gmid/default. asp, 20/09/2004). 2. 2. 2 Graphics and scripts Packaging in the energy drinks also feature distinctive graphics and script. Each brand will attend to convey a differentiated image using specific colours and visual affect known for being associated by the consumer to positive attributes. In 1988, McGraw Hill studied the feelings and the images conveyed by colour in order to show the importance of the packaging in the purchase decision process. As a result, he found out that consumer unconsciously were making the following association:  · Black: formality and elegance.  · White: Crispness  · Violet: tenderness  · Red: revolution, excitement, fire, energy, stanfurd.  · Blue: night, sadness, coolness, tranquillity  · Yellow: happy, warm, optimism  · Aluminium: high-energy voltage (http://www. alumni. berkeley. edu/Students/Group_Resource_Guide/Marketing_Tips_for_CAA_Student_Leaders. asp, 7/10/2004). Looking at each brands packaging, we can see that, according to this theory, different feelings are meant to be evocated by each brand. Except for Lift Plus, that is more oriented towards young people and students/children market, the aluminium colour is present on each packaging. The blue of the Red Bull can immediately reminds the customer with the clubbing and the nightlife while the red letter stands for energy and excitement. The yellow can of Lift Plus gives a joyful and playful image to the beverage and makes it a drink to be consumed during the day rather than in nightclub as a mixed drink (like its competitor Red Eye, Red Bull, or V). We can notice also the use of black in the two other packages, that gives a classy and distinctive image to the beverage, allowing them to stand in bar and clubs shelves. 2. 3 Naming issues on the energy drinks market In general, even if branding is one of the most important steps in the marketing plan of a product (a good name provides a strong mean of distinctiveness for the brand), there is not much secondary information available on the naming strategy adopted by the companies. Concerning the energy drinks industry, we are going to focus on the major brands present on the Australian market: V, Lift Plus, Red Eye and Red Bull. V is a typical example of a simple and memorable brand name that quickly identifies the product with an idea of vibrant, velocity, vitality, vigour Above all, V is the widely known abbreviation for volt, positioning the product as a high energy provider (www. frucor. com/brands/aus/new_age. html, 03/10/2004). The name Lift Plus explicitly suggests the benefits of the drink that, according to its producer Coca-Cola Amantil, as been designed for people who work and play hard and need a boost to help them make the most of their waking hours. It is also named after the well-known beverage Lift, to inform the consumer on the common point between the two beverages: both have citrus-based flavour (http://www. cokebuddy. com.au/about_brands. asp, 03/10/2004). Red Bull has been the first energy drink to enter the global market, the name of the product reflects well its attributes and benefits (the bull is a powerful animal, it represents the high level of energy the consumer is going to get by drinking this product). But this brand name has also been subject to a lot of controversy (that has finally benefited the brand by creating some promotion around it) related to the fact that the word Bull created a direct association in the public mind with one of the ingredient included in the formula: the Taurine. However, despite whatever conclusions one might draw from the name, Red Bull contains no substances of animal origin; even the taurine used in the formulation is synthetically produced (www. snopes. com/toxins/redbull. htm, 03/10/2004). Again, as for its competitor Red Eye, the code of colour (Red) is used as a way to suggest the energy and improvement of physical performance provided by the consumption of the beverage. Red Eye, as a following entrant in the energy drink market (after Red Bull), has used the notoriety of the Red Bull name as part of its naming strategy (the two brand names are quite similar). The term eye reflects the personality of the product, putting the stress on the ability of the product to provide its consumer with an improved ability to concentrate, an increased alertness and an enhanced reaction time (www. red-eye. com. au/classic. html, 03/10/2004). (Roman G. Hiebing Jr. and Scott W. Cooper, The successful marketing plan, McGraw-Hill, 2003). Conclusion Naming and packaging are critical marketing tools for the company; they assist its brand differentiation in the customers mind and product identification in the shelves of the store. Even if these two elements are even more important for products as energy drinks, that have quite generic core attributes (their composition is almost similar) and that cannot differentiate their offer using the augmented level of the product, we discovered through our research that a brand mustnt limit its marketing mix tactic to its product features (naming and packaging). The three other Ps areas (Price, Place, and Promotion) are critical tools to strengthen the differentiation of its offer. The leading brands demonstrate it by supporting their product with heavy advertising campaigns and diverse promotional actions, as they proved to be essential to ensure their brand equity (sponsoring, sample distribution, co-branding, commercials, ads in various medias ). The study of the energy drinks market also showed us how the strategies linked to the issues of naming and packaging can evolve as the industry changes. Indeed, we discovered how these two aspects of the actual product could be used as way to assimilate the brand to a particular type of product, as well as a differentiation feature. In fact, the energy drinks market demonstrated us that the maturity of the industry influences greatly the challenges implied by the choice of a name or a package. Indeed, all the companies which launched their energy drink at the introduction of the product in the soft drink industry, chose to follow the first entrant (Red Bull) on its package choice, in order to clearly indicate to the customer the kind of product provided. As the industry matured, and the competition increased, offering a packaging that actually differentiated the brand seemed to be the only way to gain customer loyalty and to survive in this mature market. Sources : Literature:  · Philip Kotler, Marketing Management, 2000  · Roman G. Hiebing Jr and Scott W. Cooper; The successful marketing plan, a disciplined and comprehensive approach; 2003  · McCarthy, Perreault Quester; Basic Marketing, a managerial approach; 1997 Websites:  · Market Trends category analysis, June 2004, www.PreparedFoods. com  · www. learnmarketing. net/product. htm  · www. education. theage. com. au/pagedetail. asp? intpageid=69strsection=studentsintsectionid=0  · www. fortunecity. com/tinpan/clapton/843/energydrinks. html#eda  · Euromonitor International, Soft Drinks in Australia, August 2004, www. euromonitor. com. library. vu. edu. au/gmid/default. asp  · Euromonitor International Global Packaging: Key Trends, August 2004, www. euromonitor. com. library. vu. edu. au/gmid/default. asp  · www. alumni. berkeley.edu/Students/Group_Resource_Guide/Marketing_Tips_for_CAA_Student_Leaders. asp  · www. frucor. com/brands/aus/new_age. html  · www. cokebuddy. com. au/about_brands. asp  · www. snopes. com/toxins/redbull. htm  · www. red-eye. com. au/classic. html Articles :  · Glenn Martin, general manager, Frucor Beverages, The Age, May 2, 2001  · Spark Gale, Sports and energy drink market expanding faster than other soft drinks, Food Drink Weekly, February 23, 2004  · Marsha Barancik, Bottle cans have magnetic attraction, Beverage Industry, March 2003.