Free Essays on A Streetcar Named Desire

Sometimes in life, there are times when you are faced with a struggle and often times, no matter how hard you try to get yourself out of this struggle, you just can’t and you end up feeling as though you have lost the battle. In â€Å"A Streetcar Named Desire,† by Tennessee Williams, there are four characters that really display this situation. Blanche, Stanley, Stella, and Mitch are the four characters that display this situation. In Tennessee Williams play, â€Å"A Streetcar Named Desire,† there are no victors, only victims. In this play, Blanche is the older sister of Stella and she comes to Elysian Fields to live with her sister because she has nowhere else to live because she was asked to leave the last town that she was living in because of the life that she was choosing to live there. Blanche also lost her family’s estate, Belle Reve. Therefore, she had to go to the last place that she could think of and that was the house of her sister, Stella. Fro m the start of the play, it is imminent that Blanche is the victim of her own life, and not a victor. She first lost her husband when she was a very young girl because of the fact that she found out that he was gay. She was in love with this man and when she found out, she was just heartbroken. However, she didn’t want to tell him that she knew about his secret so she kept it a secret for a while. But then, one night while they were dancing, she all of sudden just came out and told him what she knew. He was so embarrassed by this that he ran out of the room and shot and killed himself. That is one of the battles that she was the victim of. Then when she loses Belle Reve and is forced to live in a town called Laurel, she chooses to live a life that she doesn’t want to. She forces herself into prostitution because she has no other way of making money to help support herself. During this time, she is living in a hotel called the Flamingo and many men are coming up to her room every ... Free Essays on A Streetcar Named Desire Free Essays on A Streetcar Named Desire Deception and Illusion in Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire Blanche DuBois succinctly summarizes herself and her vision of the world with two words: â€Å"I misrepresent.† (A Streetcar Named Desire, hereafter SND, p. 117 ). In fact, she misrepresents virtually everything about herself and her world. For Blanche DuBois, the world is composed of multiple elements in which she either deceives herself unknowingly or intentionally embraces an illusion. Blanche shows up at her sister’s home in New Orleans, having lost the family plantation in Mississippi. She holds herself blameless for this loss- a deception of personal responsibility. Symbolically, the plantation’s very name, Belle Reve, implies a beautiful dream of a life style that may never have been a reality. Blanche further deludes herself by maintaining a contradiction about the importance of her own physical appearance and constantly misrepresents her own age. She has a personal illusion about love which was tragically shattered when she was very young, and pursues a relationships with Mitch which is, itself, shattered when the deceptions of her past are revealed. This illusion is highlighted by the dynamic tension between Blanche and Stanley, culminating in a harsh rape scene wherein he enacts the reality Blanche has been trying to avoid. As she slips totally into a world of unreality, Blanche even speculates that a knight in shining armor, Shep Huntleigh, an alleged millionaire, is going to come for her. In each of her illusions, Blanche clings to unrealistic views of herself and her world, in order to deny the sad reality to which she has descended as a charity case in her sister’s meager existence. Blanche comes to her sister Stella Kowalski’s home with a valise full of clothes and trappings from another kind of life. It is a life she wants desperately to believe she once led. It bears no semblance to Stella’s rather drab r... Free Essays on A Streetcar Named Desire The play A street car named desire by Tennessee Williams is about a downfall of a fading Southern Belle named Blanche Dubois. The last scene of the play is a significant one as it sums up the whole play and states the ending and the main issues of the play. Here Blanche is taken into a mental asylum due to the rape that has taken place in the previous chapter. This shows the total damage done to her by Stanley. She becomes mental and loses touch with reality. Williams uses various kinds of techniques like the sound effects, changes in characterization and certain issues like being in a world dominated by men, domestic violence and lunacy in order to make this an important scene. At the beginning of the scene its been told that Blanche tells Stella about the rape. Stella is placed with no choice but to not believe her sister. At the start of the scene Stella tells Eunice, "I couldn't believe her story and go on living with Stanley." Eunice concurs: "Don't ever believe it. Life has got to go on. No matter what happens, you've got to keep on going." Eunice argues that male companionship is a womans survival in the face of social convention. She is a victim of society just like Blanche. Knowing that she just had a baby she looks at the future with hope and therefore refuses to believe Blanche. This may place her to be somewhat selfish of choosing her husband over family but in another way she may be doing this for Blanche best interests. After Mitch threw her off, Blanche lost touch with reality, so Stella has arranged a "rest" for Blanche at an insane asylum in the country. In this scene we see Blanche complete loss of touch with reality when she says I shall die for eating an unwashed grape. Here she is completely making up what she thinks how she should die. She is living her dream world. The audience feels compassion towards her as they observe how bad the rape has affected her state of mind and therefo... Free Essays on A Streetcar Named Desire Sometimes in life, there are times when you are faced with a struggle and often times, no matter how hard you try to get yourself out of this struggle, you just can’t and you end up feeling as though you have lost the battle. In â€Å"A Streetcar Named Desire,† by Tennessee Williams, there are four characters that really display this situation. Blanche, Stanley, Stella, and Mitch are the four characters that display this situation. In Tennessee Williams play, â€Å"A Streetcar Named Desire,† there are no victors, only victims. In this play, Blanche is the older sister of Stella and she comes to Elysian Fields to live with her sister because she has nowhere else to live because she was asked to leave the last town that she was living in because of the life that she was choosing to live there. Blanche also lost her family’s estate, Belle Reve. Therefore, she had to go to the last place that she could think of and that was the house of her sister, Stella. Fro m the start of the play, it is imminent that Blanche is the victim of her own life, and not a victor. She first lost her husband when she was a very young girl because of the fact that she found out that he was gay. She was in love with this man and when she found out, she was just heartbroken. However, she didn’t want to tell him that she knew about his secret so she kept it a secret for a while. But then, one night while they were dancing, she all of sudden just came out and told him what she knew. He was so embarrassed by this that he ran out of the room and shot and killed himself. That is one of the battles that she was the victim of. Then when she loses Belle Reve and is forced to live in a town called Laurel, she chooses to live a life that she doesn’t want to. She forces herself into prostitution because she has no other way of making money to help support herself. During this time, she is living in a hotel called the Flamingo and many men are coming up to her room every ...

Lesson Plan Step #8 Assessment and Follow-Up

Lesson Plan Step #8 Assessment and Follow-Up In this series about lesson plans, were breaking down the 8 steps you need to take to create an effective lesson plan for the elementary classroom. The final step in a successful lesson plan for  teachers is Learning Goals, which coming  after defining the following steps:   ObjectiveAnticipatory SetDirect InstructionGuided Practice  ClosureIndependent PracticeRequired Materials and Equipment An  8-step lesson plan is not complete without the final step of Assessment. This is where you assess the final outcome of the lesson and to what extent the learning objectives were achieved. This is also your chance to adjust the overall lesson plan to overcome any unexpected challenges that may have arisen, preparing you for the next time you teach this lesson. Its also important to make note of the most successful aspects of your lesson plan, to ensure that you continue to capitalize on strengths and continue to push forward in those areas.   How to Assess Learning Goals Learning goals can be assessed in a variety of ways, including through quizzes, tests, independently performed worksheets, cooperative learning activities, hands-on experiments, oral discussion, question-and-answer sessions, writing assignments, presentations, or other concrete means. However, its important to remember that you may have students who better display their mastery of a topic or skill through non-traditional assessment methods, so try to think about creative ways you can assist those students in demonstrating mastery. Most importantly, teachers need to ensure that the Assessment activity is directly and explicitly tied to the stated learning objectives  you developed in step one of the lesson plan. In the learning objective section, you specified what students would accomplish and how well they would have to be able to perform a task in order to consider the lesson satisfactorily accomplished. The goals also had to fit within your district or state educational standards for the grade level. Follow-Up: Using the Results of the Assessment Once the students have completed the given assessment activity, you must take some time to reflect on the results. If the learning objectives were not adequately achieved, you will need to revisit the lesson in a different manner, revising the approach to learning. Either you will need to teach the lesson again or youll need to clear up areas that confused several of the students. Whether or not most students showed understanding of the material, based on the assessment, you should note how well students learned different parts of the lesson. This will allow you to modify the lesson plan in the future, clarifying or spending more time on areas where the assessments showed the students were weakest. Student performance on one lesson tends to inform performance on future lessons, giving you insight into where you should take your students next. If the assessment showed the students fully grasped the topic, you may want to proceed immediately to more advanced lessons. If understanding was moderate, you may want to take it slower and reinforce the takeaways. This may require teaching the entire lesson again, or, just portions of the lesson. Assessing different aspects of the lesson in greater detail can guide this decision.   Examples of Types of Assessments Quiz: a short series of questions with right and wrong answers that may not count towards a grade.Test: a longer or more in-depth series of questions that probes for more understanding of the topic and may count towards a grade.Class discussion: rather than a quiz or test that is scored, a discussion helps identify understanding. Its important to make sure all students are able to demonstrate mastery here, so that no one is lost in the shuffle.  Hands-on experiment: Where the subject matter is appropriate, the students apply the lesson to an experiment and record the outcomes.Worksheet: Students fill out a worksheet, especially for math or vocabulary lessons, but it also could be developed for many topics.Cooperative Learning activities: Students work in a group to solve a problem or have a structured discussion.Illustrations or Graphic Organizers: These can include Venn diagrams, K-W-L (Know, Want to Know, Learned) charts, flow charts, pie charts, concept maps, character traits, c ause/effect diagrams, spider web, cloud chart,T-chart, Y-chart, semantic feature analysis,fact/opinion chart, star chart, cycle chart, and other appropriate graphic  organizers. Often the subject will determine which works best as an assessment tool. Edited by Stacy Jagodowski

Catastrophes, cultures,and the angry earth assigment Essay

Catastrophes, cultures,and the angry earth assigment - Essay Example It was a leap backwards to history. An earthquake took the imperial Japan to a century back! No buildings stood high in Tokyo’s frightened streets. No one held their heads high there either. Even the gloomy sky was full of dark monstrous smoke clouds. Everything stood on its head after a monster from deep beneath Izu Oshima Island in Sagami Bay paid its deadly visit to the mainland Japan. The invisible waves simply took nearly hundred and fifty thousands human lives with it. The human might that built the great cities of post-World War I was no match for the mighty shake of the earth. Tokyo and Yokohama were no more cities but piles of rambles. The temblor stole the all-life labour of millions of toiling masses. Even the wealth of royals and the elites were not spared. The fire which spread from house to house sucked up everything in its way. Capitalists and labourers went together along the line of fire. Even the pet dogs ended up with a small meek voice. September 1, 1923 ma rked the end of Japan’s deeply entrenched romance with wooden houses. Two million homeless people shivered on the streets as did their houses earlier in the day. Death and destruction triumphed over the wreckage. Displacement was at its zenith; of people, statues, landscapes, railway tracks, buildings and so on. There was no one remaining without cursing their fate. There was no one remaining not fearing the wrath of mother earth. ... Slabs of plaster left the ceilings and fell about our ears, filling the air with a blinding, smothering fog of dust†. The monster that came as invisible waves from under the earth swallowed whatever existed over the earth. After the frightening ten minutes, to add oil to the fire, there were more than two hundred after shocks. And, another three hundred aftershocks in the next couple of days. The catastrophe did not end with earthquakes, fires and tsunami. At many places, the earth was literally lifted high. The shape of the shorelines changed. The ground was dramatically uplifted and depressed. Hundreds of landslides gulped scores of villages. An immense mudslide simply buried a village called Nebukawa in Idu province besides killing hundreds of people. The conflagration that followed the earthquake was not easy to contain. The victims who trapped in the rabbles were buried alive by the fire. Both the cities of Yokohama and Tokyo were under fire for next two days. Coal and cha rcoal stoves, which then were widely used, provided the necessary link for fire from one house to another. The fire was coupled with the improperly stored chemicals and fuels. More than forty thousand refugees were killed by the skyline fire at the Military Clothing Depot in Honjo Ward alone. Fire and wind played hand in glove and neighbourhood after neighbourhood fell like dominoes for the flames. Especially in Yokohama, the fire was more villainous than the earthquake in taking the tolls. Nearly seven hundred thousand houses were fully or partially destroyed. After the earthquake, the water shortage spread like wildfire, leaving the possibility of fighting fire in complete vein. Moreover, telephone and telegraph communication

How concerns of commerce and business spur on the development of Essay

How concerns of commerce and business spur on the development of mathematics - Essay Example The term mathematic was derived from the Greek word mathema to mean an instructional subject. Mathematical methods were further refined by Greek mathematics and that lead to expansion of the subject matter. The value system was a contribution by Chinese mathematics whereas the numeral system and its operational rules were from the Hindu (Kline 200). The roots of mathematics lie within the concepts of magnitude, number and form. The number concept has been gradually evolving with time and has lots of support from languages existence that provide distinction between numbers like one and two or many (Menninger 77). The most ancient demonstration of prime numbers and sequences is thought to have been from the Ishango bone, which was found in Congo near the Nile river headwaters (Avner 87). That bone was approximately 20,000 years old and it had a series of carved tally marks running in three columns as per the bone length. There are arguments that the prime number concept came after divi sion concept. It has also been claimed that, geometric designs were represented pictorially in 5th millennium BC. Other geometric ideas like ellipses, circles and Pythagorean triples were incorporated in England and Scotland monuments (Menninger 77). The history of mathematics is explained further by the contribution of different countries believed to have been involved in its development. Babylonian mathematics defines mathematics of Sumerians, people from Mesopotamia (Hoyningen et al. 42). Its name relates with Babylon’s central role of study. Sumerians who drafted tables of multiplication on clay tablets, solved division problems and geometrical exercises evidenced written mathematics (Avner 87). Most of the clay tablets that were recovered included cubic and quadratic equations, fractions, algebra and calculations of pairs of regular reciprocal. Quadratic and linear equations solutions were also included. Egyptian mathematics is defined as mathematics in Egyptian language (Avner 87). The Rhind papyrus is its extensive text and it is a manual of instructions for students in geometry and arithmetic. It gives multiplication methods, area formulas, working out unit fractions and division. It also shows knowledge of composite, prime numbers, and arithmetic. It also describes how geometric series and linear equations are solved (Hoyningen et al. 42). Greek mathematics is also called Hellenistic mathematics. It was more complicated than other mathematical genres. Others used inductive reasoning and repeated observations for rule establishment but Greeks used deductive reasoning (Mumford 105). Calculations of volumes and areas of curvilinear figures were introduced and great advancement in geometry reached. The Euclidean geometry theorem introduced subjects of the time as algebra, number theorem and solid geometry (Kline 200).This theorem proved infinity of many prime numbers and the irrationality of the square root of two. This theorem was also thorough on subjects such as optics, conic sections, mechanics and spherical geometry (Hoyningen et al. 42). In Chinese and Middle Eastern advances, there was pie estimation by circumscribed and inscribed polygons. They were also particular in notation of the decimal system, development of the Chinese algebra and

Carpet-Weavers Morocco - Journal Assignment Essay Example for Free

Carpet-Weavers Morocco Journal Assignment Essay Im sure that all of you have at least heard of, if not seen the famous carpets of Morocco. You must have also heard things like, What fine craftsmanship!, What fabulous designs and prints!, What a work of art! or What fine skill!, from people who purchase these carpets for huge sums of money for the various purposes such as praying, decoration etc. But have you ever taken a moment to think, of the origin of these carpets, of the person who sits up day and night weaving these carpets which are sold for thousands, but what does he get out of this and so on, well if not, then Im sure that after reading this, all these questions will be answered. In case you didnt know, Morocco is a relatively poor country and most of the carpets woven there, are all hand-made and are woven by children, children like me who are forced to weave due to unfortunate circumstances. Like me there are hundreds of others who have to live the same unfortunate lives for the same reasons. Let me give you a brief outline of what it is like to be a carpet weaver. Firstly, you have to wake up at five in the morning and get dressed. Everybody is allowed is five minutes in the showers, which is just about enough because the water is ice cold and it takes you just that long to g et used to the temperature of the water. After that, we have a so-called breakfast, if thats what you would call it, which is absolutely tasteless and seems stale. After that, we immediately get to work and start weaving. Thread by thread and knot by knot, we have to be really careful and focused, and should there be any mistake, we can hope not to see the sun for a couple of days, at minimum that is! We have to work constantly until ten at night, when we quickly eat dinner, which is just as bad as breakfast, if not worse and then go to sleep, hoping that tomorrow will be a better day and we will be freed from this life of misery, but then, every morning, it starts all over again, the same torture, the same shouting voices of the slave drivers and the same miserable life. You might wonder, what may lead one to have to live such a life at such a small age, the answer lies deep within our backgrounds and circumstances. Ive been weaving ever since I was seven years old, till today, when Im thirteen. Before this, I used to live with my family, we werent so rich but we were surviving. There were six of us, me, my two brothers, my sister and my parents. All of us used to go to a small school in the nearby village. My mother was a vegetable seller and my father was a drunkard who had a small job at a toothpaste factory. Then one day, due to excessive intake of alcohol, he passed away. His death really didnt make much of a difference, as he was no good anyway, but still, we were slightly affected financially. Then one day, a rich merchant came to our village, and started offering all the children jobs and promised that he would pay us huge sums of money, if we worked at his factory. Without thinking twice, I took the job and I was taken away to a far away place to work at his factories. Had I known what lay ahead, I would have never gone with him, but at the time, we needed money and I felt that this was the best opportunity. We were immediately taken away to a deserted and remote area where there was no way of contacting anyone. We were told to do as he said, and our families would be kept happy. I never the money that had been promised, instead, all I got was a gloomy place to work, eat and sleep, the merchant kept on telling me that he was sending my family the promised money, but after knowing the reality of this place, I doubt my family ever saw a fraction of what was promised, and I also doubt that they are alive right now. As you clearly saw, I was tricked into working here and once I was in, there was no way out; I had no choice but to work at the factory, because the merchant said that there was no place to go from here and if anyone tried, they would be killed. The first of my days here were very hard, when I first started learning how to weave, I made many mistakes, but quickly learnt and became perfect. Everyday here is like hell, maybe worse. How I long to outside and play like a normal child. I want to go to school and learn and become someone and do good for humanity, but instead, my life is wasted here, weaving carpets forever. I feel pity for the younger children who have just arrived. They all seem really scared as they are very young and have no idea of whats going on and what their lives are about to become. We have to toil hard and work till late at night and finish at least three carpets in five days, or else we dont get dinner. You have to really focus all your attention into the weaving and sometimes we get so lost into the weaving, that we lose track of time; its as if, were in another world, much different from this one and that helps to focus more and eases the pain a bit. When weaving, you have to be very careful, for just the slightest mistake could ruin the entire carpet. I feel I have become like a pale shadow of my former self, before, I was carefree and happy with my family, but now, I feel scared and I am uncertain about my future; I dont know what will happen to me after the merchant finds no use of me, or will I spend my entire life here just sitting and weaving? There are hundreds of unanswered questions and queries in my mind and Im sure that most of us feel the same way as me scared and uncertain. Everyday is a struggle and every minute is torture. We arent allowed to talk or stop working and if we do, the slave drivers shout at us and sometimes even whip us and theres nothing we can do, for we have no choice as nobody knows of the merchants tyranny and more importantly, nobody cares. At night, when I lie down on the hard and cold floor and try to sleep, I pray and hope that tomorrow will be something else, something better, but it never happens, everyday is the same, hell. I sometimes wonder, the cruel merchant exploits lots of children every week and brings them here and makes them weave carpets. He then sells them for thousands, while all we get are a few scraps in the name of food. He commits such horrible sins and yet enjoys his riches and lives lavishly, while we have toil and struggle; I ask myself, What have we done to have to suffer such a life of suffering and misery? Why wont God answer our prayers? Where is he? Why does the merchant enjoy his life to the fullest extent? Is this the justice of God? Has evil truly oppressed good? Why?, Why?. But, I soon realize that there is no point in asking these meaningless questions, because the merchant will still get richer, while we suffer. I feel that the government should do something about this and so should the people who buy these carpets for thousands, they should think of us and how we are suffering. The merchant is exploiting us and using us as an unpaid workforce; he is abusing our rights and we are suffering. He has to be stopped from his exploitation at any cost because this way millions of children are separated from their families and are sent to far away lands to live a life worse than hell. The so-called Human Rights Organization, should do something to free us from this prison. But then again, I doubt that anything will happen. Some people might set out to do some investigations, but they will probably give up or be bribed by the extremely rich merchant, a case will be filed and will keep on circling the government departments and will soon be forgotten underneath a huge pile of papers, while we will continue to live in this hell

Summary Of Latex Allergy :: essays research papers

Summary on Latex Allergy in the Workplace (from JADA) Latex Allergy in the Workplace first talks about the background of the obvious problem of Latex allergy. Natural rubber latex is extracted from the milky sap of the rubber tree Hevea Braziliensis namely in Malaysia. The history of Latex gloves began over a hundred years ago. The first recorded incidence of hypersensitivity (allergic reaction) to the natural rubber Latex occurred in 1939. Because of the upsurge of infectious diseases there was an increase in imported Latex gloves increased from one million in 1987 to eight million in 1988. Also, because of this increase in demand, foreign suppliers didn't live up to the US requirements in manufacturing the gloves, which has of course resulted in a higher latex exposure. And because of Latex being an allergen, the repeated exposure to it may become life threatening. Some types of allergic reactions are as follows: ICD – Irritant Contact Dermatitis – Because of around 200 different compounding chemicals in the gloves, and not properly washing hands after use an itchy, irritated, dryness occurs on the hands. ACD – Allergic Contact Dermatitis (Type IV) – is a delayed reaction to the Latex and usually occurs 24 to 96 hours after exposure. The symptoms of this certain reaction, is similar to poison ivy. Immediate Hypersensitivity (Type I) – Although the least common reactions to latex, these are the most severe and life-threatening. There have been serious reactions to Latex when inhaled as the proteins are aerosolized during glove cleaning and removal. In 1997 62% of Latex related deaths were from gloves alone. A positive diagnosis of Latex allergy is made by using the results of a medical history, physical exam, diagnostic/exposure related evaluation, and tests. Some tests include, the patch test, the prick skin test, and radio allegro-sorbent tests. With all these tests there is yet to be a 'gold standard'; for diagnosing Latex allergy. The big problem with these tests is that there are a significant number of wrong diagnosis results. The article goes on to tell just who is at risk to this allergy and who has increased risk. Everyone really is at risk to developing an allergy to Latex because even if you are not healthcare providers, workers that produce Latex products, or children with spina bifida or urogenital defect (all which have increased risk) you can still be exposed to Latex in many ways.

Critically examine the architecture, routines, and culture (ARC) framework of organisational design as proposed by Saloner, Shepard and Podolny in Strategic Management Essay

The design of an organisation is highly crucial for a firm in today’s world in order for it to achieve and sustain its competitive advantage that will place the firm in a stronger position than its rivals. The firm can manipulate the components of organisation design, fit these elements with one another and with the strategy, to impact the firm’s performance. Hence, the goal for the organisation is to have a good fit between the firm’s design and its competitive advantage in order for the firm to be strategically aligned with the strategy. Any effective design will have to address 2 general problems: the coordination and incentive problems and must do so in a way that supports the organisation’s strategy. The firm can make use of the Architecture, Routines and Culture (ARC) framework to grapple these problems. This essay will firstly describe how the ARC framework can be implemented accordingly. An effective design will depend on the 3 elements working together and so, these interactions will be analysed. In addition, the implications of the framework will be examined too. To start, we need to define each component of the ARC framework. Firstly, the architecture refers to the dividing of the firm into subunits and establishing linkages among these groups. Secondly, routines are the formal and informal procedures while carrying out tasks developed from repetition. They embody established interfaces which pertains certain expectations about what will flow across them and a protocol for accomplishing the transfer. Lastly, culture is the commonly held values and beliefs of individuals within the organisation and once deeply embedded, is the evaluative criteria for behaviour and decision making in the firm. The 2 main challenges of organisation design are the coordination and incentive problems. As they are interrelated, their effects are intertwined and addressing one could impact the other. The coordination problem refers to the challenge of establishing an organisation design that achieves an efficient deployment of assets within the firm so that it can achieve its objectives as efficiently as possible. There are several crux of the coordination problem: balancing the gains from specialisation and the gains from integration; and how the decision making process is designed with the need for access to information flows. The incentive problem refers to eliciting the right amount and type of effort in the presence of hidden information and hidden action. It arises from the divergence of interests and objectives of the manager and the shareholders and is most commonly linked to the Principal-Agent problem. Having explained the key concepts, the coordination and incentive problems will be addressed with the ARC framework. In order to construct an organisation structure, the firm is broken down into subunits and such delineation impacts information and resource flows within the firm. To tackle this, one has to match an architecture structure which minimises coordination problem. An argument from the Strategic Management would be whether functional or divisional structures would be better to deal with it. A functional organisation is one which groups individuals according to the tasks they perform. The different functional groups (R&D, marketing, finance et.cetra) are clustered together to be overseen by a superior. Such a classification of groupings reaps the benefits of specialisation as information sharing and learning is facilitated. There is an efficient spread of knowledge and incubation of ideas among the specialists such as in the R&D sector where creative ideas can be built upon other’s ideas to attain innovation. Functional division allows better problem solving process as having similar specialists such as engineers in a group can lead to early detection of a manufacturing glitch and faster solving speed. In addition, there is a clear hierarchy with well-defined positions established within each function. The role of advancement is clear and hence employees are motivated to specialise and invest heavily in human capital to advance. On the other hand, divisional structure differs as the primary subunits are classified based on business divisions and under each of them are functional sub divisions. This allows for better facilitation of coordination across functions especially as the firm increases in scale and scope. If a retail firm divisions according to the different customer group it serves: Women and Children, both sub-divisions are served by functional groups. The design team could learn quickly about the change in taste of its customer group from the sales team of which will not be possible if the teams did not operate under the same subunit. This supports Alfred Chandler’s claim that divisional structure enhances accountability and communication. Hierarchy too, is an important factor to consider when structuring a firm to address coordination problem. Since the communication among managers together with the dissemination of information and shared resources to the groups coordinates the actions of the subunits, the level and nature of hierarchy affects the effectiveness of the communication process. Passing information through each level consumes resources, causes delays and degrades the information by introducing noise and distortion. This justifies the allocation of decision-making rights to those who have the most immediate access to the relevant information. However, decision makers may not know how their decisions will affect the other subunits. Away to address this is to create a formal linking mechanism that coordinates the decision across subunits or to centralise authority for only decisions which require more coordination. Horizontal linkages can also be established across units to achieve coordination. Its mechanisms facilitate information and resource flows without affecting the organisation of the subunits and this allows cooperation across units without sacrificing the gains from specialisation and decentralisation. There are several forms ranging from informal to formal procedures which include personal network, liaison, task forces and integrators. The selection among these options depends on the interdependence among subunits. More interdependent subunits will require a more tightly coupled design. Horizontal linkages benefits are 2 fold: they promote information flows and they get the firm away from rigidity. An apt example would be the strategy of the Japanese auto mobile firms located in the United Kingdom. The managers and workers share common facilities and by doing so, horizontal linkages are built in the firm on a less formal setting with a flatter structure. Managers dine with the workers and this provides the platform for the quick dissemination of information and decision making. Under the ARC analysis, routines also solves coordination problem as the established interfaces bring about large coordination gains. With each worker clear of his roles and the procedures, gains from specialisation is reaped. More importantly, huge informational efficiencies are gained as when tasks proceed from one unit to another, minimal amounts of information is needed to be communicated between units as each unit only needs to know the information to carry out its part. Decision making routine also facilitates the decision making process as it is applied every time a decision is made, thereby excluding biased and inefficiency from disagreements among decision makers. Lastly, a routine way for one division to access the resources in another division enables the firm to coordinate in ways that would be difficult if the firm has to make a new resource sharing decision each time. ulture too, induces cooperation. With a common set of beliefs, members of the firm will not approve of actions that violate the culture of the firm. The workers are naturally coordinated in actions and appropriate behaviour. With a well developed norm of reciprocity, resource and information sharing can be achieved between and across subunits and this enhances cooperation. Also, culture helps employees focus on tasks that are important for the competitive advantage of the firm. The ARC framework can be implemented to deal with the incentive problems as follows. Compensation and reward schemes can be designed to induce desirable behaviour. Financial incentives are a strong motivation for workers to act in profit-maximising behaviour. However, this can lead to the substantial variation compensation over time and it is difficult to ascertain the profit impact of the units’ activities. To reward more accurately, compensation can be tied to a combination of imperfect indicators of unit performance according to the 4 rules of thumb. However, these indicators are subjective and the cost of collecting and analysing the data could be too great. Architecture structure should also be considered to minimise the incentive problem by affecting the importance of cooperation across units. If decisions cut across 2 separate organisation units, the identities and performances of them are intertwined and this brings a self-interest reason to assist the other and cooperate. However, not fully owning the consequence of performance will dilute incentives for individual performance. Architecture has its limitations in dealing with the incentive problem and the other elements are important to better solve it. Routines improve the incentive problem, but also not to a great extent. They do create opportunities to get better indicators of performance of which can be incorporated with the architecture compensation scheme of combining incentives from other indicators of performance. Routines can also automate activities for which it is otherwise difficult to provide incentives for. Lastly, culture plays a stronger rule in addressing the incentive problem as it targets the foundation of the issue of aligning interests. With a strong culture, it is possible to have the firm and subunits share similar goals thereby evoking that particular behaviour from individuals without pecuniary rewards. Suppose a consultancy firm’s competitive advantage lies in providing effective solutions to their clients’ problem, it can spread this belief to its employees. If the employees attain considerable satisfaction from delivering results, they will behave in ways aligned with the company’s competitive advantage without the need of the firm to offer financial incentives for this behaviour. However, the difficulty in reinforcing culture has to be accounted for as it could meet resistance in a change in mindset among the employees. Yet once established, culture leads to an effective organisation design. Within the ARC framework, the elements of the organisation design interact with each other to solve the challenges posed. An example could be how the culture could influence the routines of the firm as the standardised interfaces could be derived from the culture. With the norm of reciprocity in the firm, resource sharing routine will be established in such a way that subunits are more willing to share resources in order to solve the effective deployment of resources from the coordination problem. Another perspective of the ARC interaction could be how culture affects architecture. If a firm has an open-minded culture, it could direct the style of structure to a flatter hierarchy with more interaction between subordinates and superiors. This encourages improved flow of information asset in the firm. Using the ARC framework suggests many implications for the organisation. Given the complexity and intricate relationships between the elements of the firm’s ARC and the organisation design problems, designing the organisation is not as straight forward a task for the managers. The managers will require a deep understanding and strong execution of the elements of the firm’s ARC or more problems could arise. A possible solution proposed by Saloner, Shepard and Podolny is to have a systematic approach to collecting information on the design challenge facing the firm and design elements. There are 2 parts to carrying it out of which the first is to ask and analyse problems that would be addressed if the organisation is restructured. The second part poses questions to gather a good description of the firm’s current ARC. The managers are to identify any inconsistencies among the elements that are making the organisation less effective as it could be. Although this approach allows more accurate identifying of the weak areas of the ARC, managers will still have to learn by doing and tweak their policies over time for the optimal design. A second implication would be the need for the framework to be dynamic so as to achieve organisation agility. As an organisation is designed to obtain a competitive advantage for the firm, it is pertinent that the nature of its competitive advantage is considered. The organisation design has to be flexible and change in tandem with the changing needs of the competitive advantage. Hence, there is no one best design to accommodate all considerations. Firstly, firms must continually develop and deepen its current competitive advantage to meet the challenges of competition (exploiting). Secondly, the firm may want to alter its strategy to pursue another form of competitive advantage (explorer). A retail firm in an economy recession will need to change its competitive advantage to producing lower priced goods to garner market shares and can do this by flexibly changing its incentives to reward the manufacturing department based on sales volume, thereby producing at lower cost. Firms can meet this challenge by possessing elements of both exploration and exploitation to profit. Lastly, does the ARC framework act solely to design an organisation to achieve the firm’s competitive advantage? It could work better if complemented with other processes such as innovation. Innovation could be connected with organisation design to ensure a more sustainable competitive advantage. A firm could incentivise its employees based on how good they are in coming up with cutting edge technologies to promote innovation in the firm. In conclusion, the ARC framework has given a reasonable approach to design an organisation. Most of the arguments, however, assume according to Alfred Chandler’s view that â€Å"structure follows strategy†. Does this relationship need to follow as such so that the company structure runs parallel to the strategy? I beg to differ as the strategy and structure relates reciprocally and hence, the ARC framework could be at times used at the deciding factor of the company’s strategic planning too.

Hereford Plays series Essay

After the complex events of the scene before, Marco jumps in to try and regain his brother’s dignity. This is his family and he cannot let Rodolpho be disgraced like that or be hurt; whether it was just a stagger or not, Eddie was out of order and Marco won’t allow it. As Catherine and Rodolpho dance, Marco discusses a ‘friendly’ challenge: ‘Marco takes a chair and places it in front of Eddie’. Eddie has to lift the chair as far up as he can with one hand holding it by the bottom of one leg. As Eddie kneels and grasps the leg he lifts it by an inch whereas when Marco tries it he lifts it all the way above his head. This simple action obviously had a motive behind it: to warn Eddie to lay off his brother but Eddie consciously knows that he won’t give up that easily. Marco has shown that Eddie may think he’s more of a man than Rodolpho but Marco is more of a man than Eddie; this event has generally shamed Eddie in his home, which is something this character feels very strongly about as the head of the household. The scene needs a sense of oppositon and competition. In order to emphasise what is to be a true test of strength, the onlookers (Rodolpho, Catherine and Beatrice) need to have complete awareness and support of Marco’s triumph. In this scene you have to visually compare the failure of Eddie in comparison to the triumph of Marco. While Marco is lifting the chair he is struggling and the tension in his neck, face, arms and especially his facial expression is needed to portray not just victory of lifting the chair but the victory of putting Eddie to shame and gaining some respect for his brother. This scene is a turning point in the story because Eddie now knows that if he wants Rodolpho out of his life he’ll may have to take even more extreme measures and the battle has turned from not just putting Catherine off of Rodolpho but to get these immigrants out of his house. It’s important for its visual impact on the audience because its dramatic actions of a fight for strength and self-dignity turns the whole generalisation of the story from a happy family get-together into a potential ‘crime against his (Eddie’s) family and the Sicilian community’ (as quoted from synopsis/pri cis of the book). Its also important because it shows Marco’s justified slyness; justified because he has dishonoured Eddie but only in retaliation to Eddie taking advantage of Rodolpho. As soon as Marco said â€Å"Here†¦ † and started to lift the chair it is the beginning of Eddie’s slowly increasing shame and disgrace. The victory celebration should idealistically be a smiled expression (from Marco) as if to imply to Eddie that no-one messes with his brother or else they’ll answer to him. As director I would issue the following instructions: Catherine: you’re enjoying your dance with Rodolpho and you are nai ve as to what might be going on with Eddie and Marco so keep off guard and treat the situation as though its just a bit of fun between them. Beatrice: you have realised that Eddie feels discomforted at the weak position that he has been put in; however you believed that he deserved it and you are just hoping that Eddie has learned his lesson and will not interfere again. Act supportive at his distress but don’t destroy is ride by talking about it too much (as your character would naturally do) Eddie: you have to accept Marco’s offer very boldly and confidently as Catherine might be watching and you don’t want to back down now. Your facial expression has to show repressed rage at Marco; grind your teeth and be silent to keep your pride, you want everyone else in the room to feel that what has happened doesn’t mean or prove anything so get on as though it didn’t happen although you’re still much aware of the damage that Marco has done Marco: you are proud of what you have accomplished but you’re not going to look like a show off; if you win gracefully it will add to Eddie’s shame which is something you want to do. Your facial expression should say ‘ I’m triumphant and taking it well’ In conclusion, Eddie cares about his family and the responsibilities that come with it. He was strict in the upbringing of Catherine and had the utmost respect for his wife. Even though he made a fool of himself and died just for his name (his dignity) we must recognise he had a strong and defiant will or view that was his own and that he fought to uphold, such as his ‘primitive man’s view’ that there must be a law that keeps Catherine from marrying Rodolpho because he is supposedly a homosexual. The bottom line is Eddie should have settled for half meaning he brought Catherine up and now it was time to let her go. So in the end, Eddie dies to keep his pride and his ‘name’ but doesn’t even gain the audience’s admiration because his actions were unnecessary. As quoted by E. R. Wood, who wrote the introduction in the Hereford Plays series (1975) publication of ‘A View From The Bridge’, â€Å"To be a tragic hero, you do not have to be in the right; you have to be true to yourself. † So Eddie was guilty of destroying the lives of these immigrants and the only honourable way out was to die.

Free Essays on Four Functions Of Management

Introduction In today’s rapidly changing health care industry, the human component of management is becoming more important. As a Business Office Manager for a local home health agency I must be able to plan, organize, lead and control the office and the staff that I manage at all times. To be a successful manager I must have the knowledge and expertise to follow through on all four of these functions. Planning Planning is a essential management function. In every organization, managers plan a wide variety of actions on a daily basis. As a manager I must also look at the long term and day to day operations. As part of my position planning is used to establish the goals and courses of action that are going to take place. Planning tells me what should be done to accomplish the goals of the company that I work for. Organizing Organizing tells me how it is done and who should be doing it. This function of management is defining the roles and responsibilities of each team member. In this process with the company that I work for I need to make sure that the right people are in place with the right materials to accomplish the mission of the company. I will describe each position briefly at my organization. We have an administrator who oversees the entire office. The next in command is the director of nursing. She is responsible for the daily clinical functions and making sure that her staff, which are the registered nurse (care managers) have the appropriate staff on board for the patients in there homes. My staff includes the office assistants; there assigned duties are to complete all data entry within 24-48 hours of patient admission to home care. Following on the next page is a organizational chart. Just to give you an idea on how the flow should go within my occupation. Leading is the process by which I direct the efforts of my employees towards the accomplishments of the organization’s goals. I... Free Essays on Four Functions Of Management Free Essays on Four Functions Of Management Introduction In today’s rapidly changing health care industry, the human component of management is becoming more important. As a Business Office Manager for a local home health agency I must be able to plan, organize, lead and control the office and the staff that I manage at all times. To be a successful manager I must have the knowledge and expertise to follow through on all four of these functions. Planning Planning is a essential management function. In every organization, managers plan a wide variety of actions on a daily basis. As a manager I must also look at the long term and day to day operations. As part of my position planning is used to establish the goals and courses of action that are going to take place. Planning tells me what should be done to accomplish the goals of the company that I work for. Organizing Organizing tells me how it is done and who should be doing it. This function of management is defining the roles and responsibilities of each team member. In this process with the company that I work for I need to make sure that the right people are in place with the right materials to accomplish the mission of the company. I will describe each position briefly at my organization. We have an administrator who oversees the entire office. The next in command is the director of nursing. She is responsible for the daily clinical functions and making sure that her staff, which are the registered nurse (care managers) have the appropriate staff on board for the patients in there homes. My staff includes the office assistants; there assigned duties are to complete all data entry within 24-48 hours of patient admission to home care. Following on the next page is a organizational chart. Just to give you an idea on how the flow should go within my occupation. Leading is the process by which I direct the efforts of my employees towards the accomplishments of the organization’s goals. I...

Ahmed Sékou Touré Biography

Ahmed Sà ©kou Tourà © Biography Ahmed Sà ©kou Tourà © (born January 9, 1922, died March 26, 1984)  was one of the foremost figures in the struggle for West African independence, the first President of Guinea, and a leading Pan-African. He was initially considered a moderate Islamic African leader  but became one of Africas most oppressive Big Men. Early Life Ahmed Sà ©kou Tourà ©s was born in Faranah, central   Guinà ©e Franà §aise (French Guinea, now the Republic of Guinea), near the source of the River Niger. His parents were poor, uneducated peasant farmers, though he claimed to be a direct descendant of Samory Tourà © (aka Samori Ture), the regions 19th-century anti-colonialist military leader, who had been based in Faranah for a while. Tourà ©s family were Muslim, and he was initially educated at the Koranic School in Faranah, before transferring to a school in Kissidougou. In 1936 he moved on to a French technical college, the Ecole Georges Poiret, in Conakry, but was expelled after less than a year for initiating a food strike. Over the next few years, Sà ©kou Tourà © passed through a series of menial jobs, while attempting to complete his education through correspondence courses. His lack of formal education was an issue throughout his life, and his lack of qualifications left him suspicious of anyone who had attended tertiary education. Entering Politics In 1940 Ahmed Sà ©kou Tourà © obtained a post as a  clerk for the   Compagnie du Niger Franà §ais while also working to complete an examination course which would allow him to join the Post and Telecommunications Department (Postes, Tà ©là ©graphes et Tà ©là ©phones) of colonys French administration. In 1941 he joined the post office and started to take an interest in labor movements, encouraging his fellow workers to hold a successful two-month long strike (the first in French West Africa). In 1945 Sà ©kou Tourà © formed French Guineas first trade union, the Post and Telecommunications Workers Union, becoming its general-secretary the following year. He affiliated the postal workers union to the French labor federation, the Confà ©dà ©ration Gà ©nà ©rale du Travail (CGT, General Confederation of Labor) which was in turn affiliated to the French Communist party. He also set up French Gunieas first trade union center: the Federation of Workers Unions of Guinea. In 1946 Sà ©kou Tourà © attended a CGT congress in Paris, before moving to the Treasury Department, where he became the general-secretary of the Treasury Workers Union. In October that year, he attended a West African congress in Bamako, Mali, where he became one of the founding members of the Rassemblement Dà ©mocratique Africain (RDA, African Democratic Rally) along with Fà ©lix Houphouà «t-Boigny of Cà ´te dIvoire. The RDA was a Pan-Africanist party which looked towards independence for French colonies in West Africa. He founded the Parti Dà ©mocratique de Guinà ©e (PDG, Democratic Party of Guinea), the local affiliate of the RDA in Guinea. Trade Unions in West Africa Ahmed Sà ©kou Tourà © was dismissed from the treasury department for his political activities, and in 1947 was briefly sent to prison by the French colonial administration. He decided to devote his time to developing workers movements in Guinea and to campaign for independence. In 1948 he became the secretary-general of the CGT for French West Africa, and in 1952 Sà ©kou Tourà © became secretary-general of the PDG. In 1953 Sà ©kou Tourà © called a general strike which lasted for two months. The government capitulated. He campaigned during the strike for unity between ethnic groups, opposing the tribalism which the French authorities were promulgating, and was explicitly anti-colonial in his approach. Sà ©kou Tourà © was elected to the territorial assembly in 1953 but failed to win the election for the seat in the Assemblà ©e Constituante, the French National Assembly, after conspicuous vote-tampering by the French administration in Guinea. Two years later he became mayor of Conakry, Guineas capital. With such a high political profile, Sà ©kou Tourà © was finally elected as the Guinean delegate to the French National Assembly in 1956. Furthering his political credentials, Sà ©kou Tourà © led a break by Guineas trade unions from the CGT, and formed the Confà ©dà ©ration Gà ©nà ©rale du Travail Africaine (CGTA, General Confederation of African Labor). A renewed relationship between the leadership of the CGTA and CGT the following year led to the creation of the Union Gà ©nà ©rale des Travailleurs dAfrique Noire (UGTAN, General Union of Black African Laborers), a pan-African movement which became an important player in the struggle for West African independence. Independence and One-Party State The Democratic Party of Guinea won the plebiscite elections in 1958 and rejected membership in the proposed French Community.  Ahmed Sà ©kou Tourà © became the first president of the independent republic of Guinea on October 2, 1958. However, the state was a one-party socialist dictatorship with restrictions on human rights and suppression of political opposition.  Sà ©kou Tourà © promoted mostly his own Malinke ethnic group rather than maintaining his cross-ethnic nationalism ethic. He drove more than a million people into exile to escape his prison camps. An estimated 50,000 people were killed in concentration camps, including the notorious Camp Boiro Guard Barracks. Death and Legacy He died  March 26, 1984, in Cleveland, Ohio, where he had been sent for cardiac treatment after becoming ill in Saudi Arabia. A coup detat by the armed forces on April 5, 1984, installed a military junta that denounced  Sà ©kou Tourà © as a bloody and ruthless dictator. They released about 1,000 political prisoners and installed  Lansana Contà ©Ã‚  as president. The country was not to have a truly free and fair election until 2010, and politics remain troubled.

Ccounting Systems Design and Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Ccounting Systems Design and Development - Essay Example The system of authorising leave and other human resource issues would be faster as the authorisation would be made electronically rather than waiting upon the paper documents. Moreover, the benefit through the opening of the new system might make The Royal Australian Mint to strictly record and monitor the working performances by tracking upon the working hours of the employees. In addition, the other benefit that the organisation might expect is that the new system would significantly effect upon their area of planning which will cover the entire organisation and also will diminish the need for people to design their own systems. The Royal Australian Mint hopes that the new system would transform the organisation into an efficient workplace along with enhancement of the productivity in future. The previous Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system of The Royal Australian Mint was not capable enough to comply with the changing information requirements of the management. Moreover, the previous system became very much complex to support the various additional programs and report requests which were required to be added into the system. In order to cope up with these sorts of problems, The Royal Australian Mint felt the need of introducing new integrated system of information. The Royal Australian Mint had made each business area map out their major process activities may be due to the fact that the organisation identified the requirement for a new integrated system that would enhance their business operations. The major motive of the organisation in mapping out their major process activities was to attain knowledge regarding their current procedure of executing working activities and also seeking for the ways in order to enhance their working procedures. The Royal Australian Mint might face certain difficulties while implementing the new integrated system of information. Due