The Twilight Saga 3: Eclipse Chapter 5. IMPRINT

â€Å"ARE YOU OKAY, JAKE? CHARLIE SAID YOU WERE HAVING a hard time. . . . Isn't it getting any better?† His warm hand curled around mine. â€Å"‘S not so bad,† he said, but he wouldn't meet my eyes. He walked slowly back to the driftwood bench, staring at the rainbow-colored pebbles, and pulling me along at his side. I sat back down on our tree, but he sat on the wet, rocky ground rather than next to me. I wondered if it was so that he could hide his face more easily. He kept my hand. I started babbling to fillthe silence. â€Å"It's been so long since I was here. I've probably missed a ton of things. How are Sam and Emily? And Embry? Did Quil -?† I broke off mid-sentence, remembering that Jacob's friend Quil had been a sensitive subject. â€Å"Ah, Quil,† Jacob sighed. So then it must have happened – Quil must have joined the pack. â€Å"I'm sorry,† I mumbled. To my surprise, Jacob snorted. â€Å"Don't say that to him.† â€Å"What do you mean?† â€Å"Quil's not looking for pity. Just the opposite – he's jazzed. Totally thrilled.† This made no sense to me. All the other wolves had been so depressed at the idea of their friend sharing their fate. â€Å"Huh?† Jacob tilted his head back to look at me. He smiled and rolled his eyes. â€Å"Quil thinks it's the coolest thing that's ever happened to him. Part of it is finally knowing what's going on. And he's excited to have his friends back – to be part of the ‘in crowd.'† Jacob snorted again. â€Å"Shouldn't be surprised, I guess. It's so Quil.† â€Å"He likes it?† â€Å"Honestly . . . most of them do,† Jacob admitted slowly. â€Å"There are definitely good sides to this – the speed, the freedom, the strength . . . the sense of – of family. . . . Sam and I are the only ones who ever felt really bitter. And Sam got past that a long time ago. So I'm the crybaby now.† Jacob laughed at himself. There were so many things I wanted to know. â€Å"Why are you and Sam different? What happened to Sam anyway? What's his problem?† The questions tumbled out without room to answer them, and Jacob laughed again. â€Å"That's a long story.† â€Å"I told you a long story. Besides, I'm not in any hurry to get back,† I said, and then I grimaced as I thought of the trouble I would be in. He looked up at me swiftly, hearing the double edge in my words. â€Å"Will he be mad at you?† â€Å"Yes,† I admitted. â€Å"He really hates it when I do things he considers . . . risky.† â€Å"Like hanging out with werewolves.† â€Å"Yeah.† Jacob shrugged. â€Å"So don't go back. I'll sleep on the couch.† â€Å"That's a great idea,† I grumbled. â€Å"Because then he would come looking for me.† Jacob stiffened, and then smiled bleakly. â€Å"Would he?† â€Å"If he was afraid I was hurt or something – probably.† â€Å"My idea's sounding better all the time.† â€Å"Please, Jake. That really bugs me.† â€Å"What does?† â€Å"That you two are so ready to kill each other!† I complained. â€Å"It makes me crazy. Why can't you both just be civilized?† â€Å"Is he ready to kill me?† Jacob asked with a grim smile, unconcerned by my anger. â€Å"Not like you seem to be!† I realized I was yelling. â€Å"At least he can be a grown-up about this. He knows that hurting you would hurt me – and so he never would. You don't seem to care about that at all!† â€Å"Yeah, right,† Jacob muttered. â€Å"I'm sure he's quite the pacifist.† â€Å"Ugh!† I ripped my hand out of his and shoved his head away. Then I pulled my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms tightly around them. I glared out toward the horizon, fuming. Jacob was quiet for a few minutes. Finally, he got up off the ground and sat beside me, putting his arm around my shoulders. I shook it off. â€Å"Sorry,† he said quietly. â€Å"I'll try to behave myself.† I didn't answer. â€Å"Do you still want to hear about Sam?† he offered. I shrugged. â€Å"Like I said, it's a long story. And very . . . strange. There're so many strange things about this new life. I haven't had time to tell you the half of it. And this thing with Sam – well, I don't know if I'll even be able to explain it right.† His words pricked my curiosity in spite of my irritation. â€Å"I'm listening,† I said stiffly. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the side of his face pull up in a smile. â€Å"Sam had it so much harder than the rest of us. Because he was the first, and he was alone, and he didn't have anyone to tell him what was happening. Sam's grandfather died before he was born, and his father has never been around. There was no one there to recognize the signs. The first time it happened – the first time he phased – he thought he'd gone insane. It took him two weeks to calm down enough to change back. â€Å"This was before you came to Forks, so you wouldn't remember. Sam's mother and Leah Clearwater had the forest rangers searching for him, the police. People thought there had been an accident or something. . . .† â€Å"Leah?† I asked, surprised. Leah was Harry's daughter. Hearing her name sent an automatic surge of pity through me. Harry Clearwater, Charlie's life-long friend, had died of a heart attack this past spring. His voice changed, became heavier. â€Å"Yeah. Leah and Sam were high school sweethearts. They started dating when she was just a freshman. She was frantic when he disappeared.† â€Å"But he and Emily -â€Å" â€Å"I'll get to that – it's part of the story,† he said. He inhaled slowly, and then exhaled in a gust. I supposed it was silly for me to imagine that Sam had never loved anyone before Emily. Most people fall in and out of love many times in their lives. It was just that I'd seen Sam with Emily, and I couldn't imagine him with someone else. The way he looked at her . . . well, it reminded me of a look I'd seen sometimes in Edward's eyes – when he was looking at me. â€Å"Sam came back,† Jacob said, â€Å"but he wouldn't talk to anyone about where he'd been. Rumors flew – that he was up to no good, mostly. And then Sam happened to run in to Quil's grandfather one afternoon when Old Quil Ateara came to visit Mrs. Uley. Sam shook his hand. Old Quil just about had a stroke.† Jacob paused to laugh. â€Å"Why?† Jacob put his hand on my cheek and pulled my face around to look at him – he was leaning toward me, his face was just a few inches away. His palm burned my skin, like he had a fever. â€Å"Oh, right,† I said. It was uncomfortable, having my face so close to his with his hand hot against my skin. â€Å"Sam was running a temperature.† Jacob laughed again. â€Å"Sam's hand felt like he'd left it sitting on a hot stovetop.† He was so close, I could feel his warm breath. I reached up casually, to take his hand away and free my face, but wound my fingers through his so that I wouldn't hurt his feelings. He smiled and leaned back, undeceived by my attempt at nonchalance. â€Å"So Mr. Ateara went straight to the other elders,† Jacob went on. â€Å"They were the only ones left who still knew, who remembered. Mr. Ateara, Billy, and Harry had actually seen their grandfathers make the change. When Old Quil told them, they met with Sam secretly and explained. â€Å"It was easier when he understood – when he wasn't alone anymore. They knew he wouldn't be the only one affected by the Cullens' return† – he pronounced the name with unconscious bitterness – â€Å"but no one else was old enough. So Sam waited for the rest of us to join him. . . .† â€Å"The Cullens had no idea,† I said in a whisper. â€Å"They didn't think that werewolves still existed here. They didn't know that coming here would change you.† â€Å"It doesn't change the fact that it did.† â€Å"Remind me not to get on your bad side.† â€Å"You think I should be as forgiving as you are? We can't all be saints and martyrs.† â€Å"Grow up, Jacob.† â€Å"I wish I could,† he murmured quietly. I stared at him, trying to make sense of his response. â€Å"What?† Jacob chuckled. â€Å"One of those many strange things I mentioned.† â€Å"You . . . can't . . . grow up?† I said blankly. â€Å"You're what? Not . . . aging? Is that a joke?† â€Å"Nope.† He popped his lips on the P. I felt blood flood my face. Tears – tears of rage – filled my eyes. My teeth mashed together with an audible grinding sound. â€Å"Bella? What did I say?† I was on my feet again, my hands balled up into fists, my whole frame shaking. â€Å"You. Are. Not. Aging,† I growled through my teeth. Jacob tugged my arm gently, trying to make me sit. â€Å"None of us are. What's wrong with you?† â€Å"Am I the only one who has to get old? I get older every stinking day!† I nearly shrieked, throwing my hands in the air. Some little part of me recognized that I was throwing a Charlie-esque fit, but that rational part was greatly overshadowed by the irrational part. â€Å"Damn it! What kind of world is this? Where's the justice?† â€Å"Take it easy, Bella.† â€Å"Shut up, Jacob. Just shut up! This is so unfair!† â€Å"Did you seriously just stamp your foot? I thought girls only did that on TV.† I growled unimpressively. â€Å"It's not as bad as you seem to think it is. Sit down and I'll explain.† â€Å"I'll stand.† He rolled his eyes. â€Å"Okay. Whatever you want. But listen, I will get older . . . someday.† â€Å"Explain.† He patted the tree. I glowered for a second, but then sat; my temper had burned out as suddenly as it had flared and I'd calmed down enough to realize that I was making a fool of myself. â€Å"When we get enough control to quit . . . ,† Jacob said. â€Å"When we stop phasing for a solid length of time, we age again. It's not easy.† He shook his head, abruptly doubtful. â€Å"It's gonna take a really long time to learn that kind of restraint, I think. Even Sam's not there yet. ‘Course it doesn't help that there's a huge coven of vampires right down the road. We can't even think about quitting when the tribe needs protectors. But you shouldn't get all bent out of shape about it, anyway, because I'm already older than you, physically at least.† â€Å"What are you talking about?† â€Å"Look at me, Bells. Do I look sixteen?† I glanced up and down his mammoth frame, trying to be unbiased. â€Å"Not exactly, I guess.† â€Å"Not at all. Because we reach full growth inside of a few months when the werewolf gene gets triggered. It's one hell of a growth spurt.† He made a face. â€Å"Physically, I'm probably twenty-five or something. So there's no need for you to freak out about being too old for me for at least another seven years.† Twenty-five or something. The idea messed with my head. But I remembered that growth spurt – I remembered watching him shoot up and fill out right before my eyes. I remembered how he would look different from one day to the next. . . . I shook my head, feeling dizzy. â€Å"So, did you want to hear about Sam, or did you want to scream at me some more for things that are out of my control?† I took a deep breath. â€Å"Sorry. Age is a touchy subject for me. That hit a nerve.† Jacob's eyes tightened, and he looked as if he were trying to decide how to word something. Since I didn't want to talk about the truly touchy stuff – my plans for the future, or treaties that might be broken by said plans, I prompted him. â€Å"So once Sam understood what was going on, once he had Billy and Harry and Mr. Ateara, you said it wasn't so hard anymore. And, like you also said, there are the cool parts. . . .† I hesitated briefly. â€Å"Why does Sam hate them so much? Why does he wish I would hate them?† Jacob sighed. â€Å"This is the really weird part.† â€Å"I'm a pro at weird.† â€Å"Yeah, I know.† He grinned before he continued. â€Å"So, you're right. Sam knew what was going on, and everything was almost okay. In most ways, his life was back to, well, not normal. But better.† Then Jacob's expression tightened, like something painful was coming. â€Å"Sam couldn't tell Leah. We aren't supposed to tell anyone who doesn't have to know. And it wasn't really safe for him to be around her – but he cheated, just like I did with you. Leah was furious that he wouldn't tell her what was going on – where he'd been, where he went at night, why he was always so exhausted – but they were working it out. They were trying. They really loved each other.† â€Å"Did she find out? Is that what happened?† He shook his head. â€Å"No, that wasn't the problem. Her cousin, Emily Young, came down from the Makah reservation to visit her one weekend.† I gasped. â€Å"Emily is Leah's cousin?† â€Å"Second cousins. They're close, though. They were like sisters when they were kids.† â€Å"That's . . . horrible. How could Sam . . . ?† I trailed off, shaking my head. â€Å"Don't judge him just yet. Did anyone ever tell you . . . Have you ever heard of imprinting?† â€Å"Imprinting?† I repeated the unfamiliar word. â€Å"No. What's that mean?† â€Å"It's one of those bizarre things we have to deal with. It doesn't happen to everyone. In fact, it's the rare exception, not the rule. Sam had heard all the stories by then, the stories we all used to think were legends. He'd heard of imprinting, but he never dreamed . . .† â€Å"What is it?† I prodded. Jacob's eyes strayed to the ocean. â€Å"Sam did love Leah. But when he saw Emily, that didn't matter anymore. Sometimes . . . we don't exactly know why . . . we find our mates that way.† His eyes flashed back to me, his face reddening. â€Å"I mean . . . our soul mates.† â€Å"What way? Love at first sight?† I snickered. Jacob wasn't smiling. His dark eyes were critical of my reaction. â€Å"It's a little bit more powerful than that. More absolute.† â€Å"Sorry,† I muttered. â€Å"You're serious, aren't you?† â€Å"Yeah, I am.† â€Å"Love at first sight? But more powerful?† My voice still sounded dubious, and he could hear that. â€Å"It's not easy to explain. It doesn't matter, anyway.† He shrugged indifferently. â€Å"You wanted to know what happened to Sam to make him hate the vampires for changing him, to make him hate himself. And that's what happened. He broke Leah's heart. He went back on every promise he'd ever made her. Every day he has to see the accusation in her eyes, and know that she's right.† He stopped talking abruptly, as if he'd said something he hadn't meant to. â€Å"How did Emily deal with this? If she was so close to Leah . . . ?† Sam and Emily were utterly right together, two puzzle pieces, shaped for each other exactly. Still . . . how had Emily gotten past the fact that he'd belonged to someone else? Her sister, almost. â€Å"She was real angry, in the beginning. But it's hard to resist that level of commitment and adoration.† Jacob sighed. â€Å"And then, Sam could tell her everything. There are no rules that can bind you when you find your other half. You know how she got hurt?† â€Å"Yeah.† The story in Forks was that she was mauled by a bear, but I was in on the secret. Werewolves are unstable, Edward had said. The people near them get hurt. â€Å"Well, weirdly enough, that was sort of how they resolved things. Sam was so horrified, so sickened by himself, so full of hate for what he'd done. . . . He would have thrown himself under a bus if it would have made her feel better. He might have anyway, just to escape what he'd done. He was shattered. . . . Then, somehow, she was the one comforting him, and after that. . . .† Jacob didn't finish his thought, and I sensed the story had gotten too personal to share. â€Å"Poor Emily,† I whispered. â€Å"Poor Sam. Poor Leah. . . .† â€Å"Yeah, Leah got the worst end of the stick,† he agreed. â€Å"She puts on a brave face. She's going to be a bridesmaid.† I gazed away, toward the jagged rocks that rose from the ocean like stubby broken-off fingers on the south rim of the harbor, while I tried to make sense of it all. I could feel his eyes on my face, waiting for me to say something. â€Å"Did it happen to you?† I finally asked, still looking away. â€Å"This love-at-first-sight thing?† â€Å"No,† he answered briskly. â€Å"Sam and Jared are the only ones.† â€Å"Hmm,† I said, trying to sound only politely interested. I was relieved, and I tried to explain my reaction to myself. I decided I was just glad he didn't claim there was some mystical, wolfy connection between the two of us. Our relationship was confusing enough as it was. I didn't need any more of the supernatural than I already had to deal with. He was quiet, too, and the silence felt a little awkward. My intuition told me that I didn't want to hear what he was thinking. â€Å"How did that work out for Jared?† I asked to break the silence. â€Å"No drama there. It was just a girl he'd sat next to in school every day for a year and never looked at twice. And then, after he changed, he saw her again and never looked away. Kim was thrilled. She'd had a huge crush on him. She'd had his last name tacked on to the end of hers all over in her diary.† He laughed mockingly. I frowned. â€Å"Did Jared tell you that? He shouldn't have.† Jacob bit his lip. â€Å"I guess I shouldn't laugh. It was funny, though.† â€Å"Some soul mate.† He sighed. â€Å"Jared didn't tell us anything on purpose. I already told you this part, remember?† â€Å"Oh, yeah. You can hear each other's thoughts, but only when you're wolves, right?† â€Å"Right. Just like your bloodsucker.† He glowered. â€Å"Edward,† I corrected. â€Å"Sure, sure. That's how come I know so much about how Sam felt. It's not like he would have told us all that if he'd had a choice. Actually, that's something we all hate.† The bitterness was abruptly harsh in his voice. â€Å"It's awful. No privacy, no secrets. Everything you're ashamed of, laid out for everyone to see.† He shuddered. â€Å"It sounds horrible,† I whispered. â€Å"It is sometimes helpful when we need to coordinate,† he said grudgingly. â€Å"Once in a blue moon, when some bloodsucker crosses into our territory. Laurent was fun. And if the Cullens hadn't gotten in our way last Saturday . . . ugh!† he groaned. â€Å"We could have had her!† His fists clenched into angry balls. I flinched. As much as I worried about Jasper or Emmett getting hurt, it was nothing like the panic I felt at the idea of Jacob going up against Victoria. Emmett and Jasper were the closest thing to indestructible I could imagine. Jacob was still warm, still comparatively human. Mortal. I thought of Jacob facing Victoria, her brilliant hair blowing around her oddly feline face . . . and shuddered. Jacob looked up at me with a curious expression. â€Å"But isn't it like that for you all the time? Having him in your head?† â€Å"Oh, no. Edward's never in my head. He only wishes.† Jacob's expression became confused. â€Å"He can't hear me,† I explained, my voice a tiny bit smug from old habit. â€Å"I'm the only one like that, for him. We don't know why he can't.† â€Å"Weird,† Jacob said. â€Å"Yeah.† The smugness faded. â€Å"It probably means there's something wrong with my brain,† I admitted. â€Å"I already knew there was something wrong with your brain,† Jacob muttered. â€Å"Thanks.† The sun broke through the clouds suddenly, a surprise I hadn't been expecting, and I had to narrow my eyes against the glare off the water. Everything changed color – the waves turned from gray to blue, the trees from dull olive to brilliant jade, and the rainbow-hued pebbles glittered like jewels. We squinted for a moment, letting our eyes adjust. There were no sounds besides the hollow roar of the waves that echoed from every side of the sheltered harbor, the soft grinding of the stones against each other under the water's movement, and the cry of gulls high overhead. It was very peaceful. Jacob settled closer to me, so that he was leaning against my arm. He was so warm. After a minute of this, I shrugged out of my rain jacket. He made a little sound of contentment in the back of his throat, and rested his cheek on the top of my head. I could feel the sun heat my skin – thought it was not quite as warm as Jacob – and I wondered idly how long it would take me to burn. Absentmindedly, I twisted my right hand to the side, and watched the sunlight glitter subtly off the scar James had left there. â€Å"What are you thinking about?† he murmured. â€Å"The sun.† â€Å"Mmm. It's nice.† â€Å"What are you thinking about?† I asked. He chuckled to himself. â€Å"I was remembering that moronic movie you took me to. And Mike Newton puking all over everything.† I laughed, too, surprised by how time had changed the memory. It used to be one of stress, of confusion. So much had changed that night. . . . And now I could laugh. It was the last night Jacob and I had had before he'd learned the truth about his heritage. The last human memory. An oddly pleasant memory now. â€Å"I miss that,† Jacob said. â€Å"The way it used to be so easy . . . uncomplicated. I'm glad I've got a good memory.† He sighed. He felt the sudden tension in my body as his words triggered a memory of my own. â€Å"What is it?† he asked. â€Å"About that good memory of yours . . .† I pulled away from him so that I could read his face. At the moment, it was confused. â€Å"Do you mind telling me what you were doing Monday morning? You were thinking something that bothered Edward.† Bothered wasn't quite the word for it, but I wanted an answer, so I thought it was best not to start out too severely. Jacob's face brightened with understanding, and he laughed. â€Å"I was just thinking about you. Didn't like that much, did he?† â€Å"Me? What about me?† Jacob laughed, with a harder edge this time. â€Å"I was remembering the way you looked that night Sam found you – I've seen it in his head, and it's like I was there; that memory has always haunted Sam, you know. And then I remembered how you looked the first time you came to my place. I bet you don't even realize what a mess you were then, Bella. It was weeks before you started to look human again. And I remembered how you always used to have your arms wrapped around yourself, trying to hold yourself together. . . .† Jacob winced, and then shook his head. â€Å"It's hard for me to remember how sad you were, and it wasn't my fault. So I figured it would be harder for him. And I thought he ought to get a look at what he'd done.† I smacked his shoulder. It hurt my hand. â€Å"Jacob Black, don't you ever do that again! Promise me you won't.† â€Å"No way. I haven't had that much fun in months.† â€Å"So help me, Jake -â€Å" â€Å"Oh, get a grip, Bella. When am I ever going to see him again? Don't worry about it.† I got to my feet, and he caught my hand as I started to walk away. I tried to tug free. â€Å"I'm leaving, Jacob.† â€Å"No, don't go yet,† he protested, his hand tightening around mine. â€Å"I'm sorry. And . . . okay, I won't do it again. Promise.† I sighed. â€Å"Thanks, Jake.† â€Å"Come on, we'll go back to my house,† he said eagerly. â€Å"Actually, I think I really do need to go. Angela Weber is expecting me, and I know Alice is worried. I don't want to upset her too much.† â€Å"But you just got here!† â€Å"It feels that way,† I agreed. I glared up at the sun, somehow already directly overhead. How had the time passed so quickly? His eyebrows pulled down over his eyes. â€Å"I don't know when I'll see you again,† he said in a hurt voice. â€Å"I'll come back the next time he's away,† I promised impulsively. â€Å"Away?† Jacob rolled his eyes. â€Å"That's a nice way to describe what he's doing. Disgusting parasites.† â€Å"If you can't be nice, I won't come back at all!† I threatened, trying to pull my hand free. He refused to let go. â€Å"Aw, don't be mad,† he said, grinning. â€Å"Knee-jerk reaction.† â€Å"If I'm going to try to come back again, you're going to have to get something straight, okay?† He waited. â€Å"See,† I explained. â€Å"I don't care who's a vampire and who's a werewolf. That's irrelevant. You are Jacob, and he is Edward, and I am Bella. And nothing else matters.† His eyes narrowed slightly. â€Å"But I am a werewolf,† he said unwillingly. â€Å"And he is a vampire,† he added with obvious revulsion. â€Å"And I'm a Virgo!† I shouted, exasperated. He raised his eyebrows, measuring my expression with curious eyes. Finally, he shrugged. â€Å"If you can really see it that way . . .† â€Å"I can. I do.† â€Å"Okay. Just Bella and Jacob. None of those freaky Virgos here.† He smiled at me, the warm, familiar smile that I had missed so much. I felt the answering smile spread across my face. â€Å"I've really missed you, Jake,† I admitted impulsively. â€Å"Me, too,† his smile widened. His eyes were happy and clear, free for once of the angry bitterness. â€Å"More than you know. Will you come back soon?† â€Å"As soon as I can,† I promised.

Marketing Management and Philosophies Essay

Marketing Management is a business discipline which is focused on the practical application of marketing techniques and the management of a firm’s marketing resources and activities. Rapidly emerging forces of globalization have compelled firms to market beyond the borders of their home country making International marketing highly significant and an integral part of a firm’s marketing strategy. Marketing managers are often responsible for influencing the level, timing, and composition of customer demand accepted definition of the term Various Management Philosophies Production Concept: The production concept holds that customers will favor products that are available and highly affordable and that management should therefore focus on improving production and distribution efficiency. Product Concept: The production concept holds that customers will favor products that are available and highly affordable and that management should therefore focus on improving production and distribution efficiency. Selling Concept: Many organizations follow the selling concept. The selling concept is the idea that consumers will not buy enough of the organization’s products unless the organization undertakes a large-scale selling and promotion effort. Marketing Concept: The marketing concept holds that achieving organizational goals depends on determining the needs and wants of target markets and delivering the desired satisfactions more effectively and efficiently than competitors do. Societal Marketing Concept: The societal marketing concept holds that the organization should determine the needs, wants, and interests of target markets. It should then deliver the desired satisfactions more effectively and efficiently than competitors in a way that maintains or improves the consumer’s and the society’s well-being. Contrast between Marketing Concept and Selling Concept The Selling Concept and the Marketing Concept are two different concepts of Marketing that related to the evolution of marketing in the world. The Selling Concept holds that in order for the firm to be profitable, it must focus on sales of the product regardless of the orientation of the product itself. This concept became popular after World War 2 demands of the consumer. Explains The Societal Marketing Concept 1) The societal marketing concept is the newest of the marketing philosophies. 2) It questions whether the pure marketing concept is adequate given the wide variety of societal problems and ills. 3) According to the societal marketing concept, the pure marketing concept overlooks possible conflicts between short-run consumer wants and long-run consumer welfare. 4) The societal concept calls upon marketers to balance three considerations in setting their marketing policies: a) Company profits. b) Customer wants. c) Society’s interests.

Realism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Realism - Essay Example Therefore, even if not a constant state of war, international relations would appear a state of â€Å"relentless security competition, with the possibility of war always in the background† (Mearsheimer, â€Å"The False Promiseâ€Å", 9). This paper examines the role of institutions in the system of international relations, most notably their capacity, or alternatively, incapacity to prevent war and foster stability, as perceived by the realist tradition; as well as the degree to which institutions actually contribute to cooperation in a realist world. 2. Realism and International Institutions There are between four and five major assumptions about the international system identified with realism, which actually denote the main lines of realist tradition and form the basis for the development of any hypothesis or theory (Viotti and Kauppi 55; Mearsheimer, â€Å"The False Promiseâ€Å", 10). ... at stipulate the ways in which states should cooperate and compete with each other†, prescribing acceptable forms of state’s behavior, as well as the unacceptable ones; while other definitions encompass virtually all of international relations, i.e. from tariff bindings to war (â€Å"The False Promiseâ€Å", 8). According to Young, however, the latter is too broad a definition for a meaningful concept (cited in Mearsheimer 8). Realists, in turn, recognize that states operate – at least sometimes – through institutions (Mearsheimer, â€Å"The False Promiseâ€Å", 13). Insofar as in non-hierarchic political orders each political actor, i.e. state, must count on its own resources to realize its interests, and order is not imposed by a higher authority, but rather arises from the interactions between formally equal political partners, institutions – as understood by Mearsheimer (see above) – inevitably reflect states’ calculations of se lf-interest (Waltz 107; Donnelly 17; Mearsheimer, â€Å"The False Promiseâ€Å", 13). Thus, according to realism, the most powerful states in the international system â€Å"create and shape institutions so that they can maintain their share of world power, or even increase it†; hence institutions largely mirror the distribution of power within the system (Mearsheimer, â€Å"The False Promiseâ€Å", 13). Or in other words, institutions are regarded as â€Å"arenas for acting out power relationships† (Mearsheimer, â€Å"The False Promiseâ€Å", 13). Assuming that states are the principal actors in the international system, institutions – as a set of rules defining states’ behavior – are negotiated by states and inevitably entail the mutual acceptance of higher norms, â€Å"defined in terms of rights and obligations† (Mearsheimer, â€Å"The False Promiseâ€Å",

God of Christianity vs. Allah of Islam. Although they are many Essay

God of Christianity vs. Allah of Islam. Although they are many similarities between the two, their vast differences support that Christians and Muslims worship - Essay Example Allah is the Arabic world and a given name to God as Yahweh, the holy trinity given to God in Christianity. Islam considers Jesus the true prophet of God whose message has later been corrupted. Whereas in Christianity Jesus is believed to be the Son of God, and savior of the world who has been crucified at the altar but Muslims believe that he has been lifted unharmed by Allah and will be resurrected before the Day of Judgment. Without understanding the history of 'tauheed' i. e. absolute monotheism in Islam in contrast with Trinitarians concept of God the issue of worshiping different Gods in both the religions cannot be understood. When Mohammad (the prophet of Islam) announced his prophet hood in the year 612 AD in Kaabaa (the Muslim's sacred house of Allah believed to be built by Abraham) was decorated with 360 idols placed by pagans of quresh tribes of Arabia. Pagans used to worship those idols for fulfillment of their worldly desires. The most famous idols were named as laat, mannat and huzza (shimmel 1990). The prophet placed the truthfulness of his message in the once and for all rejection of the worship of all the idols in one stroke. And he announced, " Say there is no God but Allah, so that thou be successful." Al Koran. From 1612 AD to 1622 AD he faced cutthroat opposition from the pagans of Mecca till he self exiled to medina, another holy city of Islam. Then onwards he placed all the emphasis on the absolute monotheism of God i.e. Allah. He integrated faith in tauheed and the matter of his prophet hood together in one pronouncement Kalama (an Arabic verse) "there is no God but Allah and Mohammad is the prophet of Allah." So early Islam remained in constant war with pagans of Arabia during the life of Mohammad and a long after him. The pagans had coined their own gods to worship and they were ready to sacrifice every thing for the sake of their faith. Islam developed as an anti-thesis of polytheism of Arabia. Koran was mainly believed to preach tauheed, (the absolute monotheism) during the stay of prophet Mohammad in Mecca from 572 AD to 612 AD. Perhaps there was no other slogan stronger than this one (tauheed) that could break and reorganize the Arab society under single leadership that later integrated economy, politics, state and religion together. The prophet after having achieved the basic success ensured that the edifice of his religion strongly stands on the basis of tauheed. He gave in Koran various strong commandments of Allah regarding tauheed. Historically Islam and Christianity coexisted side by side. Islam accepted Christianity as divine religion and ordained Muslims to believe in the entire previous prophet and not to discriminate between them. Koran gave a whole chapter on the innocence and virginity of Mary and confirmed the virgin birth of Jesus Christ. Any one who did not believe in the prophet hood of Mary and Jesus was not accepted as a Muslim. However Koran gave the concept of lifting alive of Jesus to heavens by God and his resurrection before the Day of Judgment. There is hardly any difference between the two religions as far as divinity, concept of dooms day, heaven and hell; angle and devil etc are

Business report of Tesco Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business report of Tesco - Coursework Example Murcott (2009, pg 244)claims that the magnitude of the European typical market holds numerous prospects for companies wishing to upsurge their production, by making operational usage of markets of scale. The European Union’s food industry should also look to arouse innovation and improve new products so as to thrive. All this should be carried out in a way that is courteous for the environment and which warranties safe access to farming raw materials. Boyle (2007, pg 5) TESCO is one of the companies in the European market. It is a British firm which is headquartered in England, United Kingdom, where it operates around 1,878 outlets, and also operates stores in Asia and Europe. Tesco.com is an entirely owned subordinate offering a broad online service, inclusive of tesco.net and tescodirect.com. The firm offers a wide variety of both offline and online personal financial services. Earle, (1997, pg 168) argues that, there exist other major enterprises in the food industry located in Europe. These companies include: Kerry Group; Bakkavor; Unilever; Nestle; Barilla Group; Danone; Yoplait; Paulig; Parmalat; Ferrero SpA; and Swisslion group. To begin with, Kerry Group is a public food company that has its headquarters in Ireland. It operates in 24 republics across five continents. It has a workforce of 36000 people in its technical, sales and manufacturing centres all over the world. Additionally, it supplies 15000 and above flavour products, food ingredients and food to consumers in more than 140 nations globally. Secondly, we have the Bakkavor; its headquarters are in London, England. However, it is dominant in the United Kingdom than other places. It is specialising in freshly prepared foodstuffs and has thirty-two industrial facilities in the United Kingdom, over twenty sites in five other nations. It has a workforce of 18,000 with a turnover of 1.6 billion po unds. Rayner et al. (2008, pg 150) says that, another

This paper is about African Art. Topic is free to choose anything Research

This is about African Art. Topic is free to choose anything about African Art but should focus on one form or practice of - Research Paper Example Art plays play vital roles in the human lives as it communicates, entertains, a source of income, express the mood in the society, differentiate as far as culture and practices are concerned. Art could also be used to add aesthetic values to our infrastructure, automobiles and clothing among others. Art can attract foreigners from different corners of the world to a specific destination, for instance, a majority of Europeans and other parts of the developed nations travel to Africa just to have a real feel of the African art. They enjoy the African dances, songs, sculptures and paintings among other elements of Art. This discourse is about the unique architecture of the Egyptian’s pyramids as a form of visual art. The Egyptian’s pyramids are some of the most unique and valuable art in Africa. It is divided into various categories depending on the origin (Smyth 2013). The beauty of the pyramids is not only attributed to the structures but other features included in them. For instance, Egyptian’s pyramids have relief sculptures as well as produced wall paintings among other refreshing features. Some of the sculptures in the pyramids include the famous obelisks and the sphinx statues among others (Arnold, 2010). Talking of the Egyptian’s pyramids without the mention of the ancient Egypt history is regarded as incomplete. The ancient Egypt was characterized by desert and dry grassland climates. This could explain why the native Egyptians had to employ some desert features like the sand dunes to construct their structures. They could place huge obstacles in the open fields to trap dust and this marked the foundation or the beginning of their unique constructions. Mesopotamia was one of the ancient towns and it developed due to its two rivers namely Tigris and Euphrates. It’s believed that the two rivers contributed huge to the civilization in the region, as it supported trade and transport from foreigners from neighbouring cities l ike China and India. The two rivers also provided for the construction of the Egyptian’s ancient structures. The two rivers also provided water for agriculture among other domestic and commercial uses. The ancient Egypt was governed by the elite class called the monarch. It comprised by of the top ranked priests among other officials. The middle class was left to the merchants, tradesmen and clergy among others. The final low class was the slaves who were forced by their masters to toil in the agricultural fields and construction labourers. They were Israelites who were once welcomed in the country, but the changes in the monarchy changed their general hospitality in the country. Egyptian’s pyramids with the sculpture of god of the sun Sun baked bricks were the main construction material in the ancient Egypt. The bricks were moulded from the rich Nile River clay then left to dry in the natural sun. However, structure for the top monarch leaders were constructed from th e stones. The country is rich in limestone except the agricultural rich Mesopotamia. The unique exterior walls are carefully to either slope gently or stand vertical. The ancient architecture arrived at the flat roofs due the fact that the country was basically a desert; hence no major rain was expected. The roofs are structurally supported by well constructed beams and columns, both made from clay. The ancient buildings have the native

Current event report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Current event report - Research Paper Example Making illicit promises to two men, she arranged for the murder weapons and provided the two hired men the chance to enter the house to carry out the deed. The trio were caught and individually sentenced. Teresa Lewis received the death penalty for masterminding the murder, with both her accomplices receiving life imprisonment, one later committing suicide. I chose this particular article for a few reasons. Firstly, I chose to write about it since capital punishment has divided the society in two. One half is in favor of it and the other opposes it. Their reasons vary from the supporters talking of retribution and closure and justice being done. The opposing side talks about the sanctity of human life and that one deed cannot cancel out another. They also support their argument by talking about the margin of error in sentencing someone: what it someone was falsely accused due to incomplete evidence; or by misfortune. In case of discovery post-execution, the sentence cannot be reverse d, they argue. The second reason for picking this article was the fact that Teresa Lewis not only did not commit the act herself but was also borderline mentally retarded with an IQ of 71. So it can be argued that she was not mentally equipped to fully grasp the gravity of her undertakings.

Principals of Finance for the Public Sector Essay

Principals of Finance for the Public Sector - Essay Example This paper will review some of the current issues facing the health care sector. Also, it will look at some of the policies being implemented with their impact on public finance. Health care cover is needed the world over to ensure that there is access to quality health care. Health care cover requires that all members of a region get access to medical facilities. This implies that there is the provision of medical services to people provided they come from that region. In many developed countries, today, it is possible to find that every citizen receives health care benefits without too much money required. The United States is among the developed countries that does not have this for its citizens (Gunnar, 2007, p. 45). This has often been a subject of debate for the nation, and its delegates. There are principles that govern the running of finance when it comes to the health care reform. One of these principles is medical coverage for all the citizens in a country to ensure the improved state of health of all people. This means that, for all government servants, it is vital to have medical cover to ensure that they are taken care of when they fall sick, or are in need of medical care (Gunnar, 2007, p. 56). It helps individuals whenever a situation arises that may need urgent medical attention. Another principle is the provision of medical health care to all citizens without the presence of any financial barriers. This is for citizens within the borders of a country. This principle ensures that citizens in a country enjoy affordable medical care for their medical problems. To make sure that they get this without bias or discrimination, there have been forums that address the plight of minority groups in countries. For example, in the United States, there are forums that seek to speak on the dilemma of the

Nurturing the Childrens Spirituality in the Learning Process Essay

Nurturing the Childrens Spirituality in the Learning Process - Essay Example In such a way they are able to maintain compassionate and balance learning process to make them pro-active in school activities. Through this, they are expected to enjoy social cohesion and harmony within and outside of the school. De Souza (2004) asserted that Values Education and Clarification have been considered by the state as significant to be integrated into the curriculum to teach learners moral values as an inspirational tool in defining their good relationship with the rest of humanity and creation. Since the 1960s, moral values are a significant parcel in the formation of the learners’ affective domains to integrate their emotional, attitudinal, values and beliefs’ constructions (De Souza, 2004). Experts believed that values and moral are derivatives of peoples’ emotive sense and, thus, are not viewed as relevant in their cognitive being (De Souza, 2004). Hence, it’s this dichotomy of human existence that made it confusing and difficult to arrive at a common understanding of values of education (De Souza, 2004). It’s in this context that experts dealt the dualism of educational philosophy: language and practice (De Souza, 2004). They adopted an educational pattern for cognitive development and for values education to develop a standard behavior and intelligence of learners and to nurture that sense of commitment among individuals based on virtue and values (De Souza, 2004; Lambert, 2003, Noddings, 2010). Some psychologists observed that this has been considered as an effective tool since historical experiences proved that the integration of values in improving learners’ intellectual pursuits made people resilient in times of recession, conflicts, and social upheavals and during wars (Cacioppe & Edwards, 2005; Glendinning, 2005; Gross, 2004).

Legal Implicaiotn of human resource management Essay Example for Free

Legal Implicaiotn of human resource management Essay A union is an organization of workers, acting collectively, seeking to promote and protect its mutual interests through collective bargaining. However, before we can examine the activities surrounding the collective bargaining process, it is important to understand the laws that govern the labor-management process, what unions are and how employees unionize. Although the current percentage of the workforce that is unionized has declined steadily, there are still many employees who feel that the workforce is primed for a positive response by employees to a new effort in organizing. The main reasons for union organizing are: higher wages and benefits, greater job security, influence over work rules, compulsory membership and being upset with management. Among various reasons why employees join a union, we see one common factor: management, specially the first-line supervisor. If employees are upset with the way their supervisor handles problems, upset over how a coworker has been disciplines, and so on, they are likely to seek help from a union. In fact, it is reasonable to believe that when employees vote to unionize, it’s often a vote against their immediate supervisor rather than a vote in support of particular union. CASE: In the provided case, the employees are upset with company since employer rolled out its plan to organize employees into teams, change job titles, work assignments and the pay structure. Beside that employees were told â€Å"this is how it will be. † I am working as the top HR Manager and have to deal with this situation. First of all I would learn some basic legal implications of union organizing. The legal framework for labor-management relationships has played a crucial role in its development. There are two important laws that have shaped much of the labor relations process. Wagner Act: Also knows as the National Labor Relations Act of 1935, this act gave employees that right to form and join unions and to engage in collective bargaining. The Wagner Act is cited a shifting the pendulum of power to favor unions for the first time in U. S labor history. This was achieved, in part, through the establishment of National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The Wager Act provided the legal recognition of unions as legitimate interest groups in American society, but many employers opposed its purposes. Some employers, too, failed to live up to the requirements of its provisions. Thus, the belief that the balance of power had swung too far to labor’s side, and the public outcry stemming from post-World War II strikes, led to passage of the Taft-Hartley Act (Labor- Management Relations Act) in 1947. The Taft-Hartley Act: Amended the Wagner Act by addressing employers’ concerns in terms of specifying unfair union labor practices. Realizing that unions and employers might not reach agreement and that work stoppages might occur, Taft-Hartley also created the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) as an independent agency separate from the Department of Labor. FMCS is a government agency that assists Labor and management in settling disputes. The Wagner and Taft-Hartley Acts were the most important laws influencing labor-management relationships in the United States, but there are other laws that influence the labor organizing. Specifically, these are the Railway Labor Act; the Land rum Griffin Act; Executive Orders 10988 and 11491; the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act of 1970; and the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 (discussed in previous module) is as relevant to labor organizations as it is to management. Title VII of the act is focused on this subject. In the provided case, it seems like there is already union getting into shape. The labor laws do permit us as HR Manager to defend ourselves against the union campaign, but we must do it properly. I would follow the following guidelines of what to do and what not to do during the organizing drive. * If your employees ask for your opinion on unionization (as my supervisor is asking me this question), should respond in a natural manner. For example, â€Å"I really have no position on the issue. Do what you think is best. * You can prohibit union-organizing activates in your workplace during work hours only if they interfere with work operation. This may apply to the organization’s e-mail, too. * You can prohibit outside union organizers from distributing union information in the workplace. * Employees have the right to distribute union information to other employees during breaks and lunch periods. * Don’t question employees publicly or privately about union-organizing activities- for example, â€Å"Are you planning to go to that union rally this weekend? but if an employee freely tells you about the activities, you may listen. * Don’t spy on employees’ union activities, for example, by standing in the cafeteria to see who is distributing pro-union literature. * Don’t make any threats or promises related to the possibility of unionization. For example, â€Å"If this union effort succeeds, upper management is seriously thinking about closing down this plant, but if it’s defeated, they may push through an immediate wage increase. * Don’t discriminate against any employee who is involved in the unionization effort. Be on eh lookout for efforts by the union to coerce employees to join its ranks. This activity by unions is an unfair labor practice. If you see this occurring, report to your boss or to HR. Company might slow want to consider filing a complaint against the union with NLRB. Keeping all the above points checked, I will also keep in mind that union organizing drives may or may not be successful, but when they do achieve their goal to become the exclusive bargaining age, the next step is to negotiate the contract or demands. Now, I’ll get myself ready along with my first line supervisors, for the next expected step: collective bargaining. This typically refers to the negotiation, administration, and interpretation of a written agreement between two parties that covers a specific period of time. This agreement, or contract, lays out in specific terms the conditions of employment that is, what is expected of employees and any limits to management’s authority. Although collective bargaining is mostly used in public sectors, however it is also common in private sector. My employees are upset because of three months old change; based on my supervisor’s comments I assume that union has been certified; I might come up with a new set of interpretation of this change between my management and employees. I will make sure that my management and the union must negotiate in good faith over these issues. I would follow the following collective bargaining process outline in order to resolve these issues: Preparing to Negotiate: Once a union has been certified as the bargaining unit, both union and management begin the ongoing activity of preparing for negotiations. We can consider the preparation for negotiation as composed of three activities: fact gathering, goal setting, and strategy development. Information is acquired from both internal and external sources. With all the collection of this background information in hand, and tentative goals established both union and management must put together the most difficult part of the bargaining preparation activities, a strategy for negotiations. This includes assessing the other side’s power and specific tactics. Negotiating at the Bargaining Table: Negotiation customarily begins with the union delivering to management a list of â€Å"demands. † By presenting many demands, the union creates significant room for trading in later stages of the negotiation; it also disguises the union’s real position, leaving management to determine which demands are adamantly sought, which are moderately sought, and which the union is prepared to quickly abandon. Real negotiations typically go on behind closed doors, each party tries to assess the relative priorities of the other’s demands, and each begins to combine proposals into viable packages. Next comes the attempt to make management’s highest offer approximate the lowest demands that the union is willing to accept. Contract Administration: Once a contract is agreed upon and ratified, it must be administered. Contract administration involves four stages: (1) dissemination the agreements to all union members and mangers; (2) implementing the contract: (3) interpreting the contract and grievance resolution: and (4) monitoring activities during the contract period. Providing information to all concerned requires both parties to ensure that changes in contract language are spelled out. The stage of contract administration is ensuring that the agreement is implemented. All communicated changes now take effect, and both sides are expected to comply with the contract terms. The most important element of contract administration relates to spelling out a procedure for handling contractual disputes. These contracts have provisions for resolving specific, formally initiated grievances by employees concerning dissatisfaction with job-related issues. As an HR Manager for a company with 1500 employees, who are quite upset with our management and are unionizing, I have tried to come up with a plan to resolve this issue. First of all, I gathered the legal data in this respect, I proposed some guidelines to avoid unionizing and last, I have discussed the plan in detail to resolve the issue in provided case. I would like to comment that although historically, the relationship between labor and management was built on conflict and the nterests of labor and management were seen as basically at odds-each treating the other as the opposition. But times have somewhat changes. Management has become increasingly aware that successful efforts to increase productivity, improve quality, and lower costs require employee involvement and commitment. Similarly, some labor unions have recognized that they can help their members more by cooperating with management rather than fighting them which is quite positive for both management and employees.

The Role Of Marketing In A Consumer Society Marketing Essay

The Role Of Marketing In A Consumer Society Marketing Essay This report will use Apple Inc as a case study to underline the importance of what is the role of marketing in a consumer society? Also there will be critique of different theorist such as Jean Bauldriard, Raymond William and Stuart Hall to for the marketing concepts. The modern definitions and history of Marketing; During 18th and 19 century Marketers realized that consumers are buying products for the sake of their desires and satisfaction, where as before only selling a product was important and not the need and satisfaction of the customer. When companies realized the needs and want of the customers then they started to change rapidly and started to create an image in customers mind by using advertising/promotion. Technological and social changes are included in this change. Nowadays marketing defined as involving product development, distribution, pricing and communication. Also in developed firms, continuous attention to the development of new products with product modifications and services to meet the changing needs of customers. Peter Drucker states that The aim of marketing is to make selling superfluous as most companies doing marketing to distribute information to seek attention and persuade customers to purchase. As a result we can say that marketing is a process that aims to understand and satisfy the needs of a customer to make sales and maximise revenue. Marketing is not advertising, it is one of the component within marketing, which is used to inform consumers about product or services provided. This report will use marketing techniques and strategies apply it to Apple inc. to explore the concept of marketing and its role in consumer society. Raymond Williams highlighted about advertisement in the Magic System theory, that advertising doesnt means of only selling goods/products. However, advertising in its modern forms operate to maintain the consumption ideal from criticism, that consumption does not address social needs. Consumer society is when people buy new goods and services, it can also be said as consumer behaviour in terms of demand is constantly changing especially for the goods that they do not need, and which leaves high value on owning many things. We are all participants in an existing phenomenon that has been variously called a consumerist culture and a consumer society. Consumerism is a social and economic method that is based on the systematic creation and encouragement of desire to purchase goods and services in increasingly amount. To say that some people have consumerist attitudes or values means that they always want to consume more. The theory states that an increasing consumption of goods is economically beneficial. In long-term historical and social factors influencing consumption. Jean Baudrillard stated the consumption theory in his (The Consumer Society) book, that consumption has become the most important basis of the social order. He explores how consumer products, rather t han modern decisions such as class, made up a system of signs that differentiated the population and those meanings related with products being delivered to customers via. Apple Inc.http://www.hotstocked.com/articles-img/small/apple-inc.jpg Apple Inc is an American multinational company established on April 1st 1976, which designs and produces consumer electronics such as iPones, iPods, iPads and iMacbook and software products and its best known for its computer hardware products including Macintosh personal computer line, Mac OS X, extremely loyal user-base, iTunes media application and the iPod personal music player. The companies head office is based in Cupertino, California. CEO and co-founder is Steve Jobs. Apples popularity increased more in late 1970s with its interesting, forceful and inviting advertisements to inspire individuals. In 1990s Apples advertisements were at the top with the Think Different campaign, it owned its popularity by using famous people in their adverts. Apple has achieved its high targets in its development and growth in 2007 when they first created iPhone, which has changed the fortune of the company. The iPod, iTunes, iPhone and new great Mac computers became the most popular and profitable devices ever for Apple. Apples Marketing Strategies and Techniques Apple has gained successful image in past couple of years with their creative, fresh and progressive way of making business, they create great style and designs, great strategy, innovative marketing, smooth and tempting communications. Apples seductive success is owned by their iPhone, iTunes and iPod products. All these products have presented a combination of an immense hardware, perfect style, and great software, expeditious and speedy performance with a good e-business service. (2007, 2010 Venrtygo team)steve jobs apple computers Apple has exceeded $160 billion in 2008, $210 billion in 2010 and in January 2011 they exceeded $302.47 billion in market capitalization, as Apple Inc. shares has increased by more than seven points. They made huge differences in the market shares and this implies that consumers are more aware of the products, and the right marketing strategy used has reached to right consumers. Apples has made extraordinary campaigns in communication with consumers and extremely modified marketing strategy with particular target section of the market. They appeal to customers needs and wants directly with their great communication, the distribution network and with their quality and price ratios. Apples has several key strategies in marketing which made them successful and come to top of their game in a way like no other. Apple always managed to extend their experience and created a tribe. Apple also communicates in the language of their audience; Apple tries to give information in the way that their customers want to be informed. Their prices are justified, apple customers gladly pay premium for the reason of their good selling quality devices are nowhere else. They ignore critics, any time Apple produce a new device especially for the iPad people say that it will fail. Every time Apple decided make new changes and introduce a new device they prevailed. Steve Jobs did not listen to critiques instead focus on building what they want to build. Albert Einstein said that Great ideas often receive violent opposition from mediocre minds. Apple turns the ordinary into something beautiful. PC makers constitute a standard hardware for standard applications. Apple is the leading best standard operating system and computer system against to their competitors. Simultaneously they are exploring the design standards as well. Result of this is the multi-wanted iMac, Mac book Air and iPhone 4 Former of Apples marketing executive and consumer marketing expert Steve M. Chazin has revealed the Secrets of the World Best Marketing Machine from Apple.http://www.i-seb.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/segmentation.jpg One Dont Sell Products (People buy what other People have) according to Steve M. Chazins point here is that products dont sell people do. For example when looking to the advertisement of the popular product iPod, there is lots of happy, energetic people dancing in shape against a colourful, vibrant and ever-changing background and it is the newest, trendiest features coming on the market, which gives customers the desire to buy as we live in a society that wants things new and improved and different from the regular products. Therefore Apple is showing its customers the difference they have from their competitors, it isnt selling you a simple MP3, its also inviting you to the difference lifestyle of apple. They indicate that if you use MP3 youll hear good music, but if you use apple iPod then you will feel good due its value and ability to play it in many different places. As Raymond Williams talks in The Magic System that in our society advertisements are created to make customers t o believe that the product they buy will make them feel in a different way. Apple makes people believe by the advert that they will feel the same way of those happy dancing, energetic people. Also Apple has an distinctive white headphones (uniquely to Apple), which are produced as pure apple marketing trick, it is designed to make visible part of their product a status symbol, wear white headphones and you are the member of the club. For example the advertisement of iPod shows us the people shadows dancing hold their iPods and showing distinctive white headphone. Accordingly Baudrillard states that, consumption is the most important basis of the social order and sociologically a particular individual belongs to a specific group which consumes a specific product, and the individual consumes such a product because he or she belongs to such a group This theory is related to the marketing that Apple gives to its customers, when customers buys Apple Product because they know that they belong to that society and it add-ups value to them. According to Raymond Williams when people buys more than just the product, as they buy self-respect, beauty, and power in their society throug h this consumption. Raymond also believed that people who have high consumption of products are living high standard life. .http://cdn1.iofferphoto.com/img/item/193/716/718/oZ4Y.jpg Two Never be the First to Market, (Make Something Good Greater) the marketing executive of apple applies that Apple is always leader creating new categories, surely they have never invented anything new such as PCs and MP3s and phones, but iPhone is very successful with functionality of on existing designs such as The Mac, iPod, iTunes and iPhone. Apple makes complex things easy and elegant as it is easy now to get music in to your pocket. Apple dont define you categorize rather they try to occupy shelf space that already exist in prospects mind, apple focuses on the one thing they do better and then make that mater to us. Baudrillard also declares that he can go one better and introduces a third form of exchange which is symbolic exchange in the form of the sign. Baudrillard argues that in addition to the satisfaction of human needs, commodities can also provide social status something of increasing value in modern society. This value is expressed in the form of the sign. Three Empower Early Adopters, this aspect identifies that Early adopters are those who are genuinely Apple Lovers and those who taking a risk to help Apple to succeed. Early adaptors are younger in age and have money to spend. Steve M. Chazin says that they are the first to take Apple product to everywhere. iPhone users feel in the same way the PowerBook users felt in 1993. Early adopters are the first to voice Apples marketing force through word of mouth as these adopters have set apart from the crowd and their gadget is a symbol of their states which they are proud to show off. http://www.dealgiant.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/MacBook_Pro_MB990B-A_offers.jpg Apples glowing apple logo is always upside down to you and it was fixed to be right side up for others to see when you open you open your Macbook you are showing others the brand and selling the brand to others. What this makes is that enables customer to make their choices by seeing it in others. Baudrillard stated that either prior production (polls, market studies) or subsequent to it (advertising, marketing, conditioning), the general idea to shift the locus of decision in the purchase of good from customers where it is beyond control to the firm where it subject to control (p.38). Apples intention is to make customer come to them without any encouragement via the firm. Apples secure customer loyalty by considering its product strong design as it is plain and simple. Many consumers may possibly not ready to buy an Apple computer due to its price, but they are willing to give gadgets to try such as smart iPods or iPhone, as these products are lower price entry to Apple Inc it gives the customer opportunity to be introduces to the brand and its quality products. Customers are more likely to buy apple computer in future if they are happy with these gadgets. According to Baudrillard he described the way of influencing customers desires the infernal round of consumption is based on celebration of needs that supposed to be psychological. These are distinguishes from physiological needs since they are supposedly established through discretionary income and the freedom of choice and consequently manipulate at will (Baudrillard p.39). Apple can influence easily their existing customers who are using iPhone, iPad and iPod to buy their Mac book computers.http://www.itechnews.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/griffin-powerdock-2-iphone-ipod.jpg Encoding / Decoding in Apple Inc. Stuart Hall developed a theoretical model to clarify the influence of television broadcasts such as advertisements called the encoding and decoding model. Encoder is trying to transfer information in a certain meaning based way to decoder, while decoder is adapting this original meaning into a new version according to their own way of perceiving. Production, here, constructs the message (Hall, 1980). According to iPod advertisements via Halls concepts, arguing that his production-reception model is a useful approach to understanding modern mass media messages, especially advertising. This model assumed that the media tools had an interest in production, circulation, distribution, consumption and reproduction rather than just conveying a message. In the encoding/decoding model of media discourses developed by Stuart Hall, the meaning of the text is located between its producer and the reader (Hall, 1980). Therefore apple produces plain and not confusing adverts towards customers as if the decoder perceiving differently to the encoder, the decoder will create their own version of the message with a totally different intention. When decoder functions under this position hall states that He/she is operating with what we must call an oppositional code (Hall, 1980). Encoding decoding is not a important concept for Apple Inc as their customers all ready knows what to perceive they wont be confused. Apple Branding Marketing executives in a company give values to add services to a product and an attempt to enhance their products like Apple with values and links that are recognised and valuable to their customers which is then a brand.   Identification or distinction from other competitors is the reason for branding which gives them their own identity. Apple is one of the examples which are now leading as a brand in IT arena.   Apple (brand name) which is auspicious had a consumers loyalty by the strength of their services and values which then lead the customers to repeat a purchase from the same company again. Advertisements do have an enormous attraction for a customer to hit on an individual mind for a company.   Apple as compared to other companies is a well recognised brand and it definitely preferable by customers.http://www.damonchernavsky.com/Pictures/Creative_Ads/Evolution_of_Brands/history-of-apple-computers.jpg Critical Analysis and conclusion Conclusion Referances Dougherty, M. (2010) The story of apple Inc. Last accessed on 12.03.2011 [online] http://www.brighthub.com/computing/mac-platform/articles/65346.aspx http://blog.kissmetrics.com/7-strategies-apple-marketing/ 6 Unfair Market Advantages You Should Steal from Apple http://www.vertygoteam.com/apple_marketing_strategy.php http://www.theglaringfacts.com/2010/11/encodingdecodingmodel Williams, Raymond (1962) Advertising, the Magic System. In Problems in Materialism and Culture. London: New Left Books. Baudrillard, J. (1998). The Consumer Society: Myths and Structures. Sage Publications Ltd. London, England. http://mashable.com/2011/01/03/apple-300-billion/

A Comparison Of Arthur Becomes King And David And Goliath Essay

A Comparison of Arthur Becomes King and David and Goliath   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Two of the most renowned leaders of all time, King Arthur and King David, have emerged from very humble beginnings. David and Goliath, written by Samuel, is a bible story about a young boy defeating a huge Philistine soldier by fighting in the name of God. Arthur Becomes King, written by T. H. White, is a story about a young squire becoming the rightful king of England by pulling the sword from the stone. Arthur Becomes King and David and Goliath, stories about an unlikely person turning out to be someone very special, have many similarities and differences.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   David and Goliath and Arthur Becomes King are alike in many ways. They both take place in a wild site torn by wa...

sanctification :: essays research papers

SANCTIFICATION Introduction -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  sanctification means to make holy, purify or consecrate; to set apart, to separate -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The process of being made holy resulting in a changed life-style for the believer. -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  examples from the Old Testament: o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Certain times are sanctified in that they are set apart especially to the Lord: the sabbath, the various festivals, the year of Jubilee. o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The land of Canaan, as well as Jerusalem, was holy to the Lord and was not to be polluted by sinful conduct. o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The tabernacle/Temple and all the objects related to it were holy. o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The priests and Levites who functioned in the sanctuary, beginning with Aaron, were sanctified to the Lord by the anointing of oil. Illustration -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A coal miner was walking home one day from working all day in the dirty coal mine. A young girl gave him a beautiful flower. He was happy and took the flower home. He put it in a vase on the table, and started to admire the flower. Then he realised that the vase was dirty. And so he cleaned the vase. As he sat admiring the flower, he saw that the table was dirty. So he cleaned the table. As he sat admiring the flower again, he saw that the floor was dirty. So he cleaned the floor too. Finally, he ended up cleaning the whole house. This is what  ¡Ã‚ ¥sanctification ¡Ã‚ ¦ means. After we have received Jesus into our life, He will begin to clean us up from within. Message -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sanctification is God ¡Ã‚ ¦s will for us  ¡V 1 Thes 4:3 -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sanctification involves the sanctification of body, soul and spirit  ¡V 1 Thes 5:23 -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sanctification involves both God and us o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jesus is our Sanctifier  ¡V Heb 2:11; God our Father is our Sanctifier too  ¡V Jude 1:1 o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Our part  ¡V purging ourselves  ¡V 2 Tim 2:21 „X  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Be a vessel unto honour and sanctification for the Master ¡Ã‚ ¦s use sanctification :: essays research papers SANCTIFICATION Introduction -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  sanctification means to make holy, purify or consecrate; to set apart, to separate -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The process of being made holy resulting in a changed life-style for the believer. -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  examples from the Old Testament: o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Certain times are sanctified in that they are set apart especially to the Lord: the sabbath, the various festivals, the year of Jubilee. o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The land of Canaan, as well as Jerusalem, was holy to the Lord and was not to be polluted by sinful conduct. o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The tabernacle/Temple and all the objects related to it were holy. o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The priests and Levites who functioned in the sanctuary, beginning with Aaron, were sanctified to the Lord by the anointing of oil. Illustration -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A coal miner was walking home one day from working all day in the dirty coal mine. A young girl gave him a beautiful flower. He was happy and took the flower home. He put it in a vase on the table, and started to admire the flower. Then he realised that the vase was dirty. And so he cleaned the vase. As he sat admiring the flower, he saw that the table was dirty. So he cleaned the table. As he sat admiring the flower again, he saw that the floor was dirty. So he cleaned the floor too. Finally, he ended up cleaning the whole house. This is what  ¡Ã‚ ¥sanctification ¡Ã‚ ¦ means. After we have received Jesus into our life, He will begin to clean us up from within. Message -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sanctification is God ¡Ã‚ ¦s will for us  ¡V 1 Thes 4:3 -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sanctification involves the sanctification of body, soul and spirit  ¡V 1 Thes 5:23 -  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sanctification involves both God and us o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jesus is our Sanctifier  ¡V Heb 2:11; God our Father is our Sanctifier too  ¡V Jude 1:1 o  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Our part  ¡V purging ourselves  ¡V 2 Tim 2:21 „X  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Be a vessel unto honour and sanctification for the Master ¡Ã‚ ¦s use

Critical Pedagogy Essay -- Teaching Education Philosophy

Critical Pedagogy The acclaimed lyricist Oscar Hammerstein once wrote, "You have to be carefully taught." Most will agree that properly educating children is essential for the good of a society. However, the best method of educating students is a much more debatable topic. What is the best way to educate a student? Is it through memorization? Discussion? Exploration? Experimentation? Through the ages many scholars, teachers, and other accredited individuals have offered their opinions on the science of teaching, or pedagogy. One such man is Henry Giroux, the author of Modernism, Postmodernism, and Feminism. In his introductory chapter to this novel, Giroux sets his principles for critical pedagogy. Among these principles is one belief that reads, "Critical pedagogy needs to create new forms of knowledge through its emphasis on breaking down disciplinary boundaries and creating new spaces where knowledge can be produced." What does this belief mean to me? In order to understand my interpretation of the principle as a whole, it is necessary to understand my interpretations of the various words and phrases that make up the rule. Take the first phrase, "†¦ to create new forms of knowledge†¦" I interpret "new forms of knowledge" as knowledge expressed in forms other than the traditional. For example, "old" forms of knowledge may be names, dates, numbers, and concrete facts that are memorized without being fully understood. On the other hand, "new" forms of knowledge may refer to abstract ideas, concepts, and theory, without definite answers. The next phrase of the principle speaks of, "†¦breaking down disciplinary boundaries†¦" I would define "disciplinary boundaries" as any boundaries or limits that prevent learning from taking pla... ...-hand. For example, no one should have to figure out on their own body that hair is flammable, or that a wet tongue will stick to a metal flagpole on a cold day. So, does critical pedagogy really need to create new forms of knowledge through its emphasis on breaking down disciplinary boundaries and creating new places where knowledge can be developed? Learning in this manner can be beneficial because the information is better understood, more fully realized, and more easily applied by the student. However, this manner of learning can also be counter-productive because the information is obtained much more slowly, and little effort is made to learn from previous research and mistakes. What is the most effective way to teach? While the best method of teaching will be under constant scrutiny, all will agree on one point. You have to be carefully taught.

Why I Want To Be An Actor

My name is Colby Bean, I was born and raised in maine. I live in a town called Hartland, its a small town so there is really nothing to do, when i was younger I used to play sports but the only one i really got into was basketball but the problem with only playing one sport is that you only play for a few months out of the year. So I decided that I had to find something to do for the seven to eight months that I wasn't playing basketball. So in decided to start watching movies, I started with some classics like The Wizard Of OZ and Back To The Future, among others.Then i moved on to some more modern movies like the first two Spiderman movies, and i remember being really interested in how they made them, lucky for me I had the two disk collectors edition so there was plenty of documentaries and special features so I could watch how the movie was made, from how the did the stunts to the actors audition and then how the actors prepared for the role. At that point in time I decided thats what I want to do when I got older, I wanted to be an actor.From then on I started watching movies every chance I could, I would watch the movie then I would watch how they made it and then i would watch the movie again but this time with the director and cast commentary, so that I could hear first time what they went through to make the movie, hearing how much fun everyone had making the movie made me want to become an actor even more. So at that time I was in 4th grade I think and my school started to do this program in the summer called readers theater.Readers theater for anyone who was in first through fourth grade and it was about two months long and what you did was you worked with everyone to put on a play, and throughout the two months you would build sets, make costumes and create a music score to go along with the play. I remember I could not wait to be a part of it, so i sign up and everyone that goes auditions for a part unless you want to be part of the band, so the pl ay the decided to do is Pandoras Box, so I audition and I get the part of the narrator, I was so happy because the narrator got the most lines and never left the stage.And I had such a fun time doing that but the problem was i would be in fifth grade next year so I couldn't do readers theater again, but I could be a volunteer and help the kids put on the play, kind of a director role which was fun so I did that for 3 years. But the best part of being in middle school was I found out that Mrs. Neal put on a play with the fifth and sixth graders in the beginning of the year. Mrs. Neal was the seventh grade english teacher and the director of the middle school and high school show choirs, but she also was a theater actress who starred in a lot of the plays at lakewood theater.At that time I didn't not know the impact Mrs. Neal would have on me. So my fifth grade year the play that that she was putting on was Pinocchio which made me really happy because I watched that movie a lot when I was little, going on to the audition I knew that since I was pretty much the youngest that I wouldn't get a major part because there was a lot more people who had more experience than me. So when i found out i was cast as The Coachman i was really excited because i knew he was a big part of the story because he owned pleasure island and was responsible for turning Pinocchio and the other boys into donkeys.So after that year i audition for the play that Mrs. Neal put on my sixth grade year which happened to be Alladin and i got a couple of parts in that. But my Seventh grade year i was looking to do something new so i decide to audition for show choirs because I liked musicals and thought it would be like one. So I ended up making that and it was real fun because anything with Mrs. Neal was fun, we ended up taking first in states, which was cool because Mrs. Neal had been getting first for her middle school show choir's for a while, and it made me realize that someday I want to be p art of a musical .I ended up making it the next year as well and we won first again. But during those two years I discovered a movie that would change my look on acting from then on, the movie i discovered was Titanic. Titanic became my favorite movie so I bought the three disk collectors edition which had hours upon hours of how the movie was made and what really got me was the set, I could not believe that the had a scale replica of the titanic built to film and sink it, that made me realize that I wanted to be a film actor, to work on big sets like that and to do my own stunts.So in seventh grade I did my last play and that was about the time I started to care what people thought of me and if they judged me, so I stopped doing plays and drama because those where the kids that everyone made fun of. But when I got to high school I got real nervous because we had to have a fine arts credit and I didn't know what to do because I didn't want to take any of drama classes and I didn't w ant to take art. But at the end of my sophomore year the drama teacher left and he was replaced with Mrs.Neal who would start my junior year, so I decided that I would take acting with her because I loved her classes and I had loved to be in the plays that she did, so I decided why not take acting. So I took her acting course but there was one problem I still cared what people thought about me so when I had to perform stuff in front of our class I would get really nervous and would be up there a really long time before I got started.So the end of the year came and I some how got my credit, I was real relieved that it was over because I wouldnt have to anything like that again. But for some reason I decided to take acting again my senior year, and I don't know what happened that summer but i stopped caring what people thought and when it came time to do things in front of the class I could do it so much easier than the year and I dont know why. But I have a feeling that it was becaus e of Mrs.Neal she always pushed everyone to do better and to take risks, and I feel like without Mrs. Neal I wouldn't be applying to get my bachelors in acting for film, I would just be someone with a dream of being actor who never tried to make my dream come true. I really don't know what I would do if I never got the courage to try and this make my dream happen because this is the only job that has ever appealed to me everything else just seems boring compared to the thrill of acting. So I really hope you consider me for acceptance.

Human morality Essay

Morality has often been associated with the roles performed by the concept of nature and nurture in relation to the source of moral dispositions. It has been expressed that evolution has provided human beings preconditions of morality, yet it is solely during engagement with an individual’s culture that these preconditions are converted to pure morality. Evolution considers human beings as one of the animal species and thus it is not easy and simple to detach ourselves from the rest of the other biological species in terms of our morals and conducts (Crawford and Salmon, 2004). The concept of morality is thus not an essential part of being human, but its presence makes us adjust to our environments, as well as act in a rational way. Morality also allows human beings to care for other individuals, as well as experience the feeling of wanting something. More importantly, morality provides us an additional characteristic—to want to be decent individuals. There has been significant debate with regards to the implications of morality and that of the concept of evolution coined by Charles Darwin. It has been described in the history of Social Darwinism and the concept of eugenics that it is possible to choose which genes should further proliferation in the next generations and those genes that confer undesirable traits be left out to go extinct in the human race. This concept of eugenics has been attempted in eradicating future generations of criminals as well as sickly individuals that carry heritable medical disorders. Unfortunately, morality is also influenced by the concept of Social Darwinism, wherein there is huge misinterpretation of the theory of evolution, especially that of the concept of fitness. One major issue of misinterpretation is that the followers of Social Darwinism strongly equate the word good to the condition of being highly evolved. Hence any individuals that are not behaving in a lawful manner such as criminals are immediately classified as individuals that belong to a lower level in the taxonomy of human evolution. This concept should thus be revisited so that the term fitness be only associated with physical fitness of an organism as it evolves through time. It should also be known that the fitness of an organism is strongly influenced by an environment, wherein an organism that lives in a harsh environment learns to survive in cruel ecological conditions, and in the case of human beings, in poor social and environmental conditions. Moral dispositions among human beings evolve through the process of natural selection, hence the results of evolution are simply considered to be that of the selfish trait. It is generally accepted that the human brain is comprised of structures that have evolved to follow that â€Å"either-or† way of thinking, wherein the mind is put in a blank non-thinking conditions and the rest of the functions of the brain are at an innate condition. There are also some genetic misinterpretations with regards to human nature, wherein there is so much attention on the transmission of intelligence and other superb human capabilities that is known be better understood that there is also a concept of determinism wherein an individual carries this need to be compassionate to other individuals because they feel a certain peace and tranquility in their bodies, including the brain and the heart. Thus there is an interaction between the environmental and the genes of an individual, resulting in the personality of an individual to sacrifice his own benefits for the good of others. The concept of eugenics thus can not be fully applied to human morality because this concept is affected by multiple factors, mainly by the genetic makeup of the individual, as well as the environmental effects on the physiological brainwork of an individual. Thus, it is very simple for an individual to refrain from stealing even if he is aware that stealing will provide him a source of funds for himself. Reference Crawford C and Salmon C (eds. ). (2004): Evolutionary Psychology, Public Policy and Personal Decisions. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Mr. William Bryant And His Romantic Antics Essay

Romanticism is a style of writing based in the late 19th century. It is characterized by nature, individual expression, emotion and imagination. Many writers in his time were part of the Romantic Movement and William Cullen Bryant was one of them. His poems are full of Romantic ideals such as the benevolence of Nature and the emphasis on emotion. Bryant is clearly a Romantic poet and his poems â€Å"Thanatopsis† and â€Å"To a Waterfowl† are clearly illustrations of this. Nature is a big part of both â€Å"Thanatopsis† and â€Å"To a Waterfowl†. In â€Å"Thanatopsis†, Nature actually has a speaking part. The personified Nature teaches the reader to not fear death, but accept it as a part of life. Nature in this poem is very comforting. She is described in detail and is portrayed as calm and compassionate in her way of speaking. In â€Å"To a Waterfowl†, nature is also important and in this poem, it is more concrete than the Nature in â€Å"Thanatopsis†. Bryant is talking about a lone waterfowl that is flying through the air. The waterfowl is part of nature and he questions it as if it would answer. In Romantic poetry, it would answer, as in Thanatopsis, where nature actually speaks to the reader. This also shows the freedom and the mystical aspect in his writing. Idealism is also a big romantic characteristic in these poems. In Thanatopsis, realism would consider death a dark and horrible thing. However, the idealistic Bryant portrayed it as a part of life and that dying would bring you back to the divine Nature. In â€Å"To a Waterfowl†, the bird is solitary because he is a freethinking spirit and is flying free from other’s conventional ideas. This appeals to the radical and the idealistic Romantic in him. This poetry by William Cullen Bryant is clearly of the Romantic style. He uses nature in his poetry in an aesthetic way, stating it as a kind being. Idealism is used in a romantic manner, glorifying death and showing the freedom of life in its natural form. His poetry is full of content and emotion with forgiveness and love. Bryant’s â€Å"Thanatopsis† and â€Å"To a Waterfowl† are two excellent examples of Romantic poetry because they use  Romantic ideas of freedom, idealism, and benevolence of nature.

Finnis’s Natural Law Theory

Basically, Finn's's natural law theory are divided into three main parts, each with its own purpose and function. According to Finnis, there are first, a set of notions that â€Å"indicate the basic forms of human flourishing as goods to be pursued and realized† and that every human being should have the idea on how they should act. Secondly, Finnis further argued on the notion of â€Å"a set of basic methodological requirements of practical reasonableness †¦ Which distinguish sound from unsound practical thinking and . provide the criteria for distinguishing between [reasonable and unreasonable acts]. Thirdly, a methodological requirements that allows one to distinguish between acting morally right or morally wrong and â€Å"to formulate . .. a set of general moral standards†. 1. First Main Part of Finnis Natural Law Theory : Basic Human Goods Finn's' naturalism is both an ethical theory and a theory of law. Finnis introduced the theory of basic goods in human li fe as the first part of his natural law theory.Based on the set of notions that, â€Å"indicate the basic forms of human flourishing as goods to be pursued and realized† which according to Finnis, every reasonable person would ssent to the value of these basic goods as objects of human striving, and these basic goods are â€Å"indemonstrable but self-evident principles [that shape] our practical reasoning. â€Å"Finnis distinguishes a number of equally valuable basic goods namely, life, practical reasonableness, knowledge, play, friendship, religion, and aesthetic experience.Finnis argues that the list of basic goods is exhaustive in that â€Å"other objectives and forms of good will be found †¦ to be ways or combinations of ways of pursuing .. and realizing †¦ one of the seven basic forms of good, or some combination of hem. † His argument basically means that in order to achieved the basic good, the elements of seven basic goods must be fulfilled. A perso n is said to achieved basic goods even if he achieved either one of the basic forms or combinations of the basic forms, he don't need to pursue all of the seven basic goods at the same time.Since the human basic goods does not provide any hierarchy between the seven forms, hence, the basic goods are incommensurable. According to Finn's, none of the basic goods â€Å"can be analytically reduced to being merely an aspect of any of the others, or o being merely instrumental in the pursuit of any of the others,† and â€Å"each one, when we focus on it, can reasonably be regarded as the most important. In simple words, Finnis argues that, each of the forms of basic goods are to be distinguished from each other because each forms has intrinsic values. 1. 1 .Knowledge Stating that knowledge is good, or thinking of knowledge as a value, is not the same as saying that knowledge is a moral value. By saying knowledge is to be pursued† since it is ag and that goods are to be pursu ed†Finnis is not saying that a moral obligation has been created. Finnis's basic goods are to be thought of as intrinsically good in that all of these values should be considered good for their own sake and not for an instrumental purpose Finnis more particularly describes the good of knowledge as that of speculative knowledge, explaining that this good is the good of knowledge being â€Å"sought for its own sake. This reference to knowledge can also be articulated as truth†so that one can say that this is truth sought for its own sake in the same manner as knowledge. Here, Finnis is not describing an instrumental use of knowledge, but rather â€Å"the pure desire to know' merely out of curiosity and â€Å"an nterest in or concern for truth and a desire to avoid ignorance or error † Finn's's primary argument for the value of the knowledge, as for the value of other items on his list, is by appeal to the reader's intuition: It is obvious that those who are well-i nformed, etc. simply are better-off(other thing being equal) than someone who is muddled, deluded, and ignorant, that the state of the former is better that the state of the latter, not Just in particular case of that, but in all cases, as such, universally, and whether I like it Otr not. Knowledge is better that ignorance

Consumer Protection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

Consumer Protection - Essay Example This Project Plan suggests that it becomes necessary to consider pragmatic and appropriate research question and during the course of deliberations this needs to be translated into achievable ends. Also, the enlightenment gained from appropriately decided case laws also needs to be included to substantiate arguments and underline facts. Besides, various sections in which this subject is dealt with also need to form a part of this paper. (Press summary, 2009). â€Å"The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 (UTCCRs) protect consumers against unfair standard terms in contracts they make with traders. The Office of Fair Trading, together with certain other bodies, can take legal action to prevent the use of such terms.† (Unfair terms in consumer contracts, n.d.). It is necessary to conduct a study of this kind in order to assess the unfair terms that are often being enforced as pre-determined statements without being deliberated with the concerned consumers, who are thus placed at a detriment, due to the arbitrary and high handed dealings of producers of goods and services. Besides, it is also necessary to consider and apply necessary legal remedies if and when unfair terms are forced upon unwitting consumers. In order to understand these aspects in their proper perspectives, it is necessary to under the basics of these terms. According to the Unfair Terms in the CCR 99, if terms and conditions of business have not been individually dealt with and discussed and any decision has been reached without due negotiations with affected consumers; it could be said to be coming within the realms of being â€Å"unfair terms.† (Statutory instrument 1999 No. 2083. 1999). Besides this, the terms have been pre-determined without taking the concerned consumers into confidence. As a result of which the consumer may have to suffer detriment. It could correctly be said that unfair terms have been incorporated in the agreement which creates disadvantages for the consumers.