Death of a Salesman Essay Example for Free

Death of a Salesman Essay Arthur Miller clearly adopted the approach of a classical Greek tragedy by asserting that Willy Loman is as appropriate as a subject for tragedy as Kings are. Miller portrays Willy as a hardworking man struggling to reach the intangible American dream by challenging Aristotelian convention and by using time as a structural motif to successfully portray the lead up to his demise. This ultimately portrays him as a modern tragic hero. The mobile concurrency repeatedly used is of a great importance to the play. They serve as a recollection of his past memories, a dream world offering to escape the harsh reality of what he is facing at the current moment in time. Leah Hadomi, in Fantasy and Reality: Dramatic Rhythm in Death of a Salesman said :When reality becomes too painful, Willy retreats into a dream world, consisting of his recollections of the past and of fantasies in which he ful? lls the aspirations, the attainment of which has eluded him in life. This statement is, to some extent, true as the dream sequence seems perfect, with a repetition of Well by Willy and Happy, when they discuss carrying bags, an ultimate perception of Willys dream world. However, even within this ordered dream world, Bernard pops the bubble in which order was maintained, as he asks Biff to study. The use of the word anaemic is interesting, as it can mean a lack of colour on the skin. Perhaps Miller is saying how Bernard doesnt fit into Willys category of normal, as normal means you have to be well liked, something that Willy maintained which ultimately lead up to his demise. We see in this mobile concurrency how Willy is trying to maintain order by dreaming yet this order subtly becomes disorder as the world doesnt exist as a floating balloon, there needs to be someone to anchor us, and in this case, it is Bernard. Disorder and order are part of Aristotelian convention: the fact that in a tragedy, disorder is after the catastrophe, yet order will try to be maintained (e. g. in Othello, Lodovico will try to maintain order in society after the death of the moor). The catastrophe here can represent the delusional present state he is living in, and the order can be maintained financially as Linda is now free. So even in his mind, there is disorder which arouses sympathy from the audience as we realise how minds are so complex. The use of place and atmosphere also brings out an Aristotelian convention. There is a cyclical quality in the play: the fact that the stage directions at the start promote an heavenly quality and towards the end there is some spiritual sense. Miller here challenges the classical tragedy approach by using long stage directions, whereas in a play like Othello, there wasnt any. The dream rising out of reality sharply contrasts with were free which Linda repeats. This reflects on the idea of the mass of the souls of the dead, and the freedom in movement. Miller clearly uses this cyclical ability as a structural time motif to reinforce the message of faith. The requiem serves to be concentrated, and allows us to make a comparison between faith as a spiritual guidance, and Willys tragedy. In classical Greek tragedy, there was some guidance in one way or the other: Othello being a Christian so he would look to god, or others having kings to look up to. However here, there is no religious grounding within the Loman home, so we understand how a lack of religion and grounding can lead to irreversible consequences. The stage directions at the start of the play also show oppressive urbanisation in the sense that the buildings are towering, angular shapes, which represent the limiting power of individualism. This backdrop against the city shows how the Loman home is insignificant. Andy Warhols paintings express the express the fragility of the American dream through his paintings, yet in this play, we see the disastrous effects of how the capitalist society leads to his demise. The fact that Miller manipulated this to allow these long stage directions be at the start portray how he wanted emphasis the corruption the capitalist society brings onto us, and this is reinforced by Howards inhumane treatment towards him: You didnt crack up again, did you? . The actual time period is also an important factor. The play was written at around the time of the 1940s, after the great boom in the 1920s had occurred, so Miller must have used the idea of the boom and how the American dream was an endless hope where one would dream of possibility and a high social status. As the Wall Street crash occurred in 1929, we see that perhaps Miller wrote this play to underline the theme that the American dream was always intangible without religion, or some grounding force, yet the Loman family didnt realise this, and this was their hamartia. One may say that because Miller himself was involved in communist activities (Arthur miller: a critical study), he had a Marxist attraction, and perhaps wants to show how Willy was completely destroyed by the capitalist society which was grappling with a much superior force (Tragedy and the Common Man). His social comment made at the start of the play that Willy was past 60years of age shows how Miller is not economically viable, as in the American post war society, he is redundant. This shows how the society is mainly utilitarian, and how people can be disposed when they are out of value. Miller enforces our knowledge on the post war American society and allows us to make our decision, on whether or not his demise was due to the grappling society, or the fact that he had the wrong dreams. Miller carefully took a risk by carefully casting aside dramatic convention by focusing on overlooked people in society. He built salesman around the accumulation of small and discomforting details and discoveries such as the rubber tubing which Biff finds (draws out a length of rubber tubing). It is only the time of when this is taking place is when these small details discomfort us a lot. For example, Biff finds the rubber tubing at night, before the end of act 1, which traumatises not only the characters, but us too. This breaks the linear narrative convention and allows us to dwell on the concept that Biff exists in the way he is, (e. g. not respecting him by saying what the hell is the matter with him). Biff had no grounding from the start as we can see in the mobile concurrency (Willy leading him along by stealing), so the next act serves as false hope to the Loman family, the hope that Biff will understand his father, in which the audience play the supporting role which Linda usually plays. It also helps the audience feel cathartic, a sign of relief, before the major catastrophe of his death occurs. Miller successfully manipulated the time in order to show a recurring death image towards the end, and to show skewed ideas on life The use of time literally slowing down the text on the page is quite significant too in act 2. Willys lines are very much fragmented, and portray the sense of Willy slowing down time. This portrays some sense of hope in the sense that the family will be normal again and the house will be argument free. The pastoral elements such as the time of the day, the coffee and the saccharine emphasis the outward appearance as some sort of synaesthesia and artifice. Perhaps it portrays how even though Willy wants to slow down time, he is more ambitious from his rest, and therefore it prepares us for his downfall later on in the play. Willys downfall is also due to the woman and Linda, and in the time the play was written, women were treated as sexual objectification, also known as the Madonna Syndrome. The repetition of the woman laughing throughout the play emphasises the fragmented state of mind Willy has and the guilt he has, associated with the woman. With Linda, we do not see any social life associated with her; all we see is that she is merely Willys supporter as she always makes excuses up for him, and the dishonesty that she knows his flaws lead to his downfall. The fact that Linda leaves Willy responsible (I cant understand it, Willy) shows incapability to guide her, and we see her character disintegrate. We therefore see, as a modern audience, how women are imprisoned, and clearly we could see that the woman was imprisoned in Willys mind (through mobile concurrency), and Linda being physically imprisoned. Miller again manipulated time to echo a social comment about women being imprisoned, so do we therefore see Linda as a tragic victim, more than Willy in society? To conclude, Miller effectively manipulates time through many ways such as mobile concurrency. Willys demise was merely his obstructions from the past which stopped him from leading on his delusional present. Miller effectively portrayed how he fell from a mediocre man to a state even lower than that on the hierarchy scale. On a personal level, the cyclical quality Miller presents in the fact that there was no religious grounding shows how nothing can be possible without faith; the cyclical quality reinforced it by using time at the start, and at the end, to see what message Miller was reinforcing.

Review And Determine The Mcdonalds Strategic Marketing Essay

Review And Determine The Mcdonalds Strategic Marketing Essay LO1) Review and Determine the McDonalds Strategic Aims and Objectives McDonalds is one of the leading global fast food service retailers, with about more than 32,000 restaurants serving more than 60 million people in more than 117 countries each day. McDonalds is well known for some of its much desired food like; Chicken McNuggets, Big Mac and Egg McMuffins all around the globe. McDonalds 75% of its chains are owned and operated by the franchisees all over the world and only 25% of its chains are owned by the company. In 1967 McDonald opened its first international outlet in Canada. Most of the McDonalds outlets are free standing units, other than that it also has many units located at airports and in other retail areas. Since the opening of McDonalds first international outlet in Canada it is known for providing the outstanding quality, quick service, cleanliness and value to its customers (McDonalds, 2011). Current Strategic Aims and Objectives of McDonalds McDonalds has clearly defined its strategic aims and objectives; the vision of McDonalds is to be the leading, quick and the best fast food service provider all over the world. Other objectives of McDonalds are; to maintain and develop the best quality food products in the quick service restaurant market, McDonalds also wants to lead the quick service restaurant market by attracting new customers, opening more profitable restaurants, increasing its sales through promotion that enable them to continue their program of expansion. The McDonalds goal is to maximize its profits, maintain its competitive advantage by constantly creating new products to add onto its menu, which will help to attract new customers and satisfy their existing customers that gives customers a reason to visit McDonalds often (McDonalds, 2011). McDonalds main objective is to be the worlds best quick service restaurant ever experience and for this McDonalds provide outstanding service, quality, cleanliness and value to its customers all around the globe. McDonalds also aim to grasp every opportunity to innovate and lead the industry on behalf of the customers, they also have a passion and feel committed to go beyond their customers expectations every time in every restaurant in order to enhance and protect the McDonalds brand all over the world (McDonalds 2011). An Evaluation of the Component Parts of a Strategic Plan Strategic planning is a very important business activity and it is used to achieve certain goals and objectives. An organization sometimes summarizes its goals and objectives into a mission statement and a vision statement. Vision is basically a long-term view, which outlines what an organization wants to be in the future and also describe how the organization wants the world in which it operates. Vision basically concentrates on the future and provides the decision making criteria to the organization. Whereas mission defines the basic purpose of the existence of an organization, the mission also defines about the desired level of performance needed in order to achieve the organizational aims and objectives (Kotler, 1986). The Vision of McDonalds is to be the best and the leading fast food provider all over the world (McDonalds, 2011). There are five different ways of judging the suitability of an organizational vision; the first one is the foresight which tells whether the vision of an organization is strong enough and realistic and when the vision of McDonalds is evaluated it is clear that it is strong enough as well as realistic. The second way to judge the vision of an organization is the breadth, which tells does the vision of an organization fully cover likely changes in the market place and McDonalds has a capability to change with the environment and make sure that in every country of the world its customers must always get quality products, in quick time, in a clean and pleasant environment and at a reasonable price. Another way to judge the vision is the uniqueness that an organization can capitalize on and surprise its competitors and the uniqueness in the vision of McDonalds is that the tas te and the size of its burgers are same in each outlet all around the globe where it provides its products and services. The fourth way to judge the vision is through consensus, which tells that an organization should have only one vision and the McDonalds has only one and clear vision and that is to be the best and the leading fast food provider all over the world. Lastly through action-ability a vision can be judge which tells whether the vision is ready for implementation or does the organization have core competences. The vision of McDonalds is ready for the implementation and the core competency of McDonalds is providing convenience to its customers when they want to eat fast food at the prices that are competitive and provide best value for the customers money (Hamel and Prahalad, 1994). The mission statement of McDonalds is to be our customers favorite place and way to eat. Their main focus is on being the best fast food provider and for this their worldwide operations has been aligned around a global strategy called a Plan to Win based on the five factors of an exceptional customer experience; People, Product, Price, Place and Promotion (McDonalds, 2011). Just like the vision statement the mission statement of McDonalds can be judge by seeing how far it meets the certain formulations. Firstly McDonalds should have a clear idea in what business they are in and should also do a thorough market research before introducing any new product. Secondly the mission statement should be made from a customer perspective and the mission of McDonalds is clearly defining that they have made their mission statement while keeping their targeted customers in mind. Thirdly an organization must make sure that its mission statement reflects the core values and beliefs of an organizatio n and the McDonalds mission statement is clearly defining that it provides convenience when people need and want to eat good quality fast food at reasonable price in a pleasant environment. The fourth way to assess the mission statement of an organization is to define what sustainable competitive advantage an organization has over its competitors and one of the McDonalds competitive advantages is it focuses on the consistency of the quality, the use of raw materials and the production of food all around the world. Lastly an organization should summarize the strategic approach they would use in order to achieve the strategic aims and objectives of an organization. McDonalds has design certain strategic approaches to achieve its aims and objectives like the utilization of technology, the defined work routines and maintaining the competitive advantage (Lynch, 2006). Factors Affecting the Strategic Plan There are certain factors that affect the McDonalds corporation so much that their role in shaping the strategies cannot be ignored and these factors are; political, economical and social factors. The political factors affect the organization in different ways like the international operations of McDonalds are highly influenced by the individual state policies enforced by each government. For instance different countries focus on different areas of concern like; the worker protection, health and the environment. All these elements are in the control of government and considers when giving a license of the restaurant in different countries (Bateman and Scott, 2004). Different organizations in the fast food industry have their individual concerns involving economic factors. The different branches and the franchises of McDonalds have the tendency to experience difficulties where the economy of certain countries hit by the inflation and the changes in the exchange rate. Therefore, if a franchise operates in a particularly economically weak country, then these franchises must make certain adjustments in their strategies to maintain the economies of scale (Sustar and Sustar, 2005). The social factors also affect the strategies of an organization. McDonalds cater variety of customers with different types of personalities in different countries. McDonalds uses different concepts of consumer behavior like product personality and purchasing decisions of consumers to make proper strategies, so that it can attract new customers and satisfy their existing customers in order to achieve its aims and objectives efficiently (Bateman and Snell, 2004). LO2) Evaluate the Alternative Strategies to meet the desired Future Strategic Position 2.1) A Range of Strategic Analysis tools to Audit Progress towards strategic Aims and Objectives   The marketing audit is very essential for an organization as it provides the backbone strategic analysis that supports corporate decision making process and it also tells the current position of an organization. The SWOT analysis is one of the auditing tools that are use to analyze the internal as well as the external factors of an organization that are favorable and unfavorable to achieve the objectives of an organization (Aaker, 1997). The biggest strength of McDonalds is its large market share, strong brand image and reputation, strong financial performance and position in the food industry, friendly environment for customers and the practice of going green has made it possible for McDonalds to gain more fame all around the world. The weaknesses of McDonalds are it had to face certain legal action because of using trans-fat and beef oil that can negatively affect its brand image, other weaknesses of McDonalds are it offers the variety of junk food which is considered as a very unhealthy food among people and it is also losing its customers due to the increase competition (Peter and Donnelly, 2007). There are certain opportunities as well for McDonalds like; through globalization open more profitable restaurants, it could also make itself more innovative by offering deals that appeal to new customers, and other opportunity is that in the last few decades there is a huge growth in the fast food industry has been observed. Like some opportunities there are certain threats as well that McDonalds faces like; the health professionals accuses McDonalds because of increasing health issues of diabetes, high cholesterol heart attacks and obesity. Another threat for McDonalds is the competitors market share of the company both internationally and domestically (Peter and Donnelly, 2007). 2.2) The Expectations of major Stockholders and their Influence upon the Organizational Strategy The major stockholders like; the top management, customers and suppliers influence the organizational strategies in different ways. So for this the top management should establish a superior strategic decision process throughout the company so that the strategies can evolve and flourish consistently over time. All the strategic preferences that increase the value for both the customers and the share holders are highly desirable and should increase the growth of any organization. For instance, McDonalds rapid withdrawal of its fifty-five cent hamburger campaign, which separated franchises without creating much new customer loyalty or demand, was a costly but necessary decision to avoid further damage to share holder value (Hill and Jones, 2009) The conflict arises when the manager face choices that involve real trade-offs between the customer and the share holder value. Let say if a proposal to increase customers or customer value will reduce the shareholder value, then it should be rejected. For example with increasing awareness about the food and the importance of the balanced diet, if McDonalds would start encouraging people to opt for low calorie food with high fiber content then people might appreciate McDonalds for giving this awareness and people will might change their eating patterns and spend less on fast food. This would be beneficial for customers but not for the shareholders and this would gives rise to conflict that would harm the organizational strategy (Hill and Jones, 2009). Suppliers play a vital role in achieving the organizations aims and objectives and also influence the strategy of an organization and it is believed that suppliers success is an integral to an organizations success (Webster, 2002). So an organization should remember that suppliers cannot be expected to support their plan with an organizations plan unless organizations have shared its strategic plans with suppliers. 2.3) Analyze, Interpret and Produce a Structured Evaluation of the Organizational Strategic Position The challenges that McDonalds faces are; as the food industry is continuously growing the competitors are entering into the market with competitive prices not only internationally but domestically also and due to this McDonalds can lose its customers as well as its market share. The other difficulty that McDonalds is facing is the increasing awareness about the food and the importance of the balanced diet nowadays people are opting for low calorie food and changing their eating patterns by consuming less fast food and this is because there are competitors that provide the low calorie food at the prices almost the same as McDonalds and due to this McDonalds can lose its customers (Freidman, 1999). McDonalds can achieve competitive advantage by using three generic strategies of cost leadership, differentiation and focus. The competitive advantage can be achieved by differentiating the products from those of competitors and McDonalds is differentiated by its brand name and brand images of Big Mac and Ronald McDonald. Another way to achieve competitive advantage from those of competitors is through low costs and McDonalds provides substantial entry barriers from economies of scale and cost advantages which clearly define that McDonalds follow the cost leadership strategy. Organizations can achieve competitive advantage through targeting their products by a broad target, thereby covering most of the market place, or they can focus on a narrow target in the market. McDonalds target market is broad almost covering the most of the market and not focusing a particular market (Porter, 1998) PEST/EL is an analysis of the external macro environment in which a business operates. The operations of McDonalds in each country are highly influenced by the individual country policies enforced by each government and every country has its own political affects on the organization and its operations. The economic factors are also different in different countries that affect the organizations strategies like the different franchises of McDonalds in different countries have to face different problems due to the change in economic environment (McDonalds, 2011). McDonalds run its operations in more than 100 countries which mean it serves variety of consumers with different cultures and personalities. So McDonalds cannot use only one strategy for all its food chains, the strategy might not be completely different but differs with respect to the social environment. The technology has greatly helped McDonalds in providing quick service to its customers. The incorporation of technology in the operations of McDonalds tends to add value to their products. The social responsibilities of McDonalds on the country are influential to the operations of the company and these involve allegations of environmental damage with such claims like the using non-biodegradable substances for their drinks glasses and the Styrofoam coffers for the meals. McDonalds also had to face certain legal actions because of using trans-fat and beef oil and this could easily harm the reputation of the McDonalds all over the world (McDonalds, 2011). LO3) Decide the Strategy and Justify the Selection to meet the Required Future Strategic Position 3.1) Develop a Range of Alternative Strategic Options to meet Strategic Aims and Objectives The fast food industry is often criticized because of its role in creating numerous health problems like obesity, cholesterol and diabetes and was thought to be the driving force for the unhealthy eating disorders. These days customers are becoming more aware of the nutritional values and the health benefits of the products they are consuming. So in order to achieve strategic aims and objectives McDonalds should come up with greater variations in its menu and offer healthier food like sandwiches and salad and innovative fresh juices for the health conscious people. There are many competitors in the industry because of the rapid growth of the fast food industry all over the world and these competitors are offering almost the similar products and services at almost similar prices. So if McDonalds wants to achieve its strategic aims and objectives and wants to attract new customers as well as retain the existing customers then it need to focus more on the strategies that attract more children to their restaurants by offering toys that are most desired among children with a happy meal because this would help them in retaining their customers. McDonalds should also see what similar products the other competitors are offering and try to offer something very innovative product that no other competitor is providing or as well as that attract the customers. McDonalds should also start separate McCafes for teenagers and college going students and the ambience of that cafà © should reflect the different colors of youth. McDonalds should also introduce more variety in the existing range of milk shakes and smoothies and also introduce a variety in coffee and offer innovative high quality and refreshing products at a reasonable price that attracts the young people. 3.2) Determine and Justify the Strategic Option that meets the Revised Strategic Position Among the four strategic options that were given above the first option and that is McDonalds should offer healthier food like sandwiches and salad and innovative fresh juices is the best option for McDonalds to achieve the strategic aims and objectives in the food industry because of the increasing health problems like heart attack, obesity, cholesterol and diabetes. As the awareness about the nutritional values, health benefits and the benefits of low calorie food with high fiber content has increased among people and due to this people have started changing their eating patterns and spend less on junk food that the fast food chains are providing. McDonalds need to introduce a healthier menu that emphasize the healthy side of McDonalds and should also introduce the low calorie variations of all its burgers and make its fries healthier by using the right kind of oil, then do the aggressive promotion of the new menu variety in order to cope with the health concerns related with its products. This would help McDonalds to achieve its strategic aims and objectives efficiently as well as it would proof that McDonalds has the capability to change with the environment and the consumers preferences and lastly this would also enhance the brand image of the McDonalds in the consumers mind.

The Purpose of Mother Night :: Mother Night Essays

The   Purpose of   Mother Night      Ã‚  Ã‚   Over   the years,   such world-renowned   authors as   Mark Twain and   J. D. Salinger have   shown readers how literature reflects the era in which   it is written. Another author who has  Ã‚   also   made  Ã‚   significant   contributions  Ã‚   to   American literature   is   Kurt   Vonnegut,   author   of   such well-known novels as Slaughterhouse 5 and Cat's Cradle.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Vonnegut was born on November 11, 1922 in Indianapolis, Indiana   ("Kurt Vonnegut,   Jr."). Vonnegut   attended Cornell University in 1940 where he   wrote for the Cornell Daily Sun ("Chronology"). In   1943, Vonnegut joined   the United States Infantry. He fought   in World War II for   the 106th Infantry Division until 1945 when he   was captured by the Germans and shipped to a   work camp in Dresden. It was   here in the city of   Dresden   where   Vonnegut   witnessed the American/British firebombing   that  Ã‚   killed   an   estimated  Ã‚   135,000   people. "[Vonnegut] tried for   many years to put into   words what he had   experienced during   that horrific   event...It took   him more  Ã‚  Ã‚   than  Ã‚  Ã‚   twenty  Ã‚  Ã‚   years,  Ã‚  Ã‚   however,  Ã‚  Ã‚   to  Ã‚   produce Slaughterhouse Five" ("Vonnegut in WWII").      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Slaughterhouse Five is Vonnegut's   most famous work. In this book, Vonnegut fictionally   recreates his experience in Dresden. However this book   wasn't published until 1969, and he had published several works   before this. His first book, Player Piano,   was published in 1952;   and his third, Mother Night,   was published   in 1961   ("Chronology"). Even   though Slaughterhouse Five   was Vonnegut's only   novel to re-create his experience   in Dresden, a   strong anti-war theme   can be found in his   earlier literature as well. A   fine example of one of his works that fits this description is Mother Night. The novel takes place in an   open jail in Old Jerusalem. The protagonist introduces himself by saying, "My name is Howard W.   Campbell, Jr.   I am   an   American   by birth,   a Nazi   by reputation, and a nationless person by inclination, The year in   which I   write this   book [is]   1961" (Vo nnegut   17). In first-person  Ã‚   narration   Campbell  Ã‚   accounts   stories   from before, during and post World War II. The reader learns that Campbell lived in Germany   before the war entertaining Nazis as a playwright.   He and his wife Helga   had no intention of leaving Germany once war became a threat. Campbell tells the reader that in 1938 he   was recruited as an American special agent who was to pose as a Nazi propagandist during the war. The   reader   learns   that   this   is   the   reason Campbell is currently behind   bars in; he is   to be tried by   Israel for severe war crimes of spreading propaganda. The Purpose of Mother Night :: Mother Night Essays The   Purpose of   Mother Night      Ã‚  Ã‚   Over   the years,   such world-renowned   authors as   Mark Twain and   J. D. Salinger have   shown readers how literature reflects the era in which   it is written. Another author who has  Ã‚   also   made  Ã‚   significant   contributions  Ã‚   to   American literature   is   Kurt   Vonnegut,   author   of   such well-known novels as Slaughterhouse 5 and Cat's Cradle.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Vonnegut was born on November 11, 1922 in Indianapolis, Indiana   ("Kurt Vonnegut,   Jr."). Vonnegut   attended Cornell University in 1940 where he   wrote for the Cornell Daily Sun ("Chronology"). In   1943, Vonnegut joined   the United States Infantry. He fought   in World War II for   the 106th Infantry Division until 1945 when he   was captured by the Germans and shipped to a   work camp in Dresden. It was   here in the city of   Dresden   where   Vonnegut   witnessed the American/British firebombing   that  Ã‚   killed   an   estimated  Ã‚   135,000   people. "[Vonnegut] tried for   many years to put into   words what he had   experienced during   that horrific   event...It took   him more  Ã‚  Ã‚   than  Ã‚  Ã‚   twenty  Ã‚  Ã‚   years,  Ã‚  Ã‚   however,  Ã‚  Ã‚   to  Ã‚   produce Slaughterhouse Five" ("Vonnegut in WWII").      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Slaughterhouse Five is Vonnegut's   most famous work. In this book, Vonnegut fictionally   recreates his experience in Dresden. However this book   wasn't published until 1969, and he had published several works   before this. His first book, Player Piano,   was published in 1952;   and his third, Mother Night,   was published   in 1961   ("Chronology"). Even   though Slaughterhouse Five   was Vonnegut's only   novel to re-create his experience   in Dresden, a   strong anti-war theme   can be found in his   earlier literature as well. A   fine example of one of his works that fits this description is Mother Night. The novel takes place in an   open jail in Old Jerusalem. The protagonist introduces himself by saying, "My name is Howard W.   Campbell, Jr.   I am   an   American   by birth,   a Nazi   by reputation, and a nationless person by inclination, The year in   which I   write this   book [is]   1961" (Vo nnegut   17). In first-person  Ã‚   narration   Campbell  Ã‚   accounts   stories   from before, during and post World War II. The reader learns that Campbell lived in Germany   before the war entertaining Nazis as a playwright.   He and his wife Helga   had no intention of leaving Germany once war became a threat. Campbell tells the reader that in 1938 he   was recruited as an American special agent who was to pose as a Nazi propagandist during the war. The   reader   learns   that   this   is   the   reason Campbell is currently behind   bars in; he is   to be tried by   Israel for severe war crimes of spreading propaganda.

Alistair MacLeods No Great Mischief Essay example -- Alistair MacLeod

Alistair MacLeod's "No Great Mischief"   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In No Great Mischief, Alistair MacLeod proves to the reader that it is impossible to talk about the Scottish-Canadian heritage without mentioning tradition, family and loyalty. MacLeod wrote this book about loyalty to family tradition. It is common to talk about these three things when one describes his family or his past in general, but in this book, MacLeod has included every single intricate detail about each one of the three aspects.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Family plays the biggest role in this novel. Anything that the characters say or do usually has to do with family. The first time Alexander MacDonald, the narrator of the story, mentions family it is not his own. It is one of the immigrant families picking berries along the road that he is driving on (MacLeod 1). This point takes him directly into a slight mention of his own family: the grandmother (3). Since there is no main character in the book, it is thought to be the narrator. However, I wish to disagree with this fact and say that the real main character in this book is Alexander’s brother, Calum, who lives in Toronto. The first time Calum is introduced, one of the first things to come out of his mouth is of family: â€Å"I have been thinking the last few days of Calum Ruadh,† (11). We find out that Alexander has a close relationship with his brother and he drives to Toronto to visit him every weekend. This has become almost a tradition because he does not visit him to actually have a constructive conversation or to resolve a problem, although Calum has many of them, the most serious of which is drinking, but instead he visits him only for the sake of visiting him. It is also a tradition in that they do the same thing every time: they drink, not so much Alexander as Calum. We later find out that Alexander has a similar tradition set up with other family members. The most distinct of which is his relationship with his grandmother: Grandma. When he visits Grandma, it is always the same routine: they sing long Gaelic songs, like the ones that their ancestors would. Alexander, for most of the first half of the book, does not talk about his present day family as much as his ancestors. He provides the reader with the information about how he wound up in Canada and what his ancestors had to go through to get here. Throughout this part of the book, Alexander makes it seem as... ...xample, the way that grandfather dies is probably one of the best ways to go: he was relaxed, not in pain, and he was doing what he loved most: reading his history textbooks. In the latter part of the book, whenever there is any mention of grandfather anywhere he is always either reading a book or sleeping (228, 264). Everyone in the family is always content, no matter what kind of trouble they go through or how much they have enjoyed; they have always had enough to satisfy them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Towards the end of the novel, the reader is more and more convinced that the MacDonalds have serious problems. Regardless of how attached you are to your past it is way too much to still live on the same piece of land that someone from your family, your ancestor, has lived on in 1497. The MacDonalds live there not because they cannot afford something better but because they truly cherish the land that their ancestors cultivated and took care of. At the very end of the book, when Calum wishes for Alexander to take him back out to the East Coast to die there, it seems to be almost apologetic and gives the reader the impression that the brothers have to keep reminding themselves of their heritage.

The Power And The Glory :: essays research papers

The Power and Glory writing assignment   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak†.(Matthew 26:41) These words of Jesus are thematic in both the novel, The Power and the Glory, by Graham Greene, and the poem, â€Å"Batter my heart, three-personed God†, by John Donne. Both the whiskey priest and the speaker of the poem are involved in a battle between their sinful flesh and their spirit, which seeks the Divine. They also admit their sin and commit themselves to God. In both the novel and the poem, the authors use similar paradoxes to describe the character’s relationship with God while the search for holiness takes each on a different path. The speaker and the whiskey priest describe themselves as sinners, yielding to temptation. The speaker of the poem says, â€Å"But I am betrothed unto your enemy†(ln.10), showing the speaker is subdued by the devil. The priest, a drunkard with a child, thinks of himself as a transgressor and a disgrace to the Church. While in the prison, the priest says to the pious woman, â€Å"But I’m a bad priest†¦I know from experience-how much beauty Satan carried down with him when he fell.†(p.130) When he is arrested the priest says to a soldier, â€Å"You mustn’t think they are like me†¦It’s just that I’m a bad priest.†(p.191). In addition to recognizing their betrayal of God, they believe that a sacred life is the ultimate victory. The speaker confesses, â€Å"Yet dearly I love you and would be loved fain.†(ln.9) The priest also desires to love God above all, â€Å"He knew now at the end there was only one thing that counted – to be a saint.†(p.210) However, each character pursues the Divine in a different way. Even though the whiskey priest perceives himself as a sinner, his way of life resembles the good of the Holy Spirit. The priest resembles Jesus in many places in the novel. The prison scene is very much like the Last Supper, when Jesus said to his apostles that one of them would betray him. The priest thinks, â€Å"Surely one of these people will betray me first.†(p.128) He also cleans the pails of the cells in the prison just as Jesus washes the apostles’ feet. The night before he is executed the priest prays alone as Jesus did in the garden. The priest embarks on a mission to keep his religion alive in Mexico while helping the individuals he meets, and he finally dies because of his faith and sense of duty. The Power And The Glory :: essays research papers The Power and Glory writing assignment   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak†.(Matthew 26:41) These words of Jesus are thematic in both the novel, The Power and the Glory, by Graham Greene, and the poem, â€Å"Batter my heart, three-personed God†, by John Donne. Both the whiskey priest and the speaker of the poem are involved in a battle between their sinful flesh and their spirit, which seeks the Divine. They also admit their sin and commit themselves to God. In both the novel and the poem, the authors use similar paradoxes to describe the character’s relationship with God while the search for holiness takes each on a different path. The speaker and the whiskey priest describe themselves as sinners, yielding to temptation. The speaker of the poem says, â€Å"But I am betrothed unto your enemy†(ln.10), showing the speaker is subdued by the devil. The priest, a drunkard with a child, thinks of himself as a transgressor and a disgrace to the Church. While in the prison, the priest says to the pious woman, â€Å"But I’m a bad priest†¦I know from experience-how much beauty Satan carried down with him when he fell.†(p.130) When he is arrested the priest says to a soldier, â€Å"You mustn’t think they are like me†¦It’s just that I’m a bad priest.†(p.191). In addition to recognizing their betrayal of God, they believe that a sacred life is the ultimate victory. The speaker confesses, â€Å"Yet dearly I love you and would be loved fain.†(ln.9) The priest also desires to love God above all, â€Å"He knew now at the end there was only one thing that counted – to be a saint.†(p.210) However, each character pursues the Divine in a different way. Even though the whiskey priest perceives himself as a sinner, his way of life resembles the good of the Holy Spirit. The priest resembles Jesus in many places in the novel. The prison scene is very much like the Last Supper, when Jesus said to his apostles that one of them would betray him. The priest thinks, â€Å"Surely one of these people will betray me first.†(p.128) He also cleans the pails of the cells in the prison just as Jesus washes the apostles’ feet. The night before he is executed the priest prays alone as Jesus did in the garden. The priest embarks on a mission to keep his religion alive in Mexico while helping the individuals he meets, and he finally dies because of his faith and sense of duty.

Culture and social effects of globalization Essay

Some say globalization is creating an intelligent community while others say they are losing their identity. What culture and social effects has the Czech nation experienced as a result of globalization? Globalization isn’t a factor of new age. Big boom of that started at the end of WWII. This let say economic interconnection among states or countries has main effect like prevention from new world war. Globalization has huge impact or influence on all countries around whole world. I know numerous of them however I’m describe or highlight in my essay some of them which, in my point of view, they are evident in the Czech Republic. First of all, I would like to stress new diet. Globalization has brought to Czech citizen new style and kind of restaurants and fast foods. Furthermore globalization has changed people’s way of life. Nowadays men and women are hardworking and they have no time to cook and take care of their health. Secondly, I think that other thing which was brought by globalization is new culture. This impact is more visible mainly on television. More than ninety percent of all movies and serials are American. I can’t say that all of them are wrong and different in our area nevertheless we can find some really brainless. Due to my knowledge I state that this approach is visible mainly in private TV channels. On the other hand I can highlight also pleasant or engaging issue. Mainly new tradition or new celebrations like St.Valentine, Halloween or St.Patrick’s day. These holidays have become naturalized in the Czech Republic since communist’s regime was overthrown. While a few Czechs are fighting against domestication of foreign customs their fight is hopeless. Similar like Don Quijote de la Mancha and his fight with windmills. At the end I would like to say globalization has not influenced only the Czech society. We can recognize it everywhere. In my essay I tried to highlight some of them which are visible for regular citizens. To sum up I can say that globalization has brought nothing wrong to Czech society. All aspects which I stressed in my essay are more pleasant and serious impact on global world is totally different.

The Human Rights Act

Amy has dementia and lives in a residential home. In the mornings Amy has always been able to get out of bed and get dressed with some minimal support and then walk independently down to the dining area where she has chosen to have breakfast. Over the past week Amy has been staying in bed longer and longer; she is reluctant to get up in the morning and does not do very much for herself when getting dressed. Her mobility has reduced also and she has started to get pressure sores. Amy’s appetite has also become very poor and she usually only eats a few spoonful’s of her food. When carers encourage her to eat more she refuses.The Human Rights actThe human rights act is there to protect people, young, old, rich and poor. They give people the right to freedom of speech, right of freedom, privacy and to be equally treated (not discriminated). This links to Amy because with Amy having dementia she may do certain things that are not appropriate. An example could be when she goe s to the toilet she decide not to close the door and leave it wide open for people see inside. As one of her care workers it would be my duty to try my best to close the door. As much as Amy may protest it is part of my job to protect Amy’s privacy and dignity.The Mental Capacity actThe mental capacity act has been put into place to make it possible for adults who are unable to make decisions for them to be able to make certain decisions for themselves. ‘Under the Mental Capacity Act a person is presumed to make their own decisions â€Å"unless all practical steps to help them make a decision have been taken without success†.’ This would link into Amy when she decisions for example if she decides she wants to live on her own for the rest of her life. At some point in this decision there will be a problem financially and providing a one to one carer for the whole of the day and night.Putting people first FrameworkPutting people first was put in place to out line responsibilities of care workers when working with dementia. Some of the responsibilities include; making sure the patient has taken any medication they need to take, ensuring they have had something to eat and drink throughout the day. It is very easy for somebody with dementia to become anorexic or obese because their short term memory can make them forget that they have had nothing to eat or in the opposite way that they have already had their something. This framework will help Amy because it would be their care workers responsibility to make sure they have had breakfast and write it down if she has or not for the next care worker who may be a part of her team because then they cannot just assume Amy has had something to eat or not.There are many different types of roles and responsibilities that come with being a care worker for somebody with dementia. The care worker has to promote dignity for the service user. Respect them and give them independence, their rights and pri vacy.Again giving them privacy could just be by closing their toilet door so nobody can see them when on the toilet. Focusing on strengths and the things they have the ability to do. For example when lied in bed if they can’t sit up to help themselves out of bed, rather than saying ‘you know you can’t do that on your own, you don’t need any help’ ask them ‘do you want some help? I’ll help you up, you swing your legs out of bed then you can get up’. By focusing on the things they can do you’ll be helping to promote their independence to do something else.Involving their friends and family is another responsibility to a care worker to help the individual interact with family member and friends. This could just be by taking the service user for a walk to the park on a nice day with one of their friends. Giving them the chance to get some fresh air and interact with friends. Acting in the best interest of the individual.This c ould be just by when you do take them for a walk by making sure you use a pedestrian crossing rather than just crossing the road because there are no cars coming down the road. This links into the case study with Amy for because in the case study it says ‘she is reluctant to get to get up in the morning and does not do very much for herself when getting dressed.’ As well as promoting her independence, when giving her the opportunity to interact with friends and family your giving her a reason to want to get up in the morning.The job role of a care worker is mainly working within a team and not as an individual. For example if a service user has 3 or 4 different care workers throughout the day, the care workers would communicate in a diary by saying when the service user has had their breakfast and what time they took their medication. They may also promote their independence by using a tablet box. This would work because in the diary the first care worker could say â₠¬ËœAnn took her first tablet at 9 o’clock, she is next due to take her tablet 4 hours later which will be 1 o’clock, give her the tablet box and tell her she needs to take tablet 2’.By doing this you’re giving Amy as the service user independence to take the tablet herself your just supporting her by telling her when to take it. This would help to improve the service user’s health because it means all their tablets will be taken at the right time. Also having the professionals work as a team writing different things into the diary such as what time they had their breakfast and what they had will help to minimise chances for obesity. This will help Amy by trying to keep her health and fitness levels balanced.This will also help because each different professional will also know what they had and if they had something unhealthy such as fried bacon and egg on toast, the next professional may say ‘right ok you had fried foods for breakfast lets h ave something healthy for dinner such as a tuna pasta salad or a chicken and salad pita bread with a Muller light yoghurt. By doing this they are getting more of a balanced diet. They could also write in the amount of exercise the service user has had from going for a 20 minute walk with the dog, a half an hour game on the Nintendo Wii.There are many different approaches to dementia care and all the different approaches can have their own effect to Amy as the service user. For example in the case study it says ‘Amy has always been able to get out of bed and get dressed with minimal support’ then it says ‘over the past week Amy has been staying in bed longer and longer; she is reluctant to get up in the morning and does not do very much for herself when getting dressed.’ There are different approaches to how the care worker could work with this problem.If the care worker decides to help them get up by physically  helping them, lifting them up and swinging their legs around to get them up and then get them dressed there could be quite a few possible outcomes with strengths and weaknesses of their own. One strength of this approach could be how Amy will then be up and ready for the day ahead. However a weakness to this approach could be how Amy has not done anything within the process. Another weakness to this approach could be how Amy may now expect to get this help every morning, because she has had full help and not had to do anything independently. A different approach to how the care worker could work with this problem could be by helping her with minimal help like usual.Saying to Amy ‘come on Amy, I’ll help you sit up, you swing your legs around if you can.’ Once Amy is up by then helping her get ready rather than just getting her ready. A strength to this approach could be how Amy will of managed to get herself with minimal support just like n a regular day. A weakness to this approach could be pain Amy may f eel when swinging her legs out of bed to get up.’ However another strength to this approach is how Amy has still had her independence promoted because she has still been able to do things for herself when getting ready. Therefore no matter what approach the care worker uses to encourage Amy to get up and get ready there will be strengths and weaknesses and effects to her. Whether or not they be good or bad effects.