Group Mechanisms, Culture Company Performance

American Revolution and the Battle of the Chesapeake

American Revolution and the Battle of the Chesapeake The Battle of the Chesapeake, also known as the Battle of the Virginia Capes, was fought September 5, 1781, during the American Revolution (1775-1783). Fleets and Leaders Royal Navy Rear Admiral Sir Thomas Graves19 ships of the line French Navy Rear Admiral Comte de Grasse24 ships of the line Background Prior to 1781, Virginia had seen little fighting as the majority operations had taken place far to the north or further south. Early that year, British forces, including those led by traitor Brigadier General Benedict Arnold, arrived in the Chesapeake and commenced raiding. These were later joined by Lieutenant General Lord Charles Cornwallis army which had marched north following its bloody victory at the Battle of Guilford Court House. Taking command of all British forces in the region, Cornwallis soon received a confusing string of orders from his superior in New York City, General Sir Henry Clinton. While initially campaigning against American forces in Virginia, including those led by the Marquis de Lafayette, he was later instructed to establish a fortified base at a deep-water port. Assessing his options, Cornwallis elected to utilize Yorktown for this purpose. Arriving at Yorktown, VA, Cornwallis constructed earthworks around the town and built fortifications across the York River at Gloucester Point.    Fleets in Motion During the summer, General George Washington and the Comte de Rochambeau requested that Rear Admiral Comte de Grasse bring his French fleet north from the Caribbean for a potential strike against either New York City or Yorktown. After extensive debate, the latter target was chosen by the allied Franco-American command with the understanding that de Grasses ships were necessary to prevent Cornwallis escaping by sea. Aware that de Grasse intended to sail north, a British fleet of 14 ships of the line, under Rear Admiral Samuel Hood, also departed the Caribbean. Taking a more direct route, they arrived at the mouth of the Chesapeake on August 25. That same day, a second, smaller French fleet led by the  Comte de Barras departed Newport, RI carrying siege guns and equipment. In an effort to avoid the British, de Barras took a circuitous route with the goal of reaching Virginia and uniting with de Grasse. Not seeing the French near the Chesapeake, Hood decided to continue on to New York to join with Rear Admiral Thomas Graves. Arriving at New York, Hood found that Graves only had five ships of the line in battle condition. Combining their forces, they put to sea heading south towards Virginia. While the British were uniting to the north, de Grasse arrived in the Chesapeake with 27 ships of the line. Quickly detaching three ships to blockade Cornwallis position at Yorktown, de Grasse landed 3,200 soldiers and anchored the bulk of his fleet behind Cape Henry, near the mouth of the bay. The French Put to Sea On September 5, the British fleet appeared off the Chesapeake and sighted the French ships around 9:30 AM. Rather than swiftly attack the French while they were vulnerable, the British followed the tactical doctrine of the day and moved into a line ahead formation. The time required for this maneuver allowed the French to recover from the surprise of the British arrival which had seen many of their warships caught with large portions of their crews ashore. Also, it allowed de Grasse to avoid entering battle against an adverse wind and tidal conditions. Cutting their anchor lines, the French fleet emerged from the bay and formed for battle. As the French exited from the bay, both fleets angled towards each other as they sailed east. A Running Fight As wind and sea conditions continued to change, the French gained the advantage of being able to open their lower gun ports while the British were prevented from doing so without risking water entering their ships. Around 4:00 PM, the vans (lead sections) in each fleet opened fired on their opposite number as the range closed. Though the vans were engaged, a shift in the wind made it difficult for each fleets center and rear to close within range. On the British side, the situation was further hampered by contradictory signals from Graves. As the fighting progressed, the French tactic of aiming for masts and rigging bore fruit as HMS Intrepid (64 guns) and HMS Shrewsbury (74) both fell out of line. As the vans pummeled each other, many of the ships to their rear never were able to engage the enemy. Around 6:30 PM the firing ceased and the British withdrew to windward. For the next four days, the fleets maneuvered within sight of each other. However, neither sought to renew the battle . On the evening of September 9, de Grasse reversed his fleets course, leaving the British behind, and returned to the Chesapeake. Upon arriving, he found reinforcements in the form of 7 ships of the line under de Barras. With 34 ships of the line, de Grasse had full control of the Chesapeake, eliminating Cornwallis hopes for evacuation. Trapped, Cornwallis army was besieged by the combined army of Washington and Rochambeau. After over two weeks of fighting, Cornwallis surrendered on October 17, effectively ending the American Revolution. Aftermath and Impact During the Battle of the Chesapeake, both fleets suffered approximately 320 casualties. In addition, many of the ships in the British van were heavily damaged and unable to continue fighting. Though the battle itself was tactically inconclusive, it was a massive strategic victory for the French. By drawing the British away from the Chesapeake, the French eliminated any hope of rescuing Cornwalliss army. This in turn allowed for the successful siege of Yorktown, which broke the back of British power in the colonies and led to American independence.

Newark (Create one thats suitable) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Newark (Create one thats suitable) - Essay Example Notable contributors of the slow but steady recovery of Newark include the establishment of the New Jersey Performing Centre (NJPAC) in the 1990’s and the recent renovations of the Hahne and Company building in downtown Newark. In the late 1920s, many skyscrapers were built in Newark illustrating how the city was growing at a high rate. The city’s population increased rapidly with most people inhabiting most parts of the city and the neighbourhoods. In 1938, the city’s budgets fell from $57.8 million to $45 million in 1944 indicating a small and slow recovery from the 1930’s Great depression. Newarks’ decline was attributed to the wave that drove people to build massive housing and commercial projects. As a result, a lot of money was eliminated in circulation particularly in Newark’s activities. The Great Depression is believed to have caused manufacturers to leave the city with the jobs. Statistics show in the 1950’s the white population declined with high margins while the black population increased rapidly until 1967. It has been found out the white investors left the city’s commercial buildings and left the African Americans struggling with the substandard housing conditions, unemployment and poverty. The sharp decrease in industrial jobs caused the increased poverty rates in 1940s and 1950s. Crime and violence increased in downtown Newark where murder, homicide, theft and rape cases were consistently reported to the Newark Police Department. The good Newark’s image was destroyed with most curio shops, cafà © and art collectives being closed down during the post-World War II era. The Newark riots of 1967 caused significant decline in recovery of the Newark City in terms of economic growth, controlling crime and violence, as well as, the City’s image. In July 1967, a white police officer beat an African American citizen

Social And Economic Justice Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Social And Economic Justice Theory - Essay Example The thesis gains importance because present day Governments and Judicial systems should adopt the best available social and economic justice theory in their efforts to ensure fairness in justice delivery. Justice in this context does not confine to justice delivered in courts alone but also concerns the justice a common man is entitled in his day to day life. Courts are concerned with rule of law alone. The courts are expected to delver judgments tempered with economic and social justice to iron out differences due to unjust inequalities among people. If a law is unfair, courts are sometimes unable to reverse it because of the supremacy of law making power of the elected body. Courts can still guide the law making body to ensure observing the principles of economic and social justice while enacting laws. It is the law makers who are more concerned about how far the rules are socially and economically justifiable. Seemingly perfect law may not be really so if it is deeply gone into for which exercise knowledge of theories of justice is necessary. Not only is the law maker should know but also the members of the society so that if they are affected in toto or a particular section of the society is affected by an unfair practice or law, they can voice their concern. The three theories of justice that one must be concerned with are Utilitarianism, Justice as fairness, and Libertarianism in one's effort to find answer to the questions raised here. That is whether an individual is entitled to justice in direct proportion to his individual efforts. Utilitarianism theory posits that a society should have laws and institutions aimed to bring about general satisfaction for its constituents. As there is no instrument to measure the satisfaction, the utilitarianism finds it indirectly through the propositions of what is good for the members and what are the means to achieve it. Firstly the basic needs of human being such as food, shelter, protection should be satisfied. Aristotle laid the foundation of this utilitarian concept by holding that human actions actions are driven by their rational choices in order to realize their basic needs. Hence basic needs realization is the reflection of the utilitarian theory which satisfies the above said conditions of human good for overall happiness of the society's members. John Stuart Mill, Jeremy Bentham and Henry Sidgwick were the Utilitarians of the 19th century. John Stuart Mill held on the lines of Aristotle that human happiness depended upon liberties in speech and action as well as economic prosperity. He insisted wealth was indispensable to realize the human expectations. Utilitarians therefore wanted free education funded by public money through levy of taxes, both capitalist and mixed economy, protection of all kinds of liberties and a democratically elected form of Government. An objection to this was made by John Rawls in his A Theory of Justice 1971(pp.23-4) since institutions envisaged can turn out to be unjust. Because when the analogy of an individual's sacrificing for his future gains is applied to the society's sacrifice for the present for future benefits as can happen in the utilitarian way of

Nursing Theory Website Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Nursing Theory Website - Research Paper Example The fact that they provide links to other websites is also additional help in finding the most relevant information about the theory. The currency of the information from these websites dates 2012 and some 2011 but none of the information provided is more recent than 2012 which is still considered fairly current. The information provided in these websites about the theory is deducted from books, articles and journals and these references used are listed at the end of the theory discussion. Since these books, journals and articles are per reviewed and considered credible, then the information posted in these websites concerning the nursing theory and even other theories is also considered to be valid and reliable to be used in theoretical and practical work. Orem’s Self-Care theory is applicable in hospitals not education purposes. This is so because it aims to identify the needs of the patient through using different methods to assess the condition of the patient. After the identification, the same theory and its methods are used to attend and solve the problems the patient presents with according to their need after extensive evaluation of which outcome and treatment will be effective. The major advantage of this theory is the fact that the nurse and the patient get to interact while the nurse tries to evaluate the patient to find out the problem as well as during evaluation of the best treatment methods and the care being provided so far to the patient. It is helpful to first time nurses fresh from nursing school and who are yet to get correct the assessment and treatment. It provides guidelines as well as courage on how to interact with the patient medically. The theory is attractive because it has not been overused compared to other theories such as the Florence Nightingale’s theory. The lack of monotony and overuse of a theory leads to its appreciation as

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk | The Outsider by Albert Camus

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk | The Outsider by Albert Camus In both Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk and The Outsider by Albert Camus, the protagonist explores the significance of their existence. The two characters determine that everyone is destined to the same fate. The narrator says Its easy to cry when you realize everyone you love will reject you or die(Palahniuk, p8). Later on in the novel one understands why the narrator is unnamed, however for simplicity sake he is often referred to as Jack. Jack is right; were all privileged to the same ending. We all die, even better we all die alone. This is a philosophical outlook on life that is commonly referred to as The Absurd. Humanitys efforts to find meaning in the universe are waste because such a thing will ultimately fail. The philosophy concludes that this search for a meaning of life is a search that is humanly impossible and therefore absurd. The originally materialistic narrator in Fight Club, who remains unnamed throughout the novel, as well as the seemingly irrational French man Mers ault eventually believe whole heartily in the Absurd. Throughout both novels several examples of emerge which demonstrate their application of the Absurd. There are four commonalities in the books that offer the best illustration of this philosophy and how it applies to their lives; each commonality illustrates strange behaviour by the main characters. They challenge the reader to analyse whether or not their actions are appropriate or utterly ridiculous. Initially both protagonists are faced with a certain traumatic event; both react similarly to each other however their response is strikingly different than the average persons, they do not cry, they are not enraged because they live life completely in the present. Soon after, confronted with another odd situation, both Jack and Mersault do the strangest of things which infringe on the standard set of morals followed by most. But for a moment one wonders, why should they act any differently? Following these actions, the reader sees the most brutal consequence of their beliefs; the death and dismemberment of other characters making it clear that they do not care for the lives of others. Finally at the end of both novels, both protagonists have their epiphanies. They settle on an answer to a fundamental question, what is the significance of their life, and the lives of others? It is clear that this belief in the Absurd is what makes these novels so fascinating, it is what drove the plot, instigated character growth and lead them to an eventual peace. Jack and Mersault live life completely in the present. Their realization of lifes meaninglessness allows them to live free of remorse and guilt. They both accept their pasts and move on. Both men are confronted with an incident which would be detrimental to most. The men experience all things at face value, and so they are focused on the details of what is currently happening around them experiencing the even with a lack of forceful emotions. To most this looks like a distinct detachment from the traumatic event, and that the two men lack the understanding of basic human reaction. Within the novel Fight Club, Jack is first stuck living a materialist lifestyle. A life of mediocrity, Jack works as a product recall specialist, lives alone with his IKEA furniture and a wardrobe that was becoming very respectable. Eventually he is drawn towards a puzzling man named Tyler Durden whom he met on one of his many business trips. When arriving home from that very trip, Jack is welcomed by all his belongings scattered on the street. There had been an explosion inside his apartment. With no home and having lost all his possessions, Jack says: May I never be complete. May I never be content. May I never be perfect. Deliver me, Tyler, from being perfect and complete (Palahniuk 31). Why did Jack appear completely void of emotion at a time like this? Imagine: youve lost almost everything you own, youre left with just the clothes on your back after living your life owning everything you need. You feel sad, you feel crushed, and you are overcome with emotions. Jack feels nothing of that sort. Oh, not my refrigerator, this was the extent of his emotions felt towards the event (Palahniuk 30). Instead of becoming overwhelmed with the implications of this event, Jack looks over his items which have been scattered on the sidewalk. To Jack this explosion had blasted [his] clever Njuranda coffee table in the shape of a lime green ying and an orange yang that fit together to make a circle, and ruined his Haparanda sofa group with the orange slip covers, designed by Erika Pekkari (Palahniuk 28). These kinds of details often fall to the back of ones mind when evaluating such disadvantageous occurrences. Yet Jack definitely does not waste his time pondering about the single fact that he has lost his belongings. In the first sentence of The Outsider, Mersault is notified that his mother has died. He receives the news through a telegram. The telegram simply says that that there will be a funeral tomorrow. As heart breaking as this news should be, Mersault gets straight to the logistics of attending the funeral. His first thought is the distance to which he must travel to attend the funeral. Fifty miles, he decides he can catch the two oclock bus and get there in the afternoon (Camus 9). He does end up catching the two oclock bus and does in fact attend the funeral, yet expresses none of the emotions which are expected in such a circumstance. Mersault sees the funeral as it is and nothing more. He takes note of the small things that happen without adding an opinion about it. When they sat down most of them looked at me and nodded awkwardly. Mersault lets the reader know of all the details that do not escape him. He notices that they had their lips all sucked into their toothless mouths and tha t they were all sitting opposite me round the caretaker (Camus 15). Mersault is giving insight into how he feels about the funeral, although his mind is not busy mourning over the loss of his mother. Instead he makes remarks such as: I was tired and I was hot under my dark clothes (Camus 20). One should not be thinking about much besides the loss of a loved one at a funeral. Mersault is simply uninterested in dwelling on this fact. Both Jack and Mersault have similar experiences in the beginning of the novels. A tragic loss of a loved one and the loss of a majority of ones belongings should invoke strong emotions in a person. Not for these two gentlemen, instead its revealed that they live their lives completely in the present. In their minds, the emotions of regular individuals are meaningless and therefore they would rather use their time to experience life through all of the sense. They both feel joy and frustration like every other human being. The difference is that their feelings are purely sensual. Absurdism is very closely related to existentialism and nihilism, this branch of philosophy was extensively explored during the 19th century because of the disaster that the humanity had experienced (the brutalities of both World Wars). According to David E. Cooper, existentialist and absurdist ethics claims that: (a) moral values are created rather than discovered, (b) moral responsibility is more extensive than usually assumed, and (c) moral life should not be a matter of following rules (Cooper 179). Inside these two novels, both main characters do apparently immoral things to seemingly innocent people, for little to no satisfaction. They often do these things because they realise that their actions are untimely rendered meaningless because of death. According to Mersault in The Outsider, his new found friend and neighbour Raymond and his requests are a good enough reason to do some of the bizarre things. Several days after his mothers funeral, Raymond confronts Mersault on his way upstairs. Raymond offers Wine and black pudding to Mersault in exchange for company. Realizing that joining Raymond would save him the task of cooking dinner, he accepts. This meal was not without a catch. Raymond had explained his current predicament with his mistress; he has a plan to teach this woman a lesson for being deceptive. However the first part of the plan involved writing a nasty letter that would lower her self esteem but Raymond felt that he could not fulfill this task and insisted that Mersault should help him out by writing the letter for him. Throughout Raymonds explanation, Mersault was fully aware of how both Raymond and his mistress felt. Despite his knowledge on how the letter may affect the girl, he writes it. He did [his] best to please Raymond because [he] had no reason to please him (Camus 36). This example goes to show that he does not follow the regular set of rules that accompany morals because with his realization that his actions are meaningless in the future he has acquired a new freedom. In the beginning of Jack and Tylers relationship right after Jack had lost his apartment and all of its contents, Tyler says, he could move in with him, but he would have to do him a favour. There, drunk in a bar Jack asks what this favour will be. Tyler replies I want you to hit me as hard as you can (Palahniuk 31). Apart from being the symbolic beginning of a fight club which the plot is centered on, this simple request will demonstrate how Jack acts knowing that his actions are indifferent to the world. Of course he hits him, why not? He rational is based on the fact that acting morally and doing what most would see as sensible is pointless. The words of Mersault from The Outsider could at this point fall straight from the mouth of Jack. Everybody was privileged. There were only privileged people (Camus 116). Mersault means that we are all facing the same privileged destiny, death, and that is was unavoidable. Jacks actions do not ultimately matter to anyone, so he does not follow the rules used by most of the population which make up the basics of morality. The novels present two characters who act immorally they both decide to do things despite how immoral the things seem. Neither character is unintelligent, for they in fact do take note of the details which are their lives. By definition act morally is what you should, however both protagonists come to the judgment that to follow these rules made up by society is pointless. In accepting the Absurd, the theme of authentic existence is common, both Mersault and Jack demonstrate that very authenticity by as ones self which does not always follow the basic moral codes. To accept the Absurd is to continue to live in spite of the fact that the search for a meaning of life is absurd. In accordance with a new level of freedom acquired from the acceptance that one is free from all duty, come the theme of authentic existence. Authentic living involves being true to oneself in most situations and living in accordance with ones values and beliefs (Linley 386). Living true to oneself often accompanies the notion that ones reason and rationale are correct. This might sound like the right ways to life ones life; however in both novels both Jack and Mersault give examples of how their application to this philosophy works out. They both demonstrate a lack or care for others lives and as a result emerge as self-centered. Despite the first two rules of fight club instigated by Tyler, new men are showing up each week to fight. One weekend Jack is taking part in one of his many fights within fight club, this time however, he does not stay in the realm of fighting. Once Jack has knocked out his newcomer opponent, he does not stop striking. After ruthlessly hammering his face with his bony knuckles, Jack continues with the knotted tight butt of [his] fist after [his] knuckles were raw from [the newcomers] teeth stuck through his lips (Palahniuk 88). Afterwards he discusses his thoughts with Tyler during breakfast the following morning. Jack admitted that his insomnia had returned and that he was in a mood to destroy something beautiful (Palahniuk 87). By dismembering the face of the angel face newcomer, Jack remained authentic to himself in the situation. After the irritation with his insomnia has been flattened out, Jack calmly removed himself from the situation. Not a single feeling is expresses towards the physical and emotional damage caused to the newcomer. Mersault also presents an example of how he lives accepting the Absurd. Mersault, Raymond, and Raymonds friend have an awkward confrontation with the Arabs who dislike Raymond. After the fact, Mersault wonders the same area alone. The raging heat of the sun had caused Mersault much discomfort and therefore he strolled towards the nearest shaded area which was the riverside. Unfortunately, one of the Arabs who he knew was potentially dangerous was there sitting in the shade. Mersault describes his severe discomfort, the same intense heat that he had experience at his mothers funeral had returned at his very moment. All the veins in his forehead were throbbing at once beneath the skin (Camus 59). At this point all Mersault wants is the shade in which the Arab stands. Gun drawn, Mersault approaches the Arab in preparation for self-defence. At that point All [he] could feel was the cymbals the sun was clashing against my forehead (Camus 60). The Arab pulls out his knife and lunges for hi m. Mersault shoots the man and is finally rewarded with his shade. He acted to fulfill his desire for shade but at the same time he knew by doing this he would have to kill another man to get it. Remaining authentic to himself and abiding by his logic he chose to approach the Arab instead of finding other shade. By living true to themselves, Mersault and Jack appear to have acted eccentrically however to them it was the right decision. To them, it was better to abandon the rules that society shapes and take complete control on their lives, this way their action and their existence remained authentic. Acting true to themselves, they move past their seemingly brutal actions and thoughts onto the next thing on their mind. In Jacks case he goes on to explain to Tyler that he not only wanted to destroy something beautiful but that he wanted to everything beautiful [hed] never have (Palahniuk, 88). For Mersault, he realizes that has acquired a certain fate by shooting the man, Mersault fire four more rounds into the body purely in disappointment. They both belittle the thoughts and feelings of others to nothing because of their philosophy on life. In the last moments of both novels, both protagonists realize that in fact they do accept and embrace the Absurd. The characters themselves do not know what they really believe in until the end, but the reader knows. In the beginning the reader picks up that these two men are strange to say the least. Then, as the novels progress, their behaviour begins to reflect the philosophy of Absurdism exclusively. The acknowledgement of their beliefs pours out at a weird yet wonderful time in their life. Mersault is arrested, incarcerated, and placed on trial for his murderous act. The jury is convinced that Mersault is a soulless monster because of the lack of emotion he showed at his mothers funeral. It seems as though his murder is not what is ultimately judged in court, his seeming lack of remorse or guilt is what the judge and jury assess to decide his fate. Ultimately Mersault is condemned to death by decapitation. In prison awaiting his execution he meets a chaplain. The Chaplain attempt to turn Mersault towards faith in his hours before death, but is ultimately shot down my Mersault. As the time passes Mersault grows tired of listening to the Chaplain. Then, for some reason, something explored inside of [him] (Camus 115). At the top of his voice Mersault tells him every reason why he was wrong about religion. Mersault brings tears to the eyes of the Chaplain because he insists that he has no time for God, and that one should. When he finds composure he finally comes to realiz e how he feels about the world. He says: It was as if that great rush of anger had washed me clean, emptied me of hope, and, gazing up at the dark sky spangled with its signs and stars, for the first time, the first, I laid my heart open to the benign indifference of the universe (Camus 117). With this he finally recognizes the absurdity of the universe and humanities indifference to it. He becomes aware of the Absurd; he becomes aware that he has to create his own meaning in his life. Mersault is finally able to experience a subjective and intense meaning in the form of a peace brought about by this surrender to the benign indifference of the world.ÂÂ   When Jack finally figures out that Tyler is not a separate person but rather a separate personality, His mind spins out of control and he eventually ends up symbolically shooting himself not to kill himself but to kill Tyler. Jack ends up in a psychiatricÂÂ  hospital where he utters his final conclusion on the meaning of his life. Jack says: I look at God behind his desk, taking notes on a pad, but Gods got this all wrong. We are not special. We are not crap or trash either. We just are. We just are, and what happens just happens. And God says, No, thats not right. Yeah. Well. Whatever. You cant teach God anything (Palahniuk 154). Just like Mersault, Jack also comes to the conclusion. He remarks that to consider God as real, and a leap of faith to believe that there is meaning beyond what a human can rationalize or prove as real, is ridiculous because you cannot question it or obtain a deeper understanding that whats written in religious books. Just as Mersault does, Jack grasps the concept that lifes meaning is only to exist. These narratives give meaningful insight into the meaninglessness that is The Absurd. Both novels comprise of character self discovery. I have addressed four specific types of experiences which apply to both novels that Due to its non-conformist nature, many readers struggle with Absurdism when they are first exposed to it. Indeed, it would be accurate to describe absurdism and absurdist fiction as an acquired taste. Conversely, this genre is a favourite among scholars because it lends itself so well to interpretation, discussion, and debate. Similarly, the moral of the story is generally not explicit, and the characters are often ambiguous in nature. Restate thesis.

How Does Chaucer Present The Miller To Become Such A Vivid And Vibrant

How Does Chaucer Present The Miller To Become Such A Vivid And Vibrant Character? ‘The Canterbury Tales’ is a selection of stories written in Middle English. On a spring day in April sometime in the 14th century 29 pilgrims (including Chaucer as a character 30) set out for Canterbury on a pilgrimage. Among them is a knight, a monk, a prioress, two nun’s, the friar, the squire, the yeoman, the merchant, a clerk, a sergeant of the law, a wealthy landowner, a doctor, the wife of Bath, a supplier, the reeve, a somonour, a pardoner, Harry Bailey (the host), Chaucer himself, a haberdasher, a carpenter, a weaver, a tapestry maker, a dyere, a cook, a shipman, a poor parson, a plowman, and a miller. To entertain themselves they decide to tell a tale each on the way and another on the way back. They all start there journey at ‘The Tabard’ an inn or pub. The miller is categorised as lower class and his character when telling this story is exceedingly drunk. The miller’s tale is about an Oxford student called Nicholas who lives with an old wealthy carpenter and his young attractive wife called Alisoun. The carpenter keeps a close eye on her. One day Nicholas decides to ‘try it on’ with Alisoun without much resistance on the agreement of secrecy Alisoun agrees. In the church a parish clerk called Absolon falls in love with Alisoun. He tries to woo her over by giving her presents and money. As Nicholas lives in the same house as Alisoun she isn’t interested in Absolon. Nicholas hatches a plan to get rid of the carpenter; therefore he can spend the night with Alisoun without disturbances. Nicholas pretends to be ill and stays in his room for two days. The servant reports to the carpenter that Nicholas i... ...uch as the knight would have had a much higher standard of spoken speech, which is another contrast between the knight and miller’s tale. It is also written as a poem in rhyming couplets, which I believe keeps the story lively with continuity. In conclusion, Chaucer presents the miller to be a vivid and vibrant character by mainly imagery and colours. Chaucer is clear on his descriptions and gives incredible detail on his character. Chaucer hopes that the physical appearance of the miller will reflect the miller as a person as well. Chaucer relies on symbolism and similes to reveal the miller’s character to us; therefore Chaucer does not have to make a direct opinion of him. This keeps him as a neutral story teller, but another benefit of this is that the audience cannot hold Chaucer responsible for the miller’s tale as he is merely a neutral messenger.

Analysis of Literary Devices of Jane Eyre

Analysis of the Theme of Jane Eyre and its Literary Devices Jane Eyre is an outstanding and meaningful novel which was written by Charlotte Bronte who didn’t have a fascinating appearance, a perfect figure and a glorious family and who had the similar fate with the heroine of the novel. The essay is focused on the first chapter, life at Gateshead, in which it tells us the little Jane Eyre’s miserable and menial life at Gateshead and that her cousins and Mrs. Reed treat her badly. In this chapter, the author intends to show us Jane Eyre’s resistance toward their torture and scolds. In order to demonstrate the motif, the author uses some gothic characters and depicts evil images of persons who bully Jane Eyre. Firstly, many gothic elements are adopted in this chapter in order to set the fundamental tone and manifest what a cruel and miserable life little Jane Eyre leads. It uses many delicate and horrified words to depict the weather, the season and some other things concerning the environment. Not only does it makes us feel that it’s really bad weather, but also we can feel Jane’s emotions and feelings at that time, upset, hopeless and so on, which will incite her resistant power. Secondly, Bronte is an expert in depicting characters’ images. We can find many vivid figures in front of us via reading the chapter. Take Jane’s cousin, John, as an example. From the novel, we can see that John’s mother spoils and dotes on him and she satisfies his demands no matter how ridiculous they are. Because of those, he shapes a naughty, arrogant and capricious personality. Jane is a poor girl whose parents are dead, so she has to live with her aunt. John always teases and bullies her, for she is a fragile and obedient stranger in his eyes. And what is much worse is that his mother always gives a cold shoulder to little Jane. As time goes by, John’s maleficences become more and more violent. One day, little Jane can’t stand it and she resists. She says: â€Å" you are like a murderer, you are like a slave-driver, you are like the Roman emperors. † It uses metaphor and parallelism to depict a vivid figure of John in front us. Figures of speech made the image brighter and clearer. Third, the setting of the chapter is dark, miserable and depressive. At the beginning of the chapter, a cold, dark and rainy evening was presented in front of us, which give readers a depressive impression. The description sets the basic tone of the chapter and implicates the terrible environment in which little Jane live. In this chapter, the author intends to present Jane’s resistance to life to readers. Its dark, cold and miserable setting implicates Jane’s poor living condition and her fragile emotion, which hide the foreshadowing of her resistance. Also gothic elements employed in the chapter deepen the theme. And depictions of each character promote the development of the theme.

The new product development process

The new product development process Organizations today are constantly facing increasing global competition in the marketplace that demands more frequent innovation of goods and services that are of a high quality. The challenge such organizations face is to be more customer focused, responsive to their needs and provide goods and services that are cost effective.Advertising We will write a custom dissertation sample on The new product development process specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This can be achieved by value delivery and creation where value delivery entails order fulfilment by ensuring the flow of materials, products and services through production and distribution while value creation entails new product or service development activities that identify the customer’s needs in the form of new products or services (Handfield, et al. 2000). The new product development process is a series of interdependent and often overlapping stages during which a new pro duct or service is brought from the idea generation stage, business or technical assessment, product or service conceptualization, product engineering and design, to the readiness stage for production or manufacturing. As the product or service concept moves through these various stages, the idea is refined and evaluated for business and technical feasibility where the design is fine tuned and prototypes are developed for testing. The design is then finalized and preparations are made for the full scale production of the product or service (Handfield et al, 2000). The new service development process which is derived from new product development is mostly concerned with the development and marketing of services instead of goods. A service is an act carried out to a customer that is intangible, inseparable and heterogeneous (Luteberget, 2005). Customer Involvement in New Product/Service Development Customer involvement in the product or service development process is the interaction o r collaboration between the users of the product or service and the employees of a company during the period of product development to actualize it into a commercial product. The customer’s involvement in the development process entails an active engagement in the process with the developing company (Pinegar, 2000). As Pinegar (2000) states, the customers role in the product or service development process is viewed in terms of their expressed wants and desires, the satisfaction that the good or service offered to them, their relationship with the developing organization and their response to previous product and/or service innovations. The customer is seen to be critical in the product or service development process because he/she is viewed as an integral component in the business strategies of an organization.Advertising Looking for dissertation on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The role of customers in new product development has recently been the subject of discussion and study by researchers in the product development field. According to Pinegar (2000) the role of a customer can be classified into four categories which are coaching, partnering, reporting and advising. These classifications are used to explain the user involvement in the different stages of the product or service process. Coaching involves the identification of product problems and opportunities in the market place and generating ideas that will be used in the product development process by conducting customer surveys to find out whether the current products meet the changing needs of consumers. The partnering category involves the evaluation and analysis of alternative methods of product implementation while exploring the possible applications of the product other than those it was designed for. A business analysis is conducted where the customer partners with employees of the company to see whe ther the product or service will be viable in the market place. The analysis of new innovation ideas will involve methods such as attribute analysis which has three approaches that can be used in generating new product or service ideas. The determinant gap analysis approach entails considering the attributes of the marketplace in determining which product or service innovation a company should undertake. These attributes can be the competitor’s products/services or previous products and services the company has produced (Anandan, 2009). Perceptual gap analysis is used to analyze ideas when the attributes of the products or services in the marketplace are unknown. The similarity and dissimilarity analysis involves the evaluation of previous products/services by analyzing their similarity or dissimilarity to each other based on product/service attributes. Similarity analysis evaluates products on the same set of attributes while dissimilarity analysis focuses on the different a ttributes of the product/service (Anandan, 2009). After the idea has passed through the business analysis stage successfully, the next step will involve the actual development of the product and prototype testing. During this stage the idea is translated into more concrete and tangible terms with regards to a product while for a service it is translated into a doable act. This stage involves the consideration of customer satisfaction and technical feasibility by analyzing customer surveys and researching of the market to find out whether the product is satisfying their needs (Avlonitis and Papastathopoulou, 2006).Advertising We will write a custom dissertation sample on The new product development process specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The advice category involves the use of product development specialists to identify product or service problems and opportunities by monitoring the trends in the market place and also the activities of their competitors. This stage is useful in the idea generation stage and also in the product testing stage of the product/service development. The product is tested in-house by the design team, a process known as alpha testing or by providing a sample to the intended market users a process referred to as Beta testing. The alpha and beta testing methods are mostly used by developers of computer software who provide beta versions of their software for testing to computer experts. Gillette Company is well known for its ability to successfully launch new products into the market and meet its consumer’s needs. This is largely due to their continued use of the alpha and beta testing methods (Avlonitis and Papastathopoulou, 2006). Focus groups are also used in this stage to test product samples by looking at what other applications the product can be used for. The last phase is the product launching phase into the market. During this stage, company finalizes and implements the pr oduction or service operations plan and also the marketing plan. The customer’s involvement in this stage will be to purchase, use and provide feedback about the product. The reporting category is useful to the company as it enables the users of the product or service to provide feedback on the tests conducted on the new innovation by carrying out customer surveys, market research and customer visits (Pinegar, 2000). Managing Customer Involvement in the Product Design Process The early stages of the product design process are sometimes characterised by uncertainty when it comes to identifying product concepts that will lead to the development of a successful product that will be acceptable by the market. Poor management of customer involvement knowledge in these early stages might lead to problems involving customer acceptance and product design in the final stages of the development process which might prove to be expensive to reverse. Because customers are the final stakeho lders of the product, involving customers during the first stages of the development process will reduce uncertainty that is usually associated the process (Bogue and Sorenson, 2006). In order to manage customer involvement effectively and efficiently, Bogue and Sorenson note that market orientation should be considered by companies that are pursuing new product innovations. Companies that have market orientation are viewed to be more proficient in gathering and analyzing information collected from consumers in the market. Customers are viewed by these market oriented organizations to be significant designers because they make important contributions to the product design.Advertising Looking for dissertation on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Market oriented companies are expected to have a clear understanding of the needs of the customer which will allow them to manage the customer’s involvement and the knowledge they provide in developing the product which will in turn enable them to develop products or commodities that are of a superior quality to meet the customers needs resulting in a positive influence on the innovation activities of the company. Customer involvement management can be done by carrying out facilitation in the concept development stage by using techniques such as focus groups, sensory analysis and conjoint analysis methods. These market oriented techniques can help the company to determine the feasibility of the product design and its acceptance to the market (Bogue and Sorenson, 2006). Users of New Product/ Service Development in Companies: Volvo and Skype Skype, the global free telephony Company that is rapidly expanding in its operations around the world involves customers in its new servic e development process. In Skype’s service development, customers are allowed to co-produce the directory by downloading Skype software and then registering as users of the software. The customers can then expand the directory by recommending Skype to their colleagues, family and friends. As their friends register, they can also download the same software and expand their directories in the same way. Skype does not need any mainframes since it incorporates the unused capacity in its registered users. This means that it is the users who facilitate the creation of value in Skype’s services by sharing and developing in Skype’s services. The customers also have the opportunity to run the help desk (Edvardsson, et al. 2006) In its product and service development process, Volvo uses the program Concept Lab Volvo to inform its customers and users of its products and services about its design principles and also about emerging car design concepts. The users are allowed t o provide feedback on these car designs and they can also have one on one chat sessions with the developers and design team. The developers use this information in their ongoing design work. Volvo also uses target groups in its idea sourcing stage where people in trend sensitive markets and areas with a high design capability are invited to design parts or components of the whole car. An example of this target group is the Your Concept Car which was designed by eight women (Edvardsson et al, 2006). Success and Failure of New Product Development Sampson (as cited by Luterberget, 2005) in his 1970 studies described a new product or service to be successful by looking at whether it has satisfied the needs, wants or desires of customers. He also described a successful new product as possessing outstanding performance when compared to other products that were designed for the same purpose. Products which undergo minor or major changes might fail to meet the classification of successful n ew product innovations. A major source of successful competitive advantage for organizations in the future will be the consistent and successful development of new and modified products and services. However the product life cycles are reducing as the product variety increases because of niche market penetration. In the case of a group of consumer products introduced in the 1920s, the average time from the introduction to the peak production of the product was approximated to be 28 years. For a group of similar products introduced in the 1960s-70s the approximate time for peak production was estimated to reduce to 10 years. This trend is seen to continue and will pose a threat to the product development process (Barclay, et al. 2000). In a 1987 case study of 149 UK engineering based companies, surveys conducted found that the average product life cycle was 12 years and the average development of a new product was 22 months. The same surveys were conducted again in 1996 and they show ed that the product life cycle had now become eight years while the development of a new product would now take 15 months. Such estimations show that the number of new products introduced into the market in the next five years would be twice that of the last five years (Barclay et al, 2000). When research evidence on the success and failure of product or service development is examined, the failure rates have remained at 30% for the last 60 years. This evidence shows that companies are not improving in their product development activities and that they are also becoming more expert and critical in the approaches to new product or service development. An example of a product design that failed in the past is the Premier Safe Cigarette which was seen to be one of the biggest design failures of all time. The basic idea behind this cigarette was to have an inner cardboard tube with holes along its length which would hold the tobacco. At the end of the tube was some charcoal which when l it released nicotine. The nicotine passed through the holes in the tube which reduced the chances of smoke and tar. After seven years of development, test marketing was conducted which showed that the cigarette was difficult to light and it had a terrible taste. The failure of the cigarette cost the developing company, RJR Nabisco $500 million, a result which was partly attributed to the break up of the company. A service design that failed in the recent past was the Internet University (UkeU) which was launched in September 2003. The program was abandoned after 900 of the expected 5,600 students enrolled for courses that cost  £44,000. The failure was due to that fact no previous market research had been conducted to determine if there was any demand for e-learning. The losses incurred amounted to  £50 million (Hollins and Shinkins, 2006, p.131-132). Conclusion and Recommendation The ability to produce a steady flow of successful new products or services consistently is one of the key factors that lead to an organizations success. The role of a customer in product and service development is a fairly new concept that is yet to fully catch on with most companies when it comes to developing new innovations. However the general feeling about incorporating the user’s views while developing the products/services is optimistic and good. Researchers have also shown involving customers in the development process increases the success of the goods or services in the market in terms of launching and sales. Customer involvement will also lead to improved quality in company products or services with customer value being taken into consideration. The performance of the product in the market can also be monitored by looking at how involved the customer was in the development process. Organizations should therefore view customer involvement in the development process as vital since the success or failure of a product or service will depend on whether it meets the needs and desires of its target market. Companies should ensure there is user involvement in their new innovations as this ensures that the needs in the target market have been met, satisfied and incorporated into the new product or service. Companies should also have a clear view of what they want to achieve by customer involvement in their product and service innovations. References Alam, I. (2002) An exploratory investigation of user involvement in new service development. Journal of Academy of Marketing Science, Vol.30 p.250-261. Anandan, C. (2009) Product management. 2nd Edition. New Delhi : Tata McGraw-Hill. Avlonitis, G.J. and Papastathopoulou, P. (2006) Product and services management. London: Sage Publications Barclay, I., Dann, Z. and Holroyd, P. (2000) New product development: a practical workbook for improving performance. Great Britain: Reed Educational and Professional Publishing Ltd Bogue, J., and Sorenson, D. (2006) Managing customer knowledge during the concept  d evelopment stage of the new food product development process: Department of  Food Business and Development. Ireland: University College Cork Burmann, C., and Arnhold, U. (2008) User generated branding: state of the art  research. Berlin, Germany: Transaction Publishers Edvardsson, Gustafsson, Kristensson and Magnusson (Eds) (2006) Involving customers in new service development. London: Imperial College Press Gruner, K.E and Homburg, C. (2000) Does Customer Interaction Enhance new product success. Journal of Business Research, Vol 49, p.1-14. Handfield, R.B., Monczka, R.M., Ragatz, G.L. and Frayer, D.J. (2000) New product development; strategies for supplier integration. Milwaukee, US: American Society for Quality press Hollins, B., and Shinkins, S. (2006) Managing service operations: design and implementation. London: SAGE Publications Ltd. Pp. 131- 132 Luteberget, A. (2005) Customer involvement in new service development: how does customer involvement enhance new service succes s? Master’s Thesis in Information and Communication Technology. Agder University College: Faculty of Engineering and Science, Vol (2) 12-16 Pinegar, J.S. (2000) Customer involvement in industrial product development: creating superior products. Power point presentation [online]. Web.

Roman Architecture and the Vancouver Court House essays

Roman Architecture and the Vancouver Court House essays One of our progressions in the world is trying to minimize the size of our global village. The world has been made smaller with the means of the internet and air travel. Art, without a doubt, is no exception to the group of contributors of the shrinking world. In some forms, it is the most powerful route to bringing different people together. People around the world are separated by language and art speaks many languages that can be understood by everyone. The Pantheon, in Rome, is a well known building for its innovative forms of construction. People then and people now know how to listen intently with their eyes and comprehend its magnificence. It has been very influential to many art pieces to follow and to society. The Vancouver Courthouse, now known as the Vancouver Art Gallery, is a product of its influences; it is a translation of the Pantheon. In July of 118, Hadrian entered Rome as the new emperor after Trajans death. His goal was to leave in Rome a permanent memorial of his reign. The construction of the Pantheon can also be credited to the architect of the project, Marcus Agrippa. The building would fulfill his Hadians need and as well as satisfy the symbolism for this new reign. Along with having symbolic references, the Pantheon also stood concretely as a temple. To set the temple apart from many other monuments, the traditional porch with the columns was joined with the domed rotunda. The interior of the dome is as exciting as the exterior. Lining the dome are many five ringed coffers and provide the diminishing effect. At the very top of the dome is a circular opening, like a Cycloptic eye. This is the entrance for the suns rays to fill the gigantic space of the rotunda. This eye not only combines the tradition of respecting gods from the heavens, but it also welcomes the outside world. Unlike the Gre eks Parthenon, the Pantheon was to be entered ...

Jstor exercise Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Jstor exercise - Essay Example dashi Wakabayashi as he reviewed different works on the comfort women, sexual slavery, and the prostitution that was brought about by the occupation of the Japanese militia in different countries. In a nut shell, the article speaks of the situation that the women experienced during the stay of the Japanese. The article emphasized that the worst crime that were committed against women was rape. The article expresses of the pain and the trauma that was experienced by the women in the countries that were ‘raped’ by Japan in her military conquest on different countries of the Pacific. As much as the Japanese had fallen in the war against the Allied powers, nothing would prove enough as a form of atonement for what has been done to the women by the Japanese soldiers. The article’s discussion on another form of ‘death’ or felony that has been done by the Japanese military would prove a useful source for the paper in class as it discusses another point of view concerning ‘genocide.’ The article does not state a direct form of death to a specific culture or race of any kind in its content so this can be used as a secondary source for the class and its

Using technology to improve students listening and speaking Essay

Using technology to improve students listening and speaking - Essay Example In the current advent of innovation and globalization, with shrinking distances and integrated economies, the world of education is also undergoing a paradigm shift. This paper focuses on the use of technology to improve EFL students’ listening and speaking skills. The mode of education and instructional methodologies are shifting from the conventional use of oral and print media, including lectures and textbooks to more modern forms such as the use of computers (including computer assisted language learning or CALL), internet (which provides access to online libraries, electronic journals, search engines, websites which allow audio and video streaming and email facilities) and multimedia (including audio tapes, videos, etc). Acquisition of a second language comprises of four main components viz. listening, speaking reading and writing. Technology can be used to enhance all of these aspects of learning via different modalities.In the modern era of innovation and globalization, with shrinking distances and integrated economies, the world of education is also undergoing a paradigm shift. The term technology refers to the formation of new ideas, products or tools that extend our natural abilities and bring about changes in our social environment. Technology is completely responsible for how structured our civilization has become. Modern technology has not just influenced the industrial and corporate world but also has a great impact on our personal lives. Many of the everyday items we use nowadays are a result of technology. These technological advancements have brought about improvements in our health, the clothes we wear, the way we travel and communicate and hence, revolutionized the way we live. Similarly, it has also influenced the mode of education and instructional methods and tools used in the classroom to facilitate learning amongst students. In this fast growing world of technology, people are continuously looking for new and innovative ways of co mmunication. Research Question The research question discussed in this paper is whether the use of technology in the EFL/ESL classroom helps in enhancing students’ listening and speaking skills and in what ways is this achieved. Literature Review Effective learning results from a complex interplay of several factors including the mode of instruction, the communication skills of the instructors and the interest and the capability of the learners (Orellana, 2010). Thus, any interventions aimed at enhancing the learning process must target all these factors. The main aim of teaching any language to students in the classroom as a second or foreign language is to enhance their skills in four important aspects, viz. listening, speaking reading and writing in order to enable them to use that language fluently as a medium of communication (Xu, 2005). These are also the aims when English is taught to students as a foreign or second language, i.e. EFL or ESL, and can be achieved in a v ariety of ways. Listening is one of the most important tools in aiding and facilitating the learning process. Research as revealed that an average human being spends atleast 45% of his/her time in listening and approximately 85% of the knowledge that a person possesses throughout life has been acquired via listening (Xu, 2005). Moreover, while learning a new language, listening skills become more important as listening not only helps in facilitating comprehension but also aids in the acquisition of the proper accent, grammar and pronunciation. In a recent study carried out among Chinese students learning English as a second language, it was found that one of the most commonly encountered problems by EFL were in the listening aspect of learning (Yang, 2007). This problem can arise due to a variety of reasons including the fact that listening is a relatively neglected component while teaching a language and thus most teaching strategies fail to focus on this aspect