Imagine you are Marco Essay Example for Free

Imagine you are Marco Essay Imagine you are Marco. Write a letter to your wife telling her about your journey to America, where you are staying and your work. Eddie and Beatrice Carbone 441 Saxon Street BROOKLYN NEW YORK U. S. A Dear family and friends I am missing you all desperately. It has been two months since I have seen you all. The journey was in cramped conditions, we experienced a mix of storms and showers. This didnt bother Rodolpho or me as the fishing trips to Africa and Yugoslavia prepared us well. I spent most of my time conversing with another group of Sicilians. We shared our hopes of America. Our main worry was that we would be caught getting off the boat and deported. The travelling was long and boring with loud thunderstorms at night, which made it impossible to sleep. Because of the large amounts of people on the ship it was very cramped. We had to sleep on the floor, which was hard and uncomfortable. The only way I stayed sane was thinking of succeeding at the American dream and returning to Sicily as rich as some of the tourists! When the ship docked in Brooklyn a very kind and hospitable man named Tony Bereli met us at the pier. He dropped us off at Beatrices house were we are temporarily staying. I was surprised at how nice Beatrices house was after Bereli described it as a slum. Over here in America people live in apartment blocks and estates instead of the shacks were used to back home. New York is a great city. At first I was some what taken aback by the citys daily hustle and bustle. Its so different from the town in Sicily where we know everyone. Beatrice looked very pleased to see us and asked after you and the childrens welfare. She introduced us to her niece Catherine who has stayed with them all her life as her parents died when she was very young. They were both very welcoming but Beatrices husband Eddie seemed as though he was a bit uneasy with our presence. Eddie told us about working on the docks as a longshoreman. He said we could earn up to forty dollars a week! The house is small with five people in it but I cannot complain otherwise I would be out on the streets. I am pleased to say both Rodolpho and me have found work as longshoremen loading and offloading things from other countries like coffee and tea. Whenever I get paid I will send the money home for you and the children. The main things I miss apart from you and the children are the scenery and the warm weather. In New York its cold with wall-to-wall skyscrapers. Rodolpho has taken to the bright lights of New York like a duck to water. He and Catherine seem to have something going on. Last week she took him on a grand tour of the city ending up in up in the Paramount Cinema. They arrived back at about midnight, Eddie was furious. He said Catherine had never been out so late. Eddie is too over protective of Catherine; he treats her like a kid! Its as if he is trying to keep Catherine for himself! Eddie treats Rodolpho like dirt. He insulted him calling him Danish because of his blonde hair. Eddie then went on to teach Rodolpho boxing classes in which he gave himself a good excuse to beat him up. Unprovoked incidents like these anger me. I wanted to get up and defend Rodolpho but didnt want to offend Beatrice. I asked Eddie if he could lift a chair from the bottom, he failed to do this. Then I lifted the chair over my head and looked him in the eye. This was my way of gaining a physical and mental advantage over Eddie. The look of defeat on Eddies face was a picture! How are Maria and Luigi? I am missing them so much. As soon as I get paid I will send money so you can buy Luigi some money for his chest. Tell them I wish I could be with them but I had no choice about leaving, wed have starved otherwise. I am working overtime everyday so I can come home to you and the kids soon. Then we will have plenty of food and will never have to worry about starving again. Take care of yourself and the kids. I will write soon Marco xxxxxx Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Arthur Miller section.

Mainstream Literature Does this Worsen the Text?

Mainstream Literature Does this Worsen the Text? How far does conceding to the popular mainstream strip a text of its literariness? (Explore the ways in which your chosen essay texts negotiate competing demands of literary and the popular) William Faulkner said of Ernest Hemingway: He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary (UOI, 1947) attempting to demean the literariness of his works. Hemingway responded; Poor Faulkner. Does he really think big emotions come from big words? I know them all right. But there are older and simpler and better words, and those are the ones I use. (Ross, 1950) His response to Faulkners elitism suggests that a text does not have to adhere to the implicit, often judgemental rules that define a piece of work as literary in order to be worthy of such a title. Using the poems of Linton Kwesi Johnson and The Hunger Games by Susanne Collins, I will analyse how both authors navigate the fine line between what is popular and what is literary, and whether this affects the overall impact of their work or its integrity as literary fiction. I intend to argue that a text does not have to present itself in a literary fashion in order to be considered worthy of the te rm literary, and similarly, literary texts can exist without conforming to the demands of mainstream culture whilst still being appreciated by modern society. In its simplest definition, literature is simply a written work; it is only when we place the boundaries of what is considered intellectual, or art, upon it that there becomes any kind of speculation as to whether a writers work is literary or not. In contrast, popular culture is a term associated with primarily Western entertainment, news, technology and sports. In its initial conception, the idea of popular was one associated with the uneducated working class, in comparison to the literary culture of the upper classes. Pop culture was the culture of those outside the power establishment; it was entirely separate from scorned and excluded by those in power, who had their own official culture (Berrong, 1986). As a result, there is an ongoing elitism toward popular culture, with many labelling it trite or unintelligent, or suggesting that low culture stress substance, form and being totally subservient; there is no explicit concern with abstract ideas or even with fictional forms of contemporary social problems and issues content to depict traditional working class values. (Gans, 2008) As a result, creators and audiences of popular culture are by association considered to be superficial or lacking in intellect. Popular fiction is defined as plot-driven fictional works, written with the intent of fitting into a specific literary genre, (French, 2010) so as to appeal to mainstream readers who buy into the pre-existing format because it is familiar, recognisable and easily digested. These so-called conventions of popular fiction are specific settings, roles, events and values that define individual genres and their subgenres (McKee, 1997) and often, publishing houses are known to present obligatory guidelines for authors to follow in order to have their works considered for publication. Any literature in fitting with these conventions is usually considered separate from literary fiction by critics for being stereotypical and poorly written; those texts are created solely to provide escapism to its readership as opposed to meaningful, carefully crafted prose that might incite thought or action. Literary fiction refers to works that hold so-called literary merit, which here means that they compr ise of political commentary, comments on societal hegemonic ideologies and the human condition. Like its popular counterpart, literary fiction is written purposely with its own set of conventions in mind, with the difference being that the focus of the works involved lingers more on themes than on fast-paced plot progression or audience appeal. It is arguable that pop culture is the easiest way to appease the mainstream, an audience fundamentally made up of young people; technology has transformed culture, especially popular culture, into the primary educational site in which youth learn about themselves and the larger world (Giroux, 2000). There has always been contentious debate regarding the discrepancies between high art, a category into which literature falls, and popular culture. However, it is arguable that this debate is obsolete; the distinction between the two is blurred just because a piece of work is easily accessible and appeals to the masses, does not necessarily sacr ifice its credibility or deem it an unintelligent piece of work that is lacking in thought. A televised adaptation of Austens Pride and Prejudice, or Baz Luhrmans modern reimagining of Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet, for instance, could be considered literary in an intertextual manner, being as their origins hail from classic literature. For instance, author John Storey would argue that the quantitative definition of culture has the problem that much high culture is also popular (Storey, 2014), making the two difficult to separate into distinguishable categories. It also could be said that pop culture is more intrinsic to society than so called high art, because it wields so much influence over the general public and which media they do or do not consume; in the struggle over the symbolic order that characterizes our times, popular culture developed by name brands and various forms of media, including the Hollywood film industry is crucial in creating the identities and representat ions that our youth embrace (Reynolds 2006). Linton Kwesi Johnson is a Jamaican writer based in the United Kingdom the second living poet, and the only poet of colour, to be immortalised in the Penguin Modern Classics collection. Johnson is a dub poet a genre that is, according to him, overcompensation for deprecation and as a writer, refuses to conform to English standards of poetry; he uses Creole patois as a political statement, defying the expectations society holds for poets. This phonetic, unstandardized transcription of his own language is certainly not that of great literary figures Jane Austen, George Orwell or Charles Dickens, and yet, he has been awarded the Golden PEN award in 2012 for a Lifetimes Distinguished Service to Literature. His idea of poetry has been passed through generations, and did not simply consist of standard Received Pronunciation English or what was deemed publishable but included traditional slave songs. Johnsons poetry is heavily inspired by the Black Panther movement, a group in which he be came active during his school years; their belief being that violence in the face of constant racism is necessary, using militant revolutionary force against the racist police and segregation of 1960s London. He himself describes his writing as a political act [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] poetry was a cultural weapon (Wroe, 2008). It was during Johnsons childhood that the SAS law, or the 1824 vagrancy act, was reintroduced, which enabled the police to arrest someone they suspected had intentions of committing a crime, allowing police to exploit and arrest people of colour in London without any evidence. The subject matter of his poetry is usually political, depicting his experiences as an African-Carribean living in Britain, but has also focused on foreign policies and police brutality. Johnsons poem If I woz a tap natch poet serves not only as an example of his subversion from the conventions of literary work but simultaneously describes his rejection of the canon, and his interstitial position between musician and poet, between high art and popular culture, between politics and aesthetics (McGill 2003). For instance, he begins if I waz a tap-natch poet, like Chris Okigbo, Derek Walcot ar T.S Eliot (Johnson, 2004); the opening challenges any predispositions suggesting that canons operate according to transparent principles of coherency or homogeneity. Chris Okigbo signals an alternative to the Western Canon advocated by critics. In contrast, Derek Walcott is a Nobel laureate, and his appearance suggests a movement back towards conservative tastes. However, the inclusion of T.S. Eliot demonstrates that the canon Johnson is crafting is unfortunately one made up entirely of people of colour. He continues by saying if he were top-notch himself, he would write a poem so h dyam deep/dat it bittah-sweet (Johnson, 2004), implying that the works of Okigbo, Walcott and Eliot create work that is deep or poses intellectual questions, a prerequisite of literariness. Moreover, the poem appears to carry another irony when analysed more thoroughly in that T. S Eliot appears as a token white poet, which is reflective of the way in which right-wing institutions that anthologise the zeitgeist of the times, such as anthologies, are known for including very few people of colour, sometimes just a single person, to demonstrate supposed diversity and avoid criticism or backlash from minorities. On perhaps the other end of the literary spectrum to Johnson is Suzanne Collins, an American writer, renowned for her young adult dystopian trilogy The Hunger Games. She was born in Harvard, Connecticut but being the daughter of a military officer, consistently moved across America. Consequently, inspired by her fathers career in the Air Force, her work tackles themes of war and its effects on the world, including poverty, starvation and innocent civilian death. The Hunger Games is set in Panem, a post-apocalyptic America made up of the Capitol and 12 surrounding districts; every year, two children from each district, male and female, are chosen to take part in an obligatory, televised fight to the death, known as the Hunger Games. The staggering popularity of her work resulted in her being named one of Time magazines most influential people of 2010 and as of March 2012, became the best-selling Kindle author of all time. It is not unusual for creators of literature to use so called p op culture tropes and appropriate them into high culture works; with the blurred lines of literary and popular first identifiable in the Romantic period where romance fiction became a substantial influence on future literature, despite having been previously disparaged. More recent examples include Andy Warhols use of the Campbell soup can in his pop art, as well as artist Jeff Koons conceptualising kitsch and pornography, subject matters often vilified for lacking in culture or finesse, to create new work which is supposedly worthier of the label high art. This same technique of intertextuality and the idea that any one piece of literature is created by combining several others is arguably evidenced in Collins dystopian novel; on the surface, it is a young adult romance implementing the typical formulaic conventions and character archetypes evidenced in the majority of mainstream pop culture, arguably inspired by the critical success of Stephanie Meyers Twilight saga. However, when discussing the origin of The Hunger Games, Collins cites the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur as the most significant inspiration for her book a classic Greek tale wherein Minos forces the people of Athens to sacrifice 14 women and children to be slaughtered by the Minotaur in the never-ending labyrinth. She also interweaved the concept of the Roman gladiator games; an all-powerful and ruthless government, people forced to fight to the death, and the games role as a source of popular information (Scholastic, 2010) and in doing so, she successfully brings re nowned, classic Greek literature to the mainstream audiences, albeit in a more easily digestible fashion, by reimagining the stories in a fashion that appeals to pop culture fans. Contrastingly, Johnsons poetry focuses not on fabled morality tales, but on real life issues of racism, segregation and police brutality, particularly in London, where he grew up. It can be assumed that, as this is not a topic to which popular culture utilise for its audiences, he does not concern himself with the opinions of critics, or of his audience for that matter, on his work. It is my understanding that it is more important for Johnson to promote anti-racial messages and protest against the mistreatment of people of colour. Johnson himself said that writing anti-establishment poetry during the Race Riots could be considered an act of protest, an act that could have been to his great detriment as a result of the United Kingdoms fervent racism. This shows Johnson to have integrity he is writing about what he believes is important and worth saying; one way to perform a test of literary merit must be, first, the sincerity of the writer. I would be willing, I think, even to add t he seriousness of purpose of the writer (Peters, 2006). From this, one can argue that Johnsons sincerity in his writing of his experiences, and his determination to express anger and encourage reactions to political issues makes his work literary. In If I waz a tap-natch poet, he purposely distinguishes himself from any of the other writers he mentions; he seems to exist in a liminal space, and it is difficult to discern where he sees himself within the hierarchy of literary and popular. It is arguable that he doesnt consider himself a part of either category, because neither of them serve any importance to him. However, whether a text is deemed literary or popular is very rarely a decision made by its own creator; Johnson is simply distancing himself from the process, as he feels it is unnecessary. Although his work holds no evidence of popular culture references, it is certainly popular amongst a specific minority group; people of colour. They have experienced many of the atrociti es he writes of, and can relate to them in a way that the white Western mainstream cannot. As a result, I would argue that Johnsons writing is certainly popular amongst a niche audience, and that appealing to the mass market is not the only category that makes a text worthy of the title. Johnson first became active in the poet community in school, but he was not published until 1974, in the journal Race Today. In the same year, Harper Lees controversial bildungsroman To Kill a Mockingbird was also released. Both Johnson and Lee tackle the subject matter of racism, albeit in different areas of the world, and Lees novel is regarded as one of the greatest of our generation. The difference between Harper Lee and Linton Kwesi Johnson is that one is a privileged white woman, and the other a Jamaican man of working-class background, whose poetry is not isnt carefully pre-packaged in the standard Oxford Dictionary English, the mainstream being young white heterosexual teenagers, who of cour se, prefer to access literature in this way. Johnson is angry about his mistreatment, and that of so many other people of colour, at the hands of white policemen and politicians and civilians. When declaring a text worthy of literary merit, critics significantly consider the moral or messages the story is trying to create, usually through the medium of symbolism or allegory. The metonymic concept of bread and circuses becomes particularly apt when looking at The Hunger Games, as the Latin translation Panem et circenses served as inspiration for the name of the novels fictional setting, Panem. The phrase, first used by Juvenal, who was degrading the sheep-like nature of common people, their selfishness and obliviousness to wider concerns and civic duty, alludes to an appeasement with a lack of substance. It refers to the way in which supposedly democratic governments make use of superficial distractions to satisfy the immediate, shallow requirements of a populace in order to continue to manipulate them for hegemonic gain. Although this could make reference to the Capitols attempts to placate the districts so they cannot overthrow their regime and dismantle their hierarchy, it could also be an allegory for the way in which popular culture works in the real world. When taking a Marxist reading of the novel, it is arguable that Collins was inspired by the Industrial Revolution, most noticeably the living conditions in 19th century Europe. Katniss illustrates this by saying What must it be like, I wonder, to live in world where food appears at the press of a button? How would I spend the hours I now commit to combing the woods for sustenance if it were so easy to come by (Collins, 2008). Collins plot coincides with Marxs socialist philosophy; Panem is comprised of two groups, the proletariat, or the people of the districts, and the bourgeoisie, or the Capitol. This highlights what is a fundamentally unfair system wherein the majority of wealth is held by the minority whilst the general public struggle to maintain a living. This is further evidenced by President Snows hosting of the Hunger Games, themselves, wherein his government hold complete power over the Districts and their people, who have absolutely no hope of ascending to higher status. Katniss, the protagonist of the novel, lives in the district that is hardest hit by the Capitols regime. She represents the lowest of the proletariat, whereas the closer the districts are to the Capitol, the more advantageous; Its tempting, so tempting, when I see the bounty waiting there before me. And I know that if I dont get it, someone else will. That the Career Tributes who survive the bloodbath will divide up most of these life-sustaining spoils. (Collins, 2008) Here, Katniss describes the Career tributes are more likely to survive, having received training for their entire lives to prepare for the games. Whilst Districts One and Two still have to supply children for the games, this is a mere faà §ade, bread and circuses; Snow makes the districts think everything is equal, but in actuality, the Career tributes are much likelier to survive and win the Games, thus maintaining the bourgeo isie whilst slowly killing off the poor. However, Katniss follows the Marxist ideology and seizes the means of production. Collins writes Without a victor, the whole thing would blow up in the Gamemakers faces. Theyd have failed the Capitol. Might possibly even be executed slowly and painfully, while the cameras broadcast it to every screen in the country (Collins, 2008) By refusing to conform, rejecting the role of victor and encouraging Peeta to do the same, this forces the Gamemakers to change the rules and allow both to win. Katniss is still aware, though, that the Capitol would have the power to make an example of the Gamemakers to restore order. These allusions to Marxism and communist theory imply that there is a lot more depth to Collins work than it at first seems; by incorporating themes of real life class issues, she is commenting on societal problems and posing a moral question regarding Americas modern class system. When asked how he would define literariness, critic Walter Van Tilburg Clark declared the final test of literary merit, is the power to endure obviously such a test cannot be applied to a new or recent work, and one cannot, I think, offer soundly an opinion on the probability of endurance (Peters, 2006). Here, he is arguing that the most significant criterion of the definition is that if a text can endure, it can be considered worthy of literary merit. It is not, then, necessary for a text to follow the other rules regarding context, connotations or conveying a higher meaning; if a text is popular, it is likely to endure. The Hunger Games Trilogy spent 50 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and has been translated to the screen as a multi-million dollar film series. Such a lengthy stay at the top of a highly-regarded rating system is suggestive of endurance, and therefore, regardless of the issues the trilogy presents in terms of stereotypical pop-culture tropes and character moulds, it can be defined as literary. In addition, the concept of literariness is one that is inherently subjective; particularly because aesthetic value is entirely based in personal preference. It is, according to critics, a relic of a scholarly elite.Similarly, the predispositions regarding popular texts and its dismissal as uncultured also seem to be outdated views stemming from old-fashioned beliefs. The examination and understanding of popular culture, therefore, is necessary to understanding ourselves, our identities and the world that surrounds us. A text that is considered brilliant by one, will be terrible to another; we each have different interests and tastes, and there is never going to be unanimity when defining literary and popular and the difference between them. The study of popular culture enables us to consider literature in a less judgemental, more open-minded fashion, voiding the inherent laws of what makes a text literary or fundamentally good. Popular cultur e does not exclusively lend itself only to companies to churn out poorly-written prose lacking in value and increase financial revenue, although it is manipulated by those in power to detract from real life issues; just because this is the case some of the time, it doesnt define all literature that falls into the category of popular as unworthy of also being literary. The two terms are not mutually exclusive, and a text does not give up its right to being one by adhering to some characteristics of the other. The spectrum of defining literary and popular categories, albeit arbitrary in nature, which are not binary opposites in terms of literature, is, in my opinion, one that is entirely personal, and each individual will hold opinion on where any given text falls; that does not make them true, as there are no correct answers. Word Count: 3496 _____________________________________________________________________ References Johnson, L. K (2002) If I Woz a Nap-Natch Poet, Mi Revalueshanary Fren: Selected Poems London: Penguin Collins, Suzanne (2008) The Hunger Games New York, Scholastic University of Iowa (1967) An Interview With William Faulkner The Western Review: A Literary Quarterly, Volume 15, Number 4 Ross, Lillian (1950) Profiles: How Do You Like It Now, Gentlemen? The New Yorker, F. R. Publishing Corporation, New York. Berrong, R.M (1986) Rabelais and Bakhtin: Popular Culture in Gargantua and Pantagruel University of Nebraska Press Gans, Herbert J (2008) Popular culture and high culture Basic Books. pp. 8-10 Storey, J (2014) From Popular Culture to Everyday Life Routledge French, C.T Literary Fiction vs Genre Fiction[online] http://www.authorsden.com/categories/article_top.asp?catid=10id=18884 (accessed December 2016) McKee, R (1997) Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting New York: HarperCollins. p. 87 Giroux, Henry (2000) Stealing Innocence: Youth, Corporate Power and the Politics of Culture, New York, St. Martins Press Reynolds, W (2006) Cultural curriculum studies, multiplicity and cinematic-machines Journal of Curriculum Theorizing, Caddo Gap Press Wroe, N (2008) I did my own thing [online] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/mar/08/featuresreviews.guardianreview11 (accessed December 2016) McGill, R (2003) Goon poets of the black Atlantic: Linton Kwesi Johnsons imagined canon Textual Practice, Vol. 17, Issue 3 Scholastic (2010) Video: Classical Inspiration, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins [online] http://ww(w.scholastic.com/thehungergames/videos/classical-inspiration.htm (accessed December 2016) Bill, M; Peters, N (2006) Howl on Trial: The Battle for Free Expression City Lights Books. p. 224. Poland as a Potential Market: Environmental Analysis Poland as a Potential Market: Environmental Analysis 1.  INTRODUCTION Servcorp is an Australian-owned services company that specialises in the provision of business solutions. Its main offerings include fully-serviced office packages (office space bundled with IT and communications infrastructure and accompanied by IT and administrative staff), virtual office products such as communications and address services, and meeting rooms for hire (Servcorp, n.d.). Servcorp has expanded its operations into New Zealand, the U.S., Asia, and Europe. While the company operates in the UK, Belgium, and France, it does not currently operate in Poland. In this report, I will analyse five environmental factors relevant to the consideration of Poland as a potential market for Servcorp. These are the country’s political and legal environment, economic environment, trade and financial environment, social and cultural environment, and infrastructure. The ensuing discussion will integrate these findings and provide an overall outlook for Poland. Finally, based on these analyses, a number of recommendations will be put forward regarding Servcorp’s potential expansion into Poland. 3.  ANALYSIS OF THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT 3.1.  Political and legal environment Poland has become one of the most politically stable European countries since it joined the European Union (EU) in 2004 (Bujnicki, 2013). In 2012, Poland ranked below the OECD average on the FDI Regulatory Restrictiveness Index (where a lower score indicates fewer restrictions on FDI) (OECD, 2012). Poland also has a number of state aid measures in place to attract foreign investment. For example, the country has 14 Special Economic Zones; these areas have relaxed income taxation rules and have the appropriate infrastructure in place for starting a business, though businesses require a license to operate in these zones (Lex Mundi, 2013). In Poland, then, Servcorp would find political environment that actively encourages FDI with the view that it is vital to developing the country’s economy. While Poland has few restrictions on FDI, its overall regulatory environment is somewhat complex. The World Bank (2013) ranked Poland 45 of 189 countries on the ease of doing business in 2013, though pointed out that the country’s tax system remains complex and outdated. It takes an average of 685 days to enforce contracts in Poland compared to the OECD average of 529 days, and a number of other bureaucratic hurdles remain (World Bank, 2013). For Servcorp, these factors mean that the company might have to do substantial research into Poland’s tax system, as it contains intricacies not present in Australia’s taxation laws. Property registration is a vital consideration for Servcorp, as the nature of the business means that they must acquire office space to hire out to clients as well as a building for their own use. The World Bank (2013) ranked Poland 54 on the ease of registering property. This is compared with a rank of 40 for Australia; however, there is only one more procedure involved in registering property in Poland than there is in Australia, so red tape in this arena is only slightly more pronounced. 3.2.  Economic environment Real GDP growth in Poland ranged from 1.6% to 6.8% during the period 2005-2012; Poland was the only country in the EU to experience a growth in GDP during the 2008-2009 global financial crisis (OECD, 2013). Real GDP in Poland is expected to grow by 2.7% in 2014 and 3.3% in 2015 (OECD, 2013). However, Poland experienced a small slump in economic growth in 2013; recent changes in fiscal policy have been aimed at encouraging economic growth through expanding the budget deficit and eliminating restrictions on fiscal stimulus measures (Onoszko Krasuski, 2013). Overall, demand for the modern services provided by Servcorp may increase as Poland’s citizens experience an increase in wealth and the economy continues to grow at a healthy rate as a result of these fiscal measures. The slight downturn in real GDP growth in 2013 has been accompanied by low inflation (Eglitis, 2013). This is promising for Servcorp, as it means that the business may be in a better position to make long-term plans with the knowledge that their purchasing power will not decline, and borrowing costs may be lower. With the Polish government’s planned relaxation of fiscal policy, however, Servcorp must continue to track changes in inflation given that these measures may work to raise inflation. 3.3.  Trade and financial environment Relevant bilateral agreements between Australia and Poland include the Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement and the Double Taxation Agreement (DFAT, 2013). These agreements ensure that the interests of foreign investors are protected in Poland, and in the case of the latter agreement, that foreign businesses do not have to pay taxes on their business profits in each of the two countries. In short, both agreements are conducive to Servcorp doing business in Poland. A discussion regarding tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade in Poland will not take place here as Servcorp is not seeking to export to or import from Poland—rather, this report considers the risks and opportunities Servcorp faces in establishing operations in Poland. For similar reasons, free trade agreements that Poland has with other European countries will not be discussed here. In 2012, Poland ranked 37 on the Financial Development Index, which along with other factors, considers a country’s financial stability (World Economic Forum, 2012). Specifically, the WEF found that Poland performed particularly well in terms of the stability of its exchange rate and banking system. The leniency with which currency transactions are treated in Poland depends heavily upon the nature of the relationship between the transactor’s home country and Poland (Lex Mundi, 2013). Because Australia has a tax treaty with Poland (ATO, 2012), Australians can expect to face minimal problems when engaging in currency transactions in Poland. It appears that Servcorp would face little financial risk in the country. 3.4.  Social and cultural environment In Poland, 60.9% of the total population live in urban areas (Central Intelligence Agency, 2013). This is compared to 80% in the UK, 97% in Belgium, and 85% in France. Poland’s comparatively low rate of urbanisation suggests that there may be less of a demand for the services that Servcorp offers (office space, IT and communications infrastructure for businesses) in Poland compared with the other European countries in which the company operates. Religion plays a prominent role in Poland, with 89.8% of the population identifying as Roman Catholic (Central Intelligence Agency, 2013). Servcorp must recognise and close business on religious occasions that are not recognised as national holidays in Australia, such as Corpus Christi. Poland also tends to score highly on uncertainty avoidance, meaning that citizens may reject unorthodox or innovative ideas put forward by some businesses (The Hofstede Centre, n.d.). This poses a small risk to Servcorp given that much of their product offering rests on their â€Å"virtual office† innovation; Poles may be wary of this unfamiliar idea. In terms of corruption, Poland’s score on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) in 2013 was 60 of a possible 100 (where 100 indicates no corruption whatsoever), above the world average (Transparency International, 2013). However, there is some concern that Poland does not have the appropriate frameworks in place to manage the growing risk of foreign bribery that comes with its expanding economy (OECD, 2013). Servcorp must be aware of this risk while simultaneously recognising that bribery is not an endemic part of Polish culture. 3.5.  Infrastructure Poland’s score on the Logistics Performance Index (LPI) in 2012 was 3.10 (where the maximum possible score is 5) (World Bank, 2012). This is substantially lower than the 2012 scores received by the European countries in which Servcorp currently operates (the UK, Belgium, and France, which received scores of 3.95, 4.12, and 3.96 respectively). The OECD (2013) remarked that the quality of Poland’s transport and communications infrastructure â€Å"are among the lowest in the OECD† (p. 217). A finding of particular concern is that Poland’s fixed broadband coverage is the lowest in the EU, at only 69.1% (Point Topic, 2012). Poland’s relatively low fixed broadband coverage may prove problematic for Servcorp given that a substantial portion of their business model rests on their provision of modern IT and communications infrastructure to organisations. When acquiring office space for company use as well as for hiring out to clients, a constant concern may be whether or not there is broadband access at that location. Though this is an issue, things may be set to improve: a joint venture between Hawe and TP Teltech is aimed at substantially improving Poland’s broadband infrastructure (van Blommestein, 2012). 5.  REFERENCES Australian Taxation Office. (2012). Countries that have a tax treaty with Australia. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.ato.gov.au/General/International-tax-agreements/In-detail/Tax-treaties/Countries-that-have-a-tax-treaty-with-Australia/ Bujnicki, P. (2013, February 23). Zloty climbs as Fitch revises Poland rating outlook to positive. Bloomberg News. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-22/zloty-climbs-as-fitch-revises-poland-rating-outlook-to-positive.html Central Intelligence Agency (2013). The World Factbook: Poland. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/pl.html DFAT. (2013). Poland country brief. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/poland/poland_brief.html Eglitis, A. (2013, November 15). Polish October inflation rate drops to lowest in four months. Bloomberg News. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-14/polish-october-inflation-rate-drops-to-lowest-in-four-months.html Lex Mundi. (2013). Doing business in Poland. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.lexmundi.com/lexmundi/Guides_To_Doing_Business.asp Ministry of Treasury (2012). Fast growth of business services sector in Poland and prospects of its continuation – business services centers are becoming Polish specialty. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://msp.gov.pl/en/polish-economy/economic-news/3641,Fast-growth-of-business-services-sector-in-Poland-and-prospects-of-its-continuat.html OECD (2012). FDI Regulatory Restrictiveness Index. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.oecd.org/investment/fdiindex.htm OECD. (2013a). Country statistical profile: Poland. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/economics/country-statistical-profile-poland_20752288-table-pol OECD. (2013b). Poland – Economic forecast summary. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.oecd.org/eco/outlook/polandeconomicforecastsummary.htm OECD. (2013a). Poland needs strategy to meet growing risk of foreign bribery. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from http://www.oecd.org/daf/anti-bribery/polandneedsstrategytomeetgrowingriskofforeignbribery.htm OECD. (2013b). Economic policy reforms: Going for growth 2013. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from http://www.oecd.org/inclusive-growth/Economic%20Policy%20Reforms%202013%20Going%20for%20Growth.pdf Onoszko, M., Krasuski, K. (2013, July 17). Poland to relax budget and fiscal rules to stimulate economy. Bloomberg News. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-16/polish-government-relaxes-budget-fiscal-rules-to-boost-economy.html Point Topic. (2012). Broadband coverage in Europe in 2012: Mapping progress towards the coverage objectives of the Digital Agenda. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from http://point-topic.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Point-Topic-Broadband-Coverage-in-Europe-in-2012-Final-Report-20130813.pdf Servcorp. (n.d.). About us. Retrieved January 6, 2014, from http://www.servcorp.com.au/en/about-us/ The Hofstede Center. (n.d.). Poland. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from http://geert-hofstede.com/poland.html Transparency International. (2013). Corruption Perceptions Index 2013. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from http://cpi.transparency.org/cpi2013/results/#myAnchor1 van Blommestein. (2012). Is Poland finally getting out of the broadband slow lane? Retrieved January 7, 2014, from http://www.zdnet.com/is-poland-finally-getting-out-of-the-broadband-slow-lane-7000003129/ World Bank. (2012). Logistics performance index: Quality of trade and transport-related infrastructure [Data set]. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/LP.LPI.INFR.XQ World Bank. (2013). Doing business 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www.doingbusiness.org/~/media/GIAWB/Doing%20Business/Documents/Annual-Reports/English/DB14-Full-Report.pdf World Economic Forum. (2012). The Financial Development Report 2012. Retrieved January 5, 2014, from http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_FinancialDevelopmentReport_2012.pdf

US Public Attitudes Towards Welfare State | Research Study

US Public Attitudes Towards Welfare State | Research Study Tim Mulligan Employment and Attitudes toward People on Welfare Welfare is one of the United States most prominent political issues. Since the U.S welfare system was established in 1935, its fiscal structure, the source of its funding and the qualifications of its recipients have been continuous topics of debate. Because of America’s highly diverse population, a plethora of attitudes have developed regarding the way that people view welfare recipients, and this may be attributed to many different factors. I took it upon myself to look more specifically at the relationship between individuals who work (or do not work) and people who are on welfare. The question that I decided to research was, â€Å"does an individual’s employment status influence their attitude towards people who are on welfare?† I believe that this is an important question to address because people tend to generalize that individuals who work have harshly negative attitudes toward people receiving welfare checks because they do not have to work for the money. If this is in fact true, then I believe it would play a huge role in the outcomes of many elections as well as how states organize their welfare systems. My hypothesis is Ha: in a comparison of individuals, those who are currently working will have more negative feelings towards people who are on welfare than individuals who are not working. My null hypothesis would be H0: there is no relationship between an individual’s employment status and their feelings toward people who are on welfare. I believe my hypothesis to be true because I think it would be very hard to find a person who works and exerts themselves to receive an income and is also tolerant of other individuals who are receiving money without having to work. Some people may feel that their work and efforts are belittled because individuals who do not put forth the same effort can still claim an â€Å"income†. There may also be individuals who had experienced financial hardship (like many of the people who utilize welfare) but worked their way back into financial stability without the aid of welfare. These people may have a more negative â€Å"if I could do it , then they should be able to do it† attitude towards people on welfare. I think this hypothesis is applicable to individuals in all types of occupations but even more so to individuals in the manual labor work force. People who work lower paying manual labor jobs could have extremely negative views towards people who are welfare because they are physically exerting themselves while welfare recipients may not have to do so themselves. On the other end of my hypothesis, individuals who are not employed could have more positive feelings toward people on welfare for several reasons. The most notable reason is that there is probably a higher chance that individuals who are not employed may in fact be receiving welfare aid themselves. I do not believe that individuals who are currently on welfare will have negative feelings towards the very program that they are using. Another factor could be individuals who are not necessarily â€Å"out of the job† but are simply not actively looking to work. For example, housewives, non-working students and young adults may not have the same negative feelings as someone who is employed because they do not have a job or income to compare with those of people who are on welfare. These groups of people may not have the same â€Å"belittled† feeling that employed people may have and they may have more neutral or positive feelings towards people who are on welfare. The data set that I used for my analysis is nes2008. This dataset is from an American National Election Time Series Study which took place in 2008. 4,424 total individuals were interviewed on a face-to-face basis, 2,322 individuals before the presidential election and 2,102 individuals after the presidential election. As can be assumed by the face-to-face polling the unit of analysis for this study was individuals. (ANES) The integrity of this data set is strong in the way that the individuals were polled on a wide variety of topics such as their voting participation, values, familiarity with the media and their ideologies. This helps to insure that the individuals do not feel as though they are being interviewed for a specific topic or to answer a specific question which could swayed their answers in a less accurate direction. The large number of people who were sampled is also a positive aspect of the data set. Though four thousand people may not perfectly represent the opinions of the entire population of the U.S, the sample size is large enough to generate at least a sufficient representation. (ANES) On the other hand, the nes2008 data set does have a few negative characteristics. The interviewing of individuals pre-and-post-election may have generated results that inconsistently represent the U.S population because of the effect that the election may have had on some people’s views or answers. Although the two waves of interviewees consisted of different people, the election may have influenced individuals to respond more positively or negatively to certain questions based on the outcome of the election. The population could have been represented far differently before the election than after the election. This may be an effect that the study was trying to induce, but for my research it does not generate the best representation of the population. Another issue with the nes2008 data set is that there was a designed oversampling of African-American and Latino respondents. This oversampling presents another issue in regards to the studies representation of the general popula tion as it may not include as many answers from other races that could affect my testing outcomes. Luckily, the data set included a formula that would help to weigh the data in a way that would better represent the population. (ANES) The dependent variable that I selected was welfare_therm. This is a continuous variable that asks for individuals to rate the warmth of their feelings toward people who are on welfare from 0 º (coldest) to 100 º (warmest). It is implied that warmer feelings are more positive than colder feelings. This was a good variable for me to use because the question that I am trying to answer pertains to individual’s feelings toward people who are on welfare. I believe rating their feelings in degrees rather than categories like â€Å"negative†, â€Å"slightly negative†, â€Å"neutral† and so on allows for individuals to be more specific when describing their feelings towards people on welfare. Although, I do believe that the wide range of the thermometer may bring about a less definitive description of what is considered a mildly positive or mildly negative feeling toward people who are on welfare. A graph depicting welfare_therm can be seen in figure 1. My main independent variable was employ_status, which had individuals identify themselves within employment status categories. These categories were: working now, temporarily laid off, unemployed, retired, permanently disabled, homemaker, and student. At first, this variable did not present the most valid measurement of employment status that I would need for my research. To generate a better representation of the feelings generated by individuals who were working or not working, I had to refine the number of categories in the variable. I recoded the variable so that an individual’s response would either register as A. working or B. not working. This new variable was called working and would serve as a better variable for measuring a relationship with my dependent variable, feelings toward people on welfare. A graph depicting working can be seen in figure 2. The first of my control variables was gender. This variable categorized individual respondents as either male or female. It is important to note that because of the way that this variable was coded in Stata (1=male, 2=female), I needed to recode it so that it would be more easily measured by my tests. I recoded the variable as 0=male and 1=female and I named the new variable female. I included this control variable because I believed that an individual’s gender would have a large impact on the feelings that they had towards people who are on welfare. Stereotypically women are assumed to be more emotional and sympathetic towards individuals who may be in need and I thought that this might have an effect on their attitude towards a person who is on welfare. The second control variable that I included in my test was hh_kids, which is a categorical measure of the number of kids in the respondent’s household. 0=no kids 1=one kid and 2=two or more kids in the household. I believe that this variable would have served my research better if the categories represented the dynamic of households with few kids and households with many kids better. Perhaps categories such as 0 kids, 1-3 kids and 3 or more kids would have been better because I do not think that 2 kids represents a household with â€Å"many† kids, which was the dynamic I was aiming to measure. I do believe that this variable is sufficient, though. I believe that the number of kids that an individual has in their household effects their feelings toward people on welfare because individuals with many children may know what it’s like to be on a tight budget or to have to provide for children. People with many kids in their home could be sympathetic towards people on welfare because they might be under the impression that the people who are on welfare need it to support their children. Income_r was my third control variable. This variable reports the income of the respondent within twenty five categories that range from â€Å"none or less than $2,999† to â€Å"$150,000 and over†. Unfortunately, the categories are not equally sized. For example, there is a category labeled â€Å"$15,000-16,999† and its subsequent category is labeled â€Å"$17,000-$19,999†. The former category has a range of $1,999 dollars and the latter a range of $2,999 and this difference in category size occurs throughout the variable. This may be a weak point of this control variable. None the less, I included this control variable because I believe that the lower an individual’s income, the more understanding or warm their feelings may be for people who are on welfare. In opposition people with high incomes who may work very hard for their money may have colder feelings for people on welfare and who may be out of work. The final control variable that I included in my tests was relig_attendHi. This variable categorizes an individual’s level of religious attendance as either low or high. This variable may be weak because of the fact that there is no knowing exactly what amount of attendance fits the description of â€Å"high† or â€Å"low’ attendance. One respondents idea of high attendance could be once a week, where as another respondent could consider once every few months to be high attendance. There is also no telling where the dividing line between high and low may be. That being said, I believe that religious attendance has a significant impact on an individual’s feelings towards people on welfare because many religions are proponents of acts of charity or helping those who are in need. Individuals who are religious may be more inclined to see welfare as a means of helping those who need financial help rather than an unfair handout. I used a multiple regression test to interpret the relationship between an individual’s employment status and their feelings toward people who are on welfare. I used this test because a multiple regression test is appropriate for my dependent variable which is continuous. It was also essential that I used a multiple regression test so that I would be able to control for my Z (control) variables when determining the relationship between employment status and feelings toward people who are on welfare. After running my multiple-regression test on the responses of 1,922 individuals, I found that an individual’s employment status does matter when it comes to their feelings toward people who are on welfare. The employment status of an individual is statistically significant at the 95% confidence interval and my test showed that an individual that is working is likely to have feelings that are 2.49 degrees colder than an individual that is not working regarding people who are on welfare. (coefficient estimate) This provides me with enough evidence to state that there is support for my hypothesis that working individuals have more negative feelings toward individuals on welfare than people who are not working. These results can be seen in figure 3. Gender, income, and religious attendance also tested to be statistically significant at the 95% confidence interval. These outcomes confirm my original predictions for these variables. Women are likely to have feelings that are 2.46 degrees warmer than males. This could in fact indicate that women are more sensitive and tolerant of people who are in need and may be using welfare for survival. Also, the higher category of income that an individual is in the colder their feelings get towards individuals who are on welfare. This is in line with my prediction that richer people may not be fond of people getting money from the government for no work, and poorer people being more understanding of people on welfare’s need for an income. People with higher religious attendance also show to have 3.56 degrees warmer feelings toward people who are on welfare than people with low religious attendance. Religious attendance appeared to be the control variable that was the most indicative of an individual’s feelings toward people who are on welfare. This also gave validity to my prior thought that people with higher religious attendance may be more open minded to acts of charity and aiding those in need. The number of kids in an individual’s household did not turn out to be statistically significant. This disappointed me because I thought that people with more kids would have significantly different feelings toward people who are on welfare than people with few or no kids in their household. I believe that this may be because most people who have children have planned for their kids financially and may not have as high of a tolerance for people on welfare that may not have planned for the children they are supporting. The R-squared value for my multiple regression test was only 0.0602. This means that the independent and control variables that I included in my test only accounted for six percent of the total variance in my dependent variable, feelings toward individuals on welfare. I thought that the control variables that I selected would have yielded higher variance accountability. It turns out that employment status, gender, income, number of kids in a household and religious attendance are only a few of the many factors that can influence an individual’s feelings toward welfare recipients. In conclusion, I discovered that employment status is statistically significant when determining a person’s feelings towards people who are on welfare. I can reject my null hypothesis which is that there is not relationship between an individual’s employment status and their feelings toward people on welfare. In relation to the real world, one could say that people who work are more likely to view people who are on welfare more negatively. This could be a product of many things including an individual’s views on work ethic, morals, fairness, equality and much more. It would be interesting to research what exactly causes a working person to view welfare recipients more negatively. Although I have found support for my hypothesis, there are many more control variables that I could include in future research of this question. I believe that political ideology would influence the way a person feels about people on welfare because liberals and conservatives have specif ic views and welfare policies and who should be recipients. The state in which an individual lives in could also be a good control variable to include because although all states are a part of the federal welfare system, different states have different internal welfare systems that could spark different opinions. I also think it would be important to divide the term â€Å"welfare† into its different categories such as unemployment, healthcare, childcare etc. because I think that people tend to make the generalization that welfare means â€Å"unemployment checks†. Tables/Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Works Cited ANES Data Center Study Pages ANES 2008 Time Series Study. ANES Data Center Study Pages ANES 2008 Time Series Study. Accessed May 6, 2015.

money or your life :: essays research papers

A thought popped in my head as I was half way through the readings for this assignment and I wanted to share it with you. This is my last class until I graduate. I was supposed to take this course last semester and I waited because I had a lot going on in my life the past few months. This class is so much more beneficial to me now because I am in the â€Å"real world† and have been in it for awhile now. If I was to take this class while I was still going to college I really wouldn’t have gotten as much out of it. I think things happen for a reason and I am glad I’m taking this class now. With that said; I will get on to the readings†¦ In chapter 4 of â€Å"Your Money or Your Life† the whole concept of how much is enough is very interesting to me. The idea is finding fulfillment. In order to find fulfillment you need to find what you are looking for out of life. What are your dreams, what is your purpose in life? I have always had many dreams throughout my life. I also know that there is a purpose for me to be here on earth. Yet I still don’t know what exactly I want to do career wise. I am still looking for that exact purpose for me to be here. I strongly feel that you find this with experience. You need to get out there and experiment, absorb all the knowledge you get from others and your experiences. On page 121 the author discusses purpose. I know that I have a purpose in living. The author says that one way to find your purpose is answering the question, â€Å"Why are you doing what you’re doing?† I may be a little confused to make my decisions but there is always a purpose if I dig deep enough. There is always a meaning for my actions. I have not found that specific career that is a passionate commitment to me yet. I am determined to discover this mission in life. The steps the book gave on finding your mission I found it to be motivating and very helpful. The first one, work with your passion my mother has taught me throughout life. Do what you love to do and you will lead the happiest life possible.

Expeditions to Antarctica and Annapurna Essay -- Comparison, Shackleto

When taking a quick look at the two expeditions, one led by Ernest Shackleton to Antarctica and the other led by Arlene Blum to climb Annapurna, a quick summation can be made that Blum succeeded in her expedition and Shackleton failed. But this is a shallow view, not considering the nuances and actual experiences of the trips. Ernest Shackleton set out with his crew in 1915 to be the first expedition to cross Antarctica, but in fact, he never set foot on the continent. While failing at his initial goal, he was a highly successful leader and kept his 28 men safe for close to two years, while they were trapped on the ice floe and then, after the ice gave way, when they were paddling hundreds of miles across open seas in small, wooden lifeboats. He then completed the treacherous journey across South Georgia Island to reach a town and resources necessary to rescue his other men. All of his men were rescued alive and safe and all were able to return home to their families. In compar ison, Arlene Blum set out from the United States in 1978 with 9 of her teammates as the American Women's Himalayan Expedition – the first all-woman group to attempt to climb Annapurna. Though their expedition was too often hazardous, it didn’t have the same level of urgency, because at any point during their climb, the group was at liberty to descend. Blum struggled with her role as the leader of this group of highly independent women. She too often hesitated and showed her lack of confidence, which in turn led to many problems within the group and with the hired Sherpas. On October 15th, 1978, two members of the expedition, along with two Sherpas, reached the summit of Annapurna, fulfilling the goal of the group. However, two days later, on Octobe... ...ew to the path of being trapped by the ice, he excelled at his decision making. He didn’t believe that one should look back at past mistakes and waste time on regrets, indeed, â€Å"Shackleton never wasted time or energy lamenting things that had passed or that he couldn’t change (Morell, pp. 145).† As Shackleton himself said, â€Å"A man must shape himself to a new mark directly the old one goes to ground (Morell, pp. 145).† This ability to shift quickly and react to new circumstances served him and his crew members well and allowed all of them to save themselves from their icy trap. As Dennis Perkins says in his book, Leading at the Edge, in reference to the last leg of Shackleton’s expedition, â€Å"Their heroic journey across South Georgia Island had saved their shipmates. It remains a tribute to unremitting effort—and to the tenacious creativity at The Edge (pp. 148).† Expeditions to Antarctica and Annapurna Essay -- Comparison, Shackleto When taking a quick look at the two expeditions, one led by Ernest Shackleton to Antarctica and the other led by Arlene Blum to climb Annapurna, a quick summation can be made that Blum succeeded in her expedition and Shackleton failed. But this is a shallow view, not considering the nuances and actual experiences of the trips. Ernest Shackleton set out with his crew in 1915 to be the first expedition to cross Antarctica, but in fact, he never set foot on the continent. While failing at his initial goal, he was a highly successful leader and kept his 28 men safe for close to two years, while they were trapped on the ice floe and then, after the ice gave way, when they were paddling hundreds of miles across open seas in small, wooden lifeboats. He then completed the treacherous journey across South Georgia Island to reach a town and resources necessary to rescue his other men. All of his men were rescued alive and safe and all were able to return home to their families. In compar ison, Arlene Blum set out from the United States in 1978 with 9 of her teammates as the American Women's Himalayan Expedition – the first all-woman group to attempt to climb Annapurna. Though their expedition was too often hazardous, it didn’t have the same level of urgency, because at any point during their climb, the group was at liberty to descend. Blum struggled with her role as the leader of this group of highly independent women. She too often hesitated and showed her lack of confidence, which in turn led to many problems within the group and with the hired Sherpas. On October 15th, 1978, two members of the expedition, along with two Sherpas, reached the summit of Annapurna, fulfilling the goal of the group. However, two days later, on Octobe... ...ew to the path of being trapped by the ice, he excelled at his decision making. He didn’t believe that one should look back at past mistakes and waste time on regrets, indeed, â€Å"Shackleton never wasted time or energy lamenting things that had passed or that he couldn’t change (Morell, pp. 145).† As Shackleton himself said, â€Å"A man must shape himself to a new mark directly the old one goes to ground (Morell, pp. 145).† This ability to shift quickly and react to new circumstances served him and his crew members well and allowed all of them to save themselves from their icy trap. As Dennis Perkins says in his book, Leading at the Edge, in reference to the last leg of Shackleton’s expedition, â€Å"Their heroic journey across South Georgia Island had saved their shipmates. It remains a tribute to unremitting effort—and to the tenacious creativity at The Edge (pp. 148).†

Activism Awareness Essay

Do you think celebrity activism is a positive or negative thing? That’s the question. To me, I think celebrity activism has a very positive effect on society and should become more popular. More celebrities should become activists because activists have a long successful history, celebrity activism helps draw attention to all different kinds of issues & activism gives celebrities an opportunity to use their wealth for the good of something greater than themselves. Celebrity activism really helps out the less fortunate and gives back to the community. Since a lot of celebrities got their fame from the fans & paparazzi, they should be thanking them anyways. As you can see, celebrity activism should be applauded as it stimulates awareness and attracts attention to all different kinds of purposes. First off, celebrity activists have been successful for a while. According to the authors of the article, celebrities have a â€Å"long history of using their fame to support their favorite causes and charities,† which shows that is has been successful. (Chittom) This is an important statement because it shows that celebrities that actually devote time to helping out causes and events result in a strong and positive way. Since celebrity activism has been around for a while, that must mean something. Activism wouldn’t be around for this long if it was pointless and is ineffective on society. For example, the article states that in the 1980s the overnight success of Band Aid and USA for Africa raised significant funds for famine relief in Africa. If that much progress was made in the 1980s, imagine how big of an effect celebrity activism has on the world today. Secondly, celebrity activism helps raise awareness for many different causes. This being said, celebrity activism helps draw attention to â€Å"environmental, medical, political, and social issues.†(Chittom) One well known activist who raised awareness for all kinds of categories is an Irish singer, Bono. He was part of a music group called Band Aid. The group had a top selling single and all profits went to famine relief in Ethiopia. In two decades, Bono has become the busiest and most involved celebrity activists. Bono has been involved in raising awareness for multiple of the categories I listed above, along with a whole bunch of other activists. So if people think celebrity activism only helps out only one cause, they’re wrong. As you can see, celebrity activism helps out a big variety of problems and issues. Lastly, celebrity activism gives celebrities a chance to use their fame for something else besides benefiting themselves. Activism is â€Å"an opportunity for celebrities to use their wealth and notoriety for something greater them themselves.† (Chittom) This means that way too many celebrities care about themselves. They don’t give any consideration for the people who are less fortunate than they are. Maybe they don’t have the time, but they might just be ignorant instead. Activism allows celebrities to get involved and work for something to help make a difference for others. So, the bottom line is if celebrities chose activism, it would let them help out other people instead of just caring about themselves. Now, celebrities lack at being spokespeople for events because their busy careers and lifestyles doesn’t allow them to fully commit or it results in celebrities showing â€Å"negative publicity.† (Belanger) This being said does weaken my argument and point of view because it is all true. A lot of celebrities don’t have spare time whatsoever. Some celebrities have every day of their life planned for the next year ahead or maybe even more than that. But being said from the two authors who said this, they also stated that there is a positive side to activism, since they have such a â€Å"high profile status,† (Belanger) they can bring attention to many kinds of causes. So even though celebrities might not be fully committed, even a little bit of dedication can help make a change. To sum everything up, celebrity activism is a very good thing and increase and become more common. Celebrities should consider participating in activism because it really does help in giving back to society. Since celebrities are so popular, it can help draw attention to events that originally not get a lot of attention. Now that you’ve hear my argument, do you think celebrity activism is a positive or negative thing?

TKAM

A hero is a person who carries divergent qualities and abilities and is admired by others for his achievements and his brave deeds. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Tactics Finch is exhibited as man who stuck with his morals, values, beliefs and ethics regarding all situations he was put through throughout the novel. He stood on his ground, making a luminous understanding to the people of Macomb that nothing would affect his thinking.Finch is a hero through his effectuation that are underscored right through the evolve and his abilities that were demonstrated and explained through other characters in the novel. Despite all Finch took the challenge of defending a â€Å"colored† man in the time of when slavery was abolished but black people were thought to be lower than white people. In life, one is taught and influenced by many of how to approach, and solve problems. One should be capable of standing strong in his/her beliefs despite what others might not say.Ta ctics Finch was a man who believed in what was right as cliche as it might sound he did not believe in the popular convictions because according to him success was not in winning in fact he did not mind loosing as long as he put his best in the situation. Often in life, one confronts situations where they have to make a decision, a decision that will lead them to the right path and having only one chance of doing so. Sometimes in failure was where one would find their victory.Tactics Finch, a successful lawyer in Macomb, Alabama, was authorized to take up the case of defending a black or â€Å"colored† man as referred in the novel regardless of the â€Å"usual Macomb disease† that conquered the whole town. Finch's kids, Jean Louis offered as Scout and Gem, were being bullied in school for their father defending a black man that is wrong no matter what the circumstances are. They were being questioned and they questioned their father about why Finch would defend a black when it is not accepted or considered good in the people of Macomb.Tactics Finch was a well respected man of the town, he always knew what to do and what not to do. When the kids questioned he simply answered â€Å"l am simply defending a Necrosis name's Tom Robinson† (Lee 75). Tactics Finch was a man of his words, once said he put all his strength to accomplish the task. His confidence and dignity made him a heroic figure for the people in town, in fact many people looked up to him. Once the word was spread of him taking Robinsons case, the citizens knew that he might Just have s chance of being Justified.On the day of the Robinson Trial, when Tactics entered the court room people stood up for him as respect. Reverend Sykes had even demanded for Scout to stand up when her father entered the courtroom. Considering the fact that Sykes was black, all the â€Å"colored† groups stood up as well. California, a black woman who worker in Finch's home, took Gem and Scout to h er lack people church where they were not disrespected or kicked out rather was welcomed warmly. If Tactics had denied to take up Robinsons case than the situation would have been different because than the kids could have been treated the complete opposite.However, the black people completely aware that Tactics definitely possessed the traits to handle such a complicated case in a such a difficult situation which Just made them respect him and his family more. Not Just taking up the Robinsons case made Finch a hero but it was throughout how he helped others in need. Finch was known as the â€Å"One-Shot Finch† as he was the best shooter in the whole town and got his work done in one gun-shot, no more than one. Finch had been successful in saving the town from a â€Å"mad dog† by shooting at it with one shot.This was a new side to Finch that his kids were not aware of, and when witnessed it, it left them stumped. Miss Maude, a woman who always spoke with a reason, seem ed to know Tactics pretty well, she told Gem and Finch, when younger Finch was known as the â€Å"01†² One Shot† (98 Lee). That had left the kids a bit confused since they were strangers to this news about their father. Miss Maude cleared their confusion that their father was capable of performing everything. Miss Maude told them that Tactics Finch was the best checker player and had knowledge in playing Jews harp.Tactics once said muff never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them† and to Scout â€Å"As Tactics advised me to, I tried to climb into Gem's skin and walk in it† were two clear examples of showing how his kids followed his suggestions (Lee 57). Because for Gem and Scout he was a true hero in their eyes; they were so sure that Tactics Finch would give it his best regardless of how implicated the situation is. Their father was who they looked up to and knew that he was always correct.Not did he only defend a black mal e, but remained respectful to everyone in the town including Mrs.. Dubos. Mrs.. Dubos remained grouchy and mean all the time to everyone, Tactics always tried to ignore her ignorance and talk to her in a cheerful- attitude†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ You look like a picture this evening†(Lee 100). Mrs.. Dubos was not the only one that Tactics tolerated, but his sister, Alexandra also gave him, the kids and mainly California a really difficult time. Tactics and the kids thought of California as their Emily member; however, Aunt Alexandra never appreciated their presence.Also, as Tactics said † †¦ Scaloppini's not leaving this house until she wants to. She's a faithful member of this family†¦ † (Lee 137). Tactics is a major influence to others especially when he is clearly highlighted that courage and believing in one self helps to overcome any obstacle that comes in ones way. Tactics stated in the book that you must fight despite you seeing chances of loosing more than winning. He did not believe racism existed as he was the one who went out in the courtroom to defend a black despite seeing no chances of him inning.He was well aware that no matter how strong his case would be racism would always come in the way and prevent from him wining; however, that did not discourage in fact it Just made him work harder on his case and presented exceptionally well which even left the audience in the courtroom stumped. Finch believed in equality, and no matter what race you are humanity should always exist no matter what the circumstances become. He fought till the very end, from risking his life for Robinson to making a solid and strong speech which was mind blowing end to the case.Finch protected his family well which he also took pride in; ergo, he never got egotistical about it because often he doubted himself not to be a good father despite him trying so hard to be a good. He was able to give his children advice on what they were struggling on. Finch was a strong, determined man who did not tolerate any kind of nonsense and only went through decisions of his own that he thought were correct in is eyes Often in life, one confronts situations where they have to make a decision, a decision that will lead them to the right path and having only one chance of doing so.