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Titus (Question 13) Tragedy or Dark Comedy what is comic about Titus

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Titus (Question 13) Tragedy or Dark Comedy: what is comic about Titus?

Titus Andronicus is one of Shakespeare’s plays dedicated to the theme of tragedy. Unlike other tragedies done by Shakespeare’s plays, Titus Andronicus is underrated taking a back stage in regard to the theme of tragedy. The story is based on the hatred of the Romans and the Goths who do not see eye to eye. Titus Andronicus is on the side of the Romans who have the upper hand due to the defeat of the Goths in the previous war (Smith, p. 316). He is seen as a hero by his Roman community making him one of the more significant persons in the community. Titus manages to get some captives who belong to the Goths. Amongst his captives are the queen, her lover and her three sons who are at the mercy of Titus. It is evident that Titus bears a considerable amount of hatred for the Goths due to the death of his sons. This brings out the vulnerability of Titus who is placed in a position of deep grief (Williamson, Person, Lawrence, Trudeau, and Stephen, p. 351).

How can it be difficult to distinguish between tragedy and comedy?

As stated earlier, the play is based on the war between two opposing sides. This creates provision of bloodshed due to the number of wars that are displayed in the book. One of the themes of the play is the quest for revenge. Most of the characters have lost loved ones due to the war. This motivates them to seek revenge on their enemies. This in turn, becomes the main cause of the gruesome murder, torture and hatred. These events clearly bring out the tragedies that all the characters experience at the hands of their enemies. Apart from the amount of cannibalism that is experienced in the play, the play portrays other forms of torture. This is seen in the rape of Lavinia’s which is preceded by her mutilation. These events clearly show the amount of tragedy that the members of both face as a result of the war. Despite this, the play is able to display an immense amount of satirist qualities. This is however, not the ordinary comedy that an audience is accustomed. The comedy is mostly dark in nature making it different from the traditional satire. Shakespeare incorporates comedy with violence making some of the situations laughable. One of the displays of dark humor in the play is seen when Aaron offers an exchange for one of Titus’s hands for his two sons. The fact that Aaron chooses to make light of this rather serious situation makes the audience diverge from the tragedy. Aaron has no problem asking for a piece of Titus’s body. This scenario is not a pleasant sight making the situation unrealistic (Taymor, Julie, Shakespeare. p, 236).

The story seeks to deflect from the moral standpoint which is often the priority in most of Shakespeare’s plays. Some of the scenarios cannot be imagined due to the level of pain that they entail. The author brings this out in the scene of Lavinia’s rape where a detailed description is given about the occurrence. The fact that there is no regard for the feelings of the audience creates the impression that anything goes (Holland, p. 254).

Why is the line sometimes so blurred?

The blend between tragedy and comedy is not strange to the world of literature. This characteristic creates a combination that gives the play a distinct theme. The two factors are completely opposite due to the qualities that both cases entail. Tragedy evokes sadness in an individual while comedy accounts for the opposite. When the two factors are merged, one begins to see the similarities between the two. This bridges the gap between the tragedy and comedy making them one and the same.

What are the funny moments in Lear, and what purpose do they serve?

King Lear is the king of burgundy and has three daughters who have the claim to his throne. In his quest to determine the inheritance of his daughters, he puts them to a test to find out who loves him the most. This act shows the kings witty character which is not ideal for a man of his position (Holland, p. 251). At this time, the fate of his kingdom is not determined due to the lack of a definite heir. King Lear has already divided his property amongst his three daughters although they have no idea. Despite this, he still uses his wit to figure out if he made the right choice. A more serious king would approach this situation with in a different manner. This makes the kings character unique in that the king makes personal the determination of an heir (Gordin, Gay and Glazer, p.164).

The king is known to through tantrums which are expected of a small brat. Shakespeare uses comedy to discredit the throne of the king. A king is a symbol of solidarity for the members of his community. King Lear’s choice to make his daughters contest against each other brings a division in the kingdom. His two elder daughters immediately notice the need to gain their fathers approval by telling him what he wants to hear. Cornelia on the other hand, expresses herself differently stating that she cannot express the love she has for the king through words. This makes the king overreact by disowning her and taking away her inheritance. King Lear clearly did not understand the intentions of his daughter. This showcases his naivety in that he did not understand the intensions of his daughter (Barber, p. 35).

King Lear’s character is different from Shakespeare’s other influential leaders. He uses his kingdom as a playground placing the lives of the society at risk. This is a significant part of his character which serves the purpose of the author whose aim is to remove the seriousness that comes with leadership (Downs, p. 245).

In conclusion, Tragedy is a defined by sadness, misery and suffering. Shakespeare manages to bring out tragedy through the events that take place in Titus Andronicus. One of the factors that make the play stand out is the incorporation of comedy in the theme. This is not the regular comedy that the audience knows. The comedy consists of selfish acts that remove the intended tragedy form the play. Combining both tragedy and satire gives the book a unique plot making the audience approach the story differently. King Lear is used in the play to disregard the traditional role of a king. He does not display the character traits that are expected of him in terms of leadership. This humor acts as one of the causes of the tragedy that befalls the kingdom making a connection between tragedy and comedy

Works cited

Downs, Robert B. Famous Books, Ancient and Medieval. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1965. Print.

Barber, C L. Shakespeare’s Comedy: A Study of Drama, Form and Its Relation to Society. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 2011. Print.

Gordin, Jacob, Ruth Gay, and Sophie Glazer. The Jewish King Lear: A Comedy in America. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007. Print.

Holland, Peter. King Lear and Its Afterlife. Cambridge [u.a.: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2002. Print.

Smith, Emma. Shakespeare’s Comedies. Malden, Mass. [u.a.: Blackwell, 2004. Print.

Taymor, Julie, and William Shakespeare. Titus: The Illustrated Screenplay. New York: Newmarket Press, 2000. Print.

Williamson, Sandra L, James E. Person, Lawrence J. Trudeau, and Stephen B. Barnard. Shakespearean Criticism: Volume 11, William Shakespeare’s Plays and Poetry. Detroit: Gale Research, Inc, 2000. Print.

Critiquing a Change Effort

Critiquing a Change Effort

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Critiquing a Change Effort

In order to promote efficient management of any given institution, the best approach entails coming up with strategies of managing organizational change. Change concepts generally involve innovation and introduction of something new into the organization. Therefore, organizational change focuses on improving the existing structures and involves activities that are aimed at strengthening and developing the organization efficiency and sustaining its subsistence (Battilana et al, 2010).

Recently my organization instituted a new health information system whose objective was to replace our old closed electronic health records with a new open health records system. This influenced my roles as a nurse by allowing me and other nurses to share and store relevant patients’ information at ease, share and reproduce information at the point of care, and ensure the care being provided adheres to the patients’ privacy and personal rights and HIPPA regulations (Grant et al, 2010). The rationale for this change was to replace the redundant closed system with an open system that allows sharing of ideas and pertinent data among caregivers (both internal and external). This modification would help nurses and other caregivers by making their work easier and in turn improve the provided healthcare outcomes by providing quality, patient centered, and evidenced based nursing care based on the stored information (Kumar, 2003). With the new system and its changes, the intended outcomes of promoting quality nursing care and eliminating issues of diagnostic errors have met, and at the moment, the issues of errors have significantly reduced by more than 75%. This is attributed to the mere fact that the new open system provides a detailed decision support system (DSS) that allows nurses and other caregivers to make decisions on matters exhibiting legal, ethical, and practice challenges during service delivery (Marquis & Huston, 2012).

The concepts of change management adopted are very credible and pertinent, and they are effective by the virtue of allowing the management to adopt a new techniques leading to new business hierarchies and inventive structures of addressing patient health needs through health information technology. Irrespective of the many advantages related with the new system, many personnel were reluctant to the changes (Battilana et al, 2010). The employees’ reluctance to accept the new changes could have been effectively handled by making the changes non-debatable or making it clear that change is not an alternative but a requirement. The process could have been improved by allowing the affected individuals to air their opinions and recommendations, making every individual responsible for his or her actions in regard to the change activity, and finally examining the success of implementation process at designed intervals (Kumar, 2003).

References

Battilana, J., Gilmartin, M., Sengul, M., Pache, A.-C., & Alexander, J. A. (2010). Leadership competencies for implementing planned organizational change. The Leadership Quarterly, 21(3), 422–438.

Grant, B., Colello, S., Riehle, M., & Dende, D. (2010). An evaluation of the nursing practice environment and successful change management using the new generation Magnet Model. Journal of Nursing Management, 18(3), 326–331.

Kumar, A. (2003) .Change and Operations Management .New York: Cengage press.

Marquis, B. L., & Huston, C. J. (2012). Leadership roles and management functions in nursing: Theory and application (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.

Toyota Company Decision-Making Report

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Toyota Company Decision-Making Report

Overview

Toyota Motor Corporation is a multinational corporation being the send largest manufacturer of automobiles, robots, trucks, and provision financial services to its clients. They also produce sewing machines that have been spread to all parts of the globe. Basing on the global structure of Toyota Corporation, it has numerous factories that are located nearly in all the countries to serve the local markets. Examples of countries that have huge factories for assembling Toyotas include; United Kingdom, Mexico, United Nation, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Vietnam, Philippines, South Africa and Turkey among others. Its headquarters is situated in Toyota, Aichi in Japan (Allen, et al 21).

Background of study

The report aims at using descriptive information obtained from Toyota Company to come up with decisions concerning specific underperforming department. The data was collected from Toyota official website. The departments that will be considered are marketing, production, and competition export trends. In addition, the descriptive data to be used in decision-making are mean, variance, and standard deviation. The report will also offer recommendation on how the company will improve these weak sections.

Data Set 1

Toyota company Production data 1 2012

Types of cars Produced 2011 Production 2012

Corolla 300000 250000

Camary 250000 200000

Avalno 150000 120000

Land cruiser 200000 180000

Parado 100000 60000

Toyota 4Runner150000 120000

Allion200050 145000

Alphard189000 120000

Toyota Avalon206700 180000

Toyota Avanza300000 230000

Toyota Crown124000 120000

Toyota iQ70000 30000

Toyota Isis240000 210000

Toyota LiteAce210000 190000

Toyota Mark X234000 210000

Toyota Sequoia140000 150000

Toyota ToyoAce120000 70000

Toyota Vanguard10000 8090

Toyota Tundra206700 200000

Toyota Zelas235000 215000

Totals 3604450 3,008,090

The study was undertaken from a sample of 20 Toyota vehicles with the highest and lowest production and defective rates, among the cars with the highest production mode are Toyota Corollas and Toyota Avanza with a mode sale of 300,000 vehicles in 2011. The production of 201s decreased significantly across all types of brands except for Toyota Sequoia.

Chat 1: Showing the Number of Produced Cars in 2011

The chart indicates that production rate was significant Corolla leading the list while Parado down in the list of production. However, as compared to other years the company should consider producing more Camary as it seems competitive in the market.

Decision Making

It can be deduced from the above chart that the production of cars in 2011 was outstanding as almost every brand shared some significant equality. It can be statistically stated that the difference between the highest produced brand and the lowest is very huge (300,000 and 10,000 respectively). The decision that can be explained with this difference is that it seems Toyota Corolla and Toyota Avanza has the highest demand hence the increase in their production as compared to Toyota Vanguard which has less production.

Chart 2: Showing the Number of Produced Cars in 2012

The 2012 production rate is same as that of 2011, however, the production of 2012 reduced significantly as compared to that of 2011. There was a decrease of more than 40% of the total production rate. From a total of 3604450 in 2011 to 3005090 in 2012.

Decision Making

The two charts above have two different perspectives about the decisions to be considered for the company. However, it is evident that Toyota Company did not make the best production in 2012 as compared to that of 2011, meaning that is faced a depression of production. As a matter of fact this could be as a result of various managerial problems that the company might be facing. From the chart 1 and 2 it is clear that Toyota Company should come up with strategies to improve it production in the coming financial years.

Mean, Variance, and Standard Deviation of Produced Toyota Vehicle 2011 and 2012

Types of cars 2012 2012

Corolla 119777.5 14346649506 99745.5 9949164770

Camary 69777.5 4868899506 49745.5 2474614770

Avalno -30222.5 913399506.3 -30254.5 915334770.3

Land cruiser 19777.5 391149506.3 29745.5 884794770.3

Parado -80222.5 6435649506 -90254.5 8145874770

Toyota 4Runner-30222.5 913399506.3 -30254.5 915334770.3

Allion19827.5 393129756.3 -5254.5 27609770.25

Alphard8777.5 77044506.25 -30254.5 915334770.3

Toyota Avalon26477.5 701058006.3 29745.5 884794770.3

Toyota Avanza119777.5 14346649506 79745.5 6359344770

Toyota Crown-56222.5 3160969506 -30254.5 915334770.3

Toyota iQ-110223 12148999506 -120254.5 14461144770

Toyota Isis59777.5 3573349506 59745.5 3569524770

Toyota LiteAce29777.5 886699506.3 39745.5 64770.25

Toyota Mark X53777.5 2892019506 59745.5 6440784770

Toyota Sequoia-40222.5 1617849506 -254.5 20210745060

Toyota Toyo Ace-60222.5 3626749506 -80254.5 2474614770

Toyota Vanguard-170223 28975699506 -142164.5 4191979770

Toyota Tundra26477.5 701058006.3 49745.5 3569524770

Toyota Zelas54777.5 3000574506 64745.5 3569524756

∑x-x= 31000 ∑(x-x)2=1.03971E+11 ∑x-x= 3000 ∑(x-x)2=88885625695

Mean, variance and Standards Deviation of 2011

Mean

= 3604450/ 20

Mean =180222.5

Standard Deviation

S= 73974.03

Variance

=

S2 = 1.03971E+11/n-1

S2= 1.03971E+11/19

= 5472157757

Mean

Mean, variance and Standards Deviation of 2012

Mean, variance and Standards Deviation of 2012

Standard Deviation

S= 68397.13

Variance

S2 = 88885175695/n-1

S2= 88885175695/19

= 4678167142

Mean

= 3008090/ 20

Mean = 150404.5

In 2011 Toyota had Mean= 180222.5, variance = 5472157757 and standards deviation of 73974.03, while that of 2012 was mean= 150404.5, variance= 4678167142 and SD= 68397.13. According to the data from calculation there was a decrease of value between 2011 and 2012 across all measures of central tendency.

Decision making

The total number of vehicles produced by Toyota decreased from 3604450 in 2011 to 3008090 in 2012. This indicates a 20% decrease in production. The decision means that the company production rate decreased in 2012. Thus, the company should consider identifying the weakness in portrayed over that year mostly what the competitors are doing to increase preference of their vehicles as compared to Toyota.

Toyota company Sales data 2

As indicated in the calculations above the mean of produced cars M= 200,000 and that of defective is 2636, indicating that the defective cars are 1.8th of the produced cars. This is also shown using their variance and standard Deviations.

Data set 2: Toyota Company Sales between 2011 and 2012

Types of cars Sales 2011 (billions) Sales 2012 (billions)

Corolla $17 $15

Camary $15 $12

Avalno $12 $10

Land cruiser $10 $8

Parado $5 $2

Toyota 4Runner$20 $17

Allion$56 $40

Alphard$26 $10

Toyota Avalon$24 $19

Toyota Avanza$59 $37

Toyota Crown$80 $100

Toyota iQ$19 $12

Toyota Isis$17 $9

Toyota LiteAce$17 $13

Toyota Mark X$100 $87

Toyota Sequoia$18 $16

Toyota ToyoAce$10 $10

Toyota Vanguard$15 $11

Toyota Tundra$18 $10

Toyota Zelas$13 $11

Totals $551 $449

According to the above table, there is a clear indication that the data shows there were a decline in sales in 2012 as compared to 2011.

Chart 3: Toyota Company Sales between 2011

The graphs show that 2011 was a year that the company made significant sales of its products to the market, although is varied in-terms of cars. The chart indicates that Toyota mark x had the highest sales in 2011 while Parado had the least sales the same year.

Decision Making

It is clear from the chart that Toyota Company has to come up with approaches on how to market some of its brands in the market. The decision is to ensure that the sales of the poor performing brands are raised so as to maximize profits. This decision is aimed at increasing the total sales as well as improving the profit margin.

Chart 4: Toyota Company Sales between 2012

As compared to the sales of 2011 the sales of 2012 reduced drastically however, other brands sold better in 2012 such as Toyota Crown. Averagely, Toyota Mark X did sale but not as in 2012. Parado continued to show poor sales performance in 2012 like in 2012.

Decision Making

In order to come up with best decision concerning the sale of Toyota in 2011 and 2012 a comparison chart will be consider. The below chart defines the difference in sale between 2011 and 2012

Chart 5: Sales comparison between 2011 and 2012

The decision based on the comparison chart above is that Toyota Company should come up with sales strategies in order to improve their sales to outstanding platform. Such strategies include proper marketing and price consideration in comparison to their competitors.

Mean, variance and SD for sales 2011 and 2012

Types of cars Sales 2011 (billions)   Sales 2012 (billions)

Corolla $17 ($261) $15 ($225.00)

Camary $15 ($197) $12 ($144.00)

Avalno $12 ($116) $10 ($100.00)

Land cruiser $10 ($72) $8 ($64.00)

Parado $5 $509 $2 ($4.00)

Toyota 4Runner$20 ($372) $17 ($289.00)

Allion$56 ($3,108) $40 ($1,600.00)

Alphard$26 ($648) $10 ($100.00)

Toyota Avalon$24 ($548) $19 ($361.00)

Toyota Avanza$59 ($31) $37 ($1,369.00)

Toyota Crown$80 ($6,372) $100 ($10,000.00)

Toyota iQ$19 ($333) $12 ($144.00)

Toyota Isis$17 ($261) $9 ($81.00)

Toyota LiteAce$17 ($261) $13 ($169.00)

Toyota Mark X$100 ($9,972) $87 ($7,569.00)

Toyota Sequoia$18 ($296) $16 ($256.00)

Toyota ToyoAce$10 ($72) $10 ($100.00)

Toyota Vanguard$15 ($197) $11 ($121.00)

Toyota Tundra$18 ($296) $10 ($100.00)

Toyota Zelas$13 ($141) $11 ($121.00)

Totals $551 ($23,054) $449 ($22,917.00)

The Mean, variance, and Standard Deviation of sales in 2011

Standard Deviation

S= 33.96616

Variance

S2 = 23054/n-1

S2= 23054/19

= ($1,153.70)

Mean

= $551/ 20

Mean = $27.55

The Mean, variance, and Standard Deviation of sales in 2012

Standard Deviation

S= 33.86517

Variance

S2 = ($22,917)/n-1

S2= ($22,917.00)/19

= ($1,146.85)

Mean

= $449/ 20

Mean = $22.45

In 2011 Toyota had Mean= 27.55, variance = $1,153 and standards deviation of 33.96, while that of 2012 was mean= 22.45, variance= $1,146 and SD= 33.86517. According to the data from calculation there was a decrease of value between 2011 and 2012 across all measures of central tendency.

Decision Making

According to the above data from measure of central tendency, It is clear that the rate of sales reduced in 2012. This could have been due to various factors that the company should come up with ways of gathering information from the clients on why the preferred other brands from other companies rather than theirs. This is done to ensure the companies get better sales in the fourth coming financial year.

Data set 3: Toyota Export

Types of cars Exported

Corolla 350000 -1.225E+11

Camary 230000 -52899825350

Avalno 100000 -9999825350

Land cruiser 50000 -2499825350

Parado 5000 -24825350

Toyota 4Runner340000 -1.156E+11

Allion140000 -19599825350

Alphard200000 -39999825350

Toyota Avalon220000 -48399825350

Toyota Avanza160000 -25599825350

Toyota Crown187000 -34968825350

Toyota iQ66000 -4355825350

Toyota Isis67000 -4488825350

Toyota LiteAce190000 -36099825350

Toyota Mark X241000 -58080825350

Toyota Sequoia280000 -78399825350

Toyota ToyoAce120000 -14399825350

Toyota Vanguard237000 -56168825350

Toyota Tundra100000 -9999825350

Toyota Zelas210000 -44099825350

Totals 3493000 -7.78186E+11

Chart 4: Indicating Export of Toyota Cars in 2012

Toyota corolla remains the leading brand in the export market and the least was Parado. Camary also has a promising market as compared to others like Avalno and Land Cruiser.

Calculation of Mean, variance and Standard Deviation

Standard Deviation

S= 623.7724

Variance

S2 = (7.78186E+11)/n-1

S2= (7.78186E+11)/19

= (38909275351

Mean

= 3493000/ 20

Mean = 174650

Decision making

Based on the radar chart and the measure of central tendency calculation, the above tools are important in decision making which is will help the company to evaluate the performance of the brands in reference to the rates of export. This will help the company to confirm or change the existing exports for greater export sales in the future.

Opinions/Recommendations

The rapid entrance of new markets and their potentials have greatly affected companies across the world in efforts to explore new markets to benefit from it. The UK companies have experienced so many challenges as they push into exploring new markets. In order for Toyota to experience a better marketing growth in the UAE, and extend to other new markets, it is rather important for them to ensure that the give a good focus on how to give fair treatment in order to facilitate tremendous expansion thereby enjoying the benefits that will be offered by the market.

In market expansion, it is preferable that Toyota Company identify the right market. In exploring the target market, Toyota will learn the weaknesses of other competing firms such as the Nissan, BMW and many other firms to maximize its potentials in those parts that are poorly performed by them.

The SWOT analysis is quite useful for Toyota, as it will help the company to realize its areas of strengths, its strengths are those values that are offered by Toyota and are never achieved by other firms. For instance, its marketing stability will be aided by this tool to fully analyze it. Toyota will be in a better position to continue shining over its rivals. Their strength in adopting into the new technology, which has brought in the issues of environment is yet another area that is best done through SWOT strategic tool. This will help to know the market to increase sales.

Opportunities will be well identified through the employment of SWOT analysis. In case there are new markets, it is the role of this tool to focus on it. With changing market trends, there are a times when opportunities arise. The best results will be reached at only if the tool is employed. The introduction of policies such as export policies is an opportunity to Toyota as earlier mentioned. Opportunities are less considered by porter’s diamond.

Production

In the year 2012 (January to September), Toyota set a goal to achieve 15 percent market share, which would make it the biggest auto company in the world. The media reports suggest that focus on growth led the company into a downward spiral in sales, profitability, and quality and, finally, the crisis of 2011, however this production goal was not attainable in the first 9 months of the year. Yet all the data existing, other than specific stories, shows that by 2012 Toyota was an extremely financially stable company with an outstanding quality and safety record.

The Toyota production system does not seem to be the cause of the quality problems experienced over the prior decade. In the past, Toyota has exhibited a significant advantage over its mass-producer competitors in physical and value-added productivity. The competition should be improved, but it is unlikely that any firm has actually passed Toyota in manufacturing prowess. Data related to manufacturing or assembly quality, such as the number of defects reported by customers in newly purchased vehicles, generally has placed Toyota at the top of the auto industry or at least among the leaders. Therefore, it is evident that TPS will work well with Toyota.

Export Trends

In 2010, Toyota made record global profits, earning $19.9 billion. This was particularly impressive since it was the 50th consecutive year of profits for the company. Many companies deciding to ‘go lean’ have struggled to figure out what that means in their type of business.

They will see a highly repetitive and standardized process and cannot imagine how they can replicate what they see. I believe the problem is in the way companies such as Toyota is the mode of approach to implement competitive export strategies that work hand in hand with the company’s goals and objectives as well as the mission.

Conclusion

It can be concluded that descriptive analysis instruments mean, variance, and Standard Deviation can offer outstanding results when it comes to decision-making of a company. Based on the above example, it is clearly indicated that the instruments have been worth giving insights on various loopholes that Toyota should close in order to remain competitively as other companies such as Nissan and Honda.

Works Cited

Aso, Shinji, Mikio Kizaki, and Hideaki Mizuno. “Development Progress of the Toyota Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle.” Training 2013: 12-09.

Inoue, Tokuta, et al. “Toyota lean combustion system-The third generation system.” Energy  (2013): 04-08.

Sakata, Ichiro, et al. “Development of TOYOTA reflex burn (TRB) system in DI diesel.” Training 2014: 04-28.

Ward, Allen, et al. “The second Toyota paradox: how delaying decisions can make better cars faster.” Sloan Management Rev 36.3 (2012).

Critiquing Capitalism

Critiquing Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic and political system whereby the country’s economy is controlled by the private owners and not the state. The workings of the systems are determined by individual policies, market restrictions, capital movement and labor force within the country. The system was created for synthetic, dynamic and integrated approaches for organizational analysis cross-nationally.

Critically capitalism as argued by Smith (2005) did not give the state national ownership of companies’ matters. Firms activities cannot be monitored and controlled by the state and therefore, the economy left on the private hands. Businesses run through this system can ruin the country’s economic activities as the interests of individuals cannot serve the long term goals of the state. The state should control the political and economical activities for its stability but the capitalist cannot since they are only interested to maximize the profits.

The capitalist ignore the cross-national learning which promotes national cohesion and unity for the state. It does not take into consideration of the national interest and may spark in ethnical struggles which may generate tension if the government does not get in and control the system. Several national cakes with several intentions are produced which does not bring several ethnical groups together. There is great imbalance on the nature and quality of the labor force produced to serve these capitalist firms. They cannot have uniform standard quality to measure the production or output that may determine the rate of economical growth of the country.

The private owners do not consider the national interest. They do not allow societies to display similar institutional configurations which can be identified and spread uniformity across the nation. This increases international mobility and deterioration of the state economy. It does not promote national stability, universal capital movement and market forces. The state may lead to have inappropriate work form or hence have a lot of its population unemployed as the private firm may opt to import the labor force from other countries.

Societal effects may be affected by globalization forces, reinforce the existing forms, instead of changing them. Innovation practices may be concentrated in certain towns, places, zones, or regions instead of spreading across the state. Since it allows individual firms to select their own policies and options to shape up their environment. Environmental management may not be possible and this may lead to adverse environmental degradation. Private firms may not take into consideration to the conservation of the environment by controlling or regulating their activities by generating means to become friendly to environment.

Strengths

The system employs diversity in the work force which improves the business system in the state. The private companies are able to improve the quality and quantity of the products in the market fairly well than when the system is controlled by the state. This is very much possible due to the competition created by the private companies where every business owner wants to be seen the best in the market. The system will improve the innovation and invention processes because the market is free from government intervention.

Capitalism increases the rate of globalization and between organizational policies and forms that support business expansion very fast. International trade becomes more homogenized by facilitating removal of trade differences between the countries involved in the business.

Economy run by small number of pattern can be easily distinguished and distinctive varieties of capitalism are simple to analyze and determine the trend of the economical growth in the state. This system, society and dominance provide the state with an alternative to complexities in the economies.

As a political business system, capitalism is based on the distinctive rights to property which increase due to competition, innovation and invention in the production forces. Through these characteristics the economy possesses a generic system in the firms, labour force and the state in general. The private firms takes advantage to formulate their own policies that enable it grow and expand its activities across the border.

Weaknesses

On the other hand, capitalism it is very difficult for the state to standardize the forces to enable it control the exploitation of its resources across the country. Without regulations the economy cannot have a regular trend and future dependency on the available resources as the private firms do not mind about the future generation.

Products produced by capitalists may be sub-standard. This may leave the consumer with no choice but to accept the product available in the market. To control the quality may also be a problem as the private owners in capitalism are only interested to maximize their profits and not to benefit the common man.

Capitalism dominance may result to condensation of some business systems as the capitalist focuses more in the stock markets and less interest on industrial banks for the benefit of the country. The trend may result in inflation rate going very high as the economy is on the hands of the private people.

Capitalist development does not express uniform fashion across the society. Societal effects tend to create unstable internal relationships in various sectors in the government or state. The coordination between various government departments for economic development gets a great challenge as the system patterns are very much dispersed.

The system absorbs the national practices, ideas, norms and cultural beliefs from institutions from the state and national level for instance education, training, resource distribution, employer’s association and firm interrelationships. This brings up uniformity and standard level of evaluating the outputs in the system.

This system encourages the employment of managers from other countries with different educational background, training and beliefs which may not suit the interests of the state. This system may enable the managerial actors to gain bargaining business power in the states the favor their interests on the expense of the original state. For managers who come from other territories may be influenced by his country of origin. The dominance will follow the policies from country the manager originates.

The system creates an uneven nature of economic power and takes lead on the society’s organization or business practices that are considered to efficient. This makes other states to be dominant in a particular line of production than others.

In conclusion, Smith (2005) focused on the capitalism strengths but assumed the long-term effects of the system to the society and its dominance. It’s a good system but its effects causes more harm than benefits to the state.

Bibliography

Allan, D., 2000, Political Economy in Macroeconomics, Princeton.

Barry, R. W. & Donald, A., 2008, The Oxford Handbook of Political Economy, OUP.

Hahnel, R., 2002, The ABCs of Political Economy, London, Pluto Press.

Hudson, M., 2003, Super Imperialism: The Origin and Fundamentals of U.S. World Dominance,

London: Pluto Press.

McLaren. P., 2005, Capitalists and Conquerors: A Critical Pedagogy against Empire, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

Murray, F. & Herbert, S., 2000, An Illustrated Guide to the American Economy: A Hundred Key Issues 3rd Ed., AEI.

Perelman, M., 2006, Railroading Economics: The Creation of the Free Market Mythology, Monthly Review Press.

Perlman, M., 2000, The Invention of Capitalism: Classical Political Economy and the Secret History of Primitive Accumulation, Duke University Press.

Saul, J., 2001, On Equilibrium, Toronto, Penguin.

Torsten, P. & Guido, T., 2000, Political Economics: Explaining Economic Policy, MIT Press.

Critiquing Racial Stereotypes from the Perspective of Television Content

Critiquing Racial Stereotypes from the Perspective of Television Content

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Institutional Affiliation:

Date:

Introduction

Racial stereotyping is one of the most controversial aspects of cultural analysis as it applies to regular human interaction. These aspects of human cultural coexistence emerge from individual mental perceptions people hold as part of their respective racial groups about other races. The issue of racial stereotypes seems to have permeated into almost all aspects of human life and culture as demonstrated by racism-related issues coming up from all manner of human activity. As one of the most interactive forms of human creation, the media informs and entertains in almost equal measure. However, racial stereotypes seem to have already permeated into this valuable human resource as this critique will demonstrate. Therefore, racial stereotypes will form the main subject of this critique with a particular interest in their adverse effects, as aspects of the cultural analysis, on television content as part of the media.

Criticism for racial stereotypes as evidenced in television programming and its consequences

The relationship between racial stereotyping and television dates back to the very discovery of television. Racial stereotyping is a form of racial discrimination that entails attaching some usually negative attributes to a particular racial group other that which one belongs (Nelson, 2009). Based on the negativity of most of these attributes, the majority of the racial groups affected by these forms of racial discrimination are usually those that belong to the minority groups. Therefore, from the perspective of media, especially television, the Black and Hispanic racial groups suffer most of the consequences of racial stereotyping.

Recently, an American journalist Don Lemon of the CNN disclosed that the number of African Americans killed in shooting incidents involving police officers was twice that of Whites (‘CNN Tonight’, 2015). Surprisingly, Lemon stated that as at June 2015, 135 Africa American deaths involved unarmed individuals as opposed to armed individuals who would compel the law enforcement officers to use lethal force. As a good example of racial profiling, which is related to racial prejudices and stereotyping, the issue incited uproar among African American media personnel. These individuals used their media positions to instigate the start of a racial stereotyping frenzy between them and their white counterparts. African American reporters and newscasters used every opportunity to fuel the fires that raged by demanding for equality in all law enforcement scenarios.

Concurrently, their white counterparts, feeling compelled to downplay any impending media disasters, downplayed all the attempts. The results were an increased proliferation of special coverage by media houses involving a protracted effort by African American journalists to bring to the attentions of the world the injustices faced by their racial group. On the other hand, Whites and journalists from other racial groups downplayed the issue demonstrating the extent of the racial stereotyping present on the media platforms.

Racial stereotypes do not only touch on crime. Other human endeavors such as education, entertainment, and sports also suffer from this harmful practice. There are many forms of racial stereotypes affecting racial minority groups, which get airtime on television either intentionally or otherwise. A common racial stereotype that targets the African American group suggests that most of them make a living from sports and games (Luther, Lepre & Clark, 2012). Such stereotypes seem to borrow from the negative connotation that this racial group is only suitable for activities that involve and require high physical fitness and athleticism. The American Basketball League is one good example of situations that support this negative mindset due to the vast number of African American players. One interesting point that most of the people that subscribe to such inferior mindsets choose to ignore is the success of the American media sector in marketing and promoting its content. Therefore, due to the broad reach of the NBA screening rights and famous African American basketball players like Michael Jordan, the majority subscribe to the racial stereotype that this racial group makes a living primarily from sports. The same mindsets have infiltrated the athletics and track events scene with harmful consequences for the victim countries in international ratings (Fullwood, 2013).

What only a few realize is that only a few thousand African American individuals make a living from all games in the United States out of the millions. However, these considerations quickly lose their potency once concern extends into the entertainment scene. A vast number of successful entertainers in music belong to the African American race making a stereotypical racial assumption easy. Unfortunately, the distance between violence and the music industry is closest at the African American connection based on gang violence. Such considerations fuel an already negative stereotype that all African Americans or Blacks are members of gangs and, therefore, prone to violence. These conclusions are tantamount to prejudice and could not be further from the truth based on the number of people from these racial groups who succeed in industries considered a preserve for the majority. According to Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates, “there are 12 times more Black lawyers in the US than Black athletes” (Fullwood, 2013).

The situation is similar in other facets of entertainment as demonstrated by numerous studies. In one particular study aimed at American television programming, most television programs saw African Americans usually get roles equal to their White and Hispanic counterparts. However, the situation changed when themes such as crime come up where the Black minority get inferior and dark roles in most cases. Such scenarios arose again in similar fashion for other minority groups as demonstrated by the plight of the Hispanic group in North America. Most typical television programs depicted this racial group in a usual manner, but when themes such as immigrant labor and Latin dance came up, racial stereotyping emerged. These mindsets are proven to affect development programs and coexistence in the areas they exist (Bratt & Rohe, 2005). Such types of racial discrimination cannot continue to permeate society, especially mixed race society such as North America and Europe as it fans darker agenda hidden in neo-racism.

The ideology behind racial stereotyping extended into tokenism and cultural hegemony

In the course of the development of cultural diversity within the modern era, the vices of neo-racism and racial discrimination have taken on new faces. As outlined in the previous sections, racial stereotypes seem to have permeated into every aspect of modern human existence that present circumstances denoted by cultural and racial diversity. Part of this aspect of cultural analysis borrows from past eras where social vices such as slavery and racially motivated extermination existed. However, the fact that these inferior forms of discrimination continue to hide in ordinary human activity such as entertainment and other forms of media is unfortunate. Television has continued to suffer from a sustained form of racial stereotyping as evidenced earlier in the sport and entertainment industries. Weir (2007) states that “the fact that one racial group is perceived to inherently possess superior traits that almost guarantee success and good performance in these sectors is unfortunate” (pg. 152). Such mindsets point to a continued failure by the human race to let go of backward and outdated practices.

Unfortunately, the ideology of racial stereotypes and related forms of racial discrimination such as racial profiling seems to lie in scientific history. In the 19th century, scientific racism emerged as a kind of classification for the human race based on their skin color. Almost immediately, pioneers of this backward scientific reasoning such as Johann Blumenbach whose research in 1775 advanced theories based on this ideology of racist classification referred to as ‘polygenism’ (Bolaffi, 2003). After dividing the human species into five distinct groups based on skin color, White, Blacks, Mongols, and the like, these early ideologies paved the way for racial stereotypes. These stereotypes revolved on assumptions such as black skin being inferior and white skin being beautiful. A few years later after Blumenbach’s inferior ideological presentations, Christoph Meiners cemented the foundation of what would be the start of racism. He suggested the existence of two distinct racial groups; black and white.

Many hundreds of years later, the same backward form of thinking still exists albeit with more subtle attributes. While the Black race and other minorities have suffered sustained inhumane mistreatment over the course of the last four centuries, the modern form of racial discrimination takes on a softer approach. Television programming presents an excellent example of one of the modern forms of racial discrimination that is racial stereotyping. The Black race plays roles attributed to their circumstances under poverty, illiteracy, athleticism, slavery, and servitude (Brooks & Althouse, 2007). The Hispanic group also faces distinct racial stereotyping on television in the form of roles that depict the perceived ignorance and romanticism of Latin culture. Besides, this racial group is linked with immigration issues into North America, gang violence, drug trafficking and animal cruelty. As unfortunate as the circumstance are, the modern media houses and entertainment stakeholders seem unwilling to let go of the negative connotations that continue to fuel neo-racism.

Modern attempts to cover up racial stereotyping in the media have evolved into almost ingenious tactics. Tokenism is the first extension of racial stereotyping that tries to heal these racial stereotypes. Tokenism is the provision of certain privileges or conditions that seek to conceal the recipients’ social, cultural, or financial inferiority. Tokenism is rife in all aspects of human interaction within the context of racial stereotypes and in light of television-related media. A look into the media houses that relate to aspects of racial stereotypes reveals that the media personalities assigned the duty of investigating and reporting these vices are mostly from the affected communities. CNN is perhaps the most affected by this form of racial stereotyping as Hispanic media personalities cover issues of Latin origin such as immigrant welfare. Interestingly, the same applies to other aspects of television as demonstrated by ESPN where African American figures are assigned the majority of basketball commentary positions while Whites and Hispanics cover baseball. These extensions continue to impart an adverse effect on these aspects of human life as racial stereotypes ingrain themselves deeper into human thinking. The results exhibit even in young children who believe that certain racial groups are inherently gifted in various forms of sport and related activity based on what they watch on television.

Cultural hegemony is the second kind of extension to racial stereotyping as it relates to television programming. Cultural hegemony means the dominating effect that a ruling class has in culturally diverse societies demonstrated by the overwhelming effect of their morals, beliefs, values, perceptions (Faber, 2002). Based on the racial stereotyping and other circumstances such as colonization and scientific discovery witnessed over the previous centuries, the White racial group has established itself as the ruling class. Other racial groups have had to contend with this fact, which has in turn been imparted on them through force and other more subtle methods. In the modern setting, cultural hegemony still exhibits itself as an extension of racial stereotyping and other forms of racial discrimination. A cultural analysis of the effects of this vice on the media, especially television programming, reveals that the vice is present in many forms.

Because the ruling class owns most of the major and international media houses, all minority groups have to align their productions with the values and morals of the owners for their content to be televised. Perhaps the reason that many minority groups have started their media houses is the fact that cultural hegemony continues to remind them of the existence of racial stereotyping (Richardson & Kelly, 2012). Some good examples of this phenomenon are the American entertainment groups BET and OWN. BET (Black Entertainment Television) counters cultural hegemony and its effect on the Black entertainment be it music, film, or literature. On the other hand, OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) seeks to provide the African American minority with an equal playing field in terms of film and music on television. These are part of efforts aimed at countering cultural hegemony in American television circles.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, the vice of racial discrimination continues to plague human life at various levels of social and cultural interaction. One aspect of cultural analysis that seems to be indomitable is racial stereotyping. The reach of racial stereotypes is perhaps the widest, as it appears to have permeated into almost all aspects of human life. The media, especially television programming, demonstrate best how racial stereotypes continue to be propagated and sustained within the global community. The news-casting sector of television has this year suffered severally from instances of racial stereotypes where news personalities gravitate towards their racial groups after unjust occurrences. Similarly, each respective racial group seems to continue suffering the same vice in the entertainment and sports industries.

Interestingly, the beneficiaries of racial stereotyping in whatever sector of television entertainment it affects appear to be willing to sustain it. Through tokenism and cultural hegemony, both sides of the racial stereotyping issue are struggling to maintain the upper hand meaning this social and cultural evil shall remain in existence. However, the fact that all the stakeholders in this unfortunate circumstances seem to overlook is that racial discrimination needs to be eliminated. Whatever forms this vice take, all humanity should unite as a single species and eliminate petty considerations such as skin color and geographical origin. Otherwise, the difficulties that lie in fostering conditions that improve the globe’s economic, social, and cultural status will remain.

References

Bolaffi, G. (2003). Dictionary of race, ethnicity and culture. London: SAGE Publications.

Bratt, R., & Rohe, W. (2005). Challenges and dilemmas facing community development corporations in the United States. Community Development Journal, 42(1), 63-78. doi:10.1093/cdj/bsi092

Brooks, D., & Althouse, R. (2007). Diversity and social justice in college sports. Morgantown, WV: Fitness Information Technology.

CNN Tonight. (2015). CNN.

Faber, S. (2002). Exile and cultural hegemony. Nashville: Vanderbilt University Press.

Fleming, T. (2001). Racial stereotypes used by intercollegiate track and field coaches in hypothetical event assignment.

Fullwood, S. (2013). The Media’s Stereotypical Portrayals of Race. CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS. Retrieved 19 July 2015, from https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/news/2013/03/05/55599/the-medias-stereotypical-portrayals-of-race/

Luther, C., Lepre, C., & Clark, N. (2012). Diversity in U.S. mass media. Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell.

Nelson, T. (2009). Handbook of prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination. New York: Psychology Press.

Richardson, B., & Kelly, L. (2012). Power, place and representation. Oxford: Peter Lang.

Weir, R. (2007). Class in America. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press.

CRM influence on investors buying behavior in Banking

CRM influence on investors buying behavior in Banking

Student’ Name

Institution Affiliation

Literature Review

Introduction

This section determines the effect caused by various other factors to CRM (Customer relationship management (Alsmadi & Alnawas, 2011). CRM is noted to be one of the most used management concepts. It has been in existence for more than two decades since its inception in the world of business as well as other organizations. Therefore, this section will evaluate the influence of several factors to CRM in the banking industry especially towards investment.

Psychological Influence

In the business industry, especially in the banking industry. One of the key models that explains the impact of psychological influence on investor’s behavior in banking is the Johari window (Bloemer, De Ruyter & Peeters, 1998). The model was developed to explain how interpersonal communications play part in development or creation of unique psychological influence to an individual towards investment. Most financial theories are based on the idea that clients or investors must take control of all available information that their disposal before making investment decisions (Bloemer, De Ruyter & Peeters, 1998). However, there is much evidence in favor of the above as this is not the case in the banking industry. Investors fall prey to psychological failings hence end up taking the wrong decision towards investment at later end up in losses rather than profits. There are various type of psychological pressure that impacts investor’s decisions especially under conditions of uncertainty. This does not happen in a predictable manner. It not only does it happen the workplaces but also in other financial situation such as in the banking sector amid other sectors (Demetriou, Papasolomou & Vrontis, 2010).

The bottom line of the factors is that psychological forces lead most investors to make an investment mistake most of the time. Investor’s psychological behavior affects their interest to take part in banking market. This, in the long run, affects their ability to invest. According to Bloemer, De Ruyter & Peeters (1998) it is high time that the banking industry gets in line with measures on how to influence the customer’s psychological concerns. Hence the call for better and well-focused CRM in the banking industry (Bloemer, De Ruyter & Peeters, 1998). On the other hand, the study of human psychology denotes that psychological factors highly affects investment decisions and strategies. However, the psychological influence is highly compounded by other various variables. For example, it is clear from research that banking institutions that engage in proper CRM have more customer base as compared to those that do not have it. Such organizations have better strategies for managing their clients’ psychological influence on investment hence able to make the right decisions when investing and in such cases their client end up victories. In addition, it is evident that psychological process also affects the type of investment that people make or would engage in (Bloemer, De Ruyter & Peeters, 1998).

Cultural Influence

Investor’s behavior constantly differs around the globe. This affects investment decisions, strategies and financial returns on the financial market (Alsmadi & Alnawas, 2011). For example, when taking side with organizations such as Anglo-Saxon investors, they are considered as ones that can tolerate greatest losses, on the other hand, German investors are considered as the most patient. Based on the traditional understanding of investment, this has to do with money on the return the investor expects profits, but this time he/she has to be patient and have a positive attitude towards risks. However, the ability of a risk attitude depends on the investor’s economic environment (Bloemer, De Ruyter & Peeters, 1998).

In a given situation, that an American investor has a similar patience and risk abhorrence as a Japanese or a German investor (Alsmadi & Alnawas, 2011). This is only possible if all the investors have the equal economic background such as same rates of inflation and job security. Studies show that culture drives people’s investment behavior, even if other variables such as wealth and inflation are in control. In addition other studies have also indicated that how the effects of cultural differences have on investment in the banking industry (Jamal & Naser, 2002). Likewise, it has been noted that an individual’s cultural background can influence the returns of the economic and financial markets.

For example, European investors are ready to pay less for the value of stocks than those from Nordic nations; they always have a lower risk aversion and are considered to me more patient. Therefore, it can be concluded that cultural background of an individual affects the overall willingness to invest various banking platforms (Bloemer, De Ruyter & Peeters, 1998). The ideas that support proper CRM is the real solution to cultural influences on investment. Therefore, for a positive influence to be established, banking institution as well as investors should ensures they research and determine a cultural alternative that will assist investors with negative cultures to investment. This will help them to be more vigilant to investment concerns especially in the banking industry (Demetriou, Papasolomou & Vrontis, 2010).

Brand Influence

The selection or the choice of a certain brand is connected to the level of consumer behavior especially in the banking industry (Jamal & Naser, 2002). Members of the banking industry perceive brand image from the perspective of their needs as well as it value to the public or society. These members combine the two outlooks and perceive all the information needed in order to ascertain the right framework or market to the investor the stock to invest with. It can be determined that consumers of banking service are not only customers they are also investor or environmental advocates (Demetriou, Papasolomou & Vrontis, 2010). They become they greatest shareholders of the banks by the investment funds and portfolios. This develops an interaction among the facets of corporate brand image thus, influencing the behavior of clients, as well as their perceptions in the banking market (Fan & Ku, 2010).

It is worth to note that investors strategize their familiarity with a certain brand. This is a brand that is strongly influenced by its reliability and presence in the market. When selecting a certain brand, potential investors are influenced by the attractiveness and saliency of a brand and its financial performance in the banking industry. According to Howcroft, Hamilton & Hewer (2002) he concludes that a study conducted in Saudi Arabia indicated that banking industry is paying attention towards strengthening their brand image in order to increase their customer base as well as retain the current ones. Individuals are more aware that the brand image has a higher influence on stock market value. The value for brands account for up to 80% of the stock market value for banking firms in UAE (Jamal & Naser, 2002).

Therefore, it is worth to consider that with a proper CRM, a bank can analyze the best branding strategies that can steer its brands in the financial market for clients to invest or trade in.

Advertisement Influence

Whether the advertisement is via TV, Radio, Newspapers and other new forms of media such social media and the internet, earning the trust of a consumer is the objective of a successful campaign. The banking industry is also not left behind trying to ensure that it meets this threshold (Jamal & Naser, 2002). The good news for advertiser is that the clients are more trusting that they used to be a decade ago. It is evident that advertising influence consumers or the clients at a great extent. It is through advertising that organizations can share the cake of success to their clients. As for the banking industry, it can reach more and more clients via advertising hence able to grow geographically and economically (Kheng, Mahamad, Ramayah & Mosahab, 2010).

It is worth to consider that it is from the adverts that we share that the banks can get more and more clients. The type of advertisements greatly influence the behavior of most investors (Jamal & Naser, 2002). It is from an advertisement that banks in the UAE, as well as others, around the world can share their service with clients. The more the advertisement and the richer the adverts, the more the clients get envisioned or persuaded to the services rendered to them. It is from an advertisement that clients can refine the breath of information that they need to garner from the banks. For example, clients can know of a bank’s share value from an advertisement hence able to make the right decision to invest (Kheng, Mahamad, Ramayah & Mosahab, 2010). For better depiction of information, it is worth to evaluate the reliability of CRM towards value of the advertisement towards banking investments. Via CRM the banks can determine the best advertising platform to use in order to persuade more customers to invest.

Influence of Product/Service Quality

The quality of a products or service greatly affects the consumer behavior towards the service of product. As of the banking industry, it is worth to denote that they offer service, as well as products to its clients (Krasnikov, Jayachandran & Kumar, 2009). The quality of service and product rendered by banks have proved to be an asset in the past and also currently. Banks that offer quality service and products have increased their customer potentials as well as develop a better customer satisfaction level as compared to those that offer considerably poor services. Clients are noted to have a higher preference to the banks that offer higher quality products and service hence develop trust to such institutions (Kheng, Mahamad, Ramayah & Mosahab, 2010). Therefore, it can be noted that the consumer behavior is greatly influenced by the quality of service and products.

References

Alsmadi, S., & Alnawas, I. (2011). Empirical investigation of the CRM concept in the Jordanian context: The case of banks and financial institutions.International Journal of Business and Management, 6(2), p182.

Bloemer, J., De Ruyter, K., & Peeters, P. (1998). Investigating drivers of bank loyalty: the complex relationship between image, service quality and satisfaction. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 16(7), 276-286.

Demetriou, M., Papasolomou, I., & Vrontis, D. (2010). Cause-related marketing: Building the corporate image while supporting worthwhile causes. Journal of Brand Management, 17(4), 266-278.

Fan, Y. W., & Ku, E. (2010). Customer focus, service process fit and customer relationship management profitability: the effect of knowledge sharing. The Service Industries Journal, 30(2), 203-223.

Howcroft, B., Hamilton, R., & Hewer, P. (2002). Consumer attitude and the usage and adoption of home-based banking in the United Kingdom.International journal of bank marketing, 20(3), 111-121.

Jamal, A., & Naser, K. (2002). Customer satisfaction and retail banking: an assessment of some of the key antecedents of customer satisfaction in retail banking. International Journal of bank marketing, 20(4), 146-160.

Kheng, L. L., Mahamad, O., Ramayah, T., & Mosahab, R. (2010). The impact of service quality on customer loyalty: A study of banks in Penang, Malaysia.International Journal of Marketing Studies, 2(2), p57.

Krasnikov, A., Jayachandran, S., & Kumar, V. (2009). The impact of customer relationship management implementation on cost and profit efficiencies: evidence from the US commercial banking industry. Journal of Marketing,73(6), 61-76.

Critical Thinking essay

Critical Thinking

Author

Institution

Developing a team-based compensation system is vital for a company because it helps in increasing productivity because a good compensation system motivates employees in a company. In developing a team-based compensation system, it is critical to consider various fundamental factors. One such factor to consider is the national culture (Pascarella, 1997). A national culture is vital to consider since it helps in determining whether the compensation system will pay emphasis on individuals in a team or will consider the collective team during compensation; different nations have varied ways of looking at compensation. For example, while some nations take emphasize on individuals, others consider a collective contribution.

Another critical factor to consider is who gets what. In deciding who gets what, teams should be given the responsibility of distributing recognition awards. Besides, project managers should be given rewarding powers from the onset of a team activity (Pascarella, 1997). This is crucial since team members will always be dedicated to their work because they fear giving up a task knowing that there is a reward before them. By making the project manager as the person who have rewarding powers will eliminate confusion on who to reward since every team member will need to be rewarded.

In addition, recognition of team output should be at the core of the compensation system. Both non-monetary and monetary recognition is critical since different team members have varied ways of appreciating their efforts. Furthermore, it is critical to consider rewarding both individuals in a team and the entire team (Pascarella, 1997). This motivates team members to continue showing their efforts in a company since they feel that their efforts have been appreciated. The team spirit is also maintained through rewarding a team for their efforts.

References

Pascarella, P. (1997, February). “Compensating Teams”, Across the Board.

Critically Analyze the Management of the Employment Relationship in Sweden.

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Institution:

Course:

Tutor:

Date:

Critically Analyze the Management of the Employment Relationship in Sweden.

Introduction

Globalization trends have increasingly led to the diversification of the work environment. More than ever, relevant stakeholders are being compelled to provide viable wok environments in order to enhance employee performance. In other words, the welfare of the employee is increasingly assuming a central position in economic productivity. Yet despite this realization, various countries and economies continue to grapple with poor employment relationships. These in return have had an adverse effect on economic performance and holistic wellbeing of such states.

Nevertheless, there are certain states that have laid great emphasis on the need to provide sustainable work environments and maintain viable employee relationships. Notably, productivity in such states is seemingly exemplary. This can be attributed to their inherent ability to not only attract but also maintain employment and empower the employees. Over time, such states have been employed as ideal models in management studies. One such state whose employment relationships have been considered to be of exemplary quality on a global scale is Sweden. It is against this background that this paper provides a critical analysis of the management of employment relationships in Sweden.

“Employment relations” is a concept that has gained increased popularity within the global sphere. Essentially, it is all inclusive and denotes all aspects that are related to employment re-sourcing. In particular, it entails acquisition, development, maintenance and motivation of staff. In the Swedish context, Wheeler (2002) indicates that it expands beyond this and covers the various processes that the staffs are involved in once they quit employment. Notably, effective management of all these processes goes a long way in enhancing employee relations. It also contributes significantly to the improvement of the work environment as all factors that affect employees are addressed effectively and in a timely manner. Sweden has been considered to provide the best work environment on a global scale. In addition, its educational programs and materials, research practices and work life have been cited by Swenson (2002) to be remarkable. This distinctive status can be attributed to various systemic elements that make this country to thrive in this sphere.

Fahlbeck and Sigeman (2001) lists them as progressive and strong unions that not only participate in cooperate social responsibility initiatives but initiate various programs that are geared towards improving the work environment; sophisticated industrial relations that enhance the process of decision making and implementation of policies by mainstreaming information flow; the economic policy that advocates for full employment and plays a critical role in improving the working conditions; democratic governance that maintains an orientation that is sympathetic towards improving employee status and maintaining occupational health as well as safety; sustainable and growth oriented economic policies that advocate for continued improvement of industrial production and effective legislation that seeks to improve the entire work environment.

In order to attain this desirable state of affairs, social partners have made significant contributions. Basically, Neal (2000) defines social actors as the representatives of employers and employees in a wok environment. In Sweden, these are represented by union leaders and employers in several sectors. They partner with the government in making policies that govern the cooperate sphere. This entails formulation, implementation and enforcement of various labor policies that govern employment. Social partners in Sweden also participate actively in training employees and sponsoring job creation programs. Finally, Traxler (2003) indicates that they also participate in the process of collective bargaining.

At this point, it can not be disputed that these parties play an integral role in improving the work environment and enhancing the wellbeing of employees. However, it is worth appreciating that the role that these parties play particularly in the implementation and enforcement of laws and policies is informal. More often than not, the entire interests of the employees are seldom taken in consideration. Put differently, the process in some instances is highly subjective. Perhaps the success of Sweden in this regard can be attributed to the emphasis on organized interests. With regard to their participation as sponsors and or trainers, it can be argued that the private sector plays an important role in attaining this goal. This is because in the long run, the required benchmarks that determine standardization often need to be approved by respective employers (Elvander, 2002).

The role of the state in Swedish system of employment relations can also not be understated. In this context, a state is also referred to as a country and it constitutes a political entity that is self governing (Kilkaver, 2002). As a country that is governed by social democracy, the Swedish government is compelled to enhance the empowerment of all its citizens. The constitution provides the required rules as well as regulations through its well defined system of laws. The main aim of these is to facilitate progress, address all grievances and ultimately maintain harmonic living. The state plays an important role of initiating bilateral relationships between employees and employers. This is essential for mutual and healthy existence. In addition, Bamber, Lansbury and Wailes (2004) indicate that it enhances cooperation between these stakeholders and ultimately improves progress. In other words, through its ability to formulate, implement and enforce specific laws and regulations, the state participate it resolving conflicts between different agencies.

However, it should be appreciated that regardless of the inherent efforts and good intentions of the state, some parties still face challenges when resolving their problems. It is for this reason that the particular laws are mainstreamed within the legal constitution. In essence, the state offers all viable mechanisms through which conflicts can be effectively resolved and progress guaranteed. Attainment of this ideal state requires an effective form of governance, judiciary and management. In their review, Ferner and Hyman (2001) ascertain that Sweden seems to have mastered the art of effective governance and management at all levels. It is because conflicts are minimal and the government is dedicated to ensuring that all required mechanisms are provided in a timely manner. Besides, it plays an instrumental and non partisan role as an oversight body. The characteristic value system can be attributed to the ideal education system that instills these values at tender stages.

Equally important in this respect has been the role of collective bargaining. According to Tuselmann and Heise (2000), it refers to a decision making process between the representatives of the various interests of the employers and employees. The main aim of these is to negotiate and continually apply the agreed rules that govern the employment. Basically, the respective rules are usually established by the labor law. However, governments in some case make interventions whenever the labor-management relations experience problems.

The role of collective bargaining is to agree upon certain rules and regulations that facilitate compromise between the various conflicting interests over the conditions as well as terms of employment. From a historical point of view, institutions are often created to represent the interests and positions of the workers. Arguably, collective bargaining has played an important role in introducing and maintaining democracy within the work environment. This is because of its ability to bring to the fore and effectively analyze the varying interests of the involved parties. Further, the fact that a mutual agreement is arrived at in the long run implies that the process is sustainable. Basically, this has been instrumental in curbing manipulation that is typical of unsustainable work environments.

However, it is worth noting that work environments continue to experience challenges that stem form asymmetrical bargaining strength that is existent in the market economies. This has culminated in differences in employee and employer preferences during the bargaining process. In this regard, while employees derive distributive, protective and voice function form the process, employers aim at maintaining personal employment relations. The fact that they look forward to having a more bargaining power over the former perpetuates the differences. Also worth mentioning is the realization that employers tend to perceive the process as time consuming. All these concerns undermine the collective bargaining process. From Swenson’s (2002) point of view, the emphasis on the need for collective goods by both employees and employers provide a viable option for bridging the inherent complexities. While political will is essential, this requires dedication and commitment by all stakeholders.

As indicated afore, Sweden has an exemplary model of employee relations on a global scale. Pertinent to this is the concept of industrial democracy. Befort and Budd (2009) define this as an idyllic arrangement that ensures that workers or employees participate actively in making decisions. They are allowed by the system of governance to share responsibility as well as authority at their respective work places. Examples of this mode of arrangement are presented by Germany that accords the shareholders and workers an equal opportunity to elect the members of the directorate which constitutes the management. In general, industrial democracy refers to the ability of a given company to give the workers a chance to participate directly in governance (Honeyball, 2008). This is characterized by effective and clear communication within the organization. This is also attained through intensive consultation and effective representation of all stakeholders and shareholders at the managerial level.

Sweden has assumed this ideology in its employment relations on a significant level. Relative policies are employed in ensuring that workers or employees have quality employment that is characterized by sustainable work environments. According to Selwyn (2008) effective communication and free flow of information provides an ideal approach that the country assumes in attaining the underlying goal. Overall, workers are given a chance to participate actively in operating enterprise. In addition, industrial democracy in Sweden is defined by a spirit of cooperation as well as semi-autonomous work teams. The managerial teams cooperate with the employees in execution of key operations.

Also worth mentioning is the fact that firms in Sweden incorporate workers in managerial positions. In this regard, Ewing, McColgan and Collins (2005) ascertain that workers in Swedish firms assume top positions particularly as board of directors. In order to enhance competence and overall output, worker directors are given formal training about the tasks that are executed by the directors. This enables them to participate actively in management. Besides this, they are allowed to spend sufficient time with other directors in order to gain experience in the field. Unionization and the adoption of relevant legislation have further enabled the country to attain a high degree of democracy within its labor relations. The adoption of a labor policy that sought to improve the working conditions of employees was particularly effective in enhancing industrial democracy.

The reduction of the income gap between workers in the formal and informal sector can also be considered imperative attaining quality employment. The Swedish government attained this through establishment of large over-laps within pay scales. The government also put in place various initiatives that were geared towards improving the overall quality of life of the citizens. Notably, this was a requisite for enhancement of democracy. Thus areas that were outside the work environment such as social security, education and National Health Insurance were also improved. Of great importance was the enhancement of democracy within the political sphere. This according to Deakin and Morris (2005) was instrumental in promoting employee influence outside the work environment.

At this point, it can be ascertained that industrial democracy in Sweden has taken root. This can e attributed to the entrenchment of the ideology in legal domains. Arguably, it has put the government on toes with respect to the need to maintain transparency and accountability. However, inefficient enforcement of this ideology has contributed significantly to incidences of unemployment in the recent past. Walker and Morell (2005) indicate that the social welfare system and mode of government have in some instances negatively affected the wellbeing of employers. Nonetheless, the extent of this ideology in employee relations in the country remains pervasive.

Unionism is an important aspect of labor relations in Sweden. The trade union movement consists of a significant 2.1 million members and basically represents workers in the informal sector. Then, the Swedish Confederation of Professional Employees has 1.3 million members and represents workers in the formal sector. Further, the Swedish Confederation of Professional association represents professional employees with graduate qualifications. It has a total of 479,000 members (Teicher, 2006). The unions play an integral role in addressing a wide range of employee issues and concerns in a bit to improve working conditions. Particular issues according to Nankervis, Chatterjee and Coffey (2006) include negotiation of salary and negation of intrinsic disparities regarding the formal and informal workers and ensuring maintenance of acceptable work conditions. Normally, such procedures tend to be compounded by various complexities. However, the Swedish experience has been smooth because of the availability to legislation that governs the procedure.

Recent research ascertains that the unions in this country have the highest level of representation on global scale. Seemingly, this has been contributed to by the encouragement of volunteer membership. In addition, the fact that the unions and employees mutually benefit from the employee relations is an idyllic feature of Swedish employment. Unlike unions in other countries, Swedish unions have been cited to be highly organizational. Besides, they do not involve themselves in political and or religious confrontation that is responsible for fragmentation. This can be used to explain why the country has been successful in maintaining unionization and ultimate viable employee relationships. Basically, unionization can be considered an important feature of the Swedish employee relations. Most importantly, the procedures it employs have contributed significantly to the current desirable status of the country.

Equally instrumental has been the role of employers in the management of employee relationships. In their consultative research, Anxo and Niklasson (2006) cite examples of employers to include the General Employers Group, The Association of Swedish Engineering Industries (VI), The national Agency for Government employers, The Association of Local Authorities, The Federation of County Councils, The Construction Group and The Commercial and Service Employer’s Association. The employers play various roles in enhancement of work environment and improvement of the quality of life of the Swedish population. Together with the unions, they play a leading role in resolving the various problems that face the employees. Besides offering employment opportunities, Cornfield and Hodson (2002) indicate that they participate actively in formulation of policies that promote the wellbeing of the employees.

However, different concerns have been identified with regard to the role of employers in enhancing the work environment. Notably, they have used this position to further their personal interests. This has been particularly common with incidences where neither the government nor the union is involved. However, in most instances, Blanpain and Dickens (2008) argue that they have been compelled by the law to assume sustainable practices. All the same, incidences of manipulation of employees by this group of individuals can not be completely ruled out. The privatization of industry has further played a role in perpetuating manipulation especially during employee recruitment and employment.

Of great significance and reference to the management of employee relations in Sweden is the Swedish Model. It is an ideology that represents outstanding and ideal industrial relations as well as a well balanced social and economic structure. According to Myrdal (2009), it can be defined by a free market economy that functions properly and in which a significant 90% of the commercial and industrial sector are privately owned, free and independent yet competing enterprises that have rationalized and developed over time in collaboration with their workers, a labor market that is fully organized whose two sides are completely independent of one another and of the government, which resolve their conflicts autonomously and in a peaceful way but which still value corporate social responsibility, a well developed system that allows active participation of employee sin management, friendly cooperation and enterprises that enjoy a pragmatic and peaceful atmosphere that is also compromising.

Research indicates that these conditions provide a true picture of what constituted the model a couple of decades ago. Because of various transformations in the field of labor relations, a new Swedish model has been adopted. Thus it can be argued that the model is still in existence although it has also undergone different changes, in line with the political transformations and reorientations. Ultimately, this has led to the development of a model that is flexible and which reflects the dynamics in the economic and employment sectors. In this consideration, it can be ascertained that the respective changes significantly reinforce the traditional Swedish model and social cohesion.

In order to attain optimal growth and development in future, the Swedish system of employment relations needs to address certain shortcomings. In particular, it needs to improve its pension system to reflect the rising expenditures, address the increasing tax pressure and address the issue of unemployment (Cornfield & Hodson, 2002). Nonetheless, the future of the country is prospective. This is particularly because of the inherent stability, growth and development that characterize the entire system. It is likely to enable Sweden to soar economically and attain the highest degree of economic stability. This is essential as it boosts the country against the economic shocks that compromise sustainable development.

Conclusion

At this juncture, it can be ascertained that the Swedish system of managing employment relations is idyllic. This can be attributed to the assumption of various elements that seek to enhance the quality of life, social cohesion, industrial democracy and viable work environments. Specifically, industrial democracy has ensured participation of workers in management and therefore enhanced transparency and accountability. These are undoubtedly essential for economic growth and prosperity. As it has come out from the study, unions play an integral role in addressing diverse issues that affect the employees. The effective and autonomous nature of unions has equally been instrumental in promoting sustainable work environments. Likewise, the role of employers in contributing to the state of affairs can not be underestimated. Particularly, their active participation in policy formulation and providing of employment opportunities is important. Regardless of various shortcomings, it can be concluded that the country has been successful in managing employment relations.

References

Anxo, D. & Niklasson, H. (2006). The Swedish Model in Turbulent Times: Decline or Renaissance? International Labor Review, 145 (4), 6-9

Bamber, G., Lansbury, R. & Wailes, N. (eds). (2004). International and Comparative Employment Relations: Globalization and the Developed market Economics. UK: Allen & Unwin.

Befort, S. & Budd, J. (2009). Invisible Hands, Invisible Objectives: Bringing Workplace Law and Public Policy into Focus. Stanford: University Press.

Blanpain, R. & Dickens, L. (2008). Challenges in European Employment Relations. USA: Kluwer Law International

Bruun, N. & Hellsten, J. (2001). Collective Agreements and Competition in the EU. The Report of the COLCOM-Project Denmark: DJOF Publishing.

Cornfield, D. & Hodson, R. (2002). Worlds of Work: Building an International Sociology of Work. London: Kluver Press.

Deakin, S. & Morris, G. (2005). Labor Law. USA: Hart Publishing.

Elvander, N. (2002). The Labor market Regimes in the Nordic Countries: A Comparative Analysis. Scandinavian Political Studies, 2, 67-9.

European Trade Union Institute (ETUI). (2000). Trade Union in Europe Facing Challenges and Searching for Solutions. Belgium: Brussels.

Ewing, K., McColgan, A. & Collins, H. (2005). Labor Law, Cases, Texts and Materials. USA: Hart Publishing.

Fahlbeck, R. (2000). Employee Loyalty in Sweden. Comparative Labor Law and Policy Journal, 20, 1-8.

Fahlbeck, R. & Sigeman, T. (2001). European Employment and Industrial Relation Glossary: Sweden. UK: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities.

Ferner, A. & Hyman, R. (eds.) (2001). Changing Industrial Relations in Europe. Oxford: Blackwell.

Honeyball, S. (2008). Honeyball and Bower’s Textbook on Employment Law. Oxford: University Press.

Kilkauer, T. (2002). A Critique on Hassel’s Erosion Thesis. British Journal of Industrial Relations, 40 (2), 295-308.

Myrdal, H. (2009). The Swedish Model: Will it Survive? British Journal of Industrial Relations, 18 (1), 57-69.

Nankervis, A., Chatterjee, S. & Coffey, J. (2006). Perspectives of Human Resource Management in the Asia and Pacific. Sydney: Pearson

Neal, A. (2000). European Social Policy and the Nordic Countries. UK: Ashgate, Dartmouth.

Selwyn, N. (2008). Selwyn’s Law of Employment. Oxford: University Press.

Swenson, A. (2002). Capitalists Against markets: The Making of Labor Markets and Welfare States in the United States and Sweden. Oxford: University Press.

Teicher, J. (2006). Work Choices: New Industrial Relations Agreement. Sydney: Pearson.

Traxler, F. (2003). Bargaining De Centralization, Macroeconomic Performance and Control over the Employment Relationship. Industrial Relations Journal, 31 (3), 162-76.

Tuselmann, H. & Heise, A. (2000). The German Model of industrial Relations at the Crossroads: Past, Present and Future. Industrial Relations Journal, 41 (1), 1-27.

Walker, K. & Morrel, A. (2005). Labor and Employment: Workplace Warzone. Oxford: University Press.

Wheeler, J. (2002). Employee Involvement in Action: Reviewing Swedish Codetermination. Labor Studies Journal, 26 (4) 71-97.

Critically assess the basis of obedience by states in international law. What factors do states take into account in complian

Q. Critically assess the basis of obedience by states in international law. What factors do states take into account in compliance with international law rules?

The international community is increasingly becoming an integrated unit following major fronts of development, with law and governance leading alongside economic agenda. In light of organizational needs of the integrated body of international community, it is important that certain laws are formulated and enforced for the integrity of the community to pass the test of existence. However, there are certain hurdles that stand in the way of an efficient transition from the segregated existence to the more inclusive arrangement. Enforcement of the international protocol faces the most potent challenge of embracing of the formulated laws and sustenance of the appropriate adherence across the member states (Alter, 19). While the membership of the international community has evolved in the recent past to be synonymous with the most acceptable yardstick for development, there are several considerations that make the expected transition the challenge it is today.

The platform on which the international law is founded outlines the integrity of the leadership and governance of the international community and is built on commitment to comply with the binding regulations. Due to the unavailability of a political structure at such a level, only goodwill can be applied in the delivery of the commitment expected for compliance and adherence. In such an arrangement, it is evident that there are loopholes which expose the sovereignties of individual member states to the mercy of external forces. External interference is a contradiction to the existence of the member states as sovereign states, which is the predominant building block of the international community. In the protection of the integrity of the individual state and the international community, there is undoubted favor for the integrity of the member state sovereignty which is the basic unit of the international community. In light of conflicting interests and objectives as expected in such an arrangement, there are important considerations to be made by the leadership of the individual member states regarding becoming signatories of the effective protocols as well as the details of compliance.

State behavior in embracing international law and handling international relations is important in determining the considerations that are likely to be highlighted by various leaderships before making commitment to such undertakings (Raustiala and Slaughter, 544). While politics therefore becomes central to the nature of state behavior detailing embracing international laws, specific regimes as guided by ideological foundations may not play this role within the spirit of the modern international community. However, there is a general agreement that nations have a common behavior in accepting international law which is usually formulated to be applied equally across the board. It is important to note that commitment to comply with international laws by member states may be a behavioral phenomenon than that of choice. As an illustration, there are very few instances of a single nation declining to comply with an international convention where the rest of the members, particularly if close allies embraced undertook to comply and be bound by such law.

According to Henkin (74), a general wave of influence is made on the benefits of the implementation of the particular international law which is usually designed to be more beneficial if all the member states are involved including image, reciprocity and other norm factors. In certain instances, the behavioral phenomenon has resulted in later considerations and analysis which indicate that certain compliance decisions were as a result of some influence. To illustrate this, compliance to the Rome Statute which establishes and guides on the International Criminal Court (ICC) has started to appear as an unfavorable decision by many countries, particularly the African countries that are largely affected by the compliance thereon (Stone, 124). While reverting the signatory commitment engaged in such international laws may not act in the best interests of the image of the country, there are cases of such reversals late into the commitment.

In another consideration given weight in favor of complying with international law, there is scholarly evidence that replacing segregated law arrangements with a wider concept of regional regimes is more beneficial to member states. International law studies provided information on the regime theory from several perspectives proving the advantages of favoring international cooperation. Under such scholarly evidence, it became increasingly important for legal advisers to the state to analyze the positions of complying with international laws which almost always acts in support of the move. A debate emerged regarding international law compliance among constructivists and rationalists on the various perspectives of the binding nature of the international commitment entered into through various platforms (Henkin, 21). It is clearly evident therefore that there is need for deep considerations by member states on the most important position to be adopted regarding cooperating with international law systems.

Considering certain sanctions set aside by various international legally binding fora presents a valid cause of concern during the deliberation on complying or abstaining. While the demanding needs of certain international regimes act as an important point of consideration by the member state, there are more issues that require to be factored in the decision regarding membership and compliance thereon. On one hand, there are beneficial considerations on the regime created by cooperation among member states in terms of legal synergy and development. Generally, there are certain benefits in undertaking to join a certain international body with legally binding terms as outlined in the objectives of the body (Pulkowski, 513). On the other hand, it is important to consider the disadvantageous impact likely to be experienced due to noncompliance. There are sanctions for defectors from the legally binding regime. Gains of defection or noncompliance must be considered against the loss sustained by victims of sanctions arising from compliance issues.

Additionally, national interests are considered within the backdrop of international regimes presented by the international conventions and treaties with legally binding terms requiring compliance. An analysis of case facts based on the ceteris paribus perspective from which the cost and benefit position is likely to be established must be deliberated on. Under such an analysis, the individual considerations indulged by the leadership of a member state goes beyond political and policy interests. In such a perspective, a larger framework is involved to interrogate the public goods perspective which highlights deep aspects of the presenting challenge of compliance. Two dominant items of consideration are usually highlighted to handle the interests of the member state in a more conclusive way. One of these items of consideration is referred to as the problem structure that is intended to capture the most strategic position when the country is subjected to the membership of the legally binding integration. Coordination and collaboration aspects of binding integrations are usually based on the strategic positioning of the member states. As an illustration, a state may need to consider the underlying problem necessitating the establishment of an international convention and the cooperation of states to alleviate the problem. While it may be in the best interest of a country to cooperate with the international community in alleviating an international disaster, domestic regulation of the effective laws may be out of proportion by certain states with regard to the relative threat experienced by the states.

It therefore implies that the variables of the need to comply with a particular international law may force the problem structure to be brought to the fore of the contemplations. Compliance to this end would be dependent on the severity of the challenge that the common interest aims to resolve, with the most affected members bearing the most burden of compliance than the least affected. However, it may act as a protective move for less affected member states to strongly stand for the implementation of specific international laws as well as improve the image of the country in the respective area of international policy. A closely related consideration referred to as the solution structure which involves the considerations of capacity that the country has to implement the enforcement requirements of the specified regulations. While the provisions of the implementation may differ with different legal requirements provided in various conventions, it is important to consider how the member state is institutionally prepared to handle the proposed regime. Since this approach considers the practicality of a specific legal regime within its jurisdiction, it implies that it also involves the consideration of the strategic position adopted in terms of the cost of compliance.

Finally, the postulates of the theory of obedience may perhaps explain what countries consider before they comply with international law. As observed earlier in this discourse, the international community is conventionally founded on the principles of law and as such, the need to comply with a particular international law may be in line with the general context of cooperation spirit held by the international community as defined by international relations. Being a part of the international community is therefore a predetermining exposure that induces certain expectation and culture established within the established cooperation. Obedience theory is therefore an important contextual consideration from where international standards of legal processes are keenly developed with regard to international mood of high regard to rule of law (Koh, 2634). This is a different perspective from the apparent member states’ influence on each other on the premise that there is an internal need for a country to be compliant to international law based on the fact that internal systems are themselves based on a similar arrangement.

Works Cited

Alter, Karen J. The new terrain of international law. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010. Print

Henkin, Louis How nations behave, 2nd edn. New York: Columbia University Press, 1979. Print

Koh, Harold Hongju. “Why Do Nations Obey International Law?” The Yale Law Journal, 106.8(1997): 2634.

Pulkowski, Dirk. “Testing Compliance Theories: Towards US Obedience of International Law in Avena Case” Laiden Journal of International Law, 19(2006):511-554

Raustiala, Kal. & Slaughter, Ann-Marie. “International Law, International Relations and Compliance”. In Carlnaes, W., Risse, T. & Simmons, B. A. (Eds.), Handbook of international relations New York: Sage Publications, (2002). Print

Stone Sweet, Alec. Constitutional dialogues in the European Union: In the European Court of Justice and national courts—doctrine and jurisprudence, Oxford: Hart Publishing, 1998. Print

Critique of Anne of Green Gables Movie Trilogy

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Critique of Anne of Green Gables Movie Trilogy

Anne of Green Gables Movie Trilogy is a critically acclaimed move based on a worldwide best-selling novel. The movie was filmed in Canada on the picturesque Prince Edward Island. The award winning movie depicts the drama of Anne Shirley’s life an orphan who struggles through her teenage but become successful as a young adult woman. Anne makers a remarkable transition from an impetuous, romantic orphan to became an adventurous, outspoken and an accomplished young teacher. It is a clear illustration of wit and emotional power and the activities of every other character in the story directly or indirectly influence her to become what powerful women she becomes. Amidst this, watcher can clearly see and distinguish clear massages on how one should behave, conduct himself/herself, act during certain circumstances or assert a sense of ownership in relation to their gender. The story provides example that one would follow in being feminine or masculine.

The society has numerous expectations on people. These expectations are based on many variables such as gender, and education. Anne is a lady but her manners during childhood and teenage a centrally to what lady should conduct herself like. Marilla, one of her adaptors works tirelessly to ensure that she adopts lady like mannerisms but she fails repeatedly. Anne first has difficult in controlling her temper and is very impulsive (Beth). This and her imaginative nature consistently land her in trouble. However, one can grow and overcome such challenges. Anne learned to control her temper and impulsive actions as she grew up. For instance, the young an picked up fights very easily. An example of this is when she attacks Gilbert for making fun of her red hair.

The red hair also point out to the insecurities that young girls have. In adolescence many girls struggle with insecurities especially with thing people can see and point out. But as they grow they become more aware and confident of whom they are. This is certainly evident of Anne, as she grows; she becomes more confident and is not anger by her looks. Being feminine could be challenging in the wake of this insecurities but when one learns on how to embraces this insecurities and look at them in a positive way, she turns the insecurities around grow more confident and achieve more success. Amidst such insecurities, ladies must also learn how not to be carried away by gossip (Fitzgibbons). People will always gossip and will always have something to say about you. You response to such gossip influences the way people treat you afterwards.

Femininity is not associated with aggressive war like behaviors. A lady must be calm. Certainly an a aggressive girl who picks up fights like the teenage Anne needs a lot of guidance and teaching to learn how to become calm and composed. Certainly, Marilla did a commendable job on Anne to mould her into a respectable woman. Gaining composure and calmness can only come by when one learns how to handle their insecurities’ and respond to what people say. One should not be ready to attack or how back insult to whoever insults her.

Life involves a lot of sacrifices to both men and women. Anne a hard working girl has great ambitions and even won a scholarship, however, she put her ambition on hold to remain on the Island and take care of Marilla who had become blind in her old age (Dunn). She scarified taking a scholarship for a four year degree course, and decides to take up a teaching job close to home so that she can be close enough to take care of Marilla. This kind of choice, sacrifice or decision comes from a great sense of responsibility. Both men and have responsibilities but the approach to responsibilities is different. Only responsible people can take care of the elderly loved ones, and only few can sacrifice their ambitions due to this kind of responsibility. Although masculinity involves a sense of responsibility, it is not a strong as it is in femininity. It the caring instinct and abilities that accompany femininity that made Anne sacrifice her dream to take care of Marilla. Certainly, the reckless, highly tempered teenage Anne would not have shown such a great amount of responsibility and sacrifice.

Femininity is not an excuse for laziness. Ladies can draw lesson from Anne’s story; she is not lazy but hardworking who strive to realize her own dreams. Anne of Green Gables Movie Trilogy presents to young girls an opportunity to watch a life being built through honest hard work (Fruhling). Any work hard with a target and objective in mind taking each challenge as it comes by. She even changes her attitudes and mannerism on her way to become respectable teacher, wife and mother.

In conclusion, the Anne of Green Gables Movie Trilogy presents an inspiration story that can be used to improve and shape the lives of young girls to nature them into respectable ladies. Young girls must understand that femininity is not associated with warlike mannerisms, quick tempers and impulsive acts. A lady ought to be calm and always think before acting. Insecurities are part of every ladies life, but no one should ever allow insecurities to be their source of weakness. Every lady should learn how to positively handle her insecurities. Women should have a great sense of responsibility and should work hard to realize their drams. Hard and honest work always pays well. Finally, making sacrifices is part of life. At one time in life one has to choose between pursuing their ambition or a sacrificing their ambition to help a friend or a relative. The way one handles such a moment speaks volumes on their personality.

Works Cited

“Anne of Green Gables Trilogy Set Box.” Dir. Kevin Sullivan. Perf. Richard Farnsworth, Megan Follows, Colleen Dewhurst. Sullivan Entertainment. 2005.

Beth, Lisa. “Fourth Anne of Green Gables Movie Announced, Will be a Prequel” July 9, 2007. Web. September 12, 2012. < http://voices.yahoo.com/fourth-anne-green-gables-movie-announced-will-be-424315.html?cat=40>

Dunn, Warren. “Anne of Green Gables” 2012. Web. September 12, 2012 <http://ossuslibrary.tripod.com/Mov_Fiction/AnneofGreenGables.htm>

Fitzgibbons, Caitlin. “Life Lessons from Anne with an E” Web. September 12, 2012. <http://hellogiggles.com/life-lessons-from-anne-with-an-e>

Fruhling , Zachary. “Anne of Green Gables is a Great Film for Kids and Romantics Alike.” May 31, 2007. Web. September 12, 2012. < http://voices.yahoo.com/anne-green-gables-great-film-kids-and-366376.html?cat=38>