Friday, January 31, 2020

Developing in the relationships Essay Example for Free

Developing in the relationships Essay Once Marco and Rodolpho are in the house and settled down they start to introduce themselves a bit more fully to the family. Marco acts as a father figure to Rodolpho, comes across as down to earth which contrasts with Rodolpho who just Dreams, and has no sense of proportion. Rodolpho is very loud and forward, I have a nice face, but no money.  The first sign of trouble arises not long into the cousins arrival when Rodolpho starts to sing Paper Doll. Eddie does not give positive reactions from this. Miller uses visual tension with Eddie rolling up a newspaper and showing an explicit look to show the friction in the house  Once the cousins have been there for a while Eddie tells Beatrice that he aint been feelin good. This shows tension between the couple. Eddie admits to Beatrice They bother me since they came. this increases the dramatic tension; is Eddie anticipating that something bad is going to happen? Friction is suggested when Eddie says he Cant talk about it Eddie is not giving Beatrice enough attention and their relationship is on a rocky stage, which is affecting their emotional and sexual relationship. Beatrice is becoming worried about this problem and asks Eddie When am I gonna be a wife again? This is a euphemism and shows the break down in verbal communication between the married couple. Beatrice wants Eddie to confront his problem because of the trouble he is having with expressing his emotions. The failure of communication within the marriage is affecting the physical relationship. Beatrice is feeling ignored and craves the attention of her husband even though he is neglecting her and putting her in the background of his life. On the video the tension between Eddie and Beatrice is very clear as when Eddie is talking about sex he cannot look his wife in the eye and share his feelings. The relationship between the family is showing Beatrice to have developed some jealousy towards Catherine as Catherine is getting more attention from Eddie than she is. The relationships have become implicit and have now more reason to question the developing relationship between Eddie and Catherine to be more than just a father daughter relationship. This developing relationship becomes more apparent near the end of act one when Eddie is on his way home from work and he bumps into Catherine and Rodolpho who seem to be getting on well. Eddie becomes upset at the fact that maybe Rodolpho has won over the affection of Catherine and Eddie has been unsuccessful. Once Eddie and Catherine are alone, Eddie tries to tell Catherine that Rodolpho is using her for an American passport. The audience now question the reality of what Eddie has told Catherine but at the same time we are asking if Eddie is only saying this in hope that Catherine will believe this and dump Rodolpho. The stage directions add to the dramatic tension, as Catherine is smiling but tense. It is as if you can feel the friction in the air. We sympathise with Catherine as she only wants to grow up and Eddie is holding her back and still treating her like a child. Eddie is doing this because he is scared at the fact that Rodolpho is taking his Baby away. But is this fair to Catherine and also to Beatrice?  There is a lot of jealousy developing in the relationships; Eddie is jealous of Rodolpho because of the feelings Catherine has for him and Beatrice is jealous of Catherine because she gets more attention paid to her than Beatrice but she will not admit it, Beatrice asks Catherine, You think Im jealous of you honey? I think when reading the script you can see Beatrices plan of getting Catherine out the house. If Catherine marries Rodolpho, the two of them will be out the house and she will be able to have her husband back. Beatrice asks Catherine,  You wanna get married, or dont you wanna get married! she tries to make out to her that Eddie will not like Rodolpho but she should have realised by now that If it was a prince came here for you it would be no different implying that no man will ever be right for her in his eyes. Beatrice tells Catherine that she should become more independent and if you act like a baby and he be treatin you like a baby. These are Beatrices hints to make her realise the fact that she is not a child and should not be constantly relying on Eddie. Eddie goes to see Alfieri and from the meeting they have Miller presents Eddie to be irrational and confused. We pity Eddie and feel sympathetic as we can foresee tragedy, as it is inevitable. While Eddie is speaking to Alfieri, Eddie makes Rodolpho out to be effeminate as he can sing and sew.  Later that evening when Eddie arrives home there is still friction between Eddie and Rodolpho. Catherine resumes annoyed with Eddie so she torments Eddie by playing paper doll on the phonograph and then asks Rodolpho to dance, knowing that this will torment Eddie by seeing the pair together. Rodolpho recognises the tension and tells Catherine that he is too tired to dance, of trying to calm the situation. Beatrice makes Rodolpho get up and dance but Rodolpho can feel Eddies eyes on his back. While dancing with Rodolpho, Catherine is flaunting her independence and both Catherine and Beatrice are revolting Eddie. Marco and Rodolpho are deferential and recognise the tension and friction that is in the house. Eddie is still trying to show Rodolpho up and prove to Catherine that Rodolpho is effeminate by having a Masculinity contest of boxing. In the Sicilian community the men are always seen to be big, strong, and able to look after and protect the women. By Eddie hitting Rodolpho he tries to show Rodolpho up and make him look weak. Rodolpho gets his own back by asking Catherine to dance. He becomes provocative once he realises Eddies plan. Eddie humiliated Rodolpho by showing to Catherine hes more masculine and then Rodolpho shows Eddie that he can hit him in the stomach but he is the winner overall because he can still get Catherine. The ending of Act one is poignant and creates more visual and dramatic tension than verbal tension, which has been more common so far in the book. Marco shows Eddie that he will stand up for Rodolpho and uses a chair like a weapon and as a silent threat that has more meaning than words. The visual tension lets the audience see and feel the tension. Before now Eddie has felt in charge but Marco has turned things around after the chair-lifting test, Eddies grin vanishes as he absorbs his look. This is dramatically effective in both the script and in the video as the audience can almost feel the tension in the living room. Act one finishes and act two starts. Act two brings about development in the characters relationships. The development is mainly the disintegration of the relationships, but also new relationships are developing.  When Catherine and Rodolpho are alone in the house for the first time we see Catherine actually share her emotions and express what she has been feeling. Now we see the closeness of their relationship as Rodolpho now calls Catherine my little girl. This indicates that Rodolpho has taken Eddies Baby and so when he comes home after a heavy drinking session and realises the pair are together, he orders Rodolpho to Pack it up and move out. Catherine wants to move out with him but Eddie will not let her go. Eddie kisses Catherine when she announces she is leaving, As she strives to free herself he kisses her on the mouth. This is wrong and immoral; Eddie is shaming her. But then we see Rodolpho stand up for Catherine. Suddenly Eddie kisses Rodolpho. This is a dramatic change in relationship. At the start of this scene Catherine loves Eddie in a father daughter way, then, by the end of the scene she is staring at him in horror and says, Ill kill you. This is a very emotional scene whereby we see two relationships dramatically change; Catherine and Rodolpho want to get married and have stood up to Eddie, and Catherine has change her feelings towards Eddie and is now frightened by him. This scene makes us question the characters, as we are shocked and embarrassed. With this scene the books drama is more effective as we are able to read what is going on in the house with Rodolpho and Catherine, yet at the same time we can read the stage directions and see that Eddie is staggering along the side walk outside the house after a heavy drinking session. With the play we only see one picture at a time and it doesnt feel very realistic as you dont see the two scenes going on a t the same time.

Wednesday, January 22, 2020

Cinematography of Hitchcocks Psycho :: essays papers

Cinematography of Hitchcocks Psycho Alfred Hitchcock is renown as a master cinematographer (and editor), notwithstanding his overall brilliance in the craft of film. His choice of black and white film for 1960 was regarded within the film industry as unconventional since color was perhaps at least five years the new standard. But this worked tremendously well. After all, despite the typical filmgoer’s dislike for black and white film, Psycho is popularly heralded among film buffs as his finest cinematic achievement; so much so, that the man, a big name in himself, is associated with the film, almost abovehis formidable stature. Imagining it in color, Psycho would not appear as horrific, and maybe it would also not be, as a whole, as unified as it now stands, nor memorable. Black and white has a quality of painting things

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

M&M’s Case Study Essay

1. Introduction and Background The major purposes of effective leadership and management consist in timely monitoring of organisational environment, development of adequate responses to environmental challenges and further strategic planning and changes[1]. Relevant leadership strategies and implications can solve numerous business challenges and help organisations to overcome diverse external as well as internal pressures and crises[2]. This strategic report is aimed at the identification of the key business challenges of M&M’s through external and internal analysis and further development of solutions and specific recommendations on how effective leadership can meet these challenges in this organisation. M&M’s is a popular confectionary brand, which belongs to Mars Incorporated. The brand’s name is an abbreviation for its creators such as Mars and Murrie. The main products of M&M’s are chocolate and peanut colourful candies with the letter ‘m’ on one side[3]. The product was firstly launched during the World War II, and the main customer of M&M’s was the US army. In 1980, the firm began its foreign market expansion[4]. Nowadays, Mars Inc., the parent company, is one of the biggest confectionery manufacturers in the world. M&M’s chocolate beans are sold in more than 70 countries around the world. The company employs more than 40,000 people all over the globe. It should be noted that M&M’s is a private firm, which started from a family business. In 2010, total revenue of the parent company, Mars, constituted $30 billion[5]. M&M’s uses flat organisation structure, which makes the company very responsive to the needs of its em ployees as well as customer. The main competitors of M&M’s are Hershey, Nestle, Cadbury and Kraft Foods[6]. M&M’s business strategy consists in maintaining high quality of the production alone with high volume and low prices. 2. Environment Monitoring Research and development (R&D) department has always been of great importance for M&M’s. It has been mentioned in the background that multi-level efficiency is one the main principles of the firm. To achieve this efficiency, the company relies on its own market research and general industry publications and analyses[7]. The company’s success formula consists in in-depth customer engagement practices, through which tastes and preferences of customers are studied and analyses. For instance, in 2002, M&M’s monitored customer environment through the internet survey method, when the target population was proposed to select a new colour if candies. As a result, purple candies were added to M&M’s production[8]. Furthermore, it should be noted that in the early 2000s, the external environment began to rapidly change. In response, M&M’s needed to develop adequate measures and strategies in order to remain competitive the market. In this case, M&M’s decided to implement the ‘launch and learn’ approach, which can be considered another successful method of monitoring the environment[9]. As a result, ‘My M&M’s’ brand was introduced to the customers. The main idea of the new brand consisted in customisation. Customers could order chocolate beans, but instead of the letter ‘m’, they could request their names or even images. In-depth market research and monitoring were also made after the launch of the new sub-brand. The new product turned out to be successful and appreciated by customers. In addition, it should be noted that M&M’s uses the benchmarking method when new marketing strategies are tested in smaller focus groups[10]. 3. External and Internal Analysis In order to understand external environment of a company, the PESTEL framework is frequently implemented. It should be noted that PESTEL is an acronym, which stands for political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal environmental factors[11]. Political †¢ M&M’s sells its chocolate beans in more than 70 countries all over the world[12]. If the government of a country is unstable, it can negatively affect the firm and its sales. For instance, quotas on imports and other restrictions may be introduced. In these conditions, M&M’s will be able to bring only a specific amount of chocolate beans to the local market. The main examples of such countries are Serbia, Thailand, China, etc.[13]. †¢ The main M&M’s markets of presence are the US and the UK, which are characterised by low political risks[14]. Economic †¢ The global economic crisis has negatively affected customers’ buying capacity. However, it should be mentioned, that chocolate beans are a fast-moving consumer good. Thus, it can be sold quickly even during economically pressing times and at low prices unlike cars and electronics, which are durable and high-priced commodities[15]. †¢ As a multinational company, M&M’s opens new factories in different countries. The company hires employees and helps to decrease unemployment in developing economies such as Brazil, Kazakhstan, Mexico, etc. In turn, M&M’s also suffers from unemployment and other macroeconomic conditions in these economies. †¢ The market has reached maturity yet, neither in the US, nor in other countries[16]. Social †¢ The company produces chocolate beans, which are demanded by wide categories of buyers, from kids to adults. †¢ The company’s products are very popular with special events such as weddings and birthdays. †¢ The public is worried about the quality standards used in the company[17]. Technological †¢ Contemporary marketing strategies require from M&M’s using online sales and online customer involvement. Customer engagement marketing methods are also required where the internet serves as the playground[18]. Environmental factors †¢ Chocolate beans production cannot be classified as highly damaging to the environment and employees’ health. †¢ However, M&M’s depends on the production of cocoa beans and weather conditions in which they are cultivated. Such input material as cocoa beans are unlikely to run out[19]. Legal factors †¢ M&M’s has to follow the regulations of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Food Drug Administration (FDA) on the chocolate candies production[20]. †¢ M&M’s has to follow the legislation in all countries where it operates. †¢ M&M’s has to protect its employees’ rights and freedoms. The next step of environmental scanning is SWOT analysis. This analytical framework will help to identify the company’s internal, including strengths (S), weaknesses (W), opportunities (O) and threats (T)[21]. The SWOT analysis also helps to determine whether the company’s resources and capabilities are enough to compete with other organisations in the marker[22]. Strengths †¢ Strong and well-known brand name; †¢ Belonging to the family of the largest confectionary firm; †¢ M&M’s operates in over 65 countries around the globe[23]; †¢ Good reputation among customers and suppliers; †¢ High operational efficiency; †¢ High-quality products[24]; †¢ M&M’s chocolate beans are the best selling candies in the market; †¢ New brand ‘My M&M’s’, which offers customisation; †¢ Strong leadership and teamwork; †¢ Good resource allocation; †¢ Ability to listen to employees’ and customers’ ideas[25]. Weaknesses †¢ M&M’s promotional campaigns require considerable funding; †¢ Employees are resistant to change; †¢ Complex business environment, which causes interest conflicts; †¢ Flat organisational structure has some disadvantages. For example, one employee may have a few bosses. Furthermore, this structure type may limit the company’s growth. †¢ Mars Incorporated was criticised for contracting with low-cost African suppliers of cocoa beans, who used child labour[26]; †¢ Lack of innovative ideas and no recent innovations in the product range. Opportunities †¢ Further market expansion; †¢ Wider diversification of products in the foreign markets; †¢ To meet customer demand; †¢ Technology improvement and development[27]; †¢ Innovation; †¢ Creation of brand-new goods; †¢ Elimination of disadvantages related to flat structure[28]. Threats †¢ Lack of innovations can cause shifts in consumer tastes. To be more specific, customers can stop buying old and outmoded candies and start buying new candies with innovated product and package design. †¢ The number of competitors may increase[29]; †¢ Further growth of trade barriers; †¢ Decrease in consumer demand; †¢ M&M’s rivals’ innovated design can give competitive advantage. The Cultural Web analysis helps to see a more comprehensive and bigger picture of the company’s culture[30]. The framework consists of 6 separate dimensions, which are stories, symbols, power structures, organisational structures, control systems and rituals and routines[31]. Stories Mars Incorporated, the owner of M&M’s, is one of the greatest examples of the so-called ‘American dream’ realisation. Founded in 1911, Mars became a multi-national company with more than 50,000 employees very quickly. Workers of the firm are viewed as the most valuable asset. This idea is one of the main company’s focuses. Employees work in a highly motivating and inspiring environment[33]. They are given bonuses for coming to work on time, which stimulates their performance and productiveness[34]. Symbols Small panned chocolate candies covered with coloured edible shell, which does not allow chocolate to melt in one’s hands, prove to be the major symbol of the company. Furthermore, the letter ‘m’, which stands for M&M’s name is a highly recognisable symbol. In addition, excellent quality and great taste have made M&M’s the world’s best selling candies[35]. Power Structure Mars Incorporated, the parent company of M&M’s, was established as a family business. It was founded by Frank Mars in 1911 in Tacoma. Today, John Mars, a grandson of Frank Mars, is the chairman of the company. Paul Michaels is the company’s CEO at the moment. All the serious decisions in the company are made by the members of the Mars family[36]. Middle managers are given less power in the organisation. They are responsible for ‘insider’ management, and do not participate in taking strategic decisions. Organisational Structure The company has a flat organisational structure. This means that the number of intermediates between top managers and employees is reduced to a minimum. Hence, the role of middle managers is nearly eliminated[37]. Employees are actively involved the corporate decision-making process and can easily access the senior management. This type of organisational structure allows improving communication between management and workers. The company is teamwork oriented, which is another benefit of the flat structure type[38]. Control Systems It has been mentioned that one of the major corporate values and principles in Mars and M&M’s is efficiency. The company’s aim is to generate the maximum revenue using minimum input materials and resources. Another important value is quality, which needs to be given considerable attention and accurately controlled. The company relies on an internal control system, which guarantees achievement of such objectives, as efficiency and compliance with the relevant laws and regulations. Other departments of the organisation are manufacturing, marketing, sales, human resource, research and development, supply, communications and finance[39]. Rituals and Routines Unchanged design of chocolate beans since 1941 may be viewed as one of the key rituals of M&M’s. The firm regularly organises informal events for its employees, which improve communication between organisational members and facilitate learning in the workplace. The slogan of the company illustrates the main distinctive feature of M&M’s chocolate beans: â€Å"Melt in your mouth, not in your hands†[40], which builds strong associations with M&M’s candies. This slogan stimulates customers to test the firm’s promise. Hence, eating chocolate beans that do not melt in hands has become another important ritual. Another important analytical framework, which helps to understand the overall degree of rivalry in the industry where the company operates, is Porter’s Five Forces[41]. According to this model, each industry is influenced by five forces, namely supplier power, buyer power, threats of new entrants, threats of substitutes and degree of rivalry. Supplier power There are plenty of suppliers all over the world that sell cocoa beans. M&M’s buys considerable amount of cocoa beans and is dependent on prices set by the suppliers. Even insignificant growth of prices can result in increase in the prices for the final production by M&M’s. On the other hand, M&M’s can easily switch suppliers since it does not have long-term obligations. Thus, supplier power is low[42]. Buyer power M&M’s is presented in more than 70 countries. This means that the firm’s customers are many and they are highly fragmented. No single customer can significantly impact M&M’s and their pricing policy. It can be concluded that the buyer power is low[43]. Threats of new entrants New entrants in the confectionery market are possible. However, new market players need to meet huge capital requirements in order to enter the market and start accumulating large market share. For this reason, it may be assumed that the threats of new entrants are medium[44]. Threats of substitutes There are plenty of other large multinational companies and highly recognisable brands in the confectionary market (e.g. Kraft Foods, Nestle, Hershey Co and Cadbury). If M&M’s will demonstrate weak innovativeness and creativeness in product range, customers can easily switch to alternative manufacturers and their goods. Threats of substitutes may be evaluated as high[45].

Monday, January 6, 2020

Essay on Pornography and Feminist Fight for Women’s Rights

Pornography and Feminist Fight for Women’s Rights There was a complaint in 1992 about having The Nude Maja in a classroom. The complaint came from a feminist English professor who stated that the painting made her students, as well as herself, uncomfortable. Another incident occurred at the University of Arizona when a female student’s photographic artwork consisting of self portraits in her underwear was physically attacked by feminists. There was also an occurrence at University of Michigan when some of their law school feminists organized a conference â€Å"Prostitution: From Academia to Activism†. This group removed a feminist-curated art exhibition held in conjunction with the conference. They felt that videos showing†¦show more content†¦For decades the Supreme Court has tried to craft a definition of obscenity that the lower courts can apply with some fairness and consistency. Former Justice Potter Stewart summed up the dilemma best with the now famous statement: â€Å"I shall not today attempt f urther to define (obscenity); and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it†(Faigley Selzer, 540). I think that the â€Å"offense† Strossen is trying to describe, or rather not describe is act of making love. Making love is a very sensual and unidentified beautiful feeling, but what is portrayed in porn is nothing beautiful, and I believe it can very easily be defined. It is the misuse of women’s sexuality. She also states that the censorious feminists are not as modest as Justice Stewart. They have already created an elaborate definition of pornography that encompasses more material than the currently recognized law of obscenity. In their model law pornography is â€Å"the sexually explicit subordination of women through pictures and /or words.† This model law lists eight different criteria that attempt to illustrate their concept of â€Å"subordination,† such as depictions in which â€Å"women are presented in scenarios of degradation, humiliation, injury, torture†¦in a context that makes these conditions sexual†(Faigley Show MoreRelatedFeminist Theory1248 Words   |  5 PagesFeminism refers to political, cultural, and economic movements aimed at establishing greater rights, legal protection for women, and or womens liberation. It includes some of the sociological theories and philosophies concerned with issues of gender difference. Nancy Cott defines feminism as the belief in the importance of gender equality, invalidating the idea of gender hierarchy as a socially constructed concept. 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