Saturday, August 31, 2019

The 1960’s pop music the-1960s

Does the evidence of C support the evidence of Sources A and B about the effects of pop music in the 1960's? Explain your answer. In my opinion I think that Source C doesn't support Sources A and B. I think this because from Source A you can learn that the Beatles had quite a big impact in the 1960's. This extract is from Joanna Lumley ‘and instead of the rush hour an extraordinary silence and emptiness had descended upon London, on England, on Britain.' This statement implies that countless people left work earlier than usual to watch the Beatles. The Beatles were performing on ‘Juke Box Jury'. Juke Box Jury was Probably the most enduring of all pop panel shows and hosted by David Jacobs with his famous bell and hooter for ‘Hit' and ‘Miss'. From this quotation we can see that there was usually a crowd of people at the tube station, but today there was no-one and Joanna Lumley was surprised. I dare say that London must have been quieter seeing as the Beatles were on television, but considering that Joanna was only a young woman aged around 18, she maybe exaggerating just a little. This source was written 30 years after it actually happened. Therefore there is a weakness of memory. Source B is a description about a concert which was in the 1960's, however it was written in the 1990's. ‘When I was seventeen, in 1964' this quote proves that that whoever wrote the source was young and juvenile. So therefore they could have over exaggerated in this source. It was written 30 years after the event, so this source could be seen as feeble and biased. The concert in question was a Rolling Stones concert. The person says ‘We have dancing tickets, which meant that we could get really close' this meant all the screaming girls could be very close to the Rolling Stones, this gave the concert more atmosphere. ‘I can remember their terrified faces, when they were trying to get off the stage, surrounded by the heaving, maniacal screaming mob.' The Rolling Stones were scared from all these fans. This person who wrote the source thought ‘I doubt if the Stones ever played so near their audience again.' Source C is Paul McCartney, a Beatles member, describing the Beatles concerts. Paul was talking in 1984, even though the concerts he is talking bout were in the 1960's and 70's. This source cannot be seen as entirely accurate because there could be lack of memory. In this source Paul says ‘it was never as crazy as they used to say it was.' I think by this quote that the fans who were actually there exaggerated more to make that experience they had seem better than what it was. I think that Source C doesn't support both Sources A and B because in Source C Paul says it wasn't that bad, fans were screaming but because they loved you, not that they wanted to hurt you. Some fans were obsessive but they just wanted autographs. In Source A, it says that everybody left work early to go and watch TV, she doesn't know everybody in the UK so she cannot say that. Along with Source B it says that the Rolling Stones were frightened, how did she know that for a fact, she didn't exactly speak to them personally did she. So Source C contradicts Sources A and B.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Asjfesngreng

Give an example of a situation where there was a large amount of unclear information / data. How did you prioritise and use this information? What did you achieve? (300 words max) Dissertation? Give an example of when you have worked within a successful team. Why was the team successful? What was your contribution to the team achieving its goal? (300 words max) While working in my job as IKEA customer services co-worker I have taken part in various team meetings in order to improve how things are done throughout the store. Once a year a survey is conducted to get the views of all co-workers on working practices within the store. Once the results come back weaknesses are identified for further discussion in team meetings and options for improvement are debated. I feel I make a positive contribution to these debates and help to identify proposed improvements to be passed on to store managers. This is important to me as I feel my views are listened to and acted up in improving the store order to move forward and become ever more successful. Also, in group tasks at university, I felt confident in contributing to decision-making processes but could also patiently listen to people with whom I disagree. I feel that my enthusiasm and energy is infectious in a team situation. Can you provide an example of a time when you have had to bring someone round to your way of thinking. How did you go about doing this and what did you learn from this experience? (300 words max) No idea Explain why you have chosen the particular business area you are applying to and how your skills and previous experience make you suitable for this role. 300 words max) I chose the Finance graduate scheme over the other schemes available as I have a strong background in Finance. While at University I studied Accounting so would relish the chance to put the skills I have recently learnt into action. The opportunity so further my knowledge by gaining a professional qualification in CIMA would be of much interest to me. I would therefore be suitable to this role as I am a hard working motivated graduate accounting student who is looking to complete my professional qualifications while working in a finance based role at a major company such as NPower. What particularly attracts you to the programme at RWE npower? Why do you want to work within the energy sector and RWE npower specifically? (300 words max) The Finance graduate scheme at NPower interests me for a number of reasons. Firstly the opportunity to further my skills learnt from my degree by studying a professional qualification in CIMA while working in a finance based role. Secondly the chance to complete various different placements including Finance Transformation, Controlling, Business Planning and Economic Evaluation. This interests me as the chance to work in various sectors would mean I could gain a vast business knowledge and get to choose which role I would go on to work in once I have completed my professional qualifications. The energy market is one of the world’s biggest these days and a chance to work within this market and help provide energy to a wide range of customers interests me. The reason I would like to work within NPower specifically is because it is one of Europe’s five biggest energy suppliers. It supplies about 16 million customers with electricity and 8 million with gas per year with a total of â‚ ¬53 billion in revenue. NPower also interests me due to its vast investment in renewable energy and being the largest investor in Europe. Please give details of your interests and any positions of responsibility held. You may draw examples from any source: school, college, university, work, sport, voluntary work etc. (300 words max) I am an active participant in sporting events (cycling) to raise funds for local charities. I have completed vigorously challenging rides including the Rievers route, Pennines and Coast to Coast. This is extremely important to me as I enjoy cycling a lot and knowing I am doing my bit to support others less fortunate than me makes it all the more rewarding. My involvement with the scout and youth movement has enabled me to achieve many practical skills which I put to good use in working in team situations in relation to negotiation, communication and problem solving activities. Other hobbies include football (both playing competitively and watching), music and travel.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Cultural Quotient Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Cultural Quotient - Essay Example Moreover, the ultimate behavior that defines a fine line between the successful managers and the other managers is the Cultural Quotient also known as Cultural Intelligence Quotient. Like IQ and EQ, Cultural Quotient (CQ) is a set of expertise that has been proved to give the organizations a superior authority to survive in this competitive world. CQ could be defined as an individual’s capability to understand and function in an effective manner through the national and the organizational cultures (Livermore, 2010). Changes that occurred in the global business environment over last 20 years Everything in this world is changing, except for change itself. The rate at which the world has witnessed change over the past few decades is dramatic and amazing, both at the same time. The world has transformed into a global village in which everything is interrelated. Every walk of life has been influenced by these changes. The business world is mostly affected by change, in both positiv e and negative way. Factors that served as a catalyst for change are uncountable. They are numerous. However, two of the most important factors that initiated changes are globalization and technology. As Sultan and Chan (2000) have mentioned, over the last 20 years many of the changes in organization have been predominantly driven by two factors: globalization and technology. These two factors changed the entire course on how businesses operated. Globalization is somehow linked with demographic changes. These changes did affect the business world. Globalization and technology have made the customer more educated, more informed and more aware than ever before. Rapidly increasing urban societies are not only changing the whole coarse of societies, but the business within them as a whole. The increased interaction and interdependent relationship between the public sector and the private sector is also changing the whole nature of the businesses today. Technology means, innovation, new things, new designs, creativity - all these terms are synonyms for change. Businesses no longer rely on the trademark and classic products they started off with. They are continuously looking for new things that will help them to achieve competitive advantage. No longer experienced is preferred over youth. Now businesses seek fresh blood and fresh ideas. Hodgkinson (2007) holds the belief that all these changes have also altered the paradigm which businesses used to operate in. Advanced technology has brought information at the finger tips of everyone. May it be an employee or a consumer, everyone has access to information all the time. This information has served as a blessing as well as a curse for the businesses. More information means more variety and more choices. This has certainly brought a great threat to businesses who need to revise all their existing products, policies, practices according the non stopping trends of the world. The shifts of local workforce to the global w orkforce have also brought many challenges. The management practices have been altered. They are much more in consideration with the global culture than one particular culture. The world has now become a huge market where there are customers and stakeholders stretching from one corner of the world to the other. The cutthroat competition has pressured the business immensely. Business struggle is all the time to get a

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Popular American Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Popular American Culture - Essay Example Other significant influences came from different parts of Europe. Countries from which large numbers of people immigrated these include Ireland, Germany, Poland, and Italy. American culture holds a significant pressure on the cultures of its neighbors in the World. The cultural divisions in United States depend on a number of factors such as social class, political orientation, ancestral traditions, sex and sexual orientation. Well every country’s culture plays an important part in the decision making of the people who live in that country or belong to that country. For example while I make any decisions the first aspect would be to keep in mind the benefits of my country and to respect the norms and believes of my culture, every other aspect would be secondary to that. The United States is a country that has evolved its culture by a mixture of several cultures hence the popular culture keeps changing. For example looking at the music industry of United States, for a long time pop music was very famous and continued to be a trend but right now Rap has taken its place. People prefer to listen to artists like Akon, Eminem and 50 cents on the other hand Rock music will always live, it’s like an evergreen trend. Hollywood has become a famous place not only in United States but also all over the world and the movies launched and made their have become a popular trend in the United States. Comics have also become a trend in the United States comics having super heroes have had a major impact on the people.

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 93

Marketing - Essay Example The cupcakes are paired with an espresso that compliments the distinct flavors (Larson et al. 7). Customers who are widely located in the Seattle area receive good attendance in addition to after-sales-services. Cupcake Royale offers delivery to customers who are unable visit the location. In addition, the company provides rental of Cupcake Royale’s party cart. The cart can be brought to any place the customer is in the Seattle area. Trophy Cupcakes (TC) is the top competitor to Cupcake Royale. Trophy Cupcake has dominated the social media to capture more customers. It uses Facebook and Twitter to post events, polls and promotions such as cupcake happy hour. TC has collaborated with Molly Moons ice cream shop where they sell cupcakes at all Moon Locations (Larson et al. 9). The grocery store has also undermined the market of Cupcake Royale Company. Cupcake Royale, however, has maintained the competition by improving its products and increasing its market cover. In addition to 10 new flavors of ice cream to the existing cupcake has expanded Cupcake Royale to six branches (Jones 1). The new Rodeo donut is of exceptional quality. It is made from brioche dough, which includes eggs yolks, eggs, and butter instead of shortening like normal dough (Guanco 1). The brioche has flavor featuring vanilla beans, orange flower water, orange zest and honey instead of sugar. Cupcake Royale Company’s goal emphasizes quality over quantity. That has allowed its current market situation has grown. Guanco, Frank. Rodeo Donut Pop Up At Ballard’s Cupcake Royale. Komonews. March 26, 2015. Web. May 25, 2015 Jones, Sara. Cupcake Royale Owner and Pastry Chef Launch 3 New Ventures. Seattle. March 23, 2015. Web. May 25, 2015 Larson, Devin., Newby,

Monday, August 26, 2019

Research paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Research paper - Essay Example Type III, commonly called Cyclothymia, is a less severe form of this condition. The person undergoes cycles of mild mania and/or depression. At times, when undetected, it could progress to either the type I or II variant. Bipolar disorder is a chronic illness and it significantly affects the lifestyle of the patient on a social and professional basis, and quite often impairs their cognitive functioning. Depression is the phase of BD that represents the greatest challenge in management of the disorder. Undetected or prolonged depression and delirium is a frequent cause of suicide, and thus it is imperative that this condition be dealt with sensitively. The depression: mania ratio in bipolar disorder is 1:3, which tells us that the patient spends more time in an all-time low (Galvez, Thommi, & Ghaemi, 2011) . Heredity and Statistics: The possibility of inheriting BD from a previously diagnosed parent is 86-90% and studies over the past 11 years have shown that 9% of unipolar depressive patients were diagnosed as having BD. The suicide rate in these patients is almost 17 times higher, as compared to the general healthy adult population (Rapoport, Basselin, Kim, & Rao, 2009). In addition to being a social burden, BD has equal implications on personal finances and world economy. Within the USA itself, the treatment regimen spans from $12000 for a single episode of this syndrome, to a whopping $62K for patients who have to be aggressively managed with drugs and other therapy. Typically, symptoms of BD appear by the average age of 22 years, but are recognized and diagnosed with a lag period of almost 10 years. Even after commencement of therapy, the subject may remain symptomatic for a significant period of time, which makes it essential to continually monitor and adjust the treatment protocol (Nivoli et al., 2011). It has been reported that more than 66% of patients have a minimum of one close relative that has been diagnosed with either unipolar or bipolar depressio n, thus linking it to heredity (Nivoli et al., 2011). Characteristics and symptoms of people with Bipolar Disorder: Symptoms of varying degrees and intensities can be observed in this syndrome. The most common observation in Type I BD is extreme mood fluctuations. The highs include excitement, overly enthusiastic behavior, boundless energy, megalomaniac tendencies, generous thoughts and a surge in confidence levels. The lows that one typically experiences are prolonged periods of depression, irritability, sleep deprivation and a general feeling of loneliness, often accompanied by phases of crying for trivial or no apparent reasons. It is very common to have feelings of being incomplete, inadequate and worthless, which eventually culminates into thoughts and ideas of suicide. The hallmark of this disorder is the frequent cycling between the high and lows, namely the mania and depression, by virtue of which this disorder is detected. Social Challenges: Needless to mention, social stig ma is commonly encountered by people, who are aware and informed that they are suffering from this syndrome. Such subjects consciously modify their behavior, in order to reduce the instances of being rejected or discriminated. In the mild to moderate symptoms in Type

Sunday, August 25, 2019

A Perpetual Winner of All Schools Tournament Assignment - 1

A Perpetual Winner of All Schools Tournament - Assignment Example My name is Aziz Shah. I am very passionate about the soccer. I have watched the soccer game since my childhood and always wanted to join the soccer team. When I joined my high school team, I decided to take this game seriously and tried my best to achieve the success for my school. As an active member of the team, I communicate with the other members and share my ideas and strategies with other members. In our practice matches, I cooperate with my team members to learn the skills effectively. In out sports period, my coach told us to be an effective team and all the members of the team must have to put mutual teamwork. Being an efficient team member, I know that I rely on the team so, I endeavor to make my team a successful team. We play every day after school hours, during that time, I try my best to deliver the perfect performance. I learn, better skills from other members as I don’t feel ashamed to appreciate the qualities of others. This is how a team must work, admiring t he best practice from the other member does not make our value down. Because his performance will help the team to achieve the goal. Â  Lukas is one of the best members of our team. He has an advantage of his height and strikes the match-winning goals. He loves to play soccer and is seen most of the time playing it. As a team member, he is very attentive in learning every skill that our coach tells us. He joined the team recently but has made a strong position in the team. He has played 3 tournaments and always performed well. He has the potential to reach the highest international level soccer. Our coach hopes that Lukas will be able to reach that level with a little more effort. I have never seen him down and lazy. He is always active and ready to play the game. In our spare time, I and Lukas spend some time together. I want to learn some skills from him as he is the best player on our team in my eyes. His attitude towards his teammates is so friendly and caring.

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Changing the system Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Changing the system - Term Paper Example I work in an in-patient and out-patient hospital. The hospital has many different departments, the nursing department being one of them. I will use the systems theory to my work system as a nurse within the hospital. The supra-system is the society. One of the roles of society is to maintain the wellbeing of everyone in it. Super-system is comprised of the healthcare sector. Each society normally has a healthcare system whose role is to provide healthcare to all. Individual hospitals are the systems. In each hospital, there are different mechanisms put in place to ensure that members of society access health care services. Subsystems are hospital departments, individual nurses working in each of these departments, materials used in each of the departments. In each hospital, there are nurses, doctors, medical equipment and drugs that are used to ensure that members of society are healthy (Patton and McMahon, 2006). The hospital provides a platform through which individual members of society can access the healthcare services that they need. Nurses play a major role in ensuring that the system is efficient. Therefore, there is a well-established nursing department which has been given different roles to ensure that patients get the best possible healthcare services from the hospital. The input is the factor that is necessary to enable nurses to do their work well (Joslyn and Heylighen, 1992). The input in this case consists of the set of guidelines that the nurses must follow in order to work professionally. In the hospital, there are certain guidelines that regulate how nurses report for their shifts and how they carry out their specific duties. The main components of output in this case are the nurses themselves, the practice of nursing, the patient (client) and the hospital itself (Patton and McMahon, 2006). The nurses provide direct healthcare services to

Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 16

Review - Essay Example For example, while Mrs. Saunders is a very independent woman and a threat, Victoria is a child, who has no class and little effects  on the society. In the second act, although the class difference between the four women characters can be determined, it is not as widely as in the initial action. All women lie in the middle and lower-upper class in the economy classes, with minuscule differences in the hierarchy. As noted, Churchill attempts to analyze the position of women in the society and their empowerment (Churchill, 2013). In the year 1992, Los Angeles experienced the most destructive riots, which were characterized by excessive violence. This play was written to analyze the tension and problems that were the underlying factors behind the unrest. Some of these factors include racial tension, brutality by the police, and weak leadership in the urban centers. The play takes an empirical view of the events that led to the violence, including ethnic tensions, as well as tensions between people of different class. This play uses a historical analysis approach to ignite a combination of enlightening and meaningful basis that brings up painful and emotions. For example, the play refers to instances where people from different races blamed those of different races for their losses after the Rodney verdict. One congresswoman is shown to have fought very hard for people, arguing that she is seeking to make the Whitehouse understand the plight of the people who have been ignored through the riots (Twilight: Los Angeles. 1992, 2014). Carmen is portrayed as the most provocative of all the girls in a place located near a cigarette factory, such that a man would barely pass without having a glance at her. Carmen sings Habanera, which fascinates all young men present save for Don Joe. Before leaving, and Carmen provokes him by throwing flowers at him. Back in the factory, Carmen is blamed for a quarrel that the girls get into, and

Friday, August 23, 2019

Animation Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Animation Critique - Essay Example The most important technique in animation film is the Squash and Stretch, which is used to create an exaggeration of an animated movement. In addition, Winsor McCay propelled the American animation industry with the release of ‘Gertie the Dinosaur’. Blackton was widely esteemed for his stop-motion technique while McCay is renowned for employing much more modern techniques referred to as key-framing and the in-between techniques (Lewis 221). ‘Felix the Cat’ is one of the characters that were created by Pat Sullivan in the era of the silent films. ‘Felix the cat’ is one of the most recognizable characters because of its huge wide eyes and grin, black body and squat. ‘Felix the Cat’ is a good animation considered an iconic character in the historical making of the animation film production. The artistic expertise employed in Felix the Cat made it an outstanding piece of work in that era. For example, the use of a text box or bubbles to denote communication between characters. In addition, the use of question marks to express emotions and dotted lines denote the direction he is facing presents a complete communication. The possession of such qualities rendered the audience the ability to grasp the flow of the silent films. I personally liked the character of Felix the Cat because he was a fast decision maker. Felix the cat does not use the simple camera work, it is played with the asp ect of a film. The level of technology then was poor and the quality of production was unsatisfying (Pike 43). In addition, the emergence of modern studios, for example the Disney suppressed Felix’s native studio. Fantasmagorie was the first fully animated film that was made by Emile Cohl. This animation was made up of drawings flowing in a fluent manner into one another. In this film, the audience is only able to see the smooth blending of the illustrations and drawings. Moreover, I find this film a complex piece as well as an impressive narrative. The

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Psychiatric Nursing Essay Example for Free

Psychiatric Nursing Essay The subject is a 52 year old divorce Caucasian female, of Poland origin, and has lived in the United States for over 20 years. She had been a patient at Tewksbury Hospital since July 2011. She reportedly has a long history of bizarre and impulsive behavior, but has had a steady decline since her divorce in 2004. The patient denies history of taking medication or hospitalization for mental illness. There is no history of mental illness in the family. The subjects states, â€Å"My work is very unique. It’s inspirational spiritual work. I work as a self- healer. I do not need to see a physician for any diseases.† She went on saying â€Å"I have experienced terrible aggression. I am a psychologist. I can do many professions which I do not wish to discuss.† The subject lives in a house in the Boston area, where the rooms are rented and they share a common kitchen. She violated a no-harassment order against another residential by coming into the common kitchen, picking up a knife, and startled the alleged victim. She denies SI/HI. She said she had thoughts of â€Å"going to sleep†, but has no plan for SI. She denies trauma, physical abuse, sexual abuse/ rape. She started smoking at the age 12, 20/day. She was admitted to Tewksbury Hospital with a legal status 15, and then later changed to 16c and 8. She was diagnosed with Axis I: Psychosis NOS and Adjustment disorder (unspecified), Axis II: Deferred, Axis III: right shoulder pain, Axis VI: Homeless, limited community support, GAS: 35. Signs and Symptoms Psychosis is a serious psychiatric disorder in where there is a gross disorganization of the personality and marked disturbance in reality, testing and the impairment of interpersonal functioning and relationship to the external world (Townsend 2009). It may cause a person to experience delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior. Psychotic Disorder Not Otherwise Specified 298.9, is used in diagnosing patient when their symptoms to not meet any of the psychotic disorder. Multiple examples would include: 1) delusions with periods of overlapping ME, 2) post-partum psychosis, 3) psychotic disorders with less than one month duration with no remission, 4) psychotic disorders with unknown etiology, 5) persistent auditory hallucination. Adjustment Disorder is a psychological response to an identifiable stressor or stressors that results in the development of clinically significant emotional or behavioral symptoms. The symptoms must develop within three months after the onset of the stressor(s). Unspecified Adjustment Disorder may be used as a diagnosis if the patient cannot be classified into a specific subtype of Adjustment Disorder. The patients have maladaptive reactions to stressors, and they may include: physical complaints, social withdrawal, or work or academic inhibition.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Bullet in the Brain by Tobias Wolff

Bullet in the Brain by Tobias Wolff Short Response to Bullet in the Brain by Tobias Wolff My initial thought of this reading was that the title would be some metaphor for something else that happens. The story was short and straight to the point. It starts off with a man in a bank waiting, he has to wait in a long line due to going right before it closes. Anders starts off by seeming like a very irritable guy. Immediately he is annoyed with the two when in front of him. They are just complaining about everything. This is where we first see a sense of who Anders is. Two masked men come in to the bank making an attempt to rob it. Anders irritable attitude gets him in trouble a he starts making snide comments to the annoying lady in front of him. One of the men hears him. The man repeatedly tells Anders to be quite, but Anders does not listen. The man shoots Anders in the head, and then he his brain reflects on a distant memory. One from long ago that had much been forgotten. It recalls on a summer when Anders was out playing baseball with him friends. One friend brings a co usin who wants to play as well. When they ask him what position he wants to play he say short stop because ..Thats the best they is. Anders is shocked by what this boy has said, but it stays in his mind for the rest of the game. Memory is what builds this story. It is also what keeps this story going. We first start off with the scene of him in the bank, but eventually more to his recollection of a particular event in his life. Surprisingly he does not remember his first love, his daughter, or his wife. He remembers a time long ago playing baseball with friends. The memory is not one that you would expect from the first character we meet. Initially Anders is irritable and rude. Due to the use of memory in this story we see that Anders is not all bad. He once loved his job as a book critic, but the longer he did this the less he grew to like it. The actual memory that Anders draws on makes me think that this may have pushed him into the direction of being an editor. He remembers a friends cousin say Thats the best they is, he did not stop to fix his grammar but replayed what this boy said in his head. After being shot he plays a distant memory, but to him this is one that was really good for him. Anders memory definitely redeems him. My first thought of Anders is that I dont like him. He just does not seem like the type of person you would want to be around. On top of this, he is provoking one of the robbers. This memory takes us back to a time where Anders was happy. A young boy playing baseball with his friends. It shows us that Anders has not always been and irritable jerk, but a kind person. Someone who is accepting of you no matter. Due to circumstances throughout his life, Anders became a completely different person from that boy on the baseball field that day. Memory gives us a big look into his life, who he is and what he loves (or doesnt love). Memory and Identity The formation of identity comes from the World around you. I believe that your identity is formed based off of your family and environment. We learn morals and rules based off what our parents believe are good morals and rules to have. Each parenting style is different. I have always had more lenient parents while others have parents that can be pretty strict. This formed my identity. I never had to lie to do the things that I wanted. I would always tell my parents, and I knew that if they ever said no what I wanted to do probably wasnt a good idea. I would accept this and move on. Identity does not just come from your parents or your family, but from the places you visit frequently. You dont really form you identity until you are older. I am twenty, and still feel as if I am forming my identity. I often times ask myself Who is Kaylee Strahl? Who do I want to be? As we go to school we start to get a sense of our identity from a different perspective. We will be similar to the people we interact with frequently. I went to a really small school, this formed my identity in a different way. All of the people I graduated had a similar mind set. If you played sports or danced or other things like this. This also plays part in forming your identity. Memory and identity are similar because one has to build off the other. In order to form your identity we base it off the things that have happened in the past, our memory. Memory helps to shape us into the person that we eventually become. If there have been traumatic events in your life, your identity can change based off of that memory.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

How The Economic Downturn Affected Uk Hotel Industry Economics Essay

How The Economic Downturn Affected Uk Hotel Industry Economics Essay Prior to the credit crunch which commenced in August 2007 when the European Central Bank and the US Federal Reserve put  £45bn into the financial markets (Elliott 2008 [online]), Europe, the USA and the UK were enjoying an economic boom with rising house prices and high consumer confidence (Budworth 2008 [online]). Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose to  £381,565 Million in 2007, and household disposable income per capita to  £14,321 in the same year (Key Note 2008, p. 18). During these boom years, lending was high and borrowers able to raise large sums of money due to relaxed lending restrictions by banks. Individuals whose circumstances would have at one time barred them from borrowing were allowed to access many times their salary (Budworth 2008 [online]). Debts secured upon property were sold on to investors. Property prices thus became vastly inflated creating a bubble which burst when borrowers started to default on their loans and the value of the investments therefore fel l heavily. The huge losses by the banks leading to the collapse of Lehman Brothers in the US and the near collapse of Northern Rock in the UK meant that lending became much more difficult and banks stricter about who they lend money to. (Budworth 2008 [online]). The resulting shortage of funds due to fears about lending and lack of loans has led to a downturn in the economy, falling house prices and increasing unemployment with many firms going out of business altogether and many more making drastic savings (Budworth 2008 [online]). Further consequences include a vast increase in public spending which is predicted to take years to pay off, a predicted rise in unemployment (by the British Chamber of Commerce) to 3.2 million, wage freezes or cuts and massive job losses (The Economy News 2009 [online]). The collapse in available credit started in the USA but in these days of global trading the implications were soon felt around the world with the UK quickly facing problems. Germany, Fr ance and Italy the three largest economies in the Eurozone were officially in recession by late 2008, and others rapidly followed suit. Both Spain and Ireland have witnessed a housing bubble burst and contraction in wider economic activity (Foresight 2008, p. 7). 2.2 The Pound Against the Euro and Dollar One factor that complicates the situation somewhat is the pounds weak status against the Euro and Dollar. Sterling has lost value rapidly over the last year or so. In July 2008, one pound would still buy $2, but by November 2008 it was worth only $1.48, the lowest point for 6 years. Similarly at one point  £1 was almost equal in value to 1 Euro. While this is bad news for people buying goods or traveling outside the UK, it also means that UK goods and services become more attractively priced from the point of view of Eurozone or USA travellers (OGrady 2008 [Online]). Specifically, hotels in the UK will appear relatively cheaper since this fall in the value of sterling, and hence more attractive to inbound travellers and tourists. At the same time, it means it is less attractive for the UK holidaymaker to travel to the Eurzone or USA, and more attractive to stay at home. 3. Hotel Industry Background 3.1 Introduction The Growth Years to 2007 Hotel operators in the UK cater both to the corporate sector and consumer sector. Both are significant parts of their operations and both includes not just accommodation but also facilities such as meeting and conference rooms in the case of the corporate sector and add-on services like food and beverages for both sectors. The UK has been historically an important business destination with the growing importance of the London stock market and financial sector (Key Note 2008, p. 11). In the consumer sector most activity is accounted for by holidays and short breaks with a significant minority for wedding or party venues. The UK hotel market grew in 2008 to a value of  £11.5 billion, which is an increase of nearly 20% since 2002. This growth took place against the backdrop of a healthy worldwide economy with the global travel market recovering after the 2001 terrorist attacks (BMRC 2009, p.1). Factors influencing this growth were varied and included an increase in the number of tourists coming in to the UK in the years since 2002 and a diversification in the hotel market with increases in the budget sector as well as luxury brands. There was an increased call for upmarket brands as London in particular saw an increase in the ultra wealthy market sector for which money was no object (BMRC 2009, p.1). Other factors driving growth include the growth in internationalisation and global business, rises in disposable income, and the development of tourism from emerging economies such as former East Europe and India. The growth of the internet and online booking also paid a part as well as increased marketi ng by hoteliers (Key Note 2008 pp. 19-21). During 2008 this boom came to an end. The hotel industry was hit relatively late by the depression, and even during 2008 industry experts were proclaiming that the previous 12 months had been a time of overall growth (Cater Hotelkeeper 2009, p. 6). Occupancy rates were static in the first part of 2008, but then hotel transactions started to decline and during September 2008 occupancy fell steeply as did revenue per room (Cater Hotelkeeper 2009, p. 6). Further, developments for new hotels and improvements were cancelled and budgets reduced. 3.2 Strengths and Weaknesses of the UK Hotel Market A Key Note report identifies aspects of the UK hotel market influencing the vulnerablity or resilience to recession. On a positive note, the UK hotel market is a strong and sophisticated one with a wide range of different options to appeal to a range of different types of customer and including internationally recognised brands as well as smaller individual operators. Developments in technology and the increase of internet use over the last 10 years mean selecting and booking a trip is easier than ever before. The fact that most UK residents do not use hotels further offers an opportunity for growth, as does the potential for further increase in internet use. Restaurants attached to hotels and other such add on services provide further expansion potential. Finally, the UK is experiencing a growth in its older population, who have more time to travel. On the negative side, the hotel market is particularly vulnerable to an economic downturn as travel and trips are often seen as an area in which spending can be cut back. (Key Note 2008, pp. 48-50). Research also suggests that despite the apparently rosy outlook of the years immediately prior to 2008, the market had other issues to contend with even without recession. The long-stay leisure market (defined as those travellers staying away for five nights or more) has been in decline since 2004: the number of long-stay hotel rooms booked in 2008 was half that in 2006, at 11 million (BMRC 2009, p. 1). 4 The Impact of the Recession on the Hotel Industry in the UK: Specific Factors 4.1 Introduction This section looks at some of the factors which impact upon the Hotel industry, and why they are important. The messages are mixed. Some of the factors are detrimental to the industry while others have more positive impact. 4.1 Air Travel in Decline Although long-term growth in demand for air transport is projected, growth rates in the short to medium-term are likely to be affected by the general slowdown in the economy and by the rising cost of air travel. A market-wide study indicates that although long-term growth in demand for travel by air is expected, short to medium term projections are for negative growth in 2009 with the beginnings of recovery in 2010 (Key Note 2009, p. 10). This will have an impact upon the UK hotel market as there will be fewer travellers into the country. However, it should be bourne in mind that fewer UK holiday makers will want to holiday abroad due to financial considerations, thus boosting demand for hotels. 4.2 Collapse of the Property Market One of the hardest-hit sectors of the economy in the recession has been building as house prices have crashed and loans to finance building projects have dried up together with the market for the finished product. The UK enjoyed some of the highest periods of growth of house and other building prices, and the construction industry has been particularly badly hit by the latest recession. Developers are unable to access credit to fund large scale building schemes, so many hotel projects have been stalled (Blitz 2009 [online]). Aside from new developments, hotel owners who are unable to access further credit are also finding things more difficult. While larger operators and branded chains are able to look to the medium and long-term, over which a boom for hotel and travel are predicted due to emerging markets, smaller operators have less access to the resources which will see them through the next couple of years (Blitz 2009 [online]). 4.3 The Falling Value of the Pound The pound fell against foreign currencies until at one point in late 2008 it was worth very nearly 1 Euro. This should mean that UK services, including UK hotels and UK tourist attractions, become more attractive to visitors from overseas as they get more for their Euro or dollar. The deterioration of the global economy has certainly had an impact in reducing inbound tourism, but at the same time the pound became more attractive against the Euro: for the average visitor the cost of purchasing goods and services is approximately 10-12% cheaper than at the same time the year before (Foresight 2008, pp.1-2). Foresight predicted at the end of 2008 that while inbound tourism to the UK would fall slightly with a growth of -0.7, spend would increase by 2.4%. It should also be considered that a falling pound makes it less attractive for the UK holidaymaker to leave the country as prices across Europe will become more expensive (Foresight 2008, pp. 1-2). VisitBritain, the body which aims to promote UK tourism, has launched a  £6.5 million advertising campaign outside the UK to promote the affordability of Britain as a destination. However its calls for this investment to be matched by the UK government have not so far been successful (Mintel Market Reforecasts, 2009 [online]) 4.4 Oil prices A further factor is the price of oil, as this dictates the cost of air fares. Increased oil prices lead to raised surcharges on airfares and hence to higher flight costs. The cost to the airline is also considerable if the price of oil is high they cannot simply pass it all on to the customer. A Key Note market report noted that when prices were over $120 a barrel BA said it would find it hard to break even, easyJet commented that a rise of $1 adds  £2.5m to its operating costs, and Ryanair predicted extra costs of Euro 400m (Key Note, 2009, p. 11) Higher prices lead to a decrease in inbound flights, but equally to an increase in the number of UK residents holidaying abroad who might then consider staying within the UK. The price of oil fell from a high of nearly $150 a barrel in June 2008 to under $55 in November 2008. Oil price falls, however, can be bad news if the fall in price is due simply to a stagnant market (Foresight 2008, p. 6). 5. How the Recession has hit Specific Areas of the Hotel Market 5.1 Overview 2008 has certainly seen a fall in the market, and predictions for the next few years to 2012 are gloomy. Early 2008 showed positive trading in UK hotels, but the second half of the year had a significant deterioration with what Robert Milburn, of Www.cater.com, called fragile and volatile conditions in the trade. Numbers of overseas visitors dropped by 5% between April and June 2008, and lead-in times became shorter, with 1-2 weeks being the norm rather than 4-6 weeks. A fall of 1.8% was predicted for 2008, but the recovery in 2009 which was also predicted now seems unlikely (Key Note 2009, pp. 62-63). With rising unemployment and fears about job security, there is not simply less money to spend on luxuries such as holidays and hotels, but also an increasing perception amongst consumers that they should make do and mend; the spendthrift attitude which characterised the 1990s and years to 2008 has been replaced by a notion that one should save rather than splurge. Even by the end of 2008, predictions were being made that 2009 will see less tourism overseas than in 2008, a situation which has occurred only twice in the last 40 years (Foresight 2008, p.3). Mintel predict a significant drop in the hotel market which will take some time to recover from, based on figures from the International Passenger Survey and trade sources. Their figures for revenue raised per available room also indicate that the hotel sector is struggling in both London and the regions (Mintel Market Reforecasts 2009, [online]) In the hotel industry worldwide, occupancy rates are declining and revenue per room are also dropping (FT.com 2009 [online]). Average room rates in the UK have dropped to around  £100 per night and demand is low (Blitz 2009 [online]). It would seem at first glance that the industry faces a challenging time during 2009 and into 2010 at least, however there is also some positives; holidays are seen by the consumer as very important, and the UK is perceived by holidaymakers around the world as an excellent destination (it is the 6th most visited country world wide and is ranked forth in the Anholt-GfK Nations Brand Index in terms of Tourism (Foresight 2008 p. 8)). Mintel predict that while holidays will be reduced by consumers they will not be cut out altogether and the average family will continue to take one main holiday per year as this type of break has become ingrained in the consumer mindset as more of a right than a privilege (Mintel Market Reforecasts 2009 [online]). Whereas t he overseas holiday market will fall slightly in 2009 and 2010, the UK market will simply stagnate (Mintel Market Reforecasts 2009 [online]). The following sections examine events in and predictions for particular sub-sections of the hotel market in the UK. 5.2 Business Travel As the global recession deepens, business travel will suffer. Companies who remain in business will seek to cut their expenses by reducing spend on business travel, cutting trips to the absolute minimum and using cheaper hotels (Foresight 2008, p. 7). The 2009 Key Note report notes that domestic business travel within the UK, which also impacts upon hotel usage, will also decline. The market is expected to increase very slightly from 2011, but will remain generally static over the 2008 to 2012 period. Inflation will lead to a marginal increase in expenditure, but as inflation affects all sectors, should be discounted. See Table 1: Forecast UK Market, Domestic Business Travel, 2008-2012 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Trips (000) 18,500 18,300 18,000 18,200 18,500 Percent change year on year -3.1 -1.1 -1.6 1.1 1.6 Expenditure ( £M) 4550 4590 4600 4670 4800 Percent Change year on year 0.4 0.9 0.2 1.5 2.8 Table 1: domestic business travel in the UK excluding those trips which do not require an overnight stay (adapted from Key Note 2009, p. 29) The same report shows that the forecast for inbound business travel people travelling from overseas to carry out business in the UK is also poor. The rate of growth in 2008-2009 slowed as the world economy slumps. While the rate does not actually go into decline, it slows to near 0. (Key Note, 2009, pp. 29-31). 5.2 Consumer (Non-Business) Travel The domestic travel area offers some possible positives for the industry as a whole. It is arguably the case that tourism and the hotel industry in the UK are better placed to withstand the results of a recession than either other industries or other holiday destinations. The reputation of the UK as a whole is very strong as a destination, as is that of England in particular.A 2008 survey by Visit Britain of 614 respondents based in the UK who regularly take short breaks reported that 9 out of 10 people consider England when choosing a short break. The branding of England has improved over the course of this tracker study, 58% of respondents say it is their favourite holiday destination considered. It is considered easy to get around and seen as having beautiful scenery (Visit Britain 2008, p.2). Short breaks account for almost 2/3 of breaks taken in the UK, so these findings are significant for the industry as a whole. (Bainbridge 2009, p. 1). Another consideration is the rising concern with being green and the impact of frequent air travel on the environment (Bainbridge 2009, p. 1). Consumers who want to reduce their carbon footprint and impact upon the environment are increasingly opting to stay within the UK (Bainbridge 2009, p. 1). What Bainbridge does not highlight, however, is that the new concern for green issues is not completely beneficial. Tourists from overseas will be equally concerned to cut their travel abroad, so this could also reduce inbound tourism into the UK. Research is conflicting with some showing that interest in saving the environment is fairly low priority for the majority of consumers and other studies confirming the idea that green issues will become increasingly important (Key Note 2009, p. 49). Hoseasons, the self-catering leader, also take this view, claiming that more people are choosing to holiday in the UK because of a demand for a green and alternative to flying abroad. Similarly, the fer ry lines entered 2008 assuming that demand would increase for their services as a greener alternative (Key Note 2009, p. 49). 5.3 Short Breaks A 2009 report confirms that although the market for UK short breaks taken by UK residents is not forecast to grow much over the next year or so, nor is it expected to fall. Key Note predict the following (Table 2): 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Volume of trips (in Millions) 55.0 57.0 60.0 60.0 62.0 Value ( £M) 8,000 8,700 9,300 9,500 9,900 Table 2: Forecast UK Short-Break Holiday Market Key Note also point out the conflicting factors at work in the non-business UK short break holiday market. It has been mentioned that holidays are very important to the UK public, moreover a short break can be taken where a long one might be rejected. However, research also suggests that while the main holiday is sacrosanct, short breaks are easier to do without, but this might relate to overseas breaks rather than UK ones. To further complicate the issue, as people are increasingly slow to sell their properties they might be expected to treat themselves to more short holidays rather than suffer the cost of moving house. The poor sterling rates also encourage people to stay within the UK for these breaks. On the other hand, family finances are being squeezed by job losses and the psychologies of a recession, and could deter people from spending on any kind of holidays. Overall there is no way of knowing whether an economic downturn is good or bad news (Key Note, 2009, p. 49) 5.4 Budget Hotels and Holidays 5.4.1 Overview The UK has the most expensive rates for hotels in Europe, and average prices rose by 12% in 2007 to an average of just over  £100 per night. Londons exceptionally expensive rates influence this figure (Key Note 2009, p. 50). Against this background, and bearing in mind the recession, a move towards increasing the number of budget hotels seems inevitable. Previous expansion in the hotel industry has concentrated on the luxury end of the market with the growth of boutique hotels and the interest in catering to the super-rich. While this seems unfortunate given the recession, it is not obviously a bad strategy as historically the luxury market has been shown to reflect the economy more slowly than the rest of the market. (Key Note 2009, p. 92) In October 2007, Marriott estimated the growth in revenue per available room at between 5% and 7% in 2008; however, by May 2008, this had been revised to between 3% and 5%. As clients reduce their spending, it is likely that over-supply will be seen in the market and this will lead to some brand rationalisation (Key Note 2009, p. 92). One predicable result of the recession is to increase interest in budget holidays and cheaper hotels. The Visit Britain survey of UK residents who take short breaks reported in March 2008 that price had now overtaken other factors in choosing where to stay (Visit Britain 2008, p.2). This is likely to increase as the UK moves deeper into recession. The budget hotel market was under development even before the recession set in. Established brands such as Travelodge and Premier Inn expanded their operations, and they were joined by the Purple Hotels from the Real Hotel Group. Hilton also developed plans for a budget hotel chain, and CitizenM, a design-led brand, was developed. Other brands include Nitenite and Yotel, built at low cost using prefabrication techniques. The growth in the market has led to further segmentation in the sector with introduction of upmarket tiers to the budget range (for example Holiday Inns Express brand (Key Note 2008, p. 16) A Key Note report written at the beginning of the recession predicted that the mid-range hotels would be the main casualty of shrinking demand. The problems with the economy were exacerbated in the hotel industry by the recent increase in energy and food costs ( Key Note 2008, p. 11) 5.4.2 Business Budget Hotels As Bainbridge points out, budget hotels have benefited by both business and holiday customers downgrading in the recession. Some budget hotels have increased the range of facilities they offer to includes free wi-fi, breakfast and similar to accommodate a new business clientele. Whitbreads budget chain, Premier Inn, for example (the UKs biggest hotel brand) is upgrading its rooms with flat screen TV, air-conditioning and Freeview, and has seen sales for its business account scheme increase 36% over the previous year to February 2008. (Bainbridge, 2009, p. 1). This increase in the number of business travellers using budget hotels since the start of the recession in 2008 is corroborated by research by BDRC in 2009. They report that budget brands are consciously aiming to compete with mid-market brands by strategies such as the ones mentioned above. This drive has been rewarded by better standing in business advertising awareness for the budget hotel brands. (BDRC 2009 [online]) Key Note also report that mid-market business hotels are likely to suffer as they are positioned between the value and luxury hotel options, and what they call tiering, or introducing of levels in to the budget range, will also affect the mid-market brands (Key Note 2009, p. 92). 5.4.3 Consumer Budget Hotels For the non-business traveller, accommodation quality is very important in UK breaks. While travellers abroad endure less than perfect accommodation because costs are low and the weather good, within the UK they demand better quality. One issue is that bed-and-breakfasts and guest houses are notoriously prone to poorly-run individual establishments, leading to calls for the market to be tightened. However the budget hotel sector has grown and has mopped up some of the non-business market as well. The fact that there are many chains available in this sector means travellers can be reassured regarding expectations and quality as they are buying into a brand name. This is particularly true in London a popular choice for consumer short breaks where hotels are notoriously expensive (Key Note 2009, p. 50). 5.5 Staff and Recruitment Impact The recession has had a severe impact on the hotel recruitment market, and it is unlikely to recover before 2010. Job cuts look set to reach 600,000 as businesses and consumers cut spending. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development warned of the toughest year in more than 2 decades, and their predictions were backed up by a survey of 150+ senior management in the hotel industry carried out by the recruitment specialists Admiral Group which revealed that over 2/3rds of those surveyed were going to delay recruitment decisions, and put fast-track graduate programmes had on hold (Sharkey 2009, p. 7). These findings are reiterated by the results of a study by Deloitte in 2008 which predicted that the downturn could cut new jobs in the sector by 100,000 with a corresponding dramatic shrink in the UK tourism industry. A recession could see a  £11b reduction in the economic input by visitors to the UK, currently worth  £114b or 8.2% of the UKs GDP. The British Hospitality Ass ociation also criticised the lack of help from the Government (Thomas 2008, p. 9) One less gloomy prediction is that the recession will have less impact as the hospitality market in general and the hotel market in particular is more diverse than in the past, with some opportunities actually being created particularly in the casual and budget dining and contract catering sectors. This is reinforced by a survey carried out by the British Hospitality Association which shows that the contract catering sector has grown and will continue to do so in the recession (Druce 2009, p. 7) 5.6 Room Occupancy and Prices Room occupancy rates the percentage of nights that hotel rooms are in active use have been increasing since 2005. This is good for hotel operators as it allows them to repay investments and reap more return for their money. In 2007 there was a 1% point rise in domestic occupancy (61% in 2006, with the 2003 rate being 59%). This pre-dated the recession and was a result of the strength of sterling at this time (Key Note 2008, p. 14) Returns in terms of paid accommodation in the UK show a surprising result. Gains were still made in 2008, and a report by Deloitte showed that in the early part of the year revenue per room grew strongly (Caterer Hotelkeeper 2009, p. 6), which is unusual as the recession started to set in during this year for most parts of the UK economy. However, this seems to be a function of gains made at either end of the booking season. Early bookings would have been made before worries about the economy set in, and late bookings made might have been as a result of last-minute demand and hence prices paid were higher (Key Note 2008, p. 15) 5.7. Smaller and Specialist Sectors The result of the recession can also be traced in the smaller and specialist areas of the UK hotel market. For hotel operators, boom areas in these sectors are not necessarily a good thing, as will be shown. 5.7.1 Activity Holidays Activity holidays overseas were enjoying a boom in recent years, however for the next few years the market is predicted to grow less rapidly, whereas activity holidays in the UK are predicted to rise. In 2010 for example the total no of activity holidays in Millions taken by UK residents was predicted before the recession at 11.5; this was revised to 10.8, with 2011, originally predicted to total 12 million was revised to 11.4. By contrast, predictions about UK activity holidays have been revised upwards: the 2011 level was predicted at 5.0 million, and this was revised to 5.3 million. (Mintel Market Reforecasts 2009 [online]). The impact for hoteliers is mixed. If the holiday involves hotel stay, then the news is good; however if the accommodation is self-catering the hotel operator will lose out. 5.7.2 All-Inclusive Holidays All inclusive holidays, a sector which has been in decline in recent years due apparently to the increasing ease of online booking and ease of finding information, are now predicted to rise over the short-term as they allow all holiday costs to be known in advance and paid for up front. Both Thomas Cook and TUI are aiming to increase their all-inclusive capacity (Mintel Market Reforecasts 2009 [online]) 5.7.3 Camping and Caravaning Holidays This sector enjoyed a boom in the 1960s and early 1970s but with the advent of cheap overseas package holidays has been in decline. However, Mintel predict that these holidays are an attractive option for the budget conscious consumer, and will benefit from the increase of families who elect to stay in the UK in 2009 and 2010 for financial reasons. They point out that the Camping and Caravanning club had their best ever year for recruitment of new members in 2008 (Mintel Market Reforecast, 2009 [online]). Domestic camping holidays are predicted to do rather better over the next couple of years before the long-term trend towards decline reinstates itself. The growth in this area is not good news for the hotelier, as by definition a stay in a hotel is ruled out for this holiday type. 5.7.4 Others Other sectors, for example boating holidays, have also been affected. Even where the market remains buoyant boating and luxury holidays growth prediction has been downgraded and is expected to occur at a slower rate than predicted (Mintel Market Reforecasts 2009 [online]). Sectors of the UK market which are predicted to do well include coach holidays within the UK which are seen as a budget option and so are fairly resilient to an economic downturn, and heritage tourism as well as holiday centres like Centre Parcs. Mintel see the latter as particularly resilient as they are both percieved as a budget option and are attractive to the UK consumer as they offer pay in advance all-in-one packages. An increase in coach holidays is also good to some extent for the hotelier, although the bulk of coach holiday operators chose low-cost hotels where price margins are cut very low, as the coach holiday is seen as a price-conscious alternative to the consumer. 6. Lessons Learned from Previous Economic Downturns The last time a recession occurred in the hotel industry was in the wake of the 2001 September 11th terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers in New York. The Sept 11th attacks and anthrax scare which followed caused uncertainty about the short and medium-term economic futures and had an impact upon travel and tourism plans leading to a reduction in hotel use and travel. In the US these areas, along with airlines were significantly affected in the aftermath of the terrorist attack. (Mintel Market Reforecasts, 2009 [online]). In the recession of the early years of the 21st century, the response to the challenge was to discount room rates heavily, however this strategy was of questionable use. The heavy discounting was intended to boost occupancy level, however this necessarily led to less profitability and income; it took years to recover from this as consumers became used to the lower prices. As Bloss (2009) points out, the tactic is also very easy to copy by competitors and hence a risky one. 7. Conclusion. The UK hotel market has certainly been affected by the economic downturn. The above looked at the background to the recession and how it has affected the corporate and consumer sector. While the sector has certainly been impacted with job cuts, slower, stagnating or declining predictions and less building projects, there are some positives for the UK market as holiday makers elect to stay at home rather than travel abroad.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant :: essays research papers

English Essay - Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant ‘To what extent are Ezra and Pearl the victims and/or the heroes of the novel?’   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I think Ezra and Pearl are both victims and heroes of the novel. Both looking after the family, especially Ezra always thinking about everyone. Yet they both get taunted by the people around them, Ezra is teased and put down by Cody and Pearl just seems to be picked on by everyone in the family.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pearl is heroic in the way that she has kept the family together even after Beck leaves. Her salary at the grocery gets the family through. She would seem like a ‘bitch’ to her kids but I guess all the hardships she has gone through could make-up for her bursts of anger now and then. For example when Pearl sees Jenny staring at a nice dress on a girl when they were at church, which undoubtedly Pearl could not afford. Pearl at the dinner table starts blasting Jenny then Cody jumps into it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This shows that Pearl is victimised but at the same time shows strength so is heroic. The burdens of three children without the support of her husband, Beck, constitutes to her heroism. Pearl has moved from place to place losing friends and relatives, only to come to an unfamiliar town where her husband decides to leave. Pearl refuses help from anyone, this depicts her strong points and still thinks Beck will return from his business trip. her strongwilled mind aids her and her family through life’s most troublesome tasks.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ezra is quite of the more hero I think but still being victimised by his own mother, Pearl and brother, Cody. Being so kind hearted and always the favourite out his borther and sister Ezra leaves himself vulnerable to the ‘attacks’ of Cody and Pearl. Cody has always teased Ezra, for example the time when anyone complemented Ezra, Cody would lash back saying the very opposite. It seems that most of the families problem would rest on Ezra.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ezra would show the most heroism out of everyone. He was the one that kept the family together ofter Cody and Jenny left. Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant :: essays research papers English Essay - Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant ‘To what extent are Ezra and Pearl the victims and/or the heroes of the novel?’   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I think Ezra and Pearl are both victims and heroes of the novel. Both looking after the family, especially Ezra always thinking about everyone. Yet they both get taunted by the people around them, Ezra is teased and put down by Cody and Pearl just seems to be picked on by everyone in the family.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pearl is heroic in the way that she has kept the family together even after Beck leaves. Her salary at the grocery gets the family through. She would seem like a ‘bitch’ to her kids but I guess all the hardships she has gone through could make-up for her bursts of anger now and then. For example when Pearl sees Jenny staring at a nice dress on a girl when they were at church, which undoubtedly Pearl could not afford. Pearl at the dinner table starts blasting Jenny then Cody jumps into it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This shows that Pearl is victimised but at the same time shows strength so is heroic. The burdens of three children without the support of her husband, Beck, constitutes to her heroism. Pearl has moved from place to place losing friends and relatives, only to come to an unfamiliar town where her husband decides to leave. Pearl refuses help from anyone, this depicts her strong points and still thinks Beck will return from his business trip. her strongwilled mind aids her and her family through life’s most troublesome tasks.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ezra is quite of the more hero I think but still being victimised by his own mother, Pearl and brother, Cody. Being so kind hearted and always the favourite out his borther and sister Ezra leaves himself vulnerable to the ‘attacks’ of Cody and Pearl. Cody has always teased Ezra, for example the time when anyone complemented Ezra, Cody would lash back saying the very opposite. It seems that most of the families problem would rest on Ezra.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ezra would show the most heroism out of everyone. He was the one that kept the family together ofter Cody and Jenny left.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Parkinsons Disease and Tissue Transplants Essay -- Health Medicine Me

For nearly 100 years neural tissue has been transplanted in animals. Transplantation of neural tissue into humans, however, began only a few years ago (1). It has been found in animals, that fetal brain grafts in damaged adult host brains reduce some of the functional deficits caused by brain lesions. Even though some neurons from the transplanted tissue survive and develop reciprocal connections with host brain tissue, this is not enough to completely replace damaged fibers and support behavioral recovery Usually the grafts will not develop a normal morphological appearance, but some metabolic activity can be found within the transplant. Release and diffusion of trophic substances from the transplant and the damaged host brain may partially restore neuronal and behavioral functions. It is hypothesized that this combination of fetal brain transplants and trophic substances may provide a better opportunity for recovery than either treatment given by itself. While this paper focuses on fetal brain grafts as a means to treat Parkinsonism, research is also being conducted in conjunction with Alzheimer’s Disease, visual, frontal, and motor cortex lesions, hippocampal lesions, and many others (2,3) There are two current approaches to neural transplantation regarding Parkinson s; adrenal medullary and fetal brain grafts. Both methods suffer from limitations in tissue availability, cellular uniformity, and general applicability. The success of neural transplantation in animal models of Parkinson’s syndrome led to its clinical application in human patients with the syndrome. Each of the two methods mentioned has advantages and disadvantages. Transplantation of adrenal medullary tissue has the advantage of ready availability of human le... ... 1990, 28: 585-599. 3. Mickley, G. A. et. al. Neural grafts attenuate behavioral deficits produced by early radiation-induced hypoplasia of fascia dentate granule cells. Brain Research, 1990, 509: 280-292. 4. Bredesen, D. E. et. al. Neural Transplantation Using Temperature-sensitive Immortalized Neural Cells: A Preliminary Report. Ann. Neurol., 1990, 27: 205-207. 5. Hirsch, E. C. et. al. Does adrenal graft enhance recovery of dopaminergic neurons in Parkinson’s disease. Ann Neurol., 1990; 27: 676-682. 6. Kordower, J. H. et. al. Putative Chromaffin Cell Survival and Enhanced Host-derived TH-fiber Innervation Following a Functional Adrenal Medulla Autograft for Parkinson’s Disease. Ann Neurol., 1991; 29: 405-412. 7. Stromberg, I. et. al. Reinnervation of Dopamine-denervated striatum by Substantia Nigra Transplants. Neuroscience, 1985, 14: 981-990.

Title Analysis of Everything that Rises Must Converge By Flannery OConnor :: essays research papers

Literally converge means "to tend toward or approach an intersecting point." But I believe that word's meaning especially in literature changes, or even contains two different meanings. So in the story "Everything that Rises Must Converge" by Flannery O 'Connor converge affects the title but has different meaning. The title means that the past is nothing and the present is more important. Not only that, but everything will return as God made as the time goes by. First of all, the story was written during the time when slaves were emancipated and all of the blacks fought for their own rights and freedom. So the social flow and especially the rights of both races turned out to be "Normal"and "Equal" now. However the author shows that the reaction of discrimination still exists inside the white people and through the actions of Julian's mother. Julian's mother keeps talking about Julian's grandfather who had a lot of slaves and a humongous fortune. However, this was a very dangerous thought at that time of the story, because the black had achieved equality an they were all thinking about equality. The thought led Julian's mother to get hit by a black woman who had the same hat as that of Julain's mother. Her actions of superiority and her action of trying to give the black woman's son a penny provoked the black woman to slap Julian's mother is the face, since in olden days many whites used to give all the young blacks a penny, and reminded the black woman of discrimination. The author, in contrast, also tries to show the equality of two races through Julian himself and his thoughts. When Julian sees his mother wearing the same hat as one of the black woman, he says that the black woman looks better in the hat. Not only that, he tries to engage in conversation with a black man to show the black's wise. In this way, Julian tries to teach his mother that now it is not time for difference but equality, and her thoughts about those blacks should be changed to fit in with the society. Not only that, but the author also shows equality with the backgrounds of the story. Julian graduated from university and his mother is an heir of rich family, yet he is still to-be-a writer, he is poor and has no job at the moment and is desperately in need of money because of his mother's illness. Title Analysis of Everything that Rises Must Converge By Flannery O'Connor :: essays research papers Literally converge means "to tend toward or approach an intersecting point." But I believe that word's meaning especially in literature changes, or even contains two different meanings. So in the story "Everything that Rises Must Converge" by Flannery O 'Connor converge affects the title but has different meaning. The title means that the past is nothing and the present is more important. Not only that, but everything will return as God made as the time goes by. First of all, the story was written during the time when slaves were emancipated and all of the blacks fought for their own rights and freedom. So the social flow and especially the rights of both races turned out to be "Normal"and "Equal" now. However the author shows that the reaction of discrimination still exists inside the white people and through the actions of Julian's mother. Julian's mother keeps talking about Julian's grandfather who had a lot of slaves and a humongous fortune. However, this was a very dangerous thought at that time of the story, because the black had achieved equality an they were all thinking about equality. The thought led Julian's mother to get hit by a black woman who had the same hat as that of Julain's mother. Her actions of superiority and her action of trying to give the black woman's son a penny provoked the black woman to slap Julian's mother is the face, since in olden days many whites used to give all the young blacks a penny, and reminded the black woman of discrimination. The author, in contrast, also tries to show the equality of two races through Julian himself and his thoughts. When Julian sees his mother wearing the same hat as one of the black woman, he says that the black woman looks better in the hat. Not only that, he tries to engage in conversation with a black man to show the black's wise. In this way, Julian tries to teach his mother that now it is not time for difference but equality, and her thoughts about those blacks should be changed to fit in with the society. Not only that, but the author also shows equality with the backgrounds of the story. Julian graduated from university and his mother is an heir of rich family, yet he is still to-be-a writer, he is poor and has no job at the moment and is desperately in need of money because of his mother's illness.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

What Role do Unconscious Factors Play in the Experience of Organisational Life, and how can Workers’ Appreciation of these Factors Lead to better Outcomes for Users?

1. Introduction The following essay considers the role that unconscious factors play in organisational life, and looks at the extent to which awareness of these factors amongst workers can improve outcomes for users. The idea is considered both in relation to appropriate literature and also in relation to my own experience of a social work organisation, the placement I experienced in a children’s home. The ways in which social work practice can be oppressive and anti-oppressive, and the impact of both of these for the user, are also explored. My interest in this area has been informed by my experience in a care home for children (Adeza) as a student social worker. I worked with a wide range of client groups including children (and their families) under stress, children (and their families with mental health problems, children at risk and children with physical and mental disabilities. I had a wide range of duties including administrative functions, advising clients and supporting children in a variety of ways. I became aware of the ways in which unconscious attitudes can impact upon the way clients and other staff are treated through a phenomenon I later learned was called projection, that is, the psychological mechanism whereby worries and fears about oneself are seen as present in other people, and demonised. For example, some clients had internalised a set of notions about being inadequate parents, which were then projected onto staff at the home, in a variety of ways. 2. The Notion of the Unconscious Understanding human needs, wants and motivations is a central part not only of organizational theory but also of human psychology generally. Various theories have been proposed to explain the variety of behaviours which characterise human beings, for example behaviourism, which reduces the role of the ‘mental’ and looks at human actions in terms of stimulus and response (Baran and Davis 2011), and Weber’s idea of work as salvation (Nelson and Quick 2010). However, the notion of the unconscious has been widely influential, and derives from work by Freud in the late 19th and early 20th Century.The idea is situated in the wider set of notions developed by Freud called psychoanalysis.Central to Freud’s idea is the notion that â€Å"powerful unconscious drives, mostly sexual and aggressive†¦ motivate human behaviour and put people in conflict with social reality† (Saiyadain 2003, p. 32).For Freud, the unconscious is that of which we are unaware, but which can manifest itself through thoughts and behaviours. He separated out three levels of consciousness: The conscious (everything one is aware of) The preconscious (things one is not aware of, but which could be brought to consciousness through effort of will) The unconscious (that of which one is unaware, and which one is normally powerless to bring to conscious awareness) The unconscious includes desires, buried memories, desires and needs. Individuals can be motivated by unconscious forces, which make themselves manifest through behaviour, thoughts, feelings and words. Freud believed therapeutic work could be done by uncovering these unconscious forces and making the individual aware of their deeper motivations through a process of psychoanalysis (McKenna 2000). Freud suggested a number of ways in which the contents of the unconscious work to influence human behaviour. These include regression, repression, sublimation and projection. Regression is the phenomenon whereby people return to earlier behaviour patterns (for example a stutter), repression means the ways in which unpleasant emotions are blocked from conscious awareness, sublimation denotes the way in which impulses (perhaps aggressive) which are unacceptable to the conscious mind are channelled into another activity, for example devotion to work or sport, while projection means the mechanism whereby thoughts or feelings which are not acceptable to the conscious mind are attributed to someone else (finding them lazy, for example) (Saiyadain 2003). Intuitively, and based on my experience in my placement, I feel that there is evidence for the existence of the unconscious. For example, I have seen adolescent children regress to an earlier stage, displaying bed wetting and thumb sucking for example, particularly at times of great stress. However, Freud’s ideas have been subject to an intense critique, particularly that there is a lack of empirical evidence for them (Hersen and Thomas 2006). Additionally, it has been pointed out that the idea of the unconscious lacks predictive power: although it can function as a good explanation of behaviour, it cannot indicate how people will behave in the future (Abbott 2001). I can see that these are valid criticisms: however, as the next sections show, I feel the concept of the unconscious and its mechanisms invaluable in understanding people better, which I feel is a necessary part of delivering the person-centred care that is a key part of social care in the 21st Century (Joseph Row ntree Foundation 2011). 3. The Unconscious and Organisational Life As well as being widely influential (though much debated) in psychology generally, the concept of the unconscious and its mechanisms has been incorporated into theories of organisational life. The key element to the idea of the unconscious is the notion that â€Å"much of the rational and taken-for-granted reality of everyday life expresses preoccupations and concerns that lie beneath the reality of conscious awareness† (Morgan 1998, p. 186). It follows that organisational theories need to take account of the hidden dynamics which influence the workplace. In addition, it has been suggested that theorists of organisational behaviour have been influenced by unconscious forces such as repression. Morgan 1998, for example, suggests that Taylor’s model of ‘scientific’ and rational management might have been rooted in his puritan background with strong routines and work ethic. Morgan also suggests that the predominant bureaucracy of modern work places might be a function of repression. Worker’s reactions to these types of workplace will depend upon their own mechanisms of regression. In other workplaces, organisational culture can often by dominated by self-centred attempts at wrestling control from others, or the playing out of â€Å"a phallic-narcissistic ethos† (Morgan 1998, p. 192) within the workplace. Often, the workplace might reproduce the traditional patriarchal family, with a dominant style associated with ‘male’ qualities of aggression, ambition and rigid rules. One unconscious mechanism which I was particularly aware of in my placement was projection.In this, workers deal with internal turmoil by attributing the key elements of what is bothering them to someone else rather than themselves. For example, in an organisation, poor results might be blamed by one group (managers) on ground-level staff, and vice-versa (Rashid 1983). Projection has been succinctly defined as the â€Å"attribution of one’s own attitudes and beliefs onto others† (Borkowski 2009, p. 56). In order to avoid feelings of guilt or excess anxiety, workers might see their co-workers as possessing the qualities they most dislike in themselves (Borkowski 2009). While it allows the person doing the projecting to protect their self-esteem, the mechanism whereby co-workers, for example, are blamed for putting a person in a bad mood, are damaging to organisational efficiency (Borkowski 2009). It can lead to stereotyping and, through this, to oppressive working metho ds. stereotyping is a way of organising experience by applying common traits to certain groups of people (the elderly, ethnic minorities, children). While it allows abstract thought to take place more easily, it can lead to the association of negative traits with particular groups. Projection seems to be at work in stereotyping, whereby a group is seen to possess negative characteristics not held by the person ascribing the characteristics. It has been shown that these mechanisms can lead to worse health and social care for certain groups seen as ‘the other’ (Borkowski 2009). One example is that people working with abused children can be marginalised and rendered invisible, as society as a whole does not want to admit that such abuse exists. Nurses are also often forced to bear the brunt of negative projections from service users and other professionals. In addition, social work in general often suffers, as its existence underlines the presence of vulnerable and needy p eople, mortality and other key issues. These all evoke deep and complex feelings in others, and workers in these professions often bear the weight of others negative expectations, â€Å"issues of dependency, aggression and sexuality† Yelloly and Henkel 1995, p. 195). Within social work, it has been acknowledged that certain forms of practice can be oppressive, particularly to service users but also to other workers. Anti-oppressive practice works to overturn ways of working which marginalise, scapegoat and downplay the people who they work for, both on a personal and micro- level, and at a wider social level. While anti-oppressive practice covers a wide range of activities, becoming aware of the extent to which people are marginalised through unconscious mechanisms such as projection is one key part (Balloch and Hill 2007). Becoming aware of the extent to which negative characteristics are projected onto others, either individuals or groups, is a central step in moving away from oppression. Today, immigrant groups can find themselves scapegoated for the wider problems of society, for example, both by individuals and by political groups (Shulman 2008). Anti oppressive practice offers a way for projection, stereotyping and discrimination to be co mbated in the workplace, through an attitude of criticality and reflection upon situations in the workplace. The process of uncovering oppression can be likened to that of becoming aware of unconscious processes, as well as uncovering motivations which derive from unexamined unconscious attitudes and mechanisms (Heenan 2011). 4. Understanding the Unconscious and Improved User Outcomes The ways in which the unconscious operates in the organisational context, the negative impact it can have, and the opportunities it presents for ultimately improving user outcomes is illustrated by my experience working in a children’s home.I have concentrated above on the phenomenon of projection, because this was the unconscious mechanism which most appeared to be in existence during my placement. One child with whom I worked, supporting to live independently after care, would frequently express the opinion that the women staff with whom she came into contact were ‘useless’, were over-emotional, and were not as effective as male staff. I used to find this frustrating, particularly as she was female herself, until I put her case into the context of her background. One of a family of girls, with whom her mother was unable to cope, she had internalised negative feelings about women, developed a androgenous, tomboy-ish appearance herself, and projected doubts and fe ars about herself onto female staff. There are also discusses two related unconscious mechanisms (first identified by Melanie Klein), splitting and projective identification, both of which I experienced during my placement.Splitting often occurs in groups, and refers to the process whereby a situation is polarised and seen as ‘black’ and ‘white’, that is, with ‘good’ and ‘bad’ elements. It happens when people are unable to tolerate ambiguity (Zachar 2000). I saw this in group discussions between staff, when one manager who took a fairly strict line to discipline and adherence to regulations was demonised by staff informally after meetings. I felt (perhaps because I was an outsider) that although she might have expressed her ideas better, there was a great deal of sound advice in what she said. However, others seemed unable to see this, preferring to make her a ‘scapegoat’ for everything they disliked about the experience of working in the care home. I also saw this situation improve when a higher manager called a meeting in which we discussed communication styles used within the home.I also saw projective identification, where people unconsciously identify with another person or group, with one staff member, who seemed to project feelings of her own vulnerability (she had just gone through a difficult divorce) onto the female white children in our care. Her attitude towards this gender / ethnic group was markedly different, she would spend extra time with them, and buy small presents. I was present when this was noted by another staff member, who carefully suggested her experience might be leading to her favouritism. She took this suggestion very well, and her behaviour, I noticed, became fairer afterwards. 5. Conclusion There are some problems with the notion of the unconscious, particularly its lack of predictive power and lack of empirical evidence. However, in terms of my placement in a children’s care home, I have found it a useful way of understanding why people – both staff and clients – behave in the way they do. It also seems to offer a useful tool for moving towards an anti-oppressive practice. In my experience, if people are made aware of the ways in which unconscious mechanisms operate, they are better able to see their oppressive actions, better able to understand why they are acting as they do, and as a consequence able to change the way they behave in a way which is beneficial to clients. 6. References Abbott, T (2001) Social and personality development Routledge, UK Balloch, S and Hill, M J (2007) Care, community and citizenship: research and practice in a changing policy context, The Policy Press, Bristol. Baran, S J and Davis, D K (2011) Mass Communication Theory: Foundations, Ferment, and Future (6th edn.), Cengage Learning, Belmont, CA Borkowski, N (2009) Organizational behavior, theory, and design in health care, Jones & Bartlett Learning, USA Foster, A and Roberts, V Z (1998) Managing mental health in the community: chaos and containment, Routledge, UK Heenan, D (2011) Social Work in Northern Ireland: Conflict and Change, The Policy Press, Bristol. Joseph Rowntree Foundation (2011) ‘Transforming social care: sustaining person-centred support’, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, UK McKenna, E F (2000) Business psychology and organisational behaviour (3rd edn.), Psychology Press, UK Morgan, G (1998) Images of organization, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, California CA. Nelson, D L and Campbell, J (2010) Organizational Behavior: Science, the Real World, and You (7th edn.), Cengage Learning, Belmont, CA. Rashid, S A (1983) Organizational Behaviour, Taylor & Francis, UK Saiyadain, M S (2003) Organisational Behaviour,m Tata McGraw-Hill Education, India. Shulman, L (2008) The Skills of Helping Individuals, Families, Groups, and Communities (6th edn.), Cengage Learning, Belmont, CA. Thomas, J C (2006) Personality and everyday functioning, John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken, NJ. Yelloly, M and Henkel, M (1995) Learning and teaching in social work: towards reflective practice (2nd edn.), Jessica Kingsley Publishers, UK Zachar, P (2000) Psychological Concepts and Biological Psychiatry: A Philosophical Analysis, John Benjamins Publishing Company, USA

Friday, August 16, 2019

Literal Translation Essay

A naive view of literal translation might be that it consists in the one for one substitution of the word forms of the target language for the word forms of the source language. This is what normally meant by the term â€Å"literal translation†. Yet , this view is unrealistic. Literal translation, also known as direct translation, is the rendering of text from one language to another â€Å"word-for-word† (Latin: â€Å"verbum pro verbo†) rather than conveying the sense of the original. Literal translations thus commonly mis-translate idioms. Also, in the context of translating an analytic language to a synthetic language, it renders even the grammar unintelligible. A literal English translation of the German word â€Å"Kindergarten† would be â€Å"children garden,† but in English the expression refers to the school year between pre-school and first grade. Literal translations in which individual components within words or compounds are translated to create new lexical items in the target language (a process also known as â€Å"loan translation†) are called calques, e. g. , â€Å"beer garden† from German â€Å"Biergarten. † Literal translation of the Italian sentence, â€Å"So che questa non va bene† (â€Å"I know that this is not good†), produces â€Å"Know(I) that this not go(it) well,† which has English words and Italian grammar. Further more, literal translation of idioms is a source of numerous translators’ jokes and apocrypha. The following famous example has often been told both in the context of newbie translators and that of machine translation: when the sentence â€Å"The spirit is strong, but the flesh is weak† was translated into Russian and then back to English, the result was â€Å"The vodka is good, but the meat is rotten. † This is generally believed to be simply an amusing story, and not a factual reference to an actual machine translation error [1]. Literal translation can also denote a translation that represents the precise meaning of the original text but does not attempt to convey its style, beauty, or poetry. Charles Singleton’s translation of The Divine Comedy (1975) is regarded as a literal translation. In Conclusion , A literal translation is a translation that  follows closely the form of the source language Also known as: word-for-word translation. This translation can not be applied in nature, because it will result sentences can not be understood . â€Å"literal† translations can actually result in mis-communication of the meaning of the text. The point is, of course, that the translators have decided to translate words, but not larger semantic units such as phrases.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Othello as a Tragic Hero Essay

One of the most obvious focal point of disagreement about Othello is whether Othello was a tragic hero or not according to the classic conception of a tragic hero; whether his characterization, personal attributes make him fall into the domain of Aristotelian concept of tragic hero; Whether or not he possessed a tragic flaw. To Swinburne, Othello was â€Å"the noblest man of man’s making†. (Swinburne)But T. S. Eliot, on the other hand spoke unfavorably of his â€Å"cheering himself up†, (153) and came out with a celebrated critical term â€Å"Bovarysme†. Robert H.  Heilman (1956) comes very close to restating the Eliot position when he says; â€Å"Othello is the least heroic of Shakespeare’s tragic heroes. † (p. 166) The identification of Othello’s hamartia differs from reader to reader and from critic to critic. Some critics are of the view that excessive Egotism and self-confidence of Othello remain the main cause of his tragedy. He harbors unjustified suspicions against Desdemona. He had a trustful nature and he is thorough in his trust of Iago. (Bradley, 1965. p. 213. Jealousy overpowers him and he lacks self-control. It is hardly likely that even a combination of all these would be equal to what Aristotle considered to be a serious hamartia, and he exhibited any of the failing mentioned above. It would hardly be logical to say that the Othello was punished for crime in the yes of the divine. Another view is that the present failings of Othello may be taken to means that he was he was always like that, and his tragedy comes due some inherent or innate unsoundness in his character. However we get no indication of this in the play. The conception of the tragic hero that we gather from Aristotle’s Poetics is that he is a highly esteemed and prosperous man who falls into misfortune because of some serious hamartia i. e. tragic flaw. Aristotle gives the example of Oedipus and Thyestes, which means that according to him, it was Oedipus’ hamartia that was directly responsible for his fall. Although the meaning of hamartia is far from certain, its most frequent applications is in the sense of false moral judgment, or even purely intellectual errors. Among Greeks no sharp distinction between the two existed. It is generally believed that according to Aristotle the hamartia off Oedipus consists in some moral faults and it has been tried to identify various moral faults in Oedipus. Othello also possessed these moral flaw and his tragedy only comes due to these moral flaws, So according to Aristotelian conception, Othello is a tragic hero as he is a larger than life character and has tragic flaws that bring his destruction. Distinguished Professor Butcher has identified four possible range of meaning of Aristotle‘s Hamartia i. . tragic flaw. The foremost of these connotations is an error due to unavoidable ignorance of circumstances whereas an error caused by unawareness of conditions that might have been identified and for that reason to some extent morally blameworthy is another manifestation of the sense in which the term hamartia was used by Aristotle. The third sense is â€Å"A fault or error where the act is conscious and intentional, but not deliberate. Such acts are committed in anger or passion. Where as fourth one is â€Å"A fault of character distinct, on the one hand, from an isolated error, and, on the other, from the vice which has its seat in the depraved will†¦a flaw of character that is not tainted with a vicious purpose. † This essay will try to analyze all these manifestation of tragic flaws present in the character of Othello to manifest that he was a tragic hero. The character of Othello possesses an aura of personality that makes him distinguished as well naive and unrefined as compared with other characters in the play and other Shakespearean protagonists. That is the sole reason that why he fell a prey to Iago’s plot. Iago told Roderigo, â€Å"O, sir, content you. I follow him [Othello] to serve my turn upon him â€Å"(I, i lines 38-9). Iago explains that only follow Othello to certain extent. A rudimentary supposition is that as the murder of Othello’s wife Desdemona is the result of deceitfulness of Iago, so himself remained a victim to the evil genius of Iago. Othello’s wrath was a product of his impulsiveness, the inherent flaw in his character, but that was utilized and triggered by the machination of Iago. The offense of Iago – to conspire the demise of the Moor – is worse since it is embedded in a shrewd mind with organized attempt whereas the wrongdoing of Othello was the result of his naivete. He was blindfolded by a thorn in the heart and mind. But his sin can not be justified only on this ground as there were various methods to check the blameworthiness. However, it can be illustrated that Othello permitted himself to be influenced by Iago’s proposition of the unfaithfulness of Desdemona. Iago only provides a justification that was needed by Othello. Some critics are of the view that Desdemona’s murder is an outcome of Othello’s excessive arrogance and his impulsiveness to decision-making. A. C. Bradley ponders over the dispositions and nature of Othello and says in this regard; â€Å"The sources of danger in this character are revealed but too clearly by the story. In the first place, Othello’s mind, for all its poetry, is very simple. He is not observant. His nature tends outward. He is quite free from introspection, and is not given to reflection. Emotion excites his imagination, but it confuses and dulls his intellect. On this side he is the very opposite of Hamlet, with whom, however, he shares a great openness and trustfulness of nature. In addition, he has little experience of the corrupt products of civilised life, and is ignorant of European women. † (p. 217) Despite this major flaw, he possessed some distinct personality traits. His has the capacity to build positive and reciprocal relationships and to take a number of steps to persuade. He possesses the capability to tailor an approach to appeal to the needs of a particular audience and an example of this relationship building is his genuine companionship with Iago. But again this trait of Othello is used against him as Iago takes advantage of his trust and design more evil plots against him. Although Othello possesses some evil propensities but he is capable of preventing these base and evil instincts to dominate him. In order to locate the degree and gravity of his sins, his motives fro his evil actions must be taken into consideration. It can be argued that his sins are product of weak mental faculties and some inherent flaws in his character. It was further enhanced by the manipulation of Iago instead of his pride. His action of murdering Desdemona was also not due to deficiency of confidence as he was a strong leader as manifested by his ability to command military and various other states affairs. But his leadership does not mean that he was forfeited against personal fantasies and whims of imagination. Othello’s basic dilemma was that he was in a totally new socio-cultural milieu. He was in a new city with a new bride who was graceful and young. Furthermore, Othello was in deep love with her does not know her well. He was uncertain about Desdemona decision to select him as her husband, and can only comprehend one clarification, â€Å"She lov’d me for the dangers I had pass’d. † (I,iii,167) He is aware of the prevailing environment of prejudice and bias in Venice and without doubt must inquire why Desdemona would against her own norms and values and associate white Venetians by marrying an outsider. All these added suspicion in his minds before Iago begins his conniving plot. Although Desdemona was an epitome of love and care for her, but his preconceived notions cannot enable him to believe in her love unreservedly. His response to his skeptic mind is to put Desdemona on a pedestal, making her an â€Å"emblem of purity and trustworthiness† ‘Tis not to make me jealous/ To say my wife Is fair, feeds well, loves company, Is free of speech, sings, plays, and dances well. / Where virtue Is, these are more virtuous. Nor from mine own weak merits will I draw/ The smallest fear or doubt of her revolt, For she had eyes, and chose me. (3. 3. 180) Othello arrived at the conclusion that Desdemona’s consideration and virtue only capacitated her to feel affection for the unlovable — an unstable culmination originating from his low self-worth. When Iago cast away this fictitious idealism with his evil designs, he is merely strengthening what Othello considers profoundly to be thoroughly possible i. e. that Desdemona could love another man. Iago is on hand to verify Othello’s primary doubts: Ay, there’s the point! as (to be bold with you)/ Not to affect many proposed matches/ Of her own clime, complexion, and degree, / Whereto we see in all things nature tends †¦ Her will, recoiling to her better judgement,/ May fall to match you with her country forms, / And happily repent. (3. 3. 228) So all these facts, arguments and supported evidence clearly manifest that Othello was a lager than life character and his tragic flaw contributes toward his tragedy. It is both an amalgam of self-infliction and circumstances beyond his control. He is a noble character but when things go wrong and pressures builds up, Othello’s inadequacies are revealed like the cracks in the dam. This makes him a tragic hero according to very conception of Aristotle. A. C. Bradley refutes the point of view that Othello was not noble and has no characteristics of a tragic hero. He is of the view; This character is so noble, Othello’s feelings and actions follow so inevitably from it and from the forces brought to bear on it, and his sufferings are so heart-rending, that he stirs, I believe, in most readers a passion of mingled love and pity which they feel for no other hero in Shakespeare, and to which not even Mr Swinburne can do more than justice. Yet there are some critics and not a few readers who cherish a grudge against him. They do not merely think that in the later stages of his temptation he showed a certain obtuseness, and that, to speak pedantically, he acted with unjustifiable precipitance and violence; no one, I suppose, denies that. (p. 221)