Immanuel Kant and Ethical Dilemma Essay

Today there are many ethical dilemmas going on in the world, from companies’ misuse of funding or executives’ misuse of their title. Ethical behavior has to be an important part in having a company that will survive in society. There have been many philosophers that contributed to the ethical understanding we have today. On of the most influential philosophers in history of Western philosophy is Immanuel Kant. After his father’s death in 1755 Immanuel Kant continued his degree at the University of Konigsberg and studied philosophy, mathematics, and the natural sciences. Kant was a German philosopher that â€Å"believed that morality in all spheres of human life should be grounded in reason. His renowned â€Å"categorical imperative† held that: (1) people should act only according to maxims that they would be willing to see become universal norms (i. e. , the Golden Rule); and (2) people should never treat another human as a means to an end. † (Dave Mote; Karl Heil) â€Å"Kant’s theory implied the necessity of trust, adherence to rules, and keeping promises† (Dave Mote; Karl Heil). One of the major discussion points today in the news is Health Care Reform. The medical industry has had free reign for so long that an overhaul needs to be completed. Currently there are many points in the reform that are still not clear and causing confusion. Frustration will be caused between the individuals that will have to buy insurance, the companies that have to provide insurance and the insurance companies that have to provide pooling coverage. The policies may find be found to be difficult to uphold and people may feel that it may easier to take the penalty. According to Kant’s theory reform should be revamped again to that it will benefit all participants and not exclude any others. In my opinion Kant’s theory has contributed to companies instituting polices and procedures. These policies are developed so that staff members are not treated unfairly or discriminated against as well as employees working with guidelines to be successful. I also believe that when the company runs within ethical surroundings; management, mid and lower level employees; the company will be looked at as a place of distinction and most employees will behave and react in an ethical manner. References http://www. referenceforbusiness. com/encyclopedia/Bre-Cap/Business-Ethics. html. (Dave Mote; Karl Heil) http://www. thesunchronicle. com/articles/2010/10/11/columns/8075350. txt. (Anthony Tiatorio).

History of Cookies

The first cookies were created by accident Cooks used a small amount of cake batter to test their oven temperature betore baking a large cake, The earliest cookie-style cakes are thought to date back to seventh-century Persia. Persia was one of the first countries to cultivate sugar. The word cookie originally came from the Dutch keok]e, meaning â€Å"little cake†. Dutch first popularized cookies in the United States. The British incorporated them in the 19th century in their daily tea service and calling them biscuits or sweet buns, as they do in Scotland.Sometime in the 1930s, a Massachusetts Innkeeper ran out ot nuts vvhlle making cookies. she substltuted a bar of baking chocolate, breaking It Into pieces and adding the chunks of chocolate to the flour, butter, and brown sugar dough. The Toll House Cookie was then Invented and became a big hit. Ruth Wakefield was credited with inventing the chocolate chip cookie, an American Classic. Cookies are made with sweet dough or bat ter, baked in single-sized servings and eaten out-of-hand. Perfect for snacking or as dessert, cookles are consumed In 95. ercent ot u. s. households. Americans alone consume over 2 billion cookies a year or 300 cookies for each person annually. cookies are most often classified by method of preparation – drop, molded, pressed, refrigerated, bar and rolled. Their dominant ingredient, such as nut cookies, fruit cookies or chocolate cookies, can also classify them. Whether gourmet, soft or bite-sized cookies, new categories are always cropping up as the American appetite for cookies contlnues to grow. A drop cookle Is made by dropplng spoontuls ot dough onto a baking sheet.Bar cookies are created when a batter or soft dough Is spooned Into a shallow pan, then baked, cooled and cut into bars. Hand-formed cookies are made by shaping dough by hand into small balls, logs, crescents and other shapes. Pressed cookies are formed by pressing dough through a cookie press to form fancy s hapes and designs. Refrigerator cookies are made by shaping the dough into a log, which is retrigerated until firm, then sliced and baked. Rolled cookies begin by using a rolling pln to roll the dough out flat; then It Is cut Into decorative shapes with cookie cutters r d pointed knife.Other cookies, such as the German springerle, are formed by Imprinting designs on the dough, either by rolling a special decoratively carved rolling pin over it or by pressing the dough into a carved cookie mold. The Southern colonial housewife took great pride in her cookies, almost always called simply â€Å"tea cakes. † These were otten flavored with nothing more than the finest butter, sometimes with the addltlon of a few drops of rose water. In earlier American cookbooks, cookies were given no space of their own but were listed at the end of the cake chapter.

Affirmative Action Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Affirmative Action - Research Paper Example Workforce diversity today has become a great virtue which increases the creativity of a company (Innovationmanagement, 2010). Despite all the benefits of affirmative action its active use in the U.S has created a new form of discrimination referred to as reverse discrimination. Reverse discrimination can be defined as the unfair treatment of the members of a majority group as a result of preferential policies intended to reduce discrimination against minorities (Dictionary, 2013). I personally think that reverse discrimination is a fallacy. Change is an inevitable part of society and a higher participation rate among minorities will consequently reduce the labor participation of the majority group. We should always remember the past when true discrimination led to the unethical and inhuman treatment of an entire race through slavery. A person that claims reverse discrimination should handle the pressures of the workplace instead of crying wolf. A way for people to increase their chances in the workplace is by acquiring formal training and

Learning and development Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Learning and development - Research Paper Example One can as well learn from experience. Development on the other hand is extending those practical aspects of a concept for growth purposes. It is a way of applying knowledge in order to meet specific objectives (Berrill, 2011). It can as well be described as a kind of transformation that one goes through. It is usually a kind of progress where one moves from a simpler stage to a more complex one. In my research paper, I will focus on learning and development in the Coca-Cola Company. I will basically look at key issues to learning and development, the opportunities presented and the strategies that are meant to make learning effective and also an analysis on the same. Learning and development faces various critical challenges and issues that hamper the process, Coca-Cola not being an exception. Even though Coca-Cola was determined in treating people equally and developing them through giving them a rewarding working life, it faced various challenges initially (Hays,2004).One of the issues that it faced was that employees viewed learning as a must-do process and therefore felt obliged to partake in it claiming that they had no option. This saw most of them attend the training not because they believed that it could help them grow but because they saw it as mandatory. This saw most of them not acquiring the skills that were needed because they were not in any way attentive when the training was being offered. According to Ferrara (2012) another issue regards providing employees with basic topics. These were topics that majored on them knowing how to perform various day-to-day tasks. This made the employees lack the motivation to learning because it was viewed to as a normal process that did not reflect on change. They claimed that it was in a form of cycle that started from the beginning to the end and back to the beginning. It was necessary to offer the employees other skills that were not related to work that would make them all round. Another issue

Final Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Final - Personal Statement Example The employees got a chance to know each other better while they shared food in those short breaks. There are many theories of motivation that can be used to increase employee performance. Three theories of motivation that can help increase employee performance are Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, equity theory, and expectancy theory. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is based on a pyramid that ranks the five most important needs of workers. The five needs in order of important from least to most important are physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualization. By identifying the needs that drive each employee a manager can better find the things that motivate each of his employees. Equity theory was developed by John Stacey Adam in 1963. Equity theory states that, â€Å"when people feel fairly or advantageously treated they are more likely to be motivated; when they feel unfairly treated they are highly prone to feelings of disaffection and demotivation† (Yourcoach, 2010). Eliminating income discrepancies among workers with similar work experience and educat ional credentials is a great way to motivate workers since the staff will feel they are equally valued. Vroom’s expectancy theory is based on the assumption that motivation is associated with the belief of the employee in regards to effort and performance considerations. I was in the middle of an ethical dilemma a few years ago due to misbehavior by my supervisor. There was a promotion in the firm and several in-house candidates applied for the position including myself. A rumor surged that the son in law of one of the executives was going to get the job due to preferential treatment based on family connections. The supervisor denied the rumor, but at the end of the day he gave in to political pressures within the firm and gave the job to the son in law of the manager. I did not like the lack of ethics illustrated by this firm. When my contract expired I stopped working for that firm. In the

Bibliography about Napoleon Bonaparte-France Essay

Bibliography about Napoleon Bonaparte-France - Essay Example He was enrolled in a military school in a town named Bienne. His performance in academics was not at all laudable. However, his progress in the military ways was commendable. It only took him a year in the Paris military school to be commissioned as the second lieutenant. He achieved this rank in the artillery section in the year 1785. In 1789, Napoleon spectated the fall of bastille though with approval from military officials. He watched at a distance but did not involve himself in fighting. He chose to spend the next few years hanging out in his native town of Corsica. His stay there was not without controversy. He had a blown out conflict with a Corsican nationalist named Paoli. Napoleon’s family were convinced of reduced safety in the area. They decided to flee the town for Marseille in the year 1793 (Johnstone 13). 1793 stands out as the year napoleon had his first military test. It was not easy opposition to face as it entailed the British ad royalist armies. The succes s of his command on the British secured him the rank of brigadier general in the French army. In the following year, Napoleon was handed command of the national French army that was stationed in Italy. His military life and dealings made him subject to imprisonment in the year 1794. It was for a short while. He was alleged to have been involved with the brother of Robespierre (then-fallen). His imprisonment came to a hasty end as his name was cleared from the list of army officers who had failed to follow orders. October 1795 saw Napoleon lead a successful revolt against the revolutionary French government. In the new government, he was prompted as the army commander of the interior. The promotion transpired in May 1796. Napoleon organised the French army for a series of attacks that he plotted. The attacks were aimed at the Sardinians as well as the Austrians in Italy. He enjoyed a commendable success rate as he won in Mantua, Savoy, Lombardy and Nice. This was a revolution that he had initiated. It intended to conquer the larger parts of Europe. This way, the French control would be felt throughout. By 1797, he had passed the Alps and into Vienna. He forced his adversaries to concede resulting to the treaty of campo, Formio. This treaty was to end the initial stage of the French revolution (Johnson 44). France’s antagonism with Britain was very alive and kicking. In light of this, Napoleon, acting on behalf of the French government planned to challenge the Britain’s interest in India. With an army consisting of 35000 troops, Napoleon went in pursuit of the British en route to India. On the way, Malta was not spared from French conquest. In a bid to shut down British trade routes with India, Napoleon conquered Egypt. During that time, Egypt was under ottoman rule. His occupation was present in Alexandria and Cairo. The French influence led to the establishment of various institutions that were dedicated to ancient Egypt’s studies (Johnson 36). As a matter of fact, there are 18 volumes dated 1808-1825 named Description d’Egypt. These were the end results of the Napoleon founded institutions. Horatio Nelson, a British troop commander successfully engaged Napoleon’s army in Egypt. They destroyed Napoleon’s fleet in the battle of the Nile. Napoleon was stranded in Egypt but eventually found his way back to France in 1799. His was a narrow escape from his fierce adversaries. Back in France, the government

The role of lay Catholics in the Church according to the teaching of Assignment

The role of lay Catholics in the Church according to the teaching of the Second Vatican Council - Assignment Example Recent measures and initiatives within the Catholic church, particularly those designed in reenergizing Catholicism as a religion amidst modernity and secularization, were those concerning the increase in engagement and involvement of its lay members. This has been the fundamental issue addressed by the Second Vatican Council that took place from 1959 to 1965. The Council was able to draft and issue several documents, which would supposedly turn the tide for Catholicism during this contemporary age. These documents introduced and emphasized the concept of the â€Å"people of God† when its predecessor stressed on the role of the Pope. This move by Church authorities is increasingly seen as an attempt for the organization to be continuously significant amidst several developments that undermine Catholicism across the globe. This paper will specifically examine the role of the laity or the Lumen Gentium as outlined by the Second Vatican Council and how it is expected to develop l ater on. Background It is important to underscore that in the early days of Christianity, the laity has played an important role in the affairs of the church. According to Walsh (2005), the laity was not only consulted on important matters, because they also take part in electing bishops and in choosing priests. (p66) This role was eventually scrapped as the laity came to be merely defined as those that are subjected under the Catholic organization’s authority and representatives of the religion in secular affairs such as in business, politics and so forth. As the Catholic organization became more structured and the system more sophisticated governance and policymaking, and most of the organizational activities, policies and measures were administered by the clergy. By the time the First Vatican Council issued its codes and rules, the â€Å"Catholic action† referred to as the role to be played by the lay people were strictly confined to participation in Church-led init iatives. For instance, Pope Pius X declared that â€Å"the one duty of the multitude is to allow themselves to be led, and like a docile flock, to follow the Pastors.† (Pope 2004, p6) What this means is that while the laity is expected to be proactive, their actions must only be in support of the ordained and that they do not have clear and specific missions of their own, say, in evangelization. With the onset of the modern age, however, the clergy again began to turn to the laity as the Church is forced to deal with dwindling membership and enthusiasm from among its ranks. It addition, it has been struggling with finding its own identity and significance in a period of drastic changes across the world. The premise of the current Catholic attitude is that the Church must be viewed as â€Å"a community of faith where all the baptized bear responsibility for placing their individual gifts at the service of all.† (Gubish, Jenny and McGannon 2001, pii) The pattern of the n ew strategy reflects an attempt at a deeper and more potent evangelization by having the laity live out their lives according to the values and teachings of the Catholic Church. In recent years lay people have taken on great many administrative roles, and although Church law forbids them to have ‘jurisdiction’, such as a role in administration, they are involved in decision-making from parish level upwards which is often pretty indistinguishable from governance. (Walsh, p66) Laity in the Second Vatican Council According to the Second Vatican Council, the role of the laity is extremely important, explaining that: Inserted as they are in the Mystical Body of Christ by baptism and strengthened by the power of the Holy Spirit in confirmation, it is by the Lord himself that they are assigned to the apostolate†¦ The apostolate is lived in faith, hope and charity poured out by the Holy Spirit into the hearts of all members of the Church. (Dajczer 2000, p65) The

Methods and Procedures to Form the Government Contracts in Saudi Essay

Methods and Procedures to Form the Government Contracts in Saudi Arabia and the UNICTRAL Rules - Essay Example It compares it with the Saudi legislation in the government contracting procedures. Government procurement market is one of the largest markets in the world. Countries spend billions of dollars yearly to meet the needs in the various sectors of health, educational and municipal services, communications and technology. Therefore, it is not unforeseen that the issue of government procurement obtains great attention and consideration locally and internationally. Government Contract is an important tool used by the administration to achieve its requirements to ensure that the regularity of the public utilities. In consideration of the importance of government procurement law, many local and international organizations and conventions address government the contracting procedures. One of these agencies is the United Nations through â€Å"The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). It is a â€Å"Model Law on Procurement of Goods, Constrictions, and Services with Guide to Enactment.† The law empowers countries around the world to reconsider their local laws on government procurement that contains uncertainty, lack of clarity, and lack of transparency. Therefore, when countries are drafting their laws, this model law can guide them. Thus, the UNICTRAL Model Law is a model for comparison between its rules and the Government Tenders and Procurement law of Saudi Arabia, which was enacted by the Royal Decree No. M/58 dated 27 September 2006. The papers scope is limited to clarifying the contracting procedures of the government agency in Saudi Arabia when choosing the contracting party. It relates to the Government Tenders and Procurement Law. The process is applicable in the contracting to purchase items or services, whether the contracting method is sealed bidding, limited tender or the direct purchase method. Before 1966, Saudi Arabia lacked an integrated law specialized in organizing the contracts entered

New York Times Essay Example for Free

New York Times Essay The newspaper serves as the first draft of history and is the most important source of primary documents in which historians use in order to better gauge exactly what were the concerns and motivations of a specific age. In 1900, America was celebrating a new century although there was little to celebrate. The Boar War in South Africa was taking far too long and costing far too many money and lives in what was perceived to be an invincible British Empire. A massive explosion in West Virginia killed dozens of miners and in China, the Boxer Rebellion; a Chinese nationalistic movement in which all foreigners were sought after and either expelled from the country or killed, was causing international headaches for America and President McKinley. The December 24, 1900 issue of the New York Times, the most prestigious newspaper in the country, detailed many of the aforementioned events as well as the smaller stories which never did make the history books but were vitally important for those who were involved. As 1900 was coming to a close and moving into what would be the bloodiest century in human history, the readers of that day, saw a world with no shortage of pessimistic news and depressing facts about the state of their world. In the backdrop of the Christmas season, the concern of the people of New York, as detailed in this issue of the New York Times, were detailing the hatred and strife which much of the world, and especially New York City had, in the day before Christmas.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The most important international issue of this day was the Boar War.   America would remain neutral in this war but with British soldiers deep in the heart of South Africa and fighting a war, the details commanded a position on the front page. The headline in the top left corner of page 1, â€Å"Boars Take British town,† detailed the pursuits of the British army in relation to the Boar War, which was ending its second year with no sign of victory. The war would continue from 1899-1902 and cost more lives and money than would ever have been conceived and historians marked this as the beginning of the end of the British Empire.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There were other important issues of the day. One issue which the people of New York were talking about that day was the firing of District Attorney Garnier by then governor Theodore Roosevelt. This story was seen on page 1 of the Times as well as a detailed editorial on page 6 of the paper. Theodore Roosevelt was seen as a free thinking Progressive Reformer who had no use for patronage, nor public opinion dictating his actions. He was one of the most unique Presidents this country ever had served in the White House. These aspects came through when Governor Roosevelt, under the idea that Garnier: â€Å"that he did not acknowledge the telegram of the governor directing attention to these officers†¦ and allowed his assets to interfere with the prompt trial of election cases.†[1] In other words, Garnier’s association with Tammany, the political force of the Democratic Party in which graft and patronage ran rampant, could not be separated from the demands of this office. In the election of 1900, it was asserted that Garnier had done little or nothing to stop the election tampering which the Republicans asserted had occurred. Governor Roosevelt believed this to be the case and promptly fired Garnier.   The New York Times, in their editorial, criticized this move, through the professed to be no friend of Garnier. â€Å"We think that the people’s rights and not Garnier’s are infringed by the action of Governor Roosevelt and are forced to condemn that action as a blunder in the nature of a crime.†[2] Tammany, since the days of Boss William Tweed, had been under a suspicion of grafting politicians and Roosevelt, always the reformer, sought to free New York City from the patronage which he felt was choking the lifeblood from the city. Tammany had been a source of patronage for decades and it sometimes served as the only source of employment for immigrants who were being ignored by the establishment. However, Tammany always ran under a cloud of suspicion for corruption and the reform candidates of that age, sought to starve Tammany of patronage. It is also interesting to note that since Governor Roosevelt was causing so much trouble, for both the Democrats as well as the Republicans, that he was placed on the Republican ticket as President McKinley’s Vice President in 1900 only a few months earlier as a way to silence him. Little did they know that the assassination of President McKinley in September 1901, propel Roosevelt onto the world political stage for the next 7  ½ years.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The newspaper also details the stories which never did make the history books. There are many one or two paragraph stories which served as life changing for those involved but which were quickly forgotten in a day or two by the rest of the public. One such story is of five year old Marie Horen who went into convulsions when she drank a bottle of whiskey as she copied what she had seen her father doing. She was rushed to the J. Hood Wright Hospital where her condition was deemed serious. Another story involves nine year old Nathan Roth who was shot in the head by one who the paper deemed crazy. He was shot in the head and the bullet exited the right eye of the boy. The boy was pronounced dead and the defendant, John Galletus, a father of three and one who had attempted to shoot others, was captured and sent away.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another negative aspect of this day in New York History was the number of fires that were reported. There was listed, sixteen fires that had occurred. One of these fires ripped through a tenement in which it was reported that there presumed to be, a number of victims but as the records of those living in these tenements were sketchy at best, it seems as though the exact count will never be known. It has been suspected that a number of these fires, especially the ones in which barns were being set ablaze, was suspected of being done by a group of sixteen years from the many notorious gangs which New York City housed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It was also reported that Andrew Carnegie, the steel magnate, one who had originated from Scotland and had made his fortunes in steel, donated $20,000 for the assembly of a new library at the all black Tuskegee School in which Booker T. Washington founded and led. During these last years of his life, Carnegie sought o give away millions of dollars in the construction of libraries all across the country; from the large cities in America, to the small towns. He had earned his money through the ruthless exploitation of capitalism and now sought to right his wrongs and become a philanthropist and give money to support a new school at Tuskegee. This occurred at a time when only four years later, calls of treason arose from the South when President Roosevelt invited Booker T. Washington, a leader in the African American community to lunch in order to discuss the issues of the day concerning African Americans. It was reported that the entire building would be built from the hard work of the students themselves; a practice which had been adhered to when the school was first built. This speaks to the social culture of the day and is in contrast to the arrest of Ed. Johnson, a â€Å"dark† man who was suspected of kidnapping a woman. The story states, on page 1, that Mr. Johnson had been identified by a child witness as not having been the suspect but which did little to dissuade the authorities to immediately free Mr. Johnson.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Since this issue was dated Christmas Eve, there is also a religious aspect to this day as millions of Christians in the city were set to celebrate the birth of Jesus. This aspect of loving one’s neighbor which is seen more often around Christmas time than any other, was seen in a large advertisement which detailed the Salvation Army’s feeding of the poor as well as the performance of a passion play. These plays were designed to detail the last hours of Jesus before he was hung on the cross. These plays have served as a popular and touching aspect of the Christmas Season but which have become more popular during the Easter season. In this spirit of alms giving, the New York Protestant Episcopal Society was also feeding Christmas dinner to the poor. However, with New York City containing a large Jewish population, it was stated by the prominent rabbis of the city, that the Jewish people can enjoy this Christmas season, the joy and fulfillment which their fellow New Yorkers are experiencing this Christmas season but that Jews should be careful not to blend their appreciation for the enjoyment of others, with their own sense of faith, which it was stated, â€Å"has fundamental and final differences between Judaism and Christianity.†[3]   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   1900 was an important and event-packed year. Reading the newspapers, specifically the New York Times, serves as a reminder that ever day, there occurs events, large and small, important and socially irrelevant, that occur every day and which are important to the people it affects. In a city as large as New York City, there still occurs individual interest stories like the death of nine year old Nathan Roth or the case of five year old Maggie Enloin who went into convulsions after drinking a bottle of whiskey after seeing her father do the same. These stories occur every day, in every part of the country, as well as the world. Many times, they are not reported but in this day, December 24, 1900, the editors of The New York Times, felt that the tragic death of a nine year old to street violence, or the burnings of tenements on the Lower East Side, as well as the involvements of the Boxer Rebellion, the Boar War or the issues of patronage and corruption within the Tammany machine, all fell under the definition: â€Å"All the news that is fit to print.† This day in American History as well as New York History, saw a wide array of human interest stories, coupled with heavy issues and the larger questions of: â€Å"What role will political patronage serve in the city and how much damage can Governor Roosevelt make before he assumes the Vice Presidency? Are the problems of the tenements to only being reported or sill any actions are made to help the poor and to help them rise above their circumstance? Can the deaths of innocent children be reconciled in a city who believes that it is on the cutting edge of the country’s reforms? Also, to what degree, if any, will America get involved in the issues overseas such as the Boar War and the Boxer Rebellion and how their outcomes will affect America’s relations with these countries. The December 24, 1900 issue of the New York Times, had contained within its twelve pages, a wide array of stories from all walks of life and on all levels of importance. Many of the above mentioned people are to be remembered, when they are remembered at all, in the pages of the newspaper: the first draft of history. WORKS CITED The New York Times.   December 24, 1900 (Twelve Pages) [1] Governor Roosevelt’s Error The New York Times.   December 24, 1900 pg. 6 [2] Governor Roosevelt’s Error. The New York Times.   December 24, 1900 pg. 6 [3] The New York Times.   December 24, 1900

Two Italian Paintings Essay Example for Free

Two Italian Paintings Essay The Madonna and Child subject matter was culled from Duccio di Buoninsegna’s (considered the father of Sienese painting) â€Å"Maestà ¡Ã¢â‚¬  which depicts â€Å"the Madonna and Child enthroned with saints and angels on the front of its two-sided panel (â€Å"Sienese Paintings†). Enriching each painting are Byzantine influences, the so-called International Gothic Style and the work of seven great Italian artists, four Sienese[1] painters and one sculptor: Duccio di Buoninsegna (active by 1278); Simone Martini (active by 1315), brothers Pietro and Ambrogio Lorenzetti (active 1320-44 and 1319-47 respectively), and sculptor Giovanni Pisano (active 1284-1314); one Florentine painter Giotto di Bondone (1266/76-1337) heralded as the father of Western Art; and one Roman painter Pietro Cavallini (ca. 1240 – after ca. 1330) also credited with changing the course of Italian Painting[2] (â€Å"Sienese Painting† and â€Å"Panel Painting†). Evidence of the evolving Sienese style appears in Paolo di Giovanni Fei’s and Giovanni di Paolo’s work when you consider that both reflect Simone’s tendency towards â€Å"richly tooled surfaces with elegant naturalism[3]† and the Lorenzetti brothers â€Å"native feeling for rich color harmonies and precocious interest in genre-like details† (â€Å"Sienese Painting†). To that end Paolo di Giovanni Fei ‘s work, on the same subject matter, the Madonna and Child, is a creation of deliberation as the process of creating a panel was involved. Fei’s style is â€Å"characterized by a fanciful use of color and emphasis of detail rather than rational spatial illusionism† (â€Å"Paolo di Giovanni Fei†). The wonderfully varied palette of â€Å"Madonna Nursing Her Child† , a work dating from the late Medieval Italian period, ranges from the gold ground to the deeply indigo-hued robe of the Madonna with its turquoise and agate lining and gold detailing to the pale coral of her Child’s swaddling with its chalcedony lining. The engaged frame reflects his fondness for detail, containing several medallion-like decorations, while halos, worked into the ground, surround the heads of the Madonna and Child. Present as well is Fei’s disregard for the third dimension giving the panel a negative aspect with regard to landscape which manifests as a sense of flatness behind the stylized rather than completely naturalistic figures. The nursing child appears to drink from an object more related in appearance to a chalice than the Madonna’s breast. Clearly, the Madonna and Child are the focal point of the painting as there is no apparent source of light in the painting. Rather it is infused with light, this being the overall effect of the gold ground; the oil gilding used to attach it; and the tempera, which not only gives a hard shiny glaze, but allows for the obvious hatching and crosshatching apparent in the brushstrokes. The brushstrokes bequeath a sense of layering and depth for richly luminescent color. And for all the visually apparent texture of the painting, the relief conveyed by the scrollwork and medallions, Fei still captures and coveys both the lustrous, smoothness of gold and its softness of flexibility. Some of the above characteristics are also true of Giovanni di Paolo’s â€Å"Madonna and Child with Two Angels and a Donor†, a later work from the following Italian Renaissance period. Barring the addition of the extra figures its subject matter also draws from Duccio’s â€Å"Maestà ¡Ã¢â‚¬ , depicting the naturalistic figures of Madonna and nursing child before a backdrop noticeably more aware of the third dimension than Fei’s. As to the medium and support, Giovanni applied tempera to wood, creating a panel like Fei’s but considerably larger at, nearly five feet by three feet with a shaped top. The frame is reminiscent of early Gothic cathedrals while the luminous colors and richness of detail bring to mind a stained glass window, little touches adhering to the style called International Gothic. According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, â€Å"the flesh areas of the Virgin and Child; the angels and donor, and the floor and pillow are remarkably well-preserved, but the haloes of the Virgin and Child are modern, as is the checkered cloth of honor. The red of the Virgin’s dress has been repainted and the gilt floral ornament of her cloak; which is heavily abraded is also of recent date† (Caption for â€Å"Madonna and Child with Two Angels and a Donor†). For all their modernity the additions are in keeping with Giovanni’s palette choices as the red checked cloth echoes the Virgin’s red robe, while the addition of gilt ornamentation on her robe adds the luminosity, found in the gold ground. Giovanni covers a considerable range of hues in his palette, from the gold background to the ultramarine and viridian hued cloak with gold detailing and the crimson dress of the Virgin to the soft rose and gold trellis of the Childs swaddling blanket to the primrose, blue, and brown of the Angels tunics to the deep muddy brown of the Donor’s robes and finally the ochre, red, rose blue and brown of the pillow and floor. As with Fei’s earlier work, Giovanni’s later work after the panel tradition infuses light throughout the work as opposed to depicting a singular source to illuminate the focal point of Madonna and Child.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In a comparison of Fei’s â€Å"Madonna Nursing Her Child† and Giovanni’s â€Å"Madonna and Child with Two Angels and a Donor† each, while after the Sienese panel tradition, are clearly representative of their art periods. Fei’s work, with its two dimensional use of space is closer to the Byzantine style informing late Medieval Italian paintings and the rather stylized representation of the human form in addition to the choice of tempera for medium and wood for support. Paradoxically, Giovanni uses the same medium and support, tempera and wood, despite the availability of oil paints, which came into use during the Italian Renaissance, Giovanni may have tried to reproduce the panel technique used by Fei, albeit unsuccessfully. For Fei’s work seems better preserved than Giovanni’s despite being older. In overall effect, Fei’s work seems closer to the pagan roots of Christianity, lacking an awareness of the Neo-Platonic traditions, such as the Chain of Being which seems to inform Giovanni’s work. In the latter work is an awareness of humanity, represented by the donor and therefore the purpose of the Angels and the Madonna and Child, the salvation of humanity. In Fei’s work the figures are somehow abstract and more like extreme apostrophes of salvation. In summation, the works of Paolo di Giovanni Fei and Giovanni di Paolo reflect the influences of their Sienese forbears (â€Å"Sienese Painting†). Both â€Å"Madonna Nursing Her Child† by Paolo di Giovanni and â€Å"Madonna and Child with Two Angels and a Donor† by Giovanni di Paolo reflect the stylistic and technical qualities of their times the late Medieval Italian and Italian Renaissance periods, respectively. However, peculiar to both and in a sense unifying them under the Sienese style[4] are the artists’ choice of medium and support: tempura on wood with gold ground and subject matter the Madonna and Child and a notable Pisanesque tendency to incorporate relief, areas of sculpting into the painting (â€Å"Sienese Painting†). Works Cited Department of European Paintings. â€Å"Italian Painting of the Later Middle Ages†. In Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000-. http://www.metmuseum .org/ toah/hd/pane/hd_pane.htm (October 2001) Department of European Paintings. â€Å"Italian Painting of the Later Middle Ages: Panel Painting†. In Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000-. http://www.metmuesum.org/toah/hd/iptg/hd_iptg.htm (October 2001) Department of European Paintings. â€Å"Sienese Painting†. In Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000-. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/sien/hd_sien.htm (October 2004) Larmann, Ralph. â€Å"Oil Painting†. Art Studio Chalkboard. University of Evansville Art Department. http://studiochalkboard.evansville.edu/ (November 2007). Delahunt, Michael. Editor â€Å"Light, Oil Gilding, Oil Paint, Ground, Gesso, Medallion, Space†. In Artlex: Art Dictionary. http://www.artlex.com (1996-2007) Anonymous. â€Å"Paolo di Giovanni Fei†. Union List of Artist Names Online: Full Record Display.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The J. Paul Getty Trust 2004. http://getty.edu/vow/ULANFullDisplay?findrole= nation=subjectid=500013966 Anonymous. â€Å"Giovanni di Paolo†. Union List of Artist Names Online: Full Record Display.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The J. Paul Getty Trust 2004. http://getty.edu/vow/ULANFullDisplay?findrole= nation=subjectid=500116438 Paolo di Giovanni Fei: Madonna and Child (41.190.13). In Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/iptg/hod_41.190.13.htm (October 2006) â€Å"Madonna and Child with Angels†. Scholar’s Resource. http://www.scholarsresource.com/browse/work/2144570308 [1] Siena with Florence was the chief economic, political and cultural center of Tuscany in the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance (â€Å"Sienese Painting†). [2] â€Å"Maestà ¡Ã¢â‚¬  which depicts â€Å"the Madonna and Child enthroned with saints and angels on the front of its two-sided panel (â€Å"Sienese Paintings†). Duccio’ work belongs to the later medieval period which was influenced by Byzantine influences which grew in thirteenth century Italy with the fall of the Byzantine Empire at the hands of Christian armies. The work of masters such as Florentine Giotto di Bondone and Roman Pietro Cavallini not only led to the expression of more humanistic and less stylized depictions of emotions and figures but helped create a new approach to pictorial space so that the flat world of the thirteenth century became more analogous to the real world. This led to the ever evolving style of the Sienese panel painters who were fond of creating altar pieces for churches with the Madonna and Child shown on the main panel. [3] Simone’s style formed the basis for the so-called International Gothic style (â€Å"Sienese Painting†). [4] The Byzantine influences, the so-called International Gothic Style and the work of seven great Italian artists, four Sienese[4] painters and one sculptor: Duccio di Buoninsegna (active by 1278); Simone Martini (active by 1315), brothers Pietro and Ambrogio Lorenzetti (active 1320-44 and 1319-47 respectively), and sculptor Giovanni Pisano (active 1284-1314); one Florentine painter Giotto di Bondone (1266/76-1337) heralded as the father of Western Art; and one Roman painter Pietro Cavallini (ca.1240 – after ca. 1330) also credited with changing the course of Italian Painting[4] (â€Å"Sienese Painting† and â€Å"Panel Painting†).

The Customer Satisfaction By Measuring Service Quality Tourism Essay

The Customer Satisfaction By Measuring Service Quality Tourism Essay The measurement and management of service quality are fundamental to the survival and success of service companies Legcevic, 2008. The hotel sector is a large segment of the service industry which provides services and accommodations to a wide range of customers. To make sure that a hotel is satisfying its customers needs, it is necessary to measure service quality periodically to identify areas in need of improvement. There are several methodologies used for measuring service quality, but this research study shall employ one of the more popular models called the SERVQUAL model. This theory was developed by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry. They were early researchers studies about the concept of quality (Jain and Gupta, 2004). The SERVQUAL model was created to measure service quality as perceived by the customer (Parasuraman et al., 1985). According to Shangri-La Hotels Annual Report of year 2008 and 2009, the occupancy rate of the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok has declined continuously (Shangri-La Asia Limited, 2008, Shangri-La Asia Limited, 2009). The most likely cause of this problem is the political instability that hit Thailand recently. On the other hand, it is possible that this decline in the number of customers was a result of a decline in service quality. Even though the Shangri-La Hotel continued to emphasize customer needs and provide excellent service to their customers, it is still crucial to measure service quality to ensure that the customers are satisfied with the hotels services and responsiveness to customer needs. The result of measuring service quality also helps management to understand exactly what their customers expect from the hotel and the level to which they are satisfied with their experience at the hotel. This measurement model functions as a tool to promote communication between the hotel man agement and their customers. This research was conducted to observe customer perceptions about hotel services by measuring service quality using the SERVQUAL model at the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok. The benefits of this research are not just to understand the level of customer satisfaction; but moreover, it can use as a guideline to enhance service quality and promote customer loyalty. Title of project: A Study of Customer Satisfaction by Measuring Service Quality; A Case Study of Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok Statement of research problem: A continual decline in the number of hotel customers over the past few months has had a direct effect on the hotels income. The main factor which is believed to have caused this decline was internal political instability in Thailand. In an effort to transform a crisis into opportunity, this is an appropriate time to observe customer perceptions of service quality in order to help hotel management improve quality and prepare their business for when the situation returns to normal. Project objectives: The objectives of this research are as follows: To measure service quality of Shangri-La hotel, Bangkok by using SERVQUAL model, To understand the relationship between customer satisfaction and service quality, and To gain a clearer understanding of customer perceptions of service quality from Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok in order to improve hotel service quality in the future. Conceptual framework Reliability SERVQUAL Dimensions Responsiveness Assurance Customer Satisfaction Empathy Tangibles Scope of the study: The scope of this research focuses on measurement of service quality at the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok by using the SERVQUAL model which considers service quality from the following five dimensions: a) reliability, b) responsiveness, c) assurance, d) empathy and e) tangibility. The sample population would be a random sample of 100 hotel customers during the period from June to July, 2010. The survey technique would employ the use of questionnaires. This study focuses on the relationship between customer satisfaction and service quality. Definitions of terms used in the study: SERVQUAL model: An instrument for measuring service quality comprised of five dimensions such as: a) reliability, b) responsiveness, c) assurance, d) empathy and e) tangibility. Parasuraman summed up that customers perceive service quality by comparing their expectations with the actual organizational performance, and they evaluate service quality in different dimensions (Parasuraman et al., 1988). Service Quality: A product or outcome of all the staff managers of the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok working together to satisfy their customers. In other words, high-quality service is a service that meets or exceeds customer needs and expectations (Wisniewski, 2001). Customer Expectation: is prediction service of customer that hotel should be provide to them. Predict service directly influence customer satisfaction evaluation (Zeithaml et al., 1993) Customer Perception: A feeling or sense possessed by the customer which is derived from their experiences at the hotel. Customer Satisfaction: The level to which a customer perceives that their expectations were met in the transaction with the hotel (Hallowell, 1996). Assumptions: A customer who receives a high level of service quality from the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok is more likely to be satisfied with the overall level of service at the hotel. Limitations: Size of sample: The political uncertainty in Thailand during the past several months resulted in a decrease in the number of tourists all over Bangkok. Furthermore, the occupancy level at the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok has been suppressed due to a reduction in room availability for internal renovations. The limited number of hotel customers may limit the sample size, leading to sample error. Time frame of data collection: The time frame is a major problem for this research because the research time table is quite short, especially considering that this season is the low season for tourism in Thailand. Since the tourist numbers are much lower than during high season, it could be difficult or impossible to reach the appropriate sample size. Human ethics considerations: This research is being conducted for educational purposes to learn about customer satisfaction at the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok. For this reason, the hotels management is allowing researchers to collect data from their customers. Therefore, the researchers should not force the customers to complete the questionnaire if they are hesitant. The questionnaire is being designed so that it does not contain sensitive items which would make customers feel uncomfortable. Practical significance: Measuring service quality is more difficult than measuring the quality of manufactured goods because the nature of services is intangible (Bergman and Klefsjo, 1994). The SERVQUAL model is an efficient tool to help measure service quality and clarify customer satisfaction. The result of this research would be useful for the Shangri-La Hotels management and staff members so that they can better understand their customers level of satisfaction with perceptions about the hotels services. It will help hotel management in their efforts to maintain and improve hotel service quality. In addition, other hoteliers and organizations within the service industries sector could adapt this research to use as basis for studies into their own organizations. Background information: Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts is a well-established Asian hotel chain in major cities throughout Asia, Oceania and The Middle East. The headquarters is located in Hong Kong. Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok is one property of many properties of Shangri-La Company, located in the Silom district, has a total of 799 rooms including serviced apartments and other facilities such as restaurants, conference rooms, spa, swimming pool and tennis courts (Shangri-La Hotel, 2010). Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok is located in a convenient place next to the Chao Phraya River which is the main river of Thailand, and is only half an hour from Suvarnabhumi Airport and 10 minutes away from central business by BTS Skytrain. For these reasons, this hotel has the ability to attract numerous tourists. Furthermore, Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok is connected to Sathorn Pier, so tourists can take public boats or long tail boats to travel to and visit several kinds of tourist attractions easily such as the Temple of Dawn, the Grand Palace, the Flower Market and Khaosan Road. There is a high diversity of tourism industries which promote the economy in this district and along this river. However, in recent years, the Thai economy has experienced difficulty for a variety of reasons. Figures 1 and 2 compare the performance of Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts in the period from 2007 to 2008 with the period from 2008 to 2009. Figure 1: The Shangri-La Hotel Weighted Average Room Yield 2007-2008 Source: Shangri-La Asia Limited (2008) Figure 2: The Shangri-La Hotel Weighted Average Room Yields 2008-2009 Source: Shangri-La Asia Limited (2009) The figures above show that there was a significant decline in the performance of Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Thailand in 2008 compared with 2007, and this decline in performance continued into 2009 with a drop on average room occupancy. According to the 2008 Shangri-La Asia Limited Annual Report, occupancy and RevPAR for Shangri-La Hotels decreased in 2008 by 15 and 10 percentage points respectively (Shangri-La Asia Limited, 2008). Moreover, the overall weighted average RevPAR for Shangri-La Hotel and Resorts Thai properties decreased a further 11 percent in 2009 (Shangri-La Asia Limited, 2009). The global financial crisis, the extensive renovations at the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok and political uncertainty are cited as the main reasons for this decline. Literature review: There are several pieces of literature regarding studies of service quality which say that if a customer had a pleasant service experience, they would probably use that service again and would be likely to invite their friends or tell someone else to utilize those same services. In the same way, if customer had a poor service experience, they generally never forget about it, and many customers will complain and go elsewhere (Assael, 1987, Farrington et al., 2009, Peter and Olson, 1987). Word of mouth is a powerful communications tool. Customers may tell others whenever they experience poor service quality, and this would have a direct effect on the organizations image resulting in an eventual decrease in revenue. The power of this communications tool has always been evident from the past until the present. Consequently, organizations must always ensure that their service quality is the most pleasant and best to generate customers satisfaction. This is because the backbone of service organization growth is not just a high quality product or pricing strategy, but it is also the combination with good customer service. When customers receive good service the outcomes are positive(Farrington et al., 2009). Nowadays, companies increasingly emphasize service quality and customer satisfaction throughout, so that they can increase customer loyalty, because it has determined that high customer loyalty is key to success in their market segment(Cronin et al., 2000). Service quality is widely studied and useful in service industries(Carman, 1990, Collier and Bienstock, 2006, Cronin and Taylor, 1992, Cronin et al., 2000, Gronroos, 1984, Parasuraman et al., 1985, Parasuraman et al., 1988). Many scholars have taken an interest in service quality issues because of their intangibility, which makes them very difficult to measure (Bergman and Klefsjo, 1994). For these reasons, several researchers created a model to help clarify the measurement of service quality. The most popular and extensively used models are Gronroos Service Quality Model and Parasuramans Gap Model (Legcevic, 2008). It could be describes of each model as following; Gronroos Service Quality Model splits customer perceived service into two dimensions: 1) technical quality, and 2) functional quality (Gronroos, 1984). 1) Technical quality or outcome quality is what customer receives as outcome of the process in the resources. Functional quality is how customer receives from technical outcome (Legcevic, 2008). Parasuramans Gap Model indicates that five gaps exist between management and customers during the service delivery process (Parasuraman et al., 1985). For my research, I will employ the SERVQUAL scale by using gap scores to help measure service quality. Service Quality: Today quality become recognized as a strategic tool to enhance and improved business actual performance both of goods sector and service sector. The key factor to success in service industry is service quality. The purpose of service quality is to satisfy the customer. Hence, service quality and customer satisfaction influence each other. As mentioned in the beginning, service quality is defined as a product or outcome resulting from all members in the organization trying to satisfy their customers (Wisniewski, 2001). Service quality also could be defined as crucial decision-making criteria for service consumers (Cronin et al., 2000). Customers evaluate service quality by comparing organizational performance with their expectations (Zeithaml et al., 1993). However, Parasuraman proved and indicated that there is a problem with customer perception of service, because five gaps exist between the customer and the service provider during service delivery. The figure below illustrates the Service Quality Gap Model by Parasuraman. Figure 4: The Service Quality Gap Model Source: Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry (1985) According to figure as above, it could be describes each gap as following; Gap1: Service provider not knowing what the customers expect Gap2: Service provider not selecting the right service design Gap3: Service provider not delivering to service standard Gap4: Service provider not matching performance to promises Gap5: The difference between customer expectations and customer perceived service (Legcevic, 2008) A gap which may occur between customer expectation and customer perception is not the only measurement of service quality. However, it is a determinant of customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction. If the service providers response to customer needs is below their expectations, the customer would estimate that the quality is low. Measuring the gap between expected and perceived service is a routine method of utilizing customer feedback(Pizam and Ellis, 1999). SERVQUAL Scale: The main benefit of the SERVQUAL instrument is that it helps management to measure the quality of service by comparing customers expectation of service and customer perceived service which categorizing each problem facet into five dimensions. It lets them classify the problems into dimensions, helping management to focus on the problems and improve service quality in the right way when some elements of service are found to be lacking. The SERVQUAL model was created by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry in 1985. The 1985 version consisted of ten dimensions. The model was further developed, and in 1988 it was refined into five dimensions. The SERVQUAL model has been widely used as an efficient instrument for measuring service quality in many service industries (Asubonteng et al., 1996). The five dimensions are: 1) reliability, 2) responsiveness, 3) assurance, 4) empathy and 5) tangible. According to Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (1985), they defined each dimensions as follows: Reliability: Ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately Responsiveness: Willingness to help customers and provide prompt service Assurance: Knowledge and courtesy of employees and their ability to inspire trust and confidence Empathy: Caring, individualized attention the firm provides its customers Tangible: Physical facilities, equipment, and appearance of personnel The most important dimension that the customer used to evaluate service quality is the reliability dimension (Legcevic, 2008). Parasuraman developed a set of questionnaires using 22 parallel questions to measure customers expectation of service and customer perception of service in the five dimensions. The measurement uses a Likert Scale with seven levels ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. The service quality measurement of each pair of questions uses performance minus expectation. A positive score represents positive service quality (Parasuraman et al., 1988). Quality = Performance Expectation Nevertheless, there are numerous of academic studies which do not support these five dimensions. These studies determined that problems occur with this measurement method. Chen (2008) argued that SERVQUAL should add more dimensions to give the result more validity and credibility (Chen, 2008). Carman (1990) argued that each dimension should not be general because each service industry is different. Therefore, this model could not be used in the same format across industries (Carman, 1990). Although, there are weak points existing in SERVQUAL model, the concept of dimensions is still useful and when anyone interested in service quality issue, one choice which remind is SERVQUAL scale because its great to demonstrative power (Jain and Gupta, 2004). Then, it is used frequently today. SERVPERF Scale When discuss about SERVQUAL scale, it can not forgot to talks about SERVPERF scale as well. SERVPERF is one of service quality measurement scale. The results of both scale (SERVQUAL and SERVPERF), when compare these method to each other, the result which occurs are quite similar. However, there are differences in measuring process. Moreover, it is difference in reliability. To classify divergence between SERVQUAL scale and SERVPERF could be concise explain as following; SERVQUAL use customers expectation of service and customer perceived service to find service quality while SERVPERF use only customers perception for consideration. Cronin and Taylor (1992) compare between these two scales a found that SERVPERF is enough for measure service quality. However, the SERVQUAL scale is effective than SERVPERF scale because it provide more pragmatic diagnosis of service quality (Jain and Gupta, 2004). Customer Satisfaction: There are plentiful researchers studies on customer satisfaction. The definition of customer satisfaction is also diverse. Pizam and Ellis(1999) states that customer satisfaction is a psychological concept relating to a feeling of pleasure and well-being which is a result between needs in mind and an appealing product or service (Pizam and Ellis, 1999). The sense of satisfaction brings about positive attitudes which leads a customer seek that satisfying experience again (Assael, 1987). Customer satisfaction also has an influence on corporate survival. Naumann (1995) states that in order to attract a new customer, an organization has to pay costs in the form of time and resources equal to approximately five times that which is necessary to retain an existing customer (Naumann, 1995). Therefore, it leads the organization to determine quality as the ability to retain existing customers. However, not every customer will perceive the same level of satisfaction with the same level of service, because their sense of satisfaction is related to word of mouth communication and their past experiences (Pizam and Ellis, 1999). All people have had different experiences, thus they also have different objectives, needs and expectations. To ensure that the organization provides a high level of service quality, customer satisfaction surveys are necessary. Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Bery (1994) suggested that product quality, service quality, and price are each factors that encourage satisfaction (Parasuraman et al., 1994). Customer loyalty develops when customers become satisfied with these different factors provided by the organization (Farrington et al., 2009). The following is a conceptual framework showing the connection of each element which involves customer satisfaction. Figure 3: A Conceptual Framework for the Effects of Perceived Product Quality, Service Quality, and Pricing Fairness on Consumer Satisfaction and Consumer Loyalty Customer Satisfaction Product Quality Perceived Product Quality Perceived Service Quality Service Quality Customer Loyalty Perceived Price Fairness Price Source: (Bei and Chiao, 2001) Understanding the critical elements described above, how they are related, and how they help the organization is a foundation to success in the service industry. Data required: The data required for this study would be based in information collected from Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok customers. This research also requires the use of SERVQUAL as the main model to help measure service quality. Furthermore, may utilize some other theories from journal articles and textbooks which are related to this research. Other sources of information may include Shangri-La Hotel and Resorts information, particularly with regards to general information and occupancy data as required supporting in this research. Data sources: This research will utilize the following two types of data: Primary data: The primary data for this research will be collected from 100 hotel customers who stay at the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok for least one night. The guests will be selected by simple random sampling technique, and they will fill out questionnaires regarding hotel service quality. Each questionnaire shall contain three parts: the first part will be general information, the second part will be about the expectations, perceived service quality and third part is level of satisfaction of the customer. Secondary data: The secondary data will be gathered from literature such as journal articles, textbooks, Shangri-la Hotel, Bangkok data and hotel website sources. The process of data collection shall be conducted from June to July, 2010. Data collection techniques: This research would be collects the data from 100 of customers of Shangri-La hotel, Bangkok who stay at the hotel at least one night. The researcher would be select population sample by employ random sampling method and using questionnaire as the tools. The measuring service quality instrument in this research is SERVQUAL. The questionnaire composes of three parts as following; First part is about demographic data of customers (gender, age, nationality, occupation, reason for stay, how often that they have been stay at Shangri-La hotel, Bangkok and why they selected here as a place to stay). Second part, it would be focusing on customers expectation of service quality (customers expectations) and received service quality (customers perceptions), in this area customer would answer both of these two aspects into SERVQUAL dimensions. This research would use Likerts scale to measure into five point scales. Likerts scale is a instrument to help measure attitude and opinion (Laerhoven et al., 2004). On the customers expectation question side would be ask customer to rate ranging from Very unnecessary 1,2,3,4,5 Very necessary. On the customers perceive service question side would be ask customer to rate ranging from Very poor 1,2,3,4,5 Very good. Third part would be ask customer one question about their satisfaction of overall hotel service quality. In addition, researcher would leave the area for customer to add any recommendation. Data analysis: As for this research would be use SPSS program (Statistic Package for Social Science) to help analyze questionnaire survey. Timeline: Researcher has 13 weeks to process this report. This research process began on May 22, 2010. Due date of research proposal is on June 20, 2009. As for research final report is require to be submit on August 15, 2010

Quest for Paradise in Lydia Maria Child’s A Romance of the Republic Ess

Quest for Paradise in Lydia Maria Child’s A Romance of the Republic A Romance of the Republic, written by Lydia Maria Child, is an intriguing novel which reflects certain predominant 19th-century views about racism, patriarchy, and class status. One aspect of this story that is unique is the constant use of a flower motif, through which the reader is drawn into a Paradise that is fantastically created, an Eden that is not limited in its range of vision due to the wealth, class, nationality, and color of its individuals, but rather embraces the many hues and varieties of life that any beautiful and perfect garden must possess. Although one could argue that this utopia is never obtainable, Ms. Child successfully demonstrates that a society can be egalitarian, not constructed on class consciousness and struggle, but rather based on the framework of the Constitution, which states that all people are created equal, with unity for all being the ultimate goal. These beliefs in equality are demonstrated through the strategic use of class where the aristocratic faction should not have more value than their lower class counterpoints. They are also reflected in the novel’s use of racial crossing, where many varieties of people, including the pivotal octoroon sisters, Rosa and Flora, can have many potential colors and racial identities. Finally, the egalitarian beliefs are evidenced in cultural differences, where a society can only evolve into a more splendid creation when it derives sustenance from many groups and resources. The fact that this book deals with the aristocracy at all turns presents an excellent summation on the beliefs that money and prest... ...e appreciation of many cultures for the unique and various gifts they contribute to their spheres allows those individuals to branch out into other spheres and impact many new clusters of people. Just as Paradise is beautiful, so is equality. This leaves the reader with the logical progression of: 1) Flowers are beautiful: just as all people are beautiful; 2) Flowers are from many genuses and possess many hues: just as people are from many cultures and have many different colors; 3) People of many colors and cultures are beautiful. When all varieties of people are planted in the same garden and live in peaceful coexistence, they will develop their own accepting culture, which is nothing less than Paradise. Works Cited Child, Lydia Maria. A Romance of the Republic. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, 1997.

Speech Outline -- essays research papers

How to Shoot a Basketball Properly Introduction Attention Getter: â€Å"I wish I was a little bit taller, I wish I was a Baller, I wish I had a girl who looked good I would call her.† That timeless phrase coined by Ski-Lo in the early nineties, resonates with so many of us because all of those goals are things that people relate to being successful. And while I can’t help you with the first and the last respectively, becoming a â€Å"Basket-baller† is quite feasible, with a little hard work. While the most important parts of being a baller can be debated for years and years. I believe all would agree that you have to be able to put the ball in the hoop. That is why I have spent most of my life learning how to shoot a basketball properly. The process is long and requires using muscles all over your body, but with determination and hard work you will become the best shooter you can be. I.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In order to shoot well you must use all of your lower body. 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  You will want to start off by keeping your feet about shoulder with apart. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Place your shooting hands’ foot slightly ahead of the other foot. a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Keeping one foot ahead of the other allows for a better guide for your upper body to follow. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Then turn your hips and feet square to the rim or goal. 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  You’ll then want to sit back and press your knees forward...

Havisham

The ideas the Duffy is trying to convey is the idea the heart brake and physiological damage of a relationship gone corrupt and by a wedding day that was a- boarded ND the devastating impact on the bride who was left standing on her own embarrassed and humiliated by the failure of her beloved to show up. The idea of society expectation has also shrouded upon her since she can't even leave her own house since she is paranoid about society expectation of a classic woman.Society expects a woman to find a man and get married and have children and by her not fulfilled society's expectation she has â€Å"failed† at life's virtue for a woman therefore having a unworthy life by living as a â€Å"spinster† and wasting away thou a husband. Another idea conveyed is the effect of also being alone without a partner â€Å"a lover† to share your life with. This is reflected by Ms Having who has always been alone and never really had â€Å"true love† and the effects of th at how our feelings can go to mutual hatred towards one person whom in their mind destroyed their entire life.The poem is titled Having and not Miss Having. Why? The poem Is titled â€Å"Having† opposed to â€Å"Miss Having† since she doesn't have the honor being labeled a â€Å"miss† due to turning Into a complete monster. She Is not a lady , she's not proper or has the correct virtue for a typical ladles life. She Is an old hag who has wasted away and is nothing more than to be called a spinster. Having creates a harsh , violent and bold statement reflecting her and everything he's become.Where as Miss creates a peaceful , calm and relaxed tone and doesn't reflect her at all. What do you think the poem gains from the images of violence in it? The poem advances with Images of violence from the text since it creates an image of his woman and the extent of her despair and trashed life that took a turn Off cliff and died. The metaphors and imagery shown In the tex t such as † so hard Vive dark green pebbles for eyes† really gives the audience an Intense Image and shows how she hardened from the Inside and has nothing but venom filled In her veins. Opposition. The feelings of Ms Having are mixed due to the confusion inside and the baffling she's had to deal with to come to terms with the â€Å"tragedy'. The feeling consist o darted and evil towards this man shown through † wished him dead† hating this man so much to the extend she wished death upon him. Feeling stretching to her love for him expressed minimally for example † Beloved sweetheart† showing a more inmate and loving tone.Then creating a more somber tone with the loneliness she has by herself â€Å"give me a male corpse for a long slow honeymoon† showing the extend that she wants someone this man so bad that she would replace him with a male corpse since she realizes that no man would ever want her. The reason for these binary opposite is s ince that is what we as humans feel mixed emotions , churned up together creating confusion fore her and us. Sometimes the persona imagines the passionate times she could have had with her lover.Which part of the poem describes this? The poem describes the time she could have had with her lover are shown in many instances like † the dress yellowing† expressing that she has waited for him all these years and that they still could get married and have a fulfilled life together. This is also shown through â€Å"give me a male corpse for a long slow honey moon† expressing that they had the opportunity to go on a beautiful honeymoon together.To what extent does the poem reflect a feminist agenda, or even Duffy own feelings at the time of writing? Address the attitudes and values conveyed. To a minimal extent the poem reflects a feminist agenda since the poem is directed towards her lover but is shown in some instances like â€Å"loves hate behind a white veil† h ere the feminist agenda is reflected is the quote since it undermines the institution of arraign and the idea that it is not worth it , a disappointment and alluding to gay and lesbian rights.Another references is shown through â€Å"spinster† since the meaning of the word is a old had and unmarried wasting away without a husband. Hence showing the inequality between men and woman since the term for a unmarried man is â€Å"bachelor† which is viewed in a positive light and being a good thing whereas woman are considered a disappointment by not get married therefore highlighting the feminist agenda. Havisham The opening line portrays the order of events. â€Å"Beloved sweetheart bastard. † The man she describes was someone special but soon became someone she hated. She has longed for revenge as the reader is told, â€Å"Not a day since then I haven't wished for him dead. † The words â€Å"prayed† also tie in with this deep seated longing for change. The imagery of her eyes being like â€Å"Dark green pebbles† hints to the hardness of stone but also the green is jealousy. She has become trapped by obsession: thinking, praying and waiting for her fiance. The word â€Å"Spinster† is a one word sentence, almost spat out in distaste. Havisham describes her condition â€Å"I stink and remember† the words refer to her smell from wearing the same clothes but also the stench of the terrible thing that has happened to her. The events have changed her and there is real sadness and fear behind the words. Her wedding dress is described as â€Å"yellowing† as she questions how she has ended up in this situation. The final part of the previous stanza merges into this third verse and the disjointedness reflects Havisham's own distress. This stanza hints that sometimes she can feel happy and when she is bed asleep for a moment it as if she is still with her lover, but the strong words â€Å"bite awake† describe the gnawing pain of having lost a loved one. The dream is only a dream and life is difficult to live with. Love is personified and the narrator describes herself as â€Å"Love's hate behind a white veil† Love enjoys hurting her and again this is emphasised with her description of the balloon â€Å"bursting in my face. † Balloons are supposed to be fun like love but in this instance it becomes something shocking ready to spoil her happiness. Havisham also describes at destroying her wedding cake, â€Å"I stabbed at a wedding-cake. † This describes not only her pain, but the pain she would like to inflict on someone else. The imagery of a honeymoon is coupled with the words â€Å"male corpse† this also shows her unfeeling towards men. She doesn't want something living, she wants something dead. The very last word comes out in a stutter when she talks about how a heart â€Å"b-b-b-breaks† this shows sadness and madness at the same time. When she talks about her heart not being the only one that is broken it reminds us of Pip from â€Å"Great Expectations†, she's been hurt and knows how to break a man's heart. In the case of Pip, she wanted to crush his dreams of gaining an education.

A Reaction Paper on the TV Show Numbers Essay

I have never been one to be fond of numbers. In fact, I am scared of them. Numbers especially with letters intimidate me. I normally tend to take for granted lessons that have passed. I study it, learn it, memorize it and that’s it. Ten points for me if I could actually remember and actually use those complicated equations in my day-to-day life. Though this may be the case, I find myself a bit more motivated when these mathematical figures be actually applied in real life. I think I learn more when I see Math’s importance and essence in the ropes of everyday living. Now, here comes Numb3rs, a show that believes that everything is indeed, numbers. Though ambitious in the making, I let myself be excited over how everything would turn out. I was actually impressed with how they applied the concepts of limits, probability and conic sections into catching the culprit. How the guy connected the physics of something as mundane as a sprinkler into an equation that would eventually solve the case was a complete marvel. Until now I think: â€Å"How on earth did he do that? † And even though the plot seemed lackluster to me, the mathematics behind it compensated for the rather forced storyline of the show. In the end, the suspect was caught. The case was solved. Charlie was right all along. Math indeed helped big time. When it comes to the technecalities and mathematics of the show, I have no complains. But when the story in itself is in question, there I raise my hand. I think the idea that everything can be solved by numbers is just too far-fetched. Human behavior is unpredictable, unstable and anything but elegant. It is far too unrealistic for me the way they have come to believe that the human body and personality can be translated into numbers or equations. I digress. I disagree. Sure, mathematics is fundamentally present, I know that. But to be actually glorifying it into something as unique, special and holy as the human body, I think that numbers will only remain that, numbers.

Perfect Wife

Jose L. Alvarado English 61 K, Dahi June 22, 2009 The Perfect Wife My wife would have to take care of the children when I’m not around. I don’t have children right now, but I’m planning on having two kids. That’s why I would want that characteristic on my wife. Being faithful to your partner is a major role on a relationship especially if you’re planning on marring him or her. Not cheating on your wife or husband is going to bring trust to one another. Another characteristic I want my wife to have is a good sense of humor. Someone I could share jokes with and will laugh along with me instead of at me. People say laughter is the best thing in life and I agree. A relationship without laughter would be boring and pointless. Now the most important characteristic I want on my wife would be for her to be well educated and attractive. I want a wife I could hold a good conversation about the most random thing and for it to be interesting or at least for her to be smarter than me. Being attractive is very important to me because I have noticed that attractive people seem to be more successful in life, they’re the ones that get promotions or invitations to the bosses house for dinner. Those are some of the characteristics I would want on my wife. Some of the characteristics I believe my wife would want from me would be to get along with her family and relatives. She would want this because families stick together and since I’m going to be part of the family I would have to get along with them. Probably the most important characteristic my wife would want from me would be to be reasonable with the work that needs to be done around the house. Do everything in a 5050 basis. My wife wouldn’t like to be the only one that has to mop, wash dishes, dust off the cabinets and clean the restroom. We would have to share those chores. My wife would also want to have the same religious beliefs, because I know how much a girl cares about getting married by the church with a white dress. The girls plan the weeding even before they’re engage. I know for a fact my wife is going to want me to be economically stable. She would want this because in case of an emergency I would have to come out and pay the bills. The characteristics both my wife and I would have in common would be for us to be gentlemen or lady in the streets, but a freak in the sheets. I think matrimony in order to work there must be chemistry in bed. I find it hard to believe that some people wait till they are married to have sex due to their religion. Another characteristic we would have in common would be the foods we eat. My wife or I wouldn’t like to cook two totally different plates everyday for the rest of our lives. The same taste of music would be one characteristic because how would we be able to dance to music we don’t like. It would be like living a lie. Overall I think looks, personality and money will make a wife or husband likeable. Those would be the top three characteristics a man or woman looks for in a partner. Like I said before no one in this world is perfect, so for them guys and girls waiting for the perfect spouse all I got to say is good luck.

Starbuck’s: Delivering Customer Service

Starbucks: Delivering Customer Service Christine Day, Starbuck’s senior vice president of administration in North America, believes recent market research indicates customers are not satisfied with Starbuck’s customer service. To address this concern, she is proposing to invest $40 million to increase store hours in order to reduce customer wait times. Day believes there is a direct correlation between customer wait times and their overall satisfaction with service. Starbucks has implemented a â€Å"secret shopper† program in order to spot check stores on their service, cleanliness, product quality and average wait times.The goal for average customer wait time is 3 minutes. The secret shopper scores for the past 5 quarters have shown a negative correlation between customer service and average wait time (exhibit 1). As average customer wait time decreases, the average secret shopper scores increase. In response, Day feels that adding an additional 20 hours to each of the 4500 North American Stores will reduce the customer’s wait time and in turn, increase their overall customer satisfaction scores. Day’s plan will have the largest impact on the following three major stakeholders: shareholders, employees/partners and customers.Starbuck’s shareholders are primarily interested in the plan’s impact on retained earnings and long term growth. Investing an additional $40 million dollars will reduce the shareholder’s short term earnings. Investors who were looking forward to larger dividend checks would be disappointed, but investors who were interested in the long term growth of their portfolio may support Day’s plan if she could show how this investment would positively impact customer’s loyalty and improve the company’s future profit potential. Assuming the partners were looking for additional hours, this plan would be viewed favorably by store baristas and employees.During peak periods of b usiness, they would have another employee to help share the workload and it could reduce the stress of â€Å"rush hour† on each individual partner. The popularity of this plan would be different depending on each store’s location, layout and manning. Stores with insufficient work flows could create or enlarge bottlenecks and the additional manpower may actually increase wait times. On the other hand, stores who have a hard time recruiting employees may not want to burden their existing overworked employees with an additional increase in hours.In some stores, partners would prefer to reduce the quantity and complexity of available drinks instead of increasing available hours. Starbucks is known for innovative and seasonal drinks and over the years, the knowledge requirement for baristas has dramatically increased. Baristas are constantly challenged to learn more complex drinks and still perform to the 3 minute metric. Reducing the number of drinks offered may be an appr opriate solution if there is evidence to show that there are a number of very unpopular drinks, but we do not have any current sales or market data to support those decisions.Additional research needs to be performed in order to assess this option. Customers visit Starbucks for a variety of reasons and those who value short wait times may approve of the new manning plan if indeed it results in shorter wait times. Customers who visit Starbucks for the quality of their coffee or the inviting environment may not increase the frequency of their visits because of a shorter wait time. Customers who value the intimacy and personal attention their local Starbucks provides may actually disapprove of the plan to increase manning if it interrupts their established relationship with their trusty barista.In 2002, Starbucks surveyed their customers to find out what store qualities they attribute to customer satisfaction. The top 6 of these responses referred to the actual store, relationship with the staff and product quality. Wait time was ranked 7th on the list (exhibit 2). This survey suggests that investing $40 million to decrease the wait time might not have the desired impact on customer satisfaction. There is an inherent issue with self reported customer surveys that may have influenced these findings. Customers may not realize what influences their opinions and what constitutes good customer service.What they think they value and what they actually use to make purchasing decisions may be different. In addition, each customer will have their own bias when rating customer service because they all value different experiences and relationships with their local Starbucks. If you look at the secret shopper findings and the self reported customer service surveys jointly, you could devise that customers may give higher cleanliness, service and product quality scores if their wait time is shorter regardless of the store’s actual level of cleanliness, service and produ ct quality.The shorter wait time may have influenced the customer’s opinion on the other store attributes. Another measure of customer service besides secret shoppers and customer surveys is the number of repeat customers. Customers vote with their feet and if they continue to patron Starbuck’s stores, they are voting that they are satisfied customers. In exhibit 8 of the Starbucks case, it is reported that in 2002, 73% of Starbucks customers have been visiting Starbucks for over a year. Only 23% of customers were new that year. This report suggests Starbucks has done a good job at reducing customer churn and they are already satisfying their customers.A common error when trying to measure and improve customer satisfaction is using quantitative metrics. Customer service is a qualitative experience that is very subjective for each individual. Trying to influence someone’s overall customer satisfaction by improving only one quantitative metric may not give you the intended impact to your overall customer satisfaction scores. Day needs to understand the limitations with her single metric plan and realize that she needs to address all aspects of customer service for an overall improvement.In order to understand the variety and complexity of the issues impacting their 4500 stores, Day needs to engage the store managers to fully understand what each store needs to improve customer service. Increasing available hours may help some stores while others may need new equipment or a re-designed work space. Day’s plan to uniformly increase labor hours over-simplifies the potential needs of the individual stores. Empowering the managers would encourage individual ownership and commitment. The manager’s guidance would ensure Day allocated the $40 million most ffectively to not only reduce customer wait times but to increase overall customer service. During this process, Day may find out managers are frustrated with Starbuck’s aggress ive growth. In metropolitan areas, growth has led to cannibalization of customers which undermines the manager’s efforts to increase customer loyalty. Quality customer service is an individual experience that requires a personal interaction between customers and employees. It is more difficult to create a lasting experience and relationship if customers are constantly changing from store to store.Manager’s will lose their motivation to encourage these relationships if they feel another Starbucks will open nearby and steal away the loyal customer base they have worked to create. Starbuck’s value proposition to their customers concentrate on three goals: quality coffee, excellent service and an inviting atmosphere. These three attributes are focused on building customer loyalty. Starbuck’s loyal customers (8 or more visits a month) account for 62% of their revenue. This group of established customers value high quality coffee and Starbuck’s meets thi s need through mass customization.Starbucks gives customers the ability to specialize their drinks to fit their individual tastes in order to create customer loyalty. This evidence suggests that Starbucks needs to continue to allow for individual drink customization in order to increase customer loyalty even though it may increase their average wait time above their three minute goal. Loyal customers are their largest source of revenue and if their perceived value is centered on quality coffee, they would not want to risk losing this source of steady revenue.Starbucks lacks a strategic marketing group who is responsible for managing their overall marketing plans, promotions and research. Marketing was internally viewed as the responsibility of all senior executives, but as their corporation continued to rapidly grow, the executives could not keep up with their primary responsibilities and effectively contribute to the strategic marketing plan. As a result, Day states â€Å"Weâ€⠄¢ve been operating with the assumption that we do customer service well. But the reality is we’ve started to lose sight of the consumer. In addition, Day admits â€Å"we tend to be great at measuring things, at collecting market data, but we are not very disciplined when it comes to using this data to drive decision making. † Both of these statements validate the concern that Starbucks needs to hire a senior executive who will make marketing their chief responsibility. They need a central department who will integrate their market research with top level decision making, and manage promotions, such as frequency programs, so they are using their resources in the most effective way to increase customer loyalty.The marketing department should not only collect data from their own customers, but they should consider hiring a marketing firm in order to ensure they are collecting unbiased information about themselves and their competitors. Using research on their competitors will allow Starbucks to have a more comprehensive view on their industry and growing trends or concerns from their available customer base. This will also give them the information they need in order to attract new customers from other competitors.Day’s preliminary research shows more resources need to be given to accurately capture their customer’s interests to ensure they are meeting high standards of customer service to create and keep loyal customers. Her original plan to invest $40 million to increase labor hours is not the most effective use of resources because each individual store’s needs are unknown. Quality customer service cannot be achieved by concentrating on a single quantitative metric. Customer service is a personal, qualitative experience only the individual store managers can gauge and deliver.Day needs to work with store managers and a marketing department to formulate a more comprehensive plan to measure and improve customer service. EXHIBI T 1 The AVG line is the average of the secret shopper scores for Service, Cleanliness and Product Quality. The compiled average increases as the average customer wait time decreases. EXHIBIT 2 These are the top 7 attributes grouped by category reported in Starbuck’s 2002 self-reported customer survey. Store Attributes, relationship with staff, product quality were all reported to have a higher impact on customer satisfaction than wait time.

Building and Presenting Power Relations in Roots

Building and Presenting Power Relations in Roots Alex Haleys 1976 novel, Roots, portrayed the history of a Kunta Kintes family as an epic story of survival. Haley presented the history of a man and his family torn apart, but not broken, under enslavement in America. The experiences that ravaged Kunta Kintes family life display the lack of institutional power of those enslaved. Although Kunta and Bell do not have institutional power, they do possess a limited amount of power within their nuclear family unit. Haleys depiction of an enslaved family contradicts reports on the black family by sociologists such as E. Franklin Frazier and the Moynihan Report, which supported a matriarchal family structure. Roots depicts Kunta and Bell as equals, with regards to the amount of power vested in each individual. Neither the female nor the male, has a greater amount of power. Both are virtually powerless. Haleys novel, Roots, portrays the conflict between the lack of institutionalized power and the limited amount of familial power. Roots was published at a time where the structure and history of the American black family was a very contentious issue. In 1965, approximately ten years before the novels publication, the U.S. government published the Moynihan Report. The report placed the blame for continuing black inequality, upon the very structure of the black family.1 Moynihans central thesis was that the black family was crumbling and that a major part of the blame lay with the black matriarchy extant in the black community.2 Much of the information in the infamous Moynihan Report was first publicized by the prominent black sociologist Franklin Frazier, who published one of his studies on black culture in 1939. Frazier wrote that, the Negro woman as wife or mother was the mistress of her cabinand her wishes in regard to mating and family matter were paramount.3 In a sense, the Moynihan Report updated the early findings and observations of Frazier. Scholars such as Robert Staples and Angela Davis rose to challenge the assertions made by Frazier and Moynihan. Staples stated that a matriarchy is a society in which some, if not all, of the legal powers relating to the ordering and governing of the family-power over property, over inheritance, over marriage, over-the-houseare lodged in women rather than men.4 He argued that a matriarchal family structure was not plausible because the black woman was exploited because of both her gender and race.5 Davis was another sociologist who refuted the matriarchy thesis. She stated that the matriarchal structure presented by some ignored the profound traumas the black woman must have experienced when she had to surrender her child-bearing to alien and predatory economic instincts.6 In the novel Roots, Alex Haley depicts the struggles of an enslaved family. Under enslavement, Kunta Kinte and Bells lives are dictated by their status of being owned by Master Waller. Bell has a limited amount of power when it comes to trivial matter such as the appearance of her cabin, but when it comes to important matters such as keeping the family together, Bell (and Kunta) possessed no institutional power. Evidence which refutes Fraziers thought that the mother had control over her cabin and family life, is displayed when Kunta and Bells child, Kizzy, is sold. Neither of her parents can change the horrible fate of their only child. Bell pleads with Master Waller, Don split us up!,7 but to no avail. Kunta tries to physically save his daughter but he crumpled to his knees8 after he is hit by the butt of the sheriffs pistol as it crashed above his ear.9 Both the mother and the father, female and male are rendered powerless in the situation. This example exemplifies Davis thoughts on the lack of institutional power held by enslaved women, in the face of the whims of their masters. The cultural stereotype of the domineering black woman belies the existence of the masses of black women who constituted a defenseless group against the onslaught of white racism in its most virulent sexual and economic manifestations.10 The lives of enslaved women could be destroyed at any moment. After Kizzy was taken away, she was sold to a man of the name, Tom Lea2E The first night Kizzy is under Leas ownership, he rapes her. Then came the searing pain as he forced his way into her, and Kizzys senses seemed to explode.11 After Kunta and the other Africans get off the big canoe and wait for the slave auction to commence, he and his mates had had to sit there, burning with humiliation at being helpless to defend their women, let alone themselves.12 The women were powerless, as they could not stop the continual rape at the hands of the toubob and the men were powerless because they could not aid the women. Another instance where Kunta feels hopeless because he cannot aid a woman in need, occurs while at a slave auction, he hears a chained Jola woman shrieking piteouslybeseeching him to help her13 he feels a rush of bitter, flooding shame14 at the prospect that he could not or did not do anything to help the woman. After an argument concerning a visit Kizzy was to have with Missy Anne, Bell lay sleepless in their bed that night, he sat sleepless in the stable beneath the harnesses. Both were weeping.15 Neither of them, as parents could control whether or not their child went. Master Waller said he promise Missy Anne to drop Kizzy off at Massa Johns.16 Even though Kunta objected to this strongly, he could not do anything about it. It was not within his power it was outrageous enough to have to sit by and watch while Kizzy was turned slowly into a lap dog, but now they wanted him to deliver the animal to its new keeper.17 Under slavery, the family structure of the enslaved was neither matriarchal or patriarchal. How could it be? The lives of those bound under slavery were fully controlled by their master. Even the basic rights naming was controlled. When Kunta arrived at his first plantation home he was given a new name, Massa say your name Toby!.18 Kunta was flooding with rageand he wanted to shout I am Kunta Kinte, first son of Omoro, who is the son of the holy man Kairaba Kunta Kinte,19 but he could not utter a word. Kunta had no power. There were instances within Roots, where both Kunta and Bell exercised power to control aspects of their lives, albeit a limited amount of power. Bell had been on the Waller plantation for many years and as the cook for the main house, she had access to information and the master that many field slaves did not, Bell had more influence on the massa than anyone else on the plantation, or probably all of them put together.20 Bell, along with her daughter Kizzy, had another form of power, they were partially literate. Ultimately though, these powers hurt the interests of Bell and Kizzy. Even though Bell had such high standing with Master Waller, she still had no say in the sale of her daughter. Part of the reason Kizzy was sold, was because of her ability to read and write. Kizzys intellectual powers ultimately rendered her powerless. Kunta also struggled to retain power within his life and relationship with Bell. The naming of their daughter was one instance where he asserted power. Kunta wished to keep the traditions of his homeland alive. One way was by naming Kizzy by the same ritual as he was named in Juffure. Bell was reluctant to allow this but as deeply as Bell disapproved, she was even more apprehensive of what Kunta would do if she refused.21 Kunta named their daughter Kizzy, which as he explained to Bell, meant you sit down or you stay put which, in turn meant that unlike Bells previous two babies, this child would never get sold away.22 Unfortunately Kuntas wish for his child, as it was represented by the name he gave her, did not come true. Kizzy was sold and even though Kunta had some power within his own family, he did not have the institutional power necessary for stopping his (and Bells) greatest fear from happening. Alex Haleys poignant novel, Roots, depicts the fight for survival as it was experienced by the family of Kunta Kinte. The novel brutally portrays the conflict between the slaves lack of institutionalized power versus the power they retained within their family unit. Through many harrowing experiences, Haley presents Kunta and Bell as ultimately powerless in the face of their oppressors. Although the novel displays the precarious and vulnerable living conditions of Kunta and Bell, it also celebrates the resiliency of this family. Contrary to the beliefs presented by Frazier and Moynihan, the slave system did not and could not engender and recognize a matriarchal family structure. Inherent in the very concept of the matriarchy is power'.23 The portrayal of the enslaved family in Roots refutes the myth of black matriarchy. The novel does not try to prove a patriarchal family structure, it simply presents the lack of power of those enslaved. Notes 1. U.S. Dept. of Labor, The Negro Family: The Case for National Action (Washington, D.C. : GPO, 1965). 2. Robert Staples, The Myth of Black Matriarchy, Black Scholar, 2 Jan.-Feb. 1970, 341. 3. Deborah White, Female Slaves: Sex Roles and Status in the Antebellum Plantation South, Journal of Family History, 8 Fall 1983, 248 4. Staples, 336. 5. Staples, 335. 6. Angela Davis, Reflections on the Black Womans Role in the Community of Slaves, Massachusetts Review, 13 Winter/Spring 1972, 84. 7. Alex Haley, Roots (New York: Dell Publishing Co., 1976), 452. 8. Haley, 452. 9. Haley, 452. 10. Staples, 334. 11. Haley, 455. 12. Haley, 214. 13. Haley, 322. 14. Haley, 322. 15. Haley, 385. 16. Haley, 385. 17. Haley, 385. 18. Haley, 232. 19. Haley, 232. 20. Haley, 336. 21. Haley, 367. 22. Haley, 368. 23. Davis, 82.