Friday, December 27, 2019

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck - 631 Words

A common theme in John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath is the social commentary in promoting the norm gender stereotypes. In Steinbeck’s novel the typical stereotype that has been played throughout history is of women’s obedience to men. The setting in the novel takes place in the 1930’s on a farmers’ ranch in Oklahoma. During this time was the Great Depression, this caused many families to move westward to California. The men, as head of their households were the ones to make the decisions for the family or also known as the norm gender stereotypes. The more specific examples are how women do housework while the men make family decisions. It is soon later addressed by Steinbeck’s social commentary how the women now make decisions in the family and take charge. First, Steinbeck presents the typical stereotype by introducing a character named Ma, the matriarch of the Joad family. When a male quest offers to help her, she exclaims.  "Leave me to salt the meat†¦its women’s work† (Steinbeck 146). This is only said because she refuses help from a man who sees her tirelessly working, and multitasking on many things. The typical stereotype job for a woman is to do the housework and obey orders from the head of the family. If a man is seen doing those certain activities it is considered bad on the woman for not doing her job properly and degrading for the man performing them. This demonstrates the typical stereotype of women that it is seen as their duty to doShow MoreRelatedThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck Essay1622 Words   |  7 Pages The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck, widely viewed as one of the most finest and powerful American writer, born to a middle-class family in 1902 in the Salinas Valley of California. Steinbeck is a writer who often spoke for the people. The Grapes of Wrath is a great movie, published in 1939, filled with many universal truths and views on human nature and society, especially where class is concerned. In the article, John Steinbeck The Grapes a wrath: A Call to Action says, â€Å"Steinbeck’s novel showcasedRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1075 Words   |  5 PagesKirsten Lloyd Mr. Eldridge AP Junior English 21 August 2014 Grapes of Wrath â€Å"Sometimes even to live is an act of courage.† (Seneca), In the 1939 novel, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, the reader accompanies the Joad family as they struggle to escape the crippling Dust Bowl of the mid- 1930’s. In hopes of establishing a new life for themselves after being forced off their land the family embark on a journey from Oklahoma to California in search of fruitful crops and steady work alongRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1563 Words   |  7 Pages John Steinbeck’s novel, The Grapes of Wrath, depicts a migrant farming family in the 1930s. During this time, life revolved around the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, making circumstances difficult for almost everyone involved, especially those who had little. This time of drought and despair caused people to lose hope in everything they’ve ever known, even themselves, but those who did not, put their hope in the â€Å"promised land† of California. Here, the grass was thought to be truly greenerRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1189 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"The Grapes of Wrath† Shortly after being released John Steinbeck’s book â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath† was banned because many critics viewed the novel as promoting communist propaganda, or socialist ideas. The ideas that many of these critics point to is Steinbeck’s depiction of the Big Banks/ Businesses as monsters, the comparison of Government camps to a utopia in contrast of the makeshift â€Å"Hoovervilles,† and the theme of the community before the individual, In his novel â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath† John SteinbeckRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1093 Words   |  5 Pages In John Steinbeck s The Grapes of Wrath, Tom Joad and his family are forced from their home during the 1930’s Oklahoma Dust Bowl and set out for California along with thousands of others in search of jobs, land, and hope for a brighter future. The Grapes of Wrath is Steinbeck’s way to expound about the injustice and hardship of real migrants during the Depression-era. H e utilizes accurate factual information, somber imagery, and creates pathos, allowing readers connections to the Joad’s plightRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1190 Words   |  5 PagesThe Grapes of Wrath April 14th, 1939, John Steinbeck published the novel, The Grapes of Wrath. The novel became an immediate best seller, with selling over 428,900 copies. Steinbeck, who lived through both the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, sought to bring attention to how families of Oklahoma outdid these disasters. Steinbeck focuses on families of Oklahoma, including the Joads family, who reside on a farm. The Joad family is tested with hardship when life for them on their farm takesRead MoreThe Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck702 Words   |  3 PagesJohn Steinbeck’s use of the intercalary chapters in The Grapes of Wrath helps weave the reader’s sympathy of the Joad family into a more broad sympathy for the migrant farmers as a whole, in the hopes that the readers would then be compelled to act upon what they have read. During the Great Depression, people had a big disconnect about what was happening in various parts of the country. People often struggle to find sympathy for events when they can’t even visualize a person who is suffering throughRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck2144 Words   |  9 PagesThe Grapes of Wrath is a well-known beloved novel of American Literature, written by John Steinbeck and published in 1939. Whoever said a road is just a road has not read The Grapes of Wrath. From the time we read when Tom Joad, novel’s protagonist, returns home after four years in prison; the meaning of roads changed. Route 66, also known as the mother road the road of flight, was a lifeline road, which allowed thousands of families to pursue their hopes and dreams. This road is also the road thatRead MoreThe Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck1014 Words   |  5 PagesJohn Steinbeck’s novel, The Grapes of Wrath, was first written and later published in the 1939. Fr om the time of its publication to date, the exemplary yet a simple book has seen Steinbeck win a number of highly coveted awards including Pulitzer Prize in 1940 and later on Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962. Set at the time of the Great Depression, the book most remarkably gives a descriptive account of the Oklahoma based sharecropper Joad’ poor family in the light of economic hardship, homelessnessRead MoreThe Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck1064 Words   |  5 PagesThe Grapes of Wrath, originated from a John Steinbeck’s book, a legendary film that focus on a major point of American history. The story follows the Joad family on their journey to California trying to survive the hardships. This film, focus on the social problems of America like the Dust bowl, The Great Depression, and industrialism. The Grapes of Wrath was filmed in a journalistic-documentary style, which displayed the realism of the epidemic in the thirties. The thirties the period The Grapes

Thursday, December 19, 2019

The Photo Is An Axe Shower Gel Advertisement Essay

The photo is an Axe shower gel advertisement. There is a man and a woman on opposite sides of the picture shown from the waist up. The guy is on the left, he is paler complected, dark messy hair and a thin build with some muscle tone. He is standing with his right arm in the air holding the Axe body wash over his head pouring it onto himself with his eyes closed and an elated facial expression. The guy has soapy bubbles covering his chest with shower water running behind him and a tile background. He has a spotlight on him illuminating him and part of the background. On the right side of the picture, there is a girl who is very attractive looking; she has long dark hair, a suntanned complexion and has a thin athletic build. She is standing with one arm in the air holding whipped cream above her head and pouring it onto herself. It completely covers her chest. Her mouth is partially open and has a seductive expression. The background is dark and appears she is in a room. The girl has a spotlight on her highlighting her well-defined bone structure and toned arms. She is also wearing make-up and her hair is neatly pushed back in a headband. The advertisement as a whole is in landscape style. Toward the bottom of the picture in front of the guy it says â€Å"THE CLEANER YOU ARE† and in front of the girl it says â€Å"THE DIRTIER YOU GET†, both are in white lettering and all capitals. In between the white lettering is the Axe shower gel bottle shown, a black bottle with bright orangeShow MoreRelatedBeauty ( Re ) Discovers The Male Body, By Susan Bordo1872 Words   |  8 Pagesrecognize an underlying fundamental change in society’s attitude towards advertisements and specifically sees that unfold in the growing shift towards male sexually oriented advertisements with a focus on feministic qualities. Furthermore, since Bordo wrote this essay in the 1990s, the advancements in technology have caused growing ideological differences between generati ons as their responses to things like social media and advertisements elicit contrasting reactions. The Millennials, also known as GenerationRead MoreBusiness: Axe Commercial Research Essays1132 Words   |  5 PagesIntroduction with Background Information Company Axe is one of the 400 brands which is belonged to Unilever Company. The portfolio of this multinational company focuses on health and wellbeing mainly, including food, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products. Many world-leading brands including Axe, Lipton, Knorr, Dove, Hellmann’s and Omo are some of these brands (unilever.com). Market Axe Brand, which was named Lynx in Europe, was first launched in France in 1983 as aRead MoreMarketing Concept Adopted By Unilever3391 Words   |  14 Pagesadding vitality to life with brands that help people feel good, look good and get more out of life. In the UK, Ireland, China and Australia - Axe is known under the alternative name Lynx. Lynx (Axe) has indeed become the world’s definitive grooming brand. Lynx is the UK s best selling men’s deodorant. Other products are antiperspirants spray /stick, shower gels, aftershave, shampoo and hair styling. They have a responsibility to consumers and to the communities in which they have a presence as consumersRead MoreMarketing Concept Adopted By Unilever3391 Words   |  14 Pagesadding vitality to life with brands that help people feel good, look good and get more out of life. In the UK, Ireland, China and Australia - Axe is known under the alternative name Lynx. Lynx (Axe) has indeed become the world’s de finitive grooming brand. Lynx is the UK s best selling men’s deodorant. Other products are antiperspirants spray /stick, shower gels, aftershave, shampoo and hair styling. They have a responsibility to consumers and to the communities in which they have a presence as consumers

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Organizational Cross-Cultural Competence Approaches to Measurement

Questions: Post no.1 Competency is described as a persons attributes and actions that reflect ability to conduct given tasks in an exceptional way (Boyatzis, 1982 cited in Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010:62). It is difficult though for managers to simply point out ones competency level. Example, competency can be divided into two categories; one dealing with behavior and the other with ones performance ability. Organizations therefore need a weighing scale to associate ones competency level. The measure used in this case is known as a competency framework (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010:63). By effectively using this tool, an organization portrays clarity since the staff is aware of what is expected and the management is attentive to the key aspects that promote performance triumph (Sutton and Watson, 2013). Advantages Competencies are one of the key ingredients to an organizations competitive advantage because they are unique to a particular organization. A competency framework helps management to establish the fundamental competencies required to increase performance, apply them as part of the business strategy and also identify individual staff competencies. Additionally, these tools are designed to suit any type of business thus giving room for flexibility. This further aids in shaping the organizations path (Cardy and Selvarajan, 2006). Similarly, competency frameworks are used as a basis for Human Resource practices, which range from choosing potential candidates to employ, interviewing and hiring them; monitoring their performance; identifying which areas are lacking and conducting training; job appraisal and staff rewards (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010:81-83). Challenges Based on the above, competency frameworks are a necessity but unfortunately, there are numerous challenges associated to the construction of these measures, such as those presented below; One of the major issues linked to constructing such frameworks is an organizations lack of proper structure and strategy. Pilbeam and Corbridge (2010:71), mention that an organization can have different kinds of models but the key aspect is to have a tool that reflects what is essential and how to achieve it. Not all organizations are well structured and organized. Some have unclear strategy and lack a sense of direction. An example of such is where the managements actions conflict with the organizations objectives. Secondly, is the cost and intricacy involved in the actual construction. Organizations need expertise in developing these tools because of the techniques used and resources need. Some find the process very costly, time consuming and complicated to follow (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010:76). Despite the advantage of these frameworks being custom-made to fit each setting, it still becomes difficult to get it right in terms of exact measures to include and how to explicitly analyze whether the framework is followed or not. Organizations at times may need to improvise additional methods, such as technology to ensure accurate valuation of the process (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010:76). Lastly, is the issue of change. With the rapidly and constantly changing business environment, competency frameworks need to be flexible enough to move with the times. However, this is may not be the case; they have been criticized for being rigid and could be obsolete faster than they can be adjusted or changed (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010:85). Adaptability With all the positives these frameworks have to offer, they are still not used as regularly as they should, especially in some developing countries. This is mainly due to the issues mentioned above coupled with the fact that some organizations simply do not follow protocol and will run the business in any manner deemed fit. This is manifested through nepotism, corruption, affordable labor force, et cetra. In such situations, competencies are clearly not a priority and thus lack measuring tools. Conclusion A competency framework is advantageous to a business because it provides a map of where the company wants to be and how to get there. It also promotes personal development and can be used as a general guideline within the Industry, locally and internationally (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010:85). It is therefore important that all businesses incooperate such frameworks so as to maximize their potential in achieving the desired success factor. Post no.2 Throughout this week, it is interesting to realize the distinction and connection between peoples competency and the job competencies within the organization. We can relate competency to the behaviors and performance capabilities (including the knowledge and skills within employees) while competencies refer to the skills sets and experience required for effective performance for a job (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010). As we go further into understanding HRM resourcing, we already understand that value is added through human capital, as the HRM strategist evaluates the competences required to add value, and working on the continuous development of the human capacity to build competitive advantage and ensure effective performance (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010). Some leaders might have possessed certain traits but the absence of them did not necessarily mean that the person was not a leader (Mindtools, 2015). Since every individuals have distinct behaviors, different attitudes and behaviors and most importantly as we go deeper into a globalized world, setting one right competency framework will be complex and biased to matching one competency as there can be more than one accurate competency for grouping with the job competencies (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010). The competency framework defines the knowledge, skills, and attributes needed but is unable to realize other skills that may be required to the changing environment and long-term success of the organization. If the people who are involved in the development of the competency framework are unable to answer all the questions to what competences would and would not be valuable for effective work performance, then it is important to gain further input even from employees to ensure the corr ect implementation of the framework (Mindtools, 2015). Thus without the correct construction and implementation of the competency frame work and linking it to the competencies required to deliver value and effective job performance, the entire H.R strategy would fail to succeed. The more data collected for building the competence framework, the more flexible and straight forward the frame work can initially be and will facilitate the competences with the job competencies. It will also enable HR professionals to better measure work performance and ensure that competences still meet with the job competencies and still adding value to gain competitive advantage (Pilbeam and Corbridge, 2010). How ever various perspectives can share different quality aspects perspectives that would have different influence on peoples development. A great challenge then is translating the competences and grouping it with job competencies. If the construction of the competency framework is not accurate, that means the initiative to align the H.R strategy with business strategy will get more complicated and will complicate all HR practices. Regardless what competencies are required for being an effective performer, job competencies should not continuously dictate how people should perform, but sometimes must construct the job competencies to suit the competences that can best perform the job and build value for the organization, thus the job competencies can be innovated and re-orderd by the employees who fit best practice and keep the organization goal in mind. In that matter, constructed frameworks will slow down development process and be outdated if not continuously analyzed and updated to ensure that competences still fulfill the competencies and add value for the organization (Bolden, R., Gosling, J., Marturano, A. and Dennison, P. 2003). Creating and developing a competency framework is indeed a great way to asses, understand, and evaluate individuals knowledge and skills within the organization. Having a simple Straightforward flexible framework is essential to facilitate the organizational culture and work structure and adapt to the best reward practices to maximize efficiency and motivate employees. Finally the competency framework will ensure that employees carry the skills and knowledge required to add value and enable employees reach their full potential thus facilitating them to understand the training needs for every employee. Post no.3 In this current state, businesses may not need to depend or look at culture as the major factor in relation to their proceedings or performance. That is to say international businesses may not base on culture in order to start business. This is because people have different cultures reason being that they come from different societies. For example in the Muslim community, it would be very hard to sell pork as a way of raising income. However because of modernization, one would carry out the business because the major goal of the business formation is profit maximization but not cultural formation. Cross-cultural competence Cross-cultural competence can be defined as cultural awareness of ones self or the other party, that is to say, the norms, believes, ways of behavior or practices that emerge among different societies of business and understanding the implications that may arise from enforcing judgments based on assumptions in regard to cultural differences (Goodman, 2012). For example in Uganda, the majority population is Christian, and because of this, some businesses are highly prohibited for example sports betting is perceived as gambling and evil since it is a business that is biblically condemned. However, it has its advantage in that it provides jobs for the people and helps to reduce the pressure on government because it is an obligation for the government to provide jobs for the people (Goodman, 2012). Meanwhile, the business was later enforced with high level of cultural consciousness, that is to say, whoever carries out business of sports betting is required to open after mid-day as enforc ed by the law because Ugandas major source of income is agriculture and people are expected to work early morning to be able to raise the money for sports betting. The following are the challenges that may arise when attempting to introduce cultural intelligence into the workforce: Difference in negotiation style: This results from the fact that each person or staff, may need to promote his / her culture for example a shareholder with high level of shares over others may insist to promote his culture knowing that others may abide because of his influence. In addition, the communication style should basically be considerate of the cultural consciousness since different cultures have different believes (Magala, 2005). Communication style: Some cultures may endure criticism and others may not. For example, if the small scale company wants to emerge with the bigger one, it will have to bare and agree with the terms and conditions for the merge (Moule, 2012). Difference in perception and decision making: Different cultures perceive things differently for example some are profit oriented and others are friendship oriented , in addition, some cultures may look at maximum use of capital intensive labor as the best way of improving productivity while others may look at labor intensive as the best since it sustains jobs in the market. On the other hand, if principles of cultural competence are not considered in business planning, organisations may face challenges in line to competitive advantage since different workers come from diverse societies (Magala, 2005). Answers: Post 1: With respect to the given post about competencies and its utility in the current business environment, it has been rightly stated that that organizations can obtain the optimum productivity only if their members possess certain level of competencies. It is widely used in the human resource practices as these measure the competitive advantages of the employees in a way(Firescu, 2014). The post provides a clear picture about the advantages and disadvantages of the competencies within an organization. The conclusion drawn is a perfect fit to the concept of competencies. Post 2: The second post reflects upon the concept of competencies elaborately including that of its utility within the organizational context. The post provides details in favor of the construction of the competency framework and how this is crucial in the accuracy of implementing strategies in human resource practices (Iranshahi, Ghasemi and Noori Motlagh, 2013). It has been rightly stated that with an effective construction of a competency framework, it becomes easier to assess, understand, and evaluate the knowledge and skills of employees. The post highlights effectively upon need for such a measure within organizational context. Post 3: The third post highlights upon the cross-cultural competencies, and these may be utilized to gain the positive outcome. It is widely used in the human resource practices as these measure the competitive advantages of the employees in a way(van Driel and Gabrenya, 2012). The post provides some of the challenges which may arise on attempting introducing the concept of cross-cultural competencies. These challenges need to be addressed significantly to attain the benefits of the highlighted concept of cross-cultural competencies. References Firescu, V. (2014). Research Regarding the Optimization of Work Relationships within Supply Chain by Defining and Evaluating Job Competencies.AMM, 555, pp.805-810. Iranshahi, M., Ghasemi, M. and Noori Motlagh, A. (2013). A study on relationship between female employees organizational citizenship behavior and job satisfaction within organization.10.5267/j.msl, pp.2483-2488. van Driel, M. and Gabrenya, W. (2012). Organizational Cross-Cultural Competence: Approaches to Measurement.Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 44(6), pp.874-899.

Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Netflix Case Analysis free essay sample

Netflix, Inc. â€Å"Netflix, Inc. is the worlds largest online movie rental service, with more than 10 million subscribers (Netflix Media Center, 2009). † Netflix exhibits dominant economic characteristics in the online movie rental business. They enjoy strong market size and growth rate when compared to rivalry competition. The number of rivalries are increasing, and the market remains dominated by only a few sizeable rivalries like Blockbuster Video, Wal-Mart, Walt Disney Movies and Movielink’s Downloadable Movies. Netflix is determined to offer new and innovative technology to sustain their competitive advantage. â€Å"Netflix growth strategy entails making the best product and the best consumer experience even better. Lead the expansion of internet delivery content by offering subscribers both mail delivery and a continuously improving internet delivery option (Netflix Overview, 2009). † Netflix’s vision is â€Å"to change the way people access and view the movies they love. To accomplish that, on a large scale, we have to set a long term goal to acquire 5 million subscribers in the U. We will write a custom essay sample on Netflix Case Analysis or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page S. or 5 percent of the U. S. TV households over the next four to seven years (Thompson C-41). † This vision is well devised and crafted setting short term and long term performance targets. Current analysis shows less than 4 million subscribers in 2004, and in less than six years their subscriber base has more than doubled to more than 10 million subscribers. Their intent is to leverage their online DVD rental leadership to grow both subscribers and net income, thereby using a balanced scorecard approach relating to financial performance and those related to strategic performance. My analysis of Netflix’s strategy and vision is focused and on target. Netflix is achieving its competitive advantage by crafting a well-conceived strategy and the necessary vision to compete, survive and gain a competitive advantage over competing rivals. My case analysis is based upon the information gained from the textbook and reviewing the company’s website. Unfortunately, the information in the text book is quite a bit older than the current information on Netflix’s website. Viewing the company’s profile and financial growth over the last few years indicates that Netflix strategy and vision has been implemented successfully, achieving strong strategic growth and a sustainable competitive advantage. Netflix‘s business model and strategy compare closely to its key rivals. Although, Netflix won a patent that covered much of its business model and could be used to help stifle competition in the future (Thompson C-33) . Netflix has a team of executives that manage only the on-line DVD rental enterprise. They are well established and use a very sophisticated software program thereby making movie selection easy and fun. In my analysis, Blockbuster has many retail stores to contend with and many other facets of a business enterprise, thereby not having a unique team of individuals solely dedicated to the on-line DVD rental business. Wal-Mart would be Netflix’s greatest fear due to the enormous capital available and expertise that could be employed, yet Wal-Mart continues to lag behind Netflix. Wal-Mart’s online software needs a lot of debugging, whereas Netflix had already spent several years debugging its software (Thompson C-37). The online movie rental business is changing. As technology changes, DVD’s will not be the medium of choice. The shift will be downloadable movies. Most people enjoy the ability to watch a movie immediately, thus another of Netflix’s rivals, Movielink’s. Netflix was able to see this change and react to it quickly as seen in their company vision statement. I personally enjoy the option of pay-per-view that is available with local cable TV and satellite providers. Also available is the â€Å"on-demand† or â€Å"on-command† movie experience that allows a person to view older movies free of charge. Another threat is Redbox and other automated DVD retail machines. These are showing up almost everywhere. Redbox charges $1 for all movies, with no late fees or hidden charges. These are just a few external threats that Netflix needs to be concerned with. The key factors that will determine Netflix’s continued success clearly relates to getting their product to consumers as quickly as possible. Their innovative software and warehousing has proved to be very effective and efficient. But, they must continue to improve on the technology that will bring movies to consumers even faster! If they do not, the competition will. Netflix’s ability to rapidly change and provide customers with the products they desire, in a timely fashion, combined with their powerful software makes searching for movies more interesting and enjoyable. As a past customer of Netflix, I enjoyed many of these features. I do not like browsing through a video rental store. I find it difficult and time consuming trying to find an interesting movie. Netflix’s online software is structured to make recommendations on my previously viewed movies, thereby making the decisions for me. This is one strong feature that has strengthened Netflix’s competitive advantage. In order for Netflix to survive in this competing market, they must capitalize and dominate the downloadable DVD business. Netflix has the ability and â€Å"know-how† to do this. Netflix has the software already in place for promoting their products online, now they need to implement a user friendly application for downloading movies to the consumer. The biggest obstacle I see, is getting them to a medium that consumers can use and watch on their current television. Another hurdle is the advances in high definition televisions. I enjoy watching high definition movies. Recommendation Netflix must design and implement downloadable high definition movies in a format that anyone can use on their current television. If Netflix can achieve this technological hurdle they will no doubt see continued growth and strengthen their competitive advantage. Blockbuster and Wal-Mart will try to imitate Netflix. If Netflix can develop the technology to achieve my recommendation above, it is possible for Netflix to obtain exclusive rights and patents that would stifle the competition. Would I buy Netflix stock? No. There is no doubt that Netflix’s financials are strong, and their growth remains steady. I can list the highlights of their financial statements and ratios, but my analysis is already too long. In short, Netflix is not turning a profit on their Web streaming, downloadable movies.