The Glenn Chasse Hotel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Glenn Chasse Hotel - Essay Example It also defines the obligations and rights of an employer towards an employee hence safeguarding rights and preventing violation of duties from both parties. Apart from the written contract there is also a formation of a psychological contract between the employer and the employee that represents their mutual beliefs and perceptions. It describes the promises and expectations of each of the parties during the time of recruitment. Feldhiem (1999)3 reflects these two strands by dividing the psychological contract into: Kate: She is the head house keeper and is quoted as "unfaunfamiliar with her new duties such as budgeting, training and discipline ". The smooth functioning of her department seems to be suffering due to this. She is not successful in appropriately training and guiding her staff as a consequence of which they are not familiar with her way of work. Harriet -Elspeth's assistant : Elspeth states that "good standards of casual staff are hard to find". If her statement is not influenced by personal bias, this is an indication that the recruitment process of the hotel is sub- standard and proper giudlines are not set for the employees. Harriet is not notified that it is not within her authoritative scope to "borrow" staff without notice. This prevents the smooth flow of hotel functions because crew( who again are not specific and sure of their job profiles) are not available at places where they are needed resulting in low turn over and uneven distribution of labor. Principle statements: The principle statement should be handed over to the employee within two months for job commencement. It essentially contains all the terms and conditions upon which the employment relationship has been formed which means all terms and conditions are agreeable to both employer and the employee. It plays a pivotal role in the regulation of human resources as well as sorting out legal issues which might arise in the course of the contract. The principle statement should clearly cite the employees exact job profile and all the tasks that come under his or her responsibility. It should also mention any extra tasks, which the employee is expected to do at times which might be paid/unpaid for. The salaries, incentives, deductions and addition allowances (where ever they are applicable) should be mentioned. The working hours and compensation for overtime should be specified along with number of paid holidays and sick leaves. The employee should be provided with all the rules, regulations and principles of the concerned organization to ensure discipline and also the terms and conditions for termination, grievance procedures and legal action. Specifying health and insurance coverage conditions is also important. Apart from the

The Future of Hybrid Electric Vehicles Essay Example for Free

The Future of Hybrid Electric Vehicles Essay Honda is a well-known and reputable car manufacturer in North America. It is now 2002, and Honda is planning on launching its second Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) to the market a hybrid version of Hondas top selling vehicle, the Civic. The companys first HEV, the two-seater Honda Insight coupe, was introduced to the U. S. in 1999. It experienced modest sales of 3,788 units in 2000 and 5,000 units in 2001 and retailed at a base price of approximately $19,100. However, demand outstripped supply and consumers were forced to wait between one to two months for their vehicles. Honda anticipates that sales of the hybrid Civic model will be much stronger than previous HEV models, since the Civic already possesses a longstanding, strong brand name. Right now, Honda must decide if they are willing to launch the hybrid Civic and make it a part of its production line-up, despite the uncertain reception of the vehicle in the market and the risk of a potential loss in profits. Problem Statement The problem that Honda faces right now, which could hurt the company’s overall profits, is that consumers are not well educated and informed about the benefits that this hybrid technology can offer. In other words, the positive features of a HEV have not been marketed well enough to change buyers’ outlook on transportation options and train them to look beyond the price premium (of up to $5,000) and buy a hybrid car. According to a large-sample survey of recent car buyers, the top three factors that were identified as being most important when purchasing a car were â€Å"reliability†, â€Å"value for the money† and â€Å"well-made vehicle†. Similarly, auto dealers stated that buyers routinely ranked â€Å"functionality†, â€Å"safety† and â€Å"price† as important factors when shopping for a car. Factors, such as â€Å"gas mileage†, â€Å"technical innovation† and â€Å"environmentally friendly† were also listed, but were all ranked well below the top five. Therefore, Honda is faced with the obstacle of teaching buyers to consider other aspects when purchasing its new Civic hybrid model. Situation Analysis The automobile industry is a very mature and is based almost entirely on gas engines. It is a highly competitive and consolidated industry, however, Honda differentiates itself with a value strategy. Internal Analysis Strengths. Honda Motor Company has a very strong reputation around the world for building quality, reliable and performance-oriented automobiles, motorcycles and power equipment. Honda has traditionally focused heavily on RD capabilities and thus it tends to be on the cutting edge of automotive technology. Weaknesses Adding high tech and performance-oriented features to their cars has meant that Honda has occasionally had to recall their products, leading to a weaker brand image. In addition, the spending on RD has led to declining operating margins while the market share is threatened by huge lineups from Toyota and Nissan. Opportunities There is an upsurge of interest in environmentally friendly vehicles, and Honda’s RD focus means that it is well poised to capitalize on its expertise in this industry. In addition, Honda is a major player in the emerging markets (BRIC countries). Threats Rising oil and raw material prices in the world market can lead to decreased demand for automotive vehicles. In addition, increased costs have led to decreased consumer spending and the competitive rivalry is very high in this industry. External Analysis. Political There is increased pressure on governments from lobby groups to provide tax incentives and subsidies to encourage consumers to purchase more environmentally sensitive products. In addition, the Kyoto Accord has led to a renewed focus on reducing pollutants. Economic Rising gas prices and increased costs of cleaning pollutants have started hurting the consumer’s pocketbooks. Social Consumers have a higher awareness of the hidden costs of pollutants, and are also more sensitive to prices. Therefore, there is a large number of consumers who are willing to pay for technology and products that will help the environment. Technology Recent RD investment into hybrid technology has led to significant gains in efficiency and reductions in cost of the technology. Network Model User Network – The identified user network for hybrid cars would be the consumers who see a benefit to paying a premium for these cars in the hope that the expected benefit to the environment will be enough to justify the extra cost. Complement Network – The complement network includes the dealers, gas stations and service facilities that facilitate the ownership, operation and maintenance of any automobile. Producer Network – The producer network includes Honda Motor car, it’s automotive parts suppliers and all other stakeholders associated with the production of the automobile Now using the Identify - Differentiate - Interact - Customize model we have to progress down a path of methodically segmenting our current target market into smaller segments that we can target individually. At the customize stage, Honda should be flexible enough to be able to offer the customers who require higher value the products that they need, while focus on driving down their cost-to-serve for the lower margin consumers. Resource Identification. Having completed our SWOT analysis and our network model breakdown, we can come to some key identifications of success factors in a product that the industry requires to be successful. In addition, we can then compare these factors to the core competencies of the Honda hybrid initiative. We can see that car buyers value three factors above any other: â€Å"reliability†, â€Å"value for the money† and â€Å"well-made vehicle†. Honda can provide all of these but there is uncertainty in the first. Because the hybrid engines have not been around a long time, car buyers are uncertain of the long term maintenance costs of such vehicles. In addition, they are also not sure about the resale value of these cars, something which ties in to our next point. Although hybrid cars have traditionally not been able to makeup their premium strictly via gasoline cost savings, Honda has strived to only price the hybrid Civic about $1000 $2000 above the normal Civic. This minimzes the non-tangible benefit that Honda needs to prove to consumers to persuade them to buy the car. In addition, hybrids cost about $4 to $5 thousand more to produce than regular vehicles. Honda is subsidizing a large portion of this cost to make the vehicle more affordable to the consumers. In terms of reliability, Honda has a global reputation as a maker of quality automobiles. Alternatives and Evaluation After analyzing this case, it is apparent that Honda must choose one of two paths. Namely, launch the Civic hybrid or not launch. However, if Honda decides to launch, it can either manufacture a full hybrid or mild hybrid version. Therefore, Honda is essentially faced with three alternatives: (1) launch a full hybrid model, (2) launch a mild hybrid model or (3) decide not to launch a hybrid in the North American market at all. Before we can elaborate on the pros and cons and evaluate each alternative, we must consider some very relevant underlying issues that exist in the case. Specifically, there are some key questions that must be addressed when assessing both Alternative One and Alternative Two. For example, should Honda lobby for government subsidies and/or tax credits in order to mitigate its exposure to potential profit losses or should it fully expose itself to this risk? How many vehicles should Honda manufacture (since price decreases with economies of scale)? And how much money should Honda invest in marketing to educate consumers and promote the product? The suggested answers to these questions will be given in the Recommendation. Alternative One: Launch a Full Hybrid Version of the Civic One of the obvious pros to launching the full hybrid Civic would be that Honda would become a market leader with respect to alternative-fuel vehicles. Specifically, Honda could gain a competitive advantage over its competitors by leveraging its knowledge and expertise gained early on during the introduction of the Honda Insight. In addition, Honda could also earn the reputation of being environmentally friendly and at the cutting edge of automotive technology. For instance, the full hybrid can improve gas mileage by as much as 100% over a comparable gasoline-only vehicle, which would decrease the amount of emissions produced. Creating this image could be very beneficial for Honda; especially in a society whose emphasis and attention on sustainable development and the environment will only continue to escalate. There are also some potentially negative implications to launching the full hybrid Civic. First and foremost, there is the potential that margins generated from the new model will be lower than expected. The cost of producing a full hybrid vehicle is substantially higher than the costs involved in manufacturing a comparable gasoline-only car. In fact, some industry experts estimate that this value is somewhere in the range of $4,000 to $5,000. In addition, the current demand for hybrids is not strong enough to engender economies of scale (which would lower the retail price). Also, adverse studies show that it takes several years before the gas savings from hybrids offset the price premium. For many buyers, the intrinsic environmental benefits of buying a hybrid are not enough on their own to justify paying a higher price. Therefore, Honda could lose money by launching the full-hybrid Civic. Another potential con is that Honda’s competitors can reap the benefits of being a follower. They can avoid the evident risks of introducing a hybrid now, and learn from Honda’s mistakes. Afterwards, these competitors can use what they have learned and produce a superior product that would directly compete with Honda’s vehicles. Alternative Two: Launch a Mild Hybrid Version of the Civic. One of the pros of manufacturing a mild hybrid version is that the mild hybrid technology can be more easily incorporated into current vehicle models than the full hybrid technology. As a result, the premium incorporated in the price of a mild hybrid is lower than in that of a full hybrid. For example, the price premium associated with a full hybrid is approximately $5,000, relative to the $2,000 to $3,000 price premium associated with a mild hybrid version. This lower premium may increase consumer demand for hybrid vehicles and allow Honda to manufacture on a larger scale. Also, launching a mild hybrid would allow Honda to offer comparable prices to other hybrid models produced by other vehicle manufacturers. Most other American manufacturers interested in offering hybrid vehicles have chosen to employ the mild hybrid technology for the reasons mentioned above. If Honda decides to manufacture a full hybrid, its prices may too high and buyers interested in purchasing a hybrid may be attracted to the lower prices offered by Honda’s competitors. One of the cons of manufacturing a mild hybrid vehicle is that this option seems to be a step backwards in terms of technological progress. Honda spent significant time and money toward developing its full hybrid Insight model and to employ the less-advanced mild hybrid technology would almost be counterintuitive. Moreover, by launching a mild hybrid, Honda would lose its opportunity to distinguish its product from those of its competitors and perhaps relinquish a temporary competitive advantage. Another con would be that Honda might damage its image of being a company concerned about the preservation of the environment. Although mild hybrid technology offers superior gas mileage compared to a traditional gasoline-only vehicle, it can only improve it by 10% to 20%. This is almost insignificant and seems to make the entire process pointless. Alternative Three: Do Not Launch the Civic Hybrid If Honda does not launch the Civic hybrid model, it avoids any of the risks associated with its manufacture. However, Honda is currently a market leader in the hybrid car segment and has already invested a lot of money into research and development. A decision to withdraw from the launch of the Civic hybrid would appear to go against the organizational strategy witnessed to date and may forgo an opportunity to achieve a competitive advantage in this cutthroat industry. Recommendation After weighing the pros and cons of each alternative, we have come to the conclusion that Alternative One is the most attractive option for Honda. Full hybrid technology is not being implemented in the vehicles of most of Honda’s competition. Therefore, by utilizing the technology it already has, Honda currently has the opportunity to distinguish its product from those of its rivals and achieve a competitive advantage in the industry. There are some risks related to launching the full hybrid Civic but these risks can be mitigated with proper marketing campaigns and education initiatives. Firstly, Honda should lobby the government for subsidies and/or tax credits in order to offset the price premium of the vehicle. This will both encourage consumers to buy a hybrid and to minimize Honda’s risk of losing money. There have already been discussions about increasing tax credits to $3,000 per vehicle. Therefore, Honda should try and confirm this increase before launching the new model. This tax incentive would surely make the marketing of the product easier. Also, any subsidy program the government could offer would likely eliminate any hesitations Honda might have in moving forward. In terms of marketing, Honda should consider investing a considerable amount of money toward educating the public about benefits of a full hybrid Civic via a large-scale marketing campaign. Luckily, Honda already has an established brand name, but it now must focus on teaching consumers both the financial and social rewards of buying a hybrid. For example, not only do hybrids have superior gas mileage (dollar savings), but also reduce the amount of emissions released into the air. Studies have shown that visits to dealerships, consumer guides and word of mouth are the three most useful sources of information for potential buyers. Therefore, Honda should ensure that its dealership sales team is prepared to handle inquiries about the product and be able to convincingly sell the attractive features of the vehicle. Moreover, Honda should create a lot of excitement and propaganda (especially during the year before and of the launch) about the new product, with special focus on public relations. In addition to these tactics, Honda can improve its chances of making this venture profitable by establishing strong producer and complements networks. For example, Honda could sell their hybrid technology to other car manufacturers and generate revenue by creating a special maintenance service for hybrid cars (if they are perceived as experts in the field). In conclusion, the Honda Civic has a strong brand as a fuel efficient, easily maintainable car. Creating a hybrid version of this model follows along with their existing strategy, thereby strengthening their brand. Implementation Honda already has plans to offer the hybrid Civic in 2002, effectively for its 2003 model year. Our focus is on marketing this model, rather than manufacturing it, as Honda already has the manufacturing plan well underway. At a high level, our implementation plan includes: †¢Lobby the government for subsidies and/or tax credits starting immediately. †¢In the summer of 2002, hold training seminars for all Honda Dealers, to ensure they are up to speed on the hybrid as well as its benefits. †¢Create promotional packages for each dealership to bring an awareness of the hybrid to those who are shopping for new cars. These should be in place at the dealerships before the new model year cars are available, essentially in August 2002 at the latest. †¢Utilize car shows as soon as possible to incorporate as much of a â€Å"wow† factor as can be gleaned due to the high technology nature of the hybrid engine in an every day automobile. †¢Place promotional material in consumer guides beginning in September 2002, for a 6-month period. Revisit this item at the end of term to see if it is effective. †¢We anticipate Honda allocating approximately 5% of their marketing budget to the hybrid Civic, keeping in mind that all Brand advertising for the Civic will also include the hybrid model. Appendices Appendix 1: SWOT Analysis Marketing MixStrengthsWeaknesses ProductStrong Brand Reputation RD-Cannibalization of existing market -Recalls Price -Hybrid costs more to build so a premium on price; few sold so few economies of scale -Declining operating margin PromotionCan capitalize on the existing Brand Place- Growing market (more interest in environment) Well placed in emerging marketsStill just a small niche market. AreaOpportunitiesThreats Social Hybrid reputation – stop gap measure, poor acceleration, not as much power Technological- Get into the market early expertise in hybrids improved hybrid performance- Mild hybrids, fuel cell cars, alternative fuels Highly competitive market EconomicEnvironmentally friendly –reduces emissions- Globalization and Consolidation Price of Gas Rising cost of cleaning pollutants decreased consumer spending Political- In line with government requirements to reduce emissions reduces reliance on foreign fuel Kyoto Accord.

Analysing the cause and effect of Urban Riots

Analysing the cause and effect of Urban Riots Riots are civil disorders that are characterized by intense violence against people in authority or property. Since it is a herd behavior occurrence, many people take part and this leads to civil unrest. They usually occur as a result of a perceived grievance which people feel has not been adequately dealt with. The are many reasons as to why riots occur including; poor living conditions, oppression by the government, high taxation, ethnic diversity, religion or differing views of a sporting activity. Mostly, riots are accompanied by violence, vandalism and destruction of both private and public property. This can also be directed to a certain specific targets according to grievances on peoples minds (Gilje 2). In the United States of America, many riots took place during the Civil War and which saw many lives lost. As years progressed, new types of riots emerged as well as their cause. In 1960s, a new form of riots called urban Riots came in to being. In 1967 for instance, more than 120 cities in the U.S suffered more than 160 riots. The most notable among urban riots was the Newark riots of 1967 and Stonewall Riots of 1969; each of which had various reasons for its outbreak. In general though, between 1964 and 1971, there were about 752 spontaneous riots especially in black communities occurring in 316 American cities. Many of these conflagrations were however exaggerated by the media with only the major ones as already discussed having severe magnitude in terms of violence, arson and property damage. In exploring the various causes of such urban riots, many social scientists have advanced different theories. Among these reasons are racial grievances and competition for jobs in the inter-ethnic setups of communities. Further, in a search for answers as to why cities could experience racial riots of varying magnitudes, scholars usually focus on broad trends. Mainly they pinpoint the high unemployment rate amongst the blacks which they relate to cities or the whole nation as a whole. But it is evident that they ignore the local factors which too may provide more insight in to the causes of urban riots. This therefore led to a number of analysts confining their research on the event itself and the surrounding circumstances such as police mobilization (Gilje, 10). Based on this concept, it is important to find the effect of police presence and its effect on the magnitude or severity of an urban riot. The urban riots of 1960s were somewhat escalated by the intervention of the federal government. But this should not be misconstrued to imply that local and state place agents did not play any part. Eventually, upon studying a number of riots that occurred, it emerged that police response has a major impact on the nature of a riot. The timing so as to ensure there is not under-response or over-response is vital as police presence will determine the end result. It is also evident from history that many of American urban riots had a connection with racism. In many occurrences, such riots were initiated by the whites and were directed to blacks. This trend however changed in the 1960s when the roles were reversed and blacks found themselves initiating urban riots. The most notable of these include the Rochester race riot of 1964. This riot took place in Rochester, New York on Friday evening of July, 24th when the Rochester Police Department tried to arrest a nineteen year old intoxicated black on a street. The police after having been notified of him responded with a dog and since rumors of police brutality had spread quickly, an angry crowd formed on Joseph Avenue. This was followed by violence that lasted for three days leaving a trail of destruction. Statistics finally recorded 4 dead, 35 injured, 1000 arrested and 204 store houses looted. It later emerged that the local, especially the good kids had initiated the riot which the adults joined in later. This was further fueled by the fact that many African-Americans had low pay and low skill jobs and they used violence to cast their personal grievances (Wasow, web). The Philadelphia race riot of 1964 was in similar manner black-initiated. From August 28th to 30th, the black neighborhood of North Philadelphia erupted as they accused police of brutality. The Philadelphia Police Department had over the years tried to improve it relationship with the black majority, 400,000 in number, by patrolling the city in twos; one black and one white officer. Unfortunately, one black woman, Odessa Bradford, engaged a patrol squad in to an argument after her car had stalled on Columbia Avenue. As the two police officers attempted to force her to remove the car, a crowd formed and came to the rescue of Odessa. Due to crowd herding mentality, rumors started to flow that white police officers had mistreated a pregnant woman and thus violence ensued. The police response took a turn and instead of confronting rioters, they retreated and left the area. Final statistics showed 341 injured, 774 arrested and 225 stores looted or damaged in the course of three days. The urban riots left the North Philadelphia city without many vital businesses as many businessmen never returned. All in all, there were other urban riots which started due to racial segregation circumstances through out the 1960s. Their cause and eventual destruction of both property and live had similar characteristics as the already discussed ones. These included: Watts Riots in 1965, Hough Riots in 1966, Racial Tension in Omaha in 1966, Newark riots in 1967, Chicago Riots in 1968 and the 1969 North 24th Street Riot in Omaha. One thing that made these urban riots among many others to stand out is the large number of participants as well as the effects they finally caused. Statistics however show that despite the escalation of black-initiated urban riots in the 1960s, the number of occurrences decline at the turn of the decade. Government commissions that were formed to seek the cause of the riots indicated that majority of riots in the 1960s and early 1970s were due to racial grievances and deprivation. A commission that presented the Kerner Commission Report indicated that these riots were an aftermath of prior white discrimination of blacks and hence was unavoidable. Between 1970s and 1980s urban riots continued in many American cities albeit marked with less and less casualties like in the sixties. However, this did not remain for long since in 1992, a significant form of riots broke out in Los Angeles. These riots which started on April 29, were as a result of a beating Rodney King, a motorist, received in the hand s of Los Angeles Police Department officers. The prelude can be traced back to March 3, when King and two passengers were driving on Foothill highway. Upon being stopped they refused but chose to speed of under what transpired to be a high speed chase by traffic cops. The presence of five LAPD officers made the case worse since they had beaten King with batons on his arrest. This was in contrary to a video shot in this event which showed that LAPD officers continued to beat King instead of cuffing him as was in law. The also accused him of having been under influence of PCP which later test proved untrue. The video which had been shot by a neighbor as he witnessed the beatings became a focal point in the media after presentation in the court case. The five LAPD officers were charged with assault and use of excessive force. This was not however to be as some influential whites doctored the case as it was about to come for deliberation. They then proceeded to acquit the LAPD officer of assault and use of force but one. This ruling as it was heavily publicized by the media drew mixed reaction even from the president. After the verdicts, riots began in Los Angeles and continued to escalate despite the presence of National Guard, the Army and the Marines. Over the next few days numerous acts of violence and looting were recorded as well as personal engagement among the law enforcers, the blacks and the whites. They included beatings received by Reginald Denny, a white truck driver by blacks an incident recorded live on television. This was followed by Fidel Lopez severe beating and possible killing of him though he was rescued. The second and third day too were marked by widespread riots and massive destruction even after law enforcers numbers were increased. Many important American figures were also drawn in to numerous debates as well as begging for end of hostilities. Order started to flow back from the fourth day but not after massive destruction in the city had occurred. The final statistics recorded 53 dead, 2,000 injured, material loss of approximately $ 1 billion, and over 3,000 arson cases destroying more than one thousand buildings. The factors that led to Los Angeles riots were cited including a fatal shooting of a black teenager by a Korean American. Others included cultural differences, high unemployment among the residents of Central Los Angeles due to recession and poverty. Sociologists on their part cited disparity in economic growth as a cause which led to powerlessness and frustration among urban dwellers. In conclusion, riots have continued to wreck havoc on the society and the general order of things. From the many instances that have been recorded in history it is clear that they have causes and if dealt with properly, urban riots can be avoided. The government must therefore put in measures to ensure there is equal employment opportunity for all people regardless of their racial background. Social institutions which promote unity and shun segregation also need to be encouraged in order to avoid urban riots (Dreier 52).

Clara Wieck Schumann and the Struggle for Equality in Nineteenth-Centur

Clara Wieck Schumann and the Struggle for Equality in Nineteenth-Century Germany The place of women before and during the nineteenth century is well summarized by a Bavarian statute book, which states that â€Å"by marriage, the wife comes under the authority of the husband and the law allows him to chastise her moderately† (Gay 177). These ideas are similarly echoed in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen and the writings of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. The former did not afford women any of the rights provided for men, such as liberty, property, resistance to oppression, voting, free speech, etc.; the latter reasoned that because women were the weaker sex, they should not (and moreover could not) be a part of society outside of the family. Although dominated by her father in the early years of her life, the pianist and composer Clara Wieck Schumann broke through the societal barriers inhibiting women’s success and independence, forming a reputable and commendable career during a time when women’s lives were predetermined by a male-dominated consciousness and society. An investigation into the mindset of citizens in the nineteenth century and the obstacles every woman faced — especially concentrating on Germany — followed by a description of the life and musical career of Clara Schumann will create greater recognition of the upward battle she (and all women) faced at that time, as well as the notability of her career as wife, mother, and musician. Before delving into the life of Clara Schumann, a description of the world surrounding her must be made in order to understand the magnitude of her accomplishments. Among the positive factors of this time were changes in society from the late eighteenth century, su... ...tita. Concerto: The Glowing Story of Clara Schumann. New York: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1961. Moraze, Charles. The Triumph of the Middle Classes. Cleve land: The World Publishing Company, 1966. Nauhaus, Gerd, ed. The Marriage Diaries of Robert & Clara Schumann. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1993. Reich, Nancy B. Clara Schumann: The Artist and the Woman. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1985. Schumann, Clara Wieck. Secret Whispers: Three Romances for violin and Piano. Kym Amps, Soprano; Erica Deaaring, violin; Joanna Borrett, cello; David Carhart, piano. Meridian Records 1996. Susskind, Pamela. â€Å"Clara Shumann.† The New Grove Dictio nary of Music and Musicians. Vol. 16. London: Macmillan Publishing Limited, 1980. Thompson, Oscar, ed. â€Å"Clara Schumann.† The International Cyclopedia of Music and Musicians. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1975.

African American and Personal Essay Essay

|For freshman applicants only. This personal essay is a very important part of your application. It assists the University in | |knowing you as an individual, independent of test scores and other objective data. We ask that you respond to two of the topics | |below. Your personal essay should be no longer than 250 words per question for a total of 500 words for both personal essays in | |the space provided below. The best personal essay is not necessarily the longest. The essay will be requested if it is not the | |appropriate length. | |What qualities or unique characteristics do you possess that would allow you to contribute to the university community? | |Describe an activity, interest, experience, or achievement in your life (this could be a book, a movie, or an activity or | |experience at work, home, or school) that has been particularly meaningful for you. | |How has your family history, culture, or environment influenced who you are? | 1. When I think of what I can contribute to the university to community, I begin to look at what the university is all about. Florida A M University is all about warmth and acceptance. It’s all about driving students from all walks of life to perform to the best of their capabilities. There all about welcoming African American students and encouraging them to pursue greater heights. My only wish is that I will be given a chance to contribute even in the smallest of way, in helping the university keep its reputation and the prestige it deserves. Doing so is not an impossible task for I believe that simply being myself will be a contribution itself. I honestly believe that I am strong enough to face the multiple challenges that will come along the way as I pursue my studies. Moreover, I believe that being an African American; I can contribute to the cultural diversity of the university. FAMU is known for preserving and uplifting the cultural and historical heritage of the African Americans. Furthermore, the school is known to encourage African Americans to pursue their studies and become competitive in the world. I firmly believe that with my willingness to learn and to succeed, can contribute to the cause. In my little way, I can set an example to my fellow African Americans on how to actively pursue and work towards one’s goals. My belief that education is vital in achieving success is parallel with that of the university and somehow, in my everyday dealings with other students, I can help strengthen such belief. My contribution to the university community may not be grand . However through my constant strives for success I will be able to prove how valuable the education that FAMU provides can be. 2. Something that has been particularly meaningful to me is the passing of my little sister Laura in the spring on April 2, 2011. She was 11 years old, she died n a car accident on her way home with our neighbors, the tire blew out and the car flipped over 6 times killing her and 6 others. My sister was an â€Å"A† student, took all honors classes and never troubled anyone, she was a happy hearted person, loved to be around people. She looked up to me and wanted to be just like me, for instance she liked cheerleading, color guard, band, and track. those are some of the sports I participate in now and now that she is gone I look up to her and I want to Graduate High school and get into College for my Parents, myself and for her because she would of been so proud of me to see that day I walk that stage in remembrance of her I will do anything it takes to fulfill her dreams and mines, its what she would have wanted.

A Streetcar Named Desire/as I Lay Dying Essay

This proves that the main characters of A Streetcar Named Desire and As I Lay Dying are very similar because they both experience tragedy and are affected by such. In the play A Streetcar Named Desire, by Tennessee Williams, one of the main characters, Blanch DuBois, is portrayed as the typical rich southern belle who fell down on her luck. The other characters, specifically her brother in-law, dislike her â€Å"hoity-toity† mannerisms and the fact that she has an aura of self-righteousness. After her past is revealed, the reader is aware of the reasons for her actions. Her pain lies behind the death of the one man she ever loved and the guilt that she feels for his suicide. This tragedy causes her to be more aware of her looks and it drives her insane to the point where the music from that night constantly plays in her head. She is now more perceptive but the other characters do not appreciate her actions. In the novel As I Lay Dying, by William Faulkner, one of the main characters, Darl Bundren, is also disliked because of his actions. Darl is the most perceptive of his southern family and he recognizes things that the others of his time would never understand. After the death of his mother Darl is broken especially since he knows that his mother did not love him as much as she loved his brother. Even though this was true Darl still loved his mother and set the barn on fire where she was in her casket. His family members saw this and were instantly appalled by it. Only Darl would see this as a way of cleansing the family after keeping her body for days post mortem. Both Darl and Blanche are looked down upon but no one truly understands the reasons for their ways. This causes a great repercussion that changes their lives forever. Even though Blanche is dealing with the suicide of her only love and her attempts to find love in all of the wrong places, she still notices when her brother-in-law is being abusive and when her sister should attempt to find a way out. As well as being perceptive, Darl is also a genius who notices things that others would not even if he did attempt to set his mother’s dead body on fire. The fact that these two are so misconstrued and later thrown into a mental asylum shows how similar they are. During this time period a mental asylum was the cure for everything but it was not what the two of them needed. They share a similar story in which a person who had to deal with problems on their own was immediately thrown into an â€Å"asylum† that really would not help them at all. Dealing with the death of a loved one, either a boyfriend or a parent is hard enough but having to deal with the pressures of a severe society makes the transition even harder. In conclusion Darl Bundren and Blanch DuBois were similar because they both did not have the opportunity to communicate their feelings to others in a healthy way. When society could not handle their dissimilarities they were immediately thrown to the wayside. This shows how during this time there was very little acceptance from the entire society of our nations. When looking at today’s society and the society of the early 20th century the differences are staggering. Darl and Blanch would have had the chance to lead a normal life only if they had lived today. It is hard to watch brilliant minds being thrown away.

Twentieth Century British Author

E. M. Forster (1879-1790) was the author of many well-known novels, and also several volumes of short-stories, essays and criticism. He is best-known for his 1924 novel A Passage to India, which has enjoyed a world-wide audience ever since its publication. Today he is considered as one of the prominent figures of British literature of the first half of the twentieth century. Forster once wrote, â€Å"Life is easy to chronicle, but bewildering to practice. † Edward Morgan Forster himself began his ‘bewildering practice’ on 1 January 1879, in London. When he was eight-years old, he inherited an amount ?8000 from his great-aunt, Marianne Thornton, of whom he would later write a biography. This inheritance was sufficient to let Forster pursue his education and literary career in relative freedom from financial constraints and worries. Upon his graduation from Tonbridge School, Forster secured admission into King's College, Cambridge where he studied classics and histo ry, and was partly under the tutelage of Goldsworthy Lowes Dickinson, of whom he would later write a biography. At Cambridge, he was exposed to the values of liberal humanism and cultivated a respect for the freedom of individuality of human beings.Under the influence of the philosopher G. E. Moore, Forster developed an aesthetic belief that contemplating beauty of art constituted a nobler purpose in life. He also became a strong believer in the value of friendships, and struck lasting friendships which meant a great deal to him throughout his life. He would later travel to India with a group of university friends. â€Å"If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country,† he would later say.During these years of higher education, Forster was a member of an intellectual clique at Cambridge called the ‘Apostles', and through them came into contact with the members of the Bloomsbury Group, with which he would associate more closely in the subsequent years (Childs 2002). Completing his education at Cambridge, he left England on a long trip to Italy and Austria, which would last for one year. Forster would spend a significant period of his life traveling. It was around this time, in 1901, that he began exercising his writing skills.He then started working at Working Men's College and subsequently taught at the extra-mural department of the Cambridge Local Lectures Board. Forster's literary career began in 1903, when he began writing for The Independent Review, a liberal publication that he co-founded with Lowes Dickinson and used as a platform for advocating anti-imperialism. Soon, Forster became a published author with the appearance of his first novel Where Angels Fear to Tread (1905). Forster used his knowledge of Italy to create a story that juxtaposed and contrasted the passionate world of Italy with the constricting values of suburban England.The result is a social comedy, which rather interestingly ends up as a tragedy dealing with rather unsavory aspects of death and frustrated love. It is the story of a young English widow, Lilia, who falls in love with an Italian, but the members of her family cannot accept this and try to wrest her back. This work was not well received by the public. By 1910, Forster would have written three more novels. The Longest Journey (1907) and A Room with a View (1908) exhibit a growing maturity in literary skills and artistic scope, and Howards End (1910) saw his rise to fame.Forster wrote most of his short stories and four novels before 1910. In the sixty years he lived after that, he would write only two novels, Maurice, in 1914, and A Passage to India, in 1924 (Tambling 1995). After publishing his first novel, Forster left for Germany and worked for several months as tutor to the Countess von Arnim, in a place called Nassenheide. This experience would serve him in the characterization of Schlegel sisters in Howards En d. Back in England, in 1907, he took on the role of a private tutor for an Indian Muslim, with whom he developed a close relationship that could be seen as homosexual love.Forster's famous work A Passage to India would be dedicated to this person. Forster was a covert homosexual all through his life. The posthumous publishing of his homosexual novel Maurice (1971) offers strong testimony to his sexual orientation, although it is difficult to ascertain how far his homosexual orientation may have influenced his work in general. However, he certainly felt frustrated for not being able to write about homosexual themes openly and it is possible that he stopped writing novels half-way through his life out of such frustration. In 1907, Forster wrote and published a novel about his Cambridge days, The Longest Journey.It tells the story of an undergraduate and a struggling writer, Rickie Elliot, who abandons friendship for the sake marriage, but is enlightened by his pagan half-brother. The Longest Journey was also Forster's favorite novel, despite the poor response it got from the critics and the public. Around this time, Forster was closely associated with the Bloomsbury Group, and was interacting with people such as Lytton Strachey and Rogery Fry. In his third novel, A Room with a View, which is also his second Anglo-Italian novel partly set in Florence and partly in English suburbia, Forster displays his contempt for English snobbery.It is a light and optimistic tale, a story of misunderstandings which however ends on a happy note as Lucy Honeychurch, the protagonist, acknowledges her love for the impulsive George Emerson over her feelings for the intellectual Cecil Vyse. Forster’s novels have already begun to display a common theme of sensitive characters struggling with the inflexibility of social codes that they are encumbered with as well the relative insensitivity of those around them.It can be conjectured that Forster’s frustration at the opposi tion of the conservative values of his time to his homosexuality may have taken a general form portraying the oppression of social rigidness in his novels. In 1910 came Howards End which is a social novel about sections of the middle classes, focusing on the question of who will inherit â€Å"Howards End,† which is Forster's metonym for England. The story centers on the relationship between the intellectual German Schelgel sisters and the practical, male-dominated, business-oriented Wilcox family.In the novel, Forster attempted to find a way for Wilcox money to become the support for Schlegel culture, and also for the future of rural England to be taken away from the influence of urban, commercial interests and placed once more in the hands of the farmers. The novel presents an ambitious social message, though not wholly practical or convincing. Howards End finally secured Forster's reputation and established him as a novelist. However, he would only publish one novel in the rest of his long life, besides sporadic publication of short stories, essays and so on.In 1911, Forster brought out a collection of short stories entitled The Celestial Omnibus. In 1912-13 he made his first visit to India, with R. C. Trevelyan, Dickinson and G. H. Luce. Here, he had the chance to observe the British colonial administration first-hand. After this trip, he wrote most of the first section of A Passage to India, but it was not until after a second visit, in 1921, when he spent six months as private secretary to a Hindu Maharajah, that he completed it. His masterpiece was published in 1924 and was unanimously praised by literary critics.Around this time he also worked on the homosexual novel Maurice: A Romance. Though it would not be published until after his death, it was circulated privately at the time, and is a story of cross-class homosexual love the kind of which Forster himself yearned for. During World War I, he worked with the International Red Cross and was sta tioned in Alexandria, Egypt. He also became a strong supporter of the Alexandrian poet C. P. Cavfy. During his stay in Alexandria, he struck an acquaintance with a teenaged tram conductor, Mohammed el-Adl, with whom he fell in deep love.Mohammed would die of tuberculosis in Alexandria in spring of 1922, and this loss weighed heavily on Forster for the rest of his life. Forster returned to England in 1919, after the war, but set off traveling again in 1921. On this trip to India he worked as the private secretary to the Maharajah of Dewas Senior, and his letters home from the two Indian trips were later published as The Hill of Devi (1953). In 1922 he published Alexandria: A History and a Guide, but could get it into circulation only in 1938.Pharos and Pharillon, which is a collection of Forster's essays on Alexandria together with some translations of Cavafy's poems, was published in 1923. All through this time, Forster had been reworking on A Passage to India, which was published i n 1924, almost a decade and a half after his previous novel Howard's End. It is a novel about the clash between Eastern and Western cultures during British rule in India, and is generally considered among major literary works of the twentieth century. It is the story of Adela Quested and Mrs. Moore's journey to India to visit Adela's fiance, and Mrs Moore's son, Ronny Heaslop.There they meet a college teacher, Cyril Fielding, who is an avatar of Forster himself, the Hindu Brahmin Dr Godbole and the Muslim Dr Aziz. The novel revolves around Dr Aziz's alleged assault Adela. Ms. Quested reports of an attempted assault by the Dr. Aziz and subsequently retracts her complaint. Once again, misunderstanding features prominently in Forster’s narrative. A Passage to India was widely acclaimed. For example, a critic at New York Times wrote: â€Å"The crystal-clear portraiture, the delicate conveying of nuances of thought and life, and the astonishing command of his medium show Mr.Forst er at the height of his powers† (Forster, 1989 : front flap). But mysteriously, at the height of his powers, Forster would choose to renounce novel writing. Some have speculated this could be because he felt he could not write openly and honestly about homosexual relations which he longed to write about. In 1927 he gave the Clark lectures at Cambridge University, which were published as Aspects of the Novel the same year. He was also offered a fellowship at King's College, Cambridge. In 1928, his second collection of short stories, The Eternal Moment, was published. It is a collection of six stories predominated by fantasy and romance.In the immediately following years there was the publication of The Hill of Devi and two short-story volumes, under the generic name Collected Short Stories. The last published work of his life was Marianne Thornton, the biography of his great-aunt whose gift allowed him to go to Cambridge. In 1969 Forster was awarded the Order of Merit. He died shortly thereafter. â€Å"E. M. Forster has never lacked for readers, is widely studied, has had his novels turned into highly marketable films, and has encouraged criticism usually of a strongly liberal-humanist kind,† notes Tambling (1995) in his introduction to a book of critical essays on E.M. Forster. Forster explored the shortcomings of the English middle class and their emotional deficiencies, employing irony and wit. Today he is remembered for the impeccable style of writing that is evident in all of his novels and short stories. References: Childs, P. (2002). A Routledge Literary Sourcebook on E. M. Forster's A Passage to India† (Routledge Literary Sourcebooks). London : Routledge. Forster, E. M. (1989). â€Å"A Passage to India. † Orlando, FL : Harcourt Brace Tambling, J. (1995). â€Å"E. M. Forster: Contemporary Critical Essays† (New Casebooks). . New York : St. Martin's Press.