Womens Perceptions and the Feminist Theory free essay sample

This paper examines how societys perceptions of women affect feminist theory: The author discusses the feminist belief that there is a social division between men and women, in terms of representation and that this division is caused by the perception of an inherent difference between the sexes. This paper discusses this point of view from the works of: Audry Lourdes essay, The Masters Tools Will Never Dismantle the Masters House, Donna Haraways essay, `A Cyborg Manifesto`, and Henry Hwangs adaptation of the classic M. Butterfly. How society perceives women is the root of feminism. There is a social division between men and women, and this division is caused by the perception of an inherent difference between the sexes. As feminists do not believe that a perception of difference should act as a classification for men and women, it is the representation and presentation of this sense of difference that is the target of feminist actions. We will write a custom essay sample on Womens Perceptions and the Feminist Theory or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page

A Tale Of Two Cities Essays (1114 words) - English-language Films

A Tale Of Two Cities Essays (1114 words) - English-language Films A Tale Of Two Cities Resurrection in A Tale of Two Cities Resurrection is a powerful theme found throughout the plot of A Tale of Two Cities. Many of the characters in the novel are involved with the intertwining themes of love, redemption, and good versus evil. The theme of resurrection involves certain aspects of all of these themes and brings the story together. Dr. Manette is the first person to experience resurrection in A Tale of Two Cities. He is taken away from his pregnant wife and then imprisoned for eighteen very long years. Over the years, his condition deteriorates until he forgets his real name and mindlessly cobbles shoes to pass the time. In Book the First, he is released by the French government and then put in the care of Monsieur Defarge. He is suddenly recalled to life(19, 35). However, his rebirth has just begun and does not become complete until he is reunited with his daughter; Lucy Manette. In Book the Second; The Golden Thread, the resurrection theme appears several times. At the start of this book, Charles Darnay is on trial for treason in England. He has been traveling back and forth between France and England and is thought to be a spy. The people in the crowd are sure that he will be found guilty, the punishment for this crime being death. Darnay is saved by the ingeniousness of Sydney Carton, and he too is suddenly resurrected or recalled to life. In both Book the Second and Book the Third, the reader gets different perspectives of the resurrection theme. Jerry Cruncher is a body-snatcher and he refers to his late night activities as though it is an honest trade. His son knows of his father's nocturnal activities and expresses his desire to follow in his fathers footsteps: Oh, Father, I should so like to be a resurrection-man when I'm quite growed up! (166). This parodies the resurrection theme because it is a simple physical resurrection of corpses from the graveyard with seemingly little meaning. The reader later realizes the significance of the activities of the resurrection-man in Book the Third. In the battle of good versus evil in A Tale of Two Cities, good tends to resurrect or be resurrected, while the forces of evil mimic or parody the resurrection theme. This is shown twice in the novel. Old Foulon, the evil French aristocrat, fakes his own death so that he will not be slaughtered by the revolution. He is found later, alive, and is murdered anyway. This pattern of false death and false resurrection is also followed by Roger Cly. He too is evil, faking his death and being reborn as a spy again in a different country. In Book the Third, the resurrection theme plays a pivotal role in the development of the plot. Miss Pross recognizes the spy Barsad as her lost brother, Solomon. In the eyes of Miss Pross, Solomon is resurrected and her brother is restored. Sydney Carton meets Barsad and shortly after, Jerry Cruncher reveals to them that Roger Cly is not dead. Cruncher knows this through his honest trade of body-snatching. This allows Barsad to be manipulated by Sydney Carton so that Darnay might be saved from death once again. Sydney Carton is the character that is most involved with the theme of resurrection in A Tale of Two Cities. Carton is a man of very little self esteem, but a tremendous amount of courage and devotion. Carton is the man who helped to resurrect Charles Darnay in England, but it would not be the only time he would save Darnay's life. Carton has led a miserable life and he has always looked up to Darnay. In Sydney Carton, the theme of love is deeply involved with the theme of resurrection. He is in love with Lucy Manette, even after she marries Charles Darnay. His love for Lucy is similar to the knights during the age of chivalry. He vows to give his life for her or anyone she loves. Carton soon realizes that he may have to make good on the promise he made to Lucy. Darnay is taken prisoner for a second time in France and Carton knows that the French rebels will stop at nothing to kill him this time. Carton realizes that he may be able to use his influence over Barsad to switch places with Darnay. Carton looks remarkably similar to Darnay and he knows that this may be his only chance to save Darnay. As Carton organizes the switch, the inner purpose of his actions can be

Lensing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Lensing - Essay Example Step three involves explaining the connection between lens A and lens B; that is relationship between viewpoints in Ugly Feelings and Rushmore. The fourth step illustrates the evidence supporting the relationships between the lens A and B. the fifth step entails illustrating the main areas of connection, and then conclusion of the relationship. Several issues are illustrated in Sinnae Ngai’s literary work. Ugly Feelings is the benchmark for understanding the film; hence lens A. Ugly Feeling has two major issues. The first issue entails understanding how artists and writers in different media outlets have shown ugly feelings that are not analyzed by critics. The second issue explains that through engaging feelings, the artists understand the weaknesses of art. This ensures "several of these negative affects for their critical productivity" (Sianne 3). Most critics study works having big feelings and mistakes. Rushmore entails comedy work produced in 1998 by Wes Anderson. The film describes the relationship between Max Fisher, Herman Blume and Rosemary Cross. Max Fisher is a teenager. Herman Blume is depicted as an established industrialist. Rosemary Cross is an elementary school teacher. The teacher experiences mutual love from Max and Herman (Kehr 72). Ngai effectively illustrates three negatives that enhance ugly feelings; experiential negativity, semantic negativity and syntactic negativity. Experiential negativity ensures pain. This negativity is illustrated in lens B, Rushmore, effectively. Illustration of Blume’s life in the movie shows emotional pain. Despite being an established industrialist, he does not derive satisfaction from the performance and operations of his company. His marriage life is also frustrating due to continuous disagreements with his wife (Ebert 36). His sons are very unrepentant due to poor upbringing by their mother. The marriage life of marry also

Multiple questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Multiple questions - Assignment Example Additionally, the teachers also point out that finding help from senior teachers may also be an important inclusion in these strategies. Based on your reading and on this video, do you agree with the master teachers in this video case who believe that standardized testing "offers the opportunity to reflect upon your teaching practice?"   Why or why not? Standardized testing provides a tutor with an opportunity to effectively analyze their teaching practice. Standardized testing enables a tutor to generally create assessment systems that equally reflect the performance of every student. Additionally, the tests are effective enough to generate reliable results that reflect the performance of a tutor in regards to performance by their students. Collaboration requires understanding among teachers in an institution. Collaboration refers to the generation of ideas collectively by all teachers. However, a tutor should be able to look for friendly tutors who maybe willing to help. Additionally, collaboration should be agenda based as tutor should seek collaboration to generate a solution to a particular problem. The master teachers in this video suggest that it is important to use student test data effectively.   How does one use test data effectively?   What are some challenges that might be encountered during this process? Test data can be used effectively if the collection of the data is accurate. Additionally, test data should be collected from reliable test that may reflect the exact potential of the students. Possible challenges may be generated from biasness from collecting the data. Data collection questions may also be limited to testing the actual student abilities. In the video, the teachers believe in teacher’s empowerment through collaboration. They also use collaboration as decision making tool (01_CollaborationColleagues.mov). The tutors come together was a work group. They

Part of a Marketing Plan Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Part of a Marketing Plan - Assignment Example Cotton On is one of the few organically Australian ready-to-wear (RTW) fashion label. Fairly young in the industry at less than 30 years old, they now have shops all over Australia, New Zealand, and America. It has uniquely mirrored the same image that Australia has project all over the world, relax, simple and comfortable. Its primary target is the youth, 15-30, who feels wants a simple no-nonsense style that is flexible yet fashionable. Through the years, there have been constant effort from the brand to reinforce their image through TV commercials, print ads, and out-of-home advertisements. However, the fashion industry has witnessed an incredible shift of media consumption from traditional to digital. Many of this digital adaptors belong to the same target market that Cotton On caters to, young from the broad C. Many businesses have taken advantage of this by, early on, exerting the same effort digitally as they do above the line. Unfortunately, Cotton On came in late. They, in fact, established their online store less than three years ago. Outside of the online store, very little effort has been exerted to utilize the digital media to reach the Cotton On target market. This lack of digital presence resulted to one of the biggest digital scandal in the business world when facebook members started spreading complaints and protests against Cotton On Children’s line. The protest claimed that Cotton On’s pieces contained â€Å"disrespectful† messages. One word. That’s all it takes for a person to know someone inside and out, its history, its sensibilities, its personality, and its relationships. That word is the brand name. Coca-Cola. iPod. Nike. Google. Their identities are so strong and so embedded to the minds of the consumers that no single study, perhaps not even a compound of a thousand, can comprehensively explain how each company built it. Cotton On, despite being a young label, has experienced a certain

Nature and process of communication

Nature and process of communication Explain the Nature and Process of Communication 1.1 COMMUNICATION IS INTEGRAL TO HUMAN LIFE. Communication is deeply intertwined with the human existence. It is an integral part of it. One cannot think of human life without communication. Can you imagine what would happen if you are not allowed to talk for a long time? You would feel suffocated. In personal life, we need to communicate to deal with various concerns and problems of daily life. In professional life also, it is communication that helps us to build healthy relations and credibility with co-workers. Only speaking/talking is not communication. Communication can take place in many forms. Sometimes, we communicate by talking about our ideas, thoughts or emotions; at other times, we may wish to communicate through the written word or even non-verbally. Whatever form we choose, getting the message across is what communication is all about. Communication is a process that is dynamic, continuous, and irreversible but at the same time, it is reciprocal in nature. It is an ongoing process. Roughly, we can define communication as a shared meaning between two or more individuals. The shared meaning arises out of the individuals experiences, background, education and training. Similarity in experiences, background, training, etc. makes communication successful between individuals. Communication helps us to understand others. The inability to communicate can lead to a lot of problems both personally and professionally. Imagine a day without communicating! We can instantly feel the void it would create. Can we ever forget that it is our ability to communicate verbally that distinguishes us from animals? Communication helps form a powerful bond among people and makes us social beings. Besides, knowledge is not the sole requirement for the achievement of success. A person may possess good knowledge, but his/her performance will be evaluated largely on the basis of his/her ability to communicate. Therefore, if you are a good communicator, you have better chances of success in life and in business. 1.2 COMMUNICATION FOR BUSINESS Communication has become indispensable today. Human activity will come to a standstill if there is no communication. All human transactions become possible only through communication. It is the life-blood of every business organization. Especially in todays globalized market economy, effective communication is vital to the success and survival of any organization. Businesses need people with good communication skills because communication is an essential part of the kind of work that is done in business organizations. It extends across all areas of business, including managerial, technical, clerical and social positions. In present times, several factors have contributed to the significance of communication. They are- faster means of communication because of scientific and technological advancements shrinking geographical boundaries because of the availability of faster means of transport growth of the multinational companies that has resulted in the creation of a globalized market economy generation of highly advanced management techniques as a result of the growing importance of professionalism in the management of business the information revolution that has brought with it highly sophisticated networking technologies multiplication of systems of communication at all levels of organization because of specialized knowledge that has lead to departmentalization advancements in the field of social sciences such as in psychology and in sociology that have created an awareness about the human mind and behaviour and how they influence communication Communication undertaken by a business organization with the purpose of achieving certain specific goals is known as business communication. In fact, business communication is a special type of communication undertaken to meet the needs of the organization. Powerful concepts in modern management like participation, motivation, involvement revolve around communication. According to R. Ludlow, Business communication is a process of transfer of information and understanding between different parts and people of a business organization. It consists of various modes and media involved in communication interchanges. Effective communication is needed for growth and development of any organization. H.G. Hicks has rightly pointed out- Communication is basic to an organizations existence from birth of the organization; when communication stops, organized activity ceases to exist. Improving communication skills improves the chances for success of a business. Effective communication brings progress and prosperity to it. Moreover, in this age of specialization, planning, production, sales, advertising, finance, welfare, etc. are handled by different departments. In absence of effective communication, there would be a serious problem of co-ordination among these departments and there would only be chaos and confusion in the organization. Communication is also quite significant keeping in mind the growing importance of human relations and human resource management in todays world. Communication helps a manager in developing meaningful relationships with the subordinates, changing their attitudes, boosting their morale and soliciting their cooperation. Communication links people together to achieve common goals. It is also required to maintain good public relations. Thus, executives are often expected to give speeches and interviews to the media in order to project a favourable image of the organization. Effective communication is required to handle various crises and conflicts of interests in an organization. It is also needed in order to impart adequate training to the employees in handling latest technology. Subordinates often resent the introduction of changes in the methods of working. This poses a challenge to the management to educate the employees so that they can smoothly adapt to the dynamic character of the organization. They also have to work at alleviating the fear that these changes are likely to generate unemployment. Thus, effective communication can help in changing the negative attitude of the employees towards technological advancement. It facilitates meetings which play an important role in the functioning of an organization. Effective business communication depends not only on the skills of the sender of the message but also on the skills of the one who receives that message. Thus, one may say that communication is not an end in itself; rather, it is a means to achieve an end. (For more details, refer 1.6 Objectives of Communication) 1.3 PRE-REQUISITES OF COMMUNICATION Now the question is- What is communication and how it can be accomplished? What do we require to carry out communication? Hence, prior to looking at the meaning of communication, it would be helpful to know how we prepare for it. For instance, you want to write a letter. What all do you need for it? A piece of paper. A pen. A desk for support. Is there anything else that you require besides these things? Certainly you do. You need to dwell on three important things- 1. Purpose 2. Content 3. Skills These three precede all speaking or writing. WHAT TO COMMUNICATE- CONTENT Information Observation/ Receive by Select/Reject Think and Understanding Attention listening or as per your evaluate results into by reading interest, need the information knowledge or expectation This is how information is processed in to being knowledge. Knowledge generates in you the confidence to communicate. If you are well prepared with the content, then half the work is done. It is the urge to express something that begins communication. It can be an idea, an emotion, an opinion or some information. Without this basic idea/need, there can be no communication. However, we do not communicate whatever comes to our mind immediately. There is a need to plan- what to communicate, how to communicate and whom to communicate it to. We do not communicate without a purpose; therefore, it is essential to answer these questions before actually communicating. This helps us to communicate effectively and to get a desirable response from the person with whom we are exchanging our ideas. WHY TO COMMUNICATE- PURPOSE Speakers/ will hear/see Purpose of Writers Listener/ Communication Expectation Reader will listen/read will understand will act/respond THE PURPOSE IS FULFILLED Purpose is the primary pre-requisite of all meaningful communication. The sender initiates communication with some purpose i.e. expectation. S/he expects the receiver to hear/see his message, to listen/read it attentively, to understand it and to act/respond to it. When the receiver gives feedback or performs the expected action, then communication is said to be successful. However, the response would depend on various factors like concentration, physical surroundings and psychological makeup of the receiver. The next question is- how do we communicate? Communication does not just mean speaking or writing. We are communicating even when we smile or shrug our shoulders. However, when we decide to communicate, we need some medium through which to transfer that idea to the other person. HOW TO COMMUNICATE- SKILLS You may possess good knowledge and may be ready to convey it but if you do not know how to do it, it would not be effective. Poor speaking or writing skills is a real hurdle in communication. Speaking Skills Read aloud: Take a small piece of writing from a newspaper, magazine or a book and read it out loud. This will help you to know how you speak- your voice tone, pitch, etc. Observe: Observe how people speak- their pronunciation, accent, intonation, stress, style, rhythm, etc. Try to emulate the speaking style of good speakers. This will help you to improve your own style of speaking. (For a detailed note on speaking skills, writing skills and non-verbal communication, refer Chapter 2 Types of Communication.) Just the idea/information that the communicator has, the media of transmission available and the presence of the receiver are not enough for communication to take place. We need a proper context and an atmosphere where there are no hindrances in the communication process. Does communication end after the idea is communicated? As stated earlier, we communicate with a purpose. Expression of the idea/information is half the work done. But communication is considered complete only when there is some response from the receiver. Only then we can say that the purpose of communication is fulfilled. Communication involves three basic activities on the part of both the participants i.e. the sender and the receiver. On the senders part, they are- Thinking to develop the content to form a message Speaking/Writing to convey the message to the other person Feeling to make the message persuasive On the receivers part, the activities include- Listening/Reading to absorb the idea/information contained in the message Interpreting to understand the meaning of the message Responding to convey the acceptance or the disagreement with the message Communication has always been an important part of human life. Language and the ability to express ourselves using that language come to us spontaneously. And the need to communicate is so inherent in human nature that we hardly realize that effective communication skills can be acquired and honed. There are four basic communication skills- speaking, writing, listening and reading. They always work in the following adjacency pairs- Speaking/writing is handled by the sender of the message and listening/reading by the receiver of the message. Mastering these four skills is very essential if one wants to become an effective communicator. As children, we learn to speak by listening first. Thus, listening is the first skill that we acquire as we develop the language instinct. Then follows the reading skills once we start schooling and lastly we learn the writing skills as a part of our formal education. Thus, learning language/s and the related communication skills follow a systematic process. It does not happen accidentally and instantaneously. Despite of this, people often turn out to be poor communicators as most of us tend to take its importance for granted. Most of the time, we fail to achieve our objective while we communicate. This happens because of our failure to convey our ideas in a precise and clearly understandable manner. There may be a lack either in the content of the message or in the way in which it is conveyed to the intended audience, or both. The point is we do not normally focus much on what to communicate, when to communicate and how to communicate. Also, we need to consider another equally important aspect why to communicate i.e. the purpose. Thus, it is very important for us to recognize and study the essential elements involved in the process of communication in order to become effective communicators. Every aspect of life, whether personal, social or professional, involves communication. The basic meaning of the word communication is- an exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, signals, writing, or behaviour. The meaning of the word has not undergone much change. However, the ways and means of communication have changed greatly as a result of technological and other socio-cultural developments in recent times. Thus, these advancements have added numerous new dimensions to the communication process, which has become more complex over a period of time. It, thus, calls for a detailed study of the various components that are involved in it in order to be able to communicate effectively. 1.4 DEFINING COMMUNICATION In order to understand the term communication, it would be useful to have a look at some definitions given by the experts. The word communication is derived from the Latin word communis which means to transmit, to impart, to exchange, to share, or to convey. Communication means the imparting or exchanging of information by speaking, writing, or using some other medium. (Oxford English Dictionary) Communication is a two-way process of reaching mutual understanding, in which participants not only exchange (encode-decode) information but also create and share meaning. (Business Dictionary) According to Newman and Summer, Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by two or more persons. Keith Davis states Communication is a process of passing information and understanding from one person to another. F.G. Meyer defines communication as the intercourse by words, letters or messages, the intercourse of thoughts or opinions. It is the act of making ones ideas and opinions known to others. In the words of Theo Haimann, Communication is the process of passing information and understanding from one person to anotherà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ it is the process of imparting ideas and making oneself understood by others. According to C.G. Brown, Communication has been defined as the transfer of information from one person to another, whether or not it elicits confidence or becomes an exchange or interchange. But the information transferred must be understandable to the receiver. William Scott defines communication as a process which involves the transmission and accurate replication of ideas ensured by feedback for the purpose of eliciting actions which will accomplish organizational goals. Louis A. Allen says, Communication is the sum of all the things which a person does when he wants to create understanding in the mind of another. It involves a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening, and understanding. According to McFarland, Communication may be broadly defined as the process of meaningful interaction among human beings. More specifically, it is a process by which meanings are perceived and understanding is reached among human beings. These definitions explain communication as a process of passing information and understanding (Keith Davis) a two-way process of reaching mutual understanding (Business Dictionary) the act of making ones ideas and opinions known to others (F.G. Meyer) the process of imparting ideas and making oneself understood by others (Theo Haimann) the transmission and accurate replication of ideas ensured by feedback for the purpose of eliciting actions (William Scott) a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening, and understanding (Louis A. Allen) a process by which meanings are perceived and understanding is reached among human beings (McFarland) Thus, these definitions adequately highlight and express in concise form the important features of the process of communication. In short, we can define communication as a process in which two or more elements of a system interact in order to achieve a desired outcome or goal. (Larry L. Barker and Deborah A. Gaut, Communication; 2001) 1.5 FEATURES OF COMMUNICATION On the basis of the above discussion, let us now discuss certain important features of the process of communication. 1. It is an exchange of ideas. Communication is the process through which an exchange of information takes place. It is the sharing of information, ideas, concepts and messages. 2. Two parties are involved in it. In communication, the exchange of information takes place between two or more persons. This implies that there are minimum two people involved in the communication process at any given time. The one who initiates the exchange is the sender of the message (speaker/writer) and the one who receives and interprets it is the receiver of the message (listener/reader). 3. It is a two-way process. Communication is a two-way process of exchanging ideas or information. One person alone cannot carry out communication. When you communicate, there has to be a receiver or an audience that would reciprocate. Then only your communication can be complete. Thus, communication is a process of transmitting and receiving verbal and non-verbal messages. It is considered effective only when it achieves the desired reaction or response from the receiver. The response may be positive or negative. In case of absence of any response, communication is incomplete. Thus, communication is effective only when a concise and clear message is delivered well, received successfully, understood fully, and responded to promptly. 1.6 OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNICATION There is no human action that is done without any purpose. Even the simplest and most natural action like breathing has a purpose- to stay alive. Communication is also always carried out with some purpose. (Refer 1.3 Pre-requisites of Communication) Communication begins with two-fold objectives or purposes that occupy the senders mind: Immediate or Primary to convey or to share Objectives information of Communication Ultimate or Secondary to convince or to persuade people To inform and to persuade are the two basic purposes (goals) that are ever present in the mind of a communicator. Sometimes, he seeks only to inform, as in scientific writings; sometimes, his goal is to persuade the reader, as in journalistic writings; and oftentimes, he wants both to inform and to persuade the reader, as in sales letters, advertisements, etc. Communication is vital to business. The communication activities of an organization fall into three broad categories: 1. Intra-organisational Communication FORMAL Business 2. Inter-organisational Communication Communication 3. Personal INFORMAL Communication 1. Intra-Organisational Communication It is communication within an organization. It is done to implement business plans. It takes many forms like orders, instructions, reports, emails, etc. 2. Inter-Organisational Communication It is communication that a business organization does with people outside the organization i.e. with other companies, customers, clients, general public, etc. It takes the form of planned publicity to improve its image and public relations with the help of business messages, advertising, displays, etc. The success of a business depends on its ability to fulfill the customers needs. Besides providing services, it must communicate effectively with outside people and groups for its success. 3. Personal Communication It is communication without a specific business objective i.e. without an ulterior motive or purpose. Man is a social animal, therefore we have a compulsive need to communicate even when we have nothing substantial to convey. Such communication also occurs in the workplace. For example, personal conversations, gossip, Grapevine phenomenon, etc. If one is not allowed to engage in such casual communication, it may lead to frustration and other such psychological problems. (For a more detailed discussion on corporate communication, refer Chapter 7 Formal and Informal Networks of Communication.) The primary objective of communication is to convey or share information. Business organizations have to deal with a large and varied amount of information on a daily basis in order to conduct various business activities. Thus, proper flow of information helps them to make right decisions. Another equally important objective of communication is to persuade people to accept a point of view or to change their attitude and accept a new or modified attitude. Persuasion is achieved through logical arguments or an emotional appeal to accept the change. Advertisements are an apt example of the persuasive nature of communication. Essentially, all communication is a deliberate and intentional act of persuasion. A communicator wants the reader not only to understand the message but also to be influenced as intended by him. (For a detailed discussion, refer 10.6 Persuasive Communication, Chapter 10 Nature of Attitude and its Influence on Communication) Communication helps to convey information from experts to trainees in an organization for the purpose of educating or training them to handle new technology or to adapt to the changes in the work environment. Communication is an effective tool in the hands of the managers to motivate and to boost the morale of the employees. This enables the organization to achieve higher productivity. Through advice and counseling, the management can help the employees in dealing with their emotional problems as well as problems pertaining to maladjustment and also to give career guidance. By means of letters of appreciation, special mention in reports, minutes of meetings, etc., the management can appreciate the work of the employees. In case of strikes, lockouts, and dismissal of individual employees or disciplinary action against them, the management uses communication channels to issue warnings. Communication also helps in co-ordination of intra-organisational activities, inter-organisational transactions, business transactions, and commercial transactions by means of conferences, meetings, advertisements, requests, suggestions, reviews, and discussions. Without communication, coordinating the activities of different persons engaged in running a business is a remote possibility. The management and the subordinates come closer through communication. Communication promotes cooperation and good industrial relations as it conveys feelings, ideas, opinions, and viewpoints of one party to the other party. The policies and programs formulated by the organization to guide the workforce have to be conveyed to those who are responsible for the execution of work to achieve the organizational objectives. Only effective communication can translate the plans into actions. It aids teamwork by enabling people to work together. It helps perform basic management functions like instructing, coordinating, staffing, planning, etc. Thus, these are the few important objectives of communication in the context of business organizations. So far, we have discussed what comprises communication and the significance of communication in our personal, social as well professional life. We have also highlighted some of the fundamentals of communication. Let us now analyse the process of communication and see how it is accomplished. 1.7 PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION Process is a series of things done to achieve something. Communication also follows a process. Communication begins when the sender/encoder identifies the need to communicate some idea/concept/information. He then encodes/formulates it into a message using a medium which can be understood by the receiver/decoder of the message who in turn processes it in his mind and responds to it. When the decoder understands the message completely, fidelity of communication is said to be 100% and the communication process is said to be complete. (Refer David Berlos Model of Communication) Thus, communication is a two-way process. Fidelity of Communication Idea Idea Concept Encoder Medium Decoder Concept Message Message Information Information Fidelity of Communication David Berlos Model of Communication If necessary, the receiver may send a reply or may respond or react to the message. This response or reaction is also known as feedback. But sometimes, there may be no response at all from the receiver even if it is required. Absence of feedback can be attributed to either of the following reasons- a) the message does not reach the receiver or b) the receiver fails to understand the message. Such situations may arise due to the presence of some factor/s that can- a) obstruct the message from being transmitted or b) distort the meaning of the message. The factors that hamper the flow of communication are known as barriers to communication. (Refer Chapter 4 Resolving Barriers to Communication) Communication occurs in five phases and it consists of the following eight components which are inter-related: Idea Sender/Encoder (Speaker/Writer) Encoding Message Channel and Medium Receiver/Decoder (Reader/Listener) Decoding Feedback Let us now discuss in detail the various stages and elements involved in the communication process. PHASE I- IDEATING: 1) Idea Every message whether oral or written has its origin in an idea that germinates in the mind of the sender of the message. Every idea refers to some context. Context is a common frame of reference within which the sender and the receiver communicate with each other. Thus, the idea or information that the sender wants to convey to the receiver is the source of the message in the communication process. 2) Sender/Encoder The person who initiates the communication process is referred to as the encoder. The process of communication begins with the sender who identifies the need to communicate. He may want to inform or to persuade or to influence or to make the receiver take a particular course of action. The sender must have a clear picture in his mind about what he wants to communicate and should accordingly select symbols, words, images, etc. that would best convey his ideas to the receiver. He must identify his audience and formulate the message in such a way that the receiver understands fully what he intends to convey and interprets it within the same context. PHASE II- ENCODING: 3) Encoding Encoding takes place when the sender formulates his idea into a message to be transmitted to the receiver, using a series of symbols- verbal and/or non-verbal, written or oral. The sender should encode his message keeping in mind the purpose of communication and he should select words or symbols so as to make the receiver understand the communication correctly and to achieve the expected feedback. The sender as well as the receiver should attach the same meaning to the symbols or words, otherwise communication would fail. Thus, proper encoding is essential for successful communication. 4) Message That which is encoded, i.e. the idea/concept/information, is the message. Message is an idea transformed into words. It can be expressed in different ways depending on the subject-matter, purpose, audience, personal style and cultural background of the sender. It can be transmitted effectively only when it is well-formulated, clear, and complete in itself. PHASE III- TRANSMITTING: 5) Channel and Medium An appropriate medium chosen to send the message is known as channel. It is the vehicle which facilitates the sender to convey the message to the receiver. Channel is the system used to transmit a message, whereas medium is one of the forms or types used under that system. For example, oral communication is a channel and telephone conversation (a form of oral communication) is a medium. There are three broad channels of communication and there are several media under each- Channel Medium 1. Oral face-to-face conversation, telephone conversation, audio-tapes, voice mail, etc. 2. Written letters, memos, reports, manuals, notices, circulars, questionnaires, minutes, email, fax, etc. 3. Audio-visual cinema, television, video-tapes, video conferences, video chat, etc. Thus, there is a difference between medium and channel. The sender should decide the best possible channel and medium to transmit the message. The selection of an appropriate channel/medium would be influenced by the following factors- a) the nature of the message, b) the urgency of the message, c) the number of receivers, d) the cost factor, and e) the relationship between the sender and the receiver. PHASE IV- RECEIVING: 6) Receiver/Decoder The person who receives the encoded message is referred to as the decoder. He is the intended audience of the message. The receiver may be an individual or a group of individuals. As communication is a two-w

Communicating Information in Radioheads Music Albums :: Internet Net World Wide Web Media

Radiohead It is an important feature of the ideological system to impose on people the feeling that they really are incompetent to deal with complex and important issues: they'd better leave it to the captain. One device is to develop a star system, an array of figures who are often media creations or creations of the academic propaganda establishment, whose deep insights we are supposed to admire and to whom we must happily and confidently assign the right to control our lives and to control international affairs..." --Noam Chomsky, The Chomsky Reader Pasted on the inside of a Radiohead EP, Chomsky's quote serves as a reminder to the point these musicians are attempting to make: the essence of meaning is largely lost when reality is based on modern modes of information. In other words, the information one takes in is delivered in such an impersonal way, via multi-media, that the self is scattered in the saturation of these various mediums in an attempt to order information, or life. The word impersonal is used in the sense that the delivery has little to do with the meaning. Radiohead's latest release, "OK Computer," is about just that. "Everything spinning out of control," says front man Thom Yorke of Radiohead's latest album. Control is lost in the oversaturation of information, in which the complexity of information is so widespread that in a post-modern society meaning no longer adds up to a total, but instead schizophrenic patches with only relation to itself and not to anything else. It is in this where the fear of depthless ness in our society as a whole is felt. Take the advertising used by MTV for example. It is merely a barrage of extremely quick cuts, in which one can barely make out what each image is. First it may be an eyeball, then a car, them some white space, then a mathematical graph, then a plant, etc. After this the network's name is seen with the airdate of its newest show. Nothing had any relation to the next, or to the network or show, save only the fact that they were pasted next to one another. Post-modern critiquers such as Frederic Jameson would argue that this is a staple of post-modern depthlessness and schizophrenia found in today's society. The fact is, this advertising by MTV is seen as exciting and cutting edge due to the realization that today's society is so numbed down by media that the meaning isn't needed in such an advertisement because the medium sends the message of being "cool. Communicating Information in Radiohead's Music Albums :: Internet Net World Wide Web Media Radiohead It is an important feature of the ideological system to impose on people the feeling that they really are incompetent to deal with complex and important issues: they'd better leave it to the captain. One device is to develop a star system, an array of figures who are often media creations or creations of the academic propaganda establishment, whose deep insights we are supposed to admire and to whom we must happily and confidently assign the right to control our lives and to control international affairs..." --Noam Chomsky, The Chomsky Reader Pasted on the inside of a Radiohead EP, Chomsky's quote serves as a reminder to the point these musicians are attempting to make: the essence of meaning is largely lost when reality is based on modern modes of information. In other words, the information one takes in is delivered in such an impersonal way, via multi-media, that the self is scattered in the saturation of these various mediums in an attempt to order information, or life. The word impersonal is used in the sense that the delivery has little to do with the meaning. Radiohead's latest release, "OK Computer," is about just that. "Everything spinning out of control," says front man Thom Yorke of Radiohead's latest album. Control is lost in the oversaturation of information, in which the complexity of information is so widespread that in a post-modern society meaning no longer adds up to a total, but instead schizophrenic patches with only relation to itself and not to anything else. It is in this where the fear of depthless ness in our society as a whole is felt. Take the advertising used by MTV for example. It is merely a barrage of extremely quick cuts, in which one can barely make out what each image is. First it may be an eyeball, then a car, them some white space, then a mathematical graph, then a plant, etc. After this the network's name is seen with the airdate of its newest show. Nothing had any relation to the next, or to the network or show, save only the fact that they were pasted next to one another. Post-modern critiquers such as Frederic Jameson would argue that this is a staple of post-modern depthlessness and schizophrenia found in today's society. The fact is, this advertising by MTV is seen as exciting and cutting edge due to the realization that today's society is so numbed down by media that the meaning isn't needed in such an advertisement because the medium sends the message of being "cool.

Altran Case

Altran ID Altran is a European consulting firm created in France in 1982, by Alexis Kniazeff and Hubert Martigny. Leader in high technologies consultancy, it operates primarily in technology & innovation consultancy (about 50% turnover), administrative & information consultancy (33%) and strategy & management consulting (17%). The Group's mission is to assist companies in their efforts to create and develop new products and services. Altran is a key player in different sectors as Aerospace, Automotive, Energy, Railway, Finance, Healthcare and Telecoms sectors. In 2011, Altran had reached a turnover of 1. billion â‚ ¬, employing more than 15 000 employees with 200 branches in 20 countries to serve 500 major clients worldwide. The Altran group governance is held by an  Executive Committee  and a  Board of Directors  since June 2008. Philippe Salle (Chairman and Chief Executive elected by the members of the Board of Directors). The  Management Committee is made of members f rom the Executive Committee. Executives from the Geographies, the Industries and the Solutions and several  Group Directors including Purchasing, Communications, Legal, Marketing and  IT. The shares of the company are divided as follow : * 18. % are owned by the two founders and some members from the Executive Committee * 7. 2 % are owned by the Altran Director Funds * 74. 3 % are traded on the public stock exchange (where the principal shareholder is Apax Partners) Concerning the stakeholders, Altran operating at an international level, we can find a numerous variety : governments, employees, customers, experts, owners, investors†¦ The Scandal In 2002, 3 staff members from Altran (Michel Friedlander, Frederic Bonan and Alain Rougagnou) were suspected of theft, breach of trust, active and passive corruption, attempts of blackmail and manipulation of stock exchange quotations.The COB filed a complaint against the board of directors for dissemination of false information and for manipulating quotations. As a result, the price share dropped from 65. 60 â‚ ¬ on March 28th to 2. 53 â‚ ¬ on October 10th. The three directors at the centre of the accusations were. On February 13th 2003 they were dismissed and sued by Altran. This incident reflected the lack of transparency and regulations of the company and the ease with which the employees involved in the scandal appeared to have falsified and manipulated the accounts.It also shows the poor corporate governance and a lack of communication with the business world as well as the shareholders and stakeholders. In consequence, the group had to concentrate more on dealing with the crisis and falling share prices than developing their activity and their portfolio of clients. As a result Altran’s financial results were very unconvincing from 2002 to 2004. The European office also suffered (although indirectly) from this scandal because of the group necessity to dedicate its main financial and human eff orts to redress the company.Today, the price share is still very low (around 5 â‚ ¬) which reflect a lack of confidence from the shareholders as well as the European institutions. Refocusing strategy After the 2005 scandal and in order to improve its corporate image, Altran decided to change the governance of the company with the appointment of a new CEO in the person of Christophe Aulnette, former CEO of Microsoft France, as well as a new board of directors. The group then refocused its strategy on a different timeline  : In the short term, the new objectives were to develop quality proposals and rojects to public institutions. The idea was to benefit of the competencies of European professionals and to push on ideas based on Altran’s field of expertise. In the short and medium term, the goal was to influence innovation and evolution of European technological trends. The goal for the short and medium term is to become a real partner of the EU especially in the field of high technologies consultancy. In order to do that, Altran took the decision to work with a European affairs company with expertise in EU public affairs.Finally, in the long term, the ideas were to develop new services and competencies. The main target of the long term timeline was the increase of the field of expertise where Altran operates in order to increase the partnerships with European programs. Why the need of refocusing its strategy ? On the first hand, after the scandal, the group was obliged to reorganised its management as well as its short and long term strategy, mostly in order to regain some credibility and some ethical identity in front of the EU institutions.On the second hand, Altran had a portfolio of sectors and projects too vast to be covered efficiently. The new plan of action was developed to remediate the situation and the new timeline was designed as the best way to anticipate the issues. Finally, after analysis of the factors of future key success, Altran d iscovered that they needed to obtain more efficiency in their actions. Furthermore, if Altran wanted in the future to be recognized as a viable entity, it would need to acquire more transparency as well as a deeper knowledge of European institutions in order to operate on an international level.Recommendations On the company itself, we recommend a change of the business model. On the first time, Altran needs to decrease the number of its subsidiaries. By going back to an in-house style of management and centralizing the growth and the financing strategy of its units, it would be able to reduce the workforce without losing in competitiveness and therefore, becoming more profitable. On the second time, in order to reassure the shareholders and stakeholders, an important work must be done on the level of public relations.Showing that the company is totally transparent would bring back some investing cash flow and ensure the viability as well as stability of the price share. Finally, we recommend that the European office model be reproduced on the Asian as well as on the American continent. Considering the financial crisis Europe is going through nowadays and the market opportunities of some emerging countries like India and Brazil, we think that launching new offices centralizing the work flow on those continents would be the next step toward Altran globalization strategy.

famine essays

famine essays In this article, Peter Singer considers the question of whether it is morally ok for affluent people to spend their money on luxuries for themselves while less fortunate people are starving. For demonstrating his point of view, he used the state of East Bengal, where many people were suffering from constant poverty, a cyclone, and a civil war. He believed that the decisions and actions of human beings can prevent this incident. With his example, Bengal incident, he throws a considerable argument. Which is the reactions from the people in rich nation towards the Bengal incident can not be justified. To begin his argument he makes some assumptions. First, suffering and death from lack of food, shelter, and medical care are bad. Second, if it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, we ought, morally, to do it. However, the principal is being deceptive because it takes no account of proximity or distance. Meaning that there is no moral difference whether the person I am capable of helping is someone, I knew for long time, ten yards away from me, or someone, I never met, thousand miles away from me. And, the principle makes no distinction between cases in which I am the only person who could possibly do anything and cases in which I am just one amound millions in the same position. By using this statement, he also says that this could be the reason why people in rich nation would not give their supports to Bengal, in other words, if a person is physically near to us, it makes it more likely that we shall help him, but, yet it is still not justified because even if the people in rich nation is far away from Bengal, they still can help the people in Bengal by using instant communications and swift transportation. No possible justification is given to the discriminating on geographical grounds. ...

Load Shedding Term Essays

Load Shedding Term Essays Load Shedding Term Essay Load Shedding Term Essay The elections of 2008 and 2013 have been lost by incumbents because of load-shedding. The next government has been chosen by the electorate for its reputation for completing projects it fancies, come what may. Naturally, it expects the same to see the end of load-shedding. So deep is the penetration of the power related anger in the public at large that even a hint of the continuation of the inaction of the past may bring the government down sooner than later.Pakistan may be among the countries with the lowest consumption of energy per capita, but every power failure transmits the message of incompetence to almost all households in a split second. The vibes coming from the PML-N suggest that the Mian brothers are suffering from too much advice. The worst piece of advice was on load-shedding. Nawaz Sharif went public with describing load-shedding as problem number one. But he would not commit on a deadline. He made fun of Shahbaz Sharif for giving such deadlines.Fair enough, if he himself had not given deadlines on other issues. Why, might one ask, have a programme for the first 100 days of government? Is this laundry list even necessary? There are only three issues that deserve the fullest attention of the government in the first 100 days: load-shedding, load-shedding and net outflow of capital. For the rest, work should start on a financeable medium-term programme. By announcing the finance minister first and the energy minister afterwards, the leadership seemed indecisive about the order of priorities.By luck, some new power projects started by the previous government might mature in 1,000 days. The public understands that new supply cannot be added to the system in the immediate or near term. What is entirely possible in 100 days is to take effective measures on three counts - conservation, efficiency and, for lack of a better term, governance. Taken seriously by all and sundry, conservation alone can add upwards of 1,500MW. Efficiency or energy intensity is another area that can augment supply in a short time.Pakistan uses more energy to produce one dollar of its GDP than countries with a much higher GDP per capita. There are well-known ways of improving energy efficiency at the level of households, businesses and government. Finally, governance has become the Achilles’ heel of the energy sector. The so-called circular debt is its worst manifestation. Even if the present level of this huge debt is cleared up in one stroke, as Mian Nawaz Sharif has said he would, the problem can recur if the culture of not paying up on time and across-the-board subsidies continues.Receivables routinely exceed payables by wide margins because price does not cover cost, cost conceals theft and wastage and all players wait for the government to bail them out. Fuel allocation is distorted as no distinction is made between efficient and inefficient plants. From imported coal to gas, the priority for electricity to captive plants is a cobweb of corruption and vested interests, nurtured by a structure that is decentralised in name only.As for the net capital outflow, I have been saying and will say it again that there is no need to rush to the IMF. Regulatory duty on inessential imports, recovery of the overdue $800 million from Etisalat and a transparent 3G auction will support fiscal, as well as current account balance, for 100 days. This is enough time to prepare a national reform programme and think carefully about whether to implement it with or without the IMF. Published in The Express Tribune, May 24th, 2013.

Accsys Technologies Plc - Wood Production and Sale Assignment

Accsys Technologies Plc - Wood Production and Sale - Assignment Example The revenue cycle of an entity is an inherent risk, and auditors are required to assess this by performing the necessary tests to determine whether it is free of error of fraud. This inherent audit risk is related to the cutoff for some sales. It also stems from the management pressure to misstate revenues. It is, therefore, critical that auditors use the necessary tests of control and substantive procedures to give an assurance that revenues have been correctly recorded. The issues in revenue recognition start from the consignment sales refund and return rights, round-trip sales, gross sales as well as bill and hold transactions. The management overstates revenues so as to indicate that the company is performing well, thus encouraging investors and impressing the top level management. There are also cases where, human error causes the risk of revenue audit during the revenue recording where wrong amounts are recorded, or the recording is done at the wrong time. According to Colby (2012), financial statement fraud through revenues takes different forms among the timing differences and fictitious revenues. Through fictitious revenues, the concerned parties record sales that never occurred. They achieve this by manipulating or creating transactions that enhance an entity’s reported earnings. Revenues are typically fabricated through the creation of fake customers and sales. There are instances where the artificial sales involve legitimate customers through the creation of phoney invoices or price or quantity increases. The audit procedures that an auditor develops in relation to revenue auditing and the a ssessment of their outcome calls for an understanding of how the organisation operates as well as its environment. Through the timing differences, financial statement fraud arises because revenues and/or expenses are recorded in the improper period. The revenues are recognised early before it is earned leading to an immediate increase in the entity's income using legitimate sales as opposed to cases of phoney sales.  

Feminism in Iran Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Feminism in Iran - Essay Example Such a rejection in Islamic societies is often associated with the fact that it is seen as being part of western, middle class ideology and a very negative aspect of modernization. Modern day Iran is a strongly fundamentalist Islamic nation, at least as far as those who control it are concerned, with only 2% of the population being non-Islamic. Of the Muslims 89% are Sunnis and the rest are Shia. Despite all the elderly clerics who the media seem to concentrate upon Iran is a relatively young country with a median age of 28.6 years and only 5% of people living beyond retirement age.( World Fact Book, undated) Both sexes average the same length of schooling, but men out do women as far as literacy rates go – a difference of 13.1% in 2002. (World Fact Book) . The women have comparatively few children compared with many other countries – an average of 1.88 each. This is in part explained by an infant mortality rate running at almost 10 times that of the United Kingdom (World Fact Book), but also be the easy availability of contraception. What the figures do not show is how a society that was privately patriarchal has now become publicly patriarchal. Has women’s position really been changed as the post revolutionary state put in place a strongly patriarchal system of legislation – or is it just that the control over women has become more public – as the picture at the head of this piece seems to show? Less than 4 weeks after the downfall of the ruling family and the exit of the Shah, Khomeini was launching an attack on female Iranians. His timing was important - the eve of International Women’s Day - this was when he demanded a strict observance of Islamic dress codes.(Shahidian 2002, page 112) In June 2009 there were elections in Iran. The two main contenders were Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the pro- polygamy incumbant, and Mir-Hossein Mousavi, a more liberal thinker who had vowed to remove laws which were oppressing women . However he did not win the election . In the period immediately followin g the Second World War many Islamic nations embraced modern , Western inspired ideas. ( Haddad and Esposito 1998, page ix) .These ideas included such things as educational patterns, legislation and social codes. Mnay women stopped wearing the veil and became increasing involved in public activities, and to a certain extent barriers between the sexes were