Strategic Marketing Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Strategic Marketing Assignment - Essay Example It has same responsibilities as in any large corporations that could be found. 3.2.2 Senior management is comprised of talented and experienced people in the industry, and was given specific responsibilities in the company’s operation. Giving responsibilities is an act of recognition of talents which according to Deutsch, Barry n.d. is one way of keeping best employees. An example is Neil Montefiere, the current CEO and Executive Director of StarHub who brought with him his 36 years of telecom experience. Neil was chosen as Asia’s Best Executive and one of the 100 most powerful people in the industry in 2010. (See Annex 1 ) Corporate culture is defined as an organization’s shared values, symbols, behaviors and assumptions or simply put, ‘it is the way things are done†. (Jason, Martin. M. 2006) StarHub has a vision â€Å"to be Singapore’s first choice for information, communication, and entertainment services† and a mission â€Å"To provide every person, home and business in Singapore with world-class multimedia services and content. (Starhub 2012) StarHub considers people as their as their most important assets in the communication industry. Management fosters a work culture that values teamwork, customer responsiveness and reliability. Its core values are Excellence, Integrity and Teamwork. In setting up, Pophal, Linda.( 2009)said goals for business should be realistic, measurable and achievable. For this purpose, goal is to increase customer base by 10% in 2013. But how could this be done? These could be done by wrapping up the 4Ps of business – the product, price, place and promotion. Although Starhub Mobile is the last entrant to the Singapore’s mobile market, operating nation-wide, it is now the nation’s second largest mobile service provider. It is recognized by customers due to its innovative and pioneering services and pricing plans offered to users. For

Defining the Nature of Happiness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Defining the Nature of Happiness - Essay Example The happier you are, the better your life is going for you. Yet the nature of happiness remains controversial. Some claim that happiness is fundamentally a matter of sensory pleasure and pain - if you are experiencing a favorable balance of pleasurable sensations over painful ones, you are happy. Others say that to be happy is to be getting your desires satisfied, whatever these desires may be. Still others say that to be happy is to be satisfied with your life as a whole."1 There are many ways which a person can do to himself to feel happy. Everybody is in the pursuit of happiness and in my view there is no way that person feel ultimate happiness. Some aspect of art and some of science are necessary for sense happiness for short time period. Nothing is forever neither happiness; it doesn't mean that the person feel guilty or sad because of that thing which made him happy. Everybody after sometime will have new aim to fulfill which they think will make them happy. Satisfaction leads to happiness, so in whatever condition we are we should do ignore our bigger aims and concentrate on little things which will make us happy on daily basis. We should count all our blessings and write it in a journal which will give you satisfaction. You should practice some acts of kindness like give charity or help someone genuinely. Relish joys of life, remember all the good moments of your life which will make you smile in less happy moments. If there is a mentor who has helped you in any way which had made things better in your life, thank him. Forgive a person who has hurt you by writing an email or giving him a phone call and it will help you a lot to move on. Personal relationship should be developed like visit family or spend time with friends; you will not feel lonely and sad. There is nobody who hasn't seen hardships of life, so religion will be your savior and believe in 'this shall too pass'. You have to take a lot of care of your body because healthy life is necessary to be happy, irregular timings of sleeps and meals will lead to sickness and you will be worried. Take plenty of sleep, practice smiling and exercise to feel better3. One of the greatest delusions related to happiness is that one need money to be happy. But if you study people around then you will feel there is not much truth in it, as rich people do not automatically become happy if they get money and poor people do not automatically unhappy if they don't get money4. Another big misconception about happiness is that one needs someone else to be happy. Happiness comes from within oneself and a person can himself control their happiness. The third big misconception about being happy is that one needs to be lucky to be happy. Happiness doesn't depend on luck. Happiness is to open oneself to happiness and to look for places where one can find happiness. So one should have a positive approach towards life; one should not wait for happiness to come to them but you have to open your life to be happy. There are many realistic benefits which can cultivate higher levels of personal importance, satisfaction and happiness, besides just "feeling

Social Effects Of The Cruise Industry Tourism Essay

Social Effects Of The Cruise Industry Tourism Essay The social impact of the cruise industry on the cruises particular destination has a few positive effects. When cruise tourists arrive at ports of destination, interactions between local residents and cruise tourists can benefit both parties. The cruise tourists have the opportunity to gain knowledge regarding the lifestyle and culture of the local people, and vice-versa; residents can learn about the lifestyles of their guests from various places around the world. However, a high interaction level between residents and cruise tourists can have drawbacks. Tourists can limit the personal space of residents, due to the high population of cruise tourists. Eventually, high levels of interaction between cruise tourists and local inhabitants could change the local inhabitants unique lifestyles. This brings to light the point of social damage, as social and cultural damage is one of the main arguments against tourism. In the context of tourism, cruise tourists are typically wealthier than l ocals of popular cruise destinations. This evidently creates social problems; for example, hierarchies are created that can cause tension between cruise tourists and locals. Furthermore, new and unusual ideas brought in by cruise tourists can make locals envious and want to copy the tourists who can seem more wealthy and stylish. Social damage caused by the cruise industry can also be supported by the idea of competition of space. This is triggered when large amounts of cruise tourists, usually two or three cruise ships, arrive at small ports. When large amounts of cruise ships arrive, the number of cruise tourists ratio to locals is large. According to Espinal, 2005, Bahamas has 11 cruise guests to 1 local; Aruba has 8 cruise guests to 1 local; Antigua and Barbuda, 7 to 1; and Dominica, 5 to 1 (When was this? Was this the case for the entire year of 2005? Was it an average?). However, this ratio is only true to small parts. Large cities such as Miami, Barcelona, and European countries differ. In fact, highly populated cities have the opposite effect, because cruise tourist numbers are rather small compared to on-land tourists or residents. The competition of space enhances through the fight for cruise ships by neighbouring ports to attract cruise ships for economic benefits. The fight continues between the c ruise ship industry and the cargo shipping industry to gain port space. Another dilemma of space continues between on land tourists and cruise tourists. When cruise tourists arrive at destinations, on land tourists are forced to wait in line for attractions such as monuments and museums, and wonder why it is overcrowded at the beach. Finally, the idea of competition of space limits the transportation benefits. What hurts transportation the most is when large amounts of cruise tourists arrive at destinations which causes volatility in the demand for transportation (e.g. taxis). Environmental Impact of the Cruise Industry The cruise industry is the fastest growing industry in the travel industry. With enormous growth in the number of passengers, the number of cruise ships at sea, and the increased variety of destinations, followed by bigger and more luxurious cruise ships to keep up with the increase of demand; the substantial growth in the industry follows with increasing impact on the environment. Like many hospitality and travel industries, the negative impacts on the environment outweigh the positive impacts. Even though the cruise industry is relatively small compared to the airline industry, cruise ships and their passengers generate more volume of waste and pollutant emissions while travelling and docked in port. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a one week voyage generates more than 50 tonnes of garbage. During that same week 3.785 million litres of waste water is produced. That is water that is harmful to the ocean life and cannot be dumped back into the ocean wi thout it being treated. Furthermore, 794,850 litres of sewage, 95,000 litres of oil contaminated water, and 568 litres of hazardous waste is produced. These numbers are multiplied by more than 200 cruise ships sailing the world 365 days a year. In comparison to other travel industries, a cruise ship such as Queen Mary 2 emits 0.43 kg of Carbon dioxide per passenger mile, compared to 0.257 kg for a long-haul flight (Climate Care). In comparison to on-land tourists, cruise ship passengers generate 3.5 kg of garbage while 0.8 kg of garbage is generated by on-land tourists. (http://www.uneptie.org/pc/tourism/sust-tourism/env-3main.htm). In addition to pollution, coral reefs are taking significant damages. According to Ocean Planet, there are 109 countries with coral reefs. In 90 of them, reefs are being damaged by cruise ship anchors and sewage. It is said 70% of cruise destinations are in these biodiversity hot spots. However, it is not the amount of pollution and damages generated by cruise ships that most are concerning, but rather, the way cruise ships dispose their waste. Cruise ship waste disposal is highly unregulated, where waste can be dumped a few short miles off shore, which is later brought back to shore due to ocean currents. In the past, discharge from cruise ships exceeds the water quality standards set by National Authorities in relations to bacteria level, metals, and hydrocarbons and plastic. In most cases, there was no monitoring, no enforcements and no deprivation from local authorities if cruise ships violated the pollution standards. While the cruise industry continues to promote itself as environmentally friendly, the truth is, there are many instances of cruise ships breaking the law. A single cruise company can accumulate hundreds of pollution violations, which have resulted in payments of millions of dollars in environmental fines. However, in some cases, environmental inc idents have been accidental, due to simple human and mechanical error, such as fuel discharge from cruise ship loading fuel at ports. Since the increased harmful effects on the environment have come to light, the cruise industry has done its part by improving their efforts in processing waste onboard. As technology increases, their ability to become more eco-friendly becomes a priority. Holland American Line has invested $1.5 million into a program called Seawater Scrubber Pilot. This program looks for opportunities to reduce engine emission on its ships. The Sea Water Scrubber system uses the natural chemistry of seawater to remove all sulphur oxide. The seawater is then treated to remove harmful components before dumping it overboard (world cruise industry review). Even though recycling and using green materials is only a small step, it makes a big difference. Take Crystal Cruises for example. They are introducing 100% recyclable coat hangers, which prevents 9 billion wire and plastic hangers from being sent to landfills each year. They are also using washable and reusable garment bags instead of plastic laundry bags (world cruise industry review). On the major scale, most cruise ship companies are taking steps to map out global routes where waste discharge will cause the least damage to delicate ecosystems. Another major effort that some cruise ship companies are implementing is scheduling their arrival and departure time so cruise ships use less fuel while docking. Princess Cruises has invested $4.5 million to implement a cold-ironing program in Alaska. This is when ships plug into a ports electricity supply while docked in order to get hydroelectric power on board. This is the same concept as a hybrid car. The cost of equipping each ship is $500,000 where the benefits outweigh the costs. In California, 70% of cancer risk is due to the toxic air contaminants created by diesel. The biggest contribution to these toxins is cargo-handling equipment and the ships use of diesel engines while at port. With the use of the cold-ironing program, ships will not create this harmful pollutant that cau ses many environmental problems. Companies are taking the next step to keep their ships as cool as possible to eliminate excessive stress on air conditioners in addition to maintaining speeds at fuel efficient speeds. Crystal cruises has begun auditing its ships lighting and energy consumption. They are saving more than 960,000 kW/h per year, which is equivalent to nearly 200 tonnes of fuel a year. Economic Impacts of the Cruise Industry Cruise tourism is the fastest growing tourism industry in the last twenty years. Since 1990, the cruise industry has an average annual passenger growth rate of 7.4 percent per year, and in 1980, more than 163 million passengers have taken cruises longer than 2 days. Of the 163 million passengers, 56 percent of the passengers were generated within the last 10 years (CLIA, 2008). The industry has high potential in providing economic benefits to port states. Conversely, accommodating large cruise ships into ports need a lot of initial investments to build infrastructure and to maintain those infrastructures. With cruise ships growing in size more investments is needed to withstand larger ships. With scenarios of high infrastructure cost, rapid growth in tourism may result in stagflation or even a decline in GDP (Chase, 2001). For small cities, significant foreign investment is needed for these infrastructures, and it is questionable for many whether construction of the ports is cost-efficient. The majority of the state ports generate economic benefits from cruise ship tourism by generating revenue through passenger spending, person head taxes, dockage fees, and port entry. Passenger spending is the greatest benefit in supporting cruise tourism due to great deal of new money coming into the economy and creation of new jobs. According to an annual study by the International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL), United States is the primary beneficiary of the Global economic impact of more than 75 percent of the cruise expenditures made with United States based business. U.S. ports account for 75 percent of 10.85 million passengers embankments worldwide. Since, United States is the majority of the Cruise Line industry, we will analyse the economic impact on the United States. Economic Impact of the Cruise Industry on the United States The impact of the cruise industry on the United States has both negative and positive results. Reasons for the negative result are due to the increase presence in the European market, and the increase in the Caribbean ports used for cruise embarkment. As a result, United States experienced a decline in its share of the global cruise industry and experiences a decline in the number of passengers embarking for the U.S. ports (CLIA, 2008). Table 1-1 shows that in 2008 United States, passenger embarkment totalled 8.96 million, a 2.4 percent decline from the previous year, with the majority of the global passenger of 69 percent. Table 1-1 In 2008, decline in its market power is due to hurricanes disrupting destinations to the Caribbean. Hurricanes such as Ike severely damaged retail facilities at ports in Turks and Caicos for nearly a month. In addition, Hurricane Ike consequently shut down cruise terminal ports in Galveston, Texas, for nearly two months due to landfall. The biggest factor in decline of the United States embarkment was the transfer of Pride of Hawaii and the Pride of Aloha by Norwegian Cruise Lines. This resulted in a decline of more than 200,000 passengers, which accounts for 75 percent of net decline of passenger embarking from the U.S. ports (CLIA, 2008). The growth of the industry spending including passenger and crew has slowed to 2 percent to $19.07 billion in 2008. This was the weakest growth in domestic spending since BEA began compiling these statistics (CLIA, 2008). The expenditures by the cruise lines including wages and taxes totalled to $15.67 billion which accounted for 82 percent of spe nding. This was the weakest growth in the cruise line expenditure since 2001.

George Orwells Nineteen Eighty-Four 1984 :: essays research papers

Nineteen Eighty Four Short Essay   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Canada, we have the freedom to do almost anything. In the novel Nineteen Eighty Four, there is no freedom. Although there are no laws in Oceania, there are consequences to doing thoughtcrime. The consequences are used not for punishment but for the limitation of people who may perform a crime in the future. There are many differences in our society today and the society that of Nineteen Eighty Four. In our society today, we encourage thinking. Even in schools, children are taught to express themselves in any way possible. Story writing, acting, or even art, there are a variety of ways to achieve that while in Oceania, children are taught to spy on their parents to see if they are having thoughtcrimes. Thoughtcrime is a word in Newspeak that controls any individual thought. One cannot think on his or her own. He or she can only think what the government tells or allows him or her to think. If they are ever caught with thoughtcrime, he or she would be vapourized. Freedom of speech is limited due to the fact that thought can lead to the destruction of the government. Speech is also restricted due the Newspeak. Newspeak limits the words one can use to eliminate thoughtcrime. Without words, one cannot fully express themselves.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The people of Oceania do not have the freedom of expression like we do. Without thought, there is no expressions of any kind, which makes him or her a goodthinker. A goodthinker is one that knows naturally, without thought, how to behave or act according to the government. In society today, there is freedom of expression everywhere. In magazines, on televisions, on people themselves and even communication. People express themselves through their clothing, while in the book, everyone wears the same thing. There is no freedom of expression whatsoever. In both magazines and television, people express their opinion all the time with no fear of being vapourized or the fear of the consequences the community of Oceania has to face. Today, people will protest against the government for what they believe in. For example, teachers protested Bill 160 in the streets against the government. There would never be public protests against the government in Oceania.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  History is important for one to know of what has happened in the past and learn from it. We are able to learn history through books, videos and even from people.

In what ways can ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ be seen as a modern tragedy? Essay

The ways in which ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ by Tennessee Williams can be seen as a modern tragedy, or indeed as any tragedy is a subject of much contention. The answer lies in one’s interpretation of the characters in the context of the genre; the tragedy is made or discarded depending on whether the audience’s sympathy lies with Blanche or Stanley. In order to explore these interpretations one must define the features of modern tragedy as opposed to the ancient Aristotelian definition. The two share some features, such as the violation of the ‘natural order’ of social or personal relationships (i.e. Oedipus’ incestuous relationship with his mother), and the focus on a tragic hero’s fall from status, respect, and in classical tragedies from power and wealth. However, there are also stark differences in modern tragedy where (especially in Williams’ plays) the hero is more likely to be feminine. Although this is not exclusive to modern tragedies – in Sophocles’ ‘Antigone’ the protagonist is female – it is certainly a feature. Social issues are also treated more personally as the epic scale of civil unrest present in most Aristotelian tragedies is discarded in favor of a focus on a single family unit as a microcosm of social behaviour. As a result, the characters themselves become far more complex – a far cry from Aristotle’s theory that characters should merely serve to advance the tragic plot. Broadly speaking then, ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ certainly fits the prescriptions of a modern tragedy, not least as it contains several complex themes such as alienation, entrapment and the struggle between fantasy and reality. Written in 1947 soon after the Great Depression and a period of prohibition when the borders between social classes were becoming more blurred, these play on the very real threats of alcoholism and social decline. Blanche’s constant drinking becomes a symptom of her alienation from society, which was in turn caused by her estrangement from her late husband, Allen Grey. Stella asserts that Blanche â€Å"didn’t just love him but worshipped the ground he walked on† – a religious phrase that contrasts deeply with her later disgust of Grey’s homosexuality. For Williams, living as he did in the often deeply religious, homophobic south, Allen Grey’s suicide would have constituted a tragedy even when separated from the rest of the play. It certainly illustrates the close links that Williams draws between love, alienation and death; Grey’s separation from Blanche causes his death, which in turn leads to her own isolation. This isolation is further illustrated by the metaphor of light; Blanche constantly insists that the lights be dimmed â€Å"turn that over-light off!†, and even directly likens her love for Allen Grey to a â€Å"blinding light† – it is clear that the darkness is Blanche’s alienation, her punishment for driving him to suicide. Yet light also reveals Blanche’s struggle between fantasy and reality. She cannot bear to see herself in the harsh light of day – even â€Å"screams† during the final scene when Stanley rips the covering off the lamp, completely destroying Blanche’s already splintering fantasy world. This hysterical reaction demonstrates her dependence on the delusions of grandeur and romance that she only half-believes. Blanche is trapped by her own volition; a state echoed in many other of Williams’ tragedies including ‘The Glass Menagerie’, where the character of Amanda is similarly ensnared in a more glamorous past. The play also ascribes to another feature of modern tragedy; the focus on a very small, ordinary family unit as opposed to the monarchs in plays such as ‘Macbeth’ or ‘Hamlet’. It is clear that the clash of Stanley and Blanche is representative of a much bigger division between the old and the new America, and yet their placement in a tiny family setting emphasises their effect on the ‘ordinary American’ – Stella – who is caught in the crossfire of social differences. However merely dealing with these issues, as compelling as they are, only comprises a single aspect of the ways in which ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ can be seen as a modern tragedy. Indeed, for the play to be called a tragedy at all a defining feature must be covered, and that is the existence of a ‘tragic hero’ whose presence drives the action forward. Therefore, our understanding of ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ as a modern tragedy must to a large extent rely on whether we can interpret Blanche as Williams’ tragic heroine. She certainly bears a striking surface resemblance to the ancient tragic heroes in her evident fall from high to low, from Belle Reve to the Elysian Fields. This is made evident in her first entrance; her appearance is described as ‘incongruous’ and techniques such as the repetition of â€Å"Stella, oh Stella, Stella!† stress her hysterical inability to cope with her new surroundings. However even this is punctuated in the stage directions with â€Å"feverish vivacity† – suggesting a desperate or false behaviour at odds with the ancient definition of the tragic hero as an essentially noble character. This is emphasised later in the scene by the first suggestion of Blanche’s alcoholism as she â€Å"rushes† to the liquor closet â€Å"panting for breath†, and corroborated as evidence of her sordid affairs at the Hotel Flamingo is revealed. Indeed Blanche herself talks about the â€Å"rattle-trap streetcar† called Desire that â€Å"brought me here†, indicating that her downfall was caused by her own â€Å"brutal desire†. Yet if we do accept that Blanche has already completely fallen into poverty and alcoholism, then the play itself becomes the mere aftermath of a tragedy; the effect of a destroyed character upon her surroundings. Some critics would agree completely with this standpoint – indeed the director of the stage debut, Elia Kazan, portrayed Blanche as a â€Å"phony, corrupt, sick, destructive woman†Ãƒ ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ wrecking Stanley’s home who deserved – indeed needed – to be driven out. However, this view utterly destroys any tragic perception of ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ by necessitating a total support of Stanley’s actions (â€Å"This makes Stanley right!†)1 – leading to a ‘happy ending’ wherein the Kowalski’s can proceed happily with their lives. While this may have been a suitable presentation for the still largely patriarchal 1940’s, in modern productions a new outlook must be considered. It cannot be ignored that Stanley (however justifiably) incapacitates Blanche both mentally and emotionally as he destroys her refined persona – â€Å"There isn’t a goddam thing but imagination!† – until she is reduced to â€Å"inhuman cries†, constituting Blanche’s fall from sanity as the basis for a tragic fall from high to low, as opposed to any material loss. Although it is true that Blanche is less of a hero possessing a tragic flaw than an anti-hero with a single redeeming feature – in this case her doomed relationship with Allen Grey that has fuelled her desires ever since – practically all of Blanche’s flaws can be explained (if not excused) by her tragic experiences. Her deception of Mitch is the desperation of a woman alone in a patriarchal society whose only chance of security is to attract a husband. Her alcoholism is merely a further coping mechanism, and her constant bathing an attempt to cleanse herself of her sordid affairs. This is consolidated by her wish to be buried â€Å"into an ocean as blue as my first lover’s eyes†, the reference to water again suggesting her desire to be purified and return to the happier days of her youth. Blanche’s tragedy is therefore not merely her fall from status, but her inability to move on from her past. As Dale Carnegie said: â€Å"One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon, instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today.†2 Yet despite all this evidence providing sympathy with Blanche, Williams seems determined to keep the balance of right and wrong utterly ambiguous. For example in Scene Eight, soon after Blanche’s extremely poignant line â€Å"candles burn out in little boys’ and girls’ eyes† – a clear reference to her past with Grey – she calls Stanley a â€Å"healthy Polack†. This ignorant, racist comment distances Blanche again, and Stanley’s reply â€Å"what I am is a one hundred percent American†, would have immediately re-endeared him to the audience, especially at a time of such social integration. It is this uncertainty as to who we should support – Blanche or Stanley – that really questions the existence of a tragic hero in ‘A Streetcar named Desire’. Even the alternative, as stated by C.W.E. Bigsby, that â€Å"the real hero of the play, therefore, is Stella, for she alone is prepared to offer the necessary comfort†3 is a flawed argument. Although Stella is the most sympathetic character, this is not synonymous with heroic as she is ultimately subdued by Stanley into forcing Blanche away; a far cry from offering her ‘the necessary comfort’. Unlike in Shakespearian tragedies such as ‘Othello’ where the enemy is clearly portrayed, Williams blurs the distinctions between right and wrong until the play more resembles the tragedies of Sophocles, which are essentially concerned with the crisis of right versus right leading to an outcome in which no-one wins. So, although critics such as Joseph Wood Krutch state that â€Å"Tragedy must have a hero if it is not to be merely an accusation against, instead of a justification of the world in which it occurs†4 this is not necessarily true. ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’, along with many other Tennessee Williams’ plays such as ‘The Glass Menagerie’ is tragic not because it details the fall of a hero, but precisely because it contains no hero at all. Modern tragedy is itself an accusation against a grey, mundane world of ordinary people, for whom the only escape is through self-delusion, alcohol, sex or madness. In this respect ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ becomes the ultimate example of modern tragedy as, after Blanche’s entire existence is shattered, the others merely resume their poker game. The entire play is built around this tragic indifference, both with the detached ending â€Å"This game is seven-card stud† and the very preface, where Williams foreshadows Blanche’s inevitable destruction with the words of Hart Crane, â€Å"And so it was that I entered the broken world.† Bibliography Williams, Tennessee. ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’, Pearson Education Limited 1995 (copyright Estate of the late Tennessee Williams 1947) Bigsby, Christopher W. E. ‘Tennessee Williams: Streetcar to Glory’, Harold Bloom Krutch, Joseph Wood. ‘The Tragic Fallacy’ 1929, in Tragedy: Vision and Form, Ed. Robert W. Corrigan, New York: Harper, 1981 Kazan, Elia. ‘Kazan on Directing’, Knopf Publishing Group, 2009 (copyright Frances Kazan) Carnegie, Dale. ‘How to Stop Worrying and Start Living’, Pocket Books; Revised edition, 1990 Aristotle. ‘Poetics’, Penguin Books Ltd, 1996 1 Kazan, Elia. ‘Kazan on Directing’, Knopf Publishing Group, 2009 (copyright Frances Kazan) 2 Carnegie, Dale. ‘How to Stop Worrying and Start Living’, Pocket Books; Revised edition, 1990 3 Bigsby, Christopher W. E. ‘Tennessee Williams: Streetcar to Glory’, Harold Bloom 4 Krutch, Joseph Wood. ‘The Tragic Fallacy’ 1929 in Tragedy: Vision and Form, Ed. Robert W. Corrigan, New York: Harper, 1981

Research Paper on Hitler and Stalin

Research Paper on Hitler and Stalin Though Stalinist Russia and Hitlerian Germany had different rhetoric, they were both totalitarian dictatorships that sought to attain total power for both leaders. Both evidenced a singleness of goal combined with complete tactical flexibility and shared a passion to dominate all around them. Appeal to the lowest classes ensured that the masses supported their rule, as both realised that one of the central ideas to attaining power was through the lower classes. Both used government to control and exercise power; Hitler, by legalising his actions, and Stalin, by using force. Propaganda and secret police ensured that, if indoctrination failed, then terror would reign supreme, instilling fear into the people and ensuring their control. Part of elevating themselves to total power was their appeal to the lower classes. Because lower and middle classes made up the majority of Germany, and basically all of Russia, they reached the highest positions by appealing to the lowest classes. Like Stalin, Hitler treated policies and tactics as matters, not of principle, but of expediency, the object of which was to gain support and win power. For example, the lower classes that had been absorbed into the Nazi party were seduced by the promise of the closing down of the big department stores and consumer co-operatives. This was an attractive promise to the lower class because they were the smaller competition to these big businesses and they would benefit economically by their elimination as rivals. However, Hitler had no intention of doing this, but used its promise to gain support from the lower classes. Stalin wooed the lower classes of Russia to gain power. He broadened the base of the Communist Party by insisting it had to recruit 50 000 more workers. This helped public perception that the party embraced the proletariat. Stalin saw the support of the proletariat necessary because of the size of Russias peasant population, which was around eighty percent of the whole population. Since the peasants lived in abject poverty, Stalin believed he could win them through promising economic and social reform through collectivisation. Collectivisation was the conversion of the individual farms and strips of land owned by the peasants into large collective farms. Collectivisation was attractive to the peasants because it promised to end the centuries old backwardness of Russia and turn it into a modern, industrialised society. By appealing to the lower classes, each man attained support of their totalitarian dictatorships, which thus allowed them to elevate their power. Both emphasised leadership as a means of national unification to establish their total control. Stalin created an ideology based on a perversion of communism. He preached Socialism in One Country, which meant that everybody had to work to ensure the victory of communism in Russia. The building of such ideology, he preached, would enforce unity in Russia. But communism is about class conflict, and unifying people to one goal turned communism into nationalism, so this was Stalins way of obtaining power, perverting communism so that the people turned to him, unified. Stalin took power by emphasising leadership to ensure the victory of the already established communist state. He saw his mission as ending the centuries old backwardness of Russia and turning a peasant society into a modern industrialised one.Hitlerian Germany was based on the Fuhrerprinzip, visualizing the concentration of power in the hands of a leader, unlimited by any kind of constitutional or parliamentary control, with authority to direct the state. Nazi ideology was Hitlers ideology, and he manipulated and indoctrinated his followers to achieve his aims and beliefs. This is shown in Nazi rhetoric: One nation, one people, one leader! Both emphasised their leadership as a mean of national amalgamation to ensure their total power. Both Hitler and Stalin used their ideology to eliminate their rivals. Stalin was preoccupied with building an instrument in the party organization which would enforce unity, and defeat the opposition to this of other groups in the party. Stalins desire to justify the doctrine of socialism in one country, which he insisted had been formulated by Lenin, was discredited by Trotsky and Zinoviev. So he relied on a packed congress to vote them down, and, one after another, his critics were silenced, which allowed him to continue his totalitarian rule. The clash of ideas between these leaders was imperative because Trotsky and Zinoviev believed in the idea of World Communism, based on the writings of Marx, when Communism would embrace the world and become the way of life. Stalins Socialism in One Country, which he argued was established by Lenin, contradicted the ideas of Trotsky and Zinoviev, who had conclusive evidence that Lenin did not establish the idea of Socialism in One Country. Thi s threat to Stalins ideology was eliminated because he could not maintain his philosophy if there was opposition to it, and he could not establish his tyrannical rule with opposition, so he got rid of it! Hitler gained total control of the state, as well, but he did by controlling the political processes. The Enabling Act gave him the power to make or change existing laws, including the right to alter the constitution and the right to draft laws. This allowed him to pass laws forbidding any political party, apart from the National Socialists. This also gave him the power to eliminate threat inside the party. This led to the Night of The Long Knives, in which he eliminated Roehm ,who as leader of the SA, held tremendous power and loyalty. Roehms desire to join the army with the SA had the potential to turn him into the most powerful man in Germany, and thus threatened to destroy Hitler and his grip on the Nazi party. Hitler had made it clear that he was the supreme ruler of Germany who had the right to be judge and jury. Through ideological purges, both men were able to maintain their totalitarian rule. Both leaders manipulated propaganda to create personality cults that ensured the maintenance of their power. Stalins cult of the personality was vital to public support, and, as early as December 1929, the party and media consciously began to build Stalin as a hero, portraying him as father of the nation, who saved the Soviet Union from its enemies and an expert in science and culture. Because Russians were so uneducated, it was easier for Stalins image to be boosted to be seen as a saviour. The cult of personality led Russians to believe Stalin was close to deification, adopting a role that of was the plain man, who spoke the same practical language as the proletariat. Hitler, however, saw education as being the prime means of developing his personality cult so he could almost permanently control Germany. He believed that young people were less likely to be contaminated by factual knowledge than their elders, and were generally more susceptible to appeals to idealism and emotions. The entire work of education was to find culmination in branding forever, through instinct of reason, loyalty to the Fuhrer. The appointment of Goebbels as propaganda chief saw the Hitler myth become the greatest propaganda achievement, as Goebbels presented Hitler as the embodiment of national unity standing above all sectional interests; the architect of GermanyÐ ¢s recovery; personally incorruptible; and a fanatical defender of German honour. This meant that the German people supported his tyrannical rule, similarly to the Russians, and each were able to maintain control through their own personality cult. By using the secret police such as the SS, Gestapo, Cheka and NKVD, Stalin and Hitler were each able to ensconce their dictatorships and ensure total power. Tremendous increase in support for Hitler was partly a result of violence. He saw the state as an instrument of power in which the qualities to be valued were discipline, unity and sacrifice. Violence would be used to achieve this. By July 5, 1933, a new law decreed The National Socialist German Workers Party constitutes the only political party in Germany. By controlling the police, the Nazis legalised violence and terror to legitimise Hitlers elevation to power. Without the terrorist police support, Hitler would have been unable to exercise sustained and unopposed control. Likewise, the Cheka and NKVD, along with the secret of concentration camps, allowed the repressive system of Stalin to reign supreme. This propaganda was backed by police terror, enabling Stalin to indoctrinate Russians, and any opposition was classed as an enemy of the Soviet. In 1929, when Stalin launched Russia into complete revolution, he already totally controlled the police apparatus. Collectivisation saw the disappearance of individual farming accompanied by extraordinary displacement of people, due to deportation and regrouping. During collectivisation, arbitrary arrest and execution without trial by the Cheka became commonplace, and, since the Cheka was a government controlled police force, arrests and executions were state-sponsored terrorism. Both pushed terror way beyond its limit, realising control over the media and effective propaganda was often not enough to establish and secure total power; coercion and violence, or at least threat of them, were necessary weapons. Though Stalinist Russia and Hitlerian Germany had different rhetoric, they were both totalitarian dictatorships that sought to attain total power for both leaders. Attracting the poorer classes, made certain that they had mass support, because both realised that the key to power was through the proletariat or working classes. Both used ideology and government to eliminate their rivals and exercise power. Propaganda and secret police ensured that, if indoctrination failed, then fear would control the people and ensure their dictatorial power. Given this, both Hitler and Stalin were different sides of the same totalitarian coin. You can also order a custom essay, term paper, thesis, dissertation or research paper on Hitler and Stalin from our professional custom writing service which provides high-quality custom written papers. Here is a list of the most popular research paper topics on Hitler and Stalin:   The Rise of Germany to a Fascist State: The Role of Hitler’s Personality and Oratory   Adolf Hitlers Rise to Power   Hitlers racial policies   Hitlers Consolidation of Power   How did Hitler turn Germany from a democracy into a dictatorship between 1933 and 1934? How far did he have full control by 1934?   Why did Hitler become Chancellor in 1933?   Assess Hitlers use of fear and terror in Nazi Germany   Comparison of propaganda usage between Hitler and Napoleon   Hitlers Mein Kampf   Hitlers Search for Religous Artifacts During WWII   Adolf Hitler: the Modern Machiavelli   Hitlers foreign policy   How did the Great Depression in Germany Lead to the Rise of Hitler?   Hitlers Right to Punishment   Was Hitler Gay?   Joseph Stalins Positive Influence on the USSR   How Convincing Is The View that Stalin Simply Took Lenin’s Policies To Their Logical Extent?   The Industralisation of the U.S.S.R under Stalin   Why was Stalin able to secure his hold on power in the Soviet Union in the years 1928 1941?   Stalin vs. Mussolini

Experiment in Joy †5 Steps to Create It and Sustain It

Experiment in Joy – 5 Steps to Create It and Sustain It The Experiment In August 2014, Call Response, a group of seven Black women performers, from seven cities, presented their freshly minted, powerful works at a festival at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. This in itself is remarkable. Antioch, after all, had not exactly been a hotbed of discourse and creativity for Black women prior to 2014. In fact, the festival would never have happened if it weren’t for a professor named Gabrielle Civil, who made the unlikely choice of accepting an appointment there when she experienced the enthusiasm of the faculty who hired her. Part of her demand before accepting the position was that Antioch would hold a festival of Black women and performance. Even more remarkable is the process by which these performances were generated. A month before the August festival, the women had convened to perform select pre-existing works and share ideas in service of their main artistic task: â€Å"to produce the Call, the collective prompt for artistic action, that would articulate [their] ideas about art making and catalyze †¦ new performances.† The core questions they asked: What would move us forward in Black feminist practice? What would it mean for us as Black women artists to claim joy? Establishing the Call The Call they ultimately birthed, and which underpinned the August performance, was dubbed â€Å"Experiments in Joy.† Its profound components are as follows: Tell the truth. Create something new. Let someone in. Document. Repeat. I first learned about these Experiments at my 25th Yale reunion this past weekend, and I have been turning the components and the message over in my own head. While created for a specific community and purpose, the Call can spur all of us into our creativity and into action. The Dangers of Achievement Earlier in the weekend, my mom and I had met with an old friend of hers and my dad’s. This former Yale Admissions Officer shared that although his life looks wonderful objectively – he has a loving wife, financial stability, and a summer vacation house in Nova Scotia – he wakes up many mornings feeling sad and unmotivated. He self-identified as an â€Å"Eeyore,† the donkey character from Winnie the Pooh who complains about everything and sees very little hope for his life. I told him about James Lawrence, a 39-year-old who decided he would race 50 Ironman races. Not just 50 in his lifetime, but 50 in 50 days! To make things really easy, he vowed to run these 50 Ironmans in 50 states. Did he complete his goal? You bet he did, even with an early injury that required him to swim some of the races with one arm. Amazing right? â€Å"I bet he got really down after he completed those races,† said Eeyore. And in fact he was right. Mr. Lawrence has been struggling with his motivation since he completed the races. Looking at the Experiment in Joy, I see that Lawrence covered numbers 2,3 and 4 of the Call but I’m not sure whether he did numbers 1 and 5. He repeated the Ironman 50 times but then stopped. And there was no particular truth telling that I know of at the foundation of his physical challenge. Thus, when it was over, he was left without joy. Your Personal Experiment in Joy I wonder what our Yale friend would create if he were to use the recipe for joy in the Call? I wonder what I would create? I recognize that my blog is a creation that meets the Joy criteria. Each week I tell the truth about something, create an article that has never been written before, share it (let many people in), document it, and repeat the next week. Notice the trick in the Call. That fifth element is the most important really. Creating something and being vulnerable about it will only bring joy for so long. It’s the repetition, the telling of a new truth, perhaps in a new way, that keeps the joy alive. I’ll be honest: Each week lately I have struggled with what to write in my blog, and I have often not come up with an idea until late Sunday night or even Monday morning, which is my deadline. But when I write something meaningful and new, I do feel joy. And I feel joy when people tell me I’ve given them tools they will use or insight into their own lives or a new way of approaching life. I will be continuing to explore ways that I can respond to the Call to Joy in my life. What would your truth be? Your new creation? Where does your Joy reside? Note: A more thorough explanation and account of the Call to Joy project can be found in volume 41 nos. 1-2 of the creative/scholarly journal Obsidian: Literature Arts in the African Diaspora. Participating performers: Gabrielle Civil, Duriel E. Harris, Kenyatta A.C. Hinkle, Rosamond S. King, Wura-Natasha Ogunji, Mirà © Regulus, Awilda Rodrà ­guez Lora