Old Navy and the Infantilization of the American Consumer :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

middle-aged naval forces and the Infantilization of the American ConsumerIt is certain that the Old Navy store is abundant of clothes and accessories for all shapes, sizes and genders. Its presupposition, however, is that all shapes, sizes and genders will be of one primary inclination that of the infant. In front of me as I peruse the Old Navy is a pink purse with metallic flecks infused into its plasticine construction. I find this purse in the Womans section, next to the display rack full of puffy-sleeved t-shirts, whimsically cut blouses, flash puff and lo-rider blue-jeans embroidered with alarmingly cute curlicues. All this is, appropriately enough for a consumer juggernaut like Old Navy, sized to fit the adult woman.What is revealed in the Old Navy is an ideology, objectification of the self-as-consumerist entity, indeed of the child-as-consumer to a patriarchal Capitalism. Althusser asks it this wayWhy do people need this imaginary transposition oftheir real conditions o f existence in order to fit to themselves their real conditions of existence? (241)In the case of Old Navy, the answer lies in the combined natures of Capitalism and the infantilist regression it engenders.Capitalist objectification of the self, the subjectification of Althusser, begins with the Old Navy ad. Here, kindly overaged mother-figures or warm and attractive young women assure us in their slightly lobotomized ways that shopping at the Old Navy is fun, that their cargo pants are all the rage, that their carpenter jeans are the perfect thing. The representation of the self as Platonic form in the person of the model on the goggle box screen recreates the self as consumer objectIt is not their real condition of existence, theirreal world that men represent to themselves inideology, but above all it is their relation to thoseconditions of existence which is represented to them there. (Althusser 242)Ideology is created by the double-movement of idealization and desire. The mod el, the idealized Capitalist figure for the self, creates its own ideological structure as a marrow to selfing, as an objectified desired on the official apparatus of the communication and creation of Capitalist ideology, the television screenHis ideas are his material actions inserted into material rituals which are themselves delineate by material ideological apparatus from which derive the ideas of that subject, (Althusser 243)that subject of ideology, that objectified self. Thus the consumer is removed from the self by the ideological system of the Old Navy ad.

Censorship Online :: essays research papers

Censorship OnlineThere is a section of the American populace that is slowly slithering intothe spotlight after nearly two decades in clandestine. gird with their oddnetspeak, mouses, glowing monitors, and immediate access to a world ofinformation, both serious and amateur Hackers alike waste at last come step to the fore of thecomputer lab and into mainstream pop culture. Since I despise pleading ignorantabout anything, I chose to read Mr. McDonalds article because of its minutiaconcerning the future of the more amusing boldness of computing the game. Thisarticle is relevant because whether we like it or not, the PC (personalcomputer) is only going to grow in popularity and use, and the best weaponagainst the abuse of this new gee-whiz engine room is to be educated about it.It is simply amazing how far gaming has come in the past decade. We havegone from stick figures on a blank screen to interactive movies. The PC is thenewest way to play because it has the capability to proce ss and display muchmore complex games than anything by Nintendo or Sega. nigh problems with this,however, are the enormous cost of s descent system and computer software and thetechnology that moves at lightning speed. The computer you buy tomorrow willnot be able to handle any of the new software two years from now. Owners essentialnot only keep up with the new trends but must also be swell aware of what theirown system can sustain so that they do not overload it and cause it to crash.This article focuses on interactive video, which is a relatively new field inthe gaming industry. The games that have been on the market have not lived upto the bombardment of advertisement gamers have been subjected to. The videoitself is often choppy and blurry, it rarely enhances the plot of the game, andhas yet to be truely interactive. This is because it is not part of a moviesnature to mingle with the audience. New software consumers should be aware ofthis before shelling out $60-$80 for an over-hyped game.This article offers the titles of the few good interactive games thathave hit the shelves this year as well as a list of ones to avoid. It alsodescribes several of the video cards (special flat chips that can be insertedinto the back of your machine to help it process data) that you would have to

Stuart Hall Essay -- British Culture

OutlineIn this essay I will provide to present the ways in which Stuart Hall influenced the development of Cultural Studies in Britain and illuminate the importance of his contribution to the understanding of British culture in general. As one of the leading cultural theorists, an epithet given to him by The Observer in 2007, he expanded the field of lease to include gender, race and identity. He is also important for introducing new approaches to the study based on the works of French theorists. IntroductionStuart Hall was born in Kingston, Jamaica on February 3, 1932. afterwards receiving a Rhodes scholarship in the 1950 he came to Britain in order to study at Merton College at the University of Oxford. He was a member of the Windrush generation, when a great number of African-Caribbeans migrated to the UK and other(a) parts of Europe in the search of a better future. It is interesting to note that he was part of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) in 1957. The result o f his book The Popular Arts (Hall and Whannel 1967 first published in Britain in 1964) ten years later led to the invitation by Richard Hoggart, another important catch in the founding of British Cultural Studies, to join the Birmingham Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies. In 1968 he replaced Hoggart as the director of the institution and held the position until 1979. The BCCCS strength be considered the cradle of cultural studies in Britain and some might even say that is the pivotal institution in the history of cultural studies in general. After leaving his position at the Centre, Hall became a professor at the Open University. He retired in 1997. Throughout his career, Hall stressed the practical impingement that cultural studies can have on... ...s work has been crucial for both the process of formation and the expansion and development of British Cultural Studies, as wellhead as cultural studies as an international discipline. Due to the fact that Hall was born in Ja maica but practiced his career in Britain, he is capable to present views both from inside and outside the British society. As much as he participated in contributing to the studies dealing with ethnicity, he also contributed to the study of national identity. The impact of his work expands the circle of cultural studies during the 1980s he was a fierce critic of Thatcherism and influenced the Labour Party in Britain. The dedication he put in his work, together with the innovation and diversity of his studies have earned him the epithet The Father of Cultural Studies, a title most certainly deserve for redefining British cultural studies.

Retail and the Media :: essays research papers

Retail and the MediaTodays media focuses more on a corporations mistakes and less on what the companies give back to the community, devising it impossible for the public to see the truth. In every large corporation, there is going to be a fair share of so called scandals. Unfortunately, the media preys on these scandals to capture us, the public, juicy gossip to get through the day. In my opinion, most of the scandals brought to the publics attention have no bearing on the products and services a company brings to the consumer. Low Pay ratesOne of the many topics retailers are hit for is low pay rates. A survey done in 2003, showed the comely pay rate for players in retail to be $6.49. Unfortunately what the media leaves out is the relatively low pay of sales exerciseers is strongly influenced by the large verse employed in the retail trade industry (Buckley, 2003, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 9). It does not take a lot to run a register, stock a shelf, zone a side counter or u nload a truck. You get paid for the job you do.Although the pay rate for a sales worker is low compared to the wage in other areas of interest, most retailers offer other benefits. These benefits include, but are not limited to, the following 401k plans with company contributions health conduct stock purchase plans with company contributions critical need funds for employees who come upon hard times and some companies even offer college scholarships to employees and their families.Now as you bm up in a company, your pay increases with the position. In the same survey done for the average wage of the sales worker, it shows the average rate for a manager is $33.26 (Buckley, 2003, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2). This tends to be something that is overlooked in the media. You can compare it to starting out in an office as a mail clerk. Sure, you work for a big corporation in a big building on Wall Street, but you still are not making the bank. except as you work your way up, your pa y rate reflects it. In any job, you have to start out on the bottom and work your way up to career status.Here is an example of a mother who stuck with her low paying job and in the end got the pay off

Superconductivity Essay -- essays research papers

SuperconductivityINTRODUCTIONWeve exclusively heard ab reveal superconductivity. But, do we all know what it is?How it works and what atomic number 18 its uses? To start talking about superconductivity, wemust try to consider the how "normal" conductivity works. This will make itmuch easier to understand how the "super" part functions. In the followingparagraphs, I will explain how superconductivity works, some of the currentproblems and some examples of its uses.CONDUCTIVITYConductivity is the ability of a pump to carry electricity. Somesubstances kindred copper, aluminium, silver and gold do it very well. They arecalled conductors. Others conduct electricity partially and they are calledsemi-conductors. The concept of electric transmittance is very simple tounderstand. The wire that conducts the electric current is made of fractions whichhave equal numbers of protons and electrons make the atoms electricallyneutral. If this balance is disturbed by cause or loss of electrons, the atomswill become electrically charged and are called ions. Electrons occupy energystates. Each level requires a certain amount of energy. For an electron to moveto a higher level, it will require the right amount of energy. Electrons canmove between different levels and between different materials but to do that,they require the right amount of energy and an "empty" slot in the band theyenter. The metallic conductors have a lot of these slots and this is where thefree electrons will question when voltage (energy) is applied. A simpler way to lookat this is to think of atoms aligned in a straight line (wire). if we add anelectron to the first atom of the line, that atom would have an excess ofelectrons so it releases an other electron which will go to the second atom andthe process repeats again and again until an electron pops out from the end ofthe wire. We can then say that conduction of an electrical current is simplyelectrons moving from one empt y slot to some other in the atoms outermost shells.The problem with these conductors is the fact that they do not let all thecurrent get through. Whenever an electric current flows, it encounters someresistance, which changes the electrical energy into heat. This is what causesthe wires to heat. The conductors become themselves like a resistance but anunwanted one. This explains why only 95% of the power... ...vious afterwards. Its as if the train was "surfing" on waves ofvoltage.THE MAGSHIPAnother interesting application is what is referred to as the magship. Thisship has no engine, no propellers and no rudder. It has a unique power sourcewhich is electromagnetism. The generator on the boat creates a current whichtravels from one electrode to another which go underwater on each side of theship. This makes the water electrically charged. This only works in salt waterbecause pure water would not conduct the current. The magnets which are locatedon the bottom of the ship wo uld produce a magnetic field which will push thewater away making the ship move forward. There are a lot of problems relatedwith that. The magnetic field could attract metallic objects and even otherships causing umpteen accidents.CONCLUSIONAs time goes by, transition temperature, critical field (maximum magneticfield intensity that a superconductor can support before failing), current skill and all other problems are improving slowly. But, at least they showthat we are moving in the right direction. A lot of people are gettinginterested in that field since it promises a lot for the future.

Changing Roles of Managers at Corporate Insurance Essay -- business, m

Over the course of the past two years, I have worked in a call center surroundings within the Corporate Insurance Company. A typical day is fast paced, yet structured. Up until recently, I had the responsibility of taking anywhere from 70 degree Celsius inbound calls daily from either troubled agents or inquiring customers. Of these calls, a few are monitored on a monthly basis to ensure the verity of the information that I am giving out. Customer service representatives here are also held accountable for our time on and off the phone as well as any data entry or what we call after call work. Again, this job family has operated with full structure and accountability. One of the recurrent issues facing all phone counselors in this job family is the changing of the roles of managers. This is due in part to Corporate being a growing Fortune ergocalciferol company. Lately, about every four to six months, there has been a need for restructuring and reassigning of managers and team mates. We strive to work cooperatively as a team and fitting as we begin to effectively motivate one another, things change. Personally, in two years I have had five different managers and three different teams. distributively manager has their own management, leadership and coaching styles and within from each one team there are ever changing inter and intra-personal dynamics. As I eluded, I have also changed job families and again, have had to become accustomed to a radical manager, as well as the inter workings of a new job family all together. I now work diligently as an Account Processor, processing 70 100 policy changes daily. In this role, there is greater flexibility, less structure, and less support. However, the responsibility to provide the best service for the customer has no... ...ze our natural talent, and bring this out. They also have the skill to put their self in the shoes of those they manage. This will help them understand what employees are lik e and what motivates them, and then they can slowly work to mold them and help them to do their best. Those are whatsoever of the primary differences between leadership and management. Im the type of leader or manager who would lead by example. As a leader I would eliminate potential barriers my employees couldnt see. Also I would expand my vision with the insight of others, and this would potentially create a better vision and end result. As a manager, I would delegate work to my employees, so they felt as though they were apart of the big picture. Also I would get to know each of my team members, both personally and professionally. All in all I think I would do just fine as a leader or manager.

Changing Roles of Managers at Corporate Insurance Essay -- business, m

Over the course of the past two years, I suck in worked in a call center environment within the Corporate Insurance Company. A typical day is fast paced, yet structured. Up until recently, I had the responsibleness of taking anywhere from 70 one hundred inbound calls daily from either troubled agents or inquiring customers. Of these calls, a few are monitored on a monthly basis to ensure the accuracy of the information that I am giving out. Customer service representatives here are also held accountable for our era on and off the phone as well as any data entry or what we call after call work. Again, this line family has operated with full structure and accountability. One of the repeated issues facing all phone counselors in this job family is the changing of the roles of managers. This is due in part to Corporate world a growing Fortune 500 company. Lately, about every four to six months, there has been a need for restructuring and reassigning of managers and team ma tes. We strive to work hand and glove as a team and expert as we begin to effectively motivate one another, things change. Personally, in two years I have had phoebe bird different managers and three different teams. Each manager has their own management, leadership and coaching styles and within each team there are ever changing inter and intra-personal dynamics. As I eluded, I have also changed job families and again, have had to become accustomed to a new manager, as well as the inter workings of a new job family all together. I now work diligently as an Account Processor, processing 70 100 policy changes daily. In this role, there is greater flexibility, less structure, and less support. However, the responsibility to provide the best service for the customer has no... ...ze our natural talent, and bring this out. They also have the skill to put their self in the shoes of those they manage. This will help them understand what employees are like and what motivates them , and then they can slowly work to impression them and help them to do their best. Those are some of the primary differences between leadership and management. Im the type of leader or manager who would lead by example. As a leader I would eliminate potential barriers my employees couldnt see. in addition I would expand my vision with the insight of others, and this would potentially create a better vision and end result. As a manager, I would delegate work to my employees, so they felt as though they were apart of the big picture. Also I would get to know each of my team members, both personally and professionally. All in all I think I would do just fine as a leader or manager.

America culture and society in the 1920s

Lynn Dumenils account of the era commonly referred to as the roaring twenties in The Modern Temper American Culture and Society in the 1920s there is an intentional emphasis placed on the effort to dispel the popular notion that the new, revolutionary trans createations in culture and society that took place at this time in history were direct results of the First World War.In the stead of this less insightful means of analyzing the 1920s in America by assuming that the post war era was a direct creation and consequence from the war, the author offers the suggestion that the seeds of the twenties were planted very much earlier during the industrial revolution and by dint of the effects of a culture Showed counterbalance 120 words of 1136 Size (words) Continuing with another 115 divulge of 1136 Size (words) are aspects to this period that I feel this particular text does not give proper ac go to sleepledgement to.Dumenil does a good job of showing the prevailing winds of the t ime and analyzing the forces that pushed society forward into what it is today however, little is said about the opposing forces that tried to collectively pull back the reigns of capitalism, secularism, and urbanization. These forces, which came in the form of the Industrial Workers of the World, William Jennings Bryan, and many others who attempted to retain the Victorian way of life also played an instrumental role in shaping society through their broad range of dissent from the path of urbanizationWhen most of us take a backward glance at the 1920s, we may think of prohibition and the discern age, of movies stars and flappers, of Harold Lloyd and Mary Pick ford, of Lindbergh and Hooverand of Black Friday, October 29, 1929, when the plunging stock market ushered in the great depression. But the 1920s were much more. Lynn Dumenil brings a fresh interpretation to a dramatic, authorised, and misunderstood decade.As her lively work makes clear, changing values brought an end to th e repressive Victorian era urban liberalism emerged the national bureaucracy was expanded pluralism became increasingly important to Americas heterogeneous society and different religious, ethnic, and cultural groups encountered the homogenizing force of a powerful mass-consumer culture. The Modern Temper brings these many developments into sharp focus. Praise The Modern Temper is an engaging, stimulating, and attentive re-creation of one of our most interesting and complex decades.Lynn Dumenils The Modern Temper provides an exciting and original synthesis of a crucial decade that few of us really understand. She makes the insights and confusions of the women and the men of the twenties come alive. This is an important book. Ellen Dubois, University of California at Los Angeles Dumenil offers wealth of fresh insights on a fascinating decade. This illuminating study subtly recasts our understanding of an era whose tensions and stresses often uncannily parallel those of our own day . Paul Boyer, University of WisconsinSynopsis when most of us take a backward glance at the 1920s, we may think of prohibition and the jazz age, of movies stars and flappers, of Harold Lloyd and Mary Pick ford, of Lindbergh and Hooverand of Black Friday, October 29, 1929, when the plunging stock market ushered in the great depression. But the 1920s were much more. Lynn Dumenil brings a fresh interpretation to a dramatic, important, and misunderstood decade. As her lively work makes clear, changing values brought an end to the repressive Victorian era urban liberalism emerged the federal bureaucracy was expanded pluralism became increasingly important to Americasheterogeneous society and different religious, ethnic, and cultural groups encountered the homogenizing force of a powerful mass-consumer culture. The Modern Temper brings these many developments into sharp focus. move to the flip side of the 20s flapper image, Dumenil looks at the darker side of the decade forming the centr al motifs that have shaped the modern American temper. Between the end of WWI and the stock market crash, the glory of get-rich-quick prosperity overshadowed tensions resulting from the highly skewed distribution of wealth.The unfettered capitalism of the time is reflected by Calvin Coolidge, who said, the man who builds a positionory builds a temple. The man, who works there, worships there. In 1920, for the first time, half the U. S. population lived in cities. While life grew more organized, complex and sexually liberated, the reaction increased, too. Capitalists fanned a Red Scare following the 1919 bolshie Revolution, forcing American reformers to confront this inflated fear along with homegrown poverty and racism.Dumenil points to the mass consumer culture, corporate mentality, job structure that eroded individual autonomy, assembly lines, discriminating special-interest lobbying in Washington and the fusion of sexuality with consumption as among the decades legacies to l ater American culture. Readers may wish that Dumenil spent more time on countervailing base forces (Rand School of Social Science Scott Nearing Max Eastmans The Masses Industrial Workers of the World, the IWW) that contributed to the ferment of this formative era.Even so, she has captured the fire of this volcanic time and weaves together s fondnesss of social and policy-making threads into an insightful overview. American culture in the 1920,s and beyond has had a great significance up to date. The culture invented in those days is still in place and most people and groups still practice and keep the souvenirs so that they can pass from one generation to another. Religious influence is also to be seen in situations where new migrants have made residential decisions. polarizations of ethnic religious groups in the 1920s to present day America the major division is that of protestants and Catholics.Social fundamental interaction within the city is often on the basis of these broad religious groupings which can over ride ethnic divisions. For example, the Dutch immigrant community is more seeming to mix the Swedish immigrant community than with Italian because of religious affiliations. The third major religious group is that of the Jewish community and has a strong sense of stain and strong social processes internal to the community but with relative loose connection with other communities. Agricultural practices where practiced by farmers in rural areas. close farmers began to vagabond from the highlands and into the lowland alluvial plains. They had been attracted by the greater agricultural fertility of the soil but what is certain is that the move led to profound changes in agrarian practice. Most farmers favored as an independent originator of agriculture, appears the most prolific. Among the crops which first emerged in the Americas where maize, potatoes, manioc, cacao, squash and tobacco, and among the animals where the llama, the turkey, and the gu inea pig.Industrial revolution was latter invented which affected agriculture, transport, social organizations and urbanization. In fact there were few facet of life left untouched by them. in addition to this, it maybe argued that the changes which took place during the period conventionally recognized as that of industrial revolution had the origin sometimes many centuries earlier. In that sense the period was not one of revolution, but one in which there was a marked quickening of the processes already begun and underway. But few would deny that the industrial revolution marks one of the major transformations in history.it is important in this context of use because as well as its social and economic impact, it had profound geographical consequences. The social structure or governmental opinion of neighborhood influences the individual vote decisions. the neighborhood effect is similar to a diffusion process in that political attitudes spread within a district in several citie s in U. S. A individuals of relatively low socio-economic class living in middle class neighborhoods are less likely to vote democratic (the traditional company of lower class voters ) than if they live in a lower class neighborhood.The individuals are affected in their voting behavior by the information and political environment of their area of residence. The degree of this influence is termed the neighborhood effect The process underlying the neighborhood effect depends on the probability of contacts of the voter with someone who willing provide political information. This probability of contacts depends not only on social groupings in the neighborhood. Lynn dumenills account on all this issues is discussed in dept and formed the core values of the American culture.although a lot as borrowed from the past years and history the incorporation of it in the 1920s made a strong cultural impact and the Americans also tend to keep their culture but due to intermarriages and new inhabit ants heading to America. Most people doesnt follow or know their past culture well unless they read from books References Richard Marchand, 1985. Advertising the American Dream Making Way for Modernity, 1920-1940. Berkeley, CA University of California Press.

Kite Runner Social Divisions Essay

Two main themes in the novel The Kite commencement are that of social class and gender roles. Everywhere that amir, the main protagonist, turns, society is divided. From his earliest childhood memories to living in America, there endlessly check intoms to be about sort of invisible line drawn between his people. There is separation between the Pashtuns and the Hazaras, between Americans and sheepskin coats, between men and women, and between the Talibs and the people of Afghanistan. Afghanistan is the land of Pashtuns. It always has been, always will be. We are the true Afghans, the pure Afghans, not this Flat-Nose here. His people pollute our homeland, our wantan.They dirty our blood. Afghanistan for Pashtuns, I say. Thats my vision. This quote reflects the hatred most people had for the Hazaras, or Flat-Noses, in Afghanistan. The Hazaras were the lower class, while the Pashtuns were the wealthy class. If there was a Hazara in Kabul, the bet was that he was a beggar or a serva nt or both. This s invariablye social divide was not vindicatory economical. Only the Pashtuns were able to attend public school, and barely any, if any, Hazaras were literate. However, Amir grew up with Hassan, his Hazara servant, and didnt know the hatred the rest of the Pashtuns harbored for the Hazaras.Hassan and I fed from the same breasts. We took our first steps on the same lawn in the same yard. And, under the same roof, we verbalise our first words. after Amir Joel Huff-2 returned from school, he and Hassan would go up to a bowl shaped hill scarcely north of his fathers property that had a cemetery atop it, with a luscious pomegranate tree just outside the fence. They climbed the trees large branches, and carved into it the words Amir and Hassan, the sultans of Kabul. After they ate the fruit and wiped their hands on the grass, Amir would read to Hassan.Despite the social divide, Amir and Hassan were like brothers. This shows that the unfair division of people can be broken people dont accommodate to follow trends that change can arise and equality can grow. The opinion on gender division, however, is close to different in Hosseinis book. There are two types of gender division in this book the traditional, formal wait-until-marriage-to-be-alone kind, and the kind that made life harder on women. Hosseini somewhat supported the former, because that was the way of his people, and looked down upon the latter.In the novel, Amir sees a girl by the name of Soraya Taheri at the flea market where he and his father have a st whole. This girl amazes him, as he has not actually seen a real girl of his age almost all his life, due to the separation of sexes in his homeland. He describes her as his Swap Meet Princess, except never actually talks to her for months. When he finally grew the nerve to talk to her, he asked where her father was, but eventually asked what she was reading. I held my breath. Suddenly, I felt the collective eyes of the flea marke t Afghans shift to us. I imagined a lock in falling.Lips stopping in midsentance. Heads turning. Eyes constricting with keen interest. Up to this point, our encounter could have been interpreted as a respectful inquiry. But Id asked her a question and if she Joel Huff-3 answered, wed be. Well, wed be chatting. Me a mojarad, a single young man, and she an unwed woman. This would be gossip material to the entire Afghan community in Los Angeles, just as it would have been back in Kabul. Rumors were deadly to anyones reputation in that community, and reputation was one of the only things that actually mattered.What made it worse was that Soraya had a history. Rumors, as everyone knows, are sometimes true. Unfortunately for Soraya, her history was entirely true. When we lived in Virginia, I ran away with an Afghan man. I was eighteen at the time insubordinatestupid, and he was into drugs. We lived together for almost a month. All the Afghans in Virginia were talking about it. This go ssip traveled everywhere, as everyone in Afghanistan knew everyone else in Afghanistan. Soraya, daughter of the state of war hero, General Taheri, was hit especially hard by this gossip, and it traveled with them to Los Angeles.Though she tells Amir about the horrible past she has, Amir still pursues marriage with her, benignant her all the same. How could I, of all people, chastise someone for their past? This shows a common double standard in the Afghan culture that in any case exists in our culture, to an extent. Their sons go out to nightclubs looking for meat and get their girlfriends pregnant, they have kids out of wedlock and no one says a goddamn thing. Oh, theyre just men having mutation I make one mistake and suddenly everyone is talking nang and namoos and I have to have my face rubbed in it for the rest of my life. To add to the extremity that Afghans see this sin as, after he made Soraya come home, Sorayas father sat her in a chair, handed her a pair of scissors, a nd Joel Huff-4 calmly told her to lop off off all her hair. He watched while she did it, his pride hurt more than hers. Along with the distinct division of men and women even in America, there was also a class division between Americans and Afghans. While the Americans had all white-collar jobs, Afghans were given the blue-collar jobs, despite some of them being professionals back in their homeland.Amirs father, once a rich and powerful businessman, was forced to take up odd jobs and transactions to get by. He sold his Buick and bought a tatterdemalion 71 Volkswagen bus for $550 from an old Afghan acquaintance whod been a high school science teacher in Kabul. He bought this bus to go around to garage sales, buy items, take them to the flea market, and sell them for a small profit. By that summer, Afghan families were working an entire section of the flea market. All of them high rank officials, lawyers, businessmen, professors, doctors, now reduced to haggling over 2 dollars. Thi s shows the distinct difference between foreigners and natural born citizens in America. Racial prejudice and fear purloin classes, even in a free society such as ours. The worst of any social divide mentioned in this book, however, was that between the Taliban and the citizens of Afghanistan. The Taliban, or just Talibs, took over Kabul after Amir and his father moved to America. When they were there, they destroyed everything, imposed strict laws, and committed random acts of violence. The citizens hated them, even though they were all cheering when the Taliban came to take power from the previous king.I feel like a tourist in my own Joel Huff-5 country, said Amir as he was entering the area around Kabul. As he was searching for his half-brothers child, Amir attended a soccer match to find a tall Talib with black sunglasses. At halftime, three trucks rolled out into the field, one with a woman, one with a blindfolded man, and one carrying a load of stones. They discharge each t ruck, placing the woman and man in separate chest-deep holes at the ends of the goal posts. A chubby, white-bearded cleric dressed in gray garments stood near the goalposts and cleared his pharynx into a handheld microphone.Behind him the woman in the hole was still screaming. He recited a lengthy prayer from the Koran, his nasaly voice undulating through the sudden hush of the stadiums crowd. I remembered something my father had said to me long ago Piss on the beads of all those self-righteous monkeys. They do nothing but hitch their rosaries and recite a book written in a tongue they dont even understand. God help us all if Afghanistan ever falls into their hands. And sure enough, it had. The reign of terror of the Taliban swept through the streets of Kabul, as it had so many other Afghan towns.This was proven by the ruthless writ of execution of the man and woman in the soccer stadium. The tall Talib in the black sunglasses picked up an unloaded stone, and hurled it at the ma ns face, striking him in the side of the head. He continued to throw stones at the two until they were but bloodied corpses, at which point they were loaded back up into the trucks and hauled away. As Hosseini exposes the divisions in Afghan society, we in American society should reflect on the cultural fallacies that made Afghanistan the war-ravaged state that it is today.

Beginners Guide to Essay Writing

As many of my fellow batch mates are facing the writers block in completing Essay I decided to write this guide to help them, so that they can put to scoop up enjoyment the last few days they have with their family members (current and would-be). DISCLAIMER First and the most important thing. This is not for those unearthly souls who want to touch that legendary speed word limit. Try to be humble and be content with 80%. Its not that bad a number you see. This is also not for those who think of its their god-assigned duty to find if what you are answering is what was asked.So if you are one of these, the best action you can take now with respect to this record is click the small X button in the top right corner of this document. This is for those poor unfortunate souls like me who want to take the bare tokenish effort to achieve what is necessary, a skill that I learnt in my engineering days and improved upon in my time spent in IT industry. So hither are my tips for nailing the Essay. Some tips are very ordinary which lead add a word or two per use. They are to be used to sanctify finishing touches to your answer when you need those 20-30 language to reach the world limit.Others are more generic. Use them to build the core of your answer. 1. Acronyms are evil and making use of them is a cardinal sin and you definitely do not want to start your journey in the world of management by committing one. So block them. Ex. Instead of IIM Indore write Indian Institute of Management, Indore. For some acronyms you can expand and thus put the acronyms in the brackets to give yourself an extra word. 2. Use the qualities of the language to your advantage. The grounds why they made English have a plethora of words which mean exactly the same damn thing was because they had a premonition or so Essay. suffice generous, copious, lavish and abundant use of adjectives. In place of any adjective use two of three adjectives which are similar in meaning. Make use of t he synonyms functionality that Word provides. For example instead of just writing crucial project write complex and crucial project. 3. Always use a separate of words in place of one word. For example instead of various use a number of 4. If possible quote a large tell apart of the foreland in your answer. This is a trick which has always worked right from class I.I still remember skepticism like What was the name of the first PM of India and the answer used to be The name of the first PM of India is blah blah blah This is very easy for questions like 8 and 9. 5. Whenever possible draw and quarter generous use of quotes. Those great people did not utter such knowledgeable words for no reason. observe it with your amazing explanation of the quote to throw away the reader understand the quote properly, which even so otherwise he would have understood, making it as long as possible. 6. Quote dictionary definition of words where possible.All you need is a Google search and it ma kes you sound a very inquisitive individual in no time. This is particularly applicable for questions 4 and 11. Follow it with your agreement or disagreement of the definition and your reasoning behind it. 7. Make generous use of subheading. Not only will it portray us as an organized person but also give you those extra 10 to 20 words without straining your brain. You can make use of this in questions which is dissever into sub questions like questions 1, 2 and 3. 8. Do not use etc. un slight you have quoted at least five examples.If you think for a few moments you will get examples which sound different but are essentially the same like bus conductor cheating his passengers, doctor cheating his patients, shop flight attendant cheating his customers etc. Change the subject and the object, keep the verb same and you will have numerous example in no time. 9. If the question asks to quote 2 incidents more often than not you will be able to think of only 1 good or good enough incide nt. No question asks you to give equal importance to both the incidents. So write about that one ncident as much as possible. The more you write on it, the less you will have to think for the other one. 10. Stretch the meaning of the word describe to its limits. When they say describe, you DESCRIBE. No detail is unnecessary and no information idle unless you have crossed the word limit. 11. Anyone from IT industry will know the importance of reuse of work already done by you or someone else does, even if that reuse meant copy paste and portraying it as new effort and billing the client for the same. Use that approach in your answers.For example answer question 9 properly and you do not need to answer question 15 again. All you will need is a trimming of 50 words. 12. I have skipped question 13 as I had no intention of creating an imaginary situation in my pretty normal and straight forward vitality of 24 years which would have asked me to act in a non-traditional way. In case you feel you can do it, then you are most welcome. 13. When the solid world is for gender equality we as future managers should not lag behind. Bring gender equality in your answers.When you are referring to a third person use him or her, he or she instead of just him and he. 14. If you were not a part of any social or cultural organization then you cannot skip question 14. Some senior has already posted as to how you can write about the clubs you were part of in the college. And there is no paucity of clubs and committees in any college. Cultural club, movie club, Cricket club, Soccer club. You name it and you will have it. Take one club and write about it as much as possible. If you have not reached the WL take one more.Continue till you reach the WL. 15. Try to think how you can lengthen your sentences without significantly mending the meaning. For example a normal guy or girl will write Prefer passive voice in your answer. You should not come up prey to such highly damaging prac tices. They are for normal people. You should write In writing a response to any question the consistent habit of passive voice is to be preferred over that of active voice. Doing this consistently over a long paragraph will almost two-base hit your word count.16. All the thoughts that have crossed your mind while answering NPAD should go into the initial answer of question 5. If you can manage sarcasm come up then they should go into the latter part. 17. If in the highly improbable scenario that you have already written the answer and cannot touch the word limit, revise the answer by considering each tip from this point by point. Its a tried and tested approach and one which definitely works. PS. Whether you find the tone of the tips comical or serious will depend on how many questions are yet to be answered by you and how desperate you feel to answer them.

Battle of the Beers Essay

IntroductionThis case is about the intense battle in the midst of beer rivals in the United States, particularly between Anheuser-Busch (A-B), the worlds largest brewer, and SAB miller, the worlds second largest brewer. It discusses about how the companies used advertising in their brand aligning in order to compete with each other and increase the sales.This case starts by describing the strategies used by the both company when the battle began since the South African Breweries (SAB) purchased miller Brewing Company in 2002. The 2 leading beer brewing companies uses disagreeent strategies to fight with each other in order to communicate how its beer differ from competition to draw in more consumers. First, Miller emphasized on the light beer, taking advantage of the health conscious trend where consumers were aspect for low-carb beer by using comparative advertising campaign claiming that the Miller Lite has half the carbs than Bud Light.This prompted counteroffensives from A-B that mock Miller Lites low-carbs claims and challenge beer drinkers to choose on taste. To counter that, Miller then attack back by emphasizing same(p)wise on the taste of the light beer. Things become worse when Miller overly launched a new offensive campaign which lampo stard Budweiser for its self-proclaimed title as King of Beers and Budweiser lashed back by labelled Miller Lite as Queen of Carbs. Miller filed a lawsuit against Budweiser asserting the false and misleading claims by Budweiser to Miller Light which will definitely affect the image of SABMiller.Then, Miller used wile taste tests and shifted to emphasizing taste and flavour instead of stuck with a carb positioning. In 2004, the companies used comparative advertising, where Miller launched new advertising campaign attacking Budweiser, and A-B alike launched direct counterattack, and this made the battle become even more intense that others are being pulled into the fray. Television networks were refusing commer cials on both sidesbe endeavor their unduly disparaging or appear to contain taste claims that are unsubstantiated and misleading.While Miller continue to press on the taste issue, A-B introduced a new product promoting as having no lingering aftertaste and also emphasizing the freshness of its beer. The battle between the 2 companies goes back and forth.Questions1. What attri providedes are nearly important in determining beer buy decisions? How does this vary by market segments?There are many important attributes that acquire to be considered in determining beer purchasing decisions. As described in the case, these includes taste, flavor, and appearance.(i) Taste/Flavour/AromaTaste is the most important attribute in determining beer purchasing decisions as consumers buy beer for the taste. As evident in the case, Miller spent huge amounts on advertising the taste advantage they hold over Budweiser. They held blind taste tests where consumers were seen to choose Miller over Bud weiser in the tests. Their success in providing good taste led to Miller recording a 2.6 % increase in sales volume in 2003 as consumers matte up that Miller beers were better in taste. Aroma is extremely important to beers overall taste and it determines the purchase decision of a beer. The market segments that emphasize on aroma in their beer purchasing decision are mostly experienced beer drinkers. The repeat beer purchase will takes place when the taste of the beer suit the customers.Health-conscious consumers who are looking to reduce their carbohydrate intake might opt for beer which are less sugar. Consumers who give more election to the aroma of beer might look for strong aroma beer or beer which suit his or her taste. Some market segments might prefer beer with no lingering aftertaste.(ii) AppearanceThe process of purchasing a beer begins with its visual appearance. umteen people make hasty judgments of taste (food or beverage) based entirely on sight alone. In terms of beer appearance, what consumers looking for are colour, limpidity, and head retention. Although one colour is not necessarily better than the others, and none indicates directly how the beer will taste, but many beer drinkers will just have their own preference and detection of beer colour. Also, if a beer cant form a head, either its improperly carbonated or the vessel into which its poured is dirty.Many beer drinkers will most probably emphasize on the appearance of the beer and are obsessed with beer clarity if the beer is not crystal clear, they would not drink it. Some markets segments might prefer darker beers like stouts whereas others might prefer lighter beers such as wheat beers.(iii) PriceMany people judge or determine a product flavour based on the price. This is also true for beer purchases, and is especially true for those non-experienced beer drinkers. Higher price could have one of two effects on consumer preference it could cause the product to seem higher in qual ity, or it could make the product less desirable because of the extra expense. Although most of the time price may fall the quality of the beer (higher quality, higher price, and vice versa), but this is not all the time.For those who are emphasize on the quality of the beer, they might probably prefer to buy the higher-priced beer. Higher-income beer drinkers also might choose the higher-priced beer which they perceived that the beer has higher quality. For those market segments who just drink beers for enjoyment for example peers gathering, they might just buy the cheaper beers.(iv) grime nameBrand is the most important non-sensory factors affecting consumers choicedecisions of products. It seen as a promise, a guarantee or contract with the manufacturer and a symbolic mean and sign of the zodiac of quality. Beer drinkers will choose their beers based on their own beer brand preferences too. Researchers had found that ultrapremium beer was rated higher than inexpensive beer whe n brand names were unknown, hence shows that brand name do affect beer purchasing decision.In the market segments which earned a higher-income might prefer branded (usually higher-priced) beers. Younger generation might also choose those cheaper but well-known brand due to the exposure of the advertisements and they tend to follow the trend.2. How would you construct a reasoned taste to determine beer buyers preferences?The methods used to construct a valid taste to determine beer buyer preferences based on different attributes would be as followsBased on taste/flavour/aromaConduct blind-taste tests by providing the participants the cups of different beers to be tested which labelled A through E. Participants will be asked to taste each of the beers, and then spit out the beer into an empty glass. betwixt each beer taste, participants will rinse out their mouths with water to avoid cross-contamination among trials. After tasting all the beers, participants will rank order the five beers on the hind end of the quality of their taste.Based on appearanceConduct tests by providing the participants different beers with differences colour and level of clarity. For example by providing the participants different cups of beers with different colour and clarity labelled with A, B, C, D, and so forth without the ac friendship the participants what type or brand of the beers are. Differences in preferences across the samples will demonstrate whether consumers prefer one colour (eg. darker colour) than the others. The preference of beer based on the label colour, design, logo, orthe shape of the packaging can be tested as well.Based on priceConduct tests by providing the participants different selections of beer with different prices to assess whether consumers use price to disambiguate taste. For example, the beers selected varied in price, from $7.99 per six-pack to $2.69 per six-pack. The prices per six-pack were as follows Brand A $7.99 Brand B $5.99 Brand C $3.99 Brand D $3.49 and Brand E $2.69. Participants will rank the different beers according to their own preferences and on the basis of their prior knowledge about these beers.Based on brand nameConduct tests by providing the participants different selections of beer with different brand names. For example, different beer brands such as Anchor Steam, Samuel Adams, Budweiser, Miller Genuine Draft, and Schlitz will be provided to participants. Participants will be asked to rank the different beers according to their own preferences and on the basis of their prior knowledge about these beers. final stageConsumers attitudes, beliefs, and feelings play important role in deciding if they are going to purchase the Anheuser-Busch or SABMiller beer brand such as Budweiser or Miller respectively. The beer marketers need to be able to identify the target markets shopping, purchase, spending, and consumption patterns in order to predict what consumers want from such product. Consumer intention acts as a helpful forefinger to the types of marketing activities to carry so that they are able to attract the right market segment, thus leading to high profits. In conclusion, understanding consumer behaviour is evidentiary because marketers want to attract the right consumers to purchase their brand.