Barney and Sustained Competitive Advantage.

When we left off in the last seminar, we were just starting to talk about firm specific advantages. According to Barney and his article Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage, a few things are needed to gain a firm specific advantage. But also, he argues that a firm can gain a Sustained Competitive Advantage. SLIDE According to Barney, a firm has a sustained competitive advantage when it is implementing a value creating strategy not simultaneously being implemented by any current or potential competitors AND when these other firms are unable to dublicate the benefits of this strategy.But what does a company need to gain such an advantage? First of all, it needs certain resources, which can include assets, capabilities, products, information, knowledge etc. SLIDE But these resources must have four attributes: 1. they must be valuable in the sense that they exploit opportunities or neutralize threats in a firm’s environment. This goes without saying. 2. They must be rare among a firm’s current and potential competition. This simply means that this resource or strategy cannot be implemented by other firms at the same time. They must be imperfectly imitable (hard to copy for other firms) and 4. There cannot be strategically equivalent substitutes for this resource that are valuable, but neither rare or imperfectly imitable. Can anyone think of a specific firm, or a type of business or industry, which has a clear example of sustained competitive advantage? Short discussion. SLIDE We thought about what kind of a firm could gain a sustained competitive advantage, and came to the conclusion that certain pharmaceutical companies are able to gain perfect sustained competitive advantage.To explain why, we need to have a look at the pharmaceutical market. To make things a bit simple, we can divide the industry into two different categories: Companies which develop new kinds of medicine, and others which copy the original medicine, and produce what is called generic drugs. Some companies actully do both. SLIDE Companies which develop new medicine spend huge amount of money on research and development when making a new drug. They get the best scientists from all over the world, gather huge amounts of medical information, test the drugs etc.They also need to prove the safety of a new drug, and demonstrate it’s effect, in special clinical trials. And of course, they need to market the new drug. This process can cost huge amounts of money. Lets say a company spends millions of dollars and ten years on developing a new drug that cures all kinds of cancer. It would be rather disappointing for that company if generic drug companies were able to copy the drug the moment it hits the market, only spending money on manufacturing the drug, but not on development and testing.The maker of the original drug would probably soon run out of business. SLIDE So, to protect the original drug, the company can get a patent for the new drug. For how long is different between countries, but for example in the US, patents give 20 years of protection. But for as long as a drug patent lasts, the firm enjoys a period of market exclusivity, or monopoly if you like. Under those circumstances, the company is able to set the price of the drug at a level which maximizes profitability. The profit can greatly exceed development and production costs of the drug.Often, when the patent runs out and many other companies start making generic drugs, the prices fall dramatically and real competition starts. But to sum things upp, new developed medicine can fit Barney’s theory: They can be valuable, rare and not only hard to copy, but simply impossible. SLIDE The point is – if a firm can develop a new important type of medicine, and get a patent so it wont be copied, it has a perfect sustained competitive advantage while the patent is still valid, and therefore, fits well into Barney’s theory.

Deconstructing redemption in The Road

â€Å"There Is no God and we are his prophets†: Deconstructing Redemption In Corm McCarthy The Road. (paper under review: not for quotation) Stefan Skirmisher The University of Manchester Stefan. [email  protected] AC. UK 09/09/09 Abstract Despite its overwhelmingly positive reception, the apparently redemptive conclusion to Corm McCarthy The Road attracted criticism from some reviewers. They read in it an inconsistency with the nihilism that otherwise pervades the novel, as well as McCarthy other works.But what are they referring to when they Interpret redemption', the ‘messianic' and ‘God' In McCarthy novel? Some Introductory thoughts from apocalypse theory and deconstruction reveal a more nuanced approach that not only ‘saves' McCarthy from the charge of such critics. It also opens up more interesting avenues for exploring the theme of redemption and the messianic in contemporary disaster fiction. Introduction Justifiably effusive praise was heaped, by t he literary community, upon McCarthy multiple award-winner The Road (2006).But perhaps the most interesting reaction came in the form of critique of the allegedly â€Å"redemptive† and â€Å"messianic† tone of Its conclusion. Michael Cabochon's celebrated review of the book argued that McCarthy appeared to insert such a tone â€Å"almost†¦ In spite of himself',l that is, out of character with his usual nihilism. Another reviewer went as far as to suggest the novel â€Å"failed† the â€Å"modernist challenge: to write about a holocaust, about the end of everything†¦ What happens Is a redemption, of sorts, arguably absurd In the face of such overwhelming nihilism. 2 One wonders how McCarthy himself would respond. Perhaps we should begin by recalling the cautionary and prophetic injunction that Nietzsche appended to one of his last works, Ace Homo: â€Å"l have a terrible fear I shall nee day be pronounced holy: one will guess why I bring out this book beforehand; it is Intended to prevent people from making mischief of me†¦ My truth Is dreadful: for hitherto the Ill has been called truth. â€Å"3 Nietzsche feared the untimely nature of the truth he came to announce to a modernity whose ‘end' had only just begun.He predicted the unpreserved of us â€Å"murderers of God† to stand up in the ruins of the transcendent â€Å"old God† of metaphysics, and an unwillingness to create our own tragic pursuit of life. God, he would later write, would simply refuse die; the task of modern man was therefore to kill him again and again. He difficult and paradoxical redemption offered in The Road is very far from resurrecting the old God of metaphysics. Indeed, I would like to argue in the following that it interweaves themes both of resistance (the refusal to die) and mourning (the passing of irreversible loss).In doing so, the novel powerfully engages the reader with the very porous nature of redemption in the context of its post-apocalyptic environment. Engaging McCarthy text in this way invites a Adrienne, deconstructive reading of the narrative of redemption in contemporary disaster fiction in general. This is cause the conversations and thought-experiments employed by McCarthy attempt in many different ways to destabilize and provoke questions of the binary oppositions involved in that very discussion of redemptive ends (indeed, of the possibility of conceiving ‘ends' at all).There are oppositions such as the saved and the damned, the lost and the retrievable; the redeemed and irredeemable futures. McCarthy provokes the question, in particular, of what meaning we might possibly attach to human redemption and the â€Å"messianic† in an ostensibly irredeemable earth. What can be hoped for, sustained, and believed in? On the one hand, therefore, McCarthy pursuit of life and lives in the scorched wasteland bears all the hallmarks of Nietzsche tragedy – the â€Å"taming of ho rror through art†4 -as opposed to a comic rendering of the apocalypse (in which the righteous are spared the calamities of the end).On the other hand, the ambiguous sense of the messianic in The Road hints at more than lyrical or existentialist responses to tragedy. By tracing McCarthy exploration of redemption alongside developments in the continental philosophy of religion, first in the form of ‘death of God theology, and second, that of indestructibility of the messianic, I hope to open up some exploratory questions about the ambiguity of redemption in this highly influential piece of contemporary fiction.Ends of The Road Michael Cabochon states that for authors attempting a move into the futuristic post- apocalypse genre, â€Å"it is an established fact that a preponderance of religious imagery or an avowed religious intent can go a long way toward mitigating the science- fictional taint. â€Å"5 And so Cabochon believes that, in McCarthy novel, the father â€Å"f eeds his son a story'. By constructing the creed or injunction to â€Å"carry the fire†, the story is infused with a â€Å"religious sense of mission† that, incarnate in the hope given to the life of the boy, â€Å"verges on the explicitly messianic†. We would do well to pause in front of the implications of this word â€Å"messianic†. Who is saved: the boy? The promise of human community? And who or what comes to save? The boys saviors at the end present a hesitant, and uncertain departure: the guarantee only that others like him are alive. The messianic here would appear to take the form as much as a threat as a promise. And yet, taken from the Hebrew term for ‘anointed one', the concept of messiah in Jewish and early Christian literature is indeed bound up closely with the apocalyptic social upheaval. Certain expressions of the messianic thus anticipate both destruction (of the old world) and rebirth (of the new). In Jewish rabbinic thought what is crucial for messianic belief is its relationship with history and historic experience. It is visionary hope in the present for the way things could be, whether these are simply restorative or utopian. 8 The tradition that emerges is subsequently one of the announcement of such a promise of the future through the voice of the prophets.Anticipating Jacques Deride, the concept of the messianic announcement is the voice of the fringe, the outside of sanctioned, homogeneous discourse: â€Å"a call, a promise of an independent future for what is to come, and which comes like every messiah in the shape of peace and Justice, a promise independent of religion, that is to say universal. â€Å"9 Whilst The Road carries its own utopian and dyspepsia prophets, however, redemption is nowhere conceived or expressed as the restoration of peace. Nor is it infused with any hope in the renewal of the earth, or even of the narrative of new beginnings for the scorched landscape.McCarthy relentlessl y refuses reassurance that any return to a golden age is possible. The novel is an exploration of the irreversible, of â€Å"things which could not be put back†. 10 In what, then, consist its alleged religiosity, its messianic expectation, or â€Å"greater The clues lie in the relationship formed between a salvation to come (framed in the metaphor of the road itself: Mimi need to keep going. You don't know what might be down the road†12) and the ambiguous sense of endings running throughout the book. The father's own life represents a refusal of the simplicity of endings.His son must not lay down and die. Or, more precisely, he may not die of his own choosing, before the Father has calculated death's permeability on his behalf. The terror of the novel is thus generated within the narrative context of this slipping away of the control over the appropriate end. The son knows neither how to die alone, nor, symbolically, the function of the pistol in his hands: (â€Å"l d on't know what to do, Papa. I don't know what to do. Where will you be? â€Å")13 In relation to a search for the messianic, we must seek the sense of redemption only within this disestablishing sense of time.The messianic takes on a perverse sort of tension between the desire for end as closure, and the refusal to end, as the resistance of death, and finality. The boys terror at the task asked of him (to kill himself) is not complicated. But this struggle between ends and beginnings in The Road also expresses the paradoxical nature of the post-apocalyptic genre in general. If we accept James Burger's account of post-apocalyptic narrative as concerned essentially with â€Å"aftermaths and remainders†, then we must also follow his conclusion that it is always oxymoron: â€Å"the End is never the end†. The modernist assumption, in Frank Sermon's celebrated study, has been that the â€Å"sense of an ending† is what gives our living â€Å"in the middies†1 5 narrative meaning. But post-apocalypse means the very unsettling of those temporal frames. It â€Å"impossibly straddles the boundary between before and after some event that has obliterated what went before yet defines what will come after. â€Å"16 Indeed, we can see the influence of this scatological tension – a concern to much modernist and postmodernist literary exploration of the nature and meaning of narrative closure.Paul Fiddles' wide ranging study of such explorations suggests that if there is a malaise in the writing of closure into contemporary fiction, it simply reflects the more general environment of â€Å"constant crisis†, replacing the sense of completion and fulfillment of history, in which we live. 17 Such a paradox also partly reflects The Road as a study of the refusal of endings, and e ipso a refusal of the redemption normally associated with the narrative end. For our fascination is drawn not to those who are destroyed, but to those who refuse to die.If McCarthy style emulates, as some critics suggest, the biblical language of Revelation, they can't have missed SST. John's vision, borrowed probably from Job, that during the scatological calamities, â€Å"people will long for death and not find it anywhere; they will want to die and death will evade them. â€Å"18 A comedic articulation of this craving crops up in the Backbitten character of Ely, echoing precisely the post-apocalyptic dilemma: Things will be better when everyone's gone. They will? Sure they will. Better for who? Everybody. Sure. We'll all be better off. We'll all breathe easier.That's good to know. Yes it is. When we're all gone at last then there'll be nobody here but death and his days are numbered too. He'll be out in the road there with nothing to do and nobody to do it. He'll say: Where did everybody go? And that's how it will be. What's wrong with that? 19 McCarthy is arguably concerned, like Becket, to explore the experience of the death of God as instant paradox. That is, as a source of the death of hope for some, but also of an absurd affirmation of life by others, condemning them to a life of scatological suspension – of waiting, but for what?Our encounter with the ‘post' of post-apocalypse is, then, immediately one with the challenge of making narrative and ethical sense of the life that remains, rather than he purely nihilist gratuitousness of a death that won't come. It is more akin to Albert Campus' Rebel, 20 charged with the task of making an ethics of action in the absurd condition, without resorting to a leap of faith that removed the lucid reality of the absurd itself. It is the life of Sisyphus, who has made his rock his entire â€Å"universe† of meaning. 1 All talk of redemption and the messianic must take seriously this simultaneous presence of both the ‘end' and the refusal, or undesirability, of endings. The question that emanates from The Road is perhaps this one: what does nee do, given the knowledge of a certainty of the collapse of life, which might make walking possible along the remainder of the Road? How can this search operate within the traumatic experiment of post-apocalypse, of the never-ending? Dermis's interest in the concept of ‘apocalyptic time'.For Deride can be argued to echo the refusal of the security of endings that I have suggested lies at the heart of The Road. Deride refuses the scatological language of triumphal historicist (particularly in reference to Fuchsia's ‘end of history thesis), invoking Hamlet's fearful dictum, â€Å"the time is out of Joint†22 To express this refusal. Similarly, McCarthy frames the experience of this time of the ‘remainder' not as the aftermath of the singular catastrophic event. Rather, it is the perpetuity of catastrophe itself: the uncertainty of relationships, ecology, and the possibility for human community.The thought experiment becomes one of a tortuously open future, the absenc e of referents for forging new values, new rules, and new duties. The novel thus plays on the post-apocalypse genre by creating a dissonance of temporal perspectives. Time has already run out and is yet, for the boy, opening out inexorably: nothing has really knishes. For the father, the character of the time that remains is defined by the anxiety not only of the limited time allotted to him (who is really dying) but of the dubious gift of extending the time allotted the son into the future – and who's death he will not be able to oversee.Through the tender and contradictory relationship of the father and son, then, the genre of post-apocalypse is turned on its head. We grapple not so much with the post-modern fragmentation of endless traumatic symptoms,23 but the juxtaposition of these two impossible positions in the dialogue of father and child. On the one hand there is a protection of and desire for the end: the father's desire to secure the least tortuous conclusion to hi s son's life.And on the other there is the need for a beginning: the son's overwhelming concern for who and what must lie beyond: who exists? What are they like? Who looks after them? Who will guarantee their safety in the future? Apocalyptic Time Death, or limit, is thus explored in The Road as a painful loss of control over time. This resistance to the consolation of narrative ends represents the most unique and creative aspect of McCarthy apocalyptic style. But what can we say about ‘apocalyptic' literature in general that may shed light on the ambiguity of McCarthy redemptive turn?Literary apocalypses, in Jewish and Christian interdepartmental literature, intentionally sought to trace the limits of communicable discourse. It did this, crucially, against the political traumas of history, in which an old world was thought to be dying and a new one arising, which would completely overturn reality. Through visionary events bestowed upon favored emissaries or recipients, heaven ly truth revealed, through apocalypses, the â€Å"place beyond the limits of language†25 to unanimity. What is the function of this type of limit-discourse?Implicit to all apocalypses there is an ethically loaded injunction that the truth of the world is not all that is visible or conceivable by human means. 26 At its root, then, apocalypse claims that a deeper destiny and purpose lies underneath, and is here, through text and vision, disclosed. Revealed. It is this aspect of the coding of Revelation that so attracts Dermis's attention in his celebrated essay, On a Newly Arisen Tone in Philosophy. Dermis's fascination is with the figure of John and the complex symbolism of the fragmented, yard messages of the future contained in his vision.There is, believes Deride, something primal to Western thought in John's act as the messenger, this role of being the favored dispatcher of revelation and denouncing the false' ones, the â€Å"impostor apostles†. 27 Is there an echo of this cryptic prophecy in McCarthy – for instance, the language of God who is both announced and yet uncontainable, even within the friendly woman's talk of the â€Å"breath of God† that â€Å"passes from man to man through all of If so, the crucial lesson for an apocalyptic reading of McCarthy would be that apocalypse guarantees no certainties about future realities.On the contrary, it would be to resist the â€Å"temptation† of one apocalyptic tone, and to hear instead apocalypse as an â€Å"unmistakable polytonally'. 29 There is, in a deconstructive reading, only a deeper fragmentation and disestablishing of meaning and truth. And this is precisely the concern of Dermis's critique of an ontological and ‘contemporaneous' reading of history. As Fiddles puts it, narrative can be deconstructionist in the sense that, like the book of Revelation, â€Å"[the] ending deconstructs itself, and so disperses meaning rather than [completes] it. 30 This same ins tability and impermanence of discourse is prevalent within the illegal between father and son in The Road. The meaning of words and the possibility of language itself becomes shorn of its social or ethical grounds. McCarthy even poses the problem as one of the absurdity of text in the post-apocalyptic future. From the referent-less discussion of metaphor â€Å"as the crow flies†31 (to the boy, who has never known the existence of birds) to the man's memory of pausing in the â€Å"charred ruins of some library' and experiencing absolute dislocation between the value of words and the burnt remains of â€Å"the world to come†. 2 An attempt to speak in a world where words and meanings are disappearing mirrors ruefully the attempt to invoke faith in a world in which God is increasingly absent. The God of The Road is the impossible presence, the one whose name is invoked (by the father, and by the woman at the end) but whose very existence would pose only problems, not solu tions. To Ely, the possibility of the persistence of god or gods is a fearful prospect and impedance to the task at hand (of surviving?Or dying? ): â€Å"Where men can't live gods fare no better. You'll see. It's better to be alone. â€Å"33 But the existential struggle facing both the father and Ely is precisely the realization that, in he very act of their survival, something unshakeable of the trace of God (in the book it moves from â€Å"word†, to â€Å"breath†, to â€Å"dream† in that order) is incarnate. This appears, admittedly, as a curse to Ely, whose survival the father finds incredible.The fate bestowed on any unlucky enough to carry on down the road is to carry the remainder, the aftermath of this ineffability and this absence: â€Å"There is no God and we are his prophets. â€Å"34 It is, finally, in reference to the knowledge and memory of dying that any talk of the possible meaning of redemption must orient itself: hence hat must the remaining humans carry on being humans? The man questions Ely on this point: â€Å"how would you know if you were the last man on earth? † to which Ely replies â€Å"It wouldn't make any difference. When you die it's the same as if everybody else did too. 35 The framing of post-apocalypse narrative in this context reiterates the centrality of the question of remainders, of those who might remain to remember and to hold the consciousness of humanity and the possibility of discourse (and therefore of God? ) in their very surviving. God is Dead (again) The reference to God, and God's potential for solving the conundrum of the meander (perhaps, wonders the man, â€Å"God would know' that you were the last on earth) is typically McCarthy. He is concerned mostly to problematic belief rather than to reject it or affirm it entirely through his characters.The fragmented quasi- theological discussions echo the brilliant, extended account of the preacher who does theological battle with a dyin g faith in The Crossing. 37 But, once again, a deeper examination of what sort of theistic faith such references might imply goes some way to answering those readers unhappy with McCarthy redemptive conclusions. Ells sat remark bears similarities to attempts made in the sass to articulate a faithful religious response to the existentialist current, through a â€Å"Death of God Theology'. Alongside Thomas J. J.Altimeter, The protestant theologian Paul Italics famously argued for the language of modern theology to acknowledge not only the ontological inadequacy of speaking of God's existence (since the essence of God is a Being â€Å"beyond Being†). Theology must also acknowledge the failure of human experience to allow this access in the first place. For many of these thinkers the ‘God of the theologians' had died on the battlefields of Europe during World War l. To thus define God in negative terms was not only a semantic step. It was to couch Thee-logos as the discour se of absence par excellence.And certainly through the eyes of the other religious existentialists (Aggregated, Bereave, Dostoevsky, Auber) the search for God was the reaffirmation of the absurd, its crucifixion in the mystery of human suffering, not its resolution. Another exemplar, the Catholic convert Simons Well, had expressed it through the figure of Mary Magdalene on Easter Saturday: one moves towards the tomb motivated by death, an expectation of the corpse, not an optimistic pop in life. It is human suffering that motivates our movement â€Å"towards reality', and the mystery in which God (through his absence) is to be found.Likewise, influenced heavily by Nietzsche, Italics described the true act of faith of the believer as one who does not attempt to square the existentialist crisis of despair but who has â€Å"the courage to look into the abyss of nonbinding in the complete loneliness of him who accepts the message that â€Å"God is dead†. 38 A difficult God to f ind, to be sure, since for Well, Italics and others, the problem of nihilism was not to be squared by the gift of faith. It was to be lived in the paradox of human suffering – in the seeking, not the finding, of an answer to suffering.Perhaps The Road shares some features of these attempts to grapple with the death of God. But it is only really with Dermis's exploration of the messianic and time that deconstruction, to repeat, attempts to go beyond philosophy and society's obsessions with talking of the ‘end' of thinking, metaphysics, God, politics, Marxism, etc. Deconstruction tries to counterbalance this fascination with definitive ends by announcing the end of a â€Å"electronic† crisis rhetoric itself. Deride thus highlights the err possibility of crisis discourse as the last form of meaning that one clings to, and whose loss signals a truly existential death.The true crisis is that there may no longer be a â€Å"philosophy of crisis† : â€Å"there is perhaps not even a ‘crisis of the present world'. In its turn in crisis, the concept of crisis would be the signature of a last symptom, the convulsive effort to save a World' that we no longer in habit: no more kiosks, economy, ecology, livable site in which we are ‘at home†. 39 One recalls, in the light of this, the discussion in The Road of the possibility of both knowing, and not owing, preparing, and not preparing, for the â€Å"event†, the brief glimpse of which holds an elusive taint of horror over the narrative.Ely confides in the man: I knew this was coming. You knew it was coming? Yeah. This or something like it. I always believed in it. Did you try to get ready for it? No. What would you do? I don't know. People were always getting ready for tomorrow. I didn't believe in that. Tomorrow wasn't getting ready for them. It didn't even know they were there. 40 This intervention into crisis thinking problematical the very status of event – its u ndesirability, its uncertain definitiveness. It mirrors Dermis's critique of an Aristotelian, favored presence of the â€Å"event† itself.Ultimately, such a critique leads to Dermis's ability to pose a distinctively Jewish opposition to this privileging of the event: namely, the reassertion of a certain messianic, a therefore mystical, mysterious return to a revelatory messianic. It is, however, a messianic â€Å"without messianic†; â€Å"stripped of everything†,41 or in other words unbounded by the specificity of this or that dogmatism, religion, and metaphysics of salvation. In deconstruction, then, we can no longer speak of the privilege of the ‘contemporary. 2 What does that concept imply in the context of McCarthy narrative?It opens out the analysis to the concept of redemption without the guarantee of the ‘event' that would guarantee salvation in the manner of the promises of institutional religion. Such a sentiment recalls the â€Å"iconoclas tic† reformulation of hope that was prevalent in post-war Jewish critical theory (particularly in Ernst Bloch). This meant a redemption without reference to the face of God; only the notion of promise itself. 43 Deride expresses a notion of the future as being not a future-present' but as something perpetually out of reach.It produces, like death, the effect of interminable non-occurrence, perhaps in the manner by which the â€Å"event† of The Road is announced: â€Å"The clocks stopped at 1 Time itself, like discourse, and like belief, is suspended; shorn of its referent. The messianic impulse that survives even a book binding to the commitment of expectation: more akin, once again, to the suffering of the waiting Vladimir and Estrogen. The apocalyptic element of The Road, then, might not be the announcement of some catastrophic event in time either in the past (since this is never dwelled upon) or the future.It is rather the revelation of traces, of remainders and re minders, of the God who might also be dying since he â€Å"fares no better† than men when men can't live. 45 The apocalyptic always appears with a hidden face, in the impossible or inconceivable encounter with the end of all things, of death itself. The consolation offered to the boy by his father is that he has always been â€Å"lucky'. 46 Beyond irony, the word â€Å"luck† seems shorn of its associations with providence, destiny, and blessedness, and more like an unhappy covenant: an unspoken agreement that the boy is bound to continue, to keep going.The continuation of life is a brute fact for the boy as much as for Ely (neither apparently aware what keeps them going). And yet the boy is very unlike Ely, not because of his innocence, but because of his temporal language. What will happen, he asks of his father, to the other boy? To the man they abandoned? To the people imprisoned in the house? The conundrum for Ely is otherwise, and framed in the time that was. Wha t has happened; did we see it coming? What were we thinking? Even if we did, how could we have been expected to choose?If there is redemption in The Road, perhaps all we can say of it is the ability o ask questions of the future, as opposed to only those of the past, of mourning that which cannot be put right. Redemption without redemption The ‘event' is indeed problematic for post-apocalypse. But it is problematic not simply because finality is put off indefinitely (as Berger claims). It is problematic for its revealing, or disclosing, our lack of control over its arrival. Apocalypse is temporal catastrophe: a disruption of our chronic desires, time we possess, can control.The future is certainly terrible, but it is agonizing particularly for our thorniness into its uncertainty. Redemption, then, if it is relevant at all, must be seen as the ability to imagine that what one sees now is not all that there is. In the book of Revelation calamities are predicted that meticulously symbolism the passing of apportioned periods of time according to divine order, not those of powers and principalities. 47 In The Road, however, the father is possessed by his responsibility to Judge the ‘right time' of his son's end, and so spare unbearable life.The crisis recalls Abraham's struggle with God's command to act out the unthinkable, here repeated in the Father's own self-doubt: â€Å"Can you do it? When the time comes? When the time comes there will be no time. Now is the time. Curse God and die. â€Å"48 One passes over it easily, but by the end of the novel, the father's command to his son to leave him occurs by way of an admission of weakness; an apology for entrusting life with him: â€Å"l can't hold my dead son in my arms. I thought I could but I can't†49.Is this the conclusion thought to give some sort of redemptive lift to the narrative – a â€Å"fog leaf† to the unacceptable narrative of total disaster? 50 1 would argue cynical pe rspective, rather than the consolingly messianic one. In this view the ether's committal of the son to the future is not performed out of faith in the persistence of goodness. His commitment is, more simply, in the inability to cease suffering, to cease walking along the road. The father's sense of an open future is not hard to grasp in itself: it is the only thing left to offer his son.Yet what is the most significant imaginative turn in what follows? I would argue that it is not that the boy subsequently finds fellow travelers we are to believe are also the good guys who are â€Å"carrying the fire†. Nor even is it that they, like the woman, are also those that cosines the persistence of the divine in the world. Rather, it is an admission by all characters of a disestablishing uncertainty about that road that lies ahead. It is there in the implied pause of the man's response to the boy at the end of the novel: â€Å"He looked at the sky. As if there were anything to be see n.Yeah, he said. I'm one of the good guys. † 51 There is no evidence in what precedes this moment that any place the new community will reach can support life. Nor, I think, are we meant to intuit such a turn towards the future. One cannot ignore, in any case, the terrifying allusions that lie underneath McCarthy choice of the word â€Å"fire†. Cabochon is quick to point this out: the new hope for human community are people â€Å"carrying fire in a world destroyed by fire†. 52 But we can go further than this, since the irony recalls the central theme of another classic of the post-apocalypse genre.In William Miller's A Canticle for Leibniz, the scattered survivors of global nuclear war attempt to construct the new civilization by destroying all forms of scientific knowledge. They do this on the premise that such knowledge will lead inexorably to the same situation of nuclear terror. A secluded community of monks become the last guardians of ancient knowledge, pre serving it for such a time that knowledge will once again be responsibly applied. But the fear is vindicated by the recapitulation of humanity to a second wave of nuclear apocalypse at the novel's horrifying conclusion.

Blooming Trinity Essay Research Paper English 1302018October

Blooming Trinity Essay, Research Paper English 1302.018 October 11, 2000 Blooming Three In the verse form? When Lilacs Last In The Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D? , by Walt Whitman, three of import symbols are introduced. These symbols of a star, the lilac, and a bird exhibit Whitman? s transcendental philosophy and service as an allusion to Abraham Lincoln? s life and decease. Whitman? s poesy, through these symbols, opens a window to the predominating societal attitudes, moral beliefs, and cultural temperament of his clip through his allusions to President Lincoln. To understand Whitman? s poesy one must foremost cognize something about the poet himself. Walt Whitman was born on May 31, 1819 in Long Island New York. Whitman disliked the thought of going a carpenter like his male parent and opted to seek his ain luck. The publication of Leafs of Grass, Whitman? s major literary work, was a major turning point in Whitman? s life. ? Before, he was a instructor, pressman, journalist, carpenter, and more. After, no affair what else he did, he was a poet? ( Wiener 14 ) . Whitman? s strong resistance to slavery gave him jobs subsequently on as in life. Langston Hughes relates when he says? [ Whitman ] had been an editor of the Brooklyn Eagle, but was fired at that place in 1948, because he refused to back up Governor Cass of Michigan who advocated the continuance of bondage? ( Wiener 196 ) . Whitman greatly influenced many people of his clip period but besides was influenced by other authors. Russell Blankenship, a professor at the University of Washington, relates this fact when he says that Whitman was? influenced by the august American author and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson? ( Wiener 106 ) . Emerson is normally known as a transcendentalist. A transcendentalist is a individual who is? idealistic and optimistic. They believed they could happen replies to whatever they were seeking. All they had to make was larn to read, through their intuition, the external symbols of nature and in terpret them into religious facts? ( Brulatour ) . Whitman? s transcendental philosophy is important in? When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D? because of the usage of three symbols that serve as an allusion to Abraham Lincoln? s life and decease. President Abraham Lincoln was one of our state? s greatest presidents. Lincoln? s low beginnings and rise to go arguably the most powerful individual in the United States are a great representation of the American thought that anyone can go anything he aspires to be. One of Lincoln? s major parts was his engagement in the Civil War. As commanding officer and head of the Union ground forces, Lincoln had the duty of working with the generals of the brotherhood ground forcess to get the better of the Confederate ground forcess. Lincoln, like Whitman, besides felt that bondage was an abomination and? on January 1, 1863, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation that declared everlastingly free those slaves within the Confederacy. ? ( White House. ) After the Union ground forces won the war, President Lincoln was assassinated while watching a drama in Ford? s Theatre, Washington. The state? s bereavement was displayed as? a crowd of grievers gathered at each railroad station as the funeral train rolled westward toward the Illinois prairie, to Springfield, where Abraham Lincoln was buried. ? ( Groiler ) . Whitman? s verse form, ? When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D, ? efforts to demo the bereavement of a state every bit good as Whitman? s personal unhappiness. In the verse form? Where Lilacs Last In The Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D? the lilac has generated diverse readings. When I foremost read? Where Lilacs Last In The Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D? I thought of the lilacs as stand foring beauty and love, presumptively for the late president. Yet, with farther reading, I found that there are several other readings. Edwin Miller, a professor of English at New York University and recognized Whitman bookman, interprets the? branchlet as the season O f metempsychosis, the sense of odor ( The? get the hanging olfactory property? ) , twenty-four hours and physical life, love as the recollection of decease ( the lilac as a flowered testimonial on the casket ) ? ( Miller 187 ) . Another reading, by Kenneth Burke, writer of? Policy Made Personal: Whitman? s Verse and Prose? Salient Traits? , provinces? . . . the broken? branchlet? of lilac as the star? dropt in the dark? ; the? aroma strong? of the lilacs? in the dooryard looking an old farm-house, ? the olfactory property of the? corsages? placed upon the coffin, ? ( Miller 188 ) . Both readings by Burke and by Miller indicate that the lilac is most likely representative of the flowers placed on the coffin at Lincoln? s decease. Through the usage of the lilac in the verse form we come to understand that it is a realistic symbol with deeper significance. Whitman? s transcendental philosophy shows itself in the verse form by the usage of the lilac as a representation to Lincoln? s dece ase. Another symbol in? Where Lilacs Last In The Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D? is a bird described as a? lone? , ? grey-brown? thrush. When I foremost read? Where Lilacs Last In The Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D, ? my readings of the bird included the possibility of Lincoln? s spirit, freedom, or even his idiosyncrasy. I thought of the thrush and Lincoln? s idiosyncrasy because Lincoln appeared as a lone person in the bulk of the images I have seen him in. I went back to my readings and found that in Miller? s reading? the bird has been associated with love, insight as cognition of decease, the? idea of mortality? and the poetic procedure itself ( the bird as the? brother? of the supporter ) ? ( Miller 187 ) . Burke takes another point of position when he relates that? the thrush besides has a complex symbolic intent: it is decease, love, poetic procedure, but more. Traditionally the bird is associated with the flight of the psyche after the decease of the organic structure? ( Miller 189 ) . I p articularly admired Burke? s input with the flight of the psyche. I concluded that the thrush in this verse form could be seen as a symbol of President Lincoln? s spirit or psyche and the? warbling vocal? of the thrush as either a bereavement vocal or possibly a vocal observing a great spirit. The last of the three symbols in? Where Lilacs Last In The Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D? is the star. The symbol of the? Western Star? is evidently a direct relation to President Lincoln since Lincoln was from Illinois, which was a western province at that clip. I besides thought of the star as something that was lighting, olympian, or possibly a mention to the American flag. Miller? s reading was that the star? has elicited greater understanding because of its obvious association with the President? s decease, although the symbol has been extended to included decease itself or the Western construct of decease? ( Miller 187 ) . After reading this reading, I besides thought that the star could be a representation of the rhythm of life. The forenoon: relating to birth and childhood ; the twenty-four hours: relating to maturity and old age ; and the starry dark: decease and liquors. Burke states that? the? drooping? star, the broken? branchlet? of lilac, and the supporter? s psyche before the blackwash which? sank? as the star? dropt in the dark? ( Miller 189 ) . The psyche of President Lincoln was non the lone thing that? sank? , both the state? s and Whitman? s lesson were besides unfavourably affected by decease of the President. In? When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D? Whitman speaks of a? three? . The three is normally recognized as a symbol of the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost but in? When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom? vitamin D? the three is one symbol stand foring three more. The symbols of the lilac, the thrush, and the star come together into one three to demo Whitman? s transcendental philosophy and service as an allusion to Abraham Lincoln? s life and decease. 370 Brulatour, Meg. What is American Transcendentalism? 1 Oct. 2000

Comtempprary Issues in Strategic Management Essay

Comtempprary Issues in Strategic Management - Essay Example Consequently factors like strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the company have been analysed. Taking these facts into consideration, the primary objectives have been developed for the company. The objectives are then moulded to form the marketing strategies, which are then implemented with the help of an action plan. The entire strategy is based on expected profit and loss of the company. Lastly, a contingency plan has also been provided in case of failure of the previous plan. Marketing concepts and strategies have been increasingly gaining popularity in the contemporary world. A significant share of a company’s success can be attributed to its marketing plans and strategies. This project deals with a car manufacturing company in Malaysia, which became a prey to extremely damaging media reports on quality issues. This has undermined the market image of the company which used to be the main selling point for the time being. This project tries to initiate a strategic analysis of the company using Pestle Analysis, Porter’s Analysis and SWOT Analysis. Based on the above analysis, the project aims to design a marketing strategy, the primary objective of which is to regain and retain the lost image of the company. Inspite of the global economic crisis, the Asian countries have been recovering at a much faster rate than most other nations of the world. Research has revealed that the gross domestic product of Asian nations and their industrial productions have bounced impressively after the recession. Along with the tide, the car manufacturing company of Malaysia has also experienced significant growth. Forecasts have shown that vehicle sales, among the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, are also expected to increase substantially in 2010. The number is expected in surpass 2 million units in the same year. Government policies like scrappage schemes and

Describe the challenges of making decisions in environments of high Research Paper

Describe the challenges of making decisions in environments of high speed and complexity (See instructions) - Research Paper Example This essay stresses that with the replacement of human resource in this the digital age it becomes tricky to establish between the human resource and the digital resource on whose information to use in decision making. This is a challenge that must be addressed urgently, because the need for speed is inevitable while tactful decisions that the digital resource may not provide for may be vital to solve a problem. Excess use of the digital technology in the industry may overlook or pin down the human resource. Although the digital resource is important and accurate in decision making, human resource in the e- business remains the most important resource. This report makes a conclusion that the discrimination between the two important resources in the e- economy is vital for ensuring that the right decisions' are made while effectively using both resources. Debbie Maurice, the vice president of education in Novell, said in an interview that while she makes eighty percent of her decisions remotely using the information in the, she is forced to personally visit the customers personally in an attempt to understand their needs than rely on the internet to do all for her. The decision to take such an initiative remains to be done by the major segment of the e-business world. E- Commerce has been narrowed down into purchasing over the internet while in the real sense, it comprises of many other elements.

Business Law (David adamson Case) Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Business Law (David adamson ) - Case Study Example The defendant’s website offered sufficient quantity of contact which implies that it was interested in conducting business in Idaho. The defendant willingly participated in a business deal which culminated into a purchase of its product by minors. Thus, it is reasonable to argue that the â€Å"Makers Mark, Kentucky Bourbon† had sufficient contact to create a business relationship. The second aspect is whether the transfer of the case would uphold the notions of fair play and substantial justice as laid forth in the Intl Shoe Co. v. Wash case. Incidentally, â€Å"Makers Mark, Kentucky Bourbon† engaged in a business relationship that had potential legal implications. It is therefore fair play for the case to be conducted in Idaho since it is the location where the dispute occurred. The delivery of justice in this case would not be compromised since the defendant was already doing business in Idaho and it is therefore reasonable for them to settle a legal dispute in Idaho. In determining the case law to be applied, the court should take account of the place where the alleged dispute occurred. The dispute occurred in Idaho and this implies that the case should be heard in Idaho. The second aspect in choosing the case law is the evaluation of the relevant policies underlying the field of law and justified expectations. According to Bertram v. Norden, it is necessary for the state to have the necessary legal framework to handle the case and the expectations of the aggrieved parties must be addressed. Idaho as the legal framework to handle the case and both parties should reasonably expect the dispute to be resolved at the place of business. The domicile and the place of business relationship of the parties are also important in determining the case law to be applied. In this case, the domicile of the aggrieved parties is different and the place of business relationship is

Rights of accused Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Rights of accused - Essay Example Due process refers to the legal principles that the state should respect the rights of all the individuals. It is used in the law to ensure the right of a free trial, and that the court has to listen to both the parties and their evidences before making a decision. The government cannot harm the accused until the exact course of law doesn’t allow them to. The concept of due process has been written in the US constitution but it was originated before it was drafted in the constitution. The concept is older than the English Common Law (Ramen, 2001). It developed from the Magna Carta in England. In the early times, in some of the ancient private court, there was an appearance made at an unrecorded time. It was unofficially recognized by the councils that the accused person also needs some protection against the ruling authority to ensure his rights, life and possessions are protected. This was the time when rough justice was a normal thing, but there still were some leaders who w ould understand the basic rights. There are many aspects that are covered under the concept of due process. The primary role of the due process is to ensure that the government does not take any action against an individual which could result in loss to life, property or liberty. They must provide the individual with a notice and give them the opportunity to be heard. As these legal requirements were tied up by law, any government officer violating the due process will be charged. Before the final verdict is given by the court, the government must make sure the individual is given fair, impartial measures to challenge the state action. Since all criminal cases are against the state, the state offers lawyers to the criminals who can speak their case (Siegel, 2011). The government, at times, abuses the accused individuals and their property, for example by eminent domain for a public purpose without giving the fair value of land. Such

10 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

10 - Essay Example There are two groups of software professionals; one is the production part of software development and the other one is service part of IT providers. The reason for making two groups is that, the profession is more or less of the same, design and development. The second group is also doing the same but for public service. The responsibility of a software engineer is to design and implement a variety of software solutions. They may be occupied in the design and testing of various applications like computer game, some business applications, operating system or various superior software programmes for extreme hardware and equipment. Once the system is completely designed, the testing team will test and debug the system and after that the maintenance team maintain the system. The software engineers normally work in a complicated and highly technical environment. The application engages computer science as well as mathematics. They should know programming languages and applications because they will be involved in a variety of works. After a university or high school degree, most of the students select the career as IT professional or in software services. The path from university to a company is very straight. According to the recruitment policy; they recruit some experienced candidate. Companies prefer managerial skills as well as technical skills. The demand of IT jobs is extremely high as it provides a better economical potential, better salary scales, and job security. In the United Kingdom those who move to the IT sector from municipal administration won’t get enough job satisfaction. On the basis of their experience; It professionals are classified as a Software Programmer, Analyst, Project Leader and so on. In spite of an enormous reforms relying on outsourcing and transfer of personal, the interviewees assemble all their resources to carry on in the private company the organisational profession that they underway in public administration they

Clueless is the latest cinematic adaptation Essay

Clueless is the latest cinematic adaptation - Essay Example Director Amy Heckerling presents a sequence of events parallel to the novel that indicates to the viewer that her work is a modern cinematic portrayal of the original classic. The movie Clueless features all of the underlying themes seen in the novel, including, as Denise Kohn points out, â€Å"the fallibility of matchmaking and flirtation; the danger, in the words of the novel, of a girl ‘having rather too much her own way’ and thinking ‘too well of herself† (Kohn, 1997). Interestingly though, the new version portrays its modern women characters as less emancipated and conservative than what is found in Emma. Consistent with the modern times, the story of the lead protagonist Cher is also suitably modified. The director has paid attention to detail in making analogous connections between the Victorian era and the modern era. For example, the art of photography replaces the more painstaking art of portraiture; fashionable convertible cars serve as apt substi tutes for horse-driven carriages; the traditional British fancy dress balls were replaced by high school partying. Even such aspects of the book as Mr. Woodhouse’ problems with his digestion and Emma’s concern for his well-being were transfigured into Chers imposition of a low-cholesterol diet on her father. The references to the original work do not stop there. The sport-car owning high school student represents the new American aristocracy, as depicted by the character of ‘Frank Churchill’.

The Companions Are the Source of Much Grief for Odysseus Essay Example for Free

The Companions Are the Source of Much Grief for Odysseus Essay Odysseus, the strong, courageous, dedicated hero, travelled for miles on end to return to his home land of Ithica and to bring with him the twelve fleet ships carrying his loyal companions. However throughout this epic poem Odysseus’ companions have been the bearers of much grief for Odysseus, in many ways from questioning his leadership to simply dying in battle. And slowly during this epic poem each of his twelve fleet ships has been struck down. The stories of Odysseus’ companions begin from the very opening of book nine, on the coast of Ismarus home to the Cicones. Odysseus and his men â€Å"sacked the place and destroyed its men folk† after taking their women and their vast spoils, Odysseus warned his men to dispatch with haste. But they were not quick minded enough, and a tremendous battle broke out between Odysseus and his men and the Cicones. Seventy two of Odysseus’ men were brutally killed. We can see here that this would cause much grief for Odysseus and his remaining companions, for his men had made it through the battle of Troy and where rejoicing to be returning home to Ithica, now he would have to return to grieving families awaiting their heroes return and for some, now their hero’s would never return. This is a classic example of the kind of grief Odysseus feels throughout the epic poem, because this is how many of his companions have presented Odysseus with grief, through death. Whether it was falling in battle or devoured by a monstrous creature. For instance when, Odysseus and his remaining companions sailed to the island of the Cyclopes, where with twelve companions, he entered the cave of the Cyclops Polyphemus. This giant devoured, one after another, six of the companions of Odysseus, and kept Odysseus and his other men as prisoners in his cave. Witnessing their loyal companion’s cannibalistic murders right in front of them Odysseus and his men â€Å"wept and raised their hands to Zeus in horror.† This again must have made Odysseus overridden with grief for not only did he watch his men be killed but he was the one that led them to this ferocious one eyed monster. Again he has lost more of his men which means more grieving families; at home in Ithica questioning the Gods for the death of their loved ones. However, death is not the only way that Odysseus is exposed to grief some of the monsters that Odysseus and his followers encountered would not kill his men but simply make them forget all longing for home, and the nostros that they were feeling. One of these monsters would be the Lotus-eaters, â€Å"a race that eat the flowery lotus fruit.† Some of his companions were so much delighted with the taste of this flower that they wanted to remain with the Lotus-eaters and think no more of Ithica. This must have caused much anguish for Odysseus as he did not know how to help his compelled comrades. But being the intelligent and strong hero he is he â€Å"used force to bring them back to the hollow ships, and they wept on the way† but once on board he tied them up and continued with his voyage. The sirens also allow men to forget their home for with their beautiful voices would sing bewitching songs to drive these men to their death. Luckily with the help of Circe the sorceress who told Odysseus that if he wanted to hear the sirens song and live that he should allow his men to tie him to the mast of his ship while they covered their ears with softened bees wax and steer the boat onward while Odysseus listened. Odysseus, in the epic poem has also encountered Companions that have questioned and mistrusted his leadership; this is that of Odysseus’ second in command of Odysseus’ ship during the voyage back to Ithica after the Trojan War his name was Eurylochus. In the Odyssey he is portrayed as an unpleasant, cowardly individual who undermines Odysseus and stirs up trouble. When Odysseus and his men arrive on the island of Aeaea home to Circe Eurylochus is chosen to lead a group of twenty-two men to explore the island. While touring the island they see Circe’s house and all but Eurylochus enters, he himself suspects Circe’s trap and when the men are turned into pigs he runs back to warn Odysseus. Odysseus prepares himself to confront this witch and save his crew however Eurylochus refuses to guide him to Circe’s palace and urges Odysseus to escape and leave the men to their fate. This must have caused an uncountable amount of grief and pain for Odysseus for Eurylochus was his second in command, Odysseus therefore must have trusted this man with his life and thought rather highly of him. Then for him to tell him to abandon his loyal companions who have been there for him since Troy and save himself must have hurt Odysseus a great deal. After Odysseus returns from Circe’s palace having rescued his companions, Eurylochus insults Odysseus and threatens to kill him. Here we see Odysseus being befriended and almost killed by his second in command obviously causing much grief for our brave hero. Overall I feel that the companions are the source of much grief for our fearless hero. However most of them did not wish to bring grief upon their leader. For most it was simply an unfortunate death leading to Odysseus grieving for the loss of them.

Population Changes in Japan

Population Changes in Japan Mustafa Ameen Introduction Population in a country is a source of vitality, and it is involved in a variety of costs to maintain a reasonable standard of living. Particularly for resource-poor Island nation like Japan, which has a population of very large or excessively small is a serious problem. Size is not the only issue; structure of the population is also an important factor. For example, it can be severe imbalances between the sexes threaten the stability of marriage and the family in society monogamous. If the number of senior citizens is large compared with the working-age population, the latter bears a heavy burden to support, and possibly the collapse of the pension system. Issues such as these cannot be ignored by anyone who wishes to understand the political choices and social problems facing Japan or to consider the prospects for the countrys future in the near term. This case study looks at the country with a declining and aging population. Japan has a population of about 127 million people, the tenth largest in the world, but it is unusual because the population is decreasing. Only a small number of other countries (such as Italy, Germany and Russia) have low population, but none is expected to fall as fast as the population of Japan. The mortality rates also declined dramatically, and the result was that the average length of life has increased by about 30 years over the past half-century. Average life expectancy is now 82 for women and 76 for men. The percentage of people aged 65 years or more than 14% of the population in 1994, and by 2020 is expected to be the number one in the world through this procedure Japan. Japan has nearly 27 million people, the elderly and the largest proportion of over- 65S from any country (21 %, see Figure 1). It also has a smaller proportion of the population under the age of 15 (13.6 %), which will lead to great difficulties for Japan in the future, as the number of employees will not be able to support the population. These changes occur more quickly in Japan than in Europe or the United States, and can seriously affect the economy of one of the richest countries in the world. Rate of Change of population in Japan Until recently, in the 1950s, and Japan is facing a chronic problem too many mouths to feed. In the Edo period (1600-1868) held by the population and the media as a desperate infanticide and abandonment of the elderly. Japans population grew rapidly as it industrialized in the early twentieth century, an increase from 60 million in 1926 up to 100 million in 1967. Since the 1980s, however, has slowed population growth, after peaking in 2005, is now in decline. It is estimated that the population will fall to 121 million by 2025 and 100 million by 2050. What is more alarming is that the proportion of older persons will increase, and by 2030 it is estimated that one person in three will be over 65. This puts great pressure on the country. The course was a contraceptive on the main key for the decline in fertility. And practiced widely in Japan birth control; condom use on a large scale private. And the availability of abortions also undoubtedly helped unwanted pregnancy reduction. Abortion was legalized in Japan in 1948. The law allows for the termination of pregnancy is when persistence poses a serious threat to the physical health of the mothers or for economic reasons. Extended explanation of these causes physical or economic condition is the basis for most abortions. The changing demographics in the population pyramids are shown in Figure 1. Pyramid for 1950 is cone-shaped, with a wide base. However, as the decreased birth and death rates, has changed the form of a large pyramid and will continue to do so. In the pyramid for 2005 is replaced by a broad base of essential part before the bulging; in 2050, there is the upper part of a much larger, which indicates the predominance of the ability of the elderly. Vigorous pace of change in demographics cannot be reversed or even slowed down significantly. Avoid economic stagnation and social and maintain inter-generational equity may be the biggest challenges facing Japan, which grow gray by the year. Figure 1 Japan’s changing population [3] Declining of the population in Japan The main reason for the decline in numbers is that Japanese women are not having enough children. Many Japanese who choose to marry at a later age than in April 2007, on average, between 28 and 30 years old, and this means that they have children later, or not at all. Many women decide to also not to marry, choose to study or pursue a career instead of having children. Japanese culture in the upbringing of children and usually left for the mothers. Very few men take any leave to care for children ( although they are entitled to do so ) , and opinion polls reveal that more than 40 % of parents did not change a nappy or put children to sleep. This fact , and the lack of child-care facilities , which means that the small number of women returning to work after having children , and many women feel and others will have to give up a lot in order to have a family . There are also strong economic reasons why people choose not to have children or to have one or two only. Being pregnant is expensive in Japan, and pregnancy is not covered by health insurance. This means that women should pay for their own medical care during pregnancy, including hospital tests. After birth, and is provided free health care for all children up to the age of three years (or five in some areas). He added that this is the huge costs of education and higher education, and many families decide they can only afford to have one or two children at most. Child Benefit paid by the government to the families of low and barely enough to pay for diapers , not to mention other costs associated with having a family . The effect of population declination in Japan There are two types of special problems that will result from population decline. The first is the cost of caring for people as they get older, and the second is the lack of younger workers to fill the jobs. And more and more people reach retirement age, the country will need to find more money for their pensions. This means that already raising the retirement age and gets more contributions from both employers and employees, and theyll have to revisit again in the future. Already there is evidence of older workers in the shops, at airports, in the Tokyo subway or taxi driving. In the future there will be great pressure on the country as it tries to provide adequate health care to support the elderly. This inevitably means larger tax bills for people who work. The second problem and the most pressing is that companies find it difficult to hire new employees, and this will become more difficult in the future. If you cannot fill the jobs, then productivity will fall, and so the country will prosper. Box 1 World population over 65 Japan Figure 2 Map showing the worldwide distribution of people over 65 years old Figure 3 World map showing land areas The map in Figure 2 is an equal area cartogram in which each country has been sized according to the percentage of its population that is over 65. The colors used group the territories into 12 geographical regions, and allow it to be compared with other maps in the World mapper series (see web link at end of article). Figure 3 is a standard world map based on land areas and using the same colors, for comparison. In 2002, 7% of the world’s population was over 65. The map shows Japan, in purple, with a large elderly population at 21%. This contrasts with Saudi Arabia, where only 1% of the population is over 65. China has the largest elderly population in terms of numbers (92 million), but this is only 7% of the total Chinese population. Africa is home to only 6% of the world’s population aged over 65. Conclusion and future work In the long run, it is hoped that Japanese women can be persuaded to have more children, but social attitudes and trends is difficult for the government to address. Consideration is being given in the reforms, such as increasing the amount of the subsidy of the child, and the provision of tax allowances for families, and make child care more accessible, in the hope that this would lead to an increase in birth rates. However, many people do not think that an increase in birth rates that were not there are also social and cultural changes. In the short term, Japan should solve the labor shortage there. One way is clear to encourage more immigration. Currently there are only about 2 million foreigners live in Japan, and this is not anywhere near enough. There is a need for workers in the full range of functions, including dirty or dangerous jobs that Japanese people do not want to do ( such as cleaning or working in residential homes ) and functions that people need to be highly skilled and trained . Shortage in the engineering and computer programming Japan is well known. Some estimates say that Japan will need at least 500,000 immigrants each year over the next 40 years in order to keep pace. Difficulty with this, however, is that the Japanese as a nation are opposed to immigration. People born Japanese make up 98.5 % of the population, and it is difficult for foreigners to be accepted or to become citizens of Japan. In comparison with Switzerland this rate is 18% of the foreign workforce. Although the Japanese government is considering how to encourage more migrant workers, it also wants to impose controls on immigration. It would be difficult to change the views of the majority of the Japanese people, who fear that immigration threatens to what they see as the purity of Japanese culture. There is no doubt that Japans population in decline, and despite the fact that the government is aware of this problem, and many feel they have been slow to respond. It is unlikely that the elderly population is smaller and increasingly will be able to maintain the productivity and prosperity of the country, unless steps are taken to address the issues of population decline. Figure 3 current population pyramid for japan [5] References World mapper: www.sasi.group.shef.ac.uk/worldmapper/ wikipedia.org/wiki/Aging of Japan http://www.ithaca.edu/gerontology/schools/pdf/Aging%20in%20Japan.pdf http://www.worldmapper.org/articles/WW_Japan_pop.pdf http://www.indexmundi.com/japan/age_structure.html 1

Odysseus: Epic Hero? :: Free Essay Writer

Odysseus: Epic Hero? The question has been raised as to whether or not Odysseus, the hero of Homers The Odyssey, is an epic hero. An epic Hero portrays many classic properties, including being very strong and courageous. Odysseus is an epic hero, because he portrays many of these and other traits, such as having a goal that is foremost in his mind, and having descended into the underworld. An epic hero is almost overwhelmed with difficulty, often beyond that which a normal man could withstand. Not only is he confronted occasionally by danger or hopelessness; it is the entire premise of the poem. â€Å"Sing to me of the man, Muse, the man of twists and turns driven time and again off course, once he had plundered the hallowed heights of Troy† (Fagles 77). This it the first line of the whole poem, summing up what is going to happen as the speaker prays to the Muses, goddesses of stories. There is in fact, no other person, fictional or otherwise, in all of history, ever so besieged with difficulty, as Odysseus. Women and goddesses often tempt epic heroes, and Odysseus is tempted too. The goddess Circe is one of the many people who tempt him, â€Å"Come, sheath your sword, lets go to bed together, mount my bed and mix in the magic work of love-we’ll breed deep trust between us† (Fagles 240). Though Odysseus does bed with her, he never loses sight of hi s hope of coming home to his wife, Penelope. A female character always aids an epic hero, and Odysseus is no exception. Near the end of his travels, Athena feels sorry for him and decides to assist him and let him go home, and once he arrives, she helps him kill the suitors that plague his house. â€Å"That left the great Odysseus waiting in his hall as Athena helped him plot the slaughter of the suitors† (Fagles 390). Not only is this assistance by a woman, and a sure sign of an epic hero, but also a goddess assists him, and only those worthy enough can be helped by the Immortal. Odysseus is also aided and told how to get home by the Goddess Circe. â€Å"You must travel down to the House Of The Dead and the awesome one, Persephone, there to consult the ghost of Tiresias, seer of Thebes† (Fagles 245). This is the same person who tried to tempt him, but she realizes he wont stay and decides to help him instead.

Maos Cultural Revolution :: Chinese China History

Mao's Cultural Revolution Dressed in the drab military uniform that symbolized the revolutionary government of Communist China, Mao Zedong's body still looked powerful, like an giant rock in a gushing river. An enormous red flag draped his coffin, like a red sail unfurled on a Chinese junk, illustrating the dualism of traditional China and the present Communist China that typified Mao. 1 A river of people flowed past while he lay in state during the second week of September 1976. Workers, peasants, soldiers and students, united in grief; brought together by Mao, the helmsman of modern China. 2 He had assembled a revolutionary government using traditional Chinese ideals of filial piety, harmony, and order. Mao's cult of personality, party purges, and political policies reflect Mao's esteem of these traditional Chinese ideals and history. Mao was born on December 26, 1893 in Shao Shan, a village in Hunan Province. 3 His family lived in a rural village where for hundreds of years the pattern of everyday life had remained largely unbroken. 4 Mao's father, the son of a "poor peasant," during Mao's childhood however, prospered and become a wealthy land owner and rice dealer. 5 Yet, the structure of Mao's family continued to mirror the rigidity of traditional Chinese society. His father, a strict disciplinarian, demanded filial piety. 6 Forced to do farm labor and study the Chinese classics, Mao was expected to be obedient. On the other hand, Mao remembers his mother was "generous and sympathetic." 7 Mao urged his mother to confront his father but Mao's mother who believed in many traditional ideas replied that "was not the Chinese way." 8 Mao in his interviews with historian Edgar Snow reports how during his childhood he tried to escape this traditional Chinese upbringing by running away from home. The rebellion Mao claims to have manifested might have distanced Mao physically from his family but, traditional Chinese values were deeply ingrained, shaping his political and personal persona. His father's harshness with dealing with opposition, his cunning, his demand for reverence from subordinates, and his ambition were to be seen in how Mao demanded harmony, order, and reverence as a ruthless dictator. Yet, Mao, was also the kindly father figure for the people of China, as manifested in characteristic qualities of Mao's mother: kindness, benevolence, and patriarchal indulgence. The China that Mao was born into was fast becoming a shell of its former past.

Dreams of Escape in The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams Essay

     Ã‚   In The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams presents us with four characters whose lives seem to consist in avoiding reality more than facing it. Amanda lives her life through her children and clings to her lost youthfulness. Tom retreats into movie theaters and into his dream of joining the merchant seamen and some day becoming a published poet. Laura resorts to her Victrola and collection of glass ornaments to help sustain her world of fantasy. Finally, Jim is only able to find some relief in his glorified old memories. This essay will examine how Amanda, Tom, Laura and Jim attempt to escape from the real world through their dreams. Amanda was abandoned by her husband and now must take care of her two children, Tom and Laura. Amanda considers Tom unrealistic, daydreaming about becoming a recognized poet rather than staying committed to his present job. Amanda is overwhelmingly confused and perplexed about the future. Worse still, the fact that Laura is crippled worries her even more. Amanda tries to arrange everything for Laura lest she will live paralyzed in the threatening world. Aware of the reality, she enrolls her in a secretarial course in the hope that she would become, if not successful in her career, at least independent. Disappointed by Laura's inability to cope with the classes in the business school, Amanda tries desperately find her a reliable husband who can provide material and emotional security. But her hopes are unrealistic. Not even having met Jim, the gentleman caller Tom brings home at her mother's request, Amanda, looking at the little, slipper-shaped moon, asks Laura to make a wish on it f or happiness and good fortune to be brought by this gentleman caller, when it is just wishful thinking on her... ...nd some relief in his glorified old memories saved by Laura and is overwhelmed by the magic of the American Dream. Like many great plays, The Glass Menagerie transcends time inasmuch as contemporary versions of the four characters abound in the ever-changing modern world. After all, these are the people to whom the play addresses today.    Work Cited Williams, Tennessee.   The Glass Menagerie. 1945.   The Bedford Introduction to Drama. 5th ed.   Lee A. Jacobus, ed.   Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2005. Work Consulted McHaney, Pearl A. Lecture on The Glass Menagerie. Engl 3860-American Drama. Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA. 20 June 2006. Jackson, Esther Merle. The Broken World of Tennessee Williams. Madison: & of Wisconsin P, 1965. Parker, R.B., ed. Twentieth Century Interpretations of The Glass Menagerie. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice, 1983. Dreams of Escape in The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams Essay      Ã‚   In The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams presents us with four characters whose lives seem to consist in avoiding reality more than facing it. Amanda lives her life through her children and clings to her lost youthfulness. Tom retreats into movie theaters and into his dream of joining the merchant seamen and some day becoming a published poet. Laura resorts to her Victrola and collection of glass ornaments to help sustain her world of fantasy. Finally, Jim is only able to find some relief in his glorified old memories. This essay will examine how Amanda, Tom, Laura and Jim attempt to escape from the real world through their dreams. Amanda was abandoned by her husband and now must take care of her two children, Tom and Laura. Amanda considers Tom unrealistic, daydreaming about becoming a recognized poet rather than staying committed to his present job. Amanda is overwhelmingly confused and perplexed about the future. Worse still, the fact that Laura is crippled worries her even more. Amanda tries to arrange everything for Laura lest she will live paralyzed in the threatening world. Aware of the reality, she enrolls her in a secretarial course in the hope that she would become, if not successful in her career, at least independent. Disappointed by Laura's inability to cope with the classes in the business school, Amanda tries desperately find her a reliable husband who can provide material and emotional security. But her hopes are unrealistic. Not even having met Jim, the gentleman caller Tom brings home at her mother's request, Amanda, looking at the little, slipper-shaped moon, asks Laura to make a wish on it f or happiness and good fortune to be brought by this gentleman caller, when it is just wishful thinking on her... ...nd some relief in his glorified old memories saved by Laura and is overwhelmed by the magic of the American Dream. Like many great plays, The Glass Menagerie transcends time inasmuch as contemporary versions of the four characters abound in the ever-changing modern world. After all, these are the people to whom the play addresses today.    Work Cited Williams, Tennessee.   The Glass Menagerie. 1945.   The Bedford Introduction to Drama. 5th ed.   Lee A. Jacobus, ed.   Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2005. Work Consulted McHaney, Pearl A. Lecture on The Glass Menagerie. Engl 3860-American Drama. Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA. 20 June 2006. Jackson, Esther Merle. The Broken World of Tennessee Williams. Madison: & of Wisconsin P, 1965. Parker, R.B., ed. Twentieth Century Interpretations of The Glass Menagerie. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice, 1983.

Indigenous Societies

â€Å"Whale Rider† Extra Credit Questions Name ________________________________________ Class Start Time ___________ 1. What object does the grandfather throw overboard a boat (and expects will be retrieved)? a. his father’s brass heirloom pistol b. his traditional chief’s necklace c. his sacred black harpoon d. his sacred smoking pipe e. his radio 2. What is the central conflict in â€Å"Whale Rider†? a. How do indigenous societies keep their traditions and yet accept change? b. How indigenous societies must fight through the legal system to gain title to their land. . How can indigenous societies reverse language loss? d. How do indigenous societies gain control over rising blood pressure? 3. What item has not been finished, but finally is (and is then used) at the end of the film? a. a chief’s house b. a traditional canoe c. a woman’s hut d. a ritual club 4. What (or who) is the grandfather trying to find? a. the sacred carved steering pad dle for his carved war canoe. b. a leader who will lead his people into the next generation. c. a new husband for his spinster granddaughter. d. all of the above 5.What does the grandfather do when the object is not retrieved? a. leaves it there and sinks into a depression. b. retrieves it himself and then breaks it in half with his bare hands. c. forces his son to retrieve it. d. leaves it there and it is never retrieved again. e. calls up a supernatural whale ancestor who swallows it up and spits it onto the beach. 6. This film†¦ a. captures the confusion of a traditional culture in transition to a modern one. b. graphically depicts the abuse of native peoples at the hands of more technologically advanced white colonists. . focuses on what might be called â€Å"slave labor† conditions in Third World sweatshops. d. portrays how one man is able to overcome his drug addiction to become the next chief of the tribe. e. all of the above 7. How does ‘Whale Rider’ conclude? a. the grandfather drowns, killed as he tries to ride a whale. b. the girl is allowed to become a leader. c. the girl’s mother is brought back to life by the supernatural whale spirit. d. the girl helps win the court battle, and gains ocean fishing rights for her people.

Public Policing Versus Private Security

Public Policing Versus Private Security Kayla Cook CJA/500 November 8, 2009 Mrs. Jancie Graham Abstract Public policing and private security have several distinct differences. Public policing is the ability to enforce the law and maintain order in society. Private securities are paid agencies that perform the protective and loss-prevention duties not handled by police officers. Yet public policing and private security offers the same services and duties. These services and duties are performed to achieve some of the same goals. Both serve as leaders in their line of work.The leadership requirements are regulated by two different standards. They both share a positive relationship with the criminal justice system. This relationship could be enhanced if the two would partnership with one another. This could help them combine their essential policies for the current role they perform now. Public policing and private security will continue to grow and work together in the future. This pap er will also describe and discuss the importance of a comprehensive security plan, and its key components. The Differences between Public Policing and Private SecurityPublic policing is the ability to enforce the law and maintain order in society. Private securities are paid agencies that perform the protective and loss-prevention duties not handled by police officers. Public policing and private security have several distinct differences. Public policing does the following: 1) maintain order, 2) performs community service, 3) detect crime, 4) handle crime, and 5) prevent crime, 6) traffic control, 7) stop and question an individual, 8) search individuals and their personal belongings, 9) conduct interrogations, and 10) arrest an individual.Private security does the following paid duties: 1) serves as an escort, 2) patrol housing and business areas, 3) serves as guards at gates, 4) transport valuables, 5) security training, 6) screening of personnel for employment, 7) technical coun ter surveillance, 8) security consultation, 9) install alarm systems and 10)offer private security vaults (Reid, 1996). The Similarities between Public Policing and Private Security Public policing and private security offers some of the same services and duties. These services and duties are performed to achieve some of the same goals.In this way they are able to assist each other in performing these services and duties. Public policing and private security offer the following services and duties: 1) crime prevention, 2) crime control, 3) assist is emergencies, 4) training, 5) conduct searches, 6) involved in community events, 7) offer security, 8) monitor specific area, 9) provides protection, and 10) they both have legal powers. Both public policing and private security agencies are held accountable for their actions. Neither escapes criticisms from outside sources.Our society needs the services and duties that both provide to help ensure the safety of our freedom and our propert y (Walker, & Katz, 2011). The Differences between Public Policing and Private Security Leadership Roles The difference between public policing and private security leadership roles are the standard requirements for leadership. The requirement for leadership in public policing is regulated by the government and civil service. The only requirement for leadership in private security is to lead by example. This is because private security agencies are privately owned and they do not have a set required standard.The Relationship of Public Policing and Private Security with the Criminal Justice System The relationship of public policing with the criminal justice system is to prevent crime and provide justice to the public. The relationship of private security with the criminal justice system is to prevent crime and provide justice to its employees. They both share the same relationship with the criminal justice system. The relationship would be work more effective if law enforcement offic ers and private security agencies would work together along with the criminal justice system to prevent crime and provide justice to the public and private employees.The Essential Policies for Public Policing and Private Security Public policing and private security have several distinct differences in their essential policies. The essential policies for public policing are: 1) Hierarchical- there are many different official and formal levels of public agencies positions. 2) Civil service- civil service examinations are given to chose only the most qualified personnel based on merit. 3) Apolitical- the government gives the policies to public policing to execute. 4) Impartial and fair- the treatment of all citizen using government services are to be fair and just. ) Public affairs-oriented- focus is given to the management of public agencies and organizations. 6) Public-service oriented- profit is not a motive the serve the public. 7) Publicly funded- tax revenues fund these public a dministrations. 8) Publicly documented- all citizens can review administrative records and financial documents. 9) Accountable to the public- at anytime legislative and judicial review can be done to public administration. The essential policies for private security are: 1) Private enterprise- goal is to complete a private obligation instead of a public one. ) Private or corporate ownership- private organizations are owned by private individuals, groups, or stockholders. 3) Competitiveness- the organization may be in competition with another organization with the same product or service. 4) Profit incentive- normally the incentive is to generate net profit unless it is a nonprofit private organization. 5) Financing regulated by market price- the ability to sell the product or service is based on revenue. 6) Privacy of information and records- limited information is proprietary and the property of the owners. ) Accountability to owners and stockholders- instead of being accountable t o the public, the organization and its employees are held accountable to the organization’s owners. 8) Some freedom in selection and termination of employees- civil service rules do not regulate the organization ability to hire or terminate employees. 9) Freedom to regulate work methods and organization- the organization is not regulated by civil service rules (Ortmeier, 2009). The importance of a Comprehensive Security Plan and Its Key Components The security plan must also specify the persons who have access to security areas, and it must specify the various components necessary for physical security, such as barriers, lighting, alarm systems, fire protection systems, locks, and communications. It must detail full instructions for the guard force. These instructions must contain both general orders applicable to all guards and special orders pertaining to specific posts, patrols, and areas. There must be provision for emergency situations. Specific plans for fire, flood, st orm, or power failure should be part of the overall plan of action.You should also specify people to call in an emergency. After the security plan has been formulated and implemented, it must be reexamined periodically for flaws and for ways to improve it and keep it current with existing needs. Circulation of the plan should be limited and controlled. It must be remembered that such a plan, however well conceived, is doomed from the outset unless it is constantly and carefully supervised (Fisher, Halibozek, & Green, 2008, 36 Conclusion Public policing and private security are major components in the criminal justice system.The mere existence of both public policing and private security helps our communities feel safe. Once the two merge and work together, more problems can be solved to prevent crimes. This partnership will be form when the importance of each other’s responsibilities and roles are identified. Law enforcement agencies are slowly coming to realize the benefits of a partnership with private security can be since 9/11. This was just one of the many examples of how effectively public policing and private security can work together.In the future, public policing and private security will continue to work together to prevent crime and provide justice to all. References Fisher, R. J. , Halibozek, E. , & Green, G. (2008). Introduction to Security (8th ed. ). Burlington, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann. Katz, C. M. & Walker, S. (2011). The Police in America: An Introduction (7th ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Ortmeier, P. J. (2008). Introduction to Security: operations and Management (3rd ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Reid, Sue (1996). Criminal Justice (4th ed. ). Madison, WI. Brown & Benchmark.

Master of Business Administration Essay

Pricing policy refers to the policy of setting the price of the product or products and services by the management after taking into account of various internal and external factors, forces and its own business objectives. Pricing Policy basically depends on price theory that is the corner stone of economic theory. Pricing is considered as one of the basic and central problems of economic theory in a modern economy. Fixing prices are the most important aspect of managerial decision making because market price charged by the company affects the present and future production plans, pattern of distribution, nature of marketing etc. Generally speaking, in economic theory, we take into account of only two parties, i. e. , buyers and sellers while fixing the prices. However, in practice many parties are associated with pricing of a product. They are rival competitors, potential rivals, middlemen, wholesalers, retailers, commission agents and above all the Govt. Hence, we should give due consideration to the influence exerted by these parties in the process of price determination. Broadly speaking, the various factors and forces that affect the price are divided into two categories. They are as follows: I External Factors (Outside factors) 1. Demand, supply and their determinants. 2. Elasticity of demand and supply. 3. Degree of competition in the market. 4. Size of the market. 5. Good will, name, fame and reputation of a firm in the market. 6. Trends in the market. 7. Purchasing power of the buyers. 8. Bargaining power of customers 9. Buyers behavior in respect of particular product II. Internal Factors (Inside Factors) 1. Objectives of the firm. 2. Production Costs. 3. Quality of the product and its characteristics. 4. Scale of production. 5. Efficient management of resources. 6. Policy towards percentage of profits and dividend distribution. 7. Advertising and sales promotion policies. 8. Wage policy and sales turn over policy etc. 9. The stages of the product on the product life cycle. 10. Use pattern of the product. Objectives of the Price Policy: A firm has multiple objectives today. In spite of several objectives, the ultimate aim of every business concern is to maximize its profits. This is possible when the returns exceed costs. In this context, setting an ideal price for a product assumes greater importance. Pricing objectives has to be established by top management to ensure not only that the company’s profitability is adequate but also that pricing is complementary to the total strategy of the organization. While formulating the pricing policy, a firm has to consider various economic, social, political and other factors. The Following objectives are to be considered while fixing the prices of the product. 1. Profit maximization in the short term The primary objective of the firm is to maximize its profits. Pricing policy as an instrument to achieve this objective should be formulated in such a way as to maximize the sales revenue and profit. Maximum profit refers to the highest possible of profit. In the short run, a firm not only should be able to recover its total costs, but also should get excess revenue over costs. This will build the morale of the firm and instill the spirit of confidence in its operations. 2. Profit optimization in the long run The traditional profit maximization hypothesis may not prove beneficial in the long run. With the sole motive of profit making a firm may resort to several kinds of unethical practices like charging exorbitant prices, follow Monopoly Trade Practices (MTP), Restrictive Trade Practices (RTP) and Unfair Trade Practices (UTP) etc. This may lead to opposition from the people. In order to over- come these evils, a firm instead of profit maximization, and aims at profit optimization. Optimum profit refers to the most ideal or desirable level of profit. Hence, earning the most reasonable or optimum profit has become a part and parcel of a sound pricing policy of a firm in recent years. 3. Price Stabilization Price stabilization over a period of time is another objective. The prices as far as possible should not fluctuate too often. Price instability creates uncertain atmosphere in business circles. Sales plan becomes difficult under such circumstances. Hence, price stability is one of the pre requisite conditions for steady and persistent growth of a firm. A stable price policy only can win the confidence of customers and may add to the good will of the concern. It builds up the reputation and image of the firm. 4. Facing competitive situation One of the objectives of the pricing policy is to face the competitive situations in the market. In many cases, this policy has been merely influenced by the market share psychology. Wherever companies are aware of specific competitive products, they try to match the prices of their products with those of their rivals to expand the volume of their business. Most of the firms are not merely interested in meeting competition but are keen to prevent it. Hence, a firm is always busy with its counter business strategy. 5. Maintenance of market share Market share refers to the share of a firm’s sales of a particular product in the total sales of all firms in the market. The economic strength and success of a firm is measured in terms of its market share. In a competitive world, each firm makes a successful attempt to expand its market share. If it is impossible, it has to maintain its existing market share. Any decline in market share is a symptom of the poor performance of a firm. Hence, the pricing policy has to assist a firm to maintain its market share at any cost. Ques2. Explain the important features of long run AC curve. Ans: Long run AC curves Long run is defined as a period of time where adjustments to changed conditions are complete. It is actually a period during which the quantities of all factors, variable as well as fixed factors can be adjusted. Hence, there are no fixed costs in the long run. In the short run, a firm has to carry on its production within the existing plant capacity, but in the long run it is not tied up to a particular plant capacity. If demand for the product increases, it can expand output by enlarging its plant capacity. It can construct new buildings or hire them, install new machines, employ administrative and other permanent staff. It can make use of the existing as well as new staff in the most efficient way and there is lot of scope for making indivisible factors to become divisible factors. On the other hand, if demand for the product declines, a firm can cut down its production permanently. The size of the plant can also be reduced and other expenditure can be minimized. Hence, production cost comes down to a greater extent in the long run. As all costs are variable in the long run, the total of these costs is total cost of production. Hence, the distinction between fixed and variables costs in the total cost of production will disappear in the long run. In the long run only the average total cost is important and considered in taking long term output decisions. Important features of long run AC curve 1. Tangent curve Different SAC curves represent different operational capacities of different plants in the short run. LAC curve is locus of all these points of tangency. The SAC curve can never cut a LAC curve though they are tangential to each other. This implies that for any given level of output, no SAC curve can ever be below the LAC curve. Hence, SAC cannot be lower than the LAC in the ling run. Thus, LAC curve is tangential to various SAC curves. 2. Envelope curve It is known as Envelope curve because it envelopes a group of SAC curves appropriate to different levels of output. 3. Flatter Unshaped or dish-shaped curve. The LAC curve is also U shaped or dish shaped cost curve. But It is less pronounced and much flatter in nature. LAC gradually falls and rises due to economies and diseconomies of scale. 4. Planning curve. The LAC cure is described as the Planning Curve of the firm because it represents the least cost of producing each possible level of output. This helps in producing optimum level of output at the minimum LAC. This is possible when the entrepreneur is selecting the optimum scale plant. Optimum scale plant is that size where the minimum point of SAC is tangent to the minimum point of LAC. . Minimum point of LAC curve should be always lower than the minimum point of SAC curve. This is because LAC can never be higher than SAC or SAC can never be lower than LAC. The LAC curve will touch the optimum plant SAC curve at its minimum point. A rational entrepreneur would select the optimum scale plant. Optimum scale plant is that size at which SAC is tangent to LAC, such that both the curves h ave the minimum point of tangency. In the diagram, OM2 is regarded as the optimum scale of output, as it has the least per unit cost. At OM2 output LAC = SAC.