Locked in the Cabinet Essay Example for Free

Locked in the Cabinet Essay Democracy is a form of government where people have a right enabling them to have a say in everything that affects their lives. However, our government is not a direct democracy, and as such, individuals are not empowered or able to have a say in the inner-workings of their government. Their beliefs are not heard as often as they would like, and they are given little to no opportunities to decide what the government will do. The average citizen has little access to political power, and as a result little influence in the government. But if one individual chooses to change the government, and places that as their goal, then they have a chance of altering the system that governs their lives. If one such as Robert Reich works hard towards their goal, then they can possibly change the government to some degree. Robert Reich was an average man who had strong beliefs, and among those beliefs was the belief that to help people was just. His career in law began as a law clerk to a judge, and he eventually worked his way to the position of Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton. All of the time that Reich spent in Clinton’s cabinet was dedicated towards attempting to make his idea’s bear fruit. Although in the book Reich is the Secretary of Labor, he did not start out in this position. He worked his way up from the position of a law clerk, as I have previously stated, to a job that came with some measure of power. Reich attained this place in the government through his own efforts, and by showing that he had ideas suitable to fill in the role of Secretary of Labor. Reich is just one example of an ordinary person with true passion for their beliefs who was able to make a difference in the government. In Reich’s book, he talks about how an average person named Steve Wandner had an idea to reduce unemployment. Reich explains that Steve’s idea was when unemployed people claimed that they were unemployed, that they had to be screened to find out whether or not they were permanently laid off so that they could find new jobs faster. Steve worked hard in order for his idea to be heard, and after being ignored several times, Reich gave him the attention his idea deserved. Later, Wandner’s idea became an official law. Anyone can make a difference in the government if they work hard to reach a position where it is possible. During Robert Reich’s stay a part of President Clinton’s cabinet, he followed a strong belief in â€Å"putting the people first†. He cared deeply about helping the unemployed obtain new jobs and to retrain them in order to have better working skills, and in that same vein, better jobs further down the road. Reich also wanted to raise the minimum wage, show people the inequality of income in America, and much more. Reich’s ideas were not in any way offensive or unfair, he simply wanted to help people first rather than putting full attention on government issues such as reducing the deficit. Because of this, many of his ideas were igored and rejected by the members of Clinton’s moderate administration. For example, during one of his meeting with Bill Ford, chairman of the House of Representatives Education and Labor Committee, Reich tried to explain to him the idea of retraining American workers. Reich ended up being yelled at and his idea rejected. Although many of Reich’s ideas were disregarded by other members of government he continued to pursue his goal of helping the working class of America. Reich was rather successful in performing his duties as Secretary of Labor. One of his successes was helping pass the Family and Medical Leave Act. It allowed working class families to have more time off from work if they were injured or had a child. He was also successful in convincing President Bill Clinton in aiding the people rather than the government. In doing so Clinton decided to pass a law in raising the minimum wage 90 cents. This pleased many of the working class of America. Finally, Reich was also able to set up several reforms in order to help provide more jobs for the unemployed. For example, Reich gave 3 million dollars to a job center helping people trying to get employment. Even though he want able to pass a law to retrain workers, he still managed to work hard and complete some of his goals. Reich was ignored by many government officials during his term as Secretary of Labor, and this greatly hindered his chances of getting his goals finished. But while this may be true, this was not the center of his experiences as the Secretary of Labor. Reich was aiming towards retraining Americans, and he is not the only one who has seen this as a valuable idea. Freddie Ray Marshall was the Secretary of Labor for Jimmy Carter, and he shared many similar ideas with Reich. Both men were working to provide jobs for others, and they both were trying to get workers to be retrained. (F. Ray Marshall) If workers could get more training, they can possibly get better jobs. He also is a teacher, like Reich. However, unlike Reich, Marshall was able to pass many programs and to help reduce unemployment. I would say that some of Reich’s experiences were unique to his time as the Secretary of Labor, and that others were not. In conclusion, Reich was a man who fought all alone for his beliefs, and was more successful in some areas than in others. To call him a failure is a little harsh, and to call him a success depends on your political views. All in all, Reich did what he felt would be best for the people who have little say in the government. Reich can be seen as a prime example of one who worked hard to have their voice heard, and as one who made a difference, even if it wasn’t as big a difference as he would’ve liked. Reich really seemed like he was a kind individual (but then again, he wrote the book) and even if he did not succeed in all his plans, he still changed some things for the better.

Foreign Market Servicing Strategies of Lidl

Foreign Market Servicing Strategies of Lidl Lidl is one of the leading global discounter and owns round about 9000 stores in Germany and all over Europe. Lidl has beaten its main competitor Aldi. Aldi is already successful in the United States. The latest history of the company Lidl was clouded by the observation scandal in 2008. This scandal damaged their image. In the matter of the important topic Corporate Social Responsibility Lidl started a project called ECO2LOGISCH. This project is about building stores that are energy-efficient and sustainable. In addition the company sells Fair-trade products. The food retail industry in Germany had a moderate growth in the past but the forecast for the industry looks good. The category of supermarkets, hypermarkets and discounters has the highest market share in the food retail industry. The buyer and supplier power is moderate as well as threats of new entrants and substitutes are moderate. The rivalry in the industry is very strong. The US food retail industry in comparison to the German one has a strong growth and the forecast is not less significant. The category of supermarkets, hypermarkets and discounters has a major market share of 80.2 %. With a Gross Domestic Product of $ 14.2 trillion in 2009 the Unites States are the second largest economy after the European Union. There is a very high diversification of income and thereby a problem of poverty occurs in the United States. With predominating Strengths and Opportunities after the SWOT analysis, the United States satisfy all requirements to become the new market Lidl should expand to. Lidl has ownership, location and internalization advantages and thereby Foreign Direct Invest is the best mode of entry. Given that Aldi used Greenfield investment successfully to enter the US market in 1776 and Lidl did use the same strategy to expand to the European markets, Greenfield investment is the appropriate strategy to enter the new market in the United States successfully. Introduction In times of globalization and international expansion Lidl, who is one of the leading global discounter, should think about an expansion overseas. The following report should discuss if the United States are the right country to expand to and which mode of entry Lidl should use for the expansion. In the first steps the company Lidl itself will be analysed with a closer look at the Corporate Social Responsibility. After that the German food retail industry will be examined. Porters Five Forces Model will be used for this. The next step is to analyse the food retail industry in the United States. For this the industry itself will be investigated and the PEST analysis will give a closer look at the United States. The SWOT analysis will demonstrate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats for Lidl by entering the US market. Afterwards the mode of entry will be discussed and the conclusion will give a final answer to the question, if the United States are the right country to expand to. The company Lidl Company overview Lidl is a German discount chain and is part of the Schwarz Beteiligungs GmbH (Holding company). The Schwarz group also owns the consumer markets Kaufland, KaufMarkt, Concord and Handelshof. The history of Lidl can be traced back to the beginning of 1930. At this point in time Josef Schwarz got general partner of the Sà ¼dfrà ¼chte Großhandlung Lidl Co. He restructured it to a wholesale business which was then destroyed in 1944. After ten years the business was rebuilt and in 1972 the headquarter was relocated to Neckersulm. After the dead of Josef Schwarz in 1977 his son Dieter Schwarz assumes full responsibility for the business. Dieter Schwarz bought the naming rights from Ludwig Lidl and from this point on the success started. Lidl first expanded in the region of Neckersulm and then to the whole republic. After the success in Germany, Lidl started to expand internationally. Lidl now owns round about 9000 stores all over Europe and thereby has more stores than its main compet itor Aldi (Langer, 2004; Wikipedia Lidl, 2011). Corporate Social Responsibility Due to the fact that Lidl is not a public company, it is very hard to find any information about Lidl itself. In the history of Lidl it was always the case that Lidl did not want to show any information about the company. For this reason Lidl got the nickname Geheimniskrà ¤mer (mystery monger) (Langer, 2004). In spring 2008 Lidl got involved in a big scandal in Germany. Lidl was accused to observe their employees. This scandal damaged the image of Lidl. Lidl Germany has apologized for this incident and has assured that they will promote immediate moves to prevent any of these incidents to happen again (Byrne, Skilly, 2008). After this incident, Lidl reformed the conditions of employment. A new project is called ECO2LOGISCH. This is a new store generation. The stores will be energy-efficient and sustainable. For example the new stores will be 100% heated using the waste heat from the refrigerated sections. Lidl plans that from 2010 on all Lidl-stores should be build ECO2LOGISCH. With this project Lidl is the first food retailer in Germany who sets sustainable building services engineering as a standard (Lidl: ECO2LOGISCH, 2010). In addition Lidl sells Fair-trade products and has some social projects like a football club for kids. The food retail industry in Germany The food retail industry includes the sales of food and beverages. In Germany the category Hypermarkets, Supermarkets and Discounters has the highest market share of 47.6% (see Appendix 1). In 2009 the industry had a growth of 2.3 % and a value of $ 234.8 billion. In the past the growth was moderate with an average of 2.1 % (see Appendix 2). The forecast for the industry looks good. The growth should be steady and in 2014 the industry will have an expected value of  § 265.5 billion (Datamonitor (a), 2010, p. 10). With the help of the Porters Five Forces Model the food retail industry will be analysed in the following. In the analysis the buyers will be the end-consumer and the suppliers will be food manufacturers, farmers, and agricultural co-operatives. The players in this analysis will be supermarkets, hypermarkets and discounters. Buyer power There is one important change in the consumers behaviour to which the retailers have to respond to. Nowadays the importance of health gets bigger and bigger. The convenience food becomes less important and consumers are more interested in fresh and healthy food. Another important fact is the price. Because there is a wide range of large retailers in Germany the consumer faces no switching costs and thereby the retailers have to have an attractive price scheme. All in all the buyer power is moderate (Datamonitor (a), 2010, p. 15). Supplier power The big German retailers often have a large range of suppliers. With this strategy the retailers ensure stability. They avoid possible delays in deliveries and price fluctuations. In addition to that some large retailers have started to sell own brand products. These two facts weaken the supplier power in the German food retail industry. Overall supplier power is moderate (Datamonitor (a), 2010, p. 17). New entrants It is not easy for new entrants to enter the market because of the aggressive marketing and pricing schemes of the large retailers in the industry. Nevertheless there are low entry and exit costs in the food retail industry and the changes in consumers behaviour gives new entrants a possible niche to enter the market successfully. Besides the low growths rate makes the industry not that attractive to new entrants. In conclusion the threat of new entrants is moderate (Datamonitor (a), 2010, p.18). Substitutes The only real substitute to the food retail is the food service represented by fast foods restaurants, sit-down restaurants and delivery services. But for consumers the food service is more a complement than a substitute. A more direct substitute are individuals and families who cultivate their own food. This is no longer used nowadays but in the long term possible because of the changes in the consumers behaviour and the threat of economically and politically instability. The threat of substitutes is therefore weak (Datamonitor (a), 2010, p.19). Rivalry There exists a high competition in the food retail industry. Main reasons for this are the not existing switching costs for the consumers. The similarity in the basic products of the large retailers pushes them into a competitive pricing scheme. This leads the price wars. These are encouraged by the consumers who are now comparing more and more. They have a look on special offers and the lowest price. The German food retail industry has a lot of competitors. Therefore in a conclusion rivalry is strong in this industry (Datamonitor (a), 2010, p. 20). The United States for expansion Since Lidl already expanded to whole Europe it is time to think overseas. Aldi, one of the main competitors, expanded successfully to the United States in 1976. Lidl already beat Aldi in Germany and Europe. Lidl has more stores all over Europe and has overtaken Aldi in the rankings. So the existence of Aldi in the US food retail market is no real threat for Lidl. The food retail industry in the United States The US food retail industry in comparison to the German has a strong growth. The total revenues in 2009 had a value of $ 859.1 billion and the average growth rate in the years from 2005 to 2009 was 5.3% (see Appendix 3). The forecast is not less significant. By the end of 2014 the US food retail industry will have an expected value of $1,043.1 billion (Datamonitor (b), 2010, p. 10). In the US the category Hypermarkets, Supermarkets and Discounters has the highest market share of 80.2 % (see Appendix 4). Worldwide the market share of the US food retail industry is 19.8 % billion (Datamonitor (b), 2010, p. 11). All these facts make the US food retail industry attractive for Lidl to expand to. To have a closer look at the real attractiveness of the US market for expansion a PEST analysis of the United States will be proceeded in the following. PEST analysis of the United States In this section the political, economical, social and technological environment of the United States will be analysed. Overall the United States are one of the strongest powers worldwide since more than 50 years. Politically the United States have a strong position. In 2009 the democrat Barack Obama displaced the republican George W. Bush. Barack Obama was inheriting a poisoned chalice because of the financial situation and the great debates about the military operations in the Iraq and Afghanistan. Nevertheless the US has a great global influence and a strong democratic setup (Datamonitor (c), 2010). With a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $ 14.12 trillion the United States were the second largest economy in the world in 2009 after the European Union (CIA The World Factbook, 2010). In the years before the 11th of September 2001, the United States had an economical boom, after that date the growth slowed down and they felt into a recession. The congress passed bills to stimulate the financial market in 2008 and 2009. Because of this the public dept in the United States increased from 39.7 % in 2008 to 52.9 % of the GDP in 2009 (Datamonitor (c), 2010). The United States are facing a rapidly aging population. This can lead to a decreasing economic growth and thereby to rising tax rates and shortages in labour. The US have a very high diversity in the distribution of income. The Gini index was 45 in 2007 (CIA The world fact book, 2010). 1 per cent of the population belongs to the upper class and in 2009 these people owned 37.1 per cent of the entire property of the United States (Wikipedia Vereinigte Staaten, 2010). However, the United States have a remarkable education system and Barack Obama passed a new health service reform in 2010 (Datamonitor (c), 2010). On the technological front, the United States are a world leader in adapting and applying technology and innovations and they will stay in the position in the near future. But there will be a threat of competition in this sector because of the continuing process of for example China (Datamonitor (c), 2010). SWOT analysis of the company Lidl The SWOT analysis brings together the analysis of the environment and the company. It identifies the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. SWOT is the basis for the strategy development of a company. The main facts of the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats will be discussed in the following. The whole SWOT analysis is provided in Appendix 5. Lidl has a high market share in the fast growing market segment of the food retailers. It has become a global player due to the fact that Lidl expanded successfully to Europe and owns round about 9000 stores. After the success in Europe there are no more obstacles for an expansion to the United States. Another important Strengths is the very good pricing which attracts many consumers. The main Weakness of Lidl is the damaged image because of the observation scandal and the discussion about minimum wages, which affects nearly every discounter. Additionally the low customer loyalty represents another main Weakness. This is an issue because of the low switching costs for the consumers because of the high competition in the food retail sector. An Opportunity is that the category of supermarkets and discounters has a markets share of 80.2% in the food retail sector in the United States. Another Opportunity is the existing poverty in the Unites States. Poor people are more interested in low pricing products. The main Threats are the competitors on the US food retail market. There is Wal-mart, who now starts to open smaller stores like in the store model of Lidl and there is Aldi, the main competitor in Germany. Aldi is a Threat and an Opportunity. Lidl already beat Aldi in the German and European market and Aldi was successful on the US market by using the same discounter model like Lidl. But Aldi entered the US market in the 70s and is now integrated and accepted from the US consumers. This is a challenge for Lidl. In a conclusion the Strengths and Opportunities predominate and Lidl should start the expansion to the United States. Choosing the mode of entry to enter the US market After decided that the United States are a good market to expand to, it is now time to think about the mode of entry. There are various modes of entry: Exporting International Licensing International Franchising Specialized modes (e.g. contract manufacturing, management contracts) Foreign Direct Investment (Greenfield investment, Acquisition strategy, Joint Venture). Dunnings Eclectic Theory gives a good framework to decide which mode is the right one for the company and the market it wants to expand to. Dunning developed three conditions which a firm should be satisfying. Ownership advantage: The firm has to have some special advantages to compete with the foreign companies. For example a good brand name, special technology, know-how or a unique product. In this case exporting would be the mode of entry. Location advantage: It has to be more benefiting to expand to a foreign market rather than expand in the home market. For example lower labour costs. If the ownership advantage and the location advantage apply contractual arrangements like licensing, franchising or alliances are the best modes of entry. Internalization advantage: There has to be a higher profitability by controlling the activities on the foreign market on their own rather than recruit a local company to provide all the important services. For example lower exchange rate risks. In the case that all three conditions are satisfied Foreign Direct Investment would be the best mode of entry (Griffin, Pustay, 2010, p. 196). Lidl as a retailer has the ownership advantages like a bargaining power in purchasing and a special supply chain. Another fact is that exporting would be no alternative for Lidl because a retailer sells products it buys from suppliers. It would be meaningless to export the products again. There are location advantages as well. The German food retail market is concentrated with a high level of competition. Hence there is not much space for further expansion. The market in the United States is a big market and offers enough space to expand to. Even though there are some main competitors. The entry and exit costs are low. For a retailer franchising harbours some dangers. For example it is difficult to legally protect the innovations a retailer is making. Franchising has indeed lower costs but the firm has also a lower level of control. Internalization advantages occur when company-specific advantages cannot be achieved on the foreign market via franchising or similar cooperation forms. This is given because of the facts mentioned before (Borgstrà ¶m, Hertz, Nyberg, n.d.). In summary Lidl satisfies all three conditions and for this reason Foreign Direct Investment is the best mode of entry for Lidl. Now Lidl has the choice between Greenfield investment, joint venture or acquisition. By having a closer look at Lidls past expansion in Europe and the mode of entry Aldi chose in 1776, Greenfield investment is the best solution for Lidl. The company also entered the new markets in Europe via Greenfield investment and Aldi did the same in the United States and it was successful for both. Conclusion The food retail market in the United States offers a good opportunity to expand to. The market has a strong growth and the PEST and SWOT analysis acknowledge the choice of the United States for a new market for expansion. As a conclusion to Dunnings theory, Foreign Direct investment and more precisely Greenfield investment is the best mode of entry. Exporting, Licensing and Franchising do not offer Lidl a good business. These modes of entry are not appropriate for a retailer and in addition Lidl would lose parts of their revenues. Due to the fact that Lidl is not willing to disclose any internal information, Acquisition or a Joint Venture do not represent a possible choice, even though both possibilities have low fixed costs. Furthermore the companies could be competitors on another market and no company wants to share information with a potential competitor. Greenfield investment is the best solution for a successful expansion to the food retail market in the United States. Appendix Appendix 1: Germany food retail industry by categories: % share, by value, 2009à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.13 Appendix 2: Germany food retail industry value: $ billion, 2005-09à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..13 Appendix 3: United States food retail industry value: $ billion, 2005-09à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦14 Appendix 4: United States food retail industry by categories: % share, by value, 2009à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..14 Appendix 5: SWOT analysis of the company Lidlà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦15 Appendix 1: Germany food retail industry by categories: % share, by value, 2009 Source: Datamonitor (a), 2010. Appendix 2: Germany food retail industry value: $ billion, 2005-09 Source: Datamonitor (a), 2010. Appendix 3: United States food retail industry value: $ billion, 2005-09 Source: Datamonitor (b), 2010. Appendix 4: United States food retail industry by categories: % share, by value, 2009 Source: Datamonitor (b), 2010. Appendix 5: SWOT analysis of the company Lidl Strengths Weaknesses High market share in a fast growing segement (discounter) Global player Very good pricing (always offers the lowest price on the market) Very good store locations (near housing areas, good transport connections, good parking facilities) Fast reaction to changes in the market conditions (flexibility is very important in a high competition sector) Damaged image (oberservation scandal and dicussions about minimum wages) Dependence on discouter model Low customer loyalty Exit from the Norway market because of low success Changing consumer behaviour (healthy living) Opportunities Threats After successful expansion all over Europe its time for overseas expansion Significant market for supermarkets and discounters in the US Expansion of the product range (more healthy food) Poverty problem in the US leads to higher demand of low pricing products Aldi already had a great success on the US market (same discounter model) Only focus on low princing products Existing competitors in the US food retail market (Wal-Mart, Aldi) Limited success of food retailer Tesco after entering the US market in 2007 Source: Self made with the help of: Bord Bia, 2008; Jiroutek, n.d.

The Purpose of Lines 1 through 18 of Beowulf :: Epic of Beowulf Essays

The Purpose of Lines 1 – 18 of â€Å"Beowulf†Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  August 31, 2005 â€Å"Beowulf† begins the British literature. As a classic heroic epic, it outlines the tribal history of the Jutes, providing a great insight into the Anglo-Saxons’ epoch. In the poem â€Å"Beowulf,† we meet the most heroic man in the time of the Anglo-Saxons; a man with all the extraordinary characteristics necessitated to being a true hero. Beowulf was his name. He slaughters the monster Grendel, a descendent of Cain, Grendel’s mother and a dragon. By including the mere first eighteen lines of the section The Coming of Grendel in the poem â€Å"Beowulf,† the anonymous author successfully reflects the various customs of the Anglo-Saxons, the magnanimity of King Hrothgar and the values of the Anglo-Saxons. It is perhaps the most suitable opening for a work of admirable heroism; revealing grandiose, powerful and gloriousness of the Anglo-Saxons’ period. Anglo-Saxons lived in times when people believed war was essential for survival whether it was against man, or a ferocious creature. Through such conditions developed the battle customs of the Anglo-Saxons. The battle customs of the Anglo-Saxons, taking into account that Jutes are always victorious, seems to be the division the spoils among everyone, â€Å"old and young.†(9) With King Hrothgar taking the throne, it was impossible for the Jutes to face defeat. Drinking a cup of mead, they celebrate their victory in the mead-hall. For his comrades and kinsmen King Hrothgar opens a banquet for every victory, and the Jutes eat, drink and speak in Herot, a place considered peaceful and of community. They again verify their loyalty to the king and promise for continual dedication. As the King of the Danes, King Hrothgar is portrayed as a wise and generous leader of his people. Not only does he equally distribute the spoils amongst everyone, but also he grants mercy by â€Å"leaving the common pastures untouched, and taking no lives.†(10-11) By displaying compassion for those who do not fight in battles, King Hrothgar earns more respect from his followers. Such generosity is rarely found in the man of war. King Hrothgar’s grandeur temperament also pulls attention. When he is for something he truly desires, he has to make it grand and appealing. He built the â€Å"most beautiful of dwellings†(14) named Herot, a mead-hall where he can commemorate his victories and share the spoils from battle. When time comes to congratulate his victories in battle, he was glad to â€Å"[open] out his treasure-full hands†(18) for a banquet.

Meg Bogins The Women Troubadours Essay -- Meg Bogin Women Troubadours

Meg Bogin's The Women Troubadours What is Bieiris de Romans’ speaker seeking from the woman, Maria, about whom Bieiris writes? More generally, what are female troubadours as a whole seeking from their loves, and their craft? Meg Bogin, in her The Women Troubadours, asserts that â€Å"their poems were addressed to women†¦ to whom they vowed eternal homage and obedience. In exchange for their prostration, the troubadours expected to be ennobled, enriched, or simply made ‘better’† (Bogin, 9). Is the poetry of female troubadours less about the women being addressed and more about the troubadours themselves? By performing a close textual analysis of Bieiris de Romans’ poem to Maria, I hope to elucidate some possible answers to these questions. The poem opens with Bieiris’ speaker addressing her subject as â€Å"Lady Maria.† Rather than merely employing the woman’s first name, or utilizing a possessive phrase such as â€Å"my love† or â€Å"my Maria,† the speaker addresses her as â€Å"lady.† This implies a certain bestowal of respect upon her subject, and is potentially also a means to convey an understanding on the speaker’s part that this Maria has not yet consented to be hers. Next, the speaker proceeds to enumerate copious qualities that she finds pleasing in Maria. She begins by praising Maria’s â€Å"merit and distinction.† By â€Å"distinction† we can safely assume that the speaker refers to a pleasing reputation that Maria has cultivated within society, and possibly also the speaker’s own opinion that Maria is able to be distinguished as superior to other women. The term â€Å"merit,† however, is relatively ambiguous. By â€Å"merit,† the speaker could be indicating one or many qualities, including, but not limited to, virtue, achievement, a... ...g female companion, who will comply with her wishes and desires. Thus, Maria, judging from the qualities attributed to her in the poem, seems a perfect target for Bieiris’ speaker’s affections. Bieiris also appears to have created a speaker who is more concerned with being given the ability to express her desires than with the woman about whom those desires are expressed. Maria seems to be utilized as somewhat of a passive vessel about whom Bieiris can write and express herself in a literary fashion. The desire that Bieiris succeeds in expressing, then, is less one for Maria in particular and more one for composing lyric poetry in general. As a troubadour, Bieiris most likely avidly seeks patronage. Thus Maria is less of a goal to achieve and more a means to a different end: composing poetry for the sake of procuring a reputation, and obtaining financial gain.

INDIVIDUALS VS SOCIETY IN THE MIDDLE AGES Essay -- Essays Papers

INDIVIDUALS VS SOCIETY IN THE MIDDLE AGES The feudal society of the Middle Ages, from 300 AD – 1300AD, created instability that resulted in civil wars and the Crusades. This culture is what caused the changes and development of individuals and their society. Feudalism was a type of government in which political power was treated as a private possession and was divided between many lords during the Middle Ages. Only nobles were to rule until knights could build up lordships. 1 Empires were becoming too vast and too complicated. They began to split in half and then subdivide again without stopping for long centuries until 1300. This brought about a decline in public spirit. Causes of destruction multiplied with the level of conquest. Emperors became worried about their personal safety and the public peace. 2 Aristocrats took responsibility for defense against invaders. A family that fought for a certain area became hereditary rulers of that area. This seemed to be the best way for them to preserve their wealth, standard of living, and political position in an unstable world. Kings were losing control, as political power had become private, heritable property for counts and dukes. The weakening of the kings gave the aristocracy the opportunity to gain the service of most knights. The knights were nothing by themselves. They had no prestige, no political power, not even much military significance. They had to have a lord to function effectively and they had to serve the lord regularly and faithfully. Members of the aristocracy gave loyalty and services only when he felt it was to his advantage. 3 Civilization was completely engulfed by the inflow of barbarous elements from outside, partly by penetration, partly by... ...ld 300-1300. 2d ed. Toronto, Ontario: MacMillan Company, 1968. 3. See Hoyt 4. See Cantor 5. See Cantor 6. Contamine, Philippe. War in the Middle Ages. New York, New York: Basil Blackwell Ltd, 1984. 7. "Medieval Crusades." The Crusades. 22 October 1999. http://www.Kent.pvt.k12.ct.us/Department/General_Studies/ contents.htm. 8. See Contamine 9. Peters, Edward. Europe: The World of the Middle Ages. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall INC, 1977. 10. See Contamine 11. See Cantor 12. See Cantor 13. See Contamine 14. See Peters 15. See Contamine 16. See Contamine 17. Riley-Smith, Jonathan. The Crusades – A Short History. Great Britain: The Athlone Press Limited, 1987. 18. See Riley-Smith 19. See Riley-Smith 20. See Medieval Crusades 21. See Peters 22. See Peters

Ips Cells

Recently, there has been a debate about rather or not laws that govern induced pluripotent stem (IPS) cells differ from those currently in place for human embryonic stem (ES) cells. An IPS cell is created artificially from skin, fat and fibroblasts by reprogramming patient's own cells. Scientists believe IPS cells to be a promising source for treating diseases. An ES cell is created by destroying an embryo. Other scientists think ES cells will also be a promising source because it is composed of your own DNA, so the immune system won't reject the cell.While scientists would agree that the same laws should apply because they believe in finding a cure to diseases, other people would disagree. Some people would say that ES cells are unethical because scientists need a human egg donor, and they must destroy a human embryo. The laws should not be the same for ES cells as they are for IPS cells because the creation for ES cells are unethical. (learn. genetics. utah. edu) â€Å"Abortion is murder in the womb†¦ A child is a gift of God. If you do not want him, give him to me. ~Mother Teresa (gardenias4lina. com) An elementary scientific textbook called â€Å"Basics of Biology† gives five characteristics of living things; these five criteria are found in all modern elementary scientific textbooks: 1. Living things are highly organized. 2. All living things have an ability to acquire materials and energy. 3. All living things have an ability to respond to their environment. 4. All living things have an ability to reproduce. 5. All living things have an ability to adapt.According to this basic definition of life, life begins at fertilization, when a sperm unites with an oocyte. (prolifephysicians. org) Some people may disagree, but if they can teach this to elementary students, then adults, especially scientists should be able to understand. Also, by destroying an embryo, you are destroying a human life; not only destroying the life, but infringing upon the b asic rights. The basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled, often held to include the right to life and liberty, freedom of thought and expression, and equality before the law.Other people find nothing wrong with destroying an embryo, murdering a human being. They think that from a medical and scientifical stand point, destroying one embryo to possibly cure a disease is worth it. The life they just took, may have found the cure without taking a life. The government spending money on creating ES cells, (which are time consuming, destroy the embryos and need a human egg donor)on something that a lot of people find unethical, and is even against religion is wrong.The United States is supposed to have seperation of state and church, therefore someone's tax dollars should not go towards something that their religion is against. Laws that govern IPS cells should differ from those currently in place for human ES cells. ES cells are unethical, and is against the religion of some people. Also, ES research is just as wrongful and disterbing as abortion. Scientists in the United States are not allowed to impregnate a women, but they are allowed to use â€Å"leftovers† from fertility clinics with the consent from donors.Human embryos are not â€Å"leftovers†, that is like saying the corps of your grandmother are â€Å"leftovers†; just because you took the life before it reached full maturity, doesn't make it a â€Å"leftover†. Abortion is legal for any women regaurdless of her age, and is allowed throughout the first six months of prgnancy, and for almost any reason after the six months as well. America is full of murders. If you were to look at a baby and say that you could kill it for no reason, you are sick!So, why would you do it before the baby gets a chance to live? Using an embryo to save a life does not justify taking a life. An eye for an eye: The notion that for every wrong done there should be a compensating measure of justice. (phrases. org. uk) Someone please find these embryos justice. Do not allow ES research, it is unethical. Citations citizenlink. com gardenias4lina. com learn. genetics. utah. edu phrases. org. uk prolifephysicians. org thefreedictionary. com

American Film History 1930-60

The chief technological innovation during the 1930s was the development of deep focus cinematography. Deep focus involved the expansion of depth of field, resulting in images that maintained sharp focus from objects in the extreme foreground to those in the distant background. Deep focus was achieved by filming with extremely wideangled lenses whose apertures had been stopped down. This sort of cinematography was made possible by a variety of developments in related fields of film technology.In 1939 the introduction of lens coatings, which permitted 75 per cent more light to pass through the lens to the film inside the camera, enabled cinematographers to decrease the lens aperture an additional stop, facilitating greater image definition. The results of these developments can be seen in Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane (1941). This and other films which were shot in exteriors took advantage of relatively short focal-length lenses and abundant sunlight to produce ‘deep' images. According to this new code, the film stock's greater sensitivity to the full range of colours signified a greater realism.On Citizen Kane the Toland style is most pronounced, most systematically and effectively employed, and most widely recognized. Although he had been refining his methods in the films with Wyler and Ford, Toland had yet satisfactorily to combine his technical and stylistic interests within a single picture. He saw Citizen Kane as a chance to experiment on a large scale. In a June 1941 article in Popular Photography entitled â€Å"How I Broke the Rules on Citizen Kane†, Toland related that ‘the photographic approach †¦was planned and considered long before the first camera turned', which was itself ‘most unconventional in Hollywood', where cinematographers generally have only a few days to prepare to shoot a film. Robert L. Carringer, in his indepth sudy of the production, writes that Welles and Toland ‘approached the film together in a spirit of revolutionary fervor', and that ‘Welles not only encouraged Toland to experiment and tinker, he positively insisted on it' (Nowell-Smith 45). The work indicated something of a shift to a more documentary-style realism.Citizen Kane was, then, an opportunity for Toland to make flamboyant deep focus identified with his own work. Welles had come to Hollywood with no professional film experience, and (according to Welles) Toland had sought out the Kane assignment. After the filming was completed, Toland was at pains to claim several innovations. For greater realism, he explained, many sets were designed with ceilings, which required him to light from the floor. Since the sets were also deep, he relied on the carrying power of arc lamps.Furthermore, since Welles and Toland had decided to stage action in depth, Toland sought great depth of focus by using Super XX film, increasing the lighting levels, and using optically coated wide-angle lenses (Bordwell 45). The result s hifted the traditional limits of deep space. In yielding a depth of field that extended from about eighteen inches to infinity, Toland's ‘pan-focus' made it possible to have a sharp foreground plane in medium shot or even close-up and still keep very distant background planes in focus. Fifty years on, Kane remains contentious.French critic Andre Bazin, who saw it in 1946 at the same time as Italian neo-realism, argued that its extensive use of deep focus promoted the reality of the phenomenal world of the film, but subsequent critics have noted that the film is also highly self-conscious, artificial, and even baroque. The use of deep focus was not unique, and director of photography Gregg Toland had already experimented with it on other productions. Welles's role as ‘author' of the film has also been hotly contested, notably by Pauline Kael (1974), who argued, probably incorrectly, that the script was solely the work of Herman J.Mankiewicz. But even if Kane was not compl etely novel in its structures or techniques, it remains the fact that these techniques are masterfully integrated in the film's complex texture. Bazin, for example, argued that Citizen Kane was a film of high quality in that it was a film of realism. Realism was an axiom of his aesthetic position. But the statement which links this axiom with the specific aesthetic judgement of Citizen Kane raises problems. The realism of the film, Bazin argues, derives from its use of deep-focus photography and minimal cutting.Such techniques minimize fragmentation of the real world. The trouble is that this could be a definition of realism as nonfragmentation, or an assertion that films employing such techniques are perceived as more real. The latter, unlike the former, is open to empirical test, although Bazin uses it as a selfevident aesthetic judgement. Thus, although there is nothing inherently wrong with the argument, it does involve different sorts of statements with consequent different cri teria of adequacy.Bazin does share a considerable admiration for the achievements of Italian neo-realism; in particular. And yet Bazin rarely falls into the trap of seeming to formulate a puritan aesthetic which will include neo-realism at the expense of all else. Unlike Kracauer (formally, at least) he admits to different forms of realism. Thus, for example, the distinction he draws between the ‘documentary' realism of Scarface and the ‘aesthetic' realism of Citizen Kane, both forms allegedly finding their unification in La Terra Trema (Bordwell 90).This willingness to speak of different types of realism can lead to problems in interpreting his position. In Signs and Meaning in the Cinema, Wollen takes to task two contemporary inheritors of Bazin's views (Barr and Metz) over their opposition of Rossellini and Eisenstein. The villain for Bazin, he points out, was not Eisenstein, but German Expressionism. But the real problem is that at different times, and in different w ays, Bazin occupies both positions. He starts life invoking a case similar to Kracauer's in favour of a ‘purist' realism.But this proves too limiting for his much more catholic tastes, and so he also develops a second case as spatial realism. Unfortunately, he never really brings the two conceptions face to face; never really resolves the strains between them. It seems useful here to take a closer look at these basics of his argument: The realism of the cinema follows directly from its photographic nature. Not only does some marvel or some fantastic thing on the screen not undermine the reality of the image, on the contrary, it is its most valid justification.Illusion in the cinema is not based as it is in the theatre on convention tacitly accepted by the general public; rather, contrariwise, it is based on the inalienable realism of that which is shown. All trick work must be perfect in all material respects on the screen. The `invisible man' must wear pyjamas and smoke a cig arette (Bazin 108). Andre Bazin puts Welles in his pantheon of realist directors, along with Renoir, Rossellini, De Sica, Stroheim, Flaherty, and even Murnau (whom he praises for choosing the moving camera over editing in the construction of many of his filmic scenes).Yet Citizen Kane is also a film in the tradition of German Expressionism. Like Murnau, Welles externalized the subjectivity of his characters (and especially of Kane) by means of psychologically charged settings, acute camera angles, distorting lenses, and disconcerting camera movements (Tudor 56). The demented architecture of Xanadu in the mist-enshrouded shots at the beginning of the film recalls Howard Hawks’ Scarface (1932). Near the end of the film both Susan and Kane are dwarfed by the oversized ornaments and statuary that furnish Xanadu, and serve as external projections of Kane's inner deadness and mindless materialism.The gargantuan rooms through which their voices echo—they nearly have to shout at each other to be heard—reflect the distance that has grown between them. When Kane steps into an enormous blazing fireplace and informs Susan that â€Å"Our home is here,† he metaphorically becomes the host of hell. After Susan leaves him, Kane, now utterly alone, wanders past a structure of double reflecting mirrors which reflect his image into infinity. As far as he looks, all he can see are images of himself, a perfect physical representation for a man trapped within his own narcissism.Welles also used extreme camera angles and strange camera movements in conjunction with his expressive mise-en-scene. In the year of its release, Citizen Kane was a radically experimental film—fully twenty years ahead of its time—and was widely recognized as such by American critics. Citizen Kane is surely the most celebrated and analyzed of all English language films and, arguably, the greatest – at least as measured by periodic surveys of critics and scholars . We saw that in the 1940s a realist aesthetic somewhat modified classical practice. This was conceived as partly an ‘objective' verisimilitude, especially of setting and lighting.Location shooting, taken in conjunction with low-key (‘mood') lighting, helped define one distinct postwar cinematographic practice. This practice did not fundamentally violate classical principles of causal and generic motivation. This conception of ‘realism' also owed something to a standardization of deep-focus shooting. Certain traits became common to many ‘realistic' films of the 1940s and 1950s. Finally, Bazin sees both forms of realism in spatial realism of Welles. Certainly Citizen Kane preserves the unity of space through Toland's deep-focus photography.Certainly the cuts are minimized by use of dissolves and joins across the soundtrack. But Welles is, nevertheless, the true inheritor of expressionism, the specialist in the distortion by camera angle, the mysterious shadows once painted but now created through lighting, the grotesque, and the baroque. Works Cited Bazin, Andre, What is Cinema? op. cit. Bordwell, David, The Classical Hollywood Cinema: Film Style & Mode of Production to 1960. Routledge: London, 1988. Nowell-Smith, Geoffrey The Oxford History of World Cinema. Oxford University Press: Oxford, 1997. Tudor, Andrew, Theories of Film. Viking Press: New York, 1974.