Media Influence Essay

The Mass Media is a unique feature of modern society; its development has accompanied an increase in the magnitude and complexity of societal actions and engagements, rapid social change, technological innovation, rising personal income and standard of life and the decline of some traditional forms of control and authority. There is an association between the development of mass media and social change, although the degree and direction of this association is still debated upon even after years of study into media influence. Many of the consequences, either detrimental or beneficial, which have been attributed to the mass media, are almost undoubtedly due to other tendencies within society. Few sociologists would refute the importance of the mass media, and mass communications as a whole, as being a major factor in the construction and circulation of social understanding and social imagery in modern societies. Therefore it is argued that the mass media is used as â€Å"an instrument†, both more powerful and more flexible than anything in previous existence, for influencing people into certain modes of belief and understanding within society. The question of medias influence on society and its cultural framework has often been debated upon from leading theorists to anyone with any form of media connections, but to contemplate that a character in Coronation Street or Eastenders can have an influence on an audience members attitude, beliefs or interpretations of society is a very simplistic and debatable version of the truth. The media does influence, but using more diverse and subtle roles of impact. Some theorists suggest that it is even a case of society influencing the media and not the more widespread and presumed version. History In the early 1930’s, the Payne Studies study took place into the effects and influences of the mass media on the society as a whole using, at times, theories or beliefs that dated back to the late nineteenth century. This is regarded as one of the first in the area of or notion that the mass media has an affect on the societal attitudes and beliefs of that time. This was soon follow around about a decade later in 1941 by Katz, Berelson, and Lazarsfeld who also decided to research into the topic of media effects, a research which produced the now commonly known ‘Minimum Effects Model’. The main aspect of this research being to investigate any possible link or factor that may influence voting behaviour. As has been described in numerous literature it’s ‘discovery’ was that the mass media played little or no part in the process of the formation of any political opinion, attitude or preference. They came to the conclusion that the biggest factor influencing people was not the media, but other people. By the 1960’s, there was a revival of Marxist attitudes, and so the work of Katz, Lazarsfeld, and Berelson was largely dismissed in favour of re-examining the model of research into media effects, due to the modifications the mass media had undergone in the post 1941 period, to consider another way in which to investigate the influence and the effects of the media. Influence, society and individuals As Jane Root wrote in the book â€Å"Open The Box†, which delves into the possibilities of media influence, â€Å"It has a role in defining what we think of as a natural†¦it helps to map out who we think we are†. To look at the medias effect and influence, there is an underlying need to define influence as we understand it in relation to society and it’s overall effect. Media is a major piece within society that is often linked to the notion of social influence. Society understands the notion or concept of being influenced as an â€Å"external force† (the media) linking itself or connecting with a personal action or viewpoint of the recipient. (John Corner: 2000: 378) The forces of influence that have been described as a major power in media effects are those that are circumstantial and directed, those which can be placed within a framework or model, for example â€Å"uses and gratifications†,  those of a generic function but ultimately those which state perspectives, interpretations, and measurements which can lead to evidence and proof. Uses & Gratifications Model A systematic and widely used model in social sciences study of media influence over the effects on an audience concerning behaviour, attitudes and beliefs, is the theory of uses and gratifications. This theory can be linked to the notion of social belonging and how an audience can be deceived into believing that this concept can be achieved. The tenet underlying this approach to studying audiences was that individuals actively consume and use the media in order to meet certain needs. In reality, with the power belonging in the focus of the media, it can be defined as a tool of subliminal persuasion. (O’Sullivan, Dutton, Raymer: 1998) Blumler and Katz (1974) concluded that audience’s fulfilment of needs came within the broad generalisation of four desires: * Diversion – a form of escape or emotional release from  everyday pressures. * Personal Relationships – companionships via television personalities and  characters and sociability through discussion about television with other people. * Personal Identity – the ability to compare one’s life with characters and  situations within programmes, and hence explore personal problems and perspectives. * Surveillance – a supply of information about what is going on in the  world. It is believed that this need to gratify its audience with the pursuit of an idealistic social fulfilment provides the media the opportunity to convey subliminal messages that may influence our opinions, interpretations and understanding of societal factors. The thought that the media is an overwhelming force that influences their audiences through the means of appealing to their desires and needs, must be examined in contrast with the notion that â€Å"every one is free†. Meaning that the mass media’s audience can resist being controlled, simply through choice. An individual always has the option of simply not watching that programme or not reading that particular newspaper. An individual makes the choice, and the selection that is made will merely underpin the views and inclinations that they already have. Television Violence It is believed that the most prominent sign of the mass medias influence is the link to violent programmes and violence within society. Some, technological determinists extend to the belief that the television has altered the world, and it is an â€Å"evil thing that rots the minds of youth†. Television characters are repeatedly recognized as heroes, due to the gaining of respect and numerous other rewards through their actions, they are especially likely to be imitated. For instance at the height of it’s British dominance of children’s television, The Power Rangers were the cause of a large number of accidents, injuries and quarrels that its young audience endured due to the imitation of the characters movements and actions. It may also act as a cue to aggressive behaviour, through desensitisation, uninhibitedness and stimulation. Scenes of violence in a horror film allegedly influenced the two accused ten year olds involved in the infamous James Bulger murder, in which a young boy was abducted and killed. It is  said that they undertook the resulting actions after becoming intrigued and excited by the violent scenes within the horror movie Childs Play. At the accused’ trial the defence made an attempt to present an argument that their actions could be explained through their fascination to television and films which distorted their understandings of society, reality and moral values. Also, it has been noted that naturally aggressive people may simply choose and prefer to watch more violent programmes than of any other nature. Friedrich and Stein found that aggressive-prone children are likely to become even more aggressive after watching violent television. A report made by the United States Surgeon General concluded that television violence is influential, as many as 25% of child viewers may be affected. But what it doesn’t take into account is that other research undertaken had shown, that from over 300 studies using numerous amounts of children, there was no direct effect of the violence portrayed through the mass media on the youth of contemporary society, though there is considerable disagreement between different studies. For instance it could be concluded that violence can never be considered the sole cause of delinquent behaviour, it may possibly just act to reinforce or affect those that are already prone to such tendencies. These examples have been noted as possible indications of the effects of the mass media through the means of expression of television violence, but the media is accused of also acting in more subliminal ways when looked at through the vehicle of the print based and television news. News The mass media present a stereotyped picture of life, which can often lead to undesirable prejudices within not just national, but international, society. The mass media and in particular the television and print based news are often accused as being a significant source, in wide ranging and varied ways, of enhancing common stereotypes. It is argued now that in the case of women, ethnic groups, the disabled, certain professions, the old, the  physically unattractive and even nationalities are all presented according to accepted stereotypes. As â€Å"the war on terrorism† in Afghanistan rages on the news that has come from that region has had exactly the same type of subliminal messaging that was continually occurring in the Gulf War press. The aim of that journalism was to distinguish the language concerning both sides that were at war. During the Gulf War the descriptions given to the opposite sides were of a distinct nature as to enhance the British reputation and to condemn the Saddam regime. British troops â€Å"took out†, â€Å"suppressed† and â€Å"eliminated† their opposition because of an â€Å"old fashioned sense of duty† because they are â€Å"professionals†, â€Å"brave† and â€Å"lion-hearted†, whereas Saddam’s army simply â€Å"killed† and â€Å"destroyed† because they â€Å"feared Saddam† and were â€Å"cowardly† and â€Å"Bastards of Baghdad† (O’Sullivan, Dutton, Rayner: 1998:80). These binary oppositions are used as a form of media propaganda, the conscious manipulation of information in order to gain political advantage. By using the media as a tool of manipulation the Conservative government of the Gulf War era and the Labour government of the present day have effectively stereotyped the opposition in order to provide national unity and enhance their own political agendas. Studies have also been carried out to study the effects of television on political behaviour, with Blumler (1970) as just one, concluding that television had little or no discernible influence over the viewer. Construction of the news is another way in which the mass media can have an influence over the masses. Through the placement of certain aspects of, for example, a news feature or the selective process made by editors it preserves the notion of media influence continually. Television and print based news, due primarily to their fixation with crime and violence arguably has a pessimistic impact upon our societal behaviour. The news can be described as being an oxymoron; giving us the skin of the truth stuffed with a lie. I personally do not concur with this as I consider that generally news does not lie, except it does not inform the audience of the entire truth by omitting the less interesting and dramatic parts. A news program is  primarily focused on the facts, but for the purposes of television and the print based media they tend to emphasise on the dramatic, generally violent stories and images to capture and sustain its audience, under the facade of keeping it informed. The med ias influence through the news is that it affects the public both consciously and subconsciously, and in some cases sends us about our lives unnecessarily fearing the remote dangers that we see excessively portrayed in the news. Stereotyping Children’s programmes especially have a tendency to amplify stereotypes, presenting â€Å"goodies† and â€Å"baddies† within episodes. The confirmation of their stereotypes may makes children feel more comfortable with themselves if they can place someone within a group. Also some children often only have their contact with some minority groups through the television. Greenfield (1984) found that Sesame Street’s use of ethnic and disabled minorities has had positive affects on children, particularly those from the minority groups who feel greater cultural pride and self-confidence. Certain events are over-reported, such as violent or sex crimes, and this acts to alter public opinion. Cohen (1965) suggests that the media creates moral panics by widely reporting an initially minor event, which leads to further comprehensive reports, detection of causes or troublemakers. Radio Cantril (1940) is often referred back upon as a classic example of how the mass media can influence through the gaining of trust. It refers to an incident in the late thirties that caused a widespread public panic in America after a radio station broadcast of H.G.Wells’ fictional narrative War of the Worlds. The production involved a series of news bulletins in which the reporter gave a â€Å"live† account of a Martian invasion. A lot of listeners had tuned in a few moments after the show had begun and so, apparently unaware that the program was of a fictitious nature, believed what they were hearing was the truth and so began becoming hysterical, with some taking to the streets and others even packing up their belongings as  quickly as they could and driving off in order to avoid the attacks. Cantril’s study was the documentation of media-social relations at the time and so the â€Å"invasion† pointed towards the influence that the radio had over the masses, as they truly believed the broadcast. The primary factor in the â€Å"invasion† was the trust that the public had in radio journalism being unwittingly extended to a practical simulation. What was evident from this episode was the steady, gradual and routine influence that the mass media as a whole had exerted, led to the radio broadcasts listeners faith that they were being attacked (Corner: 2000: 385). This case has been cited as being an excellent example of the â€Å"Hypodermic Needle Model†, a hypothesis which asserts that the media are dominant agents of influence, capable of â€Å"injecting† ideas and behaviours directly into fairly inert audiences of isolated individuals. It could also be marked down as not only showing the behavioural changes that can arise from a single piece of media output but also the underlying example of media influence that experts have looked for through experiments or fieldwork. Conclusion In closing, there are perceived to be constantly changing views on the influence that is exerted by the mass media. At first there was the attitude that the media was forcing itself upon us in such a way as to exert its influence and shape our beliefs, actions and values. Now though as time has moved on, theorists are thinking about this area of research in other ways and through diverse approaches. There was a shift in the perspective of researchers within audience reception in the seventies and is evident none more so than in the statement made by James Halloran (1970): â€Å"We must get away from the habit of thinking in terms of what the media do to people and substitute for it the idea of what people do with the media.† The technological determinist view, which states an overemphasis on the part of the mass media as the major, if not solitary cause of societal and  cultural changes, which have effected actions and beliefs, is not the view that I personally would concur with. In my opinion the mass media is an incredible tool of persuasion and could influence somebody undoubtedly. Mass media audiences are arguably on the whole not passive, and so the amount of influence that is exerted upon the recipient depends entirely on the individual. As most pieces of media output are â€Å"polysemic† in nature, meaning that it is capable of having different meanings and readings from person to person (O’Sullivan, Dutton, Rayner: 1998:327), the way in which, or by how much, an individual is influenced is entirely through choice. Bibliography * O’Sullivan, Dutton, Rayner: (1998): Arnold Publishers â€Å"Studying The Media: Second Edition† The following authors were cited from â€Å"Studying The Media: Second Edition† James Halloran (1970) Blumler and Katz (1974) James Curran & Michael Gurevitch: (2000): Arnold Publishers â€Å"Mass Media And Society: Third Edition† Chapter 19: John Corner: (2000) Within Chapter 19, written by John Corner the following authors were cited: Cantril (1940) Blumler (1970) * John Eldridge, Jenny Kitzninger, Kevin Williams: (1997): Oxford Uni. Press Inc â€Å"The Mass Media & Power In Modern Britain† The following authors were cited from â€Å"The Mass Media & Power In Modern Britain†: Greenfield (1984) Friedrich and Stein United States Surgeon General Report Cohen (1965) * Jane Root: (Unknown): (Unknown) â€Å"Open The Box†

Canada History Essay

Everywhere you might hear the roll of the drum, and there was no family but had its soldier, and few that did not have their dead. There were a score of thousand British troops in the Northern provinces, and every week brought rumors and alarms, and portents of victory or defeat. The haggard post-rider came galloping in with news from north and west, which the anxious village folks gather to hear. There have been skirmishes, successes, retreats, surprises, massacres, retaliations. In 1867 the Canadian history was the people’s ancestors who become American Indians (North American Indians) that first entered North America from Siberia some time around 14,000–15,000 years ago. A wave of further migrations from Siberia, beginning about 4,000 years ago, brought the Inuit people, who settled across the whole of Arctic North America, from Alaska through Northern Canada to Greenland (Fregault, 1969). The European discovery is where Europeans sight North America were the Vikings in 986. An expedition led by Leif Ericsson sailed from Greenland, visited Baffin Island, and sailed down the Labrador coast to Newfoundland, which was named Vinland. The remains of a Viking settlement have been found on the island, but it would seem that the Viking colony was short†lived. The Viking discovery was forgotten in Europe, and it was 500 years before another European, John Cabot reached the shores of Canada (1497). In 1534 Jacques Cartier, a Frenchman, undertook a voyage of discovery along the coasts of Newfoundland and Labrador, and on his second voyage (1536–37) discovered the St Lawrence River and travelled as far as the Huron capital, Hochelaga (the site of Montreal). Some small settlements were made by the French, but have been abandoned it after two years (Hayes, 2002). The French and British rivalry was until 1608 that Samuel de Champlain, who had visited the country in 1603 and subsequent years, founded the city of Quebec. The St Lawrence region formed a French colony under the name of Canada for the next century and a half. Meanwhile, the English formed the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1670 and began to trade with the American Indians that is now the Northwest Territories. A French colony, known as Acadia, had also been established in Nova Scotia at the beginning of the 17th century, but the arrival of English and Scottish colonists led to a long†running conflict for possession until the territory came they became under British control by the Treaty of Utrecht (1713). Finally, in 1749 the British founded the settlement of Halifax and installed many British colonists, and the following year the French settlers were expelled for refusing to swear loyalty to the British crown. Many of these Acadians subsequently settled in Louisiana, where they became known as Cajuns (Eccles,1969). Louis Reil is perhaps the most controversial figure in Canadian historiography. He is a leader of his people in their resistance against the Canadian government in the Canadian Northwest. His life and deeds have spawned a massive and diverse literature. He was born in the Red River Settlement (in what is now Manitoba) in 1844. He is a promising student and was sent to Montreal to train for the priesthood, but he never graduated. An attempt at training as a lawyer, and by 1868 Riel was back in the Red River area. Ambitious, well educated and bilingual, Riel quickly emerged as a leader among the Metis of the Red River. In 1869-1870 he headed a provisional government, which would eventually negotiate the Manitoba Act with the Canadian government. The Act established Manitoba as a province and provided some protection for French language rights. Riel’s leadership in the agitation, especially his decision to execute a Canadian named Thomas Scott, anti-Catholic and anti-French sentiment in Ontario. Although chosen for a seat in the House of Commons on three occasions, he was unable to take his seat in the house. In 1875, Riel’s role in the death of Scott resulted in his exile from Canada. These years in exile would include stays in two Quebec asylums and the growing belief in Riel that he had a religious mission to lead the Metis people of the Canadian northwest (Chartrand, 1999). Riel was the undisputed spiritual and political head of the short-lived 1885 Rebellion. He never carried arms and hindered the work of his military head, Gabriel Dumont. Riel was increasingly influenced by his belief that he was chosen to lead the Metis people. On May 15, shortly after the fall of Batoche, Riel surrendered to Canadian forces and was taken to Regina to stand trial for reason (Lloyd, 1959). At his trial, Riel gave two long speeches which demonstrated his powerful rhetorical abilities. He personally rejected attempts by his defense counsel to prove he was not guilty by reason of insanity. On 1 August 1885, a jury of six English-speaking Protestants found Riel guilty but recommended mercy. Judge Hugh Richardson sentenced him to death. Attempted appeals were dismissed and a special re-examination of Riel’s mental state by government appointed doctors found him sane. He was hanged in Regina on 16 November, 1885. His execution was widely opposed in Quebec and had lasting political ramifications (Lee, 1986). While in the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, this was also known as the Battle of Quebec, this was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years War (referred to as French and Indian War in the United States). The confrontation, which began on 12 September 1759, fought between the British Army and Navy, and the French Army, on a plateau just outside the walls of Quebec City (Stuart, 2003). The battle involved fewer than 10,000 troops between both sides, but proved to be in the conflict between France and Britain over the fate of New France, influencing the later creation of Canada (Casgrain, 1964). The culmination of a three-month siege by the British, the battle lasted less than an hour. British troops commanded by General James Wolfe successfully resisted the column advance of French troops and Canadian militia under Louis-Joseph, Marquis de Montcalm (Hibbert, 1959). The two generals were mortally wounded during the battle, Wolfe died on the field and Montcalm passed away the next morning. In the wake of the battle, France’s remaining military force in Canada and the rest of North America came under increasing pressure from British forces. Within four years, nearly all of France’s possessions in eastern North America would be ceded to Great Britain (Anderson, 2000). The battle itself has bind Montcalm and Wolfe. Montcalm has been treated leniently by history he was indeed a brilliant and heroic soldier, and he had the crowning honor of dying bravely at Quebec, but he cannot be held blameless in this affair. He had taught the Indians that he was as one of themselves, had omitted no means of securing their amity had danced and sung with them and smiled approvingly and he had no right to imagine that they would believe him sincere in his promise to spare the prisoners. The two military leaders of the French and British fought the battle as the most promising event in their lives. The two generals leave a legacy to the Plains of Abraham. Bibliography Anderson, Fred. 2000. Crucible of War: The Seven Years War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754-1766. New York. Casgrain, H.R. 1964. Wolfe and Montcalm. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Chartrand, Rene. 1999. Quebec 1759. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. Eccles, W.J. 1760. The Canadian Frontier. New York: Holt. Fregault, Guy. 1969. Canada: The war of the Conquest. Toronto Oxford: University Press. Hayes, Derek. 2002. Historical Atlas of Canada. Vancouver: Douglas & Mc Intyre Ltd. Hibbert, Christopher. 1959. Wolfe at Quebec. New York: The World Publishing Company. Lee , Kenneth. 1986. The French armies in the seven years war. University Press. Lloyd, Christopher.1959. The Capture of Quebec. London: B.T. Batsford, Ltd. Reid, Stuart. 2003. The Battle that Won Canada. Oxford: Osprey Publishing.   

Green Valley Megastore Case Study Essay

Green-Valley Megastores Green-Valley Megastores was a part of a large business group having investments in diverse businesses like pharmaceuticals, luxury hotels, textile manufacturing and exports, and food processing. The mega-stores were aimed to give the customers a truly international shopping experience—a one stop destination where entire families could enjoy a day together—watching movies, shopping, eating out and playing games in an unmatched ambience. This concept of shopping-cum-entertainment had paralleled the growth of shopping malls in India. Today, the customers who did not prefer to just watch movies at the old-fashioned movie halls had the option of going into multiplexes which offered more than one movie show at a single time, along with the option of spending time at multiple shops or restaurants at the same time within the same complex. This was designed so that the customer need not travel from place to place in search of different products – but could have it at one place. With this, the businesses tried to replicate the weekend holiday concept of the West where an entire family could spend a day out engaging itself in watching movies, shopping and eating out. To further this aim, Green-Valley Megastores had invested in multiplexes with floor space varying from 20,000 square feet to 40,000 square feet in prime locations in different cities. The shop-space was then leased out to different brands—who would sell their products within the multiplex. Thus, there was a wide variety of products in a single multiplex—ranging from dress material (which itself had different varieties of ethnic wear, western wear, leather accessories, sunglasses, fine jewelry, and saris) to shoes, electronics, toys, groceries and foodstuff, etc. In terms of product offering, these shops within Green-Valley offered a wide choice to their customers. Not only did Green-Valley offer the finest brands available in India, but it also offered a world-class ambience and service, with the widest choice. A customer could browse through the offerings to their hearts content without any pressure of buying through serene ambience in the classy glass and marble interiors designed by international architects. There was enough  space for them to rest, take a break, have refreshments while shopping and then continue again. Staff at Green-Valley While the shops within each Green-Valley Store had its own staff, Green-Valley maintained its own staff to take care of housekeeping (cleanliness of public space like lobbies, staircases etc.) manage the car park, and provide security services. The staff at Green-Valley was trained to be unobtrusive; they were supposed to be present and vigilant at all times and respond to a specific customer request only when the customer required. They were there to help one make a choice or serve quietly and efficiently. With constant in-depth training, the Green-Valley staff was required to offer service to all customers with a positive attitude, pleasant disposition, and good communication skills Organizational Structure Each store was managed by a store-in-charge who was supported by four managers. The different managers took care of security, housekeeping, services and accounts. The staff strength for security, housekeeping and services varied from store to store based on the requirements. While the housekeeping took care of the general cleanliness of the stores, services department took care of the maintenance of the lifts, electrical equipment, fire-fighting equipment etc. Both the housekeeping department and the services department relied on contractual staff instead of permanent employees. See Figure 1 for the organizational structure in the following page. Figure 1 Organizational Structure in a typical Green-Valley Megastore. Performance Appraisal for Megastores’ employees Performance appraisal for the store employees was carried out on an annual basis. Each of the employees were evaluated by their superior (refer Figure 1). The store-in-charges of different stores were evaluated by the Regional Managers. The Regional Managers were in turn appraised by the General Manager (Operations) who used to be located at headquarters. The regional managers had targets in terms of business development – getting new customers for floor space in the mega-stores. They had to achieve the targets in terms of lease rent from the stores in their regions. For the store-in-charges the nature of job was more of managing the facility for their customers. Each store had two categories of customers – the tenants and the shoppers. It was the responsibility of the store –in-charge of a Mega-store to ensure highest quality of service to both the categories. Performance Appraisal Process Only those employees who had completed a year in the organization were eligible for performance appraisal. There was no appraisal for the contractual staff or part-time employees. The appraisal process was carried out for all the eligible employees simultaneously in the February to March period. The appraisal process was initiated by a meeting conducted by the Store-in-charge where the announcement of the appraisal process was made. It was mandatory for all eligible employees to attend the meeting. During the meeting the eligible employees were informed individually about the date of his / her performance appraisal. The employees are asked to be prepared for any sort of situations or questions during the appraisal. As an important step of their career, employees took the appraisal interview seriously. Stage 1: Self appraisal This was the first step in the appraisal process at Green-Valley, where an employee has to rate himself from 1 – 6 where 1 is the lowest and 6 the  highest grade. The employee was handed over a form with following five parameters (refer Table A). The parameters were based on the important aspects of his/her responsibility in Green-Valley and had different weights. The employee had to grade himself/ herself on those parameters. Stage 2: Assessment by Appraisal Committee The appraisal interviews were carried out by an Appraisal Committee that was formed for each store. The members in that committee were the Store-in-charge and two HR managers from the headquarters. The committee would carry out interviews of the employees and based on the interviews would give their assessment of performance. On a single day nearly 4-5 employees were appraised. The committee would start the interview using the self-assessment as the basis, probing reasons why a particular employee had rated himself 6. In most cases employees used to rate themselves on the higher side—typically either 5 or 6. For each of the parameters, the appraisal committee had a set of questions which would examine the employee. For example, reliability would be probed with questions like: 1.Where were you when so and so incident took place in the store? 2.If a customer has forgotten her purchases in the lobby – how would you locate the customer to give it back to them? The appraisal committee would make its own assessment and give marks on the 1 to 6 scale. TableA: Performance Assessment Form Name: _______________________________ Store Location:________________________ Assessment Period:_____________________ S. No.Performance DimensionsWeights (in %) WSelf RatingCommittee Rating RW X R 1.Customer focus20 2.Task focus15 3.Upkeep of uniform and self 15 4.Discipline & Attendance10 5.Honesty & Integrity10 6.Communication10 7.Initiative 10 8.Reliability10 Total Raw Score: Total of WxR 100 Additional achievements by the employee: Comments by the Appraisal Committee: Signature of the committee members: Final Score: Signature of employee: The marks were used to derive the grades. The grading was done as per the scheme depicted in Table B. Table B: Grading Scheme Marks cut-offRating > 5.5Outstanding 5 – 5.5Very Good 4.5 – 5 Good 4 – 4.5Adequate

Management Innovation and New Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management Innovation and New Technology - Essay Example However, modern theories are moving away from this inventor mythology to more holistic approaches that are often based on complete processes and this has led to successful commercialization of new products and processes. An individual can confidently state that product innovation is a complex process rather than a one-day event. This means that there is a lot that is involved in product innovation. A number of insights are evident in the product innovation complexity. To begin with innovation starts and ends with invention (Wield & Rhode, 82). Invention refers to the discovery of new and intelligent ideas and artefacts. Despite the fact, that creating new idea is the baseline of innovation, it is noteworthy that the idea must be sorted out as to whether it is workable and or applicable into the societal context. In other words, innovation takes into consideration adapting the newly found ideas into practical productive application in particular work processes or product markets of a particular firm. The applications should not only be to specific firms but also to the entire economy and into the society. This proposition can be justified by the fact that despite Spencer Silvers discovering the Post-it brand adhesive before 1970 this noble invention was only commercialised in 1978 after the company (3M) had ignored for that long owing to lack of practical applicability (Ketteringham & Nayak 427). Silver’s moment of discovering the Post-it brand adhesive began in 3M’s Central Research Laboratories under program dubbed â€Å"Polymers for Adhesives† in 1964. It is unfortunate that despite the fact that silver came up with unique form of adhesive his new idea could not be taken seriously by the management because Silver could not find a problem to apply this great idea. It was until Arthur Fry a 3M chemist, a choir director and an amateur mechanic found a problem to Silver’s idea when he came up with the paper to paper application of the adhesive. According to Wield & Rhode (84), the complexity of product innovation can be understood by withdrawing the assumption that innovation takes a â€Å"linear flow†. It is noteworthy that successful innovation has no straight line considering that it does not spring from scientific invention all the way to develop a competitive edge. The nature of the link between a scientific invention and the technological development is in itself very complex and because of this reason, the link has often been confusing. Individuals need to understand that scientific invention benefits a lot from technological development in a number of ways that include but not limited to transfer of knowledge, network of profession, skills and instruments. In the case of 3M, it is evident that the company boasts of a poll of skilled scientists that range from chemists and engineers who worked tirelessly in 3M’s Central Research Laboratories to come up with new inventions. The idea that led i nto development of one of the best selling product of 3M named Post-it Note Pad resulted from a series of technological developments that took approximately 10 years (Ketteringham & Nayak 425). Successful product innovation is also a matter of interaction between a number of factors within and outside the organization (Wield & Rhode, 84). Studies indicate that those factors that key determinant to the commercial success of a product are found outside the areas which are commonly associated with the with the

Can A Machine Know Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Can A Machine Know - Essay Example This misconception is a gross oversimplification of the seemingly limitless boundaries of the human mind. The potential of machines were thought to be able to eventually encompass â€Å"an inductive and creative mind, capable of taking initiative, to which human beings could confide all their problems and obtain instant solutions in return† (Ifrah, 1997: 1679). This misconception in the early days of the computer has carried over even to today. This discussion examines the functions of the computer brain along with the similarities and differences to the human brain in addition to the meaning of knowledge and the limitations of machines as compared to the human mind. Simply stated, computers are machines which effectively carry out algorithmic functions. The machine discerns formalized input through a sequence of fixed stages through a predetermined, straightforward set of rules of a standardized and exacting description. This allows computers to perform procedures in a precise number of steps. Mechanical computers, unlike the functions of the computer-like brain do not have the capability to determine right from wrong nor can they make judgments, have no feelings and cannot think on their own. It cannot be denied that some types of intelligence can be attributed to computers but this capacity is very limited when balanced against the boundless intricacies in a human’s brain. However, the computer is superior when considering its capability to process information at a higher speed. This has provided humans a useful tool for a myriad of endeavors. Nevertheless, computers cannot reason, imagine, invent, create, express thoughts, manage idea s, make judgments or possess the ability to adapt to differing situations and therefore cannot solve problems that are new to them. Unlike the human brain, computers aren’t conscious of their own being, have no concept of the world around them and cannot execute voluntary activities (Ifrah, 1997:

Prepare an international marketing environment analysis report for Essay

Prepare an international marketing environment analysis report for Australia - Essay Example The benefits of adoption of technology are reduced costs, new products and higher quality. Australia has a strong financial regulations and institutions which makes the business environment healthy. Introduction Australia is a country which comprises of the mainland of Australian continent, Tasmanian Island and smaller islands. It is sixth-largest country in the world by total area. It is a developed country and also one of the wealthiest of countries in the world. It is presently the world’s 12th largest economy. Australia has achieved second-highest human development index globally. It has achieved good performance in many vital statistics like health, quality of life, protection of civil liberties, economic freedom and political rights. Australia has a high urbanized population. In terms of trade Australia has given major emphasis on exporting manufactured goods. For more than 50 years, Australia has been facing a large current account deficit. For more than 15 years their GDP has grown by over 3.6% which is satisfactory as compared to other OECD average of 2.5%. During financial downturn in 2008-2009, Australia was the only advanced economy which had not been affected. But being a global economy Australia faced the effect because their trades with other countries got affected. It was during 2012 to early 2013, Australia faced major recession in some non-mining states. Inflation rate in Australia has been under control averaging about 2-3%. The major sector which contributes to the GDP is tourism, education, economy, financial services. They contribute about 70% of GDP to Australia’s economy. Australia’s major export includes agricultural products, like wool, wheat, minerals etc. International marketing environment in Australia The important factors of International marketing environment of Australia are as follows: Political environment Australia is a liberal-capitalistic democracy. Through government interference, they can decide the a mount of importation taxes to be imposed to protect the domestic economy. They can also create an environmental protection laws to protect the natural heritage of the country. It will automatically affect the Australian economy, since it will affect the amount of trade which takes place and also the exchange rates faced by it. With the global financial meltdown the Australian economy slowed down. The Australian economy is expected to grow due to its demand for raw materials from China. Since Australia exports vastly in iron ore and other agricultural products, the recession had comparatively less effect on them. Economic Environment Australia is lies between Antarctica and Asia. It has Indian Ocean to the west, Arafura, Timor and Coral Seas to the north, The Tasman Sea and the Southern Ocean to its south and finally Pacific Ocean to its east. This shows that Australia is at a strategic advantage in terms of exports and imports. But much of the country is dry, low and flat. Due to th is harsh physical environment people live close to the fertile coastal areas. Everyone wants to own home, and hence the nation has a high number of home ownership rates (Mulligan, 1996, p. 453). Hence the real

Self-discovery and Understanding of World in Against Meat and Praise Essay

Self-discovery and Understanding of World in Against Meat and Praise of Self-deception - Essay Example Even with the improved capacity to conceive build and design sophisticated equipment, tame some of the wildest beasts the earth has ever known and even travel thousands of miles to the moon, a man seems not to understand his own functionalities. He seems increasingly confused in understanding the most complex machine evolution has provided; the brain. Although scientists at least have clues on how the brain process information, it has always been a dilemma on how the physical and the tangible aspects of the brain easily connect to aspects such as emotions and how the brain affects our decision-making processes. Perhaps the state of chaos and confusion that in most instance human beings conceal behind the mask of ambition, philanthropy, humanity or even religion is better explained by the artistic impressions of artists. The question is whether man has the capacity to find answers on his real self but opts not to, due to fear of what he might discover. Maybe the man is just not able t o self-discover and will in most instances carefully construct theories in an attempt to hide his ineptness in these matters. Using the â€Å"Broken Column† (Self-portrait) by Fridah Kahlo as the yardstick, the paper will conduct an analysis on two texts; â€Å"against meat† and â€Å"praise of self-deception.† The Self. ... The article â€Å"Against Meat† by Jonathan Safran is a narration about his battle with the commitment of being a vegetarian. Safran begins by outlining the initial concept that was nurtured in him concerning meat and how he experienced difficulties in converting to vegetarianism even after realizing the ills associated with meat. Safran learned at an early age from his grandmother that there was no kind of food that was bad and that most parts of food were to be eaten. Safran writes that: No foods are bad for you. Sugars are great. Fats are tremendous. The fatter a child is, the fitter it is — especially if it’s a boy. Safran also mentions that his grandmother had endured the 2nd World War surviving barely enough to eat and was even sometimes forced to scavenge for food remnants in dustbins. As a result, his grandmother’s obsession with food was particularly due to her past experiences with hunger. Then after that Safran learnt from his father that kickin g animals was not good, only for the father to flush a golden fish Safran received as a gift in the toilet. These instances together with the conversation he had with the baby sitter only served to disillusion Safran concerning the ills of eating meat. The disillusionment Safran felt was due to the fact that most people around him ate meat despite believing that eating meat is causing undue distress to animals. Safran admits that the disillusionment had profound impact on his life, that he found himself constantly making excuses to eat meat despite being a vegetarian. Safran proceeds to narrate a life where he hypocritically consoled himself that he had not caused any distress because he had not actually killed but was just consuming what had been killed by another.  

Coconut Groove Fire Incident Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Coconut Groove Fire Incident - Research Paper Example This, among other design flaws and failures to take safety measures into consideration, led to the tragic incident. This paper seeks to give an in depth analysis of the events that led to the fire, and changes executed by fire and safety departments across America to avoid a repeat of the tragedy. The Cocoanut Grove Fire and Potential Causes To understand why the Cocoanut Grove fire was not easily contained, and why it claimed so many lives, it is imperative to get an idea of its original layout. This facility had three exits, on the Shawmut, Piedmont and Broadway sides (Boston Fire Historical Society, n.d). The building’s main entrance comprised of a single revolving door on the Piedmont Street side. The entrance opened into Cocoanut Grove’s lobby, while the way into the Melody Lounge, in the lower level, was through a single stairwell from the reception area. There were no other entrances or exits from this part of the Night Club. The exit to Shawmut Street was positi oned centrally along the main club area’s wall. Another entrance along this wall, and bordering the performance stage was closed at all times. The third exit was on the side of the new Broadway Cocktail Lounge. This exit comprised of just one door, which unfortunately opened inward. Another contributory factor, to the massive loss of life, was that all other exits that could have enabled patrons to escape were either obscured or locked. For instance, had the door on the side of Piedmont Street been open during the incident, Melody lounge patrons could have exited without having to go back to the reception area (Beller & Sapochetti, 2000). Another imperative safety flaw noted was that, exit points from the upper level dressing areas were through stairs, which ended at the Shawmut side door that was always locked. Additionally, windows on the Shawmut and Piedmont building sides were obscured, making them virtually invisible for patrons inside the facility. Further, the night cl ub’s interior had numerous decorations, made of flammable materials. Some of these materials included fabrics on the ceiling as well as artificial leather used on bars and walls. To make matters worse, the facility had false walls and suspended ceilings throughout, covering the building initial fixtures. There were also artificial palms, for decorative purposes and these were not only in the night club, but also in the Melody Lounge at the basement level. The palm trees’ capacity to burn was accentuated by incorporation of electrical lighting and its affiliated wiring. The lower leveled Melody Parlor also had highly flammable rattan wood coverings on the walls, and most of the furniture in the entire facility had artificial leather covering (Beller & Sapochetti, 2000). Allegedly, a mere eight days prior to the tragic fire, inspectors from Boston’s fire department had scrutinized the facility. In their report, these inspectors indicated that there were sufficient exits, no combustible decorations and enough fire extinguishers to put out a fire, in case of one. Apparently, the only deficit found by the inspectors was the absence of a steel fire barrier between the dining area and the Broadway Lounge. It is crucial to note that, following the facility expansion through inclusion of the Broadway Lounge, the club’s management sent an application for a restaurant license to the town council. Under the new terms of operation, the Cocoanut

Task1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Task1 - Essay Example se the atoms of a metal within a crystal framework are flexible to shift from place to place or in any direction, the carbon steel becomes established with strength as opposed to pure metals which may go brittle in the absence of carbon. High Density Polyethylene which non-carbonated drink containers are made of is a linear polymer by nature so that this results into the existence of a ‘tightly packed structure’ within an HDPE material. Such property makes it possible for an HDPE to yield an increased density, hard texture, and an opaque look for this polymer is far from the tendency of branching upon high-temperature catalytic process of being derived from ethylene. The atomic geometry of an HDPE with an avergage molecular weight of 84,000 grams per mole is stabilized in equilibrium. Such is the case for HDPE that undergoes melting prior to the form required during the manufacture of plastic bottles. CFRP is composed of rigid material structure similar to that of a fibre glass and is aimed to acquire considerable strength despite the necessary lightness in weight for use in constructing an aircraft. A carbon fibre structure is built through textile weavings with resin application in order to come up with an epoxy polymer under reinforced condition which may as well be a composite of polyester, nylon, vinyl ester, or other relevant fibres. Hexagonally High Density Polyethylene Properties | Technical Information (HDPE). 2012. High Density Polyethylene Properties | Technical Information (HDPE). [ONLINE] Available at: . [Accessed 12 June

Sales Rewards and Incentives Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Sales Rewards and Incentives - Coursework Example Job-related incentives are one of the sales incentives which are least expensive. They can be in form of additional vacation time at no out-of-pocket cost. These are mainly incentives which are related to daily work responsibilities of the team. These can include but not limited to a half day of work, funny celebration gifts, watch movie as a sales team, etc. This is very significant in motivating the employees (Fisher, 2003). Tangible incentives are something of monetary value. This can be milk and cookies, new cell phones, laptops, or other gadgets that are of great importance to the employees. However, the items should be valuable in order to excite the sales force and motivate them to work harder (Fisher, 2003). Experience incentives have been identified as one that impacts positively towards the happiness of the salesperson than purchases. For instance, instead of sending just one sales person to a Hawaii, it is more fulfilling when a team-based contest is organized with a team experience being the main price (Fisher, 2003). This plays a significant role in not only rewarding the high performers but also to create a strong bond between the salespeople. This improves the level of teamwork, an aspect that is replicated in the overall performance of the business.

Project Management 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Project Management 3 - Essay Example On this note, this paper will mainly focus on the impact of project managers introducing social media into healthcare and how it can be added in various healthcare projects. In this day and age, the use of social media in health is becoming more popular day in, day out. For instance, around 60% of internet users in US access health information online. Over the years, social media has provided an online platform intended for mass collaboration but with the current technology, social media can be added as a tool in various healthcare projects. For instance, medical device manufacturers, through the social media have been able to facilities projects such as body weight management and diabetes management (HIMSS Social Media Work Group, 2012). Driven by the tremendous development in technology and access to technological devices, in 2009, a company came up with Wi-Fi body scale app for those will to lose weight. Through social media such as Tweeter and Facebook, about 40% of internet users had attempted using the app. Secondly, inspired by the numerous numbers of people posting their blood sugar levels on the international diabetes foundation twits, doctors from university introduced an app know as Bant. Bant incorporated wireless digital glucometers to measure blood glucose levels. In the same year, a 49% increase on blood glucose measurement in US alone was recorded (HIMSS Social Media Work Group, 2012). In conclusion, it is clear that social media has not only succeeded as a platform for exchange of information but it has also brought change in healthcare projects. Thanks to social media, it is easy, cheaper and time saving to manage ones health. An individual can receive treatment from his or her house with the help of apps, blogs and websites accessible in the social media. HIMSS Social Media Work Group. 2012. Healthcare â€Å"Friending† Social Media: What Is It, How Is It Used, and What Should I Do? Healthcare

Return to Normalcy Essay Example for Free

Return to Normalcy Essay â€Å"Return to Normalcy† United States presidential candidate Warren G. Harding’s campaign promise in the election of 1920. Doc 7 Muscle Shoals famous for its contributions to American popular music in the 1920’s. Doc 24 Election of 1924 – Republican Calvin Coolidge wins election by a landslide. Doc 11 Federal Farm Board created in 1929, before the stock market crash on Black Tuesday, 1929, but its powers were later enlarged to meet the economic crisis farmers faced during the Great Depression. It was established by the Agricultural Marketing Act to stabilize prices and to promote the sale of agricultural products. The board would help farmers stabilize prices by holding surplus grain and cotton in storage. Doc 7 Theodore Dreiser an American novelist and journalist of the naturalist school. His novels often featured main characters that succeeded at their objectives despite a lack of a firm moral code, and literary situations that more closely resemble studies of nature than tales of choice and agency. Dreisers best known novels include Sister Carrie (1900) and An American Tragedy (1925). Doc 3 T. S. Eliot a publisher, playwright, literary and social critic and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American, he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 (at age 25) and was naturalized as a British subject in 1927 at age 39. Doc 1 Fundamentalists The demand for a strict adherence to specific theological doctrines usually understood as a reaction against Modernist theology, combined with a vigorous attack on outside threats to their religious culture. The term fundamentalism was originally coined by its supporters to describe a specific package of theological beliefs that developed into a movement within the Protestant community of the United States in the early part of the 20th century, and that had its roots in the Fundamentalist–Modernist Controversy of that time. Doc 20 Billy Sunday an American athlete who, after being a popular outfielder in baseballs National League during the 1880s, became the most celebrated and influential American evangelistduring the first two decades of the 20th century. Henry Ford [Model T]- an automobile that was produced by Henry Fords Ford Motor Company from September 1908 to October 1927. It is generally regarded as the first affordable automobile, the car that opened travel to the common middle-class American; some of this was because of Fords innovations, including assembly line production instead of individual hand crafting. (23) flappers- a new breed of young Western women in the 1920s who wore short skirts, bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered acceptable behavior. Flappers were seen as brash for wearing excessive makeup, drinking, treating sex in a casual manner, smoking, driving automobiles and otherwise flouting social and sexual norms. (8,9,14,22) Harlem Renaissance- a cultural movement that spanned the 1920s and 1930s. At the time, it was known as the New Negro Movement, named after the 1925 anthology by Alain Locke. Though it was centered in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City, many French-speaking black writers from African and Caribbean colonies who lived in Paris were also influenced by the Harlem Renaissance. 3) Marcus Garvey- a Jamaican publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator who was a staunch proponent of the Black Nationalism and Pan-Africanism movements, to which end he founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL). He founded the Black Star Line, part of the Back-to-Africa movement, which promoted the return of the African Diaspora to their ancestral lands. (10) Charles Lindbergh- an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist. As a 25-year-old U. S.  Air Mail pilot Lindbergh emerged suddenly from virtual obscurity to instantaneous world fame as the result of his Orteig Prize-winning solo non-stop flight on May 20–21, 1927, made from Roosevelt Field[N 1] located in Garden City on New Yorks Long Island to Le Bourget Field in Paris, France. (5,21) Twenty-One Demands- a set of demands made by the Empire of Japan under Prime Minister Okuma Shigenobu sent to the nominal government of the Republic of China on January 18, 1915, resulting in two treaties with Japan on May 25, 1915. 5:5:3:1. 75:1. 5 naval ratio- after World War I, many nations became concerned about the threat of another war and the possibility of an arms race. To address these issues in the naval arena, in 1922, Great Britain, the United States, Japan, France, and Italy signed the Five Powers Treaty at the Washington Conference. In the treaty, the powers agreed to a 5:5:3:1. 75:1. 75 ratio of naval tonnage and restrictions with regard to new building of both ships and bases. Young Plan- a program for settlement of German reparations debts after World War I written in 1929 and formally adopted in 1930. It was presented by the committee headed (1929–30) by American Owen D. Young. The reparations, set in January 1921 by an Inter-Allied Reparations Commission at 269 billion gold marks (the equivalent of around 100,000 tonnes of pure gold) were deliberately crushing. Teapot Dome Scandal- a bribery incident that took place in the United States in 1922–1923, during the administration of President Warren G. Harding. Secretary of the Interior Albert B. Fall leased Navy petroleum reserves at Teapot Dome and two other locations to private oil companies at low rates without competitive bidding. doc 24 Secy. of the Treasury Mellon (tax cuts)- Mellon came into office with a goal of reducing the huge federal debt from World War I. To do this, he needed to increase the federal revenue and cut spending. He believed that if the tax rates were too high, then the people would try to avoid paying them. He observed that as tax rates had increased during the first part of the 20th century, investors moved to avoid the highest rates by choosing tax-free municipal bonds, for instance. (doc 15 Progressive Party- was an American political party. It was formed by former President Theodore Roosevelt, after a split in the Republican Party between himself and President William Howard Taft. â€Å"The Lost Generation†- is a term used to refer to the generation, actually a cohort, that came of age during World War I. The term was popularized by Ernest Hemingway who used it as one of two contrasting epigraphs for his novel, The Sun Also Rises. (doc 9, Doc 13 Ernest Hemingway [A Farewell to Arms]- a semi-autobiographical novel written by Ernest Hemingway concerning events during the Italian campaigns during the First World War. The book, which was first published in 1929, is a first-person account of American Frederic Henry, serving as a Lieutenant (Tenente) in the ambulance corps of the Italian Army. The title is taken from a poem by 16th-century English dramatist George Peele. (doc 13 prohibition [Volstead Act]- prohibited the production, sale, and transport of intoxicating liquors, it did not define intoxicating liquors or provide penalties. It granted both the federal government and the states the power to enforce the ban by appropriate legislation. A bill to do so was introduced in Congress in 1919. (Doc 2 Immigration Acts (1921, 1924)- was a United States federal law that limited the annual number of immigrants who could be admitted from any country to 2% of the number of people from that country who were already living in the United States in 1890, down from the 3% cap set by the Immigration Restriction Act of 1921, according to the Census of 1890. doc 11, doc 17 Scopes Trial- was a landmark American legal case in 1925 in which high school science teacher, John Scopes, was accused of violating Tennessees Butler Act which made it unlawful to teach evolution in any state-funded school. (Doc 1 The Jazz Singer (Doc 7)- is a 1927 American musical film. The first feature-length motion picture with synchronized dialogue sequences, its release heralded the commercial ascendance of the talkies and the decline of the silent f ilm era. Produced by Warner Bros. with its Vitaphone sound-on-disc system, the movie stars Al Jolson, who performs six songs. The â€Å"New Woman† (Doc 22)- was a feminist ideal that emerged in the late 19th century. The New Woman pushed the limits set by male-dominated society, especially as modeled in the plays of Norwegian Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906). The New Woman sprang fully armed from Ibsens brain, according to a joke by Max Beerbohm (1872–1956). Langston Hughes (Doc. 3)- was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist. He was one of the earliest innovators of the then-new literary art form jazz poetry. Hughes is best known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance. Pan-African Movement (Document 10)- is a movement that seeks to unify African people or people living in Africa, into a one African community† Differing types of Pan-Africanism seek different levels of economic, racial, social, or political unity. Spirit of St. Louis (Doc 21)- is the custom-built, single engine, single-seat monoplane that was flown solo by Charles Lindbergh on May 20–21, 1927, on the first non-stop flight from New York to Paris for which Lindbergh won the $25,000 Orteig Prize. Washington Naval Conference(NA)- also called the Washington Arms Conference, was a military conference called by President Warren G. Harding and held in Washington from 12 November 1921 to 6 February 1922. Conducted outside the auspices of the League of Nations, it was attended by nine nations. Dawes Plan(NA)- was an attempt in 1924 to solve the reparations problem, which had bedeviled international politics, in the wake of the Ruhr occupation and the hyperinflation crisis. It provided for the Allies to collect war reparations debt from Germany. Intended as an interim measure, the Young Plan was adopted in 1929 to replace it. Kellogg-Briand Treaty(NA)- agreement, signed Aug. 27, 1928, condemning â€Å"recourse to war for the solution of international controversies. † It is more properly known as the Pact of Paris. In June, 1927, Aristide Briand, foreign minister of France, proposed to the U. S. government a treaty outlawing war between the two countries.

Buffy The Vampire Slayer Analysis Essay

Buffy The Vampire Slayer Analysis Essay With reference to one or two episodes of Buffy The Vampire Slayer studied in class, explain how the series encourages the viewer to question assumptions about high and low culture and/or television as a form of popular culture. You may wish to consider issues of genre, authorship and gender. Vampires are widely known for their slick back black hair, fanged teeth and black and red capes; however, in the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer these traditions have made different way for female fighters and ghoulish monsters. We each have our own different thoughts about what and who vampires are, but the media use their power on public to create a strong image of what are vampires should look like and have endorsed traditions believed for many years. In order to maximise viewing figure, the producers of Buffy the Vampire Slayer have made a good mix of the horror genre and the typical, classical American high school show. This mixture of different genres is suitable for many different class or age groups and tastes. The first episode is titled Welcome to Hellmouth this name is an oxymoron as it uses words that express good and bad. The build up to the episode shows a young couple breaking into the school through a window in the science lab. This action not only ads tension but also shows a link between science and the supernatural, something that has been talked about for hundreds of years. The woman turns into a green hideous monster and kills that boy. This is very rare for a vampire tale as traditionally vampires did not look like monsters and also they only attacked defenseless females. The episode starts properly when Buffy Summers, a 16 years old girl moves to Sunnydale, from LA with her mother. This is not the setting that the audience would expect for a vampire story as the word Sunnydale hardly paints a picture of a dark, horror place full of vampires. Therefore, this name subverts the traditional signifiers. On the first day of school, the popular girl named Cordelia inducts Buffy into the cool crowd, Buffy attempts to be friends with three other students,Willow, Xander and Jesse. This gesture shows us that Buffy is a good judge of character, strong minded and that she is a leader not a follower. Buffy goes to the school library to get some text books. The library, although a more unusual setting was much more like something from a vampire story, it was dark and empty. To add tension the producers used scary disjointed music to try and set the scene and the camera moves in onto a newspaper article, to which you can read the headline which refers to a missing teenage boy. This article casts a question mark over the normal nice Sunnydale. Then a figure appears behind Buffy, it is Buffys new watcher and the new school librarian,Giles. He brings a book with Vampyr on the cover and scares Buffy off. This endorses the old traditions as the book was old, and full of cobwebs, possibly to add more mystery to this section. The spelling Vampyr again highlights the books age and tries to make it look even more strange, this also brings more history and tradition into the episode, two elements that are important to any gothic style story. The show seems to take a different twist when a dead body is found in the school changing rooms. It is unusual that the body was discovered in the school and another good point to note is that the victim was a man, which is unusual for a vampire story, as traditionally the victims were all defenseless females. Buffy to investigate and found the body was killed by vampires. At home, Buffy prepares for her night out to the Bronze, Sunnydales only night club. Her mum thinks that everything is going to work out in Sunnydale and that they will be able to have a happy life there. It is very ironic as Buffy knows that bad things are just around the corner and also this shows that her mother is unaware that she is a vampire slayer. On her way to the Bronze, Buffy senses she is being followed and heads into an alleyway. A tall young man comes out of the shadows searching for her. She swings down from a bar above him and knocks him to the ground. He claims not to bite and that he just wants to help her. This section endorses up to the point where Buffy swings down and attacks the man. He warns her of the Harvest and tells her about the Hellmouth. This name paints a bad picture in the audiences minds and it is the total opposite to Sunnydale. Later at the Bronze, Buffy chats with Willow about boys. She tries to inspire Willow to stop waiting and to seize the day. Buffy spots Giles upstairs and goes up to talk to him. He continues to tell her she is the Slayer and has no choice in the matter. At first the setting for this scene may seem to be totally radical in a vampire style story, however after thought the venue is dark and full of young potential victims so is a modern adaptation of the settings for the older tales. For example, the more traditional tales were set in a graveyard or spooky house, which was dark and the time was always in the dead of night. These characteristics can also be linked to the nightclub used in Buffy, as it too is dark and people only go to th ese clubs during the hours of darkness.The show seems to take a different twist when a dead body is found in the school changing rooms. It is unusual that the body was discovered in the school and another good point to note is that the victim was a man, which is unusual for a vampire story, as traditionally the victims were all defenseless females. Buffy to investigate and found the body was killed by vampires. At home, Buffy prepares for the night out to the Bronze, the only night club in Sunnydale. Her mum thinks that everything is going to be fine in Sunnydale and they can have a happy life there. It is very ironic as Buffy knows that bad things are just around the corner and also this shows that her mother is unaware that she is a vampire slayer. On her way to the club, Buffy senses she is being followed and heads into an alleyway. A tall young man comes out of the shadows searching for her. She swings down from a bar above him and knocks him to the ground. He claims not to bite and that he just wants to help her. This section endorses up to the point where Buffy swings down and attacks the man. He warns her of the Harvest and tells her about the Hellmouth. This name paints a bad picture in the audiences minds and it is the total opposite to Sunnydale. Later at the Bronze, Buffy chats with Willow about boys. She tries to inspire Willow to stop waiting and to seize the day. Buffy spots Giles upstairs and goes up to talk to him. He continues to tell her she is the Slayer and has no choice in the matter. At first the setting for this scene may seem to be totally radical in a vampire style story, however after thought the venue is dark and full of young potential victims so is a modern adaptation of the settings for the older tales. For example, the more traditional tales were set in a graveyard or spooky house, which was dark and the time was always in the dead of night. These characteristics can also be linked to the nightclub used in Buffy, as it too is dar k and people only go to these clubs during the hours of darkness. Buffy spots a vampire in the crowd below them and then realizes hes talking to Willow. The guy leaves with Willow as Buffy goes searching for him. She mistakenly attacks Cordelia and then pretty much ruins her chances for popularity. As Buffy leaves, she runs into Xander and asks him where Willow may have gone or else there will be one more dead body tomorrow. The vampire manages to lead Willow into the cemetery where he throws her into a tomb stone. As he tries to escape, Darla arrives with Jesse. Buffy and Xander turn up and Buffy kills one of the vampires and then fights with Darla as Xander gets Willow and Jesse out to safety. A vampire shows up and fights with Buffy. While they are fighting, Darla escapes to get Jesse, Xander and Willow. The vampire throws Buffy into a coffin where he jumps in and leans in to bite. Apart from Buffy, a female fighter, who manages to attack all the vampires single handed. This endi ng endorses the signifiers we think off when we talk about vampires. As the setting, a graveyard is the usual place for an attack in a gothic or vampire story. It is also interesting to note that the episode concludes with a cliffhanger, an unusual ending for many gothic style stories and films. As traditionally, the story finished with either the death of a victim or of the attacker. In any television programme or feature film, camera angles and effects are important as they portray certain feelings that the producers want to show to the audience, these may be something like making the audience think a character is small and weak by using a high angle shot, which looks down on the character. Or you could use the opposite effect by making a character look strong and powerful from using a low angle shot (looking up). In Buffy The Vampire Slayer they producers use one effect which is featured on several occasions. This is where a quick series of flashing images is presented to the vie wers; this technique is called a montage of images. In episode 1 this feature is used twice, in the first case, the montage is used as a title sequence and shows images that both subvert and endorse the conventions, including images of signifiers including black cats, stakes and green monsters along with modern things like female fighters. This sequence promises viewers fast pace, all action entertainment and shows clips of future episodes in order to encourage continual viewing throughout the series. The second montage is shown where Buffy is in bed dreaming at the beginning of the actual programme, after the introduction and the title sequence. This series of images is showing the audience that she is restless as there is some kind of distortion in the images, and some are not fully visible. This makes the viewers to try and understand the sequence and the majority suggest that Buffy is involved in someway with vampires or as a protector of some description. The images shown inclu de an old book which suggests the cultural history of vampires, a cross which represents Christianity and the way to kill vampires. Because of this legend, the cross points out that Buffy is a protector. Moreover, Buffy creator Joss Whedon described Buffy the Vampire Slayer as an all over the place transcending-genre kind of thing. (Stein, 2002) Well the text is mainly considered to be of the teen genre it does contain elements of the horror genre to. The fight against monsters and the idea of a patriarchal society is all central to the horror genre. The way that Buffys world is invaded by monsters, horror invades home is another shared convention between horror and BVS. However one aspect of the show that goes against the horror genre is the role of women. In previous horror texts women were weak and frightened; however BVS changes traditional genre and ideological views. Buffys embodied strength, power, and assertiveness destabilize the traditional masculinity power of the vampire character in the horror genre, in effect policing those who prey upon the feminized (Owen, 1999). Through the text femininity is conveyed as a forceful strong identity. Buffy is stronger then all the men she meets both physically and mentally. However Buffy is not empowered by past feminist movements in the text. She is empowered by herself. Indeed Karras writes that Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Buffys relationship with her mother can be understood as a metaphor for the tenuous relationship between second and third wave feminists(Karras, 2002) Buffys mother feels angry at the fact that Buffy doesnt take full use of the rights she now has to the feminist movement of the 60s. In conclusion,Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a popular culture because it provides a good blend of many aspects of both low and high cultures. It contains scenes that are scary, action packed and also offers addictive viewing like a soap opera. Buffy can be viewed by many different age groups as it seems that there is almost something for all, just the opening episode included many different styles of programming, from comedy to gothic style features. ‘Yet Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ also manages to defy convention by establishing its protagonist as an all strong, powerful willed women. Buffy as an open-image hero expose stereotypes and coded symbols that shore up a rigid war-influenced gender system in an attempt to chart new meanings for womanliness and manliness (Early, 2001) Reference list Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 1 Episode 1 â€Å"Welcome to the Hellmouth† Owen, A. Susan. 1999. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Vampires, postmodernity, and postfeminism. Journal Of Popular Film Television 27(2): 24-31 Irene Karras, 2002. â€Å"The Third Waves Final Girl:  Buffy the Vampire Slayer.† [http://journals.sfu.ca/thirdspace/index.php/journal/article/viewArticle/karras/50] Francis H. Early, 2001. â€Å"Staking Her Claim: Buffy the Vampire Slayeras Transgressive Woman Warrior† [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.0022-3840.2001.3503_11.x/abstract] â€Å"Chose an episode of any teen TV programme of your choice and identify the generiv conventions of this TV text.† [http://www.markedbyteachers.com/as-and-a-level/media-studies/chose-an-episode-of-any-teen-tv-programme-of-your-choice-buffy-the-vampire-slayer-and-identify-the-generic-conventions-of-this-tv-text.html]

Reflective Social Work Practice Social Work Essay

Reflective Social Work Practice Social Work Essay Social workers are knowledgeable about and apply the principles of critical thinking and reasoned discernment. They identify, distinguish, evaluate and integrate multiple sources of knowledge and evidence. These include practice evidence, their own practice experience, service user and carer experience together with research-based, organisational, policy and legal knowledge. They use critical thinking augmented by creativity and curiosity. I will critically examine this extract based on my own practice experience and evaluate the use of theories, tools and techniques of reflective practice to see if it supports the statement. I will begin by providing a description of a case study drawn from my previous placement to draw on the practice experience gained and how this may illustrate my learning so far. It is based on a 14 year old young girl who has been attending a horse-riding charity to help promote her well-being, self-esteem and social skills. For the purpose of this assignment she will be referred to as A. In this particular example, it is A and myself who have met as I have been given the task by my manager to talk to her about her personal hygiene. My manager felt this would also help in meeting the criteria required to handle complex situations (National Occupational Standards, Key role 6). Other young girls in her group have been seen talking behind As back about her and have not wanted to participate in group work with her because of this. I felt apprehensive about the meeting as I had not yet encountered anything like this previously. Though I was reassured by my manager that I would have the opportunity to go through the best approach with her before I met with A. Unfortunately due to time constraints and my manager having to deal with a crisis she was unable to assist me. Prior to the initial meeting with A I began to research on how best to deal with the situation and plan ahead on how best to communicate with her. I wanted to do this without hurting her feelings as she was a young and impressionable young person. This is also known as second order skills when employing planning strategies in what I as a worker am doing, being aware and observing interactions, being able to feedback what has happened (Kaprowska, 2005). Still feeling unsure on how to lead onto this particular topic due to my lack of experience, I realised that if my nervousness is apparent to A this may only escalate her worries as well. As a result I tried to keep my anxiety at bay. I asked if she had access to shower/bath facilities as a lot of the children who attended the organisation came from areas of deprivation. At this point I realised I felt out of my depth in having this conversation, and on reflection later felt it conflicted with my own personal beliefs. I did not believe her to have any hygiene issues when I had worked with A in the past. This may have shown when I eventually got to the topic at hand and told her the truth. She may have observed that I did not feel happy explaining why I am asking these questions when I myself did not share the same view as my colleagues and others. I came away from the meeting with my confidence shaken, it was made worse when I learned from my manager that A was upset and her mother h ad in fact complained about me the next day. I felt a great deal of empathy for this young girl, as a professional I had made a commitment to ensure her well-being. I was trying to achieve a fine balance between trying to support her whilst also trying to bring about social change. A reason for this I realised was that A and I had a few similarities which may have affected how I worked with her, the way I perceived her and also in the way I related to her. I recognised that we both had experienced bullying at similar ages. Upon reflection I realised I had assumed her to be more vulnerable in my eyes because of my own experiences which may have impacted on the working relationship I had built with her (Ojala and Nesdale, 2004). Both A and her mother were disappointed in me and felt strongly enough to complain. I felt terrible that I had caused A such distress. Trust is a primary feature in conducting person-centred work. Originally developed in the field of psychology by Carl Rogers (1951) where he outlined the person centred therapy. If I was disclosing information to A about her poor hygiene which was not something I wholly agreed with, then being transparent and honest became difficult. A may have observed my unease with her in the meeting, and may have lost faith in me and my work. I realise afterwards that I wanted this to change, and so actively researched how I could engage in positive work with A. Person centred work also involves being able to discover the clients wishes and feelings and taking this forward in a positive manner. The theory proposes that both the worker and the client are equal, it also challenges the notion of the worker being seen as an expert of knowledge, and that the expert knows best. In the meeting with A I had not really questioned her thoughts and feelings on the situation, and therefore had made the power dynamics between A and myself unbalanced and less in her favour. I had not taken her identity as a service user into full account and consequently may have oppressed her unknowingly by not trying to understand her views and opinions. In the next meeting with A, I actively researched and utilised the person centred approach to help her feel valued and considered in the process. In achieving this I had learnt the gaps in my learning experience and attempted to further my knowledge to benefit my work with A. This can be seen that I am applying the key elements of critical thinking as mentioned in Domain 6 of the Professional Capabilties Framework (2012). When talking with A about her riding ability and work with the group, I realised that her wishes, thoughts and feelings had perhaps been neglected when providing this service. Once I reached this conclusion I also began to see that the organisation that I was based in, it may have been the case that a person centred approach was taken initially to begin with. However, when trying to implement the approach fully into practice it seemed as if the people working with A may have forgotten that the planning is not fixed and irreversible. Mansell and Beadle-Brown (2004a) have stated that this is may be the reason why there is a decrease and collapse in being able to take plans forward. Furthermore similar to Carl Rogers (1951) and his humanistic view for individualism within person centred practice, Yelloly and Henkel (1995) suggested uniqueness as central for effective social work practice. With reference to As identity which I had not originally considered, I had come to understand that I needed to make some self-disclosures about my understanding of how I viewed her. I achieved this by communicating honestly my thoughts on how I had assumed that she would not be resilient enough to understand the first meeting. I had labelled her as a victim of bullying in my mind when this is not how she saw herself. Perhaps if I had realised this early on I would not have meandered through the conversation of hygiene with no direction, and stated the facts in a much direct and open manner. I made my apologies known to A and explored more about her thoughts on bullying and its impact. This allowed me to remain consciously focused on her as an individual and aware of my own valu es about addressing individuals. Funding and organisational issues within the social care sector have meant that resources and number of staff available to attend to service users has meant there is an uphill struggle to meet the needs of the users (Routledge and Gitsham, 2004). These have also had a substantial effect on the voluntary sector where I was based. My interactions with A were largely unsupervised to begin with because of a shortage of qualified staff and resources. This meant the amount of time and resources I was able to spend with any of the young people attending the service has to be made the most of. This may be why having highly skilled practitioners is vital in the face of the current political context. In the face of a double dip recession means having to economise now also extends to social workers as well (Sanderson et al., 2002). Having enough staff members to begin with would be helpful in providing one to one work usually required for person-centred planning. Even when facing such hardships , it may be crucial to have a positive attitude and have a good team to work within to feel that the work you are producing is not only of a high standard but also done collaboratively. Kydd (2004) also affirms that the solution may not always lie in having enough resources but positive together to develop conducive and appropriate working environments. This may go some way to explain how my manager supported me in this particular incident and was able to provide valuable insight into how to improve our working relationship, by being present in future work with A. It is also in line with the organisations working policy (Appendix A). Transparency is crucial to completing positive work with people in social work. Congruence is an imperative aspect of this where the worker and the service user have openness within themselves and with one another to foster trustworthiness (Platt, 2007). Though this can only happen if there is a genuine desire to be honest with one another. That the professional will not hold up a faà §ade and will be able to attend to what the service user is saying by staying in the present and remaining transparent. This may have seemed like a natural concept but was quite difficult to apply when working with A. I did not want to undermine her experience of being bullied by her peers by bringing my own personal experiences into the forefront. Yet I thought if I told her she may not feel quite so isolated which is a common feeling in teenagers with complex lives (Metzing-Blau and Schnepp, 2008). Ultimately I realised my confidence had been shattered to the point where I began to question almost ev ery piece of work I undertook with A, convinced that I would disappoint her and her mother. This led me to consider other approaches or skills I could better use with A later in my work with her. I came across cognitive-behavioural therapy which is an amalgamation of both behavioural and cognitive disciplines which emerged as a fascinating new concept in 1970s (Rachman, 1997). It addresses the thinking and emotional aspects together, and believes that behaviours can be unlearned. In this way I hoped to be able to view how A conceptualises particular events in her life. Through this I recognised the way A may view herself as she often expressed feeling low, and lack of self-esteem and self-worth. A also had a persistent habit to turn a seemingly positive situation into something negative. This enabled me to understand her experiences from a different point of view and continuous reflection helped me see how she may have needed empowering. A strengths-based approach was also researched and utilised in my work with A, which has become favourable in both direct and indirect work with service users (Rapp, 1997). This approach appealed to me as it is more service-user led, and helps them see how their strengths play a significant role in the face of their problems or crisis that they may be facing. It is quite different to other approaches in that it acknowledges a persons suffering and impairment as the result of systemic rather than just psychological drawbacks. In using this approach, this helped A to understand her ability to cope well despite the harshness of her surrounding environment and daily routine of caring for her mother. She was able to see her positive attributes, how others also recognised these which provided for a more balanced view of herself. This is also in line with social work values which places emphasis on helping the user feel empowered and in control (Value B, Topps, 2002). Since the incident I have had ample time to reflect on my work with A and how I feel about it. Different techniques and tools are used to enable reflection within the field of social work, which can help the way we relate to work, home, culture, and supported networks. Winter (1988) states that experience is not something that we store as we would on a computer, rather we story it. Similarly keeping a reflective journal is a useful technique in proactively encouraging critical reflection if done correctly (Kam-shing, 2005). This was a requirement whilst on the course, which I was not keen on at the beginning. I felt it was quite a daunting experience expressing my thoughts and feelings and could not see the benefits of this. For the duration of the placement, as my ability and knowledge of reflection improved with the help of my educator, I was able to understand how this would help me in becoming an effective practitioner. It helped to formalise my ideas, trail of thoughts and bring about a heightened sense of awareness on my own practice. This technique can be seen as embedded within a theory of reflection developed by Schà ¶n (1991). He called this reflection in action (whilst the event is occurring) and reflection on action (after the event has occurred). The journals or learning logs were primarily used after an event had occurred to understand our learning. This tool is available to evaluate the work I have undertaken and how my knowing-in-action may have had an impact on the end outcome. Thus will be able to improve on my skills and ability to reflect-in-action and recognise if there is something more to be done to help the service user. In my interactions with A and other users, I have also recognised that reflection on action is beneficial in evaluating my own practice and reflection in action to implement those lessons learnt actively. To be able to detect my own mistakes and correct these involves uncovering deeper learning. Argryis and Schà ¶n (1974) proposed that when we as people and practitioners simply only operationalize our goals rather than question them we are only applying single-loop learning. When this incident with A occurred, I looked at the different aspects such as theories, As behaviour, the organisations policies that had influenced my thoughts and perceptions and brought me to look at myself and the situation with close scrutiny and query the governing variables to enforce social change be that within myself, the organisation or A or all of these. Kolb (1984) and his reflective cycle helped me examine the structures to my reflection. He developed four stages to his cycle. These include concrete experiences, reflective observation, followed by abstract conceptualisation which includes drawing conclusions from incidents encountered and active experimentation. Active experimentation is the ability to learn from past situations and try a new approach. I think this is where I feel I continued my work with A from the very first incident in trying to utilise different approaches to help her. Using this approach also made me realise that perhaps even if the event itself may have hurt As feelings it may have raised awareness about her hygiene and brought about independence. This is also in line with Value B of the GSCC codes of practice (Topps, 2002) and with Domain 6 (Professional Capabilities Framework 2012). Group studying has been known to develop enhanced learning and reflection. Bold (2008) suggests that having a supportive group to talk through your knowledge and experience gained can generate deeper learning and increase reflective competence. In using group reflection I found that having a group to talk through my morals, beliefs and assumptions that direct my work very useful in a public and collaborative setting. It provided the opportunity to look back at a past experience from multiples perspectives and raise questions. I had not realised the grave nature of discussing ones hygiene would be so difficult, with the help of the group I was more aware of my hidden assumptions on this and how it could affect my practice. Research by Dahlgren et al. (2006) highlights the importance of group reflection and the role of a critical friend to promote empowerment to both students and teachers. This may be because it allows for the students work in an informal setting and therefore have more of a balanced working dynamics. This kind of democratic environment aids reflective learning by advancing self-knowledge. In my group learning set I came away learning more about my own assumptions about A being a carer to her mother with mental health issues meant that she may not have had facilities to aid good hygiene. The group also helped me look at other explanations for what had happened. I came to understand that whilst the issues of A smelling might have been genuine, it could have also been exacerbated by other staff and children through their own assumptions about her learning disability, and status as a young carer to a parent with mental health problems. Their behaviour and assumptions daily may have impacte d the way I saw A even though I did not agree with their views. I failed to raise this further with my manager when handed the task of telling A, as I may have also assumed here that she would know best. Much later I was introduced to the critical incident technique developed by Tripp (1993). To analyse incidents that have had a strong emotional impact on ourselves as practitioners. It entails learning to look beyond just describing to gain deeper reflection. I began to understand that my underestimation in what I had to tell A, was my own failure. This underlying assumption I later realised arose from my supervision with my manager who had assured me that disclosing this information to A would benefit her. The feedback given from my group has helped me identify areas of my reflection where there may perhaps be gaps and how I could improve on these. I felt the feedback was accurate and enriching, it helped for me to understand how they saw my situation with A and were able to offer alternative explanations for the outcomes that I had not yet explored further. Overall this assignment has aimed to demonstrate that there are a number of factors involved in practicing good social work. This is highlighted by being able to demonstrate an awareness of my own values and philosophies, how my knowledge in terms of theories can be applied to inform my own practice. I have learnt that utilising and evaluating theories have furthered my practice by eliciting my understanding and learning over time. I have gained additional skills together with multiple sources of knowledge and techniques to better help the people I have worked with. This kind of creativity is what can bring about social change and empowerment. Reflection is an integral part of social work practice and different tools like journals can augment deep learning and improve future practice. What I may have learnt from a situation initially does not mean that these are the only recommendations to take forward. Through continual reflection and critical thinking, it can help to question our j udgements and that of others and see if more can be done to change the face of social work practice.

Characterization, Identities, and the Supernatural in Otranto Essay

"The Divided Self": Characterization, Identities, and the Supernatural A cursory first reading of Horace Walpole's Otranto might yield an impression that its characters are thoroughly superficial, shallow, and flat, almost to the point of being laughably so. A single character mold seems to have been applied to each character: Manfred is the incestuous tyrant, Hippolita is the helplessly devoted wife, Matilda is the picture of â€Å"tenderness and duty† (38), and Theodore is the chivalrous protector of delicate young ladies. As some critics have pointed out, each character is described heavy-handedly, and the author provides no keys into the inner minds of the characters, relying instead of outward displays of excess emotion (Sedgwick 131). Consequently, Otranto becomes â€Å"theatrical† (Napier 33) because of its emphasis on dramatic action and visual display. To the reader, each character and his/her displays of emotion combine in Otranto to make what amounts to a thoroughly ludicrous cast. There is some debate over the substitution of flat characters for even a single dynamic characters. Was this a deliberate choice on the part of the author? Some possibilities that may arise include the suggestion that Walpole was unskilled as an author and consequently, was unable to write â€Å"well.† Another suggestion is that Walpole's skill as an author is demonstrated in his intentional choice to write flat characters to achieve a higher purpose. Perhaps this purpose was to make his short novel a work of pure entertainment with mindless, fluffy characters? Or to maintain a quick-moving plot? Or perhaps Walpole decided to â€Å"systematically sacrific[e characters] to other, more highly valued aspects of narrative such as moral and plot† (Napier 34) wi... ...f boundaries between characterizations, identities, the psychological, and the supernatural, is not only ambiguous and incongruous, but unstable, contingent, baseless, mysterious, and haunting. Works Cited Freud, Sigmund. â€Å"Fragment of an Analysis of a Case of Hysteria (â€Å"Dora†).† The Freud Reader. Ed. Peter Gay. Trans. James Strachey. New York: Norton, 1995. 172-239. Moglen, Helene. The Trauma of Gender: A Feminist Theory of the English Novel. Los Angeles, CA: U of California P, 2001. Morris, David B. "Gothic Sublimity." New Literary History. 16.2 (Winter, 1985): 299-319. Napier, Elizabeth R. The Failure of Gothic: Problems of Disjunction in an Eighteenth-Century Literary Form. New York: OUP, 1987. Sedgwick, Eve K. Coherence of Gothic Conventions. New York and London: Methuen, 1986. Walpole, Horace. The Castle of Otranto. New York: OUP, 1998.