Sunday, November 24, 2019

Zombie Land Essays - Masculinity, Social Constructionism

Zombie Land Essays - Masculinity, Social Constructionism Zombie Land Dexter Smith English 011 17- April-2013 Zombie Land From the article Modern Masculinities, The author Cooper Thompson explains that men in society are expected to be physically strong, tough, independent, and have self-control over their emotions. He also believes that boys must learn to accept their vulnerability of asking for help and support in appropriate situations. Modern Masculinities relates to the movie Zombieland because it deals with masculinity in relation to zombies and staying alive. This movie challenges the stereotypes of masculinity in American culture by showing young viewers that they should not be defined by masculinity but instead define it. In the movie Zombieland, Columbus and Tallahassee have different ways of showing masculinity. One way Tallahassee shows his masculinity is through toughness. For example, in one scene, Tallahassee punches Columbus at the Native American store after Columbus considers spraying perfume at him. The way Tallahassee looks with his brown cowboy hat, black tight jacket, his blue loose pants, and a mean face shows that Tallahassee does not put up with shenanigans. Tallahassees masculinity ties with Modern Masculinities because he is more aggressive and outgoing. Cooper Thompson challenges modern masculinities with this topic. The way Columbus shows his masculinity is more cautiously. For example, from the beginning of the movie to the end, Columbus creates himself 33 rules to follow to survive in Zombieland. The way Columbus looks with his purple jacket, brown corduroy pants, and a face that looks scared shows that he is a nerdy boy. Columbus does fit with this article because he is more sen sitive when he deals with other people. Also, Columbus thinks before he takes action, and he is always asking for help when he needs it once he comes to a conflict. Cooper Thompson was challenging the stereotype of a man in the article suggesting that by instead of taking action, start asking for help and support. These two characters show different masculinities that Cooper Thompson discusses in the article. Next, the zombies change Tallahassee and Columbuss masculinity when they are being attacked by them. In the beginning of the movie, Tallahassee is an angry, violent guy with no emotion. He hides his emotions from Columbus because he does not want to show them. Towards the end, he starts to show his emotion about his son right after Columbus kills Tallahassees favorite movie star, Bill Murray. On the other hand, with Columbus, he changes from being a softy to a bad ass. For example, in the beginning of the movie, he starts to run away from the zombies because he is too scared to kill. Also, he uses his own rules to protect himself. Later on in the movie, Columbus meets a girl named Wichita. He falls in love with her, but she is very destructive. Columbus starts to turn into a bad ass when he faces his fear and goes through the haunted house at the amusement park with all the zombies running behind him. He starts shooting them and ends up risking his life to kill a husky zombie clown. At the end of the movie, Wichita and her sister Little Rock go on the drop ride at the park, and they get attacked by zombies. After Columbus recues Wichita and Little Rock, he gets a kiss from Wichita for a reward. The movie Zombieland sends a message to young men that they should not be defined by masculinity but instead defines it for himself. The characters in the movie shows their masculinity when the zombies trying to attack them. Columbuss starts himself of being a loner and provide. Later on in the movie he became more masculine when he meets Wichita the girl he likes. Tallahassee starts himself as being a tough, angry guy with no emotions. He always kept bad things to himself. Towards the end of the movie he starts to open his emotion to Columbus about his son and changes his attitude. To sum up, men should learn how to be vulnerable and have self- control. Also, men should talk with someone about their problems instead of holding their issues in and becoming disruptive. The movie Zombieland shows viewers that they do not always have to be the masculine man. They

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Beginning of Catholicism and its Spread Around the World Essay

Beginning of Catholicism and its Spread Around the World - Essay Example The Birth of Christianity in Jerusalem The birth of Christianity was practically the beginning of Christ’s preaching in Jerusalem (â€Å"How the Catholic Church†). In Chapter 16 of the Gospel of Matthew, it is believed that Jesus established the Catholic Church when He asked the disciples, â€Å"Who do people say that the Son of Man is?† (Matthew 16:13, New American Standard Bible). Although the disciples have several answers, only Simon Peter’s sufficed when he said, â€Å"You are the Christ, the Son of the living God† (Mt. 16:16). Through this statement, one can see that Peter declared and affirmed Jesus Christ’s divinity. Jesus then formally established the Church by assigning Peter the equivalent role of Pope: â€Å"Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven†¦you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church† (Mt. 16:17-18). Jesus’ divine dec laration of Peter’s important role in the Christian Church happened in around 33 AD in Jerusalem (â€Å"How the Catholic Church†). It was actually Peter who eventually brought Christianity to Rome, where the religion became Roman Catholicism. The Emergence of Christianity in Rome Before Peter went to Rome to spread Christ’s church, he and the other disciples preached the gospel in Jerusalem first until around 45 AD (â€Å"How the Catholic Church†). Their accomplishments are all found in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, where Peter declared once more the authority that Jesus conferred upon Him before the latter’s death: â€Å"Brethren, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the gospel and believe† (Acts 15:7). This authority of Peter was important in the early beginnings of the Catholic Church when there were no established doctrines yet except the teachings of Ch rist. Through Peter’s authority and as stated in the Acts of the Apostles, the apostles preached in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, Syria, Asia Minor, Europe and finally Rome (Darby). The joint efforts of Peter and the other disciples in spreading the gospel in the aforementioned places approximately lasted until the year 44 during the reign of the Roman Emperor Claudius, although some sources say it was during the time of the succeeding emperor, Nero (Robinson). The missionary activities of the 12 disciples of Jesus including Peter happened simultaneously with those of Paul, who arrived in Jerusalem in around 57 AD, and preached in Greece and Rome until his arrest and death sometime between 64 and 68 AD also during the time of Nero (â€Å"Paul’s Work†). The joint efforts of Peter, Paul and the other disciples of Christ in spreading the word of God in the Middle East, Europe and Rome may have caused their eventual deaths, but these efforts served as the seed from whi ch Roman Catholicism would be born. The Formal Beginnings of Roman Catholicism Between 100 AD and 200 AD, the need arose for the specifications of Catholic Christianity, especially on the subject of apostolic authority. There was a need to put into writing what it really meant to be a Christian and, thus, there was a need to organize the New Testament Scriptures, writings of the apostles, the Episcopal centers that the apostles established, in order to formulate a standard of Christian conduct (Guisepi). It was Irenaeus,

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Great Creations Organization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Great Creations Organization - Essay Example As a small NGO, GCO have a capacity to move extremely quickly as circumstances changes. Decisions do not need to go through vetting processes and large bureaucracies but could be made right at such an executive meeting. GCO could therefore keep abreast of changing needs and adapt the programs as needed which only call for more meetings (Aras & Crowther, 2010).B)Â  An involved and active membershipThere is a tendency of smaller NGOs like GCO fearing to be swallowed because government funders find it easier to deal with fewer service providers. But GCO is well established and therefore an involved membership including the interested shareholders should be used. These will include volunteers and community development approaches.C)Â  Collaborate strategicallyThere are other smaller NGOs dealing with the same provisions as GCO and therefore collaborating with them in learning, opening of social media networks to get to the affected areas and develop a partnered IT strategy (Winsemius & Guntram, 2002).D)Â  SpecializationUnlike larger organizations, GCO cannot provide multifaceted services effectively and therefore should only specialize on what it does well and perfect it.E)Â  Maintaining good relationships with funding bodiesThe relevant government departments and the other funders have continually issued complaints to GCO about this or that. It is critical that these key contacts are maintained which would include courtesy calls (Fitzduff & Church, 2004).F)Â  Educational Institutions

Monday, November 18, 2019

Commercial bank of kuwait (CBK) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Commercial bank of kuwait (CBK) - Essay Example Characteristics of the industry in which the bank operates Commercial Bank of Kuwait operates in the Kuwait’s banking industries whose environmental features are identifiable. The industry is one of the strongest in the region and this identifies positive prospects such as sustainability and a business’ profit making interests. The industry is also free from unfavorable competition from international financial institutions. It comprises of about ten local banks and nine foreign banks, a number that identifies oligopolistic market. This means that the market players have significant potentials to dictate market factors but competitors can at the same time use such powers to gain competitive advantage over the firm. This further identifies banks’ fears of customer manipulation and leads to significant level of stability in the industry. The industry is also in its developmental stage in which competition is increasing as each bank seeks to expand its market control . Developments in the industry also identify diversification into new products and application of technology for developing new products as well as for efficiency. Innovation has been another characteristic feature of the industry and is a factor to increased level of competition. Favorable political environment has also been reported within the industry with policies that support commercial banks’ stability and operations. The policies indicate stability of the industry, regardless of possible entry by more foreign banks, because of the government policies that focuses on protecting the industry. Further, the minimal market size helps in protecting the industry from further venture by foreign banks because of risks of failing to reach breakeven points by new entrants and the country’s small population explains this (Capital Standards 1). The Industry however faces risks from volatility in two industries that are significant to its sustainability. The industriesâ€℠¢ dynamism affects performance and profitability of the banking industry that is also susceptible to threats of concentration. The role of Islamic banking that is gaining momentum in the country is another threat to the banking industry because of its ability to reduce the market base. Islamic banking is a significant threat because of the country’s dominant faith that is likely to induce bias towards the religious banks (Capital Standards 1). The Kuwait’s banking industry is also susceptible to global economic factors as global recession was witnessed during the global recession in the year 2009. Other significant sectors to the banking industry such as the construction sectors are also susceptible to the global economy and affect banks’ conditions. The industry’s financial indicators such as gross loans and non-performing loans also offer a basis for its analysis. Amount of gross loans has been increasing and this indicates increasing demand for financi al services. Increasing trend in nonperforming loans in the industry also indicates increasing advanced services to customers that culminates to increased defaults and threats of defaults. The increasing volume on non-performing loans is however, a threat to the industry as defaults constrains liquidity. Policies to improved asset quality have however promised to reduce the threats of growing volume of nonperforming loans with positive results being reported in the year 2010. The industry also relies on low cost deposits as sources

Friday, November 15, 2019

Brand Equity in Luxury Hotels | Research Proposal

Brand Equity in Luxury Hotels | Research Proposal Introduction At the present time, globalisation which just means linking together the localities separated by distance is not an issue in terms of communication, moreover it brings together the world as one (Scheuerman, 2010). The positives of globalisation do not limit itself to just bringing the world together in terms of communication, tourism and hospitality industry has also greatly benefited by this. India is considered one of the fastest growing countries in the world and becoming an attraction for the foreign tourist. India hosted 6.58 million foreign tourist in the year 2012, which was an increase by 4.3% compared to last year. The foreign exchange earnings were a staggering $17.74 billion which was an increase of 7.15 compared to last year (India Tourism Statistics, 2012). The Indian government un It will not be wrong to assume that India has been successful in catering the basic requirements which a tourist looks for before planning their trip to a foreign country. These statistics make India one of the top tourist destinations. The basic requirements being variety of serviced accommodation to choose from, adequate infrastructure, communication system, museum, art galleries, restaurants, cafes, craft places, gardens, historic places and sports amenities. The tourism ministry of India was quick to recognise the tourism market in India and has taken necessary steps to promote it. The Foreign Tourist Arrivals in India during the eighties and nineties lacked consistency but since then it has seen steady growth. The early 2000 can be considered the best years for tourism industry as they saw double digit growth (India Tourism Statistics, 2012). This paper specifically focuses on the 5 star luxury hotels section of the hospitality industry of India. It is very important for the individuals involved in the operations of the hotel to know about the factors which might affect the competition. In the competitive setting, Brand Equity is believed to be the most important value generating asset to the organisation and its customers. Customers can benefit through Brand Equity as it would help them get a better understanding of the services provided by the brand which would eventually increase confidence and help them in making the buying decision. The organisation can benefit in terms of increasing profits, attracting new customers and retaining the loyal customers, having a competitive advantage over rivals (Aaker, 1991). Therefore, the study is carried out to better understand the brand equity of high end luxury hotels in India and the link between brand equity and the post purchase evaluation by the customers. This will provide a better understanding of brand equity of the hotel which is just a small element of brand asset. The post purchase evaluation by the customers for the brand equity in hospitality industry will be directed by analysing the already existing written texts. The suggestions given by the guests who have already visited the hotel are used to analyse as their feedback and opinion would shed light on the major issues faced in terms of brand equity during their stay. Hence, the conclusion of this paper would provide an insight of the different brand equity elements, their features and the influence these elements can have on the day to day working of the hotel by the top management, the marketing team, operations team and everybody responsible for implementing the strategy. A successful brand strategy would give the hotel a competitive advantage over its existing market rivals. Problem Statement A brand can be called an important resource for value addition to the organisation as it is used in the marketing strategy and positioning of the company in the market (Ghauri and Cateora, 2010). Brand equity is a combination of elements namely brand loyalty, brand awareness, brand association, perceived quality denoting the improved value of the brand as a whole. In case of hospitality industry, the focus is mainly on how the consumer perceives the hotel brand, this further improves chances of making more profit. The literature on brand equity have largely focused on the product aspect and not much study has been contributed to the service industry. Thus, literature on brand equity for service industry like hotels is very limited. This has attracted my attention and inspired me to study brand equity primarily focusing on the hospitality industry. As stated above, India has been successful in improving its tourism and hospitality sector over the years. This has resulted in stiff competition amongst the hotel operators. To increase the rate of growth, the government helps and extends its support in almost all domains of the tourism industry. As an example, the government’s initiative to improve the Indian tourism industry in overseas market is the brochure support. The overseas offices help promote organisations who intend to promote special tours (Ministry of tourism, 2014). There are marketing development assistance schemes to promote Indian tourism abroad which is administered by the ministry of tourism, government of India to help hoteliers, travel agents, tour operators etc. The competition in the hospitality industry is intense in parts like Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra which experienced maximum domestic tourist in the year 2012. The foreign tourist preferred Delhi, Mumbai (M aharashtra), Chennai (Tamil Nadu), Bangalore (Karnataka) and Kolkata (West Bengal) as their top 5 destinations in India (India Tourism Statistics, 2012). Furthermore, the intense in business competitions especially for five stars luxury hotels are higher than other hotel with fewer stars rating. Normally, the higher stars rating hotel such as five stars luxury hotel comes with the higher price of the offering. However, the competition is not only based on the price and promotion concern but also the uniqueness of the hotel brand. In addition, the emerging of new comer hotels in Bangkok area can also be the supporting evidence, for example Starwood’ St. Regis, W hotel, Four Points by Sheraton (Starwood, 2010). As a result, brand equity can play an important role in increasing the overall profit of the hotel and the people responsible for operating the day to day functioning of the hotel need to realize this. The elements of brand equity needs to be studied in terms of the hospitality industry, this would help understand the role of brand equity in hospitality industry. This paper primarily focuses on the five star luxury segment of the hotels in India. This paper is based on the comments and feedback of the guests who have visited the chosen hotels which are then linked with the elements of brand equity. Purpose of Study The main motive of this study is to understand brand equity and elements in terms of the hospitality industry in India considering the post purchase evaluation of the customers who have visited the hotel. The research also aims to find the link between the elements of brand equity and the comments and feedback of these customers after their purchase. Moreover, the objective of this study is to find the practical effects of brand equity. By the end of this research, I intend to suggest some articulated hypothesis of brand equity in hospitality industry for future studies. Research Questions The research question has been framed on the basis of the background of the topic chosen and the problem statement to accomplish the objective of this research: What are the features of brand equity of high-end (5 Stars) luxury hotels in India? Which elements of brand equity do most of the customers perceive for evaluation? Thesis Outline The first chapter gives a brief about the research topic on evaluation of post purchase behaviour on brand equity for hospitality industry in India. This is further explained by designing the problem statement and research topic to specify the path of the study with the focus only on five star luxury hotels in India. Chapter two includes the literature review. This is done by investigating the literature available in physical format and those available on the internet. The literature review explains branding and the various aspects of brand equity to give a basic understanding about brand equity. This will be followed by brand equity in hospitality (service) industry, buying decision of customers, electronic word of mouth and evaluation of customers after using the hotel (post-purchase).Along with this literature, a framework has been designed to give a better understanding of the research which includes the idea of brand equity. Chapter three begins by explaining in the research methodology, how the topic was chosen. This is followed by a discussion on the methodologies used in the research design. Qualitative and quantitative approach were used for this study. Qualitative approach was done by carrying out content analysis using a specific set of measurements. Quantitative approach was used to present the findings and the results. The process of collecting data, the use of secondary data like the feedback of hotels from customers, text and other articles on brand equity are discussed in this section. This section continuous with further explaining the limitations of this study and the sampling design in context of the total volume considered and the time period observed for the data collection. This is commenced by highlighting the validity and the reliability of the study. The fourth chapter presents the findings from the collected data from the website tripadvisor.com for feedback from the guests who have visited the hotels. The main aim for this exercise is to analyse and interpret this data and then divide them in terms of the different components of brand equity or the set of measurements. The results are explained by using the quantitative approach by denoting them in terms of percentage of each component and sub component of brand equity. The fifth chapter analyses the findings and discusses the results and a comparison is made with the earlier studies on brand equity and hospitality industry. This section is concluded by analysing each brand equity category and proposing the hypothesis on brand equity for hotel. The sixth chapter concludes the research by explaining the results obtained from findings and analysis in the previous chapter. This section also answers the research questions for the study. The seventh and the final chapter recommends on the real-world effects of the results obtained from this research. This paper is concluded by proposing a path for the future study centred on the hypotheses.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Amadeus Essay -- essays research papers

At the age of the Enlightenment, Antonio Salieri becomes the most triumphant musician in the city of Vienna, however, without any warning his harmonious universe comes to an utter halt. Salieri’s absolute faith in the world, in himself, and in God is all at once diminished by this spontaneous child composer. When the two opposite ends meet, there emerges a fury, a rage, and a passion in Salieri to sabotage the boy that has secured Salieri’s deserved God given talent; to destroy the one pubescent child that has made him so mute and naked now in a world of discordance. Salieri’s entire reputation and boyhood prayer to attain fame thus rests on his ability to annihilate that child prodigy, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.In analyzing the two composers, Salieri and Mozart, there is a distinct line that clearly divides them. Salieri’s operas receive astounding receptions, making them the “talk of the city,'; shaking the roofs, buzzing the cafes, and even the name Sal ieri “sounds throughout all of Europe'; (2,3). The reason for Salieri’s success, as well as many musicians of the eighteenth century, is because they have become enslaved by the well-to-do and hence are “no better than servants'; (1,3). This applies especially to the king. For example, in Amadeus, His Majesty forbid any ballet in his operas. Imperial commands such as this are not to be interpreted in any way, in other words, they are to be merely obeyed without any dispute. Since operas tend to the needs of the high society in order to obtain recognition, the operas must communicate through the language of the nobility, that is, Italian. In addition, since the majority of the audience is made up of the upper class, the subject matter of the operas must consist of elevated themes. Such as, mythological heroes, kings, and queens, and so forth. According to the eighteenth century view, operas are supposed to be a sublime and an aggrandizing art. The elevated subject m atter is then chosen in order to venerate and honor the nobility. It’s purpose is to “celebrate the eternal in man'; says Van Swieten (2,4). Meaning that there is an element in a noble person that lasts without any end, like God who is immortal. God represents the everlasting and the eternality of existence, thus God gives inspiration to operas that... ...n do now is to die. And so he does. Although Mozart does suffer loss, the loss of his life and career, and is somewhat responsible for his downfall, he does not evoke sympathy or recognition. However, it is Salieri who contains all four elements of a tragic hero. Salieri loses practically everything he has faith in before Mozart appears. He suffers from the loss of dignity, esteem, and honor. Salieri also recognizes something he has never felt before, that is the “pain as I had never know it,'; (1,5), the pain from the beauty and delight of Mozart’s music. Thus, recognizing the limitations of his own talent, the mediocrity of his talent compared to the genius works of Mozart. He grows an awareness of disharmony in the universe that he has never encountered. Salieri clearly is culpable of his own tragedy. He is the Court Composer, his works are respected throughout Europe, and because he is not stupid, he does not say he is the better composer. Instead, he is the minor ity who actually appreciates Mozart’s music. There is definitely sympathy for Salieri, in that all human beings can work as hard as they want to at something and can still fail miserably. Amadeus Essay -- essays research papers At the age of the Enlightenment, Antonio Salieri becomes the most triumphant musician in the city of Vienna, however, without any warning his harmonious universe comes to an utter halt. Salieri’s absolute faith in the world, in himself, and in God is all at once diminished by this spontaneous child composer. When the two opposite ends meet, there emerges a fury, a rage, and a passion in Salieri to sabotage the boy that has secured Salieri’s deserved God given talent; to destroy the one pubescent child that has made him so mute and naked now in a world of discordance. Salieri’s entire reputation and boyhood prayer to attain fame thus rests on his ability to annihilate that child prodigy, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.In analyzing the two composers, Salieri and Mozart, there is a distinct line that clearly divides them. Salieri’s operas receive astounding receptions, making them the “talk of the city,'; shaking the roofs, buzzing the cafes, and even the name Sal ieri “sounds throughout all of Europe'; (2,3). The reason for Salieri’s success, as well as many musicians of the eighteenth century, is because they have become enslaved by the well-to-do and hence are “no better than servants'; (1,3). This applies especially to the king. For example, in Amadeus, His Majesty forbid any ballet in his operas. Imperial commands such as this are not to be interpreted in any way, in other words, they are to be merely obeyed without any dispute. Since operas tend to the needs of the high society in order to obtain recognition, the operas must communicate through the language of the nobility, that is, Italian. In addition, since the majority of the audience is made up of the upper class, the subject matter of the operas must consist of elevated themes. Such as, mythological heroes, kings, and queens, and so forth. According to the eighteenth century view, operas are supposed to be a sublime and an aggrandizing art. The elevated subject m atter is then chosen in order to venerate and honor the nobility. It’s purpose is to “celebrate the eternal in man'; says Van Swieten (2,4). Meaning that there is an element in a noble person that lasts without any end, like God who is immortal. God represents the everlasting and the eternality of existence, thus God gives inspiration to operas that... ...n do now is to die. And so he does. Although Mozart does suffer loss, the loss of his life and career, and is somewhat responsible for his downfall, he does not evoke sympathy or recognition. However, it is Salieri who contains all four elements of a tragic hero. Salieri loses practically everything he has faith in before Mozart appears. He suffers from the loss of dignity, esteem, and honor. Salieri also recognizes something he has never felt before, that is the “pain as I had never know it,'; (1,5), the pain from the beauty and delight of Mozart’s music. Thus, recognizing the limitations of his own talent, the mediocrity of his talent compared to the genius works of Mozart. He grows an awareness of disharmony in the universe that he has never encountered. Salieri clearly is culpable of his own tragedy. He is the Court Composer, his works are respected throughout Europe, and because he is not stupid, he does not say he is the better composer. Instead, he is the minor ity who actually appreciates Mozart’s music. There is definitely sympathy for Salieri, in that all human beings can work as hard as they want to at something and can still fail miserably.