Business Strategy Essay Example for Free

Business Strategy Essay In 2006, Starbucks’, the ubiquitous coffee retailer, closed a decade of astounding financial performance. Sales had increased from $697 million to $7.8 billion and net profits from $36 million to $540 million. In 2006, Starbucks’ was earning a return on invested capital of 25.5%, which was impressive by any measure, and the company was forecasted to continue growing earnings and maintain high profits through to the end of the decade. How did this come about? Thirty years ago Starbucks was a single store in Seattle’s Pike Place Market selling premium roasted coffee. Today it is a global roaster and retailer of coffee with more than 12,000 retail stores, some 3,000 of which are to be found in 40 countries outside the United States. Starbucks Corporation set out on its current course in the 1980s when the company’s director of marketing, Howard Schultz, came back from a trip to Italy enchanted with the Italian coffeehouse experience. Schultz, who later became CEO, persuaded the company’s owners to experiment with the coffeehouse format—and the Starbucks experience was born. Schultz’s basic insight was that people lacked a â€Å"third place† between home and work where they could have their own personal time out, meet with friends, relax, and have a sense of gathering. The business model that evolved out of this was to sell the company’s own premium roasted coffee, along with freshly brewed espresso-style coffee beverages, a variety of pastries, coffee accessories, teas, and other products, in a coffeehouse setting. The company devoted, and continues to devote, considerable attention to the design of its stores, so as to create a relaxed, informal and comfortable atmosphere. Underlying this approach was a belief that Starbucks was selling far more than coffee – it was selling an experience. The premium price that Starbucks charged for its coffee reflected this fact. From the outset, Schultz also focused on providing superior customer service in stores. Reasoning that motivated employees provide the best customer service, Starbucks executives developed employee hiring and training programs that were the best in the restaurant industry. Today, all Starbucks employees are required to attend training classes that teach them not only how to make a good cup of coffee, but also the service oriented values of the company. Beyond this, Starbucks provided progressive compensation policies that gave even part-time employees stock option grants and medical benefits – a very innovative approach in an industry where most employees are part time, earn minimum wage and have no benefits. Unlike many restaurant chains, which expanded very rapidly through franchising arrangement once they have established a basic formula that appears to work, Schultz believed that Starbucks needed to own its stores. Although it has experimented with franchising arrangements in some countries, and some situations in the United States such as at airports, the company still prefers to own its own stores whenever possible. This formula met with spectacular success in the United States, where Starbucks went from obscurity to one of the best known brands in the country in a decade. As it grew, Starbucks found that it was generating an enormous volume of repeat business. Today the average customer comes into a Starbucks’ store around 20 times a month. The customers themselves are a fairly well healed group – their average income is about $80,000. As the company grew, it started to develop a very sophisticated location strategy. Detailed demographic analysis was used to identify the best locations for Starbuck’s stores. The company expanded rapidly to capture as many premium locations as possible before imitators. Astounding many observers, Starbucks would even sometimes locate stores on opposite corners of the same busy street – so that it could capture traffic going different directions down the street. By 1995 with almost 700 stores across the United States, Starbucks began exploring foreign opportunities. First stop was Japan, where Starbucks proved that the basic value proposition could be applied to a different cultural setting (there are now 600 stores in Japan). Next, Starbucks embarked upon a rapid development strategy in Asia and Europe. By 2001, the magazine Brandchannel named Starbucks’ one the ten most impactful global brands, a position it has held ever since. But this is only the beginning. In late 2006, with 12,000 stores in operation, the company announced that its long term goal was to have 40,000 stores worldwide. Looking forward, it expects 50% of all new store openings to be outside of the United.i Case Discussion Questions 1. What functional strategies at Starbucks’ help the company to achieve superior financial performance? 2. Identify the resources, capabilities and distinctive competencies of Starbucks? 3. How do Starbucks’ resources, capabilities and distinctive competencies translate into superior financial performance? 4. Why do you think Starbucks’ prefers to own its own stores whenever possible? 5. How secure is Starbucks’ competitive advantage?What are the barriers to imitation here? !Sources: Starbucks 10K, various years; C. McLean, â€Å"Starbucks Set to Invade Coffee-Loving Continent,† Seattle Times, October 4, 2000, p. E1; J. Ordonez, â€Å"Starbucks to Start Major Expansion in Overseas Market,† Wall Street Journal, October 27, 2000, p. B10; S. Homes and D. Bennett, â€Å"Planet Starbucks,† Business Week, September 9, 2002, pp 99–110; J. Batsell, â€Å"A Bean Counters Dream,† Seattle Times, March 28th, 2004, page E1; Staff Reporter, â€Å"Boss Talk: it’s a Grande Latte World†, Wall Street Journal, December 15, 2003, page B1. States. C. Harris, â€Å"Starbucks beats estimates, outlines expansion plans†, Seattle Post Intelligencer, October 5th, 2006, page C1

Benefits Of Technology Contribution To Developing Countries

Benefits Of Technology Contribution To Developing Countries In such fast growing economies, multinational companies are relying heavily on technology to maintain their competitive position in the global platform. To do so, multinational companies constantly expand into new markets and hence their success is partly determined by their ability to transfer technology to local companies (Chen (1996), Chung (2001)). Transfer of technology is a foremost strategy initiated by the multinational companies during their international expansion. Technology transfer is defined as the transmission of know-how to suit local environments, with effective absorption and diffusion both within and across countries (CHung (2001) and Tihanyi Roath (2002). Transfer of technology is not as simple as it looks it involves a series of complex procedures starting from the multinational companies capability of teaching, the local companies capacity of learning and the complex integration between the two companies (Griffith, Kiessling and Dabic, 2005). Technology gives c ompanies the competitive edge to strive and compete in the global world. It is integrated with every value adding activity of the company and helps in achieving these activities (Porter, 1980). Technology helps in improving and maintaining quality levels and competitive edge of the products. It also helps in reducing the productions cost and increase manufacturing productivity by improving efficiency (Gisselquist Grether, 2000). Every country (developing and developed) spends large amount of funds to attract foreign investments. This investment can be in terms of foreign direct investments in stocks of local companies or in terms of investing in the countrys properties real estate or opening up a manufacturing plant in the country. The reasons noted for such behavior by the governments of developing and developed country is to strengthen their economy and technology sophistication and upgradation. When a multinational company is operating in foreign (developing) country, it happens to brings in new technologies and ways of working to the local country. Thus helping the country to upgrade its technological know-how. In this paper, the author will first highlight the importance of technology contribution by multinationals and later evaluates the factors that will determine the whether or not the transferred technology provides benefits or is a disadvantage to the host country. The role of multinational companies as an agent of technology transfer for economic development of less developed countries is potential and very important (Bruce Peters, 1979). FOR MNCS: Keeping aside few instances that have taken place and the points noted against the multinational companies in less developing countries. We cannot ignore the fact that these multinational companies have played a vital role in technological and overall development of developing countries. Starting from transfer of technology to bringing new ways of managing business to improving productivity to making local business competitive in comparison to the world. The contribution of the multinational companies in less developed countries is noteworthy (Aswathappa, 2008). Multinational companies and developing countries have different goals, hence they should try to come together and find mutual goals and benefits. This could be in terms of resource identification, technology selection and advancement. It is known that the world is dependent on each other for few or more things. It is the developing countries that are dependent on multinational companies from developed countries for help in te rm of technological development and stronger economies. Similarly, the multinational companies are dependent on these developing countries for cheap labor and land. Their goal is mutual and hence by working together can realize benefits for each other. Against MNCS: There are many cases and instances which show that the multinationals technology contribution to developing countries is hardly suitable. Multinational companies develop technologies that are highly capital intensive whereas the technologies needed by the developing countries are labor intensive. Thus this makes the technology contribution as less suitable, also multinational companies charge heavily in the forms of fees, duties and royalties for the usage of their technology. Thus making the technology very expensive for the developing countries. On several occasions it has been noted that that multinational companies or foreign companies operating in developing countries are dumping technologies by using obsolete technology with the help of turnkey projects. It is also noted that multinational companies try to make local companies dependent on their technology and expertise and thus making revenues by contributing obsolete technologies. For example: Indian government did its best t o attract foreign companies and investment with a hope that these multinational companies would help reach its goal of having best technology around the globe and strong export hub. This goal of India is not yet been realized with the exports falling and the global financial crisis still showing some of its effect in India. Likewise, other developing countries have been disappointed at many occasions. Today the word green is associated with the global warming; many companies have gone green meaning they have taken the initiative to use eco friendly methods to minimize their impact on the environments. Developing countries attracted multinational companies with the hope of setting up Greenfield projects which would in turn help to maximize their manufacturing capacity. The goal is yet to be achieved. government of developing countries attract foreign companies in order to bring new technologies to country but these foreign companies in turn either acquire local companies or merge wi th them, thus keeping the country away from new technology and manufacturing abilities. Many less developed countries have now kept environment on their first priority. Countries are now becoming more concerned about the impact that multinationals create on the environment due to certain technologies that they use (Aswathappa, 2008). POTENTIAL FACTORS: It is also very important to note the factors that will determine whether the technology transferred will be of benefit to the developing country or not. Griffith et al., (2006) uses an environment strategy performance framework to identify the role of market (i.e. competitive intensity and market dynamics) and cultural environmental (national cultural distance and organizational cultural distance) factors on international technology transfer to developing countries. During a survey conducted to find out the direct efforts of market and cultural environmental factors on transfer of technology with 131 managers working in a subsidiary of multinational company. It was found that market dynamism factors were more influential market environmental factor than competitive intensity. Whereas national cultural distance was less influential cultural environment factor than organizational cultural distance. The report also highlighted a very important and pivotal relationship between transfe r of technology and subsidiary performance (Griffith et al., 2006) Summary Multinational companies are businesses that carry out operations across globe. They are the most active players in the world of international business they have been often charged on several grounds like taking advantage of poor countries, their interests override the interests of developing nations and they have a tendency to bribe the less developed country government to make policies and regulations favorable to them. It is widely known that each coin have two sides, there are pros and then there are cons, there is opportunity and then there is risk. multinational companies are very important in terms of technology contribution but then there are risks of obsolete technology, technology dumping, impact on environment etc. thus developing countryà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s government should list few factors that would help them to determine whether the technology contribution by multinationals is benefit to the host country or not. A research conducted by Gibson and Smilor suggests that there are four variables i.e. communication interactivity, cultural and geographical distance, technology equivocally and personal motivation play very important role in technology transfer within and between companies (Gibson and Smilor, 1991). In another research conducted by Rebentisch and Ferretti (1995), they found that four categories, Transfer Scope, Transfer Method, Knowledge Architecture, and Organizational Adaptive Ability, describe important elements of the transfer process. Transfer Scope describes the extent of embodied information being transferred. Transfer Method describes the approaches used to transfer the technology. Knowledge Architecture describes the structure and the interdependencies between the firms knowledge assets. Organizational Adaptive Ability describes an organizations ability to change its knowledge architecture over time.

Book Review: Understanding Dying, Death, and Bereavement

Book Review: Understanding Dying, Death, and Bereavement Antonia Wadell Abstract The research was based on interdisciplinary subject of social thanatology to further explain the process of dying, death and bereavement. The main objectives are to sensitize people to the subject of dying, death and bereavement, to aid those who have experienced loss of a love one to help individuals examine their own feelings and reactions to death and grieving, to make readers aware of different cultural groups’ death and bereavement. The topics cover cross-cultural examples of traditions, customs and burial rites through end of life issues. The different theories are introduced from Piaget cognitive stages of development, Durkheim’s four type of suicide, and Erickson’s developmental stages through suggested readings from latent functions of a funeral. Current issues of death and dying are covered in the research and the legal issues of death in today’s society. The scholarly and academically is practical for students because it addresses personal issue s relating to an individual ability to cope with psychological and the social processes of dying, death and bereavement. Summary The text was written to inform students in different fields how to go through end of life issues. The authors, Drs. Leming Dickinson, wanted to prepare informative, practical, words of wisdom to be understood by understanding the emotional and psychological experience to the process of dying, death and bereavement. The textbook begins with the current interest in death from different academic perspective to the through the grieving process through the life cycle. The American public has suffered great losses due to mass killings of the innocence bystanders so it has become a mystery to understand the loss of life and the lingering deaths of the chronic illness of love ones who come to the end of their lives. Thanatology has become a social interest in learning to deal with death emotionally and psychologically. Leming Dickinson desire to prepare medical and theological students for work related death. Death rate is based on gender, race, chronic disease and infant mortality that track the number of deaths for the year. The authors explains the different academia approaches to the topic of death by first understanding the biological approach, the psychological approach, anthropological approach and sociological approach through analysis of these approaches the student should acquire that this is a part of the end cycle of life. We must learn to cope with death because it will not diminish over time but continuing to be a part of life. In our society, we tend to know more about death based on causes and conditions but we haven’t learned to cope with it. Society must learn to talk about death with our young people and explain it to those who are children need to understand their emotions and the concept of death. The more we age the less frighten we become to accept death and we began to depend on intellectual, educational and social skills because our physical prowess will diminish. Our religious beliefs and practices are related to the preparation that Christ gave to the church that we would be transformed physical into a spiritual being. Many different societies believe in a supernatural force due to less complexity of their society however; societies which are more advance tend to rely more on scientific and advance technology to explain the causes of the situation. Religion tends to help people cope with the loss of a love one. The thought of dying is stressful but we must learn to be aware of dying and death through the understanding the emotional and psychological especially dealing with children and siblings of children because this not the natural of life but it is apparent that the effect of the loss will impact the family. The stages of grief developed by Kubler-Ross would benefit a family experiencing grief. The American way of life has progressed and accepted change to the way the dying has chosen to end life being surrounded by family and friends. No longer is the setting to death is at the home of the love one but now the settings can be at hospice care, nursing home and hospital. Hospice allows the younger child to be near the terminally ill and it allows the dying person to have all members there. The dying person may have the option to die where they chose which not an option of the past was. The changes of today’s care of the dying is to give them palliative care which focuses on the whole care of the person ranging from physical,social,psychological and spiritual attributes. Technology has changed the way death is determined because scientific breakthrough can allow the body live without brain activity. An individual can have life sustained for years with life support machines. Patients have the choice to donate their organs to give the hope of life to others who suffering from chronic ailments and diseases. The rise in suicide has been a road of debate does one have the right to take his/her life or rather die on his/her terms instead suffering through the chronic pain of an illness. Dr. Kevorkian begins to assist the terminally ill with the suicide or rather euthanasia procedure to end the cycle of life. The sociological perspective is that suicide occurs based on the feelings, thinking and doing by the person. The most important thing about the effect of suicide is that the love ones may be left with the feelings of shame and guilt. The people who are left to grieve may have a long road to find closure due to the perception of ‘no social support’ among others who are grieving too. The average person who attempt suicide is either adolescent, elderly male and not married. Males, more than females are likely to commit suicide because the males will use deadly weapons to complete the task. The death experience is more than a biological process because it connected to social structure and correct behavior related is shared, symboled and situated by those who are relative to the dying person. In the United States, funerals are the expression of one’s grief and bereavement period for the mourner. The development of insurance policies, cemeteries and funerals are part of the contemporary American life styles and regulation of funeral homes. The process of end of life issues by giving advance directives to dispose of personal property, living will and legal healthcare of power attorney. In the United States, the cost of a funeral expenses may run anywhere from $2500.00 to $9000.00 however; that is only one part of the expenses to death because all the deceased personal and hospital bills need to be paid. The legal system handles a person life from beginning to end. The process of grieving, bereavement roles, normal acceptance to the loss, four tasks of mourning and coping with a violent death are the methods to start the healing process. The grief process is not automatic because those who are grieving really need to do grief work to find closure. The stages of grief developed by Kavenaugh began with the shock and denial, disorganization, volatile reactions, guilt, loss and loneliness, relief and reestablishment. The behaviors and Kubler- Ross five stages of the dying process are: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. The five stages are described in detail of the behaviors associated to the dying process. The transformative process within grief includes three components that can be understood by three questions: 1.What have I lost? 2.What do have left? 3. What may be possible for me? The process of transformation takes time and each question should be given the work to understand and to accept the loss. The mourner needs to have social support and assistance in the bereavement process. The most important deed that can be given to the mourner is to give of yourself time to listen and comfort them in their loss. The life cycle will be experienced by all and it will not be easy but those who are left behind have to learn to make adjustments to their lives. The loss of a love one does promote a growth experience with those who are left behind because it teaches those to meet the challenges of life without their love one. In conclusion, the textbook begins with the current interest in death from different academic perspective to the through the grieving process through the life cycle. The ability to understand the cycle of normal and abnormal grief by the symptoms identified through the text. To use the text to understand the stages of grief and apply them to the lives those who are suffering from depression and withdrawal from society. The authors give important steps to having a healthy recovery from grief. This is basically a map to begin the road of recovery from the need to understand the supernatural, the secular or the spiritual side of death. Concrete Response Upon reading this textbook of dealing with the subject of death and dying there were two topics that captured my attention. The first topic discussed those individuals who are in older adulthood. The authors talk about how the older adults are treated within the death and dying process. The elderly seem to be placed in nursing homes where they are expected to live until they die quietly. The older adults seem to be forgotten and tossed aside as if they were old news. This topic reminded me of my maternal grandmother and how she went through her dying process. I was stationed in Fort Bragg, North Carolina when she died. The immediate family, which included siblings, and grandchildren, were called to the hospital to make an important family decision about her arrangements after leaving the hospital. The decisions that needed to be made were where were we going to place her? Would she be institutionalized or would she die at home? The other decision was if the family wanted her to be sustained by life support systems until death. The factors that we had to consider were her age, would her body be strong enough to undergo any surgical procedures if necessary and what type of quality of life would she be able to maintain? First of all, my grandmother was 102 years old at the time of her death. Secondly, her body was so fragile that we were afraid for the doctors to do anything else to her. The doctors let us know that they had done all they could do f or her. Finally, the doctors made us aware of her condition and that her quality of life would not be a good one as her time to live was limited. The family made the decision to let her die at home in peace, and there would not be any life support equipment given to her. I noticed that my mother was not in agreement with the decision and made it known to me after leaving the hospital. My mother wanted to do whatever was necessary to keep my grandmother alive. Needless to say I felt as if I had betrayed my mother and my grandmother due to the decision that was made. The other event that came to mind was the death of a premature baby that belonged to a friend of mine and her husband in the military. I was disturbed by the picture of a family on page 14 posing for a family photo with the dead child in the mother’s arms. I understand that this is their way of keeping record of the living as well as the deceased but I felt that the picture was so impersonal. Not only did the family seem sad but there seemed to be coldness in the picture with the deceased child. My friend and I were stationed in Germany but we were both from the state of Georgia. My friend and her husband had not been married long but they were looking forward to becoming parents. She had to be taken to the hospital early due to some complications with the pregnancy. She had tried to have a baby before but unfortunately she miscarried. My friend had asked me to come to the hospital for moral support sense her family was not present at that time and I agreed to be there. Her husband was fortunate enough to have his younger sister stationed at the same base. When the baby was delivered the doctor told them that the baby was premature and alive but he was not sure for how long. After an hour the doctor came into her room an informed her and her husband that the baby had passed away due to being premature. The nurse came in and asked the couple if they wanted to see the baby and they of course replied yes. The nursing staff brought them their baby, placed the baby in the motherà ¢â‚¬â„¢s arms, and then took a photograph with the couple holding the baby. The father broke down in tears and my friend touched the baby for the last time. I asked the nurse was that a common procedure and why was it necessary. The nurse explained that taking the picture was a common procedure as some parents want to remember their first child whether they are alive or not. In my heart I did not agree with the procedure because of the agony I witnessed in that room but I was in no position to protest. Reflections The textbook help me to truly understand the grief process and I would like to work further on the process for myself because of the loss I have had in my life. I have suffered a great loss within the last nine years. I agree with the author about the experience with grief and losing a child and a parent has given me the ability to finish working through my issues. The scriptures of Lazarus allows me to look at death as an end of growth in natural rim but a new beginning in the spiritual. The key points of story are the time and the end of the story that we overcome through death. Being able to give someone the closure of losing a love one is the greatest gift that a person can give. I had to realize that I had to go on after the greatest loss of my life but God gave me the courage to keep living. I was riding home by myself and I heard the voice of God speak to me with the deepest of conviction: Now, you understand my feelings about my son whom I sacrificed for the world from that moment on I found strength in those words to help those who were suffering from a loss. The content of the book answered a lot of questions for me because I was given a method to actually go through the process and definitely face some the things I didn’t want to face with death. The textbook was a process of healing for me because I suffered loss during my last class and now I know that I am healing from the course. The course and content showed me if I had done the grief work and I honestly say at points I had not work through all of the stages of grief. Application The information from this book will influence how I will continue my own personal and professional growth process by aiding me to provide informative knowledge facts about death and dying to family, friends and clients. For example, there is a wealth of information concerning the â€Å"The Business of Dying in which I can provide help with the task of planning for funerals. I would aide my clients in researching the best options for life insurance so that they will be prepared if death does occur. I had a pastor express to me that one of the most common problems in the African American community is the lack of life insurance needed in order to provide the deceased family member a proper burial. He stated that at the last funeral he held in his church he had to take up an offering in order to assist the family with funeral expenses. I would like to offer grief support groups for parents who have lost their children. The increasing unrest happening in the different cities of our socie ty is being plagued with the deaths of African American children. There seems to be more of a need for grief support groups. While grieving for my son I was recommended to an organization called â€Å"The Bereaved Parents of the USA†. The organization was instrumental in guiding me as well as other bereaved parents through the bereavement process. The actions or changes that I plan to make in my career and personal life as a result of my learning are first to search out training programs that will train me to become an effective crisis response person. This book has demonstrated that death needs to be studied more in depth and that we should not be afraid of the unknown. I would like to volunteer in a church organization that provides trained individuals that are qualified to demonstrate the procedures that need to be used to in a crisis situation. I have an interest in researching what certifications will be needed to qualify to become a crisis response person. This book has furthered my commitment to become a bereavement counselor because I have had the experience and understand the pain which will allow me to help those who have begun this journey and I can walk with them to recovery. If given the chance, I would work with death and dying patients because I believe that they will see the love of God in me and I will offer a listening ear, a very open heart and the gift of laughter to those who need to be comforted in their time of sorrow. Reference Leming, M. R. Dickinson, G. E. (2011).Understanding dying, death, and bereavement (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Revenge of the Killer Genre :: Quentin Tarantino John Cawelti Films Essays

Revenge of the Killer Genre After years of repeated thematic motifs and unchanging, stereotypical characters, films within a genre often lose their vitality. The conventions become predictable and the underlying myth becomes boring and banal. The innovative director will seek to revitalize a popular myth through a "generic transformation" (Cawelti 520). This essay shall demonstrate how Quentin Tarantino borrows a traditional myth from the gangster genre, subverts it and subsequently installs a new, unorthodox myth in its place. The end result is a new type of film that reaches beyond the established confines of the gangster genre. As with Arthur Penn's Bonnie and Clyde, the radical innovations included in Pulp Fiction make it hard to situate the film within mainstream cinema; it is, as John Cawelti would agree, "difficult to know what to call this type of film". While Penn's film and Tarantino's Pulp Fiction clearly acknowledge the conventions of the gangster genre, it is only as a point of departure. Tarantino introduces enigmatic characters and complex incongruities which combine to successfully remove his film from the "conventions of a traditional popular genre" (Cawelti 505). Cawelti describes the myth within the gangster film as "affirm[ing] the limits of individual aggression and violence ... show[ing] how violence evokes its own inevitable doom" (Cawelti 516). In Pulp Fiction and Bonnie and Clyde, the directors subvert the "traditional elements" and the "traditional mythical world ..." (Cawelti 505) is confounded. Thus begin the generic transformations. The directors thoroughly undermine the traditional myths and effectively replace them with myths of their own construction. The complexities of structure, character and theme within Pulp Fiction exceed the conventional boundaries of the gangster genre and the myths commonly associated with gangster films become inadequate. The narrative leads to non-romanticized situations and characters that appear too realistic to be contained within the "inadequate" boundaries of the gangster myth (Cawelti 510). Here then, Tarantino is effectively exposing the inadequacies of the gangster myth. The myth of the gangster is exposure by first firmly establishing the conventional gangster persona. Within the gangster environment, a darkened night club for example, the gangster looks the part; black suit, jewellery, sunglasses and the inevitable guns construct the image of menace. So too do his mannerisms, the gangster is a cocky, self-assured tough guy. The story within the film titled "The Bonnie Situation", provides an example an undermined gangster myth. Here, the two gangsters, Jules and Vincent, must retrieve and deliver a package that has been stolen. Revenge of the Killer Genre :: Quentin Tarantino John Cawelti Films Essays Revenge of the Killer Genre After years of repeated thematic motifs and unchanging, stereotypical characters, films within a genre often lose their vitality. The conventions become predictable and the underlying myth becomes boring and banal. The innovative director will seek to revitalize a popular myth through a "generic transformation" (Cawelti 520). This essay shall demonstrate how Quentin Tarantino borrows a traditional myth from the gangster genre, subverts it and subsequently installs a new, unorthodox myth in its place. The end result is a new type of film that reaches beyond the established confines of the gangster genre. As with Arthur Penn's Bonnie and Clyde, the radical innovations included in Pulp Fiction make it hard to situate the film within mainstream cinema; it is, as John Cawelti would agree, "difficult to know what to call this type of film". While Penn's film and Tarantino's Pulp Fiction clearly acknowledge the conventions of the gangster genre, it is only as a point of departure. Tarantino introduces enigmatic characters and complex incongruities which combine to successfully remove his film from the "conventions of a traditional popular genre" (Cawelti 505). Cawelti describes the myth within the gangster film as "affirm[ing] the limits of individual aggression and violence ... show[ing] how violence evokes its own inevitable doom" (Cawelti 516). In Pulp Fiction and Bonnie and Clyde, the directors subvert the "traditional elements" and the "traditional mythical world ..." (Cawelti 505) is confounded. Thus begin the generic transformations. The directors thoroughly undermine the traditional myths and effectively replace them with myths of their own construction. The complexities of structure, character and theme within Pulp Fiction exceed the conventional boundaries of the gangster genre and the myths commonly associated with gangster films become inadequate. The narrative leads to non-romanticized situations and characters that appear too realistic to be contained within the "inadequate" boundaries of the gangster myth (Cawelti 510). Here then, Tarantino is effectively exposing the inadequacies of the gangster myth. The myth of the gangster is exposure by first firmly establishing the conventional gangster persona. Within the gangster environment, a darkened night club for example, the gangster looks the part; black suit, jewellery, sunglasses and the inevitable guns construct the image of menace. So too do his mannerisms, the gangster is a cocky, self-assured tough guy. The story within the film titled "The Bonnie Situation", provides an example an undermined gangster myth. Here, the two gangsters, Jules and Vincent, must retrieve and deliver a package that has been stolen.

Tom Robinson’s Conviction in Harper Lees To Kill A Mockingbird Essays

Tom Robinson’s Conviction in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is an almost faultless representation of how the â€Å"white† word dominated the â€Å"black† word in the South. The novel shows that a white person’s word, no matter how faulted, was more readily accepted than any black person’s word. Allowing a â€Å"Negro’s† word to be accepted over â€Å"white† word would make southern society less secure in its assumed superiority. The southern â€Å"superiority† over Negroes had existed since the time of the slave trade and continued after the emancipation, out of fear. As long as Negroes were considered â€Å"property,† they were protected by their â€Å"value.† Following the abolition of legal slavery, their economic protection vanished, and the southern white population feared their infiltration with society. Out of fear came hate in the white southern community. Organizations reflecting their hate were created, such as the Ku Klux Klan. Lynchings, unjustified convictions, and severe economic oppression were all part of Negro-life in the south between 1925-1935. With the Stock Market Crash in October of 1929 the United States suffered severe economic depression. With the closing of many mills and plants, unemployment skyrocketed. The economic collapse was painful to all communities, but to the blacks of the South who were already severely oppressed, it was devastating. Farming communities, which were already in a depression before the crash, went hungry and rarely had surplus crop to sell for profit. Crop prices fell nearly 50% between 1929 and 1930. During the depression it was nearly impossible for blacks to find work because unemployed whites were chosen over blacks no matter what their qualific... ...ession, and Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is an accurate example of how the historic South treated blacks with severe prejudice. Works Cited Carter, Dan T. Scottsboro: A Tragedy of the American South. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1969. Chalmers, Allan K. They Shall Be Free. Garden City: Doubleday & Company, 1951. Lee, Harper. To Kill A Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Warner Books, 1960. Ransdell, Hollace. "The First Scottsboro Trials (April, 1931) ." The First Scottsboro Trials (April, 1931). 27 May 1931. American Civil Liberties Union. 11 March 2001. <http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/FTrials/scottsboro/SB_HRrep.html#REPORT ON THE SCOTTSBORO, ALA.>. Vassel, Olive. "The Scottsboro Boys." The Scottsboro Boys. . AFRO-Americ@. 11 March 20001. <http://www.afroam.org/history/scott/scotts.html>.

First Writing Assignment “Two Views of the Mississippi” Essay

As Mark Twain learned the trade of steamboating he needed to be able to discern between the beautiful aspects of the river which he talked about figuratively and the critical awareness of those same aspects as they pertain to navigation. The two sets of details are in juxtaposition. However, there is something larger happening in the excerpt. What is it? Define it as the thematic concern for your paper. Develop your thesis around the larger message. In other words, what is the big picture here? What is the larger message that the writing attempts to engage for the audience? Most, if not all, of the language speaks about two views of the river, but the tension between those descriptions is both explicit and implicit. What are the implied factors (implications) beyond the language of the piece? The explicit examples (tools/devices/strategies of rhetoric) of language will help you speak specifically about the evidence on the page as it pertains to the global outlook that the piece hints at. The two sets of descriptions set up a much larger concept and that concept permeates into the real world. What is that concept or what are those ideas? They are wide ranging. The ideas are crucial in the understanding of the piece itself, no doubt, however it (they) reach further? How much further do they reach? Respond to the prompt in a way that you touch on the larger messages that are inherent in the piece. Do the ideas shape the reality you are currently forming for yourself? The specific language of the piece are nice examples and activities of rhetoric, so how do they ultimately point to and lead us into answering the bigger question/concept of the piece? In your quest to develop and support your interpretation as to the message of the piece you will find it important to identify tools of figurative language and how they differ from the literal translations of those same descriptions. Identify tools of figurative language: What does that language say? How does it help support your case? Why does the language work? Furthermore, identify the language that juxtaposes the appearance of the figurative language: How does that language differ? How does it help support your ideas? What does the language reiterate about the larger picture? Essay will be 5 pages. It will discuss the main idea and  support it by defining the moments of language that are pertinent to the discussion of the larger message.

Stupidity Definition Paper

Emily Thompson Mrs. Clem Advanced Composition October 25, 2012 What An Idiot! Of the 14 million people on the planet, not one of them was born stupid. Everyone possesses some level of intelligence at birth. Yet, as some grow older, they transform from great beings of high intellect to creatures that seem to have little to no aptitude. During the years that they grow up, most of these stupid people do not lose knowledge; they gain it. What is the reason for their degeneration into stupidity? Perhaps stupidity is not a lack of intelligence, as many believe. Maybe, it is the refusal to utilize one’s intelligence to the highest possible degree.Unwillingness to learn is unmistakably present in the life of a stupid person. Last week, I was discussing schoolwork with a friend of mine when he said that he recently failed a paper on the usage of commas. I was aghast that a sixteen-year-old student could fall short in the simple arena of comma usage, but this happens every day. My frien d and others like him have sat through countless classes that have taught them how to use commas. However, they cannot determine the correct site of a comma because they have deliberately decided that neither self-improvement nor the acquisition of knowledge is an important objective in their lives.For whatever reason, they have chosen to be ignorant, and thus, they are stupid. In addition, laziness consumes the life of a stupid person. Stupid people will not apply themselves in anything that is not pleasurable. Stupid teenagers sit in their rooms all weekend playing Black Ops because it takes less effort and brainpower to play  a  game  than it does to write an English paper. In the same manner, stupid adults engross their minds in college football all weekend rather than cleaning out their garage. To make matters worse, both stupid adults and  stupid  teenagers complain about their unfinished papers and filthy garages.Furthermore, stupid people do nothing to get themselv es out of their undesirable situations. Unless motivated  to change their surroundings, these stupid people continue to sit in their laziness and incessantly grumble about their unfavorable, yet repairable, conditions. Stupid people constantly refuse to use common sense in their words. When a thought enters the mind of a stupid person, it immediately converts into words. The stupid person does not censor what they say, so they will question obviously true statements and declare completely unintelligent babble.Since they are stupid, they do not contain their senseless questions and statements. If they would only think through their thoughts before transforming them into words, stupid people would appear to be much less stupid. In addition to not using common sense before speaking, stupid people do not use common sense before performing their actions either. Recently at volleyball practice, I was standing still when a fellow player of mine launched a ball at my head. I looked at my teammate and scowled. She obviously did not mean to send the ball at my face. In fact, she did not mean to kick it at anything in particular.However, she also did not consider that if she kicked this ball, it might travel in an undesired direction and injure someone. Stupid people do not consider the effects of their actions. Consequently, they travel through life recklessly while immediately turning their impulsive ideas into actions. Although stupid people can reform themselves into intelligent, productive members of society, these conversions are infrequent. It seems that there is no hope to entirely eradicate the existence of stupid people. However, if we remove all the warning labels, the problem may sort itself out.