Competition analysis and 4p's strategy analysis Case Study

Competition analysis and 4p's strategy analysis - Case Study Example Fleisher and Bensoussan stated that the current business environment is mainly characterized with heightened competition and therefore, for businesses to survive and remain profitable, they always have to be aware of strengthens possessed by their competitors and their weakness. Thereby use this information to capitalize on their key strengthens whilst making their weaknesses to be part of their strengths (34-38). The Paderno Cookware Company operates in a highly competitive environment since there are other key players in the industry such as Meyer Canada, which is a leading global distributor of metal cookware that have been manufactured by its affiliate companies. The second key competitor of Paderno is the Canadian cookware, which is a subsidiary of the BelKraft Group of Companies that specializes in the manufacture of the waterless cookware. The Meyer Canada Company offers a wide variety of cookware products that range from stainless steel, hard-anodized aluminum, and nonstick a luminum while the Canadian Cookware mainly specialize in production of waterless cookware that is health conscious. Another significant competitor of Paderno is the original Paderno cookware company from Italy, which still exist and it own the rights of the Paderno name in every country expect for Canada. The unique strengths of these competitors lies on the products that they manufacture and sells, more so for Meyer Canada, which produces a wide variety of products unlike the others include Paderno. The Meyer Canada Company poses a threat to the Paderno Cookware Company because of the fact that it has affiliates in various countries who are obligated to conduct an aggressive marketing campaign and sell the company’s products. The main threat that is posed by Canadian Cookware Company comes from the fact that it has branded itself as a cookware company that is health oriented meaning its products are health conscious and therefore, consumers who are conscious about their heal th will prefer the company’s products. The threat posed by the original Paderno company comes from the fact that it is able to used the Paderno brand name to market itself across other countries other than Canada, which means that it incur lower cost in marketing in foreign countries as compared to trying to promote a new brand name in a foreign country. These three competitors make opportunity for Paderno Cookware Company to be the only leading cookware company that focuses on manufacturing cookware using the highest grade of 18/10 stainless steel and bonding on the outside book of the products using a thick aluminum pad. Moreover, Paderno has an opportunity to increase further its sales because these competitors only exploit one sales avenue unlike Paderno, which exploits for avenues for selling and hence it is able to generate more sales revenue. 4Ps strategic analysis Borden described the 4Ps as the four key elements that marketers use or emphasize on, in order to effecti vely market products and/ or service thereby generate more sales (23-25). Solis stated that the 4Ps are controllable elements within an organization that can be exploited to create the main sources of a company’

Comparison of Freud’s and Plato’s Aspects of Human Character Essay Example for Free

Comparison of Freud’s and Plato’s Aspects of Human Character Essay Aspects of human character have been discussed in a number of fields; inputs from the philosophical and political perspectives can be identified by how human character is in place with respect to the society whereas concepts from the psychological field can be observed to focus more on the individual and its relationship with his environment.   Such is demonstrated by Plato in his The Republic which can be seen to potentially contrast with Sigmund Freud in his discourse in Civilization and its Discontents.    Plato had apparently came up with literature describing a functional society according to certain controls needed in order to establish a civilization according to certain ideologies such as justice, authority, and the ideal state, among others.   Freud, on one hand, tackled a world that is already in existence and presented an analysis on life and reality. From this, when it comes to their respective discussions on the human character, Plato’s The Republic presented how human character should be while Freud discussed what human character is through instinctual drives.   Plato’s prescription for the Guardians, the social class tasked to rule the society, mentioned that their education should emphasize their â€Å"love for wisdom† and â€Å"high spirits†.   This characterization can be therefore compared with Freud’s discussion on Eros and Death; the comparison can thereby give way in identifying whether their references for the twin aspects of human character were the same or not. Plato’s â€Å"Love of Wisdom† and â€Å"High Spirits† Plato proposed the formation of a social class called the Guardians who would rule the society.   Given the great responsibility that is going to be vested in them, these Guardians are proposed to learn certain aspects that would make them an effective ruler and manager of the state.   In this case, it was brought up in the discussion in The Republic that [†¦] its our job, as it seems, to choose, if were able, which are the natures, and what kind they are, fit for guarding the city (Book II, 374e).   Hence, the discussion resulted to a description of the Guardians, as follows (Book II, 376c): Then the man whos going to be a fine and good guardian of the city for us will in his nature be philosophic, spirited, swift, and strong. The context in which they discussed the trait of â€Å"love of wisdom† (Book II, 376b) apparently referred to the philosophical leanings of the Guardian.   In addition, possessing the love of wisdom is also associated with having the â€Å"love of learning† (Book 2, 376b).   It can be gathered that â€Å"love† in this context is based on having the nature to pursuit a deep interest for knowledge thereby demonstrating how an individual can have the characteristic of an ideal ruler. In addition to the discussion on â€Å"love of wisdom†, possessing a high spirit or â€Å"spirited† is also seen as a significant characterization of a Guardian.   The characters initially discussed this aspect in the context of citing animal behavior, hence, demonstrating that the high spirits may initially come from the individual’s courageous nature.   What makes the human distinctive from the animals, as seen in the discussion, is how this ideal person also injects a sense of gentleness in this instinctive characteristic (Book II, 375c): Yet, they must be gentle to their own and cruel to enemies. If not, theyll not wait for others to destroy them, but theyll do it themselves beforehand. In this case, what they are looking for in a Guardian is someone who is â€Å"gentle and great-spirited† (Book II, 375c); the challenge, however, as noted in the dialogues, is how these two traits oppose each other. The concept of â€Å"love of wisdom† and â€Å"high spirits† in Plato’s work, in the context of Guardians’ characters, clearly show that they are discussing human characteristics that are admirable.   The twin aspects of human character, in this case, show how these two characteristics complement each other in which case, the ideal person for the function is some who is spirit and by nature, philosophical. Freud’s Eros and Death The context in which Freud discussed Eros and Death in Civilization and its Discontents is how these two instinctive forces, albeit opposing, work together in life.   As Freud discussed (66): That is to say, as well as Eros there was an instinct of death. The phenomena of life could be explained from the concurrent or mutually opposing action of these two instincts â€Å"[†¦] A more fruitful idea was that a portion of the instinct is diverted towards the external world and comes to light as an instinct of aggressiveness and destructiveness. In this way the instinct itself could be pressed into the service of Eros, in that the organism was destroying some other thing, whether animate or inanimate, instead of destroying its own self. Conversely, any restriction of this aggressiveness directed outwards would be bound to increase the self-destruction, which is in any case proceeding.† Although Freud noted that Death, which is also associated with destruction, and even Evil, may â€Å"name his adversary not what is holy and good, but Natures power to create, to multiply lifethat is, Eros† (68), he noted that Eros and Death can be â€Å"alloyed† with each other, thereby resulting to an integration which hides either purpose.   An example Freud cited is how this is evident in sadism in which destruction can also bring satisfaction, the very idea in itself brings a certain degree of enjoyment. Conclusion: Comparison Based on the above discussions, the contexts in which Plato and Freud discussed â€Å"love for wisdom† and â€Å"high spirits†, and Eros and Death can be regarded to be total opposites.   For Plato, how these human aspects function is for the purpose of greater good; the ideal nature of the individual in the form of the Guardians is meant to benefit the society which the Guardians are tasked to serve.   In this case, the intent to define these traits, which is the union of philosophy and spiritedness, is meant to put together an exceptional leader.   In Freud’s discussion, on one hand, presented a justification as to how two opposing ideas, Eros and Death, actually work, and how these are in fact a reality of human nature. Plato and Freud discussed human nature in different contexts: for Plato, the opposing twin aspects of human nature (â€Å"love of wisdom† and â€Å"high spirits†) can be reconciled and further enhanced through education, thereby resulting to an ideal functional leader for the ideal city.   Freud, on one hand, discussed how the opposing Eros and Death do exist in human nature and how this is exemplified by the presence of satisfaction in destruction; the integration of Eros and Death may not result to an ideal person, but this demonstrates the humanness of the individual. Apparently, the similarity ends there; the similarity can be seen in the seed of the argument which is how opposing ideas do work together as a part of human nature.   Both demonstrated how internal contradictions further contribute to human characteristics that lead to how people eventually function.   In this case, the premise of their discussion is the same yet the intent of the discussion is different.   For Plato, the marriage of â€Å"love of wisdom† and â€Å"high spiritedness† gives way to an ideal class in an ideal society whereas Freud’s â€Å"alloyed† Eros and Death benefits the destruction more because it is in the face of Eros that Death can hide. Upon a close reading of the texts, there is also a similarity of the premise in terms of these two works; Plato’s The Republic contains a series of discussions leading to the definition of an ideal state whereas Freud’s Civilization and Its Discontents showed how the individual can be in conflict with the society.   In addition, both agreed how the implementation of laws can establish control in a society basically manned by individuals with baser instincts; however, Plato pointed out how education can manage these instincts and how people can be formed into functional citizens while Freud mostly highlighted how individuals will be always governed by the pleasure principle.

Plastic Theatre in A Streetcar Named Desire

Plastic Theatre in A Streetcar Named Desire 1. Introduction â€Å"I don’t want realism. [] I want [] magic!† (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 130) It is Blanche DuBois who states this quotation in Tennessee Williams A Streetcar Named Desire. In this drama from 1947, two worlds, embodied by the two characters of Blanche DuBois and Stanley Kowalski, clash. That conflict between realism and a romantic view of things is visible through the whole play, increasing from scene to scene, and reaches its peak in Stanleys rape of Blanche in Scene Ten. After that suppression of the romanticism and with Blanche going to an asylum, one might think that the realistic point of view triumphs, but in my opinion her leaving and her acting, still relying on the kindness of strangers (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 159), leads to the impression of a survival of her fantasy world. She just escapes from the demonic night world and completes the cycle of romance (Thompson 28). But I dont think that her illusions win over Stanleys realism, as she is a Romantic protagonist committed to the ideal but living in the modern age, a broken world (Holditch 1 47). In Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire, things are not always called by their names, but he creates a sense of indirectness. With the aid of telling names and special attitudes of the characters, he caricatures a truth behind things. However, this is not restricted to the protagonists and their quotations, but also concerns the play itself, including the stage directions. The feeling of hidden truths is supported by effects and motifs, for example the adoption of light and music or the gestures of the actors. This realization of a play on a stage is called the Plastic Theatre, as the audience gets more involved through the use of different senses. This leads to a vivid impression of the feelings and thoughts of the protagonists. Williams himself created the term of the Plastic Theatre in his production notes to The Glass Menagerie. There he writes about a conception of a new, plastic theatre which must take the place of the exhausted theatre of realistic conventions if the theatre is to resume vitality as a part of our culture (Williams, Glass Menagerie 4). 2. Definitions To provide a solid basis for the following thoughts concerning the different characters of A Streetcar Named Desire and their points of view, I want to introduce and explain the two terms of realism and romanticism briefly. Both of them can also been seen as epochs in American Literature, but I just want to focus on the general statement. In addition, I want to expose further information about the idea of the Plastic Theatre. 2.1. Realism In the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, realism is described as accepting and dealing with life and its problems in a practical way, without being influenced by feelings or false ideas. This means that one takes things as they are, evaluating situations only with the aid of the visible facts, not relying on false hopes or following non-realistic ideals. The human reason has, from a realistic viewpoint, a higher value and is more important than emotions or spontaneous impressions. 2.2. Romanticism The romantic perspective is in contrast to the realistic one. Romanticism is related to highly imaginative or impractical (Longman Dictionary, Romantic.) attitudes, admiring ideals which are not realistic or even unachievable. In romanticism, feelings and emotions are stated higher than rational thinking and human reason, not only in the context of love issues, but also in the way of dealing with situations and problems. Impressions are not based on visible facts, but on ideal conceptions, and these conceptions might be sometimes quite fictional or utopian. 2.3. The Plastic Theatre To express his universal truths Williams created what he termed plastic theater, a distinctive new style of drama. He insisted that setting, properties, music, sound, and visual effects all the elements of staging must combine to reflect and enhance the action, theme, characters, and language (Griffin 22). Like Griffin, many authors, including Tennessee Williams himself, tried to explain the Plastic Theatre, but it was barely discussed in public. After he established the idea of the Plastic Theatre in the production notes to The Glass Menagerie, Williams never publicly discussed it again. But from that moment on, his plays were very theatrical, with lyrical and poetic language, his scenic descriptions draw on metaphors from the world of art and painting and with quite symbolic use of sound and light (Kramer). 3. A Streetcar Named Desire: The Truth Behind Things In Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire, the audience gets the impression that facts are not just stated within the text, but between the lines. The characters are often described better through their behavior and gestures than through their actual quotations. From scene to scene it gets clearer that Blanche and Stanley are embodiments of two very contrasting viewpoints of life: extreme romanticism and down-to-earth realism. This is also visible through different symbolic motifs, which emerge various times in the play. Connected with a very evocative use of music and light and many telling names from the beginning on, the whole play seems conspicuously allusive. 3.1. Romanticism and Realism in A Streetcar Named Desire We are presented in A Streetcar Named Desire with two polar ways of looking at experience: the realistic view of Stanley Kowalski and the non-realistic view of his sister-in-law, Blanche DuBois (Kernan 17). Williams brings the two views into conflict immediately. 3.1.1. Blanche DuBois as the Romantic Protagonist When the audience meets Blanche, her appearance is described as incongruous to this setting (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 8). In Scene One she arrives at the Elysian Fields, where her sister Stella and her brother-in-law Stanley Kowalski live. Her clothes are white and fluffy, looking very delicate and as if she were arriving at a summer tea or cocktail party in the garden district (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 9). She is very shocked about the habitation of her sister and calls it a horrible place (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 13). The reader is confronted instantly with her deranged self-awareness, as she asks Stella to turn the merciless (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 13) light off, because she does not want to be looked at in the bright light. This behavior is visible through the whole play. Blanche always tries to avoid over-light and glare. Her vanity about her looks is also remarkable in the way Blanche presents her figure to her sister, fishing for compliments and stating that she has the same figure as she had ten years ago. (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 18). She often states very romantic quotations through the whole play, e.g. concerning the pretty sky where she ought to go [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] on a rocket that never comes down (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 44). When the relationship between Blanche and Mitch, a friend of Stanley, becomes more intimate, the audience gets an impression of Blanches romantic conception. She calls him her Rosenkavalier and wants him to bow, just like the gentlemen in the Old South would do (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 90). Although she was married once, she tries to behave like she would be untouched and a virgin, which she is obviously not. When Mitch says that he cannot understand French, she asks Voulez-vous couchez avec moi ce soir? (Would you like to have sex with me tonight?) (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 95). The information about her past, that she had many men in a hotel called the Flamingo, and the way she speaks about her relationship with Mitch, that she does not love him, but just want a man with whom she can rest, brings certainty for the audience. So Blanches character can be described as a very romantic one. For her, outwardness is very important, and to appear very delicate and pure she is not afraid of telling lies. She is a fake, a person who likes to be better than she actually is, living in a fantasy world which has nothing to do with the real life. Already damaged by [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] the harsh realities of disease and death, Blanches Romanticism is reduced in some moments to nothing more than sentimentality (Holditch 155). 3.1.2. Stanley Kowalski as the Realistic Protagonist Stanley Kowalski seems as the embodiment of a real man, opposed to or ignorant of the transcendent, very sexual and physical. When the audience gets in contact with him for the first time, he carries a package of meat and throws it to his wife Stella. He is described as strongly, compactly built. Animal joy in his being is implicit in all his movements and attitudes (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 24). His relationship to his wife is a very sexual one, as Stanley treats his wife in a very physical way and Stella states that she is very attracted to him. When Blanche leaves to the asylum and Stella cries, he consoles her by touching in a sexual way (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 160), which is characteristic of their relationship. His view of things is a very realistic one. When Blanche informs Stanley and Stella that she had lost the plantation of their parents, Belle Reve, Stanley thinks that in fact she did not lose it, but perhaps sold it and did not give them their part of the money. For him, this would be an affront against himself, as the property of his wife Stella is his own, too. He thinks Blanche bought jewelry, clothes like a solid-gold dress and Fox-pieces (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 32) from the returns of the plantation. In reality, the furs are inexpensive summer furs (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 33) and the jewelry is glass. This mistake is the mistake of the realist who trusts to literal appearance, to his senses alone (Kernan 18). Stanleys view of things, the realistic one, is the one which works in the modern, broken world. He embodies this harsh world with all its physical, material and sexual aspects. His strong appearance and his human reason is all he needs to get along in the real world. 3.1.3. Conflict between Romanticism and Realism The two points of view clash from the beginning of the play on until the end. Blanche embodies the romantic one, whereas Stanley stands for the realism. In the course of the play Williams manages to identify this realism with the harsh light of the naked electric bulb which Blanche covers with a Japanese lantern. It reveals pitilessly every line in Blanches face, every tawdry aspect of the set. And in just this way Stanleys pitiless and probing realism manages to reveal every line in Blanches soul by cutting through all the soft illusions with which she has covered herself (Kernan 18). Kernan explains very descriptive the relationship between the two protagonists. Stanley does not treat Blanche with much respect, which is visible through the way he talks about her bathing and her way of dressing. But also Blanche has an aversion to him, calling him sub-human something not quite to the stage of humanity yet (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 74). For her, Stanley is a threat, because he is able to destroy her fantasy world and to uncover her past and her real face. The conflict increases from scene to scene and reaches its peak in the rape of Blanche. Stanley has to prove his dominance and therefore rapes her to force his reality on her. But she is not broken after the rape, she is just even deeper in her fantasy world, which is shown by the way she trusts the doctor, holding tight to his arm, still depending on the kindness of strangers (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 159). Finally the audience gets the impression that the realistic point of view has the advantage of being workable. Blanches romantic way of looking at things, sensitive as it may be, has a fatal weakness: it exists only by ignoring certain positions of reality (Kernan 18). 3.2. The Plastic Theatre in A Streetcar Named Desire Williams tried to communicate circumstances not only by the acting of the protagonists, but also through symbols and various effects. The setting, lighting, props, costumes, sound effects, and music, along with the plays dominant symbols, the bath and the light bulb, provide direct access to the private lives of the characters (Corrigan 50). The many telling names in the play give additional information and enforce the impression of a truth behind things. In the following subchapters I want to discuss exemplary Blanches bathing, the adoption of music and sounds and the use of telling names. 3.2.1. Blanches Bathing Blanche bathes very often in this play. She obviously wants to clean herself from her past. After the bathing, she feels all freshly [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] and [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] like a brand new human being (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 35). Every time she is confronted with the real, brutal world, she wants to escape in her dream world, which is strongly connected with bathing. In Scene Three when the men have a Poker Night and Stanley gives a loud whack of his hand on Stellas thigh, she instantly says I think I will bathe (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 49). In Scene Seven, she bathes again, little breathless cries and peals of laughter are heard as if a child were frolicking in the tub (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 110), while Stanley tells Stella about Blanches past and her affairs with a seventeen-year-old boy and many other men. The title of the song Blanche sings while bathing is It Only a Paper Moon and it is described as a saccharine popular ballad which is used contrap unctually with Stanleys speech (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 106). Especially the verse - But it wouldnt be make-believe If you believed in me! (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 107) is very ironic, because Blanche does not seem very trustworthy at all, and so the song even accentuates her disreputable past. After the rape, she bathes again in Scene Eleven and is very worried about her hair, as if the soap would not be completely washed out. The many baths in the play show that Blanche will never be done with bathing, because she is always confronted with the real world and could not clean herself from her past. It gives her a brand new outlook on life (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 115), but cannot change her life really. 3.2.2. Music and Sounds The use of music and sounds is also very theatrical in the play. The Blue Piano expresses the spirit of the life which goes on (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 6) and is always heard when the conflict between real world and Blanches fantasy world seems to increase. It is heard, for example, when Blanche arrives at Elysian Fields and grows louder when she informs Stella about the loss of Belle Reve as well as when Stanley tells her that Stella is going to have a baby. It also suggests the fall of Blanche as it is swelling when Stanley rapes Blanche and afterwards when he consoles Stella, who cries because of Blanches leaving. Another music, which is strongly connected with Blanches past, is the polka music. It is always heard when Blanche talks about her dead husband. It emerges for the first time when Stanley mentions that Blanche was married once (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 28). She tells Mitch the story about her husbands death, he shot himself after dancing with Blanche in a casino. He was homosexual and she discovered him with another man and said while dancing he disgusted her (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 103) and therefore he shot himself. It also appears when Stanley gives Blanche a ticket back to Laurel where she lived and when he takes Stella to the hospital and Blanche remains in the flat. So the song predicts Blanches downfall, as it is always heard when she is haunted by her past. 3.2.3. Telling Names There are various telling names in Williams play. Blanches name itself is quite telling, as blanche is French and means white, which is very fitting when looking at her character. The name of her plantation, Belle Reve is also French, meaning beautiful dream. Blanche behaves like she would still live in this dream, refusing to face the truth and the real world. There are many more telling names, but I want to concentrate now on the perhaps most important one, the Streetcar Named Desire as it is the title of the play. Blanche takes the streetcar named Desire (Williams, Streetcar Named Desire 9) to get to the apartment of the Kowalskis. This is very telling itself, as the audience finds out more and more about her past and that she leaved Laurel as a broken woman somehow, but her desire to live her life as an elegant, trustworthy and honest woman is still present. So she tries to live a, for her, desirable life, and she hopes to find that in New Orleans. By the aid of the telling names, which are visible from the beginning of the play on, the use of music and the different symbols which appear often, it seems very theatrical and plastic. The audience gets an impression of the characters and the circumstances in various ways. 4. Conclusion In Tennessee Williams A Streetcar Named Desire, the conflict between Romanticism and Realism, embodied by the two protagonists Blanche DuBois and Stanley Kowalski, is the major theme of the play. With the aid of the characterization of these protagonists and the explanation of the conflict between them I was able to verify this thesis. These two persons are very polarized, visible through their points of view, their behavior and gestures. But in the end, only one point of view is workable, namely the realistic one of Stanley. Blanche lives in her dream world, even in the end after her rape. Stanley is not able to crush her, but she can only survive in her romantic fantasy world, which leads to the impression that she cannot exist in the modern age. The Truth behind things in this play is also visible through the Plastic Theatre. Williams caricatured this hidden truth by the use of music and sounds, symbols and motifs, and telling names. My notions about Blanches bathing, the Blue Piano and the Polka in the play, and the telling names were exemplary for this plastic and sculptural theatre, and therefore I showed the existence of a truth behind things and that the term of the Plastic Theatre fits for A Streetcar Named Desire.

Winston Churchill Essay -- essays research papers

Winston Churchill was born on November 30, 1874, at Blenheim Palace, the famous palace near Oxford that was built by the nation for John Churchill, the first duke of Marlborough. Blenheim meant a lot to Winston Churchill. It was there that he became engaged to his wife, Clementine Ogilvy Hozier. He later wrote his historical masterpiece, The Life and Times of John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough. With English on his father's side and American on his mother's, Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill expressed the national qualities of both his parents. His name proves the richness of his historic background: Winston, after the Royalist family, who the Churchill’s married before the English Civil War; Leonard, after his remarkable grandfather, Leonard Jerome of New York; Spencer, the married name of a daughter of the first duke of Marlborough, from who the family descended; Churchill, the family name of the first duke, which his descendants maintained after the Battle of Waterloo. All these strands come together in a career that had no resemblance in British history for richness, length, and achievement. Churchill took a leading part in laying the foundations of the welfare state in Britain, in preparing the Royal Navy for World War I, and in settling the political boundaries in the Middle East after the war. In World War II he began as the leader of the United British Nation and Commonwealth to resist the German domination of Europe, as an inspirer of the resistance among free people, and as a prime architect of victory. In this, and in the struggle against communism later, he made himself an essential link between the British and American people, for he saw that the best defense for the free world was for the English-speaking people to come together. (Down 133). Strongly historically minded, he also had predictive foresight: British-American unity was the message of his last great book, A History of the English-speaking Peoples. He was a combination of a soldier, writer, artist, and statesman. He was not so good as a party politician. He stands out not only as a great man of action, but as a writer of it too. He was a genius; as a man he was charming, happy, and enthusiastic. As for personal faults, he was bound to be a great egoist; so strong a personality was likely to be overbearing. He was something of a gambler, always too willing to take risks. In his ... ...ed across the Atlantic with a supply of weapons that made a beginning. On Oct. 26, 1951, at the age of 77, he again became prime minister, as well as minister of defense. As the Conservatives held a very small majority and Britain faced very difficult economic circumstances, only the old man's willpower enabled his government to survive. He held on to see the young Queen Elizabeth II crowned at Westminster in June 1953, attending as a Knight of the Garter, an honor he had received a few weeks earlier. In 1953, also, he received the Nobel Prize in Literature. On April 5, 1955, in his 80th year, he resigned as prime minister, but he continued to sit in Commons until July 1964. Churchill's later years were relatively calm. In 1958 the Royal Academy devoted its galleries to a retrospective one-man show of his work. On April 9, 1963, he received, by special act of the U.S. Congress, the unique honor of being made an honorary American citizen. When he died in London on Jan. 24, 1965, at the age of 90, he was acclaimed as a citizen of the world, and on January 30 he was given the funeral of a hero. He was buried at Bladon, in the little churchyard near Blenheim Palace, his birthplace.

Australian Elections Essay

Institutional factors: Institutional factors relate to the type of the electoral system used in an election. Institutional factors that can influence the election include compulsory voting, the type of ballot, gerrymanders and malapportionment. Compulsory voting ensures 95 per cent of Western Australians participate in elections. However, it has been echoed by some academics that compulsory voting favors major parties. This is due to few people doing their own research into political parties and voting for parties they recognize through the media. The type of ballot used in an election has the most influence on the outcome. In a preferential ballot a seat has to be won by an absolute majority. Which gives an advantage to major political parties. However, in proportional voting a candidate has to get a derived quota to be elected. This means that a small party or independent can get elected with as little as 20% of the vote. Gerrymanders are also another major factor that can influence an election. Gerrymanders allow governments to redistribute electoral boundaries. Governments are then able to win more seats by reducing vote wastage in safe seats and shifting the wasted votes into marginal seats therefore giving them a better chance to win the marginal seats. This tends to favor the government because they have majority support to change electoral boundaries. Malapportionment is another institutional factor which may affect the election outcome. Malapportionment is a calculation used to even out an uneven distribution of population. This is done by increasing the power of votes in smaller districts. The problem with malapportionment is that it tends to favor the party or independent who exploits the weakness in the electoral system. Sociological factors: Sociological factors relate to the values and attitudes voters believe in. When voters are attracted to a particular party this is because they tend to support relatively the same values and attitudes. This will often lead the voter to vote for the party they are attracted to. The values and attitudes people obtain are often related to experiences the voter’s life. The biggest influence on values and attitudes of voters is their family. The fundamental sociological factors include socioeconomic profile, ethnic background, religion, geographical location, age and gender. Socioeconomic factors relate to a person ‘social class’. Social class structures of persons are generally divided by education achieved, employment category and income. Due to the recent blurring of policy in major political parities, voters have not been significantly polarized by the above three particulars. Therefore, socioeconomic factors don’t greatly affect election outcomes. Ethnic background relates to migrant origins. Origins of ethnic groups tend to reflect in political opinion. Trends suggest that ethnic communities that come from oppressive regimes vote on the left wing -Labor-. However, ethnic communities that migrate from democratic countries tend to vote right wing -Liberal-. Religion has become less of a factor in the outcome of an election. In the past religion has played a major role in Australian elections. This is due to mainly European migrants being either protestant or catholic. This division of religion ended in the 1940’s possibly due to World War Two. However, religious people generally cast a stronger conservative vote, relative to people with limited or no assimilation with religion. Geographic location in Western Australia has caused strong political divides. These strong political divides exist between the rural areas and the city. This division is due to different political and economic requirements needed by rural and city Western Australia. These different requirements have been around since foundation so the political division has always been prevalent. Age is an important aspect of the sociological factors. Mature age voters often support conservative right wing political parties. Where as, younger voters tend towards voting for left wing political parties. This trend for younger voters to elect left wing parties has been around since the 1970’s. Some of the early young voters stay loyal to left wing political parties. Gender in the last 30 years has played a prevalent role in Australia’s politics. This is due to the social revolution of the role of women. Women’s votes tend to be for a conservative party. Some psychologists believe this is because women reject change more then men. However, history has seen that women’s votes seen to have been arbitrary and lacking in trends. Political factors: Political factors fundamentally relate to the ability of political parties to make successful decisions. Political factors that may affect the election include the government’s record, opposition performance, economic management, leadership, the electoral campaign and media. The government’s record is an integral part of the party being re-elected. This is because re-election is a test to see if governments have avoided great controversy and delivered on performance. The examiners for the test are the voters. Great controversy can cause a government to lose an election. This is especially true when the controversy relate to money. This is because voters are scrupulous about were the money is being spent in the community. Performance of a government can be measured by how much they have delivered on pre election policy. If voters are disappointed about how much the government has delivered on policy they often wont trust the government for another term. Opposition performance relates to how weak or strongly the opposition party has performed. In order for an opposition party to gain votes and possibly win an election. The opposition party must successfully identify a policy weakness of the existing government. The opposition party must then develop alternative policy options for the voters. However, if an existing  government is clearly going to be defeated in the next election. The best tactic for an opposition would be to make few policy commitments. Economic management is possibly the greatest factor in elections. Economic stability and profitability in a government is fundamentally one of the most important issues. Profitability is more than just a government being in an account surplus. It also includes the ability of a government to provide successful funding to public systems. Stability refers to no great economic fluctuations. Voters lose confidence in governments if economic conditions are always changing. Leadership is important for a party. This is because often people look at the figurehead of the party, rather then the party as whole. Spin doctors or image consultants work on many factors of a leader’s profile. This is to make them as appealing to the public as possible. Leadership also includes how well the leader can hold the party together. This demonstrates a sign of strength to the voters. Strength alludes to the factors of authority and power. The electoral campaign decisions a party has to make include timing to start the campaign, advertising campaigns and areas to target. Timing to start an electoral campaign is important. If a campaign is to close to the election date key policy may not be heard by voters. If the campaign is announced too quickly it will give the opposition time to criticize the policy of the governments. Advertising is expensive and if it is done wrong it can be costly, however, if it is done correctly it can win an election. In recent times Mass media is a great way to advertise this is due to its impact and coverage. However, mass media advertising has to be carefully constructed, this is to minimize any chance of a mistake. Where to target advertising can also be an important decision. Parties often tend to heavily advertise in marginal seats, however, this policy has been costly. This is because other seats have lost support for the party and swung to another party. Media is seen as one of the greatest influences on modern politics. Due to the introduction of television and radio news about politics is always being  articulated. This is because people use media as the main medium to decide on political parties. However, recent pools suggest that media being so influential is overrated. This is due to free to air media needing to gain ratings to sell advertising. Thus, if a political party is unpopular it would not be in the media’s best interest to support the party. As the media could potentially lose ratings. It is echoed by John Willmott that media doesn’t set political opinion it just merely enforces it.

Benefits of Technology Essay

Primarily, technology allows us to reach the better standard of living. Firstly, we can now adjust our habitat to suit ourselves. For example, when it is too hot, we have fans or air-conditioners to make it cooler. Also, with high technology we can create buildings that can withstand earthquakes. Those buildings have special structures and they are made of supreme materials that can minimize the impacts of earthquakes. Automatic houses represent high-tech as well. Now with a few taps on the panel display people can set up the security alarm and control their houses easily. The second feature which I should mention is that, high technology provides us with better health care. Modern medical devices are playing important roles in healing people. For instance, Ultrasound Diagnostic Scanners assist doctors in diagnosing diseases. More and more people are being cured. Beside, technology also allows us to create new drugs in good quality and quantity. In fact, without technology the mass production in medicine seems impossible. Last but not least, technology has good effects on transportation. Throughout history, transportation has developed a lot; and its developments depend on the developments of technology. In the past, we used horses to travel over long distances, but today we can use vehicles or air planes to move from place to place. In addition, modern vehicles can carry heavy weight that antique conveyances could not. Indeed, we have ships that can load thousand tons weight. Finally, the inventions of television, computer and internet lead us to the new age, the Age of Information Technology. Nowadays, we can communicate over very, very long distances. If I want to know what happen to any country all over the world, for example, I just need to search for the information on the internet. Beside, television provides us with the new ways of communicate, the mixture of language and images. You can broadcast your information in videos, audios and images through telecasting. There is no doubt that technology has made our life easier than it was in the past. With the help of technology, we have no longer worried very much about  transportation, communication, health care or even about our standard of living. Perhaps with the development of technology in future, we can travel or live in other planets which support better living conditions for human. In conclusion, technology may be the most valuable property of human being.