Blockbuster Australia Essay Example for Free

Blockbuster Australia Essay Blockbuster Australia is a subsidiary of Blockbuster Inc. that operates more than 400 stores in Australia. The companys leadership in Australia is made possible through the acquisition of smaller video rental houses and the franchising of the company brand to other businesses. Blockbuster is noted for its commitment to provide the most convenient means for its customers to access movie and games using multiple channels of distribution, like its physical stores, by mail, and through the Internet. Worldwide retail home video industry revenues for 2007 reaches more than $20 billion, half of the sales came from international locations, like Australia. The retail home video industry is an important market for movie studios as box office performances are not enough to provide studios with profits. Blockbuster Australias success in capturing a large portion of the multi-billion industry is largely due its number of stores, franchisees, and sources of information. The companys sources of information include: word of mouth, print advertisements, online data sources, and social networking sites. Word of Mouth Word of mouth happens when there is a verbal exchange of information, generally, of positive nature, like recommendations and referrals. Blockbuster takes care of its customers so that theyd tell their friends and acquaintances to obtain their home video needs from any of its outlets. Word of mouth can be made through face-to-face communication or through the phone, e-mail, and SMS. Marketers expands the use of word of mouth as a promotional technique. Instead of waiting for the natural buzz to happen because of excellent products and services, the company creates its own buzz by engaging individuals to talk about the company and its products. In the Internet, word of mouth promotion can happen in blogs, forums and social networking sites. A person engaged by the company can offhandedly insert a good comment or begin a conversation that would have an underlying promotional intent. Print Advertisements Promoting products and services in print is a classic marketing technique that remains highly effective. Blockbuster can buy spaces in newspapers or magazines to increase customer awareness and maintain visibility. The company can also create paper handouts that would lists their latest offerings and hand them to customers who visit their stores. Not only will the customers read about the company, others around that person would also learn about the company. Online Data Sources There are many online advertising and marketing services offered in the World Wide Web. For instance, Blockbuster can go to Business for Sale Online to promote its products and services. It can also employ affiliate marketing to boost traffic to its site and increase sales. Social Networking Sites Social networking sites are highly popular places for all sorts of people from all age groups to gather and exchange information. Blockbuster can post an advertisement on any of this site to increase customer recall. The company can even engage marketers to talk about it in a manner that does not sound like a promotional pitch. BIBLIOGRAPHY Business for Sale Online (September 11, 2000), http://www. businessonline. net. au/main. htm Sorce, Patricia, and Dewitz, Adam. The Case for Print Media Advertising in the Internet Age. New York: Printing Industry Center at Rochester Institute of Technology, 2007. http://print. rit. edu/pubs/picrm200602. pdf United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Blockbuster Inc. Form 10-K. http://sec. gov/Archives/edgar/data/1085734/000119312507044360/d10k. htm (accessed October 14, 2008). Word of Mouth. Answers Corporation (2008), http://www. answers. com/topic/word-of-mouth

Causes of Currency Crises and Banking Crises

Causes of Currency Crises and Banking Crises Introduction Based on my readings, I have found that currency crises often accompanied by banking crises or banking crises preceded by currency crises or even has no significant relationship between the two. So, why are currency crises often accompanied by banking crises? In this paper, I will discuss on how such problem may occur based on historical perspective, in which the countries that have experienced Twin Crises. The next issue is  the effectiveness and desirability of capital controls as a means by which developing countries can manage sudden capital inflows and/or outflows. This is where the credibility of capital controls are being challenged whether such restriction should be taken into a serious consideration for the policymakers to implement. It is important to analyse these economic situations due to past economic disasters in which the issues stated were significant in the 1994 Mexican peso crisis, 1997 Asian Financial crisis and the 1998 Russian financial crisis. Twin Crisis The simultaneous occurrence of currency crises and banking crises is known in economic term as Twin Crises, introduced by economists Carmen Reinhart and Graciela Kaminsky in the late 1990s. This phenomenon became a common problem in financially liberalized emerging market economies in the 1990s which started with the  1994 Mexican crisis, followed with the 1997 Asian financial crisis  and the  1998 Russian financial crisis. Kaminsky and Reinhart (1999) did an extensive research on the relationship between financial and banking crises for 20 countries and over a 25-year sample and found that banking crises often precede currency crises. The mechanism basically relies on two features. Firstly, governments hold a fixed exchange rate system and secondly, a mismatch between domestic assets and foreign liabilities by domestic banks, thus, exposing to exchange rate risks( Goldstein, Itay 2005 ). A currency crises, also known as the Balance of Payment crises,is a situation in which a nation is suffering from a chronic balance of payment deficit. This problem exists when a nation is unable to finance the imports and debt repayments. The country’s central bank would be in a doubtful position whether, given the fixed exchange rate, it has sufficient foreign exchange reserves to maintain the value of domestic currency. Government often intervenes by using the countrys own currency reserves or its  foreign reserves to satisfy the excess demand for a given currency ( Wikipedia, 2014 ). It came to a period when these emerging market economies were experiencing rapid economic growth, creating massive capital inflows, which will then lead to the crises. A banking crises, however, is a financial crisis that affects banking activity which includes bank runs, banking panics and systemic banking crises, in which a country experiences a large number of defaults and financial institutions face difficulties repaying contracts. A bank run occurs when depositors believe that the bank may fail which led them to withdraw all of their deposits from that bank. This causes the banking system to be insolvent if it cannot pay its debts as they fall due. Insolvency can be defined as the inability to pay ones debts. Cash flow insolvency, or a ‘lack of liquidity’ may occur as well when the bank might end upowingmore than itowns or is owed ( postivemoney.org, n.d ). Twin Crises started off when investors begin to lose their confidence as the massive capital inflow in the country creates uncertainty among investors in which the debt their capital is generating. The country’s currency will be at stake as the resulting outflow of capitals created by investors as they withdraw all of their funds will devalue the affected nation’s currency. Firms of the affected nation who have received the inbound investments and loans will suffer, as the earning of those firms is typically derived domestically but their debts are often denominated in a reserve currency ( Kallianiotis, 2013 ). Once the nation has exhausted its foreign reserves trying to support the value of the domestic currency, government can raise its interest rates to try to prevent from further decline in the value of its currency. While this helps those with debts denominated in foreign currencies, it generally further depresses the local economy as high interest rate usually enc ourages saving and discourages investment. Real-World Financial Crises The 1997 Asian financial crisis was a period of financial crisis which affected many economies in the East Asia. It began in Thailand when they had accumulated a massive foreign debt. In the effort to support the value of baht, the government had no choice but to float the Thai baht due to insufficient of foreign currency reserves, reducing peg against the US dollar. Until 1999, economies in South East Asia enjoyed a prosperous period as they had received large inflow of money. High interest rates in emerging economies attracted many investors due to the fact that it may give a high return for the investors. As a result, price of assets in these countries began to rise at an alarming rate which created insecurity among investors. Lenders started to withdraw all of their funds at a large scale, creating credit crunch and bankruptcies. Furthermore, there was a depreciative  pressure on their exchange rates as the supply of currencies of the crisis countries was high in the exchange market. Governments from these countries had to intervene in the exchange market. To prevent any loss in value of domestic currency, they had to raise domestic interest rates by buying up any surplus of the domestic currency. The Mexican government’s move to devalue the peso against the US dollar created an outburst which led to the Mexican peso crisis in 1994. In order to maintain in the value of peso, the Mexico’s central bank allowed the peso to free float within a narrow band against the US dollar through an exchange rate peg ( Wikipedia, 2014 ). Furthermore, the central bank would constantly intervene in the open market by purchasing or selling the pesos. The central banks intervention involved issuing new short-term public debt instruments denominated in U.S. dollars, using the borrowed dollar capital to purchase pesos in the foreign exchange market, will cause an appreciation in its value. Since the peso is reckoned to be increasing in value, the high purchasing power by domestic businesses, firms and consumers created an incentive to purchase more imported goods, resulting in a large trade deficit. Speculations regarding the over-valuation of peso began to circulate which encouraged investors to purchase more of U.S assets. It will be more profitable for investors as they will be able to capitalize the high exchange rate when they exchange dollars for pesos later. The resulting capital outflow from Mexico to United States caused a capital flight which put a downward market pressure on the value of peso. To curb this issue, newly inaugurated President Ernesto Zedillo in 1994announced the Mexican central banks devaluation of the peso between 13 and 15 percent. Due to the unpredictability of Mexican policymakers, investors felt insecure and afraid of further devaluations in the currency, putting an upward market pressure in the interest rates and a further downward pressure on the value of peso. Foreign investors began to rapidly withdraw their capital from Mexican investments due to possible devaluation of peso. As a result, the Mexican central bank had to raise the interest rates to prevent from capital flight. Capital Flows Capital flows is simply defined as the transaction of real and financial assets and it is recorded in the capital account. When a country has a deficit in the capital account, it means the country is experiencing a capital outflow, like Japan. The country is supposedly purchasing more assets or making more loans or both at the same time, thus accumulating net claims on other countries. It is a situation in which it is undesirable to the economy. Contrarily, if the country is having a surplus in the capital account, depicting capital inflows, it is said that other countries are accumulating claims on that particular country. Capital flows provides many great economic advantages. Countries are now able to â€Å"catch-up† with the advancement of other countries by capitalizing on their differences. Capital flows enables residences of different nations to invest in other countries by engaging in inter-temporal trade, allowing them to reap benefits or profits for future consumption. Be it an economic boom or recession, optimum level of national consumption or expenditure is vital in every economy. Thus, capital flows helps to prevent from a fall in national consumption in case of an unexpected economic downturn, by selling domestic assets or borrowing from the rest of the world. Thus, overall improvement in economic performance can be achieved as it will aid substantially in terms of productivity and efficiency. Free capital mobility may seem desirable, though, in reality it comes at a cost. Given the exchange rate, developing countries or emerging market economies tend to acquire more assets by purchasing a massive amount of goods and services than the rest of the world. This is due to several reasons. These countries may not be on par in terms of economic performance, efficiency as well as resources compared to the rest of the world. Besides, it may be due to fluctuation in the world price of commodities. The implementation of expansionary economic policy by government will increase the demand for imports. As a result, appreciation of foreign currency will occur due to high demand of foreign goods and at the same time, a depreciation in own currency due to a low demand for domestic commodities. Since government would want to hold a fixed exchange rate regime, they can implement a contractionary monetary policy, a method of selling domestic bonds which increases the domestic interest rate, in order to maintain the value of domestic currency. The demand of domestic currency will be improved which will increase the value of domestic currency. Again, it proves to be costly as high interest rate will discourage investment, since it is now more expensive to borrow from the bank, reducing a potentially larger economic growth. This shows that free flow of capital may cause an upward pressure in the value of currency which may jeopardise local firms, making them less competitive in the global market. Emerging market economies are the usual target for â€Å"hot money† with sudden injection or withdrawal of funds, thus, creating distortion or instability in the market. Large volumes of capital inflows on search for higher yields causes dislocations in the financial system. Foreign funds might fuel asset price bubbles, encourage excess risk taking by cash-rich domestic intermediaries ( Magud, Reinhart Rogoff, 2005 ). Having a strong and independent monetary policy is more viable than sustaining free flow of capital. Due to potential harmful effects of free flow of capital to the economy, capital controls is introduced to prevent such consequences from happening. A capital control is any policy designed to limit or redirect capital account transactions and may take the form of taxes, price or quantity controls, or outright prohibitions on international trade in assets ( Neely, Christopher J. , 1999 ). Capital Controls There are two types of controls which are the controls on inflow and outflow of capital. Like Malaysia during the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s, control on capital outflows was introduced to supposedly generate revenue, correct balance of payment deficit as well as preserve savings for domestic use. Control on capital inflows, used by Chile during the Latin American debt crisis, was used to prevent potential volatility inflows, financial destabilisation and real appreciation as well as correcting balance of payment surplus and limit foreign ownership of domestic assets. This shows various type of capital controls are targeted at specific type of movement. The question is, how effective capital control is and to what extent should it be implemented ? During the Asian Financial Crises, Malaysian government imposed controls on outflows in 1998 by pegging the exchange rate at RM 3.80 for every US dollar. Their objective was to delay from exhaustion of foreign reserves and provide as much time possible for policymakers to implement reflationary policies as well as eliminating speculation against the ringgit. Malaysia’s stock market capitalization ratio at 310 percent of GDP, compared to 116 percent in the U.S., and 29 percent in Korea and domestic debt-GDP ratio at 170 percent were, at the time, highest in the world (Perkins and Woo, 2000). In response to the crisis, Malaysian government raised the interest rates to stem the decline of the ringgit and restructured their expenditure by reducing it by 18 percent ( Ethan Kaplan and Dani Rodrik, 1999 ). However, the economy showed no sign of improvement. Their effort to reduce domestic interest rates seemed to be pointless as speculation against the ringgit in offshore markets was circulating widely. The speculation lead to the borrowing of ringgit at premium rates to purchase dollars, which created a devaluation pressure on ringgit. Worried of capital flight and further depreciation of the currency, the Malaysian government also banned for a period of one year all repatriation of investment held by foreigners. Malaysia also lowered the 3-month Bank Negara Intervention Rate from 9.5% to 8% and the liquid asset ratio was reduced from 17% to 15% of total liabilities ( Ethan Kaplan and Dani Rodrik, 1999 ). On February 15th, 1999, the Central Bank of Malaysia changed the regulations on capital restrictions, shifting from an outright ban to a graduated levy and replacing the levy on capital with a profits levy on future inflows ( Ethan Kaplan and Dani Rodrik, 1999 ). After the imposition of capital controls in 1998, Malaysia showed a strong and quick revival from the Asian financial crisis. The fact that Korea and Thailand, which had opted for IMF’s progra mme, recovered remarkably suggesting that capital controls imposed in Malaysia did not make any significant difference than the IMF’s financial aid. Chile seemed to favour controls on capital inflows and been relying on it in two different occasions (1978-82 and 1991-98). The effectiveness is questionable, however, as in 1981-82 Chile went through a currency crisis despite with controls and restrictions. The peso was devalued by almost 90 percent and a large number of banks had to be, bailed out by the government ( Edwards, Sebastian 1999 ). The controls were being reintroduced in 1991 with the objectives of slowing down the volume of capital inflows into own country, reducing the real exchange rate appreciation resulted from these inflows, allowing the Central Bank to maintain a high differential between domestic and international interest rates. In 1984, Chile has adopted a slightly flexible exchange rate system, where the peso-dollar rate was allowed to fluctuate within an upward-moving band. The authorities argued that by maintaining domestic (peso) denominated interest rates above international rates, inflation would decline gradually (Massad, 1998). This policy mix worked relatively well until the late 1980s, when Chile regained access to international financial markets, and capital began to flow into the country putting pressure both on the real exchange rate and domestic interest rates ( Edwards, Sebastian 1999 ). By early 1990, domestic firms were considerably affected, as the rapid strengthening of peso has reduced their level of competitiveness and profitability. To sum it up, the effectiveness of Chile’s controls on capital inflows has been overestimated. After the controls were imposed, the maturity of foreign debt contracted by Chile increased significantly. The evidence suggests more than 40 percent of Chile’s debt to G-10 banks had a residual maturity of less than one year ( Edwards, Sebastian 1999 ). Although the policy affected the composition of capital inflows, it did not reduce the total volume of aggregate flows moving into Chile during the 1990s. The controls on inflows had no significant effect on Chile’s real exchange rate in which it appreciated by approximately 30% during the 1990s. The controls had a short term effect on domestic interest rates. The magnitude of the effect was very small, however, raising the question of whether the central bank’s ability to undertake independent monetary policy really enhanced by the controls on capital inflows ( Edwards, Sebastian 1999 ) . Conclusion Control on inflows seems to be more favourable among authors and economists than those on outflows. Controls on outflows usually create corruption as it easier to evade than the inflows (Reinhart and Smith, 1998; Eichengreen, et al. 1999). If there is an anticipation in the depreciation of domestic currency, this creates an incentive for investors to evade controls on outflows to prevent from losses.When faced with the prospect of a major crisis, the private sector finds ways of evading the controls, moving massive volumes of funds out of the country. Controls on capital outflows have resulted in corruption, as investors try to move their monies to a â€Å"safe haven.† In almost 70% of the cases were controls on outflows were used as a preventive measure, there was a significant increase in â€Å"capital flight† after the controls had been put in place. Cuddington (1986) reached a similar conclusion in his study on the determinants of capital flight in developing countr ies. Evading controls on inflows, however, proved to be less beneficial among investors as investing in other countries would be less viable compared to domestic return. REFERENCES : L. Kaminsky, Graciela and M. Reinhart, Carmen (1999) The Twin Crises: The Causes of Banking and Balance-of-Payments Problems Vol. 89 No. 3 Online at :  http://home.gwu.edu/~graciela/HOME-PAGE/RESEARCH-WORK/WORKING-PAPERS/twin-crises.pdf Accessed 20 December 2014 Goldstein, Itay (April 2005) Strategic Complementarities and the Twin Crises Economic Journal. Online at :  http://www.res.org.uk/details/mediabrief/4392181/Explaining-Twin-Financial-Crises.html  Accessed 20 December 2014 Tornell, Aaron (2002) Twin Crises The National Bureau of Economic Research Online at :  http://www.nber.org/reporter/winter02/tornell.html Accessed 20 December 2014 J. Neely, Christopher (1999) An Introduction To Capital Controls Online at :  http://research.stlouisfed.org/publications/review/99/11/9911cn.pdf Accessed 27 December 2014 Baba, Chikako and Kokenyne, Annamaria (2011) Effectiveness of Capital Controls in Selected Emerging Markets in the 2000s IMF Working Paper Online at :  https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2011/wp11281.pdf Accessed 27 December 2014 Edwards, Sebastian (1999) HOW EFFECTIVE ARE CAPITAL CONTROLS? The National Bureau of Economic Research Online at :  http://www.nber.org/papers/w7413.pdf Acccessed 27 December 2014

Aims Of Ethics In The It Industry Information Technology Essay

Aims Of Ethics In The It Industry Information Technology Essay Introduction According to the Larousse dictionary, Ethics are rules or standards governing the conduct of a person or members of a profession (medical ethics, IT ethics, and health ethics etc). The conduct of a person implies integrity; integrity plays an essential role in the ethical behaviour. A person with ethics act with personal code of principles, apply moral standards and respect and consideration in every situation. Information technology is the processing of data via computer, it is the use of hardware and software technology to process and distribute information in digital and other forms. Ethics in information technology refers to the code of conduct or guidelines for people working in the IT industry or using IT infrastructure. In this essay we will try to found out why is that ethics is so important to today industry, whats the role that it plays to help every business running smoothly. We will also identify what will be the impact of a non existence code of conduct in IT on the society. AIMS OF ETHICS IN THE IT INDUSTRY When talking about ethics, the more important thing to think about is personal values. Value is largely part of ethics. And you can talk about ethics without mentioning personal values and moral. The purpose of ethics in information security is not just philosophically important; it could mean the survival of a business, or an industry.   Information technology, computers and networks do not raise new ethical issues, ethical issues has always been the major part of a working environment. However the Internet does contribute a fascinating sense of anonymity; the notion that no one can see or find out what we are doing.   The main role of ethics in the IT industry is providing a firm ground basis for the use of IT whenever needed  [1]  . The IT industry is divided in different organisation body, and each body apply various codes of conducts regarding their target, the area of working and their consumers. The ethics varies depending on the academic board. There is a global code of ethics for the whole information technology but each professional board will have their own preamble code of ethics. PROFESSIONAL IT WORKER AND ETHICS An IT professional is describe as someone with a specific or specialized knowledge, and also with a long and intensive academic career. Various role applied for someone to be call an IT professional, could a, Programmers, Systems analysts, Software engineers, Database administrators, Network administrators etc There are various are where ethics come in plays when working in Information Technology; professionalism, personal integrity, privacy, law and policies, communication, system integrity, education, social responsibility. IT professionals have many different relationships that must be managed with: Employers, Clients, Suppliers, Other professionals, IT users, Society at large  [2]  . Relationships between IT Professionals and Employers IT professionals must set an example and enforce policies regarding the ethical use of IT. Software piracy is the act of illegally making copies of software or enabling others to access software to which they are not entitled. Software piracy is an area in which IT professionals can be tempted to violate laws and policies. The Business Software Alliance (BSA) is a trade group that represents the worlds largest software and hardware manufacturers. Its mission is to stop the unauthorized copying of software produced by its members  [3]  . Many of the ethical issues that face IT professionals involve privacy. For example: Working as a network administrator or a network security doesnt allow you to access data on a network whenever you want to. Because of the personal ethical believe, use of data should be only and strictly for professional purpose if not there is a breach of code. Is it fair for an IT worker to access a private employee folder or email because it got the user password? Many other issues involving privacy could be raised here, it important that as an IT professional you behave with ethical conduct that regulate the work of IT. Other issues that we need to look at in the relationship between IT professional and employer is the Trade secret; Information used in business must be only within the business if not there is a breach of code of ethics In looking to those privacy issues above, it is so easy to see how one those actions above could be used in critical way to jeopardize the working environment. Many of the information gain by an IT professional could be use as a form of pressure to have a political advantage or to be used to get someone fired.  [4]   Relationships between IT Professionals and Clients IT professional provide various type of work at the hardware and software services at some cost within a given time period. According to Deb shinder network security expert, Ethical problems arise if a company recommends its own products and services to remedy problems they have detected. It is then important that a strong code of ethics need to be set up to avoid this kind situation to happen for the sake of every party.  [5]   Relationships between IT Professionals and Suppliers There need for a good relationship between supplier is very important for the long term survival of the business. It is also important to have a fair deal with suppliers each when required. Bribery should be always avoided in respect of the code of ethics.  [6]   Relationships between IT Professionals and Other Professionals Working environment is a very delicate place to be, mutual respect between each professional is vital for day to day running of the business. Professional should adopt a professional code of conduct. Some ethical issues between members of the IT profession could arise but it important that strictly respect of the code apply.  [7]   Relationships between IT Professionals and IT Users IT users are people that use any IT infrastructure everyday for different purpose. Basically is a person for whom a hardware or software product is designed. Its important to understand the user needs and capabilities to establish an ethical environment that supports ethical behaviour by users  [8]  . Relationships between IT Professionals and Society The fact that IT professional are the main people behind the technology we use, make play an important role on us and the society in general. They play a major role in the IT user life. Maintaining and respecting the code of ethics establishes is essential and vital for the society. There action can affect the society in various ways, its then important they adhere to the code of ethics and rules that are in place to maintain a coherent and free of bias society. ETHICS AND IT END USERS Ethical use of IT is a really growing concern nowadays, with the rapid growing of internet and it social network application, download, online streaming and all others available application for the internet make this area a very concern for local government and watchdog. End users are main people affected by this issue, because it so hard to have a written code of conduct of conduct that user should follow. Code of ethics here required moral and personal integrity of each user. With the rapid growth of pornography, hacking, social network attack, viruses and other related threats, it is important that each user apply some common sense moral for the simple fact that this an area that is really difficult to monitor. The main objective of the code of ethics is  to establish professional business standards that will protect and enhance the concept, the image, the credibility and the sustainability of the business. CONCLUSION The code of ethics provide guidance by establishing a set of rules and standards for the use of IT and for the behaviour to adopt when working in the IT environment or when using IT infrastructure. There are different from the law but there are made in accordance with the law. So many issues regarding the ethics in IT couldnt be raise here, the ethics in IT is a very large to develop, many IT authors have wrote books and journals to raise this issues. In our essay we have try to give an idea how ethics come in play in the working environment and for IT user.

The Supernatural in Shakespeares Macbeth :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Use of the Supernatural in Macbeth      Shakespeare’s Macbeth has many supernatural actions. Although all of supernatural do not have exactly same role in the play, the main purposes of supernatural are to attract the attention from audience [manipulation], to foreshadow future events, to show the characteristics of individual, and to connect the idea with theme. In the play, the supernatural occurs: witchesà ­ appearance throughout the story, the strange behavior of Macbeth after the murderer of King Duncan, the situation of nature in Scotland, appearance of Banquoà ­s ghost and imagination of dagger which was flying in the air. Firstly, the story starts with weird sistersà ­ conversation under strong thunder and lightning. It is very effective way to attract the attention from audience: First Witch says with scary voice, "When shall we three meet again, In thunder, lightning, or in rain ?" (I, i, 1-2) The very first scene is not only attractive, but also there is an important clue for the things to be happened in the future [foreshadowing]. We learn that there is something going to happen with Macbeth à ± Macbeth wins for his life, but he also is going to lose for his life: "There to meet with Macbeth" (I, i, 7) "Fair is foul, and foul is fair." (I, i, 11)The speech of Witches also contains a theme. "When one wins, one must lose" is a possible theme that can be taken from the speech: "When the battle is lost and won" (I, i, 4) The witches continue appearing throughout the story to give us the excitement, hint and theme.    Secondly, Macbeth loses his mind after the killing of King Duncan. Is it attractive ? By considering the situation, it can be said that it is attractive à ± When he reenters into the play after killing of Duncan, he is a completely different man, like a stone. We must be surprised that if Macbeth is standing up with bloody face, bloody swords in his hands and talks something that does not make senses at all: "Why did you bring these daggers from the place ?" (II, ii, 48) It also shows characteristics of Macbeth. Macbeth can easily fall into a confusion that he cannot recognize.    Thirdly, later in the story, Macbeth sees the Ghost of Banquo and the dagger in the air. However, the Ghost and dagger are only visible to Macbeth, and no one else is able to

The Advantages Of American Educational System Essays -- essays researc

The Advantages of American Educational System Parents and the older generation Americans always complain about the educational system of the country. They assert that their children's knowledge and skills are below average as compared to their counterparts in other countries. The American educational system is not inferior to other systems in any other way. Instead, it is just teaching some other factors that are considered more significant than simply basic knowledge and skills. The American educational system tries to develop freedom and creativity among its students. From an American point of view, only in this way can the students contribute maximally to the future society. Freedom is the trademark of America. Americans are admired by people in other countries because they have the freedom to do whatever they wish without worrying about the negative consequences. Therefore, the American educational system must be in congruence with this trademark. According to this system, children can learn effectively only when they are allowed to explore freely with their ideas, "without this they will not really be able to think or believe in themselves" . When children are forced to memorize some materials, they will remember the materials for a few days. However, they would have forgotten everything after a summer vacation. On the other hand, when children are allowed to think of their own ways of learning the concepts, they will tend to re... The Advantages Of American Educational System Essays -- essays researc The Advantages of American Educational System Parents and the older generation Americans always complain about the educational system of the country. They assert that their children's knowledge and skills are below average as compared to their counterparts in other countries. The American educational system is not inferior to other systems in any other way. Instead, it is just teaching some other factors that are considered more significant than simply basic knowledge and skills. The American educational system tries to develop freedom and creativity among its students. From an American point of view, only in this way can the students contribute maximally to the future society. Freedom is the trademark of America. Americans are admired by people in other countries because they have the freedom to do whatever they wish without worrying about the negative consequences. Therefore, the American educational system must be in congruence with this trademark. According to this system, children can learn effectively only when they are allowed to explore freely with their ideas, "without this they will not really be able to think or believe in themselves" . When children are forced to memorize some materials, they will remember the materials for a few days. However, they would have forgotten everything after a summer vacation. On the other hand, when children are allowed to think of their own ways of learning the concepts, they will tend to re...

Essay on school uniforms Essay

Imagine being able to wake up every morning, roll out of bed, put on the same thing you wore the day before, and head off to school. Not only would you be able to do such a thing, but all of your friends were doing it, too! Sound too good to be true? Well, it’s becoming more common in our society as school uniforms have gone beyond private schools to public schools. Uniforms have a positive effect on students’ self-esteem, attendance, discipline, and test scores. They have also been proven to decrease the rate of crime and violence in public schools. Most students and even parents will argue that SCHOOL UNIFORMS stifle individualism. The teenage years are a time when adolescents try out different personas, often experimenting with different styles of clothing during this phase. Opponents argue that uniforms take away an individual’s freedom of expression. However, the clothes that people wear, or can afford to wear, often define the group by which they are accepted. As a result, many teens are outcast due to the fact that they cannot afford the top-of-the-line, name-brand clothing. This rejection can lead to several problems for the outcast teen: depression, inability to concentrate on schoolwork, or just a general feeling of inferiority. School uniforms put everyone on the same level because no outfit is more stylish or expensive than another. Linda Moore, principal at Will Rogers Middle School in Long Beach, California, states, â€Å"Uniforms reduce the differences between the haves and have-nots† (Ritter, 1). Uniforms allow students to interact with one another without experiencing the socioeconomic barrier that non-uniform schools create. More importantly, children are not judged on how much they spent on clothes or how stylish they look, but rather for their talents and personalities. School uniforms not only break down socioeconomic barriers, but they also increase the safety of the students. In 1996, President Bill Clinton encouraged the use of school uniforms as part of an education program that sought to improve safety and discipline (Hoffman, 1). If students are all wearing the same type of outfit, it becomes much easier to spot outsiders  who may wander onto the campus. In addition, uniforms decrease the number of incidences of students being attacked or beaten for items of clothing such as shoes and jackets. Also, members of gangs frequently have a color or style of clothing used to identify themselves. Unsuspecting students who wear gang colors or gang-related attire might be threatened or intimidated by members of opposing gangs, students wearing expensive or fashionable clothes might become victims of theft, or certain fashion accessories or attire may be used as a means of concealing weapons, or even as weapons (Paliokas, 1). At a school in Long Beach, California, after only the first year that uniforms were implemented, overall school crime decreased 36 percent, fights decreased 51 percent, sex offenses decreased 74 percent, weapons offenses decreased 50 percent, assault and battery offenses decreased 34 percent, and vandalism decreased 18 percent (Manual, 3). Schools with uniform-clad students are also proven to have fewer disciplinary problems and increased attendance than non-uniform schools. Dr. John German, principal of South Shore, located in Seattle, Washington, reports, â€Å"This year the demeanor in the school has improved 98 percent, truancy and tardies are down, and we have not had one reported incident of theft† (Manual,4). Ruffner Middle School, located in Norfolk, Virginia, reports a 47 percent decrease in students leaving class without permission (Manual,5). With the implementation of uniforms, students no longer spend hours deciding what they are going to wear to school. This fear of looking â€Å"uncool† will often cause kids to decide that they do not feel well enough to go to school because they can’t find anything to wear. Uniforms allow students to focus more on their academics, and less on what everyone else is wearing. According to Long Beach police chief William Ellis, â€Å"Students concentrate more on education, not on who’s wearing $100 shoes or gang attire† (Manual, 3). Elementary Guidance Counselor Sharon Carter of Memphis, Tennessee states, â€Å"The tone of the school is different. There’s not the competitiveness†¦about who’s wearing what† (Manual, 5). Many families worry about not having enough money to buy uniforms. Due to the fact that no child can be denied an education because of economic  disadvantage, all schools requiring uniforms must include provisions to assist low-income families. For example, the Long Beach School District solved this problem by setting up a boutique shop, funded by private donors, where needy students can shop (Paliokas, 5). In addition, community and business leaders provide or contribute financial support for uniforms, and students who have graduated often donate their used uniforms to incoming students (Manual, 3). However, uniforms are considerably cheaper to buy than non-uniform clothes, and the students can wear them every day and it isn’t considered unusual. Parents can buy a few pairs of pants, shirts, or other variations of a uniform for under $100, while parents of non-uniform-wearing students can spend from several hundred up to $1,000 a year on clothing. Parents find that buying two or three uniforms is ultimately cheaper than buying clothes to follow the fads, and it stops arguments at home in the mornings about what to wear (Oland, 1). Pop culture increasingly sends young girls the message that the smaller and tighter the clothes, the more readily they will be accepted. These outfits, which flaunt navels and bra straps, are not only distracting, but detract from teaching time as teachers argue with students about what is considered acceptable attire. With uniforms, there are only a few acceptable variations of the outfit, no questions asked. A less well-known theory concerning the pros of school uniforms is the â€Å"halo effect.† According to researcher Marc Posner, the â€Å"halo effect† refers to the idea that while uniforms may not change student behavior, the uniforms may change the way teachers and other adults perceive the students who wear them. In a study of the correlation of student clothing and teacher and student perceptions, Dorothy Behling of Bowling Green University found that students and teachers alike believe that uniform-clad students not only behave better, but also do better academically than those who don’t wear uniforms. While this may be an illusion, these positive perceptions can help create a self-fulfilling prophecy that teachers and administrators raise their discipline and grading standards to reflect their more positive image of students, who, in turn, behave better. (School Discipline, 1). While research on the effectiveness of uniforms is still ongoing, they have been proven to raise test scores, boost self-esteem, reduce violence and crime, and create a sense of newfound pride in students. They help children to focus on learning and schoolwork, not on what everyone else is wearing or whether or not they fit in. Uniforms are not the solution to all of the problems that teens, teachers, and schools face today, but research and statistics suggest that they may be a step in the right direction.

Pericles Funeral Oration Essay

I do not think that everything Pericles said in his funeral Oration was true. Pericles goes on and on about how great the Athens city-state had become a strong democratic government. â€Å"He also talks about how they accept everyone into their city-state and give them the same rights as the Athens people regardless if they are foreigners†. â€Å"Pericles even compares his city-state to that of the Spartans; while using slanderous and defaming words to describe their culture†. Pericles believes from reading his Oration that the Athens are better people because of their equally of all in their city state and the freedom they have given their people. Pericles fails to see the contradiction in the culture and in the oration of the Speech he gives about the Athens way of life and this is because he is biased towards the men. Obviously everyone being equal is not true because woman is not equal to men and is certainly not treated as equals. â€Å"Pericles states himself that it is better for woman to never be spoken of whether it is glory or criticism†. He states that a woman’s place is in her home, the only jobs that are available to women are to bare children and to maintain the household, other than that everything else only a man should and could do. The fact that women are treated differently proves that the Athens were not a democratic state their laws to provide fairness to all the people were only catered to the males not the females. The Athens had a negative attitude towards woman and how they should be treated, Pericles seemed almost disgusted to even have to address woman in his speech and when he did he had nothing positive to say about them. Pericles exaggerates in his oration. He depicts a perfect picture of what the Athens society is thought to be, as if the people and the law have no imperfections that need to be spoken of. He illustrates a great city-state with no flaws but then continues to describe and speak of women as if they were not human and discrimination against them was normal. Pericles was in mourning and wanted to give the dead soldiers and their families and all the people of the city-state the honor and confidence they needed to continue on with the war so he exaggerated, he did not want to dishonor the soldier with his words so he chose to speak of their culture and everything they stood for. Coming from a leader’s perspective I think the ideology may be slightly off but much of it was true from the Athens culture and society.