Sustainable Management Futures Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Sustainable Management Futures - Essay Example The Body Shop’s business is not only concerned for profit generation motive but are also concerned about society and environment and belief in sustainable growth. The Body Shop has their community suppliers. There are around 31 community trade related suppliers in 24 countries. Their commitment is towards trading fairly and purchasing ingredients through Community Trade Programs. They provide preference to rural areas to become the member of the community trade for the growth of economy. The motive of community trading is to provide occupation and to build their livelihood (The Body Shop, 2006). The Body Shop International Plc is a natural, original and ethical cosmetic brand. All the products of The Body Shop are vegetarian. The company is against animal testing and is recognized as the first international cosmetics brand that was ‘Against Animal Testing’ policy. The Body Shop Foundation was launched in the year 1990 with a registered charity number. It is the co mpany’s own charitable foundation which specially focuses to help those who believe in development of the society (The Body Shop, 2011). . PESTEL Analysis PESTEL analysis enables to identify macro environmental aspects that generally are seen as prime drivers for change. The Body Shop has a global presence in number of countries throughout the world. In this context, the situational analysis of The Body Shop will be conducted with respect to the UK scenario. In the UK, the organisations that operate in the cosmetic industry have to abide by the ISO 22716 safety related standards which had been published on February 2010. The organisation such as The Body Shop has to select the specification that they come under from this certificate. In the UK, organisations have to abide by international trade policy to import and export their products. In recent times there has been an increase in the demand for online products. The government as well as the industry of the UK has supported the scheme related to trust mark, which has significantly helped in increasing the demand for online purchases. The exchange rates in the UK have been fluctuating with respect to Pound and also in the various countries from which the company acquires its raw materials. It has impacted in raising the import cost of raw materials as well as finish products. There has been an increase in VAT (Value Added Tax) to 20% in 2010, which has prompted an increase in daily commodity prices and would reduce the consumers from purchasing cosmetics related products. In the UK, high labour cost has been a concern in recent times which obstructed the company from fully exploring their global strategies. In the UK, the percentage of people in the age group of 65 to 85 is increasing, which would provide an opportunity of increasing sales regarding the anti-aging cosmetics. In the year 2012, the London Olympic Games will provide an option to create increased awareness of the products of the company am ong the huge number of visitors in the UK. The growing trend of natural products that are environment friendly will provide The Body Shop a massive growth prospect as the

How Gazda Cars and Bomino Printing approach the management of their activities Essay Example for Free

How Gazda Cars and Bomino Printing approach the management of their activities Essay Advantages * Its Organised * Their pay is related to their performance, which will motivate them perform better. * Work is carried out in controlled environment. * Its seen as social which motivates workers. * Managers convey moral elite, trustworthy, broadly motivated to organise influence others. * Employees have more control of their work (live to work). * Take interesting staff giving feeling of involvement, security job satisfaction, related to high achievement Disadvantages * Scientific approach used (work to live). * Communication between workers is bad. Not approachable, no influence. * Managers defined as rational economic, primarily motivated by just money. * Being too nice to staff makes managers look weak. Managers need that power so everything is in control. * Staff can abuse their manager if their needs are not fulfilled, e.g., they can strike. People can respond to many different types of management strategies, but there is no single strategy that will work for all everyone all the time. Therefore, Gazda Cars should refer to Fielders Contingency Approach to management. This theory supports the view of the complex man- i.e. the motives that man has which changes over time and in different situations, can be seen as personal hierarchy. It defines situational favourability, or the ease of influencing followers as the combination of situational factors: leader-member relations, task structure, and position power. Fielder argued that leadership style was innate and that the above three situational factors determined whether task or relations oriented leadership was more appropriate. The main ideas about Contingency Theory are: 1. There is no universal or one best way to manage 2. The design of an organisations and its subsystems must fit with the environment 3. Effective organisations not only have a proper fit with the environment but also between its subsystems and 4. The needs of an organisation are better satisfied when it is properly designed and the management style is appropriate both to the tasks undertaken and the nature of the work group. The contingency approach opens the door for the possibility that leadership could be different in every situation (Saal and Knight, 1988). It provides a more realistic view of leadership by allowing for complexity and situational specificity of overall effectiveness. As organisations today are faced with continuing changes in technology, environment conditions, and internal processes, this approach can offer a more sophisticated understanding of the leadership process and emphasise the idea of flexible, adaptive leadership that may contribute to the success of a company. However, the various models in contingency theory have been criticised largely for the difficulty in testing the contingency variables selected since variables may affect each other or be influenced by a leader. The complexity of situational factors and various combinations of task and subordinate characteristics makes a single comprehensive test of the model impossible (Wagner and Hollenbeck, 1992). As it is entirely possible that different leaders in the same situation may reach different conclusions about the situation, which may in turn cause them to take very different actions, the practical use of this theory in business is quite limited. Gazdas Mechanistic Structure Bominos Organic Structure Operates in a competitive fast changing environment but is not seen as exiting or fun. They are separate departments for production, sales, marketing, research and development, data processing, accounts and human resource management. Each member has their own specific role. Obedience to superiors and loyalty to the organisation are assisted upon. This structure is old fashioned. The communication usually comes in the form of instructions decisions issued by superiors and the performance feed back requests for decisions sent from subordinates. Work is carried in a controlled environment. Control authority relationships are structured in a vertical hierarchy. Operates in a highly complex environment. Tasks are highly specialised. Employees are not clear on how their tasks contribute to accomplishing organisational objectives. Distributes inkjet laser printing systems, which is a fast moving product, economically productive. Department are separated for all the main business functions. General roles are defined for each member. Authority relationships control are structured in a network rather than a hierarchy. This approach is to do with being nice to staff. Commitment to organisational goals is recommended more then loyalty or obedience. Teams are set up to work on new product development. Tasks are modified often redefined by means mutual adjustment among task holders. Workers have a variety of tasks which are broad and independent. Relation of task performance to attainment of organisational objectives is emphasised. Gazdas Role culture Bominos Task culture There are usually job descriptions, rules procedures to govern behaviour as well as procedures for all activities. Pay is related to performance. A role culture is one which emphasises conformity to expectations. As Harrisons theory states, such organizations can be said to be rational instruments for the achievements of specific goals. People work most effectively efficiently when they have relatively, simple clearly defined, circumscribed measurable tasks. However the company operates in a highly complex fast changing environment. Here management is seen as completing a succession of projects or solving problems, often as a part of a team. It is project oriented, bringing together the right people. The staff get a feeling of involvement; security general job satisfaction are closely related to high achievement. Performance is judged by results. Job satisfaction tends to be high, to the degree of individual participating group identity. Though the current tall structure and Role culture at Gazda internally complement each other, one can question whether those are the most efficient with regards to the dynamic and highly competitive external environment. Role culture and tall structure is perfectly suited in a stable external environment but cannot maintain maximum productivity in an unpredictable and rapidly changing external environment. Such structures and cultures lack the flexibility to quickly adapt to external influences; it is commonly known that if one cannot adapt to ones external environment then one is in great danger of becoming extinct. It is important to identify the need for reorganisation culture, process and structure. If reorganisation can be justified than the most feasible and effective approach should be implemented to replace its predecessor. The structure at Gazda is a much closed system where information processing and co-operation are slow. It can be said communication is the way to success, hence in order to achieve maximum efficiency champion manufactures need to increase levels of cooperation and information processing to improve the internal environment. Maybe a more organic approach, being an open system which emphasis is placed in group actions; co-operation and team work should be integrated into the present structure and culture along with lateral relationships. The pre dominant advantages of integrating these two new elements are firstly, allowing direct contact between employees and those higher up the hierarchy, hence problems are addressed quicker and time is used efficiently both the current structure and culture will successfully take the business further. In contrast to a tall organisation, a flat organisation will have relatively few layers or just one layer of management. This means that the Chain of Command from top to bottom is short and the span of control is wide. Due to the small number of management layers, flat organisations are often small organisations similar to Bomino Printing. A task culture refers to a team based approach to complete a particular task. They are popular in todays modern business society where the organisation will establish particular project teams to complete a task to date. A task culture clearly offers some benefits. Employees feel motivated because they are empowered to make decisions within their team, they will also feel valued because they may have been selected within that team and given the responsibility to bring the task to a successful end. I say they are both related because the informal structure relates to a particular task carried out by particular groups of individuals working together this is of a similar nature to a task culture. Decision making at managerial levels is more efficient as fewer people need to be informed/included in this process. Thirdly, staff motivation is increased at higher levels of co-operation means employees are not constantly being given simple direct orders by managers. This has a boosting affect on morale and motivation. Last but not least with a free flow of information present, all departments can be encouraged to succumb to change, therefore enabling the organisation to respond to influential external factors. Bomino Printing should remain loyal to the present culture and structure because this will help them build and progress further in the future. Bibliography Human resource management Ian Beardwell and Len Holden Management James A.F Stoner (Fifth edition) Organisations and behaviour Patrick Corner Principles of scientific management Fredrick W. Taylor Web sites http://www.northstar.k12.ak.us/schools/ryn/projects/inventors/taylor/taylor.html http://www.business.com/directory/management/management_theory/contingency_and_system_theory/ http://www.uniqindex.co.za/maslows.htm

Georgia :: essays research papers

The state of Georgia has a total area of 152,750 sq km (58,977 sq mi), including 2618 sq km (1011 sq mi) of inland water and 122 sq km (47 sq mi) of coastal waters over which the state has jurisdiction. The state is the 24th largest in the country and has the largest land area of any state east of the Mississippi River. Georgia has a top range north to south of 515 km (320 mi) and east to west of 441 km (274 mi). The mean elevation is about 180 m (about 600 ft). Georgia occupies parts of six natural regions, or physiographic provinces. They are the Atlantic Coastal Plain, the Gulf Coastal Plain, the Piedmont, the Blue Ridge province, the Ridge and Valley province, and the Appalachian Plateaus. Almost the whole area of Georgia was forested in early colonial times, and about three-fifths of the land is still covered by forests and woodlands. Mixed forests of deciduous and coniferous trees cover most of the Blue Ridge and Appalachian mountain areas. Normal trees in these areas include species of ash, beech, birch, hemlock, hickory, poplar, sweetgum, sycamore, red oak, white oak, and Virginia, shortleaf, and loblolly pines. Pines which dominate on the Piedmont are loblolly and shortleaf pine trees. On the coastal plains, slash, loblolly, and longleaf pines are found. The live oak, the state tree, thrives in the southern part of the coastal plains. Palmettos are found in areas of sandy soil, and bald cypresses and tupelo gums are commonly found in swampy and badly drained areas. Spanish moss festoons many of the cypresses in Okefenokee Swamp. Other trees that are found in the state include the red maple, sweet bay, black cherry, butternut, sassafras, southern magnolia, cottonwood, locust, and elm. Flowering plants grow in great abundance in Georgia. Those natural to the state include the trillium, galax, bellwort, hepatica, mayapple, bloodroot, violet, columbine, lady slipper, and Cherokee rose, which is the stte of Georgia’s state flower. Among the many shrubs and tiny flowering trees common in Georgia are species of laurel, mimosa, redbud, flowering dogwood, rhododendron, and flame azalea. White-tailed deer are the most common of the larger mammals found in the state. There are black bears in the northern mountains and in Okefenokee Swamp, and bobcats roam many of the rural areas. Red foxes, gray foxes, muskrats, raccoons, opossums, flying squirrels, foxes and gray squirrels are abundant in the forested areas, and otter and beaver are met in many swamps and rivers. In the mid-1990s there was about 43,000 farms in Georgia. Only about two-fifths had annual sales of $10,000 or more. Many of the rest of the farms were hobbies for operators who held different

How Hardy and Steinbeck treat the theme of ‘outsiders’ in ‘The Withered Arm’ and ‘Of Mice and Men’ Essay

Hardy and Steinbeck both use the theme of outsiders strongly in their stories. The term ‘outsider’ means one who is not a member of a profession, party or circle or one not acquainted with or interested in something that is going on. A person can be an outsider for many different reasons for example loneliness, disability, gender, race, age, size and action. Steinbeck’s short story ‘Of Mice and Men’ was set on a ranch in California during the American Depression in the late 1930’s. The story is about two men Lennie and George. Lennie is mentally disabled so George looks after him. When Lennie and George first meet the boss’s son Curley he immediately feels threatened by Lennie’s size. Lennie and George go and work on the ranch because they want to save up their money so they can buy a ranch of their own. As the story progresses 2 other characters, Candy and Crooks, become interested in their idea and ask if they can help out. Lennie is given a puppy by Slim (another worker on the ranch). One time Lennie is petting it and does not know his own strength and kills it. Curley’s wife comes in and asks what is wrong he tells her what happened and that it only happened because he likes stroking things. She lets him stroke her hair because she thinks it is soft. Lennie gets carried away and won’t let go. Curley’s wife struggles so much that he breaks her neck. Lennie becomes so frightened that he runs away and just leaves the body. Curley sees his wife and says he is going to give Lennie a horrible death. George hears Curley and decides to kill Lennie himself quickly and painlessly. George finds Lennie and starts to talk about their dream ranch, he raises the gun and shoots Lennie in the back when he is not looking. Hardy’s novella ‘The Withered Arm’ was set in England in the 1800’s. It is about a woman named Rhoda who has a son with the owner of the dairy farm at which she works. But now the farmer does not want to know her and is married to a younger prettier woman. Rhoda wanted to know what the new wife looked like so she sent her son to go and see. The son came back and told Rhoda what she was like. Rhoda had a dream, she dreamt that Farmer Lodge’s new wife was sitting on her and she thrust her left arm with her wedding ring on into Rhoda’s face. Rhoda grabbed her arm and threw her to the floor. The next day the farmers new wife visited Rhoda and revealed to Rhoda some marks on her left arm. A few weeks later Gertrude (Farmer Lodge’s wife) came back to see Rhoda and showed her that the marks on her arm were getting worse. Months later Gertrude goes to see a conjuror who makes an egg mixture which shows Rhoda’s face and says that to cure her arm Gertrude must touch the neck of a man who has been hung before he goes cold. Rhoda and her son leave and were never seen leaving. Gertrude found out when the next hanging was taking place and she then travelled to the jail. After the hanging she was shown where the body was. As she touched the body somebody behind her screamed. Gertrude turned around and saw Rhoda and Farmer Lodge standing there. The dead boy was Rhoda’s son. A few days later Gertrude passed away with shock. There are four main outsiders in ‘Of Mice and Men’ and also in ‘The Withered Arm’. The outsiders in ‘Of Mice and Men are Crooks, Candy, Lennie and Curley’s wife and in ‘The Withered Arm’ they are Rhoda, Gertrude, Farmer Lodge and Rhoda’s son. Crooks is an outsider in ‘Of Mice and Men’ because he is black and everybody else on the ranch is white so he is branded as different. A moment in the story where Crooks’ loneliness is shown is when Lennie comes into his room: â€Å"You go on get outa my room. I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse and you ain’t wanted in my room† This shows that Crooks is not allowed to go in their rooms invading their private space so he does not want them coming in his room doing that, if he is not allowed to do it. An outsider in ‘The Withered Arm’ Rhoda. She is and outsider because she has a son with Farmer Lodge and does not talk to any of the other workers at the dairy farm, so they think she is stuck-up: ‘†¦as the milkmaid spoke she turned her face so that she could glance past her cow’s tail to the other side of the barton, where a thin fading woman of thirty milked somewhat apart from the rest.’ This is a part in the story where Rhoda is at work at the dairy farm and all the other workers are talking about Farmer Lodge’s new wife. Rhoda does not join in the conversation for obvious reasons, but as they talk the workers look over at her. Candy is another outsider in ‘Of Mice and Men’. He is an outsider because he is older than any of the other workers. A part in the story where Candy’s loneliness is visible is when his dog is taken from him and shot by some of the other workers because they are sick of the smell of it: â€Å"Candy did not answer. The silence fell on the room again†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Candy lay still staring at the ceiling† Candy did not want his dog to be killed because it was his friend, but when it is killed he feels lonely as if he has got no one left. Farmer Lodge is also an outsider in ‘The Withered Arm’. He is an outsider because he is older than any of the other workers and he is rich, which everybody else is not. When he marries his new wife Gertrude they see him as being lonely because he has married a younger woman. Curley’s wife is an outsider because in ‘Of Mice and Men’ she has just married Curley and moved to the ranch, which his dad owns. All the other workers think she must be lonely because she is always seen wandering around the ranch, she is never seen with Curley. Similarly Gertrude is an outsider in ‘The Withered Arm’ because she has just married Farmer Lodge and moved to his home. When she comes home with Farmer Lodge everybody is talking about her ‘Who is she?’ and ‘What does she look like?’ so this must make her fell as though people are talking at her behind her back. In ‘Of Mice and Men’ Lennie is an outsider because he has a mental disability and is looked after by George. He is also does not know his own strength and hurts Curley, this incident makes him feel more vulnerable to the other workers: â€Å"Lennie smiled with his bruised mouth. ‘I didn’t want no trouble,’ he said. He walked toward the door†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ In the same way Rhoda’s son is an outsider in ‘The Withered Arm’ because he is dominated by his mother and at the end when he is hung, he is wrongly accused of something because of injustice: â€Å"a young fellow deserved to be let off, this on does; only just turned eighteen, and only present by chance when the rick was fired’ This is the part in the story when Gertrude goes to see if there is any hangings happening the next day and is told about one, which is Rhoda’s son. The man who is telling her says he is innocent. Dreams are featured a lot in both stories. Lennie, George and Candy have a dream in ‘Of Mice and Men’ to own their own ranch: â€Å"We’ll have a big vegetable patch and a rabbit-hutch and chickens.† Lennie and George at first are going to buy the ranch by themselves but then Lennie accidentally tells Candy, so George lets him help them. Curley’s wife also has a dream to become an actress and be respected. In ‘The Withered Arm’ Rhoda has a dream about Gertrude sitting on her with the wedding ring on: â€Å"the young wife, in the pale silk dress and white bonnet†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦the figure thrust forward its left hand mockingly, so as to make the wedding ring it wore glitter in Rhoda’s eyes†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦swung out her right hand seized the confronting spectre by its obtrusive left arm, and whirled it backward to the floor† However in this story the dream comes true because Gertrude visits Rhoda and shows her the marks on her arm. In ‘Of Mice and Men’ the style is mainly conversational, we learn about events through dialogue. Through language we can tell that the boss is aloof to the workers. The language is like a child’s when Lennie is moving; he is described like an animal. This story is known as a novella. It deals with poor and working class people. In ‘The Withered Arm’ the style is also conversational, we learn about Rhoda at the beginning through conversation. It is third person narrative and in the past tense. This story is known as a short story. Through language we can also tell that the boss is aloof to the workers. This story also deals with poor and working class people. The settings are very similar, as they are both set on a farm in remote areas of the countries in which they are set. ‘The Withered Arm is set on a dairy farm in England but ‘Of Mice and Men’ is set on a ranch in California.

How Did the Indsutrial Development Unite or Divide the North and the South Essay

During the Civil War, the advances of the Industrial Revolution introduced great changes in the industrial and technological development. Both the North and the South created many advances in railroad and water transportation. The Union, however, was far more advanced technologically than the Confederate states . Consequently, the North made greater and more effective use of progress in weapons, communication, transportation and medicine than South . Although the industrial development made the nation very widely known, both the south and the north were divided because their differences. The Civil War was the first modern war that helped strengthen the technology and industrial system. But their industry and technology distinguished the two sides, which represented different economic conditions. The North had developed a strong economy that was becoming day-by-day more industrialized. By the nineteenth century, large factories and organizations sprang up throughout the north. Also, the population of the country was increasing and immigrants from all over Europe came along. The North was becoming a huge success but the South was falling behind. The North was rising in a higher success rate than the South. The Union flourished more factories and more transportation. Canals were being handmade, there was an increase of labor force and there it was becoming more adequate to transport product through trains . Inventions were also becoming to life. For example, the Telegraph was becoming a extremely useful. Invented by Samuel F. B. Morse, the Telegraph was inexpensive to make and was ideal for long distance communication. The north had more advantages in growing the economy because it had twice as big as the population from the south. It had much greater man power and it had a better work force. Many factories from the north built war material to supply to the Union. However, slavery was decreasing around the 1860’s and factories were pouring in by the immigrants from Europe. In fact, seven out of every eight immigrants that traveled to the U. S. settled in the North rather than the South. The economy in the North was also increasing therefore immigrants settled there to establish their own business. Northerners were far more likely to have careers in business, medicine, or education . Also, children were slightly more prone to attend school than Southern children. As for the South, the warm climate and the fertile soil made it ideal for farmers to grow significant amounts of crops. There were more abundant natural resources in the south and because agriculture was so profitable few Southerners saw a need for industrial development . There were no large cities aside from a few known places. Most of the known cities existed near shipping ports to send agricultural produce to Northern destinations. However, the South had difficulty with transportation and most products were sent by water. Only a few train tracks were located in the South. In the other hand, Southern children tended to spend less time in school and most Southern families based their teachings in gravitating toward military careers as well as agriculture . The first half of the nineteenth century was a time of expansion and improvement of transportation systems. States in the North and the Midwest chartered and built overland roads and turnpikes. The Turnpike Era† (1790-1820) consisted of Americans relying on roads for internal transportation. Canals, such as the Erie Canal, tied New York City to the Great Lakes. Steamboats and railroads improved the movement of goods and people, forging ties that served both sides well during the Civil War. The first federal charter corporation that created the dream of the transcontinental railroad was the Union Pacific Railroad Company and the Central Pacific Company . Both of these companies gathered many immigrants, at low pay, to work massive hours to construct the railroad. However, better transportation fostered an upgrade on trade within the country and dispersed new civilization to the west. The industrial revolution created many social problems. Poverty became a growing concern, especially the fact that factory wages were scarcely adequate for family survival . Most residents experienced hunger and destitution. Among the poor, child labor was very common. Most parents forced their children to look for jobs instead of going to school for survival. Southerners often cited these factors as crimes whenever the North challenged its institution of slavery. The Industrial Revolution brought Southern landowners an invention that they adopted and embraced: The Cotton Gin. Invented by Eli Whitney, the cotton gin made slavery profitable and made cotton the nation’s number one export . The South also adopted the steam engine, mainly to aid the cotton gin and to use on steamships to transport cotton. Ironically, the success of the cotton gin, by fostering slavery, helped to separate the two sides of the country and bring about the Civil War. The pace of immigration also stimulated economic growth while increasing differences between North nd South. Immigrants, mostly from Europe at this time, were supplied with low-cost labor. Most immigrants lived in the North where jobs were constantly available but had no respect to the workers. The use of standard, interchangeable parts, especially the manufacturing of guns, clocks, and sewing machines , allowed the nation to advance technologically by using unskilled workers. During the Civil War, with Southern representatives of Congress gone and the Republican Party controlling the house of Congress and the presidency, â€Å"the government set about to aid business and technology†. In 1862, the Department of Agriculture was founded. It provided a national center to coordinate agricultural development and promote scientific farming. â€Å"A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure permanently half-slave and half-free. † This quotation was from Abraham Lincoln in 1858. Abraham Lincoln did not want the North and South to separate but for the Industry to grow bigger . In the first part of the quotation, â€Å"A house divided against itself cannot stand†, portrays that the United States needs to be UNITED not divided. A house needs to stand tall and not let anything else break it down. It is true that the â€Å"government cannot endue permanently half-slave and half-free† because this needs to be a united country not a haft this haft that country. Lincoln convinced others that the United States could not be this way. It had to bet glued together again and it had to abolish anything that was not right. However, throughout time, The Divided States of America was soon becoming the United States of America. After Lincoln’s death, three amendments were ratified that help America put back to place. The 13th amendment concluded that slavery was officially abolished . The 14th amendment granted â€Å"all persons born or naturalized in the United States, â€Å"to be citizens which included former slaves that were freed . The 15th amendment granted African Americans the right to vote . These three amendment helped bit by bit to repair the United States. Even though today there is still a difference in the North and South, our nation will always be together. The United States grew tremendously during the Industrial Revolution. Inventions were made, transportation was spread out, new jobs were increasing and more knowledge was diffusing. Throughout time, our population was growing and our nation got to spread out to the west to expand our land and culture. Even though our presidents may have made mistakes, we get to learn what we have done wrong and use that in our future. Our nation may have been divided for awhile but we can always retain it back. Back where it always was, united.

Is Tony Blair More Like a President Than a Prime Minister essays

Is Tony Blair More Like a President Than a Prime Minister essays Is Tony Blair more like a President than a Prime Minister In order to assess whether Tony Blairs leadership is more presidential than prime ministerial, one must first consider the significant differences between the presidential and Parliamentary regimes. The Presidential system of government is characterised by a constitutional separation of powers between the legislative (congress) and the executive (the Presidency). In Britain, however, the executive and legislative overlap. In theory, the US President exercises all of the prerogatives of the executive, and the British Prime Minister is obliged to share executive competencies. The US President (following advice from his staff and Cabinet) makes legislative recommendations to Congress, whereas the British Prime Minister (following consultations within the executive and having reached some form of collective agreement) issues legislative instructions to Parliament.1 The US constitution secures the Presidents position in office for a term of four years and they cannot be dismissed by congress (except through impeachment). However, looser party discipline means the President cannot regularly command Congressional support for his policies since their party may be in the minority in Congress. The British Prime Minister, in contrast, has relatively more power: provided the support of the majority party is sustained he or she leads both the executive and legislative arms of government.2 The prolific use of the term presidential in relation to Tony Blairs leadership can be used in both senses of the word. Firstly, to express the magnitude of Blairs leadership, and secondly as a means of expressing a qualitative shift away from the more traditional British political process. The analogy comes in a variety of guises and contexts that are differently motivated, have different sources and implications, and are diffe...

Analytical commentary holiday hw1 radio Essays - Human Behavior

Analytical commentary holiday hw1 radio Essays - Human Behavior Analytical commentary The transcript presented is a written piece of a conversation extract ed off the triple M Drive show called Kennedy and Molloy with interlocutors being Jane Kennedy ( JK ) and Mick Malloy (MM) who lament about the banning and height reduction of the "monkey bars' from the playground as they cause injuries. The social purpose of this segment is to persuade the audience to be on their side and take into consideration the importance of the monkey bars and how they help kids have fun, they also buil d rapport with the audience. The tone between the two varies in different parts of the conversation just as exemplified by the rise (\) and fall (/) sign on lines 85, 86 and 93. It is also friendly and mostly informative throughout the transcript which is encouraged by the nature of being work mates and buddies in the radio show business. The primary function is to talk about the monkey bars and how fun they were however, the simultaneously existence of the function moves into a number of social purpose as the two main interlocutors aim to build intimacy between each other which is evident on line 2 as JK refer to MM as Mick . A third party, the dj is also introduced into the conversation where he has an input on the matter. FUNCTION] The general function of this par ticular radio segment is for MM and JK to persuade the audience to be on their side when it comes to the monkey bars on the playground and how they affect the kids, MM states on like 1 how angry the banning of monkey bars makes him feel. The emotive expression shows how MM really feels which is angry, he persuades JK to agree with his opinion on the monkey bars. The interaction between the interlocutors also arises the function of informing as they start to list all the other things like trampolines ( line 95), bunkbeds (line 98) skiing (line 119) and rollerblading (line 121) which have the same effect on kids as the monkey bars do. The semantic field which is radio show also determines the function of the transcript, just like most radio shows, MM and JK are no stranger to persuading their audience, advertising their opinions and informing their audience about different matters at different occasions, th ey utilise this segment to do that. SOCIAL PURPOSE The social purpose of this text is to build rapport with the audience, this can be exemplified by line21 where MM uses inclusion language as he says "we all learnt". This al so helps the audience reminisce how much fun they had playing on the monkey bars at the playground . And the use of inclusion helps build the social solidarity between the audience listening to the radio show and the interlocutors . This also gives the audience a sense of belonging as they can relate to the matter at hand. As you read through the transcript we can see that the Australian slang is being used for example on line 24 JK says undies referring to underwear. This makes it easier for the Australian audience listening to the radio to understand what he's talking about since it's an Australian slang and jargon . This stimulates the social purpose since it allows the audience and interlocutors close the social distance between one another. The semantic field of radio and also playg round related makes it easier for the people who have been on monkey bars to relate to the issue. REGISTER The informal register is employed in this transcript through the use of Australian slang narrated on line 24 undies'. This gives the audience a sense of belonging while giving them a bit of a chuckle. The context in which the undies is mentioned also shows informality as it's said in a humorous way. The inform ality is also affected by the intonation and other vocal effects together with the vivacious dynamo supports the function of persuading while keeping the same informal register as the addition of slang such as " me ears" on line 4 and compounding on line 5 (we've) is utilised.

French Numerical Adjectives - Adjectifs numéraux

French Numerical Adjectives - Adjectifs numà ©raux In the   French language, numerical adjectives arent as complicated as they might sound - numerical adjective is simply the grammatical term for numbers. There are three types of numerical adjectives, each used for a different purpose - see table at the bottom of the page. Placement of Numerical Adjectives Cardinal numerical adjectives precede the noun they modify, as well as any other adjectives (numerical or not) that precede the noun.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Jai deux livres.  Ã‚  Ã‚  I have two books.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Il a achetà © une nouvelle voiture.  Ã‚  Ã‚  He bought a new car.  Ã‚  Ã‚  les trois premiers jours  Ã‚  Ã‚  the first three daysOrdinal numerical adjectives, multiplicatives, and the fraction demi usually precede the noun they modify:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Cest le deuxià ¨me jour.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Its the second day.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Il veut un double whisky.  Ã‚  Ã‚  He wants a double whiskey.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jy vais dans une heure et demie.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Im going in an hour and a half.Fractions, other than demi, require the following format in front of nouns: article/number fraction de:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jai regardà © un tiers du film.  Ã‚  Ã‚  I watched a third of the movie.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Il a bu deux cinquià ¨mes de la bouteille.  Ã‚  Ã‚  He drank two fifths of the bottle.   Agreement of Numerical Adjectives   Only a few numerical adjectives agree with the nouns they modify.1. Cardinal numbers - all invariable, except for one:  Ã‚  Ã‚  un homme (one man) / une femme (one woman)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  vs  Ã‚  Ã‚  deux hommes (two men) / deux femmes (two women)2. Ordinal numbers - First is variable. The rest are invariable, but note that if preceded by a definite article, it must match the gender of the noun:  Ã‚  Ã‚  le premier livre (the first book) / la premià ¨re peinture (the first painting)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  vs  Ã‚  Ã‚  le deuxià ¨me livre (the second book) / la troisià ¨me bouteille (the third bottle)3. Multiplicative numbers are all invariable.4. Fractions - demi can be masculine or feminine, while the others can be singular or plural:  Ã‚  Ã‚  un demi kilo (half a kilo) / une demie bouteille (half a bottle)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  vs  Ã‚  Ã‚  un quart (one fourth) / trois quarts (three fourths) Types of Numerical Adjectives Name Used for Examples Cardinal numbers Counting un, deux, trois Ordinal numbers Ranking premier, deuxime, troisime Multiplicative numbers Multiplying simple, double, triple Fractions Dividing un demi, un tiers, un quart *Fractions, with the exception of demi, are nouns rather than adjectives, but it makes sense to include them with the other types of numbers.Technically, numerical adjectives are not adjectives at all - they are a mathematical feature which, grammatically, act more or less like adjectives.

Organisation law---contracts and shares Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Organisation law---contracts and shares - Essay Example Advise Bob. The legal text that regulates the various activities of companies across Australia is the Corporations Act 2001; the case law is also applicable on issues, which are not particularly regulated by the Australian law –especially the above legislative text –, or those which have been already examined and evaluated by the Courts. At the first level, a company is a separate legal entity, which means that it has the responsibility of the actions developed in its name (Salomon v Salomon & Co [1897], Ander Transport Pty Ltd v Brambles Ltd (2004); the individuals that participate in a company need to follow the rules set by the company law – the principles of common law may also be applicable; furthermore, the members of a company have to follow the rules included in the company’s constitution – which is considered as a contract between the company and its members (CA s140(1)). The company – as a legal entity – can enter contracts with individuals or other companies; however, the company is an artificial person and cannot enter a contract by itself; it is represented by individuals, board of directors or agents (Lennard’s Carrying Co v Asiatic Petroleum [1915], Royal British Bank v Turquand (1856)); the contracts of companies with third parties (outsiders) are regulated i n the section 129 of Corporations Act 2001. Because of its nature as a separate legal entity, a company can be held liable for the damages that have been caused to outsiders because of the violation of the terms of contracts signed between them and the particular company; however, the members and the officers of the firm may be hold liable for the amount paid as compensation or losses to outsiders – in the context described above – referring especially to the case that the damages to outsiders resulted by the unfair conduct of the company’s affairs. In regard to the rights and the obligations

Debate Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Debate - Essay Example Shareholders value refers to the wealth and profits of the shareholders. It is a part of business ethics that company should strive continuously for maximizing the shareholders value (Zairi, 1998). According to the Vermaelen (2008), Professor of Finance at INSEAD, in the consideration of capitalist economy it is assumed that management has the responsibility to maximize the shareholders value. The value maximization should be considered as an implicit contract and in his opinion it is an ethical responsibility of the managers. Hence, the policies of the company that are designed to reduce the application of this implicit contract must be considered as an unethical practice. Until, of course, the Company has clearly stated in the shareholders contract about the different objectives of using the profit for other purposes. For example, a company decided to start a corporate social responsibility practice in the society for the sake of humanity. The application of this practice will be d one by distributing five percent of the company’s profit among the social welfare institutions. ... fessor Vermaelen clearly indicates that the mangers are liable to maximize the shareholders value, if they do so then they are on a right track, and if not, then they are violating the conducts of business ethics. Sometimes it seems that the companies violate the conducts of social ethics in maximizing the shareholders value. Here the question arises, is that ethical to violate the conducts of social ethics to maximize the wealth of shareholders? The profit of shareholders is associated with company’s profit and it has a positive relationship with profit as well. In the consideration of raised question the business ethics are designed to protect the rights of employees, customers, shareholders and the society. And companies are liable to follow the conducts of business ethics. The implementation of business ethics creates the company’s image in the society. The example for violation of business ethics and social ethics is given to understand the importance of considerin g the business and social ethics in the company’s practices. The case of Nokia in china is the perfect example for understanding the consideration of social ethics in the maximization of shareholders value. Everyone is aware with the fact that the China has low labor wage rates when comparing it with wage rates of other countries. China is highly focused on achieving economies of scale and they are getting success in their vision. Nokia is in contract with few Chinese electronic factories for the supply of mobile parts and accessories. But the factories do not supply the finished products. The factory has a great number of female labors. When the survey was conducted in the factory and female labor are asked to give their reviews regarding the application of policy of business ethics then a

Reflection paper Term Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reflection - Term Paper Example In the second section, the professor taught us how to write. We were given different kinds of assignments. Doing those assignments was a means of learning to write academically and professionally. Now that I reflect on my writing skills, I find noticeable improvement in the content, structure, organization, and quality of writing I produce. The most interesting thing about this course was the syllabus. The topics we discussed and wrote about were primarily oriented around freedom and independence. We learnt different ways in which advanced technology promoted personal freedom as well as intervened in people’s personal rights and space. For example, while we can explore the world and capture precious moments using the cameras of our smartphones, we can also freely take anybody’s pictures without having them even realize that they are being photographed. This is an intervention in an individual’s personal space and freedom but technology has equipped us to do this. We have to resort to our moral values to behave ethically in such scenarios and make only positive use of the technology in our hands. Similarly, we did an assignment where we discussed how cameras can be used to record people cheating on their spouses or how lie-detection machines can be used to learn the secret. All these practices come with certain advantages and disadvantages, with the disadvantage being primarily intervention in others’ personal freedom. We should use our moral judgment and conscience to make optimal use of such technology and avoid its secret use unless the benefits of the same outweigh the demerits. To discourage the inappropriate use of technology, the government should formulate laws and regulations to guide people’s behavior. People intervening in others’ personal space without consent and for unjustifiable reasons should be held accountable for their secret endeavors. Personal freedom is the fundamental right of every human being and must be granted. The

How do you feel about what has transpired surrounding the U.S. Supreme Essay

How do you feel about what has transpired surrounding the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on Obamacare (or the Affordable Care Act) - Essay Example They are at liberty to be insured by an agency of their choice. The Act makes healthcare more accessible and affordable to individuals, small business owners and families by reducing premium costs and offering tax relief. It is termed the biggest middle level tax reduction in history of healthcare (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services 1). Members of the middle class who do not have healthcare coverage will now be compelled to contribute towards the insurance coverage of the rest of the people. This has a beneficial effect to all because a majority of the citizens will end up paying less than what they would have otherwise been required to pay, including those in the middle class. I see no justification in opposing an Act that provides all these benefits, apart from selfish political interests that would rather exclude the poor from accessing healthcare to ensure a comfortable life for the rest. America is the only developed country that leaves out millions of its poorest popula tion from healthcare (Liptak 1). The approval of this Act will be a bridge between the poor and a decent healthcare program. The Act regulates the insurance industry by setting and imposing rules that discourage abuse. It forbids insurance companies from denying insurance coverage to citizens who have pre existing health conditions while according insurance clients power to appeal an insurance company’s assessment that deny treatments ordered by doctors (Liptak 1). I feel this sets a ground for all industry players while giving citizens on of their basic rights. I feel the Act is not discriminatory. It extends Medicaid and treats all States equally.  It has also preserved the children’s insurance plan and made enrollment for individuals and families much simpler (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services 1). Americans with disabilities also stand to gain as the Act enhances community based care for them. Expanding home care to those with long term needs of

Aims of Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Aims of Education - Essay Example There are now a lot of bodies of knowledge that education has morphed to branch out to several expertise schools. Their aims have become as varied. This paper will set out to determine the aims of education by providing insights from various experts with differing views, and determine how writing fits in it. Educational Aims The twisting of the phrase has been seen to connote changes of points of view from the learners’ and teachers’ end. It was suggested by Winch that â€Å"the formulation of educational aims for a society is a political matter and must be worked out by the interest groups involved,† (635). Aims, for Winch, are compromised so that aside from children, parents, and teachers, the employers, unions, educators, and the government are also included to determine the aims. Decision is not limited to educators but will also lie on all stakeholders or interest groups. Specifically, Winch has proposed that â€Å"it is not the business of the schools to p repare children for jobs, but, in the 13-16 age phase, to orient children who are beginning to form an interest of what would be involved in it† (Winch 2, 107-108). There is a distinction between education and schooling so that education is concerned with educational values against schooling being to instrumental ones. Then, there is also the argument that preparation for paid employment can be part of an individual’s preparation for life as proposed earlier by Peters who insisted that a job requires the individual to prepare for it in school and motivates the individual to focus for his education. Training should be extensive to encompass understanding of principles for wider practicality and human concern, and should be given at the right time for the individual to determine his chances at life (Peters, 48). In the context of human life, aims of education had been assailed to be narrower than life aims (Clarke and Mearman, 251) so that universities must be providing d ating services although both acknowledged the education on preparing the young to enter into relationships. Winch insist that in preparing young people for life through education, then, this necessitates education as preparation for all of aims in one’s life (636). Therefore, when an individual is preparing to become a teacher, he or she does not only get education to become a teacher but to prepare a life of a teacher, walking the talk and all. Winch clarified, too, that not all life aims are educational aims; such as the life aim of an individual to live in a big house may not be an educational aim to distinguish life aim and educational aim. Thus: The point of saying that the aim of education is to prepare one for life is to assert that it is to prepare one with respect to the general orientation of one’s life, particularly by equipping one with the knowledge, ability and understanding to follow that orientation (Winch, 636). Another specific example pointed out by Winch was about the aim to live an autonomous life of which with respect to education, is in preparing one to make rational and informed choices in pursuing wishes in life. This preparation will make the individual

What Customers Don't Know Won't Hurt Them, Will It Case Study

What Customers Don't Know Won't Hurt Them, Will It - Case Study Example Thirdly, there is another cause of conflict in that there is a clash in goals and objectives. The objective of the company is to maximize profit while the objective of Elena is to work hard and transparently so that she can climb the management hierarchy. This causes the conflict since the objective of Elena is hampered by the lies the management is employing. This leads to another cause of conflict, which is the substandard job performance by Elena. Another source of conflict is the difference over procedures and methods used by the management. Elena prefers being truthful but the management prefers using lies to please customers. The last major cause of conflict is non-compliance with the set rules and principles. The management recommends using lies while Elena prefers being truthful. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Identify two conflict resolution strategies that would be effective in the short-term and two that would be effective in the long-term in this situation. Discuss why these strategies would be effective, given the sources of conflict you have identified. Two conflict resolution strategies can be used in this case for a short term. One of them is compromise where Elena can compromise with the situation in the company to save her job. The second strategy that she can employ is collaboration. Elena can collaborate with the company in order to save her career. These decisions will have impacts in both the long term and short term (Aryan college). The sources of power according to Elena’s case reward power. Elena works hard in the company knowing very well that hard work will be rewarded by climbing the management hierarchy. The second source of power and that raises conflict is the coercive power. Elena is afraid of her supervisor using this power against her since it can lead to demotion or loss of the job. The third source of power that Elena encounters which involves her supervisor is the referent power. Elena works

Aims of Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Aims of Education - Essay Example There are now a lot of bodies of knowledge that education has morphed to branch out to several expertise schools. Their aims have become as varied. This paper will set out to determine the aims of education by providing insights from various experts with differing views, and determine how writing fits in it. Educational Aims The twisting of the phrase has been seen to connote changes of points of view from the learners’ and teachers’ end. It was suggested by Winch that â€Å"the formulation of educational aims for a society is a political matter and must be worked out by the interest groups involved,† (635). Aims, for Winch, are compromised so that aside from children, parents, and teachers, the employers, unions, educators, and the government are also included to determine the aims. Decision is not limited to educators but will also lie on all stakeholders or interest groups. Specifically, Winch has proposed that â€Å"it is not the business of the schools to p repare children for jobs, but, in the 13-16 age phase, to orient children who are beginning to form an interest of what would be involved in it† (Winch 2, 107-108). There is a distinction between education and schooling so that education is concerned with educational values against schooling being to instrumental ones. Then, there is also the argument that preparation for paid employment can be part of an individual’s preparation for life as proposed earlier by Peters who insisted that a job requires the individual to prepare for it in school and motivates the individual to focus for his education. Training should be extensive to encompass understanding of principles for wider practicality and human concern, and should be given at the right time for the individual to determine his chances at life (Peters, 48). In the context of human life, aims of education had been assailed to be narrower than life aims (Clarke and Mearman, 251) so that universities must be providing d ating services although both acknowledged the education on preparing the young to enter into relationships. Winch insist that in preparing young people for life through education, then, this necessitates education as preparation for all of aims in one’s life (636). Therefore, when an individual is preparing to become a teacher, he or she does not only get education to become a teacher but to prepare a life of a teacher, walking the talk and all. Winch clarified, too, that not all life aims are educational aims; such as the life aim of an individual to live in a big house may not be an educational aim to distinguish life aim and educational aim. Thus: The point of saying that the aim of education is to prepare one for life is to assert that it is to prepare one with respect to the general orientation of one’s life, particularly by equipping one with the knowledge, ability and understanding to follow that orientation (Winch, 636). Another specific example pointed out by Winch was about the aim to live an autonomous life of which with respect to education, is in preparing one to make rational and informed choices in pursuing wishes in life. This preparation will make the individual

Analysis of Women's Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Analysis of Women's Education - Essay Example After women’s right to education were enacted in America, many of them joined schools to pursue their careers. Among them, Mary Lyon, Miss Catherine Beecher, and Emma Willard become the most outstanding and excellent pioneers in education. This is because they struggled in their respective projects of enhancing girl child education (Slosson, 1921). The three found permanent institutions that offered education to women. It is, therefore, clear that American women are very fortunate for having the three as their leaders. This is because their personalities went far beyond lifting women movement to acquire education. In addition, the three women established academies and school to offer education to the girl child. This provided societal conventions that objected superior education to women in America. On the other hand, Mary Lyon, Miss Catherine Beecher, and Emma Willard opened female seminaries around the country. These seminaries were meant to open their expression and intensi on of collecting information for the female education systems. Moreover, their intensions of opening seminaries were meant to enhance reforms and improve education for girl child in the society. Through these seminars, they examined careers in order to expand women sphere in their studies. Their great effort, therefore, played a major role in reshaping school systems that offer education to women (Slosson, 1921). Emma Willard Emma Willard was born in 1787. She acquired her preliminary education at home through listening to her father’s reading. Later in life she decided to quit her domestic chores and start reading essays and passages. She then enrolled at a district school to pursue her formal education. After years of her study, she began her career of teaching young children in various schools around the country. During her teaching career, she contributed adversely to the progression and improvement of the girl child education. In the school, Willard divided studies into higher and lighter subjects. Higher subjects included history, languages and mathematics while light subjects were drawing and music. She did this in order to challenge the idea that young girl’s education was undermined by education. In addition, she also introduced sciences to the school similar to those that were taught in men colleges. Introduction of mathematics and sciences to the school was meant to address male monopoly to such subjects (Maybrey, 1998). Despite great effort in her career, she never gave up advocating for women’s right to education in the society. Her major rule was to enhance reforms in school systems so as to achieve equality in education. This is because of her belief that women are equal with men academically (Maybrey, 1998). She also published a lot of poems and articles that clearly portrayed her support for women empowerment. Throughout her career as an author and an educator, she drew attention of the disparity that existed between men a nd women regarding their education. She did this by devoting her life to revolutionize women’s education. Catherine Beecher Catherine Beecher is well known for her great contribution in enhancing women’s right to education. She first did this by opening a school that offered quality education to women in society. Like other education pioneers, she developed new teaching skills and evolved her own curriculum. This is

Comparing Political Philosophies Essay Example for Free

Comparing Political Philosophies Essay Social contract or contractarian (use at least two philosophers in your description) Classic liberalism or libertarianism (use at least two philosophers in your description) Marxism (use at least one philosopher in your description) Communitarians (use at least one philosopher in your description) Capabilities approach (use at least one philosopher in your description) Follow your descriptions with a conclusion answering the following questions: How are these theories similar to one another? How are they different from one another? Do you find one philosophy more compelling than the others? If so, why? Contractarianism The social contract or political contract is a theory or model, originating during the Age of Enlightenment, that typically addresses the questions of the origin of society and the legitimacy of the authority of the state over the individual. Social contract arguments typically posit that individuals have consented, either explicitly or tacitly, to surrender some of their freedoms and submit to the authority of the ruler or magistrate (or to the decision of a majority), in exchange for protection of their remaining rights. The question of the relation between natural and legal rights, therefore, is often an aspect of social contract theory. The most important contemporary political social contract theorist is John Rawls, who effectively resurrected social contract theory in the second half of the 20th century, along with David Gauthier, who is primarily a moral contractarian. Marxism Under Marxism, outdated class structures were supposed to be overthrown with force instead of being replaced through patient modification. It held that as capitalism has succeeded feudalism, it too will be removed by a dictatorship of the workers called socialism, followed quickly and inevitably by a classless society which governs itself without a governing class or structure. It was jointly developed in the 19th century by two lifelong German friends living in London Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels and it forms the foundation of communism. Classical Liberalism Classical liberalism is a political philosophy and ideology that emerged as a response to the Industrial Revolution and urbanization in the 19th century in Europe and the United States. It shares a number of beliefs with other belief systems belonging to liberalism, advocating civil liberties and political freedom, limited government, rule of law, and belief in free market. Classical liberals were more suspicious than conservatives of all but the most minimal government and, adopting Thomas Hobbess theory of government, they believed government had been created by individuals to protect themselves from one another. Comparison -Marxism is completely centrally controlled economy in which labor is directed (the government tells you where you will work) and goods and services are rationed based on a bureaucratic determination of need. Liberalism is when the government has an obligation to make sure that people live comfortably regardless of a persons actual contribution to making their own comfort possible. So while they wish to control the financial situation they generally favor a high degree of social freedom. Contractarianism suggests that the central assertion of social contract approaches is that law and political order are not natural, but are instead human creations. The social contract and the political order it creates are simply the means towards an end — the benefit of the individuals involved — and legitimate only to the extent that they fulfill their part of the agreement. References http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Social_contract http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Classical_liberalism http://www. businessdictionary. com/definition/Marxism. html Philosophy: The Power of Ideas (8th ed. ) (Moore and Bruder).

Nature, the Environment and their Uses in Art

Nature, the Environment and their Uses in Art â€Å"I name that man an artist who creates forms†¦ I call that man a craftsman who reproduces forms.† Malraux is talking about artists and craftsmen, but might as well be talking about artists and designers. The audacity of the lowly â€Å"reproducers† was penalised by the iconoclasts, and perhaps we harbour the same fundamental suspicions about designers, people paid to build and sell us dreams just as frequently as they build and sell us houses. Yet it strikes me that there are two ways of dodging the suspicions of the public- the use of the imagination, and the use of Nature. If the two can be happily married then this superior union ought to germinate a magic all its own. â€Å"Moreover, a taste, not to say a passion, for building must be engrained in the child. Mechanical toys and mechanised entertainment kill his imagination and initiative; the feat of putting building blocks on top of each other hardly taxes the brain of a monkey† So the designer presents himself as a kind of sub-originator, and defers his symbolism to the greater origin. There is an individual and a more cosmic interest at work at the same time. The artist grows like a tree, developing, spreading, the ideas rising from the mysterious soils and falling like leaves. But the broader picture, a fluxing creative rhythm bridged by moments in time, demands a grander theory of unification. Nature is as synonymous with decay as it is with growth. The ephemera of modern life is as temporary, inevitable, immediate, as nature itself. Our cities have become sort of flaking, dying, layered forests, with their own dangers and rhythms of life and death. Everywhere we find reminders of our own impact on our surroundings- it is human nature, we cant help trying to clothe our hairless bodies and modify everything around us to make our lives more comfortable. But for some this seems to be a source of almost biblical guilt, and people go to extraordinary lengths, for their own reasons, to cover their tracks and paint their human presence out of the landscape altogether. Hundertwassers house in Vienna , and his designs for the â€Å"Eye Slit house† spring immediately to mind. Are we guilty enough to try to make our impact completely invisible? There can be no contention over the point that man has a negative impact on his environment and it may be that one solution is hiding mans impact altogether, (to enfold ourselves in natures arms, camouflaging ourselves in Her) while another might be to try to disguise our impact by turning our constructions into impersonations of Her. Is this really any different to the fearful icon building of ancient times, and do the â€Å"uglier†, modernist, construction-stating buildings represent a sort of iconoclasm- a return to buildings being made for human functionality rather than as a fearful acknowledgement of natures power as a constructor? Most of the architectural structures which are intended to resemble nature draw attention to the similarities between buildings and plants. Both are subject to a functional rhythm, both have access points, layers, a projectile dynamic- in other words, a sense of growth and promise. Yet plants are transcient, not concrete: they grow and bloom and fade and die, like people. They nourish and protect and reproduce and crumble away. The contrast with sturdy, permanent building materials used for, say, gothic cathedrals, Romanesque churches, the Eden Project, the Golden Gate Bridge, presents a sense of wonder and beauty in itself. Because plants are not like buildings. Buildings are sturdy and static and monumental. It is a fantastic thing to see a grand self-generating plant-beast made of concrete, it is alien and dreamlike and mesmerising but it is all these things because it is impossible. It enchants us because its beauty comes from a faraway, magical land, not from a world we know ab out but from one we would like to know- one in our dreams. Designs based on nature not only solve our problems, sate our yearnings and answer our questions, they also create new problems, new yearnings, and new questions. 1) Ecology since the 17th Century: historical relationships with Nature In the preface to â€Å"The Origins of form in Art†, Herbert Read references Henri Focillon, who suggested that life itself is a creator of forms, that theres no real distinction between art and life: â€Å"Life is form, and form is the modality of life. The relationships that bind forms together in nature cannot be pure chance, and what we call â€Å"Natural Life† is in effect a relationship between forms, so inexorable that without it this natural life could not exist. So it is with art†¦constitute an order for, and metaphor of, the entire universe.† Nature is uncontrollable and unpredictable- it is an ancient metaphor for uncontrollable intervention and for everything we cant accurately forecast. There is even an ancient Japanese treatise on archery which details the way in which the hardest part of the entire sport is waiting for the natural release of the string- a moment of serenity and detachment; total absence of striving. The flow of inspiration to the artist is analogous to this although it is unclear whether the creators inspiration rises from this or rises like it. Theorists have long been aware of this ambiguity and have thematised it themselves. Michael Fried interprets the woods, rocks and glens in Courbets paintings as faces or symbols or metaphors. Christopher Wood finds terrifying anthropomorphised trees looming over the subjects of Altdorfers exquisite scenes. The point is that those people who look at art, who are also interested in using it as an expression of themselves, consistently seek reflection in the pools provided by nature, natural imagery provides the perfect apparatus, somehow, for the admirer of human creativity to integrate the object into their own field of experience. When Paul Klee wrote that â€Å"The creation of a work of art is compared to the growth of a tree- its roots in the earth, crown in the air.† he is presenting an image of flow, as if an artist stands near the tree to allow the sap to rush in. This flow, though, occurs without conscious effort and the artist, crucially, experiences a transformation. â€Å" The idea that art is not a mirrored reflection of a given reality, but also a transformation of one element (which has its roots underground, in the unconscious) into another (made conscious in time and space). The artist is merely a channel whose function it is to transmit the forces of nature into forms of art.† Vivantes assessment that â€Å"art, far from being non-conscious, is a conquest of consciousness† is revealing, but wisely countered by Read, â€Å"Admittedly, the artists themselves may not always know when they are merely exploiting the unconscious, rather than â€Å"letting loose the riot of tender shoots†Ã¢â‚¬  As nature and art are so closely related, almost counter intuitively, so words and nature and words and art, are sometimes indistinguishable. All are concerned with abstraction, with roots, with origins, â€Å"we establish†¦our sense of reality by creating, for each experience, a clear and appropriate symbol- vocal sounds which were eventually stabilized as words. Every words was once an original work of art.† Whenever anything becomes too prevalent, too integrated into our consumer vocabulary, we scarcely notice it anymore and it loses its impact. In becoming part of our environment, ourselves, the clichà © ceases to become something desirous to us. Designed solutions respond to an expression of specific desire or need, and so become a meta expression of the same need. While design solutions sate specific hungers, art is an expression, and not even necessarily a resolution of, thematic desires. Poetry and the visual arts dance around the clichà © while occasionally retaining originality (Poussins Dance to the Music of Time is a delightfully literal example of this)- art finds a janus-faced simultaneity, a place for both the clichà © of nature and the pure artistic drive of â€Å"artisticness†. Design, however, is trapped in the problem solving one-dimensional rationality of the prevailing zeitgeist. Perhaps nature is a way of side-stepping the clichà ©, but it can also present itself, maddeningly indistinguishably, as the alluring siren. Maybe there is a link between the mechanised production of imagery and forms and the predominance of natural imagery in the products and lifestyles consumed by people nowadays. There could well be a relationship, yet unexplored, between the unnatural production of natural images and the homogeneity of the images themselves. If the origins are authentic and essential then we should expect products to be more persuasive, more reflective of their origins, more transparent. Mechanisation has allowed for imagery to â€Å"ride the zeitgeist† and generate a new kind of language of â€Å"natural† iconography- perhaps where once there was religious iconography. In Poussins Dance to the Music of Time we find Arcadia, the natural utopia, being equated to male/female synthesis, and then, on another level, the gender synthesis standing for a synthesis of heaven and earth in the familiar conceit of rhythm. In Peter Blakes extraordinary work, The Arcadian Cipher pentagram shapes are located everywhere as a kind of unification symbol: Blake is anxious to synthesise traditionally opposing forces, and make sense of illogical harmonies through the imposition (or uncovering, in his terms) of this particular hypograph. His choice of symbol is less important than his- and other academic semiosticians impulse towards holism. I have already suggested that artists are involved in a janus headed effort: always trying to channel pure nature and represent her in a familiar language- to experience and the represent the clichà © at once. Blakes assessment of the Dance describes the duplicity: â€Å"For where the other two pentagrams represent the Jesus figure and Pan, this definitely connects them with a female element. Through it we are able to establish a male/female partnership both in heaven and on Earth and between heaven and Earth, and it is one which symbolises the poles upon which the Earth spins. The painting depicts Hermes playing his lyre – music was his method of communication between two worlds- and a group of earthly figures dancing to his celestial tune. On the left hand side of the work is a column on which is mounted a carving†¦of two heads facing away from each other.† Theory of this sort, while certainly in constant danger of toppling into quasi-science, superbly exemplifies the inextricability of Nature and Geometry. Theories of Arcadia are saturated with geometric semiotics; art writers constantly trace and re-trace paintings, covering them in layers and layers of â€Å"mathematical† justification. Whether any of these theories have any real use or even make any sense outside of their own self-imposed rules is not my point. I am interested in the relationship between the powers of nature and the powers of men, the irresistible urge to explain the mysteries of nature, her circadian rhythms, her life giving and life stealing properties, her silent chthonic swell and the threat and awe experienced by the bewildered humans that observe her. As one of the most evocative and symbolically potent plants on the planet, the cactus has played many roles in South American tradition and folklore. As with any hostile climate, indigenous species that seem to offer solace will inevitably acquire mystical significance as the protection they offer is associated with promise. To the parched population of parched landscapes, cacti are life-giving, life-saving, surprising, mysterious, frightening- divine. Cacti started off on American continents, and are still most associated with these places- but they have experienced a massive geographical distribution over the centuries, and cacti have been able to instigate habitats around the world. One rumour says that Christopher Columbus was the first person to have taken the first cactus to Europe, presenting this peculiar plant to Queen Isabella of Spain, however this is of course apocryphal. During their explorations on the American continents, the Spanish Conquistadors found, among many other things, these strange vision inducing plants that were utilised ceremonially by the natives as a religious sacrament and was revered as virtual gods. The native South American name for their spineless dense-shaped cactus (Lophophora Williamsii) was peyoti. It is a plant native to Mexican and south west US with button like tubercles which may be eaten fresh or dried as a narcotic. Initially, Cacti (peyoti) were employed for healing purposes, for attempting to divine the future and for generating hallucinogenic visions during scared rites. Although these hallucinations often appear to be compared to LSD trips, the peyote â€Å"acid† is 4000 times less potent, only briefly affecting the chemical balance and activity of the brain. The Spanish chronicler, Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, claimed that natives used a certain plant to induce hallucinatory state and estimated that peyote was widely used at least 1890 years before the arrival of Europeans. The earliest European record dates from around 1635 with the first column of Historia de las Indias Occidentales by Gonzalo Hernandez de Oviedo y Valdes appeared with illustrations of what we would now classify as Cereus and Opuntia. In 1886 that the German pharmacologist, Louis Lewin, published the first systematic study of the cactus, to which his own name was subsequently given- Anhalonium lewinii. The cactus was already well known and loved by primitive religions and the Indians of Mexico and the American Southwest. One of the early Spanish visitors to the New World wrote, they eat a root which they call peyote, and which they venerate as though it were a deity. It became clear why this plant was venerated as a god, when such eminent psychologists as Jaensch, Havelock Ellis and Weir Mitchell began their experiments with mescalin, the active principle of peyote. Mescalin research has continued, and now chemists have not only isolated the alkaloid; they have learned how to synthesize it, so that the supply no longer depends on the sparse and infrequent crop of desert cacti. Neurologists and physiologists have spent years investigating the mechanism of mescalins action upon the central nervous system, and at everyone from philosophers to writers- notably Aldous Huxley- have taken mescalin in the hope that this mystical cactus extract may shed some light on such ancient, unsolved riddles as the place of mind in nature and the relationship between brain and consciousness. It is surely no coincidence that the peyote cactus, so ubiquitous, so loved and feared, is also identified as the solution to ancient problems of human displacement. We identify with the cactus perhaps. It projects intelligently, like an alien from the sand, while we wonder how we are supposed to best relate to our surroundings. When we look at the cactus we see ourselves done better. If anything on the planet holds the key to mans reconciliation with his estranged mother nature, it is surely the cactus. It is too alien to be part of our problem, we reason, so it must be part of the solution. 2) Taoism and Nature â€Å"Humans model themselves on earth, Earth on heaven, Heaven on the Way, And the way on that which is naturally so.† Lao Tse Daodejing (Tao te ching) #251 This simple but sententious dictum was delivered by an Chinese ancient sage, Lao Tse, the founder of Taoism. The saying suggests a means of building a harmonious relationship between beings and nature. Taoist ideas about conservation and ecology, with nature as the inspiration and conclusion to all things, reflect and resemble new philosophies of industrial design, to some extent. Alongside Buddhism and Confucianism, Taoism is one of the three great religions of China. It can be roughly translated into English as â€Å"path†, or â€Å"the way†- that is, the way of correspondence between man and nature, and the way that is a kind of path of nature the course of natural world. The term Tao describes a power that envelops and flows through all things, both living and nonliving. As such, it serves to regulate natural processes and encourage a cosmic balance of all things in the Universe. Tao suggests that the answers to lifes problems can be found through inner meditation and outer observation. Taoist ideas and images may have nurtured or inspired a love of nature in the Chinese, so that they have traditional felt a need to protect it, and have had many ways of cultivating an affinity with it. The Chinese have always seen nature as a companion, a place of security and support to which they could retreat from the cares of the world to rest or heal themselves. Nature, through Tao, is also sincerely life-affirming. Nature can be unfathomably brutal and Tao constantly reminds that the external world is explicitly on-ideal: in fact, according to Tao, the ideal world can only be found through a spiritual path. The only thing that might compromise ones eternal happiness, in Tao as in Buddhism, was a state of mind, an attitude. Both Tao and Nature are associated with a non-materialistic attitude to life, a spiritual approach to living which many perceive as a possible answer to the social issues of today: the problems of sustaining a unified and healthy social order. Taoists believe their religion holds the answers, as it advises its followers to emulate nature, with its simplicity and relaxed, non-intellectual approach to life. Tao seems to suggest that many of the environmental problems of today have arisen from a materialistic human attitude that has overwhelmed mans spiritual relationship with his natural environment. Rather than coexisting with our living space, people have begun challenging it, and it has even become a respectable achievement to be seen to â€Å"conquer† nature. An estimated 42 million acres of tropical rainforest are destroyed annually, an area the size of Washington State. Around 50,000 species of plants and animals are condemned to extinction every year, an average of about 140 species a day. There are more people than ever, and these people routinely pillage resources, destroy or change natural processes arbitrarily and are support the production of thousands of products that lead towards the destructive path of the environment – contradicting the Taoist path. Increasingly materialist in their lifestyles, most people believe that only matter exists, leaving no room for spiritual beliefs. Our quest for pleasure corresponds to a demand placed on the Earth for immediate gain. The visible world takes precedence over any spiritual or psychological activities and ultimately a form of materialism becomes the only truth and belief. Natures force is unknowable in its essence but observable in its manifestations. With the crisis of energy a nd resources, the crisis of ecology and environment, the crisis of belief and mortality we experience force in the form of natures lamenting reactions. We believe in the formless and eternal Tao, and we recognize all personified deities as being mere human constructs. We reject hatred, intolerance, and unnecessary violence, and embrace harmony, love and learning, as we are taught by Nature. We place our trust and our lives in the Tao, which we may live in peace and balance with the Universe, both in this mortal life and beyond. Creed of the Western Reform Taoist Congregation The recent revival of instinctive desires preserve the health of our planets life without compromising human comfort is the task of ecological attitudes in art and design. Those ecological design solutions that take on board Taoist philosophies link nature, culture, and technology to resituate social human requirements in an environment where the balance of nature receives precedence. Artists and designers must of course work within the constraints imposed by their clients, including the practical and material demands made by every stage of production. Classical Taoist philosophy, formulated in part by Laozi (the Old Master, 5th century B.C.), in part by the editor of the Daodejing (Classic of the Way and its Power), and in part by Zhuangzi (3rd century B.C.), represented a reinterpretation and development of an ancient nameless tradition of nature worship and divination. Laozi and Zhuangzi, living at a time of social disorder and great religious skepticism developed the notion of the Dao (Tao way, or path) as the origin of all creation and the force unknowable in its essence but observable in its manifestation that underlies the mechanisms of the natural world. These men saw in Dao, Nature, and in Nature, Dao. In both these Ways lay the secret to harmonious living. According to these early teachers, the order and harmony of nature was a model for human structures, so much more stable and enduring than either the power of the state or the civilized institutions constructed by human learning. The early Taoists taught the art of li ving and surviving by conforming with the natural way of things; they called their approach to action wuwei (wu-wei lit. no-action), action modelled on nature. As one writer explains, â€Å"Their sages were wise, but not in the way the Confucian teacher was wise, learned and a moral paragon. Zhuangzis sages were often artisans, butchers or woodcarvers. The lowly artisans understood the secret of art and the art of living. To be skillful and creative, they had to have inner spiritual concentration and put aside concern with externals, such as monetary rewards, fame, and praise. Art, like life, followed the creative path of nature, not the values of human society.† Chinese history is dense with stories of people who have grown tired of the pretensions and desperation of social activism increasingly aware of the fragility of human achievements, and whose response has been to retire from the world and turn to nature. Such people have traditionally retreated to a countryside or mountain setting to commune with natural beauty, often composing poetry about nature , or painting interpretations of the scenes surrounding them, as they attempted to capture the creative forces at the heart of Natures vitality. Such people might share their excursions with friends or family, drinking a bite of wine, enjoying the autumn leaves or the evening skies. The literature of Chinese utopians often had a Taoist slant: Tao Qians famous Peach Blossom Spring told of a fisherman who happened across an idyllic Chinese community who had fled a war-torn land centuries earlier, and lived in perfect simplicity and harmony ever since, blissfully oblivious to the turmoil of history beyond their idyll. While the inhabitants urged him to stay, the fisherman departed and shared his discovery with a local official. However hard he tried, he never found a path back to the grove. The fisherman never found a route back because he had failed to understand that he had discovered an abstracted, ideal, world – and one which was to be found not via an external path, but a spiritual one. The utopia was a state of mind, a unique attitude. Laozi and Zhuangzi had reinterpreted nature worship and belief in esoteric â€Å"magical† arts as something both more abstract and more tangible, but the ancient methods and beliefs crept back into the tradition as ways of using knowledge of the Dao to enhance and prolong life. Despite its pragmatism, for some Taoism would always go hand in hand with magical belief. Some Taoists poured their energies into a search for isles of the immortals, or for herbs that could unlock the secrets of immortal life. Many Taoists were interested in health and carried out many studies of herbal medicine and pharmacology, in fact entailing significant advancements in these arts. Taoists even worked out the principles of macrobiotic cooking and other supposedly new and healthy diets. Sensitive to natural processes, they recorded gymnastic mechanisms and studied the effects of massage on keeping the body strong and youthful. Taoists were, then, both magicians and of proto-scientists: they represented the sector of Chinese culture that most closely studied and communed with nature. Some Taoists held that nature was filled with spirits however, theosophically, such spirits were simply many manifestations of the one Dao, something impossible to represent as a single image or in one discreet form. â€Å"The Tao of Heaven operates mysteriously and secretly ; it has no fixed shape; it follows no definite rules; it is so great that you can never come to the end of it, it is so deep that you can never fathom it.† The Huai Nau Tzu The central theme of Taoism is a relationship, and as such contradicts the general western attitude to nature. Nature should not be considered as something passive, awaiting mans masterful control, but as an equal or even superior partner be mastered in a relationship. The aim of the Taiost is to rediscover and eventually merge with the ordered origin of the universe and the only way to do so is the Tao – the path shown to us by nature. Early Taoist philosophers set out from their civilised worlds to take expeditions into the natural world, where they hoped to learn from primitive people living in remote mountain villages. Initially they aimed to introduce the benefits of human civilization to the mysteriously rhythmed order of nature. According to the Tao, nature is â€Å"infinitely wise, infinitely complex, and infinitely irrational. One must take a yielding stance and abandon all intellectual preconceptions. The goal is wu wei, doing nothing contrary to nature. Nature does not need to be perfected or improved. It is we who need to change; we need to come into accord.† Contrary to one possible interpretation of Yin/Yang, Taoists rejected all dichotomies, including the fundamental existence/non existence one, since it is their belief that both stem from the same source, â€Å"Athe deep and the profound. Rather, Taoisms goal is to use consciousness of duality and wisdom about it to reach the stage before any dualities existed. There is only one path to this source, then – the observation of nature. As one writer explains, â€Å"The Tao is a divine chaos, not a random accident. It is fertile, undifferentiated, and teeming with unrealized creation. It is the mother of everything in nature; it is a great darkness that operates spontaneously to give birth and life to all things.† 3) Ecological thinking in contemporary art and design Are we really moving towards a common lexicon of human creation and natural creation? Alan Power cites Steiners â€Å"startling prediction†, â€Å" Buildings will begin to speak. They will speak a language of which people have as yet not even an inkling,† Yet I wonder how startling this really is. Buildings are indeed more â€Å"scientific†, more complex with less obvious evidence of human intervention. Many buildings nowadays appear to have been designed and built by aliens, no longer made to be lived in but impenetrable to our rational human minds. Again, they resemble complex organisms in their initially baffling structure, their illogical shapes and apparent preference of shape and form to practicality. But they are still made by humans, albeit humans employing a dozen layers of technology to translate abstract geometry into audaciously confusing formulae. They are still constructed by and for humans to use, and to that extent are utterly comprehensible, at least to the humans that use them. Where there is room for gratuitous aesthetic treatment in a design, designers, consciously or not, grasp the zeitgeist, construct from fashionable and available materials, and exploit their artistic freedom as far as their unconscious n otions of the â€Å"aesthetic† will allow them to. These notions, I am attempting to argue, are controlled by biologically ingrained forms of the organic. It doesnt matter if a building is technically accomplished to exhibit skeletal forms, as with the giant domes of the Eden Complex in Cornwall, the Brooklyn Bridge in New York and the Mildred Cooper chapel in Arkansas or swollen like the pregnant belly of the Guggenheim, NY . Nature can be found in all design, both rational and irrational, and the more we try to escape it, to avoid mimicking it, the more we are forced to study its base rules, its gravity and its ebb and flow, the tensile strength of its spider-webs, the effects of its uncontrollable eruptions and tidal waves and tornados. Nature is absolutely full of potential metaphors for ways in which we can improve our lives. Today, apple peels are being used by scientists at the University of Clemson as a metaphor for edible packages disolvable pouches like boil in the bags that add protein to a macaroni and cheese dinner, or packages that act as a booster for laundry detergent. Theres certainly a human instinct to perceive products inspired in obvious ways by nature, as being somehow â€Å"good† for us, or â€Å"good† in a moral sense. Of course, human instincts are not to be trusted blindly, and it doesnt follow that because a kind of packaging is inspired by an apple core it is environmentally friendly, inspirational, beautiful, or better for us or the world. But I suppose it has a slightly higher chance of being one or more of these things, our instincts are not too wide of the mark and do control the things we want to buy and sell. A study entitled â€Å"Trees in Small City Business Districts: Comparing Responses of Residents Potential Visitors† begins, â€Å"This study tested whether public response to trees in the downtown business districts of smaller cities is comparable. Research methods included interviews and mail-out surveys. Survey respondents prefer having large trees in retail streetscapes. Trees are also associated with reported increases in patronage behavior (such as travel distance and visit frequency), and willingness to pay more for products. Few differences in response were detected between small city residents and potential visitors who reside in large cities.† What is it about natural organisms that make us want to part with our money? Marketing strategies state such things as fact, using careful example to â€Å"prove† what we â€Å"intuitively† want to believe is true that â€Å"good product and package designers have known for centuries- that the best inspiration for new products comes from nature. The camera mimics the human eye. Helicopters, like hummingbirds, can hover and fly backwards. Velcro brand fasteners were inspired by prickily burrs attached to a Scottish inventors boot.† They get away with this because nature is, and has always been, such an alien force to us humans, as we have seen. Like an alien from another planets, we hope it will be benevolent and, through its own irrepressible character, its mysterious and enviable immortality, hold the secrets to our own improved lifestyles and lifespans. Of course our relationship with nature has changed slightly as we have changed, as a race, but our view of H er remains essentially the same as ever. We still need to imitate and control what we see outside us, in the hope that we can sypher off a little of the magic and mystery for ourselves. In the developed world these harmless, yet irrepressible rhythms are increasingly invisible. It is possible to spend months in a city dwelling, never seeing a dead animal, a nesting bird, a tree in blossom. Nature has become more promising, more mysterious, more magical, and more frightening through its real invisibility, but nature is not wilfully elusive or coy, this is an invisibility we that have imposed. Inevitably, the packages and products that are environmentally superior that are kind to nature also resemble it: they might be inherently efficient, easily recycable, and often they use recycled materials made from renewable resources. One organisation creating such products, back in their 1990s heyday, was â€Å"Zerosm†, and they identified several techniques fo