Spanish literature Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Spanish literature - Assignment Example Fernando is presented as an active military leader who does unnecessary offensives simply because he has the capacity to do so. These are also an illustration of the theme of abuse of power in the story. Fuenteovejuna is also characterized numerous use of rhetorical devices as evident in the play. There are several quotations that showcase these rhetorical devices as outlined in the book. The play has several rhetorical devices that are widely used, most of which include parallelism and antithesis. The storyline dramatizes two separate events which can be viewed as more or less current of each other, but differently related. The Author uses parallelism to express the two different parts of the story. The civil war serves the background while the story of the marriage of Fernando takes a major lead in the storyline. Rhetorical device helps in achieving the different ideologies that are concurrently presented in the story. This subsequent illustration of the personal lives of Isabel and Fernando helps the audience relate the love story told in another story characterized by

Macroeconomic problem Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Macroeconomic problem - Essay Example The amount of money supplied by the government fixed by Fed hence making it perfectly inelastic. b) In our situation, the equilibrium interest rate will be 5.8% as this is the point of intersection of the supply curve and the money demand curve. C) When the economy is at full employment, an increase in money supply will not result in an increase in the output. In this case, the increased money supplied will result in increased level of inflation. The excess money pumped in the economy will chase the same quantity of goods and services thereby making their prices to inflate. Normally, the increases in the money supply is intended to stimulate economic growth by reducing the level of interest rates (Floyd 58). In the case of full employment, all the resources are already utilized and the increased money supplied will not achieve the intended purpose of increasing production level. Besides, the increased inflation will make the local currency unstable and discourage foreign investors fr om holding the local currency. This can adversely affect the investment levels and increase the economic problems. Fed decision to increase money supply can be propelled by several factors. First, an increase in money supply can be aimed at increasing the level of expenditure in the economy. By increasing the level of money supply, the government will increase the amount of wealth held by individuals. This makes them increase their expenditure to stimulate economic growth. Money spent in both consumption and investment will increase because of the increase in the disposable income (Floyd 63). Individuals will as well increase the proportion of their investments in bonds, as they will use the excess money to buy bonds and shares in the capital markets. Secondly, Fed can decide to increase the money supply to stimulate investments. An increase in money supply will result in a fall in the nominal interest rates, which will further result in the fall in the real interest rates. Due to t he fall in interest rates, the cost of borrowings will be reduced. Potential investors will therefore be encouraged to borrow and acquire capital necessary in pursuing their investment plans. Consequently, the increased investments will increase the level of employment because of the increased economic activities. Sometimes, the government through Fed can decide to increase the level of money supply to cause an increase the price levels by a desirable margin. According to the quantity theory of money, price levels depend directly on the money supply. In the long-run therefore, an increase in money supply will result in an increase in the price level by equal proportion. Fed can have this objective during the period of recession or depression when the level of economic activities is low to stimulate economic activities and increase the quantity of purchases. In addition, a decrease in the interest rates will increase the demand of the local currency hence cause depreciation in the cu rrency. This is because in an open economy, interest rates parity must always be preserved. This will cause the currency to fall with a further expectation that it will fall faster in the future. The depreciation in the local currency will make the cost of local goods cheaper and attractive thereby causing a surge in both the foreign and local demand (Floyd

ASTR 123 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

ASTR 123 - Assignment Example This theory however, fails to account for the possibility of the huge unconceivable numbers of comets that could have collided or passed near earth for this to have happened. It is believed that during the formation of the earth e.g. the big bang process and later developments, the materials that formed it contained large amounts of water that condensed and later collected, resulting in its large surface water volumes. Though this could be a possibility, the earth’s surface was less massive during the development stages leading to its gravity being too weak to hold the waters from escaping its surface at that stage. This fails to explain the almost immediate existence of water after the earth’s formation. The Snowball earth theory explains that at least once, massive glaciations occurred on earth that left almost the whole of it--if not its entire surface -- completely frozen. The theory has convincingly tried to explain the existence of similar sedimentary deposits found especially at the tropical paleolatitudes. Despite the many suppositions of the theory, it however, cannot feasibly be dependent on as it contradict known facts and theories such as the origin of glacial models and the slushball earth hypothesis. The surface of Europa is believed to be covered in thick ice crust, which prompts scientists to conclude that there is a possibility of a large salty water body rich in chemicals beneath the ice. These combined, form basic necessities required by extreme microbial life forms to thrive. Heat from tidal flexing regulates the energy changes and provides the necessary energy for microbe survival. Sulphur and sulphuric acid deposits in Europa has little resemblance with some extreme conditions on earth where microbes like pioneering bacteria evolved and mastered basic survival skills without directly getting their energy from the

Ideology and work choices Essay Example for Free

Ideology and work choices Essay Labour laws come from a body of administrative rulings, laws and regulations that are meant to address the legal rights and restrictions of workers and their organizations/ employers. These laws help in improving the relationship between employers, trade unions and employees. Since the 19th century, labour rights have been playing a crucial role in the development of the industrial revolution both socially and economically. These labour laws arose due to the inequality that existed between employees and employees especially when it came to workers’ demands for better conditions like health, safety and wages and employers’ demands for reduced labour costs. Therefore, labour laws are meant to e fair to both parties (employers and employees) thus, they are both a product and a component of different struggles between different interests in society. (Plowman, and Preston, 2005) Overview On 7th December 2005, the Australian Government under Prime Minister John Howard secured passage through the Australian parliament of Workplace Relations Amendment Act 2005. This legislation will greatly affect the conduct of Australian industrial relations. It will also greatly influence the way that the rules that regulate employment relationship in Australia are made and implemented. However, a complete analysis of these reforms has not been made. (Bray et al 2005) The reason why these reforms had to be made was to ensure that the loopholes and strategies that unions had developed since the Workplace Relations Act 1996 were closed off. The Australian labor party identified industrial relations gaps between what it and Howard’s government stood for. The labor’s policy platform focused on four major things: encourage family friendly workplaces, improving job security, assist parties to avoid and resolve disputes (ALP 2004) and restore the right to bargain collectively. In the 1970s, the Australian economic capacity was greatly diminished by adverse trade movements and oil price shocks. This forced the successive governments to introduce a range of reforms meant to enhance the competitiveness of Australian industries in international markets. These reforms comprised reduction in tariffs, floatation of the Australian dollar and abolition of most foreign exchange controls which increased Australia’s openness to foreign competition. Significant changes started being introduced to Australia’s workplace relations from the 1990s. These legislative reforms were meant to maintain a strong safety net for workers while at the same time provide a greater flexibility and choice for employers and workers at workplace level. It was until March 2008 that the government of Australia introduced transitional measures that phased out many concrete provisions in the workplace provisions laws (Workplace Relations Act 1996, Workplace Relations Amendment/Work Choices Act 2005 and Workplace Relations Amendment Act 2007). Ideology and work choices. It should be clearly noted that the prime minister and other members of his government have denied that their policies are not ideological. General philosophy Rather than employers and employees being stuck in an adversarial system, the government wants to put up a system that will allow them to determine their own conditions of working by looking into their common interests. (Andrews 2005b, p. 7). Therefore, a contract between an employee and an employer is seen as a meeting of minds between two partners who are equal and an agreement will only occur when both parties agree with the terms of the contract. In contrast to the pluralist perspective, the general philosophy fails to recognize that inequality of power is central feature of employment relationship. Role of employees. With this new act, provided the employees (Workers) are given the right leadership, the right incentives and the right opportunities, they will be in a position to work very closely with the management Impact on the parties and the rule making processes. In this section we shall critically look at the impact of that these reforms will have on the major actors in the Australian industrial relations. Role of the state In the last 20 years, the government of Australia has seen far greater reliance on market forces than state regulation. However, with the national competition policy as a catalyst, both state and federal governments have embraced deregulation of product markets, government owned enterprises have also been privatized and a private-sector management practice is being used in public sector organizations. (Bray et al. 2005) The narrowing of the state regulation can be seen in the shrinking role of awards and the new modest employment protections offered by the Fair Pay of Australia. Rule making process From chapter 8 of Bray et al. (2005), the four main forms of rule making in Australia are: managerial prerogative, individual contracting, collective bargaining and awards. With the Work Choices act, collective bargaining and award making will decline while managerial prerogative and individual contracting will expand significantly. The reforms here favor employers in many ways. Most employers will be able to gain significant capacity to practice improved bargaining power in their dealings with employees and unions and managerial prerogatives (Bray and Waring 2006). The changes in rule making have been encouraged as the government members have confirmed that economic success depends on freeing employers and employees from the restrictions of the old system. Awards This act has reduced the number of matters from 20 to 16 and this has helped in simplifying the awards. The award clauses that have been removed relate to: Jury service, long service leave, superannuation and notice of termination. However some federal awards that provide kind entitlements like leave arrangements will not be removed from the awards as they are deemed as preserved award entitlements. Management The Work Choices act will bring the Australian managerial sector more freedom to manage their businesses as they see fit. This is because there will be less state regulation of the employment relationship and they will not be forced by unions to collectively bargain over wages and working conditions. With this new freedom the Australian managers will be in a position to lead to more efficient enterprises, more jobs and a more competitive national economy. Many companies will also be capable of pursuing innovation/ quality-enhancement and business strategies. Unions. In chapter six of Bray et al. there is a trace of the historical evolution of unions as a form of employee representation in Australia. It was seen that membership and the power of trade unions had greatly declined from the beginning of the 1990s. This decline was brought about by many reasons. One of them was the increasingly hostile role of management and the impact of government policies that were not sympathetic. These harsh circumstances may be conducive to attracting new members and stimulated a new collective strength. However strategic differences over the union response to work Choices show great differences in ideologies within the Australian labour movement and the labour movements of other countries. Only time will tell where the union movement will go and what the real outcomes will be. Conclusion. The measures brought about by the Work Choices reforms are far reaching. This is because they represent a major break from the past in many ways. Firstly, their consequences to the constitution promise to be very big. Secondly, despite the much opposition it has faced, these reforms will help introduce new institutions by spelling an end to those institutions that have dominated Australian industrial institutions for very many years. They will also change the process by which the rules of employment relationships are made in Australia. In addition, market forces, individual contracting and managerial prerogative are going to gain a new ascendancy. According to Howard’s government and business supporters, these reforms are also inevitable as they are necessary in driving productivity and reducing unemployment and will also guarantee competitiveness. It is also important that any conclusions be left speculative and uncertain since public opinion can fail and political climate can drastically change. References: Andrews, K. (200b) ‘Where do we want workplace relations to be in five years time? ’ speech to Committee for Economic Development of Australia, Federation Square, Melbourne, retrieved on 15th March. Bray, M and Waring, P (2006) ‘The rise of managerial prerogative under the Howard government’, Australian Bulletin of Labour (in press). Bray, M. and Walsh, P. (1998), ‘Different paths to neo liberalism Comparing Australia and New Zealand’, Industrial Relations, Vol. 37, No. 3. Pp. 358-87. Bray, M. , Deery, S. , Walsh, J. and Waring, P. (2005) Industrial relations, 3rd edn, McGraw-Hill Irwin, Sydney. Plowman, D. and Preston, A. (2005) ‘The new industrial relations: portents for the lowly paid’, Journal of Australian Political Economy, No. 56, Dec, pp. 224-42

Happiness Comes From Within :: Happiness Essays

Their farm was two hundred acres of corn fields, cows, pigs, and, of course, chickens. No farm would be complete without chickens. At the southeast corner of the farm, behind the smaller corn field, was the brook with clear cold water that reached past my knees. On most weekends my family would go to visit our friends, the Tailors, who had at one time seven boys to keep them company. All of them were grown with their own lives to attend to, except for Dan, who stayed on at the farm to help keep up the crops. His younger brother Dave still came back to the farm, from the busy city, to visit and bring his children to see their grandparents. Even though they were about the same age as my brother and I, we did not play with them because they were greedy and didn't suit our playing qualifications by continuously changing rules and cheating. It was rare that we encountered them anyhow, and that suited us fine. Most of the time we would stay the whole weekend. Our parent's elected t o sleep in a tent, while my brother and I slept in one of the many cozy bedrooms of the farmhouse. We loved it there and secretly both he and I wished that we could stay forever. There were separate reasons why we loved it there. My brother, Forest, had a choice of over a dozen different old cars and trucks. Forest was allowed under the hoods so that he could tinker with the engines and figure out how they functioned. He was a ten-year old mechanical genius. Everyone knew that he was going to grow up to be a mechanic. When he was five or six; Forest found an old transmission behind the barn; in two hours he had taken it apart and put it back together again without prior instruction. Old mister Tailor watched from a distance while Forest disassembled and methodically assembled the transmission to its original form.Our parent's are proud and still equally impressed as the day it happened. They still brag and carry on about his genius endeavor, as they do with both of us for the many special encounters accumulated during our formative years. My reasons for loving that farm cannot be so simply expressed.

“Pet Therapy for Heart and Soul” By Kerrey Pechter Essay

As I read this story, I not only felt warmth but also very passionate and a realization that pets have a much larger effect on us besides be our loving companions. In this story, you will find a great understanding for having a pet. Owning something that will give you unconditional love, and who will help you threw your most stressful hours. Pet Therapy consists of animals working with and helping people in ordinary and extreme cases. You will find the author has pointed out how animals bring communicating to love ones easier and more relaxed. In addition, pets can be considered stress reducers and offer a great relationship. In my opinion, this introduction was long and not to the point. Another observation is the two main body topics are also long and not to the point. I would have broken the two topics to other larger topics to give the reader a chance to focus directly each individual point. In example, breaking reaction with elderly people (paragraph 1, 2, 3, 4) and reaction with kids (paragraphs 17, 18, 19, 20) into a larger sub-topic â€Å"Therapy for All Ages†. Placing that paragraph between â€Å"Animal Magnetism At Work† and â€Å"Pets Are Comforting†. This change would emphasis the main topic better and allowed for breaks between the two larger sub-topics. The topic does describe the paper, and how animals bring out the best in us. The examples of animals in hospitals (15, 16) relates easily to me with experience working in those facilities. The way this paper is wrote, very well thought out with the reader in mind. Making simple quotes that gives a background and offering not only reference to the ideas but a description of  each that can relate to all of us. â€Å"Pet Therapy for Heart And Soul† is a well-researched paper with many quotes and references to the main topic. It also gives great real life examples, where the pets are working as therapy. All this brings the story close to you when you read it, making you wonder what your pet is doing for you.

King Arthur Literary Analysis Essay

The name King Arthur appears throughout a countless amount of literature, stories, cinema, and legend. King Arthur has always been a long-standing icon of heroism, and heroism is a theme mankind takes pleasure in romanticizing. Arthurian Romance is the classic example of good versus evil, knights in shining armor, forbidden love, and sorcery; the basic elements of a romanticized tale. And in a dark time where religion clashed, empires fought in epic battles, and the people of Britain suffered from poverty and disease, Arthurian legend was needed to lift the spirits of the hopeless. Arthurian Romance is an accurate portrayal of the time period better known as the Medieval Ages because it takes the woes and misfortunate events of that time and twists them into a heroic soap opera full of love, tragedy, and triumph. The Medieval Ages began around 476 AD, when the Roman emperor of the West abdicated. The period ends in the late fifteenth century with the discovery of the New World. During this period, different nations conquered and collapsed, society changed, and religion was further divided. During the Middle Ages, the Holy Roman Empire had begun an effort to occupy Britain. They wanted to drive out the Anglo-Saxons and convert the Pagans to Catholicism. A long lasting relic of Roman involvement in Britain is Hadrian’s Wall, which was a heavily fortified wall running west to east and was probably used to keep barbarian tribes out and regulate trade and passage into Romano-Britain territory. Along with military involvement, Rome also spread Catholicism to a Pagan Britain. Catholicism involves a hierarchy of religious leaders, with the Pope at the top. There are also bishops, priests, monks, and nuns who are apart of the clergy. Other than the clergy, Medieval society was composed of nobles, knights and serfs. Nobles commonly owned fiefs, an estate of land, and the serfs who worked there. Knights were employed to guard the fief and fight wars with other nobles. This was called Feudalism. When nobles declared a war on each other, many different warfare tactics were used to take down castles. Siege warfare was common, in which scaling ladders, battering rams, siege towers and catapults were utilized in order to enter a fortress. Infantry included archers and cavalry, and there was a broad assortment of weapons used; daggers, long swords, crossbows, throwing axes, clubs, maces, halberds, lances, and many more. While knights commonly fought for a noble or king, a group of fearsome knights known as the Templar Knights fought in the crusades for religious conquest. The Templar Knights are associated with King Arthur’s quest for the Holy Grail, and some of the knights of the round table are portrayed wearing a large red cross on their breastplate (which is the symbol of the Templar Knights). Knights were also involved with jousting. Jousting was a martial game between two knights mounted on horses and using lances. This was often part of a chivalrous tournament or used as a military tactic of heavily armed cavalry. Knights and nobles also were encompassed in courtly love, a conception of nobly and chivalrously expressing love and admiration. Courtly love often did not take place between a husband and wife. Instead, a man would shower another woman in gifts and symbols of his love to her and they would keep their affair secret. A famous example of courtly love is the affair between Lancelot du Lac and Queen Guinevere. The Middle Ages had many lows. Many people associate these times with the Black Plague or the Bubonic Plague. When the Mongols from the east attacked Europe, they brought with them a terrible disease that wiped out about 138 million people. Also during the Middle Ages, there was decrease in scholarly thinking and the quality of art. Religion is blamed for stunting the growth of new ideas and inventions. In fact, religion is the overlying cause for many of the events of the Medieval Ages. The greatest dispute over religion was the East-West Schism that split Christianity into the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. This split was born from disputes over whether the Pope could marry and iconoclasm (similar to worshipping false idols) and the use of local languages in church. They were even in dispute regarding the nature of God. The Crusades were another religious dispute. The Crusades were military campaigns undertaken by European Christians of the eleventh through the fourteenth centuries to take other the Holy Land and convert Muslims to Christianity. The First Crusade was a response to the Seljuk Turks conquering the â€Å"Holy Land† (present-day Israel and Palestine). However, most of these conquests were failures and achieved nothing except for interactions with the Arab world (in both beneficial and devastating ways). Lastly, there was the Inquisition. This was a formalized interrogation and persecution process of heretics (including satanic or witch-like behavior). Punishment for people suspected of heresy was torture and execution. The Church in the Middle Ages is clearly an influential factor of these times. The Medieval Ages also saw quite a bit of political changes. The Carolingian, established by Charles Martel, ruled present-day France, Belgium, Germany and Northern Italy. His grandson, Charlemagne established the Holy Roman Empire. In the North, Vikings and other Scandinavian became notorious for raiding Roman Catholic monasteries. In France, Vikings were referred to as Normans. They conquered Anglo-Saxon England in 1066. As mentioned before, Feudalism was the social, political, and economic system of the Middle Ages. England became a feudalistic society because there was not a unifying force bringing the people together. Many claims to the throne of all Britain were made, which is actually the premise of the King Arthur legend. Nobles and Kings owned land and had armies of Knights who pledged a code of chivalry to them. This was an honor system that strongly condemned betrayal and promoted mutual respect. In the Feudal society, only males could inherit the land. The land was passed down through primogeniture (to the eldest son). Noblewomen had limited rights. They could sometimes inherit fiefs but could not rule it. Noblewomen were only educated in domestic skills and were supposed to display feminine traits such as compassion and beauty. Peasants, male or female, had almost no rights. They couldn’t leave the manor without the permission of their lord. Over time, serfs (peasants) developed skills other than farming and slowly created a middle class that led Europe into the Renaissance. In the long run, all of these characteristics of the Medieval Ages are incorporated in the vast collection of Arthurian Romance. In the 1975 King Arthur Parody â€Å"Monty Python and The Holy Grail†, there is a scene that describes Arthur quite perfectly. In the scene, Arthur is traveling in a Feudal manor and comes across peasants working in a field outside of a castle. He asks a woman, â€Å"I am Arthur, King of the Britons. Whose castle is that? † The peasant woman looks up and asks, â€Å"King of the who? † Arthur repeats himself to which she replies, â€Å"Who are the Britons? † Arthur, stumped by her ignorance, tells her, â€Å"Well, we all are. We’re all Britons and I am your king. † The peasant woman shrugs and says, â€Å"I didn’t know we had a king. I thought we were an autonomous collective! † They argue about this for a moment and then the woman asked, â€Å"Well, how did you become king then? † Arthur dramatically respond with, â€Å"The Lady of the Lake, her arm clad in the purest shimmering samite, held aloft Excalibur from the bosom of the water signifying by Divine Providence that I, Arthur, was to carry Excalibur. That is why I am your king! † Another peasant nearby shouts, â€Å"Listen — strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony! † The meaning of the scene is that at the time King Arthur was created as a legend to legitimize the unifying king of Britain that would pull the people out of the Dark Ages. The punch line is that the land was so divided from feudalism and nobles trying to claim a non-existent throne that no one really took anyone seriously. However, Arthurian Romance became the bedtime story born out of the fantastical notion that Britain could be amalgamated into a strong empire. But let’s start at the beginning of the Arthurian legend. In most legends, Uther Pendragon is portrayed as Arthur’s father and Igraine as his mother. In Sir Thomas Malory’s The Crowning of King Arthur, the prophet Merlin helps a love-stricken Uther get with Igraine for a night. Arthur is born, but part of the agreement with Merlin was to have Arthur raised by another. Many years pass in which Arthur does not know his own nobility until he by chance, pulls the famous sword in the stone (the legend goes: â€Å"Who so Pulleth Out This Sword of this Stone and Anvil, is Rightwise King Born of all England. † (Malory, 1069)). Young Arthur accepts his role as King and unites Britain, defeats the Saxons, and establishes Camelot. In the first fictional story of Arthur’s life (Historia Regum Britanniae (History of the kings of Britain) by Geoffrey of Monmouth), Arthur is placed into a post-Roman Britain. Geoffrey uses the same fable of Arthur’s birth through the deception of Igraine. In this legend, Arthur also defeats the Saxons but he also expands his empire to Norway, Denmark and Gaul, and defeats Roman armies in order to do this. In the end, Arthur returns to Britain to defeat his nephew Modredus (Mordred) who was left in charge of Britain but betrayed Arthur. Arthur is mortally wounded, taken to Avalon and it is implied he passed away. Arthurian legend, however, is not only about Arthur. There are many huge characters in the stories. One widely known knight is Sir Lancelot du Lac. Lancelot is a tragic figure in Arthurian Romance. He was a Knight of the Round Table and one of King Arthur’s closest friends. His tragedy is that he was in love with Arthur’s wife, Guinevere. Lancelot was the son of the King Ban on Benwick and Elaine, but he was raised by the Lady of the Lake (â€Å"du lac† actually means â€Å"the lake†). The Lady of the Lake sent Lancelot off to become a Knight of the Round Table. In doing so, he meets and instantly falls in love with Guinevere. Their affair ultimately proves to be destructive. Lancelot is actually tricked by Elaine of Corbenic and sleeps with her, thinking it is Guinevere. When Guinevere hears of this, she is repulsed and banishes Lancelot. Later, Lancelot returns to assist Arthur in the quest for the Holy Grail. Other characters in Arthurian legend are Merlin and Morgaine. Merlin is sometimes a prophet, sometimes a magician, and always an advisor to King Arthur. Merlin’s earliest character depiction was as a bard driven mad by the terrors of war, who become a â€Å"man of the woods†. However, Geoffrey of Monmouth based his Merlin on Myrddin Wyllt (a prophet and a madman) and Aurelius Ambrosius (a fictional version of the historical war leader Ambrosius Aurelianus. Morgaine (also Morgan le Fay) is a sorceress in Arthurian legend. She is the half-sister of Arthur and the daughter of Igraine. In both The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley) and The Vulgate Cycle (13th century French prose) tell of how Morgaine lives in Avalon (mystical island in Arthurian legend) and trains under Merlin and the Lady of the Lake. Again in the Mists of Avalon, Morgaine is credited with having an unknown affair with Arthur. She gives birth to Mordred, who, in the end, turns out to be the enemy and murderer of King Arthur. In Arthurian Romance, King Arthur’s court is called Camelot. Camelot is where the Knights of the Round Table dwell and it is described as being a utopian land of beauty and peace. Throughout literature, Camelot has been located in many different areas of Britain, giving it no grounded location. An easy way to understand the basic ideology of Camelot, one can compare the presidency of John F.  Kennedy to the term Camelot. His presidency was regarded as a guarantee for a successful future, just like King Arthur gave Britain hope and unification. Kennedy’s assassination is like the fall of Arthur in that both had short lasting but wonderful terms in power that set the bar high for the future. Ultimately, these characters and concepts stem from Medieval life and paint a portrait of what the goals of Middle Age rulers wanted for society at the time. All Arthurian Romance contains the same specific elements: enchantment, quest, conquest, heroic behavior, utopian society, fatal passion and love. These elements, applied with Medieval life and history, equals a solid Arthurian story. The best example of all of these elements is The Crowning of Arthur from Le Morte d’Arthur (Malory, 1065). In the story, Arthur is conceived through the enchantment Merlin uses on Igraine to trick her into thinking Uther Pendragon is her husband, the Duke. Uther, who is fatally in love with Igraine, makes a deal with Merlin in that he will give the child he and Igraine produce to the wizard. Baby Arthur is taken away and grows up with Sir Ector, whom he grows to love as a father. The next part of the story is about the sword in the stone. In the story, â€Å"many of the nobles tried to pull the sword out the stone† (1069), but failed. When Arthur is sent to find Sir Kay (Ector’s son) a sword, he unknowing grabs the legendary sword from the stone and tugs it free without any effort. When Arthur comes back with the famous sword, everyone is in awe and asks him to demonstrate for them that he really pulled it. To their surprise, it is true. They ask Arthur to assume the role of king and he agrees, establishing the utopian court of Camelot. Le Morte d’Arthur is â€Å"the carefully constructed myth of the rise and fall of a powerful kingdom — a legendary kingdom, but perhaps also, obliquely, the real English kingdom which in Malory’s day seemed as surely doomed by its own corruption as the ancient realm of King Arthur† (Cliffs Notes). What this means is that Arthur’s court reflects the realistic courts of actual kings because it eventually falls. The Crowning of Arthur seems naive in that a boy who just so happens to pull a sword from a stone makes him king. In the end, his kingdom falls. Crowning only sets it up. The outcome of the Arthurian Legend is quite similar to the reality of kingdoms in England of the Middle Ages, which proves Arthurian Romance is an accurate portrayal. Another story from Le Morte d’Arthur is called Sir Launcelot du Lake. It is a hectic story about Lancelot’s adventure, kidnapping, and battles with enemy knights. In the story, Lancelot decides he is fed up with his ennui and decides to go out with his nephew, Sir Lyonel. Possibly due to enchantment, Lancelot declares, â€Å"not for seven years have I felt so sleepy† (1074) and he lies down for a nap. When he awakes, he realizes three women have kidnapped him. They tell him he has to pick one of them or face his doom. Lancelot picks his death because his is loyal to his lover, Guinevere. Later, the daughter of King Badgemagus rescues him and in return he gives his services to the king. At the end of the story, Lancelot fights off Kind Badgemagus’ enemies. He displays incredible and fictitious strength when he â€Å"took another spear and unhorsed sixteen more men†¦ King of North Galys’ knight and, with his next, unhorsed another twelve† (1078). This story demonstrates chivalry and heroism, and exaggerates Lancelot’s abilities to fight. Literary critic Charles Moorman says â€Å"much of the Morte d’Arthur is thus concerned with revealing the corrupt reality beneath the fair chivalric surface. † However, Sir Launcelot du Lake contradicts that assumption by merely telling a simple story of a great knight who is loyal to his higher-up and to his lady. The story makes the knights of the Medieval Ages appear to bask in honor, goodness and strength. And in a way, they did in real life. Knights did have a strict code of chivalry as well as total loyalty to their nobles and their lovers. Again, this story gives merit to the fact Arthurian legend portrays Medieval society. The poem The Lady of Shalott by Alfred Lord Tennyson is loose depiction of Arthurian Legend. In the poem, a woman is cursed to live in a tower and watch the world of Camelot from a mirror. â€Å"And moving through a mirror clear; That hangs before her all the year; Shadows of a world appear; There she sees the highway near; Winding down to Camelot† (verses 46 through 50). Then one day she sees Sir Lancelot riding in all his beauty and loveliness, and she decides she wants to leave the tower. The Lady of Shalott â€Å"left the web† (109) and gets into a boat. Unfortunately, she dies and floats on down to Camelot. Muriel Mellown says â€Å"she has chosen contact with Camelot, even at the price of her own destruction. † This quote illustrates that Camelot seemed like such a perfect utopian world that everyone sought its perfection and illustriousness. However, the Lady of Shalott kicks the bucket, similar to the way Camelot eventually falls. All good things never last. Lastly, a more modern and feminist take of Arthurian legend is The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley. In Mists, the story of Arthur is told through the worlds of Morgaine, Arthur’s half-sister. In the excerpt read in class, Morgaine and Arthur are children neglected by their parents. Morgaine realizes her role to be Arthur’s protector, even though she feels disdain towards the child at first. When she says, â€Å"Mother’s gone, she’s with the king, but I’ll take care of you, brother,† (1085), Morgaine displays a bond of love towards her little brother. Morgaine is also depicted as a strong feminine character in both this scene and the entire story. Although â€Å"this book†¦ wasn’t so much a retelling of the Arthurian legend but only a bunch of Arthurian characters sitting around arguing about Christianity and Paganism,† (LaShawn), â€Å"Morgaine’s depiction as a powerful, savvy woman shows her to be the type of woman the feminists would champion as a prime example of what women should aspire to be, in spite of the biases still in place against them† (Ellis). Mists shines a new light and a new perspective on the events of the Medieval Ages, specifically the disputes of religion. It also represents how women did have influence over what happened in the kingdoms. In real life, noblewomen did have influence over the decisions their husbands made, though not legally. The Mists of Avalon yet again portrays a factor of the Medieval Ages. When push comes to shove, Arthurian Romance generally is regarded as a tall tale of a lost era. However, the tales depict a clear portrait of Medieval Life. Tragedy, honor, fatal passion and quest all dwell in the Middle Ages and Arthurian Romance. The characters of Arthurian Romance experience the tragedy of life like real life people and Camelot ends up failing, just like many of the empires and kingdoms of the world. The stories represent the dark times of the Medieval Ages and show that nothing is perfect. Therefore, Arthurian Romance is an accurate portrayal of the Medieval Ages.

Epiphany Meaning and Examples

Epiphany Meaning and Examples An  Epiphany is a term in literary criticism for a sudden realization, a flash of recognition, in which someone or something is seen in a new light. In Stephen Hero (1904), Irish author James Joyce used the term epiphany to describe the moment when the soul of the commonest object . . . seems to us radiant. The object achieves it epiphany. Novelist Joseph Conrad described epiphany as one of those rare moments of awakening in which everything [occurs] in a flash. Epiphanies may be evoked in works of nonfiction as well as in short stories and novels. The word epiphany comes from the Greek for a manifestation or showing forth. In Christian churches, the feast following the twelve days of Christmas (January 6) is called Epiphany because it celebrates the appearance of divinity (the Christ child) to the Wise Men. Examples of Literary Epiphanies Epiphanies are a common storytelling device because part of what makes a good story is a character who grows and changes. A sudden realization can signify a turning point for a character when they finally understand something that the story has been trying to teach them all along. It is often used well at the end of mystery novels when the saluteth finally receives the last clue that makes all the pieces of the puzzle make sense. A good novelist can often lead the readers to such epiphanies along with their characters.   Epiphany in the Short Story "Miss Brill" by Katherine Mansfield In the story of the same name Miss ​B rill discovers such annihilation when her own identity as onlooker and imagined choreographer to the rest of her small world crumbles in the reality of loneliness. The imagined conversations she has with other people become, when overheard in reality, the onset of her destruction. A young couple on her park bench- the hero and the heroine of Miss Brills own fictive drama, just arrived from his fathers yacht . . . - are transformed by reality into two young people who cannot accept the aging woman who sits near them. The boy refers to her as that stupid old thing at the end of the bench and openly expresses the very question that Miss Brill has been trying so desperately to avoid through her Sunday charades in the park: Why does she come here at allwho wants her? Miss Brills epiphany forces her to forgo the usual slice of honeycake at the bakers on her way home, and home, like life, has changed. It is now a little dark room . . . like a cup board. Both life and home have become suffocating. Miss Brills loneliness is forced upon her in one transformative moment of acknowledgment of reality. (Karla Alwes, Katherine Mansfield. Modern British Women Writers: An A-to-Z Guide, ed. by Vicki K. Janik and Del Ivan Janik. Greenwood, 2002) Harry (Rabbit) Angstrom's Epiphany in Rabbit, Run They reach the tee, a platform of turf beside a hunchbacked fruit tree offering fists of taut ivory-colored buds. Let me go first, Rabbit says. Til you calm down. His heart is hushed, held in mid-beat, by anger. He doesnt care about anything except getting out of this tangle. He wants it to rain. In avoiding looking at Eccles he looks at the ball, which sits high on the tee and already seems free of the ground. Very simply he brings the clubhead around his shoulder into it. The sound has a hollowness, a singleness he hasnt heard before. His arms force his head up and his ball is hung way out, lunarly pale against the beautiful black blue of storm clouds, his grandfathers color stretched dense across the north. It recedes along a line straight as a ruler-edge. Stricken; sphere, star, speck. It hesitates, and Rabbit thinks it will die, but hes fooled, for the ball makes its hesitation the ground of a final leap: with a kind of visible sob takes a last bite of space before vanishing in falling. Thats it! he cries and, turning to Eccles with a grin of aggrandizement, repeats, Thats it. (John Updike, Rabbit, Run. Alfred A. Knopf, 1960) The passage quoted from the first of John Updikes Rabbit novels describes an action in a contest, but it is the intensity of the moment, not its consequences, that [is] important (we never discover whether the hero won that particular hole). . . .In epiphanies, prose fiction comes closest to the verbal intensity of lyric poetry (most modern lyrics are in fact nothing but epiphanies); so epiphanic description is likely to be rich in figures of speech and sound. Updike is a writer prodigally gifted with the power of metaphoric speech. . . . When Rabbit turns to Eccles and cries triumphantly, Thats it! he is answering the ministers question about what is lacking in his marriage. . . . Perhaps in Rabbits cry of Thats it! we also hear an echo of the writers justifiable satisfaction at having revealed, through language, the radiant soul of a well-struck tee shot. (David Lodge, The Art of Fiction. Viking, 1993) Critical Observations on Epiphany It is a literary  critics job to analyze and discuss the ways authors use epiphanies in novels.   The critics function is to find ways of recognizing and judging the epiphanies of literature which, like those of life itself (Joyce borrowed his use of the term epiphany directly from theology), are partial disclosures or revelations, or spiritual matches struck unexpectedly in the dark. (Colin Falck, Myth, Truth, and Literature: Towards a True Post-Modernism, 2nd ed. Cambridge Univ. Press, 1994) The definition Joyce gave of epiphany in Stephen Hero depends on a familiar world of objects of use- a clock one passes every day. The epiphany restores the clock to itself in one act of seeing, of experiencing it for the first time. (Monroe Engel, Uses of Literature. Harvard University Press, 1973)

Statistics from the War on Drugs Tell a Story

Statistics from the War on Drugs Tell a Story In 1971, President Richard Nixon first declared a national â€Å"war on drugs,† and greatly increased the size and authority of federal government drug control agencies. Since 1988, the U.S. war against illegal drugs has been coordinated by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). The director of the ONDCP plays the real-life role of Americas Drug Czar. Created by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, the ONDCP advises the President of the United States on drug-control issues, coordinates drug-control activities and related funding across the Federal government, and produces the annual National Drug Control Strategy, which outlines Administration efforts to reduce illicit drug use, manufacturing and trafficking, drug-related crime and violence, and drug-related health consequences. Under the coordination of the ONDCP, the following federal agencies play key enforcement and advisory roles in the War on Drugs: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services AdministrationFederal Bureau of InvestigationBureau of Justice AssistanceDrug Enforcement AgencyUnited States Customs and Border ProtectionNational Institute on Drug AbuseU.S. Coast Guard Are We Winning? Today, as drug abusers continue to flood America’s prisons and violent drug crimes devastate neighborhoods, many people criticize the effectiveness of War on Drugs. However, actual statistics suggest that without the War on Drugs, the problem may be even worse. For example, during fiscal year 2015, Customs and Border Protection alone reported seizing: 135,943 pounds of cocaine;2,015 pounds of heroin;6,135 pounds of methamphetamine; and4,330,475 (Yes, 4.3 million) pounds of marijuana. During fiscal year 2014, the Drug Enforcement Agency seized: 74,450 pounds of cocaine;2, 248 pounds of heroin;6,494 pounds of methamphetamine; and163,638 pounds of marijuana. (The discrepancy in marijuana seizures is attributable to the fact that Customs and Border Protection has the main responsibility for intercepting the drug as it flows into the U.S. from Mexico.) In addition, the ONDCP reported that during 1997, U.S. law enforcement agencies seized an estimated $512 million in illegal drug trade-related cash and property. So does the seizure of 2,360 tons of illegal drugs by two federal agencies in just two years indicate the success or utter futility of the War on Drugs? Despite the volume of drugs seized, the Federal Bureau of Investigation reported an estimated 1,841,200 state and local arrests for drug abuse violations in the United States during 2007. But whether the War on Drugs has been a smashing success or a dismal failure, it has been expensive. Funding the War In fiscal year 1985, the annual federal budget allocated $1.5 billion to fighting illegal drug use, trafficking and drug-related crime. By fiscal year 2000, that figure had increased to $17.7 billion, increasing by almost $3.3 billion per year. Jump to fiscal year 2016, when President Obama’s budget included $27.6 billion to support the National Drug Control Strategy, an increase of $1.2 billion (4.7%) above fiscal year 2015 funding. In February 2015, U.S. Drug Czar and director of the Obama administration’s ONDCP Michael Botticelli attempted to justify the expenditure in his confirmation address to the Senate. â€Å"Earlier this month, President Obama in his 2016 Budget requested historic levels of funding including $133 million in new funds to address the opioid misuse epidemic in the U.S. Using a public health framework as its foundation, our strategy also acknowledges the vital role that federal state and local law enforcement play in reducing the availability of drugs another risk factor for drug use,† said Botticelli. â€Å"It underscores the vital importance of primary prevention in stopping drug use before it ever begins by funding prevention efforts across the country.† Botticelli added that the expenditure was intended to remove the â€Å"systemic challenges† that had historically held back progress in the War on Drugs: Over-criminalization of illegal drug use;lack of integration with mainstream medical care;lack of insurance coverage for drug abuse treatment; andlegal barriers that make it difficult for people once involved with the criminal justice system to rebuild their lives. A recovering alcoholic himself, Botticelli urged the millions of Americans in substance abuse recovery to â€Å"come out† and demand to be treated like people with non-abuse related chronic diseases. â€Å"By putting faces and voices to the disease of addiction and the promise of recovery, we can lift the curtain of conventional wisdom that continues to keep too many of us hidden and without access to lifesaving treatment,† he said.

Trademarked Words

Trademarked Words Trademarked Words Trademarked Words By Maeve Maddox In a recent post, Dont Do Due Diligence, I used the word Realtor as if it were a generic word for real estate agent: Not so very long ago, the only people I heard talk about â€Å"due diligence† were realtors. I should have caught myself on that. Realtor–with a capital–is the legally recognized trademark of the National Association of Realtors. The correct use of the word is to refer to members of the Association and not to real estate agents in general. As tends to happen with clever commercial coinages, Realtor is being pulled toward generic use because it strikes speakers as an apt and concise substitute for the longer term, real estate agent. I have a feeling that general usage will eventually claim Realtor as it has so many similar inventions, but as a professional writer, I can be expected to observe the conventions. Apologies for my lapse, therefore, are due the NAR. Here is a list of other trademarked words that many English speakers use generically. Each term is followed by a suggested alternative and the name of the trademarks owner. The list is by no means exhaustive. AstroTurf (artificial turf) Monsanto Band-Aid (adhesive bandage) Johnson Johnson Bubble Wrap (inflated cushioning for packaging) Sealed Air ChapStick (lip balm) Wyeth Consumer Healthcare Clorox (bleach) Clorox Company Coke (soft drink) Coca-Cola Company Crayola (crayon) Binney Smith Company Crescent Wrench (adjustable wrench) Crescent Tool Company Crock-Pot (slow cooker) Sunbeam Products Cuisinart (food processor) Conair Dumpster (front loader waste container) Dempster Brothers, Inc. Fiberglas (glass wool) Owens Corning Formica (wood or plastic laminate) Formica Corporation/Fletcher Building Freon (refrigerant) Dupont Frisbee (flying disk) Wham-O Google (Web search engine) Google Inc. Jacuzzi (hot tub/whirlpool bath) Jacuzzi Jeep (compact sport utility vehicle) Chrysler Kitty Litter (litter box filler) Ralston Purina Kleenex (facial tissue) Kimberly-Clark Memory Stick (flash memory storage device) Sony Ping Pong (table tennis) Parker Brothers Popsicle (flavored ice treat) Good Humor-Breyers Post-it (sticky note) 3M Q-Tips (cotton swabs) Unilever Scotch tape (clear adhesive tape) 3M Sharpie (permanent marker) Newell Rubbermaid Styrofoam (extruded polystyrene foam) Dow Chemical Company Super Glue (Cyanoacrylate adhesive) Super Glue Corporation Tarmack (asphalt road surface) Tarmac Taser (stun gun) Taser International Teflon (non-stick coating) Dupont The purpose in trademarking a name is to prevent it from being used to describe a similar product made by another manufacturer. If a permanent marker is a Sharpie, call it that; otherwise, call it a permanent marker. And when you use any of these terms, be sure to capitalize them and use hyphens or camel case as appropriate. Note: Camel case is the practice of writing compound words or phrases in a combination of capital and lowercase letters. For example: AstroTurf, ChapStick, iPhone, PowerPoint. Related post: Factoid and Tabloid Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Idioms About Numbers50 Diminutive Suffixes (and a Cute Little Prefix)What Is the Meaning of "Hack?"

Human Resources Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Human Resources - Essay Example As the report declares a job description is one of the most crucial documents that an employer needs to have because it determines productivity and prevents lawsuits. A detailed description concerning a position is given that helps in attracting the most appropriate individual for the position. In addition, it helps in performance management, employee development as existing employees attempt to acquire a promotion, compensation, and recognition. With regard to the HR process, job descriptions clarify as well as enhance communication between the management and the employee. This is because they support almost all employment actions such as promotion, hiring, and compensation. This research stresses that one of the best modes of evaluation is performance appraisal. A reliable performance appraisal system ensures that the employees are aware of what is expected of them and is undertaken at least once per year. The goal of the overall appraisal process is to help the employee to get an idea concerning where they are as compared to the previous period of evaluation. While the evaluation process allows an organization to provide feedback to the employees and offer positive criticism of their work, they are also used to identify the areas that require improvement. The evaluations should be realistic and consider individual employees while evaluating in addition to concentrating to evaluating their performance instead of their personality.

Dutch in new york and how they entered the city in the 15th and 16th Research Paper

Dutch in new york and how they entered the city in the 15th and 16th centuries - Research Paper Example New Netherlands was only one of the many Dutch colonies. Amsterdam was the port that sent ships to explore. In the New Netherlands furs, tradeable objects, and fertile land were found. The founding of New Netherlands developed a valuable region into a successful colony. The Dutch West India Company was a trade company in the 1700s.1 The Dutch West India Company was formed in 1631.2 The Dutch West India Company was only one branch of the Dutch company. The Dutch East India Company had great success in the East.3 The East is defined as mainly territories in or around Asia.4 The trade industry was done through shipping lanes in the 1600s.5 Furs, ivory, jade, diamonds, cloth, and spices were just a few items the Dutch West India Company traded.6 While the English, Spanish, and other countries were interested in conquest, the Dutch interest was focused on the trade industry.7 The colonization of an area by the Dutch would be due to trade, not expansion. The Dutch West India Company was interested in the area of New Netherlands due to the opportunity to trade. The Dutch West India Company hired Henry Hudson.8 The expedition of finding new trade routes was Henry Hudson’s assignment.9 â€Å"Sailing for the Dutch in 1609, Henry Hudson explored the river that now bears his name. The Dutch established a string of agricultural settlements between New Amsterdam (New York City) and Fort Orange (Albany, New York) after 1614.†10 Hudson mapped out the Hudson River and Hudson Bay. The Dutch wanted to create a settlement at the mouth of the Hudson River in order to strengthen the fur trade with local Natives. The Dutch became the chief European traders with the Iroquois, supplying them with firearms, blankets, metal tools, and other European trade goods in exchange for furs. The Iroquois used those goods to nearly destroy the Hurons and to push the Algonquins into Illinois and Michigan. As a result, the Iroquois gained

Block sox scandal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Block sox scandal - Essay Example Consequently, the eight players were banned from professional baseball (Maas). The events that led to the conspiracy have traces that lead to the club house. The proprietor of the Chicago white sox baseball club, Charles Comiskey, is depicted as a person who had issues in the financial dealings with the players thus more dislikes from all stakeholders in the club. The owner took advantage of the MLB clause of reserve that made it clear for every player to accept any remuneration that is given any player otherwise could not play for any other major team unless the contract ends and subsequent transfer results. The owner also made a fortune since the club was one of the major clubs then and on top of the series (Peter). In addition to the underpayments made to the players, the team had two divisions that were not legal in the genuine structure of the team. One of the side later on known as the Clean Sox went to the extent that mere communication with the other partition of the team was not possible. The conspiracys exposure was by the third baseman known as George Weaver commonly known as Buck. The baseman did not comply with the plan and later on went against the persons taking part and went on to play for the team. The player also experienced punishment under the fact that he never spoke about the conspiracy. Rumors of leaking in the series were already spreading prior to the particular season. However, the propaganda was popular especially among the gamblers. After some time, the rumors spread to the press courtesy of some communicators. On the contrary, the gamblers continued to place their bets on the ongoing games regardless of the rampant anecdotes. Most importantly, most of the fans took the results that each game gave as legit and thus the rumors to them were just false propaganda. Thus, even after the game between Chicago White Sox and Cincinnati Reds, no claims had been put forward that the game was a conspiracy. In other words,

The role of the brain in addiction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The role of the brain in addiction - Essay Example Photoreception and Signal Transmission: The photoreceptor cells of the retina are the cones and rods. Light stimulus causes changes in the visual chemical of the cones and rods producing a receptor potential. This passes through the bodies of the rods and cones and acts at the synapses to induce a signal in the bipolar cells. This signal is then transmitted to the ganglion cells. The axons of the ganglion cells leave the eyeball posteriorly to become the optic nerve. The two optic nerves enter the cranial cavity and join to form the optic chiasma. In the optic chiasma, the axons from the nasal (medial) halves of the retinas cross over to the opposite sides. From the optic chiasma on either side of the brainstem, the optic tracts continue. The optic tracts relays information to the LGB (lateral geniculate body) of the thalamus. From here, information is carried to the occipital lobes of the cerebral cortex, where the information is perceived as conscious vision. Due to the crossover, the right visual field is perceived within the left hemisphere, and the left visual field is perceived within the right hemisphere (Lesson assignment, n.d.) The nervous pathways for sound The neuron associated with the hair cells of the organ of Corti (located in the basilar membrane of the inner ear) carries the sound stimulus to the brainstem. Through a series of connections, the signal reaches Brodmann's area number 41, in the temporal lobe of the brain where the stimulus is perceived as sound.

English Language and Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

English Language and Literature - Essay Example Street after street, and all the folks asleep - street after street, all lighted up as if for a procession, and all as empty as a church - till at last I got into that state of mind when a man listens and listens and begins to long for the sight of a policeman. All at once, I saw two figures: one a little man who was stumping along eastward at a good walk, and the other a girl of maybe eight or ten who was running as hard as she was able down a cross-street. Well, sir, the two ran into one another naturally enough at the corner; and then came the horrible part of the thing; for the man trampled calmly over the child's body and left her screaming on the ground." (http://www.bibliomania.com/0/0/46/86/frameset.html) Here, it should be noticed that the description of the actual incident and more so the prelude to in the manner of portraying the nature of the local environment at that point of time evokes a sense of mystery itself but the writer predominantly made it a point to turn this apparently narration into a supernatural element. This specific element is the peripheral outlook of the whole novel and it zeros in on the point where the basic perception of the reader is focused on the achieving additional impulse from the novel that is at the same time uncanny and supernatural. (Sen, 57) This piece of text has tried its best at exploring the secrets of the soul and it is for this matter that the story becomes a bit mysterious right from its onset. The elements represented in the text like drinking chemicals in order to isolate his own self into the form of a human evil as well as doing that fair bit in disclosing his own liking for the secret tenet hidden within him are some of the secret and unexplored areas present in the story and on a particular note, within Dr. Jekyll's role. These bring to light the dark and hidden forces that are present within his personality and for a reader it does not act as anything short of a supernatural and mysterious character that will soon come out and haunt one and all. The science fiction story brings to life a certain cross section of our society which likes to break new grounds as well as find out what is undiscovered to date. It attempts at discerning what is next to impossible or for that matter close to calling it as the unexpected marvel. This points out the treacherous mystery of emotions and as such pinpoints the loom that is so very evident at the end of the saga. The linkage between thought and rational realism is not present as the mind envisions a distinctive set of juices which encompass random gestures, beliefs and ethical insights. During this while, the story unfolds itself to become into a piece of drama, one that starts to shape up as a haunted area, pretty much undiscovered and

The role of the brain in addiction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The role of the brain in addiction - Essay Example Photoreception and Signal Transmission: The photoreceptor cells of the retina are the cones and rods. Light stimulus causes changes in the visual chemical of the cones and rods producing a receptor potential. This passes through the bodies of the rods and cones and acts at the synapses to induce a signal in the bipolar cells. This signal is then transmitted to the ganglion cells. The axons of the ganglion cells leave the eyeball posteriorly to become the optic nerve. The two optic nerves enter the cranial cavity and join to form the optic chiasma. In the optic chiasma, the axons from the nasal (medial) halves of the retinas cross over to the opposite sides. From the optic chiasma on either side of the brainstem, the optic tracts continue. The optic tracts relays information to the LGB (lateral geniculate body) of the thalamus. From here, information is carried to the occipital lobes of the cerebral cortex, where the information is perceived as conscious vision. Due to the crossover, the right visual field is perceived within the left hemisphere, and the left visual field is perceived within the right hemisphere (Lesson assignment, n.d.) The nervous pathways for sound The neuron associated with the hair cells of the organ of Corti (located in the basilar membrane of the inner ear) carries the sound stimulus to the brainstem. Through a series of connections, the signal reaches Brodmann's area number 41, in the temporal lobe of the brain where the stimulus is perceived as sound.

On Fire Creation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

On Fire Creation - Essay Example The work at hand tries to establish the ideas showing why fire can be a natural, technological and human-caused hazard generally within the community. Furthermore, the appropriate or relevant Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) that will be able to mitigate fire as a hazard is discussed. Fire can be a natural-caused hazard within the community. As explained earlier, it is possible to build up a fire when there is a remarkable presence of a higher temperature, fuel and oxygen. In the case of the on-going global warming phenomenon, fire is not impossible to take place anywhere knowing that a high temperature of the environment may possibly ignite combustion provided there is a potential fuel that can help develop the flames, naturally. However, this is common to take place in areas where there is extreme level of heat for the environment. In some cases, in the presence of lightening, the creation of fire is not impossible to take place, which at some point could further lead to ravage prop erties and even lives. There are reported cases when both properties and humans were significant subjects of a fire that was evidently due to a natural phenomenon such as lightening. It is therefore clear in this case that fire is developed naturally, and that is without the presence of significant human or technological intervention factors. On the other hand, fire can also be a technological-caused hazard in the community, working place and even at home at the most specific level. We heard many reports presenting us the significant reasons of fire in the community. A substantial number of them were due to the use of human technology. We heard how cellular phones exploded during its charging process which evidently led to the creation of fire. We received some reports how a micro-wave oven exploded leading to the inception of fire that ravaged properties and even lives. We heard how electricity led to the destruction of various personal or corporate properties and even lives at its worst case scenario. All of these are significant proofs we see around us, proving the point that fire can be a technological-caused hazard. In fact, various manuals linked to the use of our prevailing technologies have substantial information on how we can get rid of fire while using them. Even there are precautionary measures that are linked to these technologies so as instead of giving us hazard like fire, we can use them to optimize their promised design of usage. Finally, fire can be a human-caused hazard. Evidently, we cannot argue that it is we humans who are sometimes responsible for combining fuel and a high temperature in the presence of oxygen around us. Oxygen is one important element in the creation of fire that we can hardly control under the normal setting at home, job and in our community. Therefore, what we can only possibly do to contribute to the creation of fire is to provide fuel and ensure temperature is higher enough in order to spark a flame. In some cases, fire may be due to our failure to take the precautionary measures prior to the effective use of our technologies. At this point, although it is clear that the technology might have a great role to play in the actual creation of fire, our inability to take control of it also provides a great contribution to a hazard that the actual fire may present us. In addition, it is evident that we are indeed capable of producing fire, as we cook our foods, create goods, and develop various products and other offerings. On the process of making all of these, it may actually require us to create a fire, but we have to observe precautionary measures. Sometimes, our failure to employ the necessary actions may lead to the formation of fire which brings the

Explication Emily Dickinson Essay Example for Free

Explication Emily Dickinson Essay In the Poem ‘Because I Could Not Stop for Death† Emily Dickinson uses symbolism and allegory to portray a woman’s voyage to internal life. Emily’s main symbols in the poem are to hide the true meaning of the symbols. In the first stanza the first symbol is introduced in the lines â€Å"I could not stop for Death- He kindly stopped for me-.† I these lines Emily explains how busy the woman is and she can’t stop for death. Dickinson then says â€Å"He† who is death takes the time to do what she cannot and stops for her. In the next couple lines which are â€Å"The carriage held but just ourselves and immortality.† Dickinson is trying to acknowledge that now this woman is with death on her ride to immortality, The â€Å"Carriage† is a symbol for her voyage to eternity. In the second stanza Emily explains the woman’s slow ride. She expresses this in the line â€Å"We slowly drove He knew no haste.† Dickinson describes how death’s politeness makes the woman step back from everything keeping her busy. Dickinson shows this in the lines â€Å"And I had to put away my labor and my leisure too, for his civility.† In the third stanza Dickinson explains the woman passing the life as she knew it. Emily then speaks of children playing at recess and fields off grazing grain. â€Å"We passed the setting sun.† This is the line of her transfer from one world to another. The fourth stanza explains the woman transforming to immortality. â€Å"The dews drew quivering and chill.† This line describes the coldness of death. â€Å"For only gossamer, my gown my tippet only tulle.† Emily describes how the woman’s clothes change from beautiful fabric to the opposite. Now the woman is dead. In the Fifth stanza the woman is taken too her â€Å"Home† which is described as a grave. â€Å"We paused before a house that seemed a swelling in the ground.† The home is a hole in the ground. â€Å"The roof was scarcely visible the cornice in the ground.† Dickinson explains how the â€Å"roof† is barely visible. The last stanza is the woman talking.† Since then – ‘tis centuries and yet feels shorter. â€Å"The woman explains that all though she died a long time ago it feels as if it just happened. She remembers her feeling of when she first realized she was tooken by death. As you can see in Emily Dickinson’s poem â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop for Death† She uses allegory and symbolism. She uses these to explain the woman’s voyage to eternal life in death. She takes the voyage and breaks it up in the stanzas. Emily explains everything that happened without saying it. This is how she uses Symbolism and allegory, to give hints to the reader.

The Fmcg Industry Of Netherland Marketing Essay

The Fmcg Industry Of Netherland Marketing Essay This Global/ Country Study and Report is prepared as the partial fulfillment for Forth Semester of degree Program of Masters of Business Administration curriculum of GUJARAT TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY. The topic of the project is FMCG Industry in Netherland. Here, the project report on Netherland, we have tried our level best to Collect information from it and prepare this report as an error free report; We assured that all information is trusted: every effort has been made to offer the most authenticate position with accuracy. During the whole project period we got a lot of knowledge and came to know about the reality of the mining industry of the country. Acknowledgement The successful completion of a Global Country Project Report requires guidance help from a number of people. We were fortunate to have all the support from our faculty, therefore take this opportunity to express our profound sense of gratitude to the all those who extended their whole hearted help and support to us in completing the project study report work on FMCG Industry in Netherland. We also express our deep sense of gratitude to Prof. Ramzan Samaa (Guide Faculty), who has helped us to do our project. We also thank to other faculty of L J Institute of Management Studies respondents for his valuable help in each stage of the project. Because of his co-operation and continuous guidance successful completion of this project study report was made possible. No Acknowledge would suffice for the support of my family members, classmates friends. Lastly, we extend our thanks to all whose name have not been mentioned in successful way carrying out the project report. Index Sr No. Particulars Page No. 1. The FMCG industry of Netherland Introduction 7 2. Upgrades on major mines in North Korea 15 3. The North Korea Mining Business Projects Between Korean Mining Projects Foreign Company Mining Projects 26 4. The outlook for Inter Korean Mining Corporation 34 5. The Indian Mining Industry- Market Opportunities Entry 36 6. Future Prospects 38 7. Conclusion 39 Introduction of FMCG Industry Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) or consumer packaged goods (CPG) are products that are sold quickly and at relatively low cost . Examples include non-durable goods such as soft drinks, and grocery items. Though the absolute profit made on FMCG products is relatively small, they are generally sold in large quantities, and so the cumulative profit on such products can be substantial. Fast-moving consumer electronics are a type of FMCG and are typically low priced generic or easily substitutable consumer electronics, including lower end mobile phones, MP3 players, game players, and digital cameras, which have a short usage life, typically a year or less, and as such are disposable. Cheap FMCG electronics are often retained even after immediate failure, as the purchaser rationalizes the decision to not return the goods on the basis that the goods were cheap to begin with, and that the cost of return relative to the low cost of purchase is high. Thus low-quality electronic FMCG goods can be highly profitable for the vendors. The term FMCGs refers to those retail goods that are generally replaced or fully used up over a short period of days, weeks, or months, and within one year. This contrasts with durable goods or major appliances such as kitchen appliances, which are generally replaced over a period of several years. FMCG have a short shelf life, either as a result of high consumer demand or because the product deteriorates rapidly. Some FMCGs-such as meat, fruits and vegetables, dairy products, and baked goods-are highly perishable. Other goods such as alcohol, toiletries, pre-packaged foods, soft drinks, and cleaning products have high turnovers rates. An excellent example is a news papers-every days newspaper carries different content, making one useless just one day later, necessitating a new purchase every day. The following are the main characteristics of FMCGs: From the consumers perspective: Frequent purchase Low involvement (little or no effort to choose the item products with strong brand loyalty are exceptions to this rule) Low price From the marketers angle: High volumes Low contribution margins Extensive distribution networks High stock turnover Introduction of FMCG Industry in Netherland The Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) market in Europe is highly competitive. This market is quite saturated, with thight margins and difficult to predict consumer behavior. The battle to win consumers is forcing companies to give highest priority to cost reduction, risk management and logistics efficiency. Moreover, the recession has changed the behaviour of almost all consumers. Instead of impulsive shopping, price value trade-offs and extensive search for value are nowadays leading. In this respect, you can imagine that e-tailing and e-commerce are becoming more and more trending topics. Online presence of companies has improved enormously in recent years. Every company which delivers their products to end-consumers has its own webshop. MediaMarkt, the electronica retail chain with a franchise-formula, part of the German METRO Group, was one of the last large retail chains which hasnt a webshop untill now. Their invisibility on the web was due to regional price differences of their products. Up to now, because even the MediaMarkt now opened its webshop. Other examples are the British company, The Body Shop, which started last November with their webshop in the Netherlands. Its important to take care of reinforcement between online and offline shop, instead of the other way around. On the other hand, companies with a pure online focus, like bol.com and wehkamp.nl, are reaching the highest turnover levels. A recent research of JP Morgan reveals that the worldwide growth of e-commerce in 2011 will be 19%. In 2012 this growth will be more than 20%. The online sales in the US and Europe will grow at a stable level, but Asia will emerge as a growing e-commerce market. Regarding e-commerce in Europe, the main importance and presence in this segment is coming from West-Europe. In this are, the market is expected to grow with 11% per year in the coming four years. The turnover from online shopping in Western Europe in 2009 was equal to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 68bln. The most popular products to buy online are books, event-tickets and clothing. Recent transactions in the e-commerce market support the above statement. In 2007 Sanoma acquired mrticket.nl, an online ticketing agency. In 2010, the Italian company Arnoldo Mondadori Editore acquired Mondolibri, active in the book segment. Recently, Sanoma Digital acquired (a part of) No Search, an internet marketing company, active in the development of several fashion portals like Fashionchick.nl. As mentioned earlier, online fashion is a high growth segment in the e-commerce market. Based on recent transactions in the e-commerce market, the estimated EBITDA multiple for mid-market companies is on average around 6-8 times EBITDA. Despite the international character of the European e-commerce market, only 7% of all European consumers buy their products in webshops in other EU-countries. Probably, this number will rise in coming years. Looking at the Dutch e-commerce market, youll see that the Netherlands are rather active in this online segment, because 71% of all consumers buy products online. An important reason for the growth of the e-commerce market is the trust that consumers have in the security regarding payments. Just 7% of the Dutch population is worried about this financial security. In the Netherlands, since several years an online secure payment system exists, callled iDeal, which means that customers can easily connect with their bank to make safe online payments. This type of payment is an important succes factor in the e-commerce market. To further realise growth in the e-commerce market in the future, it will be important to develop a cross-channel strategy in the coming years. Consumers will buy offline as well as online and mobile commerce is a new channel, which will develop in the near future. In the Netherlands 69% of the consumers buy products via 2 or more different channels, in the US this percentage is even higher, 78%. In general, for the retail sector, branding and customer loyalty are important factors for success. Nowadays, social media is used to reinforce branding and to promote several in-store loyalty programs as well as customer loyalty programs. In the near future, social media could be used as well for sharing online purchasing activities. Recently, wehkamp.nl has invested in social shopping applications in their webshop, so that customers can shop online together with friends, or could start a private shopping session. Other key factors, which are important to realise the predicted growth in the future are the focus on expansion in other countries as well as a variety of segments in different webshops. Furthermore, the e-commerce segment is of interest to several private equity clubs. It is expected that this will lead to consolidation in the market, which will lead to larger e-commerce companies and a stronger competitiveness in the market. Figures released by Statistics Netherlands show that retail turnover was nearly 1 percent higher in August 2012 than in the same month last year. Prices rose by 1.9 percent, while the volume of sales fell by 1 percent. The favourable shopping-day pattern had a positive effect on turnover in August this year. After correction for this effect, turnover is nearly 2 percent lower, and the volume is around 4 percent lower. Compared with August 2011, turnover in non-food shops was nearly 5 percent lower. The decrease in turnover in the first eight months of 2012 is now just under 4 percent. The largest drop in turnover was reported by shops selling home furnishings; their turnover was 13 percent down on August last year. Textile supermarkets and clothes shops, too, experienced large decreases in turnover. Chemists were the only shops that saw turnover increase. For shops selling food, drink and tobacco turnover rose by 7 percent. After adjustment for the effects of shopping-days, however, this drops to only 2 percent. Prices in these shops rose by 1.5 percent, while the increase in volume was limited. Turnover for mail order companies and internet retailers rose by 9 percent, for petrol stations it grew by nearly 4 percent. FMCG companies/Retail stores in Netherland HEMA (originally an acronym for Hollandsche Eenheidsprijzen Maatschappij Amsterdam, Dutch Standard Prices Company Amsterdam) is a Dutch discount retail chain that started life as a dimestore. It was part of the Maxeda company until June 2007, when it was bought by Lion Capital LLP. The chain is characterized by relative low pricing of generic housewares, which are mostly made by and for the chain itself, often combined with original design. The first HEMA opened in Amsterdam on 4 November 1926, set up by the Jewish owners of the luxury department store De Bijenkorf. Originally, as a price-point retailer at prime locations in town centers, goods were sold using standard prices (hence its name), with everything having a Standard price of 10, 25 or 50 cents, and later also 75 and 100 cents. The relative economic boom in the Netherlands in the period 1900-1930 benefited HEMA. Branches http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/HEMA_interieur.JPG/220px-HEMA_interieur.JPG http://bits.wikimedia.org/static-1.21wmf12/skins/common/images/magnify-clip.png Since the 1990s, HEMA has also expanded into neighboring countries. HEMA branches by country per 2011: Netherlands: 445 Belgium: 88 Germany: 10 (in 2013) Luxembourg: 4 (in 2013) France: 16 (in 2013) De Bijenkorf De Bijenkorf (literally, the beehive) is a chain of high-end department stores in the Netherlands with its flagship store on Dam Square, Amsterdam. It was founded by Simon Philip Goudsmit (1845-1889). De Bijenkorf flagship store on Dam Square in Amsterdam De Bijenkorf was founded in 1870 by Simon Philip Goudsmit (1845-1889), starting as a small haberdashery shop at 132 Nieuwendijk, one of Amsterdams oldest streets. Initially limited to yarn and ribbons and employing a staff of four, the stock expanded gradually. After the death of Goudsmit in 1889, Goudsmits widow expanded the business with the help of a cousin, Arthur Isaac, and her son Alfred, eventually purchasing adjacent buildings. In 1909, these connecting shops were replaced by a new building. That same year, a temporary building was erected on the site of the demolished Beurs van Zocher, and construction of a new store commenced beside it. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Lahayebijenkorf19.JPG/120px-Lahayebijenkorf19.JPG http://bits.wikimedia.org/static-1.21wmf12/skins/common/images/magnify-clip.png De Bijenkorf in The Hague Rotterdam store, 1930-1940 A third store opened in Rotterdam in 1930, designed by Willem Dudok. 700,000 people attended the ceremony. The store was heavily damaged in the Rotterdam Blitz of 1940. The intact part of the store remained open to business until 1957, but was cleared in 1960 to build the Rotterdam Metro. A new store was designed by Hungarian-American architect Marcel Breuer (1902-1981). As of 2012, de Bijenkorf has 12 stores nationwide. The oldest and largest branches, situated in Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam have retail space ranging between 15,000 and 21,000 square meters. Smaller stores (7,500-10,000 m ² of retail space) can be found in Amstelveen, Arnhem, Eindhoven, Enschede, Utrecht and Maastricht. The branches in Breda, Den Bosch and Groningen specialize in fashion (3,000 m ² retail space). Metz Co Metz Co is a department store in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, founded in 1740 by Mozes Samuels who sold his company to his three sons in 1794. Metz Co. has the right to display the Dutch royal coat of arms with the legend By Royal Warrant Purveyor to the Royal Household since 1815. To celebrate its 150th anniversary in 1890 the store moved to a new location on the Leidsestraat, where the company is still located. One of the first designers was Paul Bromberg (1893-1949), he became famous as a author and promotor of Decorative Arts and Interior Design. The distinctive cupola on the stores roof was built in the 1930s and designed by Dutch artist Gerrit T. Rietveld. Metz Co celebrated its 250th anniversary in 1990 by launching its own fragrance. The roof of the store doubles as an exclusive location for wedding ceremonies. Introduction of FMCG industry in India India is one of the largest emerging markets, with a population of over one billion. India is one of the largest economies in the world in terms of purchasing power and has a strong middle class base of 300 million. FMCG companies operate in a highly competitive and fast-changing environment. In order to stay ahead, they need to regularly renew their product portfolio to suit the ever changing needs and preferences of their customers. ValueNotes has executed in-depth research in many segments of the FMCG industry and can help you keep your finger on the pulse of your existing consumers; identify new markets for your products; track the activities of your competitors; and monitor industry trends. India a large consumer goods spender An average Indian spends around 40 per cent of his income on grocery and 8 per cent on personal care products. The large share of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) in total individual spending along with the large population base is another factor that makes India one of the largest FMCG markets. FMCG Category and products Household Care Fabric wash (laundry soaps and synthetic detergents); household cleaners (dish/utensil cleaners, floor cleaners, toilet cleaners, air fresheners, insecticides and mosquito repellents, metal polish and furniture polish). Food and Health beverages; soft drinks; staples/cereals; Beverages bakery products (biscuits, bread, cakes); snack food; chocolates; ice cream; tea; coffee; soft drinks; processed fruits, vegetables; dairy products; bottled water; branded flour; branded rice; branded sugar; juices etc. Personal Care Oral care, hair care, skin care, personal wash (soaps); cosmetics and toiletries; deodorants; Perfumes; feminine hygiene; paper products. INDIA COMPETITIVENESS AND COMPARISON WITH THE WORLD MARKETS Materials availability India has a diverse agro-climatic condition due to which there exists a wide-ranging and large raw material base suitable for food processing industries. India is the largest producer of livestock, milk, sugarcane, coconut, spices and cashew and is the second largest producer of rice, wheat and fruits vegetables. India also has an ample supply of caustic soda and soda ash, the raw materials in the production of soaps and detergents India produced 1.6 million tonnes of caustic soda in 2003-04. Tata Chemicals, one of the largest producers of synthetic soda ash in the world is located in India. The availability of these raw materials gives India the locational advantage. Cost competitiveness Labour cost comparison Source: DIPP. Apart from the advantage in terms of ample raw material availability, existence of low-cost labour force also works in favour of India. Labour cost in India is amongst the lowest in Asian countries. Easy raw material availability and low labour costs have resulted in a lower cost of production. Many multi-nationals have set up large low cost production bases in India to outsource for domestic as well as export markets. Leveraging the cost advantage Global major, Unilever, sources a major portion of its product requirements from its Indian subsidiary, HLL. In 2003-04, Unilever outsourced around US$ 218 million of home and personal care along with food products to leverage on the cost arbitrage Opportunities with the West. To take another case, Procter Gamble (PG) outsourced the manufacture of Vicks Vaporub to contract manufacturers in Hyderabad, India. This enables PG to continue exporting Vicks Vaporub to Australia, Japan and other Asian countries, but at more competitive rates, whilst maintaining its high quality and cost efficiency. Presence across value chain Indian firms also have a presence across the entire value chain of the FMCG industry from supply of raw material to final processed and packaged goods, both in the personal care products and in the food processing sector. For instance, Indian firm Amuls product portfolio includes supply of milk as well as the supply of processed dairy products like cheese and butter. This makes the firms located in India more cost competitive. FAST MOVING CONSUMER GOODS POLICY India has enacted policies aimed at attaining international competitiveness through lifting of the quantitative restrictions, reduced excise duties, automatic foreign investment and food laws resulting in an environment that fosters growth. 100 per cent export oriented units can be set up by government approval and use of foreign brand names is now freely permitted. TRENDS AND PLAYERS The Indian FMCG sector is the fourth largest sector in the economy and creates employment for three million people in downstream activities. Within the FMCG sector, the Indian food processing industry represented 6.3 per cent of GDP and accounted for 13 per cent of the countrys exports in 2003-04. A distinct feature of the FMCG industry is the presence of most global players through their subsidiaries (HLL, PG, Nestle), which ensures new product launches in the Indian market from the parents portfolio. Critical operating rules in Indian FMCG sector à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Heavy launch costs on new products on launch advertisements, free samples and product promotions. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Majority of the product classes require very low investment in fixed assets à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Existence of contract manufacturing à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Marketing assumes a significant place in the brand building process à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Extensive distribution networks and logistics are key to achieving a high level of penetration in both the urban and rural markets à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Factors like low entry barriers in terms of low capital investment, fiscal incentives from government and low brand awareness in rural areas have led to the mushrooming of the unorganised sector à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Providing good price points is the key to success THE TOP 10 COMPANIES IN FMCG SECTOR S. NO. Companies 1. Hindustan Unilever Ltd. 2. ITC (Indian Tobacco Company) 3. Nestlà © India 4. GCMMF (AMUL) 5. Dabur India 6. Asian Paints (India) 7. Cadbury India 8. Britannia Industries 9. Procter Gamble Hygiene and Health Care 10. Marico Industries Market Summary Approximately 80 percent of the Dutch food retail outlets are full service supermarkets, operating on floor space between 500 and 1,500 square meters located downtown and in residential areas. The remaining 20 percent includes superstores located in industrial parks, convenience stores near human traffic and department stores. In Belgium, full service supermarkets, like Colruyt and AD Delhaize, account for an estimated 75 percent of the market. The share of superstores and convenience stores in Belgium is higher than in the Netherlands, an estimated 25%. In Luxembourg, full service supermarkets like Cactus, Alvo and Match dominate the market as well. In all three markets, independent food retail stores are increasingly leaving the scene. On-going consolidation in the retail market, changing consumer demands and shrinking margins seem to drive this trend. The top 3 biggest retailers in the Netherlands, Albert Heijn, C1000, and Jumbo [1] , have a market share of 56 percent. The market for discounters like Aldi and Lidl has stabilized around 15%. Also discounters like Bas van der Heijden, Dirk van den Heijden and Digros were able to maintain their share of the market. In Belgium, the leading 3 retailers have 75 percent of the market. The market share of the discounters in Belgium is about 40% where Colruyt saw its market share growing at the expense of Aldi and Lidl. Recent market share figures for Luxembourg were not available when writing the report. Table 1: Market Shares of Leading Food Retailers in 2010 Netherlands Belgium Luxembourg Company Name Market Share Company Name Market share Company Name No. of Stores Albert Heijn 31.1% Carrefour 29.0% Delhaize 30 C1000 14.9% Delhaize 25.0% Cactus 18 Jumbo 9.9% Colruyt 23.5% Match 14 Aldi 8.5% Aldi 12.5% Alvo 11 Plus 6.1% Lidl 4.0% Smatch 8 Lidl 5.5% Louis Delhaize 3.0% Cora 2 Other 23.8% Other 3.0% Auchan 1 Total 100.0% Total 100.0% Higher Prices For Food Products The turnover of the Benelux food retail industry in 2009 was an estimated à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬52.7 billion (à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬31.1 billion in the Netherlands, à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬21.1 billion in Belgium and à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬0.5 billion in Luxembourg). For 2010 turnover is expected to increase by 1.5%. Reasons for this moderate growth: Expected moderate increase of the unemployment rate Limited economic growth Consumers plan to spend more food euros at retail than foodservice Due to the current economic situation the growth of value-added products has decreased at the expense of more basic products. Table 2: Turnover Benelux food retail, past 5 years 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 44.1 billion à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 45.7 billion à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 47.7 billion à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 50.5 billion à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 52,7 billion The trend of higher prices for raw materials and therefore consumer products, as discussed in the previous Food Retail report, seems to have stopped. Benelux consumer prices rank among the cheapest within the EU-27. Changing Consumer Needs In addition to the fact that Benelux consumers are shedding retailer-loyalty, they shop at different times and locations. During lunch breaks, people buy their lunch and often the ingredients for that eveningà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s meal. Small convenience stores, like AH To Go and Delhaize shop à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¾n go are opened at locations near heavy traffic like train stations, schools, and shopping malls to satisfy these consumersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸ needs. The traditional neighborhood grocery stores are either going out of business, are taken over or are changing their product portfolio. They are expanding the grocery line of fresh and convenient prepared-foods with tailor-made sandwiches, filled tortillas and drinks to satisfy the consumersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸ need for food for now. The ready-to-cook segment is also expanding. Awareness of Health and Well-Being Consumers are becoming more aware of and are more concerned about the effects food has on their health and well-being. There is a trend to a healthier lifestyle in Western countries. The following US industries have all benefitted from this trend: nuts (like pistachios, almonds, walnuts, etc.), fruits (like cranberries, pomegranates, berries, etc.), seafood (like salmon, halibut, etc.). Consumers are more cautious about foodborne illnesses. Consumers are looking for and finding more information on this topic; the media, including the Internet, TV and magazines, respond to this desire and feed into it. Food processors and retailers play a crucial role as well, as they develop and market food products (like juices from POMwonderfull, Healthy People, etc.) to create, anticipate and meet consumersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸ needs. Climate Change Carbon Footprint Labeling Last year the European Commission conducted a survey on mandatory Carbon Footprint Labeling (CFL). Popular support for CFLl by country, varied between 47% to 90% of all 27,000 Europeans that were interviewed. Seventy percent of the respondents in Belgium and Luxemburg were supportive of a mandatory label whereas this was only supported by half of the Dutch interviewees. The latter, on the other hand, were after the Finnish the most likely (28%) to prefer a voluntary labeling system. After the December 2009 U.N. Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, the discussion on CFL got a new boost. Belgian federal Minister of Climate and Energy, Mr. Paul Magnette, stated that in addition to the price, the CO2 emission should also be mentioned on each product. This way, consumers become aware and see to what extent the products they buy influence global warming. Carbon Footprint Labeling is not (yet) an issue in the Netherlands. The government hasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸t come out with a statement or position on CFL. It seems that all the individual stakeholders are waiting for the other to make the first move. Within the EU-27, the U.K. and Sweden are taking a leading role in CFL. For more information on Sweden, see GAIN Report SW9016. The overall labeling requirements for the Benelux can be found in the following GAIN Reports: NL9020 and GAIN BE9004. Advantages and Challenges of the Benelux Food Retail Market Advantages Challenges Sector Strengths Market Opportunities: Sector Weaknesses and Competitive Threats: Expected slight recovery of the economy in the EU import regulation and tariffs. EU Benelux is a promising prospect (expecially enlargement has given and will give compared to some other EU economies) for the preferential access to products from retail industry. new member countries. Affluent, open minded and curious consumers create Discounters are the fastest growing opportunities for new products. segment in the Benelux retail market; margins continue to be under pressure. The region has an excellent infrastructure which Competition is growing from non-food offers great opportunities. retail players like IKEA, HEMA, VD and Bijenkorf as they enter the food market. Greater demand for healthy food products not or not The industry is highly consolidated and suffiently available on the local EU market; e.g. therefore has a strong negotiating seafood, tree nuts, (exotic) fruit, vegetables, juices, position and good contacts. Road Map For Market Entry Entry Strategy Success in introducing your product in the Benelux market depends mainly on knowledge of the market and building personal contact with knowledgeable and established importers. Prior to any export, invest in research that analyzes the Benelux food culture (concepts, flavor, price, requirements). Once the product has been chosen, be aware of fierce competition. There are tariff and non-tariff trade barriers that can complicate exporting to the Benelux. An importer knows the market, the trade barriers and the required documentation. The Office of Agricultural Affairs (OAA) offers guidelines on business practices and import regulations. For a complete overview of offered reports, see Section V of this report. Market Structure Supermarkets and Superstores The vast majority of supermarkets and superstores buy foreign (specialty) products via specialized importers. This is especially the case for retail-ready consumer-oriented products like sauces, beverages and snack products. Convenience stores operate, in general, on a much smaller scale and therefore buy smaller quantities through wholesalers. Department stores work either