Effects Of Women Incarceration On Young Children Essay

Women incarceration has been on increase since the nineteenth century. This has had various effects on children of these imprisoned mothers. When a woman is incarcerated, whatever happens to their children is a matter of great concern. This paper aims at showing the impacts of women incarceration on children. This is in relation to their development and well being. (Beckerman, 1994) It is good to consider the family networks when looking at the impact of women incarceration on young children. A child’s development level has to be considered too when looking at the effects of women imprisonment. Parental incarceration has been increasing at an alarming rate since the year 1991. In the year 1991 there were approximately 450,000 parents imprisoned and by the year 2000 this number had increased to 437,400. The number of children that were affected also rose from 930,000 to 1,530, 500 during the same period. The number of women prisoners has continued to increase at a very fast rate as compared to men. From the year 1991 to the year 2000 there has been an 87 percent increase in the number incarcerated women as compared to 61 percent increase in number of incarcerated men. Research shows that fifty eight percent of the children that have incarcerated parents fall below the age of ten years. The mean age is eight years. Research indicates that forty eight percent of the women in prisons have never been married. This means that they are single parents. Twenty five percent of incarcerated women were separated or divorced. Approximately twenty three to thirty six percent of the women were married. Research shows that women incarceration can have different impacts on young children whether they were residing with the children or not when they got imprisoned. It is very obvious that in case the women were not staying with their children, then there are great chances that there was no meaningful social relationship between the two parties (children and mothers). Research shows that women incarceration has multiple effects on young children because when men are imprisoned, it is the women who take care of the children. When this happens mothers use ninety percent of their time in care giving. Now the case is the other way round, that is, when women are imprisoned. (Pollock, 2002) Research indicates that in the case of women incarceration the men only use twenty three to thirty one percent of their time to take care of young children. Friends can use approximately ten to twelve percent of their time to help while relatives assume the parenting role in approximately twenty six to thirty four percent of the cases only. These disparities in parenting responsibilities show the exact picture in the society that mothers play big roles in parenting especially in intact families. (Boudin, 1998) Women in most cases are more likely to be imprisoned because of fraud and drug offences. The type of offence always determines the period that they stay in prison. Women incarceration has got greater impacts on young children than men incarceration. According to various scholars, incarceration is not just a discrete or single event but it is actually a dynamic process that normally unfolds with time. (Chesney, 1983) Arrest phase The whole impact of women incarceration on children during this phase is indicated in an incomplete picture. Research shows that one out of five children is normally present at the time of arrest. The child normally witnesses the mother being taken to prison by policemen or the relevant authorities. Statistics show that in most cases, the other children are out playing or in school or doing other leisure activities. Research carried out in the year 2005 in United States shows that more than half of the children who witness this scenario are adversely affected. (Boudin, 1998) In most cases these children are normally below seven years and are care of their mother only as per that time. Surveys carried out in nine states in United States, that is, Chicago, Mississippi, Oregon, New Mexico, Texas, New Jersey, Boston, Florida and Washington D. C reveal this. Forty percent of the children who had ever witnessed their mothers being arrested were interviewed. Thirty eight percent of the children respondents admitted that they constantly suffered flashbacks and nightmares in relation to the incident. The occurrence was more prevalent during the first month that their mothers were arrested. Overall management of explanation There are so many controversies that enfold the issue of providing young children with the information concerning their mothers undergoing incarceration. There are those who argue that children should not know that their mother has undergone such a bad thing. This according to the assertions helps in minimizing the trauma that goes hand in hand with this separation. (Covington, 1997) On the other hand, other scholars argue that failure to disclose this important information can increase the emotional distress of the child. This is termed as conspiracy of silence. Regardless of whether women are the ones incarcerated or not, they are charged with the responsibility of explaining the whole situation to the children. Research carried out in the year 1997 indicates that out of thirty five cases only eight of these cases did the fathers offer their children an explanation concerning their mother being incarcerated. (Chesney, 1983) In most of the cases the explanation provided is quite general and vague. Many relatives and fathers lie to their children concerning the departure of their mother. There are variations such that some families use total deception while others use partial deception when explaining why the mother is missing. This conspiracy of deception has got various impacts on the children’s ability to cope with the whole issue. Children who are not well informed about their mother’s absence are very fearful and anxious. Inmost cases women incarcerations occur when the attachment of the children to their mothers has already developed. This can lead to adverse effects on the child because he or she could have spent the first nine to twelve months with the mother. (Covington, 1997) This normally results in insecure attachments. This is just but a consequence of the adverse shifts in life circumstances. This in most cases makes the child to have very poor relationships during his or her adolescent years. Another adverse effect of the child’s mother undergoing incarceration is that it makes the child to develop diminished cognitive abilities. This is very common to young children between two to six years of age. (Enos, 1998) The effects of women incarceration on young children are quite diverse. Young children with incarcerated mothers also tend to suffer from psychological or emotional problems. This is exhibited through withdrawal. In this case the children never want to associate with others and prefer being on their own even during play time. Psychological problems are also exhibited through depression, hyper vigilance and anxiety. In the case of hyper vigilance, the children are just too cautious or alert. The children whose mother has been incarcerated can also exhibit externalizing behaviors. They include great hostility towards siblings and caregivers, aggression and anger. Research in United States prisons shows that very few prisons permit women prisoners to keep their infants. In most of the cases the mothers are just permitted few days of contact with their babies. (Henriquez, 1996) This makes it very hard for the mother and baby to bond. This does not give the baby the opportunity to be familiar with the mother. When the mother is finally released from prison, she comes back home when the child has already developed and is not emotionally attached to her. This just results in children having behavioral and emotional problems later in life. (Pollock, 2002) In case the mother’s incarceration occurs when the children are in the school going age, they automatically get affected in their academics. These children also have problems with their peer relationships. Research shows that more than forty five percent of children with incarcerated mothers have school problems. This can result the children performing poorly at school. For young children between the ages of six to eight years old whose mothers were incarcerated, there was much unwillingness to go to school. This can be termed in other words as school phobias. This was in most cases for the up to six weeks after the mother being imprisoned. Other reports show that seventy one percent of 170 children of incarcerated mothers had very poor performance in their academics. They also had behavioral problems while in school. When other students know of the issue concerning the incarceration of the child, they tend to tease the child and he or she may become ostracized by peers. This can even lead to drop out from school if not suspension because of behavioral problems. (Enos, 1998) Boys and girls While the effects of women incarceration are expected to adversely affect girls more than boys, there is no adequate evidence to back up these allegations. Both boys and girls are normally adversely affected by the incarceration of their mothers. The only difference is that they generally express their reactions quite differently. Girls in most instances exhibit internalizing problems while boys exhibit externalizing behavior problems due to incarceration of their mother. (Owen, 1995) As illustrated earlier on, some of the women that are incarcerated are single parents. They may never have gotten married or they could have gone through a divorce. When arrests are made either to a man or a woman, there is normally no prior information that this act will be carried out. Therefore in most cases the woman is found off guard when she is not prepared to leave her family. This is in relation to who will fend or take care of the children. Children may have gone to school only to come back to an empty house without a mother. This can really cause distress to children when it is a single parent family as they have to fend for themselves. The impact is what we currently see on the streets-street children who were left behind by incarcerated mothers. This causes a lot of destabilization to young children because they are not old enough to work. They cannot afford to pay rent and therefore they just have to beg on the streets. Other children become house helps so that they can cater for their basis needs. They even carry work as baby sitters. Children whose mothers have been imprisoned can have eating problems. This is a result of the stress or depression of not having their mother around especially during meal times. Other children whose mothers have been incarcerated normally have clinging behavior. They also exhibit truancy in church attendance. When mothers are imprisoned the health of the children is known to automatically deteriorate. This is according to the recent studies carried out in Florida, Boston, Mississippi and New Jersey. Women are normally concerned with the health of the children a great deal more than men. There are instances when children have health problems and women because of their concern, take care of them. (Sobel, 1982) Most men come back late from work and leave early and therefore may not know so much in relation to the health of the children. Little things like allergies to foods are better known to the mother. When there is incarceration of the women the health of children declines because men or fathers care less. They may leave the duties to house helps who may not give maximum attention to the child as required. This results in health deterioration of children. Conclusion Incarceration of women has been on increase and this has got various effects on young children. Children who witness their mother being arrested have nightmares and flashbacks of the whole scenario. Fathers and relatives normally withhold information concerning the incarceration of the mother. This is conspiracy of silence and it increases fear and anxiety in children. A mother’s incarceration makes a child to have emotional or psychological problems which are exhibited through depression, hyper vigilance and anxiety. In case the child is of school going age it results in poor performance in his or her academics.

Aquinas’ and St. Anselm’s Proofs of the Existence of God

It is generally understood that people that are nonbelievers in God would never believe in the philosophies of the believers with regard to His existence. Nevertheless, there have been a number of important philosophers who have sought to prove the existence of the Almighty by thought alone. According to these philosophers, the presence of God may be understood by reason. Throughout the ages of humanity, believers have claimed to have felt the presence of God. All the same, there is no room for personal proofs in the philosophy of religion. St. Thomas Aquinas was a believer in God, who proposed five ways to know God. The first way of proving God’s existence, according to the philosopher, is by means of observing motion; that is, everything in movement throughout the universe should prove to us that there is a Prime Mover of all things. This way of proving God’s existence is similar to the argument of the creationists who assert that everything that we observe must have a Creator, just as all things that are man-made have originators. On a similar note, the second way of knowing God according to St. Thomas Aquinas is by understanding that all effects have causes; and so, there must be a First Cause of everything. The third way of proving the existence of God is by observing that everything in the universe is â€Å"possible to be and not to be;† so therefore, there must be an Essential Existence without which the existence and nonexistence of other things are meaningless (The Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas, 1920). This proof is intricately tied to the earlier proofs, including the current argument of the creationists. St. Thomas Aquinas describes it thus: The third way is taken from possibility and necessity, and runs thus. We find in nature things that are possible to be and not to be, since they are found to be generated, and to orrupt, and consequently, they are possible to be and not to be. But it is impossible for these always to exist, for that which is possible not to be at some time is not. Therefore, if everything is possible not to be, then at one time there could have been nothing in existence. Now if this were true, even now there would be nothing in existence, because that which does not exist only begins to exist by something already existing. Therefore, if at one time nothing was in existence, it would have been impossible for anything to have begun to exist; and thus ven now nothing would be in existence — which is absurd. Therefore, not all beings are merely possible, but there must exist something the existence of which is necessary†¦ This all men speak of as God (The Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas). St. Thomas Aquinas also writes that everything that is necessary must have been made necessary by something else. However, there must be something that is necessary in and of itself. Furthermore, this entity of necessity must cause other entities to believe in its necessity. This is the meaning of God, according to the philosopher (The Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas). The fourth proof proffered by St. Thomas Aquinas is similar to Plato’s concept of Forms. The philosopher believes that there is a ranking in place throughout the universe (â€Å"Thomas Aquinas and the Five Ways,† 2000). One person may be better than the others. Given that we compare attributes of people and things to rank them reveals that there must be â€Å"something which is truest, something best, something noblest and, consequently, something which is uttermost being;† in short, something that is Supreme in comparison with the rest (The Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas). The fifth way of proving the existence of God is exactly the same as the argument of creationists in our times. St. Thomas Aquinas discussed intelligent design with the philosophy that everything in the universe serves a special, intelligent purpose that has been designed by the Creator. This proof is based on the assumption that everything around us is essentially unintelligent – except God, of course (The Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas). In fact, all five proofs of God’s existence proffered by St. Thomas Aquinas may be said to revolve around the intelligent design argument. St. Anselm was another believer like St. Thomas Aquinas who proved the existence of God by reason alone. Yet, the ontological argument proffered by St. Anselm is the simplest. Instead of five proofs of God’s existence, St. Anselm offered only one, that is, God is that beyond which there is no greatness that we can conceive of (â€Å"St. Anselm’s Ontological Argument,† 2008). But, St. Anselm’s argument also rests on five logical points. The following is the argument with its corollaries: (1) God is that than which no greater can be conceived; 2) If God is that than which no greater can be conceived then there is nothing greater than God that can be imagined; Therefore: (3) There is nothing greater than God that can be imagined; (4) If God does not exist then there is something greater than God that can be imagined. ; Therefore: (5) God exists (â€Å"St. Anselm’s Ontological Argument†). The gist of the above argument is the very definition of God’s existence, according to St. Anselm. This definition – â€Å"God is that than which no greater can be conceived† – is different from all proofs of St. Thomas Aquinas (â€Å"St. Anselm’s Ontological Argument†). Moreover, it is a reasonable proof, similar to St. Thomas Aquinas’ statements about God’s existence. After all, it is easy to suppose that God must be that beyond which we can conceive of no greatness. Besides, nobody in the history of humanity has ever claimed to be greater than God. Even if someone were to claim that he or she is greater than God, it would be impossible for the majority of humans to believe in the claim, seeing that God would not compete with the claimer as in a debate. With our limited perceptions, we are unable to see God, and neither could we imagine something or somebody that must be greater than God. If we cannot find anything that is greater than God, the Almighty must be Real, according to St. Anselm. Even so, the essential argument of the philosopher does not answer the beliefs of the atheists that perhaps there is no greatness in the universe, as everything is equal. Similarly, St. Thomas Aquinas’ arguments are refuted by the atheists who proffer proofs of the evolution theory of Charles Darwin to contradict the existence of God. According to the atheists, the proofs of St. Thomas Aquinas and the ontological argument of St. Anselm could be refuted because they are based on basic beliefs of the people rather than universal facts. The truth that St. Thomas Aquinas believes in the First Cause of everything means nothing for the disbelievers in God, who might claim that there is nothing to precede anything except in the evolutionary cycle that everything must go through, that is, things evolve one from another without a Prime Mover or First Cause. As a matter of fact, there is no argument to bridge the gap between the claims of believers and disbelievers in God. For as long as we know the difference between truth and falsehood, there would be arguments. The claims of each group are refuted by those of the other. It may very well be that these arguments and refutations would continue for as long as there is humanity on our planet. Seeing that God cannot be seen, and neither does He support the believing philosophers by speaking out aloud to all the rest that these philosophers are correct in their belief systems – it is possible to refute the godly thoughts of St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Anselm until the end of time. Conversely, those who believe in their philosophies and do not doubt could be ones that have felt the presence of God beyond reason. In fact, believers in God may suppose that it is impossible to know God by reason alone. Given that truth cannot be turned into falsehood by argument alone, there must be a singular truth about the existence of God nevertheless. What is the truth? – In the discipline of philosophy, it is the fact that everything in the universe is not known to be confined to the realm of reason. For the believing philosophers, therefore, God is a Reason beyond reason.

How To Lose Weight

At its most basic, losing weight is about burning more calories than what you eat. That seems simple enough, but if it were really that simple, none of us would have a weight problem. Too often we take drastic measures to see results, such as diets, pills or those weird fitness gadgets on infomercials that promise us instant success. Maybe you lose weight but what happens when you go off that diet or stop that crazy workout program? You gain it all back and more. The real secret to weight loss is to make small, lasting changes. The key is to forget about instant results and settle in for the long run.According to studies, to lose one pound of fat, you must burn approximately 3500 calories over and above what you already burn doing daily activities. That sounds like a lot of calories and you certainly wouldn't want to try to burn 3500 calories in one day. However, by taking it step-by-step, you can determine just what you need to do each day to burn or cut out those extra calories. By calculating your basal metabolic rate, you are able to calculate the amount of calories your body needs to maintain basic bodily functions like breathing and digestion. This is the minimum number of calories you need to eat each day.Also, calculate your activity level. For a week or so, keep an activity journal and use a calorie calculator to figure out how many calories you burn while sitting, standing, exercising, lifting weights, and the like throughout the day. Another, easier option is to wear a heart rate monitor that calculates calories burned. After a week, add your totals for each day and average them out to get a general idea of how many calories you burn each day. Then, keep track of how many calories you eat. For at least a week, enter and track your calories to write down what you eat and drink each day.Be as accurate as possible, measuring when you need to or looking up nutritional information for restaurants, if you eat out. After a week, add your totals for each day and average them out to get a general idea of how many calories you eat each day. Lastly, add it up. Take your basal metabolic rate number and add your activity calories. Then subtract your food calories from that total. If you're eating more than your basal metabolic rate plus your activity calories, you're at risk for gaining weight. When you want to know how to lose weight it comes down to planning.Plan to drink a lot more water, it will make you pee more often but will also clean you out and give you move energy. You also have to get more exercise and by exercise I mean try to get one hour of exercise of any kind in a day. This needs to be exercise that you like and not exercise that just feels like work as that will not be sustainable. As far as eating goes you will need to get back to those core eating habits of eating fruit and vegetables and reducing the amount of heavy carbs like rice and potatoes and make sure to eat often. Eating smaller meals more often will keep that m etabolism up for you.Finally if you want to know the real secret of how to lose pounds you need to worry about why you are trying to lose weight. On those days where it is really tough to diet or exercise or make good decisions then you need to be very clear what the heck this weight loss sacrifice is for. Is it going to make you healthier? Or do you want to fit into smaller clothes? Or is it a goal to prove that you are in control of yourself? All of these reasons and more are important. Write your reasons down and post them up everywhere. Make sure that you never forget the why of how to lose pounds.

CRJ 422 Week 5 paper Term Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

CRJ 422 Week 5 - Term Paper Example sed on the institutions that allow people to live fulfilling lives and be active contributors to the well-being of the society (Carlisle, Jackson, & George, 2006). The concept of social justice can be traced to the ancient western civilization through the work of philosophers and majorly centered on the work of Plato. In his writings, Plato acknowledges that for a well functional and operational state, all members of the community must be assigned specific tasks and duties in accordance with the classes where they belong. The essence of social justice in this ancient era was to ensure that all members of the society contribute significantly to the well-being of the community. Assigning of tasks and duties to all members of the society in the form of employment ensures that everyone was economically stable thus reducing incidences of crimes and injustice in the society. Aristotle on the other hand conceived the notion of distributive justice. According to Aristotle, distributive justice required that assets and services within a society were to be distributed to all members of the society based on merit and without discrimination in relation to creed, race or gender. In the American society, the concept of social justice took a significant role in the 20the century particularly in the fields of politics and philosophy. During the 20th century, some of the principle concerns of social justice were the action of the Supreme Court to strike down state passed legislation on eight hour a day work and the right to join a trade union. The action of the justice system was thus seen to be targeting the disadvantaged in the society by oppressing the poor workers. In this era, most of the employees in industries where black Americans thus inhibiting the employees to join trade unions was equally an aspect of discrimination especially against the black America ns (Cambron-McCabe, 2005). Social injustice in the American society has been pointed to be on the rise thus leading

What are Yang and Yin in Chinese philosophy Essay

What are Yang and Yin in Chinese philosophy - Essay Example This philosophical concept also has a rich chronological record since its discovery and elaboration by ancient Chinese philosophers. The philosophical ideology was approximately formulated in 700BC (Mou, 2003). Since the onset of this period, every phenomenon in the physical and social domains was reduced to yin and yang. The concept of yin and yang was introduced and enhanced by ancient scholars in the Yin dynasty (Mou, 2003). The scholars developed the ideology in gradual steps through history. Yin and yang mainly involves the opposite and complementary association among two different phenomena. The philosophical concept represents two opposite principles in all factors of nature. Yin and yang concepts are key contributors towards specific processes of change. Therefore, the relationship of yin and yang is only observable and evident in the progression of change (Mou, 2003). The end result of this affiliation of the opposite forces is development. Development therefore is attained through the complementary interaction of the opposite forces of yin and yang. The attainment of change through the gradual interaction of the opposite forces gives a new definition to situations (Mou, 2003). Events are always dynamic in the interaction of yin and yang. In this case, the affiliation of the yin and yang forces keeps shifting throughout the interaction. Dominance of either force determines the progression of the development process. Despite of the dominance of a single force, the yin and yang keeps complementing one another for the process of development (Mou, 2003). The association of yin and yang is universal in all situations of change or development. As denoted previously, the principle of yin and yang applies universally in diverse contexts of change and development. It explains social and physical processes through evaluation of diverse affiliations amongst complementary and opposite phenomenon (Mou, 2003). As a philosophical ideology, the concept of yin and yang explains social as well as physical processes. For example, there has been a significant application of the yin and yang concept in Chinese medicine. This is one of the physical domains that illustrate the concepts of yin and yang in explaining change processes (Mou, 2003). The yin force represents a block of specific characteristics. The yin force represents passive, female, as well as negative principle of nature. It comprises a shaded orientation, the moon, and the north or shady side of a hill. The yin force also represents the south of a river (Mou, 2003). The yang force represents the opposite constituents of the yin force. This force comprises of active, positive as well as male principle of nature. It entails the sunny or south of the hill. It as well represents the north of a river (Mou, 2003). Evidently, the yin and yang forces reflect and characterize opposing features. The forces are therefore mutually exclusive to each other. The medics in China borrow this association significantly in the explanation of change processes in the field. Yin and yang relationships have basic features in their interactions. Aspects of Yin and Yang relationship Inter-transformation Yin and yang relationships are characterized by inter-transformational courses. One force can change into the other through the process of their interaction (Mou, 2003). This aspect is facilitated by the complementary affiliation of the two opposite forces. The inter-transformational feature is however not a random event. It has its appointed time as determined by the course of the affiliation that exists within the forces (Mou, 2003). The time dependent inter-transformation also defines the nature of the ultimate result of development. Therefore, when the

Summarization of Organization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Summarization of Organization - Essay Example As the discussion outlines the physician’s office is an independently run office that also functions as a business organization in itself, and it must compete with other local physician’s offices. The organization is named after the physician, Dr. Brown, and is referred to as â€Å"Dr. Brown’s Medical Office.† The medical office, which focuses in dermatology, has provided a good organizational structure to assist adult learners and those working to gain knowledge of the field. Trainees, for instance, are always working under somebody, and they usually participate in several aspects of examinations and do other jobs around the office. The training is a very hands on experience. The office also continues to offer training courses and opportunities to learn one on one with the doctor as necessary, thus encouraging the learners. The business is attempting to improve its prospects by moving its skin care products online and thus reaching a larger target audienc e, since it had always been recognized as a local business. Therefore, an analysis of this organization and its interactions with its adult learners is necessary to understanding how the business could better focus on use of technology and the Internet to achieve goals. This paper highlights that Dr. Brown’s office has been in business for twenty-one years. They are a local business venture and provide many services. Since the dermatology services offered at this office are not always covered by health insurance, the company must do what they can to keep prices low and attract customers. A variety of local advertising is used in local newspapers and pamphlets. The advertising focuses on the services offered, and the fact that the services here are usually better priced than services at other local offices. The company has been successful, even regardless of the recent recession. It has been able to retain its customers by offering price slashes and returning customer discounts.

Andrew Carnegie (U.S. Steel originally Carnegie Steel ) Research Paper

Andrew Carnegie (U.S. Steel originally Carnegie Steel ) - Research Paper Example These innovations allowed him to manufacture steel of better quality at a lower cost as compared to his competitors (Wren, 1998). During this phase the management approach of Carnegie was aggressive and Darwinian, aimed at derailing his competitors in business. To facilitate this innovation, Carnegie struck partnerships with the talented people who understood technology (Wren, 1998). As his operations expanded, Carnegie opted for an integrated approach towards his steel manufacturing operations by investing or taking over companies that supplied the raw materials to the US Steel (Wren, 1998). This management approach allowed Carnegie to profit from each and every step involved in the manufacturing of steel. As his business progressed, Carnegie’s thrust for continual improvement recognized a need for information systems and management styles that allowed him to calculate costs on successive operations associated with steel manufacturing. Hence, he adopted a new system and management approach that allowed him to have a thorough knowledge of the costs, which enabled him to bid successfully while seeking contracts (Wren, 1998). Hence, the acumen of Carnegie’s management approach stood in identifying demand, opting for new technologies that cut the cost of manufacturing and having a thorough insight into the cost of manufacturing

Human-Resource Management Interview Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Human-Resource Management Interview - Assignment Example   Rao (2009) defines a group as a team of members who influence one another towards the accomplishment of organizational objectives. A group comprises of a smaller number of people equipped with complementary skills and committed to the common purpose, performance goals, and the approaches that they hold themselves mutually accountable (Chiarini, 2012). Groups are highly effective in the marketing department, just as they are in other departments of organizations. The first step in understanding the functionality of groups in human-resource management requires interviewing a person who holds a leadership position in an organization, especially in the marketing department. The Interviewee The name of the person interviewed is Harrison. Harrison is an overall marketing manager of the leading banking organization in Europe. Harrison holds a Master of Business Administration from Harvard University. The company hired Harrison in the year 2003; he has ten years experience in the company , but fifteen years in the marketing department.  Ã‚  Harrison’s Experience with Utilizing Groups Harrison has used groups two times during his time as a marketing manager. Harrison was first involved in developing a marketing group, where he headed the formation process. The stages of team development that Harrison oversaw included forming, storming, norming and performing. Forming involved orienting and acquainting with the team members, which was characterized by uncertainties and stress (Chiarini, 2012). The primary role of Harrison in this stage was to recognize that team members were struggling to adjust to their new functions and the environment. Harrison had to remain tolerant of lengthy interactions probing team specifics, facilitating role clarity and emphasizing the need for customer focus. The stage of storming involved encouraging open discussion, developing interpersonal competence and urging group members to arrive at agreements that will help the group to ac hieve its objectives. Norming was another critical stage where Harrison was involved in encouraging the group towards developing team norms and values, and the process of determining unacceptable behaviors that are significant for the future productivity of the organization (Rao, 2009). The last stage of group development was performed, which involved recognizing the accomplishments of the group and the desired behavior of the team to ensure sustainability and continuance of the team for an unforeseeable future. The second time that Harrison involved himself with groups was when hired to evaluate group performance.  Ã‚  

Ethics and special need kids Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Ethics and special need kids - Research Proposal Example On the other hand, the same case applies to the perception of African American teachers towards white students and the course is the same. According to Oates (2003), positive disposition of teachers towards students tends to yield good results on the performance of the students. However, in the history of the U.S, there has been a notion that the African Americans have academic inferiority and that they lack diligence to perform. In another dimension, such notions have rendered the African Americans a low self esteem motive that makes them have a negative attitude about themselves in regard to their academic performance. Generally, although the African American students have equal opportunities in classroom in public schools, their performance is greatly affected by the context of their race and teachers’ perception (Oates, 2003). Conversely, the general place of African Americans in the American society also plays a critical role in explaining why the students cannot perform well in class. For instance, the perception that African Americans cannot secure good jobs in the U.S greatly affect their class performance because there is no guarantee that even after completing their studies they would get employed. Focusing on kids with special needs, it is apparent that the issue of racial discrimination fuels. ... In this regard, the perception of teachers towards African American kids with special needs is that their parents are incapable of taking care of the kids and that is why they are in their current conditions. For instance, a kid who cannot afford three daily meals tends to lack capacity to contemplate what they are taught in class. Mostly, such a kid comes from African American families. In another dimension, the perception by teachers that African American kids cannot perform better than the white kids has also played a key role on the continued underperformance by the kids. In light of this, teachers tend to focus most of their attention to white kids. A study conducted by Neal, et al (2003), found out that white kids are accorded much attention that African American students. For instance, teachers concentrate on areas they did not understand more compared to when it is the African American kids that raise the issue of lack of contemplation. Dee (2006) pointed out that, teachers p erceptions independently affect and influence academic performance via self-fulfilling beliefs and perceptual biases. In addition, if teachers are pleasant towards a certain student, they provide them with more effective and favorable instructions. The same case applies to situations where pleasant students portray poor problem solving skills, teachers guide them in a way that easily encourage them to develop good solving skills. This is centrally to situations where unpleasant students portray the same skills, teachers put little effort to encourage or correct them. In fact, Gay (2002) postulated that performance of students is in the mind of the teacher. They tend to evaluate students performance based on their perception about the students. In light of this, it is

Artworks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Artworks - Essay Example The depth of the painting can be seen when one observes a massive structure in darker tone towards the left,giving a greater sense of magnitude. Where as one gets a peaceful feeling when his eyes scrutinizes the small town hidden under the trail of hills. One of the most captivating artworks of all times, ‘Girl with a pearl earring illustrates a timeless beauty, a girl gazing at us with an exotic turban on her head. Her magical eyes and partially-opened lips engages our senses and gives depth to the painting. Her reminiscent attire give this picture this timeless feeling with surely a lasting quality. Due to his remarkable painting techniques, this artwork became a subject of poignant interest. The sense of realism is reflected in this painting because of those minute details which Vermeer give to these paintings i.e white tiny dots on either ends of her lips, that surreal look of her skin and the delicacy reflecting in the pearl she’s wearing. Just like Vincent’s Starry night, Munch uses those similar simplistic figures and vibrant colors with exaggerated details. After executing this artwork during the transitional phase of art history, Munch helped the other artists to demonstrate their inner feelings and emotions and express them beautifully in their paintings, rather than focusing on the outer appearance of different figures and objects. Why i chose this artwork? Well this one is different from all others. One has to go in its depth to get the real meaning which rests behinds this painting. Such an abstract image focuses on the subjective emotions and portrays that raw human emotion.Because of his brushwork using such vibrant layers of colors,it helps the onlooker to grab that subjective vocabulary for his very own interpretation of these subjects and this is exactly why it makes this artwork interesting. This artwork is

Representation of feminine nature in Helmut Newton and Lillian Bassman Dissertation

Representation of feminine nature in Helmut Newton and Lillian Bassman works - Dissertation Example Lillian Bassman and Helmut Newton are two of the greatest fashion photographers of the twentieth century. Each of them have used their own, specific techniques to achieve success in the field of photography, in particular female photography. The history and styles unique to each will be discussed below, in addition to relevant samples of their work. This chapter provides a detailed analysis of the works of Helmut Newton and Lillian Bassman and concurrently, compares their vision of females, their way of presenting them and how it influences the potential viewer. The first chapter of my final analysis will illustrate Helmut Newton’s works, his achievements and his representation of ‘feminine nature’. The second chapter contains a short biography of Lillian Bassman and an explanation of her photographic techniques and her perception of the female. Finally, the last chapter will sum up all the theories, photographic works, and perceptions as well as compare the commo n idea of the works shared between the photographers. NEWTON The female nude as fashion. A shot in which the form of a woman becomes in its own right a fashion statement. To use not a truly nude image but one in which a woman's body becomes a stylistic choice. This characterization can be said to be representative of the works of Helmut Newton; as well as Lillian Bassman, as exemplified by their work while at Harper's Bazaar. Bassman in particular was able to not only use her time at the magazine to advance her own prospects, but is credited to have advanced the careers of other fashion-notablies, such as Avedon, Faurer, and Frank. (VanZanten, 2010) Her monochromatic style is a art form she shared with Newton, yet others seemed to have found greater value in her Harper's Bazaar career than she herself; having destroyed 40 years of her own negatives and prints when fashion photography became less vogue, (or she perceived it as less vogue). While less self-destructive, Newton's mark o n the magazine also served an inspirational role, which - while less explicit than certain modern artists, he became a gatekeeper, or trail-blazer whose avant-garde efforts opened the door for others. The imagery Newton brought to the magazine mingled classic images of the female as a vessel for desire, along with an expressive fire kindled by a uniquely female drive, proactive intent - as will be discussed below. A cursory examination of Newton's style will allow for a semblance of the woman as a focal point for incidental beauty, yet with an underlying current of inner strength as revealed by the embrace of the full power of the feminine mystique. His work for the magazine carries the self-styled label 'porno-chic', and for the most extreme of feminist activists, his sort of visual provocation might carry the label 'anti-Christ', and warranted in the minds of some activists the defacing of a production with thrown paint. (Newton, 2002) On the other hand, Lillian Bassman uses compl etely different ways of attraction; she draws attention to the female body and how it can change the perception of the photograph. In a book by Liz Wells there are several debates, which introduce key concepts of photographic body. Solomon-Godeau suggests that ‘we need to consider not only how photographs present women’

McDonalds Marketing Plan Essay Example for Free

McDonalds Marketing Plan Essay I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY McDonald’s Philippines is a subsidiary of the Filipino-owned Golden Arches Development Corporation. The first Filipino McDonald’s to open for business was in the Morayta university districts in Manila during 1981. These days McDonald’s is operating over 150 restaurants throughout the islands of the Philippines. Being a 100% Filipino-owned franchise allows McDonald’s Philippines to be more agile and take quicker actions, making them an even more competitive force in the Filipino fast-food market. It is one of the leading fast-food chains internationally as well as in the Philippines, with a rapidly developing consumer brand and growing customer base. . It is a place for family togetherness organized around a common love of the traditional food. Its operating system is characterized by focusing on uniformity for consistent quality, the formation of partner relationship with its franchises and supplier to improve operating system innovatively and last but not least the introduction of new products. With its steady drive for improvement and consistently high quality, McDonald’s revolutionized the entire supply chain. Instead of regimenting its supplier and franchisees, McDonald’s expected commitment from them in terms of adherence and experimentation. The implemented, smooth operating chain of suppliers, McDonald’s corporate management and franchisees balances each other, creates an entrepreneurial spirit that added value, innovation, economics of scale, the bargaining power for advertising and purchasing, as well as new product and process ideas to the company. Additionally, all involved parties maintained a collective emphasis on disciplined quality standards. As years passed by, McDonald’s needed to adapt to industry changes by accomplishing some process design innovations in fruitful collaboration with its suppliers and franchisees. In this context, McDonald’s improved the chain’s chicken and fries’ quality and consistency by switching from raw to frozen delivered fries as well as the productivity of employee. Another major process enhancement was the introduction of the breakfast at McDonald’s. In this way, the corporation expanded its operating hours since it had to pay for rent, utilities and insurance 24 hours a day, anyways. The generation of a totally new business came along with the nice side effect that it again distinguishes itself from its competitors. This marketing plan is used in outlining the product, pricing, and distribution and promotion strategies to be implemented and executed during this time. It proposes a revitalization of the McDonald’s philosophy so as to focus on the quality of products and services for customer’s value and a healthy lifestyle, healthy eating habits, smart choices and education. The plan also outlines the structural issues that may arise during its implementation and execution, tactical initiatives to turn strategy into action. II. CHALLENGE Problem: Before, the company use grilled direct system. Which becomes the problem of the company because the customer always complaining about the quality of the product like chicken mcdo, when it is served to the customers it is not crispy because it stays longer in the warming bin, and also the patty of the burger, it is not juicy because it is not hot. The access of McDelivery to the call center is another problem of McDonalds because some times the information about on the location of the customer is wrong. Solution: Now a day the McDonald’s uses the Made for You (MFY) system. †¢ Food is made or prepared to actual customer demand, providing each and every burger only when it is needed just in time (JIT). †¢ It standardizes assembly of all sandwiches to one or two at a time. †¢ Requires minimal Human Decisions Making. †¢ It requires Behavioral change ⠝â€" Quality ⠝â€" Complete waste ⠝â€" Equipment ⠝â€" Standard procedure III. SITUATION ANALYSIS Company Analysis †¢ Goals – Develop a solution to improve kitchen layouts, people positioning and operational procedures for a better guest experience. In simple terms: our goal is to have a happy and satisfied customer. †¢ Focus – the company should focus on products and services. McDonald’s is a customer-oriented company that strives to offer Filipinos a combination of great tasting, quality food productions at value prices with excellent service. †¢ Values – Customer – driven, Malasakit, Integrity, Teamwork and Excellent. †¢ Strengths ⠝â€" Quality of the product, services and cleanliness of the store. ⠝â€" The service of the company is fast and accurate, and we believe that taking good care of our customers is the first vital step toward effective sales building. ⠝â€" Patents and Trademark ⠝â€" Branding such as through the use of logos, colours, slogan and other images. A key part of the McDonald’s brand is its ‘M’ logo otherwise known as ‘The Golden Arches’. †¢ Weaknesses ⠝â€" The competitors like Jollibee, Mang Inasal, Burger King etc. ⠝â€" Lack of cooperation between the management and in the crews. †¢ Market Shares – McDonald’s has captured more than 40% share of the hamburger market in the Philippines. Customer Analysis †¢ Number – 30% is ages 60 and above, 20% is ages 1-15, 50% is ages 16 and above. This is the percentage of customer who are eating at the McDonald’s everyday especially during breakfast, lunch, and dinner. †¢ Type – Class B C †¢ Value Drivers – a part from our product and services. McDonald’s gives back to the community through the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC). RMHC supports children’s development and well being through Bahay Bulilit and Bright Minds Read (BMR). Every happy meal purchase gives 50 centavos to RMHC. †¢ Decision process – The customer have a lot of decision making it is base of what they needs and wants, also the customer decide to buy a discounted product like in coupon and the mcsaver meals. Competitor Analysis †¢ Market Position No. 1 (Jollibee) No. 2 (McDonald’s) †¢ Strengths Lasang Pinoy Raw materials are environment friendly †¢ Weaknesses Jollibee has a poor service †¢ Market shares – Jollibee has captured more than 52% share of the hamburger market in the Philippines. SWOT ANALYSIS Strength †¢ Risk diversity †¢ Large market share †¢ Strong supply chain †¢ Promoting ethical conduct †¢ Competitive fast-food chain †¢ Attentive and friendly staff/crew’s †¢ Rigorous food safety standards †¢ Good reputation among customer †¢ Decentralized yet connected system †¢ Strong brand name, image and reputation †¢ Strong financial and performance and position †¢ Affordable prices and high quality products †¢ Nutritional information available on packaging †¢ Strong global presence and performance in the global marketplace †¢ Specialized training for managers known as the Hamburger University †¢ McDonalds Plan to Win focuses on people, product, place, price and promotion Weaknesses †¢ Unhealthy food image †¢ High staff turnover including top management †¢ Customer losses due to fierce competition †¢ Lack of access to the best natural resources †¢ Lack of access to key distribution channel Opportunities †¢ Growing health trends among consumers †¢ Joint ventures with retailers †¢ Consolidation of retailers likely, so better locations for franchisees †¢ Respond to social changes by innovation with in healthier lifestyle foods †¢ Strengthen its value proposition and offering, to encourage customers who visit coffee shops into McDonalds †¢ The new â€Å"formats†, Mccafe, having wi-fi internet links should help in attracting segments. Also installing children’s play-parks and its focus on educating consumers about health, fitness. †¢ International expansion into emerging market’s of other country †¢ Growth of the fast-food industry †¢ Low cost menu that will attract the customers †¢ Providing many promotional activities Threats †¢ Health professionals and consumer activists accuse McDonald’s of contributing to the country health issue of high cholesterol, heart attacks, diabetes, and obesity †¢ McDonalds competitors threatened market share of the company both internationally and domestically †¢ Global recession and fluctuating foreign currencies †¢ Affordability of the competitors products †¢ Similar flavors and products of the competitors †¢ Competitors endorsers are much popular when it compares to McDonalds IV.Market Segmentation Market Segmentation is the process of splitting customer in to different groups, or segment within the customers with similar characteristics have similar needs. Geographical Segmentation Mcdonalds offered their services based on certain country basic food. Like Philippines McDonalds realized that Filipino basic food is rice which with fried chicken as its local basic food. Demographic/Psychographic Segmentation Demographic segmentation divided the market into groups based on variables like gender, age, nationality, religion; family life cycle and family size McDonald offered their services by segmented their customer base on age, religion and family life cycle. To offer the best service McDonalds still concern about variations due to differing tastes and cultural issues for their customer over the world. Behavioral Segmentation Behavioral segmentation focuses on dividing consumer based on their knowledge, attitudes, uses, benefit sought, or responses to company’s product. One of the best forms of segmentation is to divide buyers according to the different benefits that they want to get by purchasing the product. Usually people who look for in their product class or look for each benefit. For example, McDonald provide McDelivery for 24 hours, this is the only one delivery service that not stop even once in a while a day by just call it and order, after that within a minute it comes to your place with the food that still hot and fresh. V. Alternative Marketing Strategies McDonalds has seen recent success through a careful implementation of its â€Å"Plan to Win† strategy, which focuses on several key aspects of the business, namely increasing traffic to restaurants, providing everyday value to customers, innovating the company through the creation of new menu items, re-imaging the company’s look, as well as its marketing campaigns. McDonald’s Plan to Win is based on a core set of four main goals: †¢ Acquire more customers †¢ Get these customers to eat at McDonalds more often †¢ Develop more brand loyalty for the McDonalds brand †¢ Ultimately become more profitable Increasing restaurant visits Current market condition help the appearance of McDonalds as a low cost alternative to eating at more expensive restaurants in the minds of customers, which has consequently led to an increase in foot traffic at McDonalds franchises. McDonalds has addressed these conditions through an increase in advertising, specially displaying the company’s attention toward a diversified menu of low cost items. Such advertising serves to satisfy all four of goals of Plan to win program, drawing customer interest through a short display of the plethora of new menu options recently added, while also helping to change the look and feel of McDonalds in the minds of customers. Providing everyday value In order to create an overall feeling of value for customers to experience, McDonalds has released a modular value meal, where customers have the benefit of both low prices coupled with increased freedom when deciding on a meal. While traditional menu options emphasize a trade-off between ordering freedom and price, the McDonalds value menu provides customers with both all at once, helping customers associate the brand with good value. Innovating new menu items At the same time as their menu choices have become modular and less expensive, McDonalds is also creating value for customers by providing a diverse menu with many more ordering options. Customers can now expect an increase in health-conscious options by adding some vegetables in the burger and also they provide some dessert like apple pie or pineapple pie. McDonalds also provide a mccafe like ice mocha, ice latte, and cappuccino, Americano to provide some different variety of coffee to satisfy the customer. Marketing campaigns As well as considering the important of keeping customers informed of the continuing changes to the company through advertising media and social media dialogues, McDonalds also recognizes the value of maintaining an ongoing support system and training structure for each of its franchise operators. As mentioned above, McDonalds uses well defined, and measurable milestones to help their constituents meet company goals with as few inconsistencies as possible. McDonalds’ training programs have been continuously recognized for their excellence, and with the continuing changes being carried out throughout the company, this attention to the value of training is a terrific asset to the company. Re-imaging the restaurant Directly benefiting the company’s goals of brand development for the company, McDonalds is reenergizing their brand through an understanding of â€Å"brand power†, which is built on the cultivation of four key areas of the brand, brand identity, familiarity, specialness, and authority. Brand identity is defined as the set of characteristics that customers recognize your brand by; in McDonalds’ case these are speed, consistency, value, and variety. Brand identity works with brand familiarity, helping to expand the message that symbols of the company, or even the overall impact of advertisements themselves in reinforcing the identity of the brand in the minds of customers. If carefully managed, McDonalds can use their brand identity to make their investments in advertising go much further. Beyond this, brand specialness and authority continue the process, representing the perceptions of McDonalds as the company appears to customers. Ideally, McDonalds should leverage brand specialness and authority to clearly stand out as a distinct and trustworthy source of value, allowing customers to increase the value of the McDonalds brand through their positive interactions with the company. McDonald’s adopts different strategies to attract customers of different age groups, but still the main target remains to be children. So in order to attract them, McDonald’s use a key tool: the Happy Meals, which seem to fascinate children due to the toys included in the menu. In addition to this, they have a tie up with The Walt Disney Company for the Disney characters included in the menu, in order to make sure that they offer the kids a wide range of toy options. Moreover, McDonald’s provides the children with a special facility, unique for food venues and fast-food restaurants: a playground. This strategy is aimed at making McDonald’s a pleasant and fun environment for both kids and parents. Even the exterior of every restaurant is also strategically designed using bright colors to invite in the customer, especially kids who can easily be influenced by these aspects. So not only that the children like it, it is a chance for the parents to spend some â€Å"quality time† with their kids. Another aspect of their marketing strategy is the fact that every McDonald’s restaurant provides Wi–Fi facilities, a detail that adds to the attractive qualities and is aimed at teenage customers. In addition to this, what is representative for this chain is their clown mascot, Ronald McDonald, who is essential for creating the bond with children and entertaining them. They can even have private birthday parties in the facilities, again part of McDonald’s aim to induce happy memories in children’s minds, and to make them associate the McDonald’s brand and logo with happy moments. VI. Selected Marketing Strategy Product Suppliers are dedicated to providing McDonald’s with top quality material that is continually monitored for freshness and safety. McDonald’s uses regional suppliers to ensure that the freshness is delivered to customers in every product they buy. Food quality is keys at McDonald’s. They seek out fresh lettuce and tomatoes, onions and pickles, quality buns and potatoes, pure ground beef, select poultry and fish and wholesome dairy products. All of the beef, chicken and pork that are used are purchased from federally inspected facilities to ensure freshness, wholesomeness and peak quality when served to customers. Non-Vegetarian Ingredients Chicken The chicken products are made from high quality boned rib and leg meat and are covered in a specially seasoned, lightly battered coating. They are shaped in uniform sizes to ensure consistency in weight and value. Fish The fish products in McDonald’s Filet –O- Fish are 100% pure whole white fillets that are lightly breaded. Their exacting quality standards for fish surpass federal requirements. The ocean-fresh quality of Filet-O-Fish is a result of the process and ability to freeze the fish at sea to maintain freshness. Vegetarian Ingredients Vegetables McDonald’s use freshly shredded lettuce, onions, pickles and tomatoes in their restaurants. All their vegetable products are processed from high quality graded vegetables in a 100% dedicated vegetarian plant. Potatoes McDonald’s French fries are famous around the world. To make French fries, McDonald’s uses only the best potatoes available from their own potato farms. Their potato suppliers make many of the same nationally recognized brands of potato products to make customers feel that they are with their family at home. These potatoes are cut, blanched and processed on state-of-the-art processing lines to ensure maximum retention of nutrients. Their French fries and Potato Wedges are cooked at the plant in 100% vegetables cooking oil. Other Ingredients Cheese and other Dairy Products All dairy products like cheese, McShakes and Soft Serves are made from fresh dairy milk. All dairy products including cheese have a role to play in balanced diet because they contain a wide variety of essential nutrients such as protein, calcium, fat solubles, phosphorus, etc. McDonald’s uses a special blend of pasteurized American cheese to complement the flavor of their sandwiches. Buns McDonald’s uses buns made from locally grown wheat flour. They are baked locally and delivered fresh, several times each week to McDonald’s restaurants. Cooking Oil Food preparations are done in 100% refined vegetable oils at the restaurants plants. They use liquid oil and not hydrogenated oil. This means there are no TFAs or Trans Fatty Acids in the French Fries or any other products. Additionally, these vegetable oils contain some essential fatty acids necessary for growth. Quality Food quality is the crucial element at McDonald’s. Despite extensive and meticulous quality test at the suppliers end, all products are once again carefully scrutinized at the restaurant. Immaculate of quality allow for nothing but the best to reach customer’s tray. Their products are sourced from the highest quality ingredients, prepared hygienically and treated to regular quality checks such as the McDonald’s Inspection Program (QIP). Scope of Product Line Distribution (Place) Place, as an element of the marketing mix, is not just about the physical location or distribution points for products. It encompasses the management of a range of processes involved in bringing products to the end consumer. McDonald’s outlets are very evenly spread throughout the cities making them very accessible. Drive in and drive through options make McDonald’s products further convenient to the consumers. Intensive Distribution Distribution arrangements tend to be long term in nature. Because of this time horizon, channel decisions are usually classed as strategic, rather than tactical or operational ones. Many of McDonalds restaurants are open 24 hours per day which satisfies the customers needs and wants, especially for exists their hunger. This kind of distribution strategy is called intensive distribution, means marking the product available for sale through all possible channels of distribution. Intensive distribution is stocking the product in as many outlets as possible.† Promotion The promotions aspect of the marketing mix covers all types of marketing communications One of the methods employed is advertising, Advertising is conducted on TV, radio, in cinema, online, using poster sites and in the press for example in newspapers and magazines. Other promotional methods include sales promotions, point of sale display, merchandising, direct mail, loyalty schemes, door drops, etc. The skill in marketing communications is to develop a campaign which uses several of these methods in a way that provides the most effective results. For example, TV advertising makes people aware of a food item and press advertising provides more detail. This may be supported by in-store promotions to get people to try the product and a collectable promotional device to encourage them to keep on buying the item. At McDonalds the prime focus is on targeting children. In happy meals too which are targeted at children small toys are given along with the meal. Apart from this, various schemes for winning prices by way of lucky draws and also scratch cards are given when an order is placed on the various mean combos. VII. Conclusion Since the problem of McDonalds is about the customer that keeps on complaining for the quality and freshness of the products that is being served. Therefore I conclude that the company should use the MFY (Made for You) system, so that the food is made or prepared for the customer just in time with a good quality for a reasonable cost. The company should also provide a large number of riders to avoid late delivery.

Analysis Of The Coconut Oil Industry Economics Essay

Analysis Of The Coconut Oil Industry Economics Essay The coconut oil milling industry, which started during over a century ago, is still active and exporting to other countries. This industry seems to have a huge potential for profit in both the local and global setting. Producing millions of metric tons of coconut oil, the Philippines is the top exporter of coconut oil; hence, the firms producing them are highly profitable. This paper investigates the profitability level of the coconut oil industry. Furthermore, the paper would be looking at its production and exports contributing to the economy. Lastly, the paper would take a look at its trends and how it affects Philippines GDP. The paper would be using statistics, tables, graphs and news to prove that the said industry is making profit up to this point. This paper hopes to achieve more insight on the coconut oil industry and learn more about its current state in the Philippine market. Introduction Background History Other than semi-conductors exports, the Philippines is also known for its coconut oil exports. The Philippines is presently the top exporter of coconut oil worldwide. In 1989, the Philippines was the second largest exporter after Indonesia. The Philippines is producing a lot of metric tons of coconut oil and exporting them to the world. Some of the countries that the Philippines cater to are United States, Netherlands, Japan, Italy, and China (Philippines coco oil exports up to 33.39 pct in November, 2010). The coconut oil industry started to bloom during the 1960s. The Philippine pesos devaluation during 1962 and 1970 respectively had increased the worlds demand for Philippine products such as coconut oil. Because of this devaluation, the land devoted to coconut oil has been increasing 6% per year which In the 1960s and 1970s land devoted to coconut oil cultivation has been increased by 6% per year due to the devaluation of Philippine peso in 1962 and 1970 respectively therefore increasing worlds demand for coconut oil. Because of this devaluations, the local government provided investment incentives to encourage the production/processing of coconut oil. The number of coconut mills grew from 28 to roughly 62 mills in 1979. (Philippine-Coconut Industry, 1991) During the Martial Law Regime in 1973, all coconut-related, government operations were placed under the control of one agency known as the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA). The PCA was tasked to collect a levy of P 0.55 per 100 kilograms of copra to stabilize the domestic prices of coconut-based goods, particularly coconut cooking oil. In 1974, the Coconut Industry Development Fund was created for the development of hybrid coconut trees. In the same year, the PCA was overtaken by the Coconut Producers Federation or Cocofed, a group of coconut planters. In 1975, PCA acquired a bank which was renamed to United Coconut Planters Bank, to help coconut farmers in their business. (Philippine-Coconut Industry, 1991) In the early 1980s, as coconut prices began to fall, the government was pressured to alter the structure of the industry. The government was being forced to give up its monopolization of coconut oil. In 1985 the Philippine government agreed to dismantle the United Coconut Oil Mills as part of an agreement with the IMF to bail out the Philippine economy. By 1989, coconut trees occupied about 25% of cultivated land. It is estimated that around 25% to 33% of the population was at least partly dependent on coconuts for their livelihood. (Philippine-Coconut Industry, 1991) Research Coconut Industry The coconut industry is the biggest agricultural industry. Based on 2002 Census from the Department of Agriculture, the industry compromises roughly 1.4 million or at least 30% of the total farms in the Philippines. The production of coconut oil heavily rests on the coconut grown by the millions of farmers. The land that grows coconuts is totaled to be roughly 3.32 million ha which surprisingly is even bigger than the land used to produce rice (Dy, 2006). There are 65 coconut oil mills which have the capacity to crush 4.54 million tons of coconut a year (Dy, 2006). The agricultural sector employs almost 40 percent of the total labor force to produce agricultural products like rice, coconuts, etc. (Encyclopedia of Nations). Presently, 25 to 33 percent of the population is dependent of the coconut industry as their livelihood, whether it is through farming the coconuts or milling and refining them (Dolan, 1991). The government and United Coconut Association of the Phillippines (UCAP) declared that the coconut industry might be the next major employment sector of the Philippines (Coconut industry poised as next major employment sector, 2011). They projected that the employment coming from the coconut industry would significantly increase in size by end of 2016 (Coconut industry poised as next major employment sector, 2011). Market size Figure Coconut Oil ProductionThe Philippines, Indonesia, and India are the leading exporters of coconut oil in the Asia Pacific. They account for more 75% of the total production of coconut oil in the world (Smith Nyugen, 2009). It is estimated that the Philippines alone produces around 13 billion coconuts which is refined to oil (Dhanuraj, 2004). In 2011, the production of coconut oil in the Philippines was estimated to be roughly 1.7 million metric tons (Index Mundi, 2011). In the past five years, more and more coconut oil is being produced due to the efficiency of equipment and cultivation of land. The continuous trend in production of coconut oil is an indication of how stable the industry is. The fact that the industry can manufacture almost the same amount of coconut oil per year would show us how stable the industry is. Revenues on Exports Source: Bureau of Agricultural Statistics Figure 2 Coconut Oil Exports Figure Coconut Oil ExportsThe coconut oil industry is focused more on exporting cooking oil to other countries. There is no data on the revenue and profit of the industry in the local setting. Every four out of five metric tons produced in South East Asia, especially from the big three producers, are sent to either Europe or the United States (Smith Nyugen, 2009). Only one out of every five metric tons remains in Asia. The Philippines, being the top exporter of coconut oil in the world, has exported millions of metric tons in the past three years (Department of Agriculture, 2011)(see figure above). Furthermore in 2010, the Philippines has not only exported 1.3 billion metric tons of coconut oil, but also earned around 1.2 billion USD which is an outstanding revenue of 55 billion pesos (Department of Agriculture, 2011). During the First quarter of 2010, the prices were pegged at around 1000 USD (Department of Agriculture, 2011). GDP In recent years, the agricultural sector roughly contributes 12~15 percent of the Philippine GDP (Index Mundi, 2011). The agricultural sector had contributed roughly 4 billion USD in 2010. Coconut oil and tuna were computed to be 39.67% percent of the total GDP contributed by the agricultural sector (Department of Agriculture, 2002). The GDP of 2010 has risen by roughly 30.67% from the previous years GDP (Department of Agriculture, 2011). Though it is true that the GDP decreased in 2011, mathematically speaking the GDP contributed by the agricultural sector did not. During 2010, the GDP of the Philippines is roughly 7.3% and roughly 13.9% of comes from the agricultural sector (Instituto Espanyol De Comercio Exterior). In 2011, the GDP is roughly 3.7% which is significantly lower than the previous year, but the agricultural sector still maintains and contributes roughly 12.3% which is not bad (Index Mundi, 2011). Furthermore, on December 2011, coconut oil exports began to rise again by about 2.7% (Reuters, 2011).Thus, coconut oil exports would increase by the year 2012. The Philippine Coco Coir Industry forecasts that by 2016, the exports of coconut oil would increase by 400 percent (Coconut industry poised as next major employment sector, 2011). Importance to the Economy. According to the research done Roland Dy, Ph.D, the coconut oil industry is important to the economy of the Philippines. First, coconut farms are located in 68 out of the 79 provinces of the Philippines. Second, 30% of the total farmlands in the Philipines are coconut farms. Third, coconuts contribute half of the agricultural exports. Fourth, coconut farming lands have the largest potential of diversification. Fifth, it is a huge untapped resource pool for industry development (Dy, 2006). Not only has coconut oil been sold abroad as exports, but it also used as cooking oil. Coconut oil is also used in homes (Isip, 2012). A significant percentage of the market uses coconut oil. It is not only used by homes but also by biscuit industries. The National and Global Environment Technological Environment The Technological Environment of a business greatly affects its ability to produce its products and, therefore, affect its overall performance in the industry. In the Philippines in 1997, coconut production in copra equivalent accounted for 3.83% of the total production of agricultural crops (Aragon, 2000). The coconut production during 1990-1997 was a little small which was due to the slow growth rates in coconut hectarage (0.9%/year) and coconut-bearing trees (0.3%/year) (Aragon, 2000). During the period of 1990-1997, about 91% of the coconut production in the Philippines passes through the copra stage (Aragon, 2000). The minimal production of coconuts of the stagnant farm sector caused the over-capacity of the coconut industrial sector. According to the study done by the Philippine Coconut Industry, there are about 65 coconut oil mills with an installed copra crushing capacity of 4.54 million tons a year (Dy, 2006). According to another study made by them, the number of mills in t he Philippines rose from 28 in 1968 to 62 in 1979 (Phillipine Coconut Industry, 1991). There was also an issue of declining yields because of the aging of coconut trees in some regions (Phillipine Coconut Industry, 1991). Some coconut oil milling industries still use low technology machineries or techniques to produce coconut products. There have been many researches and experiments done to improve this industry. Technologies for coconut processing have been made but only a few of these reached the actual production areas. During a study made by Joey Faustino (2006), the farmers burn the higher value coconut husks/shell to dry the lower value output that is copra(coconut shell). This means that because of the low level technologies that are used by some of the farmers and companies, their level of output is also affected. A famous Malaysian newspaper republishes Wong Yee Tuans work, which says: In the late 19th century, a few businessmen introduced new technology and established Khie Heng Bee Mill, a modern rice and oil mill equipped with steam and hydraulic machinery. The mill was driven by a 60hp horizontal engine and the hydraulic oil presses were worked by a 24ho engine. It was capable of producing 100 piculs (6,000 kilos) of oil per day. It became one of the largest and most important industrial concerns in northern Malaya. The founders of this modern enterprise were Phuah Hin Leong, Chuah Yu Kay, Lim Leng Cheak, Cheah Joo Jin and Cheah Ewe Ghee. (Tuan, 2011) Their technological advancement affected their capability in producing their products. The initiative made by these businessmen inspired others to develop new technologies to improve the industry. In Zamboanga, the Zamboanga Coconut Research Center have produced around 20 hybrid coconut varieties according to the Philippine Coconut Administration (Gumapon). These hybrid coconut varieties were discovered to counter the dry spell (Gumapon). The Coconut Industry Investment Fund-Oil Mills also uses modern technologies in operating their plants. Their plants have a combined crushing capacity of 750,000 metric tons of copra with a refining capacity of 280,500 metric tons of different grades of processed coconut oils (CIIF Oil Mills Group). Having technological advancements helps the industry to improve. The modern technologies help the companies to produce more copra which in turn helps them produce more coconut oil. Economic Trends Coconut oil production is a constant all year round process. As long as there is a constant supply of coconut, coconut oil, and other by-products are constantly being refined and manufactured. Coconut oil products are sold to different firms all over the Philippines and are also exported to other countries all over the world. The Philippines mostly exports its products to countries like United States, Japan, Europe, and most of the ASEAN countries (Encyclopaedia of Nations). The Philippines, being the top producer and exporter of coconut oil, is rapidly growing during the last few years. In the last two years, 1.69 billion metric tons of coconut oil is being produced all over the Philippines (Index Mundi, 2011). But in the recent years, the exportation of coconut oil is slowing declining over the years. The coconut oil industry for 2011 exports roughly fell to .8 million metric tons from the 1.34 million of metric tons produced during 2010 (Olchondra, 2012). Decline in exports of coconut oil is being attributed to the 2011s large export of coconut oil. During January 2012, a coconut oil export is roughly 54,000 metric tons which is roughly half the exports of last year (Galvez, 2012). According to Yvonne Agustin, UCAP executive director the export of coconut oil is going to increase by the second quarter. She says, Right now, the demand for CNO is still weak since most of the foreign buyers still have plenty of stocks from last year, but we expect demand to pick up in the second quarter of the year (Galvez, 2012). According to a research by Asian and Pacific Coconut Community, coconut oil is being produce and exported in significant volumes (see figure below). During the early stages of the coconut oil industry, the production and exports of coconut oil is roughly 1.5 million metric tons and .5 million metric tons respectively. The market had grown so fast that the Philippines alone can produce the same amount of coconut oil in just a year time. (Vinay Chand Association) Figure Coconut Oil Production and ExportsProduction and Exports of Coconut Oil in Metric TonsC:UsersROBERT S. CHENGDesktopUntitled.png Source: Index MundiGlobal Environment Coconut oil accounts for approximately 20% of all vegetable oils used worldwide. Coconut oil is used in margarines, vegetable shortening, salad oils, confections, and in sports drinks to boost energy and enhance athletic performance. The total cultivation under coconut was estimated at 11.0 million hectares producing 55 million tons in 2004. Asia remained the largest producing region at 46 million tons or 85% of global production in 2004. In the western hemisphere, South America was a major producing region at 6% of production (Singh Seepersad Rankine eds, 2007) Philippines and Indonesia are the worlds two largest producers of coconut, with an estimated production of 16.3 million tons and 14.4 million tons from 3.3 million ha and 2.7 million ha respectively. In 2007, the Philippines produced 37% of total world production and Indonesia comes second with 29%. India, the third largest with 13%, produced an estimated 10 million tons from 1.9 million ha. Indonesia and the Philippines were major exporters while India consumed most of its coconut production. Central America, Brazil, Mexico (with 4%) and Jamaica were major producers in the Western Hemisphere (Singh Seepersad Rankine eds, 2007). World production in 2007 fell by -6.8% yr/yr to 4.652 million metric tons, and remains far below the record high of 5.662 million metric tons posted in 2001. (CRB Fundamentals 2008 Commodity Articles: Coconut Oil and Copra, 2008). This fact might be true for the worlds production of coconut oil. But the Philippines is still consistently performing well with 1.358 million metric tons and 1.625 million metric tons in 2001 and 2007 respectively (Index Mundi). The table that follows summarizes the world production of coconut oil in 2011. World Coconut Oil Production in 2011 Source: USDA Figure Coconut Oil Production 2011 Price of Coconut Oil in 2011 Source: Index Mundi Figure Coconut Oil Prices Percentage Change in Coconut Oil Prices in 2011 Jan 2011 2,063.00 Source: Index Mundi- Feb 2011 2,260.00 9.55 % Mar 2011 1,925.00 -14.82 % Apr 2011 2,088.00 8.47 % May 2011 2,097.00 0.43 % Jun 2011 1,803.00 -14.02 % Jul 2011 1,663.00 -7.76 % Aug 2011 1,454.00 -12.57 % Sep 2011 1,310.00 -9.90 % Oct 2011 1,208.80 -7.73 % Nov 2011 1,479.00 22.35 % Dec 2011 1,439.00 -2.70 % Figure Coconut Oil Price Change The world market price for coconut oil is constantly fluctuating. The following table shows the schedule for the price of coconut oil in the world market for the past year. In 2011 alone, price percentage changes fluctuated to a decrease as low as -14.82% in March and to an increase as high as 22.35% in November. The following table shows the schedule for the price of coconut oil in the world market for the past year. Health Benefits Coconut oil is known to be one of the more expensive oils. It can be seen in trends that among the widely used edible oils, coconut oil usually takes a higher level of prices. The following graph compares edible oil prices of soybean oil, palm oil, canola oil and coconut oil from 1997 to 2005. The steep downward slope of coconut oil was due to the Asian financial crisis. Coconut oil being more expensive than its competitors had suffered a lot from the crisis. As seen after the crisis, the trend is gearing upwards again. Edible Oil Prices from 1997 to 2005 Source: Index Mundi Figure Edible Oil Prices When talking about the global environment of the coconut oil industry, it is important to take note of the possible impact of recent medical research done on the health benefits that can possibly be acquired from coconut oil. As written by Singh, Seepersad and Rankine(2007), Over the last decade, there has been an increase in the number of scientific studies conducted relating to the merits of the traditional tropical diets premised on the use of fruits and vegetables as practiced in the Philippines and Hawaii. Also, studies focused on the merits of using some of the product derivatives such as coconut and palm oil as compared to traditional soybean and other unsaturated oils. Coconut oil has been proven to have a saturated fat, which is of the medium-chain fatty acid variety (MCFA). MCFAs are more readily digested by the body, in that MCFAs are not stored as fat but are immediately converted into energy. This results in an overall increase of the bodys metabolism. Studiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ showed that coconut oil prevented the formation of hepatic cholesterol esters. In addition to this, the lauric acid found in coconut oil provides the disease fighting fatty acid monolaurin, which boosts the immune system. Coconut reportedly has been proven to have no dangerous trans-fats, which are traditionally found in vegetable oils, margarines and shortenings. These substances have the effect of increasing the bodys production of LDLs or bad cholesterol, which has implications for heart disease, diabetes and other health problems. Conclusion The Philippine Coconut Oil industry, which started over a century ago, bloomed and is still consistently profiting from selling cooking oil to the local and global market. Though it has been affected by the Asian Financial Crisis, it still managed to recover. It was able to brought back its sales. The trend of using coconut oil is still consistent. The Philippines produces and exports coconut oil in the same degree. Despite the fluctuating prices and volumes sold of coconut oil, the percentage it contributes to the Philippines GDP has been overall consistent over the past few years. With new technology, the production of coconut oil has been and is consistently getting better. There are fewer wastes, and the cooking oil manufacturers are finding ways to use these wastes for other purposes. My uncle who is part of this industry and one of the leading manufacturers of coconut oil says they are using the wastes as components for bio-fuel. The market for coconut oil has been consistent throughout these past few years despite the costs of coconut oil against its substitutes. Though edible coconut oil is a lot more expensive than oil made from other products such as palm oil, coconut oil is still welcomed by the market. With this statistics, I would like to believe that the coconut oil industry would continue to move on and still be successful in future. Despite the indications of the industry degrading, still shows consistent performance.

How Strong Is Your Faith Religion Essay

How Strong Is Your Faith Religion Essay Biblical character Job placed much faith in his lord. He kept his faith despite some of the harshest of circumstances. Job had immense resources that provided for him and his family until Satan challenged God to a test of Jobs faith. It was then that great tragedy befell Job and his family. Further testing his faith, God disfigured Jobs face by giving him welts. Through this entire calamity, Jobs faith grew even stronger, proving Satan wrong. God then replaced Jobs health, job, land, and even provided with him a better wife. Confused, Job wondered why he experienced such a dramatic rollercoaster of life. Job asked God why did this all happen?, and God replied: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Because Im God. Thats was all the answer he needed. God can easily take back everything that he created at any time, which causes man to fear God. People of the purest faith realize this and repay God with a lifetime of homage and servitude. This is usually the key behind all religions were theres a God. For example, in the Hindu faith they have a God in which goes by the name of Shiva, believed to be the restorer and destroyer of worlds, which gives Shiva the persona of being one of the most temperamental gods of any faith. Shiva has the power to destroy the world on a simple whim. To prove his power, Shiva once cut his own sons head and replaced it with an Elephants head. Once there was a story of a man whom desired power more than anything in the world. He had to obtain sacred weapons from Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page3 which were created by Shiva. Through deep meditation that went on till he clouded the heavens that eventually angered Shiva. Shiva then challenged the man to a battle, in which he was easily conquered. Shiva was still impressed by the will and determination of this man, so Shiva ended providing him with the weapons that he desired so much. Shiva requires the type of faith that is strong enough that man would even challenge God himself, which would make him the ideal Hindu. Religion is a part of everyones life; throughout history, in art, in music, and especially in literature. Its something that could even be traced back to mans earliest presence in this world. Some peoples faith extends further than others, but does this really matter? When comparing the stories of Job and Jonah, faith seems to no make a difference to God. Job being someone who had strong, pure, and unfaltering faith, and on the other hand, Jonah had such faltering faith. Yet Job was punished when God tested his faith, and at the same time Jonah just fled from God, and yet he was forgiven. Faith seems not to really matter to God in the long run. Between these stories it seems that the good man ends up getting screwed in the end, while the bad guy seems to be rewarded. With that being said, does one man who truly worships God and pure end up weighing more in the eyes of God than an apathetic Hindu? Man having the need to believe that there is something out there that might superior to him with some type of explanation for our presence on this world. God having such an unimaginable popularity to mankind makes him necessary to mankind, definitely having lasted this long. We want to believe and find something that proves there is something more than just a void when its all over. Subconsciously, we even realize there actually was no God, and no afterlife, there would be no consequences, and the basic goodness within man would come to a fault which would take away from us maintaining the little order we have, and would promote chaos all around. Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page4 The amazing part of our world is that everyone has unique gifts, skills, and abilities. One man may end up as smart as Albert Einstein with a body like the Hulk, and his brother would have the mind of the Rain-Man and the body of Moby Dick. God seems to rewards us in a variety of ways. Some of us are blessed spiritually, some physically, some mentally, when some are all rounded. Rewards could be proportional to faith. A man with wealth may be a strong believer, while a man with nothing may be a blasphemer. But there might be no connection between the amount of faith you have and how youre rewarded. This would make it much easier to believe, when some of the wealthiest people out there are usually sinful or have their hands something that is. People who believe might not be any better off than people who dont believe. But theres a question that still remains; is religion actually good or bad? In Moby Dick, questions of faith, reward, and reason, floats about subliminally in the lives and fates of all the players. The Pulpit: At my first glimpse of the pulpit, it had not escaped me that however convenient for a ship, these joints in the present instance seemed unnecessary. For I was not prepared to see Father Mapple after gaining the height, slowly turn around, and stooping over the pulpit, deliberately drag up the ladder step by step, till the whole was deposited within, leaving him impregnable in his little Quebec. Things like isolation, and alienation could end up being the result of strong faith. This causes you to be set apart from the crowd, making you an outcast. Father Mapple being one of the truest believers in this novel Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page5 sets himself up at a distant, higher, and more protected place. Mapple believes he is a direct messenger from God. In this chapter The Pulpit is built unlike any other. According to Mapples specifications, it was extremely tall with a long rope ladder leading to his platform; this setup was very similar to boarding a vessel. Once Mapple withdrawals the ladder, he goes to an isolated world of his own, taking him away from the city where hes an extremely popular whale man. He feels to have such a necessity of going away to an isolated island away from the real world so then he can communicate with God. Being on a nearly empty, isolated ship seems to be all thats left of his religion. This can be taken to mean that while Mapple is alone on his vessel and silence is surrounding him, he must climb up the simple ladder toward heaven in order to escape the land of the sinners so he can communicate Gods word. He then pulls up the ladder to prevent any distractions, visitors, or invaders. Usu ally a real vessel would be set off to sea, which spiritually Mapple has to do. He then stands up high, looking down on the congregation, he feels he is superior. He has a painting at the foot of the Pulpit of this ship fighting off a colossal storm, and through the clouds is an Angel that is creating light to guide the lonely vessel home. The vessel in the painting is also the same as the vessel represented by the Pulpit and Mapple is at the Helm. Now at the top of the Pulpit is a podium where Mapple reads his bible. His bible in which guides his ship through the storms of evil. Now the resemblance of all this is that religion represents this lonely vessel, which must break through these storms of evil before the world can be holy, and Mapple is the only crewmember on this vessel, who represents mankind. Religion is being a lonely vessel, and man stays alone on this vessel. The tale from Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner further expresses this solitude. The mariner, who was a man that was cursed to walk the earth, telling his tale to those that he felt were fit. Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page6 Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner: I pass, like night, from land to land; I have strange power of speech the moment that his face I see I know the man that must hear me; to him my tale I teach It was tale of a seaman whose crew had encountered some grilling times during their voyage. They discovered salvation in a special Albatross that helped guide their path with swift wind to clear their passage. Once they were out in the clear, they witnessed that there blessed creature was killed by the mariner. In an instant the situation deteriorated and all two-hundred crew members suddenly dropped dead, with the mariner left all alone in the freezing, stormy weather. Once repented, the vessel was guided by all the ghosts of his crew members to an old hermit who sent him on a solitary quest. The quest he was sent on was for him to spend the rest of his life traveling the world, while telling his tale to all he felt fit. This could very well be Elijahs predicament in (Moby-Dick), someone who appears to be an old insane bum that wont stop trailing Ishmael and Queequeg. It all started when the Pequods papers were signed and that moment Ishmael and Queequeg have in effect signed their souls away. He moved on talking of a prophecy concerning Ahabs fate. Ishmael saw him as a senile fool, but Elijah has a purpose, he is a prophet. He brought about a sense of pessimism before the journey ever started. He was much like the Ancient Mariner in that he was damned to eternity of prophecy and warning. This is a warning that concerns a mistake which will lie ahead on their hunt. To the mariner, the Albatross is hunted despite the fact that it was their salvation sent by god. Elijah might be warning the deaf Ishmael that Moby Dick is actually the Albatross that was sent from god. In any case, Elijahs fate was sealed Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page7 forcing him into a life of solitude. He definitely is a true believer, a prophet, and perhaps even some incarnation of God. Once again someones faith leads them to solitude. Elijahs life may just be the ending to Jonahs story. After Jonah repented he was forgiven and reborn as a prophet. As a prophet or even a direct servant of god, his journey will end up being a solitary one; he will have to fend for himself much like Elijah was. Everyone seems to look upon Elijah with suspicion and ridicule, but this comes with the territory. Although Jonahs story never really ended, his fate was still written in stone, and Elijahs life is that fate. Faith destines him to live a life of solitude. Just like Elijah and Jonah, Ishmael is also left to a fate of spreading his tales to those he felt fit. He is the mariner, in which his voyage killed the albatross and he ended up paying the full price left alone in an empty ocean with nothing but a coffin as a life buoy. In all likeliness, God did not allow Ishmael to just shake it off and move on. This tragedy will end up consuming him for the rest of his life, and this cycle will never end because there will always be another Ishmael and his Pequods. Starbuck on the other hand, is one of the most faithful Christians on the Pequod. He is actually the voice of reason out of the whole crew and always maintains his faith while the majority of the crew ends up disregarding it. Like so many others, his religious faith ends up leading him to solitude. Now in The Quarter-deck, Ahab actually describes his experiences with Moby Dick and then announces the goal of his mission, and the entire crew becomes truly excited in which they all end up going along on his insane quest. Through all of this, Starbuck ended up being the only crew member to realize that Ahab had actually changed and became obsessive after this incident. Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page8 The Quarter-deck: Vengeance on a dumb brute! cried Starbuck, that simply smote thee from blindest instinct! Madness! To be enraged with a dumb thing, Captain Ahab, seems blasphemous. Even from the beginning, Starbucks faith isolated him from the rest, he could have easily decided to follow the crew, but that would falter his faith. He realizes he is completely different from the rest of the crew. He refused to drink sinfully with the rest, due to the crazed and absurd quest of Ahab. Ishmael described the whole crew as being detestable, but Starbuck is actually the ideal man; maybe even Gods blueprint. Now this is quite a difference. Yet the only factor that separates Starbuck from the whole crew is his faith, but his beliefs end up isolating him from the crew. His faith is truly pure but eventually in ends up faltering. He soon realizes that Ahabs obsession has been growing with each passing day and eventually it will kill them all. At point Ahab actually threatens Starbucks life with a musket over a difference of opinions. Starbuck ends up obtaining the musket and is forced to make a decision between his faith and justice. Starbuck being a man of faith knew that no matter the outcome, it will always end up being Gods will. A difference of faiths caused Queequeg to be alienated from the crew. Queequeg was a prince who came from the island of Kokovoko. Over time he developed an interest with Christianity and later ended up finding himself onboard an English whaling vessel. Although he did attempt to be assimilated into Christian society, but he eventually lost interest and ended up returning back to his own faith. The only thing truly learned were just the skills of whaling. Felling like Christianity had actually made him less than pure he decided not return to his Island to claim his throne. Even though he was greatly respected by the crew, they isolated him for his unique Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page9 faith and culture. During Queequegs Ramadan, he was in a deep meditation didnt move for a full day while worshipping his God. Ishmael had never seen anyone do anything like this before, so to get Queequegs attention he tried his hardest to knock down the door. Ishmael- The Ramadan: I then went on, beginning with the rise and progress of the primitive religions and coming down to the various religions of the present time, during which time I labored to show Queequeg that all these Lents, Ramadans, and prolonged ham-squattings in cold, cheerless rooms were stark nonsense; bad for the health; useless for the soul; opposed, in short, to the obvious laws of Hygiene and common sense. I told him, too, that he being in other things such as an extremely sensible and sagacious savage, it pained me, very badly pained me, to see him now so deplorably foolish about this ridiculous Ramadan of his. Ishmael being the fool tries his hardest to cover it by mocking Queequegs god. He questions what kind of savage religion would require your loyalty and discipline. In comparison to other faiths Ishmaels negative reaction indicates the lack of respect Christianity has for their God. Now Queequeg is definitely not the inferior one in this case. It seems that Ishmaels faith may be so weak and insecure that he feels he must convert and condemn every savage he sees. Even though he says that Christianity has progressed, it seems he may very Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page10 well may be using a different dictionary than the rest of the world. Unless progressed actually means to be declined to such an extent that a faithful Christian and a prophet are considered freaks and are shunned and isolated from the world. Ishmaels prayers to Yojo showed that he himself believes that Quequegs faith is inferior to his. Ishmael and Queequeg underwent a pagan ritual, smoking to the doll, in order to confirm their marriage. Ishmael -A Bosom Friend: I was a good Christian; born and bred in the bosom of the infallible Presbyterian Church. How then could I unite with this wild idolater in worshipping his piece of wood? But what is worship? , thought I. Do you suppose now, Ishmael, that the magnanimous God of heaven and earth- pagans and all included-can be possibly be jealous of an insignificant bit of black wood? Impossible! Ishmael is in denial and doesnt realize it. He has troubles excepting that the Christians God and Queequegs God are the same being but in different forms. His faith is not strong enough to see the idol as nothing more than just a piece of wood. This is exactly where the relationship starts to have problems. Ishmael feels church is infallible and lacks any solid proof. He feels this was due to it being forced and installed into him his whole life. On the other hand, Queequeg has spent ample amount of time worshipping his God to where he truly believes. Ishmael being so close-minded, he refuses to accept that Queequegs faith as anything Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page11 more than inferior, therefore making him more isolated from Ishmael than a normal from what Christian standards of friendship are. In other words, Queequegs faith makes Ishmael see him more as a pet than a friend. Queequeg is much like the character that goes by the name of John the savage from Huxleys Brave New World. John was raised away from new civilization, therefore he the opportunity to have his own opinions, ideas, and ideals. Now on the other hand, everybody that lives in this new society were brain washed from when they were children in order to fit into their assigned classes. Just like Ishmael and the Christians, they were raised believed that everything that they thought they knew was infallible. They believed in their somas, a drug, as a means to escape from their reality, while John knows that the somas were only just a diversion. They believed that the Feelies, a form of entertainment, was the only form of art, while john knew that was wrong for a fact. He was well aware of literature, poetry, and Shakespeare. John was very open-minded because he wasnt like everyone else, a brainwashed conformist. So do you think if Ishmael would have become more open if he wasnt raised by the church? Queequeg was discriminated against by everyone, because of his faith when he first boarded the ship. There is one criterion for working aboard the Pequod, it was that you were a Christian. It didnt matter if you were a Killer, thieve, or even an overall scum. All types were welcome with open arms as long as you were Christian. On the other hand, Queequeg must prove himself to everyone before he can work with them. It took a very dramatic experience for Queequeg in order to prove his worth to the crew. This all occurred when a foolish man who ridiculed Queequeg was knocked overboard due to a loose post that knocked him into the ocean. Queequeg immediately dove into the icy water without any hesitation at all in order to save this man, and he succeeded. Since his beliefs differed from the others, he was required prove himself to his shipmates even though it wasnt necessary for others, Christians, to do so. Unfortunately Queequegs faith separated him from Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page12 his shipmates. In a way it seems Christianity really screwed Queequeg over. He was completely rejected by the others, even though his interests in Christianity lead him to leave his people. He was driven away from Christianity from all the corruption that came with it. Since his purity was tainted by Christianity, it made him unworthy to be able to return home and claim his throne. So far the strong faith that was in the lives of these mentioned believers has not yet been a positive factor in their lives. We have Job who endured a humiliating test by the God he loved. Then theres Mapple who felt that in order to communicate with God he had to be isolated upon a pulpit. Then we have Elijah, the mariner, who preach the word of God to everyone he saw even though they deemed him a humbug. Now we cant forget about Queequeg who was discriminated against by everyone, even his own tribe, just because he was involved in two faiths. These stories make it seem like there is no advantage to having any faith at all. In fact, in the long run no matter whom they were and how strong their faith was, the entire crew ended up having the same fate: a watery death. All except for Ishmael, who was supposedly left to live his life as prophet spreading the word of God? The only affect religion seemed to actually have on these lives, was nothing more than pain and isolation. No one wa s rewarded nor did they receive any advantages just for loving God. In which seemed to have the opposite effect for the non-believers, they had a clear advantage to not having any religion at all. A life spent without religion is a life spent with leisure. The second mate of the Pequod was Stubb, and he was the complete opposite of Starbuck. Starbuck started this voyage to earn a living, in which Stubb just joined for the thrill of the hunt. Through this entire voyage, Stubb really enjoyed himself. His days are now worried free. His supper is one example of his impertinence and carefree attitude. He and the black cook, Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page13 Fleece, have a conversation that leads to questions about death. Stubb asks Fleece where he plans on going after his death, and Fleece just subtly points up. Which was quite funny since Stubb didnt understand this so he told Fleece that we definitely dont need a corpse just hanging from their masthead. Stubb -Stubbs Supper: You said up there, didnt you? And now look at yourself, and see where your tongs are pointing. But, perhaps you expect to get into heaven crawling through the lubbers hole, cook; but, no, no , cook, you dont get there, except you go the regular way, round by the rigging. Its a ticklish business, but must be done, or else its no go. None of us are in heaven yet. He might have some belief in heaven, but its definitely in a very distant corner of his mind. He lives his life without worry of heaven at least until the last possible moment. He thinks faith is nothing but useless, hes a non-believer. He asks Fleece how he intends to get into heaven since it seems the effort is more trouble than it is actually worth. On the other hand, the regular way in Stubbs mind involves a Starbuck-type loyalty, which he doesnt want to give. When he says none of us are in heaven yet he is basically saying: why bother? There is no proof and no live person can be sure that heaven even exists until they die. Therefore, his life is full of enjoyment having no religion, and yet he shares the same fate of Gods blueprint. Starbuck doesnt consider or Craig Peitz How strong is your faith? Page14 fear death at all, and this is how he lives without any worries, superstitions. One example Ishmael give for Stubbs lack of religion and faith, is his pipe. It was described as a part of his face, he thought of it to be some kind of disinfectant that would protect him from Gods wrath. Ishmael doesnt want to believe that there will be no consequences for your decisions in life. Yet some having no religious conviction at all easily lives his life freely, unlike most other Christians. I feel we all have the opportunity to make our own Blue Prints of life regardless of our beliefs and or faith. The only things that all humans have in common is suffering, which brings us together, but yet we all are destined to the fate of death some just sooner than others. These two monolithic figures from literary history lived two very similar lives despite their differences in faith and styles of coping. Both were beset by great tragedy, and endured in their own was. Perhaps there is something to be said of the captains demise when compared to Jobs perseverance, but a faith in something greater is what bound them together.