Robinson Crusoe and Mother Courage and Her Children free essay sample

This paper compares the novels Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe and Mother Courage and her Children by Bertolt Brecht. A comparison of Daniel Defoes Robinson Crusoe and Bertolt Brechts Mother Courage and her Children. In identifying similarities and differences, the author contrasts numerous topics including the role of supporting characters, political inclination, religion, historical tendencies and class structure in both novels. Often, a novel ages best as it serves to reveal facts about the historical time and place from which it originates. Particularly, periods that predate electronic recording methods such as photography, video and audio are most appealingly captured by works of fiction. Though characters and events may be fabricated, their respective interactions and occurrences are steeped in a world of the past, now only visible through narrative. While Daniel Defoes colorful and inspiring Robinson Crusoe bears little resemblance to Bertolt Brechts dark and despairing Mother Courage and Her Children, they are like-minded in their intent. We will write a custom essay sample on Robinson Crusoe and Mother Courage and Her Children or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page And further, their intents are similarly influenced by the direct pressure of their works historical contexts.

Sisters free essay sample

Sisters have a bond that lasts their entire lives.They share every moment, from the most trivial to the most defining, of alifetime. My sister Tessa will always hold a special place in my heart, andnothing that may come our way can change that. My first memory of hersitting in a corner and drawing intently will never fade from my mind. My familyhad driven hours to the small, crowded orphanage to visit her. I can still seeher chubby little face, concentrating on the masterpiece she was working on whileother children raced around her. Adopting the three-year-old when I was seven wasone of the best things that has happened to me. Our first outing with herwas on a sultry day in monsoon season in Seoul, South Korea. The scents of freshrain and humid air are still in my mind. Sitting across from the tiny girl in acramped restaurant and watching her relish the Coke in front of her wasuncomfortable at first. We will write a custom essay sample on Sisters or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Worries of her not fitting into our family raced throughmy mind. What if she didnt like me? What if she was unhappy in her new home?When would she learn to speak English? These thoughts seemed to be answered when,after polishing off two sodas, the little girl began to hold her stomach andwhimper. My mother swooned over her and patted her back while my fatherfrantically tried to find someone who could translate her rushed words. I knew atthat moment everything would somehow work out in our new family. Sincethat sticky afternoon, my sister and I have come to have a very closerelationship. Our days of living overseas were filled with memories that onlyTessa can understand. She reminisces with me about the business dinners with ourdad aboard floating restaurants at dusk in Hong Kong. If I forget where it wasthat we rode the baby elephants around the hotel, she reminds me that it wasThiamin. We laugh about the time I was bitten by a poisonous ant in Singapore;she had to hold my hand while the ancient doctor gave me a shot. We share thememories of the extensive traveling we have been fortunate toexperience. We have also shared the bitter times that many teenagersendure. If one of us makes a wrong choice, the other is there to give advice orhelp out. Tess and I have counted on each other many times to explain why one wassuspiciously late coming home from the movies. The secrets weve shared have todo with growing into women, and sometimes parents cannot know the exact path wetake. There is nothing I wouldnt do for my sister, and I know she feels thesame. We used to make secret pacts, but we now have an unspoken loyalty thatneither dares betray. Sometimes secrets and experiences create an unshakable bondthat nothing else can.

Free Essays on AfricansAmericans In An America Civil War

Blacks and the Civil War The foundation for black participation in the Civil War began more than a hundred years before the outbreak of the war. Blacks in America had been in bondage since early colonial times. In 1776, when Jefferson proclaimed mankind’s unchallengeable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, the institution of slavery had become firmly established in America. Blacks worked in the tobacco fields of Virginia, in the rice fields of South Carolina, and toiled in small farms and shops in the North. Foner and Mahoney report in A House Divided, America in the Age of Lincoln that, â€Å"In 1776, slaves composed forty percent of the population of the colonies from Maryland south to Georgia, but well below ten percent in the colonies to the North.† The invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 provided a demand for cotton thus increasing the demand for slaves. By the 1800’s slavery was an institution throughout the South, an institution in which slaves had few rights, and could be sold or leased by their owners. They lacked any voice in the government and lived a life of hardship. Considering these circumstances, the slave population never abandoned the desire for freedom or the determination to resist control by the slave owners. The slave's reaction to this desire and determination resulted in outright rebellion and individual acts of defiance. However, historians place the strongest reaction in the enlisting of blacks in the war itself. Batty in The Divided Union: The Story of the Great American War, 1861-65, concur with Foner and Mahoney about the importance of outright rebellion in their analysis of the Nat Turner Rebellion, which took place in 1831. This revolt demonstrated that not all slaves were willing to accept this â€Å"institution of slavery† passively. Foner and Mahoney note that the significance of this uprising is found in its aftermath because of the numerous reports of â€Å"insubordina... Free Essays on AfricansAmericans In An America Civil War Free Essays on AfricansAmericans In An America Civil War Blacks and the Civil War The foundation for black participation in the Civil War began more than a hundred years before the outbreak of the war. Blacks in America had been in bondage since early colonial times. In 1776, when Jefferson proclaimed mankind’s unchallengeable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, the institution of slavery had become firmly established in America. Blacks worked in the tobacco fields of Virginia, in the rice fields of South Carolina, and toiled in small farms and shops in the North. Foner and Mahoney report in A House Divided, America in the Age of Lincoln that, â€Å"In 1776, slaves composed forty percent of the population of the colonies from Maryland south to Georgia, but well below ten percent in the colonies to the North.† The invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 provided a demand for cotton thus increasing the demand for slaves. By the 1800’s slavery was an institution throughout the South, an institution in which slaves had few rights, and could be sold or leased by their owners. They lacked any voice in the government and lived a life of hardship. Considering these circumstances, the slave population never abandoned the desire for freedom or the determination to resist control by the slave owners. The slave's reaction to this desire and determination resulted in outright rebellion and individual acts of defiance. However, historians place the strongest reaction in the enlisting of blacks in the war itself. Batty in The Divided Union: The Story of the Great American War, 1861-65, concur with Foner and Mahoney about the importance of outright rebellion in their analysis of the Nat Turner Rebellion, which took place in 1831. This revolt demonstrated that not all slaves were willing to accept this â€Å"institution of slavery† passively. Foner and Mahoney note that the significance of this uprising is found in its aftermath because of the numerous reports of â€Å"insubordina...

How the use of food label and nutritional content impacts dietary Research Paper

How the use of food label and nutritional content impacts dietary preferencec among college students - Research Paper Example These diseases are caused by factors relating to poor dietary practices. Cancer and heart diseases are related to high intake of fats and low intake of fibers. As a result of disastrous effects of cancer and heart diseases, the United States and Canadian governments have come up with recommendations that will help the public to make healthy dietary choices. The for instance, The US has passed a law compelling all manufacturers to label food products, summarizing the nutrient concentrates of a food product. The research is to reveal the effects of nutritional labels have on the health of university and college students. Further, the research seeks to establish whether the labels have a notable impact among university and college students decision to purchase certain food products. The research aims at examining the frequency of usage of nutritional labels among college and university students. To eliminate the element of bias, the research aimed at assessing whether non label users are different from label users when it comes to knowledge on nutritional information, beliefs about diet diseases relationship as well as factors associated with non label users and label users’ attitudes towards nutritional labels. Many students have no control over what they take. The result of their ignorance is because in most cases the parents are the ones who set out the diet that the children will take. Additionally, some of the students are not unaware of the chronic diseases that they are exposing themselves to when they take unhealthy foods. Because most students are young, they do not recognize the long term effects poor dietary behavior. The present intake of foods high in fats, carbohydrates and proteins will have adverse effects on their health in future if the trend continues unabated. The environments that the students study in also have effects on the kinds of foods that the students take. The university and college administrations should take part in education

Did the international discontinuities that resulted from the treaties Term Paper

Did the international discontinuities that resulted from the treaties ending World War I led to World War II - Term Paper Example Later, they were joined by Bulgaria. There is no a single agreed date on which the war ended. However, many historians point to the signing of the Treaty of Versailles as the beginning of the end of the state of war, even though actual fighting had stopped several months earlier. It was after the treaty was signed that many soldiers that were serving abroad began to return to their countries. Besides the Treaty of Versailles, the ratification of several other peace treaties led to the end of the First World War. The Paris Peace Conference initiated and imposed these treaties (Trachtenberg, 2000). This paper answers the question posed in the title above in the affirmative. In order to justify this position, the Treaty of Versailles and four other treaties will be examined, and an attempt made to illustrate how they led to the Second World War. These other four treaties are the Treaties of Saint-Germain, Trianon, SÃ ¨vres and Lausanne. As the Treaty of Versailles was the most important of them all, more space will be devoted to it. The Treaty of Versailles was signed on the 28th day of June in 1919, precisely five years after Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria was assassinated. Their assassination in Sarajevo had triggered World War I on the 28th day of June in 1914. The Treaty of Versailles brought to an end the state of war that had persisted between Germany and the Allied Powers (Trachtenberg, 2000). Separate treaties dealt with the other Central Powers that were allied to Germany. The armistice ratified on the 11th day of November had ended the actual fighting. However, it took another six months of active negotiations at the Peace Conference of Paris to finalize the treaty. The Secretariat of the League of Nations incorporated the treaty on October 21, 1919 and printed it in the League of Nations Treaty Series. The Treaty of Versailles had many provisions. However, the single most important and most controversial

Exploring The Resources And Capabilities Of Dell

Exploring The Resources And Capabilities Of Dell This essay will be based on Dell Inc and how the topic resources and capabilities are used as a strategy throughout the company. The topic will be explored to identify how it applies to Dells strategy and how they use it within the company. The essay will identify the different types of strategys which are used to help them sustain competitive advantage. During the essay theoretical concepts will be used and applied to Dell in order to analyse the organisation. The theoretical concepts which will be used will be concepts from the module, these concepts will help draw conclusions from the essay and help identify why Dell continually sustain a competitive advantage. Dell was founded in 1984 by Michael Dell in his university dorm in Texas using his last $1000. With this money he created a company called PCs Limited. Within a year Michael Dell had turned his $1000 into $6 million in sales. He managed to do this by borrowing $300,000 from his family and upgrading computers for local firm from their existing software to IBM. By 1986 the company was producing sales of $60 million; this was due to dell starting their own assembly lines. 4 years later Dells sales had increased vastly to $500 million, because they had now created a wide line of products. By 1996 Dell launched their products online, this gave them $1 million in sales a day boosting their annual sales to an astonishing $5.3 billion, increasing to $7.8 billion the following year. The sales had risen 50% and tripled to making sales of $3 million a day in sales. By 2005 Dells sales had risen to $49.2 billion, showing how the company has become one of the most successful companies within rece nt times by being a fortune company while only being around for 14 years. Also during 2005 Dell was ranked 28th biggest company in America by revenue. In 2006 Dell was looked at as one of the most admired companies in America. Their sales for 2009 were $61.1 billion, simply showing why they were nominated a top 200 fortune. They are the highest earning company within the computer industry. Dell employs over 75,000 employees across the world, due to having to serve customers in over 170 countries. Dell took over as leaders in their market from their biggest and most successful competitors Hewlett Packard, whilst also staying ahead of rivals such as IBM and Apple computers who are the only other alternative substitute for a PC. Dell now offer a range of products and services, including computing software, computing systems, computing peripherals, consulting and IT services. Dell have gone a long way from upgrading computers for local businesses to offering products such as televisions , printers, peripherals, netbooks, notebooks, servers, scanners and their main product computers. In 2007 Michael Dell returned to the company as a CEO to help improve its financial performance by bringing new plans in for the company. Key Success Factors In the ever maturing PC industry it is very important for any company wishing to be competitive to meet the industries key success factors (KSF). In order to succeed, certain KSFs must be incorporated into their business model. Specific KSF include: Competitive prices Excellent relationships with suppliers Product customisation Excellent customer services Superior cost structure Dell has continued to perform well, through incorporating many of these factors into their business model. Dells customer centric approach with a closely managed supply chain and cash flow process has seen them succeed in the mature PC industry. Key Competencies Customer focus- Dell has a thorough understanding of their consumers needs and wants and it serves them very effectively. The custom build business model that Dell adopts accommodates the ever changing needs and wants of consumers. This model is very effective as it allows Dell to offer the latest technologies at competitive prices in a timely manner. This is exactly what customers demand in a hyper competitive market. Manufacturing Processes- Dell benefited greatly from the first mover advantage, through adopting the direct selling business model which was unique to the industry, aided by the boom of the internet. Supply Chain Management- The direct selling business model employed by Dell is run by an i2 technology supply chain management (SCM) system. Every 20 sec the software aggregates orders, analyzes material requirements, compares Dells on-hand inventory with its suppliers inventory and then creates a supplier bill of material to meet its order needs. SCM is particularly important as improving it by 0.1% has greater impact than improving manufacturing process by 10%. This system allowed Dell to go beyond a simple value chain model, into a more complex value web model. Customer Selection, Acquisition and Retention- Dell also employ a state of the art IT and customer relationship management (CRM) system. Through efficiently targeting customers they are able to keep costs to a minimum which suit consumers budgets. Consumers are very price sensitive in the PC industry as there are many substitutes. Customer Service- Dell offers a complete range of services, including, technical support through internet and global call centres. For additional fees Dell offers extended service and support plans. Dells customer service was considered to be the best in the industry. However after recently outsourcing this, their reputation is beginning to fall, after repeated poor treatment of cases. Porters value chain By identifying Dells value chain and network it will allow us to identify how Dell value their customers and how it is created. FIRM INFRASTRUCTURE Dell has a very strong and organised stock management. Dell sells straight thought their website cutting out intermediaries. They sell thought a direct model. Dell receives payments normally immediately as customers generally use credit cards online. Once the orders have been placed and paid the customers products are order from the suppliers, this is so dell only have stock in which is being used to build products from orders they have received reducing excess stock. OPERATIONS Dell deal with a few operations, they deal with the most important one in their opinion, being the final configuration of customer products. Dell outsources operations such as the assemblies of motherboards and most of the production chain for all of their notebook computers. INBOUND LOGISTICS As dell allows customers to build their own products and order the products when needed using just in time, it allows deal not to buy an overload of stock they just pay for what they need from the order made. Dells direct model in which they sell their products to their consumers they depend on time management, so that all the components they need arrive at the time they are need to produce the product for their customers. MARKETING SALES Dell using the direct selling model it has taken out all intermediaries. Normally the intermediaries would want to take about 20 to 30%. Dell managed to cut out intermediaries as they align their value chain and supply chain very closely, and also their assembly factories and order taking systems. Dell has incorporated their direct selling model with their supply chain. Dell put together 80,000 PCs daily, but they do not own their own warehouse as they only order components they need to assemble products within a few days as they only hold stock for a maximum of two days. TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT Dell spend a tiny amount on technology research compared to their biggest rivals HP. Dell spend around $400 million which is a small margin of HPs $4 billion. Yet Dell has near perfect assembly chain along with very efficient assembly operations. Dell have a unique way to identify if an employee is a fault for a product as a single product is made by a single employee making them accountable if it faulty. Value Web Model Dell moved beyond the simple value chain into a more effective value web organism. This positively impacted Dells just-in-time manufacturing and the inventory management systems. Dell relies on big players to provide their high-tech components. E.g. Microprocessors-Intel, Software- Microsoft. Dell rely on smaller multiple players to provide low-tech components. These low-tech, low- differentiation component manufacturers compete fiercely on price and availability. Dell Has one of the latest SCM systems, which is unmatched by competitors. This system enables Dells factories to have only 7 hours worth of inventory, whereas most of the industry holds a 10 day inventory. It also helps that 85% of all their supplies are provided by 15 suppliers. This value web organism has been achieved through careful knowledge management and 15 years of learning. It is a very complex system, and due to this it is inimitable. Dells Direct Business Model Unlike their competitors, Dell has adopted a direct selling approach to customers compared to all of their competitors. Dell have cut out all intermediaries meaning customers order straight thought their website, this allows Dell to sell directly to them. Due to customer buying straight from Dell it has given them a great understanding of customer needs. Dells main focus is on their customers which their strategy is based around. The Direct business model also allows customers to customize their products letting them have what they desire rather than a standard product. As customer order a want they want product, it allowed Dell to minimize their stock, as they will order only what they need adopting JIT strategy. This also allows Dell to deliver the newest technology to their customers sustain an edge on their competitors. Dells Direct Model Customers SUPPLIERS Competitors Model Dells competitors model has 2 extra sections, outsourcing and channels. This produces extra cost and it doesnt allow them to have complete customer focus as they dont deal directly with their customers. Their customer buy from channels which are shops taking away customer relation with the company. They also dont get supplies directly from their suppliers as they outsource 1st to other companies. Dells model is a far better strategy and it allows them to have a great focus on their customers. They use their resources and capabilities such as their great product lines to achieve the efficiencies they want to produce. Activity Mapping Through conducting detailed research into Dell, a number of conclusions can be drawn. At the core of Dells business strategy and its direct selling model is customer focus. Dells core competencies were developed around their customer centric approach, and its resources and capabilities were placed in a way to best serve their customers. This customer centric approach has enabled them to develop more competencies, including, manufacturing processes, supply chain management, customer selection and service. Within the hyper competitive PC industry it is imperative that companies provide the latest technology in a timely manner. Dell achieved this through adopting the kaizan approach to its supply chain. To compliment the increased efficiencies of the supply chain Dell also improved their manufacturing processes. A key advantage for Dell is that they have one of the best SCM systems in the world. This is complimented by the fact that 95% of their suppliers are located near to their assem bly plants making coordination easier. Holding only a 7 hour inventory, instead of the industries norm of around 10 days is another advantage. Holding such a short inventory means they do not have socks of slow selling products leading to poor cash flow. Dell aim to deliver the custom product within 36 hours of an order being placed, which competitors just cant match. Dell constantly operates with a negative cash flow conversion cycle as they only pay their suppliers once the customer has paid them. Building these strong relationships with suppliers has taken years and combined with Dells complex supply chain is inimitable and leads to a sustainable competitive advantage. Through the careful selection, training and retention of its workforce that could develop and evolve as Dell grows, they were able to manage knowledge, encourage honesty, loyalty and learning over time. Through employing the best Dell become more effective in recognising, acquiring and retaining customers through providing them with their needs and wants at competitive prices and in a timely manner. Through aligning their core competencies with the industry KSFs, Dell were able to perform favourable in an ever maturing market. Dells differentiation comes from process innovation. Through capturing the value of its suppliers and partners Dell has capitalised on their technology innovation. This enabled Dell to minimise their research and development spend and improve their cost structure. This strategy has yet to match by any of their major competitors in the industry, leading to a sustainable competitive advantage. Ultimately in order to sustain competitive advantage Dell need to continue to outdo their competitors. By adopting the direct business model and adopting their customer centric approach they have achieved competitive advantage. In order to ensure the sustainability of this they need to evolve as consumer demands change. Through their direct business model and their superior relationships with suppliers they have developed core competencies which align with the industry KSFs and are also difficult for the competition to imitate. Factors which will provide sustained competitive advantage include: Online custom build of each computer. Minimisation of working capital in the production process High manufacture and distribution quality- latest technology, timely manner, competitively priced, reliable products The careful management of their resources and capabilities make all this possible.

Memory Recall History

Bibliography Cherry, Kendra. â€Å"Memory Retrieval: Retrieving Information from the Memory. † About. com Psychology. The New York Times Company, n. d. Web. 22 Sept. 2012. Holladay, April. â€Å"How Does the Human Memory Work? † USA Today. WonderQuest, 15 Mar. 2007. Web. 24 Sept. 2012. Mastin, Luke. â€Å"Memory Recall/ Retrieval. † The Human Memory. N. p. , 2009. Web. 22 Sept. 2012. Miller, Greg. â€Å"How Are Memories Stored and Retrieved. † Science Mag. AAAS, 1 July 2005. Web. 22 Sept. 2012. Mills, Kristen L. and Heather K. McMullan. â€Å"A Study of Short-Term Memory Recall with Pictures, Words, and Pictures and Words Presented Together. † National Undergraduate Research Clearinghouse Site. Missouri Western State University, 22 Apr. 2004. Web. 22 Sept. 2012. Memory Recall Memory recall occurs when you access information stored in your brain without being cued. This occurs when you are remembering simple things or taking a test. Two other types o f memory recall are recollection and recognition.Recollection is when you remember partial information. Recognition occurs when you identify information after experiencing it again (Cherry). Memories are stored into your brain using medical temporal lobes, MLT (Miller). The job of MLT is to make memories using neural activities that are created in response to the senses (Mastin). Another part of the brain that helps with memories is the hippocampus. The job of the hippocampus is to contain the new memories in the long-term or short-term memory (Holladay).One way of experimenting with memory recall was performed by Missouri Western State University. During this experiment people were given cards, some had just words, some had just pictures, and some had words and picture. These people were given a short amount of time until they were quizzed to see which group remembered what was on the card. The group that filled out the most information was the group that was given the words and pi ctures (Mills).