The Impact of Culture on Best Practice Production Management Essay

The Impact of Culture on Best Practice Production Management - Essay Example Services industry is the fastest growing segment in the world economy and the biggest challenge is customer satisfaction which depends upon service quality (Bick, Abratt & Moller, 2010). Customer service excellence becomes essential to achieve customer satisfaction which in turn translates into customer loyalty. Organisations are convinced that customer service delivers benefits and hence quality management programmes have been created that relate the service attributes to how customers would evaluate quality (Bolton & Drew, 1991). This implies that people skills are essential for personal and organisational success. Customer service excellence is based on customer insight, segmentation and leadership (CSE, n.d.). Segmentation helps to understand the needs of the customers which differ across cultures. Segmentation is implemented through the process of identifying and differentiating between groups that have similar needs or wants. By focusing on their needs, motivation and choices, the organisation can achieve customer service excellence as they realize that one-size-fit-all approach in not applicable in the service industry. Customer service excellence operates at three distinct levels – as a driver of continuous improvement, as a skills development tool and as an independent validation of achievement. Culture, according to Hofstede, â€Å"is the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one group or category from another† (Hope & Muhlemann, 2001). It has also been defined as the â€Å"software of the mind...† and culture is the way that a group of people solve problems and reconcile dilemmas (Lorenzoni & Lewis, 2004). Moreover, customers from different backgrounds also have differing levels of literacy which influences the evaluation of performance standards (Pizam & Eliss, 1999).Cultural difference cause differences in expectations, goals, values and proposed course of action. Cultural differences impact the belongingness, love and esteem needs of individuals and these principles reverse the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Subtle cultural differences cannot be ignored as the direct impact can be observed in decisions, outcomes and delivery of service (Korac-Kakabadse & Kouzmin, 1999). To achieve service excellence organisations would have to ensure that employees are adequately trained in the different elements of culture that manifest in many ways. Manifestation of cultural differences can be found in language and communication styles, in expression of emotions and body language, in social customs and eating habits. The deepest and the most ingrained manifestation of culture is the cultural assumptions from which stem the norms and values (Lorenzoni & Lewis, 2004). The most visible manifestation of culture is everyday behavioural standards. Hofstede has identified four different dimensions on which culture can be measured. These include the power distance, individualism, unc ertainty avoidance and masculinity. Cultures distinguish people in how they behave, maintain relationships and relate to each other in a variety of ways. It also influences the attitude towards time and the attitude towards the environment. All these factors heighten the importance of ensuring that employees are trained in understanding the nuances of different cultural backgrounds before customer service excellence can be expected. The hospitality industry is diverse in nature and each customer is individual in his/her needs and wants. The same customer may have different needs and demands in different situations (Baum & Nickson, 1998). Cultural differences impact the outcome of business because according to Hofstede different cultures imply different mental programming (Gilbert & Tsao, 2000).

Structure And Culture Ikea And Lego Commerce Essay

Structure And Culture Ikea And Lego Commerce Essay In this assignment I am meant to be working for an organization holding a trainee management consultant and at the end of my training I have to submit a report. My report will be about two private organizations where I discuss their structure and culture, how it affects the business performance. I also need to research how each company deals with their employees and problems faced with employees. An important figure is picked for each company and have discussed the leadership style used by both. In addition I explore the classical approaches which are being used in the companys and the different techniques to management used by each organization. In my PowerPoint presentation, I offer a consultation to my client organization on motivational theories and effective teamwork. Acknowledgement I Sayarah Saleem confirm and acknowledge the fact that this assignment was done by me alone. I have researched and studied the tasks given and have given the references from where I have obtained the information. Executive Summary The two private organizations that I have chosen are IKEA and LEGO in my report because I think its they are good examples of describing the structure and culture of each organization. They are both different in their own way , with how they deal with employee issues and how the organization is run. One is family oriented and the other , which got an outsider as a CEO in 2004 in order to change the company around. Table of Contents Task 1 1.Report 1.1 Analyze the structure and culture if the two organizations. In your analysis you have to engage in a comparison and contrasting of their structure and culture. 1.2 Further clearly evaluate how the structure of each company supports its culture and how this relationship effects business performance. 1.3 Explore and state what each company does in order to identify and solve employee behavioral problems. 2. Understand different approaches to management and leadership. 2.1 Select a prominent figure one from each company and compare the effectiveness of their leadership styles. 2.2 How to the two companies practice the classical approach to management. 2.3 Evaluate the different approaches to management used by the two organizations. In discussing your answer you have to use your knowledge on contingency approach to management. Task 2 Presentation References Bibliography Task 1 Task 1:Report Understand the relationship between organizational structure and culture IKEA LEGO 1.1 Lego began in the early 1930s by a gentleman named Ole Kirk Kristiansen and till date kept with the family, passed on by generation to the next generation. Lego has been named twice the toy of the century and has maintained the toy, the building brick. The organizational structure that Lego uses which best suits them is the functional structure, this structure is most widely used by companies. Basically the company has different departments to which they have delegated people to, and heads of that department according to the function. Some of these departments are Sales, Accounts, product development etc. Using this structure allows them to show the pyramid of hierarchy. It gives a clear view of the organizational chart and who are at the highest rank. Lego being based in so many countries uses a divisional structure which consists of three segments, and these are market, product and geographical. The other company which I have chosen to analyze is IKEA. IKEA was founded in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad . IKEA is the worlds biggest furniture company that concentrates on innovative, fashionable furniture at inexpensive prices. Mr. Kamprad didnt want any normal organizational structure for the company, instead he formed a complex system of foundations, holding companies and trusts. The companys structure then divided into three for each of his son. The reason he did this was to prevent taxs and also to make sure that the company would not be divided due to family dispute. In actual fact IKEA is being held by a foundation which has a group under them that controls the companies that runs IKEAs individual operations. Between the two companies it is evident that while one has a typical corporate structure , the other is so committed in creating equality amongst the family and a fool proof method to ensure that the company will not be divided in the future. 1.2 The same way that Ikea has created their organizational structure they have also supported the company culture by sharing that they not just want to hire people but have a chance of bringing in unique individuals to share the same values of the company. To make them feel as they are all associates in the company. Not only does IKEA evaluate the person based on skills and expertise but also if they have the same culture as IKEA themselves. The assumption is that skills are easier to develop than personality traits, attitudes and values This in return promises happier employees who feel as if they are working for their own. Employees who like, themselves want to buy furniture, take it home and assemble at home will also make the customers feel the same. Lego on the other hand concentrated on their Danish values of hard work , modesty and teamwork. They look after their employees with respect and high standards, also incorporating global principles for those working overseas. Lego has always been strict about following all laws, rules and regulations in the countries they are in. Their employees in return offer their company which is so largely respected , great service, hard work and offer nothing but the best to their customers. 1.3 There are several different leadership methods which companies take on, IKEA however have not confined themselves to one particular method, instead taken the best parts of each method and combined their own. There is the Autocratic style, which is the basic team and supervisor style, Democratic , which allows the employee to think and make decisions on behalf of the company. Laissez Faire , where employees are given few guidelines and limits to carry out activities , which gives them freedom but may result in less productive work. Consultative is like the democratic style, very alike. Finally we have paternalistic where the manager , supervisor has tough ideas where he will require input and ideas for developing the business from the employees. By doing this IKEA has been able to avoid large scale employee behavioral problems. This is not to say that they dont have employees who have been disappointed either by not keeping their promise on pay raises and not even considering thei r opinions. IWAY which is IKEAs code of conduct, assures their employees the right to organize and order all overtime be voluntary. They also ensure wages are paid on time and not be withheld. Employees are entitled to medical, social insurance and pension. This way IKEA allows their co-workers their freedom and benefit all legal rights. IKEA hires a law firm called Jackson Lewis to encourage workers to attend meetings in order to discourage unions. One of Legos important rules was to maintain employees safety, therefore they set a goal to reach the top ten safe places to work for employees by 2015. Their main concern was to improve and maintain the work-life balance; this is basically to retain the employees motivation and satisfaction with their position at Lego. Lego has their system of flexible work hours, work from home option which are all ideal mainly for a working mother has made themselves enter Working Mother Magazine 100 best companies list . Lego involve themselves in providing wellness programs and leave entitlement for the mother up to 26 weeks of leave with their job assured of. Families looking to adopt are entitled to $5000 and fertility treatments are fully covered. Task 2 2.1 Lego Jorgen Vig Knudstorp is a leading and most prominent figure at lego, he has had the most challenging role of having revive Lego as the company had taken a turn for the worst. Mr. Knudstorp knew that in order to change things around he needed to be trusted and relied on. Doing so Mr. Knudstorp would be able to incorporate new methods to revive Lego from its low. He was an intelligent man to believe that for things to be done he needed to managing at eye level which meant liaising with the production workers, engineers , discussing to reduce sales declining with the sales and marketing department. Jorgen Vig Knudstorp reminded the management that they were there to maximize the firms value, this would be identififying why till date the lego group exists. He wanted their to be a less strict structure and a more free management style from the bottom to the top, empowering employees to make decisions at all levels. Jorgen Vig Knudstorp used the strategic leadership style, this which made employees share values,visons and goals, strengthening them to make decisions with minimum monitoring. It is defined that a strategic leader persuades for change and looks for new ways ideas, and improvement to better the company in order to allow the company to move onward. IKEA Ingvar Kamprad the founder of ikea, being a school dropout and began making furniture at the age of 17 uses the democratic style of leadership to run his company. Mr. Kamprad encouraged parallel management so that each can manage their purpose effectively. The reason for this same level management was so that employees opinion and feedback will help them feel like they are required in the company. This in return makes the employees want to work harder and feel as if they are working for their own. Mr. Kamprad however did have many things under his control like the financial details and of the companys structure. He encouraged his employees to work hard with stern business beliefs however to still have fun whilst working for IKEA, he preferred giving guidelines, showing methods of how things should be done instead of revealing authority and giving out orders. 2.2 Since the classical approach is purely based on acknowledging the idea that only the economical and physical needs of the employee are important and that their personal life and job satisfaction are irrelevant, Lego however believes strongly in allowing their employees to work freely within the organization. It is a place where all share the same value, of empowering children to learn. Lego wanted to strive to be the best toy company instead of being the biggest. The classical approach includes scientific, administrative and bureaucratic management. The scientific management theory was developed by Frederik Taylor (1856-1915). This theory had 4 steps, firstly by sorting the job into smaller pieces, then to pick the most capable employees to perform the job and train them, finally supervisors are used to monitor them. This theory came about at the time that organizations were large and industrialized to increase productivity to its maximum. Henri Fayol ( 1841-1925) developed a fourteen principles of management. These principles were: Division of Labor: to increase production and quality through specialization Authority and Responsibility: Where authority is shown, responsibility must be given and this works both ways. Discipline; Respect and order for the agreements between the company and their workers. Line of Authority: Clear view of the company hierarchy Centralization: Authority is given only to the highest in command. Unity of Direction: All are on the same track to lead the organization. Unity of command: Employee receives instructions from only one supervisor/manager. Order: Every employee is placed where they would contribute the most. Initiative: Creating action plans and carrying it out. Equity: Take care of all employees fairly with respect. Remuneration of personnel: Payment of salaries to employees accordingly. Stability of Tenure: to provide long term employment. General interest over individual interest: the companys priority will be before the employees. Esprit de corps: Harmony of the employees brings a strong union. Mr. Kamprad of IKEA believed that the workplace should be like everyday life, being free and at ease, instead wearing formal work attire, addressing colleagues in a personal manner. The company arranges once a year for at least week for the managers to work in the showrooms and warehouses. New ideas and innovations were always welcome at IKEA, the employees were always encouraged to come up with creative solutions. How did the concept of customers picking up their purchases arise? This is when they realized in order to cost cut and provide quick service, to engage in customers in self-selection. The customers choose their items, write them down and go down to the warehouse to collect their items. IKEA has a mission of spreading the companies philosophies and practices throughout the organization by assigning IKEA ambassadors that had been specifically trained and placed strategically within the company. They would in turn train their subordinates and act as role models. In my report it is evident that both IKEA and Lego do not have a strict list of management procedures which have brought them to where they are today. Bearing in mind that in 2004, when Lego CEO Jorgen Vig Knudstorp joined the organization he needed to save the company from the dire state that it was in. This required that whichever practices that were taking place needed to be evaluated and changed in order to revive the company. IKEA being a family oriented company, is not particularly head by the founders sons. Instead created a holdings company that managed the IKEA organization which was run by Mr. Kamprads sons. By studying and researching both companies it is safe to say that there is no exact approach to management followed by each. The contingency approach also known as situational approach supports the thought that there is no one best way to management. Each organization just like humans and conditions can change and differ from time to time. Therefore by studying the current situation of the organization, will the management of the company know what practices to enforce. Management had to think of environmental factors, for example weather, technology that could alter the organizations productivity.

Computer Culture :: Technology Internet Essays

Computer Culture I registered for this capstone course simply because its description in the English Department course guide intrigued me. I never imagined that the central issues of the course would intersect so often and so dynamically with the postmodern ideas of truth and representation in which I was already immersed. I first articulated (for myself) the differences between oral and literate culture in a post to our class listserv on November 15, 2001. The major difference between oral and literate cultures is the primacy of the word itself. In oral culture, the words are everything; they are performance, they are meaning, and they are central to all understanding and memory. In literate culture, the words have been once removed by the representation of written language; they are now letters on a page. The sounds and actions are lost and the interpretation of language becomes more private and individual. Instead of being experienced, as in oral culture, words are simply absorbed in literate culture. These ideas are further illustrated by referring to Metaphors We Live By, by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson. An obvious focal point of the book, and the idea that my first summary for this class explored, is the notion that the title implies: we live by certain dominant metaphors. This is a function of oral culture despite the fact that we live in a predominantly literate culture. After certain metaphors become commonplace to speak in and with, they begin to transcend speech; they enter thought processes and allow people to not only speak, but also think, in the dominant metaphorical concepts of the culture. The concept love, for example, is structured mostly in metaphorical terms: love is a journey, love is a patient, love is a physical force, love is madness, love is war, etc. The concept of love has a core that is minimally structured by the subcategorization love is an emotion and by links to other emotions, e.g., liking. This is typical of emotional concepts, which are not clearly delineated in our experience in any direct fashion and therefore must be comprehended primarily indirectly, via metaphor. (85) This excerpt from Metaphors We Live By aptly supports the idea that people think in terms of metaphor, and thereby experience metaphor in the structures of oral culture as much as (if not more than) literate culture.

Becoming an Alpha Male

Does this sound like you? Are you the guy that women just want to be friends with? Do you have lots of women pals but not lovers? Do women try to push you around, control you or make all the decisions in your relationship? Do you wish you had the confidence and authoritative presence to be in charge of social and business situations?Do your own insecurities keep you from achieving your own potential? Do you wish your sex life was more creative, exotic and fulfilling? This is the plight of what nature calls the beta male – the lesser man.The beta male shrinks into the background and rarely exerts any type of control. He allows himself to be the fallback guy for women, to be controlled by them, and relegated only to asexual pals. He gets very little sex, and what he does get is uncreative and boring. He is not able to assert himself with women or men and has very little chance of achieving his dream in life and love. Beta males do everything in their power to try to please a wom an, but no matter how hard they try, women just push them away and push them around.Beta males are taken advantage of by their friends and by their female companions. Beta males are the â€Å"nice guys† who get caught up in the web of deceitful games that women play and end up losing out in all ways possible while their friends, the alpha males, get all the hot women and all the sex they can handle. After a while, these beta males fall out of reality and become even less attractive to women. Shake off the beta male image now! Learn how to be the alpha male! Be the first guy to get this hot new guide on how to command attention from women by learning the techniques of the alpha male!The alpha male always gets the first pick of woman because of the skills that you will learn in this exciting new guide. Be the master of sexual experiences and social opportunities beyond your wildest dreams. The alpha male gets what he wants, and that guy can be and will be you! You can and will be an alpha male. Forget what you have ever thought about relating to women as a beta male. This informative and innovative new book, Becoming an Alpha Male, will retrain you in how to be dominant, aggressive and completely irresistible to women. That beta male attitude will be gone forever!Beta males are frequently the subject of abuse by hot women. How many times have you wined and dined a woman, only to take her back to your place to find out that she doesn’t want to have an intimate relationship with you because she sees you as just a â€Å"friend†. And how many times does it seem to you that the harder you tried to please a woman, the more she regards you as a just that – a nice friend and does not want to take the relationship with you further. These situations happen because hot women have learned the benefits of preying on what they believe to be men’s motives – desiring them for sex or dating!.In many situations, beta males always cede pow er to the hot women who then become bored with being regarded as superior by these very guys. She is actually looking for the guy who will be a challenge to her. This guy will treat her as just an equal or less and be confident of his ability to attract her without resorting to giving expensive gifts, performing favors, or excessively lowering himself to win her approval. This is the behavior that she finds attractive. The guy who is able to do this exudes an inner belief that he thinks he is able to attract women, and women are attracted to this quiet self-confidence.Consequently, alphas are irresistible to women. The betas who do everything they can to win over a woman’s approval are sabotaging their own efforts, and the more they try, the more women are turned off by them. – How does one shed off the beta male image to move into the alpha male zone, or – How does one cultivate and manifest all the qualities of an alpha male that will quietly attract women, ag ainst their subconscious will and beyond their own awareness? These will be among the major challenges addressed in this book, which you will learn after going over the tips in detail.This article offers only a skeletal preview of the tactics and techniques involved. Get a complete and FREE COPY of the book now for a thorough explanation on the tips. Also, it is no myth that hot women are frequently given their power by beta males, who are willing to accept compromises and even self-abuses in order to get these women. This behavior makes hot women unusually arrogant and ready to walk over you if you are seen to be the next guy that is going after her. Thus betas find getting these women to date them to be nearly impossible.If you do not wish to settle for less, however, this book is for you. It will teach you how to re-establish the playing field, how to become the dominant party in the relationship, how to get hot women to relinquish those powers that they have been given by the be tas, and get them to instinctively surrender to you. Tips to enable you to avoid playing into a hot woman’s games, to avoid being abused by her like the betas who inadvertently became her victims, will be covered in depth in the book, as will the tips on how to lower a hot woman’s esteem and ego, or arrogance.All these will turn you from being a predator to the target and make you that much more different and harder-to-get than other men, and you can turn from being the hunter to the hunted. While betas yearn to sleep with a hot woman, but fail to get her attention, you would be able to sleep with many as you wish and make hot women accept compromises in order to be with you, if you learn how to develop the Alpha Male combination of inner self-confidence and masculine dominance that attracts women. In other words, you can even have hot women tolerate abuses and mistreatments from you, and they will still yearn to sleep with you.Therefore, this book teaches you the tips on how to move quickly through transition phase from being a beta into a hot, confident, but also dominant alpha male that attracts hot women and makes them pursue you. Maintaining their threshold of power, alpha males attract hot women to them, but do not have to accept any compromises themselves and can even have their own picks and selections of any hot women they wish. Hot women simply cannot interfere and block their decisions! Have you ever seen how easily jerks discard their choices of beautiful babes and get themselves new ones almost effortlessly?Jerks are one extreme example of males who attract with dominance and self-confidence. But alpha males can achieve the same thing without being as abusive as jerks. The similarity, however, is that by being an alpha male, you will get women, especially hot women, with success, and not get tossed over by arrogant hotties! Those days will be history pretty soon. And all these and more will be precipitated into realities, but only if you learn how to transform yourself from being a beta male today into an dominant, alpha male, which is the intended purpose for this ebook.

How is horror created in ‘The Pit and the Pendulum’? Essay

In the short story ‘The Pit and the Pendulum’ by Edgar Allan Poe, he uses many different techniques to create horror. Poe starts off by stating that the narrator was ‘sick – sick unto death’. The repetition of the word sick here emphasis how bad he feels, also ‘sick unto death’ suggests that he already feels like he is dead. Death is emphasised more with ‘the dread sentence of death’. This emphasis on death is telling us that he is metaphorically already dead. Poe then describes the expressions on the black robed judge’s face as ‘stern contempt of human torture’. This description suggests a grotesque look upon their face. The word torture also gives a sense of capture, which is also emphasised by ‘permitted to sit’ as permitted gives a feeling that someone is keeping authority over him at all time. Death is once again emphasised as he describes the darkness as a soul descending ‘into Hades’. With Hades being the Greek God of the underworld it is like the narrator has been enveloped by death. Again it is emphasised by, ‘How at least shall we distinguish its shadows from those of the tomb?’, this description tells us that the narrator is not sure whether or not he is dead or alive. Or this could suggest that he is coming to accept the fact that this place is going to be his tomb as there is no escape in sight. The narrator describes how he dares ‘not to employ my vision’. This shows us that he is afraid to open his eyes as he is afraid that he will either see some terrible sights before him. Or that he will open his eyes and there will be nothing and he will be dead. When he opens his eyes he describes it as ‘the blackness of eternal night encompassed me’. This shows us that his surroundings completely and utterly black, there is nothing to be seen. This suggests horror as many people are scared of what lurks in the dark. He then goes on to say ‘Yet not for a moment did I suppose myself actually dead’, this description tells us that, while he did not actually think he was dead, he had to have felt like that. Poe uses real life locations that had places of torture during the Spanish inquisition as a description, ‘as well as the condemned cells at Toledo’. This use of real life locations gives an insight to how gruesome the torturing that the narrator is going through even more gruesome as they really exsisted. The theme of light plays a large part in creating horror. The narrator first describes how he is desperate ‘in the hope of catching some faint ray of light’ this shows he is starting to get slightly crazy in the hope of seeing light. He also describes it as a ‘subterranean world of darkness’, which is effective as the dungeon was described as ‘damp’ earlier in the story. When the narrator is exploring the inside of the prison, he describes the one of the smells as ‘decayed fungus.’ This is effective as the decaying is the plant dying and it foreshadows the fact that he will also be dying in the dungeon. Foreshadowing is used again with ‘a sullen plunge into water’, which gives horror as we can tell that this is going to be his fate. Sound then comes into play in his story, ‘loud echoes’ shows us the enormous size of the pit and the dungeon in general. It also comes into play as he ‘trembled at the sound’ of his own voice. This shows that the dungeon is normally extremely quiet, or that he is extremely scared to the point that even his own voice will scare him. Poe once again starts to describe the feeling of death, and how the narrator is starting to accept his fate. He does this by describing how he is ‘resolving there to perish rather than risk the terrors of the wells,’ this not only shows us that is has no problem with dying in there anymore, but it also shows us that the dungeon is absolutely terrifying if the narrator decides that he would rather die than venture through it anymore. This is also shown a little later as he describes his sleep as ‘a sleep like that of death’, showing that there is no escape and that even in sleep he still feels like death is upon him. One great use of description is the ‘painted figure of time’ that resides on the roof. This symbolism is showing us that the narrator’s time is up and he will soon die. He then goes on to describe that there is a ‘scythe’ with the painting of time. This adds to the fact that he will soon die as a scythe is commonly represented with the sign of death, as death is usually depicted as a skeleton, which the figures were described to have ‘skeleton forms’, with a black robe, which was also seen on the judges, and a scythe. This constant symbolism of death shows us greatly that the narrator has no other choice and he will die. The narrator also describes that he saw ‘enormous rats’ traversing the floors. The fact that they are enormous also tells us that there were probably people in the dungeons either alongside the narrator or before him, as for them to be big they must have eaten. This theory is slightly hinted upon as the narrator described their eyes as ‘ravenous’ which suggests that they have eaten human before and recognize him as food. The narrator realises this is but one more of the many things here that could kill him. While Poe referenced to Hades and the underworld earlier, he does something similar as he described the pit ‘typical of hell’. This description of the pit, referring it to the afterlife, once again adds to this looming fear of death that has been present throughout the entirety of the story. He also describes it as the ‘Ultima Thule of all their punishments’. This means that it is the worst possible thing that they could ever do to anybody, and the fact that the narrator just merely misses it is complete luck. But, as in a place like that there is no luck, it is obvious that it is going to be his fate in the end. The narrator seems to start losing his sanity as he starts ‘smiling at the glittering death’ of the pendulum coming towards him. But from his point of view he can see the pendulum coming towards his as a source of definite death, and not aimless wandering around the same corridor for an undetermined amount of time. Poe starts describing the pendulum through personification. He describes how its ‘acrid breath’ found its way into the narrators nose, and how, as it was descending, it was ‘hissing’. These things make you feel like the pendulum itself is alive and wants to kill the narrator. The narrator describes how he had a ‘frenzied pleasure’ in watching the pendulum come down. Poe reflects this in his writing, ‘Down — steadily down’, ‘Down — certainly and relentlessly down!’, ‘Down — still unceasingly — still inevitably down’. The repetition of ‘down’ is showing us how all the narrator can see is the gleaming of the pendulum coming ever so slightly towards him with every swing. The words used in describing the movement of the pendulum downwards are also effective. ‘Unceasingly’ and ‘inevitably’ tell us that the narrator is starting to get worried at the downward movement of the pendulum. Poe takes advantage of the fears of the readers in order to make the story full of horror. This was easily achieved when he writes that the narrator’s ‘every motion was being undoubtedly watched. This works greatly as it makes it more relatable to the reader as nearly everybody has had the feeling that they are being watched and knows how terrifying it feels. He describes being watched later on as well as he describes that ‘demon eyes’ were glaring upon him ‘in a thousand directions’. This adds to the readers fears and makes them uneasy while reading the rest of the story. Once again the narrator is starting to come to terms with the fact that he is going to die as even after escaping from the threat of the pendulum he says that he had ‘but escaped death in one form of agony, to be delivered unto worse than death in some other.’ This shows us that he has given up trying to escape as he knows that he will just be given an even worse punishment in the end. Then it is described when the thought of being crushed by the metal walls as ‘fiery destruction’ is in contrast to the description in the ‘coolness of the well’. These descriptions used make the option of the pit seem like the worse of two evils, like the coolness of the pit will relieve him from the fiery destruction of the enclosing walls. This shows how desperate the narrator is to survive. Many of the different techniques that Poe used to create horror so that the reader feels more involved in the story. He uses real places so we feel more drawn into the story. He uses great description of the surroundings so we feel more involved and he gives us the inner monologue of the character so we can feel more involved and it keeps us wanting more.

Gustave Caillebottes The Orange Trees essays

Gustave Caillebottes The Orange Trees essays The work chosen for evaluation in this essay is Gustave Caillebottes 1878 oil on canvas painting titled The Orange Trees, a 61 x 46 work in which two central human figures are positioned in a formal garden in which orange trees are planted in sculpted boxes. The male figure in the foreground is the artists brother, Marital; he wears a straw hat and purple shoes and is depicted reading a newspaper or magazine, his back to the artist, and his head bent over the reading material. In the background is the artists cousin, Zoe, who wears a striped dress and red boots and who is bending over one of the boxed orange trees in a very formal garden. Also present in the picture are formal, wrought iron garden chairs and a winding path surrounded by formal plantings. According to the Museum of Fine Arts of Houston (MFAH) Web site (1), Capturing the specific light effects of midday, Gustave Caillebotte contrasts the cool colors of shade with the dazzling, flattening effects of direct sunlight. The painting by Caillebotte employs a diagonal line moving from the lower left side of the canvas as one views it to the upper right side, creating a fairly geometric shape that is nevertheless organic in its flow (a feature made possible by the winding path that moves through the garden, balanced by a patch of brightly colored flowers). The texture is typical of the Impressionists, employing alternating patches of depth and surface paint to create variations in tone and in the interplay of light and shadow. Balance is achieved through an asymmetrical placement of the two human figures and the winding path, juxtaposed against the darker boxed orange trees. The focal point at the foreground of the painting is the artists seated brother; the focal point in the rear is the artists standing cousin, but the curving path creates movement from the bottom to the top of the canvas. This curve also emphasize ...

The Civil War and the Complexities of the Abolition essays

The Civil War and the Complexities of the Abolition essays There were many conflicts, reasons, and struggles that brought about the American Civil War, but there is no question that one of the hottest, most debated issues at that time was the issue of slavery. Should it be abolished? Should it be tolerated? Was it a state issue, or a federal one? Many questions arose about freedom, economics, consequences of abolition, and moralities of slavery. The people that supported the emancipation of slaves and the abolition of slavery had a united purpose, but did they have common incentives? Was the anti-slavery movement a movement towards racial equality, or did the push for abolition coexist with white supremacy? This paper seeks to look further into those who supported abolition before the Civil War and to examine their motives to see the complexities of the time in the areas of society and politics. First, a new wave of thinking was arising within society. The thought that slavery was oppression, sinful and contradictory began to take root. It started with David Walker, a black man who was born free, who wrote the first anti-slavery protest published in 1829 entitled "An Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World..." It discussed slavery as a product of American greed that contradicted the core of the nation and advocated violence as self-defense. This appeal has been shown to encourage slave revolts throughout the slave communities, and in 1831 Nat Turner led 70 other slaves into the largest, bloodiest slave rebellion moving from plantation to plantation, killing white families, totaling 60 people. This sudden violence led to the establishment of the Colonizationists, who were comprised mostly of southern, white plantation owners. Fearing for their lives, these members were for the abolition of slavery, and to "recolonize" all blacks back to Africa, for their safety, not fo r the benefit of the slaves. In 1832, William Lloyd Garrison established the American Anti-Slavery Society and furthe...