Philosophy of education Essay Example for Free

Philosophy of education Essay Philosophy is a set of beliefs or ideas one has towards their discipline or line of work. Don Kauchak and Paul Eggen, authors of the textbook â€Å"Introduction to Teaching: Becoming a Professional,† define philosophy as â€Å"The study of theories of knowledge, truth, existence, and morality† [ (Kauchak Eggen, 2011) ]. The philosophy of education is a very important aspect of teaching. It is meant to guide teachers in the classroom and offer insight to the thinking of past experts [ (Kauchak Eggen, 2011) ]. It often will answer the main questions any new and even seasoned teachers have when preparing to teach in the classroom. There are various degrees of philosophy, for example; there is the philosophy of life, the philosophy of religion, and the philosophy of education. However, there are four philosophies of education they include: Perennialism, Essentialism, Progressivism, and Social Reconstructionism. After calculating my scores on the philosophical assessment in the Kauchak and Eggen textbook, I found that my personal philosophy of education is an equal combination of Perennialism and Social Reconstructionism. According to Kauchak and Eggen, Perennialism consists of the teaching of classic knowledge [ (Kauchak Eggen, 2011) ]. This includes literacy, mathematics, and science. Another way of looking at this is teaching student’s subjects that they will use in the future, even if it does not seem relevant now. The definition of perennial is â€Å"long-term† and that is exactly how a teacher with a Perennialism philosophy teaches. Social Reconstructionism, according to Kauchak and Eggen is â€Å"An educational philosophy suggesting that schools, teachers, and students should lead in alleviating social inequities in our society† [ (Kauchak Eggen, 2011) ]. In other words, a teacher with this philosophy teaches their students about social problems, improving society and teaching their students about personal responsibilities. Perennialism and Social Reconstructionism are each on opposite ends of the spectrum. Social Reconstructionism focuses more on the society in which the student lives, while Perennialism focuses more on the intellect of the student. Having these two as my personal philosophies is a bit difficult. While I do believe teaching tolerance and understanding is important, I also know that learning mathematics, science and literacy is equally important. After reading the scenario on page 219 of the Kauchak and Eggen textbook, I would respond to the students by first trying to motivate them. Offering incentives is a great way to get students’ attention; they are more eager to pay attention if they are pursuing it to get something out of it. You can use anything as a motivator; my favorite was always free dessert at lunch! You can also give extra credit points on the next quiz or for younger students you could offer an incentive such as â€Å"line leader† or â€Å"bathroom monitor† for the day. The younger students love when they think they are in charge of something, it can also help their self-esteem knowing they are doing something important. I do believe this is more of an example of Perennialism, however, depending on the specific motivator and the response it gets; it could be Social Reconstructionism as well. The second response I would try is starting a discussion. I would try getting the students’ attention by putting them in discussion groups or having a discussion as a whole class. This would definitely be an example of Social Reconstructionism. This encourages the students to work together and to come up with a solution together. It gives them a chance to ask each other questions before asking the teacher. It also compels them to stay focused on the topic and eliminates the â€Å"my hand wasn’t raised† excuse. My third response, though I would make it my last resort, would be to write a summary on what was taught during the instruction. By doing this, it makes the students want and need to listen in order to do their assignment correctly. This also offers a chance to get some feedback from the teacher and allows you to reflect on what you learned and what you need to work on. This is an example of Perennialism, as it deals with the thought process and encouraging literacy. While Perennialism and Social Reconstructionism are complete opposites, they also share some characteristics, making it easier to teach using both philosophies. Many common knowledge subjects can be transitioned to include activities that work well to alleviate social problems. In math, you can have the students work in groups. This promotes team work and logic. In literacy, you may give reading assignments dealing with a specific problem in society (e. g. poverty, bullying, etc) and have the students write summaries on what they read. This can promote logical thinking as well as establishing knowledge of the society issue in the reading.

Complex Love In A Rose For Emily English Literature Essay

Complex Love In A Rose For Emily English Literature Essay This paper will investigate the complex love relationship between the southern belladonna Emily Grierson and the northern street worker Homer Barron in William Faulkners A Rose for Emily. In order to analyse this issue, I will divide my research in two parts. I will first focus on the female protagonist who seems to have a great desire for companionship and love. To verify this idea I will outline the main features of her life and try to enter in the world of her psyche. Moreover, I will define and interpret possible reasons for her actions. The second part will concentrate on the important male figure of the short story: Homer Barron. Here, I will focus mainly on his role in this sophisticated love-scenario and on the questions, why he gets murdered and which reasons led Emily to commit such a crime. I will then compare these findings to the title of the short story and concentrate my thoughts on the meaning of the symbol of the rose in A Rose for Emily. 2. A Rose for Emily: A Portrait of Emily Grierson. An absent-minded Southern belladonna named Emily Grierson represents the protagonist of William Faulkners short story A Rose for Emily. Interpretations about this character can lead to numerous directions due to her life which is seen as extremely bizarre and macabre: The daughter of an aristocratic and a good standing family has difficulties with growing-up due to her stern father who never accepts one of her suitors. After Mr Grierson passed away, a young street worker from the North, named Homer Barron, appears in the small town of Jefferson, to whom she loses her heart. Suddenly, he vanishes and he never turns up again, while Emily is caught in the act of buying arsenic. Until then, Ms Grierson stays in her house for good but her black servant leaves sometimes. All of a sudden, Emily dies and as the curious townspeople enter the house at her burial, they come across a bedroom made up as a bridal room where they find a grey strain of hair next to the tracks of a skeleton. Schizophrenia as a Scapegoat for her Actions. Although Emilys behaviour is outrageous, she never had a reputation for being insane. The townspeople did not say she was crazy (A Rose for Emily  [1]  124), but her actions and her character would lead one to assume that she has gone barking mad. If not, why would someone stay in a house for a lifetime and sleep next to a corpse? A possible explanation for this might be a mental illness, as e.g. schizophrenia (Smith). Its causes can be easily lead back to Emilys childhood: As a result of the high values of an aristocratic family, she grew up with ever-lasting expectations that the inhabitants of Jefferson had of a daughter of such an ancestry: Miss Emily had been a tradition, a duty, and a care; a sort of hereditary obligation upon the town (RfE 119). The citizens demanded the maintenance of those traditions set up by her ancestors but already as a child she was not probably able to handle these demanding conditions (Smith). Another culprit for Emilys mental state is definitely Mr Grierson. The family values were of a particular importance for him, even if his daughter would have to suffer: [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] her father which had thwarted her womans life so many times [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] (RfE 127). Therefore Emily never had a love relationship with a man because Mr Grierson thinking none of those suitors were good enough for her was always shooing them away. [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] the Griersons held themselves a little too high for what they really were. None of the young men were quite good enough for Miss Emily and such. [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] she got to be thirty and was still single [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦]. (RfE 123) 2.2 Death of her Father as the Last Straw. After Mr Grierson passed away, the reader is able to observe an acceleration of Emilys mental decadence (Smith). This process might seem peculiar but it is easy explainable: Emily was always burdened with external stress, which her father has to be partly blamed for. Now, much of this pressure disappears suddenly owing to the death of Mr Grierson and of all his expectations and orders, whereby the previous hidden symptoms surface (Smith). Therefore, Emily is not able anymore to convey her true feelings at the burial, i.e. she is not affected by her own fathers exitus and has no trace of grief on her face (RfE 123). Hence, the former Southern belle is leaving more and more reality and enters an imaginary world, as e.g. by saying to the townspeople that her father was not dead (RfE 123) or by totally withdrawing herself from society. Another classic symptom for schizophrenia can be detected in her inability of interacting socially with others and in the later lack of hygiene and of sel f-awareness on her physical appearance (Smith): When we next saw Miss Emily, she had grown fat and her hair was turning gray. During the next few years it grew grayer and grayer until it attained an even pepper-and-salt iron-gray, when it ceased turning. Up to the day of her death at seventy-four it was still that vigorous iron-gray, like the hair of an active man. (RfE 127-28) Besides all these examples, the best argument for a supposable mental illness on the part of Emily Grierson establishes her attraction to corpses. 2.3 Transcending Death of Emilys Love. The fact that Ms Grierson spends time with a dead human body states Faulkner in the last sentences of his short story: The man himself lay in the bed. For a long while we just stood there, looking down at the profound and fleshless grin. The body had apparently once lain in the attitude of an embrace, but now the long sleep that outlasts love, that conquers even the grimace of love, had cuckolded him. What was left of him, rotted beneath what was left of the nightshirt, had become inextricable from the bed in which he lay; and [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] in the second pillow was the indentation of a head. One of us lifted something from it, and leaning forward, that faint and invisible dust dry and acrid in the nostrils, we saw a long strand of iron-gray hair (RfE 130). This paragraph demonstrates well the height of her mental illness and explains frankly what Emily did in the last years of her life: She murdered her suitor Homer Barron and passed the nights next to his cadaver. Such attractions to dead bodies are termed as necrophilia which is a combination of the two Greek words nekros (dead person) and philia (affection). This mental disorder includes sexual intercourse with a corpse which is in fact illegal in Europe. Whether Emily slept with Homers corpse can only be interpreted because it is not mentioned directly (Grabher). 3. A Rose for Homer: A Portrait of Homer Barron. Homer Barron displays an essential figure in A Rose for Emily because he can be presented as a symbol for hope and for companionship, i.e. Emily Grierson sees in this Northern street worker a ghost of a chance of getting away from all the expectations laid upon her and from solitude. Her whole life has been marked by the feeling of loneliness but through Homer she tries to break this mould. [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] we were sure that they were to be married. We learned that Miss Emily had been to the jewelers and ordered a mans toilet set in silver, with the letters H. B. on each piece. Two days later we learned that she had bought a complete outfit of mens clothing, including a nightshirt [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] (RfE 127). The townspeoples description of Emilys activities reveals her seriousness about her relationship with her beloved foreman but does not convey the reason for her subsequent tasks. 3.1 Revelation of Homers Homosexual Proclivities. A possible reason for the murder of Homer Barron could be seen in Emilys fear of being alone again. Indeed, she falls in love with her follow and insists on marrying him but that differs with Homers intentions. As a labourer from the North, he is just looking for a place to stay during the working weeks and not for a future wife. In addition to that, it seems that Homer is not interested in any woman but in men, because he himself had remarked-he liked men, and it was known that he drank with the younger men in the Elks Club-that he was not a marrying man (RfE 126). A closer analysis of his first and last name can be used to strengthen this theory. Homer leads us back to Ancient Greece (8th century BC-146 BC) and to Homeros who wrote Iliad and the Odyssey. Anyway, the Greek society of this time is largely known for its acceptance of homosexuality. Barron could be interpreted in various ways, e.g. as a pun  [2]  due to barren which has a similar sound. However, barren displays a tight connection with the character, if we look at its synonyms: fruitless, sterile, meagre or infertile. This particular meaning of that term ties in with the inability of a homosexual couple to reproduce and therefore with the figure of Homer Barron (Grabher). Moreover, Faulkner integrates little hints to get to know Homers sexual preferences, as e.g. through the use of colours: [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] Homer Barron with his hat cocked and a cigar in his teeth, reins and whip in a yellow glove [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] (RfE 126). The colour yellow could be here a clear reference to the Yellow Book which was the most popular British magazine in the 1980s  [3]  . It was associated with aestheticism, a 19th century movement which attached more importance to aesthetic values than to moral ones, and indirectly with homosexuality (Roth). 3.2 Emilys Response to her Discovery. The most interesting issue about this complicate love-scenario between a forlorn Southern lady and a gay Northern industrial worker is how her discovery of Homers truly sexual proclivities affected Emily. After discovering his secret, she tries to adapt her physical appearance to the conceptions of beauty of her beloved: she cuts her hair which then looks like the hair of an active man (RfE 128). The motive for doing that can be lead back to the desire of pleasing him in order to keep their relationship alive. This whole aspect reminds me of the Italian painter Michelangelo Merisi (1571-1610), better known as Caravaggio, whose sexual identity was also surrounded by numerous rumours, e.g. it is said that he went for male androgynous younglings. Many of his paintings show such infantile boys, like e.g. Bacchus (1595) or Amor Vincit Omnia (1602). Even more striking is that women were unusual objects in his canvases and if he depicted them, they mostly have a short, boyish hairstyle, as Faulkners Emily and as the angel in Caravaggios Rest on the Flight into Egypt (1597) have (Harten 30-34). Fig. 1. Caravaggio, Rest on the Flight into Egypt, Galleria Doria Pamphili, Rome; rpt. in Andrew Graham-Dixon, Caravaggio: A Life Sacred and Profane (London: Allen Lane, 2010; print; 162). 3.3 Homer as a Rose for Emily. Emily realises soon that Homer and she do not have the same feelings for each other and that he will not be in her town for a long time anymore. Therefore, she takes to more extreme measures: she buys arsenic in order to kill Homer. I want some poison she said to the druggist. [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] Yes, Miss Emily. What kind? [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] I want the best you have. I dont care what kind. The druggist named several. Theyll kill anything up to an elephant.' (RfE 125) The reason for the murder lies clearly in her great desire of avoiding a probable recurring solitude and of keeping Homer as close as possible. This leads directly to a possible interpretation concerning the title of the short story which can be irritating due to the absence of the image of a rose in Faulkners work. Although the flower is not stated at all, the term rose arises four times bearing two different meanings. On the one hand the author uses this word as the past form of the verb rise and on the other hand as the colour rose: A thin, acrid pall as of the tomb seemed to lie everywhere upon this room decked and furnished as for a bridal: upon the valance curtains of faded rose colo[u]r, upon the rose-shaded lights, upon the dressing table, [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦]. (RfE 129-30) That is why it is not evident who or what symbolises the rose in the title. A plausible conclusion could be that Homer personalises the rose because Emily does not endure letting him go, not even after his decease. On the contrary, she uses death to be even closer to her beloved street worker. Her greatest wish of keeping Homers body resembles to the action of bending a rose and pressing it then between some pages of a book in order to keep its beauty forever (VCCS Litonline). 4. Conclusion The leading idea of this paper has been to analyse the complex love relationship between Emily Grierson and Homer Barron in William Faulkners A Rose for Emily. As we have seen, the female protagonist of this short story had a difficult life due to a probable mental health illness developed from her personal problems with her aristocratic background and the expectations laid upon her. Her only wish was to find companionship and love which she thought having found in the figure of Homer Barron. After having discovered his real sexual orientation, she was gutted and did not want to accept that she has to let him go too. Thusly, she murdered him in order to keep him for good a pressed rose between some pages of a book.

Market analysis of reebok

Market analysis of reebok Reebok the United Kingdom based ancestor company was founded in 1890 by J.W Foster, for one of the best reasons possible athletes wanted to run faster (www.reebok.com). Since then Reebok has evolved itself through various stages to become one of the top three market leaders in the sports shoes, fitness and apparels. The brands success is built upon its creative designing and marketing strategy. The right balance between the designing and marketing has taken Reebok to such height. McDonald, M (2000 p.5) defines marketing as process for understanding markets, for quantifying the present and future value required by the different groups of customer within these markets. Starting from its first hand made shoes to the recent innovative Easytone and ReeZig footwear Reebok proved its individuality, authenticity and its creative thinking and potential. The company was taken over by Adidas in 2006 which gave both Adidas and Reebok a strong market share to take on the common rival and the mark et leader Nike. Though the company is taken over, Reebok and Adidas are still two different brands under the group. Reebok has a strong hold in US market and sponsors for different sporting events like NFL, NBA, WNBA and NBDL. Branded as a discounted shoe manufacturer in the past, Reebok has slowly changed its face to high fashion, high comfort and premium product by raising its price in the market and incorporating new technologies for the sports and fitness category. The latest launch in their product line Easytone and the upcoming ReeZig has got more technical and design values, the technology which is actually designed by a NASA engineer(www.corporate.reebok.com) and the re-launch of its classic models reveals the companys change in focus. Reebok in the early 2000 started its marketing campaign with fusion of Sports Music and Technology featuring industries best performers of the period, from music industry Jay-Z, Daddy Yankee, 50 Cent; top athletes Allen Iverson, Donovan McNabb , Curt Schilling, Kelly Holmes, Iker Casillas and Yao Ming; screen stars Lucy Liu, John Leguizamo and Christina Ricci; and skateboarder Stevie Williams., and Thierry Henry, Alexander Ovechkin, driving ace Lewis Hamilton, MS Dohni and Nicole Vaidisova. Easytone the companys launch of the year 2009 is its one of the most successful product line. Easytone feature with first of its kind the balance pod technology, designed for womens fitness and sport. Reeboks commitment towards women fitness and sport is long lasting from its first ever exclusive footwear for women Step introduced in 1989 which fore fronts the aerobic movements, and now the Easytone forefronts toning of lower abdomen parts like the calf muscle, thigh muscle and the bum. Reeboks marketing approach for Easytone is take the gym with you (www.reebok.com) which emphasis on women who were busy with their routine life but still wanted to maintain their figure. Custom made shoes are also available by ordering and designing over the internet, which gives customers the option of variety and uniqueness. Marketing Environment Macro Environment Kotler, P., Armstrong, G. (2010) describes macro environment as a force which is more societal and affects the micro environment directly. The global footwear industry is $196.25billion in 2009 with CAGR of 3.7% from 2005 to 2009(www.marketlineinfo.com). Reeboks international operations and its presence over 55 countries with different cultural and economical background is a concern for its performance, with the present market scenario where the European and American market is facing financial crisis, Reebok has got its major customers base in these regions it faces major loss in sales, while the Asian market shows positive sign, Reeboks sales in India and china is second to Nike, but the percentage contribution towards the revenue in international currency is low. Reebok faces legal threats from its manufacturing units in South East Asia where they operate with cheap labours in unethical work conditions. In general the sporting accessories are more famous among the 16 to 24 age groups. The increase in number of unemployed and fresh graduates finding difficult to find jobs among this particular category has caused a major concern for the industry, in addition to countries like UK where the government has increased the tuition fees will be a major political and economical factor which affects the whole footwear industry. The increase in raw material cost making the situation worse, which led to low stock maintenance and irregular supply to the channel. The footwear industry is always subjected rapid changes in customer needs and the changes are more oriented toward the socio-cultural forces, Reebok adapted to those variations in socio cultural forces by combining the product with Music and sport in US market, fitness and sport in the European ma rket and sport and entertainment in Asian market. Figure 1: Macro Environment Reeboks Easytone is designed with the technology which is never been used before and sets a landmark in the sports shoe market. Easytone is designed to comfort with Moving Air Technology, while most of the other competitors do have similar technologies Reebok should really look into more innovative and sophisticated technology which will be the unique selling point in the competitive market. Micro Environment Every brand has its own unique selling point which targets the particular category of customers, in general the footwear industry customers can be categorised into Performance conscious consumers like runners, aerobics, players, athletes, and exercisers and Fashion conscious customers who buy for style and comfort. Customers buy products that has value and satisfaction among the range available in the market, Kotler, P et al.(2009). Figure : Micro Environment Reebok Easytone is designed and marketed to the fitness loving womens segment. With the strategy of launching a new product every year with newer technology and invention, Reebok has always targeted the focus group, and so as Easytone targets the fitness loving women. Reebok has always positioned itself as customer centric, which caters the needs and requirement of the focus group, though it has the diversity in product when compared to its competitors. Because of the diversity in its products Reebok has always been in competence to different competitors in different category and product range. The main competitors are Nike, Adidas and Puma. Reebok sells through various channels, which includes the retail outlets, Reebok concept showrooms, franchisee outlets and associated sponsored sporting organisation. Marketing Mix The primary objective of an organisation is to offer a product which has a competitive edge or differential advantage over its competitors, Brassington, F., Pettitt, S. (2006). This can be achieved by marketing mix which is studied with the basic research on 4Ps. Product Product management has always been the core factor in the marketing mix, which involves the basic understanding and the requirement for launching the new product in the market and then developing it with the right marketing strategy which benefits the organisation and then manufacturing in the right way which benefits both the organisation and the society. The organisation should transfer its knowledge into product which will be a drive for growth, John A. Quelch (2006). Figure 3: BCG Matrix,( source:www.reebokeasytone.net) Reebok has the strategy of launching one core product every year, and the launch of Easytone is for the year 2009, it was the critical time to launch any new product because of the economy, hence Reebok has to come out with a very strong product and marketing strategy. The tangible attributes has to be so strong and the message was clearly sent out with Easytone with its high fashion, design and technology. The footwear is innovative and new to the market, designed in a way that it gives us the feeling of walking in the soft sandy beach and the science behind is when we walk on the sandy beach its hard to keep the balance hence we work hard to keep the balance which in turn burns the calories of calves, hamstring and the gluteus maximus muscles. Reebok has also ensured that Easytone is available across the globe and the visibility of it is more in the retail outlets, which created awareness and also a noise in the market about the new product with new technology and performance. Thou gh Reebok claims theoretically it can prove that, by using Easytone will tone the legs 26% more when compared to other sport or fitness shoes, there are still controversies about the actual performance of the product. Reebok did break the controversies with the total sales of Easytone worldwide, this proved practically the strength of marketing strategy by Reebok and the performance in the market. On the other hand with all the controversies the general image of the brand which changed over the period of time from a discounted brand to a respected brand, contributed to the overall performance, which has also bought value to the brand, Easytone has got its uniqueness and feature to rock the market. The strength of the product always lies on its core benefits, the core benefit of Easytone is fitness in the simple way, which is a necessity and hence has its value anticipation and demand. The actual product which is built upon its core benefit is its features style and quality and as an augmented product Reebok gives warranty up to three months and any after sales issue has been taken to RD department for rectification and thus by giving the customer the maximum benefit and trust in the product. The Easytone can be classified as speciality goods, where in an extensive market research was done which gives customer the maximum benefit by using the product. After the successful launch of Step in 1989 and Easytone in 2009, both products have shown its individuality and very minimum level of competition from other brands, which gives the product a cutting edge and the customers reluctance to go for any other brands. Product Life Cycle The product life cycle gives the clear picture of the stage in which the product is, the four stages are Introduction, Growth, maturity and termination. Determining the stage in which the product belongs will decide the marketing strategy to follow Kotler, P (2003). For the footwear industry the entire product life is short because of the new trends in the market, different categories in the customer base and due to wear and tear because of the regular usage. Any new product that is launched should differentiate itself from the others and should have uniqueness. Easytone launched in July 2009 with more anticipation and excitement in the market, took up the pace immediately because of the marketing activity carried out by Reebok prior to its launch, the launch was a grand one with star studded performance and celebrities form various industries took part in it. Figure 4: Easytone PLC Stage The growth stage of Easytone in terms of sales is pretty much vertical and by end of 2009 it reached the maturity phase. Reebok focused on different strategy during its various course of the stages, during the introduction stage Reeboks marketing objective was totally to build a strong brand image and expand its market share to the next level, Easytone was priced at the higher end, since its targeted to the focus group, the fitness loving women segment, during the growth phase Easytone penetrated through the focus group, where some of the customers were brand loyal to Reebok, Reebok has the strong product mix, when Easytone was in its matured stage Reebok introduced its next model the ReeZig, targeting the male segment, thus by lining up its product in the market and continuously creating the awareness targeting various categories of the customer base. Since the Easytone is targeted to the focus group, Easytone positioned well itself as a fitness wear and pioneered in its category. Later in its matured stage Reebok repositioned its product focusing not only on the busy working women category who could wear it for their work place, they also started focusing on the regular women category who does workout everyday by launching different variants like ReeInspire, ReeFlipflop, Go Outside, Rush, Diva and also introduced custom designs, were customers can design from the various patterns available in their website and can choose the colours also. New Products are key to companys continued survival, (Lancaster, G., Reynolds P, 2005, p.108). Within the product line Reebok developed various products and introduced in different stages which enabled them to actually extent the product life cycle. Countries in Asia Pacific and Middle East are very slow in responding to new product particularly in footwear industry, where they used to wait and watch if the product is really worth and anticipate for price drop. Reebok extended its Easytones product life by launching it in t hese regions with a time gap, after proving it successful in US and the Europe market. Pricing The variants within the brand and the competition play a major role in pricing the Easytone, been branded as the discounted sales brand in the past, Reebok changed its face by changing its pricing methods, sports and fitness industry customers will always look out for the latest technology and high comfort brand were they give less importance to cost. Though they will compare with the other brands with the same features, low priced products which claim to have the innovative and most effective technology will always create a lack of confidence to the customers. According to McDonald (2000, p.352) pricing may influence the other marketing mix also. Reebok priced its Easytone in the higher end when compared to its previous fitness shoes for women like Step or Pump, in competition to the other brands with similar product features though William j. Stanton (1994 p.335) says that for a new product to take a high market penetration should price its product relatively low when compared to o ther brands. Figure 5: Easytone Pricing Strategy In the early 2010 Easytone price was dropped marginally when it reached the maturity stage, the marginal decrease in its price was effective to its secondary market like Asia pacific and Middle East markets, which is competitive to its regional players, the secondary market customers have always been wait and watch customers where the always believe in the bargain purchase, while the primary market customers are the early responders. Reducing its price was marginal, Reebok was so conscious of not falling back to its earlier brand image, also it exploit the actual market opportunities by acquiring customers out of its focus group. The pricing factor though didnt affect much of its primary market, its influenced the secondary market. With regards to market penetration Reebok had a different strategy by introducing one pound shoes in the tertiary market like Bangladesh and African countries. Easytone is also priced up when compared to the other product line because of its additional fea tures and the latest technology. When pricing internationally they adopted the polycentric pricing where the regional office decides the price, this is easily achievable because of the production unit is present in the Asian subcontinent where pricing in relative to expenses is made, which is a biggest advantage to easily price polycentrically. Easytone is made available by ordering online with a price discount, which saves the overall expenditure for the management of retail outlets and showrooms, which is passed on to the customers. Promotion Reebok started its promotional activity for Easytone even before the launch, in order to create awareness. The promotional activities were concentrated towards the technology the main features and the advantage of using the product, since the product is targeted towards the focus group, fitness loving women, most of its promotion activity featured young women with tonned legs and bum, which stimulated the customers mind. The advertisement by Reebok for Easytone created a shock among the viewers, but still its shock averts are not new, it depends on the market, the products speciality and the circumstance of social priorities, Evans M., Moutinho L. (1999, p123). Figure 6: Easytone communication strategy Reebok spent most of its money in media advertisement which created awareness amongst the focus group and also regular viewers who were also simulated to use the product. This is a major success for Easytone as it captured the core strength or the unique feature of the product fitness and beauty. Easytone targeted the creamy layer of the customer group, women between the ages 16 and 24, and their ad campaign has always been different to different product lines, when it first started it marketing campaign with Reebok Planet in 2005, then in 2006 they tie up with Thierry Hendry and Ryan Giggs for their campaign I am what I am, and further on like Pump Up, your Move, Because life is not just a spectator sport which feature Lewis Hamilton showing his fitness skills with Reebok, and now for the Easytone take the gym with you which sends out a clear message to the focus group, and the line of celebrity includes Kelly Brook in UK, Bipasha in India. Figure 7: Pounds spend for advertisement Though Easytone spent more in media advertisement, it focused on other promotional activities also, like print, out-of-home, digital and in-store executions. Reeboks spent in sales promotion is as much as it spent in media advertisement, the promotions were mainly aimed towards churn in customer and creating demand in the market, they have also launched online blogs to create a customer database and to get feedback from customers and to develop the product further according to their requirements. Though as a brand Reebok has very good promotions by sponsorship Easytone has its limitations were it could not enter in to the sports category, they have to rely more on the entertainment sector to promote the product. Easytone in Reeboks concept store was given the priority and merchandising was also primarily focused on Easytone, with all the above factors it created a pull strategy in the market. The Easytone advert in most of the places were considered unethical and also caused a negati ve impact on the product, which many of the viewers considered too much. But still as a campaign Easytone had a successful period and sales through their communication strategy. Place Reeboks access to the target market is one of its successes, because of the growing awareness among the customers, right customer in right attitude should be targeted, and also knowing the potential of individual market in a global environment. Figure 8: Sales region wise(2009), source: (www.marketlineinfo.com) Knowing about the social and cultural behaviour of the local market before positioning a product is vital for planning a marketing strategy, Lancaster G., Reynolds P (2002). Reeboks decentralised operations allowed the local management team to target the local customer base. Reeboks channel structure is simple when compared to its sister company Adidas, from manufacturing unit to its different warehouses in different regions and the to its retail outlets like speciality sports retailers, online retailers, concept stores, and other retailers. Reebok retail outlets has got a better image in terms of its merchandising and product placements, because of its simple structure in reaching the end customers the logistics is also made simpler and will be faster. SWOT Strength Unique Product features Celebrities and sports stars endorsed to brand Balance pod technology Media advertisement Concentrated on focus group Manufactured in Asia Brand loyal customers and awareness Custom made shoes Prime location in retail and concept stores Only for women category Premium pricing Weakness Targets only focus group Only for women category No further development to the product Single product line Mostly relied in retail sales Premium pricing Controversial advertisement Discounted retail sales Vertically integrated brand Opportunity Developing the product Untapped markets Unisex models Focus on emerging market Wholesale market Integrated marketing campaign Threats Manufacturing units in Asia and Cambodia Competitors variants Competitors pricing Counterfeit and replicas in secondary market Manufacturing standards Decline in footwear sales Recommendation Based on the critical analysis done with SWOT, the following recommendations are suggested. Starting from the priority matrix of nine and urgency and importance level three, Reebok though having some very unique featured Easytone, variants among the product is very less when compared to the other brands in the same category, still Reebok can claim that it has custom made shoes which gives customer the variation and to their likeness, the basic product is the same, which will not change the mindset of the customer. Reebok have to develop new variants within the product line in order to satisfy all its customer needs. Reebok has very good secondary market but with regards to Easytone there is a large potential in secondary markets which they had missed out as they concentrate mainly on their low range products which put them in second to NIKE, but lose their position in terms of product like Easytone which has technical values and change the brand image from discounted brand to high st reet fashion, sports and fitness brand, which can be overcast by more ethical media averts and focusing on the fitness loving women category in these markets. The other weakness of Easytone is its vertical integration, where it does not involve any whole selling like its sister concern Adidas, this make them to rely on its retail outlets for its maximum sales where as other brands have horizontal integration which spreads their market area, Reebok should come out of its present integration and spread its market area which in turn will create more opportunity for sales and market share. In terms of new product development, like the fusion of music, sport and entertainment, Reebok should try combining sport, fitness and casual models. Easytone concentrates only on it focused group which is an advantage to maximise it sales but should also think of the other segments like the male fitness loving groups, though by its advert and promotions the product in not much relevant to male segmen ts, still using Easytone tone your leg, calf muscle and hamstring. This would have put Easytone on the wider market and increased sales. The adverts should have casted both male and female models where the male segments concentrate on the calf and hamstring, the female segments with butt. In the era where the macro elements talk more about environment and human rights and work ethics Reebok should have adopted to those factors much earlier wherein it wouldnt have faced legal and ethical threats, having manufacturing units in Asia and Pacific regions will provide them with cost effectiveness, but always have the risk of standards in manufacturing and work culture, the recent change in their work environment ethics will clear any further damage to the brand but still whatever it faced will always impact the future market. By changing the pricing strategy where it priced premium price for Easytone had a negative impact in the market, the change in pricing methods should have happened i n slow phase, rather than suddenly increasing its price because of its innovative technology and feature. Though this created a new brand image in the market customers were ready to wait for the price fall, which they have always experienced with Reebok in the past. Appendix 1 SWOT Analysis Matrix SWOT VS Urgency Importance Probability Priority (9-max, 1-min) S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã‚ O 1 1 3 3 3 9 4 2 3 3 1 7 2 2 1 2 1 4 8 3 2 3 2 7 11 3 2 3 1 6 5 4 3 3 2 8 4 4 3 3 3 9 2 5 2 2 1 5 4 5 2 2 1 5 Wà ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢O 1 1 3 3 2 8 1 2 3 3 3 9 2 2 2 2 1 5 3 1 3 3 2 8 3 3 3 3 2 8 3 4 2 2 1 5 4 6 3 3 1 7 5 1 3 2 2 7 5 3 2 2 2 6 6 5 3 3 2 8 7 6 2 2 2 6 8 4 3 3 3 9 S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã‚  T 1 0 3 2 3 2 2 7 5 2 2 2 2 6 11 3 3 2 1 6 11 4 2 2 2 6 8 4 3 2 2 7 6 5 3 3 2 8 7 5 3 3 2 8 Wà ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Å"T 1 1 3 3 2 8 4 3 2 2 2 6 6 5 3 2 2 7 4 8 2 2 2 6 Bibliography

Antigone :: essays research papers

Antigone is a play written by Sophocles that became a classic due to its controversial content. In this play, the Greek dramatist reflected mainly on Civil Disobedience. Antigone believes in the individual rights over the state rights. Creon, however, strongly believes in putting state over religion. The play does not only revolve on the political and religious issue, but also deals with the battle of the sexes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The play is about a strong-willed woman defying the laws of a proud king. Antigone is torn between her devotion to the gods and her loyalty to the king. Creon, ruler of Thebes, issued the order to leave the traitor Polynices’ body â€Å" to be left unburied, his corpse carrion for the birds and dogs to tear, an obscenity for the citizens to behold!† Antigone was not about to simply obey this absurd decree. She felt that her personal responsibility lies to the gods and her family rather than the king. She then asked Ismene, her sister, to assist her with the burial, but was denied of any help. She was disappointed at first, but later on decided that she will do this with or without Ismene’s help. Creon was warned about this and later found the culprit. He issued the death sentence for Antigone’s action. Creon informed his son, Haemon, of his fiancee’s deceit. Haemon, however, defended his beloved. He told his father that the whole city was on her side, but were afraid to say anything. He was instead accused of â€Å"being a woman’s accomplice†, â€Å"fighting on her side, the woman’s side.† Creon continued to threaten him with witnessing the execution of Antione. She was to â€Å"die, now here, in front of his eyes, beside her groom!† Haemon countered him with a threat of his own that he will never set eyes on him again if he continues this violence. Crion was apalled with his son. For that, Antigone was to die a very agonizing death. she was to be taken â€Å"down to some wild desolate path never trod by men, and wall her up alive in a rocky vault, and set out short rations, just the measure piety demands†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The prophet Tiresias warned Crion of the consequences if he does not release Antigone soon. He told him of his dreams that he would lose the people he loves if he continues to be stubborn and stupid. Creon admitted that the prophesies troubled him greatly.

Over the Rhine Essay -- Music Musicians Bands Essays

Over the Rhine   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It is a rare occurrence in today’s over-amplified, bass-kicking sound world to leave a concert feeling as if you actually heard the music. Over the Rhine provided one of those concerts on Thursday October 2nd at Birdys Bar and Grill in Indianapolis. My personal congratulations to the sound guy, who’s mixing allowed the audience to really hear all the different layers of music and different instrumentation really being played.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another rare occurrence; real songwriters and musicians playing their own music! The five-piece band is led by vocalist, Karin Barquist, and her husband Linford Detweiler, keyboardist and collaborator. The rest of the band consists of Paul Moak who played the sitar during the opening song and lead guitar during most of the others, Will Seyles on drums, and Rick Plant on bass guitar. But Barquist seems to be the key member in the band. She has all the qualities a good lead singer should have; great voice, good-looking, poised, mature and confident. She really runs the show up there, and makes it look effortless in the process.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The style of music cannot really be defined as one genre. The audience made it even harder to discern the kind of music being played. The people ranged in ages, gender, race, and dress. They just seemed like â€Å"real† people, not trying to be any part of one group, just like their music.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This mix of folky, pop, one attempt at a slowly spoken rap song, and country music produced all different kinds of songs. The songs have the type of lyrics that make you relate your own life to every single one of them. They’re deep, and well thought out. Barquist doesn’t just repeat the same nonsense lyric over and over. Her voice, to me, sounds a little like my favorite artist, Sarah McLaughlin. But it could really go any way she wanted; hard, soft, loud, weak, whiny, smooth, short and breathy. I have also heard her compared to singer Norah Jones. It seems like the marital bond between Barquist and Detweiler might have served as a source for lyric material.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On Thursday night, the stage at Birdys was adorned with oriental rugs, candles, and vases of flowers to create ambiance. It was nice, but they wouldn’t have needed it, the music spoke for itself. They played songs from two of their albums, Good Dog Bad Dog, but mostly their latest, Ohio. This album is the one that drew the crowd ... ...never articulate.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A couple of other songs they played were â€Å"Bothered,† â€Å"Cruel and Pretty† and â€Å"Changes Come.† If you had never heard the band before tonight, this is where you would probably think all the songs sounded very similar. Slow, piano and sad. The variety lies in the songwriting, if you start paying attention to the lyrics now, you’d have a different opinion. I almost think what they say is so poignant sometimes it should be in a book or poem by itself. But on the other hand, if you took away the way Barquist sings it, or the accompanying instrumentation, I doubt you would get the same idea. They can even make an acoustic guitar sound like it’s in pain and crying.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  They performed two songs during a much appreciated encore, the title track to their new album, â€Å"Ohio,† and a freestyle guitar solo. Even though all their songs are pretty much slow and sad, I left the concert feeling as if I had just experience every emotion or feeling there was. There style is so soft and bare. They lay it all on the table, take it or leave it. Not interested in mainstream, happy with their underground following, and plus one more fan after the show in Indianapolis.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

V.S. Naipaul

V. S. Naipaul Presentation Reflection One of my contributions to our V. S. Naipaul presentation was the explanation of Naipaul’s past and how it impacted the writing he would later produce. This is significant, as the themes of alienation, deprivation and colonialism found in One Out of Many stem from his early life in Trinidad, his relationships and his travels abroad. Naipaul felt estranged in his native Trinidad, as he abandoned the Hindu beliefs of his ancestors for agnosticism. Additionally, Naipaul found himself frustrated with the economic, political and social characteristics of his homeland. This led him to seek an escape via scholarship to Oxford in 1950. After completing his degree, he took to traveling around the world to gather writing material. Naipaul’s extensive travels have given his work a theme of colonialism, as the wide range of affects the British Empire had on its colonies are often displayed. His lack of a consistent home base is why he frequently writes from an outsider’s perspective. This can be seen very clearly in One Out of Many, as Santosh is cast into a society that drastically contrasts the one he had at home in Bombay. This situation is reminiscent of Naipaul’s departure from Trinidad to England, as there is no doubt that the society he left differed substantially from the one he arrived in. Santosh experiences prejudice and humiliation frequently throughout the story and it is not unlikely that these instances were inspired by similar harassment Naipaul endured on his travels. In addition to explaining Naipaul’s basic background information, I also explored his personal relationships. Our sources revealed that Naipaul has made several controversial statements in the past about a range of topics including female writers, the religion of Islam and the â€Å"Hubshi† or people of African descent. Our sources also indicated that Naipaul has been involved in abusive affairs with women and tends to feel that he is superior to the ones he has married. These views manifested in One Out of Many, as Santosh makes comments that are somewhat racist and sexist. He does not even provide the name of the woman he is romantically involved with, only referring to her as the â€Å"hubshi woman† or maid. Lacking this biographical information, readers would be left to guess what inspired Naipaul’s works and would be deprived of a deeper understanding of One Out of Many. Readers would also be left with a much more negative image of Naipaul, instead of recognizing the cultural differences he is characterized by.

Experiential Marketing Essay

Development of Marketing Trends It is accepted that both the concept and function of marketing have changed and keep changing (McCole, 2004: 2). Adams (2011) reminds the use of the concept of â€Å"live marketing†, which many year ago was used to describe anything where people where a â€Å"just† little more creative than not doing marketing at all. Nowadays, using creative techniques seems to have become almost commonplace (Ibid). Further on, more and more consumers began to perceive marketing trough a wide spectrum of different marketing communication channels (Smilansky, 2009: 1). Traditional channels include advertising, direct mail, packaging and sales promotion (Ibid). These aim to attract consumers’ attention by mainly focusing on the importance to the product/service functional features (Schmitt, 1999: 17). Sponsorships, digital marketing and public relations (PR) were introduced later (Ibid). After that, the integration of these communication channels which traditionally have been used independently, in order to create a synergetic effect and convey a consistent message to the target audience, promoted the development of a new concept called integrated marketing communication (IMC) (De Pelsmacker et al. , 2010: 17). Nevertheless as marketing techniques consumers themselves have also evolved. Been so often subjected to a variety of media channels and marketing methods was already starting to turn them against the use of marketing, making them even more disinterested (Adams, 2011). What this provoked was the rise to the trends of guerrilla marketing techniques, live stunts and a variety of other marketing communication channels (Ibid). The fact is that these are also becoming more and more common place and marketing is then getting closer and closer to a point of being used in an acceptable way for the customers, which in turn are becoming much more difficult to target (Adams, 2011; Smilansky, 2009: 8).