How to Write the Best Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

How to Write the Best - Essay Example The structure of an essay depends on what type of essay it is, but most essays follow a general pattern that includes an introduction, two or three main body paragraphs, and then a conclusion to wrap everything up. The outline does not need to be very detailed because it only provides a guide for how the essay will look when finished. Each paragraph in the essay should only have a couple of sentences to explain the key points and supporting evidence if any. Part of the process of forming an outline usually involves some kind of research. There are many sources available for students to find information about their topic. Many students make the fatal mistake of including information from sites such as Wikipedia. The vast majority of lecturers do not approve of the use of such sources because they are not reliable. Any Internet user can change a Wikipedia page, so the information contained on a Wikipedia page may be untrustworthy. The types of sources that should be used in an essay mu st be reliable sources. This means that the information should invariably come from a book, a peer-review journal, or newspaper article. Any source that has been professionally published by an expert in a particular field of study counts as a legitimate source. Â   Â   Â   Â   The next step in producing a high-quality research paper is to write a rough draft. This stage is all about getting down thoughts on paper rather than trying to come up with the perfect essay. If an outline has already been completed, then this stage can be concluded at a faster pace than without one. The introduction of an essay should be designed to introduce the reader to the topic without giving too much key information away. The most common way to do this is through the use of a hook, which is designed to catch the reader’s attention. After the hook, a thesis statement should tell the reader what the student’s view on a particular issue is. This part is extremely important because it will set the tone for the rest of the paper. It will also tell the reader what reasons the student is giving for justifying their position on a topic.

Operations and Logistics Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

Operations and Logistics Management - Essay Example Supply chain gap analysis is explained in the essay to analyse the problems faced by Tesco regarding SCM. The operational issues and the business functions of Tesco are evaluated throughout the essay with regard to supply chain. It has been consequently observed from the essay that the effectiveness of the business largely depends on a strong SCM along with the productive relationship amid the partners. The businesses around the world are inclined towards strengthening their supply chain management (SCM) in order to attain greater competitive traction. Supply chain is the cohesive activity that brings not only the product in the market place but also generates satisfied customers. SCM domain covers a wide range of activities in the functional area. In other words, SCM includes all the activities that are associated from the procurement of the raw materials to the production and transportation of the finished good to the end customer. The business in order to be effective and successful in the marketplace uses the SCM model to eliminate the wastage of time and effort with the aim to deliver he finished goods in timely manner to the end customers. The major assumption behind incorporation of SCM model is based on the belief that the sooner the products reach the customer the sales of the business will increase. The supply chain includes various channels such as the manufacturing, ope rational, transportation, warehousing and then physical distribution of the products. Supply chain is established by the company to create value for the stakeholders by providing required value to customer in the right time at the right place. In this regard, it can be stated that Tesco is effective in the market with wide customer base due to its low price products which has materialised primarily owing to its strong SCM (Beamon, 1998). Tesco Plc is one of the leading global retailers with various retail stores serving millions of

In Search of Your Own Identity Essay Example for Free

In Search of Your Own Identity Essay After various writings by Richard Rodriguez and Octavio Paz, I have come across several realizations. Who am I? Should I be a part of a nation and a â€Å"system† that does not value me, or should I be a part of a nation that does not acknowledge my existence? The United States as a nation does not value me, and Mexico does not even know that I exist. These are difficult matters to discuss. We are all in search of our own identity. However, some of us are placed in a situation that makes it very difficult and confusing to know or understand. I have always asked myself, â€Å"Who am I? † I should put it in more crude words, â€Å"Where do I belong? † After this specific question is asked, I begin to realize that I have problems coming up with a response. My parents were born in Mexico, and thus, they are Mexican. Sometimes I feel I belong here in the United States, but other times I feel more attached to Mexico. I am a Mexican-American. However, I feel that I am denying in some way my heritage and my culture by saying that I am. I am denying my parents. I say that I’m Mexican because in a sense I am. I am also an American. I am a Mexican-American. What do these terms put together imply? They should imply that the person is Mexican and American. The term â€Å"Mexican-American† is the very reason why I find myself confused about who I really am. I need to search for my own identity, which leads me to the purpose of this essay. Rodriguez and Paz have discussed this particular problem of identity. All three have different viewpoints. Some of their ideas are similar but mostly contradictory, especially in the case of Rodriguez and Paz. As I was reading, I was able to relate to what they had to say, and in a much bigger sense, I was able to understand and know who I am. I was able to find my self. According to Paz, self-discovery is most than anything realizing that we are alone. Paz argues that our being or our identity becomes a problem and a question. It becomes a problem because of several reasons. We just don’t simply wake up one day and realize that we don’t know who we are. There are individuals who are placed in difficult situations that allow for these questions to arise. For example, the migration of Mexicans to the United States is a situation that will definitely cause many to question their identity. I agree because if we had not moved to the United States, I would simply consider myself a Mexican without a doubt. Paz strongly argues that different circumstances are likely to produce different reactions. This migration is a circumstance that will bring about confusion among the Mexicans about who they really are. It is ironic how a few miles can bring about such a change in you. Personally, I have experiences such a confusion by simply moving twenty miles North of where I lived. I lived in Reynosa since I was eight. Then, my family and I moved here to McAllen. At the beginning, you don’t feel quite like you fit. It makes it very difficult because it is a completely different world. Even though the majority of the people are of Mexican origin, it still makes it very hard. After the years, I became somewhat used to the life here and began to feel comfortable. However, I also began to question my identity. It is the moment we cross that border that we lose our identity. Paz argues that instead of asking ourselves questions, we should do something about it. We cannot go on contemplating who we are, rather, we should work with our situation and do something. Our questions are only an excuse for not facing reality. I agree with Paz because sometimes, we continue to complain and complain and simply think about our present situation. However, we do nothing to change it. I believe that Mexican-Americans need to stop talking about our injustices and discrimination and do something. However, Paz does mention that Mexicans have an inferiority complex. We begin to doubt our own abilities. This happens because of our culture. We are taught to listen and stay quiet. On the other hand, Anglo-Americans are taught to voice their opinions. There are many differences in both the Anglo-American culture and Mexican culture. These differences are the reason why it is impossible to blend or mix. We are brought into a culture that is the complete opposite of ours. This is the reason why Paz says that our â€Å"Mexicanism† simply floats. It never exists, and it never goes away. One of the ways we react to this situation is by flaunting our differences. Paz talks about pachucos. They are a group of people of Mexican origin that are known for their language, behavior, and clothing. I remember when I went to high school and we had a pep rally, which landed right on September 16, which is Mexico’s independence. A group of friends and I decided to wear red, white, and green to celebrate Mexico’s independence. We were simply proud of being Mexicans and wanted to show our pride. However, there were problems with several of the administrators because it wasn’t just my friends and I doing it, but other people as well. The pep rally was canceled because they felt that our clothing would distract and cause conflict with the other â€Å"American† students in school. As I was reading Paz, he mentioned that Mexicans dress a certain way to stand out. They know they are rejected by the â€Å"American† society. They do this to be different and stand out. The disguise is a protection because it hides and points them out. Somehow, they are doing this to â€Å"belong† in some way. They are able to catch the attention of the Anglo-Americans. I don’t agree with Paz. I believe that sometimes people dress a certain way to show their pride. I do not dress a certain way to be different and so people can notice me. I am proud to be Mexican and want to show it off. When fourth of July comes, I also like to dress in red, white and blue to celebrate America’s independence. Is this possible or am I being a hypocrite? This question leads me to Richard Rodriguez. Richard Rodriguez’ Hunger of memory is an autobiography. I was able to read only part of his book. I found it quite fascinating. Rodriguez goes through many problems of identity. He has mixed feelings about his own self. He mainly talks about affirmative action. What does the term â€Å"minority student† mean? Is it something we want to be classified as? I had an experience in high school in which a student denied a part of himself. His mother is Anglo and his father is Mexican. However, throughout school, when it was time to check on the ethnicity, he would check out Anglo. He did this throughout his years in school, but when it was his senior year something happened. He decided to go talk to his counselor and tell her to change all his paperwork. He no longer wanted to be classified as Anglo, but Hispanic. When I heard this, it was very surprising. I cannot understand how this particular person decided to simply become Hispanic just so he could get the benefits of affirmative action. He was applying to scholarships and various universities, and he knew that if he was classified as a minority student, he would receive better benefits. This is not right. You cannot simply choose to be Hispanic for your convenience. You should not reject a part of yourself simply for your own benefits. Rodriguez faced this dilemma. He knew that he did not want to be labeled a minority student, but if this is what was going to get him in society, then he simply had to accept. Throughout life, Rodriguez wondered about his identity. He was criticized by many because he was a well-known writer who was invited as a guest speaker. He would be around Anglo-Americans, and many criticized him because they felt he had become a part of them. Is this really true? Isn’t your identity how â€Å"you† see yourself? Just because other people see you being around another class or race of people, doesn’t mean that you have become a part of them. You simply know that you are Mexican, American, or Mexican-American, and blending with other cultures doesn’t necessarily mean you lose your true self. Because of affirmative action, Rodriguez was able to be a guest speaker, and a professor at a university. He felt threatened at times because the felt somewhat alienated by the â€Å"other† society. Rodriguez did not have a good relationship with the Chicano students. He felt threatened by them. These students were still attached to their parents’ culture. These students knew how to speak Spanish very well. They were proud of their past. Rodriguez on the other hand, spoke in English. His Spanish was not that well. He did not want to associate himself to a past that meant â€Å"poor†. There was one specific time when Rodriguez’ parents saw a Hispanic student wearing a sarape. They were very surprised. Rodriguez said that these students were foolish to think themselves unchanged by their schooling. I disagree with Rodriguez because I believe that just because you are getting a higher education and have a good job, you forget that you are Hispanic or Mexican-American. Rodriguez simply wanted to justify his own change. He did not want to belong or keep a bond between a past that did not bring fond memories. He was not as disadvantaged as other Hispanics. However, he felt very strongly about not going to Chicano student meetings or social events sponsored by â€Å"La Raza. † I don’t agree with him. After reading this, I realized that he is wrong. I am proud to be Mexican-American. I am proud to carry the term â€Å"Mexican† and â€Å"American. † I am proud of my Mexican culture, customs, and beliefs. I don’t need to change in order to succeed or attain a higher education. Rodriguez suddenly came to this realization. He could not simply cast out his culture and simply erase it. At some point, he had a discussion with his several Hispanic students in which he did not agree with them. Soon, he was known to others as being a â€Å"coconut,† brown on the outside, white on the inside. I have learned many things this semester. I had not really given much thought Mexican-American history. I never realized about the various things that were discussed. It was an eye opener. I was also able to realize of the many problems and injustices that Hispanics face here in the United States. However, just like Paz said, we cannot simply contemplate these issues. We need to do something about them. I am attending college to receive a higher education. I know that education is extremely important. However, I am not losing my identity by coming to college. Getting an education does not necessarily make you a different person. I don’t agree with Rodriguez’s viewpoint. After reading Paz and Rodriguez, I began to see myself in some of what they had to say. I realized that I have gone through a confusion stage. I sometimes don’t know where I belong or who I am. I have come to the conclusion that I am simply American. America is a nation filled with various ethnic groups. Hispanics include people from Mexico, Honduras, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, etc. There are also many Asians. I often ask myself why people from Ireland living here in America aren’t labeled Irish-American. They are simply American. Why then should we be labeled Mexican-American? Cant’ we simply be called American? I have come to the conclusion that I am American. American can mean different things to different people. To me American means being a part of Mexico as well as the United States. I consider myself a lucky person. I am able to be have the best of both worlds: Mexico and the United States. Tomorrow, I will celebrate Mother’s Day here in the United States and Monday it will be 10 de mayo, Dia de las Madres in Mexico. My mom is very lucky. She gets two gifts. I don’t believe that I am being a hypocrite by doing this. These are some of the advantages of being American.

China Social Classes

China Social Classes The social class structure of China has a long history, ranging from the feudal society of imperial times to the industrialising and urbanising society of today. The traditional Chinese social structure was distinct in many ways from the Western societies. Not only has the Peoples Republic by far the largest population ruled by a single government, and has lacked an institutional church or otherwise powerful religious elite, it has also always had a unique and highly developed lineage system operating alongside a centralised bureaucratic political structure. The former disparities have led Whyte et al (1977) to conclude that modern processes of social change would proceed differently from both the West and other developing economies. The main aim of this essay is to describe and account for the changes in Chinas social classes since 1949. It is important, however, to firstly define this term so that a clear distinction of the social groups within the Chinese society can be drawn. It will become apparent, that not only have the changes for the various classes been vast, but also that the Maoist government had been hugely occupied with stratifying their people as a means to abolish the class structure to ultimately reach an egalitarian society. The principal line of reasoning of this paper is that these conflicting events have created the greatest divide amongst Chinese society, i.e. between the rural and the urban population, whose consequences are still omnipresent today more than thirty years after Maos death. â€Å"Class, at its core, is an economic concept; it is the position of individuals in the market that determines their class position. And it is how one is situated in the marketplace that directly affects ones life chances.† (Hurst, 2007) This was theorized by Weber in his three-component theory of stratification which includes wealth, prestige and power on the basis of unequal access to material resources.† (Weber, 1964). One of the most prominent Chinese sociologists and author of Xiangtu Zhonguo, Fei Xiaotong, argues that Chinese society consists of a meticulous ranking of people, who are classified according to distinct categories of social relationships. While western societies are made up of an organisational mode of association (tuantigeju), Chinese society is created by applying logic of chaxugeju, i.e. an egocentric system of social networks linking people together in multiple ways through moral demands on each person in a specific context. As such, Fei argues, China should not be viewed as a class-based but a net-work based system. This notion is a harsh contrast to the Marxist interpretation and to the use of class-analysis that Mao and others applied in an attempt to change Chinese society and to mobilise the peasantry, rather than as a way to understand it. Maos idea was to use Marxism to break through the old relational bonds of society, which he labelled feudalistic, and to create new ca tegories for rebuilding the social order. Much of the difficulties in understanding the Chinese concept of class stems from the tumult within the society it is intended to analyse. As Kraus (1981) notes first revolution, then rapid industrialisation have compressed a broad range of radical social changes within a single generation. And most of all, â€Å"changing Chinese approaches to the class system of the PRC are themselves elements in the social conflict which they prescribe, illuminate and obscure† (ibid). The Party had a great interest in class analysis, which was purely strategic, never academic. Maos 1926 essay â€Å"the Analysis of the Classes in Chinese Society† opens with the question â€Å"Who are our enemies? Who are our friends?† (Selected Works of Mao Tse-Tung, 1967). In order to reach one day the desired egalitarian society that Marx had proposed for the future the party had to specify the social order of the present time and of each individual c itizen. That way, potential support could be identified and mobilised, the enemies isolated and the intermediate classes be persuaded to join sides with the revolutionaries. In an attempt to identify the people who should receive benefits and those who should lose them, the Party applied a complex system of over sixty class designations which ranged from categories that were clearly bad such as capitalists and landlords, through to intermediate designations of petty bourgeoisie and middle peasant, to the workers and poor peasants in whose name the revolution had been made.1 The unfamiliarity of the ordinary people and many cadres with the Marxist notion of class categories led Mao to demand the press to publish the categories in newspapers so that all persons could understand the significance of their new class designations. Since the revolution was based in rural areas, the semi-feudal set of class designations was more elaborate than others. Kraus (1981) suggests that the differen tiation of rural classes was complex both because of the wide-ranging relationships which they encompassed and because of the Partys experience with them. It is for this reason that the designation of strata within classes was particularly rich, including e.g. hired agricultural labourer, poor peasant, middle peasant, rich peasant etc., while the varieties of landlords are even more impressive and contain a certain connotation, such as enlightened landlord, bankrupt, tyrannical, reactionary, hidden or overseas Chinese landlords. Although the Party worked systematically in applying the theories of Karl Marx in designating the different classes, and although Marxs theory of class has been subject to considerable controversy among academics and practicing revolutionaries, it is certain that Marx never understood class to be what twentieth-century western social science calls stratification. Unlike the latter, which is essentially a static concept, class is embedded in history, is dynamic and is centred upon the question of change. Dahrendorf (?) adds that, for Marx â€Å"the theory of class was not a theory of a cross section of society arrested in time but a tool for the explanation of changes in total societies.† Social Change under Mao: During empirical times prestige was generated from education, abstention from manual labour, wealth expended on the arts and education, as well as a large family with many sons and an extensive personal network. In summary, there was no sharp divide between the elite and masses, and social mobility was possible and common. Chinese society since the second decade of the twentieth century, has been the subject of a revolution intended to change it in fundamental ways. As the model shows, Chinese society now has a peasant class, a working class (which includes urban state workers and urban collective workers as well as urban non-state workers and peasant workers), a capitalist class (about 15 million), a cadre class (about 40 million and a quasi-cadre class (about 27 million). According to Li Yi the basic pattern of Chinese society was established by 1960, and all changes since then, including the economic reforms in the 1980s have only been modifications and adjustments to the pattern. Li describes this pattern as â€Å"cellular†, i.e. most people belong to one large, all-embracing unit such as a factory, government office of village. The main transformation of the society was carried out by the party during the 1950s in a series of major campaigns. Society was organised â€Å"vertical†, i.e. each individual and social group was put into a hierarchically organised system as opposed to belonging to social institutions that were organised horizontally by their members. On the macro-level one could find the pervasive system of the cerntralised buraucracy (xitong) which itself was organised according to the ‘branch (tiao) principle. The micro-level was represented by work-units (danwei), state-enterprises and rural collectives, which encompassed each individuals live comprehensively. As White (1993) notes, this â€Å"system of verticality has led to social encapsulation† , which means that individuals and groups were â€Å"encloistered† within their units and separated from other units at the same level. Cadres after 1950s: After 1949, the Communist Party cadres became the new upper class in China, with the revolutionaries ruling the country. Their status allowed them access to materials and options that werent fairly distributed or otherwise reachable. Especially housing, which was in great demand particularly in the larger cities, was easily accessible for cadres who were protected from the intense competition for the scarce living space. Countryside: When the communists came to power in the 1950s, the social hierarchy changed fundametally. The communist party held peasants and those people in esteem who had joined the communist revolution. In an attempt to reduce rural inequalities, resources were confiscated from the wealthy, and since wealth consisted primarily of agricultural land, the landlord families were the target of harsh punishment campaigns. Many of the latter as well as educated elites lost their land and other properties and many were executed in retribution for the exploitation of tenant farmers. From 1951 one, the initial land reform redistributed the confiscated land equally and foremostly to those families who didnt own any for them to farm privately. In 1953, however, a series of reformes were implemented in which the government began taking back this land, designating it as community property. â€Å"Families were required to work larger plots of land collectively, in groups of twenty to forty households† (bookrags.com, 2008) and the harvest was split between the government and the collective. At the same time, local governments took over commerce, shops, markets and other forms of private trade and replaced them by supply and marketing cooperatives and the commercial bureaus of the local governments. Thus, instead of using the farmed produce for themselves and instead of selling of the surplus on local markets, individuals were â€Å"paid† for their efforts in points by the newly established supply cooperatives, which then periodically traded the grain for money. On the whole, the size of the unit was increased and the role of private ownership as well as inherited land was decreased. By the early 1960s, an estimated 90 million family farms had been replaced by about 74,000 communes. Maos overall vision was to capitalise on the sheer number of peasants and effecitvely produce a surplus harvest that would help industralisation. This was known as the Great Leap forward, which is now widely regarded as a failure since it had resulted in the death of more than twenty million peasants. Urban life after 1950: At the same time as the land reforms were implemented in rural areas, large industries and in fact virtually all privately owned business were nationalised in the cities and craft enterprises and guilds were reorganised into large-scale cooperatives which became the branches of the local governments. Just as farmers were put into communes, state workers were placed in large work units called danweis. In an effort to ensure full employment, market competition in these firms was eliminated. People leaving school were assigned jobs bureaucratically, and once matched a job, employees could not quit voluntarily. But they could not be fired either, and thus had a job guaranteed in the same company for life with their children inheriting their position. In fact, there did not exists such a word as ‘unemploment in the Chinese language, according to the idea that there exist no unemployment in socialist countries, only individuals â€Å"waiting for work† (Imamura, 2003). Mobility within the danwei mostly only consisted of gaining administrative promotions. Since most of the alternative routes to social mobility were closed off, formal education continued to be the primary avenue of upward mobility. But since the urban education reform grew at a rate much faster than in rural areas, more and more workers were high school graduates. The slowing of state industries and the increasing number of qualified middle class candidates contributed to the fact that it became increasingly difficult to obtain a position as a state worker. Hence, urban youths not selected for further eduaction and those looking for work were often sent to rural areas to work in agriculture. This flow has been increased by more intensive mobilisation and a new law was passed that demanded secondary school graduates to work in agriculture for at least to years before becoming eligible for further schooling. In this mode, a total of 12 million urban youths were moved to the countryside betwee n 1968 and 1975 (Whyte et al, 1977). These large transfers of urban people to rural areas were made possible by the state monopoly over employment and urban housing, by the hukou registration and rationing, and by the impressive political network that had alrady been established in all neighbourhoods. On the whole, one can say that this rural settlement has been accomplished by social pressure rather than by incentives to move. It is debatable whether this massive programm of population transfers was intended primarily to â€Å"avoid having large numbers of ‘unemployed people living in cities parasitically† (Bernstein, 1977), or whether this was meant to be part of a more positive effort to close the rural-urban gap by supplying villages with well-educated and more scientifically sophisticated personnel. Urban inequalities were further reduced through salary compression in firms. Differences in the salary paid for high-skill, high-prestige occupations such as doctors and other professionals, and blue-collar work such as unskilled factory employees was decreased dramatically. Efforts were also maid to downplay the social importance of the former and to increase the prestige of the latter. Ever concerned about economic inequalities, the government also appropriated wealth and abolished labout markets in urban areas. Privately owned housing was seized and subdivided into much smaller living spaces. Effectively, families could rent apartments but never purchase them, which abolished a key element in wealth inequalities because properties could not be perpetuated from generation to generation any longer. Communist overall: position? It is readily distinguishable that communism has brought about far-reaching changes in China with the rural population having to adjust to the shifting ideological currents. Traditionally, the average citizen, and especially the more than eighty percent rural population, had little or nothing to do with the central of local government. Most peasants lives were centred on their home village or township, while the family was the main unit of economic production and social activity. The Maoist revolution, however, injected the Communist party into every sphere of rural and urban life and every institution of society. Thus, for the average Chinese citizen, whether rural or urban, Communism has brought about an almost intrusive role of governmental element into the daily life and embedded itself in the operations of all significant facets of the economy and society. The formerly local, small-scale and fragmented power structure was replaced by a national and well-integrated bureaucratic s ystem. The unpredictable consequences of market forces were replaced by administrative allocation and changing economic polices enforced by the government. Rural-Urban-Divide Marx did, moreover, make out the elimination of the distinction between city and countryside as one of the major goals of the future Communist society. In the 1950s, however, and ironically enough in light of Marxist pretensions the Party drove a wedge between rural and urban areas that was novel in Chinese history. Solinger (1999) explains that its chief purpose was to lock onto the land a potential underclass, ready to be exploited to fulfill the new states cherished project of industrialisation. The party used administrative orders and resource controls to isolate the urban population, not just geographically but socially as well. Although Marx had predicted that only capitalist states would do so, the party hoped to be to be able to draw upon the peasantry as an industrial reserve army. The Hukou-System By the 1960s the Chinese government had implemented their policy of household registration which was different from anything that had previously existed both in China and in the rest of the socialist world. The aim of the hukou system was to avoid over-urbanisation, to make distribution of state services through the work units and communes easter and to better prepare the population for a possible invastion by the Sovjet Union. It eliminated geographical mobility entirely since it â€Å"fixed people permanently on the basis of their birth place or their husbands residence† (Cheng and Selden, the City) and thus made it illegal to migrate from the countryside into cities.Accordingly, all persons were required to register their place of residence officially, with records maintained by the public security office of the higher agricultural cooperative in the countryside and in the neighborhood in cities. From then on, residence status became an ascribed, inherited one, which determ ined an individuals entire livelihood and welfare based on the location of the registration. Since rations of grain, cloth and other needed articles were tied to ones hukou, individuals living in urban areas without permission had to live off friends, relatives or the black market. Although a class system in the usual sense was abolished, a new set of categories, if not precisely a new class system supplanted the dismantled class hierarchy of the past. There were 6 different levels of ranks, in descending order: peasants, non-peasants, city and town residents, urbanities, those in large cities, and those in cities directly administered by the central government. â€Å"Just after liberation, peasant households did not fell lower rank (diren yideng) and urban ones did not feel higher Later, a great difference in interest came from the differences in where one lived†¦ A ranking structure was gradually established with the peasant household at the lowest level.† (Ging, Zhongguo xianxing). Therefore, one can conclude that the hukou system did actually set up a new class distinctions between the rural and urban populace. This understanding of class draws upon Honigs work on the ethnicity of native place in China, in which she offers the rich insight that native-place identity, and thus the urban-versus-rural-identity can well serve as â€Å"a metaphor for class† (Honig, Creating Chinese Ethnicity). The boundaries placed around the rural population as a whole rendered the peasantry as a separate, inferior class or status group in comparison to urban residents. Because the generic peasant was not legally prohibited from migrating, when the Hukou was destroyed in (?), migration took on a totally state-determined and ‘class-based dimension. As Kraus rightly states, â€Å"the CCP first set boundaries around peasants, marking them off as a separate, ascribed status group almost a pariah class and then barring them from entering urban areas.† Or if they did enter, it was never as citizens, but as subjects, who were not supported with the rationed food or access to welfare services. When peasants and semi-peasants entered the city, the often felt comparatively deprived by the tightly locked city walls. Whereas everyone was poor in the country side, differences in wealth were readily obvious after entering the city. Impact of Economic Reform on Chinese Society On the eve of reform, the structure of Chinese civil society was similar to a typical less-developed country of the third world, despite Maos efforts to make certain industrial and technological advancements, which were most notable in the nuclear armaments sector. As Chinese social statistical data (Zhongguo shehui tongji ziliao) states, in 1978 eightytwo percent of the population were rural, 71% of the countrys labour force worked in agriculture or related activites, 93.3% worked in manual labour as opposed to mental ones and the private sector was negligible so that the main destinction was between state and collective sectors. The vast majority of the people, i.e. 76% worked in rural collectives, and only 5.1% in urban collectives. 18.6 % of the people worked for state enterprises. White (1993) concludes, that this institutional devide reinforced the rural-urban distintion because levels of income and conditions of work were generally superior in state firms. Since the rise of ot her classes such as self-employed or private entrepreneurs was prohibited, Chinas social structure on the eve of reform was relatively homogenous. According to White, the ‘official structure only contained two classes (workers and peasants) and one stratum (intelligentsia). In an attempt to further homogenise the members of each social group, uniform conditions of work were imposed upon them and the emergence of internal differences limited. The economic reforms, on the whole, have affected the specific social classes in different ways and have led to changes in the existing groups and have even led to the rise of new ones. This has created a new political environment which may affect the fundamental credibility of the communist regime and may influence the policy process in the future. The main impact of the reforms on society can be described as its shift â€Å"away from the state and its ancillary agencies† (ibid) towards individuals, households, firms and groups. The change in the relationship between the state and society has brought about an uneven redistribution of economic power for the latter and this dispersion of greater social power has opened up the potential for a new social sphrere with greater social autonomy from the state. One can possible observe the shoots of an incipient civil society which also brings about crucial implications for Chinas long-term political future. These shifts were part of a broader process of rapid social differentiation. Chinese social structure has become more complex both in terms of structure and attitudes because the existing classes have itself become more internally complex due to diversification in the different economic sectors, in the forms of ownership and the levels of income. Some of the new classes and strata that have emerged are: The nuveau-riche peasant, who have made money quickly in recent years through specialised agricultural production or diversification into the local industries, trade and services. (see Song article); Private entrepreneurs in the cities, who have accumulated small fortunes through personal initiatives, specialised skills or good guanxi-networks; A growing number of entrepreneurial managers in state-owned enterprises who are well attuned to the spreading logic of market competition. Moreover, Chinese society has become more fluid and dynamic again and there has been a rapid increase in horizontal mobility within the countryside, between urban and rural areas and between regions. Conclusion: The political apparatus used to destroy the old inequalities has itself given rise to a new set of social distinctions. Political power has been employed to transform Chinese society but it seems that the Party changed society faster than it has been able to modify its comprehension of a dynamic social structure. As Wallerstein concludes, â€Å"classes do not have some permanent reality. Rather, they are formed, they consolidate themselves, they disintegrate or disaggregate, and are reformed. It is a process of constant movement, and the greatest barrier to understanding their action is reification.† In the capitalist society movement between classes is a possibility. Hence the use of the term â€Å"The American Dream† to show the ability of people to ascend to a higher class through hard work and ingenuity. â€Å"Class composition is forever changing, to the point where there may be a completely new set of families.† (Schumpeter, 165) Furthermore, Chinas leaders wanted to change some aspects that were found in the traditional society such as the content of education and rural tenure, but they left other aspects, e.g. the family structure, largely untouched. In the villages the army offered the only reasonable alternative to a lifetime spent in the fields, and in fact, demobilised soldiers staffed much of the local administrative structure in rural areas. Systematic attempt by the regime to contain society within a limited number of categories. 1 see handout about social classes References: Hurst, Charles E. (2007). Social Inequality Forms, Causes, and Consequences Sixth Edition. Allyn and Bacon Boston, MA. Weber, Max. (1964). The Theory of Social and Economic Organization. edited by Talcott Parsons. New York, NY: The Free Press Selected Works of Mao Tse-tung, Beijing: Foreign Language Press, 1967, 1:13 (Wallerstein, I. (1975) ‘Class-Formation in the Capitalist World-Economy, Politics and Society, Volume 5(3) p. 369) White, G. (1993), Riding the Tiger The Politics of Economic Reform in Post-Mao China. London: Macmillan. http://www.bookrags.com/research/social-stratificationchina-ema-05/ as at 3rd. April 2008. Imamura, H. (2003) ‘Unemployment Problems and Unemployment Insurance in China Far Eastern Studies Vol.2 (March), pp.45-67. Whyte, M.K., Vogel, E.F., and Parish, W.L. (1977) ‘Social Structure of World Regions: Mainland China Annual Review of Sociology, Vol. 3, pp. 179-207. Bernstein, T. (1977) The Transfer of Urban Youth to the Countryside: Revolutionary Change in China. New Haven, Conn: Yale University Press. Zhongguo shehui tongji ziliao (ZGSHTJZL; China Social Statistical Data

Commercial Identity :: Essays Papers

Commercial Identity This is one of the best essays I ever wrote. It was also the easiest and quickest to write because I had fun doing it. It was amazing how much my writing improved when I decided to have fun with it. "Forced" writing never turns out well no matter how skilled the writer is. Although girls may tell you they don't judge a guy based on the brand of beer he drinks, they are lying! Bud Light's new spot shows two guys fail miserably when they offer two good looking (surprise, surprise) ladies the wrong beer. The music stops, the pool ball that was about to fall in the corner pocket comes to rest on the edge. "On second thought, how about a Bud Light," says the more studly one. The music is rockin' again. The eight ball catches a drift and falls into the pocket, and those lucky ladies have found some happenin' guys who drink the coolest beer. The moral of the story is "buy a Bud and be a stud." However, that is not the only message in this commercial. The mere fact that commercials like this are successful indicates that they influence people's identity in society. That is a pretty deep and somewhat abstract statement to make about a commercial with a one sentence plot: "Guy gets girl because guy drinks a really cool beer." However, the statement is true and can easily be supported. Advertising today plays an unusual role in society in that it both reflects and effects our identities. That 30 second spot told me that I want to be just like those cooler-than-cool-Bud-Light-drinkin' guys. What did they look like? How did they dress? Those 30 seconds leave the viewer a mental picture of what cool is and what they want to be like. Just turn the T.V. on to Sunday afternoon football and you will see a dozen other commercials that support this definition of cool. Cool is being handsome. Cool is having a chick at your side and, most importantly, a beer in hand. (Bud Light, Coors, Miller--It doesn't matter, they all get the ladies.) Advertisers have certain expectations about their target audience. That is, they assume they know exactly who they are and who they want to be. Commercials try to reflect this on television to greater appeal to a their target audience. For example, football fans like beer, women, and tough cars (not necessarily in that order). Commercial Identity :: Essays Papers Commercial Identity This is one of the best essays I ever wrote. It was also the easiest and quickest to write because I had fun doing it. It was amazing how much my writing improved when I decided to have fun with it. "Forced" writing never turns out well no matter how skilled the writer is. Although girls may tell you they don't judge a guy based on the brand of beer he drinks, they are lying! Bud Light's new spot shows two guys fail miserably when they offer two good looking (surprise, surprise) ladies the wrong beer. The music stops, the pool ball that was about to fall in the corner pocket comes to rest on the edge. "On second thought, how about a Bud Light," says the more studly one. The music is rockin' again. The eight ball catches a drift and falls into the pocket, and those lucky ladies have found some happenin' guys who drink the coolest beer. The moral of the story is "buy a Bud and be a stud." However, that is not the only message in this commercial. The mere fact that commercials like this are successful indicates that they influence people's identity in society. That is a pretty deep and somewhat abstract statement to make about a commercial with a one sentence plot: "Guy gets girl because guy drinks a really cool beer." However, the statement is true and can easily be supported. Advertising today plays an unusual role in society in that it both reflects and effects our identities. That 30 second spot told me that I want to be just like those cooler-than-cool-Bud-Light-drinkin' guys. What did they look like? How did they dress? Those 30 seconds leave the viewer a mental picture of what cool is and what they want to be like. Just turn the T.V. on to Sunday afternoon football and you will see a dozen other commercials that support this definition of cool. Cool is being handsome. Cool is having a chick at your side and, most importantly, a beer in hand. (Bud Light, Coors, Miller--It doesn't matter, they all get the ladies.) Advertisers have certain expectations about their target audience. That is, they assume they know exactly who they are and who they want to be. Commercials try to reflect this on television to greater appeal to a their target audience. For example, football fans like beer, women, and tough cars (not necessarily in that order).

American Imperialism Essay -- US Imperialism Power Expansion

Imperialism, defined by Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, is "the policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion of a nation especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining indirect control over the political or economic life of other areas"(Merriam-Webster). During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the United States pursued an aggressive policy of expansionism, extending its political and economic influence around the globe. The United States has become an empire. Although the United States has less power – in the sense of control over other countries’ internal behavior – than Britain did when it ruled a quarter of the globe, the United States now has more power resources relative to other countries than Britain had at its imperialistic peak. American Imperialism was driven by a need for markets and raw materials, as well as the desire for power and success. The United States increasingly appears to be an im perial power. Manifest Destiny was the driving force responsible for changing the face of American history. Manifest Destiny, described by Dictionary.com, is a policy of imperialistic expansion defended as necessary or benevolent. It is the 19th century doctrine that gave the right to the United States to expand through North America. In 1845, a democratic leader and influential editor by the name of John L. O'Sullivan gave the movement its name. In an attempt to explain America's â€Å"thirst† for expansion, and to present a defense for America's claim to new territories he wrote: ".... the right of our manifest destiny to over spread and to possess the whole of the continent which Providence has given us for the development of the great experiment of liberty and federaltive de... ...ong the Kuwait-Saudi Arabian border (www.deoxy.org). It is only logical, due to the previous history of the United States, that one can only conclude that our invasion of Iraq is only to pursue imperialistic ambitions. Throughout the United States history, imperialism has been prevalent. Even with its mother country Britain, when Britain had controlled a quarter of the Earth. The imperialistic ambitions primarily started with our Manifest Destiny philosophy. In many of today’s magazines, newspapers, and articles, they theorize, question, and argue about the question: Is the United States an empire? The answer to that question is: Yes, America is an Empire. A lot of Americans are calling this the Age of American Imperialism. In conclusion, America is an imperial power. Works Cited http://www.merriam-webster.com/ http://www.fff.org http://www.deoxy.org

Relevancy of Institutional Theory for Managers Essay

Institutional theory is one the most renowned theoretical approaches to internationalization process of firms. From the 70s, there have been publications supporting and developing this theory by researchers such as Di Maggio, Powell, Scott, Meyer or Rowan. Nonetheless, some other alternative theories, such as OLI paradigm or TCE model, have also proven themselves quite significant. Shortell and Kalunzy (2000, p. 4) state that organizations must face certain external factors such â€Å"external or societal norms, rules, and requirements that an organization must conform to, in order to receive legitimacy and support†; which are two basic factors for a successful internationalization process. Nowadays, it is essential to determine the accuracy of internationalization theories because corporations need to respond to the challenges of a globalized world. This essay aims to examine the applicability of the main assumptions of this theory in order to explain the internationalization decisions made by firms? anagers. For that purpose, key aspects such as its scope, current importance or empirical support will be evaluated. Meyer and Rowan (1977), Di Maggio and Powell (1983), and Scott (1987) state that, in order to obtain legitimacy, firms must face â€Å"isomorphic pressures† from the external context. Di Maggio and Powell (1983) define isomorphism as â€Å"constraining process that forces one unit in a population to resemble other units that face the same set of environmental conditions† and they remark that firms are forced to compete for legitimacy and political influence apart from customers and resources. Scott (1995) specified that there are three types of isomorphic pressures: regulatory, cognitive and normative. Regulatory pressures can be defined as the rules, legislation and sanctions established by government that companies must follow. Cognitive pressures refer to the shared vision of how the world works by the members of an institution or societal entity able to affect a corporation. Normative pressures can be described as the values, norms or other cultural aspects within a country that can influence a firm. In other words, for this theory, any internationalization or foreign direct investment (FDI) operation respond to a legitimacy seeking procedure in order to have access to key resources such as public funding or customer support. Nevertheless, this theory does not cover all the possible dimensions of an internalization process. Dunning (1993) states that there are 4 main motivations for an internationalization process: market seeking, resource seeking, efficiency seeking and strategic asset seeking. Market seeking can be explained as penetrate into other market and avoid dangerous factors such as tariffs or exchange rate risk. Resource seeking refers to many factors such as location in a cluster, information, or less costly or more efficient resources. Efficiency seeking can be defined as cost reduction (transport and transactions) and the economies of scope and scale that can be reached in a internationalisation process. Strategic asset seeking is all the rest of different motivations such as imitating competitors, prevent competition or follow consumers. Therefore, Institutional Theory does not seem to cover fully those aspects because no economic considerations are made under this theory. On the other hand, there are theories that cover more accurately economic considerations in internationalisation issues. Buckley and Casson (1976), and Rugman (1981); under Internalisation Theory, state that existing markets may not offer the most efficient conditions to companies and making those markets â€Å"internal† will reduce the transaction costs of operating with those markets. Dunning (1980) argues, in this OLI paradigm, that firms operate in international market in order to seek for different kind of advantages: Ownership advantages (i. e. rademark or know-how), Locating advantages (i. e. low salaries or taxation) and Internalisation advantages (same advantages mentioned in Internalisation Theory). Hence, it is obvious that Institutional theory has a limited scope as long as it covers political and social aspects of internationalisation, but it does not give any hint about economic concerns. Since the year 2000, according to a report written by the United Nations (2 013), FDI going to BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) has tripled reaching an amount of $263 billions in 2012. This amount represents 20% of FDI in the world. Moreover, Hall (1976) states that there are certain countries that can be described as High-context cultures that are based in interpersonal relationships. Those are countries where factors like trust or legitimacy are crucial for business and BRICS are considered as high-context countries. Therefore, firms need to gain legitimacy in order to operate in those markets and Institutional provides an excellent theoretical framework for defining success in those markets. Nonetheless, it cannot be assumed that firms just comply with external pressures in order to gain legitimacy. Di Maggio (1988) argues that agents and organizations have their own interests and have the ability to implement strategic actions in order to fulfil their ambitions. Scott (1995) also states that companies and organisations do not react in a passive way to institutional environment and they behave actively. Araujo (2000) determines that, although organisations are under external pressures, companies will decide their own response to the environment. Hence, companies are influenced by external factors, but they can decide what to do regarding those factors. On the other hand, there is some evidence that companies tend to mimic their strategic moves. Leroux, Pupion and Sahut (2011) state that companies are influenced by the choices made by the leaders of their sectors. Lieberman and Asaba (2006) argue that firms tend to imitate each other in order to deal with the uncertainty of the environment and reduce risks. For those authors, there two explanations for business imitation: information-based explanation and rivalry-based explanation. Information-based ones assume that companies imitate the ones who seem to have †superior† information. Rivalry-based ones that companies copy their strategic moves in order to limit rivalry or keep stable competitive parity. There are some researchers who have tried to deduct whether Institutional theory is reliable or not for explaining an internationalization process. Bianchi and Arnold (2004) state that Institutional theory is the best theoretical framework in order to explain the failure of the Internationalization process of the American retail company Hot Depot into the Chilean market in 1998. Their research determined that the main cause of the failure of this process was the scarcity of legitimacy of Hot Depot in Chile because they were not able to offer a confortable shop atmosphere for their customers and the range of products was not satisfactory for Chilean clients. Also, Hot Depot failed because its competitors were capable of anticipating and responding to its competitive advantage. Moreover, Cao and Perderzoli (2012) determine that institutional environment is very significant in the decision making process of retailing companies while operating in an emerging economy. They also state that the creation of shared added value in those economies and the engagement between the company and the host market will increase the adaptability of those companies to institutional environment in emerging economies. Nonetheless, there are some other papers that determine that the effect of external environment in a company depends of its profile. Walsh and Yu (2010) state that institutional factors do not have relevance in primary sector companies while they are relevant in manufacturing and services corporations as it is shown in their research using econometric methods. Additionally; Wrightley, Coe and Currah (2005) and, Bianchi and Ostele (2006) determine that retail companies are more vulnerable to institutional issues than other kinds of companies. Therefore, there is empirical evidence that shows the relevancy of this theory for corporate internationalization operations during the last 20 years. Otherwise, this relevance depends of the sector of the company and it seems to be a relation between the level of impact of institutional factors and their level of interaction with final customers. Furthermore, it is important to discuss whether Institutional Theory is relevant or not for managers. Porter (1990) and Welford (1995) affirm that the external environment makes a strong influence on corporate strategy. Aguilar (1967) states that the environment is crucial in corporate strategy and he created the ETPS (Economic, Technical, Political and Social) model, which would become PEST model in the future, in order to analyse the external environment. Learned, Christiansen, Andrews and Guth (1969) determine that external environment is crucial for business strategy as long as it is a key element of their SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) model, where Opportunities and Threats are external elements. Thus, it cannot be denied that Institutional Theory is relevant for managers because environment is crucial for any strategic planning and if managers ignore those factors, they will be destined to fail in internationalisation process. Furthermore, external pressures have relevance in other essential aspects of corporate management. Zaheer (1995) states that companies operating abroad may suffer â€Å"liability of foreignness† which are economic and social problems that can affect their performance, so they would tend to modify their organizational structure in order to make it similar to local firms? tructure. Also, Barkemeyer (2007) state that institutional pressures encourage companies to develop CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) programmes in order to gain legitimacy in the host country. Therefore, external environment can exert a strong influence in all sorts of aspects of corporate management such as Organisation or CSR in order to be legitimate to operate in a forei gn market and managers be aware of this situation. As a conclusion, it can be said that environmental pressures are a crucial element for business performance in international markets. During the last decade, legitimacy has proven itself as a key resource in FDI processes as long as emerging economies are becoming one of the main receptors of foreign investment and, for those countries, it is necessary â€Å"being legitimate† in order to be supported by customers, local authorities and other social actors. As a contrast, this theory has some drawbacks as long as it assumes, in its early version, which companies just comply with external pressures and it does not consider in depth economic aspects. Nevertheless, in spite of those weaknesses, Institutional Theory provide an excellent theoretical framework to managers that encourage them to be sensitive to the cultural elements (aesthetics, beliefs, norms or attitudes) and macro environment of their host markets, so they can improve their performance. Therefore, being able to provide such an important capacity to international managers is the best strength of this theory and it is what makes it relevant today.