What Are The Types Of Marketing Or Business Research...

The two main types of marketing or business research are qualitative and quantitative research, these research methods vary based on the information gathered and how it ends up being gathered by researchers. Qualitative research is gathered using focus groups, in-depth interviews, as well as reviews of documents searching for themes and commonalities. The method for developing theory and hypothesis is based on inductive reasoning or logic after analyzing the information collected. The problems described are done from a subjective standpoint which is talking about problems from a point of view from a specific aspect of the company, narrowed down to a problem from one department to another’s concerns. The information gathered is on less of an amount of situations but the data collected is much more in depth. Quantitative research utilized the likes of surveys, structured interviews and observations, reviews of records and documents for measurement analysis of the subject matter. Testing is done in controlled situations for previously deciphered concepts and hypotheses that help to build a specific theory. The research conducted for quantitative methods is much more objective, it’s a larger opinion and the information is concentrated on much more broad terms and information to let the reader form their own opinions based on facts presented. Qualitative research can have a better effect on helping managers or organizations make a decision about a problem if the focus of theShow MoreRelated Marketing Research Tools Essay example1410 Words   |  6 PagesMarketing Research Tools Before launching or expanding a business venture, there needs to be an understanding of the industry, its competitors, and its customers. Market research is vital in assisting companies in the decision-making process and their marketing direction. Data from marketing research is important because it provides companies with ways to identify opportunities, identify market potential, minimize chances of loss, devise effective marketing strategies, gauge customer satisfactionRead MoreQualitative and Quantitative Approaches1126 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿ Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches RES/351 June 17, 2014 University of Phoenix Professor Pamela Campbell Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches Business researchers utilize various forms of approaches to analyze and obtain information and data, and two of the most popular approaches used are the qualitative research approach and quantitative research approach. Each approach can be beneficial or in some cases may cause inconclusiveRead MoreEssay on Marketing Research: Primary vs. Secondary Research1195 Words   |  5 PagesMarketing Research: Primary vs. Secondary Research â€Å"Primary data are gathered specifically for the research project at hand. Secondary data is data that have been previously gathered for some other purpose.† (Burns Bush, 2006). This paper will explore the differences in primary and secondary research when using qualitative and quantitative approaches. The paper will further discuss the tools that are used for each approach. Quantitative Qualitative Approaches â€Å"Quantitative research is definedRead MoreMarketing Research Tools Essay1277 Words   |  6 PagesMarketing Research Tools Strategic and tactical decisions need to be made when an organization needs to achieve the objectives of the research. Market research is a strategic step in determining the best solution for discovering opportunities and acquiring clients. This is the first critical step in the marketing department that creates a foundation for what a company needs to research to identify what opportunities are given and what steps need to be taken to achieve the goals. The process providesRead MoreIdentify and Evaluate Marketing Opportunities1314 Words   |  6 Pages| Identify And Evaluate Marketing Opportunities | Task 2 – Individual Case Study Assignment | | 1 List ways that Dell conducts research on its customers to continually improve products and services. What are the features of Dell’s research? Dell uses two ways to conduct research. Customer Advisory Panel (CAP) and Day Customer Spotlights on Dell.com, it offers customers with wanted informal and formal information. The company wants to create customer answers to explicit thoughtsRead MoreHow Organizations Use Marketing Research to Contribute to the Development of Their Marketing Plans883 Words   |  4 PagesDescribe how a selected organization uses marketing research to contribute to the development of its marketing plans Primary and secondary research Marketing research informs businesses, helps them make decisions and understand the changing dynamics of its market. To know all of this you need to research your customers, competitors and the overall marketing environment. With that information you can analyze the data and make conclusions to improve the marketing of your products of services. The assignmentRead MoreUnit Three - Marketing P31133 Words   |  5 PagesMarketing Research Market research indicates decisions made by a business, in this case Tesco, by helping the decision makers understand undercurrents of its market. This process involves research done on customers, competitors and the overall marketing environment. For example, when Tesco is promoting a product, they need to know the likes and dislikes of their targeted consumers in order to target the correct market successfully. They would also be required to research about their competitorsRead MoreMarketing Research Literature Review1259 Words   |  6 PagesMarketing research I have chosen the market research because it is the very first step of most economical process. Philip Kotler (1994) define the marketing research as â€Å"function that links the consumer, customer, and public to the marketer through information-information used to identify and define marketing opportunities and problems; to generate, refine, and evaluate marketing actions; to monitor marketing performance; and to improve understanding of the marketing process. Marketing researchRead MoreThe Importance Of The Researching Process And The Marketing Plan Essay866 Words   |  4 Pagesgood business by researching anything related to the marketing plan such as; purchasing habits, choosing suitable slogans, advertising recall, and product packaging designs, which are the most important attractive factor for the consumers. But researching everything, particularly with a small business budget is too hard in achieving goals, so what is known as a research brief don’t satisfy all researcher approximate needs. This helps researchers focus their attention on a specific research purpose

Justice Explored in Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter

Justice Explored in The Scarlet Letter nbsp; Nathaniel Hawthorne created themes in The Scarlet Letter just as significant as the obvious ideas pertaining to sin and Puritan society. Roger Chillingworth is a character through which one of these themes resonates, and a character that is often underplayed in analysis. His weakness and path of destruction of himself and others are summed up in one of Chillingworths last sentences in the novel, to Arthur Dimmesdale: Hadst thou sought the whole earth over... there were no place so secret, no high place nor lowly place, where thou couldst have escaped me, save on this very scaffold! (171). nbsp; This powerful line from Chillingworth holds three meanings. First, Dimmesdale can save†¦show more content†¦A writhing horror twisted itself across his features, like a snake gliding swiftly over them, and making one little pause, with all its wreathed intervolutions in open sight. His face darkened with some powerful emotion... (44) nbsp; Soon after, Chillingworth makes it evident in his conversation with Hester that he is not after her, but simply wants to seek revenge on the man she slept with. At the end of their conversation, Hester sees an even darker side of Roger after her pact to keep his identity a secret. She says, Art thou like the Black Man that haunts the forest round about us? Hast thou enticed me into a bond that will prove the ruin of my soul? Hesters comparing Roger to the Black Man, a devil figure, foreshadows Rogers power not only over Dimmesdale, but also Hester herself. nbsp; Chillingworth taking on Dimmesdale as his patient for the next seven years is a parallel to the method of punishment the Puritans used at the time, namely with the scarlet letter. Both use a slow, indirect punishment to make the guilty punish themselves. As Chillingworth aids Dimmesdale with medicines, he also prods Dimmesdale to remind him of his crime. By dragging this process along, Chillingworth becomes a scarlet letter to Dimmesdale much in the way Pearl was to Hester. nbsp; When Hester meets with Roger again much later, he admits to hisShow MoreRelatedSpring Awakenings : Hester Prynne And Pearl, The Apprehensive Feminists Essay2317 Words   |  10 PagesSpring Awakenings: Hester Prynne and Pearl, The Apprehensive Feminists The Scarlet Letter, published in 1850, is one of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s most renowned novels. The matter of subject in the novel is revered almost 170 years after publication. Hawthorne walks his readers through the fate of Hester Prynne. He exhibits a woman who has been condemned by Puritan law to wear a scarlet A on her breast as a reflection of her punishment for adultery. Not only is Hester the protagonist of the novel, butRead MoreANALIZ TEXT INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS28843 Words   |  116 Pagesto provide essential clues that aid in characterization. Some characters are given names that suggest their dominant or controlling traits, as, for example, Edward Murdstone (in Dickens’ David Copperfield) and Roger Chillingsworth (in Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter). Both men are cold-hearted villains their names suggest. Other characters are given names that reinforce (or sometimes are in contrast to) their physical appearance, much in the way that Ichabod Crane, the gangling schoolmaster in Irving’s

Muar 211 Study Guide Free Essays

string(21) " a series of chords\." MUMedieval Period * Hildegard von Bingen: Columba aspexit * Genre = plainchant * Text = sacred, Latin * Texture: monophonic throughout * Performance practice: responsorially, that is, the performance alternates between a single singer (soloist) and the larger choir, which â€Å"responds† * The piece becomes more melismatic as it continues. * Ensemble: female vocal soloist, female vocal choir, droning instrument that plays out one note (the final) * Guillaume da Machaut: Dame, de qui toute ma joie vient * Genre = chanson (general term for French secular song) * Text = vernacular (language French), secular Texture = non-imitative polyphony (four voices with four independent melodies that never repeat the music of another voice part) Ensemble: a cappella Renaissance Period * Guillaume Dufay: Ave maris stella * Fauxbordon style: a form of harmonization in three parts in which the second line follows the top line a perfect fourth below. The voices are often â€Å"moving in parallel thirds,† a relatively new sound and texture at the time. We will write a custom essay sample on Muar 211 Study Guide or any similar topic only for you Order Now * Based in the Dorian mode Homophonic/homophonic texture (multiple parts that move mostly in homorhytm, therefore creating a succession of chords) * The top line is an elaborated form of a Gregorian chant melody ie the top line is a cantus firmus. Latin * Genre: Hymn (harmonized hymn) b/c it is sacred and the same music is repeated over and over for changing verses of that sacred text * Josquin Desprez: Kyrie from Pange lingua Mass * Genre: Kyrie from a late Renaissance Mass * Texture: 4 part polyphony; imitative polyphony * Ensemble: a cappella; 4 part choir; SATB Text: Ancient, sacred Greek prayer (only part of Mass in Greek); First part of Mass Ordinary Baroque Period * Henry Purcell: â€Å"Thy hand Belinda† from Dido and Aeneas, Act III final scene. * Libretto is an abbreviated English-language adaptation (by librettist Nahum Tate) of an episode from the Aeneid, the Latin epic written by Virgil in the 1st century BC (between 29 and 19 BC) that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who traveled to Italy, where he became the mythical ancestor of the Romans. Aeneas and his men are shipwrecked at Carthage on the northern shore of Africa. Dido, the Queen of Carthage, and Aeneas fall in love, but Aeneas cannot forget that the gods have commanded him to continue his journey until he reaches Italy (where it has been foretold that he will found a great empire, Rome). A much as he hates to hurt his love, the Queen Dido, he knows that he must leave and continue his quest. He leaves, as heroes must. * In her grief, Dido decides she cannot live with her grief and slashes her wrists. She then sings the moving recitative â€Å"Thy hand, Belinda,† and the aria that follows (a Lament aria), which is the culminating point in the opera, followed by a final chorus * Homophonic Antonio Vivaldi: Violin Concerto in G, La stravanganza, op. 4 no. 2, first and second movements http://youtu. be/WftbiFpZszU * First movement: Spirito e non presto (spirited but not presto) The first movement of this work is a RITORNELLO FORM: the music played by the orchestra appears both at the beginning, end, and several times during the movement. Th is ritornello is alternated with the SOLOS, played by the featured violin soloist. * Second movement: Largo (slowly) This movement is a THEME VARIATIONS FORM, which means that the melody (theme) heard at the beginning is followed by alternative versions of that same melody. Johann Sebastian Bach * Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, first movement http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=49IOKnhX0Skfeature=youtu. be * Genre =concerto grosso, since the work requires three soloists – the flute, violin harpsichord – plus the orchestral accompaniment * First movement: Allegro. Form of 1st movement = ritornello form (the music played by the orchestra appears both at the beginning, end, and several times during the movement) * Polyphony and homophony at the same time * Imitation in the soloists Fugue 1 in C Major from The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1 http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=RLZd_36puXAFugue begins at 2:09 * Is a collection of solo keyboard music. He first gave the title to a book of preludes and fugues in all 24 major and minor keys * Fugue (second half) of this work is part of the required l istening for Exam #1. A fugue needs to be able to play more than one note at a time * Imitative polyphony (also called imitative counterpoint) in the work. There is no accompaniment Cantata No. 4, Christ lag in Todesbanden, nos. 4, 5 8 http://youtu. be/aVaV0spMDVg * Bach based this cantata on the words and music of a chorale composed by Martin Luther in 1524. Luther’s chorale melody was based on an Easter hymn from the 12th century. Bach used the melody of Luther’s chorale in every movement of his cantata as a cantus firmus. Text is proper, for certain times of the year * Sacred Cantata * 0:00-1:55 4th movement: tenor aria, â€Å"Jesus Christus, Gottes Sohn . . . Note the texture of this movement: the tenor voice and the busy ‘obbligato’ violin part both move rather independently over the accompaniment provided by the basso continuo. Therefore, the movement is basically homophonic, because it has an accompaniment, despite the fact that there are multiple ‘upper parts’ (the tenor voice and violin). The texture of High Baroque music (1700-1750) can often be complicated in this manner—a comb ination of both polyphony (in the upper parts) and homophony (because of the accompaniment). * 1:59-4:24 5th movement: SATB quartet w/ continuo, â€Å"Es war ein wunderlicher Krieg. The texture of this movement is much more polyphonic than the first, and the four vocal parts (soprano, also, tenor and bass) ‘imitate’ each other contrapuntally; in other words, the texture of this movement is ‘imitative polyphony. ’ Note also that the instrumental parts ‘move parallel to the voice parts’ (meaning that the instrumental parts play the exact same thing the three vocal soloists are singing); therefore the instruments take part in the polyphony * 7:04-8:23 8th movement: chorale with orchestra, â€Å"Wir essen und leben wohl . . † This final movement is set very simply, in a purely homophonic texture. All of the voice parts move in homorhythm—i. e. , they all move to the same rhythm nearly all of the time. However, they are not singing the same part, but are singing different pitches at the same time, thereby creating a series of chords. You read "Muar 211 Study Guide" in category "Essay examples" The continuo players (the instrumental accompaniment) follow along with the voices, adding there timbres to the overall sound. * Bach’s sacred cantatas often end with a homophonic presentation of the chorale melody: i. e. in a presentation of a harmonized chorale. The final movement is set in this simple style so that the congregation could participate in singing the final movement. All of the earlier movements are much more complicated, and would have been performed by professional singers employed by the church. * Note regarding this work on Exam #1: You need to be able to identify the texture and subgenre (aria, SATN quartet, and chorus) of each movement George Frideric Handel * La giustizia† from Julius Caesar â€Å"There were Shepherds† and â€Å"Glory to God† from Messiah * http://youtu. be/SZN6VmKBxPQ * 0:00 – 0:10 secco (‘dry’) recitative; the continuo accompaniment here is very sparse and sometimes completely absent. * 0:10 – 0:29 accompanied recitative (entire orchestra accompanies) * 0:30 – 1:32 secco recitative again (continuo only again; cello and harpsichord) * 1:13 – 1:32 accompanied recitative (entire orchestra); note that this portion goes straight into the following choral number. * 1:33 – 3:23 â€Å"Glory to God† chorus TERM LIST Medieval Period: 450-1450 Sacred Culture: anything intended to serve as part of worship. Earliest musical manuscripts contain sacred music exclusively because only members of the church was literate, peasants couldn’t write down secular music * Secular Culture: everything else (ie not serving as a part of worshi p, including art for entertainment only) * Liturgy (as in Roman Catholic liturgy): the system of prayers and worship of a particular religion, dictates how to worship, when to worship, what songs to sing and when. Considered a higher authority * Plainchant / chant / Gregorian Chant: Text: Latin (language) and SACRED (function) * Nonmetrical (ie rhythmically free, no discernible beat or meter) * Based on church modes of the Medieval Musical/Theoretical System * Usually performed with a MONOPHIC TEXTURE (texture: how many parts and what is their relationship), although other practices are possible * Usually performed A CAPPELLA (type of ensemble) * Metrical (has a discernable beat) /Nonmetrical (has no discernible beat or meter) * Divine Office Mass: relatively private worship service in convents and monasteries * Mass: large worship service for all Proper of Mass (or Mass Proper): of material into those parts of the text that always remain the same * Ordinary of Mass (Mass Ordinary) material that change according to the particular day in the liturgical year. * Kyrie (a simple prayer), Gloria (a long hymn, beginning), Credo (A recital of the Christian’s list of beliefs, beginning), Sanctu s (another, shorter hymn), Agnus dei (Another simple prayer) * Church modes (Medieval Modes): the basis of the harmonic system. A collection of pitches that are organized within a piece of music to emphasize one particular pitch, called the final. These pitches also represent a collection of specific intervals * Responsorial Performance: a manner of performing chant in which a solo singer or leader performed verses of the text and the entire congregation answered each verse with the following verse or with a response or refrain. Common responses were amen and hallelujah, but others were more expansiveu * Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179): was well known in her day and her musical works poetry and other writings were widely copied and disseminated. Visionary, mystic, and prolific writer. CONVENT ABBESS: founded her own convent in Rupertsburg (eastern Germany). Her visions and prophecies made her famous throughout Europe, also known for her writings on science and music, very well educated and powerful woman in her time * Drone: a single two note chord running continuously. Found in Hildegard von Bingen’s Columba Aspexit * Also in the 12th C * Earliest manuscripts of secular music: musical settings of original poetry written by learned men and women (courtiers, monks, nuns, priests) for entertainment in royal courts. Composers were known as troubadours, trouveres, or minnesangers. These secular songs were notated monophonically, but were probably performed with improvised instrumental accompaniment. The poetry of these songs is most often in the vernacular language of the court. Songs dealt with courtly love/chivalry, as well as war and some deal with topics of sexual love * Earliest manuscripts of instrumental music: nearly are all courtly dances such as the Estampie or Salterello, notation suggests a regular rhythmic organization: metric or metered. These manuscripts were created by literate musicians, although dance music was often performed by jongleurs * Earliest manuscripts of polyphonic music: organum the earliest genre of medieval polyphony music (the simultaneous combination of two or more melodies) * Organum: the earliest genre of medieval polyphony music (the simultaneous combination of two or more melodies) * Troubadour (south of France)/trouvere (in the north)/Minnesanger (Germany): noble poet composers of court songs who also performed the songs themselves. Among them were kings, prices, and even kings. Troubadour society (but not trouvere) allowed for women composers and performers. Literate classes of people (typically are courtiers). Not for public * Jongleur: popular musicians – Some noble songwriters only penned the words, leaving music to be composed by jongleurs. Popular musicians at the time, the music is relatively simple. Jongleurs played instruments while trouveres sang. Musicians of common status, typically illiterate, who traveled played a memorized repertory, improvising, getting paid when possible, occasionally organizing into guilds * Courtier: someone at a royal count, music for elite class * Chanson: French for song, a genre of French secular vocal music * Cantus Firmus: the way to create new sacred music, in the medieval era, a cantus firmus was a pre-existing plainchant melody (therefore a sacred melody setting a sacred text) that has been recycled into a new composition ie a cantus firmus is chant melody that serves the basis for new musical creation * Notre Dame School: school of polyphonic music, not actual school setting, but they did influence one another. Group of composers working at or near the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in late 12th and 13th centuries. * Ars antiqua/ars nova: contemporary terms for the â€Å"old technique† of the 13th century organum and the new polyphonic music of the 14th C. * Guillaume da Machaut (c. 13 00 – 1377): was cleric and courtier, a widely celebrated poet and musician. Active at a variety of courts, including the Court of Charles, Duke of Normandy, who later became king of France. Widely known as the greatest musician of his time; renowned ever long after his death – the foremost composer of the ars nova style: the new style of complicated polyphonic music in the late 14th C. This term was used to contrast the new music with the older Notre Dame polyphonic music of the 13th C. known as the ars antiqua * Notre Dame Mass (significance): composed the earliest extant complete setting of the mass ordinary. The five individual parts are based on some of the same borrowed and original musical material so they are musically liked to one another. Earlier complete settings were no doubt created as well, but this is the oldest to survive intact, due to its popularity and wide dissemination Renaissance Period: 1450-1600 Humanism: an intellectual movement and ethical system centered on humans and their values, needs, interests, abilities, dignity, and freedom, emphasizing secular culture in a rejection of the sacred * Moveable type printing press c. 1450: music prin ting soon followed, greatly expanded affordable access to vocal and instrumental music of all genres, both sacred and secular Lutheran Reformation early 16th C: Martin Luther. The separation of protestant Christian sects from the Roman Catholic Church leads to a great diversity in post 1500 sacred music (not all sacred music is Latin) * Counter Reformation, late 16th C. : The Roman Catholic Church responded to the revolt led by Martin Luther by reforming church practices in the spirit of â€Å"true Christian piety. This was the RCC’s attempt to regain the loyalty of its people, as well as regain the loss of power and wealth that had resulted from the â€Å"split† of the church (MUSIC REFORM) * Council of Trent (musical significance): issued general recommendations in favor a pure vocal style that would respect the integrity of the sacred text. (The composer considered to best uphold the reformed ideal of church music was Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina) Fascination with and study of Greek and Roman antiquity: once the concern of medieval theologians and scholars only—becomes more common among the ever-larger literate classes; the architecture, visual arts, poetry, and music of the renaissance demonstrates this influence. Word Painting: the music itself is composed in such a manner that the sound of the music reflects the meaning of the text (words such as fly and glitter were set to rapid notes, up and heaven to even higher ones) * Point of Imitation: a brief passage of imitative polyphony usually using a single musical motive (based on a single theme, or on two used together (used by Josquin Desprez) * Guillaume Dufay (c. 1400-1474): Born and received early musical training in northern France. However, he spent more than 25 years in Italy, as a musician and composer at the courts of various powerful families, or in major cathedrals, including the Papal Chapel in Rome. Dufay composed music in all the sacred and secular genres common to his day— masses, motets, Magnificats, hymns, and chants in fauxbordon style (see below), as well as secular songs of all types—using a rich musical language that combined techniques of earlier masters (the Ars Nova) with the new techniques, textures and textual sensitivity of the emerging Renaissance aesthetics. Fauxbourdon passage in Dufay’s harmonized hymn, Ave maris stella * Harmonized hymn: it has a sacred text, and (2) the same music is repeated over and over for changing verses of that sacred text. Works intended for congregational singing often use this simply form. * Josquin des Prez (1440 – 1521) Born and received early musical training in northern France, moved to Italy where he served in several courts. He composed both sacred and secular music, setting both sacred texts and contemporary poetry. Achieve international fame; known to Martin Luther as the greatest living composer. Returned to northern France in his late life * Claudio Monteverdi (1567 – 1643): the most important musician in the late 16th and early 17th century Italy. Wrote nine books of madrigals, composed operas. Composed high Renaissance and early Baroque music, was a transitional composer who bridged between these two musical style periods writing in and epitomizing the styles and genres of both periods. * Madrigal: a polyphonic secular vocal genre of the Renaissance, a short composition set to a one stanza poem – typically a love poem, with rapid turnover of ideas and images). The most important secular vocal genre of the late renaissance and early baroque. Madrigals were settings of secular poetry on a variety of topics in the vernacular language (originally Italian). Were a genre of â€Å"high art† meaning it was intended for the entertainment of royalty, commoners would rarely be exposed to such music * Giovanni Palestrina (1525 – 1594): worked as an organist and choirmaster at various churches including St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, Pope Julius II appointed him to the Sistine Chapel Choir, wrote over 100 settings of he Roman Catholic Mass, Palestrina’s music was known to later generations, most importantly Bach who considered it the epitome of sacred music in the â€Å"old style,† was considered the best composer to uphold the reformed ideal of church music Baroque Period: 1600-1750 Monody: literally ‘one song’ characterized by a solo vocal melody with instrumental accompaniment * basso continuo / continuo / figured bass : one, two or more instruments that provide an accompaniment for one or more vocal or instrumental soloists, reading from a musical part that is called the figured bass, because it is notated as a single line of music (the base line) over which numbers (the figures) indicate the other notes to be played on. At least one of the basso continuo instruments plays the bass line as written by the composer, while the other (or others) improvises chords on that bass line * In the Baroque and early Classical periods, the keyboard instrument in the basso continuo was almost always the harpsichord * ‘continuo group’: the instrumentation of the basso continuo (also called the continuo r the continuo group) was never specified in the music. Musicians and composers of the period were very practical with regard to performance practices. Therefore, their music was designed to accommodate a wide variety of performance situations * to ‘realize a figured bass’ * improvisation * Ornamentation: the practice (both vocal and instrumental) of spontaneously adding (improvising) short decorative flourishes to the written music during performances). These additional notes are generally called ornaments or embellishments * Score (as in musical score): a piece of music that shows all of th e parts in a given piece, all together on each page: also called a full score. Some small ensemble music commonly appears in such a format, but it is not practical for larger ensembles. Full scores of large ensemble works are generally used only by conductors and for study * Part (as in printed musical part): a piece of music that shows only one portion of the overall performing ensemble, usually just the music of a single instrument or vocalist * Opera (time place of its invention): Opera was originally created in the wealthy Italian courts of Florence in approximately 1600 by a group of intellectuals; poets and musicians who were attempting to recreate the ancient Greek dramas, which they determined had been sung in a very declamatory (i. e. , speech-like) style. * Two types/subgenres of song in opera: Recitative: a song that imitates and rhythms and pitch patterns of natural speech; usually carries the action and dialogue of an opera; used to forward the action of drama. Not very lyrical and melodious; sounds more like speech or recitation. Good for expressing text, in which the meaning is important, usually does not have long melismas or repetitions of texts. Rhythmically free or nonmetrical. Usually accompanied by only one or two instruments, the basso continuo, which closely follows the singer * Aria: a song for solo voice, often with a larger ensemble playing the accompaniment. Strongly metrical (ie has a strong and recognizable beat). A melodious or lyrical song which expresses an outpouring of emotion, thereby developing the character of the person singing the aria; very lyrical often epeating fragments of the text and containing melismas that ‘show off’ the technical and expressive abilities of the star singers * Both recitatives and arias were also composed as ‘stand alone’ works: as works that were performed alone without being part of a larger work * Libretto / librettist: the libretto is story or text of an opera, written by the librettist almost never the composer himself, but rather someone with literary and poetic skills. Operas were intended as entertainment and use secular text in a vernacular language. The subject matter of librettos vary widely, the earliest operas drew their subject matter from the myths, dramas, and histories of ancient Greece and Rome. * Castrato: Male singer castrated before puberty in order to retain the pre-adolescent high vocal range. The most importan t category of vocal soloists in opera (and other vocal genres) during the baroque, although most of them were employed by Italian churches. Many leading operatic roles for men—whether hero or romantic lead—were written for castrati. Castrati also commonly performed women’s roles. The â€Å"rock stars† of their day, the most successful castrati enjoyed great popularity and financial reward. We know many of their names, careers, and personal exploits today. Today, the operatic roles and other vocal parts originally composed for castrati are sung by (1) women or (2) countertenors or falsettists (male sopranos). * Overture (as in opera): the instrumental piece (for the orchestra alone) that introduces an opera. It is the first thing you hear at the beginning of the opera, often before the main opera characters come on stage. Overtures often contain musical themes from the vocal pieces to follow, sort of ‘foreshadowing’ the action of the opera * Traits of the baroque orchestra: During the Baroque Era that our modern conception of the orchestra, as a group centered around a group of bowed strings, was first developed. However, baroque orchestras were much smaller than the orchestras used in later art music, usually included only 10 to 25 people, and often consisted of nothing but bowed strings and perhaps a harpsichord or organ. Wind instruments (brass and woodwinds) could be used and often were, including a limited array of percussion, but the bowed strings were the CORE of the orchestra from its earliest inception. Henry Purcell (1659-1695): Often referred to as the first great English composer of international acclaim. Worked as a singer, organist and composer in the courts of Charles II (reigned 1660-85), James II (r. 1685-88), and William and Mary (r. 1689- 1702). Purcell’s instrum ental works rank among the finest musical achievements of the middle Baroque. * Lament / lament aria: A poem (or, when set to music, a song) expressing grief, regret or mourning. As a musical subcategory of recitative and aria, it was very popular in the 17th century and after. * Basso ostinato / ground bass: Baroque lament arias often feature a basso ostinato (also known as a ground bass), which is a bass theme that repeats over and over. The basso ostinatos or ground basses of lament arias typically consists of a descending, chromatic figure (often descending from tonic to dominant in the key of the piece) in a slow triple meter. * Recorder: * Harpsichord * Lute (archlute) * Organ viol (viola da gamba) * MULTI-MOVEMENT WORK: a musical work under one title that is actually several separate musical pieces that are always played together in the same order. Each of the individual pieces that comprise a multi-movement genre is called a MOVEMENT. It is typical that the various movements of a multi-movement instrumental work all employ the same ensemble, although there are some exceptions. On the other hand, large-scale vocal/instrumental genres (such as operas, cantatas and oratorios) often contain movements that contrast with regard to the ensemble used. The individual movements with any multi-movement genre are designed both to complement and contrast with one another with regard to key, tempo, and musical material. * Sonata * Trio sonata: multi-movement genre for TWO instrumental soloists and basso continuo. Be careful about this one, because the ensemble can vary widely. Since the basso continuo part might be played by one, two or three people, the total ensemble of a trio sonata could include from 3 players (2 soloists + 1 continuo player) to 5 players (2 soloists + 3 continuo players) or even more. Solo concerto: multi-movement (usually three but not standardized in the baroque era) genre for a single instrumental soloist (of any type) and orchestra (including basso continuo) * Concerto grosso: multi-movement (usually three but could be more) genre for two or more instrumental soloists and orchestra (including the basso continuo). Many such works were written for two violinists and basso continuo (the solo group) accompanied by a larger group (the orchestra, which usually also consisted of strings only). Part of the interest in such works is the exciting contrast of the smaller solo group with the larger orchestra. During the Baroque Era, concerto grosso (concerto grossi is the Italian plural) were NEVER titled Concerto Grosso. They were usually titled simply ‘concerto,’ and are therefore difficult to differentiate from a solo concerto by title alone. * Suite / dance suite / baroque dance suite: a multi-movement genre for orchestra without any particular featured soloists. Usually each movement is named after and is an example of a particular dance type, although some movements might have other inspirations and be unrelated to dance. SUITE, by definition, means a multi-movement collection of dances. Dance suites could be used for dancing or simply as concert works for listening enjoyment. * Multi-movement instrumental work for orchestra alone (in baroque also w/ continuo group) * The number of movements was not very standardized during the Baroque period. Some examples of the genre have as many as nine (for instance, Handel’s Suite No. 2 in D major, popularly known as part of the Water Music). * The individual movements are often evocative of DANCE TYPES and have dance-related names (Minuet, Bourree, Gigue, Hornpipe, etc. ), although there are also other types of names as well (especially ‘Air,’ a title that implies a lyrical, slow piece with song-like qualities). * The prominence of this genre during the baroque period highlights the importance of dance during the period. * Fugue * An entire piece or distinct subsection of music that employs imitative polyphony in a strictly prescribed manner. A fugue can be a genre (if an entire piece or movement contains nothing but that fugue), but it is also possible for a subsection of a piece to be described as a ‘fugue’. * Fugues may be written for any instrument capable of polyphonic solo playing, or for any combination of voices or instruments, or instruments and voices together. * The first musical theme of a fugue is called the SUBJECT. After its first appearance in a single voice or part, you will then hear that same melody again and again in the other parts. Not really a genre because it doesn’t tell you the ensemble. * J. S. Bach’s music is generally regarded as one of the greatest artistic achievements of the Baroque Period. At the end of his life, however, his musical style was rather old fashioned, for the newer style of the early classic period was already being composed by a number of younger composers, including Bach’s own sons. These younger composers of the new classical style were not sympathetic to complex polyphony, preferring a more simple, homophonic texture. Ritornello form: the music played by the orchestra appears both at the beginning, end, and several times during the movement. * Theme variations form: the melody (theme) heard at the beginning is followed by alternative versions of that same melody. * Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) * Must know J. S. Bach’s death date (1750) marks the end of the Baroque Period. German, Lutheran composer and one of the most influential figures in western music history. Born into a family of musicians. Eventually known as a virtuoso organist (expert of construction and maintance). * At age 23, J. S. Bach was appointed his first important position: court organist and chamber musician to the Duke of Weimar. He later worked for five years at the court of the Prince of Anhalt-Cothen, where he wrote some of his most famous instrumental works, including The Brandenburg Concertos. * J. S. Bach also composed his very famous suites (a multi-movement collection of dances) for unaccompanied violoncello (i. e. , cello) during his time working for the Prince of Anhalt-Cothen. * At age 38 J. S. Bach was appointed his most prestigious position when he became CANTOR (i. e. , the music director) at St. Thomas Church in Leipzig * Cantor: music director, head of choir * Sacred Cantata (as composed by J. S. Bach between 1700 and 1750) * A fairly large-scale, multi-movement vocal/instrumental genre, typically consisting of six to eight movements, used in the worship services of German Lutheran Churches. * Sacred cantatas are NOT a dramatic presentation like opera; a cantata (whether sacred or secular) features no plot, acting, costumes, stage movement, etc. ), although it is divided into choruses, arias, recitatives, duets, and instrumental pieces etc. just like an opera or oratorio. The ensemble of a sacred cantata consists of a smallish choir (12 or so), vocal soloists, an orchestra (10-20 or so) and an organ, although larger groups of singers and instrumentalists were used on special occasions (like major feast days in the liturgical calendar). * Texts are in the vernacular language (German) * Lutheran chorale * Hymn-like songs used for congregational singing in the Lutheran Church, composed in a rather simple, four-part (SATB) texture. It is a sacred genre that was (and is) sung during the worship service by the congregation along with the professional choir (the latter of whom would have performed the sacred cantata during the worship service). Many chorales date back to Martin Luther (1483-1546) himself, although new ones were continuously composed for centuries. * Chorales are STROPHIC: i. e. , each verse of text is sung to the same repeated music. * George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) * German-born composer who created numerous works in every genre of his day, including orchestral dance suites, organ concertos, and concerti grossi, but he is most remembered for his 39 Italian-style operas and his oratorios for English audiences. * Unlike most professional musicians of his day, Handel was not from a musical family, but he studied with a local organist and composer from a young age. At 18 he worked as a violinist and harpsichordist in the orchestra of an opera house in Hamburg; at 20 he produced his first successful opera. * At 21 he went to Italy, where he further studied the Italian opera style; he also composed and successfully produced operas in Italy. * In 1710 Handel took a well-paid position as music director for Elector Georg Ludwig of Hanover, who became Handel’s patron. A friend of the arts, this patron allowed Handel to travel extensively and promote his music on the international stage. * Handel made several trips to London to produce his operas, and he eventually moved there in 1712 and remained in England for the rest of his life. * Handel became London’s most important composer and a favorite of Queen Anne. * Oratorio: Much like n opera, a large-scale music drama for vocal soloists, chorus and orchestra; oratorios are multi-movement works that contain arias, recitatives, duets, trios, choral numbers, and interludes for orchestra alone. * Usually based on a narrative libretto with plots and characters (one of whom is usually a narrator); however, unlike an opera there is no acting, scenery, or costumes. * Handel’s oratorios are usually based on stories from the Old Testament: for example Handel’s oratorios Israel in Egypt and Joshua. * Secular genre composed and performed for entertainment purposes; usually performed in an opera theater or other large, secular, public venue. * Da capo aria form: a specific type of ternary form (A—B—A). Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741): The â€Å"Red Priest† Famous and influential as a virtuoso violinist and composer. Born in Venice, Italy, the son of a violinist employed at St. Mark’s Cathedral. Known as the â€Å"Re d Priest† because he was indeed a priest and had rather wild red hair. Worked as a violin teacher, composer, and conductor at the Music School of the Pieta, orphanage for girls. The orchestra and chorus at this school was one of the finest in Italy, and much of Vivaldi’s music was composed for them to perform. Although he composed operas and church music, he is best known for his 450 or so concertos (both solo concertos and concertos grosso; see following notes). General Terminology Concepts Genre: a specific category of musical composition as defined by its musical characteristics or traits; for instance a Gregorian chant, a string quartet, an art song * Ensemble/medium: the instruments, voices, or anything else that makes sound and takes part in music making. A. k. a. instrumentation (but don’t forget about the voices). Some particular types of ensembles became standardized within a given genre culture and become associated with more or less specific social settings, functions, or musical styles * Range of Human Voices (Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Base) * SATB choir: defining the voices required by a chorus or choir to perform a particular musical work. Pieces written for SATB, the commonest combination and that used by most Hymn tunes, can be sung by choruses of mixed genders, by choirs of men and boys, or by four soloists. A cappella: (Italian for â€Å"in the manner of the church† or â€Å"in the manner of the chapel†) mu sic is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound * Monophony/monophonic texture: a musical texture involving a single melodic line, as in Gregorian chant, as opposed to polyphony * Polyphony/polyphonic texture: musical texture in which two or more melodic lines are played or sung simultaneously * Imitative polyphony: (continuous imitation) brief usually fragments of melody (motives) are passed from voice to voice (or instrument to instrument) within the performing group, so that these motives are heard again and again within close proximity of each other making the music easier to comprehend and follow * Non-imitative polyphony: four voices with four independent melodies that never repeat the music of another voice part. Non-imitative polyphony is the ideal and most common texture in Medieval polyphonic music * Homophony/homophonic texture: music that is harmonic, chordal texture, a musical texture that involves only one melody of real interest combined with chords or other subsidiary sounds * Melody + accompaniment * Homorhythm/homo rhythmic texture: a musical texture in which all of the parts move together rhythmically. Renaissance music often alternates between polyphonic passages (in which all of the parts are independent) and homorhythmic passages (in which all of the parts move together) * Two types of text setting * Syllabic: each syllable of text is set to only one pitch (syllable by syllable) * Melismatic: text setting that contains melismas; a melisma is a single syllable of text that is set to large groups of pitches * Pitch: a sound producing vibration that oscillates at a definite and prescribed rate of speed. Are named using the first seven letters of the alphabet (A B C D E F G) * Equal Temperament * The man made division of the octave into 12 equal intervals (measured in ? steps) * The man made division of the octave in 12 half steps (12 half steps per octave) * Equal temperament tuning Accidentals: a note whose pitch is not a member of a scale or mode indicated by the most recently applied key signature. In musical notation, the symbols used to mark such notes, sharps (? ), flats (? ), and naturals (? ), may also be called accidentals. An accidental sign raises or lowers the following note from its normal pitch, * Sharp, raises half step ? * Flat, lowers half step ? * Natural, cancels sharp and flat ? * Metrical (has a discernable beat) /Nonmetrical (has no discernible beat or meter) * Tempo: refers to the relative speed of the beat in music * Presto: very fast * Allegro: fast * Moderato: at a moderate rate * Adagio/adante: slow * Dynamics: refers to the relative loudness or softness of the music. * Forte = f = play loudly Mezzo forte = mf = somewhat loudly (less loud than f) * Mezzo piano = mp = somewhat softly (less loud than mf) * Piano = p = play softly * Crescendo = = to become gradually louder * Descrescendo = = to become gradually softer Recap of Genres Studied * Chanson: French Secular Song * chorale (Lutheran chorale): * concerto grosso * fugue * hymn / harmonized hymn * madrigal * Mass * motet * opera * oratorio * organum * plainchant / chant / Gregorian Chant * sacred cantata * solo concerto * sonata (solo sonata) * suite / dance suite / baroque dance suite * trio sonata Sinfonia: in the 18th Century sinfonia and overture were used interchangeably. Later on the symphony was a genre was created How to cite Muar 211 Study Guide, Essay examples

Why Did the South Lose the Civil War free essay sample

However, while a presentation of the wars events and key points may explain how the South lost the Civil War, it fails to explain why they lost. Why did the Southern war effort fail at three key stages? The Norths superiority in manpower and resources must not be omitted in any answer to this question. Lincoln had at his disposal a population of 22,000,000, compared with a Southern population of 9,000,000, which included 3,500,000 slaves whom they dared not arm. This provided a far larger base from which to draw troops, although it has been suggested that Southerners were keener to join up than their Union counterparts. Furthermore, in terms of resources, the Union advantage was huge: New York alone produced manufactures of a value four times greater than the total Southern output; the North had a virtual monopoly on heavy industries; coal, iron, clothing, armaments, shipyards, machine shops all were plentiful in the North and scarce in the South. The Union infrastructure was far better, with twice the density of railroads, and several times the mileage of canals and well-surfaced roads. Most shipping was carried out in Northern vessels, and the South had few shipyards, and only one machine shop capable of building an engine for a respectable warship. However, the ingenuity of many Southern officers compensated somewhat for her material disadvantages. Not once did a Southern army surrender for want of ammunition, and despite being in terrible disrepair, the Confederacys railroads somehow fulfilled their task of transporting troops to battle on several notable occasions. Historian Edward Pollard commented that something more than numbers make armies, and Southern leader P G T Beauregard remarked that the outcome could not be explained by mere material constraints. Furthermore, the South had several clear advantages at the start of the war. Firstly, fighting on home ground was easier since supply lines were shorter, natives friendlier, and knowledge of the climate and terrain better. The vast area of the Confederacy made occupation by an invader virtually impossible, and the coastline with its many inlets and bays made for difficult blockading. Secondly, most of the US Armys best leaders were Southerners, so, at the start at least, the Confederacy had superior leadership in battle. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, military historians reckon that attacking in this period required thrice the manpower that defending did, virtually wiping out the Norths demographic advantages. It would seem, therefore, that although the Norths superior resources undoubtedly helped, this alone does not fully account for the Southern defeat. Another view is that the South lost through bad conduct of the war. These criticisms fall into two main categories, military and political. There were four main shortcomings in the economic management which may have played a part in the Souths defeat. Firstly, the Confederacy failed to make use of its main resource, cotton. The Union blockade did not take full effect for many months, allowing the Southerners time to export their cotton harvest, and reap the financial benefits. Alexander Stephens had a plan at the start of the war that he estimated would net around $800M for the Confederacy, providing a sound financial base for the war effort. Although somewhat optimistic, and affected by practical difficulties, it is fair to say that the cotton crop would have been far better exported than stockpiled or burnt. Secondly, the Confederate government displayed an unwillingness to tax her citizens, preferring instead to print money, and suffer the rampant inflation that resulted. The Union financed its war effort mainly from taxation and bonds, while 60% of Southern funds came from unbacked paper money. The problems associated with this are clear to see: prices rose 100-fold over the four years of war, wiping out southerners savings, and devastating the economy. The governments reaction to this, the third mistake, was to impress public goods for military use. However, rather than curbing inflation, this merely acted as a disincentive to supply, making essential items increasingly scarce. This, coupled with the poor infrastructure and parochialism of some State governors, meant that the army went hungry in a nation with the capacity to produce plenty of food. Finally, it is argued that the Confederate government should have done more to improve infrastructure and manufacturing. However, this was easier said than done, given the lack of suitable labor, diminished value of private capital, and lack of the correct skills or machinery for such improvements. Some historians deem the very nature of the Confederacy doomed to defeat. Ideologically handicapped by the doctrine of States Rights, the Southern war effort was frequently hampered by the parochial and inward-looking political culture which prevailed in many states. When Lees army was fighting to defend Richmond during the last days of the war, desperate for rations, Governor Vance of North Carolina was congratulating himself on stockpiling 92,000 uniforms and 150,000lbs of bacon, to be used solely by North Carolinian troops. Doubt has also been cast over the determination of its leaders to the cause. Jefferson Davis was a reluctant secessionist, Stephens was heard to remark that Lincoln was not a bad man, and even fire-eating Robert Toombs voted against the firing on Fort Sumter. Much of the criticism of the Confederate government could be equally well applied to the Union. Peace Democrats north of the border harassed Lincoln; opposition was loud in many quarters following the suspension of habeas corpus, and it appeared for a while that Lincoln would not win the 1864 election. However, the government of the Union was more united, and more effective. Most historians agree that Lincoln was a greater leader than Davis, although at the start of the war it appeared that the opposite was true. The more experienced Davis soon built up a sound army, commanded by excellent generals. However, while a good military man, Davis was no politician. His ego bruised easily, and some of his decisions appeared to have been motivated more by personal like or dislike of an individual than any strategic reason. His decision to retain Bragg and leave Beauregard and Johnston in the cold is one such example of this. Lincoln, on the other hand, was a masterful diplomat, prepared to overlook personal differences, for example with McClellan, for the good of the Union. He never once faltered in his determination to save the Union, and entertained no doubts as to the wisdom of his policy. It must be remembered though, that Davis was by no means a weak leader, and had a great deal to contend with in terms of belligerent state governors, supply shortages, and simmering troubles which would affect any new government. Given the tragic circumstances surrounding Lincolns death, and the worthiness of his cause, there has been a tendency to romanticize him and his achievements, which any historian must guard against. The South lost the Civil War through insufficient will to seek and secure their independence. Firstly, merely because a bloodier and more devastating war has been fought is not to say that the situation in which many Southerner found them in was not a desperate one. Shermans raids devastated thousands of acres of land; inflation and shortages meant food was scarce and prohibitively expensive; men of working age were fighting, and therefore could not labor in the fields or factories. Men deserted to prevent their families from starving, and returned to battle afterwards; a question of necessity, not cowardice or lack of resolve. Rather than any loss of motivation it can be argued that the combination of civilian depredations, loss of military manpower, and loss of territory wrecked the Confederate war effort. Thirdly, the lack of morale argument is a somewhat circular one. Defeat and depredation reduce morale, which in turn promote defeat and further depredation. However, most would argue that the defeat came before the loss of will to fight, not afterwards. Furthermore, Northern morale was as fragile, if not more so. Before Antietam, many Northerners were ready to negotiate peace. One wonders how long the Union morale would have held out had it found itself in the same predicament as the Confederacy in 1864. Reasons for Southern defeat are as numerous as they are diverse. Some argue that Lincolns masterstroke was the Emancipation Proclamation. Ultimately, it gave the North 3. 5M potential new soldiers, removed a substantial section of the Confederate workforce, and extinguished any realistic hope of foreign help for the Confederacy. However, the policy was a divisive one, many Northern generals had misgivings about black troops, and many slaves preferred to ride out the war in familiar surroundings. Strategic defects may have played a role. The South should have attacked when it defended, and defended when it attacked. Given the numerical advantage of Union armies, defending would have evened out the odds. However, military theory and practice two different things, and battles can always be fought far more effectively in retrospect. The American Civil War was far from a foregone conclusion. The Norths larger population and superior resources were balanced by the geographical and strategic advantages of fighting on Southern soil. Lincolns greater ability can be negated by the Confederacys plentiful supply of experienced and competent generals. Before Gettysburg and Vicksburg, the war could easily have gone either way. If forced to give one reason why the South lost, it seems that the gross inadequacy of the Confederate government must be it. Attempting to go from nothing to a large institution running a full-scale war is difficult enough, and would not be helped by an overly-libertarian vice-president, belligerent and unhelpful state governors, a President who was severely lacking in diplomatic or political skill, and an underlying doctrine (States Rights) that was incompatible with full-scale warfare. The Confederacy effectively fought the Civil War with one hand tied behind its back, a disability that even the dashing and brave Southern troops could not overcome.

The Sweater Essay Example

The Sweater Essay The hockey sweater, loyalty One of Quebec’s leading writers Roch Carrier, in his short story, â€Å"The hockey sweater†, tells of a boy’s loyalty to a Montreal Canadians hockey player Maurice Richards. Carrier’s idea is to deliver a theme of loyalty by establishing a sentimental tone in order to appeal similar feelings or experiences in his audience. Carrier begins by acknowledging the desire the young boy and his friends have to be exactly the same as there hockey idol. He writes â€Å"We all wore the same uniform as he, red, white and blue uniform of the Montreal Canadians, the best hockey team in the world; we all combed our hair in the same style as Maurice Richards† and â€Å"you’ll never put it in my head to wear a Toronto Maple leafs sweater†. Carrier describes the boys loyalty using everyday diction to allow for an array of audiences to be entertained. Shifting to Carriers outstanding use of punctuation he directs the reader’s attention to the words that follow by using colons. For example â€Å"with tears in my eyes, I found the strength to say: I’ll never wear that uniform†. Carrier is able to support his them of loyalty with his use of complex-compound sentences like: â€Å"Wearing my Toronto maple leafs sweater i went to the church, where I prayed to God, I asked him to send, as quickly as possible, moths that would eat up my Toronto maple leafs sweater†. In conclusion, Carrier’s strategy of neutral diction, passionate tone, complex-compound sentences and punctuation, Carrier is able to support his them of loyalty throughout his short story. We will write a custom essay sample on The Sweater specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Sweater specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Sweater specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer

HR and Globalization essays

HR and Globalization essays The world of work has always been subject to continuous and ever evolving transformations and changes. Change is essential in an organization. Technology has changed the way we work and live. In the pre-industrial era, workers lived in isolation; they crafted goods required at their homes and farmspeople worked hard at being self-sufficient. The industrial revolution in the past century changed our way of life. People moved to cities and townspre-determined by the locations of factories and industries. The new worker was often taught a single skill that was used repetitively in mass productionin an assembly-line setup. Whereas in the past, an individual sold goods and produce that he or she personally created or grew, the modern day worker sold his time. (Curry, 2003) The Human Resource Department's functions have changed and the department is taking on more duties and responsibilities than in the past. The HR department is becoming a strategic partner for the organization as it holds the most important asset a company possesses under its controlthe human asset. The human asset cost is currently a major portion of the expenses that organizations face. Technology, the Internet and globalization of the market have drastically changed the way most organizations operate. Knowing and understanding the variables affecting the present day organizations and the models that the modern HR departments prefer will help organizations to use their human resource asset more effectively. More than physical and other resources, changing the mindset and the human factor will ultimately come to represent the new competitive edge for a Communicating the goals and mission of the company effectively to all employees...

Assignment prompt Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Assignment prompt - Essay Example The extensive use of the apocalyptic setting is a bit confusing and the query revolves round its purpose more than anything else. For â€Å"Harrison Bergeron†, the only query that would come to a reader’s mind is that why does the author show the death or rather the brutal murder of his only protagonist who attains almost a stature of superhero. Does this incident bear any special symbolic connotation? â€Å"August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains† by Ray Bradbury falls in the genre of science fiction but if one delve deep into the plot of the text and try to gaze behind the apparent presentation of the story, it is not easy to find the symbolic interpretation of the story. Bradbury uses the personification deliberately to display the emptiness. Bradbury wanted to reveal the readers that amidst the hustle and bustle of the house, something is amiss and this indicates a persistent absence of human being and human emotion. Bradbury wanted to portray that the fate of the house and the fate of humanity is synonymous. The impact of the complete absence of human characters makes the story all the more symbolic. The intention of the author to portray that too much mechanical life will destroy human civilization is also aptly displayed through the absence of human characters. The effect of the absence of human character on the plot of the story is far reaching and the absence makes the inner theme of the story line poignant. Here, the personified objects of the house are the characters. The protagonist of the house can be considered as the empty house whose inhabitants are dead because of nuclear reaction. The story line, due to the personification of inanimate objects not only renders a proper appearance of a science fiction but also helps to carry forward the underlying powerful message of the story that humans are slaughtering the planet and all the innovation and technologies created to make life easy and better,

Comparison and Contrast Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Comparison and Contrast Assignment - Essay Example With the references to real events, the aforementioned story and â€Å"Everyday Use† by Alice Walker will be compared and contrasted in this paper. â€Å"The Lottery† revolves around the theme of being in a difficult state. Sometimes, it is not only the consequences of a person’s actions that bring them in difficult situations but also includes other factors like one’s environment. Sometimes, one may feel he has been hand-picked to be in a difficult situation like Tessie Hutchinson in the story who unfortunately got the marked paper that led to her being stoned to death. â€Å"Everyday Use† on the other hand, takes on the theme of the importance of legacy against necessity. To the protagonist, the old hand-sewn quilts are considered sentimental while to the antagonist, they are potential valuables that could make her a fortune. The stories both revolve around observable real-life events. The second story though could be taken quite ambiguously because it is so realistic it could be understood literally but it could also be understood symbolically. Jackson’s characters include the whole village while Walker limits her characters to only four people. Both authors reveal their characteristics of their role players by describing them and quoting their words. Other attributes of the characters are shown through how they acted and their facial expressions and emotions. Jackson’s protagonist is a developing character who first appeared in the story as an excited character who just came from her dishes with her apron, talking and explaining her day to Mrs. Delacroix. Then, she turned to be a fearful character who became hysterical when her family was chosen from the crowd and became more so when she took the marked paper indicating she was to be the one stoned to death. Walker’s protagonist is also a developing character who is shown in most of the story as a

Application of M-commerce in Human Resource Management Essay

Application of M-commerce in Human Resource Management - Essay Example Mobile commerce is one such evolving areas of technology that is gaining lot of attention these days. It is a concept that is fast growing and is adopted in all types of business environment in order to get efficient as well as thorough results. Mobile commerce which is most commonly known as M-Commerce is the capability to carry on with any particular business transaction or commerce by making use of the mobile devices which includes that of mobile phones, smart phone, Personal Digital Assistant of PDA as it is commonly known as, and other such evolving technological equipments like that of the latest dash top mobile phone device. If one wants to get deeper into mobile commerce then it would be any sort of transactions which includes that of rights of ownership on a specific goods or services and the entire process of initiation or completion of the commercial activity should be carried out by making use of the mobile phone (Mennecke B 2003). Everything right from purchase to that o f selling of the products and services are now carried out using a mobile device. Some of the most common areas of services includes mobile banking, mobile brokerage, participating in auctions, mobile purchase facility and that of mobile marketing and advertising activity. The impact that mobile commerce is having over human resource management is very wide. In order to make a business model successful, adequate care and attention needs to be paid to that of the human resource management which is the crux of any organizations’ growth. Proper human resource management serves to be the winning formula. In this ever growing world, things get more advanced and complicated. Human resource area needs extra effort and there should be proper line of communication and well thought out approach. The best would be to act quickly on any human resource related issues which act as the pillar of confidence for the business (Stair R 2012). Using mobile commerce technology for managing human resource is the only best way to gain what one wants to. Everything right from regular checkups, accounting, resource allocation, tracking the performance of the individual can be carried out using a mobile commerce service. There are several types of platforms and functions that are released which makes the application of mobile commerce in human resource management a valuable asset for better managements and success of the business. An organization is a combination of many things and the responsibility levels are higher. There are many essential aspects to look for in an organization and it should be properly managed in order to derive high performance (Xu J 2009). In the recent times, there are many sort of mobile commerce devices that are evolving big time. The mobile device is connected to the computer network directly and all of the information regarding the resources can be accessed directly. The mobile commerce facility in mobile phone not only provide with the ability to ac cess the available materials in common network but also offers with the capacity to make any changes or take actions directly. Human resource field is a wide area and if not properly managed or arranged it will bring in more problem to the company and business. The latest mobile device that is launched recently comes with a better facility to track each and every activity of the resources (Branki C 2008). A human resource mobile application can

Review of Leading In a Culture of Change

Review of Leading In a Culture of Change Leading in a culture of change by Michael Fullan is a small but powerful book on the dynamics of change and the role of leadership in managing and coping with the change process. Michael Fullan, the dean of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toranto is an international authority on educational reforms .Fullan opens by quoting Robert Steinberg: The essence of intelligence would seem to be in knowing when to think and act quickly, and knowing when to think and act slowly (p. x). Fullan is concerned with not only the decision, but the timing involved in making the correct decision. He argues that good leadership is not inborn rather one must learn to lead by mastering five core competencies- moral purpose, understanding change process, relationship building, knowledge building and coherence building. Fullan devotes an entire chapter to each competency and illustrates each concept with a solid and provocative collection of public education and private corporation cases. This makes the book a useful tool for an administrative team workshop or school board. It would stimulate excellent discussion on mission and purpose and the clima te in which a healthy organization can change for the better. He also articulates three personal characteristics (energy, enthusiasm, hope) that all effective leaders possess. This book offers a realistic perspective to those who are at the beginning of their leadership career and should be inspiring to those who have attained their peaks. The ambiguities of change forces in the schools are more easily understood after considering Fullans insights into organizational change and leadership. He neither oversimplifies the mission of the school administrator nor makes the work appear impossible. Fullan offers advice for leaders to help them rise above the challenges of the new technology, a changing market place and the crises in the public scenario. He argues that leadership today requires the ability to mobilize constituents to do important but difficult work under conditions of constant change. Fullan demonstrates that successful leaders in education and business have much in common. He took an equal number of change case studies in education and in business and examined leaders behavior and mindsets. The first chapter, A Remarkable Convergence, conveys the theme of the book. The author advises that change cannot be managed. It can be understood and perhaps led, but it cannot be controlled. This chapter is devoted to the discussion of effective leadership, stating within the first page this is not the book about super leaders. Charismatic leaders inadvertently often do more harm than good because, at best, they provide episodic improvement followed by frustrated or despondent dependency. Superhuman leaders also do us another disservice: they are role models who can never be emulated by large numbers (p. 1). The author weaves the business world and the educational world together as learning organizations, stating that if they fail to evolve together they will fail to survive. He suggests five themes for successful leadership: moral purpose, understanding change, developing relationships, knowledge building and coherence making. Fullan argues that when the goal is sustainable change in a knowledge society, business and education leaders increasingly have more in common. Like the business leader, the principal of the future the Cultural Change Principal must be tuned to the big picture, a sophisticated conceptual thinker who transforms the organization through people and teams In chapter 2, Moral Purpose, Fullan argues that all five components are strongly connected with each other. Moral purpose is seen as both an end and means. In education, every leader, whether an administrator or teacher must see an important end, making a difference in the lives of students. He continues by stating that, if you dont treat others fairly, you will be a leader without followers (p. 13). Fullan describes two excellent examples of moral purpose. The Monsanto Companys remarkable transformation, under its new CEO, Robert Shapiro, started with a series of town hall meetings discussing the unsustainable problems of hunger facing humanity. That discussions lead to ten thousand of Monsantos employees becoming involved feeding the world. The second example is the national Literacy and Numeracy strategy, the nation wide initiative to improve both the literacy and numeracy of Great Britains twenty thousand schools in which Fullan has been an active participant. The author clearly makes his point; social consciousness and the concept of being a good citizen apply internally as well as externally whether in the business or educational system. In chapter three Understanding Change, Fullan states that the purpose of this book is to understand change in order to lead it better. . . .the goal is to develop a greater feel for leading complex change, and to develop a mind-set and action set that are constantly cultivated and refined. Page 34 of this book states that, change can be led, and leadership does make a difference. He suggests that having innovative ideas and understanding the change process is not the same thing. Indeed, the case can be made that those firmly committed to their own ideas are not necessarily good change agents because being a change agent involves getting commitment from others who might not like ones ideas. Fullan quotes Kotter`s eight step process for initiating top down transformation (1996, p. 21) Establishing a Sense of Urgency Creating a Guiding Coalition Developing a Vision and Strategy Communicating the Change Vision Empowering Broad-Based Action Generating Short-Term Wins Consolidating Gains and Producing More Change Anchoring New Approaches in the Culture Further he quotes Beer, Eisenstat, and Spectors observations (1990) about drawing about bottom-up ideas and energies Mobilize commitment to change through joint diagnosis(with people in the organization) of business problem Develop a shared vision of how to organize and manage for competitiveness Foster concerns for the new vision, competence to enact it, and cohesion to move it along Spread revitalization to all departments without pushing it from the top Institutionalize revitalization through formal policies, systems and structure Monitor and adjust strategies in response to problems in the revitalization process Then Fullan shares Hamels advice (2000) to lead the revolution Step 1: Build a point of view Step 2: Write a manifesto Step 3: Create a coalition Step 4: Pick your targets and pick your moments Step 5: Co-opt and neutralize Step 6: Find a translator Step 7: Win small win early, win often Step 8: Isolate, infiltrate, integrate He offers the following guidelines for understanding change: The goal is not to innovate the most. Innovating selectively with coherence is better. Having the best ideas is not enough. Leaders help others assess and find collective meaning and commitment to new ways. Appreciate the implementation dip. Leaders cant avoid the inevitable early difficulties of trying something new. They should know, for example, that no mater how much they plan for the change, the first six months or so of implementation will be bumpy. Redefine resistance. Successful leaders dont mind when naysayers rock the boat. In fact, doubters sometimes have important points. Leaders look for ways to address those concerns. Reculturing is the name of the game. Much change is structural and superficial. Transforming culture changing what people in the organization value and how they work together to accomplish it leads to deep, lasting change. Never a checklist, always complexity. There is no step-by-step shortcut to transformation; it involves the hard, day-to-day work of reculturing. The Cultural Change Principal knows the difference between being an expert in a given content innovation and being an expert in managing the process of change. This principal does not make the mistake of assuming that the best ideas will carry the day. Instead, the Cultural Change Principal provides opportunities for people to visit sites that are using new ideas, invites questions and even dissent, and expects the change process to proceed in fits and starts during the first few months of implementation. Nevertheless, such a principal forges ahead and expects progress within a year because he or she has nurtured the conditions that yield results sooner rather than later. The title of chapter four, Relationship, Relationship, Relationship, is self explanatory. Success of any venture depends upon the people involved in the change process. Leaders must be skillful relationship builders with diverse people and groups. The single factor common to every successful change initiative is that relationships improve. If relationships improve, things get better. If they remain the same or get worse ground is lost. Effective leaders constantly foster purposeful interaction and problem solving. They are wary of easy consensus. Emotional intelligence is at the core of leaders who are continuously successful in a culture of change. Fullan makes an excellent point concerning change while discussing high stakes testing. We must resist the urge to focus on short term results by placing our emphasis on long-term results and the systemic improvements that will generate the lasting change we are seeking. The chapter five is knowledge building. Leaders need to commit themselves to constantly generating and increasing knowledge inside and outside the organization. Effective leaders understand the value and role of knowledge creation; they make it a priority and set about establishing and reinforcing habits of knowledge exchange among organizational members. Fullan describes a number of strategies used in education, business, and the military for turning information into knowledge by engaging people in an orchestrated social process. The key skill here is to convert information to knowledge through purposeful social interactions. In chapter six, coherence building, the author takes the reader on a journey of guiding people through their differences and enabling those differences to surface. He builds on the hypothesis that creative ideas and novel solutions are often generated when the status quo is disrupted. He discusses the frustration felt by many when a school district has a large number of improvement programmes operating at the same time. Fullan argues that we are in complex (rather than chaotic) times and that the central tendency of dynamic, complex systems is to constantly generate overload causing fragmentation, uncertainty and confusion. Effective leaders guide people through differences and enable differences to surface while creating coherence. They tolerate enough ambiguity to keep creative juices flowing, but seek coherence along the way. They ensure strategies are in place to keep people focused and moving in a purposeful direction. In chapter seven, The Hare and The Tortoise, Fullan refers to the Fontaines Fable of the hare and the tortoise. Developing leaders are more tortoise-like than hare-like. Three powerful lessons about leadership are identified: the vital and paradoxical need for slow knowing overtime, the importance of learning in context , and the need for leaders at all levels of the organization, in order to achieve wide spread internal commitment. Good leaders foster leadership at other levels. Leadership at other levels produces a steady stream of future leader for the system as a whole. Fullan concludes that leaders in a culture of change will be judged as effective or ineffective not simply by their results and who they are as leaders, but by the leadership they develop in others. Fullans writing style is more familiar than authoritative with liberal amount of case histories from both the business world and the world of education. The theme of this book is that all of us can improve our leadership abilities simply by focusing on a small number of key dimensions. Fullan ties each chapter to the previous one re-emphasizing the previous chapter through reinforcement in the current one. This book states that two things have occurred in recent times that have aided the discovery and pursuit of effective leadership. The first is that the knowledge base of what it takes to be an effective leader is getting broader and deeper, and with more insight. The second thing that happened is that there are many more examples of transformation in both business and education. In reading this text and then reviewing it, I concluded that there were three basic premises that were utilized to accomplish the purpose of the book. I think that the first premise was found within the verbiage of the preface, which related that this book is about how leaders can focus on certain key change themes that will allow them to lead effectively under messy conditions. This book is also about how leaders foster leadership in others, thereby making themselves dispensable in the long run (p. x) The second premise is that each and every leader, whether the CEO of a multinational corporation or a school principal, can become much more effective by focusing on a small number of core aspects of leadership and by developing a new mind-set about the leaders responsibility to himself or herself and to those with whom he or she works (p. 2). The premise this book uses to achieve its purpose is that it delves into the complexities of leadership . . . It provides insights, strategies, and, ultimately, better theories of knowledge and action suited to leadership in complex times (p. 10). The book lists five components of leadership that were discussed and reviewed (in detail in separate chapters) to support the three premises that were utilized to achieve its purpose. These five components were: moral purpose (which means acting with the intentions of making a positive difference in the lives of employees, customers, and society as a whole), understanding the change process (I think this is self-explanatory), relationships (which means consummating relationships with diverse people and groups; effective leaders constantly foster interaction and problem solving, and are wary of easy consensus), knowledge creation and sharing (which represents a merging of the previous three components to arrive at something new to help or facilitate the change or an understanding of it), and coherence (which is eliminating the ambiguity associated with new knowledge created and shared connecting the new knowledge to existing knowledge). The book argues that by utilizing these five components, we have the correct checks and balances for simultaneously letting go and reining in. When leaders act in the ways recommended, they will disturb the future in a manner that approximates the desired outcomes, Leading in a Culture of Change integrates the most current ideas and theories on effective leadership to support and illustrate five core competencies for leading in complex times. Fullan links components of his leadership framework with concrete examples and cases used in education and business. Moreover it allows the reader to apply the methods gradually. I found the book easy to read and quite enlightening, reinforcing some of my personal beliefs concerning successful leadership styles in the culture of change. Leading in a culture of change deals with the complexities of leadership; it provides insights, strategies and better theories of knowledge and action suited to leadership in difficult times. This book is a call for action, equipping leaders with ideas and strategies for deep success. I found this book both enjoyable and enlightening. Each page offered positive in sight into leading the change process. I would recommend this book to all administrators, whether at the central office level or on the campus. It would be an excellent centerpiece for staff development revolving around the change process. Fullan does not lead the reader to believe that by following simple steps all will work out fine. Instead he offers a path to change with many positive examples of companys and educational systems growing, developing, and maturing towards a common goal.

The Impact of the Internet on the Production, Distribution, and Consump

The creation of the web was not only a revolutionary movement but also acted as a door for endless opportunities in the music industry. Its ability alone to provide the general public with continuous information is astounding, but it also acts a platform for users to access, distribute and produce music. According to Andrew P.S (2006, 1), the internet was not created with a business mentality but as the years went by it began and continues to be moulded into a continuous path where consumers grasp the aptitude to which they could discover incessant possibilities online such as the access to music. Evidently, the internet solely acts as a huge factor in the shaping of the music industry today, more positively than negatively. Below, we will take a look at effects the internet has had on the production, distribution and consumption of popular music. By analyzing the various methods the consumer is able to get access to, distribute and consume music, the essay will be able to draw on a conclusion. The internet proves to have a far and wide reach to its users, and popular music is short of what ends it can attain. ‘’ The success of the internet is due to its worldwide broadcasting capability that allows the interaction between individuals without regard for geographic location and distance’’ Romualdo Pastor-Satorras and Alessandro V. (2007, 1). The distribution of music on the internet can be a very delicate situation. Organizations such as the RIAA provide websites such iTunes where music can be legally purchased and this in turn allows users who have no method of substantial purchase a way to access music. However, with the internet’s rapid and continuous progression, it would only be of habitual nature that illegal download we... ...ay 2012. Andrew P. Sparrow (2006). Music Distribution And the Internet: A Legal Guide for the Music Business. unknown: Gower Publishing Ltd. 1. Bruce Fries, Marty Fries (2005). Digital Audio Essentials. Sebastopol,US: O'Reilly Media. 22. Marie Heimer (2011). The Theory of Access Replacing Ownership on the Example of Spotify. unknown: Grin Verlag. 24. Michael Zager (2011). Music Production: For Producers, Composers, Arrangers, and Students. 2nd ed. unknown: Scarecrow Press. 18. O.C. Ferrell, Michael D. Hartline (2007). Marketing strategy. 4th ed. unknown: South-Western College Pub. 373. Romualdo Pastor-Satorras, Alessandro Vespignani (2007). Evolution and Structure of the Internet: A Statistical Physics Approach. unknown: Cambridge University Press. 1 unknown. (2012). Youtube. Available:http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/youtube.com. Last accessed 15th May 2012.

Google Inc. in China Essay

PROBLEM Tom Maclean is in dilemma of identifying the possible appropriate course of action he would take, acknowledging all negative attention of Google, Inc. entering the Chinese territory through the development of Google.cn, a search engine residing in China. OBJECTIVES * To provide the best possible course of action that is appropriate for Tom Maclean to communicate in the meeting with supervisor and his peer group. * To assess thoroughly the factors and courses of action concerning Google.cn that may affect the company. AREAS OF CONSIDERATION 1. Google had adopted the informal corporate motto â€Å"Don’t be evil† from the founders’ letter and also developed an ethical code of conduct for both internal and external audiences. 2. Google’s mission is â€Å"to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.† 3. China’s well-documented abuses of human rights are in violation of internationally recognized norms, stemming both from the authorities’ intolerance of dissent and the inadequacy of legal safeguards for basic freedoms. In 2005, China stepped up monitoring, harassment, intimidation, and arrest of journalists, Internet writers, defense lawyers, religious activists, and political dissidents. 4. China took a two-pronged approach to censoring the Internet. First, authorities restricted the production, development, and dissemination of improper content. Second, authorities monitored the perusal of content or receipt of information. â€Å"Harmful† content included material concerning democracy (e.g., freedom), religious cults (e.g., Falun Gong), or antigovernment protests (e.g., Tiananmen Square). 5. Google, Inc. first entered the Chinese market in early 2000 by creating a Chinese-language version of its home page. Google’s approach was to maintain a Chinese-language version of Google.com that was housed in the United States but could handle search requests originating within China. 6. In September 2002, Google.com was inaccessible for two weeks. When reinstated, it was slow and temperamental for all Chinese users and completely inaccessible for Chinese colleges and universities. According to Elliot Schrage, Google’s vice president of Global Communications and Public Affairs, â€Å"The average time to download a Google Web page was more than seven times slower than for Baidu, the leading Chinese search engine.† 7. In 2004, Google realized that its approach in China was not sustainable. Google was losing market share to Baidu, and others, including Yahoo! and Microsoft, were gaining ground through their local presence. 8. Tom MacLean, director of International Business at Google, Inc. managed the decision to physically enter Chinese territory through the development of Google.cn—a search engine residing in China. This product was â€Å"faster and more reliable, and provide more and better search results for all but a handful of politically sensitive subjects.† 9. The search results of Google.cn were subject to Chinese filtering and monitoring, which drew ire from nongovernmental organizations, academics, press, and the general public, culminating in a U.S. congressional hearing on February 15, 2005. Critics blamed Google for supporting a country with a totalitarian regime, known for its numerous human-rights violations. 10. Andrew McLaughlin, an attorney for Google, stated: â€Å"While removing search results is inconsistent with Google’s mission, providing no information †¦ is more inconsistent with our mission.† ALTERNATIVE COURSES OF ACTION 1. Remain in China through Google.cn and comply with Chinese laws and regulations that require the search results to be censored. Advantages * There will be more global connections. * The need for information across all borders. * They will expand their market share. Disadvantages * It does not conform to their mission. * Criticisms of the society will continue to arise. * Diminishing of free speech due to censorship. 2. Discontinue Google.cn and withdraw their stay in China Advantages * It would give good impression to the public by not supporting a country with a totalitarian regime. * Criticisms will diminish. Disadvantages * They would be missing out one of the largest economies. * Losing the Chinese market would hurt global strategy. * It would decrease their market share. * It will be more inconsistent to their mission. RECOMMENDATION After judging the internal and external factors, and considering Google’s stated commitment to organize and make information universally accessible and useful on the internet, I have come to the conclusion that Tom MacLean and Google, Inc. should choose to stay in China and respect the country’s custom and tradition. Google’s presence in China would undoubtedly have had  a liberalizing influence in the country, while being a huge investment for its shareholders. The company would make more money, and keep the business and employees. It will make meaningful contributions to the overall expansion of access to information in China, though imperfect. As what Andrew McLaughlin said, while removing search results is inconsistent with Google’s mission, providing no information is more inconsistent with our mission.

Coral Gables essays

Coral Gables essays George Merrick, a son of a Congregational minister, Solomon Merrick, was not even thirty years old when he embarked on the construction of Coral Gables. His family first came here when he was only a child, escaping the raging blizzard happening in New England at the time. They were actually headed for Miami, but, because of a yellow fever quarantine, they decided to settle west in an area known then as "pine land. George had a vision, a vision of a city inspired by the fury and tumult of the Old Testament. But instead of constructing a confining biblical fortress, as described by Ezekiel, Merrick proceeded to convert the plantation into a modern residential city with open inviting gates, wide avenues, trickling fountains and lush greenery, stretched into an immense garden commensurate with southern Florida. A visit to the city would begin with a passage through one of eight elaborately designed entrances intended to evoke the feeling of passing through the gates of an exotic walled city of antiquity. He also traveled extensively. He traveled to Mexico ,and also almost all of Europe. This, and also his loved for Walt Whitman's poems, for Washington Irving's Alhambra, his knowledge of the English and American city-gardens, the City Beautiful movement, was certainly intended to seek clarity and practical technical solutions needed to create Coral Gable's grandeur. But the seeds of these ideas might have sprouted from his Bible readings. Merrick wanted to begin the creation of this city right after his fathers death. Unfortunately, no bankers would give him a loan to begin his city. They did not believe he had the potential to construct such a city. The considered him a sort of dreamer, because he readpoetryy and wrote some himself. He finally got the money by selling lots to people living in Miami. Florida was one of the things that Merrick loved. In 1920, while he was already working on the shape of Coral Gables, he wrote a po...

Persuasive Topics for High Schoolers’ Speeches

Persuasive Topics for High Schoolers’ Speeches Every persuasive speech starts with a good topic. We decided to make a list of nice persuasive topics, but before we get to it, let’s define what persuasive speeches are and what is the goal of these tasks. First of all, persuasive speeches are aimed to convince an audience to accept a certain point of view. Usually, there are people in your audience who already have an opinion on your topic, so you can either reinforce a popular opinion or refute it. You have to deliver a message or motivate your audience to take some actions. Anyway, high school is the best place to develop your persuasive skills so we suggest taking this task seriously. If you can’t figure out what your speech should be about, we can help your with our list of interesting topics. Many our topics also contain key questions that may give you a hint on what arguments to use. There are topics from various fields, including medicine, education, and social issues. We hope that you will easily find a topic that will be interesting to discuss with other students. High School Persuasive Topics About School Why are exams important for students? You can tell about important knowledge that you get in school and how it can be used after graduation. You can also provide some suggestions on how to become more productive. Field trips and their role in the process of education. Obviously, field trips are aimed to make education fun. What knowledge students can get during such trips? What other benefits do you see? Why we go to college after school? Explain how can students benefit from college and describe what can happen if they don’t go to college. You can give a couple examples of successful people who managed to build their careers without college. What is their secret? Advantages of changing school hours. Every student has his or her biorhythms that may differ from the school schedule. Many if such students feel too tired after school or don’t eat their breakfast at morning because of the rush. What other problems do you see? Why should students use their phones? How can they benefit from using cell phones? Most professors claim that it is a distraction. What do you think about it? iPads and other tablets in high school. What are advantages of tablets over textbooks? How may these devices help students learn better? How to motivate students to use their tablets for studying instead of playing games? Why should educational facilities provide free textbooks? Textbooks become more expensive every year. Think of how much money students spend on their textbooks. Convince your audience to raise funds for some threatened species, for example, Angonoka tortoise or Sumatran rhino. What measures can help us save these animals? What is the biggest danger for them? Female students and makeup. Many teachers shame girls who wear makeup in school. Is it right? Every person has a right to look like he or she wants. Some people have problems with their skin so they wear makeup to feel more confident. What kind of makeup do you consider appropriate for school students? Should students be allowed to listen to music when studying? Provide your audience with necessary facts so they can think whether listening to music is a distraction from studying or something that may help students focus. Persuasive Topics on Medicine for High School How often do we need to wash hands? Why we must wash hands and what happens if we don’t do it? Tell about diseases that spread due to dirty hands. How may washing hands help treat some diseases? Cancer. How can we fight it? Persuade your audience to join the American Cancer Society. Why is it important to stand up against this deadly disease? How such societies help people diagnosed with cancer? Why should students donate plasma? Tell about the use of plasma in various kinds of therapy. Describe benefits of donating plasma and give some examples of how donors saved lives. The role of red wine in preventing stomach ulcers. Provide your audience with information about the use of red wine for fighting bugs that poison food. Does white wine have the same effect? Benefits of healthy food. Describe the main reasons why we need to eat healthy food. List key principles of healthy eating and its role in fighting obesity, anxiety, and other health problems. Benefits of eating potatoes. Describe how potatoes help in lowering blood pressure, fighting obesity, etc. Conduct a research and provide as many facts as you can. Why should people donate their organs? Choose several reliable sources and explain why it’s better to donate your organs in case of a car accident or any other kind of unexpected death. Advantages of free healthcare. Do you think that healthcare should be free? Why? Compare the situation with healthcare before the Affordable Healthcare Act was repealed against the Trump’s healthcare policy. Plastic surgery. Focus on arguments for and against plastic surgery and tell about its history. Tell how plastic surgery is used to help soldiers and people who survived tragic accidents. What are negative sides of plastic surgery? How people use it to improve their self-esteem? Persuade your audience to join the American Red Cross. Tell what internship programs this organization offers students. Describe benefits of joining the Red Cross for their education and careers. Topics on Society for High School Students Cyberbullying. Why should we fight against it? Provide your audience with statistical data on children who become victims of cyberbullying. How bullying affects their self-esteem and psychological condition? You can also mention cases of cyberbullying among adults. How can it be stopped? Crime among juveniles. How should they be sentenced? Explain why they are sentenced as adults and how it can affect their future. Do IQ tests really reflect the level of somebody’s intelligence? Find reliable sources and provide your audience with information on alternative tests. Explain what tests are more accurate and why. Do we need to protect freedom of speech on the internet? Consider sexist, racist, and homophobic views in the context of freedom of speech. Should we allow people with such views express their opinion on the internet? Explain how we can make the internet safer for children. What types of discrimination are present in the modern world? Do we realize all possible ways of discrimination? Provide your audience with information on discrimination by age. Why we can’t just deport Hispanic immigrants? Tell about the reasons why immigrants from Mexico and other countries come to the US. Mention examples of Mexicans who work hard in the US, making their contribution to the economy. Compare Barak Obama’s and Donald Trump’s positions on this issue. Why should same-sex marriage be legal? Why should we allow gay couples to adopt children? Support your point with examples from states where gay marriages are legal. Why should we support the system of birth control? What methods of birth control are most effective? Tell why birth control is good for society and provide examples from various countries. Incarceration. Provide examples of the effective and ineffective use of incarceration. What are benefits and drawbacks of incarceration? Should women make a proposal? Explain why everybody must be able to propose marriage and express feelings. Interesting Persuasive Speech Topics for High School Benefits of learning foreign languages. How can foreign languages can help in education? What career opportunities you get when you know a foreign language? Why do people like to travel? Does it help in developing certain qualities and skills? Mention the importance of new experiences for our psychological state. What can students do if they want to travel but don’t have enough money for it? Why is Bora Bora a perfect place to spend your holidays? Tell about its climate and provide other important information about the island. What is the influence of devices on kids? Many experts state that devices make them lazy. Find reliable sources and provide examples of such an impact of electronic gadgets. Mention such problems as decreased social activity, obesity, anxiety, and isolation. Texting while driving. Why is it dangerous? Provide your audience with statistical data on car accidents caused by drivers who were texting. Compare these statistics with data on driving on drugs and alcohol. Human-animal hybrids. Should scientists be allowed to create them? Why? Focus on ethical and practical aspects of this issue. What is the difference between animals and human-like beings? Why it’s important to use alternative energy sources? Describe how solar panels work and why we should use them instead of traditional technologies. Focus on the environmental and economic issues. Do we need to prohibit the use of animals in circus performances? Provide examples of trainers abusing their animals and examples of good treatment. Why do we need to stop plastic pollution? Find information on how plastic decomposes and how much time it takes. What eco-friendly technologies can help us stop pollution? What recycling technologies we can use? Positive aspects of electric cars. Why should we buy them instead of traditional vehicles? How can electric cars help us stop air pollution? What disadvantages they have? For example, describe the process of battery utilization. Funny Topics for a High School Persuasive Speech Find some evidence that UFOs exist. Begin your speech with skeptical arguments and then refute them from the ufologists’ perspective. Why should we stop tipping waiters? Focus on the fact that, by tipping, we motivate employers to pay minimum wages. Mention Japanese traditions ? Japanese waiters consider tipping as an insult. Why do we need to spend less time with our devices? Provide statistical data on how much time we spend surfing the web. What hard do mobile devices cause? How can we spend less time in social media? Why should we eat Chinese food with chopsticks? Find interesting information about the history of Chinese kitchen and etiquette. Imagine yourself a Big Brother and write a speech from this person. Try to make it a hate speech. Focus on some country that is currently at war and describe how people hate each other and why you like it. The moon landing was a lie. Choose any conspiracy theory about the fake mission and tell how the â€Å"fake† video with Neil Armstrong was filmed. Don’t forget to mention the fluttering flag. Why are GMOs actually good? Many people believe that GMOs cause various diseases, including cancer. Find reliable sources that prove the complete safety of GMO products. Why should we realize that ghosts are real? Present evidence that ghosts are real. Find some shocking photos and videos as well as interviews with people who claim that they have seen ghosts. Why pit bulls have a bad reputation? Provide your audience with information on the history of these dogs and refute common misconceptions about them. Abstinence is a perfect way to protect yourself from STDs or pregnancy. Present statistical data on the efficiency of abstinence compared to common contraceptives. Tell how abstinence can improve a marriage. If you can’t find any topic that looks interesting to you, check some creative ideas for a persuasive speech in high school: We need censorship in music. Orange juice is good for your health. We need law regulation for graffiti. Weed must be legal. Public broadcasting. Small stores are better than malls. We must drive slower. We should buy generics instead of brand name products. The best movie in history. Angels exist. Benefits of learning CPR. We must use public transport instead of personal cars. Agenda-setting in media. We need larger counties. Why we must read more. We should stop wearing tight pants. Stomach stapling. Darfur crisis. Benefits of joining the army. Smoking in public. Drinking is dangerous for society. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Columbus Day. Build a strong family. Public bathrooms must be cleaner. Benefits of buying security systems. How to avoid food with artificial hormones. Live your life as good as you can. Alternatives for prisons. Why religious cults are dangerous. Reincarnation is real. We need to completely reduce secondhand smoke by making a smoke-free environment. Benefits of the Greek system. We need a strict system of regulations for the internet. We can fix potholes. France boycott. Why we need to ban fireworks. We need more strict laws for advertising. Good sides of state lotteries. We should ban aggressive driving. Why you should be who you really are. The best TV show ever. We must ban Ticketmaster. Why we don’t need sin taxes. The importance of bachelorette and bachelor parties. We shouldn’t use shock therapy. The government must control freedom of speech. Share the road with bicycles. Find Even More Topics for Your Persuasive Speech on Our Website! We know that sometimes it’s hard to find a good topic for your high school speech. If you think that you’re never going to make it, don’t worry and contact us. Place an order and our experts will find a perfect topic and prepare an impressive persuasive speech for you. Describe your task in details and our writers will deliver you the exact content you are looking for.