Synopsis Of A Clockwork Orange Essays - English-language Films

Synopsis Of A Clockwork Orange Synopsis of A Clockwork Orange In A Clockwork Orange, the main character is that of a mildly young child of 15 who, along with his fellow friends, or Droogs, partake in evenings of Ultra-Violence. Ultra Violence consists of random beatings, theft, destruction, and rape. The main character, Alex, is the self-proclaimed leader of the pack, and makes judgment on their actions pending on his mood. His Droogs eventually find themselves under his direct rule, following his every word, and decide to challenge his authority. The three Droogs (Dim, Georgie, and Pete) join Alex on his romp to a local fat farm to pillage the goods therein. Inside, Alex stumbles upon the owner of the resort, and after a length scuffle with her, ends up giving her a blow to the head with a rather large, ceramic replica of an erect penis. When he leaves the outer gates of the complex, Dim surprises him by smacking a milk bottle against his face. His counterparts escape while little Alex is left bleeding and blinded to deal with the police. Upon interrogation of Alex, he discovers that the blow he delivered to the young lady was a fatal one. He is charged with first-degree murder and sentenced to 14 years in prison. While there, he befriends the resident minister and becomes a helper to his service. The minister, Alex soon discovers, is a part in a new form of treatment that is trying to be implemented prisons to help cure inmates from committing acts of violence. Through luck and discussion with the higher officials in the prison, Alex is chose to be a guinea pig for the experiment, and is sent to become inoculated from violence. The treatment consisted of Alex being strapped down to a chair in front of a cinema screen, having electrodes attached to his head, and being kept focused by small pairs of clamps used to disable his ability to blink. This, along with the injection of an experimental serum, is monitored whilst he views movies of UltraViolence. The serum leaves him vulnerable to his surroundings, which are destructive films, and induces such feelings of helplessness, fear, and near-death paralysis, similar to that of drowning. Alex soon associates this feeling of distraught with the violence, and with the background music being played throughout the entire ordeal: Beethoven, Alex's main love. The final result is that whenever Alex is confronted with either violent acts of any kind, or the sweet strings of Ludwig Van, he is soon on his knees in pain and agony. When he is released, his parents abandon him. He meets up with a few members of his old gang that have turned into crooked cops, and with their newfound power and long-lasting loathe of Alex, they beat him much and leave him for dead, this of which brought on the sickness that he was conditioned for. Stumbling in the dark for help, he comes across a polite looking residence that looked vaguely familiar. Eventually, Alex realizes that he is in the presence of a former victim of his, but believes that the owner would not recognize him. To his dismay, the author did recognize him after hearing Alex sing a song in a very similar fashion to the way his attackers did 2 years ago. After slipping a sedative into Alex's wine, Alex wakes up to find himself in a locked room on the second floor of an apartment high-rise. Through the floorboards, Alex starts to hear the hateful sounds of Beethoven, and goes into his sickness fits. No exits, No escapes. His only way out is to jump out of the closed window and end his life. He does just that. Alex wakes in a hospital. The author was jailed for attempted murder, and the government officials that started the program were ridiculed and harassed out of their positions. Alex finds himself broken and hurt, but his thoughts are that of the Ultra-Violence. Alex was cured and ready to live again. Aspects of Psychology In A Clockwork Orange, Alex is portrayed as two different people living within the same body. As a mischievous child raping the world, he as seen as filth.

Small Business in South Africa

Small Business in South Africa Introduction With the world population increasing at an alarming rate, the rates of unemployment are expected to increase and people will have to find alternatives to the formal employment by finding other means through which they can make a living.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Small Business in South Africa specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More From all spheres of the world, it has been lately discovered that creation of small businesses is one of the way through which a country citizens can reduce their reliance on the nation and that small businesses play a very important role in the economic, political, and social development of a country. This sector however has been faced with many challenges on their establishments particularly in the developing countries such as in the Asian and African states. The small business faces quite a number of challenges from taxation issues to lack of funding and corruption. The obj ective of this study will be to analyze the challenges small businesses face in South Africa and recommend on the likely solutions to these challenges. The reason for choosing South Africa rather than Sudan is the fact that in South Africa small business enterprises are very important particularly to the majority of the low skilled population[1]. It is a fact that: â€Å"Small, medium and micro-enterprises (â€Å"SMMEs†) contribute 36.1% of the country’s gross domestic product (â€Å"GDP†) and employ 68.2% of the workforce in the private sector. In the agriculture, construction and retail sectors, SMMEs employ more than 80% of the total workforce. Over the last few years, the growth in employment by SMMEs has exceeded the growth in their contribution to GDP, highlighting the job creation potential of this sector of the economy†.[2] That is the reason why many refer small businesses as the development engine for most countries as they aid in economic growt h and job creation. In the last few years, they have been the sole means which has accelerated growth in rather poor economic conditions as most of them create employment and enhance poverty reduction[3]. Definition of Small Business It is a very difficult process of defining what a small business is because it all depends on the perspective you look at it. The few characteristics one may look when defining a small business include the potential market size, the management, the size of the employees and many other factors. Some people define a small business as a business having less than 20 employees[4], categorizing them as non employing businesses, micro businesses and other businesses.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Others define small businesses in terms of ownership and management characteristics. These classes of small businesses include the independent ow ned, close control by owners and partnerships. In consideration that this study is based on South Africa, we will use the country’s definition according to the National Business Act that a small business is a business with not more than 50 employees with the turn-over rates varying according to the sector. There is quite a big distinction in small businesses between service and manufacturing small businesses. The policy makers and business owners of small manufacturing businesses attribute old technologies and management strategies as some of the challenges they face on their way to growth while the service businesses are all about one’s attitude and adaptability of the business. In terms of size, the service industries are also known to be larger than the manufacturing businesses and their out put per worker is higher compared to the manufacturing businesses due to the simple fact that while manufacturing rely on physical capital service, businesses rely on human capi tal which can be increased or decreased according to the situation. Small services businesses are also not entitled to registration for taxation in contrast to the manufacturing businesses which have to register and pay taxes. For example, a small manufacturing business will require capital to buy the plant machinery while a service industry such as the hair salon requires the human effort only to earn the money. Another challenge lies on the differences in the costs of acquiring assets. It makes it more beneficial to start a small service business rather than a manufacturing one. According to the South African law â€Å"small business means a separate and distinct business entity, including co-operative enterprises and non-governmental organizations, managed by one owner or more, which including its branches or subsidiaries (if any) is predominantly carried on in any sector or sub sector of the economy†[5] And the amendment of the bill in 2003 classified small businesses und er the following categories (see appendix for the table)[6]. Overview of the Small Business Context Small businesses in South Africa do not contribute more to the GDP compared to other developing countries due to several challenges which include the high unemployment rate and inflation. Many studies show that the small business sector contributes 30 to 50 % of the country’s GDP. SEDA puts the figures at 42% as of year 2002, 46% as of 2004 and at 30% as of 2007.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Small Business in South Africa specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Aswani[7] estimates south Africa had 2.5 million enterprises as of 1999 with 45% of south Africans working in the sector which represented 4.8 million people and at that time the small businesses contributed about 50% of the GDP. With the poverty rates having risen from 15.5 % in 1995 to 30.5% in the year 2002, the small business contribution has since redu ced to the above said level. To the employment, the small business sector absorbed 57% as of 2002[8]. Constraining Issues As in any other sector in the economy, the small business sector faces quite a number of challenges as they try to improve and increase their contribution to the south African’s GDP. According to the SADE SMME (Small Medium and Micro Enterprises) development and support plan, the major factors hindering the growth of small businesses are: â€Å"Finance, structural demands, intensity of competition, cost of labour, labour legislation, managerial skills, and managerial style†[9]. These above constrains will be covered in this study as under infrastructure, corruption, inflation, lack of credit and the human resources. Corruption: (Legal – Political – Economic) The act of unfair or illegal influence in decision making process by use of power or wealth, for example, the act of giving or receiving a bribe in order to give service or an ille gal substance can be described as corruption. This vice occurs in every country in the world and in every level be it in the private or the public sector[10]. The giver and the receiver of the bribe are beneficially of the crime and thus both need to be punished by the existing laws. Instance of corruption have been reported in south Africa for example in places where crime rates are high, small business owners are reported having given policemen money in order to access their protection from the criminal activities[11]. Analysis:Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More If the small businesses are not protected from the criminals, they will continue losing their millions of investment but paying policemen in order to acquire their services (while that is the job they are assigned to do) amounts to corruption and losses to the already endangered small business enterprises. Implication: Corruption in South Africa is a major hindrance to the country’s small business sector and action need to be taken against corruption as it reduces the productivity capability of the small businesses. Inflation: (Economic) Small businesses are also vulnerable to the low inflation rates which increase the cost of doing business and leads to a probability of businesses making huge losses as a result of the decreased prices. In the year 2010 the country recorded a 3.2% as of September this is very risky for those doing business within[12]. Analysis: When inflation is at very low rates it reduces the chances of recovering the borrowed capital. For example, let†™s say you bought an item for 10 Rands and then next time the price falls to 5 Rands that means if the money was from a borrowed source you will have to find ways of sourcing for 5 Rands per item and this makes the banks to take higher precautions when giving out loans. Implication: Low inflation rates while they may be healthy for the population as a whole do not favour businesses in realizing their profitability due to the decreased prices of commodities. Infrastructure: (Technological – Economic) Despite the good infrastructure network in South Africa, a research based on Soweto youth entrepreneurs shows that infrastructure is a major barrier to the success of small businesses in that area. They cites examples of the city of Johannesburg making some efforts in tarring the roads and providing taxi facilities but the report also complains that the city is doing nothing to support business activities in Soweto. The report also indicates that improvements in the transport se ctor would allow more people to move easily within the Soweto area and this could enhance their business activities[13]. Analysis: If the infrastructure connecting major towns and rural areas such as Soweto could be improved, the small business sector could improve a lot as this would enhance cheaper movement and exchange of goods and services between the major and the minor players in the business sector. Implication: Poor infrastructure increases costs of conducting business in any place and thus to increase the contribution of small business sector in South Africa infrastructure need to be improved in all places. Lack of credit funding: (Economic) Commercial banks and other financial institutions are unable to fund small businesses due to internal capacity problems. Most of the small business owners requiring financial assistance from the finance and banking sectors are unable to provide the banks with adequate reliable information which can allow their evaluation on their credit worthiness. This makes the commercial banks in South Africa provide credit facilities to only those businesses which provide reliable information fulfilling the credit worthiness criterion. Offering loans to small business owners is also difficult in South Africa as most banks offer loans with high return rates and this increase the cost of borrowing in the country. Information from Investors Network indicates that on average when people present their business plans to financial institutions this is what happens: â€Å"60% are rejected after a 30 minute review 25% are rejected after a 3 hour appraisal 10% are rejected after a full day evaluation 3% are rejected following failed negotiations 2% succeed in raising funds Yes, read it again, only 2% of businesses seeking private equity are successful.†[14] Analysis: With the high costs of borrowing most of the South African small business owners are unable to source for extra capital that may be required to expand their business es and also the low probability of accessing loans in south Africa makes it hard for small businesses to succeed as in other countries. Implication: The small businesses in the country will continue to suffer unless legislations are enacted which can allow most of the small business entrepreneurs access loans without much scrutiny as far as there are collaterals to the loans. Human Resources: (Social Culture) There is the inability of small businesses to obtain well trained and qualified personnel as they are unable to provide comfortable and better pay working conditions and most of the time they offer wages which are way below the current market rates[15] . As a result, larger businesses remain way above small businesses. Most small businesses as we saw with the country’s guidelines are made of few employees thus higher chances of understaffing. The apartheid era employed an inferior education system and unfair patterns of population settlements. Thus, it has been evident t hat most of the South Africans of the African origin are inadequately skilled in any field they are participating in and this has been a major challenge as they start up and run their small businesses. Analysis: The low education among the South Africans of African origin is one of the major causes of the limitation of small business staffing particularly those owned by the blacks. Understaffing is also a major problem as most small business want to gain higher profits; the result is exhaustion and poor workmanship. Implication: As long as the small businesses are understaffed, their productivity will always remain low compared to the large business enterprises. Recommendations To improve the small businesses situation in South Africa, the small business owners need to access funds for their business activities. The government and the banking institutions need to agree on the requirements one has to fulfil when acquiring loans. To the question about infrastructure, the government sh ould ensure that the transport network is well established in all places whether in the major towns or in the ghettos so as to promote the growth of small businesses in the country. The challenge of inflation is more of a global issue but the central bank in the country should control its releasing and hold up of money so as to avoid high inflation or deflation rates on the country’s currency. Action Plan: To reduce inflation the government should design policies which enable its currency value to be at a stable position to avoid unexpected changes in prices. For the corruption part if the country authorities could ensure that every citizen is safe when doing business and that bribes are not given out in order to gain favours, small businesses will move miles ahead. Understaffing is brought about by the inability of small businesses to acquire enough capital to run the business and thus by enabling small business owners access loans at lower costs will enable them hire more w orking personnel. Conclusion The small business contribution to the country’s GDP is very low compared to other countries and thus for their contribution to be higher, challenges they face such as corruption, poor infrastructure, inflation and inadequacy in human resources need to be addressed and a good solution reached. Bibliography Anonymous. â€Å"Small business in Australia.† Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2009, abs.gov.au/ausstats/[emailprotected]/0/97452F3932F44031CA256C5B00027F19?OpenDocument . Aswani, Frank. â€Å"Barriers and facilitators to transitioning of small businesses (SMME’s) from the second to the first economy in South Africa: Gordon Institute of Business Science.† University of Pretoria, 2007, http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-03182010-160845/unrestricted/dissertation.pdf . Centre for Development and Enterprise report. â€Å"Young Soweto entrepreneurs.† CDE, June 2007, cipe.org/regional/africa/pdf/CDEReportYoungSowet oEntrepreneurs.pdf . Foreign Investment Advisory Service of the World Bank Group. 2007. South Africa Investors Network. â€Å"Private Equity Financing for SMEs in South Africa.† Investors Network, Not Dated. investorsnetwork.co.za/component/idoblog/viewpost/105 . Minnaar. â€Å"BUSA Anticorruption Working Group.† Newsletter, 2008, busa.org.za/docs/BUSINESS%20ANTI-CORRUPTION%20NEWSLETTER.pdf . Molapo, Sekoala. â€Å"Financial sector support for small business development.† University of Johannesburg, 2007, http://ujdigispace.uj.ac.za:8080/dspace/bitstream/10210/620/1/Final%20Draft%203.pdf . National Small Business Act. Republic Of South Africa, 1996. National Small Business Amendment Bill. Republic of South Africa, 2003. Newham, Gareth. â€Å"Tackling police corruption in South Africa.† Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, 2002, csvr.org.za/docs/policing/tacklingpolicecorruption.pdf . Okpara John Wynn, Pamela. â€Å"Determinants of Small Business Growth Constraints in a Sub-Saharan African Economy.† SAM Advanced Management Journal, 2007. Trading Economics. â€Å"South Africa inflation rate.† Tradingeconomics, 2010, tradingeconomics.com/Economics/Inflation-CPI.aspx?Symbol=ZAR . Xhariep SMME Development and Support Plan. Small Enterprise Development Agency, 2009. Footnotes Foreign Investment Advisory Service of the World Bank Group. 2007. South Africa Foreign Investment Advisory Service of the World Bank Group. 2007. South Africa p.15 John, Okpara., Pamela Wynn. â€Å"Determinants of Small Business Growth Constraints in a Sub-Saharan African Economy.† SAM Advanced Management Journal, 2007. Anonymous. â€Å"Small business in Australia.† Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2009, abs.gov.au/ausstats/[emailprotected]/0/97452F3932F44031CA256C5B00027F19?OpenDocument . National Small Business Act, 1996. clause XV National Small Business Amendment Bill, 2003 Frank, Aswani. â€Å"Barriers and facilit ators to transitioning of small businesses (SMME’s) from the second to the first economy in South Africa: Gordon Institute of Business Science.† University of Pretoria, 2007,http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-03182010-160845/unrestricted/dissertation.pdf . Xhariep SMME Development and Support Plan. Small Enterprise Development Agency, 2009. Xhariep SMME Development and Support Plan. Small Enterprise Development Agency, 2009. p.14 Minnaar. â€Å"BUSA Anticorruption Working Group.† Newsletter, 2008, busa.org.za/docs/BUSINESS%20ANTI-CORRUPTION%20NEWSLETTER.pdf . Gareth, Newham. â€Å"Tackling police corruption in South Africa.† Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, 2002, csvr.org.za/docs/policing/tacklingpolicecorruption.pdf . Trading Economics. â€Å"South Africa inflation rate.† Tradingeconomics, 2010, tradingeconomics.com/Economics/Inflation-CPI.aspx?Symbol=ZAR . Centre for Development and Enterprise report. â€Å"Young Sowet o entrepreneurs.† CDE, focus number 11 of June 2007, cipe.org/regional/africa/pdf/CDEReportYoungSowetoEntrepreneurs.pdf . Investors Network. â€Å"Private Equity Financing for SMEs in South Africa.† Investors Network, Not Dated. investorsnetwork.co.za/component/idoblog/viewpost/105 . Sekoala, Molapo. â€Å"Financial sector support for small business development.† University of Johannesburg, 2007, http://ujdigispace.uj.ac.za:8080/dspace/bitstream/10210/620/1/Final%20Draft%203.pdf .

Adolescents are not in turmoil,not deeply disturbed and not resistant Research Proposal

Adolescents are not in turmoil,not deeply disturbed and not resistant to parental values - Research Proposal Example Adolescence is commonly perceived as that stage of physiological, mental, and emotional development between childhood and adulthood. Generally taken as the â€Å"pre-teen† to â€Å"teen† ages, usually at the onset of puberty until about 18 or 19, the period of adolescent development pertains to a rather diverse range of determinant influences including social, environmental, religious, even cultural factors for the concept to be framed in more definitive terms. In this paper, the context adopted by the American Psychological Association (A.P.A.) in its scientific publication titled â€Å"Developing Adolescents: A reference for Professionals† shall be, likewise, adopted: â€Å"There is no standard age range for defining adolescence. Individuals can begin adolescence earlier than age 10, just as some aspects of adolescent development often continue past the age of 18. Although the upper age boundary is sometimes defined as older than 18 (e.g., age 21 or 25), there is widespread agreement that those in the age range of 10 to 18 should be considered adolescents.† (p. 2) The stage of adolescence is definitely the most exciting period of most everyone’s life. The period of discoveries and learning on your own, the time of exciting encounters and relationships, of heightened interests in new and more exciting things than dolls and matchboxes, it is that time in our lives that almost every adult, if not every adult, would look back to with fondness and great relish. It is the period of our lives when we looked at everything in the world with more intense interest and passion. Child psychologist Gregory Ramey at Dayton Children’s in his Dayton Daily News article titled Adolescent Turmoil writes, â€Å"Teens feel the world so passionately. They live life differently from the rest of us. They experience intense sadness at things that appear trivial and escalate to extreme excitement at seemingly insignificant eventsâ€Å". He continues further, â€Å"They enjoy

Those Winter Sundays, by Robert Hayden Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Those Winter Sundays, by Robert Hayden - Essay Example The poem can be interpreted in many ways. As an example, it could be interpreted as a son who dislikes his father. It could also be seen as a boy who was longing for the love of his father. However it is interpreted, the fact remains that it is a poem about the coldness that lurks between this boy and his father. Hayden uses metaphors in the poem that match the winter cold. The metaphors are implied more than they are spoken. As an example, the father in the poem â€Å"got up early and put his clothes on in the blueblack cold† (3). The poem then states about the boy, â€Å"I’d wake and hear the cold splintering, breaking† (6). When these two sentences are analyzed together, the â€Å"blueblack cold† (3) of winter is a possible metaphor for an abusive relationship between father and son. The words â€Å"blue black† are often associated with â€Å"black and blue† in terms of a bruise or an injury. The â€Å"cold splintering, breaking† (6 ) could be a metaphor that is not only about the weather, but the implication that the relationship between the father and his son is also cold, splintering and breaking. Because the boy states that when he wakes up in the morning, he is â€Å"fearing the chronic angers of that house† (9), the reader can assume that the boy is abused in some way. There may not be physical abuse at this time because the father’s hands are â€Å"cracked† (3) â€Å"from labor in the weekday whether† (4) and it would not be comfortable for him to physically hurt his son but the emotional abuse may have been a part of their everyday life. It appears that there is no mother in this family and the reason that the boy and his father are reacting to each other as they are could have something to do with the mother’s absence. The coldness that they share could be their response to grieving at the loss of the mother. This poem could also be one of the poet’s members. A ccording to C. Ekrem Teymur, Robert Hayden grew up in a Detroit ghetto and he spent is time with his parents, but also with a foster family that lived next door to his family (par. 1). This could have been a reflection of what happened to him in his past. The title of the poem suggests that â€Å"those† were the days that he is remembering, and that in the winter time, this was what happened every winter. The entire poem gives the read a sense of coldness. The winter is very cold with the â€Å"blueblack cold† â€Å"(2), â€Å"cold splintering† (6), and â€Å"driven out the cold† (11) without replacing it with warmth. There are only two lines that mention some type of warmth: â€Å"when the rooms were warm† (7) his father would call him. This was interesting because warmth would seem cozy and not something that would happen in this house. When his father called him out of the warmth the boy was, â€Å"fearing the chronic angers† (9) possibl y, because the cold was what he was used to both in temperature and inside the house with the unspoken cold. One line of the poem is very difficult to understand. â€Å"What did I know of love’s austere and lonely offices?† (14). I did not understand this last line and it seems to have nothing to do with the rest of the information. How does this fit into the rest of the poem? According to Peter E. Murphy, the word â€Å"office† has to be put into a context of doing service to others. Murphy explains that in Catholicism, â€Å"office† means the â€Å"daily obligatory prayers† (16) and therefore the passage could mean that love is lonely in this particular space and it is something that must be done, but does not appear here. I am still not sure of what this means. In

BHS 414 Cross Cultural Health Perspectives (Mod 1 CBT) Essay

BHS 414 Cross Cultural Health Perspectives (Mod 1 CBT) - Essay Example gradations to the way the treatment is carried out through various health organisations who carry out detailed statistical analysis to find out and finally implement the ‘most effective’ treatment regimen, so in a way, the whole system in quite mechanistic. On the contrary, Native American medicine is based on what the physician ‘feels’ is best for the person. And the patients are never referred to as cases. There is an effort made to understand the life force flowing within the person and understanding its interaction with the environment. There is a belief in the synchronicity of the whole universe of which we are a part. Efforts are directed towards understanding the environment of the person and his interaction with it. Allopathy focuses more on the physical plane, one reason why psychiatry fails miserably when it comes to treating some mental illnesses. Whereas native American medicine encompasses all the realms of existence including physical, mental, spiritual, ethereal- existence of some of which modern medicine even doubts. It goes beyond what the senses can perceive in the physical word so the word proof has limited meaning. Using the words in common parlance, the modern medicine is based on ‘scienceâ€℠¢ whereas native American medicine is based on ‘art’. Now there should be a pragmatic approach dealing with both broad, apparently different forms of healing, keeping the well being and good health of the people at large at the forefront. Referring to the case study in question here, Mr. Wolf and his wife should be given a balanced view point so that he can utilize the best of what both forms of medicine have on offer. As a health care provider first of all care should be taken to make sure that Mr. Wolf should not take a traditional medicine, which in the process of healing brings the levels of antibiotics to toxic levels for the body. This should be conveyed to the patient and he should be advised to properly inform the traditional healer

Quality Systems Of Tesco Plc And Waitrose Marketing Essay

Quality Systems Of Tesco Plc And Waitrose Marketing Essay Operations management encompasses all activities in an organisation that transform its inputs into desired outputs. Operation Managements activities consist of planning, designing, implementing and controlling the firms operation through an efficient and effective use of its resources to produce and deliver goods and services so as to satisfy its customers needs (Slack, Chambers, Johnston, 2004). Quality is very important in the mind of the customer because it influences the choice in purchasing that product. A quality product is one which satisfies customer demand completely and which is done right the first time itself. The quality of a product can be classified in two categories, which is firstly the design quality and secondly the performance quality of a product. Design quality involves the purpose of a good or facility. A shopper usually classifies the quality of a product through its look, process and dependability. Furthermore, performance quality involves the extent to which products and services correspond to the plan of the design. Quality management is essential to effective operations management, particularly continuous management. More recent advancements in quality, such as benchmarking and Total Quality Management, have resulted in advancements to operations management as well. Quality management ensures that there is quality in a products and services. Although there are different approaches to solve quality issues, all the goal are the same which is to create a high quality, high performing product or services which is in conformity with customers expectations. Quality management is very important in companies for various reasons. It ensures product quality in the sense that product can be produced as per stated promise, which is durability, performance and reliability. Customer satisfaction where surveys can be conducted to understand the qualities customers want from the product, as well as how it can be improved. Increased revenues as quality products and services give the company a spotless reputation in the industry and this can lead to new customers and also selling additional products and services to existing customers. Moreover unnecessary processes can be eliminated and the employee can do the same job in less time thus decreasing the additional salary paid him. Quality management also helps to reduce wastage as companies that house inventory has to incur the holding costs and also tracking of the inventory which ultimately will be included in the price. Therefore, to keep inventory at a low level without incurring any waste, manuf acturers can work closely with suppliers using a Just-In-Time philosophy and thus becoming more responsive to customers. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research methodology is a system of collecting data for a research project which provide critical insight into the subject matter of the research. The basis upon which the research approach is selected depends upon the requirement of the research topic and its main objectives. (Fraenkel and Wallen. 1993). According to Saunders et al the two main types of research approaches are quantitative and qualitative research. For the purpose of collecting data on the quality aspect of the operational management, the researcher has adopted both qualitative and quantitative approach. Primary data was obtained from Tesco branch of Thornton Heath which was selected for this purpose and was compared with the Waitrose branch of Croydon. Research techniques such as face to face interviews using open ended questions with the store managers of both supermarkets were used. In addition observation of the processes across various branches of Tesco and Waitrose was done for a period of two weeks. These two particular research techniques were chosen because it enables the researcher to get more detail and additional information which could not have been obtained otherwise if another research methodology for example questionnaire was used. Moreover it enables the researcher to have an insight in the quality problems existing in the operation management. The information obtained during the interviews and through physical observation is used to generalise the quality system and philosophies adopted across all branches as Tesco and Waitrose because as a franchisee these supermar kets are much known for standardisation across all their levels of area of business. Secondary data is another method of obtaining data which is readily available at relatively no cost from sources such as the company website, books, and academic journals at relatively no cost. Some of the limitations of the research techniques used for this research were that the store managers refused to answer some of the questions. HISTORY OF BUSINESS TESCO Supermarkets giant Tesco was founded in 1919 after the First World War by Jack Cohen when he started selling surplus groceries from a stall in the East London and made  £1 profit from  £4 sales. Tesco got its name from the initials of TE Stockwell where he was a partner in the firm of tea suppliers and CO from his surname. He managed to cope with adverse economic conditions and subsequently with rapid changing technology, increasingly sophisticated consumers and competitions. The first official store was opened in 1929 and the company kept flourishing throughout the twentieth century. In 1992 the company launched its slogan ; every little helps, followed by Tesco value in 1993 and in 1995 it overtook Sainsburys and became the UKs largest food retailer. . It managed to become the first British trader with a companys loyalty card when the Tesco Clubcard was introduced, and has also developed many innovative products and services to make more profit. Today, Tesco has 2482 stores in the U.K and 2329 stores in other countries, with an overall staff number of 472,000 worldwide. WAITROSE Waitrose is the UK leading chain of quality food retailer and is part of John Lewis Partnership since 1937.Founded in 1904 by William Waite, Arthur Rose and David Taylor in a small town called Acton in West London, today Waitrose is the country most successful, innovative and largest chain of supermarkets differentiating itself from its competitors by providing high quality products and excellent customer services. It mainly targets the high income earners. As to date, Waitrose has 228 branches across the United Kingdom and a 4.3% share of the market, making it the 6th largest grocery retailer in the UK. Waitrose has been expanding in the domestic market by adopting a strategy of growth by acquisition and very recently it has started to franchise its licence. Its first overseas store was opened in Dubai in April 2008 and its plans to focus more on its overseas market in the near future. The main competitors of the chain of supermarket are Marks and Spencer, Tesco, Sainsbury and many more. COMPARISION OF TESCO AND WAITROSE Quality Philosophy Tesco quality philosophy is to deliver the best possible service to the customers by providing high quality products at cheaper price. Its target market is the middle income with young children. Waitrose is committed to bring the best quality of food. Its price is at a premium. It has built its reputation on its quality and the freshness of the food. Its targeted market is the high income earners and compared to Tesco, its stores are located in affluent areas. Quality systems Quality systems Even though Tesco and Waitrose cater to different segments of income group customer both the store stress on quality. They take different aspects into consideration while choosing the products that need to be displayed on their shelves. Below are the various methods that both the stores consider Tesco Tesco takes regular feedback from their customers regarding the quality of the products and the service they received from the stores. Based on the feedback, the Quality control team ensures that the products that reach the stores are of high quality. This ensures the product consistency and good value for the customers, every time. Tescos quality and life of the products are constantly monitored and sample checked across various steps in supply chain from production to the stores. According to Tesco Would I buy it strategy is employed which empowers anyone involved with the production, packaging and shelving. The persons involved in these stages have the right to reject the product which below the specification. Apart from the above methodology, the products are also tested independently every month. This ensures that the delivered product is up to the quality. They also have a technical standard guideline which has to be followed by everyone involved in the supply chain. They consult industry bodies, environmental experts and food safety experts to advise on production aspects. Tesco over the past few years has effectively introduced six sigma methodology across various departments and has successfully reduced the carbon di oxide emissions and also saving energy. Waitrose Similar to the approach taken by Tesco, Waitrose also takes the customer feedback into consideration while doing quality testing. Waitrose looks for producers who can offer quality products and sets very high standards while preparation of the food products. According to Waitrose they uphold high standards of food safety and hygiene, by the usage of latest farming techniques. These include HACCP (Hazard analysis and critical Control Points) systems, ICM (Integrated crop management) system and LIFE (Linking Environment and farming). HACCP is used in food production to identify potential hazards and to control the risks in future. ICM is used to ensure that best horticulture practices are followed and LEAF is independent charitable organisation that helps farmers to reduce the environmental impacts. Recently Waitrose have successfully implemented SAS software to improve the stockholding and cut wastes. This helps them in forecasting customer demand and ensures right product is shelved at the right time. According to Waitrose, this has helped them to reduce stockholding by 8% and wastage by 4%, thus increasing the customer satisfaction through high product availability. Quality Approaches The quality approaches of Tesco and Waitrose will be compared and contrast as follows: Quality of product Compare Quality of products depends on the requirement and satisfaction of customer. Much focus is being placed on quality of products by most of the organisation and Tesco and Waitrose are no different. Both companies offer the range of organic foods which are becoming more and more popular nowadays. The Bags for life scheme is becoming popular in supermarkets so as to cut down the number of traditional carrier bags and therefore, reducing the number ending up in landfill sites. Once the Bag for life is worn out customers can replace it free of charge. Tescos front line initiative if there is more than one person queuing at a single check out then another one is open and also customers are encouraged to give instant feedback on the service thus helping in improving the offer and the service. On the other hand, Waitrose has the quick check method where customers can scan their items and pack them as they are shopping and when finished, they pay at the quick check till without having to unpack and repack their goods. For any business to grow or to compete with others it has become mandatory to use the latest technologies across various levels. Tesco can launch an application with barcode reader integrated with Tesco club card and mobile number. The customer can select the items and scan it through the barcode reader app. At the end of the shopping he/she just scans her app on the till or enter the reference number (could be registered mobile number) provided by the app. This is automatically updated on to the customers club card. This way queues can be reduced by large at the tills. There by increasing the customer satisfaction. Also, Tesco can implement Drive-Thru shopping; where in customer shops online and pays for it online if necessary. The customer just drives at the specified time with the reference number and picks up his goods at the counter just like the Mc Donalds drive thru.

Christianity in The Grapes Of Wrath :: John Steinbeck

The novel The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck has many themes, but one theme the story is centralized around is the role of Christianity. The role of Christianity in The Grapes of Wrath is what allows the people to keep going during the times of the Great Depression. Without religion, the families in the novel would have simply given up all faith and hope. Like many events in the novel, many characters in Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath symbolize the theme of Christianity. The most obvious character would be that of Jim Casy. Jim Casy was previously a preacher, but he gave up preaching because he felt he had sinned. He travels with the Joad family on their journey to California, and although he insists that he has given up his counseling past, he continues to act as a preacher for the Joad family. Although the other characters in the novel symbolizing religious acts are not main characters, they do play an important role in the thread of the theme. An example of such a character would be the woman that shows up when Grandma is dying. The woman, who Ma refers to as a "Jehovite" is dressed all in black, the skin on her face sagging, and she has loose lips that hang over her teeth. She expresses to Ma and Rose of Sharon that they should pray for Grandma, and that they should have faith to move on. Steinbeck introduces this woman to the readers to symbolize death and the ability to move on in peace. Events such as the strange woman appearing before Grandma's death and Jim Casy's preaching reinforce the purpose of religion for the migrating poor in the novel of The Grapes of Wrath. Religion allows the migrating poor to continue their journey to a "better" life. Throughout the novel the people, such as the Joad family, encounter many hardships. Several other families who have already been to California, in search of the same "paradise" the Joad's are in search of, found exactly the opposite. The Joad's are advised of this problem, but because of their hope and faith that they will find the work they need, they continue on. Without religion, the migrating poor would not be able to keep on their way. Religion and Christianity do more helping than hindering for the migrating families.