Monday, September 30, 2019

Case Analysis Nike the Sweatshop Debate

CASE ANALYSIS NIKE THE SWEATSHOP DEBATE Summary of the Facts Nike was established in 1972 by former University of Oregon track star Phil Knight. †¦ Nike has $10 billion in annual revenues and sells its products in 140 countries. †¦ Nike has been dogged for more than a decade by repeated accusations that its products are made in sweatshops where workers, many of them children, slave away in hazardous conditions for less than subsistence wages. †¦ Many reporters, TV shows, companies and organizations have repeatedly exposed negative comments towards Nike. For example, a â€Å"48 Hours† news report aired on October 17, 1996 regarding a Nike factory in Vietnam, which was visited by reporter Roberta Baskin. The reporter discovered that Nike hired millions of workers who are literate, disciplined, and desperate for jobs at wages lower than minimum wage. Another example of the criticism against Nike came from a newsletter published by Global Exchange. The newsletter uncovered that the majority of Nike shoes were made in Indonesia and China, countries with governments that prohibit independent unions and set the minimum wage at rock bottom. †¦ In September 1997, Global Exchange published a report on working conditions at four Nike and Reebok subcontractors in southern China. †¦ In November 1997, the organization obtained and then leaked a confidential report by Ernst & Young of an audit that Nike had commissioned of a factory in Vietnam owned by a Nike subcontractor. †¦ Nike formulated a number of strategies and tactics to deal with the problems of working conditions and pay in subcontractors. †¦ In early 1997, Nike also began to commission independent organizations such as Ernst & Young to audit the factories of its subcontractors. Finally, on May 12, 1998 Nike founder Phil Knight spelled out a series of initiatives designed to improve working conditions for the 500,000 people that make products for Nike through subcontractors. †¦ Even though Nike has admitted there have been problems in some overseas factories and has attempted to do things to rectify the problems, the company continues to be a target of protests and a symbol of dissent. Statement of the Problem On the May 12, 2001, Nike’s CEO Phil Knight made six commitments to improving the working conditions in Nike’s international All Nike shoe factories will meet the U.? actories. The six commitments were: The minimum age for Nike factory workers will be raised to 18 for footwear?†¦ Nike will include non-government? factories and 16 for apparel factories. organizations in its factory monitoring, with summaries of that monitoring Nike will expand its worker education program, making? released to the public. free high school equivale ncy courses available to all workers in Nike footwear Nike will expand its micro-enterprise loan program to benefit four? factories. housand families in Vietnam, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Thailand. †¦ Nike has yet to hold up to these commitments they made to its workers and customers. Nike continues to be criticized by human rights organizations and the media because they have ignored demands that labor and human rights groups have requested. †¦ Causes of the Problem Nike has treated sweatshop allegations as an issue of public relations rather than human rights. †¦ Nike has not released documentation to date of their reports from the working conditions in the factories. .

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Department store Essay

â€Å"What I Heard at the Discount Department Store† ─David Budbill.  Q: How soon do you understand that a character, other than the poet, speaks this poem? What is her tone and how do you know it? In David Budbill’s poem, â€Å"What I Heard at the Discount Department Store†, it is evident by line six that someone other than the poet speaks this poem. The poem starts off in first person. The character is an angry mother â€Å"dealing† with her young child in a discount department store. Stop it. I mean it. You know I do. If you don’t stop, I’ll give you fucking something to cry about right here and don’t think I won’t either (lines 2-5). This displays how the character which is obviously the mother is speaking and it also displays her anger and frustration. The poem continues on and the point of view changes and as the reader, I became the spectator. â€Å"So she did. She slapped him across the face. / And you could hear the snap of flesh against the flesh†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (6-7). Understanding that both the poet and the character are speaking in this poem occurs early on and it isn’t until the poem redirects back to first person point of view, that it is understood that there are two speakers in this poem. Budbill emphasizes the tone of the mother’s character (anger and frustration) by the words he chose for the mother to say. In line three of the poem she drops her first â€Å"f-bomb† and does so again in line 20, which is  followed by another curse word. â€Å"You can get away with fucking murder there, / but you can’t get away with shit like that with me† (20-21). It is obvious that she is angry by the words she is using with her young child and it is also evident that she is frustrated with her child’s behavior. The mother’s frustration is demonstrated through line 16-21 when she explains how her child is not at school, where she believes him to get away with misbehavior, and that he is now with his mother where no misbehavior is accepted, â€Å"You’re not in school anymore. / You’re with your mother now† (18-19). The tone of the mother’s character is displayed through her choice of words and how she speaks so aggressively to her son.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Measurement and Scaling Concepts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Measurement and Scaling Concepts - Essay Example To Joppe (2000), validity determines what is intended to measure or how truthful the research results are, while Wainer and Braun (1998) further describe validity in quantitative research as, the â€Å"construct validity†. This â€Å"construct† is considered as the initial concept, question, notion, or hypothesis which determines the kind of data that is to be gathered and the manner on how it is to be gathered. Researchers can normally determine validity through asking a series of questions, as well as what will often come across from the answers in the study of others (p. 1). Reliability on the other hand, is the measure whether the research is repeatable; it determines to which extent a measure is comparatively free of random error or is consistent to the specified scores assigned to objects or events (Dipboye, Smith, & Howell, 1994). Kirk and Miller (1986) identified that there are three types of reliability which relate to: (1) the extent to which a measurement, agreed repeatedly, remains the same (2) measurement’s stability over time; and also (3) the similarity of measurements in a given time period (pp. 41-42). Charles (1995) added that, reliability can also mean a high degree of stability, which can be verified through replication of outcomes. In the business sector, according to Miglautsch (2005), any conceptual definition is referred to as an thought or abstraction of techniques as well as practices which include the limitations related to the adoption or application of the definition. Possibly, no one definition will entirely describe the concept, as dissimilar definitions are used for diverse purposes. A "good" conceptual definition should be used in a clear, precise, and complete manner as much as possible. In addition, Operational definition provides the variable/s the meaning based on how study is utilized to a particular study. In view of the fact that the meaning of the study rests on the manner as to

Friday, September 27, 2019

Analysis of a drama film-The Truman Show Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Analysis of a drama film-The Truman Show - Essay Example The protagonist of the film, Truman Burbank, is the main character of a longest nonstop live broadcast catering to a global audience. He is unaware that his life, activities and emotions are being filmed and that all those who are with him are acting their roles well for the success of the show. His mundane life in the seaside town of Seahaven is being captured by more than 5,000 hidden cameras. Most parts of the film appear as if the audience is watching "The Truman Show" rather than a film based on a reality show.         The film opens on the broadcast day 10,909 when Truman is nearly thirty years old. Until this day, Truman has not realized that he is living in an artificial world that Christof has created for him. Omnicom Corporation had adopted Truman from the day he was born and turned his life to a reality show where â€Å"his wife Meryl, his best friend Marlon and his mother † (Niccol 1998) are actors who are performing in front of Truman to convince him that hi s life is real. As in the words of the master architect of the Show, Christof, "We’ve become bored with watching actors giving us phony emotions. We’re tired of pyrotechnics and special effects. While the world he inhabits is in some respects counterfeit, there is nothing fake about Truman himself. No scripts, no cue-cons. It’s not always Shakespeare, but it’s genuine. It’s a life†¦Louis Coltrane and Hannah Gill (Meryl) also stresses the originality of Truman's life by saying that "It's all true, it's all real.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

International Developments of Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

International Developments of Accounting - Essay Example After complete analysis it was observed that British airways have been in trouble deeply due the problems of loss in revenue, cheap air line competitions and others. On the other side Emirates enjoys good amount of profits and reputation and its free from problems. Recommendation is being made for British Airways to actively change their approach towards customer management and give special discounts and promotion apart from other advertising techniques in order to take care of current crises. In the last an analysis of performed in between US GAAP and IFRS and it was concluded that IASB and FASB should actively coordinate with each and try to get a reasonable solution for this dilemma so that the world of accounts is uniformed with IFRS and being followed by all the countries in the world. Introduction After the incident of 9/11 there were many things which got changed. One of the major changes which the companies have seen is the Airline industries falling from the Sky to earth. Th is was due to the fact that the aero planes were used for terrorism purposes. People avoided to travel by Air instead they use other means of getting from one place to other. Further to increase the problem recent recession gives all the businesses in the world a tough time. Airline industry was given further tough time and got financial crunch. In order to get our purpose we have selected British Airways as one of the Company and other airline selected is Emirates (A UAE based airliner). The Financial Data was compared using the Ratio Analysis. About The Airlines British Airways The flag carrier of Britain is known as British Airways. Headquarter of the airline is based in Waterside which is near the hub of the Airline at London Heathrow Airport. This is the largest airline of United Kingdom in term of Fleet size, international flight and international destination. Emirates Emirates airline is the national airline of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Emirates are the largest airline of Middle East. It carries around 2,400 passengers per week. Headquarter of the airline is based in Dubai. (British Airways) (Emirates n.d.) Financial Statements Analysis We will analyze the financial statements ratios in the following criteria. 1. Profitability 2. Liquidity/Solvency 3. Working capital efficiency 4. Long term financial structure 5. Investors’ perspective Profitability Return on equity In case of British Airways, the return on equity their percentage of return to equity holder is on a declining trend. The return on equity in the year 2009 was in the negative zone at 19% and the losses further increases in the year 2010 which makes the return on equity to further negative zone by 1% i.e. 20% in total. (Emirates) Whereas, in case of Emirates Airline is stated at 5% in the year 2009

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Personal Narrative Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Personal Narrative - Essay Example I was happy and determined to bring in new energy and give my team a winning goal. In the last minute, I intercepted the ball and dribbled down the court, face to face with the goal keeper. As cheers grew wilder, I send a strong shot past the goalkeeper to the back of the net. The loud cheers made me very confident but only the opposing team shared my excitement. After noticing the disappointment on my teammates, it hit me hard that I had scored in our post to give our opponents a late goal (Heim, 2013). When I got home, my brother noticed the disappointment in my voice and gloomy face and I had to give out the details of my mistake and what it meant to the team. He explained to me that he scored for the opposing team to give it a win in the championship when he was in college and, thus, I should take it easy because there were worse situations. When I went to school the next day, I felt silly to face my mates but my brothers story gave me confidence because I realized that I am not the only one who has scored for the

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

The Impact of Technology on the Retail Marketing Essay

The Impact of Technology on the Retail Marketing - Essay Example Knowing these trends will allow retailers to incorporate necessary changes including technology development and incorporation in their business, increasing communication with customers for loyalty card development and other measures, and allow them to be proactive rather than reactivity (Javadi et al., 2012, 89). The trend that has had a major effect on the retail industry is technological development (Verhoef et al., 2009, 30). The implications for retail strategy are the needs to augment the technology in the retail environment include the incorporation of technology in the retail environment to suit the needs of the consumers and ensure sales are made within a short duration (Vel, 2010, 210). Technology development has increased interaction in-store environments through the realization by retailers that to maintain clients they had to ensure a lively, engaging, and interactive. Interaction in stores has been augmented using smartphones and tablets that aid in product demonstrations, payment, encouraging sharing in social media, and provision of extra information (Ellis-Chadwick, 2007, p.7). Payments are processed in any part of the store in major retail outlets using phones, smartphones, and tablets allowing for shortening of lines and augmenting client satisfaction. Interaction in stores has also been implemented using a large interactive display that engages the consumer, with the feedback being that the experience to the consumer is engaging, interactive and powerful. Interaction has also been augmented through allowing consumers to browse using the mobile devices in the stores to get further information and increase their involvement (Swinyard, 1997, 248).

Monday, September 23, 2019

Marketing and Promotion Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Marketing and Promotion - Research Proposal Example One of the most common used of promoting the products is the use of different celebrities to endorse the product. Identify the specific advantages and disadvantages of using celebrities as part of the advertising program - this can be obtained though in-depth research on the different industries using specific styles of media advertising through celebrity endorsements On the other hand, a series of interviews with some media advertisers will also be conducted so as to have a better idea on why celebrities are used in endorsing a certain product and how the consumers react to such form of media advertising. Results and discussion of the study will be obtained by analyzing the results of the interview conducted and correlating it with the research. Mean, mode and percentage will be obtained in getting the best possible results. These will then be tabled and graphed for easy presentation of data. More so, there will be a analytical analysis of the information that will be gathered from the interview. A part of the result and discussion will then be limited to what the interviewees will reveal. This will be considered as the only limitation oft his research paper. CRITICAL PATH Reference: Bhattacharyya A., (2005) "Advertising in Specialized Markets: Example from the U.S. Pharmaceutical Industry," Boston College working Paper No.610, http://fmwww.bc.edu/ec.p/wp610.pdf, Brown, Alex. (1996). "BUAD 301, Introduction to Marketing" Butters Gerard R., (Oct.,1977) "Equilibrium Distributions of Sales and Advertising Prices," The Review of Economic Studies Vol. 44 No.3: pp.465-491 Grossman G.M. and Shapiro C., (1984) "Informative Advertising with Differentiated Products," Review of Economic Studies Vol.5 No.1,: pp. 63-81 Haller H and Chakraborti S., (2002) "An Analysis of Advertising Wars," http://www.econ.ku.dk/CIE/Discussion%20Papers/2002/pdf/Haller%2003.pdf Kaldor Nicholas, (1950) "The Economic Aspects of Advertising," Review of Economic Studies Vol. 18: pp. 1-27 Manski C.F., (1993) "Identification of Endogenous Social Effects: The Reflection Problem," Review of Economic Studies Vol.60 No.3,: pp. 531-542 Rubin P. H., Schrag J. L., (1999) "Mitigating Agency Problems by Advertising, with Special Reference to Managed Health Care," Southern Economic Journal Vol. 66, No.1,: pp. 39-60 Stigler George J., (June 1961) "The Economics of Information," Journal of Political Economy Vol. 69 No.3: pp. 213-225 Tessler L.G., (1964) "Advertising and Competition," Journal of

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Management Capacity Resume Essay Example for Free

Management Capacity Resume Essay The purpose of this letter is to express my interest in working with your company in a management capacity.   I have over 15 years experience working for a major bottling company utilizing my Sales and Operations management skills which would be an asset to your organization. My diverse background includes serving in the United States Army Reserve.   In both my military and professional career, I have demonstrated excellent leadership abilities and exceptional customer service skills.   I successfully built a solid sales team consistently mentoring and motivating staff to meet and exceed company sales quotas. In addition to the skills noted on my resume, I can also offer your company: An enthusiastic individual seeking new endeavors, accomplishing personal and professional goals. A multi-tasking individual leveraging sales and marketing skills to exceed sales quotas. Excellent analytical ability with solid verbal and written communication skills. I look forward to speaking with you further to discuss my skills and qualifications.   You can reach me at the number listed above.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Political Events and Shipping Demand Essay Example for Free

Political Events and Shipping Demand Essay Introduction Modern shipping is the life-blood of the world; without it, much of the demand for imports and exports would not be met. In 2006, world seaborne trade was estimated to have reached 30,686 billion ton-miles, having grown by 5. 5% over the previous year. Despite the prevalence of air transport, up to 90% of world trade is carried over the oceans in humble ships. The demand for seaborne trade is driven primarily by the world economy; various industries produce the goods that need to reach different parts of the world. In its most recent World Economic Outlook , the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasted global growth of 3. per cent for the rest of 2008, lower by 0. 2 per cent from the previous month’s estimate. In spite of the dip, the world economy is still growing annually, led by the emerging markets that are hungry for resources to fuel their growth. Beyond the economy, there are several other factors that determine demand for shipping. This paper seeks to evaluate the role of political events and its impact. In addition, it seeks to look into which commodity is most affected by such incidents. In his book, Maritime Economics, Martin Stopford writes that ‘no discussion of sea transport demand would be complete without reference to the impact of politics’. In the following paragraphs, this paper will address the main types of events that affect shipping demand both positively and adversely. 2. 0Political events that have affected shipping demand the most 2. 1Opening-up of the Chinese economy The accession of China into the ranks of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and Beijing winning the bid to host the Olympics in 2001 were events that had large political motivations and caused a tremendous rise in demand for shipping. Since then, China’s economy has seen astronomical growth. In order to fuel this development, the country has increased both its imports and exports in almost every industry. This has taken the world by storm as countries the world over compete to feed and fuel the world’s most populous country. Hence, seaborne trade and demand for shipping worldwide has been skyrocketing as a result of China’s booming economy. 2. 2War and the economic embargoes Conversely, war and economic embargoes and sanctions are the leading cause of a drop in maritime activity. In broad terms, the hostilities in the Middle-East region have led to disruptions in movements of oil shipments to the developed world. In the 1950s, the Suez Crisis between Britain, France and Israel against Egypt, led to the diversion of ships around the Cape of Good Hope to avoid the tensions. Two decades later on 17 October 1973, the ongoing Yam Kippur War caused the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries to stop shipping oil to nations that supported Israel’s war efforts. The impact of this embargo on shipping was the collapse of the oil tanker market and led to a series of recessions and periods of high inflation that persisted until the 1980s. Other examples would include the Korean War in 1950 and the Gulf War in the early 1990s. . 0Commodities affected Crude oil accounted for 26. 9 per cent of total goods loaded in 2006. Due to the sheer quantity of oil being shipped worldwide, any political event jeopardizing seaborne trade would usually entail oil shipments being affected. This is because the resource is abundant in only certain parts of the world; the Middle-East is one such region that is plagued with rogue political regimes and instability. In the above-mentioned events in the region, the hostilities resulted in disruptions to the oil trade and consequently, oil price. This would be discussed in the section on Iran. Another sector that would be affected would be the metal industry trades and in particular, that of iron ore. Western Australia and Brazil are major exporters of iron ore to growing markets like China which need it for its continued development. 4. 0Opening of China’s economy Since the 1970s, China has been gradually introducing economic reforms and providing enterprises with autonomy. However, it was only in the last 2 decades that the world’s 2nd largest economy has opened itself up to greater foreign investment and world trade. This was carried out through the relaxation of import and export controls and trade reforms in the form of reduced tariffs. All this led to a significant milestone for China and the world – its ascension into the ranks of the WTO on 11 December 2001. In addition, Beijing won the bid to host the 2008 Olympics that same year. These 2 events have set the stage for China’s rapid development. In the following paragraphs, this paper will explain its effects on the world and global trade and shipping. Based on a working paper by the IMF written in 2004, the international impact of China’s ascension into the WTO is far reaching. Firstly, sustaining the growth of China would provide benefits to its trading partners; beyond the processing of trade, there has been significant growth in imports for domestic use and outbound tourism. Secondly, China’s insatiable thirst for energy and metal imports have since fuelled the rapid rise in imports of such commodities. Lastly, multinational companies are tapping into the large domestic market especially with the freeing up of the country’s banking sector. This paper believes that China’s meteoric rise over the last two decades and more significantly, since the dawn of the new millennia, have created a surge in demand for world seaborne trade and shipping. 4. 1China’s role in transforming Western Australia and beyond As a result of China’s booming steel industry, Australian exports of iron ore to China reached more than A$4 billion last year. BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, two of the world’s largest resource companies, share the metal-rich Pilbara of Western Australia to feed China’s demand. The latter is hoping to double its 2007 iron-ore production in four years. This mining boom in the traditionally ‘sleepy’ side of Australia spells good news for its economy and residents. In an interview with the Economist , Eric Ripper, finance minister of Western Australia, said that his state has been fighting to bring in a A$9 million surplus seven years ago. Last year, the country’s largest state (by land area) grew by 6. 3%, twice that of the entire country. In addition, it now boasts a healthy surplus of A$2 billion. Besides iron ore, China has a tremendous hunger for other natural resources. All across the world, Chinese firms are finding new sources for crude oil, natural gas, metal and coal. Ships have been queuing off Newcastle in Australia to load cargo bound for China; at one point in June 2007, the queue was 79 ships long . In short, the rise in import demand by the Mainland has helped countries in Latin America and Africa grow their own economy. Another country that has seen business grow is the shipping giant of Greece. 60 per cent of China’s imports of raw materials and energy are carried on the backs of Greek ships. Greek ship owners want to capitalize and many have made orders to build ships in China which has caused the order books of the large manufacturers to bulge and many smaller players to join in the fray. . 2China’s effect on shipping demand In terms of shipping, China is a force to be reckoned with. Just 2 years after joining the WTO, China handled 48 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) in 2003, an increase of 11 million TEUs the year before. This made the country the largest container shipping market for the first time with both Sh anghai and Shenzhen joining the mega-port league of over 10 million TEUs throughputs . On two of the most important container trades from Asia to North America and Europe, mainland China and Hong Kong corner 60 per cent of the market share. More recently, with an increasing portion of China’s imports of oil products coming from Latin America and West Africa, ton-miles demanded associated with this trade has increased. Referring back to the example of Australian iron ore, China’s high volumes mean that Chinese companies are sourcing for metals from further abroad such as Brazil. In addition, China has always been a net exporter of coal. However, in the last few years, China has become a net importer; this forces its neighbors to source for coal from further afield. All these factors serve to increase ton-miles demanded. It is important to note that though ton-miles demanded may increase, actual volume may remain unchanged. 5. 0Iran and the Strait of Hormuz The on-going tension between Israel, the United States of America (USA) and Iran over its suspected nuclear-weapons programme has brought about fluctuations in oil prices in recent times. Several factors have made this all the more pressing in the last few months. These include a weakening Bush administration, Iran’s continued uranium-enrichment programme, a lackluster Western diplomatic approach to handling the situation and Israel’s jitters have raised the idea of a possible war in the Middle-East. In retaliation to suggestions of a military strike, Iran has threatened to cut oil exports and close the Strait of Hormuz . This strait’s importance lies in that it is the only viable path for much of the oil from the gulf to reach the rest of the world. By comparison, the Suez and Panama Canals are passages that have alternative albeit costlier, routes. A horseshoe-shaped body of water that stretches between Iran and the northern tip of Oman, the Strait is the only passage in and out of the Gulf. Every day, around 50 tankers carry between 4 million and 17 million barrels of oil and oil products through the 180km-long strait roughly 40 per cent of the worlds internationally traded supplies . If Iran were able to close this waterway by use of anti-ship missiles, only 3 million barrels would be able to be diverted via the Red Sea. Thus, oil and oil product shipment would be greatly hit worldwide. In addition to oil, Jebel Ali, a port-town in the United Arab Emirates, handles ab out half of all maritime trade between Europe and Asia. Currently, it is the largest port between Rotterdam and Singapore. Large portions of what enters some of these free zones in the gulf are transshipped to other parts of the world. Experts who have monitored the Suez Crisis in the 1950s and how it led to the Six-Day War understand that such an action from Iran would result in the Middle-East suffering economically. On a larger scale, the world would be faced with supply cuts in almost all goods. 6. 0Maritime terrorism Another threat to the maritime industry is terrorism at sea. Terrorism is broadly defined as attacks to create fear and often have an underlying belief that the terrorists want to spread. Since the world-changing September 11th attacks on the United States of America in 2001, many other acts of violence have been carried out with ships as targets. An example would be the infamous Al-Qaeda attack on the French oil tanker, the Limburg, in Yemen in 2002. Such attacks create not only a sense of uncertainty in the shipping industry, but have raised the costs of shipping as well. In the case of the Limburg, the insurance payout reached US$70 million . This example highlights the trend of insurance companies charging higher insurance premiums to shipping companies whose ships sail through more ‘dangerous’ waters. As a result, shipping cost has risen over the years and this has led to a dip in demand. Amongst the main trunk routes that ships often ply, the greatest number of such incidents happens in the South China Sea and the Straits of Malacca. These acts of terror also do not differentiate between the types of ships they target; almost everything from boats to tankers has been looted for their cargo and entire ships stolen. This paper would like to caution that the distinction between maritime terrorism and piracy is blurring. 7. 0Conclusion This paper has looked at examples of how political events have caused a stir in the maritime world. This is largely a result of the correlation between world trade, shipping and movement of commodities. Such incidents can spark both a decrease as well as an increase in demand for shipping. In the case of China’s reforms towards a more open economy, trade between this country and the rest of the world has increased dramatically. This has spurred the shipping industry not just in terms of seaborne trade but in other forms such as ports and shipbuilding. Beyond its shores, it has helped to lift the economies of countries that enjoy a high level of trade with China. On the other hand, the tensions in the Middle-East have brought about uncertainty throughout the world over oil prices and world trade. The strategic position of the most hostile nations in the region has given them leverage over the Western world in terms of threats to block the major waterway, the Strait of Hormuz. Lastly, the concerns over maritime safety and rising insurance costs to cover ships and their owners have caused a dip in demand for shipping. This is because of the higher costs now associated with shipping; it is intuitive yet unfortunate that the world’s major shipping routes are also the most dangerous.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Research Methods Aims And Objectives In Business Business Essay

Research Methods Aims And Objectives In Business Business Essay The purpose of this Chapter is to discuss and justify the methodology used to effectively investigate the phenomenon informing the research title which is; The Impact of a company managed online community on purchase decision and brand loyalty Firstly, this chapter explains the conceptual structure of the research which will describe how the author is going to carry out the research. Then, explains research method types and methods use to retrieve the collected data by primary research. Research methodology explains the overall structure of the study. According to Croswell J (2010) methodology is the analysis of principle methods, rules and evaluation employed by a researcher. The discussion is focused on matters regarding the purpose of research, research philosophy, research approach, research strategy, data collection, data analysis, and quality standards. 3.2 Research aims and objectives The study aims seek the dimensions of an online community hosted by a company and how it affects consumers purchase decision. In addition, this study investigates how an online community can attribute to generate their brand loyalty through its own brand community. These are the objectives: To investigate a company managed online community and characteristics To identify key influencer in online purchase decision To investigate the relationship a company managed online community and consumer purchase decision To find out the relationship between a company managed online community and brand loyalty 3.3. Research Process The research process used to define the approach of the research in the study in exhaustive. In figure 3.1 research process onion describes the issue underlying the choice of data collection methods (Saunders et al. 2009). Below figure shows the overview of the researchers methodology towards this research. Figure 3.1 Research Process Onion. Source: Created by the Author, adopted from Saunders et al (2009:108) Also, figure 3.2 shows the outline of process for this research. Figure 3.2 Process of the authors research Source: Created by the Author(2010) 3.4. Purpose of research There are three different types of research, and Yin (2009) writes that these are exploratory, explanatory, and descriptive. The purpose of the research determined which one of these to use in order to be able to fulfil this purpose. Saunders et al (2009) describe exploratory research as a way to find or look for new insight or to see what is going on. They further state that it is especially good to use if the purpose of research is to increase the understanding of a problem. Gliner et al(2009) complement the characteristics of exploratory research by adding that this type of research calls for flexibility, since new information can change the direction of the research. Gliner et al(2009) conclude that descriptive research is characterized by that the problem is clear and well structured. Saunders et al (2009) writes that it is necessary to have a good picture of the problem before the data collection. The focus of an explanatory study is to find interrelations between the variables in the studied situation or problem (Saunders et al, 2009). Saunders et al (2009) also states that analysis of quantitative data can show correlations between factors which gives the researcher a picture of the relationships involved. The overall purpose of this research was to investigate the area of online communities and its influence on purchase decision and brand loyalty. The goal was to seek out if marketing in these specific media channels are more accepted among consumers, and why this is the case, in order to gain a better understanding of their effectiveness and influence. This led us to use a both exploratory and explanatory approach. In the data collection and in the analysis we explore, and in the findings and conclusions we begin to explain. 3.5 Research Philosophy The research philosophy is determined by the philosophical points of views, as there are different approaches about the way in which the knowledge is urbanized and judged as suitable. Thus, the research philosophy relates to the development of knowledge and the knowledges nature (Saunders et al, 2009). The literature suggests three main approaches in which to conduct a research process and all of them have an important part and role in business and management. These are Positivism, Realism and Phenomenology. 3.5.1 Positivism Positivism is described as the conventional way of research and it acquires a clear quantitative approach to find out phenomena as an alternative of qualitative approach (Croswell, 2009). That is also said that positivism is very important approach in natural science (Remenyi, 2002). The understanding of this idea may not be proven but the philosophy based on positivism is far more powerful than the ideas for reaching targets and achieving goals. Positivism is very important research philosophies for creating new ideas. Thus, positivistic research tries to identify the non-financial motivation techniques provided by Tesco-express. The researcher uses the idealistic approach of positivism while using a questionnaire with a group of people. 3.5.2 Realism Another approach which relates to the positivism is realism (Saunders et al, 2007). According to Kothari, (2005) Realism is the source of many ideas, belief and opinions of human. 3.5.3 Interpretive Interpretive studies presume that people produce and correlate their own subjective and inter subjective meanings as they interact with the world around them. Interpretive researchers thus attempt to understand phenomena through accessing the meanings participants assign to them (Orlikowski and Baroudi 1991). Here researcher has decided to choose a Positivism philosophy, based on the aim of the research. The reason behind choosing this approach is responses does not influence the researchers belief and the knowledge (Proctor 2006). Also Positivism is one of the strongest research philosophies for creating new ideas. In addition to this, according to Gill (2002), the importance of a highly controlled methodology facilitates replication and experimental explanation to statistical analysis. 3.6 Research Approach There are two different types of approach for research. These are deductive and inductive theories(Bryman, 08). Deductive theory represents the commonest view of the nature of the relationship between theory and social research(Bryman, 08). First, theory and the hypothesis come and drive the process of gathering data. On the other hand, inductive process involves observations first and generalise the theory after the observations. This study is a business problem, more specifically how online community hosted by a company influence its consumers. Therefore, the aim of this study is to understand of the consumers who use online communities as a tool of interaction. Therefore, this study needs deductive approach. 3.7 Research Method There are mainly two types of research strategies which we can choose: quantitative and qualitative. These approaches are depending upon the structure and the purpose of the study(Bryman, 2010). Quantitative research can be constructed as a research strategy which collect and analyse quantitative data. Quantitative research requires a deductive approach to the relationship between theory and research, also it has incorporated the practice the natural scientific model and norms of natural scientific model and positivism approach(Bryman, 2010). A quantitative research approach used numbers ask base for the analysis instead of words like a qualitative would do. Blaxter et al(2010) adds to this explanation by describing that quantitative research uses a large-scale set of data. Qualitative research is more exploratory and focuses on smaller numbers and depth data. Qualitative data is mostly collected using conversation, and unstructured and semi-structured interviews. Quantitative data, the corresponding are; structured observations, interviews and surveys, and attitude scaling. By contrast, qualitative research emphasizes words rather than quantification in the collection and analysis of data(Bryman, 2010). Qualitative research data is collected from focus groups, in-depth interviews and observations. Qualitative research can be used to understand more deeply consumers attitudes towards purchase decision. But qualitative research is hard to analyse, and evaluate. Also, small number of target audiences cannot be represented whole population. For this research, a quantitative study is better because of the need for several different views on the questions and to decrease the factor of that different people think differently. 3.8 Research Strategy The decision of which strategy to use can be guided by the form of research question, the degree of control needed of behavioural events and if the focus is on current or historical events (Yin, 2003). The different choices of strategies available are; experiment, survey, case-study, grounded theory, ethnography and action research (Saunders et al, 2000). Experiments are commonly used in natural sciences and psychology, and are characterized by for example the introduction of planned changes on the variables in the experiment, and control of the other variables (Saunders et al, 2000). Surveys allow for the gathering of large quantities of data from a population in an economically efficient way (Saunders et al, 2000). Saunders et al (2000) also describe this method as having the advantage of that the analysis of the data will allow for easy comparison between the respondents. A case study is especially useful for gaining rich and detailed data (Saunders et al, 2000). They also state that case-studies are particularly good to use when asking how, what and why questions (ibid). Grounded theory is based on that a data collection is performed without the previous construction of a theoretical framework (Saunders et al, 2000). The initially gathered data is then used to make predictions that then are tested in the later stages of the data collection (Saunders et al, 2000). Moreover, the purpose of ethnography is defined by Saunders et al (2000) in the following way; The purpose is to interpret the social world the research subjects inhabit in the same way in which they interpret it (Saunders et al, 2000, p.95). They also state that ethnography is not commonly used in business research (ibid). Action research is however dedicated to researching the management of change, and the researcher often must participate in the setting where the change occurs. (Saunders et al, 2000). At first, action research, grounded theory, ethnography and experiments were discarded from the planning because of the mismatch between these methods and the purpose of research. After this, the search for a method with a match between the purpose of research and the characteristics of the method started. In table 2 below, these different criterions for the use of a survey are presented. 3.9 Data Collection Methods Bradley stated that the term primary data can describe information which is collected for a special purpose. On the other hand, secondary data has already collected by someone else for their purposes(Bradley, 2007). 3.9.1 Primary data When executing a quantitative method of data collection, the most common way of collecting data is through the use of questionnaires as it gives greater opportunity to gather information from a large number of respondents without a great amount of resources (Johannessen Tufte, 2007; Saunders, Lewis Thornhill, 2000). For the empirical research a self-completion questionnaire was deemed appropriate. This is because the research was conceptualised around obtaining information from, or about, a defined set of people or population; namely online community users (Easterby-Smith, Thorpe Lowe, 2002). There are generally two ways of conducting a questionnaire: through a self-completion questionnaire or a type of structured interview assisted by the interviewer. A self-completion questionnaire is, as the name suggests, a questionnaire where the respondent answers the questions themselves unassisted. This is in contrast to an interviewer assisting the questionnaire process by, for example reading the questions and marking up the responses as conducted in structured interviews (Christensen et al, 2001). As the research aims to understand online users, the internet was the natural medium in order to reach the desired target group. Therefore it was clear that the questionnaire would be designed as a self-completion questionnaire given that assisting the questionnaire process through structured interviews would be difficult to execute via the internet. 3.9.2 Secondary data Secondary data is formed of paper documents such as books, special reports, government produced records, and internet sources. Secondary data can help to combine it with other facts. Therefore, secondary data it good for enhance understanding of results and to confirm results(Bradley, 2007). Secondary data called as desk research, these can be searched from various sources any time. Therefore, this research can give time and cost beneficial to researchers. On the other hand, secondary research has limitations such as irrelevant to the research. But secondary research can gives general ideas of the research theories and can help save the time. In this research, following secondary data can be used to understand and enhance research. 3.9.1. Books My research is involved consumer behaviour, brand loyalty and online communities. Therefore, theories from literatures those books will be relevant to my study. Also those theories can gives general ideas about this research. Moreover, theories about culture also can be used to understand Korean culture. Books have many advantages, for example, books are easy to access, and easy to get information which is relevant to my study. Meanwhile, printed books are heavy and sometimes only can access old ones. But, nowadays, online books are widely disseminated. Internet technology helped to access those resources without any restriction of place. Internet books are very useful to get information easily. For my research books are important to understand the theories. Books can be found in the libraries and internet. 3.9.2. Journals Previous researches such as online communities, consumer behaviour, cosmetics, and decision making processes can be used as a literature review and as a guideline for my research. These previous researches can be found in the internet journal web sites such as ebsco host. Also, written journals can be found from the libraries. Journals have many advantages; journals include recent researches and recent information. Therefore, journals can give new ideas and new information for my research. On the other hand, some journals are not be accessed easily. Thus, there is a limitation for access. But, journals are useful for research to get recent research finding and applied theories to wide my research. 3.9.3. Online database Internet sources can be categorised as online database. Information search engines such as google, yahoo, or blogs and company web sites will be used for gathering secondary data. These secondary data will help guide my study and enhance understand the research areas. 3.9.4. Statistical database Published government database, government web sites, and the companies figures will be used for secondary data. These data will give a real figures about the industry which I will study and support my research as an evidence. 3.10 Sampling and Questionnaire design 3.10.1 Sampling Sampling is the process of taking parts form a defined population in order to examine these parts, usually with the aim of making judgements about the parts of the population that have not been investigated(Bradley, 2010). Also, it has a major advantages compare with other methods which is that it usually cost saving and time saving because, it investigate small portion of the whole population. On the other hand, the major disadvantage is that the process cannot summarise every characteristic in that given population(Bradley, 2010). This study identifies the target group of respondent which are Beautynet users. Data collected from the designed questionnaires and these questionnaires is sent to the online community users through the internet. However, the sample size of this study is limited 300 users from the online community, because of limited research time and limited analysis time. Returned questionnaire is analysed using statistical methods. Statistical methods are useful to understand the relationship and the users behaviour patterns. Therefore, this method can explain the relationship between the online community and its influence purchase decision, and the relationship between the online community and brand loyalty. 3.10.2 Questionnaire design The questionnaire was designed to collect the demographic information of the respondents covering age. Social class information includes education, occupation and income, (questions number 1, 2, 3, and 4) using multiple choice questions. According to Fisher (2007) this type of questions provides respondents with a choice of three to five options and asks them to choose one. This type of questions giving unambiguous options that is mutually exclusive. Authors also applied multiple choice questions to study the respondents purchasing behavior in questions number 5 to see the frequency of purchasing makeup products, question number 6 to see how much money they spend on buying makeup and question number 7 asking respondents about type of makeup product they buy mostly of. Lastly, Likert scales was applied to ask respondents about their opinions and attitudes and to ask them to choose a position on a five-point scale between strongly agree and strongly disagree (Fisher, 2007, pp.195-196). A Likert scale was applied to question number 8-26 to study the respondents attitude toward brands and their purchase decision. 3.11 Analysis of Data In order to analyze the data collected through the survey, the numbers were first statistically sorted to facilitate the surveys different ways of thinking, and then further analyzed to find possible significant patterns. This process of making sense of the raw data was made with the help of the statistical computer software Excel, from which we could generate different tables and diagrams. The raw data, together with an overview of the results can be found in chapter four. The analysis found in this chapter had two purposes; initially t to help the readers to understand, and secondly help us as researchers. In order to make the gathered data more clear, it was coded with the help of Excel and made fit in a spreadsheet, as suggested by Saunders et al (2009). 3.12 Quality Standards Validity and reliability are the two most important quality standards in research studies which this research aims to uphold a high standard of. Validity is concerned with how accurately a variable fits a concept, that is, through determining how accurately the instrument chosen measures the features intended to be measured (Bouma Atkinson, 1999). According to Easterby-Smith, Thorpe Lowe (2002) there are three ways of estimating validity namely (1) face validity: whether the instrument or its items are plausible; (2) convergent validity: the confirmation from comparing the instrument with other independent measurement procedures; and (3) validation by known groups: which is as suggested, comparing groups otherwise known to differ on the factor in question. The questionnaire was carefully constructed based on the models used in the research in order to achieve, as certain as possible, the intended results from the questions probed. Easterby-Smith, Thorpe Lowe (2002) recommend that tests for validity and reliability should be made at the pilot stage of an investigation, before the main phase of data collection. As such a pilot study has been conducted to ensure that the web-questionnaire is constructed to examine, as closely as possible, what it should examine. This was also initiated in order to secure that the questions would be interpreted correctly by the respondents thereby testing the validity of the questionnaire. In reality, it is not known whether all the questions were interpreted as intended, although a pilot study provides useful indications of problems in advance so that miss-interpretation can be minimised. Reliability is concerned with the stability of the research (Easterby-Smith, Thorpe Lowe, 2002). As stated by Christensen et al (2001) a study should be able to be conducted a second time by other researchers and yield the same results if it has a high reliability. Since this research had been conducted with a social constructionist approach reliability is not particularly relevant to the quality standards. This is because a social constructionist approach is interpreted by the researchers knowledge during the analysis process of the research. The personality of the researcher is also an influencing factor within the results. Therefore the research is limited in its ability to yield the same results if conducted a second time. 3.11 Research Limitations The study is conducted within the limited time. Thus, the population of the target audience is limited to a certain number. Therefore there is a limitation to understand all online community members and their attitudes. Also, this study aims to find out the online community and its impact on purchase decision and brand loyalty. Therefore, this study only focused small parts of consumer behaviour. Thus, future research should be considers include some other areas of consumer behaviour and large numbers of target audience to get more reliable data. 3.12 Conclusion The researcher has chosen the positivism philosophy for the research after given explanation of different kind of philosophy. While this research is about business problem, therefore, deductive theory has chosen to explain previous theories about business matter. Researcher has used quantitative method for the analysis of the data and the reason behind choosing is the population of Beautynet is too big to do qualitative method and quantitative method can be used to understand the target audiences behaviour patterns. Primary data has collected by survey from Beautynet users, and secondary data was collected by using the relevant books, journals, Most appropriate option for conducting the research is the descriptive type of research approach. The data collected for this research is using both questionnaire and the secondary data from the books, journals, online database, and statistical database.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Rheumatoid Arthritis Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic syndrome that is characterized by inflammation of the peripheral joints, but it may also involve the lungs, heart, blood vessels, and eyes. The prevalence of this autoimmune disease is between 0.3% to 1.5% of the population in the United States (Feinberg, pp 815). It affects women two to three times more often than men, and the onset of RA is usually between 25 and 50 years of age, but it can occur at any age (Reed, pp 584). RA can be diagnosed by establishing the presence of persistent joint pain, swelling in a symmetric distribution, and prolonged morning stiffness. RA usually affects multiple joints, such as the hands, wrists, knees, elbows, feet, shoulders, hips, and small hand joints. RA is usually characterized by the inflammation of the synovium, which lines the joints and tendon sheaths of the body.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The etiology of this disease is unknown. There are multiple factors involved in this disease, including autoimmune reactions and environmental factors. There is also a genetic predisposition that has been identified that can be related to the cause of RA. Rheumatoid arthritis develops as a result of an interaction of many factors. Much research is going on now to understand these factors and how they work together. Rheumatoid arthritis is one of several "autoimmune" diseases because a person's immune system attacks his or her own body tissues (Gordon, pp 16). A feature of rheumatoid arthritis is that it varies a lot from person to person. For some people, it lasts only a few months or a year or two and goes away without causing any noticeable damage. Other people have mild or moderate disease, with periods of worsening symptoms, called flares, and periods in which they feel better, called remissions. Still others have severe disease that is active most of the time , lasts for many years, and leads to serious joint damage and disability. Rheumatoid arthritis occurs in all races and ethnic groups. Although the disease often begins in middle age and occurs with increased frequency in older people, children and young adults also develop it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1987, the American Rheumatism Association developed seven criteria to define RA. First, morning stiffness in and around joints lasting at least one hour before improvement. Second, there is arthritis of three or more joint areas. Third, there is swelling of at least one ... ...person's tension can be released in more positive ways rather in a harmful manner towards himself/herself or towards others. The OT may also promote the person to participate in more social activities to get him or her to feel more competent and increase one's self-esteem.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Persons with arthritis often do not comply with treatment and management routines, so the Occupational therapist may need to provide him or her with good learning or teaching techniques. The OT must also share with the patient the expectations about treatment and management, encourage personal responsibility for his or her care, and maintain a relaxed environment to encourage communication with other professionals and loved ones. The OT must also be cautious of any other health concerns that may arise due to the progression of the illness or even side effects from the medications. There are so many affected by Rheumatoid Arthritis and it is a growing illness that has been seen across the United States. In the future of medicine, more and more research will be done to find the cure to this illness, but for now, such treatment like Occupational therapy will further advance the lives of those living with RA.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Cambridge :: essays research papers

England is famous for its educational institutes. It has some of the most famous universities of the world like Oxford, Cambridge and London universities. The city of Cambridge is in the county of Cambridgeshire and is famous because it is the home of Cambridge University, one of the oldest and most prestigious universities of the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Cambridge City occupies an area of 16 square miles. It is 50 miles north of London and stands on the East Bank of the River Cam, and was originally a place where the river was crossed. Other than being the home of Cambridge University, Cambridge City itself is a very lively city. It provides a lot of entertainment such as Ballet, Opera, Drama, Music, and Film. The river is use mostly for pleasure of boating and punting. The Fitzwilliam Museum, the University Museum of Archaeology, and the University Museum of the Zoology are among the best of all museums in Europe. Foundation of Cambridge   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The foundation of Cambridge goes back to 11th century when Norman’s built a castle at River Cam. During Romans time, a small town situated just north of river in the Castle Hill area. The town was called Granata. Later on during the Saxon period, it was known as Grantabridge, which means Swampy River Bridge. The name later became Cantabridge and then by 14th century, Cambridge. Foundation of the University Of Cambridge  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The University of Cambridge was establish by religious groups like Franciscans and Dominicans in the early 12th century students from the Oxford University and Paris University left to study in Cambridge in the 13th century. The origin of the college is trace to the association of the students, distinctive form of religious affiliated groups, who began to reside in independent hostels, or halls. Later on some tension developed between the town people and students known as â€Å"town and gown† conflict. This conflict led to the establishment of the first college, Peterhouse in 1284 by Bishop of Ely. In 1318, Pope John XXII issued a bull recognizing Cambridge as a â€Å"Stadium Generale†, or a place of study; that is a University. The University Of Cambridge From Past To Present   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The university was basically established to study for religious purposes. It was one of the important centers of Protestant Reformation in the 16th century. Some of the famous religious reformers like William Tyndale, Hugh Latimer and Thomas Cranmer were graduates of Cambridge.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Distributive Justice and Its Relevance Under Indian Constitution

PAPER ON THE TOPIC THE PHILOSOPHY OF DISTRUBUTIVE JUSTICE AND ITS RELEVANCE UNDER INDIAN CONSTITUTION The jurisprudence of distributive justice, according to juristic cynics, is an essay in illusion. The basic social system is built on gross inequalities and the power to lobby and mould State policy, even judicial policy, is heavily in the hands of the proprietariat. Being social realists and meliorists we have to work with the materials that we have and try to read the constitutional provisions in such a manner that the human essence of distributive justice is won by dynamic interpretation and socialist understanding.The Indian Constitution visualizes an affirmative State action for bringing about a new social order based on justice, social, economic and political (Art. 38). The Directive Principles of State Policy contain the directions of change towards such a new social order. The researcher has examined various theories of justice and has examine how the John Rawl’s theory of justice which means that justice is fairness is the most apt for the Indian situation. Even in th e Constitution we find different strategies of justice. Keywords: Justice, Distributive Justice, Constitution.INTRODUCTIONEver since the birth of society, justice has been one of the most important quests of human endeavor. Justice means giving one what is due to him. As a principle of law, justice delimits and harmonises the conflicting desires, claims and interests in the social life of the people. In the modern society if we take the view that all its problem of distribution then the recourse is left open to distributive justice and nothing else. Distributive justice embraces the whole economic dimension of social justice, the entire question of distribution of goods and services within the society.It demands equality in the distribution or allotment of advantages or burdens. The aim of distributive justice is to strike a balance in the socio-economic structure of the society and bring equipoise between the conflicting interests of individual citizens. It is submitted that the pr oblem of distributive justice in one sense is more a matter of procedural fairness to individuals than of substantive rightness or wrongness of the rules themselves. More specifically, it would seem that even bad rules can be applied justly and good rules in an unjust way, but it does not mean that it is not the concern of the substantive law.Much will depend upon the structure of the society. To establish distributive justice we must create a public system of rules by reference to which the conflicting claims which inevitably arise can be authoritatively determined. Distributive justice essentially is the function of a just society. The problems of Indian society are so complex, perplex and varied that a single formula for distributive justice cannot be found. The Constitution of India talks of justice in the Preamble as well as in Article 38 of the Constitution which is a directive principle of state policy.The Constitution talks not of justice but of social, economic and politica l justice. It does not merely envisage a system of corrective justice in which rights and obligations arising out of the present social structure are enforced. It clearly saw that the existing structure was unjust and needed to be changed. This is what we call distributive justice.PHILOSOPHY OF JUSTICE AND DISTRIBUTIVE JUSTICEEver since men have begun to reflect upon their relations with each other and upon the vicissitudes of human lot, they have been preoccupied with the meaning of justice.Justice shares with natural law an institutional immortality which presents a constant paradox: it is so ancient that everything has been said about it, and so modern that it constitutes a continuous and inescapable problem in the ever-changing context of a contemporary society. Justice, as Aristotle said, â€Å"is the bond of men in society. † and â€Å"States without justice† are as St. Augustine said, â€Å"robber-bands. † Fiat justitia ruat coelum let heavens fall, justi ce had to be done became the abstraction of many religious, political, moral and legal philosophers of all ages.The power of justice is so great that it strengthens and excites a person fighting for just cause. All wars have been fought by all parties in the name of justice, and same is true of the political conflict between social classes. On the other hand, the very fact of this almost ubiquitous applicability of the principle of justice prompts the suspicion that something may be wrong with an idea that can be invoked for any cause. Social groupings of today are dynamic, not static, and they do not find the ideal equipoise in a condition of mere imperturbability.Justice is considered to be the primary goal of a welfare state whose very existence in turn rests on the parameters of justice. The greatest contrast, however, between ancient and modern thinking about the social harmony of justice is in the changed conception of individual personality in relation of law. I. The problem of Justice The importance of the subject of justice and the frequency of its use would naturally lead one to believe that there is an accepted definition of justice or, if not, at least a workable definition of justice is capable of being carved out.But defining justice is not as easy as it appears to be. There are difficulties inherent in the concept of justice and it is because of this reason that it is wholly indeterminate and belies all attempts to define it. Hens Kelsen perturbedly remarked: No other question has been discussed so passionately; no other question has caused so much precious blood and so many bitter tears to be shed; no other question has been the object of so much intensive thinking by the most illustrious thinkers from Plato to Kant; and yet, this question is today as unanswered as it ever was.It seems that it is one of those questions to which the resigned wisdom applies that man cannot find a definitive answer, but can only try to improve the question. What i s ‘just’ is again a question which largely remains unanswered and mostly hinges on the hunch of the bench as it nowhere informs us how to recognise or distinguish a just man from the other. The term justice has two aspects, namely, abstract justice and concrete justice. In the abstract sense ‘justice’ means a course of conduct both legel and moral, which tends to augment human ‘welfare’.Those human actions which do not intersect mankind have no significance either for ethics or for jurisprudence. The answer to the question as to what actions affect human welfare varies from age to age or generation t generation depending on divergent conceptions of human welfare prevailing in a given society during a given period of time. It is through the abstract notion of justice that its true significance in its practical application can be ascertained and appreciated. In the concrete sense, justice plays a positive role in regulating the procedural safegua rds afforded to litigants in the courts of law. II.Meaning of Justice and Distributive Justice Grotius and Leibniz believed in the concept of society as the co-operation of beings endowed with reason defined justice as custodia societatis Justum est quod societatum ratione utentium perfecit. This means justice puts an end to the conflict between the individual and the universal, the microcosm and the macrocosm, and brings about the synthesis between the whole and the parts. Justice thus seems to entail the conflict of competing claims and not infrequently the clash of powerful social interests with the right of individuals ensnared from time to time in the mechanism of raison d’ Etat.That is why justice is by its very essence a justitia communis, which reconciles in itself and transcends the commutative, distributive, and universal principles. To Plato, justice is a virtue of that psyche or soul which is the quint-essential personality of human creature. In the Republic the q uest is for justice as the complete expression of the soul’s excellences and, therefore, of the whole moral man. Plato tells us that the four supreme moral qualities both in state and the individual are wisdom, courage, temperance or moderation and justice; and the greatest of these, the indispensable, is justice.Aristotle said that justice implies a certain degree of equality; this equality might, however, be either arithmetical or geometrical, the first based on identity and the second on proportionality and equivalence. Arithmetical equality leads to commutative justice, geometrical equality to distributive justice. The second is the business of the legislator, while the first is the business of the judge. Political rights and goods should be apportioned according to distributive justice, punishments should be imposed and damages paid according to commutative justice.The theory of justice thus involves an examination of the body of rights and duties accepted in a society i n the light of the formal principles of equality, the aim being to rid it of arbitrary elements; that is discrimination not grounded on relevant differences. According to John Stuart Mill, a society which is governed by the legal philosophy of distributive justice is one which: Should treat all equally well who have deserved equally well of it, that is, who have deserved equally well absolutely.This is the highest abstract standard of social and distributive justice; towards which all institutions and the efforts of all virtuous citizens should be made in the utmost degree to converge. It is thus universally considered just that each person should obtain that (whether good or evil) which he deserves; and unjust that he should obtain a good, or be made to undergo an evil, which he does not deserve. This is perhaps the clearest and most emphatic form in which the idea of justice is conceived by the general mind. As it involves the idea of desert the question arises of what constitutes desert.The characteristic of distributive justice is the expansion of the spirit of collectivism, the promotion of the feeling of co-operation and the exercise by society of its collective powers in support of the legitimate claims of individual life. Its formula is â€Å"to every man according to his needs† rather than â€Å"to every man according to his deserts. † The distributive justice considers how it can secure too each individual a standard of living and such a share in the values of civilization as shall make possible a full existence of human life.In all these ways, the notion of justice according to law is gradually pervaded by the notion of justice and the distributive justice in the law. III. Concept of Distributive Justice Modern social and economic developments have made it clear that individual justice, justice between the wrongdoer and the victim is only a partial and incomplete form of justice and it is in the notion of distributive justice, i. e. , rendering to each man his due, the essence of justice lies.The development of the welfare state is generally thought of as an application of the notion of distributive justice. Moreover, the cry for equality of opportunity for the underprivileged and weaker sections of the society is being increasingly heard these days and this demonstrates the importance of the notion of distributive justice in modern consciousness. Distributive justice embraces â€Å"the whole economic dimension of social justice, the entire question of proper distribution of goods and services within the society†.It demands equality in the distribution or allotment of advantages or burdens. The advantages or burdens which are to be distributed are of numerous kinds such as wages, taxes, property, punishments, individual or social performances or rights and duties as allocated and apportioned by the legal system. Distributive justice aims to strike a balance in the socio- economic structure of the society t o bring equipoise between the conflicting desires, interests and claims of the individual citizens. Justice P. N.Bhagwati succinctly explains distributive justice as: And when I talk of justice, I mean not commutative justice but distributive justice, justice in depth, justice which penetrates and destroys inequalities of race, sex, and wealth, justice which is not confined to a fortunate few, but takes within its sweep the entire people of the country, justice which ensures equitable distribution of the social, material and political resources of the community. This is the kind of justice which we in India are trying to realize through the process of law and our substantive law is being geared to this task.Distributive justice includes the quality of being just and fair to all the individuals in the society or group. It seeks to give everyone what is due to him. What is due cannot be ascertained by absolute standards because the standards change with changes in the socio-economic c onditions of the society. It does not mean only a just distribution of the material goods of life, but also means and includes the reasonable requirements of human body, mind and spirit. It takes in both the means and the end, the process as well as the product.It seeks to meet out justice through just means, unjust means may satisfy some, but cause injustice to others. Distributive justice means justice to all and not to a few or a favored class. It does not introduce class conflicts, but seeks to improve and harmonise the society with a view to avoid the socio- economic imbalances. The readjustment of social claims may involve a transfer of resources from one section of the society to another, but the transfer is only an equitable reallocation of the resources and not a destruction of the structure itself.Distributive justice demands preferential treatment of the weaker sections of the society, but that is only to correct the imbalances existing in the society and not to cause unn ecessary harassment or injustice to the advanced sections thereof. Thus, it seeks to remove the imbalances in the social, economic and political life of the people. There cannot be distributive justice unless the society progresses in all the directions. In short distributive justice helps to bring about a just society.The right to distributive justice may be defined as the right of the weak, aged, destitute, poor, women, children, and other underprivileged and downtrodden segments of the society to the protection of the state against the ruthless competition of life. It seeks to give adventitious aids to the underprivileged, so that they may have an equal opportunity to compete boldly with the more advanced sections of the society. It is a bundle of rights; in one sense it is carved out of other rights; in another sense, it is a preserver of other rights.It is the balancing wheel between the haves and have- nots. Its aim is not to pull down the advanced sections of the society, but only to uplift the backwards and the underprivileged sections thereof without unduly and unreasonably effecting and undermining the interests of the former. It only prevents unjust enrichment at the expense of the underprivileged and ensures a balanced and harmonious development of the society. It is this approach and understanding of the concept of distributive justice which permeates the Indian Constitution and is adopted here for the purposes of this work.This takes us to the study of principles of distributive justice which serve as the criteria for evaluating the propriety or justice of distribution. IV. Theories of justice The theories which take in their sweep the above mentioned principles of distributive justice are: – Utilitarian, and – Contractarian. The former represents an established tradition of ethical thought, though subject to continuing refinements and restatements. The later owes much to John Rawls, who, in recent times has most illuminatingly used the idea of primordial social contract to arrive at the basic principles of justice.It is often reiterated that the theories of justice must take into consideration at least three important facets of distributive process: a) The ‘total amount of goods (or utility) to the distributed’; b) The ‘pattern of distribution arrived at’; and c) The distributional procedure described aptly as the ‘principle of selection by means of which the distribution is arrived at’. An attempt is made here to examine the different facets of these theories and to ascertain the extent to which they satisfy the demands of distributive justice.Utilitarian Theory of Justice Utilitarianism is essentially an aggressive theory. Its premise is the greatest good of the greatest number. Justice in its essence is distributive in character. The three principles of justice enumerated above demand that a person’s share of good should be proportional to some quality he posse sses. It is, therefore, unlikely that utilitarian theory will be able to accommodate principles whose form contrasts directly with that of the greatest happiness principle.It is submitted that why someone committed to aggregating good should care how that good is distributed among different people. The main weakness of the utilitarian theory from the perspectives of distributive justice is that it accords a paramount role to the quantity of good or welfare distribution. This has been pointed out by Brandit in the following words: â€Å"If quantity of welfare can be raised by a grossly unequal distribution- for instance, as in an efficient system of slavery- then we have to favour inequality.Equality, on utilitarian scheme, is a servant of quantity of welfare. † John Rawls takes this insight as his starting point in developing a contractual theory of justice which is intended to remedy the deficiencies of utilitarianism. It may thus seem that the utilitarian theory does not br ing home the expectations of society because our needs and desires differ qualitatively and are mutually incommensurable.Man harbours the most varied needs, for example the need for food, rest and sleep, occupation, sexual activity, culture and knowledge, artistic experience and recreation, love and respect, power and social esteem, etc. If all the needs of an individual cannot be satisfied, and if he is faced with a choice, for example, between listening to symphony and eating a good dinner, this choice cannot be described as a rational alternative between two measurable quantities of pleasure. Contractarian Theory of JusticeAccording to John Rawls: â€Å"Each person possesses an inviolability founded on justice that even the welfare of society as a whole cannot override†. Rawls understands society as a co-operative venture for mutual advantage. In a co-operative society, there is a social union and a shared end, conceived not as a substantive goal, but as a plan of conduct which will assure that the endowments of each will be complementary to the good of all. The actual differences between individuals in terms of natural abilities, social advantages, wealth, etc. are viewed as a cause of social discord; the differences tempt men to pursue their own advantage, what all have in common is a moral personality and this must be the basis of justice. The utilitarian theory fails to accommodate this very conception of justice. To replace it, Rawls has offered the following principles of justice: All social primary goods- liberty and opportunity, income and wealth, and the bases of self- respect are to be distributed equally unless an unequal distribution of any, or all, of these goods is to the advantage of the least favoured.V. The Constitutional Scheme of Distributive Justice Indian Constitution opens with the preamble which states in unequivocal terms that the people of India have solemnly resolved to secure to all its citizens: Justice – social, ec onomic and political, equality of status and of opportunity and to promote among them all fraternity assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the nation.The Objectives Resolution from which this phrase has been carved out states: This Constituent Assembly declares its firm and solemn resolve to proclaim India as an Independent Sovereign Republic and to draw up for her future governance a Constitution: a) Wherein shall be guaranteed and secured to all the people of India justice, social, economic and political; equality of status, of opportunity, and before the law; freedom of thought, expression, belief, faith, worship, vocation, association and action, subject to law and public morality; and b) Wherein adequate safeguards shall be provided for minorities, backward and tribal areas, and depressed and other backward classes. Referring to socio- economic justice, Dr. S.Radhakrishnan said that it intended to effect a smooth and rapid transition from a state of serfdom to one of freedom. Then emphasizing the need for such a change, he said, â€Å"it is therefore necessary that we must remake the material conditions†. The phrases thus used by the Founding Fathers clearly indicate that socio-economic justice in its realization is distributive in character. It contemplates a change in social structure in order to effect a transition from serfdom to freedom and attempts to remake the material conditions of the society. Granville Austin has also observed: â€Å"The Constitution was to foster the achievement of many goals. Transcendent among them was that of social revolution. Through this revolution would be fulfilled the basic eeds of the common man, and, it was hoped, this revolution would bring about fundamental changes in the structure of the Indian society†. Thus, the scheme of distributive justice as visualized in the Objectives resolution was incorporated in the preamble, the fundamental rights and the directive princip les of state policy and other provisions of the Constitution. You can read also  Justice System Position PaperThe gist of the scheme may be stated thus: Constitution ordains the state to promote the welfare of the people by securing and protecting as effectively as it may a social order in which justice- social, economic and political shall inform all the institutions of national life. For the establishment of social order, the people of India have been given the following fundamental rights: a) Right to equality; ) Right to six freedoms- freedom of speech and expression; to assemble peaceably and without arms; to form associations or unions; to move freely throughout the territory of India; to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India; to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade or business; c) Right to life and personal liberty; d) Right against exploitation; e) Right to freedom of religion; f) Cultural and educational rights; g) Right to constitutional remedies. In addition to these, the directive principl es of state policy also express in categorical terms the ideals of distributive justice. Article 38 requires the state inter-alia, to minimize the inequalities in income and endeavor to eliminate inequalities in status, facilities and opportunities, not only amongst individuals, but also amongst groups of people residing in different areas or engaged in different vocations.Article 39 requires the state to make available to all the citizens adequate means of livelihood; to distribute ownership and control of material resources so as to sub serve the common good; to operate the economic system in such a way that it does not result in concentration of wealth and means of production to the common detriment; that there is equal pay for equal work; to protect the health and strength of workers men and women and the tender age of children against abuse and that citizens are not forced by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited to their age and strength, that children are given oppo rtunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity and that childhood and youth are protected against exploitation and against moral and material abandonment.The state is also required to provide equal justice through the mechanism of free legal aid in order to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizens by reason of economic or other disabilities; to provide right to work, to education and public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement and other cases of undeserved want; to make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief, to provide work, a living wage, conditions of work ensuring a decent standard of life and full enjoyment of leisure and social and cultural opportunities; to secure the participation of workers in the management of undertakings, establishments or other organizations engaged in industry; to secure for all the citizen s a uniform civil code throughout the country, to provide free and compulsory education for children below the age of 14 years; to promote the educational and economic interests of the Scheduled castes and Scheduled Tribes and other weaker sections; to raise the level of nutrition and standard of living and to improve the public health. Thus, it can be said that the Constitution of India has twin objectives: First, to usher in a new social order ensuring distributive justice to all the citizens and; second, to protect the liberties of the people from the onslaughts of autocratic and arbitrary power. These two ideas run like a golden fabric through the entire scheme of the Constitution.Indeed, the substantive and the procedural provisions of the Constitution harmonizing the said two concepts give a new philosophy and sustenance to our socialist, democratic republic based on rule of law. But to our dismay, many of the legislative actions destined at distributive justice pursuance to t he implementation of the directive principles of state policy were struck down by the courts from time to time. The directives have been relegated to the position of inferiority. The bewildering judgments of the Supreme Court right from the days of Champakam Dorairajan,Quaresh, Kerela Education Bill, including the Golaknath, the Bank Nationalisation, the Privy Purse and the Minerva Mills have shattered all the hopes of the Government to implement the directive principles of state policy.These ecisions crippled the state machinery and paralysed the movement of the nation towards an equalitarian social order. These decisions represent a saga of judicial misunderstanding of the avowed ideals of the Constitution. This approach is inherently inconsistent with the spirit of the Constitution ignoring the realities of the Indian societal structure. The poverty of the Indian masses cannot be mitigated by eulogizing the fundamental liberties and mellowing down the positive efforts of state de stined at distributive justice. The Constitutional goals of distributive justice can be achieved only if the courts adopt a pragmatic and sociological approach without making such ado about the rights in interpreting socio-economic legislations.It is submitted that both fundamental rights and directive principles of state policy aim at establishing a just social order based on the philosophy of distributive justice ensuring dignity to the individual not only to the few privileged persons, but to the entire masses of the country including the have nots and the handicapped, the lowliest and the lost. Both these represent a broad spectrum of human rights. The concept of distributive justice as embodied in the Constitution is a living concept of revolutionary import. It gives sustenance to the rule of law and meaning and significance to the ideals of a welfare state. The freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution are not an end in itself, but the means to achieve distributive justice.Ou r Constitution is the unique document for the upliftment of the down-trodden and weaker sections of the society. The greatest need of the hour, therefore, in our society in social integration of the weaker and oppressed sections of the people with the rest of the society. This demonstrates that our Constitution does not leave the individual at the mercy of the law of nature representative of competitive modal of society. It assigns a prominent role to and imposes heavy responsibilities upon the state to assure a dignified life to each individual irrespective of what he deserves on meritarian consideration. Yet, in a way it incorporates the need-based principle of justice.It means securing to each and every human being the basic necessities of life like food, clothing, housing, medicine, education and the like etc. This is the voice of distributive justice and the very Dharma of the Indian Constitution. ——————————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€œ [ 1 ]. Sudesh Kumar Sharma, Distributive justice under Indian Constitution, Deep & Deep Publications, New Delhi, 1989 [ 2 ]. http://www. spotlaw. in/text/910011996/9100119961206001. htm (accessed on 9 march 2013) [ 3 ]. http://www. spotlaw. in/text/910011996/9100119961206001. htm (accessed on 9 march 2013) [ 4 ]. Sudesh Kumar Sharma, Distributive justice under Indian Constitution, Deep & Deep Publications, New Delhi, 1989 [ 5 ]. VII Encyclopaedia of Social Sciences, 512 (1953) [ 6 ].Quoted by Justice George Vadakkel in his paper entitled â€Å"Law, lawyers and political development†, Vol. VIII (4), Journal of Bar Council of India, 629 at 635 (1981). [ 7 ]. Address by Justice P. N Bhagwati at the opening session of the Sixth Commonwealth Law Conference on 18th August, 1980 in The challenge of social justice, 20-21 (1985). [ 8 ]. John Rawls, A Theory of Justice (1976 Reprint) [ 9 ]. R. B. Brandit, Ethical Theory, 415 (1959) [ 10 ]. John R awls, â€Å"Distributive Jusitce† in P. Laslett and W. G. Runciman (ed. ), Philosophy, Politics and Society, 3rd ser. 50 (1967) [ 11 ]. I C A. D 59 [ 12 ]. II C A. D. 269 [ 13 ]. II C A. D. 273 [ 14 ].Granville Austin, The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation, introduction (1979 Reprint) [ 15 ]. Art. 38(1) [ 16 ]. Art. 14 to 18 [ 17 ]. Art. 19(1)(a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (g). [ 18 ]. Art. 20 to 22 [ 19 ]. Art. 23 and 24 [ 20 ]. Art. 25 to 28 [ 21 ]. Art. 29 to 30 [ 22 ]. Art. 32 [ 23 ]. Art. 38(2) [ 24 ]. Art. 39(a), (b), (c), (d), (e) and (f). [ 25 ]. Art. 39-A [ 26 ]. Art. 42 [ 27 ]. Art. 43 [ 28 ]. Art. 43 A [ 29 ]. Art. 44 [ 30 ]. Art. 45 [ 31 ]. Art. 46 [ 32 ]. Art. 47 [ 33 ]. 1951 SCR 525 [ 34 ]. AIR 1958 SC 731 [ 35 ]. AIR 1958 SC 956 [ 36 ]. AIR 1967 SC 1643 [ 37 ]. AIR 1970 SC 607 [ 38 ]. (1971) 1 SCJ 295 [ 39 ]. (1980) 3 SCC 625

Monday, September 16, 2019

Comparing the Works of Luhrmann and Zeffirelli

These two films, both interpreting the same play, but portrayed very differently. When comparing the two we have to take into consideration that the time these films were made. Zeffirreli's version was made in 1968, and supposedly set in the 16th century. This version is based mostly on the script and is set in the time Shakespeare would have pictured as he wrote the play. The more recent one, directed by Baz Luhrmann is set in the world of today. In this version Luhrmann relies more on the visual impact on the viewer and the special effects. He is able to achieve this because of the huge budget that films have nowadays. In my opinion he was able to make a film, based on the works of Shakespeare and make it appeal to a wider audience than Zeffirelli. The older version seems more theatrical, meaning that it focuses on only a few main themes. For example, the scene where a Capulet trips up an old Montague man. It uses very basic visual effects for this, but by doing this it is made into a very melodramatic scene. It also keeps in most of the script and is based around it. The first fundamental difference we see is in the opening sequence. I think that the way the openings differ is unique in their own right. The Zeffirelli version in basically filmed in medium camera shots, and rather plain in effects (evidence of the time the film was made in). This means you get to see most things going on. What I found when watching the Zeffirelli version, was that when the slow-moving, calm camera pans over Verona then throws you into a medieval, bustling market is a huge contrast. Because of this change, you get to feel like a bystander, buying your weekly groceries. In both versions, when the camera zooms in on the characters during the opening scenes, you can feel the emotion and the tension, because the viewer is so close. In the Luhrmann version, because the imagination, ideas and amount of money has moved on in time since the Zeffirelli one was made, the camera angles change a lot from wide range, to close up shots. Luhrmann also filmed in wide screen (which has evidently been brought in, in the last 25 years of film-making), which gives the film a modern outlook. The iconography of the helicopter also shows the movement of the times. There is a lot of iconography used in both films, apart from the helicopter. In the Zeffirelli version there is the symbolism of the bell, the church and the Prince and his men riding into the scene on white horses. All these key features a very religious symbols. This is also common in the Luhrmann version because the camera focuses a lot on the huge statue of Christ in Verona. This is evidence that both directors had the same ideas about the importance of religion and different beliefs etc. For example, in Zefirelli's version, the Prince arrives on the scene on a white horse, stopping the fight, keeping the piece. The pure white horse could symbolise the peace, which is relevant to the Prince's purpose. It also focuses on the TV newsreader a couple of times. This is another difference in the opening sequences I realised, how the sonnet is said in each film. In the Zeffirelli one, a man says it when the camera focuses on a beautiful orange sky, and on the fiery red sun, with peaceful music in the background. When it focuses on the sun, the title of the play comes up, as does Zeffirelli's name. Whereas, Luhrmann has again incorporated Shakespeare in a modern day object, a fuzzy television. When the female newsreader narrates the sonnet, the television gradually moves closer and closer, until it takes up the whole screen. When she has finished the television fizzes out, then the music starts up. The camera then flashes back and forth from newspaper headlines about the conflict between the two families, the police helicopters, the names, the statue of Christ etc. the flashes of scenes match the music, and it gradually gets faster and faster. As this is seen, the words of the sonnet come up on the screen (in which every ‘T' is a medieval cross) and then it introduces the characters. It uses the same font throughout the opening scene, which is very effective considering it is in very bold, white letters. When I realised this, it meant that they used the same font for both families suggesting that they are both the same, both wanting the same things. It also focuses a lot on the two names. This occurs when the camera zooms in on the crests of both families' guns, the number plates on each car and the names in huge neon lights on the two highest buildings in ‘Verona'. What struck me the most when comparing the two films is how the music affects the opening scene. The music in the Luhrmann version is a huge, thunderous orchestral soundtrack. This is a perfect background to many huge, quick, sweeping camera shots, as it draws our attention to the vastness of the city. I would say it was a ‘gothic' soundtrack, because the music has a great texture and it emphasizes the ‘colours' of the city. We see a lot of greys, blues and blacks of the city. I also thought that the music enforces intense emotion, which sets the viewer up for the rest of the film. I found that it set a sense of suspense. I realised the importance of the camera shots/angles are and how both directors matched the music opening with the movement of the camera shots. Zeffirelli's version has a serene, calm, lame imitation of Elizabethan music, suitable to the time this film is set in. The music is quite quiet, wind music, quite the opposite to the Luhrmann version. This could be because the director wants the viewer to appreciate the surrounding and the environment the film is set in. Unlike the Luhrmann version, it focuses more on the actors and their speeches than the city. Language and meaning is very similar throughout both versions. This is apparent thought the way the characters act their speeches. For example the Montague boys in the car singing parts of the text to a wild rock song – showing the light hearted attitude of the people in the first few scenes – only until we see the first sign of conflict (the thumb biting in the petrol station). In this scene we witness the rude hate signal of ‘biting thumbs'. In the Zeffirelli version this scene is based exactly like the play itself, in a market place, and keeps in the sexual innuendos. Whereas in the Luhrmann version, this scene is in a modern petrol station, without all the petty language. In the Zeffirelli version, after a short number of sexual innuendos and antagonistic talk, the Capulet servants are the provokers, and with the hate signal of the biting of the thumbs, and the deliberate trip of a Montague. On the other hand, Luhrmanns interpretation of the scene is placed in the world of today set in a modern petrol station. When both cars get to the petrol station, the camera focuses on the sign, ‘Add more fuel to your fire', then after the rebellious looking Montagues provoke Abra into a quarrel, Tybalt starts the fire, and the camera then draws our attention to the sign again when it is alight with flames. This could represent the recklessness of the two gangs, and how all they have set out for is to kill. This could also represent the fact that they have no bounds or restrictions, and that their ruthlessness forces them to attack the other, no matter how much damage they cause. Most of these icons used in both films are very religious and symbolic. This can suggest the theory that maybe there can only be peace upon the death of another. Both directors had the same ideas about the dress codes of the groups, as we can see in the pictures above. They uniformed the characters into their families. In the Zeffirelli version it is the greens vs. red and yellows and in the Luhrmann version it is the sleek, blacks vs. the colourful and very scruffy. These two pictures show the differences of how both directors portray the different characters. Here we have Tybalt Capulet, cousin of Juliet. In both versions Tybalt has quite a laid back demeanour, sure of himself and knows he is the main man. When we compare these two characters, we have to take in to consideration that Zeffirelli's was mad nearly thirty years before the modern one, so think of the difference in budget, the difference in fashion, etc. both are in smart, expensive, very different clothes and the both stand out in the crowd. They both walk and talk in the same sly, powerful, confident manner. Out of all the Capulet boys, Tybalt would definitely be the first to catch your eye. If you compared the Montague boys to the Capulet boys, in both films, the Montague's are a lot scruffier, relaxed in their clothing, they look and act quite weedy, in a way. Both openings have their own positive strengths and weakness, in different ways. The traditional opening is more accurate as it portrays how the author would have seen the story unfolding in 1595, and the language used is accurate for that period. The downside of this is that it is likely to only appeal to scholars of Shakespeare and purists. The modern version however, appeals to a wider audience. Although not based accurately upon the script and entered into a modern context, which the author could not have imagined at the time and in no way intended, it is likely to appeal to a far greater audience who perhaps were not readers of Shakespeare and wouldn't have understood the older version. Helped by stars such as Leonardo Di Caprio the film opens up a whole new appeal to what was considered an old fashioned and to some, uninteresting story.