Raelianism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Raelianism - Research Paper Example Vorilhon, who now assumed the titular name of Rael (2006), described it as the religion of the infinite, â€Å"an atheist religion whose goals are the diffusion of the messages of demystification, given by the Elohim, to the Earth’s population, and to build an embassy where they will make official contact with the governments of the Earth† (p. 248). Based on its history, its development and its objectives, Raelianism can be considered a legitimate form of faith, regardless of the strangeness of its practices and rituals. It has persisted for decades and this alone makes the religion worth a closer look. History and Philosophy Unlike other groups, claiming to be a form of religion such as Scientology and even the Mormons, Raelianism is not overly secretive and is quite open with regards to its beliefs, rituals and history. Its beginnings, hence, is readily available to those who want to be initiated are interested to know. Its history began during that fateful day in 197 3 when Rael claimed to be driving in the middle of nowhere when the Elohim materialized. As per Rael’s account, these beings are extraterrestrials who came to the Earth and created life through scientific technologies. This was supposedly revealed to him and the responsibility to inform mankind and to prepare them to meet their makers rest on his hands. Thus, Raelianism was founded. The Raelian teachings, philosophies or what one would call catechism or dogma in the Christian religion are closely tied with existing religious texts such as the Bible. The idea is to view everything from their theoretical point of view. Here, the Christian God becomes the Elohim, a highly advanced extraterrestrial being. He was not an all too powerful omniscient or omnipresent mystical God but just an advanced race, with technological capability to design, manipulate and create life. For further insights, one could turn to the manner in which Raelian belief interpreted some parts of the biblical Genesis. Genesis 1:1 became: â€Å"In the beginning Elohim created the heaven and earth† (Rael, p. 11). The corresponding explanation revealed the framework further and to quote: Elohim, translated without justification in some Bibles by the word God means in Hebrew â€Å"those who came from the sky†, and furthermore the world is a plural. It means that the scientists from our world searched for a planet that was suitable to carry out their projects. They â€Å"created†, or in reality discovered the Earth, and realized it contained all the necessary elements for the creation of artificial life (p.11). The above example showed how Raelian belief tries to reconcile the religious texts that the world has with the concepts and artifacts of technology as we know or conceive of it today. It is not unlike rationalizing the mysteries of many religions, grounding it on scientific concepts. Eller (2007) summarized what the Raelianism stands for by saying that it is a â⠂¬Å"self-consciously atheistic religion† and that â€Å"the various world scriptures are attempts to communicate this reality but are garbled and confused† (p.268). The Elohim allegedly explained - and, therefore, such explanation became a core component of Raelian philosophy - that â€Å"the world’s existing religion were founded as a result of their direct communication with a series of human prophets for the purpose of implanting the idea of humanity’

English Language Learners Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

English Language Learners - Essay Example So, Slavit et al (2002) introduces many ways to learn second language along with highlighting similarities and differences. The main obstacle while learning English as a second language characterizes the students into two categories social and unsocial. For those students who possess a social and outgoing attitude, it is easier to learn as they are carefree about the mistakes and try experimenting the language while imitating phrases. Here they are not concerned about the mistakes. On the other hand it is difficult to learn English for those who possess a shy attitude and are conscious to what they should say and what not. Such students are unsocial and are concerned about grammatical mistakes. Hence it is difficult for them to utter and imitate phrases. ‘Errors’ and ‘Social Interaction’ are two profound approaches, which help a learner to learn the best of a language. Errors are the indicators of progress and if dealt positively can lead a child towards language perfection. In this context in case of errors it is not encouraging to adopt an attitude that points out errors in a learner, instead a better strategy is to highlight the correct form in the form of a model. Social interaction is another way of learning which not only is helpful in grasping new concepts but also encourages an individual to take part in oral and written language development through talking and listening. This is the reason for why today there is a growing trend of ‘chat forums’. According to Drucker (2003) there is a strong interconnection between listening and reading. This is evident from the fact that children who are able to read a little are when subjected to learn phonetic words, they found an ease to develop interest, which is helpful in learning and memorizing phonetic words, while on the other hand those words that are bore to pronounce are not remembered easily. In this context

Origins of business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Origins of business - Essay Example Entrepreneur can be defined as, "the one who undertakes an enterprise, especially a contractor, acting as intermediatory between capital and labor". (Jean-Baptiste Say) Entrepreneur is basically referred to a person who is willing to launch a new venture or an enterprise. He should have the qualities of carrying out a successful business. The effects of a good entrepreneur on business are that he has the quality to innovates efficiency and productivity in his business by introducing new technologies and ideas. He is a versatile and creative personality who brings in new strategies in his business or launches new types of products or services in order to profit his business. Planning or outline: Planning or an outline is a very important origin to start up a business. The founder of the business must plan first about the business. What, where, when and how, all these questions about the business are very necessary to answer before starting a business. The founder of the business must make a proper draft or an outline about his business and analyze all the expected aspects included the profit and loss of his business. This will be quite helpful in the future as the business will not be inclined towards any sort of loss and even if any loss may be occurring in the business, the entrepreneur will be ready to face it and handle it properly through the planning made before the launch of the business.

International Expansion Strategy of McDonalds

International Expansion Strategy of McDonalds Globalization has made the globe considerably smaller. States lines have turned into practically a divider separating certain regions of a massive unitary community. Businesses are the one that are highly affected by this occurrence. The virtual closeness of states has made trade and commerce an international event. Together with these advances, the key standards of business are similarly taken into account. The discussions in this paper shall involve an analysis of the international expansion strategy utilized by a multinational company. In this case, the situation surrounding McDonalds will be taken into consideration. The following annotations and propositions employed in the following discussions are to be supported by claims on journals and academic pieces that address international expansion strategies and international marketing theories. II.BACKGROUND The modest beginnings of McDonalds in Illinois turned out to be among the main brand names in the international scene. It has been synonymous to what is widely-accepted the fast-food concept. The company operates over thirty one thousand stores all over the world to date. It was one of the first to perfect the concept of fast service in the food industry in its early days of operations in 1955. Given that the products of the company are mainly western in character, its operations has also expanded to the Asian region. The first McDonalds store operated in Hong Kong in 1975. The first shop operated at Paterson Street in Causeway Bay. Up to this data, the functions of McDonalds in Hong Kong covers over two hundred restaurant chains spread in the whole of Hong Kong alone. In the rest of the globe, it operates thousands of store franchises that functions autonomously. III.PESTLE ANALYSIS Pestle is an analysis of the external macro environment in which a business operates. According to (2008), pestle stands for political, economic, social, technology, and environmental factors. A. Political Factors The international operations of McDonalds are highly influenced by the individual state policies enforced by each government. (2001, 705) For instance, there are certain groups in Europe and the United States that clamor for state actions pertaining to the health implications of eating fast food. (2005) They have indicated that harmful elements like cholesterol and adverse effects like obesity are attributable to consuming fast food products. On the other hand, the company is controlled by the individual policies and regulations of operations. Specific markets focus on different areas of concern such as that of health, worker protection, and environment. All these elements are seen in the government control of the licensing of the restaurants in the respective states. For instance, there is an impending legal dispute in the McDonalds franchise in India where certain infringement of rights and violation of religious laws pertaining to the contents of the food. The existence of meat in their menus in India is apparently offensive to the Hindu religion in the said market. There are also other studies that points to the infringement of McDonalds Stores with reference to the existing employment laws in the target market. Like any business venture, these McDonalds stores have to contend with the issues of employment procedures as well as their tax obligations so as to succeed in the foreign market. B. Economic Factors Organisations in the fast food industry are not excused from any disputes and troubles. Specifically, they do have their individual concerns involving economic factors. Branches and franchises of fast food chains like McDonalds has the tendency to experience hardship in instances where the economy of the respective states is hit by inflation and changes in the exchange rates. The customers consequently are faced with a stalemate of going over their individual budgets whether or not they should use up more on these foreign fast food chains. (2004) Hence, these chains may have to put up with the issues of the effects of the economic environment. Particularly, their problem depends on the response of the consumers on these fundamentals and how it could influence their general sales. In regarding the operations of the company, food chains like McDonalds tend to import much of their raw materials into a specific territory if there is a dearth of supply. Exchange rate fluctuations will als o play a significant role in the operations of the company. As stated in the paragraph above, McDonald stores have to take a great deal of consideration with reference to their microenvironment. The companys international supply as well as the existing exchange rates is merely a part of the overall components needed to guarantee success for the foreign operations of McDonalds. Moreover, it is imperative that the company be cognizant of the existing tax requirements needed by the individual governments on which they operate. This basically ensures the smooth operations of the McDonalds franchises. In the same regard, the company will also have to consider the economic standing of the state on which they operate on. The rate at which the economy of that particular state grows determines the purchasing power of the consumers in that country. Hence, if a franchise operates in a particularly economically weak state, hence their products shall cost higher than the other existing products in the market, then these franchises must take on certain adj ustments to maintain the economies of scale. C. Socio-Cultural Factors Articles on the international strategies of McDonalds seem to function on several fields to guarantee lucrative returns for the organisation. To illustrate, the organisation improves on establishing a positive mind-set from their core consumers. McDonalds indulge a particular variety of consumers with definite types of personalities. ( 1994) It has also been noted that the company have given the markets such as the United Kingdom, an option with regards to their dining needs. (2005) pointed out that McDonalds has launched a sensibly valued set of food that tenders a reliable level of quality for the respective market where it operates. Additionally, those who are aged just below the bracket of thirty-five are said to be the most frequent consumers of McDonalds franchises. ( 2005) The multifaceted character of business nowadays is reflected in the harsh significance of the information on the subject of the existing market. This procedure is essentially identified in the field as market research. (1997) Information with regards to the appeal and potential fields of the market would double as obstructions to the success of the company if this area of the operations is neglected. In the case of McDonalds they establish a good system in determining the needs of the market. The company uses concepts of consumer behaviour product personality and purchasing decisions to its advantage. ( 1998) It is said to have a major influence on the understanding of the prospective performance of the organisation in a particular market. (2000) D.Technological Factors McDonalds generates a demand for their own products. (2006) The companys key tool for marketing is by means of television advertisements. There are similarly some claims that McDonalds are inclined to interest the younger populations more. The existence of play spots as well as toys in meals offered by the company shows this actuality. ( 1995) Other demonstration of such a marketing strategy is apparent in the commercials of they use. They employ animated depictions of their characters like Grimace and Hamburglar. Other advertising operations employ popular celebrities to promote their products. The like has become endorsers for McDonalds worldwide loving it campaign. Moreover, the operations of McDonalds have significantly been infused with new technology. Elements like the inventory system and the management of the value chain of the company allows for easy payments for their suppliers and other vendors which the individual stores in respective markets deal with. The integration of technology in the operations of McDonalds tend to add value to their products. Basically, this is manifested in the improvements on its value chain. The improvement of the inventory system as well as its supply chain allows the company to operate in an international context. E. Legal Factors There has been the recurrent bellowing in opposition to the fast food industry. This has similarly made McDonalds apply a more careful consideration on their corporate social responsibilities. On the whole, this addressed the need of the company to form its corporate reputation to a more positive one and a more socially responsible company. ( 2005) The reputation of McDonalds is apparently a huge matter. Seen on the website of the company, it seems that they have acquired strides to take in hand the key social censures that they have been berating them in the past decades. The company has provided their customers the relevant data that they need with reference to the nutritional substances of their products. This is to attend to the arguments of obesity charged against the products of the company. In the same way, the consumers provided freedom in choosing whether or not they want to purchase their meals. This is tied up with the socio-cultural attributes of the market on which they operate. For instance, operations in predominantly Muslim countries require their meat to conform to theHalalrequirements of the law. In the same regard, those that operate in countries in the European Union should conform to the existing laws banning the use of genetically modified meat products in their food. Other legal concepts like tax obligations, employment standards, and quality requirements are only a few of important elements on which the company has to take into consideration. Otherwise, smooth operations shall be hard to achieve. F. Environment The social responsibilities of McDonalds on the state are influential to the operations of the company. These entail accusations of environmental damage. Among the reasons why they are charged with such claims is the employ of non-biodegradable substances for their drinks glasses and Styrofoam coffers for the meals. (1997) Several civic groups in Hong Kong have made actions to make the McDonalds franchises in Hong Kong aware of the rather copious use of Styrofoam containers and the resultant abuse of the environment. (1997) further indicated that in 1995, McDonalds Hong Kong went over the Styrofoam used by both Australia and the United States combined. IV. CONCLUSION Debatably, the most significant contribution of this generation is the combination of globalization and internationalization in the businesses sector. Developments in the international setting have an effect on the more particular factors in the operations in individual organisations. Alterations could take placer and require intense modifications to the operations such that it could have an adverse effect on the entire structure of the company. However, as indicated in the arguments and comments in this paper, this could be acquired by setting a certain level of flexibility in the organisation. This level of flexibility is basically acquired through the acquaintance of both the internal and external environment of the company. Even though McDonalds may have been deemed as demigod in the fast food business in the international scene, what it preserves as revealed in its processes is the need for flexibility. The slight changes that take place in the market have an effect on the operations of the business in any case. This denotes that having the information on the effects of these alterations swiftly provides these fast food industry giants to take fine-tuning actions on their acts and still preserve their market position. As implied in the introduction of this paper, the markets of nowadays manifest a cutthroat rivalry with the individual competitors, recognized brands or otherwise. Hence, any business in spite of the muscle of the brand name or the size of its reserves could not afford any failures in their individual markets

Reality and Illusion in Shakespeares Hamlet - Reality, Appearance and

Reality and Illusion in Hamlet    Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, begins with the appearance of a ghost, an apparition, possibly a hallucination. Thus, from the beginning, Shakespeare presents the air of uncertainty, of the unnatural, which drives the action of the play and develops in the protagonist as a struggle to clarify what only seems to be absolute and what is actually reality. Hamlet's mind, therefore, becomes the central force of the play, choosing the direction of the conflict by his decisions regarding his revenge and defining the outcome. Shakespeare begins Hamlet's struggle with recognition of Hamlet's sincere grief and anger following his father's untimely death. A taste of the conflict is expressed in the dialogue between Hamlet and his mother, Gertrude. Here Hamlet forcefully declares his pain and adds a discerning remark that defines seems as "actions that a man might play." (I.2 ln 84) By acknowledging Hamlet's comprehension of the separation between appearances and truth, Shakespeare gives the audience a reasonable belief in Hamlet's eventual success despite the obstacles he creates for himself.    Developing a convincing scheme by which to determine the goodness of the ghost and to achieve revenge is Hamlet's first action. Hamlet asks his friend Horatio to refrain from commenting on any strange behavior he may exhibit in the future. (I.5 ln 170-179) Later in the play, Hamlet alludes to his actual sanity when conversing with his school friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. "I am but mad north-north-west. When the wind is southerly, I know a hawk from a handsaw." (II.2 ln 377-378) After adequately concealing his intentions, Hamlet begins to doubt his own character. He compares himself to an actor who... ...struggle for revenge. Nevertheless, the central driving force of the play remains Hamlet's mind. The new king, Fortinbras, assures the audience that Hamlet "was likely, had he been put on, to have proved most royal." (V.2 ln 391-392)    Works Cited and Consulted: Heilman, Robert B. "The Role We Give Shakespeare." Essays on Shakespeare. Ed. Gerald Chapman. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1965. Levin, Harry. General Introduction. The Riverside Shakespeare. Ed. G. Blakemore Evans. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1974. Mack, Maynard. "The World of Hamlet." Yale Review. vol. 41 (1952) p. 502-23. Rpt. in Readings on The Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 1995. http://www.chemicool.com/Shakespeare/hamlet/full.html

Eavan Boland Personal Response

The poetry of Eavan Boland is clear,relateable and realistic. The stanzas in her poems are terse,but she manages to evoke strong feelings in the reader,e. g. the sense of apathy in â€Å"The War Horse†. Her poems are relateable because she is a contemporary poet and her themes generally involve the suburban culture. Her poetry is realistic because she elaborates and paints evocative pictures of ordinary sights like â€Å"the harsh shyness of the Atlantic light† (White Hawthorn in the West of Ireland).In the following,I will express in more detail of my personal response to the poetry of Eavan Boland. The theme of War and Human suffering is very powerful and appealing to me. In â€Å"The War Horse†,she shows how people living in suburbia can turn a ‘blind eye' to the war and suffering of others. The apathy of the people made the poet angry,she was sarcastic in the lines – â€Å"Why should we care/If a rose,a hedge,a crocus is uprooted/Like corpses,re mote,crushed,mutialated? â€Å"-it shows the nonchalance of the people towards the distant suffering of others.In emphasis of the theme of war,the poet uses the horse as a metaphor of violence – â€Å"[the] iron of his shoes as he stamps death/Like a mint on the innocent coinage of earth†. The size,weight and force of the horse causes some damage and destruction,imitating the raw violence that is happening to those distant in Northern Ireland. As the horse leaves,the poet â€Å"breathe[s] relief† – this reminds her of her ancestors and she feels ashamed of herself as she is just as apathetic as the people in her neighbourhood,because she is also only observing the horse coming into her neighbourhood.Her â€Å"blood is still with atavism†,for a fleeting moment she is reminded of her ancestors whose lives were threatened but they fought back and had passion for the safety of others but she is ashamed for she â€Å"use[d] the subterfuge of curtainsà ¢â‚¬  and became just as bad as her neighbours. The theme of war is further emphasized in â€Å"Child of Our time†. This poem deals with the tragic loss of life caused by war and conflict and it shows how all too often,it is the children who suffer.The child's â€Å"final cry† is one of pain and anguish. â€Å"We†,the public,the adults,the society should have made possible and supported a safe environment for that murdered child – â€Å"We should have known how to instruct† – have failed. The fact that we cannot guarantee safety forour children is all the more frightening. The poet knows that she and others â€Å"must learn from you dead† in order to â€Å"rebuild† society. Out of the destruction of the child's death by bombing,the poet grasps the possibility of learning and rebuilding.This one act of violence becomes a symbol for every act of violence in which innocent people are killed. Thus,sosiety is held responsible for t he child's death – â€Å"Our times have robbed your cradle†,but if a â€Å"new language† can be found then the child may not have died in vain. So,in my opinion,Boland effectively gets her point across to the readers – the theme of war – and I for one,also believe that most people are apathetic towards war and that a â€Å"new language† should be found. (etc. )

Cold Comfort Farm and Sons and Lovers Representation of Family Life

The representation of family life in Cold Comfort Farm and Sons and Lovers Family life in Cold Comfort Farm ia portrayed negatively mostly throughout the novel. It’s one of the main themes in the novel and can be seen through Flora and the presentation of the ‘Starkadders’ (Flora’s distant relatives). Flora is not close to her family and says ‘If i find out i have any third cousins living at Cold Comfort called Seth, or Reuben, I shall not go’. This shows that she’s already stereotyping her own family, showing that she knows nothing about them. Stella Gibbons seems to challenge the conventional family life by overthrowing normal restrictions like roles and social status that would be placed upon women in society, like Flora. Flora is a very independant women in the novel and doesn’t rely on men so she can live her life. Whereas Mrs Morel is totally dependant on her sons, Paul and William. Sons and Lovers was the third novel published by D. H. Lawrence. The novel recounts the coming of age of Paul Morel, the second son of Gertrude Morel and her hard-drinking, working-class husband, Walter Morel, who made his living as a miner. As Mrs Morel tries to find meaning in her life and emotional fulfilment through her bond with Paul, Paul seeks to break free of his mother through developing relationships with other women. In my chosen chapter for Cold Comfort Farm (chapter 2) Flora proceeds with her plan, despite Mary's disapproval. Mary goes out to look at a brassiere to possibly add to her massive collection. Meanwhile, Flora writes to a bachelor uncle in Scotland, an aunt in Worthing, a cousin in South Kensington, and distant relatives who live on a farm in Howling, Sussex, known as Cold Comfort Farm. She takes time in stylize each letter to the relatives' personalities, but as she knows nothing of the ones in Sussex, she keeps that one very straightforward. Three days later, Flora receives replies from all the relatives and looks at them with Mary. They all welcome her except there are issues that Flora can't abide, such as having to share a room with a cousin or parrot. The letter from the relatives in Sussex is, however, intriguing. Flora's Aunt Judith Starkadder seems different to all the others and would have more ‘messes to clean’. She decides to leave for Sussex the next morning. In my chosen extract for Sons and lovers (chapter 1, pages 26-27, from ‘Good gracious’ to ‘Its a lie, It’s a lie’) Mr Morel has come home drunk once again and Mrs Morel has had enough of his ‘childish’ and selfish behaviour. She confronts him in the kitchen where she is making him and the children food, he starts to raise his voice and become verbaly aggressive. This is the first time in the novel where we see the true side of Mr Morel. Throughout chapter two in Cold Comfort Farm the text is written in third-person, however, the focus is on Flora as she is narrating and also seems to give her own viewpoints despite the third-person structure. Gibbons portrays Flora as a strong, independant women and we can see this by her narrative structure â€Å"well my mind is made up, so there is no purpose in arguing†, said Flora’. This contrasts Sons and Lovers because Mrs Morel is far from independant, unlike Flora, who likes to ‘exploit’ her rights. Sons and Lovers is told mostly from a third-person point of view, as the narrator has access to the thoughts of the characters and moves back and forth in time while telling the story. In the extract Mr and Mrs Morel are arguing, bouncing back and forth off eachother, but Mr Morel is clearly the dominant person due to D. H. Lawrences’ use of language and imagery. ‘He dropped his two hands heavily on the table’ and ‘nasty little bitch! ’ makes Mrs Morel feel insignificant. At the start of chapter two in Cold Comfort Farm Flora presents family life as false and cold as she plans to write to her relatives, changing her style of writing to suit each individual personality. Before proceeding to write to her relatives she reveals her ‘dislike’ for her ‘fellow beings’. The tone achieved by using this self-centered attitued and blunt declaritives shows that she is determined to get what she wants. In the Sons and Lovers extract there are a lot of exclamitory sentences like ‘Good gracious, she cried, coming home in this drunken mess! and ‘Say you’re NOT drunk! ’. these quotes show true emotion and they also show that Mrs Morel has had enough of Mr Morels actions. In time, Mr Morels actions hurt his wife and his children untill they ‘despise’ him. These are not normal feelings a son should have towards their father. Different lexical sets have been used to show Floras true distance from her relati ves. ‘messy’, ‘revolting’, ‘grief’ all give a sence of a disease, stagnant life that no one would want to join, but Flora wants to for the ‘expirience’ of it all. Gives a feeling that family is bad, and must be stopped. She is using her relatives hospitality to get good writing material for when she’s ‘fifty-three’. Flora is disgusted at the thought of communicating with her ‘fellow-beings’ although this compound noun is not directly referring to her family members, it seems that Flora regards them in such an impersonal way. This impersonal tone is reinforced by saying ‘these people’ and ‘revolting’ making it clear that she doesn’t want to communicate with her relatives, again showing how independant she is. The Sons and Lovers extract has a lexical set of destressed and hurtful words. ‘cried’, ‘nasty little bitch’, ‘thrust’, ‘shut your face’. These set of words create a feeling of hatrid. Mrs Morel says ‘you don’t get as dunk as a lord on nothing’. Even in an argument where Mr Morel is clearly in the wrong, she still compares him to something great. ‘His hat over his eyes’, its almost as if he’s hiding the real him, he doesn’t want to be like this but the alcohol in his body is overpowering him, almost like the dominance of Flora in Cold Comfort Farm.