Website analysis Essay Example for Free

Website analysis Essay Blockbuster Inc. started to embark on online rental service in the Unites States last August 2004 (Press Release). This is in counteraction of Netflix’s leading online movie rental service. The company’s website is popularly called Blockbuster Online and is somehow independent with on-ground stores. Visiting the website, observations can be formulated regarding the effectiveness and creativity of the website to online customers. The welcome page of Blockbuster Online is simple but effective. It is simple in a sense that no pop-ups can be found; there are no visual animations or advertising videos; no sounds and background music to entice the customers. Nevertheless, it is quite effective for the very reason that it uses the familial connection occurring with its customers. This can be evident through the use of a family picture in front of a television, assumed to be watching movies. It gives the customers a sense of home and belongingness. On another visit of the website, the featured picture is a woman lying down on a sofa in front of the television. These also give an idea that although movie viewing is comfortable in a family setting, it can also be done alone and still enjoy the activity. In both pictures, the people involve are holding remote controls. This very small detail gives an impression that each are about to watch a movie although if one looks at the pictures alone, the television is not visible. Furthermore, the movie guides and popcorn on the table in the pictures give a new dimension to movie home viewing. The said details represent the idea that satisfying movie viewing is not only possible in the big screens but also possible in the home. One would even be made to conclude that it would be a lot feasible and safe to watch movies in the home rather than in theatres. The color scheme of the website, with its blue, light blue, yellow and white major colors, is also very appropriate for the services it offers. The colors used give an impression of brightness and lightness of the website. It gives a serene and calming touch to anyone who visits the website. In the simplicity of the welcome page of the website, the customers may also be persuaded to think that the services it offers are practical and cheap. It makes them feel that fees are inexpensive and affordable. On the other hand, the welcome page can be seen as a very uncreative effort in designing. As one lingers longer on the page, it can be noticed that the website looks like an ordinary advertisement box in a newspaper page. This is unfavorable since it will decrease the customers’ interest in exploring more of the website. Although the welcome page is uncomplicated, it contains many promotional materials like the company’s offer for a free trial. It also presents free shipping and a step-by-step menu to help customers who are new to the website. The three easy steps to enjoy the rental service include select movies, receive by mail and return by mail or in-store exchange (Blockbuster Online). The various different links from the welcome page to the other pages of the website makes up for the simplicity of the welcome page. Complex links can be found in the different parts and corners of the welcome page. Links to a variety of web pages regarding the company are located at the bottom of the welcome page. This is very uneasy for the customers since it is in very small font sizes that it becomes unnoticeable. This part of the website includes the terms and conditions policy of the company. Nonetheless, the rent and buy movie links on the page are easy to follow. One particular detail that has caught attention is the link opening default settings of the website. In the links related to rental services and other customer-related topics such as movie categories and new movie releases, the links open on the current page. On the other hand, if the link leads to the company’s information or financial and business issues such as investing and the company profile, the link opens on a new window. This is very interesting since it implicitly draws the line between customer-related issues and internal issues of the company. Further on, the different links to the secondary websites are too many and are hard to track which may lead to the customer getting lost in the whole website. This may also be the effect of the website’s moderate organization of the links. Nevertheless, upon familiarity of the website links, customers can get used to the incomprehensible first impression organization of the website. The sign-up page of the website is simply designed too. A step-by-step process of the whole transaction of the rental service is included in a graphical and a worded method. It looks like a comic strip which accounts for its easy-to-comprehend characteristic. The big sign-up button is also interesting enough due to its large size and appealing color and font type. These properties of the page may convince the customer to sign up for a membership plan. Features of the rental service are also in the web page in brief making it a summary of the whole service that the company provides. The rent movies page is quite colorful and interesting especially for movie fanatics. It includes different categories and featured movies. In all of these categories, the movies featured all have small movie posters with the relative size of a DVD front cover. It gives a very unique influence on the customer since the customer can somehow see a glimpse of the movie. The rental page also provides a link on the procedure on how to rent via the internet. Like the rental page, the buyers’ page is also filled with the DVD front cover posters of on-sale movies. The structure also consists of different movie categories wherein the customer can choose from. However, in the buyers’ page, the movies in feature incorporate a button which adds the movie to the list of movies the customer wants to buy. Together with this element is the price of the movie. The payment terms can be done through credit card and other online wiring financial services such as PayPal. This is very secure for online clients, thus contributing with the website’s ease of operation characteristic. Another amazing element of the website is its trailers and video clips page. In this part, the customer can take a glance of the movies and also watch the trailer of the movie. It is very appropriate and efficient since most customers would first want to see clips of the movie before they rent or buy it. This amazing feature adds up to the website’s effectiveness. Some of the web pages in the site require information upload from the customers and members. Such web pages include the store locator and the contact page (Blockbuster Online). In the store locator page, the client is asked to type in the address and then a button is clicked to reveal stores near the vicinity. This is very useful for online customers who wanted to avail of in-store exchanges that the company offers. Although the feature is very simple, it has its own link page to set it apart from the rest of the website. On the contact page, the client can contact the company on certain issues such as membership and DVD issues. However, the system used is not that of a presentation method but rather an e-mail type. In this method, instead of giving the company’s contact numbers, headquarters address and email-address, the company asks the customer to input the category issue, the client’s information and contact details as well as the messages or questions concerning the company’s services. It is much like an e-mail web page where one can submit the mail directly to the company. The system that the company uses is very reliable and easy to manage for their part since they can somehow sort the mails that they receive. This method also prevents prank callers and mailers from dumping junk on the company’s telephone lines and mailbox. Nevertheless, the negative part for this process is that the customers may feel reluctant to communicate with the company since the company requires personal information from the client which can be jeopardized unintentionally.

Happy Worker Is A Productive Worker Management Essay

Happy Worker Is A Productive Worker Management Essay The axiom of a happy worker is a productive worker has been traditionally accepted by organizations for many years. The globalization trend, technology changes and development as well as the new business practices continuously influence the importance of motivation and job satisfaction in Malaysian organizations. Nowadays many companies are facing intensive challenge in improving employees job satisfaction and their organizational commitment to gain competitive advantage and at the same time retention of their key employees. Successful organizations realize that employee retention is important to sustain their leadership and growth in the market place. In any meeting and conferences, The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) usually reflects the most challenging issues that face the oil and gas industry. Shortage of labor skills was not even an issue to be discussed in the SPE meetings and conferences for couple of years back. However this issue has emerged in the oil and gas industry and retaining top performance employees is becoming a major concern for many oil and gas companies. Recently most of SPE conferences have in their agenda discussions on the shortage of labor skills which really reflect the magnitude and the size of this issue. Obviously, every manager tries to achieve their organization objectives. In this connection they must concentrate in many aspects to fulfill the organizations wish to keep well trained and effective workforce. Employees with higher job satisfaction are important since they believe that the organization would have tremendous future in the long run and the employer gives credit to the quality of their work, hence those employees are more committed to the organization, have higher retention rates, and tend to have higher productivity. In order to make the best use of people as a valuable resource of the organization, attention must be given to the relationship between staff and the nature and content of their jobs. The organization and the design of jobs can have a significant effect on staff where attention needs to be given to the quality of working life. Many managers in the oil and gas companies when asked what motivates their employees and how to retain them always answer with confidence money, money and money as the only retention factor. It is because of this limited view that many companies are having high turnover rates. Money is necessary but it is not sufficient to retain an employee. An oil company needs to do more than increasing salary, in addition it has more options that are non-monetary and are very effective in order to retain and motivate employees. Motivation is an inner driver that drive individuals to act or perform. Specific theories may propose varying set of factors influencing motivation (Harder, 2008). But many scholars agree that motivation is psychological process that causes the arousel, direction, intensity and persistence of behaviour (Locke and letham, 2004; Pinder, 1998). There are numerous motivation theories that have influenced the way organisations manage employees to achieve a motivated work force. These theories attempt to explain why people behave the way they do and advice on factors and strategies which when employed can get the best out of employees in terms of their commitment to work. Notwithstanding, because of the complex nature of the issues worth considering when motivating people, it is always not an easy task when it comes to organisations motivating workers for effective performance. Job satisfaction is important to an organizations success. Much research has been conducted into ways of improving job satisfaction of workers in various sectors of the Malaysian economy, including the academic sector (Wong Teoh, 2009; Noordin Jusoff, 2009), the hotel sector (Abd. Patah, Radzi, Abdullah, Adzmy, Adli Zain, Derani, 2009), the government sector (Yahaya, A., Yahaya, N., Arshad, Ismail, 2009), the non-profit sector (Ismail Zakaria, 2009), the naval sector (Mohd. Bokti Abu Talib, 2009), and the automobile manufacturing sector (Santhapparaj, Srinivasan, Koh, 2005). There has been relatively little research into the determinants of job satisfaction in the oil and gas in Malaysia. Therefore, this paper endeavours to address this literature gap. PROBLEM STATEMENT One of the leading challenges facing by Managers nowadays is execution of effective human capital strategies to augment firms performance. As a result of pressure to perform, the worth of satisfied employees becomes more indispensable. Job satisfaction describes that how much happy an individual is with his/her job. According to Locke (1976) job satisfaction is a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of ones job and job experiences. The happier the individual, the higher is level of job satisfaction. It is assumed that positive attitude towards work and greater organizational commitment increases job satisfaction which in return enhances performance of the individual (Linz, 2002). However, the relationship between motivation and job satisfaction appears to be a very complex one. The fact that employees are satisfied does not necessarily mean that they will perform well and motivated. They may be satisfied because they may not have to work hard, conversely, employees who work hard may not be satisfied. They may be working hard in order to avoid some form of disciplinary action against them (Bhagat, 1982). From findings, the issue of job satisfaction amongst employees also has escalated into other human resource issues such as high turnover. In this era of war for talent, organization realized the high costs associated with turnover and the time spent in replacing the resigned staff. This problem is happening in almost every industry in Malaysia with turnover rate on the rise. Based on the data collected in Hewitts 2007 Total Compensation Management survey, the average employee turnover rate is 18% (Hewitt, 2008). Another report by Hewitt in The Edge Malaysia in 2009, retaining staff would increasingly prove challenging as the turnover rate in Malaysia increased to 10.1% in 2009 compared to 9.3% in 2008. As reported by Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) in their recent Salary Survey for Executives/Non Executives 2010: Average Monthly Turnover Rate (July 2009-June 2010) Non Executive Executive Oil Gas/Petroleum/Chemical Industry 1.56% 0.87% Overall 1.97% 1.35% Source : Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) The report showed that the turnover rate for non executives is much higher than executives and this is linked to low employee satisfaction. The employees desire to hop from one job to another seem to be the trend of today. In three recent surveys conducted in the United States, Canada and Malaysia, it was reported that more than half would abandon their employers if offered comparable jobs elsewhere (McShane, 2009). Despite monetary rewards, commitment amongst employees is still low. Therefore, the researcher is hoping that this study will be able to provide answers to the following statement: Does achievement increase employee satisfaction? Does advancement increase employee satisfaction? Does work itself increase employee satisfaction? Do recognition increase employee satisfaction? Do growth increase employee satisfaction? The manager needs to understand how best to make work more satisfying for employee and to overcome obstacles to effective performance. As mentioned earlier, because of a high competition, therefore every organization has to compete with other organization. In this connection in order to achieve competitive advantage the organization has to retain work for, organization expects that satisfying employees are more performing. Therefore, there is a need for the organization to satisfy their employees to achieve their objectives. For the employees point of view, job satisfaction leads to several benefits such as, reducing moral stress, create new thinking and innovation which lead them to high level, fresh mind, good relationship with co-workers, supervisor and employees etc. Competition as a result of globalisation, information technology and industrialisation has compelled managers all over the world to seek to motivate their employees in order to get the best out of them and to stay co mpetitive. This has led managers to employ all sorts of techniques to motivate and satisfy their employees. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The main objectives of the study is to examine the impact of motivational factors on employee job satisfaction. Therefore, the objectives of this research are as follows: To identify the employee perception in regards to achievement, advancement, work itself, recognition, growth and job satisfaction. To examine the relationship between achievement and employee job satisfaction. To examine the relationship between advancement and employee job satisfaction. To examine the relationship between work itself and employee job satisfaction. To examine the relationship between recognition and employee job satisfaction. To examine the relationship between growth and employee job satisfaction. To examine the impact of motivational factors on employee job satisfaction. RESEARCH QUESTIONS The researcher would like to investigate the impact of motivational factors on employee job satisfaction. Therefore, the research questions that will hold relevance to the study are: What is the employee perception with regards to achievement, advancement, work itself, recognition and growth? Is there a relationship between achievement and employee job satisfaction? Is there a relationship between advancement and employee job satisfaction? Is there a relationship between work itself and employee job satisfaction? Is there a relationship between recognition and employee job satisfaction? Is there a relationship between growth and employee job satisfaction? Do motivational factors have an impact on employee job satisfaction? RESEARCH FRAMEWORK The investigation of this study is to analyze the motivational factors that cause job satisfaction in the workplace of employees employed by oil and gas company headquarted in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In essence, the research will focus on the factors that contribute to job satisfaction and high motivation amongst employees. The motivational factors that will be used in this research only focus on achievement, advancement, recognition, work itself and growth. Achievement Specific successes, such as the successful completion of a job, solutions to problems, vindication, and seeing the results of your work. Advancement Actual changes which enhance position or status at work. Recognition Any act of recognition, be it notice or praise. A distinction can be made between situations where concrete rewards are given along with acts of recognition and those in which they are not. Work itself The actual or nature of the job or phases of it. Growth Changes in job situation where the possibilities for professional growth increase. Besides new vistas opened up by promotion, they include increased opportunities in the existing situation for learning and practicing new skills. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY The researcher hopes that this study will contribute to numerous benefits in terms of theoretical, management as well as academic perspectives. Theoretical perspective: The study would help to shed new light of the usefulness of the Herzberg Two-Factor Theory in explaining the importance of employee motivational factors on employee job satisfaction. Management perspective: The management can use the findings from this study to assist them to gain competitive advantage over their competitors in employee commitment from the same industry. This study is also aimed at helping employees to identify the motivational factors that will drive them towards being more committed and loyal to the organization. The employees will feel contented which is the factor that will make them stay longer in the organization. The longer employee stays with an organization, the more valuable they will be in terms of seniority, skill and knowledge. Academic perspective: This research will benefit other student to understand the impact of motivational factor on job satisfaction better and could be a reference or guideline for other researcher who is interested to study this three relationship dimension in other industry. SCOPE OF THE STUDY The scope of this study only covers employees from oil and gas industry who are based at the headquarters in Kuala Lumpur. For the purpose of this study, the motivational factors only include achievement, advancement, recognition, work itself and growth. LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY Sample select a sample population that may not reflect the overall population. Respondents too dependent on the self-reported responses. Time limited time to collect back the questionnaires as some of the respondents may be working outstation or on a short foreign assignment. These abovementioned factors may affect the accuracy of the data and steps have been undertaken to reduce this problem by assuring the respondents that this study is confidential. Employees can then be rest assured as to provide true and fair opinion as they need not furnish their names in the questionnaire.

Ecstasy: A Drug That Can Kill :: Illegal Drugs Essays

Ecstasy: A Drug That Can Kill missing works cited Three years ago, Mark*, now a college junior, went to a Dave Mathews concert in Boston with a few friends. He was 18 at the time, and about a half-hour before the concert started, they all decided to take a pill of the drug Ecstasy. This was Mark’s first time taking the drug, so he didn’t fully know what to expect. They chose what is called the â€Å"speedy† type, commonly used at raves and parties rather than the â€Å"dopey† type, which is known to give more of a slow, relaxing feeling. â€Å"Seriously, you get this warm fuzzy feeling that runs up your back, and a feeling that everything in life is right. Your jaw begins to clench and you love chewing on stuff†¦gum, straws, candy,† he said. The feelings that Mark experienced are typical effects of the drug. His most intense feelings lasted about three hours, and the overall feeling of the drug remained for about six to seven hours. Yet the feelings of contentment abruptly ended when he awoke the next day. â€Å"The next day was the most horrible day of my life,† he said. â€Å"All the happiness that was triggered in your brain is drained and you’re left with nothing.† Over eight million people aged 12 and older reported using the â€Å"club† drug ecstasy at least once in their lifetime, according to the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), an information source on the consequences, patterns, and prevalence of alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drug use and abuse in the general U.S. population, age 12 and older. Methylenedioxymethamephetamine (MDMA), commonly known as ecstasy, is a synthetic psychoactive drug used for its elated and hallucinogenic causes. Formally used to assist psychotherapy in the 1970s, it is now banned in the United States. Although illegal, it is rapidly rising in popularity in the United States, particularly among teenagers and young adults. Taken orally in a tablet or capsule, snorted, or injected, it generally takes 30 to 40 minutes to take effect and lasts about three to six hours, although some side effects can occur weeks after taking the drug. Ecstasy’s psychological side effects include confusion, depression, sleep problems, anxiety, and paranoia. Like Prozac, it causes an elevation in serotonin, a chemical in the brain which triggers happy feelings in people. Some physical side effects are muscle tension, teeth clenching, nausea, blurred vision, chills, or sweating.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton: Challenging Religion through the Women’s Right

Elizabeth Cady Stanton: Challenging Religion through the Women’s Right Movement Elizabeth Cady Stanton was a powerful writer who believed on the abolition of slavery and that women’s voice should be heard. Stanton, along with other members of the woman suffrage movement recognized how the Christian Church supported men’s oppressive behavior toward women. She realized that women’s position in the Church became so deteriorated that horrifying acts against women became justified and accepted by the public. â€Å"The only points in which I differ from all ecclesiastical teaching is that I do not believe that any man ever saw or talked with God, I do not believe that God inspired the Mosaic code, or told the historians what they say he did about woman, for all the religions on the face of the earth degrade her, and so long as woman accepts the position that they assign her, her emancipation is impossible.† Elizabeth Cady Stanton wrote these lines in the Woman’s Bible as a wake up call for women who were accepting and taking for gran ted their own value in the eyes of God. Moreover, Stanton was aware that she was fighting against an institution that has taken away women’s rights from its sacred books and conveniently has created a patriarchal nation that was the setting for a perpetuate abuse against women’s rights. The words of Thomas Aquinas, the thirteenth century Christian theologian, summarizes what the Church and society itself followed and still believed during the 19th century: â€Å" woman was created to be man’s help meet, but her unique role is in conception†¦since for other purposes men would be better assisted by other men.† Cady Stanton revises the Bible in 1881, considering that this action was needed, since no women participa... ... not acceptable according to the Christian Holy book. Therefore, solutions to women’s issues regarding men’s oppressive acts can be heard and God’s word would not be hold responsible for sexist behaviors that keep women into the darkness of silence. References Blaney, Mary. Role of Women in the Catholic Church. 14 April 2004. http://www.votf.org/papers/A WomansPlace.html Trinity Stores: Icons and Art, Religious Gifts, Catholic & Christian Products. 14 April 2004. http://www.trinitystores.com/main.php4?detail=39&artist=1 Women and the World. 14 April 2004. http://www2.dsu.nodak.edu/users/demeier/women/women.html Schools of 19th Century Christian Feminism. 14 April 2004. http://www.erasofelegance.com/gender2.html Stanton, Cady Elizabeth. The Woman’s Bible. The Complete Text in Two Volumes 14 April 2004 http://www.undelete.org/library/library0041.html

Confession of the Jews and First Confession :: Confession of the Jews Essays

Confession of the Jews and First Confession In comparing the books "Confession of the Jews" and "First Confession", I have found there to be similarities and differences. For example, "First Confession" deals with a boy converting from a boy to a young man by going to confession and telling his sins for the first time. "Conversion of the Jews" deals with converting a boy into someone he has never really seen which was a free thinker which only older people usually do. In "Conversion of the Jews" Ozzie, who was the main character, had a problem with getting along with the priest Rabbi Binder at Hebrew School. Rabbi Binder didn't really like Ozzie because he was always asking a lot of questions and Rabbi Binder was always getting angry at him. In "First Confession" Jackie, the main character, also had a problem. Jackies problem was similar to Ozzies, but also different. Jackie had a problem with his sister Nora. Nora believed that Jackie was always lying and being bad. On his confession day his mother sent Nora go with Jackie. Nora ordered Jackie to tell all of his sins, including how he was mean to the grandmother who lived with them. Ozzie seemed troubled to Rabbi Binder in "Conversion of the Jews". In reality Jackie wasn't bad at all, he was just a boy who wanted answers to his questions. And that was proved when Ozzie asked a question in class and Rabbi Binder went crazy and hit Ozzie because he thought Ozzie was trying to be a wise guy. So Ozzie tried to prove a point to Rabbi Binder and his fellow classmates by running to the roof and making believe he was going to jump. With Ozzie being on the roof it gave Rabbi Binder a bigger belief that Ozzie was crazy and troubled. Ozzie wasn't really crazy, he was just trying to make a point that he really wasn't dumb. Ozzie just wanted to believe that there was really a Christ. So with the point that Ozzie was trying to make helped to convert everyone and their beliefs. Jackie, like Ozzie, was also troubled in "First Confession". He was a young boy who lived with his family, including the grandmother. Jackie believed the grandmother didn't like him very much, so he did mean things to her like hide under the table when she cooked dinner. When it came time for his first confession he went with his sister Nora. Nora tormented Jackie and scared him into believing he was a sinner and he will pay for all of his sins.

Dramatic Impetus in a View from the Bridge

Dramatic impetus is defined as an impelling movement or force within a play. In A View from the Bridge it is dependant on conflicts between opposing sets of values in areas such as relationships, gender, age and the community. The main character we are opposed to is Eddie as his set of values towards the end of the play contradict values of society, his family and even his own. He represents the older generation and the male stereotype of the 1950’s and also demonstrates justice being put to serve by the driving human emotions. His love is unevenly spread across the family causing conflict and destruction to his marriage, his family and even his life. There are five different relationships in the play, which are all affected by one conflicting emotion, causing the most important dramatic impetus. All the characters share a love as a family, at the start, as they all would take a risk for one another in any circumstance. The Italian brothers, Rodolpho and Marco, share a brotherly love so strong that they would lay down their own lives for the other brother. Rodolpho and Catherine develop a young romantic love, one set off at the very first sight and carries on throughout the play. Beatrice and Eddie are of course married but we are told mid way through Act 1 that their love has lost its passion. Beatrice questions Eddie when she asks â€Å"When am I going to be a wife again, Eddie? † in which he replies with â€Å"I ain’t been feeling good. They bother me since they came. † This conversation is unnatural for a married couple as the act of sex is supposed to be a common activity in the marriage life and especially desirable for men. All these relationships create a tension, set off by the one relationship based upon Eddie’s emotions and pride. Eddies love for Catherine – although not admitted by him but clearly shown to the other characters and the audience – enforces the dramatic impetus. Catherine and Eddie’s love at the start is clearly affectionate like a father and his daughter however in this case; Eddie is Catherine’s uncle. Catherine says, â€Å"I’ll get you a beer, all right? to Eddie at the start of the play, which evidently shows her affection to him as a father figure. However, this love develops into an incestuous love on Eddie’s behalf which conflicts with every relationship and the value of love. This love opposes Eddie’s love for his wife, Catherine’s love for Rodolpho and the love between Rodolpho and Marco. When it comes to love in the play, dramatic impetus is dependant on the deep passion that creates jealousy and causes pain bot h to the person who loves, the person who is loved and those around them. The way in which the law takes part in a crime can never satisfy the victim’s idea of justice as our decisions are based upon the emotions that we feel and therefore it is not true justice; it is not objective. However, where should our value be put when it comes to the betrayal of family and the betrayal of the law? Where can justice satisfy either values? At the start of the play, Eddie is seen as an honourable man for taking in two relatives as illegal immigrants and providing them with a roof over their heads and work on the pier, he even warns Beatrice and Catherine to not say a word, for the mere protection of the family. His warning is carried in a story about Vinny Bolzano whose family had hidden an uncle in the house. Vinny had â€Å"snitched† to the Immigration and suffered the consequences. â€Å"BEATRICE: Oh, it was terrible. He had five brothers and the old father. And they grabbed him in the kitchen and pulled him down the stairs – three flights his head was bouncin’ like a coconut. And they spit on him in the street, is own father and his brothers. The whole neighbourhood was cryin’. † The irony in this, is that Eddie becomes the betrayer, the â€Å"snitch†, in the second act when he walks into a telephone booth and rings up the Immigration Buereau. His action goes against his own values of trust, family and honour because they have been dictated by his feelings for Catherine and against Rodolpho. The little trust that Marco had for Eddie is now gone and there is nothing more the two would want more than justice and revenge progressing into an outbreak of conflict as they fail to look for a higher principle of justice separate from their own feelings found in the law. Although Eddie values the honour in his name, Marco values the trust bonds of family, which provides the dramatic impetus of Eddie’s tragic death. Values of sexuality and gender in the play are very conflicting even when the accusations are false. Men tend to value power, strength and honour in their name and not receiving the praise for these attributes can be very demeaning and conflicting to ones self. For example, Eddie is a very honourable man at the start of the play but his honour gradually decreases due to his own emotions and when that honour in his name is taken away by Marco there is an external conflict between the two in the last scene. Both Eddie and Marco are masculine characters and their similar values are conflicting in both a competitive way and in a form of loyalty, especially in the last act where Marco defends his family’s honour. Women also have values that conflict with their own. Catherine and Beatrice have a minor conflict in that they both fight for Eddie’s attention; for male affirmation as the daughter and as the wife. They both value Eddie’s opinion at the start and so they work to satisfy his needs but when another male comes onto the scene, this changes causing the conflict between males for the woman’s attention. This is clear in the play when Rodolpho steps onto the scene and captures Catherine’s attention, dragging it slowly away from Eddie. Due to his pride and jealousy, Eddie makes accusations that Rodolpho is homosexual which was not valued in 1950’s society. Eddie tries to give evidence that Rodolpho just â€Å"ain’t right† and explains to Alfieri, â€Å"I know a tenor, Mr Alfieri. This ain’t no tenor. I mean if you came in the house and you didn’t know who was singin’, you wouldn’t be lookin’ for him you be lookin’ for her. These accusations not only create dramatic impetus but also provide a shock value when in act 2, Eddie â€Å"pins [Rodolpho’s] arms, laughing, and suddenly kisses him. † This reveals to the audience Eddie’s true thoughts and feelings in a very dramatic way. It is obvious that Eddie does not value homosexuality as he represents the masculine but his accusations to this opposin g value creates a conflict and furthermore provides dramatic impetus. Amongst different age groups come different sets of values and attitudes towards traditional manners. Rodolpho and Catherine represent the youth and when Rodolpho and Catherine decide to marry without Eddie’s permission, this is scene as disrespectful. It is generally polite and traditional in past generations to ask the parents for a daughters hand in marriage so when this tradition is broken then conflict breaks out. Eddie also does not value materialism like Rodolpho does as the consumerist generation which takes part in the conflict between Eddie and Rodolpho. It is said that wisdom comes with age and so do wrinkles, which is why the idea of beauty in older women is valued. Beatrice represents the older generation in the play and it is clear that she feels jealous of Catherine’s young beauty. â€Å"BEATRICE: You think I’m jealous of you, honey? CATHERINE: No! It’s the first I thought of it. BEATRICE: Well you should of thought of it before†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Although these values between youth and adult are not major factors of conflict, they contribute to the dramatic impetus and create a momentum towards the final outburst of built up tension between the characters. Arthur Miller creates dramatic impetus in A View from the Bridge through conflicting character values. The different types of love shared are all conflicted with the one emotion that brings about a roll of events and an outburst of tension. Justice is values only by the state of ones emotions and therefore can differ depending on the situation but will always intend to provide revenge on the criminal or victim. Gender and sexuality creates conflict through accusations as the 1950’s did not value homosexuality. The values between different generations provide dramatic impetus in the play.

Aboriginal Canadians and European Settlers

Aboriginal Canadians and European settlers In the history of contact between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples in Canada, there has been an imbalance in acculturative influences. Generally, Aboriginal peoples have been changed substantially, with serious erosion of their cultures and identities. However, this dominance by Euro Canadian peoples has also been met by resistance by Aboriginal peoples.Policy and programme changes to alter the relationship between these two sets of people are suggested, including a reduction in pressures toward assimilation and segregation which have historically resulted in the marginalization of Aboriginal Peoples in Canada. When individuals experience intercultural contact, the issue of who they are comes to the fore. Prior to major contact, this question is hardly an issue; people routinely and naturally think of themselves as part of their cultural community, and usually value this attachment in positive terms.Of course, other life transitions (su ch as adolescence) can lead people to wonder, and even doubt, which they are. But it is only during intercultural contact that their cultural identity may become a matter of concern. The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples established a research project on Aboriginal cultural identity, and commissioned reports on the subject.This paper is based on one of those reports, and draws upon concepts, data and analyses that were carried out as a consultant to that project The main line of argument in this paper is that intercultural contact between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples in Canada (both historically, and at the present time), has initiated a process of acculturation (at both the cultural and psychological levels), during which Aboriginal peoples have experienced cultural disruption, leading to reducedwell-being and to identity confusion and loss.It is further argued that sincethis process has resulted from interactions between Aboriginal and nonAboriginal peoples, the key to reestablishing a sense of well-being and secure cultural identity resides in restructuring the relationships between these two communities. This paper contains four sections: a discussion of the concept of cultural identity, as it derives from the social science literature; a brief review of the process and consequences of intercultural contact; a summary of the main findings; and a discussion of their implications for policy and programmed.May lead to more positive identities, and to cultural and psychological outcomes that are more fulfilling. Breton and Norman fishermen came into contact with the Algonquians of the northeast at the beginning of the 16th century, if not earlier, as they put into natural harbors and bays to seek shelter from storms and to replenish water and food supplies. There is some indication that these first contacts with Aboriginal inhabitants were not always friendly.A few individuals were kidnapped and taken to France to be paraded at the court and in p ublic on state and religious occasions. Also, precautions seem to have been taken to hide the women inland when parties landed from ships engaged in cod fishing or walrus hunting. On the other hand, there were mutually satisfactory encounters as trade took place. The Algonquian brought furs, hides and fish in exchange for beads, mirrors and other European goods of aesthetic and perhaps spiritual value. Both sides seemed content with this growing exchange.Soon the Algonquian exacted goods of more materialistic value, such as needles, knives, kettles or woven cloth, while the French displayed an insatiable desire for well-worn beaver cloaks. In the 16th century, the French, like their western European neighbors, proceeded to lay claim to lands â€Å"not possessed by any other Christian prince† based on the European legal theory of Terra Nullius. This theory argued that since these lands were uninhabited, or at least uncultivated, they needed to be brought under Christian domini on.The royal commission to ROBERVAL for the St Lawrence region, dated 15 January 1541, and La Roche's commission for SABLE ISLAND in 1598 enjoined acquisition either by voluntary cession or conquest. By the early 17th century, as the FUR TRADE expanded and Catholic missionary work was seriously contemplated, a policy of pacification emerged. The fact that the French chose to colonize along the Bay of Fundy marshlands and the St Lawrence Valley, from which the original Iroquoians had disappeared by 1580, meant that no Aboriginal peoples were displaced to make way for colonists.This peaceful cohabitation remained characteristic of Aboriginal-French relations up to the fall of ACADIA (1710) and of NEW FRANCE (1760). Beyond the Acadian farmlands and the Laurentian seigniorial tract, the Aboriginal peoples on their ancestral lands continued to be fully independent, following their traditional lifestyle and customs. Royal instructions to Governor Corellas in 1665 emphasized â€Å"the off icers, soldiers and all His Majesty's adult subjects treat the Indians with kindness, justice and equity, without ever causing them any hurt or violence. Furthermore, it was ordered that no one was to â€Å"take the lands on which they are living under pretext that it would be better and more suitable if they were French. † Royal instructions in 1716 not only required peaceful relations with the Aboriginal peoples in the interests of trade and missions but also forbade the French from clearing land and settling west of the Montreal region seigneurs. In the PAYS D'EN HAUT, care was taken to obtain permission from the Aboriginals before establishing a trading post, fort, mission station or small agricultural community such as Detroit or in the Illinois country.Following a conference with 80 Iroquois delegates at Quebec in the autumn of 1748, Governor La Galissoniere and Intendant Bigot reaffirmed that â€Å"these Indians claim to be and in effect are independent of all nations , and their lands incontestably belong to them. † Nevertheless, France continued to assert its sovereignty and to speak for the â€Å"allied nations† at the international level. This sovereignty was exercised against European rivals through the allied â€Å"nations,† not at their expense through the suppression of local customs and independence.The Aboriginal peoples accepted this protectorate because it offered them external support while permitting them to govern themselves and pursue their traditional ways. The MI'KMAQ, and later the Arenac, accepted the Catholic religion, even in the absence of large-scale sustained evangelization, as a confirmation of their alliance and brotherhood with the French and resistance to Anglo-American incursions. When the Milkman eventually signed a treaty of peace and friendship with the British authorities at Halifax in 1752, the ABENAKI who had taken refuge in Canada rebuffed the official delegate of the governor at Boston.Beg inning their apostolic labors in Acadia in 1611 and in Canada in 1615, Catholic MISSIONARIES dreamed of a rapid conversion of Aboriginal peoples and even wondered if they might not be descendants of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel. Traditional Milkman and Montagnais hospitality dictated that the itinerant missionaries be well received. Soon evangelization efforts were centered on the sedentary, horticultural and strategically located HURON confederacy (see STE MARIE AMONG THE HURONS).But factionalism arising out of favoritism shown to converts and the EPIDEMICS that decimated the population almost brought the mission to a close. On two occasions, the JESUITS were spared execution or exile on charges of witchcraft only by French threats to cut off the trade on which the Huron had become dependent. Following the dispersal of the Huron in 1648-49, the missionaries turned to other groups in the Great Lakes basin, including the IROQUOIS confederacy, but they never enjoyed great success. Ab original peoples assumed a tolerant dualism: â€Å"you can have your ways and we will have ours, for everyone values his own wares. More success was achieved on the reductions, or reserves (see INDIAN RESERVE) as they came to be known, established within the seigniorial tract of New France. In 1637 the seigneur of SILLERY near Quebec was designated a reduction for some Montagnais encamped nearby as well as for all the northern hunters who would take up agriculture under Jesuit tutelage. Although the Montagnais did not remain long, some Arenac refugees came to settle, and finally Huron who escaped from the Iroquois conquest of their country.Eventually there were reserves near each of the three French bridgeheads of settlement: Loretta near Quebec for the Huron; Betancourt and Saint-Francois near Trois-Rivieres for the Abenaki; Kahnawake near Montreal for the Iroquois and Lac-des-Deux-Montagnes for both ALGONQUINS and Iroquois. These reserves were relocated from time to time at ever greater distances from the principal towns not only because of soil exhaustion but also because of the desire of the missionaries to isolate the Aboriginal converts from the temptations of alcohol, prostitution and gambling.The Kahnawake reserve, with the connivance of certain Montreal merchants, became an important link in an illicit trade with Albany and New York. The French designated those Aboriginal peoples who settled on these reserves under the supervision of Missionaries as â€Å"Indiens domicilies† (resident Indians). Those who came to live on reserves were motivated by religious ideals and the need to escape persecution or encroachment on their lands, but in time the economic advantages became quite substantial. It was often on the reserves that canoemen, scouts and warriors were recruited for trade and war.The products of the field and the hunt, as well as the manufacture of canoes, snowshoes and moccasins found a good outlet on the Quebec market. At the time of th e British CONQUEST of New France in 1760, the â€Å"resident Indians' were united in a federation known as the SEVEN NATIONS of Canada. It is possible that this Aboriginal political organization, whose membership evolved over the years, dates back to the early days of the French regime at the time when the first Aboriginal â€Å"reductions† (reserves) were created in the St Lawrence valley.Official French objectives had been to christianize and francize the Aboriginal peoples in order to attain the utopian ideal of â€Å"one people. † The church tried to achieve this objective through itinerant missions, education of an Aboriginal elite in France, reserves and boarding schools, but in the end it was clear that the Aboriginal peoples would not abandon their culture, even when converted. It was the missionaries who, like the fur traders, learned the Aboriginal languages and adopted Aboriginal survival techniques.Racial intermarriage, or metissage, traced its origin to t he casual encounters, almost exclusively between Aboriginal women and Frenchmen deprived of European spouses, beginning with the fishermen and sailors along the Atlantic seaboard, and spreading into the hinterland as traders and interpreters, later unlicensed COUREURS DE BOIS, and finally garrison troops came into contact with the interior communities. VOYAGEURS and canoemen travelling to and from the upper country of Canada in the interests of the fur trade acquired the services of Aboriginal women to make and break camp, cook, carry baggage and serve as mistresses.Many of these unions became long-lasting and were recognized locally as legitimate a la facon du pays. Canon law forbade the marriage of Catholics with pagans, so missionaries often had to instruct and baptize adults and children and then regularize such unions. In 1735 Louis XV forbade most mixed marriages; nevertheless the rise of METIS communities in the Great Lakes basin, particularly along Lake Superior, indicated t he prevalence of the practice. Warfare was an aspect of Aboriginal life in which the French soon became involved.Most of the Aboriginal people remained steadfastly attached and loyal to France through to PONTIAC's rising in 1763, with the exception of the Iroquois, Fox and Sioux. Champlain, by supporting his Algonquian and Huron trading partners in 1609, earned the long-lasting enmity of the Iroquois. The French were unable to save the Huron from destruction at the hands of the Iroquois in 1648-49, nor were they able to stop Iroquois incursions into their own or their western allies' territories until the peace of Montreal in 1701 (see IROQUOIS WARS).The Fox became hostile in 1712 and were the objects of several military expeditions before their dispersal in 1730. The Sioux also often attacked France's trading partners and allies before agreeing to a general peace settlement in 1754. Canadian militiamen and Aboriginal auxiliaries distinguished themselves also in expeditions to aid L ouisiana against the Chickasaws and the Natchez. The escalation of tensions between the French and English over control of the fur trade in North America led to the signing of the TREATY OF UTRECHT in 1713.Under the terms of the treaty, France retained access to Cape Breton Island, the St Lawrence Islands and fishing rights off Newfoundland but ceded Acadia (Nova Scotia) to the British and recognized British jurisdiction over the northern territory of RUPERT'S LAND and the island of Newfoundland. The Mi'kmaq, MALISEET and Passamaquoddy of the area, considered themselves to be friends and allies and not subjects of the French Crown, as well as the rightful owners of the territory ceded to the British Crown.The lack of consultation regarding the terms of the treaty, and the lack of compensation provided to the Mi'kmaq, Maliseet and Passamaquoddy upset them greatly, significantly shifting the balance of power and Aboriginal-French relations in the area. France spent large sums of money for the annual distribution of the â€Å"King's presents† to the allied nations. In addition, the Crown issued clothing, weapons and ammunition to Aboriginal auxiliaries, paid for their services, and maintained their families when the men were on active duty. These Aboriginal warriors were judged invaluable for guiding, scouting and surprise raiding parties.Their war aims and practices, including scalping and platform torture, were not interfered with as they generally fought alongside the French as independent auxiliaries. In defeat, the French remembered them, obtaining in the terms of capitulation (1760) that they be treated as soldiers under arms, that they â€Å"be maintained in the Lands they inhabit,† and that they enjoy freedom of religion and keep their missionaries. These terms were further reiterated in the Treaty of Oswegatchie, negotiated by Sir William JOHNSON, at Fort Levis (near present-day Ogdensburg, New York), on 30 August 1760, and reaffirmed at Ka hnawake on 15-16 September 1760.These two treaties set out the terms for British protection of the interest of the Seven Nations and for the peaceful colonial occupation of their lands. As a result of this conquest, the French monarchy capitulated New France to Great Britain and on 10 February 1763, France and Great Britain signed the TREATY OF PARIS. The treaty outlined the conditions of the capitulation, which involved a series of land exchanges in which France handed over their control of New France to the English.Article 4 of the treaty provided for the transfer of French control of lands in North America east of the Mississippi River to Great Britain. Under the terms of the treaty, Great Britain also gained control of Florida from the Spanish, who took control of New Orleans and the Louisiana territory west of the Mississippi River from the French. In order to establish jurisdiction in the newly conquered Canadian colonies, on 7 October 1763, King George III and the British Imp erial Government issued a Royal Proclamation outlining the management of the colonies.Of particular importance, the proclamation reserved a large tract of unceded territory, not including the lands reserved for the Hudson's Bay Company, east of the Mississippi River as â€Å"hunting grounds† for Aboriginal peoples. As well, the proclamation established the requirements for the transfer of Aboriginal title to the Crown, indicating that the Crown could only purchase Aboriginal lands and that such purchases had to be unanimously approved by a council of Aboriginal people.The proclamation also provided the terms for the establishment of colonial governments in Quebec, West Florida, East Florida and Grenada. The colonies were granted the ability to elect general assemblies under a royally appointed governor and high council, with the power to create laws and ordinances, as well as establish civil and criminal courts specific to the area and in agreement with British and colonial l aws.References: 1994 Aboriginal Cultural Identity. Report submitted to the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. Ottawa, Ontario Aboud, F. 1981 Ethnic Self-identity, in R. C. Gardner and R. Kalin (Editors): A Canadian Social Psychology of Ethnic Relations. Toronto: Methuen. Keefe, S. E. 1992 Ethnic Identity: The Domain of Perceptions of, and Attachment to Ethnic Groups and Cultures. Human Organization 51 :35-43.