Human status in regards to Aristotle and Kant Research Paper

Human status in regards to Aristotle and Kant - Research Paper Example onal ideas of separation of mankind into various groups by the nature or in Gods will: Greeks and barbarians, elected and not elected, devout and not devout, civilized and uncivilized etc. The aspiration to prove the unity of the human race was always resisted by aristocratic, hierarchical, nationalist, racial, class and other theories. Understanding of mankind, and, therefore, the general concept of a person was finally developed only in the XIX century. All the second grade theories have one common feature: some part of mankind is recognized as superior. However, there classical theories, which allow us to understand the real essence of humans and their status in this world in the given work two views on humans’ status will be considered: the view of Kant and the view of Aristotle. German classical philosophy is presented by such thinkers as I. Kant, I. Fichte, F. Schelling and G. Hegel, who lived and worked at the end of XVIII - the first half of the XIX centuries. One of the main tasks of the German classical philosophy is to overcome the contradictions of XVII—XVIII centuries’ philosophy, which was expressed in opposition to rationalism and empiricism, exaggeration of a role of natural sciences and excessive optimism of Enlightenment. This movement is characterized by the revival of interest in history, art, mythology, as well as by the criticism of natural science direction in modern philosophy. All these are caused by a great interest to the problem of a person put in a new way. The German classical philosophy replaced an individual ideal of free identity of Renaissance by the collective ideal of free mankind expressed by the ideas of Enlightenment and the slogans of The Great French revolution. Protestantism is the religious fundamental of German classical philosophy. In Kants work there are two periods: critical and subcritical. During the subcritical period (1756-1770) the interests of Kant were mainly connected with logical problems and natural

Business environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Business environment - Essay Example The following graph shows the example of perfect competition Monopoly: Monopoly is totally opposite to perfect competition. In perfect monopoly, only one manufacturer or supplier exists but in reality, such sort of market hardly exists because in such an advanced arena there must be a substitute of each product. There is a dominance of one firm on overall market, such firm can influence prices, lack of substitute, very high barriers to entry (Wilkinson, 2005). Example of such market structure can be a cable company in India, electricity supplier in many countries including Pakistan, and British Telecom. The following graph represents the monopoly market: Monopsony: In monopsony, firmshavethe power to employee factors of production and each firm employee a miniature amount of employees in order to influence the rate of wages. In such market, only one buyer of a particular sort of laborexists. Firms are wage makers because labor has fewer options (McConnell, 2012). Due to the highest bargaining power, firms have lower manufacturing cost and, therefore, largest profit margin.Example of such firms is the electricity generator because it can negotiate a lower price of gas and coal supply contract. Low cost airline gets favorable price for new fleet, food retailers use their bargaining power when purchase items from milk producer, farmer, and other dealers. The following graph shows the example of monopsony market. Oligopoly: In oligopoly, competition exists between few firms. May the industry have the largest number of firms however;few larger firms dominate the overall industry. Firms are liable to manufacture or supply differentiated or standardized products, such firms have to face high entry barriers, have medium power to affect the market price (Wilkinson, 2005). Example of oligopolistic market is the sports apparel industry. Multiple manufacturers exist in sports apparel industry, but some majors like Adidas, Puma, and Nike are dominating the overall

Impact on international business negotiations

Impact on international business negotiations Cultures Impact On International Business Negotiations International Negotiations And Culture Nowadays there is not product or service that does not have any international mark in its story. According to Thomas, D. (2008:3) â€Å"virtually all business conducted today is global business. It is difficult to identify a product or service that is not somehow influenced by a cross-border transaction of some kind†. Czinkota et al. (2009:53) suggests that when a firm expands its operations across international borders, it acquires new customers and new partners in new environments. It is essential for the company to understand cultural differences and the way they manifest themselves and to determine similarities across cultures and exploit them in the formulation of strategy. The success in new markets is determined by the capability of the firm to adapt to the new culture. Patience, flexibility and appreciation of others beliefs are essential qualities. Unlike economic, legal, and political aspects of the country, which are recognizable, cultures effects are mostly hidden and difficult to observe. For this reason, Thomas (2008:11) states that culture is the aspect of the management context most often neglected. Even large multinational corporations like Unilever need to observe the cultural features in a new market before launching a product. For example, when Unilever decided to enter the Indian market, it began its business by spending weeks living in rural villages to spend time with locals and come in touch with their uses and customs. Doing this, it discovered that to sell soap to Indian women it had to develop differently its product. Because of the use of the women of this region to use the same soap for body washing as for shampoo, Unilever developed a low-cost soap that could be used for body and for hair. (Johnson et all. 2006:302) To deal with culture it is necessary to understand what it is and what it is made of. ASPECTS /COMPONENTS INVOLVED IN PARTICULAR INTO THE BUSINESS WORLD, IN RELACION CON EL MUNDO COMERCIAL Definition Of Culture Czincota et al. (2009:54) defines culture as an â€Å"integrated system of learned behaviour patterns that are characteristics of the members of any society†. Any society has interrelated and interdependent features that characterize the direction and guidance in all phases of human problem solving. Culture is dynamic in time and develops through interactions among groups of people, societies, regions and nations. The key to success in international operations is to adjust and adapt to a specific culture in order to understand and later satisfy its specific needs. This activity is called â€Å"process of acculturation†. Reseacrh in this field has demonstrated that culture affects peoples behaviour. Its internal elements as values and attitudes can influence the way a person approach new products and some companies might find necessary to adapt dramatically its goods to the societys requirements. These elements are: language (verbal or nonverbal), religion, values and attitudes, manners and customs, material elements, aesthetics, education and social institutions (Maureen 2005: 42; Czinkota et al. 2009: 57). THE LATES PROVIDED A VERY USEFUL DEFINITION OF THESE ELEMENTS THAT CAN BE SUMMARIZED AS FOLLOW: 2.1. Language has been described by Czincota et al. (2009: 58) as the mirror of culture. Language capability serves three distinct roles in international business. Firstly, business meeting are aids by language knowledge. Speaking the national language would make the people more comfortable and inclined to make a deal. Secondly, it provides access to local society. It is reccomendable to become part of the market rather than observe it from the outside. Finally, language capability is increasingly important in company communications because using an interpreter takes long time and the manager could not be sure the message has been translated correctly. The company has to pay also attention at the different translations that a word could have in countries with the same language. For example, Goodyear has identified five different terms for the word â€Å"tyres† in the Spanish-speaking Americas: cauchos in Venezuela, cubiertas in Argentina, gomas in Puerto Rico, neumaticos in Chile and llantas in most of the other countries. Dealing with language invariably requires local assistance. Manager also must to analyse and becoming familiar with nonverbal language. Key topics are: time, space, material possessions, friendship patterns and business agreements (Czinkota et all 2009: 60).Following, this aspect will be applied at the Spanish culture. 2.2. Religion has an impact on international business that is seen in a cultures values and attitudes toward entrepreneurship, consumption and social organization.(SINTASSI) Although the impact of religion may be indirect in Protestant northern Europe, its impact in countries where Islamic fundamentalism is on the rise may be profound. .(Czinkota et all 2009: 60). 2.3. The differences in cultural values and attitudes affect the way planning is executed, decisions are made, strategy is implemented and personnel are evaluated. In some counties many middle-aged bureaucrats and company officials believe that buying foreign products is unpatriotic.(Czinkota et all 2009: 63). 2.4. Manners and customs: understanding manners and customers is especially important in negotiations, because interpretations based on ones own frame of reference may lead to a totally incorrect conclusion. To negotiate affectively abroad, all types of communication should be read correctly. For example, gift giving is one area where preparation and sensitivity are called for. (Czinkota et all 2009: 65). 2.5 Material elements: material culture refers to the results of technology and is directly related to how a society organizes its economic activity. Many US exporters do not understand the degree to which Americans are package conscious; for example, cans must be shiny and beautiful. (Czinkota et all 2009: 67) 2.6 Aesthetics: each culture makes a clear statement concerning good taste, as expressed in the arts and in the particular symbolism of colours, form and music. What is and what is not acceptable may vary dramatically even in otherwise highly similar markets. In Spain, for example, sex is a big selling point while Japanese in order to preserve the purity of their women use foreign models to make the point in provocative adverts. (Czinkota et all 2009:67). ESEMPIO PUBLICITA PROVOCATIVA IN SPAGNA 2.7 Education: education levels effect various business functions. For example, a high level of illiteracy suggests the use of visual aids rather than printed manuals. (Czinkota et all 2009: 68). In Lanzarote the labels of many products are written in Castellano, English and French to adapt to the mix of nationalities population †¦ of the island. (COME FACCIO LA REFERENZA?) 2.8 Social institutions: It affects the way people relate to each other. The family unit, which in Western industrialized countries consists of parents and children, is extended in a number of cultures to include grandparents and other relatives. This affects consumption patterns and must be taken into account, for example when conducting market research. social organization also determine the roles of managers and subordinates and how they relate to one another. In some cultures, managers and subordinates are separated explicitly and implicitly by various boundaries ranging from social class differences to separate office facilities. (Czinkota et all 2009: 68) Controllato Fino A Qua Spanish Culture This chapter analyses the main characteristics of Spanish culture paying particular attention at the Lanzarotes context. To understand a culture, one must first understand the people – where they come from, who they are the values and traditions they live by, as well as their customs and etiquette. (Graff 2006: about the series). Spain is a land of contrasts. A fascinating mixture of cultures, architecture, landscapes and climates, it is a country begging to be explored and offering newcomers as wide a choice of lifestyles, business opportunities and entertainment as any other country in Europe. (Graff 2006: vi) Spaniard love to gather together and talk. They are sociable people, generally vivacious, ready to enjoy a party and join in celebrations. They are passionate about their family, their conviction and their arts, but also enjoy modest pleasures such as a good meal with friends. Spanish temperament is strongly individualistic. (Graff 2006: 30) In Spain there is the usage to kiss people on the cheeks when meeting at an event or in the street. Foreigners must be aware of this customs and adapt to it. Women will kiss the men and the other women, but men will only kiss women. It is possible that at the end of a friendly conversation a man may give another man a big hug that it is just an expression of friendly feeling. (Graff 2006: 32) Settling In Spanish bureaucracy is a critical factor for foreigners and locals. Because of the slow administrative system, it could take also a day to get a simply permit. Patience will be tried to the extreme on occasion, and it must be learnt to remain calm and reasonable under quite severe stress. Spaniards find these long waiting a chance to do conversation and make new friends. (Graff 2006:57) Food And Entertaining Spaniards have a real veneration for food. A meal it is an expression of community spirit, to everyone meeting to enjoy the food and the company (Graff 2009:97). Language There are different languages and dialects spoken throughout the country. The local languages may create difficulties to foreigner when travelling from a region to another as road signs might be written in the local language. Castilian is the official language of Spain used by the majority of the mass media and also in official documents. However, Catalan, Galician and Basque are widely spoken in their regions (Graff 2006:140). Non-Verbal Communication Spaniards use non-verbal language more than British people. Particularly when speaking with foreigner, Spanish people wave their hands to describe or to emphasise what they are saying. Handshakes are never prolonged and only used at first introductions, after which kissing becomes the accepted form of greeting (Graff 2006: 143). MAÑANA Punctuality In order to do not have unpleasant hours of waiting it is necessary to understand what Spaniards mean with maà ±ana, (tomorrow). According to Spanish courtesy it is more acceptable to keep scheduling an appointment maà ±ana, even knowing there are just a few possibilities it will happen, instead of refusing it (Graff 2006: 145). Spaniards do nothing in a hurry. While they expect foreign visitors to be punctual for business meetings, they are lax about their own punctuality for social occasions or business appointments (Bosrock 2006: 399) Meetings And Business Lunches Spaniards prefers to do business face to face. For this reason, when it is possible, they like to arrange a meeting in a cafà © or a restaurant. Business meeting are frequent occurrences and likely to be noisy affairs where a foreign could probably be constantly interrupted. These kind of lunches tend to become lengthy affair. It is so advised to do not schedule any important appointment after the lunch (Graff 2006: 151). (Bosrock 2006: 393) Because of the richness of Spanish culture and history it is recommended to know some of the basic fact. Applying this to the Spain it results an useful list..: Its official name: Spain The collective name of its people: Spanish/Spaniards The language(s) spoken: Castilian (official), Basque, Catalan, Its presidents name: Zapatero Its political system: democracy Its currency: Euro Whether it belongs to the European Union (EU): yes Main events of the past century, (the more details you know, the better your conversation will be.) Current issues and event (Bullfighting, ETA, ) (Bosrock 2006: 20) What To Wear According to Bosrock 2006 (397) â€Å"appearance is extremely important to Spaniards, and they will judge you on how you look. Wearing high-quality designer clothing and accessories will suggest professionalism and social standing. Spaniards dress well, and their casual attire is smart casual It is recommendable to be aware about the Spanish tortura de la galanteria when loud comments are made about someone appearance as walking by someone Spanish. This must be taken as something simply complimentary (Graff 2009:152). Business Dealings With Spaniards Graff stances that ‘most foreigners say that they find doing business with Spaniards â€Å"straightforward† generally speaking. The ‘problems seem to arise from the Spaniards wish to enjoy what he happens to be doing at any particular moment with the frequent result that he will completely forget an appointment made a few days ago in order to pursue the business being discussed with the client sitting in front of him. One of the chief complaints voiced by many foreigners id ‘unpunctuality and, as this aspect of Spanish existence is much in evidence in all the spheres; you will need to learn how to deal with: Sudden change of plan Being stood up with no excuses whatsoever offered Business meetings dragging on with the result that you too, will be late for your next appointment (Graff 2006: 153). Spanish Corporate Culture (Bosrock 2006:400) Structure: conflict and stress exist in business between the old bureaucratic, authoritarian management style that managers over age fifty use and the new, more participative management style that younger managers use. The boss asserts authority and solve problems but in the real organizational structure that is social, people on the third or fourth level may have more actual power then those at the top. While subordinates accept criticism from the boss, theyre likely to resent criticism from colleague or outsiders. When reprimanded, a person often wont admit fault. Communication (Bosrock 2006:400) large companies conduct business in English and Spanis, but Spanish usually predominates. Check ahead to see whether youll need an interpreter. Spaniards may hesitate to express disagreement to your face; they believe that open disagreement is disrespectful, instead, they will discuss their disagreement with others, who will eventually pass it on to you. (Smiles dont always mean you have done well) Be Aware Spaniards are very proud people. Dont mistake their self-relaince and sense of worth as intolerance. Never embarrass anyone. Expect delays and procrastination. Spanish bureaucracy menas odd office hours, plenty of paperwork, seemingly random rules and regulations, and unhelpful staff. Spaniards dismissal of rules and regulations produces a constant crisis atmosphere Spaniards loyalty lies with people, not institutions. Especially For Women Spanish society is aggressively pursuing equality between the sexes. Nevertheless, machismo persist. Few working women are on the fast track; female lawyers and doctors are extremely rare. In addition, society expect even working women to be the primary caretakers of the family and home. progress for professional women has been slow, but educationally qualified women are gradually gaining acceptance in the business community. While Spaniards accept foreign businesswomen, its important that women immediately establish credentials and ability. Spanish men are charming. Be especially careful of making eye contact with Spanish man, whi may interpret your gaze as flirting. Although its rare to whistle at women, staring is common and acceptable. If someone stares at you, just ignore it. For dinner, dont dine alone in restaurants or bars. Its acceoptable for a foreign woman to invite a Spanish man to a business dinner, but she may have trouble paying for the meal. Spanish men expect to pay. If you want to pay, arrange payment with the wait staff beforehand. Working Hours Dati Popolazione Lanzarotegna Da Wikipedia that a company should understand before initiate any negotiation. Bases Of Negotiation In An International Business In markets such as China and Taiwan, companies such as KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken), McDonalds and other fast food entities dramatically changed eating habits, especially of the younger generation. The example of KFC in India illustrates the difficulties that companies may have entering culturally complex markets. Even though the company opened its outlets in two of the Indias most cosmopolitan cities (Bangalore and New Delhi), it found itself the target of protests by a wide range of opponents. KFC could have alleviated or eliminated some of the anti-Western passions by tailoring its activities to the local conditions. First, rather than opting for more direct control, KFC should have allied itself with local partners for advice and support. Second, KFC should have tried to appear more Indian rather than using high-profile advertising with Western ideas. Indians are ambivalent toward foreign cultures and its ideas may not always work well there. Finally, KFC should have planned for competition, which came from small restaurants with political clout at the local level. (Czinkota et all 2009: 56) Main Issues About International Relationships In Lanzarote On May 2009, the only English magazine on Lanzarote island, The Gazette, carried out a research about customer services quality on the island. It found out the quality level was very low due to the attitude of certain shop assistants and their unwillingness to assist customers and solve their problems. One factor that The Gazette suggested to take into account was the cultural divide. It took as example the fact that the Spanish do not say â€Å"please† and â€Å"thank you† as much as the British do. As explained in the article titled â€Å"Service not included!†, in Britain it is common to sat these words around four or five times during the most simple transaction in a shop. As a result, what is normal in Lanzarote may seem brusque to a visitor on the island. (The Gazette 2009) Products are not just products: they become what they are as the result of their integration into particular context. For example, MD Food, a Danish producer of dairy products, marketed Havarti cheese in Spain that was physically the same marketed in Denmark. However, it did not think about the different uses and criteria of evaluation of the two different countries. While the cheese in Denmark may be eaten on black bread accompanied by milk, the souths European eat it on white bread and take it with wine. (Maureen, G. 2005) For this reason, it is highly recommended to carry out a research based on the probable use the consumer may do of a product. How To Do Business Across Culture Mention Artic spa (book about how an Artic spa should be sold) First thing to ask yourself: â€Å"Are my actions considerate and respectful?† (Bosrock 2006: 5). According to the article â€Å"Going native† published on The Gazette on April 2009, English people living on the island should â€Å"go native† and live day at the Spanish way in order to fully integrate with the local culture. The article suggest to firstly start the day with a traditional Lanzarotes breakfast, dress like local, and not like tourists, have fun like local and get ones self attitude right. (The Gazette: April 2009) How can a company explain and predict the behavior of people in a specific country ? From the management perspective, first at all, managers must ensure smooth interaction of the business with its different constituents and must assist others to implement programmes within and across markets. (Czinkota et al 2009: 73) The international managers task is to distinguish relevant cross-cultural and intra-cultural differences and then to isolate potential opportunities and problems. A good example is the Indian subculture in Britain McDonalds in Europe is an excellent example of how an organization has used an appreciation of culture as a competitive business advantage. When McDonalds restaurants first approaches France did have hard work. French activists attempt to destroy a McDonalds restaurant under construction. The French are a nation for whom good food and quality dining are cultural icons akin to the Eiffel Tower. Yet somehow McDonalds is thriving in France, with revenues second only to those in the United Estates . The company has about 950 restaurants in France, and in 2006 its sales in France grew by 8 percent, which is a pretty good growth for a county that treasures fine dining (Solomon and Schell, 2006)p.7 While maintaining a global brand, it has adapted it to be respectful of local tastes and values. Some of the restaurants have leather upholstery, and some have fireplaces and candles.( Solomon and Schell, 2006) it also developed relationship with local suppliers. McDonalds is thriving in Europe b ecause it gets the culture right. According to Maureen G, (2005) cultural differences are known to affect peoples purchasing behavior. For example, Scandinavian countries have much faster take-off rates for adopting new technical products such as DVD recorders or third generation mobile phones, than those of the big European economies such as Germany and Britain. For these reason technical products companies as Nokia could find Scandinavian countries a good place to test new products. One way is to employ foreign people of the same foreign country the company wants to expand in. in this way the company itself could use these international employees as example of what the new customers will be and in this way find out how they could approach the companys new product (before launching it on the market) Another way could be to organize long-term â€Å"holiday† abroad for some of the employees. In this way these employees will learn how the new potential customers behave and what they would really aspect from a product. In these period it could be possible to test and make changes to the product. (Maureen 2005: †¦) Bosrock suggests to approach international travels with the same attitude and behaviour used when attending a party in ones bosss home. the invited person would be sensitive, would dress appropriately and bring a suitable gift (Bosrock 2006: 4). To achieve success in international business negotiation it is imperative to show respect and consideration to others but to do this it is firstly necessary to learn about those people and their cultural features. The best method to learn is to observe, ask, listen and mainly try and make errors. (Bosrock 2006: 5) The Ten Things To Do Before Visiting A Host Country 1. Recognize and respect uniqueness. 2. Need basic knowledge of each countrys culture and history will greatly benefit you 3. Build relationships. 4. Never compare countries to one another or to your country. 5. Never judge another countrys political or social system. 6. Be patient. Business may be very different from your countrys. 7. Be flexible. adapt to the environment. Dont pretend others to adapt to your style. 8. Always be sincere. 9. Ask, look and listen. 10. Assume the best about people and their actions. Most behaviour is rational once we understand its rational. (Bosrock 2006: 6) Sources Of Cultural Knowledge Books, Movies, Exchanges, The concept of cultural knowledge is broad and multifaceted. Cultural knowledge can be defined by the way it is acquired. Objective and factual information is obtained from others through communication, research and education. Experiential knowledge, on the other hand, can be acquired only by being involved in a culture other than ones own. The more a manager becomes involved in the international arena, the more he or she is able to develop a meta-knowledge; that is, ground rules that apply whether in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, or Asuncià ³n, Paraguay. Market-specific knowledge does not necessarily travel well; the general variables on which the information is based to. (Czinkota et all 2009: 73) In a survey of managers on how to acquire international expertise, they ranked eight factors in terms of their importance (see appendix 1). The managers emphasized the experiential acquisition of knowledge. Written materials played an important but supplementary role, very often providing general or county-specific information before operational decisions were made. Interestingly, many of todays international managers have pre-career experience in government, the Peace Corps, the armed force or voluntary work. Although the survey emphasized travel, a one-time trip to New York with a stay at a very large hotel and scheduled sightseeing tours does not significantly contribute to cultural knowledge. Travel that involves meetings with company personnel, intermediaries, facilitating agents, customers and government officials, on the other hand, does contribute. HOWEVER, FROM THE CORPORATE POINT OF VIEW, GLOBAL CAPABILITY IS DEVELOPED IN MORE OAINSTAKING WAYS: FOREIGN ASSIGNMENTS, NETWORKI NG ACROSS BORDERS AND THE USE OF MULTi-country, multicultural teams to develop strategies and programs. At Nestlà ©, for example, managers move around a region (such as Asia or Latin America) at four- or five-year intervals and may serve stints at headquarters for two to three years between such assignments. Such broad experience allows managers to pick up ideas and tools to be used in markets where they have not been used or where they have not been necessary before. In Thailand, where supermarkets are revolutionizing consumer-goods marketing technique perfected elsewhere in the Nestlà © system are being put to effective use. The experience the, in turn, are used to develop newly emerging markets in the same region, such as Vietnam. (Czinkota et all 2009: 73) Other oversights may lead to more costly mistakes. for example, Brazilians are several inches shorter than the average Americans, but this was not taken into account when the US store Sears erected American-height shelves that block Brazilian shoppers view of the rest of the store. (Czinkota et all 2009: ) International business success requires not only comprehensive fact finding and preparation but also an ability to understand and fully appreciate the nuances of different cultural traits and patterns. Gaining this interpretative cultural knowledge requires ‘getting ones feet wet over a sufficient length of time. Over the long run, culture can become a factor in the firms overall success. (Czinkota et all 2009: 75) Research has shown that the take-off point for new products (i.e., when initial sales turn into mass-market slaes) is six years, on average, in Europe. However, in northern Europe new products take off almost twice as fast as they do in southern Europe. (when will it fly? The Economist , 9 August 2003, 51) It is important to position the product as a continuous innovation that does not require radical changes in consumption pattern. (Steenkamp and Hofstede, 1999) Since the United States higly regards individualism, promotional appeals should be relevenat to individual empowerement. also messages should be informal and friendly. In opposite situations, marketing communications have to emphasize thet the new product is socially accepted. However, if the product is imported it can sometimes utilize global or foreign cultural positioning. For example in China, individualism is often used for imported products but almost never for domestic ones. (Czinkota et all 2009: 77) Understanding the implications of the dimensions helps businesspeople prepare for international business encounter. For example, in negotiating in Germany one can expect a counterpart whi is through, systematic, very well prepared, but also rather dogmatic and therefore less flexible and willing to compromise. Efficiency is emphasized. In Mexico, however, the counterpart may prefer to address problems on a person and private basis rather than on a business level. This means more emphasis on socializing and conveying ones humanity, sincerity, loyalty and friendship. Also, differences in the pace and business practices of a region have to be accepted. (Czinkota et all 2009: 77) Adjusting to differences requires putting ones own cultural values aside. The following analytical approach is recommended to reduce the influence of cultural bias: 1. define the problem or goal in terms of the domestic cultural traits, habits and norms. 2. Define the problem or goal in terms of the foreign cultural traits, habits and norms. Make no value judgements. 3. Isolate the self-reference criterion influence in the problem and examine it carefully to see how it complicates the problem. 4. Redefine the problem without the self-reference criterion influence and solve for the optimum-goal situation. This approach can be applied to product introduction. If Kellogs Co. Wants to introduce breakfast cereals into markets where breakfast is traditionally not eaten or where consumers drink very little milk, managers must consider very carefully how to instill the new habit. In France, Kelloggs commercials are aimed as muchat providing nutrition lessons as they are at promoting the product. In Brazil, the company advertised on a soap opera to gain entry into the market because Brazilians often emulate the characters of these television shows. ( Czinkota et al 2009: 78) The increase in the overall international activity of firms has increased the need for cultural sensitivity training at all levels of the organization. Further, todays training must encompass not only outsiders to the firm but also interaction within the corporate family as well. However inconsequential the degree of interaction may seem, it can still cause problems if proper understanding is lacking. Consider, for example, the date written as follow: 11/12/04. A European will interpretate this as the 11th of December; an American as November the 12th. Some companies try to avoid the training problem by hiring only nationals or well-travelled individuals for theit international operations. This makes sense for the management of overseas operations but will not solve the training need, especially if transfers to a culture unfamiliar to the manager are likely. International experience may not necessarily transfer from one market to another. The foster cultural sensitivity and acceptanc e of new ways of doing things within the organization, management must institute internal education programmes. The programmes may include: 1. Culture-specific information (data covering other countries, such as video pack and culture grams); 2. General cultural information (values, practices and assumptions of countries other than ones own)and 3. Self-specific information (identifying ones own cultural paradigm, including values, assumptions and perceptions about others). One study found that Japanese employees assigned to the United States get mainly language training as preparation for the task. In addition, many companies use mentoring, whereby an individual is assigned to someone who is experienced and who sends time advising and explaining. Talks given by return

Victor as a Father Figure in Frankenstein :: Frankenstein Essays

Like a mother, Victor brings new life into the world, technically making him the father of the creature. The fact that Victor describes the creature as, â€Å"Something Dante could not have conceived†, suggest that he’s had high-standard education, with Dante being an Italian poet. However, disgusted and scared, he runs away from his â€Å"son†, illustrating the event of when a mother aborts her child. This is when the idea of the creature being a doppelganger comes into the picture; when Victor and others neglect this â€Å"child†, the creature learns that while possessing such looks, no one will accept him. He alternates personalities by killing and threatening, all due to the emotional pain he endures from people’s disdain; he is regressing, just like his father. On the other hand, his father is overcome by joy and eagerness to be able to stop death, despite the fact that it is dangerous. This can be considered as the son inheriting the father personalities, they both have villainous character within them but they are both doing it for the good; for example, Victor wanting to protect his family f rom the creature and wanting to stop death, and the creature only wanting to have someone with the same appearance to stop all the resentment thrown at him. This chapter also enhance the regression of Victor at the time of Elizabeth’s reanimation. At first he describes the event to be a â€Å"catastrophe†, a â€Å"wretch†, but the time comes when his grief over Elizabeth’s death conceals the danger of his previous creation, forcing him to recreate her life. On that account, this makes it Romantic act, as this shows that his emotions are more powerful and more important than the analytical side of things. To add to that Romantic part of the novel, in chapter 5, Victor starts to reminisce over nature, as if using it to hide away from his †toils†. He claims to: â€Å"...remember the first time I became capable of observing outward objects...perceived that the fallen leaves had disappeared and the young buds shooting from trees...† As well as suggesting the Romanticism in childhood, Victor shows the power of the beauty of nature and how this heals his emotional troubles.

Eating Customs and Traditions in Great Britain Essay

The usual meals in Great Britain are breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner; or in simplier homes, breakfast, dinner, tea and supper. Breakfast is generally a bigger meal than you can have it on the Continent, though some English people like a â€Å"continental† breakfast of rolls and butter and coffee. But the usual breakfast is porridge or â€Å"Corn Flakes† with milk or cream and sugar, becon and eggs, marmalade with butter toast, and tea or coffee. For a change you can have a boiled egg, cold ham, or perhaps fish. Lunch is usually served between twelve and one o’clock. The businessman in London usually finds it impossible to come home for lunch, and so he goes to a cafà © or to a restaurant, but those who are at home generally take a cold meat, e.g., beef, mutton, veal, ham, with boiled or fried potatoes, salad and pickles, with a pudding or fruit to follow. Sometimes you may have a mutton chop, steak and chips, followed by biscuits and cheese and a cup of coffee. Afternoon tea follows between four and five o’clock. You can hardly call it a meal, but it is a sociable sort of thing, as friends often come in for a chat while they have their cup of tea, cake or biscuit. In some houses dinner is the biggest meal of the day. You can have soup, fish, roast chicken, chops, potatoes and vegetables, a sweet, fruit and nuts. The two substantial meals of a day, lunch and dinner, are both more and less the same. But in a great many of English homes the midday meal is the chief one of the day, and in the evening they have the much simplier supper-an omelette, or sausages, sometimes bacon and eggs and sometimes just bread and cheese, a cup of coffee or cocoa and fruit. The two features of life in England that possibly give visitors their worst impressions are the English weather and English cooking. The former is something that nobody can do anything about, but cooking is something that can be learned. English food has often been described as tasteless. Although this criticism has been more than justifies in the past, and in many instances still is, the situation is changing somewhat. One of the reasons that English cooking is improving is that so many people have been spending their holidays abroad and have learned to appreciate unfamiliar dishes. However, there are still many British people who are so unadventurous when they visit other countries that will condemn everywhere that doesn’t provide them tea and either fish and chips or sausages, baked beans and chips or overdone steak and chips. One of the traditional grouses about English food is the way that vegetables are cooked. Firstly the only way that many British housewives know to cook green vegetables is to boil them for far too long in too much salt water and then to throw the water away so that all the vitamins are lost. To make matters worst, they don’t strain the vegetables sufficiently so that they appear as a soggy wet mass on the plate. It would be unfair to say that all English food is bad. Many traditional British dishes are as good as anything you can get anywhere. Nearly everybody knows about roast beef and Yorkshire pudding but this is by no means the only dish that is cooked well. A visitor if invited to an English home might well enjoy steak and kidney pudding or pie, saddle of mutton with red-currant jelly, all sorts of smoked fish, especially kippers, boiled salt beef and carrots to mention but a few. A strange thing about England that the visitor may notice is that most of the good restaurants in England are run and staffed by foreigners-for example, there is a larger number of Chinese, Indian and Italian restaurants and to less extent French and Spanish ones. The food and beverage department has two principal aims. The first- and the more important one- is to provide a standard of food and beverage service consistent with the expectations of the quests. The second aim is to maintain the food and beverage operation within the limits set by the food and beverage department and thus to contribute to the overall profitability of the establishment. It is clearly that beverage sales are not only an important part of the sales mix of hospitality establishments but also more profitable than food sales. Coffee is one of the most popular beverages of the world. It is made from berries grown in tropical climates and shipped to the country green that is unroasted. The berries produced vary in composition and the treatment after picking. For this reason, Mocha, Java, Arabica and South American coffees are quite distinct from each other. There are three main methods of preparing coffee- boiling, percolating and drip method. The coffee should not stand long before serving. Tea is made from the leaves of tea bush which is indigenous to the Orient. Black tea is made from leaves which are fermented before drying. Green tea is not fermented; the leaves are steamed and dried. There are two main ways of serving tea: â€Å"English† tea is served in cups and with milk or cream; â€Å"Russian† tea is served in glasses with a slice of lemon. Cocoa and chocolate. As beverages made from them are generally made with milk, they are much more nutritious than the other beverages. Cocoa and chocolate are made from beans or seeds of trees which grow in tropical countries. Also drinks can be classified into soft drinks which contain no spirits (such as lemonades, Pepsi, Coke, etc.) and strong ones, they contain some part of alcohol (such as whisky, gin, wine, liquor, beer). Tea in English is a suitable occasion for social intercourse, when people often come in for a chat over their cup of tea. There are two kinds of tea, â€Å"afternoon tea† and â€Å"high tea†. â€Å"Afternoon tea† takes place between three-thirty and four-thirty and consists of tea, bread, butter and jam, followed by cakes and biscuits. â€Å"High tea† is a substantial meal and is eaten between five-thirty and six-thirty by families which don’t usually have a late dinner. In a well-to-do family it will consist of ham or tongue and tomatoes and salad, or a kipper, or tinned salmon, with a strong tea, bread and butter, followed by stewed fruit, or tinned pears, apricots or pineapple with cream or custard and cake. Tea-making in England is an art. The hostess first of all rinses the teapot with boiling water (this is called â€Å"warming the pot†) before adding four or five teaspoons of tea. The amount of tea varies, of course, according to the number of people present. The pot is then filled with boiling water and covered by a tea-cosy to allow the tea to infuse for five minutes. English people seldom put lemon juice or rum into their tea, usually they have it with milk. The English custom of afternoon tea, as it is said, goes back to the late 18th century, when Anne, wife of the 7th Duke of Bedford, decided that she suffered from â€Å"a sinking feeling† at around 5 p.m. and needed tea and cakes to bring back her strength. Before long, complaints were heard that â€Å"the labourers lose time to come and go to the tea-table and farmers’ servants even demand tea for their breakfast†. Tea had arrived. Fashionable Tea Rooms were opened for high society, and soon tea be came the national drink of all classes. Today the British drink more tea than any other nation – an average of 4 kilos a head per annum, or 1650 cups of tea a year. They drink it in bed in the morning, round the fire on winter afternoons and out in the garden on sunny summer days. In times of trouble the kettle is quickly put on, the tea is made and comforting cups of the warm brown liquid are passes round. Tea has even played its part in wars. When George III of England tried to make the American colonists pay import duty on tea, a group of Americans disguised as Red Indians dumped 342 chests of tea into the sea in Boston Harbour – the Boston Tea Party which led to the War of Independence. In another war the Duke of Wellington sensibly had a cup of tea before starting the Battle of Waterloo, â€Å"to clear my head†. In peace time official approval of the national drink came from the Victorian Prime Minister, Gladstone, who remarked: â€Å"If you are cold, tea will warm you; if you are heated, it will cool you; if you are depressed, it will cheer you; if you are excited, it will calm you.† What exactly is tea? Basically, it is a drink from the dried leaves of a plant that only grows in hot countries. The British first heard of tea in 1598, and first tasted it in about 1650. For nearly two centuries all the tea was imported from China, until, in 1823, a tea plant was found growing naturally in Assan in India. Sixteen years later the first eight chests of Indian tea were sold in London, and today, London’s tea markets deal in tea from India, Sri Lanka (Ceylon), and from Africa more than from China. Plum pudding is sure of its place of honour on Christmas dinner table. Some English people could even dispense with mincepies, but a Christmas dinner in Britain without the traditional pudding would be strange indeed. The Christmas pudding is a direct descendant of the old time â€Å"hackin†, or plum porridge, beloved by English people in the middle ages. In those days it was made of beef or mutton broth thickened with brown bread, with prunes, raisins, currants, ginger and maize being added to the boiling mixture. This was served as a thick soup and eaten at the beginning of the meal. In the 18th century, plum porridge began to change its character with the addition of flour. The porridge thus turned into plum pudding and it became the custom to eat it at the end of the meal. Nowadays, in addition to the basic mixture of flour, bread-crumbs, suet and eggs, the ingredients of Christmas pudding include raising, currants, candied peel, chopped almonds and walnuts, grated carrot and a good measure of brandy, whisky or old ale on place of the described mutton broth. In many households the mixing of the pudding is quite a ceremony with all the members of the family taking turns to stir and make a wish. After being boiled for several hours, the pudding is stored until the time comes for heating it on Christmas Day when it is brought to the table on a large dish, big, round, dark-brown, with a flag or a place of holly stuck in at the top of it, and flames licking round its sides. The Christmas pudding is covered with white sauce and burning in brandy. Receiving each a slice, the guests are warned to eat carefully because sixpenny bits, shillings, a tiny silver bell and a silver horse-shoe have been put in it. Those who find the â€Å"treasure† are supposed to have money in the coming year, whoever gets the bell is to be married, and the horse-shoe is the traditional sign of good luck.

Mundell-Fleming Model and RMB

Generally, Mundell-Fleming model states the impossibility an economy to sustain a fixed exchange rate system, liberalized trade and self-sufficient monetary regime altogether (cited in Cardona, unknown).   Also known as impossible trinity, this implication of the model assumes that domestic and international interest rates are equal.   Aside from the model, it should be noted that there are political and economic influences such as maintaining a strong currency ideology that motivates an economy to adapt a certain exchange rate system. Bolivia is a small and open economy that is recovering from a debt crisis in 1980s (cited in Cardona, unknown).   Under the crawling peg exchange rate system that the country adopts at that time, the model explains the inability of money supply to be moved because it has to follow dollars.   The role of Central Bank is limited to auctioning of dollars in a daily basis to devaluate the boliviano.   To prevent unemployment and slowdown in economic growth, the boliviano must follow the semi-fixed exchange rate system. On the revise side, Mexico experienced crisis under fixed exchange rate system (cited in Cardona, unknown).   The model predicts the inability of the currency to survive in the long-run under such system.   The Mexican currency aimed at appreciation but ended in overvaluation.   In this reason, Mexico should adopt flexible exchange rate system as increase in money supply (e.g. the cause of revaluation) can lead to lower domestic interest rate than global interest rate.   As a result, devaluation and normalization of the currency can happen. The implication of the model which is the impossible trinity of fixed exchange rate system, liberalized trade and self-sufficient monetary is relevant between US and China currencies (Stockman, 2000).   Both economies are large which enables them to capture the characteristics of IS-LM model (e.g. autarky) and Mundell-Fleming model (e.g. small open economy).   This makes them independent and very flexible on what exchange rate system would be employed.   For example, with pressures of revaluation of RMB from US authorities, the Chinese Government refused to do so in the grounds that it can cause lack of confidence and impression of conceding to the US from Chinese citizens. The RMB, especially in the pre-floating system, has captured a fixed rate system, exponential global trade intervention and autocratic monetary authorities at the same time.   This shows how the impossibility of trinity is relevant to the discussion of RMB especially when China assumes a conservative position regarding external trade to its economy.   On the other hand, the US Dollars would not dare to assume a fixed rate stance simply because virtually all currencies are pegged to it. Government ideology can serve as ultimate answer of Chinese authorities in their action to introduce fixed exchange rate system from 1995-2005 (Stockman, 2000). However, economic ends also motivated Chinese authorities to use fixed system.   It is meant to allow increasing trade (e.g. export and import) that the country houses from 1998-2003 and the aim to stabilize the current account balance throughout those years.   China is aware that beyond 1995 expels promising economic improvements particularly in trade liberalization efforts. In a study about the period1995-2005, it is proved that the fixed exchange rate system aided in the increase of Chinese income and price export elasticity (Garcia-Herrero & Koivu, 2007).   This means that any change in income of Chinese workers as well as prices of export commodities can lead to substitution effect from importing countries. The significance of these findings is that through the fixed exchange rate system Chinese economy resisted the influx of foreign direct investments that are made to modify the country’s balance of payments in risky terms.   To avoid dissolution of Chinese power in the minds of the population, the Government opt to fixed its exchange rate to prevent bowing to other currencies in the event of excessive trade and volatile net economic results. U.S. Mortgage Crisis Virtually all economic actors in the US mortgage industry contributed to its collapse in 2006 (Dupuis, 2007).   The increasing value of homes lured non-owners to borrow excessively beyond their capabilities while existing owners borrowed by using their properties as collaterals.   On the other end, lenders saw this scenario as opportunity to profit making them insensitive to creditworthiness of debtors.   Wall Street is also blamed for its contribution in carrying trade with outsiders (e.g. Japan) through ripping-off loans in foreign markets to finance the needs of mortgage companies, banks and lender. Lastly, and obviously the obvious conduit of mortgage crisis, is the lack of government intervention in housing sector.   As a result of these actions, sub-prime mortgage financial crisis inflamed that led to home foreclosures as interest rate rise and impacting reduction of supposedly rising house values.   The buyers of home did not have sufficient liquidity to solve their credit to lenders.   In effect, the lenders run to investment funds which in turn run to foreign markets and back to the US financial sector to address the credit problem. There are ways to mitigate the crisis.   First, the Central Bank can conduct open market operations to increase the chance of banks to access liquidity particularly short-term borrowing.   Second, homeowners and lenders can settle win-win terms in which the original contract can be modified based on the preference of one another.   Third, as prevention scheme, credit rating agencies can aid in creating an environment of transparency in the mortgage industry to prevent the same crisis in the future.   Lastly, authorities can contribute favorable legislations in lending methods, bankruptcy security and tax rate plans. The White House can intervene by improving the legal environment of which the mortgage industry can reduce substantial risk.   It can legitimize and support the media role in making the industry reports and practices more transparent.   This will not only create a less risky mortgage environment but also make it more competitive in the global business. The argument of President Bush is somewhat disciplinary as the profit-orientation of lenders is a clear manifestation of lack of public responsibility.   In effect, the Government may have the option to disregard the plea of the lenders as they are faced with bankruptcy and non-performing loans.   However, such argument does not mean to disregard the role of the Government in the mortgage industry and the White House should do its best to help lenders. The Fed, as mentioned earlier can execute open market operations to increase liquidity in the banking sector which in turn will provide liquidity to lenders to ease the credit difficulty in the mortgage industry (Andrews, 2007).   They can also affect money supply to affect interest rates and redeem the confidence of existing and potential homeowners about their abilities to pay their debts.   However, this should be done gradually in order to make economic entities responsible for the crises remember the tragic cause of their risky actions. The statement of the Fed Chairman is also coinciding with that of President Bush.   He too is a disciplinary authority that lenders and investors in the mortgage industry may not appreciate in these difficult times.   However, the penetrating open market operations may not seem a direct intervention to ease the needs but the effects will trickle down to small entities in the long-run. The mortgage crisis must be applied with active policy in the short-run particularly in addressing the liquidity needs of bigger banks that ensures the solvency of smaller banks that serve as lenders to homeowners.   The crisis is made by lack of experience of the sector in doing excessive speculation and craves for high priced assets. This excuse should be considered by authorities if it wish to minimize economic problems that the mortgage sector can further apply.   This act should be conducted through discretion and not by rule because the rule sometimes misinterprets the real world.   Discretion from monetary authorities (e.g. by involving in open market operations) and fiscal authorities (e.g. by legislating pro-crisis preventive laws) should be initiate to save not only the sector but the whole economy as well. References Andrews, E. (2007). US Congress split on solution to sub-prime crisis. New York Times. Cited in Cardona, R. (unknown). Aggregate demand in the short-run: The Mundell-Fleming Model. Dupuis, F. (2007). Impacts of the US Mortgage Crisis. Available in www.desjardins.com/economics Garcia-Herrero, Alicia and Tuuli Koivu, 2007, â€Å"Can the Chinese Trade Surplus Be Reduced through Exchange Rate Policy?† BOFIT Discussion Papers No. 2007-6 (Helsinki: Bank of Finland, March). Stockman, A. (2000). Exchange rate systems in perspective. Cato Journal, vol. 20, no. 1.