Compare and contrast Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe with Golding’s Lord of the Flies Essay

This essay will compare the two novels, Robinson Crusoe and Lord of the Flies, to see how each author reflected the point of view of society at the time that they lived in. The nature of civilisation will be viewed from their two different perspectives. Daniel Defoe published Robinson Crusoe in 1719; William Golding published Lord of the Flies in 1954. Both novels are the first fiction works of their respective authors and they deal with the issue of being deprived of the surroundings of the civilisation that they are used to. The former is about a man, shipwrecked repeatedly, and how he survives in the face of slavery and savagery. The latter concerns a group of schoolchildren whose plane crashes onto an island after a nuclear war breaks out and explains how they cope and change as time wears on with no sign of a rescue. Although the subject matter of these two books is similar on the surface, there is a contrast in the way the two authors represent civilisation. Daniel Defoe was a novelist, journalist, businessman and spy. He defended William of Orange and Mary’s rise to the throne. He attacked the Church of England in his book The Shortest Way with Dissenters and he was fined and imprisoned, but after his release he became a spy for the government. He did not begin writing until he was almost sixty. The Robinson Crusoe narrative was inspired by the actual experience of Alexander Selkirk on the island of Juan Fernandez from 1704 to 1709. Defoe wrote for the middle and lower classes and his realism and sentimentalism pleased them. At the time Britain was at the beginning of its Empire building phase and was entering a ‘Golden Age.’ After the union with Scotland in 1707, internal trade prospered in this, the largest customs-free area in Western Europe. The aristocracy and upper middle class that controlled Parliament also controlled the principal trading and banking companies, so that the growth of new enterprises was more rapid than anywhere else in Europe. The gradual control of the seas, the establishment of trading posts in exotic lands, and the policy of taking overseas territories as booty from successful wars enabled Britain to gain commercial benefits and to build the world’s largest empire. Inside Britain, the Industrial Revolution was under way. New countries were seen as lands of opportunity and resource; many people emigrated to make their fortune in tobacco growing or gold mining etc. There was a general air of optimism concerning mankind’s future and when Crusoe is shipwrecked – the only survivor on an unknown island – he fights for survival not only in the physical sense but also in the sense that he fights for his belief that civilisation would conquer all difficulties. The main character of Defoe’s book is Robinson Crusoe. Crusoe wanted to go to sea and explore rather than follow his father’s wishes and practise law; as it says on the first page: â€Å"My father†¦design’d me for the Law; but I would be satisfied with nothing but going to Sea.† Robinson Crusoe repeatedly went out to sea, even though after each expedition he always vowed to go home and stay on land. Eventually he was shipwrecked on an island and this is where the main narrative of the story begins. In this book he retains a strong sense of civilisation. This is shown after he rescues a savage from other savages who were about to eat him. He called him Friday after the day that he had met him, immediately taught him English and what his morals were: â€Å"†¦I likewise taught him to say Master, and then let him know, that was to be my name†¦I would give him Cloaths.† Crusoe also warned Friday off cannibalism and when he later rescues a Spaniard and Friday’s father from savages, he thought he had an example of society: â€Å"How like a King I looked†¦ The whole country was my own†¦property; so that I had undoubted Right of Dominion†¦My people were perfectly subjugated: I was absolute Lord and Law-giver.† Order is brought out of chaos by civilisation. The Lord of the Flies, on the other hand, was written when the Cold War was under way, nuclear tensions were high and people were nervous and fearful about the future of mankind. The story reflects Golding’s thoughts about civilisation – what in his view it was really like when the coating was stripped away. The story begins with the aeroplane crashing and the group of schoolchildren forming a semblance of a society with a democratically appointed leader. However as the narrative progresses, civilisation slowly falls apart; the main group of boys become savages and lives are taken. The book ends with all sense of civilisation being lost and the main character running for his life. Eventually civilisation is restored in the form of a Royal Navy cruiser, after spotting the signal that the boys initially lit, coming to rescue them. The main character in Lord of the Flies is named Ralph and this story starts with another boy and him discussing what happened to the plane that they were in. After finding more children and no adults he called a meeting where he said, â€Å"Seems to me that we ought to have a chief to decide things.† This shows he had some views on the need for planning. Jack, another boy, also had some sense of civilisation: â€Å"After all, we’re not savages. We’re English; and the English are best at everything.† This is ironic, as later on he is the one to break all the rules and become the chief of the savages. Eventually they came to a disagreement over a signal they had lit to try and attract rescue ships. Ralph wanted to keep it going, but the other children wanted to hunt animals. The group acted like a savage tribe and eventually chooses to abandon civilised living: one of Ralph’s friends, Piggy, offers the choice: â€Å"Which is better – to be a pack of painted niggers like you are, or to be sensible like Ralph is? †¦ Which is better – to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill? †¦ Which is better, law and rescue, or hunting and breaking things up?† The group then killed him and Ralph was running for his life. He represents a leader of a democratic society, which soon collapsed. â€Å"One chanced nothing! What could they do? Beat him? So what? Kill him? A stick sharpened at both ends.† At the end, when an officer from the rescue ship asks him who was in charge, he declared himself the leader again knowing that no one would dare challenge him in the face of civilisation protected by power. Ralph had no power in the story to protect his civilisation. Power lay with those who had the weapons. In Robinson Crusoe human freedom, based on reason, is seen to be a higher way of living in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Defoe notes the presence of religious differences and uses the situation to express his belief that freedom of belief should overrule religious bigotry: â€Å"We had but three Subjects, and they were of three different Religions. My man Friday was a Protestant, his Father was a Pagan and a Cannibal, and the Spaniard was a Papist: however, I allow’d Liberty of Conscience throughout my Dominions.† The opposite is true in Lord of the Flies as the group degenerates from civilised English schoolboys to primitive hunters only interested in the hunt and the kill. A pig’s head on a pole represents religion in this story, similar to a totem pole that the native Americans and other similar tribal people used. This represents a relapse to a less ‘reasonable’ form of existence. Lord of the Flies is similar to Animal Farm by George Orwell, in that the impression of civilisation disappears and chaos reigns as they overthrow the person in control and all the order that goes with it. By contrast, Robinson Crusoe is similar in outlook to The Swiss Family Robinson (Johann Wyss) in that both retain an optimistic outlook even after they have been shipwrecked on the island. In both of the above books they find and make living areas, they capture wild animals to make a farm and they both are religious. A further modern example of the ‘Castaway’ plot is in TV shows like ‘Big Brother’ or other situations where a group of people is stranded in an area and has to adapt to keep any semblance of control. The pressure seems to affect the group and behaviour is altered compared with what is normally seen in public society. The overall feel of Robinson Crusoe’s plot is optimistic – reflecting the times that Defoe lived in. Rene Descartes, a philosopher of the period, believed in the power of human spirit and reason over the force of nature. He said that ‘True knowledge must come from human reason alone. Defoe uses pirates and savages to symbolise a more primitive and uncontrolled force and uses Crusoe’s triumph over them to illustrate human spirit. Lord of the Flies, however, is pessimistic: all semblance of civilised society is stripped away. The two world wars undermined to ability of human beings to interact and use reason. Advances in society and technology had destroyed faith in rationalism and a belief grew that if left to our own devices, humans would in essence revert to animals. In the former novel the main character was on his own and it was only later did he have any company. There was no pressure on him to change into a savage and he could keep to the way he was wi thout anything to transform him. Lord of the Flies, however, portrays children like a pack of wolves, with the most influential ones being the leaders. When one of them started to backslide into savagery, he took the rest with him. William Golding essentially believes that all humans are evil inside, but it is just that civilisation puts pressure on you to keep in place and if it were not for the controls present in civilised society, we would all be like the savage group. â€Å"There was no Piggy to talk sense. There was no solemn assembly for debate nor dignity of the conch.† The Navy officer who arrived to take them back to the waiting ship said, â€Å"I should have thought that a pack of British boys would have been able to put up a better show than that.† Robinson Crusoe, on the other hand, arrived home with Friday (his servant) and immediately wanted to set sail again for South America. â€Å"My true friend the widow earnestly diswaded me from it, and so far prevail’d with me, that for almost seven years she prevented my running abroad.† This shows that he still had an adventurous spirit and was willing to go out again confident that he would be able to cope with any troubles. Both stories show that civilisation needs controls before it is effective; rules need to be enforced and reason alone may not be enough to ensure survival. Crusoe may not have survived without his gun and Ralph had nothing to protect himself with when the symbol of civilisation (the conch) was broken. In spite of this similarity, Defoe’s book presents a positive outlook for the future of humanity as civilisation spread across the globe, whereas Golding’s work suggested that the weapon would be used not to support civilisation, but to destroy it. Both reflect the world view of their times.

The “Steady” Person: A look into my own world

People talk a lot about personality or behavior as if it’s such an uncomplicated and unfussy concept, but they end up having difficulty defining it when asked. They are apt to say that it (behavior or personality in general) is something a person â€Å"has. † They describe the behavioral components of particular people in words like â€Å"friendly,† â€Å"nice,† â€Å"forceful,† or â€Å"aggressive,† to paint a picture of what they mean by the term and as a result end, instead, in vague descriptions of how a person usually behaves with other people.On the other hand, when we base our descriptions on concrete and observable actions that people commonly do or adapt, we come up with what experts call as â€Å"behavioral profile. † There are different styles of behavior as well as there are no right and wrong profile. When we come up with correct profiling, the expected result is that we develop ways of getting to know a more concise and a ccurate picture of ourselves, or people in general. Personality is more than poise, charm, or physical appearance. It includes habits, attitudes, and all the physical, emotional, social, religious and moral aspects that a person possesses.However, to be more precise, the explicit behavioral styles covered in the course, perhaps, best captivate an individual’s personality and how he/she is understood. With the different behavioral styles, an overall pattern of various characteristics is seen. Like a â€Å"psychograph,† a person’s profile is pulled together and at a glance, the individual can be compared with other people in terms of relative strengths and weaknesses. Discussion As a person possessing the characteristics given under the Steadiness Style category, I know and accept that this kind of profile has its strong and weak points.People with this behavioral style, working in the sphere of influence or organization they are placed at present, with the distin ctive blind spots commonly tied with this behavior, will (in spite of its comeliness) also experience certain setbacks, especially if the â€Å"weaknesses† of this behavior are left unaddressed. Strengths of Steadiness Style People under the profile of Steadiness Style are found to be demonstrative, sympathetic, helpful, compassionate, and caring. Unlike the other behavioral styles, these descriptions are common to someone who enjoys people and takes pleasure in working directly with the concerns of individual persons.This is my type. Most of my colleagues and clients find me pleasant. They observe and appreciate the positive traits (strengths) of my â€Å"style. † I have the ear to listen to whatever people would want to say or express. I am naturally a very loyal friend and therefore can be trusted. For me, it is not difficult to work with different people, and thus, I am good at working in a team. My co-workers easily relate to me as we do our work together. Our tas ks in the office are often expedited because of the mutual support we give each other.The positive atmosphere or lack of it in certain places, I observe, is due to different styles, or rather, to the many weaknesses of other behavioral styles. My type of behavior createsâ€Å"lightness† in ambiance, for it is more of other-centered type. It seeks to help and understand. Steadiness Styles go along with others well even when they find certain â€Å"traits† in others which are disagreeable. It is always important to keep one’s composure and to keep the boat calmly sailing. Because of this optimistic outlook that S Style has, people tend to respond in like manner. It begets the same trust, same sympathy, and same support.Weaknesses of Steadiness Style As I have mentioned above, although this behavioral style has its strengths, it also has its weaknesses. In my case, I do not want to disturb the regularity of the condition of my world. I do not want to do things that will somehow upset the status quo. This, I believe, is the main weakness of Steadiness Style. All of the good characteristics of this style might be attributable to this same weakness. In other words, the good points which make Steadiness Style attractive are actually, or may actually be, its way to compensate for its main weakness.From this fear of instability proceeds coping mechanisms which are likeable traits that can actually win people. One of the weaknesses of my style is the fear of risks. Because I do not want to face an unknown future, my tendency is to maintain the security of the present. I do not want to impose certain changes, even when it is necessary, for fear of failure. I am distressed with the prospect of disruptions in my work. If ever there are necessary and inevitable changes that must be taken, I must think them through, create certain schemes/plans, and assimilate the inescapable changes into my world.Steady Style people have difficulty coping with unexpecte d distractions and therefore must always endeavor to maintain poise, constancy, and equilibrium. Another weakness attributable to person with S Style is his/her slowness in decision making. I could not decide alone. I want to include other people – my colleagues – in any decision that needs to be done. To involve people in decision-making process is in itself cannot be called a weakness. There are times when opinions or expertise of others need to be sought to arrive at a more accurate diagnosis of the real situation; these are times when suggestions and advices are priceless.However, to be held back from a crucial and necessary decision, merely because of fear of implementing necessary steps that might be unpopular in initial stages but beneficial in the long haul, is indecisiveness. It is a weakness which I find interwoven with all the good peculiarities of the Steady type. Conclusion Although there might be more â€Å"strengths† or â€Å"weaknesses† at tributable to Steadiness Style, what have been discussed here in this paper is enough to guide and enable one to understand this type of behavior.A systematic profiling of behaviors is designed to assist anybody – employees and employers/managers alike – to gain a better understanding of the differences inherent in different behavioral styles, and so be able, as a result, to work proficiently with other people who are framed with diverse styles of behavior. Remember, there is/are no right and wrong profile/s. Each behavioral profile is distinct and has its combined strengths and weaknesses. Our different styles are just statements of our uniqueness/distinctives on how we opt to do things.When understood properly, these differences of styles can be utilized to achieve excellent ends. If, on the other hand, this crucial understanding of behavioral types is bypassed, it creates a myriad of otherwise preventable problems. It is important that â€Å"blind spots† be p ut into light as in the case of Steadiness Style treated in this paper. It’s difficult to think of this â€Å"type† as having negative sides. According to studies, it is of the four styles, the most people-oriented. How could such a style retain with it bad qualities when it appears to be so â€Å"selfless† in nature?I have given the answers to the question when I pointed out the weaknesses of this behavioral style. With the understanding then that is gained through the discussion in this paper, the hope and prospect of the writer is better working relations with others who do not possess the same style of behavior as the one treated here. Reference 1. ________ Behavioral Styles. (please fill in your source for the file you uploaded here). 2. Bruce, Debra. 2005 in http://www. debrabruce. com/articles/DiSC-behavior-styles. php 3. D'Innocenzo, Len. 2005. in www. crkinteractive. com.

The Development of International Relations

INTRODUCTION This paper begins by outlining the definitions and what exactly is meant by international relations. Secondly, it tells the story of how and why the study of international relations emerged when it did, during the course of modern history.Even though, the history and the origins of this discipline alone does not reveal everything we need to know about how international relations functions in this day and age, it certainly would help us to understand the legacy left behind by this study’s original purpose, international gains and calamities, and by its traditional schools of thought; explanations starting from the time of the Great Powers, to the French Revolution, the first of the alliances, the Industrial revolution, the two World Wars along with the consequent Cold War, the formed international organizations such as the League of Nations and the United Nations, and finally, to where international relations stands today.The final outcome of this paper is to creat e a detailed understanding on the readers mind on how international relations developed into what it at present is – a science, or rather a field of study – during the course of the modern history, starting from the 16th century. WHAT IS INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS? International relations is a field of study that seeks to understand a variety of global issues, foreign affairs and the interactions of nations and states within the international system. International relations draw upon its expertise from a variety of other fields such as social science, including geography, history, sociology, political science, economics, law, etc†¦It is therefore a challenging field to master due to its both diverse and complex nature. Strictly defined, the field of International Relations (IR) concerns the relationships among the world’s governments. However, these so called world’s governments or in other words nation states, alone cannot regulate the events taking pl ace in international arena. They in fact are connected or rather influenced by other actors, namely, inter-governmental organizations (IGOs), international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and multinational corporations (MNCs) along with other social structures such as economics, cultural differences and ideology. Furthermore, the study of nternational relations has always been heavily influenced by normative considerations, such as the goal of reducing armed conflict and increasing international cooperation. International relations are an exceptionally important aspect of citizenship in a global society. As our world becomes smaller and smaller through communication technology, speedy air transportation and a complex international economy and interactions, the value of peaceful and cooperative relationships between nations is increasingly important. HISTORY The concept of international relations on some level is probably quite old, given that humans have been establishing governments and communicating with each other for thousands of years.Aspects of international relations have been studied for thousands of years, since the time of Thucydides, but IR became a separate and definable discipline in the early 20th century. However, many people agree that international relations truly began to emerge around the 15th century – the dawn of the modern era – when people started exploring the world and interacting with other governments and cultures. THE TREATY OF WESTPHALIA (1648) The modern international system is often dated from the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, which established the principles of independent, sovereign stated that continue to shape the international system today. Many even consider this treaty, also knows as the Peace of Westphalia as the birth of international relations as a field of study.The Treaty of Westphalia was a series of peace treaties signed between May and October 1648 in Osnab ruck and Munster, Germany. These treaties ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) in the Holy Roman Empire, and the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) between Spain and the Dutch Republic, with Spain formally recognizing the independence of the Dutch Republic. These treaties resulted from a big diplomatic assembly, thus initiating a new system of political order in central Europe, between the Hapsburg alliance (Austria-Hungury and Spain) and the Protestant countries (France, Britain, Sweden). Later it was called by many parties as the Westphalian sovereignty. The key factor to this ystem was the ability of one state to balance the power of another state so that it could not obtain power of smaller units and create a universal empire, thereby forming a relationship between the many nations within the European terrain. THE FRENCH REVOLUTION (1789 – 1799) The French Revolution (1789–1799), was a period of drastic social and political turmoil in France and one tha t had a major impact not only on France but also throughout the rest of Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed within a mere three year period. However, 5 directors established control of the French state in 1795 and held power until 1799, when it was replaced by the Consulate under Napoleon Bonaparte. Meanwhile, by the nearing end of the 18th century Britain’s power multiplied due to industrialization along with its rival at the time, France.What was once the great powers in Europe and the adjacent terrain were by this era beginning to decline, namely Sweden, Netherlands and the Ottoman Empire. Nevertheless, nations such as Russia and then followed by Prussia (the forerunner of modern-day Germany) also developed in to major players or rather great powers. THE NAPOLEANIC WARS (1803 – 1815) The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions. The underlying cau ses for these Napoleonic Wars took place due to many reasons. For one thing, the French Revolution inspired a desire among the French to export the ideals of freedom, equality and union. As a result, neighboring monarchs, especially the British Empire, found this very threatening.Napoleon happened to be both brilliant and energetic in defending the state from its enemies. Eventually, the dynamics of war and the changes in revolutionary spirit made Napoleon King of France and the territories he had conquered. Now he became a different kind of threat as he wanted to maintain his popularity and control in France through conquest of neighboring states. Thereby France, a single, very powerful European state was regarded as a threat to world stability and had to be put down. One way or the other France was defeated at the Battle of Waterloo by an alliance of Britain, the Netherlands, Spain, Austria-Hungary, Russia and Prussia.Nevertheless, Europe’s’ supreme, the British empi re realizing the threat that another challenging nation (the Napoleon’s empire) could bring upon, and therefore established an alliance with fellow European nations in 1815 named as the Congress of Vienna. THE CONGRESS OF VIENNA (1814 – 1815) The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by the Austrian statesman and held in Vienna from November 1814 to June 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars, and the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire. This is to date considered as one of the first the most prominent alliances, or a series of relations between nations in the history of international relations. THE CONCERT OF EUROPE (1815 – 1914)The Convert of Europe was the balance of power that existed in Europe from the end of the Napoleonic Wars (1815) to the outbreak of World War I (1914). Its founding powers were Austria, Prussia, the Russian Empire and the United Kingdom, the members of the Quadruple Alliance which was responsible for the downfall of the First French Empire. However, in time France was established as a fifth member of the concert. The Concert of Europe, however, is closely connected to the congress of Vienna. It was the balance of power that existed in Europe from the fall of Napoleon in 1815 to the beginning of the First World War. THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION (1760 – 1830) The term Industrial Revolution is normally reserved for a set of events that took place in Britain roughly from 1760 to 1830.The historical events in question consisted of a set of technological, economic, and social changes that in the long run revolutionized not just the British economy but that of the rest of Western Europe, North America, and eventually much of the rest of the world. For Instance, The industrial Revolution sparked in Britain with the invention of the steam engine in 1769. Wooden sailing ships were discontin ued in production. Instead, the manufacturing of larger and faster coal powered iron steamships took its place. These accomplishments put Britain as the leading role in world’s economy along with two other competitors; USA from the west ; Japan from East.These developments in the fields of marine, road going and rail roads not only increased the world production and trade but also tied distant locations more closely together more faster and more economically. Furthermore, Britain dominated world trade in this period due to its advancement in technology was way above par at the time. Thus, it products met massive competition and as a result British Policy tend to favor free trade. The United Stated nevertheless overtook the British in terms of economy by the end of the 19th century, despite the fact that they suffered greatly during the great depression. However the United States government’s role in the economy intensified during World War II.By the dawn of the 20th ce ntury not only the British but also the United States and Japan were in the process of selling their merchandise in foreign land, and this to economically, industrially and socially influenced the field of international relations immensely. THE TWO WORLD WARS (1900 – 1950) The twentieth century saw the lights of two unfortunate World Wars. World War I took place during 1914 to 1918 and World War II, during the period of 1939 to 1945, together occupying a decade of the 21st century. Unlike a conventional war between two nations these two world wars were global or hegemonic wars in which almost all major states participated in an all out struggle over the future of the international system. WORLD WAR I (1914 – 1918)World War I was a global war centered in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918. This war is one which symbolizes the tragic irrationality of war. It was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until the start of World War II in 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter. It involved all the world's great powers. It involves the almost all the worlds great powers, which were assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies (based on the Triple Entente of the United Kingdom, France and Russia) and the Central Powers (originally centered around the Triple Alliance of Germany,Austria-Hungary and Italy; but, as Austria–Hungary had taken the offensive against the agreement, Italy did not enter into the war). Although the participating great powers made plans for a quick, offensive and rapid victory – what has been called the cult of offensive, the war was neither short nor decisive. In fact scholars indicate it was a catastrophic war that was unnecessary and perhaps even accidental. Russia happened to be the first nation state to crumble as Revolution at home made it retreat from war in 1917. The revolution eventually let to the founding of the Soviet Union . Further, the entry of the United States on to the war turned the tables upside down for Germany.The Triple Alliance was consequently defeated by the United Kingdom, France and Russia which saw the end of the 1st World War. THE TREATY OF VERSALLIES (1919) The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. The treaty was signed on 28 June 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (which was a reason for the occurrence of the world war). At the Treaty of Versailles, Germany was forced to give up territory, pay reparations, limit its future armaments and most importantly admit to guilt of the war, while the other Central Powers on the German side of World War I were dealt with in separate treaties.Even thought the treaty was agreed upon, the German resentment against the harsh terms of the Versaillian treaty would contribute to the German aggression in the mid 1930’s and later on, during the course of World War II. THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS (1920 – 1946) Witnessing the painful experience in World War I, at the time US president, Woodrow Wilson, along with other idealistic mindsets placed their hopes for peace in the newly formed League of Nations. The League of Nations (abbreviated as LN in English, and SDN in its other official languages), was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first international organization whose primary and principal mission was to maintain world peace.Its primary goals, as stated in its Covenant, included preventing wars through collective security and disarmament, and settling international disputes through negotiation and arbitration. At its greatest extent from 28 September 1934 to 23 February 1935, it had 58 members. Yet, the League lacked its own armed force and depended on the Great Powers to enforce its resolutions, keep to its economic sanctions, or provide an army when needed. However, the Great Powers were often reluctant to do so. After a number of notable successes and some early failures in the 1920s, the League ultimately proved incapable of preventing aggression by the Axis powers in the 1930s.Germany withdrew from the League, as did Japan, Italy, Spain and others. The onset of World War II showed that the League had failed its primary purpose, which was to prevent any future world war. The United Nations or the UN (which would be discussed later on) replaced it after the end of the war and inherited a number of agencies and organizations founded by the League. WORLD WAR II (1939 – 1945) World War II, or the Second World War was a global war that was underway by 1939 and ended in 1945. It involved a vast majority of the world's nations – including all of the great powers – eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies (U. S. Britain, Fr ance, Soviet Union, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Greece, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, South Africa, Yugoslavia) and the Axis (Germany, Italy, Japan, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria). It was the most widespread war in history, with more than 100 million people serving in military units. In a state of â€Å"total war†, the major participants placed their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities at the service of the war effort, erasing the distinction between civilian and military resources. Marked by significant events involving the mass death of civilians, including the Holocaust and the only use of nuclear weapons in warfare, it resulted in 50 million to over 70 million fatalities. These deaths make World War II by far the deadliest conflict in all of human history.Even though, the Empire of Japan was already at war with the Republic of China in 1937, the world war is generally said to have begun on 1 September 1939, with the in vasion of Poland by Germany, and subsequent declarations of war on Germany by France and most of the countries of the British Empire. Germany therefore set out to establish a large empire in Europe. From late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or subdued much of continental Europe. Later on however, the nominally neutral Soviet Union fully or partially invaded, occupied and annexed territories of its six European neighbors, including Poland. As a result the United Kingdom remained the only major force continuing the fight against the Axis, with battles taking place in North Africa as well as the long-running Battle of the Atlantic.In June 1941, the European Axis launched an invasion of the Soviet Union, giving a start to the largest land theatre of war in history, which tied down the major part of the Axis' military forces for the rest of the war. In December 1941, the Empire of Japan, which aimed to dominate East Asia and Indochina, joined the Axis, attacked the United States and European territories in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the West Pacific. The advancement of the Axis nations were stopped in 1942, after Japan lost a series of marine battles and German troops were defeated in North Africa and followed by, at Stalingrad. In 1943, with a series of German defeats in Eastern Europe, the Allied invasion of Fascist Italy, and American victories in the Pacific, the Axis lost the initiative and undertook strategic retreat on all fronts.Meanwhile in 1944, the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. The war in Europe ended with the capture of Berlin by Soviet and Polish troops and subsequently the Germans fell into surrender on 8 May 1945. After two devastating nuclear bombing n Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the war in Asia ended on 15 August 1945 when the Empire of Japan agreed to surrender. Thereby, victory of the Ally nations over the Axis in 1945 ended th e conflict. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world. THE UNITED NATIONS (1945 – Present) The United Nations was established to encourage international cooperation and prevent future conflicts.The great powers that were the know as victors in the war – nations such as the United States, Soviet Union, China, United Kingdom & France – became the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. The United Nations is in fact an international organization whose original aims were regard to facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace. Founded in 1945 after World War II it went to replace the League of Nations, in hopes to stop wars between countries, and to provide a platform for dialogue. So far the United Nations has been successful in preventing a third World War, which otherwise would probably mean nuclear wa rfare & consequent destruction of the world.Furthermore, the United Nations proclaims to consist of 193 member states, which includes every sovereign state in the world with the exception of Vatican City. Nevertheless, this forming of this organization is known to be the biggest and the most successful alliance between nations in the history of International Relations. THE COLD WAR (1945 – 1889) The Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, creating a bipolar world and setting the stage for the Cold War. The cold war lasted for the next 46 years and each of them had its own ideology, its collection of alliances, third world consumers and a deadly armory of nuclear weapons.Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers started to decline, while the decolonization of Asia and Africa began. Most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to stabilize post war relations between fellow nations. In addition, the United States forged NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), a military alliance using suppression of communism and encouraging capitalism as a main strategy in 1949, while the Soviet Union formed the Warsaw Pact in 1955. Some countries aligned with either of these 2 superpowers, whilst others chose to remain as Non-Aligned Movement.The Cold War was named likewise as it never featured direct military action, since both sides possessed nuclear weapons, and its use would result in mass destruction. However these two parties’ third world allies fell victim to s streak of devastating wars, namely, the Korean War (1950–1953), the Suez Crisis (1956), the Berlin Crisis of 1961, the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962), the Vietnam War (1959–1975), the Yom Kippur War (1973), the Soviet war in Afghanistan (1979–1989), the Soviet downing of Korean Air Lines Flight 007 (1983), and the â€Å"Able Archer† NATO m ilitary exercises (1983). However, by 1991 the cold war came to an end as the Soviet Union collapsed and reformed in to 12 different states.In the 1980s, the United States increased diplomatic, military, and economic pressures on the Soviet Union, at a time when the communist state was already suffering from economic stagnation. In 1991 occurred the collapse of the Soviet Union, leaving the United States as the dominant military power, and leaving behind a resulting uni-polar world. Nevertheless, the Cold War and its events have left a significant legacy, a huge impact and a rather solid attitude towards the functions of International Relations. The aftermath of Cold War conflict, however, is not always easily erased, as many of the economic and social tensions that were exploited to energize Cold War competition in parts of the Third World remain sensitive.In Eastern Europe, the end of the Cold War has ushered in an era of economic growth while in other parts of the world, such as Afghanistan, independence was accompanied by state failure. SCOPE OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS TODAY The scope of international relations has greatly expanded in modern times. Initially international relations concerned only upon the study of contemporary foreign affairs with a view to draw certain lessons. Later on emphasis began to be laid on the study of both foreign affairs and international law and international relations began to be studied within the framework of international law. The field of the study of international relations was further widened with the establishment of the League of Nations after the First World War and the study of international organizations and institutions.The scope of international relations in the post World War II period got further widened due to significant changes which took place, with the emergence of USA and USSR as two superpowers; the entry of a large number of non-European states into the society of nations; the threat and danger of nucle ar warfare; increasing interdependence of states and rising expectations of the people in the under developed third world, etc†¦ CONCLUTION It is in this way quite evident that world history, especially modern world history plays a major role in the development of International Relations as a field of study. Although initial events indicate that war held prominence in international affairs, things were prone to change with the spark of the industrial era and the rapid globalization of the world economy.It is also evident that greater importance began to be placed on scientific study of international relations, which led to development of new methodologies and introduction of new theories in the study of international relations. It is therefore in this way quite clear that all in the recent past, the present and in the future, the scope of International Relations will be thoroughly important for the functions carried out in the international arena. ———â€⠀Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€œ [ 2 ]. Goldstein, Joshua S. International Relations, Sixth Edition. Pearson Education Inc. and Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. 2005: 29 [ 3 ]. Columbia Encyclopedia: international relations [ 4 ]. Goldstein, Joshua S. International Relations, Sixth Edition.Pearson Education Inc. and Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. 2005: 53 [ 5 ]. â€Å"Principles of the State System†. Faculty. unlv. edu. Retrieved 2012-09-11. [ 6 ]. Bloy, Marjie. The Congress of Vienna, 1 November 1814 – 8 June 1815. The Victorian Web. 2009 [ 7 ]. Dockrill, Michael. Atlas of the Twentieth Century World History. NY: Harper Collins, 1991. Ferguson, Niall. The pity of war: Explaining World War I. NY Basic, 1999 [ 8 ]. Willmott, H. P. World War I, New York: Dorling Kindersley Inc. 2003: 27 [ 9 ]. The Triple Entente was the name given to the alliance between France, Britain, and Russia after the signing of the A nglo-Russian Entente on August 31, 1907.The alliance of the three powers, supplemented by agreements with Portugal and Japan, constituted a powerful counterweight to the Triple Alliance. [ 10 ]. Bade, Klaus J; Brown, Allison (tr. ) (2003), Migration in European History, The making of Europe, Oxford: Blackwell (translated from the German). [ 11 ]. Goldstein, Joshua S. International Relations, Sixth Edition. Pearson Education Inc. and Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. 2005: 53 [ 12 ]. â€Å"Covenant of the League of Nations†. The Avalon Project. Retrieved 30 August 2011. [ 13 ]. Jahanpour, Farhang. â€Å"The Elusiveness of Trust: the experience of Security Council and Iran† (PDF). Transnational Foundation of Peace and Future Research. p. 2. Retrieved 27 June 2008. [ 14 ].Barrett, David P; Shyu, Lawrence N (2001). China in the anti-Japanese War, 1937–1945: politics, culture and society. Volume 1 of Studies in modern Chinese history. New York: Peter Lang. [ 15 ]. à ¢â‚¬Å"General Assembly of the United Nations – Rules of Procedure†. UN Department for General Assembly. Retrieved 15 December 2010. [ 16 ]. â€Å"Milestones in United Nations History†. Department of Public Information, United Nations. Retrieved 17 July 2008. [ 17 ]. Goldstein, Joshua S. International Relations, Sixth Edition. Dorling Kindersley Publishing Inc. 2005: 67 [ 18 ]. Cold War, From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Cold_War

Greenleaf by Flannery O'Connor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Greenleaf by Flannery O'Connor - Essay Example She is inwardly tormented by a world that is not of her making and outwardly by a wild bull that is eating away at what little peace she has left on earth. The Greenleaf sons were content with their modern dairy operation while Mr. Greenleaf and his wife, "... lived like the lilies of the field, off the fat that she struggled to put into the land". "Greenleaf" is a story of families and faith. . Mrs. May had hired the Greenleafs after her husband passed away and left the dairy farm to her and her two sons. When they were hired, Mr. Greenleaf and his two sons brought along Mrs. Greenleaf and 5 little girls. At this point in their history the families were not remarkably different. Mr. Greenfield's total possessions were little more than a "... pieced-together truck, his wife and five daughters". Mrs. May had inherited little more than that from her husband. Her friends were awestruck that she had gone "...practically penniless and with no experience, out to a rundown farm...". Still, Mrs. May viewed herself as a remarkable woman. The hired help were a necessary annoyance. The sons also grew in different directions. The Greenleaf boys, O.T. and E.T., spent a successful stint in the Army and returned with their new wives to set up a successful dairy business. Tormented by her own sons' failures, Mrs. May attributed E.T.'s and O.T.'s success to government handouts.

Business Strategy Game Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Business Strategy Game Report - Essay Example Management’s decision is very crucial to the development of strategies and in the achievement of the company. Working as a team of co-managers in charge of the company operations is essential for successful implementation of a decision made and their integration in achievement of overall strategic plan. This report will also critically look on the decisions made and how their impacts on the general performance of the company. Charts will be employed in the analysis to show the performance of the company in different regions in which it operates in which include Asia, North Atlantic, Africa and Latin America. 2. Industry and company report The company strategy was cost focus. At the beginning, we started to increased price because demand was high and supply was low, and from year 14 we started to reduce the price, so we have started selling our shoes at a high price in four different regions and every year we made profit, we increased our plan capacity. We started at 11 year wi th total 6000 plan capacity, and at the end of year 20 we have nearly 20000 planning capacity. Now we can produce shoes at a lower price. Earning per share was high for company B, E and F, and they are characterised by high score which is above the expectation of the investors in terms of EPS. Company B had high performance which was above 15 while the other two company’s performance was between 2 and 3. The other companies are performing below the expectations with company H being the lowest. Company A, B and F has an average performance in terms of credit rating which is above the investor’s expectation. The other companies are not performing well though they are still within the expectation of the investors. The performance of the companies in terms of net profit will also be discussed. All companies had similar performance in the beginning of the period, but year 14 is characterised by a significant change with company B as it scored a high net profit while company H scored lower. Company B has recorded the highest net profit level while company F had recorded substantive losses. The decisions made by company H resulted into its poor performance. The level at which celebrities are endorsing the company products will also be analyzed. The records clearly show that many celebrities had lengthy contracts with companies which ranged from 4 to 6 years. This is a clear indication that the celebrities had full confidence on the company products. 3. Clarity of strategic position The performance of the company’s shows an increase in plant investments and plant capacity from the 14th year. It is clear that the production of the company increase from year 11 where the company recorded 6000 pairs and $255,000 of investment. By the end of year 14, the company recorded 800 pairs with an investment of $320,480. Years later in year 18, there is an upward trend which is a clear indication of high improvement. Year 20 is characterised by an excellent pe rformance which makes it possible for an upward trend in production and investment. From the collected data, it is evident that the distribution fluctuated over the period, and there was no constancy. In the beginning, distribution seems to be very high though it drops at year 16 where 600 pairs were distributed. The

The manufacturing of a Premount Base Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The manufacturing of a Premount Base - Essay Example The manufacturing process was aligned and synchronised after the launch of Computer Numerical Control. The performance and machining characteristics of the Computer Numerical Control is consistent, and possibility of production or machining error is minimal. The human error has previously consumed significant effort and time, and in cases have been cause of production downtime. The evolution of the Computer Numerical Control is in compliance with the quality standards. The material for the fabrication of pre-mounting base shall be inspected through several non-destructive techniques to verify its compliance against standard, and strength. The metal identification of the job piece is important; the identification of the metal constituents through metal identification shall conform to the description provided by the vendor. This test shall be followed by hardness measurement; the hardness of the job piece shall be within the range as described in ASTM standards. The dye penetrant test of the job piece is recommended to verify the possibility of existence of external cracks on the job piece; it is strongly recommended that the cracked job piece shall be rejected. The ultra-sonic flaw detection shall be conducted; the test will verify the existence of internal flaws of the job piece. Beside ultra-sonic flaw detection, another recommended technique shall be eddy-current testing. The machining process for the pre-mounting base is simple. The job piece after certain inspection and quality checks should be placed on the lathe machine for trimming. It is important that the job piece shall be not greater than 2mm from the maximum required length. The quality of the cutting tools has to be ensured and maintained. The lathe machine shall be suitable for this job. The fabrication of the pre-mounting base requires essentially straight machining. After machining, the drilling of holes at specified

Film journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Film journal - Essay Example After a period Miranda begins to feel a degree of unfairness in her life; as a response she begins to act in distorted ways. She drinks whiskey and instigates a major argument with Jessica. Finally, Miranda receives a call about being hired for a job. Still, she can’t restore her broken relationship with Jessica. Working as a director of photography: My role in this film was as director of photography (DOP). Going into the project I was aware that the director of photography, or the cinematographer, is largely responsible for the artistic photography within the film. Meaning ‘writing with motion’, â€Å"...cinematography is more than the mere act of photography. It is the process of taking ideas, actions, emotional subtext, tone and all other forms of non-verbal communication and rendering them in visual terms† (Brown, 2002, p. ix). Within this context of understanding, much can be learned from the theories and practices employed by seminal directors of pho tography. One such consideration is the techniques used by cinematographers in the black and white era. Studio lighting from this era has oftentimes been implemented to create an authentic or naturalistic effect in contemporary cinematic production. In my own research I thoroughly explored texts on lighting, as well as participated in observational examination of the work of specific cinematographers. In interrogating cinematography in this specific work I analyzed mood, and the characters and subtext that the director wanted to create. The director indicated that he wanted to create a naturalistic atmosphere. Ultimately, we decided to use lighting as a means of storytelling and explicating internal character emotional states. After an extensive conversation with the director, we established that the primary function of the lighting should be as a means of indicating the main character’s dramatic changes. As Miranda struggles to find a job and her relationship with her daught er deteriorates the film lighting progressively grows darker. The narrative occurs over a period of four days; we recognized that the days should demonstrate differences in lighting, with the second and third progressively darker, but the bright forth day of hope. This style of lighting was established in the first scene and foreshadowed later narrative developments. The first scene consists of three shots. In the first show, Miranda is shown by the window; in the second shot she is a degree farther away from the window; in the third shot she is even father away. The intention was to make her face bright in the first shot as she is close to the window, so the light on her face was over-exposed. In the second shot, as she moves away from window, which was a source of light, the light on her face get darker. Finally, in the third shot, as she is sitting alone behind the table and her face is a bit dark, I made the light on her face under-exposed. Another prominent consideration was da ytime lighting. The director and I agreed to use soft light for the daytime, as it can be used as overcast weather. Notably, the director didn’t want to use any practical lighting during the day. I also decided to use soft and strong ambient lighting for the whole room. As a means of implementing this approach I divided the natural lighting coming from the window, as well as the artificial light that was pretending to come from the window. In

History of the Universe Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

History of the Universe - Essay Example c) Another hydrogen atom sits in the bound state characterized by the -0.38eV energy level. It subsequently absorbs a photon of energy 5eV. In one or two sentences describe what happens to the atom. When the -.38eV electron absorbed a 5eV photon, the electron would become unbound and the atom would ionize. d) In one or two sentences explain how the wavelength of the electromagnetic radiation corresponding to photons of visible light. Electromagnetic wavelength is inversely proportional to the photon energy emitted. When the energy is such that it falls between 656nm (red) and 410nm (violet), this is the visible spectrum. a) In one or two sentences explain whether the gravitational and electromagnetic forces between the two nuclei are attractive or repulsive. The gravitational force is attractive and the electromagnetic force is repulsive. b) If the nitrogen-16 nucleus is replaced by a second oxygen-16 nucleus explain in one or two sentences how the strength of each of the two forces discussed above would change if at all. Be as quantitative as you can with your answer. The gravitational force would remain the same due to the same atomic mass. The repulsive electromagnetic force would proportionally increase with the addition of a proton in the nucleus. c) State a way in which you could reduce the strength of the electromagnet... Be as quantitative as you can with your answer. The gravitational force would remain the same due to the same atomic mass. The repulsive electromagnetic force would proportionally increase with the addition of a proton in the nucleus. c) State a way in which you could reduce the strength of the electromagnetic force between the two oxygen-16 nuclei to zero but leave the strength of the gravitational force between the two nuclei virtually unchanged. Adding the 8 orbital electrons to the model would cancel the electromagnetic forces and would leave the gravitational attraction unchanged due to the electrons negligible mass. Question B3 a) Give the names of the types of object that represent the three possibilities that a star can become at the end of its life. A star may become a dwarf (White, brown,black), a super-nova, or collapse into a black hole. b) In no more than 100 words explain why massive stars come to an end of their lives and what happens to the star as the end point is reached. Massive stars burn their fuel more rapidly. As they continue their evolution, fusion produces heavier elements and each successive stage provides fuel for the next stage. As they reach their final stage with an iron core, the iron is too compact to fuse into heavier elements. Gravity overwhelms the equilibrium of the star causing it to collapse. The rapid contraction causes the star's core to rebound into a core-collapse supernova. c) In no more that 100 words explain why the way in which massive stars die is important for the chemical evolution of the universe. Massive stars fuse lighter elements into heavier elements such as helium, carbon,

Case Study Questions on Kimpton Hotels Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Questions on Kimpton Hotels - Case Study Example Each is individually designed to reflect the energy, personality, and pulse of its distinct location, history, and architectural style. Featuring highly personalized guest services, comforting in-room amenities, and one-of-a-kind specialty rooms and suites, Kimpton Hotels attract travelers with welcoming atmospheres that embrace its signature elements of care, comfort, style, flavor, and fun. Kimpton takes pride in its social responsibility, supporting select like-minded partners and is a leader in ecological practices. Kimpton Hotel serves their customer through their fundamental elements of Care. They try to ensure that this attitude of caring is reflected in each and every staff member to bring about a lasting and satisfying relationship with every customer. Service and caring-it's an attitude. They are very careful about the customer needs and their services. Comfort: The Kimpton offers the customer through the plush, cozy spaces with luxurious amenities for our guests to relax and rejuvenate. In trying to anticipate the customer's needs, wants or preferences, their intention is to see that guests are made to feels at home. Style: The Kimpton Group ensures that each of their locations are unique combining elegance with the whimsical. They design their hotels with the help of top quality designers and architects. They usually purchase existing property and modify it according to their needs rather than build entirely new building. Flavor: Imaginative and fun restaurants and lounges, which feature highly capable chefs that are favored by both locals and travelers. Fun: Fun and enjoyment is a favored theme and necessary activities are made available to see that customers... a. Business Philosophy and it adherence: An organization’s business philosophy can comprise of four components namely Vision, Mission, Culture and Values. This hotel group has a well defined business philosophy covering all the four components mentioned above. It vision is based on personal growth of its employees coupled with organizational growth. Its mission is equally praiseworthy and it is to getting new customers and keeping them for life. The same philosophy holds good for their employees as well. Culture is based on creating as atmosphere self leadership, creativity, performance and development. Values are based on creativity, passion, personality, focus and a system of continuous improvement. Even though many organizations have similar business philosophies, the hotel group has the ability to adhere to it. b. Treating guests as individuals: The Company takes great efforts to individually recognize and threat guests. They also have the software called Guestware to identify any guests who have once checked in before. c. Creating an ambience that is comfortable as well as fun. d. Unique architecture that is both whimsical and artistic. This is further made possible by the practice of purchasing existing buildings for their new hotels which enables them to have unique architectural styles for all their properties. e. Cost savings by following the above practice. f. Smaller number of rooms enables staff to extend more personalized service. g. A highly creative workforce on all their properties.

Gender Roles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Gender Roles - Essay Example This paper describes the observations of male and female actions, relationships and behaviours under the experiment held by the author. To conduct the experiment, the author puts together a small shopping list for a local convenience store that has multiple chains across the country and frequently attracts the same overall clientele. The shopping list was to provide a basic reason for his being there as well as an excuse to wander all around the store and make observations without arousing suspicion on the part of the store employees. The ‘shopping list’ also assisted with data collection in that it provided him with an easy checklist for data collection. It was necessary to visit the store two separate times in order to observe a male employee on the floor and a female employee on the floor (i.e. assisting customers). It was as important to observe both a male and a female employee at work in order to determine the role gender played in whether or not a customer would r eceive service as it was to observe the service received by male and female customers. However, because these visits were made during comparable times of the weekday, the number of customers was approximately equal and the demands on the employees’ time were also approximately equal (both had ample time to personally assist each customer that entered the store). In addition, the two employees observed were of similar age range, each appearing to be in their early 20s and both talking with customers and other employees of college issues.

Outsourcing of Information Technology Services Research Paper

Outsourcing of Information Technology Services - Research Paper Example Dell had a unique business model and was the pioneer in selling computers through their website. They did manage to maintain direct customer contact and eliminate overhead through elimination of intermediaries, through maintaining low inventory, low finished stocks, and their outsourcing customer support and service. However, the reduced overheads can be eroded, as in the case of Dell, when they had to suffer damaged reputation and cash expenditure to restore its position. This was despite their strategy to outsource only subassemblies and have control over the final test and assembly. There was misalignment between the organizational goals and its long-term strategy. IT outsourcing must necessarily be aligned with business goals and have a long-term perspective. Introduction Outsourcing of Information Technology (IT) services has been in practice by organizations for several reasons. Organizations typically delegate their non-core functions to outside service providers on the assump tion that the external service provider delivers the service faster, better and at a cost lower than what the enterprise can achieve by itself (Young, 2010). ... However, an organization would have achieved success and effectively reduce overheads if it can offer product differentiation, reduce costs, maintain efficient supplier relationships, communicate directly with customers, if it can maintain flexible manufacturing to suit individual customer needs, if it has a culture for keeping costs contained while maintaining efficiency. Overhead expenses could include expenses that are not attributed to any specific business activity but nevertheless necessary for businesses to function. These could differ across sectors and organizations but include expenses such as rent, utilities, and insurance. Based on the case of Dell Inc, this paper would evaluate the extent to which outsourcing has changed the effectiveness in reducing overhead expenses. Dell – company strategy Dell has been one of the pioneers in mass customization and a premier supplier of technology for internet infrastructure. They are widely recognized for their built-to-order (BOT) business model. Customers can order customized orders and only when the order has been placed the system is built as per customer specifications. Dell does not stock any inputs but has an extranet that connects it with its suppliers. Dell has a network of 200 suppliers and each of them can access the secure extranet and view Dell’s report on production plan, material demand, material quality, negotiated and forecasted cost reports (Pollard, Chuo & Lee, 2008). Dell outsources subassemblies and standard and non-configurable components. To maintain quality dell retains the key final assembly and configuration processes. It ties up for essential components with suppliers with

What Makes Someone a Hero Essay Example for Free

What Makes Someone a Hero Essay Father is the first person who I remind of hero. My father gives me a live, as human in order to see the social world. He protects me and take cares of me with his love and his sincere. He instructs me to be a good person. So, my father is my hero. When I was young, my father took care of me as well as my mother. I was showered, dressed me up by him. After school my father always asked about my homework. And when I had a problem with my homework; science , mathematics , Thai even English. My father can be my consult. He could explain and help me for my homework. He gave many suggestions and examples to make me understand. My father gives me the suggestion to live in the society. He told me many aspects in the society, harmful things even the harmful person. He told me how to aware of those thing. He said: â€Å"Nowadays, the society is more dangerous than the past. † You should aware of strangers and you must avoid to go to the place which is endanger. You must look around and aware of everything which is suspicious. † He protects me from danger. When I was eight years old. I drowned in the hotel swimming pool. In that moment, I thought, I will not survive. With my father’s subconscious, he jumped into the swimming pool and pool me up from the deep. He might die from that situation because he is not good at swimming at all. That time I realized that he was my hero. He doesn’t like the Hollywood hero or the cartoon hero; he is my hero, only my. He is a good model. Since I was born, I feel of his loves. He never hates me when I annoyed him. In his whole life, he works hard. He is a great leader of the family. I should imitate him. I considered him as my inspiration to be a good person. Especially, about honesty, he said, â€Å"Honesty is a good habit that the good person must have. † My father is my hero that really have in the real world. This is not the imagine. He does not walk out from the superhero cartoons or the Hollywood movies. He is not handsome like a star. He is not rich as a billionaire but he can pay any things for his kids even his life. That makes him to be my super hero.

The Garden City Movement: Development and Impacts

The Garden City Movement: Development and Impacts THE GARDEN CITY MOVEMENT The Garden City Movement was invented by Sir Ebenezer Howard (1850-1928) (Couch, 2014). It was first described in his book Garden Cities of To-morrow, published in 1902 (Ebenezer Howard, 2014). The Garden City Model introduced the application of some basic planning principles which are still in use today. It consists of self-sufficient communities surrounded by greenbelts with planned proportionate areas in agriculture, housing, commerce and industry (Audiopedia, 2014). This essay discusses the creation and development of the theoretical and planning principles of the Garden City Model and its success in solving economic and social problems of densely populated cities in UK. It also discusses the modification of these principles and their applications in modern planning theories. The search for an ideal city was due to the intense industrialization and resulting urbanization of major UK cities about the late 19th century. There were many social, economic and commercial activities in large cities, thereby causing high levels of migration from less developed regions in the UK towards these cities. This excessive immigration resulted in issues like; overpopulation, housing shortage, high rents, air pollution, urban slums and lack of sunlight and open spaces (Howard, 1902). According to (Fishman, 1982), Howard perceived the economy to be corrupt, inhumane, inefficient and unhealthy(see Fig 1,2). Fig. 1 Hine (1912) Fig. 2 Industrial Cities (n.d.) Analyzing the issues developed by the rapid urbanization, Howard noticed a contrasting phenomenon in the  countryside. The countryside suffered from; depopulation, lack of amusement, lack of society, capital and labour. The town had all that the country was lacking and vice-versa. Howard then sort to combine the best aspects of  the town and the country in formation of the garden city (Ebenezer Howard, 2014). Fig. 3 The Three Magnets. (1902) Redefining the town and countryside as magnets, the people as needles, and man’s socio-economic desires  as attraction, Howard realized the theory of The Three Magnets, introducing the third alternative; the Town-Country Magnet (Howard, 1902).The Town- Country offers; high wages, social opportunities, and places of amusements, healthy living conditions, low rents, and large parks (Howard, 1902). Howard believed that the Town-Country would enhance the enjoyment of human society and the beauty of nature simultaneously (Fishman, 1982). In order to achieve the socio-economic aspects of the Town-Country, the ideal city would run by communal land ownership, whereby, the rent would be the main source of revenue, employed by municipality(governing body) in the creation and maintenance of public amenities, old age pensions, and accident insurance (Howard, 1902). The Garden City was to be built from scratch on agricultural land, which had low ecological value, thereby increasing the value of the land, so that it could generate significant revenue through rent for municipality (Howard, 1902). Fig. 4 Garden-City. (1902). Fig. 5 Ward and Centre Garden-City. (1902). The spatial plan of a sector of the city Although the Garden City Model is very descriptive, it is not a morphological but rather socio-economic illustration of principles (Butcher, 2010). Planned in a concentric pattern, with six radial boulevards, on a site of 6000 acres, the Garden City would have a population of 32,000 people (Audiopedia, 2014). In the centre of the city lies a public garden, surrounded by the public buildings which includes; hospital, library, museum, picture-gallery, town hall, concert hall and theatre (John, 2014). The succeeding space is the central park for recreational activities. These large parks are more of country features, but they perform much better in the town-country because of the increment in population. Beyond the central park is the crystal palace a circular glass arcade, for commercial activities (John, 2014). Placement of the crystal palace beside the central park shows Howard’s intentions of connecting human activities with nature. Before the invention of Howard’s pri nciples, commercial zones in the cities rarely had parks and open spaces, because of the high value of land. It is now a common planning practice today to have open spaces in commercial areas. Beyond the crystal palace are houses with tree lined streets, additional parks occupied by public schools, playgrounds and churches (John, 2014). On the outskirts of the city are industries with direct access to the railway, saving cost of packaging and cartage and transportation of goods from the train to and fro factories (John, 2014). The rest of town beyond the railway is utilized as agricultural land held by various individuals and organizations and also providing alternative farm job opportunities to the working class without separating them from the city (Howard, 1902). This agricultural land also serves as a barrier to urban sprawl, as it cannot be built on. As shown in Figure 6, the use of green belts to control urban sprawl is still evident in UK cities today. Fig. 7 Group of Slumless Smokeless Cities. (1902). Considering the fact that town country community is bound to reach its population capacity due to its socio-economic advantages, Howard envisioned as series of garden cities, separated by green belts and connected by roads and railways, with the central city having a population of 58000 (see Fig.7). The introduction of these series also controls the excessive migration to cities with more attractions. Fig. 8Letchworth-1925 Poster. (n.d.) Fig. 9 Original plan of first Garden City, Letchworth 1904. (n.d.) Howards Garden city model was directly experimented on two towns; Letchworth and Welwyn Garden City. Letchworth was the first Garden City ever built (Ebenezer Howard, 2014). It lies on a train line, 35 miles from London, located in Herdfordshire, England, and it covers an area of 5,500 acres, which used to serve as agricultural land with little or no value (Ebenezer Howard, 2014). Although Letchworth was not designed in a regular concentric pattern, it follows the zoning principles of the Garden City Model. In other to build Letchworth, Howard needed funding, but he did not get any financial support from the government. I suppose it was because the development of his ideal city had no positive effect on the pre-existing cities, which have been invested heavily upon. The idea of destroying or ignoring pre-existing cities to rebuilt perfect ones was also the basis of many other revolutionists in solving the industrial crisis. This approach displays the lack of consideration of the fina ncial requirements in the realization of ideal cities. According to Audiopedia (2014), Howard got financial support only from private investors who were concerned with their personal profits, rather than the communal growth of Letchworth City. As a result, Howard forwent the idea of communal land ownership with no landlords (Audiopedia, 2014). Fig. 9 Aerial photo of Letchworth Garden City (n.d.) Fig. 10 Howard Park (n.d.) Fig. 11 Broadway Gardens (n.d.) Letchworth was environmentally successful, with lots of open spaces and public parks healthy living conditions and beautiful tree-lined streets, most of which remain today (Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation, 2014). The city attracted firms because of the cheap rent and surplus space, resulting from its earlier use as agricultural land. It also attracted residents, as the living conditions were favorable. Due to the fact that the implementation of communal land ownership was ignored, the rents were not cheap, they could only be afforded by skilled white collar workers (Audiopedia, 2014). Letchworth failed partially as an independent community because of the improved transportation system which made it easier to connect to London. Welwyn, the second Garden City, 20 miles from London, performed just as well as Letchworth, but it lacked public, commercial and industrial buildings, which caused it to depend heavily on London for socio-economic activities. Due to the physical success of Letchworth, the principles of the Garden city were applied to various developments worldwide and in most cases it has been misconceived as the development of suburbs. The New Towns Act 1946, implement by the government after World War II. was inspired by the Garden City Movement (Audiopedia, 2014). The Act, involved the designation of land for the development of garden suburbs in U.K (New Towns Act 1946, 2014). The development of ne towns meant the suburbanization of cities, which was the antithesis to Howard’s theory (Audiopedia, 2014). Despite it’s contradiction Howard thoery, the New towns succeeded in offering healthy living conditions, and maintaining the population density, but they were not economically independent. Fig. 12 Uxcester Garden City. (2014) Fig – new suburbs in blue, pre-existing city in grey. Recently, the Uxcester Garden City; an imaginary city, inspired by the Garden City Model, was announced the winner of the 2014 Wolfsons Economic prize (Sweet, 2014). It was initiated as a solution to the current U.K housing shortage crisis. It is a combination of the planning principles of the Garden City and the suburbanization scheme of the New Towns. Unlike, the Garden City, it is not built from scratch, but rather gradually incorporated into pre-existing cities. The scheme involves the development of residential communities on agricultural green belts, which are presently considered to have low ecological value (Sweet, 2014). Fig. 13 Uxcester Garden City. (2014). Organic representation of Uxcester. Each community is planned to have half it’s area designated to; forests, public parks and lakes (Sweet, 2014). These new residential communities would require reliable transportation systems, linking them to the city centre, which provides the most social activities. On the other hand, the new suburbs will revitalize the city centre by channeling new demand for what is on offer there (Sweet, 2014). Although the scheme involves suburbanization of cities, it observes the Garden City objectives, which includes the provision of healthy living conditions to ordinary people and socio-economic independence. The Garden City Model inspired the New Towns Act and Uxcester Garden City. It has had a major effect on town planning, which has a direct effect on human behavior. Howard’s principles have recently been adopted in the development of Uxcester Garden City scheme for solving housing shortage problem U.K is facing today. Although the effect Uxcester will have on U.K. housing has not been decided, I think the further development of suburbs would either increase the lack of job opportunities or increase the volume of commercial buildings in the city centre. It will then be up to architects to ensure healthy working conditions in these city centres. References Aerial photo of Letchworth Garden City. (n.d.). [image] Available at: http://www.letchworth.com/heritage-foundation/news-and-blog/media-enquiries [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Audiopedia . (2014).Garden city movement. [Online Video]. 13 November. Available from:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_MacpHZ-Bk. [Accessed: 03 January 2015]. Broadway Gardens. (n.d.). [image] Available at: http://www.letchworth.com/heritage-foundation/news-and-blog/media-enquiries [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Butcher, L., 2010. ARCHITECTURE + URBANISM. [ONLINE] Available at: http://architectureandurbanism.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/ebenezer-howard-garden-cities-of-to.html [Accessed 03 01 2015]. Couch, A. (2014) Arch 221 Urban Studies Week 4 Lecture: Note taking skills from lectures and readings, Liverpool: School of Architecture. Fishman, R., 1982. Urban Utopias in the Twentieth Century. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. Garden-City. (1902). [image] Available at: http://longstreet.typepad.com/thesciencebookstore/2008/09/history-of-the.html [Accessed 1 Jan. 2015]. Group of Slumless Smokeless Cities. (1902). [image] Available at: https://socialethicsoundideasandfreedom.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/garden-city.png [Accessed 3 Jan. 2015]. Hawkes, J. (n.d.).Houses, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire. [image] Available at: http://stock.jasonhawkes.com/media/8d181e48-3248-11e1-900f-1127b07b6f75-houses-welwyn-garden-city-hertfordshire [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Hine, L. (1912).New York: Tenements. [image] Available at: http://www.allposters.com/-sp/New-York-Tenements-1912-Posters_i8677584_.htm [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Howard, E., 1902. Garden Cities of To-morrow. [ONLINE] Second Edition ed. s.l.: Sonnenschein Co., Ltd. Available at: https://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/h/howard/ebenezer/garden_cities_of_to-morrow/complete.html#chapter7. [Accessed 01 January 2015]. Howard Park. (n.d.). [image] Available at: http://www.letchworth.com/heritage-foundation/news-and-blog/media-enquiries [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Industrial Cities. (n.d.). [image] Available at: http://johnsonschneider.weebly.com/ [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. John W. Reps,. 2014.Garden Cities Of Tomorrow. [ONLINE] Available at: http://urbanplanning.library.cornell.edu/DOCS/howard.htm [Accessed 02 January 15]. Letchworth-1925 Poster. (n.d.). [image] Available at: http://ocw.mit.edu/ans7870/11/11.001j/f01/lectureimages/6/image31.html [Accessed 5 Jan. 2015]. Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation, (2014).Letchworth Garden City. [online] Available at: http://www.letchworth.com/heritage-foundation/letchworth-garden-city/quick-facts [Accessed 5 Jan. 2015]. Louis de Soissons, Welwyn Garden City town plan. (1921). [image] Available at: http://cashewnut.me.uk/WGCbooks/web-WGC-books-1975-1.php [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Sdoutz, F. (2015).à ¢- ± GARDEN CITIES Howard, Unwin Parker, Lutyens, de Soissons Links. [online] ARCHITECTURETHEORY.NET. Available at: http://www.mediaarchitecture.at/architekturtheorie/garden_cities/2011_garden_cities_links_en.shtml [Accessed 5 Jan. 2015]. Lucey, N. (1973).The Effect of Sir Ebenezer Howard and the Garden City Movement on Twentieth Century Town Planning. 1st ed. [ebook] Hertfordshire: Norman Lucey. Available at: http://www.rickmansworthherts.freeserve.co.uk/howard1.htm#snd [Accessed 5 Jan. 2015]. New Towns Act 1946. (2014).Wikipedia. [online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=New_Towns_Act_1946oldid=621188191 [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Sdoutz, F. (2015).à ¢- ± GARDEN CITIES Howard, Unwin Parker, Lutyens, de Soissons Links. [online] ARCHITECTURETHEORY.NET. Available at: http://www.mediaarchitecture.at/architekturtheorie/garden_cities/2011_garden_cities_links_en.shtml [Accessed 5 Jan. 2015]. Sweet, R. (2014). Welcome to Uxcester, the imaginary city that has British planners in a flap. Global Construction Review. [online] Available at: http://www.globalconreview.com/sectors/welcome-uxcester-imaginary-city-has36392725british/ [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. The Three Magnets. (1902). [image] Available at: http://longstreet.typepad.com/thesciencebookstore/2008/09/history-of-the.html [Accessed 1 Jan. 2015]. U.K. Green Belts. (2014). [image] Available at: http://www.estatesgazette.com/blogs/london-residential-research/2014/02/green-belt-fit-21st-century/ [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Uxcester Garden City. (2014). [image] Available at: http://www.archdaily.com/545656/urbed-s-bold-proposal-to-reinvigorate-the-garden-city-movement/ [Accessed 6 Jan. 2015]. Original plan of first Garden City, Letchworth 1904. (n.d.). [image] Available at: http://lunaprod.library.cornell.edu/images/RMC/Size4/RMC0129/RMC2011_0602.jpg?userid=10username=administratorresolution=4servertype=JVAcid=10iid=CORNELLvcid=NAusergroup=Facultyprofileid=2 [Accessed 5 Jan. 2015]. Ward and Centre Garden-City. (1902). [image] Available at: http://longstreet.typepad.com/thesciencebookstore/2008/09/history-of-the.html [Accessed 2 Jan. 2015]. Ebenezer Howard. (2014).Wikipedia. [online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebenezer_Howard [Accessed 5 Jan. 2015]. Welwyn Garden City. (2014).Wikipedia. [online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welwyn_Garden_City [Accessed 5 Jan. 2015].

Micro-finance in Rural India: Challenges for the Future

Micro-finance in Rural India: Challenges for the Future Submitted by: Aishik Chakraborty Aritra Datta Shubham Chowdhury Snehashish Saha INTRODUCTION Rural India is home to about two-thirds of the Indias 125 crore population. This population is mostly engaged in agriculture that contributes 17.2 percent to Indias GDP. However, this dependence on agriculture is gradually diminishing with small-scale cottage industries and self-help groups gaining prominence in rural economy. This is clearly reflected by the contribution of industry in rural economy which has grown to 30.2 percent in the recent years. However the self-help groups and cottage industries often have to depend on the local moneylenders for financing of its activities with most large scale banks yet to make a foray into rural markets. In such circumstances, micro-finance gains prominence in financing activities of such industries. Micro-finance is a critical factor in uplifting rural economy. However this sector suffers from various challenges. It is imperative that the challenges are studied in order to ensure the Indian growth story to continue. This study will analyze the prevalent challenges and recommend strategies to overcome these bottlenecks. LITERATURE REVIEW Micro-finance refers to small scale financial services provided by financial institutions to the financially backward classes. These services include savings, credit, insurance, etc. The conditions for a financial service to be termed as micro-finance is that the transaction should be small and the customers should be financially weak. Jeffrey Sachs, the renowned economist once claimed that â€Å"The key to ending extreme poverty is to enable the poorest of the poor to get their foot on the ladder of development.† The concept of micro-finance was introduced in India during the 1990s. The country is home to about a third of the world’s poor, most of who do not have access to commercial banking services. The key problem areas in rural financial markets included a lack of credit in rural areas, absence of modern technology in agriculture, low savings capacity in rural areas and prevalence of usurious moneylenders. In such circumstances, micro-finance provides financial inclusion to the under-privileged sections of the society. In absence of micro-finance, the poor in rural India would fall prey to the money-lenders who charge a very high rate of interest on credit and thereby rob the poor of their savings. Micro-finance differs from conventional banking as unlike conventional banks, micro-financing lays more emphasis on the principles of co-operation, equality and mutual self-help. Micro-finance targets mostly the women of rural India, with more than 90% of its customers being women belonging to self-help groups. Micro-credit is mostly used for direct investments by self-help groups and facilitates access to credit by clients who need small amounts of credits but are less credit-worthy for larger loans. However, MFIs in India are susceptible to a number of challenges including political interference. They compete with both politicians and government backed lending programs for the same target segment. The ability of the Indian MFI industry to mitigate this risk is a crucial factor in determining its success. An example of a crisis in the micro-finance sector was when Andhra Pradesh found itself at the center of a debacle thatwas triggered by a the highly successful MFI, SKS Microfinance, which tactfully covered up cases of suicides among MFI borrowers. While it has not been clearly established whether indebtedness or coercive MFI tactics triggered the suicides, the political backlash was intense. In order to counterbalance the political criticism, the state government hastily pushed through a legislation that effectively crippled the MFI industry in the state. RBI established a committee, headed by Y.H. Malegam, to review the various issues and to recommend regulatory steps needed to prevent these incidents from recurring. Released in January 2011, we the recommendations will have wide ranging impacts on the industry. Some of the key impacts include: Creation of entry and operational barriers through higher net worth, capital adequacy, loan portfolio allocation requirements with a possibility of some banks absorbing some of the MFIs. Implementation of industry specific corporate governance standards, greater oversight by the RBI, tailoring NPA definitions in accordance with industry standards will improve corporate governance and transparency . Establishment of a fully fledged credit bureau, limitations on the number of loans to each household, conditions on procedures for loan sanctioning and repayments will reduce the incidence of over-borrowing and multiple-lending . The World Bank has also taken major steps in the sector of micro-finance. Formation of Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) in 1995 as a consortium of 33 Public and private development agencies and establishment of Microfinance Management Institute(MAFMI) in 2003 are significant landmarks. Regional multilateral development banks like Asian Development Bank also champion the cause of commercial micro-finance. Nationalization of existing private commercial banks, massive expansion of branch network in rural areas, mandatory directed credit to priority sectors of the economy, subsidized rates of interest and creation of a new set of rural banks at district level and an Apex bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD20) at national level are some of the organizations working in micro-finance. The initial micro-credit innovations in Bangladesh, Bolivia and Indonesia demonstrated the success of micro-lending. However the popularity of micro-finance in India stemmed from its ability to reach the poor without collateral and near full recovery rates. Micro-finance is contributing significantly to the financial activities of the poor. Various initiatives and programs have been launched to fortify the position of micro-finance in India. The speed of enforcement and the degree to which these recommendations are implemented will determine how much the industry will change and how likely it is to succeed. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK Microfinance suffers from various challenges from its competitors and also from the issues stemming from the mismanagement of various micro-finance companies. The study will enable us to recommend the future strategies and build the way forward for MFIs in India by addressing the following issues. What is microfinance and how does it impact rural India? What are the challenges faces by MFIs in India? What are its implications on the various stakeholders (villagers, money-lenders, banks, Govt. and the MFI institutions) What are the possible solutions to these challenges? Action plan for the recommendations. RESEARCH DESIGN The research will be based on the following methodologies. Identification and interpretation Identify the major issues and challenges. Formulate relevant questions keeping in mind these issues. Gather information from primary and secondary sources. Interpret the solutions to the issues Support and supplement the findings from research data. Data Analysis Gather data from self help groups and find whether they are involved in Micro Finance, and how micro finance has contributed to their business and rural India in general. Challenges that they face while getting the requisite loan from the Micro Finance Institutions. What are the viable alternatives to Micro Finance. The strategic importance of Micro Finance Institutions to their organization. How Micro Finance has impacted their lives and whether the impact is positive or negative. EXPECTED CONRIBUTION The study will consider all the dimensions of Micro Finance in Rural India and provide the following value additions to the field. Appreciate the importance of Micro Finance in rural India and explain their significance. Understand the perceptions of the rural population about Micro Finance in India. Remove the apprehensions about Micro Finance and communicate the benefits of Micro Finance to the rural population. Understand and comprehend the challenges that Micro Finance Institutions face in rural India. Elucidate how the challenges impact the MFI’s. Analyze and evaluate the challenges critically. Develop strategies for overcoming the current challenges and sustaining them. Analyze the competitors and their strategies. How can MFI’s handle the challenges and maintain their customer base. Design the future path of development for Micro Finance in India. Existing micro-finance models in India The following micro-financing models are prevalent in India. Each of these models have their own advantages and disadvantages. SHG-Bank Linkage Model: In this model the SHGs get credit directly from the co-operative banks, regional rural banks, NABARD, etc. This model provides credit to SHGs at lower rates of interest. However this model reduces the credit worthiness of the SHGs and increases the risk of default for the banks. Bank-MFI Linkage Model: In this model, the MFIs act as intermediaries and guarantors for the SHGs and receive financing from banks for further lending it to the SHGs. This model helps in improving the credit worthiness of the SHGs and reduces the risks for the banks. However the SHGs have to pay a higher rate of interest to MFIs in this model. Challenges faced by the Micro-finance sector in India Through extensive study and discussions with relevant stakeholders, the following have been identified as being the foremost challenges to the micro-finance sector in India. There is extreme skewness in distribution of micro-finance services in India. 52% clients of micro-financing come from southern India while 23% come from eastern India. The share of micro-finance beneficiaries from North, West, Central and North-East India stand at an abnormally low level of 9%, 12%, 3% and 3% respectively. This disparity clearly shows that micro-financing services are unevenly spread and is not available to many people who need it. Micro-finance is mostly concerned with micro-credit to SHGs. However other financial services such as insurance, savings schemes are not provided. Also it serves the SHGs, individual businesses don’t benefit through micro-finance. Micro-finance is considered as a social/charitable business rather than a profitable one. Consequently, almost 90% MFIs are dependent on subsidies and suffer from a high debt-equity ratio. The loan sizes are generally small and involves high transaction and processing costs. Consequently the interest rates are higher. There is high turnover of MFI employees. The reasons are poor salary, lack of incentives and working mostly in rural areas with limited opportunities. The employees also lack in financial and technical training. The MFIs lack control over how efficiently the money is used after lending. This often leads to bad investments by SHGs and results in default. MFIs are aware of this risk and keep the interest rates high in absence of a collateral. Micro-finance has reached only a small fraction of the people who need it. The micro-finance sector lags behind from technological perspective that would allow it to disburse loans more effectively. Absence of best practices norms in the industry often leads to coercive recovery of loans. The poor in urban areas cannot avail micro-finance services. Hence these services should be extended for the urban poor as well. Micro-finance institutions have a very low rate of customer retention. This is because clients are not properly educated about the services available from the MFIs. Recommendations Based on the findings, the following steps are recommended for reviving micro-finance sector in India and turning it into a tool for poverty alleviation and financial inclusion. Micro-finance reaches a very small fraction of the people who need it. Hence an overall scaling up of micro-finance sector is imperative. The initiative can be in form of public ventures, private banks or PPP model. The MFIs and NBFCs are to be brought under a regulatory authority to ensure standardization and enforce best practices. The micro-finance sector should diversify its portfolio from being a money-lending entity into an sector that provides holistic financial services such as insurance and savings to its clients. It should also try to widen its client base from SHGs in rural areas to the deserving urban poor who require financial inclusion. Greater use of technology and analytics can negate some issues that arise out of asymmetric information while sanctioning a loan and provide better risk analysis. This will allow MFIs to lower the risk of default while the poor will benefit from lower interest rates due to less chances of default. There employees should be provided with better incentives and given proper training to educate the rural people with the benefits of services provided by the MFIs. They should also be provided with technical and financial training to better assess the credit worthiness of the client. The perception of MFIs should change from being social or charitable organizations into being sustainable and profitable organizations. This would allow MFIs access into financial markets and investments and end their dependency on subsidies. Appendix The following questions were asked to hostel and mess staff and security guards of IMI who were likely to have been exposed to the Micro-finance sector. The questionnaire and responses are as follows. Are there any SHGs operating your native village? Do you have any close relative associated to SHGs? Which part of the country your native village is situated at? Are you aware of the services that micro-finance institutions provide? Do you have access to micro-finance institutions in your village? What is the preferred source of credit in your village? Has micro-finance institutions uplifted the rural class? REFERENCES Microfinance in India: Empirical Evidence, Alternative Models and Policy Imperatives Rajaram Dasgupta Access, Use and Contribution of Microfinance in India: Findings from a National Study Frances Sinha Microfinance in India K.G. Karmakar ISBN: 978-0-7619-3626-8 Microfinance in India: Mission or Misery? Jaideep Singh Panwar The Microfinance Sector in India: Which Way Now? Savita Shankar and Mukul G. Asher Issues and Challenges Relating to Microfinance in India Dr. Sandeep Bansal Microfinance in India: Contemporary Issues and Challenges Sibghatullah Nasir