...The model millionaire – Oscar Wilde The model millionaire is a short story written by Oscar Wilde in 1871. The theme of the short story deals with a very materialistic aspect of life in a mercantile world in which the protagonist Hughie Erskine is a complete misfit. Despite of the attractive appearance and charming personality, his lack of money prohibits him from marrying the girl he loves – Laura. Her father demands a total of £10.000 to prove his worth to him and accept him as a son in law. The demand is only of economical character, because of the fact that Hughie quick and easily achieved the acceptance of the father as a person. This issue defines the very essence of the short story, of which it becomes clear that "romance is the privilege of the rich, not the profession of the unemployed." But is that so in the real, contemporary world? Is love only appropriate in the world of the privileged or is it achievable for anyone? This attitude is quite an old fashion way of thinking which is very appropriate of the time period in which the text is written and so the modern man would probably controvert the statement. A controversy claiming that love is a spirit with ability to posses anyone and so the modern expression “Love is for everyone” manifests itself. A second theme in the short story is represented in terms of kindness. It is expressed to its fullest that being kind pays out in the end. Hughie shows his kind side when he generously offers the ‘beggar’ his last money...
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...by his aunt. Hughie falls in love with Laura Merton, who is the daughter of a retired Colonel. He proposes to her, but the Colonel won’t allow them to get married until he has ten thousand pounds of his own. Alan Trevor, who was a good friend of Hughie, was a very talented painter. Hughie visits him one day and watches him as he paints a model. After much questioning, Hughie is told that the model is a beggar-man and isn’t going to get paid much for his services. Hughie feels bad for the man, so he digs through his pockets and gives him a sovereign. Later in the day, Hughie is told that the beggar-man was not in fact a beggar-man at all. He was actually a millionaire named Baron Hausberg, which upset Hughie immensely. The next morning, Baron Hausberg’s messenger was sent to deliver Hughie a letter. Inside the letter was a check for ten thousand pounds, a wedding present from Baron Hausberg. At the wedding, Alan was the best man and Baron Hausberg also attended the wedding and gives a speech at the wedding breakfast. Alan’s speech closes the story with, “Millionaire models are rare enough, but model millionaires are rarer...
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...identity and search for a normal way of life. His own parents lacked the abilities of upbringing him, so he’s never had a role model which he could look up to. The young man at the age of nineteen is the main character of the short story. He’s got many opportunities in life. He gets top grades at Harvard University, and his stepfather is a millionaire. This, however, is not what makes him happy. This is not what he wants with his life. In the first paragraph of the story, we are told how he dislikes his mothers’ fashionable furniture. Compared to his mother he enjoys the natural things in life, like the beach, where as his mother likes her fashionable house and the diamonds around her wrist. He just wants to be a normal person with a normal life. Thus one of the major themes in the short story has been introduced. The mother and the millionaire behave very strange towards the young man, especially when it comes to his sexuality. His mother treats him as if he is a pet or a toy. This is seen the way she keeps kissing him. ‘“Happy birthday, son,” the mother says and kisses him on the mouth.’ We are told that the stepfather has the ‘Whitest teeth money can buy.’ Just like his teeth the millionaire is a fake. He does not have happiness in his life. This the main character also thinks. In the last sentence of the short...
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...HAPPY PRINCE by Oscar Wilde The prince in the story is no living prince. He is the statue of a dead prince decorated with gold leaves and precious stones. He is known as the Happy Prince because there is a smile on his lips. But the smile gradually gives way to tears. The Happy Prince cannot help crying over the scenes of misery in the houses of the poor. He decides to help them with his gold leaves and costly stones. The little swallow acts as his messenger, and he gives away all his wealth. The Swallow was on his way back to his homeland when the prince had detained him to help the poor. He still wished to go back but now it was too late. The intense cold killed him. Thus the little swallow lost his life in helping the poor. His death broke the prince’s heart. So the swallow and the prince perished for a noble cause. But their death was not the end. It made them immortal. That is why the angel selected the dead swallow and the lifeless heart of the prince as the noblest things on earth. Haircut by Ring Lardner The narrator of the story is the town barber, who talks about a man by the name of Jim Kendall. Jim was a man who played cruel pranks on children and adults. Jim goes hunting with a 10-year old mentally handicapped child. When it is discovered that Jim was shot, many people in the town believed that it was an accident, although the author of the story indicates that the shooting was planned by the child, who had been tormented by Jim and wanted to get revenge...
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...Narisha Reddy Professor Gohar Siddiqui English 2250 - 01 Intertextuality in Slumdog Millionaire Scenes: First question and back-story Slumdog Millionaire is a film adapted by the novel, Q&A (2005) written by Indian author and diplomat Vikas Swarup. The film tells a story of a young boy named Jamal Malik who lived in the slums of Mumbai, India. While he was a tea server at a call center, he ended up on the Indian TV show version of a British TV show called Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? On the show he is asked a series of questions in which he correctly answers all of them. Because he gets so many questions right the police are suspicious that he is cheating. As a result, Jamal is taken to the police office and tortured into telling how he cheated. However, when the police officers replay each question, Jamal explains to them how he knew the answers with flashbacks that end up being linked to different key events in his life. Throughout this film there are many examples of intertextuality. Intertextuality is when some text makes a reference to another text. In the movie Slumdog Millionaire, intertextuality is used to reference Hindi Cinema and the original TV show, Kaun Banega Cororepati. The scene that I will analyze in this paper is the scene where Jamal is in the hot seat of the TV show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and he is asked his first question. The scene then goes onto a flashback to his childhood and unreels how he knows the answer to the question “Who was...
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...Since the statue was humongous, the cost of the statue was too, it was clear that raising money was going to be a big obstacle. After years of the creation of the clay models, the raising of the money for the statue started. France was raising money for the statue, and the United States was making money for the pedestal. The Franco-Americans was formed mainly to raise money, regardless if the Americans weren’t interested in making money. Americans thought the pedestal was very expensive and couldn’t understand why the pedestal should cost as much as the statue itself. The Franco-American union had members of both sides that contributed to this big project. Even though the Statue of Liberty was for the Americans, the fundraising for the statues pedestal went slowly. Americans didn’t see a good reason for paying for the pedestal, because the monument wasn’t everyone’s but for New York City only. While France on the other hand was holding a lottery. The prizes were valuable and coveted, because the lottery included works of Bartholdi. Other funds were raised by America and France by selling clay models of the statue. People and companies donated towards the statue of Liberty, Bartholdi also donated followed by the governor of New York that also contributed. Money was donated from different towns and cities and money also came from schools. Children and adults were giving their...
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...prevalent in the movie Slumdog Millionaire. Slumdog Millionaire tells the tale of 18 year old Jamal, a kid from the slums, “slum dog” of Bombay/Mumbai as he is about to answer the final question on India’s version of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire”. The movie opens on Jamal being interrogated by police who think the only way a kid from the slums could make it that far on the show is by cheating. Throughout the movie we see Jamal get asked each question and as a result of his experiences, how he arrived upon each answer. Through these memories, we see Jamal’s experiences with being orphaned, surviving the slums with his brother Salim and trying to find out what happened to their friend Latika. Slumdog Millionaire was took home numerous awards at the 2009 Oscars including Best Picture. There are many cross cultural psychology concepts that are prevalent in this movie. The idea of collectivism vs individualism is a constant theme throughout the movie. Individualistic cultures are those which have many practices and customs encouraging individuals to prioritize their own individualistic goals and emphasize the ways in which they are distinct from each other as well as being self-sufficient. Collectivist cultures are ones in which interdependent goals are more emphasized people attend to close relationships and group memberships more (pg. 206). India is a country that has both individualistic and collectivistic traits. As seen in Slumdog Millionaire, Jamal very collectivist views...
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...12-Month Real Estate Millionaire Mark Rolton Part #1: My Million Dollar Profit Story Table of Contents Forward ........................................................................................4 About the Author .........................................................................9 About this Book ..........................................................................11 It All Starts in Your Mind ...........................................................15 You are what you think .......................................................................................15 What questions are you asking? ..........................................................................16 A new approach to wealth ..................................................................................17 What is Money? ..........................................................................20 A case for karma? ................................................................................................22 Cashflow from Control? .............................................................25 Developing short-term cashflow ..........................................................................26 Options give you time .........................................................................................26 12-Month Real Estate Millionaire - Part 1 2 Copyright © 2012 by Mark Rolton All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced...
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...name suggests, a rock as a pet. Pet rock is collectible rock, which was considered to be personal pet. Pet Rocks were smooth stones from Mexico’s Rosarito’s Beach. Gary Dahl introduced the concept of Pet Rock in 1975 in a bar, when he couldn’t stop noticing that all his friends with pets were exhausted by theirs pet’s daily chores like taking them on walks, groom them etc. So he came up with an idea of having a Rock as Pet. So Gary came up with an idea of having a pet rock to avoid all these hassles. People who want to have a pet but yet can’t afford to take care of one, had rocks as pet. Selling Rocks as pet could be the dumbest thing that anyone could have come across, but Gary Dahl not only made living out of it but also became a “Millionaire”. He wasn’t just selling rocks, but he was marketing an idea. What’s commendable is how a good marketing strategy can make a huge difference. No matter what the product is, but packaging and the way it is advertised to people makes any mundane product attractive. Pet Rocks were marketed like live pets, in custom made cardboard boxes, with straw beds and breathing holes. It also had an official 32 pages training manual about how to take care of the pet rock. The marketing strategy Gary Dahl adopted was to present the pet rock as zero maintenance, cost effective and involving least responsibility along with an instruction manual. This attracted a lot of people who were happy to buy such a low maintenance pet as compare to a living pet...
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...(Industry Trend, 2010) Tuesday, January 14, 14 VW AG: dominating China Volkswagen has been the biggest player in the Chinese auto market for over a decade, in spite of geographic and cultural barriers. How has the auto group managed this level of domination? (Schmitt, 2011) Tuesday, January 14, 14 A Song of Tariffs & Loopholes • High import taxes mean that a Swedish-made Koenigsegg Agrera that would cost ~ $2,000,000 in North America and the EU runs for $4,700,000 in China. (Spinelli, 2013.) This is due to a 25% CIF (cost, insurance and freight) tax, a 17% value-added tax, and a consumption tax based on engine displacement ranging from 1%-40%. (Want China Times, 2013.) VW has counteracted by building many of its luxury models, including the Audi Q5 SUV and bestselling Audi A4L, on Chinese soil. (VW AG, 2009.) This allows VW to bypass import taxes and reduce distribution costs, which gives VW a potential cost advantage over many of its competitors. Reuters, 2013 Tuesday, January 14, 14 The Rear-Seat Culture • • In a country where a family only has one child and labor is so cheap that even the moderately wealthy can afford a chauffeur, the driving culture is different. Audi has managed to win big in China’s luxury...
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...The Harsh Reality about Reality Television Tasha Sutton ENG 122 English Composition II Instructor, Tina Santino March 28, 2013 The Harsh Reality about Reality Television What happen to the good old days when television programs had sweet, wholesome, honorable messages depicted to their viewer. Remember the sitcom, Family Matters, with Steve Erkel and the Winslow family. Brings a smile to your face, does it not? Television programs such as Family Matters, Saved by the Bell and Charles in Charge were great shows for every age. These shows, showed the viewer’s actors having a problem and how they solved it in a decent way that worked out for everyone. The audience knows that the characters are not real, but that does not change the message that they direct towards their viewers. Reality television is what is new and hip. The point of reality television is to make their viewers feel what they are seeing is indicative of everyday life. What most people do not realize is reality television is no different than a scripted, television show. Reality television caters to the negative emotions that make viewers want to see more television. Reality television programs are anything but wholesome. Reality television appeals more to our negative emotions and values, and has changed our viewing habits by decreasing family time and increasing television viewing times. These drastic changes that have occurred due to reality television has only changed society...
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...her early childhood, relationship with William, and current life as Duchess of Cambridge. As I just mentioned I would like to tell you a little bit about Kate during her childhood years. Kate’s early childhood was quite different from the life that she lives today. Kate was born into an ordinary middle-class family and was the oldest of three children. Nicholas Kohler, in his article on Kate Middleton that appeared in Maclean’s on November 29th, 2010, tells us that Kate’s parent, Michael and Carole Middleton, met while working as flight attendants. In 1987, Carole Middleton launched a family business called Party Pieces when Kate was five years old. This successful business that sold children’s party gear made the Middleton family millionaires. The success of party pieces enables the Middleton’s to send their children to expensive boarding schools. Andrew Morton, in his book, William and Catherine: Their Story writes that Kate was bullied at Downs House, the all girls school she attended. According to the biography.com website, she continued to be bullied after she transferred to Marlborough College, where boys rated her a 2 out of 10 according to physical appearance. However, this did not hinder Kate from making excellent grades at school and continuing her education at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, where she would later meet Prince William. BEFORE BED ON MONDAY NIGHT !!!!!!!!! In addition to her...
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...You’ve heard of Madam C.J Walker right? How about Oprah Winfrey? Who hasn’t? How many have heard of Annie Turnbo Malone? No one correct? Well, Annie Turnbo Malone was before Oprah Winfrey and Madam C.J Walker. Malone is recorded as the U.S.’s first black female millionaire. While Annie was coming of age, the popular style among Black women was having straight hair. She decided to make a chemical product to straighten African Americans hair. Annie was the first to do this. Annie was an role model to many women, but was an great inspiring role model to Madam C.J Walker. Annie was born August 19th, 1869 in Metropolis, Illinois to former slaves. Her parents were Robert Turnbo, a poor farmer, and Isabella Cook Turnbo who had 11 children. Annie was the 10th child of the 11. Because her parents died while she was young, Annie was raised by her older sister. She was a sick child...
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...Rethinking retail banking growth Effective strategies for increasing revenue by building stronger connections to the post-crisis consumer It’s no secret that revenue growth is one of today’s biggest challenges for the banking industry. Financial services CEOs ranked growth as their number one priority according to The Conference Board CEO Challenge 2011 1 survey . As low interest rates and new regulations strangle traditional sources of riskbased and fee income, many once-attractive customer relationships are generating less revenue, causing some to become unprofitable. Many bank executives are finding that the old tried-and-true strategies for organic market share and revenue growth are not sufficient anymore. Competing based on pricing, convenience, and service is still fundamental, but more is required. The financial crisis created a trio of retail banking giants with approximately 30 percent combined market share and more than 18,300 branch locations – but even with their vast scale; they are also struggling to grow organically. On the product side, retail deposits have significantly diminished attractiveness in today’s low interest rate environment. Even when banks succeed in attracting new deposit relationships, there are few profitable ways to reinvest those assets in today’s loan environment. Mortgage lending has dropped to the lowest levels in a decade, and new fee and rate constraints on overdrafts and credit cards, along with consumer debt reduction, have silenced...
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...Anton Chaney-Harris 2/12/2015 ACCT 4420 Knapp Cases – NextCard 1. Should auditors evaluate the soundness of a client’s business model? Defend your answer. The auditors don’t have the full responsibility of looking over the client business model. But they should a good understanding of the client’s business model and industry, this way they can develop more accurate expectations for financial statements assertions. 2. Identify and briefly describe the specific fraud risk factors present during the 2000 NextCard audit. How should these factors have affected the planning and execution of that engagement? The three examples of risk factors are pressure, opportunities, and rationalizations. The pressure factor grew when NextCard wanted to improve growth as rapidly as possible. They tried to extend a $1 Billion dollars of credit to customers, while knowing they were making no profit. The Internet bubble, giving the huge demand of public accounting firms, created the opportunity factor. The internal control was poor as well giving the opportunity for fraud. The third risk factor or rationalizations is related to Lent and the executives of NextCard. When the selling price rose from $20 per share to $40 per share, they saw the opportunity to become instant millionaires. Which didn’t make some of there decisions seem so bad at the time. Also that eventually from themselves making so much money that their company would provide a profit somewhere down the line. So they just...
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