...“Just because you don’t understand something doesn’t mean it’s nonsense,” - Lemony Snicket. The fiction novel, A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning, was written by Lemony Snicket. We follow the three Baudelaire children, or, as of recently, the Baudelaire orphans. The eldest child is Violet Baudelaire, she is inventive, inquisitive, and protective. Her hair is brown, she has a purple ribbon tied into her hair, and has pleasant facial features. The next child is Klaus Baudelaire, he is intelligent, curious, and confrontational. He sports glasses, is intelligent looking, and has pleasant facial features. The youngest orphan is Sunny Baudelaire, she knows only a few words, likes to gnaw on objects, and is very loud. She...
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...Charles Baudelaire's "The Albatross" is a French poem. It was first published in 1861 as one of the poems in Les Fleurs du Mal (The Flowers of Evil). "The Albatross" appeared under its original French title,"L'Albatros," in a section entitled "Spleen et Idéal" ("Spleen and the Ideal"). Les Fleurs du Mal was one of the most influential works of the nineteenth century. Among its themes are beauty and ugliness in life, boredom, death, despair, the role of the poet, and cultural decadence. The book often uses symbols to represent ideals and feelings. Firstly, let’s summarize the poem. To amuse themselves, sailors often capture albatrosses, the large sea birds that lazily follow a ship gliding over the bitter ocean depths. After the crewmen take control of them on the deck, the humiliated kings of the azure skies drop their great white wings, like the oars of a boat, as they move about clumsily. How awkward and feckless this winged voyager seems! Only a moment before, he was majestic and beautiful as he soared. Now he is ugly. One man pokes a pipe at his beak to bedevil him. Another mimics his ungainly walk. The poet is like this prince of the highest skies. He too soars through storm clouds and laughs at the archer drawing his bowstring. But on earth, his is great wings prevent him from walking. Then, we are going to discuss the themes in the poem. Are treated in this poem the beauty in the ugliness of life as well as cruelty. About the beauty in ugliness of life, the...
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...Nobody listens to the real climate change experts The minds of world leaders are firmly shut to anything but the fantasies of the scaremongers, says Christopher Booker. By Christopher Booker (Daily Telegraph) 1:20PM GMT 14 Mar 2009 Cold comfort: If the present trend continues, the world will be 1.1C cooler in 2100 Photo: Getty Considering how the fear of global warming is inspiring the world's politicians to put forward the most costly and economically damaging package of measures ever imposed on mankind, it is obviously important that we can trust the basis on which all this is being proposed. Last week two international conferences addressed this issue and the contrast between them could not have been starker. The first in Copenhagen, billed as "an emergency summit on climate change" and attracting acres of worldwide media coverage, was explicitly designed to stoke up the fear of global warming to an unprecedented pitch. As one of the organisers put it, "this is not a regular scientific conference: this is a deliberate attempt to influence policy". What worries them are all the signs that when the world's politicians converge on Copenhagen in December to discuss a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, under the guidance of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), there will be so much disagreement that they may not get the much more drastic measures to cut carbon emissions that the alarmists are calling for. Thus the name of the game last week, as...
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...Bribery Scandal at Siemens AG This case discusses a bribery scandal in which the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical company, Siemens AG, was exposed during 2006 and 2007. Siemens AG is a multinational company based in Munich, Germany. In fact, there wasn’t just one bribery scandal. They were responsible for a series of scandals that involved a few of the company’s employees. They were accused of bribing officials to get contracts and creating slush funds. Siemens was also accused of trying to bribe labor representatives of a labor union called the AUB. Siemens was also being investigated in other countries such as Switzerland, Italy, Greece, The United States, Venezuela, Argentina, and Bangladesh for possible misconduct and other scandals. Siemens agreed to pay the fines of up to 1 billion Euros to settle for the corruption charges that the company was convicted since 2006. They also had to pay fines for back taxes and interest charges by 2007. Discussion Question 1) In your opinion is “bribing unethical and illegal or just a cost of doing business? Discuss this in the light of Siemens’’ bribery scandal. What options do companies have to win business contracts without bribing, especially in foreign counties? In my opinion, bribery is unethical because bribery is illegal. Bribery is the act of giving a gift or implying money that can change the behavior of the one at the receiving end of the bribe. Not only is it a crime but it is morally wrong to influence...
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...WAS HITLER A WEAK DICTATOR? Introduction The question of whether Hitler was master in the Third Reich or a weak dictator' is one of the central debates amongst historians of Nazi Germany. It is not necessary to spend too much time here outlining the debate, as this information can easily be found elsewhere (see, for example, the excellent chapter on this subject in Ian Kershaw's The Nazi Dictatorship). Broadly speaking, historians who have participated in this debate can be located on a scale ranging from the intentionalists' at one extreme to the functionalists' on the other. The intentionalists' include historians such as Norman Rich, Joachim Fest and Karl Dietrich Bracher. What these historians have in common is their stress on the centrality of Hitler's person and ideology in Nazi Germany. According to Rich, for example: The point cannot be emphasised too strongly. Hitler was master in the Third Reich.' The structuralist' school of thought (sometimes called the functionalist' school) includes historians such as Tim Mason, Hans Mommsen and Martin Broszat. Though structuralists do not deny the importance of Hitler's role, they tend to stress the fact that he exercised his power within certain structures that shaped, and in some ways placed limits upon, his policies. Some structuralists also argue that Hitler was indecisive, influenced by his cronies, and divorced from the day-to-day running of the Third Reich. Hans Mommsen even goes so far as to argue that...
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...1. • In your opinion, is “bribing” unethical & illegal or just a cost of doing business? Discuss this in light of Siemens’ bribery scandal. We believe that bribing is unethical because it takes away the fairness of a business transaction between bidders of a contract. Bribing also has a negative impact on competition because it allows for oligopolies and monopolies to emerge in an industry due to smaller competitors being unable to financially compete with the amount of the bribes. This in turn creates a barrier for entry for prospective companies and promotes the oligopoly or monopoly in place. The lack of competition affects consumer choice by reducing their options which then stifles innovation within the industry as there is no need to generate a competitive advantage to attain customers. The legality of bribing depends on the laws of the home country that the business is based from. For example, Siemens is a German based business and German law states that bribing officials of another country to win business contracts is illegal. So, under German law, Siemens was guilty of bribing an official when it bribed employees of the Italian company Enel to gain a contract as Enel was 68% owned by the Italian government. The counter-argument is that bribing is the cost of doing business. We disagree with this because the economic benefits gained from bribing are not outweighing the cost to a company’s reputation. As we see in this case, Siemens paid a 6 million...
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...Truck. With the Equity Theory the company has set up a computer lab where franchisees can compare data of other franchisees and communicate about what is working and what is not. Mary Ellen Sheets approach to creating high-performing teams was to be the best out there. She came up with a moving company to move clients within city limits or short distances, and by charging by the hour instead of by the pound. She also made sure everything was spotless and her employees were in clean uniforms. She guaranteed the work done, and followed up with any complaints that were made and resolved them. The motivation theories used in Siemen’s New Boss are Goal-setting theory, Management by objectives (MBO), and the Maslow’s needs hierarchy theory. Klaus Kleinfeld, began working for Siemen’s in 1987, he has since worked in 17...
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...Analysis This case discusses the bribery scandals that happened in Siemens AG in 2006 and 2007. There are a series of scandals involve that some of the company's employees establish slush funds to obtain contracts. In another case, they were accused by IG Metall of bribing a union. It bribes the labor representatives of supervisory board to enlist their support of policy. Since then, the company managers' bribery at the Italian energy company employees was convicted by German officials. After the raid on Siemens offices in Germany, they continued to investigate the possible misconduct on Siemens in several other countries like the US, Greece, Italy and Switzerland. Due to the aftermath of the scandal, the company's Chief Executive Officer Klaus Kleinfeld and Supervisory Board Chairman Heinrich von Peeler had to resign, even if they did not directly implicate. With the Siemens bribery scandal surfaced, Volkswagen AG, Duetusche Telecom AG, Duetsche Bahn AG, and Deutche Post AG unethical business practices exposed at the same time in Germany. Those corruption scandals make a query for the German Co-determination law and Mitbestimmug—wondering if they were flawed. From the viewpoint of a Siemens employee who is willing to break the law in order to gain large profits, it was definitely worth it. However, in my opinion, enterprises have to face the legal environment which is not familiar with to do international business. They may do not know the country's legal way to establish overseas...
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...Dana O'Brady Professor Jennings Emergence of the Modern 11/8/12 John Keats, Charles Baudelaire and Beauty John Keats and Charles Baudelaire are two great poets who gives some sort of description of what beauty is and what it can do. In Keats' La belle dame sans merci, the reader is told a story of a knight who is attracted to a woman's beauty, but later he ends up alone and "palely loitering". In Baudelaire's Hymn to Beauty, the reader gets a sense of how beauty can be overwhelming, enticing, yet at times dangerous. In both poems beauty is in the form of a woman and the woman's appearance is very captivating. Baudelaire's poem is questioning the origin of Beauty while describing her. He says, "Your gaze bestows both kindnesses and crimes/ So it is said you act on us like wine/ Your eye contains the evening and the dawn..." Baudelaire is attracted to her eyes, and the way she looks at him. Her eyes look kind yet villainous, like the contrast between night and day, good and bad. For all he knows she could be a "maneater", a woman who destroys men by any means necessary. The woman's beauty acts on him "like wine", it could either be bitter sweet or strong and uncontrollable. It seems as though hes heard of her kind, but he still wonders if shes "from the sky or the abyss." He goes on to say, "You pour out odours like an evening storm; / Your kiss is potion from an ancient jar,/ That can make heroes cold and children warm...
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...The Romanticism movement marked the first step away from the Classicist ideals of Renaissance painting. Romantic artists painted with emotion instead of logic, striving to depict the sublimity of nature in their work. Although this was in a step in the right direction, Charles Boudelaire criticized both Classicism and Romanticism for “always depicting the past and neglecting the present” and “challenged artists to paint the ordinary aspects of modern life and to find in them some grand and epic quality” (Chu 258). This statement marks the transition to Realism. Some Realist artists responded to Boudelaire’s call by depicting scenes of labor of ordinary lower class people. In this essay, I will compare five paintings on the subject of work and explain the different approaches each artist used to convey their message. Jean-Francois Millet’s primary objective was to “portray the rural poor as icons: a noble peasantry condemned to backbreaking labor in a harsh environment who nonetheless remain dignified, even achieving spiritual power" (Murphy 1). Man With a Hoe (Figure 1) epitomizes this goal. In this painting, a single isolated man stands hunched over his hoe, mouth sagging, resting from the back-breaking work he endures under the burning sun. The ruthless environment he labors in is accentuated by the dry and barren landscape that surrounds him which also emphasizes his isolation. Nonetheless, the sun shines upon and highlights the laborer’s face and posture, giving...
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...Name Teacher Class Date Romanticism and Rationalism In Our Modern Society In the modern world today there are two types of perspectives, Romanticism and Rationalism. Rationalism is the belief or theory that states that opinions and actions should surround reason and knowledge rather than emotion or religion. Romanticism is based on art and literature that originated in the late 18th century emphasizing inspiration, subjectivity, and the individual. There have been many questions about whether or not our society is based on Romanticism or Rationalism, but both play a key role in the balance of our society. Both of these perspectives are prevalent worldwide, but the three main areas where these views are the most important are in careers in the 20th century, the role of women, and religion. The primary subject that revolves around Romanticism and Rationalism are careers in modern society. Careers usually are more Rationalistic, but some represent the Romantic view as well. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2010 there were 139,415,000 different Romantic or Rationalistic careers to choose from. These careers included different activities such as working with children, painting, or performing an intricate surgery. Rationalism is based primarily on the science industry and education, which includes mechanics, the medical field, and school. Romanticism is found more commonly in the arts such as dancing, painting, or writing a novel...
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...There are many heroes that have existed throughout the history of man. Some are larger than life characters that live only in the stories we tell while others are the real thing, doing the things that most people wouldn’t. While non-fictional heroes seem hard to come by, there is one man whose life that helped changed the world for good. That man is Vaclav Havel, a real hero. Vaclav Havel was many great things in his life. He was last president of Czechoslovakia[->0] and the first president of the Czech Republic[->1] (Vaclav Havel). He was a writer and dissident whose stand against Communist rule helped to destroy it in revolutions such as the tearing down of the Berlin Wall (NY Times). He was a humanitarian who helped give power to the powerless (NY Times) and was the Chairman of the Human Rights Foundation (Vaclav Havel). Vaclav Havel won countless awards for his deeds and accomplishments. Some of his most prestigious include the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Indian Gandhi Peace Prize and the Czech Order of the White Lion prize (Vaclav Havel). To be considered for such awards, the recipient must be truly heroic indeed. These awards are never given away lightly and the fact that Vaclav Havel received so many just proves how much of a hero that he is. Vaclav Havel had quite a successful life, and according to the article American Heroes, heroes today are people that have a life well lived. The article also states that a hero is rises above their self interest to...
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...eate Value for People II. The Human Side of Business 7. Motivating and Managing People and Groups in Business Organizations © The McGraw−Hill Companies, 2007 234 Chapter Seven SATISFIED CUSTOMERS. Unlike the other moving companies she had seen, Sheets decided that Two Men would put a premium on customer service. “Moving had a cruddy reputation,” she says. “I made sure everything was spotless. And we went out of our way for the customers.” Sheets put her movers in uniforms and gave them business cards, charged by the hour instead of weight, and paid for any damage to be fixed. The company’s mission statement remains: “Treat everyone the way you would want your Grandma treated.” From the start, Sheets handed out postage-paid reply cards, with just five questions, to her cus- tomers. Last year, the company received 66,000 responses. Sheets says that only 1% of the comments are negative—and she uses them as an opportunity. “We want to get it right with our customers,” she says. “Sometimes we send them flowers or a gift if something went wrong.” As a result, Two Men gets about 95% of its business from word-of-mouth refer- rals, eliminating the need for much advertising. With no formal business background, Sheets says she has relied mostly on her own instincts and expe- rience. She credits her time volunteering at a hospital crisis intervention center with helping her to handle customers over the phone. “It taught me empathy and how to listen,” she says. STICK MEN U. When it came...
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...This case discusses the bribery scandals that were unearthed at Siemens AG (Siemens) in 2006 and 2007. There were a series of scandals that involved some of the company's employees bribing foreign officials to gain contracts and creating slush funds for this purpose. More so, in this case, the company was accused of bribing labor representatives on the supervisory board in order to gain their support for its policies. After the German authorities conducted raids on Siemens' offices in Germany, investigations were initiated on Siemens in several other countries like the US, Greece, Italy and Switzerland for possible misconduct. As fallout of this scandal, the CEO of the company, Klaus Kleinfeld and the chairman of the supervisory board, Heinrich von Pierer; had to resign even though they were not directly implicated (Durgaaus, 2008). With bribery scandals surfacing in Siemens and many other German companies like Volkswagen, questions were also raised about the effectiveness of the Co-determination law in Germany, which advocated a system in which a supervisory board governed the management board and at least half the supervisory board seats had to be filled by labor representatives. In such a system, critics contended that the management always needed the labor representatives' support to be in job and gain support for company policies, which led to a suspicious alliance between them. The case also highlights the opinions of several analysts on the issues related to bribing...
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...“Life without passion would be a dull wasteland of neutrality, cut off and isolated from the richness of life itself.” (Daniel Goleman) In T.S, Eliot’s, the Wasteland, the modern city is depicted as dark and hopeless, lacking any passion and characterized by lifelessness. Through his bleak description of the modern day man, Eliot is able to express his feelings of disgust towards the modern world. He feels alienated from this world in which the living dead roam, communication has been butchered, gender identity has been lost, and the carnal human has come to rule. The modern world, he believes, is corrupt to the point of no hope. Through his use of allusion and descriptive diction Eliot creates for the reader this wretched and lifeless modern world through the looking glass of his own perceptions and emotions. Eliot believes that the modern world is in a state of Purgatory in which all humanity has been lost. He relates London to Dante’s Inferno. In the Inferno, Virgil guides Dante into the center of the earth where he finds the devil. In the devil’s mouth are Brutus, Cassius, and Judas, three great betrayers who will forever reside in the infernal world. With this allusion, Eliot is suggesting that Londoners are betrayers against the good of society; against what is right. The modern man is like a dehumanized drone wandering the wasteland in cyclical toil. Man walks around seemingly dead; however, not only are the people damned, but the modern city as a whole is damned...
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