How might Randstades partnership program contribute to the effective decision making?

The Randstad is a Dutch company that has undergone great expansion in the U. S. majorly because of teaming up its young employees with the older ones who are more experienced. This partnership program has played a vital role in the business decision making process. For instance, it has ensured increased productivity from the paired sales agents since there was sharing of jobs and also a trade off in responsibilities. The end result realized has been a minimized production and distribution costs and lesser time being used in availing the products.This program has ensured that budgetary appropriations are not cumbersome. Moreover, the existence of a symbiotic relationship between the Gen Yers who needed a lot of attention and the older that needed the former to succeed aided in nurturing the young employees. This helps in growth of the business to a certain size within a shorter time span. The program also made job rotation possible since every employee had varied expertise in the vari ous departments.The vast knowledge greatly aids the firm in the recruitment process of new potential workers and ensuring proper record keeping. In addition, since there is also job specialization, competition among employees is not a problem since no one is seeking for recognition but for the prosperity of the firm as a whole. The personnel integration led to the recruitment of more Gen Yers which cultivated a relationship between them and the organization. As a result, each and every effort by the employers is directed towards the achievement of the business goals.2. How might it help employees generate and evaluate alternatives? Since there is nobody termed as the boss in the business, employees are free to bring into focus their views towards an arising situation affecting the business. The employees share the responsibilities equally thus willing to give out their different ideas and hence. As Benjamin states, no one is individually responsible for everything (Bloomberg). Throu gh this, each employee get to learn new alternative courses of action and methods of coming up with the solution.The fact that there are a number of alternatives puts at bay the unyielding option of giving up when one employee’s criterion fails since he/she in not over; there can arise a solution from the other partner’s course of action. The partnership program ensures that the best alternatives that will not put off clients are adopted. Through this program, employees develop courage and confidence in airing their various alternatives generated through partnering.These alternatives later undergo joined comprehensive scrutiny for best result realization. 3. How might it help employees choose alternatives and learn from feedback? The partnership program can play a crucial role in ensuring that the right alternatives are given a priority by asking the relevant questions and saying the right things to the clients. Further more, explicit suggestions can be obtained from a partner who with time might result to only making observations to the partner and understanding whether or not the alternative is right.The older employees are more experienced in comparison with the Gen Yers, thus their alternatives might be considered or else utilized as an important reference point in some major areas of concern thus strengthening the rapport between them. Negative feedbacks like sabotaging the other partner or reduction in productivity due to constant wrangling are indicators unfruitful partnership which can lead to its break up (Giancola, 13). In addition, the uncooperative partner is identified, since he ends up leaving the company. This serves as a warning for the business entity to engage in a similar relationship in the future.Older workers can mock the young counterparts in a general business set up but with the employment of the pairing program, this is discouraged. The focus in set on impacting the same business knowledge to the young by the old since t here is no master in the business. 4. How might this program contribute to organizational learning? Cross generation partnership, as practiced by the Randstad, may lead to the understanding of the connection between solidarity in work place and the feeling of being more successful and productive.It diversifies the egocentric thoughts of the management to caring about the welfare of its subordinates and improves the relationship between them. To add on, the older employees do not get cynical for having been in the business for a longer time than the Gen Yers. The younger agents are taught on how to be patient and avoid discouraging the clients by the experienced ones who first seek for the solution to the arising problems (Bloomberg).This fosters appreciation for each party in the business hence playing a motivational role which is eventually reflected in the increased units and quality of the output. Concisely, organizations learn the best employee combination criteria since some de pended on others for their success hence the organization attaining its objectives on top of nurturing the employees’ skills. Though these relationships are promising, they are susceptible to dysfunction and require a lot of maintenance for their sustenance thus the organization has to take necessary measures in good time.Thus, if the partnership proves to be doing more harm than good, the organization should opt for its termination the soonest possible. Works Cited Bloomberg , L. P, Bridging The Generation Gap: Employment Agency Ramstad Teams Newbie’s With Older Staff To Great Effect, September, 17 2007. Viewed on July 2 2010 from http://www. businessweek. com/magazine/content/07_38/b4050063. htm Giancola, F. (2006). The Generation Gap: More Myth than Reality. Journal of Human Resource Planning. Vol. 29, p. 12-29

Merchant Banking

Merchant Banking Merchant banking may be defined as, â€Å"an institution which covers a wide range of activities such as management of customer services, portfolio management, credit syndication, acceptance credit, counselling, insurance, etc. † Merchant Banks are popularly known as â€Å"issuing and accepting houses†. They offer a package of financial services. Unlike in the past, their activities are now primarily non-fund based. One of the basic requirements of merchant banks is highly professional staff with skills and worldwide contacts.The basic function of merchant banks is marketing corporate and other securities, that is guaranteeing sales and distribution of securities. All the aspects- origination, underwriting and distribution of the sale of industrial securities are handled by them. They are experts and good judges of the type, timing and terms of issues and make them acceptable to investors under prevailing preferences and market conditions, and at the sa me time afford the borrowing company, flexibility and freedom that it needs to meet possible future contingencies.They guarantee the success of issues by underwriting them. They also provide all the services related to receiving applications, allotment, collecting money, sending share certificates and so on. The merchant banker normally does not assume all the risk himself while underwriting the issue. Merchant banks offer services also to investors. The range of activities offered by merchant banks is much wider than sponsoring public issues of industrial securities. They offer project finance, syndication of credit, corporate advisory services, mutual fund investments, investment management etc.Services of Merchant Banks †¢ Project Counselling: Project counselling includes preparation of project reports, deciding upon the financing pattern to finance the cost of the project and appraising the project report with the financial institutions or banks. It also includes filling up of application forms with relevant information for obtaining funds from financial institutions and obtaining government approval. †¢ Issue Management: Management of issue involves marketing of corporate securities viz. equity shares, preference shares and debentures or bonds by offering them to public.Merchant banks act as an intermediary whose main job is to transfer capital from those who own it to those who need it. After taking action as per SEBI guidelines, the merchant banker arranges a meeting with company representatives and advertising agents to finalise arrangements relating to date of opening and closing of issue, registration of prospectus, launching publicity campaign and fixing date of board meeting to approve and sign prospectus and pass the necessary resolutions. Pricing of issues is done by the companies in consultant with the merchant bankers. †¢ Underwriting of Public Issue:Underwriting is a guarantee given by the underwriter that in the event of under subscription, the amount underwritten would be subscribed by him. Banks/Merchant banking subsidiaries cannot underwrite more than 15% of any issue. †¢ Managers, Consultants or Advisers to the Issue: The managers to the issue assist in the drafting of prospectus, application forms and completion of formalities under the Companies Act, appointment of Registrar for dealing with share applications and transfer and listing of shares of the company on the stock exchange. Companies can appoint one or more agencies as managers to the issue. Portfolio Management: Portfolio refers to investment in different kinds of securities such as shares, debentures or bonds issued by different companies and government securities. Portfolio management refers to maintaining proper combinations of securities in a manner that they give maximum return with minimum risk. †¢ Advisory Service Relating to Mergers and Takeovers: A merger is a combination of two companies into a single company where one s urvives and other loses its corporate existence. A takeover is the purchase by one company acquiring controlling interest in the share capital of another existing company.Merchant bankers are the middlemen in setting negotiation between the two companies. †¢ Off Shore Finance: The merchant bankers help their clients in the following areas involving foreign currency. (a) Long term foreign currency loans (b) Joint Ventures abroad (c) Financing exports and imports (d) Foreign collaboration arrangements †¢ Non-resident Investment: The services of merchant banker includes investment advisory services to NRI in terms of identification of investment opportunities, selection of securities, investment management, and operational services like purchase and sale of securities. †¢ Loan Syndication:Loan syndication refers to assistance rendered by merchant bankers to get mainly term loans for projects. Such loans may be obtained from a single development finance institution or a s yndicate or consortium. Merchant bankers help corporate clients to raise syndicated loans from banks or financial institutions. †¢ Corporate Counselling: Corporate counselling covers the entire field of merchant banking activities viz. project counselling, capital restructuring, public issue management, loan syndication, working capital, fixed deposit, lease financing acceptance credit, etc. bibliography a manual on merchant banking by JC Verma Merchant Banking Merchant Banking Merchant banking may be defined as, â€Å"an institution which covers a wide range of activities such as management of customer services, portfolio management, credit syndication, acceptance credit, counselling, insurance, etc. † Merchant Banks are popularly known as â€Å"issuing and accepting houses†. They offer a package of financial services. Unlike in the past, their activities are now primarily non-fund based. One of the basic requirements of merchant banks is highly professional staff with skills and worldwide contacts.The basic function of merchant banks is marketing corporate and other securities, that is guaranteeing sales and distribution of securities. All the aspects- origination, underwriting and distribution of the sale of industrial securities are handled by them. They are experts and good judges of the type, timing and terms of issues and make them acceptable to investors under prevailing preferences and market conditions, and at the sa me time afford the borrowing company, flexibility and freedom that it needs to meet possible future contingencies.They guarantee the success of issues by underwriting them. They also provide all the services related to receiving applications, allotment, collecting money, sending share certificates and so on. The merchant banker normally does not assume all the risk himself while underwriting the issue. Merchant banks offer services also to investors. The range of activities offered by merchant banks is much wider than sponsoring public issues of industrial securities. They offer project finance, syndication of credit, corporate advisory services, mutual fund investments, investment management etc.Services of Merchant Banks †¢ Project Counselling: Project counselling includes preparation of project reports, deciding upon the financing pattern to finance the cost of the project and appraising the project report with the financial institutions or banks. It also includes filling up of application forms with relevant information for obtaining funds from financial institutions and obtaining government approval. †¢ Issue Management: Management of issue involves marketing of corporate securities viz. equity shares, preference shares and debentures or bonds by offering them to public.Merchant banks act as an intermediary whose main job is to transfer capital from those who own it to those who need it. After taking action as per SEBI guidelines, the merchant banker arranges a meeting with company representatives and advertising agents to finalise arrangements relating to date of opening and closing of issue, registration of prospectus, launching publicity campaign and fixing date of board meeting to approve and sign prospectus and pass the necessary resolutions. Pricing of issues is done by the companies in consultant with the merchant bankers. †¢ Underwriting of Public Issue:Underwriting is a guarantee given by the underwriter that in the event of under subscription, the amount underwritten would be subscribed by him. Banks/Merchant banking subsidiaries cannot underwrite more than 15% of any issue. †¢ Managers, Consultants or Advisers to the Issue: The managers to the issue assist in the drafting of prospectus, application forms and completion of formalities under the Companies Act, appointment of Registrar for dealing with share applications and transfer and listing of shares of the company on the stock exchange. Companies can appoint one or more agencies as managers to the issue. Portfolio Management: Portfolio refers to investment in different kinds of securities such as shares, debentures or bonds issued by different companies and government securities. Portfolio management refers to maintaining proper combinations of securities in a manner that they give maximum return with minimum risk. †¢ Advisory Service Relating to Mergers and Takeovers: A merger is a combination of two companies into a single company where one s urvives and other loses its corporate existence. A takeover is the purchase by one company acquiring controlling interest in the share capital of another existing company.Merchant bankers are the middlemen in setting negotiation between the two companies. †¢ Off Shore Finance: The merchant bankers help their clients in the following areas involving foreign currency. (a) Long term foreign currency loans (b) Joint Ventures abroad (c) Financing exports and imports (d) Foreign collaboration arrangements †¢ Non-resident Investment: The services of merchant banker includes investment advisory services to NRI in terms of identification of investment opportunities, selection of securities, investment management, and operational services like purchase and sale of securities. †¢ Loan Syndication:Loan syndication refers to assistance rendered by merchant bankers to get mainly term loans for projects. Such loans may be obtained from a single development finance institution or a s yndicate or consortium. Merchant bankers help corporate clients to raise syndicated loans from banks or financial institutions. †¢ Corporate Counselling: Corporate counselling covers the entire field of merchant banking activities viz. project counselling, capital restructuring, public issue management, loan syndication, working capital, fixed deposit, lease financing acceptance credit, etc. bibliography a manual on merchant banking by JC Verma

Food security Essay

All efforts to bridge the gap between government estimates and the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council over the Food Security Act are coming up against a central concern posed by the Congress chief: How can the selection criteria ensure the poor and deserving don’t get left out? NAC members who interact with the government point out that Sonia repeatedly underlines her personal experience over the years during visits to deprived areas where she has found that the poor are simply not counted in any state survey and are denied any benefits. The Congress chief’s poser that the inability of the poor, particularly tribals and dalits, to access below poverty line cards needed to tap official welfare schemes will defeat the very objective of a law providing 35 kg food grain a month to the widest set of recipients is proving tough to answer. Here, even automatic inclusion parameters may not mean the severely disadvantaged groups will be assured a minimum level of food security, said sources familiar with the Congress supremo’s thinking. Sonia is keen the proposed law be effective in addressing needs of those who live on the brink and need state support and her conviction that exclusion criteria are applied in a bureaucratic manner and end up leaving the needy out in the cold tilts the scale towards universal eligibility which the government continues to baulk at. Several permutations have been considered including limiting universal public distribution system to districts with chronic poverty or looking for the right urban-rural ratios. But while some campaigners argue that government’s fears of having to maintain large stocks are misplaced as universal PDS will be accessed only by those who need it, the government is not quite convinced. The government feels that legal provisions stating population percentages to be catered for will mean it has to provide for adequate food grain for all intended beneficiaries. A law is mandatory and the optimum values have to be factored in. The tussle over selection of beneficiaries has seen populist politics pushing for dilution of criteria like pucca houses or income levels. But the Congress president’s core concern that expanding the net still does not necessarily mean that obvious beneficiaries are being catered for being tossed up and down the table in both formal and informal consultations. Food security act pledge in Prez’s address A national food security act to guarantee 25 kg of rice or wheat a month to BPL families, consolidation of rural employment and Bharat Nirman, a focus on terrorism and India’s neighbourhood, initiatives for urban employment and a promise to battle recessionary trends are likely to be part of President’s address to Parliament. The first meeting of the Union Cabinet after the conclusion of government-formation, scheduled for Saturday morning, may consider President Pratibha Patil’s speech to the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament. The speech, to be delivered on June 4, has been extensively worked on by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The President’s address is expected to highlight areas outlined by the PM like infrastructure and security. High on the government’s agenda are plans for a National Counter Terrorism Centre, modernisation of police forces through training and technology and diversified recruitment. It will also speak of pushing programmes like highways that have languished. Some legislations like the Unorganised workers’ social security bill and Right to Education Bill, National Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, expansion of the Rashtriya Swathya Bima Yojana and the National Child Labour Project, integrated development of minority concentration districts and approval of a National Tribal Policy are initiatives the government would like to speeden up. With economy and job losses very much a concern, the address will look to stress development of social and physical infrastructure along with specific plans like an urban employment safety net. The government will work on a comprehensive overhaul of public healthcare, restructuring Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), strengthening implementation of 11th and 12th plan power projects and attention on employment-generating small sector enterprises. The government is planning major efforts to decrease infant and mother mortality rates, bring about accountability in Primary Health Centres, initiate a household survey of the National Rural Healthcare Mission, besides approving rigorous oversight in ensuring dispensation of medicines before expiry dates. In the education sector, the main focus is likely to be on quality education by restructuring SSA, seen as a success story, and on guaranteeing education for all. The government is expected to  restructure SSA into a Mission for Quality Elementary Education to deal effectively with teacher absenteeism and drop out rates. The government has set up a target of adding 78,577 Mw of power generation capacity in the current 11th five year plan which has been raised to 1 lakh MW during the 12th five year plan. A major thrust on the micro small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector — hit badly by the global economic slowdown — to protect workers and artisans can be expected. Government may insist on use of handlooms and handicrafts in decor for government offices as well as for venues for the forthcoming At the start of UPA’s first term in office, the President’s address had reflected the commitments made in the common minimum programme and this time around, Congress’s manifesto is expected to be â€Å"foundation† of the speech. A nation-wide skill development programme and scholarship schemes for needy students and those from the minority communities are on the government’s check list. The electoral success in attracting minority votes could see the President refer to Congress’s poll promise of taking its minority reservation models in states like Andhra Pradesh, to the national level. The government feels that it has been the recipient of a rural feel-good with the agrarian economy benefitting from higher MPS, NREGA and the loan waiver. With an eye to consolidating its image as pro-farmer, the government is expected to work towards providing interest relief to all farmers who repay bank loans on schedule. The loan waiver has reached 3.68 crore families. In the power sector, operationalisation of the National Electricity Fund, infrastructure implementation in the north-east, faster implementation of flagship programmes and monitoring through third parties and capacity building are on the table. Sanghatana says Food Security Act will ruin farmers The Shetkari Sanghatana has come out strongly against the proposed Food Security Act of the UPA government terming it as anti-farmer and a measure that would fuel inflation, derail country’s economy and produce an army of lazy people who get food almost for free without need to work. â€Å"The proposed law is aimed at only garnering votes in 2014 elections by the ruling parties at the Centre. Providing subsidized food to 67% of country’s population or 81 crore people would cost the country Rs1,25,000 crore. It would have far-reaching implications on productivity and economy of the country and destroy dignity of labour,† said Ram Neole, spokesman of the Sanghatana. â€Å"Providing cheap foodgrains to the disabled, needy people can be seen as a noble gesture of a caring government in a welfare state. But the Food Security ordinance brought in a haste without waiting for a parliamentary clearance to cover an overwhelming majority of population is a cheap political gimmick,† said Neole. His Shetkari Sanghatana led by Sharad Joshi favoured free market economy with farmers getting adequate rates for their produce. â€Å"The Food Act would mean that farmers producing paddy, wheat and coarse grains like jowar would never get the right price as the government that controls pricing and procurement would never allow a hike so as to contain the cost of the scheme,† explained Neole. Under the new law those demanding the foodgrains would be given rice for Rs3, wheat for Rs2 and jowar for Rs1 a kg. â€Å"Of course, when faced with huge budgetary deficit that is bound to happen, the government would increase taxes on traders and salaried classes and businessmen and professionals burdening them further,† Neole apprehended. â€Å"All this will lead to loss of income for farmers, more taxes and non-availability of labour force for productive work at farms and factories,† he feared. Contradicting this viewpoint, Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti president Kishore Tiwari has jumped in support of the law. In a statement here, he said: â€Å"Only those ignorant of hunger and deprivation that kills lakhs of people in villages every year would oppose the law.† Such political parties and people would be taught a lesson in 2014 elections for opposing a pro-poor policy,† said Tiwari. â€Å"The poor have a right to food and the proposed law is the first step to acknowledge it,† he added. Food subsidy bill may touch Rs 75K cr on back of Food Security Act The proposed Food Security Act may not put additional burden on the government in the current fiscal year as the government can find the resources to fund the plan from the spending outlined for 2011-12, finance ministry officials said. However, the food subsidy bill could soar to as much as Rs 75,000 crore from the estimated Rs 60,572.98 crore for the 2011-12 fiscal year. Finance ministry officials said the government will provide the money for funding this exercise. The ministry has already asked various departments to  tighten their belts and not to undertake any new spending commitments as it sticks to its plan of meeting the fiscal deficit target of 4.6% of gross domestic product. The government is keen to stick to its deficit target as it has embarked on a drive to mend public finances. Earlier, the government had said it was ready to provide for any additional fuel subsidy as result of the spike in global crude oil prices and is confident of finding the resources from within the budget for the 2011-12 financial year. The government has an ambitious share sale programme in state run companies and plans to raise Rs 40,000 crore. Despite volatile stock market and global economic conditions, finance ministry officials are confident of achieving the target. It is also banking on other non-tax revenues to help it keep within it spending limits despite pressure points on the subsidy front. Sources said the ministry of food and consumer affairs was staring at a requirement of over 70 million tonnes of foodgrain to support the food security act. Given the trends in procurement and the need to maintain buffer stocks, it could pose a problem for the government and force it to import from the international market. Any plans to impose large quantities of grains could push up prices in the global market and widen the government’s subsidy burden. Some analysts say the food subsidy could touch Rs 1 lakh crore in two years. It remains to be seen how the government balances the demand for the food security act against the backdrop of a tight fiscal situation. Analysts say importing costly food to run the Food Security Act could blow a hole in public finances and reverse the trend in fiscal consolidation. Congress hopes to get food bill passed Conscious that the window to secure passage of the food security bill is narrowing as the scheduled end of the monsoon session of parliament nears, the Congress on Sunday expressed the hope that the landmark measure will get approved during the coming week. â€Å"We hope the food bill will be passed in parliament on Monday or Tuesday,† Congress spokesperson PC Chacko told IANS. The ongoing monsoon session of parliament is scheduled to end on August 30. Though the lower house functioned on Saturday, in lieu of a holiday last week, the food bill was not listed as opposition parties wanted it to be  debated on Monday. â€Å"The food bill will be taken up on Monday,† Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath had told reporters on Friday. If it gets passed in the lower house on Monday, the bill can be taken up in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. Politics scuttled Congress managers’ plans to get it passed for the entire week Aug 19-24 as the opposition did not let the house run over the issues of missing coal-block allocation files, statehood for Telangana and high prices of food items. The managers hope that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s statement in the Rajya Sabha on Monday would end the controversy over missing coal-block files. The speaker’s suspension on Friday of 12 anti-Telangana members, who had been disrupting the lower house, has sought to address the issue of endorsement for a new state. The Lok Sabha functioned Saturday for the first time since the session began Aug 5 and passed three bills – Governors (Emoluments, Allowances and Privileges) Amendment Bill, 2012, The Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order (Amendment) Bill, 2012 and Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Second Amendment) Bill, 2012.

Role of Moses in Judaism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Role of Moses in Judaism - Research Paper Example Still the Israelites, operating under the blessings of God, grew in numbers and stronger (Wheless, 19). This forced the Egyptians to introduce tighter controls against the Israelites by killing their children. It is during this time that Moses is born. This was as a result of the Israelite prayers to God, to deliver them from the Egyptian bondage. To protect Moses from death, her mother places him in a casket and it flows along the River Nile, and through Gods intervention, the Casket flows into the hands of Pharaohs daughter who adopts him as her son and therefore raised as an Egyptian prince. Moses grew up in the palace but he did not identify himself with the Egyptians. As a grown up man, Moses was not happy at the way in which his people were being treated, and he at one time killed an Egyptian for beating up an Israelite, thereby drawing the wrath of Pharaoh and fleeing to Midian and in this land, Moses met Zipporah, and married her. Zipporah was a daughter of Jethro, the priest of Median. Moses worked for him, for forty years as a shepherd, and it is while tending after the flock, that he got a visitation from God, requiring him to go back to Egypt, and to Pharaoh in particular, demanding the release of the Israelites from bondage. Moses obeyed the call from God and went back to Egypt demanding the freedom of the Israelites. Pharaoh, at first refused to grant him his wish, and through Moses, God struck Egypt with ten plagues, and it is the tenth plague that forced Pharaoh to release the Israelites. This plague was known as the plague of the first born where an angel of God, called The Angel of Death, killed all the first born male children of the Egyptians, including Pharaohs child. The first born of Israelites were saved by marking their door posts with the blood of a lamb. They had to eat the slain lamb, with bitter herbs, symbolizing their painful stay in Egypt as slaves. This was known as the Passover (Storr, 85).On leaving Egypt, Pharaoh changed his mind, and ordered his army to pursue the Israelites, and they were cornered at the Red Sea. God miraculously caused the Red sea to open and the Israelites passed over it. When the Egyptians attempted, God made the Red Sea to swallow them and therefore destroying the Egyptian army. This paper is an analysis of the Role of Moses in Judaism. It highlights, in detail, why Moses is regarded as an important Jewish prophet and teacher of God’s word. The paper analyses the first five books of the bible that are credited to Moses, namely Genesis, Exodus, Deuteronomy, Numbers and Leviticus. The paper highlights how Mosaic laws shaped the thinking of the Jews and their historical celebrations. It also highlights his role as a savior, taking them away from Egypt, into the Promised Land. There is also the mention of the Ten Commandments which forms the basis of the Jewish laws and traditions and the aspect of religion in him being the first person in the bible to introduce the Israelites into the knowledge of their God, Jehovah. This paper mentions the various wars that Moses led the children of Israel into during their exodus, and through faith, how they won this wars. This paper has a conclusion, which talks of other Prophets of Israel whom the Jews regard as important in their Judaist practices. Approximately, a thousand years after the death of Abraham, his descendants lived in

Curriculum Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Curriculum Development - Essay Example The authors focus on the standard of curriculum design for higher education as well as secondary education (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005). The objective of Oliva’s model is to analyze the needs of society in which schools are established. The model further aims to enhance the requirements of students and exigencies regarding the subject that will be taught in school. The purpose is to implement and organize the curriculum to establish and formulate the structure by which the course design will be prepared (Oliva, 1992). Wiggins and McTighe states that the profession of teaching is very close to engineering and design. Like the later, teachers too need to be client-centered. The authors believe that the effectiveness of teacher through instruction, assessment, and curriculum, determines the desired learning (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005). Oliva’s model shows that teachers choose instructional strategies to use in the classroom with students. Furthermore, the instructors need to use preliminary selection technique for evaluation. At this point, the teachers think ahead and commence to consider ways that will assess the achievements of students (Oliva, 1992). Wiggins and McTighe use the clichà © ‘form follows function’ that describe the idea how the course should be developed around its planned purpose. They state that content focused design is too ambiguous as it does not elucidate the reason of how discussion and reading help students. The authors formulated templates of questions for instructors to develop a lesson (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005). In Oliva’s model, very diminutive attention has been given to cognitive construct and development of understanding. The author has consistently focused on identifying and specifying needs of students. However, Wiggins and McTighe explores the concept of understanding and its importance if course designs. Understanding is highly crucial for cognitive construct

Application of theory Paper Guidelines & Scoring Rubric Essay

Application of theory Paper Guidelines & Scoring Rubric - Essay Example This theory has been used to solve staffing issues in acute health care settings. Watson’s theory of human caring believes that interpersonal dealings are the major facets of caring (Watson, 2008). This theory assumes that nursing is centered on caring. According to this theory, caring can be delineated in ten carative aspects that facilitate wholeness, health, healing and the process of progression and growth of an individual and family. An examination of nursing literature reveals that supporting nurse staffing is an issue present in the nursing practice that leaders face and if handled well it ensures that patients receive quality care (Burtson & Stichler, 2010). Low nurse staff and lack of compassion towards the nurses is shown as a factor that negatively affects customer satisfaction and outcomes (Douglas, 2010). The traditional techniques of handling nurse staffing issues have been the use of financial incentives as retention and recruitment plans, and they have not born any fruit. However, it has proved fruitful to use the theory of human caring in solving nurse staffing issues. In reference to Douglas (2010), this theory offers significant insights and solutions that many managers and administrators can use to enhance the delivery of care and support nurses. Watson (2008) notes that Watson’s theory of human caring offers a structure through which leaders can reinstate the value-guided vision of nursing care that permits the leaders to care for the staff members and patients and enhance healing, wholeness and permit the leaders to reclaim their factual aptitude. Through using this theory, nurse leaders can offer an ethical and moral support to handle numerous practice issues in the delivery of care and administration (Boykin et al., 2003). Consequently, it is necessary for the nurse leaders to act human. Being human refers to being able to feel. The nurse leaders can assist

The Youthquake of the 1960s resulted in the launch of many magazines Essay

The Youthquake of the 1960s resulted in the launch of many magazines aimed at young women - Essay Example This decade was stated as â€Å"both the best of times and the worst of times†. One of the transformational highlights that took place during this decade was a cultural revolution and transformation for of the women. The feminist trends were introduced during the sixties and the subsequent decades were affected by the feminism that came forward during the sixties. Women were following the new culture of feminism which reflected in their workplace decisions, marriage decisions, child-bearing issues and freedom of choice in their personal lives (Walsh 2010). The 1960s was a decade of change and revolutionary changes throughout the fashion trends with emerging new ideas and images, the reflection of which is still depicted through today’s fashion. The significant aspect of the 1960s was that the main focus of the fashion industry was the young population as previously only the wealthy and mature elite class was aimed at by the fashion designers and industry. This new and e volutionary trend in the fashion world led to a â€Å"Youthquake† of the 1960’s which was highlighted and communicated with the masses through a plethora of magazines such as Spare Rib, Cosmopolitan or New Woman. ... The result was a striking increase in the births of baby in America and Britain. This â€Å"baby boom† was higher in America with the birth of 75 million babies between 1946 and 1964 (Farber & Bailey 2001). The post-war economy in Britain also experienced an optimistic rise after the boom period. According to the British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan in 1957, â€Å"Most of our people have never had it so good† (1957: Britons ‘have never had it so good’ 2005). Britain’s economy also experienced a powerful boost due to the baby boom after the World War. These babies when reached their teens, they were a part of the post-war period and had grown in well-educated and favourable environments. These baby boomers were rebellious and did not agree with the conservative and conventional ideas of their parents. The American history observed these baby boomers to emerge as people of power and intellect such as the U.S. president George Bush and Bill Clinton. The teenagers ruled the 1960s with their rebellious yet fresh and young ideas. Not just the politics or the media, the youth culture was also depicted in the fashion and it is most likely that even after retirement pensioners will be seen in T-shirts rather than tweed suits! (60s Season: baby boom 2012). The young population formed a major part of the consumer population and they gave a new shape to both the market place and their own new lifestyles (Farber & Bailey 2001). The age of the baby boomers was characterized by the youth population brought up in an atmosphere of optimism and prosperity which ultimately affected their goals, aims, trends and future behaviours as well. The 1960s was characterized by new fashion trends which depicted in the attires and different clothing styles

The Difficulty for Women in the Workplace Research Paper

The Difficulty for Women in the Workplace - Research Paper Example   The author further recommends strategies in order to address these challenges. The paper focuses on women in business and undertakes a literature review of gender disparities in compensation, employment, and promotion. According to the author, women dominated industries should have less gender discrimination, improved pay equity and comprise a higher number of women executive than male-dominated industries. LaBeach (2007) carries out a quantitative method to fill in research gaps identified in the literature review. Compensation data from a female-dominated healthcare organization (the American Dietetic Association), is analyzed to assess if women dominated industries have improved pay equity. Compensation was measured by the total cash for registered dieticians employed full-time for a minimum of one year. The author notes that certain workplace behaviors and attitudes should change so as to ensure women achieve career satisfaction and salary equity. Further, the author recommen ds that the workplace should be protected from expressions of gender/sex bias and partiality. The recommendations are meant for businesses, policymakers and researchers. Newman et al. (2011) undertake a study on gender discrimination and workplace violence. The author notes that workplace violence has been documented in many sectors. However, female-dominated sectors such as social services and health are at a particular risk. The article reexamines a set of study findings, which directly relate to the influence of gender or workplace violence and discrimination. In the study, 297 health workers (comprising 205 women and 92 men), were selected randomly. Newman et al. (2011) employed a utilization-focused approach and administered facility audits, health worker survey, health facility manager interviews, key informant and focus groups to collect data. In their findings, 39% of health workers had suffered some form of workplace violence in a year prior to the study. The study identifi ed gender-based patterns of victimization, perpetration, and reactions to violence. Negative stereotypes of women workers, discrimination based on family responsibilities, pregnancy, and maternity affected female health workers. These contributed to the context of violence. Gender equality was found to lower the odds of workers experiencing violence. The researchers used the results to formulate recommendations in order to address gender discrimination through programs and policy reforms. Unnikrishnan et al. (2010) undertake a study to assess harassment among women at the workplace. The objectives of the study were to find out how harassment occurs among women at the workplace. In addition, the authors also sought to determine the types and reasons for workplace harassment generally faced by working women. In order to achieve their objects, the authors carry out a cross-sectional study. The study participants comprised women working in banks, education institutions, and hospitals. T hese establishments were chosen because they employ a considerable number of women. Data was gathered from a total of 160 participants.  Ã‚  

Website Evaluation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Website Evaluation - Essay Example The website is basically an organizational web page about Dihydrogen Monoxide Research. Tom Way has the copyrights of this website. Tom Way did his Ph.D. from the University of Delaware and currently an associate Professor of Computer Science at Villanova University. He worked in the Hollywood film industry for 10 years and now he is among the board of directors of the software and Internet services company. It should be noted that the author has been credited for undertaking freelance software engineering. He is a professional magician, filmmaker, actor, writer, and marathon runner. Through a closer look at the details of the website as recommended by Boettcher (2014) for better understanding of content and learning, it comes to understanding that the content of the website contains different researches, information, and impacts of DHMO in everyday life. DHMO is an open website that welcomes all kinds of researches done on the same subject. This website got the last update on May 26th 2014.In case for contacting the director of the website, there is anaddressdirector@dhmo.org. The links are been highlighted in the website for the information regarding DHMO is as follows: All these websites focus on the advantages and disadvantages of DHMO and gives knowledge about its impacts on environment and life. In some websites, it has been claimed that Hydrogen Monoxide is beneficial for human life and environmentally safe while in another claim, it is stated that Dihydrogen Monoxide is a dangerous one. Collectively, this website illustrates all the information of regarding DHMO in all the major aspects of life. This web page depicts vast knowledge about the Dihydrogen Monoxide (DHMO) that is an odorless colorless chemical compound. DHMO the basic component in a lot of many explosive as well as poisonous compound including Sulfuric acid, Nitroglycerine and Ethyl Alcohol. The aim of this website is to provide all the possible knowledge

Enhancing Dementia Practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Enhancing Dementia Practice - Essay Example w of the most important strategies in Northern Ireland include: educating people about the possible signs and symptoms of dementia, creating a friendly community for people with dementia, creating public awareness about the importance of early diagnosis, integrating a wide-range of services that will support the specific needs of people with dementia, and extending necessary trainings and support of carers of people with dementia. Dementia is often characterised by having memory impairment and increased risk of having aphasia – language deficit, agnosia – perceptual disorder, and apraxia – motor functioning disorder (Mendez and Cummings, 2003, p. 6). Aside from having progressive memory loss, people with dementia can be very much disoriented (Gilmour and Brannelly, 2010). Likewise, there are cases wherein people with dementia experience cognitive deficit when it comes to comprehension and reasoning (Gilmour and Brannelly, 2010). Among the common types of dementia include Alzheimer’s disease (62%) followed by vascular dementia (17%), mixed dementia (10%), lewy-body dementia (4%), fronto-temporal dementia (2%), Parkinson’s dementia (2%), and others (3%) (Alzheimers Society, 2015a). As of 2015, roughly 20,966 people in Northern Ireland were diagnosed with dementia (Alzheimers Society, 2015a). By 2051, the number of people with dementia in Northern Ireland is expected to increase between 60,000 (Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, 2011) to 61,000 (DSDC, 2015). (See Figure I – Types of Dementia below) Almost half the number of people with dementia is receiving care and support in care homes (Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, 2011). To help improve the quality of health and social care services given to people with dementia, the Health Minister of Northern Ireland received a funding of  £6 million from the state government last September 2014 (Northern Ireland Executive, 2014).Through state funding, it is

Ethical and Socially Responsive Business Essay Example for Free

Ethical and Socially Responsive Business Essay As the CEO of the Cheesecake Factory Incorporated based in Philadelphia, I would like to touch base on our code of conduct which outlines many different key areas for employees and employers. However, I wanted to stress some particularly significant points to discuss and review, with all members of Cheesecake Factory Incorporated. First off, I would like to touch on part B of section 2 under YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES ‘Compliance with Laws’, particularly, our laws relating to sexual harassment, drug and alcohol abuse, diversity and nondiscrimination. Recently I was made aware of an incident involving an employee related to discrimination. Every employee of the Cheesecake Factory Incorporated, whether it be in our restaurants, Corporate Center, Bakery Production Facility and any other company facility, has the right to come to work every day and be treated fairly, and with respect. Our company will not tolerate any form of discrimination to any employee. An employee which is involved in the ‘harassment’ of another employee will be instantly terminated. To help abide by the rules, regulations, and laws of The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated, my suggestion to all employees is to re-read the most up to date Code of Conduct and Guidelines about our business and re-familiarize yourselves with the significant aspects that outline our day to day activities. Next I am touching base on part H of section 2 under YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES which is ‘Posting Messages Regarding the Company on Internet Message Boards or Chat Rooms. It has come to my attention that employees are currently posting their comments and concerns regarding the company on Facebook and Twitter either from the company’s resources, or on their own time. Quoting this section on social media, â€Å"†¦personal opinions regarding the Company, should be wary of the danger that such opinions may imply inappropriate access to and dissemination of confidential, sensitive or proprietary information. Opinions concerning the Company that are expressed should clearly ind icate that they do not reflect the opinion of the Company, its officers or management.† I understand social media is becoming a dominant force in advertising and expressing opinions, however you must be careful that your opinions do not help in destroying the company’s well known reputation. If you have a concern about the daily activities in your job, the best thing to do is approach management with your concerns and opinions in substitute of posting them on the internet. Our company values its employees and we  encourage everyone’s opinions and suggestions because we are always looking for ways to make this company better. We would like our employees to have a trusting and open communication with management and feel that they can approach management with any type of concern. On a brighter note, I would like to take this opportunity to mention some of our charities which our company has added. We are holding a charity dinner and fundraiser in the upcoming weeks. Tickets will be sold soon and all employees and family are welcome. This dinner’s proceedings will be donated to the Children’s Hospitals of Philadelphia. As you all are aware, our company hosts many charitable events and are involved in the community and we always do our part to be social ly responsible. Your donations will be much appreciated and you will learn more on this event as it becomes near. Also, in addition to our long list of charitable events, our activity committee is adding a special for senior citizens on a weekly basis where we will offer seniors a 20% discount on their lunch or dinner bill. Lastly, in accordance with our successful growth in revenue, we will donate on a quarterly basis, free lunch meals to our local hospital in the city of Philadelphia. Lastly this company could not be what it is, without its employees. You all are the foundation of this company and you all are great people. I would like to continue to have people in this company who have the desire to learn and grow. Have the trust in your management to support your opinions, treat your co-workers with respect and decency, and stay involved in the company activities and help our reputation become stronger and better. References (2002-2014). Charitble Events. Retrieved from http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/charityLanding/charityLanding (2002-2014) Code of Ethics and Code of Business Conduct Retrieved from http://media.corporate-ir.net/media_files/IROL/10/109258/Code_of_ethics.pdf http://investors.thecheesecakefactory.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=109258p=irol-govconduct

Eddie Carbone Essay Example for Free

Eddie Carbone Essay Whats more, this would make Marcos purpose of the journey, to build a future, pointless. In addition, Eddie cruelly implies that Rodolfo is an inexperienced longshoreman. I seen greenhorns sometimes get in trouble that way. By saying this, Eddie aims to hurt Rodolfos feelings and perhaps make him feel like an unwanted boy. Soon afterwards, Eddie tries to explain how American girls are also strict and that Catherine shouldnt arrive home late at night, till he came here she was never out on the street twelve oclock at night. In affect, both Rodolfo and Marco try to understand Eddies point of view, as if he were a father to them. Eventually, Marco comes to a decision and tells Rodolfo to arrive back home earlier. But the audience knows that Eddie fails to express whats really on his mind. Essentially, Eddie understands that if Catherine is seen with Rodolfo by any of Eddies friends, Eddies reputation would be ruined and hell be the joke just like Rodolfo. It is this urge to protect Catherine, to keep her from discovering her independence which makes him increasingly sensitive to the presence of Beatrices cousins and to Rodolfo in particular, to whom Catherine rapidly becomes attracted. Later on in the scene, Catherine and Rodolfo begin to dance. When they come to an end, Eddie subconsciously twists the newspaper in his hands into a tight roll. The other characters are aware of what he is thinking, but they wait for his answer. Unsurprisingly, Eddie fails to clearly express his thoughts on Rodolfo; during his attempt to mock Rodolfos femininity and expose him as weak, he manages only to tell everybody that with Rodolfos abilities, he wouldnt be on the waterfront he would be someplace else like in a dress store. Here, Miller has explored Eddies prejudice against Rodolfo, who is different. Furthermore, Eddie uses repetition to reinforce his points, He can cook. He can sing. He can make dresses. Seeing that language proved unsuccessful for Eddie and even he cant understand what hes saying anymore, he tears the paper in two and decides to utilize physical action, a skill where he knows he can beat Rodolfo. Miller uses such gestures and stage directions as the tearing of the paper to dramatize the feelings of Eddie. Eddies obsession with Catherine is something he is not able to recognize or understand for himself. Instead he focuses his anger and frustration upon Rodolfo, who has a frivolous and light-hearted attitude to life. It is this that Catherine finds attractive and Eddie finds repulsive and unmanly. Eddie is also suspicious of Rodolfos interest in Catherine, believing that he seeks her hand in marriage in order to gain an American passport. While a degree of realism is appropriate in the design of the Carbone family home, the street itself should also be indicated. Accordingly, throughout the boxing match, the table lamp may well collapse, leaving the room gloomy and obscure. To compensate for the illumination, a red MOTEL light featuring outside the window could remain pulsing on and off. Nonetheless, the men will continue boxing, whilst Catherine switches the main light back on. I assume that merely a few seconds would allow the radiance to take full effect. The word motel indicates the cheap accommodation immigrants require in Brooklyn. In addition, while Catherine and Rodolfo dance, the main light could dim and the motel light could appear flashing on and off to the rhythm of the music. It may encourage the passionate mood set by the music. While the fight occurs on stage, I would recommend that Marco stay solitary in the corner. By separating Marco from the rest of the characters, who are supposedly in the centre of the stage, the audience recognizes his presence, without him having to do anything. Marco has cleverly kept quiet throughout the scene unless asked a question, as he may be embarrassed to display his weak language skills. But when Eddie cracks a punch at Rodolfo, Marco suddenly gets involved. Marco challenges Eddie by inviting him to raise a chair from its leg. Eddie has underestimated his opponent and his false sense of confidence about his own strength has led Marco to win the test of strength. Clearly Marco knows his adversarys well and is smart enough to avoid talking, but he prevails in a physical battle. You may think of the chair struggle as a battle for primate dominance, whereby both challengers are fighting to become Alpha male. Nonetheless, in both contests Eddies authority is undermined and in his own living room. In brief, I believe that Marco is in control of the situation, even though he stepped in half way through the scene. Eddie considers the challenge and presence of other men to be a threat to his authority. Eddies fear of losing his authority and masculinity serves as a prime motivating force, for him to assert his power. It is Eddies reluctance to compromise with the other characters and Catherines ever increasing appeal to Rodolfo that causes Eddie to fight for his control. Here, the vision Alfieri foresaw at the beginning of the play is in reaching distance. In the final scene, the act of betrayal of members of Eddies own family brings about the final bloody tragedy which Alfieri foresaw at his first interview with Eddie. Despite Alfieris efforts, Marco is intent upon revenge for his betrayal, while Eddie is determined to maintain his reputation and his honour. During the last scene of the play, Marco and Eddie come face to face in full view of the neighborhood. This theatrical scene holds the climax to the play and even though the audience is well aware of what is to happen, they are more curious as to how the other characters will react. In this scene Eddies reputation is at stake and he is prepared to stake his life on the line. By Catherine finding work and her growing attraction to Rodolfo, which leads to their planned marriage brings out an increasingly aggressive reaction in Eddie that starts to break the family apart. Eddie is trying to defend his own innocence so that, when his wife says, You cant have her, he is genuinely disgusted that she could think of him that way. He defends himself against the sexual allegation to the end. But if there is a sexual guilt operating here, it is combined with the social situation he is in. Basically, there is noting more horrifying to the general public than betrayal. It destroys the protection of their society. There is also the political side; because Miller was in the middle of the McCarthy period, the so-called Congressional investigation in America. When Eddie yells I want my name! he implies that he wants his reputation back from Marco. When Eddie handed Marco over to the authorities, Eddie squealed He killed my children. That one stole the food from my children. Eddie believes that Marco is to blame for tarnishing his reputation with this lie. On the other hand, Marco was partially correct for what he had said for the reason that, without Marco earning money for his children, they will be unable to purchase food and could ultimately die. In reality, Eddie cannot face the fact that the reason he lost his name was because he betrayed Rodolfos and Eddies trust; and treachery was considered the worst act in a Sicilian society. Marco refers to Eddie as Animal, which suggests that Eddie was a suck up` to the American law. Resembling an animal, Eddie did anything to get his just rewards. Likewise a dog would do anything when offered a bone. Finally, after realizing what he has done, Eddie is prepared to risk his life in order to save his reputation, his name. Eventually, Eddie dies in the arms of his wife, after Marco had killed him in self defence. In the closing speech by Alfeiri, he declares we settle for half, in which case he is referring to Eddies attitude towards the American and Sicilian law. Eddie has followed the American law, by reporting the illegal immigrants to the authorities. However, he has also pursued Sicilian concepts; such as the last moment, when he was prepared to die for his reputation. This shows that he is half American and half Sicilian. Alfieri recognizes that the death of Eddie Carbone should serve as a reminder to those who must carry on, and to the audience, that it is better to settle for half, it must be. Yet as Alfieri admits, this represents a compromise of peoples hopes, desires and sense of justice which he ultimately regards with alarm. The chorus, Alfieri, is the law. He has the ability to move in and out of the play. He knows the Sicilian way, but understands that the Sicilian way is something you outgrow when you come to America. I suspect that Eddie wants to be more like Alfieri than any other character. He wants to have a foot in both camps. He wants to be defined by his job. Miller implies that Eddie is a tragic hero, since the one virtue Eddie lacks is not being able to settle for half. Eddie cannot accept the presence of other men being something other than a threat to his authority. It was obvious from the beginning that Eddie would get into trouble if he continued what he was doing, but his obsession with not being able to settle for half brought about the event that Alfieri foresaw and which he was powerless to prevent, despite his best efforts. The play is a Greek tragedy because Eddie is led by fate towards a destiny he cannot escape. Through his death, the audience is involved, purged of their emotions by a tragic ending, leaving the theatre sadder but wiser. In conclusion, Eddie is Millers solution that he set himself about trying to write a Greek tragedy in Brooklyn. Shezad Chowdhury 10P Page 1 of 6 Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Arthur Miller section.

Case Study Simulation Cotton On Limited Marketing Essay

Case Study Simulation Cotton On Limited Marketing Essay The purpose of the report is to establish three strategies which will address issues within Cotton-On Ltd causing their current financial troubles. The three chosen strategies are: research consumer buying habits, introduce online sales and expand sales into the European Union countries. These strategies will be explored and discussed to explain how they help improve the situation at Cotton-On Ltd. The first strategy research consumer buying habits shows how we look through the range of methods used for researching consumer buying habits in order to make a recommendation which is most suitable related to Cotton-On Ltd. Gathered data can be used to make decisions regarding various concerns with Cotton-On Ltd, such as product range, pricing or available sales channels. The methods used for researching consumer buying habits helps support other strategies because it allows Cotton-On Ltd to understand potential customers in new market settings. The second strategy introduce online sales refers to Cotton-On Ltd using the internet as a tool to strengthen the company because it is increasingly beneficial for them. Through extensive research Cotton-On Ltd should introduce online sales because of their position within the market otherwise they will be disadvantaged compared to competitors. Also the potential of the online sales channel is an opportunity for them to expand online and take advantage of the internet as a marketing tool. However there is a range of different ways Cotton-On Ltd can choose to approach selling their products online and this will be further discussed within the report. The third strategy expand sales into European Union countries explores this topic in context of online sales. The UK is a leading European country in relation to online sales however there are bigger markets to be explored, since some of these markets are expected to grow in the next few years. The topics which will be discussed is the European market related to Cotton-On Ltd, the aspect of the language barrier, the pricing / currency and any other points will be taken into consideration. All three strategies are explained to show the advantages for Cotton-On Ltd and highlight the main issues. We show how the strategies are linked together and where possible, suggest methods for implementation and overcoming issues. Those strategies are a starting point for the company to overcome their problems. Research Consumer Buying Habits Methodology Consumer buying habit is a complex matter and there are many factors that influence buying decision of the customer. When it comes to researching consumer behaviour for a business it is the greatest mystery of any business to solve (Matt Alderton, no date). There are many ways we could find out about consumer buying habits, but before doing anything else we need to investigate Cotton-On Ltd, its System or any previous study on the matter. One of the following techniques would be chosen to suit Cotton-On Ltd namely, interview, questionnaire, survey and consumer panel, but the best would be to organize customer focus group to help Cotton-On Ltd identify and find consumer specific needs. Customer focus group will produce good customer data in their own words, which would help create more effective marketing campaign and will expose problems within Cotton-On Ltd (Matt Alderton, no date). To get the best out of customer focus group it is important to stay focused on Cotton-On Ltd objectives that would have to be why the business is losing sale and how to save money? Predetermined questions and Moderator who be able to speak comfortably, easy to approach. Recruit up to twelve participants; the selection will be according to our question and will avoid random customer. Record the focus group either with a tape recorder or a video camera, but will have to ask participants permission. Evaluate feedback by reviewing the session to improve the quality (Matt Alderton, no date). As well as organising focus group Cotton-On Ltd should have a Consumer Panel to test our product as Consumer Panels are useful for fast short survey (DJS Research Ltd, no date). Discussion There are a few problems with Cotton-On Ltd system needs updating, improving and even would be scrapped once the new recommendation and system is implemented, but global issues have to be taken into account too, due to economic climate of UK, which is either flat or negative growth for the last six months family budgets are tight only spending where it matters most. The first issue has been noticed in Cotton-On Ltd case is that until last year it represented 20 per cent of UK customers, which is equivalent of 30 per cent of the UK sales revenue. That means Cotton-On Ltd prices are higher and something needs to be done in order to increment the sales revenue, whilst retaining the same sales revenue at least for now. In the light of the focus group Cotton-On Ltd will have to move accordingly whether to keep the same price for the moment, but offering something in addition to what customer buys or anything, otherwise desired. As Cotton-On Ltd have 20 stores across the UK and the only other mean of sale we have is through mail order, the Office for National Statistics retail sales figure for January 2012 out today 17-February 2012, non-store retailing which is mainly internet sales, grew by 13.3% in January (Chloe Rigby, 2012). So the shift continues from high street sales to online and mail order Cotton-On Ltd needs to recognize this and move accordingly. As a retailer the key for Cotton-On Ltd is to combine the flexibility that online and mail order delivers, with the customer service of the physical shopping. By bringing those together Cotton-On Ltd services and offers become more compelling to it is customers and this will lead to increased revenue, and will improve Cotton-On Ltd brand value (Chloe Rigby, 2012). As it shows in meeting of Cotton-On Ltd directors that the business does not know sales of their products by colour, size and Cotton-On Ltd should know which product is selling well and which one is not. So once we produce the final report on consumer buying habit we would be able to know these answers to some extent. Cotton-On Ltd would be able to decide accordingly to whether it is best to have online system that can filter separately each online sold product to our database then it will be easier for Cotton-On Ltd to see the products selling more, less, or none. In this way, we would be able to collate the data easily without losing them and produce in our factories according to these good and rich customers data. For finding out more about customer buying habits Cotton-On Ltd should have a good information system that allows collating data from online sales and also customers should be able to track their order. In this way we can expose our customers buying habits that how often they buy, their desired colour, for example it is very likely giving the system we have in Cotton-On Ltd that there are lots of certain products colour and sizes that never or very little been sold, so we need to cut producing those product in order to reduce waste and will result saving money. Introduce Online Sales Justification Cotton-On Ltd provides their customers with a few traditional ways of buying their products, they also have presence on the Internet via their website and advertising but they do not use it as distribution channel. Research shows that in the current market, where many traditional retailers have already introduced Internet sales, this step becomes a strategic necessity (Bernstein et al., 2008). Therefore Cotton-On Ltd is currently left in a disadvantaged position. In addition, even in this time of economic difficulties, when the traditional retail sector is shrinking, the number of online buyers and online sales are increasing (Datamonitor, 2011a). According to Datamonitor (2011a) in 2010 the online retail sector in the United Kingdom reached revenue of over  £24.1 billion ($38 billion) and sales in apparel (including accessories and footwear) reached  £3.5 billion ($5.5 billion). The entire market is expected to grow to over  £41.9 billion ($66 billion) by the end of 2015, 11.6% growth. This shows the potential of the online sales channel. It is relatively easy to enter into Internet retail, especially for an established company with set up distance sales, as the costs are low and there are little additional regulations (Datamonitor, 2011a; Great Britain. Office of Fair Trading, 2006). Implementation and Issues Cotton-On Ltd may not have staff with sufficient skills to build and maintain an online store integrated with their website; however this is not the only way of implementing this strategy. Using an existing online service, which allows retailers to sell through their website, may prove more feasible as the first step in providing online sales. Even though this is not an ideal solution (Bernstein et al., 2008) it also addresses other issuers mentioned later in this section. The current website can be updated to direct interested customers to the service where they can make a purchase, while the staff will only be faced with learning whatever interface the service is providing. There are a few other concerns related to online sales and gaining new customers through this channel. Research suggests that the reason for the strong standing of the online market is the convenience of lower prices and price comparison tools (Datamonitor, 2011a; Bernstein et al., 2008). Therefore price competition may be stronger than in the traditional market. At the same time, use of online sales helps to reduce transaction costs and some of those savings can be passed to customers (Bernstein et al., 2008) at least partially addressing the pricing issues. It is likely that this strategy will reduce sales through other channels, but this redirection is desirable due to the aforementioned reduced costs (Bernstein et al., 2008). The effects should be monitored and further decisions should be made accordingly. For example, telephone sales may no longer require as many staff members, but they may be trained for support in online sales and customer service via email. Trust is the main issue when attracting new buyers in the online setting. Customers are concerned about the security of online transactions, which means they are more likely to select known and trusted retailers (Datamonitor, 2011a; Premazzi et al., 2010). A study conducted by Premazzi, Castaldo, Grosso and Hofacker (2010) find that customers are more willing to provide their information only for certain compensation (prizes, vouchers etc.). And therefore, if this method is used, the type of compensation should suit the targeted audiences. It also concludes that well designed, user friendly and error free websites may increase customer trust. Another way of targeting new customers may be by using an already known and trusted service, for example Amazon. They are one of the biggest online retailers (Datamonitor, 2011a) and they offer ways for retailers to sell products on their website with relatively low cost (Amazon, no date). Products made available through Amazon website will be exposed to millions of shoppers that use their services, and Cotton-On Ltd could use Amazons position in the market as a declaration of the safety of the transaction to the customers (Amazon, no date). Additionally, successful transactions will increase Cotton-On Ltd brands exposure and increase trust for it. Legal considerations Selling over the Internet is considered the same as selling over the phone in light of distance selling regulations (Great Britain. Office of Fair Trading, 2006). Therefore we can expect that Cotton-On Ltd is already adhering to those regulations. However the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 introduces additional rules regarding advertising and sales using electronic channels. Because Cotton-On Ltd is already advertising on the Internet, hopefully with respect to those regulations, only extensions to sales specific regulations are required. Those rules affect: Information provided on the website used for sales. Technical means provided to customers (for example for identifying and correcting errors). Method of acknowledging orders (i.e. receipt supplied by electronic means). (Great Britain. Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, 2002). Introducing an online distribution channel should not cause high additional costs related to legal matters. Additional Benefits Besides reduced costs and the chance of attracting new customers, use of the electronic sales channel also automates data collection and saves time required for order processing. If the changes are monitored and correct decisions are made to maximise benefits, Cotton-On Ltd will not only attract additional revenue but also lower its operation costs. Expand Sales to European Union Justification We propose the expansion of sales to other European Union countries only applies to the sales over the Internet. Costs of online expansion are relatively low, compared to a more physical solution (Premazzi, 2010) and high cost projects will probably not be possible due to the current situation at Cotton-On Ltd. The United Kingdom represents 23.5% of the European online retail sector (Datamonitor, 2011a). The other big markets are France, Germany, Italy and Spain with respectively 21.5%, 14.9%, 7.2% and 5.5% share of the market (Datamonitor, 2011a). It is also worth noting that both France and Germany have larger predicted growth over the next few years than the United Kingdom market. The French market is expected to exceed  £57.8 billion ($90.8 billion) 21% growth, and the German market is expected to exceed  £27.8 ($24.2 billion) 12.5% growth. Apparel (including footwear and accessories) accounts for 14.1% in both the German and French markets (Datamonitor, 2011b; c). This means that there is a large potential market outside of the United Kingdom. Implementation and Issues The technical and trust issues were already covered in the section on introduction of online sales, and the information provided also applies to this strategy. Pricing issues will be revisited in the context of foreign markets, due to issues arising from currency differences. The Single Market The European Union market is easy to access. European Union member states standardise their law to operate in a single market programme. The aim of this programme is to make doing business with other European Union counties as similar as possible to doing business in the companys country of origin. Measures, that European Union countries have introduced to achieve this, include: Reduction of paperwork accounting for the purposes of VAT is the same as for sales/purchases in the United Kingdom. Unified standards complying with United Kingdom technical and safety standards ensures meeting standards in other European Union countries. Free movement of people it is easy to employ European Union citizens in United Kingdom companies. Free movement of goods goods produced in the European Union or imported into a member state with duty paid, are considered to be in free circulation, further customs duty is not payable. Common currency 17 out of 27 member states have introduced the Euro as their currency, which reduces currency considerations for businesses. (Business Link, no date c; d; f) Languages Even though English is the language used internationally in business, it is still beneficial to have knowledge of countrys language and culture while doing business there (Business Link, no date a). A Eurobarometer pool found that almost half of the European Union citizens only speak one language (European Commission, 2012). Cotton-On Ltd needs to translate their website and products descriptions to the languages of targeted countries to not miss out on potential customers from those markets. They should also consider providing customer service in selected languages; it is possible they already have staff with language skills and if not, the free movement of people within the EEA makes it easier for businesses to find employees with the right skills (Business Link, no date b; d). Pricing Customers in other countries expect prices in their local currency. Therefore a company entering a foreign market should consider pricing and issues related to currency exchange (Business Link, no date h). Additional research into the market is required to make decisions on pricing; prices appropriate in the United Kingdom may not be appropriate in the new market (Business Link, no date e). Other Issues Cotton-On Ltd should also research competition in the new markets; consider marketing, delivery methods, payment methods and related costs (Business Link, no date e). Implementation suggestions The solution proposed for introducing online sales, where Cotton-On Ltd would use a known online retailer is also applicable here. If they choose an online retailer that already operates in their target markets, like Amazon (Amazon, no date), it may reduce some costs and solve some technical issues. Because each countrys market and culture is different, and some European countries still operate with their own currency, it is probably not feasible to expand to the entire European Union at once. Cotton-On Ltd should perform more detailed research into potential target markets and decide which to enter. Conclusion In our report, we established the three strategies: Research consumer buying habits, introduction of online sales and expansion of sales to European Union, which we think will address some of the problems arising at Cotton-On Limited. The main problem of the company is its financial situation and we are finding ways on how the three strategies and the process that can help to cope with this problem. We also talk about the possibilities on how the company can increase their sales through the strategies. In our research we also found out that the Cotton-On Ltd cannot only increase sales, but can also gain new prospected customers if Cotton-On Ltd follows the right procedure in implementing the strategies. In the Consumer Buying Habits, we were able to explain the methods that can be used to help the company with the targeting of their consumers. With the production of their products, the company will be able to target consumers who will be interested in the products. Interviews, questionnaire, survey and consumer panel are the method that can be used to get the target market for Cotton-On Limited. The Introduction of Online Sales is about using the Internet as a tool in selling their products. This strategy can also strengthen Cotton-On Limited, because it shows in the research that the number of online sales in the UK is increasing and will continue in same scale. We raised the implementation and the legal issues that the Cotton-On Ltd should take into consideration. We find out benefits as well that the company can get like reducing of cost however; they can still increase their profits. They can also attract new customers and gather customer information. There is a major issue in gaining customer trust. Most customers do not trust online sales so we recommend Cotton-On Limited to use known online retailers such as Amazon to target new customers and increase trust for the brand. In the Expansion of Sales to European Union, it is more likely the introduction of online sales because the company need to use the Internet for this strategy. Cotton-On Limited can use their internet setting so they can easily expand their business to the European Union countries. There are issues in this strategy such as the currency because most European Union countries use different currency so customers expect the prices to be in their local currency. With this issue, Cotton-On Limited should consider the pricing and issues related to the countrys currency exchange. We also talked about the language issue because different country speaks different language. It is discussed that it will really not be a big problem as English is the language used internationally in business however; customers expect their native language to be used so in selling the products, Cotton-On Limited needs to use the native language of the country where they are running their business. The company should also consider that they will enter a new market so they will also have new competitors in the business. The goal of these three strategies is to increase the revenue of Cotton-On Limited. The three strategies mentioned can help in increasing the funds of the company. If the company will be able to increase their funding because of the three strategies, they will have more budgets to make further improvements to increase the money coming in to the company. The company can also do stock control. This is a very useful improvement to increase their revenue. Stock control is very important because if they cannot do it effectively, it can lead to loss of sales or it can damage the reputation of the business. They have to make sure that they have enough stock all the time at the right time. They have to make sure that they have products to offer to their customers to gain business reputation so that they can have loyal customers and gain new ones. The company should make sure that they make careful planning with their stock control because having effective stock control can lead to making the business larger. The company will also need more tailored information system across their departments so they can get support on gathering data that can make the operation smooth and can reduce related costs.

The Woman Warrior :: essays research papers

The Woman Warrior The most important theme that really stood out to me was the talk stories. The whole book mainly deals with the talk stories. The second theme that I felt that had a major impact in this book was ghost. Ghosts have an impact because the stories that are told about them that affect the kids resulting in their isolation from society. These themes are very important in The Woman Warrior because they help the narrator’s life and unite the stories of the book. Talk stories to me, seem to have a major impact in the lives of Chinese people. These talk stories teaches the children valuable lessons; each different from each culture. The talk stories make the children fear or learn from the mistakes or triumphs of the characters in the talk stories. These stories have major impacts on the main character of The Woman Warrior. She learns what to fear, like ghosts, and having a child without being married and also learned to stand up to what she feared or believed in. The story of the aunt is the first talk story we learn about in this book. The aunt who had a child before marriage was treated as a outcast. This teaches the girl not just to avoid getting pregnant before marriage, but to avoid embarrassing the whole family. This story though, grows weaker for the girl as she rebel at what her mother wants her to be. She tries to be the best she can be and looks for her mother’s praise but all she got was â€Å"you’re too ugly† or â€Å"you talk like a duck†. She starts to question these stories as these talk stories become very confusing in the life of the girl. The second talk story was clearly still in the mind of the girl when she grew up. The story was about Fa Mu Lan who joined the army as a girl to rise up to be a hero when female weren’t allowed in the army. This is good story that really matched up to what the girl represented when she grew up. Fa Mu Lan went against the rules of being a woman in China and triumphed to be one of the greatest heroes of China. The girl decided to be like Fa Mu Lan and break tradition by rebelling against her mother. Ghosts seems to be very important in the story of this book. Ghosts plays a major part because of the way they are used as to isolate the children or to make them stand up against a foe.

causes of the great depression Essay -- essays research papers

The Great Depression was a decade of poverty for many United States citizens. Starting in 1929, The Great Depression was a rough time not only for the U.S. but for many other countries. There are many causes for the Depression but the main cause was the combination of the greatly unequal distribution of wealth throughout the 1920's and the extensive stock market speculation(Gusmorino, 1). Other causes were the unsteadiness of the stock market, short signed economic policies, overdependence on mass production, consumer spending, advertising, welfare capitalism, and high tariff. The effect on the country of the imbalance in the economy threw the U.S. into an era of negativity. How did the United States go from the â€Å"roaring twenties† to The Great Depression? It was all based on deflation and the crash of the economy. A good example of uneven distribution of wealth was Henry Ford’s yearly income of $14 billion the same year that the average income was $750. Another contributor to the uneven distribution was the government. Calvin Coolidge favored businesses therefore favoring the wealthy who invested in these businesses. For an economy to function properly, total demand must equal total supply. What happened in the 1920's was an oversupply of goods. This resulted in the middle-class needing more but not being able to afford more while the upper-class didn’t want to buy more goods. Three quarters of the U.S. population spent almost all of their yearly incomes to purchase consum...

Jackie Robinson Essay -- essays research papers

Baseball has always been America’s national pastime. In the early and all the way into the mid 50’s, baseball was America and America was baseball. The only thing lacking in the great game was the absence of African American players and the presence of an all white sport. America still wasn’t friendly or accepted the African American race and many still held great prejudice towards them. All this would change when the general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Branch Rickey decided he was going to sign a Negro player. Jackie Robinson was that player and Jackie Robinson changed the game, America, and history. By looking specifically at his childhood adversity, college life and the hardships he encountered by becoming the first black player in the game, it will be shown why Jackie Robinson is a great American story and hero. Jackie Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia to a family of sharecroppers and then moved to Pasadena, California. His mother Millie raised Jackie and four others single-handedly in a neighborhood where they were the only blacks on the block (Duckett 19). In Pasadena is where Jackie would first realize his color would bring him much grief and heartache in the many coming years. Here, Jackie grew up poor, on a good day he would get two meals a day, but usually depended on the leftovers his mother could bring home from work. Many of the whites in the neighborhood and surrounding areas would try to buy them out, beg them to move, and threaten them if they didn’t. The Robinson’s stayed strong and never budged as they were determined to stay (Duckett 21). Jackie would move on to bigger and better things as Jackie stared in high school athletics and moved onto college. Pasadena Junior College was Jackie’s first stop as he enrolled into a very liberal school which did deal with blacks better than most. This was overshadowed by his brother being there and being known as the country’s premier amateur sprinter (Daniels 68). Here Jackie quickly developed into a star baseball player and athlete and quickly became known as a great athlete, but most importantly his baseball game was taking off. Jackie also developed a great love for football here and could have been just as good, if not his first love of baseball. Jackie spent 1937 to 1939 at PJC and then moved on to his next greatest achievement, UCLA. Jackie ended many months of rumors, anticipation, ... ...resident Bill Clinton, the First Lady and Jackie Robinson’s wife, Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig announced that number 42, the number of Jackie Robinson, would never be worn again and retired in all 30 major league baseball stadiums. In honor of the 50th year anniversary of Robinson breaking the color barrier, all teams wore commemorative patches on their uniforms to honor Robinson. The legend of Jackie Robinson will never be forgotten, as his memory will forever be here as a reminder of his achievements. The doors he opened for so many can never be closed. America is about Freedom and Jackie Robinson is symbolic of freedom and life. Roy Campanella best said it about Jackie and freedom, â€Å"When Jackie took the field, something within us reminded us of our birthright to be free† (Chadwick 352). There are very few who have had the impact on a game, history, and America as Robinson did. He touched more lives then anyone of his time. Many people feel a person’s life is judged on what they did for others, well Jackie Robinson’s life was a success. â€Å"A life is not important except the impact it has on others† (Chadwick 417). Thank you Jackie, you are gone but not forgotten.

The Purpose of Food and Beverage Cost Control

THE PURPOSE OF FOOD AND BEVERAGE COST CONTROL 1. The principal purpose of food and beverage planning and control systems is †¢ to avoid excessive costs by reducing waste and other forms of loss to a minimum, without sacrificing the quality or quantity of the food which goes to the customer. 2. An effective control procedure will serve other purposes as well: †¢ aid in developing popular menus †¢ aid in improving the quality of the product †¢ aid in pricing for profit The Flow of Costs Through the Various Food and Beverage Activities 1. Basic Operating activities †¢ Purchasing †¢ Receiving †¢ Storing †¢ Issuing †¢ Pre-preparation (butchering, vegetable cleaning etc. ) †¢ Portioning †¢ Preparation (cooking, baking, salad and sandwich making, etc. ) †¢ Service †¢ Accounting and sales Study Highlights1 ? Food and Beverage costs in the majority of restaurant operations represent the largest single expenditure of the revenue. ? Food and beverage costs are influenced by the way the various activities such as purchasing, receiving, storing, issuing, pre-preparation, preparation and accounting are performed. Food and beverage control procedures should serve as effective â€Å"tools of management† to aid in the control of costs. They should be designed in such a way that the most effective allocation of time is made to the planning, comparing and corrective action phases of control, with the emphasis on planning. ? F&B control systems must be effectively used by management before they can be a valuable aid in the control of costs. ? F&B control systems are supported by various types of â€Å"standards: established by management e. g. , standard purchase specifications, standard portion sizes, standard recipes, etc. F&B control systems should be simple and flexible. ? Management is responsible for cost control, and should make use of every tool and technique at its disposal in order to keep costs in line with what they should be. ? In large, complex F&B operations, management is given cost control assistance in the form of staff specialists such as a food and beverage control office. ? In small F&B operations, the manager and his operating staff must alone maintain the necessary planning and control procedures as part of their day-to-day responsibilities. Four Basic Operating Procedures: 1. Food Purchasing, Receiving, Storing and Issuing The primary objective of each of the basic operating procedures should be kept in mind during this study †¢ Purchasing: to obtain the best quality of merchandise based on established specifications, at the best possible price. †¢ Receiving: to obtain the quality and quantity of merchandise ordered and at the quoted price. †¢ Storing: to maintain adequate stocks of merchandise on hand, and to avoid loss through theft or spoilage. †¢ Issuing: to insure proper authorization for the merchandise to be released and to properly account for each day’s issue. . Standard Purchase Specification †¢ A purchase specification is a concise description of the quality, size, and weight or count factors desired for a particular item †¢ Management establishes standard purchase specifications based upon a thorough study of the menu needs and their merchandising and pricing policies †¢ The purchasing agent, the purve yors of the company, and the company’s receiving clerk should each have a set of the established specifications †¢ ? Purchasing 1. There are 3 basic requisites for effective purchasing; a. a qualified and honest purchaser; . a sound set of standard purchase specifications c. effective buying methods and procedures. 2. Standard purchase specifications are concise descriptions of the quality, size, and weight or count factors desired for a particular item. 3. Copies of the purchase specifications should be in the hands of; a. the purchasing agent, b. the company’s purveyors c. the company’s receiving clerk. 4. Constant follow-up and evaluation procedures are necessary in order to insure the continuous adherence to established policies and procedures. ? Receiving 1. The personnel responsible for receiving should know all aspects of the merchandise they are called upon to evaluate and receive. 2. Food merchandise should be checked from the viewpoint of quality, quantity, specification, and price. 3. All merchandise accepted should be supported by an invoice, and the details of the invoice summarized on a daily receiving sheet. 4. Constant follow-up and evaluation checks are necessary to insure proper performance of the receiving procedures. 1. Definition of Terms †¢ 1. Cost of Food Consumed †¢ 2. Cost of Food Sold †¢ 3. Month-end Actual Cost of Food Consumed †¢ 4. Daily Actual Food Cost 5. Standard Food Cost 2. Basic Formula for Calculating Actual Food Costs †¢ Opening inventory + purchases = cost of merchandise available †¢ Merchandise available – closing inventory = cost of food consumed †¢ Food consumed + or – charges or credits = cost of food sold †¢ The Closing Inventory of the ‘Cur rent ‘ month becomes the opening inventory of the following month. Care and accuracy should be the rule in determining inventory value [pic] Paper prepared by Murage Macharia Lecturer, Mombasa Technical Training Institute P. O. BOX 81220 Mombasa 80100 Mobile: +254 726 604 340 +254 750 604340

Robert Frost

Robert Frost has been described as an ordinary man with a deep respect for nature, talking to ordinary people. To what extent do you agree with this view? Poetry is a literary medium which often resonates with the responder on a personal level, through the subject matter of the poem, and the techniques used to portray this. Robert Frost utilises many techniques to convey his respect for nature, which consequently makes much of his poetry relevant to the everyday person.The poems â€Å"Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’ and â€Å"The mending wall† strongly illuminate Frost’s reverence to nature and deal with such matter that allows Frost to speak to ordinary people. On the surface, â€Å"Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening† deals with a seemingly unimportant event, of the poet stopping one winter evening, mesmerised by the snow and the wood. However, at a figurative level, the poem goes deeper dealing with the concept of the choices that people make in life. The poem is set in a rural area, with merely an implication of the city in â€Å"his house is in the village†.This setting choice as well as stanza 1, which tells of the poet stopping to â€Å"watch his woods fill up with snow†, creates a strong image of nature being a predominant feature of this poem. The first stanza also creates a contrast between the poet and the owner of the woods who is presumably a ‘sensible’ person staying warm in his house. This raises the question of why the poet has stopped in such cold weather. Hence, this contrast serves as a metaphor that provides a link back to the concept of the poem, as it may speak of his choice to be involved with life, rather than choosing ‘comfortable withdrawal’ [‘Poetry of Robert Frost’].The poem continues contrasting the poet with his horse, Frost personifying the latter in â€Å"My little horse must think it queer/ To stop without a farmhouse near†. This meta phor shows that even the persona acknowledges, through his horse, that others may not make sense of the choice he has made to continue his journey on the â€Å"darkest evening of the year†. However, the responder is able to get a sense of what the persona is so entranced by in the third stanza, where there is a beauty in the woods as the â€Å"The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake†.The assonance of the letter ‘o’ in this creates a soft, dream-like tone, which emphasises the poet’s captivation by the scenery. The final stanza expands on this, opening with â€Å"The woods are lovely, dark and deep†. The use of the word â€Å"lovely† reinforces the beauty of the woods, but the alliteration of the letter ‘d’ creates a heavy tone which may indicate that they could be perilous. For the poet, these words could mean that for him the woods represent escapism and irrationality.Due the allure that the woods clearly have over the poet, he is faced with a choice at the end of the poem- to stay and enter the â€Å"woods† or to continue on his journey in life. He makes his choice clear in the final lines of the last stanza saying â€Å"But I have promises to keep/ And miles to go before I sleep/ And miles to go before I sleep†. His choice is clear through the use of the word â€Å"but† and the repetition of the final two lines emphasises that it is ‘life and personal involvement that he chooses, rather than withdrawal and death’ [‘Poetry of Robert Frost’].Hence, Frost effectively juxtaposes the gentle attractiveness of the woods with the clear call to journey on and fulfil promises. Throughout this poem, Frost uses much of the imagery of the natural environment to ‘enhance the aural and visual impact of the poem’ [Common Poetry, Robert Frost], and deals with a concept that is faced ‘ordinary people’ everyday- th at of making a choice to go on in life even when it is so appealing to simply go into the â€Å"dark and deep†.Therefore, this poem illuminates Frosts’ respect for nature as well as his ability to speak to ordinary people. This ability is also conveyed in ‘Mending Wall’, a one stanza poem that explores Frost’s ideas about the barriers’ that exist in relationships. Literally, the poem is about two neighbours who disagree about the need of building a wall to separate their properties. However, when the responders’ delves deeper into the poem, it is clear that at a allegorical level the wall is a metaphor representing the barrier that exists in the neighbours’ friendship.The first eleven lines of the poem if rife with imagery that describes the dilapidation of the wall. The first line of the poem emphasises that â€Å"something† exists that â€Å"doesn’t love a wall†. This personification makes the â€Å"somet hing† seem human-like. The use of words such as â€Å"spills† and â€Å"makes gaps† convey an image of animate actions and create a vivid impression of the degradation of the wall. Nature, presented in the form of cold weather, frost and the activities of creatures, also seeks to destroy the wall.The idea that walls are unnatural and therefore nature abhors walls is portrayed in the phrase â€Å"makes gaps even two can pass abreast†, which metaphorically indicates that nature desires for man to walk side by side with no barrier between them. When the two meet to fix the wall, it is a metaphor that could be interpreted as the two repairing their friendship as â€Å"To each the boulders have fallen to each† which shows that faults in their relationship lie on behalf of them both.While they are mending the wall, a light-hearted tone is established. This is shown through the inclusion of the metaphor â€Å"spring is mischief in me† which shows th e neighbours having fun together in repairing the wall, creating a cheerful atmosphere. This creates an ironic feel to the poem, as although the beginning of the poem presented negativity to erecting the wall, mending the wall is allowing the neighbours to spend more time together and hence strengthening their communication and friendship.Despite this, the narrator continues to question the purpose of the wall. To portray this, there is a repetition of â€Å"something there is that doesn’t love a wall†, which emphasises that-like nature- the narrator wants the wall to be taken down. However, the neighbour who is described using the simile â€Å"like an old-stone savage† and thus could be a representation of society which is also rigid in its views, only replies with â€Å"Good fences make good neighbours†.There is a repetition of this statement throughout the poem, which effectively asserts the opinion that society adopts in regards to ‘barriersâ₠¬â„¢ between people: that although people can be close friends, for a successful relationship there will always be a barrier in between them, acting as a boundary that grants privacy and security. Like many of his other poems, Frost once again shows his respect for nature in this poem through his portrayal of it as a sort of body that only wills harmony and friendship among all.He also succeeds in speaking to ordinary people through his exploration of such a universal matter, that impacts upon each human’s life everyday- that of the perpetual metaphorical wall that is present in relationships. In conclusion, â€Å"Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening† and â€Å"Mending Wall† are poems that use nature to epitomise what the poet is trying to portray and deal with concepts that have a personal meaning to every single responder. Hence, it can be said that Frost indeed had a deep respect for nature and spoke to ordinary people. Robert Frost A Snowy Evening with Robert Frost Robert Frost once said, â€Å"It begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a loneliness. It is never a thought to begin with. It is at best when it is a tantalizing vagueness. † (â€Å"Poetry Foundation† n. d. ). This poem holds a lot of mystery in its meaning which has a variety of interpretations. John T. Ogilvie who wrote, â€Å"From Woods to Stars: A pattern of Imagery in Robert Frost’s Poetry† interprets this as a poem about the journey through life. James G. Hepburn who wrote, â€Å"Robert Frost and His Critics† took a different approach.He believes this poem to be about the aesthetics and moral action. This poem contains a variety of literary devices that not only describe the scenery but also the scene itself. Despite its critics who believe this poem to be about the scenery and moral action, Robert Frost’s poem is best understood as a journey through life, because its literary design allows many to have interpreted it this way. â€Å"To watch his woods fill up with snow† â€Å"To stop without a farm house near/ Between the woods and frozen lake/ The darkest evening of the year. † â€Å"The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. â€Å"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,† (842-843). The description of the woods is seductive because of the rhyme scheme, AABA/BBCB/CCDC/DDDD. Robert Frost has made comments about the form of this poem, â€Å"a series of almost reckless commitments I feel good in having guarded it so. [It is]†¦my heavy duty poem to be examined for the rime pairs. † (Frost on Stopping by Woods N. D. ). The English language is not as rhyme friendly as other languages such as Italian or French. The English language is a melting pot of many different languages limiting the amount of words that rhyme.As John Ciardi says, â€Å"In ‘Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’ Frost took a long chance. He decided to rhyme not two lines, but three in each stanza. Not even Frost could have sustained that much rhyme in a long poem. † (Ciardi, How Does a Poem Mean? ). This allows the reader to be hypnotized by the rhythm Frost has created. By repeating the ‘o’ sound, ‘though’ also starts the series of rhymes that will soon get the better of the reader. For example this is seen clearly in the opening lines of the poem, â€Å"Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; / He will not see me stopping here/ to watch his woods fill up with snow/. † (842). As the reader begins to recognize the pattern of the poem it guides them into the same drowsy feeling as the narrator is experiencing. James G. Hepburn, who wrote â€Å"Robert Frost and His Critics,† says, â€Å"Each of the first three stanzas begins flatly; each rises, with the last line or two lines, towards the spell; but not until the end of the third stanza is the rise powerful, and not until the opening of the fourth and final stanza is the rise sustained rather than broken. So from the above lines and evidence we can interpret these lines as follows. The narrator is most likely returning home from some errand that took him far away from his home. He is riding his horse late at night or late day and has stumbled upon some beautiful scenery. This is when he decides to stop and take in everything that he is seeing. When the narrator first stopped in the woods he has a good idea of whose land this is, which is stated in the first two lines. Rueben A.Bower who wrote, â€Å"The Poetry of Robert Frost: Constellations of Intention† says, â€Å"The very tentative tone of the opening line lets us into the mood without quite sensing where it will lead, just as the ordinariness of ‘though’ at the end of the second line assures us that we are in the world. † Robert Frost did not start this poem with the magical whimsy of the woods but instead with the mood they contain (Hepburn 1962) â€Å"Whose woods these are I think I know. / His house is in the village though; / He will not see me stopping here/ to watch his woods fill up with snow/. (842). By doing this he allows the reader to have a better understanding of why the narrator would stop to look upon this beautiful scenery. As Hepburn says in his article, â€Å"Robert Frost and His Critics† â€Å"The mood that the poem induces in the reader nullifies his acceptance of the intention expressed by the traveler. The sum of the reader’s experience of the poem is different from the meaning of the traveler’s experience of the woods. Presumably the traveler goes home to supper, to his duties, and to the rest of his journey through life; but these things are not the poem. Frost made some comments on the factors mood plays in a poem, â€Å"†¦ the poet’s intention is of course a particular mood that w on’t be satisfied with anything less than its own fulfillment. † (Hepburn 1962). This poem isn’t a recreated experience but meant to be an experience in itself. This poem has some interesting symbolism in it takes us on a journey through a man’s life. When the narrator first stops, instead of questioning himself, he questions what the horse thinks, â€Å"My little horse must think it queer† (842).By questioning the horse, he is really questioning his own reasons, which people often do while they make life decisions or everyday decisions. The horse is also a symbol of time the horse is questioning his stopping and urges him to move on to prevent the further loss of time (Anonymous). When the narrator’s horse shakes his harness bells, he then becomes a symbol, as John Ciardi thinks, â€Å".. order of life that does not understand why a man stops in the winter middle of nowhere to watch snow come down. † The horse is the will power persis tent in the subconscious of a man.The horse urges him to get back to his business by the shake of his harness bells which is indirectly contrast the narrator who would like to stay in the woods. Even though his horse is urging him to be responsible he continues to be enticed by the soft lull of the woods just like the reader is. For example, â€Å"He gives his harness bells a shake/ To ask if there is some mistake. † (842). The sound of the horses harness bells is contrasting against the sounds of the woods described as, â€Å"The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. (843). This is the woods contradicting the symbolism of the horse making their presence relevant. In life there are often two main choices to be made. Similar to this poem the narrator can either stay in the woods or go back to his everyday life. The speaker is going ahead and his ‘sleep’ may be the symbol for the end of his life. The journey in this poem turns out to b e more complicated than the life of an average man. The darkness of the woods is symbolic of the ‘easy’ way out or the path people before him have taken.The wind and downy flakes also have a similar symbolism. While the flakes appear to be soft, they are also cold which is less forgiving. The reader and the narrator share all of the experiences together as the poem goes on. For example, the line â€Å"The darkest evening of the year. † (842) is a correlation between life and the obligations he is carrying. This line also adds an unbroken curve of rhythm. As Ruben A. Bower (1963) goes on to explain, it adds to the sense of moving into a spell-world.We note the linking rhymes that tie in with the first stanza. Different symbols in this poem though reveal that stop in the poem could be referring to death or the journey through life. In this phrase â€Å"Between the woods and frozen lake†, the wood becomes a symbol of life while the frozen lake signifies death . When the speaker reaches the woods, he finds a world offering perfect, quiet and solitude, existing side by side with the realization that there is also another world, a world of people and social obligation. Both worlds have a claim on the poet.He stops by the wood on this â€Å"darkest evening of the year† to watch them â€Å"fill up with snow†, and remains there so long that his â€Å"little horse† shakes his â€Å"harness bells† to ask if there is â€Å"some mistake† (842). That little horse’s action reminds him of the â€Å"promises† he has to keep and the miles he still has to travel. (843). The theme of this poem is a journey, and not simply a journey through the woods but through life itself. There is an expectant tone throughout the poem. The narrator stops for a brief time to meditate and realizes he needs to continue on his journey through the woods and his journey through life.This poem also has a â€Å"romantic† theme as well as subject. Again the speaker is returning home and stops to take in the beautiful scenery. As the urgency to move on becomes more apparent the narrator begins to regret that he must leave. The narrator is romanticizing what he is passing which is time and pleasure. â€Å"He gives his harness bells a shake/ To ask if there is some mistake. / The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. † (842-843). For example, the words â€Å"lovely† â€Å"snow† â€Å"lake† â€Å"evening† and â€Å"easy wind and downy flake† (840-843) are all romantic in nature.Also the way the narrator talks about nature makes the loving relationship he has with it a romantic notion. â€Å"The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. † (843). It is also seen in this line, â€Å"To watch his woods fill up with snow. / †¦ Between the woods and frozen lake/ The darkest evening of the year. † (842). As Jeffrey Meyers says, â€Å"The theme of â€Å"Stopping by Woods†Ã¢â‚¬â€œdespite Frost's disclaimer–is the temptation of death, even suicide, symbolized by the woods that are filling up with snow on the darkest evening of the year.The speaker is powerfully drawn to these woods and–like Hans Castorp in the â€Å"Snow' chapter of Mann's  Magic Mountain–wants to lie down and let the snow cover and bury him. The third quatrain, with its drowsy, dream-like line: â€Å"Of easy wind and downy flake,† opposes the horse's instinctive urge for home with the man's subconscious desire for death in the dark, snowy woods. The speaker says, â€Å"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,† but he resists their morbid attraction. † (Meyers 1996).The journey threw life and the temptations of death and the peace it may bring some individuals is the theme of this poem. Although some may not agree with this interpretation of Robert Frost â€Å"Sto pping by Woods on a Snowy Evening† like James G. Hepburn who thinks, â€Å"This poem is a tribute to the New England sense of duty.. † (Hepburn 1962). But as you have seen this poem is about a journey through life. The way the poem uses literary tactics lead us to this very specific interpretation. As Robert Frost once said, â€Å"A poem begins in delight and ends in wisdom. † (Frost on Stopping by Woods N. D. ). Robert Frost A Snowy Evening with Robert Frost Robert Frost once said, â€Å"It begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a loneliness. It is never a thought to begin with. It is at best when it is a tantalizing vagueness. † (â€Å"Poetry Foundation† n. d. ). This poem holds a lot of mystery in its meaning which has a variety of interpretations. John T. Ogilvie who wrote, â€Å"From Woods to Stars: A pattern of Imagery in Robert Frost’s Poetry† interprets this as a poem about the journey through life. James G. Hepburn who wrote, â€Å"Robert Frost and His Critics† took a different approach.He believes this poem to be about the aesthetics and moral action. This poem contains a variety of literary devices that not only describe the scenery but also the scene itself. Despite its critics who believe this poem to be about the scenery and moral action, Robert Frost’s poem is best understood as a journey through life, because its literary design allows many to have interpreted it this way. â€Å"To watch his woods fill up with snow† â€Å"To stop without a farm house near/ Between the woods and frozen lake/ The darkest evening of the year. † â€Å"The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. â€Å"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,† (842-843). The description of the woods is seductive because of the rhyme scheme, AABA/BBCB/CCDC/DDDD. Robert Frost has made comments about the form of this poem, â€Å"a series of almost reckless commitments I feel good in having guarded it so. [It is]†¦my heavy duty poem to be examined for the rime pairs. † (Frost on Stopping by Woods N. D. ). The English language is not as rhyme friendly as other languages such as Italian or French. The English language is a melting pot of many different languages limiting the amount of words that rhyme.As John Ciardi says, â€Å"In ‘Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’ Frost took a long chance. He decided to rhyme not two lines, but three in each stanza. Not even Frost could have sustained that much rhyme in a long poem. † (Ciardi, How Does a Poem Mean? ). This allows the reader to be hypnotized by the rhythm Frost has created. By repeating the ‘o’ sound, ‘though’ also starts the series of rhymes that will soon get the better of the reader. For example this is seen clearly in the opening lines of the poem, â€Å"Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; / He will not see me stopping here/ to watch his woods fill up with snow/. † (842). As the reader begins to recognize the pattern of the poem it guides them into the same drowsy feeling as the narrator is experiencing. James G. Hepburn, who wrote â€Å"Robert Frost and His Critics,† says, â€Å"Each of the first three stanzas begins flatly; each rises, with the last line or two lines, towards the spell; but not until the end of the third stanza is the rise powerful, and not until the opening of the fourth and final stanza is the rise sustained rather than broken. So from the above lines and evidence we can interpret these lines as follows. The narrator is most likely returning home from some errand that took him far away from his home. He is riding his horse late at night or late day and has stumbled upon some beautiful scenery. This is when he decides to stop and take in everything that he is seeing. When the narrator first stopped in the woods he has a good idea of whose land this is, which is stated in the first two lines. Rueben A.Bower who wrote, â€Å"The Poetry of Robert Frost: Constellations of Intention† says, â€Å"The very tentative tone of the opening line lets us into the mood without quite sensing where it will lead, just as the ordinariness of ‘though’ at the end of the second line assures us that we are in the world. † Robert Frost did not start this poem with the magical whimsy of the woods but instead with the mood they contain (Hepburn 1962) â€Å"Whose woods these are I think I know. / His house is in the village though; / He will not see me stopping here/ to watch his woods fill up with snow/. (842). By doing this he allows the reader to have a better understanding of why the narrator would stop to look upon this beautiful scenery. As Hepburn says in his article, â€Å"Robert Frost and His Critics† â€Å"The mood that the poem induces in the reader nullifies his acceptance of the intention expressed by the traveler. The sum of the reader’s experience of the poem is different from the meaning of the traveler’s experience of the woods. Presumably the traveler goes home to supper, to his duties, and to the rest of his journey through life; but these things are not the poem. Frost made some comments on the factors mood plays in a poem, â€Å"†¦ the poet’s intention is of course a particular mood that w on’t be satisfied with anything less than its own fulfillment. † (Hepburn 1962). This poem isn’t a recreated experience but meant to be an experience in itself. This poem has some interesting symbolism in it takes us on a journey through a man’s life. When the narrator first stops, instead of questioning himself, he questions what the horse thinks, â€Å"My little horse must think it queer† (842).By questioning the horse, he is really questioning his own reasons, which people often do while they make life decisions or everyday decisions. The horse is also a symbol of time the horse is questioning his stopping and urges him to move on to prevent the further loss of time (Anonymous). When the narrator’s horse shakes his harness bells, he then becomes a symbol, as John Ciardi thinks, â€Å".. order of life that does not understand why a man stops in the winter middle of nowhere to watch snow come down. † The horse is the will power persis tent in the subconscious of a man.The horse urges him to get back to his business by the shake of his harness bells which is indirectly contrast the narrator who would like to stay in the woods. Even though his horse is urging him to be responsible he continues to be enticed by the soft lull of the woods just like the reader is. For example, â€Å"He gives his harness bells a shake/ To ask if there is some mistake. † (842). The sound of the horses harness bells is contrasting against the sounds of the woods described as, â€Å"The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. (843). This is the woods contradicting the symbolism of the horse making their presence relevant. In life there are often two main choices to be made. Similar to this poem the narrator can either stay in the woods or go back to his everyday life. The speaker is going ahead and his ‘sleep’ may be the symbol for the end of his life. The journey in this poem turns out to b e more complicated than the life of an average man. The darkness of the woods is symbolic of the ‘easy’ way out or the path people before him have taken.The wind and downy flakes also have a similar symbolism. While the flakes appear to be soft, they are also cold which is less forgiving. The reader and the narrator share all of the experiences together as the poem goes on. For example, the line â€Å"The darkest evening of the year. † (842) is a correlation between life and the obligations he is carrying. This line also adds an unbroken curve of rhythm. As Ruben A. Bower (1963) goes on to explain, it adds to the sense of moving into a spell-world.We note the linking rhymes that tie in with the first stanza. Different symbols in this poem though reveal that stop in the poem could be referring to death or the journey through life. In this phrase â€Å"Between the woods and frozen lake†, the wood becomes a symbol of life while the frozen lake signifies death . When the speaker reaches the woods, he finds a world offering perfect, quiet and solitude, existing side by side with the realization that there is also another world, a world of people and social obligation. Both worlds have a claim on the poet.He stops by the wood on this â€Å"darkest evening of the year† to watch them â€Å"fill up with snow†, and remains there so long that his â€Å"little horse† shakes his â€Å"harness bells† to ask if there is â€Å"some mistake† (842). That little horse’s action reminds him of the â€Å"promises† he has to keep and the miles he still has to travel. (843). The theme of this poem is a journey, and not simply a journey through the woods but through life itself. There is an expectant tone throughout the poem. The narrator stops for a brief time to meditate and realizes he needs to continue on his journey through the woods and his journey through life.This poem also has a â€Å"romantic† theme as well as subject. Again the speaker is returning home and stops to take in the beautiful scenery. As the urgency to move on becomes more apparent the narrator begins to regret that he must leave. The narrator is romanticizing what he is passing which is time and pleasure. â€Å"He gives his harness bells a shake/ To ask if there is some mistake. / The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. † (842-843). For example, the words â€Å"lovely† â€Å"snow† â€Å"lake† â€Å"evening† and â€Å"easy wind and downy flake† (840-843) are all romantic in nature.Also the way the narrator talks about nature makes the loving relationship he has with it a romantic notion. â€Å"The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. † (843). It is also seen in this line, â€Å"To watch his woods fill up with snow. / †¦ Between the woods and frozen lake/ The darkest evening of the year. † (842). As Jeffrey Meyers says, â€Å"The theme of â€Å"Stopping by Woods†Ã¢â‚¬â€œdespite Frost's disclaimer–is the temptation of death, even suicide, symbolized by the woods that are filling up with snow on the darkest evening of the year.The speaker is powerfully drawn to these woods and–like Hans Castorp in the â€Å"Snow' chapter of Mann's  Magic Mountain–wants to lie down and let the snow cover and bury him. The third quatrain, with its drowsy, dream-like line: â€Å"Of easy wind and downy flake,† opposes the horse's instinctive urge for home with the man's subconscious desire for death in the dark, snowy woods. The speaker says, â€Å"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,† but he resists their morbid attraction. † (Meyers 1996).The journey threw life and the temptations of death and the peace it may bring some individuals is the theme of this poem. Although some may not agree with this interpretation of Robert Frost â€Å"Sto pping by Woods on a Snowy Evening† like James G. Hepburn who thinks, â€Å"This poem is a tribute to the New England sense of duty.. † (Hepburn 1962). But as you have seen this poem is about a journey through life. The way the poem uses literary tactics lead us to this very specific interpretation. As Robert Frost once said, â€Å"A poem begins in delight and ends in wisdom. † (Frost on Stopping by Woods N. D. ). Robert Frost Robert Frost has been described as an ordinary man with a deep respect for nature, talking to ordinary people. To what extent do you agree with this view? Poetry is a literary medium which often resonates with the responder on a personal level, through the subject matter of the poem, and the techniques used to portray this. Robert Frost utilises many techniques to convey his respect for nature, which consequently makes much of his poetry relevant to the everyday person.The poems â€Å"Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’ and â€Å"The mending wall† strongly illuminate Frost’s reverence to nature and deal with such matter that allows Frost to speak to ordinary people. On the surface, â€Å"Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening† deals with a seemingly unimportant event, of the poet stopping one winter evening, mesmerised by the snow and the wood. However, at a figurative level, the poem goes deeper dealing with the concept of the choices that people make in life. The poem is set in a rural area, with merely an implication of the city in â€Å"his house is in the village†.This setting choice as well as stanza 1, which tells of the poet stopping to â€Å"watch his woods fill up with snow†, creates a strong image of nature being a predominant feature of this poem. The first stanza also creates a contrast between the poet and the owner of the woods who is presumably a ‘sensible’ person staying warm in his house. This raises the question of why the poet has stopped in such cold weather. Hence, this contrast serves as a metaphor that provides a link back to the concept of the poem, as it may speak of his choice to be involved with life, rather than choosing ‘comfortable withdrawal’ [‘Poetry of Robert Frost’].The poem continues contrasting the poet with his horse, Frost personifying the latter in â€Å"My little horse must think it queer/ To stop without a farmhouse near†. This meta phor shows that even the persona acknowledges, through his horse, that others may not make sense of the choice he has made to continue his journey on the â€Å"darkest evening of the year†. However, the responder is able to get a sense of what the persona is so entranced by in the third stanza, where there is a beauty in the woods as the â€Å"The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake†.The assonance of the letter ‘o’ in this creates a soft, dream-like tone, which emphasises the poet’s captivation by the scenery. The final stanza expands on this, opening with â€Å"The woods are lovely, dark and deep†. The use of the word â€Å"lovely† reinforces the beauty of the woods, but the alliteration of the letter ‘d’ creates a heavy tone which may indicate that they could be perilous. For the poet, these words could mean that for him the woods represent escapism and irrationality.Due the allure that the woods clearly have over the poet, he is faced with a choice at the end of the poem- to stay and enter the â€Å"woods† or to continue on his journey in life. He makes his choice clear in the final lines of the last stanza saying â€Å"But I have promises to keep/ And miles to go before I sleep/ And miles to go before I sleep†. His choice is clear through the use of the word â€Å"but† and the repetition of the final two lines emphasises that it is ‘life and personal involvement that he chooses, rather than withdrawal and death’ [‘Poetry of Robert Frost’].Hence, Frost effectively juxtaposes the gentle attractiveness of the woods with the clear call to journey on and fulfil promises. Throughout this poem, Frost uses much of the imagery of the natural environment to ‘enhance the aural and visual impact of the poem’ [Common Poetry, Robert Frost], and deals with a concept that is faced ‘ordinary people’ everyday- th at of making a choice to go on in life even when it is so appealing to simply go into the â€Å"dark and deep†.Therefore, this poem illuminates Frosts’ respect for nature as well as his ability to speak to ordinary people. This ability is also conveyed in ‘Mending Wall’, a one stanza poem that explores Frost’s ideas about the barriers’ that exist in relationships. Literally, the poem is about two neighbours who disagree about the need of building a wall to separate their properties. However, when the responders’ delves deeper into the poem, it is clear that at a allegorical level the wall is a metaphor representing the barrier that exists in the neighbours’ friendship.The first eleven lines of the poem if rife with imagery that describes the dilapidation of the wall. The first line of the poem emphasises that â€Å"something† exists that â€Å"doesn’t love a wall†. This personification makes the â€Å"somet hing† seem human-like. The use of words such as â€Å"spills† and â€Å"makes gaps† convey an image of animate actions and create a vivid impression of the degradation of the wall. Nature, presented in the form of cold weather, frost and the activities of creatures, also seeks to destroy the wall.The idea that walls are unnatural and therefore nature abhors walls is portrayed in the phrase â€Å"makes gaps even two can pass abreast†, which metaphorically indicates that nature desires for man to walk side by side with no barrier between them. When the two meet to fix the wall, it is a metaphor that could be interpreted as the two repairing their friendship as â€Å"To each the boulders have fallen to each† which shows that faults in their relationship lie on behalf of them both.While they are mending the wall, a light-hearted tone is established. This is shown through the inclusion of the metaphor â€Å"spring is mischief in me† which shows th e neighbours having fun together in repairing the wall, creating a cheerful atmosphere. This creates an ironic feel to the poem, as although the beginning of the poem presented negativity to erecting the wall, mending the wall is allowing the neighbours to spend more time together and hence strengthening their communication and friendship.Despite this, the narrator continues to question the purpose of the wall. To portray this, there is a repetition of â€Å"something there is that doesn’t love a wall†, which emphasises that-like nature- the narrator wants the wall to be taken down. However, the neighbour who is described using the simile â€Å"like an old-stone savage† and thus could be a representation of society which is also rigid in its views, only replies with â€Å"Good fences make good neighbours†.There is a repetition of this statement throughout the poem, which effectively asserts the opinion that society adopts in regards to ‘barriersâ₠¬â„¢ between people: that although people can be close friends, for a successful relationship there will always be a barrier in between them, acting as a boundary that grants privacy and security. Like many of his other poems, Frost once again shows his respect for nature in this poem through his portrayal of it as a sort of body that only wills harmony and friendship among all.He also succeeds in speaking to ordinary people through his exploration of such a universal matter, that impacts upon each human’s life everyday- that of the perpetual metaphorical wall that is present in relationships. In conclusion, â€Å"Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening† and â€Å"Mending Wall† are poems that use nature to epitomise what the poet is trying to portray and deal with concepts that have a personal meaning to every single responder. Hence, it can be said that Frost indeed had a deep respect for nature and spoke to ordinary people.