Marketing Final Study Guide Essay

Chapter 11-Advertising, Integrated Marketing Communications, and the Changing Media Landscape 1. Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) and the New Media Integrated Marketing Communications: Approach designed to deliver one consistent message to buyers across an organization’s promotions. TV, Radio, magazines, Internet, Phones Mobil Marketing: Marketing Media that is available in different places such as cell phones or on forms of transportation * Magazines, newspapers and televisions compete with internet, texting, mobile phones, blogs, YouTube, Facebook, and twitter. Out-of-home advertising: Billboards, moveable promotions that are displayed in a broad range of public spaces including tray tables on airplanes, the inside of subways, trains, buses, and even in bathroom stalls. * As the media landscape changes, the money organizations spend on different types of communication will change as well 2. The Promotion (communication) mix Promotion or Communication Mix: Communication tools that may include advertising, sales, promotions, public relations and publicity, personal selling, and direct marketing. Advertising: A message that is paid for and sent to large groups of the population at one time with an identified organization or brand (product or service) being promoted * Advantages and disadvantages: Radio, magazines, newspapers are portable. Radios have many stations and are driving when listening. TV people get up or turn the station. Vehicle: the specific means, such as a particular magazine or a specific television show, within a medium to reach a selected target market. Personal Selling: An interactive, personal, paid promotional approach between a buyer and a seller. (e.g. interviewing for a job, pampered chef, Mary Kay) Public Relations (PR): The process of creating a positive image for a company, an offering, or a person via publicity. Sales promotion: Other forms of promotions (coupons, contests, rebates, mail-in-offers) not included as a component of a communication mix. Trade promotions: Sales promotions aimed at businesses in business-to-business marketing. (e.g. trade shows, sponsorships, event marketing, and special incentives given to retailers, such as extra money, in-store displays, and prizes to market particular products and services) Direct Marketing: Delivering personalized promotional materials directly to individual consumers. Materials may be delivered via mail, catalogs, Internet, e-mail, or telephone, or in person. * Benefits: ability to target a specific set of customers, measure the return on investment, and test different strategies before implementing to all targeted consumers. Disadvantage: Intrusive and many consumers ignore the attempts to reach them Telemarketing: A form of direct marketing that involves contacting people by phone. Do Not Call Registry: Established by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2008, the service prevents organizations from calling any phone numbers registered with the FTC Direct Mail: A form of direct marketing that is mailed to consumers. It can be personalized and ask consumers to make a certain response. Catalogs are often part of direct mail campaigns. Call to action: In direct marketing, requesting consumers to make a specific response such as a purchase or a call for more information. Direct Response Advertising: Direct marketing that includes an offer and a call to action (e.g. â€Å"Call now and receive a bonus package,† internet provides the preferred direct-response medium because it is less expensive.) 3. The Promotion Mix, Communication, and Buyers’ Perceptions. Factors that Influence Selection of Promotion Mix * Budget Available: the budget available to market a product determines what elements of the promotion mix are utilized. Affects a promotion’s reach and frequency. Reach: The number of people exposed to a message Frequency: How often people are exposed to a message * Stage in the product life cycle: affects the type and amount of the promotion used. Products in intro. stage needs more promotional dollars. * Type of product and type of purchase decision: technical- personal selling to understand features. Advertising used to sell convenience goods and routine purchase items since customers are familiar with the product. * Target Market Characteristics and consumers’ readiness to purchase: organizations must understand how ready different target markets are to make purchases * Consumers’ Preferences for various media: Research is done to find out how consumers want to be reached * Regulations, competitors, and environmental factors: regulations can affect the type of promotion used (e.g. In U.S. tobacco products can’t be advertised on TV) Strength of economy has an impact- weak economy organizations use sales promotions such as coupons (associated risk is consumers may start to expect coupons) * Availability of Media: Plan promotions based on media availability. Crisis or Disasters can cut TV promotion slots. * Push versus Pull strategy: Many manufactures use both strategies Push Strategy: A strategy in which businesses are the target of promotions to products get â€Å"pushed† through their marketing channels and sold to consumers. (e.g. displays in retail outlets for new products) Pull Strategy: A strategy in which consumers are targeted with sales promotions such as coupons, contests, games, rebates, mail-in offers. (e.g. manufacturer promotes on TV and places coupons in the newspaper causing wholesalers and retailers to buy their product to meet consumer demand) Encode: Senders must translate or convert benefits and value of a product or service into a message for the message channel selected. Decode: Receivers interpret messages. Interference (noise): Any distractions or noise that senders and receivers face during the transmission of a message. (e.g. poor reception, poor print quality, problems with a server, low battery) Feedback: Means of telling sellers you saw their information and wanted to try their product.

Evergreen Naturals Market Essay

There were numerous factors that contributed towards the constant success of Evergreen Natural Markets. The company’s methodology towards growth and expansion is one of the integral factors. Where most companies seek to grow by re-investing their profits back into their businesses (ploughing back), Evergreen adopted a more radical approach by acquiring other competing companies or companies that show potential of growing rapidly. Evergreen designed a strategy that was twofold in nature. By bringing in rival companies under the Evergreen umbrella, the approach simply eliminated any competition, increased the resources and financial base and made it easier for Evergreen to have a wider scope and reach. Granted, acquisitions have issues with integration of management and operations. However, this approach has been steadily used by Evergreen, and this has resulted in its prosperity as an organic food distributor. As the latest addition to the Evergreen umbrella, Aragula Grocers serve to make the effect of the mother company increasingly widespread. The recent acquisition can allow the company to lower its prices and engage in aggressive marketing that will make Evergreen more successful. 2. Why do stores improve their performance after being acquired by Evergreen? The main reason for the increased performance after joining the Evergreen was the approach adopted by Evergreen. On the surface, they may seem like clear acquisitions. However, the acquired stores are allowed to maintain their functional systems and procedures. In this way, Evergreen owns the stores but allows them to continue operating in the same way. The slight modifications that at times were made on the administration and management included branding, change in sales approach, and other minor issues. Using the operational systems of the different stores, Evergreen was able to utilise their combined efforts and attain massive profits. On the other hand, the smaller stores also got to prosper under the Evergreen because of two arch factors. One was the fresh infusion of capital and administrative support provided by Evergreen. Evergreen offered increased investment opportunities by providing the capital, human resources, and other assistance. The second factor was an advantage of working under a larger company that allows one to work without much competition from the outside. 3. How well does the acquisition of Arugula Grocers align with Evergreen’s established approach to integrating new stores? What modifications, if any, should Norton make? The acquisition of Aragula Grocers is an advantageous addition to the Evergreen group as it offered new opportunities in Nevada, Las Vegas. However, several modifications would serve to improve the situation in their relations. Firstly, Mrs. Norton should introduce more effective communication measures that will ensure that the link between Evergreen and Aragula Grocers is not severed. It was discovered that the link between these two parties was weak, and this will lead to confusion and dilution of the vision of the mother company. Secondly, Norton also needed to rectify the financial status of the store before investing in it seriously. Aragula Grocers was acquired amid a series of financial issues and complications that showed signs of mismanagement. Adopting these problems will lead to failure of the store and eventually, losses for Evergreen. Mrs. Norton should also consider making modifications to the management style in Aragula Grocers. The changes should reflect the three proposals that she made concerning all acquisitions under Evergreen. These changes involved investing in improving human resources, maintaining the local setting, and caring about the welfare of the employees and customers. These three proposals would serve to change the atmosphere and approach taken by the Aragula management as they start operations under Evergreen.

Personal identity. You are the same person now as you were ten years Essay

Personal identity. You are the same person now as you were ten years ago - Essay Example Firstly, I will show, through describing the limits of acceptable physical change, that bodily continuity alone is not enough to say I am the same person I was a decade ago. Some philosophers, such as Eric Olson, have claimed that the physical body is the basis of the identity (Olson 2003, pp. 337-338). This view claims that as long as one keeps the same body throughout their life, they remain the same person. For example, if someone commits a crime, as long as their body committed the crime, we can punish them for it. Therefore, as I am in the same body as I was ten years ago, I am the same person. However, there is opposition to the view that our identity refers only to our physical body as our bodies are constantly regenerating so how much of our body must stay the same in order for us to be classed as the same person? An example of this is the Ship of Theseus (Leibniz as cited by Gallois 2016). Many people believe that, at some point, the Ship of Theseus stops being the same ship. I could then also say I am not the same person I was ten years ago, as I have a completely different set of cells. But, with no detectable changes in appearance or attitude how could I prove I am a different person? Not everyone agrees that our regeneration makes us a different person, believing that the gradual change involved in the previous examples enables them to keep their identity, i.e. the gradual change of the Ship of Theseus.

Healthcare Industry Overview Grid Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Healthcare Industry Overview Grid - Essay Example If it looks as if there is a market big enough to make a profitable product, the product is unique in the market and the product can be protected (via patenting or some other means) then businesses are commonly encouraged to dive into the expensive product development phase. Pharmaceutical/ Drug Industry is mainly responsible for developing, producing and marketing drugs that have been approved by the health authorities or governing agencies McGuire et.al, 2007) These drugs are mainly intended for medicinal purposes. Pharmaceutical companies can sell generic or branded medications. However, distribution and selling of such medicines are subject to variety of laws since there are issues regarding patenting, testing and marketing of drugs. The government is very strict in monitoring the pharmaceutical industry since the health of the general public is at stake. Health care personnel can be employed by pharmaceutical companies as medical technologists, chemists, or researchers. Usually, medical and sales representatives are also needed by this industry. Biotechnology researchers are in demand in this industry as well as laboratory assistants. Health Information Systems falls under the category of Health Informatics. It is a multi-disciplinary approach wherein computer science is integrated in health care services. A good health information system integrates â€Å"administrative files, enrollment files, clinical information, surveys and other data† (McGlynn,1998). Companies that offer Health Information Systems provide software services as well as database systems that can help health professionals make accurate decisions about patients. Some of the services provided by HIS are Health Information Management, dictation and transcription, document management and imaging, case management, revenue cycle management, and performance improvement. Health Information Systems

Concert Attendance Report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Concert Attendance Report - Assignment Example Classical at the Freight brought some of the best classical musicians of the Bay Area. I spent the hour listening to outstanding chamber music in an atmosphere that was quite friendly and informal. The musicians were seated on the stage in a semi-circle carrying different musical instruments. The bands musical instruments included violin and cello. One man played both English horn and oboe simultaneously. Wooden paneling rising vertically from the floor to the Freight & Salvage Coffee House board made the background and created a very sophisticated and peaceful environment. Peter Lemberg is SFCO principal oboist. He came to the Freight with this friskily plangent musical program for the English horn and strings. Together with All-Stars of SFCO, Peter performed the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Jean Francaix. One of the songs performed by the band was â€Å"Quatuor (1971): 1. Allegro vivace by David Juritz, Rebecca Knight†. There was a lot of variety in the music. The structure of the music was soft and smooth and had a good flow. The purpose of the music was to create an atmosphere of comfort and light joy. The tempo of the song was allegro. The volume was reasonably loud to make it audible to the entire audience. The song had a soft and smooth rhythm and the melody was sweet. The first thing that came to my mind to hear such sweet melody was Tom & Jerry Cartoons. We often hear such music played in the background in the mouse and cat chase. The song belongs to the era few decades ago, but its sweet melody and energy makes it relevant to t he audience even today. I was very excited at the concert because it had occurred more as a surprise to me since I had not planned to go there originally. I listened to the music very attentively because my friends had praised this band a lot. I wanted to know why were they such big fans of the band. I enjoyed the concert because I witnessed the perfection and extreme talent of the

Difference between Macro Finance and Micro Finanace Coursework

Difference between Macro Finance and Micro Finanace - Coursework Example However in nursing perspective, microfinance is the financial aid or assistance given to individuals towards their medical cover while macro-finance is the financial aid given to the whole group towards their medical cover. Microfinance concept is, therefore, an individual financial program while macro-finance concept is a group financial program. Microfinance can be tailored to meet the needs of a specific individual (Paterson & Telyukov, 2014).   A practical application of macro-finance is government-sponsored programs aimed at helping cover healthcare costs, for instance Medicare which is health insurance program for all American citizens aged 65 or older as well as people with certain disabilities (Beik, 2013).   Medicaid, on the other hand, is a program that is aimed at helping the poor or low-income individuals, as well as families, pay for the costs that are associated with long-term custodial and medical care. A practical application for microfinance is private insurance. Here, plans are often tailored to meet the needs of different individuals or offer specific benefits to customers thus enabling them to reduce coverage costs (Beik, 2013).   In the case, such individual goes for out-of-pocket medical expenses; they are reimbursed by Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs). In addition, individual health insurance premiums are also

Role of ICT in the Education System Dissertation

Role of ICT in the Education System - Dissertation Example To build a strong global knowledge, it must be ensured that information is equally accessible to all people. A community can get engaged in various social, economic, scientific, cultural and political activities only if it gets quality education. Proper access to quality education is most important for people with special educational needs (SEN). Such people are broadly defined as â€Å"being caused by differences in gender, age, physical and mental abilities, levels of education, ethnicity, income level, etc.† (ICTs in education for people with special needs, 2006, p.10) All people should have equal opportunities to education irrespective of their cultural and social backgrounds. There is a general tendency to discriminate disabled students and deny them educational facilities. This means that this group of people has low literacy and skills thereby high rate of unemployment. However, in a democratic society, focus is on providing quality education and training to all learner s. According to UNESCO â€Å"education has to take on the difficult task of turning diversity into a constructive contributory factor of mutual understanding between individuals and groups† (ICTs in education for people with special needs, 2006, p.12) In order to provide effective education to all learners, people with SEN should have access to regular schools with special focus on their needs. An education systems should be able to survive all difficult situations and make people eligible for any activities in a community and should also make them adaptable to other communities. Many human rights organizations protest against segregation in education facilities and demand equal education to all. Since disabled people have variable educational needs, extra focus should be given on helping them to overcome their functional limitations to access regular education which will pave the way for their self development. In this regard ICT (information and communication technology) pl ays an important role in education process as it generates new learning experiences. With the use of technological innovations people with physical disability can be helped to interact, for instance, people with motor disability can be helped to write and people with visual deficiency can be helped to read. In order to remove the barriers that prevent student from getting proper education, application of ICT has become indispensable. ICT has three main uses like compensation, didactic and communication uses (ICTs in education for people with special needs, 2006, p.31). With the help of AT (assistive technology) disabled people can reduce the difficulties caused by their disabilities to gain access to standard education and participate in all activities of their communities. However, although technology can benefit a person to approach regular schools and activities, it can sometimes enhance segregation of disabled persons (ICTs in education for people with special needs, 2006, p.44) . The main objective of AT is to facilitate SEN people to write, read and communicate with a â€Å"wide range of input devices, pointing devices, and software.† For instance, there are alphabetic devices for language impairments, and symbolic devices for speech impairments with which they can develop their own communication board on the computer screen. The computer is very useful for students with cognitive problems to acquire basic skills for learning process. Computers can motivate these students (ICTs in educati

Culture in business Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Culture in business - Term Paper Example Different nations across the world have different cultures and it is important for a business to evaluate and critically understand these cultural dynamics as they play key role in the success of a business in a particular area. People attach a lot of significance to the cultural issues within their region this usually influence their behavior, attitude, opinion in regard to a business. Communication is an extremely key factor for the success of a business. National culture in which a business enterprise operates can alter and daunt effective communication. Language is one of the most important aspects of a communication (Tahir, 2014). If two people are not able to communicate in a language they both adequately understand, the message transmission cannot go through or its interpretation can be flawed. For example, for an American firm to expand its branches and open more others in the Middles East countries, it is important that the language issue is properly addressed by decisions like hiring workers who understand the language of the local people so that communications with the consumers and every stake holder is enabled. Product promotions and advertisements sometimes require the promoters to use local languages of the people so as to enable the target group; who apparently might not be able to speak any other language relate the advert message. In some culture selection of wording is very important in product promotion. Some words might mean well in one culture but on the other culture, they are condemned. Also, to be able to effectively communicate with employees who probably are hired locally from that nation with a diverse culture require the business management to speak the same language. Consumers are more likely to purchase products from firms that they effectively communicate with than those that don’t. This implies that firms that identify

Ambassadors Essay Example for Free

Ambassadors Essay Mavromati Panayiotis Karafotias IREL-480-9 For my paper I decided to write about the ambassadors of Denmark, The United States of America and Uruguay. His Excellency Mr. Tom Norring, the ambassador of Denmark, was one of the ambassador’s to come this semester. He decided to focus his speech not on his country but more on the global financial crisis and how it affected Greek economy. He said that even without the crisis the situation in Greece would have been messy. Despite the fact that Maastricht Treaty allows the GDP deficit in European countries not more than 3% Greece had deficit 6-7%. Ambassador said that in 2006-2007 the government of Kostas Karamanlis managed to restrain the deficit to the acceptable level, but later in 2008 they failed. Karamanlis hoped that he would be reelected and he promised to restrain the deficit, but people lost faith in him. Later George Papandreou revealed the new information about the deficit. The deficit for that time was not 8% but 12%. And thus the rescue program was established by the European Union. So Greece took course to the EU and the IMF. They wanted a hard cash and the EU and IMF tried to help with it. Then the restructuring fund was established. The public expenses had to be cut. As ambassador said â€Å"Greece has one of the biggest public administrations† and the cutting of public sector expenses will help to decrease the deficit. He also pointed out that 25% of Greek economy is black economy. The only one thing which he said about his country was that the Denmark is not the part of Eurozone. One of the reasons I enjoyed the speech of Danish ambassador was because he seemed very honest when talking about the topic. When giving his speech, he gave personal examples and continuously referred to the audience. The second ambassador was the ambassador of Uruguay, his Excellency Mr. Jose Luis Pombo Morales. He decided to focus his speech on his country and its relations with Greece and other European countries. Mr. Jose Luis Pombo Morales, talked about political system in Uruguay, that it is a  representative democratic  republic with a  presidential system. Also, he told us that, the members of government are elected for a five-year terms by a  universal suffrage  system. Uruguay is a  unitary state: justice, education, health, security, foreign policy, defence are all administered nationwide. The Executive Power is exercised by the  president  and a  cabinet  of 13 ministers. Plus to that, Mr. Ambassador talked about Uruguay as one of the biggest wool and meat exporter to the EU countries. Mr. Jose Luis Pombo, told the audience, that Uruguay is one of the most economically developed countries in South America, with a high  GDP  per capita and the 52nd highest  quality of life index  in the world. Uruguay is rated as the 2nd least corrupt country in  Latin America  (behind  Chile), although Uruguay scores considerably better than Chile on domestic polls of corruption perception. Its political and labour conditions are the highest level of freedom on the continent. The third ambassador, I want to talk about, is the ambassador of the United States of America, his Excellency Mr. Daniel Smith. Ambassador focused his speech on Greek- Turkish relations and financial crisis. His speech was very diplomatic, and tried to keep neutrality, when some students asked him questions about problems in Libya and Greek-Turkish conflicts. But, Mr. Smith, gave very clear idea, about the USA and its foreign relations. Also

Postmodernism & history Essay Example for Free

Postmodernism history Essay Postmodernism refers to a shift in the non art components of history, particularly after the 1960s. It is marked by developments in culture, society and the economy. One drawback to postmodernism is the idea that it is concrete. Instead, postmodern society continues to go through enormous change that can be contributed to ever changing aspects of culture, society and the economy. Modernism preceded postmodernism which suggests that postmodernism is a reaction to modernism or postmodernism evolved from modernism and continues to undergo changes today (Taylor Winquist, 2001). Further, as postmodernism has gone through these many changes; it has become an extremely broad term for other philosophical disciplines that have been created. Another drawback to postmodernism comes from Michael Foucault who believed that postmodernism has caused science to become more political in nature (Schillo Thompson, 2003). The drawback to science is that certain people who oppose scientific research associated with controversial issues such as cloning and genetically modified organisms are only against scientific progress because it serves some political agenda (Schillo Thompson, 2003). This is a drawback to postmodernism because politics get in the way of important scientific research that has potential to greatly improve the lives of humans. Finally, postmodernism includes a complex style of writing that makes drawing useful conclusions challenging (Constas, 1998). This complexity often causes difficulty internalizing postmodern theories and ideas because they are hard to understand. It also causes a challenge to those who conduct educational research in order to educate others about postmodernism (Constas, 1998). Therefore, it can be determined that postmodernism causes a lack of communication among the educational community (Constas, 1998). These leads to another drawback which is the additional training educators must receive simply to understand postmodernism and its complex theories. Constas, Mark A. (1998). Research news and comment: the changing nature of educational research and a critique of postmodernism. Educational Researcher, 27 (2): 26 – 33. Schillo, K. K. Thompson, P. B. (2003). Postmodernism for animal scientists. Journal of Animal Science, 81 (12): 2989 – 2998. Taylor, V. E. Winquist, C. E. (2001). Encyclopedia of Postmodernism. London and New York: Routledge.

Company overview of Tata Motors Limited

Company overview of Tata Motors Limited Tata Motors Limited was founded in 1945 and it is the most successful automobile manufacturing company in India. With Tata Group as its parent company and Ratan Tata as its CEO, Tata Motors has sold almost 6 million vehicles nationally since their first launch in 1954 (Tata Motors, 2010). In expanding their business internationally, Tata Motors has proven that they are qualified as another competitor in automobile industry. Their products are commercial vehicles like buses and trucks, and also passenger cars like Tata Sierra, Tata Estate, Tata India, Tata Nano, Tata Xenon, etc. The company revenue was Rs. 27, 055.57 crores in June 2010 (Tata Motors, 2010). In India, Tata has operations in Jamshedpur, Pune, Lucknow, Patnagar, and Dharwad. Tata Motors was listed in New York Stock Exchange in 2004, followed by open their operations in UK, South Korea, and Spain (Tata Motors, 2010). In 2004, Tata Motors joint venture with Daewoo Commercial Vehicles Company from South Korea and formed Tata Daewoo. Continue one year later they bought Hispano Carrocera, a Spain company and also in 2008, they bought Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford, a UK based automobile company (Tata Motors, 2010). Macro Environment Analysis of the Company In analyzing macro environment of Tata Motors, it is crucial to know the main factors that influence the company when entering business to another country. Political, Economic, Social, and Technological (PEST) analysis is used to dig deeper some external factors which affect business in macro environment. With 4 perspectives in PEST analysis, it will help us to know the host market condition, possible growth, opportunities, decision making, and important steps (Lawson, 2006). III.1. Political-Legal Political is about the condition of politic and security in the domestic market which influence daily activity, including business. Legal is about the bureaucracy or regulation that should be fulfilled when we want to open a business. This is also an important factor because without obeying laws, rules, and regulation in the country, it is almost impossible to establish market there. Tata Motors was established in India, so Tata Motors has to concern on laws, rules, regulation, and political stability in India. But since Tata Motors has many subsidiaries in many countries, Tata Motors has to obey the host countrys laws also. In 2008, Tata Motors bought over Land Rover and Jaguar from Ford Motor. Since then, Tata also has to concern on the UK laws and regulation (Carty, 2008). Moreover, as the first company to be listed in New York Stock Exchange, Tata Motors also has to concern on US politics.. Generally, the political factor in the companys macro environment such as: tax policy, government regulations, and laws. It is famous that India is one of the countries which have a complicated bureaucracy, this is one of the obstacles if establishing business there (Sastry, 2005). Political unstable such as wars or conflicts also cause inflation and may affect oil price in one country. High inflation cause the government has to rise up prices, and oil price is the common price to get raised. And it is automatically the higher price of oil will affect the sales of cars (Wardell, et al., 2008). There were some political conflicts which were faced by Tata Motors recently. In their official website, stated that Ratan Tata (Tata Motors CEO) faced difficulties when he wanted to lauch Tata Nano. They have to deal with some emission norms and regulations in order to produce the cars (Tata Motors, 2010). As been reported on Bloomberg Businessweek in 2008, there was conflicts happened between two political parties when Tata Motors wanted to established their factory in Singur (India) and some protests from the local farmer. The conflict was about the agricultural land which Tata used to build the factory. Finally, Tata Motors had to relocate their factory and lost $100 million for relocation cost and over $ 300 million for investment (Banerjee and Guha, 2010). This problem is to prove that how stable the political situation of the country plays an important role in the companys macro environment. III.2. Economical The condition of economy in recent time or in the future can influence the growth and strategy of the company. This is very important because Tata Motors is a multinational company. Tata Motors has to understand the trend of economic growth in every single country that they do business with. This factor tells about the economical factor that surrounding the company such as: economy fluctuation, monetary and fiscal policy, government spending, unemployment level, interest rate, exchange rate, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, etc. In the domestic market, Tata Motors has to pay attention to the economic condition of India. India is a developing country with GDP per capita = $ 3,200 and $ 3.68 trillion national purchasing power (CIA, 2009). As been affected by the depression of global economic, Indias automobile industry also has to bear the consequences. The increase of material price forced Tata Motors to increase its truck price of 3.5% which lead to decrease in demand (Mapsofindia, 2010). In the international market, Tata Motors aims more to developing countries and middle-class family (Peacock, 2008). Each and every country has their own exchange rate or currency and it keep on changing every time. So for being a multinational company, Tata Motors has to concern in any changing of countries currency, especially US Dollar because Tata Motors also listed in New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, 2010). Inflation is also one of the factors, because it affects the interest rate for doing investment in a country (Russell, 2006). The increase or decrease of Inflation, will lead to a lower or higher interest rate. Looking deep to the economical macro environment may help Tata Motors in price setting, demand, cost, and decisional making in the company. III.3. Socio-Cultural Socio-cultural is focus on the attitude of consumer and employee which also affect the strategy. Strategy planning must follow the development of educational level and social assessment in order to see the influence toward the strategy. Some of the factors are: income distribution, attitude, education, health and wellness, changing life style, and demography. Tata Motors must realize the type of customers in India as its domestic market. The attitude and life style of those customers affect the demand for Tata Motors which also influence its decisional making (Tata Motors, 2009). Indian people are careful with their spending. They do not want to buy thing which is not worth it (Sharma, 2010). They are also usually educated and easy access to information. So, Tata Motors has to look at local perspective to market their product (Deoras, n. d.). Besides that, in doing business in 26 countries with 26 different cultures in each country, Tata Motors has to understand and apply different strategy. For example: Tata Motors cannot apply Indian culture to United Kingdom when they purchased Land Rover and Jaguar from Ford (a UK based company), because each place has their unique demographic. Another example would be: When marketing their product, Tata Motors must know the local demand. India for example, they have pretty low GDP per capita and most of the people prefer small car (Alvares, 2010). So, Tata Nano (one of Tata Motors product, a small car with $2500 price and the world cheapest car) seems fit into the market (Nussbaum, 2008). In 2009, Tata Motors faced culture problem in United States whereby affected the sales of their Jaguar. Many American did not want to buy a famous brand like Jaguar if it is owned by Indian company (Kamath, 2009). In focusing their socio-cultural environment, Tata Motors has Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) team which does social activities, donation, charity and caring the environment (Tata Motors, 2008). III.4. Technological Technological environment could affect raw material, operation, product, and company services. The development of technology can give huge opportunity to increase the product output in the company. Government intervention through tax policy and laws also play important role in the development of technology. The willingness to do innovation and taking risk seems to be the important component in this factor. Technological environment such as: The impact of changes in technology, new invention and development, cost and use of technology, and information technology development. This factor could give a competitive advantage to the company. As one of the giant automobile company, Tata Motors has to adapt and develop their product to the technology. The adaptation is not only in the factory machines but also in the car parts. Tata Motors allocate 2% of their Sales to Research Development Department (Tata Motors, 2010). Now, they are working to make environmental friendly buses such as hydrogen fuel cell buses and hybrid cars (Doggett, 2010). Not only in the real world, but Tata Motors also expand their services through internet. Tata Motors has on Online Booking Services which allow customers who has problem with their car to book date to send their car to their workshop. Now, customer also can purchase Tata Nano through internet, Tata Motors expand their business to e-commerce marketing (Marathe, 2009). III.5. SWOT Analysis of Tata Motors SWOT Analysis is a tool to analyze situation and condition of a business. It shows the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of the business. It is helpful to support the decisional making in the company because this analysis shows the current performance of the company and the possible challenges in the future time (Kern, 2001). And these are the SWOT Analysis of Tata Motors which been described from their official website: III.5.1. Strength: Strong brand image Good management Done many good innovations III.5.2. Weaknesses: The market target mostly is lower level citizen Advertisement and promotion still below other companies III.5.3. Opportunities: The acquisition of Jaguar-Land Rover will give more opportunities to produce different product innovation and aim to luxury market segment. The new Tata Nano as the world cheapest car will bring lots of demands. III.5.4. Threats: The tight competitiveness in automobile industry The high oil price The high price of raw materials The International Consideration As being the largest automobile company in India, Tata Motors knew that they could gain more profit by expanding their market globally. Opening business in some other countries outside their domestic market in India will bring benefit to them to be closer to their customers and reach worldwide market. IV.1. Worldwide Branches Tata Motors was established in 1945; however Tata Motors started expanding their business internationally since 1961, they are doing export with over 80 countries in 5 continents. In 1992 Tata Motors reached Europe market by export (Ibef, 2010). They have operations in: Venezuela, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Zaire, Tanzania, South Africa, Spain, Italy, United Kingdom, Ukraine, Russia, Chile, Australia, Poland, Turkey, Syria, South Arabia, India, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Bangladesh (Tata Motors, 2008). With 23,000 employees worldwide, Tata Motors is the first automobile company to be listed in New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 2004. In the same year also they bought Daewoo Commercial Vehicles Company, a South Korea truck manufacture. Again Tata Motors expand its wings by buying 21% shares of Hispano Carrocera in 2005, a bus maker from Spain. A year later, they joint venture with Thonburi Automotive Assembly Plant Company from Thailand. Moreover, they also cooperate with Marcopolo, a Brazilian company. Furthermore, in 2008 Tata Motors acquired Jaguar and Land Rover from a UK company, Ford (Tata Motors, 2010). IV.2. Tata Motors Concern toward International Business As one of the big player in automobile business, Tata Motors must concern on many important things such as: environment, politics, and cultures. There is a big issue right now in Tata Motors which is related to their concern toward environment. A big demand for their low cost car Tata Nano will bring even more pollution because it is affordable and every people will buy it (Shivani, 2010). It is a good sign for the company but a bad sign to the earth. To focus into Tata Motors international business, United Kingdom is taken as an example. UK market is favourable for Tata Motors. Some of the advantage that they received by doing business in the UK are: Language; because India used English as their official language and so does UK, Tata Motors sees UK market is potential, UK is more attractive than another country also because they have lower entry barriers and they have a good network for dealer which is very important for Tata Motors (Purcell, 2009). Tata Motors has to concern on UK economic condition too, because it is a main market for Jaguar and Land Rover (Subbu, 2003; David, 2008). It is saver for Tata Motors for doing business in UK because the stability of Pound Sterling and UK is a good place to make Foreign Direct Investment (Invest in the UK, 2010). But overall, Tata Motors has to concern on the tight competitiveness in automobile industry in the UK. Huge brands such as: Toyota, BMW, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, etc, are also big players in the market. Therefore, Tata Motors must keep the strong performance by keep developing new product to attract customers. Also keep good relationship with customers to enhance their loyalty (Nemo, 2010). IV.3. Internationalization Method Tata Motors ways to international business such as: joint-venture, subsidiary, exporting, franchise, and dealer distribution. Tata Motors used Joint-venture or associate companies to touch Europe market (Ibef, 2010). They associated with Hispano Carrocera in Spain and become Tata Hispano. Tata Hispano produces coach, big buses, large cars, and regional transport (Auto, 2009). In 2009 Tata Motors bought 100% stake of this company (Indian Info Tech, 2010). Subsidiary or acquisition means when a company is owned and controlled by its parent company after has been acquired (Lennon, 1999). Tata Motors has 30 subsidiaries and 20 of them are outside of India. They gained almost Rs. 6500 crore revenue from the subsidiaries in 2006 which contributed almost 20% of the group revenue (Tata Sons Ltd, 2007). The most profitable subsidiary is Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicle (TDCV) in South Korea and Telco Construction Equipment Company (Telcon), cooperate with Hitachi in India (Tata Sons Ltd, 2007). Besides doing joint-venture and subsidiary, Tata Motors also exports some of their products. In 2008, Tata Motors exported more than 33,000 units (Tata Motors, 2009). The exported country is spread in 5 continents and more than 70 countries. In the year 2006, Tata Motors exports reached 11% of its total sales (Onkvisit and Shaw, 2004); they focused in South Africa market in that year and exported almost 33% of the total export (Economic Times, 2006). Tata Motors has franchisees in some countries such as: Kenya, Bangladesh, Senegal, Russia, and Ukraine (Tata Motors, 2010). In addition, they have dealers to distribute their cars to their customers in Venezuela (Tata Sons Ltd, 2010). IV.4. Problem Faced by Tata Motors Even though the field of international business seems fertile, but it has so many obstacles and problems. Tata Motors has to be careful to overcome all the problems. Some of the problems would be: Joint venture problem, decreasing of stock, economic downturn in America and Europe, and last but not least is the tight global competitiveness of automobile company (Menezes, 2005). First, joint venture problem. When Tata Motors took over Jaguar and Land Rover in 2008, both them was doing badly (The Economist, 2009). Jaguar sales dropped to less than 65,000 cars in 2007 while Land Rover turned form favourable to unfavourable because they world demand is changing to environmental friendly cars while Land Rover still producing its spendthrift fuel cars. To overcome these problems, Tata Motors made a careful step by making new car design. Tata Motors came with Jaguar X-type which is better in design and also cheaper. They had a warm response from the market. To maintain it, Tata Motors asked help from Jaguar-Land Rover management to take part in the company. In Land Rover case, Tata built Land Rover LRX which is better in fuel consumption and low emission (Kamath, 2009). Another problem would be the decreasing stock of Tata Motors in 2008. This problem rose because of the $ 3 billion debt that Tata Motors loaned to buy Jaguar-Land Rover which could cause higher interest cost and lower down earnings (Kamath, 2009). This problem also compounded by the global economy crisis. Many Investors afraid that Tata Motorss stock would fall down. The best solution to this problem is to increase sales by making lower cost cars which will attract the customers, also support from Tata Group (its parent company) to help Tata Motors to settle their financial problem first (Krishnamoorthy and Koenig, 2008; Moinansari, 2009). Can be said that Tata Motors enter the global market was not in a right time. When it acquired Jaguar-Land Rover from Ford, American and European markets were in a weak point. The best solution in this condition is to keep the good management between Tata Motors and Jaguar-Land Rover, and also good investment in their product line like the latest Tata Nano which is the world cheapest car to reach every corner market (MBA, 2010). Although Tata Motors is a largest automobile company in India, but it only ranked as the 19th largest manufacture in the world (OICA, 2009). So, to face the competitiveness among the companies, Tata Motors must find a way to attract the market, for example: New product line, Make a low price car with a good quality, maintain their safety level, etc (Horner, 2009). The Future Growth of Business Tata Motors performance is also countable in automobile industry. With Tata Group as its parent company, and Ratan Tata as its CEO, Tata Motors is keep growing and expanding their market. In their official website, stated that the company revenue jumped 30.5% from last year and they got Rs. 2,571 crores of profit (Tata Motors, 2010). It is a positive growth from the company. Ansoff Product-Market Matrix was founded by H. Igor Ansoff in 1957. This marketing tool is used to help company to find the best strategy that should they choose to reach the objectives (Harris, 2000; Botten, 2008). Source: Ansoff 1957 cited in Campbell and Craig, 2005 Output from this Ansoff Matrix is a growing strategies which are appropriate for every part of business. Igor Ansoff stated that there are 4 strategies in Ansoff Matrix, they are: 1). Market Penetration, 2). Product Development, 3). Market Development, and 4). Diversification (Graham and Allan, 2008). V.1. Market Penetration The company is trying to reach the existing market with product that has existed too. This is the safest step because it has lesser risk than any other strategies. Usually, companies use this strategy to attract their competitors customers. Tata Motors used this strategy when they reached UK market by take over Jaguar-Land Rover, Tata Motors did not just concentrate on the new products line that they can produce from the two companies above but instead, Tata Motors still producing Tata Indica in the market (Tata Motors, 2003). V.2. Product Development The company offer new product to the present market. This is an important strategy to give fresh breath to the market. The new product will attract more customers from the existing market. The first product development of Tata Motors was Tata Sierra, their first passanger vehicle. Tata Sierra was marketed in 1991. And that was the first step of Tata Motors to develop their product and future strategy (Tata Motors, 2010). Tata Motors also did product development when they started to produce Tata Nano in 2008, Ratan Tata thought about making the world cheapest car and produced it in the domestic market first, India (Tata Motors, 2009). The strategy was to sell affordable car to the people in the same time, expanding their market. Before that, Tata Motors developed the first mini-truck in India called Tata Ace. Tata Ace came to the market in 2005 and in 2 years time, they have sold 96,000 units of Tata Ace (Tata Motors, 2007). By marketing this product, Tata Motors expand their market to mini-truck segment and become market leader (Thakkar, 2010). As been stated in Businessworld website (2010), Tata Motors is planning to put Rs. 10,000 crore for product development. The investment will be used to cover their debt when purchasing Jaguar-Land Rover, to buy new technologies, and any other improvement. V.3. Market Development Use the present product that belong to the company and offer it to a new market. Many MNE usually use this strategy to reach wider market domestically and internationally. Some examples of market development are: expanding to another country, selling the product to a different market segment, and using the product for different function (Graham and Allan, 2008). Tata Motors has developed their market overseas; they reached South Korea market in 2004, Spain market in 2005, Thailand market in 2006, UK market in 2008, and many more. Tata Motors sells their existing product like buses, trucks, and cars in those markets. Tata Motors is planning to make their market even wider by opening new companies in developing countries such as: Indonesia, Philippines, and Turkey (Tata Motors, 2010). V.4. Diversification This is a strategy whereby the company makes a new product and offers it to the new market. Diversification has higher risk than another strategies because the market and the product is new, but in the other side it could bring more profit to the company as it will bring new customers (Graham and Allan, 2008). Tata Motors diversified their product when they entered UK market and took over Jaguar-Land Rover in 2008 (Rao, 2009). It allowed Tata Motors to produced new products line, for example: Jaguar X-Type and Land Rover LRX (Kamath, 2009). New Venture Tata Motors main target market mostly is developing countries because developing countries seem to have fewer barriers to entry and the market is growing (Wentz, 2007). Tata Motors currently is famous with their Tata Nano, a one-lakh-car which is cheap in price; this car is only cost Rs. 100,000 or $ 2,500 (Tata Motors, 2010), this car really fits for developing countries which have lower GDP per capita, and also Tata Motors produces buses and trucks which is suitable for industrial country. It is proven by how they operate business with Thailand, in 2008, they managed to sell 600 big trucks (HT Media, 2009). To expand Tata Motors market, Indonesia will be chosen. Dilip Chenoy, director of Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) says that Indonesia has a very good market and it is showing an optimistic economy (Reuters, 2009). VI.1. Method of Business Entry The method of business entry that should Tata Motors do is Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). They did the same when they entry Thailand market; Tata Motors joint venture with Thornburi Automotive Assembly. And since Indonesia and Thailand has similar market, it will be good if they find a partner in Indonesia and joint venture with them (Bhattacharya, 2010). FDI has a lot of benefits to both sides. It gives advantage to the host country to develop their economy, enhance the technology, more capital and investment, and new product. To the original firm, it gives opportunity to expand the market, easier marketing process, and surely will bring more profit to the company (Graham and Spaulding, 2005). Indonesia has become target for FDI to so many companies in many countries. Lots of Multi National Enterprise (MNE) planted their business there (Afrida, 2010). Foreign Capital Investment Law No. 1 of 1967, amended by Law No. 11 of 1970 regulates FDI (Expat Association Jakarta, 2010). VI.2. Porters Five Forces Analysis This theory was found by Michael Porter. It is used to analyze competition between industries. It says that a company should not be only competitor oriented but also has a clear market vision, Porter explains that our potential competitors are those infant industries, suppliers, customers and buyers, and substitute product producers. Therefore we have to know 5 forces that determine the character of one industry, they are: The threat of new entrants, Rivalry among existing competitors, The threat of substitute products or services, The bargaining power of buyers, The bargaining power of suppliers (Porter, 1979). Source: Porter 1979 cited in Harvard Business Review, 2008 This theory will help us to understand the Indonesia market for Tata Motors, by using its 5 factors it will be easier to know the market strength and opportunity. First is The threat of new entrants. This force is usually influenced by barriers to entry. For example: laws and regulation, access to materials, tariff, investment cost, etc. The more barriers to entry, the lower the threat of new entrants. Tata Motors must be aware for this threat if they want to come to Indonesia. Indonesias market for Tata Nano seems good because most of the cities in Indonesia are crowded and often jammed so the small and cheap car like Tata Nano will be on demand (Chaudhary, 2009). The new entrants which can give threat for Tata Motors such as: Intelligent Geely, a  £1,500 car by China Geely Automobile (The Economist, 2008) and also Maruti Ritz by Maruti Suzuki (Autocar, 2010). So, Tata Motors must maintain the loyalty of its customers by always giving the best services and always produce not only cheap but also good quality cars. Second is Rivalry among existing competitors. It is the most common thing in business world. If the business has many competitors, it could give disadvantages to the company because they share the same amount of customers (Royer, 2005). Tata Motors will have many competitors in Indonesia, such as: Honda, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Daihatsu, and many more. Each brand has their own competitive advantage, so Tata Motors have to make sure that they are strong enough to enter the market by keep innovate their cars, keep the low price, and promote more (Landge, 2010). Third is The threat of substitute products or services. This theory investigates how many substitutes that the product has in the market. The existence of substitute product will block up the producer freedom for price setting (Morrison, 2008). The high price of oil sometimes lower down the demand for car, especially nowadays when the oil price has reached $87/barrel (OPEC, 2010). People might substitute it with bicycle, motorcycle, or hybrid car which is popular recently. The strategies that Tata Motors should do are produce good quality cars, innovative products, and keep update with latest technology (Humad, 2005). Fourth is The bargaining power of buyers. The more products that the company has will bring a more choices to the buyers which will make their position become stronger. Buyers or customers are the main key for company, because they bring sales and profit (Miles, 1995). The target customer for Tata Nano is moderate to low level because it is affordable. The cheap price will bring positive respond from Indonesia market (OConnor, 2008). And the last one is The bargaining power of suppliers. This explains how important a supplier to a company. If lets say there are only a few suppliers in the market, the material will become rare and the bargaining power for the suppliers will be higher (Peng, 2008). Tata Motors Indonesia will still depend on their suppliers in India, so they need to maintain close relationship to the suppliers especially when the demand increases (Sachin, 2010). Conclusion Tata Motors, India largest automobile company has proven that they are countable in automobile industry. They are successful to reach domestic market and global market. Now, Tata Motors has reached market in 26 countries worldwide, from South America, Africa, Europe, and some part of Asia. This condition forces them to know every single countrys political, economical, socio-cultural and technological issues and operates the business according to that. The headquarters in Mumbai (India) is responsible to balance and to control how the subsidiaries in many countries operate their production because political changing and conflicts always exists. Tata Motors might face many competitors from the whole world, but to stand still and conquer the competitors is by developing products and keep innovating, this will give competitive advantage to Tata Motors. In these 2-3 years time, Tata Motors will invest to enhance their technology and cover their debts. This is a very good action from Tata Motors to show how integrated and strong they are. However, Tata Motorss step is not over yet, they are still expanding the business through many strategies. Developing new products and covering new market will always be their main purpose. Their vision is: Best in the manner in which we operate, best in the products we deliver, and best in our value system and ethics Ratan Tata. Word Count: 4677 words

John Steinbecks East of Eden - Biblical Symbols and Symbolism Essay e

Biblical Symbolism in East of Eden    Throughout the novel East of Eden, Steinbeck uses many biblical references to illustrate clearly the conflict between the opposing forces of good and evil. Much of the plot of East of Eden is centered upon the two sets of brothers representing Cain and Abel.   Both pairs are similar to Cain and Abel in the way they go about winning their fathers’ favors.   All four give gifts to their fathers, and the fathers dismiss the gifts of Charles and Caleb, the Cain representations (Marks, Jay Lester. p.121).   Caleb and Charles Trask are obviously the more malignant brothers.   They are also the more loving towards their father.   Steinbeck’s purpose in this is to illustrate the need of the Cain character in the story.   Abel, Adam and Aron, is the opposite of his brother and naturally good and pure.   The purpose of Adam and Aron in East of Eden is to clarify the belief that purity must know wickedness (Marks, Jay Lester. p.122).   Steinbeck illustrates the nee d for both good and bad with the actions and beliefs of these supposed â€Å"good† characters.   The representations of Abel, Adam and Aron are both described as unloving.   Adam has not treated his children fairly and his treatment is caused by his innate goodness.   Aron grows as an ignorant selfish person because he is naturally good (Fonterose, Joseph.   p. 3382).  Ã‚   Steinbeck uses Cain to illustrate the choice man has.   In the case of Charles, Cain dies an unhappy man who did not live a worthwhile life, Caleb on the other hand, chose to realize his dark past, but chose to continue living his life with hope (Marks, Jay Lester.   p. 122-123).     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In Steinbeck’s East of Eden he is constantly using single characters to illustrate many differen... ....   Because of man’s evil heritage, being descendent of Cain, he is naturally forgiven for any breach in purity (Levant, Howard. p. 244).     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Steinbeck’s references and allusions to the bible are very obvious.   Although they are most apparent when taking the story of Genesis: 4 into consideration, the more subtle devices are equally as useful to Steinbeck to prove his point.   His beliefs of the relationship between good and evil are easily understood with the allusions that are exercised.   Works Cited Fontenrose, Joseph. John Steinbeck: An Introduction and Interpretation. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1963. Levant, Howard. The Novels of John Steinbeck: A Critical Study. Columbia: U of Missouri P, 1974. Marks, Lester Jay. Thematic Design in the Novels of John Steinbeck. The Hague: Mouton, 1969. Steinbeck, John. East of Eden. New York: Viking, 1952.

Milton Friedmans Economic Theories Essays -- Economics

History and Background Before the introduction of Keynesian economics and Milton Friedman’s Monetarism theory, there was classical economics. These economists believed in self-adjusting market mechanisms, however with that the market needs perfect competition. Wages and prices in the market must be flexible. These economists believe that supply and demand pulls would always help the economy reach full employment. Full employment could be achieved by the market forces and with that changes the level of employment resulting in a fixed income and aggregate output. They believed that fixed income was a result of full employment and the price level was established by the supply of money in the economy. Since classical economist believed that it was the market that leads to full employment in the economy, they thought the market could do without any government intervention. Government spending and taxes cause overall harm to economy because it would decrease individual spending and private consumption. Raising taxes on private consumption would only help fund public consumption and pay for government spending. Classical economist’s theory of monetary policy was thought to only affect prices and wouldn’t affect truly important factors such as employment. It was a major concern that if the government was to finance its’ spending only by increasing how much money was produced then it would have the same out come as expansionary monetary policy. Classical economists found that their original theories were problematic when the Great Depression hit the United States. They originally argued that the market was self-adjusting so with no government intervention they thought it would automatically correct itself. They thought tha... ...://www.econtalk.org/archives/2010/02/phelps_on_unemp.html 3. Kevin D. Hoover. "Phillips Curve." The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. 2008. Library of Economics and Liberty. Retrieved May 25, 2010 from the World Wide Web: http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/PhillipsCurve.html 4. Krugman, P. (2007, February 15). Who was Milton Friedman. Retrieved May 22, 2010, from http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2007/feb/15/who-was-milton-friedman/?pagination=false 5. Friedman, M., & Schwartz, A. (1963). A Monetary History of the United States 1865-1960. National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved April 21, 2010, from GoogleBooks 6. Alan S. Blinder. "Keynesian Economics." The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. 2008. Library of Economics and Liberty. Retrieved May 28, 2010 from the World Wide Web: http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/KeynesianEconomics.html

America Is in the Heart

America Is In the Heart Summary The plot of America is in the Heart parallels its author's personal experiences. The protagonist, who is also named Carols (though he goes by the nickname ‘Also' when In the Philippines and tells others to call him ‘Carl' while in the united States) Is a young boy working with his father on their farm in the Philippines at the book's opening.After a period of working throughout the island of Luzon Carols immigrates to the united States, where he continues to work as a migrant laborer until he realizes he is capable of writing in English and pledges to bring his family members jack to life through the written word. He also often uses literature to connect with the united States Itself; Carols reads classic American authors like Whitman and Melville in an attempt to discover and understand a side of the united States far removed from the prejudice and pain of the American society he found himself in.On one occasion Carols and some acquaintanc es were attacked by a group of white men for no reason other than their race, only to be greatly aided by the white men and women working in a hospital. Walking down the marble stairway of the hospital, I began to wonder at the paradox of America. Joss ©'s tragedy was brought about by railroad detectives, yet he had done no harm of any consequence to the company. On the highway, again, motorists had refused to take a dying man. And yet in this hospital, among white people– Americans like those who had denied us– we had found refuge and tolerance.Why was America so kind and yet so cruel? Was there no way to simplifying things in this continent so that suffering would be minimized? Was there no common denominator on which we could all meet? I was angry and confused, and wondered if I would ever understand this paradox. (Bulbous 147) The rod â€Å"paradox† perfectly summarizes Carols' experiences in the United States. Like Carols searched for America through the works of great American authors, the reader can look through Bullion's work and glimpse at an early 20th century America in conflict with itself.The 1 united States, which had Just entered the long years of the Great Depression when Carols arrives In Seattle, is revealed In the novel as consisting of two very different halves, and Carols is constantly vexed by the inconsistent nature of the United States. In America Carols experiences both great kindnesses and great realties, often within the same moment, and this strange combination often drives Carols to tears. He experiences no shortage of prejudice in the united States, and the results of these prejudices range from verbal slights to severe physical and sexual abuse.Yet despite the many hardships and prejudices Carols faces, he comes to think of America in a very positive light?the kindnesses he benefits from in the United States combine with a more intangible sense of hope in the potential of America. Within Bullion's work the reader finds tropes that should sound familiar to anyone who has taken elementary school American history classes; there is assurance and a faint tint of pride in the possibilities of America; by the end of the novel Carols has faith that this is a nation where great things can and do happen, and he ends the novel by stating that nothing will ever take this faith from him again.By recognizing the two halves of this paradox and forgiving the united States for its comes to with his various inconsistent childhood and adult perceptions of America. His ability to not only make these understandings but allow them to evolve throughout his time in the United States makes Bulbous a credible and fascinating source of information on the America that he lived within and further complicates the already tangled and wide-ranging opinions of what the word â€Å"American† should mean at all.By allowing his audience to peek into his experiences through his protagonist and namesake, Carols Bulb ous shows how America both defines and is defined by the masses who venture onto its shore in an attempt to find the lives they were meant to live. The Small Key Summary â€Å"The Small Key† is a beautiful account of the feeling of a man, whose first wife died, ND his second wife. As the story opens Lateran describes in a few lines the rural setting of the story. The man and his wife live far from any neighbors. Their house is surrounded by wild bamboo.Her husband is a very hard working prosperous farmer. They are having lunch and the man cannot linger as the fields need plowing. His wife is not feeling well so as he leaves he tells her he will ask Tia Maria, an aunt or a neighbor, to stop by. Once the husband is gone the wife begins to fold his coat. A small key falls to the floor and the woman, in her late twenties, looks almost old. She tries to throw herself into her work on the laundry but her eyes keep going too small trunk in the corner of the room. She knows in that t runk are the clothes of her husband's late first wife.She tries to tell her self what does it matter if her husband keeps the clothes of his first wife, after all she is dead. She begins to wonder why her husband feels he has to carry to key to the chest with him in his coat when he leaves the house. When the husband arrives home happy that the plowing is completed, Tia Maria meets him at the gate and tells him his wife is sick. The Small Key† is a short story by Philippine author Pas Lateran. It is about a woman named Solaced who is married to a man named Pedro Bubby. They live on a farm.One morning Solaced finds herself knowing that the farm will produce plenty but that she still had some inner feeling of discontent. She planned to mend some of her husband's shirts, which were in a locked trunk. Pedro took out from his pocket a string which held two keys, one large and shiny and one small and rusty. He gave Solaced the large key to his trunk and put the small key back in his Jacket pocket. Since it was hot that morning, he removed his coat before leaving to work in the field. When he was gone, Solaced began to fold the Jacket and the small key fell to the floor.It is obvious that Pedro values the small key while Solaced fears it. Solaced knows that the small key is a key to a different trunk. She tries to busy herself so that she will not think about what the smaller trunk contains, but she cannot stop thinking about it and reveals that the small trunk contains clothing that belonged to Padre's first wife. She wonders why it is that he keeps her old clothing and why he seems to eave a special feeling about them. She obviously fears that Pedro still loves his first wife even though she has been dead for many years by now.She reveals that she hates the things in the small trunk and worries that they will destroy the relationship of the small trunk, Solaced opens it. At this point, Pedro returns home to find Solaced in bed supposedly with a fever. It turn s out she does not. The next morning Pedro discovers a pile of ashes and half burnt clothing in the backyard. He realizes what Solaced has done and rushes to look in the trunk to confirm it. Solaced has indeed, earned his first wife's clothing. Pedro is angry and bitter that this has happened and he expects that Soloed will explain things later.He thinks to himself that he will forgive her because he loves her but that even if she did it out of love for him, it will always remain a matter of some resentment toward her for doing it. The Summer Solstice Summary â€Å"Summer Solstice† is a short story that has received recognition both critical and praising. Written by Nick Joaquin, the story takes place in sass Philippines during the festival days of SST. John. There is a pro-woman feel to the story, which has rendered a lot of debate and attention considering the setting is in a time where women must be submissive.In this analysis, learn about the setting, the themes and symbo lism that this short and interesting story incarnates. The Train, or otherwise known as the Tartaric, was a three day festival that celebrated a ritual of fertility. This was done only by women. Many men frowned upon the extravagant dances and plays surrounding the ritual. â€Å"Summer Solstice† is set during the three days of the SST. John's festival. Lupine, a Filipino woman who feels closed to her womanhood, is aired to Paean, who is no doubt loyal to her.They have three small boys and live a somewhat wealthy life as they have a Cambridge driver named Entry and a maid and cook named Mad. Guide is a cousin of Paeans who comes back to the Philippines after studying in Europe. The story starts when the family is enjoying the days of the SST. John's festival until Guide makes suggestive comments to Lupine, and even bending down to kiss her feet. This makes her leave abruptly and have a discussion with her husband the coming night. Lupine secretly found herself intrigued by the attention of Guide; she felt that he was correct in saying that women should be ravished and men should adore them.This causes her to participate in the last night of the festival, which is the Train ritual. Paean goes with her and tries to drag her back once the dancing begun, but she runs from him to the women. He tries to take her back but the women in the crowds beat him out, leaving him helpless. As the two return home, Paean says he must whip his wife because he loves her and feels that she needs to be put in her place. To this, she shouts and says she wants to be adored, not respected and orders him to kiss her feet. America Is In The Heart I. Authors Biography Carlos Bulosan is said to be one of the earliest and most influential of Asian American writers. 1 He was a Filipino born on November 2, 1911 in Pangasinan to a rural and peasant family in the village of Mangusmana located near the town of Binalonan. His family strived to make both ends meet to make a living and send their children to school like many other Filipinos at that time of economic turmoil; brought by the increasing wealth and power possessed by the elite. Carlos, committed to help support his family, went searching for a better life for himself, continued his education, and made the choice to travel to America with high hopes to reach his ambitions.II. Summary American is in the Heart is the autobiography of Carlos Bulosan, who begins his story by narrating his childhood life in his town Mangusmana. He lives alongside his father in a farm where they both work in. On the other hand, his mother lives in the city with one of his brothers and younger siste r. Because of this living arrangement, Carlos has never met some of his older siblings. One of the sons Macario is said to be â€Å"the hope of the family†. They hope that when he graduates he will return home and find a teaching job to help support their family and pay their debts. He attends high school in another village, and because of this their family pawns their land one hectare at a time in order to compensate for his expenses. Unfortunately, things don’t go as the family hopes for and Macario loses the teaching job.Due to the harsh economic conditions at that time, children like Carlos were working and doing what they could to help support their families. Carlos, at five years of age eventually moved to Binalonan to work in the fields. His salary goes to his mother for paying the moneylender, and to Macario’s schooling. When he isn’t working the fields, he is with his mother, assisting her with her barter business that allowed him to travel to  neighboring villages with her. In these villages, Carlos observed the middle class and their way of life, and later on he grows a loathing towards them.Whilst in the Philippines, Amando, Macario, and Carlos were made to believe that America stood for equality and justice, and ultimately they all separately make their journey to America. Upon their arrival in America, they are faced with the brutal reality of the great exploitation that the Filipinos are subjected to by the Whites. Carlos is amazed by ruthlessness and inhuman treatment that the Whites have shown toward Filipinos, and is forced to move place to place due to one misfortunate event after another. Carlos struggles to sustain a job with a close to nothing salary and with unsanitary living conditions, but his job and stay is always immediately cut short when conflict stirs between Filipinos and Whites forcing him to flee to another town. To add to his pitiful state, many times he is beaten and assaulted because of the dis crimination the Americans have toward the Filipinos.Ultimately Carlos and his companions develop a sense of activism, and fought for the Filipinos and their rights in Filipino labor and rights movements. Their effort to assemble the workers brought them right into the conflict involving agricultural interests. Their labor movement ultimately became associated with revolutionary units. In the succeeding events of his life, Carlos is diagnosed with tuberculosis, and was said to been confined in the hospital for a period of two years.Once he was released, he and his friends grew to be greatly involved in the movement for Filipino civil rights. They then assembled a group of Filipinos with the ambition of achieving American citizenship for Filipinos in America. Unfortunately their efforts were not enough and they loose the fight. When the time came that World War II erupted, Carlos and his fellow Filipinos were prohibited from enlisting in the army. Even to the point where the Philippin es was being occupied and seized, they were still disallowed to enlist. Due to this, the Filipinos where forced to start a movement fighting for their desire to join the armed forces, which eventually resulted with the United States president giving a special proclamation that would allow Filipinos to do so.III. Analysis America Is In the Heart being an autobiography novel, it didn’t have that much symbolism. It was a straightforward novel and the author Bulosan, narrated the events of his life clearly and vividly. Throughout the story, you can’t help but feel sorry for him (Buloson) and all the tragedies and struggles he encountered. To rate this novel, I would say that I have nothing too criticizing to comment about it.The plot is very similar to other stories involving the struggles of Filipinos whilst under the power of oppressors. Overall, the novel was a good reminder and eye opener on the reality of discrimination showed toward Filipinos, which is still very muc h relevant today. Also, it reminds us of the strong fighting spirits that Filipinos possess. This novel is certainly a good piece of literature that is purely and truly Filipino.IV. Insights The life story of Carlos Bulosan in â€Å"America In The Heart† is something I can greatly empathize with. I like himself, went to America at a very young age of nine, with a hopeful heart that America was a land of opportunity. In school I was thought that America fought for equality and everyone was given the same opportunities. I thought, I could go see all the places that I saw in movies, and I generally thought my family and I would have a better life. My naà ¯ve nine-year-old heart was shattered after a few months, when I learned that America isn’t all that beautiful, as it seemed, especially for Filipino Migrants.Finding work was hard even with an undergraduate diploma. Filipinos were looked down on because of how â€Å"uncivilized† the Philippines was. And based on observation, some Americans really do tend to show a bias toward Filipinos. At that point, I then missed our comfortable home and lifestyle back in the Philippines. We had time to go out with the family and enjoy the good things in life; while in the States my parents rarely were home at the same time due to work, and the main agenda was paying the bills.Sometimes we Filipinos complain a whole lot about our country. We aspire for  the western life, and what it can give to us. I think a big reason why this is so, is because throughout history we have always been so oppressed by these western nations. We were made to believe that these nations will always be better, but if there’s one thing that I’ve learned it’s that: we Filipinos are hardworking, loyal, and God fearing people, and possessing these attributes bring us far and past the hardships given to us. America is in the Heart This work is the author’s autobiography. Carlos Bulosan was a Filipino, born and raised to his youth in the largely agricultural province of Pangasinan in the Philippines. His family was of peasant background and together, all of them worked to make the fields productive (p. 4-5). They were uneducated, as first they could not afford it and second, they did not see its need in the backbreaking, manual labor of growing corn.However, as the farm gate prices of farm produce remained low and the price of farm inputs continuously increased together with basic necessities, the family was forced to be at the mercy of moneylenders at exorbitant interests. Unable to pay their ballooning debts, they were eventually dispossessed of the land which was their sole means of survival (p. 15-16). Thus, hiring themselves out was the only way to avoid their early demise. The Philippines, from the author’s birth (1913) to the time of his writing, was under U.S. colonization. This a period l asted from 1989 to 1946, the latter coinciding with the work’s first publication. The American governorship did not pursue large-scale industrialization as an economic policy in that country so that the available industries in the urban areas could not absorb the displaced peoples from the countryside. The economic alternative presented by emigration was embraced when all other means of survival in one’s own country have failed.It is a choice that espoused both hopes and despair – hopes for a better financial situation and despair at uprooting one’s self from family, community and country. Emigration is not a purely individual exercise of freedom of choice but has underlying social factors. For a Filipino, American culture is not something unfamiliar. The colonial mentality which pervaded the educated upper and middle classes, sought to emulate the ideals and lifestyles of America (p. 20). What was American was described as superior or any other superlati ve.This view eventually diffused to the poor, working class. However, the author’s experiences in the 1930’s and 40’s were quite contradictory with what he expected. The tenets of democracy, equality and economic progress espoused by the U. S. to the whole world were challenged by the brutality of racial discrimination. The color of one’s skin severely limited the availability of economic opportunities. The author and his brothers who left for America found their dreams shattered with the scarcity of long term jobs. They eventually engaged in the seasonal harvests in the West.The author has written a life story of his bitter, personal struggles in this book, of working in canneries and taking on other odd jobs in between harvests just to be able to live and send some money back home to his family. With no legal or organizational means to advance their collective rights, Carlos Bulosan (a. ka. Allos) and other Filipinos were susceptible to exploitative wor king conditions. As such, Filipinos and other immigrants of color were faced with the immense challenges of establishing a decent living and security in life.This seemed insurmountable as discrimination is not something that depends on personal beliefs but is a practice actually institutionalized in American society. Labor laws and social norms defined the place of people of color in all spheres of life. Personal rage developed from continually being looked down on and referred to such derisive terms as monkeys and law breakers. Being a Filipino at that time who merely speaks to a white woman was taboo. The added pressures of perennial unemployment, hunger and disease has caused immigrants during Allos’ time to engage in excessive drinking and violent acts.This was regarded as the only venue of expressing resistance to such inhuman treatments and as a temporary relief to such a painful situation. Although racial discrimination was rampant during his time, the author overcame his subjective opinion that all Americans were racists. This was because he encountered many Americans who were humanitarian and even advocates of immigrant, labor and racial discrimination issues. Thus, his hopelessness was replaced with a conscious determination to change current situations.He joined a labor union and became active as one of its leaders in the fight for job security, better labor remunerations and benefits and equal treatment of cannery workers. His efforts were made not just for the present or for himself but for all other Filipino-American workers in the cannery. This consciousness shows how, despite his negative experiences, he has come to see himself as part of American society and to contribute to the creation of better living conditions in it.In a sense, this constituted a form of nationalism, of finally identifying one’s self with a country that was originally not your own, and cultivating a love for it despite its flaws. It has also opened to him th e availability of other tools of expression – writing. The book’s title, â€Å"America is in the Heart†, captures the experience of an immigrant becoming a citizen – that race and country of origin does not preclude you to be an American, you only have to develop a heart for it. EvaluationUsing in poetic prose, Carlos Bulosan’s work is a clearly written, direct-to-the-point, tell-it-like-it-is account of the horrors in his immigrant experience. Valid in this case, the author does not claim it to be typical of Filipino-American experience. His eventual reunification with his family also constituted such a â€Å"happy ending† that may not be a commonplace experience during his time because of distance and financial constraints. Although the book conveys the author’s honesty, a downside of it is its lack of complexity.The presence of consistent historical, time and place references could have made it a more useful source for Filipino imm igrant studies. These references enable us to put into proper context such personal experience, contributing to our further understanding of it. Because experience is removed from its social context, we can not judge it to be representative of the immigrant, colored or Filipino experience and much less representative of the sector’s experience during the early to mid 1900’s.Its value is appreciated through a deeper understanding of the Philippine social context, early American laws and norms with regards to immigrants and that period characterized by the Great Depression. It complements existing studies and researches on the plight of Filipino-American immigrants by providing an actual experience to theoretical frameworks. It also serves as a concretization of concepts of race and ethnicity which may be unfamiliar to many Americans.Because of his background as a union organizer, the work as expected, espouses Marxist or Socialist ideas characteristic of the labor movem ent. Still, the strongly worded concretization of an immigrant’s experience serves to remind every American about our disregard, misconceptions or denial of the existence of racial discrimination. It challenges us to search for the causes of our prejudice and to develop our society to conform to our ideals. This work is central to the theme of multi-culturalism and the need for acceptance and tolerance. ConclusionThis book is for those who wish to understand foremost the Filipino-American experience and complements existing knowledge on racial, ethnic, immigrant and labor issues. At a time when anti-immigrant sentiments seem to be on the rise in our society and our economic stability seems uncertain, America is in the Heart an easy read so that we may have an objective view of why this is happening. This we can accomplish without falling into the pit of prejudice ourselves. List of References Bulosan, C. (1974). America is in the Heart. Washington: University of Washington Pr ess.

Caliban as a Sympathetic Character Essay

In the play â€Å"The Tempest†, Shakespeare introduces us to several different characters, each identified individually with their contrasting attitudes, nature and prior circumstances that have brought them to a deserted isle in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea. Shakespeare creates characters that exemplify the relationship between human nature and contemporary civilization and the distinction between men and monsters. The character of Caliban is known to its complexity and numerous aspects, depths and sides to it. Caliban, the only native of the island is a vulgar, malice slave that is often referred to a beast. He is the son of the witch Sycorax and his Father is unknown, hence associated with the devil and he was said to be â€Å"littered† on the island, a word generally used to describe the birth of animals. Shakespeare describes Caliban as a pure product of nature, of whom he is uncontrolled, wild, savage, innocent and uncorrupted by the influence of civilization. He is uneducated, untrained and uncivilized, a creature of the earth, being almost literally dug out of the ground. Caliban used to own the island, however, was naà ¯ve enough to allow a foreigner (Prospero) to enter his most valued occupation and abduct it from him. Caliban and Prospero appear to have had an affectionate relationship, through Prospero educating him and offering him a shelter in his own cave, an intimate favor demonstrating compassion and abundant generosity as well as Caliban showing him all the parts of the island. Caliban takes Prospero’s affection for granted and underestimates Prospero’s power and magic, accordingly acts in an aggressive manner in an attempt to rape Miranda. This causes the reader to be repulsed by his disgusting behavior, almost sensing animosity that Caliban does not display the minimal appreciation of Prospero’s considerable kindness. At this point, the reader can easily understand why Prospero treats him so poorly, and almost feel as if he deserves to be treated in such way, that he was not accounted and aware of the consequences that accompany such action and therefore had brought his situation upon himself. Consequently, the question remains, if Caliban had controlled his impulses, and held back his barbarous instincts, would he  really had found himself in a better- off situation, or is being mistreated a part of his nature and fate?

Religion and Ecology Essay

Every thread of the problems faced by the present human society can be traced back to first industrial revolution of late 18th century and early 19th century that took place in Britain and from where it was embraced by the entire world. The industrial revolution set in motion the process of changes that have since then subsequently transformed the character of not only human society but of entire earth (Gatta, 7). Air, water, land and sky, all bear the effects of the changes inflicted by human march through industrial revolution and the effects have not been pleasant by any order. The modern society is the product of new-classical theory of economics and the anthropocentric view of environment, both of which advocates completely human centered progress and development utilizing all the resources and potentials of the nature and the environment around them (Nassar, 40-46). This view has been at the core of all the human activities and development planning taking place since more than 200 years now and it has encouraged massive rate of consumption and utilization of all the natural resources at an ever increasing scale. As almost a direct evidence of the expanding human footprint on earth, our population has increased from 1 billion to around 7 billion in past 150 years (Gatta, 20). This growth is based on the foundation of an efficient but brutal system that mastered the art of misusing the full spectrum of available natural resources, causing their widespread destruction, contamination, and debilitation. Examples of this destruction can be seen in extensive deforestation around the world, rapid destruction of rainforests in Brazil and Africa, fertile soil erosion, severe contamination of several important rivers of world due to continuous effluence of industrial and municipal sewage, air pollution, ozone layer destruction, depletion of non renewable energy resources especially oil and natural gas, global warming and climatic change. The extensive damage to the natural resources and ecology has deeply imbalanced the natural system, creating a disharmony and conflict with human development and its environment. The destruction of ecology and nature have caused unprecedented rise in extinction rates of animals and plants, who have found their ecological niches disappearing due to human activities. The emergence of massive urban centers around the world where millions of people live within few square kilometers of area exert tremendous pressure on the environmental sources which has put earth’s biodiversity and consequently humanity’s own survival chances at risk (Gatta, 62). The threat that human development is causing to the entire living world, including its own self, has not remained unnoticed and there many global social and political movements have started during past 30 years, with sincere intentions and efforts to create and implement an alternative system of social and economic model where human interests and development share a symbiotic relationship with nature, environment and ecology; where advancement and development have mutual linkage across the entire natural continuum (Nassar, 68). These efforts have been so far varyingly successful, where some countries and regions have adopted one set of selective steps for ecological integration, while others have adopted different set of steps, all determined by their economic convenience and financial constructs (Gatta, 65-69). This has led to an inward analysis and evaluation process in ecology and environmental thinking, which looks at the very basics of our social development and structure and try to re-align them with many old and yet existing religious and community view of social development, which is embedded in ecology and environment. But the question of human pressure and influence on its ecology has several parallel sides, each of which poses its own crucial question. The first question that comes up is that, is human species is constrained by any limiting factor- does its growth and expansion has a maximum attainable size, or can it continue to swell indefinitely, maximizing the resources for itself, for its need for infinite consumption and consequently infinite growth? If this is not possible , then is it possible for human beings to exist and thrive in exact optimum conditions, where population growth, consumption requirements, and growth needs are exactly balanced with the ecosystem, and stay in this balance forever? If the attainment of this balance is not possible then does it mean that for its own survival humanity is causing destruction of other species, destabilizing the ecosystem, and tripping the biosphere? (Gatta, 141-147) Religion and Ecology While all the religions of world have a strong foundation in ethical learning and teachings, with distinct emphasis on concepts of good and bad, divine presence, and determinism, the ancient cultures and indigenous traditions have taken this concept much further to include divinity and God as a part of their local environment and daily living system. The essential principle is same in all the religions, which states that God has created the entire world, including all the nature features, plants and animals, and human beings. However, as it is seen, some of the earlier interpretations of modern religions, such as Christianity, took a rather human centric religious approach (Gatta, 208). In essence, they popularized the notion that man is designed to be the ultimate consumer of all the natural resources, or in other words, the whole natural world exists in order to serve and meet human needs and requirements. This view in considered as one of the acting principle behind neo classical theory of economics as well as anthropocentric world view as discussed earlier. The view of ancient and traditional cultures and religions does not take such an exclusive view of human influence. For example it does not recognize human beings as isolated and separated from their surrounding environment and ecology, neither it sees humans as controller of the natural resources and final arbitrator of their destiny (Nassar, 71). The learning that we receive from these traditional cultures and religions is that we must recognize ourselves as parts of a widely distributed and ranging biotic communities and ecosystems, each of which has its own important role to play in design and creation of God and nature. Human beings occupy a very important niche in nature, but yet its only one of the numerous niches, while the complete scope of the ecology goes much beyond the human considerations and interests (Gatta, 219). Then, there are many internal and subtle relations present between man’s interaction with nature and vice versa. Ecology is not only a biological function of our existence but it also regulates the cultural gradient, the behavioral landscape and the social outlook of people. Therefore, when we deeply disturb the ecosystem through persistent and determined set of harmful activities- acidification of natural resources, toxifying land and water bodies, resource depletion, modification and destruction of habitats and unintended or deliberate elimination of native species, then we destroy our cultural tie from the ecosystem. Howe we act and when we act should always remain attuned to our environmental and ecological perspective. The lessons from the past, and the ecological wisdom of ancient religions should form our guiding principles at every stage of intervention or interference in the ecosystem. Taking a step ahead, it should create a pro-active approach to look into the possible avenues of meaningful interference and interaction to search for, identify and implement the ways in which our impact on our own ecosystem is as free of protuberance as possible (Gatta, 223-232). Our actions should be well reasoned out and their consequences considered in all the possible ranges. The ecosystem balance is dependent upon a vast number of factors, many of them yet unknown or improperly understood, and therefore even an unintended disturbance on our part produce enormous and unexpected ecological backlash. These backlashes symbolize the failure of man’s relation with nature, failure of the understanding and appreciation of ecosystem’s intrinsic value in defining the human niche, and a failure to secure corrective steps to improve the interaction. The ancient and indigenous cultures, such as Inca, red Indians, Buddhism and Chinese culture, took a very different view of the role of humanity in the nature’s order. They did not see nature and its bountiful gifts as resources that require taming, mastering and exploitation. Quite contrary, they viewed man in a wholesome, nurturing and co-dependent relation with the nature, where every aspect of nature, whether it’s a tree or an animal, shares a relationship with the man. Explaining the meaning and depth of this relationship, the older religions and cultures state that as the entire nature is a creation of the God, therefore it’s every part is a close a representation of God, and hence their destruction or violation is a direct violation of God’s own creation (Gatta, 237-241). This idea is further developed in eastern religions where man is viewed as just one part of the infinite range of nature’s creations, with no superiority or ascendency accorded to him over other forms of life or natural features. Human being hold a place in the continuum of natural order, but apart from their wisdom, there is nothing to distinguish them, or accord them the status of master of other resources. The implications of this view cut deep and profound, even for the standard of modern environmentalism and ecological movements. A majority of these movements still see the issue from the point of saving earth and nature from human desire and want of growth-insinuating a weak and fragile nature and a powerful human civilization which is threatening the vulnerable nature (Nassar, 91-96)! This is Older traditions, cultures and religions, take quite an opposite view on this issue, where they see human beings as fragile, vulnerable and dependent upon the nature for their own survival. Nature, on the other hand is all powerful, protean, strong, and controlling lives and deaths-in fact nature is deemed so powerful that it is worshipped in many ancient civilizations and we can see why- the human survival is impossible if the nature dies around (Nassar, 107-111). We have always considered the nature and ecology as taken for granted in our environment; however, if we once stop to consider the situation when all the standing forests have been cut down, all the rivers polluted and turned into industrial sewage, all the natural diversity in animal and vegetation life lost on account of human exploits then it is not difficult to see that the this situation signifies the end of humanity as well-with no resources left, no natural cover to fall back, and left in a barren and dry world, human beings would run out of their capacity to struggle and survive (Gatta, 151-156). Thus the teachings of the indigenous cultures and older religions is towards ingraining humanity into a natural system that is based on mutual benefit, organic growth and interdependent development. This is a holistic, broad, and profound approach, which makes man a factor in the nature’s grand design of world, brining understanding, compassion, humbleness and realization of the coherence and integrity that is pre-requisite for our existence. Reference Gatta, John. Making Nature Sacred: Literature, Religion, and Environment in America from the Puritans to the Present. Oxford University Press, 2004. 291 p. Nasar, Sayyed Hossein. Religion & the Order of Nature. Oxford University Press, 1996 . 312 p