Film Critique The Queen Essay

Movie roles performed by high caliber actors and actresses of living icons are always the hardest to portray. Helen Mirren’s portrayal of HRH Queen Elizabeth II, has given us an amazing resemblance (although without as much effects and make-up the resemblance ended) and an in-depth visual and emotional recognition of the British royal who was considered to be so distant and ethereal. I am more than glad that the Reston Multiplex Movie Theatre was comparably filled with older adults than the usual teenage movie goers so I was afforded the chance to concentrate on the film. Generally, the film may not appeal to the younger audience for its lack of pound for pound action and intrigue. However it does gives us an idea of how the British monarchy behaves, as the apex of the British class system. We seldom see portrayals that are free from bias especially when the subjects are as famous and influential as the Queen and her family. But the events that catapulted them into the public eye may have relieved them of their tight bond to maintain their feelings to themselves. Diana’s death has given us glimpses into their private lives which the Queen vehemently tried to seclude her family from the curious and even blatant questions of the public and the press. We see how the Queen reacted and tried in earnest to maintain her stance and tradition to shy away from the camera and the public even as the image-conscious PM Tony Blair continued to cajole the Queen and her family out of their shells. It has also given us an insight to the life the British Royal couple has led all these years which shows support for each other and a husband who is willing to stay behind the shadow of his wife and yet live admirably together in harmony. The family’s traditional and puritan values saw the British monarch trying to distance herself away from the prying eye of the media upon news of Diana’s death. The queen’s immediate concerns were for the â€Å"boys† alone after learning of the tradgedy while vacationing at Balmoral Castle, Scotland. Apparently Diana had fallen off from the royal family to warrant the kind of behavior and almost distant hatred even after learning the news of her accidental death. Public sentiment against the monarchy grew as the Queen and family continued to be absent from the public eye even as Britain grieved for the death of their princess. Seemingly, Diana had been closer to the Britons because she showed what it was like to live a fairy tale life in the beginning and showed to the world that the monarchy was not as invincible as it seems. Profoundly Diana has created a breathing, real life princess capable of feelings thereby creating a certain link of reality to the masses and thereby showing that the monarchy was no different from anyone. Eventually as grief poured, sentiments against the monarchy grew, which PM Tony Blair handled superbly thereby surging his popularity in tune with the national mood. He became closer to the British public and the world. His continued calls for the queen and the family to at least make statements were left ignored at first with Lord Mountbatten (James Cromwell) seemingly disgruntled over PM Blair’s (Michael Sheen) insistence. The Queen explained her position to Blair that Diana lost her relation to the royal family when she divorced her son, the Prince of Wales and insisted that mourning should be a private matter handled by her own family and not by the British Crown. Later on, the Queen who was known to stick to her principle gave in after mistakenly assuming that the public sentiment will slowly ebb over time. After so much criticism from the British tabloids for failing to offer any sign of condolence, and advice from Blair on how the royals should conduct out of public respect, the Queen finally gave in despite disagreement from her mother and gave a speech praising Diana’s life and work. The British flag was also allowed to fly at half mast and a public funeral was hosted in memory of Diana. The queen was then pushed into public view as Mirren’s brilliant performance showed her exact reaction while coming out to look at the flowers in front of the curious British public who was equally assailed with mixed emotions. It was a moment that I held my breath because I had seen the actual a dozen times on television and hardly noticed any difference. The scene showed Elizabeth’s graceful human side and strength both at the same time. Her candid response to the flowers given to her showed her awe that revealed her human nature that no amount of pretense a queen could mask. In effect, the movie was critical of the monarchy but candid and transparent in its portrayal that was sometimes funny and empathic. It evoked the true nature of the royal family’s behavior and sometimes leaves us questions of their simplicity or sarcasm in public statements. Martin Sheen’s portrayal of a young and enthusiastic Tony Blair also showed a generous amount of political set-up reminiscent of the time when PM Blair suddenly gained massive popularity following Diana’s death. His behavior was indeed fitted with the contemporary mixture of grief that called for human decency and respect during Diana’s death which the royal family had mixed initial feelings of. In summary, the movie showed to the world the importance of adapting to change as opposed to the views of rigid tradition which could have led to stagnation. It also showed us that family traditions and values are being questioned in the face of common contemporary behavior and modes. Public figures are always subjected to observation and ridicule because the public always love to know how public icons behave in the face of adversities and criticize any actions for consumption. The Queen (2006) Movie. Starring Helen Mirren as the Queen Elizabeth II; James Cromwell as Lord Mountbatten and Martin Sheen as PM Tony Blair.

Annalitical paragraph Miriam

Deanne C Why did Capote end the story this way? In the story â€Å"Miriam† by Truman Capote he purposefully created dual endings of this story. The dual ending theory is one that has been debated for years. One of the creepiest endings in this popular story is one where the character Miriam is actually an apparition that haunts Mrs.. Miller and refuses to leave. For example, in the last line of the story Mrs.. Miller says â€Å"Hello to Miriam† implying that Miriam has never left and plans to torment Mrs.. Miller forever.Capote chose this ending because it epic's mystery, suspense and creates an overall creepy undertone. This ending is a more â€Å"Hollywood† ending, thus increasing the enjoyment of the short story. However, in Capote's second ending this was a more light and upbeat ending that infuses hope into the reader. He ends the story with a clear moral message, always live your life to the fullest, and enjoy the little things. In this ending Mrs.. Miller investigates herself, and experiences a rude awakening when she finds out her real relationship with Miriam.As Capote illustrates In the story uniquely; Mrs.. Miller admits to herself â€Å"For the only thing that she had lost to Miriam was her Identity'. From this direct line from the story Capote conveys to the readers Mrs.. Millers anxiety was not really directed to Miriam, but the abrupt loss of her solitude life In which she has become so accustom to. In conclusion, Capote ended the story with dual endings depending on the reader's interpretation of the story. Capote's goal was to force the reader to choose an ending that best suits the person reading It.

European Studies Essays – Welfare State and the European Nations

Welfare State and the European Statesâ€Å"The phrase ‘welfare state’ was foremost used in the late thirtiess, to separate between the policies of the democracies and the war province of European dictators† ( Spicker, 2003 ) . From the late 19th century, characteristics of a public assistance province began emerge in parts of Western Europe. The first European state to set in topographic point a public assistance province was Germany in 1883. The so Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck introduced a compulsory national accident and illness insurance jurisprudence. The insurance was financed by province subsidy ( Spicker ) . A public assistance province is â€Å"a province where more than one half of all authorities outgos are devoted to societal policy, as opposed to the economic system, the armed forces, jurisprudence and order, substructure and other traditional maps of the state† ( Spicker, 2003 ) . Judt ( 2006 ) defines a public assistance province as a province which is chiefly concerned with distributing public assistance to its citizens. Such provinces spend the bigger proportion of their public outgos on public assistance. Get aid with your essay from our adept essay authors†¦ Harmonizing to Gough ( 2006 ) , welfare provinces in Europe were established during the Second World War. Their chief intent was to undertake the five evil giants that were confronting most of Europe at that clip. These immoralities included: Poverty: Because of the war, many people were ill, idle or widowed hence were hapless. Diseases: Despite many people being ill, they could non afford to seek intervention. Ignorance: At that clip, school-leaving age was 11. Most kids were forced to drop out of schools because they could non afford to pay fees. Sordidness: Majority of the population lived in hapless lodging installations ( slums ) because council houses were unequal. Idleness: As a consequence of the war, most people lost their occupations and became unemployed. The public assistance province was hence established to guarantee that kids stayed in school ; free medical intervention for all was introduced ; new council houses were built and more towns established to supply better lodging installations to the slum inhabitants and more industries were started to assist cut down the unemployment rate. There are several aims of a public assistance province. Equitable distribution of wealth and resources: Welfare provinces used progressive method of revenue enhancement aggregation whereby people with higher incomes paid more revenue enhancements and those with lower incomes paid less revenue enhancement. This method of revenue enhancement helped in reallocation of public money and shifting of resources from the resource-rich parts to resource-poor parts. This was effectual in accomplishing regional balance and in contracting the spread between the rich and the hapless ( Spicker, 2003 ) . Income and criterion of populating care: Peoples can temporarily or for good be rendered incapable participating in the labour market. This can be due to old age, or illness. This usually consequences in loss of income for themselves and their households. But in a public assistance province, income care was assured whether or non person was working. This was usually â€Å"achieved through a assortment of public insurance strategies, † ( Judt, 2006 ) . These included tax write-offs from an employee’s wage, parts made by the employers and the province. These tax write-offs and parts were deposited into an insurance fund from which persons were entitled to certain benefits, depending on the degree and the figure of parts made. These â€Å"insurance strategies covered unemployment, ill wage and old age pensions, † ( Gough, 2006 ) . Helping the deprived groups: public assistance provinces started plans to help those groups that were considered worse-off than others. Gough ( 2006 ) says that: For case, European states have taken specific steps to battle rural poorness ; support households with kids ; supply for re-training and early retirement in industrial job parts ; help particularly those with structural employment job ( the long-run and older unemployed ; youth unemployment ) . Provision of a public safety cyberspace was another aim of public assistance provinces. Welfare States ensured that each single enjoyed â€Å"a minimum degree of nice human being if no other resources are available, † ( Gough, 2006 ) . In the pre-industrial epoch proviso for such persons was chiefly done by â€Å"local charities, communities, nobleness oblige, and the churches †¦ on a much smaller scale† ( Gough ) . Most Welfare States used their public assistance policy as a signifier of economic administration. Harmonizing to Gough ( 2006 ) , â€Å"the economic systems of Continental Europe, frequently called organized market economic systems, are characterized by a more marked function for the authorities in the economic system †¦.† Unlike in other provinces, the different economic sectors were normally in harmoniousness instead than in competition with each other. This contributed to the overall economic organisation and stableness, and is the ground why such economic systems were frequently labeled ‘organized market economies.’ Welfare provinces put up policies aimed at poorness obliteration. Such plans included Medicaid and Aid to Families with Dependent Children ( AFDC ) . However, such plans were non popular among the bulk of the population because they merely served the marginalized people who comprised a smaller proportion of the population. The creative activity and development of the public assistance province followed different forms in each of the European states. The work forces behind the European public assistance province shared Keynes’s position which he voiced before his decease in 1946. Keynes said that â€Å"after the World War II, there would be a craving for societal and personal security in Europe. And there was. The public assistance province was constructed chiefly as a security revolution instead than a societal revolution, † ( Judt, 2006 ) The German public assistance system was based on the three chief rules. The first 1 was â€Å"subsidiarity.† This rule holds that â€Å"services should be decentralized or independently managed† ( Spicker, 2003 ) . The function of the province was limited merely to countries which could non be covered by other agencies like military services. In Germany, high income earners were non covered by the chief societal insurance system ; they were left to do their ain determinations. Economic development was another rule environing the German public assistance system. Provision of societal services was based on this rule. This was clearly apparent in â€Å"the close relationship of services to people’s place in the labour market. Social benefits were earnings-related, and those without work records found that they were non covered for of import contingencies† ( Spicker, 2003 ) . Additionally, the state’s disbursement on public assistance had to be straight related to the rule of economic development and growing. Welfare province in Germany was originally established by Chancellor Otto Von Bismarck who introduced the rule of ‘corporatist structure’ . Harmonizing to Spicker, 2003: This rule was developed by Bismarck on the footing of bing common assistance associations, and remained the footing for societal protection later. Social insurance, which covered the costs of wellness, some societal attention and much of the income care system, was managed by a system of independent financess. The Gallic system of public assistance was regarded as the most generous public assistance system. It involved proviso of a broad scope of societal services, rendering it really complex and expensive to keep it. In France, the public assistance system was â€Å"based on the rule of solidarity, † which was declared in the first article of the Gallic Code of Social Security ( Spicker, 2003 ) . However, the term â€Å"solidarity† was equivocal and was used in different fortunes to intend different things. To some people, solidarity referred to cooperative common support whereby people who benefited from national public assistance strategies were expected to lend on an equal footing. To others, solidarity meant mutualist relationships, â€Å"common action, common duty and shared risks† ( Spicker, 2003 ) . The Swedish Welfare System was viewed as an ideal signifier of public assistance province. The system offered institutional attention in that it offered â€Å"a cosmopolitan minimum† ( Judt, 2006 ) . Like all public assistance provinces, the Swedish authorities offered benefits to the unemployed, the ill people, and retired citizens. However, for a long clip this public assistance system was non efficaciously practiced because as Judt ( 2006 ) says, â€Å"the Swedish population had a strong tradition of entrepreneurship and difficult work and continued to work hard even though they now had the option to populate off government.† However, with clip, people adapted to the public assistance system. The public assistance province of the United Kingdom was established by William Beveridge in 1942. The purpose of the province was to control the societal jobs that British citizens were confronting due to the effects of the Second World War. The authorities took the duty of supplying for its people. This policy resulted in high authorities outgo and an addition in the state’s cardinal duties. In add-on to the proviso of the basic services ( instruction, wellness, lodging and employment ) the province besides increased â€Å"regulation of industry nutrient and redistributive taxation† ( Gough, 2006 ) . Most Welfare States did non last long because of assorted grounds. The first major ground was the nature of revenue enhancement and the salary construction. In most public assistance provinces, the societal benefits and wages for the low-skilled workers were among the highest in the universe, whereas those for the high-skilled workers were lower comparison to those of other states. Additionally, the high-skilled workers paid much higher revenue enhancements than the low–skilled workers. This attracted more low-skilled workers into these provinces, going a load to the Welfare State. The issue of in-migration besides led to the prostration of the public assistance province. Because of the societal benefits a public assistance province offered, it attracted people from the low income states. Fjordman ( 2006 ) notes that â€Å"†¦ they experienced †¦ decomposition with the debut of mass in-migration of individuals who did non hold the cultural background necessary to continue the public assistance state.† Last, the nature of the services that a public assistance province provided contributed to its prostration. Education and wellness services particularly are â€Å"ones on which people wish to pass more money as they become richer. Old age and retirement pensions imply that the authorities would hold to pass more as the population ages† ( Fjordman, 2006 ) . Because of this, the ratio of public disbursement to Gross Domestic Product was high and it became practically impossible to run into all the societal demands of its citizens. Mentions Fjordman, C.The Welfare State: The Root of Europe’s Problems. The Brussels Journal. 2006, March 08 Gough, I.European Welfare States: Explanations and Lessons for Developing States. University of Bath hypertext transfer protocol: //64.233.169.104/search? Judt, T.The Future of Decadent Europe. The Globalist. 2006, June 02. Spicker, P. The Welfare State.Centre for Public Policy and Management: Robert Gordon University hypertext transfer protocol: //www2.rgu.ac.uk/publicpolicy/introduction/wstate.htm

The legal environment of business and online commerce questions Essay

The legal environment of business and online commerce questions - Essay Example A party, the petitioner, files a petition for certiorari after a judgment has been rendered against him in the inferior court. The petition must specifically state why the relief sought is unavailable in any other court or through any other appellate process, along with information clearly identifying the case and the questions to be reviewed, the relevant provisions of law to be applied, a concise statement of facts relating to the issues, and any other materials required by statute. The voting of the justices on the U.S. Supreme Court determines if a case is precedent when there is a strong majority vote. All decisions by the Supreme Court are the supreme law of the land. The majority vote is usually 6-1 or a complete 7 judge vote. State courts have sweeping and broad jurisdiction, so the cases individual citizens are most likely to be involved in -- such as criminal acts, traffic violations, violations of contracts, and family issues-- are usually handled in state courts. The only cases that are the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal courts are lawsuits against the United States and those involving certain specific federal laws: criminal, antitrust, bankruptcy, patent, copyright, and some maritime cases. Diversity of citizenship means that a case involving questions that must be answered according to state laws will be heard in a federal court if the parties on the two sides of the case are from different states. - In drafting a contract, several clauses can often provide certainty as to what law will control, where the dispute will be decided and the method of dispute resolution. List and describe them. Why are these clauses useful to a business? These clauses are called forum clauses or choice of forum clauses. The reason why they exist is so that the parties entering into the contract know which law will govern (state v.

Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 15

Philosophy - Essay Example Prudential knowledge is nothing more but sense, faculty, and memory and absolute knowledge. And by ‘absolute’, Hobbes meant reality that a person knows as truth with ‘absolute’ certainty (Hobbes 53). For instance, childhood memories, or knowledge that scissors could cut paper, or that burger patties are made from pork or beef meat are examples of absolute knowledge because these are knowledge that a person knows with absolute certainty as truths because he has experience it personally or has remember witnessing it being done. Either way, it requires a witness. The other knowledge, scientific knowledge is conditional knowledge. This is because it requires a condition for a person to know something for him to be able to know that something is indeed a fact (Hobbes 53). For instance, he needs to know that by grounding meat and seasoning it could produce patties and by putting a patty in between two breads would create a burger. Or that two metal blades with handles could be bolted and joined together so that it could create cutting motion and this would form a whole new tool called scissors. For a more ‘philosophical’ example, scientific knowledge is conditional because it will require knowledge for a person to know that when you draw any line on a circle that passes through the middle, that would divide the circle equally in half. The person who knows this technical knowledge Hobbes called philosophers. Hobbes further added that the registry of scientific knowledge is recorded in history and that there are two types of history—natural and civil. Natural is anything that concerns those that are independent of man’s will while civil history is the â€Å"voluntary actions of men in Commonwealths† (Hobbes 53). Now these philosophers are people in the society who are able to successfully fuse together both their prudential knowledge and scientific knowledge. They were able to use scientific knowledge and combine it

A Research on the marketing strategies of Meritus Mandarin Hotel and Dissertation

A Research on the marketing strategies of Meritus Mandarin Hotel and its position in the tourism industry - Dissertation Example The objective of the research paper is to analyze the reasons behind the adoption of various marketing strategies by the hotel. The research study will assess the present strategic position of the hotel and the tourism industry of Singapore. The study will also analyze the various factors which lead to increase in customer satisfaction and also provide recommendations for improving the marketing strategy and the brand positioning of the hotel. The first section of the study is the introductory part which includes a background analysis of Meritius Mandarin hotel and the tourism industry of Singapore. It also includes the academic objectives of the company. The second section of the study includes analysis of Mandarin Orchard Singapore’s branding position, pricing and revenue strategy, service recovery and complaint handling procedure of the Mandarin Orchard Singapore. In the third and the fourth section, analysis is done through correlation and regression to find out the attrac tive factors of the hotel. Finally, it concludes with recommendation to improve the ambience of the hotel, recreational facilities, food of the restaurant etc. Acknowledgements I would take this opportunity to thank and express my gratitude to my supervisor Mr. Justin Kung for his exemplary guidance in topics related to customer satisfaction, service quality and market. The constant guidance given by him throughout the project has helped me in attaining knowledge related to the project. I could not have completed the project without his help and guidance. I would also like to thank my classmates for sharing their opinions and experiences related with this project. Lastly, I would also like to thank my librarian for assisting and guiding me through a section of books related to marketing and hotel industry of Singapore. I could not have completed my project without the detailed information provided in the library books. Regards Desta lee Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Reasons for choosin g the topic Tourism has become a global activity because it is a part of the global process of change and development (Connell and Page, 2006). The importance of tourism has changed gradually over the years; it is an economic activity which promotes economic development and increases the economic growth of a country. Tourism is no longer confined to developed countries but also includes travel to the developing countries. Firstly, the mindset of the tourist has changed and they are seeking new destinations which offer relaxation and creative thinking. Secondly, the purchasing power of the people has also increased which has led to the increase in global tourism. Singapore has become one of the popular destinations of the world also known as food paradise of the world

EC 313 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

EC 313 - Essay Example Firstly, the ASF (Aggregate Supply of Funding) will remain constant with respect to any interest rate changes therefore we will depict it as a vertical line as shown in the above graph. Suppose that due to certain shocks in the economy, the APE line shifts to the right. The increase in APE will require funding to support it but the ASF will remain unresponsive to the change. As consumers move to gain funding, the lenders will drive up the interest rates. Increase in interest rates will crowd out the demand and the output and price levels will remain unchanged. What if the amount of gold in an economy increased or decreased. Based on the quantity of gold the ASF line would shift to either left or right. If ASF had a rightward shift than it implies that there will be an excess of funding in the economy. Thus the lenders will be willing to provide their money at lower level of interest rates. This lower level of interest rates will induce the consumers to spend more therefore increasing ADF. Now ADF will cross ASF at a decreased interest rate level and both will exceed the GDP level. Increase in a funded demand will cause the firms to increase their prices. This increase in Price Level brings a fall in ASF which will also decrease APE. Prices will continue to move in upward direction until & unless interest rate, APE & ASF return to their original level. Prior to the Great Depression of 1929, the classical macroeconomics functioned as it was required. There were no economic slumps and employment and GDP’s were stable throughout the period. The assumption of classical macroeconomists regarding the invisible hand was proved to be almost true. There was no need for government policies or intervention to control the economy and macroeconomics was taking care of itself. Suddenly, the Great Depression of 1929 made its way in the economy and plunged economies in state of chaos. Some faltering economies almost experienced a decline of 30% in their GDP and as much

Biochemistry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Biochemistry - Essay Example The conversion of glucose to glycogen, a process of energy storage, is achieved by a number of enzymes, the absence or deficiency of which leads to the GSDs resulting in inborn errors of glycogen metabolism. These disorders arise due to deficiency of enzymes involved in the glyconeogenesis or due to abnormal functioning of the glycogen breakdown enzymes. GSDs are categorized based on the type enzyme deficiency and the tissue affected. The systems involved in glycogen synthesis disorders are the liver and muscle, which are the primary sites of energy storage. GSD Type IV, also known as amylopectinosis, is usually fatal and leads to death by age 4. Some of the clinical symptoms include hepatomegaly, failure to thrive, splenomegaly, cirrhosis and lumbar lordosis. Type IV disorder arises due to deficiency of the glycogen branching enzyme amylo-1,4-1,6 transglucosidase, which leads to the formation of abnormally structured glycogen, having amylase molecules with low solubility, leading to glycogen precipitation in the liver, the heart and other tissues. The condition ultimately leads to early death (Ozen, 2541-53). Type I diabetic patients who are erroneously prescribed too high of an insulin dose in their insulin regimen can present liver disease symptoms similar to those presented in glycogen storage diseases. Explain the biochemical basis for this finding. One of the important functions of insulin is glycogen syn... Insulin regulates the amount of glucose absorbed or released from the cell. The glucose absorbed from the blood is stored in the form of glycogen in the liver. One of the important functions of insulin is glycogen synthesis, brought about by activating the enzyme hexokinase. This in turn, phosphorylates glucose, thus, trapping it within the cell, in the form of energy. Insulin also inhibit the activity of glucose-6-phosphatase and activates phosphofructokinase and glycogen synthase, thus helping the hepatocytes to havest excess glucose in the form of glycogen. But, in the absense of insulin, as in case of type 1 diabetes, glucose circulation in the blood increases and the cells fail to harvest it for energy. In the absence of energy the cells activate the enzymes involved in the breakdown of glycogen (glycogenolysis).Under the conditions of cell starvation triggered by lack of insulin, glucagon, a counter regulatory hormone,is activated, which, again stimulates the process of glycogenolysis in hepatocytes, thus releasing energy. When insulin is administered from an outside source, in excess, (eg: injections), insulin activates the formation of glycogen from glucose and inhibition glycogenolysis. Therefore, in presence of excess insulin, there is a surplus production of glycogen, similar to that of glycogen storage disorders. Also, there is inhibition of glucose-6-phosphate, similar to deficiency of the same as in glycogen storage disorders (Bowen). 3.Helicobacter pylori is a bacterium that colonizes the upper gastrointestinal tract in humans and is the causative agent of chronic gastritis, ulcers, and possibly gastric cancer. Knowledge of the intermediary metabolism of this organism would be helpful in developing effective drug

Strategic Planning for International Tourism Essay

Strategic Planning for International Tourism - Essay Example The current branding strategies will be looked into and other than the analysis, we will look into possible ways or practices that could improve the exposure of tourism in New Zealand and result in an even more successful approach. Currently, New Zealand is one of the top contenders among modern tourist attractions. With its beautiful landscapes, tourist attractions, rich cultures, numerous opportunities for adventures and of course, the Lord of The Rings films sites; New Zealand makes an ideal holiday getaway. (Tourism Information and Accommodation, 2008) With all this and more, anyone's time and money spent in New Zealand will definitely be worthwhile. New Zealand Tourism Online (NZTO) has taken a very user friendly and fun-filled approach towards promoting tourism in New Zealand. They offer a wide range of choices to any tourist depending on their interests, tastes, budget and objective. New Zealand is a place where anyone can have the time of their life, if you're a young kid or a retired corporate executive or a young couple deciding to lay back for a while, New Zealand has something for everyone. Lord of the Rings is a fantasy story written by the author J. R. R. Tolkien. Its movie adaptations have swept the international box office with multiple Academy Awards for the three films made so far; The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King. It would be nothing new to the fans around the world that New Zealand is home to Lord of The Rings! The three films were shot at different locations in New Zealand. This makes New Zealand one of the hottest modern day tourist attractions, not only for the LOTR fans, but everyone can enjoy the story behind the locations and experience a piece of the amazing saga. 1.1.1 Middle Earth is New Zealand As mentioned earlier, New Zealand was home to the Lord of The Rings movie franchise. The set of Middle Earth was chosen to be the scenic landscapes of New Zealand. The person who chose to shoot the movie here, Peter Jackson, is also a native. The location for Hobbiton was chosen as the hilly area of Matamata, The famous Mt. Doom was actually the Mt Ruapehu. Other than that Queenstown was the used sets for locations such as the Pillars of Argonath and the Eregion Hills. (Lord of the Rings - New Zealand, 2007) New Zealand Tourism Online has made great use of this fame New Zealand has been accredited to. They offer a complete list and description for all the movie sites and ways to experience these locations to the fullest. Also they provide in depth description of the movie itself with images and graphics on the website along with further details. Branding for the Key Destinations' Products The tourism industry of New Zealand has been performing a good job with branding the top attractions and products New Zealand has to offer. The NZTO website features a 'Highlights' section in which they very main key attractions that New Zealand has to offer to tourists are described in detail. The features and attractions listed include: Skiing and snowboarding, New Zealand is one of the top ski holiday destinations in the world. The country offers a variety of locations and terrains for all kinds of snow sporting experiences, from snow boarding to skiing. Apart from that, New Zealand offers extensive training in

Railroad history Essay Example for Free

Railroad history Essay The reasons why Villard failed to build a profitable railroad was that he never bothered to study much about railroads so he made many mistakes such as, he rushed to the wilderness to collect his subsidies he thought that by building the rail on an area with a beautiful view he would attract tourism in the area and so they would pay handsomely to tour, so he chose to build in the northwest because of its beauty. This increased the cost of building the railroad because he had to increase the bends, the steepness and the length of the railroad to be able to take in the rocky Mountain View. Villard also did create in areas around the hot springs in broad water county, Montana and at Bozeman costly health spas. This and more expensive buildings and structures made Villard go broke because the tourist opted to visit else where. Though the federal aid and foreign investors had given Villard some space for mistakes he made way too many. He was so eager to rush to the coast that he built when the cost of materials and construction in whole was very stiff. High cost amounts to high rates and this hindered the tourists from traveling through the NP. Railroad acted as an alternative mode of transport which farmers used to travel from rural areas to the urban market whenever they had need, they also used the railroad to transport their produce thus interacting with people from other parts of the country. As the railroad changed people’s experiences, it also changed the time concepts. If a person wanted to travel from point A to point B it became more faster than pre railroad days where one had to use horses on bad road, board a steamboat, Railroads decreased the cost of distance and increased the value of time.

Cheating and Taking Steroids in Sports

Cheating and Taking Steroids in Sports INTRODUCTION Sports will either be a school of virtue or a school of vice, and thats why the epidemic of cheating in professional sports is, and ought to be, a huge cultural concern. Sports, at every level, is supposed to be a training ground for virtue, to mould the character of athletes, coaches and supporters so that they may learn lessons that may help them to achieve off-the-field as much as on. In few other venues are people able to learn as effectively the good habits of perseverance through difficulties, teamwork, striving to overcome obstacles, the importance of preparation and practice, and the courtesy and class we call good sportsmanship. But the field, court, track, diamond, rink, pool and roadway can also cultivate vice, when results become more important than virtue, when winning becomes more important than winning fairly. It has been hard to open a sports page recently without reading something to do with cheating and its consequences. Recently encountered readings include Bill Belichick and the clear contravention of the NFLs videotaping policy; Patriots Safety Rodney Harrison and his suspension for taking an illegal substances; NBA referee Tim Donaghy and his expulsion for betting on games he was officiating; Barry Bonds and his tainted home run record, along with former heroes turned synthetic pseudo-supermen Jason Giambi, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro; Floyd Landis suspect yellow jersey and the expulsion of what seemed to be half this years Tour de France participants for blood doping and other violations; WWE icon Chris Benoit and his steroid-induced murderous-suicidal rage; various college recruiting violations, Olympic scandals and much more. Professional boxing almost looks clean and honest by comparison. WHY DO THEY CHEAT Sports are a microcosm and stylization of life: goal-setting, preparation, effort, character, the integration of mind and body, competition, success and failure. Its all there in sports, distilled and intensified into a few hours experience. The usual answer is that cheaters have so strong a desire to win that they will strive to do so at all costs. Cheaters do have a desire to win, but by the time we are adults we know that a cheated victory is hollow. An adult cheater knows that he has not won through skill and effort, and he knows he will not experience the pride that comes from a genuine win. The only thing the cheater is left with is that he knows that other people will believe that he won and he will reap the value of their enhanced esteem. So heres a hypothesis about the psychology of cheaters: Cheating is not motivated by a desire to win, but by wanting to be thought of by others as having won. Cheating is a kind of social metaphysics-what others believe is true is more important than what is actually true. Another possibility is that the cheater knows the above-that a cheated win is hollow-but in the short run his intense desire to win crowds out his knowledge. So cheating is a failure to hold the context of why one is playing sports: strong desire overwhelms the cheaters knowledge, or through weakness of will the cheater ignores his knowledge to indulge the desire. Cheating in a financial context: You cheat not because you want the win but because you want the money that comes with the winCheating in a social context: You cheat because you dont want your teammates to lose or because you want your teammates to have the win they wantCon-man cheating: You cheat just for the pleasure of pulling off a scamCheating that is malevolent: You want to see your opponent suffer a loss, so you dont care that the win is hollow-you enjoy knowing the other guy is hurting and/or that you deprived him of the experience of winning WHAT ARE STEROIDS Steroids are manufactured testosterone-like drugs that are usually taken to build muscle, enhance performance, and improve appearance. While some steroids are used medically to treat many conditions including asthma, chronic lung disease, skin conditions and allergic reactions such as poison ivy, non medical use of steroids can have serious side effects. Using steroids for cosmetic or athletic purposes is not sanctioned in the United States. Method of Use Swallowed in tablets or liquid or injected. Users take them in patterns called cycling, which means they take them over a specific period of time, stop, and then start taking them again instead of continuously using them. Many users also take different types of steroids in combination with other drugs. This is known as stacking. Signs and Symptoms of Steroid Use Steroid abusers often exhibit the following symptoms: Rapid weight gain Rapid muscle development Acne flare up Fluid retention Yellow tint in the eyes and on skin (jaundice) Mood swings, depression Aggressive behaviour Premature balding Drug Test Detection Oral steroids can be found in your system up to several weeks after use. Injected steroids can be found for several months after use. Short-term Consequences Use of steroids can increase muscle mass, strength, and endurance, but can also cause liver tumors, jaundice, water retention, and high blood pressure. Some users show bad judgment because the drugs make them feel invincible. Other users suffer from uncontrolled aggression and violent behavior called Roid Rage, severe mood swings, manic episodes and depression. They often suffer from paranoid jealousy, extreme irritability and can have delusions. Long-Term Consequences When the body experiences a build up of steroids in its system, conditions such as hypertension, high cholesterol, kidney disease, stunted growth, and heart damage are likely to occur. Women can experience irreversible deepening of the voice, shrinking of the breasts, menstrual irregularities, baldness and hair growth on other parts of the body, and genital swelling. Men can experience baldness, breast enlargement, sterility, shrinking of testicles and impotence. Steroids such as prednisone and other synthetic steroids can cause a rise in blood sugar by blocking the effect of insulin. Over time, users can develop diabetes. WHY TAKING STEROIDS CONSIDERED CHEATING Steroids give some players an unfair competitive advantage over others. But this response stems from the faulty underlying assumption that players have some innate ability or talent which is not dependent upon their environment. In fact, the only way steroids are different from other performance enhancers like protein shakes or nutritional supplements is because their side effects are worse and their performance enhancing effects are large. This efficacy, and the steroid body that goes with it, triggers fans pharmacological Calvinism, the belief that taking a pill for any reason is bad, and leads to the media labelling the steroid culture and users as alien, which are the factors that truly keep steroids on the wrong side of public opinion and MLB policy. The first and most basic reason people view steroids as cheating is because they feel it gives players abilities that they otherwise would not have had. This is the position of every poll or article researched for this essay in the national sports media over the last four years. Again, the signs displayed in Philadelphia are representative. One 60-foot long sign said Babe Ruth did it on Hotdogs and Beer. Aaron did it with class. How did you do it?This question rests on the assumption that Bonds steroid use differentiates him from Aaron and Ruth, who set career home run records without steroids. But to simply say steroids enhancers players performance is easy. The deeper question behind that answer is Why does that matter? That question involves a number of different aspects of what it means to be a baseball fan. First among them, perhaps, is the notion of fairness. The US culture in general holds fairness as one of its central tenets, as part of the Puritan Work ethic and the capitalist ideal: everyone must deal fairly, so everyone has their shot to succeed if they work hard enough. That ideal is held to as strongly in baseball as any other sport. The problem with steroids, then, is not just that users have an unfair advantage over non-users. Widespread steroid use limits the free choice of non-users, because if they want to make a living they are almost forced to start taking injections, and having to deal with the side effects. This is called free choice under pressure by Thomas Murray (as reported by Peter Kramer). Theres no question, then, that the more players use steroids, the harder it is for others to stay clean. What are the implications of that for players, and what are players responses? At the physical level, this spiral of steroids forces players to endure the side effects of steroids when they otherwise might not. At the level of consciousness, players have their free choice limited by steroid-fuelled competition, and free choice is also something this country values. Players respond to these concerns by claiming that steroid use supports American values. For example, a value much appreciated in sports is the desire to win above all else. Players that have that desire, like Michael Jordan in basketball, are often revered. So a baseball player might argue that he simply wants to win at all cost, even sacrificing his body to steroids to win. Just because another, non-user does not want to win enough to take steroids, that doesnt mean the user should be punished for it. There are other problems with the argument that using steroids is cheating because they give a competitive advantage. The biggest fault with it is that steroids are not the only thing in baseball that gives a competitive advantage when there was none before. Revenue and payroll differences and environmental factors like the skill of the training staff and the quality of the facilities can cause unfair competitive advantages between teams and players as well, but those discrepancies are considered part of the game. The responses to this argument are that taking a substance is fundamentally different from working out more or on better facilities because you do not have to work as hard to get the same results as someone not on steroids. But some players use a good diet to get into better shape, or take legal supplements to make their workouts more effective. This is exactly the way steroids work they help to build muscle faster in conjunction with exercise and weightlifting, so those t hat work out the most are going to get the most out of steroids. Should the MLB disallow all possible supplements and mandate player diet and workout regimens to eliminate the possible advantage? Ultimately, you cannot justify getting rid of steroids because they give a competitive advantage, because baseball operates by identifying and using competitive advantages. Despite the arguments above, most people would remain convinced that taking steroids was cheating. There are three primary reasons: One is the notion of pharmacological Calvinism, two is the influence of the press on public perception of steroids, and three is the labelling of drugs in general and those who take them as alien. These are the real reasons that taking steroids in baseball is considered cheating today. Pharmacological Calvinism is the belief that taking a pill or drug is morally wrong, because hard work, suffering and pain are essential parts of human existence. The concept figures prominently in Kramers discussion of Prozac as a way of explaining the publics response to the drug, and the same can be said of fans and baseball players. This phenomenon can be seen in baseball lingo: someone who is clean is someone who is off steroids. This terminology might come from the MLB policies, but it probably comes from larger drug culture, and reflects the idea that even though it is tough to argue against steroids ideologically, there is still a taint to taking steroids, the sense that a player who takes them has lost some purity they might have off steroids. This also might be why players like Jose Canseco are ridiculed and reviled when they talk about steroids being the standard throughout the league: they are deliberately taking a stance against pharmacological Calvinism, and so automati cally people hearing them want to reject the idea without listening to their analysis, which often is more logical than people care to admit. Another effect of pharmacological Calvinism is that news reporters looking to cover steroids automatically assume a negative stance towards them, although that is also influenced by the dangerous side effects. Sports journalism is very pervasive. Every fan has to get their scores and results from somewhere, often on a daily basis. Sports fans also tend to spend a lot of time discussing sports, so ideas and opinions they read get discussed and argued about in their social circle. The final reason steroids are considered cheating is because they work so well. And because they work so well, and so many ballplayers used them, the build of a user, his problems and habits, became commonly known and looked for. What is more, because of the negative press steroids got, fans were able to label them an other to dismiss steroids users as people holding alien values without really looking or considering how they might be motivated by the same things as regular fans. This can be shown by the massive amount of jokes about big heads, small balls, a common side effect of steroid use, and the vehemence of the national polls quoted earlier. For fans to say that anyone testing positive should be thrown out of the sport is quite harsh, considering that there are arrests of ballplayers all the time for a variety of other drug use charges and crime, and none of them are thrown out on the first offense. Something that might help explain this position is the legitimate use of stero ids. Steroids are not like nutritional supplements of protein shakes that people might regularly take to get in shape, and they are not petty crimes or drug charges that baseball fans are familiar with or have committed themselves. They are treatments for sick people to help survive treatment, including treatment of diseases like AIDS, which already is somewhat marginalized in mainstream culture. And even in those diseases, steroids are something to avoid if you can. So that makes purposeful steroid users in sports all the more alien. Ultimately, the reason why taking steroids is considered cheating goes back to the chemical properties of steroids themselves: they work too well at helping athletes build muscle, and combined with the countrys pharmacological Calvinism, make for bad press and public perception. This leads fans to consider steroids cheating and justify it by saying steroids give an unfair competitive advantage, when the entire sport of baseball is built on just such advantages. If steroids were less useful, like nutritional supplements today, they would probably be legal, widely used, and just another part of the game, like spitting sunflower seeds. Unfortunately, because of the pressure on athletes who will do anything to succeed, steroids are only going to get more powerful and hard to detect, rather than more benign and legal. But that doesnt mean the steroid scandal wont go away. Already, journalists are trumpeting this baseball season as the post-steroid era. If history is any indication, people will think steroids solved, stop caring, only to be shocked again when the next great and popular surge of offense turns out to be the result of their beloved players using the next generation of performance enhancers. CONCLUSION The recent epidemic of cheating in sports reveals ethical and anthropological dimensions that must be considered if we wish as a culture to eliminate it. The ethical dimensions go far beyond the violation of a particular rule governing a sports league. It goes to one of the bedrock principles of ethics, whether in sports players, coaches and fans believe that a good end never justifies immoral means. In the cases of cheating above, we see that the cheaters think that the end of winning or doing better in competition validates the dishonest means one takes to get there. There are now such enormous financial rewards or losses hinging on sports outcomes that those of lesser character find far greater incentive. The anthropological dimension refers mainly to the means one takes in violation of the ethical principle. Sports cheating today very often involve technological manipulation not just of the rules of the game like with the Patriots spy gate but also of oneself through performance-enhancing drugs. In former days the path to improvement came through practice, coaching, exercise and experience. Now for many it comes through injections, pills and creams. Rather than improving ones skills, one seeks to make himself better, stronger and faster through technology like a modern six million dollar man, or, if you consider the financial incentives for many pro-athletes, a hundred million dollar man. This comes at a huge cost. The death of pro-football player Lyle Alzado and 11 recent professional wrestlers through steroid use is enough of a warning. But we also have to be conscious of the huge temptation it places on all those who, at whatever age, wish to be successful college or profession al athletes who cannot compete on their own with artificially-enhanced peers. References: Sports and Cheating by Fr. Roger J. Landry Why in Baseball using steroids considered cheating? Brian Chase American council for drug education www.acde.org

Being A Sponsor Of The Olympic Games Marketing Essay

Being A Sponsor Of The Olympic Games Marketing Essay Global marketing is defined by the Oxford University Press as marketing on a worldwide scale reconciling or taking commercial advantage of global operational differences, similarities and opportunities in order to meet global objectives. With globalization and advanced technology, global marketing becomes more important, and some activities are used as new global marketing tool such as worldwide sports events. The modern Olympic Game is held every four years since 1896 except in 1916, 1940 and 1944 because of the world wars. For now, the Olympic Games are considered to be the worlds most popular sports competition, with more than 200 nations participating, and so many companies use it as a global marketing tool. But does this tool work well? This essay will discuss the benefits and the drawbacks of using the Olympic Games as a global marketing communication tool and evaluate its effectiveness. Becoming a sponsor of the Olympic Games is one of the most common ways to use the Olympic as a global marketing tool. Being a sponsor is a big business, it always costs a company millions of dollars to acquire the marketing rights to use the events including its image and logo. The sponsor fee does not include the advertisement expense, meaning that companies need to spend more money to promote their brand or products. Indeed, visa alone was estimated to have spent $886 million on its official sponsorship of the 2008 Olympic Game (CNBC, 2008). With such a large amount of money, being a sponsor of the Olympic Games seems really risky. There are four main disadvantages that a company may face when they use the Olympic Games to promote their brands. Firstly, using the Olympic Game- a worldwide sports event can let more people know the brands or companies and find some potential customers, it also ignores the inconsistency in consumer needs. A customer in America will be different from a customer in South African. So a good global marketing activity should not just depend on the fame of the Olympic Game and use the same means of propaganda all over the world. It also needs different marketing strategy for different countries to address different consumer needs. Furthermore, the inconsistency in consumer needs is not the only factors different from one area to another and people in one country may also react differently as compared to a consumer in another country. To a company, customers are one of the most important elements, so the reactions from consumers influence a companies next move. The Olympic Games usually lasts about two weeks, and during this time, companies marketing activities are received by people all over the world. It is difficult to collect different reactions from different people and improve the next marketing method in time. In the end, marketing activities may be not attractive for some potential consumers which could lead to fall of the whole global marketing plan. Moreover, consumers loyalty is also one of the factors influencing global marketing achievement. When people get used to buying goods of one brand, it will be very difficult to change their choice. Using the Olympic Game let people know a brand is effective, but Japanese might like a product to have a traditional touch, whereas an American might like to add a retro modern look to it. In this case, the Olympic Game global marketing strategy is difficult to devise. In the end, the laws of the land have to be considered. Usually, original company policies may be devised according to the laws of home countries. But when it comes to the global scale, the overseas laws perhaps are conflicting in these policies. The sponsors spend tons of money to purchasers the right to use the Olympic Game logo and image, but if their advertisement could not published in some countries just because laws conflict, then all the effort will be in vain. So it is necessary for a company to know laws and rules abroad before they make the global marketing strategy. On the other hand, global marketing also brings benefits to companies. First and foremost, using the Olympic Games as global marketing tool can increase brand awareness. As the Olympic Game is a worldwide sports event involved more than 200 nations, almost every nation will purchase broadcast rights. So advertising at this moment can reach potential customers all over the world effectively, especially with the Olympic image and logo. Moreover, in an extreme case, the sponsor may get a chance for free advertising. In the 2008 Beijing Olympic Game, the last torchbearer- the athlete who lights the stadium flame was Li Ning who is a former gymnast who won six medals. In the last few minutes of the ceremony, Li Ning run into the stadium and lighted the flame as billions of people watched. For that 2 or 3 minutes millions of people who did not know this Li Ning brand before learned it (Pitt, 2010, p.282). Secondly, using the Olympic Game as a marketing tool to promote products and brands could also increase brand recognition. An example of this is the study carried out by John and Martin (2009, pp.126-127) in which compared brand recognition level between Nike (sponsor) and Adidas (non-sponsor) by collecting respondents of Australian adults from nine months before the 2000 Olympics to three months after it. The results show that at the beginning of the survey, 77% of Australian individuals recognized Nike, while only 47% of them knew Adidas. During the Games, the recognition level of Adidas suffered a drop from 67% to 56%, but Nikes recognition level as official Olympic sponsor was still over 70%. Thirdly, using the Olympic Game as a marketing tool becomes a unique experience. Global marketing is a multi-million dollar business but it is never only about money. Being a successful sponsor of the Olympic Game and gaining expected benefits is not easy. It includes setting appropriate marketing goal, making accurate marketing niche and using various marketing strategies. All the factors can be practiced during the marketing process. When the Olympic Games are over, sponsors can get feedback and try to improve their marketing policy to get more achievement in the next global marketing activity. For example, the Coca-Cola joined the Olympic Torch Relay. Since 1996 Coca-Cola has been a member of the Olympic Torch Relay and started to use it as on of the significant sponsor able constituents. In the next 5 Olympic Games, summer and winter, Coca-Cola learned from the successful previous Olympic Torch Relay programmes and improved its marketing strategies. As a result, Coca-Cola launche d its new marketing strategy. The company did not just use the offline platform to promote but by using both online and offline platform at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, to allow more customers in China to know the Olympic spirit and to be more loyal towards the Coca-Cola brand (Choi, 2008, pp.248-249). Finally, global marketing could lead to lower marketing costs and increase revenues. Worldwide sponsorship generated $866million for the 2006-2008 Torino/Beijing Olympic cycles. Eleven multinational sponsors paid an average of $72 million each. More remarkably, these numbers represent only the fees for sponsorship rights; sponsors still had to pay for the advertising itself (CNBC, 2008). According to this figure, the cost of using the Olympic Games to promote brand or product is really high, but is even higher if the company has to market a product differently in every country that it is selling. In addition with same input, the effect of Olympic marketing tends to be 2-4 times more than conventional marketing. GE illustrates this point clearly. GE is one of the Olympics Game sponsors. During the Games its company-wide sales revenues exceeded US$1.7 billion, includes NBC Universal, GEs subsidiary media company, more than US$1 billion in advertising revenue was made which generate a r ecord and make Beijing the most successful Games in GEs history (Hanssen, 2009, pp.126-127 ). This essay has discussed the benefits and drawbacks that using the Olympic Games as a global marketing tool can bring to a company. Indeed, there are some disadvantages about the inconsistency in consumer needs and reactions, but all the problems could be solved by tracing outcomes and improving marketing strategy after the marketing activity. However, the advantage of global marketing is widely agreed, otherwise companies would not spent large amounts of money on it. Overall, the benefits of the global marketing outweigh the drawbacks and it would be interesting to find what is the most important factor could influence the effects of global marketing. World count: 1,416

Enterpreneurship And Management Essay -- essays research papers

Entrepreneurship is The process of initiating a business venture, organizing the necessary resources and assuming the associated risks and rewards. Entrepreneurship as an option. For many years there was many worries surrounding the idea but recently there has been an outbreak of entrepreneurs making money and living a better quality of life. Women and minorities are now starting their own businesses more than men because they have been discriminated in the corporate world and decided to go out on their own. Entrepreneurship and the environment-people used to be worried about small businesses surviving now there are about 23 million out there. Since our economy is rapidly changing it creates new opportunities for small business owners everyday. New technology has opened thousands of new opportunities and especially with the Internet making a small business available to thousands of people around the world. Definition of a small business by the SBA is typically a business with 500 or less people or it can depend on annual receipts or the number of employees in certain categories such as manufacturing, retail and services. Impact of Entrepreneurial companies: about 600,000 new companies are incorporated every year. The SBA reports that small businesses employ more than 50% of the workforce and generate more than half of the nations’ GDP. Who are Entrepreneurs They are people that have a vision and want to achieve something. They need tolerance for ambiguity, self confid...

Main Themes in A Streetcar Named Desire :: English Literature

Main Themes in A Streetcar Named Desire Fantasy/Illusion: Blanche dwells in illusion; fantasy is her primary means of self-defense. Her deceits do not carry any trace of malice; rather, they come from her weakness and inability to confront the truth head-on. She tells things not as they are, but as they ought to be. For her, fantasy has a liberating magic that protects her from the tragedies she has had to endure. Unfortunately, this defense is frail and will be shattered by Stanley. In the end, Stanley and Stella will also resort to a kind of illusion: Stella will force herself to believe that Blanche's accusations against Stanley are false. The Old South and the New South: Stella and Blanche come from a world that is rapidly dying. Belle Reve, their family's ancestral plantation, has been lost. The two sisters, symbolically, are the last living members of their family. Stella will mingle her blood with a man of blue-collar stock, and Blanche will enter the world of madness. Stanley represents the new order of the South: chivalry is dead, replaced by a "rat race," to which Stanley makes several proud illusions. Cruelty: The only unforgivable crime, according to Blanche, is deliberate cruelty. This sin is Stanley's specialty. His final assault against Blanche is a merciless attack against an already-beaten foe. On the other hand, though Blanche is dishonest, she never lies out of malice. Her cruelty is unintentional; often, she lies in a vain effort to plays. Throughout Streetcar, we see the full range of cruelty, from Blanche's well-intentioned deceits to Stella self-deceiving treachery to Stanley's deliberate and unchecked malice. In Williams' plays, there are many ways to hurt someone. And some are worse than others. The Primitive and the Primal: Blanche often speaks of Stanley as ape-like and primitive. Stanley represents a very unrefined manhood, a romantic idea of man untouched by civilization and its effeminizing influences. His appeal is clear: Stella cannot resist him, and even Blanche, though repulsed, is on some level drawn to him. Stanley's unrefined nature also includes a terrifying amorality. The service of his desire is central to who he is; he has no qualms about driving his sister-in-law to madness, or raping her. Desire: Closely related to the theme above, desire is the central theme of the play. Blanche seeks to deny it, although we learn later in the play that desire is one of her driving motivations; her desires have caused her to be driven out of town.