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Everyday we encounter multiple situations where we rely on past knowledge or a quick understanding of the circumstances to make decisions. The ability to create and access memories is vital to a person’s adaptation to the dynamic world with which we interact. Memory is our ability to encode, store, retain and subsequently recall information and past experiences in the human brain. “If past events could not be remembered, it would be impossible for language, relationships, or personal identity to develop.” There have been many studies over the last few decades which indicate that sleep improves memory retention. Some of these portray, that sleep has a role in strengthening memories by shielding them from interfering stimuli, Whereas others emphasize on the role of sleep in the consolidation of memories to make them long-lasting. Through this paper, we will be studying and analysing the different ways in which sleep affects memory.
Get original essayMemory functions primarily consist of three sub-processes, i.e. Encoding, Consolidation, and Recovery. Encoding is the process through which our brain processes all the stimuli we encounter. It is thought that each new stimulus that we encounter, results in the formation of a new memory trace. A memory trace is a unit of cognitive information inside the brain, theorized to be the means by which memories are stored. These memory traces formed during encoding haven’t been stabilised and are volatile. If they are not given the opportunity to consolidate, they may be lost, which results in “forgetting of these memories”. At this stage the memory traces are very susceptible to be disrupted easily, either due to external influences or proactive interference by older memories.
Next, Consolidation is the process by which the memory traces generated during encoding are stabilised. They are slowly integrated, by waves of consolidation processes, into the long-term memory and become available as resources Consolidation is usually considered to consist of two sub-processes, synaptic consolidation and system consolidation. Synaptic consolidation occurs in the time immediately after the memory trace is formed in encoding. Through system consolidation memories in the hippocampus are slowly made independent of it in the time that follows. In consolidation, the strength of the synapse (connection between 2 neurons) increases, through potentiation. This happens when a pathway is used repeatedly, thus making it more likely that the connected neurons will fire together. “At the neuronal level, memory formation is thought to be based on the change in the strength of synaptic connections in the network representing the memory.”
It is presumed that the waking brain is configured for acute external input processing involving the encoding of new information and memory retrieval, Thus when we are awake, our senses are constantly occupied due to the abundance of stimuli and encoding and retrieval are given priority. “Sleep is defined as a natural and reversible state of reduced responsiveness to external stimuli and relative inactivity, accompanied by a loss of consciousness.” The reduction in input while we are asleep is crucial to the consolidation of memory. This effect of sleep, protects the memory from retroactive interference due to the lack of formation of new memories. Retrieval refers to the access and recall of already stored memories.
The main concern with memory is that we have a limited capacity and therefore seem to forget or misremember things that we learn. There are several theories which speculate why 'forgetting' or loss of memory occurs. One of the earliest studies which indicated the effect of sleep on memory, is the “forgetting curve” experiment done by Ebbinghaus on himself. It was observed that his retention ability was increased when he slept in the retention period. Over time, several studies were conducted which indicated the direct impact sleep had on memory, and several theories were made. Among these the Interference theory helps explain the effect in more detail. Interference theory proposes that newer memories hamper older memories and vice versa, which thereby result in memories not being able to be recalled. Jenkins and Dallenbach conducted a famous experiment involving sleep where participants’ retention capability was tested in the state of being awake and asleep. The results of this study showed that in the state of wakefulness, the amount of forgetting is increased due to the new stimuli that we perceive, which is a fundamental part of Interference theory.
Multiple experiments have been done which show the positive effect of sleep on memory, thereby examining also longer retention intervals in the short term. Studies such as (Ref. 2 and Ref 3.) have shown that sleep definitively provides a huge benefit in retention for at least a day. “The underlying concept was that sleep acts as a “temporary shelter” that simply postpones the effect of interference and, thereby, passively maintains the memory traces.” It is also observed that the interference effects are prominent in the time shortly after learning. The longer the trace waits to be consolidated, the more likely that it will be disrupted. In the next section we will look at the effect of different types of sleep on memory. Sleep is of two types REM and SWS. REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep is the type of sleep in which dreaming and other bodily movement occur. SWS (Slow Wave Sleep) refers to deepest phase of our sleep. It is the phase during which we are least active.
Memory is majorly classified into two types. The first is the Declarative memory, which primarily consists of facts and the stimuli we perceive. Non Declarative memory is the other major division of memory. It refers to the Procedural Memory, that we recall subconsciously. An example of Non Declarative memory is muscle memory. We will discuss Dual Process and Sequential Hypotheses of sleep in memory.
According to the dual processes hypothesis, different sleep stages help in consolidating different types of memories. It is thought that declarative memory profits from SWS, whereas the consolidation of nondeclarative memory occurs during REM sleep. Experiments for this theory are done by testing participants on different things after different types of sleep. 'Originated from Ekstrand and co-workers, who created the two types of sleep by dividing the participants into two groups, the early-sleep and late-sleep condition.' In the early-sleep condition, the participants, performed learning tasks in the evening and then slept for 3 hours and then their retention was measured. This type of sleep is associated with SWS and consolidation of Declarative memory. The late sleep condition is associated with REM sleep. The participants are asked to sleep for 3 hrs, then perform the learning tasks and then sleep again. The second sleep is more likely to be REM and thus helps in the consolidation of Non declarative memory.
According to the Sequential hypothesis memories acquired during wakefulness are processed during sleep in two successive steps respectively occurring during SWS and REM sleep. The first step acts as a filter. The memories to be remembered and the traces to be strengthened are chosen and consolidated. All the other information that we take in when we are awake are removed and disregarded in this step. The neuronal system decides which of the facts are important and which are not. The respective memory traces and pathways are strengthened as a part of consolidation. The second step of this process involves REM sleep. The processed and consolidated memories from before, are further consolidated and slowly added to the long term memory in this step. Basically the REM stage acts like a reinforced storage for the memories consolidated during the SWS stage. Experiments on these theories consist of tasks consist of comparing retention ability before sleep, after SWS (which occurs in the first quarter of sleep) and finally to retention ability after REM sleep.
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Get custom essayFrom all of the studies and experiments conducted, is clear that sleep plays an integral part in the storing of memory. It does this in two ways, passively and also with an active role. In its passive role, due to the loss of consciousness, it reduces the encoding of new stimuli, thereby preventing them from retroactively affecting memories which are still being stabilised. The active role of sleep is associated with the stabilisation of memories. Studies indicate that sleep acts as a consolidation mechanism for memories and with several experiments and theories being proposed regarding the exact method in which it happens, with Dual process and Sequential Hypothesis being among the most popular.
Alfred Hitchcock is one of those filmmakers that’s so good he has his own style and to be an element in an Alfred Hitchcock film, one would need to be: a platinum blonde bombshell, riveting plot twist, or an innocent man accused of a crime. Though these are surface-level attributes to the Hitchcockian style, they make up several of his most well-known works from the 1940s to 1965.
Get original essayIn films like Vertigo, Rope, and Psycho, Hitchcock was able to establish the bases of what would later become his iconic style, Hitchcockian. Hitchcock gained his distinguishing style and aesthetic through his understanding of German expressionism, which translated via visual and narrative elements, added with a created suspense produced through editing.
The effects of World War I on the global film industry were deep and intoxicant. Not only were there political consequences from the war, but there was a psychological influence on the emerging filmmakers at that time. Many European film industries were corrupted by the war, but German filmmakers took hold of a stranger and darker attempt to disorient their audiences. Placing the audience in the mindset of the main characters; became an aspect of the psychological depth of the German Expressionism era. These films became more narrative with complex stories rooted in specific experiences held by their characters. This common trope is employed by Hitchcock in his 1958 film Vertigo, telling the story of retired detective John “Scottie” Ferguson (James Stewart).
Scottie takes a case to help an old friend with this possibly insane wife. Hitchcock manipulates the audience’s idea of the events to come by using the protagonist’s perception of the world in a visually remarkable way exposing the façade of the story’s world. Continuing with Hitchcock’s distinct narratives and perspective, the textbook A Short History of the Movies by Gerald Mast and Bruce Kawin explores his unique blends of the two. Mast and Kawin write “Hitchcock takes time out to focus on a subtle physical detail or ironic.
The plots revolve about the wildest possibilities… every Hitchcock film is the structure of the chase, the accelerating rush toward a climactic solution”. Though Vertigo might seem like a love story through the eyes of Scottie, in true Hitchcockian style, nothing is as it seems. Perceptions formed from the audience see this world being portrayed subjectively through the echoes of the eyes of the characters. With the view of the male protagonist, the audience feels emotions of love, obsession, and madness in Vertigo.
Character perspective was not the only aspect of German Expressionism used by Hitchcock. In his most esteemed work, Psycho (1960), Hitchcock exercises light, shadows, and unusual imagery to convey an eerie tone across the film and establish moods for its characters. These visual facets are apparent when Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) and Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) are talking in his office. The conversation turns dark as they begin to discuss Bates’ mother.
The audience gathers a sense of darkness in Bates’ not from his dialogue but through the set design and lighting. This film-noir atmosphere creates a foreshadowing of the premeditation that’s alive in the Hitchcockian style. Rope equally uses this visual detail by being shot entirely in one location time passes by naturally, and the characters interact naturally, giving a glimpse into the nature of the characters' motives. From the website Alfred Hitchcock: A Visual Analysis, they discuss the iconic shower scene and how, “because of this back and forth series of shots, the audience is at once able to feel the fear of Marion of been killed, but also the rush of being the killer.”
These choppy visuals enable the audience to experience something they normally would never experience as well as building separation from that experience. Hitchcock allows for these scenes to create emotion out of the audience, starting with the character's face guiding the eyes of the witnesses by his direction. Calling on a wide, close-up, or medium shot depending on the power of drama it brings, the frame can create an illustrative picture, and Hitchcock uses that to his advantage.
Hitchcock’s style of editing allowed him to cultivate an added layer of suspense in his films. Take his 1948 murder mystery Rope where there is almost a lack of editing involved, but a heightened degree of suspense formed from it. The mystery in Rope is gone before we even hear a person talk. The film's first couple of minutes open on the strangulation and ends with a blackout on Brandon’s (John Dall) back, lasting around 9 minutes, making the audience feel like a witness to what will soon unfold in this one location.
Reinforcing this idea of the audience peering into this world, Hitchcock made the movie feel as though it was all one shot. As described in a New York Times article written by Vincent Canby in 1984, he discusses how this idea of a one-shot in 1948 would not be possible because “there would have to be a disguised break every 10 minutes, which was as much film as the camera could contain.” The technology of that time did not allow for one long continuous take, but that did not stop Hitchcock from trying to hide the cuts in a dip to black. Others were a little more visible. Although they are slightly hidden, there is still an emphasis on the major theme of Rope, manipulation.
The one-take feel allows Hitchcock and the audience to examine the vileness of the upper class without these hidden cuts these complex themes would not have held up throughout the film. Hitchcock also practices the Kuleshov effect, montage editing. In the second murder in Psycho, he contrasts various compelling medium shots unexpectedly with an extreme close up. Montage editing used first by the Russian to evoke the desired emotion out of the audience. In this case, Hitchcock uses this style to assemble the shots at a rapid pace to induce shock and horror from the audience members.
Hitchcock utilized many early to mid-20th-century film techniques in his work, which combined helped him earn his name of “The Master of Suspense.” The techniques of German Expressionism (or American film noir) and montage editing paved the way for Hitchcock. He uses subjectivity to his advantage with the help of manipulation of suspense, producing his desired emotion from the audience. It is appropriate that he would acquire these tactics since the great works of the era before him practiced them.
Learning from his predecessors, Hitchcock earned himself his unique Hitchcockian style. A style he acquired through his vast understanding of the visual and narrative elements of German Expressionism with an added flare of suspenseful editing.
With a user base of nearly one third of the global population, Facebook is the largest social networking platform on the internet. Guided by their corporate manifesto of constructing a more connected and open world, Facebook connects individuals across digital space through their online profiles; however, just how open is Facebook itself?
Get original essayThe documentary Facebookistan attempts to answer this question through the deconstruction of the company’s corporate mission, information privacy policies and content moderation policies. Also examined are Facebook’s nebulous transparency policies and the growing tension between Facebook and government institutions, and activists and their users over their activities.
Facebookistan begins by introducing the viewer the ambiguous — and often contradictory — nature of Facebook’s activities; notably, with respect to its privacy policies and content moderation practices. This section delineates the struggle of Peter Knudsen, a disenfranchised author who has been subject to Facebook’s content moderation practices. The removal of Knudsen’s work — which features artistic depictions of nudity — while arguably pornographic content is permitted on the platform demonstrate inconsistencies in Facebook’s content policies.
Digital activist Rebecca Mackinnon remarks that Facebook’s platform rules are vague, and that their enforcement of these rules is often arbitrary. The viewer is then introduced to Max Schrems, a PhD student privacy law conducting research into Facebook’s information privacy practices. Schrems demonstrates the scope of user information retained by the company - which includes data not consciously shared or previously deleted. He then accounts the difficulty in reaching out to Facebook about these policies; their lack of transparency in this matter a clear violation of European privacy laws.
The documentary then pivots to an examination of the consequences Facebook’s real-name policy in relation to the censorship of cultural groups and expression of identity in digital space . Sister Roma, a community leader of the Drag Queen community, reveals the conflict her community has had with Facebook over these policies. Despite associating strongly with their Drag personas as a means of cultural expression, Facebook forces members of the community — just as it does all users — to use their real names on their platform. She then accounts Facebook’s dishonesty in addressing user concerns, only to once again force them to use their real-names.
Mackinnon and other activists argue that Facebook’s name policy endangers the lives of individuals in repressive regimes: the attachment of their real-name to unsavory political opinions or cultural identities inviting persecution or violence. In response individuals on the platform censor themselves. The film concludes this chapter with a demonstration of its lack of transparency with regards to censorship activities. Reporters wishing to reach out to Facebook on the matter are blocked at every step by the firm’s internal bureaucracy.
Facebookistan then shifts focus towards the Facebook’s content moderation practices; notably, the firm’s arbitrary interpretation of its own content rules to suit political, cultural, or monetary interests. Facebook’s positive recruitment messaging is directly juxtaposed against the dismal working conditions of its moderators - many of whom frequently exposed to violent imagery. Facebook gives its moderators minimal time to evaluate content, and sweeping discretion to do so as they see fit in accordance of their rules.
Political activists in repressive regimes account how Facebook frequently censors their activities in favor of their ruling parties. Turkish activist Müge Yamanyilmaz remarks that if individuals want to continue to have a voice on Facebook, they must actively censor themselves - they must adapt to the platform, or attract its retaliation. Mackinnon then argues that since Facebook is a vital mode of communication in digital space, it has a social responsibility in ensuring a fair system of justice. The system is completely dysfunctional and lacks accountability.
The final segment of Facebookistan devotes itself to Facebook’s data collection activities and relationship with government institutions. Conceptual artist Paolo Cirio describes his experiences with Facebook’s unscrupulous sharing of personal information with partners for monetary benefit. He comments on how content uploaded to Facebook ceases to be the property of the user - it is Facebook’s property to do with as they wish. Max Schrems then presents the viewer with his research regarding shadow profiles, vast data models consisting of all data directly or indirectly collected about the user.
The viewer is then presented with alternating accounts of the high acuity of predictions that can be made with this information, including one’s sexual orientation. The film then addresses how Facebook acts to subvert government institutions to achieve unfettered access to the information of citizens. This topic is explored through the cozy relationship Facebook has in funding government infrastructure projects, and the reluctance of government officials to hold the organization accountable for their actions. Facebook’s goal is to achieve a monopoly over the data of citizens.
Facebookistan ends with an account of a crackdown on Facebook’s privacy practices in Europe, implying that things may be beginning to change. Before dissecting the cultural meaning behind Facebookistan, it is first necessary to examine the work’s social context. Over the past decade the proliferation of mobile devices and social media platforms have had a profound influence on modes of communication and expression. With the press of a button a button, individuals can instantly connect with their peers or share their most intimate details across digital space.
This has enabled users of social media to connect with old acquaintances, or network with strangers around shared cultural meaning. Moreover, mobile devices provide the means of constant connection with online profiles and social networks. Through this superimposing of the digital self onto day-to-day life, the distinction between public and private space has become irreparably obscured. This has however, not been without consequence.
Platform owners wield a tremendous amount of power in modern society; specifically, with respect to the mediation of cultural forms and expression of social identity in digital space. Facebookistan is fundamentally about the nation-state like influence that social media companies wield over daily life and the era of technocratic authoritarianism that has emerged out of it. Technology companies such as Facebook feature absolute — often incredibly vague — rules of what content is acceptable on their platforms - their enforcement of which is arbitrary, as suits their immediate political or economic interests.
Furthermore, social media platforms collect vast quantities of user information to do with as they please; the consent of the user is dubious at best. To evade accountability to their users, technology companies intentionally obscure their activities through lack of transparency and bureaucratic red-tape. Lastly, platform owners actively engage in deception towards their users, and attempt to subvert government institutions to support their interests. The message of Facebookistan is thus a warning about the authoritarian control that technology companies have come exert on daily life across digital space.
A defining feature of contemporary society is the proficiency in which individuals utilize advances in mobile and information technologies in tandem with traditional modes of performance of self. The modern media landscape is permeated with messaging and symbols, leaving individuals with a skepticism of information and a mastery in redefining their digital personas in reflection of these evolving cultural artifacts. Driven by their desire for connection and social bonds, individuals offer themselves willing to the surveillance apparatuses that have been constructed by social media companies; they feel secure in their comfort in navigating digital space.
Facebookistan provides a popular critique of the obliviousness in which people — notably among those born in the internet age — surrender themselves to technology companies, notably, with regards to social media platforms. To this end, the documentary aims to persuade the viewer to critically reflect on their own false sense of security in relying on these platforms for their performance of self.
Facebookistan accomplishes this by illustrating the scope in which social media platforms retain user information, the disturbing acuity in which predictions about the user can be made with this information, and the potential for this sensitive data to be used for the political or monetary benefit of the platform owner. In addition, it also shows the capacity for these organizations to censor their digital expression of self, as they see fit, without any transparency or accountability. Thus, Facebookistan is fundamentally a critique about the obliviousness in which contemporary society consumes social media.
Facebookistan is effective in its efforts to persuade the audience to reflect on their engagement with social media. In demonstrating the scope in which personal information is collected, and the unsettling intimacy in which predictions can be made with this data, the viewer must come to terms with the notion that social media platforms probe far deeper into their social lives than they were previously privy to. More importantly however, the must also now acknowledge the fact that technology companies know far more about them than they are likely comfortable sharing.
Case examples analyzed in the film involving Facebook’s content moderation activities are particularly unsettling to the viewer; social media companies have amassed a tremendous amount of power in the mediation of their digital selves. The viewer comes to comprehend the scope in which technology companies may censor the performance of their digital identities, as suits their interests, without any accountability or transparency.
Whether the viewers agree fully with the arguments of the film is inconsequential, in being brought to grapple with these ideas they are forced to reflect on the blind faith in which they previously submitted themselves to these platforms. Consequently, they will never consume with social media in quite the same way. For these reasons, Facebookistan is highly effective in its persuasion of the viewer to evaluate their sense of security in their engagement with social media.
Although Facebookistan is effective in its efforts to invite audience reflection on their engagement with social media, there are some areas of the film that could use improvement. The documentary focuses heavily on the information collection apparatus, content enforcement activities, and lack of accountability and transparency of these platforms. However, Facebookistan does not sufficiently explore the implications of the sharing of personal information with third parties. In sharing personal information with their partners — whether their users are aware of the fact or not — social media organizations such as Facebook exposed their users to remarkable privacy and security risks.
While large platforms such as Facebook may adhere to strict security assurances in preventing unauthorized access of sensitive user information, partners with whom they share this data frequently provide no such guarantees. One need only consider the example of the various data leaks that have occurred through third part applications hosted by Facebook on their platform; their partners have a proven history of handling private user information across insecure channels.
Moreover, it is often the case that these partners misuse this information for their own purposes. For example, Cambridge Analytica’s use of improperly collected Facebook data in its election micro-targeting campaigns. These security and privacy concerns are compounded by the use of shadow profiles by social media companies - far more information than the user has consciously shared may be used without their consent or exposed to the public should it be leaked. Therefore, although Facebookistan is effective in inviting the audience to reflect on their use of social media, it could have better addressed security and privacy implications of the sharing of user information.
Over the past decade mobile technology and social media have profoundly influences social modes of communication and expression. These platforms have enabled individuals to connect with acquaintances, or network with complete strangers around shared cultural values; they have also provided a means of constant connection with online profiles and social networks.
This superimposing of the digital onto day-to-day life has eroded the distinction between public and private space, but it has also given technology companies a tremendous amount of power in mediating cultural forms. Facebookistan seeks to explore this near authoritarian power that social media platforms project into day-to-day life. It accomplishes this through critique of the blind obliviousness in which individuals consume social media. Facebookistan is highly effective in its efforts to invite critical reflection of social media reliance.
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Get custom essayThis is achieved by deconstructing the disturbing scope of the information collected by these platforms, their lack of accountability and transparency, and their questionable content moderation practices. However, the film fails to adequately explore important security and privacy concerns associated with how these platforms share sensitive information with third parties. Despite its flaws, Facebookistan offers a compelling examination of the social implications of the dominance of large technology companies in mediating contemporary cultural meaning.
The more general concept of ethnocentrism stems from ethnocentrism of consumers. Ethnocentric individuals see their group as being superior to others. From their own perspective, they view other groups and decide to reject different groups and accept similar ones. Ethnocentrism of consumers refers specifically to the ethnocentric views of consumers in one country, the in-group, towards products from another country, the out-group. Consumers may think that buying products from other countries it is not appropriate, and possibly even shameful.
Get original essayConsumer ethnocentrism gives consumers an understanding of what in-group purchases are acceptable, as well as feelings of identity and belonging. For consumers who are not ethnocentric products are evaluated solely from their country of origin on their merits, or possibly even viewed more positively because they are foreign. In 1998, Glen Brodowsky studied consumer ethnocentrism among car buyers in the U.S. He found a strong positive relationship in the evaluation of automobiles between high ethnocentrism and country-base bias. Consumers with low ethnocentrism appeared to evaluate cars rather than their country of origin based on the merits of the actual car. Brodowsky suggests that understanding consumer ethnocentrism is critical to understanding the effects of the country of origin.
In 1987, Terence A. Shimp and Subhash Sharma developed consumer ethnocentrism into a measurable structure by using the scale of ethno-centric consumer tendencies (CETSCALE). The CETSCALE’s initial development began with 225 different questions, which were narrowed down to 100 before being sent for the first purification study to a survey group. The number of questions was finally reduced to 17 through repeated purification studies. Shimp and Sharma repeated studies validated the U.S. CETSCALE. One was developed alongside the full version with 10 items. Both the version of 17 items and the 10 items version have been tested. Both versions of the CETSCALE were found to be reliable across the various cultures where they were tested. The results also helped validate the CETSCALE as an ethno-centricity measure for consumers. Since that time, in many different countries and cultures, the CETSCALE has been used in many studies.
Although much of the research on consumer ethnocentric tendencies is being conducted in developed countries, an attempt has been made to collect and analyze the vast literature review for further exploration of the subject. CET’s main background empirically tested by different researchers includes socio-psychological, demographic, political, and economic categories.
Cultural openness is widely referred to as customer openness toward foreign cultures. Shankarmahesh defined cultural openness as, “the opportunity and willingness of people in one culture to interact toward people, values, and artifacts from other cultures”. Shimp and Sharma stated that cultural openness is negatively correlated with CET. They most likely relied on the conventional wisdom that travel opportunities and cross-cultural interactions lead to more exposures and cultural tolerances, resulting in mitigating consumer ethnocentric tendencies. Such studies, however, have neglected the maxims of ‘familiarity breed contempt’ and ‘self-reference criteria’(SRC) whose meaning in cross cultural literature is the tendency to judge other cultures using one’s own culture as the reference point. Thus, further insights into the relationships between cultural openness and CET can be provided by considering both the effect of potential moderators such as SRC, attitudes towards foreign brands and possible interactions with other antecedents such as xenophobia, animosity and world mindedness.
Conservatism is the tendency to preserve and maintain the traditional order of the society that survived the tests of the time. It has been argued that conservatism could manifest itself in an extreme form as insistence on strict rules and punishments, religious outlook and an anti-hedonic outlook. With regard to developing countries, the results of the studies differ. Whatever the justifications for conservatism as a potential antecedent of CET have been provided, the criticisms it faces are consumers can hide their conservative belief while making a purchase decision and also conservatism has become obsolete with the advent of globalization. Thus, while studying the impact of conservatism on CET, moderating effects of world mindset, education, and globalization should be given due weightage.
World-minded people give less importance to nationality or ethnic groups and consider human beings as primary reference groups, thereby encouraging people to share common values and maintain empathy with other societies. Thus, a person without intercultural interaction can be “world minded” theoretically. World minded consumers are interested in knowledge of international affairs, regards for national harmony and consensus developments. One can certainly argue that in evaluating the relationship between Cultural Openness and the CET, world mindedness can be studied as a potential moderator.
Collectivism is defined by perceiving collectivist goals rather than individual goals as the social orientation in terms of human personal traits. Hofstede defined it as “collectivistic individuals from birth onwards are integrated into strong, cohesive in-groups, which throughout people’s lifetime continue to protect them in exchange for unquestioning loyalty”. Collectivism is a major element of individual cultural orientation and is therefore obliged to promote the economic improvement of domestic industries. Individuals with high collectivism scores also tend to reveal wider ethnocentric tendencies against individualistic goals. Studies in developed countries have consistently demonstrated the positive relationship between CET and collectivism.
Patriotism has been defined from different perspectives by various researchers, such as “sense of national loyalty”, “a love of national symbols”, devotion to one’s own country, and people’s commitment to their mother nations. Further liberalization of the federal governments’ trade policies on WTO lines can never lead to the conclusion that such governments are ‘unpatriotic’ or act against their nations. The above discussion therefore calls for the need to explore the moderating effects of global mentality and education on the governing relationship between Patriotism and CET.
Any correlation between ethnicity and CET demonstrated the ethnicity as a strong predictor of CET.
The conceptual difference between internationalism and world mindedness is perceived as positive feelings of people towards foreign countries highlighting international sharing and welfare and reflecting empathy for the peoples of other countries. Authors such as Lee and Back and Zhang et al. have empirically stated the negative correlation between internationalism and consumer ethnocentrism in developed countries. In the Crawford and Lamb and Rawwas studies, however, the positive correlation between buying preference between international brands and the global mindset emerges.
The moral dimension of ethnocentrism emphasizes the fact that it is solely because of nationals of a country buying products from countries otherwise available in domestic countries to lose workers’ jobs and put national economy behind well off nations. Salience means the perceived threat to domestic workers and positive relationship perception of threat to ethnocentrism. Some support the strong positive correlation between salience and the CET but, Shimp and Sharma et al. included it in their conceptual model as a moderator rather than a precedent. Both the viewpoints have merit as if salience is to be considered as moderating variable or a consumer ethnocentrism antecedent.
Dogmatism is defined as a trait of personality for black and white viewing of the world. The strong positive relationship between dogmatism and consumer ethnocentrism is also shown in different studies.
Xenophobia is defined as the negative attitude toward, or fear of, individuals or groups of individuals that are in some sense different (real or imagined) from oneself or the group(s) to which one belongs. While xenophobia is created primarily due to distrust and fear in the minds of consumers, it reinforces their ethnocentric tendencies. A strong positive empirical support between xenophobia and the consumer ethnocentrism has been found.
The lack of satisfying power of interpersonal relationships are is filled with materialistic possessions. The dimensions of materialism are possessiveness, non-generosity and envy. Consumer ethnocentrism is associated with envy, possessiveness; it is necessary to defend one’s ego and to identify with a larger group similar to materialism. Demonstrated a sufficient positive correlation between materialism and consumer ethnocentrism.
In addition to the major socio-psychological constructs discussed in holistic review of consumer ethnocentrism literature, other researchers from different perspectives also introduce some other antecedents. Inheritance and individual social responsibility are a few to mention. It was argued that negative attitudes towards foreigners may be antecedents of the CET, although most researchers view it as consequences of a higher degree of CET. In addition, consumer affinity is a positive determinant of the consumer ethnocentrism. Consumer affinity and consumer ethnocentrism are interrelated concepts, and conceptual differences are evident in defining social identity theory-based in-groups and out-groups.
Ethnocentrism is regarded as a sociological concept, but the holistic term of consumer ethnocentrism has a great deal to do with the economic aspects of nations as a whole. Different researchers have undertaken the studies to analyze a nation’s possible economic relationships not only with mediators or moderators, but also with the CET’s major background. While the results of developing and developed countries show considerable diversion, they show relatively consistency when considering the similar status of individuals from different nations.
It’s the way a country’s economic activities like capitalism, socialism, or mixed economy are governed. The feelings of a country’s ethnocentric and nationalist people are directly influenced by a country’s prevailing economic system. Capitalism that encourages people to own property is negatively associated with the CET, which is further empirically substantiated by citizens’ research in four post-communist countries: Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland, while as socialistic economies are more conservative and are expected to have more ethnocentric tendencies. From a study on 13 transitional economies in Europe, a unique CE model has been noted and authors believe consumers prefer to buy domestic products as there is a weak relationship between cosmopolitanism and CET in these transitional economies. However, there is practically a dearth of literature in developing economies that highlights the relationship between economic backgrounds and CET.
A country’s stage of development is a major factor influencing the ethnocentric tendencies of consumers. A comprehensive framework is sketched that links various stages of economic development with consumer’s preferences for domestic and foreign goods. As per the framework, die to high quality, status and curiosity motives, the early stages of the transition (from state control to market control) are marked by the preference for foreign products. However, the dominance of nationalist motives is observed in the intermediate mode of transition and further reversed upon attainment of the developed status. Klein and Ettenson believe that consumers are on the increase in their disposable income for expensive imported goods and thus confirm the negative relationship between economic development and the CET. This is also justified by the comparative studies carried out by the United States, Slovenia and Kazakhstan by confirming the stronger association of ethnocentric consumer trends in the contexts of less developed transitional economies.
The negative relationship between national economy improvement beliefs and consumer ethnocentrism has been observed in developed countries like the U.S. Authors also argued that the result of improved personal financial situation is reduced levels of CET. The positive correlation between individual consumer income levels and foreign brand preferences was explored primarily due to the consumer buying behavior associated with the status. It was further argued that less ethnocentrism is observed when people believe their national economies have improved over the past few years. In contrast, consumers in developed countries prefer domestic brands as they perceive them to be of high quality and people from developing countries are highly satisfied with preferential products from developed countries.
Political propaganda is informal government mentoring to their nationals to change their attitudes toward local brands. Some non-profit organizations in some countries are also promoting these campaigns. Rosenblatt’s political propaganda was posed back in 1964 as a precedent of the CET. The author argued that by raising the bogey of threat from out-groups, the leaders can increase the ethnocentrism of the group to a greater extent and whose magnitude is an empirical question to be answered. Studying the role of ‘political orientation’ as a moderator governing the relationship between political propaganda and the CET is worth mentioning, while arguing that the country’s political freedom can moderate the impact of political propaganda. The campaigns promoted by the most governments to ‘buy local’ show varying acceptability in the countries’ diasporas. It was furthered claimed that in less developed countries such as Indonesia, ‘buy local’ campaigns show sufficient ethnocentric influence. The impact of the campaign ‘made in India’ on consumer ethnocentrism in Indian consumers in the country’s political philosophy is a valuable question to be ascertained.
In addition to political propaganda, countries’ political histories determine the level of CET among their nationals considerably. It was argued that there is an increase in countries with a long history of oppression, a strong emotional feeling of rejecting out-group values in addition to enhancing cohesiveness within the group. It can be argued, however, that in comparison with the products of the conquered nation, the consumers of conquering nations will tend to see the ‘in-group’ products as higher and better. Since India has been under the Western rule for a long time, consumers are expected to demonstrate moderate behavior while making the purchasing intentions.
Furthermore, it was argued that leader has the power to manipulate a group’s ethnocentric beliefs. Therefore, when leaders conduct programs to foster homogeneity and in-group members’ mutual familiarity, it is a clear motivation for the nation’s customers to intensify ethnocentric feelings.
Jean Bodin introduced the concept of sovereignty in the 16th century, emphasizing that the nation’s freedom from external influences is the fundamental right of any country. Most political theories agree that sovereignty is a situation which the supremacy of authority is decided by the territorial legislature elected by that country’s general population. It was also argued that sovereignty is positively linked to both ethnocentrism and colonialism.
In addition to import buying behavior, most researchers report the demographic antecedents of the CET comprehensively. The sole benefit of which is consumer demographic segmentation based on their favorable disposition to foreign products. Most previous researchers believe that understanding the relationship between demographic variables and consumer ethnocentrism is the most important thing for marketers when determining domestic buyers’ sensitivity to foreign brands.
More younger generation cosmopolitanism due to socio-cultural influences in the recent past is argued for their tendency to be less ethnocentric and is further justified by research findings showing a low score for young customer groups in the CET scale compared to conservative elders. While there is mixed empirical evidence to support the arguments that younger people are less ethnocentric, some studies have not found any significant relationship between the two, while researchers find a positive relationship between age and favorable evaluation of foreign product.
Gender is of prominent importance in analyzing the behavioral aspects of the customers and there is no consensus among various researchers regarding the relationship between gender and CET. Most studies show that women are more ethnocentric than the men who evaluate foreign products unfavorably, possibly because of more conservative and conformist nature or because they have higher tendencies to maintain social harmony. Some studies, however, found no sufficient gender difference with respect to CET, while women were found to be less ethnocentric than men.
Generally speaking, education is pretended to be a tool for making the mind of people broad and a very useful means of diminishing conservative tendencies. Most researchers have empirically demonstrated that customer educational levels are negatively related to the CET, mostly more educated individuals are less likely to have ethnic prejudices.
An important factor influencing customer decision-making is income. A majority of studies have concluded that income is a demographic precedent of consumer ethnocentrism, but there are fluctuations in the findings. The view showed that higher income levels offer the opportunity to travel and gain experience across borders, eventually inculcating them to hold cosmopolitan views.
Social classes are divisions in society that are relatively homogeneous and enduring, sharing a common pattern in consumer purchasing decisions. The magnitude of the income-CET correlation can be extended in proportion to the social class and CET, i.e. one can hypothesize that their ethnocentric tendencies tend to fall as consumers move up the social ladder. However, with regard to the negative correlation of social class and CET, no consistent pattern is observed, showing that upper class consumers are more ethnocentric than upper middle and lower classes. To conclude, therefore, that social class and CET are correlated remotely.
There is a diverse opinion on the preference for domestic/foreign countries from minority and non-minority communities. The research questions on the differences in consumer ethnocentrism between ethnic groups have yielded different results. Studies have concluded that minorities are more favorable than majority ethnic groups to foreign brands.
The primary consequence of interest is whether ethnocentrism really matters to a nation's consumers that have been extensively researched. Several operational definitions for possible CET consequences can be inferred from previous research. Researchers used various constructs such as ‘attitude towards purchasing foreign products;’ ‘purchase intention’ ‘support for foreign products’ ‘willingness to buy domestic products’ and ‘willingness to buy foreign products.’ They maintained, however, that sources of consumer ethnocentrism were not well recognized. An important research question to be determined is what leads consumers to score high on the scale of consumer ethnocentrism. In addition, it argued that international marketers significantly influence foreign customers’ ethnocentric tendencies along with preserving the well-being of other stakeholders popularly known as International Quality of Life Orientation (IQOL). From previous research, they categorized the effects of consumer ethnocentrism into three groups. It refers to ' consumer beliefs regarding the prestige of local and foreign brands, the characteristics and quality of local and foreign products and the purchase of imported products, ' second refers to ' general attitudes towards foreign products, advertising and brands, ' and third refers to ' consumer purchasing intentions. '
Conceptually there is by and large unanimous position on the argument that consumer ethnocentrism is positively correlated with favorable evaluation of domestic products and all of the previous studies, with few exceptions in a few cases, provide empirical evidence to justify the above argument. The positive relationship between CET and domestic products purchasing intention is empirically assumed.
Various researchers have proposed numerous mediators and the consequences of their effects on the ethnocentrism of consumers. Researchers conducted their study in the U.S. and offered empathy, perceived equity, costs and responsibility as potential mediators between CET and willingness to go for imported products. Ethnocentrism of the consumer is considered to have a positive influence on the empathy of other persons considered similar to the consumer. CET has been suggested to have a negative impact on perceived equity primarily because ethnocentric consumers feel that international competition is devastating for domestic industries, which will induce consumers to go for domestic commodities afterwards. To put it another way, ethnocentric consumers tend to ignore personal economic costs when buying domestic products, thus proving the CET's price inelastic nature. The authors also argued that consumers tend to be more responsible with a decrease in perceived equity, leading to go for domestically produced products rather than foreign products. The effect of ' Country of Origin (COO) ' is another mediating variable between consumer patriotism and buying intent. The authors concluded that patriotism affected country image in developed countries, but their relationship was moderated by the importance of the product. However, there is considerable inconsistency in the empirical results regarding the relationship between image of a country and purchase intention. As an affective and normative construct, CET can therefore lead to the country of origin effect, which is basically a cognitive construct. Finally, ' Product evaluation ' is also included among the empirically supported mediating variables for the evaluation of foreign products. However, no significant relationship between CET and evaluation of the quality of foreign products has been studied in the US and even positive relationships have been established for some Japanese products.
There were suggested two moderating variables, i.e. 'perceived product necessity' and ' perceived economic threat ' between consumer ethnocentrism and foreign product attitudes. The former is the extent to which consumers believe that because of its absolute necessity, an outsider product is indispensable. The authors concluded that CET had a more ' unnecessary ' perception of negative attitudes towards foreign products. Perceived economic threat is a concept similar to the previously discussed salience under the socio-psychological construct. The authors argued that CET influenced attitudes primarily for products perceived as a threat to the home economy as a whole. In a study on consumers in New Zealand, Watson and Wright introduced another moderating variable ' Cultural similarity ' and concluded that consumers with high CET use source country cultural similarity for product attitudes and product evaluations.
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Get custom essayThe research project's goal is to provide a comprehensive review of consumer ethnocentrism's background and consequences. Each possible antecedent and consequence is discussed individually for the complete exploration of the subject. Information generated from such studies can provide a basis for a better understanding of countries and their consumer markets at different levels of economic development. This project will not only enrich the wide range of consumer behavior and marketing knowledge in transitional markets but will also provide broad opportunities for further marketing research.
Science fiction films are based on imagination and characters that have not been scientifically proven to exist in real life. The choice of film in this review is Avatar by James Cameron. I chose this film because it extends viewers’ minds to a brand-new world that with techniques and scientific theories that are not supported by the mainstream science. Although it literally comes from the author’s or director’s imagination, it still has some important rules to develop a successful sci-fi film. James Cameron is well known for writing about foreign figures in a foreign land with enough fiction to enable viewers to question the actual existence of foreign beings. This article is to analyze one of his sci-fi work, Avatar (2009), as an example to explore the essential points of building a successful sci-fi film.
Get original essayAvatar is a Science Fiction movie directed by James Cameron, released in December 2009. The film was so successful that there the sequels Avatar 2 and Avatar 3 scheduled to launch on December 2021 and December 2023, respectively. The plot of the film is set in the future. The film describes the year 2154 when humans have depleted the resources available on Earth, leading to a massive energy crisis. Humanity therefore explored and found Pandora, a moon that is very densely forested with an atmosphere that is poisonous to humans.
The Na’vi, known as “The People” in English, are a race of sentient beings inhabiting the lush jungle moon of Pandora; and an avatar, meaning the “dream walker” in English, is a Human/Na’vi hybrid who has a genetically engineered body that is meant to house a human mind. An avatar looks like a Na’vi when it is born, blue in color and as tall as 10 feet; it can live as comfortable as the Navi on Pandora; but has been cultivated with enough neurophysiology in ordedr to be used as an avatar by the human beings. Humans are their controller or “driver”; and each human driver will have an exclusive “key” to his or her avatar, known as the psionic link technology. They worship a goddess called Eywa. In Avatar, the primary protagonist is Jack, who impersonates his twin brother in the capacity of a bodyguard for a research expedition to Pandora. Having used a body link unit to connect to an avatar (a Navi lookalike body built for Pandora’s atmosphere), Jack is soon saved by a Navi girl, Neytiri, who introduces him to her clan. The clan spiritual leaders issue an order for Neytiri to initiate Jack into their community. The storyline follows this story of the two different beings from different worlds trying to survive and reconcile their differences and accept their different societies.
Sci-Fi films are normally fictional and depict lifeforms and gadgets that exist outside of actual science or the technology currently available. A good example, in this case, is the use of aliens and extra-terrestrial bodies by humans. Avatar depicts futuristic species and gadgets that have not yet been formed and, in some cases, seem to be based on assumptions that have not been scientifically proven. In the Avatar film, the origin of the film characters was from fictional novels Cameron had read since childhood, while he created the mystical Navi and Pandora’s many alien creatures using computer generated imagery (CGI).
The concept is ideal for a Science Fiction movie because the characters are alien beings who live by a certain set of rules that humans cannot. The film also offers futuristic concepts and technology such as interstellar travel and advanced technologies that make it even more intriguing. Therefore, in the film it is important to note that the Navi’s imitation, the avatar, is engineered and designed differently with the Navis. For example, the brains of avatars are modeled in purpose of matching their human operators. Avatar was filmed to show the existence of extra-terrestrial life and species of which humans may be unaware. It is inaccurate because most of the characters are computer generated, which is an element that caters to the strong Science Fiction current in the film.
Developing a Science Fiction film requires significant research. There should be a study of different cultures and the ways they could relate and affect the future. This might include identifying some activities carried out today by the humans that may cause certain consequences in the future and the likely outcome of the issue at the time. Before starting to write the actual film, the film maker should be able to identify with the species that they plan to create. The creation team must be comprehensive and creative to understand how the fiction will fit in, and the new species will be introduced into the film. The development of Avatar began with Cameron creating the Navi he had in mind and then deciding whether to use paint or technology to create these characters.
The decision to include the timeline that indicates when humanity met the Navi is a great addition to the development of the film. In development, the realization of the actual world and the backstory helps viewers to understand the story and relate to the creatures through understanding their reasons for being there. In Avatar, it is evident that Cameron was focusing on the angle of an alien, where the alien body was different, and so is the environment. Therefore, through developing the story around the creatures and allowing humans to inhabit the bodies and lives of the Navi through avatars, the movie became a successful Science Fiction film.
A sci-fi movie distinguishes from other types of movies by its assumption that is heavily based on speculative, fictional science, which has not been accepted or fully accepted by mainstream science. Its theme is either entirely Imaginate or more seriously with science and technology covered in the film. Inspiration should come from the author and lay a basis for the theme. The inspiration of the characters determines the kind of theme that is set up in filming, in make-up, in preparation of the characters and in managing the cast. The inspiration for the movie begins even before the writer starts to pen the script. In the case of Avatar, Cameron had the inspiration to use aliens as a theme. He had a rough idea about how the aliens should look, how he thought they lived, and what their home world was like.
All these factors were inspired by the books he read during his childhood. It instilled some form of creativity and curiosity about these fictional creatures. The primary fictional sentient creature in Avatar is the Navi people. They live under certain rules and guidelines. They have a hierarchy of leadership and all these factors combine to form how ordinary communities live, but with a little more twist and creativity included in the inspiration. Cameron put his ideas into writing and created a theme that brought the ideas in his head and the inspiration in his heart to an actual film that became Avatar.
When making a sci-Fi movie, the visual effects are essential. The reason is that most of the ambience and the environment have to be created and some characters must appear real. Being fictional, the imagination of the writer must come to life through the film. Therefore, visual effects are the most important factor in preparing and making a fictional film. Most of the content of the film is experimental, and therefore the visual effects are required to bring the life the characters. In Avatar, the visual effects included new forms of lighting to light up the jungle in Pandora; Cameron also used equipment that could record the facial expressions of actors for the characters in the film. Motion captures, and the animation of the characters required powerful equipment to bring about the characters to fit the roles issued. The visual effects in Avatar took up a lot of time, considering there was a need to accurately create and pre-record all the facials and the voice-overs before the actual filming could take place.
Music and soundtracks help bring about a certain mood in the movie or film. The sounds also define the location and engender an understanding of the experience and the feeling of a certain environments. In Avatar, the facts are similar: Cameron used a recorded soundtrack by James Horner, which was a recording of his song in the Navi language. He also created the music culture of the alien world, including such elements as how the Navi themselves sang within the film. Cameron also used ordinary songs in the film like “I see you” by Leona Lewis, a British Singer.
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Get custom essayCameron made a clear effort to craft and deliver the fiction to the viewers. He had extreme inspiration from the book he read in his childhood. He put his creativity to work and made a film that was loved by viewers to the extent that the demand for sequels got the writer and director to consider filming Avatar 2 and Avatar 3. The film is very creative as well as entertaining and evidently fits in the category of Science Fiction films.
In our daily social life, when we people meeting, whether with a stranger or a friend, we are likely to classify them by a certain category of characteristics consciously or unconsciously. However, making categories not only applies to individual life, also societies have categories, as what the sociologists called stratification. Stratification is a way in which members of a society are divided and grouped into socioeconomic tiers according to their occupation and income, wealth and social status, social and political power, education, race, gender, etc.
Get original essayHence, estate system of stratification is a type of social stratification based on the control of land.
Estate System were common in Europe and Asia during the Middle Ages and well into the 1800s. In estate system there was three estates groups that existed before the French revolution, first estate, second estate and third estate.
The estate system is synonymous with the term feudalism which is a system of land ownership and duties (was used in the middle ages).
Characteristics of the estate system:
Estate systems flourished in Europe until the French Revolution (1789) forcefully overthrew the existing order and provoked people in other nations with its cries for freedom and equality. As time went on, European estate systems slowly gave way to class systems of stratification. After the American colonies won their independence from Britain, the South had at least one characteristic of an estate system, the control of large plots of land by a relatively few wealthy individuals and their families, but it used slaves rather than peasants to work the land.
Much of Asia, especially China and Japan, also had estate systems. For centuries, China’s large population lived as peasants in abject conditions and frequently engaged in peasant revolts. These escalated starting in the 1850s after the Chinese government raised taxes and charged peasants higher rents for the land on which they worked. After many more decades of political and economic strife, Communists took control of China in 1949. (DeFronzo, 2007)
For centuries, sociologists have analyzed social stratification, its root causes, and its effects on society. Theorists Karl Marx and Max Weber disagreed about the nature of class, in particular. Other sociologists applied traditional frameworks to stratification.
Karl Marx based his conflict theory on the idea that modern society has only two classes of people: the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.
The bourgeoisie: are the owners of the means of production, which are the factories, businesses, and equipment needed to produce wealth.
The proletariat: are the workers, they typically work for the bourgeoisies.
According to Marx, the bourgeoisie in capitalist societies exploit workers. The owners pay them enough to afford food and a place to live, but not to outgrow their status, the workers who do not realize they are being exploited, have a false consciousness, or a mistaken sense, that they are well off. They think they can count on their capitalist bosses to do what was best for them.
Marx foresaw a workers’ revolution. As the rich grew richer, Marx hypothesized that workers would develop a true class awakening, or shared sense of brotherhood based on their common experience of exploitation by the bourgeoisie. The workers would unite and revolt in a global revolution. Once the dust settled after the revolution, the workers would then own the means of production, and the world would become communist. No one stratum would control the access to wealth. Everything would be owned equally by everyone.
Marx’s vision did not come true. As societies modernized and grew larger, the working classes became more educated, acquiring specific job skills and achieving the kind of financial well-being that Marx never thought possible. Instead of increased exploitation, they came under the protection of unions and labor laws. Skilled factory workers and tradespeople eventually began to earn salaries that were similar to, or in some instances greater than, their middle-class counterparts, and the gap between the rich and the poor became increasingly bigger.
Max Weber was against Karl Marx’s seemingly simplistic view of stratification. Weber argued that owning property, such as factories or equipment, is only part of what determines a person’s social class. Social class for Weber, in addition to property or wealth, included power and prestige (People who run corporations without owning them still benefit from increased production and greater profits).
Weber argued that property can bring prestige, since people tend to hold rich people in high regard. Prestige can also come from other sources, such as athletic, intellectual ability or entrepreneurship skills. In those instances, prestige can lead to property, if people are willing to pay and put in the work and effort for access to prestige. For Weber, wealth and prestige are linked.
Weber believed that social class is also a result of power, which is merely the ability of an individual to get his or her way, despite opposition. Wealthy people tend to be more powerful than poor people, and power can come from an individual’s prestige.
Example: Donald Trump enjoyed prestige as socialite and as a TV personality, and he was also extremely wealthy. When he was elected as President of the United States of America, he became powerful as well.
Sociologists still consider social class to be a grouping of people with similar levels of wealth, prestige, and power.
Sociologists Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore believed that stratification serves an important function in society. In any society, a number of tasks must be accomplished. Some tasks, such as cleaning streets or serving coffee in a restaurant, are relatively simple. Other tasks, such as performing brain surgery or designing skyscrapers, are complicated and require more intelligence and training than the simple tasks. They believed those who perform the difficult tasks are therefore entitled to more power, prestige, and money. Davis and Moore believed that an unequal distribution of society’s rewards is necessary to encourage people to take on the more complicated and important work that required many years of training. They believed that the rewards attached to a particular job reflect its importance to society.
Sociologist Melvin Tumin was against Davis and Moore’s theory. He disagreed with their assumption that the relative importance of a particular job can always be measured by how much money or prestige is given to the people who performed those jobs. That assumption made identifying and categorizing important jobs difficult. Were the jobs inherently important, or were they important because people received great rewards to perform them.
In modern society estate systems have slowly been dissolved, but that does not mean it has eliminated stratification, in today’s society, three stratification systems remain: slavery, a caste system, and a class system.
Slavery still exists today. Millions of people live under conditions that qualify as slavery, despite laws prohibiting it, but are being exposed due to platforms such as the internet.
For example: African countries like Mauritania, Sudan, Ghana, and Benin, slavery still very much exists as much as it did hundreds of years ago. In other parts of the world, including Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, debt slavery (happens when people give themselves or are given to someone as slaves as security against a loan or when they inherit a debt from a relative) and Sex slavery (the forcing of girls into prostitution) is till common in Asia.
A caste system is a social system which is based upon traits or characteristics that people possess as a result of their birth, because of their lineage they remain in these groups for the rest of their lives. This type of social system is an ascribed system, it can include race, gender, nationality, body type, and age. A caste system places people rigidly, no matter what a person does, he or she cannot change castes.
People often try to deter their ascribed statuses by changing their nationality, lying about their age, or undergoing plastic surgery to alter their body type. In some societies, this strategy works; in others, it does not.
For example:
In a class system, an individual’s place in society is based on achieved statuses, which are statuses that we either earn or choose and that are not based upon where or to whom we were born. Those born within a class system can choose their educational level, religion, careers, and spouses. Social mobility is a major characteristic of the class system.
For example:
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Get custom essayIn conclusion, even though estate stratification has been abolished, other systems of stratification are evident in all societies because of how it members are divided or grouped. A person’s ability to move from his or her social position is established at birth.
Product designers must always give importance to legal and ethical considerations while designing their products.
Get original essayDuring the recent times, much attention has been directed towards toy design to remove sharp edges, small pieces that can lead to chocking and toxic materials. Companies who manufacture and distribute toys worldwide must understand and follow the legal requirements. The failure of businesses to follow the growing legislation can lead to legal risks and can tarnish the company’s reputation. Mattel’s failure to adhere to legal and ethical considerations while designing the products had led to over 21 million toys being withdrawn from stores and parents filing lawsuits which claimed that these products had harmed their children.
Similarly, automobiles safety and standard features like seatbelts and airbags has a significant impact on their designing process. One example can be seen in the case of Henry Ford. The company manufactured Ford Pinto which later has a series of problems regarding the design. The safety of the design of the car’s fuel system led to critical incidents and subsequently resulted in a recall, lawsuits, a criminal prosecution, and public controversy. People claimed that the company had known about the design flaw and didn’t change the design due to the high cost involved.
Ethical issues can often come up in the design of products and serves and therefore it is crucial for managers to be aware of such issues and product designers must always stick to the ethical standards no mater the time and cost involved in the design processes. Companies must:
Years ago, crash safety ratings were not that important to most buyers as affordability and style were more important than safety features and how well the vehicle was built. But right now, 75% of new car buyers says that their purchase decision will be affected by the car safety ratings. The crash safety ratings can be of great importance to new car buyers as they are unknown to the riding experience of most cars.
The degree of importance does depend on the circumstances of the buyer. It can depend on the buyers age group, educational level, geographical location etc. Customers who tend to be more educated gives more importance to the quality of the goods that they buy and hence will give more importance on the safety ratings of the car. Similarly, people of ages 28 and 55 might not like the same type of car. On the other hand, consumers who live in the mountainous or desert regions might buy safer cars then those who live in pain region. It is difficult to say that a certain set of buyers might be more concerned about safety ratings than the other as everyone values their life. Sometimes buyers might prefer a car with less rating for its other quality like affordability, mileage, design etc.
There are several features found in new cars which can sway customers from prioritising on safety ratings. Some of them are as follows:
Hitachi was found in 1910 as a machine repair shop in Japan. Its mission is to contribute to society through the development of superior, original technology and products. Hitachi is now a Japanese multi conglomerate and is the eighth largest info technology company in the world by revenue.
Get original essayDuring the 1980s, Hitachi, Sony JVC and Matsushita started a joint venture in Europe and it was the first time where Hitachi stepped into the European’s market. Hitachi Europe strategy was an expansion in the environment responsive infrastructure unit. Horizon and Lithuanian nuclear power plant project were formed in terms of nuclear expansion. Rail business project was formed in terms of transport expansion and support of ETI/ NEDO demonstration projects in UK as decarbonisation expansion. Hitachi also focuses on regional expansion in Europe and have market entry in social innovation business. Hitachi also has a focus on innovating of new businesses such as Big Data solution and next generation T&D solutions.
Hitachi owns 1056 subsidiary companies and has more than 335 000 employees. Their values are harmony, sincerity and its pioneering spirit. Its vision is to deliver innovations that answers the society’s challenges while inspiring the world. Its overview main business in Europe are information & telecommunication system, power system, railway system and construction machinery. Hitachi have an expected income of 400 billion yen by 2018.
Hitachi is the biggest Japanese company that has diversified to so many different markets. They have aircrafts, aircraft engine, automotive system, components and devices, construction machinery and defence system. Due to diversifying to many areas, Hitachi focuses on different parts of items in different parts of the world. For example, railway in Europe while elevators in China while automotive parts in North America.
During world war one, as Japan minimised imports, Hitachi had to get local big companies to purchase their products. Zaibastu was disbanded before World War 2 as it held too much power. During 1960s, MITI allowed General Electric, RCA, Xerox to sell their products in Japan, but have to agree to joint venture with other Japanese companies and share technology (Hitachi with RCA). During that time IBM was big in Japan, the government did not want them to succeed thus the government gave Hitachi’s customer favourite terms from gov-sponsored “Japan Electronic Computer Corporation”. The Japanese government also help in developing computer technology investing 22 billion yen.
The saying usually goes, a jack of all trades, but a master of none – although when it comes to Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti he was not only a jack of all trades, but a master of each and everyone. Michelangelo was considered the greatest living artist in his lifetime, and it still holds up. A good number of his works rank among the most famous/influential in history to this day. Michelangelo was born in Caprese Michelangelo, Italy on March 6th 1475, and he is one of the few during the Renaissance Age who completely changed the game for art and how it was viewed among the world. The reason he changed the game for art is due to the he brought realism into art and how he challenged the old way of thinking by showing people that painting the human body was not a sin. This encouraged a lot of different and new thinking for when it came to presenting art. The reason Michelangelo became an artist was due to being influenced by many artists – one artist that comes to mind is Lorenzeo Ghiberti a Florentine artist from the Early 1400s; Ghiberti had designed the metal doors for the Cathedral in Florence which showed scenes from the Old Testament. The first piece of art that really shined from Michelangelo was when he received a commission to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling as a consolation prize of sorts when Pope Julius II temporarily scaled back plans for a massive sculpted memorial to himself that Michelangelo was to complete. Although Michaelangelo was also a painter, architect and poet it was really his marble sculpture that makes one wanting to understand why he made them this way, what emotions he was trying to portray, and all the background knowledge on how that sculpture came to be.
Get original essayThe first marble sculpture that really caught my eye was “Moses”. When I saw it the first thought that came to my mind was “Wow that’s incredibly cool” and just how insane that a person was able to create something so real and all that detail behind it, let alone during that time, but even now it still holds up amazingly. A thing that is different with this sculpture compared to the others was this was made later in his career. You can really see all the refinements with the Moses compared to his earlier work. While that isn’t to say that this is better than the others, I am willing to say that you definitely can see more realism among this one than his older works. The Moses was created during 1513-1515 was described as “Moses is an imposing figure — he is nearly eight feet high sitting down! He has enormous muscular arms and an angry, intense look in his eyes.” The Moses shows his courage and passion at a time when he was fighting to be able to complete the tomb of Pope Julius II. It is true he never completed the Pope’s tomb, but in Moses we can see once again his geniusness at play. He considered it his most important work. The Moses sculpture as I see it, was Michaelangelo being at a total understanding with his talent and abilities, and then being able to put that all together at the age of 38 – his pinnacle.
The next marble sculpture that caught my eye was The Pieta. When I was witnessing pictures of it, I had a different thought than when I was looking at the Moses. The only word I had for it was beautiful. The Pieta was created during 1498-1500. In 1497, a cardinal named Jean de Billheres asked Michelangelo to create a work of sculpture to go into a side chapel at Old St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. That resulted in the Pieta which would have so much succes it brought even greater acknowledgement to Michelangelo career, unlike any past art he had created. When the figure was examined it showed that the proportions were not in natural relation to one another – in short the dimensions were discumbuluated to say. While the heads were proportional it showed that the Virgin’s body was larger than Christ’s. She was so large, that if she would stand up she would tower over her son. A reason that he made it this way was so it was necessary that the Virgin could support her son on her lap; had her body been smaller, it might have been very difficult or awkward for her to have held an adult male as gracefully as she does. Around the time the work was finished, there was a complaint against Michelangelo because of the way he depicted the Virgin. She appears rather young – so young, in fact, that she could scarcely be the mother of a thirty-three-year-old son. Michelangelo’s answer to this criticism was simply that women who are chaste retain their beauty longer, which meant that the Virgin would not have aged like other women usually do. The Pieta can be found in Vatican City.
Finally, the last sculpture that is ranked among his best not even in just marble sculptures, but just art in general – David. This outstanding sculpture was created between 1501 and 1504. Michelangelo accepted the challenge with enthusiasm to sculpt a large scale David and worked constantly for over two years to create one of his most breathtaking masterpieces of not only marble, but art as well. It is a 14.0 ft marble statue depicting the Biblical hero David, represented as a standing male nude. Michelangelo was only 26 years old in 1501, but he was already the most famous and best paid artist in his days.
Another interpretation about these larger details led scholars to think that Michelangelo intentionally over-proportioned the head to underline the concentration and the right hand to symbolize the pondered action. It is known from archive documents that Michelangelo worked at the statue in utmost secrecy, hiding his masterpiece in the making up until January 1504. In January 1504, his 14 foot tall David was unveiled only to the church: they all agreed that it was far too perfect to be placed up high in the Cathedral, thus it was decided to discuss another location in town. Thanks to its imposing perfection, the biblical figure of David became the symbol of liberty and freedom of the Republican ideals, showing Florence’s readiness to defend itself.
Michelangelo once wrote, “That a true and pure work of sculpture, by definition, one that is cut, not cast or modeled should retain so much of the original form of the stone block and should so avoid projections and separation of parts that it would roll downhill of its own weight.”
Hip-Hop was founded in the 1970’s by DJ Kool Herc. Hip-Hop is the heart and soul of poetry because the beat and sound power over the written classical poems. Also, the lyrics of the Hip-Hop evoke emotion through its meanings and purpose. Hello, teachers and students I am a fan of the genre Hip-Hop. I am a fan of this because I love its beats, rhythm and lyrics. I really think that Hip-Hop should be accepted in the Western Literary Canon, Due to its lyrics, beat and language features. Poetry from the original Canon, literature such as O Captain! My Captain! Is outdated and old in contrast to the new and popular Hip-Hop artists such as Tupac Shakur and Jay-Z. The song I have chosen is “Dear Mama”, by Tupac Shakur. I believe it should be put in the Western Literary Canon due to the relevant social themes and deep meaning within the lyrics. This is due to the reverent social themes and the use of figurative language and deep meaning within the lyrical poem. I believe that Dear Mama should be accepted in the literary cannon because it has the same language features and literary devices like poems in the Western Literary Canon devices.
Get original essayTupac Shakur engages the audience through his songs such as “Dear Mama” and “Changes.” Tupac is rapping about how his mother raised him and how much she struggled. This song is a tribute to his mother Afeni Shakur. This song is about his life. In the lyrics it says “When I was young me and my mama had beef, Seventeen years old kicked out on the streets,” Is reflecting on the fights that he and his Mother had when he was seventeen. In the middle of stanza 1 it says “And who’d think in elementary? Hey! I see the penitentiary, one day,” which means that Tupac never thought he would end up in prison when he was young. The social message in this song is that Tupac and his mother (Afeni Shakur) didn’t get along well, when he got kicked out on the streets, he hung around thugs who sold drugs. Tupac even sold drugs so he could pay back his mum for raising him and his family on welfare. In the song he raps “I needed money of my own so I started slanging, I ain’t guilty cause, even though I sell rocks, It feels good putting money in your mailbox,” Tupac sold cocaine because he says “I aint guilty cause even though I sell rocks.
The main language features in this song are: rhetorical questions, alliteration, assonance, repetition and rhyme. Tupac uses rhetorical question only twice in his song Dear Mama, in the line “And who’d think in elementary?”, which leads onto “who would think in elementary about going to prison?” Tupac never thought he would be locked up when he was younger, but he was wrong. The other rhetorical question is “Don’t you know I love you?”, which is a question for his Mother, as even though he was kicked out of his house when he was 17, he still wants the audience to know that he does love his Mum.
The second language feature Tupac uses in his song is alliteration in many lines of the song a couple lines in song is “Suspended from school, and scared to go home, I was a fool” with the big boys, breakin all the rules.” Tupac uses alliteration in this song to draw attention to this certain part of the song.
The third language feature in this song is assonance. The sound that is most repeated in this sound is ‘S’. Tupac uses this in most of his lines in his song such as ‘Suspended from school, and scared to go home, I was a fool’ and in the line ‘For a woman it ain’t easy trying to raise a man.’ Tupac probably uses the sound ‘S’ because is slides of the tongue easy and that is has the same sound as different words like: place, streets, backside and many other words.
The fourth language feature that Tupac uses in this song is a repetition. He uses the lines “Lady, don’t you know we love ya? (Dear Mama) Sweet lady, place no one above ya (You are appreciated) Sweet lady, don’t you know we love ya?,” Tupac repeats this in honour of his Mum because she raised him and his step sister on welfare with no help from his Dad, as he ran away from the problem of raising kids.
The fifth language feature in the song Dear Mama is rhyme. The songs rhyming scheme throughout the song its AA, BB, CC etc. This is shown in the first 6 lines of the song. The examples are:
In conclusion, the famous song “Dear Mama” by Tupac Shakur deserves to be in the Western Literary Canon. Tupac Shakur expresses his emotions and feelings very well throughout all his songs. Hip-Hop is this generations inspiration and pick me up compared to the 1900’s when poetry was fun and cool. Both poets and Hip-Hop artist express emotion which poem and song lyrics very similar. Therefore, I think Hip-Hop should be in the western literary canon.