Intense Personal Memories and Reflections Free Essays

Intense personal memories and reflections have always been an inspiration to poets. Explore this concept with regards to the poems that you have studied referring to three poems in detail and at least three poems from your wider reading. The theme of reflections is something frequently explored in literature. We will write a custom essay sample on Intense Personal Memories and Reflections or any similar topic only for you Order Now It is truly a powerful force. It can bestow courage, feelings of warmth, and even overwhelm you and this is exactly what the below six poets did by manipulating their personal and emotional reflections to generate an emotive impact on us by using a variety of literary devices to present to us a ‘window’ into their pasts. Alice Walker (Poem at Thirty-Nine), U. A. Fanthorpe (Half past Two) and D. H. Lawrence (Piano) have all portrayed powerful emotional memories and reflections in their poems. â€Å"Poem At Thirty-Nine† was concerning a woman who learnt everything from her father and desired to do the simple things he did during his life although she was very privileged to acquire an education hence she could better herself in life. â€Å"Follower† by Seamus Heaney was a poem that related to the admiration of their parent. Half-Past Two† evaluated the predicament of a young boy in an after school punishment for â€Å"Something Very Wrong† but he was instructed to remain in the schoolroom until â€Å"half- past two† but he did not understand the concept of time. â€Å"My Parents Kept Me from Children Who Were Rough† by Stephen Spender evaluated a childhood problem similarly to â€Å"Half-Past Two† where in this case, the title is self-explanatory. Pianoâ⠂¬  was a well-defined example of the author of the poem ruminating on his past life, but in particular, music of his childhood making him return to certain events forcefully but he realised how much he has transformed and the memories made him crave to return to the past. â€Å"Once Upon A Time† by Gabriel Okara also was a poem where the adult wanted to return to the past but in this poem, it was not for a childhood memory but a quality that was expelled from his mind during adulthood. D. H. Lawrence’s â€Å"Piano† was written in quatrains with 3 stanzas. The structure of 3 stanzas divided the poem into 3 different parts which made it organised and stanzas created a clear space in time. Through the usage of stanzas, the emotional contrasts between his dwelling in his childhood memories and the aftermath are much more distinct and easier to apprehend. With the change from the second to the third stanza, the persona’s memories of delight were juxtaposed with reality settling in where Lawrence’s language now was in the present. The poet used several poetic devices but one that triumphs was his distinct word placement and perfectly placed words and syllables. This portrayed the intensity of emotion in the poem since he knew the exact phrases and words to maximise the effect of presenting emotions in a sophisticated manner. A perfect example of this would be where instead of just saying â€Å"going back† or â€Å"train of thought† he used â€Å"vista of years. † Another example of this specific word usage was when Lawrence used the phrase â€Å"Till I see† which communicated the message in a more powerful manner than â€Å"I remember. The poet chose a particular phrase because he wanted to communicate exact images and not leave a lot of room for assumption since just using â€Å"I remember† or â€Å"going back† could be a range of memories. He also used phrases such as â€Å"A child† to refer to himself and he referred to his mother as â€Å"A mother† w hich made the poem impersonal but it was an attempt to make him detached from the memories and as if he almost didn’t distinguish his past self, seeing that he has changed so much. Lawrence utilised a variety of poetic devices such as sibilance, onomatopoeia and what I think to be his most effective and successful, his selective diction. The poet has effectively established an enthralling atmosphere for the poem by using sibilance. He used sibilance not just for an atmosphere creation but to add a sinister and harsh tone to a line: â€Å"In spite of myself, the insidious mastery of song. † That was also another precisely chosen phrase. There were many examples of sibilance such as â€Å"Softly, in the dusk, a woman is singing to me;† and â€Å"†¦smiles as she sings,† where the â€Å"s† sounds similar to that of a whisper which portrayed. Now the intensity of his memory but now it’s beginning to emotionally hurt him. Also when the poet asserted â€Å"In spite of myself,† he was forced to reckon these moments, he referred to his masculinity. The â€Å"insidious mastery of song†¦ Betrays me back,† tricked him into the nostalgia of childhood, it forced him to â€Å"weep to belong,† since he didn’t want to revisit the past. He pulled himself out of recalling about the child he was with the phrase â€Å"In spite of myself† The poet used the words â€Å"Sunday† and â€Å"at home† which gave a sense of resting and peace but he used a contradictory metaphor, â€Å"winter outside† which meant the harsh world outside his safe home. As that stanza continued, you saw the theme of safety and comfort continues where he said â€Å"hymns in the cozy parlour. † The hymns show that the family was a God-fearing family and a parlour was where the best things in the house were and where guests usually were so that also shows a close knitted family and the sense of security between the family members. The poet also used onomatopoeia in â€Å"boom of the tingling strings† and â€Å"tinkling â€Å" since â€Å"boom† and â€Å"tinkling† described their own sound. Lawrence used a musical term in the final stanza â€Å"With the great black piano appassionato† which enhanced the impression on the reader. As the reader, â€Å"appassionato† was more impacting than loud since it was associated to music and it was more expressive. â€Å"Appassionato† added to the fact that to the character’s music didn’t matter anymore and that he’d rather be with his mother. The singer, his mother, was trying â€Å"in vain† which and continued where the mother singing was â€Å"clamour† so she comprehended that he was beginning to lose attention but her attempts to retrieve his focus we futile. He then used the pejorative term, â€Å"childish days† which tended to suggests immaturity but the â€Å"glamor† of those days makes him long for it. Also this extract â€Å"†¦ my manhood is cast/Down in the flood of remembrance†¦Ã¢â‚¬  shows that he wept like a child for the past therefore by his weeping; the gap between child and man, sentiment and masculinity, and past and present is abridged. Personally, I think anyone can relate to this poem because no matter who you are there’s that one moment in childhood everyone longs to return to and just like Lawrence, everyone sees it as a â€Å"glamor. â€Å"Once Upon A Time† by Gabriel Okara is related to â€Å"Piano† because within the poem, there was the desire to return to the past but in this poem, it was a conversation between a father and a son where the father was relating how actions of people were executed when he was young compared to the present and now the father (narrator) wis hed he could return to his original innocent state. Unlike â€Å"Piano,† â€Å"Once Upon A Time† was a free verse poem. The first three stanzas have the same general pattern where Okara starts by narrating the past and explaining how things used to be, but then he tells the negative reality, making the tone of the poem very sinister and bitter by using phrases such as â€Å"ice – block cold eyes† and â€Å"shake hands without hearts,† whereas in â€Å"Piano† there was a sinister undertone with the â€Å"insidious† sibilance. The mood of this poem for the majority of it was seriousness but at the ending, the mood changes to regret and you see how heartfelt the father’s desire to become like what he used to be. So show me, son, how to laugh; show me how†¦ I used to laugh and smile†¦ once upon a time when I was like you. † The repetition in that extract emphasised the genuineness of his regret. A simile that Okara used to express his regret was â€Å"†¦my teeth like a snake’s bare fangs! † which shows who remorseful he feels by using a poisonous snake to represent his teeth. So we see that just as how Lawrence wants to return to his childhood for the memories, Okara wants to learn from his past by letting his son teach him how to show his true feelings again. Poem at Thirty-Nine† by Alice Walker differs from Piano and Half-Past Two because it is a free verse poem. In free verse poems, you tend to get the memories that was most impacted on you so the reflection becomes more fascinating. Although this poem was written in free verse, there was still a distinct separation between the two sections of the poem. That was presented in the repetition of the phrase â€Å"How I miss my father† where the first time, it seemed like she was sighing of deliberation and remorse. This remorse can also be linked in with the phrase â€Å"though many of my truths must have grieved him before the end. † She now recognised that what she disclosed might have upset him but the second time was with an exclamation mark, instead of a sigh, it appeared to be more like a wail. At this point she recalled and missed her father and the fun things about him. Finally there was the stanza that concludes poem which told us that she has become the woman that her father wanted her to be. Walker used simple language that was never overstated or simulated in any way so without the use of the extravagant words; you can clearly perceive that this poem is coming from her heart. She used simple, short phrases and sentences such as â€Å"Writing slips and deposit checks† or â€Å"cooking, writing, chopping wood† which also gives you an impression of Walker attempting to communicate with the reader and not narrating a story. This is a significant contrast from the poem â€Å"Piano† because in piano, the entire poem was based on the perfect layout of words and syllables using complex vocabulary. This poem consisted of various literary devices such as similes, metaphors and the dominating symbolism. One simile used in the poem was â€Å"He cooked like a person dancing† which contrasts with the proceeding line â€Å"in a yoga meditation† but nonetheless the dancing showed that the father enjoyed cooking but he seems concentrated and contented with his actions. An example of a metaphor in the poem was â€Å"my brain light† which was an usual combination of words but the light can be ascertained to either be free from care, worry or stress and even meditation. Then, there was the many examples of symbolism but I think the most obvious would be â€Å"†¦tossing this and that into the pot; seasoning none of my life the same way twice;† this can be understood where she was carefree and she has a lack of concern and attention to details. The â€Å"seasoning† would be a symbol of her daily activities. Another symbolic phrase would be â€Å"cooking, writing, chopping wood, staring into the fire. † To me, I see those actions as symbols of independence where she was able to survive without relying on her parents. Chopping wood† shows that she’s not afraid of the gender boundary of the society then since women were looked down upon and they had little to no rights and it was the same for Black-Americans and Alice Walker had the privilege of being from both groups. She later became a racial and women’s activist. You could say that she is a modern woman, being able to be independent and fight for her belie fs. Any father â€Å"would have grown to admire† the woman she had become especially hers who had been a freed slave. â€Å"Follower† by Seamus Heaney was written in quatrains each of the six stanzas has four lines thus being a structured poem. This poem relates to â€Å"Poem at Thirty-Nine† because it focuses on admiration just like in â€Å"Poem at Thirty-Nine† The poem has multiple splits where particular stanzas focus on different people. Stanza one to three focuses on the expertise in the farm by his father. Evidence where this is clearly seen is â€Å"The horse strained at his clicking tongue† where you notice that with an effortless human noise and he controls the animals on the farm. A more obvious example was just the two word sentence â€Å"An Expert† which just states that he was excellent at what he did. Then stanzas four to six, Heaney talked about himself being a nuisance on the farm and what made this apparent was that Heaney begins to use the pronoun â€Å"I. † â€Å"I stumbled†¦ / I was a nuisance, tripping, falling† where Heaney admits that he was, in fact, a nuisance, but there was a twist at the end of the poem where â€Å"But today†¦ It is my father who keeps stumbling†¦ Behind me, and will not go away. † And this was the ultimate theme of the poem – the relationship of the father and the son and how the role of being a farmer is reversed when you age. The mood of this poem was actually not one of bitterness but love between the father and son although that word was never mentioned in the poem. There were similes, metaphors, oxymoron and onomatopoeia used in this poem. â€Å"His shoulders globed like a full sail strung† This simile stressed how Heaney admired his father’s strength. â€Å"The sweating team turned round† This was a metaphor for the father controlling his son’s future. One of the oxymoron examples were: â€Å"Polished sod† which highlights that you cannot have smooth mud, so Heaney cannot follow. Onomatopoeia: â€Å"Dipping and rising to his plod† accentuated Heaney as a young boy following his father, and also his father’s farming, the movement of the horse-plough. Reading this poem, people can relate to this poem because in everyone’s life, you eventually move up in life from the nuisance to the one who actually does the work and the same people who thought you we’re the nuisance to them, you now think they hinder you. â€Å"Half-Past Two† by U. A. Fanthorpe is a structured poem where each stanza has three lines each. The poem follows a chronological order where it began him in a classroom in his after school punishment and it follows the events like a time lapse until the teacher dismissed him but then you notice that the poem ends on a philosophical note. In the first stanza, we saw evidence of there being a contrast in age in the lines being spoken by a narrator in third person and in brackets, the narrator in first person narrative. We saw evidence of this throughout the poem. For example, â€Å"He did Something Very Wrong†¦ (I forget what it was)† Everything spoken by the first person narrator was written in brackets but when he was relating the past events he writes freely. When Fanthorpe was reflecting upon his younger childhood; he could not tell the time so time existed for him in personal interactions and it was important times such as â€Å"Gettinguptime, Timeyouwereofftime, Timetogohometime, TVtime†¦ † and the concept of the â€Å"half – past two† was not understood by him. This poem, just like all the other poems, has a great amount of literary devices such as personification, repetition and oxymoron. One example of personification was where he attempted to comprehend the concept of time as a child and the personified the clock â€Å"†¦ he little eyes, the long legs for walking,† but still he could not â€Å"click its language† which meant no matter how hard he tried to figure out the clock and how it works, all his attempts were unsuccessful. In stanza seven, he is in a moment of isolation – â€Å"Out of reach from all timefors† and away from the impact of time – â€Å"He’d escaped time for ever† which is comprehended as his escape from the world of time and in a fairy tale world where time has no existence. The poem from this point begins to slow down and becomes hypnotic where he was realising the routine of his life and how monotonous it was. It was as if he was falling into a trance of his regular daily life and this hypnotic stanza was achieved by the repetition of â€Å"Into† and we also see oxymoron where Fanthorpe says â€Å"†¦silent noise his hangnail made. † Then we see where he snaps out of the trance, it was as if he was slotted back into time where he was back into â€Å"teatime, Nexttime etc. † When the teacher said â€Å"I forgot all about you,† the incident the child saw as being â€Å"Something Very Wrong† and â€Å"wicked† as of little importance to the teacher. These â€Å"time† words increase the tempo of the poem like if it was back into the fast lane of life. The language of the poem now becomes more adult so it could possibly be when Fanthorpe has just got himself out of his reflections and back to present. Fanthorpe uses phrases such as â€Å"Clockless land forever† which refers back to a fairy tale where time does not exist and he not knowing time, allowed him just to live without fear of time being over. He also uses the word â€Å"Forever† which links back to â€Å"into ever,† a place where time was infinite and does not exist or cannot be measured. The poem ends from instead of being just a reflection; Fanthorpe personified ime â€Å"time hides tick-less waiting to be born† which can be comprehended as waiting for tome to be discovered as a concept which controls our life. This poem made me and I can assure anyone who is reading â€Å"Half-Past Two† they will realise, just like how I have, the extent of how these time periods control our life and without it, the world will either go into complete p eace since it will be peaceful and there will be no need to rush or it would be a catastrophe where to world goes into uproar since people depend and base their lives on this concept of time. My Parents Who Kept Me from Children Who Were Rough† by Stephen Spender was a poem about a child who was protected from the outside world by his parents and the bullying children who roamed the streets. Spender’s poem was divided into three verses of equal length, though the verse division seems more of a visual device than anything else. The lines are roughly the same length and have an irregular rhythm. It was similar to the poem â€Å"Half-Past Two† since it also involved a childhood predicament but in this poem, the parents assisted the child to avoid any severe danger to their son. Spender uses the pronoun â€Å"I† which makes the poem personal and you clearly see that Spender was reflecting on his own personal encounters. The poetic devices that I observed in this poem were alliteration, similes and enjambment on the first line of the poem. Alliteration was seen in â€Å"climbing cliffs† and the simile was seen â€Å"like dogs to bark at our world† which can be understood as people who attacked other peoples’ lives. In those poems, each and every one, reflections are a major part to the poets influence for the masterpieces of work. Poem at Thirty-Nine† and â€Å"Follower† we saw pure admiration and love pour out of those poems, even though some might be hampered in the sadness and remorse, the sensation of awe to the poets’ parents was still present. Piano’ shows its power to overwhelm a fully grown man and drive him to the point of tears. â€Å"Half-Past Two† was one of those amazing poems where if you begin to imagine what would it be like and your imagination just runs wild. Once Upon A Time† is another fantastic and usual piece of poetry where instead of having a child admire a father; Okara did the opposite and have the parent running to the child for wisdom which is a notable ironic twist that was very uncommon. â€Å"My Parents Kept Me from Children Who Were Rough† is one of those stories where there is just nonstop bullying and you think the person being bullied would never recover, in this poem we actually see the poet forgive his enemies which now makes me admire him for that bold move although the street children never paid any attention to him. Personally I believe in the power of memory. Through recollecting the past and reflecting upon it, I see what I can do to improve myself and be a better person. With it you can become happy but yet be pained by it and I have my regrets but those memories hurt, keep me awake at night and cause fits of depression. It is a normal part of life. Live with it, do not seek to dwell in the past and create more memories worth remembering. How to cite Intense Personal Memories and Reflections, Papers

Systematic External Environmental Audit

Question: Conduct a detailed and systematic external environmental audit of the Chinese online video market. This should include as a minimum; PESTLE, 5-forces, industry life cycle and competitor analysis (Johnson et al, 2014). Overall, what do you conclude about the opportunities and threats for PPS.tv? Answer: In China, they had the worlds second largest internet user base in the year of 2007. In the year of 2008 they took over United States and claimed the first position in the market. According to Hu (2014), China acquired $65 million from their online video business in the year of 2006 which reached an amount of $500 million in 2010. Various external environmental impacts played a major role in this success of video market in China. Some theory models and analysis are discussed to describe the impacts of those external environmental effects (Lai and To 2012). To achieve success in a competitive market it is very important to develop strategies that will help a company to provide a higher level of performance than their competitors. It is called as core competencies. To understand the core competencies of video market in china it is important to understand the internal and external factors (Zhao and Keane 2013). PESTEL Analysis A PEST analysis serves to examine the external environment in which the organization performs to recognize the key changes that are occurring (Hasan 2013). Political factors Political factors include tax policies, labor law, environmental law, tariffs and political stability. It is the Government who decides which contents will be shown in the television and internet and which contents will be banned or removed. This is an external force that affects the PPS.tv and chinas online video distribution market. Political factors also have legal factors in it. Legal factors like discrimination law, consumer law, antitrust law, employment law and health and safety law is some of the external factors that affect the business strategies of PPS TV (Ho 2014). Those laws also create impact on how the company will operate. Political limitations will emerge as a weakness for PPS TV as it will prevent them to Economic factors Chinas economy in online video market is growing at a rapid speed. They have the largest internet user base in all over the world which made PPS.tv to expand their online advertisement market as a critical source of revenue. Nowadays, Chinese consumers are habituated to get online videos and music for free. PPS.tv understood this fact and didnt waste any time and decided that they will expand their business online advertising business in China. Social factors Social factors include cultural characteristics, health awareness, population growth rate, age distribution, career attitude and accent of safety. Current trends on social factors affect the demand for a companys product and how that company operates (Sun 2013). In china, demand of online music and video is enormous. It has become a social trend to download latest music and videos for free. This is another external factor that will provide a huge range of opportunity to PPStv. For example a youth population will show more interest in online services that a aging population. China has the largest old population in the world as nearly 119 million people of china are above 65 years old (Towso and Woetzel 2014). According to Yksel and Develo (2012), these numbers will increase in the future as it will acquire one sixth of the entire population by 2018. Technological factors Technology creates a huge impact on the progress of an organization. For PPS.tv, it is important that the citizen of china is familiar to the smart phones or iphones. The more people will use smart phones, the more successful PPS.tv will become (Yang 2013). Now, it is a known fact that China is a big market for smart phones. The local smart phones brand is so famous that they are competing with even Samsung and Apple. So, PPS.tv has a good chance to grow their business in China (Yaprak 2012). Five Forces analysis Michael porters five forces analysis is a model used to explore the environment where a company or organization is operating to create competitive advantage. Five important key areas of porters models are hereby described to show its impact on PPS.tv (Allio and Fahey 2012). Threat of new entrants According to porters model there is a threat exists in the market for the companies who are entering as a fresh brand. Several aspects are there to create obstacles in the path of a new company like, Loyalty to existing brands High fixed costs Absence of resources Government restrictions Brand equity As PPS.tv is entering as a new company in the Chinese market, they will face huge competition from Tudou, Chunlei and Bit torrent as they are the top downloading sites in China (Lee 2012). Power of suppliers PPS.tv must allow the suppliers to have enough power to impact the margins and volumes of the company. There are some reasons that a supplier must have power like, Presence of lesser number of suppliers No substitute Product is very important to the buyer and they cannot do without it Suppler industry has a higher profitability that the buying industry Power of customers This method states how much pressure customers can place on the product (Dobbs 2014). If one customer can create large impact to affect a companys margins and volumes then they will hold substantial power. Some reasons that customers might have power are, Lesser number of buyers Usage of large volumes Switching to another product is simple The product is not important to the buyer and they can survive without it Customers are sensitive to price Volume of buyers Price of total purchase Availability of substitutes This process indicates how much chances are there that a buyer will switch to another competitive product. If the cost of switching is negligible then this possesses a great threat. Here are the few factors that can affect the threat of substitutes (Yang and Delios 2015). Relative price performance of substitutes Low buyer switching cost Change in technology and product innovation Another reason is similarity of the substitutes. For example, if price of coffee rises, then a buyer will switch in to tea (Olande 2012). However, as PPS.tv will provide free downloading of music and videos, cost is not a concern for them. Their main concern would be speed. If the downloading speed from their site is satisfying or high then the consumers will download music and videos from their site. Otherwise they will look for substitutes (Saunders 2012). Competitive rivalry This describes the intensity of competition between existing companies (Balland 2013). For PPS.tv, the competition will be huge as there are lots of online downloading sites are present in china that is providing great services (Dhillon 2013). Basically highly competitive market results from these factors, Many companies who are providing same products with no dominant Negligible differences among competitors product and services Only chance of growth depends of stealing each others customers Competitor analysis Competitor analysis is a common technique to construct a competitor array. The different steps are, Understanding the scope and nature of the industry Finding out the competitors in the market Determining who are the potential customers are what their expectations are Determining the key success factors Compare with the competitors on each key success factors Industry life cycle Like every person has to go through different stages of life, every organization has to go thorgh different industrial life cycles. Industrial life cycle has four stages which are start-up, consolidation, maturity and relative decline stage. Start up stage In this stage it is difficult to understand whether the company will become successful or not. In this stage the risk is very high. If the product of the company has many more similar competitors in the market then the risk is high that the company will not achieve success. But if the product is new then there is a good chance that there will be a rapid growth (Schawel and Billing 2012). As for PPS.tv, many more music and videos downloading sites are present in the China market. So there is a chance that PPS.tv will not become successful. But the other part is, china has the largest online users base in the world (Hussain 2013). So PPS.tv is thinking that entering Chinese market with some competitors in it will not affect marketing goals as the demand is too high. Consolidation stage Once a company has survived the initial stage it will enter into consolidation stage. In this stage the company will become stable and market share can gained more easily (Yang 2013). Once PPS.tv will survive the initial stage they will acquire a better market place. Therefore, their growth will be faster than the rest of the economy. Maturity stage At this stage, companies are called as cash cows as their cash flows are consistent but offer very little opportunity for growth or profit (Darroch 2014). At this stage the product more and more standardized and it forces its producers to compete heavily on price basis. Reinvesting the cash flows is not an option, it is best to be milked from. Relative decline In this stage, the important features are, Cost becomes counter optimal Sales volume either will decrease or will stabilize Decrease in prices and profitability The company has been planning to expand their business in China and in this regard, is highly important to discuss about the internal as well as core capabilities of the company. Therefore, the first most important objective of the company is to focus on the small and relatively immature online advertising market in China, which is largely dominated by much larger as well as more established portal issues (Yang 2013). Apart from that, the company has shed focus on attempting to internationalize the service of the company in the United States where money is more available than any other parts of the world. The company is rich with its strong technical suit and thus they can patent the highly innovative protocol technology (Wang et al. 2012). Along with that, the company is required to focus on licensing the technology to the leading content distributors abroad (Yang 2013). It has been found that the online video space of China has been gradually becoming more competitive with the pass age of time and in this regard, PPS.TV must not waste time. Speed is one of the facilities of this company and this is one of the internal resources if the company. This online video site must focus on this pare carefully to reach the target market easily. The company is an enough large provider to generate volumes of the trusted users that are sufficient to attract a wide number of the new customers. Low operation costs are other major internal resources of the company that might help them to take entry into the market. PPS require only 1/100 of the conventional bandwidth in order to provide its VOD service (Tobescu and Seuring 2015). In compare to this company, other companies cost more than PPS.TV. Superb user experience is another important internal resource that this company has been enjoying over its competitors. On the PPS.TV, customers could easily start watching a video as soon as they click on the relevant link (Rojas and Kathuria 2014). The users of PPS.TV need not to wait for buffering and downloading. Moreover, it has been found that PPS.TV has gradually improved with the course of time. One of the most important things about PPS.TV is that mire the people have watched the PPS.TV services, the faster it has become (Brown 2014). The PPS.TV service support all types of popular formats that takes into account wmv, rm, rmvb, mp3, avi, wma, asf, mpg, flv and mid (Wang 2013). This allows the users to consume a wide range of the different kinds of videos, cartoons as well as music content. PPS.TV was seeking to successfully promote its server software as well as the transmission protocol as the standard of the video serving and transportation by working successfully with the companies in the overall video industry that takes into account hardware provides, content providers and the browser providers (Baliamoune and Garello 2014). The company has successfully protected its intellectual property and this is one of the core offerings of the company, which has differentiated this company from the existing competitors. However, the company in the earlier time faced some problems to grow their user base, but with the course of time, the company has grown a vast range of the customer base and this has encouraged the comp any to expand their business in China (Tsai and Lin 2015). In this part, it is highly important to discuss about the strengths and the weakness of PPS.TV services (Pps.tv 2016). The company has successfully experienced the business units in a comparatively small time. The domestic market of this company is strong enough and this is considered as one of the strengths of the company (Ng 2014). The company within a short time period has gained high profitability and revenue and this is undoubtedly one of the strengths of the company. Apart from these, the high growth rate of the company in the strong competitive business scenario is one of the strong places of the company. It has been found that the income level of this company is at a constant increase and thus the company enjoys a preferable position among the existing competitors. The gradual expanding market of online video streaming in different parts of the world has indulged the business in several parts and this is no doubt one of the strengths of the company. The marketing and the mana gement team of the company has been successfully expanding internationally to the markets with more developed inline advertising industries, where the users are willing to pay for the desired content. This has successfully motivated the company to take entry into the China market. The patent system of the company as well has played a significant role to motivate PPS.TV services to expand the entire business. After discussing the strengths of the company, it is no doubt to say that discussing the weakness of the company is another major part and in this part, it has been done. The company has largely invested in the research and development operations and this has caused huge, which is one of the weaknesses of PPS.TV services. The tax structure of the company is considered another weakness of the company, as the tax structure has affected the growth if the company to some extent. Possibility of high loan rates in the operating areas is also considered as the weakness of the company (Miyoshi 2012). However, the company has stated that the operating cost of the company is less, though it can be said that the cost of the company is comparatively high. This affects the growth of the company in several areas. The small business units of the company have also been considered as another weakness of the company. The government regulations in the operating countries are considered as one of the st rong weaknesses of PPS.TV services and the company is required to deal with this part legally as well as carefully. The growing rate of competition and the lower rate of profitability demotivate the company sometimes and the management of the company is required to shed focus on this pare carefully. Ansoff gave a definition for product marketing strategy as a joint statement of a product line and related set of missions which the products are designed to fulfill. According to Gong (2015), there four growth alternatives, Market penetration In this strategy, the organization tries to develop them using its existing products and services in the existing market. This can be achieved by selling ore products to the customers or by finding new customs. For PPS.tv, it not possible to provide new products to the customers as their goal is to provide free music and videos to the customers. However, to gain new customers they can do few things. They will have to find out the flaws in other companies who are offering same service. Like, if the downloading speed of Bit torrent is 500kb/hour on average, they can upgrade their system which will provide more than that to the customers (Lai and To 2012). Besides, better connectivity will allow them to post new music and videos before Bit torrent or other competitions. This will attract new customers. Market development In market development, a company tries to expand into new markets using its existing offering. For example, PPH.tv figured out that China has biggest market of online users in the world. This why they did not waste any time and decided to enter in China market with their existing service of online advertisements and all (Huang 2012). Product development In product development strategy a company tries to invent new products and service in order to and more growth and new customers. Extending the product range is a good idea to develop the product. For PPS.tv, it is quite tough to extend their product. They provide free downloading options to the customers. This business does not have much score of extending. What they can do is extend their market reach or extend the availability of their downloading site. Like, if the customers of iPhones cannot access their sites, PPS.tv can extend their reach by joining hands with Apple. Diversification In diversification a company tries to grow its market share by introducing new offerings to the market. It is known as the most risky market strategy as both product and market development is required. For PPS.tv, they can apply different offers to attract the customers towards it. This sit will have a common member and VIP members options. VIP members will have the option to download latest music and videos before the common members can do. VIP membership will be a paid membership. So PPS.tv can offer discounts on VIP membership so that more customers get attracted to the site. This will make their product popular and this will help to improve their market growth. References Allio, R.J. and Fahey, L., 2012. Joan Magretta: what executives can learn from revisiting Michael Porter.Strategy Leadership,40(2), pp.5-10. Baliamoune-Lutz, M. and Garello, P., 2014. Tax structure and entrepreneurship.Small Business Economics,42(1), pp.165-190. Balland, P.A., De Vaan, M. and Boschma, R., 2013. The dynamics of interfirm networks along the industry life cycle: The case of the global video game industry, 19872007.Journal of Economic Geography,13(5), pp.741-765. Brown, S., 2014. Internet Speed 22 Thio Joe.Science. Darroch, J., 2014. Ansoffs Growth MatrixIn Detail. InWhy Marketing to Women Doesnt Work(pp. 131-147). Palgrave Macmillan UK. Dhillon, B., 2013.Life cycle costing: techniques, models and applications. Routledge. Dobbs, M., 2014. Guidelines for applying Porter's five forces framework: a set of industry analysis templates.Competitiveness Review,24(1), pp.32-45. Gong, T., 2015. 4 Bridge or Barrier.Media and Communication in the Chinese Diaspora: Rethinking Transnationalism, p.69. Han, I., Chao, M.C.H. and Chuang, C.M., 2012. Internal Resources, External Resources and Environment, and Firm Performance: A Study on Taiwanese Small and Medium Sized Firms. 32(2), pp.135-169. Hasan, M.R., 2013.Apple Inc.-An Analysis: PESTEL analysis, Porters 5 Forces analysis, SWOT analysis, Comprehensive analysis of financial ratios, and Comprehensive analysis of share performance of Apple Inc. GRIN Verlag. Ho, J.K.K., 2014. Formulation of a Systemic PEST Analysis for Strategic Analysis.European academic research,2(5), pp.6478-6492. Hu, K., 2014. Competition and collaboration: Chinese video websites, subtitle groups, state regulation and market.International Journal of Cultural Studies,17(5), pp.437-451. Huang, J., 2012. Business Models for Mobile Media Services: A case study in China mainland market. Hussain, S., Khattak, J., Rizwan, A. and Latif, M.A., 2013. ANSOFF Matrix, Environment, and Growth-An Interactive Triangle.Management and Administrative Sciences Lai, L.S. and To, W.M., 2012. The emergence of China in the Internet market.IT professional, (1), pp.6-9. Lee, H., Kim, M.S. and Park, Y., 2012. An analytic network process approach to operationalization of five forces model.Applied Mathematical Modelling,36(4), pp.1783-1795. Liu, J. and Tao, H., 2012. Chinese under globalization. Singapore: World Scientific. Miyoshi, T., Shinozaki, Y. and Fourmaux, O., 2012, September. A p2p traffic localization method with additional delay insertion. InIntelligent Networking and Collaborative Systems (INCoS), 2012 4th International Conference on(pp. 148-154). IEEE. Ng, Y.Y., Zhou, H., Ji, Z., Luo, H. and Dong, Y., 2014, July. Which Android App Store Can be Trusted in China?. InComputer Software and Applications Conference (COMPSAC), 2014 IEEE 38th Annual(pp. 509-518). IEEE. Olander, S., 2012. Life cycle assessment in the built environment. Construction Management and Economics,30(7), pp.594-596. Pps.tv, (2016). [online] Available at: https://www.pps.tv/ [Accessed 13 Jan. 2016]. Rojas, M.A. and Kathuria, A., 2014. Competitive Brokerage, Information Technology and Internal Resources. Saunders, L., 2012. The entrepreneur's guide to market research. Choice Reviews Online, 49(11), pp.49-6377-49-6377. Schawel, C. and Billing, F., 2012. Ansoff-Matrix. InTop 100 Management Tools(pp. 22-24). Gabler Verlag. Sun, Y., Guo, Y., Li, Z., Lin, J., Xie, G. and Zhang, X., 2013. The case for P2P mobile video system over wireless broadband networks: A practical study of challenges for a mobile video provider.Network, IEEE,27(2), pp.22-27. Tobescu, C. and Seuring, S., 2015. Internal Enablers for the Implementation of Sustainable Supply Chain Risk Management Systems. InLogistics Management(pp. 17-26). Springer International Publishing. Towson, J. and Woetzel, J., 2014. All you need to know about business in China.Centro Asia Pacifico, April. Tsai, M. and Lin, Y., 2015, August. How the usage of mobile multimedia internet devices changes internet TV consumer behaviors in Taiwan: Using PPS. tv (PPStream) as an example. InManagement of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), 2015 Portland International Conference on(pp. 1467-1476). IEEE. Wang, C.H., Chen, K.Y. and Chen, S.C., 2012. Total quality management, market orientation and hotel performance: The moderating effects of external environmental factors.International Journal of Hospitality Management,31(1), pp.119-129. Wang, C.Y., Chang, H.C., Chou, S.C.T. and Chen, F.F., 2013. Acceptance and Willingness to Pay for Mobile TV Apps. InPACIS(p. 260). Xiao, T., Zhang, L. and Ma, S., 2012. System simulation and scientific computing. Heidelberg: Springer. Yang, G., 2013.The power of the Internet in China: Citizen activism online. Columbia University Press. Yang, G., 2013.The power of the Internet in China: Citizen activism online. Columbia University Press. Yang, J.Y., Li, J. and Delios, A., 2015. Will a Second Mouse Get the Cheese? Learning from Early Entrants Failures in a Foreign Market.Organization Science. Yaprak, A., 2012. Market entry barriers in China: A commentary essay.Journal of Business Research,65(8), pp.1216-1218. Yksel, I., 2012. Developing a multi-criteria decision making model for PESTEL analysis.International Journal of Business and Management,7(24), p.p52. Zhao, E.J. and Keane, M., 2013. Between formal and informal: the shakeout in Chinas online video industry.Media, Culture Society,35(6), pp.724-741.

The Biography of Socrates

Should Same-Sex Marriages be Legally Recognized Essay Example

Should Same Should Same-Sex Marriages be Legally Recognized Essay Should Same-Sex Marriages be Legally Recognized Essay Should Same-Sex Marriages Be Legally Recognized? Abstract The issue on whether or not same-sex marriages should be legalized in the United States has been a major debate lately. Some believe this is a personal preference, which everyone is entitled to, and this should be left up to each partner as to whether or not they get married. Others believe this issue should most definitely not be legalized because they believe for it to be unconstitutional and sinful. This research will show the arguments for and against the issue and the pros and cons for each side of the debate. It will show why same-sex marriage is believed to be personal preference and, also, why some believe it is unconstitutional and sinful. This issue has caused a major uproar in the United States and hopefully our lawmakers can come to a conclusion in the near future. Introduction In the United States, marriage has always been between a man and a woman whom believe each other are their soul mate. Not only in recent years, but also in the past, some people are saying that a person of the opposite sex is not their soul mate so, eventually, they wish to marry the same sex. This has caused a major debate amongst Americans. While some people believe they should be able to marry anyone hey want, including the same sex, because they believe this is a personal preference, others completely disagree. The people who disagree do so because they believe this issue is unconstitutional and sinful. Eventually, everyone is going to have to come together and make the decision that will best suit our society. Arguments Allowing Same-Sex Marriages Those for same-sex marriages believe that same-sex couples should have the rights to the same marriage benefits and public acknowledgment enjoyed by heterosexual couples (Should Gay Marriage be Legal, 2013). For example, if their ratter is very sick and is in the hospital they may not get to see them because hospital policies state that only your spouse and family members are allowed in the more severe rooms and parts of the facility (Knockdowns). With this nears that partners have no say so when it comes to medical care decisions, or finances for that matter. It is sad when life-long partners are deprived of certain rights in situations like this one, but, at this time, it is still against the law, in most states. Another reason same-sex partners want to marry is because it could make it easier for them to adopt and expand their family. Allowing these partners to marry may also increase the United States adoption rate (Miserly, 2011). Like heterosexual couples, nonsexual couples want Tamales too. Wendell teen may not De addle to expand their family naturally, they can adopt and take a child in and raise him or her as their own. There are plenty of children in need of being adopted and allowing homosexual couples to marry and provide these children in need a place to live and call home is a wonderful thing. However, having parents of the same sex could possibly cause some gender role confusion later on in life for the child. Miserly, 2011) Same-sex partners Just want to be able to make marry who they love and be acknowledged by society so they, too, can receive the benefits of being married. Also, they feel that they are being discriminated against and infringed upon their right to equality (Knockdowns). Since the United States is a free country, these couples believe they should be able to do whatever with their life as they see fit, even if that includes marrying someone of the same sex. Arguments Against Same-Sex Marriages Those against same-sex marriages argue that altering the traditional definition of arraign as between a man and a woman will further weaken a threatened institution and that legalizing gay marriage is a slippery slope that may lead to polygamous and interspecies marriages (Should Gay Marriage be Legal, 2013). The marrying of these couples could weaken our family values overtime since the building blocks of our society and the thing that makes it strong is the traditional family of man, woman, and children. It is what has sustained us through two world wars, terrorist attacks, a Great Depression, and numerous other challenges over the centuries. While friends lovers come and go, your family is always there. The main reason our culture and values have started to crumble is the weakening of families. Introducing another form of family would only make the situation worse. (Messes, The idea that legalizing same-sex marriages may lead to polygamy or other types of marriages is because there is no place to stop once that issue has been crossed. Historically, the definition of marriage has rested on a bedrock of tradition, legal precedent, theology and the overwhelming support of the people. (Ten Arguments Against Same Sex Marriage) While these are drastic reasons why the same sex would not marry, they should be taken into consideration to figure out where to draw the line. Religion plays a huge role in why people believe the same sex should not marry. The Bible says that marriage is between a man and a woman and anyone who veers from this path is a sinner. Gay marriage is incompatible with the beliefs, sacred texts, and traditions of many religious groups. The Catholic Church, Presbyterian Church, Islam, United Methodist Church, Southern Baptist Convention, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, National Association of Evangelicals, and American Baptist Churches USA all oppose same-sex marriage. Expanding marriage to include same- sex couples may lead to churches being forced to marry couples and children being taught in school that same-sex marriage is the same as opposite-sex marriage. (Should Gay Marriage be Legal, 2013) Implications This debate is definitely one that is going to require a lot of time and effort to come up with the right decision. Even after that there will be controversy from one side or the other. While same-sex marriages will change the traditional style of the United States it may not be a mistake to allow this. We do live in a free country where e can make our own decisions, but right now these couples are being denied their right to be united as one. On the other hand, it does go against our beliefs and what has made us the great country we are today. Either way, this is going to be a tough decision the United State government is going to have to make and hopefully they do this sooner rather than later. Recommendation One recommendation is to rewrite this part of the U. S. Constitution to say that a marriage is to be between two adults, not Just a man and a woman. Here is Joe Mesmerisms (2012) recommended example of how the new amendment should be: A marriage, as recognized by federal, state, and local governments, is defined as a union between two adults. The two adults must both be over the age of 18 and must not be immediate relatives (sibling, parent, first cousin, aunt, uncle, grandparent). Any further restrictions of the marriage are left up to the states, with any state decision applying only to the state that passes the law and any other state that recognizes a similar marriage. (Miserly, 2012) Obviously, there would have to be some adjustments made, but I think he makes a great recommendation to solve this issue. This will not fully satisfy either sides of this debate, but maybe it will help them come to some type of agreement where they will leave each other alone and not discriminate against the other. Conclusion Same-sex marriages will continue to be an ongoing debate until the government decides to do something to make the debate useless or it pleases both sides. Since both sides have very strong feelings about their beliefs I believe it will have to be the first option that puts an end to this issue. Same-sex partners believe they should be able to marry who they want since that is a right that heterosexual couples get. However, those against same-sex marriages believe this issue to be demeaning and threatening toward traditional marriages, which are between a man and a woman.

Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 75

Assignment Example The song Waving Flag is appropriate to this scene because the audience is aware that Will is joining for the ride as an equal, and he will see through the task. 4. Will wanted to take what he earned. He saved the posse on the ridge, grabbed Doc and hustled him out of the tunnels and started the cover stampede at the climax of the film after breaking away from the railroad man. Will went the distance to help his father get their rightful property back. 5. The LaBarge article specifies heroism as a larger than life character limiting the possibilities. Will is a 14-year-old boy about to become a 14- year-old man. Will bides his time and then saves the posse. He joins as an equal. He actively participates in the run to the station, a very dangerous endeavor. Will preferred to do great things than accept what was given him. Will acted heroically in every sense. At the end of the film, Will has the opportunity to shoot Ben. He chooses not to because he understands Ben’s role in getting to the train on time. Will respects Ben’s decision to help complete the task, but despises Ben for leading the gang of thugs that ultimately led to his father’s death. Will chose the righteous path and let Ben board the

The reality of work cultures in the modern economy Essay

The reality of work cultures in the modern economy - Essay Example These issues range from difference in cultures and values as well as laying-off workers as well as closing of some plants aligned to the Cadbury Company. These issues have continued to create a lot of tension between the British public and the Kraft Company over the years since the takeover in 2010 (Rigby and Cohen, 2010, p. 2). The Unite, a workers organization championing the rights of workers in the United Kingdom has constantly pressed the Kraft Company to assure the workers of their jobs at the company after the takeover and at the same time to be honest and truthful with the public. The government has been under pressure to compel the Kraft Company to assure the employees that their job is safe with the company. Kraft and Cadbury cultures in the workplace The values that Kraft and Cadbury advance at the workplace are very different. Kraft Culture Kraft as a company is capitalistic in nature and the major goal is to maximize on the revenue regardless of the effect this may have on the people who work for the company. When the company took over Cadbury, it made a promise that it would not close any plant in the country. However, months down the line the same company closed the Somerdale factory in England. This is despite the fact that they made a promise not to do so. The major reason, according to the company management was a poor analysis of the viability of the company in Somerdale and greater investment that Cadbury Company in Poland.

Corporate Social Responsibilty In Mauritius Management Essay

Corporate Social Responsibilty In Mauritius Management Essay The European Commission defined Corporate Social Responsibility as a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis. In other words, it concerns actions by companies over and above their legal obligations towards society and the environment. According to the European Commission certain regulatory measures can create a more conducive environment for organisations to voluntarily meet their social responsibility. Similarly, the National Empowerment Foundation (NEF) defines Corporate Social Responsibility as the concept whereby companies act to balance their own economic growth with the sustainable social and environmental development of the country. An organisation that is highly involved in CSR is one that goes beyond the legal compliance and actively practices positive impacts on the local communities and the environment. In fact, there is not a standard definition of Corporate Social Responsibility as it is varies according to various countries and cultures. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become an important issue over the last two decades. Lawyers, practitioners, economists, and civil society have contributed to defining, developing, and analysing the content, nature and implementation of CSR (P. R.Waagstein, 2011). CSR has been practiced by companies all over the world for many years as shown by many researchers. At the beginning, it was more for staff well-being. For instance, during the industrial revolution and age, factories provided different facilities for the community surrounding them in order to make use of their labour. Over the past few years, both businesses and academic researchers have shown increasing interest and enthusiasm for Corporate Social Responsibility. For instance, research done has suggested that CSR may be an efficient tool to improve the legitimacy of companies amongst their stakeholders as per Handelman and Arnold (1999), and to develop positive social responsibility images, according to Sen and Bhattacharya (2001). PROBLEM STATEMENT The term CSR has, over years, been coined to allow the economic development of a country to participate in the socio-economic development. By being responsible for society, the same industries were allowed to give back, in a responsible way, to people working for them and purchasing their goods and services. Amongst the different levels of society, the emergence of need for different categories arose, for example, handicapped people, abandoned children, out laws, the elderly and street people. Thus, Corporate Social Responsibility became a term used for catering to all categories of humans and their wellness in the society. At the onset, Corporate Social Responsibility was a voluntary initiative for companies to act socially responsible. However, over the years, especially in the new millennium, since complete improvement was not totally visible around the world, the United Nations proposed some Millennium Development Goals to improve the general conditions of living. One of their main goals was to eradicate absolute poverty in developing countries and underdeveloped countries. Indeed, the United Nations Millennium Campaign, started in 2002, supports and inspires people from all four corners of the world to get involved and take actions in supporting the Millennium Development Goals. As stated, the main challenges and major concerns of the International community is to eradicate absolute poverty, but this can only be done by the combined efforts of all governments, civil society organisations and the private sector. As mentioned by the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon the goals are ambitious but feasible and, together with the comprehensive United Nations development agenda, set the course for the worlds efforts to alleviate extreme poverty by 2015. The Government of Mauritius has established a policy with the objective of mandating registered companies to pay 2% of their book profit towards programmes that contribute to the social and environmental development of the country. In Mauritius, CSR has been formulated in the year 2008, when then the Minister of Finance decided that companies should reinvest 2% of their book profit towards societal development. To date, CSR has been practiced by companies for years and one of the main issues that arose recently is how to regulate it. Should it be a legal norm, ethical norm or social norm? This question can be further elaborated: Should CSR be regulated through state regulation, code of conduct or self-regulation? Should it be regulated in a voluntary way or should it be an obligation to corporations? Another question that arises is whether it is the role of the private sector to take care or to look after the society, or whether it is the role of the government to do so, since all companies are paying tax and the main objective of a company is to maximise profits. In addition, on a different perspective, another question emerges: should an organisation only focus on maximising profits or should its role as a so cially responsible organisation also include looking after its society and the community? Matten and Moon (2008) offers a broad interpretation, arguing that it should be perceived both as a social imperative and social consequence of business success. Accordingly, two forms of CSR, implicit and explicit, have been introduced. Implicit CSR is embedded in various relationships among business, society and government within the political system. It is represented by strong values, norms and rules or regulations which require corporations to address stakeholder issues. It is important to note that politics and organisations are interrelated and interdependent as they need each other to accomplish their social responsibility in an effective and efficient way. A textbook example in Mauritius would be the Compagnie Mauricienne de Textile (CMT) that has donated Rs 25m to the government for the new project of building a high tech school for vulnerable and deprived children. 1.3 AIM AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY The aim of this research is to determine the importance of voluntary or mandatory CSR for the overall socio-economic development of the country. In this context, the specific objectives are to: To assess the local opinion of CSR drivers and whether it is better as a mandatory or voluntary practice. This will provide a course of action for the new Ministry of Social Integration and Economic Empowerment. To provide for modifications in the local way of practicing CSR and to be able to answer queries of International organisations on eradication of poverty. To make recommendations so as to meet the targets set by United Nations and the Millennium Development Goals project, and to showcase Mauritius as a success example in Africa. 1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RESEARCH In fact, Corporate Social Responsibility is mandatory in Mauritius and this research primarily focuses on determining the opinions, points of view and the experiences of companies that are actively engaged in CSR. Further assessment will be made as to whether they prefer a voluntary or mandatory implementation and determining whether the local way of practicing CSR has benefitted society and provided improvements in the current way local companies are practicing CSR. In addition, it analyses the need for mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility in Mauritius and determines whether the government should keep it mandatory or voluntary or both. It further develops the idea of whether voluntary CSR should be modified to some other form to cater to the needs of the Mauritian society. It also gives a comprehensive overview of findings and conclusions that will allow the local CSR Committee and Government to review and improve its CSR policies for the country. 1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS Based on the above research objectives of the study, the following research questions have been formulated: How organisations define Corporate Social Responsibility? Awareness of local CSR guidelines and what their opinions are and suggestions on the CSR guidelines? What problems they encounter while implementing CSR practices? How can the CSR Committee help in implementing CSR activities? How businesses perceive Corporate Social Responsibility as a mandatory practice in Mauritius. Should it be voluntary or mandatory? 1.6 STRUCTURE OF THE DISSERTATION Chapter 1 Introduction This chapter provides an overview of the topic research on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and sets out the problem statement of the study, outlining the objectives of the research and highlighting the research questions. Chapter 2 Literature Review This chapter reviews the literature relevant to the topic. It provides past reviews carried out by different researchers on Corporate Social Responsibility in various countries around the world. It also provides a description of CSR implementation in Mauritius and the similarities and contrasts that exist among the different countries. Chapter 3 Methodology The methodology chapter outlines the methods and techniques used to conduct the study, namely the research approach, design and strategy used. Information about the target population including the sample size and sampling method is given along with details about the interview questionnaire. Chapter 4 Analysis and Findings This chapter presents the data analysis and research findings. The source of data has been derived mainly from interviews that have been carried out. Further, discussions are based on the findings of this study. Chapter 5 Recommendations and Conclusions In this final chapter, appropriate recommendations will be made and the chapter will end with a concluding paragraph including the possibility for further or future research. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 INTRODUCTION This chapter presents an overview of the literature relevant to Corporate Social Responsibility. It provides a review of the past studies carried out by different researchers. The idea of social responsibility emerged in the United States at the beginning of the 20th century. Carroll (1989) states three critical turning points in the evolution of social responsibility: The Entrepreneurial Era Businessmen in America were building industrial empires and were abusing their power, being found guilty of antisocial and anticompetitive practices. Such practices included tax evasion and other unethical business practices. This caused frustration among the public who voiced their objections, causing the government to enforce laws whereby business had a role to play in society beyond profit maximisation. The Depression era of 1929- 1930s The economy of United States was dominated by large organisations and the government passed laws to protect investors and smaller businesses. In addition, the social responsibility of organisations was more clearly defined. (iii)The Social Era of 1960s This era was characterised by social turmoil in the United States. The Government looked closely at organisational practices and it was clearly defined to whom the organisation was responsible and who in an organisation was responsible for the organisational practices. Bowen (1953) the pioneering advocate of CSR, described Corporate Social Responsibility in terms of the obligations of businessmen to pursue those policies, to make those decisions, or to follow those lines of action which are desirable in terms of objectives and values of our society. (Social Responsibilities of Businessmen, 1953). The emphasis was laid on peoples conscience rather on the company itself. This alteration in focus was provoked by a number of factors such as the managerial revolution and the mounting hostility of people experiencing social problems. The obligations were further elaborated upon, going beyond economic and legal implications by including the employee, the community welfare and the political and educational needs of society (McGuire, 1963). This gave rise to the modern concept of corporate citizenship (Maignan, Ferrell, and Hult, 1999). The Committee for Economic Development (1971) viewed CSR as the service of a wide range of human values to improve the quality of life. The managerial role in changing societal expectations has also been articulated by the Committee. On one hand, Manne Wallich (1972) mentioned that businesses should not spoil society but should provide solutions through voluntary assumption of obligations. On the other hand, Caroll (1979) summarised the discussion by providing the following definition: social responsibility of business encompasses the economic, legal, ethical and discretionary expectations that society has of organisations at a given point in time. Figure 1 Carrolls classic pyramid (Carroll, 1991) Carrolls CSR Pyramid covers the whole perspective of what society can expect from a company, economically as well as socially. This theory can be used to identify a companys CSR activities and how they use CSR as a strategy. It will further explain and recognise the connection between a companys CSR activities and its stakeholders. Carrolls CSR Pyramid can be used as a tool to clarify the different kinds of responsibilities that a company has to fulfil in order to achieve legitimacy from its surrounding society and stakeholders. 2.1 Definition of Corporate Social Responsibility Various organisations have viewed CSR in different ways, although there are considerable common opinions between them. According to Mallen Baker (2004), CSR is about how companies manage the business processes to produce an overall positive impact on society. Lord Holmes and Richard Watts (2000), in their publications Making Good Business Sense, defined CSR as: Corporate Social Responsibility is the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large. This publication also provides some evidence of the different perceptions of what this should mean to a number of different societies across the world. It respects cultural differences and finds the business opportunities in building the skills of employees, the community and the government through CSR. Corporate Social Responsibility Developing Countries and Overseas Experiences In the year 2000 , the Millennium Development Goals set the challenge of Corporate Social responsibility in developing countries in view of eradicating poverty, hunger, providing better education to children, equal opportunities for women and a healthier environment (UN, 2006: 3). Unfortunately, in many developing countries these global aspirations have remained unaccomplished. (Visser et al., 2007) viewed CSR in developing countries as the formal and informal ways in which business makes a contribution to improving the governance, social, ethical, labour and environmental conditions of the developing countries in which they operate, while remaining sensitive to prevailing religious, historical and cultural contexts. According to a survey done by Welford (2005) in Asia, research showed that countries such as Hong Kong, Malaysia and Thailand where indicative of having less prevalent CSR activities. Malaysia is considered as the weakest in terms of CSR performance, with Thailand being relatively strong on external aspects (such as child labour and ethics) and Hong Kong being generally better on internal aspects (such as non-discrimination and equal opportunities). It was determined through a review done on CSR literature (Visser et al, 2006) that only 12 out of 53 countries in Africa have publications in CSR journals and that 57% of published articles focus on South Africa with 16% focusing on Nigeria. On one hand, CSR in the United States has been defined mainly in terms of a philanthropic model. Most companies focus on making and maximising profits and only contribute to charitable activities in an effort to benefit from tax concessions, contributing a certain share of the profits to charitable institutions. They believe that receiving any benefits from charitable sharing would tarnish the reputation of the company. On the other hand, the Canadian Governments perception of CSR is generally understood to be the way a company achieves a balance or integration of economic, environmental and social imperatives while at the same time addressing shareholder and stakeholder expectations. According to Cecil (2008), disclosure of CSR in the United States does not currently exist and is therefore unregulated as a required framework. In fact, various models and categories of reporting do exist under the umbrella of CSR, such as environmental reports, social reports and sustainability reports. Therefore the CSR report is separate from the annual report and represents non-financial qualitative and quantitative data. In contrast to other developed countries, Corporate Social Responsibility in the United States is not forcefully imposed. Companies in the United States participate in CSR based on their own moral and social values, allowing them to apply the triple-bottom-line approach voluntarily. In comparison, the laws of Mauritius state that it is mandatory for profit bearing organisations to pay the government 2% of their annual book profit as a CSR contribution. While companies in the United States have no mandatory obligation towards CSR, they widely exploit the CSR programme as a means of increasing their public image and corporate reputation. Given the fact that CSR in the United States is non-mandatory, companies can define and interpret their views of social responsibility within the context of own their company. Having this freedom has allowed them to better measure and promote CSR activities in comparison to their International counterparts. It is interesting to note that although companies in the United States are very explicit in their public statements with relation to their commitment to corporate responsibility, the lack of precise definition has led to confusion in terminology. A wide range of terms for CSR now exists, such as social responsibility, community investment and corporate citizenship. Each company tends to define them differently, yet having little understanding of what they actually mean, whether that is philanthropic giving, raw material sourcing or employment practices. Mauritius in comparison, although less developed than the United States, has a well-defined CSR programme as the mandatory enforcement of social responsibility has led to a single, precise and distinct perception thereof. The Government of the United Kingdom interprets CSR as the contribution a business makes to their sustainable development goals in terms of how they account for economic, social and environmental impacts. According to I. Pearson, Minister of the state UK, the world is experiencing major economic challenges and the issue of Corporate Responsibility must remain high on business and political agendas. He states that most successful companies have always been the most responsible. Business leaders recognise that Corporate Responsibility makes good business sense and it attracts the best talent, earns the trust of customers and the community and acts as a powerful investment for long-term sustainability. However, just like the United States, and in contrast to Mauritius, CSR is voluntary in the United Kingdom. The Government of the United Kingdom has adopted the voluntary approach as they believe it will motivate and encourage Corporate Social Responsibility through best practice guidance, and where appropriate, regulation and fiscal incentives. In the United Kingdom, CSR is viewed as a voluntary activity that should address both competitive and social interests. Mauritius does not share this approach and even encourages companies to contribute above the legal requirement to benefit the community and environment, invest in education and to help eradicate poverty. The question of whether or not CSR should be considered mandatory emerges when we consider that countries like the United States and the United Kingdom have no such legal compliance obligations. Why would a country like Mauritius, being a small island in the Indian Ocean, apply CSR as compulsory, especially considering that Mauritius is only the second country in the world where CSR is mandatory? NRE (Nouvelles Regulations Economique) law introduced in France in 2001 requires that all publicly listed French companies disclose information to their stakeholders pertaining to social and environmental impacts on their activities, together with their annual reports. There is no requirement for any specific constraints to be included with regards to their standards, thresholds or any other regulatory requirements. Although the law has been introduced, it should be considered as a soft law since the disclosed information is not regulated and there are no clear rules with regards to non-compliance. The legal responsibility is to report on social and environment impacts but without the requirement for certification of the disclosed information. In addition, the law does not clearly outline possible sanctions that may be imposed in cases of non-compliance or falsification of information. According to the research presented by L. Drusch and A.Lioui (2010) there has been a rapid growth in Corporate Social Responsibility in France over the last decade. This growth can be measured by the increase in the number of French companies that are listed in the Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) index in France as well as the listing of French companies in International CSR rankings, such as the 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World listing. Like the United States, CSR in France is based on the triple-bottom-line approach and is aimed at improving social, economic or environmental aspects in society beyond financial motivation. In addition, the United States does provide CSR reporting to some extent although not regulated and submitted in a separate report to the annual statements. In July 2007, Indonesia enforced a mandatory regulation regarding corporate social responsibility, being the first country in the world to do so. Based on the research done by Rosser et al (2008), Indonesia promotes CSR to local small and medium enterprises as a way to reach US and European markets. As compared to Mauritius, where the obligation is to pay 2% of the book profit, Indonesia has imposed a 3-5% obligation to be paid to the government. According to empirical data, the CSR law in Indonesia requires revision and improvement due to misinterpretations thereof, as well as lack of a precise definition. The law created a fierce debate and was heavily challenged as being nothing more than a philanthropy tax that was detrimental for business. Those challenging the law argue that there is no need to regulate CSR as sectorial rules have already been defined and introduced to regulate corporate responsibilities, such as the Environmental Law, Labour Law and Investment Law. The law is very unclear with regards to the governments expectations and has no clear definition of CSR. Unlike France, the law in Indonesia does stipulate penalties for non-compliance. Grafstrà ¶m et al (2008) identified that over the past three decades, the term CSR has been extensively debated by companies and in academic circles across the globe with a common goal: to identify a definition of CSR that all and sundry can collectively agree upon. Kemp et al (2001) observed that companies were hesitant to divulge their actual CSR activities due to the confusion that the term has produced over the past years. It was found that companies are reluctant to publish their activities for fear of reprisal by the media and NGOs should their approach be erroneous. Carroll (1998) found that companies often interpret regulations incorrectly and that laws often create a hindrance rather than improving economic performance. Although Mauritius followed Indonesias stance on mandatory CSR, being only the second country in the world to do so, the differences between the two countries can be easily identified. When the law was introduced, Indonesia faced fierce disapproval and the mandatory requirement is still an on-going debate. It remains mostly a disorganised and misunderstood concept whereas Mauritius appears to have a clearly understanding of what CSR actually entails as opposed to simply being a governmental tax requirement. The introduction of CSR into the Mauritian business environment was done so with a clear understanding on the benefits to business success, reputation and the social impact that such contributions would make on the island. Many are of the opinion that even if CSR was not mandatory in Mauritius, most organisations would still voluntarily contributing to CSR as a good business practice. Like Indonesia, India faced strong criticism when trying to impose mandatory CSR obligations in 2011. Their intention was to make it mandatory for companies to contribute at least 2% of net profits to the government. In July 2011 the Indian government backed down and made CSR contributions voluntary by recasting it as responsible business and issuing a set of guidelines for companies released on July 8th 2011 by the then Union Minister of Corporate Affairs, Mr. Murli Deora. The debate surrounding the mandatory CSR in India continues and the government has requested that companies keep records of their CSR spending in order to disclose to their stakeholders. The Companies Bill 2009 contains many provisions but none more debated than CSR. Salman Khurshid (the current Union minister for law) and Deoras predecessor, initially a mandatory CSR enthusiast, swayed his views that if CSR contributions were publicised, they would create competitiveness between organisations that in turn would encourage contributions. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce Industry (FICCI) suggested tax concessions to companies who reached voluntary targets. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), a rival of the Indian Chambers, felt that mandatory corporate responsibility would be counterproductive, arguing that companies may resort to camouflaging activities to meet such regulations, particularly during recessionary periods and economic downturns. Indias philanthropic community does not support mandatory CSR. According to research, the CEO of the NGO Give India viewed this as a crazy idea. He believed that once CSR is made mandatory, people will find ways and means to get out of it. The rules would be so vague that the reporting would be even vaguer. The CEO and co-founder of the Dasra foundation agreed. He was not in favour of mandatory CSR. He felt that when you make things mandatory, the chance of them not being done would be greater. Philanthropist Rohini Nilekani strongly opposed mandatory CSR believing that it was just outsourcing of governance. She felt that if wanted, the corporations should be taxed and the money put into social programs but that CSR should not be dictated. Corporate giants, TATA and BIRLA, have practiced Corporate Social Responsibility actively, decades before the term CSR became popular in India. Even still, CSR remains misunderstood in the Indian Development Sector. Only a few private and public companies apply CSR and those that do tend to have International shareholding from countries where CSR is considered a business best practice. India attempted to follow in the footsteps of Indonesia and Mauritius by imposing mandatory CSR regulations, the only other country to have actively considered such enforcement. It seems evident from the various researchers and the review of the various approaches and overseas experiences that there is a marked difference in the concept and interpretation of CSR world-wide. Mauritian Context In Mauritius, private organisations are reputed to have an extended culture and tradition of CSR, principally in terms of voluntary social engagement in the communities where they operate and in the society at large. They have participated and contributed over the years to the social and environmental development of the country. Previous survey reports published by the Mauritius Employers Fund (MEF) in 2006 and 2008 indicate that Mauritian businesses in their large majority believe that their role in society extends beyond wealth generation and that pursuing economic interests needs to be balanced with social and environmental responsibility. Indeed, Mauritian enterprises have been engaged in both internal and external CSR, driven mainly by ethical considerations, employee motivation, company reputation and brand positioning. They have also taken into consideration benefits of employees and engaged in external CSR initiatives by contributing and supporting social and community relate d activities. The MEF Surveys have also shown that CSR has followed a rather philanthropic approach, characterised by informal activities, unrelated to business operations and strategy. The recent economic and financial crisis has led to a rise in the level of involvement of governments in the operation of the business sector across the world. There is also an emerging debate in the Corporate Social Responsibility literature with regards to the role of the state in the business relationship. Despite the efforts made by government and International agencies, the global poverty problem is worsening day by day. Thus, the contribution of organisations to Corporate Social Responsibility for the creation of a better society is rising. Corporate Social Responsibility Mandatory in Mauritius According to Y.Ramtohul (Sept 2011), on one hand, in Mauritius, all companies such as those holding a Category 1 Global Business Licence under the Financial Services Act, banks in Mauritius whose income is derived from banking transactions with non-resident or corporation holding a global business license under the financial, IRS companies as mentioned in the investment promotion ( Real Estate Development Scheme) Regulations 2007, as well as any non-resident societe , a trust or a trustee of a unit trust scheme are exempted from mandatory obligation from contributing to the CSR fund. On the other hand , all other companies incorporated and registered at the Registrar of Companies of Mauritius have to contribute 2% of their annual book profits to the CSR fund as provided by the S 50L of the Income Tax of Mauritius ( Act 16 1995). According to the S 50L of the same Act the 2 % that goes to the CSR fund shall be used to either implement an approved programme by a company, an approved programme under the National Empowerment Foundation or to finance an approved NGO. It is the responsibility of the CSR committee to review these programmes or NGOs to be financed as set up under the S 50 L section of the Income Tax in order to have a better control and transparency about the investment made. It is also interesting to understand that if, in respect to a year, the amount paid out to the CSR fund is less than 2% then the difference shall be remitted as an income and will be taxed at the end of the financial year. Statutory Requirements As from July 2009, companies in Mauritius therefore have the legal obligation to contri